21,801 research outputs found
Seeing bulk topological properties of band insulators in small photonic lattices
We present a general scheme for measuring the bulk properties of
non-interacting tight-binding models realized in arrays of coupled photonic
cavities. Specifically, we propose to implement a single unit cell of the
targeted model with tunable twisted boundary conditions in order to simulate
large systems and, most importantly, to access bulk topological properties
experimentally. We illustrate our method by demonstrating how to measure
topological invariants in a two-dimensional quantum Hall-like model.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures; with Supplemental Material (2 pages
Color and Variability Characteristics of Point Sources in the Faint Sky Variability Survey
We present an analysis of the color and variability characteristics for point
sources in the Faint Sky Variability Survey (FSVS). The FSVS cataloged ~23
square degrees in BVI filters from ~16--24 mag to investigate variability in
faint sources at moderate to high Galactic latitudes. Point source completeness
is found to be >83% for a selected representative sample (V=17.5--22.0 mag,
B-V=0.0--1.5) containing both photometric B, V detections and 80% of the
time-sampled V data available compared to a basic internal source completeness
of 99%. Multi-epoch (10--30) observations in V spanning minutes to years
modeled by light curve simulations reveal amplitude sensitivities to
0.015--0.075 mag over a representative V=18--22 mag range. Periodicity
determinations appear viable to time-scales of an order 1 day or less using the
most sampled fields (~30 epochs). The fraction of point sources is found to be
generally variable at 5--8% over V=17.5--22.0 mag. For V brighter than 19 mag,
the variable population is dominated by low amplitude (<0.05 mag) and blue
(B-V<0.35) sources, possibly representing a population of gamma Doradus stars.
Overall, the dominant population of variable sources are bluer than B-V=0.65
and have Main Sequence colors, likely reflecting larger populations of RR
Lyrae, SX Phe, gamma Doradus, and W UMa variables.Comment: 34 pages, 16 figures, accepted in A
The Amplitude Mode in the Quantum Phase Model
We derive the collective low energy excitations of the quantum phase model of
interacting lattice bosons within the superfluid state using a dynamical
variational approach. We recover the well known sound (or Goldstone) mode and
derive a gapped (Higgs type) mode that was overlooked in previous studies of
the quantum phase model. This mode is relevant to ultracold atoms in a strong
optical lattice potential. We predict the signature of the gapped mode in
lattice modulation experiments and show how it evolves with increasing
interaction strength.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Physics Potential of a 2540 Km Baseline Superbeam Experiment
We study the physics potential of a neutrino superbeam experiment with a 2540
km baseline. We assume a neutrino beam similar to the NuMI beam in medium
energy configuration. We consider a 100 kton totally active scintillator
detector at a 7 mr off-axis location. We find that such a configuration has
outstanding hierarchy discriminating capability. In conjunction with the data
from the present reactor neutrino experiments, it can determine the neutrino
mass hierarchy at 3 sigma level in less than 5 years, if sin^2(2*theta13) >
0.01, running in the neutrino mode alone. As a stand alone experiment, with a 5
year neutrino run and a 5 year anti-neutrino run, it can determine non-zero
theta13 at 3 sigma level if sin^2(2*theta13) > 7*10^{-3} and hierarchy at 3
sigma level if sin^2(2*theta13) > 8*10^{-3}. This data can also distinguish
deltaCP = pi/2 from the CP conserving values of 0 and pi, for sin^2(2*theta13)
> 0.02.Comment: 16 pages, 7 figures and 1 table: Published versio
Interplay between nanometer-scale strain variations and externally applied strain in graphene
We present a molecular modeling study analyzing nanometer-scale strain
variations in graphene as a function of externally applied tensile strain. We
consider two different mechanisms that could underlie nanometer-scale strain
variations: static perturbations from lattice imperfections of an underlying
substrate and thermal fluctuations. For both cases we observe a decrease in the
out-of-plane atomic displacements with increasing strain, which is accompanied
by an increase in the in-plane displacements. Reflecting the non-linear elastic
properties of graphene, both trends together yield a non-monotonic variation of
the total displacements with increasing tensile strain. This variation allows
to test the role of nanometer-scale strain variations in limiting the carrier
mobility of high-quality graphene samples
- …