32,626 research outputs found
Determining the spin-orbit coupling via spin-polarized spectroscopy of magnetic impurities
We study the spin-resolved spectral properties of the impurity states
associated to the presence of magnetic impurities in two-dimensional, as well
as one-dimensional systems with Rashba spin-orbit coupling. We focus on Shiba
bound states in superconducting materials, as well as on impurity states in
metallic systems. Using a combination of a numerical T-matrix approximation and
a direct analytical calculation of the bound state wave function, we compute
the local density of states (LDOS) together with its Fourier transform (FT). We
find that the FT of the spin-polarized LDOS, a quantity accessible via
spin-polarized STM, allows to accurately extract the strength of the spin-orbit
coupling. Also we confirm that the presence of magnetic impurities is strictly
necessary for such measurement, and that non-spin-polarized experiments cannot
have access to the value of the spin-orbit coupling.Comment: 26 pages, 6 figure
Monitoring Microtubule Mechanical Vibrations via Optomechanical Coupling
The possible disruption of a microtubule during mitosis can control the
duplication of a cancer cell. Cancer detection and treatment may be possible
based on the detection and control of microtubule mechanical oscillations in
cells through external fields (e.g. electromagnetic or ultrasound). However,
little is known about the dynamic (high-frequency) mechanical properties of
microtubules. Here we propose to control the vibrations of a doubly clamped
microtubule by tip electrodes and to detect its motion via the optomechanical
coupling between the vibrational modes of the microtubule and an optical
cavity. In the presence of a red-detuned strong pump laser, this coupling leads
to optomechanical induced transparency of an optical probe field, which can be
detected with state-of the art technology. The center frequency and linewidth
of the transparency peak give the resonance frequency and damping rate of the
microtubule respectively, while the height of the peak reveals information
about the microtubule-cavity field coupling. Our method should yield new
knowledge about the physical properties of microtubules, which will enhance our
capability to design physical cancer treatment protocols as alternatives to
chemotherapeutic drugs
Impact of the various spin and orbital ordering processes on multiferroic properties of orthovanadate DyVO3
The orthovanadate DyVO3 crystal, known to exhibit multiple structural, spin
and orbital ordering transitions, is presently investigated on the basis of
magnetization, heat capacity, resistivity, dielectric and polarization
measurements. Our main result is experimental evidence for the existence of
multiferroicity below a high TC of 108 K over a wide temperature range
including different spin-orbital ordered states. The onset of ferroelectricity
is found to coincide with the antiferromagnetic C-type spin ordering transition
taking place at 108 K, which indicates that DyVO3 belongs to type II
multiferroics exhibiting a coupling between magnetism and ferroelectricity.
Some anomalies detected on the temperature dependence of electric polarization
are discussed with respect to the nature of the spin-orbital ordered states of
the V sublattice and the degree of spin alignment in the Dy sublattice. The
orthovanadates RVO3 (R = rare earth or Y) form an important new category for
searching for high-TC multiferroics.Comment: 25 pages, 7 figures, 68 references, one supplementary material,
Physical Review B, Published 23 July 201
Equation-free modeling of evolving diseases: Coarse-grained computations with individual-based models
We demonstrate how direct simulation of stochastic, individual-based models
can be combined with continuum numerical analysis techniques to study the
dynamics of evolving diseases. % Sidestepping the necessity of obtaining
explicit population-level models, the approach analyzes the (unavailable in
closed form) `coarse' macroscopic equations, estimating the necessary
quantities through appropriately initialized, short `bursts' of
individual-based dynamic simulation. % We illustrate this approach by analyzing
a stochastic and discrete model for the evolution of disease agents caused by
point mutations within individual hosts. % Building up from classical SIR and
SIRS models, our example uses a one-dimensional lattice for variant space, and
assumes a finite number of individuals. % Macroscopic computational tasks
enabled through this approach include stationary state computation, coarse
projective integration, parametric continuation and stability analysis.Comment: 16 pages, 8 figure
Highly charged ions in Penning traps, a new tool for resolving low lying isomeric states
The use of highly charged ions increases the precision and resolving power,
in particular for short-lived species produced at on-line radio-isotope beam
facilities, achievable with Penning trap mass spectrometers. This increase in
resolving power provides a new and unique access to resolving low-lying
long-lived ( ms) nuclear isomers. Recently, the keV
(determined from -ray spectroscopy) isomeric state in Rb has
been resolved from the ground state, in a charge state of with the TITAN
Penning trap at the TRIUMF-ISAC facility. The excitation energy of the isomer
was measured to be keV above the ground state. The extracted
masses for both the ground and isomeric states, and their difference, agree
with the AME2003 and Nuclear Data Sheet values. This proof of principle
measurement demonstrates the feasibility of using Penning trap mass
spectrometers coupled to charge breeders to study nuclear isomers and opens a
new route for isomer searches.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figure
Adaptive finite element method assisted by stochastic simulation of chemical systems
Stochastic models of chemical systems are often analysed by solving the corresponding\ud
Fokker-Planck equation which is a drift-diffusion partial differential equation for the probability\ud
distribution function. Efficient numerical solution of the Fokker-Planck equation requires adaptive mesh refinements. In this paper, we present a mesh refinement approach which makes use of a stochastic simulation of the underlying chemical system. By observing the stochastic trajectory for a relatively short amount of time, the areas of the state space with non-negligible probability density are identified. By refining the finite element mesh in these areas, and coarsening elsewhere, a suitable mesh is constructed and used for the computation of the probability density
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