Atypical presentation of visceral leishmaniasis from non-endemic region

A case of atypical and acute presentation of visceral leishmaniasis from non-endemic region, characterised by exudative pleural effusion and hepatitis is reporte

Effect of an atom on a quantum guided field in a weakly driven fiber-Bragg-grating cavity

We study the interaction of an atom with a quantum guided field in a weakly driven fiber-Bragg-grating (FBG) cavity. We present an effective Hamiltonian and derive the density-matrix equations for the combined atom-cavity system. We calculate the mean photon number, the second-order photon correlation function, and the atomic excited-state population. We show that, due to the confinement of the guided cavity field in the fiber cross-section plane and in the space between the FBG mirrors, the presence of the atom in the FBG cavity can significantly affect the mean photon number and the photon statistics even though the cavity finesse is moderate, the cavity is long, and the probe field is weak.Comment: Accepted for Phys. Rev.

Robust Techniques for Bearing Estimation in Contaminated Gaussian Noise

The problem of estimating directions-of-arrival (DOA) of radiating sources from measurements provided by a passive array of sensors is frequently encountered in radar, sonar, radio astronomy and seismology. In this study various robust methods for the DOA estimation problem are developed, where the term robustness refers to insensitivity against small deviation in the underlying Gaussian noise assumption. The first method utilizes an eigenvector method and robust reconstruction of the correlation matrix by time series modeling of the array data; Secondly, a decentralized processing scheme is considered for geographically distributed array sites. The method provides reliable estimates even when a few of the subarray sites are malfunctioning. The above two techniques are useful for narrow band and incoherent sources. The third robust method, which utilizes Radon Transform, is capable of handling both the narrow band and wide band sources as well as the incoherent or coherent sources. The technique is also Useful in situations of very low SNR and colored noise with unknown correlation structure. The fourth method is an efficient narrow band robust maximum likelihood DOA estimation algorithm which is capable of handling coherent signals as well as the single snapshot cases. Furthermore, relationships between eigenvector methods and a ML DOA estimation, where the source signals are treated as sample functions of Gaussian random processes, are investigate

Dynamical Casimir Effect in Optically Modulated Cavities

Cavities with periodically oscillating mirrors have been predicted to excite photon pairs out of the quantum vacuum in a process known as the Dynamical Casimir effect. Here we propose and analyse an experimental layout that can provide an efficient modulation of the effective optical length of a cavity mode in the near-infrared spectral region. An analytical model of the dynamical Casimir emission is developed and compared to the predictions of a direct numerical solution of Maxwell's equations in real time. A sizeable intensity of dynamical Casimir emission is anticipated for realistic operating parameters. In the presence of an external coherent seed beam, we predict amplification of the seed beam and the appearance of an additional phase-conjugate beam as a consequence of stimulated dynamical Casimir processes.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure

Exchange through nonmagnetic insulating matrix

Exchange interactions between hard-magnetic particles in a nonmagnetic matrix are investigated by model calculations. A Landau–Ginzburg approach is developed to describe the net exchange interactions between spheres of arbitrary diameters. Introducing cylindrical coordinates and integrating over the surfaces of the adjacent spheres yields an exchange coupling which decreases with a decay length depending on interatomic exchange, intra-atomic exchange, and temperature. Typically, the decay length does not exceed a few interatomic distances. The decay is exponential but also contains a prefactor depending on the surface curvature of the grains. It increases with decreasing curvature, but this dependence is only a small correction to the leading exponential term

Flow around submerged groynes in a sharp bend using a 3D LES model

River hydrodynamicsInteraction with structure

X-Atlas: An Online Archive of Chandra's Stellar High Energy Transmission Gratings Observations

The high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy made possible by the 1999 deployment of the Chandra X-ray Observatory has revolutionized our understanding of stellar X-ray emission. Many puzzles remain, though, particularly regarding the mechanisms of X-ray emission from OB stars. Although numerous individual stars have been observed in high-resolution, realizing the full scientific potential of these observations will necessitate studying the high-resolution Chandra dataset as a whole. To facilitate the rapid comparison and characterization of stellar spectra, we have compiled a uniformly processed database of all stars observed with the Chandra High Energy Transmission Grating (HETG). This database, known as X-Atlas, is accessible through a web interface with searching, data retrieval, and interactive plotting capabilities. For each target, X-Atlas also features predictions of the low-resolution ACIS spectra convolved from the HETG data for comparison with stellar sources in archival ACIS images. Preliminary analyses of the hardness ratios, quantiles, and spectral fits derived from the predicted ACIS spectra reveal systematic differences between the high-mass and low-mass stars in the atlas and offer evidence for at least two distinct classes of high-mass stars. A high degree of X-ray variability is also seen in both high and low-mass stars, including Capella, long thought to exhibit minimal variability. X-Atlas contains over 130 observations of approximately 25 high-mass stars and 40 low-mass stars and will be updated as additional stellar HETG observations become public. The atlas has recently expanded to non-stellar point sources, and Low Energy Transmission Grating (LETG) observations are currently being added as well

FK Comae Berenices, King of Spin: The COCOA-PUFS Project

COCOA-PUFS is an energy-diverse, time-domain study of the ultra-fast spinning, heavily spotted, yellow giant FK Com (HD117555; G4 III). This single star is thought to be a recent binary merger, and is exceptionally active by measure of its intense ultraviolet and X-ray emissions, and proclivity to flare. COCOA-PUFS was carried out with Hubble Space Telescope in the UV (120-300 nm), using mainly its high-performance Cosmic Origins Spectrograph, but also high-precision Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph; Chandra X-ray Observatory in the soft X-rays (0.5-10 keV), utilizing its High-Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer; together with supporting photometry and spectropolarimetry in the visible from the ground. This is an introductory report on the project. FK Com displayed variability on a wide range of time scales, over all wavelengths, during the week-long main campaign, including a large X-ray flare; "super-rotational broadening" of the far-ultraviolet "hot-lines" (e.g., Si IV 139 nm (T~80,000 K) together with chromospheric Mg II 280 nm and C II 133 nm (10,000-30,000 K); large Doppler swings suggestive of bright regions alternately on advancing and retreating limbs of the star; and substantial redshifts of the epoch-average emission profiles. These behaviors paint a picture of a highly extended, dynamic, hot (10 MK) coronal magnetosphere around the star, threaded by cooler structures perhaps analogous to solar prominences, and replenished continually by surface activity and flares. Suppression of angular momentum loss by the confining magnetosphere could temporarily postpone the inevitable stellar spindown, thereby lengthening this highly volatile stage of coronal evolution.Comment: to be published in ApJ