Robustness of Majorana Fermion induced Fractional Josephson Effect

It is shown in previous works that the coupling between two Majorana end states in superconducting quantum wires leads to fractional Josephson effect. However, in realistic experimental conditions, multiple bands of the wires are occupied and the Majorana end states are accompanied by other fermionic end states. This raises the question concerning the robustness of fractional Josephson effect in these situations. In this work, we show that the absence of the avoided energy crossing which gives rise to the fractional Josephson effect is robust, even when the Majorana fermions are coupled with arbitrary strengths to other fermions. Moreover, we calculate the temperature dependence of the fractional Josephson current and show that it is suppressed by thermal excitations to the other fermion bound states.Comment: 4+ pages, 3 figure

Non-Markovian master equation for a damped oscillator with time-varying parameters

We derive an exact non-Markovian master equation that generalizes the previous work [Hu, Paz and Zhang, Phys. Rev. D {\bf 45}, 2843 (1992)] to damped harmonic oscillators with time-varying parameters. This is achieved by exploiting the linearity of the system and operator solution in Heisenberg picture. Our equation governs the non-Markovian quantum dynamics when the system is modulated by external devices. As an application, we apply our equation to parity kick decoupling problems. The time-dependent dissipative coefficients in the master equation are shown to be modified drastically when the system is driven by $\pi$ pulses. For coherence protection to be effective, our numerical results indicate that kicking period should be shorter than memory time of the bath. The effects of using soft pulses in an ohmic bath are also discussed

The LuckyCam Survey for Very Low Mass Binaries II: 13 new M4.5-M6.0 Binaries

We present results from a high-angular-resolution survey of 78 very low mass (VLM) binary systems with 6.0 = 0.15 arcsec/yr. 21 VLM binaries were detected, 13 of them new discoveries. The new binary systems range in separation between 0.18 arcsec and 1.3 arcsec. The distance-corrected binary fraction is 13.5% (+6.5%/-4%), in agreement with previous results. 9 of the new binary systems have orbital radii > 10 AU, including a new wide VLM binary with 27 AU projected orbital separation. One of the new systems forms two components of a 2300 AU separation triple system. We find that the orbital radius distribution of the binaries with V-K < 6.5 in this survey appears to be different from that of redder (lower-mass) objects, suggesting a possible rapid change in the orbital radius distribution at around the M5 spectral type. The target sample was also selected to investigate X-ray activity among VLM binaries. There is no detectable correlation between excess X-Ray emission and the frequency and binary properties of the VLM systems.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures. Submitted to MNRA

A quantitative ecological study of selected nearshore marine plants and animals at the Diablo Canyon power plant site: a pre-operational baseline, 1973-1978

Biologists of the California Department of Fish and Game, under contract with the Pacific Gas and Electric Company, conducted surveys or intertidal and subtidal plants and animals 1n the vicinity of the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant for the summer of 1973 through 1978. Abundances of the dominant plants and animals were obtained at random as well as permanent stations in Diablo Cove as well as nearby control areas. A total of 643 permanent and random stations were surveyed, 262 in the intertidal and 381 in the subtidal. Natural as well as man-caused occurrences have resulted in several significant changes in plant and animal abundance in the study areas; these include the arrival of the southern front or the sea otter population in Diablo Cove in 1974; a strong red tide bloom in the fall of 1974; and the release of copper ions from the power plant condenser tubes into Diablo Cove during the summer of 1974. Our intertidal and subtidal random station data have shown a strong decline in giant red sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus franciscanus, densities and the surface canopy kelp, Nereocystis/leutkeana, and a corresponding increase in the subcanopy kelps, Pterygophora and Laminaria. Seasonal patterns of abundance of foliose red algae at random intertidal stations occurred at all study areas. Several species intertidal and subtidal invertebrates showed increasing or decreasing trends in levels of abundance during the five year study period covered by the report. Some of these changes in abundance may be related to the natural man-caused impacts mentioned above. (Document has 728 pages

Thinking beyond the hybrid:“actually-existing” cities “after neoliberalism” in Boyle <i>et al.</i>

In their article, ‘The spatialities of actually existing neoliberalism in Glasgow, 1977 to present’, Mark Boyle, Christopher McWilliams and Gareth Rice (2008) usefully problematise our current understanding of neoliberal urbanism. Our response is aimed at developing a sympathetic but critical approach to Boyle et al's understanding of neoliberal urbanism as illustrated by the Glasgow example. In particular, the counterposing by Boyle et al of a 'hybrid, mutant' model to a 'pure' model of neoliberalism for us misrepresents existing models of neoliberalism as a perfectly finished object rather than a roughly mottled process. That they do not identify any ‘pure’ model leads them to create a straw construct against which they can claim a more sophisticated, refined approach to the messiness of neoliberal urbanism. In contrast, we view neoliberalism as a contested and unstable response to accumulation crises at various scales of analysis

The USG STEM II Initiative at Georgia Perimeter College

No abstract is available

Control of trapped-ion quantum states with optical pulses

We present new results on the quantum control of systems with infinitely large Hilbert spaces. A control-theoretic analysis of the control of trapped ion quantum states via optical pulses is performed. We demonstrate how resonant bichromatic fields can be applied in two contrasting ways -- one that makes the system completely uncontrollable, and the other that makes the system controllable. In some interesting cases, the Hilbert space of the qubit-harmonic oscillator can be made finite, and the Schr\"{o}dinger equation controllable via bichromatic resonant pulses. Extending this analysis to the quantum states of two ions, a new scheme for producing entangled qubits is discovered.Comment: Submitted to Physical Review Letter

A Generalization of the Goldberg-Sachs Theorem and its Consequences

The Goldberg-Sachs theorem is generalized for all four-dimensional manifolds endowed with torsion-free connection compatible with the metric, the treatment includes all signatures as well as complex manifolds. It is shown that when the Weyl tensor is algebraically special severe geometric restrictions are imposed. In particular it is demonstrated that the simple self-dual eigenbivectors of the Weyl tensor generate integrable isotropic planes. Another result obtained here is that if the self-dual part of the Weyl tensor vanishes in a Ricci-flat manifold of (2,2) signature the manifold must be Calabi-Yau or symplectic and admits a solution for the source-free Einstein-Maxwell equations.Comment: 14 pages. This version matches the published on

Photon collection from a trapped ion--cavity system

We present the design and implementation of a trapped ion cavity QED system. A single ytterbium ion is confined by a micron-scale ion trap inside a 2 mm optical cavity. The ion is coherently pumped by near resonant laser light while the cavity output is monitored as a function of pump intensity and cavity detuning. We observe a Purcell enhancement of scattered light into the solid angle subtended by the optical cavity, as well as a three-peak structure arising from strongly driving the atom. This system can be integrated into existing atom{photon quantum network protocols and is a pathway towards an efficient atom{photon quantum interface