Fluctuating hydrodynamics and principal oscillation pattern analysis

Principal oscillation pattern (POP) analysis was recently introduced into climatology to analyze multivariate time series x_i(t) produced by systems whose dynamics are described by a linear Markov process x=Bx + . The matrixB gives the deterministic feedback and is a white noise vector with covariances (t) _j (t*Q _ij (t–t. The POP method is applied to data from a direct simulation Monte Carlo program. The system is a dilute gas with 50,000 particles in a Rayleigh-Bénard configuration. The POP analysis correctly reproduces the linearized Navier-Stokes equations (in the matrixB) and the stochastic fluxes (in the matrixQ) as given by Landau-Lifschitz fluctuating hydrodynamics. Using this method, we find the Landau-Lifschitz theory to be valid both in equilibrium and near the critical point of Rayleigh-Bénard convection.     

High-density properties of hard spheres within a modified Percus-Yevick theory: The role of thermodynamic consistency

Using an integral-equation approach based upon an approximation for the tail function, the equilibrium properties of a system of hard spheres are studied with special concern for the behavior in the region of close packing. The closure adopted is such that full, internal consistency is ensured in the thermodynamics of the model with respect to both the two zero-separation theorems as well as to the more standard virial and fluctuation routes to the equation of state. The scheme also makes use of the continuity properties of the tail function and of the cavity distribution function at contact. These properties are explictly tested in the low-density limit up to the fourth derivative. The theory generates an equilibrium branch bounded on the high-density side by a point corresponding to a packing fraction0.78, a value which closely matches Rogers' least upper bound for the densest packing of spheres. The pair structure of the fluid in the state of random close packing is also compared to the type of local order predicted by the theory at similar densities.     

Novel perturbation expansion for the Langevin equation

We discuss the randomly driven systemdx/dt= -W(x) +f(t), wheref(t) is a Gaussian random function or stirring force withf(t)f(t)=2(t–t), andW(x) is of the formgx ¹⁺². The parameter is a measure of the nonlinearity of the equation. We show how to obtain the correlation functionsx(t)f(t)···x(t( n)) _f as a power series in. We obtain three terms in the expansion and show how to use Padé approximants to analytically continue the answer in the variable. By using scaling relations, we show how to get a uniform approximation to the equal-time correlation functions valid for allg and.     

The effect of a coriolis force on Taylor-Couette flow

Taylor-Couette flow subject to a Coriolis force is studied experimentally and numerically. In the experiment, the Couette apparatus is mounted on a turntable with the axis of the cylinders orthogonal to the rotation vector of the turntable. The Coriolis force stabilizes the fluid against the onset of Taylor vortices and alters the velocity fields, both above and below the transition from the initial flow. At small dimensionless turntable frequencies, the transition yields time-independent Taylor vortices which are tilted with respect to the cylinder axis. At larger there is a direct transition to turbulence. We determine the first-order correction to the classical Couette initial flow, to account for the effects of the Coriolis force, by expanding in powers of. We present numerical results for the axial velocity (the only nonvanishing correction term to order) in the infinite-cylinder approximation.     

Exact solution of the Boltzmann equation in the homogeneous color conductivity problem

An exact solution of the Boltzmann equation for a binary mixture of colored Maxwell molecules is found. The solution corresponds to a nonequilibrium homogeneous steady state created by a nonconservative external force. Explicit expressions for the moments of the distribution function are obtained. By using information theory, an approximate velocity distribution function is constructed, which is exact in the limits of small and large field strengths. Comparison is made between the exact energy flux and the one obtained from the information theory distribution.     

Transport phenomena in a plane shock wave

With the use of the nonpolynomial closure 1/ _z in the Mott-Smith approximation of the solution of the Boltzmann equation, we obtain a value of the density gradient in the limit of a very weak shock wave that is close to the correct value. For the determination of the transverse temperature gradient we calculated the _x ² / _z moment of the Mott-Smith collision integral. The effective values of viscosity and thermal conductivity in the limit of a very weak shock wave were calculated for inverse-power potentials and found to agree almost exactly with the Chapman-Enskog values. Such a comparison can serve as a criterion for the evaluation of different bimodal theories. Various bimodal theories give different values of viscosity and thermal conductivity, but all of them give 33 % too high a value of the Eucken ratio.     

Necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of positive solutions to algebraic Riccati equations with indefinite quadratic term

Necessary and sufficient conditions are established in this paper for the existence of positive- and/or negative-definite solutions to the algebraic Riccati equation with indefinite coefficient. An iterative procedure is also given for computing such a solution.Project supported by the National Science Foundation of China and by the special program of the State Education Commission of China under grant 9033507.     

关于非线性波动方程的爆破现象

通过引入一类“爆破因子K(u,ut）”,讨论了非线性波动方程分别具Newmann边界条件和Dirichlet边界条件时,混合问题对于常见的各种非线性情形及初值条件,解在有限时间内的爆破行为。     

The two-dimensional Coulomb gas on a sphere: Exact results

At the special value of the reduced inverse temperature=2, the equilibrium statistical mechanics of a two-dimensional Coulomb gas confined to the surface of a sphere is an exactly solvable problem, just as it was for the Coulomb gas in a plane. The thermodynamic quantities and all the correlation functions can be calculated. Use is made of an isomorphism between the classical Coulomb gas and the free Fermi field theory associated with the Dirac operator on the sphere.Laboratory associated with the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique.     

Phase equilibria in the Ag4SSe-SnTe system

The phase diagram of the system Ag₄SSe-SnTe is studied by means of X-ray diffraction, differential thermal and metallographic analyses and measurements of the microhardness and the density of the material. This diagram is divided into two eutectic-type subdiagrams by the composition Ag₄SSe·2SnTe. The unit-cell parameters of the intermediate phases 3Ag₄SSe·SnTe (phase A) and -Ag₄SSe·2SnTe (phase B) are determined as follows: for phase A: a=0.7851 nm, b=0.7196 nm, c=0.6296 nm, =101.32°, =85.90°, =111.36°; for phase B: a=0.3662 nm, b=0.3303 nm, c=0.3343 nm, =90.74°, =108.94°, =91.91°. The phase Ag4SSe·2SnTe melts congruently at 615°C and a polymorphic transition of the phase takes place at T _- =110°C.This revised version was published online in November 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.