2,647 research outputs found
New method for obtaining complex roots in the semiclassical coherent-state propagator formula
A semiclassical formula for the coherent-state propagator requires the
determination of specific classical paths inhabiting a complex phase-space
through a Hamiltonian flux. Such trajectories are constrained to special
boundary conditions which render their determination difficult by common
methods. In this paper we present a new method based on Runge-Kutta integrator
for a quick, easy and accurate determination of these trajectories. Using
nonlinear one dimensional systems we show that the semiclassical formula is
highly accurate as compared to its exact counterpart . Further we clarify how
the phase of the semiclassical approximation is correctly retrieved under time
evolution.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures. Submitted to Brazilian Journal of Physic
Topological confinement in graphene bilayer quantum rings
We demonstrate the existence of localized electron and hole states in a
ring-shaped potential kink in biased bilayer graphene. Within the continuum
description, we show that for sharp potential steps the Dirac equation
describing carrier states close to the K (or K') point of the first Brillouin
zone can be solved analytically for a circular kink/anti-kink dot. The
solutions exhibit interfacial states which exhibit Aharonov-Bohm oscillations
as functions of the height of the potential step and/or the radius of the ring
Universality in Bacterial Colonies
The emergent spatial patterns generated by growing bacterial colonies have
been the focus of intense study in physics during the last twenty years. Both
experimental and theoretical investigations have made possible a clear
qualitative picture of the different structures that such colonies can exhibit,
depending on the medium on which they are growing. However, there are
relatively few quantitative descriptions of these patterns. In this paper, we
use a mechanistically detailed simulation framework to measure the scaling
exponents associated with the advancing fronts of bacterial colonies on hard
agar substrata, aiming to discern the universality class to which the system
belongs. We show that the universal behavior exhibited by the colonies can be
much richer than previously reported, and we propose the possibility of up to
four different sub-phases within the medium-to-high nutrient concentration
regime. We hypothesize that the quenched disorder that characterizes one of
these sub-phases is an emergent property of the growth and division of bacteria
competing for limited space and nutrients.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figure
J-PLUS: analysis of the intracluster light in the Coma cluster
The intracluster light (ICL) is a luminous component of galaxy clusters
composed of stars that are gravitationally bound to the cluster potential but
do not belong to the individual galaxies. Previous studies of the ICL have
shown that its formation and evolution are intimately linked to the
evolutionary stage of the cluster. Thus, the analysis of the ICL in the Coma
cluster will give insights into the main processes driving the dynamics in this
highly complex system. Using a recently developed technique, we measure the ICL
fraction in Coma at several wavelengths, using the J-PLUS unique filter system.
The combination of narrow- and broadband filters provides valuable information
on the dynamical state of the cluster, the ICL stellar types, and the
morphology of the diffuse light. We use the Chebyshev-Fourier Intracluster
Light Estimator (CICLE) to disentangle the ICL from the light of the galaxies,
and to robustly measure the ICL fraction in seven J-PLUS filters. We obtain the
ICL fraction distribution of the Coma cluster at different optical wavelengths,
which varies from , showing the highest values in the narrowband
filters J0395, J0410, and J0430. This ICL fraction excess is distinctive
pattern recently observed in dynamically active clusters (mergers), indicating
a higher amount of bluer stars in the ICL compared to the cluster galaxies.
Both the high ICL fractions and the excess in the bluer filters are indicative
of a merging state. The presence of younger/lower-metallicity stars the ICL
suggests that the main mechanism of ICL formation for the Coma cluster is the
stripping of the stars in the outskirts of infalling galaxies and, possibly,
the disruption of dwarf galaxies during past/ongoing mergers.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures, 1 table. Accepted for publication in A&
Semiclassical Approximations in Phase Space with Coherent States
We present a complete derivation of the semiclassical limit of the coherent
state propagator in one dimension, starting from path integrals in phase space.
We show that the arbitrariness in the path integral representation, which
follows from the overcompleteness of the coherent states, results in many
different semiclassical limits. We explicitly derive two possible semiclassical
formulae for the propagator, we suggest a third one, and we discuss their
relationships. We also derive an initial value representation for the
semiclassical propagator, based on an initial gaussian wavepacket. It turns out
to be related to, but different from, Heller's thawed gaussian approximation.
It is very different from the Herman--Kluk formula, which is not a correct
semiclassical limit. We point out errors in two derivations of the latter.
Finally we show how the semiclassical coherent state propagators lead to
WKB-type quantization rules and to approximations for the Husimi distributions
of stationary states.Comment: 80 pages, 4 figure
The interplay between double exchange, super-exchange, and Lifshitz localization in doped manganites
Considering the disorder caused in manganites by the substitution of Mn by Fe
or Ga, we accomplish a systematic study of doped manganites begun in previous
papers. To this end, a disordered model is formulated and solved using the
Variational Mean Field technique. The subtle interplay between double exchange,
super-exchange, and disorder causes similar effects on the dependence of T_C on
the percentage of Mn substitution in the cases considered. Yet, in
LaCaMnGaO our results suggest a quantum
critical point (QCP) for , associated to the localization of
the electronic states of the conduction band. In the case of
LaCaMnFeO (with ) no such QCP is expected.Comment: 6 pages + 3 postscript figures. Largely extended discussio
A giant comet-like cloud of hydrogen escaping the warm Neptune-mass exoplanet GJ 436b
Exoplanets orbiting close to their parent stars could lose some fraction of
their atmospheres because of the extreme irradiation. Atmospheric mass loss
primarily affects low-mass exoplanets, leading to suggest that hot rocky
planets might have begun as Neptune-like, but subsequently lost all of their
atmospheres; however, no confident measurements have hitherto been available.
The signature of this loss could be observed in the ultraviolet spectrum, when
the planet and its escaping atmosphere transit the star, giving rise to deeper
and longer transit signatures than in the optical spectrum. Here we report that
in the ultraviolet the Neptune-mass exoplanet GJ 436b (also known as Gliese
436b) has transit depths of 56.3 +/- 3.5% (1 sigma), far beyond the 0.69%
optical transit depth. The ultraviolet transits repeatedly start ~2 h before,
and end >3 h after the ~1 h optical transit, which is substantially different
from one previous claim (based on an inaccurate ephemeris). We infer from this
that the planet is surrounded and trailed by a large exospheric cloud composed
mainly of hydrogen atoms. We estimate a mass-loss rate in the range of
~10^8-10^9 g/s, which today is far too small to deplete the atmosphere of a
Neptune-like planet in the lifetime of the parent star, but would have been
much greater in the past.Comment: Published in Nature on 25 June 2015. Preprint is 28 pages, 12
figures, 2 table
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