Nonadiabatic pumping in classical and quantum chaotic scatterers

We study directed transport in periodically forced scattering systems in the regime of fast and strong driving where the dynamics is mixed to chaotic and adiabatic approximations do not apply. The model employed is a square potential well undergoing lateral oscillations, alternatively as two- or single-parameter driving. Mechanisms of directed transport are analyzed in terms of asymmetric irregular scattering processes. Quantizing the system in the framework of Floquet scattering theory, we calculate directed currents on basis of transmission and reflection probabilities obtained by numerical wavepacket scattering. We observe classical as well as quantum transport beyond linear response, manifest in particular in a non-zero current for single-parameter driving where according to adiabatic theory, it should vanish identically.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figure

Two-dimensional Anderson-Hubbard model in DMFT+Sigma approximation

Density of states, dynamic (optical) conductivity and phase diagram of paramagnetic two-dimensional Anderson-Hubbard model with strong correlations and disorder are analyzed within the generalized dynamical mean-field theory (DMFT+Sigma approximation). Strong correlations are accounted by DMFT, while disorder is taken into account via the appropriate generalization of the self-consistent theory of localization. We consider the two-dimensional system with the rectangular "bare" density of states (DOS). The DMFT effective single impurity problem is solved by numerical renormalization group (NRG). Phases of "correlated metal", Mott insulator and correlated Anderson insulator are identified from the evolution of density of states, optical conductivity and localization length, demonstrating both Mott-Hubbard and Anderson metal-insulator transitions in two-dimensional systems of the finite size, allowing us to construct the complete zero-temperature phase diagram of paramagnetic Anderson-Hubbard model. Localization length in our approximation is practically independent of the strength of Hubbard correlations. However, the divergence of localization length in finite size two-dimensional system at small disorder signifies the existence of an effective Anderson transition.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figures, improve phase diagra

A systematic experimental neuropsychological investigation of the functional integrity of working memory circuits in major depression

Verbal and visuospatial working memory (WM) impairment is a well-documented finding in psychiatric patients suffering from major psychoses such as schizophrenia or bipolar affective disorder. However, in major depression (MDD) the literature on the presence and the extent of WM deficits is inconsistent. The use of a multitude of different WM tasks most of which lack process-specificity may have contributed to these inconsistencies. Eighteen MDD patients and 18 healthy controls matched with regard to age, gender and education were tested using process- and circuit-specific WM tasks for which clear brain-behaviour relationships had been established in prior functional neuroimaging studies. Patients suffering from acute MDD showed a selective impairment in articulatory rehearsal of verbal information in working memory. By contrast, visuospatial WM was unimpaired in this sample. There were no significant correlations between symptom severity and WM performance. These data indicate a dysfunction of a specific verbal WM system in acutely ill patients with MDD. As the observed functional deficit did not correlate with different symptom scores, further, longitudinal studies are required to clarify whether and how this deficit is related to illness acuity and clinical state of MDD patients

A generalized model for smartphone adoption and use in an Arab context: A cross-country comparison

The main aim of this research is to propose a conceptual model that explains the factors that can predict behavioral intention to use smartphones and the actual use of smartphones by young Arab consumers in three Arab countries: Iraq, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.). The findings indicate that the proposed extended model fits well in the three countries. The research provides information that can help policymakers and mobile companies

Floquet Formalism of Quantum Pumps

We review Floquet formalism of quantum electron pumps. In the Floquet formalism the quantum pump is regarded as a time dependent scattering system, which allows us to go beyond the adiabatic limit. It can be shown that the well-known adiabatic formula given by Brouwer can be derived from the adiabatic limit of Floquet formalism. We compare various physical properties of the quantum pump both in the adiabatic and in the non-adiabatic regime using the Floquet theory.Comment: Latex2e 16 pages, 6 figures. A review paper to appear in Int. J. Mod. Phys.

Patients with schizophrenia show deficits of working memory maintenance components in circuit-specific tasks

Working memory (WM) deficits are a neuropsychological core finding in patients with schizophrenia and also supposed to be a potential endophenotype of schizophrenia. Yet, there is a large heterogeneity between different WM tasks which is partly due to the lack of process specificity of the tasks applied. Therefore, we investigated WM functioning in patients with schizophrenia using process- and circuit-specific tasks. Thirty-one patients with schizophrenia and 47 controls were tested with respect to different aspects of verbal and visuospatial working memory using modified Sternberg paradigms in a computer-based behavioural experiment. Total group analysis revealed significant impairment of patients with schizophrenia in each of the tested WM components. Furthermore, we were able to identify subgroups of patients showing different patterns of selective deficits. Patients with schizophrenia exhibit specific and, in part, selective WM deficits with indirect but conclusive evidence of dysfunctions of the underlying neural networks. These deficits are present in tasks requiring only maintenance of verbal or visuospatial information. In contrast to a seemingly global working memory deficit, individual analysis revealed differential patterns of working memory impairments in patients with schizophrenia

Schizophrenia as a disorder of disconnectivity

Schizophrenia is considered as a neurodevelopmental disorder with genetic and environmental factors playing a role. Animal models show that developmental hippocampal lesions are causing disconnectivity of the prefrontal cortex. Magnetic resonance imaging and postmortem investigations revealed deficits in the temporoprefrontal neuronal circuit. Decreased oligodendrocyte numbers and expression of oligodendrocyte genes and synaptic proteins may contribute to disturbances of micro- and macro-circuitry in the pathophysiology of the disease. Functional connectivity between cortical areas can be investigated with high temporal resolution using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), electroencephalography (EEG), and magnetoencephalography (MEG). In this review, disconnectivity between different cortical areas in schizophrenia patients is described. The specificity and the neurobiological origin of these connectivity deficits and the relation to the symptom complex of schizophrenia and the glutamatergic and GABAergic system are discussed

Collecting a set of psoriasis family material through a patient organisation; clinical characterisation and presence of additional disorders

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study was to describe the clinical characteristics of a population of psoriatics sampled from a patient organisation and not from hospitals or out-patient clinics. Furthermore, we wanted to compare siblings with and without psoriasis regarding the occurrence of other diseases. METHODS: At the end of 1991, we initiated a project which aimed to study genetic factors leading to psoriasis. Firstly, we sent questionnaires to all the members of the Swedish Psoriasis Association. We then examined 1,217 individuals (570 with psoriasis) from 310 families, in their homes in the southern part of Sweden. All the available family members were examined clinically and asked about the course of the skin disease and the occurrence of other diseases. The eight hundred members of the proband generation were divided into two groups, with or without psoriasis, and their clinical features were compared. RESULTS: Most individuals in this study population had a mild form of psoriasis. The siblings with psoriasis had joint complaints significantly more frequently than their siblings without the skin disease and those with joint complaints had more widespread skin disease. Among the other studied concomitant diseases (iritis, heart or hypertension disease, endocrine disease, inflammatory bowel disease and neurological disease), we were not able to find any difference. Seventy-seven of 570 persons were found to be in remission (13.5%). Females had a mean onset 2.5 years earlier than males. We were not able to find any correlation between the extent of the skin disease and age at onset. Twice as many persons with joint complaints were found among those with psoriasis than among those without, 28% versus 13%. Almost half (48%) the psoriatics who also had joint complaints had psoriasis lesions on their nails. Endocrine disorders were found in 9% of those without any allele for Cw6, but only in 1% of those who had Cw6. In fact, none of 183 Cw6 carriers had diabetes, as compared to the population prevalence of 3–5% in Sweden. CONCLUSION: With the exception of joint complaints, persons with psoriasis, collected from a patient organisation, did not have an increased frequency of (studied) co-existing diseases