215 research outputs found
Observation of Ising-like critical fluctuations in frustrated Josephson junction arrays with modulated coupling energies
We report the results of ac sheet conductance measurements performed on fully
frustrated square arrays of Josephson junctions whose coupling energy is
periodically modulated in one of the principal lattice directions. Such systems
are predicted to exhibit two distinct transitions: a low-temperature Ising-like
transition triggered by the proliferation of domain walls and a
high-temperature transition driven by the vortex unbinding mechanism of the
Beresinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) theory. Both the superfluid and
dissipative components of the conductance are found to exhibit features which
unambiguously demonstrate the existence of a double transition whose properties
are consistent with the Ising-BKT scenario.Comment: To be published in Physica C (Proceedings of the 2nd European
Conference in School Format 'Vortex Matter in Superconductors'
Phases of Josephson Junction Ladders
We study a Josephson junction ladder in a magnetic field in the absence of
charging effects via a transfer matrix formalism. The eigenvalues of the
transfer matrix are found numerically, giving a determination of the different
phases of the ladder. The spatial periodicity of the ground state exhibits a
devil's staircase as a function of the magnetic flux filling factor . If the
transverse Josephson coupling is varied a continuous superconducting-normal
transition in the transverse direction is observed, analogous to the breakdown
of the KAM trajectories in dynamical systems.Comment: 12 pages with 3 figures, REVTE
Giant Shapiro Resonances in a Flux Driven Josephson Junction Necklace
We present a detailed study of the dynamic response of a ring of equally
spaced Josephson junctions to a time-periodic external flux, including
screening current effects. The dynamics are described by the resistively
shunted Josephson junction model, appropriate for proximity effect junctions,
and we include Faraday's law for the flux. We find that the time-averaged
characteristics show novel {\em subharmonic giant Shapiro voltage resonances},
which strongly depend on having phase slips or not, on , on the inductance
and on the external drive frequency. We include an estimate of the possible
experimental parameters needed to observe these quantized voltage spikes.Comment: 8 pages RevTeX, 3 figures available upon reques
Genome-wide association studies in kidney transplantation: Advantages and constraints
Since the discovery of the human leukocyte antigen
(HLA) system, the role of HLA molecules in the field of transplantation has
been appreciated: better matching leads to better graft function. Since then,
the association of other genetic polymorphisms with clinical outcome has been investigated
in many studies. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) represent a powerful
tool to identify causal genetic variants, by simultaneously analyzing millions of
single nucleotide polymorphisms scattered across the genome. GWAS in
transplantation may indeed be useful to reveal novel markers that may potentially
be involved in the mechanism of allograft rejection and graft failure. However,
the relevance of GWAS for risk stratification or donor selection for an
individual patient is limited as is already reflected by the fact that many
parameters, significant in one study,
cannot be confirmed in another one. Stemcel biology/Regenerative medicine (incl. bloodtransfusion
Editorial: Immunological challenges around pregnancy complications associated with failures of maternal tolerance to the fetus
Obstetric
Resistivity scaling and critical dynamics of fully frustrated Josephson-junction arrays with on-site dissipation
We study the scaling behavior and critical dynamics of the resistive
transition in Josephson-junction arrays, at f=1/2 flux quantum per plaquette,
by numerical simulation of an on-site dissipation model for the dynamics. The
results are compared with recent simulations using the
resistively-shunted-junction model. For both models, we find that the
resistivity scaling and critical dynamics of the phases are well described by
the same critical temperature as for the chiral (vortex-lattice) transition,
with a power-law divergent correlation length. The behavior is consistent with
the single transition scenario, where phase and chiral variables order at the
same temperature, but with different dynamic exponents z for phase coherence
and chiral order.Comment: 17 pages, 13 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev.
Nonlinear Viscous Vortex Motion in Two-Dimensional Josephson-Junction Arrays
When a vortex in a two-dimensional Josephson junction array is driven by a
constant external current it may move as a particle in a viscous medium. Here
we study the nature of this viscous motion. We model the junctions in a square
array as resistively and capacitively shunted Josephson junctions and carry out
numerical calculations of the current-voltage characteristics. We find that the
current-voltage characteristics in the damped regime are well described by a
model with a {\bf nonlinear} viscous force of the form , where is the vortex velocity,
is the velocity dependent viscosity and and are
constants for a fixed value of the Stewart-McCumber parameter. This result is
found to apply also for triangular lattices in the overdamped regime. Further
qualitative understanding of the nature of the nonlinear friction on the vortex
motion is obtained from a graphic analysis of the microscopic vortex dynamics
in the array. The consequences of having this type of nonlinear friction law
are discussed and compared to previous theoretical and experimental studies.Comment: 14 pages RevTex, 9 Postscript figure
Smecticlike phase for modulated XY spins in two dimensions
The row model for frustrated XY spins on a triangular lattice in 2D is used
to study incommensurate{IC}) spiral and commensurate{C} antiferromagnetic (AF)
phases, in the regime where a C-IC transition occurs. Using fluctuating
boundary conditions and specific histogram techniques, a detailed Monte Carlo
(MC) study reveals more structure in the phase diagram than found in previous
MC simulations of the full parameter space. On the (C) side, equilibrium
configurations consist of alternating stripes of spiral phases of opposite
chirality separated by walls of the (C) phase. For this same parameter regime,
thermodynamic quantities are computed analytically using the NSCHA, a
generalization of the self consistent harmonic approximation appropriate for
chiral systems. On the commensurate side of the (C)-(IC) boundary, NSCHA
predicts an instability of the (C) phase. This suggests that the state is
spatially inhomogeneous, consistent with the present MC result: it resembles
the smectic-A phase of liquid crystals, and its existence implies that the
Lifshitz point is at for modulated XY spins in 2D. The connection
between frustrated XY systems and the vortex state of strong type II
superconductors suggests that the smectic phase may correspond to a vortex
liquid phase of superconducting layers.Comment: Single Postscript file containing 24 pages of text and 8 figures. To
appear in May 1 issue of Phys. Rev. B, Vol. 5
Study of the Fully Frustrated Clock Model using the Wang-Landau Algorithm
Monte Carlo simulations using the newly proposed Wang-Landau algorithm
together with the broad histogram relation are performed to study the
antiferromagnetic six-state clock model on the triangular lattice, which is
fully frustrated. We confirm the existence of the magnetic ordering belonging
to the Kosterlitz-Thouless (KT) type phase transition followed by the chiral
ordering which occurs at slightly higher temperature. We also observe the lower
temperature phase transition of KT type due to the discrete symmetry of the
clock model. By using finite-size scaling analysis, the higher KT temperature
and the chiral critical temperature are respectively estimated as
and . The results are in favor of the double
transition scenario. The lower KT temperature is estimated as .
Two decay exponents of KT transitions corresponding to higher and lower
temperatures are respectively estimated as and
, which suggests that the exponents associated with the KT
transitions are universal even for the frustrated model.Comment: 7 pages including 9 eps figures, RevTeX, to appear in J. Phys.
Phase transitions in a frustrated XY model with zig-zag couplings
We study a new generalized version of the square-lattice frustrated XY model
where unequal ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic couplings are arranged in a
zig-zag pattern. The ratio between the couplings can be used to tune the
system, continuously, from the isotropic square-lattice to the
triangular-lattice frustrated XY model. The model can be physically realized as
a Josephson-junction array with two different couplings, in a magnetic field
corresponding to half-flux quanta per plaquette. Mean-field approximation,
Ginzburg-Landau expansion and finite-size scaling of Monte Carlo simulations
are used to study the phase diagram and critical behavior. Depending on the
value of , two separate transitions or a transition line in the
universality class of the XY-Ising model, with combined and U(1)
symmetries, takes place. In particular, the phase transitions of the standard
square-lattice and triangular-lattice frustrated XY models correspond to two
different cuts through the same transition line. Estimates of the chiral
() critical exponents on this transition line deviate significantly from
the pure Ising values, consistent with that along the critical line of the
XY-Ising model. This suggests that a frustrated XY model or Josephson-junction
array with a zig-zag coupling modulation can provide a physical realization of
the XY-Ising model critical line.Comment: 11 pages, 9 figures, RevTex, to appear in Phys. Rev.
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