Electromagnetic self-force on a charged particle on Kerr spacetime: equatorial circular orbits

We calculate the self-force acting on a charged particle on a circular geodesic orbit in the equatorial plane of a rotating black hole. We show by direct calculation that the dissipative self-force balances with the sum of the flux radiated to infinity and through the black hole horizon. Prograde orbits are found to stimulate black hole superradiance, though we confirm that the condition for floating orbits cannot be met. We calculate the conservative component of the self-force by application of the mode sum regularization method, and we present a selection of numerical results. We obtain the leading-order coefficients in post-Newtonian expansions of the dissipative and conservative components of the self-force, using an analytical method and numerical fitting, respectively. The self-force on the innermost stable circular orbits of the Kerr spacetime is calculated, and comparisons are drawn between the electromagnetic and gravitational self forces

Persistent and context-dependent effects of the larval feeding environment on post-metamorphic performance through the adult stage

One of the central issues in ecology is the identification of processes affecting the population structure and dynamics of species with complex life cycles. In such species, variation in both the number of larvae that enter a population and their phenotype are important drivers of survival and growth after metamorphosis. Larval experience can have strong effects on key post-metamorphic traits, but the temporal scale of such ‘trait-mediated effects’ may be short, and their magnitude may depend on the environment experienced after metamorphosis. We used an intertidal barnacle to study the long-term consequences of trait-mediated effects under different post-metamorphic conditions by manipulating larval food concentration and monitoring patterns of survival and growth in juveniles at 2 intertidal levels over a 5 mo period. In 2 replicated experiments, higher food levels resulted in increased body size, mass and reserves (measured from elemental composition) in the settling larval stage and increased body size of newly metamorphosed juveniles. In Expt 1, high food concentration reduced juvenile mortality at low intertidal levels, while on the upper intertidal, mortality was high for all larval food concentrations. By contrast, in Expt 2, low larval food concentration decreased juvenile survival at both shore levels. When present, effects were established early (Weeks 1 or 2) and persisted for over 10 wk in Expt 1 and 22 wk in Expt 2. Interactive effects of the larval and juvenile environments can have important implications for population size: trait-mediated effects may persist for long periods, helping to explain patterns of adult abundance

Electromagnetic self-force on a charged particle on Kerr spacetime : equatorial circular orbits

We calculate the self-force acting on a charged particle on a circular geodesic orbit in the equatorial plane of a rotating black hole. We show by direct calculation that the dissipative self-force balances with the sum of the flux radiated to infinity and through the black hole horizon. Prograde orbits are found to stimulate black hole superradiance, but we confirm that the condition for floating orbits cannot be met. We calculate the conservative component of the self-force by application of the mode sum regularization method, and we present a selection of numerical results. By numerical fitting, we extract the leading-order coefficients in post-Newtonian expansions. The self-force on the innermost stable circular orbits of the Kerr spacetime is calculated, and comparisons are drawn between the electromagnetic and gravitational self forces

Wave focusing by submerged islands and gravitational analogues

We study water waves propagating over a smooth obstacle in a fluid of varying depth, motivated by the observation that submerged islands in the ocean act as effective lenses that increase the amplitude and destructive power of tsunami waves near focal points. We show that islands of substantial height (compared to the water depth) lead to strong focusing in their immediate vicinity, and generate caustics of either cusp or butterfly type. We highlight similarities and differences with focusing of (high-frequency) gravitational waves by a neutron star. In the linear regime, the comparison is made precise through an effective-spacetime description of the island-fluid system. This description is then put to practical use: We identify caustics by solving the Raychaudhuri equation (a transport equation) along rays of the effective metric. Next, the island-fluid scattering processes are examined in detail (i.e., deflection angle, phase shifts, scattering amplitudes) using numerical simulations and analytical techniques, including the eikonal approximation and its generalisation in the form of the Gaussian beam approximation. We show that the techniques capture the key features of the simulations. Finally, we extend the eikonal approximation to the dispersive regime, demonstrating that the essential features are robust in dispersive settings. This paves the way for future exploration in a controlled laboratory set-up

Meta-Stable Supersymmetry Breaking in a Cooling Universe

We look at the recently proposed idea that susy breaking can be accomplished in a meta-stable vacuum. In the context of one of the simplest models (the Seiberg-dual of super-QCD), we address the following question: if we look at this theory as it cools from high temperature, is it at all possible that we can end up in a susy-breaking meta-stable vacuum? To get an idea about the answer, we look at the free energy of the system at high temperature. We conclude that the phase-structure of the free-energy as the temperature drops, is indeed such that there is a second order phase transition in the direction of the non-susy vacuum at a finite $T=T_c^Q$. On the other hand, the potential barrier in the direction of the susy vacuum is there all the way till $T \sim 0$.Comment: writing full author name

Modeling the Radio and X-ray Emission of SN 1993J and SN 2002ap

Modeling of radio and X-ray observations of supernovae interacting with their circumstellar media are discussed, with special application to SN 1993J and SN 2002ap. We emphasize the importance of including all relevant physical mechanisms, especially for the modeling of the radio light curves. The different conclusions for the absorption mechanism (free-free or synchrotron self-absorption), as well as departures from an $\rho \propto r^{-2}$ CSM, as inferred by some authors, are discussed in detail. We conclude that the evidence for a variation in the mass loss rate with time is very weak. The results regarding the efficiencies of magnetic field generation and relativistic particle acceleration are summarized.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figures. Uses svmult.cls. To appear in proceedings of IAU Colloquium 192 "Supernovae (10 years of SN 1993J)", April 2003, Valencia, Spain, eds. J. M. Marcaide and K. W. Weile

Magnetic phenomena in 5d transition metal nanowires

We have carried out fully relativistic full-potential, spin-polarized, all-electron density-functional calculations for straight, monatomic nanowires of the 5d transition and noble metals Os, Ir, Pt and Au. We find that, of these metal nanowires, Os and Pt have mean-field magnetic moments for values of the bond length at equilibrium. In the case of Au and Ir, the wires need to be slightly stretched in order to spin polarize. An analysis of the band structures of the wires indicate that the superparamagnetic state that our calculations suggest will affect the conductance through the wires -- though not by a large amount -- at least in the absence of magnetic domain walls. It should thus lead to a characteristic temperature- and field dependent conductance, and may also cause a significant spin polarization of the transmitted current.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure

The Atomic Physics Underlying the Spectroscopic Analysis of Massive Stars and Supernovae

We have developed a radiative transfer code, CMFGEN, which allows us to model the spectra of massive stars and supernovae. Using CMFGEN we can derive fundamental parameters such as effective temperatures and surface gravities, derive abundances, and place constraints on stellar wind properties. The last of these is important since all massive stars are losing mass via a stellar wind that is driven from the star by radiation pressure, and this mass loss can substantially influence the spectral appearance and evolution of the star. Recently we have extended CMFGEN to allow us to undertake time-dependent radiative transfer calculations of supernovae. Such calculations will be used to place constraints on the supernova progenitor, to place constraints on the supernova explosion and nucleosynthesis, and to derive distances using a physical approach called the "Expanding Photosphere Method". We describe the assumptions underlying the code and the atomic processes involved. A crucial ingredient in the code is the atomic data. For the modeling we require accurate transition wavelengths, oscillator strengths, photoionization cross-sections, collision strengths, autoionization rates, and charge exchange rates for virtually all species up to, and including, cobalt. Presently, the available atomic data varies substantially in both quantity and quality.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, Accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space Scienc

Towards unified understanding of conductance of stretched monatomic contacts

When monatomic contacts are stretched, their conductance behaves in qualitatively different ways depending on their constituent atomic elements. Under a single assumption of resonance formation, we show that various conductance behavior can be understood in a unified way in terms of the response of the resonance to stretching. This analysis clarifies the crucial roles played by the number of valence electrons, charge neutrality, and orbital shapes.Comment: 2 figure

Scalar mesons moving in a finite volume and the role of partial wave mixing

Phase shifts and resonance parameters can be obtained from finite-volume lattice spectra for interacting pairs of particles, moving with nonzero total momentum. We present a simple derivation of the method that is subsequently applied to obtain the pi pi and pi K phase shifts in the sectors with total isospin I=0 and I=1/2, respectively. Considering different total momenta, one obtains extra data points for a given volume that allow for a very efficient extraction of the resonance parameters in the infinite-volume limit. Corrections due to the mixing of partial waves are provided. We expect that our results will help to optimize the strategies in lattice simulations, which aim at an accurate determination of the scattering and resonance properties.Comment: 19 pages, 12 figure