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Joseph P. Straley

Publications and source records attributed to Joseph P. Straley.

36 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
arXiv2012

Fermion condensation around a Coulomb impurity in a Weyl semimetal as a manifestation of the Landau zero-charge problem

A Coulomb impurity placed in an undoped Weyl semimetal spontaneously surrounds itself with a cloud of condensed Weyl fermions. We study this system within the Thomas-Fermi approximation. We find that the ground-state of the system is electrically neutral and exhibits an experimentally accessible Landau zero-charge effect: the impurity charge is screened out at any finite distance in the limit of vanishing impurity size. Specifically, we show how in this limit the Thomas-Fermi equation for the electrostatic potential transforms into the Gell-Mann-Low equation for the charge.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗
arXiv2012

Interplay of Aharonov-Bohm, chirality, and aspect ratio effects in the axial conductance of a nanotube

A magnetic flux applied along the axis of a nanotube can counteract the effect of the tube chirality and dramatically affect its conductance, leading to a way to determine the chirality of a nanotube. The effect of the applied flux is strongest in the long tube limit where the conductance is (i) either a sequence of sharp $4e^{2}/h$ height peaks located at integer (in units of the flux quantum) values of the flux (for an armchair tube) or (ii) a periodic sequence of pairs of $2e^{2}/h$ height peaks for a chiral tube, with the spacing determined by the chirality. In the short tube limit the conductance takes on the value that gives the universal conductivity of an undoped graphene sheet, with a small amplitude modulation periodic in the flux.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗
arXiv2010

Casimir effect due to a single boundary as a manifestation of the Weyl problem

The Casimir self-energy of a boundary is ultraviolet-divergent. In many cases the divergences can be eliminated by methods such as zeta-function regularization or through physical arguments (ultraviolet transparency of the boundary would provide a cutoff). Using the example of a massless scalar field theory with a single Dirichlet boundary we explore the relationship between such approaches, with the goal of better understanding the origin of the divergences. We are guided by the insight due to Dowker and Kennedy (1978) and Deutsch and Candelas (1979), that the divergences represent measurable effects that can be interpreted with the aid of the theory of the asymptotic distribution of eigenvalues of the Laplacian discussed by Weyl. In many cases the Casimir self-energy is the sum of cutoff-dependent (Weyl) terms having geometrical origin, and an "intrinsic" term that is independent of the cutoff. The Weyl terms make a measurable contribution to the physical situation even when regularization methods succeed in isolating the intrinsic part. Regularization methods fail when the Weyl terms and intrinsic parts of the Casimir effect cannot be clearly separated. Specifically, we demonstrate that the Casimir self-energy of a smooth boundary in two dimensions is a sum of two Weyl terms (exhibiting quadratic and logarithmic cutoff dependence), a geometrical term that is independent of cutoff, and a non-geometrical intrinsic term. As by-products we resolve the puzzle of the divergent Casimir force on a ring and correct the sign of the coefficient of linear tension of the Dirichlet line predicted in earlier treatments.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗
arXiv2008

Geometrical interpretation of the Casimir effect

Casimir forces are a manifestation of the change in the zero-point energy of the vacuum caused by the insertion of boundaries. We show how the Casimir force can be efficiently computed by consideration of the vacuum fluctuations that are suppressed by the boundaries, and rederive the scalar Casimir effects for a series of the Dirichlet geometries. For the planar case a finite universal force is automatically found. Consistent with other calculations of the effect, for curved geometries divergent (non-universal) expressions are encountered. They are interpreted geometrically following Candelas and Deutsch (1979) as largely due to the divergent self-energy of the boundary contributing to the force. This viewpoint is supported by explicit calculations for a wedge-circular arc geometry in two dimensions where non-universal and universal contributions into the effect can be unambiguously separated. We also give a heuristic derivation of the purely geometrical expression (Sen, 1981) for the non-universal piece of the Casimir energy due to an arbitrary smooth two-dimensional Dirichlet boundary of a compact region.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗
arXiv2008

Casimir effect in a one-dimensional gas of free fermions

We compute an analog Casimir effect in a one-dimensional spinless Luttinger liquid confined to a segment in the presence of a nearly-impenetrable partition dividing the segment into two compartments. The Casimir interaction is found to be a bounded piecewise-continuous oscillatory function whose maxima are points of force discontinuity and correspond to resonant tunneling across the partition. The well-known regularization-based results are reproduced by the lower envelope of this function, which corresponds to an approximation that ignores the rather large oscillations due to particle discreteness. These macroscopic conclusions are tested and confirmed via a rigorous analysis of the Casimir effect in an exactly-solvable model of a one-dimensional non-relativistic spinless gas of free fermions, thus resolving an objection that has been raised by Volovik (2003). Additionally we confirm the result of a recent calculation which employed an effective low-energy theory with a cutoff to find the Casimir interaction between two strong well-separated impurities placed in a Luttinger liquid.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗
arXiv2007

On the calculation of the Casimir forces

Casimir forces are a manifestation of the change in the zero-point energy of the vacuum caused by the insertion of boundaries. We show how the Casimir force can be computed by consideration of the vacuum fluctuations that are suppressed by the boundaries, and rederive the scalar Casimir effects for a series of geometries. For the planar case a finite universal force is automatically found. For curved geometries formally divergent expressions are encountered which we argue are largely due to the divergent self-energy of the boundary contributing to the force. This idea is supported by computing the effect for a fixed perimeter wedge-arc geometry in two dimensions.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗
arXiv2007

Interacting bosons in a nearly-resonant potential well

We establish that the ability of a localized trapping potential to bind weakly-interacting bosons is dramatically enhanced in the vicinity of the threshold of formation of the single-particle bound-state of the trap. Specifically, for repulsive particles and a super-threshold trapping potential the equilibrium number of bound bosons and the size of the ground state diverge upon approaching the single-particle threshold from above. For attractive interactions and a sub-threshold trap a collective bound state always forms for a sufficiently large number of bosons despite the inability of interparticle attraction alone to form a two-body bound state.

cond-mat.other↗
arXiv2003

Ground-state properties of artificial bosonic atoms, Bose interaction blockade and the single-atom pipette

We analyze the ground-state properties of an artificial atom made out of repulsive bosons attracted to a center for the case that all the interactions are short-ranged. Such bosonic atoms could be created by optically trapping ultracold particles of alkali vapors; we present the theory describing how their properties depend on experimentally adjustable strength of ``nuclear'' attraction and interparticle repulsion. The binding ability of the short-range potential increases with space dimensionality - only a limited number of particles can be bound in one dimension, while in two and three dimensions the number of bound bosons can be chosen at will. Particularly in three dimensions we find an unusual effect of enhanced resonant binding: for not very strong interparticle repulsion the equilibrium number of bosons bound to a nuclear potential having a sufficiently shallow single-particle state increases without bound as the nuclear potential becomes less attractive. As a consequence of the competing nuclear attraction enhanced by the Bose statistics and interparticle repulsions, the dependence of the ground-state energy of the atom on the number of particles has a minimum whose position is experimentally tunable. This implies a staircase dependence of the equilibrium number of bound bosons on external parameters which may be used to create a single-atom pipette - an arrangement which allows the transport of atoms into and out of a reservoir, one at a time.

cond-mat↗
arXiv2003

Deconfinement and Dissipation in Quantum Hall "Josephson" Tunneling

The zero-bias tunneling resonance in quantum Hall bilayer systems is investigated via numerical simulations of the classical two dimensional XY model with a symmetry-breaking field. Disorder is included in the model, and is shown to nucleate strings of overturned spins proliferated through the system, with unpaired vortices and antivortices at their endpoints. This string glass state supports low energy excitations which lead to anomalously large dissipation in tunneling, as observed in experiment. The effect of an in-plane magnetic field is discussed.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗
arXiv2002

Probing Vortex Unbinding via Dipole Fluctuations

We develop a numerical method for detecting a vortex unbinding transition in a two-dimensional system by measuring large scale fluctuations in the total vortex dipole moment ${\vec P}$ of the system. These are characterized by a quantity $\cal F$ which measures the number of configurations in a simulation for which the either $P_x$ or $P_y$ is half the system size. It is shown that $\cal F$ tends to a non-vanishing constant for large system sizes in the unbound phase, and vanishes in the bound phase. The method is applied to the XY model both in the absence and presence of a magnetic field. In the latter case, the system size dependence of $\cal F$ suggests that there exist three distinct phases, one unbound vortex phase, a logarithmically bound phase, and a linearly bound phase.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗
arXiv2001

Reply to `Comment on "Low-dimensional Bose liquids: beyond the Gross-Pitaevskii approximation"'

This is a published reply to the comment of Bhaduri and Sen, Physical Review Letters 86, 4708 (2001), cond-mat/0105385, on our original work, Physical Review Letters 85, 1146 (2000), cond-mat/0002282 . In this reply we point out that our continuum theory captures the correct physics of non-interacting fermions in one dimension. In contrast, the two proposed alternative theories of Bhaduri and Sen produce physically incorrect results. We take this opportunity to point out that the abstract of cond-mat/0105385 obscures the contents of the comment and reply. The soliton solutions found in our theory are the continuum analogs of solitonic states which are known from exact studies of non-interacting fermions.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗
arXiv2000

The Bose molecule in one dimension

We give the Green function, momentum distribution, two-particle correlation function, and structure factor for the bound state of N indistinguishable bosons with an attractive delta-function interaction in one dimension, and an argument showing that this boson "molecule" has no excited states other than dissociation into separated pieces.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗
arXiv2000

Low-dimensional Bose liquids: beyond the Gross-Pitaevskii approximation

The Gross-Pitaevskii approximation is a long-wavelength theory widely used to describe a variety of properties of dilute Bose condensates, in particular trapped alkali gases. We point out that for short-ranged repulsive interactions this theory fails in dimensions d less than or equal to 2, and we propose the appropriate low-dimensional modifications. For d=1 we analyze density profiles in confining potentials, superfluid properties, solitons, and self-similar solutions.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗
arXiv2000

Order parameter for two-dimensional critical systems with boundaries

Conformal transformations can be used to obtain the order parameter for two-dimensional systems at criticality in finite geometries with fixed boundary conditions on a connected boundary. To the known examples of this class (such as the disk and the infinite strip) we contribute the case of a rectangle. We show that the order parameter profile for simply connected boundaries can be represented as a universal function (independent of the criticality model) raised to the power eta/2. The universal function can be determined from the Gaussian model or equivalently a problem in two-dimensional electrostatics. We show that fitting the order parameter profile to the theoretical form gives an accurate route to the determination of eta. We perform numerical simulations for the Ising model and percolation for comparison with these analytic predictions, and apply this approach to the study of the planar rotor model.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗
arXiv2000

Breaking a one-dimensional chain: fracture in 1 + 1 dimensions

The breaking rate of an atomic chain stretched at zero temperature by a constant force can be calculated in a quasiclassical approximation by finding the localized solutions ("bounces") of the equations of classical dynamics in imaginary time. We show that this theory is related to the critical cracks of stressed solids, because the world lines of the atoms in the chain form a two-dimensional crystal, and the bounce is a crack configuration in (unstable) mechanical equilibrium. Thus the tunneling time, Action, and breaking rate in the limit of small forces are determined by the classical results of Griffith. For the limit of large forces we give an exact bounce solution that describes the quantum fracture and classical crack close to the limit of mechanical stability. This limit can be viewed as a critical phenomenon for which we establish a Levanyuk-Ginzburg criterion of weakness of fluctuations, and propose a scaling argument for the critical regime. The post-tunneling dynamics is understood by the analytic continuation of the bounce solutions to real time.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗
arXiv1999

Manifold self-localization in a deformable medium

Directed manifolds (domain walls, interfaces, vortex lines) in a deformable medium can exist in a correlated state in which the manifold is self-localized by its own strain field. Depending on the temperature, manifold/medium dimensionalities, and the strength of the coupling with the medium, the degree of localization of the ground state can vary both continuously and discontinuously; there can be phase transitions from self- localized to the free-manifold state.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗
arXiv1999

Statics and dynamics of a one-dimensional quantum many-body system

The macroscopic zero-temperature behavior of weakly- incommensurate systems in one dimension is described in terms of solitons. The soliton density n obeys equations displaying several types of singular interface-like solutions: (i) equilibrium or moving boundary between the n = 0 and finite n regions, and (ii) stationary or moving annihilation front separating solitons from antisolitons.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗