Quantum Physics Commons^™

Schrödinger And Nietzsche On Life: The Eternal Recurrence Of The Same, Babette Babich

Working Papers

Schrödinger and Nietzsche on Life: The Eternal Recurrence of the Same

This essay explores Schrödinger’s reflections on measurement, consciousness, and personal identity. Schrödinger’s, What Is Life? is read together with Nietzsche’s own reflections on the same question, in his aphorism What is Life? together with Nietzsche’s teaching of the eternal return of the selfsame. Schrödinger’s own thinking is influenced as is Nietzsche’s by Schopenhauer but Schrödinger also has the Vedic tradition as this influenced Schopenhauer himself in view.

Solutions To Quasi-Relativistic Multi-Configurative Hartree-Fock Equations In Quantum Chemistry, Carlos Argáez García, Michael Melgaard

Articles

We establish existence of infinitely many distinct solutions to the multi-configurative Hartree-Fock type equations for N-electron Coulomb systems with quasi-relativistic kinetic energy for the n th electron. Finitely many of the solutions are interpreted as excited states of the molecule. Moreover, we prove existence of a ground state. The results are valid under the hypotheses that the total charge Z of K nuclei is greater than N-1 and that Z is smaller than a critical charge. The proofs are based on a new application of the Lions-Fang-Ghoussoub critical point approach to nonminimal solutions on a complete analytic Hilbert-Riemann manifold.

Fluorescence Emission Study Of Cdse/Zns Quantum Dot And Au Nanoparticles Composite For Application In Quantum Dot Solar Concentrators, Subhash Chandra, John Doran, Manus Kennedy, S Mccormack, A Chatten

Conference Papers

Fluorescence of core shell (CdSe/ZnS) quantum dots (QDs) and Au nanoparticles (NPs) composite has been studied for application in quantum dot solar concentrators (QDSC). We conclude two points from the particular QD/Au NP composite studied. One; for the particular Au NPs concentration, the relative fluorescence emission enhancement increases with decreasing QD concentration. Second; the enhancement is more pronounced for the Au nanoparticles whose surface plasmon resonance wavelength overlaps with the absorption peak of QDs. The fundamental concept that could describe the change in fluorescence emission of QDs in the presence of Au NPs is the locally enhanced electromagnetic field induced …

Projection Of Diffracted Optical Atom Traps, Jeremy Kruger

Physics

Theoretical calculations were performed for the projection of a diffraction pattern created by a pinhole through a single-lens system using vector diffraction theory and a combination of programs (MathCAD, Igor, etc.). The projected diffraction patterns were then experimentally created, recorded, and analyzed. This work is part of a larger collaboration with Dr. Kat Gillen, to trap and manipulate atoms in a Magneto Optical Trap (MOT) and to make further steps in the direction of Quantum Computing using trapped neutral atoms.

Pointer States Via Engineered Dissipation, Kaveh Khodjasteh, Viatcheslav V. V. Dobrovitski, Lorenza Viola

Dartmouth Scholarship

Pointer states are long-lasting high-fidelity states in open quantum systems. We show how any pure state in a non-Markovian open quantum system can be made to behave as a pointer state by suitably engineering the coupling to the environment via open-loop periodic control. Engineered pointer states are constructed as approximate fixed points of the controlled open-system dynamics, in such a way that they are guaranteed to survive over a long time with a fidelity determined by the relative precision with which the dynamics is engineered. We provide quantitative minimum-fidelity bounds by identifying symmetry and ergodicity conditions that the decoherence-inducing perturbation …

Quantum Diffusion-Limited Aggregation, David Bradley Johnson

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Though classical random walks have been studied for many years, research concerning their quantum analogues, quantum random walks, has only come about recently. Numerous simulations of both types of walks have been run and analyzed, and are generally well-understood. Research pertaining to one of the more important properties of classical random walks, namely, their ability to build fractal structures in diffusion-limited aggregation, has been particularly noteworthy. However, nobody has yet pursued this avenue of research in the realm of quantum random walks. The study of random walks and the structures they build has various applications in materials science. Since all …

Characteristic Extraction Tool For Gravitational Waveforms, Maria C. Babiuc-Hamilton, B´Ela Szila´Gyi, Jeffrey Winicour, Yosef Zlochower

Physics Faculty Research

We develop and calibrate a characteristic waveform extraction tool whose major improvements and corrections of prior versions allow satisfaction of the accuracy standards required for advanced LIGO data analysis. The extraction tool uses a characteristic evolution code to propagate numerical data on an inner worldtube supplied by a 3+1 Cauchy evolution to obtain the gravitational waveform at null infinity. With the new extraction tool, high accuracy and convergence of the numerical error can be demonstrated for an inspiral and merger of mass M binary black holes even for an extraction worldtube radius as small as R=20M. The …

Transport And Optical Properties Of Quantized Low-Dimensional Systems, Xiaoguang Li

Doctoral Dissertations

In this thesis, we present a systematic investigation of the static and dynamic response properties of low-dimensional systems, using a variety of theoretical techniques ranging from time dependent density functional theory to the recursive Green's function method.

As typical low-dimensional systems, metal nanostructures can strongly interact with an electric field to support surface plasmons, making their optical properties extremely attractive in both fundamental and applied aspects. We have investigated the energy broadening of surface plasmons in metal structures of reduced dimensionality, where Landau damping is the dominant dissipation channel and presents an intrinsic limitation to plasmonics technology. We show that …

Comparison Of A High Purity Germanium Gamma Ray Spectrometer And A Multidimensional Nai(T1) Scintillation Gamma Ray Spectrometer, Greg Stratton

Aerospace Engineering

This report compares two different gamma ray spectrometers in terms of performance, operation, and apparatus and also investigates the design and integration challenges of using gamma ray spectrometers in space. The first spectrometer is a one-dimensional high purity germanium (HPGe) spectrometer and the second is a multidimensional NaI(Tl) scintillation spectrometer (MGRS). The key results show that the HPGe exhibits 15 to 27 times better energy resolution than the MGRS, but the MGRS is 52 times more sensitive and removes 177 % more of the background radiation.

Variable Renewable Energy In Modeling Climate Change Mitigation Scenarios, Falko Ueckerdt, Robert J. Brecha, Gunnar Luderer, Patrick Sullivan, Eva Schmid, Nico Bauer, Diana Böttger

Physics Faculty Publications

This paper addresses the issue of how to account for short‐term temporal variability of renewable energy sources and power demand in long‐term climate change mitigation scenarios in energy‐economic models. An approach that captures in a stylized way the major challenges to the integration of variable renewable energy sources into power systems has been developed. As a first application this approach has been introduced to REMIND‐D, a hybrid energy‐economy model of Germany. An approximation of the residual load duration curve is implemented. The approximating function endogenously changes depending on the penetration and mix of variable renewable power. The approach can thus …

Approach To Typicality In Quantum Systems, Shawn Dubey

Applied Physics Masters Theses Collection

The study of quantum mechanics has greatly broadened since its inception in the early twentieth century. Recent research has focused on the emergence of thermalization in quantum many-body systems. In this thesis I will demonstrate the approach to typicality--the notion that for specific sets of objects, most of the objects share a common property--in a single, many-body spins chain of spin half particles. This notion of typicality is new. But it serves as a good explanation for the emergence of thermalization.

Quantum Mechanics, Quantum Computation, And The Density Operator In Sympy, Addison Cugini

Physics

Because aspects of quantum mechanics are both difficult to understand and difficult algebraically, there is a need for software which symbolically simulates quantum mechanical phenomena. To accomplish this goal, code has been added to an open-source computer algebra system, called SymPy, which models the abstraction of Dirac notation and the density operator. Additionally, a quantum computer simulation has been built using this abstraction. This paper shall discuss the code that has been added as well as any relevant physics important to understanding the code. In particular, we shall focus on the density operator of statistical quantum mechanics using SymPy's density …

Saturated Absorption For A Magneto-Optical Atom Trap As A Step Toward Atomic Dipole Traps In A Diffraction Pattern From A Circular Aperture, Andrew Ferdinand

Physics

Neutral atom quantum computing is a promising avenue toward the realization of a physical quantum computer. The diffraction pattern formed by laser light immediately behind a circular aperture can be used as optical atomic dipole traps, and has the potential to be scaled up to create a two dimensional array of individually addressable qubit sites. In working towards experimental demonstration of the dipole traps, we are constructing a MOT. The function of the MOT is to cool and trap ⁸⁷Rb in a localized cloud in our vacuum chamber, which will be used to load the dipole traps. One critical …

Symbolic Quantum Circuit Simplification In Sympy, Matthew Curry

Physics

In the field of quantum information science, one can design a series of quantum logic operations known as a circuit. Circuits are the basis for quantum computations in quantum computing. As circuits will most likely be designed from a logical standpoint, there could exist mathematical redundancies which will lead to a larger circuit than necessary. These redundancies are computationally expensive, and there is a need for them to be found and eliminated to simplify the circuit. We present our research on finding the rules for simplifying circuits and its implementation in SymPy.

The Penetration Of Social Media In Governance,Political Reforms And Building Public Perception, Ratnesh Dwivedi Mr

Ratnesh Dwivedi

Social media are media for social interaction, using highly accessible and scalable communication techniques. Social media is the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into interactive dialogue. While we know that social media can play an important role in publicizing political activities such as protests, do we have evidence that such actions have led to substantive political change? Is it possible to develop a set of indicators to more effectively gauge the impact of new technologies and media on questions of political change? That social media can help coordinate large and discrete activities, such as protests and …

Quantum Ghost Imaging Through Turbulence, John C. Howell

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

We investigate the effect of turbulence on quantum ghost imaging. We use entangled photons and demonstrate that for a specific experimental configuration the effect of turbulence can be greatly diminished. By decoupling the entangled photon source from the ghost-imaging central image plane, we are able to dramatically increase the ghost-image quality. When imaging a test pattern through turbulence, this method increases the imaged pattern visibility from V=0.15±0.04 to 0.42±0.04.

The Quantum Dialectic, Logan Kelley

Pitzer Senior Theses

A philosophic account of quantum physics. The thesis is divided into two parts. Part I is dedicated to laying the groundwork of quantum physics, and explaining some of the primary difficulties. Subjects of interest will include the principle of locality, the quantum uncertainty principle, and Einstein's criterion for reality. Quantum dilemmas discussed include the double-slit experiment, observations of spin and polarization, EPR, and Bell's theorem. The first part will argue that mathematical-physical descriptions of the world fall short of explaining the experimental observations of quantum phenomenon. The problem, as will be argued, is framework of the physical descriptive schema. Part …

Holism And Non-Separability Applied To Quantum Mechanics, Catherine E. Nisson

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Einstein was never satisfied with quantum mechanics. He argued that quantum mechanics was incomplete for two main reasons; it violated the locality principle and the separability principle. The violation of separability is an unavoidable consequence of quantum interactions. Non-separability can be seen in quantum entanglement. Non-locality, however, is more controversial. Einstein and his associates published the EPR paper in order to argue for the incompleteness of quantum mechanics. Years later, John Bell formulated what became known as the Bell Inequalities in response to the EPR paper. The Bell Inequalities are seen as a major obstacle for quantum locality. I will …

Prioritizing Investment In Residential Energy Efficiency And Renewable Energy: A Case Study For The U.S. Midwest, Robert J. Brecha, Austin Mitchell, Kevin P. Hallinan, J. Kelly Kissock

Physics Faculty Publications

Residential building energy use is an important contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and in the United States represents about 20% of total energy consumption. A number of previous macro-scale studies of residential energy consumption and energy-efficiency improvements are mainly concerned with national or international aggregate potential savings. In this paper we look into the details of how a collection of specific homes in one region might reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions, with particular attention given to some practical limits to what can be achieved by upgrading the existing residential building stock. Using a simple model of residential, single-family home …

Two Faces Of Media While Covering Human Right Activities In India, Ratnesh Dwivedi Mr

Ratnesh Dwivedi

The situation of human rights in India is a complex one, as a result of the country's large size and tremendous diversity, its status as a developing country and a sovereign, secular, democratic republic, and its history as a former colonial territory. The Constitution of India provides for Fundamental rights, which include freedom of religion. Clauses also provide for Freedom of Speech, as well as separation of executive and judiciary and freedom of movement within the country and abroad. In its report on human rights in India during 2010, Human Rights Watch stated India had "significant human rights problems". They …