Updating QCD2

We review two-dimensional QCD. We start with the field theory aspects since 't Hooft's 1/N expansion, arriving at the non-Abelian bosonization formula, coset construction and gauge-fixing procedure. Then we consider the string interpretation, phase structure and the collective coordinate approach. Adjoint matter is coupled to the theory, and the Landau-Ginzburg generalization is analysed. We end with considerations concerning higher algebras, integrability, constraint structure, and the relation of high-energy scattering of hadrons with two-dimensional (integrable) field theories.

Affine Toda systems coupled to matter fields

We investigate higher grading integrable generalizations of the affine Toda systems, where the flat connections defining the models take values in eigensubspaces of an integral gradation of an affine Kac-Moody algebra, with grades varying from l to -l (l > 1). The corresponding target space possesses nontrivial vacua and soliton configurations, which can be interpreted as particles of the theory, on the same footing as those associated to fundamental fields. The models can also be formulated by a hamiltonian reduction procedure from the so-called two-loop WZNW models. We construct the general solution and show the classes corresponding to the solitons. Some of the particles and solitons become massive when the conformal symmetry is spontaneously broken by a mechanism with an intriguing topological character and leading to a very simple mass formula. The massive fields associated to nonzero grade generators obey field equations of the Dirac type and may be regarded as matter fields. A special class of models is remarkable. These theories possess a U(1 ) Noether current, which, after a special gauge fixing of the conformal symmetry, is proportional to a topological current. This leads to the confinement of the matter field inside the solitons, which can be regarded as a one-dimensional bag model for QCD. These models are also relevant to the study of electron self-localization in (quasi-)one-dimensional electron-phonon systems.

Overlap of isochrone resonances: Chaos and refraction

We consider the two nonconcentric circles billiard, with the inner circle as a refringent medium, in order to study the classical dynamics of a light ray. The eccentricity controls the chaotic sea intensity and the refraction index acts on the integrable portion of the phase space, prompting the appearance and overlapping of isochrone resonances. Numerical results are presented and discussed.

First-order perturbed Korteweg-de Vries solitons

We consider the Korteweg-de Vries equation with a perturbation arising naturally in many physical situations. Although being asymptotically integrable, we show that the corresponding perturbed solitons do not have the usual scattering properties. Specifically, we show that there is a solution, correct up to O(ε), where ε is the perturbative parameter, consisting, at t→ -∞ of two superposed deformed solitons characterized by wave numbers k1 and k2 that give rise, for t→ +∞, to the same but phase-shifted superposed solitons plus a coupling term depending on k1, and k2. We also find the condition on the original equation for which this coupling vanishes.

Nonlinear short-wave propagation in ferrites

In this paper we discuss the propagation of nonlinear electromagnetic short waves in ferromagnetic insulators. We show that such propagation is perpendicular to an externally applied field. In the nonlinear regime we determine various possible propagation patterns: an isolated pulse, a modulated sinusoidal wave, and an asymptotic two-peak wave. The mathematical structure underlying the existence of these solutions is that of the integrable sine-Gordon equation.

Confinement, solitons and the equivalence between the sine-Gordon and massive Thirring models

We consider a two-dimensional integrable and conformally invariant field theory possessing two Dirac spinors and three scalar fields. The interaction couples bilinear terms in the spinors to exponentials of the scalars. Its integrability properties are based on the sl(2) affine Kac-Moody algebra, and it is a simple example of the so-called conformal affine Toda theories coupled to matter fields. We show, using bosonization techniques, that the classical equivalence between a U(1) Noether current and the topological current holds true at the quantum level, and then leads to a bag model like mechanism for the confinement of the spinor fields inside the solitons. By bosonizing the spinors we show that the theory decouples into a sine-Gordon model and free scalars. We construct the two-soliton solutions and show that their interactions lead to the same time delays as those for the sine-Gordon solitons. The model provides a good laboratory to test duality ideas in the context of the equivalence between the sine-Gordon and Thirring theories. © 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Confinement and soliton solutions in the SL(3) Toda model coupled to matter fields

We consider an integrable conformally invariant two-dimensional model associated to the affine Kac-Moody algebra sl3(ℂ). It possesses four scalar fields and six Dirac spinors. The theory does not possesses a local Lagrangian since the spinor equations of motion present interaction terms which are bilinear in the spinors. There exists a submodel presenting an equivalence between a U(1) vector current and a topological current, which leads to a confinement of the spinors inside the solitons. We calculate the one-soliton and two-soliton solutions using a procedure which is a hybrid of the dressing and Hirota methods. The soliton masses and time delays due to the soliton interactions are also calculated. We give a computer program to calculate the soliton solutions. © 2002 Published by Elsevier Science B.V.

Integrability and conformal symmetry in higher dimensions: A model with exact hopfion solutions

We use ideas on integrability in higher dimensions to define Lorentz invariant field theories with an infinite number of local conserved currents. The models considered have a two-dimensional target space. Requiring the existence of lagrangean and the stability of static solutions singles out a class of models which have an additional conformal symmetry. That is used to explain the existence of an ansatz leading to solutions with non-trivial Hopf charges. © SISSA/ISAS 2002.

Construction of exact Riemannian instanton solutions

We present the exact construction of Riemannian (or stringy) instantons, which are classical solutions of 2D Yang-Mills theories that interpolate between initial and final string configurations. They satisfy the Hitchin equations with special boundary conditions. For the case of U(2) gauge group those equations can be written as the sinh-Gordon equation with a delta-function source. Using the techniques of integrable theories based on the zero curvature conditions, we show that the solution is a condensate of an infinite number of one-solitons with the same topological charge and with all possible rapidities.

Higher grading conformal affine Toda theory and (generalized) sine-Gordon/massive Thirring duality

Some properties of the higher grading integrable generalizations of the conformal affine Toda systems are studied. The fields associated to the non-zero grade generators are Dirac spinors. The effective action is written in terms of the Wess-Zumino-Novikov-Witten (WZNW) action associated to an affine Lie algebra, and an off-critical theory is obtained as the result of the spontaneous breakdown of the conformal symmetry. Moreover, the off-critical theory presents a remarkable equivalence between the Noether and topological currents of the model. Related to the off-critical model we define a real and local lagrangian provided some reality conditions are imposed on the fields of the model. This real action model is expected to describe the soliton sector of the original model, and turns out to be the master action from which we uncover the weak-strong phases described by (generalized) massive Thirring and sine-Gordon type models, respectively. The case of any (untwisted) affine Lie algebra furnished with the principal gradation is studied in some detail. The example of s^l(n) (n = 2, 3) is presented explicitly. © SISSA/ISAS 2003.

Scaling properties of the fermi-ulam accelerator model

The chaotic low energy region (chaotic sea) of the Fermi-Ulam accelerator model is discussed within a scaling framework near the integrable to non-integrable transition. Scaling results for the average quantities (velocity, roughness, energy etc.) of the simplified version of the model are reviewed and it is shown that, for small oscillation amplitude of the moving wall, they can be described by scaling functions with the same characteristic exponents. New numerical results for the complete model are presented. The chaotic sea is also characterized by its Lyapunov exponents.

A literatura latino-americana e as alegorias nacionais de concierto Barroco

The problematical identity of Latin America is reflected on the recurrence of the theme in the literature created in this part of the continent. The images of Caliban and anthropophagy and the attribution of a Baroque meaning to the Latin American experience characterize an expressive part of such literature. By means of the character Amo, Carpentier's Concierto Barroco exemplifies the difficulties of the Creole elite in finding a nobleorigin for themselves in their ancestors' Europe, and in identifying themselves with it. The slave musician Filomeno and Amo naturalizes narrative, whereas Filomeno provocativelytransits between the hierarchies, turning the Baroque meaning of identity into an allegory. Jazz is a Creole, anthropophagic and Baroque product whose erased origin was replaced by the fabled narrative in the Spirituals that renewed modern music. It is important to emphasize that Carpentier created, by means of Filomeno, the unity of the American experience whose frontier is Mexico.

Generating string solutions in BTZ

Integrability of classical strings in the BTZ black hole enables the construction and study of classical string propagation in this background. We first apply the dressing method to obtain classical string solutions in the BTZ black hole. We dress time like geodesics in the BTZ black hole and obtain open string solutions which are pinned on the boundary at a single point and whose end points move on time like geodesics. These strings upon regularising their charge and spins have a dispersion relation similar to that of giant magnons. We then dress space like geodesics which start and end on the boundary of the BTZ black hole and obtain minimal surfaces which can penetrate the horizon of the black hole while being pinned at the boundary. Finally we embed the giant gluon solutions in the BTZ background in two different ways. They can be embedded as a spiral which contracts and expands touching the horizon or a spike which originates from the boundary and touches the horizon. © 2013 SISSA, Trieste, Italy.

What kind of State? what kind of equality?: XI Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean: Brasilia, 13-16 July 2010

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What kind of State? What kind of equality? XI Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean: Brasilia, 13-16 July 2010. Summary

The document What kind of State? What kind of equality? analyses the progress of gender equality in the region 15 years after the approval of the Beijing Platform for Action, 10 years after the drafting of the Millennium Development Goals and 3 years after the adoption of the Quito Consensus at the tenth session of the Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean, held in 2007. It also examines the achievements made and challenges faced by governments in light of the interaction between the State, the market and families as social institutions built on the foundation of policies, laws, and customs and habits which, together, establish the conditions for renewing or perpetuating gender and social hierarchies.