Vortex-boson duality in four space-time dimensions

A continuum version of the vortex-boson duality in (3+1) dimensions is formulated and its implications studied in the context of a pair Wigner crystal in underdoped cuprate superconductors. The dual theory to a phase fluctuating superconductor (or superfluid) is shown to be a theory of bosonic strings interacting through a Kalb-Ramond rank-2 tensorial gauge field. String condensation produces Higgs mass for the gauge field and the expected Wigner crystal emerges as an interesting space-time analog of the Abrikosov lattice.Comment: 4 pages REVTeX; for related work and info visit http://www.physics.ubc.ca/~fran

Spin glass models with Kac interactions

In this paper I will review my work on disordered systems -spin glass model with two body and $p>2$ body interactions- with long but finite interaction range $R$. I will describe the relation of these model with Mean Field Theory in the Kac limit and some attempts to go beyond mean field.Comment: Proceedings of the Stat-phys23 conferenc

Metastable States, Relaxation Times and Free-energy Barriers in Finite Dimensional Glassy Systems

In this note we discuss metastability in a long-but-finite range disordered model for the glass transition. We show that relaxation is dominated by configuration belonging to metastable states and associate an in principle computable free-energy barrier to the equilibrium relaxation time. Adam-Gibbs like relaxation times appear naturally in this approach.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures. Typos correcte

Flight to quality? An investigation of the attributes of sold properties in hot and cold markets

This paper uses sales transaction data in order to examine whether flight from risk phenomena took place in the US office property investment market during the financial crisis of 2007-2009. The effect of the crisis on the pricing of property quality attributes, mainly summarized by the class category of each building, is investigated. In addition, the paper examines how turnover levels were affected by the market downturn and whether there were significant variations between different real estate quality types. The results of the hedonic regression models suggest that the price spread between Class, A, B and C grew significantly during the downturn. We also find that property attributes such as size, height and age are priced significantly different in ‘hot’ and ‘cold’ markets

Analytic determination of dynamical and mosaic length scales in a Kac glass model

We consider a disordered spin model with multi-spin interactions undergoing a glass transition. We introduce a dynamic and a static length scales and compute them in the Kac limit (long--but--finite range interactions). They diverge at the dynamic and static phase transition with exponents (respectively) -1/4 and -1. The two length scales are approximately equal well above the mode coupling transition. Their discrepancy increases rapidly as this transition is approached. We argue that this signals a crossover from mode coupling to activated dynamics.Comment: 4 pages, 4 eps figures. New version conform to the published on

Series Expansion of the Off-Equilibrium Mode Coupling Equations

We show that computing the coefficients of the Taylor expansion of the solution of the off-equilibrium dynamical equations characterizing models with quenched disorder is a very effective way to understand the long time asymptotic behavior. We study the $p=3$ spherical spin glass model, and we compute the asymptotic energy (in the critical region and down to $T=0$) and the coefficients of the time decay of the energy.Comment: 9 pages, LaTeX, 3 uuencoded figure

Dispersive analysis of omega --> 3pi and phi --> 3pi decays

We study the three-pion decays of the lightest isoscalar vector mesons, omega and phi, in a dispersive framework that allows for a consistent description of final-state interactions between all three pions. Our results are solely dependent on the phenomenological input for the pion-pion P-wave scattering phase shift. We predict the Dalitz plot distributions for both decays and compare our findings to recent measurements of the phi --> 3pi Dalitz plot by the KLOE and CMD-2 collaborations. Dalitz plot parameters for future precision measurements of omega --> 3pi are predicted. We also calculate the pi-pi P-wave inelasticity contribution from omega-pi intermediate states.Comment: 23 pages, 18 figures; discussion extended, Appendix D added, matches version published in EPJ

4D-XY quantum criticality in a doped Mott insulator

A new phenomenology is proposed for the superfluid density of strongly underdoped cuprate superconductors based on recent data for ultra-clean single crystals of YBCO. The data feature a puzzling departure from Uemura scaling and a decline of the slope as the T_c = 0 quantum critical point is approached. We show that this behavior can be understood in terms of the renormalization of quasiparticle effective charge by quantum fluctuations of the superconducting phase as described by a (3+1)-dimensional XY model. We calculate the renormalization of the superfluid density and its slope, explain the new phenomenology, and predict its eventual demise close to the QCP.Comment: Version published in PRL. For additional info and related work visit http://www.physics.ubc.ca/~fran