We study the relaxation dynamics of a binary Lennard-Jones liquid in the presence of an amorphous wall generated from equilibrium particle configurations. In qualitative agreement with the results presented by Kob et al. [Nat. Phys. 8, 164 (2012).] for a liquid of harmonic spheres, we find that our binary mixture shows a saturation of the dynamical length scale close to the mode-coupling temperature $T_c$. Furthermore we show that, due to the broken symmetry imposed by the wall, signatures of an additional change in dynamics become apparent at a temperature well above $T_c$. We provide evidence that this modification in the relaxation dynamics occurs at a recently proposed dynamical crossover temperature $T_s>T_c$, which is related to the breakdown of the Stokes-Einstein relation. We find that this dynamical crossover at $T_s$ is also observed for the harmonic spheres as well as a WCA liquid, showing that it may be a general feature of glass-forming systems.

The demonstration of a spontaneous macroscopic ferroelectric order in liquid phases in the absence of any long range positional order is considered an outstanding problem of both fundamental and technological interest. Recently, we reported that a system of polar achiral disklike ellipsoids can spontaneously exhibit a long searched ferroelectric nematic phase and a ferroelectric columnar phase with strong axial polarization. The major role is played by the dipolar interactions. The model system of interest consists of attractive-repulsive Gay-Berne oblate ellipsoids embedded with two parallel point dipoles positioned symmetrically on the equatorial plane of the ellipsoids. In the present work, we investigate in detail the profound effects of changing the separation between the two symmetrically placed dipoles and the strength of the dipoles upon the existence of different ferroelectric discotic liquid crystal phases via extensive off-lattice $N$-$P$-$T$ Monte Carlo simulations. Ferroelectric biaxial phases are exhibited in addition to the uniaxial ferroelectric fluids where the phase biaxiality results from the dipolar interactions. The structures of all the ferroelectric configurations of interest are presented in detail. Simple phase diagrams are determined which include different polar and apolar discotic fluids generated by the system.

In this paper, we analyze the effect of the redistribution of the transmembrane ion channels in an axon caused by longitudinal acoustic vibrations of the membrane. These oscillations can be excited by an external source of ultrasound and weak microwave radiation interacting with the charges sitting on the surface of the lipid membrane. It is shown, using the Hodgkin-Huxley model of the axon, that the density redistribution of transmembrane sodium channels may reduce the threshold of the action potential, up to its spontaneous initiation. At the significant redistribution of sodium channels in the membrane, the rarefaction zones of the transmembrane channel density are formed, blocking the propagation of the action potential. Blocking the action potential propagation along the axon is shown to cause anesthesia in the example case of a squid axon. Various approaches to experimental observation of the effects considered in this paper are discussed.

We study the transition from the amplitude death (AD) to the oscillation death (OD) state in limit-cycle oscillators coupled through mean-field diffusion. We show that this coupling scheme can induce an important transition from AD to OD even in identical limit cycle oscillators. We identify a parameter region where OD and a nontrivial AD (NTAD) state coexist. This NTAD state is unique in comparison with AD owing to the fact that it is created by a subcritical pitchfork bifurcation and parameter mismatch does not support this state, but destroys it. We extend our study to a network of mean-field coupled oscillators to show that the transition scenario is preserved and the oscillators form a two-cluster state.

We investigate the escape dynamics of the doubling map with a time-periodic hole. Ulam's method was used to calculate the escape rate as a function of the control parameters. We consider two cases, oscillating or breathing holes, where the sides of the hole are moving in or out of phase respectively. We find out that the escape rate is well described by the overlap of the hole with its images, for holes centered at periodic orbits.

Flow past a disk was investigated experimentally in a low-velocity water channel in the range of intermediate Reynolds numbers. Systematic experiments with flow visualization and particle image velocimetry measurements are presented. Different disks with the aspect ratio $\chi =d/h$ varying from 1 to 24 were investigated. The measurements were made in the range of Reynolds numbers from 0 to 500, where stationary and oscillatory instabilities appear. The influence of the aspect ratio on the value of onset instability, the evolution of perturbation, and the obtained vorticity bifurcation branches of the instability were identified.

The pseudopotential lattice Boltzmann (LB) model is a popular model in the LB community for simulating multiphase flows. Recently, several thermal LB models, which are based on the pseudopotential LB model and constructed within the framework of the double-distribution-function LB method, were proposed to simulate thermal multiphase flows [G. Házi and A. Márkus, Phys. Rev. E 77, 026305 (2008); L. Biferale, P. Perlekar, M. Sbragaglia, and F. Toschi, Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 104502 (2012); S. Gong and P. Cheng, Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer 55, 4923 (2012); M. R. Kamali et al., Phys. Rev. E 88, 033302 (2013)]. The objective of the present paper is to show that the effect of the forcing term on the temperature equation must be eliminated in the pseudopotential LB modeling of thermal flows. First, the effect of the forcing term on the temperature equation is shown via the Chapman-Enskog analysis. For comparison, alternative treatments that are free from the forcing-term effect are provided. Subsequently, numerical investigations are performed for two benchmark tests. The numerical results clearly show that the existence of the forcing-term effect will lead to significant numerical errors in the pseudopotential LB modeling of thermal flows.

We study the stability of shear flows in a fully ionized plasma. Kelvin-Helmholtz is a well-known macroscopic and ideal shear-driven instability. In sufficiently low-density plasmas, also the microscopic Hall magnetoshear instability can take place. We performed three-dimensional simulations of the Hall-magnetohydrodynamic equations where these two instabilities are present, and carried out a comparative study. We find that when the shear flow is so intense that its vorticity surpasses the ion-cyclotron frequency of the plasma, the Hall magnetoshear instability is not only non-negligible, but it actually displays growth rates larger than those of the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability.

The Landau-Lifshitz equation provides an efficient way to account for the effects of radiation reaction without acquiring the nonphysical solutions typical for the Lorentz-Abraham-Dirac equation. We solve the Landau-Lifshitz equation in its covariant four-vector form in order to control both the energy and momentum of radiating particles. Our study reveals that implicit time-symmetric collocation methods of the Runge-Kutta-Nyström type are superior in accuracy and better at maintaining the mass-shell condition than their explicit counterparts. We carry out an extensive study of numerical accuracy by comparing the analytical and numerical solutions of the Landau-Lifshitz equation. Finally, we present the results of the simulation of particle scattering by a focused laser pulse. Due to radiation reaction, particles are less capable of penetrating into the focal region compared to the case where radiation reaction is neglected. Our results are important for designing forthcoming experiments with high intensity laser fields.

Recently, Sawada [Phys. Rev. E 88, 032406 (2013)] proposed a model to take into account the dielectric dispersion of ionic origin in a weak electrolyte cell. We first show that the model is based on questionable assumptions. Next, we point out an error in the author's calculation of the current in the external circuit. Finally, we demonstrate why some criticism on recent papers is irrelevant.

The dielectric properties of dilute electrolytic solution cells have been measured in a low-frequency region, and the dielectric spectra have been analyzed in terms of space-charge polarization by using the Nernst-Planck (NP) model in the presence of ionic adsorption on electrodes [Phys. Rev. E 88, 032406 (2013)]. In the NP model, the internal electric field of the cell is considered to be approximately equal to the external field. In a Comment by Alexe-Ionescu et al. [Phys. Rev. E 89, 056401 (2014).] on our paper [Phys. Rev. E 88, 032406 (2013)], they claim the invalidity of the NP model and the necessity of the conventional Poisson-Nernst-Planck (PNP) model for the data analysis. Their criticisms are, however, originated from a viewpoint for determining the internal electric field, that is different from our approach. In this Reply, we show the validity of the NP model referring to our previous paper in which the conventional PNP model has been modified so as to correctly describe the actual internal field.

We study heterogeneous $k$-core (HKC) percolation with a general mixture of the threshold $k$, with $k_{min}=2$ on random networks. Based on the local tree approximation, the scaling behaviors of the percolation order parameter $P_{\infty }\left(p\right)$ are analytically obtained for general distributions of the threshold $k$. The analytic calculations predict that the generalized HKC percolation is completely described by the series of continuous transitions with order parameter exponents ${\beta }_n=2/n$, discontinuous hybrid transitions with ${\beta }_H=1/2$ or ${\beta }_{A_4}=1/4$, and three kinds of multiple transitions. Simulations of the generalized HKC percolations are carried out to confirm analytically predicted transition natures. Specifically, the exponents of the series of continuous transitions are shown to satisfy the hyperscaling relation $2{\beta }_n+{\gamma }_n={\overline{\nu }}_n$.

The Bobylev-Pikin striped-pattern state induced by a homogeneous electric field is a volume flexoelectric instability, originating in the midregion of a planarly aligned nematic liquid crystal layer. We find that the instability acquires a spatiotemporal character upon excitation by a low frequency (<0.5 Hz) square wave field. This is demonstrated using a bent-core liquid crystal, initially in the 90°-twisted planar configuration. The flexoelectric modulation appears close to the cathode at each polarity reversal and, at low voltage amplitudes, decays completely as the field becomes steady. Correspondingly, at successive polarity changes, the stripe direction switches between the alignment directions at the two substrates. For large voltages, the stripes formed nearly along the alignment direction at the cathode gradually reorient toward the midplane director. These observations are generally attributed to inhomogeneous and time-dependent field conditions that come to exist after each polarity reversal. Polarity dependence of the instability is attributed to the formation of intrinsic double layers that bring about an asymmetry in surface fields. Momentary field elevation near the cathode following a voltage sign reversal and concomitant gradient flexoelectric polarization are considered the key factors in accounting for the surfacelike modulation observed at low voltages.

Recent results have suggested that the statistics of bursts in the solar wind vary with solar cycle. Here, we show that this variation is basically absent if one considers extreme bursts. These are defined as threshold-exceeding events over the range of high thresholds for which their number decays as a power law. In particular, we find that the distribution of duration times and energies of extreme bursts in the solar wind $\epsilon$ parameter and similar observables are independent of the solar cycle and in this sense stationary, and show robust asymptotic power laws with exponents that are independent of the specific threshold. This is consistent with what has been observed for solar flares and, thus, provides evidence in favor of a link between solar flares and extreme bursts in the solar wind.

Experimentally, the phase of the amplitude for electron transmission through a quantum dot (transmission phase) shows the same pattern between consecutive resonances. Such universal behavior, found for long sequences of resonances, is caused by correlations of the signs of the partial-width amplitudes of the resonances. We investigate the stability of these correlations in terms of a statistical model. For a classically chaotic dot, the resonance eigenfunctions are assumed to be Gaussian distributed. Under this hypothesis, statistical fluctuations are found to reduce the tendency towards universal phase evolution. Long sequences of resonances with universal behavior only persist in the semiclassical limit of very large electron numbers in the dot and for specific energy intervals. Numerical calculations qualitatively agree with the statistical model but quantitatively are closer to universality.

We analyze the effect of confinement on the transient dynamics of liquid drops, suspended in another immiscible liquid medium, under the influence of an externally applied uniform dc electric field. For our analysis, we adhere to an analytical framework conforming to a Newtonian-leaky-dielectric liquid model in the Stokes flow regime, under the small deformation approximation. We characterize the transient relaxation of the drop shape towards its asymptotic configuration, attributed by the combined confluence of the charge-relaxation time scale and the intrinsic shape-relaxation time scale. While the former appears due to the charge accumulation process on the drop surface over a finite interval of time, the genesis of the latter is found to be intrinsic to the hydrodynamic situation under consideration. In an unbounded condition, the intrinsic shape-relaxation time scale is strongly governed by the viscosity ratio, defined as the ratio of dynamic viscosities of the droplet and the background liquid. However, when the wall effects are brought into consideration, the combined influence of the relative extent of the confinement and the intrinsic viscosity effects, acting in tandem, alter this time scale in a rather complicated and nontrivial manner. We reveal that the presence of confinement may dramatically increase the effective viscosity ratio that could have otherwise been required in an unconfined domain to realize identical time-relaxation characteristics. We also bring out the alterations in the streamline patterns because of the combinations of transient and confinement effects. Thus, our results reveal that the extent of fluidic confinement may provide an elegant alternative towards manipulating the transient dynamics of liquid drops in the presence of an externally applied electric field, bearing far-ranging consequences towards the design and functionalities of several modern-day microfluidic applications.

Electrostatic solitary waves (ESWs) and solitons are widely present in the solar system plasma environment. Many theoretical and numerical studies have been carried out to address the formation and structure of ESWs and solitons in electron-ion plasmas. Due to the inertia symmetry, the issue of whether solitons can exist in pair plasmas has been raised and has been discussed in a number of papers. Recently, we have shown that interlacing electron and positron holes in phase space associated with periodic positive and negative potentials may be generated by current-free electron and positron beams streaming in stationary electron-positron background plasmas [Jao and Hau, Phys. Rev. E 86, 056401 (2012)]. The question remains of whether pure electron or positron holes with positive or negative polarity may exist in neutral electron-positron plasmas. In this paper, we show the formation of electron (positron) holes associated with ESWs of positive (negative) potential based on the particle-in-cell simulations of bump-on-tail streaming instability in pair plasmas. The fluid theory shows that the coexistence of two unstable modes with different wavelengths is the essential condition for the generation of electrostatic solitons and hole structures in an electron-positron plasma.

This paper addresses the packing and void fraction of polydisperse particles with a lognormal size distribution. It is demonstrated that a binomial particle size distribution can be transformed into a continuous particle-size distribution of the lognormal type. Furthermore, an original and exact expression is derived that predicts the packing fraction of mixtures of particles with a lognormal distribution, which is governed by the standard deviation, mode of packing, and particle shape only. For a number of particle shapes and their packing modes (close, loose) the applicable values are given. This closed-form analytical expression governing the packing fraction is thoroughly compared with empirical and computational data reported in the literature, and good agreement is found.

Social reinforcement and modular structure are two salient features observed in the spreading of behavior through social contacts. In order to investigate the interplay between these two features, we study the generalized epidemic process on modular networks with equal-sized finite communities and adjustable modularity. Using the analytical approach originally applied to clique-based random networks, we show that the system exhibits a bond-percolation type continuous phase transition for weak social reinforcement, whereas a discontinuous phase transition occurs for sufficiently strong social reinforcement. Our findings are numerically verified using the finite-size scaling analysis and the crossings of the bimodality coefficient.