Detrimental adsorbate fields in experiments with cold Rydberg gases near surfaces

We observe the shift of Rydberg levels of rubidium close to a copper surface when atomic clouds are repeatedly deposited on it. We measure transition frequencies of rubidium to S and D Rydberg states with principal quantum numbers n between 31 and 48 using the technique of electromagnetically induced transparency. The spectroscopic measurement shows a strong increase of electric fields towards the surface that evolves with the deposition of atoms. Starting with a clean surface, we measure the evolution of electrostatic fields in the range between 30 and 300 \mum from the surface. We find that after the deposition of a few hundred atomic clouds, each containing ~10^6 atoms, the field of adsorbates reaches 1 V/cm for a distance of 30 \mum from the surface. This evolution of the electrostatic field sets serious limitations on cavity QED experiments proposed for Rydberg atoms on atom chips.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures Submitted to Phys. Rev.

Axial Transition Form Factors and Pion Decay of Baryon Resonances

The pion decay constants of the lowest orbitally excited states of the nucleon and the $\Delta(1232)$ along with the corresponding axial transition form factors are calculated with Poincar\'e covariant constituent-quark models with instant, point and front forms of relativistic kinematics. The model wave functions are chosen such that the calculated electromagnetic and axial form factors of the nucleon represent the empirical values in all three forms of kinematics, when calculated with single-constituent currents. The pion decay widths calculated with the three forms of kinematics are smaller than the empirical values. Front and instant form kinematics provide a similar description, with a slight preference for front form, while the point form values are significantly smaller in the case of the lowest positive parity resonances.Comment: 18 pages, 5 figures. Slightly revised, accepted in Phys. Rev.

Axial exchange currents and nucleon spin

We calculate the hypercharge and flavor singlet axial couplings related to the spin of the nucleon in a constituent quark model. In addition to the standard one-body axial currents, the model includes two-body axial exchange currents. The latter are necessary to satisfy the Partial Conservation of Axial Current (PCAC) condition. For both axial couplings we find significant corrections to the standard quark model prediction. Exchange currents reduce the valence quark contribution to the nucleon spin and afford an interpretation of the missing nucleon spin as orbital angular momentum carried by nonvalence quark degrees of freedom.Comment: 14 pages, 1 figur

A spectroscopic look at the gravitationally lensed type Ia SN 2016geu at z=0.409

The spectacular success of type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) in SN-cosmology is based on the assumption that their photometric and spectroscopic properties are invariant with redshift. However, this fundamental assumption needs to be tested with observations of high-z SNe Ia. To date, the majority of SNe Ia observed at moderate to large redshifts (0.4 < z < 1.0) are faint, and the resultant analyses are based on observations with modest signal-to-noise ratios that impart a degree of ambiguity in their determined properties. In rare cases however, the Universe offers a helping hand: to date a few SNe Ia have been observed that have had their luminosities magnified by intervening galaxies and galaxy clusters acting as gravitational lenses. In this paper we present long-slit spectroscopy of the lensed SNe Ia 2016geu, which occurred at a redshift of z=0.409, and was magnified by a factor of ~55 by a galaxy located at z=0.216. We compared our spectra, which were obtained a couple weeks to a couple months past peak light, with the spectroscopic properties of well-observed, nearby SNe Ia, finding that SN 2016geu's properties are commensurate with those of SNe Ia in the local universe. Based primarily on the velocity and strength of the Si II 6355 absorption feature, we find that SN 2016geu can be classified as a high-velocity, high-velocity gradient and "core-normal" SN Ia. The strength of various features (measured though their pseudo-equivalent widths) argue against SN 2016geu being a faint, broad-lined, cool or shallow-silicon SN Ia. We conclude that the spectroscopic properties of SN 2016geu imply that it is a normal SN Ia, and when taking previous results by other authors into consideration, there is very little, if any, evolution in the observational properties of SNe Ia up to z~0.4. [Abridged]Comment: 12 pages, 5 figures, 4 tables. Submitted to MNRAS. Comments welcome

Generalized Parton Distributions of ^3He

A realistic microscopic calculation of the unpolarized quark Generalized Parton Distribution (GPD) $H_q^3$ of the $^3He$ nucleus is presented. In Impulse Approximation, $H_q^3$ is obtained as a convolution between the GPD of the internal nucleon and the non-diagonal spectral function, describing properly Fermi motion and binding effects. The proposed scheme is valid at low values of $\Delta^2$, the momentum transfer to the target, the most relevant kinematical region for the coherent channel of hard exclusive processes. The obtained formula has the correct forward limit, corresponding to the standard deep inelastic nuclear parton distributions, and first moment, giving the charge form factor of $^3He$. Nuclear effects, evaluated by a modern realistic potential, are found to be larger than in the forward case. In particular, they increase with increasing the momentum transfer when the asymmetry of the process is kept fixed, and they increase with the asymmetry at fixed momentum transfer. Another relevant feature of the obtained results is that the nuclear GPD cannot be factorized into a $\Delta^2$-dependent and a $\Delta^2$-independent term, as suggested in prescriptions proposed for finite nuclei. The size of nuclear effects reaches 8 % even in the most important part of the kinematical range under scrutiny. The relevance of the obtained results to study the feasibility of experiments is addressed.Comment: 23 pages, 8 figures; Discussion in section II enlarged; discussion in section IV shortened. Final version accepted by Phys. Rev.

Stability analysis of sonic horizons in Bose-Einstein condensates

We examine the linear stability of various configurations in Bose-Einstein condensates with sonic horizons. These configurations are chosen in analogy with gravitational systems with a black hole horizon, a white hole horizon and a combination of both. We discuss the role of different boundary conditions in this stability analysis, paying special attention to their meaning in gravitational terms. We highlight that the stability of a given configuration, not only depends on its specific geometry, but especially on these boundary conditions. Under boundary conditions directly extrapolated from those in standard General Relativity, black hole configurations, white hole configurations and the combination of both into a black hole--white hole configuration are shown to be stable. However, we show that under other (less stringent) boundary conditions, configurations with a single black hole horizon remain stable, whereas white hole and black hole--white hole configurations develop instabilities associated to the presence of the sonic horizons.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figures (reduced resolution

The contribution of 211 particles to the mechanical reinforcement mechanism of 123 superconducting single domains

Hardness and fracture toughness of Dy-123 single-domains were studied by Vickers micro-indentation. A significant anisotropy of the mechanical properties was observed. Hardness tests give higher values when performed in (001) planes rather than in planes parallel to the c-axis. Moreover cracks pattern around the indentation follows preferential orientation in planes parallel to the c-axis whereas a classical ''four-cracks'' pattern is observed in the (001) planes. It has been possible to show the crucial role played by the 211-particles in the deviating mechanism of cracks and the relevance of the 211-particle distribution high homogeneity in the material.Comment: 14 pages, including 5 figures and 1 Table. submitted to Supercond. Sci. Techno

Magnetotransport in the Kondo model with ferromagnetic exchange interaction

We consider the transport properties in an applied magnetic field of the spin S=1/2 Kondo model with ferromagnetic exchange coupling to electronic reservoirs, a description relevant for the strong coupling limit of underscreened spin S=1 Kondo impurities. Because the ferromagnetic Kondo interaction is marginally irrelevant, perturbative methods should prove accurate down to low energies. For the purpose of this study, we use a combination of Majorana diagrammatic theory with Density Matrix Numerical Renormalization Group simulations. In the standard case of antiferromagnetic Kondo exchange, we first show that our technique recovers previously obtained results for the T-matrix and spin relaxation at weak coupling (above the Kondo temperature). Considering then the ferromagnetic case, we demonstrate how the low-energy Kondo anomaly splits for arbitrary small values of the Zeeman energy, in contrast to fully screened Kondo impurities near the strong coupling Fermi liquid fixed point, and in agreement with recent experimental findings for spin S=1 molecular quantum dots.Comment: 14 pages, 13 figures, minor changes in V