7,711 research outputs found
Numerical simulation of dark lanes in post-flare supra-arcade
We integrate the MHD ideal equations to simulate dark void sunwardly moving
structures in post--flare supra--arcades. We study the onset and evolution of
the internal plasma instability to compare with observations and to gain
insight into physical processes and characteristic parameters of these
phenomena. The numerical approach uses a finite-volume Harten-Yee TVD scheme to
integrate the 1D1/2 MHD equations specially designed to capture supersonic flow
discontinuities. The integration is performed in both directions, the sunward
radial one and the transverse to the magnetic field. For the first time, we
numerically reproduce observational dark voids described in Verwichte et al.
(2005). We show that the dark tracks are plasma vacuums generated by the
bouncing and interfering of shocks and expansion waves, upstream an initial
slow magnetoacoustic shock produced by a localized deposition of energy modeled
with a pressure perturbation. The same pressure perturbation produces a
transverse to the field or perpendicular magnetic shock giving rise to
nonlinear waves that compose the kink--like plasma void structures, with the
same functional sunward decreasing phase speed and constancy with height of the
period, as those determined by the observations.Comment: Accepted MNRAS, 6 pages, 7 figure
Structural validation of oral mucosal tissue using optical coherence tomography
Background:
Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a non-invasive optical technology using near-infrared light to produce cross-sectional tissue images with lateral resolution.
Objectives:
The overall aims of this study was to generate a bank of normative and pathological OCT data of the oral tissues to allow identification of cellular structures of normal and pathological processes with the aim to create a diagnostic algorithm which can be used in the early detection of oral disorders.
Material and methods:
Seventy-three patients with 78 suspicious oral lesions were referred for further management to the UCLH Head and Neck Centre, London. The entire cohort had their lesions surgically biopsied (incisional or excisional). The immediate ex vivo phase involved scanning the specimens using optical coherence tomography. The specimens were then processed by a histopathologist.
Five tissue structures were evaluated as part of this study, including: keratin cell layer, epithelial layer, basement membrane, lamina propria and other microanatomical structures. Two independent assessors (clinician and pathologist trained to use OCT) assessed the OCT images and were asked to comment on the cellular structures and changes involving the five tissue structures in non-blind fashion.
Results:
Correct identification of the keratin cell layer and its structural changes was achieved in 87% of the cohort; for the epithelial layer it reached 93.5%, and 94% for the basement membrane. Microanatomical structures identification was 64% for blood vessels, 58% for salivary gland ducts and 89% for rete pegs. The agreement was âgoodâ between the clinician and the pathologist.
OCT was able to differential normal from pathological tissue and pathological tissue of different entities in this immediate ex vivo study. Unfortunately, OCT provided inadequate cellular and subcellular information to enable the grading of oral premalignant disorders.
Conclusion:
This study enabled the creation of OCT bank of normal and pathological oral tissues. The pathological changes identified using OCT enabled differentiation between normal and pathological tissues, and identification of different tissue pathologies.
Further studies are required to assess the accuracy of OCT in identification of various pathological processes involving the oral tissues
Nitric oxide donation lowers blood pressure in adrenocorticotrophic hormone-induced hypertensive rats.
Adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) elevates systolic blood pressure (SBP) and lowers plasma reactive nitrogen intermediates in rats. We assessed the ability of NO donation from isosorbide dinitrate (ISDN) to prevent or reverse the hypertension caused by ACTH. In the prevention study, male Sprague Dawley rats were treated with ACTH (0.2 mg/kg/day) or saline control for 8 days, with either concurrent ISDN (100 mg/kg/day) via the drinking water or water alone. Animals receiving ISDN via the drinking water were provided with nitrate-free water for 8 hours every day. In the reversal study ISDN (100 mg/kg) or vehicle was given as a single oral dose on day 8. SBP was measured daily by the indirect tail-cuff method in conscious, restrained rats. ACTH caused a significant increase in SBP compared with saline (P < 0.0015). In the prevention study, chronic administration of ISDN (100 mg/kg/day) did not affect the SBP in either group. In the reversal study, ISDN significantly lowered SBP in ACTH-treated rats at 1 and 2.5 hours (132 +/- 3 mmHg (1 h) and 131 +/- 2 mmHg (2.5 h) versus 143 +/- 3 mmHg (0 h), P < 0.002), but not to control levels. It had no effect in control (saline treated) rats. In conclusion, the lowering of SBP by NO donation is consistent with the notion that ACTH-induced hypertension involves an impaired bioavailability or action of NO in vivo
Phase diagram of the one-dimensional Holstein model of spinless fermions
The one-dimensional Holstein model of spinless fermions interacting with
dispersionless phonons is studied using a new variant of the density matrix
renormalisation group. By examining various low-energy excitations of finite
chains, the metal-insulator phase boundary is determined precisely and agrees
with the predictions of strong coupling theory in the anti-adiabatic regime and
is consistent with renormalisation group arguments in the adiabatic regime. The
Luttinger liquid parameters, determined by finite-size scaling, are consistent
with a Kosterlitz-Thouless transition.Comment: Minor changes. 4 pages, 4 figures. To appear in Physical Review
Letters 80 (1998) 560
Temperature dependence of the interlayer magnetoresistance of quasi-one-dimensional Fermi liquids at the magic angles
The interlayer magnetoresistance of a quasi-one-dimensional Fermi liquid is
considered for the case of a magnetic field that is rotated within the plane
perpendicular to the most-conducting direction. Within semi-classical transport
theory dips in the magnetoresistance occur at integer amgic angles only when
the electronic dispersion parallel to the chains is nonlinear. If the field
direction is fixed at one of the magic angles and the temperature is varied the
resulting variation of the scattering rate can lead to a non-monotonic
variation of the interlayer magnetoresistance with temperature. Although the
model considered here gives a good description of some of the properties of the
Bechgaard salts, (TMTSF)2PF6 for pressures less than 8kbar and (TMTSF)2ClO4 it
gives a poor description of their properties when the field is parallel to the
layers and of the intralayer transport.Comment: 10pages, RevTeX + epsf, 3 figure
Ferromagnetism, paramagnetism and a Curie-Weiss metal in an electron doped Hubbard model on a triangular lattice
Motivated by the unconventional properties and rich phase diagram of NaxCoO2
we consider the electronic and magnetic properties of a two-dimensional Hubbard
model on an isotropic triangular lattice doped with electrons away from
half-filling. Dynamical mean-field theory (DMFT) calculations predict that for
negative inter-site hopping amplitudes (t<0) and an on-site Coulomb repulsion,
U, comparable to the bandwidth, the system displays properties typical of a
weakly correlated metal. In contrast, for t>0 a large enhancement of the
effective mass, ferromagnetism and a Curie-Weiss magnetic susceptibility are
found in a broad electron doping range. Our observation of Nagaoka
ferromagnetism is consistent with the A-type antiferromagnetism (i.e.
ferromagnetic layers stacked antiferromagnetically) observed in neutron
scattering experiments on NaxCoO2. We propose that `Curie-Weiss metal' phase
observed in NaxCoO2 is a consequence of the crossover from ``bad metal'' with
incoherent quasiparticles at temperatures T>T* and Fermi liquid behavior with
enhanced parameters below T*, where T* is a low energy coherence scale induced
by strong local Coulomb electron correlations. We propose a model which
contains the charge ordering phenomena observed in the system which, we
propose, drives the system close to the Mott insulating phase even at large
dopings.Comment: 24 pages, 15 figures; accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.
Quantum entanglement between a nonlinear nanomechanical resonator and a microwave field
We consider a theoretical model for a nonlinear nanomechanical resonator
coupled to a superconducting microwave resonator. The nanomechanical resonator
is driven parametrically at twice its resonance frequency, while the
superconducting microwave resonator is driven with two tones that differ in
frequency by an amount equal to the parametric driving frequency. We show that
the semi-classical approximation of this system has an interesting fixed point
bifurcation structure. In the semi-classical dynamics a transition from stable
fixed points to limit cycles is observed as one moves from positive to negative
detuning. We show that signatures of this bifurcation structure are also
present in the full dissipative quantum system and further show that it leads
to mixed state entanglement between the nanomechanical resonator and the
microwave cavity in the dissipative quantum system that is a maximum close to
the semi-classical bifurcation. Quantum signatures of the semi-classical
limit-cycles are presented.Comment: 36 pages, 18 figure
Defining Fuel Poverty in Northern Ireland: A preliminary review
Measures to tackle fuel poverty in Northern Ireland over the past decade have been effective but much more needs to be done, new research carried out by the University of Ulster has revealed.‘Defining Fuel Poverty: A Preliminary Review’, which was commissioned by the Department of Social Development, was launched at the Stormont Hotel by the DSD Minister Nelson McCausland.Christine Liddell, Professor of Psychology at the University of Ulster, led the independent Preliminary Review of fuel poverty, which is one of three being carried out across the UK.She said: “While efforts to tackle fuel poverty in Northern Ireland have made measurable inroads – the severity of fuel poverty remains profound for many households.“The Preliminary Review concludes, based on the extensive evidence gathered, that past and present approaches to tackling fuel poverty in Northern Ireland have delivered a highly cost-effective programme of housing regeneration. Returns from investment in Warm Homes and similar programmes include:-ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ substantial impacts on human health and well-being;-ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ significant savings on energy bills for thousands of households;-ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ measurable returns in terms of job creation;-ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ ĂÂ a widening of opportunities for consolidating partnerships across the public and private sector
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