The Vacuum Structure of Light-Front ϕ1+14\phi^4_{1+1}-Theory

We discuss the vacuum structure of $\phi^4$-theory in 1+1 dimensions quantised on the light-front $x^+ =0$. To this end, one has to solve a non-linear, operator-valued constraint equation. It expresses that mode of the field operator having longitudinal light-front momentum equal to zero, as a function of all the other modes in the theory. We analyse whether this zero mode can lead to a non-vanishing vacuum expectation value of the field $\phi$ and thus to spontaneous symmetry breaking. In perturbation theory, we get no symmetry breaking. If we solve the constraint, however, non-perturbatively, within a mean-field type Fock ansatz, the situation changes: while the vacuum state itself remains trivial, we find a non-vanishing vacuum expectation value above a critical coupling. Exactly the same result is obtained within a light-front Tamm-Dancoff approximation, if the renormalisation is done in the correct way.Comment: 28 pages LaTeX, 1 Postscript figur

A model for melting of confined DNA

When DNA molecules are heated they denature. This occurs locally so that loops of molten single DNA strands form, connected by intact double-stranded DNA pieces. The properties of this "melting" transition have been intensively investigated. Recently there has been a surge of interest in this question, caused by experiments determining the properties of partially bound DNA confined to nanochannels. But how does such confinement affect the melting transition? To answer this question we introduce, and solve a model predicting how confinement affects the melting transition for a simple model system by first disregarding the effect of self-avoidance. We find that the transition is smoother for narrower channels. By means of Monte-Carlo simulations we then show that a model incorporating self-avoidance shows qualitatively the same behaviour and that the effect of confinement is stronger than in the ideal case.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, supplementary materia

Stellar laboratories: new Ge V and Ge VI oscillator strengths and their validation in the hot white dwarf RE 0503-289

State-of-the-art spectral analysis of hot stars by means of non-LTE model-atmosphere techniques has arrived at a high level of sophistication. The analysis of high-resolution and high-S/N spectra, however, is strongly restricted by the lack of reliable atomic data for highly ionized species from intermediate-mass metals to trans-iron elements. Especially data for the latter has only been sparsely calculated. Many of their lines are identified in spectra of extremely hot, hydrogen-deficient post-AGB stars. A reliable determination of their abundances establishes crucial constraints for AGB nucleosynthesis simulations and, thus, for stellar evolutionary theory. In a previous analysis of the UV spectrum of RE 0503-289, spectral lines of highly ionized Ga, Ge, As, Se, Kr, Mo, Sn, Te, I, and Xe were identified. Individual abundance determinations are hampered by the lack of reliable oscillator strengths. Most of these identified lines stem from Ge V. In addition, we identified Ge VI lines for the first time. We calculated Ge V and Ge VI oscillator strengths to consider their radiative and collisional bound-bound transitions in detail in our non-LTE stellar-atmosphere models for the analysis of the Ge IV - VI spectrum exhibited in high-resolution and high-S/N UV spectra of RE 0503-289. We identify four Ge IV, 37 Ge V, and seven Ge VI lines. Most of these are identified for the first time in any star. We reproduce almost all Ge IV, Ge VI, and Ge VI lines in the observed spectrum of RE 0503-289 (Teff = 70 kK, log g = 7.5) at log Ge = -3.8 +/- 0.3 (mass fraction, about 650 times solar). Reliable measurements and calculations of atomic data are a prerequisite for stellar-atmosphere modeling. Our oscillator-strength calculations have allowed, for the first time, Ge V and Ge VI lines to be successfully reproduced in a white dwarf's spectrum and to determine its photospheric Ge abundance.Comment: 54 pages, 8 figure

Observation of Scalar Aharonov-Bohm Effect with Longitudinally Polarized Neutrons

We have carried out a neutron interferometry experiment using longitudinally polarized neutrons to observe the scalar Aharonov-Bohm effect. The neutrons inside the interferometer are polarized parallel to an applied pulsed magnetic field B(t). The pulsed B field is spatially uniform so it exerts no force on the neutrons. Its direction also precludes the presence of any classical torque to change the neutron polarization