406 research outputs found

    Quantum logic as superbraids of entangled qubit world lines

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    Presented is a topological representation of quantum logic that views entangled qubit spacetime histories (or qubit world lines) as a generalized braid, referred to as a superbraid. The crossing of world lines is purely quantum in nature, most conveniently expressed analytically with ladder-operator-based quantum gates. At a crossing, independent world lines can become entangled. Complicated superbraids are systematically reduced by recursively applying novel quantum skein relations. If the superbraid is closed (e.g. representing quantum circuits with closed-loop feedback, quantum lattice gas algorithms, loop or vacuum diagrams in quantum field theory), then one can decompose the resulting superlink into an entangled superposition of classical links. In turn, for each member link, one can compute a link invariant, e.g. the Jones polynomial. Thus, a superlink possesses a unique link invariant expressed as an entangled superposition of classical link invariants.Comment: 4 page

    Superfluid turbulence from quantum Kelvin wave to classical Kolmogorov cascades

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    A novel unitary quantum lattice gas algorithm is used to simulate quantum turbulence of a BEC described by the Gross-Pitaevskii equation on grids up to 5760^3. For the first time, an accurate power law scaling for the quantum Kelvin wave cascade is determined: k^{-3}. The incompressible kinetic energy spectrum exhibits very distinct power law spectra in 3 ranges of k-space: a classical Kolmogorov k^{-5/3} spectrum at scales much greater than the individual quantum vortex cores, and a quantum Kelvin wave cascade spectrum k^{-3} on scales of order the vortex cores. In the semiclassical regime between these two spectra there is a pronounced steeper spectral decay, with non-universal exponent. The Kelvin k^{-3} spectrum is very robust, even on small grids, while the Kolmogorov k^{-5/3} spectrum becomes more and more apparent as the grids increase from 2048^3 grids to 5760^3.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure

    Relativistic quantum mechanics of a Dirac oscillator

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    The Dirac oscillator is an exactly soluble model recently introduced in the context of many particle models in relativistic quantum mechanics. The model has been also considered as an interaction term for modelling quark confinement in quantum chromodynamics. These considerations should be enough for demonstrating that the Dirac oscillator can be an excellent example in relativistic quantum mechanics. In this paper we offer a solution to the problem and discuss some of its properties. We also discuss a physical picture for the Dirac oscillator's non-standard interaction, showing how it arises on describing the behaviour of a neutral particle carrying an anomalous magnetic moment and moving inside an uniformly charged sphere.Comment: 19 pages, 1 figur

    Identification of Kelvin waves: numerical challenges

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    Kelvin waves are expected to play an essential role in the energy dissipation for quantized vortices. However, the identification of these helical distortions is not straightforward, especially in case of vortex tangle. Here we review several numerical methods that have been used to identify Kelvin waves within the vortex filament model. We test their validity using several examples and estimate whether these methods are accurate enough to verify the correct Kelvin spectrum. We also illustrate how the correlation dimension is related to different Kelvin spectra and remind that the 3D energy spectrum E(k) takes the form 1/k in the high-k region, even in the presence of Kelvin waves.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures. The final publication is available at http://www.springerlink.co

    Corn Fiber as a Biomass Feedstock for Production of Succinic Acid

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    The selection of an economical carbon source is a fundamental parameter to establish a successful industrial succinic acid (SA) bioprocess. In this work, corn fiber (CF), a renewable and an inexpensive source of carbohydrates, was successfully used for bioproduction of SA. Optimized liquid hot water (LHW) pretreatment followed by enzymatic hydrolysis were used to obtain corn fiber hydrolysate (CFH). Results in batch fermentation with Actinobacillus succinogenes showed that a control solution mimicking CFH produced 28.7 g/L of SA with a yield of 0.67 g SA/g sugars, while fermentation of CFH produced 27.8 g/L of SA with a yield of 0.61 g SA/g sugars. It was found that culture pH was a critical factor affecting SA production. In sodium acetate buffered media, SA was the major end-product with lower levels of acetic acid (AA) and formic acid (FA). When unbuffered media was used, lactic acid (LA) and ethanol were also detected

    A multi-species synthesis of physiological mechanisms in drought-induced tree mortality

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    Widespread tree mortality associated with drought 92 has been observed on all forested continents, and global change is expected to exacerbate vegetation vulnerability. Forest mortality has implications for future biosphere-atmosphere interactions of carbon, water, and energy balance, and is poorly represented in dynamic vegetation models. Reducing uncertainty requires improved mortality projections founded on robust physiological processes. However, the proposed mechanisms of drought-induced mortality, including hydraulic failure and carbon starvation, are unresolved. A growing number of empirical studies have investigated these mechanisms, but data have not been consistently analyzed across species and biomes using a standardized physiological framework. Here we show that xylem hydraulic failure was ubiquitous across multiple tree taxa at drought induced mortality. All species assessed had 60% or higher loss of xylem hydraulic conductivity, consistent with proposed theoretical and modelled survival thresholds. We found diverse responses in non-structural carbohydrate reserves at mortality, indicating that evidence supporting carbon starvation was not universal. Reduced non-structural carbohydrates were more common for gymnosperms than angiosperms, associated with xylem hydraulic vulnerability, and may have a role in reducing hydraulic function. Our finding that hydraulic failure at drought-induced mortality was persistent across species indicates that substantial improvement in vegetation modelling can be achieved using thresholds in hydraulic function

    A multi-species synthesis of physiological mechanisms in drought-induced tree mortality

    Get PDF
    Widespread tree mortality associated with drought 92 has been observed on all forested continents, and global change is expected to exacerbate vegetation vulnerability. Forest mortality has implications for future biosphere-atmosphere interactions of carbon, water, and energy balance, and is poorly represented in dynamic vegetation models. Reducing uncertainty requires improved mortality projections founded on robust physiological processes. However, the proposed mechanisms of drought-induced mortality, including hydraulic failure and carbon starvation, are unresolved. A growing number of empirical studies have investigated these mechanisms, but data have not been consistently analyzed across species and biomes using a standardized physiological framework. Here we show that xylem hydraulic failure was ubiquitous across multiple tree taxa at drought induced mortality. All species assessed had 60% or higher loss of xylem hydraulic conductivity, consistent with proposed theoretical and modelled survival thresholds. We found diverse responses in non-structural carbohydrate reserves at mortality, indicating that evidence supporting carbon starvation was not universal. Reduced non-structural carbohydrates were more common for gymnosperms than angiosperms, associated with xylem hydraulic vulnerability, and may have a role in reducing hydraulic function. Our finding that hydraulic failure at drought-induced mortality was persistent across species indicates that substantial improvement in vegetation modelling can be achieved using thresholds in hydraulic function

    Evapotranspiration flux partitioning at a multi-species shrubland with stable isotopes of soil, plant, and atmosphere water pools

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    Evapotranspiration is the second largest component of the hydrological cycle after rainfall precipitation in semiarid regions such as northwestern Mexico. In this study, we partitioned the evapotranspiration (ET) flux using stable isotopes of water in the soil-plant-atmosphere continuum in combination with eddy covariance flux measurements. We considered three methods for determining the isotopic composition of transpiration (δT): (1) isotopic steady state, (2) non-steady state, and (3) non-steady state weighting the relative importance of dominant species cover and accounting for the relative values of stomatal conductance. Three approaches of T/ET partitioning were estimated during several wet and dry days at the study site in Sonora, Mexico. The total ET flux was variable across years due to differences in precipitation amount between years. ET was lower during the drier-year and reached higher values during the wetter-year. Soil evaporation (E) dominated ET soon after large rain events (40 to 70 mm d–1 [DOY-196 and DOY-197] in 2008) but showed a rapid decrease in dominance as the soil surface dried. Estimated values of T/ET based on an isotopic mass balance were in the same range independent of three methods used. The mean T/ET ratio across all the periods studied was in the range of other studies in semiarid ecosystems and global trends with values of ~0.67 ± 0.02. This work contributes to a better understanding of the surface atmosphere interactions in semi-arid regions
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