The Nucleon-Nucleon Potential in the 1/N_c Expansion

The nucleon-nucleon potential is analysed using the 1/N_c expansion of QCD. The NN potential is shown to have an expansion in 1/N_c^2, and the strengths of the leading order central, spin-orbit, tensor, and quadratic spin-orbit forces (including isospin dependence) are determined. Comparison with a successful phenomenological potential (Nijmegen) shows that the large-N_c analysis explains many of the qualitative features observed in the nucleon-nucleon interaction. The 1/N_c expansion implies an effective Wigner supermultiplet symmetry for light nuclei. Results for baryons containing strange quarks are presented in an appendix.Comment: 17 pages, 3 figures, TeX, macros harvmac and eps

Bounds on Expected Black Hole Spins in Inspiraling Binaries

As a first step towards understanding the angular momentum evolution history of black holes in merging black-hole/neutron-star binaries, we perform population synthesis calculations to track the distribution of accretion histories of compact objects in such binaries. We find that there are three distinct processes which can possibly contribute to the black-hole spin magnitude: a birth spin for the black hole, imparted at either (i) the collapse of a massive progenitor star to a black hole or (ii) the accretion-induced collapse of a neutron star to a black hole; and (iii) an accretion spin-up when the already formed black hole [via (i) or (ii)] goes through an accretion episode (through an accretion disk or a common-envelope phase). Our results show that, with regard to accretion-induced spinup in merging BH-NS binaries [method (iii) above], only {\em accretion episodes associated with common-envelope phases and hypercritical accretion rates} occur in the formation history of merging black hole/neutron star binaries. Lacking unambiguous experimental information about BH birth spins [i.e., regarding the results of processes (i) and (ii)], we choose two fiducial values for the BH birth angular momentum parameter a=J/M^2, consistent with observations of (i) NS birth spins (a roughly 0) and (ii) X-ray binaries (a=0.5). Using these two fiducial values and a conservative upper bound on the specific angular momentum of accreted matter, we discuss the expected range of black hole spins in the binaries of interest. We conclude with comments on the significance of these results for ground-based gravitational-wave searches of inspiral signals from black hole binaries.Comment: Submitted to ApJ. (v1) Uses emulateapj.cls. 5 figures. (v2): corrected reference list and uses smaller figures (v3): Includes changes in response to referee comments, including new discussion of XRBs. Figures merged, so only 3 figures (v4) Minor typo correction, plus updated abstract posted onlin

Comment on "The Phenomenology of a Nonstandard Higgs Boson in W_L W_L Scattering"

We show that in Composite Higgs models, the coupling of the Higgs resonance to a pair of $W$ bosons is weaker than the corresponding Standard Model coupling, provided the Higgs arises from electroweak doublets only. This is partly due to the effects of the nonlinear realization of the chiral symmetries at the compositeness scale.Comment: 6 pages, BU-HEP 94-2

Development of high resolution simulations of the atmospheric environment using the MASS model

Numerical simulations were performed with a very high resolution (7.25 km) version of the MASS model (Version 4.0) in an effort to diagnose the vertical wind shear and static stability structure during the Shuttle Challenger disaster which occurred on 28 January 1986. These meso-beta scale simulations reveal that the strongest vertical wind shears were concentrated in the 200 to 150 mb layer at 1630 GMT, i.e., at about the time of the disaster. These simulated vertical shears were the result of two primary dynamical processes. The juxtaposition of both of these processes produced a shallow (30 mb deep) region of strong vertical wind shear, and hence, low Richardson number values during the launch time period. Comparisons with the Cape Canaveral (XMR) rawinsonde indicates that the high resolution MASS 4.0 simulation more closely emulated nature than did previous simulations of the same event with the GMASS model

Propagation and interaction of ultrashort electromagnetic pulses in nonlinear media with a quadratic-cubic nonlinearity

Propagation of extremely short unipolar pulses of electromagnetic field ("videopulses") is considered in the framework of a model in which the material medium is represented by anharmonic oscillators (approximating bound electrons) with quadratic and cubic nonlinearities. Two families of exact analytical solutions (with positive or negative polarity) are found for the moving solitary pulses. Direct simulations demonstrate that the pulses are very robust against perturbations. Two unipolar pulses collide nearly elastically, while collisions between pulses with opposite polarities and a small relative velocity are inelastic, leading to emission of radiation and generation of a small-amplitude additional pulse.Comment: 12 pages, 10 figure

Book Review

A review of Law and Tactics in Federal Criminal Cases, edited by George W. Shadoan (published in 1964)

Nearby, Thermally Emitting Neutron Stars

We describe a sample of thermally emitting neutron stars discovered in the ROSAT All-Sky Survey. We discuss the basic observational properties of these objects and conclude that they are nearby, middle-aged pulsars with moderate magnetic fields that we see through their cooling radiation. While these objects are potentially very useful as probes of matter at very high densities and magnetic fields, our lack of understanding of their surface emission limits their current utility. We discuss this and other outstanding problems: the spectral evolution of one sources and the relation of this population to the overall pulsar population.Comment: 9 pages, one table, 3 figures. To appear in the proceedings of "40 Years of Pulsars: Millisecond Pulsars, Magnetars, and More", August 12-17, 2007, McGill University, Montreal, Canad