2,222 research outputs found
Possible effects of tilt order on phase transitions of a fixed connectivity surface model
We study the phase structure of a phantom tethered surface model shedding
light on the internal degrees of freedom (IDOF), which correspond to the
three-dimensional rod like structure of the lipid molecules. The so-called tilt
order is assumed as IDOF on the surface model. The model is defined by
combining the conventional spherical surface model and the XY model, which
describes not only the interaction between lipids but also the interaction
between the lipids and the surface. The interaction strength between IDOF and
the surface varies depending on the interaction strength between the variables
of IDOF. We know that the model without IDOF undergoes a first-order transition
of surface fluctuations and a first-order collapsing transition. We observe in
this paper that the order of the surface fluctuation transition changes from
first-order to second-order and to higher-order with increasing strength of the
interaction between IDOF variables. On the contrary, the order of collapsing
transition remains first-order and is not influenced by the presence of IDOF.Comment: 20 pages, 14 figure
Can Electric Field Induced Energy Gaps In Metallic Carbon Nanotubes?
The low-energy electronic structure of metallic single-walled carbon nanotube
(SWNT) in an external electric field perpendicular to the tube axis is
investigated. Based on tight-binding approximation, a field-induced energy gap
is found in all (n, n) SWNTs, and the gap shows strong dependence on the
electric field and the size of the tubes. We numerically find a universal
scaling that the gap is a function of the electric field and the radius of
SWNTs, and the results are testified by the second-order perturbation theory in
weak field limit. Our calculation shows the field required to induce a 0.1
gap in metallic SWNTs can be easily reached under the current
experimental conditions. It indicates a kind of possibility to apply nanotubes
to electric signal-controlled nanoscale switching devices
Area-Constrained Planar Elastica
We determine the equilibria of a rigid loop in the plane, subject to the
constraints of fixed length and fixed enclosed area. Rigidity is characterized
by an energy functional quadratic in the curvature of the loop. We find that
the area constraint gives rise to equilibria with remarkable geometrical
properties: not only can the Euler-Lagrange equation be integrated to provide a
quadrature for the curvature but, in addition, the embedding itself can be
expressed as a local function of the curvature. The configuration space is
shown to be essentially one-dimensional, with surprisingly rich structure.
Distinct branches of integer-indexed equilibria exhibit self-intersections and
bifurcations -- a gallery of plots is provided to highlight these findings.
Perturbations connecting equilibria are shown to satisfy a first order ODE
which is readily solved. We also obtain analytical expressions for the energy
as a function of the area in some limiting regimes.Comment: 23 pages, several figures. Version 2: New title. Changes in the
introduction, addition of a new section with conclusions. Figure 14 corrected
and one reference added. Version to appear in PR
A generalized integral fluctuation theorem for general jump processes
Using the Feynman-Kac and Cameron-Martin-Girsanov formulas, we obtain a
generalized integral fluctuation theorem (GIFT) for discrete jump processes by
constructing a time-invariable inner product. The existing discrete IFTs can be
derived as its specific cases. A connection between our approach and the
conventional time-reversal method is also established. Different from the
latter approach that was extensively employed in existing literature, our
approach can naturally bring out the definition of a time-reversal of a
Markovian stochastic system. Additionally, we find the robust GIFT usually does
not result into a detailed fluctuation theorem
Theory on quench-induced pattern formation: Application to the isotropic to smectic-A phase transitions
During catastrophic processes of environmental variations of a thermodynamic
system, such as rapid temperature decreasing, many novel and complex patterns
often form.
To understand such phenomena, a general mechanism is proposed based on the
competition between heat transfer and conversion of heat to other energy forms.
We apply it to the smectic-A filament growth process during quench-induced
isotropic to smectic-A phase transition. Analytical forms for the buckling
patterns are derived and we find good agreement with experimental observation
[Phys. Rev. {\bf E55} (1997) 1655]. The present work strongly indicates that
rapid cooling will lead to structural transitions in the smectic-A filament at
the molecular level to optimize heat conversion. The force associated with this
pattern formation process is estimated to be in the order of
piconewton.Comment: 9 pages in RevTex form, with 3 postscript figures. Accepted by PR
B7DC/PDL2 Promotes Tumor Immunity by a PD-1–independent Mechanism
B7H1 (PDL1) and B7DC (PDL2) are two new members of the B7 family that can interact with PD-1, a putative negative regulator for immune function. Recent studies have provided evidence for inhibitory functions of both members via PD-1. Meanwhile, compelling evidence exists for costimulatory function of both members. Here we demonstrate that expression of B7DC on the tumor cells promotes CD8 T cell–mediated rejection of tumor cells, at both the induction and effector phase of antitumor immunity. Moreover, B7DC binds to PD-1(−/−) cells and enhances T cell killing in a PD-1–independent mechanism. Our results demonstrate a novel pathway for B7DC to promote tumor immunity and may reconcile the apparently contradictory findings on the function of B7DC
Evolution of the Electronic Structure of 1T-CuxTiSe2
The electronic structure of a new charge-density-wave/ superconductor system,
1T-CuxTiSe2, has been studied by photoemission spectroscopy. A correlated
semiconductor band structure is revealed for the undoped case. With Cu doping,
the charge density wave is suppressed by the raising of the chemical potential,
while the superconductivity is enhanced by the enhancement of the density of
states. Moreover, the strong scattering at high doping might be responsible for
the suppression of superconductivity in that regime.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
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