108 research outputs found
Predicting bulk powder flow dynamics in a continuous mixer operating in transitory regimes
Over recent years there has been increasing interest in continuous powder mixing processes, due mainly to the development of on-line measurement techniques. However, our understanding of these processes remains limited, particularly with regard to their flow and mixing dynamics. In the present work, we study the behaviour of a pilot-scale continuous mixer during transitory regimes, in terms of hold-up weight and outflow changes. We present and discuss experimental results concerning the start-up dynamics of a Gericke GCM 500 mixer, for which a specific experimental protocol has been developed to determine the evolution of the hold-up in the mixer and the real outflow. Empirical relationships are derived so as to link hold-up weight variations with operating conditions. A simple stochastic approach, based on a non-homogeneous Markov chain, is developed to simulate the bulk particle flow and transport in the continuous mixer at a macroscopic level. Although this simple model is only based on the start-up behaviour, it provides a full description of the mixer dynamics in response to strong perturbations on the flow rate or on the rotational speed of the stirring device, such as negative or positive steps. This model is validated experimentally for a wide range of operating conditions, and constitutes a first approach to process control
Bulk crystal growth and electronic characterization of the 3D Dirac Semimetal Na3Bi
High quality hexagon plate-like Na3Bi crystals with large (001) plane
surfaces were grown from a molten Na flux. The freshly cleaved crystals were
analyzed by low temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and
angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES), allowing for the
characterization of the three-dimensional (3D) Dirac semimetal (TDS) behavior
and the observation of the topological surface states. Landau levels (LL) were
observed, and the energy-momentum relations exhibited a linear dispersion
relationship, characteristic of the 3D TDS nature of Na3Bi. In transport
measurements on Na3Bi crystals the linear magnetoresistance and Shubnikov-de
Haas (SdH) quantum oscillations are observed for the first time.Comment: To be published in a special issue of APL Material
Human p53 interacts with the elongating RNAPII complex and is required for the release of actinomycin D induced transcription blockage
The p53 tumour suppressor regulates the transcription initiation of selected genes by binding to specific DNA sequences at their promoters. Here we report a novel role of p53 in transcription elongation in human cells. Our data demonstrate that upon transcription elongation blockage, p53 is associated with genes that have not been reported as its direct targets. p53 could be co-immunoprecipitated with active forms of DNA-directed RNA polymerase II subunit 1 (RPB1), highlighting its association with the elongating RNA polymerase II. During a normal transcription cycle, p53 and RPB1 are localised at distinct regions of selected non-canonical p53 target genes and this pattern of localisation was changed upon blockage of transcription elongation. Additionally, transcription elongation blockage induced the proteasomal degradation of RPB1. Our results reveal a novel role of p53 in human cells during transcription elongation blockage that may facilitate the removal of RNA polymerase II from DNA
Gate-Tunable Transmon Using Selective-Area-Grown Superconductor-Semiconductor Hybrid Structures on Silicon
We present a gate-voltage tunable transmon qubit (gatemon) based on planar
InAs nanowires that are selectively grown on a high resistivity silicon
substrate using III-V buffer layers. We show that low loss superconducting
resonators with an internal quality of can readily be realized
using these substrates after the removal of buffer layers. We demonstrate
coherent control and readout of a gatemon device with a relaxation time,
, and dephasing times, and .
Further, we infer a high junction transparency of from an analysis
of the qubit anharmonicity
Quasi particle interference of heavy fermions in resonant x ray scattering
Resonant x ray scattering RXS has recently become an increasingly important tool for the study of ordering phenomena in correlated electron systems. Yet, the interpretation of RXS experiments remains theoretically challenging because of the complexity of the RXS cross section. Central to this debate is the recent proposal that impurity induced Friedel oscillations, akin to quasi particle interference signals observed with a scanning tunneling microscope STM , can lead to scattering peaks in RXS experiments. The possibility that quasi particle properties can be probed in RXSmeasurements opens up a new avenue to study the bulk band structure ofmaterials with the orbital and element selectivity provided by RXS. We test these ideas by combining RXS and STM measurements of the heavy fermion compound CeMIn5 M Co, Rh . Temperature and doping dependent RXSmeasurements at the Ce M4 edge show abroad scattering enhancement that correlateswith the appearance of heavy f electron bands in these compounds. The scattering enhancement is consistentwith themeasured quasi particle interference signal in the STMmeasurements, indicating that the quasi particle interference can be probed through the momentum distribution of RXS signals. Overall, our experiments demonstrate new opportunities for studies of correlated electronic systems using the RXS techniqu
An Unbiased Evaluation of CK2 Inhibitors by Chemoproteomics: Characterization of Inhibitor Effects on CK2 and Identification of Novel Inhibitor Targets
Recently protein kinases have emerged as some of the most promising drug targets; and therefore, pharmaceutical strategies have been developed to inhibit kinases in the treatment of a variety of diseases. CK2 is a serine/threonine-protein kinase that has been implicated in a number of cellular processes, including maintenance of cell viability, protection of cells from apoptosis, and tumorigenesis. Elevated CK2 activity has been established in a number of cancers where it was shown to promote tumorigenesis via the regulation of the activity of various oncogenes and tumor suppressor proteins. Consequently the development of CK2 inhibitors has been ongoing in preclinical studies, resulting in the generation of a number of CK2-directed compounds. In the present study, an unbiased evaluation of CK2 inhibitors 4,5,6,7-tetrabromo-
Mapping the unconventional orbital texture in topological crystalline insulators
The newly discovered topological crystalline insulators (TCIs) harbor a
complex band structure involving multiple Dirac cones. These materials are
potentially highly tunable by external electric field, temperature or strain
and could find future applications in field-effect transistors, photodetectors,
and nano-mechanical systems. Theoretically, it has been predicted that
different Dirac cones, offset in energy and momentum-space, might harbor vastly
different orbital character, a unique property which if experimentally
realized, would present an ideal platform for accomplishing new spintronic
devices. However, the orbital texture of the Dirac cones, which is of immense
importance in determining a variety of materials properties, still remains
elusive in TCIs. Here, we unveil the orbital texture in a prototypical TCI
PbSnSe. By using Fourier-transform (FT) scanning tunneling
spectroscopy (STS) we measure the interference patterns produced by the
scattering of surface state electrons. We discover that the intensity and
energy dependences of FTs show distinct characteristics, which can directly be
attributed to orbital effects. Our experiments reveal the complex band topology
involving two Lifshitz transitions and establish the orbital nature of the
Dirac bands in this new class of topological materials, which could provide a
different pathway towards future quantum applications
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