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We consider a geodesic problem in a manifold endowed with a Randers-Kropina metric. This is a type of singular Finsler metric arising both in the description of the lightlike vectors of a spacetime endowed with a causal Killing vector field and in the Zermelo's navigation problem with a wind represented by a vector field having norm not greater than one. By using Lusternik-Schnirelman theory, we prove existence of infinitely many geodesics between two given points when the manifold is not contractible. Due to the type of nonholonomic constraints that the velocity vectors must satisfy, this is achieved thanks to a recent result about the homotopy type of the set of solutions of an affine control system with a controlled drift and related to a corank one, completely nonholonomic distribution of step 2., Comment: 19 pages, AMSLaTeX. This version includes corrections to the published version that will appear separately on the journal

In this paper, we consider a symmetrization with respect to mixed volumes of convex sets, for which a P\'olya-Szeg\"o type inequality holds. We improve the P\'olya-Szeg\"o for the $k$-Hessian integral in a quantitative way, and, with similar arguments, we show a quantitative inequality for the comparison proved by Tso for solutions to the $k$-Hessian equation. As an application of the first result we prove a quantitative version of the Faber-Krahn and Saint-Venant inequalities for these equations.

Chiral phonons possessing valley pseudo angular momentum (PAM) underlie a diversity of quantum phenomena of fundamental and applied importance, but are challenging to probe directly. We show that deficiencies of typical momentum-resolved electron energy loss measurements that make it impossible to distinguish the PAM of chiral phonons can be overcome by introducing pinwheel free electron states with well-defined PAM. Transitions between such states generate 2D periodic arrays of in-plane field vortices with polarization textures tailored to selectively couple to desired chiral mode symmetries.

We consider a differential inclusion on a manifold, defined by a field of open half-spaces whose boundary in each tangent space is the kernel of a one-form. We make the assumption that the corank one distribution associated to the kernel is completely nonholonomic. We identify a subset of solutions of the differential inclusion, satisfying two endpoints and periodic boundary conditions, which are homotopically equivalent in the $W^{1,p}$-topology, for any $p\in [1,+\infty)$, to the based loop space and the free loop space respectively., Comment: AMS-LaTex, 17 pages

Spectroscopies utilizing free electron beams as probes offer detailed information on the reciprocal-space excitations of 2D materials such as graphene and transition metal dichalcogenide monolayers. Yet, despite the attention paid to such quantum materials, less consideration has been given to the electron-beam characterization of 2D periodic nanostructures such as photonic crystals, metasurfaces, and plasmon arrays, which can exhibit the same lattice and excitation symmetries as their atomic analogs albeit at drastically different length, momentum, and energy scales. Due to their lack of covalent bonding and influence of retarded electromagnetic interactions, important physical distinctions arise that complicate interpretation of scattering signals. Here we present a fully-retarded theoretical framework for describing the inelastic scattering of wide field electron beams from 2D materials and apply it to investigate the complementarity in sample excitation information gained in the measurement of a honeycomb plasmon array versus angle-resolved optical spectroscopy in comparison to single monolayer graphene.

Recent advancements in abilities to create and manipulate the electron's transverse wave function within the transmission electron microscope (TEM) and scanning TEM (STEM) have enabled vectorially-resolved electron energy loss (EEL) and gain (EEG) measurements of nanoscale and quantum material responses using pre- and post-selected free electron states. This newfound capability is prompting renewed theoretical interest in quantum mechanical treatments of inelastic electron scattering observables and the information they contain. Here, we present a quantum mechanical treatment of the inelastic scattering of free electrons between pre- and post-selected transverse states with fully-retarded electron-sample interactions for both spontaneous EEL and continuous-wave laser-stimulated EEG measurements. General expressions for the state-resolved energy loss and gain rates are recast in forms amenable to numerical calculation using the method of coupled dipoles. We numerically implement our theory within the $e$-DDA code, and use it to investigate specific examples that highlight its versatility regarding the number, size, geometry, and material composition of the target specimen, as well as its ability to describe matter-wave diffraction from finite nanoscopic targets.

In this paper, we obtain a quantitative version of the classical comparison result of Talenti for elliptic problems with Dirichlet boundary conditions. The key role is played by quantitative versions of the P\'olya-Szego inequality and of the Hardy-Littlewood inequality.

We consider finite element approximations to the optimal constant for the Hardy inequality with exponent $p=2$ in bounded domains of dimension $n=1$ or $n \geq 3$. For finite element spaces of piecewise linear and continuous functions on a mesh of size $h$, we prove that the approximate Hardy constant converges to the optimal Hardy constant at a rate proportional to $1/| \log h |^2$. This result holds in dimension $n=1$, in any dimension $n \geq 3$ if the domain is the unit ball and the finite element discretization exploits the rotational symmetry of the problem, and in dimension $n=3$ for general finite element discretizations of the unit ball. In the first two cases, our estimates show excellent quantitative agreement with values of the discrete Hardy constant obtained computationally., Comment: Review: Significantly improved estimates compared to the original version (23 pages, 6 figures)

Advances in the ability to manipulate free electron phase profiles within the electron microscope have spurred development of quantum-mechanical descriptions of electron energy loss (EEL) processes involving transitions between phase-shaped transverse states. Here, we elucidate an underlying connection between two ostensibly distinct optical polarization analogs identified in EEL experiments as manifestations of the same conserved scattering flux. Our work introduces a procedure for probing general tensorial target characteristics including global mode symmetries and local polarization.

ITER envisages the use of two heating neutral beam injectors plus an optional one as part of the auxiliary heating and current drive system. The 16.5 MW expected neutral beam power per injector is several notches higher than worldwide existing facilities. A Neutral Beam Test Facility (NBTF) was established at Consorzio RFX, exploiting the synergy of two test beds, SPIDER and MITICA. SPIDER is dedicated to developing and characterizing large efficient negative ion sources at relevant parameters in ITER-like conditions: source and accelerator located in the same vacuum where the beam propagates, immunity to electromagnetic interferences of multiple radio-frequency (RF) antennas, avoidance of RF-induced discharges on the outside of the source. Three years of experiments on SPIDER have addressed to the necessary design modifications to enable full performances. The source is presently under a long shut-down phase to incorporate learnings from the experimental campaign. Parallelly, developments on MITICA, the full-scale prototype of the ITER NBI featuring a 1 MV accelerator and ion neutralization, are underway including manufacturing of in-vessel components, while power supplies and auxiliary plants are already under final testing and commissioning. Integration, commissioning and tests of the 1MV power supplies are essential for this first-of-kind system, unparalleled both in research and industry field. The integrated test to confirm 1MV output by combining invertor systems, DC generators and transmission lines extracted errors/accidents in some components. To realize a concrete system for ITER, solutions for the repair and the improvement of the system were developed. Hence, NBTF is emerging as a necessary facility, due to the large gap with existing injectors, effectively dedicated to identify issues and find solutions to enable successful ITER NBI operations in a time bound fashion.

Symmetry properties of solutions to elliptic quasilinear equations have been widely studied in the context of Dirichlet boundary conditions. We show that, in the context of Robin boundary conditions, the symmetry property \'a la Gidas, Ni and Nirenberg does not hold in dimension $n\geq 2$, even for superharmonic functions, and we provide an explicit example.

Let $\Omega \subset \mathbb{R}^n$ be an open, bounded and Lipschitz set. We consider the Poisson problem for the $p-$Laplace operator associated to $\Omega$ with Robin boundary conditions. In this setting, we study the equality case in the Talenti-type comparison stated in \cite{AGM}. We prove that the equality is achieved only if $\Omega$ is a ball and both the function $u$ and the right hand side $f$ of the Poisson equation are radial.

Nanophotonics research has focused recently on the ability of non-linear optical processes to mediate and transform optical signals in a myriad of novel devices, including optical modulators, transducers, color filters, photodetectors, photon sources, and ultrafast optical switches. The inherent weakness of optical nonlinearities at smaller scales has, however, hindered the realization of efficient miniaturized devices, and strategies for enhancing both device efficiencies and synthesis throughput via nanoengineering remain limited. Here, we demonstrate a novel mechanism by which second harmonic generation, a prototypical non-linear optical phenomenon, from individual lithium niobate particles can be significantly enhanced through nonradiative coupling to the localized surface plasmon resonances of embedded gold nanoparticles. A joint experimental and theoretical investigation of single mesoporous lithium niobate particles coated with aispersed layer of $\sim$10-nm diameter gold nanoparticles shows that a $\sim$32-fold enhancement of second harmonic generation can be achieved without introducing finely tailored radiative nanoantennas to mediate photon transfer to or from the non-linear material. This work highlights the limitations of current strategies for enhancing non-linear optical phenomena and proposes a route through which a new class of subwavelength nonlinear optical platforms can be designed to maximize non-linear efficiencies through near-field energy exchange., Comment: Main text: 12 pages, 4 figures. Supplementary information: 47 pages, 18 figures, 4 tables. Edits, v2: Corrected typos in metadata

Let $\Omega \subset \mathbb{R}^2$ be an open, bounded and Lipschitz set. We consider the torsion problem for the Laplace operator associated to $\Omega$ with Robin boundary conditions. In this setting, we study the equality case in the Talenti-type comparison, proved in arXiv:1909.11950. We prove that the equality is achieved only if $\Omega$ is a disk and the torsion function $u$ is radial.

We are interested in finding sharp bounds for the Cheeger constant $h$ via different geometrical quantities, namely the area $|\cdot|$, the perimeter $P$, the inradius $r$, the circumradius $R$, the minimal width $\omega$ and the diameter $d$. We provide new sharp inequalities between these quantities for planar convex bodies and enounce new conjectures based on numerical simulations. In particular, we completely solve the Blaschke-Santal\'o diagrams describing all the possible inequalities involving the triplets $(P,h,r)$, $(d,h,r)$ and $(R,h,r)$ and describe some parts of the boundaries of the diagrams of the triplets $(\omega,h,d)$, $(\omega,h,R)$, $(\omega,h,P)$, $(\omega,h,|\cdot|)$, $(R,h,d)$ and $(\omega,h,r)$., Comment: 38 pages, 20 figures

In this paper, we prove an upper bound for the first Robin eigenvalue of the $p$-Laplacian with a positive boundary parameter and a quantitative version of the reverse Faber-Krahn type inequality for the first Robin eigenvalue of the $p$-Laplacian with negative boundary parameter, among convex sets with prescribed perimeter. The proofs are based on a comparison argument obtained by means of inner sets, introduced by Payne, Weimberger and Polya.

We study the behaviour, when $p \to +\infty$, of the first $p$-Laplacian eigenvalues with Robin boundary conditions and the limit of the associated eigenfunctions. We prove that the limit of the eigenfunctions is a viscosity solution to an eigenvalue problem for the so-called $\infty$-Laplacian.

Let $\Omega\subset\mathbb{R}^n$, $n\geq 2$, be a bounded, open and convex set and let $f$ be a positive and non-increasing function depending only on the distance from the boundary of $\Omega$. We consider the $p-$torsional rigidity associated to $\Omega$ for the Poisson problem with Dirichlet boundary conditions, denoted by $T_{f,p}(\Omega)$. Firstly, we prove a P\'olya type lower bound for $T_{f,p}(\Omega)$ in any dimension; then, we consider the planar case and we provide two quantitative estimates in the case $f\equiv 1 $., Comment: 18 pages, 4 figures