1,910 research outputs found
High accuracy measure of atomic polarizability in an optical lattice clock
Despite being a canonical example of quantum mechanical perturbation theory,
as well as one of the earliest observed spectroscopic shifts, the Stark effect
contributes the largest source of uncertainty in a modern optical atomic clock
through blackbody radiation. By employing an ultracold, trapped atomic ensemble
and high stability optical clock, we characterize the quadratic Stark effect
with unprecedented precision. We report the ytterbium optical clock's
sensitivity to electric fields (such as blackbody radiation) as the
differential static polarizability of the ground and excited clock levels:
36.2612(7) kHz (kV/cm)^{-2}. The clock's fractional uncertainty due to room
temperature blackbody radiation is reduced an order of magnitude to 3 \times
10^{-17}.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, 2 table
An atomic clock with instability
Atomic clocks have been transformational in science and technology, leading
to innovations such as global positioning, advanced communications, and tests
of fundamental constant variation. Next-generation optical atomic clocks can
extend the capability of these timekeepers, where researchers have long aspired
toward measurement precision at 1 part in . This milestone will
enable a second revolution of new timing applications such as relativistic
geodesy, enhanced Earth- and space-based navigation and telescopy, and new
tests on physics beyond the Standard Model. Here, we describe the development
and operation of two optical lattice clocks, both utilizing spin-polarized,
ultracold atomic ytterbium. A measurement comparing these systems demonstrates
an unprecedented atomic clock instability of after
only hours of averaging
Probing the interiors of the ice giants: Shock compression of water to 700 GPa and 3.8 g/ccm
Recently there has been tremendous increase in the number of identified
extra-solar planetary systems. Our understanding of their formation is tied to
exoplanet internal structure models, which rely upon equations of state of
light elements and compounds like water. Here we present shock compression data
for water with unprecedented accuracy that shows water equations of state
commonly used in planetary modeling significantly overestimate the
compressibility at conditions relevant to planetary interiors. Furthermore, we
show its behavior at these conditions, including reflectivity and isentropic
response, is well described by a recent first-principles based equation of
state. These findings advocate this water model be used as the standard for
modeling Neptune, Uranus, and "hot Neptune" exoplanets, and should improve our
understanding of these types of planets.Comment: Accepted to Phys. Rev. Lett.; supplementary material attached
including 2 figures and 2 tables; to view attachments, please download and
extract the gzipped tar source file listed under "Other formats
Hyper-Ramsey Spectroscopy of Optical Clock Transitions
We present non-standard optical Ramsey schemes that use pulses individually
tailored in duration, phase, and frequency to cancel spurious frequency shifts
related to the excitation itself. In particular, the field shifts and their
uncertainties of Ramsey fringes can be radically suppressed (by 2-4 orders of
magnitude) in comparison with the usual Ramsey method (using two equal pulses)
as well as with single-pulse Rabi spectroscopy. Atom interferometers and
optical clocks based on two-photon transitions, heavily forbidden transitions,
or magnetically induced spectroscopy could significantly benefit from this
method. In the latter case these frequency shifts can be suppressed
considerably below a fractional level of 10^{-17}. Moreover, our approach opens
the door for the high-precision optical clocks based on direct frequency comb
spectroscopy.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
The Mid-Infrared Spectra of Normal Galaxies
The mid-infrared spectra (2.5 to 5 and 5.7 to 11.6 mu) obtained by ISO-PHOT
reveal the interstellar medium emission from galaxies powered by star formation
to be strongly dominated by the aromatic features at 6.2, 7.7, 8.6 and 11.3 mu.
Additional emission appears in-between the features, and an underlying
continuum is clearly evident at 3-5 mu. This continuum would contribute about a
third of the luminosity in the 3 to 13 mu range. The features together carry 5
to 30% of the 40-to-120 mu `FIR' luminosity. The relative fluxes in individual
features depend very weakly on galaxy parameters such as the far-infrared
colors, direct evidence that the emitting particles are not in thermal
equilibrium. The dip at 10 mu is unlikely to result from silicate absorption,
since its shape is invariant among galaxies. The continuum component has a f_nu
\~ nu^{0.65} shape between 3 and 5 mu and carries 1 to 4% of the FIR
luminosity; its extrapolation to longer wavelengths falls well below the
spectrum in the 6 to 12 mu range. This continuum component is almost certainly
of non-stellar origin, and is probably due to fluctuating grains without
aromatic features. The spectra reported here typify the integrated emission
from the interstellar medium of the majority of star-forming galaxies, and
could thus be used to obtain redshifts of highly extincted galaxies up to z=3
with SIRTF.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figures, uses AAS LaTeX; to appear in the Astrophysical
Journal Letter
Ordered phase in the two-dimensional randomly coupled ferromagnet
True ground states are evaluated for a 2d Ising model with random near
neighbor interactions and ferromagnetic second neighbor interactions (the
Randomly Coupled Ferromagnet). The spin glass stiffness exponent is positive
when the absolute value of the random interaction is weaker than the
ferromagnetic interaction. This result demonstrates that in this parameter
domain the spin glass like ordering temperature is non-zero for these systems,
in strong contrast to the 2d Edwards-Anderson spin glass.Comment: 7 pages; 9 figures; revtex; new version much extende
Religious Vehicle Stickers in Nigeria: a discourse of identity, faith and social vision
This study focuses on analysing the ways in which vehicle
stickers construct individual and group identities, people’s religious faith and social vision in the context of religious assumptions and practices in Nigeria. Data comprise 73 vehicle stickers collected in Lagos and Ota, between 2006 and 2007 and are analysed within the framework of the post-structuralist model of discourse analysis which views discourse as a product of a complex system of social and institutional practices that sustain its continuous
existence (Derrida, 1982; Fairclough, 1989, 1992, 1995; Foucault, 1972, 1981). Results show that through stickers people define their individual and group identities within religious institutional practices. And as a means of group identification, they guarantee social security and privileges. In constructing social vision the stickers help mould the individual aspiration about a future which transcends the present. Significantly, stickers in the data
also reveal the tension between Islam and Christianity and the struggle to propagate one above the other.
KEY WORDS: assumption, discourse, discursive, practices, religion, stickers
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