957 research outputs found
Renormalization Group Evolution in the type I + II seesaw model
We carefully analyze the renormalization group equations in the type I + II
seesaw scenario in the extended standard model (SM) and minimal supersymmetric
standard model (MSSM). Furthermore, we present analytic formulae of the mixing
angles and phases and discuss the RG effect on the different mixing parameters
in the type II seesaw scenario. The renormalization group equations of the
angles have a contribution which is proportional to the mass squared difference
for a hierarchical spectrum. This is in contrast to the inverse proportionality
to the mass squared difference in the effective field theory case.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figures; corrected error due to wrong superfield
normalization in RG equations (24-28,C1-4) as well as error in RG equations
of mixing parameters (38,43); RG equations of mixing angles depend on
Majorana phase
Astronomy and Computing: a New Journal for the Astronomical Computing Community
We introduce \emph{Astronomy and Computing}, a new journal for the growing
population of people working in the domain where astronomy overlaps with
computer science and information technology. The journal aims to provide a new
communication channel within that community, which is not well served by
current journals, and to help secure recognition of its true importance within
modern astronomy. In this inaugural editorial, we describe the rationale for
creating the journal, outline its scope and ambitions, and seek input from the
community in defining in detail how the journal should work towards its
high-level goals.Comment: 5 pages, no figures; editorial for first edition of journa
Some Remarks on Quantum Coherence
There are many striking phenomena which are attributed to
``quantum coherence''. It is natural to wonder if there are new quantum
coherence effects waiting to be discovered which could lead to interesting
results and perhaps even practical applications. A useful starting point for
such discussions is a definition of ``quantum coherence''. In this article I
give a definition of quantum coherence and use a number of illustrations to
explore the implications of this definition. I point to topics of current
interest in the fields of cosmology and quantum computation where questions of
quantum coherence arise, and I emphasize the impact that interactions with the
environment can have on quantum coherence.Comment: 25 pages plain LaTeX, no figures. More references have been added and
typos have been corrected. Journal of Modern Optics, in press.
Imperial/TP/93-94/1
Exploring Exogenic Sources for the Olivine on Asteroid (4) Vesta
The detection of olivine on Vesta is interesting because it may provide
critical insights into planetary differentiation early in our Solar System's
history. Ground-based and Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations of asteroid
(4) Vesta have suggested the presence of olivine on the surface. These
observations were reinforced by the discovery of olivine-rich HED meteorites
from Vesta in recent years. However, analysis of data from NASA's Dawn
spacecraft has shown that this olivine-bearing unit is actually impact melt in
the ejecta of Oppia crater. The lack of widespread mantle olivine, exposed
during the formation of the 19 km deep Rheasilvia basin on Vesta's South Pole,
further complicated this picture. Ammannito et al., (2013a) reported the
discovery of local scale olivine-rich units in the form of excavated material
from the mantle using the Visible and InfraRed spectrometer (VIR) on Dawn. Here
we explore alternative sources for the olivine in the northern hemisphere of
Vesta by reanalyzing the data from the VIR instrument using laboratory spectral
measurements of meteorites. We suggest that these olivine exposures could be
explained by the delivery of olivine-rich exogenic material. Based on our
spectral band parameters analysis, the lack of correlation between the location
of these olivine-rich terrains and possible mantle-excavating events, and
supported by observations of HED meteorites, we propose that a probable source
for olivine seen in the northern hemisphere are remnants of impactors made of
olivine-rich meteorites. Best match suggests these units are HED material mixed
with either ordinary chondrites, or with some olivine-dominated meteorites such
as R-chondrites.Comment: 62 pages, 12 figures, 4 tables; Icarus, Available online 30 January
2015, ISSN 0019-1035, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.icarus.2015.01.01
Insights into ultrafast demagnetization in pseudo-gap half metals
Interest in femtosecond demagnetization experiments was sparked by Bigot's
discovery in 1995. These experiments unveil the elementary mechanisms coupling
the electrons' temperature to their spin order. Even though first quantitative
models describing ultrafast demagnetization have just been published within the
past year, new calculations also suggest alternative mechanisms.
Simultaneously, the application of fast demagnetization experiments has been
demonstrated to provide key insight into technologically important systems such
as high spin polarization metals, and consequently there is broad interest in
further understanding the physics of these phenomena. To gain new and relevant
insights, we perform ultrafast optical pump-probe experiments to characterize
the demagnetization processes of highly spin-polarized magnetic thin films on a
femtosecond time scale. Previous studies have suggested shifting the Fermi
energy into the center of the gap by tuning the number of electrons and thereby
to study its influence on spin-flip processes. Here we show that choosing
isoelectronic Heusler compounds (Co2MnSi, Co2MnGe and Co2FeAl) allows us to
vary the degree of spin polarization between 60% and 86%. We explain this
behavior by considering the robustness of the gap against structural disorder.
Moreover, we observe that Co-Fe-based pseudo gap materials, such as partially
ordered Co-Fe-Ge alloys and also the well-known Co-Fe-B alloys, can reach
similar values of the spin polarization. By using the unique features of these
metals we vary the number of possible spin-flip channels, which allows us to
pinpoint and control the half metals electronic structure and its influence
onto the elementary mechanisms of ultrafast demagnetization.Comment: 17 pages, 4 figures, plus Supplementary Informatio
Feature-Model-Guided Online Learning for Self-Adaptive Systems
A self-adaptive system can modify its own structure and behavior at runtime
based on its perception of the environment, of itself and of its requirements.
To develop a self-adaptive system, software developers codify knowledge about
the system and its environment, as well as how adaptation actions impact on the
system. However, the codified knowledge may be insufficient due to design time
uncertainty, and thus a self-adaptive system may execute adaptation actions
that do not have the desired effect. Online learning is an emerging approach to
address design time uncertainty by employing machine learning at runtime.
Online learning accumulates knowledge at runtime by, for instance, exploring
not-yet executed adaptation actions. We address two specific problems with
respect to online learning for self-adaptive systems. First, the number of
possible adaptation actions can be very large. Existing online learning
techniques randomly explore the possible adaptation actions, but this can lead
to slow convergence of the learning process. Second, the possible adaptation
actions can change as a result of system evolution. Existing online learning
techniques are unaware of these changes and thus do not explore new adaptation
actions, but explore adaptation actions that are no longer valid. We propose
using feature models to give structure to the set of adaptation actions and
thereby guide the exploration process during online learning. Experimental
results involving four real-world systems suggest that considering the
hierarchical structure of feature models may speed up convergence by 7.2% on
average. Considering the differences between feature models before and after an
evolution step may speed up convergence by 64.6% on average. [...
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