6,090 research outputs found
Contrast Interferometry Using Bose-Einstein Condensates to Measure h/m and the Fine Structure Constant
The kinetic energy of an atom recoiling due to absorption of a photon was
measured as a frequency using an interferometric technique called ``contrast
interferometry''. Optical standing wave pulses were used as atom-optical
elements to create a symmetric three-path interferometer with a Bose-Einstein
condensate. The recoil phase accumulated in different paths was measured using
a single-shot detection technique. The scheme allows for additional photon
recoils within the interferometer and its symmetry suppresses several random
and systematic errors including those from vibrations and ac Stark shifts. We
have measured the photon recoil frequency of sodium to ppm precision, using
a simple realization of this scheme. Plausible extensions should yield a
sufficient precision to bring within reach a ppb-level determination of
and the fine structure constant
The spin 1/2 Heisenberg star with frustration II: The influence of the embedding medium
We investigate the spin 1/2 Heisenberg star introduced in J. Richter and A.
Voigt, J. Phys. A: Math. Gen. {\bf 27}, 1139 (1994). The model is defined by
; , . In extension to the Ref. we consider a more general
describing the properties of the spins surrounding the
central spin . The Heisenberg star may be considered as an essential
structure element of a lattice with frustration (namely a spin embedded in a
magnetic matrix ) or, alternatively, as a magnetic system with a
perturbation by an extra spin. We present some general features of the
eigenvalues, the eigenfunctions as well as the spin correlation of the model. For being a linear chain, a square
lattice or a Lieb-Mattis type system we present the ground state properties of
the model in dependence on the frustration parameter .
Furthermore the thermodynamic properties are calculated for being a
Lieb--Mattis antiferromagnet.Comment: 16 pages, uuencoded compressed postscript file, accepted to J. Phys.
A: Math. Ge
Hydrodynamic coupling and rotational mobilities near planar elastic membranes
We study theoretically and numerically the coupling and rotational
hydrodynamic interactions between spherical particles near a planar elastic
membrane that exhibits resistance towards shear and bending. Using a
combination of the multipole expansion and Faxen's theorems, we express the
frequency-dependent hydrodynamic mobility functions as a power series of the
ratio of the particle radius to the distance from the membrane for the self
mobilities, and as a power series of the ratio of the radius to the
interparticle distance for the pair mobilities. In the quasi-steady limit of
zero frequency, we find that the shear- and bending-related contributions to
the particle mobilities may have additive or suppressive effects depending on
the membrane properties in addition to the geometric configuration of the
interacting particles relative to the confining membrane. To elucidate the
effect and role of the change of sign observed in the particle self and pair
mobilities, we consider an example involving a torque-free doublet of
counterrotating particles near an elastic membrane. We find that the induced
rotation rate of the doublet around its center of mass may differ in magnitude
and direction depending on the membrane shear and bending properties. Near a
membrane of only energetic resistance toward shear deformation, such as that of
a certain type of elastic capsules, the doublet undergoes rotation of the same
sense as observed near a no-slip wall. Near a membrane of only energetic
resistance toward bending, such as that of a fluid vesicle, we find a reversed
sense of rotation. Our analytical predictions are supplemented and compared
with fully resolved boundary integral simulations where a very good agreement
is obtained over the whole range of applied frequencies.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figures. Revised manuscript resubmitted to J. Chem. Phy
Ion distribution and ablation depth measurements of a fs-ps laser-irradiated solid tin target
The ablation of solid tin surfaces by an 800-nanometer-wavelength laser is
studied for a pulse length range from 500 fs to 4.5 ps and a fluence range
spanning 0.9 to 22 J/cm^2. The ablation depth and volume are obtained employing
a high-numerical-aperture optical microscope, while the ion yield and energy
distributions are obtained from a set of Faraday cups set up under various
angles. We found a slight increase of the ion yield for an increasing pulse
length, while the ablation depth is slightly decreasing. The ablation volume
remained constant as a function of pulse length. The ablation depth follows a
two-region logarithmic dependence on the fluence, in agreement with the
available literature and theory. In the examined fluence range, the ion yield
angular distribution is sharply peaked along the target normal at low fluences
but rapidly broadens with increasing fluence. The total ionization fraction
increases monotonically with fluence to a 5-6% maximum, which is substantially
lower than the typical ionization fractions obtained with nanosecond-pulse
ablation. The angular distribution of the ions does not depend on the laser
pulse length within the measurement uncertainty. These results are of
particular interest for the possible utilization of fs-ps laser systems in
plasma sources of extreme ultraviolet light for nanolithography.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figure
More Benefits of Semileptonic Rare B Decays at Low Recoil: CP Violation
We present a systematic analysis of the angular distribution of Bbar ->
Kbar^\ast (-> Kbar pi) l^+ l^- decays with l = e, mu in the low recoil region
(i.e. at high dilepton invariant masses of the order of the mass of the
b-quark) to account model-independently for CP violation beyond the Standard
Model, working to next-to-leading order QCD. From the employed heavy quark
effective theory framework we identify the key CP observables with reduced
hadronic uncertainties. Since some of the CP asymmetries are CP-odd they can be
measured without B-flavour tagging. This is particularly beneficial for
Bbar_s,B_s -> phi(-> K^+ K^-) l^+ l^- decays, which are not self-tagging, and
we work out the corresponding time-integrated CP asymmetries. Presently
available experimental constraints allow the proposed CP asymmetries to be
sizeable, up to values of the order ~ 0.2, while the corresponding Standard
Model values receive a strong parametric suppression at the level of O(10^-4).
Furthermore, we work out the allowed ranges of the short-distance (Wilson)
coefficients C_9,C_10 in the presence of CP violation beyond the Standard Model
but no further Dirac structures. We find the Bbar_s -> mu^+ mu^- branching
ratio to be below 9*10^-9 (at 95% CL). Possibilities to check the performance
of the theoretical low recoil framework are pointed out.Comment: 18 pages, 3 fig.; 1 reference and comment on higher order effects
added; EOS link fixed. Minor adjustments to Eqs 4.1-4.3 to match the (lower)
q^2-cut as given in paper. Main results and conclusions unchanged; v3+v4:
treatment of exp. uncert. in likelihood-function in EOS fixed and constraints
from scan on C9,C10 updated (Fig 2,3 and Eqs 3.2,3.3). Main results and
conclusions absolutely unchange
Modelling marine emissions and atmospheric distributions of halocarbons and dimethyl sulfide: the influence of prescribed water concentration vs. prescribed emissions
Marine-produced short-lived trace gases such as dibromomethane (CH2Br2), bromoform (CHBr3), methyliodide (CH3I) and dimethyl sulfide (DMS) significantly impact tropospheric and stratospheric chemistry. Describing their marine emissions in atmospheric chemistry models as accurately as possible is necessary to quantify their impact on ozone depletion and Earth's radiative budget. So far, marine emissions of trace gases have mainly been prescribed from emission climatologies, thus lacking the interaction between the actual state of the atmosphere and the ocean. Here we present simulations with the chemistry climate model EMAC (ECHAM5/MESSy Atmospheric Chemistry) with online calculation of emissions based on surface water concentrations, in contrast to directly prescribed emissions. Considering the actual state of the model atmosphere results in a concentration gradient consistent with model real-time conditions at the ocean surface and in the atmosphere, which determine the direction and magnitude of the computed flux. This method has a number of conceptual and practical benefits, as the modelled emission can respond consistently to changes in sea surface temperature, surface wind speed, sea ice cover and especially atmospheric mixing ratio. This online calculation could enhance, dampen or even invert the fluxes (i.e. deposition instead of emissions) of very short-lived substances (VSLS). We show that differences between prescribing emissions and prescribing concentrations (−28 % for CH2Br2 to +11 % for CHBr3) result mainly from consideration of the actual, time-varying state of the atmosphere. The absolute magnitude of the differences depends mainly on the surface ocean saturation of each particular gas. Comparison to observations from aircraft, ships and ground stations reveals that computing the air–sea flux interactively leads in most of the cases to more accurate atmospheric mixing ratios in the model compared to the computation from prescribed emissions. Calculating emissions online also enables effective testing of different air–sea transfer velocity (k) parameterizations, which was performed here for eight different parameterizations. The testing of these different k values is of special interest for DMS, as recently published parameterizations derived by direct flux measurements using eddy covariance measurements suggest decreasing k values at high wind speeds or a linear relationship with wind speed. Implementing these parameterizations reduces discrepancies in modelled DMS atmospheric mixing ratios and observations by a factor of 1.5 compared to parameterizations with a quadratic or cubic relationship to wind spee
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