Two-pion exchange NN potential from Lorentz-invariant χ\chiEFT

We outline the progress made in the past five years by the S\~ao Paulo group in the development of a two-pion exchange nucleon-nucleon potential within a Lorentz-invariant framework of (baryon) chiral perturbation theory.Comment: 5 pages, Talk given at the 18th International IUPAP Conference on Few-Body Problems in Physics, August 21-26 2006, Santos, Sao Paulo, Brazi

Relativistic O(q4)O(q^4) two-pion exchange nucleon-nucleon potential: configuration space

We have recently performed a relativistic $O(q^4)$ chiral expansion of the two-pion exchange $NN$ potential, and here we explore its configuration space content. Interactions are determined by three families of diagrams, two of which involve just $g_A$ and $f_{\pi}$, whereas the third one depends on empirical coefficients fixed by subthreshold $\pi N$ data. In this sense, the calculation has no adjusted parameters and gives rise to predictions, which are tested against phenomenological potentials. The dynamical structure of the eight leading non-relativistic components of the interaction is investigated and, in most cases, found to be clearly dominated by a well defined class of diagrams. In particular, the central isovector and spin-orbit, spin-spin, and tensor isoscalar terms are almost completely fixed by just $g_A$ and $f_{\pi}$. The convergence of the chiral series in powers of the ratio (pion mass/nucleon mass) is studied as a function of the internucleon distance and, for $r>$ 1 fm, found to be adequate for most components of the potential. An important exception is the dominant central isoscalar term, where the convergence is evident only for $r>$ 2.5 fm. Finally, we compare the spatial behavior of the functions that enter the relativistic and heavy baryon formulations of the interaction and find that, in the region of physical interest, they differ by about 5%.Comment: 27 pages, 33 figure

On soft singularities at three loops and beyond

We report on further progress in understanding soft singularities of massless gauge theory scattering amplitudes. Recently, a set of equations was derived based on Sudakov factorization, constraining the soft anomalous dimension matrix of multi-leg scattering amplitudes to any loop order, and relating it to the cusp anomalous dimension. The minimal solution to these equations was shown to be a sum over color dipoles. Here we explore potential contributions to the soft anomalous dimension that go beyond the sum-over-dipoles formula. Such contributions are constrained by factorization and invariance under rescaling of parton momenta to be functions of conformally invariant cross ratios. Therefore, they must correlate the color and kinematic degrees of freedom of at least four hard partons, corresponding to gluon webs that connect four eikonal lines, which first appear at three loops. We analyze potential contributions, combining all available constraints, including Bose symmetry, the expected degree of transcendentality, and the singularity structure in the limit where two hard partons become collinear. We find that if the kinematic dependence is solely through products of logarithms of cross ratios, then at three loops there is a unique function that is consistent with all available constraints. If polylogarithms are allowed to appear as well, then at least two additional structures are consistent with the available constraints.Comment: v2: revised version published in JHEP (minor corrections in Sec. 4; added discussion in Sec. 5.3; refs. added); v3: minor corrections (eqs. 5.11, 5.12 and 5.29); 38 pages, 3 figure

Space-like (vs. time-like) collinear limits in QCD: is factorization violated?

We consider the singular behaviour of QCD scattering amplitudes in kinematical configurations where two or more momenta of the external partons become collinear. At the tree level, this behaviour is known to be controlled by factorization formulae in which the singular collinear factor is universal (process independent). We show that this strict (process-independent) factorization is not valid at one-loop and higher-loop orders in the case of the collinear limit in space-like regions (e.g., collinear radiation from initial-state partons). We introduce a generalized version of all-order collinear factorization, in which the space-like singular factors retain some dependence on the momentum and colour charge of the non-collinear partons. We present explicit results on one-loop and two-loop amplitudes for both the two-parton and multiparton collinear limits. At the level of square amplitudes and, more generally, cross sections in hadron--hadron collisions, the violation of strict collinear factorization has implications on the non-abelian structure of logarithmically-enhanced terms in perturbative calculations (starting from the next-to-next-to-leading order) and on various factorization issues of mass singularities (starting from the next-to-next-to-next-to-leading order).Comment: 81 pages, 5 figures, typos corrected in the text, few comments added and inclusion of NOTE ADDED on recent development

Janus monolayers of transition metal dichalcogenides.

Structural symmetry-breaking plays a crucial role in determining the electronic band structures of two-dimensional materials. Tremendous efforts have been devoted to breaking the in-plane symmetry of graphene with electric fields on AB-stacked bilayers or stacked van der Waals heterostructures. In contrast, transition metal dichalcogenide monolayers are semiconductors with intrinsic in-plane asymmetry, leading to direct electronic bandgaps, distinctive optical properties and great potential in optoelectronics. Apart from their in-plane inversion asymmetry, an additional degree of freedom allowing spin manipulation can be induced by breaking the out-of-plane mirror symmetry with external electric fields or, as theoretically proposed, with an asymmetric out-of-plane structural configuration. Here, we report a synthetic strategy to grow Janus monolayers of transition metal dichalcogenides breaking the out-of-plane structural symmetry. In particular, based on a MoS2 monolayer, we fully replace the top-layer S with Se atoms. We confirm the Janus structure of MoSSe directly by means of scanning transmission electron microscopy and energy-dependent X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and prove the existence of vertical dipoles by second harmonic generation and piezoresponse force microscopy measurements

Analytic two-loop form factors in N=4 SYM

The original publication is available at www.springerlink.co

Central Nucleon-Nucleon Potential and Chiral Scalar Form Factor

The central two-pion exchange NN potential at large distances is studied in the framework of relativistic chiral symmetry and related directly to the nucleon scalar form factor, which describes the mass density of its pion cloud. This relationship is well supported by phenomenology and allows the dependence of the asymptotic potential on the nucleon mass to be assessed. Results in the heavy baryon limit are about 25% larger than those corresponding to the empirical nucleon mass in the region of physical interest. This indicates that it is very important to keep this mass finite in precise descriptions of the NN system and supports the efficacy of the relativistic chiral framework. One also estimates the contribution of subleading effects and presents a simple discussions of the role of the quark condensate in this problem.Comment: 16 pages, 8 figure

Roy-Steiner equations for pion-nucleon scattering

Starting from hyperbolic dispersion relations, we derive a closed system of Roy-Steiner equations for pion-nucleon scattering that respects analyticity, unitarity, and crossing symmetry. We work out analytically all kernel functions and unitarity relations required for the lowest partial waves. In order to suppress the dependence on the high-energy regime we also consider once- and twice-subtracted versions of the equations, where we identify the subtraction constants with subthreshold parameters. Assuming Mandelstam analyticity we determine the maximal range of validity of these equations. As a first step towards the solution of the full system we cast the equations for the $\pi\pi\to\bar NN$ partial waves into the form of a Muskhelishvili-Omn\`es problem with finite matching point, which we solve numerically in the single-channel approximation. We investigate in detail the role of individual contributions to our solutions and discuss some consequences for the spectral functions of the nucleon electromagnetic form factors.Comment: 106 pages, 18 figures; version published in JHE

Cervical Mucus Properties Stratify Risk for Preterm Birth

Background: Ascending infection from the colonized vagina to the normally sterile intrauterine cavity is a well-documented cause of preterm birth. The primary physical barrier to microbial ascension is the cervical canal, which is filled with a dense and protective mucus plug. Despite its central role in separating the vaginal from the intrauterine tract, the barrier properties of cervical mucus have not been studied in preterm birth. Methods and Findings: To study the protective function of the cervical mucus in preterm birth we performed a pilot case-control study to measure the viscoelasticity and permeability properties of mucus obtained from pregnant women at high-risk and low-risk for preterm birth. Using extensional and shear rheology we found that cervical mucus from women at high-risk for preterm birth was more extensible and forms significantly weaker gels compared to cervical mucus from women at low-risk of preterm birth. Moreover, permeability measurements using fluorescent microbeads show that high-risk mucus was more permeable compared with low-risk mucus. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that critical biophysical barrier properties of cervical mucus in women at high-risk for preterm birth are compromised compared to women with healthy pregnancy. We hypothesize that impaired barrier properties of cervical mucus could contribute to increased rates of intrauterine infection seen in women with preterm birth. We furthermore suggest that a robust association of spinnbarkeit and preterm birth could be an effectively exploited biomarker for preterm birth prediction.Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Charles E. Reed Faculty Initiative FundBurroughs Wellcome Fund (Preterm Birth Research Grant)National Science Foundation (U.S.). Graduate Research Fellowship Progra

Uma modificação do método LP-Newton sob a hipótese de subregularidade métrica do tipo Hölder

Orientador: Prof. Dr. Alberto RamosDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal do Paraná, Setor de Ciências Exatas, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Matemática. Defesa : Curitiba, 31/05/2019Inclui referências: p. 78-79Resumo: O método LP-Newton é um método do tipo Newton que permite determinar um zero de um sistema de equações não lineares e resolve, a cada iteração, um problema de programação linear. Uma das características deste método é o fato de que ele apresenta mesma ordem de convergência local que o método de Newton, mesmo sob hipóteses mais fracas. Pouco depois de este método local haver sido proposto, uma versão globalizada deste método foi apresentada, garantindo o critério de Bouligandestacionaridade para determinada classe de funções. Tendo em vista estes fatos e o objetivo de lidar com hipóteses diferentes, neste trabalho buscamos modificar a versão local do método LP-Newton de modo que, a cada iteração, o novo método ainda consista em resolver um problema de programação linear. Apresentamos um estudo da teoria de convergência local deste método sob hipóteses diferentes das consideradas pelo método LP-Newton, tais como a hipótese de subregularidade métrica do tipo Hölder, garantindo convergência local superlinear. De modo análogo à globalização do método LP-Newton, apresentamos também uma versão globalizada deste novo método utilizando busca linear. Para o algoritmo global, prova-se que o critério de Clarke-estacionaridade é satisfeito, ao considerarmos o problema de minimizar a norma infinito de uma função continuamente diferenciável F : Rn ? Rm. Palavras-chave: Método LP-Newton. Subregularidade métrica do tipo Hölder. Sistema de equações não lineares. Otimização restrita. Conjunto poliédrico.Abstract: The LP-Newton method is a Newton-type method which deals with the problem of find a zero of a system of nonlinear equations and solves, at each iteration, a linear programming problem. One of the features of this method is the fact that it achieves the same local convergence order of Newton's method, even under weaker assumptions, [8]. A global version of this method was presented in [7], which assured the Bouligand-stationarity condition for certain classes of functions. In this work we present both local and global modifications to the LP-Newton method to deal with different assumptions than those considered in the LP-Newton method, as the Hölder metric subregularity hypothesis. The local algorithm of this new method still consists in solving a linear programming problem. A superlinear local convergence order is achieved by the LP-(?, ?) method, for certain class of functions. Likewise the LP-Newton globalization, we also present a globalized version of the LP-(?, ?) method, using line search. For this global algorithm, we prove that the Clarkestationarity condition is achieved, when we consider the problem of minimizing the infinity norm of a continuously differentiable function F : Rn ? Rm. Keywords: LP-Newton method. Hölder metric subregularity. System of nonlinear equations. Constrained optimization. Polyhedral set