Magnetic calorimeter for registration of small energy release

A scheme of magnetic calorimeter for registration of rare events characterized by small energy release (cosmic rays, WIMPs, solitary X-ray quanta) is proposed. The calorimeter is brought to operation by adiabatic demagnetization, and its magnetic response is measured by a quantum interferometer (SQUID, A. Barone and G. Paterno, Physics and applications of Josephson Effect). Special consideration is given to the specific features of calorimeter operation in the ferromagnetic transition region. The trigger registration of ultrasmall energy release by a ferromagnetic system in the metastable state is described.     

A Modified Szilard Engine: Measurement, Information, and Maxwell's Demon

Using an isolated measurement process, we calculate the effect measurement has on entropy for the multi-cylinder Szilard engine. We find that the system of cylinders possesses an entropy associated with cylinder total energy states, and that it records information transferred at measurement. Contrary to other's results, we find that the apparatus loses entropy due to measurement. The Second Law of Thermodynamics may be preserved if Maxwell's demon gains entropy moving the engine partition.     

Level shift operators for open quantum systems

Level shift operators describe the second-order displacement of eigenvalues under perturbation. They play a central role in resonance theory and ergodic theory of open quantum systems at positive temperatures. We exhibit intrinsic properties of level shift operators, properties which stem from the structure of open quantum systems at positive temperatures and which are common to all such systems. They determine the geometry of resonances bifurcating from eigenvalues of positive temperature Hamiltonians and they relate the Gibbs state, the kernel of level shift operators, and zero energy resonances. We show that degeneracy of energy levels of the small part of the open quantum system causes the Fermi Golden Rule Condition to be violated and we analyze ergodic properties of such systems.     

Metric fluctuations,entropy, and the Wheeler-deWitt equation

Quantization using quantum potentials is described in terms of momentum fluctuations, and it is related to Fisher information and entropy. __________ Translated from Teoreticheskaya i Matematicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 152, No. 1, pp. 32–44, July, 2007.     

Binding energy of impurity states in an inverse parabolic quantum well under magnetic field

 We have investigated the effects of the magnetic field which is directed perpendicular to the well on the binding energy of the hydrogenic impurities in an inverse parabolic quantum well (IPQW) with different widths as well as different Al concentrations at the well center. The Al concentration at the barriers was always x_max=0.3. The calculations were performed within the effective mass approximation, using a variational method. We observe that IPQW structure turns into parabolic quantum well with the inversion effect of the magnetic field and donor impurity binding energy in IPQW strongly depends on the magnetic field, Al concentration at the well center and well dimensions.     

Quantum Key Distribution Using Four-Qubit W State

A new theoretical quantum key distribution scheme based on entanglement swapping is proposed, where four-qubit symmetric W state functions as quantum channel. It is shown that two legitimate users can secretly share a series of key bits by using Bell-state measurements and classical communication.     

Some applications of thermal field theory to quark-gluon plasma

We briefly introduce the thermal field theory within imaginary time formalism, the hard thermal loop perturbation theory and some of its applications to the physics of the quark-gluon plasma, possibly created in relativistic heavy-ion collisions     

Coupled Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical and Chemical Analysis of Expansive Clay Subjected to Heating and Hydration

A fully coupled formulation combining reactive transport and an existing thermo-hydro-mechanical (THM) code is presented. Special attention has been given to phenomena likely to be encountered in clay barriers used as part of containment systems of nuclear waste. The types of processes considered include hydrolysis, complex formation, oxidation/reduction reactions, acid/base reactions, precipitation/dissolution of minerals and cation exchange. Both kinetically-controlled and equilibrium-controlled reactions have been incorporated. The total analytical concentrations (including precipitated minerals) are adopted as basic transport variables and chemical equilibrium is achieved by minimizing Gibbs Free Energy. The formulation has been incorporated in a general purpose computer code capable of performing numerical analysis of engineering problems. A validation exercise concerning a laboratory experiment involving the heating and hydration of an expansive compacted clay is described.