Regions Of Space Research Articles

How Marginal Value of Time Influences Optimality when Remanufacturing to Multiple Generations

Because a product’s value decays over time, recovered items (cores) cannot regain their original value when remanufactured—even if kept in pristine condition. We consider a Remanufacturing Original Equipment Manufacturer who can remanufacture recovered cores to their original configuration or upgrade them to current technology. He sells new and remanufactured items concurrently. Each production period signifies an upgrade of the product’s features to a new technological generation. We use our novel modeling of Marginal Value of Time (MVT) to perform a rigorous structural decomposition over all potentially optimal values of costs, consumers’ valuations, core availability, and MVT to determine conditions under which cores should be restored to their original configuration and those conditions under which cores should be upgraded to current technology. We also show that for only a very small region of the parameter space (1.58% of remanufacturing instances) does concurrently offering both generations of remanufactured units provide greater profit than does remanufacturing to the optimal single generation. Furthermore, the average improvement in these instances is negligible (0.42%).

Effect of higher-order interactions on chimera states in two populations of Kuramoto oscillators.

We investigate the effect of the fraction of pairwise and higher-order interactions on the emergent dynamics of the two populations of globally coupled Kuramoto oscillators with phase-lag parameters. We find that the stable chimera exists between saddle-node and Hopf bifurcations, while the breathing chimera lives between Hopf and homoclinic bifurcations in the two-parameter phase diagrams. The higher-order interaction facilitates the onset of the bifurcation transitions at a much lower disparity between the inter- and intra-population coupling strengths. Furthermore, the higher-order interaction facilitates the spread of breathing chimera in a large region of the parameter space while suppressing the spread of the stable chimera. A low degree of heterogeneity among the phase-lag parameters promotes the spread of both stable chimera and breathing chimera to a large region of the parameter space for a large fraction of the higher-order coupling. In contrast, a large degree of heterogeneity is found to decrease the spread of both chimera states for a large fraction of the higher-order coupling. A global synchronized state is observed above a critical value of heterogeneity among the phase-lag parameters. We have deduced the low-dimensional evolution equations for the macroscopic order parameters using the Ott-Antonsen Ansatz. We have also deduced the analytical saddle-node and Hopf bifurcation curves from the evolution equations for the macroscopic order parameters and found them to match with the bifurcation curves obtained using the software XPPAUT and with the simulation results.

Nonlinear Landau resonant interaction between whistler waves and electrons: Excitation of electron-acoustic waves

Electron-acoustic waves (EAWs) as well as electron-acoustic solitary structures play a crucial role in thermalization and acceleration of electron populations in Earth's magnetosphere. These waves are often observed in association with whistler-mode waves, but the detailed mechanism of EAW and whistler wave coupling is not yet revealed. We investigate the excitation mechanism of EAWs and their potential relation to whistler waves using particle-in-cell simulations. Whistler waves are first excited by electrons with a temperature anisotropy perpendicular to the background magnetic field. Electrons trapped by these whistler waves through nonlinear Landau resonance form localized field-aligned beams, which subsequently excite EAWs. By comparing the growth rate of EAWs and the phase mixing rate of trapped electron beams, we obtain the critical condition for EAW excitation, which is consistent with our simulation results across a wide region in parameter space. These results are expected to be useful in the interpretation of concurrent observations of whistler-mode waves and nonlinear solitary structures and may also have important implications for investigation of cross-scale energy transfer in the near-Earth space environment.

Muted Features in the JWST NIRISS Transmission Spectrum of Hot Neptune LTT 9779b

The hot Neptune desert is one of the most sparsely populated regions of the exoplanet parameter space, and atmosphere observations of its few residents can provide insights into how such planets have managed to survive in such an inhospitable environment. Here, we present transmission observations of LTT 9779 b, the only known hot Neptune to have retained a significant H/He-dominated atmosphere, taken with JWST NIRISS/SOSS. The 0.6–2.85 μm transmission spectrum shows evidence for muted spectral features, rejecting a perfectly flat line at >5σ. We explore water- and methane-dominated atmosphere scenarios for LTT 9779 b’s terminator, and retrieval analyses reveal a continuum of potential combinations of metallicity and cloudiness. Through comparisons to previous population synthesis works and our own interior structure modeling, we are able to constrain LTT 9779 b’s atmosphere metallicity to 20–850× solar. Within this range of metallicity, our retrieval analyses prefer solutions with clouds at millibar pressures, regardless of whether the atmosphere is water or methane dominated—though cloud-free atmospheres with metallicities >500× solar cannot be entirely ruled out. By comparing self-consistent atmosphere temperature profiles with cloud condensation curves, we find that silicate clouds can readily condense in the terminator region of LTT 9779 b. Advection of these clouds onto the dayside could explain the high dayside albedo previously inferred for this planet and be part of a feedback loop aiding the survival of LTT 9779 b’s atmosphere in the hot Neptune desert.

An Interactive Knowledge-Based Multiobjective Evolutionary Algorithm Framework for Practical Optimization Problems

Experienced users often have useful knowledge and intuition in solving real-world optimization problems. User knowledge can be formulated as inter-variable relationships to assist an optimization algorithm in finding good solutions faster. Such inter-variable interactions can also be automatically learned from high-performing solutions discovered at intermediate iterations in an optimization run – a process called innovization. These relations, if vetted by the users, can be enforced among newly generated solutions to steer the optimization algorithm towards practically promising regions in the search space. Challenges arise for large-scale problems where the number of such variable relationships may be high. This paper proposes an interactive knowledge-based evolutionary multi-objective optimization () framework that extracts hidden variable-wise relationships as knowledge from evolving high-performing solutions, shares them with users to receive feedback, and applies them back to the optimization process to improve its effectiveness. The knowledge extraction process uses a systematic and elegant graph analysis method which scales well with number of variables. The working of the proposed is demonstrated on three large-scale real-world engineering design problems. The simplicity and elegance of the proposed knowledge extraction process and achievement of high-performing solutions quickly indicate the power of the proposed framework. The results presented should motivate further such interaction-based optimization studies for their routine use in practice.

Primordial gravitational waves in non-minimally coupled chromo-natural inflation

We consider inflation driven by an axion-like particle coupled to an SU(2) gauge sector via a Chern-Simons term. Known as chromo-natural inflation, this scenario is in tension with CMB observations. In order to remedy this fact and preserve both the symmetries and the intriguing gravitational wave phenomenology exhibited by the model, we explore the non-minimal coupling of the axion-inflaton to the Einstein tensor. We identify regions of parameter space corresponding to a viable cosmology at CMB scales. We also highlight the possibility of a non-trivial chiral gravitational wave signal at small scales.

A prototype electromagnetic calorimeter for the MUonE experiment: status and first performance results

The MUonE experiment proposes a novel approach to determine the leading hadronic contribution to the muon g-2, from a precise measurement of the differential cross section of the μ-e elastic scattering, achievable by using the CERN SPS muon beam onto atomic electrons of a light target. The detector layout is modular, consisting of an array of identical tracking stations, each one made of a light target and silicon strip planes, followed by an electromagnetic calorimeter made of PbWO4 crystals with APD readout, placed after the last station, and a muon filter. The scattering particles are tracked without any magnetic field, and the event kinematics can be defined in a large phase space region from the expected correlation of the outgoing particle angles. The ambiguity affecting a specific region, with electron and muon outgoing with similar deflection angles, can be solved by identifying the electron track as the one with extrapolation matching the calorimeter cluster or the muon track by associating it to hits in the muon filter. The role of the calorimeter will be important for background estimate and reduction, and to assess systematic errors, providing some useful redundancy and allowing for alternative selections.Beam tests are carried out at CERN with a prototype calorimeter to determine its calibration with both high energy (20–150 GeV) and low energy electrons (1–10 GeV). In late summer a pilot run is scheduled with up to three tracking stations and the calorimeter integrated within a common triggerless readout system. The main motivations for the MUonE calorimeter are discussed, and the status and first performance results will be presented.

Curvature-driven pathways interpolating between stationary points: the case of the pure spherical 3-spin model

This paper focuses on characterizing the energy profile along pathways connecting different regions of configuration space in the context of a prototypical glass model, the pure spherical p-spin model with p = 3. The study investigates pairs of stationary points (local minima or rank-1 saddles), analyzing the energy profile along geodesic paths and comparing them with ‘perturbed’ pathways correlated to the landscape curvature. The goal is to assess the extent to which information from the local Hessian matrices around stationary points can identify paths with lower energy barriers. Surprisingly, unlike findings in other systems, the direction of softest local curvature is not a reliable predictor of low-energy paths, except in the case in which the direction of softest curvature corresponds to an isolated mode of the Hessian. However, other information encoded in the local Hessian does allow the identification of pathways associated with lower energy barriers. We conclude commenting on implications for the system’s activated dynamics.

Heavy vector-like quarks decaying to exotic scalars: a case study with triplets

We investigate the pair production of a vector-like quark triplet with hypercharge 5/3 decaying into top quark and a complex scalar triplet with hypercharge 1 at the LHC. This novel scenario, featuring particles with exotic charges — two quarks with charge 8/3 and 5/3 and a scalar with charge 2 — serves as a unique window to models based on the framework of partial compositeness, where these particles naturally emerge as bound states around the TeV scale. Leveraging on the LHC data we establish exclusion limits on the masses of the vector-like quark and the scalar triplet. Subsequently, we design an analysis strategy aimed at improving sensitivity in the region which is still allowed. Our analysis focuses on two specific regions in the parameter space: the first entails a large mass gap between the vector-like quarks and the scalars, so that the vector-like quarks can decay into the scalars; the second involves a small mass gap, such that this decay is forbidden. To simplify the parameter space, both vector-like quarks and scalars are assumed to be degenerate or almost degenerate within the triplets, such that chain decays between fermions and scalars are suppressed. As a result, we found that final states characterized by a same-sign lepton pair, multiple jets, and high net transverse momentum (i.e. effective mass) will play a pivotal role to unveil this model and, more in general, models characterised by multiple vector-like quarks around the same mass scale during the high luminosity LHC phase.

Searching for sbottom LSP at the LHC

Assuming that the sbottom is the lightest supersymmetric particle (LSP), we carry out an analysis of the relevant signals expected at the LHC. The discussion is established in the framework of the μν\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mu \ u $$\\end{document}SSM, where the presence of R-parity violating couplings involving right-handed neutrinos solves simultaneously the μ\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mu $$\\end{document}-problem and the accommodation of neutrino masses and mixing angles. The sbottoms are pair produced at the LHC, decaying to a lepton and a top quark or a neutrino and a bottom quark. The decays can be prompt or displaced, depending on the regions of the parameter space of the model. We focus the analysis on the right sbottom LSP, since the left sbottom is typically heavier than the left stop because of the D-term contribution. We compare the predictions of this scenario with ATLAS and CMS searches for prompt and long-lived particles. To analyze the parameter space we sample the μν\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mu \ u $$\\end{document}SSM for a right sbottom LSP, paying special attention to reproduce the current experimental data on neutrino and Higgs physics, as well as flavor observables. For displaced (prompt) decays, our results translate into lower limits on the mass of the right sbottom LSP of about 1041 GeV (1070 GeV). The largest possible value found for the decay length is about 3.5 mm.

Gravitational waves from phase transitions in scale invariant models

We investigate the properties of the gravitational waves (GW) generated during a strongly first order electroweak phase transition (EWPT) in models with the classical scale invariance (CSI). Here, we distinguish two parameter space regions that correspond to the cases of (1) light dilaton and (2) purely radiative Higgs mass (PRHM). In the CSI models, the dilaton mass, or the Higgs mass in the PRHM case, in addition to some triple scalar couplings are fully triggered by the radiative corrections (RCs). In order to probe the RC effects on the EWPT strength and on the GW spectrum, we extend the standard model by a real singlet to assist the electroweak symmetry breaking and an additional scalar field Q with multiplicity NQ and mass mQ. After imposing all theoretical and experimental constraints, we show that a strongly first order EWPT with detectable GW spectra can be realized for the two cases of light dilaton and PRHM. We also show the corresponding values of the relative enhancement of the cross section for the di-Higgs production process, which is related to the triple Higgs boson coupling. We obtain the region in which the GW spectrum can be observed by different future experiments such as LISA and DECIGO. We also show that the scenarios (1) and (2) can be discriminated by future GW observations and measurements of the di-Higgs productions at future colliders.

Precision Higgs width and couplings with a high energy muon collider

The interpretation of Higgs data is typically based on different assumptions about whether there can be additional decay modes of the Higgs or if any couplings can be bounded by theoretical arguments. Going beyond these assumptions requires either a precision measurement of the Higgs width or an absolute measurement of a coupling to eliminate a flat direction in precision fits that occurs when ghVV/ghVVSM\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\left|{g}_{hVV}/{g}_{hVV}^{SM}\\right| $$\\end{document} > 1, where V = W±, Z. In this paper we explore how well a high energy muon collider can test Higgs physics without having to make assumptions on the total width of the Higgs. In particular, we investigate off-shell methods for Higgs production used at the LHC and searches for invisible decays of the Higgs to see how powerful they are at a muon collider. We then investigate the theoretical requirements on a model which can exist in such a flat direction. Combining expected Higgs precision with other constraints, the most dangerous flat direction is described by generalized Georgi-Machacek models. We find that by combining direct searches with Higgs precision, a high energy muon collider can robustly test single Higgs precision down to the O.1%\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\mathcal{O}\\left(.1\\%\\right) $$\\end{document} level without having to assume SM Higgs decays. Furthermore, it allows one to bound new contributions to the width at the sub-percent level as well. Finally, we comment on how even in this difficult flat direction for Higgs precision, a muon collider can robustly test or discover new physics in multiple ways. Expanding beyond simple coupling modifiers/EFTs, there is a large region of parameter space that muon colliders can explore for EWSB that is not probed with only standard Higgs precision observables.

Flux vacua of the mirror octic

We determine all flux vacua with flux numbers Nflux ≤ 10 for a type IIB orientifold-compactification on the mirror-octic three-fold. To achieve this, we develop and apply techniques for performing a complete scan of flux vacua for the whole moduli space — we do not randomly sample fluxes nor do we consider only boundary regions of the moduli space. We compare our findings to results in the literature.

The relationship between linearised 3D and 2DH models for tidally dominated shallow waters

The water motion computed using 3D and 2DH models in tidally dominated shallow waters can, in some cases, differ significantly. In 2DH models, bed friction is typically parametrised in terms of the depth-averaged velocity, whereas in 3D models, typically the near-bed velocity is used. This difference causes the bed shear stress in 2DH models to point towards the depth-averaged velocity, whereas in 3D models, it points towards the near-bed velocity, which are not necessarily the same. Focussing on linearised barotropic models, we derive an exact friction parametrisation for 2DH models such that the same depth-averaged dynamics are described as in the corresponding 3D model. The result is a convolutional friction formulation where the instantaneous friction depends on the present and past velocities, thus modifying the traditional 2DH friction formulation that only depends on the present depth-averaged velocity. In the case of harmonic (tidal) waves, this parametrisation has a clear physical interpretation and shows that the near-bed velocity should be parametrised as a rotated, deformed and phase shifted variant of the depth-averaged velocity. We demonstrate that in certain regions of the parameter space, it may be impossible to calibrate a 2DH model that uses a traditional friction law to reproduce the water levels from a 3D model, showing that the 3D friction formulation can be crucial to capture the 3D dynamics within a depth-averaged model. This phenomenon is explored in detail in a narrow well-mixed estuary.

Gravitational Waves from Nnaturalness

We study the prospects for probing the Nnaturalness solution to the electroweak hierarchy problem with future gravitational wave observatories. Nnaturalness, in its simplest incarnation, predicts N copies of the Standard Model with varying Higgs mass parameters. We show that in certain parameter regions the scalar reheaton transfers a substantial energy density to the sector with the smallest positive Higgs squared mass while remaining consistent with bounds on additional effective relativistic species. In this sector, all six quarks are much lighter than the corresponding QCD confinement scale, allowing for the possibility of a first-order chiral symmetry-breaking phase transition and an associated stochastic gravitational wave signal. We consider several scenarios characterizing the strongly-coupled phase transition dynamics and estimate the gravitational wave spectrum for each. Pulsar timing arrays (SKA), spaced-based interferometers (BBO, Ultimate-DECIGO, μAres, asteroid ranging), and astrometric measurements (THEIA) all have the potential to explore new regions of Nnaturalness parameter space, complementing probes from next generation cosmic microwave background radiation experiments.

Assessment and treatment of visuospatial neglect using active learning with Gaussian processes regression

Visuospatial neglect is a disorder characterised by impaired awareness for visual stimuli located in regions of space and frames of reference. It is often associated with stroke. Patients can struggle with all aspects of daily living and community participation. Assessment methods are limited and show several shortcomings, considering they are mainly performed on paper and do not implement the complexity of daily life. Similarly, treatment options are sparse and often show only small improvements.We present an artificial intelligence solution designed to accurately assess a patient’s visuospatial neglect in a three-dimensional setting. We implement an active learning method based on Gaussian process regression to reduce the effort it takes a patient to undergo an assessment. Furthermore, we describe how this model can be utilised in patient oriented treatment and how this opens the way to gamification, tele-rehabilitation and personalised healthcare, providing a promising avenue for improving patient engagement and rehabilitation outcomes.To validate our assessment module, we conducted clinical trials involving patients in a real-world setting. We compared the results obtained using our AI-based assessment with the widely used conventional visuospatial neglect tests currently employed in clinical practice. The validation process serves to establish the accuracy and reliability of our model, confirming its potential as a valuable tool for diagnosing and monitoring visuospatial neglect. Our VR application proves to be more sensitive, while intra-rater reliability remains high.

Relic gravitons and pulsar timing arrays: a theoretical viewpoint

During the last 3 years the pulsar timing arrays reported a series of repeated evidences of gravitational radiation (with stochastically distributed Fourier amplitudes) at a benchmark frequency of the order of 30 nHz and characterized by spectral energy densities (in critical units) ranging between 10-8\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$10^{-8}$$\\end{document} and 10-9\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$10^{-9}$$\\end{document}. While it is still unclear whether or not these effects are just a consequence of the pristine variation of the space-time curvature, the nature of the underlying physical processes would suggest that the spectral energy density of the relic gravitons in the nHz domain may only depend on the evolution of the comoving horizon at late, intermediate and early times. Along this systematic perspective we first consider the most conventional option, namely a post-inflationary modification of the expansion rate. Given the present constraints on the relic graviton backgrounds, we then show that such a late-time effect is unable to produce the desired hump in the nHz region. We then analyze a modified exit of the relevant wavelengths as it may happen when the gravitons inherit an effective refractive index from the interactions with the geometry. A relatively short inflationary phase leads, in this case, to an excess in the nHz region even if the observational data coming from competing experiments do not pin down exactly the same regions in the parameter space. We finally examine an early stage of increasing curvature and argue that it is not compatible with the observed spectral energy density unless the wavelengths crossing the comoving horizon at early times reenter in a decelerated stage not dominated by radiation.

Gauge theory for quantum XYZ spin glasses

Nishimori’s gauge theory is extended to the quantum XYZ p-spin glass model in finite dimensions. This enables us to obtain useful correlation equalities, which show also that Duhamel correlation functions at an arbitrary temperature are bounded by those in the corresponding classical model on the Nishimori line. These bounds give that the spontaneous magnetization vanishes in any low temperature even if the model enters the Z2 -symmetry broken spin glass phase. This theory explains well-known fact from experiments and numerical calculations that the magnetic susceptibility does not diverge in the spin glass transition. The new gauge theory together with the known phase diagram of the Edwards–Anderson model can specify the spin glass region in the coupling constant space of the quantum Heisenberg XYZ spin glass model.

Spectral reflectance reconstruction based on wideband multi-illuminant imaging and a modified particle swarm optimization algorithm.

A method for spectral reflectance factor reconstruction based on wideband multi-illuminant imaging was proposed, using a programmable LED lighting system and modified Bare Bones Particle Swarm Optimization algorithms. From a set of 16 LEDs with different spectral power distributions, nine light sources with correlated color temperatures in the range of 1924 K - 15746 K, most of them daylight simulators, were generated. Samples from three color charts (X-Rite ColorChecker Digital SG, SCOCIE ScoColor paint chart, and SCOCIE ScoColor textile chart), were captured by a color industrial camera under the nine light sources, and used in sequence as training and/or testing colors. The spectral reconstruction models achieved under multi-illuminant imaging were trained and tested using the canonical Bare Bones Particle Swarm Optimization and its proposed modifications, along with six additional and commonly used algorithms. The impacts of different illuminants, illuminant combinations, algorithms, and training colors on reconstruction accuracy were studied comprehensively. The results indicated that training colors covering larger regions of color space give more accurate reconstructions of spectral reflectance factors, and combinations of two illuminants with a large difference of correlated color temperature achieve more than twice the accuracy of that under a single illuminant. Specifically, the average reconstruction error by the method proposed in this paper for patches from two color charts under A + D90 light sources was 0.94 and 1.08 CIEDE2000 color difference units. The results of the experiment also confirmed that some reconstruction algorithms are unsuitable for predicting spectral reflectance factors from multi-illuminant images due to the complexity of optimization problems and insufficient accuracy. The proposed reconstruction method has many advantages, such as being simple in operation, with no requirement of prior knowledge, and easy to implement in non-contact color measurement and color reproduction devices.

Edge of chaos as critical local symmetry breaking in dissipative nonautonomous systems

The fully nonlinear notion of resonance−geometrical resonance−in the general context of dissipative systems subjected to spatially periodic phase-modulated potentials is discussed. It is demonstrated that there is an exact local invariant associated with each geometrical resonance solution which reduces to the system’s energy when the potential is stationary. The geometrical resonance solutions represent a local symmetry whose critical breaking leads to a new analytical criterion for the onset of chaotic instabilities. This physical criterion is deduced in the co-moving frame from the local energy conservation over the shortest significant timescale. Remarkably, the new physical criterion for the onset of chaotic instabilities is shown to be valid over large regions of parameter space, thus being useful beyond the scope of current mathematical techniques. More importantly, the present theory helps to understand the unreasonable effectiveness of the Melnikov’s method beyond the perturbative regime.