Addendum to "Travelling waves for a non-local Korteweg-de Vries-Burgers equation" [J. Differential Equations 257 (2014), no. 3, 720--758]

We add a theorem to [J. Differential Equations 257 (2014), no. 3, 720--758] by F. Achleitner, C.M. Cuesta and S. Hittmeir. In that paper we studied travelling wave solutions of a Korteweg-de Vries-Burgers type equation with a non-local diffusion term. In particular, the proof of existence and uniqueness of these waves relies on the assumption that the exponentially decaying functions are the only bounded solutions of the linearised equation. In this addendum we prove this assumption and thus close the existence and uniqueness proof of travelling wave solutions

WP 37 - Search, mismatch and unemployment

This paper explores the efficiency of the equilibrium allocation in a matching model with heterogeneous workers and jobs. In the basic setup the labor force is divided in two groups. The high-skill workers are qualified for all jobs, while low-skill workers can perform unskilled jobs but not the more attractive skilled jobs. We demonstrate that the equilibrium with random search and ex post bargaining is never efficient. Under Hosios’ condition the average wage is correct, but bargaining compresses the wage distribution relative to workers’ shadow values. The wage compression distorts the relative profits of jobs making it too attractive to create skilled jobs. Furthermore, the low skill premium may prevent that the two types of workers efficiently sort in different jobs. In the first case we show that the market offers too few job opportunities for low-skill workers. On the contrary, when mismatch is socially wasteful, we find that low-skill workers experience shorter unemployment spells than in the efficient allocation. Finally, we show that our results generalize to environments with many types of agents and less stringent restrictions on the production technology.

Experimental and theoretical studies of sequence effects on the fluctuation and melting of short DNA molecules

Understanding the melting of short DNA sequences probes DNA at the scale of the genetic code and raises questions which are very different from those posed by very long sequences, which have been extensively studied. We investigate this problem by combining experiments and theory. A new experimental method allows us to make a mapping of the opening of the guanines along the sequence as a function of temperature. The results indicate that non-local effects may be important in DNA because an AT-rich region is able to influence the opening of a base pair which is about 10 base pairs away. An earlier mesoscopic model of DNA is modified to correctly describe the time scales associated to the opening of individual base pairs well below melting, and to properly take into account the sequence. Using this model to analyze some characteristic sequences for which detailed experimental data on the melting is available [Montrichok et al. 2003 Europhys. Lett. {\bf 62} 452], we show that we have to introduce non-local effects of AT-rich regions to get acceptable results. This brings a second indication that the influence of these highly fluctuating regions of DNA on their neighborhood can extend to some distance.Comment: To be published in J. Phys. Condensed Matte

Nonlinear electrodynamics and the gravitational redshift of highly magnetised neutron stars

The idea that the nonlinear electromagnetic interaction, i. e., light propagation in vacuum, can be geometrized was developed by Novello et al. (2000) and Novello & Salim (2001). Since then a number of physical consequences for the dynamics of a variety of systems have been explored. In a recent paper Mosquera Cuesta & Salim (2003) presented the first astrophysical study where such nonlinear electrodynamics (NLEDs) effects were accounted for in the case of a highly magnetized neutron star or pulsar. In that paper the NLEDs was invoked {\it a l\`a} Euler-Heisenberg, which is an infinite series expansion of which only the first term was used for the analisys. The immediate consequence of that study was an overall modification of the space-time geometry around the pulsar, which is ``perceived'', in principle, only by light propagating out of the star. This translates into an significant change in the surface redshift, as inferred from absorption (emission) lines observed from a super magnetized pulsar. The result proves to be even more dramatic for the so-called magnetars, pulsars endowed with magnetic ($B$) fields higher then the Schafroth quantum electrodynamics critical $B$-field. Here we demonstrate that the same effect still appears if one calls for the NLEDs in the form of the one rigorously derived by Born & Infeld (1934) based on the special relativistic limit for the velocity of approaching of an elementary particle to a pointlike electron [From the mathematical point of view, the Born & Infeld (1934) NLEDs is described by an exact Lagrangean, whose dynamics has been successfully studied in a wide set of physical systems.].Comment: Accepted for publication in Month. Not. Roy. Ast. Soc. latex file, mn-1.4.sty, 5 pages, 2 figure