3,352 research outputs found
First results in terrain mapping for a roving planetary explorer
To perform planetary exploration without human supervision, a complete autonomous rover must be able to model its environment while exploring its surroundings. Researchers present a new algorithm to construct a geometric terrain representation from a single range image. The form of the representation is an elevation map that includes uncertainty, unknown areas, and local features. By virtue of working in spherical-polar space, the algorithm is independent of the desired map resolution and the orientation of the sensor, unlike other algorithms that work in Cartesian space. They also describe new methods to evaluate regions of the constructed elevation maps to support legged locomotion over rough terrain
Measurement of electrons from semi-leptonic heavy-flavour hadron decays with ALICE at the LHC
Radiating dipoles in photonic crystals
The radiation dynamics of a dipole antenna embedded in a Photonic Crystal are
modeled by an initially excited harmonic oscillator coupled to a non--Markovian
bath of harmonic oscillators representing the colored electromagnetic vacuum
within the crystal. Realistic coupling constants based on the natural modes of
the Photonic Crystal, i.e., Bloch waves and their associated dispersion
relation, are derived. For simple model systems, well-known results such as
decay times and emission spectra are reproduced. This approach enables direct
incorporation of realistic band structure computations into studies of
radiative emission from atoms and molecules within photonic crystals. We
therefore provide a predictive and interpretative tool for experiments in both
the microwave and optical regimes.Comment: Phys. Rev. E, accepte
The Role of Repeated Exposure to Multimodal Input in Incidental Acquisition of Foreign Language Vocabulary
Prior research has reported incidental vocabulary acquisition with complete beginners in a foreign language (FL), within 8 exposures to auditory and written FL word forms presented with a picture depicting their meaning. However, important questions remain about whether acquisition occurs with fewer exposures to FL words in a multimodal situation and whether there is a repeated exposure effect. Here we report a study where the number of exposures to FL words in an incidental learning phase varied between 2, 4, 6, and 8 exposures. Following the incidental learning phase, participants completed an explicit learning task where they learned to recognize written translation equivalents of auditory FL word forms, half of which had occurred in the incidental learning phase. The results showed that participants performed better on the words they had previously been exposed to, and that this incidental learning effect occurred from as little as 2 exposures to the multimodal stimuli. In addition, repeated exposure to the stimuli was found to have a larger impact on learning during the first few exposures and decrease thereafter, suggesting that the effects of repeated exposure on vocabulary acquisition are not necessarily constant
On the equivalence of the Langevin and auxiliary field quantization methods for absorbing dielectrics
Recently two methods have been developed for the quantization of the
electromagnetic field in general dispersing and absorbing linear dielectrics.
The first is based upon the introduction of a quantum Langevin current in
Maxwell's equations [T. Gruner and D.-G. Welsch, Phys. Rev. A 53, 1818 (1996);
Ho Trung Dung, L. Kn\"{o}ll, and D.-G. Welsch, Phys. Rev. A 57, 3931 (1998); S.
Scheel, L. Kn\"{o}ll, and D.-G. Welsch, Phys. Rev. A 58, 700 (1998)], whereas
the second makes use of a set of auxiliary fields, followed by a canonical
quantization procedure [A. Tip, Phys. Rev. A 57, 4818 (1998)]. We show that
both approaches are equivalent.Comment: 7 pages, RevTeX, no figure
Multipole interaction between atoms and their photonic environment
Macroscopic field quantization is presented for a nondispersive photonic
dielectric environment, both in the absence and presence of guest atoms.
Starting with a minimal-coupling Lagrangian, a careful look at functional
derivatives shows how to obtain Maxwell's equations before and after choosing a
suitable gauge. A Hamiltonian is derived with a multipolar interaction between
the guest atoms and the electromagnetic field. Canonical variables and fields
are determined and in particular the field canonically conjugate to the vector
potential is identified by functional differentiation as minus the full
displacement field. An important result is that inside the dielectric a dipole
couples to a field that is neither the (transverse) electric nor the
macroscopic displacement field. The dielectric function is different from the
bulk dielectric function at the position of the dipole, so that local-field
effects must be taken into account.Comment: 17 pages, to be published in Physical Review
Resonant dipole-dipole interaction in the presence of dispersing and absorbing surroundings
Within the framework of quantization of the macroscopic electromagnetic
field, equations of motion and an effective Hamiltonian for treating both the
resonant dipole-dipole interaction between two-level atoms and the resonant
atom-field interaction are derived, which can suitably be used for studying the
influence of arbitrary dispersing and absorbing material surroundings on these
interactions. The theory is applied to the study of the transient behavior of
two atoms that initially share a single excitation, with special emphasis on
the role of the two competing processes of virtual and real photon exchange in
the energy transfer between the atoms. In particular, it is shown that for weak
atom-field interaction there is a time window, where the energy transfer
follows a rate regime of the type obtained by ordinary second-order
perturbation theory. Finally, the resonant dipole-dipole interaction is shown
to give rise to a doublet spectrum of the emitted light for weak atom-field
interaction and a triplet spectrum for strong atom-field interaction.Comment: 15 pages, 1 figure, RevTE
Charge disproportionation and the pressure-induced insulator?metal transition in cubic perovskite PbCrO3
The perovskite PbCrO3 is an antiferromagnetic insulator. However, the fundamental interactions leading to the insulating state in this single-valent perovskite are unclear. Moreover, the origin of the unprecedented volume drop observed at a modest pressure of P = 1.6 GPa remains an outstanding problem. We report a variety of in situ pressure measurements including electron transport properties, X-ray absorption spectrum, and crystal structure study by X-ray and neutron diffraction. These studies reveal key information leading to the elucidation of the physics behind the insulating state and the pressure-induced transition. We argue that a charge disproportionation 3Cr4+ â 2Cr3+ + Cr6+ in association with the 6s-p hybridization on the Pb2+ is responsible for the insulating ground state of PbCrO3 at ambient pressure and the charge disproportionation phase is suppressed under pressure to give rise to a metallic phase at high pressure. The model is well supported by density function theory plus the correlation energy U (DFT+U) calculations.Fil: Cheng, Jinguang. University Of Texas At Austin; Estados Unidos. Chinese Academy Of Sciences; RepĂșblica de China. University of Tokyo. Institute for Solid State Physics; JapĂłnFil: Kweon, K. E.. University Of Texas At Austin; Estados UnidosFil: Larregola, Sebastian Alberto. University Of Texas At Austin; Estados Unidos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂ©cnicas. Centro CientĂfico TecnolĂłgico San Luis. Instituto de Investigaciones en TecnologĂa QuĂmica; ArgentinaFil: Ding, Yang. Argonne National Laboratory; Estados UnidosFil: Shirako, Y.. University Of Texas At Austin; Estados UnidosFil: Marshall, L. G.. University Of Texas At Austin; Estados Unidos. Northeastern University; Estados UnidosFil: Li, Z. Y.. University Of Texas At Austin; Estados UnidosFil: Li, X.. University Of Texas At Austin; Estados UnidosFil: Dos Santos, AntĂłnio M.. Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Quantum Condensed Matter Division; Estados UnidosFil: Suchomel, M. R.. Argonne National Laboratory; Estados UnidosFil: Matsubayashi, K.. University of Tokyo. Institute for Solid State Physics; JapĂłnFil: Uwatoko, Y.. University of Tokyo. Institute for Solid State Physics; JapĂłnFil: Hwang, G. S.. University Of Texas At Austin; Estados UnidosFil: Goodenough, John B.. University Of Texas At Austin; Estados UnidosFil: Zhou, J. S.. University Of Texas At Austin; Estados Unido
Net Charge Fluctuations in Au + Au Interactions at sqrt(s_NN) = 130 GeV
Data from Au + Au interactions at sqrt(s_NN) = 130 GeV, obtained with the
PHENIX detector at RHIC, are used to investigate local net charge fluctuations
among particles produced near mid-rapidity. According to recent suggestions,
such fluctuations may carry information from the Quark Gluon Plasma. This
analysis shows that the fluctuations are dominated by a stochastic distribution
of particles, but are also sensitive to other effects, like global charge
conservation and resonance decays.Comment: 6 pages, RevTeX 3, 3 figures, 307 authors, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Lett. on 21 March, 2002. Plain text data tables for the points plotted in
figures for this and previous PHENIX publications are (will be made) publicly
available at http://www.phenix.bnl.gov/phenix/WWW/run/phenix/papers.htm
Event-by-event fluctuations in Mean and Mean in sqrt(s_NN) = 130 GeV Au+Au Collisions
Distributions of event-by-event fluctuations of the mean transverse momentum
and mean transverse energy near mid-rapidity have been measured in Au+Au
collisions at sqrt(s_NN) = 130 GeV at RHIC. By comparing the distributions to
what is expected for statistically independent particle emission, the magnitude
of non-statistical fluctuations in mean transverse momentum is determined to be
consistent with zero. Also, no significant non-random fluctuations in mean
transverse energy are observed. By constructing a fluctuation model with two
event classes that preserve the mean and variance of the semi-inclusive p_T or
e_T spectra, we exclude a region of fluctuations in sqrt(s_NN) = 130 GeV Au+Au
collisions.Comment: 10 pages, RevTeX 3, 7 figures, 4 tables, 307 authors, submitted to
Phys. Rev. C on 22 March 2002. Plain text data tables for the points plotted
in figures for this and previous PHENIX publications are (will be made)
publicly available at
http://www.phenix.bnl.gov/phenix/WWW/run/phenix/papers.htm
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