Editorial: Insect pollinators in the Anthropocene: how multiple environmental stressors are shaping pollinator health

Editorial of the special issue "Insect pollinators in the Anthropocene: how multiple environmental stressors are shaping pollinator health

Revertant fibres and dystrophin traces in Duchenne muscular dystrophy: Implication for clinical trials

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is characterised by the absence of dystrophin in muscle biopsies, although residual dystrophin can be present, either as dystrophin-positive (revertant) fibres or traces. As restoration of dystrophin expression is the end point of clinical trials, such residual dystrophin is a key factor in recruitment of patients and may also confound the analysis of dystrophin restoration in treated patients, if, as previously observed in the mdx mouse, revertant fibres increase with age. In 62% of the diagnostic biopsies reports of 65 DMD patients studied, traces or revertants were recorded with no correlation between traces or revertants, the patients' performance, or corticosteroids response. In nine of these patients, there was no increase in traces or revertants in biopsies taken a mean of 8.23 years (5.8-10.4 years) after the original diagnostic biopsy. This information should help in the design and execution of clinical trials focused on dystrophin restoration strategies. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Plan, execute, and discuss vibration measurements and correlations to evaluate a NASTRAN finite element model of the AH-64 helicopter airframe

A ground vibration test was performed on the AH-64 (Apache) helicopter to determine the frequency response of the airframe. The structure was excited at both the main and tail rotor hubs, separately, and response measurements were taken at 102 locations throughout the fuselage structure. Frequency responses were compared and correlated with results from a NASTRAN finite element model of AH-64. In addition, natural frequencies and mode shapes were estimated from the frequency response data and were correlated with analytical results

Image resonance in the many-body density of states at a metal surface

The electronic properties of a semi-infinite metal surface without a bulk gap are studied by a formalism that is able to account for the continuous spectrum of the system. The density of states at the surface is calculated within the GW approximation of many-body perturbation theory. We demonstrate the presence of an unoccupied surface resonance peaked at the position of the first image state. The resonance encompasses the whole Rydberg series of image states and cannot be resolved into individual peaks. Its origin is the shift in spectral weight when many-body correlation effects are taken into account

CDW, Superconductivity and Anomalous Metallic Behavior in 2D Transition Metal Dichalcogenides

We propose a theory for quasi-two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides that provides a unified microscopic picture of the charge density wave (CDW) and superconducting phases. We show, based on the electron-phonon coupling and Fermi surface topology, that a CDW order parameter with six-fold symmetry and nodes (f-wave) gives a consistent description of the available experimental data. The elementary excitations in the CDW phase are Dirac electrons. The superconducting state has its origin on the attractive interaction mediated by phonons. The theory predicts strong deviations from Fermi liquid theory in the CDW phase.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Investigation of fiber/matrix adhesion: test speed and specimen shape effects in the cylinder test

The cylinder test, developed from the microdroplet test, was adapted to assess the interfacial adhesion strength between fiber and matrix. The sensitivity of cylinder test to pull-out speed and specimen geometry was measured. It was established that the effect of test speed can be described as a superposition of two opposite, simultaneous effects which have been modeled mathematically by fitting two parameter Weibull curves on the measured datas. Effects of the cylinder size and its geometrical relation on the measured strength values have been analyzed by finite element method. It was concluded that the geometry has a direct influence on the stress formation. Based on the results achieved, recommendations were given on how to perform the novel single fiber cylinder test

First principles simulations of direct coexistence of solid and liquid aluminium

First principles calculations based on density functional theory, with generalised gradient corrections and ultrasoft pseudopotentials, have been used to simulate solid and liquid aluminium in direct coexistence at zero pressure. Simulations have been carried out on systems containing up to 1000 atoms for 15 ps. The points on the melting curve extracted from these simulations are in very good agreement with previous calculations, which employed the same electronic structure method but used an approach based on the explicit calculation of free energies [L. Vo\v{c}adlo and D. Alf\`e, Phys. Rev. B, {\bf 65}, 214105 (2002).]Comment: To appear in Phys. Rev.

Lifetimes of image-potential states on copper surfaces

The lifetime of image states, which represent a key quantity to probe the coupling of surface electronic states with the solid substrate, have been recently determined for quantum numbers $n\le 6$ on Cu(100) by using time-resolved two-photon photoemission in combination with the coherent excitation of several states (U. H\"ofer et al, Science 277, 1480 (1997)). We here report theoretical investigations of the lifetime of image states on copper surfaces. We evaluate the lifetimes from the knowledge of the self-energy of the excited quasiparticle, which we compute within the GW approximation of many-body theory. Single-particle wave functions are obtained by solving the Schr\"odinger equation with a realistic one-dimensional model potential, and the screened interaction is evaluated in the random-phase approximation (RPA). Our results are in good agreement with the experimentally determined decay times.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, to appear in Phys. Rev. Let

Self-energy of image states on copper surfaces

We report extensive calculations of the imaginary part of the electron self-energy in the vicinity of the (100) and (111) surfaces of Cu. The quasiparticle self-energy is computed by going beyond a free-electron description of the metal surface, either within the GW approximation of many-body theory or with inclusion, within the GW$\Gamma$ approximation, of short-range exchange-correlation effects. Calculations of the decay rate of the first three image states on Cu(100) and the first image state on Cu(111) are also reported, and the impact of both band structure and many-body effects on the electron relaxation process is discussed.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev.

Nonlinear Magneto-Optics of Fe Monolayers from first principles: Structural dependence and spin-orbit coupling strength

We calculate the nonlinear magneto-optical response of free-standing fcc (001), (110) and (111) oriented Fe monolayers. The bandstructures are determined from first principles using a full-potential LAPW method with the additional implementation of spin-orbit coupling. The variation of the spin-orbit coupling strength and the nonlinear magneto-optical spectra upon layer orientation are investigated. We find characteristic differences which indicate an enhanced sensitivity of nonlinear magneto-optics to surface orientation and variation of the in-plane lattice constants. In particular the crossover from onedimensional stripe structures to twodimensional films of (111) layers exhibits a clean signature in the nonlinear Kerr-spectra and demonstrates the versatility of nonlinear magneto-optics as a tool for in situ thin-film analysis.Comment: 28 pages, RevTeX, psfig, submitted to PR