A semi-relativistic approach to the circular restricted three body problem and a numerical experiment around the 3:2 resonance

A Hamiltonian that approaches the study of the three-body problem in general relativity is obtained. We use it to study the relativistic version of the circular restricted three-body problem in which the first body is the heaviest and the third body is a test-particle. We focus on the orbits around the 3:2 resonance. We show that, in spite of the notable difference between the relativistic and Newtonian orbits, most of the resonant region is preserved. Nevertheless, differently from the Newtonian case, the frequencies between the second and the third body are no longer commensurable.Comment: 6 eps figures, accepted to Class. Quant. Gra

The relativistic glider

We present a purely relativistic effect according to which asymmetric oscillations of a quasi-rigid body slow down or accelerate its fall in a gravitational background.Comment: 3 pages, 2 figures. To appear in Phys Rev

Non-perturbative \lambda\Phi^4 in D=1+1: an example of the constructive quantum field theory approach in a schematic way

During the '70, several relativistic quantum field theory models in $D=1+1$ and also in $D=2+1$ have been constructed in a non-perturbative way. That was done in the so-called {\it constructive quantum field theory} approach, whose main results have been obtained by a clever use of Euclidean functional methods. Although in the construction of a single model there are several technical steps, some of them involving long proofs, the constructive quantum field theory approach contains conceptual insights about relativistic quantum field theory that deserved to be known and which are accessible without entering in technical details. The purpose of this note is to illustrate such insights by providing an oversimplified schematic exposition of the simple case of $\lambda\Phi^4$ (with $m>0$) in $D=1+1$. Because of the absence of ultraviolet divergences in its perturbative version, this simple example -although does not capture all the difficulties in the constructive quantum field theory approach- allows to stress those difficulties inherent to the non-perturbative definition. We have made an effort in order to avoid several of the long technical intermediate steps without missing the main ideas and making contact with the usual language of the perturbative approach.Comment: 63 pages. Typos correcte

Metachronal wave and hydrodynamic interaction for deterministic switching rowers

We employ a model system, called rowers, as a generic physical framework to define the problem of the coordinated motion of cilia (the metachronal wave) as a far from equilibrium process. Rowers are active (two-state) oscillators interacting solely through forces of hydrodynamic origin. In this work, we consider the case of fully deterministic dynamics, find analytical solutions of the equation of motion in the long wavelength (continuum) limit, and investigate numerically the short wavelength limit. We prove the existence of metachronal waves below a characteristic wavelength. Such waves are unstable and become stable only if the sign of the coupling is reversed. We also find that with normal hydrodynamic interaction the metachronal pattern has the form of stable trains of traveling wave packets sustained by the onset of anti-coordinated beating of consecutive rowers.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figure

Very low shot noise in carbon nanotubes

We have performed noise measurements on suspended ropes of single wall carbon nanotubes (SWNT) between 1 and 300 K for different values of dc current through the ropes. We find that the shot noise is suppressed by more than a factor 100 compared to the full shot noise 2eI. We have also measured an individual SWNT and found a level of noise which is smaller than the minimum expected. Another finding is the very low level of 1/f noise, which is significantly lower than previous observations. We propose two possible interpretations for this strong shot noise reduction: i) Transport within a rope takes place through a few nearly ballistic tubes within a rope and possibly involves non integer effective charges. ii) A substantial fraction of the tubes conduct with a strong reduction of effective charge (by more than a factor 50).Comment: Submitted to Eur. Phys. J. B (Jan. 2002) Higher resolution pictures are posted on http://www.lps.u-psud.fr/Collectif/gr_07/publications.htm

Fast Witness Extraction Using a Decision Oracle

The gist of many (NP-)hard combinatorial problems is to decide whether a universe of $n$ elements contains a witness consisting of $k$ elements that match some prescribed pattern. For some of these problems there are known advanced algebra-based FPT algorithms which solve the decision problem but do not return the witness. We investigate techniques for turning such a YES/NO-decision oracle into an algorithm for extracting a single witness, with an objective to obtain practical scalability for large values of $n$. By relying on techniques from combinatorial group testing, we demonstrate that a witness may be extracted with $O(k\log n)$ queries to either a deterministic or a randomized set inclusion oracle with one-sided probability of error. Furthermore, we demonstrate through implementation and experiments that the algebra-based FPT algorithms are practical, in particular in the setting of the $k$-path problem. Also discussed are engineering issues such as optimizing finite field arithmetic.Comment: Journal version, 16 pages. Extended abstract presented at ESA'1