Relativistic N-boson systems bound by pair potentials V(r_{ij}) = g(r_{ij}^2)

We study the lowest energy E of a relativistic system of N identical bosons bound by pair potentials of the form V(r_{ij}) = g(r_{ij}^2) in three spatial dimensions. In natural units hbar = c = 1 the system has the semirelativistic `spinless-Salpeter' Hamiltonian H = \sum_{i=1}^N \sqrt{m^2 + p_i^2} + \sum_{j>i=1}^N g(|r_i - r_j|^2), where g is monotone increasing and has convexity g'' >= 0. We use `envelope theory' to derive formulas for general lower energy bounds and we use a variational method to find complementary upper bounds valid for all N >= 2. In particular, we determine the energy of the N-body oscillator g(r^2) = c r^2 with error less than 0.15% for all m >= 0, N >= 2, and c > 0.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figure

Functional inversion for potentials in quantum mechanics

Let E = F(v) be the ground-state eigenvalue of the Schroedinger Hamiltonian H = -Delta + vf(x), where the potential shape f(x) is symmetric and monotone increasing for x > 0, and the coupling parameter v is positive. If the 'kinetic potential' bar{f}(s) associated with f(x) is defined by the transformation: bar{f}(s) = F'(v), s = F(v)-vF'(v),then f can be reconstructed from F by the sequence: f^{[n+1]} = bar{f} o bar{f}^{[n]^{-1}} o f^{[n]}. Convergence is proved for special classes of potential shape; for other test cases it is demonstrated numerically. The seed potential shape f^{[0]} need not be 'close' to the limit f.Comment: 14 pages, 2 figure

Discrete spectra of semirelativistic Hamiltonians from envelope theory

We analyze the (discrete) spectrum of the semirelativistic ``spinless-Salpeter'' Hamiltonian H = \beta \sqrt{m^2 + p^2} + V(r), beta > 0, where V(r) represents an attractive, spherically symmetric potential in three dimensions. In order to locate the eigenvalues of H, we extend the ``envelope theory,'' originally formulated only for nonrelativistic Schroedinger operators, to the case of Hamiltonians H involving the relativistic kinetic-energy operator. If V(r) is a convex transformation of the Coulomb potential -1/r and a concave transformation of the harmonic-oscillator potential r^2, both upper and lower bounds on the discrete eigenvalues of H can be constructed, which may all be expressed in the form E = min_{r>0} [ \beta \sqrt{m^2 + P^2/r^2} + V(r) ] for suitable values of the numbers P here provided. At the critical point, the relative growth to the Coulomb potential h(r) = -1/r must be bounded by dV/dh < 2 \beta/\pi.Comment: 20 pages, 2 tables, 4 figure

Convexity and potential sums for Salpeter-like Hamiltonians

The semirelativistic Hamiltonian H = \beta\sqrt{m^2 + p^2} + V(r), where V(r) is a central potential in R^3, is concave in p^2 and convex in p. This fact enables us to obtain complementary energy bounds for the discrete spectrum of H. By extending the notion of 'kinetic potential' we are able to find general energy bounds on the ground-state energy E corresponding to potentials with the form V = sum_{i}a_{i}f^{(i)}(r). In the case of sums of powers and the log potential, where V(r) = sum_{q\ne 0} a(q) sgn(q)r^q + a(0)ln(r), the bounds can all be expressed in the semi-classical form E \approx \min_{r}{\beta\sqrt{m^2 + 1/r^2} + sum_{q\ne 0} a(q)sgn(q)(rP(q))^q + a(0)ln(rP(0))}. 'Upper' and 'lower' P-numbers are provided for q = -1,1,2, and for the log potential q = 0. Some specific examples are discussed, to show the quality of the bounds.Comment: 21 pages, 4 figure

Energy bounds for the spinless Salpeter equation: harmonic oscillator

We study the eigenvalues E_{n\ell} of the Salpeter Hamiltonian H = \beta\sqrt(m^2 + p^2) + vr^2, v>0, \beta > 0, in three dimensions. By using geometrical arguments we show that, for suitable values of P, here provided, the simple semi-classical formula E = min_{r > 0} {v(P/r)^2 + \beta\sqrt(m^2 + r^2)} provides both upper and lower energy bounds for all the eigenvalues of the problem.Comment: 8 pages, 1 figur

[Review of] Anne Wortham, The Other Side of Racism: A Philosophical Study of Black Race Consciousness

The author, a freelance writer, editor, and broadcast researcher .... (presently) a doctoral candidate in sociology at Boston College, proposes to study blacks who advocate black consciousness. Wortham condemns ethnic or racial consciousness, and therefore characterizes the other side of racism as a dilemma of individual self-esteem as opposed to problems of group conflict in race relations

Asymptotic expressions for the nearest and furthest dislocations in a pile-up against a grain boundary

In 1965, Armstrong and Head (Acta Metall. 13(7):759–764, 1965) explored the problem of a pile-up of screw dislocations against a grain boundary. They used numerical methods to determine the positions of the dislocations in the pile-up and they were able to fit approximate formulae for the locations of the first and last dislocations. These formulae were used to gain insights into the Hall-Petch relationship. More recently, Voskoboinikov et al. (Phil. Mag. Lett. 87(9):669-676, 2007) used asymptotic techniques to study the equivalent problem of a pile-up of a large number of screw dislocations against a bimetallic interface.\ud \ud In this paper, we extend the work of Voskoboinikov et al. to construct systematic asymptotic expressions for the formulae proposed by Armstrong and Head. The further extension of these techniques to more general pile-ups is also outlined. As a result of this work, we show that a pile-up against a grain boundary can become equivalent to a pile-up against a locked dislocation in the case where the mismatch across the boundary is small

Asymptotic analysis of a pile-up of edge dislocation

The idealised problem of a pile-up of dislocation walls (that is, of planes each containing an infinite number of parallel and identical dislocations) was presented by Roy et al. (Mater. Sci. Eng. A 486:653-661, 2008) as a proto-type for understanding the importance of discrete dislocation interactions in dislocation-based plasticity models. They noted that analytic solutions for the dislocation wall density are available for a pile-up of screw dislocation walls, but that numerical methods seem to be necessary for investigating edge dislocation walls. In this paper, we use the techniques of discrete-to-continuum asymptotic analysis to obtain a detailed description of a pile-up of edge dislocation walls. To leading order, we find that the dislocation wall density is governed by a simple differential equation and that boundary layers are present at both ends of the pile-up