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# Extended Self-Similarity and Hierarchical Structure in Turbulence

## Abstract

It is shown that the two remarkable properties of turbulence, the Extended Self-Similarity (ESS) \[R. Benzi et al., Phy. Rev. E 48, R29, (1993)\] and the She-Leveque Hierarchical Structure (SLHS) \[Z.S. She and E. Leveque, Phy. Rev. Lett. 72, 336, (1994)\] are related to each other. In particular, we have shown that a generalized hierarchical structure together with the most intense structures being shock-like give rise to ESS. Our analysis thus suggests that the ESS measured in turbulent flows is an indication of the shock-like intense structures. Results of analysis of velocity measurements in a pipe-flow turbulence support our conjecture.

Fully developed turbulence is characterized by power-law dependence of the moments of velocity fluctuations. It was suggested by Kolmogorov in 1941 (K41)K41  that there is a constant rate of energy transfer from large to small scales and that the statistical properties of the velocity difference across a separation $`r`$, $`\delta v_rv(x+r)v(x)`$, depend only on the mean energy transfer or equivalently the mean energy dissipation rate $`ϵ`$ and the scale $`r`$ when $`r`$ is within an inertial range. Dimensional considerations then lead to the prediction that the velocity structure functions, which are moments of the magnitude of the velocity difference, have simple power-law dependence on $`r`$ within the inertial range:

$$S_p(r)|\delta v_r|^pϵ^{p/3}r^{p/3}$$
(1)
ExperimentsFrisch  have indicated that there is indeed power law scaling in the inertial range but the scaling exponents are different from $`p/3`$:

$$S_p(r)r^{\zeta _p}$$
(2)
where $`\zeta _p`$ has a nonlinear dependence on $`p`$. Such a deviation implies that the functional form of the probability density function (pdf) of $`\delta v_r`$ depends on $`r`$, that is, the velocity fluctuations have scale-dependent statistics. Understanding this deviation from K41 is essential to our fundamental understanding of the small scale statistical properties of turbulence.

Recently, Benzi et al.ESS  have discovered a remarkable new scaling property: $`S_p(r)`$ has a power-law dependence on $`S_3(r)`$ over a range substantially longer than the scaling range obtained by plotting $`S_p(r)`$ as a function of $`r`$. This behavior was named Extended Self-Similarity (ESS); its discovery has enabled more accurate determination of the scaling exponents $`\zeta _p`$, particularly at moderately high Reynolds numbers assessible experimentally and numerically, It was later reported that ESS is invalid for anisotropic turbulent flows such as atmospheric boundary layer and channel flowSS93 ; BST96 ; ABS97 . This inspires the study of a generalized ESS (GESS), a scaling behavior of the normalized structure functions when plotted against each otherBBCST95 ; BBCST96 , which is still valid in these anisotropic flows. The validity of ESS suggests that the different order structure functions have the same dependence on $`r`$ when $`r`$ is near the dissipative rangeBCBC95 ; SLP96 ; FG01 . Very recently, Yakhot argued that some mean-field approximation of the pressure contributions in the Navier-Stokes equation would lead to ESSYakhot .

A number of phenomenological models have been proposed to explain the anomalous scaling exponents $`\zeta _p`$. Among them, a recent successful one is from She and LevequeSL94  with a hypothesis of a hierarchical structure (HS). When stated for the velocity structure functions, the HS hypothesis reads

$$\frac{S_{p+2}(r)}{S_{p+1}(r)}=A_{p+1}\left[\frac{S_{p+1}(r)}{S_p(r)}\right]^\beta [S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)]^{1\beta }$$
(3)
Here $`S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)lim_p\mathrm{}S_{p+1}(r)/S_p(r)`$ and $`0<\beta <1`$ is a constant. This hypothesis (and the similar version for the local energy dissipation) was supported by experimental velocity measurements taken in turbulent jets and wakesCBC95 ; CBBC95 ; CB97 . Note that the boundedness of the velocity will ensure the existence of $`S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)`$. In fact, one can show that $`S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)lim_p\mathrm{}S_p^{1/p}`$, and is equal to $`|\delta v_r|^{\mathrm{max}}`$, the maximum magnitude of $`\delta v_r`$ChingSu .

It was later reported that the passive scalar structure functionsCBC96  and the local passive scalar dissipationLRCBC99 , the temperature structure functionsChing00  and the local temperature dissipationChingKwok00  in turbulent convection, and the velocity structure functions in a class of shell modelsFDB95 ; BBT96 ; LS97  were all found to possess similar hierarchical structures.

In this Letter, we shall show that the She-Leveque hierarchical structure (SLHS) leads to GESS. In other words, the SLHS is a special form of GESS. We then give a generalized form of SLHS, which is equivalent to GESS, with the constant $`\beta `$ replaced by a function of $`p`$. Furthermore, it is shown that if $`|\delta v_r|^{\mathrm{max}}`$ is independent of $`r`$ for $`r`$ within the GESS range (which will be the case when the most intense structures are shock-like), the generalized SLHS (and hence GESS) will give rise to ESS. We then conjecture that the observed ESS in turbulent flows is an indication of the most intense structures being shock-like. Consequently, we predict that in the anisotropic flows where GESS but not ESS holds, $`|\delta v_r|^{\mathrm{max}}`$ has a dependence on $`r`$. Finally, we present a systematic procedure of analysis of experimental turbulent signals. Application of this analysis to turbulent velocity fluctuations in a pipe flow demonstrates that $`|\delta v_r|^{\mathrm{max}}`$ indeed depends on $`r`$ in the near-wall strong-shear regions where only GESS but not ESS is valid but is consistent with being $`r`$-independent in the centerline of the pipe where ESS is valid.

First, rewrite Eq. (3) as

$$\frac{S_{k+1}(r)}{S_k(r)S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)}=A_k\left[\frac{S_k(r)}{S_{k1}(r)S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)}\right]^\beta $$
(4)
for integer $`k`$, which implies

$$\frac{S_k(r)}{S_{k1}(r)S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)}=\mathrm{\Pi }_{j=0}^{k1}A_j^{\beta ^{k1j}}\left[\frac{S_1(r)}{S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)}\right]^{\beta ^{k1}}$$
(5)
ultiply Eq. (5) for $`k=1,2,\mathrm{},n`$ gives

$$S_n(r)=B_n\left[\frac{S_1(r)}{S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)}\right]^{\frac{1\beta ^n}{1\beta }}[S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)]^n$$
(6)
where $`B_n\mathrm{\Pi }_{k=1}^n\mathrm{\Pi }_{j=0}^{k1}A_j^{\beta ^{k1j}}`$, which further gives

$$\frac{S_n(r)}{S_3(r)^{n/3}}=\frac{B_n}{B_3^{n/3}}\left[\frac{S_1(r)}{S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)}\right]^{\frac{3(1\beta ^n)n(1\beta ^3)}{3(1\beta )}}$$
(7)
Equation (7) then implies the GESS property:

$$T_n(r)T_m(r)^{\rho (n,m)}$$
(8)
which is a scaling behavior for the normalized structure functions, $`T_n(r)S_n(r)/S_3(r)^{n/3}`$, with the normalized exponents $`\rho (n,m)`$ even when $`S_n(r)`$ does not have a scaling behavior in $`r`$. For SLHS,

$$\rho (n,m)=\frac{3(1\beta ^n)n(1\beta ^3)}{3(1\beta ^m)m(1\beta ^3)}$$
(9)
We have thus proved that SLHS implies GESS.

Earlier, Benzi et al.BBCST96  showed that GESS holds if the structure functions are of the form

$$S_p(r)g_1(r)^pg_2(r)^{H(p)}$$
(10)
for any functions $`g_1(r)`$, $`g_2(r)`$, and $`H(p)`$. On the other hand, if Eq. (8) with any $`\rho (n,m)`$ is valid, we can always write the structure functions in the form of Eq. (10), say, with $`g_1(r)=S_3(r)^{1/3}`$, $`g_2(r)=S_q^{}(r)/S_3(r)^{q^{}/3}`$, and $`H(p)=\rho (p,q^{})`$ for any chosen value of $`q^{}`$. Thus, Eq. (10) is equivalent to GESS.

Our demonstration here gives the functions $`g_1(r)`$, $`g_2(r)`$ a meaning. Although the choice of $`g_1(r)`$ and $`g_2(r)`$ is not unique, the following form can be obtained from Eq. (6): $`g_1(r)=S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)`$ and $`g_2(r)=S_3(r)/[S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)]^3`$. Here, $`g_1(r)`$ describes the $`r`$-dependence of very strong fluctuations $`S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)`$ and $`g_2(r)`$ describes the normalized $`r`$-dependence of (typical) weak fluctuations \[e.g. $`S_3(r)`$\] by $`[S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)]^3`$. Express $`g_1`$ and $`g_2`$ this way, we have

$$S_p(r)\left[S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)\right]^p\left\{\frac{S_3(r)}{[S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)]^3}\right\}^{f(p)}$$
(11)
where $`f(p)`$ is a function to be discussed below. Note that when $`g_2(r)`$ is constant, or the weak fluctuations have the same $`r`$-dependence as the strong fluctuations, we have the K41 scaling. The function $`f(p)`$ has to satisfy various conditions. By definition, $`f(0)=0`$, $`f(3)=1`$, and $`lim_p\mathrm{}f(p+1)f(p)=lim_p\mathrm{}f(p)/p=0`$. Furthermore, the boundedness of the velocity restricts that $`df(p)/dp0`$.

Note that Eq. (11) is a general expression of GESS. Rewriting Eq. (11) in the form of Eq. (4), we have

$$\frac{S_{p+1}(r)}{S_p(r)S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)}=C_p\left[\frac{S_p(r)}{S_{p1}(r)S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)}\right]^{g(p)}$$
(12)
where $`g(p)[f(p+1)f(p)]/[f(p)f(p1)]`$. It is clear that SLHS corresponds to the particular case of $`g(p)=\beta `$ or equivalently

$$f(p)=\frac{1\beta ^p}{1\beta ^3}$$
(13)
We can list several additional possible classes of $`f(p)`$, which include $`f(p)=[(p\sigma +1)^\alpha 1]/[(3\sigma +1)^\alpha 1]`$ and $`f(p)=\mathrm{ln}(p\sigma +1)/\mathrm{ln}(3\sigma +1)`$ with $`\sigma >0`$ and $`0<\alpha <1`$. The latter is the limit of the former when $`\alpha 0`$. These two cases correspond to the two results derived by Novikov, Eqs. (18) and (19) in Ref.N94 , using the theory of infinitely divisible distributions.

To study when GESS would further give rise to ESS, we rewrite Eq. (8) in the following form:

$$\frac{S_p(r)^{1/p}}{S_3(r)^{1/3}}\left[\frac{S_q(r)^{1/q}}{S_3(r)^{1/3}}\right]^{\frac{q}{p}\rho (p,q)}$$
(14)
with

$$\rho (p,q)=\frac{f(p)p/3}{f(q)q/3}$$
(15)
Thus we see that if there exists an $`p^{}0`$ such that $`S_p^{}(r)^{1/p^{}}`$ is independent of $`r`$, then we would have a scaling behavior of $`S_p`$ vs $`S_3`$ (and thus $`S_q`$ for $`qp`$). If $`p^{}`$ is finite, $`\zeta _p^{}=0`$ which implies $`\zeta _m=0`$ for $`0mp^{}`$ because $`\zeta _n`$ has to be a non-decreasing function of $`n`$ in order for the velocity field to be boundedFrisch . It further gives $`\zeta _p=0`$ for all values of $`p`$ if $`\zeta _p`$ is an analytic function of $`p`$. This could be avoided only if $`p^{}`$ approaches $`\mathrm{}`$, which means that $`S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)`$ is independent of $`r`$. Hence, GESS together with the condition that $`S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)`$ or equivalently $`|\delta v_r|^{\mathrm{max}}`$ being independent of $`r`$ would give rise to ESS:

$$S_p(r)S_3(r)^{\eta (p,3)}$$
(16)
with $`\eta (p,3)=f(p)`$ even when $`S_p(r)`$ does not have a power-law dependence on $`r`$. We note that the presence of shocks with maximum velocity, $`v_{\mathrm{max}}`$, in opposite directions across the shock discontinuity would give $`|\delta v_r|^{\mathrm{max}}=2v_{\mathrm{max}}`$, which is thus independent of $`r`$.

Using Eq. (11), an independence of $`S^{(\mathrm{})}`$ on $`r`$ implies

$$\zeta _p=\zeta _3f(p)$$
(17)
For SLHS, $`lim_p\mathrm{}f(p)=1/(1\beta ^3)`$ hence Eq. (17) further implies a saturation of $`\zeta _p`$ as $`p\mathrm{}`$. A connection of the saturation of the exponents with the existence of shocks was suggested earlier by Chen and CaoCC95 .

Both ESS and SLHS have been observed in a variety of fluctuating flow fields. The above analysis points to a possibility that the two combined may be indicative of a property of the flow field: $`S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)`$ is independent of $`r`$. One way to check the plausibility of these ideas is to examine experimental velocity measurements that demonstrate GESS, and to investigate whether $`|\delta v_r|^{\mathrm{max}}`$ is indeed independent of $`r`$ when ESS is valid and otherwise dependent on $`r`$ when ESS is not valid. Note, however, that the detectable $`|\delta v_r|^{\mathrm{max}}`$ in any finite measurement would almost surely underestimate the true value.

If the GESS is of the special form of SLHS, a systematic procedure can be developed to perform an indirect estimate of the $`r`$-dependence of $`S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)`$ as follows. First, one verifies if the SLHS is valid by performing a $`\beta `$-test. It consists of computing the normalized structure functions $`T_p(r)`$ and obtaining the normalized exponents $`\rho (p,q)`$ by measuring the slopes of $`\mathrm{ln}(T_p)`$ vs $`\mathrm{ln}(T_q)`$. Let $`\mathrm{\Delta }\rho (p,q)=\rho (p+1,q)\rho (p,q)`$. It is easy to derive the following equation when SLHS is valid:

$$\mathrm{\Delta }\rho (p+1,q)=\beta \mathrm{\Delta }\rho (p,q)+\frac{(1\beta )(1\beta ^3)}{q(1\beta ^3)3(1\beta ^q)}$$
(18)
If one finds parallel straight lines when ploting $`\mathrm{\Delta }\rho (p+1,q)`$ vs $`\mathrm{\Delta }\rho (p,q)`$ for a set of values of $`q`$, we say that the data passes the $`\beta `$test and the turbulent flow field possesses the SLHS property. The slope and intercept provides a double estimate of the constant $`\beta `$. With the estimated $`\beta `$, one can then construct $`f(p)`$ using Eq. (13).

For an indirect estimate of $`S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)`$, we introduce

$$F_p(r,r_0)\frac{\mathrm{ln}[S_p(r)/S_p(r_0)]f(p)\mathrm{ln}[S_3(r)/S_3(r_0)]}{p3f(p)}$$
(19)
From Eq. (11), $`F_p(r,r_0)`$ should be independent of $`p`$ and equal to $`\mathrm{log}[S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)/S^{(\mathrm{})}(r_0)]`$ for $`r`$ within the GESS range. Thus, one computes $`F_p(r,r_0)`$ for a fixed value of $`r_0`$, within the GESS range, and plots it as a function of $`r`$ for a set of values of $`p`$ to estimate indirectly the $`r`$-dependence of $`\mathrm{ln}[S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)/S^{(\mathrm{})}(r_0)]`$. In particular, if $`S^{(\mathrm{})}`$ is independent of $`r`$, then $`F_p(r,r_0)=0`$ for $`r`$ within the GESS range.

We have applied the above procedure to analyze hot-wire measurements of longitudinal velocity fluctuations in a pipe flownote . The pipe is 22.5 m long with an inner diameter of 10.5 cm, and the Reynolds number is $`1.35\times 10^5`$. The velocity measurements studied were taken at a cross section at 18.2 m away from the entrance both at the centerline of the pipe and at a distance of 0.1 mm from the pipe-wall. The number of measurements taken at each point is $`5.76\times 10^7`$ and the maximum order of moments computed is $`p=10`$. We have checked that GESS is valid for both sets of measurements but ESS is valid only at the centerline. The range of GESS (and also ESS when valid) is $`r10500`$, in units of the sampling time $`1/48`$ ms. All $`r`$’s quoted below will be in the same units. We have obtained $`\rho (p,q)`$ for the two locations and $`\eta (p,3)`$ for the centerline location. In Fig. 1, we plot $`\mathrm{\Delta }\rho (p+1,q)`$ vs $`\mathrm{\Delta }\rho (p,q)`$ for some values of $`q`$ for both locations. The data can be fitted by parallel straight lines showing that the hierarchical structure is indeed of the SL form in both locations. We estimate the value of $`\beta `$ simultaneously from the slope and the intercept and get $`0.93\pm 0.01`$ and $`0.85\pm 0.01`$ respectively for the centerline and the near-wall location. In the inset, we see good agreement of $`\eta (p,3)`$ with $`f(p)`$ for the centerline measurements. This implies the $`r`$-independence of $`S^{(\mathrm{})}`$, in accord with the validity of ESS in these measurements.

We have next computed $`F_p(r,r_0)`$ with $`r_0=69`$ for both locations and found that the data indeed collapse when $`p`$ is large. In Fig. 2, we plot $`F_p(r,r_0)`$ as a function of $`r`$. We see that $`F_p(r,r_0)`$ for the centerline measurements is almost zero for $`r30`$ while that for the near-wall measurements shows a clear $`r`$-dependence throughout. Since ESS is valid for the centerline but not the near-wall measurements (see the inset), these results support our conjecture that the validity of ESS in turbulent flows is an indication of $`S^{(\mathrm{})}`$ being independent of $`r`$.

In summary, our analysis proposes a link between a measurable statistical property of turbulence, the ESS, and a property of the most intense structure, the $`r`$-independence of $`|\delta v_r|^{\mathrm{max}}`$ or $`S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)`$. We have developed a systematic procedure to test this conjecture when the SL hierarchical structure holds. The analyis of experimental pipe flow data support our conjecture: the near-wall strong-shear turbulence contains more complex structures while the centerline fully developed turbulence has shock-like structure for $`S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)`$. A consequence of the $`r`$-independence of $`S^{(\mathrm{})}(r)`$ is the saturation of the scaling exponents of the velocity structure functions at very high orders. Further experimental and numerical tests are highly desirable.

###### Acknowledgements.

Z.Z. thanks Prof. M.D. Zhou and Y. Zhu for their help in conducting the pipe-flow velocity measurements. The work at the Chinese University of Hong Kong was supported by the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong SAR, China (CUHK 4119/98P and CUHK 4286/00P) while that at Peking University was partially supported by a grant from National Natural Science Foundation (NNSF) of China and from the Ministry of Education of China.


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# Reply to Comment on “Absence of electron dephasing at zero temperature”

\[

## Abstract

We explain why the objections raised by Golubev et al. in a comment on cond-mat/0111398 are not valid.

\]

In a recent comment on our paper, Golubev et al. raise two objections to our proof that the Cooperon is massless at zero temperature. They claim that, (1) the electron-electron interaction breaks time-reversal invariance, and (2) our proof breaks down for the case of a Coulomb interaction, as opposed to a short-ranged interaction. We disagree with both of these arguments.

Concerning (1), it is well established that interacting many-particle systems, classical or quantum, are time reversal invariant in equilibrium in the absence of external magnetic fields or magnetic impurities. Time reversal is an exact symmetry of our starting Hamiltonian, as well as the one studied by the authors of Ref. . This leads to the exact symmetry of the Green function used in Ref. , which in turn relates the diffuson and Cooperon, respectively. To avoid misunderstandings we stress again, as we have in Ref. , that this relation holds for the disconnected (with respect to the interaction) parts of the particle-hole (“diffuson”) and particle-particle (“Cooperon”) correlation functions only.

Concerning (2), there is no difference in the behavior of systems interacting via a Coulomb interaction and a short-ranged interaction, respectively, in dimensions $`d>2`$. Furthermore, it has been shown in Ref.  how to generalize our Ward identity to deal directly with a bare Coulomb interaction, if this is desired. This procedure is substantially more involved than the simple limit taken in Ref. .

In summary, the objections raised by Golubev et al. are not valid.

###### Acknowledgements.

This work was supported by the NSF under Grant Nos. DMR-99-75259 and DMR-98-70597.


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# The birth place of gamma-ray bursts: abundance gradients and constraints on progenitors

## 1 Introduction

One can understand the dynamics of GRB afterglows simply, independent of uncertainties about their progenitors, using the relativistic generalization of the theory of supernova remnants. The basic model for GRB hydrodynamics is of a relativistic blast wave that expands into the surrounding interstellar medium (ISM; Mészáros & Rees 1997), decelerates on contact with the ambient matter, and leads to a predictable radiative spectrum with a characteristic power-law decline. The study of GRB afterglows has provided confirmation of relativistic source expansion (Piran 1999; Mészáros 2001). The energy source of the fireball is assumed to be a cataclysmic event, either a compact stellar merger (Lattimer & Schramm 1976; Eichler et al. 1989) or the collapse of a massive star (Woosley 1993; Paczynski 1998; MacFadyen & Woosley 1999, hereafter MW99).

Evidence is accumulating that GRBs are intimately linked with the deaths of massive stars. For the long-burst afterglows localized so far, the host galaxies show signs of the ongoing star formation activity necessary for the presence of young, massive progenitor stars (Kulkarni et al. 1998; Fruchter et al. 1999; Berger et al. 2001). The physical properties of the afterglows, their locations in host galaxies (Bloom, Kulkarni & Djorgovski 2001b), iron line features (Piro et al. 2000; Amati et al. 2000), and evidence for supernova components several weeks after three bursts (GRB980326, Bloom et al. 1999a; GRB970228, Reichart 1999; GRB 000911, Lazzati et al. 2001) strongly support the idea that the most common GRBs are linked to the collapse of massive stars.

The circumburst medium provides a natural laboratory for studying GRBs. Stars that readily shed their envelopes have short jet-crossing times and are more likely to produce a GRB. Stars with less radiative mass loss retain a hydrogen envelope, in which a poorly collimated jet is likely to lose energy and fail to breaking out of the star (MW99). Finding useful diagnostics for the progenitors is simplified if the metallicity of and physical conditions in the local ISM influences the evolution of the progenitor. GRBs occur close to the birth sites of their short-lived progenitors, and so their evolution is likely to be affected only by local properties of the host galaxy. Here, we show that bursts located closer to the center of their parent galaxies have smaller isotropic equivalent energies (or broader jets), and so progenitors in inner and outer galactic locations may be intrinsically different. We suggest that this could be the outcome of abundance gradients in the host galaxy. We assume $`H_0=65\mathrm{km}\mathrm{s}^1\mathrm{Mpc}^1`$, $`\mathrm{\Omega }_{\mathrm{matter}}=0.3`$, and $`\mathrm{\Omega }_\mathrm{\Lambda }=0.7`$.

## 2 The offset of GRBs from their parental galaxies

Important information may be gained by studying the location of GRBs and host galaxies (Bloom et al. 1999b; 2001c). This approach was successful for studying SN progenitors even before detailed models of light-curves were available (e.g. Reaves 1953). Unfortunately this kind of observation is impossible for GRB host galaxies, as current instruments can only resolve circumburst environments with sizes of tens of parsecs at low redshifts $`z0.1`$, and so a physical understanding of the local GRB environment was thought to have to wait for NGST. Nonetheless, Bloom et al. (2001c) show that the distribution of the offsets of a small subset of GRBs with accurate positions from the centers of their host galaxies is an important probe of their progenitors. In our analysis, we consider all 16 bursts from Bloom et al. (2001c) with measured angular offsets, inferred physical projections, secure redshifts and K-corrected, isotropic equivalent burst energy estimates $`E_{\mathrm{iso}}`$ (Bloom, Frail & Sari 2001a), and also the recently imaged GRB 010222 (see Table 1). We searched for correlations between the normalized offsets of the bursts from the brightest component of their host system ($`r_0`$, offset/half-light radius) and their inferred physical properties, namely the external particle density and the isotropic equivalent energy of the jet. The discovery of a correlation could provide constraints on progenitor models. In particular, we investigated the dependence of $`E_{\mathrm{iso}}`$ on galactic location $`r_0`$. We found a marginally significant correlation, with the innermost bursts being least energetic (Fig. 1); a similar result is obtain using the measured physical projections, $`R_0`$ (see Table 1).

We fit a model for the correlation between $`E_{\mathrm{iso}}`$ and $`r_0`$ that takes into account the relative influence of each datum and its errors. We constructed the individual probability distribution $`p_i(x,y)dxdy`$ of the true offset at some distance $`x`$ and $`y`$ from the measured offset location $`(x_0,y_0)`$, assuming that the errors in $`x`$ and $`y`$ are uncorrelated. The probability distribution should appear Gaussian when the offset is large, but clearly departs from a Gaussian form for small offsets, for which the ratio between the offset and its error is close to unity (see Fig. 10 of Bloom et al. 2001c). The distribution of bursts in the log $`r_0`$ – log $`E_{\mathrm{iso}}`$ plane can be well modeled by a normal distribution about a straight line (Fig. 1). To evaluate this correlation we created synthetic sets of observed data from the probability distributions of the measured values of both $`r_0`$ and $`E_{\mathrm{iso}}`$, assuming that the uncertainties in $`E_{\mathrm{iso}}`$ are Gaussian distributed. We then determined model parameters and their uncertainties by fitting $`10^3`$ synthetic sets of data from Monte-Carlo realizations. We find that the correlation extends for $``$ 3 orders of magnitude in $`E_{\mathrm{iso}}`$, and has a positive slope, $`m`$, with a probability $`P(m<0)3.2\sigma `$. The best-fit model is shown in Fig. 1 as a solid line: $`r_0E_{\mathrm{iso}}^{0.3_{0.1}^{+0.2}}`$. This positive correlation could result from abundance gradients in the host galaxies and so some intrinsic scatter is expected (see Section 3).

There are some necessary limitations to our approach: we used only a subset of moderate-redshift bursts with $`R<28`$ optical host galaxies, and well-localized afterglows at optical and radio wavelengths. Both high-redshift ($`z>3`$) and heavily dust-enshrouded host galaxies could be missing. More importantly, dimmer bursts in the outskirts of galaxies may be missed owing to the average decrease in density of the ISM, $`n`$, which will lead to a systematic reduction in the afterglow brightness. This effect may be very important, but the afterglow flux depends on density as $`F_\nu n^{1/2}`$, and so large variations in $`n`$ are required to have noticeable effects: densities in the 0.1 to 50 cm<sup>-3</sup> range can accommodate the broadband emission of most afterglows (Panaitescu & Kumar 2001). Moreover, the densities derived for these bursts do not correlate with their location in the host galaxy. This could be due in part to the certainly diverse fractal structure expected in the ISM. On the other hand, it is possible that the afterglows of bursts close to the galactic center are more likely to suffer dust extinction than those in the outer parts: this effect may open up a scatter in the correlation, as a greater fraction of the luminosity function becomes visible near the edges of the galaxy. It is also important to note that both the assignment of a certain observed galaxy as the host of a GRB and the position of its center are uncertain. However, Bloom et al. (2001c) find that the probability of a chance association is small $`<10^4`$; in most cases, the apparent host has only one bright component which is assigned as its center.

Recently, it was suggested (Frail et al. 2001; Panaitescu & Kumar 2001; Piran et al. 2001) that the total energy output of GRBs is constant, and that a distribution of jet opening angles causes the apparent dispersion in $`E_{\mathrm{iso}}`$. This analysis assumes that the breaks observed in many GRB afterglow light-curves are due to a geometrical beam effect (Rhoads 1997) and not to either a transition to non-relativistic expansion (Huang, Dai & Lu 2000) or an environmental effect such as a sharp density gradient (Chevalier & Li 2000; Ramirez-Ruiz et al. 2001). If the energy output of GRBs is fixed, then our correlation may imply a link between jet opening angle and burst location.

## 3 Abundance gradients and the physics of GRB progenitors

An exciting recent development in observational cosmology has been the extension of studies of abundances from the local Universe to high redshifts. The dependence of metallicity on environment appears to be stronger than on the redshift of formation: galaxies selected using the same techniques have metallicities rather independent of redshift, and old stars are not necessarily metal-poor (Pettini 2001). Chemical abundances within different galaxies depend strongly on luminosity and environment (e.g. Vila-Costas & Edmunds 1992; Zaritsky, Kennicut & Huchra 1994; Henry & Worthey 1999; Pettini 2001). From the center to the outermost 10 kpc, metallicity typically decreases by a factor of ten. A comparable change in metallicity only occurs over a range of a factor of a thousand in luminosity (see Fig. 5 of Pettini 2001). This is a much greater range of luminosity than displayed by moderate-redshift GRB host galaxies, which usually have magnitudes $`R`$ 25 (Table 1). These host galaxies are UV-bright (Trentham, Ramirez-Ruiz & Blain 2001), and so may exhibit comparable abundance gradients to their local counterparts. Drawing inferences about GRB hosts from local galaxies is difficult, however, since both merging and secular evolution are likely to be important and will complicate a direct comparison. Nonetheless, a direct association between abundance gradients in GRB hosts and in local galaxies could be responsible for the correlation presented in Fig. 1.

Low-metallicity stars, which are likely to be more prominent in the outskirts of the galaxy, are smaller and have less mass loss than their metal-rich counterparts. Both properties inhibit the loss of angular momentum (MW99), and so low-metallicity stars are likely to be rotating rapidly. Equatorial accretion may thus be delayed and a funnel may be produced along the rotation axis. For higher rotational velocities this evacuated region will be more collimated, reducing the jet opening angle. Furthermore, for a given mass-loss rate, the lower the metallicity, the higher both the WR stellar mass, and the mass threshold for the removal of the hydrogen envelope by stellar winds. These effects all increase the mass of the helium core and favor black hole formation (MW99, Ramirez-Ruiz et al. 2001). If there are abundance gradients in the hosts, then the likely metallicity dependence of both black-hole formation and rotation suggests that GRBs in outer galactic locations may be more energetic (greater helium core mass) or less collimated (faster rotation) than those close to the galactic center. In the local Universe, regular galaxies are found to have steeper abundance gradients than those with complex morphologies (Zaritsky et al. 1994). Indeed, it is reassuring that the most regular GRB host galaxies (shown as open circles in Fig. 1) firmly support the trend between $`E_{\mathrm{iso}}`$ and $`r_0`$. Note that the scatter in Fig. 1 can be due to the dependence of metallicity on luminosity. A more detailed analysis of the underlying reasons for the correlation requires a large and unbiased sample of GRBs hosts, and knowledge of both the underlying GRB and afterglow luminosity functions.

## 4 Consequences of a dependence of GRB properties on local metallicity

What are the potential effects of a significant dependence of GRB luminosity, as detected by unextinguished $`\gamma `$-ray photons, on their location in the host galaxy, which could reflect the metallicity of their progenitors? The most significant is a potential offset between the true star-formation rate and that traced by GRB. If GRBs in outlying, low-metallicity environments and in low-mass galaxies are more luminous, then they are likely to be overrepresented in GRB samples, and especially in the bright BATSE catalog, as compared with those in high-metallicity environments.

The radial dependence of metallicity $`Z`$ in low-redshift spiral (Zaritsky et al. 1994) and elliptical galaxies (Henry & Worthey 1999), is $`Z\mathrm{exp}(1.9R/\overline{R})`$, while the dependence of metallicity at fixed radius on enclosed mass $`M_{\mathrm{enc}}`$ in spiral galaxies derived from Fig. 4 of Henry & Worthey is $`ZM_{\mathrm{enc}}^{0.5}`$. These functions both depend strongly on radius. Therefore, it is likely that local environmental effects will overcome global enrichment effects (Pettini et al. 2001), but that there will be a gradual increase in the typical luminosity of GRBs with increasing redshift (see Lloyd-Ronning, Fryer & Ramirez-Ruiz 2001).

Low-mass galaxies are likely to have statistically lower metallicities and thus contain more luminous GRBs than high-mass galaxies. As galaxy mass is expected to build up monotonically through mergers, then it is possible that the highest-redshift GRBs could be systematically more luminous due to the lower mass of their hosts, perhaps by a factor of 2–3 at $`z3`$. This effect is likely to be more significant than, but in the same direction as, the global increase in metallicity with cosmic time.

The most luminous GRBs of all could be associated with metal-free Population-III stars; however, their very high redshifts would make examples difficult to find even in the Swift catalog of hundreds of bursts.

Star-formation activity is likely to be enhanced in merging galaxies. In major mergers of gas-rich spiral galaxies, this enhancement takes place primarily in the inner kpc, as bar instabilities drive gas into the core (Mihos & Hernquist 1994). Metallicity gradients in the gas are likely to be smoothed out, both by mixing prior to star formation, and by SN enrichment during the burst of activity. GRB luminosities could thus be suppressed in such well-mixed galaxies, making GRBs more difficult to detect in these most luminous objects, in which a significant fraction of all high-redshift star formation is likely to have occurred. Shocks in tidal tails associated with merging galaxies are also likely to precipitate the formation of high-mass stars, yet as tidal tails are likely to consist of relatively low-metallicity gas, it is perhaps these less intense sites of star-formation at large distances from galactic radii that are more likely to yield detectable GRBs.

For star formation taking place in both merging and quiescent high-redshift galaxies, there should thus be a bias in favor of detecting GRBs at a greater projected distance from the host galaxy than the mean radius of the star-formation activity. Hence, based on the correlation shown in Fig. 1, we predict that the radial distribution of a large sample of GRBs around their host galaxies should be considerably more extended than the signatures of star-formation regions within the host, such as blue colors, location of H$`\alpha `$ emission, intense radio emission etc. This might have the unfortunate consequence of making GRBs more difficult to use as clean markers of high-redshift star-formation activity. Detailed observations of the astrophysics of individual GRB host galaxies may be essential before a large sample of bursts can be interpreted. More optimistically, the astrophysics of star formation in high-redshift galaxies could perhaps be studied using the intrinsic properties of a well-selected population of GRB with deep, resolved host galaxy images.

If confirmed in detailed studies, a metallicity selection effect for GRBs may be able to explain the differences between the star-formation rate infered from observations of galaxies (Steidel et al. 1999; Blain et al. 1999), which tend not to increase with redshift beyond $`z2`$, and the rate inferred from GRB counts assuming a variability–luminosity relation (Fenimore & Ramirez-Ruiz 2001; Lloyd-Ronning et al. 2001), which continues to increase to the highest redshifts. This increase may reflect a bias to detecting high-redshift GRBs in more numerous, low-mass, low-metallicity high-redshift galaxies.

Another test of the effect could be provided by a comparison of the luminosity function of GRB host galaxies with that of the total galaxy luminosity function over the same redshift range. If there is a bias towards the discovery of GRBs in low-metallicity regions, then the GRB host galaxy luminosity function should be biased to low luminosities by an increasing amount as redshift increases.

## 5 Conclusion

We report a correlation between the isotropic equivalent energy of GRBs and their position offset from their host galaxies. This is possibly due to a dependence of the end point of massive stellar evolution on metallicity. If confirmed in further host observations, this correlation will both complicate interpretation of GRBs as tracers of cosmic star formation, and potentially allow a new probe of the astrophysics in high-redshift galaxies.

We thank G. Denicoló, N. Lloyd-Ronning, M. Pettini, M. J. Rees, C. Tout and the referee for useful comments and suggestions. ERR acknowledges support from CONACYT, SEP and the ORS foundation. AWB thanks the Raymond & Beverly Sackler Foundation for financial support at the IoA.


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# Dephasing via stochastic absorption: A case study in Aharonov-Bohm oscill ations

## Abstract

The Aharonov-Bohm ring has been the mainstay of mesoscopic physics research since its inception. In this paper we have dwelt on the problem of dephasing of AB oscillations using a phenomenological model based on stochastic absorption. To calculate the conductance in the presence of inelastic scattering we have used the method due to Brouwer and Beenakker. We have shown that conductance is symmetric under flux reversal and visibility of AB oscillations decay to zero as a function of the incoherence parameter thus signalling dephasing in the system. Some comments are made on the relative merits of stochastic absorption with respect to optical potential model, which have been used to mimic dephasing.

Dephasing is defined as the process by which quantum mechanical interference is gradually destroyedimry ; fluorian . Dephasing of electronic phase coherence may be caused by it’s interaction with other quasi particles in the system. The notion of intrinsic decoherence and dephasing of a particle interacting with it’s environment is being investigated intensively. For, a comparison between theory and experiment, it is necessary to know how dephasing affects the various quantum phenomena related to transport. In our present work we will be interested in modeling dephasing phenomenologically. The Aharonov-Bohm (AB) interferometer is one of the best examples for analyzing how quantum interference effects are affected by dephasing. In this interferometer the phase of the electrons passing through the arms is modulated by the magnetic flux. It is not unlike the Young’s double slit experiment apart from the presence of the magnetic flux. In the Young’s double slit interferometer as we know the intensity is given by $`I=|\mathrm{\Psi }|^2=|\psi _1|^2+|\psi _2|^2+2Re(\psi _1^{}\psi _2e^{i\varphi })`$, the part $`2Re(\psi _1^{}\psi _2e^{i\varphi })`$ represents the interference term. Here $`\psi _1`$ and $`\psi _2`$ are the complex wave amplitudes across the upper and lower arms of the interferometer (this discussion is restricted to only two partial amplitudes for simplicity) and $`\varphi `$ is phase difference between the two wave amplitudes. If there is no phase relationship between the waves then the intensity will be $`I=|\psi _1|^2+|\psi _2|^2`$. Dephasing thus suppresses the interference terms. In other words dephasing, leads to the vanishing of the off-diagonal elements of the density matrix.

Aharonov-Bohm effect in mesoscopic rings manifests itself as a periodic behavior of conductance as a function of magnetic flux piercing the loopimry . In an AB interferometer the electrons are treated quantum mechanically along the ring and they retain their phase memory across the entire sample and this gives rise to an operative definition of the phase coherence length $`L_\varphi `$ or incoherence length. On increasing the temperature $`L_\varphi `$ becomes less than the size of the ring and the phase coherence in the system gradually disappears and as a consequence the AB effect (the visibility of the AB oscillations) vanishes. Typically $`L_\varphi `$ scales with temperature $`T`$ in a power law form, i.e., $`L_\varphi =T^p`$ ($`p`$ lies in the range $`1`$ to $`2`$).

There are different ways to model dephasing in such mesoscopic systems. A controlled way to introduce dephasing in the AB interferometer is to attach a voltage probebuti  to the sample as in inset of Fig. 1 (Buttiker’s model). This voltage probe breaks the phase coherence by removing electrons from the phase coherent channel in the system and subsequently re-injecting them without any phase relationship. Another way to introduce dephasing, is to add a spatially uniform imaginary potential ($`iV_i`$) (or optical potential) to the Hamiltonianyohta , which removes particles from the phase coherent motion in the system. In this case absorbed particles are identified as a spectral weight lost in the inelastic channels and they are re-injected back into the sample. In the method due to Zohta and Ezawayohta  the total transmission is defined after re-injection as the sum of two contributions one due to the coherent part and the other due to the incoherent part, i.e., $`T_{tot}=T_{coh}+T_{incoh}`$. The incoherent part is calculated as $`T_{incoh}=\frac{T_r}{T_l+T_r}A`$, herein $`T_r`$ and $`T_l`$ are the probabilities for right and left transmission from the region of inelastic scattering and $`A`$ is the absorbed part which is given by $`A=1T_{coh}R_{coh}`$. This model has been used by several other authors as well to simulate inelastic scattering. But, this model has a problem, in the presence of magnetic flux it is shown to violate the Onsager’s two terminal symmetry relationspareek , i.e., $`T_{tot}(\mathrm{\Phi })T_{tot}(\mathrm{\Phi })`$, where $`\mathrm{\Phi }`$ is the magnetic flux, and hence is not suitable in modeling inelastic scattering whereas Buttiker’s model preserves the Onsager’s symmetry relations in the presence of magnetic flux. However, the Buttiker model suffers from a shortcoming, in that it describes only localized dephasing (at the point contact between system and third lead) instead of dephasing that occurs throughout the system in realistic situations.

Brouwer and Beenakkerbrouwer  have removed the shortcomings of both the above stated models by mapping the three probe Buttiker’s method into a two terminal geometry, this is done by eliminating the transmission coefficients which explicitly depend on the third probe by means of unitarity of the S-matrix. They have considered a three terminal geometry in which one of the probes is used as a voltage probe in absence of magnetic flux (see inset of Fig. 1). A current $`I=I_1=I_2`$ flows from source to drain. In this model, a fictitious third lead connects the ring to a reservoir at chemical potential $`\mu _3`$ in such a way that no current is drawn $`(I_3=0)`$. The $`3`$X$`3`$ S-matrix of the entire system can be written as-

$$S=\left(\begin{array}{ccc}r_{11}& t_{12}& t_{13}\\ t_{21}& r_{22}& t_{23}\\ t_{31}& t_{32}& r_{33}\end{array}\right)$$

Application of the relationsbuti ; brouwer ; datta \- $`I_p=_qG_{pq}[\mu _p\mu _q],p=1,2,3`$ and $`G_{pq}=(2e^2/h)T_{pq}`$

yields the (dimensionless) two probe conductance $`G=\frac{h}{2e^2}\frac{I}{\mu _1\mu _2}`$,

$`G=T_{21}+{\displaystyle \frac{T_{23}T_{31}}{T_{31}+T_{32}}}`$ (1)
and on elimination of the transmission coefficients which involve the voltage probe using the unitarity of the S - Matrix leads tobrouwer

$`G=T_{21}+{\displaystyle \frac{(1R_{11}T_{21})(1R_{22}T_{21})}{1R_{11}T_{21}+1R_{22}T_{12}}}.`$ (2)
Now all the above coefficients are built from the 2X2 S matrix-

$$S^{}=\left(\begin{array}{cc}r_{11}& t_{12}\\ t_{21}& r_{22}\end{array}\right)$$

which represents the S Matrix of the absorbing system. The first term in Eq. 2 represents the conductance contribution from the phase coherent part. The second term accounts for electrons that are re-injected from the phase breaking reservoir, thereby ensuring particle conservation in the voltage probe model. For further calculation one can use the coefficients of the $`S^{}`$ matrix of an absorbing system where absorption takes place uniformly.

There are different ways of introducing absorption in the system -(1) The well known imaginary potential (IP) model and (2)Stochastic absorption (SA). In the first case Hamiltonian becomes non-hermitian due to the presence of complex potential term $`iV_i`$, which leads to absorption (non conservation of particle number). This model suffers from some spurious featuresjayan ; rubio . In the scattering case, in the vicinity of the absorber, the particle experiences a mismatch in the potential (being complex) and therefore it tries to avoid this region by enhanced back reflection. Thus the IP model plays a dual role of an absorber as well as a reflector, i.e., absorption without reflection is not possible. Naively one expects the absorption to increase monotonically as a function of $`V_i`$. However, the observed behavior is non-monotonic. At first absorption increases and after exhibiting a maximum decreases to zero as $`V_i\mathrm{}`$. The absorber in this limit acts as a perfect reflector. During each scattering event an electron picks up an additional scattering phase shift due to $`V_i`$ which along with multiple reflections leads to spurious scatterings (additional resonances)jayan ; rubio  in the system. As a result of the afore mentioned limitations there is need of a model wherein such spurious scatterings are absent and in the limit of large absorption does not correspond to a perfect reflector. Fortunately such a model exists, and this is the model of stochastic absorptionjoshi . This model does not suffer from the drawbacks of the IP model as we will show towards the end of our work.

The SA model is not new it has earlier been dealt with in the context of ID localizationjoshi . Stochastic absorption in the ring is inserted by the factor $`e^{\alpha l_1}`$ (or $`e^{\alpha l_2}`$) in the complex free propagator amplitudes, every time we traversedatta  the upper (or lower) arms of the ring (see Fig. 1). We have calculated the relevant transmission and reflection coefficients by using the S matrix method along with the quantum wave guide theory for a single channel case. In this model, average absorption per unit length is given by $`2\alpha `$. With this method we show that the calculated conductance $`(G)`$ in Eq. 2 is symmetric under the flux reversal as required. The visibility of the AB oscillations rapidly decay as a function of $`\alpha `$, indicating dephasing. Hence forth we refer to $`\alpha `$ as an incoherence parameter. Increasing $`\alpha `$ corresponds to increasing dephasing processes in the system or increase in temperature.

In Fig. 1, the length of the upper arm is $`l_1`$ and that of lower arm is $`l_2`$. The total circumference of the loop is $`L=l_1+l_2`$. The loop is connected to two current leads. The couplers (triangles) in Fig. 1 which connects the leads and the loop are described by a scattering matrix $`S`$. The S matrix for the left coupler yields the amplitudes $`O_1=(\alpha ^{},\beta _1^{},\gamma _1^{})`$ emanating from the coupler in terms of the incident waves $`I_1=(\alpha ,\beta _1,\gamma _1)`$, and for the right coupler yields the amplitudes $`O_2=(\delta ^{},\beta _2^{},\gamma _2^{})`$ emanating from the coupler in terms of the incident waves $`I_2=(\delta ,\beta _2,\gamma _2)`$. The S-matrix for either of the couplersbutipra  is given by-

$$S=\left(\begin{array}{ccc}(a+b)& \sqrt{ϵ}& \sqrt{ϵ}\\ \sqrt{ϵ}& a& b\\ \sqrt{ϵ}& b& a\end{array}\right)$$

with $`a=\frac{1}{2}(\sqrt{(12ϵ)}1)`$ and $`b=\frac{1}{2}(\sqrt{(12ϵ)}+1)`$. $`ϵ`$ plays the role of a coupling parameter. The maximum coupling between reservoir and loop is $`ϵ=\frac{1}{2}`$, and for $`ϵ=0`$, the coupler completely disconnects the loop from the reservoir. As mentioned above incoherence is taken into account by introducing an attenuation constant per unit length as mentioned before.

The waves incident into the branches of the loop are related by the S Matrices for upper branch by-

$$\left(\begin{array}{c}\beta _1\\ \beta _2\end{array}\right)=\left(\begin{array}{cc}0& e^{ikl_1}e^{\alpha l_1}e^{\frac{i\theta l_1}{L}}\\ e^{ikl_1}e^{\alpha l_1}e^{\frac{i\theta l_1}{L}}& 0\end{array}\right)\left(\begin{array}{c}\beta _1^{}\\ \beta _2^{}\end{array}\right)$$

and for lower branch-

$$\left(\begin{array}{c}\gamma _1\\ \gamma _2\end{array}\right)=\left(\begin{array}{cc}0& e^{ikl_2}e^{\alpha l_2}e^{\frac{i\theta l_2}{L}}\\ e^{ikl_2}e^{\alpha l_2}e^{\frac{i\theta l_2}{L}}& 0\end{array}\right)\left(\begin{array}{c}\gamma _1^{}\\ \gamma _2^{}\end{array}\right)$$

These S matrices of course are not unitary $`S(\alpha )S(\alpha )^{}1`$ but they obey the relation $`S(\alpha )S(\alpha )^{}=1`$. The same relation is also obeyed by the S Matrix of the system in presence of imaginary potential. Here $`kl_1`$ and $`kl_2`$ are the phase increments of the wave function in absence of flux. $`\frac{\theta l_1}{L}`$ and $`\frac{\theta l_2}{L}`$ are the phase shifts due to flux in the upper and lower branches. Clearly, $`\frac{\theta l_1}{L}+\frac{\theta l_2}{L}=\frac{2\pi \mathrm{\Phi }}{\mathrm{\Phi }_0}`$, where $`\mathrm{\Phi }`$ is the flux piercing the loop and $`\mathrm{\Phi }_0`$ is the flux quantum$`\frac{hc}{e}`$. The transmission and reflection coefficients in Eq. 2 are given as follows- $`T_{21}=|\frac{\delta ^{}}{\alpha }|^2`$, $`R_{11}=|\frac{\alpha ^{}}{\alpha }|^2`$, $`R_{22}=|\frac{\delta ^{}}{\delta }|^2`$, $`T_{12}=|\frac{\alpha ^{}}{\delta }|^2`$ wherein $`\delta ^{},\delta ,\alpha ^{},\alpha `$ are as depicted in Fig. 1.

After calculating the required reflection and transmission coefficients we graphically represent our results in the following figures. Throughout the discussion the physical parameters we give are in dimensionless units. We see that the coherent transmission $`T_{21}`$ is not symmetric under the flux reversal however proper re-injection of carriers by Eq. 2 for the total conductance $`G`$ plotted in Fig. 2 shows that the Onsager’s symmetry relations are restored, i.e., $`G`$ is symmetric under flux reversal. In the inset of Fig. 2 we have plotted $`G`$ versus flux for the same physical parameters except we have considered the weak coupling case $`(ϵ=0.10)`$. $`G`$ is symmetric in flux and features are sharp as expected because of lifetime broadening of the energy levels is small in this case compared to the case for which $`ϵ=0.44`$.

In Fig. 3 we plot visibility ($`V`$) as a function of incoherence parameter $`\alpha `$. Visibility is of course defined as-

$`V={\displaystyle \frac{G_{max}G_{min}}{G_{max}+G_{min}}}.`$ (3)
The plot shows that with increase in the value of the parameter $`\alpha `$ the visibility exponentially falls off, reaching a point where it becomes zero corresponding to the disappearance of quantum interference effects. In the inset of Fig. 3 we have plotted the first few Fourierxia  harmonics $`a_i`$ (wherein $`i=1`$ to $`4`$) of $`G(\mathrm{\Phi })`$ as a function of $`\alpha `$. The harmonics exponentially fall off with increasing $`\alpha `$ with exponent increasing as we go from $`1`$ to $`4`$. The $`nth`$ order harmonic corresponds to the contribution from electronic paths which encircle the flux $`n`$ times. The harmonics can sometimes show non monotonic behavior depending on the physical parameters, however, the visibility is a monotonic function of the incoherence parameter $`\alpha `$.

Now for the comparison between the two models, i.e., IP and SA, in Fig. 4 we plot the total conductance $`(G)`$ for both the cases. In the case of imaginary potential we see that the total conductance $`(G)`$ continuously decreases and as $`V_i\mathrm{}`$, $`G0`$ (this limit is not shown in the graph as it goes beyond the scale used), while in-case of stochastic absorption as $`\alpha \mathrm{}`$, $`G`$ goes to a constant value which depends on the Fermi-energy and other system parameters. Thus we see that the modeling of dephasing by SA is indeed justified as we want the AB oscillations to die out and not that the conductance itself should vanish, and this is where SA scores over the IP model. In the figure inset we have depicted the behavior of total absorption in the system $`A`$ for both the cases for the same physical parameters. As $`\alpha \mathrm{}`$ there is a finite absorption in the system as the electron propagates in the medium in this limit whereas absorption in the imaginary potential model is non-monotonic and in the limit $`V_i\mathrm{}`$ absorption vanishes. This is due to the fact that in the IP model as $`V_i\mathrm{}`$ absorber acts as a perfect reflector, there is no absorption in the medium as the particles do not enter the medium (and hence $`G=0`$) obviously which is an unrealistic situation for real systems.

In conclusion, we have shown that $`G(\mathrm{\Phi })`$ is symmetric under flux reversal in the presence of incoherent scattering represented by the incoherence parameter $`\alpha `$. For this we have used the procedure of Brouwer and Beenakker in the presence of magnetic flux and simulated absorption (dephasing) using the method of stochastic absorption. We have used this method of SA to study the behaviors of the various quantum phenomena, e.g., transport across resonant tunneling systems, current magnification effect in mesoscopic rings,psdeo  delay and sojourn timesanantha  in mesoscopic systems in the presence of incoherence. These results will be published elsewhere.

###### Acknowledgements.

One of us (AMJ) thanks Professor Markus Buttiker for his communication and his views on this problem.


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# References

Geometric quantization of completely integrable Hamiltonian systems in the action-angle variables

G.Giachettaa,111E-mail addresses: giovanni.giachetta@unicam.it (G.Giachetta), luigi.mangiarotti@unicam.it (L.Mangiarotti), sard@grav.phys.msu.su (G.Sardanashvily) L.Mangiarottia and G.Sardanashvilyb

a Department of Mathematics and Physics, University of Camerino, 62032 Camerino (MC), Italy

b Department of Theoretical Physics, Moscow State University, 117234 Moscow, Russia

Abstract.

We provide geometric quantization of a completely integrable Hamiltonian system in the action-angle variables around an invariant torus with respect to polarization spanned by almost-Hamiltonian vector fields of angle variables. The associated quantum algebra consists of functions affine in action coordinates. We obtain a set of its nonequivalent representations in the separable pre-Hilbert space of smooth complex functions on the torus where action operators and a Hamiltonian are diagonal and have countable spectra.

MSC: 53D50; 81S10

We study geometric quantization of an autonomous completely integrable system around a regular compact invariant manifold. By virtue of the classical Arnold–Liouville theorem, a small neighbourhood $`W`$ of this manifold in the ambient momentum phase space $`M`$ is isomorphic to the symplectic annulus

$$W=V\times T^m,$$
(1)
where $`V𝐑^m`$ is a nonempty domain and $`T^m`$ is an $`m`$-dimensional torus . The product (1) is equipped with the action-angle coordinates $`(I_k,\varphi ^k)`$. With respect to these coordinates, the symplectic form on $`W`$ (1) reads

$$\mathrm{\Omega }=dI_kd\varphi ^k,$$
(2)
while a Hamiltonian of a completely integrable system is a function $`(I_k)`$ of action variables only.

There are different approaches to quantization of completely integrable Hamiltonian systems . The advantage of the geometric quantization procedure is that it remains equivalent under symplectic diffeomorphisms. Geometric quantization of completely integrable Hamiltonian systems has been studied with respect to polarization spanned by Hamiltonian vector fields of integrals of motion . In fact, the Simms quantization of the harmonic oscillator is also of this type . The problem is that the associated quantum algebra includes functions which are not globally defined, and elements of the carrier space are not smooth sections of a quantum bundle. Indeed, written with respect to the action-angle variables, this quantum algebra consists of functions which are affine in angle coordinates.

Here, we use a different polarization. Since a Hamiltonian of a completely integrable system on the symplectic annulus $`W`$ (1) depends only on action variables, it seems natural to provide the Schrödinger representation of action variables by first order differential operators on functions of angle coordinates. For this purpose, one should choose the angle polarization of the symplectic annulus (1) spanned by almost-Hamiltonian vector fields $`^k`$ of angle variables.

Since the action-angle coordinates are canonical for the symplectic form (2), geometric quantization of the symplectic annulus $`(W,\mathrm{\Omega })`$ in fact is equivalent to geometric quantization of the cotangent bundle $`T^{}T^m=𝐑^m\times T^m`$ of the torus $`T^m`$ provided with the canonical symplectic form. In particular, the above mentioned angle polarization of $`V\times T^m`$ corresponds to the familiar vertical polarization of $`T^{}T^m`$ which leads to Schrödinger quantization of the cotangent bundle $`T^{}T^m`$. The associated quantum algebra $`𝒜`$ of $`W`$ consists of functions which are affine in action variables $`I_k`$. It possesses the continuum set of nonequivalent representations by first order differential operators in the separable pre-Hilbert space $`𝐂^{\mathrm{}}(T^m)`$ of smooth complex functions on $`T^m`$. This set is indexed by homomorphisms of the de Rham cohomology group $`H^1(T^m)=𝐑^m`$ of the torus $`T^m`$ to the circle group $`U(1)`$.

As is well known, an application of Schrödinger geometric quantization is limited by the fact that a Hamiltonian fails to belong to the quantum algebra $`𝒜`$, unless it is affine in momenta. In the case of a completely integrable system on the symplectic annulus $`W`$, a Hamiltonian $``$ depends only on action variables which mutually commute. Therefore, if $`(I_k)`$ is a polynomial function, it is uniquely represented by an element of the enveloping algebra $`\overline{𝒜}`$ of the Lie algebra $`𝒜`$, and is quantized as the operator $`(\widehat{I}_k)`$. Moreover, this quantization is also extended to Hamiltonians which are analytic functions on $`𝐑^m`$ because, as we will observe, the action operators $`\widehat{I}_k`$ are diagonal.

As was mentioned above, the geometric quantization procedure is equivalent under symplectic diffeomorphisms, but it essentially depends on the choice of polarization . Given a symplectic diffeomorphism (1) of $`W`$ to the product $`V\times T^m`$, geometric quantization of $`V\times T^m`$ with respect to the angle polarization of $`V\times T^m`$ implies the equivalent quantization of the initial completely integrable system on a neighbourhood $`W`$ of a compact invariant manifold with respect to the induced angle polarization of $`W`$. However, this polarization of $`W`$ is not canonical because an isomorphism (1) by no means is unique. Furthermore, there are topological obstructions to global action-angle coordinates . Therefore, quantization with respect to the angle polarization is not extended to the whole momentum phase space $`M`$ of a completely integrable system. For instance, one usually mentions a harmonic oscillator as the simplest completely integrable Hamiltonian system whose quantization in the action-angle variables looks notoriously difficult because the eigenvalues of its action operator is expected to be lower bounded (see  for a survey). However, a harmonic oscillator written relative to action-angle coordinates $`(I,\varphi )`$ is located in the momentum phase space $`𝐑^2\{0\}`$, but it is not the standard oscillator on $`𝐑^2`$. Namely, there is a monomorphism, but not an isomorphism of the Poisson algebra of smooth complex functions on $`𝐑^2`$ to that on $`𝐑^2\{0\}`$. Furthermore, the angle polarization on $`𝐑^2\{0\}`$ is not extended to $`𝐑^2`$. As a consequence, the quantum algebra associated to this polarization contains functions on $`𝐑^2\{0\}`$ which are not extended to $`𝐑^2`$, and its carrier space $`𝐂^{\mathrm{}}(T^m)`$ does so. As was mentioned above, the Simms quantization of the harmonic oscillator on the momentum phase space $`𝐑^2\{0\}`$ with respect to the polarization spanned by the Hamiltonian vector field of a Hamiltonian $``$ is quantization with respect to the action-angle variables. The carrier space of this quantization consists of tempered distributions, and the spectrum of the Hamiltonian is lower bounded .

In accordance with the standard geometric quantization procedure , since the symplectic form $`\mathrm{\Omega }`$ (2) is exact, the prequantum bundle is defined as a trivial complex line bundle $`C`$ over $`V\times T^m`$. Since the action-angle coordinates are canonical for the symplectic form (2), the prequantum bundle $`C`$ need no metaplectic correction, and it is a quantum bundle. Let its trivialization

$$C(V\times T^m)\times 𝐂$$
(3)
hold fixed. Any other trivialization leads to equivalent quantization of $`V\times T^m`$. Given the associated bundle coordinates $`(I_k,\varphi ^k,c)`$, $`c𝐂`$, on $`C`$ (3), one can treat its sections as smooth complex functions on $`V\times T^m`$.

The Konstant–Souriau prequantization formula associates to each smooth real function $`fC^{\mathrm{}}(V\times T^m)`$ on $`V\times T^m`$ the first order differential operator

$$\widehat{f}=i_{\vartheta _f}+f$$
(4)
on sections of $`C`$, where

$`\vartheta _f=^kf_k_kf^k`$
is the Hamiltonian vector field of $`f`$ and $``$ is the covariant differential with respect to a suitable $`U(1)`$-principal connection on $`C`$. This connection preserves the Hermitian metric $`g(c,c^{})=c\overline{c}^{}`$ on $`C`$, and its curvature form obeys the prequantization condition $`R=i\mathrm{\Omega }`$. It reads

$$A=A_0+icI_kd\varphi ^k_c$$
(5)
where $`A_0`$ is a flat $`U(1)`$-principal connection on $`CV\times T^m`$. The classes of gauge nonconjugated flat principal connections on $`C`$ are indexed by homomorphisms of the de Rham cohomology group

$`H^1(V\times T^m)=H^1(T^m)=𝐑^m`$
of the annulus $`V\times T^m`$ to $`U(1)`$ , i.e., their set is bijective to $`𝐑^m/𝐙^m`$. We choose their representatives of the form

$`A_0[(\lambda _k)]=dI_k^k+d\varphi ^k(_k+i\lambda _kc_c),\lambda _k[0,1).`$
Accordingly, the relevant connection (5) on $`C`$ up to gauge conjugation reads

$$A[(\lambda _k)]=dI_k^k+d\varphi ^k(_k+i(I_k+\lambda _k)c_c).$$
(6)
For the sake of simplicity, we will assume that the numbers $`\lambda _k`$ in the expression(6) belongs to $`𝐑`$, but will bear in mind that connections $`A[(\lambda _k)]`$ and $`A[(\lambda _k^{})]`$ with $`\lambda _k\lambda _k^{}𝐙`$ are gauge conjugated. Given a connection (6), the prequantization operators (4) read

$$\widehat{f}=i\vartheta _f+(f(I_k+\lambda _k)^kf).$$
(7)
Let us choose the above mentioned angle polarization $`V\pi `$ which is the vertical tangent bundle of the fibration $`\pi :V\times T^mT^m`$. This polarization is spanned by the vectors $`^k`$. It is readily observed that the corresponding quantum algebra $`𝒜C^{\mathrm{}}(V\times T^m)`$ consists of affine functions

$$f=a^k(\varphi ^r)I_k+b(\varphi ^r)$$
(8)
of action coordinates $`I_k`$. The carrier space of its representation by operators (7) is defined as the space $`E`$ of sections $`\rho `$ of the prequantum bundle $`C`$ of compact support which obey the condition $`_\vartheta \rho =0`$ for any Hamiltonian vector field $`\vartheta `$ subordinate to the distribution $`V\pi `$. This condition reads

$`_kf^k\rho =0,fC^{\mathrm{}}(T^m).`$
It follows that elements of $`E`$ are independent of action variables and, consequently, fail to be of compact support, unless $`\rho =0`$. This is the well-known problem of Schrödinger geometric quantization. It is solved as follows .

Given an imbedding $`i_T:T^mV\times T^m`$, let $`C_T=i_T^{}C`$ be the pull-back of the prequantum bundle $`C`$ (3) over the torus $`T^m`$. It is a trivial complex line bundle $`C_T=T^m\times 𝐂`$ provided with the pull-back Hermitian metric $`g(c,c^{})=c\overline{c}^{}`$. Its sections are smooth complex functions on $`T^m`$. Let

$`\overline{A}=i_T^{}A=d\varphi ^k(_k+i(I_k+\lambda _k)c_c)`$
be the pull-back of the connection $`A`$ (6) onto $`C_T`$. Let $`𝒟`$ be a metalinear bundle of complex half-forms on the torus $`T^m`$. It admits the canonical lift of any vector field $`\tau `$ on $`T^m`$, and the corresponding Lie derivative of its sections reads

$`𝐋_\tau =\tau ^k_k+{\displaystyle \frac{1}{2}}_k\tau ^k.`$
Let us consider the tensor product

$$Y=C_T𝒟T^m.$$
(9)
Since the Hamiltonian vector fields

$`\vartheta _f=a^k_k(I_r_ka^r+_kb)^k`$
of functions $`f`$ (8) are projectable onto $`T^m`$, one can associate to each element $`f`$ of the quantum algebra $`𝒜`$ the first order differential operator

$$\widehat{f}=(i\overline{}_{\pi \vartheta _f}+f)\mathrm{Id}+\mathrm{Id}𝐋_{\pi \vartheta _f}=ia^k_k\frac{i}{2}_ka^ka^k\lambda _k+b$$
(10)
on sections of $`Y`$. A direct computation shows that the operators (10) obey the Dirac condition

$`[\widehat{f},\widehat{f}^{}]=i\widehat{\{f,f^{}\}}.`$
Sections $`s`$ of the quantum bundle $`YT^m`$ (9) constitute a pre-Hilbert space $`E_T`$ with respect to the nondegenerate Hermitian form

$`s|s^{}=\left({\displaystyle \frac{1}{2\pi }}\right)^m{\displaystyle \underset{T^m}{}}s\overline{s},s,sE_T.`$
Then it is readily observed that $`\widehat{f}`$ (10) are Hermitian operators in $`E_T`$. They provide a desired Schrödinger geometric quantization of a completely integrable Hamiltonian system on the annulus $`V\times T^m`$. Of course, this quantization depends on the choice of a connection $`A[(\lambda _k)]`$ (6) and a metalinear bundle $`𝒟`$. The latter need not be trivial.

If $`𝒟`$ is trivial, sections of the quantum bundle $`YT^m`$ (9) obey the transformation rule

$`s(\varphi ^k+2\pi )=s(\varphi ^k)`$
for all indices $`k`$. They are naturally complex smooth functions on $`T^m`$. By virtue of the multidimensional Fourier theorem , the functions

$$\psi _{(n_r)}=\mathrm{exp}[i(n_r\varphi ^r)],(n_r)=(n_1,\mathrm{},n_m)𝐙^m,$$
(11)
constitute an orthonormal basis for the pre-Hilbert space $`E_T=𝐂^{\mathrm{}}(T^m)`$. The action operators

$$\widehat{I}_k=i_k\lambda _k$$
(12)
(10) are diagonal

$$\widehat{I}_k\psi _{(n_r)}=(n_k\lambda _k)\psi _{(n_r)}$$
(13)
with respect to this basis. Other elements of the algebra $`𝒜`$ are decomposed into the pull-back functions $`\pi ^{}\psi _{(n_r)}`$ which act on $`𝐂^{\mathrm{}}(T^m)`$ by multiplications

$$\pi ^{}\psi _{(n_r)}\psi _{(n_r^{})}=\psi _{(n_r)}\psi _{(n_r^{})}=\psi _{(n_r+n_r^{})}.$$
(14)
If $`𝒟`$ is a nontrivial metalinear bundle, sections of the quantum bundle $`YT^m`$ (9) obey the transformation rule

$$\rho _T(\varphi ^j+2\pi )=\rho _T(\varphi ^j)$$
(15)
for some indices $`j`$. In this case, the orthonormal basis of the pre-Hilbert space $`E_T`$ can be represented by double-valued complex functions

$$\psi _{(n_i,n_j)}=\mathrm{exp}[i(n_i\varphi ^i+(n_j+\frac{1}{2})\varphi ^j)]$$
(16)
on $`T^m`$. They are eigenvectors

$`\widehat{I}_i\psi _{(n_i,n_j)}=(n_i\lambda _i)\psi _{(n_i,n_j)},\widehat{I}_j\psi _{(n_i,n_j)}=(n_j\lambda _j+{\displaystyle \frac{1}{2}})\psi _{(n_i,n_j)}`$
of the operators $`\widehat{I}_k`$ (12), and the pull-back functions $`\pi ^{}\psi _{(n_r)}`$ act on the basis (16) by the above law (14). It follows that the representation of the quantum algebra $`𝒜`$ determined by the connection $`A[(\lambda _k)]`$ (6) in the space of sections (15) of a nontrivial quantum bundle $`Y`$ (9) is equivalent to its representation determined by the connection $`A[(\lambda _i,\lambda _j\frac{1}{2})]`$ in the space $`𝐂^{\mathrm{}}(T^m)`$ of smooth complex functions on $`T^m`$.

Therefore, one can restrict the study of representations of the quantum algebra $`𝒜`$ to its representations in $`𝐂^{\mathrm{}}(T^m)`$ associated to different connections (6). These representations are nonequivalent, unless $`\lambda _k\lambda _k^{}𝐙`$ for all indices $`k`$.

Given the representation (10) of the quantum algebra $`𝒜`$ in $`𝐂^{\mathrm{}}(T^m)`$, any polynomial Hamiltonian $`(I_k)`$ of a completely integrable system is uniquely quantized as a Hermitian element $`\widehat{}(I_k)=(\widehat{I}_k)`$ of the enveloping algebra $`\overline{𝒜}`$ of $`𝒜`$. It has the countable spectrum

$`\widehat{}(I_k)\psi _{(n_r)}=(n_k\lambda _k)\psi _{(n_r)}.`$
Note that, since $`\widehat{I}_k`$ are diagonal, one can also quantize Hamiltonians $`(I_k)`$ which are analytic functions on $`𝐑^m`$.

As a conclusion remark, let us assume that a Hamiltonian $``$ of a completely integrable system is independent of action variables $`I_a`$ ($`a,b,c=1,\mathrm{},l`$). Then its eigenvalues are countably degenerate. Let us consider the perturbed Hamiltonian

$$^{}=\mathrm{\Delta }(\xi ^\mu ,\varphi ^b,I_a)+(I_j),$$
(17)
where the perturbation term $`\mathrm{\Delta }`$ depends on the action-angle coordinates with the above mentioned indices $`a,b,c,\mathrm{}`$ and on some time-dependent parameters $`\xi ^\lambda (t)`$ by the law

$$\mathrm{\Delta }=\mathrm{\Lambda }_\lambda ^a(\xi ^\mu ,\varphi ^b)_t\xi ^\lambda I_a.$$
(18)
The Hamiltonian $`^{}`$ characterizes a Hamiltonian system with time-dependent parameters \[18-21\]. Being affine in action variables, the perturbation term $`\mathrm{\Delta }`$ (18) admits the instantwise quantization by the operator

$`\widehat{\mathrm{\Delta }}=(i\mathrm{\Lambda }_\beta ^a_a+{\displaystyle \frac{i}{2}}_a\mathrm{\Lambda }_\beta ^a+\lambda _a\mathrm{\Lambda }_\beta ^a)_t\xi ^\beta .`$
Since the operators $`\widehat{\mathrm{\Delta }}`$ and $`\widehat{}`$ mutually commute, the total quantum evolution operator reduces to the product

$`T\mathrm{exp}\left[i{\displaystyle \underset{0}{\overset{t}{}}}\widehat{}^{}dt^{}\right]=U_1(t)U_2(t)=T\mathrm{exp}\left[i{\displaystyle \underset{0}{\overset{t}{}}}\widehat{}dt^{}\right]T\mathrm{exp}\left[i{\displaystyle \underset{0}{\overset{t}{}}}\widehat{\mathrm{\Delta }}dt^{}\right].`$
The first factor $`U_1`$ in this product is the dynamic evolution operator of the quantum completely integrable Hamiltonian system. The second operator acts in the eigenspaces of the operator $`U_1`$ and reads

$`U_2(t)=T\mathrm{exp}\left[{\displaystyle \underset{0}{\overset{t}{}}}\{\mathrm{\Lambda }_\beta ^a(\varphi ^b,\xi ^\mu (t^{}))_a{\displaystyle \frac{1}{2}}_a\mathrm{\Lambda }_\beta ^a(\varphi ^b,\xi ^\mu (t^{}))+i\lambda _a\mathrm{\Lambda }_\beta ^a(\varphi ^b,\xi ^\mu (t^{}))\}_t\xi ^\beta dt^{}\right]`$
$`=T\mathrm{exp}\left[{\displaystyle \underset{\xi ([0,t])}{}}\{\mathrm{\Lambda }_\beta ^a(\varphi ^b,\sigma ^\mu )_a{\displaystyle \frac{1}{2}}_a\mathrm{\Lambda }_\beta ^a(\varphi ^b,\sigma ^\mu )+i\lambda _a\mathrm{\Lambda }_\beta ^a(\varphi ^b,\sigma ^\mu )\}d\sigma ^\beta \right].`$ (19)
It is readily observed that this operator depends on the curve $`\xi ([0,1])S`$ in the parameter space $`S`$. One can treat it as an operator of parallel displacement along the curve $`\xi `$ \[19-22\]. For instance, if $`\xi ([0,1])`$ is a loop in $`S`$, the operator $`U_2`$ (19) is the geometric Berry factor. In this case, one can think of $`U_2`$ as being a holonomy control operator . At present, such control operators attract special attention in connection with holonomic quantum computation \[24-26\].


text:
# High-resolution radio polarimetry of Vela X

## 1. Introduction

Vela X is the pulsar wind nebula near the center of the Vela supernova remnant (Bock, Turtle, & Green 1998b). In total intensity, the radio emission is dominated by synchrotron filaments which have no clear optical counterpart (Bock et al. 1998a). The remnant’s distance of 350 pc111Recent measurements of the pulsar’s distance include an optical parallax of $`294_{50}^{+76}`$ pc (Caraveo et al. 1991) and a radio parallax of $`410\pm 42`$ pc (Legge 2001) makes it one of the nearest SNRs, and thus one of the easiest to study. Its age, 10,000 yr, is much larger than that of the Crab Nebula, and we can hope to learn something about remnant evolution by comparing the sources. High quality interferometric polarimetry now makes it possible to study at sub-arcminute resolution the magnetic fields in pulsar-powered nebulae, and in the Galaxy as a whole.

## 2. Observations

Observations of Vela X at 1.4 GHz were obtained with the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) using configurations which yielded a $`50^{\prime \prime }\times 35^{\prime \prime }`$ beam. Images were made using multi-frequency synthesis and deconvolution was performed with a maximum entropy method algorithm. The total intensity image includes large-scale structure which was measured with the Parkes Telescope. However, there is little structure in polarized intensity larger than that sampled by the interferometer, so single-dish data has not been included in the polarization images. See Sault, Bock, & Duncan (1999) for additional details. A grayscale image showing the polarized intensity measured from part of Vela X is shown in Figure 1. The emission is up to 60% linearly polarized; there is no detectable circular polarization. Figure 1 also shows the H$`\alpha `$ emission from the same region (from the survey of Buxton, Bessell, & Watson 1998). Vectors representing the intensity and E-field direction of the polarized emission are plotted on a total intensity image in Figure 2.

## 3. Discussion

The most striking aspect of the polarimetric image of Vela X (Figure 1) is the complex network of ‘canals’ criss-crossing the broader synchrotron filaments. These canals are unresolved, indicating that they are probably due to Faraday depolarization within the synthesized beam, caused by rapid spatial changes in the foreground rotation measure (RM). They have no counterpart in total intensity. Similar features have been seen in the background Galactic radiation (Gaensler et al. 2001, and references therein). However, in the present case we have been able to identify optical counterparts for many of the canals among H$`\alpha `$ filaments originating in the shell of the Vela SNR (Figure 1). By considering the geometry of the filaments (which are probably sheets in projection) and obtaining electron densities in the region from further optical studies, we expect to be able to make a *direct* measurement of the compressed magnetic field in the Vela SNR shell.

The underlying more diffuse linearly polarized emission has some overall corellation with total intensity. However, there are many regions of disagreement. These could be either intrinsic to the source (i.e. due to variations within the internal magnetic fields) or result from depolarization by some intervening more compact region. In the latter case, their counterpart in total intensity is the underlying diffuse emission which forms the majority of the flux density measured from Vela X.

The polarization E-vector direction (Figure 2) is a useful diagnostic of the magnetic field. In this region, the RM is approximately 40 rad m-2 (Milne 1995), indicating that the magnetic field is generally aligned with the E-vectors plotted, and thus lies along the filaments (the discrepant E-vectors half-way along the central filament correspond to a region of higher RM). We note that the ‘wisp’ just to the north-east of the pulsar (Bietenholz, Frail, & Hankins 1991) and the filament extending south do not appear symmetric across the pulsar. Further work to make high-resolution corrections for Faraday rotation will allow a more detailed interpretation.

## References

Bietenholz, M. F., Frail, D. A., Hankins, T. H. 1991, ApJ, 376, L41

Bock, D. C.-J., Frail, D. A., Sault, R. J., Green, A. J., & Milne, D. K. 1998a, Mem. Soc. Astron. Italiana, 69, 919

Bock, D. C.-J., Turtle, A. J., & Green, A. J. 1998b, AJ, 116, 1886

Buxton, M., Bessell, M., Watson, B. 1998, Publ. Astron. Soc. Australia, 15, 24

Caraveo, P. A., De Luca, A., Mignani, R. P., & Bignami, G. F. 2001, ApJ, 561, 930

Gaensler, B. M., Dickey, J. M., McClure-Griffiths, N. M., Green, A. J., Wieringa, M. H., & Haynes, R. F. 2001, ApJ, 549, 959

Legge, D. 2001, PhD Thesis, University of Tasmania

Milne, D. K. 1995, MNRAS, 277, 1435

Sault, R. J., Bock, D. C.-J., & Duncan, A. R. 1999, A&AS, 139, 387


text:
# Ferroelectric Ordering in the Relaxor Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3 as Evidenced by Low-Temperature Phonon Anomalies

## I Introduction

Both Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3 (PMN) and the Zn analogue (PZN) are disordered perovskites of the form PbBO3 that possess fascinating dielectric properties. Termed “relaxors,” each exhibits an unusual dielectric response that peaks broadly at a temperature $`T=T_{\mathrm{max}}`$ that is strongly frequency dependent ($`T_{\mathrm{max}}=265`$ K at 1 kHz for PMN). When doped with ferroelectric PbTiO3 (PT), both compounds exhibit dramatic increases in their already exceptional piezoelectric properties. Park\_JAP97  Each compound is characterized by quenched chemical disorder on the perovskite B-site by Mg2+ (or Zn2+) and Nb5+ cations. Ye\_review  It is well known that the mixed valence character inherent to both PMN and PZN is required for the dielectric relaxation and “diffuse transition” in a temperature range around $`T_{\mathrm{max}}`$. Despite these similarities, PMN and PZN are surprisingly different. Whereas PZN is a ferroelectric that transforms from a cubic to a rhombohedral phase at 410 K, Kuwata\_82  PMN remains, on average, cubic below $`T_{\mathrm{max}}`$ down to 5 K, Mathan\_91  To date the true ground state of PMN remains an enigma.

Neutron measurements of the lattice dynamics and diffuse scattering in these relaxor systems have proven to be invaluable in the effort to solve the relaxor problem. Pioneering work by Vakhrushev et al. Vakhrushev\_89 ; Vakhrushev\_93 ; Naberezhnov\_99  yielded critical information about the diffuse scattering and low-frequency transverse optic (TO) phonons in PMN at high temperatures. Recent neutron inelastic scattering measurements on PZN and PZN doped with PT in the cubic phase have revealed an anomalous damping of the TO phonons that only occurs at reduced wave vectors $`q`$ less than a characteristic value $`q_{wf}0.2`$ Å-1, which gives rise to the so-called “waterfall” feature. Gehring\_00\_1 ; Gehring\_00\_2  The origin of this damping was speculated to result from the presence of local regions of randomly-oriented polarization that couple strongly to the polar nature of TO modes. These small regions of polarization, also known as polar nanoregions or PNR, were first inferred in 1983 by Burns and Dacol from measurements of the optic index of refraction in different relaxor systems, including PMN and PZN. Burns\_83  The most remarkable aspect of their finding was that the PNR start forming at a temperature $`T_d`$, also known as the Burns temperature, that is several hundred degrees higher than $`T_{\mathrm{max}}`$ (or $`T_c`$).

Gehring et al. demonstrated that at temperatures above $`T_d`$, where there are no PNR, the low-$`q`$ TO modes in PMN exhibit a normal optic phonon dispersion, and are not overdamped. Gehring\_01  This provides the first direct evidence of the correlation between the PNR and the anomalous phonon damping. Subsequently, Hirota et al. Hirota\_01  proposed a simple model that resolves the puzzling diffuse scattering problem in PMN by introducing the concept of a “phase-shifted condensed soft mode.” Recent improvements in crystal growth have made such measurements possible using larger crystals. From these experimental facts, we know that the PNR are directly connected with the soft zone center TO mode.

In this paper we extend our previous phonon research down to 10 K using a large high quality single crystal of PMN, the same as that used in Ref. . Our results clearly show the recovery of the TO mode at 220 K in addition to two distinct phonon anomalies which provide definitive evidence of ferroelectric ordering in PMN, and thus sheds new light on the ground state of PMN.

## II Experimental procedure

Neutron-scattering experiments were performed on the C5 triple-axis spectrometer located in the NRU reactor at Chalk River Laboratories. Inelastic measurements were carried out by holding the momentum transfer $`\stackrel{}{Q}=\stackrel{}{k_i}\stackrel{}{k_f}`$ constant, while scanning the energy transfer $`\mathrm{}\omega =E_iE_f`$ by fixing the final neutron energy $`E_f`$ at 14.6 meV and varying the incident energy $`E_i`$. Horizontal beam collimations from reactor to detector were 32-32-S-48-60 (S = sample). Highly-oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) (002) crystals were used as monochromator, analyzer, and higher-order filter. A 3.25 g ($`0.4`$ cc) single crystal of PMN was prepared by a top-seeded solution growth technique from PbO flux. The crystal was mounted in either a high-temperature furnace or a closed-cycle helium refrigerator such that reflections of the form $`(h0l)`$ lay in the scattering plane. The room temperature lattice parameter of PMN is $`a=4.04`$ Å, so that 1 reciprocal lattice unit (r.l.u.) $`=2\pi /a=1.555`$ Å-1.

## III Results

One of the most important findings of the present study is the recovery of the soft mode at low temperature. As shown in a previous neutron scattering study, this mode becomes overdamped at $`T_d`$ when the PNR first condense. Gehring\_01  The recovery of the TO branch is summarized in Fig. 1(a) together with the TO branch at 1100 K from Ref. . Circles and squares represent the phonon energies at 500 K and 150 K, respectively. While the TO modes are overdamped or heavily damped for $`qq_{wf}0.16`$ r.l.u. at 500 K, these modes are underdamped at 150 K, and exhibit a normal TO dispersion. Phonon profiles at (2, 0, 0.08) ($`qq_{wf}`$) are shown at three different temperatures in Fig. 1(b), (c), and (d). It is clear that the TO mode is nearly overdamped at 500 K, strongly damped at 290 K, but has recovered an underdamped character at 150 K.

Figure 2(a) summarizes the temperature dependence of the TA linewidth $`\mathrm{\Gamma }`$ at (2, 0, 0.2), which begins to broaden significantly near $`T_d`$, and is in good agreement with the results of Naberezhnov et al. Naberezhnov\_99  and Koo et al. Koo\_CM  Upon further cooling we obtain the new result that the broadening peaks around 400 K and decreases until it finally disappears around 220 K. Similar results are observed at $`q=0.12`$ and 0.16 r.l.u., however the broadening at $`q=0.2`$ r.l.u. was studied in more detail since the effect is most prominent there. Examples of TA phonon profiles at (2, 0, 0.2) are shown in the three right-hand panels of Fig. 3. Clearly the TA phonon linewidth at 500 K is larger than it is at either 150 or 750 K. It is quite interesting to note that the temperature at which the broadening vanishes (220 K) is very close to the temperature at which PMN becomes ferroelectric ($`T_c=213`$ K) when cooled in the presence of a sufficiently large electric field $`E>E_c`$Ye\_review

Fig. 2(b) combines the temperature dependence of the zone center TO phonon energy squared ($`\mathrm{}\omega _0`$)2 measured at (2, 0, 0) at low temperatures with that reported at high temperatures by Gehring et al. Gehring\_01  When compared with Fig. 2(a) a truly striking picture emerges. As indicated by the dashed vertical lines passing through both panels (a) and (b), the onset of the TA phonon broadening near $`T_d`$ coincides with the temperature at which the zone center mode becomes overdamped. On the low temperature side, the TO mode reappears around 220 K, which is effectively the same temperature ($`T_c`$) at which the TA broadening vanishes. Thus these data show that the lattice dynamics of PMN are intimately connected with the condensation of the PNR at $`T_d`$ as well as with the ferroelectric transition temperature $`T_c`$ (for $`E>E_c`$).

At high temperatures ($`T>T_d`$), the zone center TO mode has been shown to soften in a manner consistent with that of a ferroelectric soft mode. Gehring\_01  It was not possible to determine the energy $`\mathrm{}\omega _0`$ of the zone center mode over a wide range of temperatures below $`T_d`$ due to its overdamped nature (see Fig. 3(b)). At temperatures below 220 K, however, the TO mode is no longer overdamped, and the phonon profiles could be fit to a Lorentzian function of $`q`$ and $`\omega `$ convolved with the instrumental resolution function. From these fits we have established that ($`\mathrm{}\omega _0`$)2 increases linearly with decreasing temperature. This is a seminal point since, in a normal ferroelectric material, the linear relationship between ($`\mathrm{}\omega _0`$)2 and the inverse dielectric constant $`1/ϵ`$ is well established above and below $`T_c`$Shirane\_70  It should also be noted that $`\mathrm{}\omega _0`$ reaches 11 meV at 10 K, a value identical to that for ferroelectric PZN at low temperature. PZN\_TO  This suggests a ferroelectric state is eventually established in PMN too. This point will be discussed in detail later.

The three left-hand panels of Fig. 3 trace the evolution of the zone center TO mode at (2, 0, 0). We observe a well-defined propagating mode at 1100 K, but a subsequently overdamped mode at 500 K, which then completely recovers an underdamped character at 50 K. The dramatic recovery of the soft mode below 220 K occurs relatively quickly with decreasing temperature. By comparison, the recovery of the underdamped soft mode in PZN is slower, as it is readily observed only at temperatures below $`100`$ K. PZN\_TO  The quick recovery in PMN is also clearly demonstrated in Fig. 4(a), which shows the temperature dependence of the soft mode linewidth $`\mathrm{\Gamma }`$. Below $`T_c`$ $`\mathrm{\Gamma }`$ decreases quickly, and becomes very small at low temperature.

## IV Discussion

In Fig. 2 we demonstrate the occurence of two distinct phonon anomalies in PMN near 220 K. The most remarkable of these is the linear increase of the square of the soft mode energy that begins below 220 K. This behavior is typical of many ferroelectrics in their ordered states. Yet PMN is known to retain an average cubic structure through 220 K, and even down to very low temperature. Mathan\_91  The soft mode behavior shown in Fig. 2 appears to contradict the currently accepted picture of PMN because it implies that a phase transition takes place from a relaxor state to a short-range ordered ferroelectric (non-cubic) state at $`T_c`$.

Relaxor-to-ferroelectric phase transitions have been observed in other lead-oxide compounds such as chemically disordered Pb(Sc1/2Ta1/2)O3 (PST) Chu\_93  and Pb(Sc1/2Nb1/2)O3 (PSN). Chu\_95  They usually occur at a temperature $`T_c`$ that is lower than the temperature of the maximum permittivity $`T_{\mathrm{max}}`$. The difference between $`T_{\mathrm{max}}`$ (at 1 kHz) and $`T_c`$ is about 15 degrees in PST and PSN, and is significantly smaller than that observed in PMN ($`50`$ K). In addition, both PST and PSN have relatively sharp dielectric permittivity $`ϵ(T)`$ peaks (small diffuse character) compared to that in PMN. The only data on PMN that shows an anomaly at $`T_c=213`$ K upon ZFC is the peak in the hypersonic damping shown in Fig. 4(b). Tu\_95  It has also been reported that a macroscopic ferroelectric phase can be induced in PMN upon cooling in a small electric field, and that once induced, the ferroelectric phase and the related polarization vanish upon zero-field-heating as a first-order transition at $`T_c=213`$ K. Ye\_93 ; Calvarin\_95  These results suggest that PMN may exhibit a ferroelectric phase, which, however, does not achieve long-range order when zero-field cooled. Therefore, the soft mode behavior reported here is not entirely unexpected. It does, however, reveal the ferroelectric phase transition near $`T_c`$ in terms of the dynamics for the first time.

There remains the question of why a sharp structural phase transition is not observed in PMN by x-rays, even though a ferroelectric phase is implied from the low-temperature lattice dynamics. One possible answer concerns the length scale of the rhombohedral ferroelectric phase. Quite simply, a length scale of order $`100`$ Å will appear as long-range order to neutrons but as short-range order to x-rays. In fact, ferroelectric regions of order 100 Å in size have been reported by de Mathan et al. Mathan\_91

PMN is a special relaxor compound given its unusually broad dielectric relaxation, and the large temperature difference between $`T_{\mathrm{max}}`$ and $`T_c`$. We believe that an important clue to understanding the low temperature properties of PMN lies in the concept of the phase-shifted condensed soft mode recently proposed by Hirota et al. Hirota\_01  In this work the PNR are shown to result from the condensation of the soft TO mode at $`T_d`$ through a model that reconciles the differences between the structure factors of the soft mode and the diffuse scattering by introducing a uniform ionic shift of the PNR along their polar axis relative to the surrounding cubic matrix. This phase shift persists to low temperatures as shown by the structural work of de Mathan et al. Mathan\_91  It is important to note that the relative intensities of the diffuse lines reported by de Mathan et al. are in excellent agreement with the phase-shifted condensed soft mode results of Hirota et al. The uniform phase shift idea provides an additional energy barrier to the formation of a long-range ordered ferroelectric state. We speculate that the combination of this energy barrier and the random field effects introduced by the PNR prevent PMN from entering into a pure ferroelectric state.

Finally, we discuss the relationship between $`(\mathrm{}\omega _0)^2`$ and $`1/ϵ(T)`$. In Fig. 2(b), the dashed line is drawn so that $`(\mathrm{}\omega _0)^2`$ has a minimum at $`400`$ K, where the TA phonon linewidth is largest. Since $`(\mathrm{}\omega _0)^2`$ is linearly related to $`1/ϵ(T)`$, one might guess that the minimum value of $`(\mathrm{}\omega _0)^2`$ would occur at $`T_{max}=265`$ K. However, this value of $`T_{max}`$ is obtained at a measuring frequency of 1 kHz. By comparison, $`T_{\mathrm{max}}=305`$ K at a measuring frequency of 100 MHz. Tsurumi . Our neutron measurements probe the dynamical response function of PMN at frequencies on the order of THz. Since $`T_{max}`$ is by definition strongly frequency dependent in relaxors, the temperature of 400 K may possibly correspond to $`T_{max}`$ on the THz scale.

To understand the relaxor-to-ferroelectric phase transition in PMN (and thos in other relaxors), we intend to carry out a series of neutron experiments which includes a systematic comparison of the lattice dynamics in PMN, PMN-$`x`$PT, PSN and PZN. These experiments will provide useful information about the microscopic mechanism of relaxor ferroelectricity. Recent studies Koo\_CM ; Dkhill\_02  of PMN-$`x`$PT have already documented very interesting changes in the phase transition with increasing PbTiO3 content $`x`$.

###### Acknowledgements.

We thank A. A. Bokov, K. Hirota, J. -M. Kiat, B. Noheda, and K. Ohwada for stimulating discussions. Work at the University of Toronto is supported by the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada. We acknowledge financial support from the U. S. DOE under contract No. DE-AC02-98CH10886, and the Office of Naval Research under Grant No. N00014-99-1-0738.