1,388 research outputs found
Suppression of the structural phase transition and lattice softening in slightly underdoped Ba(1-x)K(x)Fe2As2 with electronic phase separation
We present x-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) and neutron diffraction
measurements on the slightly underdoped iron pnictide superconductor
Ba(1-x)K(x)Fe2As2, Tc = 32K. Below the magnetic transition temperature Tm =
70K, both techniques show an additional broadening of the nuclear Bragg peaks,
suggesting a weak structural phase transition. However, macroscopically the
system does not break its tetragonal symmetry down to 15 K. Instead, XRPD
patterns at low temperature reveal an increase of the anisotropic microstrain
proportionally in all directions. We associate this effect with the electronic
phase separation, previously observed in the same material, and with the effect
of lattice softening below the magnetic phase transition. We employ density
functional theory to evaluate the distribution of atomic positions in the
presence of dopant atoms both in the normal and magnetic states, and to
quantify the lattice softening, showing that it can account for a major part of
the observed increase of the microstrain.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure
Galaxy rotation curves: the effect of j x B force
Using the Galaxy as an example, we study the effect of j x B force on the
rotational curves of gas and plasma in galaxies. Acceptable model for the
galactic magnetic field and plausible physical parameters are used to fit the
flat rotational curve for gas and plasma based on the observed baryonic
(visible) matter distribution and j x B force term in the static MHD equation
of motion. We also study the effects of varied strength of the magnetic field,
its pitch angle and length scale on the rotational curves. We show that j x B
force does not play an important role on the plasma dynamics in the
intermediate range of distances 6-12 kpc from the centre, whilst the effect is
sizable for larger r (r > 15 kpc), where it is the most crucial.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space Science (final
printed version, typos in proofs corrected
Cluster Monte Carlo study of multi-component fluids of the Stillinger-Helfand and Widom-Rowlinson type
Phase transitions of fluid mixtures of the type introduced by Stillinger and
Helfand are studied using a continuum version of the invaded cluster algorithm.
Particles of the same species do not interact, but particles of different types
interact with each other via a repulsive potential. Examples of interactions
include the Gaussian molecule potential and a repulsive step potential.
Accurate values of the critical density, fugacity and magnetic exponent are
found in two and three dimensions for the two-species model. The effect of
varying the number of species and of introducing quenched impurities is also
investigated. In all the cases studied, mixtures of -species are found to
have properties similar to -state Potts models.Comment: 25 pages, 5 figure
Theoretical approach and impact of correlations on the critical packet generation rate in traffic dynamics on complex networks
Using the formalism of the biased random walk in random uncorrelated networks
with arbitrary degree distributions, we develop theoretical approach to the
critical packet generation rate in traffic based on routing strategy with local
information. We explain microscopic origins of the transition from the flow to
the jammed phase and discuss how the node neighbourhood topology affects the
transport capacity in uncorrelated and correlated networks.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure
Blow up criterion for compressible nematic liquid crystal flows in dimension three
In this paper, we consider the short time strong solution to a simplified
hydrodynamic flow modeling the compressible, nematic liquid crystal materials
in dimension three. We establish a criterion for possible breakdown of such
solutions at finite time in terms of the temporal integral of both the maximum
norm of the deformation tensor of velocity gradient and the square of maximum
norm of gradient of liquid crystal director field.Comment: 22 page
Local minimal energy landscapes in river networks
The existence and stability of the universality class associated to local
minimal energy landscapes is investigated. Using extensive numerical
simulations, we first study the dependence on a parameter of a partial
differential equation which was proposed to describe the evolution of a rugged
landscape toward a local minimum of the dissipated energy. We then compare the
results with those obtained by an evolution scheme based on a variational
principle (the optimal channel networks). It is found that both models yield
qualitatively similar river patterns and similar dependence on . The
aggregation mechanism is however strongly dependent on the value of . A
careful analysis suggests that scaling behaviors may weakly depend both on
and on initial condition, but in all cases it is within observational
data predictions. Consequences of our resultsComment: 12 pages, 13 figures, revtex+epsfig style, to appear in Phys. Rev. E
(Nov. 2000
The Interspersed Spin Boson Lattice Model
We describe a family of lattice models that support a new class of quantum
magnetism characterized by correlated spin and bosonic ordering [Phys. Rev.
Lett. 112, 180405 (2014)]. We explore the full phase diagram of the model using
Matrix-Product-State methods. Guided by these numerical results, we describe a
modified variational ansatz to improve our analytic description of the
groundstate at low boson frequencies. Additionally, we introduce an
experimental protocol capable of inferring the low-energy excitations of the
system by means of Fano scattering spectroscopy. Finally, we discuss the
implementation and characterization of this model with current circuit-QED
technology.Comment: Submitted to EPJ ST issue on "Novel Quantum Phases and Mesoscopic
Physics in Quantum Gases
Microbial Associations With Microscopic Colitis
INTRODUCTION: Microscopic colitis is a relatively common cause of chronic diarrhea and may be linked to luminal factors. Given the essential role of the microbiome in human gut health, analysis of microbiome changes associated with microscopic colitis could provide insights into the development of the disease. METHODS: We enrolled patients who underwent colonoscopy for diarrhea. An experienced pathologist classified patients as having microscopic colitis (n = 52) or controls (n = 153). Research biopsies were taken from the ascending (ASC) and descending (DES) colon, and the microbiome was characterized with Illumina sequencing. We analyzed the associations between microscopic colitis and microbiome with a series of increasingly complex models adjusted for a range of demographic and health factors. RESULTS: We found that alpha diversity was significantly lower in cases with microscopic colitis compared with that in controls in the DES colon microbiome. In the DES colon, a series of models that adjusted for an increasing number of covariates found taxa significantly associated with microscopic colitis, including Proteobacteria that was enriched in cases and Collinsella that was enriched in controls. While the alpha diversity and taxa were not significantly associated with microscopic colitis in the ASC colon microbiome, the inference P values based on ASC and DES microbiomes were highly correlated. DISCUSSION: Our study demonstrates an altered microbiome in cases with microscopic colitis compared with that in controls. Because both the cases and controls experienced diarrhea, we have identified candidate taxa that could be mechanistically responsible for the development of microscopic colitis independent of changes to the microbial community caused by diarrhea
Dietary calcium and risk of microscopic colitis
BACKGROUND: Microscopic colitis is an increasingly common cause of watery diarrhea particularly in older individuals. The role of diet in microscopic colitis has received little study. METHODS: We conducted a case-control study at a single institution enrolling patients referred for elective, outpatient colonoscopy for diarrhea. Patients were classified as microscopic colitis cases or non-microscopic colitis controls following review of colon biopsies by one research pathologist. Study subjects were interviewed by a trained telephone interviewer using a validated food frequency questionnaire. Adherent microbes were evaluated from colonic biopsies using 16s rRNA sequencing. RESULTS: The study population included 106 microscopic colitis cases and 215 controls. Compared to controls, the cases were older, better educated and more likely to be female. Microscopic colitis cases had lower body mass index (BMI) and were more likely to have lost weight. Subjects in the highest quartile of dietary calcium intake had a lower risk of microscopic colitis compared to the lowest quartile, adjusted odds ratio 0.22, 95% confidence interval 0.07-0.76). The findings were not explained by dairy intake, body mass index or weight loss. We found that dietary calcium intake had significant associations with the abundance of Actinobacteria and Coriobacteriales in the microbial community of colonic biopsies. CONCLUSIONS: Compared to patients with diarrhea, microscopic colitis cases had lower intake of dietary calcium. Diet can be associated with alterations in the gut microbiota and with luminal factors that could affect risk for microscopic colitis
The AXH Domain of Ataxin-1 Mediates Neurodegeneration through Its Interaction with Gfi-1/Senseless Proteins
SummarySpinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (SCA1) is a neurodegenerative disease caused by an expanded glutamine tract in human Ataxin-1 (hAtx-1). The expansion stabilizes hAtx-1, leading to its accumulation. To understand how stabilized hAtx-1 induces selective neuronal degeneration, we studied Drosophila Atx-1 (dAtx-1), which has a conserved AXH domain but lacks a polyglutamine tract. Overexpression of hAtx-1 in fruit flies produces phenotypes similar to those of dAtx-1 but different from the polyglutamine peptide alone. We show that the Drosophila and mammalian transcription factors Senseless/Gfi-1 interact with Atx-1’s AXH domain. In flies, overexpression of Atx-1 inhibits sensory-organ development by decreasing Senseless protein. Similarly, overexpression of wild-type and glutamine-expanded hAtx-1 reduces Gfi-1 levels in Purkinje cells. Deletion of the AXH domain abolishes the effects of glutamine-expanded hAtx-1 on Senseless/Gfi-1. Interestingly, loss of Gfi-1 mimics SCA1 phenotypes in Purkinje cells. These results indicate that the Atx-1/Gfi-1 interaction contributes to the selective Purkinje cell degeneration in SCA1
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