7,252 research outputs found
Macroscopic equations for the adiabatic piston
A simplified version of a classical problem in thermodynamics -- the
adiabatic piston -- is discussed in the framework of kinetic theory. We
consider the limit of gases whose relaxation time is extremely fast so that the
gases contained on the left and right chambers of the piston are always in
equilibrium (that is the molecules are uniformly distributed and their
velocities obey the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution) after any collision with
the piston. Then by using kinetic theory we derive the collision statistics
from which we obtain a set of ordinary differential equations for the evolution
of the macroscopic observables (namely the piston average velocity and
position, the velocity variance and the temperatures of the two compartments).
The dynamics of these equations is compared with simulations of an ideal gas
and a microscopic model of gas settled to verify the assumptions used in the
derivation. We show that the equations predict an evolution for the macroscopic
variables which catches the basic features of the problem. The results here
presented recover those derived, using a different approach, by Gruber, Pache
and Lesne in J. Stat. Phys. 108, 669 (2002) and 112, 1177 (2003).Comment: 13 pages, 7 figures (revTeX4) The paper has been completely rewritten
with new derivation and results, supplementary information can be found at
http://denali.phys.uniroma1.it/~cencini/Papers/cppv07_supplements.pd
One hundred years of Alfred Landé's g-factor
Prompted by the centenary of Alfred Landé's g-factor, we reconstruct Landé's path to his discovery of half-integer angular momentum quantum numbers and of vector coupling of atomic angular momenta—both encapsulated in the g-factor—as well as point to reverberations of Landé's breakthroughs in the work of other pioneers of quantum physics
Strain bursts in plastically deforming Molybdenum micro- and nanopillars
Plastic deformation of micron and sub-micron scale specimens is characterized
by intermittent sequences of large strain bursts (dislocation avalanches) which
are separated by regions of near-elastic loading. In the present investigation
we perform a statistical characterization of strain bursts observed in
stress-controlled compressive deformation of monocrystalline Molybdenum
micropillars. We characterize the bursts in terms of the associated elongation
increments and peak deformation rates, and demonstrate that these quantities
follow power-law distributions that do not depend on specimen orientation or
stress rate. We also investigate the statistics of stress increments in between
the bursts, which are found to be Weibull distributed and exhibit a
characteristic size effect. We discuss our findings in view of observations of
deformation bursts in other materials, such as face-centered cubic and
hexagonal metals.Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures, submitted to Phil Ma
On the structure of the body of states with positive partial transpose
We show that the convex set of separable mixed states of the 2 x 2 system is
a body of constant height. This fact is used to prove that the probability to
find a random state to be separable equals 2 times the probability to find a
random boundary state to be separable, provided the random states are generated
uniformly with respect to the Hilbert-Schmidt (Euclidean) distance. An
analogous property holds for the set of positive-partial-transpose states for
an arbitrary bipartite system.Comment: 10 pages, 1 figure; ver. 2 - minor changes, new proof of lemma
On the Second Law of thermodynamics and the piston problem
The piston problem is investigated in the case where the length of the
cylinder is infinite (on both sides) and the ratio is a very small
parameter, where is the mass of one particle of the gaz and is the mass
of the piston. Introducing initial conditions such that the stochastic motion
of the piston remains in the average at the origin (no drift), it is shown that
the time evolution of the fluids, analytically derived from Liouville equation,
agrees with the Second Law of thermodynamics.
We thus have a non equilibrium microscopical model whose evolution can be
explicitly shown to obey the two laws of thermodynamics.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figures submitted to Journal of Statistical Physics
(2003
The Activity of the Serotonin Receptor 2C is Regulated by Alternative Splicing
The central nervous system-specific serotonin receptor 2C (5HT2C) controls key physiological functions, such as food intake, anxiety, and motoneuron activity. Its deregulation is involved in depression, suicidal behavior, and spasticity, making it the target for antipsychotic drugs, appetite controlling substances, and possibly anti-spasm agents. Through alternative pre-mRNA splicing and RNA editing, the 5HT2C gene generates at least 33 mRNA isoforms encoding 25 proteins. The 5HT2C is a G-protein coupled receptor that signals through phospholipase C, influencing the expression of immediate/early genes like c-fos. Most 5HT2C isoforms show constitutive activity, i.e., signal without ligand binding. The constitutive activity of 5HT2C is decreased by pre-mRNA editing as well as alternative pre-mRNA splicing, which generates a truncated isoform that switches off 5HT2C receptor activity through heterodimerization; showing that RNA processing regulates the constitutive activity of the 5HT2C system. RNA processing events influencing the constitutive activity target exon Vb that forms a stable double stranded RNA structure with its downstream intron. This structure can be targeted by small molecules and oligonucleotides that change exon Vb alternative splicing and influence 5HT2C signaling in mouse models, leading to a reduction in food intake. Thus, the 5HT2C system is a candidate for RNA therapy in multiple models of CNS disorders
Phase Rotation, Cooling And Acceleration Of Muon Beams: A Comparison Of Different Approaches
Experimental and theoretical activities are underway at CERN with the aim of
examining the feasibility of a very-high-flux neutrino source. In the present
scheme, a high-power proton beam (some 4 MW) bombards a target where pions are
produced. The pions are collected and decay to muons under controlled optical
condition. The muons are cooled and accelerated to a final energy of 50 GeV
before being injected into a decay ring where they decay under well-defined
conditions of energy and emittance.
We present the most challenging parts of the whole scenario, the muon
capture, the ionisation-cooling and the first stage of the muon acceleration.
Different schemes, their performance and the technical challenges are compared.Comment: LINAC 2000 CONFERENCE, paper ID No. THC1
Solid-Solid Interfacial Contact of Tubing Walls Drives Therapeutic Protein Aggregation During Peristaltic Pumping
Peristaltic pumping during bioprocessing can cause therapeutic protein loss and aggregation during use. Due to the complexity of this apparatus, root-cause mechanisms behind protein loss have been long sought. We have developed new methodologies isolating various peristaltic pump mechanisms to determine their effect on monomer loss. Closed-loops of peristaltic tubing were used to investigate the effects of peristaltic pump parameters on temperature and monomer loss, whilst two mechanism isolation methodologies are used to isolate occlusion and lateral expansion-relaxation of peristaltic tubing. Heat generated during peristaltic pumping can cause heat-induced monomer loss and the extent of heat gain is dependent on pump speed and tubing type. Peristaltic pump speed was inversely related to the rate of monomer loss whereby reducing speed 2.0-fold increased loss rates by 2.0- to 5.0-fold. Occlusion is a parameter that describes the amount of tubing compression during pumping. Varying this to start the contacting of inner tubing walls is a threshold that caused an immediate 20-30% additional monomer loss and turbidity increase. During occlusion, expansion-relaxation of solid-liquid interfaces and solid-solid interface contact of tubing walls can occur simultaneously. Using two mechanisms isolation methods, the latter mechanism was found to be most destructive and a function of solid-solid contact area, where increasing the contact area 2.0-fold increased monomer loss by 1.6-fold. We establish that a form of solid-solid contact mechanism whereby the contact solid interfaces disrupt adsorbed protein films is the root-cause behind monomer loss and protein aggregation during peristaltic pumping
The Use of Gamma-ray Bursts as Direction and Time Markers in SETI Strategies
When transmitting a signal over a large distance it is more efficient to send
a brief beamed signal than a continuous omni-directional transmission but this
requires that the receiver knows where and when to look for the transmission.
For SETI, the use of various natural phenomena has previously been suggested to
achieve the desired synchronization. Here it is proposed that gamma-ray bursts
may well the best ``synchronizers'' of all currently known phenomena due to
their large intrinsic luminosities, high occurrence rate, isotropic sky
distribution, large distance from the Galaxy, short duration, and easy
detectability. For targeted searches, precise positions for gamma-ray bursts
are required together with precise distance measurements to a target star. The
required burst position determinations are now starting to be obtained, aided
in large part by the discovery of optical afterglows. Good distance
measurements are currently available from Hipparcos and even better
measurements should be provided by spacecraft now being developed. For
non-targeted searches, positional accuracies simply better than a detector's
field of view may suffice but the time delay between the detection of a
gamma-ray burst and the reception of the transmitted signal cannot be predicted
in an obvious way.Comment: 8 pages, accepted for publication in PAS
Finite-Dimensional Calculus
We discuss topics related to finite-dimensional calculus in the context of
finite-dimensional quantum mechanics. The truncated Heisenberg-Weyl algebra is
called a TAA algebra after Tekin, Aydin, and Arik who formulated it in terms of
orthofermions. It is shown how to use a matrix approach to implement analytic
representations of the Heisenberg-Weyl algebra in univariate and multivariate
settings. We provide examples for the univariate case. Krawtchouk polynomials
are presented in detail, including a review of Krawtchouk polynomials that
illustrates some curious properties of the Heisenberg-Weyl algebra, as well as
presenting an approach to computing Krawtchouk expansions. From a mathematical
perspective, we are providing indications as to how to implement in finite
terms Rota's "finite operator calculus".Comment: 26 pages. Added material on Krawtchouk polynomials. Additional
references include
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