Papers

The stochastic block model is a widely studied model of community structure in networks. Here we study the component structure and percolation properties of networks generated from this model and its variants, using exact methods based on probability generating functions. In particular, we derive expressions for the size of the giant component and the distribution of small components in such networks and for the size of the percolating cluster and position of the percolation threshold for both node and edge percolation, for the original stochastic block model and for its degree-corrected versions. In passing, we also develop a mapping between generating functions for microcanonical and canonical block models that allows us to generalize results for the former to the latter with minimal effort.

Likelihood-based inference in particle physics, and in the physical sciences more broadly, relies on the assumption that the model accurately describes the data. When the model is misspecified, though, standard confidence intervals shrink to zero width with increasing data, producing overconfident and potentially misleading constraints. We propose the well-tempered likelihood, which divides the likelihood-ratio test statistic by a goodness-of-fit (GOF) statistic evaluated at the best-fit point. Under correct specification, the GOF is $\mathcal{O}(1)$ and standard inference is recovered. Under misspecification, both the likelihood and the GOF scale as $\mathcal{O}(N)$ for $N$ data points, so their ratio remains $\mathcal{O}(1)$ and the resulting well-tempered confidence interval self-limits at a floor determined by the model's inadequacy, essentially reducing the effective sample size. In other words, all models are correct, as long as your dataset is small enough. We present binned and unbinned formulations of the well-tempered likelihood—the latter based on a classifier two-sample test—and demonstrate our method on a Gaussian example and on a measurement of the strong coupling constant using synthetic electron-positron collisions.

Machine learning-based weather prediction is revolutionizing weather forecasting by learning from weather data in present-day climate. However, generalization to other climates remains a major challenge. With melting sea ice, land-use change, and increasing ocean temperatures, boundary conditions are changing. Therefore, generalization in time depends on generalization in space. Here, we present three test cases to evaluate whether machine learning-based weather and climate models generalize in space and apply them to GraphCast and NeuralGCM. We reverse or rotate the planet in longitude or latitude under the model's coordinate system and adapt all boundary conditions and forcings accordingly. Physics-based general circulation models simulate a rotated/reversed planet with only rounding errors, but GraphCast and NeuralGCM fail these tests. The analyses furthermore revealed unphysical variable mappings based on correlation rather than causation. We argue that machine learning-based climate models should be designed to pass generalization tests to prevent overfitting on present-day regional climate.

We argue that the back-reaction of inhomogeneities, when combined with a pure cosmological constant, produces an effective dark energy whose equation of state can evolve with time. Our analytical computation agrees with recent numerical simulations, which have shown that the back-reaction of inhomogeneities can impact dark energy around the present time. Here, its equation of state is derived from an average version of the Friedmann equations, for which the average is taken over a fixed volume of matter particles (not necessarily global). When treating the inhomogeneities as small perturbations around a homogeneous background, dark energy acquires a time dependence which reduces to a boundary term, at least at quadratic order in the scalar modes of the perturbations. Thus, it becomes negligible for a global average. On the other hand, when treating instead the spatial derivatives of the inhomogeneities perturbatively in a gradient expansion, dark energy gets the same time dependence, which no longer reduces to a boundary term. This time dependence can be significant even for a global average or when the constant spatial curvature induced by the inhomogeneities is negligible. It also keeps the same sign around the present time, thus causing dark energy to remain either always phantom or never phantom, not allowing for any crossing from one type of behaviour to the other.

We study the one-dimensional linear-potential system as an affine extension of the conformal triangle formed by the free particle, harmonic oscillator (HO) and inverted harmonic oscillator (IHO). Unlike these homogeneous quadratic Hamiltonians in the $sl(2,\mathbb R)$ sector, the linear-potential Hamiltonian involves the Heisenberg ideal of the Schrödinger algebra. Its direct relation to the free particle is a regular accelerated-frame transformation, developed here at the levels of the classical action, canonical transformation, wave-function intertwiner and propagator; its HO and IHO realizations instead arise through singular displaced-oscillator limits. The Airy energy eigenstates follow from a cubic-phase transform of free-particle momentum eigenstates, from condensation of highly excited harmonic-oscillator levels, and from the limit of a subdominant parabolic-cylinder scattering branch of the inverted oscillator. We also develop a planar extension in homogeneous crossed electric and magnetic fields, where uniform acceleration generates the electric interaction, while uniform rotation produces the Landau coupling and the centrifugal inverted-oscillator term; the guiding-center dynamics yields the Hall drift.

Entanglement can show fundamentally different behavior in fermionic systems. However, while bipartite measures of fermionic entanglement have been established, genuine multiparty entanglement (GME) in fermionic systems is much less understood. We introduce an efficiently computable measure (via semi-definite programming) of fermionic GME, fermion genuine multiparty negativity (fGMN), and show that it is an entanglement monotone and a natural multipartite extension of the fermionic negativity. Using this measure, we find many states which have fGMN but no non-fermionic GME, including large classes of fermionic stabilizer states. The fGMN also displays some major phenomenological differences to the bipartite fermionic negativity, such as finite sudden death points over separation and temperature.

We present the implementation and optimization of the cosmological simulation code RAMSES on Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) using CUDA Fortran. This accelerated version ports the main computational routines, including hydrodynamics, particle dynamics, and self-gravity, to multi-GPU architectures. We detail our strategy for managing cell-by-cell Adaptive Mesh Refinement (AMR) on the GPU, utilizing bucket sort with prefix sums for AMR level sorting, radix sort via the CUB library for Hilbert key ordering, and an fnv64 hash table with linear probing for fast spatial indexing. Portability across diverse hardware architectures is achieved via a dispatcher and C-Fortran wrappers, calling CUDA, HIP, and Metal kernels directly translated from the CUDA Fortran framework. Hydrodynamics updates are executed via a Godunov MUSCL-Hancock HLLC Riemann solver managed through a three-tier shared-memory kernel architecture (named rock, paper, and scissor). Particle mass deposition uses Cloud-in-Cell (CIC) interpolation optimized with atomic additions or prefix sums, combined with a kick-drift-kick time integration pusher. Self-gravity is handled via a Multigrid (MG) Poisson solver performing hierarchical V-cycles on individual levels. Performance benchmarks conducted on NVIDIA A100 and H200 GPUs demonstrate substantial accelerations compared to multi-core CPUs, yielding 10x up to a 100x speedup for standard test problems such as the Sedov blast wave, molecular core collapse, and cosmological simulations. Finally, we briefly discuss additional accelerated physics modules, including equilibrium cooling, polytropic equations of state, ideal and non-ideal magneto-hydrodynamics (MHD), and stellar feedback.

We develop a geometric perturbation theory of Bloch states for perturbations coupling via the interband Berry connection. The gauge-invariant Bargmann trace builds the dressed dispersion and connection order by order as a hierarchy \(Q^{(N)}\), starting with the quantum geometric tensor. Higher members encode multiband geometry beyond the quantum metric and Berry curvature. Connected amplitudes control vertex-order corrections, while strict-order corrections reduce to disconnected products. For a uniform electric field we find the fully coherent, purely geometric sector of the third-order response.

Incorporating an absolute refractory period into the population density approach for spiking neurons remains an open problem, despite evidence that refractoriness can strongly affect nonlinear transfer functions and network stability. We develop a rigorous operator-theoretic framework for neuronal population dynamics with a finite refractory time by augmenting the state space to include refractory history and formulating the problem as a non-self-adjoint boundary eigenvalue problem for the Fokker-Planck operator. This yields a complete spectral characterization of the generator, proves dissipativity and the existence of a contraction semigroup, and identifies defective eigenvalues as exceptional points where oscillatory modes emerge from coalescing relaxational modes. Within the framework of linear response theory, we also derive an exact transfer function that accounts for boundary conditions modulated by external input, correcting previous heuristic derivations and revealing additional threshold-noise contributions. Using this transfer function under a mean-field approximation, we further show that refractoriness in populations of interacting neurons can facilitate the onset of limit cycles, that is, stable oscillations in the firing rate. These results provide a rigorous foundation for spectral decomposition methods in computational neuroscience, opening the way to their further rigorous mathematical analysis.

We study core composition \(g_1\) modes of cold, nonrotating neutron stars containing antikaon condensates, hyperons, and \(\Delta(1232)\) baryons and present, to our knowledge, the first calculation in full general relativity of the continuous-composition \(g_1\)-mode frequency and gravitational-wave damping time for stars with a \(K^-\) condensate. Using the BigApple relativistic mean-field equation of state, we compute frequencies, damping times, and frozen-composition tidal overlaps, and identify the buoyancy channels with a species-resolved Ledoux decomposition validated by mode-frequency sensitivities. We compare fully frozen matter with a fast-\(K\) limit for \(n\leftrightarrow p+K^-\) and a strong-equilibrium limit for the \(\Delta\) quartet. Fast-\(K\) equilibration retains \(36\%\)–\(44\%\) of the peak local kaon buoyancy and \(65.7\%\)–\(73.4\%\) of the frozen terminal-configuration frequencies, while increasing the damping times by factors of \(14.4\)–\(31.8\); the mode remains above the nucleonic band. Strong \(\Delta\) equilibration removes most of the direct \(\Delta\)-induced enhancement, returning the \(N\Delta\) mode toward the nucleonic band, whereas the high-frequency \(NY\Delta\) branch survives through the frozen \(\Lambda\) gradient. Eigenfunction tracking confirms a continuous \(g_1\) branch, and representative DD-ME2 calculations reproduce this hierarchy. The direct full-GR frozen-composition phase shifts satisfy \(|\Delta\Phi_{g_1}|\leq1.410\times10^{-3}\) rad, a factor of 21 below the \(0.03\)-rad favorable-event scale for the Einstein Telescope. An exotic species therefore produces a distinct composition mode only if its composition gradient, or a coupled slowly equilibrating gradient, survives over the oscillation period.

The cosmological propagation of gravitational waves (GWs) can exhibit amplitude and phase polarization distortions when parity symmetry is broken, a phenomenon known as cosmological birefringence. In this paper, we investigate the phenomenology of GW birefringence in a gravitational model $f(R)$ coupled to a dynamical Chern-Simons (dCS) term, analyzed in the metric and Palatini formalisms. At the background level, this model can lead to dynamical dark energy, while for GW propagation we find that the Palatini formalism predicts both amplitude and velocity birefringence, whereas the metric formalism predicts amplitude birefringence only. We also find that the birefringence effects can either be suppressed or enhanced by the $f(R)$ interactions, depending on the specific form of $f(R)$. Considering three common $f(R)$ models (Hu-Sawicki, Exponential, and Hyperbolic gravity) fit to recent cosmological data, we find that birefringence is enhanced relative to the $f(R) = R$ case, by $1-10\%$ in the Palatini formalism and up to a factor of 2 in the metric formalism. We also translate current GW birefringence constraints to bounds on the dCS coupling within our model. Finally, we show that in our model the birefringence effect grows polynomially with source redshift, in contrast to the linear-distance scaling commonly assumed in phenomenological models of GW birefringence in the current literature.

We investigate a coherently driven exciton–photon microcavity with Kerr nonlinearity in the ultrastrong-coupling regime. When the lower and upper polariton branches are well separated in energy, the full Hopfield–Rabi–Kerr model reduces to an effective single-mode description of the lower polariton. We analyze the stability of the lower-polariton steady states. We show that the resulting bistability is qualitatively similar to that in the strong-coupling regime. However, in the ultrastrong-coupling regime counter-rotating processes and the diamagnetic $A^{2}$ term renormalize the polariton spectrum and composition, changing the effective detuning $\tilde{\Delta}_{1}$ and nonlinearity $U_{\mathrm{LP}}$ $g$-dependency beyond the strong-coupling (RWA) picture. As a result, although the semiclassical bistability criterion keeps its standard Kerr–oscillator form, the turning points and hysteresis window are shifted relative to the strong-coupling prediction.

We propose a first-order gauge formulation of de Sitter relativity in which the pseudo-radius l(x) is promoted to a spacetime field, locally breaking SO(4,1) to SO(3,1). Here, l(x) is a geometric compensator and dl(x) the associated order parameter. This modifies the Strong Equivalence Principle: the local vacuum follows the matter distribution instead of remaining fixed, while the propagating degrees of freedom of General Relativity are unchanged. At fixed l(x), the action is SO(3,1)-gauge invariant, but varying l(x) destroys covariance under the full translational sector of SO(4,1). Through the Inonu-Wigner contraction, abstract generators become explicit spacetime transformations, yielding nonlinear Killing vectors in both the macroscopic l tends to infinity and microscopic l tends to 0 limits. The generalized Noether theorem gives a unified energy-momentum current coupling the standard tensor to the proper conformal matter current. It vanishes identically without matter, causing the asymptotic extinction of local vacuum energy and the decay of the background to Minkowski spacetime. Independent variations yield the coupled de Sitter field equations, and we algebraically prove their equivalence to the tensorial splitting on the coordinate manifold. Gauge Bianchi identities further show that Lambda(x) is an intrinsic source of spacetime torsion, consistently identifying it with the local order parameter of the symmetry breaking. The cosmological constant problem is therefore recast, not numerically solved: deriving the decay of Lambda(x) from early-universe densities to its observed value remains future work.

We study the spatially homogeneous Boltzmann equation with continuous mass exchange on $X=(0,\infty)_m\times\mathbb R^d_v$, with a Grad cut-off hard-potential collision kernel. For bounded continuous symmetric mass-exchange rates, every nonnegative initial datum with finite number, mass, and kinetic energy admits a global nonnegative $L^1$-integral weak solution in $W^{1,\infty}(0,\infty;L^1(X))$ with number and mass conserved, kinetic energy dissipated. If $\int_X (m|v|^2)^{1+\delta} f_0(x)dx<\infty,$ for some $\delta>0$, this higher-energy moment propagates on every finite time interval and kinetic energy is conserved through the constructed solution. Moreover, every energy-dissipating solution propagates any such moment. Under the additional $1+\gamma$ moment assumption, the solution is unique among all energy-dissipating $L^1$-integral weak solutions with the same initial datum. We also establish a local theory for a linearly growing mass-exchange rate. With $H_p(f)=\int_X (1+m+m|v|^2)^pfdx,$ every datum with $H_p(f_0)<\infty$, where $p\ge1+\gamma$ admits a conservative local $H_p$-solution. Moreover, an $H_p$-solution continues across every finite time $T$ for which $H_{1+\gamma}(f)\in L^1(0,T).$ This proof requires no detailed-balance or relative-entropy structures. It is based on a new two-stage bootstrap method. The first stage rules out mass concentration at $m=0$, while the second stage combines this control with collision geometry to establish uniform integrability. These estimates provide the compactness needed for the global solution and for the identification of the nonlinear collision form.

We present a high-dimensional neural network potential (HDNNP) for the martensitic phase of the NiTi shape-memory alloy trained to density functional theory (DFT) data. A central aspect of this work is the systematic validation of the potential with respect to the underlying DFT reference method for key properties governing structural evolution, including equilibrium crystal structures, elastic constants, generalized-stacking fault energies, and vibrational spectra. The HDNNP accurately describes the relative stability of the B19$^\prime$ and B33 phases, including subtle energy differences on the order of meV/atom. The predicted stacking-fault energy landscape is strongly anisotropic and reveals a preferential shear pathway, providing atomistic insight into deformation and twinning mechanisms. Finite-temperature molecular dynamics simulations further enable the investigation of unconstrained structural evolution as a function of temperature. Overall, the developed HDNNP provides a robust basis for atomistic simulations of the complex structural and functional behavior of martensitic NiTi systems containing hundreds of thousands of atoms on nanosecond time scales.

In arXiv:2306.01837, it was conjectured that one can engineer a large class of quantum field theory states for which the modular flow on a spacelike slice is "instantaneously local." Here we show that on null slices, such flows are highly constrained; ultraviolet universality essentially requires null-local modular flow to be unique. Concretely, we study massless Klein-Gordon theory in Minkowski spacetime, and construct, for any sufficiently regular future-directed vector field on the past null boundary of a causal diamond, a state that has this vector field as its instantaneous modular flow. We then show by explicit computation that no two distinct states in this class can be realized in the same local Hilbert space. Using a more abstract argument, we also show that in the vacuum sector of the theory, the only null-local modular flow in a causal diamond is provided by the vacuum state itself. We also comment on the construction of null-local modular flow for massive scalars, free Maxwell fields, free gravitons, and in curved backgrounds.

Hailstorms in the United States produce immense economic losses and have an occurrence frequency that appears to have a long-term positive trend. Here we contribute an updated examination of such hail activity and the relevant environmental parameters over the period 1990–2024. We define a hail outbreak as any day with $\gt 6$ significant hail reports ($hail\geq 2$” diameter) and find a positive trend in hail outbreaks since 1990 ($slope=0.8$ days $yr^{-1}$) with the largest increases occurring in May and June and in the Southern Great Plains. Analysis of environmental parameters shows that the long-term increase in hail outbreaks correlates with a long-term increase in the significant hail parameter (SHIP, $cc=0.67$, $p\lt 0.01$). The interannual variability and long-term trend of SHIP are driven both by thermodynamic and kinematic processes, though kinematic processes play a more important role than thermodynamic processes in the interannual variability of hail outbreaks. Using warm-season (April–July) weather regimes (WRs), we find that large-scale circulation modulates the interannual variability of hail outbreak frequency. An empirical model using WR frequency captures the interannual variability in warm-season hail outbreaks reasonably well ($cc=0.38$, $p=0.03$). Our study is the first to relate hail activity to WRs and presents a better understanding of the trend and year-to-year variability of hail outbreaks.

Context. Wide substellar companions provide important benchmarks for studying the formation and evolution of brown dwarfs and giant planets. Their association with stellar primaries also provides age and metallicity constraints that are difficult to obtain for isolated objects. Aims. We investigate the population of wide substellar companions to nearby main-sequence stars using proper motions derived from multi-epoch WISE imaging. Our sample includes 2103 stars within 20 pc and is sensitive to companions down to $\sim300$ K at separations up to 20,000 AU. Methods. We use a Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) analysis to constrain the companion mass and semi-major axis distributions while accounting for observational selection effects, including the reduced detectability of faint companions. We assume power-law distributions, $d^2n \propto M^\alpha a^\beta dM da$. Results. We derive $\alpha=-0.21^{+0.31}_{-0.27}$, $\beta=-1.38\pm0.32$, and an occurrence rate of $1.07^{+0.31}_{-0.24}\%$ for companions with masses of 5–80 $M_J$ at separations of 1,000–20,000 AU. The occurrence rate increases towards smaller separations and for more massive host stars. Conclusions. The inferred companion mass distribution is consistent with previous direct imaging surveys despite differences in target selection. The power-law distributions in both mass and separation also agree with those of stellar binaries. Our sample is about an order of magnitude larger than those of previous imaging surveys, providing the most robust statistical characterisation of wide substellar companions to date. These results support the interpretation that wide substellar companions represent the low-mass extension of the stellar binary population rather than a direct extension of close-in giant planets.

Sand dunes are bedforms that grow due to the action of a fluid flow over a sand bed or pile. Whenever the fluid flow is mainly in one direction and the availability of sand is limited, crescent-shaped dunes known as barchans appear. These dunes are a strong attractor, being found on Earth, Mars, and other celestial bodies, usually in dune fields where they interact with each other, the terrain, and dune-size obstacles. In this review, we discuss the processes and outcomes of the different barchan-barchan and barchan-obstacle interactions, based on grain-scale subaqueous experiments and numerical simulations. We propose that those interactions depend basically on the Shields and Stokes numbers (that are two dimensionless parameters), the transverse position of bedforms, and the size ratio between the interacting objects. In addition, we show in detail the fluid flow, the trajectories of grains, and the resultant force acting on each grain, explaining the mechanisms for the different behaviors observed. Finally, we discuss the implications for the aeolian case, and put into perspective the current findings.

The VLBI Global Observing System (VGOS) is the next generation system for geodetic and astrometric Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI). To optimize the observing time for each source in geodetic schedules, a flux density catalog is needed for the sources that are observed at the VGOS frequencies. The aim of this work is to monitor the flux densities of geodetic sources in the VGOS bands. The obtained flux density time series can be used for more effective scheduling of geodetic and astrometric VLBI experiments, as well as probing active galactic nuclei (AGN) physics. The Onsala Twin Telescopes have been used as a single baseline interferometer to measure flux densities of AGN that are part of the International Celestial Reference System (ICRF3). The telescopes observed at 3.2, 5.5, 6.6 and 10.4 GHz simultaneously. Both locally planned flux monitoring sessions and international geodetic experiments were analyzed. The data were calibrated using the Common Astronomy Software Applications (CASA). The possibility of predicting geodetic signal-to-noise ratios (S/N) using the measured flux densities was also tested. Simultaneous light curves in up to four frequencies have been obtained for 361 sources. The majority of the sources vary significantly in flux density during the measurement period. Most sources have a flat or inverted spectrum, with only 6 % having a steep spectrum. Furthermore, the flux densities from this work were shown to more precisely predict geodetic signal-to-noise ratios compared to the standard VGOS flux density catalog, especially for the most variable sources. Flux density variation needs to be taken into account to obtain the most optimal VGOS schedules. The flux density catalog presented here is expected to be of use for both astronomy and geodesy. We plan to continue the monitoring program.

Quantum key distribution (QKD) allows for the establishment of a secret key between two parties, secure against computationally unbounded adversaries. Most experimental and theoretical research in this area, investigates the performance of QKD over fiber or free space channels. A growing body of work, however, has begun to investigate its performance in underwater scenarios. Here, we consider the realistic finite key scenario, and evaluate the simulated performance of two different decoy state protocols. We show that there are certain underwater channels where "simpler" QKD protocols outperform more complex ones. Finally, we also investigate methods to improve QKD performance underwater, specifically looking at classical advantage distillation, which we show can greatly improve the maximal distance supported by QKD underwater.

SrNi$_2$P$_2$ represents a unique case of a collapsed structural phase (one-third collapsed, where one out of every three P-P pairs forms a bond) in the A(TM)$_2$X$_2$ family of compounds (A = alkali metal, alkaline-earth metal, or rare earth; TM = transition metal; X = pnictogen). Furthermore, Co doping studies aimed at understanding the interrelationship between this unusual bonding motif and the resulting physical properties produced a magnetically rich phase diagram, specifically on the Co-rich side of the phase diagram. However, important questions remained regarding the detailed nature of the magnetic ground states. To address these issues, we performed single-crystal neutron diffraction measurements on Sr(Ni$_{1-x}$Co$_x$)$_2$P$_2$ with compositions $x = 0.88$, 0.94, and 0.97. For $x = 0.88$ and 0.94, the measurements reveal incommensurate helical magnetic order with a doping-dependent propagation vector $(0,0,\tau)$, similar to that observed in Sr(Ni$_{1-x}$Co$_x$)$_2$As$_2$. In contrast, the $x = 0.97$ composition shows clear signatures of a ferromagnetically ordered ground state, resolving the earlier ambiguity regarding the nature of the low-temperature phase. Furthermore, our results highlight the subtle balance between these competing ground states, whose evolution does not appear to be fully captured by the conventional frameworks of either itinerant or local-moment Heisenberg models typically applied to related 122 systems.

Laboratory automation accelerates discovery, yet its adoption is constrained by the high cost, proprietary design, and limited remote supervisability of commercial liquid-handling systems. This work presents RAINBOT\textsuperscript{TM}, a low-cost, openly reproducible liquid-handling robot built by converting a consumer-grade Cartesian 3D printer (Elegoo Neptune 4 Max). The printer extruder is replaced by a precision single-channel pipette actuated through the printer's own G-code-driven X–Y–Z gantry, with plunger and tip-eject motions effected by two compact linear actuators under Python control. To make experiments transparent and remotely supervisable, a browser-based digital twin is implemented to synchronise bidirectionally with the physical platform, mirroring kinematics and pipetting states in real time and exposing remote monitoring, intervention, and an emergency stop from any web browser. As a proof of concept, RAINBOT\textsuperscript{TM} performed sequential exchanges of differently coloured aqueous solutions while an integrated colour sensor quantified the resulting mixtures; measured red, yellow, and blue (RYB) responses agreed with expected mixing behaviour to within a mean absolute error of two percentage points, validating correct execution and real-time tracking. Closing the loop, the platform is coupled to the CEID\textsuperscript{TM} (Cooperative Explorer for Inverse Design) framework, which recasts experimentation from iterative manual guessing into a goal-directed inverse-design search while keeping a human in the loop. The complete hardware costs under US\$1300, which is roughly an order of magnitude below entry-level commercial handlers, thereby establishing an accessible physical–virtual framework for self-driving laboratory automation.

Gravitational waves (GW) from stellar mass compact binary coalescences (CBCs) that encounter a lens whose Schwarzschild radius is comparable to the GW wavelength, will be microlensed, leading to frequency-dependent modulations in the observed signal. Neglecting such wave-optics effects in standard templated searches for CBCs can result in signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) losses as large as 30%. Here, we present a prescription for constructing a template bank targeted at microlensed GWs. We consider CBCs microlensed by isolated point mass lenses, whose frequency-dependent amplification factor is known to have a closed-form analytical expression. However, to construct the template bank, it suffices to use the geometric optics approximation, effectively modeling the microlensed signal as overlapping signals. Moreover, given that matched filtering is mostly sensitive to the phase of the GW signal, we use the phase of the amplification factor to compute the metric elements. The usual CBC parameter space is appended by two extra parameters: (i) the time-delay ($t_d$) between images and (ii) the relative-magnification ($\mu_r$). By identifying the region of the lensing parameter space where the fitting factor (FF) falls below 97% due to wave-optics effects, we construct a template bank consisting of ~4000 templates covering the selected lensing region, independent of the values of the unlensed CBCs' parameters. We show that the bank targeting microlensed CBCs is, to a very good approximation, a Cartesian product of the unlensed CBC bank and the bank spanning the lensing parameters. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our method by evaluating fitting factors using both the unlensed CBC bank and the product template bank, finding a reduction of up to a factor of ~10 in the mismatch, as well as consistency with the prescribed minimal match criterion of 0.97 used in the construction of the banks.

A single-trace surface integral equation (SIE) solver incorporating generalized sheet transition conditions (GSTCs) is presented for the simulation of three-dimensional (3D) open bianisotropic metasurfaces. The metasurface is modeled as an infinitesimally thin, non-enclosing sheet across which the GSTCs enforce the electromagnetic field discontinuities through four surface susceptibility tensors. The proposed solver uses a single set of equivalent surface currents on the sheet, in place of the two sets used by prior multi-trace formulations. The scattered fields on both faces of the sheet, expressed through SIE operators acting on these currents, are substituted into the GSTCs. The resulting system of equations is then discretized using Rao–Wilton–Glisson basis functions. This solver models an open metasurface directly, without an artificial closure, and applies to both planar and curved geometries. It is validated against analytical solutions for polarization rotation and perfect reflection, and is used to model a realistic broadband absorber whose susceptibility tensors are retrieved from full-wave simulation data. A direct comparison shows that the single-trace formulation attains lower error than a multi-trace formulation while using significantly fewer unknowns.

Unique and rapid classification of knots and links is an open mathematical problem that is relevant to a range of (bio)physical systems, including polymer melts, DNA, and proteins. In this paper, we explore a data-driven approach to the classification problem of link topology. Extending the framework introduced in Ref. 1 (Sleiman et al, 2024 Soft Matter, 20(1), pp.71-78), we show that a feedforward neural network trained on the writhe density matrix classifies thermally equilibrated configurations of the first six prime links with 97% accuracy. We demonstrate that this accuracy remains high across a range of temperatures and lengths of link components, while rapidly deteriorating with the addition of topology-altering Gaussian noise; a result consistent with the writhe density matrix containing features sensitive to topology. Our results show that neural networks based on the writhe density matrix efficiently classify two-component links, establishing machine learning as a promising tool for rapid classification of more complex link topologies, e.g. Borromean rings and multi-component links, as the computational cost of exact numerical calculation of topological invariants becomes prohibitive.

We investigate cosmological inflation within the framework of a linear form of f (R, T ) gravity that incorporates an inflaton scalar field augmented by a Chern-Simons correction induced by aspects of quantum gravity. Utilizing the FLRW metric, we derive the modified Friedmann equations under the slow-roll approximations. We consider two specific forms of the Chern-Simons coupling function, trigonometric and exponential, each paired with the choice of an inflaton potential. Then, we define the essential slow-roll parameters and acquire their required expressions in the proposed model. Subsequently, we compute the scalar spectral index, the tensor spectral index, and the tensor-to- scalar ratio. By adequately constraining the free parameters, the proposed model provides accurate predictions for these inflationary observables that are in good agreement with the Planck 2018 data. Furthermore, the model predictions for the Chern-Simons exponential coupling function impose a stronger limit on the value of the tensor-to-scalar ratio and also provide good agreement with the joint Planck, BK15 and BAO data. Meanwhile, for comparative analysis and better comparison of the model motivations, we also examine the model without the Chern-Simons correction, without the linear form of f (R, T ) gravity, and with a non-linear form of f (R, T ) gravity. As a general conclusion, the obtained findings indicate that the inclusion of the Chern-Simons correction approximately refines the values of the tensor spectral index and tensor-to-scalar ratio in the context of the linear form of f (R, T ) gravity.

Recent JWST observations suggest that star formation in the early universe was substantially burstier than assumed in standard models. Such burstiness can be described as a stochastic process characterized by the burst amplitude and the coherence time of star formation epochs. In this paper, we investigate how bursty star formation modifies the 21-cm power spectrum during Cosmic Dawn through its impact on the non-local radiation fields that govern its evolution, namely Lyman-$\alpha$ and X-ray backgrounds. To do so, we introduce an unequal-time correlation in the star-formation-rate density sourcing the two fields and we compute its impact using the analytical framework implemented in the public code Zeus21. We find that the burstiness-induced time correlation produces a shot-noise-like contribution in the Lyman-$\alpha$ and X-ray fields, enhancing both their auto- and cross-power spectra while leaving the global 21-cm signal, $T_{21}(z)$, unchanged. As a result, the 21-cm power spectrum is strongly modified by a shot-noise-like contribution at the beginning of the Cosmic Dawn, where the signal is dominated by lower-mass halos ($M_h\lesssim10^{10}\,M_\odot$), and is boosted by a factor of a few near the Wouthuysen-Field absorption trough. Elsewhere at low redshift, where the clustering signal dominates and larger halos drive the signal, the burstiness component is negligible.

WISPIT 2 is a young pre-main-sequence star hosting a multi-ringed transition disk and two directly imaged protoplanets, including the accreting WISPIT 2b, making it the closest known analogue to PDS 70. We present the first optical spectrum of its central star, obtained with HFOSC on the 2-m Himalayan Chandra Telescope, and derive its atmospheric parameters, test its youth, and constrain its accretion state. We analyse low-resolution spectra with iSpec and validate the pipeline at HFOSC resolution against Gaia FGK Benchmark Stars and K-type pre-main-sequence templates. We measure T_eff = 4551 +/- 150 K, log g = 4.32 +/- 0.18, and a low-resolution, model-dependent global metallicity [M/H] = -0.17 +/- 0.16. The surface gravity and Li I equivalent width support the pre-main-sequence nature of the host. H-alpha remains in net absorption but is partially filled by weak emission at only 1.5-2.0 sigma, approximately 1.1 dex below the expected chromospheric-noise level and therefore consistent with chromospheric activity rather than detectable accretion. We place a 95% upper limit on the stellar accretion rate of 3.6 x 10^-11 solar masses per year, below even the lowest monitored value for PDS 70 and implying a host-to-planet accretion-rate ratio below approximately 18. Both known double-protoplanet hosts therefore show strongly suppressed or undetectable stellar accretion. Larger spectroscopic samples are needed to determine whether this is common in multi-protoplanet transition disks.

In these proceedings, we provide a summary of our recent advancements in determining the mass of the lightest gluelump using hyperasymptotic expansions in Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) \cite{Ayala2025}. This paper details our methodology, our precise determination of leading renormalon normalization constants, and our extraction of the gluelump mass from two independent physical systems, yielding a final combined, renormalization-group-invariant and scheme-independent result of $\Lambda_{B}^{\rm PV} = 2.44(7) r_0^{-1}$.