Dirac quasiparticles in the mixed state

Energies and wave functions are calculated for d-wave quasiparticles in the mixed state using the formalism of Franz and Tesanovic for the low-lying energy levels. The accuracy of the plane-wave expansion is explored by comparing approximate to exact results for a simplified one-dimensional problem, and the convergence of the plane- wave expansion to the two-dimensional case is studied. The results are used to calculate the low-energy tunneling density of states and the low-temperature specific heat, and these theoretical results are compared to semiclassical treatments and to the available data. Implications for the muon spin resonance measurements of vortex core size are also discussed.Comment: 13 pages, 15 figures, RevTeX. References corrected. A factor of 2 in the results has been corrected, and the conclusions have been update

BonFIRE: A multi-cloud test facility for internet of services experimentation

BonFIRE offers a Future Internet, multi-site, cloud testbed, targeted at the Internet of Services community, that supports large scale testing of applications, services and systems over multiple, geographically distributed, heterogeneous cloud testbeds. The aim of BonFIRE is to provide an infrastructure that gives experimenters the ability to control and monitor the execution of their experiments to a degree that is not found in traditional cloud facilities. The BonFIRE architecture has been designed to support key functionalities such as: resource management; monitoring of virtual and physical infrastructure metrics; elasticity; single document experiment descriptions; and scheduling. As for January 2012 BonFIRE release 2 is operational, supporting seven pilot experiments. Future releases will enhance the offering, including the interconnecting with networking facilities to provide access to routers, switches and bandwidth-on-demand systems. BonFIRE will be open for general use late 2012

Quasiparticle thermal Hall angle and magnetoconductance in YBa_2Cu_3O_x

We present a way to extract the quasiparticle (qp) thermal conductivity Kappa_e and mean-free-path in YBa_2Cu_3O_x, using the thermal Hall effect and the magnetoconductance of Kappa_e. The results are very consistent with heat capacity experiments. Moreover, we find a simple relation between the thermal Hall angle Theta_Q and the H-dependence of Kappa_e, as well as numerical equality between Theta_Q and the electrical Hall angle. The findings also reveal an anomalously anisotropic scattering process in the normal state.Comment: 4 pages in Tex, 5 figures in EPS; replaced on 5/12/99, minor change

Theory of Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy of Magnetic-Field-Induced Discrete Nodal States in a D-Wave Superconductor

In the presence of an external magnetic field, the low lying elementary excitations of a d-wave superconductor have quantized energy and their momenta are locked near the node direction. It is argued that these discrete states can most likely be detected by a local probe, such as a scanning tunneling microscope. The low temperature local tunneling conductance on the Wigner-Seitz cell boundaries of the vortex lattice is predicted to show peaks spaced as $\pm \sqrt{n}, n ={0,1,2, ...}$. The $n=0$ peak is anomalous, and it is present only if the superconducting order parameter changes sign at certain points on the Fermi surface. Away from the cell boundary, where the superfluid velocity is nonzero, each peak splits, in general, into four peaks, corresponding to the number of nodes in the order parameter.Comment: RevTeX 3.0, 4 pages, 3 figures (included

Heat Conduction in κ\kappa-(BEDT-TTF)2_2Cu(NCS)2_2

The first study of thermal conductivity, $\kappa$, in a quasi-two-dimensional organic superconductor of the $\kappa$-(BEDT-TTF)$_2$X family reveals features analogous to those already observed in the cuprates. The onset of superconductivity is associated with a sudden increase in $\kappa$ which can be suppressed by the application of a moderate magnetic field. At low temperatures, a finite linear term - due to a residual electronic contribution- was resolved. The magnitude of this term is close to what is predicted by the theory of transport in unconventional superconductors.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures include

Efficacy of essential oil mouthwash with and without alcohol: a 3-Day plaque accumulation model

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The aim of this study was to evaluate the antiplaque effect of a new alcohol free essential oil mouthwash with respect to a control of an essential oil with alcohol mouthwash, using an <it>in vivo </it>plaque regrowth model of 3-days.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The study was designed as a double-masked, randomized, crossover clinical trial, involving 30 volunteers to compare two different essential oil containing mouthwashes, during a 3-day plaque accumulation model. After receiving a thorough professional prophylaxis at the baseline, over the next 3-days each volunteer refrained from all oral hygiene measures and had two daily rinses with 20 ml of the test mouthwash (alcohol free essential oil) or the control mouthwash (essential oil with alcohol). At the end of the each experimental period, plaque was assessed and the panelists filled out a questionnaire. Each subject underwent a 14 days washout period and there was a second allocation.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The essential oil mouthwash with ethanol shows a better inhibitory effect of plaque regrowth in 3-days than the mouthwash test with only essential oil in the whole mouth (plaque index = 2.18 against 2.46, respectively, p < 0.05); for the lower jaw (plaque index = 2.28 against 2.57, respectively, p < 0.05); for the upper jaw (plaque index = 2.08 against 2.35, respectively, p < 0.05); for the incisors (plaque index = 1.93 against 2.27, respectively, p < 0.05); and the canines (plaque index = 1.99 against 2.47, respectively, p < 0.05).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The essential oil containing mouthwash without alcohol seems to have a less inhibiting effect on the plaque regrowth than the traditional alcoholic solution.</p> <p>Trial Registration</p> <p>ClinicalTrials.gov <a href="http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01411618">NCT01411618</a></p

Effect of age on passive elastic stiffness of rat heart muscle.

A thick-wall spherical model for the rat left ventricle was used to deduce passive wall stiffness from diastolic pressure-volume data. This was done for rats in three age classes: young (1 mo), adult (17 mo) and old (17 mo). The model was based on finite deformation elasticity theory consistent with the magnitude of observed deformation. A least-squares procedure was used to determine elastic constants in postulated nonlinear stress-stretch relations for the myocardium. It was found that at a given level of stress, wall stiffness for ventricles in the young age class was consistently greater than wall stiffness in the other two classes. In addition, the difference in wall stiffness between rats in the adult and old age classes was found to be approximately 10%