Single crystal MgB2 with anisotropic superconducting properties

The discovery of superconductor in magnesium diboride MgB2 with high Tc (39 K) has raised some challenging issues; whether this new superconductor resembles a high temperature cuprate superconductor(HTS) or a low temperature metallic superconductor; which superconducting mechanism, a phonon- mediated BCS or a hole superconducting mechanism or other new exotic mechanism may account for this superconductivity; and how about its future for applications. In order to clarify the above questions, experiments using the single crystal sample are urgently required. Here we have first succeeded in obtaining the single crystal of this new MgB2 superconductivity, and performed its electrical resistance and magnetization measurements. Their experiments show that the electronic and magnetic properties depend on the crystallographic direction. Our results indicate that the single crystal MgB2 superconductor shows anisotropic superconducting properties and thus can provide scientific basis for the research of its superconducting mechanism and its applications.Comment: 7 pages pdf fil

Asymmetric line shapes for medium energy H and He ions undergoing a large angle collision

Asymmetric line shapes for medium energy H and He ions backscattered from topmost adatoms such as Si 111 3x 3 Sb and Ni 111 2x2 O are measured by a toroidal electrostatic analyzer with an excellent energy resolution. The spectra exhibit a pronounced asymmetric nature and are well fitted by an exponentially modified Gaussian profile. It is found that the nonperturbative coupled channel calculations reproduce well the observed asymmetric line shapes for He impact on different materials, although slightly overestimate the asymmetry for H impact on Au. On the other hand, the CASP 3.2 program involving additional approximations gives large underestimates for He ions and overestimates for H ions. This problem has been partially solved by modifying the order of the implementation of the shell corrections and higher order effects in the CASP mode

Coulomb Breakup Mechanism of Neutron-Halo Nuclei in a Time-Dependent Method

The mechanism of the Coulomb breakup reactions of the nuclei with neutron-halo structure is investigated in detail. A time-dependent Schr\"odinger equation for the halo neutron is numerically solved by treating the Coulomb field of a target as an external field. The momentum distribution and the post-acceleration effect of the final fragments are discussed in a fully quantum mechanical way to clarify the limitation of the intuitive picture based on the classical mechanics. The theory is applied to the Coulomb breakup reaction of $^{11}$Be + $^{208}$Pb. The breakup mechanism is found to be different between the channels of $j^{\pi}=\frac{1}{2}^{-}$ and $\frac{3}{2}^{-}$, reflecting the underlying structure of $^{11}$Be. The calculated result reproduces the energy spectrum of the breakup fragments reasonably well, but explains only about a half of the observed longitudinal momentum difference.Comment: 15 pages,revtex, 9 figures (available upon request

High-Field Magnetization of Doped Spin-Peierls System Cu_<1-x>Zn_xGeO_3(Research in High Magnetic Fields)

We measured magnetizations of doped spin-Peierls Cu_Zn_xGeO_3 with x=0, 0.005, 0.010 and 0.020 in order to study effects of impurities on a magnetic phase. A rapid change of the magnetization associated with a phase transition from dimerized to other phases is seen. The magnetization above 16 T shows weak x and temperature dependence. A critical field associated with the phase transition decreases with increasing x. Effects of impurities on the magnetic phase are weaker than on the dimerized phase. The soliton model is applicable to the magnetic phase

Thermolabile phenotype of carnitine palmitoyltransferase II variations as a predisposing factor for influenza-associated encephalopathy

AbstractTo assess the etiology of influenza-associated encephalopathy (IAE), a surveillance effort was conducted during 2000–2003 in South-West Japan. All fatal and handicapped patients except one (4/34 patients) exhibited a disorder of mitochondrial β-oxidation evoked by the inactivated carnitine palmitoyltransferase II (CPT II) with transiently elevated serum acylcarnitine ratios (C16:0+C18:1)/C2>0.09 during high-grade fever. Analyses of genotypes and allele compositions of CPT II revealed a thermolabile phenotype of compound heterozygotes for [1055T>G/F352C] and [1102G>A/V368I], which shows a higher frequency in IAE patients than healthy volunteers (P<0.025). The thermolabile phenotype of CPT II variations may be a principal genetic background of IAE in Japanese

Tachycardia-induced myocardial ischemia and diastolic dysfunction potentiate secretion of ANP, not BNP, in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

Kido, S; Hasebe, N; Ishii, Y; Kikuchi, K, AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSIOLOGY-HEART AND CIRCULATORY PHYSIOLOGY, 290(3), H1064-H1070, 2006. "Copyright 2006 by the American Physical Society." publisherThe aim of this study was to investigate what factor determines tachycardia-induced secretion of atrial and brain natriuretic peptides (ANP and BNP, respectively) in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). HCM patients with normal left ventricular (LV) systolic function and intact coronary artery (n = 22) underwent rapid atrial pacing test. The cardiac secretion of ANP and BNP and the lactate extraction ratio (LER) were evaluated by using blood samples from the coronary sinus and aorta. LV end-diastolic pressure (LVEDP) and the time constant of LV relaxation of tau were measured by a catheter-tip transducer. These parameters were compared with normal controls (n = 8). HCM patients were divided into obstructive (HOCM) and nonobstructive (HNCM) groups. The cardiac secretion of ANP was significantly increased by rapid pacing in HOCM from 384 ± 101 to 1,268 ± 334 pg/ml (P < 0.05); however, it was not significant in control and HNCM groups. In contrast, the cardiac secretion of BNP was fairly constant and rather significantly decreased in HCM (P < 0.01). The cardiac ANP secretion was significantly correlated with changes in LER (r = –0.57, P < 0.01) and tau (r = 0.73, P < 0.001) in HCM patients. Tachycardia potentiates the cardiac secretion of ANP, not BNP, in patients with HCM, particularly when it induces myocardial ischemia and LV diastolic dysfunction