3,805 research outputs found
On the Decoherence of Primordial Fluctuations During Inflation
We study the process whereby quantum cosmological perturbations become
classical within inflationary cosmology. By setting up a master-equation
formulation we show how quantum coherence for super-Hubble modes can be
destroyed by their coupling to the environment provided by sub-Hubble modes. We
identify what features the sub-Hubble environment must have in order to
decohere the longer wavelengths, and identify how the onset of decoherence (and
how long it takes) depends on the properties of the sub-Hubble physics which
forms the environment. Our results show that the decoherence process is largely
insensitive to the details of the coupling between the sub- and super-Hubble
scales. They also show how locality implies, quite generally, that the
decohered density matrix at late times is diagonal in the field representation
(as is implicitly assumed by extant calculations of inflationary density
perturbations). Our calculations also imply that decoherence can arise even for
couplings which are as weak as gravitational in strength.Comment: 31 pages, 1 figur
The ultra high resolution XUV spectroheliograph: An attached payload for the Space Station Freedom
The principle goal of the ultra high resolution XUV spectroheliograph (UHRXS) is to improve the ability to identify and understand the fundamental physical processes that shape the structure and dynamics of the solar chromosphere and corona. The ability of the UHRXS imaging telescope and spectrographs to resolve fine scale structures over a broad wavelength (and hence temperature) range is critical to this mission. The scientific objectives and instrumental capabilities of the UHRXS investigation are reviewed before proceeding to a discussion of the expected performance of the UHRXS observatory
Nonequilibrium Microscopic Distribution of Thermal Current in Particle Systems
A nonequilibrium distribution function of microscopic thermal current is
studied by a direct numerical simulation in a thermal conducting steady state
of particle systems. Two characteristic temperatures of the thermal current are
investigated on the basis of the distribution. It is confirmed that the
temperature depends on the current direction; Parallel temperature to the
heat-flux is higher than antiparallel one. The difference between the parallel
temperature and the antiparallel one is proportional to a macroscopic
temperature gradient.Comment: 4 page
Stacking-fault energies for Ag, Cu, and Ni from empirical tight-binding potentials
The intrinsic stacking-fault energies and free energies for Ag, Cu, and Ni
are derived from molecular-dynamics simulations using the empirical
tight-binding potentials of Cleri and Rosato [Phys. Rev. B 48, 22 (1993)].
While the results show significant deviations from experimental data, the
general trend between the elements remains correct. This allows to use the
potentials for qualitative comparisons between metals with high and low
stacking-fault energies. Moreover, the effect of stacking faults on the local
vibrational properties near the fault is examined. It turns out that the
stacking fault has the strongest effect on modes in the center of the
transverse peak and its effect is localized in a region of approximately eight
monolayers around the defect.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.
A Dynamic Approach to the Thermodynamics of Superdiffusion
We address the problem of relating thermodynamics to mechanics in the case of
microscopic dynamics without a finite time scale. The solution is obtained by
expressing the Tsallis entropic index q as a function of the Levy index alpha,
and using dynamical rather than probabilistic arguments.Comment: 4 pages, new revised version resubmitted to Phys. Rev. Let
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Pubertal timing and breast density in young women: a prospective cohort study.
BACKGROUND:Earlier age at onset of pubertal events and longer intervals between them (tempo) have been associated with increased breast cancer risk. It is unknown whether the timing and tempo of puberty are associated with adult breast density, which could mediate the increased risk. METHODS:From 1988 to 1997, girls participating in the Dietary Intervention Study in Children (DISC) were clinically assessed annually between ages 8 and 17 years for Tanner stages of breast development (thelarche) and pubic hair (pubarche), and onset of menses (menarche) was self-reported. In 2006-2008, 182 participants then aged 25-29 years had their percent dense breast volume (%DBV) measured by magnetic resonance imaging. Multivariable, linear mixed-effects regression models adjusted for reproductive factors, demographics, and body size were used to evaluate associations of age and tempo of puberty events with %DBV. RESULTS:The mean (standard deviation) and range of %DBV were 27.6 (20.5) and 0.2-86.1. Age at thelarche was negatively associated with %DBV (p trend = 0.04), while pubertal tempo between thelarche and menarche was positively associated with %DBV (p trend = 0.007). %DBV was 40% higher in women whose thelarche-to-menarche tempo was 2.9 years or longer (geometric mean (95%CI) = 21.8% (18.2-26.2%)) compared to women whose thelarche-to-menarche tempo was less than 1.6 years (geometric mean (95%CI) = 15.6% (13.9-17.5%)). CONCLUSIONS:Our results suggest that a slower pubertal tempo, i.e., greater number of months between thelarche and menarche, is associated with higher percent breast density in young women. Future research should examine whether breast density mediates the association between slower tempo and increased breast cancer risk
Total energy global optimizations using non orthogonal localized orbitals
An energy functional for orbital based calculations is proposed, which
depends on a number of non orthogonal, localized orbitals larger than the
number of occupied states in the system, and on a parameter, the electronic
chemical potential, determining the number of electrons. We show that the
minimization of the functional with respect to overlapping localized orbitals
can be performed so as to attain directly the ground state energy, without
being trapped at local minima. The present approach overcomes the multiple
minima problem present within the original formulation of orbital based
methods; it therefore makes it possible to perform calculations for an
arbitrary system, without including any information about the system bonding
properties in the construction of the input wavefunctions. Furthermore, while
retaining the same computational cost as the original approach, our formulation
allows one to improve the variational estimate of the ground state energy, and
the energy conservation during a molecular dynamics run. Several numerical
examples for surfaces, bulk systems and clusters are presented and discussed.Comment: 24 pages, RevTex file, 5 figures available upon reques
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