960 research outputs found
Classification of finite simple Lie conformal superalgebras
The notion of a Lie conformal superalgebra encodes an axiomatic descrption of
singular parts of the operator product expansions of chiral fields in conformal
field theory. In the paper we give a detailed proof of the classification of
all finite simple Lie conformal superalgebras. We also classify all their
central extensions.Comment: 29 pages, LaTe
Resting-state connectivity and functional specialization in human medial parieto-occipital cortex
According to recent models of visuo-spatial processing, the medial parieto-occipital cortex is a crucial node of the dorsal visual stream. Evidence from neurophysiological studies in monkeys has indicated that the parieto-occipital sulcus (POS) contains three functionally and cytoarchitectonically distinct areas: the visual area V6 in the fundus of the POS, and the visuo-motor areas V6Av and V6Ad in a progressively dorsal and anterior location with respect to V6. Besides different topographical organization, cytoarchitectonics, and functional properties, these three monkey areas can also be distinguished based on their patterns of cortico-cortical connections. Thanks to wide-field retinotopic mapping, areas V6 and V6Av have been also mapped in the human brain. Here, using a combined approach of resting-state functional connectivity and task-evoked activity by fMRI, we identified a new region in the anterior POS showing a pattern of functional properties and cortical connections that suggests a homology with the monkey area V6Ad. In addition, we observed distinct patterns of cortical connections associated with the human V6 and V6Av which are remarkably consistent with those showed by the anatomical tracing studies in the corresponding monkey areas. Consistent with recent models on visuo-spatial processing, our findings demonstrate a gradient of functional specialization and cortical connections within the human POS, with more posterior regions primarily dedicated to the analysis of visual attributes useful for spatial navigation and more anterior regions primarily dedicated to analyses of spatial information relevant for goal-directed action
Crossing Over from Attractive to Repulsive Interactions in a Tunneling Bosonic Josephson Junction
We explore the interplay between tunneling and interatomic interactions in
the dynamics of a bosonic Josephson junction. We tune the scattering length of
an atomic K Bose-Einstein condensate confined in a double-well trap to
investigate regimes inaccessible to other superconducting or superfluid
systems. In the limit of small-amplitude oscillations, we study the transition
from Rabi to plasma oscillations by crossing over from attractive to repulsive
interatomic interactions. We observe a critical slowing down in the oscillation
frequency by increasing the strength of an attractive interaction up to the
point of a quantum phase transition. With sufficiently large initial
oscillation amplitude and repulsive interactions the system enters the
macroscopic quantum self-trapping regime, where we observe coherent undamped
oscillations with a self-sustained average imbalance of the relative well
population. The exquisite agreement between theory and experiments enables the
observation of a broad range of many body coherent dynamical regimes driven by
tunable tunneling energy, interactions and external forces, with applications
spanning from atomtronics to quantum metrology.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures, supplemental materials are include
Sub-Doppler laser cooling of potassium atoms
We investigate sub-Doppler laser cooling of bosonic potassium isotopes, whose
small hyperfine splitting has so far prevented cooling below the Doppler
temperature. We find instead that the combination of a dark optical molasses
scheme that naturally arises in this kind of systems and an adiabatic ramping
of the laser parameters allows to reach sub-Doppler temperatures for small
laser detunings. We demonstrate temperatures as low as 25(3)microK and
47(5)microK in high-density samples of the two isotopes 39K and 41K,
respectively. Our findings will find application to other atomic systems.Comment: 7 pages, 9 figure
Atom interferometry gravity-gradiometer for the determination of the Newtonian gravitational constant G
We developed a gravity-gradiometer based on atom interferometry for the
determination of the Newtonian gravitational constant \textit{G}. The
apparatus, combining a Rb fountain, Raman interferometry and a juggling scheme
for fast launch of two atomic clouds, was specifically designed to reduce
possible systematic effects. We present instrument performances and show that
the sensor is able to detect the gravitational field induced by source masses.
A discussion of projected accuracy for \textit{G} measurement using this new
scheme shows that the results of the experiment will be significant to
discriminate between previous inconsistent values.Comment: 9 pages,9 figures, Submitte
A common neural substrate for processing scenes and egomotion-compatible visual motion
Neuroimaging studies have revealed two separate classes of category-selective regions specialized in optic flow (egomotion-compatible) processing and in scene/place perception. Despite the importance of both optic flow and scene/place recognition to estimate changes in position and orientation within the environment during self-motion, the possible functional link between egomotion- and scene-selective regions has not yet been established. Here we reanalyzed functional magnetic resonance images from a large sample of participants performing two well-known “localizer” fMRI experiments, consisting in passive viewing of navigationally relevant stimuli such as buildings and places (scene/place stimulus) and coherently moving fields of dots simulating the visual stimulation during self-motion (flow fields). After interrogating the egomotion-selective areas with respect to the scene/place stimulus and the scene-selective areas with respect to flow fields, we found that the egomotion-selective areas V6+ and pIPS/V3A responded bilaterally more to scenes/places compared to faces, and all the scene-selective areas (parahippocampal place area or PPA, retrosplenial complex or RSC, and occipital place area or OPA) responded more to egomotion-compatible optic flow compared to random motion. The conjunction analysis between scene/place and flow field stimuli revealed that the most important focus of common activation was found in the dorsolateral parieto-occipital cortex, spanning the scene-selective OPA and the egomotion-selective pIPS/V3A. Individual inspection of the relative locations of these two regions revealed a partial overlap and a similar response profile to an independent low-level visual motion stimulus, suggesting that OPA and pIPS/V3A may be part of a unique motion-selective complex specialized in encoding both egomotion- and scene-relevant information, likely for the control of navigation in a structured environment
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