Ising analogue to compact-star matter

By constructing an Ising analogue of compact-star matter at sub-saturation density we explored the effect of Coulomb frustration on the nuclear liquid-gas phase transition. Our conclusions is twofold. First, the range of temperatures where inhomogeneous phases form expands with increasing Coulomb-field strength. Second, within the approximation of uniform electron distribution, the limiting point upon which the phase-coexistence region ends does not exhibit any critical behaviour. Possible astrophysics consequences and thermodynamical connections are discussed.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

From multifragmentation to supernovae and neutron stars

The thermodynamics properties of globally neutral dense stellar matter are analyzed both in terms of mean field instabilities and structures beyond the mean field. The mean field response to finite wavelenght fluctuations is calculated with the realistic Sly230a effective interaction. A Monte Carlo simulation of a schematic lattice Hamiltonian shows the importance of calculations beyond the mean field to calculate the phase diagram of stellar matter. The analogies and differences respect to the thermodynamics of nuclear matter and finite nuclei are stressed.Comment: To be published in Acta Phys. Hung.

Distribution of the largest fragment in the Lattice Gas Model

The distribution of the largest fragment is studied in different regions of the Lattice Gas model phase diagram. We show that first and second order transitions can be clearly distinguished in the grancanonical ensemble, while signals typical of a continuous transition are seen inside the coexistence region if a mass conservation constraint is applied. Some possible implications of these findings for heavy ion multifragmentation experiments are discussed

Freeze-out volume in multifragmentation - dynamical simulations

Stochastic mean-field simulations for multifragmenting sources at the same excitation energy per nucleon have been performed. The freeze-out volume, a concept which needs to be precisely defined in this dynamical approach, was shown to increase as a function of three parameters: freeze-out instant, fragment multiplicity and system size.Comment: Submitted to Eur. Phys. J. A - march 200

Enhancement of kinetic energy fluctuations due to expansion

Global equilibrium fragmentation inside a freeze out constraining volume is a working hypothesis widely used in nuclear fragmentation statistical models. In the framework of classical Lennard Jones molecular dynamics, we study how the relaxation of the fixed volume constraint affects the posterior evolution of microscopic correlations, and how a non-confined fragmentation scenario is established. A study of the dynamical evolution of the relative kinetic energy fluctuations was also performed. We found that asymptotic measurements of such observable can be related to the number of decaying channels available to the system at fragmentation time.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Pairing Vibrations Study with the Time-Dependent Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov theory

International audienceWe study pairing vibrations in $^{18,20,22}$O and $^{42,44,46}$Ca nuclei solving the time-dependent Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov equation in coordinate space with spherical symmetry. We use the SLy4 Skyrme functional in the normal part of the energy density functional and a local density dependent functional in its pairing part. Pairing vibrations are excited by two-neutron transfer operators. Strength distributions are obtained using the Fourier transform of the time-dependent response of two-neutron pair-transfer observables in the linear regime. Results are in overall agreement with quasiparticle random phase approximation calculations for Oxygen isotopes, though differences appear when increasing the neutron number. Both low lying pairing modes and giant pairing vibrations (GPV) are discussed. The GPV is observed in the Oxygen but not in the Calcium isotopes

Low density expansion and isospin dependence of nuclear energy functional: comparison between relativistic and Skyrme models

In the present work we take the non relativistic limit of relativistic models and compare the obtained functionals with the usual Skyrme parametrization. Relativistic models with both constant couplings and with density dependent couplings are considered. While some models present very good results already at the lowest order in the density, models with non-linear terms only reproduce the energy functional if higher order terms are taken into account in the expansion.Comment: 16 pages,6 figures,5 table

Absolute instability in axisymmetric wakes: Compressible and density variation effects

International audienceLesshafft & Huerre (Phys. Fluids, 2007; vol. 19, 024102) have recently studied the transition from convective to absolute instability in hot round jets, for which absolute instability is led by axisymmetric perturbations and enhanced when lowering the jet density. The present paper analyses similarly the counterpart problem of wake flows, and establishes that absolute instability is then led by a large-scale helical wake mode favoured when the wake is denser than the surrounding fluid. This generalizes to variable density and compressible wakes the results of Monkewitz (J. Fluid Mech. vol 192, 1988, p. 561). Furthermore, we show that in a particular range of density ratios, the large-scale helical wake mode can become absolutely unstable by increasing only the Mach number up to high subsonic values. This possibility of an absolute instability triggered by an increase of the Mach number is opposite to the behaviour previously described in shear flows such as plane mixing layers and axisymmetric jets. A physical interpretation based on the action of the baroclinic torque is proposed. An axisymmetric short-scale mode, similar to that observed in plane mixing layers, leads the transition in light wakes, but the corresponding configurations require large counterflow for the instability to be absolute. These results suggest that the low-frequency oscillation present in afterbody wakes may be due to a nonlinear global mode triggered by a local absolute instability, since the azimuthal wavenumber and absolute frequency of the helical wake mode agree qualitatively with observations. © 2008 Cambridge University Press