3,006 research outputs found
Spectroscopic measurements of solar wind generation
Spectroscopically observable quantities are described which are sensitive to the primary plasma parameters of the solar wind's source region. The method is discussed in which those observable quantities are used as constraints in the construction of empirical models of various coronal structures. Simulated observations are used to examine the fractional contributions to observed spectral intensities from coronal structures of interest which co-exist with other coronal structures along simulated lines-of-sight. The sensitivity of spectroscopic observables to the physical parameters within each of those structures is discussed
Hamiltonian and physical Hilbert space in polymer quantum mechanics
In this paper, a version of polymer quantum mechanics, which is inspired by
loop quantum gravity, is considered and shown to be equivalent, in a precise
sense, to the standard, experimentally tested, Schroedinger quantum mechanics.
The kinematical cornerstone of our framework is the so called polymer
representation of the Heisenberg-Weyl (H-W) algebra, which is the starting
point of the construction. The dynamics is constructed as a continuum limit of
effective theories characterized by a scale, and requires a renormalization of
the inner product. The result is a physical Hilbert space in which the
continuum Hamiltonian can be represented and that is unitarily equivalent to
the Schroedinger representation of quantum mechanics. As a concrete
implementation of our formalism, the simple harmonic oscillator is fully
developed.Comment: 19 pages, 2 figures. Comments and references added. Version to be
published in CQ
Andreev reflection in bosonic condensates
We study the bosonic analog of Andreev reflection at a normal-superfluid
interface where the superfluid is a boson condensate. We model the normal
region as a zone where nonlinear effects can be neglected. Against the
background of a decaying condensate, we identify a novel contribution to the
current of reflected atoms. The group velocity of this Andreev reflected
component differs from that of the normally reflected one. For a
three-dimensional planar or two-dimensional linear interface Andreev reflection
is neither specular nor conjugate.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures. Text revise
Geometrical Shape Optimization of a Cavity Receiver Using Coupled Radiative and Hydrodynamic Modeling
AbstractBy using a two-stage optimisation process we maximise the heat rate output of afour-parameter axisymmetric direct steam generation cavity receiver. The model includes radiative and hydrodynamic considerations. We show that a significant range of geometrical shapes show similar efficiencies while having different wall flux and temperature profiles
The APEX-CHAMP+ view of the Orion Molecular Cloud 1 core - Constraining the excitation with submillimeter CO multi-line observations
A high density portion of the Orion Molecular Cloud 1 (OMC-1) contains the
prominent, warm Kleinmann-Low (KL) nebula that is internally powered by an
energetic event plus a farther region in which intermediate to high mass stars
are forming. Its outside is affected by ultraviolet radiation from the
neighboring Orion Nebula Cluster and forms the archetypical photon-dominated
region (PDR) with the prominent bar feature. Its nearness makes the OMC-1 core
region a touchstone for research on the dense molecular interstellar medium and
PDRs. Using the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment telescope (APEX), we have imaged
the line emission from the multiple transitions of several carbon monoxide (CO)
isotopologues over the OMC-1 core region. Our observations employed the 2x7
pixel submillimeter CHAMP+ array to produce maps (~ 300 arcsec x 350 arcsec) of
12CO, 13CO, and C18O from mid-J transitions (J=6-5 to 8-7). We also obtained
the 13CO and C18O J=3-2 images toward this region. The 12CO line emission shows
a well-defined structure which is shaped and excited by a variety of phenomena,
including the energetic photons from hot, massive stars in the nearby Orion
Nebula's central Trapezium cluster, active high- and intermediate-mass star
formation, and a past energetic event that excites the KL nebula. Radiative
transfer modeling of the various isotopologic CO lines implies typical H2
densities in the OMC-1 core region of ~10^4-10^6 cm^-3 and generally elevated
temperatures (~ 50-250 K). We estimate a warm gas mass in the OMC-1 core region
of 86-285 solar masses.Comment: 11 pages, 9 figures, accepted by A&
The century of the incomplete revolution: searching for general relativistic quantum field theory
In fundamental physics, this has been the century of quantum mechanics and
general relativity. It has also been the century of the long search for a
conceptual framework capable of embracing the astonishing features of the world
that have been revealed by these two ``first pieces of a conceptual
revolution''. I discuss the general requirements on the mathematics and some
specific developments towards the construction of such a framework. Examples of
covariant constructions of (simple) generally relativistic quantum field
theories have been obtained as topological quantum field theories, in
nonperturbative zero-dimensional string theory and its higher dimensional
generalizations, and as spin foam models. A canonical construction of a general
relativistic quantum field theory is provided by loop quantum gravity.
Remarkably, all these diverse approaches have turn out to be related,
suggesting an intriguing general picture of general relativistic quantum
physics.Comment: To appear in the Journal of Mathematical Physics 2000 Special Issu
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