20,265 research outputs found
Symmetric path integrals for stochastic equations with multiplicative noise
A Langevin equation with multiplicative noise is an equation schematically of
the form dq/dt = - F(q) + e(q) xi, where e(q) xi is Gaussian white noise whose
amplitude e(q) depends on q itself. I show how to convert such equations into
path integrals. The definition of the path integral depends crucially on the
convention used for discretizing time, and I specifically derive the correct
path integral when the convention used is the natural, time-symmetric one that
time derivatives are (q_t - q_{t-\Delta t}) / \Delta t and coordinates are (q_t
+ q_{t-\Delta t}) / 2. [This is the convention that permits standard
manipulations of calculus on the action, like naive integration by parts.] It
has sometimes been assumed in the literature that a Stratanovich Langevin
equation can be quickly converted to a path integral by treating time as
continuous but using the rule \theta(t=0) = 1/2. I show that this prescription
fails when the amplitude e(q) is q-dependent.Comment: 8 page
A method to construct refracting profiles
We propose an original method for determining suitable refracting profiles
between two media to solve two related problems: to produce a given wave front
from a single point source after refraction at the refracting profile, and to
focus a given wave front in a fixed point. These profiles are obtained as
envelopes of specific families of Cartesian ovals. We study the singularities
of these profiles and give a method to construct them from the data of the
associated caustic.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figure
Expanded mixed multiscale finite element methods and their applications for flows in porous media
We develop a family of expanded mixed Multiscale Finite Element Methods
(MsFEMs) and their hybridizations for second-order elliptic equations. This
formulation expands the standard mixed Multiscale Finite Element formulation in
the sense that four unknowns (hybrid formulation) are solved simultaneously:
pressure, gradient of pressure, velocity and Lagrange multipliers. We use
multiscale basis functions for the both velocity and gradient of pressure. In
the expanded mixed MsFEM framework, we consider both cases of separable-scale
and non-separable spatial scales. We specifically analyze the methods in three
categories: periodic separable scales, - convergence separable scales, and
continuum scales. When there is no scale separation, using some global
information can improve accuracy for the expanded mixed MsFEMs. We present
rigorous convergence analysis for expanded mixed MsFEMs. The analysis includes
both conforming and nonconforming expanded mixed MsFEM. Numerical results are
presented for various multiscale models and flows in porous media with shales
to illustrate the efficiency of the expanded mixed MsFEMs.Comment: 33 page
Hydrodynamics of Micro-swimmers in Films
One of the principal mechanisms by which surfaces and interfaces affect
microbial life is by perturbing the hydrodynamic flows generated by swimming.
By summing a recursive series of image systems we derive a numerically
tractable approximation to the three-dimensional flow fields of a Stokeslet
(point force) within a viscous film between a parallel no-slip surface and
no-shear interface and, from this Green's function, we compute the flows
produced by a force- and torque-free micro-swimmer. We also extend the exact
solution of Liron & Mochon (1976) to the film geometry, which demonstrates that
the image series gives a satisfactory approximation to the swimmer flow fields
if the film is sufficiently thick compared to the swimmer size, and we derive
the swimmer flows in the thin-film limit. Concentrating on the thick film case,
we find that the dipole moment induces a bias towards swimmer accumulation at
the no-slip wall rather than the water-air interface, but that higher-order
multipole moments can oppose this. Based on the analytic predictions we propose
an experimental method to find the multipole coefficient that induces circular
swimming trajectories, allowing one to analytically determine the swimmer's
three-dimensional position under a microscope.Comment: 35 pages, 11 figures, 5 table
Investigation of double beta decay with the NEMO-3 detector
The double beta decay experiment NEMO~3 has been taking data since February
2003. The aim of this experiment is to search for neutrinoless
() decay and investigate two neutrino double beta decay in
seven different isotopically enriched samples (Mo, Se,
Ca, Zr, Cd, Te and Nd). After analysis of
the data corresponding to 3.75 y, no evidence for decay in the
Mo and Se samples was found. The half-life limits at the 90%
C.L. are y and y, respectively.
Additionally for decay the following limits at the 90% C.L.
were obtained, y for Ca, y
for Zr and y for Nd. The
decay half-life values were precisely measured for all investigated isotopes.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, 5 tables; talk at conference on "Fundamental
Interactions Physics" (ITEP, Moscow, November 23-27, 2009
Demonstration of an inductively coupled ring trap for cold atoms
We report the first demonstration of an inductively coupled magnetic ring trap for cold atoms. A uniform, ac magnetic field is used to induce current in a copper ring, which creates an opposing magnetic field that is time-averaged to produce a smooth cylindrically symmetric ring trap of radius 5 mm. We use a laser-cooled atomic sample to characterize the loading efficiency and adiabaticity of the magnetic potential, achieving a vacuum-limited lifetime in the trap. This technique is suitable for creating scalable toroidal waveguides for applications in matter-wave interferometry, offering long interaction times and large enclosed areas
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