Probing Majorana Phases and Neutrino Mass Spectrum in the Higgs Triplet Model at the LHC

Doubly charged Higgs bosons (H^++) are a distinctive signature of the Higgs Triplet Model of neutrino mass generation. If H^++ is relatively light (m_{H^++} < 400GeV) it will be produced copiously at the LHC, which could enable precise measurements of the branching ratios of the decay channels H^++ to l_i l_j. Such branching ratios are determined solely by the neutrino mass matrix which allows the model to be tested at the LHC. We quantify the dependence of the leptonic branching ratios on the absolute neutrino mass and Majorana phases, and present the permitted values for the channels ee, emu and mumu. It is shown that precise measurements of these three branching ratios are sufficient to extract information on the neutrino mass spectrum and probe the presence of CP violation from Majorana phases.Comment: 1+19 pages, 22 figures, typos corrected, references added, version to appear in Phys. Rev.

Testing neutrino mass generation mechanisms from the lepton flavor violating decay of the Higgs boson

We investigate how observations of the lepton flavor violating decay of the Higgs boson ($h \to \ell\ell^\prime$) can narrow down models of neutrino mass generation mechanisms, which were systematically studied in Refs. [1,2] by focusing on the combination of new Yukawa coupling matrices with leptons. We find that a wide class of models for neutrino masses can be excluded if evidence for $h \to \ell\ell^\prime$ is really obtained in the current or future collider experiments. In particular, simple models of Majorana neutrino masses cannot be compatible with the observation of $h \to \ell\ell^\prime$. It is also found that some of the simple models to generate masses of Dirac neutrinos radiatively can be compatible with a significant rate of the $h \to \ell\ell^\prime$ process.Comment: 16 pages, 7 eps files, published in PL

Does Interactivity in an English Presentation Affect its Preparation Process?

The purpose of this study is to clarify the differences in the process of students’ preparation and practice outside of class for a one-way or interactive English presentation. The participants were 105 third-year junior high school students in Japan. They were supposed to record their actions while preparing for each type of presentation outside of class for a week. A hierarchical cluster analysis was conducted on all learners based on a self-evaluation questionnaire administered beforehand. Three clusters were created from the dendrogram. Kruskal-Wallis test and multiple comparisons showed significant differences among all items. Each cluster was named "Self-rating (high)", "Self-rating (medium)", and "Self-rating (low)". These three groups were analyzed based on the records and the post-questionnaire. The results indicated that the amount of practice on the day of the presentation was greater for a one-way presentation in any group, while in an interactive presentation, the tendency of the group to “Self-rating (high)” was different from the others. The inclusion of interaction with listeners in a presentation confirmed motivation for further preparation, such as conducting research and creating additional questions and quizzes in advance, suggesting the possibility of a different range of effects on learning

Rarefied gas flows through a curved channel: Application of a diffusion-type equation

Rarefied gas flows through a curved two-dimensional channel, caused by a pressure or a temperature gradient, are investigated numerically by using a macroscopic equation of convection-diffusion type. The equation, which was derived systematically from the Bhatnagar–Gross–Krook model of the Boltzmann equation and diffuse-reflection boundary condition in a previous paper [K. Aoki et al., “A diffusion model for rarefied flows in curved channels, ” Multiscale Model. Simul. 6, 1281 (2008)], is valid irrespective of the degree of gas rarefaction when the channel width is much shorter than the scale of variations of physical quantities and curvature along the channel. Attention is also paid to a variant of the Knudsen compressor that can produce a pressure raise by the effect of the change of channel curvature and periodic temperature distributions without any help of moving parts. In the process of analysis, the macroscopic equation is (partially) extended to the case of the ellipsoidal-statistical model of the Boltzmann equation

Cold Positions of the Restricted Wythoff\u27s Game

Wythoff\u27s game is a kind of 2-pile Nim game, which admits taking the same number of stones from both piles. It differs only a little from the 2-pile Nim game, but their winning strategies are quite different from each other. Amazingly the winning strategy of Wythoff\u27s game is directly related to a real number, specifically the golden ratio. In this paper we add two restrictions to this game, and investigate the winning strategy of the revised game

Multiband superconductivity with unexpected deficiency of nodal quasiparticles in CeCu2Si2

Superconductivity in the heavy-fermion compound CeCu2Si2 is a prototypical example of Cooper pairs formed by strongly correlated electrons. For more than 30 years, it has been believed to arise from nodal d-wave pairing mediated by a magnetic glue. Here, we report a detailed study of the specific heat and magnetization at low temperatures for a high-quality single crystal. Unexpectedly, the specific-heat measurements exhibit exponential decay with a two-gap feature in its temperature dependence, along with a linear dependence as a function of magnetic field and the absence of oscillations in the field angle, reminiscent of multiband full-gap superconductivity. In addition, we find anomalous behavior at high fields, attributed to a strong Pauli paramagnetic effect. A low quasiparticle density of states at low energies with a multiband Fermi-surface topology would open a new door into electron pairing in CeCu2Si2.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures (main text) + 5 pages, 6 figures (supplemental material), published in Phys. Rev. Let

Thermodynamic study of gap structure and pair-breaking effect by magnetic field in the heavy-fermion superconductor CeCu2Si2

This paper presents the results of specific-heat and magnetization measurements, in particular their field-orientation dependence, on the first discovered heavy-fermion superconductor CeCu$_2$Si$_2$ ($T_{\rm c} \sim 0.6$ K). We discuss the superconducting gap structure and the origin of the anomalous pair-breaking phenomena, leading e.g., to the suppression of the upper critical field $H_{\rm c2}$, found in the high-field region. The data show that the anomalous pair breaking becomes prominent below about 0.15 K in any field direction, but occurs closer to $H_{\rm c2}$ for $H \parallel c$. The presence of this anomaly is confirmed by the fact that the specific-heat and magnetization data satisfy standard thermodynamic relations. Concerning the gap structure, field-angle dependences of the low-temperature specific heat within the $ab$ and $ac$ planes do not show any evidence for gap nodes. From microscopic calculations in the framework of a two-band full-gap model, the power-law-like temperature dependences of $C$ and $1/T_1$, reminiscent of nodal superconductivity, have been reproduced reasonably. These facts further support multiband full-gap superconductivity in CeCu$_2$Si$_2$.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures, published in Phys. Rev.

Membrane-associated prostaglandin E synthase-1 is upregulated by proinflammatory cytokines in chondrocytes from patients with osteoarthritis

Prostaglandin E synthase (PGES) including isoenzymes of membrane-associated PGES (mPGES)-1, mPGES-2, and cytosolic PGES (cPGES) is the recently identified terminal enzyme of the arachidonic acid cascade. PGES converts prostaglandin (PG)H(2 )to PGE(2 )downstream of cyclooxygenase (COX). We investigated the expression of PGES isoenzyme in articular chondrocytes from patients with osteoarthritis (OA). Chondrocytes were treated with various cytokines and the expression of PGES isoenzyme mRNA was analyzed by the reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction and Northern blotting, whereas Western blotting was performed for protein expression. The subcellular localization of mPGES-1 was determined by immunofluorescent microscopy. Conversion of arachidonic acid or PGH(2 )to PGE(2 )was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Finally, the expression of mPGES-1 protein in OA articular cartilage was assessed by immunohistochemistry. Expression of mPGES-1 mRNA in chondrocytes was significantly induced by interleukin (IL)-1β or tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, whereas other cytokines, such as IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, and interferon-γ, had no effect. COX-2 was also induced under the same conditions, although its pattern of expression was different. Expression of cPGES, mPGES-2, and COX-1 mRNA was not affected by IL-1β or TNF-α. The subcellular localization of mPGES-1 and COX-2 almost overlapped in the perinuclear region. In comparison with 6-keto-PGF(1α )and thromboxane B(2), the production of PGE(2 )was greater after chondrocytes were stimulated by IL-1β or TNF-α. Conversion of PGH(2 )to PGE(2 )(PGES activity) was significantly increased in the lysate from IL-1β-stimulated chondrocytes and it was inhibited by MK-886, which has an inhibitory effect on mPGES-1 activity. Chondrocytes in articular cartilage from patients with OA showed positive immunostaining for mPGES-1. These results suggest that mPGES-1 might be important in the pathogenesis of OA. It might also be a potential new target for therapeutic strategies that specifically modulate PGE(2 )synthesis in patients with OA

Ⅱ.Impact assessment for fish and wildlife

金沢大学大学院自然科学研究科　環境科学Editor : Tazaki, Kazue |田崎, 和