1,076 research outputs found
Vertical Melting of a Stack of Membranes
A stack of tensionless membranes with nonlinear curvature energy and vertical
harmonic interaction is studied. At low temperatures, the system forms a
lamellar phase. At a critical temperature, the stack disorders vertically in a
melting-like transition.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figure
Quantum Key Distribution using Continuous-variable non-Gaussian States
In this work we present a quantum key distribution protocol using
continuous-variable non-Gaussian states, homodyne detection and post-selection.
The employed signal states are the Photon Added then Subtracted Coherent States
(PASCS) in which one photon is added and subsequently one photon is subtracted.
We analyze the performance of our protocol, compared to a coherent state based
protocol, for two different attacks that could be carried out by the
eavesdropper (Eve). We calculate the secret key rate transmission in a lossy
line for a superior channel (beam-splitter) attack, and we show that we may
increase the secret key generation rate by using the non-Gaussian PASCS rather
than coherent states. We also consider the simultaneous quadrature measurement
(intercept-resend) attack and we show that the efficiency of Eve's attack is
substantially reduced if PASCS are used as signal states.Comment: We have included an analysis of the simultaneous quadrature
measurement attack plus 2 figures; we have also clarified some point
Decrumpling membranes by quantum effects
The phase diagram of an incompressible fluid membrane subject to quantum and
thermal fluctuations is calculated exactly in a large number of dimensions of
configuration space. At zero temperature, a crumpling transition is found at a
critical bending rigidity . For membranes of fixed lateral
size, a crumpling transition occurs at nonzero temperatures in an auxiliary
mean field approximation. As the lateral size L of the membrane becomes large,
the flat regime shrinks with .Comment: 9 pages, 4 figure
Rare human skin infection with Corynebacterium ulcerans: transmission by a domestic cat
Corynebacterium ulcerans is mainly known for its ability to cause animal infections. Some strains of C. ulcerans produce diphtheria toxin, which can cause life-threatening cardiopathies and neuropathies in humans. Human cutaneous C. ulcerans infection is a very rare disease that mimics classical cutaneous diphtheria. We present a very rare case of a C. ulcerans skin infection caused by a non-diphtheria toxin-producing strain of C. ulcerans that resolved after 3weeks of therapy with amoxicillin-clavulanate. A pet cat was the probable source of infection. The presence of C. ulcerans in the mouth of the cat was confirmed by 16S rRNA gene analysis and the API Coryne system. In cases of human infection with potentially toxigenic corynebacteria, it is important to determine the species and examine the isolate for diphtheria toxin production. If toxigenicity is present, diphtheria antitoxin should be administered immediately. Carriers and potential infectious sources of C. ulcerans include not only domestic livestock but also pet animals. For the primary prevention of disease caused by diphtheria toxin-producing corynebacteria, vaccination with diphtheria toxoid is recommende
Non-Perturbative Renormalisation of Composite Operators
It is shown that the renormalisation constants of two quark operators can be
accurately determined (to a precision of a few per-cent using 18 gluon
configurations) using Chiral Ward identities. A method for computing
renormalisation constants of generic composite operators without the use of
lattice perturbation theory is proposed.Comment: 3 pages, uuencoded compressed postscript file, to appear in the
Proceedings of the International Symposium on Lattice Field Theory, Dallas,
Texas, 12-17 October 1993, Southampton Preprint 93/94-0
Ozone in Lombardy: Years 1998-1999
Photochemical pollutants, especially ozone, have reached very high levels in Lombardy in recent years, with peaks of up to 150 ppb in late spring and summer. Lombardy, lying on the Po Plain, supports a large number of cities and
industries and these, along with heavy traffic, produce copious amounts of primary pollutants such as nitrogen oxides and numerous volatile organic compounds. Furthermore,
the peculiar orography of this region fosters the stagnation of air masses on a basin-scale and the presence of diurnal breezes towards northern areas, along with the evolution of the Mixing Layer, spread the polluted air masses over a large territory. Numerous stations in Lombardy give the concentrations of ozone and of nitrogen oxides. In this paper, ozone measurements carried out at the plain area around Milan and at pre-alpine sites in the spring and summer 1998 and 1999 will be shown and discussed, focusing on the months of May and July. The study of temporal and spatial behaviour of ozone goes hand in hand with the analysis of the Boundary Layerâs evolution. A number of radon stations were operating in Milan and in other sites in Lombardy. Measurements of atmospheric concentrations of radon yield an index of atmospheric stability, of the formation of thermal inversion, of convective turbulence, and of the movement of air masses, and hence they are very relevant to the understanding of the conditions of atmospheric pollutants
Need for integrating early palliative care with standard hematology care long before the allogeneic hemopoietic stem cells transplantation
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