Quantum transport properties of two-dimensional systems in disordered magnetic fields with a fixed sign

Quantum transport in disordered magnetic fields is investigated numerically in two-dimensional systems. In particular, the case where the mean and the fluctuation of disordered magnetic fields are of the same order is considered. It is found that in the limit of weak disorder the conductivity exhibits a qualitatively different behavior from that in the conventional random magnetic fields with zero mean. The conductivity is estimated by the equation of motion method and by the two-terminal Landauer formula. It is demonstrated that the conductance stays on the order of $e^2/h$ even in the weak disorder limit. The present behavior can be interpreted in terms of the Drude formula. The Shubnikov-de Haas oscillation is also observed in the weak disorder regime.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev.

Cosmology of hybrid metric-Palatini f(X)-gravity

A new class of modified theories of gravity, consisting of the superposition of the metric Einstein-Hilbert Lagrangian with an $f(\cal R)$ term constructed \`{a} la Palatini was proposed recently. The dynamically equivalent scalar-tensor representation of the model was also formulated, and it was shown that even if the scalar field is very light, the theory passes the Solar System observational constraints. Therefore the model predicts the existence of a long-range scalar field, modifying the cosmological and galactic dynamics. An explicit model that passes the local tests and leads to cosmic acceleration was also obtained. In the present work, it is shown that the theory can be also formulated in terms of the quantity $X\equiv \kappa^2 T+R$, where T and R are the traces of the stress-energy and Ricci tensors, respectively. The variable X represents the deviation with respect to the field equation trace of general relativity. The cosmological applications of this hybrid metric-Palatini gravitational theory are also explored, and cosmological solutions coming from the scalar-tensor representation of f(X)-gravity are presented. Criteria to obtain cosmic acceleration are discussed and the field equations are analyzed as a dynamical system. Several classes of dynamical cosmological solutions, depending on the functional form of the effective scalar field potential, describing both accelerating and decelerating Universes are explicitly obtained. Furthermore, the cosmological perturbation equations are derived and applied to uncover the nature of the propagating scalar degree of freedom and the signatures these models predict in the large-scale structure.Comment: 17 pages. V2: 18 pages; minor revision and references added; to appear in JCA

Wormholes supported by hybrid metric-Palatini gravity

Recently, a modified theory of gravity was presented, which consists of the superposition of the metric Einstein-Hilbert Lagrangian with an $f(\cal R)$ term constructed \`{a} la Palatini. The theory possesses extremely interesting features such as predicting the existence of a long-range scalar field, that explains the late-time cosmic acceleration and passes the local tests, even in the presence of a light scalar field. In this brief report, we consider the possibility that wormholes are supported by this hybrid metric-Palatini gravitational theory. We present here the general conditions for wormhole solutions according to the null energy conditions at the throat and find specific examples. In the first solution, we specify the redshift function, the scalar field and choose the potential that simplifies the modified Klein-Gordon equation. This solution is not asymptotically flat and needs to be matched to a vacuum solution. In the second example, by adequately specifying the metric functions and choosing the scalar field, we find an asymptotically flat spacetime.Comment: 4 pages. V2: 5 pages, discussion added; matches published versio

Stereo vision based approach for extracting features from digital holograms

With digital holography one can record and reconstruct real world three-dimensional (3D) objects [1,2]. The recorded interference pattern includes information about both amplitude and phase of a wavefront reflected from or transmitted through the object. However, some of the hologram capture setups pose a problem for the reliable reconstruction of quantitative phase information. This can be because the twin image or noise corrupts the reconstructed phase. In such cases it is usual that only amplitude is reconstructed and used as the basis for metrology. A focus criterion is often applied to this reconstructed amplitude to extract depth information from the sensed 3D scene [3,4]. In this paper we present an alternative technique based on applying conventional computer stereo vision algorithms to amplitude reconstructions. We show the effectiveness of our technique using digital holograms of both macroscopic and microscopic real-world 3D objects. We discuss sensitivity to the depth of field of reconstructions, and which hologram capture setups are, and which are not, suitable for the technique

Shot noise and conductivity at high bias in bilayer graphene: Signatures of electron-optical phonon coupling

We have studied electronic conductivity and shot noise of bilayer graphene (BLG) sheets at high bias voltages and low bath temperature $T_0=4.2$ K. As a function of bias, we find initially an increase of the differential conductivity, which we attribute to self-heating. At higher bias, the conductivity saturates and even decreases due to backscattering from optical phonons. The electron-phonon interactions are also responsible for the decay of the Fano factor at bias voltages $V>0.1$ V. The high bias electronic temperature has been calculated from shot noise measurements, and it goes up to $\sim1200$ K at $V=0.75$ V. Using the theoretical temperature dependence of BLG conductivity, we extract an effective electron-optical phonon scattering time $\tau_{e-op}$. In a 230 nm long BLG sample of mobility $\mu=3600$ cm$^2$V$^{-1}$s$^{-1}$, we find that $\tau_{e-op}$ decreases with increasing voltage and is close to the charged impurity scattering time $\tau_{imp}=60$ fs at $V=0.6$ V.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures. Extended version of the high bias part of version 1. The low bias part is discussed in arXiv:1102.065

Numerical reconstruction of digital holograms for conventional 3D display

True hologram video displays are currently under development, but are not yet available. Because of this restriction, conventional 3D displays can be used with digital holographic data. However when using conventional 3D displays, holographic data has to be processed correctly to meet the requirements of the display. A unique property of digital holograms, namely that a single hologram encodes multiple perspectives, can be used to achieve this goal. Reconstructions from digital holograms at different perspectives are processed further to meet the requirements of the conventional 3D display, which are typically based on stereoscopic images of the scene

Using disparity in digital holograms for three-dimensional object segmentation

Digital holography allows one to sense and reconstruct the amplitude and phase of a wavefront reflected from or transmitted through a real-world three-dimensional (3D) object. However, some combinations of hologram capture setup and 3D object pose problems for the reliable reconstruction of quantitative phase information. In particular, these are cases where the twin image or noise corrupts the reconstructed phase. In such cases it is usual that only amplitude is reconstructed and used as the basis for metrology. A focus criterion is often applied to this reconstructed amplitude to extract depth information from the sensed 3D scene. In this paper we present an alternative technique based on applying conventional stereo computer vision algorithms to amplitude reconstructions. In the technique, two perspectives are reconstructed from a single hologram, and the stereo disparity between the pair is used to infer depth information for different regions in the field of view. Such an approach has inherent simplifications in digital holography as the epipolar geometry is known a priori. We show the effectiveness of the technique using digital holograms of real-world 3D objects. We discuss extensions to multi-view algorithms, the effect of speckle, and sensitivity to the depth of field of reconstruction