Solution of the infinite range t-J model

The t-J model with constant t and J between any pair of sites is studied by exploiting the symmetry of the Hamiltonian with respect to site permutations. For a given number of electrons and a given total spin the exchange term simply yields an additive constant. Therefore the real problem is to diagonalize the "t- model", or equivalently the infinite U Hubbard Hamiltonian. Using extensively the properties of the permutation group, we are able to find explicitly both the energy eigenvalues and eigenstates, labeled according to spin quantum numbers and Young diagrams. As a corollary we also obtain the degenerate ground states of the finite $U$ Hubbard model with infinite range hopping -t>0.Comment: 15 pages, 2 figure

Plaquette bond order wave in the quarter-filled extended Hubbard model on the checkerboard lattice

An extended Hubbard model (including nearest-neighbor repulsion and antiferromagnetic spin exchange) is investigated on the frustrated checkerboard lattice, a two-dimensional analog of the pyrochlore lattice. Combining Gutzwiller renormalized mean-field (MF) calculations, exact diagonalization (ED) techniques, and a weak-coupling renormalization group (RG) analysis we provide strong evidence for a crystalline valence bond plaquette phase at quarter-filling. The ground state is twofold degenerate and breaks translation symmetry. The bond energies show a staggering while the charge distribution remains uniform.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, published versio

Exploring the functional domain and the target of the tetanus toxin light chain in neurohypophysial terminals

The tetanus toxin light chain blocks calcium induced vasopressin release from neurohypophysial nerve terminals. Here we show that histidine residue 233 within the putative zinc binding motif of the tetanus toxin light chain is essential for the inhibition of exocytosis, in the rat. The zinc chelating agent dipicolinic acid as well as captopril, an inhibitor of zinc-dependent peptidases, counteract the effect of the neurotoxin. Synthetic peptides, the sequences of which correspond to motifs present in the cytoplasmic domain of the synaptic vesicle membrane protein synaptobrevin 1 and 2, prevent the effect of the tetanus toxin light chain. Our results indicate that zinc bound to the zinc binding motif constitutes the active site of the tetanus toxin light chain. Moreover they suggest that cleavage of synaptobrevin by the neurotoxin causes the inhibition of exocytotic release of vasopressin from secretory granules

Topological Hall effect in the A-phase of MnSi

Recent small angle neutron scattering suggests, that the spin structure in the A-phase of MnSi is a so-called triple-$Q$ state, i.e., a superposition of three helices under 120 degrees. Model calculations suggest that this structure in fact is a lattice of so-called skyrmions, i.e., a lattice of topologically stable knots in the spin structure. We report a distinct additional contribution to the Hall effect in the temperature and magnetic field range of the proposed skyrmion lattice, where such a contribution is neither seen nor expected for a normal helical state. Our Hall effect measurements constitute a direct observation of a topologically quantized Berry phase that identifies the spin structure seen in neutron scattering as the proposed skyrmion lattice

On a global differential geometric approach to the rational mechanics of deformable media

In the past the rational mechanics of deformable media was largely concerned with materials governed by linear constitutive equations. In recent years, the theory has expanded considerably towards covering materials for which the constitutive equations are inherently nonlinear, and/or whose mechanical properties resemble in some respects those of a fluid and in others those of a solid. In the present article we formulate a satisfactory global mathematical theory of moving deformable media, which includes all these aspects

Exact integral equation for the renormalized Fermi surface

The true Fermi surface of a fermionic many-body system can be viewed as a fixed point manifold of the renormalization group (RG). Within the framework of the exact functional RG we show that the fixed point condition implies an exact integral equation for the counterterm which is needed for a self-consistent calculation of the Fermi surface. In the simplest approximation, our integral equation reduces to the self-consistent Hartree-Fock equation for the counterterm.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figur

Collective fields in the functional renormalization group for fermions, Ward identities, and the exact solution of the Tomonaga-Luttinger model

We develop a new formulation of the functional renormalization group (RG) for interacting fermions. Our approach unifies the purely fermionic formulation based on the Grassmannian functional integral, which has been used in recent years by many authors, with the traditional Wilsonian RG approach to quantum systems pioneered by Hertz [Phys. Rev. B 14, 1165 (1976)], which attempts to describe the infrared behavior of the system in terms of an effective bosonic theory associated with the soft modes of the underlying fermionic problem. In our approach, we decouple the interaction by means of a suitable Hubbard-Stratonovich transformation (following the Hertz-approach), but do not eliminate the fermions; instead, we derive an exact hierarchy of RG flow equations for the irreducible vertices of the resulting coupled field theory involving both fermionic and bosonic fields. The freedom of choosing a momentum transfer cutoff for the bosonic soft modes in addition to the usual band cutoff for the fermions opens the possibility of new RG schemes. In particular, we show how the exact solution of the Tomonaga-Luttinger model emerges from the functional RG if one works with a momentum transfer cutoff. Then the Ward identities associated with the local particle conservation at each Fermi point are valid at every stage of the RG flow and provide a solution of an infinite hierarchy of flow equations for the irreducible vertices. The RG flow equation for the irreducible single-particle self-energy can then be closed and can be reduced to a linear integro-differential equation, the solution of which yields the result familiar from bosonization. We suggest new truncation schemes of the exact hierarchy of flow equations, which might be useful even outside the weak coupling regime.Comment: 27 pages, 15 figures; published version, some typos correcte

Regulation of releasable vesicle pool sizes by protein kinase A-dependent phosphorylation of SNAP-25

AbstractProtein kinase A (PKA) is a key regulator of neurosecretion, but the molecular targets remain elusive. We combined pharmacological manipulations of kinase and phosphatase activities with mutational studies on the exocytotic machinery driving fusion of catecholamine-containing vesicles from chromaffin cells. We found that constitutive PKA activity was necessary to maintain a large number of vesicles in the release-ready, so-called primed, state, whereas calcineurin (protein phosphatase 2B) activity antagonized this effect. Overexpression of the SNARE protein SNAP-25a mutated in a PKA phosphorylation site (Thr-138) eliminated the effect of PKA inhibitors on the vesicle priming process. Another, unidentified, PKA target regulated the relative size of two different primed vesicle pools that are distinguished by their release kinetics. Overexpression of the SNAP-25b isoform increased the size of both primed vesicle pools by a factor of two, and mutations in the conserved Thr-138 site had similar effects as in the a isoform

Two complementary approaches for intracellular delivery of exogenous enzymes.

Intracellular delivery of biologically active proteins remains a formidable challenge in biomedical research. Here we show that biomedically relevant enzymes can be delivered into cells using a new DNA transfection reagent, lipofectamine 3000, allowing assessment of their intracellular functions. We also show that the J774.2 macrophage cell line exhibits unusual intracellular uptake of structurally and functionally distinct enzymes providing a convenient, reagent-free approach for evaluation of intracellular activities of enzymes

Loss of AP-3 function affects spontaneous and evoked release at hippocampal mossy fiber synapses

Synaptic vesicle (SV) exocytosis mediating neurotransmitter release occurs spontaneously at low intraterminal calcium concentrations and is stimulated by a rise in intracellular calcium. Exocytosis is compensated for by the reformation of vesicles at plasma membrane and endosomes. Although the adaptor complex AP-3 was proposed to be involved in the formation of SVs from endosomes, whether its function has an indirect effect on exocytosis remains unknown. Using mocha mice, which are deficient in functional AP-3, we identify an AP-3-dependent tetanus neurotoxin-resistant asynchronous release that can be evoked at hippocampal mossy fiber (MF) synapses. Presynaptic targeting of the tetanus neurotoxin-resistant vesicle soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor attachment protein receptor (SNARE) tetanus neurotoxin-insensitive vesicle-associated membrane protein (TI-VAMP) is lost in mocha hippocampal MF terminals, whereas the localization of synaptobrevin 2 is unaffected. In addition, quantal release in mocha cultures is more frequent and more sensitive to sucrose. We conclude that lack of AP-3 results in more constitutive secretion and loss of an asynchronous evoked release component, suggesting an important function of AP-3 in regulating SV exocytosis at MF terminals