5,117 research outputs found
Robustness of Majorana Fermion induced Fractional Josephson Effect
It is shown in previous works that the coupling between two Majorana end
states in superconducting quantum wires leads to fractional Josephson effect.
However, in realistic experimental conditions, multiple bands of the wires are
occupied and the Majorana end states are accompanied by other fermionic end
states. This raises the question concerning the robustness of fractional
Josephson effect in these situations. In this work, we show that the absence of
the avoided energy crossing which gives rise to the fractional Josephson effect
is robust, even when the Majorana fermions are coupled with arbitrary strengths
to other fermions. Moreover, we calculate the temperature dependence of the
fractional Josephson current and show that it is suppressed by thermal
excitations to the other fermion bound states.Comment: 4+ pages, 3 figure
Mass fluxes and isofluxes of methane (CH4) at a New Hampshire fen measured by a continuous wave quantum cascade laser spectrometer
We have developed a midâinfrared continuousâwave quantum cascade laser directâabsorption spectrometer (QCLS) capable of high frequency (â„1 Hz) measurements of 12CH4 and 13CH4 isotopologues of methane (CH4) with in situ 1âs RMS image precision of 1.5 â° and Allanâminimum precision of 0.2 â°. We deployed this QCLS in a wellâstudied New Hampshire fen to compare measurements of CH4 isoflux by eddy covariance (EC) to Keeling regressions of data from automated flux chamber sampling. Mean CH4 fluxes of 6.5 ± 0.7 mg CH4 mâ2 hrâ1 over two days of EC sampling in July, 2009 were indistinguishable from mean autochamber CH4 fluxes (6.6 ± 0.8 mgCH4 mâ2 hrâ1) over the same period. Mean image composition of emitted CH4 calculated using EC isoflux methods was â71 ± 8 â° (95% C.I.) while Keeling regressions of 332 chamber closing events over 8 days yielded a corresponding value of â64.5 ± 0.8 â°. Ebullitive fluxes, representing âŒ10% of total CH4 fluxes at this site, were on average 1.2 â° enriched in 13C compared to diffusive fluxes. CH4 isoflux time series have the potential to improve processâbased understanding of methanogenesis, fully characterize source isotopic distributions, and serve as additional constraints for both regional and global CH4 modeling analysis
SU(3) monopoles and their fields
Some aspects of the fields of charge two SU(3) monopoles with minimal
symmetry breaking are discussed. A certain class of solutions look like SU(2)
monopoles embedded in SU(3) with a transition region or ``cloud'' surrounding
the monopoles. For large cloud size the relative moduli space metric splits as
a direct product AH\times R^4 where AH is the Atiyah-Hitchin metric for SU(2)
monopoles and R^4 has the flat metric. Thus the cloud is parametrised by R^4
which corresponds to its radius and SO(3) orientation. We solve for the
long-range fields in this region, and examine the energy density and rotational
moments of inertia. The moduli space metric for these monopoles, given by
Dancer, is also expressed in a more explicit form.Comment: 17 pages, 3 figures, latex, version appearing in Phys. Rev.
Theory of Quasi-Particles in the Underdoped High Tc Superconducting State
The microscopic theory of superconducting (SC) state in the SU(2) slave-boson
model is developed. We show how the pseudogap and Fermi surface (FS) segments
in the normal state develop into a d-wave gap in the superconducting state.
Even though the superfluid density is of order x (the doping concentration),
the physical properties of the low lying quasiparticles are found to resemble
those in BCS theory. Thus the microscopic theory lay the foundation for our
earlier phenomenological discussion of the unusual SC properties in the
underdoped cuprates.Comment: 4 pages in RevTeX, 1 figure in eps, revised versio
Degenerate Bose liquid in a fluctuating gauge field
We study the effect of a strongly fluctuating gauge field on a degenerate
Bose liquid, relevant to the charge degrees of freedom in doped Mott
insulators. We find that the superfluidity is destroyed. The resulting metallic
phase is studied using quantum Monte Carlo methods. Gauge fluctuations cause
the boson world lines to retrace themselves. We examine how this world-line
geometry affects the physical properties of the system. In particular, we find
a transport relaxation rate of the order of 2kT, consistent with the normal
state of the cuprate superconductors. We also find that the density excitations
of this model resemble that of the full tJ model.Comment: 4 pages. Uses RevTeX, epsf, multicols macros. 5 postscript figure
Prospective Study on Retinal Nerve Fibre Layer Thickness Changes in Isolated Unilateral Retrobulbar Optic Neuritis
Purpose. To investigate the retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) thickness after unilateral acute optic neuritis using optical coherence tomography (OCT). Patients and Methods. This prospective cohort study recruited consecutive patients with a first episode of isolated, unilateral acute optic neuritis. RNFL thickness and visual acuity (VA) of the attack and normal fellow eye were measured at presentation and 3 months in both the treatment and nontreatment groups. Results. 11 subjects received systemic steroids and 9 were treated conservatively. The baseline RNFL thickness was similar in the attack and fellow eye (Pâ„0.4). At 3 months, the attack eye had a thinner temporal (P=0.02) and average (P=0.05) RNFL compared to the fellow eye. At 3 months, the attack eye had significant RNFL thinning in the 4 quadrants and average thickness (Pâ€0.0002) compared to baseline. The RNFL thickness between the treatment and nontreatment groups was similar at baseline and 3 months (Pâ„0.1). Treatment offered better VA at 3 months (0.1 ± 0.2 versus 0.3 ± 0.2 LogMAR, P=0.04). Conclusion. Generalized RNFL thinning occurred at 3 months after a first episode of acute optic neuritis most significantly in the temporal quadrant and average thickness. Visual improvement with treatment was independent of RNFL thickness
Restoring Ureagenesis in Hepatocytes by CRISPR/Cas9-mediated Genomic Addition to Arginase-deficient Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.
Urea cycle disorders are incurable enzymopathies that affect nitrogen metabolism and typically lead to hyperammonemia. Arginase deficiency results from a mutation in Arg1, the enzyme regulating the final step of ureagenesis and typically results in developmental disabilities, seizures, spastic diplegia, and sometimes death. Current medical treatments for urea cycle disorders are only marginally effective, and for proximal disorders, liver transplantation is effective but limited by graft availability. Advances in human induced pluripotent stem cell research has allowed for the genetic modification of stem cells for potential cellular replacement therapies. In this study, we demonstrate a universally-applicable CRISPR/Cas9-based strategy utilizing exon 1 of the hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase locus to genetically modify and restore arginase activity, and thus ureagenesis, in genetically distinct patient-specific human induced pluripotent stem cells and hepatocyte-like derivatives. Successful strategies restoring gene function in patient-specific human induced pluripotent stem cells may advance applications of genetically modified cell therapy to treat urea cycle and other inborn errors of metabolism
Colossal Positive Magnetoresistance in a Doped Nearly Magnetic Semiconductor
We report on a positive colossal magnetoresistance (MR) induced by
metallization of FeSb, a nearly magnetic or "Kondo" semiconductor with 3d
ions. We discuss contribution of orbital MR and quantum interference to
enhanced magnetic field response of electrical resistivity.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
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