7,086 research outputs found
The Control System for the Cryogenics in the LHC Tunnel [First Experience and Improvements]
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) was commissioned at CERN and started operation with beams in 2008. Several months of operation in nominal cryogenic conditions have triggered an optimisation of the process functional analysis. This lead to a few revisions of the control logic, which were realised on-the-fly. During the 2008-09 shut-down, and in order to enhance the safety, availability and operability of the LHC cryogenics, a major rebuild of the logic and several hardware modifications were implemented. The databases, containing instruments and controls in-formation, are being rationalized; the automatic tool, that extracts data for the control software, is being simplified. This paper describes the main improvements and sug-gests perspectives of further developments
Disentangling Cooper-pair formation above Tc from the pseudogap state in the cuprates
The discovery of the pseudogap in the cuprates created significant excitement
amongst physicists as it was believed to be a signature of pairing, in some
cases well above the room temperature. In this "pre-formed pairs" scenario, the
formation of pairs without quantum phase rigidity occurs below T*. These pairs
condense and develop phase coherence only below Tc. In contrast, several recent
experiments reported that the pseudogap and superconducting states are
characterized by two different energy scales, pointing to a scenario, where the
two compete. However a number of transport, magnetic, thermodynamic and
tunneling spectroscopy experiments consistently detect a signature of
phase-fluctuating superconductivity above leaving open the question of whether
the pseudogap is caused by pair formation or not. Here we report the discovery
of a spectroscopic signature of pair formation and demonstrate that in a region
of the phase diagram commonly referred to as the "pseudogap", two distinct
states coexist: one that persists to an intermediate temperature Tpair and a
second that extends up to T*. The first state is characterized by a doping
independent scaling behavior and is due to pairing above Tc, but significantly
below T*. The second state is the "proper" pseudogap - characterized by a
"checker board" pattern in STM images, the absence of pair formation, and is
likely linked to Mott physics of pristine CuO2 planes. Tpair has a universal
value around 130-150K even for materials with very different Tc, likely setting
limit on highest, attainable Tc in cuprates. The observed universal scaling
behavior with respect to Tpair indicates a breakdown of the classical picture
of phase fluctuations in the cuprates.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figure
Hot exozodiacal dust resolved around Vega with IOTA/IONIC
Although debris discs have been detected around a significant number of
main-sequence stars, only a few of them are known to harbour hot dust in their
inner part where terrestrial planets may have formed. Thanks to infrared
interferometric observations, it is possible to obtain a direct measurement of
these regions, which are of prime importance for preparing future exo-Earth
characterisation missions. In this context, we have resolved the exozodiacal
dust disc around Vega with the help of infrared stellar interferometry and
estimated the integrated H-band flux originating from the first few AUs of the
debris disc. Using precise H-band interferometric measurements obtained with
the 3-telescope IOTA/IONIC interferometer (Mount Hopkins, Arizona), thorough
modelling of both interferometric data (squared visibility and closure phase)
and spectral energy distribution was performed to constrain the nature of the
near-infrared excess emission. The most straightforward scenario consists in a
compact dust disc producing a thermal emission that is largely dominated by
small grains located between 0.1 and 0.3 AU from Vega and accounting for 1.23
+/- 0.45% of the near-infrared stellar flux for our best-fit model. This flux
ratio is shown to vary slightly with the geometry of the model used to fit our
interferometric data (variations within +/-0.19%). Initially revealed by K-band
CHARA/FLUOR observations, the presence of hot exozodiacal dust in the vicinity
of Vega is confirmed by our H-band IOTA/IONIC measurements at the 3-sigma
level. Whereas the origin of the dust is still uncertain, its presence and the
possible connection with the outer disc suggest that the Vega system is
currently undergoing major dynamical perturbations.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in A&
Automatically generating streamlined constraint models with ESSENCE and CONJURE
Streamlined constraint reasoning is the addition of uninferred constraints to a constraint model to reduce the search space, while retaining at least one solution. Previously, effective streamlined models have been constructed by hand, requiring an expert to examine closely solutions to small instances of a problem class and identify regularities. We present a system that automatically generates many conjectured regularities for a given Essence specification of a problem class by examining the domains of decision variables present in the problem specification. These conjectures are evaluated independently and in conjunction with one another on a set of instances from the specified class via an automated modelling tool-chain comprising of Conjure, Savile Row and Minion. Once the system has identified effective conjectures they are used to generate streamlined models that allow instances of much larger scale to be solved. Our results demonstrate good models can be identified for problems in combinatorial design, Ramsey theory, graph theory and group theory - often resulting in order of magnitude speed-ups.Postprin
The camera of the fifth H.E.S.S. telescope. Part I: System description
In July 2012, as the four ground-based gamma-ray telescopes of the H.E.S.S.
(High Energy Stereoscopic System) array reached their tenth year of operation
in Khomas Highlands, Namibia, a fifth telescope took its first data as part of
the system. This new Cherenkov detector, comprising a 614.5 m^2 reflector with
a highly pixelized camera in its focal plane, improves the sensitivity of the
current array by a factor two and extends its energy domain down to a few tens
of GeV.
The present part I of the paper gives a detailed description of the fifth
H.E.S.S. telescope's camera, presenting the details of both the hardware and
the software, emphasizing the main improvements as compared to previous
H.E.S.S. camera technology.Comment: 16 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in NIM
Abrupt Onset of Second Energy Gap at Superconducting Transition of Underdoped Bi2212
The superconducting gap - an energy scale tied to the superconducting
phenomena-opens on the Fermi surface at the superconducting transition
temperature (TC) in conventional BCS superconductors. Quite differently, in
underdoped high-TC superconducting cuprates, a pseudogap, whose relation to the
superconducting gap remains a mystery, develops well above TC. Whether the
pseudogap is a distinct phenomenon or the incoherent continuation of the
superconducting gap above TC is one of the central questions in high-TC
research. While some experimental evidence suggests they are distinct, this
issue is still under intense debate. A crucial piece of evidence to firmly
establish this two-gap picture is still missing: a direct and unambiguous
observation of a single-particle gap tied to the superconducting transition as
function of temperature. Here we report the discovery of such an energy gap in
underdoped Bi2212 in the momentum space region overlooked in previous
measurements. Near the diagonal of Cu-O bond direction (nodal direction), we
found a gap which opens at TC and exhibits a canonical (BCS-like) temperature
dependence accompanied by the appearance of the so-called Bogoliubov
quasiparticles, a classical signature of superconductivity. This is in sharp
contrast to the pseudogap near the Cu-O bond direction (antinodal region)
measured in earlier experiments. The emerging two-gap phenomenon points to a
picture of richer quantum configurations in high temperature superconductors.Comment: 16 pages, 4 figures, authors' version Corrected typos in the abstrac
Chiral Polymerization in Open Systems From Chiral-Selective Reaction Rates
We investigate the possibility that prebiotic homochirality can be achieved
exclusively through chiral-selective reaction rate parameters without any other
explicit mechanism for chiral bias. Specifically, we examine an open network of
polymerization reactions, where the reaction rates can have chiral-selective
values. The reactions are neither autocatalytic nor do they contain explicit
enantiomeric cross-inhibition terms. We are thus investigating how rare a set
of chiral-selective reaction rates needs to be in order to generate a
reasonable amount of chiral bias. We quantify our results adopting a
statistical approach: varying both the mean value and the rms dispersion of the
relevant reaction rates, we show that moderate to high levels of chiral excess
can be achieved with fairly small chiral bias, below 10%. Considering the
various unknowns related to prebiotic chemical networks in early Earth and the
dependence of reaction rates to environmental properties such as temperature
and pressure variations, we argue that homochirality could have been achieved
from moderate amounts of chiral selectivity in the reaction rates.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in Origins of Life and
Evolution of Biosphere
Delivery of Dark Material to Vesta via Carbonaceous Chondritic Impacts
NASA's Dawn spacecraft observations of asteroid (4) Vesta reveal a surface
with the highest albedo and color variation of any asteroid we have observed so
far. Terrains rich in low albedo dark material (DM) have been identified using
Dawn Framing Camera (FC) 0.75 {\mu}m filter images in several geologic
settings: associated with impact craters (in the ejecta blanket material and/or
on the crater walls and rims); as flow-like deposits or rays commonly
associated with topographic highs; and as dark spots (likely secondary impacts)
nearby impact craters. This DM could be a relic of ancient volcanic activity or
exogenic in origin. We report that the majority of the spectra of DM are
similar to carbonaceous chondrite meteorites mixed with materials indigenous to
Vesta. Using high-resolution seven color images we compared DM color properties
(albedo, band depth) with laboratory measurements of possible analog materials.
Band depth and albedo of DM are identical to those of carbonaceous chondrite
xenolith-rich howardite Mt. Pratt (PRA) 04401. Laboratory mixtures of Murchison
CM2 carbonaceous chondrite and basaltic eucrite Millbillillie also show band
depth and albedo affinity to DM. Modeling of carbonaceous chondrite abundance
in DM (1-6 vol%) is consistent with howardite meteorites. We find no evidence
for large-scale volcanism (exposed dikes/pyroclastic falls) as the source of
DM. Our modeling efforts using impact crater scaling laws and numerical models
of ejecta reaccretion suggest the delivery and emplacement of this DM on Vesta
during the formation of the ~400 km Veneneia basin by a low-velocity (<2
km/sec) carbonaceous impactor. This discovery is important because it
strengthens the long-held idea that primitive bodies are the source of carbon
and probably volatiles in the early Solar System.Comment: Icarus (Accepted) Pages: 58 Figures: 15 Tables:
CSRP3 mediates polyphenols-induced cardioprotection in hypertension
Berries contain bioactive polyphenols, whose capacity to prevent cardiovascular diseases has been established recently in animal models as well in human clinical trials. However, cellular processes and molecular targets of berries polyphenols remain to be identified. The capacity of a polyphenol-enriched diet (i.e., blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberry tree fruits and Portuguese crowberries berries mixture) to promote animal survival and protect cardiovascular function from salt-induced hypertension was evaluated in a chronic salt-sensitive Dahl rat model. The daily consumption of berries improved survival of Dahl/salt-sensitive rats submitted to high-salt diet and normalized their body weight, renal function and blood pressure. In addition, a prophylactic effect was observed at the level of cardiac hypertrophy and dysfunction, tissue cohesion and cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. Berries also protected the aorta from fibrosis and modulated the expression of aquaporin-1, a channel involved in endothelial water and nitric oxide permeability. Left ventricle proteomics analysis led to the identification of berries and salt metabolites targets, including cystein and glycin-rich protein 3 (CSRP3), a protein involved in myocyte cytoarchitecture. In neonatal rat ventricular cardiomyocytes, CSRP3 was validated as a target of a berries-derived polyphenol metabolite, 4-methylcatechol sulfate, at micromolar concentrations, mimicking physiological conditions of human plasma circulation. Accordingly, siRNA silencing of CSRP3 and 4-methylcatechol sulfate pretreatment reversed cardiomyocyte hypertrophy and CSRP3 overexpression induced by phenylephrine. Our systemic study clearly supports the modulation of CSRP3 by a polyphenol-rich berries diet as an efficient cardioprotective strategy in hypertension-induced heart failure
Development of a LAMP assay for detection of Leishmania infantum infection in dogs using conjunctival swab samples
Background: Leishmania infantum infections in dogs play a crucial role in the transmission of pathogens causing visceral leishmaniasis to humans in the Gansu province, northwest China. To be able to control zoonotic transmission of the parasite to humans, a non-invasive loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay to specifically detect L. infantum infections in dogs was developed. Methods: The primers used in the LAMP assay were designed to target kinetoplast DNA minicircle sequences of the L. infantum isolate MCAN/CN/90/SC and tested using DNA isolated from promastigotes of different Leishmania species. The LAMP assay was evaluated with conjunctional swab samples obtained from 111 and 33 dogs living in an endemic and a non-endemic region of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis in the Gansu province, respectively. The LAMP assay was also compared with conventional PCR, ELISA and microscopy using conjunctional swab, serum and bone marrow samples from the dogs, respectively. Results: The LAMP assay detected 1 fg of L. infantum DNA purified from cultured promastigotes which was 10-fold more sensitive than a conventional PCR test using Leishmania genus-specific primers. No cross reaction was observed with DNA isolated from promastigotes of L. donovani, L. major, L. tropica, and L. braziliensis, and the L. infantum reference strain MHOM/TN/80/IPT1. The L. infantum-positive rates obtained for field-collected samples were 61.3%, 58.6%, 40.5% and 10.8% by LAMP, PCR, ELISA and microscopy, respectively. As only one out of the 33 samples from control dogs from the non-endemic region of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis was positive by the LAMP assay and the PCR test, the observed true negative rate (specificity) was 97% for both methods. Conclusion: This study has shown that the non-invasive, conjunctional swab-based LAMP assay developed was more sensitive in the detection of leishmaniasis in dogs than PCR, ELISA and microscopy. The findings indicate that the LAMP assay is a sensitive and specific method for the field surveillance of domestic dogs, particularly of asymptomatic canines, in ZVL-endemic areas in western China
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