Physics : upso

The Theory of Materials Failure

Richard M. Christensen — 2013-05-23

Author:: Richard M. Christensen
ISBN:: 9780199662111
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199662111.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

This book provides a complete and comprehensive development of failure theory for homogeneous materials. The resultant failure criteria to be used for applications with isotropic materials are calibrated by only two properties: the uniaxial tensile and compressive strengths, T and C. From these data the entire family of failure envelopes can be generated for all states of stress. The account begins with a historical survey that includes the efforts of many of history’s greatest scientists. The complete inadequacy for general applications of all the historical forms are detailed. The center point of the book is the derivation of the failure theory for isotropic materials. The new and enabling technical insight is that of an organizing principle whereby the entire spectrum of isotropic materials types can be characterized by their strengths ratio, T/C, with stress being non-dimensionalized by C. Two coordinated but competitive failure criteria then emerge. One of several unique features of the book is a full and complete treatment of ductile versus brittle behavior for isotropic materials. Along with the experimental evaluation of the failure theory, many examples of failure behavior and applications are presented. The relationship to fracture mechanics is also included. The overall coverage is very broad, but with no compromise in quality or rigor. Reasonably extensive treatments are given for fiber composites failure as well as investigations into microscale and nanoscale aspects of failure. The book is completed with a probe into damage models and a fairly complete derivation of probabilistic failure and life prediction.

The Theory of Intermolecular Forces

Anthony Stone — 2013-05-23

Author:: Anthony Stone
ISBN:: 9780199672394
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Atomic, Laser, and Optical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199672394.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

The theory of intermolecular forces has advanced very greatly in the last few decades. Simple empirical models are no longer adequate to account for the detailed and accurate experimental measurements that are now available, or to predict properties such as the structures of molecular crystals reliably. At the same time computational methods for calculating intermolecular forces have improved enormously, so that it is possible to construct much more accurate intermolecular potential energy functions for much larger systems than was possible twenty years ago. The Theory of Intermolecular Forces describes these advances. It sets out the mathematical techniques that are needed to describe molecular properties and the ways that they contribute to the interactions between molecules. There is a detailed account of the use of multipole moments to describe electrostatic and related interactions, and both Cartesian and spherical tensor methods are described. Perturbation theories of intermolecular interactions, in particular the widely-used SAPT and SAPT-DFT methods, are discussed in detail. The many analytic models of intermolecular potentials are described and discussed, and the methods used to predict experimental properties from them are described.

The Quantum Divide

Christopher C. Gerry and Kimberley M. Bruno — 2013-05-23

Author:: Christopher C. Gerry, Kimberley M. Bruno
ISBN:: 9780199666560
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Atomic, Laser, and Optical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199666560.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

Using a selection of key experiments performed over the past thirty years or so, this book presents a discussion of the strikingly counter-intuitive phenomena of the quantum world that defy explanation in terms of everyday ‘common sense’ reasoning, and it provides the corresponding quantum mechanical explanations with a very elementary use of associated formalism. Most, but certainly not all, of the experiments described are optical experiments involving a very small number of photons (particles of light). The book begins with experiments on the wave-particle duality of electrons, proceeds to experiments on the particle nature of light and single photon interference, delayed choice experiments, and interaction-free detection; and then goes on to experiments involving the interference of two photons, quantum entanglement and Bell's Theorem, quantum teleportation, large-scale quantum effects, and the divide between the classical and quantum worlds, addressing the question as to whether or not there is such a divide.

Quantum Cascade Lasers

Jérôme Faist — 2013-05-23

Author:: Jérôme Faist
ISBN:: 9780198528241
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198528241.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

This book provides an introduction to quantum cascade lasers, including the basic underlying models used to describe the devices. It aims at giving a synthetic view of the topic including the aspects of the physics, the technology, and the use of the device. It should also provide a guide for the application engineer to use this device in systems. The book is based on lecture notes of a class given for Masters and beginning PhD students. The idea is to provide an introduction to the new and exciting developments that intersubband transitions have brought to the use of the mid-infrared and terahertz region of the electromagnetic spectrum. The book provides an introductory part to each topic so that it can be used in a self-contained way, while references to the literature will allow deeper studies for further research.

Novel Superfluids

Karl-Heinz Bennemann and John B. Ketterson — 2013-05-23

Author:: Karl-Heinz Bennemann, John B. Ketterson
ISBN:: 9780199585915
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Nuclear and Plasma Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199585915.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

This book reports on the latest developments in the field of superfluidity. The phenomenon has had a tremendous impact on the fundamental sciences as well as a host of technologies. It began with the discovery of superconductivity in mercury in 1911, which was ultimately described theoretically by the theory of Bardeen Cooper and Schriever (BCS) in 1957. The analogous phenomena, superfluidity, was discovered in helium in 1938 and tentatively explained shortly thereafter as arising from a Bose–Einstein Condensation by London. But the importance of superfluidity, and the range of systems in which it occurs, has grown enormously. In addition to metals and the helium liquids the phenomena has now been observed for photons in cavities, excitons in semiconductors, magnons in certain materials, and cold gasses trapped in high vacuum. It very likely exist for neutrons in a neutron star and, possibly, in a conjectured quark state at their centre. Even the Universe itself can be regarded as being in a kind of superfluid state. All these topics are discussed by experts in the respective subfields.

An Introduction to Non-Perturbative Foundations of Quantum Field Theory

Franco Strocchi — 2013-05-23

Author:: Franco Strocchi
ISBN:: 9780199671571
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Particle Physics / Astrophysics / Cosmology
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199671571.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

The book begins by discussing i) the conflict between locality or hyperbolicity and positivity of the energy for relativistic wave equations, which marks the origin of quantum field theory, and ii) the mathematical problems of the perturbative expansion (canonical quantization, interaction picture, non-Fock representation, asymptotic convergence of the series, and so on). The general physical principles of positivity of the energy, Poincaré covariance, and locality provide a substitute for canonical quantization, qualify the non-perturbative foundations, and lead to very relevant results, such as the spin–statistics theorem, TCP symmetry, a substitute for canonical quantization, non-canonical behavior, the Euclidean formulation at the basis of the functional integral approach, the non-perturbative definition of the S-matrix (LSZ, Haag–Ruelle–Buchholz theory). A characteristic feature of gauge field theories is the Gauss law constraint; it is responsible for the conflict between locality of the charged fields and positivity, which yields the superselection of the (unbroken) gauge charges, provides a non-perturbative explanation of the Higgs mechanism in the local gauges, and implies the infraparticle structure of the charged particles in QED and the breaking of the Lorentz group in the charged sectors. A non-perturbative proof of the Higgs mechanism is discussed in the Coulomb gauge: the vector bosons corresponding to the broken generators cannot be massless, and their two-point function dominates the Goldstone spectrum, thus excluding the occurrence of massless Goldstone bosons. The solution of the U(1) problem in QCD, the theta vacuum structure, and the inevitable breaking of the chiral symmetry in each theta sector are derived solely from the topology of the gauge group, without relying on the semiclassical instanton approximation.

Introduction to Mathematical Physics

Chun Wa Wong — 2013-05-23

Author:: Chun Wa Wong
ISBN:: 9780199641390
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199641390.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

Mathematical physics provides physical theories with their logical basis and the tools for drawing conclusions from hypotheses. Introduction to Mathematical Physics explains to the reader why and how mathematics is needed in the description of physical events in space. For undergraduates in physics, it is a classroom-tested textbook on vector analysis, linear operators, Fourier series and integrals, differential equations, special functions and functions of a complex variable. Strongly correlated with core undergraduate courses on classical and quantum mechanics and electromagnetism, it helps the student master these necessary mathematical skills. The book covers advanced topics of interest to graduate students on relativistic square-root spaces and nonlinear systems. It contains many tables of mathematical formulas and references to useful materials on the Internet. Short tutorials on basic mathematical topics are included to help readers refresh their mathematical knowledge. An appendix on Mathematica encourages the reader to use computer-aided algebra to solve problems in mathematical physics.

Hans Christian Ørsted

Dan Ch. Christensen — 2013-05-23

Author:: Dan Ch. Christensen
ISBN:: 9780199669264
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, History of Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199669264.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

Hans Christian Ørsted (1777–1851), the discoverer of electromagnetism, came to be of great importance as a scientist and philosopher far beyond the borders of Denmark and his own time. The centre of an international network of scholars, he was instrumental in establishing the world picture of modern physics. Ørsted was the physicist who brought Kant’s metaphysics to fruition. His discovery of electromagnetism in 1820, a phenomenon that could not possibly exist according to his adversaries, changed the course of research in physics; it inspired M. Faraday’s experiments and discovery of the adverse effect, magneto‐electric induction; the two physical phenomena were later described in mathematical equations by J.C. Maxwell. Together these discoveries constitute the prerequisites for the overwhelming development of modern technology. But Ørsted was also one of the cultural leaders and organizers of the Danish Golden Age (together with Grundtvig, Kierkegaard, and Hans Christian Andersen, his protégé) making significant contributions to aesthetics, philosophy, pedagogy, politics, and religion. Ørsted epitomizes the synthesis of two cultures, remarkably bridging the gap between science, the humanities, and the arts. The concordance between his philosophy of ‘the true, the good, and the beautiful’ and his personal conduct of life makes him a model scholar.

From Strange Simplicity to Complex Familiarity

Manfred Eigen — 2013-05-23

Author:: Manfred Eigen
ISBN:: 9780198570219
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, History of Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198570219.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

This book presents a vivid argument for the almost lost idea of a unity of all natural sciences. It starts with the "strange" physics of matter, including particle physics, atomic and quantum mechanics, cosmology, relativity and their consequences (Chapter 1), and it continues by describing the properties of material systems that are best understood by statistical and phase-space concepts (Chapter 2). These lead to entropy and to the classical picture of quantitative information, initially devoid of value and meaning (Chapter 3). Finally, "information space" and dynamics within it are introduced as a basis for semantics (Chapter 4), leading to an exploration of life and thought as new problems in physics (Chapter 5). Dynamic equations – again of a strange (but very general) nature – bring about the complex familiarity of the world we live in. Surprising new results in the life sciences open our eyes to the richness of physical thought, and they show us what can and what cannot be explained by a Darwinian approach. The abstract physical approach is applicable to the origins of life, of meaningful information and even of our universe.

Electronic and Optical Properties of Conjugated Polymers

William Barford — 2013-05-23

Author:: William Barford
ISBN:: 9780199677467
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199677467.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

Since the discovery of the light emitting properties of the phenyl-based organic semiconductors in 1990 there has been a huge growth of interest in conjugated polymers. The potential device applications are enormous, ranging from optical switching to solar cells and light emitting devices. They are also active components in many important biological processes.Progress in our understanding of the fundamental physics of conjugated polymers, which provides a crucial underpinning to the technological applications, has also been large. This progress has been driven by experimental, theoretical and computational developments.The aim of this book is to describe and explain the electronic and optical properties of conjugated polymers. It focuses on the three key roles of electron-electron interactions, electron-nuclear coupling, and disorder in determining the character of the electronic states. The strategy is to develop a theoretical understanding of the character of excited states by solving progressively more realistic and sophisticated model Hamiltonians. It then relates these properties to experimental observations in real systems, particularly to linear polyenes and the phenyl-based light emitting polymers.A number of important optical and electronic processes in conjugated polymers are also described, including non-linear optical properties, exciton transfer and migration, and dispersion interactions.There are numerous appendices containing more detailed technical explanations of the core material.

Einstein's Physics

Ta-Pei Cheng — 2013-05-23

Author:: Ta-Pei Cheng
ISBN:: 9780199669912
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Particle Physics / Astrophysics / Cosmology
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199669912.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

Einstein’s doctoral thesis and his Brownian motion paper were decisive contributions to our understanding of matter as composed of molecules and atoms. Einstein was one of the founding fathers of quantum theory: his photon proposal through the investigation of blackbody radiation, his quantum theory of specific heat, his calculation of radiation fluctuation giving the first statement of wave–particle duality, his introduction of probability in the description of quantum radiative transitions, and finally quantum statistics and Bose–Einstein condensation. Einstein’s special theory of relativity gave us the famous relation E = mc2 and the new kinematics leading to the idea of 4D spacetime as the arena in which physical events take place. Einstein’s geometric theory of gravity, general relativity, extends Newton’s theory to time-dependent and strong gravitational fields. It laid the groundwork for the study of black holes and cosmology. This is a physics book with material presented in a historical context. Also, we do not stop at Einstein’s discovery, but carry the discussion onto some of the later advances: Bell’s theorem, quantum field theory, gauge theories, and Kaluza–Klein unification in a spacetime with an extra spatial dimension.

Dislocations, Mesoscale Simulations and Plastic Flow

Ladislas Kubin — 2013-05-23

Author:: Ladislas Kubin
ISBN:: 9780198525011
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198525011.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

In the past twenty years, new experimental approaches, improved models and progress in simulation techniques have brought new insights into longstanding issues concerning dislocation-based plasticity in crystalline materials. During this period, three-dimensional dislocation dynamics (DD) simulations appeared and reached maturity. Their major objective is to contribute to the multiscale modelling of plastic flow by bridging the gap between atomic-scale studies of dislocation core properties and continuum models. Three-dimensional DD simulations are now becoming accessible to a wide range of users. This book presents to students and researchers in materials science and mechanical engineering a comprehensive coverage of the physical body of knowledge on which they are based and of current unsolved issues that deserve further investigation. The contents include classical studies, which are too often ignored, recent experimental and theoretical advances, and a discussion of selected applications on various topics. As the field is very broad, an extensive bibliography is provided. Chapter 1 presents an introduction to the topics discussed in the ensuing chapters. Chapters 2 and 3 are devoted to crystal plasticity, from elementary core and elastic dislocation properties to the mechanical response. The first of these discusses essentially FCC metals, and the second discusses BCC metals, some transition HCP metals and silicon. Chapter 4 presents basic elements that are common to all three-dimensional DD simulations, as well as characteristic features of each existing code, and Chapter 5 provides a synthesis of applications of DD simulations to large-scale crystals and to size effects in small-scale crystals.

Acids and Bases

Brian G. Cox — 2013-05-23

Author:: Brian G. Cox
ISBN:: 9780199670512
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199670512.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-05-23

Acids and bases are ubiquitous in chemistry. Our understanding of them, however, is dominated by their behaviour in water. Transfer to non-aqueous solvents leads to profound changes in acid-base strengths and to the rates and equilibria of many processes: for example, synthetic reactions involving acids, bases, and nucleophiles; isolation of pharmaceutical actives through salt formation; formation of zwitter-ions in amino acids; and chromatographic separation of substrates. This book seeks to enhance our understanding of acids and bases by reviewing and analysing their behaviour in non-aqueous solvents. The behaviour is related where possible to that in water, but correlations and contrasts between solvents are also presented. Fundamental background material is provided in the initial chapters: quantitative aspects of acid–base equilibria, including definitions and relationships between solution pH and species distribution; the influence of molecular structure on acid strengths; and acidity in aqueous solution. Solvent properties are reviewed, along with the magnitude of the interaction energies of solvent molecules with (especially) ions; the ability of solvents to participate in hydrogen bonding and to accept or donate electron pairs is seen to be crucial. Experimental methods for determining dissociation constants are described in detail. In the remaining chapters, dissociation constants of a wide range of acids in three distinct classes of solvent are discussed: protic solvents, such as alcohols, which are strong hydrogen-bond donors; basic, polar aprotic solvents, such as dimethylformamide; and low-basicity and low-polarity solvents, such as acetonitrile and tetrahydrofuran. Dissociation constants of individual acids vary over more than twenty orders of magnitude among the solvents, and there is a strong differentiation between the response of neutral and charged acids to solvent change. Ion-pairing and hydrogen-bonding equilibria, such as between phenol and phenoxide ions, play an increasingly important role as the solvent polarity decreases, and their influence on acid–base equilibria and salt formation is described.

Simple Brownian Diffusion

Daniel Thomas Gillespie and Effrosyni Seitaridou — 2013-01-24

Author:: Daniel Thomas Gillespie, Effrosyni Seitaridou
ISBN:: 9780199664504
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Soft Matter / Biological Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199664504.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2013-01-24

Brownian diffusion is the motion of one or more solute molecules in a sea of very many, much smaller solvent molecules. Its importance today owes mainly to cellular chemistry, since Brownian diffusion is one of the ways in which key reactant molecules move about inside a living cell. This book focuses on the four simplest models of Brownian diffusion: the classical Fickian model, the Einstein model, the discrete-stochastic (cell-jumping) model, and the Langevin model. The book carefully develops the theories underlying these models, assess their relative advantages, and clarify their conditions of applicability. Special attention is given to the stochastic simulation of diffusion, and to showing how simulation can complement theory and experiment. Two self-contained tutorial chapters, one on the mathematics of random variables and the other on the mathematics of continuous Markov processes (stochastic differential equations), make the book accessible to researchers from a broad spectrum of technical backgrounds.

Non-equilibrium Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics

Phil Attard — 2013-01-24

Author:: Phil Attard
ISBN:: 9780199662760
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199662760.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2013-01-24

This book builds from basic principles to advanced techniques, and covers the major phenomena, methods, and results of time-dependent systems. The book treats time-dependent systems by close analogy with their static counterparts, with most of the familiar equilibrium results being generalised to the non-equilibrium case. The book is notable for its unified treatment of thermodynamics, hydrodynamics, stochastic processes, and statistical mechanics; for its coherent derivations of a variety of theorems; and for its quantitative tests against experimental measurements and computer simulations. Systems that evolve over time are more common than static systems, and yet until recently, they lacked any over-arching theory. This book provides a unified presentation of the theory of non-equilibrium systems, which has now reached the stage of quantitative experimental and computational verification. The novel perspective and deep understanding that this book brings offers the opportunity for new direction and growth in the study of time-dependent phenomena.

Nicolas-Louis De La Caille, Astronomer and Geodesist

Ian Stewart Glass — 2013-01-24

Author:: Ian Stewart Glass
ISBN:: 9780199668403
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, History of Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199668403.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2013-01-24

This is a comprehensive biography of a great observational astronomer, Nicolas-Louis de La Caille (1713–62). Though educated for the priesthood, La Caille refused to be ordained and turned instead to astronomy. Early on he was made Professor of Mathematics at the Collège Mazarin, where he propagated Newtonian ideas. He also built an observatory from which he conducted his lifelong programme of improving the positions of the bright stars and determining the orbits of the Moon and planets. At the Cape of Good Hope (1751–53) he made the first systematic telescopic sky survey and mapped the southern heavens. He defined and named many of the constellations. Making measurements simultaneously with colleagues in Europe, he determined the distances of the Sun, the Moon and the planets Venus and Mars. The information he gathered was critical to the development of the theory of planetary perturbations. He measured the radius of the earth and came to the conclusion that it is pear-shaped. He also made extensive notes on the Cape environment as well as on the colonists and slaves. In some ways rather fierce, La Caille had a serious demeanour and abhorred frivolity and dishonesty. Nevertheless, he had a small number of close friends with whom he could relax and unbend. His colleagues and former pupils loved and respected him in spite of his forbidding manner.

Multifunctional Oxide Heterostructures

Evgeny Y. Tsymbal, Elbio R. A. Dagotto, Chang-Beom Eom, and Ramamoorthy Ramesh — 2013-01-24

Author:: Evgeny Y.TsymbalCharles Bessey Professor of Physics, University of Nebraska-LincolnElbio R. A.DagottoDistinguished Professor of Physics, University of TennesseeChang-BeomEomHarvey D. Spangler Distinguished Professor, University of Wisconsin-MadisonRamamoorthyRameshPlato Malozemoff Professor of Materials Science and Physics, University of California-Berkeley
ISBN:: 9780199584123
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199584123.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2013-01-24

This book is devoted to the rapidly developing field of research on oxide thin-films and heterostructures. Recent advances in thin-film deposition and characterization techniques made possible the experimental realization of such heterostructures, where two or more complex oxides are combined with atomic-scale precision. Especially notable advances have been made over the past few years, driven by the discovery of fascinating new physical phenomena in oxide heterostructures. The fundamental science underlying these phenomena is rich and exciting and promises novel functionalities and device concepts. The book consists of a set of chapters on topics that represent some of the key innovations in the field over recent years. It starts from fundamentals that include two chapters discussing physics of strongly correlated electronic materials and magnetoelectric coupling in multiferroic materials. Part II of the book is devoted to the growth and characterization of oxide heterostructures and includes four chapters on these subjects comprising key experimental developments in advanced deposition and characterization techniques. Part III of the book addresses functional properties of oxide heterostructures, including two-dimensional electron gases at oxide interfaces, manganite multilayers, and thermoelectric phenomena. Part IV of the book is focused on existing and potential applications of oxide heterostructures, including high-k dielectric materials, ferroelectric field effect transistors (FeFET) and ferroelectric random access memories (FeRAM), and new concepts of oxide electronics. Overall, this book covers the core principles of oxide electronic materials, describes experimental approaches to fabricate and characterize oxide thin-films and heterostructures, demonstrates new functional properties of these materials, and provides an overview of novel applications, as well as the challenges and opportunities in the field.

Many-Body Physics with Ultracold Gases

Christophe Salomon, Georgy V. Shlyapnikov, and Leticia F. Cugliandolo — 2013-01-24

Author:: ChristopheSalomonLaboratoire Kastler Brossel, Ecole Normale Superieure, ParisGeorgy V.ShlyapnikovLeticia F.CugliandoloDepartment of Physics, University of Paris VI
ISBN:: 9780199661886
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Atomic, Laser, and Optical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199661886.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2013-01-24

This book gathers the lecture notes of courses given at the 2010 summer school in theoretical physics in Les Houches, France, Session XCIV. This book illustrates how the field of quantum gases has flourished at the interface between atomic physics and quantum optics, condensed matter physics, nuclear and high-energy physics, non-linear physics, and quantum information. The physics of correlated atoms in optical lattices is covered from both theoretical and experimental perspectives, including the Bose and Fermi Hubbard models, and the description of the Mott transition. Few-body physics with cold atoms has made spectacular progress and exact solutions for 3-body and 4-body problems have been obtained. The remarkable collisional stability of weakly bound molecules is at the core of the studies of molecular BEC regimes in Fermi gases. Entanglement in quantum many-body systems is introduced and is a key issue for quantum information processing. Rapidly rotating quantum gases and optically induced gauge fields establish a remarkable connection with the fractional quantum Hall effect for electrons in semiconductors. Dipolar quantum gases with long range and anisotropic interaction lead to new quantum degenerate regimes in atoms with large magnetic moments, or electrically aligned polar molecules. Experiments with ultracold fermions show how quantum gases serve as ‘quantum simulators’ of complex condensed matter systems through measurements of the equation of state. Similarly, the recent observation of Anderson localization of matter waves in a disordered optical potential makes a fruitful link with the behaviour of electrons in disordered systems.

The Long Road to Stockholm

Peter Mansfield — 2013-01-24

Author:: Peter Mansfield
ISBN:: 9780199664542
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Soft Matter / Biological Physics, History of Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199664542.001.0001
Published in print:: 2013
Published Online:: 2013-01-24

I describe my life from the age of 5 in 1939 through to 2010. The first chapter describes my evacuation to Devon during the blitz and following the V1 and V2 attacks on London. At the end of hostilities I worked briefly in the printing industry but decided to pursue my real interests in science by joining the Rocket Propulsion Department at Westcott near Aylesbury. Following National Service and University I married and went to the USA for 2 years returning in 1964 as a Lecturer in Physics at the University of Nottingham. In 1972 I spent a sabbatical period in Heidleberg. During this period I interacted with my student, Peter Grannell, in Nottingham on the then novel idea of magnetic resonance imaging which led to my first paper on MRI presented at the first Specialised Colloque Ampère held in Krakow in 1973. Later in 1975 I met Godfrey Hounsfield, inventor of the CT scanner, at the EMI Central Research Laboratories in Hayes, Middlesex. This meeting sparked of an interest leading to EMI producing their own MRI scanner. In 1980-82 other MRI groups at Nottingham, led by Professor Andrew and Dr Moore, left Nottingham to set up in the U.S.A. This exodus left me free to steam on with my group’s developments of high speed imaging. These were the Golden Years in MRI at Nottingham. In 1987 a new Vice Chancellor, Colin Campbell took over the running of the University of Nottingham. He was extremely helpful to me in our acquiring a new building dedicated to our work with MRI. In the early 90’s there was considerable speculation about whether there should be a Nobel Prize in MRI. This speculation was initiated in the U.S.A by the Journal “Diagnostic Imaging”. But interest soon faded. Further developments in MRI led finally to a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2003 awarded jointly with Paul Lauterbur. There were some antagonisims to MRI especially from Raymond Damadian, but these were settled or ignored. New ideas for reducing acoustic noise were explored and a 50 dB reduction achieved on a rectangular plate construction. However, on a circular gradient coil system, the best noise reduction achieved was around 30 dB. My two brothers, Conrad and Sidney together with a number of friends and colleagues central to my progress in MRI, are included in the Epilogue.

Lie Groups and Lie Algebras

Adam M. Bincer — 2013-01-24

Author:: Adam M. Bincer
ISBN:: 9780199662920
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199662920.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2013-01-24

This book is based on lectures given to graduate students in physics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Group theory has been around for many years and the only thing new in this book is my approach to the subject, in particular the attempt to emphasize its beauty. The inspiration was this quote from Hermann Weyl: “My work always tried to unite the true with the beautiful; but when I had to choose one or the other I usually chose the beautiful”. The book starts with the definition of basic concepts such as group, vector space, algebra, Lie group, Lie algebra, simple and semisimple groups, compact and non-compact groups. Next SO(3) and SU(2) are introduced as examples of elementary Lie groups and their relation to Physics and angular momentum. All irreducible representations, addition of angular momentum, Clebsch–Gordan coefficients and the Wigner–Eckart theorem are presented. Next the so(n) algebras and spinors are discussed using Clifford numbers. Conjugate, orthogonal and symplectic representations of spinors are described and the Clebsch–Gordan series for spinors is given, followed by a description of the center and outer automorphisms of Spin(n). The book next presents a diversion on Hurwitz’s theorem, quaternions and octonions, which leads into a discussion of the exceptional group G 2. The discussion of orthogonal groups is concluded with a presentation of their Casimir operators. As a lead in to unitary groups the book discusses classical groups and obtain the dimensions of orthogonal, unitary and symplectic groups in one fell swoop by treating them as unitary groups over the reals, the complex and the quaternions, respectively. The symmetric group S is introduced and used to discuss irreducible representations of SU(n). The next three chapters involve the Cartan basis, the Cartan classification of semisimple algebras and Dynkin diagrams. The last three chapters are of particular importance to physicists as they describe the space-time groups known as the Lorentz, Poincaré and Liouville groups and the energy levels of the hydrogen atom in n space dimensions. At the end of each chapter brief biographical notes are given on the scientist(s) mentioned in that chapter for the first time.

Illustrating the Phaenomena

Elly Dekker — 2013-01-24

Author:: Elly Dekker
ISBN:: 9780199609697
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, History of Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199609697.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2013-01-24

The introduction in antiquity of the moving sphere as a model for understanding the celestial phenomena provided the momentum for making celestial globes and mapping the stars. The globe is the most deceptive of all early scientific instruments. Invented by the Greeks as a scientific instrument imitating the phenomena such as the rising of the setting of the stars and precession, it became soon used in antiquity in education to circumvent the complicated mathematics of the sphere, and by artists for decorative purposes symbolising the world at large. The globe was also the starting-point for the construction of maps in antiquity. Although no antique celestial maps have survived medieval copies of them are included in illustrated astronomical books such as the Latin translation of Aratus's Phaenomena describing how the constellations are located with respect to each other. The cultural impact of globes is echoed in the oldest known ceiling painting of the celestial sky in the bath house of Quṣayr cAmra built in the first half of the eighth century. The complete absence of celestial maps other than the retes of astrolabes in the Islamic tradition is a puzzle that needs further study. The construction of globes varied greatly as it passed from Greece to the Arabic and Medieval European cultures. The constellation design of Islamic globes stands out from later western globes made in the early fifteenth century by the way constellations are drawn on a sphere. The first celestial maps in the mathematical tradition also emerged in the early fifteenth century foreshadowing the modern period in celestial cartography in the Western World.

Fractured Porous Media

Pierre M. Adler, Jean-François Thovert, and Valeri V. Mourzenko — 2013-01-24

Author:: Pierre M. Adler, Jean-François Thovert, Valeri V. Mourzenko
ISBN:: 9780199666515
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199666515.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2013-01-24

This book aims to estimate the macroscopic properties of fractures, fracture networks and fractured porous media from easily measurable quantities. Attention is focused on geological media where rocks are necessarily fractured at various scales by the slow but constant motion of continental masses. This book is situated between three disciplines. First, geology and geophysics provide most of the data and most applications; a characteristic feature is that one never has a complete knowledge of the studied objects — such as an oil reservoir — in contrast with a laboratory experiment where every quantity can be measured. Second, engineering develops the main tools of analysis for one- and two-phase flows, and calculations of permeability (absolute and relative). Third, statistical physics plays a major role in concepts such as the excluded volume, dimensionless density, percolation threshold and power laws. In view of this interdisciplinary character, the general results presented in this book may have unexpected applications in many different domains. This book is based on courses which have been taught in several countries at Master and Ph.D. levels in universities, in research centers and at conferences. It should provide, in a compact form, all the necessary tools to achieve the general objective. The mathematical level in this book has been kept as low as possible. The interested reader can always go further, thanks to the references that are provided, where the mathematical level is not restricted. The colloquial aspect of a course has been preserved where one tries to explain abstract concepts in simple terms.

The Conceptual Framework of Quantum Field Theory

Anthony Duncan — 2013-01-24

Author:: Anthony Duncan
ISBN:: 9780199573264
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199573264.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2013-01-24

This book illustrates the interplay between distinct domains of mathematics. Firstly, this book provides an introduction to hyperbolic geometry, based on the Lorentz group. The Lorentz group plays, in relativistic space-time, a role analogue to the rotations in Euclidean space. The hyperbolic geometry is the geometry of the unit pseudo-sphere. The boundary of the hyperbolic space is defined as the set of light rays. Special attention is given to the geodesic and horocyclic flows. Hyperbolic geometry is presented via special relativity to benefit from physical intuition. Secondly, this book introduces basic notions of stochastic analysis: the Wiener process, Itô's stochastic integral, and calculus. This introduction allows study in linear stochastic differential equations on groups of matrices. In this way the spherical and hyperbolic Brownian motions, diffusions on the stable leaves, and the relativistic diffusion are constructed. Thirdly, quotients of the hyperbolic space under a discrete group of isometries are introduced. In this framework some elements of hyperbolic dynamics are presented, as the ergodicity of the geodesic and horocyclic flows. This book culminates with an analysis of the chaotic behaviour of the geodesic flow, performed using stochastic analysis methods. This main result is known as Sinai's central limit theorem.

Quantum Theory from Small to Large Scales

2012-09-20

Author:: JürgFrohlichProfessor, ETH Zürich, SwitzerlandManfredSalmhoferUniversität Heidelberg, GermanyVieriMastropietroUniversita' di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica, ItalyWojciechDe RoeckUniversität Heidelberg, GermanyLeticia F.CugliandoloUniversité Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris VI, France
ISBN:: 9780199652495
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Atomic, Laser, and Optical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199652495.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2012-09-20

This book collects lecture courses and seminars given at the Les Houches Summer School 2010 on ‘Quantum Theory: From Small to Large Scales’. Fundamental quantum phenomena appear on all scales, from microscopic to macroscopic. Some of the pertinent questions include the onset of decoherence, the dynamics of collective modes, the influence of external randomness, and the emergence of dissipative behaviour. Our understanding of such phenomena has been advanced by the study of model systems and by the derivation and analysis of effective dynamics for large systems and over long times. In this field, research in mathematical physics has regularly contributed results that were recognized as essential in the physics community. During the last few years, the key questions have been sharpened and progress on answering them has been particularly strong. This book reviews the state-of-the-art developments in this field and provides the necessary background for future studies.

Fluid Mechanics and the SPH Method

Damien Violeau — 2012-09-20

Author:: Damien Violeau
ISBN:: 9780199655526
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199655526.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2012-09-20

This book aims at presenting the SPH method for fluid modelling from a theoretical and applied viewpoint. It comprises two parts that refer to each other. The first, dealing with the fundamentals of Hydraulics, is based on the elementary principles of Lagrangian and Hamiltonian mechanics. The specific laws governing a system of macroscopic particles are built, then the large systems involving dissipative processes are explained. The continua are then discussed; lastly, a fairly exhaustive account of turbulence is given. The second part discloses the bases of the SPH Lagrangian numerical method from the continuous equations, as well as from discrete variational principles, setting out the method's specific properties of conservativity and invariance. Various numerical schemes are compared, permanently referring to physics as dealt with in the first part. Applications to schematic instances are then discussed; ultimately, practical applications to the dimensioning of coastal and fluvial structures are considered. Despite the rapid growth in the SPH field, this book is the first to present this method in a comprehensive way for fluids. It should serve as a rigorous introduction to SPH and a reference for fundamental mathematical fluid dynamics.

Fluctuating Nonlinear Oscillators

Mark Dykman — 2012-09-20

Author:: MarkDykmanDepartment of Physics, Michigan State University
ISBN:: 9780199691388
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199691388.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2012-09-20

The book elucidates the physics of classical and quantum fluctuations in nonlinear oscillators and provides a unifying insight into fluctuation phenomena in a variety of vibrational systems of current interest. The considered systems are mesoscopis: they are small, so that fluctuations play an important role, but can be individually accessed. The book consists of chapters written by leading experts in the field. The chapters are self-contained and complement each other. They describe major types of nonlinear mesoscopic vibrational systems and the new quantum and classical physics learned using these systems. Also described are new approaches to quantum and classical measurements. The discussed topics include nonlinear dynamics, bistability, and quantum control of microwave cavity modes coupled to qubits; measurements with bifurcation amplifiers based on modulated vibrational systems and new types of such amplifiers; switching rate scaling and a new quantum mechanism of switching in modulated systems; nonlinear wave mixing, parametric excitation, and amplification in the quantum regime; collective phenomena in coupled modulated vibrational systems and the interaction-induced breaking of the time-translation symmetry; quantum back-action in strongly coupled electron-vibrational systems and the effect on the vibrations of the shot noise from spin current; new mechanisms of vibrational relaxation; and the quantum-classical correspondence in the strongly nonlinear regime. The specific systems considered in the book include Josephson junctions, microwave cavities containing qubits or other devices based on Josephson junctions, nano- and micro-mechanical systems, carbon nanotubes, cold atoms, and nano-magnetic oscillators.

Electronic Structure Methods for Complex Materials

Wai-Yim Ching and Paul Rulis — 2012-09-20

Author:: Wai-Yim Ching, Paul Rulis
ISBN:: 9780199575800
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199575800.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2012-09-20

The aim of this book is to broadly introduce a robust method for electronic structure calculation that is particularly well suited for application to large complex systems. This method, called the orthogonalized linear combination of atomic orbitals (OLCAO) method, is an all-electron density functional theory (DFT) based method that uses local atomic orbitals in the basis expansion. The book endeavors to illustrate its utility by presenting a large number of examples of how it has been applied to many complex systems and different types of materials. These results are based on the authors’ work, culled from research conducted over the last thirty five years up to and including current projects. A brief historical account and description of the background of the method is included before the formal definition of the method and the modes of property calculation are provided. A series of extended discussions follows. The topics include semiconductors, insulators, crystalline metals and alloys, complex crystals, non-crystalline solids and liquids, microstructure containing systems and those containing impurities, defects, and surfaces, biomolecular systems, the technique of ab initio core level spectroscopy calculation, and areas of future development for the OLCAO program and its underlying approach. The last component of the book is a basic manual for practical understanding of the operation of the OLCAO method.

Conductor-Insulator Quantum Phase Transitions

Vladimir Dobrosavljevic, Nandini Trivedi, and James M. Valles, Jr. — 2012-09-20

Author:: VladimirDobrosavljevicDepartment of Physics and National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Florida State UniversityNandiniTrivediDepartment of Physics, Ohio State UniversityJames M.Valles, Jr.Department of Physics, Brown University
ISBN:: 9780199592593
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199592593.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2012-09-20

Quantum phase transitions describe the violent rearrangement of electrons or atoms as they evolve from well defined excitations in one phase to a completely different set of excitations in another. The book chapters give insights into how a coherent metallic or superconducting state can be driven into an incoherent insulating state by increasing disorder, magnetic field, carrier concentration and inter-electron interactions. They illustrate the primary methods employed to develop a multi-faceted theory of many interacting particle systems. They describe how recent experiments probing the microscopic structure, transport, charge and spin dynamics have yielded guiding insights. What sets this book apart is this strong dialog between experiment and theory, which reveals the recent progress and emergent opportunities to solve some major problems in many body physics. The pedagogical style of the chapters has been set for graduate students starting in this dynamic field.

Stellar Magnetism

Leon Mestel — 2012-05-24

Author:: Leon Mestel
ISBN:: 9780199641741
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Particle Physics / Astrophysics / Cosmology
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199641741.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2012-05-24

Ongoing studies in mathematical depth, and inferences from ‘helioseismological’ observations of the internal solar rotation have shown up the limitations in our knowledge of the solar interior and of our understanding of the solar dynamo, manifested in particular by the sunspot cycle, the Maunder minimum, and solar flares. This second edition of this book retains the overall structure as the first edition, but is designed so as to be self-contained with the early chapters presenting the basic physics and mathematics underlying cosmical magnetohydrodynamics, followed by studies of the specific applications appropriate for a book devoted to a central area in astrophysics.

Quantum Gravity

Claus Kiefer — 2012-05-24

Author:: Claus Kiefer
ISBN:: 9780199585205
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199585205.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2012-05-24

This book is concerned with the attempts to unify Einstein's theory of general relativity and quantum theory into a theory of quantum gravity. It presents, for the first time, most of the approaches in a single textbook. Among them are canonical quantum gravity (including loop quantum gravity), covariant quantum gravity, and string theory. The book also discusses the relevance of these theories for cosmology and the physics of black holes. The first chapter gives a general introduction to the problem of quantizing the gravitational field. The second chapter then presents the main covariant approaches - perturbation theory and Feynman diagrammes, path integrals, and supergravity. The third chapter discusses the important concept of reparametrization invariance in the framework of simple systems: particle models, bosonic string, and parametrized field theory. This concept plays a crucial role in the Hamiltonian formulation of general relativity, which is the topic of Chapter 4. Chapter 5 presents the canonical quantization in the metric variables, leading to the central Wheeler-DeWitt equation, while the sixth chapter presents loop quantum gravity. The next two chapters 7 and 8 then discuss the major applications - quantization of black holes and quantum cosmology. Chapter 9 gives an introduction to string theory by focusing on its quantum gravitational aspects. Chapter 10 contains a discussion of interpretational issues: the relevance of quantum gravity for the foundations of quantum theory and the arrow of time. It also contains a brief review of quantum-gravity phenomenology. The emphasis throughout is on conceptual and formal clarity. Wherever possible, connections between the various approaches are examined.

Niels Bohr and the Quantum Atom

Helge Kragh — 2012-05-24

Author:: Helge Kragh
ISBN:: 9780199654987
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, History of Physics, Atomic, Laser, and Optical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199654987.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2012-05-24

The theory of atomic structure proposed by the young Danish physicist Niels Bohr in 1913 marked the true beginning of modern atomic and quantum physics. This is the first book that focuses in detail on the origin and development of this remarkable theory. It offers a comprehensive account of Bohr’s ideas and the way they were modified by other physicists. By following the development and applications of the theory, it brings new insight into Bohr’s peculiar way of thinking; what Einstein once called his ‘musicality’ and ‘unique instinct and tact’. Contrary to most other accounts of the Bohr atom, the book presents it in a broader perspective, which includes the reception among other scientists, popular expositions of the theory, and the objections raised against it by scientists of a more conservative inclination. Moreover, it discusses the theory as Bohr originally conceived it, namely, as an ambitious attempt to understand the structure of atoms as well as molecules: the chemical aspects of the theory are given much attention. The book covers the successes as well as the failures of Bohr’s theory, arguing that the latter were no less important in the process that led Bohr to abandon the original model and Heisenberg to propose a new ‘quantum mechanics’. By discussing the theory in its entirety—following it from its birth in 1913, through its adolescence round 1918, to its decline in 1924—it becomes possible to understand its development and use it as an example of the dynamics of scientific theories.

The Neutron's Children

Sean F. Johnston — 2012-05-24

Author:: Sean F. Johnston
ISBN:: 9780199692118
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, History of Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199692118.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2012-05-24

This book follows nuclear engineers, specialists in a field described by early participants as a ‘strange journey through Alice in Wonderland’ and ‘What Buck Rogers reads about when he reads’. Their hidden origins trace back to the discovery of the neutron and the cascade of knowledge and applications released by the chain reaction. Unlike the atomic bomb which motivated their creation, nuclear specialists in the USA, Britain, and Canada did not burst into visibility at the end of the Second World War. Cosseted and cloistered by their governments, they worked in secrecy for a further decade to explore applications of atomic energy at a handful of national laboratories. The identities of these unusually voiceless experts—forming a uniquely state-managed discipline—were shaped in the context of pre-war nuclear physics, wartime industrial management, post-war politics, and utopian energy programmes. Even after their eventual emergence at universities and companies, nuclear workers carried the enduring legacy of their origins. Their shared experiences shaped not only their identities, but our collective memories of the nuclear age. And as illustrated by the Fukushima Dai-ichi accident seven decades after the Manhattan Project began, they are still seen conflictingly as selfless heroes or as mistrusted guardians of an unbottled and malevolent genie. Based on extensive archival research and interviews with participants, this bottom-up account tracks these shadowy specialists and how they evolved to influence late twentieth-century science, industry, and culture.

Luminescence Spectroscopy of Semiconductors

Ivan Pelant and Jan Valenta — 2012-05-24

Author:: Ivan Pelant, Jan Valenta
ISBN:: 9780199588336
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Atomic, Laser, and Optical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199588336.001.0001
Published in print:: 2012
Published Online:: 2012-05-24

Luminescence of semiconductors is nowadays based on very firm background of solid state physics. The purpose of this book is to introduce the reader to the study of the physical principles underlying inorganic semiconductor luminescence phenomena. It guides the reader starting from the very introductory definitions over luminescence of bulk semiconductors and finishing at the up-to-date luminescence spectroscopy of individual nanocrystals. The book thus set the aim of filling the gap between general textbooks on semiconductors and dedicated advanced monographs. At the beginning, important knowledge of the solid state like lattice vibrations, exciton–phonon interaction and the concept of configurational coordinate are reviewed. Self-contained chapters are then devoted to exciton luminescence processes, effects of high optical excitation, and to an overview of the essentials of electroluminescence. Apart from spontaneous luminescence, special attention is paid to stimulated emission and investigation of optical gain. Considerable space is given also to optical processes in low-dimensional semiconductor structures. The book has been written by experimentalists and is destined primarily for experimentalists, too. Visual approach using schemes and graphs is used frequently instead of rigorous mathematical derivation. The chapter devoted to experimental techniques of luminescence spectroscopy is rich in content. Whenever it makes sense, the accent is put on how to extract from the appearance of luminescence emission spectrum (shapes of emission lines, their behaviour with varying experimental parameters) as much information on microscopic origin of luminescence as possible. The book cannot be regarded as a comprehensive monograph on semiconductor luminescence; selected examples from extremely rich literature only have been chosen to illustrate the text.

Layered Superconductors

Richard A. Klemm — 2012-05-24

Author:: Richard A. Klemm
ISBN:: 9780199593316
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199593316.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2012-05-24

Layered Superconductors, Volume I, describes the chemistry and physics of all layered superconductors. Although widespread interest in the subject did not really arise until the discovery of high-temperature superconductivity in the cuprates, it has a much longer history, and is still evolving rapidly. This book describes the chemical syntheses, crystal structures, calculations and measurements of the Fermi surfaces, and measurements of the normal state physical properties and of the upper and lower critical fields of all classes of layered superconductors. At present, the large classes of layered superconductors are the graphite intercalation compounds, the transition metal dichalcogenides, the intercalated transition metal dichalcogenides, the organic layered superconductors,various artificial superconducting superlattices, the cuprates, binary and ternary intermetallics with the AlB2 structure, ternary and quaternary intermetallics of the ThCr2Si2 structure, the borocarbides, the iron pnictides, the iron oxypnictides, and the iron chalcogenides. Each of the stoichiometric compounds Sr2RuO4, MgB2, La3Ni2B2N3, and Ag5Pb2O6 are layered superconductors, as are intercalated β-ZrNCl and β-HfNCl. Many of these materials exhibit electronic instabilities such as charge-density waves, spin-density waves, magnetism, and “pseudogaps”, which may have closely related origins, and which compete with the superconductivity. Some of these materials are extremely anisotropic, while others are nearly isotropic in their normal and superconducting behaviours. To characterize the superconductivity, three phenomenological models are presented: the anisotropic London model, the anisotropic Ginzburg-Landau model, and the Lawrence-Doniach model. These models are used to calculate the upper and lower critical fields of layered superconductors. Experimental verification of these and selected microscopic models is provided.

Theory of Molecular Fluids

Christopher G. Gray, Keith E. Gubbins, and Christopher G. Joslin — 2012-01-19

Author:: Christopher G. Gray, Keith E. Gubbins, Christopher G. Joslin
ISBN:: 9780198556213
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198556213.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2012-01-19

Existing texts on the theory of liquids treat only simple, spherical molecules. However, nearly all fluids of practical interest are composed of non-spherical molecules that are often dipolar or exhibit other kinds of electrostatic forces. This book describes the statistical mechanical theory of fluids of non-spherical molecules at equilibrium, and its application to the calculation of physical properties, and is a sequel to Theory of Molecular Fluids: Vol. 1: Fundamentals by C.G. Gray and K.E. Gubbins. The emphasis is on the new and diverse phenomena that arise due to the non-spherical nature of the molecules and of their intermolecular forces, such as new phase transitions, interfacial phenomena, structural features, and dielectric effects. In addition to application of perturbation theories and integral equation theories to physical property calculation, new theory is introduced as needed; for example, the theory of hard non-spherical particles, Kirkwood–Buff theory of mixtures,, the theory of associating liquids, density functional theory of inhomogeneous fluids, scattering theory of the structure factor, and the theory of dielectric phenomena and equilibrium spectral properties are treated. Throughout, tests of the theory against molecular simulation and experimental results are emphasized. The book contains chapters on the thermodynamic properties of pure and mixed fluids surface properties. X-ray and neutron diffraction structure factors dielectric properties, and spectroscopic properties. The book is aimed at senior undergraduates, graduate students, and research workers in chemistry, physics, life sciences, materials science, and engineering.

Principles of Electron Tunneling Spectroscopy

E. L. Wolf — 2012-01-19

Author:: E. L. Wolf
ISBN:: 9780199589494
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199589494.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2012-01-19

This second edition of this book fully embraces the advances represented by the scanning tunnelling microscope and, especially, scanning tunnelling spectroscopy. The book includes images of single atoms and spectral images of impurity states in high temperature superconductors. The background and current status are provided for the applications of scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy, to single atoms and molecules, including the determination of bonding energies and vibrational frequencies. The adaptation of the McMillan–Rowell analysis, based on the Eliashberg theory of superconductivity, to include proximity electron tunnelling spectroscopy PETS, is described. The applications to high temperature superconductivity HTC of cuprate and iron-based materials are carefully introduced and the current status is described. A new section covers the astounding advances in instrumentation, which now routinely provide atomic resolution, and, in addition, developments in imaging and image processing, such as Fourier transform scanning tunneling spectroscopy.

Photographic Science

Tadaaki Tani — 2012-01-19

Author:: Tadaaki Tani
ISBN:: 9780199572953
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Atomic, Laser, and Optical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199572953.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2012-01-19

This book is composed of two parts: progresses in photographic science (Part I) and application of photographic science to new areas (Part II). Part I describes the accumulated knowledge of photographic science including its recent progresses. Descriptions are made on the structure, formation, and physical properties of silver halide (AgX) nanoparticles and grains, the formation and performance of Ag clusters and nanoparticles on AgX grains, and dye sensitization with J-aggregated dye layers on AgX grains. Part II describes the application of the above-stated knowledge to new areas now developing for the future. They include digital photography with CCD and CMOS as sensors, new nuclear-truck emulsions for detection of unknown nuclear particles, silver nanoparticles with their surface plasmon resonance available for various purposes, dye-sensitized solar cells with Ru dyes on the layers of sintered nanoparticles of TiO2, and organic semiconductors in terms of light absorption and aggregation of dyes, electronic structures, behaviors of excitons, creation and transport of electronic charge carriers, and production of their devices in relation to colour films with J-aggregated dye layers on AgX grains. Leaving the accumulating knowledge on photographic science in record, this book provides these new areas with unique knowledge and ideas arising from their synergetic interaction with photographic science and technology that have been accumulating on the basis of nanoparticles, J-aggregates, and dye sensitization.

Modern Perspectives in Lattice QCD: Quantum Field Theory and High Performance Computing

2012-01-19

Author:: LaurentLellouchCentre de Physique Théorique, CNRS and Université Aix-Marseille II, FranceRainerSommerJohn von Neumann Institute for Computing, DESY, Zeuthen, GermanyBenjaminSvetitskyTel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, IsraelAnastassiosVladikasINFN-Tor Vergata Division, Rome, ItalyLeticia F.CugliandoloUniversité Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6
ISBN:: 9780199691609
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199691609.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2012-01-19

The book is based on the lectures delivered at the XCIII Session of the ´Ecole de Physique des Houches, held in August, 2009. The aim of the event was to familiarize the new generation of Ph.D. students and postdoctoral Fellows with the principles and methods of modern lattice field theory, which Is set to resolve fundamental, non-perturbative questions about QCD without uncontrolled approximations. The emphasis of the book is on the theoretical developments that have shaped the field in the last two decades and that have turned lattice gauge theory into a robust approach to the determination of low energy hadronic quantities and of fundamental parameters of the Standard Model. By way of introduction, the courses of the school began by covering lattice theory basics (P. Hernández), lattice renormalization and improvement (P. Weisz and A. Vladikas) and the many faces of chirality (D.B. Kaplan). A later course introduced QCD at finite temperature and density (O. Philipsen). A broad view of lattice computation from the basics to recent developments was offered in the corresponding course (M. Lüscher). The students learned the basics of lattice computation in a hands-on tutorial (S. Schaefer)---a first at Les Houches, Extrapolations to physical quark masses and a framework for the parameterization of the low-energy physics by means of effective coupling constants has been covered in the course on chiral perturbation theory (M. Golterman). A course in heavy-quark effective theories (R. Sommer), an essential tool for performing the relevant lattice calculations, covered HQET from its basics to recent advances. A number of shorter courses rounded out the school and broadened its purview. These included recent applications to flavour physics (L. Lellouch) the nucleon--nucleon interation (S. Aoki) and a course on physics beyond the Standard Model (T. Appelquist and E.T. Neil).

Introduction to Black Hole Physics

Valeri P. Frolov and Andrei Zelnikov — 2012-01-19

Author:: Valeri P. Frolov, Andrei Zelnikov
ISBN:: 9780199692293
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Particle Physics / Astrophysics / Cosmology
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199692293.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2012-01-19

This book is a thorough and up‐to‐date introduction to black hole physics. It provides a modern and unified overview of all their aspects, physical, mathematical, astrophysical, classical, and quantum. Black holes are the most intriguing objects in the Universe. For many years they have been considered just as interesting solutions of the General Relativity with a number of amusing mathematical properties. But now, after discovery of astrophysical black holes, the Einstein gravity has become a practical tool for their study. In this book we present the theory of black holes in the form which might be useful for students and young scientists. This is a self‐contained textbook. It includes pedagogically presented `standard' material on black holes and also quite new subjects such as black holes in spacetimes with large extra dimensions and a role of hidden symmetries in black hole physics.

Electron Crystallography

Xiaodong Zou, Sven Hovmöller, and Peter Oleynikov — 2012-01-19

Author:: Xiaodong Zou, Sven Hovmöller, Peter Oleynikov
ISBN:: 9780199580200
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Crystallography
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199580200.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2012-01-19

This is the first textbook describing crystal structure determination (especially inorganic) from high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and electron diffraction (ED). The theoretical background and practical procedures are explained with hundreds of figures. The fundamental fact that the crystallographic structure factor phase information is present in EM images is explained by formulas, and HRTEM images and their Fourier transforms.The basics of crystallography are presented in an innovative way compared to standard crystallographic texts, exploiting direct imaging of structures at atomic resolution – impossible with X-ray crystallography. Moving back and forth between real and reciprocal space facilitates a deep understanding of the subject. EM images and ED patterns illustrate the symmetries in crystals.Electron optics and distortion (and how they can be quantified and corrected for) are explained with drawings, formulas and experimental EM images and ED patterns.New developments including precession electron diffraction and 3D reconstruction from HRTEM images and ways of collecting complete 3D ED data are thoroughly covered.We hope this textbook will become the standard for those who investigate crystal structures by EM but want to improve their skills, including going from 2D projections to full 3D structures. It introduces electron crystallography for all crystallographers and materials scientists, who are struggling with crystals, too small or imperfect for single-crystal X-ray diffraction and too complex for X-ray powder diffraction.We believe the easiest way to learn X-ray crystallography is to go via electron crystallography, since you can see both the structure image and the diffraction pattern. We have written this book also with these readers in mind, making reference to X-ray crystallography at every stage. Extensive appendices with worked examples makes the book ideal for courses and self-study.

Advanced Ferroelectricity

Robert Blinc — 2012-01-19

Author:: Robert Blinc
ISBN:: 9780199570942
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199570942.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2012-01-19

The field of ferroelectricity has greatly expanded and changed recently. In addition to classical organic and inorganic ferroelectrics as well as composite ferroelectrics new fields and materials have appeared, important for both basic science and application and showing technological promise for novel multifunctional devices. Most of these fields were unknown or inactive 20 to 40 years ago. Such new fields are multiferroic magnetoelectric systems, where the spontaneous polarization and the spontaneous magnetization are allowed to coexist, incommensurate ferroelectrics, where the periodicity of the order parameter is incommensurate to the periodicity of the underlying basic crystal lattice, ferroelectric liquid crystals, dipolar glasses, relaxor ferroelectrics, ferroelectric thin films and nanoferroelectrics. These new fields are in addition to basic physical interest also of great technological importance and allow for new memory devices, spintronic applications and electro‐optic devices. They are also important for applications in acoustics, robotics, telecommunications and medicine. New developments in relaxors allow for giant electromechanical and electrocaloric effects. The book is primarily intended for material scientists working in research or industry. It is also intended for graduate and doctoral students and can be used as a textbook in graduate courses. Finally, it should be useful for everybody following the development of modern solid‐state physics.

Viscoelastic Behavior of Rubbery Materials

C. Michael Roland — 2011-09-22

Author:: C. Michael Roland
ISBN:: 9780199571574
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199571574.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2011-09-22

This book describes the relaxation dynamics of rubbery materials, with the objective of providing a molecular basis for many physical properties. As the term comprises any amorphous, flexible macromolecule above its glass-transition temperature, rubber includes a broad class of substances, with a richness of behavior rivaled by few materials. The focus is mainly on the phenomenology, emphasizing anomalies and aspects that are incompletely understood and thus productive avenues for future research. Rubber is especially interesting because it has unique properties. It can exist in a state of equilibrium, unlike glassy or semicrystalline plastics, thermosetting resins, fibers, etc. These polymers have path-dependent morphologies and process-specific properties, which frustrate scientific inquiry, notwithstanding their practical utility. Among all materials only rubber exhibits high elasticity—the ability to recover from very large deformations. This property underlies most applications of elastomers and gave rise to its own field of study. Despite these singular characteristics, rubber is arguably the prototype for relaxation in soft matter. By copolymerizing different monomers, an enormous variety of chemical structures are available that, along with the ease of avoiding crystallization, makes make rubber ideal for the study of the glass transition, a major unsolved problem in condensed-matter physics. In the glassy state or when vitrification is imminent, polymers cannot easily be distinguished from molecular liquids, and the correspondence of many phenomena makes distinctions between molecular and polymeric liquids artificial. Accordingly, the scope of this book is not limited to polymer science, with the discussion often extending to small-molecule compounds, including simple liquids and liquid crystals.

Ultracold Gases and Quantum Information

2011-09-22

Author:: ChristianMiniaturaCentre for Quantum Technologies and Department of Physics, National University of SingaporeLeong-ChuanKwekCentre for Quantum Technologies and Department of Physics, National University of SingaporeMartialDucloyDirecteur de Recherche Classe Exceptionelle, CNRS, FranceBenoîtGrémaudLaboratoire Kastler Brossel, FranceBerthold-GeorgEnglertCentre for Quantum Technologies and Department of Physics, National University of Singaporehttp://www.physics.nus.edu.sg/~phyebg/LeticiaCugliandoloUniversité Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris VI, FranceArturEkertMathematical Institute, University of OxfordKok KhooPhuaInstitute of Advanced Studies, Nanyang Technological Universityhttp://www.physics.nus.edu.sg/corporate/staff/phuakk.html
ISBN:: 9780199603657
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199603657.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2011-09-22

In recent years, there has been much synergy between the exciting areas of quantum information science and ultracold atoms. This volume, as part of the proceedings for the XCI session of Les Houches School of Physics (held for the first time outside Europe in Singapore) brings together experts in both fields. The theme of the school focused on two principal topics: quantum information science and ultracold atomic physics. The topics ranged from Bose-Einstein condensates to degenerate Fermi gases to fundamental concepts in quantum information sciences, including some special topics on quantum Hall effects, quantum phase transition, interactions in quantum fluids, disorder and interference phenomenoma, trapped ions and atoms, and quantum optical devices.

The Quest for Reality

Stig Stenholm — 2011-09-22

Author:: Stig Stenholm
ISBN:: 9780199603589
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, History of Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199603589.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2011-09-22

The content of this book is essentially one argument. The aim of this book is to consider the breakdown of a certain world view during the twentieth century. This is mirrored in the treatment of both science and philosophy. As these form the foundation for the human position in the world, a major reorganization of the body of knowledge had to take place. Bohr and Wittgenstein have been chosen as the main actors to represent this revision. Each one had to replace apparent order and certainty by an understanding based on limited concepts in constant flux. The conclusion is that the modern synthesis is far from satisfactory. By leaving the story unfinished in its present state, the book hopes to provoke a renewal of the discussion and the eventual emergence of a reformed clarity and understanding. Reality is to be left as it is, but the human mind is also to be left as it is. The problem is to find a way to effect a harmonious combination of these.

New Trends in the Physics and Mechanics of Biological Systems

Martine Ben Amar, Alain Goriely, Martin Michael Müller, and Leticia Cugliandolo — 2011-09-22

Author:: MartineBen AmarUniversité Pierre et Marie Curie and Ecole Normale Supérieure, Paris, FranceAlainGorielyMathematical Institute, Oxford Universityhttp://www.maths.ox.ac.uk/contact/details/gorielyMartin MichaelMüllerUniversité Paul Verlaine - Metz, FranceLeticiaCugliandoloUniversité Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France
ISBN:: 9780199605835
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Soft Matter / Biological Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199605835.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2011-09-22

In July 2009, many experts in the mathematical modelling of biological sciences gathered in Les Houches for a four-week summer school on the mechanics and physics of biological systems. The goal of the school was to present to students and researchers an integrated view of new trends and challenges in physical and mathematical aspects of biomechanics. While the scope for such a topic was very wide, the summer school focused on problems where solid and fluid mechanics play a central role. The school covered both the general mathematical theory of mechanical biology in the context of continuum mechanics but also the specific modelling of particular systems in the biology of the cell, plants, microbes, and in physiology. The chapters in this book contain the lecture notes which are organized (as was the school) around five different main topics all connected by the common theme of continuum modelling for biological systems: bio-fluidics, bio-gels, bio-mechanics, bio-membranes, and morphogenesis. These notes are not meant as a journal review of the topic but rather as a gentle tutorial introduction on the basic problematic in modelling biological systems from a mechanics perspective.

Nanocomposites with Biodegradable Polymers

Vikas Mittal — 2011-09-22

Author:: VikasMittalPolymer Engineer, BASF Polymer Research, Ludwigshafen, Germany
ISBN:: 9780199581924
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199581924.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2011-09-22

Polymer nanocomposites with practically all the commercial polymer matrices have been synthesized and nano-scale filler dispersion has been achieved with varying degrees of success. The commercial polymer nanocomposites studied to a great extent are unfortunately non-biodegradable like polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene etc. To a small extent, these nanocomposites are reformed or recycled into other products after one life cycle, however, the properties of such recycled materials are very poor. Therefore, subject of bio-based nanocomposites and biodegradable nanocomposites has become topic of interest in the recent years and a number of suitable bio-based and biodegradable polymer matrices have been developed and their property enhancement have been reported after the incorporation of the inorganic filler materials. These systems include poly(lactic acid), poly(butyl succinate), alginate, cellulosic plastics, gelatine, starch, soy protein based polymers, plant oil based polymers, poly(hydroxyalkanoates), bio based epoxies, etc. Various inorganic filler systems like clay, spherical particles as well as nanotubes have been incorporated in these matrices. The various properties which have been enhanced include mechanical performance, thermal properties, gas diffusion resistance, flammability, rheological performance, biodegradation etc. Though the commercial applications of these bio-nanocomposites are in infancy, but these materials have a huge commercial potential. The book provides the description of the subject as a whole, from the basic introduction to the more specific systems and advancements. The use of such nanocomposites for packaging as well as for sensors has been depicted.

Dynamical Heterogeneities in Glasses, Colloids, and Granular Media

2011-09-22

Author:: LudovicBerthierLaboratoire des Colloides, Verres et Nanomateriaux, Université Montpellier II, FranceGiulioBiroliInstitut de Physique Théorique, CEA Saclay, Francehttp://ipht.cea.fr/en/Pisp/giulio.biroli/index_en.phpJean-PhilippeBouchaudScience & Finance, Capital Fund Management, ParisLucaCipellettiLaboratoire des Colloides, Verres et Nanomateriaux, Université Montpellier II, FranceWimvan SaarloosInstituut-Lorentz, LION, Leiden University, The Netherlands
ISBN:: 9780199691470
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199691470.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2011-09-22

Most of the solid materials we use in everyday life, from plastics to cosmetic gels exist in a non-crystalline, amorphous form: they are glasses. Yet, we are still seeking a fundamental explanation as to what glasses really are, why they form, and what their properties are. This book surveys the most recent theoretical and experimental research dealing with the physics of glassy and disordered materials, from molecular fluids to colloidal glasses, granular media and foams. Chapters present broad and original perspectives on one of the deepest mystery of condensed matter physics, with a particular emphasis on the key role played by dynamic heterogeneities to understand from a unified viewpoint phenomena occurring in scores of disordered materials. The book covers both fundamental aspects, and reviews extensively several recent theoretical developments in the field of the glass transition that have changed our view of the glass transition. It also provides an up-to-date perspective on new experimental tools that have been developed to study with unprecedented resolution the structural relaxation of systems like molecular and polymer liquids, colloidal glasses, foams and granular materials. It also confronts, discusses, compares, and challenges the different perspectives actively promoted by different research groups and communities in a very active area of condensed-matter and statistical physics.

Cognitive Biology

Gennaro Auletta — 2011-09-22

Author:: Gennaro Auletta
ISBN:: 9780199608485
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Soft Matter / Biological Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199608485.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2011-09-22

The book provides a new conceptual scaffold for further research in biology and cognition by introducing the new field of Cognitive Biology. It is a systems biology approach showing that further progress in this field will depend on a deep recognition of developmental processes, as well as on the consideration of the developed organism as an agent able to modify and control its surrounding environment. The role of cognition, the means through which the organism is able to cope with its environment, cannot be underestimated. In particular, it is shown that this activity is grounded on a theory of information based on Bayesian probabilities. The organism is considered as a cybernetic system able to integrate a processor as a source of variety (the genetic system), a regulator of its own homeostasis (the metabolic system), and a selecting system separating the self from the non-self (the membrane in unicellular organisms).

Neutron Protein Crystallography

Nobuo Niimura and Alberto Podjarny — 2011-05-01

Author:: Nobuo Niimura, Alberto Podjarny
ISBN:: 9780199578863
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Crystallography
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199578863.001.0001
Published in print:: 2011
Published Online:: 2011-05-01

This book on neutron protein crystallography (NPC) begins with a brief review of the physics of neutrons and neutron diffraction, highlighting the differences between neutron and X-ray diffraction phenomena, and specific features of the interactions between neutrons and bio-macromolecules. Two types of neutron sources—steady-state, reactor neutron sources and pulsed, accelerator-driven neutron sources—are described, along with the different techniques used with each source. A section is devoted to describing the key technologies of neutron detection. In the second part, aspects of the experimental procedures of NPC are discussed, including the techniques of growing and preparing large single crystals of good quality, the different types of diffractometers used for NPC, and the procedures for reducing and analyzing the data. The third and final part focuses on the results of NPC. One of the main repositories of the results from NPC is the “Hydrogen and Hydration in Proteins Data Base” (HHDB), which catalogs all the hydrogen-atom positions in biological macromolecules and in hydration water molecules that have been determined thus far. It provides a graphic interface for visualizing all types of interactions involving hydrogen atoms, such as methyl-group configurations, the potential numbers of hydrogen bonds of amino-acid residues, H/D exchange ratios, and bifurcated, noncolinear, and frustrated hydrogen bonds. The significances of these data are explained in detail by using two proteins, RNase A and insulin, as examples. Finally, the physiological significances of the protonation and deprotonation of biologically important amino-acid residues are illustrated through a survey of various proteins.

Numerical Methods for Nonlinear Elliptic Differential Equations

Klaus Boehmer — 2011-01-01

Author:: Klaus Boehmer
ISBN:: 9780199577040
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199577040.001.0001
Published in print:: 2010
Published Online:: 2011-01-01

Nonlinear elliptic problems play an increasingly important role in mathematics, science and engineering, and create an exciting interplay. Other books discuss nonlinearity by a very few important examples. This is the first and only book, proving in a systematic and unifying way, stability and convergence results and methods for solving nonlinear discrete equations via discrete Newton methods for the different numerical methods for all these problems. The proofs use linearization, compact perturbation of the coercive principal parts, or monotone operator techniques, and approximation theory. This is examplified for linear to fully nonlinear problems (highest derivatives occur nonlinearly) and for the most important space discretization methods: conforming and nonconforming finite element, discontinuous Galerkin, finite difference and wavelet methods. The proof of stability for nonconforming methods employs the anticrime operator as an essential tool. For all these methods approximate evaluation of the discrete equations, and eigenvalue problems are discussed. The numerical methods are based upon analytic results for this wide class of problems, guaranteeing existence, uniqueness and regularity of the exact solutions. In the next book, spectral, mesh‐free methods and convergence for bifurcation and center manifolds for all these combinations are proved. Specific long open problems, solved here, are numerical methods for fully nonlinear elliptic problems, wavelet and mesh‐free methods for nonlinear problems, and more general nonlinear boundary conditions. Adaptivity is discussed for finite element and wavelet methods with totally different techniques.

Equations of Motion in General Relativity

Hideki Asada, Toshifumi Futamase, and Peter Hogan — 2011-01-01

Author:: Hideki Asada, Toshifumi Futamase, Peter Hogan
ISBN:: 9780199584109
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199584109.001.0001
Published in print:: 2010
Published Online:: 2011-01-01

This book focuses attention on two aspects of equations of motion in general relativity: the motion of extended bodies(stars) and the motion of small black holes. The objective is to offer a guide to prospective researchers into these areas of general relativity and to point out open questions and topics that are ripe for further development. It is over forty years since a text on this subject was published and in that time the research area of equations of motion in general relativity has undergone extraordinary development stimulated by the discovery of the binary neutron star PSR 1913+16 in 1974, which was the first isolated gravitating system found in which general relativity plays a fundamental role in describing theoretically its evolution, and more recently by the advent of kilometre size interferometric gravitational wave detectors which are expected to detect gravitational waves produced by coalescing binary neutron stars. Included in the book are novel topics in general relativistic celestial mechanics: choreographic configurations and the relativistic motion of small black holes.

Elements of Phase Transitions and Critical Phenomena

Hidetoshi Nishimori and Gerardo Ortiz — 2011-01-01

Author:: Hidetoshi Nishimori, Gerardo Ortiz
ISBN:: 9780199577224
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199577224.001.0001
Published in print:: 2010
Published Online:: 2011-01-01

Phase transitions and critical phenomena have consistently been among the principal subjects of active studies in statistical physics. The simple act of transforming one state of matter or phase into another, for instance by changing the temperature, has always captivated the curious mind. This book provides an introductory account on the theory of phase transitions and critical phenomena, a subject now recognized to be indispensable for students and researchers from many fields of physics and related disciplines. The first five chapters are very basic and quintessential, and cover standard topics such as mean-field theories, the renormalization group and scaling, universality, and statistical field theory methods. The remaining chapters develop more advanced concepts, including conformal field theory, the Kosterlitz-Thouless transition, the effects of randomness, percolation, exactly solvable models, series expansions, duality transformations, and numerical techniques. Moreover, a comprehensive series of appendices expand and clarify several issues not developed in the main text. The important role played by symmetry and topology in understanding the competition between phases and the resulting emergent collective behaviour, giving rise to rigidity and soft elementary excitations, is stressed throughout the book. Serious attempts have been directed toward a self-contained modular approach so that the reader does not have to refer to other sources for supplementary information. Accordingly, most of the concepts and calculations are described in detail, sometimes with additional/auxiliary descriptions given in appendices and exercises. The latter are presented as the topics develop with solutions found at the end of the book, thus giving the text a self-learning character.

Crystals, X-rays and Proteins

Dennis Sherwood and Jon Cooper — 2011-01-01

Author:: Dennis Sherwood, Jon Cooper
ISBN:: 9780199559046
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Crystallography
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199559046.001.0001
Published in print:: 2010
Published Online:: 2011-01-01

This book presents a complete account of the theory of the diffraction of X-rays by crystals with particular reference to the processes of determining the structures of protein molecules. The book develops from first principles all relevant mathematics, diffraction, and wave theory. The practical aspects of sample preparation and X-ray data collection using both laboratory and synchrotron sources are covered along with data analysis at both the theoretical and practical levels. The important role played by the Patterson function in structure analysis by both molecular replacement and experimental phasing approaches is covered, as are methods for improving the resulting electron density map. The theoretical basis of methods used in refinement of protein crystal structures are then covered in depth along with the crucial task of defining the binding sites of ligands and drug molecules. The complementary roles of other diffraction methods which reveal further detail of great functional importance in a crystal structure are outlined.

Scientific Methods and Cultural Heritage

Gilberto Artioli — 2010-09-01

Author:: Gilberto Artioli
ISBN:: 9780199548262
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, History of Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199548262.001.0001
Published in print:: 2010
Published Online:: 2010-09-01

Scientific techniques and methods developed in materials science offer invaluable information to archaeology, art history, and conservation. A rapidly growing number of innovative analytical techniques, as well as many established experimental ones, are constantly being improved and optimized for the analysis of cultural heritage materials. The book is intended as a comprehensive entry-level introduction to the methods and rationales of scientific investigations of the cultural heritage materials, with emphasis placed on analytical strategies and modes of operation, materials properties, and resulting information rather than on instrumental technicalities. The first part of the book is devoted to the understanding of the basic principles of available techniques and the information they provide. The second part describes the properties and the processes related to the most common classes of materials, including several topics such as textile, paper, and amber analysis, conservation of photographic materials, and non-invasive metal analysis that are hardly covered in other non-specialist textbooks. Students and researchers from the humanities approaching scientific enquiry should find it a useful manual of available techniques and protocols, whereas scientists applying familiar techniques and methods to unfamiliar problems related to cultural heritage materials might discover interesting and unusual fields of investigation. The extensive and up-to-date reference list aims to be a useful starting point for further reading on all the presented topics.

Networks

Mark Newman — 2010-09-01

Author:: Mark Newman
ISBN:: 9780199206650
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199206650.001.0001
Published in print:: 2010
Published Online:: 2010-09-01

The scientific study of networks, including computer networks, social networks, and biological networks, has received an enormous amount of interest in the last few years. The rise of the Internet and the wide availability of inexpensive computers have made it possible to gather and analyze network data on a large scale, and the development of a variety of new theoretical tools has allowed us to extract new knowledge from many different kinds of networks. The study of networks is broadly interdisciplinary and important developments have occurred in many fields, including mathematics, physics, computer and information sciences, biology, and the social sciences. This book brings together the most important breakthroughs in each of these fields and presents them in a coherent fashion, highlighting the strong interconnections between work in different areas. Subjects covered include the measurement and structure of networks in many branches of science, methods for analyzing network data, including methods developed in physics, statistics, and sociology, the fundamentals of graph theory, computer algorithms, and spectral methods, mathematical models of networks, including random graph models and generative models, and theories of dynamical processes taking place on networks.

Lectures on Light

Stephen Rand — 2010-09-01

Author:: Stephen Rand
ISBN:: 9780199574872
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Atomic, Laser, and Optical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199574872.001.0001
Published in print:: 2010
Published Online:: 2010-09-01

This book attempts to bridge the enormous gap between introductory quantum mechanics and the research front of modern optics and scientific fields that make use of light in one step. Hence, while it is suitable as a reference for the specialist in quantum optics, it also targets the nonspecialists from other disciplines who need to understand light and its uses in research. With a unique approach it introduces a single analytic tool, namely the density matrix, to analyze complex optical phenomena encountered in traditional as well as cross‐disciplinary research. It moves swiftly in a tight sequence from elementary to sophisticated topics in quantum optics, including laser tweezers, laser cooling, coherent population transfer, optical magnetism, electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT), squeezed light, and cavity quantum electrodynamics (QED). A systematic approach is used that starts with the simplest systems – stationary two‐level atoms – then introduces atomic motion, adds more energy levels, and moves on to discuss first‐, second‐, and third‐order coherence effects that are the basis for analyzing new optical phenomena in incompletely characterized systems. Unconventional examples and original problems are used to engage even seasoned researchers in exploring a mathematical methodology with which they can tackle virtually any new problem involving light. An extensive bibliography makes connections with mathematical techniques and subject areas which can extend the benefit of each section to guide readers further. The steady progression from “simple” to “elaborate” makes the book accessible not only to students from traditional subject areas that make use of light (physics, chemistry, electrical engineering, and materials science), but also to researchers from the “hyphenated” subjects of modern science and engineering: the biophysicists using mechanical effects of light, photochemists developing coherent control for rare species detection, biomedical engineers imaging through scattering media, electromechanical engineers working on molecular design of materials for electronics and space, electrical and computer engineers developing schemes for quantum computation, cryptography, frequency references, and so on. To try to identify techniques and ideas that are universal enough to be applied across the bewildering landscape of research on intersecting boundaries of emerging modern disciplines is a great challenge of out time. “Lectures on Light” offers selected insights on quantum dynamics and quantum theory of light for exactly this purpose.

Crystal Structure Refinement

2010-09-01

Author:: Peter Müller, Regine Herbst-Irmer, Anthony L. Spek, Thomas R. Schneider, Michael R. Sawaya
ISBN:: 9780198570769
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Crystallography
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198570769.001.0001
Published in print:: 2006
Published Online:: 2010-09-01

This book covers advanced aspects of practical crystal structure refinement, focusing on practical problems in the everyday life of a crystallographer. After an introduction to SHELXL in the first chapter, the second chapter provides a brief survey of crystal structure refinement. The next few chapters address the various aspects of structure refinement, from the treatment of hydrogen atoms to the assignment of atom types, to disorder, to non-crystallographic symmetry and twinning. One chapter is dedicated to the refinement of macromolecular structures and two shorter chapters deal with structure validation. In most chapters, the book gives refinement examples, based on the program SHELXL, describing every problem in detail.

Macromolecular Crystallization and Crystal Perfection

Naomi E. Chayen, John R. Helliwell, and Edward H. Snell — 2010-05-01

Author:: Naomi E. Chayen, John R. Helliwell, Edward H. Snell
ISBN:: 9780199213252
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Crystallography
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199213252.001.0001
Published in print:: 2010
Published Online:: 2010-05-01

Structural crystallography provides key information to understand the mechanism involved for biological processes. The technique requires high‐quality crystals. The book Macromolecular crystallization and crystal perfection covers the techniques to get these high quality crystals and then obtain the best structural data from them. We focus on two areas, the crystal and the diffraction experiment. We briefly address crystallization theory and then focus on practical crystallization strategies discussing screening and optimization. Where high quality crystals are not initially obtained, remediation strategies and alternative approaches are discussed. Diffraction is covered from both the X‐ray and neutron viewpoint. A physical analysis of long and short‐range order is used to explain features seen in the diffraction pattern and the causes of those features. Diffraction disorders are discussed. Factors that cause degradation to the diffraction and strategies to mitigate those factors are addressed. We then address beamline and detector optimization as a means to improve the data quality. Crystallization is still a largely empirical process and our final chapters focus on the use of powder methods, where crystals are small, complementary techniques where we have no crystals at all and what the future holds with the advent of fourth generation X‐ray sources. Overall the book is aimed at both more experienced researchers and graduate students. We aim for it to become a reference work for all researchers in these interdisciplinary subjects on these topics.

Lectures on Complex Networks

Sergey Dorogovtsev — 2010-05-01

Author:: Sergey Dorogovtsev
ISBN:: 9780199548927
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199548927.001.0001
Published in print:: 2010
Published Online:: 2010-05-01

This book provides a concise modern introduction to the science of complex networks. The book is based on lectures for university students and non-specialists. The aim is to introduce the world of networks to the subject without need for a serious background in mathematics or physics. The introductory chapters fill the existing gap between popular science books and comprehensive reference volumes on complex networks (including the Internet, World Wide Web, etc.). The book provides the shortest path to the world of networks and discusses the main directions of modern research in this active field as well as the history of network studies. The book describes the current state of the art in complex networks and includes recent results.

Atomic Force Microscopy

Peter Eaton and Paul West — 2010-05-01

Author:: Peter Eaton, Paul West
ISBN:: 9780199570454
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Atomic, Laser, and Optical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199570454.001.0001
Published in print:: 2010
Published Online:: 2010-05-01

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is an amazing technique that allies a versatile methodology (it allows the imaging of samples in liquid, vacuum or air) to imaging with unprecedented resolution. But it goes one step further than conventional microscopic techniques; it also allows us to make measurements of magnetic, electrical or mechanical properties of the widest possible range of samples, with nanometre resolution. This book will demystify AFM for the reader, making it easy to understand, and easy to use. Peter Eaton and Paul West share a common passion for atomic force microscopy. However, they have very different perspectives on the technique. Over the past 12 years Peter used AFMs as the focal point of his research in a variety of scientific projects from materials science to biology. Paul, on the other hand, is an instrument builder and has spent the past 25 years creating these microscopes for scientists and engineers. This insightful book covers the theory, practice and applications of atomic force microscopes and will serve as an introduction to AFM for scientists and engineers that want to learn about this powerful technique, and as a reference book for expert AFM users. Application examples from the physical, materials, and life sciences, nanotechnology and industry illustrate the many and varied capabilities of the technique.

A Zeptospace Odyssey: A Journey into the Physics of the LHC

Gian Francesco Giudice — 2010-02-01

Author:: Gian Francesco Giudice
ISBN:: 9780199581917
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Particle Physics / Astrophysics / Cosmology
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199581917.001.0001
Published in print:: 2009
Published Online:: 2010-02-01

It is at this very moment that the most ambitious scientific experiment of all time is about to begin, and yet its precise aims are rather poorly understood by the general public. This book provides an everyman's guide for understanding and following the discoveries that will take place within the next few years at the LHC project at CERN. This book shares an insider's view of the world of particle physics and allows for an appreciation of a true intellectual revolution that is about to take place. The technological innovations required to build the LHC constitute not the least among the many astonishing aspects of this scientific adventure, and they too are described here as part of the LHC story. The book culminates with an outline of the scientific aims and expectations at the LHC. Does the mysterious Higgs boson exist? Does space hide supersymmetry or extend into extra dimensions? How can colliding protons at the LHC unlock the secrets of the origin of our universe? These questions are all framed and then addressed by an expert in the field.

Semiconductor Nanostructures

Thomas Ihn — 2010-02-01

Author:: Thomas Ihn
ISBN:: 9780199534425
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199534425.001.0001
Published in print:: 2009
Published Online:: 2010-02-01

This book presents the physics of semiconductor nanostructures with emphasis on their electronic transport properties. At its heart are five fundamental transport phenomena: quantized conductance, tunneling transport, the Aharonov–Bohm effect, the quantum Hall effect, and the Coulomb blockade effect. The book starts out with basics of solid state and semiconductor physics, such as crystal structure, band structure, and effective mass approximation, including spin-orbit interaction effects important for research in semiconductor spintronics. It deals with material aspects such as band engineering, doping, gating, and a selection of nanostructure fabrication techniques. The book discusses the Drude–Boltzmann–Sommerfeld transport theory as well as conductance quantization and the Landauer–Büttiker theory. These concepts are extended to mesoscopic interference phenomena and decoherence, magnetotransport, and interaction effects in quantum-confined systems, guiding the reader from fundamental effects to specialized state-of-the-art experiments.

Relativity, Gravitation and Cosmology

Ta-Pei Cheng — 2010-02-01

Author:: Ta-Pei Cheng
ISBN:: 9780199573639
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Particle Physics / Astrophysics / Cosmology
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199573639.001.0001
Published in print:: 2009
Published Online:: 2010-02-01

Einstein's general theory of relativity is introduced in this advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate level textbook. Topics include special relativity, the principle of equivalence, Riemannian geometry and tensor analysis, Einstein field equation, as well as many modern cosmological subjects: from primordial inflation, cosmic microwave anisotropy to the dark energy that propels an accelerating universe. The subjects are presented with an emphasis on physical examples and simple applications. One first learns how to describe curved spacetime. At this mathematically more accessible level, the reader can already study the many interesting phenomena such as gravitational lensing, black holes, and cosmology. The full tensor formulation is presented later, when the Einstein equation is solved for a few symmetric cases. Mathematical accessibility, together with the various pedagogical devices (e.g., worked-out solutions of chapter-end problems), make it practical for interested readers to use the book to study general relativity and cosmology on their own. In this new edition of the book, presentations on special relativity and black holes are augmented by new chapters. Other parts of the book are updated to include new observation tests of general relativity (e.g., the double pular system) and more recent evidence for dark matter and dark energy.

Polarisation: Applications in Remote Sensing

Shane Cloude — 2010-02-01

Author:: Shane Cloude
ISBN:: 9780199569731
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Particle Physics / Astrophysics / Cosmology, Geophysics, Atmospheric and Environmental Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199569731.001.0001
Published in print:: 2009
Published Online:: 2010-02-01

This book is concerned with the exploitation of polarisation effects in electromagnetic wave scattering for applications in remote sensing. It combines, for the first time, the topics of scattering polarimetry and interferometry, and is written in three main sections. In the first four chapters it provides detailed coverage of all major topics of polarimetry, including its basis in electromagnetic scattering theory, the topic of decomposition theorems, and a detailed analysis of the entropy/alpha approach to characterising polarisation effects. In the next chapter it provides a brief introduction to radar interferometry, before developing in three chapters the important new topic of polarimetric interferometry. In this way it provides a complete treatment of the subject, suitable for those working in interferometry who wish to know about polarimetry, or vice versa, as well as those new to the topic who are seeking a one-stop comprehensive treatment of the subject. The emphasis throughout is on the application of these techniques to remote sensing and the book concludes with a set of practical examples to illustrate the theoretical ideas. Useful appendices on matrix algebra, unitary groups and stochastic signal analysis are provided.

Concepts in Thermal Physics

Stephen J. Blundell and Katherine M. Blundell — 2010-02-01

Author:: Stephen J. Blundell, Katherine M. Blundell
ISBN:: 9780199562091
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Particle Physics / Astrophysics / Cosmology
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199562091.001.0001
Published in print:: 2009
Published Online:: 2010-02-01

An understanding of thermal physics is crucial to much of modern physics, chemistry, and engineering. This book provides a modern introduction to the main principles that are foundational to thermal physics, thermodynamics, and statistical mechanics. The key concepts are carefully presented in a clear way, and new ideas are illustrated with worked examples as well as a description of the historical background to their discovery. Applications are presented to subjects as diverse as stellar astrophysics, information and communication theory, condensed matter physics, and climate change. Each chapter concludes with detailed exercises. This second edition of the text maintains the structure and style of the first edition but extends its coverage of thermodynamics and statistical mechanics to include several new topics, including osmosis, diffusion problems, Bayes theorem, radiative transfer, the Ising model, and Monte Carlo methods. New examples and exercises have been added throughout.

Advanced Statistical Mechanics

Barry M McCoy — 2010-02-01

Author:: Barry M McCoy
ISBN:: 9780199556632
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199556632.001.0001
Published in print:: 2009
Published Online:: 2010-02-01

This book begins where elementary books and courses leave off and covers the advances made in statistical mechanics in the past fifty years. The book is divided into three parts. The first part is on general theory which includes a summary of the basic principles of statistical mechanics; a presentation of the physical phenomena covered and the models used to discuss them; theorems on the existence and uniqueness of partition functions; theorems on order; and critical phenomena and scaling theory. The second part is on series and numerical methods which includes derivations of the Mayer and Ree–Hoover expansions of the low density virial equation of state; Groeneveld's theorems; the application to hard spheres and discs; a summary of numerical studies of systems at high density; and the use of high temperature series expansions to estimate critical exponents for magnets. The third part covers exactly solvable models which includes a detailed presentation of the Pfaffian methods of computing the Ising partition function, magnetization, correlation functions, and susceptibility; the star-triangle (Yang–Baxter equation); functional equations and the free energy for the eight-vertex model; and the hard hexagon and chiral Potts models. All needed mathematics is developed in detail and many open questions are discussed. The goal is to guide the reader to the current forefront of research.

Acoustic Microscopy

Andrew Briggs and Oleg Kolosov — 2010-02-01

Author:: Andrew Briggs, Oleg Kolosov
ISBN:: 9780199232734
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199232734.001.0001
Published in print:: 2009
Published Online:: 2010-02-01

Acoustic microscopy enables you to image and measure the elastic properties of materials with the resolution of a good microscope. By using frequencies in the microwave range, it is possible to make the acoustic wavelength comparable with the wavelength of light, and hence to achieve a resolution comparable with an optical microscope. The contrast gives information about the elastic properties and structure of the sample. Since acoustic waves can propagate in materials, acoustic microscopy can be used for interior imaging, with high sensitivity to defects such as delaminations. Solids can support both longitudinal and transverse acoustic waves. At surfaces a combination of the two known as Rayleigh waves can propagate, and in many circumstances these dominate the contrast in acoustic microscopy. Contrast theory accounts for the variation of signal with defocus, V(z). Acoustic microscopy can image and measure properties such as anisotropy and features such as surface boundaries and cracks. A scanning probe microscope can be used to detect ultrasonic vibration of a surface with resolution in the nanometre range, thus beating the diffraction limit by operating in the extreme near‐field. This 2nd edition of Acoustic Microscopy has a major new chapter on the technique and applications of acoustically exited probe microscopy.

The Weak Hydrogen Bond

Gautam Desiraju and Thomas Steiner — 2010-01-01

Author:: Gautam Desiraju, Thomas Steiner
ISBN:: 9780198509707
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Crystallography
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198509707.001.0001
Published in print:: 2001
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

The weak hydrogen bond, also known as non-conventional hydrogen bond, has been the subject of intense scrutiny over recent years in several fields, in particular structural chemistry, structural biology, and the pharmaceutical sciences. Today, there is a large body of experimental and theoretical evidence confirming that hydrogen bonds like C-H···O, N-H···π, C-H···π and even bonds like O-H··· metal play distinctive roles in molecular recognition, guiding molecular association, and in determining molecular and supramolecular architectures. The relevant compound classes include organometallic complexes, organic and bio-organic systems, as well as DNA and proteins.

The Universe in a Helium Droplet

Grigory E. Volovik — 2010-01-01

Author:: Grigory E. Volovik
ISBN:: 9780199564842
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials, Particle Physics / Astrophysics / Cosmology
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199564842.001.0001
Published in print:: 2009
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

There are fundamental relations between three vast areas of physics: particle physics, cosmology, and condensed matter physics. The fundamental links between the first two areas — in other words, between micro- and macro-worlds — have been well established. There is a unified system of laws governing the scales from subatomic particles to the cosmos and this principle is widely exploited in the description of the physics of the early universe. This book aims to establish and define the connection of these two fields with condensed matter physics. According to the modern view, elementary particles (electrons, neutrinos, quarks, etc.) are excitations of a more fundamental medium called the quantum vacuum. This is the new ‘aether’ of the 21st century. Electromagnetism, gravity, and the fields transferring weak and strong interactions all represent different types of the collective motion of the quantum vacuum. Among the existing condensed matter systems, a quantum liquid called superfluid 3He-A most closely represents the quantum vacuum. Its quasiparticles are very similar to the elementary particles, while the collective modes are analogues of photons and gravitons. The fundamental laws of physics, such as the laws of relativity (Lorentz invariance) and gauge invariance, arise when the temperature of the quantum liquid decreases.

Time Restored

Jonathan Betts — 2010-01-01

Author:: Jonathan Betts
ISBN:: 9780198568025
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, History of Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198568025.001.0001
Published in print:: 2006
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This is the story of Rupert T. Gould (1890-1948), the polymath and horologist. A remarkable man, Lt Cmdr Gould made important contributions in an extraordinary range of subject areas throughout his relatively short and dramatically troubled life. From antique clocks to scientific mysteries, from typewriters to the first systematic study of the Loch Ness Monster, Gould studied and published on them all. With the title ‘The Stargazer’, Gould was an early broadcaster on the BBC's Children's Hour when, with his encyclopaedic knowledge, he became known as The Man Who Knew Everything. Not surprisingly, he was also part of that elite group on BBC radio who formed The Brains Trust, giving on-the-spot answers to all manner of wide ranging and difficult questions. With his wide learning and photographic memory, Gould awed a national audience, becoming one of the era's radio celebrities. During the 1920s Gould restored the complex and highly significant marine timekeepers constructed by John Harrison (1693-1776), and wrote the unsurpassed classic, The Marine Chronometer, its History and Development. Today he is virtually unknown, his horological contributions scarcely mentioned in Dava Sobel's bestseller Longitude. The TV version of Longitude, in which Jeremy Irons played Rupert Gould, did at least introduce Rupert's name to a wider public. Gould suffered terrible bouts of depression, resulting in a number of nervous breakdowns. These, coupled with his obsessive and pedantic nature, led to a scandalously-reported separation from his wife and cost him his family, his home, his job, and his closest friends.

Theory of Optical Processes in Semiconductors

P. K. Basu — 2010-01-01

Author:: P. K. Basu
ISBN:: 9780198526209
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Atomic, Laser, and Optical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198526209.001.0001
Published in print:: 2003
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

Semiconductor optoelectronic devices are at the heart of all information generation and processing systems and are likely to be essential components of future optical computers. With more emphasis on optoelectronics and photonics in graduate programmes in physics and engineering, there is a need for a text providing a basic understanding of the important physical phenomena involved. Such a training is necessary for the design, optimization, and search for new materials, devices, and application areas. This book provides a simple quantum mechanical theory of important optical processes, i.e. band-to-band, intersubband, and excitonic absorption and recombination in bulk, quantum wells, wires, dots, superlattices, and strained layers including electro-optic effects. The classical theory of absorption, quantization of radiation, and band picture based on k p perturbation has been included to provide the necessary background. Prerequisites for the book are a knowledge of quantum mechanics and solid state theory. Problems have been set at the end of each chapter, some of which may guide the reader to study processes not covered in the book. The application areas of the phenomena are also indicated.

The Theory of Open Quantum Systems

Heinz-Peter Breuer and Francesco Petruccione — 2010-01-01

Author:: Heinz-Peter Breuer, Francesco Petruccione
ISBN:: 9780199213900
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199213900.001.0001
Published in print:: 2007
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This book treats the central physical concepts and mathematical techniques used to investigate the dynamics of open quantum systems. To provide a self-contained presentation, the text begins with a survey of classical probability theory and with an introduction to the foundations of quantum mechanics, with particular emphasis on its statistical interpretation and on the formulation of generalized measurement theory through quantum operations and effects. The fundamentals of density matrix theory, quantum Markov processes, and completely positive dynamical semigroups are developed. The most important master equations used in quantum optics and condensed matter theory are derived and applied to the study of many examples. Special attention is paid to the Markovian and non-Markovian theory of environment induced decoherence, its role in the dynamical description of the measurement process, and to the experimental observation of decohering electromagnetic field states. The book includes the modern formulation of open quantum systems in terms of stochastic processes in Hilbert space. Stochastic wave function methods and Monte Carlo algorithms are designed and applied to important examples from quantum optics and atomic physics. The fundamentals of the treatment of non-Markovian quantum processes in open systems are developed on the basis of various mathematical techniques, such as projection superoperator methods and influence functional techniques. In addition, the book expounds the relativistic theory of quantum measurements and the density matrix theory of relativistic quantum electrodynamics.

Theory of Nonequilibrium Superconductivity

Nikolai Kopnin — 2010-01-01

Author:: Nikolai Kopnin
ISBN:: 9780198507888
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198507888.001.0001
Published in print:: 2001
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This book presents modern theory of nonstationary and nonequilibrium superconductivity. It deals with superconductors in external fields varying in time and studies transport phenomena in superconductors. The book provides the microscopic theory based on the Green function formalism within the Bardeen, Cooper, and Schrieffer (BCS) theory. The method of quasiclassical Green functions is formulated for both stationary and nonequilibrium problems in the theory of superconductivity. Chapters 1 to 4 give an introduction to the Green function formalism in the BCS theory for clean materials and alloys. In next two chapters, the quasiclassical approximation is introduced and applied to some generic stationary problems such as the Ginzburg–Landau (GL) equations, critical magnetic fields, gapless superconductivity, d-wave superconductivity, bound states in the vortex core. Chapter 7 describes the quasiclassical method for layered superconductors. In Chapter 8 the nonstationary theory is formulated using both the method of analytical continuation and the Keldysh diagram technique. Next two chapters are devoted to the quasiclassical approximation and to generalized kinetic equations in nonstationary situations. Chapter 11 demonstrates how the GL model can be extended to nonstationary problems. A considerable part of the book is devoted to the vortex dynamics, which treats behaviour of type II superconductors when they carry electric currents in presence of a magnetic field. Chapters 12 to 15 deal with the dynamics of vortices. In Chapter 12, the time-dependent GL model is used to calculate the resistivity in the flux flow regime. Chapter 13 derives the forces acting on a moving vortex using the Green function formalism and applies the microscopic theory to the vortex dynamics in superconducting alloys. In Chapters 14 and 15 the vortex dynamics in clean superconductors is considered and the flux-flow conductivity, the vortex Hall effect, and the vortex mass are calculated.

Theories of Molecular Reaction Dynamics

Niels E. Henriksen and Flemming Y. Hansen — 2010-01-01

Author:: Niels E. Henriksen, Flemming Y. Hansen
ISBN:: 9780199203864
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199203864.001.0001
Published in print:: 2008
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This book deals with a central topic at the interface of chemistry and physics — the understanding of how the transformation of matter takes place at the atomic level. Building on the laws of physics, the book focuses on the theoretical framework for predicting the outcome of chemical reactions. The style is highly systematic with attention to basic concepts and clarity of presentation. Molecular reaction dynamics is about the detailed atomic-level description of chemical reactions. Based on quantum mechanics and statistical mechanics or, as an approximation, classical mechanics, the dynamics of uni- and bi-molecular elementary reactions are described. The first part of the book is on gas-phase dynamics and it features a detailed presentation of reaction cross-sections and their relation to a quasi-classical as well as a quantum mechanical description of the reaction dynamics on a potential energy surface. Direct approaches to the calculation of the rate constant that bypasses the detailed state-to-state reaction cross-sections are presented, including transition-state theory, which plays an important role in practice. The second part gives a comprehensive discussion of basic theories of reaction dynamics in condensed phases, including Kramers and Grote–Hynes theory for dynamical solvent effects. Examples and end-of-chapter problems are included in order to illustrate the theory and its connection to chemical problems. The book has nine appendices with useful details, e.g. on statistical mechanics including the Boltzmann distribution, quantum mechanics, stochastic dynamics and various coordinate transformations including normal-mode and Jacobi coordinates.

Structure Determination from Powder Diffraction Data

W.I.F. David, K. Shankland, L.B. McCusker, and C. Bärlocher — 2010-01-01

Author:: W.I.F.DavidISIS Facility, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Chilton, DidcotK.ShanklandISIS Facility, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Chilton, DidcotL.B.McCuskerLaboratory of Crystallography, ETH Zurich, SwitzerlandC.BärlocherLaboratory of Crystallography, ETH Zurich, Switzerland
ISBN:: 9780199205530
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199205530.001.0001
Published in print:: 2006
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

The art of solving a structure from powder diffraction data has developed rapidly over the last ten years to the point where numerous crystal structures, both organic and inorganic, have been solved directly from powder data. However, it is still an art and, in contrast to its single crystal equivalent, is far from routine. The art lies not only in the correct application of a specific experimental technique or computer program, but also in the selection of the optimal path for the problem at hand.

The Story of Semiconductors

John W. Orton — 2010-01-01

Author:: John W. Orton
ISBN:: 9780199559107
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Crystallography
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199559107.001.0001
Published in print:: 2008
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This book provides an overview of the fascinating spectrum of semiconductor physics, devices, and applications, presented from a historical perspective. It covers the subject from its inception in the early 19th century up to the recent millennium. The first chapter introduces the essential properties of semiconductor materials, together with a brief account of their distribution within the Periodic Table, while the second chapter outlines their development from Faraday's work on silver sulphide up to their application in microwave radar during the Second World War. Chapter three deals with the dramatic events leading to the invention of the transistor at Bell Labs in 1947, followed in chapter four by the application of silicon to the integrated circuit and to a series of power devices with wide ranging applications. Chapter five introduces a number of compound semiconductor materials with application to microwave and optical devices, chapter six describes the development of low-dimensional and nano-scale structures, while chapters seven, eight and nine cover light-emitting devices, fibre-optic communications and applications in the infra-red. The final chapter is concerned with large area applications such as LCD TVs and photovoltaics. The book emphasises the vital relationship between semiconductor physics, materials and devices and places this discussion within the context of appropriate applications. The book is organised so as to provide a text that is light on mathematics, together with a series of ‘boxes’ describing important specific examples with greater mathematical detail.

Stellar Magnetism

Leon Mestel — 2010-01-01

Author:: Leon Mestel
ISBN:: 9780198526728
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Particle Physics / Astrophysics / Cosmology
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198526728.001.0001
Published in print:: 2003
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

Most stars appear to show some degree of magnetic activity. For example, the varying magnetic field of the Sun shows up in the familiar sun-spot cycle. Similar behaviour is observationally inferred in other solar-type stars. Radio and X-ray pulsars are enormously dense, rapidly rotating neutron stars that carry nearly steady magnetic fields, which are far stronger than the average magnetic field of the Sun. Likewise, many uncollapsed stars behave like rotating permanent magnets. Furthermore, magnetic fields may partly control the formation of new stars, especially through interaction with angular momentum, as well as the spectacular phenomena observed in galactic nuclei. Stellar magnetism is therefore a rapidly developing field of astrophysics. In this book, most of the important topics are treated in mathematical depth, with reference given to other relevant literature. Some of the studies, especially those on accretion discs, dynamos, and winds are applicable to galaxies and galactic nuclei.

Statistical Physics of Spin Glasses and Information Processing

Hidetoshi Nishimori — 2010-01-01

Author:: Hidetoshi Nishimori
ISBN:: 9780198509417
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198509417.001.0001
Published in print:: 2001
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

Spin glasses are magnetic materials with strong disorder. Statistical mechanics has been a powerful tool to theoretically analyse various unique properties of spin glasses. A number of new analytical techniques have been developed to establish a theory of spin glasses. Surprisingly, these techniques have offered new tools and viewpoints for the understanding of information processing problems, including neural networks, error-correcting codes, image restoration, and optimization problems. A vast, interdisciplinary field has consequently been developing between physics and information, or more specifically, between the statistical physics of spin glasses and several important aspects of information processing tasks. This book provides a broad overview of this new field. It also contains detailed descriptions of the theory of spin glasses.

Simple Models of Magnetism

Ralph Skomski — 2010-01-01

Author:: Ralph Skomski
ISBN:: 9780198570752
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198570752.001.0001
Published in print:: 2008
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

For hundreds of years, models of magnetism have been pivotal in the understanding and advancement of science and technology, from the Earth's interpretation as a magnetic dipole to quantum mechanics, statistical physics, and modern nanotechnology. This book is the first to envision the field of magnetism in its entirety. It complements a rich literature on specific models of magnetism and provides an introduction to simple models, including some simple limits of complicated models. The book is written in an easily accessible style, with a limited amount of mathematics, and covers a wide range of models on quantum mechanics, finite temperature, micromagnetics, and dynamics. It deals not only with basic magnetic quantities, such as moment, Curie temperature, anisotropy, and coercivity, but also with modern areas such as nanomagnetism and spintronics, and with ‘exotic’ themes, as exemplified by the polymer analogy of magnetic phase transitions. Throughout the book, a sharp line is drawn between simple and simplistic models, and much space is devoted to discussing the merits and failures of the individual model approaches.

Scale-Free Networks

Guido Caldarelli — 2010-01-01

Author:: Guido Caldarelli
ISBN:: 9780199211517
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199211517.001.0001
Published in print:: 2007
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

A variety of different social, natural and technological systems can be described by the same mathematical framework. This holds from the Internet to food webs and to boards of company directors. In all these situations, a graph of the elements of the system and their interconnections displays a universal feature. There are only a few elements with many connections and many elements with few connections. This book reports the experimental evidence of these ‘Scale-free networks’ and provides students and researchers with a corpus of theoretical results and algorithms to analyse and understand these features. The content of this book and the exposition makes it a clear textbook for beginners and a reference book for experts.

Revolutionaries of the Cosmos

Ian Glass — 2010-01-01

Author:: Ian Glass
ISBN:: 9780199550258
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, History of Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199550258.001.0001
Published in print:: 2008
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

Galileo, Newton, Herschel, Huggins, Hale, Eddington, Shapley, and Hubble: these astronomers applied ideas drawn from physics to astronomy and made dramatic changes to the world-pictures that they inherited. They showed that celestial objects are composed of the same materials as the earth and that they behave in the same way. They displaced successively the earth, the sun, and finally the Milky Way galaxy from being the centre of the universe. This book, suitable for scientists from a broad range of disciplines as well as laypeople, contains their biographies and outlines their greatest discoveries. Hard work, physical insight, desire for fame and a strong belief in the rightness of their own ideas were characteristics of all eight. It is also the first serious treatment of William Huggins. Their often quirky personalities led them into bitter controversies with their contemporaries. But their successes arose from the outstanding clarity of their thoughts, their practical ability and their strong sense of direction in science.

Relaxation Processes in Micromagnetics

Harry Suhl — 2010-01-01

Author:: Harry Suhl
ISBN:: 9780198528029
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198528029.001.0001
Published in print:: 2007
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

Electrons in solids behave like microscopic bar magnets, and in certain solids these align to produce macroscopic magnetizations. This book deals with the dynamics of this magnetization field. It addresses questions of microscopic mechanism only to the extent that residual interactions of the magnetic moments with other degrees of freedom of the host solid affect the dynamics, particularly the dissipative aspects. Several of these damping mechanisms are evaluated here for their effect on the equations of the magnetization dynamics. These dynamics are intrinsically nonlinear. This is important in the applications, particularly magnetic recording, which involves very large motion of the magnetization, well beyond the validity of linearized (small motion) approximations or limited extensions thereof. Therefore nonlinear solution methods are emphasized, but with only minimal use of numerical simulation.

Random Processes in Physics and Finance

Melvin Lax, Wei Cai, and Min Xu — 2010-01-01

Author:: Melvin Lax, Wei Cai, Min Xu
ISBN:: 9780198567769
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198567769.001.0001
Published in print:: 2006
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This book discusses random processes in physics, from basic probability theory to the Fokker-Planck process and Langevin equation for the Fokker Planck process and diffusion. It includes diverse applications, such as explanations of very narrow laser width, analytical solutions of the elastic Boltzmann transport equation, and a critical viewpoint of mathematics currently used in the world of finance. The name ‘econophysics’ has been used to denote the use of the mathematical techniques developed for the study of random processes in physical systems to applications in the economic and financial worlds. Since a substantial number of physicists are now employed in the financial arena or are doing research in this area, it is appropriate to give a course that emphasises and relates physical applications to financial applications. The course and text in this book differ from mathematical texts by emphasising the origins of noise, as opposed to an analysis of its transformation by linear and nonlinear devices. Among other topics, this book discusses thermal noise, shot noise, fluctuation-dissipation theorem, and delta functions.

Quasielastic Neutron Scattering and Solid State Diffusion

Rolf Hempelmann — 2010-01-01

Author:: Rolf Hempelmann
ISBN:: 9780198517436
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198517436.001.0001
Published in print:: 2000
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

The book provides an account of quasielastic neutron scattering (QENS) which has made many important contributions to the atomistic elucidation of diffusion processes in solids. The unique feature of QENS is that it probes the diffusion process on atomistic scales of space and time simultaneously. The aim of this book is to inform of the potential of QENS. Chapters 3-6 present the derivation of all equations in great details. Chapter 2 deals with neutron sources, and Chapter 7 with some experimental details of QENS. The second part addresses the expert and summarizes the scientific applications of quasielastic neutron scattering to special solid state material systems, as for example to diffusion in metals or to diffusion in solid state ionic conductors. By far the most favourable element for QENS is hydrogen: hydrogen is very mobile in metals and ceramics, so the restricted energy/time resolution of QENS is no limitation; hydrogen has a huge scattering cross section, so the limited intensity of existing neutron sources is no limitation; hydrogen leads to almost purely incoherent scattering which facilitates the theoretical treatment and interpretation of neutron scattering events appreciably.

Quantum Hall systems

Lucjan Jacak, Piotr Sitko, Konrad Wieczorek, and Arkadiusz Wójs — 2010-01-01

Author:: Lucjan Jacak, Piotr Sitko, Konrad Wieczorek, Arkadiusz Wójs
ISBN:: 9780198528708
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198528708.001.0001
Published in print:: 2003
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

The book presents the wide range of topics in two-dimensional physics of quantum Hall systems, especially fractional quantum Hall states. It starts with the fundamental problems of quantum statistics in two dimensions and the corresponding braid group formalism. The braid group formalism of anyons (previously known) is developed for composite fermions. The effective formalism used in many-body quantum Hall theories — the Chern–Simons theory is also presented. The Chern–Simons theory of anyons (particles obeying fractional statistics) and composite fermions (related to Hall systems) is given, in detail. Numerical studies, which play the important role in quantum Hall analyses, are presented for spherical systems (Haldane sphere). The composite fermion theory is tested in numerical studies. The concept of the hierarchy of condensed states of composite fermion excitations is introduced (in analogy to the Haldane hierarchy). The hierarchies of odd-denominator states and even-denominator states are presented. The BCS paired Hall state is also discussed. An introduction to multi-component quantum Hall systems and spin quantum Hall systems is sketched.

Quantum Gravity

Claus Kiefer — 2010-01-01

Author:: Claus Kiefer
ISBN:: 9780199212521
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199212521.001.0001
Published in print:: 2007
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This book is concerned with the attempts to unify Einstein's theory of general relativity and quantum theory into a theory of quantum gravity. Among the approaches include canonical quantum gravity (including loop quantum gravity), covariant quantum gravity, and string theory. The book also discusses the relevance of these theories for cosmology and the physics of black holes. Chapter 1 gives a general introduction into the problem of quantizing the gravitational field. Chapter 2 then presents the main covariant approaches — perturbation theory and Feynman diagrammes, path integrals, and supergravity. Chapter 3 discusses, for simpler systems, the important concept of reparametrization invariance which plays a crucial role in the Hamiltonian formulation of general relativity discussed thereafter. Chapter 5 presents the canonical quantization in the metric variables, leading to the central Wheeler-DeWitt equation, while Chapter 6 presents loop quantum gravity. The next two chapters then discuss the major applications — quantization of black holes and quantum cosmology. Chapter 9 gives an introduction to string theory by focusing on its quantum gravitational aspects. The book concludes with a discussion of the relevance of quantum gravity for the interpretation of quantum theory.

Quantum Field Theory of Many-Body Systems

Xiao-Gang Wen — 2010-01-01

Author:: Xiao-Gang Wen
ISBN:: 9780199227259
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199227259.001.0001
Published in print:: 2007
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

For most of the last century, condensed matter physics has been dominated by band theory and Landau's symmetry breaking theory. In the last twenty years, however, there has been an emergence of a new paradigm associated with fractionalization, emergent gauge bosons and fermions, topological order, string-net condensation, and long range entanglements. These new physical concepts are so fundamental that they may even influence our understanding of the origin of light and electrons in the universe. This book is a pedagogical and systematic introduction to the new concepts and quantum field theoretical methods in condensed matter physics. It discusses many basic notions in theoretical physics which underlie physical phenomena in nature, including a notion that unifies light and electrons. Topics covered include dissipative quantum systems, boson condensation, symmetry breaking and gapless excitations, phase transitions, Fermi liquids, spin density wave states, Fermi and fractional statistics, quantum Hall effects, topological/quantum order, and spin liquid and string-net condensation. Methods discussed include the path integral, Green's functions, mean-field theory, effective theory, renormalization group, bosonization in one- and higher dimensions, non-linear sigma-model, quantum gauge theory, dualities, projective construction, and exactly soluble models beyond one-dimension.

Quantum Field Theory and Critical Phenomena

Jean Zinn-Justin — 2010-01-01

Author:: Jean Zinn-Justin
ISBN:: 9780198509233
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198509233.001.0001
Published in print:: 2002
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

The book is an introduction to quantum field theory and renormalization group. It shows that these frameworks are essential for the understanding of phenomena belonging to many different areas of physics, which range from phase transitions in macroscopic systems to the theory of fundamental interactions. This book emphasizes the common aspects of particle physics and the theory of critical phenomena in a unified framework. Three new chapters have been included in this edition: an introduction to non-relativistic quantum statistical physics; a chapter on critical phenomena in non-magnetic systems, polymers, liquid-vapour, and helium superfluid transitions; and a chapter on finite temperature relativistic quantum field theory. The book can be roughly divided into four parts: chapters 1-12 deal with general field theory, functional integrals, and functional methods. In chapters 13-21, renormalization properties of theories with symmetries are studied and specific applications to particle physics are emphasized. Chapters 23-37 are devoted to critical phenomena. Chapters 39-43 describe the role of instantons in quantum mechanics and field theory.

Quantum Dynamical Systems

Robert Alicki and Mark Fannes — 2010-01-01

Author:: Robert Alicki, Mark Fannes
ISBN:: 9780198504009
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198504009.001.0001
Published in print:: 2001
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This book presents a number of basic concepts and mathematical techniques for analyzing quantum and classical dynamical systems on an equal basis, mainly but not solely aimed at quantifying randomizing dynamical behaviour. One of the central topics is the introduction of a quantum dynamical entropy based on successive observations of the system. This leads to a symbolic model in terms of a state on a quantum spin chain and its associated entropy that quantifies the complexity of the time evolution. Several model systems are analyzed, but more realistic dynamics and scaling limits are considered as well. Gradually the key concepts and mathematical results are presented and special attention is paid to their relevance for quantum dynamics. The book starts out with a reminder of standard Hilbert space quantum mechanics and then gently introduces the need for the more general and abstract C*-dynamical system setup. Basic examples like quantum spin chains, CAR- and CCR-formalism, and the irrational rotation algebra are described. Next the essential notions from ergodic theory and quantum irreversibility are provided along with the properties and use of von Neumann entropy as quantifiers for randomness. The last part of the book introduces a quantum dynamical entropy based on operational partitions: for classical dynamics the well-established KS-invariant is recovered, while for quantum dynamics a variety of systems are analyzed. The book ends with some open problems and speculations on the footprints of microscopic quantum dynamics on transport phenomena at the macroscopic scale.

Quantum Dot Lasers

Victor M. Ustinov, Alexey E. Zhukov, Anton Yu. Egorov, and Nikolai A. Maleev — 2010-01-01

Author:: Victor M. Ustinov, Alexey E. Zhukov, Anton Yu. Egorov, Nikolai A. Maleev
ISBN:: 9780198526797
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Atomic, Laser, and Optical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198526797.001.0001
Published in print:: 2003
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This book is devoted to the physics and technology of diode lasers based on self-organized quantum dots (QD). It addresses the fundamental and technology aspects of QD edge-emitting and vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers, reviewing their current status and future prospects. The theoretically predicted advantages of an ideal QD array for laser applications are discussed and the basic principles of QD formation using self-organization phenomena are reviewed. Structural and optical properties of self-organized QDs are considered with a number of examples in different material systems. The book includes recent achievements in controlling the QD properties such as the effect of vertical stacking, changing the matrix bandgap and the surface density of QDs. The book is also focused on the use of self-organized quantum dots in laser structures, fabrication and characterization of edge- and surface-emitting diode lasers, their properties and optimization. Special attention is paid to the relationship between structural and electronic properties of QDs and laser characteristics. The threshold and power characteristics of the state-of-the-art QD lasers are also demonstrated. Issues related to the long-wavelength (1.3-um) lasers on a GaAs substrate are also addressed and recent results on InGaAsN-based diode lasers presented for the purpose of comparison.

Quantum Chromodynamics

Günther Dissertori, Ian G. Knowles, and Michael Schmelling — 2010-01-01

Author:: Günther Dissertori, Ian G. Knowles, Michael Schmelling
ISBN:: 9780199566419
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Particle Physics / Astrophysics / Cosmology
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199566419.001.0001
Published in print:: 2009
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This book provides an introduction to Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD), the theory of strong interactions. It covers in full detail both the theoretical foundations and the experimental tests of the theory. Although the experimental chapters focus on recent measurements, the subject is placed into historical perspective by also summarizing the steps which lead to the formulation of QCD. Measurements are discussed as they were performed by the LEP experiments at CERN, or at hadron-hadron and lepton-hadron colliders such as the TEVATRON at Fermilab and HERA at DESY. Emphasis is placed on high-energy tests of QCD, such as measurements of the strong coupling constant, investigations of the non-abelian structure of the underlying gauge group, determinations of nucleon structure functions, and studies of the non-perturbative hadronization process.

Principles and Applications of Ferroelectrics and Related Materials

M. E. Lines and A. M. Glass — 2010-01-01

Author:: M. E. Lines, A. M. Glass
ISBN:: 9780198507789
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Condensed Matter Physics / Materials
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198507789.001.0001
Published in print:: 2001
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

The book develops the modern theory of ferroelectricity in terms of soft modes and lattice dynamics and also describes modern techniques of measurement, including X-ray, optic, and neutron scattering, infrared absorption, and magnetic resonance. It includes a discussion of the related phenomena of antiferroelectricity, pyroelectricity, and ferroelasticity and seconds on domains, thin films, ceramics, and polymers, leading to a comprehensive survey of potential and actual device capabilities for pyroelectric detection, memories, display, and modulation. It provides an authoritative account for those engaged in research or graduate study of ferroelectric or pyroelectric devices.

Polymorphism in Molecular Crystals

Joel Bernstein — 2010-01-01

Author:: Joel Bernstein
ISBN:: 9780199236565
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Crystallography
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199236565.001.0001
Published in print:: 2007
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

Polymorphism — the multiplicity of structures or forms — is a term used in many disciplines. In chemistry, it refers to the existence of more than one crystal structure for a particular chemical substance. The properties of a substance are determined by its composition and by its structure. In the last three decades there has been a sharp rise in the interest in polymorphic systems, as an intrinsically interesting phenomenon and as an increasingly important component in the development and marketing of a variety of materials based on organic molecules (e.g., pharmaceuticals, dyes, pigments, explosives, etc.). This book summarizes and brings up to date (as of 2002) the current knowledge and understanding of polymorphism of molecular crystals, and concentrates it in one comprehensive source. The opening chapter deals with nomenclature, a historical perspective of the phenomenon, and the industrial and commercial importance of polymorphism. This is followed by chapters covering fundamental concepts used in the description and study of polymorphism, thermodynamic and kinetic aspects of polymorph formation, the control of the polymorph obtained, analytical techniques for studying and characterizing polymorphs, conformational polymorphism, and the use of polymorphism to study structure-property relations in molecular crystals. Three individual chapters cover aspects of polymorphism in pharmaceuticals, dyes and pigments, and high energy materials. A final chapter covers some aspects of polymorphism and patents, another aspect of the subject of particular importance to the pharmaceutical industry.

The Physics of Lyotropic Liquid Crystals

Antônio M. Figueiredo Neto and Silvio R. A. Salinas — 2010-01-01

Author:: Antônio M. Figueiredo Neto, Silvio R. A. Salinas
ISBN:: 9780198525509
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Crystallography
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198525509.001.0001
Published in print:: 2005
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

Mixtures of surfactant or amphiphilic molecules and solvents are known to display a large number of lyotropic mesophases. Although the physics of thermotropic liquid crystals has been vastly discussed in the literature, lyotropic mesophases have been much less explored. This book gives a unifying presentation of the structural and physical properties of lyotropic liquid crystalline systems, including a set of experimental results and a discussion of the characterization of different structures and the corresponding phase transitions. The initial chapters contain a description of the main experimental results and techniques associated with the characterization of lyotropic mixtures, and an overview of some theoretical approaches to account for the phase transitions and phase diagrams of these mesophases. This book includes discussions on periodically organized lyotropic systems, micellar and bicontinuous structures, modulated and cholesteric structures, and a number of related developments (magnetic colloids, microemulsions, films, and lyo-banana mesophases).

Physics of Ice

Victor F. Petrenko and Robert W. Whitworth — 2010-01-01

Author:: Victor F. Petrenko, Robert W. Whitworth
ISBN:: 9780198518945
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Crystallography
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198518945.001.0001
Published in print:: 2002
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

Ice is one of the most abundant and environmentally important materials on Earth, and its unique and intriguing physical properties present fascinating areas of study. This book takes as its subject the physics of ice: the properties of the material itself and the ways in which these properties are interpreted in terms of water molecules and crystalline structure. Although ice has a simple crystal structure its hydrogen bonding results in unique properties, which continue to be the subject of active research. An understanding of these properties is essential in fields such as glaciology, ice mechanics, ice adhesion, the dating of ice cores in Antarctica and Greenland, meteorology, thunderstorm electricity, and the study of comets or the icy moons of the outer planets in the solar system. In this book the physical principles underlying the properties of ice are carefully developed. Much work on important topics such as the current understanding of the electrical, mechanical, and surface properties of ice, or the occurrence of many different crystalline phases, are developed.

Physics in Oxford, 1839-1939

Robert Fox and Graeme Gooday — 2010-01-01

Author:: RobertFoxModern History Faculty, University of Oxford, UKGraemeGoodaySchool of Philosophy, University of Leeds, UK
ISBN:: 9780198567929
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, History of Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198567929.001.0001
Published in print:: 2005
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This book offers a new interpretation of pre-war physics at the University of Oxford, which was far more dynamic than most historians and physicists have been prepared to believe. It explains, on the one hand, how attempts to develop the University's Clarendon Laboratory by Robert Clifton, Professor of Experimental Philosophy from 1865 to 1915, were thwarted by academic politics and funding problems, and latterly by Clifton's idiosyncratic concern with precision instrumentation. Conversely, by examining in detail the work of college fellows and their laboratories, the book reconstructs the decentralized environment that allowed physics to enter into a period of conspicuous vigour in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, especially at the characteristically Oxonian intersections between physics, physical chemistry, mechanics, and mathematics. Whereas histories of Cambridge physics have tended to focus on the self-sustaining culture of the Cavendish Laboratory, it was Oxford's college-trained physicists who enabled the discipline to flourish in due course in university as well as college facilities, notably under the newly appointed professors, J. S. E. Townsend from 1900 and F. A. Lindemann from 1919. This perspective allows us to understand better the vitality with which physicists in Oxford responded to the demands of wartime research on radar and techniques relevant to atomic weapons and laid the foundations for the dramatic post-war expansion in teaching and research that has endowed Oxford with one of the largest and most dynamic schools of physics in the world.

Phase Transitions and Renormalization Group

Jean Zinn-Justin — 2010-01-01

Author:: Jean Zinn-Justin
ISBN:: 9780199227198
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199227198.001.0001
Published in print:: 2007
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This book provides an elementary introduction to the notions of continuum limit and universality in statistical systems with a large number of degrees of freedom. The existence of a continuum limit requires the appearance of correlations at large distance, a situation that is encountered in second order phase transitions, near the critical temperature. In this context, the book emphasizes the role of gaussian distributions and their relations with the mean field approximation and Landau's theory of critical phenomena. The book shows that quasi-gaussian or mean-field approximations cannot describe correctly phase transitions in three space dimensions. The book assigns this difficulty to the coupling of very different physical length scales, even though the systems we will consider have only local, that is, short range, interactions. To analyze the unusual situation, a new concept is required: the renormalization group, whose fixed points allow understanding the universality of physical properties at large distance, beyond mean-field theory. In the continuum limit, critical phenomena can be described by quantum field theories. In this framework, the renormalization group is directly related to the renormalization process; that is, the necessity to cancel the infinities that arise in straightforward formulations of the theory. The book discusses the renormalization group in the context of various relevant field theories. This leads to proofs of universality and to efficient tools for calculating universal quantities in a perturbative framework. Finally, the book constructs a general functional renormalization group, which can be used when perturbative methods are inadequate.

Path Integrals in Quantum Mechanics

Jean Zinn-Justin — 2010-01-01

Author:: Jean Zinn-Justin
ISBN:: 9780198566748
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Particle Physics / Astrophysics / Cosmology, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198566748.001.0001
Published in print:: 2004
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

Path integrals are mathematical objects that can be considered as generalizations to an infinite number of variables, represented by paths, of usual integrals. They share the algebraic properties of usual integrals, but have new properties from the viewpoint of analysis. They are powerful tools for the study of quantum mechanics, since they emphasize very explicitly the correspondence between classical and quantum mechanics. Physical quantities are expressed as averages over all possible paths but, in the semi-classical limit, the leading contributions come from paths close to classical paths. Thus, path integrals lead to an intuitive understanding of physical quantities in the semi-classical limit, as well as simple calculations of such quantities. This observation can be illustrated with scattering processes, spectral properties, or barrier penetration effects. Even though the formulation of quantum mechanics based on path integrals seems mathematically more complicated than the usual formulation based on partial differential equations, the path integral formulation is well adapted to systems with many degrees of freedom, where a formalism of Schrödinger type is much less useful. It allows simple construction of a many-body theory both for bosons and fermions.

Nuclear Structure from a Simple Perspective

Richard F. Casten — 2010-01-01

Author:: Richard F. Casten
ISBN:: 9780198507246
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, Nuclear and Plasma Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198507246.001.0001
Published in print:: 2001
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This textbook on nuclear structure takes a unique and complementary approach compared to existing texts on the topic. Avoiding complicated calculations and complex mathematical formalism, it explains nuclear structure by building on a few elementary physical ideas. Even such apparently intricate topics as shell model residual interactions, the Nilsson model, and the random phase approximation analysis of collective vibrations are explained in a simple, intuitive way so that predictions can usually be made without calculations, essentially by inspection. Frequent comparison with data allows the relevance of theoretical approaches to be immediately evident. This edition includes new chapters on exotic nuclei and radioactive beams, and on correlations of collective observables. Completely new discussions are given of isospin, the shell model, nature of collective vibrations, multi-phonon states, superdeformation, bandmixing, geometric collective model, Fermi gas model, basic properties of simple nuclear potentials, the deuteron, and low energy nuclear structure, as well as other topics.

No Time to be Brief

Charles P. Enz — 2010-01-01

Author:: Charles P. Enz
ISBN:: 9780198564799
Publisher:: Oxford University Press
Subjects:: Physics, History of Physics
DOI:: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198564799.001.0001
Published in print:: 2002
Published Online:: 2010-01-01

This book, the first biography on the life of the physicist Wolfgang Pauli, analyses his scientific work and describes the evolution of his thinking. Pauli spent 30 years as a professor at the Federal Institute of Technology ETH in Zurich, which occupies a central place in this biography. It would be incomplete, however, without a rendering of Pauli’s sarcastic wit and, most importantly, of the world of his dreams. It is through the latter that quite a different aspect of Pauli’s life comes in, namely his association with the psychology of C. G. Jung and his school. This book sets Pauli’s life into historical context, based on original and unparalleled source material, including an extended account of his correspondence.