7,718 research outputs found
Heat capacity anomaly at the quantum critical point of the Transverse Ising Magnet CoNb_2O_6
The transverse Ising magnet Hamiltonian describing the Ising chain in a
transverse magnetic field is the archetypal example of a system that undergoes
a transition at a quantum critical point (QCP). The columbite CoNbO is
the closest realization of the transverse Ising magnet found to date. At low
temperatures, neutron diffraction has observed a set of discrete collective
spin modes near the QCP. We ask if there are low-lying spin excitations
distinct from these relatively high energy modes. Using the heat capacity, we
show that a significant band of gapless spin excitations exists. At the QCP,
their spin entropy rises to a prominent peak that accounts for 30 of the
total spin degrees of freedom. In a narrow field interval below the QCP, the
gapless excitations display a fermion-like, temperature-linear heat capacity
below 1 K. These novel gapless modes are the main spin excitations
participating in, and affected, by the quantum transition.Comment: 14 pages total, 8 figure
Association between sleep quality and type 2 diabetes at 20-year follow-up in the Southall and Brent REvisited (SABRE) cohort: a triethnic analysis.
BACKGROUND: The risk of developing type 2 diabetes associated with poor sleep quality is comparable to other lifestyle factors (eg, overweight, physical inactivity). In the UK, these risk factors could not explain the two to three-fold excess risks in South-Asian and African-Caribbean men compared with Europeans. This study investigates (1) the association between mid-life sleep quality and later-life type 2 diabetes risk and (2) the potential modifying effect of ethnicity. METHODS: The Southall and Brent REvisited cohort is composed of Europeans, South-Asians and African-Caribbeans (median follow-up 19 years). Complete-case analysis was performed on 2189 participants without diabetes at baseline (age=51.7±7 SD). Competing risks regressions were used to estimate the HRs of developing diabetes associated with self-reported baseline sleep (difficulty falling asleep, early morning waking, waking up tired, snoring and a composite sleep score), adjusting for confounders. Modifying effects of ethnicity were analysed by conducting interaction tests and ethnicity-stratified analyses. RESULTS: There were 484 occurrences of incident type 2 diabetes (22%). Overall, there were no associations between sleep exposures and diabetes risk. Interaction tests suggested a possible modifying effect for South-Asians compared with Europeans for snoring only (p=0.056). The ethnicity-stratified analysis found an association with snoring among South-Asians (HR 1.41, 95% CI 1.08 to 1.85), comparing those who snored often/always versus occasionally/never. There were no elevated risks for the other sleep exposures. CONCLUSION: The association between snoring and type 2 diabetes appeared to be modified by ethnicity, and was strongest in South-Asians
Topological Dislocations and Mixed State of Charge Density Waves
We discuss the possibility of the ``mixed state'' in incommensurate charge
density waves with three-dimensional order. It is shown that the mixed state
can be created by applying an electric field perpendicular to the chains. This
state consists of topological dislocations induced by the external field and is
therefore similar to the mixed states of superfluids (type-II superconductor or
liquid Helium II). However, the peculiar coupling of charge density waves with
the electric field strongly modifies the nature of the mixed state compared to
the conventional superfluids. The field and temperature dependence of the
properties of the mixed state are studied, and some experimental aspects are
discussed.Comment: 10 pages, Revtex format, no figures, to appear in Phys. Rev. Let
One-neutron knockout reaction of 17C on a hydrogen target at 70 MeV/nucleon
First experimental evidence of the population of the first 2- state in 16C
above the neutron threshold is obtained by neutron knockout from 17C on a
hydrogen target. The invariant mass method combined with in-beam gamma-ray
detection is used to locate the state at 5.45(1) MeV. Comparison of its
populating cross section and parallel momentum distribution with a Glauber
model calculation utilizing the shell-model spectroscopic factor confirms the
core-neutron removal nature of this state. Additionally, a previously known
unbound state at 6.11 MeV and a new state at 6.28(2) MeV are observed. The
position of the first 2- state, which belongs to a member of the lowest-lying
p-sd cross shell transition, is reasonably well described by the shell-model
calculation using the WBT interaction.Comment: 15 pages, 3 figure
Transport properties of the layered Rh oxide K_0.49RhO_2
We report measurements and analyses of resistivity, thermopower and Hall
coefficient of single-crystalline samples of the layered Rh oxide K_0.49RhO_2.
The resistivity is proportional to the square of temperature up to 300 K, and
the thermopower is proportional to temperature up to 140 K. The Hall
coefficient increases linearly with temperature above 100 K, which is ascribed
to the triangular network of Rh in this compound. The different transport
properties between Na_xCoO_2 and K_0.49RhO_2 are discussed on the basis of the
different band width between Co and Rh evaluated from the magnetotransport.Comment: 3 figures, submitted to PR
Anisotropic effect of field on the orthorhombic-to-tetragonal transition in the striped cuprate (La,Nd)_{2-x}Sr_xCuO_4
The Nd-doped cuprate La_{2-y-x}Nd_ySr_xCuO_4 displays a first-order phase
transition at T_d (= 74 K for x=0.10, y = 0.60) to a low-temperature tetragonal
(LTT) phase. A magnetic field H applied || the a-axis leads to an increase in
T_d, whereas T_d is decreased when H || c. These effects show that magnetic
ordering involving both Nd and Cu spins plays a key role in driving the LTO-LTT
transition. Related anisotropic effects are observed in the uniform
susceptibility and the in-plane magnetoresistance.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
Doing it differently: Engaging interview participants with imaginative variation
Imaginative variation was identified by Husserl (1936/1970) as a phenomenological technique for the purpose of elucidating the manner in which phenomena appear to consciousness. Briefly, by engaging in the phenomenological reduction and using imaginative variation, phenomenologists are able to describe the experience of consciousness, having stepped outside of the natural attitude through the epochē. Imaginative variation is a stage aimed at explicating the structures of experience, and is best described as a mental experiment. Features of the experience are imaginatively altered in order to view the phenomenon under investigation from varying perspectives. Husserl argued that this process will reveal the essences of an experience, as only those aspects that are invariant to the experience of the phenomenon will not be able to change through the variation.
Often in qualitative research interviews, participants struggle to articulate or verbalise their experiences. The purpose of this article is to detail a radical and novel way of using imaginative variation with interview participants, by asking the participants to engage with imaginative variation, in order to produce a rich and insightful experiential account of a phenomenon. We will discuss how the first author successfully used imaginative variation in this way in her study of the erotic experience of bondage, discipline, dominance & submission, and sadism & masochism (BDSM), before considering the usefulness of this technique when applied to areas of study beyond sexuality
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