278 research outputs found
Self-aligned charge read-out for InAs nanowire quantum dots
A highly sensitive charge detector is realized for a quantum dot in an InAs
nanowire. We have developed a self-aligned etching process to fabricate in a
single step a quantum point contact in a two-dimensional electron gas and a
quantum dot in an InAs nanowire. The quantum dot is strongly coupled to the
underlying point contact which is used as a charge detector. The addition of
one electron to the quantum dot leads to a change of the conductance of the
charge detector by typically 20%. The charge sensitivity of the detector is
used to measure Coulomb diamonds as well as charging events outside the dot.
Charge stability diagrams measured by transport through the quantum dot and
charge detection merge perfectly.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figure
Bloch's theory in periodic structures with Rashba's spin-orbit interaction
We consider a two-dimensional electron gas with Rashba's spin-orbit
interaction and two in-plane potentials superimposed along directions
perpendicular to each other. The first of these potentials is assumed to be a
general periodic potential while the second one is totally arbitrary. A general
form for Bloch's amplitude is found and an eigen-value problem for the band
structure of the system is derived. We apply the general result to the two
particular cases in which either the second potential represents a harmonic
in-plane confinement or it is zero. We find that for a harmonic confinement
regions of the Brillouin zone with high polarizations are associated with the
ones of large group velocity.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure
Geometrical enhancement of the proximity effect in quantum wires with extended superconducting tunnel contacts
We study Andreev reflection in a ballistic one-dimensional channel coupled in
parallel to a superconductor via a tunnel barrier of finite length . The
dependence of the low-energy Andreev reflection probability on
reveals the existence of a characteristic length scale beyond which
is enhanced up to unity despite the low interfacial transparency. The
Andreev reflection enhancement is due to the strong mixing of particle and hole
states that builds up in contacts exceeding the coherence length ,
leading to a small energy gap (minigap) in the density of states of the normal
system. The role of the geometry of such hybrid contacts is discussed in the
context of the experimental observation of zero-bias Andreev anomalies in the
resistance of extended carbon nanotube/superconductor junctions in field effect
transistor setups.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures; minor revisions including added Ref. 7 and inset
to Fig. 3b; version as accepted for publication to Phys. Rev.
An uncharged amine in the transition state of the ribosornal peptidyl transfer reaction.
The ribosome has an active site comprised of RNA that catalyzes peptide bond formation. To understand how RNA promotes this reaction requires a detailed understanding of the chemical transition state. Here, we report the Bronsted coefficient of the a-amino nucleophile with a series of puromycin derivatives. Both 50S subunit- and 70S ribosome-catalyzed reactions displayed linear free-energy relationships with slopes close to zero under conditions where chemistry is rate limiting. These results indicate that, at the transition state, the nucleophile is neutral in the ribosome-catalyzed reaction, in contrast to the substantial positive charge reported for typical uncatalyzed aminolysis reactions. This suggests that the ribosomal transition state involves deprotonation to a degree commensurate with nitrogen-carbon bond formation. Such a transition state is significantly different from that of uncatalyzed aminolysis reactions in solution
Tunable few electron quantum dots in InAs nanowires
Quantum dots realized in InAs are versatile systems to study the effect of
spin-orbit interaction on the spin coherence, as well as the possibility to
manipulate single spins using an electric field. We present transport
measurements on quantum dots realized in InAs nanowires. Lithographically
defined top-gates are used to locally deplete the nanowire and to form
tunneling barriers. By using three gates, we can form either single quantum
dots, or two quantum dots in series along the nanowire. Measurements of the
stability diagrams for both cases show that this method is suitable for
producing high quality quantum dots in InAs.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure
Influence of clinical and gait analysis experience on reliability of observational gait analysis (Edinburgh Gait Score Reliability)
AbstractObjectivesTreatment complexity of cerebral palsy (CP) patients imposes outcome evaluation studies, which may include objective technical analysis and more subjective functional evaluation. The Edinburgh Gait Score (EGS) was proposed as an additive or alternative when complex instrumented three-dimensional gait analysis is not available. Our purposes were to apply a translated EGS to standard video recordings of independent walking spastic diplegic CP patients, to evaluate its intraobserver and interobserver reliability with respect to gait analysis familiar and not familiar observers.MethodsTen standard video recordings acquired during routine clinical gait analysis were examined by eight observers gait analysis interpretation experienced or not, out of various specialities, two times with a two weeks interval. Kappa statistics and intraclass correlation coefficient were calculated.ResultsBetter reliability was observed for foot and knee scores than in proximal segments with significant differences between stance and swing phase. Significantly better results in gait analysis trained observers underlines the importance to either be used to clinical gait analysis interpretation, or to benefit of video analysis training before observational scoring.ConclusionVisual evaluation may be used for outcome studies to explore clinical changes in CP patients over time and may be associated to other validated evaluation tools
Nanoscale spin rectifiers controlled by the Stark effect
The control of orbital and spin state of single electrons is a key ingredient
for quantum information processing, novel detection schemes, and, more
generally, is of much relevance for spintronics. Coulomb and spin blockade (SB)
in double quantum dots (DQDs) enable advanced single-spin operations that would
be available even for room-temperature applications for sufficiently small
devices. To date, however, spin operations in DQDs were observed at sub-Kelvin
temperatures, a key reason being that scaling a DQD system while retaining an
independent field-effect control on the individual dots is very challenging.
Here we show that quantum-confined Stark effect allows an independent
addressing of two dots only 5 nm apart with no need for aligned nanometer-size
local gating. We thus demonstrate a scalable method to fully control a DQD
device, regardless of its physical size. In the present implementation we show
InAs/InP nanowire (NW) DQDs that display an experimentally detectable SB up to
10 K. We also report and discuss an unexpected re-entrant SB lifting as a
function magnetic-field intensity
Spin-orbit qubit in a semiconductor nanowire
Motion of electrons can influence their spins through a fundamental effect
called spin-orbit interaction. This interaction provides a way to electrically
control spins and as such lies at the foundation of spintronics. Even at the
level of single electrons, spin-orbit interaction has proven promising for
coherent spin rotations. Here we report a spin-orbit quantum bit implemented in
an InAs nanowire, where spin-orbit interaction is so strong that spin and
motion can no longer be separated. In this regime we realize fast qubit
rotations and universal single qubit control using only electric fields. We
enhance coherence by dynamically decoupling the qubit from the environment. Our
qubits are individually addressable: they are hosted in single-electron quantum
dots, each of which has a different Land\'e g-factor. The demonstration of a
nanowire qubit opens ways to harness the advantages of nanowires for use in
quantum computing. Nanowires can serve as one-dimensional templates for
scalable qubit registers. Unique to nanowires is the possibility to easily vary
the material even during wire growth. Such flexibility can be used to design
wires with suppressed decoherence and push semiconductor qubit fidelities
towards error-correction levels. Furthermore, electrical dots can be integrated
with optical dots in p-n junction nanowires. The coherence times achieved here
are sufficient for the conversion of an electronic qubit into a photon, the
flying qubit, for long-distance quantum communication
Providing social support for underrepresented racial and ethnic minority phd students in the biomedical sciences:a career coaching model
Improvement in the proportion of underrepresented racial and ethnic minorities (URMs) in academic positions has been unsatisfactory. Although this is a complex problem, one key issue is that graduate students often rely on research mentors for career-related support, the effectiveness of which can be variable. We present results from a novel academic career “coaching” intervention, one aim of which was to provide supplementary social support for PhD students, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds. Coaching was deÂlivered both within small groups and on an individual basis, with a diverse group of coachÂes and students coming from many universities. Coaches were provided with additional diversity training. Ninety-six semistructured interviews with 33 URM students over 3 years were analyzed using a qualitative framework approach. For most of the URM PhD students, coaching provided social support in the form of emotional, informational, and appraisal support. Coaching groups provided a noncompetitive environment and “community of support” within which students were able to learn from one another’s experiences and discuss negative and stressful experiences related to their graduate school, lab, or career plans. This coached peer group model is capable of providing the social support that many URM students do not find at their home universities
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