Ferromagnetism and large negative magnetoresistance in Pb doped Bi-Sr-Co-O misfit-layer compound

Ferromagnetism and accompanying large negative magnetoresistance in Pb-substituted Bi-Sr-Co-O misfit-layer compound are investigated in detail. Recent structural analysis of (Bi,Pb)${}_2$Sr${}_{3}$Co${}_2$O${}_9$, which has been believed to be a Co analogue of Bi${}_2$Sr${}_2$CaCu${}_2$O${}_{8+\delta}$, revealed that it has a more complex structure including a CoO${}_2$ hexagonal layer [T. Yamamoto {\it et al.}, Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. {\bf 39} (2000) L747]. Pb substitution for Bi not only introduces holes into the conducting CoO${}_2$ layers but also creates a certain amount of localized spins. Ferromagnetic transition appears at $T$ = 3.2 K with small spontaneous magnetization along the $c$ axis, and around the transition temperature large and anisotropic negative magnetoresistance was observed. This compound is the first example which shows ferromagnetic long-range order in a two-dimensional metallic hexagnonal CoO${}_2$ layer.Comment: 8 pages including eps figures. To be published in J. Phys. Soc. Jp

Electronic and magnetic states in doped LaCoO_3

The electronic and magnetic states in doped perovskite cobaltites, (La, Sr)CoO_3, are studied in the numerically exact diagonalization method on Co_2O_{11} clusters. For realistic parameter values, it is shown that a high spin state and an intermediate spin state coexist in one-hole doped clusters due to strong p-d mixing. The magnetic states in the doped cobaltites obtained in the calculation explain various experimental results.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, epsfj.st

Evidence for a Low-Spin to Intermediate-Spin State Transition in LaCoO3

We present measurements of the magnetic susceptibility and of the thermal expansion of a LaCoO$_3$ single crystal. Both quantities show a strongly anomalous temperature dependence. Our data are consistently described in terms of a spin-state transition of the Co$^{3+}$ ions with increasing temperature from a low-spin ground state to an intermediate-spin state without (100K - 500K) and with (>500K) orbital degeneracy. We attribute the lack of orbital degeneracy up to 500K to (probably local) Jahn-Teller distortions of the CoO$_6$ octahedra. A strong reduction or disappearance of the Jahn-Teller distortions seems to arise from the insulator-to-metal transition around 500 K.Comment: an error in the scaling factor of Eq.(4) and consequently 2 values of table I have been corrected. The conclusions of the paper remain unchanged. See also: C. Zobel et al. Phys. Rev. B 71, 019902 (2005) and J. Baier et al. Phys. Rev. B 71, 014443 (2005

Ferromagnetism and Superconductivity in the multi-orbital Hubbard Model: Hund's Rule Coupling versus Crystal-Field Splitting

The multi-orbital Hubbard model in one dimension is studied using the numerical diagonalization method. Due to the effect of the crystal-field splitting $\Delta$, the fully polarized ferromagnetism which is observed in the strong coupling regime becomes unstable against the partially polarized ferromagnetism when the Hund's rule coupling $J$ is smaller than a certain critical value of order of $\Delta$. In the vicinity of the partially polarized ferromagnetism, the orbital fluctuation develops due to the competition between the Hund's rule coupling and the crystal-field splitting. The superconducting phase with the Luttinger liquid parameter $K_{\rho}>1$ is observed for the singlet ground state in this region.Comment: 4 pages,5 figures,submitted to J.Phys.Soc.Jp

Thermopower of the Correlated Narrow Gap Semiconductor FeSi and Comparison to RuSi

Iron based narrow gap semiconductors such as FeSi, FeSb2, or FeGa3 have received a lot of attention because they exhibit a large thermopower, as well as striking similarities to heavy fermion Kondo insulators. Many proposals have been advanced, however, lacking quantitative methodologies applied to this problem, a consensus remained elusive to date. Here, we employ realistic many-body calculations to elucidate the impact of electronic correlation effects on FeSi. Our methodology accounts for all substantial anomalies observed in FeSi: the metallization, the lack of conservation of spectral weight in optical spectroscopy, and the Curie susceptibility. In particular we find a very good agreement for the anomalous thermoelectric power. Validated by this congruence with experiment, we further discuss a new physical picture of the microscopic nature of the insulator-to-metal crossover. Indeed, we find the suppression of the Seebeck coefficient to be driven by correlation induced incoherence. Finally, we compare FeSi to its iso-structural and iso-electronic homologue RuSi, and predict that partially substituted Fe(1-x)Ru(x)Si will exhibit an increased thermopower at intermediate temperatures.Comment: 14 pages. Proceedings of the Hvar 2011 Workshop on 'New materials for thermoelectric applications: theory and experiment

Synchronization of multi-phase oscillators: An Axelrod-inspired model

Inspired by Axelrod's model of culture dissemination, we introduce and analyze a model for a population of coupled oscillators where different levels of synchronization can be assimilated to different degrees of cultural organization. The state of each oscillator is represented by a set of phases, and the interaction --which occurs between homologous phases-- is weighted by a decreasing function of the distance between individual states. Both ordered arrays and random networks are considered. We find that the transition between synchronization and incoherent behaviour is mediated by a clustering regime with rich organizational structure, where some of the phases of a given oscillator can be synchronized to a certain cluster, while its other phases are synchronized to different clusters.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure

Monitoring Bacterial Community of Human Gut Microbiota Reveals an Increase in Lactobacillus in Obese Patients and Methanogens in Anorexic Patients

Background: Studies of the bacterial communities of the gut microbiota have revealed a shift in the ratio of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes in obese patients. Determining the variations of microbial communities in feces may be beneficial for the identification of specific profiles in patients with abnormal weights. The roles of the archaeon Methanobrevibacter smithii and Lactobacillus species have not been described in these studies. Methods and Findings: We developed an efficient and robust real-time PCR tool that includes a plasmid-based internal control and allows for quantification of the bacterial divisions Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, and Lactobacillus as well as the methanogen M. smithii. We applied this technique to the feces of 20 obese subjects, 9 patients with anorexia nervosa, and 20 normal-weight healthy controls. Our results confirmed a reduction in the Bacteroidetes community in obese patients (p<0.01). We found a significantly higher Lactobacillus species concentration in obese patients than in lean controls (p = 0.0197) or anorexic patients (p = 0.0332). The M. smithii concentration was much higher in anorexic patients than in the lean population (p = 0.0171). Conclusions: Lactobacillus species are widely used as growth promoters in the farm industry and are now linked to obesity in humans. The study of the bacterial flora in anorexic patients revealed an increase in M. smithii. This increase might represent an adaptive use of nutrients in this population

Differential effects of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists on heart rate

Abstract While glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) are known to increase heart rate (HR), it is insufficiently recognized that the extent varies greatly between the various agonists and is affected by the assessment methods employed. Here we review published data from 24-h time-averaged HR monitoring in healthy individuals and subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) treated with either short-acting GLP-1 RAs, lixisenatide or exenatide, or long-acting GLP-1 RAs, exenatide LAR, liraglutide, albiglutide, or dulaglutide (N\ua0=\ua01112; active-treatment arms). HR effects observed in two independent head-to-head trials of lixisenatide and liraglutide (N\ua0=\ua0202; active-treatment arms) are also reviewed. Short-acting GLP-1 RAs, exenatide and lixisenatide, are associated with a transient (1\u201312\ua0h) mean placebo- and baseline-adjusted 24-h HR increase of 1\u20133\ua0beats per minute (bpm). Conversely, long-acting GLP-1 RAs are associated with more pronounced increases in mean 24-h HR; the highest seen with liraglutide and albiglutide at 6\u201310\ua0bpm compared with dulaglutide and exenatide LAR at 3\u20134\ua0bpm. For both liraglutide and dulaglutide, HR increases were recorded during both the day and at night. In two head-to-head comparisons, a small, transient mean increase in HR from baseline was observed with lixisenatide; liraglutide induced a substantially greater increase that remained significantly elevated over 24\ua0h. The underlying mechanism for increased HR remains to be elucidated; however, it could be related to a direct effect at the sinus node and/or stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system, with this effect related to the duration of action of the respective GLP-1 RAs. In conclusion, this review indicates that the effects on HR differ within the class of GLP-1 RAs: short-acting GLP-1 RAs are associated with a modest and transient HR increase before returning to baseline levels, while some long-acting GLP-1 RAs are associated with a more pronounced and sustained increase during the day and night. Findings from recently completed trials indicate that a GLP-1 RA-induced increase in HR, regardless of magnitude, does not present an increased cardiovascular risk for subjects with T2DM, although a pronounced increase in HR may be associated with adverse clinical outcomes in those with advanced heart failure