433 research outputs found
Lateral Segregation of Photosystem I in Cyanobacterial Thylakoids
Photosystem I (PSI) is the dominant photosystem in cyanobacteria and it plays a pivotal role in cyanobacterial metabolism. Despite its biological importance, the native organisation of PSI in cyanobacterial thylakoid membranes is poorly understood. Here, we use atomic force microscopy (AFM) to show that ordered, extensive macromolecular arrays of PSI complexes are present in thylakoids from Thermosynechococcus (T.) elongatus, Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 and Synechocystis sp PCC 6803. Hyperspectral confocal fluorescence microscopy (HCFM) and three-dimensional structured illumination microscopy (3D-SIM) of Synechocystis sp PCC 6803 cells visualise PSI domains within the context of the complete thylakoid system. Crystallographic and AFM data were used to build a structural model of a membrane landscape comprising 96 PSI trimers and 27,648 chlorophyll a molecules. Rather than facilitating inter-trimer energy transfer the close associations between PSI primarily maximise packing efficiency; short-range interactions with Complex I and cytochrome b6f are excluded from these regions of the membrane, so PSI turnover is sustained by long-distance diffusion of the electron donors at the membrane surface. Elsewhere, PSI-photosystem II (PSII) contact zones provide sites for docking phycobilisomes and the formation of megacomplexes. PSI-enriched domains in cyanobacteria might foreshadow the partitioning of PSI into stromal lamellae in plants, similarly sustained by long-distance diffusion of electron carriers
The Muonium Atom as a Probe of Physics beyond the Standard Model
The observed interactions between particles are not fully explained in the
successful theoretical description of the standard model to date. Due to the
close confinement of the bound state muonium () can be used as
an ideal probe of quantum electrodynamics and weak interaction and also for a
search for additional interactions between leptons. Of special interest is the
lepton number violating process of sponteanous conversion of muonium to
antimuonium.Comment: 15 pages,6 figure
Measurement of single-spin azimuthal asymmetries in semi-inclusive electroproduction of pions and kaons on a longitudinally polarised deuterium target
Single-spin asymmetries have been measured for semi-inclusive
electroproduction of , , and mesons in
deep-inelastic scattering off a longitudinally polarised deuterium target. The
asymmetries appear in the distribution of the hadrons in the azimuthal angle
around the virtual photon direction, relative to the lepton scattering
plane. The corresponding analysing powers in the moment of the
cross section are for ,
for ,
for and for . The moments are
compatible with zero for all particles.Comment: Revised version shortened 9 pages, 3 tables, 7 figure
Quantum Griffiths effects and smeared phase transitions in metals: theory and experiment
In this paper, we review theoretical and experimental research on rare region
effects at quantum phase transitions in disordered itinerant electron systems.
After summarizing a few basic concepts about phase transitions in the presence
of quenched randomness, we introduce the idea of rare regions and discuss their
importance. We then analyze in detail the different phenomena that can arise at
magnetic quantum phase transitions in disordered metals, including quantum
Griffiths singularities, smeared phase transitions, and cluster-glass
formation. For each scenario, we discuss the resulting phase diagram and
summarize the behavior of various observables. We then review several recent
experiments that provide examples of these rare region phenomena. We conclude
by discussing limitations of current approaches and open questions.Comment: 31 pages, 7 eps figures included, v2: discussion of the dissipative
Ising chain fixed, references added, v3: final version as publishe
Practical observations on the performance of bare silica in hydrophilic interaction compared with C18 reversed-phase liquid chromatography
The kinetic performance of a bare silica and C18 phase prepared from the same sub-2. μm and 3.5. μm base materials were compared in the HILIC and RP mode using both charged and neutral solutes. The HILIC column was characterised using the neutral solute 5-hydroxymethyluridine, the weak base cytosine, and the strong base nortriptyline, the latter having sufficient retention also in the RP mode to allow comparison of performance. Naphthalene was also used as a simple neutral substance to evaluate the RP column alone. The retention factors of all substances were adjusted to give similar values (k'. ~. 5.5) at their respective optimum linear velocities. Reduced van Deemter b-coefficients (determined by curve fitting and by the peak parking method, using a novel procedure involving switching to a dummy column) were significantly lower in HILIC for all substances compared with those found under RP conditions. Against expectation, c-coefficients were always lower in RP when compared with HILIC using sub-2. μm particles. While measurement of these coefficients is complicated by retention shifts caused by the influence of high pressure and by frictional heating effects, broadly similar results were obtained on larger particle (3.5. μm) phases. The mechanism of the separations was further investigated by examining the effect of buffer concentration on retention. It was concluded that HILIC can sometimes show somewhat inferior performance to RP for fast analysis at high mobile phase velocity, but clearly shows advantages when high column efficiencies, using longer columns at low flow velocity, are employed. The latter result is attributable to the lower viscosity of the mobile phase in HILIC and the reduced pressure requirement as well as the lower b-coefficients. © 2014 David V. McCalley
Flavor Decomposition of the Polarized Quark Distributions in the Nucleon from Inclusive and Semi-inclusive Deep-inelastic Scattering
Spin asymmetries of semi-inclusive cross sections for the production of
positively and negatively charged hadrons have been measured in deep-inelastic
scattering of polarized positrons on polarized hydrogen and 3He targets, in the
kinematic range 0.023<x<0.6 and 1 GeV^2<Q^2<10 GeV^2. Polarized quark
distributions are extracted as a function of x for up $(u+u_bar) and down
(d+d_bar) flavors. The up quark polarization is positive and the down quark
polarization is negative in the measured range. The polarization of the sea is
compatible with zero. The first moments of the polarized quark distributions
are presented. The isospin non-singlet combination Delta_q_3 is consistent with
the prediction based on the Bjorken sum rule. The moments of the polarized
quark distributions are compared to predictions based on SU(3)_f flavor
symmetry and to a prediction from lattice QCD.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures (eps format), 10 tables in Latex New version
contains tables of asymmetries and correlation matri
Double-Spin Asymmetry in the Cross Section for Exclusive rho^0 Production in Lepton-Proton Scattering
Evidence for a positive longitudinal double-spin asymmetry = 0.24
+-0.11 (stat) +-0.02 (syst) in the cross section for exclusive diffractive
rho^0(770) vector meson production in polarised lepton-proton scattering was
observed by the HERMES experiment. The longitudinally polarised 27.56 GeV HERA
positron beam was scattered off a longitudinally polarised pure hydrogen gas
target. The average invariant mass of the photon-proton system has a value of
= 4.9 GeV, while the average negative squared four-momentum of the virtual
photon is = 1.7 GeV^2. The ratio of the present result to the
corresponding spin asymmetry in inclusive deep-inelastic scattering is in
agreement with an early theoretical prediction based on the generalised vector
meson dominance model.Comment: 10 pages, 4 embedded figures, LaTe
Measurement of the Neutron Spin Structure Function with a Polarized ^3He Target
Results are reported from the HERMES experiment at HERA on a measurement of
the neutron spin structure function in deep inelastic scattering
using 27.5 GeV longitudinally polarized positrons incident on a polarized
He internal gas target. The data cover the kinematic range
and . The integral evaluated at a fixed of is . Assuming Regge behavior at low , the first
moment is .Comment: 4 pages TEX, text available at
http://www.krl.caltech.edu/preprints/OAP.htm
Atmospheric effects on extensive air showers observed with the Surface Detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory
Atmospheric parameters, such as pressure (P), temperature (T) and density,
affect the development of extensive air showers initiated by energetic cosmic
rays. We have studied the impact of atmospheric variations on extensive air
showers by means of the surface detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory. The
rate of events shows a ~10% seasonal modulation and ~2% diurnal one. We find
that the observed behaviour is explained by a model including the effects
associated with the variations of pressure and density. The former affects the
longitudinal development of air showers while the latter influences the Moliere
radius and hence the lateral distribution of the shower particles. The model is
validated with full simulations of extensive air showers using atmospheric
profiles measured at the site of the Pierre Auger Observatory.Comment: 24 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in Astroparticle
Physic
- …