14,051 research outputs found
Vacuum fluctuations and the thermodynamics of chiral models
We consider the thermodynamics of chiral models in the mean-field
approximation and discuss the relevance of the (frequently omitted) fermion
vacuum loop. Within the chiral quark-meson model and its Polyakov loop extended
version, we show that the fermion vacuum fluctuations can change the order of
the phase transition in the chiral limit and strongly influence physical
observables. We compute the temperature-dependent effective potential and
baryon number susceptibilities in these models, with and without the vacuum
term, and explore the cutoff and the pion mass dependence of the
susceptibilities. Finally, in the renormalized model the divergent vacuum
contribution is removed using the dimensional regularization.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figure
Ultracold collisions between two light indistinguishable diatomic molecules: elastic and rotational energy transfer in HD+HD
A close coupling quantum-mechanical calculation is performed for rotational
energy transfer in a HD+HD collision at very low energy, down to the ultracold
temperatures: K. A global six-dimensional H-H
potential energy surface is adopted from a previous work [Boothroyd {\it et
al.}, J. Chem. Phys., {\bf 116}, 666 (2002).] State-resolved integral cross
sections of different
quantum-mechanical rotational transitions in the HD
molecules and corresponding state-resolved thermal rate coefficients
have been computed. Additionally, for comparison,
H+H calculations for a few selected rotational transitions have also
been performed. The hydrogen and deuterated hydrogen molecules are treated as
rigid rotors in this work. A pronounced isotope effect is identified in the
cross sections of these collisions at low and ultracold temperatures.Comment: 9 pages, 9 figures. Accepted for publication in Physical Review
Impacts of mandatory GE food labeling: a quasi-natural experiment
In July 2016, Vermont became the first U.S. state to require mandatory labeling of foods containing genetically engineered (GE) ingredients. The introduction of the Vermont law serves as a quasi-natural experiment on the economic effects of mandatory GE labeling. We investigate the market response in the U.S. sugar market. Almost all beet sugar is GE, while cane sugar is GE-free. Prior to 2016, cane and beet sugar were regarded as homogenous. However, in mid 2016, refined cane sugar began selling at a premium over refined beet sugar. We find the mandatory labeling initiative generated about a 13% price discount for beet sugar and a premium of about 1% for cane. Food manufacturers’ concerns over mandatory labeling caused them to switch inputs. This resulted in a redistribution of welfare in the U.S. sugar industry
From X-ray dips to eclipse: Witnessing disk reformation in the recurrent nova USco
The 10th recorded outburst of the recurrent eclipsing nova USco was observed
simultaneously in X-ray, UV, and optical by XMM-Newton on days 22.9 and 34.9
after outburst. Two full passages of the companion in front of the nova ejecta
were observed, witnessing the reformation of the accretion disk. On day 22.9,
we observed smooth eclipses in UV and optical but deep dips in the X-ray light
curve which disappeared by day 34.9, then yielding clean eclipses in all bands.
X-ray dips can be caused by clumpy absorbing material that intersects the line
of sight while moving along highly elliptical trajectories. Cold material from
the companion could explain the absence of dips in UV and optical light. The
disappearance of X-ray dips before day 34.9 implies significant progress in the
formation of the disk. The X-ray spectra contain photospheric continuum
emission plus strong emission lines, but no clear absorption lines. Both
continuum and emission lines in the X-ray spectra indicate a temperature
increase from day 22.9 to day 34.9. We find clear evidence in the spectra and
light curves for Thompson scattering of the photospheric emission from the
white dwarf. Photospheric absorption lines can be smeared out during scattering
in a plasma of fast electrons. We also find spectral signatures of resonant
line scattering that lead to the observation of the strong emission lines.
Their dominance could be a general phenomenon in high-inclination systems such
as Cal87.Comment: Submitted to ApJ. 16 pages, 16 figure
Near-infrared studies of the 2010 outburst of the recurrent nova U Scorpii
We present near-infrared (near-IR) observations of the 2010 outburst of U Sco. JHK photometry is presented on 10 consecutive days starting from 0.59 d after outburst. Such photometry can gainfully be integrated into a larger data base of other multiwavelength data which aim to comprehensively study the evolution of U Sco. Early near-IR spectra, starting from 0.56 d after outburst, are presented and their general characteristics discussed. Early in the eruption, we see very broad wings in several spectral lines, with tails extending up to ∼10 000 km s−1 along the line of sight; it is unexpected to have a nova with ejection velocities equal to those usually thought to be exclusive to supernovae. From recombination analysis, we estimate an upper limit of [inline image] for the ejected mass
Impaired Hyperemic Response to Exercise Post Stroke
Individuals with chronic stroke have reduced perfusion of the paretic lower limb at rest; however, the hyperemic response to graded muscle contractions in this patient population has not been examined. This study quantified blood flow to the paretic and non-paretic lower limbs of subjects with chronic stroke after submaximal contractions of the knee extensor muscles and correlated those measures with limb function and activity. Ten subjects with chronic stroke and ten controls had blood flow through the superficial femoral artery quantified with ultrasonography before and immediately after 10 second contractions of the knee extensor muscles at 20, 40, 60, and 80% of the maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) of the test limb. Blood flow to the paretic and non-paretic limb of stroke subjects was significantly reduced at all load levels compared to control subjects even after normalization to lean muscle mass. Of variables measured, increased blood flow after an 80% MVC was the single best predictor of paretic limb strength, the symmetry of strength between the paretic and non-paretic limbs, coordination of the paretic limb, and physical activity. The impaired hemodynamic response to high intensity contractions was a better predictor of lower limb function than resting perfusion measures. Stroke-dependent weakness and atrophy of the paretic limb do not explain the reduced hyperemic response to muscle contraction alone as the response is similarly reduced in the non-paretic limb when compared to controls. These data may suggest a role for perfusion therapies to optimize rehabilitation post stroke
On the appearance of hyperons in neutron stars
By employing a recently constructed hyperon-nucleon potential the equation of
state of \beta-equilibrated and charge neutral nucleonic matter is calculated.
The hyperon-nucleon potential is a low-momentum potential which is obtained
within a renormalization group framework. Based on the Hartree-Fock
approximation at zero temperature the densities at which hyperons appear in
neutron stars are estimated. For several different bare hyperon-nucleon
potentials and a wide range of nuclear matter parameters it is found that
hyperons in neutron stars are always present. These findings have profound
consequences for the mass and radius of neutron stars.Comment: 12 pages, 12 figures, RevTeX4; summary and conclusions are
strengthened, to appear in PR
Gauge Invariant Density and Temperature Perturbations in the Quasi-Newtonian Formulation
We give an improved formalism for calculating the evolution of density
fluctuations and temperature perturbations in flat universes. Our equations are
general enough to treat the perturbations in collisionless relics like massive
neutrinos. We find this formulation to be simpler to use than gauge dependent
and other gauge-invariant formalisms. We show how to calculate temperature
fluctuations (including multipole moments) and transfer functions, including
the case of collisionless relics like massive neutrinos. We call this formalism
"quasi-Newtonian" because the equations for the potential and cold matter
fluctuation evolution have the same form as the Newtonian gravitational
equations in an expanding space. The density fluctuation variable also has the
same form inside and outside of the horizon which allows the initial conditions
to be specified in a simple intuitive way. Our sample calculations demonstrate
how to use these equations in cosmological models which have hot, cold, and
mixed dark matter and adiabatic (isentropic) or isocurvature modes. We also
give an approximation which may be used to get transfer functions quickly.Comment: 1 LaTEX text file (29 pages), and a uuencoded gzip'ed tar file
containing 7 Postscript figure
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