1,238 research outputs found
Generation of mechanical interference fringes by multi-photon counting
Exploring the quantum behaviour of macroscopic objects provides an intriguing
avenue to study the foundations of physics and to develop a suite of
quantum-enhanced technologies. One prominent path of study is provided by
quantum optomechanics which utilizes the tools of quantum optics to control the
motion of macroscopic mechanical resonators. Despite excellent recent progress,
the preparation of mechanical quantum superposition states remains outstanding
due to weak coupling and thermal decoherence. Here we present a novel
optomechanical scheme that significantly relaxes these requirements allowing
the preparation of quantum superposition states of motion of a mechanical
resonator by exploiting the nonlinearity of multi-photon quantum measurements.
Our method is capable of generating non-classical mechanical states without the
need for strong single photon coupling, is resilient against optical loss, and
offers more favourable scaling against initial mechanical thermal occupation
than existing schemes. Moreover, our approach allows the generation of larger
superposition states by projecting the optical field onto NOON states. We
experimentally demonstrate this multi-photon-counting technique on a mechanical
thermal state in the classical limit and observe interference fringes in the
mechanical position distribution that show phase superresolution. This opens a
feasible route to explore and exploit quantum phenomena at a macroscopic scale.Comment: 16 pages, 4 figures. v1: submitted for review on 28 Jan 2016. v2:
significantly revised manuscript. v3: some further revisions and some extra
results included. v3: new results added, extra author added, close to
published version, supplementary material available with published versio
Demonstration of a simple entangling optical gate and its use in Bell-state analysis
We demonstrate a new architecture for an optical entangling gate that is
significantly simpler than previous realisations, using partially-polarising
beamsplitters so that only a single optical mode-matching condition is
required. We demonstrate operation of a controlled-Z gate in both
continuous-wave and pulsed regimes of operation, fully characterising it in
each case using quantum process tomography. We also demonstrate a
fully-resolving, nondeterministic optical Bell-state analyser based on this
controlled-Z gate. This new architecture is ideally suited to guided optics
implementations of optical gates.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures. v2: additional author, improved data and figures
(low res), some other minor changes. Accepted for publication in PR
On The Phase Structure and Thermodynamic Geometry of R-Charged Black Holes
We study the phase structure and equilibrium state space geometry of
R-charged black holes in , 4 and 7 and the corresponding rotating ,
and branes. For various charge configurations of the compact black
holes in the canonical ensemble we demonstrate new liquid-gas like phase
coexistence behaviour culminating in second order critical points. The critical
exponents turn out to be the same as that of four dimensional asymptotically
AdS black holes in Einstein Maxwell theory. We further establish that the
regions of stability for R-charged black holes are, in some cases, more
constrained than is currently believed, due to properties of some of the
response coefficients. The equilibrium state space scalar curvature is
calculated for various charge configurations, both for the case of compact as
well as flat horizons and its asymptotic behaviour with temperature is
established.Comment: 1 + 33 pages, LaTeX, 25 figures. References adde
On the Thermodynamic Geometry and Critical Phenomena of AdS Black Holes
In this paper, we study various aspects of the equilibrium thermodynamic
state space geometry of AdS black holes. We first examine the
Reissner-Nordstrom-AdS (RN-AdS) and the Kerr-AdS black holes. In this context,
the state space scalar curvature of these black holes is analysed in various
regions of their thermodynamic parameter space. This provides important new
insights into the structure and significance of the scalar curvature. We
further investigate critical phenomena, and the behaviour of the scalar
curvature near criticality, for KN-AdS black holes in two mixed ensembles,
introduced and elucidated in our earlier work arXiv:1002.2538 [hep-th]. The
critical exponents are identical to those in the RN-AdS and Kerr-AdS cases in
the canonical ensemble. This suggests an universality in the scaling behaviour
near critical points of AdS black holes. Our results further highlight
qualitative differences in the thermodynamic state space geometry for electric
charge and angular momentum fluctuations of these.Comment: 1 + 37 Pages, LaTeX, includes 31 figures. A figure and a
clarification added
Mechanisms of isothiocyanate detoxification in larvae of two belowground herbivores, Delia radicum and D. floralis (Diptera: Anthomyiidae)
International audienceLike aboveground herbivores, belowground herbivores are confronted with multiple plant defense mechanisms including complex chemical cocktails in plant tissue. Roots and shoots of Brassicaceae plants contain the two-component glucosinolate (GSL)-myrosinase defense system. Upon cell damage, for example by herbivore feeding, toxic and pungent isothiocyanates (ITCs) can be formed. Several aboveground-feeding herbivores have developed biochemical adaptation strategies to overcome the GSL-ITC defenses of their host plant. Whether belowground herbivores feeding on Brassica roots possess similar mechanisms has received little attention. Here, we analyze how two related belowground specialist herbivores detoxify the GSL-ITC defenses of their host plants. The larvae of the fly species Delia radicum and D. floralis are common pests and specialized herbivores on the roots of Brassicaceae. We used chemical analyses (HPLC-MS/MS and HPLC-UV) to examine how the GSL-ITC defense system is metabolized by these congeneric larvae. In addition, we screened for candidate genes involved in the detoxification process using RNAseq and qPCR. The chemical analyses yielded glutathione conjugates and amines. This indicates that both species detoxify ITCs using potentially the general mercapturic acid pathway, which is also found in aboveground herbivores, and an ITC-specific hydrolytic pathway previously characterized in microbes. Performance assays confirmed that ITCs negatively affect the survival of both species, in spite of their known specialization to ITC-producing plants and tissues, whereas ITC breakdown products are less toxic. Interestingly, the RNAseq analyses showed that the two congeneric species activate different sets of genes upon ITC exposure, which was supported by qPCR data. Based on our findings, we conclude that these specialist larvae use combinations of general and compound-specific detoxification mechanisms with differing efficacies and substrate preferences. This indicates that combining detoxification mechanisms can be an evolutionarily successful strategy to handle plant defenses in herbivores
Kerr-Newman Black Hole Thermodynamical State Space: Blockwise Coordinates
A coordinate system that blockwise-simplifies the Kerr-Newman black hole's
thermodynamical state space Ruppeiner metric geometry is constructed, with
discussion of the limiting cases corresponding to simpler black holes. It is
deduced that one of the three conformal Killing vectors of the
Reissner-Nordstrom and Kerr cases (whose thermodynamical state space metrics
are 2 by 2 and conformally flat) survives generalization to the Kerr-Newman
case's 3 by 3 thermodynamical state space metric.Comment: 4 pages incl 2 figs. Accepted by Gen. Rel. Grav. Replaced with
Accepted version (minor corrections
Quantum Hypercube States
We introduce quantum hypercube states, a class of continuous-variable quantum
states that are generated as orthographic projections of hypercubes onto the
quadrature phase-space of a bosonic mode. In addition to their interesting
geometry, hypercube states display phase-space features much smaller than
Planck's constant, and a large volume of Wigner-negativity. We theoretically
show that these features make hypercube states sensitive to displacements at
extremely small scales in a way that is surprisingly robust to initial thermal
occupation and to small separation of the superposed state-components. In a
high-temperature proof-of-principle optomechanics experiment we observe, and
match to theory, the signature outer-edge vertex structure of hypercube states.Comment: Main consists of 5 pages and 5 figures. Supplementary material
consists of 5 pages and 6 figure
A mosaic of induced and non-induced branches promotes variation in leaf traits, predation and insect herbivore assemblages in canopy trees
Second Cluster Integral and Excluded Volume Effects for the Pion Gas
The quantum mechanical formula for Mayer's second cluster integral for the
gas of relativistic particles with hard-core interaction is derived. The proper
pion volume calculated with quantum mechanical formula is found to be an order
of magnitude larger than its classical evaluation.
The second cluster integral for the pion gas is calculated in quantum
mechanical approach with account for both attractive and hard-core repulsive
interactions. It is shown that, in the second cluster approximation, the
repulsive pion-pion-interactions as well as the finite width of resonances give
important but almost canceling contributions. In contrast, an appreciable
deviation from the ideal gas of pions and pion resonances is observed beyond
the second cluster approximation in the framework of the Van der Waals
excluded-volume model.Comment: 29 pages, Latex, 9 PS-figure
Stochastic pump effect and geometric phases in dissipative and stochastic systems
The success of Berry phases in quantum mechanics stimulated the study of
similar phenomena in other areas of physics, including the theory of living
cell locomotion and motion of patterns in nonlinear media. More recently,
geometric phases have been applied to systems operating in a strongly
stochastic environment, such as molecular motors. We discuss such geometric
effects in purely classical dissipative stochastic systems and their role in
the theory of the stochastic pump effect (SPE).Comment: Review. 35 pages. J. Phys. A: Math, Theor. (in press
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