Polarization as a Probe to the Production Mechanisms of Charmonium in πN\pi N Collisions

Measurements of the polarization of \jp produced in pion-nucleus collisions are in disagreement with leading twist QCD prediction where \jp is observed to have negligible polarization whereas theory predicts substantial polarization. We argue that this discrepancy cannot be due to poorly known structure functions nor the relative production rates of \jp and $\chi_J$. The disagreement between theory and experiment suggests important higher twist corrections, as has earlier been surmised from the anomalous non-factorized nuclear $A$-dependence of the \jp cross section.Comment: 8 page

Exchange bias with Fe substitution in LaMnO_3

The exchange bias (EB) in LaMn_{0.7}Fe_{0.3}O_3 is observed by the negative shift and training effect of the hysteresis loops, while the sample was cooled in external magnetic field. The analysis of cooling field dependence of EB gives the size of the ferromagnetic (FM) cluster ~ 25 Angstrom, where the magnetic anisotropy of FM cluster is found two order of magnitude higher than the FM bulk manganites. We propose that the nanoscale FM clusters are embedded in the glassy magnetic host with EB at the FM/glassy magnetic interface.Comment: 6 figure

Native Plasmid-Encoded Mercury Resistance Genes Are Functional and Demonstrate Natural Transformation in Environmental Bacterial Isolates.

Plasmid-mediated horizontal gene transfer (HGT) is a major driver of genetic diversity in bacteria. We experimentally validated the function of a putative mercury resistance operon present on an abundant 8-kbp native plasmid found in groundwater samples without detectable levels of mercury. Phylogenetic analyses of the plasmid-encoded mercury reductases from the studied groundwater site show them to be distinct from those reported in proximal metal-contaminated sites. We synthesized the entire native plasmid and demonstrated that the plasmid was sufficient to confer functional mercury resistance in Escherichia coli Given the possibility that natural transformation is a prevalent HGT mechanism in the low-cell-density environments of groundwaters, we also assayed bacterial strains from this environment for competence. We used the native plasmid-encoded metal resistance to design a screen and identified 17 strains positive for natural transformation. We selected 2 of the positive strains along with a model bacterium to fully confirm HGT via natural transformation. From an ecological perspective, the role of the native plasmid population in providing advantageous traits combined with the microbiome's capacity to take up environmental DNA enables rapid adaptation to environmental stresses.IMPORTANCE Horizontal transfer of mobile genetic elements via natural transformation has been poorly understood in environmental microbes. Here, we confirm the functionality of a native plasmid-encoded mercury resistance operon in a model microbe and then query for the dissemination of this resistance trait via natural transformation into environmental bacterial isolates. We identified 17 strains including Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria to be naturally competent. These strains were able to successfully take up the plasmid DNA and obtain a clear growth advantage in the presence of mercury. Our study provides important insights into gene dissemination via natural transformation enabling rapid adaptation to dynamic stresses in groundwater environments

Indirect exchange of magnetic impurities in zigzag graphene ribbon

We use quantum Monte Carlo method to study the indirect coupling between two magnetic impurities on the zigzag edge of graphene ribbon, with respect to the chemical potential $\mu$. We find that the spin-spin correlation between two adatoms located on the nearest sites in the zigzag edge are drastically suppressed around the zero-energy. As we switch the system away from half-filling, the antiferromagnetic correlation is first enhanced and then decreased. If the two adatoms are adsorbed on the sites belonging to the same sublattice, we find similar behavior of spin-spin correlation except for a crossover from ferromagnetic to antiferromagentic correlation in the vicinity of zero-energy. We also calculated the weight of different components of d-electron wave function and local magnet moment for various values of parameters, and all the results are consistent with those of spin-spin correlation between two magnetic impurities.Comment: 3 pages, 4 figures, conference proceedin