Uniaxial Phase Transition in Si : Ab initio Calculations

Based on a previously proposed thermodynamic analysis, we study the relative stabilities of five Si phases under uniaxial compression using ab initio methods. The five phases are diamond, beta-tin, sh, sc, and hcp structures. The possible phase-transition patterns were investigated by considering the phase transitions between any two chosen phases of the five phases. By analyzing the different conributions to the relative pahse stability, we identified the most important factors in reducing the phase-transition pressures at uniaxial compression. We also show that it is possible to have phase transitions occur only when the phases are under uniaxial compression, in spite of no phase transition when under hydrostatic commpression. Taking all five phases into consideration, the phase diagram at uniaxial compression was constructed for pressures under 20 GPa. The stable phases were found to be diamond, beta-tin and sh structures, i.e. the same as those when under hydrostatic condition. According to the phase diagram, direct phase transition from the diamond to the sh phase is possible if the applied uniaxial pressures, on increasing, satisfy the condition of Px>Pz. Simiilarly, the sh-to-beta-tin transition on increeasing pressures is also possible if the applied uniaxial pressures are varied from the condition of Px>Pz, on which the phase of sh is stable, to that of Px<Pz, on which the beta-tin is stable

Ab initio study of the beta$-tin->Imma->sh phase transitions in silicon and germanium

We have investigated the structural sequence of the high-pressure phases of silicon and germanium. We have focussed on the cd->beta-tin->Imma->sh phase transitions. We have used the plane-wave pseudopotential approach to the density-functional theory implemented within the Vienna ab-initio simulation package (VASP). We have determined the equilibrium properties of each structure and the values of the critical parameters including a hysteresis effect at the phase transitions. The order of the phase transitions has been obtained alternatively from the pressure dependence of the enthalpy and of the internal structure parameters. The commonly used tangent construction is shown to be very unreliable. Our calculations identify a first-order phase transition from the cd to the beta-tin and from the Imma to the sh phase, and they indicate the possibility of a second-order phase-transition from the beta-tin to the Imma phase. Finally, we have derived the enthalpy barriers between the phases.Comment: 12 pages, 16 figure

Usefulness of microsimulation to translate valve performance into patient outcome: Patient prognosis after aortic valve replacement with the Carpentier–Edwards supra-annular valve

ObjectiveNumerous reports have been published documenting the results of aortic valve replacement. It is often not easy to translate these outcomes involving the condition of the valve into the actual consequences for the patient. We previously developed an alternative method to study outcome after aortic valve replacement that allows direct estimation of patient outcome after aortic valve replacement: microsimulation modeling. The goal of this article is to provide insight into microsimulation methodology and to give an overview of the advantages and disadvantages of simulation methods (in particular microsimulation) in comparison with standard methods of outcome analysis.MethodsBy using a primary dataset containing 1847 patients and 14,429 patient-years, advantages and disadvantages of standard methods of outcome analysis are discussed, and the potential role of microsimulation is illustrated by means of a step-by-step explanation of building, testing, and using such a model.ResultsTotal life expectancy, event-free life expectancy, and reoperation-free life expectancy for a 65-year-old male patient were 10.6 years, 9.2 years, and 9.8 years, respectively. Lifetime risk of reoperation due to structural valve deterioration was 13.3%.ConclusionsMicrosimulation is capable of providing accurate estimates of age-related life expectancy and lifetime risk of reoperation for patients who underwent aortic valve replacement with the Carpentier–Edwards supra-annular valve. It provides a useful tool to facilitate and optimize the choice for a specific heart valve prosthesis in a particular patient

The effect of curricular and extracurricular activities on university students? entrepreneurial intention and competences

This study examines how the alliance-building process affects the intention to enter into international alliances in the case of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). From a psychological perspective (Perceived Behavioural Control), the authors analyse the alliance-building process as an inhibitor of the international collaboration intention, considering to what extent the experience affects the intention of the partners involved. The study explores these hypotheses based on a sample of 220 Spanish SMEs. The results provide empirical evidence showing that the intention to develop international alliances is negatively affected by the search and the selection process as well as by the negotiation of the agreement, which reduces the intention to establish an international agreement. In addition, the intention is moderated by the experience of the SME manager. Moreover, there is a negative relationship between the extent of the SME manager's international experience and the intention to develop an international alliance

Observation of Scaling Violations in Scaled Momentum Distributions at HERA

Charged particle production has been measured in deep inelastic scattering (DIS) events over a large range of $x$ and $Q^2$ using the ZEUS detector. The evolution of the scaled momentum, $x_p$, with $Q^2,$ in the range 10 to 1280 $GeV^2$, has been investigated in the current fragmentation region of the Breit frame. The results show clear evidence, in a single experiment, for scaling violations in scaled momenta as a function of $Q^2$.Comment: 21 pages including 4 figures, to be published in Physics Letters B. Two references adde

Observation of hard scattering in photoproduction events with a large rapidity gap at HERA

Events with a large rapidity gap and total transverse energy greater than 5 GeV have been observed in quasi-real photoproduction at HERA with the ZEUS detector. The distribution of these events as a function of the $\gamma p$ centre of mass energy is consistent with diffractive scattering. For total transverse energies above 12 GeV, the hadronic final states show predominantly a two-jet structure with each jet having a transverse energy greater than 4 GeV. For the two-jet events, little energy flow is found outside the jets. This observation is consistent with the hard scattering of a quasi-real photon with a colourless object in the proton.Comment: 19 pages, latex, 4 figures appended as uuencoded fil

Measurement of the cross-section and charge asymmetry of WW bosons produced in proton-proton collisions at s=8\sqrt{s}=8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

This paper presents measurements of the $W^+ \rightarrow \mu^+\nu$ and $W^- \rightarrow \mu^-\nu$ cross-sections and the associated charge asymmetry as a function of the absolute pseudorapidity of the decay muon. The data were collected in proton--proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 8 TeV with the ATLAS experiment at the LHC and correspond to a total integrated luminosity of 20.2~\mbox{fb^{-1}}. The precision of the cross-section measurements varies between 0.8% to 1.5% as a function of the pseudorapidity, excluding the 1.9% uncertainty on the integrated luminosity. The charge asymmetry is measured with an uncertainty between 0.002 and 0.003. The results are compared with predictions based on next-to-next-to-leading-order calculations with various parton distribution functions and have the sensitivity to discriminate between them.Comment: 38 pages in total, author list starting page 22, 5 figures, 4 tables, submitted to EPJC. All figures including auxiliary figures are available at https://atlas.web.cern.ch/Atlas/GROUPS/PHYSICS/PAPERS/STDM-2017-13

Shell evolution approaching the N=20 island of inversion : Structure of 26Na

The levels in 26Na with single particle character have been observed for the first time using the d(25Na, pγ) reaction at 5 MeV/nucleon. The measured excitation energies and the deduced spectroscopic factors are in good overall agreement with (0+1)hω shell model calculations performed in a complete spsdfp basis and incorporating a reduction in the N=20 gap. Notably, the 1p3/2 neutron configuration was found to play an enhanced role in the structure of the low-lying negative parity states in 26Na, compared to the isotone 28Al. Thus, the lowering of the 1p3/2 orbital relative to the 0f7/2 occurring in the neighbouring Z=10 and 12 nuclei - 25,27Ne and 27,29Mg - is seen also to occur at Z=11 and further strengthens the constraints on the modelling of the transition into the island of inversion

A disease-associated gene desert directs macrophage inflammation through ETS2

Increasing rates of autoimmune and inflammatory disease present a burgeoning threat to human health1. This is compounded by the limited efficacy of available treatments1 and high failure rates during drug development2, highlighting an urgent need to better understand disease mechanisms. Here we show how functional genomics could address this challenge. By investigating an intergenic haplotype on chr21q22—which has been independently linked to inflammatory bowel disease, ankylosing spondylitis, primary sclerosing cholangitis and Takayasu’s arteritis3–6—we identify that the causal gene, ETS2, is a central regulator of human inflammatory macrophages and delineate the shared disease mechanism that amplifies ETS2 expression. Genes regulated by ETS2 were prominently expressed in diseased tissues and more enriched for inflammatory bowel disease GWAS hits than most previously described pathways. Overexpressing ETS2 in resting macrophages reproduced the inflammatory state observed in chr21q22-associated diseases, with upregulation of multiple drug targets, including TNF and IL-23. Using a database of cellular signatures7, we identified drugs that might modulate this pathway and validated the potent anti-inflammatory activity of one class of small molecules in vitro and ex vivo. Together, this illustrates the power of functional genomics, applied directly in primary human cells, to identify immune-mediated disease mechanisms and potential therapeutic opportunities