Divertor Heat Load in ASDEX Upgrade L-Mode in Presence of External Magnetic Perturbation

Power exhaust is one of the major challenges for a future fusion device. Applying a non-axisymmetric external magnetic perturbation is one technique that is studied in order to mitigate or suppress large edge localized modes which accompany the high confinement regime in tokamaks. The external magnetic perturbation brakes the axisymmetry of a tokamak and leads to a 2D heat flux pattern on the divertor target. The 2D heat flux pattern at the outer divertor target is studied on ASDEX Upgrade in stationary L-Mode discharges. The amplitude of the 2D characteristic of the heat flux depends on the alignment between the field lines at the edge and the vacuum response of the applied magnetic perturbation spectrum. The 2D characteristic reduces with increasing density. The increasing divertor broadening $S$ with increasing density is proposed as the main actuator. This is supported by a generic model using field line tracing and the vacuum field approach that is in quantitative agreement with the measured heat flux. The perturbed heat flux, averaged over a full toroidal rotation of the magnetic perturbation, is identical to the non-perturbed heat flux without magnetic perturbation. The transport qualifiers, power fall-off length $\lambda_q$ and divertor broadening $S$, are the same within the uncertainty compared to the unperturbed reference. No additional cross field transport is observed.Comment: 23 pages, 28 figures. This is an author-created, un-copyedited version of an article submitted for publication in Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion. IoP Publishing Ltd is not responsible for any errors or omissions in this version of the manuscript or any version derived from i

Bouncing wave packets, Ehrenfest theorem, and uncertainty relation based upon a new concept for the momentum of a particle in a box

For a particle in a box, the operator is not self-adjoint and thus does not qualify as the physical momentum. As a result, in general the Ehrenfest theorem is violated. Based upon a recently developed new concept for a self-adjoint momentum operator, we reconsider the theorem and find that it is now indeed satisfied for all physically admissible boundary conditions. We illustrate these results for bouncing wave packets which first spread, then shrink, and return to their original form after a certain revival time. We derive a very simple form of the general Heisenberg–Robertson–Schrödinger uncertainty relation and show that our construction also provides a physical interpretation for it

Interleukin-22 predicts severity and death in advanced liver cirrhosis: a prospective cohort study

Background: Interleukin-22 (IL-22), recently identified as a crucial parameter of pathology in experimental liver damage, may determine survival in clinical end-stage liver disease. Systematic analysis of serum IL-22 in relation to morbidity and mortality of patients with advanced liver cirrhosis has not been performed so far. Methods: This is a prospective cohort study including 120 liver cirrhosis patients and 40 healthy donors to analyze systemic levels of IL-22 in relation to survival and hepatic complications. Results: A total of 71% of patients displayed liver cirrhosis-related complications at study inclusion. A total of 23% of the patients died during a mean follow-up of 196 +/- 165 days. Systemic IL-22 was detectable in 74% of patients but only in 10% of healthy donors (P 18 pg/ml, n = 57) showed significantly reduced survival compared to patients with regular ([less than or equal to]18 pg/ml) levels of IL-22 (321 days versus 526 days, P = 0.003). Other factors associated with overall survival were high CRP ([greater than or equal to]2.9 mg/dl, P = 0.005, hazard ratio (HR) 0.314, confidence interval (CI) (0.141 to 0.702)), elevated serum creatinine (P = 0.05, HR 0.453, CI (0.203 to 1.012)), presence of liver-related complications (P = 0.028, HR 0.258 CI (0.077 to 0.862)), model of end stage liver disease (MELD) score [greater than or equal to]20 (P = 0.017, HR 0.364, CI (0.159 to 0.835)) and age (P = 0.011, HR 1.047, CI (1.011 to 1.085)). Adjusted multivariate Cox proportional-hazards analysis identified elevated systemic IL-22 levels as independent predictors of reduced survival (P = 0.007, HR 0.218, CI (0.072 to 0.662)). Conclusions: In patients with liver cirrhosis, elevated systemic IL-22 levels are predictive for reduced survival independently from age, liver-related complications, CRP, creatinine and the MELD score. Thus, processes that lead to a rise in systemic interleukin-22 may be relevant for prognosis of advanced liver cirrhosis

Vector Mesons in Medium and Dileptons in Heavy-Ion Collisions

Theoretical approaches to assess modifications of vector mesons in the medium, as well as their experimental identification via electromagnetic probes, are discussed. Implications for the nature of chiral symmetry restoration in hot/dense matter are outlined and put into context with the axialvector channel.Comment: Invited talk by first author at the 2nd KEK-Tanashi International Symposium on 'Nuclear and Hadronic Physics with Electromagnetic Probes', Tokyo, Oct. 25-27, 1999; 8 pages LaTeX including 7 eps-figures and style file espcrc1.st

Differential regulation of interleukin-6 expression in human fibroblasts by tumor necrosis factor-α and lymphotoxin

AbstractThe treatment of human diploid fibroblasts with tumor necrosis factor (TNP)-α and with lymphotoxin (LT) is associated with induction of interleuk-in-6 (IL-6) transcripts with TNF-α being 10-fold more potent than LT. Here we report on the TNF-α/LT-induced signaling mechanisms responsible for the regulation of IL-6 gene expression in these cells. Run-on assays demonstrated that both TNF-α and LT increase IL-6 mRNA levels by transcriptional activation of this gene. Stability studies of IL-6 transcripts in fibroblasts showed that TNF-α delayed IL-6 mRNA decay but not LT. The induction of IL-6 transcripts by TNF-α and LT was not inhibited by the isoquinoline sulfonamide derivative H7. Similarly, depletion of protein kinase C (PKC) by 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol 13-acetate (TPA) did not change the ability of TNF-α and LT to induce IL-6 transcripts, demonstrating that stimulation by these agents may not be mediated by activation of PKC. Stimulation of IL-6 transcripts in fibroblasts did also not require new protein synthesis as exposure to the protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide (CHX) enhanced accumulation of IL-6 mRNA in the presence or absence of TNF-α or LT

Vector and axial-vector correlators in a chirally symmetric model

We present a chirally symmetric hadronic model for the vector and axial-vector correlators in vacuum. The dominant contributions to these correlators come from intermediate pions, rho and a_1 mesons which are calculated in one-loop approximation. The resulting spectral functions are compared with the data obtained by the ALEPH collaboration from tau decay. In the vector channel we find good agreement up to q^2 = 1 GeV^2, in the transverse axial-vector channel up to q^2 = 2 GeV^2, corresponding to the regimes dominated by two-pion or three-pion decay channels, respectively. The longitudinal axial correlator is in almost perfect agreement with the PCAC result.Comment: 32 pages, 25 figures included; revised version with one additional figure and appendix, accepted for publication in Nucl. Phys.

An organometallic chimie douce approach to new Re(x)W(1-x)O3 phases

Re(x)W(1-x)O3.H2O and Re(x)W(1-x)O3 phases are prepared by a new organometallic chimie douce concept employing the organometallic precursor methyltrioxorhenium.Comment: 3 pages, 6 figures, submitted to Chem. Com