6,041 research outputs found
Foliations of asymptotically flat manifolds by surfaces of Willmore type
The goal of this paper is to establish the existence of a foliation of the asymptotic region of an asymptotically flat manifold with nonzero mass by surfaces which are critical points of the Willmore functional subject to an area constraint. Equivalently these surfaces are critical points of the Geroch-Hawking mass. Thus our result has applications in the theory of General Relativity
The degradation of MgB2 under ambient environment
The superconductivities of samples prepared by several procedures were found
to degrade under ambient environment. The degradation mechanism was studied by
measuring the change of surface chemical composition of dense MgB2 pellets
(prepared by hot isostatic pressure, HIPed) under atmospheric exposure using
X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). Results showed that samples with poor
connectivity between grains and with smaller grain sizes degrade with time when
exposed to ambient conditions. In these samples, the Tc did not change with
time, but the superconducting transition became broader and the Meissner
fraction decreased. In contrast, our well-sintered and the HIPed samples
remained stable for several months under ambient condition. The degradation was
found to be related to surface decomposition as observed by XPS. We observed
the formation of oxidized Mg, primarily in the form of a Mg hydroxide, the
increase of C and O contents, and the reduction of B concentration in the
surface layer of MgB2 samples.Comment: 15 pages, 3 figure
Shearing Interferometer for Quantifying the Coherence of Hard X-Ray Beams
We report a quantitative measurement of the full transverse coherence function of the 14.4 keV x-ray radiation produced by an undulator at the Swiss Light Source. An x-ray grating interferometer consisting of a beam splitter phase grating and an analyzer amplitude grating has been used to measure the degree of coherence as a function of the beam separation out to 30 m. Importantly, the technique provides a model-free and spatially resolved measurement of the complex coherence function and is not restricted to high resolution detectors and small fields of view. The spatial characterization of the wave front has important applications in discovering localized defects in beam line optics
Valence band offset in heterojunctions between crystalline silicon and amorphous silicon (sub)oxides (a-SiOx:H, 0 < x < 2)
The heterojunction between amorphous silicon (sub)oxides (a-SiOx:H, 0 < x < 2)
and crystalline silicon (c-Si) is investigated. We combine chemical vapor
deposition with in-system photoelectron spectroscopy in order to determine the
valence band offset ΔEV and the interface defect density, being
technologically important junction parameters. ΔEV increases from ≈0.3 eV for
the a-Si:H/c-Si interface to >4 eV for the a-SiO2/c-Si interface, while the
electronic quality of the heterointerface deteriorates. High-bandgap a-SiOx:H
is therefore unsuitable for the hole contact in heterojunction solar cells,
due to electronic transport hindrance resulting from the large ΔEV. Our method
is readily applicable to other heterojunctions
Analysis of Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor-Mediated Decline in Contractile Force in Rat Engineered Heart Tissue
Introduction Left ventricular dysfunction is a frequent and potentially severe side effect of many tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI). The mode of toxicity is not identified, but may include impairment of mitochondrial or sarcomeric function, autophagy or angiogenesis, either as an on-target or off-target mechanism. Methods and Results We studied concentration-response curves and time courses for nine TKIs in three-dimensional, force generating engineered heart tissue (EHT) from neonatal rat heart cells. We detected a concentration- and time-dependent decline in contractile force for gefitinib, lapatinib, sunitinib, imatinib, sorafenib, vandetanib and lestaurtinib and no decline in contractile force for erlotinib and dasatinib after 96 hours of incubation. The decline in contractile force was associated with an impairment of autophagy (LC3 Western blot) and appearance of autophagolysosomes (transmission electron microscopy). Conclusion This study demonstrates the feasibility to study TKI-mediated force effects in EHTs and identifies an association between a decline in contractility and inhibition of autophagic flux
North Atlantic 2001 - Part 3 Cruise No. 50, Leg 3 20 June – 15 July 2001, St. John’s – Reykjavik J. Holfort,
Electrical Stimulation of the Human Cerebral Cortex by Extracranial Muscle Activity: Effect Quantification With Intracranial EEG and FEM Simulations
Objective: Electric fields (EF) of approx. 0.2 V/m have been shown to be sufficiently strong to both modulate neuronal activity in the cerebral cortex and have measurable effects on cognitive performance. We hypothesized that the EF caused by the electrical activity of extracranial muscles during natural chewing may reach similar strength in the cerebral cortex and hence might act as an endogenous modality of brain stimulation. Here, we present first steps toward validating this hypothesis. Methods: Using a realistic volume conductor head model of an epilepsy patient having undergone intracranial electrode placement and utilizing simultaneous intracranial and extracranial electrical recordings during chewing, we derive predictions about the chewing-related cortical EF strength to be expected in healthy individuals. Results: We find that in the region of the temporal poles, the expected EF strength may reach amplitudes in the order of 0.1-1 V/m. Conclusion: The cortical EF caused by natural chewing could be large enough to modulate ongoing neural activity in the cerebral cortex and influence cognitive performance. Significance: The present study lends first support for the assumption that extracranial muscle activity might represent an endogenous source of electrical brain stimulation. This offers a new potential explanation for the puzzling effects of gum chewing on cognition, which have been repeatedly reported in the literature
The intrinsic features of the specific heat at half-filled Landau levels of two-dimensional electron systems
The specific heat capacity of a two-dimensional electron gas is derived for
two types of the density of states, namely, the Dirac delta function spectrum
and that based on a Gaussian function. For the first time, a closed form
expression of the specific heat for each case is obtained at half-filling. When
the chemical potential is temperature-independent, the temperature is
calculated at which the specific heat is a maximum. Here the effects of the
broadening of the Landau levels are distinguished from those of the different
filling factors. In general, the results derived herein hold for any
thermodynamic system having similar resonant states.Comment: 11 pages, 1 figure, to appear in J Low Temp Phys (2010
Microscopic structure of a vortex line in superfluid neutron star matter
The microscopic structure of an isolated vortex line in superfluid neutron
star matter is studied by solving the Bogoliubov-de Gennes equations. Our
calculation, which is the starting point for a microscopic calculation of
pinning forces in neutron stars, shows that the size of the vortex core varies
differently with density, and is in general smaller than assumed in some
earlier calculations of vortex pinning in neutron star crusts. The implications
of this result are discussedComment: 5 pages, 2 figure
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