35,847 research outputs found
Recommended from our members
Pictures of life in older age: a quantitative analysis of the lived experience of ageing using the Understanding Society survey
A new quantum fluid at high magnetic fields in the marginal charge-density-wave system -(BEDT-TTF)Hg(SCN) (where ~K and Rb)
Single crystals of the organic charge-transfer salts
-(BEDT-TTF)Hg(SCN) have been studied using Hall-potential
measurements (K) and magnetization experiments ( = K, Rb). The data show
that two types of screening currents occur within the high-field,
low-temperature CDW phases of these salts in response to time-dependent
magnetic fields. The first, which gives rise to the induced Hall potential, is
a free current (), present at the surface of the sample.
The time constant for the decay of these currents is much longer than that
expected from the sample resistivity. The second component of the current
appears to be magnetic (), in that it is a microscopic,
quasi-orbital effect; it is evenly distributed within the bulk of the sample
upon saturation. To explain these data, we propose a simple model invoking a
new type of quantum fluid comprising a CDW coexisting with a two-dimensional
Fermi-surface pocket which describes the two types of current. The model and
data are able to account for the body of previous experimental data which had
generated apparently contradictory interpretations in terms of the quantum Hall
effect or superconductivity.Comment: 13 pages, 11 figure
A model for time-dependent grain boundary diffusion of ions and electrons through a film or scale, with an application to alumina
A model for ionic and electronic grain boundary transport through thin films,
scales or membranes with columnar grain structure is introduced. The grain
structure is idealized as a lattice of identical hexagonal cells - a honeycomb
pattern. Reactions with the environment constitute the boundary conditions and
drive the transport between the surfaces. Time-dependent simulations solving
the Poisson equation self-consistently with the Nernst-Planck flux equations
for the mobile species are performed. In the resulting Poisson-Nernst-Planck
system of equations, the electrostatic potential is obtained from the Poisson
equation in its integral form by summation. The model is used to interpret
alumina membrane oxygen permeation experiments, in which different oxygen gas
pressures are applied at opposite membrane surfaces and the resulting flux of
oxygen molecules through the membrane is measured. Simulation results involving
four mobile species, charged aluminum and oxygen vacancies, electrons, and
holes, provide a complete description of the measurements and insight into the
microscopic processes underpinning the oxygen permeation of the membrane. Most
notably, the hypothesized transition between p-type and n-type ionic
conductivity of the alumina grain boundaries as a function of the applied
oxygen gas pressure is observed in the simulations. The range of validity of a
simple analytic model for the oxygen permeation rate, similar to the Wagner
theory of metal oxidation, is quantified by comparison to the numeric
simulations. The three-dimensional model we develop here is readily adaptable
to problems such as transport in a solid state electrode, or corrosion scale
growth
Spin-density wave Fermi surface reconstruction in underdoped YBa2Cu3O6+x
We consider the reconstruction expected for the Fermi surface of underdoped
YBa2Cu3O6+x in the case of a collinear spin-density wave with a characteristic
vector Q=(pi[1+/-2 delta],pi), assuming an incommensurability delta~0.06
similar to that found in recent neutron scattering experiments. A Fermi surface
possibly consistent with the multiple observed quantum oscillation frequencies
is obtained. From the low band masses expected using this model as compared
with experiment, a uniform enhancement of the quasiparticle effective mass over
the Fermi surface by a factor of ~7 is indicated. Further predictions of the
Fermi surface topology are made, which may potentially be tested by experiment
to indicate the relevance of this model to underdoped YBa2Cu3O6+x.Comment:
Analytical Hartree-Fock gradients for periodic systems
We present the theory of analytical Hartree-Fock gradients for periodic
systems as implemented in the code CRYSTAL. We demonstrate how derivatives of
the integrals can be computed with the McMurchie-Davidson algorithm. Highly
accurate gradients with respect to nuclear coordinates are obtained for systems
periodic in 0,1,2 or 3 dimensions.Comment: accepted by International Journal of Quantum Chemistr
The NuSTAR View of the Seyfert 2 Galaxy NGC 4388
We present analysis of NuSTAR X-ray observations in the 3-79 keV energy band
of the Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 4388, taken in 2013. The broadband sensitivity of
NuSTAR, covering the Fe K line and Compton reflection hump, enables
tight constraints to be placed on reflection features in AGN X-ray spectra,
thereby providing insight into the geometry of the circumnuclear material. In
this observation, we found the X-ray spectrum of NGC 4388 to be well described
by a moderately absorbed power law with non-relativistic reflection. We fit the
spectrum with phenomenological reflection models and a physical torus model,
and find the source to be absorbed by Compton-thin material (N cm) with a very weak Compton reflection hump
(R 0.09) and an exceptionally large Fe K line (EW eV) for a source with weak or no reflection. Calculations
using a thin-shell approximation for the expected Fe K EW indicate that
an Fe K line originating from Compton-thin material presents a possible
explanation.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures. Accepted for publication in Ap
Quantum box energies as a route to the ground state levels of self-assembled InAs pyramidal dots
A theoretical investigation of the ground state electronic structure of InAs/GaAs quantum confined structures is presented. Energy levels of cuboids and pyramidal shaped dots are calculated using a single-band, constant-confining-potential model that in former applications has proved to reproduce well both the predictions of very sophisticated treatments and several features of many experimental photoluminescence spectra. A connection rule between their ground state energies is found which allows the calculation of the energy levels of pyramidal dots using those of cuboids of suitably chosen dimensions, whose solution requires considerably less computational effort. The purpose of this work is to provide experimentalists with a versatile and simple method to analyze their spectra. As an example, this rule is then applied to successfully reproduce the position of the ground state transition peaks of some experimental photoluminescence spectra of self-assembled pyramidal dots. Furthermore the rule is used to predict the dimensions of a pyramidal dot, starting from the knowledge of the ground state transition energy and an estimate for the aspect ratio Q. © 2000 American Institute of Physics
Conjugative transfer frequencies of mef(A)-containing Tn1207.3 to macrolide-susceptible Streptococcus pyogenes belonging to different emm types
The aim of this study was to examine the gene transfer potential of mef(A)-containing Tn120.3 to macrolide-susceptible Streptococcus pyogenes belonging to different emm types. Using the filter mating technique, Tn1207.3 was transferred by conjugation to 23 macrolide-susceptible recipients representing 11 emm types. PCR analysis confirmed the presence of the mef(A) gene and the comEC junction regions of the Tn1207.3 insertion in resultant transconjugants. Significant variation was found in the transfer frequency of Tn1207.3 to different Strep. pyogenes strains, and this phenomenon may contribute to the differences in mef(A) frequency observed among clinical isolates. Significance and Impact of the Study: The spread of antimicrobial resistance among pathogenic bacteria is an important problem, but the mechanisms of horizontal transfer between strains and species are often poorly understood. For instance, little is known on how macrolide resistance spreads between strains of the human pathogen Strep. pyogenes and why certain strains more commonly display resistance than others. Here, we show that Strep. pyogenes strains vary greatly in their ability to acquire a transposon encoding macrolide resistance by horizontal gene transfer in vitro. These data provide a novel insight into the transfer of antibiotic resistance between bacterial strains and offer an explanation for the differences in the frequency of resistance determinates and resistance seen among clinical isolates. © 2014 The Authors Letters in Applied Microbiology
- …