Effective Potential for \mathcal{P}\mathcal{T}-Symmetric Quantum Field Theories

Recently, a class of -invariant scalar quantum field theories described by the non-Hermitian Lagrangian = () ² +g ² (i) was studied. It was found that there are two regions of . For <0 the -invariance of the Lagrangian is spontaneously broken, and as a consequence, all but the lowest-lying energy levels are complex. For 0 the -invariance of the Lagrangian is unbroken, and the entire energy spectrum is real and positive. The subtle transition at =0 is not well understood. In this paper we initiate an investigation of this transition by carrying out a detailed numerical study of the effective potential V _eff (_c) in zero-dimensional spacetime. Although this numerical work reveals some differences between the <0 and the >0 regimes, we cannot yet see convincing evidence of the transition at =0 in the structure of the effective potential for -symmetric quantum field theories.     

On the Hamiltonian interpolation of near-to-the identity symplectic mappings with application to symplectic integration algorithms

We reconsider the problem of the Hamiltonian interpolation of symplectic mappings. Following Moser's scheme, we prove that for any mapping , analytic and -close to the identity, there exists an analytic autonomous Hamiltonian system, H such that its time-one mapping _H differs from by a quantity exponentially small in 1/. This result is applied, in particular, to the problem of numerical integration of Hamiltonian systems by symplectic algorithms; it turns out that, when using an analytic symplectic algorithm of orders to integrate a Hamiltonian systemK, one actually follows exactly, namely within the computer roundoff error, the trajectories of the interpolating Hamiltonian H, or equivalently of the rescaled Hamiltonian K=^-1H, which differs fromK, but turns out to be ⁵ close to it. Special attention is devoted to numerical integration for scattering problems.     

Fine Structures of the Permittivity and Characteristic Losses of Electrons in Fluorite

Experimental-computational spectra of the permittivity and characteristic losses –Im^–1 for energies in the range 5–21 eV at a temperature of 4.2 K and theoretical spectra of and –Im^–1 of a fluorite crystal are resolved into elementary transition bands. The parameters of transition bands (energies of their maxima E _i, band halfwidths H _i and areas S _i, and oscillator forces f _i) are determined. A correlation of the spectral bands of and –Im^–1is established, and their specific features are elucidated.     

Power law scaling of the top Lyapunov exponent of a Product of Random Matrices

A sequence of i.i.d. matrix-valued random variables with probabilityp and with probability 1–p is considered. Leta() = a ₀ + O(), c() = c ₀ + O() lim ₀ b() = Oa ₀,c ₀, >0, andb()>0 for all >0. It is shown show that the top Lyapunov exponent of the matrix productX _n X _n-1...X ₁, = lim_n (1/n) n X _n X _n-1...X ₁ satisfies a power law with an exponent 1/2. That is, lim ₀(ln /ln ) = 1/2.     

Power law growth for the resistance in the Fibonacci model

Many one-dimensional quasiperiodic systems based on the Fibonacci rule, such as the tight-binding HamiltonianH(n)=(n+1)+(n–1)+v(n) (n),n,l ²(),, wherev(n)=[(n+1)]–[n],[x] denoting the integer part ofx and the golden mean , give rise to the same recursion relation for the transfer matrices. It is proved that the wave functions and the norm of transfer matrices are polynomially bounded (critical regime) if and only if the energy is in the spectrum of the Hamiltonian. This solves a conjecture of Kohmoto and Sutherland on the power-law growth of the resistance in a one-dimensional quasicrystal.     

Unmixing of binary alloys by a vacancy mechanism of diffusion: a computer simulation

The initial stages of phase separation are studied for a model binary alloy (AB) with pairwise interactions _AA , _AB , _BB between nearest neighbors, assuming that there is no direct interchange of neighboring atoms possible, but only an indirect one mediated by vacancies (V) occurring in the system at a concentrationc _v and which are strictly conserved, as are the concentrationsc _A andc _B of the two species.A-atoms may jump to vacant sites with jump rate _A , B-atoms with jump rate _B (in the absence of interactions). Particular attention is paid to the question to what extent nonuniform distribution of vacancies affects the unmixing kinetics. Our study focuses on the special case _A = _B on a square lattice, considering three different choices of interactions with the same = _AB – ( _AA + _BB )/2: (i) _AB =, _AA = _BB = 0; (ii) _AA = 0, _AA = _BB ; = ; (iii) _AB = _BB = 0, _AA = –2. We obtain both the time evolution of the structure factorS(k,t) following a quench from infinite temperature to the considered temperature, and the timedependence of the mean cluster size and the various neighborhood probabilities of a vacancy. While in case (i) forc _V 0.16 the distribution of vacancies in the system stays nearly random, in case (ii) the vacancies cluster in theA-B interfacial region, and in case (iii) they get nearly completely expelled from theA-rich regions. While phase separation proceeds in case (i) only slightly faster than in case (ii), a significant slowing down of the relaxation is observed for case (iii), which shows up in a strong reduction of the effective exponents describing the growth.     

Hyperbolic initial-boundary-value problem for magnetic flux compression by plane liners

Based on the (relativistic) Maxwell equations with displacement current E/t, the initial-boundary-value problem for the compression of an initially homogeneous magnetic fieldB={0,B(x,t),0} between a fixed liner atx=0 and a detonation-driven liner atx=s(t) is solved analytically. By homogenizing the boundary conditions at the moving boundary, the transient electromagnetic fields are shown to be a superposition of quasistatic elliptic (E/t=0) and hyperbolic (E/t0) wave solutions. The wave equation is solved by a Fourier expansion in time-dependent eigenfunctionsf _n =f _n [nx/s(t)] for the variable region 0xs(t), where the Fourier amplitudes _n (t) are determined by coupled differential equations of second order. It is concluded that the conventional elliptic flux compression theories (E/t=0) hold approximately for nonrelativistic liner speeds , whereas the hyperbolic theory (E/t0) is valid for arbitrary liner speeds .     

Quantum supports and modal logic

LetA be a quasi-manual with finite operations. Associate to each E = {e ₁ ,..., e_n} A the set _E of modal formulas: (e ₁ ··· e_n), e_i (e ₁ ··· e_i–1 e_i+1 ··· e_n), i=1,..., n. Set _A = {_E|E A}. We show that supports ofA are in one-to-one correspondence with certain Kripke models of _A where the supports are given by {x |A x is true}.On leave from the Department of Mathematics, Pontificia Universidade Catolica, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.     

Colored noise in activated rate processes

We consider bistable systems driven by stationary wideband Gaussian colored noise. We construct uniform asymptotic expansions of the stationary probability density function and of the activation rate, for small intensity and short correlation time of the noise. We find that for different values of the total power output / of the noise, different terms in the asymptotic expansions become dominant. For we recover previously derived results, while for =O() and new results are obtained.     

Microwave dielectric properties of Ti4+/MgO and Ni2+/MgO

The dielectric properties of titanium-doped magnesium oxide (Ti/MgO) and nickel-doped magnesium oxide (Ni/MgO) single crystals have been measured in the range of temperature from 300 to 450 K at the microwave frequency of 9.31 GHz. For both crystals the dielectric properties are found similar. From the conductivity data, the activation energy in the measured temperature region has been estimated to be 0.15 eV. The values of the temperature dependence (–1)^–1(+2)^–1 (/T) _p have been calculated. The data confirms the Bosmann and Havinga postulate that, for materials in which the dielectric constant; is less than 20 the temperature dependence should be positive.     

Photonic pseudogaps for periodic dielectric structures

We consider the problems of existence and structure of gaps (pseudogaps) in the spectra associated with Maxwell equations and equations that govern the propagation of acoustic waves in periodic two-component media. The dielectric constant is assumed to be real and positive, and the value of = _b on the background is supposed to be essentially larger than the value of = _a on the embedded component. We prove the existence of pseudogaps in the spectra of the relevant operators. In particular, we give an accurate treatment of the term pseudogap. We also show that if the contrast _b / _a approaches infinity, then the bands of the spectrum shrink to a discrete set which can be identified with the set of eigenvalues of a Neumann-type boundary value problem and thus can be effectively calculated.     

Correlation functions of the 1-D coulomb gas,solitons and the 1-D Fermi gas

We study various correlation functions of the classical one-dimensional two component Coulomb gas (1-D CG). As a first example the dielectric function _q is considered. Explicit expressions for the first two terms of the long-wavelength expansion of _q ^-1 are rigorously derived by extending the method of Edwards and Lenard. On account of the equivalence between the 1-D CG and the sine-Gordon (SG) model _q can also be viewed as a correlation function of the SG field and the effects of small amplitude oscillations and of solitons can be traced in _q . We show that the nonmetallic nature of the 1-D CG is solely attributable to solitons. A similar analysis is carried out for other correlation functions. We establish a relation between these correlation functions and certain response functions of a one-dimensional Fermi gas by exploiting the known equivalence between the backward-scattering model of the Fermi gas and a 2-D CG on the surface of a cylinder and by investigating the conditions under which this 2-D CG can be considered one-dimensional.     

Random Versus Deterministic Exponents in a Rich Family of Diffeomorphisms

We study, both numerically and theoretically, the relationship between the random Lyapunov exponent of a family of area preserving diffeomorphisms of the 2-sphere and the mean of the Lyapunov exponents of the individual members. The motivation for this study is the hope that a rich enough family of diffeomorphisms will always have members with positive Lyapunov exponents, that is to say, positive entropy. At question is what sort of notion of richness would make such a conclusion valid. One type of richness of a family—invariance under the left action of SO(n+1)—occurs naturally in the context of volume preserving diffeomorphisms of the n-sphere. Based on some positive results for families linear maps obtained by Dedieu and Shub, we investigate the exponents of such a family on the 2-sphere. Again motivated by the linear case, we investigate whether there is in fact a lower bound for the mean of the Lyapunov exponents in terms of the random exponents (with respect to the push-forward of Haar measure on SO(3)) in such a family. The family that we study contains a twist map with stretching parameter . In the family , we find strong numerical evidence for the existence of such a lower bound on mean Lyapunov exponents, when the values of the stretching parameter are not too small. Even moderate values of like 10 are enough to have an average of the metric entropy larger than that of the random map. For small the estimated average entropy seems positive but is definitely much less than the one of the random map. The numerical evidence is in favor of the existence of exponentially small lower and upper bounds (in the present example, with an analytic family). Finally, the effect of a small randomization of fixed size of the individual elements of the family is considered. Now the mean of the local random exponents of the family is indeed asymptotic to the random exponent of the entire family as tends to infinity.     

Geometric expansion of the boundary free energy of a dilute gas

We consider a dilute classical gas in a volume ^–1 which tends to ^d by dilation as 0. We prove that the pressurep(^–1) isC ^q in at =0 (thermodynamic limit), for anyq, provided the boundary isC ^q and provided the Ursell functionsu _n (x ₁, ...,x _n) admit moments of degreeq and have nice derivatives.     

A generalized representation for dielectric dispersion

The generalized formulation for dielectric dispersion is extended for dielectrics exhibiting strongly overlapping arcs in the- complex plane. Subsequently, a novel network representation is developed whereby Negative Impedance Converters (NICs) are employed along with passive R-C elements. Satisfactory agreement is obtained in comparing the experimental results with those calculated using the new formulation.     

Nonstationary Markov chains and convergence of the annealing algorithm

We study the asymptotic behavior as timet + of certain nonstationary Markov chains, and prove the convergence of the annealing algorithm in Monte Carlo simulations. We find that in the limitt + , a nonstationary Markov chain may exhibit phase transitions. Nonstationary Markov chains in general, and the annealing algorithm in particular, lead to biased estimators for the expectation values of the process. We compute the leading terms in the bias and the variance of the sample-means estimator. We find that the annealing algorithm converges if the temperatureT(t) goes to zero no faster thanC/log(t/t ₀) ast+, with a computable constantC andt ₀ the initial time. The bias and the variance of the sample-means estimator in the annealing algorithm go to zero likeO(t^–1+) for some 0<1, with =0 only in very special circumstances. Our results concerning the convergence of the annealing algorithm, and the rate of convergence to zero of the bias and the variance of the sample-means estimator, provide a rigorous procedure for choosing the optimal annealing schedule. This optimal choice reflects the competition between two physical effects: (a) The adiabatic effect, whereby if the temperature is loweredtoo abruptly the system may end up not in a ground state but in a nearby metastable state, and (b) the super-cooling effect, whereby if the temperature is loweredtoo slowly the system will indeed approach the ground state(s) but may do so extremely slowly.     

Collision Integrals for Attractive Potentials

Motivated by previous discussions of particle interactions under the Manev potential U(r)=–/r–/r ², we construct the collision integrals for attractive potentials U(r) satisfying the condition U(r) r ²– as r0 with 0. For =0, we obtain a Boltzmann-type integral with a collision law allowing spiral interactions and nonunique correspondence between impact parameter and scattering angle. For >0, an additional Smoluchowski-type coagulation integral arises. All these integrals are derived and possible applications are discussed.     

Kinetic limit of a conservative lattice gas dynamics showing long-range correlations

An anisotropic lattice gas dynamics is investigated for which particles on ^d jump to empty nearest neighbor sites with (fast) rate ^–2 in a specified direction and some particular configuration-dependent rates in the other directions. The model is translation and reflection invariant and is particle conserving. The space coordinate in the fast-rate direction is rescaled by ^–1. It follows that the density field converges in probability, as 0, to the corresponding solution of a nonlinear diffusion-type equation. The microscopic fluctuations about the deterministic macroscopic evolution are determined explicitly and it is found that the stationary fluctuations decay via a power law (1/r ^d ) with the direction dependence of a quadrupole field.     

Millimeter wave propagation through a chiral medium model of human trunk

That millimeter wave propagation through a chiral medium of human trunk has been discussed by obtaining the electromagnetic filed, absorbent power, specific absorption rate, temperature field and their distribution in a human trunk model with plane strati calate homogeneous tissues under a normal incidence plane wave. The chiral medium is described electromagnetically by the constitutive relationsD=E+B andB=H+E. The constants, and ate real and have values that are fixed by the size, the shape, and the spatial distribution of the elements that collectively compose the medium. Also, the principle of thermal therapeutics for millimeter wave is discussed preliminaryly.     

Band-gap structure of the spectrum of periodic Maxwell operators

We investigate the band-gap structure of some second-order differential operators associated with the propagation of waves in periodic two-component media. Particularly, the operator associated with the Maxwell equations with position-dependent dielectric constant (x),xR ³, is considered. The medium is assumed to consist of two components: the background, where (x) = _b , and the embedded component composed of periodically positioned disjoint cubes, where (x) = _a . We show that the spectrum of the relevant operator has gaps provided some reasonable conditions are imposed on the parameters of the medium. Particularly, we show that one can open up at least one gap in the spectrum at any preassigned point provided that the size of cubesL, the distancel=L betwen them, and the contrast = _b / _a are chosen in such a way thatL ^–2, and quantities ^-1-3/2 and ² are small enough. If these conditions are satisfied, the spectrum is located in a vicinity of widthw(^3/2)^-1 of the set {² L ^-2 k ²:kZ³}. This means, in particular, that any finite number of gaps between the elements of this discrete set can be opened simultaneously, and the corresponding bands of the spectrum can be made arbitrarily narrow. The method developed shows that if the embedded component consists of periodically positioned balls or other domains which cannot pack the space without overlapping, one should expect pseudogaps rather than real gaps in the spectrum.