8 research outputs found
Statistical Analysis of Composite Spectra
We consider nearest neighbor spacing distributions of composite ensembles of
levels. These are obtained by combining independently unfolded sequences of
levels containing only few levels each. Two problems arise in the spectral
analysis of such data. One problem lies in fitting the nearest neighbor spacing
distribution to the histogram of level spacings obtained from the data. We show
that the method of Bayesian inference is superior to this procedure. The second
problem occurs when one unfolds such short sequences. We show that the
unfolding procedure generically leads to an overestimate of the chaoticity
parameter. This trend is absent in the presence of long-range level
correlations. Thus, composite ensembles of levels from a system with long-range
spectral stiffness yield reliable information about the chaotic behavior of the
system.Comment: 26 pages, 3 figures; v3: changed conclusions, appendix adde