657 research outputs found
Fluctuations and Dissipation of Coherent Magnetization
A quantum mechanical model is used to derive a generalized Landau-Lifshitz
equation for a magnetic moment, including fluctuations and dissipation. The
model reproduces the Gilbert-Brown form of the equation in the classical limit.
The magnetic moment is linearly coupled to a reservoir of bosonic degrees of
freedom. Use of generalized coherent states makes the semiclassical limit more
transparent within a path-integral formulation. A general
fluctuation-dissipation theorem is derived. The magnitude of the magnetic
moment also fluctuates beyond the Gaussian approximation. We discuss how the
approximate stochastic description of the thermal field follows from our
result. As an example, we go beyond the linear-response method and show how the
thermal fluctuations become anisotropy-dependent even in the uniaxial case.Comment: 22 page
Electromagnetic-field quantization and spontaneous decay in left-handed media
We present a quantization scheme for the electromagnetic field interacting
with atomic systems in the presence of dispersing and absorbing
magnetodielectric media, including left-handed material having negative real
part of the refractive index. The theory is applied to the spontaneous decay of
a two-level atom at the center of a spherical free-space cavity surrounded by
magnetodielectric matter of overlapping band-gap zones. Results for both big
and small cavities are presented, and the problem of local-field corrections
within the real-cavity model is addressed.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figures, RevTe
Model Analysis of Time Reversal Symmetry Test in the Caltech Fe-57 Gamma-Transition Experiment
The CALTECH gamma-transition experiment testing time reversal symmetry via
the E2/M1 mulipole mixing ratio of the 122 keV gamma-line in Fe-57 has already
been performed in 1977. Extending an earlier analysis in terms of an effective
one-body potential, this experiment is now analyzed in terms of effective one
boson exchange T-odd P-even nucleon nucleon potentials. Within the model space
considered for the Fe-57 nucleus no contribution from isovector rho-type
exchange is possible. The bound on the coupling strength phi_A from effective
short range axial-vector type exchange induced by the experimental bound on
sin(eta) leads to phi_A < 10^{-2}.Comment: 5 pages, RevTex 3.
Stability of the monoclinic phase in the ferroelectric perovskite PbZr(1-x)TixO3
Recent structural studies of ferroelectric PbZr(1-x)TixO3 (PZT) with x= 0.48,
have revealed a new monoclinic phase in the vicinity of the morphotropic phase
boundary (MPB), previously regarded as the the boundary separating the
rhombohedral and tetragonal regions of the PZT phase diagram. In the present
paper, the stability region of all three phases has been established from high
resolution synchrotron x-ray powder diffraction measurements on a series of
highly homogeneous samples with 0.42 <=x<= 0.52. At 20K the monoclinic phase is
stable in the range 0.46 <=x<= 0.51, and this range narrows as the temperature
is increased. A first-order phase transition from tetragonal to rhombohedral
symmetry is observed only for x= 0.45. The MPB, therefore, corresponds not to
the tetragonal-rhombohedral phase boundary, but instead to the boundary between
the tetragonal and monoclinic phases for 0.46 <=x<= 0.51. This result provides
important insight into the close relationship between the monoclinic phase and
the striking piezoelectric properties of PZT; in particular, investigations of
poled samples have shown that the monoclinic distortion is the origin of the
unusually high piezoelectric response of PZT.Comment: REVTeX file, 7 figures embedde
A tetragonal-to-monoclinic phase transition in a ferroelectric perovskite: the structure of PbZr(0.52)Ti(0.48)O3
The perovskite-like ferroelectric system PbZr(1-x)Ti(x)O3 (PZT) has a nearly
vertical morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) around x=0.45-0.50. Recent
synchrotron x-ray powder diffraction measurements by Noheda et al. [Appl. Phys.
Lett. 74, 2059 (1999)] have revealed a new monoclinic phase between the
previously-established tetragonal and rhombohedral regions. In the present work
we describe a Rietveld analysis of the detailed structure of the tetragonal and
monoclinic PZT phases on a sample with x= 0.48 for which the lattice parameters
are respectively: at= 4.044 A, ct= 4.138 A, at 325 K, and am= 5.721 A, bm=
5.708 A, cm= 4.138 A, beta= 90.496 deg., at 20K. In the tetragonal phase the
shifts of the atoms along the polar [001] direction are similar to those in
PbTiO3 but the refinement indicates that there are, in addition, local
disordered shifts of the Pb atoms of ~0.2 A perpendicular to the polar axis..
The monoclinic structure can be viewed as a condensation along one of the
directions of the local displacements present in the tetragonal phase. It
equally well corresponds to a freezing-out of the local displacements along one
of the directions recently reported by Corker et al.[J. Phys. Condens.
Matter 10, 6251 (1998)] for rhombohedral PZT. The monoclinic structure
therefore provides a microscopic picture of the MPB region in which one of the
"locally" monoclinic phases in the "average" rhombohedral or tetragonal
structures freezes out, and thus represents a bridge between these two phases.Comment: REVTeX, 7 figures. Modifications after referee's suggestion: new
figure (figure 5), comments in 2nd para. (Sect.III) and in 2nd & 3rd para.
(Sect. IV-a), in the abstract: "...of ~0.2 A perpendicular to the polar
axis.
Phenomenology of the Lense-Thirring effect in the Solar System
Recent years have seen increasing efforts to directly measure some aspects of
the general relativistic gravitomagnetic interaction in several astronomical
scenarios in the solar system. After briefly overviewing the concept of
gravitomagnetism from a theoretical point of view, we review the performed or
proposed attempts to detect the Lense-Thirring effect affecting the orbital
motions of natural and artificial bodies in the gravitational fields of the
Sun, Earth, Mars and Jupiter. In particular, we will focus on the evaluation of
the impact of several sources of systematic uncertainties of dynamical origin
to realistically elucidate the present and future perspectives in directly
measuring such an elusive relativistic effect.Comment: LaTex, 51 pages, 14 figures, 22 tables. Invited review, to appear in
Astrophysics and Space Science (ApSS). Some uncited references in the text
now correctly quoted. One reference added. A footnote adde
Fitting the integrated Spectral Energy Distributions of Galaxies
Fitting the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of galaxies is an almost
universally used technique that has matured significantly in the last decade.
Model predictions and fitting procedures have improved significantly over this
time, attempting to keep up with the vastly increased volume and quality of
available data. We review here the field of SED fitting, describing the
modelling of ultraviolet to infrared galaxy SEDs, the creation of
multiwavelength data sets, and the methods used to fit model SEDs to observed
galaxy data sets. We touch upon the achievements and challenges in the major
ingredients of SED fitting, with a special emphasis on describing the interplay
between the quality of the available data, the quality of the available models,
and the best fitting technique to use in order to obtain a realistic
measurement as well as realistic uncertainties. We conclude that SED fitting
can be used effectively to derive a range of physical properties of galaxies,
such as redshift, stellar masses, star formation rates, dust masses, and
metallicities, with care taken not to over-interpret the available data. Yet
there still exist many issues such as estimating the age of the oldest stars in
a galaxy, finer details ofdust properties and dust-star geometry, and the
influences of poorly understood, luminous stellar types and phases. The
challenge for the coming years will be to improve both the models and the
observational data sets to resolve these uncertainties. The present review will
be made available on an interactive, moderated web page (sedfitting.org), where
the community can access and change the text. The intention is to expand the
text and keep it up to date over the coming years.Comment: 54 pages, 26 figures, Accepted for publication in Astrophysics &
Space Scienc
Incised valley paleoenvironments interpreted by seismic stratigraphic approach in Patos Lagoon, Southern Brazil
<div><p>ABSTRACT: The Rio Grande do Sul (RS) coastal plain area (33,000 km 2 ) had its physiography modified several times through the Quaternary, responding to allogenic and autogenic forcings. The Patos Lagoon covers a significant area of RS coastal plain (10,000 km 2 ), where incised valleys were identified in previous works. About 1,000 km of high resolution (3.5 kHz) seismic profiles, radiocarbon datings, Standard Penetration Test (SPT) and gravity cores were analyzed to interpret the paleoenvironmental evolution as preserved in incised valley infills. Seismic facies were recognized by seismic parameters. The sediment cores were used to ground-truth the seismic interpretations and help in the paleoenvironmental identification. Key surfaces were established to detail the stratigraphical framework, and seismic facies were grouped into four seismic units, which one classified in respective system tracts within three depositional sequences. The oldest preserved deposits are predominantly fluvial and estuarine facies, representing the falling stage and lowstand system tracts. The Holocene transgressive records are dominated by muddy material, mainly represented by estuarine facies with local variations. The transgression culminated in Late Holocene deposits of Patos Lagoon, representing the highstand system tract. The depositional pattern of the vertical succession was controlled by eustatic variations, while the autogenic forcing (paleogeography and sediment supply) modulated the local facies variation.</p></div
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