5,018 research outputs found
Collective modes of CP(3) Skyrmion crystals in quantum Hall ferromagnets
The two-dimensional electron gas in a bilayer quantum Hall system can sustain
an interlayer coherence at filling factor nu=1 even in the absence of tunneling
between the layers. This system has low-energy charged excitations which may
carry textures in real spin or pseudospin. Away from filling factor nu =1 a
finite density of these is present in the ground state of the 2DEG and forms a
crystal. Depending on the relative size of the various energy scales, such as
tunneling (Delta_SAS), Zeeman coupling (Delta_Z) or electrical bias (Delta_b),
these textured crystal states can involve spin, pseudospin, or both
intertwined. In this article, we present a comprehensive numerical study of the
collective excitations of these textured crystals using the GRPA. For the pure
spin case, at finite Zeeman coupling the state is a Skyrmion crystal with a
gapless phonon mode, and a separate Goldstone mode that arises from a broken
U(1) symmetry. At zero Zeeman coupling, we demonstrate that the constituent
Skyrmions break up, and the resulting state is a meron crystal with 4 gapless
modes. In contrast, a pure pseudospin Skyrme crystal at finite tunneling has
only the phonon mode. For Delta_SAS=0, the state evolves into a meron crystal
and supports an extra gapless U(1) mode in addition to the phonon. For a CP(3)
Skyrmion crystal, we find a U(1) gapless mode in the presence of the
symmetry-breaking fields. In addition, a second mode with a very small gap is
present in the spectrum.Comment: 16 pages and 12 eps figure
Long-Period Giant Companions to Three Compact, Multiplanet Systems
Understanding the relationship between long-period giant planets and multiple smaller short-period planets is critical for formulating a complete picture of planet formation. This work characterizes three such systems. We present Kepler-65, a system with an eccentric (e = 0.28 ± 0.07) giant planet companion discovered via radial velocities (RVs) exterior to a compact, multiply transiting system of sub-Neptune planets. We also use precision RVs to improve mass and radius constraints on two other systems with similar architectures, Kepler-25 and Kepler-68. In Kepler-68 we propose a second exterior giant planet candidate. Finally, we consider the implications of these systems for planet formation models, particularly that the moderate eccentricity in Kepler-65\u27s exterior giant planet did not disrupt its inner system
Diffusion of Pt dimers on Pt(111)
We report the results of a density-functional study of the diffusion of Pt
dimers on the (111) surface of Pt. The calculated activation energy of 0.37 eV
is in {\em exact} agreement with the recent experiment of Kyuno {\em et al.}
\protect{[}Surf. Sci. {\bf 397}, 191 (1998)\protect{]}. Our calculations
establish that the dimers are mobile at temperatures of interest for adatom
diffusion, and thus contribute to mass transport. They also indicate that the
diffusion path for dimers consists of a sequence of one-atom and (concerted)
two-atom jumps.Comment: Pour pages postscript formatted, including one figure; submitted to
Physical Review B; other papers of interest can be found at url
http://www.centrcn.umontreal.ca/~lewi
Anisotropy of Growth of the Close-Packed Surfaces of Silver
The growth morphology of clean silver exhibits a profound anisotropy: The
growing surface of Ag(111) is typically very rough while that of Ag(100) is
smooth and flat. This serious and important difference is unexpected, not
understood, and hitherto not observed for any other metal. Using density
functional theory calculations of self-diffusion on flat and stepped Ag(100) we
find, for example, that at flat regions a hopping mechanism is favored, while
across step edges diffusion proceeds by an exchange process. The calculated
microscopic parameters explain the experimentally reported growth properties.Comment: RevTeX, 4 pages, 3 figures in uufiles form, to appear in Phys. Rev.
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Investigating the local-scale influence of sea ice on Greenland surface melt
Rapid decline in Arctic sea ice cover in the 21st century may have wide-reaching effects on the Arctic climate system, including the Greenland ice sheet mass balance. Here, we investigate whether local changes in sea ice around the Greenland ice sheet have had an impact on Greenland surface melt. Specifically, we investigate the relationship between sea ice concentration, the timing of melt onset and open-water fraction surrounding Greenland with ice sheet surface melt using a combination of remote sensing observations, and outputs from a reanalysis model and a regional climate model for the period of 1979–2015. Statistical analysis points to covariability between Greenland ice sheet surface melt and sea ice within Baffin Bay and Davis Strait. While some of this covariance can be explained by simultaneous influence of atmospheric circulation anomalies on both the sea ice cover and Greenland melt, within Baffin Bay we find a modest correlation between detrended melt onset over sea ice and the adjacent ice sheet melt onset. This correlation appears to be related to increased transfer of sensible and latent heat fluxes from the ocean to the atmosphere in early sea ice melt years, increasing temperatures and humidity over the ice sheet that in turn initiate ice sheet melt
Quantum key distribution and 1 Gbit/s data encryption over a single fibre
We perform quantum key distribution (QKD) in the presence of 4 classical
channels in a C-band dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM)
configuration using a commercial QKD system. The classical channels are used
for key distillation and 1 Gbps encrypted communication, rendering the entire
system independent from any other communication channel than a single dedicated
fibre. We successfully distil secret keys over fibre spans of up to 50 km. The
separation between quantum channel and nearest classical channel is only 200
GHz, while the classical channels are all separated by 100 GHz. In addition to
that we discuss possible improvements and alternative configurations, for
instance whether it is advantageous to choose the quantum channel at 1310 nm or
to opt for a pure C-band configuration.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figure
Self-diffusion of adatoms, dimers, and vacancies on Cu(100)
We use ab initio static relaxation methods and semi-empirical
molecular-dynamics simulations to investigate the energetics and dynamics of
the diffusion of adatoms, dimers, and vacancies on Cu(100). It is found that
the dynamical energy barriers for diffusion are well approximated by the
static, 0 K barriers and that prefactors do not depend sensitively on the
species undergoing diffusion. The ab initio barriers are observed to be
significantly lower when calculated within the generalized-gradient
approximation (GGA) rather than in the local-density approximation (LDA). Our
calculations predict that surface diffusion should proceed primarily via the
diffusion of vacancies. Adatoms are found to migrate most easily via a jump
mechanism. This is the case, also, of dimers, even though the corresponding
barrier is slightly larger than it is for adatoms. We observe, further, that
dimers diffuse more readily than they can dissociate. Our results are discussed
in the context of recent submonolayer growth experiments of Cu(100).Comment: Submitted to the Physical Review B; 15 pages including postscript
figures; see also http://www.centrcn.umontreal.ca/~lewi
ERK2 phosphorylation of serine 77 regulates Bmf pro-apoptotic activity
B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) homology 3 (BH3)-only proteins represent a class of pro-apoptotic factors that neutralize pro-survival Bcl-2 proteins, and, in some cases, directly activate Bax. The mechanisms of control and the role of BH3-only proteins, such as Bcl-2 like protein 11 extra large and Bad are well studied. By contrast, relatively little is known about the regulation and role of Bcl-2 modifying factor (Bmf). The B-RAF oncogene is mutated in ∼8% of human tumors. We have previously shown that Bmf is upregulated at the transcript level and is required for apoptosis induced by targeting B-RAF signaling in tumor cells harboring mutant B-RAF. In this study, we show that Bmf is regulated at the post-translational level by mutant B-RAF-MEK-ERK2 signaling. Extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK2) directly phosphorylates Bmf on serine 74 and serine 77 residues with serine 77 being the predominant site. In addition, serine 77 phosphorylation reduces Bmf pro-apoptotic activity likely through a mechanism independent of altering Bmf localization to the mitochondria and/or interactions with dynein light chain 2 and the pro-survival proteins, B-cell lymphoma extra large, Bcl-2 and Mcl-1. These data identify a novel mode of regulation in Bmf that modulates its pro-apoptotic activity in mutant B-RAF tumor cells
Reactivity of Gold Hydrides: O2 Insertion into the Au–H Bond
Dioxygen reacts with the gold(I) hydride (IPr)AuH under insertion to give the hydroperoxide, (IPr)AuOOH, a long-postulated reaction in gold catalysis and the first demonstration of O2 activation by Au-H in a well-defined system. Subsequent condensation gave the peroxide (IPr)Au-OO-Au(IPr) (IPr = 1,3-bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imidazole-2-ylidene). The reaction kinetics are reported, as well as the reactivity of Au(I) hydrides with radical scavengers
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