13,290 research outputs found
Anisotropic superconducting properties of aligned MgB2 crystallites
Samples of aligned MgB2 crystallites have been prepared, allowing for the
first time the direct identification of an upper critical field anisotropy
Hc2^{ab}/Hc2^{c}= xi_{ab}/xi_{c} ~ 1.73; with xi_{o,ab} ~ 70 A, xi_{o,c} ~ 40
A, and a mass anisotropy ratio m_{ab}/m_{c} ~ 0.3. A ferromagnetic background
signal was identified, possibly related to the raw materials purity.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures; Revised version to appear in Phys. Rev. Let
Disorder effects at low temperatures in La_{0.7-x}Y_{x}Ca_{0.3}MnO_{3} manganites
With the aim of probing the effect of magnetic disorder in the
low-temperature excitations of manganites, specific-heat measurements were
performed in zero field, and in magnetic fields up to 9 T in polycrystalline
samples of La_{0.7-x}Y_{x}Ca_{0.3}MnO_{3}, with Y concentrations x=0, 0.10, and
0.15. Yttrium doping yielded the appearance of a cluster-glass state, giving
rise to unusual low-temperature behavior of the specific-heat. The main feature
observed in the results is a strong enhancement of the specific-heat linear
term, which is interpreted as a direct consequence of magnetic disorder. The
analysis was further corroborated by resistivity measurements in the same
compounds.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figure
Irreversible magnetization under rotating fields and lock-in effect on ErBa_2Cu_3O_7 single crystal with columnar defects
We have measured the irreversible magnetization M_i of an ErBa_2Cu_3O_7
single crystal with columnar defects (CD), using a technique based on sample
rotation under a fixed magnetic field H. This method is valid for samples whose
magnetization vector remains perpendicular to the sample surface over a wide
angle range - which is the case for platelets and thin films - and presents
several advantages over measurements of M_L(H) loops at fixed angles. The
resulting M_i(\Theta) curves for several temperatures show a peak in the CD
direction at high fields. At lower fields, a very well defined plateau
indicative of the vortex lock-in to the CD develops. The H dependence of the
lock-in angle \phi_L follows the H^{-1} theoretical prediction, while the
temperature dependence is in agreement with entropic smearing effects
corresponding to short range vortex-defects interactions.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures, to be published in Phys. Rev.
Vacuum fluctuations of a scalar field near a reflecting boundary and their effects on the motion of a test particle
The contribution from quantum vacuum fluctuations of a real massless scalar
field to the motion of a test particle that interacts with the field in the
presence of a perfectly reflecting flat boundary is here investigated. There is
no quantum induced dispersions on the motion of the particle when it is alone
in the empty space. However, when a reflecting wall is introduced, dispersions
occur with magnitude dependent on how fast the system evolves between the two
scenarios. A possible way of implementing this process would be by means of an
idealized sudden switching, for which the transition occurs instantaneously.
Although the sudden process is a simple and mathematically convenient
idealization it brings some divergences to the results, particularly at a time
corresponding to a round trip of a light signal between the particle and the
wall. It is shown that the use of smooth switching functions, besides
regularizing such divergences, enables us to better understand the behavior of
the quantum dispersions induced on the motion of the particle. Furthermore, the
action of modifying the vacuum state of the system leads to a change in the
particle energy that depends on how fast the transition between these states is
implemented. Possible implications of these results to the similar case of an
electric charge near a perfectly conducting wall are discussed.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figure
Five-Dimensional QED, Muon Pair Production and Correction to the Coulomb Potential
We consider QED in five dimensions in a configuration where matter is
localized on a 3-brane while foton propagates in the bulk. The idea is to
investigate the effects of the Kaluza-Klein modes of the photon in the
relativistic regime, but in low energy, and in the nonrelativistic regime. In
the relativistic regime, we calculate the cross section for the reaction . We compare our theoretical result with a precise
measurement of this cross section at GeV. As result, we
extract a lower bound on the size of the extra dimension. In the
nonrelativistic regime, we derive the contribution for the Coulomb potential
due to the whole tower of the Kaluza-Klein excited modes of the photon. We use
the modified potential to calculate the Rutherford scattering differential
cross section.Comment: minor changes, three new refs. added, to appear in IJMP
Efeitos da vinhaça sobre a dispersão de argila de amostras de Latossolos.
Em condicoes de laboratorio, foi determinado o efeito de amostras de vinhacas de duas procedencias sobre a dispersao da fracao argila de seis Latossolos com diferentes texturas. A determinacao de argila foi feita pelo metodo da pipeta, utilizando NaOH 0,5 N como dispersante em um tratamento, comparativamente aos tratamentos onde essa solucao foi substituida por agua e, em dois outros, pelas vinhacas. As vinhacas atuaram, em relacao a agua, como dispersantes nos solos de textura media e como floculantes nos solos de textura argilosa. A vinhaca com maior concentracao de cations apresentou menor efeito de dispersao, em todos os solos. Concluiu-se que o efeito das vinhacas sobre a dispersao argila dos solos depende da concentracao e do balanco de cations na vinhaca, alem na natureza da fracao argila
Working-class royalty: bees beat the caste system
The struggle among social classes or castes is well known in humans. Here, we show that caste inequality similarly affects societies of ants, bees and wasps, where castes are morphologically distinct and workers have greatly reduced reproductive potential compared with queens. In social insects, an individual normally has no control over its own fate, whether queen or worker, as this is socially determined during rearing. Here, for the first time, we quantify a strategy for overcoming social control. In the stingless bee Schwarziana quadripunctata, some individuals reared in worker cells avoid a worker fate by developing into fully functional dwarf queens
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