Entanglement in finite spin rings with noncollinear Ising interaction

We investigate the entanglement properties of finite spin rings, with noncollinear Ising interaction between nearest neighbours. The orientations of the Ising axes are determined either by the spin position within the ring (model A) or by the direction of the bond (model B). In both cases, the considered spin Hamiltonians have a point group symmetry, rather than a translation invariance, as in spin rings with collinear Ising interaction. The ground state of these models exhibit remarkable entanglement properties, resembling GHZ-like states in the absence of an applied magnetic field (model B). Besides, the application of an homogeneous magnetic field allows to modify qualitatively the character of the ground state entanglement, switching from multipartite to pairwise quantum correlations (both models A and B)

Cochlear injury and adaptive plasticity of the auditory cortex

Growing evidence suggests that cochlear stressors as noise exposure and aging can induce homeostatic/maladaptive changes in the central auditory system from the brainstem to the cortex. Studies centered on such changes have revealed several mechanisms that operate in the context of sensory disruption after insult (noise trauma, drug-, or age-related injury). The oxidative stress is central to current theories of induced sensory-neural hearing loss and aging, and interventions to attenuate the hearing loss are based on antioxidant agent. The present review addresses the recent literature on the alterations in hair cells and spiral ganglion neurons due to noise-induced oxidative stress in the cochlea, as well on the impact of cochlear damage on the auditory cortex neurons. The emerging image emphasizes that noise-induced deafferentation and upward spread of cochlear damage is associated with the altered dendritic architecture of auditory pyramidal neurons. The cortical modifications may be reversed by treatment with antioxidants counteracting the cochlear redox imbalance. These findings open new therapeutic approaches to treat the functional consequences of the cortical reorganization following cochlear damage

Hyperfine-induced decoherence in triangular spin-cluster qubits

We investigate hyperfine-induced decoherence in a triangular spin-cluster for different qubit encodings. Electrically controllable eigenstates of spin chirality (C_z) show decoherence times that approach milliseconds, two orders of magnitude longer than those estimated for the eigenstates of the total spin projection (S_z) and of the partial spin sum (S_{12}). The robustness of chirality is due to its decoupling from both the total- and individual-spin components in the cluster. This results in a suppression of the effective interaction between C_z and the nuclear spin bath

Towards the chemical tuning of entanglement in molecular nanomagnets

Antiferromagnetic spin rings represent prototypical realizations of highly correlated, low-dimensional systems. Here we theoretically show how the introduction of magnetic defects by controlled chemical substitutions results in a strong spatial modulation of spin-pair entanglement within each ring. Entanglement between local degrees of freedom (individual spins) and collective ones (total ring spins) are shown to coexist in exchange-coupled ring dimers, as can be deduced from general symmetry arguments. We verify the persistence of these features at finite temperatures, and discuss them in terms of experimentally accessible observables.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Spin-Electric Coupling in Molecular Magnets

We study the triangular antiferromagnet Cu$_3$ in external electric fields, using symmetry group arguments and a Hubbard model approach. We identify a spin-electric coupling caused by an interplay between spin exchange, spin-orbit interaction, and the chirality of the underlying spin texture of the molecular magnet. This coupling allows for the electric control of the spin (qubit) states, e.g. by using an STM tip or a microwave cavity. We propose an experimental test for identifying molecular magnets exhibiting spin-electric effects.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure

Geomorphology of the lower Mesopotamian plain at Tell Zurghul archaeological site

The landscape of the Lower Mesopotamia Plain (LMP) has been moulded by water-related processes, consequently, its Holocene geomorphic evolution has been strictly connected to the fluvial process and the anthropogenic water management since 8000 BC. About 6000 years ago, during the maximum marine ingression, the modern cities of Nasiriyah and Al-Amara were close to the Persian Gulf shoreline. Successively, the Tigris and Euphrates developed two wide delta systems, that prograded south-eastward developing a complex fluvial network. Remote sensing investigations over the LMP using satellite imagery and topographic analysis revealed the surficial expression of deltaic bodies with a lobate planform and several terminal distributary channels (TDCs), classifiable as tidal-influenced river-dominated deltas. Tell Zurghul archaeological site, belonging to the ancient State of Lagash, expanded in the western part of the recognized TDC during the Mid- and Late Holocene. Indeed, the occurrence of a divergent multi-channel system supplied water for the early civilizations, which improved the water management and prevented floods through a canals network. Therefore, the multi-sensor remote sensing approach over an area of 2850 km2 allowed us to recognize several fluvial landforms, both still active and relict, attributable to the Holocene riverscape of the LMP, as well as anthropogenic features and aeolian deposits. The Main map is a geomorphological map at the scale of 1:120,000 centred on Tell Zurghul, focusing on the geometry, spatial distribution, and state of activity of erosional and constructional landforms

Neutral and charged electron-hole complexes in artificial molecules: quantum transitions induced by the in-plane magnetic field

We theoretically investigate the properties of neutral and charged excitons and of the biexciton in vertically coupled quantum dots, as a function of the in-plane magnetic field B-parallel to. The main effect of the field consists in the suppression of the bonding-antibonding splitting, and in the resulting enhancement of the interdot correlations. As a consequence, the excitons form with the additional carrier a bound or an unbound complex depending on the sign of the charging, whereas the biexciton undergoes a transition between different quantum states with increasing B-parallel to. The discussed behaviors and transitions show up in the field dependence of experimentally accessible quantities, such as the charged-exciton and biexciton binding energies

Spin electric effects in molecular antiferromagnets

Molecular nanomagnets show clear signatures of coherent behavior and have a wide variety of effective low-energy spin Hamiltonians suitable for encoding qubits and implementing spin-based quantum information processing. At the nanoscale, the preferred mechanism for control of quantum systems is through application of electric fields, which are strong, can be locally applied, and rapidly switched. In this work, we provide the theoretical tools for the search for single molecule magnets suitable for electric control. By group-theoretical symmetry analysis we find that the spin-electric coupling in triangular molecules is governed by the modification of the exchange interaction, and is possible even in the absence of spin-orbit coupling. In pentagonal molecules the spin-electric coupling can exist only in the presence of spin-orbit interaction. This kind of coupling is allowed for both $s=1/2$ and $s=3/2$ spins at the magnetic centers. Within the Hubbard model, we find a relation between the spin-electric coupling and the properties of the chemical bonds in a molecule, suggesting that the best candidates for strong spin-electric coupling are molecules with nearly degenerate bond orbitals. We also investigate the possible experimental signatures of spin-electric coupling in nuclear magnetic resonance and electron spin resonance spectroscopy, as well as in the thermodynamic measurements of magnetization, electric polarization, and specific heat of the molecules.Comment: 31 pages, 24 figure

Calculation of pure dephasing for excitons in quantum dots

Pure dephasing of an exciton in a small quantum dot by optical and acoustic phonons is calculated using the ``independent boson model''. Considering the case of zero temperature the dephasing is shown to be only partial which manifests itself in the polarization decaying to a finite value. Typical dephasing times can be assigned even though the spectra exhibits strongly non-Lorentzian line shapes. We show that the dephasing from LO phonon scattering, occurs on a much larger time scale than that of dephasing due to acoustic phonons which for low temperatures are also a more efficient dephasing mechanism. The typical dephasing time is shown to strongly depend on the quantum dot size whereas the electron phonon ``coupling strength'' and external electric fields tend mostly to effect the residual coherence. The relevance of the dephasing times for current quantum information processing implementation schemes in quantum dots is discussed

Antioxidant treatment with coenzyme Q-ter in prevention of gentamycin ototoxicity in an animal model

Aminoglycosides, such as gentamycin, are well known ototoxic agents. Toxicity occurs via an activation process involving the formation of an iron-gentamycin complex with free radical production. Antioxidants like Q-ter (a soluble formulation of coenzyme Q10, CoQ10), can limit or prevent cellular ototoxic damage. The present study was designed to investigate the possible protective effects of Q-ter on gentamycin ototoxicity in albino guinea pigs (250-300 g). Animals were divided into five experimental groups: I, a sham control group given an intra-peritoneal (I.P.) injection of 0.5 ml saline (SHAM); II, gentamycin group (GM), treated with an injection of gentamycin (100 mg/ kg); III, gentamycin + Q-ter group (GM+Q-ter), treated with gentamycin (same dose as group II) and an I.P. injection of coenzyme Q10 terclatrate (Q-ter) at 100 mg/kg body weight; IV, injected with gentamycin (100 mg/kg) plus saline; V, treated with Q-ter alone (100 mg/ kg). All animals were treated for 14 consecutive days. Auditory function was evaluated by recording auditory brainstem responses (ABR) at 15 and 30 days from the beginning of treatment. Morphological changes were analyzed by rhodamine-phalloidine staining. Gentamycininduced progressive high-frequency hearing loss of 45-55 dB SPL. Q-ter therapy slowed and attenuated the progression of hearing loss, yielding a threshold shift of 20 dB. The significant loss of outer hair cells (OHCs) in the cochlear medio-basal turn in gentamycin-treated animals was not observed in the cochleae of animals protected with Q-ter. This study supports the hypothesis that Q-ter interferes with gentamycin-induced free radical formation, and suggests that it may be useful in protecting OHC function from aminoglycoside ototoxicity, thus reducing hearing loss