Entanglement of two individual atoms using the Rydberg blockade

We report on our recent progress on the manipulation of single rubidium atoms trapped in optical tweezers and the generation of entanglement between two atoms, each individually trapped in neighboring tweezers. To create an entangled state of two atoms in their ground states, we make use of the Rydberg blockade mechanism. The degree of entanglement is measured using global rotations of the internal states of both atoms. Such internal state rotations on a single atom are demonstrated with a high fidelity.Comment: Proceeding of the 19th International Conference on Laser Spectroscopy ICOLS 2009, 7-13 June 2009, Hokkaido, Japa

Rotavirus and illness severity in children presenting with acute gastroenteritis at the primary care out-of-hours service

BACKGROUND: Rotavirus is a common cause of acute gastroenteritis in young children in the Netherlands, where rotavirus vaccination has not yet been implemented. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate a difference in illness severity course depending on the presence of rotavirus infection and assess the prevalence of viruses and the referral rate in children with acute gastroenteritis. METHODS: A prospective cohort of children aged 6 months to 6 years presenting with acute gastroenteritis to a primary care out-of-hours service from October 2016 to March 2018. Faeces were sampled and sent to a laboratory where viral pathogens were identified and quantified by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Severe course of acute gastroenteritis was defined as a Modified Vesikari Score of ≥11. In addition, we assessed referral rates. Chi-square tests were used to evaluate differences between groups. RESULTS: We included 75 children (34 boys) with a median age of 1.5 years (interquartile range, 0.9–2.0 years). The prevalence of rotavirus was 65.3% (95% confidence interval, 53.5–76.0) with a median cycle threshold of 16.0. Severe course of acute gastroenteritis was present in 31 of 71 children (4 were lost to follow-up). Those with rotavirus (20/47) did not have a severe course more often than those without (11/24): odds ratio, 0.88 (95% confidence interval, 0.33–2.36). Referral rates were comparable for rotavirus (15.2%) and non-rotavirus (14.3%). CONCLUSION: In out-of-hours primary care, rotavirus is common but not associated with increased severity and higher referral rates in children with acute gastroenteritis

Mid-infrared spectroscopy of calcium-aluminium-rich inclusions: a tool to detect primitive asteroids?

Calcium-aluminium-rich inclusions in Vigarano, Ornans and Allende have characteristic refractory components that may help us identify primitive near-Earth asteroids through mid-IR space telescope spectrometers. We have identified some features