4,521 research outputs found
Orbital magnetoelectric coupling in band insulators
Magnetoelectric responses are a fundamental characteristic of materials that
break time-reversal and inversion symmetries (notably multiferroics) and,
remarkably, of "topological insulators" in which those symmetries are unbroken.
Previous work has shown how to compute spin and lattice contributions to the
magnetoelectric tensor. Here we solve the problem of orbital contributions by
computing the frozen-lattice electronic polarization induced by a magnetic
field. One part of this response (the "Chern-Simons term") can appear even in
time-reversal-symmetric materials and has been previously shown to be quantized
in topological insulators. In general materials there are additional orbital
contributions to all parts of the magnetoelectric tensor; these vanish in
topological insulators by symmetry and also vanish in several simplified models
without time-reversal and inversion those magnetoelectric couplings were
studied before. We give two derivations of the response formula, one based on a
uniform magnetic field and one based on extrapolation of a long-wavelength
magnetic field, and discuss some of the consequences of this formula.Comment: 13 page
RNA-Seq optimization with eQTL gold standards.
BackgroundRNA-Sequencing (RNA-Seq) experiments have been optimized for library preparation, mapping, and gene expression estimation. These methods, however, have revealed weaknesses in the next stages of analysis of differential expression, with results sensitive to systematic sample stratification or, in more extreme cases, to outliers. Further, a method to assess normalization and adjustment measures imposed on the data is lacking.ResultsTo address these issues, we utilize previously published eQTLs as a novel gold standard at the center of a framework that integrates DNA genotypes and RNA-Seq data to optimize analysis and aid in the understanding of genetic variation and gene expression. After detecting sample contamination and sequencing outliers in RNA-Seq data, a set of previously published brain eQTLs was used to determine if sample outlier removal was appropriate. Improved replication of known eQTLs supported removal of these samples in downstream analyses. eQTL replication was further employed to assess normalization methods, covariate inclusion, and gene annotation. This method was validated in an independent RNA-Seq blood data set from the GTEx project and a tissue-appropriate set of eQTLs. eQTL replication in both data sets highlights the necessity of accounting for unknown covariates in RNA-Seq data analysis.ConclusionAs each RNA-Seq experiment is unique with its own experiment-specific limitations, we offer an easily-implementable method that uses the replication of known eQTLs to guide each step in one's data analysis pipeline. In the two data sets presented herein, we highlight not only the necessity of careful outlier detection but also the need to account for unknown covariates in RNA-Seq experiments
Kinetic-inductance-limited reset time of superconducting nanowire photon counters
We investigate the recovery of superconducting NbN-nanowire photon counters
after detection of an optical pulse at a wavelength of 1550 nm, and present a
model that quantitatively accounts for our observations. The reset time is
found to be limited by the large kinetic inductance of these nanowires, which
forces a tradeoff between counting rate and either detection efficiency or
active area. Devices of usable size and high detection efficiency are found to
have reset times orders of magnitude longer than their intrinsic photoresponse
time.Comment: Submitted to Applied Physics Letter
Revisiting the washout period in the incident user study design: why 6â12 months may not be sufficient
The purpose of this study was to describe how washout period duration affects the size and accuracy of retrospective incident user cohorts
A Characterization of the Manduca sexta Serotonin Receptors in the Context of Olfactory Neuromodulation
Neuromodulation, the alteration of individual neuron response properties, has dramatic consequences for neural network function and is a phenomenon observed across all brain regions and taxa. However, the mechanisms underlying neuromodulation are made complex by the diversity of neuromodulatory receptors expressed within a neural network. In this study we begin to examine the receptor basis for serotonergic neuromodulation in the antennal lobe of Manduca sexta. To this end we cloned all four known insect serotonin receptor types from Manduca (the Ms5HTRs). We used phylogenetic analyses to classify the Ms5HTRs and to establish their relationships to other insect serotonin receptors, other insect amine receptors and the vertebrate serotonin receptors. Pharmacological assays demonstrated that each Ms5HTR was selective for serotonin over other endogenous amines and that serotonin had a similar potency at all four Ms5HTRs. The pharmacological assays also identified several agonists and antagonists of the different Ms5HTRs. Finally, we found that the Ms5HT1A receptor was expressed in a subpopulation of GABAergic local interneurons suggesting that the Ms5HTRs are likely expressed heterogeneously within the antennal lobe based on functional neuronal subtype
The Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope: Instrument and Data Characteristics
The Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (UIT) was flown as part of the Astro
observatory on the Space Shuttle Columbia in December 1990 and again on the
Space Shuttle Endeavor in March 1995. Ultraviolet (1200-3300 Angstroms) images
of a variety of astronomical objects, with a 40 arcmin field of view and a
resolution of about 3 arcsec, were recorded on photographic film. The data
recorded during the first flight are available to the astronomical community
through the National Space Science Data Center (NSSDC); the data recorded
during the second flight will soon be available as well. This paper discusses
in detail the design, operation, data reduction, and calibration of UIT,
providing the user of the data with information for understanding and using the
data. It also provides guidelines for analyzing other astronomical imagery made
with image intensifiers and photographic film.Comment: 44 pages, LaTeX, AAS preprint style and EPSF macros, accepted by PAS
Photometry of Kuiper belt object (486958) Arrokoth from New Horizons LORRI
On January 1st 2019, the New Horizons spacecraft flew by the classical Kuiper belt object (486958) Arrokoth (provisionally designated 2014 MU69), possibly the most primitive object ever explored by a spacecraft. The I/F of Arrokoth is analyzed and fit with a photometric function that is a linear combination of the Lommel-Seeliger (lunar) and Lambert photometric functions. Arrokoth has a geometric albedo of p_vâŻ=âŻ0.21_(â0.04)^(+0.05) at a wavelength of 550 nm and â0.24 at 610 nm. Arrokoth's geometric albedo is greater than the median but consistent with a distribution of cold classical Kuiper belt objects whose geometric albedos were determined by fitting a thermal model to radiometric observations. Thus, Arrokoth's geometric albedo adds to the orbital and spectral evidence that it is a cold classical Kuiper belt object. Maps of the normal reflectance and hemispherical albedo of Arrokoth are presented. The normal reflectance of Arrokoth's surface varies with location, ranging from â0.10â0.40 at 610 nm with an approximately Gaussian distribution. Both Arrokoth's extrema dark and extrema bright surfaces are correlated to topographic depressions. Arrokoth has a bilobate shape and the two lobes have similar normal reflectance distributions: both are approximately Gaussian, peak at â0.25 at 610 nm, and range from â0.10â0.40, which is consistent with co-formation and co-evolution of the two lobes. The hemispherical albedo of Arrokoth varies substantially with both incidence angle and location, the average hemispherical albedo at 610 nm is 0.063 ± 0.015. The Bond albedo of Arrokoth at 610 nm is 0.062 ± 0.015
- âŠ