11,362 research outputs found
A Transactional Analysis of Interaction Free Measurements
The transactional interpretation of quantum mechanics is applied to the
"interaction-free" measurement scenario of Elitzur and Vaidman and to the
Quantum Zeno Effect version of the measurement scenario by Kwiat, et al. It is
shown that the non-classical information provided by the measurement scheme is
supplied by the probing of the intervening object by incomplete offer and
confirmation waves that do not form complete transactions or lead to real
interactions.Comment: Accepted for publication in Foundations of Physics Letter
Exact relaxation in a class of non-equilibrium quantum lattice systems
A reasonable physical intuition in the study of interacting quantum systems
says that, independent of the initial state, the system will tend to
equilibrate. In this work we study a setting where relaxation to a steady state
is exact, namely for the Bose-Hubbard model where the system is quenched from a
Mott quantum phase to the strong superfluid regime. We find that the evolving
state locally relaxes to a steady state with maximum entropy constrained by
second moments, maximizing the entanglement, to a state which is different from
the thermal state of the new Hamiltonian. Remarkably, in the infinite system
limit this relaxation is true for all large times, and no time average is
necessary. For large but finite system size we give a time interval for which
the system locally "looks relaxed" up to a prescribed error. Our argument
includes a central limit theorem for harmonic systems and exploits the finite
speed of sound. Additionally, we show that for all periodic initial
configurations, reminiscent of charge density waves, the system relaxes
locally. We sketch experimentally accessible signatures in optical lattices as
well as implications for the foundations of quantum statistical mechanics.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, replaced with final versio
Mistakes, Crises, and Research Independence: The Perils of Fieldwork as a form of Evidence
Drawing on examples from rural Ethiopia and Uganda, this research note highlights some of the difficulties experienced in fieldwork. These difficulties do not justify the reluctance of increasingly risk-averse universities and funders to support independent fieldwork in Africa, but they do show that the rationale for research and the features of its design can provoke animosity and tensions. They also show that our own failure on occasion to appreciate local political dynamics made the situation more difficult. Challenges and threats came not only from local political forces but also from multinational companies and Fairtrade organizations uncomfortable with our findings and with fully independent research. The research note argues that the details of our experience have a practical value for other researchers, and that at least some of them should be treated as substantive forms of evidence and insight, rather than simply as threats or failures. We conclude that some crude best-practice norms and pressures on academics to form partnerships to conduct policy-relevant work may undermine the potential for truly independent and intensive field research. However, crises should not necessarily be seen as an unwelcome interruption to smooth processes of research; they can illuminate the context and power relations that the research is trying to understand
Fairtrade and Labour Markets in Ethiopia and Uganda
Drawing on four years of fieldwork in Ethiopia and Uganda, this paper addresses gaps in knowledge about the mechanisms linking agricultural exports with poverty reduction, the functioning of rural labour markets, and the relevance to the lives of the poorest people of Fairtrade. Statistical analysis of survey evidence, complemented by qualitative research, highlights the relatively poor payment and non-pay working conditions of those employed in research sites dominated by Fairtrade producer organizations. We conclude that Fairtrade is not an effective way to improve the welfare of the poorest rural people
Do mixtures of bosonic and fermionic atoms adiabatically heat up in optical lattices?
Mixtures of bosonic and fermionic atoms in optical lattices provide a
promising arena to study strongly correlated systems. In experiments realizing
such mixtures in the quantum degenerate regime the temperature is a key
parameter. In this work, we investigate the intrinsic heating and cooling
effects due to an entropy-preserving raising of the optical lattice potential.
We analyze this process, identify the generic behavior valid for a wide range
of parameters, and discuss it quantitatively for the recent experiments with
87Rb and 40K atoms. In the absence of a lattice, we treat the bosons in the
Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov-Popov-approximation, including the fermions in a
self-consistent mean field interaction. In the presence of the full
three-dimensional lattice, we use a strong coupling expansion. As a result of
the presence of the fermions, the temperature of the mixture after the lattice
ramp-up is always higher than for the pure bosonic case. This sheds light onto
a key point in the analysis of recent experiments.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure
Introducing evidence based medicine to the journal club, using a structured pre and post test: a cohort study
BACKGROUND: Journal Club at a University-based residency program was restructured to introduce, reinforce and evaluate residents understanding of the concepts of Evidence Based Medicine. METHODS: Over the course of a year structured pre and post-tests were developed for use during each Journal Club. Questions were derived from the articles being reviewed. Performance with the key concepts of Evidence Based Medicine was assessed. Study subjects were 35 PGY2 and PGY3 residents in a University based Family Practice Program. RESULTS: Performance on the pre-test demonstrated a significant improvement from a median of 54.5 % to 78.9 % over the course of the year (F 89.17, p < .001). The post-test results also exhibited a significant increase from 63.6 % to 81.6% (F 85.84, p < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Following organizational revision, the introduction of a pre-test/post-test instrument supported achievement of the learning objectives with a better understanding and utilization of the concepts of Evidence Based Medicine
Partial-measurement back-action and non-classical weak values in a superconducting circuit
We realize indirect partial measurement of a transmon qubit in circuit
quantum electrodynamics by interaction with an ancilla qubit and projective
ancilla measurement with a dedicated readout resonator. Accurate control of the
interaction and ancilla measurement basis allows tailoring the measurement
strength and operator. The tradeoff between measurement strength and qubit
back-action is characterized through the distortion of a qubit Rabi oscillation
imposed by ancilla measurement in different bases. Combining partial and
projective qubit measurements, we provide the solid-state demonstration of the
correspondence between a non-classical weak value and the violation of a
Leggett-Garg inequality.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, and Supplementary Information (8 figures
Structure of glassy lithium sulfate films sputtered in nitrogen (LISON): Insight from Raman spectroscopy and ab initio calculations
Raman spectra of thin solid electrolyte films obtained by sputtering a
lithium sulfate target in nitrogen plasma are measured and compared to ab
initio electronic structure calculations for clusters composed of 28 atoms.
Agreement between measured and calculated spectra is obtained when oxygen atoms
are replaced by nitrogen atoms and when the nitrogen atoms form bonds with each
other. This suggests that the incorporation of nitrogen during the sputtering
process leads to structures in the film, which prevent crystallization of these
thin film salt glasses.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Quantum protocols for anonymous voting and surveying
We describe quantum protocols for voting and surveying. A key feature of our
schemes is the use of entangled states to ensure that the votes are anonymous
and to allow the votes to be tallied. The entanglement is distributed over
separated sites; the physical inaccessibility of any one site is sufficient to
guarantee the anonymity of the votes. The security of these protocols with
respect to various kinds of attack is discussed. We also discuss classical
schemes and show that our quantum voting protocol represents a N-fold reduction
in computational complexity, where N is the number of voters.Comment: 8 pages. V2 includes the modifications made for the published versio
Quantum equilibration in finite time
It has recently been shown that small quantum subsystems generically
equilibrate, in the sense that they spend most of the time close to a fixed
equilibrium state. This relies on just two assumptions: that the state is
spread over many different energies, and that the Hamiltonian has
non-degenerate energy gaps. Given the same assumptions, it has also been shown
that closed systems equilibrate with respect to realistic measurements. We
extend these results in two important ways. First, we prove equilibration over
a finite (rather than infinite) time-interval, allowing us to bound the
equilibration time. Second, we weaken the non degenerate energy gaps condition,
showing that equilibration occurs provided that no energy gap is hugely
degenerate.Comment: 7 page
- …