Ratchet effect for cold atoms in an optical lattice

The realization of a directed current for a quantum particle in a flashing asymmetric potential is studied. It is found that a positive current, i.e. in the direction expected for a conventional diffusive ratchet, can be attained at short times in the limit where the potential is weak and quantum diffusion dominates, while current reversal is obtained for stronger potentials. A single parameter, the ratio between the kicking frequency and the optical lattice potential strength, determines both the degree to which quantum effects dominate, and the possibility of obtaining a ratchet current. The effect should be readily observable in experiments.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Quantum Critical Dynamics Simulation of Dirty Boson Systems

Recently the scaling result $z=d$ for the dynamic critical exponent at the Bose glass to superfluid quantum phase transition has been questioned both on theoretical and numerical grounds. This motivates a careful evaluation of the critical exponents in order to determine the actual value of $z$. We study a model of quantum bosons at T=0 with disorder in 2D using highly effective worm Monte Carlo simulations. Our data analysis is based on a finite size scaling approach to determine the scaling of the quantum correlation time from simulation data for boson world lines. The resulting critical exponents are $z=1.8 \pm 0.05, \nu=1.15 \pm 0.03,$ and $\eta=-0.3 \pm 0.1$, hence suggesting that $z=2$ is not satisfied.Comment: 4 pages 4 figure

Critical Scaling Properties at the Superfluid Transition of 4^4He in Aerogel

We study the superfluid transition of $^4$He in aerogel by Monte Carlo simulations and finite size scaling analysis. Aerogel is a highly porous silica glass, which we model by a diffusion limited cluster aggregation model. The superfluid is modeled by a three dimensional XY model, with excluded bonds to sites on the aerogel cluster. We obtain the correlation length exponent $\nu=0.73 \pm 0.02$, in reasonable agreement with experiments and with previous simulations. For the heat capacity exponent $\alpha$, both experiments and previous simulations suggest deviations from the Josephson hyperscaling relation $\alpha=2-d\nu$. In contrast, our Monte Carlo results support hyperscaling with $\alpha= -0.2\pm 0.05$. We suggest a reinterpretation of previous experiments, which avoids scaling violations and is consistent with our simulation results.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Assessment of nitrogen pollution reduction options in the river Nemunas (Lithuania) using FyrisNP model

The paper quantifies and discusses diffuse and point sources total nitrogen (TN) inputs as well as retention and TN reduction options in the catchment of the main Lithuanian River Nemunas. Modelled average TN export between 2000–2006 from the River Nemunas catchment to the Baltic Sea was 37620 tonnes TN yr−1 according to the data oriented FyrisNP model. Loads of TN from diffuse and point sources as well as retention have been estimated for five subcatchments of the River Nemunas including the external load from Belarus. Agriculture contributes 74.6 to 89.5% of the TN load, increasing with the percentage of arable land and load from point sources. The main point source input is poorly treated wastewater at Kaunas city. The contribution from forest land to the TN load increases from 2.2% to 15.8% with an increase in forest land from 28.5 to 56.9% of the total subcatchments area. The highest retention of TN (30.7%) was observed in the Neris river subcatchment with the lowest hydraulic load (5.55 m yr−1). Scenario modelling suggests that the reduction target for Lithuania for nitrogen input to the Baltic Sea by 11700 tonnes can be achieved by installing biological treatment in sewage treatment plants in all district cities and by converting 20% of arable land to pastures or implementation of other equivalent measures in agriculture. Assessment of the FyrisNP model results shows that the model can be successfully applied for river basin management planning in catchments outside the area where the model originally has been developed. First published online: 11 Oct 201