Competing pairing interactions responsible for the large upper critical field in a stoichiometric iron-based superconductor CaKFe4As4

The upper critical field of multiband superconductors is an important quantity that can reveal details about the nature of the superconducting pairing. Here we experimentally map out the complete upper-critical-field phase diagram of a stoichiometric superconductor, CaKFe4As4, up to 90T for different orientations of the magnetic field and at temperatures down to 4.2K. The upper critical fields are extremely large, reaching values close to ∼3Tc at the lowest temperature, and the anisotropy decreases dramatically with temperature, leading to essentially isotropic superconductivity at 4.2K. We find that the temperature dependence of the upper critical field can be well described by a two-band model in the clean limit with band-coupling parameters favoring intraband over interband interactions. The large Pauli paramagnetic effects together with the presence of the shallow bands is consistent with the stabilization of an FFLO state at low temperatures in this clean superconductor

Parkinson’s Disease and Forced Exercise: A Preliminary Study

Objective. The concept of forced exercise has drawn attention for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease symptoms with anecdotal reports of success. This study sought to ascertain any significant effect of forced exercise using a motorized stationary bicycle when compared to controls on Parkinson’s disease symptoms in a blinded, randomized, and controlled setting. Setting. Parkinson’s disease outpatient clinic, Veterans Administration Medical Center. Method. We assessed 23 patients (13 experimental and 10 controls) on a number of standard Parkinson’s measures at baseline, after participation in eight weeks of twice weekly forced exercise or eight weeks of conventional clinic care, and then after a three-month period had elapsed. Dependent measures were UPDRS-III, Berg Balance Scale, finger taping test, and the PDQ-39. Results. Results did not demonstrate any main effect differences between the exercise and control groups on any measure at any point in time. A within subjects effect was demonstrated for the forced exercise group on overall UPDRS-III scores at the three-month end point. No other within group effects were noted. Results suggest that early enthusiasm for forced exercise may need tempering. Limitations of the study are discussed as well as numerous logistical challenges to this type of study

CBT for people with intellectual disabilities : emerging evidence, cognitive ability and IQ effects

Historically people with intellectual disabilities have not been offered or received cognitive behavioural interventions that have been shown to be effective for mental health and emotional problems experienced by those without such disabilities. This is despite many people with intellectual disabilities having life experiences that potentially result in them having an increased risk to such problems. This paper discusses whether such therapeutic disdain is justified based on the evidence that is available and emerging concerning the application of cognitive behavioural interventions for this population. Issues concerning access to services, the ability of people with intellectual disabilities to engage in and benefit from the cognitive components of CBT, and the effect of cognitive abilities and IQ level on treatment effectiveness are explored in relation to this question

Mercaptophosphonic acids as efficient linkers in quantum dot sensitized solar cells

This work was supported by the Agence Nationale de la Recherche, project QuePhélec (ANR-13-BS10-0011-01). MTS and IDWS are thankful to ERC for financial support for exciton diffusion project, grant number 321305. AKB and IDWS also acknowledge financial support from EPSRC programme grant: structured light, EP/J01771X.Control over the deposition of quantum dots (QDs) on nanostructured semiconductors is very important for the photovoltaic performance of QD sensitized solar cells. The best control is typically achieved using bifunctional molecular linkers, such as mercaptopropionic acid (MPA), to attach the QDs to metal oxides in a specific manner; however some materials, such as ZnO, are not compatible with these molecules due to their pH sensitivity. We have developed new linkers, mercaptophosphonic acids of different length, which allow efficient functionalization of ZnO nanowires and also mesoporous TiO2 without damaging their surface. Detailed XPS and contact angle studies of the mechanism of self-assembly of these acids show that their strong chelation of the oxide surface prevents protonic attack and etching. Using these linkers, we show that colloidal ternary quantum dots, CuInS2, can be conformally and homogeneously deposited on the functionalized metal oxides. Photophysical studies by means of time-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy confirm efficient electron transfer from the QDs to the metal oxides with the rate and efficiency scaling with respect to the linker length and nature. The efficiency of the QD sensitized solar cells fabricated with such assemblies also strongly depends on the linkers used and follows the trends observed for the charge transfer.PostprintPeer reviewe

Cosmology with a long range repulsive force

We consider a class of cosmological models in which the universe is filled with a (non-electric) charge density that repels itself by means of a force carried by a vector boson with a tiny mass. When the vector's mass depends upon other fields, the repulsive interaction gives rise to an electromagnetic barrier which prevents these fields from driving the mass to zero. This can modify the cosmology dramatically. We present a very simple realization of this idea in which the vector's mass arises from a scalar field. The electromagnetic barrier prevents this field from rolling down its potential and thereby leads to accelerated expansion.Comment: 15 pages, 8 figures, LaTeX (version accepted for publication in PRD). 3 new figures, extended discussion of observational consequence

Seafloor warm water temperature anomalies impact benthic macrofauna communities of a high-Arctic cold-water fjord

Amid the alarming atmospheric and oceanic warming rates taking place in the Arctic, western fjords around the Svalbard archipelago are experiencing an increased frequency of warm water intrusions in recent decades, causing ecological shifts in their ecosystems. However, hardly anything is known about their potential impacts on the until recently considered stable and colder northern fjords. We analyzed macrobenthic fauna from four locations in Rijpfjorden (a high-Arctic fjord in the north of Svalbard) along its axis, sampled intermittently in the years 2003, 2007, 2010, 2013 and 2017. After a strong seafloor warm water temperature anomaly (SfWWTA) in 2006, the abundance of individuals and species richness dropped significantly across the entire fjord in 2007, together with diversity declines at the outer parts (reflected in Shannon index drops) and increases in beta diversity between inner and outer parts of the fjord. After a period of three years with stable water temperatures and higher sea-ice cover, communities recovered through recolonization processes by 2010, leading to homogenization in community composition across the fjord and less beta diversity. For the last two periods (2010-2013 and 2013-2017), beta diversity between the inner and outer parts gradually increased again, and both the inner and outer sites started to re-assemble in different directions. A few taxa began to dominate the fjord from 2010 onwards at the outer parts, translating into evenness and diversity drops. The inner basin, however, although experiencing strong shifts in abundances, was partially protected by a fjordic sill from impacts of these temperature anomalies and remained comparatively more stable regarding community diversity after the disturbance event. Our results indicate that although shifts in abundances were behind important spatio-temporal community fluctuations, beta diversity variations were also driven by the occurrence-based macrofauna data, suggesting an important role of rare taxa. This is the first multidecadal time series of soft-bottom macrobenthic communities for a high-Arctic fjord, indicating that potential periodic marine heatwaves might drive shifts in community structure, either through direct effects from thermal stress on the communities or through changes in environmental regimes led by temperature fluctuations (i.e. sea ice cover and glacial runoff, which could lead to shifts in primary production and food supply to the benthos). Although high-Arctic macrobenthic communities might be resilient to some extent, sustained warm water anomalies could lead to permanent changes in cold-water fjordic benthic systems

Competing pairing interactions responsible for the large upper critical field in a stoichiometric iron-based superconductor, CaKFe4_4As4_4

The upper critical field of multiband superconductors is an important quantity that can reveal the details about the nature of the superconducting pairing. Here we experimentally map out the complete upper critical field phase diagram of a stoichiometric superconductor, CaKFe$_4$As$_4$, up to 90T for different orientations of the magnetic field and at temperatures down to 4.2K. The upper critical fields are extremely large, reaching values close to ~3$T_c$ at the lowest temperature, and the anisotropy decreases dramatically with temperature leading to essentially isotropic superconductivity at 4.2K. We find that the temperature dependence of the upper critical field can be well described by a two-band model in the clean limit with band coupling parameters favouring intraband over interband interactions. The large Pauli paramagnetic effects together with the presence of the shallow bands is consistent with the stabilization of an FFLO state at low temperatures in this clean superconductor.Comment: to appear in Physical Review B (2020); 13 pages, 9 figure