arXiv subjects

Wei-Zhou Jiang

Publications and source records attributed to Wei-Zhou Jiang.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

Thermal properties of zero sound in asymmetric nuclear matter

The zero-sound modes at finite temperature are investigated with the relativistic random phase approximation to signal the uncertainty of the equation of state (EOS) of asymmetric nuclear matter. It is observed that in typically selected stiff and soft relativistic mean-field (RMF) models, zero-sound modes arise at low temperature, whereas increasing the temperature gradually breaks the zero sound in soft models, with a smaller density range compared to stiff models. At high density, the presence or absence of zero sound turns out to be correspondingly the character of the stiff or soft RMF EOS. More strikingly, we find by analyzing the dispersion relation and sound velocity that at finite temperature the zero-sound modes in RMF models with the stiff EOS undergo a thermal bifurcation, resulting in the transform of zero sound into the first sound at some momentum $Q>T$. The thermally bifurcated sound branch in the stiff models and the zero-sound branch in the soft models are both highly sensitive to the slope of the symmetry energy, providing promising signals for the pending high-density symmetry energies. In addition, it is found that there exists a nonlinear dispersion relation for both the stiff and soft models that supports the zero sound in the relatively lower density region.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2024

Uncovering quantum characteristics of incipient evolutions at the photosynthetic oxygen evolving complex

Water oxidation of photosynthesis at the oxygen evolving complex (OEC) is driven by the polarization field induced by the photoelectric hole. By highlighting the role of the polarization field in reshaping the spin and orbit potentials, we reveal in this work the characteristics and underlying mechanism in the relatively simpler OEC evolutions within the states S0 - S2 prior to the water oxidation. The characteristic shifts of the density of states (DOS) of the electron donor Mn atom are observed in the vicinity of the Fermi surface to occur with the spin flips of Mn atoms and the change of the Mn oxidation states during the electron transfer. Notably, the spin flips of Mn atoms point to the resulting spin configuration of the next states. It is found that the electron transfer tend to stabilize the catalyst OEC itself, whereas the proton transfer pushes the evolution forward by preparing a new electron donor, demonstrating the proton-coupled electron transfer. Meanwhile, it shows that the Mn-O bonds around the candidate Mn atom of the electron donor undergo characteristic changes in the bond lengths during the electron transfer. These concomitant phenomena uncovered in first-principle calculations characterize the essential equilibrium of the OEC between the state evolution and stability that forms a ground of the dynamic OEC cycles. In particular, the characteristic undulation of the DOS around the Fermi level occurring at the proton-coupled electron transfer can be used to reveal crucial processes in a wide range of realistic systems.

physics.bio-ph↗

arXiv2024

Correlation of the hyperon potential stiffness with hyperon constituents in neutron stars and heavy-ion collisions

The breaking of SU(6) symmetry to a more general flavor SU(3) symmetry could serve as a potential explanation for the "hyperon puzzle" of neutron stars by adjusting the hyperon potentials. Specifically, when the soft relativistic mean-field (RMF) $Λ$ hyperon potentials fall within the domains of chiral SU(3) interactions NLO13 with two-body forces, the maximum mass of neutron stars is expected to be lower than 2.0 $M_\odot$, whereas it can exceed $2.0M_\odot$ if the RMF $Λ$ hyperon potentials are sufficiently stiff to be consistent with those from chiral SU(3) interactions NLO13 with three-body forces. In our investigation involving these two types of $Λ$ hyperon potentials, we explore how the hyperon yields and flows are affected in heavy-ion collisions. We find that the inclusion of hyperon potentials results in better agreement of the $Λ$ directed flows with data but without clear differentiation in the stiffness of the hyperon potentials. Similarly negligent is the disparity in the rapidity distributions of the $Λ$ collective flows predicted by the stiff and soft hyperon potentials. In contrast, the $Λ$ collective flows beyond the central rapidity region turn out to be sensitive to the stiffness of the RMF equation of state (EOS) with the preference of a soft RMF EOS to a stiff one. Notably, the transverse momentum distributions of $Λ$ hyperon production are sensitive to both the stiffness of the RMF EOS and $Λ$ hyperon potential at high transverse momenta.

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arXiv2024

Dynamic evolution of S$_0$-S$_3$ at the oxygen evolving complex with spin markers under photoelectric polarization

Water oxidation at the oxygen evolving complex (OEC) of the photosystem II is catalyzed by the core cluster CaMn$_4$O$_5$ which was projected to experience five intermediate states S$\rm_i$ in the Kok's cycle since 1970's. However, the detailed dynamics of state evolutions still remains unclear, albeit with the general fact that the process is initiated by the transfer of photoelectrons with the steady electron donors of the water molecules. Based on density functional simulations, we find that the spin flips of Manganese atoms between the consecutive states in the electric polarization field can be used as a marker to uncover the intricate dynamic evolutions and the underlying dynamics. The dynamic electron and proton transfers and water insertion and dissociation are traced to reveal the evolution pathways of S$_0$-S$_3$ with commensurate spin flips towards the exact spin configuration of the next state. In particular, the various water insertions and dissociations at coordination sites of the S$_2$ open and closed cubane isomers are predicted with constraints on the necessary spin flips. Our study paves a way to uncover the animated OEC evolutions with the spin flips that await for more experimental verifications and lays a solid ground for revealing the mechanism of dioxygen generation via the pending S$_4$ state.

physics.bio-ph↗

arXiv2023

Strong correlation of the neutron star core-crust transition density with the $σ$-meson mass via vacuum polarization

We study the neutron star core-crust transition density $ρ_t$ with the inclusion of the vacuum polarization in the dielectric function in the nonlinear relativistic Hartree approach (RHAn). It is found that the strong correlation between the $ρ_{t}$ and the scalar meson mass $m_σ$ strikingly overwhelms the uncertainty of the nuclear equation of state in the RHAn models, in contrast to the usual awareness that $ρ_{t}$ is predominantly sensitive to the isovector nuclear potential and symmetry energy. The accurate extraction of $ρ_{t}$ through the future gravitational wave measurements can thus provide a strong constraint on the longstanding uncertainty of $m_σ$, which is of significance to better infer the vacuum property. As an astrophysical implication, it suggests that the correlation between $ρ_t$ and $m_σ$ is very favorable to reconcile the difficulty in reproducing the large crustal moment of inertia for the pulsar glitches with the well constrained symmetry energy.

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arXiv2022

Ultra-efficient mid-infrared energy absorption by water confined in carbon nanotubes

The energy absorption on nanometer scale is vital for many bio and chemical systems. We report here that a two times amplification in absorption efficiency can be achieved by water molecules confined in carbon nanotubes with small radius, compared with situations in normal bulk water, under irradiations of short mid-infrared pulses. The effect of confinement due to a (6,6) carbon nanotube is found to be very robust, equivalent to that of a 5 $V/nm$ static electric field. These findings are instructive not only for designing high-efficiency nano devices but also for understanding behaviours in biological channels.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2022

Heating anomaly of cold interfacial water under irradiation of mid-infrared pulses

The mid-infrared heating of interfacial water with different initial temperatures is studied using non-equilibrium molecular dynamics simulation. It is found that under the irradiation of a pulse at 3360-3380 $cm^{-1}$ the two-dimensional water monolayer on a hydrophilic surface at a lower initial temperature acquires a much larger temperature jump. The mechanism beneath this counterintuitive phenomenon is the enhanced transition efficiency of the asymmetric OH stretching vibration due to the specific oriented configuration of water molecules at lower initial temperatures. The understanding of the anomalous phenomenon clarifies the sensitivity of the interfacial properties of water molecules to the temperature.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2022

Effects of isoscalar- and isovector-scalar meson mixing on neutron star structure

Based on the accurately calibrated interaction FSUGold, we show that including isovector scalar $δ$ meson and its coupling to isoscalar scalar $σ$ meson in the relativistic mean field (RMF) model can soften the symmetry energy $E_{\rm{sym}}(n)$ at intermediate densities while stiffen the $E_{\rm{sym}}(n)$ at high densities. We find this new RMF model can be simultaneously compatible with (1) the constraints on the equation of state of symmetric nuclear matter at suprasaturation densities from flow data in heavy-ion collisions, (2) the neutron skin thickness of $^{208}$Pb from the PREX-II experiment, (3) the largest mass of neutron star (NS) reported so far from PSR J0740+6620, (4) the limit of $Λ_{1.4}\leq580$ for the dimensionless tidal deformability of the canonical 1.4$M_{\odot}$ NS from the gravitational wave signal GW170817, (5) the mass-radius relation of PSR J0030+0451 and PSR J0740+6620 measured by NICER, and thus remove the tension between PREX-II and GW170817 observed in the conventional RMF model.

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arXiv2022

Orientated energy absorption from mid-infrared laser pulses in constrained water systems

The energy acquisition based on resonant excitations are of great importance in chemical and biological systems. Here, the intramolecular resonant absorption of polarized mid-infrared pulses by bulk water and surface water is investigated using molecular dynamics simulation. The consequent heating based on the OH stretching vibrations is found to be very prompt, achieving more than 100 K temperature jump under irradiation of a pulse with 1 ps width and maximum intensity of 0.5 V/nm. A general anisotropic phenomenon is manifested as a result of preferential resonant excitation of symmetric or asymmetric OH stretching vibration, depending on the relationships between the orientations of water molecules and the polarized direction of the pulse. In the case of water molecules with the preferred dipole orientation, constrained by applied static electric field or spacial confinement, parallel to the polarized direction of the pulses, the energy absorption is dominated by the symmetric stretching mode (around 99 THz), while in the perpendicular case, the asymmetric stretching mode (around 101 THz) is more efficient. Since orientated water molecules are prevalent in chemical and biological systems, these findings concerning orientation-dependent excitation of intramolecular vibrations are of special significance to understood the energy absorption and transition in relevant biochemical processes.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2021

Nuclear potentials relevant to the symmetry energy in chiral models

We employ the extended Nambu-Jona-Lasinio, linear-$σ$ models, and the density-dependent model with chiral limits to work out the mean fields and relevant properties of nuclear matter. To have the constraint from the data, we reexamine the Dirac optical potentials and symmetry potential based on the relativistic impulse approximation (RIA). Unlike the extended NJL and the density-dependent models with the chiral limit in terms of the vanishing scalar density, the extended linear-$σ$ model with a sluggish changing scalar field loses the chiral limit at the high density end. The various scalar fields can characterize the different Schrödinger-equivalent potentials and kinetic symmetry energy in the whole density region and the symmetry potential in the intermediate density region. The drop of the scalar field due to the chiral restoration results in a clear rise of the kinetic symmetry energy. The chiral limit in the models gives rise to the softening of the symmetry potential and thereof the symmetry energy at high densities.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2021

Symmetry energy and neutron star properties in the saturated Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model

In this work, we adopt the Nambu-Jona-Lasinio (NJL) model that ensures the nuclear matter saturation properties to study the density dependence of the symmetry energy. With the interactions constrained by the chiral symmetry, the symmetry energy shows novel characters different from those in conventional mean-field models. First, the negative symmetry energy at high densities that is absent in relativistic mean-field (RMF) models can be obtained in the RMF approximation by introducing a chiral isovector-vector interaction, although it would be ruled out by the neutron star (NS) stability. Second, with the inclusion of the isovector-scalar interaction the symmetry energy exhibits a general softening at high densities even for the large slope parameter of the symmetry energy. The NS properties obtained in the present NJL model can be in accord with the observations. The NS maximum mass obtained with various isovector-scalar couplings and momentum cutoffs is well above the $2M_\odot$, and the NS radius obtained well meets the limits extracted from recent measurements. In particular, the significant reduction of the canonical NS radius occurs with the moderate decrease of the slope of the symmetry energy.

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arXiv2021

Symmetry potentials and in-medium nucleon-nucleon cross sections within the Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model in relativistic impulse approximation

In the relativistic impulse approximation (RIA), we study symmetry potentials and in-medium nucleon-nucleon (NN) cross sections with the Nambu-Jona-Lasinio (NJL) model that features chiral symmetry. The chiral symmetry that plays a fundamental role in the nonperturbative physics in the strong interaction is anticipated to add restrictive effects on the symmetry potentials and in-medium NN cross sections. For comparison, we also perform the study with the usual relativistic mean-field (RMF) model. The numerical results with the NJL and RMF models are similar at saturation density and below, since a priori fit was made to saturation properties. With the increase of nuclear density, the chiral symmetry starts to be restored partially in the NJL model, resulting in the explicit fall of the scalar density. In a large energy span, the symmetry potential acquires a significant rise for the partial restoration of the chiral symmetry, compared to the one with the RMF model. It is found that the in-medium NN cross sections in the RIA with the NJL and RMF models both increase with the density in the energy region interested in this study, whereas those with the NJL model increase sharply as long as a clear chiral symmetry restoration takes place. The different tendency of observables in density can be transmitted to the different energy dependence in the RIA. The NJL model is shown to have characteristic energy-dependent symmetry potentials and NN cross sections beyond saturation point, apart from the RMF models.

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arXiv2019

Level inversion in kaonic nuclei and the high-density nuclear equation of state

It is very difficult for any nuclear model to pin down the saturation property and high-density equation of state (EOS) simultaneously because of high nonlinearity of the nuclear many-body problem. In this work, we propose, for the first time, to use the special property of light kaonic nuclei to characterize the relation between saturation property and high-density EOS. With a series of relativistic mean-field models, this special property is found to be the level inversion between orbitals $2S_{1/2}$ and $1D_{5/2}$ in light kaonic nuclei. This level inversion can serve as a theoretical laboratory to group the incompressibility at saturation density and the EOS at supra-normal densities simultaneously.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2018

Ground-state properties of light kaonic nuclei signaling symmetry energy at high densities

A sensitive correlation between the ground-state properties of light kaonic nuclei and the symmetry energy at high densities is constructed under the framework of relativistic mean-field theory. Taking oxygen isotopes as an example, we see that a high-density core is produced in kaonic oxygen nuclei, due to the strongly attractive antikaon-nucleon interaction. It is found that the $1S_{1/2}$ state energy in the high-density core of kaonic nuclei can directly probe the variation of the symmetry energy at supranormal nuclear density, and a sensitive correlation between the neutron skin thickness and the symmetry energy at supranormal density is established directly. Meanwhile, the sensitivity of the neutron skin thickness to the low-density slope of the symmetry energy is greatly increased in the corresponding kaonic nuclei. These sensitive relationships are established upon the fact that the isovector potential in the central region of kaonic nuclei becomes very sensitive to the variation of the symmetry energy. These findings might provide another perspective to constrain high-density symmetry energy, and await experimental verification in the future.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2017

The resonant heating of heavy water solutions under the terahertz pulse irradiation

The heating effect of terahertz pulse with various frequencies and intensities on the heavy water solution is investigated using the molecular dynamics simulation. Resonant absorptions are found for both heavy water and light water, but at a different resonant frequency which is about 16 THz for heavy water and 21 THz for light water. This resonant phenomenon can be explained perfectly by the collective rotational modes that may release water molecules from hydrogen bonding. The findings not only illustrate the heating mechanism of heavy water solution under the terahertz pulse irradiation, but also demonstrate a novel difference between light water and heavy water that could have potential applications.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2016

Equation of state and hybrid star properties with the weakly interacting light U-boson in relativistic models

It has been a puzzle whether quarks may exist in the interior of massive neutron stars, since the hadron-quark phase transition softens the equation of state (EOS) and reduce the neutron star (NS) maximum mass very significantly. In this work, we consider the light U-boson that increases the NS maximum mass appreciably through its weak coupling to fermions. The inclusion of the U-boson may thus allow the existence of the quark degrees of freedom in the interior of large mass neutron stars. Unlike the consequence of the U-boson in hadronic matter, the stiffening role of the U-boson in the hybrid EOS is not sensitive to the choice of the hadron phase models. In addition, we have also investigated the effect of the effective QCD correction on the hybrid EOS. This correction may reduce the coupling strength of the U-boson that is needed to satisfy NS maximum mass constraint. While the inclusion of the U-boson also increases the NS radius significantly, we find that appropriate in-medium effects of the U-boson may reduce the NS radii significantly, satisfying both the NS radius and mass constraints well.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2015

Fast Water Channeling across Carbon Nanotubes in Far Infrared Terahertz Electric Fields

Using molecular dynamics simulations, we investigate systematically the water permeation properties across the single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) in the presence of the terahertz electric field (TEF). With the TEF normal to the nanotube, the fracture of the hydrogen bonds results in the giant peak of net fluxes across the SWCNT with a three-fold enhancement centered around 14THz. The phenomenon is attributed to the resonant mechanisms, characterized by librational, rotational, and rotation-induced responses of in-tube polar water molecules to the TEF. For the TEF along the symmetry axis of the nanotube, the vortical modes for resonances and consequently the enhancement of net fluxes are greatly suppressed by the alignment of polar water along the symmetry axis, which characterizes the quasi one-dimensional feature of the SWCNT nicely. The resonances of water molecules in the TEF can have potential applications in the high-flux device designs used for various purposes.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2015

Small radii of neutron stars as an indication of novel in-medium effects

At present, neutron star radii from both observations and model predictions remain very uncertain. Whereas different models can predict a wide range of neutron star radii, it is not possible for most models to predict radii that are smaller than about 10 km, thus if such small radii are established in the future they will be very difficult to reconcile with model estimates. By invoking a new term in the equation of state that enhances the energy density, but leaves the pressure unchanged we simulate the current uncertainty in the neutron star radii. This new term can be possibly due to the exchange of the weakly interacting light U-boson with appropriate in-medium parameters, which does not compromise the success of the conventional nuclear models. The validity of this new scheme will be tested eventually by more precise measurements of neutron star radii.

nucl-th↗