6,831 research outputs found
HARM: A Numerical Scheme for General Relativistic Magnetohydrodynamics
We describe a conservative, shock-capturing scheme for evolving the equations
of general relativistic magnetohydrodynamics. The fluxes are calculated using
the Harten, Lax, and van Leer scheme. A variant of constrained transport,
proposed earlier by T\'oth, is used to maintain a divergence free magnetic
field. Only the covariant form of the metric in a coordinate basis is required
to specify the geometry. We describe code performance on a full suite of test
problems in both special and general relativity. On smooth flows we show that
it converges at second order. We conclude by showing some results from the
evolution of a magnetized torus near a rotating black hole.Comment: 38 pages, 18 figures, submitted to Ap
The QCD equation of state at finite T/\mu on the lattice
We present N_t=4 lattice results for the equation of state of 2+1 flavour
staggered, dynamical QCD at finite temperature and chemical potential. We use
the overlap improving multi-parameter reweighting technique to extend the
equation of state for non-vanishing chemical potentials. The results are
obtained along the line of constant physics. Our physical parameters extend in
temperature and baryon chemical potential upto \approx 500-600 MeV.Comment: 13 pages 9 figures, talk given at Finite Density QCD at Nara, Nara,
Japan, 10-12 July 200
Lattice QCD at non-vanishing density: phase diagram, equation of state
We propose a method to study lattice QCD at non-vanishing temperature (T) and
chemical potential (\mu). We use n_f=2+1 dynamical staggered quarks with
semi-realistic masses on L_t=4 lattices. The critical endpoint (E) of QCD on
the Re(\mu)-T plane is located. We calculate the pressure (p), the energy
density (\epsilon) and the baryon density (n_B) of QCD at non-vanishing T and
\mu.Comment: Contributed to Workshop on Strong and Electroweak Matter (SEWM 2002),
Heidelberg, Germany, 2-5 Oct 200
Gravitational torques in spiral galaxies: gas accretion as a driving mechanism of galactic evolution
The distribution of gravitational torques and bar strengths in the local
Universe is derived from a detailed study of 163 galaxies observed in the
near-infrared. The results are compared with numerical models for spiral galaxy
evolution. It is found that the observed distribution of torques can be
accounted for only with external accretion of gas onto spiral disks. Accretion
is responsible for bar renewal - after the dissolution of primordial bars - as
well as the maintenance of spiral structures. Models of isolated, non-accreting
galaxies are ruled out. Moderate accretion rates do not explain the
observational results: it is shown that galactic disks should double their mass
in less than the Hubble time. The best fit is obtained if spiral galaxies are
open systems, still forming today by continuous gas accretion, doubling their
mass every 10 billion years.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, Astronomy and Astrophysics Letters (accepted
Algebraic volume density property of affine algebraic manifolds
We introduce the notion of algebraic volume density property for affine
algebraic manifolds and prove some important basic facts about it, in
particular that it implies the volume density property. The main results of the
paper are producing two big classes of examples of Stein manifolds with volume
density property. One class consists of certain affine modifications of \C^n
equipped with a canonical volume form, the other is the class of all Linear
Algebraic Groups equipped with the left invariant volume form.Comment: 35 page
Magnetized Accretion-Ejection Structures: 2.5D MHD simulations of continuous Ideal Jet launching from resistive accretion disks
We present numerical magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of a magnetized
accretion disk launching trans-Alfvenic jets. These simulations, performed in a
2.5 dimensional time-dependent polytropic resistive MHD framework, model a
resistive accretion disk threaded by an initial vertical magnetic field. The
resistivity is only important inside the disk, and is prescribed as eta =
alpha_m V_AH exp(-2Z^2/H^2), where V_A stands for Alfven speed, H is the disk
scale height and the coefficient alpha_m is smaller than unity. By performing
the simulations over several tens of dynamical disk timescales, we show that
the launching of a collimated outflow occurs self-consistently and the ejection
of matter is continuous and quasi-stationary. These are the first ever
simulations of resistive accretion disks launching non-transient ideal MHD
jets. Roughly 15% of accreted mass is persistently ejected. This outflow is
safely characterized as a jet since the flow becomes super-fastmagnetosonic,
well-collimated and reaches a quasi-stationary state. We present a complete
illustration and explanation of the `accretion-ejection' mechanism that leads
to jet formation from a magnetized accretion disk. In particular, the magnetic
torque inside the disk brakes the matter azimuthally and allows for accretion,
while it is responsible for an effective magneto-centrifugal acceleration in
the jet. As such, the magnetic field channels the disk angular momentum and
powers the jet acceleration and collimation. The jet originates from the inner
disk region where equipartition between thermal and magnetic forces is
achieved. A hollow, super-fastmagnetosonic shell of dense material is the
natural outcome of the inwards advection of a primordial field.Comment: ApJ (in press), 32 pages, Higher quality version available at
http://www-laog.obs.ujf-grenoble.fr/~fcass
Changes in private health service utilisation and access to the Italian National Health Service between 2006 and 2019: A cross-sectional comparative study
Objectives: Previous research highlighted that in the early 2000s a significant share of the Italian population used and paid out of pocket for private healthcare services even when they could potentially have received the same treatments from the National Health Service (NHS). The decrease in public investments in healthcare and the increase in health needs due to the population ageing may have modified the use of private health services and equity of access to the Italian NHS. This study aims to investigate the change in the prevalence of individuals who have fully paid out of pocket for accessing healthcare services in Italy between 2006 and 2019 and the main reasons behind this choice. Design: Cross-sectional comparative study. Participants and comparison: Two representative samples of the Italian population were collected in 2006 and 2019. Outcome measures: Prevalence of access to fully paid out-of-pocket private health services; type of service of the last fully paid out-of-pocket access; main reasons for the last fully paid out-of-pocket access. Results: We found an increase in the prevalence of people who declared having fully paid out of pocket at least one access to health services during their lifetime from 79.0% in 2006 to 91.9% in 2019 (adjusted OR 2.66; 95% CI 1.98 to 3.58). 'To avoid waiting times' was the main reason and it was significantly more frequent in 2019 compared with 2006 (adjusted OR 1.75; 95% CI 1.45 to 2.11). Conclusions: This comparative study, conducted the year before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighted an increase in the prevalence of Italian residents who have fully paid out of pocket for access to health services to overcome long waiting times. Our findings may indicate a reduced access and possible worsening of the equity of access to the public and universalistic Italian NHS between 2006 and 2019
Rheology of distorted nematic liquid crystals
We use lattice Boltzmann simulations of the Beris--Edwards formulation of
nematodynamics to probe the response of a nematic liquid crystal with
conflicting anchoring at the boundaries under shear and Poiseuille flow. The
geometry we focus on is that of the hybrid aligned nematic (HAN) cell, common
in devices. In the nematic phase, backflow effects resulting from the elastic
distortion in the director field render the velocity profile strongly
non-Newtonian and asymmetric. As the transition to the isotropic phase is
approached, these effects become progressively weaker. If the fluid is heated
just above the transition point, however, another asymmetry appears, in the
dynamics of shear band formation.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in Europhys. Let
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