The Experimental plan of the 4m Resonant Sideband Extraction Prototype for The LCGT

The 4m Resonant Sideband Extraction (RSE) interferometer is a planned prototype of the LCGT interferometer. The aim of the experiment is to operate a powerrecycled Broadband RSE interferometer with suspended optics and to achieve diagonalization of length signals of the central part of the interferometer directly through the optical setup. Details of the 4m RSE interferometer control method as well as the design of the experimental setup will be presented

Phase Coherence in a Driven Double-Well System

We analyze the dynamics of the molecular field incoherently pumped by the photoassociation of fermionic atoms and coupled by quantum tunnelling in a double-well potential. The relative phase distribution of the molecular modes in each well and their phase coherence are shown to build up owing to quantum mechanical fluctuations starting from the vacuum state. We identify three qualitatively different steady-state phase distributions, depending on the ratio of the molecule-molecule interaction strength to interwell tunnelling, and examine the crossover from a phase-coherent regime to a phase-incoherent regime as this ratio increases.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figure

Control sideband generation for dual-recycled laser interferometric gravitational wave detectors

We present a discussion of the problems associated with generation of multiple control sidebands for length sensing and control of dual-recycled, cavity-enhanced Michelson interferometers and the motivation behind more complicated sideband generation methods. We focus on the Mach–Zehnder interferometer as a topological solution to the problem and present results from tests carried out at the Caltech 40 m prototype gravitational wave detector. The consequences for sensing and control for advanced interferometry are discussed, as are the implications for future interferometers such as Advanced LIGO

Random-phase approximation study of collective excitations in the Bose-Fermi mixed condensate of alkali-metal gases

We perform Random Phase Approximation (RPA) study of collective excitations in the bose-fermi mixed degenerate gas of Alkali-metal atoms at T=0. The calculation is done by diagonalization in a model space composed of particle-hole type excitations from the ground state, the latter being obtained from the coupled Gross-Pitaevskii and Thomas-Fermi equations. We investigate strength distributions for different combinations of bose and fermi multipole ($L$) operators with $L=0,1,2,3$. Transition densities and dynamical structure factors are calculated for collective excitations. Comparison with the sum rule prediction for the collective frequency is given. Time dependent behavior of the system after an external impulse is studied.Comment: 28 pages, 13 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

A study for reduction of radiation pressure noise in gravitational wave detectors

We describe an experimental conceptual design for observation and reduction of radiation pressure noise. The radiation pressure noise is increased in a high finesse cavity with a small mass mirror. In our experiment a Fabry-Perot Michelson interferometer with a homodyne detection scheme will be built with Fabry-Perot cavities of finesse of 10000 containing suspended mirrors of 23 mg. To observe the radiation pressure noise, the goal sensitivity is set to 1×10^(-17) [m/√Hz] at 1 kHz. Then the radiation pressure noise is reduced by adjusting the homodyne phase. To achieve the sensitivity, the other noise sources such as thermal noises, seismic noise and laser frequency noise should be suppressed below 1×10^(-18) [m/√Hz] at 1kHz. The whole interferometer is suspended as a double pendulum on double-layer stacks. As a preliminary setup, a Fabry-Perot cavity of finesse of 800 with a suspended mirror of 100 mg was locked. The current best sensitivity is 1×10^(-15) [m/√Hz] at 1 kHz

dc readout experiment at the Caltech 40m prototype interferometer

The Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO) operates a 40m prototype interferometer on the Caltech campus. The primary mission of the prototype is to serve as an experimental testbed for upgrades to the LIGO interferometers and for gaining experience with advanced interferometric techniques, including detuned resonant sideband extraction (i.e. signal recycling) and dc readout (optical homodyne detection). The former technique will be employed in Advanced LIGO, and the latter in both Enhanced and Advanced LIGO. Using dc readout for gravitational wave signal extraction has several technical advantages, including reduced laser and oscillator noise couplings as well as reduced shot noise, when compared to the traditional rf readout technique (optical heterodyne detection) currently in use in large-scale ground-based interferometric gravitational wave detectors. The Caltech 40m laboratory is currently prototyping a dc readout system for a fully suspended interferometric gravitational wave detector. The system includes an optical filter cavity at the interferometer's output port, and the associated controls and optics to ensure that the filter cavity is optimally coupled to the interferometer. We present the results of measurements to characterize noise couplings in rf and dc readout using this system

Simultaneous carriage of mcr-1 and other antimicrobial resistance determinants in Escherichia coli from poultry

The use of antimicrobial growth promoters (AGPs) in sub-therapeutic doses for long periods promotes the selection of resistant microorganisms and the subsequent risk of spreading this resistance to the human population and the environment. Global concern about antimicrobial resistance development and transference of resistance genes from animal to human has been rising. The goal of our research was to evaluate the susceptibility pattern to different classes of antimicrobials of colistin-resistant Escherichia coli from poultry production systems that use AGPs, and characterize the resistance determinants associated to transferable platforms. E. coli strains (n = 41) were obtained from fecal samples collected from typical Argentine commercial broiler farms and susceptibility for 23 antimicrobials, relevant for human or veterinary medicine, was determined. Isolates were tested by PCR for the presence of mcr-1, extended spectrum β-lactamase encoding genes and plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) coding genes. Conjugation and susceptibility patterns of the transconjugant studies were performed. ERIC-PCR and REP-PCR analysis showed a high diversity of the isolates. Resistance to several antimicrobials was determined and all colistin-resistant isolates harbored the mcr-1 gene. CTX-M-2 cefotaximase was the main mechanism responsible for third generation cephalosporins resistance, and PMQR determinants were also identified. In addition, co-transference of the qnrB determinant on the mcr-1-positive transconjugants was corroborated, which suggests that these resistance genes are likely to be located in the same plasmid. In this work a wide range of antimicrobial resistance mechanisms were identified in E. coli strains isolated from the environment of healthy chickens highlighting the risk of antimicrobial abuse/misuse in animals under intensive production systems and its consequences for public health.Instituto de PatobiologíaFil: Dominguez, Johana Elizabeth. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Patobiología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Redondo, Leandro Martí­n. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Patobiología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Figueroa Espinosa, Roque A. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Laboratorio de Resistencia Bacteriana. Cátedra de Microbiología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Cejas, Daniela. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Laboratorio de Resistencia Bacteriana. Cátedra de Microbiología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Gutkind, Gabriel O. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Laboratorio de Resistencia Bacteriana. Cátedra de Microbiología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Chacana, Pablo. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Patobiología; ArgentinaFil: Di Conza, José A. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Laboratorio de Resistencia Bacteriana. Cátedra de Microbiología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Fernandez Miyakawa, Mariano Enrique. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Patobiología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Clostridium perfringens epsilon toxin increases the small intestinal permeability in mice and rats

Epsilon toxin is a potent neurotoxin produced by Clostridium perfringens types B and D, an anaerobic bacterium that causes enterotoxaemia in ruminants. In the affected animal, it causes oedema of the lungs and brain by damaging the endothelial cells, inducing physiological and morphological changes. Although it is believed to compromise the intestinal barrier, thus entering the gut vasculature, little is known about the mechanism underlying this process. This study characterizes the effects of epsilon toxin on fluid transport and bioelectrical parameters in the small intestine of mice and rats. The enteropooling and the intestinal loop tests, together with the single-pass perfusion assay and in vitro and ex vivo analysis in Ussing's chamber, were all used in combination with histological and ultrastructural analysis of mice and rat small intestine, challenged with or without C. perfringens epsilon toxin. Luminal epsilon toxin induced a time and concentration dependent intestinal fluid accumulation and fall of the transepithelial resistance. Although no evident histological changes were observed, opening of the mucosa tight junction in combination with apoptotic changes in the lamina propria were seen with transmission electron microscopy. These results indicate that C. perfringens epsilon toxin alters the intestinal permeability, predominantly by opening the mucosa tight junction, increasing its permeability to macromolecules, and inducing further degenerative changes in the lamina propria of the bowel. © 2009 Goldstein et al

Possible Universal Cause of High-T_c Superconductivity in Different Metals

Using the theory of the high temperature superconductivity based on the idea of the fermion condensation quantum phase transition (FCQPT), we show that neither the d-wave pairing symmetry, nor the pseudogap phenomenon, nor the presence of the Cu-O_2 planes are of decisive importance for the existence of the high-T_c superconductivity. We analyze recent experimental data on this type of superconductivity in different materials and show that these facts can be understood within the theory of superconductivity based on FCQPT. The latter can be considered as a universal cause of the high-T_c superconductivity. The main features of a room-temperature superconductor are discussed.Comment: 8 pages, Revtex, revised and accepted by JETP Letter