325 research outputs found
Approximating the inspiral of test bodies into Kerr black holes
We present a new approximate method for constructing gravitational radiation
driven inspirals of test-bodies orbiting Kerr black holes. Such orbits can be
fully described by a semi-latus rectum , an eccentricity , and an
inclination angle ; or, by an energy , an angular momentum component
, and a third constant . Our scheme uses expressions that are exact
(within an adiabatic approximation) for the rates of change (,
, ) as linear combinations of the fluxes (,
, ), but uses quadrupole-order formulae for these fluxes.
This scheme thus encodes the exact orbital dynamics, augmenting it with
approximate radiation reaction. Comparing inspiral trajectories, we find that
this approximation agrees well with numerical results for the special cases of
eccentric equatorial and circular inclined orbits, far more accurate than
corresponding weak-field formulae for (, , ). We
use this technique to study the inspiral of a test-body in inclined, eccentric
Kerr orbits. Our results should be useful tools for constructing approximate
waveforms that can be used to study data analysis problems for the future LISA
gravitational-wave observatory, in lieu of waveforms from more rigorous
techniques that are currently under development.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figures, submitted to PR
Perturbative Approach to an orbital evolution around a Supermassive black hole
A charge-free, point particle of infinitesimal mass orbiting a Kerr black
hole is known to move along a geodesic. When the particle has a finite mass or
charge, it emits radiation which carries away orbital energy and angular
momentum, and the orbit deviates from a geodesic.
In this paper we assume that the deviation is small and show that the
half-advanced minus half-retarded field surprisingly provides the correct
radiation reaction force, in a time-averaged sense, and determines the orbit of
the particle.Comment: accepted for publication in the Physical Revie
Rotational kinetics of absorbing dust grains in neutral gas
We study the rotational and translational kinetics of massive particulates
(dust grains) absorbing the ambient gas. Equations for microscopic phase
densities are deduced resulting in the Fokker-Planck equation for the dust
component. It is shown that although there is no stationary distribution, the
translational and rotational temperatures of dust tend to certain values, which
differ from the temperature of the ambient gas. The influence of the inner
structure of grains on rotational kinetics is also discussed.Comment: REVTEX4, 20 pages, 2 figure
Gauge Problem in the Gravitational Self-Force II. First Post Newtonian Force under Regge-Wheeler Gauge
We discuss the gravitational self-force on a particle in a black hole
space-time. For a point particle, the full (bare) self-force diverges. It is
known that the metric perturbation induced by a particle can be divided into
two parts, the direct part (or the S part) and the tail part (or the R part),
in the harmonic gauge, and the regularized self-force is derived from the R
part which is regular and satisfies the source-free perturbed Einstein
equations. In this paper, we consider a gauge transformation from the harmonic
gauge to the Regge-Wheeler gauge in which the full metric perturbation can be
calculated, and present a method to derive the regularized self-force for a
particle in circular orbit around a Schwarzschild black hole in the
Regge-Wheeler gauge. As a first application of this method, we then calculate
the self-force to first post-Newtonian order. We find the correction to the
total mass of the system due to the presence of the particle is correctly
reproduced in the force at the Newtonian order.Comment: Revtex4, 43 pages, no figure. Version to be published in PR
Fundamental Physical Constants: Looking from Different Angles
We consider fundamental physical constants which are among a few of the most
important pieces of information we have learned about Nature after its
intensive centuries-long studies. We discuss their multifunctional role in
modern physics including problems related to the art of measurement, natural
and practical units, origin of the constants, their possible calculability and
variability etc
Reconstruction of Black Hole Metric Perturbations from Weyl Curvature
Perturbation theory of rotating black holes is usually described in terms of
Weyl scalars and , which each satisfy Teukolsky's complex
master wave equation and respectively represent outgoing and ingoing radiation.
On the other hand metric perturbations of a Kerr hole can be described in terms
of (Hertz-like) potentials in outgoing or ingoing {\it radiation
gauges}. In this paper we relate these potentials to what one actually computes
in perturbation theory, i.e and . We explicitly construct
these relations in the nonrotating limit, preparatory to devising a
corresponding approach for building up the perturbed spacetime of a rotating
black hole. We discuss the application of our procedure to second order
perturbation theory and to the study of radiation reaction effects for a
particle orbiting a massive black hole.Comment: 6 Pages, Revtex
The Relativistic Factor in the Orbital Dynamics of Point Masses
There is a growing population of relativistically relevant minor bodies in
the Solar System and a growing population of massive extrasolar planets with
orbits very close to the central star where relativistic effects should have
some signature. Our purpose is to review how general relativity affects the
orbital dynamics of the planetary systems and to define a suitable relativistic
correction for Solar System orbital studies when only point masses are
considered. Using relativistic formulae for the N body problem suited for a
planetary system given in the literature we present a series of numerical
orbital integrations designed to test the relevance of the effects due to the
general theory of relativity in the case of our Solar System. Comparison
between different algorithms for accounting for the relativistic corrections
are performed. Relativistic effects generated by the Sun or by the central star
are the most relevant ones and produce evident modifications in the secular
dynamics of the inner Solar System. The Kozai mechanism, for example, is
modified due to the relativistic effects on the argument of the perihelion.
Relativistic effects generated by planets instead are of very low relevance but
detectable in numerical simulations
Fermion Chern Simons Theory of Hierarchical Fractional Quantum Hall States
We present an effective Chern-Simons theory for the bulk fully polarized
fractional quantum Hall (FQH) hierarchical states constructed as daughters of
general states of the Jain series, {\it i. e.} as FQH states of the
quasi-particles or quasi-holes of Jain states. We discuss the stability of
these new states and present two reasonable stability criteria. We discuss the
theory of their edge states which follows naturally from this bulk theory. We
construct the operators that create elementary excitations, and discuss the
scaling behavior of the tunneling conductance in different situations. Under
the assumption that the edge states of these fully polarized hierarchical
states are unreconstructed and unresolved, we find that the differential
conductance for tunneling of electrons from a Fermi liquid into {\em any}
hierarchical Jain FQH states has the scaling behavior with the
universal exponent , where is the filling fraction of the
hierarchical state. Finally, we explore alternative ways of constructing FQH
states with the same filling fractions as partially polarized states, and
conclude that this is not possible within our approach.Comment: 10 pages, 50 references, no figures; formerly known as "Composite
Fermions: The Next Generation(s)" (title changed by the PRB thought police).
This version has more references and a discussion of the stability of the new
states. Published version. One erroneous reference is correcte
Negatively Charged Excitons and Photoluminescence in Asymmetric Quantum Well
We study photoluminescence (PL) of charged excitons () in narrow
asymmetric quantum wells in high magnetic fields B. The binding of all
states strongly depends on the separation of electron and hole layers.
The most sensitive is the ``bright'' singlet, whose binding energy decreases
quickly with increasing even at relatively small B. As a result, the
value of B at which the singlet--triplet crossing occurs in the spectrum
also depends on and decreases from 35 T in a symmetric 10 nm GaAs well
to 16 T for nm. Since the critical values of at which
different states unbind are surprisingly small compared to the well
width, the observation of strongly bound states in an experimental PL
spectrum implies virtually no layer displacement in the sample. This casts
doubt on the interpretation of PL spectra of heterojunctions in terms of
recombination
Search for the Rare Decay KL --> pi0 ee
The KTeV/E799 experiment at Fermilab has searched for the rare kaon decay
KL--> pi0ee. This mode is expected to have a significant CP violating
component. The measurement of its branching ratio could support the Standard
Model or could indicate the existence of new physics. This letter reports new
results from the 1999-2000 data set. One event is observed with an expected
background at 0.99 +/- 0.35 events. We set a limit on the branching ratio of
3.5 x 10^(-10) at the 90% confidence level. Combining the results with the
dataset taken in 1997 yields the final KTeV result: BR(KL --> pi0 ee) < 2.8 x
10^(-10) at 90% CL.Comment: 4 pages, three figure
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