2,097 research outputs found

    Elastic response of [111]-tunneling impurities

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    We study the dynamic response of a [111] quantum impurity, such as lithium or cyanide in alkali halides, with respect to an external field coupling to the elastic quadrupole moment. Because of the particular level structure of a eight-state system on a cubic site, the elastic response function shows a biexponential relaxation feature and a van Vleck type contribution with a resonance frequency that is twice the tunnel frequency Δ/ℏ\Delta/\hbar. This basically differs from the dielectric response that does not show relaxation. Moreover, we show that the elastic response of a [111] impurity cannot be reduced to that of a two-level system. In the experimental part, we report on recent sound velocity and internal friction measurements on KCl doped with cyanide at various concentrations. At low doping (45 ppm) we find the dynamics of a single [111] impurity, whereas at higher concentrations (4700 ppm) the elastic response rather indicates strongly correlated defects. Our theoretical model provides a good description of the temperature dependence of ήv/v\delta v/v and Q−1Q^{-1} at low doping, in particular the relaxation peaks, the absolute values of the amplitude, and the resonant contributions. From our fits we obtain the value of the elastic deformation potential γt=0.192\gamma_t=0.192 eV.Comment: 19 pages, 5 figure

    Soft Interaction Between Dissolved Dendrimers: Theory and Experiment

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    Using small-angle neutron scattering and liquid integral equation theory, we relate the structure factor of flexible dendrimers of 4th generation to their average shape. The shape is measured as a radial density profile of monomers belonging to a single dendrimer. From that, we derive an effective interaction of Gaussian form between pairs of dendrimers and compute the structure factor using the hypernetted chain approximation. Excellent agreement with the corresponding experimental results is obtained, without the use of adjustable parameters. The present analysis thus strongly supports the previous finding that flexible dendrimers of low generation present fluctuating structures akin to star polymers.Comment: 20 pages, 4 figures, submitted to Macromolecules on July 24, 200

    Restoration of CD28 Expression in CD28− CD8+ Memory Effector T Cells Reconstitutes Antigen-induced IL-2 Production

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    The control of many persistent viral infections by Ag-specific cytolytic CD8+ T cells requires a concurrent virus-specific CD4+ Th cell response. This reflects in part a requirement of activated effector CD8+ T cells for paracrine IL-2 production as a growth and survival factor. In human CMV and HIV infection, the majority of differentiated virus-specific CD8+ T cells notably lose the ability to produce IL-2 but also lose expression of CD28, a costimulatory molecule. Analysis of the fraction of memory CD8+ T cells that continue to express CD28 revealed these cells retain the ability to produce IL-2. Therefore, we examined if IL-2 production by CD28− CD8+ T cells could be restored by introduction of a constitutively expressed CD28 gene. Expression of CD28 in CD28− CD8+ CMV- and HIV-specific CD8+ T cells reconstituted the ability to produce IL-2, which could sustain an autocrine proliferative response after Ag recognition. These results suggest that the loss of CD28 expression during differentiation of memory/effector CD8+ T cells represents a decisive step in establishing regulation of responding CD8+ T cells, increasing the dependence on CD4+ Th for proliferation after target recognition, and has implications for the treatment of viral disease with adoptively transferred CD8+ T cells

    Spectral Shape of Relaxations in Silica Glass

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    Precise low-frequency light scattering experiments on silica glass are presented, covering a broad temperature and frequency range (9 GHz < \nu < 2 THz). For the first time the spectral shape of relaxations is observed over more than one decade in frequency. The spectra show a power-law low-frequency wing of the relaxational part of the spectrum with an exponent α\alpha proportional to temperature in the range 30 K < T < 200 K. A comparison of our results with those from acoustic attenuation experiments performed at different frequencies shows that this power-law behaviour rather well describes relaxations in silica over 9 orders of magnitude in frequency. These findings can be explained by a model of thermally activated transitions in double well potentials.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let

    Low temperature acoustic properties of amorphous silica and the Tunneling Model

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    Internal friction and speed of sound of a-SiO(2) was measured above 6 mK using a torsional oscillator at 90 kHz, controlling for thermal decoupling, non-linear effects, and clamping losses. Strain amplitudes e(A) = 10^{-8} mark the transition between the linear and non-linear regime. In the linear regime, excellent agreement with the Tunneling Model was observed for both the internal friction and speed of sound, with a cut-off energy of E(min) = 6.6 mK. In the non-linear regime, two different behaviors were observed. Above 10 mK the behavior was typical for non-linear harmonic oscillators, while below 10 mK a different behavior was found. Its origin is not understood.Comment: 1 tex file, 6 figure

    Evaluating the Potential of Legumes to Mitigate N2_{2}O Emissions From Permanent Grassland Using Process-Based Models

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    A potential strategy for mitigating nitrous oxide (N2_{2}O) emissions from permanent grasslands is the partial substitution of fertilizer nitrogen (Nfert_{fert}) with symbiotically fixed nitrogen (Nsymb_{symb}) from legumes. The input of Nsymb_{symb} reduces the energy costs of producing fertilizer and provides a supply of nitrogen (N) for plants that is more synchronous to plant demand than occasional fertilizer applications. Legumes have been promoted as a potential N2_{2}O mitigation strategy for grasslands, but evidence to support their efficacy is limited, partly due to the difficulty in conducting experiments across the large range of potential combinations of legume proportions and fertilizer N inputs. These experimental constraints can be overcome by biogeochemical models that can vary legume‐fertilizer combinations and subsequently aid the design of targeted experiments. Using two variants each of two biogeochemical models (APSIM and DayCent), we tested the N2_{2}O mitigation potential and productivity of full factorial combinations of legume proportions and fertilizer rates for five temperate grassland sites across the globe. Both models showed that replacing fertilizer with legumes reduced N2_{2}O emissions without reducing productivity across a broad range of legume‐fertilizer combinations. Although the models were consistent with the relative changes of N2_{2}O emissions compared to the baseline scenario (200 kg N ha−1^{-1} yr−1^{-1}; no legumes), they predicted different levels of absolute N2_{2}O emissions and thus also of absolute N2_{2}O emission reductions; both were greater in DayCent than in APSIM. We recommend confirming these results with experimental studies assessing the effect of clover proportions in the range 30–50% and ≀150 kg N ha−1^{-1} yr−1^{-1} input as these were identified as best‐bet climate smart agricultural practices

    Global Research Alliance N2O chamber methodology guidelines : Summary of modeling approaches

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    Acknowledgements Funding for this publication was provided by the New Zealand Government to support the objectives of the Livestock Research Group of the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases. Individual authors work contribute to the following projects for which support has been received: Climate smart use of Norwegian organic soils (MYR, 2017-2022) project funded by the Research Council of Norway (decision no. 281109); Scottish Government's Strategic Research Programme, SuperG (under EU Horizon 2020 programme); DEVIL (NE/M021327/1), Soils-R-GRREAT (NE/P019455/1) and the EU H2020 project under Grant Agreement 774378—Coordination of International Research Cooperation on Soil Carbon Sequestration in Agriculture (CIRCASA); to project J-001793, Science and Technology Branch, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada; and New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) core funding. Thanks to Alasdair Noble and the anonymous reviewers for helpful comments on a draft of this paper and to Anne Austin for editing services.Peer reviewedPublisher PD
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