6,061 research outputs found
Langevin dynamics in crossed magnetic and electric fields: Hall and diamagnetic fluctuations
Based on the classical Langevin equation, we have re-visited the problem of
orbital motion of a charged particle in two dimensions for a normal magnetic
field crossed with or without an in-plane electric bias. We are led to two
interesting fluctuation effects: First, we obtain not only a longitudinal
"work-fluctuation" relation as expected for a barotropic type system, but also
a transverse work-fluctuation relation perpendicular to the electric bias. This
"Hall fluctuation" involves the product of the electric and the magnetic
fields. And second, for the case of harmonic confinement without bias, the
calculated probability density for the orbital magnetic moment gives non-zero
even moments, not derivable as field derivatives of the classical free energy.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, revised versio
Molecular Characterisation of Bacteriophage K Towards Applications for the Biocontrol of Pathogenic Staphylococci
End of project reportThe aim of this work was to characterise staphylococcal bacteriophage (a bacterial virus) and to assess their potential as therapeutic agents against pathogenic strains of Staphylococcus aureus, particularly mastitis-causing strains. The project included the use of two newly isolated phage CS1 and DW2, and an existing polyvalent phage. The new phage were isolated from the farmyard and characterised by electron microscopy and restriction analysis. Both phage were shown to belong to the Siphoviridae family and were lytic for representatives of all three clonal groups of Irish mastitis-associated staphylococci. A cocktail of three phage (CS1, DW2 and K) at 108 (plaque forming units) PFU/ml was infused into cows teats in animal trials. The lack of an increase in somatic cell counts in milks indicated strongly that the phage did not irritate the animal. In addition, the most potent phage used in this study, phage K, was further studied by genome sequencing, which revealed a linear DNA genome of 127,395 base pairs, which encodes 118 putative ORFs (open reading frames)
Monte Carlo simulation with time step quantification in terms of Langevin dynamics
For the description of thermally activated dynamics in systems of classical
magnetic moments numerical methods are desirable. We consider a simple model
for isolated magnetic particles in a uniform field with an oblique angle to the
easy axis of the particles. For this model, a comparison of the Monte Carlo
method with Langevin dynamics yields new insight in the interpretation of the
Monte Carlo process, leading to the implementation of a new algorithm where the
Monte Carlo step is time-quantified. The numeric results for the characteristic
time of the magnetisation reversal are in excellent agreement with asymptotic
solutions which itself are in agreement with the exact numerical results
obtained from the Fokker-Planck equation for the Neel-Brown model.Comment: 5 pages, Revtex, 4 Figures include
Magnetic susceptibility of a CuO2 plane in the La2CuO4 system: I. RPA treatment of the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya Interactions
Motivated by recent experiments on undoped La2CuO4, which found pronounced
temperature-dependent anisotropies in the low-field magnetic susceptibility, we
have investigated a two-dimensional square lattice of S=1/2 spins that interact
via Heisenberg exchange plus the symmetric and anti-symmetric
Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya anisotropies. We describe the transition to a state with
long-ranged order, and find the spin-wave excitations, with a mean-field
theory, linear spin-wave analysis, and using Tyablikov's RPA decoupling scheme.
We find the different components of the susceptibility within all of these
approximations, both below and above the N'eel temperature, and obtain evidence
of strong quantum fluctuations and spin-wave interactions in a broad
temperature region near the transition.Comment: 20 pages, 2 column format, 22 figure
On the Radial Distribution of White Dwarfs in the Globular Cluster NGC 6397
We have examined the radial distribution of white dwarfs over a single
HST/ACS field in the nearby globular cluster NGC 6397. In relaxed populations,
such as in a globular cluster, stellar velocity dispersion, and hence radial
distribution, is directly dependent on stellar masses. The progenitors of very
young cluster white dwarfs had a mass of ~0.8 solar masses, while the white
dwarfs themselves have a mass of ~0.5 solar masses. We thus expect young white
dwarfs to have a concentrated radial distribution (like that of their
progenitors) that becomes more extended over several relaxation times to mimic
that of ~0.5 solar mass main-sequence stars. However, we observe young white
dwarfs to have a significantly extended radial distribution compared to both
the most massive main sequence stars in the cluster and also to old white
dwarfs.Comment: 13 pages including 1 table and 3 figures. Accepted for publication in
the MNRAS Letter
Physical properties of the jet from DG Tauri on sub-arcsecond scales with HST/STIS
We derive the physical properties at the base of the jet from DG Tau both
along and across the flow and as a function of velocity. We analysed seven
optical spectra of the DG Tau jet, taken with the Hubble Space Telescope
Imaging Spectrograph. The spectra were obtained by placing a long-slit parallel
to the jet axis and stepping it across the jet width. The resulting
position-velocity diagrams in optical forbidden emission lines allowed access
to plasma conditions via calculation of emission line ratios.
We find at the base of the jet high electron density, 10, and
very low ionisation, , which combine to give a total
density up to 3 10. This analysis confirms previous reports of
variations in plasma parameters along the jet, (i.e. decrease in density by
several orders of magnitude, increase of from 0.05 to a plateau at 0.7
downstream at 2 from the star). Furthermore, a spatial coincidence is
revealed between sharp gradients in the total density and supersonic velocity
jumps. This strongly suggests that the emission is caused by shock excitation.
The position-velocity diagrams indicate the presence of both fast accelerating
gas and slower, less collimated material. We derive the mass outflow rate,
, in the blue-shifted lobe in different velocity channels, that
contribute to a total of 8 4 10 M
yr. We estimate that a symmetric bipolar jet would transport at the low
and intermediate velocities probed by rotation measurements, an angular
momentum flux of 2.9 1.5 10 M yr
AU km s.
The derived properties of the DG Tau jet are demonstrated to be consistent
with magneto-centrifugal theory. However, non-stationary modelling is required
in order to explain all of the features revealed at high resolution.Comment: 16 pages, 18 figure
Tradition and Prudence in Locke's Exceptions to Toleration
Why did Locke exclude Catholics and atheists from toleration? Not, I contend, because he was trapped by his context, but because his prudential approach and practica ljudgments led him to traditiona ltexts. I make this argumentfirst by outlining the connections among prudential exceptionality, practical judgments, and traditional texts. I then describe important continuities betweenc onventional English understandings of the relationship between state and religion and Locke's writings on toleration, discuss Locke's conception of rights, and illustrate his use of prudential exceptions and distinctions. I conclude by arguing that Locke's problems are relevant to assessingc ontemporary liberal discussions of tolerationa nd the separation of state and religion that lean heavily on practical justification
Accurate Results from Perturbation Theory for Strongly Frustrated Heisenberg Spin Clusters
We investigate the use of perturbation theory in finite sized frustrated spin
systems by calculating the effect of quantum fluctuations on coherent states
derived from the classical ground state. We first calculate the ground and
first excited state wavefunctions as a function of applied field for a 12-site
system and compare with the results of exact diagonalization. We then apply the
technique to a 20-site system with the same three fold site coordination as the
12-site system. Frustration results in asymptotically convergent series for
both systems which are summed with Pad\'e approximants.
We find that at zero magnetic field the different connectivity of the two
systems leads to a triplet first excited state in the 12-site system and a
singlet first excited state in the 20-site system, while the ground state is a
singlet for both. We also show how the analytic structure of the Pad\'e
approximants at evolves in the complex plane at
the values of the applied field where the ground state switches between spin
sectors and how this is connected with the non-trivial dependence of the
number on the strength of quantum fluctuations. We discuss the origin
of this difference in the energy spectra and in the analytic structures. We
also characterize the ground and first excited states according to the values
of the various spin correlation functions.Comment: Final version, accepted for publication in Physical review
The circumstellar environment of HD50138 revealed by VLTI/AMBER at high angular resolution
HD50138 is a Herbig B[e] star with a circumstellar disc detected at IR and mm
wavelength. Its brightness makes it a good candidate for NIR interferometry
observations. We aim to resolve, spatially and spectrally, the continuum and
hydrogen emission lines in the 2.12-2.47 micron region, to shed light on the
immediate circumstellar environment of the star. VLTI/AMBER K-band observations
provide spectra, visibilities, differential phases, and closure phases along
three long baselines for the continuum, and HI emission in Br and five
high-n Pfund lines. By computing the pure-line visibilities, we derive the
angular size of the different line-emitting regions. A simple LTE model was
created to constrain the physical conditions of HI emitting region. The
continuum region cannot be reproduced by a geometrical 2D elongated Gaussian
fitting model. We estimate the size of the region to be 1 au. We find the
Br and Pfund lines come from a more compact region of size 0.4 au. The
Br line exhibits an S-shaped differential phase, indicative of
rotation. The continuum and Br line closure phase show offsets of
-255 and 2010, respectively. This is evidence of an
asymmetry in their origin, but with opposing directions. We find that we cannot
converge on constraints for the HI physical parameters without a more detailed
model. Our analysis reveals that HD50138 hosts a complex circumstellar
environment. Its continuum emission cannot be reproduced by a simple disc
brightness distribution. Similarly, several components must be evoked to
reproduce the interferometric observables within the Br, line.
Combining the spectroscopic and interferometric data of the Br and
Pfund lines favours an origin in a wind region with a large opening angle.
Finally, our results point to an evolved source.Comment: accepted for publication in A&
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