1,069 research outputs found
Long-lived qubit memory using atomic ions
We demonstrate experimentally a robust quantum memory using a
magnetic-field-independent hyperfine transition in 9Be+ atomic ion qubits at a
magnetic field B ~= 0.01194 T. We observe that the single physical qubit memory
coherence time is greater than 10 seconds, an improvement of approximately five
orders of magnitude from previous experiments with 9Be+. We also observe long
coherence times of decoherence-free subspace logical qubits comprising two
entangled physical qubits and discuss the merits of each type of qubit.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Using the theory of planned behaviour as a process evaluation tool in randomised trials of knowledge translation strategies : A case study from UK primary care
Peer reviewedPublisher PD
Non-linear microwave impedance of short and long Josephson Junctions
The non-linear dependence on applied field () or current () of the microwave (ac) impedance of both
short and long Josephson junctions is calculated under a variety of excitation
conditions. The dependence on the junction width is studied, for both field
symmetric (current anti-symmetric) and field anti-symmetric (current symmetric)
excitation configurations.The resistance shows step-like features every time a
fluxon (soliton) enters the junction, with a corresponding phase slip seen in
the reactance. For finite widths the interference of fluxons leads to some
interesting effects which are described. Many of these calculated results are
observed in microwave impedance measurements on intrinsic and fabricated
Josephson junctions in the high temperature superconductors, and new effects
are suggested. When a field () or current () is applied,
interesting phase locking effects are observed in the ac impedance
. In particular an almost periodic dependence on the dc bias is
seen similar to that observed in microwave experiments at very low dc field
bias. These results are generic to all systems with a potential
in the overdamped limit and subjected to an ac drive.Comment: 7 pages, 11 figure
Quantum control, quantum information processing, and quantum-limited metrology with trapped ions
We briefly discuss recent experiments on quantum information processing using
trapped ions at NIST. A central theme of this work has been to increase our
capabilities in terms of quantum computing protocols, but we have also applied
the same concepts to improved metrology, particularly in the area of frequency
standards and atomic clocks. Such work may eventually shed light on more
fundamental issues, such as the quantum measurement problem.Comment: Proceedings of the International Conference on Laser Spectroscopy
(ICOLS), 10 pages, 5 figure
Quantum random walks with history dependence
We introduce a multi-coin discrete quantum random walk where the amplitude
for a coin flip depends upon previous tosses. Although the corresponding
classical random walk is unbiased, a bias can be introduced into the quantum
walk by varying the history dependence. By mixing the biased random walk with
an unbiased one, the direction of the bias can be reversed leading to a new
quantum version of Parrondo's paradox.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, RevTe
First Dark Matter Results from the XENON100 Experiment
The XENON100 experiment, in operation at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran
Sasso in Italy, is designed to search for dark matter WIMPs scattering off 62
kg of liquid xenon in an ultra-low background dual-phase time projection
chamber. In this letter, we present first dark matter results from the analysis
of 11.17 live days of non-blind data, acquired in October and November 2009. In
the selected fiducial target of 40 kg, and within the pre-defined signal
region, we observe no events and hence exclude spin-independent WIMP-nucleon
elastic scattering cross-sections above 3.4 x 10^-44 cm^2 for 55 GeV/c^2 WIMPs
at 90% confidence level. Below 20 GeV/c^2, this result constrains the
interpretation of the CoGeNT and DAMA signals as being due to spin-independent,
elastic, light mass WIMP interactions.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures. Matches published versio
Comment on "On the subtleties of searching for dark matter with liquid xenon detectors"
In a recent manuscript (arXiv:1208.5046) Peter Sorensen claims that
XENON100's upper limits on spin-independent WIMP-nucleon cross sections for
WIMP masses below 10 GeV "may be understated by one order of magnitude or
more". Having performed a similar, though more detailed analysis prior to the
submission of our new result (arXiv:1207.5988), we do not confirm these
findings. We point out the rationale for not considering the described effect
in our final analysis and list several potential problems with his study.Comment: 3 pages, no figure
Prevalence and Predictors of Urinary Tract Infection and Severe Malaria Among Febrile Children Attending Makongoro Health Centre in Mwanza City, North-Western Tanzania.
In malaria endemic areas, fever has been used as an entry point for presumptive treatment of malaria. At present, the decrease in malaria transmission in Africa implies an increase in febrile illnesses related to other causes among underfives. Moreover, it is estimated that more than half of the children presenting with fever to public clinics in Africa do not have a malaria infection. Thus, for a better management of all febrile illnesses among under-fives, it becomes relevant to understand the underlying aetiology of the illness. The present study was conducted to determine the relative prevalence and predictors of P. falciparum malaria, urinary tract infections and bacteremia among under-fives presenting with a febrile illness at the Makongoro Primary Health Centre, North-Western Tanzania. From February to June 2011, a cross-sectional analytical survey was conducted among febrile children less than five years of age. Demographic and clinical data were collected using a standardized pre-tested questionnaire. Blood and urine culture was done, followed by the identification of isolates using in-house biochemical methods. Susceptibility patterns to commonly used antibiotics were investigated using the disc diffusion method. Giemsa stained thin and thick blood smears were examined for any malaria parasites stages. A total of 231 febrile under-fives were enrolled in the study. Of all the children, 20.3% (47/231, 95%CI, 15.10-25.48), 9.5% (22/231, 95%CI, 5.72-13.28) and 7.4% (17/231, 95%CI, 4.00-10.8) had urinary tract infections, P. falciparum malaria and bacteremia respectively. In general, 11.5% (10/87, 95%CI, 8.10-14.90) of the children had two infections and only one child had all three infections. Predictors of urinary tract infections (UTI) were dysuria (OR = 12.51, 95% CI, 4.28-36.57, P < 0.001) and body temperature (40-41 C) (OR = 12.54, 95% CI, 4.28-36.73, P < 0.001). Predictors of P. falciparum severe malaria were pallor (OR = 4.66 95%CI, 1.21-17.8, P = 0.025) and convulsion (OR = 102, 95% CI, 10-996, P = 0.001). Escherichia coli were the common gram negative isolates from urine (72.3%, 95% CI, 66.50-78.10) and blood (40%, 95%CI, and 33.70-46.30). Escherichia coli from urine were 100% resistant to ampicillin, 97% resistant to co-trimoxazole, 85% resistant to augmentin and 32.4% resistant to gentamicin; and they were 100%, 91.2% and 73.5% sensitive to meropenem, ciprofloxacin and ceftriaxone respectively. Urinary tract infection caused by multi drug resistant Escherichia coli was the common cause of febrile illness in our setting. Improvement of malaria diagnosis and its differential diagnosis from other causes of febrile illnesses may provide effective management of febrile illnesses among children in Tanzania
Material screening and selection for XENON100
Results of the extensive radioactivity screening campaign to identify
materials for the construction of XENON100 are reported. This Dark Matter
search experiment is operated underground at Laboratori Nazionali del Gran
Sasso (LNGS), Italy. Several ultra sensitive High Purity Germanium detectors
(HPGe) have been used for gamma ray spectrometry. Mass spectrometry has been
applied for a few low mass plastic samples. Detailed tables with the
radioactive contaminations of all screened samples are presented, together with
the implications for XENON100.Comment: 8 pages, 1 figur
Dark Matter Results from 100 Live Days of XENON100 Data
We present results from the direct search for dark matter with the XENON100
detector, installed underground at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso of
INFN, Italy. XENON100 is a two-phase time projection chamber with a 62 kg
liquid xenon target. Interaction vertex reconstruction in three dimensions with
millimeter precision allows to select only the innermost 48 kg as ultra-low
background fiducial target. In 100.9 live days of data, acquired between
January and June 2010, no evidence for dark matter is found. Three candidate
events were observed in a pre-defined signal region with an expected background
of 1.8 +/- 0.6 events. This leads to the most stringent limit on dark matter
interactions today, excluding spin-independent elastic WIMP-nucleon scattering
cross-sections above 7.0x10^-45 cm^2 for a WIMP mass of 50 GeV/c^2 at 90%
confidence level.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures; matches accepted versio
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