1,567 research outputs found
Piezoelectric-based apparatus for strain tuning
We report the design and construction of piezoelectric-based apparatus for
applying continuously tuneable compressive and tensile strains to test samples.
It can be used across a wide temperature range, including cryogenic
temperatures. The achievable strain is large, so far up to 0.23% at cryogenic
temperatures. The apparatus is compact and compatible with a wide variety of
experimental probes. In addition, we present a method for mounting
high-aspect-ratio samples in order to achieve high strain homogeneity.Comment: 8 pages, 8 figure
On the finite-size behavior of systems with asymptotically large critical shift
Exact results of the finite-size behavior of the susceptibility in
three-dimensional mean spherical model films under Dirichlet-Dirichlet,
Dirichlet-Neumann and Neumann-Neumann boundary conditions are presented. The
corresponding scaling functions are explicitly derived and their asymptotics
close to, above and below the bulk critical temperature are obtained. The
results can be incorporated in the framework of the finite-size scaling theory
where the exponent characterizing the shift of the finite-size
critical temperature with respect to is smaller than , with
being the critical exponent of the bulk correlation length.Comment: 24 pages, late
Preservation of information in a prebiotic package model
The coexistence between different informational molecules has been the
preferred mode to circumvent the limitation posed by imperfect replication on
the amount of information stored by each of these molecules. Here we reexamine
a classic package model in which distinct information carriers or templates are
forced to coexist within vesicles, which in turn can proliferate freely through
binary division. The combined dynamics of vesicles and templates is described
by a multitype branching process which allows us to write equations for the
average number of the different types of vesicles as well as for their
extinction probabilities. The threshold phenomenon associated to the extinction
of the vesicle population is studied quantitatively using finite-size scaling
techniques. We conclude that the resultant coexistence is too frail in the
presence of parasites and so confinement of templates in vesicles without an
explicit mechanism of cooperation does not resolve the information crisis of
prebiotic evolution.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figures, accepted version, to be published in PR
Thermodynamic Casimir effects involving interacting field theories with zero modes
Systems with an O(n) symmetrical Hamiltonian are considered in a
-dimensional slab geometry of macroscopic lateral extension and finite
thickness that undergo a continuous bulk phase transition in the limit
. The effective forces induced by thermal fluctuations at and above
the bulk critical temperature (thermodynamic Casimir effect) are
investigated below the upper critical dimension by means of
field-theoretic renormalization group methods for the case of periodic and
special-special boundary conditions, where the latter correspond to the
critical enhancement of the surface interactions on both boundary planes. As
shown previously [\textit{Europhys. Lett.} \textbf{75}, 241 (2006)], the zero
modes that are present in Landau theory at make conventional
RG-improved perturbation theory in dimensions ill-defined. The
revised expansion introduced there is utilized to compute the scaling functions
of the excess free energy and the Casimir force for temperatures
T\geqT_{c,\infty} as functions of , where
is the bulk correlation length. Scaling functions of the
-dependent residual free energy per area are obtained whose
limits are in conformity with previous results for the Casimir amplitudes
to and display a more reasonable
small- behavior inasmuch as they approach the critical value
monotonically as .Comment: 23 pages, 10 figure
Lipid Metabolism Crosstalk in the Brain: Glia and Neurons
Until recently, glial cells have been considered mainly support cells for neurons in the mammalian brain. However, many studies have unveiled a variety of glial functions including electrolyte homeostasis, inflammation, synapse formation, metabolism, and the regulation of neurotransmission. The importance of these functions illuminates significant crosstalk between glial and neuronal cells. Importantly, it is known that astrocytes secrete signals that can modulate both presynaptic and postsynaptic function. It is also known that the lipid compositions of the pre- and post-synaptic membranes of neurons greatly impact functions such as vesicle fusion and receptor mobility. These data suggest an essential lipid-mediated communication between glial cells and neurons. Little is known, however, about how the lipid metabolism of both cell types may interact. In this review, we discuss neuronal and glial lipid metabolism and suggest how they might interact to impact neurotransmission
On the Finite-Temperature Generalization of the C-theorem and the Interplay between Classical and Quantum Fluctuations
The behavior of the finite-temperature C-function, defined by Neto and
Fradkin [Nucl. Phys. B {\bf 400}, 525 (1993)], is analyzed within a d
-dimensional exactly solvable lattice model, recently proposed by Vojta [Phys.
Rev. B {\bf 53}, 710 (1996)], which is of the same universality class as the
quantum nonlinear O(n) sigma model in the limit . The scaling
functions of C for the cases d=1 (absence of long-range order), d=2 (existence
of a quantum critical point), d=4 (existence of a line of finite temperature
critical points that ends up with a quantum critical point) are derived and
analyzed. The locations of regions where C is monotonically increasing (which
depend significantly on d) are exactly determined. The results are interpreted
within the finite-size scaling theory that has to be modified for d=4.
PACS number(s): 05.20.-y, 05.50.+q, 75.10.Hk, 75.10.Jm, 63.70.+h, 05.30-d,
02.30Comment: 15 pages LATEX, ioplppt.sty file used, 6 EPS figures. Some changes
made in section V (on finite-size scaling interpretation of the results
obtained
Excess free energy and Casimir forces in systems with long-range interactions of van-der-Waals type: General considerations and exact spherical-model results
We consider systems confined to a -dimensional slab of macroscopic lateral
extension and finite thickness that undergo a continuous bulk phase
transition in the limit and are describable by an O(n) symmetrical
Hamiltonian. Periodic boundary conditions are applied across the slab. We study
the effects of long-range pair interactions whose potential decays as as , with and , on
the Casimir effect at and near the bulk critical temperature ,
for . For the scaled reduced Casimir force per unit cross-sectional
area, we obtain the form L^{d} {\mathcal F}_C/k_BT \approx \Xi_0(L/\xi_\infty)
+ g_\omega L^{-\omega}\Xi\omega(L/\xi_\infty) + g_\sigma L^{-\omega_\sigm a}
\Xi_\sigma(L \xi_\infty). The contribution decays for
algebraically in rather than exponentially, and hence
becomes dominant in an appropriate regime of temperatures and . We derive
exact results for spherical and Gaussian models which confirm these findings.
In the case , which includes that of nonretarded van-der-Waals
interactions in dimensions, the power laws of the corrections to scaling
of the spherical model are found to get modified by logarithms.
Using general RG ideas, we show that these logarithmic singularities originate
from the degeneracy that occurs for the spherical
model when , in conjunction with the dependence of .Comment: 28 RevTeX pages, 12 eps figures, submitted to PR
Editorial: The History and Evolution of the Journal of Sorority and Fraternity Life Research and Practice
Individuals involved in the founding of the Oracle: The Research Journal of the Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors (Oracle), former Oracle editors and Adam M. McCready, Editor of Journal of Sorority and Fraternity Life Research and Practice share the history and evolution of the journal over the past two decades
Casimir force in O(n) lattice models with a diffuse interface
On the example of the spherical model we study, as a function of the
temperature , the behavior of the Casimir force in O(n) systems with a
diffuse interface and slab geometry , where is
the dimensionality of the system. We consider a system with nearest-neighbor
anisotropic interaction constants parallel to the film and
across it. The model represents the limit of O(n) models
with antiperiodic boundary conditions applied across the finite dimension
of the film. We observe that the Casimir amplitude of the anisotropic -dimensional system is
related to that one of the isotropic system via
. For we find the exact Casimir amplitude , as well as the exact scaling functions of
the Casimir force and of the helicity modulus . We obtain that
, where is the critical temperature of the
bulk system. We find that the effect of the helicity is thus strong that the
Casimir force is repulsive in the whole temperature region.Comment: 15 pages, 3 figure
Acute Overactive Endocannabinoid Signaling Induces Glucose Intolerance, Hepatic Steatosis, and Novel Cannabinoid Receptor 1 Responsive Genes
Endocannabinoids regulate energy balance and lipid metabolism by stimulating the cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1). Genetic deletion and pharmacological antagonism have shown that CB1 signaling is necessary for the development of obesity and related metabolic disturbances. However, the sufficiency of endogenously produced endocannabinoids to cause hepatic lipid accumulation and insulin resistance, independent of food intake, has not been demonstrated. Here, we show that a single administration of isopropyl dodecylfluorophosphonate (IDFP), perhaps the most potent pharmacological inhibitor of endocannabinoid degradation, increases hepatic triglycerides (TG) and induces insulin resistance in mice. These effects involve increased CB1 signaling, as they are mitigated by pre-administration of a CB1 antagonist (AM251) and in CB1 knockout mice. Despite the strong physiological effects of CB1 on hepatic lipid and glucose metabolism, little is known about the downstream targets responsible for these effects. To elucidate transcriptional targets of CB1 signaling, we performed microarrays on hepatic RNA isolated from DMSO (control), IDFP and AM251/IDFP-treated mice. The gene for the secreted glycoprotein lipocalin 2 (lcn2), which has been implicated in obesity and insulin resistance, was among those most responsive to alterations in CB1 signaling. The expression pattern of IDFP mice segregated from DMSO mice in hierarchal cluster analysis and AM251 pre-administration reduced (>50%) the majority (303 of 533) of the IDFP induced alterations. Pathway analysis revealed that IDFP altered expression of genes involved in lipid, fatty acid and steroid metabolism, the acute phase response, and amino acid metabolism in a CB1-dependent manner. PCR confirmed array results of key target genes in multiple independent experiments. Overall, we show that acute IDFP treatment induces hepatic TG accumulation and insulin resistance, at least in part through the CB1 receptor, and identify novel cannabinoid responsive genes
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