1,694 research outputs found
Revealing the magnetic proximity effect in EuS/Al bilayers through superconducting tunneling spectroscopy
A ferromagnetic insulator attached to a superconductor is known to induce an
exchange splitting of the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) singularity by a
magnitude proportional to the magnetization, and penetrating into the
superconductor to a depth comparable with the superconducting coherence length.
We study this long-range magnetic proximity effect in EuS/Al bilayers and find
that the exchange splitting of the BCS peaks is present already in the
unpolarized state of the ferromagnetic insulator (EuS), and is being further
enhanced when magnetizing the sample by a magnetic field. The measurement data
taken at the lowest temperatures feature a high contrast which has allowed us
to relate the line shape of the split BCS conductance peaks to the
characteristic magnetic domain structure of the EuS layer in the unpolarized
state. These results pave the way to engineering triplet superconducting
correlations at domain walls in EuS/Al bilayers. Furthermore, the hard gap and
clear splitting observed in our tunneling spectroscopy measurements indicate
that EuS/Al bilayers are excellent candidates for substituting strong magnetic
fields in experiments studying Majorana bound states.Comment: 9 pages, 4 color figure
Mannose binding lectin deficiency attenuates neurobehavioral deficits following experimental traumatic brain injury
Introduction:
Mannose binding lectin (MBL) is the activator of the lectin complement pathway. After cerebral ischemia it has been shown that MBL could be a mediator of secondary brain damage, in contrast after traumatic brain injury (TBI) there are data suggesting that it could be linked to neuroprotection. We tested the hypothesis that MBL is involved in the pathophysiology of TBI. We 1) characterized the temporal activation of MBL and 2) the effects of its inhibition in a model of experimental TBI.
Methods:
1) Male C57/Bl6 mice were subjected to intraperitoneal anesthesia (Pentobarbital, 65 mg/kg) followed by the controlled cortical impact brain injury model of experimental TBI (injury parameters: velocity of 5 meter/second and 1 mm depth of deformation). MBL immunostaining was evaluated at various time points after TBI: 30 minutes, 1, 6, 12, 24, 48, 96 hours and 1 week using anti MBL-A and MBL-C antibodies (n=3). 2) The effects of MBL inhibition were evaluated by comparing functional and histologic outcomes in C57/Bl6 mice (WT) and in MBL knock-out (-/-) mice. Functional outcome was tested using the Composite Neuroscore and Beam Walk test weekly up to 4 weeks postinjury (n = 11). Histologic outcome was evaluated by calculating the contusion volume at 4 weeks postinjury (n = 6). Sham-operated mice received identical anesthesia without brain injury.
Results:
We observed a robust MBL positive immunostaining in the injured cerebral cortex starting at 30 minutes postinjury and up to 1 week, suggestive of an activation of this pathway following TBI. MBL was observed both at endothelial and tissue level.
Consistently, injured WT and MBL (-/-) mice showed neurological motor deficits up to 4 weeks postinjury when compared to their sham controls. Notably, MBL (-/-) mice showed attenuated behavioral deficits when compared to their WT counterpart at 2-4 weeks postinjury (p < 0.01 for both Neuroscore and Beam Walk test). In contrast we observed similar contusion volumes at 4 weeks postinjury (WT = 15.6 \ub1 3.2 cm3 and MBL KO = 13.9 \ub1 3.2 cm3, p = 0.3).
Conclusions:
We observed that 1) MBL deposition and/or synthesis is increased following TBI; 2) MBL deficiency is associated with functional neuroprotection, suggesting that MBL modulation might be a potential therapeutic target after TBI
Delocalized-localized transition in a semiconductor two-dimensional honeycomb lattice
We report the magneto-transport properties of a two-dimensional electron gas
in a modulation-doped AlGaAs/GaAs heterostructure subjected to a lateral
potential with honeycomb geometry. Periodic oscillations of the
magneto-resistance and a delocalized-localized transition are shown by applying
a gate voltage. We argue that electrons in such artificial-graphene lattices
offer a promising approach for the simulation of quantum phases dictated by
Coulomb interactions
Session H/11.8 -Effect of management and housing on horse welfare Corresponding author: [email protected] Three-dimensional design of a horse stud like better toll for technical choices of housing and welfare
Abstract It is well known that captivity and the following upsetting of the horse natural habits and physiological activities have made the horse defenceless towards the numerous dangers and have exposed it to a wide range of risks. As a consequence, the safety of the infrastructures where the athlete spends the majority of its life time represent a fundamental aspect strictly linked to the prevention modalities of many pathologies found within equestrian veterinary practice. In recent year the three-dimensional designs are more and more utilised to have a complete vision of the structures. In the case of horse studs, the three-dimensional design represents the best solution to verify, in virtual imagines, the technical choices not only for housing bur also for improving welfare conditions. In fact it is possible to hypothesize and to virtually test the operative conditions needed both in terms of structures and welfare. The results of this kind of representation is optimal to research the best welfare conditions. This study refers to a virtual three-dimensional design of an equestrian centre destined to show jumping horses. This facility includes the realization of different structures such as stud and wasting areas, covered grounds, open air fields, open fields, rings, club services, competition arenas with tribunes, jury, services for public, etc.
Large-scale analysis of the SDSS-III DR8 photometric luminous galaxies angular correlation function
We analyse the large-scale angular correlation function (ACF) of the CMASS
luminous galaxies (LGs), a photometric-redshift catalogue based on the Data
Release 8 (DR8) of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey-III. This catalogue contains
over LGs in the range , which was split
into four redshift shells of constant width. First, we estimate the constraints
on the redshift-space distortion (RSD) parameters and ,
where is the galaxy bias, the growth rate and is the
normalization of the perturbations, finding that they vary appreciably among
different redshift shells, in agreement with previous results using DR7 data.
When assuming constant RSD parameters over the survey redshift range, we obtain
, which agrees at the level with Baryon
Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey DR9 spectroscopic results. Next, we performed
two cosmological analyses, where relevant parameters not fitted were kept fixed
at their fiducial values. In the first analysis, we extracted the baryon
acoustic oscillation peak position for the four redshift shells, and combined
with the sound horizon scale from 7-year \textit{Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy
Probe} to produce the constraints and
. In the second analysis, we used the ACF full shape
information to constrain cosmology using real data for the first time, finding
and .
These results are in good agreement with findings, showing that the ACF
can be efficiently applied to constrain cosmology in future photometric galaxy
surveys.Comment: MNRAS accepted. Minor corrections to match publish versio
Feshbach resonances in ultracold atom-molecule collisions
We investigate the presence of Feshbach resonances in ultracold
alkali-dialkali reactive collisions. Quantum scattering calculations are
performed on a new Na_3 quartet potential energy surface. An analysis of
scattering features is performed through a systematic variation of the
nonadditive three-body interaction potential. Our results should provide useful
information for interpreting future atom-molecule collision experiments.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure
Mutations in a Novel, Cryptic Exon of the Luteinizing Hormone/Chorionic Gonadotropin Receptor Gene Cause Male Pseudohermaphroditism
Joerg Gromoll and colleagues describe the identification and characterization of a novel exon that appears to be a new regulatory element within the luteinizing hormone/chorionic gonadotropin receptor gene of three individuals with Leydig cell hypoplasia
Tailoring symmetry groups using external alternate fields
Macroscopic systems with continuous symmetries subjected to oscillatory
fields have phases and transitions that are qualitatively different from their
equilibrium ones. Depending on the amplitude and frequency of the fields
applied, Heisenberg ferromagnets can become XY or Ising-like -or, conversely,
anisotropies can be compensated -thus changing the nature of the ordered phase
and the topology of defects. The phenomena can be viewed as a dynamic form of
"order by disorder".Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures finite dimension and selection mechanism clarifie
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