59,603 research outputs found
Kinetic-Ion Simulations Addressing Whether Ion Trapping Inflates Stimulated Brillouin Backscattering Reflectivities
An investigation of the possible inflation of stimulated Brillouin
backscattering (SBS) due to ion kinetic effects is presented using
electromagnetic particle simulations and integrations of three-wave
coupled-mode equations with linear and nonlinear models of the nonlinear ion
physics. Electrostatic simulations of linear ion Landau damping in an ion
acoustic wave, nonlinear reduction of damping due to ion trapping, and
nonlinear frequency shifts due to ion trapping establish a baseline for
modeling the electromagnetic SBS simulations. Systematic scans of the laser
intensity have been undertaken with both one-dimensional particle simulations
and coupled-mode-equations integrations, and two values of the electron-to-ion
temperature ratio (to vary the linear ion Landau damping) are considered. Three
of the four intensity scans have evidence of SBS inflation as determined by
observing more reflectivity in the particle simulations than in the
corresponding three-wave mode-coupling integrations with a linear ion-wave
model, and the particle simulations show evidence of ion trapping.Comment: 56 pages, 20 figure
APOLLO: the Apache Point Observatory Lunar Laser-ranging Operation: Instrument Description and First Detections
A next-generation lunar laser ranging apparatus using the 3.5 m telescope at
the Apache Point Observatory in southern New Mexico has begun science
operation. APOLLO (the Apache Point Observatory Lunar Laser-ranging Operation)
has achieved one-millimeter range precision to the moon which should lead to
approximately one-order-of-magnitude improvements in the precision of several
tests of fundamental properties of gravity. We briefly motivate the scientific
goals, and then give a detailed discussion of the APOLLO instrumentation.Comment: 37 pages; 10 figures; 1 table: accepted for publication in PAS
Selective laser sintering of hydroxyapatite reinforced polyethylene composites for bioactive implants and tissue scaffold development
Selective laser sintering (SLS) has been investigated for the production of bioactive implants and tissue scaffolds using composites of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) reinforced with hydroxyapatite (HA) with the aim of achieving the rapid manufacturing of customized implants. Single-layer and multilayer block specimens made of HA-HDPE composites with 30 and 40 vol % HA were sintered successfully using a CO2 laser sintering system. Laser power and scanning speed had a significant effect on the sintering behaviour. The degree of particle fusion and porosity were influenced by the laser processing parameters, hence control can be attained by varying these parameters. Moreover, the SLS processing allowed exposure of HA particles on the surface of the composites and thereby should provide bioactive products. Pores existed in the SLS-fabricated composite parts and at certain processing parameters a significant fraction of the pores were within the optimal sizes for tissue regeneration. The results indicate that the SLS technique has the potential not only to fabricate HA-HDPE composite products but also to produce appropriate features for their application as bioactive implants and tissue scaffolds
Rotational Dynamics of Vortices in Confined Bose-Einstein Condensates
We derive the frequency of precession and conditions for stability for a
quantized vortex in a single-component and a two-component Bose-Einstein
condensate. The frequency of precession is proportional to the gradient of the
free energy with respect to displacement of the vortex core. In a two-component
system, it is possible to achieve a local minimum in the free energy at the
center of the trap. The presence of such a minimum implies the existence of a
region of energetic stability where the vortex cannot escape and where one may
be able to generate a persistent current.Comment: 6 Pages, 6 Figure
Role of Particle Interactions in the Feshbach Conversion of Fermion Atoms to Bosonic Molecules
We investigate the Feshbach conversion of fermion atomic pairs to condensed
boson molecules with a microscopic model that accounts the repulsive
interactions among all the particles involved. We find that the conversion
efficiency is enhanced by the interaction between boson molecules while
suppressed by the interactions between fermion atoms and between atom and
molecule. In certain cases, the combined effect of these interactions leads to
a ceiling of less than 100% on the conversion efficiency even in the adiabatic
limit. Our model predicts a non-monotonic dependence of the efficiency on mean
atomic density. Our theory agrees well with recent experiments on Li and
K.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
X-Shooter spectroscopy of young stellar objects in Lupus: Accretion properties of class II and transitional objects
We present the results of a study of the stellar and accretion properties of
the (almost) complete sample of class II and transitional YSOs in the Lupus I,
II, III and IV clouds, based on spectroscopic data acquired with the
VLT/X-Shooter spectrograph. Our study combines the dataset from our previous
work with new observations of 55 additional objects. We have investigated 92
YSO candidates in total, 11 of which have been definitely identified with giant
stars unrelated to Lupus. The stellar and accretion properties of the 81 bona
fide YSOs, which represent more than 90% of the whole class~II and transition
disc YSO population in the aforementioned Lupus clouds, have been homogeneously
and self-consistently derived, allowing for an unbiased study of accretion and
its relationship with stellar parameters. The accretion luminosity, Lacc,
increases with the stellar luminosity, Lstar, with an overall slope of ~1.6,
similar but with a smaller scatter than in previous studies. There is a
significant lack of strong accretors below Lstar~0.1Lsun, where Lacc is always
lower than 0.01Lstar. We argue that the Lacc-Lstar slope is not due to
observational biases, but is a true property of the Lupus YSOs. The
logMacc-logMstar correlation shows a statistically significant evidence of a
break, with a steeper relation for Mstar<0.2Msun and a flatter slope for higher
masses. The bimodality of the Macc-Mstar relation is confirmed with four
different evolutionary models used to derive the stellar mass. The bimodal
behaviour of the observed relationship supports the importance of modelling
self-gravity in the early evolution of the more massive discs, but other
processes, such as photo evaporation and planet formation during the YSO's
lifetime, may also lead to disc dispersal on different timescales depending on
the stellar mass. We also refined the empirical Lacc vs. Lline relationships.Comment: 43 pages, 22 figure
Vegetation and peat characteristics of restiad bogs on Chatham Island (Rekohu), New Zealand
Restiad bogs dominated by Sporadanthus traversii on Chatham Island, New Zealand, were sampled to correlate vegetation patterns and peat properties, and to compare with restiad systems dominated by Sporadanthus ferrugineus and Empodisma minus in the Waikato region, North Island, New Zealand. Classification and ordination resulted in five groups that reflected a disturbance gradient. The largest S. traversii group, which comprised plots from central, relatively intact bogs, had the lowest levels of total nitrogen (mean 1.20 mg cm-3), total phosphorus (mean 0.057 mg cm-3), total potassium (mean 0.083 mg cm-3), and available phosphorus (mean 18.6 μg cm-3). Modification by drainage, stock, and fires resulted in a decline of S. traversii and an increase of Gleichenia dicarpa fern cover, together with elevated peat nutrient levels and higher bulk density. Compared with peat dominated by Sporadanthus ferrugineus or Empodisma minus in relatively unmodified Waikato restiad bogs, Chatham Island peat under S. traversii has significantly higher total potassium, total nitrogen, available phosphorus, bulk density, and von Post decomposition indices, and significantly lower pH. Sporadanthus traversii and Empodisma minus have similar ecological roles in restiad bog development, occupying a relatively wide nutrient range, and regenerating readily from seed after fire. Despite differences in root morphology, S. traversii and E. minus are the major peat formers in raised restiad bogs on Chatham Island and in Waikato, respectively, and could be regarded as ecological equivalents
Quantum Cosmological Relational Model of Shape and Scale in 1-d
Relational particle models are useful toy models for quantum cosmology and
the problem of time in quantum general relativity. This paper shows how to
extend existing work on concrete examples of relational particle models in 1-d
to include a notion of scale. This is useful as regards forming a tight analogy
with quantum cosmology and the emergent semiclassical time and hidden time
approaches to the problem of time. This paper shows furthermore that the
correspondence between relational particle models and classical and quantum
cosmology can be strengthened using judicious choices of the mechanical
potential. This gives relational particle mechanics models with analogues of
spatial curvature, cosmological constant, dust and radiation terms. A number of
these models are then tractable at the quantum level. These models can be used
to study important issues 1) in canonical quantum gravity: the problem of time,
the semiclassical approach to it and timeless approaches to it (such as the
naive Schrodinger interpretation and records theory). 2) In quantum cosmology,
such as in the investigation of uniform states, robustness, and the qualitative
understanding of the origin of structure formation.Comment: References and some more motivation adde
New interpretation of variational principles for gauge theories. I. Cyclic coordinate alternative to ADM split
I show how there is an ambiguity in how one treats auxiliary variables in
gauge theories including general relativity cast as 3 + 1 geometrodynamics.
Auxiliary variables may be treated pre-variationally as multiplier coordinates
or as the velocities corresponding to cyclic coordinates. The latter treatment
works through the physical meaninglessness of auxiliary variables' values
applying also to the end points (or end spatial hypersurfaces) of the
variation, so that these are free rather than fixed. [This is also known as
variation with natural boundary conditions.] Further principles of dynamics
workings such as Routhian reduction and the Dirac procedure are shown to have
parallel counterparts for this new formalism. One advantage of the new scheme
is that the corresponding actions are more manifestly relational. While the
electric potential is usually regarded as a multiplier coordinate and Arnowitt,
Deser and Misner have regarded the lapse and shift likewise, this paper's
scheme considers new {\it flux}, {\it instant} and {\it grid} variables whose
corresponding velocities are, respectively, the abovementioned previously used
variables. This paper's way of thinking about gauge theory furthermore admits
interesting generalizations, which shall be provided in a second paper.Comment: 11 page
Gravitational Waves from the Dynamical Bar Instability in a Rapidly Rotating Star
A rapidly rotating, axisymmetric star can be dynamically unstable to an m=2
"bar" mode that transforms the star from a disk shape to an elongated bar. The
fate of such a bar-shaped star is uncertain. Some previous numerical studies
indicate that the bar is short lived, lasting for only a few bar-rotation
periods, while other studies suggest that the bar is relatively long lived.
This paper contains the results of a numerical simulation of a rapidly rotating
gamma=5/3 fluid star. The simulation shows that the bar shape is long lived:
once the bar is established, the star retains this shape for more than 10
bar-rotation periods, through the end of the simulation. The results are
consistent with the conjecture that a star will retain its bar shape
indefinitely on a dynamical time scale, as long as its rotation rate exceeds
the threshold for secular bar instability. The results are described in terms
of a low density neutron star, but can be scaled to represent, for example, a
burned-out stellar core that is prevented from complete collapse by centrifugal
forces. Estimates for the gravitational-wave signal indicate that a dynamically
unstable neutron star in our galaxy can be detected easily by the first
generation of ground based gravitational-wave detectors. The signal for an
unstable neutron star in the Virgo cluster might be seen by the planned
advanced detectors. The Newtonian/quadrupole approximation is used throughout
this work.Comment: Expanded version to be published in Phys. Rev. D: 13 pages, REVTeX,
13 figures, 9 TeX input file
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