Preparing the bound instance of quantum entanglement

Among the possibly most intriguing aspects of quantum entanglement is that it comes in "free" and "bound" instances. Bound entangled states require entangled states in preparation but, once realized, no free entanglement and therefore no pure maximally entangled pairs can be regained. Their existence hence certifies an intrinsic irreversibility of entanglement in nature and suggests a connection with thermodynamics. In this work, we present a first experimental unconditional preparation and detection of a bound entangled state of light. We consider continuous-variable entanglement, use convex optimization to identify regimes rendering its bound character well certifiable, and realize an experiment that continuously produced a distributed bound entangled state with an extraordinary and unprecedented significance of more than ten standard deviations away from both separability and distillability. Our results show that the approach chosen allows for the efficient and precise preparation of multimode entangled states of light with various applications in quantum information, quantum state engineering and high precision metrology.Comment: The final version accounts for a recent comment in Nature Physics [24] clarifying that a previous claim of having generated bound entanglement [23] was not supported by the authors' data. We also extended our introduction and discussion and also added reference

Multipartite entanglement dynamics in a cavity

We study the dynamics of two kinds of entanglement, and there interplay. On one hand, the intrinsic entanglement within a central system composed by three two level atoms, and measured by multipartite concurrence, on the other, the entanglement between the central system and a cavity, acting as an environment, and measured with purity. Using dipole-dipole and Ising interactions between atoms we propose two Hamiltonians, a homogeneous and a quasi-homogeneous one. We find an upper bound for concurrence as a function of purity, associated to the evolution of the $W$ state. A lower bound is also observed for the homogeneous case. In both situations, we show the existence of critical values of the interaction, for which the dynamics of entanglement seem complex.Comment: 10 pages, closest to journal versio

Drug-like analogues of the parasitic worm-derived immunomodulator ES-62 are therapeutic in the MRL/Lpr model of systemic lupus erythematosus

Introduction ES-62, a phosphorylcholine (PC)-containing immunomodulator secreted by the parasitic worm Acanthocheilonema viteae, protects against nephritis in the MRL/Lpr mouse model of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). However, ES-62 is not suitable for development as a therapy and thus we have designed drug-like small molecule analogues (SMAs) based around its active PC-moiety. To provide proof of concept that ES-62-based SMAs exhibit therapeutic potential in SLE, we have investigated the capacity of two SMAs to protect against nephritis when administered to MRL/Lpr mice after onset of kidney damage. Methods SMAs 11a and 12b were evaluated for their ability to suppress antinuclear antibody (ANA) generation and consequent kidney pathology in MRL/Lpr mice when administered after the onset of proteinuria. Results SMAs 11a and 12b suppressed development of ANA and proteinuria. Protection reflected downregulation of MyD88 expression by kidney cells and this was associated with reduced production of IL-6, a cytokine that exhibits promise as a therapeutic target for this condition. Conclusions SMAs 11a and 12b provide proof of principle that synthetic compounds based on the safe immunomodulatory mechanisms of parasitic worms can exhibit therapeutic potential as a novel class of drugs for SLE, a disease for which current therapies remain inadequate

Color image processing in a cellular neural-network environment

When low-level hardware simulations of cellular neural networks (CNNs) are very costly for exploring new applications, the use of a behavioral simulator becomes indispensable. This paper presents a software prototype capable of performing image processing applications using CNNs. The software is based on a CNN multilayer structure in which each primary color is assigned to a unique layer. This allows an added flexibility as different processing applications can be performed in parallel. To be able to handle a full range of color tones, two novel color mapping schemes were derived. In the proposed schemes the color information is obtained from the cell's state rather than from its output. This modification is necessary because for many templates CNN has only binary stable outputs from which only either a fully saturated or a black color can be obtained. Additionally, a postprocessor capable of performing pixelwise logical operations among color layers was developed to enhance the results obtained from CNN. Examples in the areas of medical image processing, image restoration, and weather forecasting are provided to demonstrate the robustness of the software and the vast potential of CN

The analysis of spot defect induced faults in MOS circuits

A strategy for modeling spot defect induced faults by their corresponding Boolean functions is developed. The presented strategy is based on the principle of local conduction path analysis. This way of modeling is much more general in the sense that all kinds of faults are unified by one concept, the Boolean function. In this way testing related applications can be done efficiently and can maintain a high qualit

A spot-defect to fault collapsing technique

A new technique is presented that is capable of collapsing defects to circuit faults by establishing a simple probabilistic model between them. This way of modeling supplies accurate results for ranking the failure probability of nodes and the probability of occurrence of faults. Since it is independent of the multilayer critical area extraction, the collapsing and its related applications can be done effectively in a rather short CPU time. By applying this technique, the likelihood of occurrence of faults, induced by defects, can be ranked accurately according to the conditions prevailing in the manufacturing line. The derivation of the weighted spectrums of nodes, or partial faults, can further be used for manufacturing debugging. The results of the analysis show that conventional testing methods concentrating on single stuck-at faults are insufficient and that, in particular, multiple faults need more careful treatmen