On the chirality of quark modes

A model for the QCD vacuum based on a domainlike structured background gluon field with definite duality attributed to the domains has been shown elsewhere to give confinement of static quarks, a reasonable value for the topological susceptibility and indications that chiral symmetry is spontaneously broken. In this paper we study in detail the eigenvalue problem for the Dirac operator in such a gluon mean field. A study of the local chirality parameter shows that the lowest nonzero eigenmodes possess a definite mean chirality correlated with the duality of a given domain. A probability distribution of the local chirality qualitatively reproduces histograms seen in lattice simulations.Comment: RevTeX4, 5 figures, 14 page

Topology and chiral symmetry breaking in SU(N) gauge theories

We study the low-lying eigenmodes of the lattice overlap Dirac operator for SU(N) gauge theories with N=2,3,4 and 5 colours. We define a fermionic topological charge from the zero-modes of this operator and show that, as N grows, any disagreement with the topological charge obtained by cooling the fields, becomes rapidly less likely. By examining the fields where there is a disagreement, we are able to show that the Dirac operator does not resolve instantons below a critical size of about rho = 2.5 a, but resolves the larger, more physical instantons. We investigate the local chirality of the near-zero modes and how it changes as we go to larger N. We observe that the local chirality of these modes, which is prominent for SU(2) and SU(3), becomes rapidly weaker for larger N and is consistent with disappearing entirely in the limit of N -> infinity. We find that this is not due to the observed disappearance of small instantons at larger N.Comment: 41 pages, 12 figures, RevTe

Confinement and Chiral Symmetry Breaking via Domain-Like Structures in the QCD Vacuum

A qualitative mechanism for the emergence of domain structured background gluon fields due to singularities in gauge field configurations is considered, and a model displaying a type of mean field approximation to the QCD partition function based on this mechanism is formulated. Estimation of the vacuum parameters (gluon condensate, topological susceptibility, string constant and quark condensate) indicates that domain-like structures lead to an area law for the Wilson loop, nonzero topological susceptibility and spontaneous breakdown of chiral symmetry. Gluon and ghost propagators in the presence of domains are calculated explicitly and their analytical properties are discussed. The Fourier transforms of the propagators are entire functions and thus describe confined dynamical fields.Comment: RevTeX, 48 pages (32 pages + Appendices A-E), new references added [1,2,4,5] and minor formulae corrected for typographical error

Strengthening Biblical Historicity vis-a`-vis Minimalism, 1992–2008 and Beyond. Part 2.3: Some Commonalities in Approaches to Writing Ancient Israel’s History

This series of articles covers scholarly works in English which can, at least potentially, be associated with a generally positive view of biblical historicity regarding periods preceding the Israelites’ return from exile. Part 2 covers works that treat the methodological issues at the center of the maximalist–minimalist debate. Parts 2.1 and 2.2 selectively survey the works of 24 non-minimalist scholars during two decades. In the absence of consensus, this article analyzes the works in Parts 2.1 and 2.2, tracing elements of approach that are held in common, at least among pluralities of non-minimalists (possible majorities are not noted). The first commonality of approach is that history is provisional, not final. The second is that history should become fully multidisciplinary. The third commonality is that historians should receive all historical evidence on an equal footing before examination and cross-examination. The fourth and last is that historians should become increasingly sensitive to cultural aspects and coding in ancient Near Eastern materials

A search for doubly charged higgs production in z0 decays

Contains fulltext : 124394.pdf (preprint version ) (Open Access

Glacial geomorphology: towards a convergence of glaciology and geomorphology

This review presents a perspective on recent trends in glacial geomorphological research, which has seen an increasing engagement with investigating glaciation over larger and longer timescales facilitated by advances in remote sensing and numerical modelling. Remote sensing has enabled the visualization of deglaciated landscapes and glacial landform assemblages across continental scales, from which hypotheses of millennial-scale glacial landscape evolution and associations of landforms with palaeo-ice streams have been developed. To test these ideas rigorously, the related goal of imaging comparable subglacial landscapes and landforms beneath contemporary ice masses is being addressed through the application of radar and seismic technologies. Focusing on the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, we review progress to date in achieving this goal, and the use of radar and seismic imaging to assess: (1) subglacial bed morphology and roughness; (2) subglacial bed reflectivity; and (3) subglacial sediment properties. Numerical modelling, now the primary modus operandi of 'glaciologists' investigating the dynamics of modern ice sheets, offers significant potential for testing 'glacial geomorphological' hypotheses of continental glacial landscape evolution and smaller-scale landform development, and some recent examples of such an approach are presented. We close by identifying some future challenges in glacial geomorphology, which include: (1) embracing numerical modelling as a framework for testing hypotheses of glacial landform and landscape development; (2) identifying analogues beneath modern ice sheets for landscapes and landforms observed across deglaciated terrains; (3) repeat-surveying dynamic subglacial landforms to assess scales of formation and evolution; and (4) applying glacial geomorphological expertise more fully to extraterrestrial cryospheres