9,249 research outputs found
Anomalies in non-stoichiometric uranium dioxide induced by pseudo-phase transition of point defects
A uniform distribution of point defects in an otherwise perfect
crystallographic structure usually describes a unique pseudo phase of that
state of a non-stoichiometric material. With off-stoichiometric uranium dioxide
as a prototype, we show that analogous to a conventional phase transition,
these pseudo phases also will transform from one state into another via
changing the predominant defect species when external conditions of pressure,
temperature, or chemical composition are varied. This exotic transition is
numerically observed along shock Hugoniots and isothermal compression curves in
UO2 with first-principles calculations. At low temperatures, it leads to
anomalies (or quasi-discontinuities) in thermodynamic properties and electronic
structures. In particular, the anomaly is pronounced in both shock temperature
and the specific heat at constant pressure. With increasing of the temperature,
however, it transforms gradually to a smooth cross-over, and becomes less
discernible. The underlying physical mechanism and characteristics of this type
of transition are encoded in the Gibbs free energy, and are elucidated clearly
by analyzing the correlation with the variation of defect populations as a
function of pressure and temperature. The opportunities and challenges for a
possible experimental observation of this phase change are also discussed.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figure
Multi-responsive Graphene Aerogel-directed Phase Change Smart Fibres
Wearable devices and systems demand multifunctional units with intelligent and integrative functions. Smart fibers with response to external stimuli, such as electrical, thermal, and photonic signals, etc., as well as offering energy storage/conversion are essential units for wearable electronics, but still remain great challenges. Herein, flexible, strong, and selfâcleaning grapheneâaerogel composite fibers, with tunable functions of thermal conversion and storage under multistimuli, are fabricated. The fibers made from porous graphene aerogel/organic phaseâchange materials coated with hydrophobic fluorocarbon resin render a wide range of phase transition temperature and enthalpy (0â186 J gâ1). The strong and compliant fibers are twisted into yarn and woven into fabrics, showing a selfâclean superhydrophobic surface and excellent multiple responsive properties to external stimuli (electron/photon/thermal) together with reversible energy storage and conversion. Such aerogelâdirected smart fibers promise for broad applications in the nextâgeneration of wearable systems
The Tensor Current Divergence Equation in U(1) Gauge Theories is Free of Anomalies
The possible anomaly of the tensor current divergence equation in U(1) gauge
theories is calculated by means of perturbative method. It is found that the
tensor current divergence equation is free of anomalies.Comment: Revtex4, 7 pages, 2 figure
Entanglement distillation using particle statistics
We extend the idea of entanglement concentration for pure states(Phys. Rev.
Lett. {\bf 88}, 187903) to the case of mixed states. The scheme works only with
particle statistics and local operations, without the need of any other
interactions. We show that the maximally entangled state can be distilled out
when the initial state is pure, otherwise the entanglement of the final state
is less than one. The distillation efficiency is a product of the diagonal
elements of the initial state, it takes the maximum 50%, the same as the case
for pure states.Comment: 3 pages, 1 figur
A TH1 Polarizing Vaccine For Boosting The Antitumor Activity Of Adoptively Transferred T Cells
Polo-like kinase 1 siRNA-607 induces mitotic arrest and apoptosis in human nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells
Polo-like kinase (Plk) 1 is overexpressed in many human malignancies including nasopharyngeal carcinoma, indicating its potential as a therapeutic target. Recently, using a simple cellular morphologybased strategy, we have identified several novel effective siRNAs against Plk1 including Plk1 siRNA- 607. In this study, we further investigated the effects of Plk1 siRNA-607 in human nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line, HNE-1. Real time RT-PCR and Western blot indicated that Plk1 siRNA-607 transfection resulted in a significant inhibition in Plk1 expression in the HNE-1 cells. Furthermore, cell cycle, cell growth and apoptosis analysis clearly indicated that Plk1 siRNA-607 caused a dramatic mitotic cell cycle arrest followed by massive apoptotic cell death, and eventually resulted in a significant decrease in growth and viability of the nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells. Given that Plk1 has been widely accepted as a novel efficient target for cancer therapy, these results suggested that Plk1 siRNA-607 could be further developed for the treatment of human nasopharyngeal carcinoma.Key words: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma, Plk1, RNA silencing, cell cycle, apoptosis
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