691 research outputs found
Hierarchical functionalisation of single-wall carbon nanotubes with DNA through positively charged pyrene
A simple and efficient method to link reversibly DNA to SWNTs via electrostatic interaction is reported. The DNA/nanotube hybrids are characterised by a combination of gel electrophoresis and AFM
On the reheating stage after inflation
We point out that inflaton decay products acquire plasma masses during the
reheating phase following inflation. The plasma masses may render inflaton
decay kinematicaly forbidden, causing the temperature to remain frozen for a
period at a plateau value. We show that the final reheating temperature may be
uniquely determined by the inflaton mass, and may not depend on its coupling.
Our findings have important implications for the thermal production of
dangerous relics during reheating (e.g., gravitinos), for extracting bounds on
particle physics models of inflation from Cosmic Microwave Background
anisotropy data, for the production of massive dark matter candidates during
reheating, and for models of baryogenesis or leptogensis where massive
particles are produced during reheating.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures. Submitted for publication in Phys. Rev.
A loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay for rapid detection of Anaplasma phagocytophilum infection in dogs
A simple and rapid diagnostic method of Anaplasma phagocytophilum infection was established, employing the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) reaction. With 1 set of 4 specific primers targeting the citrate synthase (gltA) gene of A. phagocytophilum, the LAMP assay rapidly amplified the target DNA sequence in a single tube in 1 h, requiring only a water bath for reaction. When visualized by gel electrophoresis, the LAMP products appeared as a ladder-like pattern, with many bands of different sizes from 180 base pairs up to the loading well. The results obtained from testing 32 clinical blood samples of dogs demonstrated that the LAMP method was more sensitive than nested PCR in the diagnosis reaction for the detection of A. phagocytophilum DNA
The effects of the bacterial interaction with visible-light responsive titania photocatalyst on the bactericidal performance
Bactericidal activity of traditional titanium dioxide (TiO2) photocatalyst is effective only upon irradiation by ultraviolet light, which restricts the potential applications of TiO2 for use in our living environments. Recently carbon-containing TiO2 was found to be photoactive at visible-light illumination that affords the potential to overcome this problem; although, the bactericidal activity of these photocatalysts is relatively lower than conventional disinfectants. Evidenced from scanning electron microscopy and confocal Raman spectral mapping analysis, we found the interaction with bacteria was significantly enhanced in these anatase/rutile mixed-phase carbon-containing TiO2. Bacteria-killing experiments indicate that a significantly higher proportion of all tested pathogens including Staphylococcus aureus, Shigella flexneri and Acinetobacter baumannii, were eliminated by the new nanoparticle with higher bacterial interaction property. These findings suggest the created materials with high bacterial interaction ability might be a useful strategy to improve the antimicrobial activity of visible-light-activated TiO2
Phenomenology of a Fluxed MSSM
We analyze the phenomenology of a set of minimal supersymmetric standard
model (MSSM) soft terms inspired by flux-induced supersymmetry (SUSY)-breaking
in Type IIB string orientifolds. The scheme is extremely constrained with
essentially only two free mass parameters: a parameter M, which sets the scale
of soft terms, and the mu parameter. After imposing consistent radiative
electro-weak symmetry breaking (EWSB) the model depends upon one mass parameter
(say, M). In spite of being so constrained one finds consistency with EWSB
conditions. We demonstrate that those conditions have two solutions for mu<0,
and none for mu>0. The parameter tan beta results as a prediction and is
approximately 3-5 for one solution, and 25-40 for the other, depending upon M
and the top mass. We examine further constraints on the model coming from b->s
gamma, the muon g-2, Higgs mass limits and WMAP constraints on dark matter. The
MSSM spectrum is predicted in terms of the single free parameter M. The low tan
beta branch is consistent with a relatively light spectrum although it is
compatible with standard cosmology only if the lightest neutralino is unstable.
The high tan beta branch is compatible with all phenomenological constraints,
but has quite a heavy spectrum. We argue that the fine-tuning associated to
this heavy spectrum would be substantially ameliorated if an additional
relationship mu=-2M were present in the underlying theory.Comment: 18 pages, minor revision
Developing mHealth Apps with researchers: multi-stakeholder design considerations
The authors have been involved with developing a number of mHealth smartphone Apps for use in health or wellness research in collaboration with researchers, clinicians and patient groups for clinical areas including Sickle Cell Disease, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, asthma and infertility treatment. In these types of applications, end-users self-report their symptoms and quality of life or conduct psychometric tests. Physiological data may also be captured using sensors that are internal or external to the device.
Following a discussion of the multiple stakeholders that are typically involved in small scale research projects involving end-user data collection, four Apps are used as case studies to explore the issue of non-functional requirements
Effects of inhomogeneities on apparent cosmological observables: "fake" evolving dark energy
Using the exact Lemaitre-Bondi-Tolman solution with a non-vanishing
cosmological constant , we investigate how the presence of a local
spherically-symmetric inhomogeneity can affect apparent cosmological
observables, such as the deceleration parameter or the effective equation of
state of dark energy (DE), derived from the luminosity distance under the
assumption that the real space-time is exactly homogeneous and isotropic. The
presence of a local underdensity is found to produce apparent phantom behavior
of DE, while a locally overdense region leads to apparent quintessence
behavior. We consider relatively small large scale inhomogeneities which today
are not linear and could be seeded by primordial curvature perturbations
compatible with CMB bounds. Our study shows how observations in an
inhomogeneous CDM universe with initial conditions compatible with the
inflationary beginning, if interpreted under the wrong assumption of
homogeneity, can lead to the wrong conclusion about the presence of "fake"
evolving dark energy instead of .Comment: 22 pages, 19 figures,Final version to appear in European Physical
Journal
A Supersymmetric SO(10) Model with Inflation and Cosmic Strings
We have built a supersymmetric SO(10) model consistent with cosmological
observations. The model gives rise to a false vacuum hybrid inflationary
scenario which solves the monopole problem. We argue that this type of
inflationary scenario is generic in supersymmetric SO(10) model, and arises
naturally from the theory. Neither any external field nor any external symmetry
has to be added. It can just be a consequence of the theory. In our specific
model, at the end of inflation, cosmic strings form. The properties of the
strings are presented. The cosmic background radiation anisotropies induced by
the inflationary perturbations and the cosmic strings are estimated. The model
produces a stable lightest superparticle and a very light left-handed neutrino
which may serve as the cold and hot dark matter. The properties of a mixed
cosmic string-inflationary large scale structure formation scenario are
discussed.Comment: 32 pages, uses RevTex. Misprint in a referenc
Spin-3/2 Nucleon and Delta Baryons in Lattice QCD
We present first results for masses of spin-3/2 N and Delta baryons in
lattice QCD using Fat-Link Irrelevant Clover (FLIC) fermions. Spin-3/2
interpolating fields providing overlap with both spin-3/2 and spin-1/2 states
are considered. In the isospin-1/2 sector, we observe, after appropriate spin
and parity projection, a strong signal for the J^P=3/2^- state together with a
weak but discernible signal for the 3/2^+ state with a mass splitting near that
observed experimentally. We also find good agreement between the 1/2^+/- masses
and earlier nucleon mass simulations with the standard spin-1/2 interpolating
field. For the isospin-3/2 Delta states, clear mass splittings are observed
between the various 1/2^+/- and 3/2^+/- channels, with the calculated level
orderings in good agreement with those observed empirically.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figures, 2 table
Bond order from disorder in the planar pyrochlore magnet
We study magnetic order in the Heisenberg antiferromagnet on the checkerboard
lattice, a two-dimensional version of the pyrochlore network with strong
geometric frustration. By employing the semiclassical (1/S) expansion we find
that quantum fluctuations of spins induce a long-range order that breaks the
four-fold rotational symmetry of the lattice. The ordered phase is a
valence-bond crystal. We discuss similarities and differences with the extreme
quantum case S = 1/2 and find a useful phenomenology to describe the
bond-ordered phases.Comment: Minor clarifications + reference to an informal introduction
cond-mat/030809
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