Universal first-passage statistics of aging processes

Many out of equilibrium phenomena, such as diffusion-limited reactions or target search processes, are controlled by first-passage events. So far the general determination of the mean first-passage time (FPT) to a target in confinement has left aside aging processes, involved in contexts as varied as glassy dynamics, tracer diffusion in biological membranes or transport of cold atoms in optical lattices. Here we consider general non-Markovian scale-invariant processes in arbitrary dimension, displaying aging, and demonstrate that all the moments of the FPT obey universal scalings with the confining volume with non trivial exponents. Our analysis shows that a nonlinear scaling of the mean FPT with the volume is the hallmark of aging and provides a general tool to quantify its impact on first-passage kinetics in confinement

Field-free two-direction alignment alternation of linear molecules by elliptic laser pulses

We show that a linear molecule subjected to a short specific elliptically polarized laser field yields postpulse revivals exhibiting alignment alternatively located along the orthogonal axis and the major axis of the ellipse. The effect is experimentally demonstrated by measuring the optical Kerr effect along two different axes. The conditions ensuring an optimal field-free alternation of high alignments along both directions are derived.Comment: 5 pages, 4 color figure

Acute Abdomen: A Rare Presentation of Lung Cancer Metastasis

Surgical emergencies caused by bowel metastases from carcinoma of the lung are very rare. We describe two cases of symptomatic gastrointestinal metastatic small cell carcinoma: the first one concerns a 69-year-old man with an acute abdomen and the second is a 72-year-old man complaining of a gastric ulcer symptoms. We also discuss the current management and the prognosis of these patients

Évolutions récentes de la structure des placements des assureurs.

L’analyse des portefeuilles des assureurs en 2009 confirme leur forte diversification géographique, avec une prépondérance des titres d’émetteurs de la zone euro, ainsi que l’allongement de leurs placements obligataires en réponse aux évolutions de la courbe des taux.organismes d’assurance, assureurs vie, assureurs vie-mixte, assureurs non-vie, provisions techniques, contrats en euros, contrats en unités de compte, placements financiers, mise en transparence, épargne des ménages, circuits de financement, titres de créance, obligations, actions.

Reaching optimally oriented molecular states by laser kicks

We present a strategy for post-pulse orientation aiming both at efficiency and maximal duration within a rotational period. We first identify the optimally oriented states which fulfill both requirements. We show that a sequence of half-cycle pulses of moderate intensity can be devised for reaching these target states.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Optimized time-dependent perturbation theory for pulse-driven quantum dynamics in atomic or molecular systems

We present a time-dependent perturbative approach adapted to the treatment of intense pulsed interactions. We show there is a freedom in choosing secular terms and use it to optimize the accuracy of the approximation. We apply this formulation to a unitary superconvergent technique and improve the accuracy by several orders of magnitude with respect to the Magnus expansion.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure

Mean first-passage times of non-Markovian random walkers in confinement

The first-passage time (FPT), defined as the time a random walker takes to reach a target point in a confining domain, is a key quantity in the theory of stochastic processes. Its importance comes from its crucial role to quantify the efficiency of processes as varied as diffusion-limited reactions, target search processes or spreading of diseases. Most methods to determine the FPT properties in confined domains have been limited to Markovian (memoryless) processes. However, as soon as the random walker interacts with its environment, memory effects can not be neglected. Examples of non Markovian dynamics include single-file diffusion in narrow channels or the motion of a tracer particle either attached to a polymeric chain or diffusing in simple or complex fluids such as nematics \cite{turiv2013effect}, dense soft colloids or viscoelastic solution. Here, we introduce an analytical approach to calculate, in the limit of a large confining volume, the mean FPT of a Gaussian non-Markovian random walker to a target point. The non-Markovian features of the dynamics are encompassed by determining the statistical properties of the trajectory of the random walker in the future of the first-passage event, which are shown to govern the FPT kinetics.This analysis is applicable to a broad range of stochastic processes, possibly correlated at long-times. Our theoretical predictions are confirmed by numerical simulations for several examples of non-Markovian processes including the emblematic case of the Fractional Brownian Motion in one or higher dimensions. These results show, on the basis of Gaussian processes, the importance of memory effects in first-passage statistics of non-Markovian random walkers in confinement.Comment: Submitted version. Supplementary Information can be found on the Nature website : http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v534/n7607/full/nature18272.htm

Laser control for the optimal evolution of pure quantum states

Starting from an initial pure quantum state, we present a strategy for reaching a target state corresponding to the extremum (maximum or minimum) of a given observable. We show that a sequence of pulses of moderate intensity, applied at times when the average of the observable reaches its local or global extremum, constitutes a strategy transferable to different control issues. Among them, post-pulse molecular alignment and orientation are presented as examples. The robustness of such strategies with respect to experimentally relevant parameters is also examined.Comment: 16 pages, 9 figure