arXiv subjects

K. Shi

Publications and source records attributed to K. Shi.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

Absence of high-field spin supersolid phase in Rb$_2$Co(SeO$_3$)$_2$ with a triangular lattice

Magnetization, torque magnetometry, specific heat and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) are used to study the high field intermediate phase between the 1/3-magnetization plateau and polarized state in the quantum Ising antiferromagnet Rb$_2$Co(SeO$_3$)$_2$ with a triangular lattice. The magnetic phase diagram with the magnetic field up to 30 T is mapped by the comprehensive experimental data. The "up-up-down" (UUD) spin configuration of the 1/3-magnetization plateau state is identified by NMR spectral analysis. At higher magnetic fields, this UUD structure persist to the intermediate phase, which is finally destroyed in the polarized state. This observation supplies unambiguous spectroscopic evidence for the absence of proposed high field spin supersolid phase. The high-field phase diagram of this quantum magnet proximate to the Ising-anisotropy limit contradicts with that proposed by theoretical studies.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2024

The Young-Laplace equation for a solid-liquid interface

The application of the Young-Laplace equation to a solid-liquid interface is considered. Computer simulations show that the pressure inside a solid cluster of hard spheres is smaller than the external pressure of the liquid (both for small and large clusters). That would suggest a negative value for the interfacial free energy. We show that in a Gibbsian description of the thermodynamics of a curved solid-liquid interface in equilibrium, the choice of the thermodynamic (rather than mechanical) pressure is required, as suggested by Tolman for the liquid-gas scenario. With this definition, the interfacial free energy is positive, and the values obtained are in excellent agreement with previous results from nucleation studies. Although for a curved fluid-fluid interface there is no distinction between mechanical and thermal pressures (for a sufficiently large inner phase), in the solid-liquid they do not coincide, as hypothesized by Gibbs.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2021

Caustics in quantum many-body dynamics

We describe a new class of nonequilibrium quantum many-body phenomena in the form of networks of caustics that dominate the many-body wavefunction in the semiclassical regime following a sudden quench. It includes the light cone-like propagation of correlations as a particular case. Caustics are singularities formed by the birth and death of waves and form a hierarchy of universal patterns whose natural mathematical description is via catastrophe theory. Examples in classical waves range from rainbows and gravitational lensing in optics to tidal bores and rogue waves in hydrodynamics. Quantum many-body caustics are discretized by second-quantization (``quantum catastrophes'') and live in Fock space which can potentially have many dimensions. We illustrate these ideas using the Bose Hubbard dimer and trimer models which are simple enough that the caustic structure can be elucidated from first principles and yet run the full range from integrable to nonintegrable dynamics. The dimer gives rise to discretized versions of fold and cusp catastrophes whereas the trimer allows for higher catastrophes including the codimension-3 hyperbolic and elliptic umbilics which are organized by, and projections of, an 8-dimensional corank-2 catastrophe known as $X_9$. These results describe a hitherto unrecognized form of universality in quantum dynamics organized by singularities that manifest as strong fluctuations in mode population probabilities.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2018

Corrected Proximity-Force Approximation for Lateral Casimir Forces

The widely-adopted proximity-force approximation (PFA) to estimate normal Casimir forces is known to be asymptotically exact at vanishing separations. In this letter, we propose a correction to the PFA, which is sufficiently accurate in predicting displacement-induced lateral Casimir forces between a sphere and a grating, for separation-to-radius ratio up to 0.5, far beyond the limit within which the application of PFA is previously restricted. Our result allows convenient estimation of Casimir interactions and thus shall be useful in relevant experimental and engineering Casimir applications. We also study the PFA for gradient gratings, and we find that the inhomogeneity-induced lateral Casimir force is beyond the corrected PFA.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2017

Quantum propulsion and trapping of nano-objects by inhomogeneity-induced lateral Casimir forces

Lateral Casimir force near a laterally-inhomogeneous plate is first revealed by both rigorous simulations and proximity approximations. The inhomogeneity-induced lateral Casimir force provides a novel method to control the lateral motion of nano-objects above the plate, and makes source-free manipulations of them possible. When incorporated with the Casimir repulsion in a fluid, the lateral Casimir force is shown to dominate over Brownian motion and enables long-distance quantum propulsion and firm quantum trapping of nano-objects. Gratings of varying filling factors to mimic micro-scale inhomogeneity also confirm those effects. The idea to design asymmetric distributions of nano-structures paves the way to sophisticated tailoring of the lateral Casimir force.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2012

Constraining dark energy using observational growth rate data

Observational growth rate data had been derived from observations of redshift distortions in galaxy redshift surveys. Here we use the growth rate data to place constraints on the dark energy model parameters. By performing a joint analysis with the Type Ia supernova, baryon acoustic oscillation and cosmic microwave background data, it is found that the growth rate data are useful for improving the constraints. The joint constraints show that the $\Lambda$CDM model is still in good agreement with current observations, although a time-variant dark energy still cannot be ruled out. It is argued that the growth rate data are helpful for understanding the dark energy. With more accurate data available in the future, we will have a powerful tool for constraining the cosmological and dark energy parameters.

astro-ph.CO↗