7,839 research outputs found
Electrodynamics of superconductors
An alternate set of equations to describe the electrodynamics of
superconductors at a macroscopic level is proposed. These equations resemble
equations originally proposed by the London brothers but later discarded by
them. Unlike the conventional London equations the alternate equations are
relativistically covariant, and they can be understood as arising from the
'rigidity' of the superfluid wave function in a relativistically covariant
microscopic theory. They predict that an internal 'spontaneous' electric field
exists in superconductors, and that externally applied electric fields, both
longitudinal and transverse, are screened over a London penetration length, as
magnetic fields are. The associated longitudinal dielectric function predicts a
much steeper plasmon dispersion relation than the conventional theory, and a
blue shift of the minimum plasmon frequency for small samples. It is argued
that the conventional London equations lead to difficulties that are removed in
the present theory, and that the proposed equations do not contradict any known
experimental facts. Experimental tests are discussed.Comment: Small changes following referee's and editor's comments; to be
published in Phys.Rev.
Exploring CP Violation with B_d -> D K_s Decays
We (re)examine CP violation in the decays B_d -> D K_s, where D represents
D^0, D(bar), or one of their excited states. The quantity can be extracted from the time-dependent rates for and , where the decays to
. If one considers a non-CP-eigenstate hadronic final state to
which both D(bar) and D^0 can decay (e.g. ), then one can obtain two
of the angles of the unitarity triangle from measurements of the time-dependent
rates for and .
There are no penguin contributions to these decays, so all measurements are
theoretically clean.Comment: 15 pages, LaTeX, no figure
Statistical mechanics of an ideal Bose gas in a confined geometry
We study the behaviour of an ideal non-relativistic Bose gas in a
three-dimensional space where one of the dimensions is compactified to form a
circle. In this case there is no phase transition like that for the case of an
infinite volume, nevertheless Bose-Einstein condensation signified by a sudden
buildup of particles in the ground state can occur. We use the grand canonical
ensemble to study this problem. In particular, the specific heat is evaluated
numerically, as well as analytically in certain limits. We show analytically
how the familiar result for the specific heat is recovered as we let the size
of the circle become large so that the infinite volume limit is approached. We
also examine in detail the behaviour of the chemical potential and establish
the precise manner in which it approaches zero as the volume becomes large.Comment: 13 pages, 2 eps figures, revtex
Correcting 100 years of misunderstanding: electric fields in superconductors, hole superconductivity, and the Meissner effect
From the outset of superconductivity research it was assumed that no
electrostatic fields could exist inside superconductors, and this assumption
was incorporated into conventional London electrodynamics. Yet the London
brothers themselves initially (in 1935) had proposed an electrodynamic theory
of superconductors that allowed for static electric fields in their interior,
which they unfortunately discarded a year later. I argue that the Meissner
effect in superconductors necessitates the existence of an electrostatic field
in their interior, originating in the expulsion of negative charge from the
interior to the surface when a metal becomes superconducting. The theory of
hole superconductivity predicts this physics, and associated with it a
macroscopic spin current in the ground state of superconductors ("Spin Meissner
effect"), qualitatively different from what is predicted by conventional
BCS-London theory. A new London-like electrodynamic description of
superconductors is proposed to describe this physics. Within this theory
superconductivity is driven by lowering of quantum kinetic energy, the fact
that the Coulomb repulsion strongly depends on the character of the charge
carriers, namely whether electron- or hole-like, and the spin-orbit
interaction. The electron-phonon interaction does not play a significant role,
yet the existence of an isotope effect in many superconductors is easily
understood. In the strong coupling regime the theory appears to favor local
charge inhomogeneity. The theory is proposed to apply to all superconducting
materials, from the elements to the high cuprates and pnictides, is
highly falsifiable, and explains a wide variety of experimental observations.Comment: Proceedings of the conference "Quantum phenomena in complex matter
2011 - Stripes 2011", Rome, 10 July -16 July 2011, to be published in J.
Supercond. Nov. Mag
Electron-beam-induced shift in the apparent position of a pinned vortex in a thin superconducting film
When an electron beam strikes a superconducting thin film near a pinned
vortex, it locally increases the temperature-dependent London penetration depth
and perturbs the circulating supercurrent, thereby distorting the vortex's
magnetic field toward the heated spot. This phenomenon has been used to
visualize vortices pinned in SQUIDs using low-temperature scanning electron
microscopy. In this paper I develop a quantitative theory to calculate the
displacement of the vortex-generated magnetic-flux distribution as a function
of the distance of the beam spot from the vortex core. The results are
calculated using four different models for the spatial distribution of the
thermal power deposited by the electron beam.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, resubmitted to PRB with referee-suggested
revisions, includes new paragraph on numerical evaluatio
Extracting Weak Phase Information from B -> V_1 V_2 Decays
We describe a new method for extracting weak, CP-violating phase information,
with no hadronic uncertainties, from an angular analysis of B -> V_1 V_2
decays, where V_1 and V_2 are vector mesons. The quantity can be cleanly obtained from the study of decays such as B_d^0(t) ->
D^{*\pm} \rho^\mp, D^{*\pm} a_1^{\mp}, D^{*0} K^{*0}, etc. Similarly, one can
use B_s^0(t) -> D_s^{*\pm} K^{*\mp} to extract . There are no
penguin contributions to these decays. It is possible that will be the second function of CP phases, after , to be
measured at B-factories.Comment: 4 pages, RevTeX, no figure
Low Dopamine D2/D3 Receptor Availability is Associated with Steep Discounting of Delayed Rewards in Methamphetamine Dependence.
BackgroundIndividuals with substance use disorders typically exhibit a predilection toward instant gratification with apparent disregard for the future consequences of their actions. Indirect evidence suggests that low dopamine D2-type receptor availability in the striatum contributes to the propensity of these individuals to sacrifice long-term goals for short-term gain; however, this possibility has not been tested directly. We investigated whether striatal D2/D3 receptor availability is negatively correlated with the preference for smaller, more immediate rewards over larger, delayed alternatives among research participants who met DSM-IV criteria for methamphetamine (MA) dependence.MethodsFifty-four adults (n = 27 each: MA-dependent, non-user controls) completed the Kirby Monetary Choice Questionnaire, and underwent positron emission tomography scanning with [(18)F]fallypride.ResultsMA users displayed steeper temporal discounting (p = 0.030) and lower striatal D2/D3 receptor availability (p < 0.0005) than controls. Discount rate was negatively correlated with striatal D2/D3 receptor availability, with the relationship reaching statistical significance in the combined sample (r = -0.291, p = 0.016) and among MA users alone (r = -0.342, p = 0.041), but not among controls alone (r = -0.179, p = 0.185); the slopes did not differ significantly between MA users and controls (p = 0.5).ConclusionsThese results provide the first direct evidence of a link between deficient D2/D3 receptor availability and steep temporal discounting. This finding fits with reports that low striatal D2/D3 receptor availability is associated with a higher risk of relapse among stimulant users, and may help to explain why some individuals choose to continue using drugs despite knowledge of their eventual negative consequences. Future research directions and therapeutic implications are discussed
Kinetic energy driven superconductivity and superfluidity
The theory of hole superconductivity proposes that superconductivity is
driven by lowering of quantum kinetic energy and is associated with expansion
of electronic orbits and expulsion of negative charge from the interior to the
surface of superconductors and beyond. This physics provides a dynamical
explanation of the Meissner effect. Here we propose that similar physics takes
place in superfluid helium 4. Experimental manifestations of this physics in
are the negative thermal expansion of below the point
and the "Onnes effect", the fact that superfluid helium will creep up the walls
of the container and escape to the exterior. The Onnes effect and the Meissner
effect are proposed to originate in macroscopic zero point rotational motion of
the superfluids. It is proposed that this physics indicates a fundamental
inadequacy of conventional quantum mechanics
Scattering of Phonons by a Vortex in a Superfluid
Recent work gives a transverse force on an isolated moving vortex which is
independent of the normal fluid velocity, but it is widely believed that the
asymmetry of phonon scattering by a vortex leads to a transverse force
dependent on the relative motion of the normal component and the vortex. We
show that a widely accepted derivation of the transverse force is in error, and
that a careful evaluation leads to a much smaller transverse force. We argue
that a different approach is needed to get the correct expression.
\pacs{67.40.Vs,67.57.Fg,47.37.+q,47.32.Cc}Comment: 4 page
Magnus and Iordanskii Forces in Superfluids
The total transverse force acting on a quantized vortex in a superfluid is a
problem that has eluded a complete understanding for more than three decades.
In this letter I propose a remarkably simple argument, somewhat reminiscent of
Laughlin's beautiful argument for the quantization of conductance in the
quantum Hall effect, to define the superfluid velocity part of the transverse
force. This term is found to be . Although
this result does not seem to be overly controversial, this thermodynamic
argument based only on macroscopic properties of the superfluid does offer a
robust derivation. A recent publication by Thouless, Ao and Niu has
demonstrated that the vortex velocity part of the transverse force in a
homogeneous neutral superfluid is given by the usual form . A combination of these two independent results and the required
Galilean invariance yields that there cannot be any transverse force
proportional to the normal fluid velocity, in apparent conflict with
Iordanskii's theory of the transverse force due to phonon scattering by the
vortex.Comment: RevTex, 1 Encapsulated Postscript figur
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