859 research outputs found
Phase Diagram of Rydberg atoms in a nonequilibrium optical lattice
We study the quantum nonequilibrium dynamics of ultracold three-level atoms
trapped in an optical lattice, which are excited to their Rydberg states via a
two-photon excitation with nonnegligible spontaneous emission. Rich quantum
phases including uniform phase, antiferromagnetic phase and oscillatory phase
are identified. We map out the phase diagram and find these phases can be
controlled by adjusting the ratio of intensity of the pump light to the control
light, and that of two-photon detuning to the Rydberg interaction strength.
When the two-photon detuning is blue-shifted and the latter ratio is less than
1, bistability exists among the phases. Actually, this ratio controls the
Rydberg-blockade and antiblockade effect, thus the phase transition in this
system can be considered as a possible approach to study both effects.Comment: 5 pages,5 figure
Colloid-stabilized emulsions: behaviour as the interfacial tension is reduced
We present confocal microscopy studies of novel particle-stabilized
emulsions. The novelty arises because the immiscible fluids have an accessible
upper critical solution temperature. The emulsions have been created by
beginning with particles dispersed in the single-fluid phase. On cooling,
regions of the minority phase nucleate. While coarsening these nuclei become
coated with particles due to the associated reduction in interfacial energy.
The resulting emulsion is arrested, and the particle-coated interfaces have
intriguing properties. Having made use of the binary-fluid phase diagram to
create the emulsion we then make use of it to study the properties of the
interfaces. As the emulsion is re-heated toward the single-fluid phase the
interfacial tension falls and the volume of the dispersed phase drops.
Crumpling, fracture or coalescence can follow. The results show that the
elasticity of the interfaces has a controlling influence over the emulsion
behaviour.Comment: Submitted for the proceedings of the 6th Liquid Matter Conference,
held in Utrecht (NL) in July 200
Size dependence of the photoinduced magnetism and long-range ordering in Prussian blue analog nanoparticles of rubidium cobalt hexacyanoferrate
Nanoparticles of rubidium cobalt hexacyanoferrate
(RbCo[Fe(CN)]HO) were synthesized using different
concentrations of the polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) to produce four different
batches of particles with characteristic diameters ranging from 3 to 13 nm.
Upon illumination with white light at 5 K, the magnetization of these particles
increases. The long-range ferrimagnetic ordering temperatures and the coercive
fields evolve with nanoparticle size. At 2 K, particles with diameters less
than approximately 10 nm provide a Curie-like magnetic signal.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures in text, expanded text and dat
Glial βii spectrin contributes to paranode formation and maintenance
Action potential conduction along myelinated axons depends on high densities of voltage-gated Na channels at the nodes of Ranvier. Flanking each node, paranodal junctions (paranodes) are formed between axons and Schwann cells in the peripheral nervous system (PNS) or oligodendrocytes intheCNS. Paranodal junctions contribute to both no deassembly and maintenance. Despitetheir importance, the molecular mechanisms responsible for paranode assembly and maintenance remain poorly understood. βII spectrin is expressed in diverse cells and is an essential part of the submembranous cytoskeleton. Here, we show that Schwann cell βII spectrin is highly enriched at paranodes. To elucidate the roles of glial βII spectrin, we generated mutant mice lacking βII spectrin in myelinating glial cells by crossing mice with a floxed allele of Sptbn1 with Cnp-Cre mice, and analyzed both male and female mice. Juvenile (4 weeks) and middle-aged (60 weeks) mutant mice showed reduced grip strength and sciatic nerve conduction slowing, whereas no phenotype was observed between 8 and 24 weeks of age. Consistent with these findings, immunofluorescence microscopy revealed disorganized paranodes in the PNS and CNS of both postnatal day 13 and middle-aged mutant mice, but not in young adult mutant mice. Electron microscopy confirmed partial loss of transverse bands at the paranodal axoglial junction in the middle-aged mutant mice in both the PNS and CNS. These findings demonstrate that a spectrin-based cytoskeleton in myelinating glia contributes to formation and maintenance of paranodal junctions.Fil: Susuki, Keiichiro. Baylor College of Medicine; Estados UnidosFil: Zollinger, Daniel R.. Baylor College of Medicine; Estados UnidosFil: Chang, Kae Jiun. Baylor College of Medicine; Estados UnidosFil: Zhang, Chuansheng. Baylor College of Medicine; Estados UnidosFil: Huang, Claire Yu Mei. Baylor College of Medicine; Estados UnidosFil: Tsai, Chang Ru. Baylor College of Medicine; Estados UnidosFil: Galiano, Mauricio Raul. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientÃficas y Técnicas. Centro CientÃfico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Centro de Investigaciones en QuÃmica Biológica de Córdoba. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias QuÃmicas. Centro de Investigaciones en QuÃmica Biológica de Córdoba; Argentina. Baylor College of Medicine; Estados UnidosFil: Liu, Yanhong. Baylor College of Medicine; Estados UnidosFil: Benusa, Savannah D.. Virginia Commonwealth University; Estados UnidosFil: Yermakov, Leonid M.. Wright State University; Estados UnidosFil: Griggs, Ryan B.. Wright State University; Estados UnidosFil: Dupree, Jeffrey L.. Virginia Commonwealth University; Estados UnidosFil: Rasband, Matthew N.. Baylor College of Medicine; Estados Unido
Integrability and chaos: the classical uncertainty
In recent years there has been a considerable increase in the publishing of
textbooks and monographs covering what was formerly known as random or
irregular deterministic motion, now named by the more fashionable term of
deterministic chaos. There is still substantial interest in a matter that is
included in many graduate and even undergraduate courses on classical
mechanics. Based on the Hamiltonian formalism, the main objective of this
article is to provide, from the physicist's point of view, an overall and
intuitive review of this broad subject (with some emphasis on the KAM theorem
and the stability of planetary motions) which may be useful to both students
and instructors.Comment: 24 pages, 10 figure
ciliaFA : a research tool for automated, high-throughput measurement of ciliary beat frequency using freely available software
Background: Analysis of ciliary function for assessment of patients suspected of primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) and
for research studies of respiratory and ependymal cilia requires assessment of both ciliary beat pattern and beat
frequency. While direct measurement of beat frequency from high-speed video recordings is the most accurate and
reproducible technique it is extremely time consuming. The aim of this study was to develop a freely available
automated method of ciliary beat frequency analysis from digital video (AVI) files that runs on open-source software
(ImageJ) coupled to Microsoft Excel, and to validate this by comparison to the direct measuring high-speed video
recordings of respiratory and ependymal cilia. These models allowed comparison to cilia beating between 3 and 52 Hz.
Methods: Digital video files of motile ciliated ependymal (frequency range 34 to 52 Hz) and respiratory epithelial cells
(frequency 3 to 18 Hz) were captured using a high-speed digital video recorder. To cover the range above between 18
and 37 Hz the frequency of ependymal cilia were slowed by the addition of the pneumococcal toxin pneumolysin.
Measurements made directly by timing a given number of individual ciliary beat cycles were compared with those
obtained using the automated ciliaFA system.
Results: The overall mean difference (± SD) between the ciliaFA and direct measurement high-speed digital imaging
methods was −0.05 ± 1.25 Hz, the correlation coefficient was shown to be 0.991 and the Bland-Altman limits of
agreement were from −1.99 to 1.49 Hz for respiratory and from −2.55 to 3.25 Hz for ependymal cilia.
Conclusions: A plugin for ImageJ was developed that extracts pixel intensities and performs fast Fourier
transformation (FFT) using Microsoft Excel. The ciliaFA software allowed automated, high throughput measurement of
respiratory and ependymal ciliary beat frequency (range 3 to 52 Hz) and avoids operator error due to selection bias. We
have included free access to the ciliaFA plugin and installation instructions in Additional file 1 accompanying this
manuscript that other researchers may use
Innermost Stable Circular Orbit of a Spinning Particle in Kerr Spacetime
We study stability of a circular orbit of a spinning test particle in a Kerr
spacetime. We find that some of the circular orbits become unstable in the
direction perpendicular to the equatorial plane, although the orbits are still
stable in the radial direction. Then for the large spin case ($S < \sim O(1)),
the innermost stable circular orbit (ISCO) appears before the minimum of the
effective potential in the equatorial plane disappears. This changes the radius
of ISCO and then the frequency of the last circular orbit.Comment: 25 pages including 8 figure
Regular and chaotic interactions of two BPS dyons at low energy
We identify and analyze quasiperiodic and chaotic motion patterns in the time
evolution of a classical, non-Abelian Bogomol'nyi-Prasad-Sommerfield (BPS) dyon
pair at low energies. This system is amenable to the geodesic approximation
which restricts the underlying SU(2) Yang-Mills-Higgs dynamics to an
eight-dimensional phase space. We numerically calculate a representative set of
long-time solutions to the corresponding Hamilton equations and analyze
quasiperiodic and chaotic phase space regions by means of Poincare surfaces of
section, high-resolution power spectra and Lyapunov exponents. Our results
provide clear evidence for both quasiperiodic and chaotic behavior and
characterize it quantitatively. Indications for intermittency are also
discussed.Comment: 22 pages, 6 figures (v2 contains a few additional references, a new
paragraph on intermittency and minor stylistic corrections to agree with the
published version
The detection of Gravitational Waves
This chapter is concerned with the question: how do gravitational waves (GWs)
interact with their detectors? It is intended to be a theory review of the
fundamental concepts involved in interferometric and acoustic (Weber bar) GW
antennas. In particular, the type of signal the GW deposits in the detector in
each case will be assessed, as well as its intensity and deconvolution. Brief
reference will also be made to detector sensitivity characterisation, including
very summary data on current state of the art GW detectors.Comment: 33 pages, 12 figures, LaTeX2e, Springer style files --included. For
Proceedings of the ERE-2001 Conference (Madrid, September 2001
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