The Quantum-Classical Correspondence in Polygonal Billiards

We show that wave functions in planar rational polygonal billiards (all angles rationally related to Pi) can be expanded in a basis of quasi-stationary and spatially regular states. Unlike the energy eigenstates, these states are directly related to the classical invariant surfaces in the semiclassical limit. This is illustrated for the barrier billiard. We expect that these states are also present in integrable billiards with point scatterers or magnetic flux lines.Comment: 8 pages, 9 figures (in reduced quality), to appear in PR

Semiclassical Inequivalence of Polygonalized Billiards

Polygonalization of any smooth billiard boundary can be carried out in several ways. We show here that the semiclassical description depends on the polygonalization process and the results can be inequivalent. We also establish that generalized tangent-polygons are closest to the corresponding smooth billiard and for de Broglie wavelengths larger than the average length of the edges, the two are semiclassically equivalent.Comment: revtex, 4 ps figure

Reconstruction of the eruptive history of Usu volcano, Hokkaido, Japan, inferred from petrological correlation between tephras and dome lavas

Usu volcano has erupted nine times since 1663. Most eruptive events started with an explosive eruption, which was followed by the formation of lava domes. However, the ages of several summit lava domes and craters remain uncertain. The petrological features of tephra deposits erupted from 1663 to 1853 are known to change systematically. In this study, we correlated lavas with tephras under the assumption that lava and tephra samples from the same event would have similar petrological features. Although the initial explosive eruption in 1663 was not accompanied by lava effusion, lava dome or cryptodome formation was associated with subsequent explosive eruptions. We inferred the location of the vent associated with each event from the location of the associated lava dome and the pyroclastic flow deposit distribution and found that the position of the active vent within the summit caldera differed for each eruption from the late 17th through the 19th century. Moreover, we identified a previously unrecognized lava dome produced by a late 17th century eruption; this dome was largely destroyed by an explosive eruption in 1822 and was replaced by a new lava dome during a later stage of the 1822 event at nearly the same place as the destroyed dome. This new interpretation of the sequence of events is consistent with historical sketches and documents. Our results show that petrological correlation, together with geological evidence, is useful not only for reconstructing volcanic eruption sequences but also for gaining insight into future potential disasters

Statistical Origin of Pseudo-Hermitian Supersymmetry and Pseudo-Hermitian Fermions

We show that the metric operator for a pseudo-supersymmetric Hamiltonian that has at least one negative real eigenvalue is necessarily indefinite. We introduce pseudo-Hermitian fermion (phermion) and abnormal phermion algebras and provide a pair of basic realizations of the algebra of N=2 pseudo-supersymmetric quantum mechanics in which pseudo-supersymmetry is identified with either a boson-phermion or a boson-abnormal-phermion exchange symmetry. We further establish the physical equivalence (non-equivalence) of phermions (abnormal phermions) with ordinary fermions, describe the underlying Lie algebras, and study multi-particle systems of abnormal phermions. The latter provides a certain bosonization of multi-fermion systems.Comment: 20 pages, to appear in J.Phys.

Patterns and partners within the QCD phase diagram including strangeness

We review the current situation of the pattern of chiral symmetry restoration. In particular, we analyze partner degeneration for $O(4)$ and $U(1)_A$ symmetries within the context of Ward Identities and Effective Theories. The application of Ward Identities to the thermal scaling of screening masses is also discussed. We present relevant observables for which an Effective Theory description in terms of Chiral Perturbation Theory and its unitarized extension are compatible with lattice data even around the transition region. We pay special attention to the role of strangeness in this context.Comment: Proceedings of the Workshop "Strangeness in Quark Matter 2019", 6 pages, 2 figure

Hepatocyte growth factor and invasion-stimulatory activity are induced in pleural fluid by surgery in lung cancer patients

Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is a stromal cell-derived cytokine that can stimulate matrix invasion by carcinoma cells. We analysed the concentrations of HGF and invasion-stimulatory activity in pleural fluid after lung surgery. The concentration of HGF in pleural fluids was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in seven patients who underwent pulmonary resection for primary or metastatic lung cancer. The effect of the pleural fluid on cancer cell invasion across reconstituted basement membrane (Matrigel) was assessed with a Boyden chamber assay using a lung adenocarcinoma cell line, A549. HGF levels in the pleural fluid after lung surgery ranged from 6.0 to 23.0 ng ml−1 (average: 10.2 ± 4.3 ng ml−1). The matrix invasion of lung carcinoma cells in the presence of the pleural fluid was significantly higher than that in the presence of culture medium alone or sera from normal subjects (P < 0.01). The invasion-stimulatory activity of the pleural fluid was strongly inhibited by HGF-neutralizing antibody. Positive correlation was found between the HGF level and invasion-stimulatory activity in the pleural fluids and normal sera (P = 0.0073). This is the first report demonstrating that the lung surgery induces a considerable amount of HGF, which is closely correlated with the invasion-stimulatory activity of the pleural fluid. © 1999 Cancer Research Campaig

Hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) in proteomics

In proteomics, nanoflow multidimensional chromatography is now the gold standard for the separation of complex mixtures of peptides as generated by in-solution digestion of whole-cell lysates. Ideally, the different stationary phases used in multidimensional chromatography should provide orthogonal separation characteristics. For this reason, the combination of strong cation exchange chromatography (SCX) and reversed-phase (RP) chromatography is the most widely used combination for the separation of peptides. Here, we review the potential of hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) as a separation tool in the multidimensional separation of peptides in proteomics applications. Recent work has revealed that HILIC may provide an excellent alternative to SCX, possessing several advantages in the area of separation power and targeted analysis of protein post-translational modifications