Nonlinear robust controller design for multi-robot systems with unknown payloads

This work is concerned with the control problem of a multi-robot system handling a payload with unknown mass properties. Force constraints at the grasp points are considered. Robust control schemes are proposed that cope with the model uncertainty and achieve asymptotic path tracking. To deal with the force constraints, a strategy for optimally sharing the task is suggested. This strategy basically consists of two steps. The first detects the robots that need help and the second arranges that help. It is shown that the overall system is not only robust to uncertain payload parameters, but also satisfies the force constraints

Universality and correlations in individuals wandering through an online extremist space

The 'out of the blue' nature of recent terror attacks and the diversity of apparent motives, highlight the importance of understanding the online trajectories that individuals follow prior to developing high levels of extremist support. Here we show that the physics of stochastic walks, with and without temporal correlation, provides a unifying description of these online trajectories. Our unique dataset comprising all users of a global social media site, reveals universal characteristics in individuals' online lifetimes. Our accompanying theory generates analytical and numerical solutions that describe the characteristics shown by individuals that go on to develop high levels of extremist support, and those that do not. The existence of these temporal and also many-body correlations suggests that existing physics machinery can be used to quantify and perhaps mitigate the risk of future events

Shuttle-promoted nano-mechanical current switch

We investigate electron shuttling in three-terminal nanoelectromechanocal device built on a movable metallic rod oscillating between two drains. The device shows a double-well shaped electromechanical potential tunable by a source-drain bias voltage. Four stationary regimes controllable by the bias are found for this device: (i) single stable fixed point, (ii) two stable fixed points, (iii) two limiting cycles, and (iv) single limiting cycle. In the presence of perpendicular magnetic field the Lorentz force makes possible switching from one electromechanical state to another. The mechanism of tunable transitions between various stable regimes based on the interplay between voltage controlled electromechanical instability and magnetically controlled switching is suggested. The switching phenomenon is implemented for achieving both a reliable \emph{active} current switch and sensoring of small variations of magnetic field.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figure

Self-sustained oscillations in nanoelectromechanical systems induced by Kondo resonance

We investigate instability and dynamical properties of nanoelectromechanical systems represented by a single-electron device containing movable quantum dot attached to a vibrating cantilever via asymmetric tunnel contact. The Kondo resonance in electron tunneling between source and shuttle facilitates self-sustained oscillations originated from strong coupling of mechanical and electronic/spin degrees of freedom. We analyze stability diagram for two-channel Kondo shuttling regime due to limitations given by the electromotive force acting on a moving shuttle and find that the saturation amplitude of oscillation is associated with the retardation effect of Kondo-cloud. The results shed light on possible ways of experimental realization of dynamical probe for the Kondo-cloud by using high tunability of mechanical dissipation as well as supersensitive detection of mechanical displacement

q-Deformation of W(2,2) Lie algebra associated with quantum groups

An explicit realization of the W(2,2) Lie algebra is presented using the famous bosonic and fermionic oscillators in physics, which is then used to construct the q-deformation of this Lie algebra. Furthermore, the quantum group structures on the q-deformation of this Lie algebra are completely determined.Comment: 12 page

Consistency test of general relativity from large scale structure of the Universe

We construct a consistency test of General Relativity (GR) on cosmological scales. This test enables us to distinguish between the two alternatives to explain the late-time accelerated expansion of the universe, that is, dark energy models based on GR and modified gravity models without dark energy. We derive the consistency relation in GR which is written only in terms of observables - the Hubble parameter, the density perturbations, the peculiar velocities and the lensing potential. The breakdown of this consistency relation implies that the Newton constant which governs large-scale structure is different from that in the background cosmology, which is a typical feature in modified gravity models. We propose a method to perform this test by reconstructing the weak lensing spectrum from measured density perturbations and peculiar velocities. This reconstruction relies on Poisson's equation in GR to convert the density perturbations to the lensing potential. Hence any inconsistency between the reconstructed lensing spectrum and the measured lensing spectrum indicates the failure of GR on cosmological scales. The difficulties in performing this test using actual observations are discussed.Comment: 7 pages, 1 figur

Energy and momentum deposited into a QCD medium by a jet shower

Hard partons moving through a dense QCD medium lose energy by radiative emissions and elastic scatterings. Deposition of the radiative contribution into the medium requires rescattering of the radiated gluons. We compute the total energy loss and its deposition into the medium self-consistently within the same formalism, assuming perturbative interaction between probe and medium. The same transport coefficients that control energy loss of the hard parton determine how the energy is deposited into the medium; this allows a parameter free calculation of the latter once the former have been computed or extracted from experimental energy loss data. We compute them for a perturbative medium in hard thermal loop (HTL) approximation. Assuming that the deposited energy-momentum is equilibrated after a short relaxation time, we compute the medium's hydrodynamical response and obtain a conical pattern that is strongly enhanced by showering.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, revtex4, intro modified, typos correcte

Magneto-infrared spectroscopy of Landau levels and Zeeman splitting of three-dimensional massless Dirac Fermions in ZrTe5_5

We present a magneto-infrared spectroscopy study on a newly identified three-dimensional (3D) Dirac semimetal ZrTe$_5$. We observe clear transitions between Landau levels and their further splitting under magnetic field. Both the sequence of transitions and their field dependence follow quantitatively the relation expected for 3D \emph{massless} Dirac fermions. The measurement also reveals an exceptionally low magnetic field needed to drive the compound into its quantum limit, demonstrating that ZrTe$_5$ is an extremely clean system and ideal platform for studying 3D Dirac fermions. The splitting of the Landau levels provides a direct and bulk spectroscopic evidence that a relatively weak magnetic field can produce a sizeable Zeeman effect on the 3D Dirac fermions, which lifts the spin degeneracy of Landau levels. Our analysis indicates that the compound evolves from a Dirac semimetal into a topological line-node semimetal under current magnetic field configuration.Comment: Editors' Suggestio