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In this chapter, we will review the field-theoretic treatment of General Relativity based on an effective field theory extension of the Einstein-Hilbert action. This pragmatic route to low-energy quantum effects in gravity critically underpins miscellaneous investigations of phenomenological and quantum extensions of General Relativity. We discuss how it allows quantum field theory to be a theoretical laboratory for testing Einstein's theory of gravity and demonstrate the current state of the art of an efficient and practical scheme for evaluating the classical components of perturbative weak-field scattering amplitudes until the fourth post-Minkowskian order. Such results complement numerical predictions in Einstein's theory of gravity., Comment: 42 pages. 12 figures. Invited chapter for the Section "Effective Quantum Gravity" edited by C. Burgess and J. Donoghue of the "Handbook of Quantum Gravity" (Eds. C. Bambi, L. Modesto and I.L. Shapiro, Springer Nature, expected in 2023)

Within the framework of self-force theory, we compute the gravitational-wave energy flux through second order in the mass ratio for compact binaries in quasicircular orbits. Our results are consistent with post-Newtonian calculations in the weak field and they agree remarkably well with numerical-relativity simulations of comparable-mass binaries in the strong field. We also find good agreement for binaries with a spinning secondary or a slowly spinning primary. Our results are key for accurately modelling extreme-mass-ratio inspirals and will be useful in modelling intermediate-mass-ratio systems., 5 pages + supplemental material, 7 figures; Updated to reflect published version

We investigate numerically the role of near-field dipole-dipole interactions on the late-emission dynamics of large disordered cold atomic samples driven by a weak field. Previous experimental and numerical studies of subradiance in macroscopic samples have focused on low-density samples of pure two-level atoms, without internal structure, which corresponds to a scalar representation of the light. The cooperative nature of the late emission of light is then governed by the resonant optical depth. Here, by considering the vectorial nature of the light, we show the detrimental role of the near-field terms on cooperativity in higher-density samples. The observed reduction in the subradiant lifetimes is interpreted as a signature of the inhomogeneous broadening due to the near-field contributions, in analogy with the van der Waals dephasing phenomenon for superradiance.

The principal objective of this project is to investigate the gravitational lensing by asymptotically flat black holes in the framework of Horndeski theory in weak field limits. To achieve this objective, we utilize the Gauss-Bonnet theorem to the optical geometry of asymptotically flat black holes and apply the Gibbons-Werner technique to achieve the deflection angle of photons in weak field limits. Subsequently, we manifest the influence of plasma medium on deflection of photons by asymptotically flat black holes in the context of Horndeski theory. We also examine the graphical impact of deflection angle on asymptotically flat black holes in the background of Horndeski theory in plasma medium as well as non-plasma medium., 13 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in International Journal of Geometric Methods in Modern Physics

Aiming at the problem of servoing task failure caused by the manipulated object deviating from the camera field-of-view (FOV) during the robot manipulator visual servoing (VS) process, a new VS method based on an improved tracking learning detection (TLD) algorithm is proposed in this article, which allows the manipulated object to deviate from the camera FOV in several continuous frames and maintains the smoothness of the robot manipulator motion during VS. Firstly, to implement the robot manipulator visual object tracking task with strong robustness under the weak FOV constraints, an improved TLD algorithm is proposed. Then, the algorithm is used to extract the image features (object in the camera FOV) or predict image features (object out of the camera FOV) of the manipulated object in the current frame. And then, the position of the manipulated object in the current image is further estimated. Finally, the visual sliding mode control law is designed according to the image feature errors to control the motion of the robot manipulator so as to complete the visual tracking task of the robot manipulator to the manipulated object in complex natural scenes with high robustness. Several robot manipulator VS experiments were conducted on a six-degrees-of-freedom MOTOMANSV3 industrial manipulator under different natural scenes. The experimental results show that the proposed robot manipulator VS method can relax the FOV constraint requirements on real-time visibility of manipulated object and effectively solve the problem of servoing task failure caused by the object deviating from the camera FOV during the VS.

We study light deflection from a Reissner-Nordstr\"om-de Sitter black hole in the gravitational monopole background. We first calculate the orbit equation and the contribution of the monopole and black hole parameters to the deflection angle up to second-order for the vanishing cosmological constant case using the Rindler-Ishak method. We also obtain the contribution of the cosmological constant to light deflection in this geometry in the weak field limit using the same method., Comment: v2: 10 pages, 2 figures, matches the published version

The role of magnetic fields in the chromospheric heating problem remains greatly unconstrained. Most theoretical predictions from numerical models rely on a magnetic configuration, field strength and connectivity whose details have not been well established with observational studies. High-resolution studies of chromospheric magnetic fields in plage are very scarce or non-existent in general. Our aim is to study the stratification of the magnetic field vector in plage regions. We use high-spatial resolution full-Stokes observations acquired with CRISP instrument at the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope in the Mg I $\lambda$5173, Na I $\lambda$5896 and Ca II $\lambda$8542 lines. We have developed a spatially-regularized weak-field approximation (WFA) method based on the idea of spatial regularization. This method allows for a fast computation of magnetic field maps for an extended field of view. The fidelity of this new technique has been assessed using a snapshot from a realistic 3D magnetohydrodynamics simulation. We have derived the depth-stratification of the line-of-sight component of the magnetic field from the photosphere to the chromosphere in a plage region. The magnetic fields are concentrated in the intergranular lanes in the photosphere and expand horizontally toward the chromosphere, filling all the space and forming a canopy. Our results suggest that the lower boundary of this canopy must be located around 400-600 km from the photosphere. The mean canopy total magnetic field strength in the lower chromosphere ($z\approx760$ km) is 658 G. At $z=1160$ km we estimate $\approx 417$ G. We propose a modification to the WFA that improves its applicability to data with worse signal-to-noise ratio. These methods provide a quick and reliable way of studying multi-layer magnetic field observations without the many difficulties inherent to other inversion methods., Comment: Accepted for publication on 2020-08-27

International audience; We present paleomagnetic and geochronological data of twenty-five stacked lava flows from São Miguel Island (Azores) that were emplaced during the last geomagnetic reversal (Matuyama-Brunhes, M-B). The characteristic direction of natural remanent magnetization was isolated through alternating field and/or thermal demagnetization. From bottom to top, the directional changes display a first phase with reverse, transitional and normal directions which is followed by a second phase with transitional and normal directions. Dating by Potassium-Argon (K-Ar) of fresh separated groundmass provide ages of 768 ± 5 ka and 765 ± 5 ka (1σ) for the first and second transitional episodes, respectively. We infer that this sequence recorded the last reversal and reveal the presence of a rebound that occurred soon after the transition. The age of the transition is 5-15 kyr younger than at other volcanic localities, but in agreement with astronomical ages that were recently proposed for the transitional interval. The reversal is characterized by weak field intensity during the transition, a recovery phase and a subsequent decrease during the rebound. The two transitional virtual geomagnetic poles (VGPs) that characterize the transition are found above the South Atlantic and the North Pacific. When compared to other M-B records, no VGP is found above preferred locations.

We study numerically the thermodynamic properties of the spin nematic phases in a magnetic field in the spin-1 bilinear-biquadratic model. When the field is applied, the phase transition temperature once goes up and then decreases rapidly toward zero, which is detected by the peak-shift in the specific heat. The underlying mechanism of the reentrant behavior is the entropic effect. In a weak field the high temperature paramagnetic phase rapidly loses its entropy while the ferroquadrupolar nematic phase remains robust by modifying the shape of the ferroquadrupolar moment. This feature serves as a fingerprint of generic ferroquadrupolar phases, while it is not observed for the case of antiferroquadrupoles., 6 pages, 4 figures + supplemental material

A Symmetry Principle has been shown to augment unambiguously the Einstein Field Equations, promoting the whole closed-string massless NS-NS sector to stringy graviton fields. Here we consider its weak field approximation, take a non-relativistic limit, and derive the stringy augmentation of Newton Gravity: \[ \begin{array}{lll} {\bf{\nabla}^{2}\Phi}=4\pi G \rho+\bf{H}{\bf{\cdot}}\bf{H}\,, \quad&\qquad\bf{\nabla}\bf{\cdot}\bf{H}=0\,, \quad&\qquad {\bf{\nabla}\bf{\times}\bf{H}}=4\pi G\, \bf{K}\,. \end{array} \] Not only the mass density $\rho$ but also the current density $\mathbf{K}$ is intrinsic to matter. Sourcing $\mathbf{H}$ which is of NS-NS $H$-flux origin, $\mathbf{K}$ is nontrivial if the matter is `stringy'. $\mathbf{H}$ contributes quadratically to the Newton potential, but otherwise is decoupled from the point particle dynamics, i.e. $\bf{\ddot{x}}=-\bf{\nabla}\Phi$. We define `stringization' analogous to magnetization and discuss regular as well as monopole-like singular solutions., Comment: 6 pages, No figure, v2) Refs added

The present study outlines discursive work in a weak field mandate event. The case is a conference focussed on assistive technologies that may help persons with disabilities gain better access to educational and employment spaces in India. Findings highlight three mechanisms which underpinned event-specific discursive work – discursive clarity, alignment, and coordination. In outlining such discursive work, the present study indicates how actors, who congregate as a group without high symbolic or resource support from powerful institutional elites, attempt to influence broader processes of institutionalisation. Keywords: Discourse, Field-level events, Disability, Assistive technologies

We show that fundamental plane of elliptical galaxies can be used to obtain observational constraints on metric theories of gravity. Being it connected to global properties of ellipticals, it can fix parameters of modified gravity. Specifically, we use fundamental plane to constrain modified theories of gravity with Yukawa-like corrections which commonly emerge in the post-Newtonian limit. After giving examples on how these corrections are derived, we first analyze the velocity distribution of elliptical galaxies comparing theoretical results of modified gravity with Yukawa-like corrections with astronomical data. According to these results, it is possible to constrain the parameters of the corrections discriminating among classes of models compatible with astronomical observations. We conclude that fundamental plane can be used as a standard tool to probe different theories of gravity in the weak field limit., Comment: 13 pages, 7 figures, to be published in Phys. Dark. Univ. (2020)

It was pointed out long ago by Vainshtein [Phys. Lett. 39B, 393 (1972)] that the weak-field perturbation expansion of generic theories (of the nonlinear Fierz-Pauli type) involving massive spin-2 excitations breaks down below a certain distance around a material source ("Vainshtein radius"), scaling as some inverse power of the spin-2 mass $m_2$, i.e., some positive power of the range $m_2^{-1}$. Here we prove that this conclusion does not apply in a generalized Einstein-Cartan theory (called "torsion bigravity") whose spectrum is made (like that of bimetric gravity) of a massless spin-2 excitation and a massive spin-2 one. Working within a static spherically symmetric ansatz, we prove, by reformulating the field equations in terms of new variables, that one can construct an all-order weak-field perturbative expansion where no denominators involving $m_2$ ever appear in the region $r \ll m_2^{-1}$. In particular, we show how the formal large-range limit, $m_2 \to 0$, leads to a well-defined, finite perturbation expansion, whose all-order structure is discussed in some detail., 18 pages, no figures

We calculate the ultraviolet divergences in a weak field expansion of the Volkov propagator. This is done for the full Lorentz class of gauges. The expected gauge invariance of the vacuum mass shift in each sideband is recovered. However, the renormalisation of the background induced mass shift is shown to be gauge dependent. In particular, we show that it vanishes in Landau gauge. We find that only in that gauge does the vacuum renormalisation remove all ultraviolet divergences., 8 pages, 3 figures, revised version to appear in Physics Letters B

We consider one-particle reducible (1PR) contributions to QED and scalar QED processes in external fields, at one-loop and two-loop order. We investigate three cases in detail: constant crossed fields, constant magnetic fields, and plane waves. We find that 1PR tadpole contributions in plane waves and constant crossed fields are non-zero, but contribute only divergences to be renormalised away. In constant magnetic fields, on the other hand, tadpole contributions give physical corrections to processes at one-loop and beyond. Our calculations are exact in the external fields and we give strong and weak field expansions in the magnetic case., Comment: 36 pages, 9 figures, update to journal version

While non-action generated, but identically conserved,-abelian and non-gauge vectors exist, they are unsuitable for building alternate field equations because they have no stress-tensor, hence do not permit Poincare generators and, most phiyically, cannot couple consistently to gravity. Separately, their geometric analogues -covariantly conserved non-Lagrangian symmetric tensors-probably do not exist, but their weak field, abelian counterparts do, and share the vector fields' absence of generators., Comment: Published version

Physical review / D D 99(9), 096002 (2019). doi:10.1103/PhysRevD.99.096002, In the dynamically assisted Schwinger mechanism, the pair production probability is significantly enhanced by including a weak, rapidly varying field in addition to a strong, slowly varying field. In a previous paper we showed that several features of dynamical assistance can be understood by a perturbative treatment of the weak field. Here we show how to calculate the prefactors of the higher-order terms, which is important because the dominant contribution can come from higher orders. We give a new and independent derivation of the momentum spectrum using the worldline formalism, and extend our WKB approach to calculate the amplitude to higher orders. We show that these methods are also applicable to doubly assisted pair production., Published by Inst.189733, Melville, NY

We give a proof of the equivalence of the electric-magnetic duality on one side and helicity conservation of the tree level amplitudes on the other side within general models of nonlinear electrodynamics. Using modified Feynman rules derived from generalized normal ordered Lagrangian we discuss the interrelation of the above two properties of the theory also at higher loops. As an illustration we present two explicit examples, namely we find the generalized normal ordered Lagrangian for the Born-Infeld theory and derive a semi-closed expression for the Lagrangian of the Bossard-Nicolai model (in terms of the weak field expansion with explicitly known coefficients) from its normal ordered form., Comment: 31 pages

Understanding the nature of epileptic state transitions remains a major goal for epilepsy research. Simple in vitro models offer unique experimental opportunities, which we exploit to show that such transitions can arise from shifts in the ictal source of the activity. These transitions reflect the fact that cortical territories differ both in the type of epileptiform activity they can sustain, and their susceptibility to drug manipulation. In the zero Mg2+ model, the earliest epileptiform activity is restricted to neocortical and entorhinal networks. Hippocampal bursting only starts much later, and triggers a marked transition in neo-/entorhinal cortical activity. Thereafter, the hippocampal activity acts as a pacemaker, entraining the other territories to their discharge pattern. This entrainment persists following transection of the major axonal pathways between hippocampus and cortex, indicating that it can be mediated through a non-synaptic route. Neuronal discharges are associated with large rises in extracellular [K+], but we show that these are very localised, and therefore are not the means of entraining distant cortical areas. We conclude instead that the entrainment occurs through weak field effects distant from the pacemaker, but which are highly effective at recruiting other brain territories that are already hyperexcitable. The hippocampal epileptiform activity appears unusually susceptible to drugs that impact on K+ conductances. These findings demonstrate that the local circuitry gives rise to stereotypical epileptic activity patterns, but these are also influenced by both synaptic and non-synaptic long-range effects. Our results have important implications for our understanding of epileptic propagation, and anti-epileptic drug action.

We find the generalized version of the Toomre's criterion for the stability of a rotating thin disk in the context of Eddington inspired Born-Infeld (EiBI) gravity which possesses one free parameter $\chi$. To do so we use the weak field limit of the theory and find the dispersion relation for the propagation of matter density waves on the surface of a self-gravitating and differentially rotating disk. Finally we find a new version of Toomre's stability criterion for thin disks. We show that EiBI gravity with negative $\chi$ destabilizes all the rotating thin disks. On the other hand EiBI with positive $\chi$ substantially can suppress the local fragmentation, and has stabilizing effects against axi-symmetric perturbations. More specifically, we show that only an annulus remains unstable on the surface of the disk. The width of the annulus directly depends on the magnitude of $\chi$., Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS

The post-Newtonian formalism is developed for hybrid f(R)-gravity. The model is tested in the weak field regime of the Solar System. Using scalartensor representation of hybrid f(R)-gravity we impose restrictions on the parameters of the theory and show that hybrid f(R)-gravity is not ruled out by the observations in the weak field limit.

We provide the detailed calculation of a general form for Maxwell and London equations that takes into account gravitational corrections in linear approximation. We determine the possible alteration of a static gravitational field in a superconductor making use of the time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau equations, providing also an analytic solution in the weak field condition. Finally, we compare the behavior of a high-Tc superconductor with a classical low-Tc superconductor, analyzing the values of the parameters that can enhance the reduction of the gravitational field., 28 pages, 5 figures. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:cond-mat/0010399

We reconsider the recently proposed mimetic gravity, focusing in particular on whether the theory is able to reproduce the inferred flat rotation curves of galaxies. We extend the theory by adding a non-minimal coupling between matter and mimetic field. Such coupling leads to the appearance of an extra force which renders the motion of test particles non-geodesic. By studying the weak field limit of the resulting equations of motion, we demonstrate that in the Newtonian limit the acceleration law induced by the non-minimal coupling reduces to a Modified Newtonian Dynamics (MOND)-like one. In this way, it is possible to reproduce the successes of MOND, namely the explanation for the flat galactic rotation curves and the Tully-Fisher relation, within the framework of mimetic gravity, without the need for particle dark matter. The scale-dependence of the recovered acceleration scale opens up the possibility of addressing the missing mass problem not only on galactic but also on cluster scales: we defer a full study of this issue, together with a complete analysis of fits to spiral galaxy rotation curves, to an upcoming companion paper., 11 pages, accepted for publication in Class. Quant. Grav

International audience; Post-Newtonian (PN) theory enables us to predict the waveform and the phaseevolution of the gravitational waves emitted by a system of two compact objectscoalescing in its inspiral phase. State-of-the-art works provide the phase ofthe expected signal up to 3.5PN 5 (i.e. up to 1/c 7). Comparison with numericalrelativity, as well as the promising evolution of gravitational wave detectorsand the new discoveries incite us to pursue this computation to a higher order.In our current program, we are aiming at reaching the phase of the signal at the4.5PN order (i.e. 1/c 9). For this purpose, the energy flux emitted by such asystem for circular orbits has to be known at 4.5PN. One difficulty of thiscomputation is the high-order interactions-commonly called tails-between themass of the system and its mass and current multipole moments during thepropagation of the signal. In Marchand et al. 2016 1 , we have computed thecontribution of all the tails entering the flux at the 4.5PN order, and inparticular the third-order mass-quadrupole interactions known as " tails-of-tails-of-tails ". Our work enables to fully determine the 4.5PN coefficient ofthe flux for circular orbits (while the 4PN coefficient is still unknown).

It was recently proposed that the effects usually attributed to particle dark matter on galaxy scales are due to the displacement of dark energy by baryonic matter, a paradigm known as emergent gravity. This formalism leads to predictions similar to Modified Newtonian Dynamics (MOND) in spherical symmetry, but not quite identical. In particular, it leads to a well defined transition between the Newtonian and the modified gravitational regimes, a transition depending on both the Newtonian acceleration and its first derivative with respect to radius. Under the hypothesis of the applicability of this transition to aspherical systems, we investigate whether it can reproduce observed galaxy rotation curves. We conclude that the formula leads to marginally acceptable fits with strikingly low best-fit distances, low stellar mass-to-light ratios, and a low Hubble constant. In particular, some unobserved wiggles are produced in rotation curves because of the dependence of the transition on the derivative of the Newtonian acceleration, leading, even in the most favorable case, to systematically less good fits than MOND. Then, applying the predicted transition from emergent gravity in a regime where it should a priori be applicable, i.e. in spherical symmetry and outside of the bulk of matter, we show that the predictions for the secular advances of Solar System planets' perihelia are discrepant with the data by seven orders of magnitude, ruling out the present emergent gravity weak-field formula with high confidence., 10 pages, 2 figures, accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. D

This work relates to the famous experiments, performed in 1975 and 1979 by Werner et al., measuring neutron interference and neutron Sagnac effects in the earth's gravitational field. Employing the method of Stodolsky in its weak field approximation, explicit expressions are derived for the two phase shifts, which turn out to be in agreement with the experiments and with the previously obtained expressions derived from semi-classical arguments: these expressions are simply modified by relativistic correction factors., 7 pages, 1 figure

We study the tunneling of virtual matter-antimatter pairs from the quantum vacuum in the presence of a spatially uniform temporal electric background composed of of a strong slow field superimposed with a weak rapid field. After analytic continuation to Euclidean spacetime we obtain from the instanton equations two critical points. While one of them is the closing point of the instanton path, the other serves as an Euclidean mirror which reflects and squeezes the instanton. It is this reflection and shrinking which is responsible for an enormous enhancement of the vacuum pair production rate. We discuss how important features of this mechanism can be analysed and understood via such a rotation in the complex plane. Consistent with previous studies, we consider certain examples where we apply weak fields with a distinct pole structure in order to show that the reflection takes place exactly at the poles. We also discuss the effect of possible sub-cycle structures. We extend this reflection picture to fields which have no poles present and illustrate the effective reflections with explicit examples. An additional field strength dependence for the rate occurs in such cases. We analytically compute the characteristic threshold for this mechanism given by the critical combined Keldysh parameter. We discuss significant differences between these two types of fields. For various backgrounds, we present the contributing instantons and perform analytical computations for the corresponding rates treating both fields nonperturbatively. The validity of the results is confirmed by numerical computations. Considering different profiles for the strong field, we also discuss its impact on the critical combined Keldysh parameter.

International audience; Although the perturbation series in quantum electrodynamics has been studied for eighty years concerning its high-order behavior, our present understanding is still poorer than for many other field theories. An interesting case is Schwinger pair creation in a constant electric field, which may possibly provide a window to high loop orders, simple non-perturbative closed-form expressions have been conjectured for the pair creation rate in the weak field limit, for scalar QED in 1982 by Affleck, Alvarez, and Manton, and for spinor QED by Lebedev and Ritus in 1984. Using Borel analysis, these can be used to obtain non-perturbative information on the on-shell renormalized N-photon amplitudes at large N and low energy. This line of reasoning also leads to a number of nontrivial predictions for the effective QED Lagrangian in either four or two dimensions at any loop order, and preliminary results of a calculation of the three-loop Euler–Heisenberg Lagrangian in two dimensions are presented.

The identification of scalable processes that transfer random mixtures of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) into fractions featuring a high content of semiconducting species is crucial for future application of SWCNTs in high-performance electronics. Herein we demonstrate a highly efficient and simple separation method that relies on selective interactions between tailor-made amphiphilic polymers and semiconducting SWCNTs in the presence of low viscosity separation media. High purity individualized semiconducting SWCNTs or even self-organized semiconducting sheets are separated from an as-produced SWCNT dispersion via a single weak field centrifugation run. Absorption and Raman spectroscopy are applied to verify the high purity of the obtained SWCNTs. Furthermore SWCNT - network field-effect transistors were fabricated, which exhibit high ON/OFF ratios (105) and field-effect mobilities (17 cm2/Vs). In addition to demonstrating the feasibility of high purity separation by a novel low complexity process, our method can be readily transferred to large scale production.

Polarity reversals of the geomagnetic field are a major feature of the Earth's dynamo. Questions remain regarding the dynamical processes that give rise to reversals and the properties of the geomagnetic field during a polarity transition. A large number of paleomagnetic reversal records have been acquired during the past 50 years in order to better constrain the structure and geometry of the transitional field. In addition, over the past two decades, numerical dynamo simulations have also provided insights into the reversal mechanism. Yet despite the large paleomagnetic database, controversial interpretations of records of the transitional field persist; they result from two characteristics inherent to all reversals, both of which are detrimental to an ambiguous analysis. On the one hand, the reversal process is rapid and requires adequate temporal resolution. On the other hand, weak field intensities during a reversal can affect the fidelity of magnetic recording in sedimentary records. This paper is aimed at reviewing critically the main reversal features derived from paleomagnetic records and at analyzing some of these features in light of numerical simulations. We discuss in detail the fidelity of the signal extracted from paleomagnetic records and pay special attention to their resolution with respect to the timing and mechanisms involved in the magnetization process. Records from marine sediments dominate the database. They give rise to transitional field models that often lead to overinterpret the data. Consequently, we attempt to separate robust results (and their subsequent interpretations) from those that do not stand on a strong observational footing. Finally, we discuss new avenues that should favor progress to better characterize and understand transitional field behavior., Key Points We examine and assess an updated database of geomagnetic reversal recordsWe discuss robust and controversial features of the transitional fieldFuture work should involve millimeter‐size specimens and physics‐based models

In 2012 Coey proposed a theory on the mechanism of magnetic water treatment based on the gradient of the applied field rather than its absolute strength. We tested this theory by measuring the effect of very weak field magnets (≤ 10 G) containing strong magnetic inhomogeneities (ΔB = 770 G·m−1 (WCM 62081992) and 740 G·m−1 (WCM 62083545)) on tap water samples by the use of electric impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and laser scattering. Our results show an increased formation of nm-sized prenucleation clusters (dynamically ordered liquid like oxyanion polymers or “DOLLOPs”) due to the exposure to the magnetic field and thus are consistent with Coey’s theory which is therefore also applicable to very weak magnetic fields as long as they contain strong gradients.

It has been shown that a self-gravitating system of massive keV fermions in thermodynamic equilibrium correctly describes the dark matter (DM) distribution in galactic halos (from dwarf to spiral and elliptical galaxies) and that, at the same time, it predicts a denser quantum core towards the center of the configuration. Such a quantum core, for a fermion mass in the range of 50 keV ≲m c2≲345 keV , can be an alternative interpretation of the central compact object in Sgr A*, traditionally assumed to be a black hole (BH). We present in this work the gravitational lensing properties of this novel DM configuration in nearby Milky-Way-like spiral galaxies. We describe the lensing effects of the pure DM component both on halo scales, where we compare them to the effects of the Navarro-Frenk-White and the nonsingular isothermal sphere DM models, and near the galaxy center, where we compare them with the effects of a Schwarzschild BH. For the particle mass leading to the most compact DM core, m c2≈1 02 keV , we draw the following conclusions. At distances r ≳20 pc from the center of the lens the effect of the central object on the lensing properties is negligible. However, we show that measurements of the deflection angle produced by the DM distribution in the outer region at a few kpc, together with rotation curve data, could help to discriminate between different DM models. In the inner regions 1 0-6≲r ≲20 pc , the lensing effects of a DM quantum core alternative to the BH scenario becomes a theme of an analysis of unprecedented precision which is challenging for current technological developments. We show that at distances ?1 0-4 pc strong lensing effects, such as multiple images and Einstein rings, may occur. Large differences in the deflection angle produced by a DM central core and a central BH appear at distances r ≲1 0-6 pc ; in this regime the weak-field formalism is no longer applicable and the exact general-relativistic formula has to be used for the deflection angle which may become bigger than 2 π . An important difference in comparison to BHs is in the fact that quantum DM cores do not show a photon sphere; this implies that they do not cast a shadow (if they are transparent). Similar conclusions apply to the other DM distributions for other fermion masses in the above-specified range and for other galaxy types., Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas

We define chiral fermions in the presence of non-trivial gravitational and gauge background fields in the framework of locally covariant field theory. This allows to straightforwardly compute the chiral anomalies on non-compact Lorentzian space-times, without recourse to a weak field approximation., Comment: 19 pages

We measured the transverse magnetoresistivity of the mixed valence compound $\alpha$-YbAlB$_4$. Two configurations were used where current was applied along [110] direction for both and magnetic field was applied along [-110] and $c$-axis. We found the transverse magnetoresistivity is highly anisotropic. In the weak field below 1 T, it is consistent with stronger $c$-$f$ hybridization in the $ab$ plane which was suggested from the previous zero field resistivity measurements. At the higher field above 3 T, we observed a negative transverse magnetoresistivity for the field applied along the $c$-axis. The temperature dependences of the resistivity measured at several different fields suggest the suppression of the heavy fermion behavior at the characteristic field of $\sim 5.5$ T., Comment: 6pages, 4 figures

We consider population transfer in open quantum systems, which are described by quantum dynamical semigroups (QDS). Using second order perturbation theory of the Lindblad equation, we show that it depends on a weak external field only through the field's autocorrelation function (ACF), which is phase independent. Therefore, for leading order in perturbation, QDS cannot support dependence of the population transfer on the phase properties of weak fields. We examine an example of weak-field phase-dependent population transfer, and show that the phase-dependence comes from the next order in the perturbation., 24 pages, 6 figures

Introduction Migratory birds travel spectacular distances each year, navigating and orienting by a variety of means, most of which are poorly understood. Among these is a remarkable ability to perceive the intensity and direction of the Earth's magnetic field (Mouritsen and Ritz, 2005; Wiltschko and Wiltschko, 2006; Johnsen and Lohmann, 2008). Biologically credible mechanisms for the detection of such a weak field (25–65 μT) are scarce, and in recent years just two proposals have emerged as front-runners. One, essentially classical, centers on clusters of magnetic iron-containing particles in the upper beak, which appear to act as a magnetometer for determining geographical position (Kirschvink and Gould, 1981; Kirschvink et al. , 2001; Fleissner et al. , 2007; Solov'yov and Greiner, 2007; Walker, 2008; Solov'yov and Greiner, 2009a, b; Falkenberg et al. , 2010). The other relies on the quantum spin dynamics of transient photoinduced radical pairs (Schulten et al. , 1978; Schulten, 1982; Schulten and Windemuth, 1986; Ritz et al. , 2000b; Cintolesi et al. , 2003; Moller et al. , 2004; Mouritsen et al. , 2004; Heyers et al. , 2007; Liedvogel et al. , 2007b, a; Solov'yov et al. , 2007; Feenders et al. , 2008; Maeda et al. , 2008; Solov'yov and Schulten, 2009; Ritz et al. , 2009; Rodgers and Hore, 2009; Zapka et al. , 2009). Originally suggested by Schulten in 1978 (Schulten et al. , 1978) as the basis of the avian magnetic compass sensor, this mechanism gained support from the subsequent observation that the compass is light dependent (Wiltschko et al. , 1993) (for a review see e.g. (Wiltschko et al. , 2010)).

The problem of matching different regions of spacetime in order to construct inhomogeneous cosmological models is investigated in the context of Lagrangian theories of gravity constructed from general analytic functions f(R), and from non-analytic theories with f(R)=R^n. In all of the cases studied, we find that it is impossible to satisfy the required junction conditions without the large-scale behaviour reducing to that expected from Einstein's equations with a cosmological constant. For theories with analytic f(R) this suggests that the usual treatment of weak-field systems as perturbations about Minkowski space may not be compatible with late-time acceleration driven by anything other than a constant term of the form f(0), which acts like a cosmological constant. In the absence of Minkowski space as a suitable background for weak-field systems, one must then choose and justify some other solution to perform perturbative analyses around. For theories with f(R)=R^n we find that no known spherically symmetric vacuum solutions can be matched to an expanding FLRW background. This includes the absence of any Einstein-Straus-like embeddings of the Schwarzschild exterior solution in FLRW spacetimes., 12 pages. Corrections made in Eqs. (6)-(9)

The present article mobilizes the concepts of “weak field” and “avatar” to explain Europe’s historically variable meanings, analyzing two successful reinventions (as a “community of law” and a “single market”) and one failure (“social Europe”). Focusing on law and economics, the authors first show that the weak field of EU studies serves as a crossroads between nationally anchored scholarly professions and Europe’s political field; second, they show that under certain conditions legal and economic constructions have exerted performative effects via scholarly avatars. Depending on their strategic positioning, scholarly avatars facilitate symbolic exchange across political, technocratic, and scholarly boundaries and endow theoretical constructions with performative potential.

We reexamine the light deflection by an Ellis wormhole. The bending angle as a function of the ratio between the impact parameter and the throat radius of the wormhole is obtained in terms of a complete elliptic integral of the first kind. This result immediately yields asymptotic expressions in the weak field approximation. It is shown that an expression for the deflection angle derived (and used) in recent papers is valid at the leading order but it breaks down at the next order because of the nontrivial spacetime topology., 3 pages, accepted by PRD

In this paper, we examine the possibility of static, spherically symmetric gravitational geons on a 3 dimensional brane embedded in a 4+1 dimensional space-time. We choose a specific g_tt for the brane-world space-time metric. We then calculate g_rr analytically in the weak field limit and numerically for stronger fields. We show that the induced field equations on the brane do admit gravitational geon solutions., 14 pages with 9 figures. To appear in General Relativity and Gravitation

Coherent phenomena in molecular chromophores interacting with a dissipative environment is addressed. We defined coherence by the phenomena of decoherence which collapses the system to pointer states. Coherent irreducible phenomena takes place in a time window before the system collapses. We describe a computational model: The Stochastic Surrogate Hamiltonian that can deal with such complex quantum systems. The conditions for coherent control are analyzed. A prerequisite for coherent phenomena is the ability to perform coherent control using shaped light sources. We show that weak field coherent control is enabled by interaction with the environment., Israel Science Foundation