Periodic orbit resonances in layered metals in tilted magnetic fields

The frequency dependence of the interlayer conductivity of a layered Fermi liquid in a magnetic field which is tilted away from the normal to the layers is considered. For both quasi-one- and quasi-two-dimensional systems resonances occur when the frequency is a harmonic of the frequency at which the magnetic field causes the electrons to oscillate on the Fermi surface within the layers. The intensity of the different harmonic resonances varies significantly with the direction of the field. The resonances occur for both coherent and weakly incoherent interlayer transport and so their observation does not imply the existence of a three-dimensional Fermi surface.Comment: 4 pages, RevTeX + epsf, 2 figures. Discussion of other work revised. To appear in Phys. Rev. B, Rapid Commun., October 1

Knockdown of the schizophrenia susceptibility gene TCF4 alters gene expression and proliferation of progenitor cells from the developing human neocortex

BACKGROUND: Common variants in the TCF4 gene are among the most robustly supported genetic risk factors for schizophrenia. Rare TCF4 deletions and loss-of-function point mutations cause Pitt-Hopkins syndrome, a developmental disorder associated with severe intellectual disability. METHODS: To explore molecular and cellular mechanisms by which TCF4 perturbation could interfere with human cortical development, we experimentally reduced the endogenous expression of TCF4 in a neural progenitor cell line derived from the developing human cerebral cortex using RNA interference. Effects on genome-wide gene expression were assessed by microarray, followed by Gene Ontology and pathway analysis of differentially expressed genes. We tested for genetic association between the set of differentially expressed genes and schizophrenia using genome-wide association study data from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium and competitive gene set analysis (MAGMA). Effects on cell proliferation were assessed using high content imaging. RESULTS: Genes that were differentially expressed following TCF4 knockdown were highly enriched for involvement in the cell cycle. There was a nonsignificant trend for genetic association between the differentially expressed gene set and schizophrenia. Consistent with the gene expression data, TCF4 knockdown was associated with reduced proliferation of cortical progenitor cells in vitro. LIMITATIONS: A detailed mechanistic explanation of how TCF4 knockdown alters human neural progenitor cell proliferation is not provided by this study. CONCLUSION: Our data indicate effects of TCF4 perturbation on human cortical progenitor cell proliferation, a process that could contribute to cognitive deficits in individuals with Pitt-Hopkins Syndrome and risk for schizophrenia

Entanglement in the One-dimensional Kondo Necklace Model

We discuss the thermal and magnetic entanglement in the one-dimensional Kondo necklace model. Firstly, we show how the entanglement naturally present at zero temperature is distributed among pairs of spins according to the strength of the two couplings of the chain, namely, the Kondo exchange interaction and the hopping energy. The effect of the temperature and the presence of an external magnetic field is then investigated, being discussed the adjustment of these variables in order to control the entanglement available in the system. In particular, it is indicated the existence of a critical magnetic field above which the entanglement undergoes a sharp variation, leading the ground state to a completely unentangled phase.Comment: 8 pages, 13 EPS figures. v2: four references adde

Effects of copper sulfate and zinc oxide on weanling pig growth and plasma mineral levels

A total of 216 weanling pigs (PIC TR4 × 1050, initially 13.6 lb and 21 d of age) were used in a 42-d growth trial to compare the effects of supplemental zinc and copper and changing mineral regimens on growth performance and plasma mineral levels. The 6 dietary treatments included a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement with main effects of added copper from copper sulfate (0 or 125 ppm) and added zinc from zinc oxide (0 or 3,000 ppm from d 0 to 14 and 0 or 2,000 ppm from d 14 to 42). For the final 2 treatments, either zinc oxide alone or the combinations of zinc and copper were fed from d 0 to 14, with copper sulfate fed from d 14 to 42. There were 6 pens per treatment with 6 pigs per pen. All diets were supplemented with an additional 165 ppm zinc and 16.5 ppm copper from the trace mineral premix. Plasma was collected from 2 pigs per pen on d 14 and 42. From d 0 to 14, ADG, ADFI, and F/G were improved (P < 0.04) with the addition of dietary zinc. Copper supplementation also tended to increase (P < 0.07) ADFI from d 0 to 14. From d 14 to 42, added copper increased (P < 0.003) ADG and ADFI. Over the entire trial, continuous supplemental zinc increased (P < 0.03) ADG and tended to increase (P < 0.09) ADFI. Dietary copper also increased (P < 0.004) ADG and ADFI when fed from d 0 to 42. The most advantageous values for ADG and ADFI were seen in the treatment containing high levels of zinc from d 0 to 14 and high copper levels from d 14 to 42. The addition of either zinc or copper increased (P < 0.02) feed cost per pound of gain. However, income over feed cost was improved (P < 0.006) with the addition of copper, with the greatest value obtained when high zinc was fed from d 0 to 14 and high copper was fed from d 14 to 42. Plasma zinc levels were increased (P < 0.001) with zinc supplementation on d 14. These results indicate the optimal mineral regimen was supplementing zinc oxide from d 0 to 14 and copper sulfate from d 14 to 42

Prediction of pH Change in Processed Acidified Turnips

The acetic acid uptake by turnips was studied during an acidification process in containers. The process was successfully described by a Fickian diffusion, using a correlation for the buffer effect. Diffusion coefficients (0.629 to 3.99 × 10-9 m2/sec) and partition coefficients (0.8 to 1.1) were obtained by optimization of the fit between experimental and theoretical values, using the simplex method. The partition coefficient did not show an evident dependence on temperature, while diffusivity followed an Arrhenius type behavior. The relationship between acid concentration and pH was described using a cubic model with parameters independent of temperature. Results showed that the combination of these models describing the acid diffusion into the food and the buffering effects of the food allowed accurate prediction of pH evolution in the acidification process

On the Two Species Asymmetric Exclusion Process with Semi-Permeable Boundaries

We investigate the structure of the nonequilibrium stationary state (NESS) of a system of first and second class particles, as well as vacancies (holes), on L sites of a one-dimensional lattice in contact with first class particle reservoirs at the boundary sites; these particles can enter at site 1, when it is vacant, with rate alpha, and exit from site L with rate beta. Second class particles can neither enter nor leave the system, so the boundaries are semi-permeable. The internal dynamics are described by the usual totally asymmetric exclusion process (TASEP) with second class particles. An exact solution of the NESS was found by Arita. Here we describe two consequences of the fact that the flux of second class particles is zero. First, there exist (pinned and unpinned) fat shocks which determine the general structure of the phase diagram and of the local measures; the latter describe the microscopic structure of the system at different macroscopic points (in the limit L going to infinity in terms of superpositions of extremal measures of the infinite system. Second, the distribution of second class particles is given by an equilibrium ensemble in fixed volume, or equivalently but more simply by a pressure ensemble, in which the pair potential between neighboring particles grows logarithmically with distance. We also point out an unexpected feature in the microscopic structure of the NESS for finite L: if there are n second class particles in the system then the distribution of first class particles (respectively holes) on the first (respectively last) n sites is exchangeable.Comment: 28 pages, 4 figures. Changed title and introduction for clarity, added reference

Potential for Precision Measurement of Solar Neutrino Luminosity by HERON

Results are presented for a simulation carried out to test the precision with which a detector design (HERON) based on a superfluid helium target material should be able to measure the solar pp and Be7 fluxes. It is found that precisions of +/- 1.68% and +/- 2.97% for pp and Be7 fluxes, respectively, should be achievable in a 5-year data sample. The physics motivation to aim for these precisions is outlined as are the detector design, the methods used in the simulation and sensitivity to solar orbit eccentricity.Comment: 15 pages, 11 figure

Qubit Disentanglement and Decoherence via Dephasing

We consider whether quantum coherence in the form of mutual entanglement between a pair of qubits is susceptible to decay that may be more rapid than the decay of the coherence of either qubit individually. An instance of potential importance for solid state quantum computing arises if embedded qubits (spins, quantum dots, Cooper pair boxes, etc.) are exposed to global and local noise at the same time. Here we allow separate phase-noisy channels to affect local and non-local measures of system coherence. We find that the time for decay of the qubit entanglement can be significantly shorter than the time for local dephasing of the individual qubits.Comment: REVTeX, 9 pages, 1 figure, v2 with minor changes, reference adde