12,358 research outputs found
Quantum Gauge Equivalence in QED
We discuss gauge transformations in QED coupled to a charged spinor field,
and examine whether we can gauge-transform the entire formulation of the theory
from one gauge to another, so that not only the gauge and spinor fields, but
also the forms of the operator-valued Hamiltonians are transformed. The
discussion includes the covariant gauge, in which the gauge condition and
Gauss's law are not primary constraints on operator-valued quantities; it also
includes the Coulomb gauge, and the spatial axial gauge, in which the
constraints are imposed on operator-valued fields by applying the
Dirac-Bergmann procedure. We show how to transform the covariant, Coulomb and
spatial axial gauges to what we call
``common form,'' in which all particle excitation modes have identical
properties. We also show that, once that common form has been reached, QED in
different gauges has a common time-evolution operator that defines
time-translation for states that represent systems of electrons and photons.
By combining gauge transformations with changes of representation from
standard to common form, the entire apparatus of a gauge theory can be
transformed from one gauge to another.Comment: Contribution for a special issue of Foundations of Physics honoring
Fritz Rohrlich; edited by Larry P. Horwitz, Tel-Aviv University, and Alwyn
van der Merwe, University of Denver (Plenum Publishing, New York); 40 pages,
REVTEX, Preprint UCONN-93-3, 1 figure available upon request from author
Analysis of low-temperature direct-condensing vapor-chamber fin and conducting fin radiators
Analysis of flat, direct-condensing finned-tube space radiator with vapor chamber, and central fin tube geometries for low temperature Rankine space power electric generating syste
Precision Measurements of Stretching and Compression in Fluid Mixing
The mixing of an impurity into a flowing fluid is an important process in
many areas of science, including geophysical processes, chemical reactors, and
microfluidic devices. In some cases, for example periodic flows, the concepts
of nonlinear dynamics provide a deep theoretical basis for understanding
mixing. Unfortunately, the building blocks of this theory, i.e. the fixed
points and invariant manifolds of the associated Poincare map, have remained
inaccessible to direct experimental study, thus limiting the insight that could
be obtained. Using precision measurements of tracer particle trajectories in a
two-dimensional fluid flow producing chaotic mixing, we directly measure the
time-dependent stretching and compression fields. These quantities, previously
available only numerically, attain local maxima along lines coinciding with the
stable and unstable manifolds, thus revealing the dynamical structures that
control mixing. Contours or level sets of a passive impurity field are found to
be aligned parallel to the lines of large compression (unstable manifolds) at
each instant. This connection appears to persist as the onset of turbulence is
approached.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
Parabolic resonances and instabilities in near-integrable two degrees of freedom Hamiltonian flows
When an integrable two-degrees-of-freedom Hamiltonian system possessing a
circle of parabolic fixed points is perturbed, a parabolic resonance occurs. It
is proved that its occurrence is generic for one parameter families
(co-dimension one phenomenon) of near-integrable, t.d.o. systems. Numerical
experiments indicate that the motion near a parabolic resonance exhibits new
type of chaotic behavior which includes instabilities in some directions and
long trapping times in others. Moreover, in a degenerate case, near a {\it flat
parabolic resonance}, large scale instabilities appear. A model arising from an
atmospherical study is shown to exhibit flat parabolic resonance. This supplies
a simple mechanism for the transport of particles with {\it small} (i.e.
atmospherically relevant) initial velocities from the vicinity of the equator
to high latitudes. A modification of the model which allows the development of
atmospherical jets unfolds the degeneracy, yet traces of the flat instabilities
are clearly observed
Persistent Transport Barrier on the West Florida Shelf
Analysis of drifter trajectories in the Gulf of Mexico has revealed the
existence of a region on the southern portion of the West Florida Shelf (WFS)
that is not visited by drifters that are released outside of the region. This
so-called ``forbidden zone'' (FZ) suggests the existence of a persistent
cross-shelf transport barrier on the southern portion of the WFS. In this
letter a year-long record of surface currents produced by a Hybrid-Coordinate
Ocean Model simulation of the WFS is used to identify Lagrangian coherent
structures (LCSs), which reveal the presence of a robust and persistent
cross-shelf transport barrier in approximately the same location as the
boundary of the FZ. The location of the cross-shelf transport barrier undergoes
a seasonal oscillation, being closer to the coast in the summer than in the
winter. A month-long record of surface currents inferred from high-frequency
(HF) radar measurements in a roughly 60 km 80 km region on the WFS off
Tampa Bay is also used to identify LCSs, which reveal the presence of robust
transient transport barriers. While the HF-radar-derived transport barriers
cannot be unambiguously linked to the boundary of the FZ, this analysis does
demonstrate the feasibility of monitoring transport barriers on the WFS using a
HF-radar-based measurement system. The implications of a persistent cross-shelf
transport barrier on the WFS for the development of harmful algal blooms on the
shoreward side of the barrier are considered.Comment: Submitted to Geophysical Research Letter
Dissipative inertial transport patterns near coherent Lagrangian eddies in the ocean
Recent developments in dynamical systems theory have revealed long-lived and
coherent Lagrangian (i.e., material) eddies in incompressible,
satellite-derived surface ocean velocity fields. Paradoxically, observed
drifting buoys and floating matter tend to create dissipative-looking patterns
near oceanic eddies, which appear to be inconsistent with the conservative
fluid particle patterns created by coherent Lagrangian eddies. Here we show
that inclusion of inertial effects (i.e., those produced by the buoyancy and
size finiteness of an object) in a rotating two-dimensional incompressible flow
context resolves this paradox. Specifically, we obtain that anticyclonic
coherent Lagrangian eddies attract (repel) negatively (positively) buoyant
finite-size particles, while cyclonic coherent Lagrangian eddies attract
(repel) positively (negatively) buoyant finite-size particles. We show how
these results explain dissipative-looking satellite-tracked surface drifter and
subsurface float trajectories, as well as satellite-derived \emph{Sargassum}
distributions.Comment: Submitted to \emph{Chaos} Focus Issue on Objective detection of
Lagrangian Coherent Structures. Revised 23-Feb-1
Specifications and programs for computer software validation
Three software products developed during the study are reported and include: (1) FORTRAN Automatic Code Evaluation System, (2) the Specification Language System, and (3) the Array Index Validation System
Stressed detector arrays for airborne astronomy
The development of stressed Ge:Ga detector arrays for far-infrared astronomy from the Kuiper Airborne Observatory (KAO) is discussed. Researchers successfully constructed and used a three channel detector array on five flights from the KAO, and have conducted laboratory tests of a two-dimensional, 25 elements (5x5) detector array. Each element of the three element array performs as well as the researchers' best single channel detector, as do the tested elements of the 25 channel system. Some of the exciting new science possible with far-infrared detector arrays is also discussed
Hammerhead, an ultrahigh resolution ePix camera for wavelength-dispersive spectrometers
Wavelength-dispersive spectrometers (WDS) are often used in synchrotron and
FEL applications where high energy resolution (in the order of eV) is
important. Increasing WDS energy resolution requires increasing spatial
resolution of the detectors in the dispersion direction. The common approaches
with strip detectors or small pixel detectors are not ideal. We present a novel
approach, with a sensor using rectangular pixels with a high aspect ratio
(between strips and pixels, further called "strixels"), and strixel
redistribution to match the square pixel arrays of typical ASICs while avoiding
the considerable effort of redesigning ASICs. This results in a sensor area of
17.4 mm x 77 mm, with a fine pitch of 25 m in the horizontal direction
resulting in 3072 columns and 176 rows. The sensors use ePix100 readout ASICs,
leveraging their low noise (43 e, or 180 eV rms). We present results
obtained with a Hammerhead ePix100 camera, showing that the small pitch (25
m) in the dispersion direction maximizes performance for both high and low
photon occupancies, resulting in optimal WDS energy resolution. The low noise
level at high photon occupancy allows precise photon counting, while at low
occupancy, both the energy and the subpixel position can be reconstructed for
every photon, allowing an ultrahigh resolution (in the order of 1 m) in
the dispersion direction and rejection of scattered beam and harmonics. Using
strixel sensors with redistribution and flip-chip bonding to standard ePix
readout ASICs results in ultrahigh position resolution (1 m) and low
noise in WDS applications, leveraging the advantages of hybrid pixel detectors
(high production yield, good availability, relatively inexpensive) while
minimizing development complexity through sharing the ASIC, hardware, software
and DAQ development with existing versions of ePix cameras.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figure
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