Magnetic Helicity Conservation and Inverse Energy Cascade in Electron Magnetohydrodynamic Wave Packets

Electron magnetohydrodynamics (EMHD) provides a fluid-like description of small-scale magnetized plasmas. An EMHD wave (also known as whistler wave) propagates along magnetic field lines. The direction of propagation can be either parallel or anti-parallel to the magnetic field lines. We numerically study propagation of 3-dimensional (3D) EMHD wave packets moving in one direction. We obtain two major results: 1. Unlike its magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) counterpart, an EMHD wave packet is dispersive. Because of this, EMHD wave packets traveling in one direction create opposite traveling wave packets via self-interaction and cascade energy to smaller scales. 2. EMHD wave packets traveling in one direction clearly exhibit inverse energy cascade. We find that the latter is due to conservation of magnetic helicity. We compare inverse energy cascade in 3D EMHD turbulence and 2-dimensional (2D) hydrodynamic turbulence.Comment: Phys. Rev. Lett., accepted (4pages, 4 figures

A little inflation at the cosmological QCD phase transition

We reexamine the recently proposed "little inflation" scenario that allows for a strong first order phase-transition of QCD at non-negligible baryon number in the early universe and its possible observable consequences. The scenario is based on the assumptions of a strong mechanism for baryogenesis and a quasistable QCD-medium state which triggers a short inflationary period of inflation diluting the baryon asymmetry to the value observed today. The cosmological implications are reexamined, namely effects on primordial density fluctuations up to dark matter mass scales of M_{max} \sim 1 M_{\astrosun}, change in the spectral slope up to M_{max} \sim 10^6 M_{\astrosun}, production of seeds for the present galactic and extragalactic magnetic fields and a gravitational wave spectrum with a peak frequency around $\nu_{peak} \sim 4 \cdot 10^{-8} Hz$. We discuss the issue of nucleation in more detail and employ a chiral effective model of QCD to study the impact on small scale structure formation.Comment: 18 pages, 12 figures, several extensions to the text and structure formation part was rephrased for better readabilit

Two-Loop O(αsGFmt2){\cal O}(\alpha_sG_Fm_t^2) Corrections to Higgs Production at LEP

We evaluate the two-loop ${\cal O}(\alpha_sG_Fm_t^2)$ correction to the $ZZH$ coupling in the Standard Model by means of a low-energy theorem, assuming that the top quark is much heavier than the Higgs boson. We then construct a heavy-top-quark effective Lagrangian for the $ZZH$ interaction that accommodates the ${\cal O}(G_Fm_t^2)$ and ${\cal O}(\alpha_sG_Fm_t^2)$ corrections and derive from it the corresponding corrections to the $H\to ZZ$ decay as well as those to Higgs-boson production at LEP1, via $Z\to f\bar fH$, and at LEP2, via $e^+e^-\to ZH$. In all cases, the leading ${\cal O}(G_Fm_t^2)$ terms are considerably screened by their QCD corrections, if the on-shell renormalization scheme with $G_F$ as a basic parameter is employed.Comment: 11 pages, latex, no figure

CKM Matrix and Standard-Model CP Violation

The currently favored model of CP violation is based on phases in the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa (CKM) matrix describing the weak charge-changing couplings of quarks. The present status of parameters of this matrix is described. Tests of the theory, with particular emphasis on the study of B meson decays, are then noted. Some remarks are made regarding the possible origin of the baryon asymmetry of the universe; the corresponding coupling pattern of the leptons could shed light on the question. Some possibilities for non-standard physics are discussed.Comment: 16 pages, latex, 8 figures. Invited talk at Fourth KEK Topical Conference on Flavour Physics, 29 -- 31 October 1996. To be published in Nucl. Phys. B (Proc. Suppl.