Having fun with science and technology.
libquantum 0.9.1 released Posted: 2007-09-03 07:13
libquantum 0.9.1 has been released. The new release adds an interface for time-evolution of arbitrary Hamiltonians using a fourth-order Runge-Kutta algorithm. The license has been changed to GPLv3 and several bugs have been fixed. Further information can be found on the libquantum website.
The Quantum Machine that Both Works and Doesn't Posted: 2007-08-22 06:32
As some of you may know, I wrote my diploma thesis on transport in quantum thermodynamics. Related to this work, we now put up a paper on arXiv, describing how to incorporate the concepts of work and heat, which are well-known from the classical world, into the quantum realm.
It turns out that if you do it properly, you get some remarkable consequences, like a machine that both works and does not at the same time. These strange things arise (hardly surprising) from non-commuting observables in quantum mechanics.
Strongly Interacting Rydberg Atoms Posted: 2008-06-28 12:32
Rydberg atoms are atoms with a large principle quantum number. One possibility to create them is to excite ground state atoms with lasers. They are very sensitive to electric fields, so if you bring them close together they will experience very strong interactions due to static or induced electric dipoles.
We have now put a paper onto the arXiv, where we investigate the properties of the strongly interacting regime. We have found some interesting links between Rydberg physics and concepts originally coming from condensed matter physics.
Read Scientific Papers from Anywhere Posted: 2007-01-03 12:56
Accessing scientific papers online is great because it spares you the way to the library. Unfortunately, most journals make their articles available only to paying subscribers (contrary to Open Access). So if you want to read an article at home or while on a conference you have a problem. This posting shows you how to access it anyway just by clicking on the download link in a journal. Read more
Pseudonymity is Different from Anonymity Posted: 2008-06-06 06:43
A paper (also available here) published yesterday in Nature analyzes moving patterns of humans based on position data provided by a European mobile network operator. While the paper itself is very interesting and provides new insights it also raises serious privacy concerns, and maybe even legal troubles for the telco in question.
- Copyright 2006--2008 Hendrik Weimer. This document is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. See the licensing terms for further details.