850 research outputs found
Direct evidence of electronic ferroelectricity in YbFe2O4 using neutron diffraction and nonlinear spectroscopy
We report the first observation of room temperature spontaneous electric polarization in an electronic ferroelectric material, a YbFe2O4 single crystal. The observation was based on second harmonic generation (SHG), a nonlinear optical process. Tensor analysis of the SHG signal revealed that this material has a polar charge superstructure with Cm symmetry. This result settles the long-term discussion on the uncertainty about electronic ferroelectric properties, including the charge order structure. We present a complete picture of the polar charge ordering of this material via consistent results from two different characterization methods. The SHG signal shows the same temperature dependence as the superlattice signal observed in neutron diffraction experiments. These results prove ferroelectric coupling to electron ordering in YbFe2O4, which results in electronic ferroelectricity which is enabled by the real space ordering of iron cations with different valences. The existence of electronic ferroelectricity holds promise for future electronics technologies where devices run a thousand times faster than frequency of the present CPU (a few gigahertz) embedded in smartphones, etc
About the measurements of the hard X-ray background
We analyze uncertainties in the cosmic X-ray background measurements
performed by the INTEGRAL observatory. We find that the most important effect
limiting the accuracy of the measurements is related to the intrinsic
background variation in detectors. Taking into account all of the uncertainties
arising during the measurements we conclude that the X-ray background intensity
obtained in the INTEGRAL observations is compatible with the historic X-ray
background observations performed by the HEAO-1 satellite.Comment: 20 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Astrophysics and
Space Scienc
Role of lepton flavor violating (LFV) muon decay in Seesaw model and LSND
The aim of the work is to study LFV in a newly proposed Seesaw model of
neutrino mass and to see whether it could explain LSND excess. The motivation
of this Seesaw model was that there was no new physics beyond the TeV scale. By
studying \mu \to 3e in this model, it is shown that the upper bound on the
branching ratio requires Higgs mass m_{h} of a new scalar doublet with lepton
number L=-1 needed in the model has to be about 9 TeV. The predicted branching
ratio for \mu \to e\nu_{l}\bar{\nu}_{l} is too small to explain the LSND. PACS:
11.30.Hv, 14.60.PqComment: 05 pages, three figures, the version to appear in PR
"Of Mice and Measures": A Project to Improve How We Advance Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Therapies to the Clinic
A new line of dystrophic mdx mice on the DBA/2J (D2) background has emerged as a candidate to study the efficacy of therapeutic approaches for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). These mice harbor genetic polymorphisms that appear to increase the severity of the dystropathology, with disease modifiers that also occur in DMD patients, making them attractive for efficacy studies and drug development. This workshop aimed at collecting and consolidating available data on the pathological features and the natural history of these new D2/mdx mice, for comparison with classic mdx mice and controls, and to identify gaps in information and their potential value. The overall aim is to establish guidance on how to best use the D2/mdx mouse model in preclinical studies
Energy-dependent solar neutrino flux depletion in the Exact Parity Model and implications for SNO, SuperKamiokande and BOREXINO
Energy-dependent solar neutrino flux reduction caused by the
Mikheyev-Smirnov-Wolfenstein (MSW) effect is applied to the Exact Parity Model.
Several scenarios are possible, depending on the region of parameter space
chosen. The interplay between intergenerational MSW transitions and vacuum
``intragenerational'' ordinary-mirror neutrino oscillations is discussed.
Expectations for the ratio of charged to neutral current event rates at the
Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) are estimated. The implications of the
various scenarios for the Boron neutrino energy spectrum and BOREXINO are
briefly discussed. The consequences of MSW-induced solar neutrino depletion
within the Exact Parity Model differ in interesting ways from the standard
and cases. The physical causes of
these differences are determined.Comment: 43 pages, 8 figures, RevTeX; to appear in Phys. Rev. D, accepted
versio
A High Statistics Search for Electron-Neutrino --> Tau-Neutrino Oscillations
We present new limits on nu_e to nu_tau and nu_e to nu_sterile oscillations
by searching for electron neutrino dissappearance in the high-energy wide-band
CCFR neutrino beam. Sensitivity to nu_tau appearance comes from tau decay modes
in which a large fraction of the energy deposited is electromagnetic. The beam
is composed primarily of muon neutrinos but this analysis uses the 2.3%
electron neutrino component of the beam. Electron neutrino energies range from
30 to 600 GeV and flight lengths vary from 0.9 to 1.4 km. This limit improves
the sensitivity of existing limits and obtains a lowest 90% confidence upper
limit in sin**2(2*alpha) of 9.9 x 10**(-2) at delta-m**2 of 125 eV**2.Comment: submitted to Phys. Rev. D. Rapid Com
Generating Neutrino Mass in the 331 Model
A mechanism for generating small tree-level Majorana mass for neutrinos is
implemented in the 331 Model. No additional fermions or scalars need to be
added, and no mass scale greater than a few TeV is invoked.Comment: LaTex, 7 pages, no figures. Revised version to appear in Phys. Rev.
Matter-affected neutrino oscillations in ordinary and mirror stars and their implications for gamma-ray bursts
It has been proposed that the annihilation process may be responsible for the generation of gamma-ray
bursts (GRBs). The incipient neutrino--antineutrino pairs carry virtually all
of the gravitational binding energy available from the central engine. However,
gamma-ray bursters proposed to date are inevitably surrounded by an excess of
baryons, leading to the "baryon-loading problem". In the light of growing
evidence for neutrino oscillations, we discuss the implications of
matter-affected oscillations for GRB energetics, and on the viability of
"mirror" stars as GRB progenitors.Comment: 12 pages, RevTe
Linear and cooperative signaling: roles for Stat proteins in the regulation of cell survival and apoptosis in the mammary epithelium
The mammary epithelium undergoes cyclical periods of cellular proliferation, differentiation and regression. These processes are under the control of the hormones secreted during pregnancy, lactation and involution. Signaling pathways have been identified that connect the hormonal stimuli with the transcription of genes responsible for the determination of the cellular fate. The kinetics of induction and deinduction have suggested that cytokine-activated Stat proteins play a crucial role. Stat5 is strongly activated towards the end of pregnancy, persists in an activated state during pregnancy and is rapidly inactivated after cessation of suckling. Stat3 activation is hardly detectable during lactation, but is strongly induced at the onset of involution. The phenotypes of mice in which these genes have been inactivated through homologous recombination corroborate some of the functional assignments deducted from the activation pattern. Stat3 activation seems to be a driving force in the induction of apoptosis early in the involution period
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