54072178
Electric field quench in AdS/CFT
A bstractAn electric field quench, a suddenly applied electric field, can induce nontrivial dynamics in confining systems which may lead to thermalization as well as a deconfinement transition. In order to analyze this nonequilibrium transitions, we use the AdS/CFT correspondence for N=2$$ \mathcal{N}=2 $$ supersymmetric QCD that has a confining meson sector. We find that the electric field quench causes the deconfinement transition even when the magnitude of the applied electric field is smaller than the critical value for the static case (which is the QCD Schwinger limit for quark-antiquark pair creation). The time dependence is crucial for this phenomenon, and the gravity dual explains it as an oscillation of a D-brane in the bulk AdS spacetime. Interestingly, the deconfinement time takes only discrete values as a function of the magnitude of the electric field. We advocate that the new deconfinement phenomenon is analogous to the exciton Mott transition.
116986876
Strong field physics in condensed matter
There are deep similarities between non-linear QFT studied in high-energy and non-equilibrium physics in condensed matter. Ideas such as the Schwinger mechanism and the Volkov state are deeply related to non-linear transport and photovoltaic Hall effect in condensed matter. Here, we give a review on these relations.
118336021
Confinement Phase in Carbon-Nanotubes and the Extended Massive Schwinger Model
Carbon nanotube with electric fluxes confined in one dimension is studied. We show that a Coulomb interaction \propto |x| leads to a confinement phase with many properties similar to QCD in 4D. Low-energy physics is described by the massive Schwinger model with multi-species fermions labeled by the band and valley indices. We propose two means to detect this state. One is through an optical measurement of the exciton spectrum, which has been calculated via the 't Hooft-Berknoff equation with the light-front field theory. We show that the Gell-Mann-Oakes-Renner relation is satisfied by a dark exciton. The second is the nonlinear transport which is related to Coleman's "half-asymptotic" state.
2901780
H3+ in Diffuse Interstellar Clouds: A Tracer for the Cosmic-Ray Ionization Rate
Author Institution: Department of Astronomy and Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois at; Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801; Gemini Observatory, Hilo, HI 96720; Department of Astronomy \& Astrophysics and Department of Chemistry, University of; Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637
53724872
ANOMALOUS DIFFUSE INTERSTELLAR BANDS IN THE SPECTRUM OF HERSCHEL 36. I. OBSERVATIONS OF ROTATIONALLY EXCITED CH AND CH + ABSORPTION AND STRONG, EXTENDED REDWARD WINGS ON SEVERAL DIBs ∗
Anomalously broad diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) at 5780.5, 5797.1, 6196.0, and 6613.6 A are found in absorption along the line of sight to Herschel 36, the star illuminating the bright Hourglass region of the Hii region Messier 8. Interstellar absorption from excited CH + in the J = 1 level and from excited CH in the J = 3/2 level is also seen. To our knowledge, neither those excited molecular lines nor such strongly extended DIBs have previously been seen in absorption from interstellar gas. These unusual features appear to arise in a small region near Herschel 36 which contains most of the neutral interstellar material in the sight line. The CH + and CH in that region are radiatively excited by strong far-IR radiation from the adjacent infrared source Her 36 SE. Similarly, the broadening of the DIBs toward Herschel 36 may be due to radiative pumping of closely spaced high-J rotational levels of relatively small, polar carrier molecules. If this picture of excited rotational states for the DIB carriers is correct and applicable to most DIBs, the 2.7 K cosmic microwave background may set the minimum widths (about 0.35 A) of known DIBs, with molecular processes and/or local radiation fields producing the larger widths found for the broader DIBs. Despite the intense local UV radiation field within the cluster NGC 6530, no previously undetected DIBs stronger than 10 mA in equivalent width are found in the optical spectrum of Herschel 36, suggesting that neither dissociation nor ionization of the carriers of the known DIBs by this intense field creates new carriers with easily detectable DIB-like features. Possibly related profile anomalies for several other DIBs are noted.