898 research outputs found
Area limit laws for symmetry classes of staircase polygons
We derive area limit laws for the various symmetry classes of staircase
polygons on the square lattice, in a uniform ensemble where, for fixed
perimeter, each polygon occurs with the same probability. This complements a
previous study by Leroux and Rassart, where explicit expressions for the area
and perimeter generating functions of these classes have been derived.Comment: 18 pages, 3 figure
Strain bursts in plastically deforming Molybdenum micro- and nanopillars
Plastic deformation of micron and sub-micron scale specimens is characterized
by intermittent sequences of large strain bursts (dislocation avalanches) which
are separated by regions of near-elastic loading. In the present investigation
we perform a statistical characterization of strain bursts observed in
stress-controlled compressive deformation of monocrystalline Molybdenum
micropillars. We characterize the bursts in terms of the associated elongation
increments and peak deformation rates, and demonstrate that these quantities
follow power-law distributions that do not depend on specimen orientation or
stress rate. We also investigate the statistics of stress increments in between
the bursts, which are found to be Weibull distributed and exhibit a
characteristic size effect. We discuss our findings in view of observations of
deformation bursts in other materials, such as face-centered cubic and
hexagonal metals.Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures, submitted to Phil Ma
Virus-like-vaccines against HIV
Protection against chronic infections has necessitated the development of ever-more potent vaccination tools. HIV seems to be the most challenging foe, with a remarkable, poorly immunogenic and fragile surface glycoprotein and the ability to overpower the cell immune system. Virus-like-particle (VLP) vaccines have emerged as potent inducers of antibody and helper T cell responses, while replication-deficient viral vectors have yielded potent cytotoxic T cell responses. Here, we review the emerging concept of merging these two technologies into virus-like-vaccines (VLVs) for the targeting of HIV. Such vaccines are immunologically perceived as viruses, as they infect cells and produce VLPs in situ, but they only resemble viruses, as the replication defective vectors and VLPs cannot propagate an infection. The inherent safety of such a platform, despite robust particle production, is a distinct advantage over live-attenuated vaccines that must balance safety and immunogenicity. Previous studies have delivered VLVs encoded in modified Vaccinia Ankara vectors and we have developed the concept into a single-reading adenovirus-based technology capable of eliciting robust CD8+ and CD4+ T cells responses and trimer binding antibody responses. Such vaccines offer the potential to display the naturally produced immunogen directly and induce an integrated humoral and cellular immune response
Homogeneous Gold Catalysis through Relativistic Effects: Addition of Water to Propyne
In the catalytic addition of water to propyne the Au(III) catalyst is not
stable under non-relativistic conditions and dissociates into a Au(I) compound
and Cl2. This implies that one link in the chain of events in the catalytic
cycle is broken and relativity may well be seen as the reason why Au(III)
compounds are effective catalysts.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figures, 1 tabl
Identification of the slow E3 transition 136mCs -> 136Cs with conversion electrons
We performed at ISOLDE the spectroscopy of the decay of the 8- isomer in
136Cs by and conversion-electron detection. For the first time the excitation
energy of the isomer and the multipolarity of its decay have been measured. The
half-life of the isomeric state was remeasured to T1/2 = 17.5(2) s. This isomer
decays via a very slow 518 keV E3 transition to the ground state. In addition
to this, a much weaker decay branch via a 413 keV M4 and a subsequent 105 keV
E2 transition has been found. Thus we have found a new level at 105 keV with
spin 4+ between the isomeric and the ground state. The results are discussed in
comparison to shell model calculations.Comment: Phys. Rev. C accepted for publicatio
Cohesive energies of cubic III-V semiconductors
Cohesive energies for twelve cubic III-V semiconductors with zincblende
structure have been determined using an ab-initio scheme. Correlation
contributions, in particular, have been evaluated using the coupled-cluster
approach with single and double excitations (CCSD). This was done by means of
increments obtained for localized bond orbitals and for pairs and triples of
such bonds. Combining these results with corresponding Hartree-Fock data, we
recover about 92 \% of the experimental cohesive energies.Comment: 16 pages, 1 figure, late
, Nuclear quadrupole moment of 139La from relativistic electronic structure calculations of the electric field gradients in LaF, LaCl, LaBr and LaI
Relativistic coupled cluster theory is used to determine accurate electric field gradients in order to provide a theoretical value for the nuclear quadrupole moment of La139. Here we used the diatomic lanthanum monohalides LaF, LaCl, LaBr, and LaI as accurate nuclear quadrupole coupling constants are available from rotational spectroscopy by Rubinoff [J. Mol. Spectrosc. 218, 169 (2003)]. The resulting nuclear quadrupole moment for La139 (0.200±0.006 barn) is in excellent agreement with earlier work using atomic hyperfine spectroscopy [0.20 (1) barn]. © 2007 American Institute of Physics
Calculation of the positron bound state with the copper atom
A new relativistic method for calculation of positron binding to atoms is
presented. The method combines a configuration interaction treatment of the
valence electron and the positron with a many-body perturbation theory
description of their interaction with the atomic core. We apply this method to
positron binding by the copper atom and obtain the binding energy of 170 meV (+
- 10%). To check the accuracy of the method we use a similar approach to
calculate the negative copper ion. The calculated electron affinity is 1.218
eV, in good agreement with the experimental value of 1.236 eV. The problem of
convergence of positron-atom bound state calculations is investigated, and
means to improve it are discussed. The relativistic character of the method and
its satisfactory convergence make it a suitable tool for heavier atoms.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figures, RevTe
Excited States of Ladder-type Poly-p-phenylene Oligomers
Ground state properties and excited states of ladder-type paraphenylene
oligomers are calculated applying semiempirical methods for up to eleven
phenylene rings. The results are in qualitative agreement with experimental
data. A new scheme to interpret the excited states is developed which reveals
the excitonic nature of the excited states. The electron-hole pair of the
S1-state has a mean distance of approximately 4 Angstroem.Comment: 24 pages, 21 figure
- …