689 research outputs found
Nonlocal effects in thin 4H-SiC UV avalanche photodiodes
The avalanche multiplication and excess noise characteristics of 4H-SiC avalanche photodiodes with i-region widths of 0.105 and 0.285 mum have been investigated using 230-365-nm light, while the responsivities of the photodiodes at unity gain were examined for wavelengths up to 375 nm. Peak unity gain responsivities of more than 130 mA/W at 265 nm, equivalent to quantum efficiencies of more than 60%, were obtained for both structures. The measured avalanche characteristics show, that beta > alpha and that the beta/alpha ratio remains large even in thin 4H-SiC avalanche regions. Very low excess noise, corresponding to k(eff) < 0.15 in the local noise model, where k(eff) = alpha/beta(beta/alpha) for hole (electron) injection, was measured with 365-nm light in both structures. Modeling the experimental results using a simple quantum efficiency model and a nonlocal description yields effective ionization threshold energies of 12 and 8 eV for electrons and holes, respectively, and suggests that the dead space in 4H-SiC is soft. Although dead space is important, pure hole injection is still required to ensure low excess noise in thin 4H-SiC APDs owing to beta/alpha ratios that remain large, even at very high fields
Magnetic field induced lattice anomaly inside the superconducting state of CeCoIn: evidence of the proposed Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov state
We report high magnetic field linear magnetostriction experiments on
CeCoIn single crystals. Two features are remarkable: (i) a sharp
discontinuity in all the crystallographic axes associated with the upper
superconducting critical field that becomes less pronounced as the
temperature increases; (ii) a distinctive second order-like feature observed
only along the c-axis in the high field (10 T ) low
temperature ( 0.35 K) region. This second order transition is
observed only when the magnetic field lies within 20 of the ab-planes and
there is no signature of it above , which raises questions regarding
its interpretation as a field induced magnetically ordered phase. Good
agreement with previous results suggests that this anomaly is related to the
transition to the Fulde-Ferrel-Larkin-Ovchinnikov superconducting state.Comment: 3 figures, 5 page
High-magnetic field lattice length changes in URu2Si2
We report high magnetic field (up to 45 T) c-axis thermal expansion and
magnetostriction experiments on URu2Si2 single crystals. The sample length
change associated with the transition to the hidden order phase becomes
increasingly discontinous as the magnetic field is raised above 25 T. The
re-entrant ordered phase III is clearly observed in both the thermal expansion
and magnetostriction above 36 T, in good agreement with previous results. The
sample length is also discontinuous at the boundaries of this phase, mainly at
the upper boundary. A change in the sign of the coefficient of
thermal-expansion is observed at the metamagnetic transition (B_M = 38 T) which
is likely related to the existence of a quantum critical end point.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, to be published in PR
Reduced capacity of tumour blood vessels to produce endothelium-derived relaxing factor: significance for blood flow modification.
The effect of nitric oxide-dependent vasodilators on vascular resistance of tumours and normal tissue was determined with the aim of modifying tumour blood flow for therapeutic benefit. Isolated preparations of the rat P22 tumour and normal rat hindlimb were perfused ex vivo. The effects on tissue vascular resistance of administration of sodium nitroprusside (SNP) and the diazeniumdiolate (or NONO-ate) NOC-7, vasodilators which act via direct release of nitric oxide (NO), were compared with the effects of acetylcholine (ACh), a vasodilator which acts primarily via receptor stimulation of endothelial cells to release NO in the form of endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF). SNP and NOC-7 effectively dilated tumour blood vessels after preconstriction with phenylephrine (PE) or potassium chloride (KCl) as indicated by a decrease in vascular resistance. SNP also effectively dilated normal rat hindlimb vessels after PE/KCl constriction. Vasodilatation in the tumour preparations was accompanied by a significant rise in nitrite levels measured in the tumour effluent. ACh induced a significant vasodilation in the normal hindlimb but an anomalous vasoconstriction in the tumour. This result suggests that tumours, unlike normal tissues are incapable of releasing NO (EDRF) in response to ACh. Capacity for EDRF production may represent a difference between tumour and normal tissue blood vessels, which could be exploited for selective pharmacological manipulation of tumour blood flow
Unusual metamagnetism in CeIrIn
We report a high field investigation (up to 45 T) of the metamagnetic
transition in CeIrIn with resistivity and de-Haas-van-Alphen (dHvA) effect
measurements in the temperature range 0.03-1 K. As the magnetic field is
increased the resistivity increases, reaches a maximum at the metamagnetic
critical field, and falls precipitously for fields just above the transition,
while the amplitude of all measurable dHvA frequencies are significantly
attenuated near the metamagnetic critical field. However, the dHvA frequencies
and cyclotron masses are not substantially altered by the transition. In the
low field state, the resistivity is observed to increase toward low
temperatures in a singular fashion, a behavior that is rapidly suppressed above
the transition. Instead, in the high field state, the resistivity monotonically
increases with temperature with a dependence that is more singular than the
iconic Fermi-liquid, temperature-squared, behavior. Both the damping of the
dHvA amplitudes and the increased resistivity near the metamagnetic critical
field indicate an increased scattering rate for charge carriers consistent with
critical fluctuation scattering in proximity to a phase transition. The dHvA
amplitudes do not uniformly recover above the critical field, with some
hole-like orbits being entirely suppressed at high fields. These changes, taken
as a whole, suggest that the metamagnetic transition in CeIrIn is
associated with the polarization and localization of the heaviest of
quasiparticles on the hole-like Fermi surface.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figure
Exchange-correlation energy densities for two-dimensional systems from quantum dot ground-states
In this paper we present a new approach how to extract polarization-dependent
exchange-correlation energy densities for two-dimensional systems from
reference densities and energies of quantum dots provided by exact
diagonalization. Compared with results from literature we find systematic
corrections for all polarizations in the regime of high densities.Comment: 7 figures. submitted to Phys. Rev.
A versatile and compact capacitive dilatometer
We describe the design, construction, calibration, and operation of a
relatively simple differential capacitive dilatometer suitable for measurements
of thermal expansion and magnetostriction from 300 K to below 1 K with a
low-temperature resolution of about 0.05 angstroms. The design is characterized
by an open architecture permitting measurements on small samples with a variety
of shapes. Dilatometers of this design have operated successfully with a
commercial physical property measurement system, with several types of
cryogenic refrigeration systems, in vacuum, in helium exchange gas, and while
immersed in liquid helium (magnetostriction only) to temperatures of 30 mK and
in magnetic fields to 45 T.Comment: 8 pages, incorporating 6 figures, submitted to Rev. Sci. Instru
Direct visualization of electroporation-assisted in vivo gene delivery to tumors using intravital microscopy – spatial and time dependent distribution
BACKGROUND: Electroporation is currently receiving much attention as a way to increase drug and DNA delivery. Recent studies demonstrated the feasibility of electrogene therapy using a range of therapeutic genes for the treatment of experimental tumors. However, the transfection efficiency of electroporation-assisted DNA delivery is still low compared to viral methods and there is a clear need to optimize this approach. In order to optimize treatment, knowledge about spatial and time dependency of gene expression following delivery is of utmost importance in order to improve gene delivery. Intravital microscopy of tumors growing in dorsal skin fold window chambers is a useful method for monitoring gene transfection, since it allows non-invasive dynamic monitoring of gene expression in tumors in a live animal. METHODS: Intravital microscopy was used to monitor real time spatial distribution of the green fluorescent protein (GFP) and time dependence of transfection efficiency in syngeneic P22 rat tumor model. DNA alone, liposome-DNA complexes and electroporation-assisted DNA delivery using two different sets of electric pulse parameters were compared. RESULTS: Electroporation-assisted DNA delivery using 8 pulses, 600 V/cm, 5 ms, 1 Hz was superior to other methods and resulted in 22% increase in fluorescence intensity in the tumors up to 6 days post-transfection, compared to the non-transfected area in granulation tissue. Functional GFP was detected within 5 h after transfection. Cells expressing GFP were detected throughout the tumor, but not in the surrounding tissue that was not exposed to electric pulses. CONCLUSIONS: Intravital microscopy was demonstrated to be a suitable method for monitoring time and spatial distribution of gene expression in experimental tumors and provided evidence that electroporation-assisted gene delivery using 8 pulses, 600 V/cm, 5 ms, 1 Hz is an effective method, resulting in early onset and homogenous distribution of gene expression in the syngeneic P22 rat tumor model
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