Critical Endpoint and Inverse Magnetic Catalysis for Finite Temperature and Density Quark Matter in a Magnetic Background

In this article we study chiral symmetry breaking for quark matter in a magnetic background, $\bm B$, at finite temperature and quark chemical potential, $\mu$, making use of the Ginzburg-Landau effective action formalism. As a microscopic model to compute the effective action we use the renormalized quark-meson model. Our main goal is to study the evolution of the critical endpoint, ${\cal CP}$, as a function of the magnetic field strength, and investigate on the realization of inverse magnetic catalysis at finite chemical potential. We find that the phase transition at zero chemical potential is always of the second order; for small and intermediate values of $\bm B$, ${\cal CP}$ moves towards small $\mu$, while for larger $\bm B$ it moves towards moderately larger values of $\mu$. Our results are in agreement with the inverse magnetic catalysis scenario at finite chemical potential and not too large values of the magnetic field, while at larger $\bm B$ direct magnetic catalysis sets in.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figure

Update to ANSI/ANS-643-1991 for high-Z materials and review of particle transport theory

The ANSI/ANS-6.4.3-1991 Standard (ANSI/ANS-6.4.3, 1991), Gamma-Ray Attenuation Coefficients and Buildup Factors for Engineering Materials, presents evaluated gamma-ray elemental attenuation coefficients and single material buildup factors for selected engineering materials for use in shielding calculations. Since its last publication, new particle transport codes and cross-sectional data have become available. Therefore, this study was conducted for the purpose of updating gamma-ray buildup factors for high-Z materials that are presented in ANSI/ANS-6.4.3-1991 by using ENDF/B-VI.8 photo-atomic cross-section library data in MCNPX. The results from MCNPX were relatively in good agreement with those of ANSI/ANS-6.4.3-1991, which were calculated using PALLAS-1D (VII). A sample problem was run in both MCNPX and PALLAS and the results were in good agreement. New buildup factor and mass attenuation coefficient data tables are included in this paper along with the sample calculation results used to compare MCNPX and PALLAS as well as the PHOTX and ENDF/B-VI.8 cross-section data libraries

Probing the QCD vacuum with an abelian chromomagnetic field: A study within an effective model

We study the response of the QCD vacuum to an external abelian chromomagnetic field in the framework of a non local Nambu-Jona Lasinio model with the Polyakov loop. We use the Lattice results on the deconfinement temperature of the pure gauge theory to compute the same quantity in the presence of dynamical quarks. We find a linear relationship between the deconfinement temperature with quarks and the squared root of the applied field strength, $gH$, in qualitative (and to some extent also quantitative) agreement with existing Lattice calculations. On the other hand, we find a discrepancy on the approximate chiral symmetry restoration: while Lattice results suggest the deconfinement and the chiral restoration remain linked even at non-zero value of $gH$, our results are consistent with a scenario in which the two transitions are separated as $gH$ is increased.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figures, RevTeX4. Published version, with enlarged abstract and minor changes in the main tex

Hot Quark Matter with an Axial Chemical Potential

We analyze the phase diagram of hot quark matter in presence of an axial chemical potential, $\mu_5$. The latter is introduced to mimic the chirality transitions induced, in hot Quantum Chromodynamics, by the strong sphaleron configurations. In particular, we study the curvature of the critical line at small $\mu_5$, the effects of a finite quark mass and of a vector interaction. Moreover, we build the mixed phase at the first order phase transition line, and draw the phase diagram in the chiral density and temperature plane. We finally compute the full topological susceptibility in presence of a background of topological charge.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures. Few references added, short discussion included. Final version appearing on Phys. Rev.

A clinical review on megalencephaly: A large brain as a possible sign of cerebral impairment.

Megalencephaly and macrocephaly present with a head circumference measurement 2 standard deviations above the age-related mean. However, even if pathologic events resulting in both megalencephaly and macrocephaly may coexist, a distinction between these two entities is appropriate, as they represent clinical expression of different disorders with a different approach in clinical work-up, overall prognosis, and treatment. Megalencephaly defines an increased growth of cerebral structures related to dysfunctional anomalies during the various steps of brain development in the neuronal proliferation and/or migration phases or as a consequence of postnatal abnormal events. The disorders associated with megalencephaly are classically defined into 3 groups: idiopathic or benign, metabolic, and anatomic. In this article, we seek to underline the clinical aspect of megalencephaly, emphasizing the main disorders that manifest with this anomaly in an attempt to properly categorize these disorders within the megalencephaly group

Evaluating the phase diagram of superconductors with asymmetric spin populations

The phase diagram of a non-relativistic fermionic system with imbalanced state populations interacting via a short-range S-wave attractive interaction is analyzed in the mean field approximation. We determine the energetically favored state for different values of the mismatch between the two Fermi spheres in the weak and strong coupling regime considering both homogeneous and non-homogeneous superconductive states. We find that the homogeneous superconductive phase persists for values of the population imbalance that increase with increasing coupling strength. In the strong coupling regime and for large population differences the energetically stable homogeneous phase is characterized by one gapless mode. We also find that the inhomogeneous superconductive phase characterized by the condensate $\Delta({\bf x}) \sim \Delta~\exp{(i \bf{q \cdot x})}$ is energetically favored in a range of values of the chemical potential mismatch that shrinks to zero in the strong coupling regime.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figure

Dressed Polyakov loop and phase diagram of hot quark matter under magnetic field

We evaluate the dressed Polyakov loop for hot quark matter in strong magnetic field. To compute the finite temperature effective potential, we use the Polyakov extended Nambu-Jona Lasinio model with eight-quark interactions taken into account. The bare quark mass is adjusted in order to reproduce the physical value of the vacuum pion mass. Our results show that the dressed Polyakov loop is very sensitive to the strenght of the magnetic field, and it is capable to capture both the deconfinement crossover and the chiral crossover. Besides, we compute self-consistently the phase diagram of the model. We find a tiny split of the two aforementioned crossovers as the strength of the magnetic field is increased. Concretely, for the largest value of magnetic field investigated here, $eB=19 m_\pi^2$, the split is of the order of $10\%$. A qualitative comparison with other effective models and recent Lattice results is also performed.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures, RevTeX4-1 styl

Congenital muscular dystrophy: from muscle to brain.

Congenital muscular dystrophies (CMDs) are a wide group of muscular disorders that manifest with very early onset of muscular weakness, sometime associated to severe brain involvement.The histologic pattern of muscle anomalies is typical of dystrophic lesions but quite variable depending on the different stages and on the severity of the disorder.Recent classification of CMDs have been reported most of which based on the combination of clinical, biochemical, molecular and genetic findings, but genotype/phenotype correlation are in constant progression due to more diffuse utilization of the molecular analysis.In this article, the Authors report on CMDs belonging to the group of dystroglycanopathies and in particular on the most severe forms represented by the Fukuyama CMD, Muscle-Eye-Brain disease and Walker Walburg syndrome.Clinical diagnosis of infantile hypotonia is particularly difficult considering the different etiologic factors causing the lesions, the difficulty in localizing the involved CNS area (central vs. peripheral) and the limited role of the diagnostic procedures at this early age.The diagnostic evaluation is not easy mainly in differentiating the various types of CMDs, and represents a challenge for the neonatologists and pediatricians. Suggestions are reported on the way to reach a correct diagnosis with the appropriate use of the diagnostic means

Short-Term Neurodevelopmental Outcome in Term Neonates Treated with Phenobarbital versus Levetiracetam: A Single-Center Experience

BACKGROUND: Phenobarbital (PB) has been traditionally used as the first-line treatment for neonatal seizures. More recently, levetiracetam (LEV) has been increasingly used as a promising newer antiepileptic medication for treatment of seizures in neonates. OBJECTIVES: The aim of our study was to compare the effect of PB vs. LEV on short-term neurodevelopmental outcome in infants treated for neonatal seizures. METHOD: This randomized, one-blind prospective study was conducted on term neonates admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of S. Bambino Hospital, University Hospital "Policlinico-Vittorio Emanuele," Catania, Italy, from February 2016 to February 2018. Thirty term neonates with seizures were randomized to receive PB or LEV; the Hammersmith Neonatal Neurological Examination (HNNE) was used at baseline (T0) and again one month after the initial treatment (T1). RESULTS: We found a significantly positive HNNE score for the developmental outcomes, specifically tone and posture, in neonates treated with LEV. There was no significant improvement in the HNNE score at T1 in the neonates treated with PB. CONCLUSION: This study suggests a positive effect of levetiracetam on tone and posture in term newborns treated for neonatal seizures. If future randomized-controlled studies also show better efficacy of LEV in the treatment of neonatal seizures, LEV might potentially be considered as the first-line anticonvulsant in this age grou

LCA DI MATERIALI ISOLANTI IN CALCECANAPULO PER EDILIZIA SOSTENIBILE

La necessita\u300 di ridurre le emissioni derivanti dal settore dell\u2019edilizia ha portato alla ricerca di soluzioni per migliorare la sostenibilita\u300 e la performance energetica degli edifici. Una soluzione efficace e\u300 l\u2019utilizzo di mate- riali isolanti di origine naturale. Il calcecanapulo e\u300 un biocomposito ottenuto dalla miscela di una fibra natura- le (canapulo) e di un legante (calce) con ottime capacita\u300 isolanti e igrometriche. L\u2019obiettivo dello studio e\u300 quello di valutare la sostenibilita\u300 in termini di Life Cycle Assessment di tre diverse miscele del biocomposito prodotte dall\u2019azienda italiana Equilibrium: Natural Beton 200 (con un rapporto calce canapa 1:1), Natural Be- ton 300 (con rapporto 2:1) e Biomattone (2:1). L\u2019approccio dello studio e\u300 \u201cdalla culla al cancello\u201d. Per tutte le miscele la fase di produzione della calce e della canapa risultano essere quelle con impatti maggiori. Gli im- patti derivanti dal trasporto della calce possono essere ridotti cambiando il sito di approvviggionamento