823 research outputs found
A Quantum-Mechanical Equivalent-Photon Spectrum for Heavy-Ion Physics
In a previous paper, we calculated the fully quantum-mechanical cross section
for electromagnetic excitation during peripheral heavy-ion collisions. Here, we
examine the sensitivity of that cross section to the detailed structure of the
projectile and target nuclei. At the transition energies relevant to nuclear
physics, we find the cross section to be weakly dependent on the projectile
charge radius, and to be sensitive to only the leading momentum-transfer
dependence of the target transition form factors. We exploit these facts to
derive a quantum-mechanical ``equivalent-photon spectrum'' valid in the
long-wavelength limit. This improved spectrum includes the effects of
projectile size, the finite longitudinal momentum transfer required by
kinematics, and the response of the target nucleus to the off-shell photon.Comment: 19 pages, 5 figure
Higgs Scalars in the Minimal Non-minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model
We consider the simplest and most economic version among the proposed
non-minimal supersymmetric models, in which the -parameter is promoted to
a singlet superfield, whose all self-couplings are absent from the
renormalizable superpotential. Such a particularly simple form of the
renormalizable superpotential may be enforced by discrete -symmetries which
are extended to the gravity-induced non-renormalizable operators as well. We
show explicitly that within the supergravity-mediated supersymmetry-breaking
scenario, the potentially dangerous divergent tadpoles associated with the
presence of the gauge singlet first appear at loop levels higher than 5 and
therefore do not destabilize the gauge hierarchy. The model provides a natural
explanation for the origin of the -term, without suffering from the
visible axion or the cosmological domain-wall problem. Focusing on the Higgs
sector of this minimal non-minimal supersymmetric standard model, we calculate
its effective Higgs potential by integrating out the dominant quantum effects
due to stop squarks. We then discuss the phenomenological implications of the
Higgs scalars predicted by the theory for the present and future high-energy
colliders. In particular, we find that our new minimal non-minimal
supersymmetric model can naturally accommodate a relatively light charged Higgs
boson, with a mass close to the present experimental lower bound.Comment: 63 pages (12 figures), extended versio
Chemically selective alternatives to photoferroelectrics for polarization-enhanced photocatalysis: the untapped potential of hybrid inorganic nanotubes
Linear-scaling density functional theory simulation of methylated imogolite nanotubes (NTs) elucidates the interplay between wall-polarization, bands separation, charge-transfer excitation, and tunable electrostatics inside and outside the NT-cavity. The results suggest that integration of polarization-enhanced selective photocatalysis and chemical separation into one overall dipole-free material should be possible. Strategies are proposed to increase the NT polarization for maximally enhanced electronâhole separation
Heritability of specific language impairment depends on diagnostic criteria
Heritability estimates for specific language impairment (SLI) have been inconsistent. Four twin studies reported heritability of 0.5 or more, but a recent report from the Twins Early Development Study found negligible genetic influence in 4-year-olds. We considered whether the method of ascertainment influenced results and found substantially higher heritability if SLI was defined in terms of referral to speech and language pathology services than if defined by language test scores. Further analysis showed that presence of speech difficulties played a major role in determining whether a child had contact with services. Childhood language disorders that are identified by population screening are likely to have a different phenotype and different etiology from clinically referred cases. Genetic studies are more likely to find high heritability if they focus on cases who have speech difficulties and who have been referred for intervention
AltitudeOmics: The Integrative Physiology of Human Acclimatization to Hypobaric Hypoxia and Its Retention upon Reascent.
An understanding of human responses to hypoxia is important for the health of millions of people worldwide who visit, live, or work in the hypoxic environment encountered at high altitudes. In spite of dozens of studies over the last 100 years, the basic mechanisms controlling acclimatization to hypoxia remain largely unknown. The AltitudeOmics project aimed to bridge this gap. Our goals were 1) to describe a phenotype for successful acclimatization and assess its retention and 2) use these findings as a foundation for companion mechanistic studies. Our approach was to characterize acclimatization by measuring changes in arterial oxygenation and hemoglobin concentration [Hb], acute mountain sickness (AMS), cognitive function, and exercise performance in 21 subjects as they acclimatized to 5260 m over 16 days. We then focused on the retention of acclimatization by having subjects reascend to 5260 m after either 7 (nâ=â14) or 21 (nâ=â7) days at 1525 m. At 16 days at 5260 m we observed: 1) increases in arterial oxygenation and [Hb] (compared to acute hypoxia: PaO2 rose 9Âą4 mmHg to 45Âą4 while PaCO2 dropped a further 6Âą3 mmHg to 21Âą3, and [Hb] rose 1.8Âą0.7 g/dL to 16Âą2 g/dL; 2) no AMS; 3) improved cognitive function; and 4) improved exercise performance by 8Âą8% (all changes p<0.01). Upon reascent, we observed retention of arterial oxygenation but not [Hb], protection from AMS, retention of exercise performance, less retention of cognitive function; and noted that some of these effects lasted for 21 days. Taken together, these findings reveal new information about retention of acclimatization, and can be used as a physiological foundation to explore the molecular mechanisms of acclimatization and its retention
Signatures of Thermal Dilepton Radiation at RHIC
The properties of thermal dilepton production from heavy-ion collisions in
the RHIC energy regime are evaluated for invariant masses ranging from 0.5 to 3
GeV. Using an expanding thermal fireball to model the evolution through both
quark-gluon and hadronic phases various features of the spectra are addressed.
In the low-mass region, due to an expected large background, the focus is on
possible medium modifications of the narrow resonance structures from
and mesons, whereas in the intermediate-mass region the old idea of
identifying QGP radiation is reiterated including effects of chemical
under-saturation in the early stages of central Au+Au collisions.Comment: 17 pages ReVTeX including 16 figure
Compliance amongst asthma patients registered for an asthma disease risk-management programme in South Africa
Fast Neutron Detection with 6Li-loaded Liquid Scintillator
We report on the development of a fast neutron detector using a liquid
scintillator doped with enriched Li-6. The lithium was introduced in the form
of an aqueous LiCl micro-emulsion with a di-isopropylnaphthalene-based liquid
scintillator. A Li-6 concentration of 0.15 % by weight was obtained. A 125 mL
glass cell was filled with the scintillator and irradiated with fission-source
neutrons. Fast neutrons may produce recoil protons in the scintillator, and
those neutrons that thermalize within the detector volume can be captured on
the Li-6. The energy of the neutron may be determined by the light output from
recoiling protons, and the capture of the delayed thermal neutron reduces
background events. In this paper, we discuss the development of this 6Li-loaded
liquid scintillator, demonstrate the operation of it in a detector, and compare
its efficiency and capture lifetime with Monte Carlo simulations. Data from a
boron-loaded plastic scintillator were acquired for comparison. We also present
a pulse-shape discrimination method for differentiating between electronic and
nuclear recoil events based on the Matusita distance between a normalized
observed waveform and nuclear and electronic recoil template waveforms. The
details of the measurements are discussed along with specifics of the data
analysis and its comparison with the Monte Carlo simulation
Search for a W' boson decaying to a bottom quark and a top quark in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV
Results are presented from a search for a W' boson using a dataset
corresponding to 5.0 inverse femtobarns of integrated luminosity collected
during 2011 by the CMS experiment at the LHC in pp collisions at sqrt(s)=7 TeV.
The W' boson is modeled as a heavy W boson, but different scenarios for the
couplings to fermions are considered, involving both left-handed and
right-handed chiral projections of the fermions, as well as an arbitrary
mixture of the two. The search is performed in the decay channel W' to t b,
leading to a final state signature with a single lepton (e, mu), missing
transverse energy, and jets, at least one of which is tagged as a b-jet. A W'
boson that couples to fermions with the same coupling constant as the W, but to
the right-handed rather than left-handed chiral projections, is excluded for
masses below 1.85 TeV at the 95% confidence level. For the first time using LHC
data, constraints on the W' gauge coupling for a set of left- and right-handed
coupling combinations have been placed. These results represent a significant
improvement over previously published limits.Comment: Submitted to Physics Letters B. Replaced with version publishe
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