8,773 research outputs found
Black Branes as Piezoelectrics
We find a realization of linear electroelasticity theory in gravitational
physics by uncovering a new response coefficient of charged black branes,
exhibiting their piezoelectric behavior. Taking charged dilatonic black strings
as an example and using the blackfold approach we measure their elastic and
piezolectric moduli. We also use our results to draw predictions about the
equilibrium condition of charged dilatonic black rings in dimensions higher
than six.Comment: v2: 9 pages; important sign corrections in section 3 and other minor
corrections; published in PR
Perpendicular transport properties of YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-\delta}/PrBa_2Cu_3O_{7-\delta} superlattices
The coupling between the superconducting planes of YBa2Cu3O{7-\delta}/
PrBa2Cu3O{7-\delta} superlattices has been measured by c-axis transport. We
show that only by changing the thickness of the superconducting
YBa2Cu3O{7-\delta} layers, it is possible to switch between quasi-particle and
Josephson tunneling. From our data we deduce a low temperature c-axis coherence
length of 0.27 nm.Comment: Presented at LT22, contains 2 pages and 2 figures. to appear in
Physica
Charge carrier density collapse in La_0.67Ca_0.33MnO_3 and La_0.67Sr_0.33MnO_3 epitaxial thin films
We measured the temperature dependence of the linear high field Hall
resistivity of La_0.67Ca_0.33MnO_3 (T_C=232K) and La_0.67Sr_0.33MnO_3
(T_C=345K) thin films in the temperature range from 4K up to 360K in magnetic
fields up to 20T. At low temperatures we find a charge carrier density of 1.3
and 1.4 holes per unit cell for the Ca- and Sr-doped compound, respectively. In
this temperature range electron-magnon scattering contributes to the
longitudinal resistivity. At the ferromagnetic transition temperature T_C a
dramatic drop in the number of current carriers down to 0.6 holes per unit
cell, accompanied by an increase in unit cell volume, is observed. Corrections
of the Hall data due to a non saturated magnetic state will lead a more
pronounced charge carrier density collapse.Comment: 5 pages, 5 EPS figures, submitted to Eur. Phys. J.
Intra-burst firing characteristics as network state parameters
Introduction \ud
In our group we are aiming to demonstrate learning and memory capabilities of cultured networks of cortical neurons. A first step is to identify parameters that accurately describe changes in the network due to learning. Usually, such parameters are calculated from the responses to test-stimuli before and after a learning experiment. We propose that parameters should be calculated from the spontaneous activity before and after a learning experiment, as the applying of test-stimuli itself may alter the network. Since bursting is dominant in our cultures, we have investigated its spatio-temporal structure. \ud
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Methods \ud
Networks of cortical neurons were cultured on a MEA. Over a period from 9 to 35 DIV, the spontaneous activity has been measured on a regular basis. Measurements on a single day are always continuous; otherwise cultures are kept in a stove under controlled conditions (37 ËC, 5% CO2, 100% humidity). Network bursts were detected by analysing the Array-Wide Spiking Rate (AWSR, the sum of activity over all electrodes). Next, we estimated the instantaneous AWSR during a burst by convolving spike-occurrences with a Gaussian function. We investigated the changes in burst profiles over time by aligning them to their peak AWSR. In 4 hour recording sessions, we grouped the burst profiles over 1 hour, resulting in 4 average burst profiles per day. In addition, a sufficient amount of aligned bursts yielded enough data to calculate the contribution of each recording site. \ud
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Results \ud
The burst profiles, calculated over a period of 1 hour, generally show little variation (figure 1). In subsequent hours, the profiles gradually change shape. Over a period of days however, the shape can change dramatically (figure 2). The relatively slow changes over the period of hours indicate an underlying probabilistic structure in the AWSR during bursts. The apparent structure in the burst profiles result from the relationships between individual recording sites, and thus also on the connectivity in the neural network. This is revealed in more detail by showing the contributions of individual sites (figure 3). The spike envelopes have a shape that is too detailed to be described accurately by a small set of parameters. \ud
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Discussion \ud
The burst profiles prove to be stable over a period of one hour, and gradually change their shape over several hours, as has also been suggested in [1]. The day-to-day changes in burst profiles may be the result of these gradual changes, thereby suggesting an intrinsically changing network. However, they can also be the result of putting the cultures back in the stove. The spike envelopes per recording site offer more detailed descriptions of the network state than the burst profiles. This may however be the amount of detail required to reveal the changes made during learning experiments. A subsequent refinement can be made by identifying distinct subgroups of bursts, as has been suggested in [2]
Femtosecond photoelectron and photoion spectrometer with vacuum ultraviolet probe pulses
We describe a setup to study ultrafast dynamics in gas-phase molecules using
time-resolved photoelectron and photoion spectroscopy. The vacuum ultraviolet
(VUV) probe pulses are generated via strong field high-order harmonic
generation from infrared femtosecond laser pulses. The band pass characteristic
in transmission of thin indium (In) metal foil is exploited to isolate the
harmonic of the 800 nm fundamental (H9, 14 eV, 89 nm) from all
other high harmonics. The harmonic is obtained with high
conversion efficiencies and has sufficient photon energy to access the complete
set of valence electron levels in most molecules. The setup also allows for
direct comparison of VUV single-photon probe with 800 nm multi-photon probe
without influencing the delay of excitation and probe pulse or the beam
geometry. We use a magnetic bottle spectrometer with high collection efficiency
for electrons, serving at the same time as a time of flight spectrometer for
ions. Characterization measurements on Xe reveal the spectral width of H9 to be
meV and a photon flux of photons/pulse after
spectral filtering. As a first application, we investigate the S excitation
of perylene using time-resolved ion spectra obtained with multi-photon probing
and time-resolved electron spectra from VUV single-photon probing. The time
resolution extracted from cross-correlation measurements is fs for
both probing schemes and the pulse duration of H9 is found to be fs
SQUID developments for the gravitational wave antenna MiniGRAIL
We designed two different sensor SQUIDs for the readout of the resonant mass gravitational wave detector MiniGRAIL. Both designs have integrated input inductors in the order of 1.5 muH and are planned for operation in the mK temperature range. Cooling fins were added to the shunt resistors. The fabricated SQUIDs show a behavior that differs from standard DC-SQUIDs. We were able to operate a design with a parallel configuration of washers at reasonable sensitivities. The flux noise saturated to a value of 0.84 muPhi0/radicHz below a temperature of 200 mK. The equivalent noise referred to the current through the input coil is 155 fA/radicHz and the energy resolution yields 62 h
Effects of a ÎČ-andrenergic agonist on growth performance, body composition and nutrient retention in finishing pigs fed normal or low amounts of protein
In earlier studies with pigs the P-adrenergic agonist Ro 16·8714 ((3-AG) enhanced the efficiency of nitrogen (N) retention. Therefore effects of Ro 16·8714 were studied on growth rate, body composition, N, fat and energy retention in pigs fed isoenergetically, but given different amounts of protein (112 or 138 g/kg diet) without (groups LP and NP) or with 60 mg Ro 16·8714 per kg diet (groups LPP and NPP) from 60 to 100 kg live weight. Weight gain (898, 927, 855 and 810 g/day in NP, NPp, LP and LPp) decreased, whereas food: gain ratio (2·94, 2·82, 3·04 and 3·24 kg/kg in NP, NPP, LP and LPP) was increased by low protein intake (P 0·05) whereas the efficiency of energy retention was not influenced by Ro 16·8714 and protein intake. In conclusion, an adequate intake of protein is necessary for optimum expression of many, but not all, effects of the P-adrenergic agonist Ro 16·871
Two-vibron bound states in alpha-helix proteins : the interplay between the intramolecular anharmonicity and the strong vibron-phonon coupling
The influence of the intramolecular anharmonicity and the strong
vibron-phonon coupling on the two-vibron dynamics in an -helix protein
is studied within a modified Davydov model. The intramolecular anharmonicity of
each amide-I vibration is considered and the vibron dynamics is described
according to the small polaron approach. A unitary transformation is performed
to remove the intramolecular anharmonicity and a modified Lang-Firsov
transformation is applied to renormalize the vibron-phonon interaction. Then, a
mean field procedure is realized to obtain the dressed anharmonic vibron
Hamiltonian. It is shown that the anharmonicity modifies the vibron-phonon
interaction which results in an enhancement of the dressing effect. In
addition, both the anharmonicity and the dressing favor the occurrence of two
different bound states which the properties strongly depend on the interplay
between the anharmonicity and the dressing. Such a dependence was summarized in
a phase diagram which characterizes the number and the nature of the bound
states as a function of the relevant parameters of the problem. For a
significant anharmonicity, the low frequency bound states describe two vibrons
trapped onto the same amide-I vibration whereas the high frequency bound states
refer to the trapping of the two vibrons onto nearest neighbor amide-I
vibrations.Comment: may 2003 submitted to Phys. Rev.
Disordered Bose Einstein Condensates with Interaction in One Dimension
We study the effects of random scatterers on the ground state of the
one-dimensional Lieb-Liniger model of interacting bosons on the unit interval
in the Gross-Pitaevskii regime. We prove that Bose Einstein condensation
survives even a strong random potential with a high density of scatterers. The
character of the wave function of the condensate, however, depends in an
essential way on the interplay between randomness and the strength of the
two-body interaction. For low density of scatterers or strong interactions the
wave function extends over the whole interval. High density of scatterers and
weak interaction, on the other hand, leads to localization of the wave function
in a fragmented subset of the interval
Cultured cortical networks described by conditional firing probabilities
Networks of cortical neurons were grown over multi electrode arrays to enable simultaneous measu-rement of action potentials from 60 electrodes. All possible pairs of electrodes (i,j) were tested for syn-chronized activity. We calculated conditional firing probability (CFPi,j[Ï]) as the probability of an action potential at electrode j at t=Ï, given that a spike was detected at i at t=0. If a CFPi,j[Ï] distribution clearly deviated from flat, electrodes i and j were considered related. A function was fitted to each CFP-curve to obtain parameters for strength and delay. In young cultures the set of identified relationships changed rather quickly. At 16 days in vitro (DIV) 50% of the set changed within one day. Beyond 25 DIV this set stabilized: during a period of a week more than 50% of the set remained intact. Most individual relationships developed rather gradually. Moreover, beyond 25 DIV relational strength appeared quite stable during periods of â 10 hours, with coefficients of variation (100ĂSD/mean) of â 25% on average. CFP analysis provides a robust method to describe the stable underlying probabilistic structure of highly varying spontaneous activity in cultured cortical networks. It may offer a suitable basis for plasticity studies, in which induced changes should exceed spontaneous fluctuations. CFP analysis is likely to describe the network in sufficient detail to detect subtle changes in individual relationships. Analysis of data continuously recorded for â 6 weeks, showed that highest stability is reached after â 25 DIV, suggesting the 4th and 5th week as a suitable period for plasticity studies.\ud
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