13,224 research outputs found
Shaping the import system of mitochondria
Evidence is accumulating that unrelated species have independently evolved the same way of importing proteins in their mitochondria
Conditional quasi-exact solvability of the quantum planar pendulum and of its anti-isospectral hyperbolic counterpart
We have subjected the planar pendulum eigenproblem to a symmetry analysis
with the goal of explaining the relationship between its conditional
quasi-exact solvability (C-QES) and the topology of its eigenenergy surfaces,
established in our earlier work [Frontiers in Physical Chemistry and Chemical
Physics 2, 1-16, (2014)]. The present analysis revealed that this relationship
can be traced to the structure of the tridiagonal matrices representing the
symmetry-adapted pendular Hamiltonian, as well as enabled us to identify many
more -- forty in total to be exact -- analytic solutions. Furthermore, an
analogous analysis of the hyperbolic counterpart of the planar pendulum, the
Razavy problem, which was shown to be also C-QES [American Journal of Physics
48, 285 (1980)], confirmed that it is anti-isospectral with the pendular
eigenproblem. Of key importance for both eigenproblems proved to be the
topological index , as it determines the loci of the intersections
(genuine and avoided) of the eigenenergy surfaces spanned by the dimensionless
interaction parameters and . It also encapsulates the conditions
under which analytic solutions to the two eigenproblems obtain and provides the
number of analytic solutions. At a given , the anti-isospectrality
occurs for single states only (i.e., not for doublets), like C-QES holds solely
for integer values of , and only occurs for the lowest eigenvalues of
the pendular and Razavy Hamiltonians, with the order of the eigenvalues
reversed for the latter. For all other states, the pendular and Razavy spectra
become in fact qualitatively different, as higher pendular states appear as
doublets whereas all higher Razavy states are singlets
Voltage-Controlled Spin Selection in a Magnetic Resonant Tunnelling Diode
We have fabricated all II-VI semiconductor resonant tunneling diodes based on
the (Zn,Mn,Be)Se material system, containing dilute magnetic material in the
quantum well, and studied their current-voltage characteristics. When subjected
to an external magnetic field the resulting spin splitting of the levels in the
quantum well leads to a splitting of the transmission resonance into two
separate peaks. This is interpreted as evidence of tunneling transport through
spin polarized levels, and could be the first step towards a voltage controlled
spin filter.Comment: To be published in Phys. Rev. Let
Adaptive Finite Element Method for Simulation of Optical Nano Structures
We discuss realization, properties and performance of the adaptive finite
element approach to the design of nano-photonic components. Central issues are
the construction of vectorial finite elements and the embedding of bounded
components into the unbounded and possibly heterogeneous exterior. We apply the
finite element method to the optimization of the design of a hollow core
photonic crystal fiber. Thereby we look at the convergence of the method and
discuss automatic and adaptive grid refinement and the performance of higher
order elements
Convex Optimization for Big Data
This article reviews recent advances in convex optimization algorithms for
Big Data, which aim to reduce the computational, storage, and communications
bottlenecks. We provide an overview of this emerging field, describe
contemporary approximation techniques like first-order methods and
randomization for scalability, and survey the important role of parallel and
distributed computation. The new Big Data algorithms are based on surprisingly
simple principles and attain staggering accelerations even on classical
problems.Comment: 23 pages, 4 figurs, 8 algorithm
On the electronic structure of the charge-ordered phase in epitaxial and polycrystalline La1-xCaxMnO3 (x = 0.55, 0.67) perovskite manganites
In this work the charge transport properties of charge ordered (CO)
La1-xCaxMnO3 (LCMO) (x= 0.55, 0.67) epitaxial thin films and polycrystals are
discussed following the recent controversy of localised electron states vs.
weakly or de- localised charge density wave (CDW) states in CO manganites. The
transport properties were investigated by current vs. voltage, direct current
resistivity vs. temperature, local activation energy vs. temperature,
magnetoresistance and admittance spectroscopy measurements, which all indicated
a localised electronic structure in the single CO phase. Delocalised charge
anomalies observed previously may be restricted to phase separated materials.Comment: Physical Review B, to be publishe
Computing Motion Plans for Assembling Particles with Global Control
We investigate motion planning algorithms for the assembly of shapes in the
\emph{tilt model} in which unit-square tiles move in a grid world under the
influence of uniform external forces and self-assemble according to certain
rules. We provide several heuristics and experimental evaluation of their
success rate, solution length, runtime, and memory consumption.Comment: 20 pages, 12 figure
The effect of CSF drain on the optic nerve in idiopathic intracranial hypertension
Background: Elevation of intracranial pressure in idiopathic intracranial hypertension induces an edema of the prelaminar section of the optic nerve (papilledema). Beside the commonly observed optic nerve sheath distention, information on a potential pathology of the retrolaminar section of the optic nerve and the short-term effect of normalization of intracranial pressure on these abnormalities remains scarce.
Methods: In this exploratory study 8 patients diagnosed with idiopathic intracranial hypertension underwent a MRI scan (T2 mapping) as well as a diffusion tensor imaging analysis (fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity). In addition, the clinical presentation of headache and its accompanying symptoms were assessed. Intracranial pressure was then normalized by lumbar puncture and the initial parameters (MRI and clinical features) were re-assessed within 26 h.
Results: After normalization of CSF pressure, the morphometric MRI scans of the optic nerve and optic nerve sheath remained unchanged. In the diffusion tensor imaging, the fractional anisotropy value was reduced suggesting a tissue decompression of the optic nerve after lumbar puncture. In line with these finding, headache and most of the accompanying symptoms also improved or remitted within that short time frame.
Conclusion: The findings support the hypothesis that the elevation of intracranial pressure induces a microstructural compression of the optic nerve impairing axoplasmic flow and thereby causing the prelaminar papilledema. The microstructural compression of the optic nerve as well as the clinical symptoms improve within hours of normalization of intracranial pressure
Consequences of altered eicosanoid patterns for nociceptive processing in mPGES-1-deficient mice
Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2)-dependent prostaglandin (PG) E2 synthesis in the spinal cord plays a major role in the development of inflammatory hyperalgesia and allodynia. Microsomal PGE2 synthase-1 (mPGES-1) isomerizes COX-2-derived PGH2 to PGE2. Here, we evaluated the effect of mPGES-1-deficiency on the noci-ceptive behavior in various models of nociception that depend on PGE2 synthesis. Surprisingly, in the COX-2-dependent zymosan-evoked hyperalgesia model, the nociceptive behavior was not reduced in mPGES-1-deficient mice despite a marked decrease of the spinal PGE2 synthesis. Similarly, the nociceptive behavior was unaltered in mPGES-1-deficient mice in the formalin test. Importantly, spinal cords and primary spinal cord cells derived from mPGES-1-deficient mice showed a redirection of the PGE2 synthesis to PGD2, PGF2α and 6-keto-PGF1α (stable metabolite of PGI2). Since the latter prostaglandins serve also as mediators of noci-ception they may compensate the loss of PGE2 synthesis in mPGES-1-deficient mice
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