Berry Phase in Atom-Molecule Conversion Systems and Fractional Monopole

We investigate the geometric phase or Berry phase of adiabatic quantum evolution in an atom-molecule conversion system, and find that the Berry phase in such system consists of two parts: the usual Berry connection term and a novel term from the nonlinearity brought forth by the atom-molecule conversion. The geometric phase can be viewed as the flux of the magnetic field of a monopole through the surface enclosed by a closed path in parameter space. The charge of the monopole, however, is found to be one third of the elementary charge of the usual quantized monopole.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figur

Block copolymer templated synthesis of PtIr bimetallic nanocatalysts for the formic acid oxidation reaction

Arrays of PtIr alloy nanoparticle (NP) clusters are synthesized from a method using block copolymer templates, which allows for relatively narrow NP diameter distributions (~4–13 nm) and uniform intercluster spacing (~ 60 or ~100 nm). Polystyrene-block-poly(4-vinylpyridine) (PS-b-P4VP) block copolymer micelles were used to create thin film templates of NPs with periodic pyridinium-rich domains that are capable of electrostatically loading PtCl62- and IrCl62- anion precursors for the preparation of NP arrays. The composition of PtIr NPs was specified by the ratio of metal anions in a low-pH immersion bath. Formic acid oxidation, studied by cyclic voltammetry, shows that the arrays of clusters of PtIr alloy NPs are highly active catalysts, with mass activity values on par or exceeding current industrial standard catalysts. The uniformity in the NP population in a cluster and the small diameter range established by the block copolymer template permit an estimate of the optimal Pt:Ir ratio for the direct oxidation of formic acid, where, ~10 nm Pt16Ir84 alloy NPs were the most active with a mass activity of 37 A/g. &nbsp

Effects of Anacetrapib in Patients with Atherosclerotic Vascular Disease

BACKGROUND: Patients with atherosclerotic vascular disease remain at high risk for cardiovascular events despite effective statin-based treatment of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels. The inhibition of cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) by anacetrapib reduces LDL cholesterol levels and increases high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels. However, trials of other CETP inhibitors have shown neutral or adverse effects on cardiovascular outcomes. METHODS: We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involving 30,449 adults with atherosclerotic vascular disease who were receiving intensive atorvastatin therapy and who had a mean LDL cholesterol level of 61 mg per deciliter (1.58 mmol per liter), a mean non-HDL cholesterol level of 92 mg per deciliter (2.38 mmol per liter), and a mean HDL cholesterol level of 40 mg per deciliter (1.03 mmol per liter). The patients were assigned to receive either 100 mg of anacetrapib once daily (15,225 patients) or matching placebo (15,224 patients). The primary outcome was the first major coronary event, a composite of coronary death, myocardial infarction, or coronary revascularization. RESULTS: During the median follow-up period of 4.1 years, the primary outcome occurred in significantly fewer patients in the anacetrapib group than in the placebo group (1640 of 15,225 patients [10.8%] vs. 1803 of 15,224 patients [11.8%]; rate ratio, 0.91; 95% confidence interval, 0.85 to 0.97; P=0.004). The relative difference in risk was similar across multiple prespecified subgroups. At the trial midpoint, the mean level of HDL cholesterol was higher by 43 mg per deciliter (1.12 mmol per liter) in the anacetrapib group than in the placebo group (a relative difference of 104%), and the mean level of non-HDL cholesterol was lower by 17 mg per deciliter (0.44 mmol per liter), a relative difference of -18%. There were no significant between-group differences in the risk of death, cancer, or other serious adverse events. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with atherosclerotic vascular disease who were receiving intensive statin therapy, the use of anacetrapib resulted in a lower incidence of major coronary events than the use of placebo. (Funded by Merck and others; Current Controlled Trials number, ISRCTN48678192 ; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01252953 ; and EudraCT number, 2010-023467-18 .)