495 research outputs found
Influence of the Barrier Shape on Resonant Activation
The escape of a Brownian particle over a dichotomously fluctuating barrier is
investigated for various shapes of the barrier. The problem of resonant
activation is revisited with the attention on the effect of the barrier shape
on optimal value of the mean escape time in the system. The characteristic
features of resonant behavior are analyzed for barriers switching either
between different heights, or "on" and "off" positions. PACS number(s):
05.10-a, 02.50.-r, 82.20.-wj.Comment: 7 pages, 8 figures, RevTex4. Manuscript has been revised and
enhanced. Pictures have been made more clear and some of them have been
cancelled. Additional references have been added. The paper has been
submitted to Phys. Rev.
Studying Paths of Participation in Viral Diffusion Process
Authors propose a conceptual model of participation in viral diffusion
process composed of four stages: awareness, infection, engagement and action.
To verify the model it has been applied and studied in the virtual social chat
environment settings. The study investigates the behavioral paths of actions
that reflect the stages of participation in the diffusion and presents
shortcuts, that lead to the final action, i.e. the attendance in a virtual
event. The results show that the participation in each stage of the process
increases the probability of reaching the final action. Nevertheless, the
majority of users involved in the virtual event did not go through each stage
of the process but followed the shortcuts. That suggests that the viral
diffusion process is not necessarily a linear sequence of human actions but
rather a dynamic system.Comment: In proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Social
Informatics, SocInfo 201
States and transitions in black-hole binaries
With the availability of the large database of black-hole transients from the
Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer, the observed phenomenology has become very
complex. The original classification of the properties of these systems in a
series of static states sorted by mass accretion rate proved not to be able to
encompass the new picture. I outline here a summary of the current situation
and show that a coherent picture emerges when simple properties such as X-ray
spectral hardness and fractional variability are considered. In particular,
fast transition in the properties of the fast time variability appear to be
crucial to describe the evolution of black-hole transients. Based on this
picture, I present a state-classification which takes into account the observed
transitions. I show that, in addition to transients systems, other black-hole
binaries and Active Galactic Nuclei can be interpreted within this framework.
The association between these states and the physics of the accretion flow
around black holes will be possible only through modeling of the full time
evolution of galactic transient systems.Comment: 30 pages, 11 figures, To appear in Belloni, T. (ed.): The Jet
Paradigm - From Microquasars to Quasars, Lect. Notes Phys. 794 (2009
Measurement of and charged current inclusive cross sections and their ratio with the T2K off-axis near detector
We report a measurement of cross section and the first measurements of the cross section
and their ratio
at (anti-)neutrino energies below 1.5
GeV. We determine the single momentum bin cross section measurements, averaged
over the T2K -flux, for the detector target material (mainly
Carbon, Oxygen, Hydrogen and Copper) with phase space restricted laboratory
frame kinematics of 500 MeV/c. The
results are and $\sigma(\nu)=\left( 2.41\
\pm0.022{\rm{(stat.)}}\pm0.231{\rm (syst.)}\ \right)\times10^{-39}^{2}R\left(\frac{\sigma(\bar{\nu})}{\sigma(\nu)}\right)=
0.373\pm0.012{\rm (stat.)}\pm0.015{\rm (syst.)}$.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figure
Measurement of W Polarisation at LEP
The three different helicity states of W bosons produced in the reaction e+
e- -> W+ W- -> l nu q q~ at LEP are studied using leptonic and hadronic W
decays. Data at centre-of-mass energies \sqrt s = 183-209 GeV are used to
measure the polarisation of W bosons, and its dependence on the W boson
production angle. The fraction of longitudinally polarised W bosons is measured
to be 0.218 \pm 0.027 \pm 0.016 where the first uncertainty is statistical and
the second systematic, in agreement with the Standard Model expectation
Search for Anomalous Couplings in the Higgs Sector at LEP
Anomalous couplings of the Higgs boson are searched for through the processes
e^+ e^- -> H gamma, e^+ e^- -> e^+ e^- H and e^+ e^- -> HZ. The mass range 70
GeV < m_H < 190 GeV is explored using 602 pb^-1 of integrated luminosity
collected with the L3 detector at LEP at centre-of-mass energies
sqrt(s)=189-209 GeV. The Higgs decay channels H -> ffbar, H -> gamma gamma, H
-> Z\gamma and H -> WW^(*) are considered and no evidence is found for
anomalous Higgs production or decay. Limits on the anomalous couplings d, db,
Delta(g1z), Delta(kappa_gamma) and xi^2 are derived as well as limits on the H
-> gamma gamma and H -> Z gamma decay rates
Measurement of W Polarisation at LEP
The three different helicity states of W bosons produced in the reaction e+
e- -> W+ W- -> l nu q q~ at LEP are studied using leptonic and hadronic W
decays. Data at centre-of-mass energies \sqrt s = 183-209 GeV are used to
measure the polarisation of W bosons, and its dependence on the W boson
production angle. The fraction of longitudinally polarised W bosons is measured
to be 0.218 \pm 0.027 \pm 0.016 where the first uncertainty is statistical and
the second systematic, in agreement with the Standard Model expectation
Bose-Einstein Correlations of Neutral and Charged Pions in Hadronic Z Decays
Bose-Einstein correlations of both neutral and like-sign charged pion pairs
are measured in a sample of 2 million hadronic Z decays collected with the L3
detector at LEP. The analysis is performed in the four-momentum difference
range 300 MeV < Q < 2 GeV. The radius of the neutral pion source is found to be
smaller than that of charged pions. This result is in qualitative agreement
with the string fragmentation model
Z Boson Pair-Production at LEP
Events stemming from the pair-production of Z bosons in e^+e^- collisions are
studied using 217.4 pb^-1 of data collected with the L3 detector at
centre-of-mass energies from 200 GeV up to 209 GeV. The special case of events
with b quarks is also investigated.
Combining these events with those collected at lower centre-of-mass energies,
the Standard Model predictions for the production mechanism are verified. In
addition, limits are set on anomalous couplings of neutral gauge bosons and on
effects of extra space dimensions
Neutral-Current Four-Fermion Production in e+e- Interactions at LEP
Neutral-current four-fermion production, e+e- -> ffff is studied in 0.7/fb of
data collected with the L3 detector at LEP at centre-of-mass energies
root(s)=183-209GeV. Four final states are considered: qqvv, qqll, llll and
llvv, where l denotes either an electron or a muon. Their cross sections are
measured and found to agree with the Standard Model predictions. In addition,
the e+e- -> Zgamma* -> ffff process is studied and its total cross section at
the average centre-of-mass energy 196.6GeV is found to be 0.29 +/- 0.05 +/-
0.03 pb, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second systematic,
in agreement with the Standard Model prediction of 0.22 pb. Finally, the mass
spectra of the qqll final states are analysed to search for the possible
production of a new neutral heavy particle, for which no evidence is found
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