5,360 research outputs found
Numerical study of the hard-core Bose-Hubbard Model on an Infinite Square Lattice
We present a study of the hard-core Bose-Hubbard model at zero temperature on
an infinite square lattice using the infinite Projected Entangled Pair State
algorithm [Jordan et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 250602 (2008)]. Throughout the
whole phase diagram our values for the ground state energy, particle density
and condensate fraction accurately reproduce those previously obtained by other
methods. We also explore ground state entanglement, compute two-point
correlators and conduct a fidelity-based analysis of the phase diagram.
Furthermore, for illustrative purposes we simulate the response of the system
when a perturbation is suddenly added to the Hamiltonian.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figure
Reducing Cascading Failure Risk by Increasing Infrastructure Network Interdependency
Increased coupling between critical infrastructure networks, such as power
and communication systems, will have important implications for the reliability
and security of these systems. To understand the effects of power-communication
coupling, several have studied interdependent network models and reported that
increased coupling can increase system vulnerability. However, these results
come from models that have substantially different mechanisms of cascading,
relative to those found in actual power and communication networks. This paper
reports on two sets of experiments that compare the network vulnerability
implications resulting from simple topological models and models that more
accurately capture the dynamics of cascading in power systems. First, we
compare a simple model of topological contagion to a model of cascading in
power systems and find that the power grid shows a much higher level of
vulnerability, relative to the contagion model. Second, we compare a model of
topological cascades in coupled networks to three different physics-based
models of power grids coupled to communication networks. Again, the more
accurate models suggest very different conclusions. In all but the most extreme
case, the physics-based power grid models indicate that increased
power-communication coupling decreases vulnerability. This is opposite from
what one would conclude from the coupled topological model, in which zero
coupling is optimal. Finally, an extreme case in which communication failures
immediately cause grid failures, suggests that if systems are poorly designed,
increased coupling can be harmful. Together these results suggest design
strategies for reducing the risk of cascades in interdependent infrastructure
systems
Doppler Lidar Sensor for Precision Navigation in GPS-Deprived Environment
Landing mission concepts that are being developed for exploration of solar system bodies are increasingly ambitious in their implementations and objectives. Most of these missions require accurate position and velocity data during their descent phase in order to ensure safe, soft landing at the pre-designated sites. Data from the vehicle's Inertial Measurement Unit will not be sufficient due to significant drift error after extended travel time in space. Therefore, an onboard sensor is required to provide the necessary data for landing in the GPS-deprived environment of space. For this reason, NASA Langley Research Center has been developing an advanced Doppler lidar sensor capable of providing accurate and reliable data suitable for operation in the highly constrained environment of space. The Doppler lidar transmits three laser beams in different directions toward the ground. The signal from each beam provides the platform velocity and range to the ground along the laser line-of-sight (LOS). The six LOS measurements are then combined in order to determine the three components of the vehicle velocity vector, and to accurately measure altitude and attitude angles relative to the local ground. These measurements are used by an autonomous Guidance, Navigation, and Control system to accurately navigate the vehicle from a few kilometers above the ground to the designated location and to execute a gentle touchdown. A prototype version of our lidar sensor has been completed for a closed-loop demonstration onboard a rocket-powered terrestrial free-flyer vehicle
A Southern Ocean Mechanism for the Interhemispheric Coupling and Phasing of the Bipolar Seesaw
The last glacial period is punctuated by abrupt changes in Northern Hemisphere temperatures that are known as DansgaardâOeschger (DO) events. A striking and largely unexplained feature of DO events is an interhemispheric asymmetry characterized by cooling in Antarctica during periods of warming in Greenland and vice versaâthe bipolar seesaw. Methane-synchronized ice core records indicate that the Southern Hemisphere lags the Northern Hemisphere by approximately 200 years. Here, we propose a mechanism that produces observed features of both the bipolar seesaw and the phasing of DO events. The spatial pattern of sea ice formation and melt in the Southern Ocean imposes a rigid constraint on where water masses are modified: waters are made denser near the coast where ice forms and waters are made lighter farther north where ice melts. This pattern, coupled to the tilt of density surfaces across the Southern Ocean and the stratification of the ocean basins, produces two modes of overturning corresponding to different bipolar seesaw states. We present evolution equations for a simplified ocean model that describes the transient adjustment of the basin stratification, the Southern Ocean surface density distribution, and the overturning strength as the ocean moves between these states in response to perturbations in North Atlantic Deep Water formation, which we take as a proxy for Greenland temperatures. Transitions between different overturning states occur over a multicentennial time scale, which is qualitatively consistent with the observed Southern Hemisphere lag. The volume of deep density layers varies inversely with the overturning strength, leading to significant changes in residence times. Evidence of these dynamics in more realistic circulation models is discussed
The role of the Southern Ocean in abrupt transitions and hysteresis in glacial ocean circulation
Highâlatitude Northern Hemisphere climate during the last glacial period was characterized by a series of abrupt climate changes, known as DansgaardâOeschger (DO) events, which were recorded in Greenland ice cores as shifts in the oxygen isotopic composition of the ice. These shifts in inferred Northern Hemisphere highâlatitude temperature have been linked to changes in Atlantic meridional overturning strength. The response of ocean overturning circulation to forcing is nonâlinear and a hierarchy of models have suggested that it may exist in multiple steady state configurations. Here, we use a timeâdependent coarseâresolution isopycnal model with four density classes and two basins, linked by a Southern Ocean to explore overturning states and their stability to changes in external parameters. The model exhibits hysteresis in both the steadyâstate stratification and overturning strength as a function of the magnitude of North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) formation. Hysteresis occurs as a result of two nonâlinearities in the modelâââthe surface buoyancy distribution in the Southern Ocean and the vertical diffusivity profile in the Atlantic and IndoâPacific basins. We construct a metric to assess circulation configuration in the model, motivated by observations from the Last Glacial Maximum, which show a different circulation structure from the modern. We find that circulation configuration is primarily determined by NADW density. The model results are used to suggest how ocean conditions may have influenced the pattern of DO events across the last glacial cycle
Analytical and experimental study of stratification and liquid-ullage coupling, 1 June 1964 - 31 May 1965
Closed-form solution for stratification of subcooled fluids in containers subjected to heating, and for liquid-ullage vapor couplin
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