2,655 research outputs found
Non-monotoic fluctuation-induced interactions between dielectric slabs carrying charge disorder
We investigate the effect of monopolar charge disorder on the classical
fluctuation-induced interactions between randomly charged net-neutral
dielectric slabs and discuss various generalizations of recent results (A. Naji
et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 060601 (2010)) to highly inhomogeneous dielectric
systems with and without statistical disorder correlations. We shall focus on
the specific case of two generally dissimilar plane-parallel slabs, which
interact across vacuum or an arbitrary intervening dielectric medium. Monopolar
charge disorder is considered to be present on the bounding surfaces and/or in
the bulk of the slabs, may be in general quenched or annealed and may possess a
finite lateral correlation length reflecting possible `patchiness' of the
random charge distribution. In the case of quenched disorder, the bulk disorder
is shown to give rise to an additive long-range contribution to the total
force, which decays as the inverse distance between the slabs and may be
attractive or repulsive depending on the dielectric constants of the slabs. We
show that in the case of two dissimilar slabs the net effect due to the
interplay between the disorder-induced and the pure van der Waals interactions
can lead to a variety of unusual non-monotonic interaction profiles between the
dielectric slabs. In particular, when the intervening medium has a larger
dielectric constant than the two slabs, we find that the net interaction can
become repulsive and exhibit a potential barrier, while the underlying van der
Waals force is attractive. On the contrary, when the intervening medium has a
dielectric constant in between that of the two slabs, the net interaction can
become attractive and exhibit a free energy minimum, while the pure van der
Waals force is repulsive. Therefore, the charge disorder, if present, can
drastically alter the effective interaction between net-neutral objects.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figure
The Effect of Neutral Atoms on Capillary Discharge Z-pinch
We study the effect of neutral atoms on the dynamics of a capillary discharge
Z-pinch, in a regime for which a large soft-x-ray amplification has been
demonstrated. We extended the commonly used one-fluid magneto-hydrodynamics
(MHD) model by separating out the neutral atoms as a second fluid. Numerical
calculations using this extended model yield new predictions for the dynamics
of the pinch collapse, and better agreement with known measured data.Comment: 4 pages, 4 postscript figures, to be published in Phys. Rev. Let
Isotropy, shear, symmetry and exact solutions for relativistic fluid spheres
The symmetry method is used to derive solutions of Einstein's equations for
fluid spheres using an isotropic metric and a velocity four vector that is
non-comoving. Initially the Lie, classical approach is used to review and
provide a connecting framework for many comoving and so shear free solutions.
This provides the basis for the derivation of the classical point symmetries
for the more general and mathematicaly less tractable description of Einstein's
equations in the non-comoving frame. Although the range of symmetries is
restrictive, existing and new symmetry solutions with non-zero shear are
derived. The range is then extended using the non-classical direct symmetry
approach of Clarkson and Kruskal and so additional new solutions with non-zero
shear are also presented. The kinematics and pressure, energy density, mass
function of these solutions are determined.Comment: To appear in Classical and Quantum Gravit
Thyroid cancer risk in Belarus among children and adolescents exposed to radioiodine after the Chornobyl accident
BACKGROUND: Previous studies showed an increased risk of thyroid cancer among children and adolescents exposed to radioactive iodines released after the Chornobyl (Chernobyl) accident, but the effects of screening, iodine deficiency, age at exposure and other factors on the dose-response are poorly understood.
METHODS: We screened 11 970 individuals in Belarus aged 18 years or younger at the time of the accident who had estimated (131)I thyroid doses based on individual thyroid activity measurements and dosimetric data from questionnaires. The excess odds ratio per gray (EOR/Gy) was modelled using linear and linear-exponential functions.
RESULTS: For thyroid doses \u3c5 \u3eGy, the dose-response was linear (n=85; EOR/Gy=2.15, 95% confidence interval: 0.81-5.47), but at higher doses the excess risk fell. The EOR/Gy was significantly increased among those with prior or screening-detected diffuse goiter, and larger for men than women, and for persons exposed before age 5 than those exposed between 5 and 18 years, although not statistically significant. A somewhat higher EOR/Gy was estimated for validated pre-screening cases.
CONCLUSION: 10-15 years after the Chornobyl accident, thyroid cancer risk was significantly increased among individuals exposed to fallout as children or adolescents, but the risk appeared to be lower than in other Chornobyl studies and studies of childhood external irradiation
Theory of Thermal Motion in Electromagnetically Induced Transparency: Diffusion, Doppler, Dicke and Ramsey
We present a theoretical model for electromagnetically induced transparency
(EIT) in vapor, that incorporates atomic motion and velocity-changing
collisions into the dynamics of the density-matrix distribution. Within a
unified formalism we demonstrate various motional effects, known for EIT in
vapor: Doppler-broadening of the absorption spectrum; Dicke-narrowing and
time-of-flight broadening of the transmission window for a finite-sized probe;
Diffusion of atomic coherence during storage of light and diffusion of the
light-matter excitation during slow-light propagation; and Ramsey-narrowing of
the spectrum for a probe and pump beams of finite-size.Comment: Reference added, typos correcte
On the possibility of a relativistic correction to the E and B fields around a current-carrying wire
It is well known that electric and magnetic fields may change when they are
observed from different frames of reference. For example, the motion of a
charged probe particle moving parallel to a current-carrying wire would be
described by utilizing different electric or magnetic fields, depending on from
which frame of reference the system is observed and described. To describe the
situation in all frames by utilizing the theory of relativity, one has to first
describe the situation in one particular frame, and this choice in the case of
a current-carrying wire is the topic of this paper. In this study I examine an
alternative to the standard choice, and consider its theoretical and
experimental validity. An outcome of the alternative approach is that in the
rest frame of a wire, running a current introduces also an electric field by
giving rise to a minute charge. Present day experimental sensitivities,
specifically those of cold ions, may be able to differentiate between the
observable signatures predicted by the different approaches
Form factors and photoproduction amplitudes
We examine the use of phenomenological form factors in tree level amplitudes
for meson photoproduction. Two common recipes are shown to be fundamentally
incorrect. An alternate form consistent with gauge invariance and crossing
symmetry is proposed.Comment: To be published in PR
Delta isobar masses, large N_c relations, and the quark model
Motivated by recent remarks on the Delta+ mass and comparisons between the
quark model and relations based on large-N_c with perturbative flavor breaking,
two sets of Delta masses consistent with these constraints are constructed.
These two sets, based either on an experimentally determined mass splitting or
a quark model of isospin symmetry breaking, are shown to be inconsistent. The
model dependence of this inconsistency is examined, and suggestions for
improved experiments are made. An explicit quark model calculation and mass
relations based on the large-N_c limit with perturbative flavor breaking are
compared. The expected level of accuracy of such relations is realized in the
quark model, except for mass relations spanning more than one SU(6)
representation. It is shown that the Delta0 and Delta++ pole masses and Delta0
- Delta+ = (Delta- - Delta++)/3 about 1.5 MeV are more consistent with model
expectations than the analogous Breit-Wigner masses and their splittings.Comment: 10 pages, including 1 eps figure, revte
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