Local order and magnetic behavior of amorphous and nanocrystalline yttrium iron garnet produced by swift heavy ion irradiations

International audienceThin epitaxial films of gallium or scandium-doped and undoped yttrium iron garnet (Y3Fe5O12 or YIG) on nonmagnetic Gd3Ga5O12 substrates were irradiated with swift heavy ions (50 MeV 32S, 50 MeV 63Cu, and 235 MeV 84Kr) in the electronic slowing down regime. The mean electronic stopping power in the films was always larger than the threshold for amorphous track formation in YIG which is around 4.5 MeV/μm in this low ion-velocity range. The local order and magnetic properties of the damaged films were then studied at room temperature by 57Fe conversion electron Mössbauer spectroscopy (CEMS) and x-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) at the iron K edge in the fluorescence mode. In the case of paramagnetic gallium or scandium-substituted films (YIG:Ga, YIG:Sc) irradiated with 32S or 63Cu ions, the CEMS data show that the tetrahedral Fe3+ sites are preferentially damaged, while the octahedral sites are conserved. This is confirmed by the decrease of the pre-edge peak in the XAS data of the ferrimagnetic undoped YIG films showing that the number of tetrahedral iron sites is decreased in the amorphous phase obtained with 84Kr ion irradiation, due to the formation of fivefold-coordinated pyramidal sites, as already found in a previous study on undoped YIG sinters amorphized by 3.5 GeV 132Xe ion irradiation. In the case of the nanophase induced by ion-beam recrystallization of the tracks with 32S or 63Cu irradiations, a further decrease of the pre-edge peak is found. This is interpreted by (i) an increase of the fivefold-coordinated pyramidal sites and/or (ii) a probable decomposition of the garnet into orthoferrite (YFeO3) and haematite (α-Fe2O3) under the high-pressure and high-temperature conditions in the thermal spike generated by the ions. The CEMS data of irradiated undoped YIG also show that both the amorphous and nanocrystalline phases have a paramagnetic behavior at room temperature. The nanophase magnetic behavior is analyzed on the basis of a superparamagnetic relaxation above the blocking temperature, whereas the amorphous phase behavior is ascribed to a speromagnetic state

Diffusion Process in a Flow

We establish circumstances under which the dispersion of passive contaminants in a forced, deterministic or random, flow can be consistently interpreted as a Markovian diffusion process. In case of conservative forcing the repulsive case only, $\vec{F}=\vec{\nabla }V$ with $V(\vec{x},t)$ bounded from below, is unquestionably admitted by the compatibility conditions. A class of diffusion processes is exemplified, such that the attractive forcing is allowed as well, due to an appropriate compensation coming from the "pressure" term. The compressible Euler flows form their subclass, when regarded as stochastic processes. We establish circumstances under which the dispersion of passive contaminants in a forced, deterministic or random, flow can be consistently interpreted as a Markovian diffusion process. In case of conservative forcing the repulsive case only, $\vec{F}=\vec{\nabla }V$ with $V(\vec{x},t)$ bounded from below, is unquestionably admitted by the compatibility conditions. A class of diffusion processes is exemplified, such that the attractive forcing is allowed as well, due to an appropriate compensation coming from the "pressure" term. The compressible Euler flows form their subclass, when regarded as stochastic processes.Comment: 10 pages, Late

Broken symmetries and directed collective energy transport

We study the appearance of directed energy current in homogeneous spatially extended systems coupled to a heat bath in the presence of an external ac field E(t). The systems are described by nonlinear field equations. By making use of a symmetry analysis we predict the right choice of E(t) and obtain directed energy transport for systems with a nonzero topological charge Q. We demonstrate that the symmetry properties of motion of topological solitons (kinks and antikinks) are equivalent to the ones for the energy current. Numerical simulations confirm the predictions of the symmetry analysis and, moreover, show that the directed energy current drastically increases as the dissipation parameter $\alpha$ reduces. Our results generalize recent rigorous theories of currents generated by broken time-space symmetries to the case of interacting many-particle systems.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure

Anatomy of the AGN in NGC 5548. III. The high-energy view with NuSTAR and INTEGRAL

We describe the analysis of the seven broad-band X-ray continuum observations of the archetypal Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 5548 that were obtained with XMM-Newton or Chandra, simultaneously with high-energy (>10 keV) observations with NuSTAR and INTEGRAL. These data were obtained as part of a multiwavelength campaign undertaken from the summer of 2013 till early 2014. We find evidence of a high-energy cut-off in at least one observation, which we attribute to thermal Comptonization, and a constant reflected component that is likely due to neutral material at least a few light months away from the continuum source. We confirm the presence of strong, partial covering X-ray absorption as the explanation for the sharp decrease in flux through the soft X-ray band. The obscurers appear to be variable in column density and covering fraction on time scales as short as weeks. A fit of the average spectrum over the range 0.3–400 keV with a realistic Comptonization model indicates the presence of a hot corona with a temperature of 40^(+40)_(-10) keV and an optical depth of 2.7^(+0.7)_(-1.2) if a spherical geometry is assumed

Organometallic iridium(III) anticancer complexes with new mechanisms of action: NCI-60 screening, mitochondrial targeting, and apoptosis

Platinum complexes related to cisplatin, cis-[PtCl2(NH3)2], are successful anticancer drugs; however, other transition metal complexes offer potential for combating cisplatin resistance, decreasing side effects, and widening the spectrum of activity. Organometallic half-sandwich iridium (IrIII) complexes [Ir(Cpx)(XY)Cl]+/0 (Cpx = biphenyltetramethylcyclopentadienyl and XY = phenanthroline (1), bipyridine (2), or phenylpyridine (3)) all hydrolyze rapidly, forming monofunctional G adducts on DNA with additional intercalation of the phenyl substituents on the Cpx ring. In comparison, highly potent complex 4 (Cpx = phenyltetramethylcyclopentadienyl and XY = N,N-dimethylphenylazopyridine) does not hydrolyze. All show higher potency toward A2780 human ovarian cancer cells compared to cisplatin, with 1, 3, and 4 also demonstrating higher potency in the National Cancer Institute (NCI) NCI-60 cell-line screen. Use of the NCI COMPARE algorithm (which predicts mechanisms of action (MoAs) for emerging anticancer compounds by correlating NCI-60 patterns of sensitivity) shows that the MoA of these IrIII complexes has no correlation to cisplatin (or oxaliplatin), with 3 and 4 emerging as particularly novel compounds. Those findings by COMPARE were experimentally probed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) of A2780 cells exposed to 1, showing mitochondrial swelling and activation of apoptosis after 24 h. Significant changes in mitochondrial membrane polarization were detected by flow cytometry, and the potency of the complexes was enhanced ca. 5× by co-administration with a low concentration (5 μM) of the γ-glutamyl cysteine synthetase inhibitor L-buthionine sulfoximine (L-BSO). These studies reveal potential polypharmacology of organometallic IrIII complexes, with MoA and cell selectivity governed by structural changes in the chelating ligands

Driven diffusion in a periodically compartmentalized tube: homogeneity versus intermittency of particle motion

We study the effect of a driving force F on drift and diffusion of a point Brownian particle in a tube formed by identical ylindrical compartments, which create periodic entropy barriers for the particle motion along the tube axis. The particle transport exhibits striking features: the effective mobility monotonically decreases with increasing F, and the effective diffusivity diverges as F → ∞, which indicates that the entropic effects in diffusive transport are enhanced by the driving force. Our consideration is based on two different scenarios of the particle motion at small and large F, homogeneous and intermittent, respectively. The scenarios are deduced from the careful analysis of statistics of the particle transition times between neighboring openings. From this qualitative picture, the limiting small-F and large-F behaviors of the effective mobility and diffusivity are derived analytically. Brownian dynamics simulations are used to find these quantities at intermediate values of the driving force for various compartment lengths and opening radii. This work shows that the driving force may lead to qualitatively different anomalous transport features, depending on the geometry design

Evaluación de la capacidad de rebrote en avena con distinta intensidad de defoliación y dos frecuencias de corte

La finalidad del presente trabajo fue estudiar el efecto de la frecuencia de corte y la intensidad de defoliación de la avena (Avena sativa), sobre la producción de materia seca y la persistencia. El ensayo se llevó a cabo en la Facultad de Agronomía de la UNLPam, durante el ciclo de cultivo en el año 1989. El diseño experimental empleado fue el de bloques completos al azar involucrando un arreglo de tratamiento factorial con cuatro repeticiones. En la experiencia se determinó producción de materia seca y stand de plantas. La comparación de las distintas frecuencias de corte dentro de una misma intensidad de defoliación, mostró diferencias altamente significativas en producción de materia seca en favor del intervalo entre cortes más prolongados y a su vez al comparar distintas intensidades de defoliación dentro de una misma frecuencia, se encontraron diferencias altamente significativas siendo mayor la producción de materia seca a mayor I.A.F. (índice de área foliar) remanente. En lo que respecta a stand de plantas se observó una pérdida muy importante en el corte más intenso, donde las pérdidas fueron del ochenta y cinco por ciento. Para lograr una alta producción de materia seca y buena persistencia se deben combinar una baja frecuencia con un elevado LA.F. remanente.Director: Ing. Agr. Oscar Hernández. Profesor Titular Cátedra de Forrajicultura y Manejó de pasturas

The parentage of 'Sangiovese', the most important Italian wine grape

A previous microsatellite study pointed out a possible parent-offspring relationship between 'Sangiovese', the most widespread red grape cultivar in Italy, and 'Ciliegiolo', an ancient Tuscan variety. Testing 'Sangiovese' as a parent of 'Ciliegiolo', we searched for the putative other parent in our extensive, private and standardized database, but we did not find any candidate. Testing 'Ciliegiolo' as a parent of 'Sangiovese', we found four candidate cultivars. After the analysis of 50 microsatellites, only one stood the paternity test and we established with a strong statistical support that 'Sangiovese' is a progeny of 'Ciliegiolo' and 'Calabrese di Montenuovo', an obscure grapevine from Campania, Italy. This cultivar does not have a registered name and is supposed to have been introduced from Calabria. Among 180 additional local grape cultivars from Calabria, Campania or Tuscany, we did not find any matching variety. As a consequence, we propose to adopt the name 'Calabrese di Montenuovo' for this grape cultivar. In addition, we found relatives of 'Sangiovese' and 'Calabrese di Montenuovo' in Calabria, thus strongly suggesting a Calabrian origin for 'Calabrese di Montenuovo' and indicating that 'Sangiovese' has ancestors and/or progenies in Tuscany and in Southern Italy.

Fire behaviour of non-load bearing double stud cold-formed steel frame walls

This work investigates the behaviour of Double stud Light Steel Frame (LSF) walls under ISO834 standard fire through a series of experimental tests. The walls were covered on both sides with one or two fire-resistant gypsum plasterboards (Type F), and the cavity of the steel frame was either empty, partially or fully insulated with ceramic fibre. The fire resistance of the assemblies is improved due to the existence of a wider cavity, the employment of additional gypsum plasterboard layers and the use of ceramic fibre cavity insulation. In partially insulated assemblies, significantly higher fire resistance is achieved when the ceramic fibre is placed towards the fire-exposed gypsum plasterboard. Moreover, the number of studs in contact with the unexposed gypsum plasterboard affects the fire resistance of the specimens. The experimental data acquired is useful to conduct further numerical analyses and experimental studies, as well as to understand the unique thermal behaviour of different configurations of double stud LSF walls at elevated temperatures.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Medical Therapies for Uterine Fibroids - A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials

BACKGROUND: Uterine fibroids are common, often symptomatic and a third of women need repeated time off work. Consequently 25% to 50% of women with fibroids receive surgical treatment, namely myomectomy or hysterectomy. Hysterectomy is the definitive treatment as fibroids are hormone dependent and frequently recurrent. Medical treatment aims to control symptoms in order to replace or delay surgery. This may improve the outcome of surgery and prevent recurrence. PURPOSE: To determine whether any medical treatment can be recommended in the treatment of women with fibroids about to undergo surgery and in those for whom surgery is not planned based on currently available evidence. STUDY SELECTION: Two authors independently identified randomised controlled trials (RCT) of all pharmacological treatments aimed at the treatment of fibroids from a list of references obtained by formal search of MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane library, Science Citation Index, and ClinicalTrials.gov until December 2013. DATA EXTRACTION: Two authors independently extracted data from identified studies. DATA SYNTHESIS: A Bayesian network meta-analysis was performed following the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence-Decision Support Unit guidelines. Odds ratios, rate ratios, or mean differences with 95% credible intervals (CrI) were calculated. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: A total of 75 RCT met the inclusion criteria, 47 of which were included in the network meta-analysis. The overall quality of evidence was very low. The network meta-analysis showed differing results for different outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: There is currently insufficient evidence to recommend any medical treatment in the management of fibroids. Certain treatments have future promise however further, well designed RCTs are needed