Estimation of the Dihedral Angle Between Metal Nanoparticles During Their Coalescence

The process of coalescence of various metal nanoparticles has been studied by the Monte Carlo method. The interaction of nanoparticles is described by a multiparticle Gupta type potential. An algorithm of recognizing and estimating a dihedral angle at the neck is developed. The dihedral angle between metal nanoparticles during their sintering is estimated

Физико-химические свойства мутантных форм L-аспарагиназы из Rhodospirillum rubrum, обладающих антителомеразной активностью

Rru_A3730 protein is a bacterial Rhodospirillum rubrum L-asparaginase (RrA), which is known by its anticancer activity. RrA variants with point amino acid substitutions in the region of 150 amino acids residues: RrA17N, K149E, RrAE149R, V150P, F151T, RrА17N, E149R, V150P, RrAE149R, V150P, showed antiproliferative properties, and also by their ability to suppress telomerase activity. This work is devoted to comparison of physical-chemical and catalytic properties of these mutant forms of RrA. It is shown that pH optimum is in the alkaline zone (8.5 – 9.3); L-glutaminase and D-asparaginase activity is respectively not more than 0.1% and 1.6% of L-asparaginase for all studied variants of RrA. The presence of the N17-terminal amino acid sequence MASMTGGQMGRGSSRQ of the capsid protein of bacteriophage T7 in the RrA structure leads to an increase in the thermal stability of mutant RrA analogues (from 50°C to 56°C) and their resistance to denaturation in the presence of 3 – 4 M urea. It is of Metal ions exhibit multidirectional effects on L-asparaginase activity of RrA. K+, Ca2+, Zn2+, Cs+, Co2+ in significantly affect the activity of L-asparaginase, while Mn2+, Cu2+, Fe3+ ions inhibit it. There was no correlation between antitelomerase (antiproliferative) activity and kinetic properties of mutant forms of L-asparaginase RrA.Белок Rru_A3730, известный как бактериальная L-аспарагиназа Rhodospirillum rubrum, представляет интерес в качестве потенциального противоопухолевого средства, особенно её варианты с точечными аминокислотными заменами в районе 150 аминокислотного остатка (а.к.о.): RrA17N, K149E, RrAE149R, V150P, F151T, RrА17N, E149R, V150P, RrAE149R, V150P, обладающие не только антипролиферативными свойствами, но и способностью подавлять активность теломеразы. Данная работа посвящена сравнению физико-химических и каталитических свойств этих мутантных форм RrA. Показано, что для всех изученных вариантов RrA рН оптимум находится в щелочной зоне (8.5 – 9.3); L-глутаминазная и D-аспарагиназная активность составляют, соответственно, не более 0.1% и 1.6% от L-аспарагиназной. Присутствие 17N-концевой аминокислотной последовательности MASMTGGQQMGRGSSRQ капсидного белка бактериофага Т7 в структуре RrA приводит к повышению термостабильности мутантных аналогов RrA (от 50°С до 56°С) и их устойчивости к денатурации в присутствии 3 – 4 М мочевины. Выявлен разнонаправленный эффект ионов металлов на L-аспарагиназную активность вариантов RrA: ионы K+, Ca2+, Zn2+, Cs+, Co2+ существенно не влияют на активность L-аспарагиназы, добавление ионов Mn2+, Cu2+, Fe3+ приводит к снижению активности. Не обнаружено корреляции между антителомеразной (антипролиферативной) активностью и кинетическими свойствами мутантных форм L-аспарагиназы RrA

Measurement of RudsR_{\text{uds}} and RR between 3.12 and 3.72 GeV at the KEDR detector

Using the KEDR detector at the VEPP-4M $e^+e^-$ collider, we have measured the values of $R_{\text{uds}}$ and $R$ at seven points of the center-of-mass energy between 3.12 and 3.72 GeV. The total achieved accuracy is about or better than $3.3\%$ at most of energy points with a systematic uncertainty of about $2.1\%$. At the moment it is the most accurate measurement of $R(s)$ in this energy range

Nonquasiparticle states in half-metallic ferromagnets

Anomalous magnetic and electronic properties of the half-metallic ferromagnets (HMF) have been discussed. The general conception of the HMF electronic structure which take into account the most important correlation effects from electron-magnon interactions, in particular, the spin-polaron effects, is presented. Special attention is paid to the so called non-quasiparticle (NQP) or incoherent states which are present in the gap near the Fermi level and can give considerable contributions to thermodynamic and transport properties. Prospects of experimental observation of the NQP states in core-level spectroscopy is discussed. Special features of transport properties of the HMF which are connected with the absence of one-magnon spin-flip scattering processes are investigated. The temperature and magnetic field dependences of resistivity in various regimes are calculated. It is shown that the NQP states can give a dominate contribution to the temperature dependence of the impurity-induced resistivity and in the tunnel junction conductivity. First principle calculations of the NQP-states for the prototype half-metallic material NiMnSb within the local-density approximation plus dynamical mean field theory (LDA+DMFT) are presented.Comment: 27 pages, 9 figures, Proceedings of Berlin/Wandlitz workshop 2004; Local-Moment Ferromagnets. Unique Properties for Moder Applications, ed. M. Donath, W.Nolting, Springer, Berlin, 200

Search for narrow resonances in e+ e- annihilation between 1.85 and 3.1 GeV with the KEDR Detector

We report results of a search for narrow resonances in e+ e- annihilation at center-of-mass energies between 1.85 and 3.1 GeV performed with the KEDR detector at the VEPP-4M e+ e- collider. The upper limit on the leptonic width of a narrow resonance Gamma(R -> ee) Br(R -> hadr) < 120 eV has been obtained (at 90 % C.L.)

Measurement of \Gamma_{ee}(J/\psi)*Br(J/\psi->e^+e^-) and \Gamma_{ee}(J/\psi)*Br(J/\psi->\mu^+\mu^-)

The products of the electron width of the J/\psi meson and the branching fraction of its decays to the lepton pairs were measured using data from the KEDR experiment at the VEPP-4M electron-positron collider. The results are \Gamma_{ee}(J/\psi)*Br(J/\psi->e^+e^-)=(0.3323\pm0.0064\pm0.0048) keV, \Gamma_{ee}(J/\psi)*Br(J/\psi->\mu^+\mu^-)=(0.3318\pm0.0052\pm0.0063) keV. Their combinations \Gamma_{ee}\times(\Gamma_{ee}+\Gamma_{\mu\mu})/\Gamma=(0.6641\pm0.0082\pm0.0100) keV, \Gamma_{ee}/\Gamma_{\mu\mu}=1.002\pm0.021\pm0.013 can be used to improve theaccuracy of the leptonic and full widths and test leptonic universality. Assuming e\mu universality and using the world average value of the lepton branching fraction, we also determine the leptonic \Gamma_{ll}=5.59\pm0.12 keV and total \Gamma=94.1\pm2.7 keV widths of the J/\psi meson.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure

Measurement of main parameters of the \psi(2S) resonance

A high-precision determination of the main parameters of the \psi(2S) resonance has been performed with the KEDR detector at the VEPP-4M e^{+}e^{-} collider in three scans of the \psi(2S) -- \psi(3770) energy range. Fitting the energy dependence of the multihadron cross section in the vicinity of the \psi(2S) we obtained the mass value M = 3686.114 +- 0.007 +- 0.011 ^{+0.002}_{-0.012} MeV and the product of the electron partial width by the branching fraction into hadrons \Gamma_{ee}*B_{h} = 2.233 +- 0.015 +- 0.037 +- 0.020 keV. The third error quoted is an estimate of the model dependence of the result due to assumptions on the interference effects in the cross section of the single-photon e^{+}e^{-} annihilation to hadrons explicitly considered in this work. Implicitly, the same assumptions were employed to obtain the charmonium leptonic width and the absolute branching fractions in many experiments. Using the result presented and the world average values of the electron and hadron branching fractions, one obtains the electron partial width and the total width of the \psi(2S): \Gamma_{ee} =2.282 +- 0.015 +- 0.038 +- 0.021 keV, \Gamma = 296 +- 2 +- 8 +- 3 keV. These results are consistent with and more than two times more precise than any of the previous experiments

Heavy quarkonium: progress, puzzles, and opportunities

A golden age for heavy quarkonium physics dawned a decade ago, initiated by the confluence of exciting advances in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) and an explosion of related experimental activity. The early years of this period were chronicled in the Quarkonium Working Group (QWG) CERN Yellow Report (YR) in 2004, which presented a comprehensive review of the status of the field at that time and provided specific recommendations for further progress. However, the broad spectrum of subsequent breakthroughs, surprises, and continuing puzzles could only be partially anticipated. Since the release of the YR, the BESII program concluded only to give birth to BESIII; the $B$-factories and CLEO-c flourished; quarkonium production and polarization measurements at HERA and the Tevatron matured; and heavy-ion collisions at RHIC have opened a window on the deconfinement regime. All these experiments leave legacies of quality, precision, and unsolved mysteries for quarkonium physics, and therefore beg for continuing investigations. The plethora of newly-found quarkonium-like states unleashed a flood of theoretical investigations into new forms of matter such as quark-gluon hybrids, mesonic molecules, and tetraquarks. Measurements of the spectroscopy, decays, production, and in-medium behavior of c\bar{c}, b\bar{b}, and b\bar{c} bound states have been shown to validate some theoretical approaches to QCD and highlight lack of quantitative success for others. The intriguing details of quarkonium suppression in heavy-ion collisions that have emerged from RHIC have elevated the importance of separating hot- and cold-nuclear-matter effects in quark-gluon plasma studies. This review systematically addresses all these matters and concludes by prioritizing directions for ongoing and future efforts.Comment: 182 pages, 112 figures. Editors: N. Brambilla, S. Eidelman, B. K. Heltsley, R. Vogt. Section Coordinators: G. T. Bodwin, E. Eichten, A. D. Frawley, A. B. Meyer, R. E. Mitchell, V. Papadimitriou, P. Petreczky, A. A. Petrov, P. Robbe, A. Vair

Study of doubly strange systems using stored antiprotons

Bound nuclear systems with two units of strangeness are still poorly known despite their importance for many strong interaction phenomena. Stored antiprotons beams in the GeV range represent an unparalleled factory for various hyperon-antihyperon pairs. Their outstanding large production probability in antiproton collisions will open the floodgates for a series of new studies of systems which contain two or even more units of strangeness at the P‾ANDA experiment at FAIR. For the first time, high resolution γ-spectroscopy of doubly strange ΛΛ-hypernuclei will be performed, thus complementing measurements of ground state decays of ΛΛ-hypernuclei at J-PARC or possible decays of particle unstable hypernuclei in heavy ion reactions. High resolution spectroscopy of multistrange Ξ−-atoms will be feasible and even the production of Ω−-atoms will be within reach. The latter might open the door to the |S|=3 world in strangeness nuclear physics, by the study of the hadronic Ω−-nucleus interaction. For the first time it will be possible to study the behavior of Ξ‾+ in nuclear systems under well controlled conditions