264 research outputs found
Disorder-induced melting of the charge order in thin films of Pr0.5Ca0.5MnO3
We have studied the magnetic-field-induced melting of the charge order in
thin films of Pr0.5Ca0.5MnO3 (PCMO) films on SrTiO3 (STO) by X-ray diffraction,
magnetization and transport measurement. At small thickness (25 nm) the films
are under tensile strain and the low-temperature melting fields are of the
order of 20 T or more, comparable to the bulk value. With increasing film
thickness the strain relaxes, which leads to a strong decrease of the melting
fields. For a film of 150 nm, with in-plane and out-of-plane lattice parameters
closer to the bulk value, the melting field has reduced to 4 T at 50 K, with a
strong increase in the hysteretic behavior and also an increasing fraction of
ferromagnetic material. Strain relaxation by growth on a template of
YBa2Cu3O(7-delta) or by post-annealing yields similar results with an even
stronger reduction of the melting field. Apparently, strained films behave
bulk-like. Relaxation leads to increasing suppression of the CO state,
presumably due to atomic scale disorder produced by the relaxation process.Comment: 7 pages, 4 fig
Non-Fermi-liquid behavior in Ce(RuFe)Ge: cause and effect
We present inelastic neutron scattering measurements on the intermetallic
compounds Ce(RuFe)Ge (=0.65, 0.76 and 0.87). These
compounds represent samples in a magnetically ordered phase, at a quantum
critical point and in the heavy-fermion phase, respectively. We show that at
high temperatures the three compositions have the identical response of a local
moment system. However, at low temperatures the spin fluctuations in the
critical composition are given by non-Fermi-liquid dynamics, while the spin
fluctuations in the heavy fermion system show a simple exponential decay in
time. In both compositions, the lifetime of the fluctuations is determined
solely by the distance to the quantum critical point. We discuss the
implications of these observations regarding the possible origins of
non-Fermi-liquid behavior in this system.Comment: 4 figures, submitted to PR
Proximity effects in the superconductor / heavy fermion bilayer system Nb / CeCu_6
We have investigated the proximity effect between a superconductor (Nb) and a
'Heavy Fermion' system (CeCu_6) by measuring critical temperatures and
parallel critical fields H_{c2}^{\parallel}(T) of Nb films with varying
thickness deposited on 75 nm thick films of CeCu_6, and comparing the results
with the behavior of similar films deposited on the normal metal Cu. For Nb on
CeCu_6 we find a strong decrease of T_c with decreasing Nb thickness and a
finite critical thickness of the order of 10 nm. Also, dimensional crossovers
in H_{c2}^{\parallel}(T) are completely absent, in strong contrast with Nb/Cu.
Analysis of the data by a proximity effect model based on the Takahashi-Tachiki
theory shows that the data can be explained by taking into account both the
high effective mass (or low electronic diffusion constant), {\it and} the large
density of states at the Fermi energy which characterize the Heavy Fermion
metal.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figure. Manuscript has been submitted to a refereed
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Harvesting the wisdom of the crowd: using online ratings to explore care experiences in regions.
Regional population health management (PHM) initiatives need an understanding of regional patient experiences to improve their services. Websites that gather patient ratings have become common and could be a helpful tool in this effort. Therefore, this study explores whether unsolicited online ratings can provide insight into (differences in) patient's experiences at a (regional) population level
The Haroche-Ramsey experiment as a generalized measurement
A number of atomic beam experiments, related to the Ramsey experiment and a
recent experiment by Brune et al., are studied with respect to the question of
complementarity. Three different procedures for obtaining information on the
state of the incoming atom are compared. Positive operator-valued measures are
explicitly calculated. It is demonstrated that, in principle, it is possible to
choose the experimental arrangement so as to admit an interpretation as a joint
non-ideal measurement yielding interference and ``which-way'' information.
Comparison of the different measurements gives insight into the question of
which information is provided by a (generalized) quantum mechanical
measurement. For this purpose the subspaces of Hilbert-Schmidt space, spanned
by the operators of the POVM, are determined for different measurement
arrangements and different values of the parameters.Comment: REVTeX, 22 pages, 5 figure
Impedance measurements of zinc and amalgamated zinc electrodes in alkaline electrolyte
Predicting outcomes in chronic kidney disease:needs and preferences of patients and nephrologists
Introduction: Guidelines on chronic kidney disease (CKD) recommend that nephrologists use clinical prediction models (CPMs). However, the actual use of CPMs seems limited in clinical practice. We conducted a national survey study to evaluate: 1) to what extent CPMs are used in Dutch CKD practice, 2) patients’ and nephrologists’ needs and preferences regarding predictions in CKD, and 3) determinants that may affect the adoption of CPMs in clinical practice. Methods: We conducted semi-structured interviews with CKD patients to inform the development of two online surveys; one for CKD patients and one for nephrologists. Survey participants were recruited through the Dutch Kidney Patient Association and the Dutch Federation of Nephrology. Results: A total of 126 patients and 50 nephrologists responded to the surveys. Most patients (89%) reported they had discussed predictions with their nephrologists. They most frequently discussed predictions regarded CKD progression: when they were expected to need kidney replacement therapy (KRT) (n = 81), and how rapidly their kidney function was expected to decline (n = 68). Half of the nephrologists (52%) reported to use CPMs in clinical practice, in particular CPMs predicting the risk of cardiovascular disease. Almost all nephrologists (98%) reported discussing expected CKD trajectories with their patients; even those that did not use CPMs (42%). The majority of patients (61%) and nephrologists (84%) chose a CPM predicting when patients would need KRT in the future as the most important prediction. However, a small portion of patients indicated they did not want to be informed on predictions regarding CKD progression at all (10–15%). Nephrologists not using CPMs (42%) reported they did not know CPMs they could use or felt that they had insufficient knowledge regarding CPMs. According to the nephrologists, the most important determinants for the adoption of CPMs in clinical practice were: 1) understandability for patients, 2) integration as standard of care, 3) the clinical relevance. Conclusion: Even though the majority of patients in Dutch CKD practice reported discussing predictions with their nephrologists, CPMs are infrequently used for this purpose. Both patients and nephrologists considered a CPM predicting CKD progression most important to discuss. Increasing awareness about existing CPMs that predict CKD progression may result in increased adoption in clinical practice. When using CPMs regarding CKD progression, nephrologists should ask whether patients want to hear predictions beforehand, since individual patients’ preferences vary.</p
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