Structure and dynamics of a pinned vortex liquid in superconducting a-Re_xZr (x ~ 6) thin film

We report the formation of a pinned vortex liquid spanning a very large region of the magnetic field-temperature parameter space in a 5 nm thick amorphous superconducting Re_xZr (x~6) (a-ReZr) thin film, using a combination of low-temperature scanning tunnelling spectroscopic (STS) imaging and magnetotransport measurements. The nature of the vortex liquid differs significantly from a regular liquid. Analysing series of STS images captured as a function of time, we observe that the interplay of pinning and intervortex interactions produces a very inhomogeneous state, where some vortices remain static, whereas others move forming a percolating network along which vortices are mobile. With increase in temperature or magnetic field this network becomes denser eventually encompassing all vortices. Our results provide key insight on the nature of a pinned vortex liquid and some of the peculiarities in the transport properties of ultrathin superconducting films.Comment: Main text with Supplementar

Why shot noise does not generally detect pairing in mesoscopic superconducting tunnel junctions

The shot noise in tunneling experiments reflects the Poissonian nature of the tunneling process. The shot noise power is proportional to both the magnitude of the current and the effective charge of the carrier. Shot-noise spectroscopy thus enables - in principle - to determine the effective charge q of the charge carriers that tunnel. This can be used to detect electron pairing in superconductors: in the normal state, the noise corresponds to single electron tunneling (q = 1e), while in the paired state, the noise corresponds to q = 2e, because of Andreev reflections. Here, we use a newly developed amplifier to reveal that in typical mesoscopic superconducting junctions, the shot noise does not reflect the signatures of pairing and instead stays at a level corresponding to q = 1e. We show that transparency can control the shot noise and this q = 1e is due to the large number of tunneling channels with each having very low transparency. At such transparencies, the shot noise in the junction resembles that of a metallic instead of a superconducting tunnel junction. Our results indicate that in typical mesoscopic superconducting junctions one should expect q = 1e noise, and lead to design guidelines for junctions that allow the detection of electron pairing

Genetic analysis of heat tolerance in hot pepper: insights from comprehensive phenotyping and QTL mapping

High temperatures present a formidable challenge to the cultivation of hot pepper, profoundly impacting not only vegetative growth but also leading to flower and fruit abscission, thereby causing a significant reduction in yield. To unravel the intricate genetic mechanisms governing heat tolerance in hot pepper, an F2 population was developed through the crossing of two distinct genotypes exhibiting contrasting heat tolerance characteristics: DLS-161-1 (heat tolerant) and DChBL-240 (heat susceptible). The F2 population, along with the parental lines, was subjected to comprehensive phenotyping encompassing diverse morphological, physiological, and biochemical heat-related traits under high temperature conditions (with maximum temperature ranging from 31 to 46.5°C and minimum temperature from 15.4 to 30.5°C). Leveraging the Illumina Nova Seq-6000 platform, Double digest restriction-site associated DNA sequencing (ddRAD-seq) was employed to generate 67.215 Gb data, with subsequent alignment of 218.93 million processed reads against the reference genome of Capsicum annuum. Subsequent variant calling and ordering resulted in 5806 polymorphic SNP markers grouped into 12 LGs. Further QTL analysis identified 64 QTLs with LOD values ranging from 2.517 to 11.170 and explained phenotypic variance ranging from 4.05 to 19.39%. Among them, 21 QTLs, explaining more than 10% phenotypic variance, were identified as major QTLs controlling 9 morphological, 3 physiological, and 2 biochemical traits. Interestingly, several QTLs governing distinct parameters were found to be colocalized, suggesting either a profound correlation between the QTLs regulating these traits or their significant genomic proximity. In addition to the QTLs, we also identified 368380 SSR loci within the identified QTL regions, dinucleotides being the most abundant type (211,381). These findings provide valuable insights into the genetics of heat tolerance in hot peppers. The identified QTLs and SSR markers offer opportunities to develop heat-tolerant varieties, ensuring better crop performance under high-temperature conditions

Health of Immigrants in European countries

The health of older immigrants can have important consequences for needed social support and demands placed on health systems. This paper examines health differences between immigrants and the nativeborn populations aged 50 years and older in 11 European countries. We examine differences in functional ability, disability, disease presence and behavioral risk factors, for immigrants and non-immigrants using data from the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) database. Among the 11 European countries, migrants generally have worse health than the native population. In these countries, there is a little evidence of the “healthy migrant” at ages 50 years and over. In general, it appears that growing numbers of immigrants may portend more health problems in the population in subsequent years

Vitamin D deficiency presenting with cardiogenic shock in an infant

A 2-month-old child was referred as a case of dilated cardiomyopathy with cardiogenic shock. On evaluation, hypocalcemia secondary to severe vitamin D deficiency was found. There were no clinical or radiological features of rickets. The child had developed multiorgan failure due to cardiogenic shock at the time of admission and could not be saved despite adequate ventilatory and pharmacologic support. Hypocalcemia should be considered as an important differential diagnosis in cases of dilated cardiomyopathy in infants

Low field manifestation of spiral ordering in sheet like BiFeO3 nanostructures

Magnetic phase diagram of a material could be tuned through structural modication. Here we show significant lowering of magnetic field (Hi) required from transition from cycloidal to canted antiferromagnetic state in sheet like nanostructures of BiFeO3 (BFO), in comparison to reported bulk single crystals of BFO. Structural analysis of this sheet like nanostructured BFO suggests that there is more tilting in FeO6 octahedra that reduce Fe-O-Fe distance in comparison to bulk BFO, leading to decrease in Hi through the reduction of exchange interaction strength

In Silico Guided Drug Repurposing to Combat SARS-CoV-2 by Targeting Mpro, the Key Virus Specific Protease

The reemergence of SARS-CoV named, as SARS-CoV-2 has been highly infectious and able to infect a large population around the globe. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared this SARS-CoV-2 associated Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) as pandemic. SARS-CoV-2 genome is translated into polyproteins and has been processed by its protease enzymes. 3CLprotease is named as main protease (Mpro) enzyme which cleaves nsp4-nsp16. This crucial role of Mpro makes this enzyme a prime and promising antiviral target. The drug repurposing is a fast alternative method than the discovery of novel antiviral molecules. We have used high-throughput virtual screening approach to examine FDA approved LOPAC1280 library against Mpro. Primary screening have identified few potential drug molecule for the target among which 10 molecules were studied further. Molecular docking of selected molecules was done to detailed study about their binding energy and binding modes. Positively, Etoposide, BMS_195614, KT185, Idarubicin and WIN_62577 were found interacting with substrate binding pocket of Mpro with higher binding energy. These molecules are being advanced by our group for in vitro and in vivo testing to study the efficacy of identified drugs. As per our understanding, these molecules have the potential to efficiently interrupt the viral life cycle and may reduce or eliminate the expeditious outspreading of SARS-CoV-2.</p