2,819 research outputs found
Quantum optical effective-medium theory for loss-compensated metamaterials
A central aim in metamaterial research is to engineer sub-wavelength unit
cells that give rise to desired effective-medium properties and parameters,
such as a negative refractive index. Ideally one can disregard the details of
the unit cell and employ the effective description instead. A popular strategy
to compensate for the inevitable losses in metallic components of metamaterials
is to add optical gain material. Here we study the quantum optics of such
loss-compensated metamaterials at frequencies for which effective parameters
can be unambiguously determined. We demonstrate that the usual effective
parameters are insufficient to describe the propagation of quantum states of
light. Furthermore, we propose a quantum-optical effective-medium theory
instead and show that it correctly predicts the properties of the light
emerging from loss-compensated metamaterials.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures. Accepted for Physical Review Letter
Transport coefficients for electrolytes in arbitrarily shaped nano and micro-fluidic channels
We consider laminar flow of incompressible electrolytes in long, straight
channels driven by pressure and electro-osmosis. We use a Hilbert space
eigenfunction expansion to address the general problem of an arbitrary cross
section and obtain general results in linear-response theory for the hydraulic
and electrical transport coefficients which satisfy Onsager relations. In the
limit of non-overlapping Debye layers the transport coefficients are simply
expressed in terms of parameters of the electrolyte as well as the geometrical
correction factor for the Hagen-Poiseuille part of the problem. In particular,
we consider the limits of thin non-overlapping as well as strongly overlapping
Debye layers, respectively, and calculate the corrections to the hydraulic
resistance due to electro-hydrodynamic interactions.Comment: 13 pages including 4 figures and 1 table. Typos corrected. Accepted
for NJ
Educational differences in cardiovascular mortality:The role of shared family factors and cardiovascular risk factors
Aims: To explore the confounding effects of early family factors shared by siblings and cardiovascular risk factors in midlife on the educational differences in mortality from cardiovascular disease (CVD). Methods: Data from national and regional health surveys in Norway (1974–2003) were linked with data from the Norwegian Family Based Life Course Study, the National Educational Registry and the Cause of Death Registry. The study population consisted of participants with at least one full sibling among the health survey participants ( n=271,310). Data were available on CVD risk factors, including weight, height, blood pressure, total cholesterol and smoking. Results: The hazards ratio (HR) of CVD mortality was 3.44 (95% confidence interval (CI) 2.98–3.96) in the lowest educational group relative to the highest. The HRs were little altered in the within-sibship analyses. Adjusted for risk factors, the HR for CVD mortality in the cohort analyses was 2.05 (CI 1.77–2.37) in the lowest educational group relative to the highest. The respective HR in the within-sibship analyses was 2.46 (CI 1.48–2.24). Conclusions: Using a sibling design, we did not find that the association between education and CVD mortality was confounded by early life factors shared by siblings, but it was explained to a large extent by CVD risk factors. These results suggest that reducing levels of CVD risk factors could have the greatest effect on mortality in less well-educated people. </jats:p
Mass and charge transport in micro and nano-fluidic channels
We consider laminar flow of incompressible electrolytes in long, straight
channels driven by pressure and electro-osmosis. We use a Hilbert space
eigenfunction expansion to address the general problem of an arbitrary cross
section and obtain general results in linear-response theory for the mass and
charge transport coefficients which satisfy Onsager relations. In the limit of
non-overlapping Debye layers the transport coefficients are simply expressed in
terms of parameters of the electrolyte as well as the hydraulic radius R=2A/P
with A and P being the cross-sectional area and perimeter, respectively. In
articular, we consider the limits of thin non-overlapping as well as strongly
overlapping Debye layers, respectively, and calculate the corrections to the
hydraulic resistance due to electro-hydrodynamic interactions.Comment: Invited paper presented at the Second International Conference on
Transport Phenomena in Micro and Nanodevices, Il Ciocco Hotel and Conference
Center, Barga, Italy, 11-15 June 2006. Accepted for publication in a special
issue of Nanoscale and Microscale Thermophysical Engineering (Taylor &
Francis
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