Gravitational Lens Statistics and The Density Profile of Dark Halos

We investigate the influence of the inner profile of lens objects on gravitational lens statistics taking into account of the effect of magnification bias and both the evolution and the scatter of halo profiles. We take the dark halos as the lens objects and consider the following three models for the density profile of dark halos; SIS (singular isothermal sphere), the NFW (Navarro Frenk White) profile, and the generalized NFW profile which has a different slope at smaller radii. The mass function of dark halos is assumed to be given by the Press-Schechter function. We find that magnification bias for the NFW profile is order of magnitude larger than that for SIS. We estimate the sensitivity of the lensing probability of distant sources to the inner profile of lenses and to the cosmological parameters. It turns out that the lensing probability is strongly dependent on the inner density profile as well as on the cosmological constant. We compare the predictions with the largest observational sample, the Cosmic Lens All-Sky Survey. The absence or presence of large splitting events in larger surveys currently underway such as the 2dF and SDSS could set constraints on the inner density profile of dark halos.Comment: 22 pages, minor changes and references added, accepted for publication in Ap

Remote preparation of arbitrary ensembles and quantum bit commitment

The Hughston-Jozsa-Wootters theorem shows that any finite ensemble of quantum states can be prepared "at a distance", and it has been used to demonstrate the insecurity of all bit commitment protocols based on finite quantum systems without superselection rules. In this paper, we prove a generalized HJW theorem for arbitrary ensembles of states on a C*-algebra. We then use this result to demonstrate the insecurity of bit commitment protocols based on infinite quantum systems, and quantum systems with Abelian superselection rules.Comment: 21 pages, LaTeX. Version 2: Proofs expanded and made more self-contained; added an example of a bit commitment protocol with continuous ensemble

Finite-size Scaling of Correlation Ratio and Generalized Scheme for the Probability-Changing Cluster Algorithm

We study the finite-size scaling (FSS) property of the correlation ratio, the ratio of the correlation functions with different distances. It is shown that the correlation ratio is a good estimator to determine the critical point of the second-order transition using the FSS analysis. The correlation ratio is especially useful for the analysis of the Kosterlitz-Thouless (KT) transition. We also present a generalized scheme of the probability-changing cluster algorithm, which has been recently developed by the present authors, based on the FSS property of the correlation ratio. We investigate the two-dimensional quantum XY model of spin 1/2 with this generalized scheme, obtaining the precise estimate of the KT transition temperature with less numerical effort.Comment: 4 pages, RevTeX4, to appear in Phys. Rev. B, Rapid Communication

Low Energy Effective Action for Horava-Witten Cosmology

As a supersymmetric extension of the Randall-Sundrum model, we consider a 5-dimensional Horava-Witten type theory, and derive its low energy effective action. The model we consider is a two-brane system with a bulk scalar field satisfying the BPS condition. We solve the bulk equations of motion using a gradient expansion method, and substitute the solution into the original action to get the 4-dimensional effective action. The resultant effective theory can be casted into the form of Einstein gravity coupled with two scalar fields, one arising from the radion, the degree of freedom of the inter-brane distance, and the other from the bulk scalar field. We also clarify the relation between our analysis and the moduli approximation.Comment: 11 page

Measured Quantum Fourier Transform of 1024 Qubits on Fiber Optics

Quantum Fourier transform (QFT) is a key function to realize quantum computers. A QFT followed by measurement was demonstrated on a simple circuit based on fiber-optics. The QFT was shown to be robust against imperfections in the rotation gate. Error probability was estimated to be 0.01 per qubit, which corresponded to error-free operation on 100 qubits. The error probability can be further reduced by taking the majority of the accumulated results. The reduction of error probability resulted in a successful QFT demonstration on 1024 qubits.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figures, submitted to EQIS 2003 Special issue, Int. J. Quantum Informatio

Photometric Observations of Star Formation Activity in Early Type Spirals

We observationally study the current star formation activities of early type spiral galaxies. We construct a complete sample of 15 early type spirals having far-infrared (FIR) to optical B band luminosity ratios, L(FIR)/L(B), larger than the average of the type, and make their CCD imaging of the R and H-alpha bands. The equivalent widths of H-alpha emission increase with increasing L(FIR)/L(B), indicating that L(FIR)/L(B) can be an indicator of star formation for such early type spirals with star formation activities higher than the average. For all of the observed early type spirals, the extended HII regions exist at the central regions with some asymmetric features. H-alpha emission is more concentrated to the galactic center than the R band light, and the degree of the concentration increases with the star formation activity. We also analyze the relation between the star formation activities and the existence of companion galaxies in the sample galaxies and other bright early type spirals. No correlation is found and this suggests that the interaction is not responsible for all of the star formation activities of early type spirals.Comment: LaTex, 23 pages (2 tables included), plus 9 Postscript figures & 1 table. To be published in AJ (November issue

Enhancement of the Critical Current Density of YBa2Cu3Ox Superconductors under Hydrostatic Pressure

The dependence of the critical current density Jc on hydrostatic pressure to 0.6 GPa is determined for a single 25-degree [001]-tilt grain boundary in a bicrystalline ring of nearly optimally doped melt-textured YBa2Cu3Ox. Jc is found to increase rapidly under pressure at +20 %/GPa. A new diagnostic method is introduced (pressure-induced Jc relaxation) which reveals a sizeable concentration of vacant oxygen sites in the grain boundary region. Completely filling such sites with oxygen anions should lead to significant enhancements in Jc.Comment: revised manuscript, graphic errors in figures correcte