Relaxation to quantum equilibrium for Dirac fermions in the de Broglie-Bohm pilot-wave theory

Numerical simulations indicate that the Born rule does not need to be postulated in the de Broglie-Bohm pilot-wave theory, but arises dynamically (relaxation to quantum equilibrium). These simulations were done for a particle in a two-dimensional box whose wave-function obeys the non-relativistic Schroedinger equation and is therefore scalar. The chaotic nature of the de Broglie-Bohm trajectories, thanks to the nodes of the wave-function which act as vortices, is crucial for a fast relaxation to quantum equilibrium. For spinors, we typically do not expect any node. However, in the case of the Dirac equation, the de Broglie-Bohm velocity field has vorticity even in the absence of nodes. This observation raises the question of the origin of relaxation to quantum equilibrium for fermions. In this article, we provide numerical evidence to show that Dirac particles also undergo relaxation, by simulating the evolution of various non-equilibrium distributions for two-dimensional systems (the 2D Dirac oscillator and the Dirac particle in a spherical 2D box).Comment: 11 pages, 9 figure

Faraday waves in elongated superfluid fermionic clouds

We use hydrodynamic equations to study the formation of Faraday waves in a superfluid Fermi gas at zero temperature confined in a strongly elongated cigar-shaped trap. First, we treat the role of the radial density profile in the limit of an infinite cylindrical geometry and analytically evaluate the wavelength of the Faraday pattern. The effect of the axial confinement is fully taken into account in the numerical solution of hydrodynamic equations and shows that the infinite cylinder geometry provides a very good description of the phenomena.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figures. Figures 4 and 6 in high resolution on reques

Wavelet transforms in a critical interface model for Barkhausen noise

We discuss the application of wavelet transforms to a critical interface model, which is known to provide a good description of Barkhausen noise in soft ferromagnets. The two-dimensional version of the model (one-dimensional interface) is considered, mainly in the adiabatic limit of very slow driving. On length scales shorter than a crossover length (which grows with the strength of surface tension), the effective interface roughness exponent $\zeta$ is $\simeq 1.20$, close to the expected value for the universality class of the quenched Edwards-Wilkinson model. We find that the waiting times between avalanches are fully uncorrelated, as the wavelet transform of their autocorrelations scales as white noise. Similarly, detrended size-size correlations give a white-noise wavelet transform. Consideration of finite driving rates, still deep within the intermittent regime, shows the wavelet transform of correlations scaling as $1/f^{1.5}$ for intermediate frequencies. This behavior is ascribed to intra-avalanche correlations.Comment: RevTeX, 10 pages, 9 .eps figures; Physical Review E, to be publishe

Destruction of Anderson localization by a weak nonlinearity

We study numerically a spreading of an initially localized wave packet in a one-dimensional discrete nonlinear Schr\"odinger lattice with disorder. We demonstrate that above a certain critical strength of nonlinearity the Anderson localization is destroyed and an unlimited subdiffusive spreading of the field along the lattice occurs. The second moment grows with time $\propto t^\alpha$, with the exponent $\alpha$ being in the range $0.3 - 0.4$. For small nonlinearities the distribution remains localized in a way similar to the linear case.Comment: 4 pages, 5 fig

Engineering many-body quantum dynamics by disorder

Going beyond the currently investigated regimes in experiments on quantum transport of ultracold atoms in disordered potentials, we predict a crossover between regular and quantum-chaotic dynamics when varying the strength of disorder. Our spectral approach is based on the Bose-Hubbard model describing interacting atoms in deep random potentials. The predicted crossover from localized to diffusive dynamics depends on the simultaneous presence of interactions and disorder, and can be verified in the laboratory by monitoring the evolution of typical experimental initial states.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures (improved version), to be published in PR

Fluids confined in wedges and by edges: Virial series for the line-thermodynamic properties of hard spheres

This work is devoted to analyze the relation between the thermodynamic properties of a confined fluid and the shape of its confining vessel. Recently, new insights in this topic were found through the study of cluster integrals for inhomogeneous fluids that revealed the dependence on the vessel shape of the low density behavior of the system. Here, the statistical mechanics and thermodynamics of fluids confined in wedges or by edges is revisited, focusing on their cluster integrals. In particular, the well known hard sphere fluid, which was not studied in this framework so far, is analyzed under confinement and its thermodynamic properties are analytically studied up to order two in the density. Furthermore, the analysis is extended to the confinement produced by a corrugated wall. These results rely on the obtained analytic expression for the second cluster integral of the confined hard sphere system as a function of the opening dihedral angle 0 < β < 2π. It enables a unified approach to both wedges and edges.Fil: Urrutia, Ignacio. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Centro Atómico Constituyentes; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Massive Black Hole Binary Systems in Hierarchical Scenario of Structure Formation

The hierarchical scenario of structure formation describes how objects like galaxies and galaxy clusters are formed by mergers of small objects. In this scenario, mergers of galaxies can lead to the formation of massive black hole (MBH) binary systems. On the other hand, the merger of two MBH could produce a gravitational wave signal detectable, in principle, by the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA). In the present work, we use the Press-Schechter formalism, and its extension, to describe the merger rate of haloes which contain massive black holes. Here, we do not study the gravitational wave emission of these systems. However, we present an initial study to determine the number of systems formed via mergers that could permit, in a future extension of this work, the calculation of the signature in gravitational waves of these systems.Comment: to match the published version in International Journal of Modern Physics

A Model for the Propagation of Sound in Granular Materials

This paper presents a simple ball-and-spring model for the propagation of small amplitude vibrations in a granular material. In this model, the positional disorder in the sample is ignored and the particles are placed on the vertices of a square lattice. The inter-particle forces are modeled as linear springs, with the only disorder in the system coming from a random distribution of spring constants. Despite its apparent simplicity, this model is able to reproduce the complex frequency response seen in measurements of sound propagation in a granular system. In order to understand this behavior, the role of the resonance modes of the system is investigated. Finally, this simple model is generalized to include relaxation behavior in the force network -- a behavior which is also seen in real granular materials. This model gives quantitative agreement with experimental observations of relaxation.Comment: 21 pages, requires Harvard macros (9/91), 12 postscript figures not included, HLRZ preprint 6/93, (replacement has proper references included

Localization in momentum space of ultracold atoms in incommensurate lattices

We characterize the disorder induced localization in momentum space for ultracold atoms in one-dimensional incommensurate lattices, according to the dual Aubry-Andr\'e model. For low disorder the system is localized in momentum space, and the momentum distribution exhibits time-periodic oscillations of the relative intensity of its components. The behavior of these oscillations is explained by means of a simple three-mode approximation. We predict their frequency and visibility by using typical parameters of feasible experiments. Above the transition the system diffuses in momentum space, and the oscillations vanish when averaged over different realizations, offering a clear signature of the transition

Optimal Cosmic-Ray Detection for Nondestructive Read Ramps

Cosmic rays are a known problem in astronomy, causing both loss of data and data inaccuracy. The problem becomes even more extreme when considering data from a high-radiation environment, such as in orbit around Earth or outside the Earth's magnetic field altogether, unprotected, as will be the case for the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). For JWST, all the instruments employ nondestructive readout schemes. The most common of these will be "up the ramp" sampling, where the detector is read out regularly during the ramp. We study three methods to correct for cosmic rays in these ramps: a two-point difference method, a deviation from the fit method, and a y-intercept method. We apply these methods to simulated nondestructive read ramps with single-sample groups and varying combinations of flux, number of samples, number of cosmic rays, cosmic-ray location in the exposure, and cosmic-ray strength. We show that the y-intercept method is the optimal detection method in the read-noise-dominated regime, while both the y-intercept method and the two-point difference method are best in the photon-noise-dominated regime, with the latter requiring fewer computations.Comment: To be published in PASP. This paper is 12 pages long and includes 15 figure