One Hour of Chemical Demonstrations

This article describes a diverse set of chemistry demonstrations especially selected to encourage student interaction and to be easily transported. The demonstrations may be presented at a level that can be tailored to any audience– from very young children to high school students planning careers in science. An ideal environment is a small classroom with 20-30 students where everyone can take part in the discussion. Once the chemicals are prepared, the collection of demonstrations takes about ten minutes to set-up, and one hour (or less) to perform. Very little is needed at the visiting site, no more than a table and a pitcher of water. A single electrical outlet is useful, but not essential. In Table 2 th

Electronic heat current rectification in hybrid superconducting devices

In this work, we review and expand recent theoretical proposals for the realization of electronic thermal diodes based on tunnel-junctions of normal metal and superconducting thin films. Starting from the basic rectifying properties of a single hybrid tunnel junction, we will show how the rectification efficiency can be largely increased by combining multiple junctions in an asymmetric chain of tunnel-coupled islands. We propose three different designs, analyzing their performance and their potential advantages. Besides being relevant from a fundamental physics point of view, this kind of devices might find important technological application as fundamental building blocks in solid-state thermal nanocircuits and in general-purpose cryogenic electronic applications requiring energy management.Comment: 9 pages, 5 color figure

Classical R-matrix theory of dispersionless systems: I. (1+1)-dimension theory

A systematic way of construction of (1+1)-dimensional dispersionless integrable Hamiltonian systems is presented. The method is based on the classical R-matrix on Poisson algebras of formal Laurent series. Results are illustrated with the known and new (1+1)-dimensional dispersionless systems.Comment: 23 page

Field Dependent Phase Diagram of the Quantum Spin Chain (CH3)2NH2CuCl3

Although (CH3)2NH2CuCl3 (MCCL) was first examined in the 1930's [1], there are open questions regarding the magnetic dimensionality and nature of the magnetic properties. MCCL is proposed to be a S=1/2 alternating ferromagnetic antiferromagnetic spin chain alternating along the crystalline a-axis [2,3]. Proposed ferromagnetic (JFM =1.3 meV) and antiferromagnetic (JAFM =1.1 meV) exchange constants make this system particularly interesting for experimental study. Because JFM and JAFM are nearly identical, the system should show competing behavior between S=1/2 (AFM) and S=1(FM) effects. We report low temperature magnetic field dependent susceptibility, chi(H), and specific heat, Cp, of MCCL. These provide an initial magnetic-field versus temperature phase diagram. A zero-field phase transition consistent with long range magnetic order is observed at T=0.9 K. The transition temperature can be reduced via application of a magnetic field. We also present comparisons to a FM/AFM dimer model that accounts for chi(T,H=0) and Cp(H,T).Comment: 2 pages, 1 figure included in text. Submitted to proceedings of 24th International Conference on Low Temperature Physics, August 200

A compactness theorem for complete Ricci shrinkers

We prove precompactness in an orbifold Cheeger-Gromov sense of complete gradient Ricci shrinkers with a lower bound on their entropy and a local integral Riemann bound. We do not need any pointwise curvature assumptions, volume or diameter bounds. In dimension four, under a technical assumption, we can replace the local integral Riemann bound by an upper bound for the Euler characteristic. The proof relies on a Gauss-Bonnet with cutoff argument.Comment: 28 pages, final version, to appear in GAF

Flat bidifferential ideals and semihamiltonian PDEs

In this paper we consider a class of semihamiltonian systems characterized by the existence of a special conservation law. The density and the current of this conservation law satisfy a second order system of PDEs which has a natural interpretation in the theory of flat bifferential ideals. The class of systems we consider contains important well-known examples of semihamiltonian systems. Other examples, like genus 1 Whitham modulation equations for KdV, are related to this class by a reciprocal trasformation.Comment: 18 pages. v5: formula (36) corrected; minor change

Possible observation of phase separation near a quantum phase transition in doubly connected ultrathin superconducting cylinders of aluminum

The kinetic energy of superconducting electrons in an ultrathin, doubly connected superconducting cylinder, determined by the applied flux, increases as the cylinder diameter decreases, leading to a destructive regime around half-flux quanta and a superconductor to normal metal quantum phase transition (QPT). Regular step-like features in resistance vs. temperature curves taken at fixed flux values were observed near the QPT in ultrathin Al cylinders. It is proposed that these features are most likely resulted from a phase separation near the QPT in which normal regions nucleate in a homogeneous superconducting cylinder.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev. Let

Theory of localization and resonance phenomena in the quantum kicked rotor

We present an analytic theory of quantum interference and Anderson localization in the quantum kicked rotor (QKR). The behavior of the system is known to depend sensitively on the value of its effective Planck's constant \he. We here show that for rational values of \he/(4\pi)=p/q, it bears similarity to a disordered metallic ring of circumference $q$ and threaded by an Aharonov-Bohm flux. Building on that correspondence, we obtain quantitative results for the time--dependent behavior of the QKR kinetic energy, $E(\tilde t)$ (this is an observable which sensitively probes the system's localization properties). For values of $q$ smaller than the localization length $\xi$, we obtain scaling $E(\tilde t) \sim \Delta \tilde t^2$, where $\Delta=2\pi/q$ is the quasi--energy level spacing on the ring. This scaling is indicative of a long time dynamics that is neither localized nor diffusive. For larger values $q\gg \xi$, the functions $E(\tilde t)\to \xi^2$ saturates (up to exponentially small corrections $\sim\exp(-q/\xi)$), thus reflecting essentially localized behavior.Comment: 27 pages, 3 figure

Gauge transformation and reciprocal link for (2+1)-dimensional integrable field systems

Appropriate restrictions of Lax operators which allows to construction of (2+1)-dimensional integrable field systems, coming from centrally extended algebra of pseudo-differential operators, are reviewed. The gauge transformation and the reciprocal link between three classes of Lax hierarchies are established.Comment: to appear in J. Nonl. Math. Phys., 12 page