7,126 research outputs found
Topological analysis of polymeric melts: Chain length effects and fast-converging estimators for entanglement length
Primitive path analyses of entanglements are performed over a wide range of
chain lengths for both bead spring and atomistic polyethylene polymer melts.
Estimators for the entanglement length N_e which operate on results for a
single chain length N are shown to produce systematic O(1/N) errors. The
mathematical roots of these errors are identified as (a) treating chain ends as
entanglements and (b) neglecting non-Gaussian corrections to chain and
primitive path dimensions. The prefactors for the O(1/N) errors may be large;
in general their magnitude depends both on the polymer model and the method
used to obtain primitive paths. We propose, derive and test new estimators
which eliminate these systematic errors using information obtainable from the
variation of entanglement characteristics with chain length. The new estimators
produce accurate results for N_e from marginally entangled systems. Formulas
based on direct enumeration of entanglements appear to converge faster and are
simpler to apply.Comment: Major revisions. Developed near-ideal estimators which operate on
multiple chain lengths. Now test these on two very different model polymers
Thermopower peak in phase transition region of (1-x)LaCaMnO/xYSZ
The thermoelectric power (TEP) and the electrical resistivity of the
intergranular magnetoresistance (IGMR) composite,
(1-x)LaCaMnO/xYSZ (LCMO/YSZ) with x = 0, 0.75%, 1.25%,
4.5%, 13% 15% and 80% of the yttria-stabalized zirconia (YSZ), have been
measured from 300 K down to 77 K. Pronounced TEP peak appears during the phase
transition for the samples of x 0, while not observed for x = 0. We suggest
that this is due to the magnetic structure variation induced by the lattice
strain which is resulting from the LCMO/YSZ boundary layers. The transition
width in temperature derived from , with being the AC magnetic
susceptibility, supports this interpretation.Comment: 4 pages, 4 eps figures, Latex, J. Appl. Phys 94, 7206 (2003
Random Time Forward Starting Options
We introduce a natural generalization of the forward-starting options, first
discussed by M. Rubinstein. The main feature of the contract presented here is
that the strike-determination time is not fixed ex-ante, but allowed to be
random, usually related to the occurrence of some event, either of financial
nature or not. We will call these options {\bf Random Time Forward Starting
(RTFS)}. We show that, under an appropriate "martingale preserving" hypothesis,
we can exhibit arbitrage free prices, which can be explicitly computed in many
classical market models, at least under independence between the random time
and the assets' prices. Practical implementations of the pricing methodologies
are also provided. Finally a credit value adjustment formula for these OTC
options is computed for the unilateral counterparty credit risk.Comment: 19 pages, 1 figur
Random walk approach to the d-dimensional disordered Lorentz gas
A correlated random walk approach to diffusion is applied to the disordered
nonoverlapping Lorentz gas. By invoking the Lu-Torquato theory for chord-length
distributions in random media [J. Chem. Phys. 98, 6472 (1993)], an analytic
expression for the diffusion constant in arbitrary number of dimensions d is
obtained. The result corresponds to an Enskog-like correction to the Boltzmann
prediction, being exact in the dilute limit, and better or nearly exact in
comparison to renormalized kinetic theory predictions for all allowed densities
in d=2,3. Extensive numerical simulations were also performed to elucidate the
role of the approximations involved.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
Dynamic multilateral markets
We study dynamic multilateral markets, in which players' payoffs result from intra-coalitional bargaining. The latter is modeled as the ultimatum game with exogenous (time-invariant) recognition probabilities and unanimity acceptance rule. Players in agreeing coalitions leave the market and are replaced by their replicas, which keeps the pool of market participants constant over time. In this infinite game, we establish payoff uniqueness of stationary equilibria and the emergence of endogenous cooperation structures when traders experience some degree of (heterogeneous) bargaining frictions. When we focus on market games with different player types, we derive, under mild conditions, an explicit formula for each type's equilibrium payoff as the market frictions vanish
Microscopic theory for the glass transition in a system without static correlations
We study the orientational dynamics of infinitely thin hard rods of length L,
with the centers-of-mass fixed on a simple cubic lattice with lattice constant
a.We approximate the influence of the surrounding rods onto dynamics of a pair
of rods by introducing an effective rotational diffusion constant D(l),l=L/a.
We get D(l) ~ [1-v(l)], where v(l) is given through an integral of a
time-dependent torque-torque correlator of an isolated pair of rods. A glass
transition occurs at l_c, if v(l_c)=1. We present a variational and a
numerically exact evaluation of v(l).Close to l_c the diffusion constant
decreases as D(l) ~ (l_c-l)^\gamma, with \gamma=1. Our approach predicts a
glass transition in the absence of any static correlations, in contrast to
present form of mode coupling theory.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure
Shear flow effects on phase separation of entangled polymer blends
We introduce an entanglement model mixing rule for stress relaxation in a polymer blend to a modified Cahn-Hilliard equation of motion for concentration fluctuations in the presence of shear flow. Such an approach predicts both shear-induced mixing and demixing, depending on the relative relaxation times and plateau moduli of the two components
Enhanced electrohydrodynamic collapse of DNA due to dilute polymers
We experimentally demonstrate that addition of small, charge-neutral polymers to a buffer solution can promote compression of dilute solutions of single electrophoresing DNA. This phenomenon contrasts with the observed extension of DNA during capillary electrophoresis in dilute solutions of high molecular weight polymers. We propose these discrepancies in micron-scale DNA configurations arise from different nano-scale DNA-polymer collision events, controlled by solute polymer properties. We build upon theories previously proposed for intermolecular DNA aggregation in polymer-free solutions to develop scaling theories that describe trends seen in our data for intramolecular DNA compaction in dilute polymer solutions.National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant 1335938)Singapore. National Research Foundation (Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology
Energy spectra of finite temperature superfluid helium-4 turbulence
A mesoscopic model of finite temperature superfluid helium-4 based on coupled Langevin-Navier-Stokes dynamics is proposed. Drawing upon scaling arguments and available numerical results, a numerical method for designing well resolved, mesoscopic calculations of finite temperature superfluid turbulence is developed. The application of model and numerical method to the problem of fully developed turbulence decay in helium II, indicates that the spectral structure of normal-fluid and superfluid turbulence is significantly more complex than that of turbulence in simple-fluids. Analysis based on a forced flow of helium-4 at 1.3 K, where viscous dissipation in the normal-fluid is compensated by the Lundgren force, indicate three scaling regimes in the normal-fluid, that include the inertial, low wavenumber, Kolmogorov k?5/3 regime, a sub-turbulence, low Reynolds number, fluctuating k?2.2 regime, and an intermediate, viscous k?6 range that connects the two. The k?2.2 regime is due to normal-fluid forcing by superfluid vortices at high wavenumbers. There are also three scaling regimes in the superfluid, that include a k?3 range that corresponds to the growth of superfluid vortex instabilities due to mutual-friction action, and an adjacent, low wavenumber, k?5/3 regime that emerges during the termination of this growth, as superfluid vortices agglomerate between intense normal-fluid vorticity regions, and weakly polarized bundles are formed. There is also evidence of a high wavenumber k?1 range that corresponds to the probing of individual-vortex velocity fields. The Kelvin waves cascade (the main dynamical effect in zero temperature superfluids) appears to be damped at the intervortex space scale
Boundary conditions associated with the Painlev\'e III' and V evaluations of some random matrix averages
In a previous work a random matrix average for the Laguerre unitary ensemble,
generalising the generating function for the probability that an interval at the hard edge contains eigenvalues, was evaluated in terms of
a Painlev\'e V transcendent in -form. However the boundary conditions
for the corresponding differential equation were not specified for the full
parameter space. Here this task is accomplished in general, and the obtained
functional form is compared against the most general small behaviour of
the Painlev\'e V equation in -form known from the work of Jimbo. An
analogous study is carried out for the the hard edge scaling limit of the
random matrix average, which we have previously evaluated in terms of a
Painlev\'e \IIId transcendent in -form. An application of the latter
result is given to the rapid evaluation of a Hankel determinant appearing in a
recent work of Conrey, Rubinstein and Snaith relating to the derivative of the
Riemann zeta function
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