An improved Monte Carlo study of coherent scattering effects of low energy charged particle transport in Percus-Yevick liquids

We generalize a simple Monte Carlo (MC) model for dilute gases to consider the transport behavior of positrons and electrons in Percus-Yevick model liquids under highly non-equilibrium conditions, accounting rigorously for coherent scattering processes. The procedure extends an existing technique [Wojcik and Tachiya, Chem. Phys. Lett. 363, 3--4 (1992)], using the static structure factor to account for the altered anisotropy of coherent scattering in structured material. We identify the effects of the approximation used in the original method, and develop a modified method that does not require that approximation. We also present an enhanced MC technique that has been designed to improve the accuracy and flexibility of simulations in spatially-varying electric fields. All of the results are found to be in excellent agreement with an independent multi-term Boltzmann equation solution, providing benchmarks for future transport models in liquids and structured systems.Comment: 27 pages, 6 figure

Beating of exciton-dressed states in a single semiconductor InGaAs/GaAs quantum dot

We report picosecond control of excitonic dressed states in a single semiconductor quantum dot. A strong laser pulse couples the exciton and biexciton states, to form an Autler-Townes doublet of the neutral exciton transition. The Rabi-splitting, and hence the admixture of the dressed states follows the envelope of the picosecond control laser. We create a superposition of dressed states, and observe the resulting beat: a direct measurement of a Rabi oscillation in time delay rather than the usual power domain

A small area faint KX redshift survey for QSOs in the ESO Imaging Survey Chandra Deep Field South

In this paper we present preliminary spectroscopic results from a small area faint K-excess (KX) survey, and compare KX selection against UVX selection. The aim of the KX method is to produce complete samples of QSOs flux-limited in the K band, in order to minimize any selection bias in samples of QSOs from the effects of reddening and extinction. Using the photometric catalogue of the ESO Imaging Survey Chandra Deep Field South (48 arcmin^2) we have identified compact objects with J-K colours redder than the stellar sequence, that are brighter than K=19.5. We have obtained spectra of 33 candidates, using the LDSS++ spectrograph on the AAT. Amongst the 11 bluer candidates, with V-J<3, three are confirmed as QSOs. Identification of the 22 redder candidates with V-J>3 is substantially incomplete, but so far no reddened QSOs have been found. Near-infrared spectroscopy will be more effective in identifying some of these targets. Only two UVX (U-B<-0.2) sources brighter than K=19.5 are found which are not also KX selected. These are both identified as galactic stars. Thus KX selection appears to select all UVX QSOs. The surface density of QSOs in the blue subsample (V-J<3) at K<19.5 is 325^+316_-177 deg^-2. Because identification of the red subsample (V-J>3) is substantially incomplete, the 2sigma upper limit on the density of reddened QSO is large, <1150 deg^-2. As anticipated, at these faint magnitudes the KX sample includes several compact galaxies. Of the 14 with measured redshifts, there are roughly equal numbers of early and late type objects. Nearly all the early type galaxies are found in a single structure at z=0.66.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figures. Accepted for publication in MNRA

Towards coherent optical control of a single hole spin: rabi rotation of a trion conditional on the spin state of the hole

A hole spin is a potential solid-state q-bit, that may be more robust against nuclear spin induced dephasing than an electron spin. Here we propose and demonstrate the sequential preparation, control and detection of a single hole spin trapped on a self-assembled InGaAs/GaAs quantum dot. The dot is embedded in a photodiode structure under an applied electric field. Fast, triggered, initialization of a hole spin is achieved by creating a spin-polarized electron-hole pair with a picosecond laser pulse, and in an applied electric field, waiting for the electron to tunnel leaving a spin-polarized hole. Detection of the hole spin with picoseconds time resolution is achieved using a second picosecond laser pulse to probe the positive trion transition, where a trion is created conditional on the hole spin being detected as a change in photocurrent. Finally, using this setup we observe a Rabi rotation of the hole-trion transition that is conditional on the hole spin, which for a pulse area of 2 pi can be used to impart a phase shift of pi between the hole spin states, a non-general manipulation of the hole spin. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

An evaluation of four private animal health and welfare standards and associated quality assurance programmes for dairy cow production

peer-reviewedPrivate standards in animal health and welfare (AHW) and associated quality assurance (QA) programmes are an important instrument for food policy with the potential to substantially improve AHW. However, there are concerns that they do not necessarily do so. In this study, we evaluated four private AHW standards and associated QA programmes for dairy cow production, from Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, using an existing (but adapted) conceptual framework. The framework considers criteria relating to programme goals including relevance to AHW, programme beneficiaries, effectiveness, efficiency and transparency. The current study focused on information that was publicly available online. We found limited objective information to support programme claims, although there were considerable differences between programmes. Across all programmes, problems were identified with respect to transparency, and attempts to scrutinise claims would not be a straightforward process for most consumers. Among the programmes, there were notable examples of best-practice in AHW, relating to science-based evidence, separation of risk assessment and risk management, animal-based measures, farm benchmarking, ongoing programme-level metrics and measurement, and ongoing programme review. There is a need for careful scrutiny of private standards and QA programmes, to provide consumers with assurance with respect to programme effectiveness and transparency. Further, it is important that programme efficiencies are maximised. There is a strong case for regulatory oversight of private standards in AHW and associated QA programmes. This could be within existing or defined policy instruments, both to facilitate the positive impact of these programmes and to build confidence among consumers of the validity of programme claims

Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of daily all-over-body application of emollient during the first year of life for preventing atopic eczema in high-risk children (The BEEP trial): protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Atopic eczema (AE) is a common skin problem that impairs quality of life and is associated with the development of other atopic diseases including asthma, food allergy and allergic rhinitis. AE treatment is a significant cost burden for health care providers. The purpose of the trial is to investigate whether daily application of emollients for the first year of life can prevent AE developing in high-risk infants (first-degree relative with asthma, AE or allergic rhinitis). METHODS: This is a protocol for a pragmatic, two-arm, randomised controlled, multicentre trial. Up to 1400 term infants at high risk of developing AE will be recruited through the community, primary and secondary care in England. Participating families will be randomised in a 1:1 ratio to receive general infant skin-care advice, or general skin-care advice plus emollients with advice to apply daily to the infant for the first year of life. Families will not be blinded to treatment allocation. The primary outcome will be a blinded assessment of AE at 24 months of age using the UK Working Party Diagnostic Criteria for Atopic Eczema. Secondary outcomes are other definitions of AE, time to AE onset, severity of AE (EASI and POEM), presence of other allergic diseases including food allergy, asthma and hay fever, allergic sensitisation, quality of life, cost-effectiveness and safety of the emollients. Subgroup analyses are planned for the primary outcome according to filaggrin genotype and the number of first-degree relatives with AE and other atopic diseases. Families will be followed up by online and postal questionnaire at 3, 6, 12 and 18 months with a face-to-face visit at 24 months. Long-term follow-up until 60 months will be via annual questionnaires. DISCUSSION: This trial will demonstrate whether skin-barrier enhancement through daily emollient for the first year of life can prevent AE from developing in high-risk infants. If effective, this simple and cheap intervention has the potential to result in significant cost savings for health care providers throughout the world by preventing AE and possibly other associated allergic diseases. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN registry; ID: ISRCTN21528841 . Registered on 25 July 2014

The Supernova Relic Neutrino Background

An upper bound to the supernova relic neutrino background from all past Type II supernovae is obtained using observations of the Universal metal enrichment history. We show that an unambiguous detection of these relic neutrinos by the Super-Kamiokande detector is unlikely. We also analyze the event rate in the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (where coincident neutrons from anti-nu_e + D --> n + n + e+ might enhance background rejection), and arrive at the same conclusion. If the relic neutrino flux should be observed to exceed our upper bound and if the observations of the metal enrichment history (for z<1) are not in considerable error, then either the Type II supernova rate does not track the metal enrichment history or some mechanism may be responsible for transforming anti-nu_{mu,tau} --> anti-nu_e.Comment: Matches version accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Boost operators in Coulomb-gauge QCD: the pion form factor and Fock expansions in phi radiative decays

In this article we rederive the Boost operators in Coulomb-Gauge Yang-Mills theory employing the path-integral formalism and write down the complete operators for QCD. We immediately apply them to note that what are usually called the pion square, quartic... charge radii, defined from derivatives of the pion form factor at zero squared momentum transfer, are completely blurred out by relativistic and interaction corrections, so that it is not clear at all how to interpret these quantities in terms of the pion charge distribution. The form factor therefore measures matrix elements of powers of the QCD boost and Moeller operators, weighted by the charge density in the target's rest frame. In addition we remark that the decomposition of the eta' wavefunction in quarkonium, gluonium, ... components attempted by the KLOE collaboration combining data from phi radiative decays, requires corrections due to the velocity of the final state meson recoiling against a photon. This will be especially important if such decompositions are to be attempted with data from J/psi decays.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figure

An estimate of the flavour singlet contributions to the hyperfine splitting in charmonium

We explore the splitting between flavour singlet and non-singlet mesons in charmonium. This has implications for the hyperfine splitting in charmonium

Application of heavy-quark effective theory to lattice QCD: III. Radiative corrections to heavy-heavy currents

We apply heavy-quark effective theory (HQET) to separate long- and short-distance effects of heavy quarks in lattice gauge theory. In this paper we focus on flavor-changing currents that mediate transitions from one heavy flavor to another. We stress differences in the formalism for heavy-light currents, which are discussed in a companion paper, showing how HQET provides a systematic matching procedure. We obtain one-loop results for the matching factors of lattice currents, needed for heavy-quark phenomenology, such as the calculation of zero-recoil form factors for the semileptonic decays $B\to D^{(*)}l\nu$. Results for the Brodsky-Lepage-Mackenzie scale $q^*$ are also given.Comment: 35 pages, 17 figures. Program LatHQ2QCD to compute matching one-loop coefficients available at http://theory.fnal.gov/people/kronfeld/LatHQ2QCD