Isotope effect on superconductivity in Josephson coupled stripes in underdoped cuprates

Inelastic neutron scattering data for YBaCuO as well as for LaSrCuO indicate incommensurate neutron scattering peaks with incommensuration $\delta(x)$ away from the $(\pi,\pi)$ point. $T_c(x)$ can be replotted as a linear function of the incommensuration for these materials. This linear relation implies that the constant that relates these two quantities, one being the incommensuration (momentum) and another being $T_c(x)$ (energy), has the dimension of velocity we denote $v^*$: $k_B T_c(x) = \hbar v^* \delta(x)$. We argue that this experimentally derived relation can be obtained in a simple model of Josephson coupled stripes. Within this framework we address the role of the $O^{16} \to O^{18}$ isotope effect on the $T_c(x)$. We assume that the incommensuration is set by the {\em doping} of the sample and is not sensitive to the oxygen isotope given the fixed doping. We find therefore that the only parameter that can change with O isotope substitution in the relation $T_c(x) \sim \delta(x)$ is the velocity $v^*$. We predict an oxygen isotope effect on $v^*$ and expect it to be $\simeq 5$.Comment: 4 pages latex file, 2 eps fig

Q-dependence of the inelastic neutron scattering cross section for molecular spin clusters with high molecular symmetry

For powder samples of polynuclear metal complexes the dependence of the inelastic neutron scattering intensity on the momentum transfer Q is known to be described by a combination of so called interference terms. They reflect the interplay between the geometrical structure of the compound and the spatial properties of the wave functions involved in the transition. In this work, it is shown that the Q-dependence is strongly interrelated with the molecular symmetry of molecular nanomagnets, and, if the molecular symmetry is high enough, is actually completely determined by it. A general formalism connecting spatial symmetry and interference terms is developed. The arguments are detailed for cyclic spin clusters, as experimentally realized by e.g. the octanuclear molecular wheel Cr8, and the star like tetranuclear cluster Fe4.Comment: 8 pages, 1 figures, REVTEX

Finite-size and pressure effects in YBa_2Cu_4O_8 probed by magnetic field penetration depth measurements

We explore the combined pressure and finite-size effects on the in-plane penetration depth \lambda_{ab} in YBa_2Cu_4O_8. Even though this cuprate is stoichiometric the finite-size scaling analysis of \lambda_{ab}^{-2}(T) uncovers the granular nature and reveals domains with nanoscale size L_{c} along the c-axis. L_{c} ranges from 33.2 Angstrom to 28.9 Angstrom at pressures from 0.5 to 11.5 kbar. These observations raise serious doubts on the existence of a phase coherent macroscopic superconducting state in cuprate superconductors.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure

Sequence Effects on DNA Entropic Elasticity

DNA stretching experiments are usually interpreted using the worm-like chain model; the persistence length A appearing in the model is then interpreted as the elastic stiffness of the double helix. In fact the persistence length obtained by this method is a combination of bend stiffness and intrinsic bend effects reflecting sequence information, just as at zero stretching force. This observation resolves the discrepancy between the value of A measured in these experiments and the larger ``dynamic persistence length'' measured by other means. On the other hand, the twist persistence length deduced from torsionally-constrained stretching experiments suffers no such correction. Our calculation is very simple and analytic; it applies to DNA and other polymers with weak intrinsic disorder.Comment: LaTeX; postscript available at http://dept.physics.upenn.edu/~nelson/index.shtm

Excitation Spectrum and Superexchange Pathways in the Spin Dimer VODPO_4 . 1/2 D_2O

Magnetic excitations have been investigated in the spin dimer material VODPO_4 \cdot 1/2 D_2O using inelastic neutron scattering. A dispersionless magnetic mode was observed at an energy of 7.81(4) meV. The wavevector dependence of the scattering intensityfrom this mode is consistent with the excitation of isolated V^{4+} spin dimers with a V-V separation of 4.43(7) \AA. This result is unexpected since the V-V pair previously thought to constitute themagnetic dimer has a separation of 3.09 \AA. We identify an alternative V-V pair as the likely magnetic dimer, which involves superexchange pathways through a covalently bonded PO_4 group. This surprising result casts doubt on the interpretation of (VO)_2P_2O_7 as a spin ladder.Comment: 4 pages, 4 postscript figures - identical to previous paper but figure 2 and 3 hopefully more compatible .p

CD4 cell count and the risk of AIDS or death in HIV-Infected adults on combination antiretroviral therapy with a suppressed viral load: a longitudinal cohort study from COHERE.

BACKGROUND: Most adults infected with HIV achieve viral suppression within a year of starting combination antiretroviral therapy (cART). It is important to understand the risk of AIDS events or death for patients with a suppressed viral load. METHODS AND FINDINGS: Using data from the Collaboration of Observational HIV Epidemiological Research Europe (2010 merger), we assessed the risk of a new AIDS-defining event or death in successfully treated patients. We accumulated episodes of viral suppression for each patient while on cART, each episode beginning with the second of two consecutive plasma viral load measurements 500 copies/µl, the first of two consecutive measurements between 50-500 copies/µl, cART interruption or administrative censoring. We used stratified multivariate Cox models to estimate the association between time updated CD4 cell count and a new AIDS event or death or death alone. 75,336 patients contributed 104,265 suppression episodes and were suppressed while on cART for a median 2.7 years. The mortality rate was 4.8 per 1,000 years of viral suppression. A higher CD4 cell count was always associated with a reduced risk of a new AIDS event or death; with a hazard ratio per 100 cells/µl (95% CI) of: 0.35 (0.30-0.40) for counts <200 cells/µl, 0.81 (0.71-0.92) for counts 200 to <350 cells/µl, 0.74 (0.66-0.83) for counts 350 to <500 cells/µl, and 0.96 (0.92-0.99) for counts ≥500 cells/µl. A higher CD4 cell count became even more beneficial over time for patients with CD4 cell counts <200 cells/µl. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the low mortality rate, the risk of a new AIDS event or death follows a CD4 cell count gradient in patients with viral suppression. A higher CD4 cell count was associated with the greatest benefit for patients with a CD4 cell count <200 cells/µl but still some slight benefit for those with a CD4 cell count ≥500 cells/µl

Dynamical Structure Factors for Dimerized Spin Systems

We discuss the transition strength between the disordered ground state and the basic low-lying triplet excitation for interacting dimer materials by presenting theoretical calculations and series expansions as well as inelastic neutron scattering results for the material KCuCl_3. We describe in detail the features resulting from the presence of two differently oriented dimers per unit cell and show how energies and spectral weights of the resulting two modes are related to each other. We present results from the perturbation expansion in the interdimer interaction strength and thus demonstrate that the wave vector dependence of the simple dimer approximation is modified in higher orders. Explicit results are given in 10th order for dimers coupled in 1D, and in 2nd order for dimers coupled in 3D with application to KCuCl_3 and TlCuCl_3.Comment: 17 pages, 6 figures, part 2 is based on cond-mat/021133

Local spin resonance and spin-Peierls-like phase transition in a geometrically frustrated antiferromagnet

Using inelastic magnetic neutron scattering we have discovered a localized spin resonance at 4.5 meV in the ordered phase of the geometrically frustrated cubic antiferromagnet $\rm ZnCr_2O_4$. The resonance develops abruptly from quantum critical fluctuations upon cooling through a first order transition to a co-planar antiferromagnet at $T_c=12.5(5)$ K. We argue that this transition is a three dimensional analogue of the spin-Peierls transition.Comment: 4 figures, revised and accepted in Phys. Rev. Let

Band Calculations for Ce Compounds with AuCu3_{3}-type Crystal Structure on the basis of Dynamical Mean Field Theory I. CePd3_{3} and CeRh3_{3}

Band calculations for Ce compounds with the AuCu$_{3}$-type crystal structure were carried out on the basis of dynamical mean field theory (DMFT). The auxiliary impurity problem was solved by a method named NCA$f^{2}$vc (noncrossing approximation including the $f^{2}$ state as a vertex correction). The calculations take into account the crystal-field splitting, the spin-orbit interaction, and the correct exchange process of the $f^{1} \rightarrow f^{0},f^{2}$ virtual excitation. These are necessary features in the quantitative band theory for Ce compounds and in the calculation of their excitation spectra. The results of applying the calculation to CePd$_{3}$ and CeRh$_{3}$ are presented as the first in a series of papers. The experimental results of the photoemission spectrum (PES), the inverse PES, the angle-resolved PES, and the magnetic excitation spectra were reasonably reproduced by the first-principles DMFT band calculation. At low temperatures, the Fermi surface (FS) structure of CePd$_{3}$ is similar to that of the band obtained by the local density approximation. It gradually changes into a form that is similar to the FS of LaPd$_{3}$ as the temperature increases, since the $4f$ band shifts to the high-energy side and the lifetime broadening becomes large.}Comment: 12 pasges, 13 figure