Casimir energy density in closed hyperbolic universes

The original Casimir effect results from the difference in the vacuum energies of the electromagnetic field, between that in a region of space with boundary conditions and that in the same region without boundary conditions. In this paper we develop the theory of a similar situation, involving a scalar field in spacetimes with compact spatial sections of negative spatial curvature.Comment: 10 pages. Contribution to the "Fifth Alexander Friedmann International Seminar on Gravitation and Cosmology," Joao Pessoa, Brazil, 2002. Revised version, with altered Abstract and one new referenc

A role for doctors in assisted dying? An analysis of legal regulations and medical professional positions in six European countries

An extensive debate about assisted suicide and euthanasia has been taking place in westernized countries during the last twenty years. Traditionally, the medical profession has maintained a clear distance from euthanasia and assisted suicide, but this distance can no longer be justified by simply referring to the law. This paper analyses the legal and, in particular, medical professional positions with respect to the doctor’s role in assisted dying in certain Western European countries (Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, United Kingdom) and discusses their implications for doctors

Weak hyperon decays in heavy baryon chiral perturbation theory: Renormalization and applications

The complete renormalization of the weak Lagrangian to chiral order q^2 in heavy baryon chiral perturbation theory is performed using heat kernel techniques. The results are compared with divergences appearing in the calculation of Feynman graphs for the nonleptonic hyperon decay Lambda -> p pi^- and an estimate for the size of the counterterm contributions to the s-wave amplitudes in nonleptonic hyperon decays is given.Comment: 21 pages, 2 figure

Nanoscale tunnel field effect transistor based on a complex oxide lateral heterostructure

We demonstrate a tunnel field effect transistor based on a lateral heterostructure patterned from an $\mathrm{LaAlO_3/SrTiO_3}$ electron gas. Charge is injected by tunneling from the $\mathrm{LaAlO_3}$/$\mathrm{SrTiO_3}$ contacts and the current through a narrow channel of insulating $\mathrm{SrTiO_3}$ is controlled via an electrostatic side gate. Drain-source I/V-curves have been measured at low and elevated temperatures. The transistor shows strong electric-field and temperature-dependent behaviour with a steep sub-threshold slope %of up to as small as $10\:\mathrm{mV/decade}$ and a transconductance as high as $g_m\approx 22 \: \mathrm{\mu A/V}$. A fully consistent transport model for the drain-source tunneling reproduces the measured steep sub-threshold slope.Comment: 20 pages, 6 figures, Supplementary material: 4 pages, 2 figure

Lyapunov Spectra in SU(2) Lattice Gauge Theory

We develop a method for calculating the Lyapunov characteristic exponents of lattice gauge theories. The complete Lyapunov spectrum of SU(2) gauge theory is obtained and Kolmogorov-Sinai entropy is calculated. Rapid convergence with lattice size is found.Comment: 7pp, DUKE-TH-93-5

Accurate simulation estimates of cloud points of polydisperse fluids

We describe two distinct approaches to obtaining cloud point densities and coexistence properties of polydisperse fluid mixtures by Monte Carlo simulation within the grand canonical ensemble. The first method determines the chemical potential distribution $\mu(\sigma)$ (with $\sigma$ the polydisperse attribute) under the constraint that the ensemble average of the particle density distribution $\rho(\sigma)$ matches a prescribed parent form. Within the region of phase coexistence (delineated by the cloud curve) this leads to a distribution of the fluctuating overall particle density n, p(n), that necessarily has unequal peak weights in order to satisfy a generalized lever rule. A theoretical analysis shows that as a consequence, finite-size corrections to estimates of coexistence properties are power laws in the system size. The second method assigns $\mu(\sigma)$ such that an equal peak weight criterion is satisfied for p(n)$for all points within the coexistence region. However, since equal volumes of the coexisting phases cannot satisfy the lever rule for the prescribed parent, their relative contributions must be weighted appropriately when determining$\mu(\sigma)$. We show how to ascertain the requisite weight factor operationally. A theoretical analysis of the second method suggests that it leads to finite-size corrections to estimates of coexistence properties which are {\em exponentially small} in the system size. The scaling predictions for both methods are tested via Monte Carlo simulations of a novel polydisperse lattice gas model near its cloud curve, the results showing excellent quantitative agreement with the theory.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figure