1,826 research outputs found
Cesium plasma spectroscopy. Electron number density measured by Stark shift of spectral lines Final report
Electron density measurement from atomic spectral line widths and shifts in cesium plasma electric discharg
Above- and belowground herbivory jointly impact defense and seed dispersal traits in Taraxacum officinale
Plants are able to cope with herbivores by inducing defensive traits or growth responses that allow them to reduce or avoid the impact of herbivores. Since above- and belowground herbivores differ substantially in life-history traits, for example feeding types, and their spatial distribution, it is likely that they induce different responses in plants. Moreover, strong interactive effects on defense and plant growth are expected when above- and belowground herbivores are jointly present. The strengths and directions of these responses have been scarcely addressed in the literature. Using Taraxacum officinale, the root-feeding nematode Meloidogyne hapla and the locust Schistocerca gregaria as a model species, we examined to what degree above- and belowground herbivory affect (1) plant growth responses, (2) the induction of plant defensive traits, that is, leaf trichomes, and (3) changes in dispersal-related seed traits and seed germination. We compared the performance of plants originating from different populations to address whether plant responses are conserved across putative different genotypes. Overall, aboveground herbivory resulted in increased plant biomass. Root herbivory had no effect on plant growth. Plants exposed to the two herbivores showed fewer leaf trichomes than plants challenged only by one herbivore and consequently experienced greater aboveground herbivory. In addition, herbivory had effects that reached beyond the individual plant by modifying seed morphology, producing seeds with longer pappus, and germination success
Axial anomaly and magnetism of nuclear and quark matter
We consider the response of the QCD ground state at finite baryon density to
a strong magnetic field B. We point out the dominant role played by the
coupling of neutral Goldstone bosons, such as pi^0, to the magnetic field via
the axial triangle anomaly. We show that, in vacuum, above a value of B ~
m_pi^2/e, a metastable object appears - the pi^0 domain wall. Because of the
axial anomaly, the wall carries a baryon number surface density proportional to
B. As a result, for B ~ 10^{19} G a stack of parallel pi^0 domain walls is
energetically more favorable than nuclear matter at the same density.
Similarly, at higher densities, somewhat weaker magnetic fields of order B ~
10^{17}-10^{18} G transform the color-superconducting ground state of QCD into
new phases containing stacks of axial isoscalar (eta or eta') domain walls. We
also show that a quark-matter state known as ``Goldstone current state,'' in
which a gradient of a Goldstone field is spontaneously generated, is
ferromagnetic due to the axial anomaly. We estimate the size of the fields
created by such a state in a typical neutron star to be of order
10^{14}-10^{15} G.Comment: 18 pages, v2: added a discussion of the energy cost of neutralizing
the domain wall charg
Structural Phase Transition in the Superconducting Pyrochlore Oxide Cd2Re2O7
We report a structural phase transition found at Ts = 200 K in a pyrochlore
oxide Cd2Re2O7 which shows superconductivity at Tc = 1.0 K. X-ray
diffractionexperiments indicate that the phase transition is of the second
order, from a high-temperature phase with the ideal cubic pyrochlore structure
(space group Fd-3m) to a low-temperature phase with another cubic structure
(space group F-43m). It is accompanied by a dramatic change in the resistivity
and magnetic susceptibility and thus must induce a significant change in the
electronic structure of Cd2Re2O7.Comment: 4 pages, 4figures, proceeding for ISSP
ZnSe/GaAs(001) heterostructures with defected interfaces: structural, thermodynamic and electronic properties
We have performed accurate \emph{ab--initio} pseudopotential calculations for
the structural and electronic properties of ZnSe/GaAs(001) heterostructures
with interface configurations accounting for charge neutrality prescriptions.
Beside the simplest configurations with atomic interdiffusion we consider also
some configurations characterized by As depletion and cation vacancies,
motivated by the recent successfull growth of ZnSe/GaAs pseudomorphic
structures with minimum stacking fault density characterized by the presence of
a defected (Zn,Ga)Se alloy in the interface region. We find that--under
particular thermodynamic conditions--some defected configurations are favoured
with respect to undefected ones with simple anion or cation mixing, and that
the calculated band offsets for some defected structures are compatible with
those measured. Although it is not possible to extract indications about the
precise interface composition and vacancy concentration, our results support
the experimental indication of (Zn,Ga)Se defected compounds in high-quality
ZnSe/GaAs(001) heterojunctions with low native stacking fault density. The
range of measured band offset suggests that different atoms at interfaces
rearrange, with possible presence of vacancies, in such a way that not only
local charges but also ionic dipoles are vanishing.Comment: 26 pages. 5 figures, revised version, in press (Physical Review B
Mott-Superfluid transition in bosonic ladders
We show that in a commensurate bosonic ladder, a quantum phase transition
occurs between a Mott insulator and a superfluid when interchain hopping
increases. We analyse the properties of such a transition as well as the
physical properties of the two phases. We discuss the physical consequences for
experimental systems such as Josephson Junction arrays.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, revtex
Structural, elastic and thermal properties of cementite (FeC) calculated using Modified Embedded Atom Method
Structural, elastic and thermal properties of cementite (FeC) were
studied using a Modified Embedded Atom Method (MEAM) potential for iron-carbon
(Fe-C) alloys. Previously developed Fe and C single element potentials were
used to develop an Fe-C alloy MEAM potential, using a statistically-based
optimization scheme to reproduce structural and elastic properties of
cementite, the interstitial energies of C in bcc Fe as well as heat of
formation of Fe-C alloys in L and B structures. The stability of
cementite was investigated by molecular dynamics simulations at high
temperatures. The nine single crystal elastic constants for cementite were
obtained by computing total energies for strained cells. Polycrystalline
elastic moduli for cementite were calculated from the single crystal elastic
constants of cementite. The formation energies of (001), (010), and (100)
surfaces of cementite were also calculated. The melting temperature and the
variation of specific heat and volume with respect to temperature were
investigated by performing a two-phase (solid/liquid) molecular dynamics
simulation of cementite. The predictions of the potential are in good agreement
with first-principles calculations and experiments.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figure
Tight-binding study of high-pressure phase transitions in titanium: alpha to omega and beyond
We use a tight-binding total energy method, with parameters determined from a
fit to first-principles calculations, to examine the newly discovered gamma
phase of titanium. Our parameters were adjusted to accurately describe the
alpha Ti-omega Ti phase transition, which is misplaced by density functional
calculations. We find a transition from omega Ti to gamma Ti at 102 GPa, in
good agreement with the experimental value of 116 GPa. Our results suggest that
current density functional calculations will not reproduce the omega Ti-gamma
Ti phase transition, but will instead predict a transition from omega Ti to the
bcc beta Ti phase.Comment: 3 encapsulated Postscript figures, submitted to Phyical Review
Letter
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