4,534 research outputs found
Coulomb field of an accelerated charge: physical and mathematical aspects
The Maxwell field equations relative to a uniformly accelerated frame, and
the variational principle from which they are obtained, are formulated in terms
of the technique of geometrical gauge invariant potentials. They refer to the
transverse magnetic (TM) and the transeverse electric (TE) modes. This gauge
invariant "2+2" decomposition is used to see how the Coulomb field of a charge,
static in an accelerated frame, has properties that suggest features of
electromagnetism which are different from those in an inertial frame. In
particular, (1) an illustrative calculation shows that the Larmor radiation
reaction equals the electrostatic attraction between the accelerated charge and
the charge induced on the surface whose history is the event horizon, and (2) a
spectral decomposition of the Coulomb potential in the accelerated frame
suggests the possibility that the distortive effects of this charge on the
Rindler vacuum are akin to those of a charge on a crystal lattice.Comment: 27 pages, PlainTex. Related papers available at
http://www.math.ohio-state.edu/~gerlac
Full Counting Statistics of Spin Currents
We discuss how to detect fluctuating spin currents and derive full counting
statistics of electron spin transfers. It is interesting to consider several
detectors in series that simultaneously monitor different components of the
spins transferred. We have found that in general the statistics of the
measurement outcomes cannot be explained with the projection postulate and
essentially depends on the quantum dynamics of the detectors.Comment: twocolumns, 4 pages, 2 figure
The Stern-Gerlach Experiment Revisited
The Stern-Gerlach-Experiment (SGE) of 1922 is a seminal benchmark experiment
of quantum physics providing evidence for several fundamental properties of
quantum systems. Based on today's knowledge we illustrate the different
benchmark results of the SGE for the development of modern quantum physics and
chemistry.
The SGE provided the first direct experimental evidence for angular momentum
quantization in the quantum world and thus also for the existence of
directional quantization of all angular momenta in the process of measurement.
It measured for the first time a ground state property of an atom, it produced
for the first time a `spin-polarized' atomic beam, it almost revealed the
electron spin. The SGE was the first fully successful molecular beam experiment
with high momentum-resolution by beam measurements in vacuum. This technique
provided a new kinematic microscope with which inner atomic or nuclear
properties could be investigated.
The original SGE is described together with early attempts by Einstein,
Ehrenfest, Heisenberg, and others to understand directional quantization in the
SGE. Heisenberg's and Einstein's proposals of an improved multi-stage SGE are
presented. The first realization of these proposals by Stern, Phipps, Frisch
and Segr\`e is described. The set-up suggested by Einstein can be considered an
anticipation of a Rabi-apparatus. Recent theoretical work is mentioned in which
the directional quantization process and possible interference effects of the
two different spin states are investigated.
In full agreement with the results of the new quantum theory directional
quantization appears as a general and universal feature of quantum
measurements. One experimental example for such directional quantization in
scattering processes is shown. Last not least, the early history of the
`almost' discovery of the electron spin in the SGE is revisited.Comment: 50pp, 17 fig
What is the Geometry of Superspace ?
We investigate certain properties of the Wheeler-DeWitt metric (for constant
lapse) in canonical General Relativity associated with its non-definite nature.
Contribution to the conference on Mach's principle: "From Newtons Bucket to
Quantum Gravity", July 26-30 1993, Tuebingen, GermanyComment: 10 pages, Plain Te
Disorder-Induced Resistive Anomaly Near Ferromagnetic Phase Transitions
We show that the resistivity rho(T) of disordered ferromagnets near, and
above, the Curie temperature T_c generically exhibits a stronger anomaly than
the scaling-based Fisher-Langer prediction. Treating transport beyond the
Boltzmann description, we find that within mean-field theory, d\rho/dT exhibits
a |T-T_c|^{-1/2} singularity near T_c. Our results, being solely due to
impurities, are relevant to ferromagnets with low T_c, such as SrRuO3 or
diluted magnetic semiconductors, whose mobility near T_c is limited by
disorder.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures; V2: with a few clarifications, as publishe
Spin separation in cyclotron motion
Charged carriers with different spin states are spatially separated in a
two-dimensional hole gas. Due to strong spin-orbit interaction holes at the
Fermi energy have different momenta for two possible spin states travelling in
the same direction and, correspondingly, different cyclotron orbits in a weak
magnetic field. Two point contacts, acting as a monochromatic source of
ballistic holes and a narrow detector in the magnetic focusing geometry are
demonstrated to work as a tunable spin filter.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure
On the exciton binding energy in a quantum well
We consider a model describing the one-dimensional confinement of an exciton
in a symmetrical, rectangular quantum-well structure and derive upper and lower
bounds for the binding energy of the exciton. Based on these bounds, we
study the dependence of on the width of the confining potential with a
higher accuracy than previous reports. For an infinitely deep potential the
binding energy varies as expected from at large widths to at
small widths. For a finite potential, but without consideration of a mass
mismatch or a dielectric mismatch, we substantiate earlier results that the
binding energy approaches the value for both small and large widths,
having a characteristic peak for some intermediate size of the slab. Taking the
mismatch into account, this result will in general no longer be true. For the
specific case of a quantum-well
structure, however, and in contrast to previous findings, the peak structure is
shown to survive.Comment: 32 pages, ReVTeX, including 9 figure
The profile of an emission line from relativistic outflows around a black hole
Recent observations show strong evidence for the presence of Doppler-shifted
emission lines in the spectrum of both black hole candidates and active
galactic nuclei. These lines are likely to originate from relativistic outflows
(or jets) in the vicinity of the central black hole. Consequently, the profile
of such a line should be distorted by strong gravitational effects near the
black hole, as well as special relativistic effects. In this paper, we present
results from a detailed study on how each process affects the observed line
profile. We found that the profile is sensitive to the intrinsic properties of
the jets (Lorentz factor, velocity profile, and emissivity law), as well as to
the spin of the black hole and the viewing angle (with respect to the axis of
the jets). More specifically, in the case of approaching jets, an intrisically
narrow line (blue-shifted) is seen as simply broadened at small viewing angles,
but it shows a doubly peaked profile at large viewing angles for extreme Kerr
black holes (due to the combination of gravitational focusing and Doppler
effects); the profile is always singly peaked for Schwarzschild black holes.
For receding jets, however, the line profile becomes quite complicated owing to
complicated photon trajectories. To facilitate comparison with observations, we
searched a large parameter space to derive representative line profiles. We
show the results and discuss how to use emission lines as a potential tool for
probing the inner region of a black hole jet system.Comment: 16 pages in emulateapj style, 11 figure
Money in monetary policy design: monetary cross-checking in the New-Keynesian model
In the New-Keynesian model, optimal interest rate policy under uncertainty is formulated without reference to monetary aggregates as long as certain standard assumptions on the distributions of unobservables are satisfied. The model has been criticized for failing to explain common trends in money growth and inflation, and that therefore money should be used as a cross-check in policy formulation (see Lucas (2007)). We show that the New-Keynesian model can explain such trends if one allows for the possibility of persistent central bank misperceptions. Such misperceptions motivate the search for policies that include additional robustness checks. In earlier work, we proposed an interest rate rule that is near-optimal in normal times but includes a cross-check with monetary information. In case of unusual monetary trends, interest rates are adjusted. In this paper, we show in detail how to derive the appropriate magnitude of the interest rate adjustment following a significant cross-check with monetary information, when the New-Keynesian model is the central bank’s preferred model. The cross-check is shown to be effective in offsetting persistent deviations of inflation due to central bank misperceptions. Keywords: Monetary Policy, New-Keynesian Model, Money, Quantity Theory, European Central Bank, Policy Under Uncertaint
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