19,282 research outputs found
Combining exclusive semi-leptonic and hadronic B decays to measure |V_ub|
The Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix element |V_ub| can be extracted from the
rate for the semi-leptonic decay B -> pi + l + antineutrino_l, with little
theoretical uncertainty, provided the hadronic form factor for the B -> pi
transition can be measured from some other B decay. In here, we suggest using
the decay B -> pi J\psi. This is a color suppressed decay, and it cannot be
properly described within the usual factorization approximation; we use instead
a simple and very general phenomenological model for the b d J\psi vertex. In
order to relate the hadronic form factors in the B -> pi J\psi and B -> pi + l
+ antineutrino_l decays, we use form factor relations that hold for
heavy-to-light transitions at large recoil.Comment: Latex, 7 pages, no figure
Group theory for structural analysis and lattice vibrations in phosphorene systems
Group theory analysis for two-dimensional elemental systems related to
phosphorene is presented, including (i) graphene, silicene, germanene and
stanene, (ii) dependence on the number of layers and (iii) two stacking
arrangements. Departing from the most symmetric graphene space
group, the structures are found to have a group-subgroup relation, and analysis
of the irreducible representations of their lattice vibrations makes it
possible to distinguish between the different allotropes. The analysis can be
used to study the effect of strain, to understand structural phase transitions,
to characterize the number of layers, crystallographic orientation and
nonlinear phenomena.Comment: 24 pages, 3 figure
An extended formalism for preferential attachment in heterogeneous complex networks
In this paper we present a framework for the extension of the preferential
attachment (PA) model to heterogeneous complex networks. We define a class of
heterogeneous PA models, where node properties are described by fixed states in
an arbitrary metric space, and introduce an affinity function that biases the
attachment probabilities of links. We perform an analytical study of the
stationary degree distributions in heterogeneous PA networks. We show that
their degree densities exhibit a richer scaling behavior than their homogeneous
counterparts, and that the power law scaling in the degree distribution is
robust in presence of heterogeneity
On the quantumness of correlations in nuclear magnetic resonance
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) was successfully employed to test several
protocols and ideas in Quantum Information Science. In most of these
implementations the existence of entanglement was ruled out. This fact
introduced concerns and questions about the quantum nature of such bench tests.
In this article we address some issues related to the non-classical aspects of
NMR systems. We discuss some experiments where the quantum aspects of this
system are supported by quantum correlations of separable states. Such
quantumness, beyond the entanglement-separability paradigm, is revealed via a
departure between the quantum and the classical versions of information theory.
In this scenario, the concept of quantum discord seems to play an important
role. We also present an experimental implementation of an analogous of the
single-photon Mach-Zehnder interferometer employing two nuclear spins to encode
the interferometric paths. This experiment illustrate how non-classical
correlations of separable states may be used to simulate quantum dynamics. The
results obtained are completely equivalent to the optical scenario, where
entanglement (between two field modes) may be present
Experimental Determination of Thermal Entanglement in Spin Clusters using Magnetic Susceptibility Measurements
The present work reports an experimental observation of thermal entanglement
in a clusterized spin chain formed in the compound NaCuSiO.
The presence of entanglement was investigated through two measured quantities,
an Entanglement Witness and the Entanglement of Formation, both derived from
the magnetic susceptibility. It was found that pairwise entanglement exists
below K. Tripartite entanglement was also observed below K. A theoretical study of entanglement evolution as a function of applied
field and temperature is also presented.Comment: Submited to Phys. Rev.
Susceptibility in vitro of canine methicillin-resistant and -susceptible staphylococcal isolates to fusidic acid, chlorhexidine and miconazole: opportunities for topical therapy of canine superficial pyoderma
OBJECTIVES: Increasing multidrug resistance amongst canine pathogenic staphylococci has renewed interest in topical antibacterial therapy for skin infections in the context of responsible veterinary prescribing. We therefore determined the activity in vitro of three clinically relevant topical agents and synergism between two of them against Staphylococcus pseudintermedius and Staphylococcus aureus. METHODS: The MICs of fusidic acid (n = 199), chlorhexidine (n = 198), miconazole (n = 198) and a 1:1 combination of miconazole/chlorhexidine (n = 198) were determined for canine isolates [50 MRSA and 49 methicillin-resistant S. pseudintermedius (MRSP), 50 MSSA and 50 methicillin-susceptible S. pseudintermedius (MSSP)] collected from the UK and Germany using an agar dilution method (CLSI VET01-A4). Fractional inhibitory concentration (FIC) indices were calculated to assess the interaction of miconazole with chlorhexidine. RESULTS: MICs of each drug/combination were significantly (P < 0.0005) higher for S. aureus when compared with S. pseudintermedius. Most strains (n = 172) had an MIC of fusidic acid of ≤0.03 mg/L (MIC ≥64 mg/L, n = 5 MRSA). All strains had MICs of chlorhexidine of 0.5–4 mg/L, except for one MRSA (MIC = 8 mg/L). All but four strains had MICs of miconazole of 1–4 mg/L (MIC = 16 mg/L, n = 3; MIC = 256 mg/L, n = 1). Miconazole/chlorhexidine (1:1 ratio) had a synergistic effect against 49/50 MRSA, 31/50 MSSA, 12/49 MRSP and 23/49 MSSP. CONCLUSIONS: Since the majority of these staphylococci, including methicillin-resistant isolates, had MICs that should be readily exceeded by topical skin application of these agents, their therapeutic efficacy for canine superficial pyoderma should be assessed. The synergistic interaction shown in vitro supports further clinical evaluation of miconazole/chlorhexidine combination therapy for staphylococcal infection
- …