7,048 research outputs found
Enhanced spin accumulation in a superconductor
A lateral array of ferromagnetic tunnel junctions is used to inject and
detect non-equilibrium quasi-particle spin distribution in a superconducting
strip made of Al. The strip width and thickness is kept below the quasi
particle spin diffusion length in Al. Non-local measurements in multiple
parallel and antiparallel magnetic states of the detectors are used to in-situ
determine the quasi-particle spin diffusion length. A very large increase in
the spin accumulation in the superconducting state compared to that in the
normal state is observed and is attributed to a diminishing of the
quasi-particle population by opening of the gap below the transition
temperature.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures; accepted for publication in Journal of Applied
Physic
The linear tearing instability in three dimensional, toroidal gyrokinetic simulations
Linear gyro-kinetic simulations of the classical tearing mode in
three-dimensional toroidal geometry were performed using the global gyro
kinetic turbulence code, GKW . The results were benchmarked against a
cylindrical ideal MHD and analytical theory calculations. The stability, growth
rate and frequency of the mode were investigated by varying the current
profile, collisionality and the pressure gradients. Both collision-less and
semi-collisional tearing modes were found with a smooth transition between the
two. A residual, finite, rotation frequency of the mode even in the absense of
a pressure gradient is observed which is attributed to toroidal finite
Larmor-radius effects. When a pressure gradient is present at low
collisionality, the mode rotates at the expected electron diamagnetic
frequency. However the island rotation reverses direction at high
collisionality. The growth rate is found to follow a scaling with
collisional resistivity in the semi-collisional regime, closely following the
semi-collisional scaling found by Fitzpatrick. The stability of the mode
closely follows the stability using resistive MHD theory, however a
modification due to toroidal coupling and pressure effects is seen
Rotation and Neoclassical Ripple Transport in ITER
Neoclassical transport in the presence of non-axisymmetric magnetic fields
causes a toroidal torque known as neoclassical toroidal viscosity (NTV). The
toroidal symmetry of ITER will be broken by the finite number of toroidal field
coils and by test blanket modules (TBMs). The addition of ferritic inserts
(FIs) will decrease the magnitude of the toroidal field ripple. 3D magnetic
equilibria with toroidal field ripple and ferromagnetic structures are
calculated for an ITER steady-state scenario using the Variational Moments
Equilibrium Code (VMEC). Neoclassical transport quantities in the presence of
these error fields are calculated using the Stellarator Fokker-Planck Iterative
Neoclassical Conservative Solver (SFINCS). These calculations fully account for
, flux surface shaping, multiple species, magnitude of ripple, and
collisionality rather than applying approximate analytic NTV formulae. As NTV
is a complicated nonlinear function of , we study its behavior over a
plausible range of . We estimate the toroidal flow, and hence , using
a semi-analytic turbulent intrinsic rotation model and NUBEAM calculations of
neutral beam torque. The NTV from the ripple dominates
that from lower perturbations of the TBMs. With the inclusion of FIs, the
magnitude of NTV torque is reduced by about 75% near the edge. We present
comparisons of several models of tangential magnetic drifts, finding
appreciable differences only for superbanana-plateau transport at small .
We find the scaling of calculated NTV torque with ripple magnitude to indicate
that ripple-trapping may be a significant mechanism for NTV in ITER. The
computed NTV torque without ferritic components is comparable in magnitude to
the NBI and intrinsic turbulent torques and will likely damp rotation, but the
NTV torque is significantly reduced by the planned ferritic inserts
Spin injection and relaxation in a mesoscopic superconductor
We study spin accumulation and spin relaxation in a superconducting nanowire.
Spins are injected and detected by using a set of magnetic tunnel contact
electrodes, closely spaced along the nanowire. We observe a giant enhancement
of the spin accumulation of up to five orders of magnitude on transition into
the superconducting state, consistent with the expected changes in the density
of states. The spin relaxation length decreases by an order of magnitude from
its value in the normal state. These measurements combined with our theoretical
model, allow us to distinguish the individual spin flip mechanisms present in
the transport channel. Our conclusion is that magnetic impurities rather than
spin-orbit coupling dominate spin-flip scattering in the superconducting state.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
An Integrated In VitroâIn Silico Approach for Silver Nanoparticle Dosimetry in Cell Cultures
Potential human and environmental hazards resulting from the exposure of living organisms to silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) have been the subject of intensive discussion in the last decade. Despite the growing use of Ag NPs in biomedical applications, a quantification of the toxic effects as a function of the total silver mass reaching cells (namely, target cell dose) is still needed. To provide a more accurate dose-response analysis, we propose a novel integrated approach combining well-established computational and experimental methodologies. We first used a particokinetic model (ISD3) for providing experimental validation of computed Ag NP sedimentation in static-cuvette experiments. After validation, ISD3 was employed to predict the total mass of silver reaching human endothelial cells and hepatocytes cultured in 96 well plates. Cell viability measured after 24 h of culture was then related to this target cell dose. Our results show that the dose perceived by the cell monolayer after 24 h of exposure is around 85% lower than the administered nominal media concentration. Therefore, accurate dosimetry considering particle characteristics and experimental conditions (e.g., time, size and shape of wells) should be employed for better interpreting effects induced by the amount of silver reaching cells
The wave energy flux of high frequency diffracting beams in complex geometrical optics
We consider the construction of asymptotic solutions of Maxwell's equations for a diffracting wave beam in the high frequency limit and address the description of the wave energy flux transported by the beam. With this aim, the complex eikonal method is applied. That is a generalization of the standard geometrical optics method in which the phase function is assumed to be complex valued, with the non-negative imaginary part accounting for the finite width of the beam cross section. In this framework, we propose an argument which simplifies significantly the analysis of the transport equation for the wave field amplitude and allows us to derive the wave energy flux. The theoretical analysis is illustrated numerically for the case of electron cyclotron beams in tokamak plasmas by using the GRAY code [D. Farina, Fusion Sci. Technol. 52, 154 (2007)], which is based upon the complex eikonal theory. The results are compared to those of the paraxial beam tracing code TORBEAM [E. Poli et al., Comput. Phys. Commun. 136, 90 (2001)], which provides an independent calculation of the energy flow
Comparative analyses among interfaces of some ceramic materials and bone in sheep
Aim of this work is the evaluation of âin situâ implants in an animal model to study the interfaces that some ceramic materials for dental bone defects develop with bone and to check which material is more osteoconductive.In a sheepâs jaw, eight holes were drilled and filled with six ceramic materials in granular shape. Two bilateral holes were left empty as reference. The ceramic materials were: porous tricalcium phosphate (TCP), porous hydroxylapatite (HA) and four bioactive glasses. The glasses differ for doping agents that affect the velocity of biodegradation in the living body.Monthly radiographs were taken and the X-ray pictures analyzed by means of a Video Display Computer in order to quantify the optical density changes occured in the holes. After 4 month implantation, the segments of the jaw containing the materials were fixed in paraformaldehyde, embedded in methylmethacrylate and sectioned.The results obtained under the microradiograph, the SEM and the X-ray microprobe showed a good bone repair only with TCP granules. A great degradation was seen in HA granules and particularly in glasses.The degradation modified the structure and the composition of the glass granules, but it was not followed by a consequent bone deposition.Des granules de Phosphate TriCalcique, de Hydroxyapatite et de trois cĂ©ramiques bioactifs (A, AKRA 15 et 18) ont Ă©tĂ© implantĂ©s pendant 4 mois dans des cavitĂ©s produites dans la mandibule dâun mouton, dans le but dâen Ă©valuer les capacitĂ©s ostĂ©orĂ©paratrices. Les Ă©tudes en microradiographie, au MEB et Ă la microsonde Ă rayons X des coupes de la mandibule, incluse dans le mĂ©thacrylate, mettent en Ă©vidence que seulement le PTC produit une rĂ©paration satisfaisante, tandis que les autres matĂ©riaux nâinduisent pas une nĂ©oformation osseuse au niveau des lĂ©sions expĂ©rimentales
Quasar Evolution Driven by Galaxy Encounters in Hierarchical Structures
We link the evolution of the galaxies in the hierarchical clustering scenario
with the changing accretion rates of cold gas onto the central massive black
holes that power the quasars. We base on galaxy interactions as main triggers
of accretion; the related scaling laws are taken up from Cavaliere & Vittorini
(2000), and grafted to a semi-analytic code for galaxy formation. As a result,
at high the protogalaxies grow rapidly by hierarchical merging; meanwhile,
much fresh gas is imported and also destabilized, so the holes are fueled at
their full Eddington rates. At lower the galactic dynamical events are
mostly encounters in hierarchically growing groups; now the refueling peters
out, as the residual gas is exhausted while the destabilizing encounters
dwindle. So, with no parameter tuning other than needed for stellar
observables, our model uniquely produces at a rise, and at a decline of the bright quasar population as steep as observed. In addition,
our results closely fit the observed luminosity functions of quasars, their
space density at different magnitudes from to , and
the local relation.Comment: 5 pages. Accepted for publication in ApJ Letter
The assembly of massive galaxies from NIR observations of the Hubble Deep Field South
We use a deep K(AB)<25 galaxy sample in the Hubble Deep Field South to trace
the evolution of the cosmological stellar mass density from z~ 0.5 to z~3. We
find clear evidence for a decrease of the average stellar mass density at high
redshift, 2<z<3.2, that is 15^{+25}_{-5}% of the local value, two times higher
than what observed in the Hubble Deep Field North. To take into account for the
selection effects, we define a homogeneous subsample of galaxies with
10^{10}M_\odot \leq M_* \leq 10^{11}M_\odot: in this sample, the mass density
at z>2 is 20^{+20}_{-5} % of the local value. In the mass--limited subsample at
z>2, the fraction of passively fading galaxies is at most 25%, although they
can contribute up to about 40% of the stellar mass density. On the other hand,
star--forming galaxies at z>2 form stars with an average specific rate at least
~4 x10^{-10} yr, 3 times higher than the z<~1 value. This
implies that UV bright star--forming galaxies are substancial contributors to
the rise of the stellar mass density with cosmic time. Although these results
are globally consistent with --CDM scenarios, the present rendition of
semi analytic models fails to match the stellar mass density produced by more
massive galaxies present at z>2.Comment: Accepted for publication on ApJLetter
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