14 research outputs found
Condensation Transitions in a One-Dimensional Zero-Range Process with a Single Defect Site
Condensation occurs in nonequilibrium steady states when a finite fraction of
particles in the system occupies a single lattice site. We study condensation
transitions in a one-dimensional zero-range process with a single defect site.
The system is analysed in the grand canonical and canonical ensembles and the
two are contrasted. Two distinct condensation mechanisms are found in the grand
canonical ensemble. Discrepancies between the infinite and large but finite
systems' particle current versus particle density diagrams are investigated and
an explanation for how the finite current goes above a maximum value predicted
for infinite systems is found in the canonical ensemble.Comment: 18 pages, 4 figures, revtex
Kinetics and scaling in ballistic annihilation
We study the simplest irreversible ballistically-controlled reaction, whereby
particles having an initial continuous velocity distribution annihilate upon
colliding. In the framework of the Boltzmann equation, expressions for the
exponents characterizing the density and typical velocity decay are explicitly
worked out in arbitrary dimension. These predictions are in excellent agreement
with the complementary results of extensive Monte Carlo and Molecular Dynamics
simulations. We finally discuss the definition of universality classes indexed
by a continuous parameter for this far from equilibrium dynamics with no
conservation laws
Stochastic Ballistic Annihilation and Coalescence
We study a class of stochastic ballistic annihilation and coalescence models
with a binary velocity distribution in one dimension. We obtain an exact
solution for the density which reveals a universal phase diagram for the
asymptotic density decay. By universal we mean that all models in the class are
described by a single phase diagram spanned by two reduced parameters. The
phase diagram reveals four regimes, two of which contain the previously studied
cases of ballistic annihilation. The two new phases are a direct consequence of
the stochasticity. The solution is obtained through a matrix product approach
and builds on properties of a q-deformed harmonic oscillator algebra.Comment: 4 pages RevTeX, 3 figures; revised version with some corrections,
additional discussion and in RevTeX forma
Ballistic Annihilation
Ballistic annihilation with continuous initial velocity distributions is
investigated in the framework of Boltzmann equation. The particle density and
the rms velocity decay as and , with the
exponents depending on the initial velocity distribution and the spatial
dimension. For instance, in one dimension for the uniform initial velocity
distribution we find . We also solve the Boltzmann equation
for Maxwell particles and very hard particles in arbitrary spatial dimension.
These solvable cases provide bounds for the decay exponents of the hard sphere
gas.Comment: 4 RevTeX pages and 1 Eps figure; submitted to Phys. Rev. Let
Casimir Forces at Tricritical Points: Theory and Possible Experiments
Using field-theoretical methods and exploiting conformal invariance, we study
Casimir forces at tricritical points exerted by long-range fluctuations of the
order-parameter field. Special attention is paid to the situation where the
symmetry is broken by the boundary conditions (extraordinary transition).
Besides the parallel-plate configuration, we also discuss the geometries of two
separate spheres and a single sphere near a planar wall, which may serve as a
model for colloidal particles immersed in a fluid. In the concrete case of
ternary mixtures a quantitative comparison with critical Casimir and van der
Waals forces shows that, especially with symmetry-breaking boundaries, the
tricritical Casimir force is considerably stronger than the critical one and
dominates also the competing van der Waals force.Comment: 18 pages, Latex, 3 postscript figures, uses Elsevier style file
Boundary critical behavior at m-axial Lifshitz points for a boundary plane parallel to the modulation axes
The critical behavior of semi-infinite -dimensional systems with
-component order parameter and short-range interactions is
investigated at an -axial bulk Lifshitz point whose wave-vector instability
is isotropic in an -dimensional subspace of . The associated
modulation axes are presumed to be parallel to the surface, where . An appropriate semi-infinite model representing the
corresponding universality classes of surface critical behavior is introduced.
It is shown that the usual O(n) symmetric boundary term
of the Hamiltonian must be supplemented by one of the form involving a
dimensionless (renormalized) coupling constant . The implied boundary
conditions are given, and the general form of the field-theoretic
renormalization of the model below the upper critical dimension
is clarified. Fixed points describing the ordinary, special,
and extraordinary transitions are identified and shown to be located at a
nontrivial value if . The surface
critical exponents of the ordinary transition are determined to second order in
. Extrapolations of these expansions yield values of these
exponents for in good agreement with recent Monte Carlo results for the
case of a uniaxial () Lifshitz point. The scaling dimension of the surface
energy density is shown to be given exactly by , where
is the anisotropy exponent.Comment: revtex4, 31 pages with eps-files for figures, uses texdraw to
generate some graphs; to appear in PRB; v2: some references and additional
remarks added, labeling in figure 1 and some typos correcte
Ionization via Chaos Assisted Tunneling
A simple example of quantum transport in a classically chaotic system is
studied. It consists in a single state lying on a regular island (a stable
primary resonance island) which may tunnel into a chaotic sea and further
escape to infinity via chaotic diffusion. The specific system is realistic : it
is the hydrogen atom exposed to either linearly or circularly polarized
microwaves. We show that the combination of tunneling followed by chaotic
diffusion leads to peculiar statistical fluctuation properties of the energy
and the ionization rate, especially to enhanced fluctuations compared to the
purely chaotic case. An appropriate random matrix model, whose predictions are
analytically derived, describes accurately these statistical properties.Comment: 30 pages, 11 figures, RevTeX and postscript, Physical Review E in
pres
Traffic and Related Self-Driven Many-Particle Systems
Since the subject of traffic dynamics has captured the interest of
physicists, many astonishing effects have been revealed and explained. Some of
the questions now understood are the following: Why are vehicles sometimes
stopped by so-called ``phantom traffic jams'', although they all like to drive
fast? What are the mechanisms behind stop-and-go traffic? Why are there several
different kinds of congestion, and how are they related? Why do most traffic
jams occur considerably before the road capacity is reached? Can a temporary
reduction of the traffic volume cause a lasting traffic jam? Under which
conditions can speed limits speed up traffic? Why do pedestrians moving in
opposite directions normally organize in lanes, while similar systems are
``freezing by heating''? Why do self-organizing systems tend to reach an
optimal state? Why do panicking pedestrians produce dangerous deadlocks? All
these questions have been answered by applying and extending methods from
statistical physics and non-linear dynamics to self-driven many-particle
systems. This review article on traffic introduces (i) empirically data, facts,
and observations, (ii) the main approaches to pedestrian, highway, and city
traffic, (iii) microscopic (particle-based), mesoscopic (gas-kinetic), and
macroscopic (fluid-dynamic) models. Attention is also paid to the formulation
of a micro-macro link, to aspects of universality, and to other unifying
concepts like a general modelling framework for self-driven many-particle
systems, including spin systems. Subjects such as the optimization of traffic
flows and relations to biological or socio-economic systems such as bacterial
colonies, flocks of birds, panics, and stock market dynamics are discussed as
well.Comment: A shortened version of this article will appear in Reviews of Modern
Physics, an extended one as a book. The 63 figures were omitted because of
storage capacity. For related work see http://www.helbing.org
Semiclassical Spectra from Periodic-Orbit Clusters in a Mixed Phase Space.
We calculate complete quasienergy spectra (rather than partial information thereon) from classical periodic orbits for the kicked top, throughout the transition from integrability to well-developed chaos. The standard error incurred for the quasienergies is a small percentage of their mean spacing, even though the effective Planck constant is not pushed to small values. The price paid is the inclusion of collective contributions of clusters of periodic orbits near bifurcations into Gutzwiller's trace formula