Kekule-distortion-induced Exciton instability in graphene

Effects of a Kekule distortion on exciton instability in single-layer graphene are discussed. In the framework of quantum electrodynamics the mass of the electron generated dynamically is worked out using a Schwinger-Dyson equation. For homogeneous lattice distortion it is shown that the generated mass is independent of the amplitude of the lattice distortion at the one-loop approximation. Formation of excitons induced by the homogeneous Kekule distortion could appear only through direct dependence of the lattice distortion.Comment: 6 pages, 1 figur

Dimensionality of Local Minimizers of the Interaction Energy

In this work we consider local minimizers (in the topology of transport distances) of the interaction energy associated to a repulsive-attractive potential. We show how the imensionality of the support of local minimizers is related to the repulsive strength of the potential at the origin.Comment: 27 page

Nonlocal interactions by repulsive-attractive potentials: radial ins/stability

In this paper, we investigate nonlocal interaction equations with repulsive-attractive radial potentials. Such equations describe the evolution of a continuum density of particles in which they repulse each other in the short range and attract each other in the long range. We prove that under some conditions on the potential, radially symmetric solutions converge exponentially fast in some transport distance toward a spherical shell stationary state. Otherwise we prove that it is not possible for a radially symmetric solution to converge weakly toward the spherical shell stationary state. We also investigate under which condition it is possible for a non-radially symmetric solution to converge toward a singular stationary state supported on a general hypersurface. Finally we provide a detailed analysis of the specific case of the repulsive-attractive power law potential as well as numerical results. We point out the the conditions of radial ins/stability are sharp.Comment: 42 pages, 7 figure

Critical interfaces and duality in the Ashkin Teller model

We report on the numerical measures on different spin interfaces and FK cluster boundaries in the Askhin-Teller (AT) model. For a general point on the AT critical line, we find that the fractal dimension of a generic spin cluster interface can take one of four different possible values. In particular we found spin interfaces whose fractal dimension is d_f=3/2 all along the critical line. Further, the fractal dimension of the boundaries of FK clusters were found to satisfy all along the AT critical line a duality relation with the fractal dimension of their outer boundaries. This result provides a clear numerical evidence that such duality, which is well known in the case of the O(n) model, exists in a extended CFT.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Living with HIV in Finland: Stigma, Psychosocial Functioning and the Role of Social Support

Objectives: The present investigation looks into the levels of perceived stigma, perceived social support and psychosocial functioning of individuals with HIV consulting at an infectious diseases clinic in Helsinki, Finland. Background: The AIDS pandemic continues to be a serious global health concern with an estimated 38 million individuals infected with HIV worldwide the majority of which are in developing countries. In many developed countries, the increased use of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has been associated with dramatic health benefits, improving prognosis for HIV-infected individuals. With HIV increasingly regarded as a chronic\u27 disease in developed countries, there is a need to further clarify the psychosocial aspects of HIV/AIDS as disease-related stigma continues to make significant impact on both the individual and the larger society. Design/Methods: HIV-positive individuals consulting at the HIV/AIDS Clinic at the Aurora Hospital (HUCH Division of Infectious Diseases), Helsinki, Finland were recruited within a 1 month period in June 2004. They were asked to complete the HIV Stigma Scale (Berger 1996), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (Zimet et al. 1998) Texas Christian University (TCU) Psychosocial Functioning Scale (Knight et al. 1994). Results/Outcome: Main outcomes: HIV Stigma Scale Score, Psychological Function Score, Perceived Stigma Scale Score. Results: Results show that the respondents in the study may not generally feel stigmatized but that they may have issues with disclosing their HIV status. Respondents show a pattern of good psychosocial functioning. Most respondents feel that they get strong support from friends, family and significant others and they were also satisfied with the kind of healthcare that they receive particularly as a person living with HIV. Conclusion: The small number of participants (n=12) recruited within the 1-month study period precluded any statistically significant results but the study demonstrated that the instruments can be used to investigate psychosocial parameters of HIV among PLWH in Helsinki.\u2

Hot Quark Matter with an Axial Chemical Potential

We analyze the phase diagram of hot quark matter in presence of an axial chemical potential, $\mu_5$. The latter is introduced to mimic the chirality transitions induced, in hot Quantum Chromodynamics, by the strong sphaleron configurations. In particular, we study the curvature of the critical line at small $\mu_5$, the effects of a finite quark mass and of a vector interaction. Moreover, we build the mixed phase at the first order phase transition line, and draw the phase diagram in the chiral density and temperature plane. We finally compute the full topological susceptibility in presence of a background of topological charge.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures. Few references added, short discussion included. Final version appearing on Phys. Rev.

Site occupation constraints in mean-field approaches of quantum spin systems at finite temperature

We study the effect of site occupation on the description of quantum spin systems at finite temperature and mean-field level. We impose each lattice site to be occupied by a single electron. This is realized by means of a specific prescription. The outcome of the prescription is compared to the result obtained by means of a projection procedure which fixes the site occupation to one particle per site on an average. The comparison is performed for different representations of the Hamiltonian in Fock space leading to different types of mean-field solutions. The behaviour of order parameters is analyzed for each choice of the mean-field and constraint which fixes the occupation rate at each site. Sizable quantitative differences between the outcomes obtained with the two different constraints are observed.Comment: 18 pages, 2 figure

Chiral symmetry restoration in (2+1)-dimensional QEDQED with a Maxwell-Chern-Simons term at finite temperature

We study the role played by a Chern-Simons contribution to the action in the $QED_3$ formulation of a two-dimensional Heisenberg model of quantum spin systems with a strictly fixed site occupation at finite temperature. We show how this contribution affects the screening of the potential which acts between spinons and contributes to the restoration of chiral symmetry in the spinon sector. The constant which characterizes the Chern-Simons term can be related to the critical temperature $T_c$ above which the dynamical mass goes to zero.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure