3,024 research outputs found
Pressure effects in the triangular layered cobaltites NaxCoO2
We have measured transport properties as a function of temperature and
pressure up to 30GPa in the NaxCoO2 system. For the x=0.5 sample the transition
temperature at 53K increases with pressure, while paradoxically the sample
passes from an insulating to a metallic ground state. A similar transition is
observed in the x=0.31 sample under pressure. Compression on the x=0.75 sample
transforms the sample from a metallic to an insulating state. We discuss our
results in terms of interactions between band structure effects and Na+ order.Comment: 18 pages, 5 figure
Novel phase diagram of superconductor NaxCoO2-yH2O in a 75 % relative humidity
We succeeded in synthesizing the powder samples of bilayer-hydrate sodium
cobalt oxide superconductors NaxCoO2-yH2O with Tc = 0 ~ 4.6 K by systematically
changing the keeping duration in a 75 % relative humidity atmosphere after
intercalation of water molecules. From the magnetic measurements, we found that
the one-day duration sample does not show any superconductivity down to 1.8 K,
and that the samples kept for 2 ~ 7 days show superconductivity, in which Tc
increases up to 4.6 K with increasing the duration. Tc and the superconducting
volume fraction are almost invariant between 7 days and 1month duration. The
59Co NQR spectra indicate a systematic change in the local charge distribution
on the CoO2 plane with change in duration.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, submitted to Journal of the Physical Society of
Japa
Large enhancement of the thermopower in NaCoO at high Na doping
Research on the oxide perovskites has uncovered electronic properties that
are strikingly enhanced compared with those in conventional metals. Examples
are the high critical temperatures of the cuprate superconductors and the
colossal magnetoresistance in the manganites. The conducting layered cobaltate
displays several interesting electronic phases as is varied
including water-induced superconductivity and an insulating state that is
destroyed by field. Initial measurements showed that, in the as-grown
composition, displays moderately large thermopower and
conductivity . However, the prospects for thermoelectric cooling
applications faded when the figure of merit was found to be small at this
composition (0.60.7). Here we report that, in the poorly-explored
high-doping region 0.75, undergoes an even steeper enhancement. At the
critical doping 0.85, (at 80 K) reaches values 40 times
larger than in the as-grown crystals. We discuss prospects for low-temperature
thermoelectric applications.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figure
NMR studies of Successive Phase Transitions in Na0.5CoO2 and K0.5CoO2
59Co- and 23Na-NMR measurements have been carried out on polycrystalline and
c-axis aligned samples of Na0.5CoO2, which exhibits successive transitions at
temperatures T = 87 K (= Tc1) and T = 53 K (= Tc2). 59Co-NMR has also been
carried out on c-axis aligned crystallites of K0.5CoO2 with similar successive
transitions at Tc1 ~ 60 K and Tc2 ~ 20 K. For Na0.5CoO2, two sets of three NMR
lines of 23Na nuclei explained by considering the quadrupolar frequencies nuQ
~1.32 and 1.40 MHz have been observed above Tc1, as is expected from the
crystalline structure. Rather complicated but characteristic variation of the
23Na-NMR spectra has been observed with varying T through the transition
temperatures, and the internal fields at two crystallographically distinct Na
sites are discussed on the basis of the magnetic structures reported
previously. The internal fields at two distinct Co sites observed below Tc1 and
the 591/T1-T curves of Na0.5CoO2 and K0.5CoO2 are also discussed in a
comparative way.Comment: 7 pages, 10 figures, submitted to J. Phys. Soc. Jpn, correction is
made in right colum of p6 (35th line) as K0.5CoO2-->Na0.5CoO
Structure and Dynamics of Superconducting NaxCoO(2) Hydrate and Its Unhydrated Analog
Neutron scattering has been used to investigate the crystal structure and
lattice dynamics of superconducting Na0.3CoO2 1.4(H/D)2O, and the parent
Na0.3CoO2 material. The structure of Na0.3CoO2 consists of alternate layers of
CoO2 and Na and is the same as the structure at higher Na concentrations. For
the superconductor, the water forms two additional layers between the Na and
CoO2, increasing the c-axis lattice parameter of the hexagonal P63/mmc space
group from 11.16 A to 19.5 A. The Na ions are found to occupy a different
configuration from the parent compound, while the water forms a structure that
replicates the structure of ice. Both types of sites are only partially
occupied. The CoO2 layer in these structures is robust, on the other hand, and
we find a strong inverse correlation between the CoO2 layer thickness and the
superconducting transition temperature (TC increases with decreasing
thickness). The phonon density-of-states for Na0.3CoO2 exhibits distinct
acoustic and optic bands, with a high-energy cutoff of ~100 meV. The lattice
dynamical scattering for the superconductor is dominated by the hydrogen modes,
with librational and bending modes that are quite similar to ice, supporting
the structural model that the water intercalates and forms ice-like layers in
the superconductor.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figures, Phys. Rev. B (in press). Minor changes + two
figures removed as requested by refere
Crystal Structure of the Sodium Cobaltate Deuterate Superconductor NaxCoO2o4xD2O (x=1/3)
Neutron and x-ray powder diffraction have been used to investigate the
crystal structures of a sample of the newly-discovered superconducting sodium
cobaltate deuterate compound with composition Na0.31(3)CoO2o1.25(2)D2O and its
anhydrous parent compound Na0.61(1)CoO2. The deuterate superconducting compound
is formed by coordinating four D2O molecules (two above and two below) to each
Na ion in a way that gives Na-O distances nearly equal to those in the parent
compound. One deuteron of the D2O molecule is hydrogen bonded to an oxygen atom
in the CoO2 plane and the oxygen atom and the second deuteron of each D2O
molecule lie approximately in a plane between the Na layer and the CoO2 layers.
This coordination of Na by four D2O molecules leads to ordering of the Na ions
and D2O molecules. The sample studied here, which has Tc=4.5 K, has a refined
composition of Na0.31(3)CoO2o1.25(2)D2O, in agreement with the expected 1:4
ratio of Na to D2O. These results show that the optimal superconducting
composition should be viewed as a specific hydrated compound, not a solid
solution of Na and D2O (H2O) in NaxCoO2oyD2O. Studies of physical properties
vs. Na or D2O composition should be viewed with caution until it is verified
that the compound remains in the same phase over the composition range of the
study.Comment: 22 pages, 8 figure
Starburst99: Synthesis Models for Galaxies with Active Star Formation
Starburst99 is a comprehensive set of model predictions for
spectrophotometric and related properties of galaxies with active star
formation. The models are an improved and extended version of the data set
previously published by Leitherer & Heckman (1995). We have upgraded our code
by implementing the latest set of stellar evolution models of the Geneva group
and the model atmosphere grid compiled by Lejeune et al. (1997). Several
predictions which were not included in the previous publication are shown here
for the first time. The models are presented in a homogeneous way for five
metallicities between Z = 0.040 and 0.001 and three choices of the initial mass
function. The age coverage is 10^6 to 10^9 yr. We also show the spectral energy
distributions which are used to compute colors and other quantities. The full
data set is available for retrieval at
http://www.stsci.edu/science/starburst99/. This website allows users to run
specific models with non-standard parameters as well. We also make the source
code available to the community.Comment: 32 pages, LaTeX. All the Figures and the summary Table are located at
http://www.stsci.edu/science/starburst99/, ApJ accepte
Emergence of Anti-Cancer Drug Resistance: Exploring the Importance of the Microenvironmental Niche via a Spatial Model
Practically, all chemotherapeutic agents lead to drug resistance. Clinically,
it is a challenge to determine whether resistance arises prior to, or as a
result of, cancer therapy. Further, a number of different intracellular and
microenvironmental factors have been correlated with the emergence of drug
resistance. With the goal of better understanding drug resistance and its
connection with the tumor microenvironment, we have developed a hybrid
discrete-continuous mathematical model. In this model, cancer cells described
through a particle-spring approach respond to dynamically changing oxygen and
DNA damaging drug concentrations described through partial differential
equations. We thoroughly explored the behavior of our self-calibrated model
under the following common conditions: a fixed layout of the vasculature, an
identical initial configuration of cancer cells, the same mechanism of drug
action, and one mechanism of cellular response to the drug. We considered one
set of simulations in which drug resistance existed prior to the start of
treatment, and another set in which drug resistance is acquired in response to
treatment. This allows us to compare how both kinds of resistance influence the
spatial and temporal dynamics of the developing tumor, and its clonal
diversity. We show that both pre-existing and acquired resistance can give rise
to three biologically distinct parameter regimes: successful tumor eradication,
reduced effectiveness of drug during the course of treatment (resistance), and
complete treatment failure
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