Disordered Quantum Walks in one lattice dimension

We study a spin-1/2-particle moving on a one dimensional lattice subject to disorder induced by a random, space-dependent quantum coin. The discrete time evolution is given by a family of random unitary quantum walk operators, where the shift operation is assumed to be deterministic. Each coin is an independent identically distributed random variable with values in the group of two dimensional unitary matrices. We derive sufficient conditions on the probability distribution of the coins such that the system exhibits dynamical localization. Put differently, the tunneling probability between two lattice sites decays rapidly for almost all choices of random coins and after arbitrary many time steps with increasing distance. Our findings imply that this effect takes place if the coin is chosen at random from the Haar measure, or some measure continuous with respect to it, but also for a class of discrete probability measures which support consists of two coins, one of them being the Hadamard coin.Comment: minor change

Select pyrimidinones inhibit the propagation of the malarial parasite, Plasmodium falciparum

Plasmodium falciparum, the Apicomplexan parasite that is responsible for the most lethal forms of human malaria, is exposed to radically different environments and stress factors during its complex lifecycle. In any organism, Hsp70 chaperones are typically associated with tolerance to stress. We therefore reasoned that inhibition of P. falciparum Hsp70 chaperones would adversely affect parasite homeostasis. To test this hypothesis, we measured whether pyrimidinone-amides, a new class of Hsp70 modulators, could inhibit the replication of the pathogenic P. falciparum stages in human red blood cells. Nine compounds with IC50 values from 30 nM to 1.6 μM were identified. Each compound also altered the ATPase activity of purified P. falciparum Hsp70 in single-turnover assays, although higher concentrations of agents were required than was necessary to inhibit P. falciparum replication. Varying effects of these compounds on Hsp70s from other organisms were also observed. Together, our data indicate that pyrimidinone-amides constitute a novel class of anti-malarial agents. © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Continuum Halos in Nearby Galaxies -- an EVLA Survey (CHANG-ES) -- II: First Results on NGC 4631

We present the first results from the CHANG-ES survey, a new survey of 35 edge-on galaxies to search for both in-disk as well as extra-planar radio continuum emission. The motivation and science case for the survey are presented in a companion paper (Paper I). In this paper (Paper II), we outline the observations and data reduction steps required for wide-band calibration and mapping of EVLA data, including polarization, based on C-array test observations of NGC 4631. With modest on-source observing times (30 minutes at 1.5 GHz and 75 minutes at 6 GHz for the test data) we have achieved best rms noise levels of 22 and 3.5 $\mu$Jy beam$^{-1}$ at 1.5 GHz and 6 GHz, respectively. New disk-halo features have been detected, among them two at 1.5 GHz that appear as loops in projection. We present the first 1.5 GHz spectral index map of NGC 4631 to be formed from a single wide-band observation in a single array configuration. This map represents tangent slopes to the intensities within the band centered at 1.5 GHz, rather than fits across widely separated frequencies as has been done in the past and is also the highest spatial resolution spectral index map yet presented for this galaxy. The average spectral index in the disk is $\bar\alpha_{1.5 GHz}\,=\,-0.84\,\pm\,0.05$ indicating that the emission is largely non-thermal, but a small global thermal contribution is sufficient to explain a positive curvature term in the spectral index over the band. Two specific star forming regions have spectral indices that are consistent with thermal emission. Polarization results (uncorrected for internal Faraday rotation) are consistent with previous observations and also reveal some new features. On broad scales, we find strong support for the notion that magnetic fields constrain the X-ray emitting hot gas.Comment: Accepted to the Astronomical Journal, Version 2 changes: Added acknowledgement to NRA

The spectral gap for some spin chains with discrete symmetry breaking

We prove that for any finite set of generalized valence bond solid (GVBS) states of a quantum spin chain there exists a translation invariant finite-range Hamiltonian for which this set is the set of ground states. This result implies that there are GVBS models with arbitrary broken discrete symmetries that are described as combinations of lattice translations, lattice reflections, and local unitary or anti-unitary transformations. We also show that all GVBS models that satisfy some natural conditions have a spectral gap. The existence of a spectral gap is obtained by applying a simple and quite general strategy for proving lower bounds on the spectral gap of the generator of a classical or quantum spin dynamics. This general scheme is interesting in its own right and therefore, although the basic idea is not new, we present it in a system-independent setting. The results are illustrated with an number of examples.Comment: 48 pages, Plain TeX, BN26/Oct/9

NM-300 Silver Characterisation, Stability, Homogeneity

This report describes the characteriation of NM-300, a nano-silver reference material used in the context of risk and exposure assessment studies. The material was produced in the context of the JRC IHCP activity on nano-materials. A representative set test items was handed over to the JRC IES analytical laboratory for further characterisation. First, inorganic chemical characterisation of the total silver content and the homogeneity of the Ag-distribution was done using ICP-AES. To this end, a dedicated method was developed and validated according to the requirements laid down in ISO 17025. This works were completed by different types of microscopy analyses (Scanning Electron Microscope, Transmission Electron Microscope and Nanoparticle Tracking Analysis) performed in close collaboration with the German Institute of Energy and Environmental Technology e.V. (IUTA), the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (EMPA) and Belgium Veterinary and Agrochemical Research Centre (VAR). This report summarises all technical details and discusses the assessments made.JRC.DG.I.5-Nanobioscience

Sub-millimeter Observations of Giant Molecular Clouds in the Large Magellanic Cloud: Temperature and Density as Determined from J=3-2 and J=1-0 transitions of CO

We have carried out sub-mm 12CO(J=3-2) observations of 6 giant molecular clouds (GMCs) in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) with the ASTE 10m sub-mm telescope at a spatial resolution of 5 pc and very high sensitivity. We have identified 32 molecular clumps in the GMCs and revealed significant details of the warm and dense molecular gas with n(H2) $\sim$ 10$^{3-5}$ cm$^{-3}$ and Tkin $\sim$ 60 K. These data are combined with 12CO(J=1-0) and 13CO(J=1-0) results and compared with LVG calculations. We found that the ratio of 12CO(J=3-2) to 12CO(J=1-0) emission is sensitive to and is well correlated with the local Halpha flux. We interpret that differences of clump propeties represent an evolutionary sequence of GMCs in terms of density increase leading to star formation.Type I and II GMCs (starless GMCs and GMCs with HII regions only, respectively) are at the young phase of star formation where density does not yet become high enough to show active star formation and Type III GMCs (GMCs with HII regions and young star clusters) represents the later phase where the average density is increased and the GMCs are forming massive stars. The high kinetic temperature correlated with \Halpha flux suggests that FUV heating is dominant in the molecular gas of the LMC.Comment: 74 pages, including 41 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ

Silica in Protoplanetary Disks

Mid-infrared spectra of a few T Tauri stars (TTS) taken with the Infrared Spectrograph (IRS) on board the Spitzer Space Telescope show prominent narrow emission features indicating silica (crystalline silicon dioxide). Silica is not a major constituent of the interstellar medium; therefore, any silica present in the circumstellar protoplanetary disks of TTS must be largely the result of processing of primitive dust material in the disks surrouding these stars. We model the silica emission features in our spectra using the opacities of various polymorphs of silica and their amorphous versions computed from earth-based laboratory measurements. This modeling indicates that the two polymorphs of silica, tridymite and cristobalite, which form at successively higher temperatures and low pressures, are the dominant forms of silica in the TTS of our sample. These high temperature, low pressure polymorphs of silica present in protoplanetary disks are consistent with a grain composed mostly of tridymite named Ada found in the cometary dust samples collected from the STARDUST mission to Comet 81P/Wild 2. The silica in these protoplanetary disks may arise from incongruent melting of enstatite or from incongruent melting of amorphous pyroxene, the latter being analogous to the former. The high temperatures of 1200K-1300K and rapid cooling required to crystallize tridymite or cristobalite set constraints on the mechanisms that could have formed the silica in these protoplanetary disks, suggestive of processing of these grains during the transient heating events hypothesized to create chondrules.Comment: 47 pages, 9 figures, to appear in the 1 January, 2009 issue of the Astrophysical Journa

Milagrito: a TeV air-shower array

Milagrito, a large, covered water-Cherenkov detector, was the world's first air-shower-particle detector sensitive to cosmic gamma rays below 1 TeV. It served as a prototype for the Milagro detector and operated from February 1997 to May 1998. This paper gives a description of Milagrito, a summary of the operating experience, and early results that demonstrate the capabilities of this technique.Comment: 38 pages including 24 figure

Gas morphology and energetics at the surface of PDRs: new insights with Herschel observations of NGC 7023

We investigate the physics and chemistry of the gas and dust in dense photon-dominated regions (PDRs), along with their dependence on the illuminating UV field. Using Herschel-HIFI observations, we study the gas energetics in NGC 7023 in relation to the morphology of this nebula. NGC 7023 is the prototype of a PDR illuminated by a B2V star and is one of the key targets of Herschel. Our approach consists in determining the energetics of the region by combining the information carried by the mid-IR spectrum (extinction by classical grains, emission from very small dust particles) with that of the main gas coolant lines. In this letter, we discuss more specifically the intensity and line profile of the 158 micron (1901 GHz) [CII] line measured by HIFI and provide information on the emitting gas. We show that both the [CII] emission and the mid-IR emission from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) arise from the regions located in the transition zone between atomic and molecular gas. Using the Meudon PDR code and a simple transfer model, we find good agreement between the calculated and observed [CII] intensities. HIFI observations of NGC 7023 provide the opportunity to constrain the energetics at the surface of PDRs. Future work will include analysis of the main coolant line [OI] and use of a new PDR model that includes PAH-related species.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics Letters (Herschel HIFI special issue), 5 pages, 5 figure

AKARI and BLAST Observations of the Cassiopeia A Supernova Remnant and Surrounding Interstellar Medium

We use new large area far infrared maps ranging from 65 - 500 microns obtained with the AKARI and the Balloon-borne Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope (BLAST) missions to characterize the dust emission toward the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant (SNR). Using the AKARI high resolution data we find a new "tepid" dust grain population at a temperature of ~35K and with an estimated mass of 0.06 solar masses. This component is confined to the central area of the SNR and may represent newly-formed dust in the unshocked supernova ejecta. While the mass of tepid dust that we measure is insufficient by itself to account for the dust observed at high redshift, it does constitute an additional dust population to contribute to those previously reported. We fit our maps at 65, 90, 140, 250, 350, and 500 microns to obtain maps of the column density and temperature of "cold" dust (near 16 K) distributed throughout the region. The large column density of cold dust associated with clouds seen in molecular emission extends continuously from the surrounding interstellar medium to project on the SNR, where the foreground component of the clouds is also detectable through optical, X-ray, and molecular extinction. At the resolution available here, there is no morphological signature to isolate any cold dust associated only with the SNR from this confusing interstellar emission. Our fit also recovers the previously detected "hot" dust in the remnant, with characteristic temperature 100 K.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. Maps and related data are available at http://blastexperiment.info