620 research outputs found
Numerical Studies on the Magnetism of Fe-Ni-Mn Alloys in the Invar Region
By means of self-consistent semi-empirical LCAO calculations we study the
itinerant magnetism of (Fe_{0.65}Ni_{0.35})_{1-y} Mn_y alloys for y between 0
and 0.22 at T=0 K, neglecting only the transverse spin components. We find that
the magnetic behaviour is quite complicated on a local scale. In addition to
ferromagnetic behaviour, also metastable spin-glass-like configurations are
found. In the same approach, using a direct numerical calculation by the
Kubo-Formalism without any fit parameters, we also calculate the electrical
conductance in the magnetic state and find that the -dependence observed in
the experiments is well reproduced by our calculations, except of an overall
factor of rougly 5, by which our resistivities are too large.Comment: 12 pages (Latex, to be applied 2 times) + 13 figures (eps-files
Spin Transport in Disordered Two-Dimensional Hopping Systems with Rashba Spin-Orbit Interaction
The influence of Rashba spin-orbit interaction on the spin dynamics of a
topologically disordered hopping system is studied in this paper. This is a
significant generalization of a previous investigation, where an ordered
(polaronic) hopping system has been considered instead. It is found, that in
the limit, where the Rashba length is large compared to the typical hopping
length, the spin dynamics of a disordered system can still be described by the
expressions derived for an ordered system, under the provision that one takes
into account the frequency dependence of the diffusion constant and the
mobility (which are determined by charge transport and are independent of
spin). With these results we are able to make explicit the influence of
disorder on spin related quantities as, e.g., the spin life-time in hopping
systems.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures, some clarifications adde
Mycobacterium tuberculosis drug-resistance testing: challenges, recent developments and perspectives
Drug-resistance testing, or antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST), is mandatory for Mycobacterium tuberculosis in cases of failure on standard therapy. We reviewed the different methods and techniques of phenotypic and genotypic approaches. Although multiresistant and extensively drug-resistant (MDR/XDR) tuberculosis is present worldwide, AST for M. tuberculosis (AST-MTB) is still mainly performed according to the resources available rather than the drug-resistance rates. Phenotypic methods, i.e. culture-based AST, are commonly used in high-income countries to confirm susceptibility of new cases of tuberculosis. They are also used to detect resistance in tuberculosis cases with risk factors, in combination with genotypic tests. In low-income countries, genotypic methods screening hot-spot mutations known to confer resistance were found to be easier to perform because they avoid the culture and biosafety constraint. Given that genotypic tests can rapidly detect the prominent mechanisms of resistance, such as the rpoB mutation for rifampicin resistance, we are facing new challenges with the observation of false-resistance (mutations not conferring resistance) and false-susceptibility (mutations different from the common mechanism) results. Phenotypic and genotypic approaches are therefore complementary for obtaining a high sensitivity and specificity for detecting drug resistances and susceptibilities to accurately predict MDR/XDR cure and to gather relevant data for resistance surveillance. Although AST-MTB was established in the 1960s, there is no consensus reference method for MIC determination against which the numerous AST-MTB techniques can be compared. This information is necessary for assessing in vitro activity and setting breakpoints for future anti-tuberculosis agents
(I) Early Alterations of Apoptosis and Cell Proliferation in Azoxymethane-initiated Rat Colonic Epithelium (II) Expression of Bcl-2, Bax and Bcl-XL proteins in the azoxymethane-induced rat colonic adenocarcinomas
(I) Early Alterations of Apoptosis and Cell Proliferation in Azoxymethane-initiated Rat Colonic Epithelium(II) Expression of Bcl-2, Bax and Bcl-XL proteins in the azoxymethane-induced rat colonic adenocarcinoma
Controlled Stark shifts in Er-doped crystalline and amorphous waveguides for quantum state storage
We present measurements of the linear Stark effect on the I I transition in an Er-doped proton-exchanged
LiNbO crystalline waveguide and an Er-doped silicate fiber. The
measurements were made using spectral hole burning techniques at temperatures
below 4 K. We measured an effective Stark coefficient
kHz/Vcm in the crystalline waveguide and
kHz/Vcm in the silicate fiber.
These results confirm the potential of Erbium doped waveguides for quantum
state storage based on controlled reversible inhomogeneous broadening.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures v2. typo in formula correcte
Плазмодинамический синтез двукомпонентного Zn-Bi[2]O[3] порошкообразного ультрадисперсного материала для изготовления варисторной керамики
We report the observation of ferroelectricity in capacitors based on hafnium-zirconium-oxide. Hf0.5Zr0.5O2 thin films of 7.5 to 9.5 nm thickness were found to exhibit ferroelectric polarization-voltage hysteresis loops when integrated into TiN-based metal-insulator-metal capacitors. A remnant polarization of 16 C/cm2 and a high coercive field of 1 MV/cm were observed. Further proof for the ferroelectric nature was collected by quasi-static polarization-voltage hysteresis, small signal capacitance-voltage, and piezoelectric measurements. Data retention characteristics were evaluated by a Positive Up Negative Down pulse technique. No significant decay of the initial polarization state was observed within a measurement range of up to two days
Quantum creep and variable range hopping of one-dimensional interacting electrons
The variable range hopping results for noninteracting electrons of Mott and
Shklovskii are generalized to 1D disordered charge density waves and Luttinger
liquids using an instanton approach. Following a recent paper by Nattermann,
Giamarchi and Le Doussal [Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf 91}, 56603 (2003)] we calculate
the quantum creep of charges at zero temperature and the linear conductivity at
finite temperatures for these systems. The hopping conductivity for the short
range interacting electrons acquires the same form as for noninteracting
particles if the one-particle density of states is replaced by the
compressibility. In the present paper we extend the calculation to dissipative
systems and give a discussion of the physics after the particles materialize
behind the tunneling barrier. It turns out that dissipation is crucial for
tunneling to happen. Contrary to pure systems the new metastable state does not
propagate through the system but is restricted to a region of the size of the
tunneling region. This corresponds to the hopping of an integer number of
charges over a finite distance. A global current results only if tunneling
events fill the whole sample. We argue that rare events of extra low tunneling
probability are not relevant for realistic systems of finite length. Finally we
show that an additional Coulomb interaction only leads to small logarithmic
corrections.Comment: 15 pages, 3 figures; references adde
M\"ossbauer, nuclear inelastic scattering and density functional studies on the second metastable state of Na2[Fe(CN)5NO]2H2O
The structure of the light-induced metastable state SII of
Na2[Fe(CN)5NO]2H2O 14 was investigated by transmission M\"ossbauer
spectroscopy (TMS) in the temperature range 15 between 85 and 135 K, nuclear
inelastic scattering (NIS) at 98 K using synchrotron 16 radiation and density
functional theory (DFT) calculations. The DFT and TMS results 17 strongly
support the view that the NO group in SII takes a side-on molecular orientation
18 and, further, is dynamically displaced from one eclipsed, via a staggered,
to a second 19 eclipsed orientation. The population conditions for generating
SII are optimal for 20 measurements by TMS, yet they are modest for
accumulating NIS spectra. Optimization 21 of population conditions for NIS
measurements is discussed and new NIS experiments on 22 SII are proposed
A solid state light-matter interface at the single photon level
Coherent and reversible mapping of quantum information between light and
matter is an important experimental challenge in quantum information science.
In particular, it is a decisive milestone for the implementation of quantum
networks and quantum repeaters. So far, quantum interfaces between light and
atoms have been demonstrated with atomic gases, and with single trapped atoms
in cavities. Here we demonstrate the coherent and reversible mapping of a light
field with less than one photon per pulse onto an ensemble of 10 millions atoms
naturally trapped in a solid. This is achieved by coherently absorbing the
light field in a suitably prepared solid state atomic medium. The state of the
light is mapped onto collective atomic excitations on an optical transition and
stored for a pre-programmed time up of to 1 mu s before being released in a
well defined spatio-temporal mode as a result of a collective interference. The
coherence of the process is verified by performing an interference experiment
with two stored weak pulses with a variable phase relation. Visibilities of
more than 95% are obtained, which demonstrates the high coherence of the
mapping process at the single photon level. In addition, we show experimentally
that our interface allows one to store and retrieve light fields in multiple
temporal modes. Our results represent the first observation of collective
enhancement at the single photon level in a solid and open the way to multimode
solid state quantum memories as a promising alternative to atomic gases.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, version submitted on June 27 200
Hospitalised patients with suspected 2009 H1N1 Influenza A in a hospital in Norway, July - December 2009
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The main objective of this study was to describe the patients who were hospitalised at Oslo University Hospital Aker during the first wave of pandemic Influenza A (H1N1) in Norway.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Clinical data on all patients hospitalised with influenza-like illness from July to the end of November 2009 were collected prospectively. Patients with confirmed H1N1 Influenza A were compared to patients with negative H1N1 tests.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>182 patients were hospitalised with suspected H1N1 Influenza A and 64 (35%) tested positive. Seventeen patients with positive tests (27%) were admitted to an intensive care unit and four patients died (6%). The H1N1 positive patients were younger, consisted of a higher proportion of non-ethnic Norwegians, had a higher heart rate on admission, and fewer had pre-existing hypertension, compared to the H1N1 negative patients. However, hypertension was the only medical condition that was significantly associated with a more serious outcome defined as ICU admission or death, with a univariate odds ratio of the composite endpoint in H1N1 positive and negative patients of 6.1 (95% CI 1.3-29.3) and 3.2 (95% CI 1.2-8.7), respectively. Chest radiography revealed pneumonia in 24/59 H1N1 positive patients. 63 of 64 H1N1 positive patients received oseltamivir.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The extra burden of hospitalisations was relatively small and we managed to admit all the patients with suspected H1N1 influenza without opening new pandemic isolation wards. The morbidity and mortality were similar to reports from comparable countries. Established hypertension was associated with more severe morbidity and patients with hypertension should be considered candidates for vaccination programs in future pandemics.</p
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