797 research outputs found
Why do gallium clusters have a higher melting point than the bulk?
Density functional molecular dynamical simulations have been performed on
Ga and Ga clusters to understand the recently observed
higher-than-bulk melting temperatures in small gallium clusters [Breaux {\em et
al.}, Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf 91}, 215508 (2003)]. The specific-heat curve,
calculated with the multiple-histogram technique, shows the melting temperature
to be well above the bulk melting point of 303 K, viz. around 650 K and 1400 K
for Ga and Ga, respectively. The higher-than-bulk melting
temperatures are attributed mainly to the covalent bonding in these clusters,
in contrast with the covalent-metallic bonding in the bulk.Comment: 4 pages, including 6 figures. accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.
Let
Goldstones in Diphotons
We study the conditions for a new scalar resonance to be observed first in
diphotons at the LHC Run-2. We focus on scenarios where the scalar arises
either from an internal or spacetime symmetry broken spontaneously, for which
the mass is naturally below the cutoff and the low-energy interactions are
fixed by the couplings to the broken currents, UV anomalies, and selection
rules. We discuss the recent excess in diphoton resonance searches observed by
ATLAS and CMS at 750 GeV, and explore its compatibility with other searches at
Run-1 and its interpretation as Goldstone bosons in supersymmetry and composite
Higgs models. We show that two candidates naturally emerge: a Goldstone boson
from an internal symmetry with electromagnetic anomalies, and the scalar
partner of the Goldstone of supersymmetry breaking: the sgoldstino. The dilaton
from conformal symmetry breaking is instead disfavoured by present data, in its
minimal natural realization.Comment: 18 pages + refs, 2 figures. v2: typos corrected, references added,
discussions extended and three new plots. Conclusion unchanged. v3: published
versio
Minimal Gaugino Mediation
We propose Minimal Gaugino Mediation as the simplest known solution to the
supersymmetric flavor and CP problems. The framework predicts a very minimal
structure for the soft parameters at ultra-high energies: gaugino masses are
unified and non-vanishing whereas all other soft supersymmetry breaking
parameters vanish. We show that this boundary condition naturally arises from a
small extra dimension and present a complete model which includes a new
extra-dimensional solution to the mu problem. We briefly discuss the predicted
superpartner spectrum as a function of the two parameters of the model. The
commonly ignored renormalization group evolution above the GUT scale is crucial
to the viability of Minimal Gaugino Mediation but does not introduce new model
dependence.Comment: LaTeX, 16 pages, 4 figures, running of the bottom and tau Yukawas
included, plots revise
Size--sensitive melting characteristics of gallium clusters: Comparison of Experiment and Theory for Ga and Ga
Experiments and simulations have been performed to examine the
finite-temperature behavior of Ga and Ga clusters.
Specific heats and average collision cross sections have been measured as a
function of temperature, and the results compared to simulations performed
using first principles Density--Functional Molecular--Dynamics. The
experimental results show that while Ga apparently undergoes a
solid--liquid transition without a significant peak in the specific--heat,
Ga melts with a relatively sharp peak. Our analysis of the
computational results indicate a strong correlation between the ground--state
geometry and the finite--temperature behavior of the cluster. If the
ground--state geometry is symmetric and "ordered" the cluster is found to have
a distinct peak in the specific--heat. However, if the ground--state geometry
is amorphous or "disordered" the cluster melts without a peak in the
specific--heat.Comment: 6 figure
The Gravitino-Stau Scenario after Catalyzed BBN
We consider the impact of Catalyzed Big Bang Nucleosynthesis on theories with
a gravitino LSP and a charged slepton NLSP. In models where the gravitino to
gaugino mass ratio is bounded from below, such as gaugino-mediated SUSY
breaking, we derive a lower bound on the gaugino mass parameter m_1/2. As a
concrete example, we determine the parameter space of gaugino mediation that is
compatible with all cosmological constraints.Comment: 1+14 pages, 6 figures; v2: minor clarifications, 1 reference added,
matches version to appear in JCA
Minimal Supersymmetric Pati-Salam Theory: Determination of Physical Scales
We systematically study the minimal supersymmetric Pati-Salam theory, paying
special attention to the unification constraints. We find that the SU(4)_c
scale M_c and the Left-Right scale M_R lie in the range 10^{10} GeV < M_c <
10^{14} GeV, 10^{3} GeV < M_R <10^{10} GeV (with single-step breaking at
10^{10} GeV), giving a potentially accessible scale of parity breaking. The
theory includes the possibility of having doubly-charged supermultiplets at the
supersymmetry breaking scale; color octet states with mass of order M_R^2/M_c;
magnetic monopoles of intermediate mass that do not conflict with cosmology,
and a 'clean' (type I) form for the see-saw mechanism of neutrino mass.Comment: 5 page
Intrauterine exposure to mild analgesics during pregnancy and the occurrence of cryptorchidism and hypospadia in the offspring: The Generation R Study
This article is available open access through the publisher’s website. Copyright @ 2012 The Authors.BACKGROUND - Recently, over-the-counter mild analgesic use during pregnancy has been suggested to influence the risk of reproductive disorders in the offspring. We examined the influence of maternal exposure to mild analgesics during pregnancy on the occurrence of cryptorchidism and hypospadia in their offspring.
METHODS - Associations between maternal exposure to mild analgesics during pregnancy and cryptorchidism or hypospadia in the offspring were studied in 3184 women participating in a large population-based prospective birth cohort study from early pregnancy onwards in the Netherlands (2002–2006), the Generation R Study. Cryptorchidism and hypospadia were identified during routine screening assessments performed in child health care centres by trained physicians. The use of mild analgesics was assessed in three prenatal questionnaires in pregnancy, resulting in four periods of use, namely, periconception period, first 14 weeks of gestation, 14–22 weeks of gestation and 20–32 weeks of gestation. Logistic regression analyses were used to study the associations between maternal exposure to mild analgesics and cryptorchidism and hypospadia.
RESULTS - The cumulative prevalence over 30 months of follow up was 2.1% for cryptorchidism and 0.7% for hypospadia. Use of mild analgesics in the second period of pregnancy (14–22 weeks) increased the risk of congenital cryptorchidism [adjusted odds ratio (OR) 2.12; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.17–3.83], primarily due to the use of acetaminophen (paracetamol) (adjusted OR 1.89; 95% CI 1.01–3.51). Among mothers of cryptorchid sons, 33.8% reported (23 of 68) the use of mild analgesics during pregnancy, compared with 31.8% (7 of 22) of mothers with a boy with hypospadia and 29.9% (926 of 3094) of mothers with healthy boys.
CONCLUSIONS - Our results suggest that intrauterine exposure to mild analgesics, primarily paracetamol, during the period in pregnancy when male sexual differentiation takes place, increases the risk of cryptorchidism.Erasmus University Rotterdam, School of Law and Faculty of Social Sciences, the Municipal Health Service Rotterdam area, Rotterdam, the Rotterdam Homecare Foundation, Rotterdam and the Stichting Trombosedienst & Artsenlaboratorium
Rijnmond (STAR), Rotterdam
A Solution to the Hierarchy Problem with an Infinitely Large Extra Dimension and Moduli Stabilization
We construct a class of solutions to the Einstein's equations for dimensions
greater than or equal to six. These solutions are characterized by a
non-trivial warp factor and possess a non-compact extra dimension. We study in
detail a simple model in six dimensions containing two four branes. One of each
brane's four spatial directions is compactified. The hierarchy problem is
resolved by the enormous difference between the warp factors at the positions
of the two branes, with the standard model fields living on the brane with
small warp factor. Both branes can have positive tensions. Their positions, and
the size of the compact dimension are determined in terms of the fundamental
parameters of the theory by a combination of two independent and comparable
effects---an anisotropic contribution to the stress tensor of each brane from
quantum fields living on it and a contribution to the stress tensor from a bulk
scalar field. One overall fine tuning of the parameters of the theory is
required ---that for the cosmological constant.Comment: 16 pages 1 figure. Conclusion about naturalness of hierarchy without
bulk interactions changed. Section added on obtaining a natural hierarchy
with bulk scalar field. References added. Minor editin
Sparticle spectrum and constraints in anomaly mediated supersymmetry breaking models
We study in detail the particle spectrum in anomaly mediated supersymmetry
breaking models in which supersymmetry breaking terms are induced by the
super-Weyl anomaly. We investigate the minimal anomaly mediated supersymmetry
breaking models, gaugino assisted supersymmetry breaking models, as well as
models with additional residual nondecoupling D-term contributions due to an
extra U(1) gauge symmetry at a high energy scale. We derive sum rules for the
sparticle masses in these models which can help in differentiating between
them. We also obtain the sparticle spectrum numerically, and compare and
contrast the results so obtained for the different types of anomaly mediated
supersymmetry breaking models.Comment: LaTeX, 20 pages, 6 figures. A few comments and a reference added;
typos corrected; version published in Phys. Rev.
Matter-gravity interaction in a multiply warped braneworld,
The role of a bulk graviton in predicting the signature of extra dimensions
through collider-based experiments is explored in the context of a multiply
warped spacetime. In particular it is shown that in a doubly warped braneworld
model, the presence of the sixth dimension, results in enhanced concentration
of graviton Kaluza Klein (KK) modes compared to that obtained in the usual
5-dimensional Randall-Sundrum model. Also, the couplings of these massive
graviton KK modes with the matter fields on the visible brane turn out to be
appreciably larger than that in the corresponding 5- dimensional model. The
significance of these results are discussed in the context of KK graviton
search at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC).Comment: 13 pages, 2 table
- …