Timeless path integral for relativistic quantum mechanics

Starting from the canonical formalism of relativistic (timeless) quantum mechanics, the formulation of timeless path integral is rigorously derived. The transition amplitude is reformulated as the sum, or functional integral, over all possible paths in the constraint surface specified by the (relativistic) Hamiltonian constraint, and each path contributes with a phase identical to the classical action divided by $\hbar$. The timeless path integral manifests the timeless feature as it is completely independent of the parametrization for paths. For the special case that the Hamiltonian constraint is a quadratic polynomial in momenta, the transition amplitude admits the timeless Feynman's path integral over the (relativistic) configuration space. Meanwhile, the difference between relativistic quantum mechanics and conventional nonrelativistic (with time) quantum mechanics is elaborated on in light of timeless path integral.Comment: 41 pages; more references and comments added; version to appear in CQ

Local threshold field for dendritic instability in superconducting MgB2 films

Using magneto-optical imaging the phenomenon of dendritic flux penetration in superconducting films was studied. Flux dendrites were abruptly formed in a 300 nm thick film of MgB2 by applying a perpendicular magnetic field. Detailed measurements of flux density distributions show that there exists a local threshold field controlling the nucleation and termination of the dendritic growth. At 4 K the local threshold field is close to 12 mT in this sample, where the critical current density is 10^7 A/cm^2. The dendritic instability in thin films is believed to be of thermo-magnetic origin, but the existence of a local threshold field, and its small value are features that distinctly contrast the thermo-magnetic instability (flux jumps) in bulk superconductors.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Spectral asymmetry for bag boundary conditions

We give an expression, in terms of boundary spectral functions, for the spectral asymmetry of the Euclidean Dirac operator in two dimensions, when its domain is determined by local boundary conditions, and the manifold is of product type. As an application, we explicitly evaluate the asymmetry in the case of a finite-length cylinder, and check that the outcome is consistent with our general result. Finally, we study the asymmetry in a disk, which is a non-product case, and propose an interpretation.Comment: Some minor changes. To appear in Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and Genera

Towards Canonical Quantum Gravity for G1 Geometries in 2+1 Dimensions with a Lambda--Term

The canonical analysis and subsequent quantization of the (2+1)-dimensional action of pure gravity plus a cosmological constant term is considered, under the assumption of the existence of one spacelike Killing vector field. The proper imposition of the quantum analogues of the two linear (momentum) constraints reduces an initial collection of state vectors, consisting of all smooth functionals of the components (and/or their derivatives) of the spatial metric, to particular scalar smooth functionals. The demand that the midi-superspace metric (inferred from the kinetic part of the quadratic (Hamiltonian) constraint) must define on the space of these states an induced metric whose components are given in terms of the same states, which is made possible through an appropriate re-normalization assumption, severely reduces the possible state vectors to three unique (up to general coordinate transformations) smooth scalar functionals. The quantum analogue of the Hamiltonian constraint produces a Wheeler-DeWitt equation based on this reduced manifold of states, which is completely integrated.Comment: Latex 2e source file, 25 pages, no figures, final version (accepted in CQG

Atomic Tunneling from a STM/AFM tip: Dissipative Quantum Effects from Phonons

We study the effects of phonons on the tunneling of an atom between two surfaces. In contrast to an atom tunneling in the bulk, the phonons couple very strongly, and qualitatively change the tunneling behavior. This is the first example of {\it ohmic} coupling from phonons for a two-state system. We propose an experiment in which an atom tunnels from the tip of an STM, and show how its behavior would be similar to the Macroscopic Quantum Coherence behavior predicted for SQUIDS. The ability to tune and calculate many parameters would lead to detailed tests of the standard theories. (For a general intro to this work on the on the World-Wide-Web: http://www.lassp.cornell.edu. Click on ``Entertaining Science Done Here'' and ``Quantum Tunneling of Atoms'')Comment: 12 pages, ReVTex3.0, two figures (postscript). This is a (substantially) revised version of cond-mat/9406043. More info (+ postscript text) at : http://www.lassp.cornell.edu/ardlouis/publications.htm

Pole structure of the Hamiltonian ζ\zeta-function for a singular potential

We study the pole structure of the $\zeta$-function associated to the Hamiltonian $H$ of a quantum mechanical particle living in the half-line $\mathbf{R}^+$, subject to the singular potential $g x^{-2}+x^2$. We show that $H$ admits nontrivial self-adjoint extensions (SAE) in a given range of values of the parameter $g$. The $\zeta$-functions of these operators present poles which depend on $g$ and, in general, do not coincide with half an integer (they can even be irrational). The corresponding residues depend on the SAE considered.Comment: 12 pages, 1 figure, RevTeX. References added. Version to appear in Jour. Phys. A: Math. Ge

Suppression of Superconducting Critical Current Density by Small Flux Jumps in MgB2MgB_2 Thin Films

By doing magnetization measurements during magnetic field sweeps on thin films of the new superconductor $MgB_2$, it is found that in a low temperature and low field region small flux jumps are taking place. This effect strongly suppresses the central magnetization peak leading to reduced nominal superconducting critical current density at low temperatures. A borderline for this effect to occur is determined on the field-temperature (H-T) phase diagram. It is suggested that the small size of the flux jumps in films is due to the higher density of small defects and the relatively easy thermal diffusion in thin films in comparison with bulk samples.Comment: 7 figures Phys. Rev. B accepted scheduled issue: 01 Feb 200

Heat kernel coefficients for chiral bag boundary conditions

We study the asymptotic expansion of the smeared L2-trace of fexp(-tP^2) where P is an operator of Dirac type, f is an auxiliary smooth smearing function which is used to localize the problem, and chiral bag boundary conditions are imposed. Special case calculations, functorial methods and the theory of zeta and eta invariants are used to obtain the boundary part of the heat-kernel coefficients a1 and a2.Comment: Published in J. Phys. A38, 2259-2276 (2005). Record without file already exists on the SLAC recor

Quantum fluctuations can promote or inhibit glass formation

The very nature of glass is somewhat mysterious: while relaxation times in glasses are of sufficient magnitude that large-scale motion on the atomic level is essentially as slow as it is in the crystalline state, the structure of glass appears barely different than that of the liquid that produced it. Quantum mechanical systems ranging from electron liquids to superfluid helium appear to form glasses, but as yet no unifying framework exists connecting classical and quantum regimes of vitrification. Here we develop new insights from theory and simulation into the quantum glass transition that surprisingly reveal distinct regions where quantum fluctuations can either promote or inhibit glass formation.Comment: Accepted for publication in Nature Physics. 22 pages, 3 figures, 1 Tabl

VectorDisk: a microfluidic platform integrating diagnostic markers for evidence-based mosquito control

Effective mosquito monitoring relies on the accurate identification and characterization of the target population. Since this process requires specialist knowledge and equipment that is not widely available, automated field-deployable systems are highly desirable. We present a centrifugal microfluidic cartridge, the VectorDisk, which integrates TaqMan PCR assays in two feasibility studies, aiming to assess multiplexing capability, specificity, and reproducibility in detecting disk-integrated vector-related assays. In the first study, pools of 10 mosquitoes were used as samples. We tested 18 disks with 27 DNA and RNA assays each, using a combination of multiple microfluidic chambers and detection wavelengths (geometric and color multiplexing) to identify mosquito and malaria parasite species as well as insecticide resistance mechanisms. In the second study, purified nucleic acids served as samples to test arboviral and malaria infective mosquito assays. Nine disks were tested with 14 assays each. No false positive results were detected on any of the disks. The coe cient of variation in reproducibility tests was <10%. The modular nature of the platform, the easy adaptation of the primer/probe panels, the cold chain independence, the rapid (2-3 h) analysis, and the assay multiplexing capacity are key features, rendering the VectorDisk a potential candidate for automated vector analysis