Comment on "On the ionization equilibrium of hot hydrogen plasma and thermodynamic consistency of formulating finite partition functions"

Zaghloul [Phys. Plasmas 17, 062701 (2010); arXiv:1010.1161v1] reconsiders the occupation probability formalism in plasma thermodynamics and claims inconsistencies in previous models. I show that the origin of this incorrect claim is an omission of the configurational factor from the partition function. This arXiv version is supplemented with two appendices, where I add remarks and comments on two more recent publications of the same author on the same subject: on his response to this Comment [Phys. Plasmas 17, 124705 (2010)] and on his criticism towards the Hummer and Mihalas's (1988) formalism [Phys. Plasmas 17, 122903 (2010); arXiv:1010.1102v1].Comment: 4 pages: 2 pages of the journal publication + 2 pages of the electronic supplemen

Fluctuations in the presence of fields -Phenomenological Gaussian approximation and a new class of thermodynamic inequalities-

The work approaches the study of the fluctuations for the thermodynamic systems in the presence of the fields. The approach is of phenomenological nature and developed in a Gaussian approximation. The study is exemplified on the cases of a magnetizable continuum in a magnetoquasistatic field, as well as for the so called discrete systems. In the last case one finds that the fluctuations estimators depends both on the intrinsic properties of the system and on the characteristics of the environment. Following some earlier ideas of one of the authors we present a new class of thermodynamic inequalities for the systems investigated in this paper. In the case of two variables the mentioned inequalities are nothing but non-quantum analogues of the well known quantum Heisenberg (''uncertainty'') relations. Also the obtained fluctuations estimators support the idea that the Boltzmann's constant k has the signification of a generic indicator of stochasticity for thermodynamic systems. Pacs number(s): 05.20.-y, 05.40.-a, 05.70.-a, 41.20.GzComment: preprint, 24 page

Quarkonia and Quark Drip Lines in Quark-Gluon Plasma

We extract the $Q$-$\bar Q$ potential by using the thermodynamic quantities obtained in lattice gauge calculations. The potential is tested and found to give dissociation temperatures that agree well with those from lattice gauge spectral function analysis. Using such a $Q$-$\bar Q$ potential, we examine the quarkonium states in a quark-gluon plasma and determine the `quark drip lines' which separate the region of bound color-singlet $Q\bar Q$ states from the unbound region. The characteristics of the quark drip lines severely limit the region of possible bound $Q\bar Q$ states with light quarks to temperatures close to the phase transition temperature. Bound quarkonia with light quarks may exist very near the phase transition temperature if their effective quark mass is of the order of 300-400 MeV and higher.Comment: 24 pages, 13 figures, in LaTe

Many-body effects on adiabatic passage through Feshbach resonances

We theoretically study the dynamics of an adiabatic sweep through a Feshbach resonance, thereby converting a degenerate quantum gas of fermionic atoms into a degenerate quantum gas of bosonic dimers. Our analysis relies on a zero temperature mean-field theory which accurately accounts for initial molecular quantum fluctuations, triggering the association process. The structure of the resulting semiclassical phase space is investigated, highlighting the dynamical instability of the system towards association, for sufficiently small detuning from resonance. It is shown that this instability significantly modifies the finite-rate efficiency of the sweep, transforming the single-pair exponential Landau-Zener behavior of the remnant fraction of atoms Gamma on sweep rate alpha, into a power-law dependence as the number of atoms increases. The obtained nonadiabaticity is determined from the interplay of characteristic time scales for the motion of adiabatic eigenstates and for fast periodic motion around them. Critical slowing-down of these precessions near the instability leads to the power-law dependence. A linear power law $Gamma\propto alpha$ is obtained when the initial molecular fraction is smaller than the 1/N quantum fluctuations, and a cubic-root power law $Gamma\propto alpha^{1/3}$ is attained when it is larger. Our mean-field analysis is confirmed by exact calculations, using Fock-space expansions. Finally, we fit experimental low temperature Feshbach sweep data with a power-law dependence. While the agreement with the experimental data is well within experimental error bars, similar accuracy can be obtained with an exponential fit, making additional data highly desirable.Comment: 9 pages, 9 figure

Nonlinear adiabatic passage from fermion atoms to boson molecules

We study the dynamics of an adiabatic sweep through a Feshbach resonance in a quantum gas of fermionic atoms. Analysis of the dynamical equations, supported by mean-field and many-body numerical results, shows that the dependence of the remaining atomic fraction $\Gamma$ on the sweep rate $\alpha$ varies from exponential Landau-Zener behavior for a single pair of particles to a power-law dependence for large particle number $N$. The power-law is linear, $\Gamma \propto \alpha$, when the initial molecular fraction is smaller than the 1/N quantum fluctuations, and $\Gamma \propto \alpha^{1/3}$ when it is larger. Experimental data agree better with a linear dependence than with an exponential Landau-Zener fit, indicating that many-body effects are significant in the atom-molecule conversion process.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Resonance Damping in Ferromagnets and Ferroelectrics

The phenomenological equations of motion for the relaxation of ordered phases of magnetized and polarized crystal phases can be developed in close analogy with one another. For the case of magnetized systems, the driving magnetic field intensity toward relaxation was developed by Gilbert. For the case of polarized systems, the driving electric field intensity toward relaxation was developed by Khalatnikov. The transport times for relaxation into thermal equilibrium can be attributed to viscous sound wave damping via magnetostriction for the magnetic case and electrostriction for the polarization case.Comment: 5 pages no figures ReVTeX

On the conversion efficiency of ultracold fermionic atoms to bosonic molecules via Feshbach resonances

We explain why the experimental efficiency observed in the conversion of ultracold Fermi gases of $^{40}$K and $^{6}$Li atoms into diatomic Bose gases is limited to 0.5 when the Feshbach resonance sweep rate is sufficiently slow to pass adiabatically through the Landau Zener transition but faster than ``the collision rate'' in the gas, and increases beyond 0.5 when it is slower. The 0.5 efficiency limit is due to the preparation of a statistical mixture of two spin-states, required to enable s-wave scattering. By constructing the many-body state of the system we show that this preparation yields a mixture of even and odd parity pair-states, where only even parity can produce molecules. The odd parity spin-symmetric states must decorrelate before the constituent atoms can further Feshbach scatter thereby increasing the conversion efficiency; ``the collision rate'' is the pair decorrelation rate.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, final version accepted to Phys. Rev. Let

Dirac and Normal Fermions in Graphite and Graphene: Implications to the Quantum Hall Effect

Spectral analysis of Shubnikov de Haas (SdH) oscillations of magnetoresistance and of Quantum Hall Effect (QHE) measured in quasi-2D highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) [Phys. Rev. Lett. 90, 156402 (2003)] reveals two types of carriers: normal (massive) electrons with Berry phase 0 and Dirac-like (massless) holes with Berry phase pi. We demonstrate that recently reported integer- and semi-integer QHE for bi-layer and single-layer graphenes take place simultaneously in HOPG samples.Comment: 4 page

Level Correlations And Persistent Currents In Mesoscopic Metals

We use the exact correlation function of the density of energy levels in the magnetic field to evaluate persistent currents in mesoscopic metals. We also analyze the perturbation theory limit of the correlation function vis-a-vis the perturbation theory limit of the orbital response.Comment: 10 pages revte

Geometric factors in the Bohr--Rosenfeld analysis of the measurability of the electromagnetic field

The Geometric factors in the field commutators and spring constants of the measurement devices in the famous analysis of the measurability of the electromagnetic field by Bohr and Rosenfeld are calculated using a Fourier--Bessel method for the evaluation of folding integrals, which enables one to obtain the general geometric factors as a Fourier--Bessel series. When the space region over which the factors are defined are spherical, the Fourier--Bessel series terms are given by elementary functions, and using the standard Fourier-integral method of calculating folding integrals, the geometric factors can be evaluated in terms of manageable closed-form expressions.Comment: 21 pages, REVTe