174 research outputs found
Measurement noise floor for a long-distance optical carrier transmission via fiber
We investigated the measurement floor and link stability for the transfer of
an ultra-stable optical frequency via an optical fiber link. We achieved a
near-delay-limited instability of 3x10^(-15)/(tau x Hz) for 147 km deployed
fiber, and 10^(-20) (integrations time tau = 4000 s) for the noise floor.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, 7th Symposium on Frequency Standards and
Metrology (Pacific Grove,USA, Oct 2008
New Limits to the Drift of Fundamental Constants from Laboratory Measurements
We have remeasured the absolute - transition frequency in atomic hydrogen. A comparison with the result of the previous
measurement performed in 1999 sets a limit of Hz for the drift of
with respect to the ground state hyperfine splitting in Cs. Combining this result with the recently published
optical transition frequency in Hg against and a
microwave Rb and Cs clock comparison, we deduce separate limits
on yr and the
fractional time variation of the ratio of Rb and Cs nuclear magnetic moments
equal to
yr. The latter provides information on the temporal behavior of the
constant of strong interaction.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, LaTe
Optical Clocks in Space
The performance of optical clocks has strongly progressed in recent years,
and accuracies and instabilities of 1 part in 10^18 are expected in the near
future. The operation of optical clocks in space provides new scientific and
technological opportunities. In particular, an earth-orbiting satellite
containing an ensemble of optical clocks would allow a precision measurement of
the gravitational redshift, navigation with improved precision, mapping of the
earth's gravitational potential by relativistic geodesy, and comparisons
between ground clocks.Comment: Proc. III International Conference on Particle and Fundamental
Physics in Space (SpacePart06), Beijing 19 - 21 April 2006, to appear in
Nucl. Phys.
Error Estimation for the Linearized Auto-Localization Algorithm
The Linearized Auto-Localization (LAL) algorithm estimates the position of beacon nodes in Local Positioning Systems (LPSs), using only the distance measurements to a mobile node whose position is also unknown. The LAL algorithm calculates the inter-beacon distances, used for the estimation of the beacons’ positions, from the linearized trilateration equations. In this paper we propose a method to estimate the propagation of the errors of the inter-beacon distances obtained with the LAL algorithm, based on a first order Taylor approximation of the equations. Since the method depends on such approximation, a confidence parameter τ is defined to measure the reliability of the estimated error. Field evaluations showed that by applying this information to an improved weighted-based auto-localization algorithm (WLAL), the standard deviation of the inter-beacon distances can be improved by more than 30% on average with respect to the original LAL method
Pathway to the PiezoElectronic Transduction Logic Device
The information age challenges computer technology to process an
exponentially increasing computational load on a limited energy budget - a
requirement that demands an exponential reduction in energy per operation. In
digital logic circuits, the switching energy of present FET devices is
intimately connected with the switching voltage, and can no longer be lowered
sufficiently, limiting the ability of current technology to address the
challenge. Quantum computing offers a leap forward in capability, but a clear
advantage requires algorithms presently developed for only a small set of
applications. Therefore, a new, general purpose, classical technology based on
a different paradigm is needed to meet the ever increasing demand for data
processing.Comment: in Nano Letters (2015
High Throughput, Multiplexed Pathogen Detection Authenticates Plague Waves in Medieval Venice, Italy
Background: Historical records suggest that multiple burial sites from the 14th-16(th) centuries in Venice, Italy, were used during the Black Death and subsequent plague epidemics.Methodology/Principal Findings: High throughput, multiplexed real-time PCR detected DNA of seven highly transmissible pathogens in 173 dental pulp specimens collected from 46 graves. Bartonella quintana DNA was identified in five (2.9%) samples, including three from the 16th century and two from the 15th century, and Yersinia pestis DNA was detected in three (1.7%) samples, including two from the 14th century and one from the 16th century. Partial glpD gene sequencing indicated that the detected Y. pestis was the Orientalis biotype.Conclusions: These data document for the first time successive plague epidemics in the medieval European city where quarantine was first instituted in the 14th century
Graphene nanoribbon field-effect transistors on wafer-scale epitaxial graphene on SiC substrates
We report the realization of top-gated graphene nanoribbon field effect transistors (GNRFETs) of ∼10 nm width on large-area epitaxial graphene exhibiting the opening of a band gap of ∼0.14 eV. Contrary to prior observations of disordered transport and severe edge-roughness effects of graphene nanoribbons (GNRs), the experimental results presented here clearly show that the transport mechanism in carefully fabricated GNRFETs is conventional band-transport at room temperature and inter-band tunneling at low temperature. The entire space of temperature, size, and geometry dependent transport properties and electrostatics of the GNRFETs are explained by a conventional thermionic emission and tunneling current model. Our combined experimental and modeling work proves that carefully fabricated narrow GNRs behave as conventional semiconductors and remain potential candidates for electronic switching devices
Yersinia pestis Lineages in Mongolia
BACKGROUND: Whole genome sequencing allowed the development of a number of high resolution sequence based typing tools for Yersinia (Y.) pestis. The application of these methods on isolates from most known foci worldwide and in particular from China and the Former Soviet Union has dramatically improved our understanding of the population structure of this species. In the current view, Y. pestis including the non or moderate human pathogen Y. pestis subspecies microtus emerged from Yersinia pseudotuberculosis about 2,600 to 28,600 years ago in central Asia. The majority of central Asia natural foci have been investigated. However these investigations included only few strains from Mongolia. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Prokaryotic Repeats (CRISPR) analysis and Multiple-locus variable number of tandem repeats (VNTR) analysis (MLVA) with 25 loci was performed on 100 Y. pestis strains, isolated from 37 sampling areas in Mongolia. The resulting data were compared with previously published data from more than 500 plague strains, 130 of which had also been previously genotyped by single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis. The comparison revealed six main clusters including the three microtus biovars Ulegeica, Altaica, and Xilingolensis. The largest cluster comprises 78 isolates, with unique and new genotypes seen so far in Mongolia only. Typing of selected isolates by key SNPs was used to robustly assign the corresponding clusters to previously defined SNP branches. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: We show that Mongolia hosts the most recent microtus clade (Ulegeica). Interestingly no representatives of the ancestral Y. pestis subspecies pestis nodes previously identified in North-western China were identified in this study. This observation suggests that the subsequent evolution steps within Y. pestis pestis did not occur in Mongolia. Rather, Mongolia was most likely re-colonized by more recent clades coming back from China contemporary of the black death pandemic, or more recently in the past 600 years
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