Reduced Density Matrix Approach to Phononic Dissipation in Friction

Understanding mechanisms for energy dissipation from nanoparticles in contact with large samples is a central problem in describing friction microscopically. Calculation of the reduced density matrix appears to be the most suitable metho to study such systems that are coupled to a large environment. In this paper the time evolution of the reduced density matrix has been evaluated for an arbitrary system coupled to a heat reservoir. The formalism is then applied to study the vibrational relaxation following the stick-slip motion of a small adsorbate on a surface. The frequency dependence of the relaxation time is also determined.Comment: 16 pages, 3 figures (included), revte

Form factors in B->f0(980) and D->f0(980) transitions from dispersion relations

Within the dispersion relation approach we give the double spectral representation for space-like and time-like B-> f_0(980) and D-> f_0(980) transition form factors in the full q^2 range. The spectral densities, being the input of the dispersion relations, are obtained from a triangle diagram in the relativistic quark model.Comment: Talk given at MESON 2006, Krakow, 9-13 June 200

Social marketing: Immunizing against unethical practice

A simple approach for the catalytic conversion of primary alcohols into their corresponding esters and amides, with evolution of H2 gas using in situ formed ruthenium PNP- and PNN-pincer catalysts, is presented. The evaluation showed conversions for the esterification with turnover numbers as high as 4300, and 4400 for the amidation

Mesoscopic motion of atomic ions in magnetic fields

We introduce a semiclassical model for moving highly excited atomic ions in a magnetic field which allows us to describe the mixing of the Landau orbitals of the center of mass in terms of the electronic excitation and magnetic field. The extent of quantum energy flow in the ion is investigated and a crossover from localization to delocalization with increasing center of mass energy is detected. It turns out that our model of the moving ion in a magnetic field is closely connected to models for transport in disordered finite-size wires.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, subm. to Phys.Rev.A, Rap.Co

Time-dependent perturbation theory for vibrational energy relaxation and dephasing in peptides and proteins

Without invoking the Markov approximation, we derive formulas for vibrational energy relaxation (VER) and dephasing for an anharmonic system oscillator using a time-dependent perturbation theory. The system-bath Hamiltonian contains more than the third order coupling terms since we take a normal mode picture as a zeroth order approximation. When we invoke the Markov approximation, our theory reduces to the Maradudin-Fein formula which is used to describe VER properties of glass and proteins. When the system anharmonicity and the renormalization effect due to the environment vanishes, our formulas reduce to those derived by Mikami and Okazaki invoking the path-integral influence functional method [J. Chem. Phys. 121 (2004) 10052]. We apply our formulas to VER of the amide I mode of a small amino-acide like molecule, N-methylacetamide, in heavy water.Comment: 16 pages, 5 figures, 5 tables, submitted to J. Chem. Phy

Radioactive ion beam development in Berkeley

Two radioactive ion beam projects are under development at the 88" Cyclotron, BEARS (Berkeley Experiment with accelerated radioactive species) and the 14O experiment. The projects are initially focused on the production of 11C and 14O, but it is planned to expand the program to 17F, 18F, 13N and 76Kr. For the BEARS project, the radioactivity is produced in form of either CO2 or N2O in a small medical 10 MeV proton cyclotron. The activity is then transported through a 300 m long He-jet line to the 88" cyclotron building, injected into the AECR-U ion source and accelerated through the 88" cyclotron to energies between 1 to 30 MeV/ nucleon. The 14O experiment is a new experiment at the 88" cyclotron to measure the energy-shape of the beta decay spectrum. For this purpose, a target transfer line and a radioactive ion beam test stand has been constructed. The radioactivity is produced in form of CO in a hot carbon target with a 20 MeV 3He from the 88" Cyclotron. The activity diffuses through an 8m long stainless steel line into the 6 GHz ECR ion source IRIS (Ion source for Radioactive ISotopes). It is then ionized and accelerated to 30 keV to mass separate the 14O and then implanted into a carbon foil. In order to optimize the on-line efficiencies of the LBNL ECR ion sources, off-line ionization efficiency studies are carried out for various gases. A summary of the ionization efficiency measurements is presented

Spontaneous edge currents for the Dirac equation in two space dimensions

Spontaneous edge currents are known to occur in systems of two space dimensions in a strong magnetic field. The latter creates chirality and determines the direction of the currents. Here we show that an analogous effect occurs in a field-free situation when time reversal symmetry is broken by the mass term of the Dirac equation in two space dimensions. On a half plane, one sees explicitly that the strength of the edge current is proportional to the difference between the chemical potentials at the edge and in the bulk, so that the effect is analogous to the Hall effect, but with an internal potential. The edge conductivity differs from the bulk (Hall) conductivity on the whole plane. This results from the dependence of the edge conductivity on the choice of a selfadjoint extension of the Dirac Hamiltonian. The invariance of the edge conductivity with respect to small perturbations is studied in this example by topological techniques.Comment: 10 pages; final versio

Massive Dirac fermions and the zero field quantum Hall effect

Through an explicit calculation for a Lagrangian in quantum electrodynamics in (2+1)-space--time dimensions (QED$_3$), making use of the relativistic Kubo formula, we demonstrate that the filling factor accompanying the quantized electrical conductivity for massive Dirac fermions of a single species in two spatial dimensions is a half (in natural units) when time reversal and parity symmetries of the Lagrangian are explicitly broken by the fermion mass term. We then discuss the most general form of the QED$_3$ Lagrangian, both for irreducible and reducible representations of the Dirac matrices in the plane, with emphasis on the appearance of a Chern-Simons term. We also identify the value of the filling factor with a zero field quantum Hall effect (QHE).Comment: 15 pages. Accepted in Jour. Phys.