Arithmetic area for m planar Brownian paths

We pursue the analysis made in [1] on the arithmetic area enclosed by m closed Brownian paths. We pay a particular attention to the random variable S{n1,n2, ...,n} (m) which is the arithmetic area of the set of points, also called winding sectors, enclosed n1 times by path 1, n2 times by path 2, ...,nm times by path m. Various results are obtained in the asymptotic limit m->infinity. A key observation is that, since the paths are independent, one can use in the m paths case the SLE information, valid in the 1-path case, on the 0-winding sectors arithmetic area.Comment: 12 pages, 2 figure

Localization Properties in One Dimensional Disordered Supersymmetric Quantum Mechanics

A model of localization based on the Witten Hamiltonian of supersymmetric quantum mechanics is considered. The case where the superpotential $\phi(x)$ is a random telegraph process is solved exactly. Both the localization length and the density of states are obtained analytically. A detailed study of the low energy behaviour is presented. Analytical and numerical results are presented in the case where the intervals over which $\phi(x)$ is kept constant are distributed according to a broad distribution. Various applications of this model are considered.Comment: 43 pages, plain TEX, 8 figures not included, available upon request from the Authors

The Local Time Distribution of a Particle Diffusing on a Graph

We study the local time distribution of a Brownian particle diffusing along the links on a graph. In particular, we derive an analytic expression of its Laplace transform in terms of the Green's function on the graph. We show that the asymptotic behavior of this distribution has non-Gaussian tails characterized by a nontrivial large deviation function.Comment: 8 pages, two figures (included

Hall Conductivity for Two Dimensional Magnetic Systems

A Kubo inspired formalism is proposed to compute the longitudinal and transverse dynamical conductivities of an electron in a plane (or a gas of electrons at zero temperature) coupled to the potential vector of an external local magnetic field, with the additional coupling of the spin degree of freedom of the electron to the local magnetic field (Pauli Hamiltonian). As an example, the homogeneous magnetic field Hall conductivity is rederived. The case of the vortex at the origin is worked out in detail. This system happens to display a transverse Hall conductivity ($P$ breaking effect) which is subleading in volume compared to the homogeneous field case, but diverging at small frequency like $1/\omega^2$. A perturbative analysis is proposed for the conductivity in the random magnetic impurity problem (Poissonian vortices in the plane). At first order in perturbation theory, the Hall conductivity displays oscillations close to the classical straight line conductivity of the mean magnetic field.Comment: 28 pages, latex, 2 figure

Topological relaxation of entangled flux lattices: Single vs collective line dynamics

A symbolic language allowing to solve statistical problems for the systems with nonabelian braid-like topology in 2+1 dimensions is developed. The approach is based on the similarity between growing braid and "heap of colored pieces". As an application, the problem of a vortex glass transition in high-T_c superconductors is re-examined on microscopic levelComment: 4 pages (revtex), 4 figure

Statistics of reduced words in locally free and braid groups: Abstract studies and application to ballistic growth model

We study numerically and analytically the average length of reduced (primitive) words in so-called locally free and braid groups. We consider the situations when the letters in the initial words are drawn either without or with correlations. In the latter case we show that the average length of the reduced word can be increased or lowered depending on the type of correlation. The ideas developed are used for analytical computation of the average number of peaks of the surface appearing in some specific ballistic growth modelComment: 29 pages, LaTeX, 7 separated Postscript figures (available on request), submitted to J. Phys. (A): Math. Ge

Wax moth larva (Galleria mellonella): An in vivo model for assessing the efficacy of antistaphylococcal agents

Objectives - To investigate whether the wax moth larva, Galleria mellonella, is a suitable host for assessing the in vivo efficacy of antistaphylococcal agents against Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) infections. Methods - Wax moth larvae were infected with increasing doses of S. aureus to investigate the effect of inoculum size on larval survival. In addition, infected wax moth larvae were treated with daptomycin, penicillin or vancomycin to examine whether these agents were effective against S. aureus and MRSA infections in vivo. Results - Increasing inoculum doses of live S. aureus cells resulted in greater larval mortality, but heat-killed bacteria and cell-free culture filtrates had no detrimental effects on survival. Larval mortality rate also depended on the post-inoculation incubation temperature. After larvae were infected with S. aureus, larval survival was enhanced by administering the antistaphylococcal antibiotics daptomycin or vancomycin. Larval survival increased with increasing doses of the antibiotics. Moreover, penicillin improved survival of larvae infected with a penicillin-susceptible methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) strain, but it was ineffective at similar doses in larvae infected with MRSA (penicillin resistant). Daptomycin and vancomycin were also effective when administered to the larvae prior to infection with bacteria. Conclusions - This is the first report to demonstrate that antibiotics are effective in the wax moth larva model for the treatment of infections caused by Gram-positive bacteria. The new wax moth larva model is a useful preliminary model for assessing the in vivo efficacy of candidate antistaphylococcal agents before proceeding to mammalian studies, which may reduce animal experimentation and expense

Statistical Curse of the Second Half Rank

In competitions involving many participants running many races the final rank is determined by the score of each participant, obtained by adding its ranks in each individual race. The "Statistical Curse of the Second Half Rank" is the observation that if the score of a participant is even modestly worse than the middle score, then its final rank will be much worse (that is, much further away from the middle rank) than might have been expected. We give an explanation of this effect for the case of a large number of races using the Central Limit Theorem. We present exact quantitative results in this limit and demonstrate that the score probability distribution will be gaussian with scores packing near the center. We also derive the final rank probability distribution for the case of two races and we present some exact formulae verified by numerical simulations for the case of three races. The variant in which the worst result of each boat is dropped from its final score is also analyzed and solved for the case of two races.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figure

Flow effects on multifragmentation in the canonical model

A prescription to incorporate the effects of nuclear flow on the process of multifragmentation of hot nuclei is proposed in an analytically solvable canonical model. Flow is simulated by the action of an effective negative external pressure. It favors sharpening the signatures of liquid-gas phase transition in finite nuclei with increased multiplicity and a lowered phase transition temperature.Comment: 13 pages, 5 Post Script figures (accepted for publication in PRC

Localization effects in a periodic quantum graph with magnetic field and spin-orbit interaction

A general technique for the study of embedded quantum graphs with magnetic fields and spin-orbit interaction is presented. The analysis is used to understand the contribution of Rashba constant to the extreme localization induced by magnetic field in the T3 shaped quantum graph. We show that this effect is destroyed at generic values of the Rashba constant. On the other hand, for certain combinations of the Rashba constant and the magnetic parameters another series of infinitely degenerate eigenvalues appears.Comment: 25 pages, typos corrected, references extende