Superconductivity-Induced Anderson Localisation

We have studied the effect of a random superconducting order parameter on the localization of quasi-particles, by numerical finite size scaling of the Bogoliubov-de Gennes tight-binding Hamiltonian. Anderson localization is obtained in d=2 and a mobility edge where the states localize is observed in d=3. The critical behavior and localization exponent are universal within error bars both for real and complex random order parameter. Experimentally these results imply a suppression of the electronic contribution to thermal transport from states above the bulk energy gap.Comment: 4 pages, revtex file, 3 postscript figure

Diagnosis and outcome of oesophageal Crohn's disease

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Crohn's disease (CD) can involve any part of the gastrointestinal tract. We aimed to characterize clinical, endoscopic, histologic features and treatment outcomes of CD patients with oesophageal involvement. METHODS: We collected cases through a retrospective multicentre European Crohn's and Colitis Organisation CONFER [COllaborative Network For Exceptionally Rare case reports] project. Clinical data were recorded in a standardized case report form. RESULTS: A total of 40 patients were reported [22 males, mean (±SD, range) age at oesophageal CD diagnosis: 25 (±13.3, 10-71) years and mean time of follow-up: 67 (±68.1, 3-240) months]. Oesophageal involvement was established at CD diagnosis in 26 patients (65%) and during follow-up in 14. CD was exclusively located in the oesophagus in 2 patients. Thirteen patients (32.2%) were asymptomatic at oesophageal disease diagnosis. Oesophageal strictures were present in 5 patients and fistulizing oesophageal disease in one. Eight patients exhibited granulomas on biopsies. Proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs) were administered in 37 patients (92.5%). Three patients underwent endoscopic dilation for symptomatic strictures and none oesophageal-related surgery. Diagnosis in pre-established CD resulted in treatment modifications in 9/14 patients. Clinical remission of oesophageal disease was seen in 33/40 patients (82.5%) after a mean time of 7 (±5.6, 1-18) months. Follow-up endoscopy was performed in 29/40 patients and 26/29 (89.7%) achieved mucosal healing. CONCLUSION: In this case series the endoscopic and histologic characteristics of isolated oesophageal CD were similar to those reported in other sites of involvement. Treatment was primarily conservative, with PPIs administered in the majority of patients and modifications in pre-existing IBD-related therapy occurring in two thirds of them. Clinical and endoscopic remission was achieved in more than 80% of the patients.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Fractal Noise in Quantum Ballistic and Diffusive Lattice Systems

We demonstrate fractal noise in the quantum evolution of wave packets moving either ballistically or diffusively in periodic and quasiperiodic tight-binding lattices, respectively. For the ballistic case with various initial superpositions we obtain a space-time self-affine fractal $\Psi(x,t)$ which verify the predictions by Berry for "a particle in a box", in addition to quantum revivals. For the diffusive case self-similar fractal evolution is also obtained. These universal fractal features of quantum theory might be useful in the field of quantum information, for creating efficient quantum algorithms, and can possibly be detectable in scattering from nanostructures.Comment: 9 pages, 8 postscript figure

Binomial level densities

It is shown that nuclear level densities in a finite space are described by a continuous binomial function, determined by the first three moments of the Hamiltonian, and the dimensionality of the underlying vector space. Experimental values for $^{55}$Mn, $^{56}$Fe, and $^{60}$Ni are very well reproduced by the binomial form, which turns out to be almost perfectly approximated by Bethe's formula with backshift. A proof is given that binomial densities reproduce the low moments of Hamiltonians of any rank: A strong form of the famous central limit result of Mon and French. Conditions under which the proof may be extended to the full spectrum are examined.Comment: 4 pages 2 figures Second version (previous not totally superseeded

Localization Transition in Multilayered Disordered Systems

The Anderson delocalization-localization transition is studied in multilayered systems with randomly placed interlayer bonds of density $p$ and strength $t$. In the absence of diagonal disorder (W=0), following an appropriate perturbation expansion, we estimate the mean free paths in the main directions and verify by scaling of the conductance that the states remain extended for any finite $p$, despite the interlayer disorder. In the presence of additional diagonal disorder ($W > 0$) we obtain an Anderson transition with critical disorder $W_c$ and localization length exponent $\nu$ independently of the direction. The critical conductance distribution $P_{c}(g)$ varies, however, for the parallel and the perpendicular directions. The results are discussed in connection to disordered anisotropic materials.Comment: 10 pages, Revtex file, 8 postscript files, minor change

Spectral Statistics in Chiral-Orthogonal Disordered Systems

We describe the singularities in the averaged density of states and the corresponding statistics of the energy levels in two- (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) chiral symmetric and time-reversal invariant disordered systems, realized in bipartite lattices with real off-diagonal disorder. For off-diagonal disorder of zero mean we obtain a singular density of states in 2D which becomes much less pronounced in 3D, while the level-statistics can be described by semi-Poisson distribution with mostly critical fractal states in 2D and Wigner surmise with mostly delocalized states in 3D. For logarithmic off-diagonal disorder of large strength we find indistinguishable behavior from ordinary disorder with strong localization in any dimension but in addition one-dimensional $1/|E|$ Dyson-like asymptotic spectral singularities. The off-diagonal disorder is also shown to enhance the propagation of two interacting particles similarly to systems with diagonal disorder. Although disordered models with chiral symmetry differ from non-chiral ones due to the presence of spectral singularities, both share the same qualitative localization properties except at the chiral symmetry point E=0 which is critical.Comment: 13 pages, Revtex file, 8 postscript files. It will appear in the special edition of J. Phys. A for Random Matrix Theor

Two Interacting Electrons in a Quasiperiodic Chain

We study numerically the effect of on-site Hubbard interaction U between two electrons in the quasiperiodic Harper's equation. In the periodic chain limit by mapping the problem to that of one electron in two dimensions with a diagonal line of impurities of strength U we demonstrate a band of resonance two particle pairing states starting from E=U. In the ballistic (metallic) regime we show explicitly interaction-assisted extended pairing states and multifractal pairing states in the diffusive (critical) regime. We also obtain localized pairing states in the gaps and the created subband due to U, whose number increases when going to the localized regime, which are responsible for reducing the velocity and the diffusion coefficient in the qualitatively similar to the non-interacting case ballistic and diffusive dynamics. In the localized regime we find propagation enhancement for small U and stronger localization for larger U, as in disordered systems.Comment: 14 pages Revtex file, 8 figures (split into 19 jpg figures). (postscript versions of the jpg figures are also available upon request) submitted to PR

Vascular conditioning prevents adverse left ventricular remodelling after acute myocardial infarction: a randomised remote conditioning study

Aims: Remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) alleviates ischemia–reperfusion injury via several pathways, including micro-RNAs (miRs) expression and oxidative stress modulation. We investigated the effects of RIC on endothelial glycocalyx, arterial stiffness, LV remodelling, and the underlying mediators within the vasculature as a target for protection. Methods and results: We block-randomised 270 patients within 48 h of STEMI post-PCI to either one or two cycles of bilateral brachial cuff inflation, and a control group without RIC. We measured: (a) the perfusion boundary region (PBR) of the sublingual arterial microvessels to assess glycocalyx integrity; (b) the carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV); (c) miR-144,-150,-21,-208, nitrate-nitrite (NOx) and malondialdehyde (MDA) plasma levels at baseline (T0) and 40 min after RIC onset (T3); and (d) LV volumes at baseline and after one year. Compared to baseline, there was a greater PBR and PWV decrease, miR-144 and NOx levels increase (p  15% (odds-ratio of 3.75, p = 0.029). MiR-144 and PWV changes post-RIC were interrelated and associated with LVESV reduction at follow-up (r = 0.40 and 0.37, p < 0.05), in the single-cycle RIC. Conclusion: RIC evokes “vascular conditioning” likely by upregulation of cardio-protective microRNAs, NOx production, and oxidative stress reduction, facilitating reverse LV remodelling