Excitonic Effects in Quantum Wires

We review the effects of Coulomb correlation on the linear and non-linear optical properties of semiconductor quantum wires, with emphasis on recent results for the bound excitonic states. Our theoretical approach is based on generalized semiconductor Bloch equations, and allows full three-dimensional multisubband description of electron-hole correlation for arbitrary confinement profiles. In particular, we consider V- and T-shaped structures for which significant experimental advances were obtained recently. Above band gap, a very general result obtained by this approach is that electron-hole Coulomb correlation removes the inverse-square-root single-particle singularity in the optical spectra at band edge, in agreement with previous reports from purely one-dimensional models. Strong correlation effects on transitions in the continuum are found to persist also at high densities of photoexcited carriers. Below bandgap, we find that the same potential- (Coulomb) to kinetic-energy ratio holds for quite different wire cross sections and compositions. As a consequence, we identify a shape- and barrier-independent parameter that governs a universal scaling law for exciton binding energy with size. Previous indications that the shape of the wire cross-section may have important effects on exciton binding are discussed in the light of the present results.Comment: Proc. OECS-5 Conference, G\"ottingen, 1997 (To appear in Phys. Stat. Sol. (b)

Redistribution of DNA topoisomerase II beta after in vitro stabilization of human erythroleukemic nuclei by heat or Cu++ revealed by confocal microscopy.

Using confocal laser scanning microscope and a monoclonal antibody we have examined by means of indirect immunofluorescence techniques the distribution of DNA topoisomerase II beta (the 180-kDa nucleolar isoform of topoisomerase II) following stabilization of isolated nuclei by exposure to moderate heat (37 degrees or 42 degrees C) or Cu++. In intact cells the antibody specifically decorated the nucleoli. The same pattern was maintained if nuclei were incubated at 0 degree C in a buffer containing spermine/spermidine/KCl or stabilized by means of 0.5 mM Cu++ for 10 minutes at 0 degree C in the same buffer. On the contrary, if stabilization was performed by incubating the nuclei either at 37 degrees or 42 degrees C, the immunoreactivity dispersed all over the nucleus, forming numerous speckles. This phenomenon was not detected if, in addition to spermine/spermidine/KCl, the incubation buffer also contained 5 mM Mg++ and the temperature was 37 degrees C. If the stabilization was performed at 42 degrees C, Mg++ failed to maintain the original distribution of DNA topoisomerase II beta, as seen in intact cells. The analysis on 2-D optical section showed the alteration of the nucleolar profile, particularly at 37 degrees C, even when the samples were treated with Mg++. The 3-D reconstruction figured out the irregularity of the surface at 37 degrees C and the variations of the volume occupied by the fluorescent figures. These were in close proximity to each other both in intact cells and in 0 degree C incubated nuclei; they showed a certain degree of shrinkage in 0 degree C plus Cu++ exposed samples (-20\% of the volume), and, on the contrary, the labeled structures were scattered in a volume increased two- or threefold when exposed to 37 degrees or 42 degrees C, respectively. The addition of Mg++ restored the original spatial relationship and volume at 37 degrees C, but not at 42 degrees C, where the volumetric analysis showed an increase of about 50\%. Our results demonstrate that heat stabilization of isolated nuclei in a buffer without Mg++ (i.e., a technique often employed to prepare the nuclear matrix or scaffold) cannot be considered an optimal procedure to maintain the original distribution of protein within the nucleus

Post-test simulations for the NACIE-UP benchmark by STH codes

This paper illustrates the results obtained in the last phase of the NACIE-UP benchmark activity foreseen inside the EU SESAME Project. The purpose of this research activity, performed by system thermal–hydraulic (STH) codes, is finalized to the improvement, development and validation of existing STH codes for Heavy Liquid Metal (HLM) systems. All the participants improved their modelling of the NACIE-UP facility, respect to the initial blind simulation phase, adopting the actual experimental boundary conditions and reducing as much as possible sources of uncertainty in their numerical model. Four different STH codes were employed by the participants to the benchmark to model the NACIE-UP facility, namely: CATHARE for ENEA, ATHLET for GRS, RELAP5-3D© for the “Sapienza” University of Rome and RELAP5/Mod3.3(modified) for the University of Pisa. Three reference tests foreseen in the NACIE-UP benchmark and carried out at ENEA Brasimone Research Centre were analysed from four participants. The data from the post-test analyses, performed independently by the participant using different STH codes, were compared together and with the available experimental results and critically discussed

Operator Counting for N=2 Chern-Simons Gauge Theories with Chiral-like Matter Fields

The localization formula of Chern-Simons quiver gauge theory on $S^3$ nicely reproduces the geometric data such as volume of Sasaki-Einstein manifolds in the large-$N$ limit, at least for vector-like models. The validity of chiral-like models is not established yet, due to technical problems in both analytic and numerical approaches. Recently Gulotta, Herzog and Pufu suggested that the counting of chiral operators can be used to find the eigenvalue distribution of quiver matrix models. In this paper we apply this method to some vector-like or chiral-like quiver theories, including the triangular quivers with generic Chern-Simons levels which are dual to in-homogeneous Sasaki-Einstein manifolds $Y^{p,k}(\mathbb{CP}^2)$. The result is consistent with AdS/CFT and the volume formula. We discuss the implication of our analysis.Comment: 23 pages; v2. revised version; v3. corrected typos and clarified argument

Z-extremization and F-theorem in Chern-Simons matter theories

The three dimensional exact R symmetry of N=2 SCFTs extremizes the partition function localized on a three sphere. Here we verify this statement at weak coupling. We give a detailed analysis for two classes of models. The first one is an SU(N)_k gauge theory at large k with both fundamental and adjoint matter fields, while the second is a flavored version of the ABJ theory, where the CS levels are large but they do not necessarily sum up to zero. We study in both cases superpotential deformations and compute the R charges at different fixed points. When these fixed points are connected by an RG flow we explicitly verify that the free energy decreases at the endpoints of the flow between the fixed points, corroborating the conjecture of an F-theorem in three dimensions.Comment: 28 pages, 3 figures, JHEP.cls, minor corrections, references adde

Multidomain switching in the ferroelectric nanodots

Controlling the polarization switching in the ferroelectric nanocrystals, nanowires and nanodots has an inherent specificity related to the emergence of depolarization field that is associated with the spontaneous polarization. This field splits the finite-size ferroelectric sample into polarization domains. Here, based on 3D numerical simulations, we study the formation of 180$^{\circ }$ polarization domains in a nanoplatelet, made of uniaxial ferroelectric material, and show that in addition to the polarized monodomain state, the multidomain structures, notably of stripe and cylindrical shapes, can arise and compete during the switching process. The multibit switching protocol between these configurations may be realized by temperature and field variations

Emerging Non-Anomalous Baryonic Symmetries in the AdS_5/CFT_4 Correspondence

We study the breaking of baryonic symmetries in the AdS_5/CFT_4 correspondence for D3 branes at Calabi-Yau three-fold singularities. This leads, for particular VEVs, to the emergence of non-anomalous baryonic symmetries during the renormalization group flow. We claim that these VEVs correspond to critical values of the B-field moduli in the dual supergravity backgrounds. We study in detail the C^3/Z_3 orbifold, the cone over F_0 and the C^3/Z_5 orbifold. For the first two examples, we study the dual supergravity backgrounds that correspond to the breaking of the emerging baryonic symmetries and identify the expected Goldstone bosons and global strings in the infra-red. In doing so we confirm the claim that the emerging symmetries are indeed non-anomalous baryonic symmetries.Comment: 65 pages, 15 figures;v2: minor changes, published versio

Sequential localization of a complex electron fluid

Complex and correlated quantum systems with promise for new functionality often involve entwined electronic degrees of freedom. In such materials, highly unusual properties emerge and could be the result of electron localization. Here, a cubic heavy fermion metal governed by spins and orbitals is chosen as a model system for this physics. Its properties are found to originate from surprisingly simple low-energy behavior, with two distinct localization transitions driven by a single degree of freedom at a time. This result is unexpected, but we are able to understand it by advancing the notion of sequential destruction of an SU(4) spin-orbital-coupled Kondo entanglement. Our results implicate electron localization as a unified framework for strongly correlated materials and suggest ways to exploit multiple degrees of freedom for quantum engineering.Comment: 21 pages, 4 figures (preprint format

Targeting the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt/mechanistic target of rapamycin signaling pathway in B-lineage acute lymphoblastic leukemia: An update

Despite considerable progress in treatment protocols, B-lineage acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) displays a poor prognosis in about 15–20% of pediatric cases and about 60% of adult patients. In addition, life-long irreversible late effects from chemo- and radiation therapy, including secondary malignancies, are a growing problem for leukemia survivors. Targeted therapy holds promising perspectives for cancer treatment as it may be more effective and have fewer side effects than conventional therapies. The phosphatidylinositol 3-phosphate kinase (PI3K)/Akt/mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway is a key regulatory cascade which controls proliferation, survival and drug-resistance of cancer cells, and it is frequently upregulated in the different subtypes of B-ALL, where it plays important roles in the pathophysiology, maintenance and progression of the disease. Moreover, activation of this signaling cascade portends a poorer prognosis in both pediatric and adult B-ALL patients. Promising preclinical data on PI3K/Akt/mTOR inhibitors have documented their anticancer activity in B-ALL and some of these novel drugs have entered clinical trials as they could lead to a longer event-free survival and reduce therapy-associated toxicity for patients with B-ALL. This review highlights the current status of PI3K/Akt/mTOR inhibitors in B-ALL, with an emphasis on emerging evidence of the superior efficacy of synergistic combinations involving the use of traditional chemotherapeutics or other novel, targeted agents

R-charges from toric diagrams and the equivalence of a-maximization and Z-minimization

We conjecture a general formula for assigning R-charges and multiplicities for the chiral fields of all gauge theories living on branes at toric singularities. We check that the central charge and the dimensions of all the chiral fields agree with the information on volumes that can be extracted from toric geometry. We also analytically check the equivalence between the volume minimization procedure discovered in hep-th/0503183 and a-maximization, for the most general toric diagram. Our results can be considered as a very general check of the AdS/CFT correspondence, valid for all superconformal theories associated with toric singularities.Comment: 43 pages, 17 figures; minor correction