Parton-hadron duality in event generators

The validity of local parton-hadron duality within the framework of HERWIG and JETSET event generators is investigated. We concentrate one ⁺ e ^– annihilations in LEP 2 energy range as these interactions provide theoretically the cleanest condition for the discussion of this concept. We conclude that the concept of local parton-hadron duality is not valid in either of the two generators considered.     

Sturmian functions for nonlocal interactions

The problem of calculation of Sturmian functions (positive energy Weinberg states) for nonlocal (exchange) interactions is considered. It is shown that the method of continued fractions proposed by Horáek and Sasakawa makes the calculation of Sturmian eigenfunctions and eigenvalues feasible even for complicated nonlocal interactions. As an example Sturmian functions and Sturmian eigenvalues for the low energy electron-hydrogen scattering in the static exchange approximation are calculated. In addition a very general proof of convergence of the method of continued fractions is presented.Dedicated to the memory of Professor Jozef Kvasnica.     

Electric-field control of exchange bias in multiferroic epitaxial heterostructures

The magnetic exchange between epitaxial thin films of the multiferroic (antiferromagnetic and ferroelectric) hexagonal YMnO3 oxide and a soft ferromagnetic (FM) layer is used to couple the magnetic response of the FM layer to the magnetic state of the antiferromagnetic one. We will show that biasing the ferroelectric YMnO3 layer by an electric field allows control of the magnetic exchange bias and subsequently the magnetotransport properties of the FM layer. This finding may contribute to paving the way towards a new generation of electric-field controlled spintronic devices.     

Model study on steady heat capacity in driven stochastic systems

We explore two- and three-state Markov models driven out of thermal equilibrium by non-potential forces, to demonstrate basic properties of the steady heat capacity based on the concept of quasistatic excess heat. It is shown that large enough driving forces can make the steady heat capacity negative. For both the low- and high-temperature regimes we propose an approximative thermodynamic scheme in terms of “dynamically renormalized” effective energy levels.     

Analysis of spectral properties of acoustic noise produced during magnetic resonance imaging

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique enables non-invasive analysis of the human vocal tract during phonation. Creation of MR images of the vocal tract is accompanied by simultaneous recording of the produced speech. The paper analyzes and compares spectral properties of an acoustical noise produced by mechanical vibration of the gradient coils during scanning in the open-air MRI equipment working in a weak magnetic field with low B₀ up to 0.2 T. This noise exhibits harmonic character, so it is suitable to analyze its properties in the spectral domain. Obtained results of spectral analysis will be used to devise a new cepstral-based filtering method for noise suppression of recorded speech.     

Ultrasound promoted synthesis of thioesters from 2-mercaptobenzoxa(thia)zoles

An ultrasound-enhanced method has been developed for the synthesis of a variety of thioesters from benzoyl chlorides and 2-mercaptobenzoxa(thia)zoles. Applying this methodology, 14 compounds were synthesized in excellent yields.     

Interchange-turbulence-based radial transport model for SOLPS-ITER: A COMPASS case study

Mean-field plasma edge transport codes such as SOLPS-ITER heavily rely on ad-hoc radial diffusion coefficients to approximately model anomalous transport. Such coefficients are experimentally determined and vary between different machines, and also depend on the operational regime and plasma location within the same device. Therefore, to match experimental data the modeller is required to manually tune several free parameters in expensive simulations, and the code's predictive capabilities are significantly downgraded. As a solution, a new model has been developed for SOLPS-ITER, solving an additional transport equation for the turbulent kinetic energy k, derived by consistently time-averaging the Braginskii equations, and including a diffusive closure for the anomalous particle flux. This closure model relates the anomalous diffusion coefficient to the local k value. The resulting equation structure and its closure are inspired by TOKAM2D isothermal interchange turbulence simulation results. Within this model, fewer and hopefully more universal free parameters are retained, thus improving the code's predictive capabilities. The new model has been tested on a COMPASS case for which upstream plasma profiles were available. Experimental data and a reference solution, obtained by matching the profiles through manual tuning of radial diffusivities, have been used to estimate the parameters of our new transport model. A ballooned particle diffusivity profile is retrieved by the new radial transport model, thanks to the proposed interchange drive. The obtained upstream profiles qualitatively agree with the experiment and prove the new model is a promising first attempt to be further refined.     

Low-loss multilayered metamaterial exhibiting a negative index of refraction at visible wavelengths

We experimentally demonstrate a low-loss multilayered metamaterial exhibiting a double-negative refractive index in the visible spectral range. To this end, we exploit a second-order magnetic resonance of the so-called fishnet structure. The low-loss nature of the employed magnetic resonance, together with the effect of the interacting adjacent layers, results in a figure of merit as high as 3.34. A wide spectral range of negative index is achieved, covering the wavelength region between 620 and 806 nm with only two different designs.     

Spontaneous formation of bags with negative surface energy

We demonstrate within the Ginzburg-Landau model of a confining medium that the surface energy associated with the interface between the normal and the confining phases can be negative, and briefly discuss some consequences of this fact.Dedicated to the memory of M. Gmitro.This work was done at the Niels Bohr Institute Copenhagen, and put into its final form at the Institute of Theoretical Physics, of University of Regensburg. I thank both institutes for their generous hospitality and Professors Poul Olesen and Wolfram Weise for discussions.