416 research outputs found
Particle Aggregation in a turbulent Keplerian flow
In the problem of planetary formation one seeks a mechanism to gather small
solid particles together into larger accumulations of solid matter. Here we
describe a scenario in which turbulence mediates this process by aggregating
particles into anticyclonic regions. If, as our simulations suggest,
anticyclonic vortices form as long-lived coherent structures, the process
becomes more powerful because such vortices trap particles effectively. Even if
the turbulence is decaying, following the upheaval that formed the disk, there
is enough time to make the dust distribution quite lumpy.Comment: 16 pages, 9 figure
Examples of the Zeroth Theorem of the History of Physics
The zeroth theorem of the history of science (enunciated by E. P. Fischer)
and widely known in the mathematics community as Arnol'd's Principle (decreed
by M. V. Berry), states that a discovery (rule, regularity, insight) named
after someone (often) did not originate with that person. I present five
examples from physics: the Lorentz condition defining the Lorentz gauge of the
electromagnetic potentials; the Dirac delta function (x); the Schumann
resonances of the earth-ionosphere cavity; the Weizsacker-Williams method of
virtual quanta; the BMT equation of spin dynamics. I give illustrated thumbnail
sketches of both the true and reputed discoverers and quote from their
"discovery" publications.Comment: 36 pages, 8 figures. Small revisions, added material and references -
Arnol'd's law, Emil Wiechert. Submitted to Am. J. Phy
Finite size corrections to scaling in high Reynolds number turbulence
We study analytically and numerically the corrections to scaling in
turbulence which arise due to the finite ratio of the outer scale of
turbulence to the viscous scale , i.e., they are due to finite size
effects as anisotropic forcing or boundary conditions at large scales. We find
that the deviations \dzm from the classical Kolmogorov scaling of the velocity moments \langle |\u(\k)|^m\rangle \propto k^{-\zeta_m}
decrease like . Our numerics employ a
reduced wave vector set approximation for which the small scale structures are
not fully resolved. Within this approximation we do not find independent
anomalous scaling within the inertial subrange. If anomalous scaling in the
inertial subrange can be verified in the large limit, this supports the
suggestion that small scale structures should be responsible, originating from
viscosity either in the bulk (vortex tubes or sheets) or from the boundary
layers (plumes or swirls)
Nuclear masses set bounds on quantum chaos
It has been suggested that chaotic motion inside the nucleus may
significantly limit the accuracy with which nuclear masses can be calculated.
Using a power spectrum analysis we show that the inclusion of additional
physical contributions in mass calculations, through many-body interactions or
local information, removes the chaotic signal in the discrepancies between
calculated and measured masses. Furthermore, a systematic application of global
mass formulas and of a set of relationships among neighboring nuclei to more
than 2000 nuclear masses allows to set an unambiguous upper bound for the
average errors in calculated masses which turn out to be almost an order of
magnitude smaller than estimated chaotic components.Comment: 4 pages, Accepted for publication in Physical Review Letter
Mean-Field vs Monte-Carlo equation of state for the expansion of a Fermi superfluid in the BCS-BEC crossover
The equation of state (EOS) of a Fermi superfluid is investigated in the
BCS-BEC crossover at zero temperature. We discuss the EOS based on Monte-Carlo
(MC) data and asymptotic expansions and the EOS derived from the extended BCS
(EBCS) mean-field theory. Then we introduce a time-dependent density
functional, based on the bulk EOS and Landau's superfluid hydrodynamics with a
von Weizs\"acker-type correction, to study the free expansion of the Fermi
superfluid. We calculate the aspect ratio and the released energy of the
expanding Fermi cloud showing that MC EOS and EBCS EOS are both compatible with
the available experimental data of Li atoms. We find that the released
energy satisfies an approximate analytical formula that is quite accurate in
the BEC regime. For an anisotropic droplet, our numerical simulations show an
initially faster reversal of anisotropy in the BCS regime, later suppressed by
the BEC fluid.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, presented to the 15th International Laser
Physics Workshop (Lausanne, July 24-28, 2006); to be published in Laser
Physic
Realizations of Causal Manifolds by Quantum Fields
Quantum mechanical operators and quantum fields are interpreted as
realizations of timespace manifolds. Such causal manifolds are parametrized by
the classes of the positive unitary operations in all complex operations, i.e.
by the homogenous spaces \D(n)=\GL(\C^n_\R)/\U(n) with for mechanics
and for relativistic fields. The rank gives the number of both the
discrete and continuous invariants used in the harmonic analysis, i.e. two
characteristic masses in the relativistic case. 'Canonical' field theories with
the familiar divergencies are inappropriate realizations of the real
4-dimensional causal manifold \D(2). Faithful timespace realizations do not
lead to divergencies. In general they are reducible, but nondecomposable - in
addition to representations with eigenvectors (states, particle) they
incorporate principal vectors without a particle (eigenvector) basis as
exemplified by the Coulomb field.Comment: 36 pages, latex, macros include
Inclusive particle production at HERA: Higher-order QCD corrections to the resolved quasi-real photon contribution
We calculate in next-to-leading order inclusive cross sections of
single-particle production via resolved photons in collisions at HERA.
Transverse-momentum and rapidity distributions are presented and the scale
dependence is studied. The results are compared with first experimental data
from the H1 Collaboration at HERA.Comment: 11 pages with 15 uuencoded PS figures. Preprint DESY 93-03
A quantum-like description of the planetary systems
The Titius-Bode law for planetary distances is reviewed. A model describing
the basic features of this rule in the "quantum-like" language of a wave
equation is proposed. Some considerations about the 't Hooft idea on the
quantum behaviour of deterministic systems with dissipation are discussed.Comment: LaTex file, 17 pages, no figures. Version published in Foundations of
Physics, August 200
On the complementarity of the quadrature observables
In this paper we investigate the coupling properties of pairs of quadrature
observables, showing that, apart from the Weyl relation, they share the same
coupling properties as the position-momentum pair. In particular, they are
complementary. We determine the marginal observables of a covariant phase space
observable with respect to an arbitrary rotated reference frame, and observe
that these marginal observables are unsharp quadrature observables. The related
distributions constitute the Radon tranform of a phase space distribution of
the covariant phase space observable. Since the quadrature distributions are
the Radon transform of the Wigner function of a state, we also exhibit the
relation between the quadrature observables and the tomography observable, and
show how to construct the phase space observable from the quadrature
observables. Finally, we give a method to measure together with a single
measurement scheme any complementary pair of quadrature observables.Comment: Dedicated to Peter Mittelstaedt in honour of his eightieth birthda
Reheating and turbulence
We show that the ''turbulent'' particle spectra found in numerical
simulations of the behavior of matter fields during reheating admit a simple
interpretation in terms of hydrodynamic models of the reheating period. We
predict a particle number spectrum with for Comment: 10 pages, one figure included in tex
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