[en] Recent developments in general relativity, astrophysics and quantum field theories are presented

[en] A new method for the analysis of Coulomb explosion data is described. The formalism is based on the solution of the Fokker Planck equation of motion and is general enough to accomodate the needs of existing experimental set-ups. It is hoped that such analyses will be practical even for studies of fairly complex molecular ions. The simulation of experiments reproduces the data with more detailed accuracy than before, permitting a better understanding of the role of the interplay of the multiple scattering and Coulomb explosion processes. (H.K.)

[en] Quantum theory is expressed in a language using the vocabulary of classical physics. However, new meanings are attached to various words, and phrases which make sense in a classical situation become utterly meaningless in a quantum context. (author)

[en] Einstein's progress from the special (or restricted) theory of relativity to the general theory took him eleven years. Whereas the special theory had been taken over from Newtonian physics the notion of rigid space and time, albeit with different and new properties, general relativity eliminated these rigidities, leaving intact only the manifold character of space-time and postulating the dynamics of space-time geometry. (author)

[en] It is shown that, after separation of center-of-mass motion, the relativistic classical mechanics of the two-body problem with action-at-a-distance interaction potential can be embedded in a Riemannian manifold with conformal metric, where the curvature replaces the explicit appearance of the potential. Geodesic motion in the conformal space coincides with the solutions of the Hamiltonian equations of motion in the corresponding flat space problem. To account for the mutual effect of gravitation, the manifold of this (relative) spacetime can be considered as the globally defined coordinates for which there exists, at every point, a local frame in which the metric is conformal, and hence corresponds locally to a canonical Hamiltonian mechanics in a flat space. One can, in this way, describe a class of non gravitational interactions in spacetime by essentially geometrical means. A relation is proposed between the Einstein tensor in the locally conformal space and the (non-conserved) energy momentum tensor associated with relative motion, with the help of Brans-Dicke type field. (authors)

[en] Recent progress on non-linear unitary field theories of elementary particles is reviewed. A simple model of coupled field fits the lepton family well and predicts a particle size within experimental bounds. The role of gravitation in elementary particle formation is explored and it is shown that gravitation is significant only for particles which have e²∼m², unlike the particles with which we are familiar. The phenomenon of Reissner-Nordstrom repulsion is shown to be realized in particles such as the electron. The spatial components of the four-vector potential of electromagnetism can create spin and magnetic moment in analogy with the time component which creates mass and charge. (author)

[en] A formulation of the electrodynamics is presented in which the concept of the magnetic moment is taken as the fundamental quantity instead of the charge in ordinary Maxwell's theory. The field equations of electrodynamics for the interactions between magnetic moments are given. They have R*S³ invariance rather than the Lorentz invariance of ordinary electrodynamics. The basic kinematical quantity in our formalism is the angular momentum. It is remarkable that in this theory the divergence of the magnetic field is different from zero, whereas the divergence of the electric field vanishes, exactly the opposite that in Maxwell's theory. (authors)

[en] We discuss some properties of the quantum field theory that is constructed by gauging an affine algebra. (author)

[en] Transient effects in the charge state distribution of ions in beam-foil type configurations are discussed. Recent experiments giving some information on the electronic structure of fast projectiles inside solius are reviewed. It is shown that the use of channeling technics and of molecular ion beams provides powerful methods to study the physics of charge exchange processes in ion solid interactions. (author)

[en] The spectrum and yield for convoy electrons produced by 1 to 8.5 MeV/u Csup(q+), Osup(q+), Sisup(q+) and Nisup(q+) ions traversing equilibrium thickness polycrystalline C, Al, Ag and Au targets, and <110> and <100> axial channels in thin Au monocrystals are described. By studying convoy electron production in coincidence with emergent ions of charge state qsub(e), it is found fhat the yield integrated over electron velocity for channeled ions depends strongly on qsub(e), but the shape is found to be independent of qsub(e), v, and target material. For polycrystalline and randomly oriented monocrystalline targets, the yield is found to be independent of emergent ion charge state qsub(e). The data suggest that convoy electron production is a bulk process and that convoy production is initiated by capture events requiring a close approach to lattice sites (within about 0.65 A for gold). The similarity of the convoy spectra to analogous spectra observed for projectile electron loss in gases suggests that subsequent electron loss collisions determine the basic shape of the convoy spectrum, which is then modified by electron scattering out of the forward direction in such a way as to yield a skew toward high electron energy. (author)