Sums of variables at the onset of chaos

We explain how specific dynamical properties give rise to the limit distribution of sums of deterministic variables at the transition to chaos via the period-doubling route. We study the sums of successive positions generated by an ensemble of initial conditions uniformly distributed in the entire phase space of a unimodal map as represented by the logistic map. We find that these sums acquire their salient, multiscale, features from the repellor preimage structure that dominates the dynamics toward the attractors along the period-doubling cascade. And we explain how these properties transmit from the sums to their distribution. Specifically, we show how the stationary distribution of sums of positions at the Feigebaum point is built up from those associated with the supercycle attractors forming a hierarchical structure with multifractal and discrete scale invariance properties.Comment: arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1312.071

Confluence of the right internal iliac vein into a compressed left common iliac vein

The authors describe the abnormal confluence of the right internal iliac vein into a left common iliac vein compressed by the overlying right common iliac artery. The prevalence of this combination of abnormalities, evaluated in cadavers and in living subjects by CT, was 0.9%. The possible obstacle to venous pelvic return by these anomalies is pointed out

Anomalous metastability in a temperature-driven transition

Langer theory of metastability provides a description of the lifetime and properties of the metastable phase of the Ising model field-driven transition, describing the magnetic field-driven transition in ferromagnets and the chemical potential-driven transition of fluids. An immediate further step is to apply it to the study of a transition driven by the temperature, as the one underwent by the two-dimensional Potts model. For this model a study based on the analytical continuation of the free energy (Meunier, Morel 2000) predicts the anomalous vanishing of the metastable temperature range in the limit of large system size, an issue that has been controversial since the eighties. With a parallel-GPU algorithm we compare the Monte Carlo dynamics with the theory, obtaining agreement and characterizing the anomalous system size dependence. We discuss the microscopic origin of these metastable phenomena, essentially different with respect to the Ising case.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure

Piecewise smooth stationary Euler flows with compact support via overdetermined boundary problems

We construct new stationary weak solutions of the 3D Euler equation with compact support. The solutions, which are piecewise smooth and discontinuous across a surface, are axisymmetric with swirl. The range of solutions we find is different from, and larger than, the family of smooth stationary solutions recently obtained by Gavrilov and Constantin-La-Vicol; in particular, these solutions are not localizable. A key step in the proof is the construction of solutions to an overdetermined elliptic boundary value problem where one prescribes both Dirichlet and (nonconstant) Neumann data

Optimization of the ionization time of an atom with tailored laser pulses: a theoretical study

How fast can a laser pulse ionize an atom? We address this question by considering pulses that carry a fixed time-integrated energy per-area, and finding those that achieve the double requirement of maximizing the ionization that they induce, while having the shortest duration. We formulate this double-objective quantum optimal control problem by making use of the Pareto approach to multi-objetive optimization, and the differential evolution genetic algorithm. The goal is to find out how much a precise time-profiling of ultra-fast, large-bandwidth pulses may speed up the ionization process with respect to simple-shape pulses. We work on a simple one-dimensional model of hydrogen-like atoms (the P\"oschl-Teller potential), that allows to tune the number of bound states that play a role in the ionization dynamics. We show how the detailed shape of the pulse accelerates the ionization process, and how the presence or absence of bound states influences the velocity of the process

Phase ordering and symmetries of the Potts model

We have studied the ordering of the q-colours Potts model in two dimensions on a square lattice. On the basis of our observations we propose that if q is large enough the system is not able to break global and local null magnetisation symmetries at zero temperature: when q<4 the system forms domains with a size proportional to the system size while for q>4 it relaxes towards a non-equilibrium phase with energy larger than the ground state energy, in agreement with the previous findings of De Oliveira et al. (M. J. de Oliveira, A. Petri, T. Tome, Europhys. Lett., 65, 20 (2004)).Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures; minor text rewordings and changes in figures styl