491 research outputs found
Mapping Itinerant Electrons around Kondo Impurities
We investigate single Fe and Co atoms buried below a Cu(100) surface using
low temperature scanning tunneling spectroscopy. By mapping the local density
of states of the itinerant electrons at the surface, the Kondo resonance near
the Fermi energy is analyzed. Probing bulk impurities in this well-defined
scattering geometry allows separating the physics of the Kondo system and the
measuring process. The line shape of the Kondo signature shows an oscillatory
behavior as a function of depth of the impurity as well as a function of
lateral distance. The oscillation period along the different directions reveals
that the spectral function of the itinerant electrons is anisotropic.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, accepted by Physical Review Letter
A first study of the galaxy HRG 2304 and its companion AM 1646-795 (NED01)
Aims. We report the first study of the peculiar ring-like galaxy HRG 2304
(NED02),which was previously classified as a ring galaxy with an elliptical
smooth ring. This object was selected to prove that it is a candidate for the
Solitaire-type ring galaxies in an early stage of ring formation. The main goal
of this work is to provide the spectral characteristics of the current object
and its companion AM 1646-795 (NED01). Methods. The study is based on
spectroscopic observations in the optical band to highlight the characteristics
of this interacting galaxy. To investigate the star formation history of HRG
2304 we used the stellar population synthesis code STARLIGHT. The direct V and
B broad band images were used to enhance some fine structures. Results. Along
the entire long-slit signal, the spectra of HRG 2304 and its companion resemble
that of an early-type galaxy. We estimated a heliocentric systemic redshift of
z = 0.0415, corresponding to heliocentric velocities of 12449 km s-1 for HRG
2304 (NED02) and 12430 km s-1 for AM1646-795 (NED01). The spatial variation in
the contribution of the stellar population components for both objects are
dominated by an old stellar population 2x10^9 < t < 13x10^9 yr. The observed
radial-velocity distribution and the fine structures around HRG 2304 suggest an
ongoing tidal interaction of both galaxies. Conclusions.The spectroscopic
results and the morphological peculiarities of HRG 2304 can be adequately
interpreted as an ongoing interaction with the companion galaxy. Both galaxies
are early-type, the companion is elliptical, and the smooth distribution of the
material around HRG 2304 and its off-center nucleus in the direction of
AM1646-795 (NED01) characterize HRG 2304 as a Solitaire-type galaxy candidate
in an early stage of ring formation.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics, 9 pages, 10
figures and 3 table
Investigation of unconventional reconstruction and electronic properties on the Na2IrO3 surface
Na2IrO3 is an intriguing material for which spin-orbit coupling plays a key
role. Theoretical predictions, so far unverified, have been made that the
surface of Na2IrO3 should exhibit a clear signature of the quantum spin Hall
effect. We studied the surface of Na2IrO3 using scanning tunneling microscopy
and density-functional theory calculations. We observed atomic level resolution
of the surface and two types of terminations with different surface periodicity
and Na content. By comparing bias-dependent experimental topographic images to
simulated images, we determined the detailed atomistic structure of both
observed surfaces. One of these reveals a strong relaxation to the surface of
Na atoms from the subsurface region two atomic layers below. Such dramatic
structural changes at the surface cast doubt on any prediction of surface
properties based on bulk electronic structure. Indeed, using spatially resolved
tunneling spectroscopy we found no indication of the predicted quantum spin
Hall behavior
Surface resonance of the (2×1) reconstructed lanthanum hexaboride (001)-cleavage plane : a combined STM and DFT study
We performed a combined study of the (001)-cleavage plane of lanthanum hexaboride (LaB6) using scanning tunneling microscopy and density-functional theory (DFT). Experimentally, we found a (2×1) reconstructed surface on a local scale. The reconstruction is only short-range ordered and tends to order perpendicularly to step edges. At larger distances from surface steps, the reconstruction evolves to a labyrinthlike pattern. These findings are supported by low-energy electron diffraction experiments. Slab calculations within the framework of DFT show that the atomic structure consists of parallel lanthanum chains on top of boron octahedra. Scanning tunneling spectroscopy shows a prominent spectral feature at −0.6eV. Using DFT, we identify this structure as a surface resonance of the (2×1) reconstructed LaB6 (100) surface which is dominated by boron dangling bond states and lanthanum d states
Finger somatotopy is preserved after tetraplegia but deteriorates over time
Previous studies showed reorganised and/or altered activity in the primary sensorimotor cortex after a spinal cord injury (SCI), suggested to reflect abnormal processing. However, little is known about whether somatotopically specific representations can be activated despite reduced or absent afferent hand inputs. In this observational study, we used functional MRI and a (attempted) finger movement task in tetraplegic patients to characterise the somatotopic hand layout in primary somatosensory cortex. We further used structural MRI to assess spared spinal tissue bridges. We found that somatotopic hand representations can be activated through attempted finger movements in the absence of sensory and motor hand functioning, and no spared spinal tissue bridges. Such preserved hand somatotopy could be exploited by rehabilitation approaches that aim to establish new hand-brain functional connections after SCI (e.g. neuroprosthetics). However, over years since SCI the hand representation somatotopy deteriorated, suggesting that somatotopic hand representations are more easily targeted within the first years after SCI
Attentional Demands of Movement Observation as Tested by a Dual Task Approach
Movement observation (MO) has been shown to activate the motor cortex of the observer as indicated by an increase of corticomotor excitability for muscles involved in the observed actions. Moreover, behavioral work has strongly suggested that this process occurs in a near-automatic manner. Here we further tested this proposal by applying transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) when subjects observed how an actor lifted objects of different weights as a single or a dual task. The secondary task was either an auditory discrimination task (experiment 1) or a visual discrimination task (experiment 2). In experiment 1, we found that corticomotor excitability reflected the force requirements indicated in the observed movies (i.e. higher responses when the actor had to apply higher forces). Interestingly, this effect was found irrespective of whether MO was performed as a single or a dual task. By contrast, no such systematic modulations of corticomotor excitability were observed in experiment 2 when visual distracters were present. We conclude that interference effects might arise when MO is performed while competing visual stimuli are present. However, when a secondary task is situated in a different modality, neural responses are in line with the notion that the observers motor system responds in a near-automatic manner. This suggests that MO is a task with very low cognitive demands which might be a valuable supplement for rehabilitation training, particularly, in the acute phase after the incident or in patients suffering from attention deficits. However, it is important to keep in mind that visual distracters might interfere with the neural response in M1
On the Connection of Anisotropic Conductivity to Tip Induced Space Charge Layers in Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy of p-doped GaAs
The electronic properties of shallow acceptors in p-doped GaAs{110} are
investigated with scanning tunneling microscopy at low temperature. Shallow
acceptors are known to exhibit distinct triangular contrasts in STM images for
certain bias voltages. Spatially resolved I(V)-spectroscopy is performed to
identify their energetic origin and behavior. A crucial parameter - the STM
tip's work function - is determined experimentally. The voltage dependent
potential configuration and band bending situation is derived. Ways to validate
the calculations with the experiment are discussed. Differential conductivity
maps reveal that the triangular contrasts are only observed with a depletion
layer present under the STM tip. The tunnel process leading to the anisotropic
contrasts calls for electrons to tunnel through vacuum gap and a finite region
in the semiconductor.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figure
Concurrent adaptation to opposing visual displacements during an alternating movement.
It has been suggested that, during tasks in which subjects are exposed to a visual rotation of cursor feedback, alternating bimanual adaptation to opposing rotations is as rapid as unimanual adaptation to a single rotation (Bock et al. in Exp Brain Res 162:513–519, 2005). However, that experiment did not test strict alternation of the limbs but short alternate blocks of trials. We have therefore tested adaptation under alternate left/right hand movement with opposing rotations. It was clear that the left and right hand, within the alternating conditions, learnt to adapt to the opposing displacements at a similar rate suggesting that two adaptive states were formed concurrently. We suggest that the separate limbs are used as contextual cues to switch between the relevant adaptive states. However, we found that during online correction the alternating conditions had a significantly slower rate of adaptation in comparison to the unimanual conditions. Control conditions indicate that the results are not directly due the alternation between limbs or to the constant switching of vision between the two eyes. The negative interference may originate from the requirement to dissociate the visual information of these two alternating displacements to allow online control of the two arms
Influence of the Characteristics of the STM-tip on the Electroluminescence Spectra
We analyze the influence of the characteristics of the STM-tip (applied
voltage, tip radius) on the electroluminescence spectra from an STM-tip-induced
quantum dot taking into account the many-body effects. We find that positions
of electroluminescence peaks, attributed to the electron-hole recombination in
the quantum dot, are very sensitive to the shape and size of the confinement
potential as determined by the tip radius and the applied voltage. A critical
value of the tip radius is found, at which the luminescence peak positions as a
function of the tip radius manifest a transition from decreasing behavior for
smaller radii to increasing behavior for larger radii. We find that this
critical value of the tip radius is related to the confinement in the lateral
and normal direction.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figure
- …