45 research outputs found
Theory of Disordered Itinerant Ferromagnets I: Metallic Phase
A comprehensive theory for electronic transport in itinerant ferromagnets is
developed. We first show that the Q-field theory used previously to describe a
disordered Fermi liquid also has a saddle-point solution that describes a
ferromagnet in a disordered Stoner approximation. We calculate transport
coefficients and thermodynamic susceptibilities by expanding about the saddle
point to Gaussian order. At this level, the theory generalizes previous
RPA-type theories by including quenched disorder. We then study soft-mode
effects in the ferromagnetic state in a one-loop approximation. In
three-dimensions, we find that the spin waves induce a square-root frequency
dependence of the conductivity, but not of the density of states, that is
qualitatively the same as the usual weak-localization effect induced by the
diffusive soft modes. In contrast to the weak-localization anomaly, this effect
persists also at nonzero temperatures. In two-dimensions, however, the spin
waves do not lead to a logarithmic frequency dependence. This explains
experimental observations in thin ferromagnetic films, and it provides a basis
for the construction of a simple effective field theory for the transition from
a ferromagnetic metal to a ferromagnetic insulator.Comment: 15pp., REVTeX, 2 eps figs, final version as publishe
Effect of farnesol on Candida dubliniensis morphogenesis
Cell–cell signalling in Candida albicans is a known phenomenon and farnesol was identified as a quorum sensing molecule determining the yeast morphology. The aim of this work was to verify if farnesol had a similar effect on Candida dubliniensis, highlighting the effect of farnesol on Candida spp. morphogenesis.
Methods and Results: Two different strains of C. dubliniensis and one of C. albicans were grown both in RPMI 1640 and in serum in the presence of absence of farnesol. At 150 μmol l -1 farnesol the growth rate of both Candida species was not affected. On the contrary, farnesol inhibited hyphae and pseudohyphae formation in C. dubliniensis.
Conclusion: Farnesol seems to mediate cell morphology in both Candida species.
Significance and Impact of the Study: The effect of farnesol on C. dubliniensis
morphology was not reported previously.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT
Conductivity in quasi two-dimensional systems
The conductivity in quasi two-dimensional systems is calculated using the
quantum kinetic equation. Linearizing the Lenard-Balescu collision integral
with the extension to include external field dependences allows one to
calculate the conductivity with diagrams beyond the GW approximation including
maximally crossed lines. Consequently the weak localization correction as an
interference effect appears here from the field dependence of the collision
integral (the latter dependence sometimes called intra-collisional field
effect). It is shown that this weak localization correction has the same origin
as the Debye-Onsager relaxation effect in plasma physics. The approximation is
applied to a system of quasi two-dimensional electrons in hetero-junctions
which interact with charged and neutral impurities and the low temperature
correction to the conductivity is calculated analytically. It turns out that
the dynamical screening due to charged impurities leads to a linear temperature
dependence, while the scattering from neutral impurities leads to the usual
Fermi-liquid behavior. By considering an appropriate mass action law to
determine the ratio of charged to neutral impurities we can describe the
experimental metal-insulator transition at low temperatures as a Mott-Hubbard
transition.Comment: 7 pages 7 pages appendix 11 figure