Lattice Model of an Ionic Liquid at an Electrified Interface

We study ionic liquids interacting with electrified interfaces. The ionic fluid is modeled as a Coulomb lattice gas. We compare the ionic density profiles calculated using a popular modified Poisson-Boltzmann equation with the explicit Monte Carlo simulations. The modified Poisson-Boltzmann theory fails to capture the structural features of the double layer and is also unable to correctly predict the ionic density at the electrified interface. The lattice Monte Carlo simulations qualitatively capture the coarse-grained structure of the double layer in the continuum. We propose a convolution relation that semiquantitatively relates the ionic density profiles of a continuum ionic liquid and its lattice counterpart near an electrified interface

A self-consistent renormalized Jellium approach for calculating structural and thermodynamic properties of charge stabilized colloidal suspensions

An approach is proposed which allows to self-consistently calculate the structural and thermodynamic properties of highly charged aqueous colloidal suspensions. The method is based on the renormalized Jellium model with the background charge distribution related to the colloid-colloid correlation function. The theory is used to calculate the correlation functions and the effective colloidal charges for suspension containing additional monovalent electrolyte. The predictions of the theory are in excellent agreement with the Monte Carlo simulations

Equilibrium properties of charged microgels: a Poisson-Boltzmann-Flory approach

The equilibrium properties of ionic microgels are investigated using a combination of the Poisson-Boltzmann and Flory theories. Swelling behavior, density profiles, and effective charges are all calculated in a self-consistent way. Special attention is given to the effects of salinity on these quantities. It is found that the equilibrium microgel size is strongly influenced by the amount of added salt. Increasing the salt concentration leads to a considerable reduction of the microgel volume, which therefore releases its internal material -- solvent molecules and dissociated ions -- into the solution. Finally, the question of charge renormalization of ionic microgels in the context of the cell model is briefly addressed

Yukawa particles in a confining potential

We study the density distribution of repulsive Yukawa particles confined by an external potential. In the weak coupling limit, we show that the mean-field theory is able to accurately account for the particle distribution. In the strong coupling limit, the correlations between the particles become important and the mean-field theory fails. For strongly correlated systems, we construct a density functional theory which provides an excellent description of the particle distribution, without any adjustable parameters.Comment: Submitte

Does the thermal spike affect low-energy ion-induced interfacial mixing?

Molecular dynamics simulations have been used to obtain the three-dimensional distribution of interfacial mixing and cascade defects in Ti/Pt multilayer system due to single 1 keV $Ar^+$ impacts at grazing angle of incidence. The Ti/Pt system was chosen because of its relatively high heat of mixing in the binary alloy and therefore a suitable candidate for testing the effect of heat of mixing on ion-beam mixing. However, the calculated mixing profile is not sensitive to the heat of mixing. Therefore the thermal spike model of mixing is not fully supported under these irradiation conditions. Instead we found that the majority of mixing occurs after the thermal spike during the relaxation process. These conclusions are supported by liquid, vacancy as well as adatom analysis. The interfacial mixing is in various aspects anomalous in this system: the time evolution of mixing is leading to a phase delay for Ti mixing, and Pt exhibits an unexpected double peaked mixing evolution. The reasons to these effects are discussed.Comment: 7 pages, 12 figures, Nucl. Instr. Meth. B211, 524. (2003

Equation of state of charged colloidal suspensions and its dependence on the thermodynamic route

The thermodynamic properties of highly charged colloidal suspensions in contact with a salt reservoir are investigated in the framework of the Renormalized Jellium Model (RJM). It is found that the equation of state is very sensitive to the particular thermodynamic route used to obtain it. Specifically, the osmotic pressure calculated within the RJM using the contact value theorem can be very different from the pressure calculated using the Kirkwood-Buff fluctuation relations. On the other hand, Monte Carlo (MC) simulations show that both the effective pair potentials and the correlation functions are accurately predicted by the RJM. It is suggested that the lack of self-consistency in the thermodynamics of the RJM is a result of neglected electrostatic correlations between the counterions and coions

Reply to Comment on "Quantum dense key distribution"

In this Reply we propose a modified security proof of the Quantum Dense Key Distribution protocol detecting also the eavesdropping attack proposed by Wojcik in his Comment.Comment: To appear on PRA with minor change

Thermodynamic and dynamic anomalies for a three dimensional isotropic core-softened potential

Using molecular dynamics simulations and integral equations (Rogers-Young, Percus-Yevick and hypernetted chain closures) we investigate the thermodynamic of particles interacting with continuous core-softened intermolecular potential. Dynamic properties are also analyzed by the simulations. We show that, for a chosen shape of the potential, the density, at constant pressure, has a maximum for a certain temperature. The line of temperatures of maximum density (TMD) was determined in the pressure-temperature phase diagram. Similarly the diffusion constant at a constant temperature, $D$, has a maximum at a density $\rho_{max}$ and a minimum at a density $\rho_{min}<\rho_{max}$. In the pressure-temperature phase-diagram the line of extrema in diffusivity is outside of TMD line. Although in this interparticle potential lacks directionality, this is the same behavior observed in SPC/E water.Comment: 16 page

Nontrivial dependence of dielectric stiffness and SHG on dc bias in relaxors and dipole glasses

Dielectric permittivity and Second Harmonic Generation (SHG) studies in the field-cooled mode show a linear dependence of dielectric stiffness (inverse dielectric permittivity) on dc bias in PMN-PT crystals and SHG intensity in KTaO$_{3}$:Li at small Li concentrations. We explain this unusual result in the framework of a theory of transverse, hydrodynamic-type, instability of local polarization.Comment: 5 figure

The two sided parsec scale structure of the Low Luminosity Active Galactic Nucleus in NGC 4278

We present new Very Long Baseline Interferometry observations of the LINER galaxy NGC 4278. The observations were taken with the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) and a single antenna of the Very Large Array (VLA) at 5 GHz and 8.4 GHz and have a linear resolution of <0.1 pc. Our radio data reveal a two sided structure, with symmetric S-shaped jets emerging from a flat spectrum core. We fit the jet brightness with gaussian components, which we identify from a previous observation taken five years before. By comparing the positions of the components in the two epochs, we measure motions between 0.45 +/- 0.14 and 3.76 +/- 0.65 mas, corresponding to apparent velocities < 0.2c, and to ages in the range 8.3 - 65.8 years. Assuming that the radio morphology is intrinsically symmetric and its appearance is governed by Doppler beaming effects, we find that NGC4278 has mildly relativistic jets (beta ~ 0.75), closely aligned to the line-of-sight (2 degrees < theta < 4 degrees). Alternatively, the source could be oriented at a larger angle and asymmetries could be related to the jet interaction with the surrounding medium. We also present new simultaneous VLA observations between 1.4 and 43 GHz, and a 5 GHz light curve between 1972 and 2003. The radio spectrum can be fit by a relatively steep power-law (alpha = 0.54). We find significant variability at 5 GHz. All these arguments indicate that the radiation from NGC 4278 is emitted via the synchrotron process by relativistic particles accelerated by a supermassive black hole. Despite a much lower power, this is the same process that takes place in ordinary radio loud AGNs.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figures, ApJ accepte