1,720,967 research outputs found

    Renormalization group flows and fixed points for a scalar field in curved space with nonminimal F (φ)R coupling

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    Using covariant methods, we construct and explore the Wetterich equation for a nonminimal coupling F(φ)R of a quantized scalar field to the Ricci scalar of a prescribed curved space. This includes the often considered nonminimal coupling ξφ2R as a special case. We consider the truncations without and with scale- and field-dependent wave-function renormalization in dimensions between four and two. Thereby the main emphasis is on analytic and numerical solutions of the fixed point equations and the behavior in the vicinity of the corresponding fixed points. We determine the nonminimal coupling in the symmetric and spontaneously broken phases with vanishing and nonvanishing average fields, respectively. Using functional perturbative renormalization group methods, we discuss the leading universal contributions to the RG flow below the upper critical dimension d=4

    Gravitational form factors and decoupling in 2D

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    We calculate and analyse non-local gravitational form factors induced by quantum matter fields in curved two-dimensional space. The calculations are performed for scalars, spinors and massive vectors by means of the covariant heat kernel method up to the second order in the curvature and confirmed using Feynman diagrams. The analysis of the ultraviolet (UV) limit reveals a generalized “running” form of the Polyakov action for a nonminimal scalar field and the usual Polyakov action in the conformally invariant cases. In the infrared (IR) we establish the gravitational decoupling theorem, which can be seen directly from the form factors or from the physical beta function for fields of any spin

    Torsion action and its possible observables

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    The methods of effective field theory are used to explore the theoretical and phenomenological aspects of the torsion field. The spinor action coupled to the electromagnetic field and torsion possesses an additional softly broken gauge symmetry. This symmetry enables one to derive the unique form of the torsion action compatible with unitarity and renormalizability. It turns out that the antisymmetric torsion field is equivalent to a massive axial vector field. The introduction of scalars leads to serious problems which are revealed after the calculation of the leading two-loop divergences. Thus the phenomenological aspects of torsion may be studied only for the fermion-torsion systems. In this part of the paper we obtain upper bounds for the torsion parameters using present experimental data on forward-backward Z-pole asymmetries, data on the experimental limits on four-fermion contact interaction (LEP, HERA, SLAC, SLD, CCFR) and also TEVATRON limits on the cross section of a new gauge boson, which could be produced as a resonance at high energy pp collisions. The present experimental data enable one to put limits on the torsion parameters for the various ranges of the torsion mass. We emphasize that for a torsion mass of the order of the Planck mass no independent theory for torsion is possible, and one must directly use string theory. © 1999 Elsevier Science B.V.Instituto de Fisica Teórica Universidade Estadual Paulista, Rua Pamplona 145, 01405-900 Sao Paolo, S.P.Skobeltsyn Inst. of Nuclear Physics Moscow State University, 119 899, MoscowTomsk State Pedagogical University, 634041, TomskInstituto de Fisica Teórica Universidade Estadual Paulista, Rua Pamplona 145, 01405-900 Sao Paolo, S.P

    Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis

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    The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed

    Variations on the Author

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    “Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship

    Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis

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    We provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis

    Inflation with sterile scalar coupled to massive fermions and to gravity

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    In a recent paper by V. Barra et al. [3] it was shown that the consistency of the quantum theory of a sterile scalar coupled to massive fermions requires inclusion of odd-power terms in the potential of scalar self-interaction. One of the most important examples of a sterile scalar is the inflaton, which is typically a real scalar field that does not belong to representations of particle physics gauge groups, such as SU (2). Here we explore the effects of odd-power terms in the inflation potential on main observables, such as the scalar spectral index n(s) and the tensor-to-scalar ratio r, in the case of the inflaton's strong non-minimal coupling to gravity

    Form factors and decoupling of matter fields in four-dimensional gravity

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    We extend previous calculations of the non-local form factors of semiclassical gravity in 4D to include the Einstein–Hilbert term. The quantized fields are massive scalar, fermion and vector fields. The non-local form factor in this case can be seen as the sum of a power series of total derivatives, but it enables us to derive the beta function of Newton's constant and formally evaluate the decoupling law in the new sector, which turns out to be the standard quadratic one

    Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts

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    We conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more sophisticated methods
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