2,425 research outputs found
Quantum decoherence in the theory of open systems
In the framework of the Lindblad theory for open quantum systems, we
determine the degree of quantum decoherence of a harmonic oscillator
interacting with a thermal bath. It is found that the system manifests a
quantum decoherence which is more and more significant in time. We calculate
also the decoherence time scale and analyze the transition from quantum to
classical behaviour of the considered system.Comment: 6 pages; talk at the 3rd International Workshop "Quantum Physics and
Communication" (QPC 2005), Dubna, Russia, 200
Quantum decoherence of the damped harmonic oscillator
In the framework of the Lindblad theory for open quantum systems, we
determine the degree of quantum decoherence of a harmonic oscillator
interacting with a thermal bath. It is found that the system manifests a
quantum decoherence which is more and more significant in time. We also
calculate the decoherence time and show that it has the same scale as the time
after which thermal fluctuations become comparable with quantum fluctuations.Comment: Talk at the XI International Conference on Quantum Optics
(ICQO'2006), May 2006, Minsk (Belarus), 9 page
The asymptotic quasi-stationary states of the two-dimensional magnetically confined plasma and of the planetary atmosphere
We derive the differential equation governing the asymptotic quasi-stationary
states of the two dimensional plasma immersed in a strong confining magnetic
field and of the planetary atmosphere. These two systems are related by the
property that there is an intrinsic constant length: the Larmor radius and
respectively the Rossby radius and a condensate of the vorticity field in the
unperturbed state related to the cyclotronic gyration and respectively to the
Coriolis frequency. Although the closest physical model is the
Charney-Hasegawa-Mima (CHM) equation, our model is more general and is related
to the system consisting of a discrete set of point-like vortices interacting
in plane by a short range potential. A field-theoretical formalism is developed
for describing the continuous version of this system. The action functional can
be written in the Bogomolnyi form (emphasizing the role of Self-Duality of the
asymptotic states) but the minimum energy is no more topological and the
asymptotic structures appear to be non-stationary, which is a major difference
with respect to traditional topological vortex solutions. Versions of this
field theory are discussed and we find arguments in favor of a particular form
of the equation. We comment upon the significant difference between the CHM
fluid/plasma and the Euler fluid and respectively the Abelian-Higgs vortex
models.Comment: Latex 126 pages, 7 eps figures included. Discussion on various forms
of the equatio
Burst-Timing-Dependent Plasticity of NMDA Receptor-Mediated Transmission in Midbrain Dopamine Neurons
SummaryBursts of spikes triggered by sensory stimuli in midbrain dopamine neurons evoke phasic release of dopamine in target brain areas, driving reward-based reinforcement learning and goal-directed behavior. NMDA-type glutamate receptors (NMDARs) play a critical role in the generation of these bursts. Here we report LTP of NMDAR-mediated excitatory transmission onto dopamine neurons in the substantia nigra. Induction of LTP requires burst-evoked Ca2+ signals amplified by preceding metabotropic neurotransmitter inputs in addition to the activation of NMDARs themselves. PKA activity gates LTP induction by regulating the magnitude of Ca2+ signal amplification. This form of plasticity is associative, input specific, reversible, and depends on the relative timing of synaptic input and postsynaptic bursting in a manner analogous to the timing rule for cue-reward learning paradigms in behaving animals. NMDAR plasticity might thus represent a potential neural substrate for conditioned dopamine neuron burst responses to environmental stimuli acquired during reward-based learning
Galactic periodicity and the oscillating G model
We consider the model involving the oscillation of the effective
gravitational constant that has been put forward in an attempt to reconcile the
observed periodicity in the galaxy number distribution with the standard
cosmological models. This model involves a highly nonlinear dynamics which we
analyze numerically. We carry out a detailed study of the bound that
nucleosynthesis imposes on this model. The analysis shows that for any assumed
value for (the total energy density) one can fix the value of
(the baryonic energy density) in such a way as to
accommodate the observational constraints coming from the
primordial abundance. In particular, if we impose the inflationary value
the resulting baryonic energy density turns out to be . This result lies in the very narrow range allowed by the observed values of the primordial
abundances of the other light elements. The remaining fraction of
corresponds to dark matter represented by a scalar field.Comment: Latex file 29 pages with no figures. Please contact M.Salgado for
figures. A more careful study of the model appears in gr-qc/960603
Classical Fields Near Thermal Equilibrium
We discuss the classical limit for the long-distance (``soft'') modes of a
quantum field when the hard modes of the field are in thermal equilibrium. We
address the question of the correct semiclassical dynamics when a momentum
cut-off is introduced. Higher order contributions leads to a stochastic
interpretation for the effective action in analogy to Quantum Brownian Motion,
resulting in dissipation and decoherence for the evolution of the soft modes.
Particular emphasis is put on the understanding of dissipation. Our discussion
focuses mostly on scalar fields, but we make some remarks on the extension to
gauge theories.Comment: REVTeX, 6 figure
Universe Reheating after Inflation
We study the problem of scalar particle production after inflation by a
rapidly oscillating inflaton field. We use the framework of the chaotic
inflation scenario with quartic and quadratic inflaton potentials. Particular
attention is paid to parametric resonance phenomena which take place in the
presence of the quickly oscillating inflaton field. We have found that in the
region of applicability of perturbation theory the effects of parametric
resonance are crucial, and estimates based on first order Born approximation
often underestimate the particle production. In the case of the quartic
inflaton potential , the particle production
process is very efficient even for small values of coupling constants. The
reheating temperature of the universe in this case is times larger than the corresponding estimates based
on first order Born approximation. In the case of the quadratic inflaton
potential the reheating process depends crucially on the type of coupling
between the inflaton and the other scalar field and on the magnitudes of the
coupling constants. If the inflaton coupling to fermions and its linear (in
inflaton field) coupling to scalar fields are suppressed, then, as previously
discussed by Kofman, Linde and Starobinsky (see e.g. Ref. 13), the inflaton
field will eventually decouple from the rest of the matter, and the residual
inflaton oscillations may provide the (cold) dark matter of the universe. In
the case of the quadratic inflaton potential we obtain the lowest and the
highest possible bounds on the effective energy density of the inflaton field
when it freezes out.Comment: 40 pages, Preprint BROWN-HET-957 (revised version, some mistakes
corrected), uses phyzz
- …