Shape-phase transitions in odd-mass γ\gamma-soft nuclei with mass A≈130A\approx 130

Quantum phase transitions between competing equilibrium shapes of nuclei with an odd number of nucleons are explored using a microscopic framework of nuclear energy density functionals and a particle-boson core coupling model. The boson Hamiltonian for the even-even core nucleus, as well as the spherical single-particle energies and occupation probabilities of unpaired nucleons, are completely determined by a constrained self-consistent mean-field calculation for a specific choice of the energy density functional and pairing interaction. Only the strength parameters of the particle-core coupling have to be adjusted to reproduce a few empirical low-energy spectroscopic properties of the corresponding odd-mass system. The model is applied to the odd-A Ba, Xe, La and Cs isotopes with mass $A\approx 130$, for which the corresponding even-even Ba and Xe nuclei present a typical case of $\gamma$-soft nuclear potential. The theoretical results reproduce the experimental low-energy excitation spectra and electromagnetic properties, and confirm that a phase transition between nearly spherical and $\gamma$-soft nuclear shapes occurs also in the odd-A systems.Comment: 13 pages, 15 figures, 9 table

Signatures of shape phase transitions in odd-mass nuclei

Quantum phase transitions between competing ground-state shapes of atomic nuclei with an odd number of protons or neutrons are investigated in a microscopic framework based on nuclear energy density functional theory and the particle-plus-boson-core coupling scheme. The boson-core Hamiltonian, as well as the single-particle energies and occupation probabilities of the unpaired nucleon, are completely determined by constrained self-consistent mean-field calculations for a specific choice of the energy density functional and paring interaction, and only the strength parameters of the particle-core coupling are adjusted to reproduce selected spectroscopic properties of the odd-mass system. We apply this method to odd-A Eu and Sm isotopes with neutron number $N \approx 90$, and explore the influence of the single unpaired fermion on the occurrence of a shape phase transition. Collective wave functions of low-energy states are used to compute quantities that can be related to quantum order parameters: deformations, excitation energies, E2 transition rates and separation energies, and their evolution with the control parameter (neutron number) is analysed.Comment: 15 pages, 13 figures; Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Microscopic analysis of the octupole phase transition in Th isotopes

A shape phase transition between stable octupole deformation and octupole vibrations in Th nuclei is analyzed in a microscopic framework based on nuclear density functional theory. The relativistic functional DD-PC1 is used to calculate axially-symmetric quadrupole-octupole constrained energy surfaces. Observables related to order parameters are computed using an interacting-boson Hamiltonian, with parameters determined by mapping the microscopic energy surfaces to the expectation value of the Hamiltonian in the boson condensate. The systematics of constrained energy surfaces and low-energy excitation spectra point to the occurrence of a phase transition between octupole-deformed shapes and shapes characterized by octupole-soft potentials.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in Physical Review C, Rapid Communicatio

Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless transitions in the six-state clock model

Classical 2D clock model is known to have a critical phase with Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless(BKT) transitions. These transitions have logarithmic corrections which make numerical analysis difficult. In order to resolve this difficulty, one of the authors has proposed the method called level spectroscopy, which is based on the conformal field theory. We extend this method to the multi-degenerated case. As an example, we study the classical 2D 6-clock model which can be mapped to the quantum self-dual 1D 6-clock model. Additionally, we confirm that the self-dual point has a precise numerical agreement with the analytical result, and we argue the degeneracy of the excitation states at the self-dual point from the effective field theoretical point of view.Comment: 18pages, 7figure

Neutrino Oscillation and Charged Lepton-Flavor Violation in the Supersymmetric Standard Models

The neutrino experiment results suggest that the neutrinos have finite masses and the lepton-flavor symmetries are violating in nature. In the supersymmetric models, the charged lepton-flavor violating processes, such as mu -> e gamma and tau -> mu gamma, may have the branching ratios accessible to the future experiments, depending on origins of the neutrino masses and the SUSY breaking. In this paper we discuss the branching ratios in the supergravity scenario using the current solar and atmospheric neutrino experimental data.Comment: 12 pages. Talk given at the Workshop on High Intensity Muon Sources (HIMUS99), Tsukuba, Japan, 1-4 Dec 199

Evidence for the Multiverse in the Standard Model and Beyond

In any theory it is unnatural if the observed parameters lie very close to special values that determine the existence of complex structures necessary for observers. A naturalness probability, P, is introduced to numerically evaluate the unnaturalness. If P is small in all known theories, there is an observer naturalness problem. In addition to the well-known case of the cosmological constant, we argue that nuclear stability and electroweak symmetry breaking (EWSB) represent significant observer naturalness problems. The naturalness probability associated with nuclear stability is conservatively estimated as P_nuc < 10^{-(3-2)}, and for simple EWSB theories P_EWSB < 10^{-(2-1)}. This pattern of unnaturalness in three different arenas, cosmology, nuclear physics, and EWSB, provides evidence for the multiverse. In the nuclear case the problem is largely solved even with a flat multiverse distribution, and with nontrivial distributions it is possible to understand both the proximity to neutron stability and the values of m_e and m_d - m_u in terms of the electromagnetic contribution to the proton mass. It is reasonable that multiverse distributions are strong functions of Lagrangian parameters due to their dependence on various factors. In any EWSB theory, strongly varying distributions typically lead to a little or large hierarchy, and in certain multiverses the size of the little hierarchy is enhanced by a loop factor. Since the correct theory of EWSB is unknown, our estimate for P_EWSB is theoretical. The LHC will determine P_EWSB more robustly, which may remove or strengthen the observer naturalness problem of EWSB. For each of the three arenas, the discovery of a natural theory would eliminate the evidence for the multiverse; but in the absence of such a theory, the multiverse provides a provisional understanding of the data.Comment: 79 pages, 23 figure

Magnetization Plateau of an S=1 Frustrated Spin Ladder

We study the magnetization plateau at 1/4 of the saturation magnetization of the S=1 antiferromagnetic spin ladder both analytically and numerically, with the aim of explaining recent experimental results on BIP-TENO by Goto et al. We propose two mechanisms for the plateau formation and clarify the plateau phase diagram on the plane of the coupling constants between spins

Microscopic description of octupole shape-phase transitions in light actinides and rare-earth nuclei

A systematic analysis of low-lying quadrupole and octupole collective states is presented, based on the microscopic energy density functional framework. By mapping the deformation constrained self-consistent axially symmetric mean-field energy surfaces onto the equivalent Hamiltonian of the $sdf$ interacting boson model (IBM), that is, onto the energy expectation value in the boson condensate state, the Hamiltonian parameters are determined. The study is based on the global relativistic energy density functional DD-PC1. The resulting IBM Hamiltonian is used to calculate excitation spectra and transition rates for the positive- and negative-parity collective states in four isotopic chains characteristic for two regions of octupole deformation and collectivity: Th, Ra, Sm and Ba. Consistent with the empirical trend, the microscopic calculation based on the systematics of $\beta_{2}$-$\beta_{3}$ energy maps, the resulting low-lying negative-parity bands and transition rates show evidence of a shape transition between stable octupole deformation and octupole vibrations characteristic for $\beta_{3}$-soft potentials.Comment: 18 pages, 18 figures, 1 tabl

Ground-State Phase Diagram of the XXZ Model on a Railroad-Trestle Lattice with Asymmetric Leg Interactions

Using the bosonization and level spectroscopy methods, we study the ground-state phase diagram of a XXZ antiferromagnet on a railroad-trestle lattice with asymmetric leg interactions. It is shown that the asymmetry does not change the dimer/Neel transition line significantly, which agrees with the expectation based on a naive bosonization procedure, but it does change the dimer/spin-fluid transition line. To understand this observation, we analyze eigenvectors of the ground state, dimer excitation, doublet excitation and Neel excitation, and find that only the doublet excitation is affected by the asymmetric interaction.Comment: 6 pages, 11 Postscript figures, use jpsj2.cl