3,679 research outputs found
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
Periodic One-Dimensional Hopping Model with one Mobile Directional Impurity
Analytic solution is given in the steady state limit for the system of Master
equations describing a random walk on one-dimensional periodic lattices with
arbitrary hopping rates containing one mobile, directional impurity (defect
bond). Due to the defect, translational invariance is broken, even if all other
rates are identical. The structure of Master equations lead naturally to the
introduction of a new entity, associated with the walker-impurity pair which we
call the quasi-walker. The velocities and diffusion constants for both the
random walker and impurity are given, being simply related to that of the
quasi-particle through physically meaningful equations. Applications in driven
diffusive systems are shown, and connections with the Duke-Rubinstein reptation
models for gel electrophoresis are discussed.Comment: 31 LaTex pages, 5 Postscript figures included, to appear in Journal
of Statistical Physic
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
Effects of differential mobility on biased diffusion of two species
Using simulations and a simple mean-field theory, we investigate jamming
transitions in a two-species lattice gas under non-equilibrium steady-state
conditions. The two types of particles diffuse with different mobilities on a
square lattice, subject to an excluded volume constraint and biased in opposite
directions. Varying filling fraction, differential mobility, and drive, we map
out the phase diagram, identifying first order and continuous transitions
between a free-flowing disordered and a spatially inhomogeneous jammed phase.
Ordered structures are observed to drift, with a characteristic velocity, in
the direction of the more mobile species.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figure
Area-preserving dynamics of a long slender finger by curvature: a test case for the globally conserved phase ordering
A long and slender finger can serve as a simple ``test bed'' for different
phase ordering models. In this work, the globally-conserved,
interface-controlled dynamics of a long finger is investigated, analytically
and numerically, in two dimensions. An important limit is considered when the
finger dynamics are reducible to the area-preserving motion by curvature. A
free boundary problem for the finger shape is formulated. An asymptotic
perturbation theory is developed that uses the finger aspect ratio as a small
parameter. The leading-order approximation is a modification of ``the Mullins
finger" (a well-known analytic solution) which width is allowed to slowly vary
with time. This time dependence is described, in the leading order, by an
exponential law with the characteristic time proportional to the (constant)
finger area. The subleading terms of the asymptotic theory are also calculated.
Finally, the finger dynamics is investigated numerically, employing the
Ginzburg-Landau equation with a global conservation law. The theory is in a
very good agreement with the numerical solution.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, Latex; corrected typo
Multiple timescales in a model for DNA denaturation dynamics
The denaturation dynamics of a long double-stranded DNA is studied by means
of a model of the Poland-Scheraga type. We note that the linking of the two
strands is a locally conserved quantity, hence we introduce local updates that
respect this symmetry. Linking dissipation via untwist is allowed only at the
two ends of the double strand. The result is a slow denaturation characterized
by two time scales that depend on the chain length . In a regime up to a
first characteristic time the chain embodies an
increasing number of small bubbles. Then, in a second regime, bubbles coalesce
and form entropic barriers that effectively trap residual double-stranded
segments within the chain, slowing down the relaxation to fully molten
configurations, which takes place at . This scenario is
different from the picture in which the helical constraints are neglected.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figure
Acceptance conditions in automated negotiation
In every negotiation with a deadline, one of the negotiating parties has to accept an offer to avoid a break off. A break off is usually an undesirable outcome for both parties, therefore it is important that a negotiator employs a proficient mechanism to decide under which conditions to accept. When designing such conditions one is faced with the acceptance dilemma: accepting the current offer may be suboptimal, as better offers may still be presented. On the other hand, accepting too late may prevent an agreement from being reached, resulting in a break off with no gain for either party. Motivated by the challenges of bilateral negotiations between automated agents and by the results and insights of the automated negotiating agents competition (ANAC), we classify and compare state-of-the-art generic acceptance conditions. We focus on decoupled acceptance conditions, i.e. conditions that do not depend on the bidding strategy that is used. We performed extensive experiments to compare the performance of acceptance conditions in combination with a broad range of bidding strategies and negotiation domains. Furthermore we propose new acceptance conditions and we demonstrate that they outperform the other conditions that we study. In particular, it is shown that they outperform the standard acceptance condition of comparing the current offer with the offer the agent is ready to send out. We also provide insight in to why some conditions work better than others and investigate correlations between the properties of the negotiation environment and the efficacy of acceptance condition
On occurrence of spectral edges for periodic operators inside the Brillouin zone
The article discusses the following frequently arising question on the
spectral structure of periodic operators of mathematical physics (e.g.,
Schroedinger, Maxwell, waveguide operators, etc.). Is it true that one can
obtain the correct spectrum by using the values of the quasimomentum running
over the boundary of the (reduced) Brillouin zone only, rather than the whole
zone? Or, do the edges of the spectrum occur necessarily at the set of
``corner'' high symmetry points? This is known to be true in 1D, while no
apparent reasons exist for this to be happening in higher dimensions. In many
practical cases, though, this appears to be correct, which sometimes leads to
the claims that this is always true. There seems to be no definite answer in
the literature, and one encounters different opinions about this problem in the
community.
In this paper, starting with simple discrete graph operators, we construct a
variety of convincing multiply-periodic examples showing that the spectral
edges might occur deeply inside the Brillouin zone. On the other hand, it is
also shown that in a ``generic'' case, the situation of spectral edges
appearing at high symmetry points is stable under small perturbations. This
explains to some degree why in many (maybe even most) practical cases the
statement still holds.Comment: 25 pages, 10 EPS figures. Typos corrected and a reference added in
the new versio
Adiabaticity Conditions for Volatility Smile in Black-Scholes Pricing Model
Our derivation of the distribution function for future returns is based on
the risk neutral approach which gives a functional dependence for the European
call (put) option price, C(K), given the strike price, K, and the distribution
function of the returns. We derive this distribution function using for C(K) a
Black-Scholes (BS) expression with volatility in the form of a volatility
smile. We show that this approach based on a volatility smile leads to relative
minima for the distribution function ("bad" probabilities) never observed in
real data and, in the worst cases, negative probabilities. We show that these
undesirable effects can be eliminated by requiring "adiabatic" conditions on
the volatility smile
Self-diffusion in binary blends of cyclic and linear polymers
A lattice model is used to estimate the self-diffusivity of entangled cyclic
and linear polymers in blends of varying compositions. To interpret simulation
results, we suggest a minimal model based on the physical idea that constraints
imposed on a cyclic polymer by infiltrating linear chains have to be released,
before it can diffuse beyond a radius of gyration. Both, the simulation, and
recently reported experimental data on entangled DNA solutions support the
simple model over a wide range of blend compositions, concentrations, and
molecular weights.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figure
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