2,017 research outputs found
Phase transitions and the internal noise structure of nonlinear Schr\"odi nger equation solitons
We predict phase-transitions in the quantum noise characteristics of systems
described by the quantum nonlinear Schr\"odinger equation, showing them to be
related to the solitonic field transition at half the fundamental soliton
amplitude. These phase-transitions are robust with respect to Raman noise and
scattering losses. We also describe the rich internal quantum noise structure
of the solitonic fields in the vicinity of the phase-transition. For optical
coherent quantum solitons, this leads to the prediction that eliminating the
peak side-band noise due to the electronic nonlinearity of silica fiber by
spectral filtering leads to the optimal photon-number noise reduction of a
fundamental soliton.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure
Quantum limits to center-of-mass measurements
We discuss the issue of measuring the mean position (center-of-mass) of a
group of bosonic or fermionic quantum particles, including particle number
fluctuations. We introduce a standard quantum limit for these measurements at
ultra-low temperatures, and discuss this limit in the context of both photons
and ultra-cold atoms. In the case of fermions, we present evidence that the
Pauli exclusion principle has a strongly beneficial effect, giving rise to a
1/N scaling in the position standard-deviation -- as opposed to a
scaling for bosons. The difference between the actual mean-position fluctuation
and this limit is evidence for quantum wave-packet spreading in the
center-of-mass. This macroscopic quantum effect cannot be readily observed for
non-interacting particles, due to classical pulse broadening. For this reason,
we also study the evolution of photonic and matter-wave solitons, where
classical dispersion is suppressed. In the photonic case, we show that the
intrinsic quantum diffusion of the mean position can contribute significantly
to uncertainties in soliton pulse arrival times. We also discuss ways in which
the relatively long lifetimes of attractive bosons in matter-wave solitons may
be used to demonstrate quantum interference between massive objects composed of
thousands of particles.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures. Submitted to PRA. Revised to include more
references as well as a discussion of fermionic center-of-mas
A feasible "Kochen-Specker" experiment with single particles
We present a simple experimental scheme which can be used to demonstrate an
all-or-nothing type contradiction between non-contextual hidden variables and
quantum mechanics. The scheme, which is inspired by recent ideas by Cabello and
Garcia-Alcaine, shows that even for a single particle, path and spin
information cannot be predetermined in a non-contextual way.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Considerations for the optimal management of antibiotic therapy in elderly patients
Objectives: To maximise efficacy and minimise toxicity, special considerations are required for antibiotic prescription in elderly patients. This review aims to provide practical suggestions for the optimal management of antibiotic therapy in elderly patients. Methods: This was a narrative review. A literature search of published articles in the last 15 years on antibiotics and elderly patients was performed using the Cochrane Library and PubMed electronic databases. The three priority areas were identified: (i) pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics (PK/PD) for optimising dosage regimens and route of administration; (ii) antibiotic dosages in some special subpopulations; and (iii) treatment considerations relating to different antibiotic classes and their adverse events. Results: Clinicians should understand the altered PK/PD of drugs in this population owing to co-morbid conditions and normal physiological changes associated with ageing. The body of evidence justifies the need for individualised dose selection, especially in patients with impaired renal and liver function. Clinicians should be aware of the major drug–drug interactions commonly observed in the elderly as well as potential side effects. Conclusion: Antibiotic therapy in the elderly requires a comprehensive approach, including strategies to improve appropriate antibiotic prescribing, limit their use for uncomplicated infections and ensure the attainment of an optimal PK/PD target. To this purpose, further studies involving the elderly are needed to better understand the PK of antibiotics. Moreover, it is necessary to assess the role therapeutic drug monitoring in guiding antibiotic therapy in elderly patients in order to evaluate its impact on clinical outcome
Constraining chemical transport PM<sub>2.5</sub> modeling outputs using surface monitor measurements and satellite retrievals: application over the San Joaquin Valley
Advances in satellite retrieval of aerosol type can improve the
accuracy of near-surface air quality characterization by providing broad
regional context and decreasing metric uncertainties and errors. The
frequent, spatially extensive and radiometrically consistent instantaneous
constraints can be especially useful in areas away from ground monitors and
progressively downwind of emission sources. We present a physical approach to
constraining regional-scale estimates of PM2.5, its major chemical
component species estimates, and related uncertainty estimates of chemical
transport model (CTM; e.g., the Community Multi-scale Air Quality Model)
outputs. This approach uses ground-based monitors where available, combined
with aerosol optical depth and qualitative constraints on aerosol size,
shape, and light-absorption properties from the Multi-angle Imaging
SpectroRadiometer (MISR) on the NASA Earth Observing System's Terra
satellite. The CTM complements these data by providing complete spatial and
temporal coverage. Unlike widely used approaches that train statistical
regression models, the technique developed here leverages CTM physical
constraints such as the conservation of aerosol mass and meteorological
consistency, independent of observations. The CTM also aids in identifying
relationships between observed species concentrations and emission sources.Aerosol air mass types over populated regions of central California are
characterized using satellite data acquired during the 2013 San Joaquin field
deployment of the NASA Deriving Information on Surface Conditions from Column
and Vertically Resolved Observations Relevant to Air Quality (DISCOVER-AQ)
project. We investigate the optimal application of incorporating 275 m
horizontal-resolution aerosol air-mass-type maps and total-column aerosol
optical depth from the MISR Research Aerosol retrieval algorithm (RA) into
regional-scale CTM output. The impact on surface PM2.5 fields
progressively downwind of large single sources is evaluated using
contemporaneous surface observations. Spatiotemporal R2 and RMSE values for the model, constrained by both satellite and surface monitor measurements based on 10-fold cross-validation, are 0.79 and 0.33 for PM2.5, 0.88 and
0.65 for NO3−, 0.78 and 0.23 for SO42−, 1.00 and
1.01 for NH4+, 0.73 and 0.23 for OC, and 0.31 and 0.65
for EC, respectively. Regional cross-validation temporal and spatiotemporal
R2 results for the satellite-based PM2.5 improve by 30 % and
13 %, respectively, in comparison to unconstrained CTM simulations and
provide finer spatial resolution. SO42− cross-validation values
showed the largest spatial and spatiotemporal R2 improvement, with a
43 % increase. Assessing this physical technique in a well-instrumented
region opens the possibility of applying it globally, especially over areas
where surface air quality measurements are scarce or entirely absent.</p
Generating and probing a two-photon Fock state with a single atom in a cavity
A two-photon Fock state is prepared in a cavity sustaining a "source mode "
and a "target mode", with a single circular Rydberg atom. In a third-order
Raman process, the atom emits a photon in the target while scattering one
photon from the source into the target. The final two-photon state is probed by
measuring by Ramsey interferometry the cavity light shifts induced by the
target field on the same atom. Extensions to other multi-photon processes and
to a new type of micromaser are briefly discussed
Soliton back-action evading measurement using spectral filtering
We report on a back-action evading (BAE) measurement of the photon number of
fiber optical solitons operating in the quantum regime. We employ a novel
detection scheme based on spectral filtering of colliding optical solitons. The
measurements of the BAE criteria demonstrate significant quantum state
preparation and transfer of the input signal to the signal and probe outputs
exiting the apparatus, displaying the quantum-nondemolition (QND) behavior of
the experiment.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
Immunomodulatory parasites and toll-like receptor-mediated tumour necrosis factor alpha responsiveness in wild mammals
BACKGROUND: Immunological analyses of wild populations can increase our understanding of how vertebrate immune systems respond to 'natural' levels of exposure to diverse infections. A major recent advance in immunology has been the recognition of the central role of phylogenetically conserved toll-like receptors in triggering innate immunity and the subsequent recruitment of adaptive response programmes. We studied the cross-sectional associations between individual levels of systemic toll-like receptor-mediated tumour necrosis factor alpha responsiveness and macro- and microparasite infections in a natural wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) population. RESULTS: Amongst a diverse group of macroparasites, only levels of the nematode Heligmosomoides polygyrus and the louse Polyplax serrata were correlated (negatively) with innate immune responsiveness (measured by splenocyte tumour necrosis factor alpha responses to a panel of toll-like receptor agonists). Polyplax serrata infection explained a strikingly high proportion of the total variation in innate responses. Contrastingly, faecal oocyst count in microparasitic Eimeria spp. was positively associated with innate immune responsiveness, most significantly for the endosomal receptors TLR7 and TLR9. CONCLUSION: Analogy with relevant laboratory models suggests the underlying causality for the observed patterns may be parasite-driven immunomodulatory effects on the host. A subset of immunomodulatory parasite species could thus have a key role in structuring other infections in natural vertebrate populations by affecting the 'upstream' innate mediators, like toll-like receptors, that are important in initiating immunity. Furthermore, the magnitude of the present result suggests that populations free from immunosuppressive parasites may exist at 'unnaturally' elevated levels of innate immune activation, perhaps leading to an increased risk of immunopathology
Cumulant expansion for studying damped quantum solitons
The quantum statistics of damped optical solitons is studied using
cumulant-expansion techniques. The effect of absorption is described in terms
of ordinary Markovian relaxation theory, by coupling the optical field to a
continuum of reservoir modes. After introduction of local bosonic field
operators and spatial discretization pseudo-Fokker-Planck equations for
multidimensional s-parameterized phase-space functions are derived. These
partial differential equations are equivalent to an infinite set of ordinary
differential equations for the cumulants of the phase-space functions.
Introducing an appropriate truncation condition, the resulting finite set of
cumulant evolution equations can be solved numerically. Solutions are presented
in Gaussian approximation and the quantum noise is calculated, with special
emphasis on squeezing and the recently measured spectral photon-number
correlations [Spaelter et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 81, 786 (1998)].Comment: 17 pages, 13 figures, revtex, psfig, multicols, published in
Phys.Rev.
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