7,765 research outputs found
Dispersion corrections to parity violating electron scattering
We consider the dispersion correction to elastic parity violating
electron-proton scattering due to \gammaZ exchange. In a recent publication,
this correction was reported to be substantially larger than the previous
estimates. In this paper, we study the dispersion correction in greater detail.
We confirm the size of the disperion correction to be 6% for the QWEAK
experiment designed to measure the proton weak charge. We enumerate parameters
that have to be constrained to better than relative 30% in order to keep the
theoretical uncertainty for QWEAK under control.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables; To be published in the proceedings of
the VIII Latin American Symposium on Nuclear Physics and Applications,
December 15-19, 2009, Santiago, Chiil
High-Frequency Microstrip Cross Resonators for Circular Polarization EPR Spectroscopy
In this article we discuss the design and implementation of a novel
microstrip resonator which allows for the absolute control of the microwaves
polarization degree for frequencies up to 30 GHz. The sensor is composed of two
half-wavelength microstrip line resonators, designed to match the 50 Ohms
impedance of the lines on a high dielectric constant GaAs substrate. The line
resonators cross each other perpendicularly through their centers, forming a
cross. Microstrip feed lines are coupled through small gaps to three arms of
the cross to connect the resonator to the excitation ports. The control of the
relative magnitude and phase between the two microwave stimuli at the input
ports of each line allows for tuning the degree and type of polarization of the
microwave excitation at the center of the cross resonator. The third (output)
port is used to measure the transmitted signal, which is crucial to work at low
temperatures, where reflections along lengthy coaxial lines mask the signal
reflected by the resonator. EPR spectra recorded at low temperature in an S=
5/2 molecular magnet system show that 82%-fidelity circular polarization of the
microwaves is achieved over the central area of the resonator.Comment: Published in Review of Scientific Instrument
A double-helix neutron detector using micron-size B-10 powder
A double-helix electrode configuration is combined with a B powder
coating technique to build large-area (9 in 36 in) neutron detectors.
The neutron detection efficiency for each of the four prototypes is comparable
to a single 2-bar He drift tube of the same length (36 in). One unit has
been operational continuously for 18 months and the change of efficiency is
less than 1%. An analytic model for pulse heigh spectra is described and the
predicted mean film thickness agrees with the experiment to within 30%. Further
detector optimization is possible through film texture, power size, moderator
box and gas. The estimated production cost per unit is less than 3k US\$ and
the technology is thus suitable for deployment in large numbers
Fabrication of Nano-Gapped Single-Electron Transistors for Transport Studies of Individual Single-Molecule Magnets
Three terminal single-electron transistor devices utilizing Al/Al2O3 gate
electrodes were developed for the study of electron transport through
individual single-molecule magnets. The devices were patterned via multiple
layers of optical and electron beam lithography. Electromigration induced
breaking of the nanowires reliably produces 1-3 nm gaps between which the SMM
can be situated. Conductance through a single Mn12(3-thiophenecarboxylate)
displays the coulomb blockade effect with several excitations within +/- 40
meV.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure
Revivals of Coherence in Chaotic Atom-Optics Billiards
We investigate the coherence properties of thermal atoms confined in optical
dipole traps where the underlying classical dynamics is chaotic. A perturbative
expression derived for the coherence of the echo scheme of [Andersen et. al.,
Phys. Rev. Lett. 90, 023001 (2003)] shows it is a function of the survival
probability or fidelity of eigenstates of the motion of the atoms in the trap.
The echo coherence and the survival probability display "system specific"
features, even when the underlying classical dynamics is chaotic. In
particular, partial revivals in the echo signal and the survival probability
are found for a small shift of the potential. Next, a "semi-classical"
expression for the averaged echo signal is presented and used to calculate the
echo signal for atoms in a light sheet wedge billiard. Revivals in the echo
coherence are found in this system, indicating they may be a generic feature of
dipole traps
Kepler Mission Stellar and Instrument Noise Properties Revisited
An earlier study of the Kepler Mission noise properties on time scales of
primary relevance to detection of exoplanet transits found that higher than
expected noise followed to a large extent from the stars, rather than
instrument or data analysis performance. The earlier study over the first six
quarters of Kepler data is extended to the full four years ultimately
comprising the mission. Efforts to improve the pipeline data analysis have been
successful in reducing noise levels modestly as evidenced by smaller values
derived from the current data products. The new analyses of noise properties on
transit time scales show significant changes in the component attributed to
instrument and data analysis, with essentially no change in the inferred
stellar noise. We also extend the analyses to time scales of several days,
instead of several hours to better sample stellar noise that follows from
magnetic activity. On the longer time scale there is a shift in stellar noise
for solar-type stars to smaller values in comparison to solar values.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures, accepted by A
Schiff Theorem and the Electric Dipole Moments of Hydrogen-Like Atoms
The Schiff theorem is revisited in this work and the residual - and
-odd electron--nucleus interaction, after the shielding takes effect, is
completely specified. An application is made to the electric dipole moments of
hydrogen-like atoms, whose qualitative features and systematics have important
implication for realistic paramagnetic atoms.Comment: 3 pages. Contribution to PANIC05, Particles and Nuclei International
Conference, Santa Fe, New Mexico, Oct. 24-28, 200
Penicillin kills chlamydia following the fusion of bacteria with Lysosomes and prevents genital inflammatory lesions in C. muridarum-infected mice
The obligate intracellular bacterium Chlamydia exists as two distinct forms. Elementary bodies (EBs) are infectious and extra-cellular, whereas reticulate bodies (RBs) replicate within a specialized intracellular compartment termed an ‘inclusion’. Alternative persistent intra-cellular forms can be induced in culture by diverse stimuli such as IFNγ or adenosine/EHNA. They do not grow or divide but revive upon withdrawal of the stimulus and are implicated in several widespread human diseases through ill-defined in vivo mechanisms. β-lactam antibiotics have also been claimed to induce persistence in vitro. The present report shows that upon penicillin G (pG) treatment, inclusions grow as fast as those in infected control cells. After removal of pG, Chlamydia do not revert to RBs. These effects are independent of host cell type, serovar, biovar and species of Chlamydia. Time-course experiments demonstrated that only RBs were susceptible to pG. pG-treated bacteria lost their control over host cell apoptotic pathways and no longer expressed pre-16S rRNA, in contrast to persistent bacteria induced with adenosine/EHNA. Confocal and live-video microscopy showed that bacteria within the inclusion fused with lysosomal compartments in pG-treated cells. That leads to recruitment of cathepsin D as early as 3 h post pG treatment, an event preceding bacterial death by several hours. These data demonstrate that pG treatment of cultured cells infected with Chlamydia results in the degradation of the bacteria. In addition we show that pG is significantly more efficient than doxycycline at preventing genital inflammatory lesions in C. muridarum-C57Bl/6 infected mice. These in vivo results support the physiological relevance of our findings and their potential therapeutic applications
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