32 research outputs found
Correlation Functions for an Elastic String in a Random Potential: Instanton Approach
We develop an instanton technique for calculations of correlation functions
characterizing statistical behavior of the elastic string in disordered media
and apply the proposed approach to correlations of string free energies
corresponding to different low-lying metastable positions. We find high-energy
tails of correlation functions for the case of long-range disorder (the
disorder correlation length well exceeds the characteristic distance between
the sequential string positions) and short-range disorder with the correlation
length much smaller then the characteristic string displacements. The former
case refers to energy distributions and correlations on the distances below the
Larkin correlation length, while the latter describes correlations on the large
spatial scales relevant for the creep dynamics.Comment: 5 pages; 1 .eps figure include
Melting of Flux Lines in an Alternating Parallel Current
We use a Langevin equation to examine the dynamics and fluctuations of a flux
line (FL) in the presence of an {\it alternating longitudinal current}
. The magnus and dissipative forces are equated to those
resulting from line tension, confinement in a harmonic cage by neighboring FLs,
parallel current, and noise. The resulting mean-square FL fluctuations are
calculated {\it exactly}, and a Lindemann criterion is then used to obtain a
nonequilibrium `phase diagram' as a function of the magnitude and frequency of
. For zero frequency, the melting temperature of the
mixed phase (a lattice, or the putative "Bose" or "Bragg Glass") vanishes at a
limiting current. However, for any finite frequency, there is a non-zero
melting temperature.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figur
Emotion Dysregulation and Conspiracy Beliefs about COVID-19: The Moderating Role of Critical Social Media Use
As COVID-19 has spread worldwide, conspiracy theories have proliferated rapidly on social media platforms, adversely affecting public health. For this reason, media literacy interventions have been highly recommended, although the impact of critical social media use on the development of COVID-19 conspiracy theories has not yet been empirically studied. Moreover, emotional dysregulation may play another crucial role in the development of such theories, as they are often associated with stress, anxiety, lack of control, and other negative emotions. Therefore, the aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that emotion dysregulation would be positively associated with conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 and that critical use of social media would attenuate this association. Data from 930 Italian participants (339 men and 591 women) were collected online during the third wave of the COVID-19 outbreak. A moderated model was tested using the PROCESS Macro for SPSS. Results showed that: (1) emotion dysregulation and critical social media use accounted for a significant proportion of the variance in conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19; and (2) critical social media use moderated the effect of emotion dysregulation on conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19. Implications for preventing the spread of conspiracy theories are discussed
Patterned Irradiation of YBa_2Cu_3O_(7-x) Thin Films
We present a new experiment on YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-x} (YBCO) thin films using
spatially resolved heavy ion irradiation. Structures consisting of a periodic
array of strong and weak pinning channels were created with the help of metal
masks. The channels formed an angle of +/-45 Deg with respect to the symmetry
axis of the photolithographically patterned structures. Investigations of the
anisotropic transport properties of these structures were performed. We found
striking resemblance to guided vortex motion as it was observed in YBCO single
crystals containing an array of unidirected twin boundaries. The use of two
additional test bridges allowed to determine in parallel the resistivities of
the irradiated and unirradiated parts as well as the respective current-voltage
characteristics. These measurements provided the input parameters for a
numerical simulation of the potential distribution of the Hall patterning. In
contrast to the unidirected twin boundaries in our experiment both strong and
weak pinning regions are spatially extended. The interfaces between
unirradiated and irradiated regions therefore form a Bose-glass contact. The
experimentally observed magnetic field dependence of the transverse voltage
vanishes faster than expected from the numerical simulation and we interpret
this as a hydrodynamical interaction between a Bose-glass phase and a vortex
liquid.Comment: 7 pages, 8 Eps figures included. Submitted to PR
Dynamic Vortex Phases and Pinning in Superconductors with Twin Boundaries
We investigate the pinning and driven dynamics of vortices interacting with
twin boundaries using large scale molecular dynamics simulations on samples
with near one million pinning sites. For low applied driving forces, the vortex
lattice orients itself parallel to the twin boundary and we observe the
creation of a flux gradient and vortex free region near the edges of the twin
boundary. For increasing drive, we find evidence for several distinct dynamical
flow phases which we characterize by the density of defects in the vortex
lattice, the microscopic vortex flow patterns, and orientation of the vortex
lattice. We show that these different dynamical phases can be directly related
to microscopically measurable voltage - current V(I) curves and voltage noise.
By conducting a series of simulations for various twin boundary parameters we
derive several vortex dynamic phase diagrams.Comment: 5 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev.
Elastic-to-plastic crossover below the peak effect in the vortex solid of YBa2Cu3O7 single crystals
We report on transport and ac susceptibility studies below the peak effect in
twinned YBa2Cu3O7 single crystals. We find that disorder generated at the peak
effect can be partially inhibited by forcing vortices to move with an ac
driving current. The vortex system can be additionally ordered below a
well-defined temperature where elastic interactions between vortices overcome
pinning-generated stress and a plastic to elastic crossover seems to occur. The
combined effect of these two processes results in vortex structures with
different mobilities that give place to history effects.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures. Published in PRB Rapid Comm., February 1, 200
The Bone-Protective Effect of Genistein in the Animal Model of Bilateral Ovariectomy: Roles of Phytoestrogens and PTH/PTHR1 Against Post-Menopausal Osteoporosis
Genistein, a major phytoestrogen of soy, is considered a potential drug for the prevention and treatment of post-menopausal osteoporosis. Mounting evidence suggested a positive correlation between genistein consumption and bone health both in vivo and in vitro. Earlier studies have revealed that genistein acted as a natural estrogen analogue which activated estrogen receptor and exerted anti-osteoporotic effect. However, it remains unclear whether PTH, the most crucial hormone that regulates mineral homeostasis, participates in the process of genistein-mediated bone protection. In the present study, we compared the therapeutic effects between genistein and nilestriol and investigated whether PTH and its specific receptor PTHR1 altered in response to genistein-containing diet in the animal model of ovariectomy. Our results showed that genistein administration significantly improved femoral mechanical properties and alleviates femoral turnover. Genistein at all doses (4.5 mg/kg, 9.0 mg/kg and 18.0 mg/kg per day, respectively) exerted improved bending strength and b-ALP limiting effects than nilestriol in the present study. However, genistein administration did not exert superior effects on bone protection than nilestriol. We also observed circulating PTH restoration in ovariectomized rats receiving genistein at the dose of 18 mg/kg per day. Meanwhile, PTHR1 abnormalities were attenuated in the presence of genistein as confirmed by RT-PCR, Western blot and immunohistochemistry. These findings strongly support the idea that besides serving as an estrogen, genistein could interact with PTH/PTHR1, causing a superior mineral restoring effect than nilestriol on certain circumstance. In conclusion, our study reported for the first time that the anti-osteoporotic effect of genistein is partly PTH/PTHR1-dependent. Genistein might be a potential option in the prevention and treatment of post-menopausal osteoporosis with good tolerance, more clinical benefits and few undesirable side effects
Nature of the Low Field Transition in the Mixed State of High Temperature Superconductors
We have numerically studied the statics and dynamics of a model
three-dimensional vortex lattice at low magnetic fields. For the statics we use
a frustrated 3D XY model on a stacked triangular lattice. We model the dynamics
as a coupled network of overdamped resistively-shunted Josephson junctions with
Langevin noise. At low fields, there is a weakly first-order phase transition,
at which the vortex lattice melts into a line liquid. Phase coherence parallel
to the field persists until a sharp crossover, conceivably a phase transition,
near which develops at the same temperature as an infinite
vortex tangle. The calculated flux flow resistivity in various geometries near
closely resembles experiment. The local density of field induced
vortices increases sharply near , corresponding to the experimentally
observed magnetization jump. We discuss the nature of a possible transition or
crossover at (B) which is distinct from flux lattice melting.Comment: Updated references. 46 pages including low quality 25 eps figures.
Contact [email protected] or visit
http://www.physics.ohio-state.edu:80/~ryu/ for better figures and additional
movie files from simulations. To be published in Physical Review B1 01Jun9
Phase Behavior of Type-II Superconductors with Quenched Point Pinning Disorder: A Phenomenological Proposal
A general phenomenology for phase behaviour in the mixed phase of type-II
superconductors with weak point pinning disorder is outlined. We propose that
the ``Bragg glass'' phase generically transforms via two separate thermodynamic
phase transitions into a disordered liquid on increasing the temperature. The
first transition is into a glassy phase, topologically disordered at the
largest length scales; current evidence suggests that it lacks the long-ranged
phase correlations expected of a ``vortex glass''. This phase has a significant
degree of short-ranged translational order, unlike the disordered liquid, but
no quasi-long range order, in contrast to the Bragg glass. This glassy phase,
which we call a ``multi-domain glass'', is confined to a narrow sliver at
intermediate fields, but broadens out both for much larger and much smaller
field values. The multi-domain glass may be a ``hexatic glass''; alternatively,
its glassy properties may originate in the replica symmetry breaking envisaged
in recent theories of the structural glass transition. Estimates for
translational correlation lengths in the multi-domain glass indicate that they
can be far larger than the interline spacing for weak disorder, suggesting a
plausible mechanism by which signals of a two-step transition can be obscured.
Calculations of the Bragg glass-multi-domain glass and the multi-domain
glass-disordered liquid phase boundaries are presented and compared to
experimental data. We argue that these proposals provide a unified picture of
the available experimental data on both high-T and low-T materials,
simulations and current theoretical understanding.Comment: 70 pages, 9 postscript figures, modified title and minor changes in
published versio
Structural insight into the membrane targeting domain of the Legionella deAMPylase SidD
AMPylation, the post-translational modification with adenosine monophosphate (AMP), is catalyzed by effector proteins from a variety of pathogens. Legionella pneumophila is thus
far the only known pathogen that, in addition to encoding an AMPylase (SidM/DrrA), also
encodes a deAMPylase, called SidD, that reverses SidM-mediated AMPylation of the vesicle
transport GTPase Rab1. DeAMPylation is catalyzed by the N-terminal phosphatase-like
domain of SidD. Here, we determined the crystal structure of full length SidD including the
uncharacterized C-terminal domain (CTD). A flexible loop rich in aromatic residues within
the CTD was required to target SidD to model membranes in vitro and to the Golgi apparatus
within mammalian cells. Deletion of the loop (??loop) or substitution of its aromatic phenylalanine
residues rendered SidD cytosolic, showing that the hydrophobic loop is the
primary membrane-targeting determinant of SidD. Notably, deletion of the two terminal
alpha helices resulted in a CTD variant incapable of discriminating between membranes of
different composition. Moreover, a L. pneumophila strain producing SidD??loop phenocopied
a L. pneumophila ??sidD strain during growth in mouse macrophages and displayed prolonged
co-localization of AMPylated Rab1 with LCVs, thus revealing that membrane targeting
of SidD via its CTD is a critical prerequisite for its ability to catalyze Rab1 deAMPylation
during L. pneumophila infection