A Fermi golden rule for population transfer between instantaneous eigenstates of elliptical quantum billiards with oscillating boundaries is derived. Thereby the occurrence of both the recently observed resonant population transfer between instantaneous eigenstates and the empirical criterion stating that these transitions occur when the driving frequency matches the mean difference of the latter [Lenz et al., New J. Phys. 13, 103019 (2011)] is explained. As a second main result a criterion judging which resonances are resolvable in a corresponding experiment of certain duration is provided. Our analysis is complemented by numerical simulations for three different driving laws. The corresponding resonance spectra are in agreement with the predictions of both criteria.

The longitudinal viscosity ${\eta }_l$ is obtained for a two-dimensional (2D) liquid using a Green-Kubo method with a molecular dynamics simulation. The interparticle potential used has the Debye-Hückel or Yukawa form, which models a 2D dusty plasma. The longitudinal ${\eta }_l$ and shear ${\eta }_s$ viscosities are found to have values that match very closely, with only negligible differences for the entire range of temperatures that is considered. For a 2D Yukawa liquid, the bulk viscosity ${\eta }_b$ is determined to be either negligibly small or not a meaningful transport coefficient.

We implement a Wang-Landau sampling technique in quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) simulations for the purpose of calculating the Rényi entanglement entropies and associated mutual information. The algorithm converges an estimate for an analog to the density of states for stochastic series expansion QMC, allowing a direct calculation of Rényi entropies without explicit thermodynamic integration. We benchmark results for the mutual information on two-dimensional (2D) isotropic and anisotropic Heisenberg models, a 2D transverse field Ising model, and a three-dimensional Heisenberg model, confirming a critical scaling of the mutual information in cases with a finite-temperature transition. We discuss the benefits and limitations of broad sampling techniques compared to standard importance sampling methods.

Electrostatic polarization is important in many nano- and micro-scale physical systems such as colloidal suspensions, biopolymers, and nanomaterials assembly. The calculation of polarization potential requires an efficient algorithm for solving 3D Poisson's equation. We have developed a useful image charge method to rapid evaluation of the Green's function of the Poisson's equation in the presence of spherical dielectric discontinuities. This paper presents an extensive study of this method by giving a convergence analysis and developing a coarse-graining algorithm. The use of the coarse graining could reduce the number of image charges to around a dozen, by 1–2 orders of magnitude. We use the algorithm to investigate the interaction force between likely charged spheres in different dielectric environments. We find the size and charge asymmetry leads to an attraction between like charges, in agreement with existing results. Furthermore, we study three-body interactions and find, in the presence of an external interface, that the interaction force depends on the curvature of the interface and performs a nonmonotonic electrostatic force.

Information field dynamics (IFD) is introduced here as a framework to derive numerical schemes for the simulation of physical and other fields without assuming a particular subgrid structure as many schemes do. IFD constructs an ensemble of nonparametric subgrid field configurations from the combination of the data in computer memory, representing constraints on possible field configurations, and prior assumptions on the subgrid field statistics. Each of these field configurations can formally be evolved to a later moment since any differential operator of the dynamics can act on fields living in continuous space. However, these virtually evolved fields need again a representation by data in computer memory. The maximum entropy principle of information theory guides the construction of updated data sets via entropic matching, optimally representing these field configurations at the later time. The field dynamics thereby become represented by a finite set of evolution equations for the data that can be solved numerically. The subgrid dynamics is thereby treated within auxiliary analytic considerations. The resulting scheme acts solely on the data space. It should provide a more accurate description of the physical field dynamics than simulation schemes constructed ad hoc, due to the more rigorous accounting of subgrid physics and the space discretization process. Assimilation of measurement data into an IFD simulation is conceptually straightforward since measurement and simulation data can just be merged. The IFD approach is illustrated using the example of a coarsely discretized representation of a thermally excited classical Klein-Gordon field. This should pave the way towards the construction of schemes for more complex systems like turbulent hydrodynamics.

This paper studies a bidisperse granular mixture consisting of two species of stainless steel spheres in a vertically vibrated compartmentalized container. The experiments show that with proper vibration acceleration, the granular clock stops when horizontal segregation of the large spheres residing in the far end from the barrier wall occurs. When the segregation is broken, the granular clock restarts. We present the phase diagrams of vibration acceleration versus container width and small particle number, which exhibits three different regions, namely, clustering state, stop-restart of the granular clock, and the granular clock. A generalized flux model is proposed to reproduce the phenomenon of stop and restart of the granular clock.

A statistical mechanical-based theory is used to develop the equation of state for the molecular fluid of H${}_2$. We incorporate in this equation the long-range correlations through the double Yukawa potential, dimerization of the H${}_2$ molecule by treating the fluid as a hard convex body fluid, and first-order quantum correction which is important at low temperatures. We use this to calculate the liquid-vapor equilibrium of H${}_2$, including the temperature and pressure dependence of compressibility factor, entropy, specific heat, compressibility, and sound velocity.

We study diffusion processes in anomalous spacetimes regarded as models of quantum geometry. Several types of diffusion equation and their solutions are presented and the associated stochastic processes are identified. These results are partly based on the literature in probability and percolation theory but their physical interpretation here is different since they apply to quantum spacetime itself. The case of multiscale (in particular, multifractal) spacetimes is then considered through a number of examples, and the most general spectral-dimension profile of multifractional spaces is constructed.

In the study of stochastic resonance, it is often mentioned that nonlinearity can enhance a weak signal embedded in noise. In order to give a systematic proof of the signal enhancement in nonlinear systems, we derive an optimal nonlinearity that maximizes a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). The obtained optimal nonlinearity yields the maximum unbiased signal estimation performance, which is known in the context of information theory. It is found that a linear system is optimal for a Gaussian noise, but for a non-Gaussian noise, there exist nonlinear systems that can achieve an SNR higher than that obtained from linear systems. This analysis refers to a system subjected to an additive non-Gaussian noise with a small signal input.

The surface topography of glass-forming polymers and oligomer cholesteric systems with a phototunable helix pitch was studied. For this purpose several mixtures based on nematic polyacrylate and cholesteric cyclosiloxanes doped with chiral-photochromic dopant were prepared and investigated. The molecules of chiral-photochromic dopant consist of isosorbide chiral moiety and cinnamic C=C double bonds capable of $E$-$Z$ photoisomerizing. UV irradiation of the planarly oriented films of mixtures leads to dopant photoisomerization and changes of its helical twisting power. During this process irreversible changes of helix pitch values take place, which allows one to obtain the same cholesteric systems with different helix pitch values. The films of the annealed mixtures were studied by atomic force microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The correlations between the features of surface topography and helix pitch of cholesteric supramolecular structure were found and discussed.

In this study, we apply a mean-field theory to the neural network model with two periodic inputs in order to clarify the conditions of synchronies. This mean-field theory yields a self-consistent condition for the synchrony and enables us to study the effects of synaptic connections for the behavior of neural networks. Then, we obtain a condition of synaptic connections for the synchrony with the cycle time $T$. The neurons in neural networks receive sensory inputs and top-down inputs from outside of the network. When the network neurons receive two or more inputs, their synchronization depends on the conditions of inputs. We also analyze this case using the mean-field theory. As a result, we clarify the following points: (i) The stronger synaptic connections enhance the shorter synchrony cycle of neurons. (ii) The cycle of the synchrony becomes longer as the cycle of external inputs becomes longer. (iii) The relationships among synaptic weights, the properties of input trains, and the cycle of synchrony are expressed by one equation, and there are two areas for asynchrony. With regard to the third point, the yielded equation is so simple for calculation that it can easily provide us with feasible and infeasible conditions for synchrony.

We propose a general method for predicting potentially good folders from a given number of amino acid sequences. Our approach is based on the calculation of the rate of convergence of each amino acid chain towards the native structure using only the very initial parts of the dynamical trajectories. It does not require any preliminary knowledge of the native state and can be applied to different kinds of models, including atomistic descriptions. We tested the method within both the lattice and off-lattice model frameworks and obtained several so far unknown good folders. The unbiased algorithm also allows one to determine the optimal folding temperature and takes at least 3–4 orders of magnitude fewer time steps than those needed to compute folding times.

We study the coherence dynamics of a kicked two-mode Bose-Hubbard model starting with an arbitrary coherent spin preparation. For preparations in the chaotic regions of phase space we find a generic behavior with Floquet participation numbers that scale as the entire $N$-particle Hilbert space, leading to a rapid loss of single-particle coherence. However, the chaotic behavior is not uniform throughout the chaotic sea and unique statistics is found for preparations at the vicinity of hyperbolic points that are embedded in it. This is contrasted with the low $\text{log}\left(N\right)$ participation that is responsible for the revivals in the vicinity of isolated hyperbolic instabilities.

We report analytical results for the development of interfacial instabilities in a radial Hele-Shaw cell in which a yield stress fluid is pushed by a Newtonian fluid of negligible viscosity. By dealing with a gap averaging of the Navier-Stokes equation, we derive a Darcy-law-like equation for the problem, valid in the regime of high viscosity compared to yield stress effects. A mode-coupling approach is executed to examine the morphological features of the fluid-fluid interface at the onset of nonlinearity. Within this context, mechanisms for explaining the rising of tip-splitting and side-branching events are proposed.

We investigate rogue-wave solutions in a three-component coupled nonlinear Schrödinger equation. With certain requirements on the backgrounds of components, we construct a multi-rogue-wave solution that exhibits a structure like a four-petaled flower in temporal-spatial distribution, in contrast to the eye-shaped structure in one-component or two-component systems. The results could be of interest in such diverse fields as Bose-Einstein condensates, nonlinear fibers, and superfluids.

Small-angle x-ray and neutrons scattering is a widespread experimental tool for the investigation of the microstructure of random heterogeneous materials. Validation of (computer-generated) model microstructures often requires the numerical computation of the scattering intensity, which must be carried out with great care due to finite size effects. In this paper, a new method for this computation is presented. It is superior to previously existing methods for three reasons: First, it applies to any type of microstructure (not necessarily granular). Second, closed-form expressions of the size effects inherent to the proposed method can be rigorously derived and removed (in this sense, our method is free of size effects). Third, the complexity of the new algorithm is linear and the computation can easily be updated to account for local changes of the microstructure, while most existing algorithms are quadratic and any change of the microstructure requires a full recomputation. The present paper provides full derivation and validation of this method. Application to the computation of the scattering intensity of dense, polydisperse assemblies of spheres is then presented. A new, simple algorithm for the generation of these dense configurations is introduced. Finally, the results are critically reviewed in the perspective of hardened cement pastes.

The recently developed technique combining the weak-coupling limit with the Floquet formalism is applied to a model of a two-level atom driven by a strong laser field and weakly coupled to heat baths. First, the case of a single electromagnetic bath at zero temperature is discussed and the formula for resonance fluorescence is derived. The expression describes the well-known Mollow triplet, but its details differ from the standard ones based on additional simplifying assumptions. The second example describes the case of two thermal reservoirs: an electromagnetic one at finite temperature and the second dephasing one, which can be realized as a phononic or buffer gas reservoir. It is shown using the developed thermodynamical approach that the latter system can work in two regimes depending on the detuning sign: a heat pump transporting heat from the dephasing reservoir to an electromagnetic bath or heating both, always at the expense of work supplied by the laser field.

The effects of an external force on a diffusive process subjected to a backbone structure are investigated by considering the system governed by a Fokker-Planck equation with drift terms. Our results show an anomalous spreading which may present different diffusive regimes connected to anomalous diffusion and stationary states.

When submitted to the repeated passages of vehicles unpaved roads made of sand or gravel can develop a ripply pattern known as washboard or corrugated road. We propose a stability analysis based on experimental measurements of the force acting on a blade (or plow) dragged on a circular sand track and show that a linear model is sufficient to describe the instability near onset. The relation between the trajectory of the plow and the profile of the sand bed left after its passage is studied experimentally. The various terms in the expression of the lift force created by the flow of granular material on the plow are determined up to first order by imposing a sinusoidal trajectory to the blade on an initially flat sand bed, as well as by imposing a horizontal trajectory on an initially rippled sand bed. Our model recovers all the previously observed features of washboard road and accurately predicts the most unstable wavelength near onset as well as the critical velocity for the instability.