Semimetalic graphene in a modulated electric potential

The $\pi$-electronic structure of graphene in the presence of a modulated electric potential is investigated by the tight-binding model. The low-energy electronic properties are strongly affected by the period and field strength. Such a field could modify the energy dispersions, destroy state degeneracy, and induce band-edge states. It should be noted that a modulated electric potential could make semiconducting graphene semimetallic, and that the onset period of such a transition relies on the field strength. There exist infinite Fermi-momentum states in sharply contrast with two crossing points (Dirac points) for graphene without external fields. The finite density of states (DOS) at the Fermi level means that there are free carriers, and, at the same time, the low DOS spectrum exhibits many prominent peaks, mainly owing to the band-edge states.Comment: 12pages, 5 figure

Strain modification in coherent Ge and SixGe1–x epitaxial films by ion-assisted molecular beam epitaxy

We have observed large changes in Ge and SixGe1–x layer strain during concurrent molecular beam epitaxial growth and low-energy bombardment. Layers are uniformly strained, coherent with the substrate, and contain no dislocations, suggesting that misfit strain is accommodated by free volume changes associated with injection of ion bombardment induced point defects. The dependence of layer strain on ion energy, ion-atom flux ratio, and temperature is consistent with the presence of a uniform dispersion of point defects at high concentration. Implications for distinguishing ion-surface interactions from ion-bulk interactions are discussed

Localization of Neurospora ornithine aminotransferase in mitochondria

Localization of ornithine aminotransferase in mitochondri

Eigenstructure Assignment Based Controllers Applied to Flexible Spacecraft

The objective of this paper is to evaluate the behaviour of a controller designed using a parametric Eigenstructure Assignment method and to evaluate its suitability for use in flexible spacecraft. The challenge of this objective lies in obtaining a suitable controller that is specifically designated to alleviate the deflections and vibrations suffered by external appendages in flexible spacecraft while performing attitude manoeuvres. One of the main problems in these vehicles is the mechanical cross-coupling that exists between the rigid and flexible parts of the spacecraft. Spacecraft with fine attitude pointing requirements need precise control of the mechanical coupling to avoid undesired attitude misalignment. In designing an attitude controller, it is necessary to consider the possible vibration of the solar panels and how it may influence the performance of the rest of the vehicle. The nonlinear mathematical model of a flexible spacecraft is considered a close approximation to the real system. During the process of controller evaluation, the design process has also been taken into account as a factor in assessing the robustness of the system

Numerical analysis of the Iosipescu specimen for composite materials

A finite element analysis of the Iosipescu shear tests for unidirectional and cross-ply composites is presented. It is shown that an iterative analysis procedure must be used to model the fixture-specimen kinematics. The correction factors which are needed to compensate for the nonuniformity of stress distribution in calculating shear modulus are shown to be dependent on the material orthotropic ratio and the finite element loading models. Test section strain distributions representative of typical graphite-epoxy specimens are also presented

TagF-mediated repression of bacterial type VI secretion systems involves a direct interaction with the cytoplasmic protein Fha

The bacterial type VI secretion system (T6SS) delivers effectors into eukaryotic host cells or toxins into bacterial competitor for survival and fitness. The T6SS is positively regulated by the threonine phosphorylation pathway (TPP) and negatively by the T6SS-accessory protein TagF. Here, we studied the mechanisms underlying TagF-mediated T6SS repression in two distinct bacterial pathogens, Agrobacterium tumefaciens and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. We found that in A. tumefaciens, T6SS toxin secretion and T6SS-dependent antibacterial activity are suppressed by a two-domain chimeric protein consisting of TagF and PppA, a putative phosphatase. Remarkably, this TagF domain is sufficient to post-translationally repress the T6SS, and this inhibition is independent of TPP. This repression requires interaction with a cytoplasmic protein, Fha, critical for activating T6SS assembly. In P. aeruginosa, PppA and TagF are two distinct proteins that repress T6SS in a TPP-dependent and -independent pathways, respectively. P. aeruginosa TagF interacts with Fha1, suggesting that formation of this complex represents a conserved TagF-mediated regulatory mechanism. Using TagF variants with substitutions of conserved amino acid residues at predicted protein-protein interaction interfaces, we uncovered evidence that the TagF-Fha interaction is critical for TagF-mediated T6SS repression in both bacteria. TagF inhibits T6SS without affecting T6SS protein abundance in A. tumefaciens, but TagF overexpression reduces the protein levels of all analyzed T6SS components in P. aeruginosa. Our results indicate that TagF interacts with Fha, which in turn could impact different stages of T6SS assembly in different bacteria, possibly reflecting an evolutionary divergence in T6SS control

Bayesian Implications of Current LHC Supersymmetry and Dark Matter Detection Searches for the Constrained MSSM

We investigate the impact of recent limits from LHC searches for supersymmetry and from direct and indirect searches for dark matter on global Bayesian inferences of the parameter space of the Constrained Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (CMSSM). In particular we apply recent exclusion limits from the CMS \alpha_T analysis of 1.1/fb of integrated luminosity, the current direct detection dark matter limit from XENON100, as well as recent experimental constraints on \gamma-ray fluxes from dwarf spheroidal satellite galaxies of the Milky Way from the FermiLAT telescope, in addition to updating values for other non-LHC experimental constraints. We extend the range of scanned parameters to include a significant fraction of the focus point/hyperbolic branch region. While we confirm earlier conclusions that at present LHC limits provide the strongest constraints on the model's parameters, we also find that when the uncertainties are not treated in an excessively conservative way, the new bounds from dwarf spheroidal have the power to significantly constrain the focus point/hyperbolic branch region. Their effect is then comparable, if not stronger, to that from XENON100. We further analyze the effects of one-year projected sensitivities on the neutrino flux from the Sun in the 86-string IceCube+DeepCore configuration at the South Pole. We show that data on neutrinos from the Sun, expected for the next few months at IceCube and DeepCore, have the potential to further constrain the same region of parameter space independently of the LHC and can yield additional investigating power for the model.Comment: 27 pages, 7 figures, version published in PR

Crystallization and preliminary crystallographic analysis of the DNA gyrase B protein from B-stearothermophilus

DNA gyrase B (GyrB) from B. stearothermophilus has been crystallized in the presence of the non-hydrolyzable ATP analogue, 5'-adenylpl-beta-gamma-imidodiphosphate (ADPNP), by the dialysis method. A complete native data set to 3.7 Angstrom has been collected from crystals which belonged to the cubic space group I23 with unit-cell dimension a = 250.6 Angstrom. Self-rotation function analysis indicates the position of a molecular twofold axis. Low-resolution data sets of a thimerosal and a selenomethionine derivative have also been analysed. The heavy-atom positions are consistent with one dimer in the asymmetric unit