1,167 research outputs found
(Conformal) Killing vectors and their associated bivectors
Fayos and Sopuerta have recently set up a formalism for studying vacuum
spacetimes with an isometry, a formalism that is centred around the bivector
corresponding to the Killing vector and that adapts the tetrad to the bivector.
Steele has generalized their approach to include the homothetic case. Here, we
generalize this formalism to arbitrary spacetimes and to homothetic and
conformal Killing vectors but do not insist on aligning the tetrad with the
bivector. The most efficient way to use the formalism to find conformal Killing
vectors (proper or not) of a given spacetime is to combine it with the notion
of a preferred tetrad. A metric by Kimura is used as an illustrative example
Two tone response of radiofrequency signals using the voltage output of a Superconducting Quantum Interference Filter
In the presence of weak time harmonic electromagnetic fields, Superconducting
Quantum Interference Filters (SQIFs) show the typical behavior of non linear
mixers. The SQIFs are manufactured from high-T_c grain boundary Josephson
junctions and operated in active microcooler. The dependence of dc voltage
output V_dc vs. static external magnetic field B is non-periodic and consists
of a well pronounced unique dip at zero field, with marginal side modulations
at higher fields. We have successfully exploited the parabolic shape of the
voltage dip around B=0 to mix quadratically two external time harmonic
rf-signals, at frequencies f_1 and f_2 below the Josephson frequency f_J, and
detect the corresponding mixing signal at f_1-f_2. When the mixing takes place
on the SQIF current-voltage characteristics the component at 2f_2 - f_1 is
present. The experiments suggest potential applications of a SQIF as a
non-linear mixing device, capable to operate at frequencies from dc to few GHz
with a large dynamic range.Comment: 10 pages, 3 Figures, submitted to J. Supercond. (as proceeding of the
HTSHFF Symposium, June 2006, Cardiff
Site symmetry and crystal symmetry: a spherical tensor analysis
The relation between the properties of a specific crystallographic site and
the properties of the full crystal is discussed by using spherical tensors. The
concept of spherical tensors is introduced and the way it transforms under the
symmetry operations of the site and from site to site is described in detail.
The law of spherical tensor coupling is given and illustrated with the example
of the electric dipole and quadrupole transitions in x-ray absorption
spectroscopy. The main application of the formalism is the reduction of
computation time in the calculation of the properties of crystals by band
structure methods. The general approach is illustrated by the examples of
substitutional chromium in spinel and substitutional vanadium in garnet.Comment: 27 pages, 3 figure
Relative amplitude index: A new tool for hemodynamic evaluation of periprosthetic regurgitation after transcatheter valve implantation
ObjectiveThe impact of paravalvular aortic regurgitation (PAR) on hemodynamic performance after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) remains disputable. Common parameters such as the diastolic blood pressure or the blood pressure amplitude do not provide reproducible results. The aim of our study was to evaluate the impact of PAR on hemodynamics and outcome using the relative amplitude index (RAI).MethodsPAR was prospectively evaluated by echocardiography before discharge in 110 patients. The RAI was calculated according to the formula: RAIÂ =Â [(Post-TAVI BP amplitude)/(Post-TAVI SBP) â (Pre-TAVI BP amplitude)/(Pre-TAVI SBP)]Â ĂÂ 100%, where BP is blood pressure and SBP is systolic blood pressure. Correlations of increased RAI with perioperative outcome were investigated and factors influencing mortality were isolated.ResultsThe incidence of moderate and severe PAR after TAVI was 9% and 1%, respectively. Diastolic pressure or post-TAVI amplitude did not correlate to perioperative outcome. RAI increased from 2 when PAR was <2+ to 7 when PAR was â„2+ (PÂ =Â .006). A cut-off value of RAI â„14 was associated with increased perioperative mortality (29 vs 5%; PÂ =Â .013) and acute renal injury requiring dialysis (71 vs 18%; PÂ =Â .001). RAI â„14 was also associated with higher follow-up mortality at 1 year (57 vs 16%; PÂ =Â .007). RAI â„14 (odds ratio [OR], 3.390; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.6-7.194; PÂ =Â .00146), PAR â„2+ (OR, 4.717; 95% CI, 1.828-12.195; PÂ =Â .00135), and perioperative renal replacement therapy (OR, 12.820; 95% CI, 5.181-31.250; PÂ =Â .00031) were found to be independent predictors of mortality at 1 year.ConclusionsThe RAI is a useful tool to predict perioperative and 1-year outcome in patients with PAR after TAVI
A comparison of chemistry and dust cloud formation in ultracool dwarf model atmospheres
The atmospheres of substellar objects contain clouds of oxides, iron,
silicates, and other refractory condensates. Water clouds are expected in the
coolest objects. The opacity of these `dust' clouds strongly affects both the
atmospheric temperature-pressure profile and the emergent flux. Thus any
attempt to model the spectra of these atmospheres must incorporate a cloud
model. However the diversity of cloud models in atmospheric simulations is
large and it is not always clear how the underlying physics of the various
models compare. Likewise the observational consequences of different modeling
approaches can be masked by other model differences, making objective
comparisons challenging. In order to clarify the current state of the modeling
approaches, this paper compares five different cloud models in two sets of
tests. Test case 1 tests the dust cloud models for a prescribed L, L--T, and
T-dwarf atmospheric (temperature T, pressure p, convective velocity
vconv)-structures. Test case 2 compares complete model atmosphere results for
given (effective temperature Teff, surface gravity log g). All models agree on
the global cloud structure but differ in opacity-relevant details like grain
size, amount of dust, dust and gas-phase composition. Comparisons of synthetic
photometric fluxes translate into an modelling uncertainty in apparent
magnitudes for our L-dwarf (T-dwarf) test case of 0.25 < \Delta m < 0.875 (0.1
< \Delta m M 1.375) taking into account the 2MASS, the UKIRT WFCAM, the Spitzer
IRAC, and VLT VISIR filters with UKIRT WFCAM being the most challenging for the
models. (abr.)Comment: 22 pages, 17 figures, MNRAS 2008, accepted, (minor grammar/typo
corrections
Dust in Brown Dwarfs IV. Dust formation and driven turbulence on mesoscopic scales
Dust formation in brown dwarf atmospheres is studied by utilising a model for
driven turbulence in the mesoscopic scale regime. We apply a pseudo-spectral
method where waves are created and superimposed within a limited wavenumber
interval. The turbulent kinetic energy distribution follows the Kolmogoroff
spectrum which is assumed to be the most likely value. Such superimposed,
stochastic waves may occur in a convectively active environment. They cause
nucleation fronts and nucleation events and thereby initiate the dust formation
process which continues until all condensible material is consumed. Small
disturbances are found to have a large impact on the dust forming system. An
initially dust-hostile region, which may originally be optically thin, becomes
optically thick in a patchy way showing considerable variations in the dust
properties during the formation process. The dust appears in lanes and curls as
a result of the interaction with waves, i.e. turbulence, which form larger and
larger structures with time. Aiming on a physical understanding of the
variability of brown dwarfs, related to structure formation in substellar
atmospheres, we work out first necessary criteria for small-scale closure
models to be applied in macroscopic simulations of dust forming astrophysical
systems.Comment: A&A accepted, 20 page
Ultra-sensitive magnetometry based on free precession of nuclear spins
We discuss the design and performance of a very sensitive low-field
magnetometer based on the detection of free spin precession of gaseous, nuclear
polarized 3He or 129Xe samples with a SQUID as magnetic flux detector. The
device will be employed to control fluctuating magnetic fields and gradients in
a new experiment searching for a permanent electric dipole moment of the
neutron as well as in a new type of 3He/129Xe clock comparison experiment which
should be sensitive to a sidereal variation of the relative spin precession
frequency. Characteristic spin precession times T_2 of up to 60h could be
measured. In combination with a signal-to-noise ratio of > 5000:1, this leads
to a sensitivity level of deltaB= 1fT after an integration time of 220s and to
deltaB= 10^(-4)fT after one day. Even in that sensitivity range, the
magnetometer performance is statistically limited, and noise sources inherent
to the magnetometer are not limiting. The reason is that free precessing 3He
(129Xe) nuclear spins are almost completely decoupled from the environment.
That makes this type of magnetometer in particular attractive for precision
field measurements where a long-term stability is required
Multifractal properties of resistor diode percolation
Focusing on multifractal properties we investigate electric transport on
random resistor diode networks at the phase transition between the
non-percolating and the directed percolating phase. Building on first
principles such as symmetries and relevance we derive a field theoretic
Hamiltonian. Based on this Hamiltonian we determine the multifractal moments of
the current distribution that are governed by a family of critical exponents
. We calculate the family to two-loop order in a
diagrammatic perturbation calculation augmented by renormalization group
methods.Comment: 21 pages, 5 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev.
Neurochemical Mechanism of Electroacupuncture: Anti-injury Effect on Cerebral Function after Focal Cerebral Ischemia in Ratsâ
We explored the neurochemical mechanism of electroacupuncture's (EA) protective effect on brain function in focal cerebral ischemia rats, using cerebral ischemia/reperfusion rats established by the middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) method. Adult male SpragueâDawley rats were randomly divided into four groups: Sham, Sham+EA, MCAO and MCAO+EA. The rats in Sham+EA and MCAO+EA were accepted EA treatment at âGV26â and âGV20â acupoints for 30 min. Electric stimulation was produced by a G-6805 generator and neurological deficit scores were recorded. Mitochondria respiratory function and the activities of respiratory enzymes were measured by a computer-aided Clark oxygen electrode system. Results showed that EA treatment might reduce the neurological deficit score, and significantly improve respiratory control ratio (RCR), the index of mitochondrial respiratory function, and increase the activities of succinic dehydrogenase, NADH dehydrogenase and cytochrome C oxidase in the MCAO rats. Results suggest that EA might markedly decrease the neurological deficit score, promote the activities of respiratory enzymes and reduce the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), resulting in improvement of respiratory chain function and anti-oxidative capability of brain tissues in the infarct penumbra zone. This be a mechanism of EA's anti-injury effect on brain function in MCAO rats
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