291 research outputs found
Phase chirality and stereo-selective swelling of cholesteric elastomers
Cholesteric elastomers possess a macroscopic ``phase chirality'' as the
director n rotates in a helical fashion along an optical axis and can be
described by a chiral order parameter. This parameter can be tuned by changing
the helix pitch p and/or the elastic properties of the network. The
cholesterics also possess a local nematic order, changing with temperature or
during solvent swelling. In this paper, by measuring the power of optical
rotation, we discover how these two parameters vary as functions of temperature
or solvent adsorbed by the network. The main result is a finding of pronounced
stereo-selectivity of cholesteric elastomers, demonstrating itself in the
retention of the ``correct'' chirality component of a racemic solvent. It has
been possible to quantify the amount of such stereo-separation, as the basic
dynamics of the effect
Evidence for two distinct anisotropies in the oxypnictide superconductors SmFeAsO_(0.8)F_(0.2) and NdFeAsO_(0.8)F_(0.2)
Single crystals of the oxypnictide superconductors SmFeAsO_(0.8)F_(0.2) and
NdFeAsO_(0.8)F_(0.2) with T_c in the range of 44 K to 48 K were investigated by
torque magnetometry. An analysis of the data in terms of a recently proposed
model for the anisotropic magnetization in the superconducting state, treating
the penetration depth anisotropy differently than the upper critical field
anisotropy, provides evidence that in the oxypnictide superconductors two
distinct anisotropies are present. As a result the penetration depth anisotropy
differs significantly in magnitude and in temperature dependence from the upper
critical field anisotropy, analogous to MgB_2 but with a reversed sign of
slope. This scenario strongly suggests a new multi-band mechanism in the novel
class of oxypnictide high-temperature superconductors.Comment: published online in J. Supercond. Nov. Mag
Understanding social disparities in hypertension prevalence, awareness, treatment, and control: The role of neighborhood context.
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/57187/1/Morenoff JD et al 2007 Understanding social disparities in hypertension prevalence awareness treatment and control The role of neighborhood context.pd
High magnetic field scales and critical currents in SmFeAs(O,F) crystals: promising for applications
Superconducting technology provides most sensitive field detectors, promising
implementations of qubits and high field magnets for medical imaging and for
most powerful particle accelerators. Thus, with the discovery of new
superconducting materials, such as the iron pnictides, exploring their
potential for applications is one of the foremost tasks. Even if the critical
temperature Tc is high, intrinsic electronic properties might render
applications rather difficult, particularly if extreme electronic anisotropy
prevents effective pinning of vortices and thus severely limits the critical
current density, a problem well known for cuprates. While many questions
concerning microscopic electronic properties of the iron pnictides have been
successfully addressed and estimates point to a very high upper critical field,
their application potential is less clarified. Thus we focus here on the
critical currents, their anisotropy and the onset of electrical dissipation in
high magnetic fields up to 65 T. Our detailed study of the transport properties
of optimally doped SmFeAs(O,F) single crystals reveals a promising combination
of high (>2 x 10^6 A/cm^2) and nearly isotropic critical current densities
along all crystal directions. This favorable intragrain current transport in
SmFeAs(O,F), which shows the highest Tc of 54 K at ambient pressure, is a
crucial requirement for possible applications. Essential in these experiments
are 4-probe measurements on Focused Ion Beam (FIB) cut single crystals with
sub-\mu\m^2 cross-section, with current along and perpendicular to the
crystallographic c-axis and very good signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in pulsed
magnetic fields. The pinning forces have been characterized by scaling the
magnetically measured "peak effect"
Single crystals of LnFeAsO1-xFx (Ln=La, Pr, Nd, Sm, Gd) and Ba1-xRbxFe2As2: growth, structure and superconducting properties
A review of our investigations on single crystals of LnFeAsO1-xFx (Ln=La, Pr,
Nd, Sm, Gd) and Ba1-xRbxFe2As2 is presented. A high pressure technique has been
applied for the growth of LnFeAsO1-xFx crystals, while Ba1-xRbxFe2As2 crystals
were grown using quartz ampoule method. Single crystals were used for
electrical transport, structure, magnetic torque and spectroscopic studies.
Investigations of the crystal structure confirmed high structural perfection
and show less than full occupation of the (O, F) position in superconducting
LnFeAsO1-xFx crystals. Resistivity measurements on LnFeAsO1-xFx crystals show a
significant broadening of the transition in high magnetic fields, whereas the
resistive transition in Ba1 xRbxFe2As2 simply shifts to lower temperature.
Critical current density for both compounds is relatively high and exceeds
2x109 A/m2 at 15 K in 7 T. The anisotropy of magnetic penetration depth,
measured on LnFeAsO1-xFx crystals by torque magnetometry is temperature
dependent and apparently larger than the anisotropy of the upper critical
field. Ba1-xRbxFe2As2 crystals are electronically significantly less
anisotropic. Point-Contact Andreev-Reflection spectroscopy indicates the
existence of two energy gaps in LnFeAsO1-xFx. Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy
reveals in addition to a superconducting gap, also some feature at high energy
(~20 meV).Comment: 27 pages, 19 figures, 2 tables, accepted to the special issue of the
Physica C on superconducting pnictide
A Map of Dielectric Heterogeneity in a Membrane Protein: the Hetero-Oligomeric Cytochrome b 6 f Complex
The cytochrome b6f complex, a member of the cytochrome bc family that mediates energy transduction in photosynthetic and respiratory membranes, is a hetero-oligomeric complex that utilizes two pairs of b-hemes in a symmetric dimer to accomplish trans-membrane electron transfer, quinone oxidation–reduction, and generation of a proton electrochemical potential. Analysis of electron storage in this pathway, utilizing simultaneous measurement of heme reduction, and of circular dichroism (CD) spectra, to assay heme–heme interactions, implies a heterogeneous distribution of the dielectric constants that mediate electrostatic interactions between the four hemes in the complex. Crystallographic information was used to determine the identity of the interacting hemes. The Soret band CD signal is dominated by excitonic interaction between the intramonomer b-hemes, bn and bp, on the electrochemically negative and positive sides of the complex. Kinetic data imply that the most probable pathway for transfer of the two electrons needed for quinone oxidation–reduction utilizes this intramonomer heme pair, contradicting the expectation based on heme redox potentials and thermodynamics, that the two higher potential hemes bn on different monomers would be preferentially reduced. Energetically preferred intramonomer electron storage of electrons on the intramonomer b-hemes is found to require heterogeneity of interheme dielectric constants. Relative to the medium separating the two higher potential hemes bn, a relatively large dielectric constant must exist between the intramonomer b-hemes, allowing a smaller electrostatic repulsion between the reduced hemes. Heterogeneity of dielectric constants is an additional structure–function parameter of membrane protein complexes
To What Extent Iron-Pnictide New Superconductors Have Been Clarified: A Progress Report
In this review, the authors present a summary of experimental reports on
newly discovered iron-based superconductors as they were known at the end of
2008. At the same time, this paper is intended to be useful for experimenters
to know the current status of these superconductors. The authors introduce
experimental results that reveal basic physical properties in the normal and
superconducting states. The similarities and differences between iron-pnictide
superconductors and other unconventional superconductors are also discussed.Comment: 20 pages, 32 figures. Open selec
Thin Film Growth and Device Fabrication of Iron-Based Superconductors
Iron-based superconductors have received much attention as a new family of
high-temperature superconductors owing to their unique properties and distinct
differences from cuprates and conventional superconductors. This paper reviews
progress in thin film research on iron-based superconductors since their
discovery for each of five material systems with an emphasis on growth,
physical properties, device fabrication, and relevant bulk material properties.Comment: To appear in J. Phys. Soc. Jp
- …