374 research outputs found
Influence of Topological Edge States on the Properties of Al/Bi2Se3/Al Hybrid Josephson Devices
In superconductor-topological insulator-superconductor hybrid junctions, the
barrier edge states are expected to be protected against backscattering, to
generate unconventional proximity effects, and, possibly, to signal the
presence of Majorana fermions. The standards of proximity modes for these types
of structures have to be settled for a neat identification of possible new
entities. Through a systematic and complete set of measurements of the
Josephson properties we find evidence of ballistic transport in coplanar
Al-Bi2Se3-Al junctions that we attribute to a coherent transport through the
topological edge state. The shunting effect of the bulk only influences the
normal transport. This behavior, which can be considered to some extent
universal, is fairly independent of the specific features of superconducting
electrodes. A comparative study of Shubnikov - de Haas oscillations and
Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy gave an experimental signature compatible with
a two dimensional electron transport channel with a Dirac dispersion relation.
A reduction of the size of the Bi2Se3 flakes to the nanoscale is an unavoidable
step to drive Josephson junctions in the proper regime to detect possible
distinctive features of Majorana fermions.Comment: 11 pages, 14 figure
Strong interconversion of non-polar phonons and Josephson plasma oscillations induced by equilibrium Josephson currents in high T_c superconductors
We analyze consequences of dynamical modulations of Josephson current by
non-polar lattice mode in the Josephson junction barrier. In the high
junctions, the effect of such modulations can be anomalously strong due to the
proximity of the insulating barrier to the superconducting state. Accordingly,
the interconversion of sound (as well as other non-polar phonons) and the
Josephson plasma oscillations mediated by stationary Josephson currents, which
may be present in the junction due to various reasons, becomes possible. We
suggest that this effect can be employed for imaging of the stationary
Josephson currents. Estimates of the effect are given.Comment: 11 RevTeX pages, no figure
Adverse events following measles-mumps-rubella-varicella vaccination and the case of seizures: A post marketing active surveillance in Puglia Italian region, 2017-2018
Since 2012, the Italian Ministry of Health has recommended to improve the surveillance of adverse events following the measles-mumps-rubella-varicella (MMRV) tetravalent vaccine that was provided in the official immunization schedule of some Italian regions for children during the second year of life. This recommendation was based on data from some surveys that showed an additional risk of seizure following the administration of this vaccine. Responding to the Ministry commitment, the Puglia Region launched, from May 2017 to November 2018, a post-marketing active surveillance program of adverse events following MMRV immunization (AEFIs). Immunized children (second year of life) were enrolled on a voluntary basis, AEFIs diaries were used, and their parents were interviewed 25 days after the immunization. There were 2540 children enrolled; 2149/2540 (84.6%) completed the post-vaccination follow-up. Of these, 992 AEFIs were registered with a reporting rate of 46.2 × 100 doses: 883/992 (89.0%) AEFIs were not serious, while 109/992 (11.0%) were serious. For serious AEFIs, the evaluation of causality assessment was performed using the algorithm proposed by the World Health Organisation (WHO): 82/109 consistent causal associations to MMRV immunization were detected (reporting rate of consistent AEFIs: 3.8 × 100 follow-up). All serious AEFIs consistently associated with immunization resulted completely resolved at the follow-up. The reporting rate of seizure consistently associated with immunization was 0.05 × 100, lower than data previous published in the literature that did not report the causality assessment. Because no emerging signals were detected, our data from the active surveillance program confirmed the safety profile of the MMRV vaccine
Mechanisms of Spontaneous Current Generation in an Inhomogeneous d-Wave Superconductor
A boundary between two d-wave superconductors or an s-wave and a d-wave
superconductor generally breaks time-reversal symmetry and can generate
spontaneous currents due to proximity effect. On the other hand, surfaces and
interfaces in d-wave superconductors can produce localized current-carrying
states by supporting the T-breaking combination of dominant and subdominant
order parameters. We investigate spontaneous currents in the presence of both
mechanisms and show that at low temperature, counter-intuitively, the
subdominant coupling decreases the amplitude of the spontaneous current due to
proximity effect. Superscreening of spontaneous currents is demonstrated to be
present in any d-d (but not s-d) junction and surface with d+id' order
parameter symmetry. We show that this supercreening is the result of
contributions from the local magnetic moment of the condensate to the
spontaneous current.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, RevTe
Flux flow of Abrikosov-Josephson vortices along grain boundaries in high-temperature superconductors
We show that low-angle grain boundaries (GB) in high-temperature
superconductors exhibit intermediate Abrikosov vortices with Josephson cores,
whose length along GB is smaller that the London penetration depth, but
larger than the coherence length. We found an exact solution for a periodic
vortex structure moving along GB in a magnetic field and calculated the
flux flow resistivity , and the nonlinear voltage-current
characteristics. The predicted dependence describes well our
experimental data on unirradiated and irradiated
bicrystals, from which the core size , and the intrinsic depairing
density on nanoscales of few GB dislocations were measured for the
first time. The observed temperature dependence of
indicates a significant order parameter suppression in current channels between
GB dislocation cores.Comment: 5 pages 5 figures. Phys. Rev. Lett. (accepted
Thermal hopping and retrapping of a Brownian particle in the tilted periodic potential of a NbN/MgO/NbN Josephson junction
We report on the occurrence of multiple hopping and retrapping of a Brownian
particle in a tilted washboard potential. The escape dynamic has been studied
experimentally by measuring the switching current distributions as a function
of temperature in a moderately damped NbN/MgO/NbN Josephson junction. At low
temperatures the second moment of the distribution increases in agreement with
calculations based on Kramers thermal activation regime. After a turn-over
temperature T*, the shape of the distributions starts changing and width
decreases with temperature. We analyze the data through fit of the switching
probability and Monte Carlo simulations and we find a good agreement with a
model based on a multiple retrapping process
Theory of High-Tc Superconductivity: Accurate Predictions of Tc
The superconducting transition temperatures of high-Tc compounds based on
copper, iron, ruthenium and certain organic molecules are discovered to be
dependent on bond lengths, ionic valences, and Coulomb coupling between
electronic bands in adjacent, spatially separated layers [1]. Optimal
transition temperature, denoted as T_c0, is given by the universal expression
; is the spacing between interacting
charges within the layers, \zeta is the distance between interacting layers and
\Lambda is a universal constant, equal to about twice the reduced electron
Compton wavelength (suggesting that Compton scattering plays a role in
pairing). Non-optimum compounds in which sample degradation is evident
typically exhibit Tc < T_c0. For the 31+ optimum compounds tested, the
theoretical and experimental T_c0 agree statistically to within +/- 1.4 K. The
elemental high Tc building block comprises two adjacent and spatially separated
charge layers; the factor e^2/\zeta arises from Coulomb forces between them.
The theoretical charge structure representing a room-temperature superconductor
is also presented.Comment: 7 pages 5 references, 6 figures 1 tabl
Induced paramagnetic states by localized -loops in grain boundaries
Recent experiments on high-temperature superconductors show paramagnetic
behavior localized at grain boundaries (GB). This paramagnetism can be
attributed to the presence unconventional d-wave induced -junctions. By
modeling the GB as an array of and conventional Josephson junction we
determine the conditions of the occurrence of the paramagnetic behavior.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let
Music, middle childhood and agency:The value of an interactional-relational approach
This article considers the implications of children’s out-of-school musical experiences and activities for conceptualisations of child agency. In particular, it engages with differing approaches to relational agency and considers their value for understanding music-related practice during middle childhood. Accounts from children (n = 111) living in three parts of England are explored, and the subsequent analysis provides the basis for proposing the potential of an interactional–relational approach for approaching questions about children’s agency within such domains of practice and beyond
Macroscopic quantum phenomena in Josephson structures
The Josephson effect is a probe with unparalleled capabilities for the study of a variety of macroscopic quantum phenomena. This is a survey of important achievements and challenging trends, in particular macroscopic quantum tunneling and energy level quantization. We focus on high-T-C superconducting structures and recent research on nanostructures
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