104,627 research outputs found
Fixed Number and Quantum Size Effects in Nanoscale Superconductors
In recent experiments on nanoscale Al particles, whose electron number was
fixed by charging effects, a ``negative gap'' was observed in particles with an
odd number of electrons. This observation has called into question the use of a
grand canonical ensemble in describing superconductivity in such ultrasmall
particles.
We have studied the effects of fixed electron number and finite size in
nanoscale superconductors, by applying the canonical BCS theory for the
attractive Hubbard model. The ground state energy and the energy gap are
compared with the conventional and parity-projected grand canonical BCS
results, and in one dimension also with the exact solutions by the Bethe
ansatz. The crossover from the bulk to quantum limit is studied for various
regimes of electron density and coupling strength. The effects of boundary
conditions and different lattice structures are also examined.
A ``negative gap'' for odd electron number emerges most naturally in the
canonical scheme. For even electron number, the gap is particularly large for
``magic numbers'' of electrons for a given system size or of atoms for a fixed
electron density. These features are in accordance with the exact solutions,
but are essentially missed in the grand canonical results.Comment: 2 pages, 4 figures, submitted to Physica C for M2S-HTSC-VI
Proceeding
Universal scaling relations for logarithmic-correction exponents
By the early 1960's advances in statistical physics had established the
existence of universality classes for systems with second-order phase
transitions and characterized these by critical exponents which are different
to the classical ones. There followed the discovery of (now famous) scaling
relations between the power-law critical exponents describing second-order
criticality. These scaling relations are of fundamental importance and now form
a cornerstone of statistical mechanics. In certain circumstances, such scaling
behaviour is modified by multiplicative logarithmic corrections. These are also
characterized by critical exponents, analogous to the standard ones. Recently
scaling relations between these logarithmic exponents have been established.
Here, the theories associated with these advances are presented and expanded
and the status of investigations into logarithmic corrections in a variety of
models is reviewed.Comment: Review prepared for the book "Order, Disorder, and Criticality. Vol.
III", ed. by Yu. Holovatch and based on the Ising Lectures in Lviv. 48 pages,
1 figur
The music of organising: Exploring aesthetic ethnography
Through a discussion of Ingarden’s phenomenology, this paper proposes an aesthetic ethnographic methodology. Aesthetic ethnography enables the researcher to view
organisations as if they are works of art. This involves observing the continual oscillation between order and chaos, a quality Schiller terms as the play impulse. The shifts in focus from naïve outsider (Emotional Attachment) to critical insider (Cognitive Detachment) and then to informed outsider (Integrated Synthesis) are explored, followed by a case study of a symphony orchestra undergoing governance change
Recent Progress in Intersecting D-brane Models
The aim of this article is to review some recent progress in the field of
intersecting D-brane models. This includes the construction of chiral,
semi-realistic flux compactifications, the systematic study of Gepner model
orientifolds, the computation of various terms in the low energy effective
action and the investigation of the statistics of solutions to the tadpole
cancellation conditions.Comment: 13 pages, 1 figure, contribution to the proceedings of the 37.
Symposium Ahrenshoop, 23-27 August 2004, Wernsdorf, Germany, v3: more refs.
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