47 research outputs found
Spin tunneling in the Kagom\'e antiferromagnet
The collective tunneling of a small cluster of spins between two degenerate
ground state configurations of the Kagom\'{e}-lattice quantum Heisenberg
antiferromagnet is \mbox{studied}. The cluster consists of the six spins on a
hexagon of the lattice. The resulting tunnel splitting energy is
calculated in detail, including the prefactor to the exponential \exp(- \SSo /
\hbar). This is done by setting up a coherent spin state path integral in
imaginary time and evaluating it by the method of steepest descent. The hexagon
tunneling problem is mapped onto a much simpler tunneling problem, involving
only one collective degree of freedom, which can be treated by known methods.
It is found that for half-odd-integer spins, the tunneling amplitude and the
tunnel splitting energy are exactly zero, because of destructive interference
between symmetry-related -instanton and -instanton tunneling paths.
This destructive interference is shown to occur also for certain larger loops
of spins on the Kagom\'{e} lattice. For small, integer spins, our results
suggest that tunneling strongly competes with \mbox{in-plane}
order-from-disorder selection effects; it constitutes a disordering mechanism
that might drive the system into a partially disordered ground state, related
to a spin nematic.Comment: 38 pages (RevTex), 8 figures upon request PRB921
Aharonov-Bohm cages in two-dimensional structures
We present an extreme localization mechanism induced by a magnetic field for
tight-binding electrons in two-dimensional structures. This spectacular
phenomenon is investigated for a large class of tilings (periodic,
quasiperiodic, or random). We are led to introduce the Aharonov-Bohm cages
defined as the set of sites eventually visited by a wavepacket that can, for
particular values of the magnetic flux, be bounded. We finally discuss the
quantum dynamics which exhibits an original pulsating behaviour.Comment: 4 pages Latex, 3 eps figures, 1 ps figur
Feasibility of quantum key distribution through dense wavelength division multiplexing network
In this paper, we study the feasibility of conducting quantum key
distribution (QKD) together with classical communication through the same
optical fiber by employing dense-wavelength-division-multiplexing (DWDM)
technology at telecom wavelength. The impact of the classical channels to the
quantum channel has been investigated for both QKD based on single photon
detection and QKD based on homodyne detection. Our studies show that the latter
can tolerate a much higher level of contamination from the classical channels
than the former. This is because the local oscillator used in the homodyne
detector acts as a "mode selector" which can suppress noise photons
effectively. We have performed simulations based on both the decoy BB84 QKD
protocol and the Gaussian modulated coherent state (GMCS) QKD protocol. While
the former cannot tolerate even one classical channel (with a power of 0dBm),
the latter can be multiplexed with 38 classical channels (0dBm power each
channel) and still has a secure distance around 10km. Preliminary experiment
has been conducted based on a 100MHz bandwidth homodyne detector.Comment: 18 pages, 5 figure
Spatial Structure of Spin Polarons in the t-J Model
The deformation of the quantum Neel state induced by a spin polaron is
analyzed in a slave fermion approach. Our method is based on the selfconsistent
Born approximation for Green's and the wave function for the quasiparticle. The
results of various spin-correlation functions relative to the position of the
moving hole are discussed and shown to agree with those available from small
cluster calculations. Antiferromagnetic correlations in the direct neighborhood
of the hole are reduced, but they remain antiferromagnetic even for J as small
as 0.1 t. These correlation functions exhibit dipolar distortions in the spin
structure, which sensitively depend on the momentum of the quasiparticle. Their
asymptotic decay with the distance from the hole is governed by power laws, yet
the spectral weight of the quasiparticles does not vanish.Comment: 12 pages, 2 postscipt files with figures; uses REVTeX, to be
published in Phys. Rev. B, Feb. 199
Modulating endothelial adhesion and migration impacts stem cell therapies efficacy
Background: Limited knowledge of stem cell therapies‘ mechanisms of action hampers their sustainable implementation into the clinic. Specifically, the interactions of transplanted stem cells with the host vasculature and its implications for their therapeutic efficacy are not elucidated. We tested whether adhesion receptors and chemokine receptors on stem cells can be functionally modulated, and consequently if such modulation may substantially affect therapeutically relevant stem cell interactions with the host endothelium. Methods: We investigated the effects of cationic molecule polyethylenimine (PEI) treatment with or without nanoparticles on the functions of adhesion receptors and chemokine receptors of human bone marrow-derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSC). Analyses included MSC functions in vitro, as well as homing and therapeutic efficacy in rodent models of central nervous system´s pathologies in vivo. Findings: PEI treatment did not affect viability, immunomodulation or differentiation potential of MSC, but increased the CCR4 expression and functionally blocked their adhesion receptors, thus decreasing their adhesion capacity in vitro. Intravenously applied in a rat model of brain injury, the homing rate of PEI-MSC in the brain was highly increased with decreased numbers of adherent PEI-MSC in the lung vasculature. Moreover, in comparison to untreated MSC, PEI-MSC featured increased tumour directed migration in a mouse glioblastoma model, and superior therapeutic efficacy in a murine model of stroke. Interpretation: Balanced stem cell adhesion and migration in different parts of the vasculature and tissues together with the local microenvironment impacts their therapeutic efficacy. Funding: Robert Bosch Stiftung, IZEPHA grant, EU grant 7 FP Healt
The importance of sedimenting organic matter, relative to oxygen and temperature, in structuring lake profundal macroinvertebrate assemblages
We quantified the role of a main food
resource, sedimenting organic matter (SOM), relative
to oxygen (DO) and temperature (TEMP) in structuring
profundal macroinvertebrate assemblages in
boreal lakes. SOM from 26 basins of 11 Finnish lakes
was analysed for quantity (sedimentation rates),
quality (C:N:P stoichiometry) and origin (carbon
stable isotopes, d13C). Hypolimnetic oxygen and
temperature were measured from each site during
summer stratification. Partial canonical correspondence
analysis (CCA) and partial regression analyses
were used to quantify contributions of SOM, DO and
TEMP to community composition and three macroinvertebrate
metrics. The results suggested a major
contribution of SOM in regulating the community
composition and total biomass. Oxygen best explained
the Shannon diversity, whereas TEMP had largest
contribution to the variation of Benthic Quality Index.
Community composition was most strongly related to d13C of SOM. Based on additional d13C and stoichiometric
analyses of chironomid taxa, marked differences
were apparent in their utilization of SOM and
body stoichiometry; taxa characteristic of oligotrophic
conditions exhibited higher C:N ratios and lower C:P
and N:P ratios compared to the species typical of
eutrophic lakes. The results highlight the role of SOM
in regulating benthic communities and the distributions
of individual species, particularly in oligotrophic
systems
The necessity of management in a lake of the Atlantic Forest biodiversity hotspot: nitrogen levels connected to a persistent bloom of Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii
Phasing of coherent femtosecond x-ray diffraction from size- varying nanocrystals
The scattering between Bragg reflections from nanocrystals is used to aid solution of the phase problem. We describe a method for reconstructing the charge density of a typical molecule within a single unit cell, if sufficiently finely-sampled "snap-shot" diffraction data (as provided a free-electron X-ray laser) are available from many nanocrystals of different sizes lying in random orientations. By using information on the particle-size distribution within the patterns, this digital method succeeds, using all the data, without knowledge of the distribution of particle size or requiring atomic-resolution data