794 research outputs found
Coherent and Incoherent Vortex Flow States in Crossed Channels
We examine vortex flow states in periodic square pinning arrays with one row
and one column of pinning sites removed to create an easy flow crossed channel
geometry. When a drive is simultaneously applied along both major symmetry axes
of the pinning array such that vortices move in both channels, a series of
coherent flow states develop in the channel intersection at rational ratios of
the drive components in each symmetry direction when the vortices can cross the
intersection without local collisions. The coherent flow states are correlated
with a series of anomalies in the velocity force curves, and in some cases can
produce negative differential conductivity. The same general behavior could
also be realized in other systems including colloids, particle traffic in
microfluidic devices, or Wigner crystals in crossed one-dimensional channels.Comment: 5 pages, 4 postscript figure
Analysis of cyt0kine gene expression in stimulated T cells of small children by semi-quantitative PCR
Only limited amounts of peripheral blood samples can be obtained from small children. Therefore, a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) aided analysis of cytokine gene expression by PBMC or T cells is a valuable tool. We present a combination of procedures to obtain an accurate estimation of the expression of the cytokines IL-4 and IFN-γ. This can be performed on T cells purified from blood samples of up to 5 ml in volume from children aged 0–4 years with allergic asthma and atopic dermatitis. This procedure includes multiple sampling of PCR products to determine the linear phase of the PCR; inter-experiment correction using a helper T-cell clone, expressing both IL-4 and IFN-γ; interpatient correction by comparing the expression of a housekeeping gene (HPRT); and finally the development of specific software to analyse densitometric data obtained by scanning photographs of agarose gels, separating PCR products. In this way it is possible to study cytokine gene expression from a very small amount of material
Frustration and Melting of Colloidal Molecular Crystals
Using numerical simulations we show that a variety of novel colloidal
crystalline states and multi-step melting phenomena occur on square and
triangular two-dimensional periodic substrates. At half-integer fillings
different kinds of frustration effects can be realized. A two-step melting
transition can occur in which individual colloidal molecules initially rotate,
destroying the overall orientational order, followed by the onset of interwell
colloidal hopping, in good agreement with recent experiments.Comment: 6 pages, 3 postscript figures. Procedings of International Conference
on Strongly Coupled Coulomb Systems, Santa Fe, 200
Characterization of immune response to neurofilament light in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis
PMCID: PMC3856490This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.PMCID: PMC385649
Spatio-temporal dynamics and plastic flow of vortices in superconductors with periodic arrays of pinning sites
We present simulations of flux-gradient-driven superconducting rigid vortices
interacting with square and triangular arrays of columnar pinning sites in an
increasing external magnetic field. These simulations allow us to
quantitatively relate spatio-temporal microscopic information of the vortex
lattice with typically measured macroscopic quantities, such as the
magnetization . The flux lattice does not become completely commensurate
with the pinning sites throughout the sample at the magnetization matching
peaks, but forms a commensurate lattice in a region close to the edge of the
sample. Matching fields related to unstable vortex configurations do not
produce peaks in . We observe a variety of evolving complex flux
profiles, including flat terraces or plateaus separated by winding
current-carrying strings and, near the peaks in , plateaus only in
certain regions, which move through the sample as the field increases
Shapiro steps in a superconducting film with an antidot lattice
Shapiro voltage steps at voltages V_n=nV_0 (n integer) have been observed in
the voltage-current characteristics of a superconducting film with a square
lattice of perforating microholes (antidots)in the presence of radiofrequent
radiation. These equidistant steps appear at the second matching field H_2 when
the flow of the interstitial vortex lattice in the periodic potential created
by the antidots and the vortices trapped by them, is in phase with the applied
rf frequency. Therefore, the observation of Shapiro steps clearly reveals the
presence of mobile intersitial vortices in superconducting films with regular
pinning arrays. The interstitial vortices, moved by the driving current,
coexist with immobile vortices strongly pinned at the antidots.Comment: 6 pages text, 3 EPS figures, RevTeX, accepted for publication in PRB
Rapid Communication
Individual and Multi Vortex Pinning in Systems with Periodic Pinning Arrays
We examine multi and individual vortex pinning in thin superconductors with
periodic pinning arrays. For multi-vortex pinning we observe peaks in the
critical current of equal magnitude at every matching field, while for
individual vortex pinning we observe a sharp drop in the critical current after
the first matching field in agreement with experiments. We examine the scaling
of the critical current at commensurate and incommensurate fields for varied
pinning strength and show that the depinning force at incommensurate fields
decreases faster than at the commensurate fields.Comment: 4 figuure
Vortex phase diagram for mesoscopic superconducting disks
Solving numerically the 3D non linear Ginzburg-Landau (GL) equations, we
study equilibrium and nonequilibrium phase transitions between different
superconducting states of mesoscopic disks which are thinner than the coherence
length and the penetration depth. We have found a smooth transition from a
multi-vortex superconducting state to a giant vortex state with increasing both
the disk thickness and the magnetic field. A vortex phase diagram is obtained
which shows, as function of the magnetic field, a re-entrant behavior between
the multi-vortex and the giant vortex state.Comment: 5 figures (post script files) include
Stability of multiquantum vortices in dilute Bose-Einstein condensates
Multiply quantized vortices in trapped Bose-Einstein condensates are studied
using the Bogoliubov theory. Suitable combinations of a localized pinning
potential and external rotation of the system are found to energetically
stabilize, both locally and globally, vortices with multiple circulation
quanta. We present a phase diagram for stable multiply quantized vortices in
terms of the angular rotation frequency and the width of the pinning potential.
We argue that multiquantum vortices could be experimentally created using these
two expedients.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Vortex Pinning and the Non-Hermitian Mott Transition
The boson Hubbard model has been extensively studied as a model of the zero
temperature superfluid/insulator transition in Helium-4 on periodic substrates.
It can also serve as a model for vortex lines in superconductors with a
magnetic field parallel to a periodic array of columnar pins, due to a formal
analogy between the vortex lines and the statistical mechanics of quantum
bosons. When the magnetic field has a component perpendicular to the pins, this
analogy yields a non-Hermitian boson Hubbard model. At integer filling, we find
that for small transverse fields, the insulating phase is preserved, and the
transverse field is exponentially screened away from the boundaries of the
superconductor. At larger transverse fields, a ``superfluid'' phase of tilted,
entangled vortices appears. The universality class of the transition is found
to be that of vortex lines entering the Meissner phase at H_{c1}, with the
additional feature that the direction of the tilted vortices at the transition
bears a non-trivial relationship to the direction of the applied magnetic
field. The properties of the Mott Insulator and flux liquid phases with tilt
are also discussed.Comment: 20 pages, 12 figures included in text; to appear in Physical Review
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