AB effect and Aharonov-Susskind charge non-superselection

We consider a particle in a coherent superposition of states with different electric charge moving in the vicinity of a magnetic flux. Formally, it should acquire a (gauge-dependent) AB relative phase between the charge states, even for an incomplete loop. If measureable, such a geometric, rather than topological, AB-phase would seem to break gauge invariance. Wick, Wightman and Wigner argued that since (global) charge-dependent phase transformations are physically unobservable, charge state superpositions are unphysical (`charge superselection rule'). This would resolve the apparent paradox in a trivial way. However, Aharonov and Susskind disputed this superselection rule: they distinguished between such global charge-dependent transformations, and transformations of the relative inter-charge phases of two particles, and showed that the latter \emph{could} in principle be observable! Finally, the paradox again disappears once we considers the `calibration' of the phase measured by the Aharonov-Susskind phase detectors, as well as the phase of the particle at its initial point. It turns out that such a detector can only distinguish between the relative phases of two paths if their (oriented) difference forms a loop around the flux

The Roughness Properties of Small Ice-Bearing Craters at the South Pole of the Moon: Implications for Accessing Fresh Water Ice in Future Surface Operations

The lunar poles provide a fascinating thermal environment capable of cold-trapping water ice on geologic timescales [1]. While there have been many observations indicating the presence of water ice at the lunar surface [e.g., 24], it is still not clear when this ice was delivered to the Moon. The timing of volatile dep-osition provides important constraints on the origin of lunar ice because different delivery mechanisms have been active at different times throughout lunar history. We previously found that some small (<10 km) cra-ters at the south pole of the Moon have morphologies suggestive of relatively young ages, on the basis of crisp crater rims [5]. These craters are too small to date with robust cratering statistics [5], but the possibility of ice in young craters is intriguing because it suggests that there is some recent and perhaps ongoing mechanism that is delivering or redistributing water to polar cold traps. Therefore, understanding if these small, ice-bear-ing craters are indeed young is essential in understand-ing the age and source of volatiles on the Moon. Here we take a new approach to understand the ages of these small polar cold traps: analyzing the roughness properties of small ice-bearing craters. It is well under-stood that impact crater properties (e.g., morphology, rock abundance, and roughness) evolve with time due to a variety of geologic and space-weathering processes [611]. Topographic roughness is a measurement of the local deviation from the mean topography, providing a measurement of surface texture, and is a powerful tool for evaluating surface evolution over geologic time [e.g., 1114]. In this study we analyze the roughness of southern lunar craters (40S90S) from all geologic eras, and determine how the roughness of small (<10 km) ice-bearing craters compare. We discuss the implications of the ages of ice-bearing south polar craters, and potential strategies for accessing fresh ice on the Moon

Magnetic properties of La(0.67)Sr(0.33)MnO3/BiFeO3(001) heterojunctions: chemically abrupt versus atomic intermixed interface

Using first-principles density-functional calculations, we address the magnetic properties of the ferromagnet/antiferromagnet La(0.67)Sr(0.33)MnO3/BiFeO3(001) heterojunctions, and investigate possible driving mechanisms for a ferromagnetic (FM) interfacial ordering of the Fe spins recently observed experimentally. We find that the chemically abrupt defect-free La(0.67)Sr(0.33)MnO3/BiFeO3(001) heterojunction displays, as ground state, an ordering with compensated Fe spins. Cation Fe/Mn intermixing at the interface tends to favour, instead, a FM interfacial order of the Fe spins, coupled antiferromagnetically to the bulk La(0.67)Sr(0.33)MnO3 spins, as observed experimentally. Such trends are understood based on a model description of the energetics of the exchange interactions.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figure

Quasi-hermitian Quantum Mechanics in Phase Space

We investigate quasi-hermitian quantum mechanics in phase space using standard deformation quantization methods: Groenewold star products and Wigner transforms. We focus on imaginary Liouville theory as a representative example where exact results are easily obtained. We emphasize spatially periodic solutions, compute various distribution functions and phase-space metrics, and explore the relationships between them.Comment: Accepted by Journal of Mathematical Physic

5-State Rotation-Symmetric Number-Conserving Cellular Automata are not Strongly Universal

We study two-dimensional rotation-symmetric number-conserving cellular automata working on the von Neumann neighborhood (RNCA). It is known that such automata with 4 states or less are trivial, so we investigate the possible rules with 5 states. We give a full characterization of these automata and show that they cannot be strongly Turing universal. However, we give example of constructions that allow to embed some boolean circuit elements in a 5-states RNCA

Honey bee colony losses

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Quantum-Mechanical Dualities on the Torus

On classical phase spaces admitting just one complex-differentiable structure, there is no indeterminacy in the choice of the creation operators that create quanta out of a given vacuum. In these cases the notion of a quantum is universal, i.e., independent of the observer on classical phase space. Such is the case in all standard applications of quantum mechanics. However, recent developments suggest that the notion of a quantum may not be universal. Transformations between observers that do not agree on the notion of an elementary quantum are called dualities. Classical phase spaces admitting more than one complex-differentiable structure thus provide a natural framework to study dualities in quantum mechanics. As an example we quantise a classical mechanics whose phase space is a torus and prove explicitly that it exhibits dualities.Comment: New examples added, some precisions mad

On the probabilistic description of a multipartite correlation scenario with arbitrary numbers of settings and outcomes per site

We consistently formalize the probabilistic description of multipartite joint measurements performed on systems of any nature. This allows us: (1) to specify in probabilistic terms the difference between nonsignaling, the Einstein- Podolsky-Rosen (EPR) locality and Bell's locality; (2) to introduce the notion of an LHV model for an S_{1}x...xS_{N}-setting N-partite correlation experiment, with outcomes of any spectral type, discrete or continuous, and to prove both general and specific "quantum" statements on an LHV simulation in an arbitrary multipartite case; (3) to classify LHV models for a multipartite quantum state, in particular, to show that any N-partite quantum state, pure or mixed, admits an Sx1x...x1 -setting LHV description; (4) to evaluate a threshold visibility for a noisy bipartite quantum state to admit an S_{1}xS_ {2}-setting LHV description under any generalized quantum measurements of two parties. In a sequel to this paper, we shall introduce a single general representation incorporating in a unique manner all Bell-type inequalities for either joint probabilities or correlation functions that have been introduced or will be introduced in the literature.Comment: 26 pages; added section Conclusions and some references for section

Reduction of Effective Terahertz Focal Spot Size By Means Of Nested Concentric Parabolic Reflectors

An ongoing limitation of terahertz spectroscopy is that the technique is generally limited to the study of relatively large samples of order 4 mm across due to the generally large size of the focal beam spot. We present a nested concentric parabolic reflector design which can reduce the terahertz focal spot size. This parabolic reflector design takes advantage of the feature that reflected rays experience a relative time delay which is the same for all paths. The increase in effective optical path for reflected light is equivalent to the aperture diameter itself. We have shown that the light throughput of an aperture of 2 mm can be increased by a factor 15 as compared to a regular aperture of the same size at low frequencies. This technique can potentially be used to reduce the focal spot size in terahertz spectroscopy and enable the study of smaller samples

Relaxation Phenomena in a System of Two Harmonic Oscillators

We study the process by which quantum correlations are created when an interaction Hamiltonian is repeatedly applied to a system of two harmonic oscillators for some characteristic time interval. We show that, for the case where the oscillator frequencies are equal, the initial Maxwell-Boltzmann distributions of the uncoupled parts evolve to a new equilibrium Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution through a series of transient Maxwell-Boltzmann distributions. Further, we discuss why the equilibrium reached when the two oscillator frequencies are unequal, is not a thermal one. All the calculations are exact and the results are obtained through an iterative process, without using perturbation theory.Comment: 22 pages, 6 Figures, Added contents, to appear in PR