246 research outputs found
Time consistent discounting
A possibly immortal agent tries to maximise its summed discounted rewards over time, where discounting is used to avoid infinite utilities and encourage the agent to value current rewards more than future ones. Some commonly used discount functions lead to time-inconsistent behavior where the agent changes its plan over time. These inconsistencies can lead to very poor behavior. We generalise the usual discounted utility model to one where the discount function changes with the age of the agent. We then give a simple characterisation of time-(in)consistent discount functions and show the existence of a rational policy for an agent that knows its discount function is time-inconsistent
Fractional Quantum Hall States of Clustered Composite Fermions
The energy spectra and wavefunctions of up to 14 interacting quasielectrons
(QE's) in the Laughlin nu=1/3 fractional quantum Hall (FQH) state are
investigated using exact numerical diagonalization. It is shown that at
sufficiently high density the QE's form pairs or larger clusters. This
behavior, opposite to Laughlin correlations, invalidates the (sometimes
invoked) reapplication of the composite fermion picture to the individual QE's.
The series of finite-size incompressible ground states are identified at the QE
filling factors nu_QE=1/2, 1/3, 2/3, corresponding to the electron fillings
nu=3/8, 4/11, 5/13. The equivalent quasihole (QH) states occur at nu_QH=1/4,
1/5, 2/7, corresponding to nu=3/10, 4/13, 5/17. All these six novel FQH states
were recently discovered experimentally. Detailed analysis indicates that QE or
QH correlations in these states are different from those of well-known FQH
electron states (e.g., Laughlin or Moore-Read states), leaving the origin of
their incompressibility uncertain. Halperin's idea of Laughlin states of QP
pairs is also explored, but is does not seem adequate.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figures; revision: 1 new figure, some new references,
some new data, title chang
Magnetic Field Effects on Neutron Diffraction in the Antiferromagnetic Phase of
We discuss possible magnetic structures in UPt based on our analysis of
elastic neutron-scattering experiments in high magnetic fields at temperatures
. The existing experimental data can be explained by a single-{\bf q}
antiferromagnetic structure with three independent domains. For modest in-plane
spin-orbit interactions, the Zeeman coupling between the antiferromagnetic
order parameter and the magnetic field induces a rotation of the magnetic
moments, but not an adjustment of the propagation vector of the magnetic order.
A triple-{\bf q} magnetic structure is also consistent with neutron
experiments, but in general leads to a non-uniform magnetization in the
crystal. New experiments could decide between these structures.Comment: 5 figures included in the tex
Structures for Interacting Composite Fermions: Stripes, Bubbles, and Fractional Quantum Hall Effect
Much of the present day qualitative phenomenology of the fractional quantum
Hall effect can be understood by neglecting the interactions between composite
fermions altogether. For example the fractional quantum Hall effect at
corresponds to filled composite-fermion Landau levels,and
the compressible state at to the Fermi sea of composite fermions.
Away from these filling factors, the residual interactions between composite
fermions will determine the nature of the ground state. In this article, a
model is constructed for the residual interaction between composite fermions,
and various possible states are considered in a variational approach. Our study
suggests formation of composite-fermion stripes, bubble crystals, as well as
fractional quantum Hall states for appropriate situations.Comment: 16 pages, 7 figure
Non Linear Current Response of a Many-Level Tunneling System: Higher Harmonics Generation
The fully nonlinear response of a many-level tunneling system to a strong
alternating field of high frequency is studied in terms of the
Schwinger-Keldysh nonequilibrium Green functions. The nonlinear time dependent
tunneling current is calculated exactly and its resonance structure is
elucidated. In particular, it is shown that under certain reasonable conditions
on the physical parameters, the Fourier component is sharply peaked at
, where is the spacing between
two levels. This frequency multiplication results from the highly nonlinear
process of photon absorption (or emission) by the tunneling system. It is
also conjectured that this effect (which so far is studied mainly in the
context of nonlinear optics) might be experimentally feasible.Comment: 28 pages, LaTex, 7 figures are available upon request from
[email protected], submitted to Phys.Rev.
Astrophysical structures from primordial quantum black holes
The characteristic sizes of astrophysical structures, up to the whole
observed Universe, can be recovered, in principle, assuming that gravity is the
overall interaction assembling systems starting from microscopic scales, whose
order of magnitude is ruled by the Planck length and the related Compton
wavelength. This result agrees with the absence of screening mechanisms for the
gravitational interaction and could be connected to the presence of Yukawa
corrections in the Newtonian potential which introduce typical interaction
lengths. This result directly comes out from quantization of primordial black
holes and then characteristic interaction lengths directly emerge from quantum
field theory.Comment: 11 page
Determination of Superconducting Gap of SmFeAsFxO1-x Superconductors by Andreev Reflection Spectroscopy
The superconducting gap in FeAs-based superconductor SmFeAs(O1-xFx) (x = 0.15
and 0.30) and the temperature dependence of the sample with x = 0.15 have been
measured by Andreev reflection spectroscopy. The intrinsic superconducting gap
is independent of contacts while many other "gap-like" features vary
appreciably for different contacts. The determined gap value of 2D = 13.34
+/-0.47 meV for SmFeAs(O0.85F0.15) gives 2D/kBTC = 3.68, close to the BCS
prediction of 3.53. The superconducting gap decreases with temperature and
vanishes at TC, in a manner similar to the BCS behavior but dramatically
different from that of the nodal pseudogap behavior in cuprate superconductors.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figures, Special Issue of Physica C on Superconducting
Pnictide
Forest Biodiversity Assessment in Peruvian Andean Montane Cloud Forest
Cloud forests are unusual and fragile habitats, being one of the least studied and least understood ecosystems. The tropical Andean dominion is considered one of the most significant places in the world as rega rds biological diversity, with a very high level of endemism. The biodiversity was analysed in an isolated remnant area of a tropical montane cloud forest known as the ?Bosque de Neblina de Cuyas?, in the North of the Peruvian Andean range. Composition, structure and dead wood were measured or estimated. The values obtained were compared with other cloud forests. The study revealed a high level of forest biodiversity, although the level of biodiversity differs from one area to another: in the inner areas, where human pressure is almost inexistent, the biodiversity values increase. The high species richness and the low dominance among species bear testimony to this montane cloud forest as a real enclave of biodiversity
Toward a Multifaceted Heuristic of Digital Reading to Inform Assessment, Research, Practice, and Policy
In this commentary, the author explores the tension between almost 30 years of work that has embraced increasingly complex conceptions of digital reading and recent studies that risk oversimplifying digital reading as a singular entity analogous with reading text on a screen. The author begins by tracing a line of theoretical and empirical work that both informs and complicates our understanding of digital literacy and, more specifically, digital reading. Then, a heuristic is proposed to systematically organize, label, and define a multifaceted set of increasingly complex terms, concepts, and practices that characterize the spectrum of digital reading experiences. Research that informs this heuristic is used to illustrate how more precision in defining digital reading can promote greater clarity across research methods and advance a more systematic study of promising digital reading practices. Finally, the author discusses implications for assessment, research, practice, and policy
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