2,769 research outputs found
The Ward Identity from the Background Field Dependence of the Effective Action
The dependence of the effective action for gauge theories on the background
field obeys an exact identity. We argue that for Abelian theories the Ward
identity follows from the more general background field identity. This
observation is particularly relevant for the anomalous Ward identity valid for
gauge theories with an effective infrared cutoff as used for flow equations.Comment: 8 page
Sex hormones in allergic conjunctivitis: altered levels of circulating androgens and estrogens in children and adolescents with vernal keratoconjunctivitis
PURPOSE:
Vernal keratoconjunctivitis (VKC) is a chronic allergic disease mainly affecting boys in prepubertal age and usually recovering after puberty. To evaluate a possible role of sex hormones in VKC, serum levels of sex hormones in children and adolescents with VKC were assessed.
METHODS:
12 prepubertal and 7 early pubertal boys with active VKC and 6 male patients with VKC in remission phase at late pubertal age and 48 healthy age and sex-matched subjects were included. Serum concentration of estrone, 17 beta-estradiol, dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate, total testosterone and free testosterone, dihydrotestosterone (DHT), cortisol, delta-4-androstenedione, follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, and sex-hormones binding globuline (SHBG) were evaluated.
RESULTS:
Serum levels of Estrone were significantly increased in all groups of patients with VKC when compared to healthy controls (P < 0.001). Prepubertal and early pubertal VKC showed a significant decrease in DHT (P = 0.007 and P = 0.028, resp.) and SHBG (P = 0.01 and P = 0.002, resp.) when compared to controls and serum levels of SHBG were increased in late pubertal VKC in remission phase (P = 0.007).
CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE:
VKC patients have different circulating sex hormone levels in different phases of the disease and when compared to nonallergic subjects. These findings suggest a role played by sex hormones in the pathogenesis and/or activity of VKC
Topological invariants in interacting Quantum Spin Hall: a Cluster Perturbation Theory approach
Using Cluster Perturbation Theory we calculate Green's functions,
quasi-particle energies and topological invariants for interacting electrons on
a 2-D honeycomb lattice, with intrinsic spin-orbit coupling and on-site e-e
interaction. This allows to define the parameter range (Hubbard U vs spin-orbit
coupling) where the 2D system behaves as a trivial insulator or Quantum Spin
Hall insulator. This behavior is confirmed by the existence of gapless
quasi-particle states in honeycomb ribbons. We have discussed the importance of
the cluster symmetry and the effects of the lack of full translation symmetry
typical of CPT and of most Quantum Cluster approaches. Comments on the limits
of applicability of the method are also provided.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures: discussion improved, one figure added, references
updated. Matches version published in New J. Phy
The beta functions of a scalar theory coupled to gravity
We study a scalar field theory coupled to gravity on a flat background, below
Planck's energy. Einstein's theory is treated as an effective field theory.
Within the context of Wilson's renormalization group, we compute gravitational
corrections to the beta functions and the anomalous dimension of the scalar
field, taking into account threshold effects.Comment: 13 pages, plainTe
Exact Flow Equations and the U(1)-Problem
The effective action of a SU(N)-gauge theory coupled to fermions is evaluated
at a large infrared cut-off scale k within the path integral approach. The
gauge field measure includes topologically non-trivial configurations
(instantons). Due to the explicit infrared regularisation there are no gauge
field zero modes. The Dirac operator of instanton configurations shows a zero
mode even after the infrared regularisation, which leads to U_A(1)-violating
terms in the effective action. These terms are calculated in the limit of large
scales k.Comment: 22 pages, latex, no figures, with stylistic changes and some
arguments streamlined, typos corrected, References added, to appear in Phys.
Rev.
Periodic Instantons in SU(2) Yang-Mills-Higgs Theory
The properties of periodic instanton solutions of the classical SU(2) gauge
theory with a Higgs doublet field are described analytically at low energies,
and found numerically for all energies up to and beyond the sphaleron energy.
Interesting new classes of bifurcating complex periodic instanton solutions to
the Yang-Mills-Higgs equations are described.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figures (in 5 included eps files), ReVTeX (minor typos
corrected and reference added
Evolution Equations for the Quark-Meson Transition
Evolution equations describe the effect of consecutively integrating out all
quantum fluctuations with momenta larger than some infrared cutoff scale k. We
develop a formalism for the introduction of collective degrees of freedom at
some intermediate scale and derive the corresponding evolution equations. This
allows to account for the appearance of bound states at some characteristic
length scale as, for example, the mesons in QCD. The vacuum properties,
including condensates of composite operators, can be directly infered from the
effective action for k->0. We compute in a simple QCD-motivated model with
four-quark interactions the chiral condensate \bar\psi\psi and the effective
action for pions including f_\pi. A full treatment of QCD along these lines
seems feasible but still requires substantial work. (5 figures available by
ordinary mail upon request)Comment: 31 pages, HD-THEP-94-
Equation of state and coarse grained free energy for matrix models
We investigate phase transitions in three dimensional scalar matrix models,
with special emphasis on complex matrices. The universal equation
of state for weak first order phase transitions is computed. We also study the
coarse grained free energy. Its dependence on the coarse graining scale gives a
quantitative criterion for the validity of the standard treatment of bubble
nucleation.Comment: Latex, 48 page
Time evolution of correlation functions and thermalization
We investigate the time evolution of a classical ensemble of isolated
periodic chains of O(N)-symmetric anharmonic oscillators. Our method is based
on an exact evolution equation for the time dependence of correlation
functions. We discuss its solutions in an approximation which retains all
contributions in next-to-leading order in a 1/N expansion and preserves time
reflection symmetry. We observe effective irreversibility and approximate
thermalization. At large time the system approaches stationary solutions in the
vicinity of, but not identical to, thermal equilibrium. The ensemble therefore
retains some memory of the initial condition beyond the conserved total energy.
Such a behavior with incomplete thermalization is referred to as "mesoscopic
dynamics". It is expected for systems in a small volume. Surprisingly, we find
that the nonthermal asymptotic stationary solutions do not change for large
volume. This raises questions on Boltzmann's conjecture that macroscopic
isolated systems thermalize.Comment: 40 pages, 9 figure
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