216 research outputs found
Viscosity Bound and Causality in Superfluid Plasma
It was argued by Brigante et.al that the lower bound on the ratio of the
shear viscosity to the entropy density in strongly coupled plasma is translated
into microcausality violation in the dual gravitational description. Since
transport properties of the system characterize its infrared dynamics, while
the causality of the theory is determined by its ultraviolet behavior, the
viscosity bound/microcausality link should not be applicable to theories that
undergo low temperature phase transitions. We present an explicit model of
AdS/CFT correspondence that confirms this fact.Comment: 27 pages, 5 figures. References added, typos fixe
Collective Excitations of Holographic Quantum Liquids in a Magnetic Field
We use holography to study N=4 supersymmetric SU(Nc) Yang-Mills theory in the
large-Nc and large-coupling limits coupled to a number Nf << Nc of
(n+1)-dimensional massless supersymmetric hypermultiplets in the Nc
representation of SU(Nc), with n=2,3. We introduce a temperature T, a baryon
number chemical potential mu, and a baryon number magnetic field B, and work in
a regime with mu >> T,\sqrt{B}. We study the collective excitations of these
holographic quantum liquids by computing the poles in the retarded Green's
function of the baryon number charge density operator and the associated peaks
in the spectral function. We focus on the evolution of the collective
excitations as we increase the frequency relative to T, i.e. the
hydrodynamic/collisionless crossover. We find that for all B, at low
frequencies the tallest peak in the spectral function is associated with
hydrodynamic charge diffusion. At high frequencies the tallest peak is
associated with a sound mode similar to the zero sound mode in the
collisionless regime of a Landau Fermi liquid. The sound mode has a gap
proportional to B, and as a result for intermediate frequencies and for B
sufficiently large compared to T the spectral function is strongly suppressed.
We find that the hydrodynamic/collisionless crossover occurs at a frequency
that is approximately B-independent.Comment: 45 pages, 8 png and 47 pdf images in 22 figure
Charged Magnetic Brane Solutions in AdS_5 and the fate of the third law of thermodynamics
We construct asymptotically AdS_5 solutions to 5-dimensional Einstein-Maxwell
theory with Chern-Simons term which are dual to 4-dimensional gauge theories,
including N=4 SYM theory, in the presence of a constant background magnetic
field B and a uniform electric charge density \rho. For the solutions
corresponding to supersymmetric gauge theories, we find numerically that a
small magnetic field causes a drastic decrease in the entropy at low
temperatures. The near-horizon AdS_2 \times R^3 geometry of the purely
electrically charged brane thus appears to be unstable under the addition of a
small magnetic field. Based on this observation, we propose a formulation of
the third law of thermodynamics (or Nernst theorem) that can be applied to
black holes in the AdS/CFT context.
We also find interesting behavior for smaller, non-supersymmetric, values of
the Chern-Simons coupling k. For k=1 we exhibit exact solutions corresponding
to warped AdS_3 black holes, and show that these can be connected to
asymptotically AdS_5 spacetime. For k\leq 1 the entropy appears to go to a
finite value at extremality, but the solutions still exhibit a mild singularity
at strictly zero temperature. In addition to our numerics, we carry out a
complete perturbative analysis valid to order B^2, and find that this
corroborates our numerical results insofar as they overlap.Comment: 45 pages v2: added note about subsequent results found in
arXiv:1003.130
Moduli and electromagnetic black brane holography
We investigate the thermodynamic and hydrodynamic properties of 4-dimensional
gauge theories with finite electric charge density in the presence of a
constant magnetic field. Their gravity duals are planar magnetically and
electrically charged AdS black holes in theories that contain a gauge
Chern-Simons term. We present a careful analysis of the near horizon geometry
of these black branes at finite and zero temperature for the case of a scalar
field non-minimally coupled to the electromagnetic field. With the knowledge of
the near horizon data, we obtain analytic expressions for the shear viscosity
coefficient and entropy density, and also study the effect of a generic set of
four derivative interactions on their ratio. We also comment on the attractor
flows of the extremal solutions.Comment: 39 pages, no figures; v2: minor changes, refs. added; v3: typo fixed;
v4: a proof for decoupling of the viscosity mode added in appendix, matches
the published versio
Thermodynamics of Holographic Defects
Using the AdS/CFT correspondence, we study the thermodynamic properties and
the phase diagram of matter fields on (2+1)-dimensional defects coupled to a
(3+1)-dimensional N=4 SYM "heat bath". Considering a background magnetic field,
(net) quark density, defect "magnitude" and the mass of the
matter, we study the defect contribution to the thermodynamic potentials and
their first and second derivatives to map the phases and study their physical
properties.
We find some features that are qualitatively similar to other systems e.g. in
(3+1) dimensions and a number of features that are particular to the defect
nature, such as its magnetic properties, unexpected properties at T->0 and
finite density; and the finite effects, e.g. a diverging
susceptibility and vanishing density of states at small temperatures, a
physically consistent negative heat capacity and new types of consistent
phases.Comment: 33 pages, 16 figures (jpg and pdf), typos fixed and references added,
final version published in JHE
A facile chemical conversion synthesis of Sb2S3 nanotubes and the visible light-driven photocatalytic activities
We report a simple chemical conversion and cation exchange technique to realize the synthesis of Sb2S3 nanotubes at a low temperature of 90°C. The successful chemical conversion from ZnS nanotubes to Sb2S3 ones benefits from the large difference in solubility between ZnS and Sb2S3. The as-grown Sb2S3 nanotubes have been transformed from a weak crystallization to a polycrystalline structure via successive annealing. In addition to the detailed structural, morphological, and optical investigation of the yielded Sb2S3 nanotubes before and after annealing, we have shown high photocatalytic activities of Sb2S3 nanotubes for methyl orange degradation under visible light irradiation. This approach offers an effective control of the composition and structure of Sb2S3 nanomaterials, facilitates the production at a relatively low reaction temperature without the need of organics, templates, or crystal seeds, and can be extended to the synthesis of hollow structures with various compositions and shapes for unique properties
Radiation chemistry of solid-state carbohydrates using EMR
We review our research of the past decade towards identification of radiation-induced radicals in solid state sugars and sugar phosphates. Detailed models of the radical structures are obtained by combining EPR and ENDOR experiments with DFT calculations of g and proton HF tensors, with agreement in their anisotropy serving as most important criterion. Symmetry-related and Schonland ambiguities, which may hamper such identification, are reviewed. Thermally induced transformations of initial radiation damage into more stable radicals can also be monitored in the EPR (and ENDOR) experiments and in principle provide information on stable radical formation mechanisms. Thermal annealing experi-ments reveal, however, that radical recombination and/or diamagnetic radiation damage is also quite important. Analysis strategies are illustrated with research on sucrose. Results on dipotassium glucose-1-phosphate and trehalose dihydrate, fructose and sorbose are also briefly discussed. Our study demonstrates that radiation damage is strongly regio-selective and that certain general principles govern the stable radical formation
Changes in muscle-tendon unit length-force characteristics following experimentally induced photothrombotic stroke cannot be explained by changes in muscle belly structure.
Purpose The aim of this study was to assess the effects of experimentally induced photothrombotic stroke on structural and mechanical properties of rat m. flexor carpi ulnaris. Methods Two groups of Young-adult male Sprague–Dawley rats were measured: stroke (n = 9) and control (n = 7). Photothrombotic stroke was induced in the forelimb region of the primary sensorimotor cortex. Four weeks later, muscle–tendon unit and muscle belly length–force characteristics of the m. flexor carpi ulnaris, mechanical interaction with the neighbouring m. palmaris longus, the number of sarcomeres in series within muscle fibres, and the physiological cross-sectional area were measured. Results Stroke resulted in higher force and stiffness of the m. flexor carpi ulnaris at optimum muscle–tendon unit length, but only for the passive conditions. Stroke did not alter the length–force characteristics of m. flexor carpi ulnaris muscle belly, morphological characteristics, and the extent of mechanical interaction with m. palmaris longus muscle. Conclusion The higher passive force and passive stiffness at the muscle–tendon unit level in the absence of changes in structural and mechanical characteristics of the muscle belly indicates that the experimentally induced stroke resulted in an increased stiffness of the tendon
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