257 research outputs found
Measurements of the absolute value of the penetration depth in high- superconductors using a tunnel diode resonator
A method is presented to measure the absolute value of the London penetration
depth, , from the frequency shift of a resonator. The technique
involves coating a high- superconductor (HTSC) with film of low - Tc
material of known thickness and penetration depth. The method is applied to
measure London penetration depth in YBa2Cu3O{7-\delta} (YBCO)
Bi2Sr2CaCu2O{8+\delta} (BSCCO) and Pr{1.85}Ce{0.15}CuO{4-\delta}\lambda (0)\lambda \approx 2790$ \AA, reported for the first
time.Comment: RevTex 4 (beta 4). 4 pages, 4 EPS figures. Submitted to Appl. Phys.
Let
Dimorphic aggregation behavior of a fusion polypeptide incorporating a stable protein domain (EGFP) with an amyloidogenic sequence (retroCspA)
AbstractWe describe the behavior of a polypeptide consisting of the genetic fusion of a structurally stable single-domain protein, EGFP (an analog of the green fluorescent protein) with an amyloidogenic sequence, retroCspA (known to readily form amyloid fibrils). Refolding of the fusion protein through single-step removal of denaturant and salt results in precipitation into amyloid aggregates displaying fibrillar morphology, thioflavin T binding as well as green fluorescence. Refolding through step-wise reduction of denaturant concentration in the presence of salt yields a soluble aggregate containing a folded, thermally-stable, non-fluorescent EGFP domain. Together, these results indicate that retroCspA forces the fusion protein to aggregate; however, the EGFP domain remains folded in a native-like structural format in both soluble aggregates and precipitates
New method for fast computation of gravity and magnetic anomalies from arbitrary polyhedra
We show that at any point the gravity field from a solid body bounded by plane surfaces and having uniform density can be computed as a field from a fictitious distribution of surface mass-density on the same body. The surface mass density at every surface element is equal to the product of the volume density of the body and the scalar product of (1) the unit outward vector normal to that surface element and (2) the position vector of the surface element with respect to the point of observation. Accordingly, the contribution to the gravity field from any plane surface of the body vanishes if the observation point lies in the plane of that surface. As a result, we can compute the gravity field everywhere, including points inside, on the surface, on an edge, or at a corner of the body where more than two surfaces meet. This new result lets us compute the gravity field using exactly the same simple procedure as for the magnetic field of a uniformly magnetized object, computed from an equivalent surface distribution of magnetic pole density. To get the gravity field while computing the magnetic field, one simply uses the product of this surface mass density and the universal gravitational constant instead of the surface magnetic pole density. Therefore, the same computer program can be used to compute the gravity, the magnetic field, or both simultaneously. This simple and novel approach makes the numerical computations much faster than all other previously published schemes
Considerations for the Control Design of Augmentative Robots
Robotic systems that are intended to augment human capabilities commonly
require the use of semi-autonomous control and artificial sensing, while at the
same time aiming to empower the user to make decisions and take actions. This
work identifies principles and techniques from the literature that can help to
resolve this apparent contradiction. It is postulated that augmentative robots
must function as tools that have partial agency, as collaborative agents that
provide conditional transparency, and ideally, serve as extensions of the human
body.Comment: 7 pages. Presented at the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on
Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2021) Workshop on Building and
Evaluating Ethical Robotic Systems, Prague, Czech Republic, 28-30 September
202
Sharp Raman Anomalies and Broken Adiabaticity at a Pressure Induced Transition from Band to Topological Insulator in Sb2Se3
The nontrivial electronic topology of a topological insulator is thus far
known to display signatures in a robust metallic state at the surface. Here, we
establish vibrational anomalies in Raman spectra of the bulk that signify
changes in electronic topology: an E2 g phonon softens unusually and its
linewidth exhibits an asymmetric peak at the pressure induced electronic
topological transition (ETT) in Sb2Se3 crystal. Our first-principles
calculations confirm the electronic transition from band to topological
insulating state with reversal of parity of electronic bands passing through a
metallic state at the ETT, but do not capture the phonon anomalies which
involve breakdown of adiabatic approximation due to strongly coupled dynamics
of phonons and electrons. Treating this within a four-band model of topological
insulators, we elucidate how nonadiabatic renormalization of phonons
constitutes readily measurable bulk signatures of an ETT, which will facilitate
efforts to develop topological insulators by modifying a band insulator
Low temperature vortex phase diagram of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8 : a magnetic penetration depth study
We report measurements of the magnetic penetration depth \lambda_m(T) in the
presence of a DC magnetic field in optimally doped BSCCO-2212 single crystals.
Warming, after magnetic field is applied to a zero-field cooled sample, results
in a non-monotonic \lambda_m(T), which does not coincide with a curve obtained
upon field cooling, thus exhibiting a hysteretic behaviour. We discuss the
possible relation of our results to the vortex decoupling, unbinding, and
dimensional crossover.Comment: M2S-HTSC-V
Discovery of highly spin-polarized conducting surface states in the strong spin-orbit coupling semiconductor SbSe
Majority of the AB type chalcogenide systems with strong spin-orbit
coupling, like BiSe, BiTe and SbTe etc., are
topological insulators. One important exception is SbSe, where a
topological non-trivial phase was argued to be possible under ambient
conditions, but such a phase could be detected to exist only under pressure. In
this Letter, we show that like BiSe, SbSe, displays generation
of highly spin-polarized current under mesoscopic superconducting point
contacts as measured by point contact Andreev reflection spectroscopy. In
addition, we observe a large negative and anisotropic magnetoresistance in
SbSe, when the field is rotated in the basal plane. However, unlike in
BiSe, in case of SbSe a prominent quasiparticle interference
(QPI) pattern around the defects could be obtained in STM conductance imaging.
Thus, our experiments indicate that SbSe is a regular band insulator
under ambient conditions, but due to it's high spin-orbit coupling, non-trivial
spin-texture exists on the surface and the system could be on the verge of a
topological insulator phase.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, supplemental material not include
Evolution of Magnetic and Superconducting Fluctuations with Doping of High-Tc Superconductors (An electronic Raman scattering study)
For YBa_2Cu_3O_{6+\delta} and Bi_2Sr_2CaCu_2O_8 superconductors, electronic
Raman scattering from high- and low-energy excitations has been studied in
relation to the hole doping level, temperature, and energy of the incident
photons. For underdoped superconductors, it is concluded that short range
antiferromagnetic (AF) correlations persist with hole doping and doped single
holes are incoherent in the AF environment. Above the superconducting (SC)
transition temperature T_c the system exhibits a sharp Raman resonance of B_1g
symmetry and about 75 meV energy and a pseudogap for electron-hole excitations
below 75 meV, a manifestation of a partially coherent state forming from doped
incoherent quasi-particles. The occupancy of the coherent state increases with
cooling until phase ordering at T_c produces a global SC state.Comment: 5 pages, 4 EPS figures; SNS'97 Proceedings to appear in J. Phys.
Chem. Solid
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