Statistical Theory of Spin Relaxation and Diffusion in Solids

A comprehensive theoretical description is given for the spin relaxation and diffusion in solids. The formulation is made in a general statistical-mechanical way. The method of the nonequilibrium statistical operator (NSO) developed by D. N. Zubarev is employed to analyze a relaxation dynamics of a spin subsystem. Perturbation of this subsystem in solids may produce a nonequilibrium state which is then relaxed to an equilibrium state due to the interaction between the particles or with a thermal bath (lattice). The generalized kinetic equations were derived previously for a system weakly coupled to a thermal bath to elucidate the nature of transport and relaxation processes. In this paper, these results are used to describe the relaxation and diffusion of nuclear spins in solids. The aim is to formulate a successive and coherent microscopic description of the nuclear magnetic relaxation and diffusion in solids. The nuclear spin-lattice relaxation is considered and the Gorter relation is derived. As an example, a theory of spin diffusion of the nuclear magnetic moment in dilute alloys (like Cu-Mn) is developed. It is shown that due to the dipolar interaction between host nuclear spins and impurity spins, a nonuniform distribution in the host nuclear spin system will occur and consequently the macroscopic relaxation time will be strongly determined by the spin diffusion. The explicit expressions for the relaxation time in certain physically relevant cases are given.Comment: 41 pages, 119 Refs. Corrected typos, added reference

Learning from multimedia and hypermedia

Computer-based multimedia and hypermedia resources (e.g., the world wide web) have become one of the primary sources of academic information for a majority of pupils and students. In line with this expansion in the field of education, the scientific study of learning from multimedia and hypermedia has become a very active field of research. In this chapter we provide a short overview with regard to research on learning with multimedia and hypermedia. In two review sections, we describe the educational benefits of multiple representations and of learner control, as these are the two defining characteristics of hypermedia. In a third review section we describe recent scientific trends in the field of multimedia/hypermedia learning. In all three review sections we will point to relevant European work on multimedia/hypermedia carried out within the last 5 years, and often carried out within the Kaleidoscope Network of Excellence. According to the interdisciplinary nature of the field this work might come not only from psychology, but also from technology or pedagogy. Comparing the different research activities on multimedia and hypermedia that have dominated the international scientific discourse in the last decade reveals some important differences. Most important, a gap seems to exist between researchers mainly interested in a “serious” educational use of multimedia/ hypermedia and researchers mainly interested in “serious” experimental research on learning with multimedia/hypermedia. Recent discussions about the pros and cons of “design-based research” or “use-inspired basic research” can be seen as a direct consequence of an increasing awareness of the tensions within these two different cultures of research on education

Silicon and Germanium Nanostructures for Photovoltaic Applications: Ab-Initio Results

Actually, most of the electric energy is being produced by fossil fuels and great is the search for viable alternatives. The most appealing and promising technology is photovoltaics. It will become truly mainstream when its cost will be comparable to other energy sources. One way is to significantly enhance device efficiencies, for example by increasing the number of band gaps in multijunction solar cells or by favoring charge separation in the devices. This can be done by using cells based on nanostructured semiconductors. In this paper, we will present ab-initio results of the structural, electronic and optical properties of (1) silicon and germanium nanoparticles embedded in wide band gap materials and (2) mixed silicon-germanium nanowires. We show that theory can help in understanding the microscopic processes important for devices performances. In particular, we calculated for embedded Si and Ge nanoparticles the dependence of the absorption threshold on size and oxidation, the role of crystallinity and, in some cases, the recombination rates, and we demonstrated that in the case of mixed nanowires, those with a clear interface between Si and Ge show not only a reduced quantum confinement effect but display also a natural geometrical separation between electron and hole

Molecular Features of Cancers Exhibiting Exceptional Responses to Treatment

A small fraction of cancer patients with advanced disease survive significantly longer than patients with clinically comparable tumors. Molecular mechanisms for exceptional responses to therapy have been identified by genomic analysis of tumor biopsies from individual patients. Here, we analyzed tumor biopsies from an unbiased cohort of 111 exceptional responder patients using multiple platforms to profile genetic and epigenetic aberrations as well as the tumor microenvironment. Integrative analysis uncovered plausible mechanisms for the therapeutic response in nearly a quarter of the patients. The mechanisms were assigned to four broad categories—DNA damage response, intracellular signaling, immune engagement, and genetic alterations characteristic of favorable prognosis—with many tumors falling into multiple categories. These analyses revealed synthetic lethal relationships that may be exploited therapeutically and rare genetic lesions that favor therapeutic success, while also providing a wealth of testable hypotheses regarding oncogenic mechanisms that may influence the response to cancer therapy. Profiling multi-platform genomics of 110 cancer patients with an exceptional therapeutic response, Wheeler et al. identify putative molecular mechanisms explaining this survival phenotype in ∼23% of cases. Therapeutic success is related to rare molecular features of responding tumors, exploiting synthetic lethality and oncogene addiction