Giant circular dichroism of a molecule in a region of strong plasmon resonances between two neighboring gold nanocrystals

We report on giant circular dichroism (CD) of a molecule inserted into a plasmonic hot spot. Naturally occurring molecules and biomolecules have typically CD signals in the UV range, whereas plasmonic nanocrystals exhibit strong plasmon resonances in the visible spectral interval. Therefore, excitations of chiral molecules and plasmon resonances are typically off-resonant. Nevertheless, we demonstrate theoretically that it is possible to create strongly-enhanced molecular CD utilizing the plasmons. This task is doubly challenging since it requires both creation and enhancement of the molecular CD in the visible region. We demonstrate this effect within the model which incorporates a chiral molecule and a plasmonic dimer. The associated mechanism of plasmonic CD comes from the Coulomb interaction which is greatly amplified in a plasmonic hot spot.Comment: Manuscript: 4+pages, 4 figures; Supplemental_Material: 10 pages, 7 figure

Inhomogeneous Magnetoelectric Effect on Defect in Multiferroic Material: Symmetry Prediction

Inhomogeneous magnetoelectric effect in magnetization distribution heterogeneities (0-degree domain walls) appeared on crystal lattice defect of the multiferroic material has been investigated. Magnetic symmetry based predictions of kind of electrical polarization distribution in their volumes were used. It was found that magnetization distribution heterogeneity with any symmetry produces electrical polarization. Results were systemized in scope of micromagnetic structure chirality. It was shown that all 0-degree domain walls with time-noninvariant chirality have identical type of spatial distribution of the magnetization and polarization.Comment: submitted to IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineerin

Associations Between Positive Body Image, Sexual Liberalism, and Unconventional Sexual Practices in U.S. Adults

While studies have documented robust relationships between body image and sexual health outcomes, few studies have looked beyond sexual functioning in women. Here, we hypothesized that more positive body image would be associated with greater sexual liberalism and more positive attitudes toward unconventional sexual practices. An online sample of 151 women and 164 men from the U.S. completed measures of sexual liberalism, attitudes toward unconventional sexual practices, and indices of positive body image (i.e., body appreciation, body acceptance by others, body image flexibility, and body pride), and provided their demographic details. Regression analyses indicated that, once the effects of sexual orientation, relationship status, age, and body mass index had been accounted for, higher body appreciation was significantly associated with greater sexual liberalism in women and men. Furthermore, higher body appreciation and body image flexibility were significantly associated with more positive attitudes toward unconventional sexual practices in women and men. These results may have implications for scholars working from a sex-positive perspective, particularly in terms of understanding the role body image plays in sexual attitudes and behaviors

Circular dichroism of cholesteric polymers and the orbital angular momentum of light

We explore experimentally if the light's orbital angular momentum (OAM) interacts with chiral nematic polymer films. Specifically, we measure the circular dichroism of such a material using light beams with different OAM. We investigate the case of strongly focussed, non-paraxial light beams, where the spatial and polarization degrees of freedom are coupled. Within the experimental accuracy, we cannot find any influence of the OAM on the circular dichroism of the cholesteric polymer.Comment: 3 pages, 4 figure

High titers of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy infectivity associated with extremely low levels of PrP in vivo

Rona Barron - ORCID: 0000-0003-4512-9177 https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4512-9177Diagnosis of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) disease in humans and ruminants relies on the detection in post-mortem brain tissue of the protease-resistant form of the host glycoprotein PrP. The presence of this abnormal isoform (PrPSc) in tissues is taken as indicative of the presence of TSE infectivity. Here we demonstrate conclusively that high titers of TSE infectivity can be present in brain tissue of animals that show clinical and vacuolar signs of TSE disease but contain low or undetectable levels of PrPSc. This work questions the correlation between PrPSc level and the titer of infectivity and shows that tissues containing little or no proteinase K-resistant PrP can be infectious and harbor high titers of TSE infectivity. Reliance on protease-resistant PrPSc as a sole measure of infectivity may therefore in some instances significantly underestimate biological properties of diagnostic samples, thereby undermining efforts to contain and eradicate TSEs.https://doi.org/10.1074/jbc.M704329200282pubpub4

Chiral discrimination in optical binding

The laser-induced intermolecular force that exists between two or more particles in the presence of an electromagnetic field is commonly termed “optical binding.” Distinct from the single-particle forces that are at play in optical trapping at the molecular level, the phenomenon of optical binding is a manifestation of the coupling between optically induced dipole moments in neutral particles. In other, more widely known areas of optics, there are many examples of chiral discrimination—signifying the different response a chiral material has to the handedness of an optical input. In the present analysis, extending previous work on chiral discrimination in optical binding, a mechanism is identified using a quantum electrodynamical approach. It is shown that the optical binding force between a pair of chiral molecules can be significantly discriminatory in nature, depending upon both the handedness of the interacting particles and the polarization of the incident light, and it is typically several orders of magnitude larger than previously reported

SUSY vertex algebras and supercurves

This article is a continuation of math.QA/0603633 Given a strongly conformal SUSY vertex algebra V and a supercurve X we construct a vector bundle V_X on X, the fiber of which, is isomorphic to V. Moreover, the state-field correspondence of V canonically gives rise to (local) sections of these vector bundles. We also define chiral algebras on any supercurve X, and show that the vector bundle V_X, corresponding to a SUSY vertex algebra, carries the structure of a chiral algebra.Comment: 50 page

Anisotropic thermal expansion of Fe1.06Te and FeTe0.5Se0.5 single crystals

Heat capacity and anisotropic thermal expansion was measured for Fe1.06Te and FeTe0.5Se0.5 single crystals. Previously reported phase transitions are clearly seen in both measurements. In both cases the thermal expansion is anisotropic. The uniaxial pressure derivatives of the superconducting transition temperature in FeTe0.5Se0.5 inferred from the Ehrenfest relation have opposite signs for in-plane and c-axis pressures. Whereas the Gruneisen parameters for both materials are similar and only weakly temperature-dependent above ~ 80 K, at low temperatures (in the magnetically ordered phase) the magnetic contribution to the Gruneisen parameter in Fe1.06Te is significantly larger than electron and phonon contributions combined

Development of a key performance indicator system to benchmark relative paratransit performance

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities. US transit agencies are therefore required to offer services to eligible customers that complement the mobility opportunities provided to the general public on fixed-route public transit. While these paratransit services are necessary and just, they represent a proportionally large cost to agencies: approximately eight times the cost per boarding compared to fixed-route bus service. To be able to identify opportunities for (cost) efficiencies, and to further improve the quality of paratransit services offered, the twenty agencies of the American Bus Benchmarking Group (ABBG) decided to benchmark their relative performance in paratransit management and operations. To ensure comparability of agencies’ performance and hence ensure the usefulness of the benchmarking program, a key performance indicator system was developed and associated data items were defined in detail. The scope of this system went beyond the data already provided to the National Transit Database, both in amount and granularity of data collected, as well as the detail of definitions. This paper describes the challenges, respective solutions, and other lessons identified during four years of paratransit benchmarking development led by Imperial College London, the ABBG facilitators. The paper provides transit agencies and authorities as well as benchmarking practitioners and academics an opportunity to apply these lessons for the further benefit of paratransit services and their customers around the U.S