Spin fluctuations in the 0.7-anomaly in quantum point contacts

It has been argued that the 0.7 anomaly in quantum point contacts (QPCs) is due to an enhanced density of states at the top of the QPC-barrier (van Hove ridge), which strongly enhances the effects of interactions. Here, we analyze their effect on dynamical quantities. We find that they pin the van Hove ridge to the chemical potential when the QPC is subopen; cause a temperature dependence for the linear conductance that qualitatively agrees with experiment; strongly enhance the magnitude of the dynamical spin susceptibility; and significantly lengthen the QPC traversal time. We conclude that electrons traverse the QPC via a slowly fluctuating spin structure of finite spatial extent

Synaptic Inhibition Influences the Temporal Coding Properties of Medial Superior Olivary Neurons. An in vitro Study

The medial superior olive (MSO) functions as a coincidence detector for interaural time and phase differences by integrating excitatory synaptic inputs. Recent studies demonstrating glycinergic projections to MSO neurons suggest that coincidence detection results from the temporal integration of both EPSPs and IPSPs. We examined the impact of synaptic inhibition on the temporal coding properties of gerbil MSO neurons in vitro with intracellular recordings and electrical stimulation. For low-level bilateral electric stimulation, the EPSPs summated to produce an action potential in 73% of MSO neurons if they occurred within 50–500 microseconds of one another. Synaptic inhibition became more prominent at higher stimulus amplitudes in 73% of MSO neurons, and could block an evoked action potential if the stimuli to each pathway were delivered within 250 microseconds of one another. The glycine receptor antagonist strychnine influenced the response to simulated interaural time differences. In the presence of strychnine, interstimulus delays that originally resulted in full action potential suppression were sufficient to evoke an action potential. For trains of stimuli, as stimulus intensity increased (spatial summation), or as stimulus repetition rate increased to 100–500 Hz (temporal summation), there was a decrease in the number of stimulus pulses that evoked an action potential. In the presence of strychnine, MSO neurons generated a greater percentage of action potentials to the stimulus trains. When stimulus trains were delivered bilaterally, MSO neurons fired a greater number of action potentials at specific interstimulus time differences, and were selectively inhibited at other time differences.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)</jats:p

Coupling of transverse and longitudinal response in stiff polymers

The time-dependent transverse response of stiff polymers, represented as weakly-bending wormlike chains (WLCs), is well-understood on the linear level, where transverse degrees of freedom evolve independently from the longitudinal ones. We show that, beyond a characteristic time scale, the nonlinear coupling of transverse and longitudinal motion in an inextensible WLC significantly weakens the polymer response compared to the widely used linear response predictions. The corresponding feedback mechanism is rationalized by scaling arguments and quantified by a multiple scale approach that exploits an inherent separation of transverse and longitudinal correlation length scales. Crossover scaling laws and exact analytical and numerical solutions for characteristic response quantities are derived for different experimentally relevant setups. Our findings are applicable to cytoskeletal filaments as well as DNA under tension.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, 1 table; final versio

Disruptive events in high-density cellular networks

Stochastic geometry models are used to study wireless networks, particularly cellular phone networks, but most of the research focuses on the typical user, often ignoring atypical events, which can be highly disruptive and of interest to network operators. We examine atypical events when a unexpected large proportion of users are disconnected or connected by proposing a hybrid approach based on ray launching simulation and point process theory. This work is motivated by recent results using large deviations theory applied to the signal-to-interference ratio. This theory provides a tool for the stochastic analysis of atypical but disruptive events, particularly when the density of transmitters is high. For a section of a European city, we introduce a new stochastic model of a single network cell that uses ray launching data generated with the open source RaLaNS package, giving deterministic path loss values. We collect statistics on the fraction of (dis)connected users in the uplink, and observe that the probability of an unexpected large proportion of disconnected users decreases exponentially when the transmitter density increases. This observation implies that denser networks become more stable in the sense that the probability of the fraction of (dis)connected users deviating from its mean, is exponentially small. We also empirically obtain and illustrate the density of users for network configurations in the disruptive event, which highlights the fact that such bottleneck behaviour not only stems from too many users at the cell boundary, but also from the near-far effect of many users in the immediate vicinity of the base station. We discuss the implications of these findings and outline possible future research directions.Comment: 8 pages, 11 figure

Extended Initiality for Typed Abstract Syntax

Initial Semantics aims at interpreting the syntax associated to a signature as the initial object of some category of 'models', yielding induction and recursion principles for abstract syntax. Zsid\'o proves an initiality result for simply-typed syntax: given a signature S, the abstract syntax associated to S constitutes the initial object in a category of models of S in monads. However, the iteration principle her theorem provides only accounts for translations between two languages over a fixed set of object types. We generalize Zsid\'o's notion of model such that object types may vary, yielding a larger category, while preserving initiality of the syntax therein. Thus we obtain an extended initiality theorem for typed abstract syntax, in which translations between terms over different types can be specified via the associated category-theoretic iteration operator as an initial morphism. Our definitions ensure that translations specified via initiality are type-safe, i.e. compatible with the typing in the source and target language in the obvious sense. Our main example is given via the propositions-as-types paradigm: we specify propositions and inference rules of classical and intuitionistic propositional logics through their respective typed signatures. Afterwards we use the category--theoretic iteration operator to specify a double negation translation from the former to the latter. A second example is given by the signature of PCF. For this particular case, we formalize the theorem in the proof assistant Coq. Afterwards we specify, via the category-theoretic iteration operator, translations from PCF to the untyped lambda calculus

Plasma from Volunteers Breathing Helium Reduces Hypoxia-Induced Cell Damage in Human Endothelial Cells-Mechanisms of Remote Protection Against Hypoxia by Helium.

PurposeRemote ischemic preconditioning protects peripheral organs against prolonged ischemia/reperfusion injury via circulating protective factors. Preconditioning with helium protected healthy volunteers against postischemic endothelial dysfunction. We investigated whether plasma from helium-treated volunteers can protect human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) against hypoxia in vitro through release of circulating of factors.MethodsHealthy male volunteers inhaled heliox (79% helium, 21% oxygen) or air for 30 min. Plasma was collected at baseline, directly after inhalation, 6 h and 24 h after start of the experiment. HUVECs were incubated with either 5% or 10% of the plasma for 1 or 2 h and subjected to enzymatically induced hypoxia. Cell damage was measured by LDH content. Furthermore, caveolin 1 (Cav-1), hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF1α), extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)1/2, signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT3) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) were determined.ResultsPrehypoxic exposure to 10% plasma obtained 6 h after helium inhalation decreased hypoxia-induced cell damage in HUVEC. Cav-1 knockdown in HUVEC abolished this effect.ConclusionsPlasma of healthy volunteers breathing helium protects HUVEC against hypoxic cell damage, possibly involving circulating Cav-1

Argon metastable dynamics in a filamentary jet micro-discharge at atmospheric pressure

Space and time resolved concentrations of Ar ($^{3}P_2$) metastable atoms at the exit of an atmospheric pressure radio-frequency micro-plasma jet were measured using tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy. The discharge features a coaxial geometry with a hollow capillary as an inner electrode and a ceramic tube with metal ring as outer electrode. Absorption profiles of metastable atoms as well as optical emission measurements reveal the dynamics and the filamentary structure of the discharge. The average spatial distribution of Ar metastables is characterized with and without a target in front of the jet, showing that the target potential and therewith the electric field distribution substantially changes the filaments' expansion. Together with the detailed analysis of the ignition phase and the discharge's behavior under pulsed operation, the results give an insight into the excitation and de-excitation mechanisms

Theory of thermal spin-charge coupling in electronic systems

The interplay between spin transport and thermoelectricity offers several novel ways of generating, manipulating, and detecting nonequilibrium spin in a wide range of materials. Here we formulate a phenomenological model in the spirit of the standard model of electrical spin injection to describe the electronic mechanism coupling charge, spin, and heat transport and employ the model to analyze several different geometries containing ferromagnetic (F) and nonmagnetic (N) regions: F, F/N, and F/N/F junctions which are subject to thermal gradients. We present analytical formulas for the spin accumulation and spin current profiles in those junctions that are valid for both tunnel and transparent (as well as intermediate) contacts. For F/N junctions we calculate the thermal spin injection efficiency and the spin accumulation induced nonequilibrium thermopower. We find conditions for countering thermal spin effects in the N region with electrical spin injection. This compensating effect should be particularly useful for distinguishing electronic from other mechanisms of spin injection by thermal gradients. For F/N/F junctions we analyze the differences in the nonequilibrium thermopower (and chemical potentials) for parallel and antiparallel orientations of the F magnetizations, as evidence and a quantitative measure of the spin accumulation in N. Furthermore, we study the Peltier and spin Peltier effects in F/N and F/N/F junctions and present analytical formulas for the heat evolution at the interfaces of isothermal junctions.Comment: to be published in PRB (in press), 19 pages, 19 figure