4,916 research outputs found
Arrest stress of uniformly sheared wet granular matter
We conduct extensive independent numerical experiments considering
frictionless disks without internal degrees of freedom (rotation etc.) in two
dimensions. We report here that for a large range of the packing fractions
below random-close packing, all components of the stress tensor of wet granular
materials remain finite in the limit of zero shear rate. This is direct
evidence for a fluid-to-solid arrest transition. The offset value of the shear
stress characterizes plastic deformation of the arrested state {which
corresponds to {\em dynamic yield stress} of the system}. {Based on an
analytical line of argument, we propose that the mean number of capillary
bridges per particle, , follows a non-trivial dependence on the packing
fraction, , and the capillary energy, \vareps. Most noticeably, we show
that is a generic and universal quantity which does not depend on the
driving protocol.} Using this universal quantity, we calculate the arrest
stress, , analytically based on a balance of the energy injection
rate due to the external force driving the flow and the dissipation rate
accounting for the rupture of capillary bridges. The resulting prediction of
is a non-linear function of the packing fraction , and the
capillary energy \vareps. This formula provides an excellent, parameter-free
prediction of the numerical data. Corrections to the theory for small and large
packing fractions are connected to the emergence of shear bands and of
contributions to the stress from repulsive particle interactions, respectively.Comment: 7 pages, g figure
Peli1 facilitates virus replication and promotes neuroinflammation during West Nile virus infection
The effects of ram-pressure stripping on the internal kinematics of simulated spiral galaxies
We investigate the influence of ram-pressure stripping on the internal gas
kinematics of simulated spiral galaxies. Additional emphasis is put on the
question of how the resulting distortions of the gaseous disc are visible in
the rotation curve and/or the full 2D velocity field of galaxies at different
redshifts. A Milky-Way type disc galaxy is modelled in combined
N-body/hydrodynamic simulations with prescriptions for cooling, star formation,
stellar feedback, and galactic winds. This model galaxy moves through a
constant density and temperature gas, which has parameters similar to the
intra-cluster medium (ICM). Rotation curves (RCs) and 2D velocity fields of the
gas are extracted from these simulations in a way that follows the procedure
applied to observations of distant, small, and faint galaxies as closely as
possible. We find that the appearance of distortions of the gaseous disc due to
ram-pressure stripping depends on the direction of the acting ram pressure. In
the case of face-on ram pressure, the distortions mainly appear in the outer
parts of the galaxy in a very symmetric way. In contrast, in the case of
edge-on ram pressure we find stronger distortions. The 2D velocity field also
shows signatures of the interaction in the inner part of the disc. At angles
smaller than 45 degrees between the ICM wind direction and the disc, the
velocity field asymmetry increases significantly compared to larger angles.
Compared to distortions caused by tidal interactions, the effects of
ram-pressure stripping on the velocity field are relatively low in all cases
and difficult to observe at intermediate redshift in seeing-limited
observations. (abridged)Comment: 9 pages, 11 figures, accepted for publication in A&
Inquiry into special reading programs in secondary schools in selected cities in the United States dealing with reading problems associated with the content areas
The purpose of this paper was to report on special programs which have been implement in secondary schools to deal with reading problems associated with the content areas
Phase Separation in Binary Fluid Mixtures with Continuously Ramped Temperature
We consider the demixing of a binary fluid mixture, under gravity, which is
steadily driven into a two phase region by slowly ramping the temperature. We
assume, as a first approximation, that the system remains spatially isothermal,
and examine the interplay of two competing nonlinearities. One of these arises
because the supersaturation is greatest far from the meniscus, creating
inversion of the density which can lead to fluid motion; although isothermal,
this is somewhat like the Benard problem (a single-phase fluid heated from
below). The other is the intrinsic diffusive instability which results either
in nucleation or in spinodal decomposition at large supersaturations.
Experimental results on a simple binary mixture show interesting oscillations
in heat capacity and optical properties for a wide range of ramp parameters. We
argue that these oscillations arise under conditions where both nonlinearities
are important
Quantum Multibaker Maps: Extreme Quantum Regime
We introduce a family of models for quantum mechanical, one-dimensional
random walks, called quantum multibaker maps (QMB). These are Weyl
quantizations of the classical multibaker models previously considered by
Gaspard, Tasaki and others. Depending on the properties of the phases
parametrizing the quantization, we consider only two classes of the QMB maps:
uniform and random. Uniform QMB maps are characterized by phases which are the
same in every unit cell of the multibaker chain. Random QMB maps have phases
that vary randomly from unit cell to unit cell. The eigenstates in the former
case are extended while in the latter they are localized. In the uniform case
and for large , analytic solutions can be obtained for the time
dependent quantum states for periodic chains and for open chains with absorbing
boundary conditions. Steady state solutions and the properties of the
relaxation to a steady state for a uniform QMB chain in contact with
``particle'' reservoirs can also be described analytically. The analytical
results are consistent with, and confirmed by, results obtained from numerical
methods. We report here results for the deep quantum regime (large ) of
the uniform QMB, as well as some results for the random QMB. We leave the
moderate and small results as well as further consideration of the
other versions of the QMB for further publications.Comment: 17 pages, referee's and editor's comments addresse
Label-free optical detection of single enzyme-reactant reactions and associated conformational changes
Monitoring the kinetics and conformational dynamics of single enzymes is
crucial in order to better understand their biological functions as these
motions and structural dynamics are usually unsynchronized among the molecules.
Detecting the enzyme-reactant interactions and associated conformational
changes of the enzyme on a single molecule basis, however, remain as a
challenge with established optical techniques due to the commonly required
labeling of the reactants or the enzyme itself. The labeling process is usually
non-trivial and the labels themselves might skew the physical properties of the
enzyme. Here we demonstrate an optical, label-free method capable of observing
enzymatic interactions and the associated conformational changes on the single
molecule level. We monitor polymerase/DNA interactions via the strong
near-field enhancement provided by plasmonic nanorods resonantly coupled to
whispering gallery modes in microcavities. Specifically, we employ two
different recognition schemes: one in which the kinetics of polymerase/DNA
interactions are probed in the vicinity of DNA-functionalized nanorods, and the
other in which these interactions are probed via the magnitude of
conformational changes in the polymerase molecules immobilized on nanorods. In
both approaches we find that low and high polymerase activities can be clearly
discerned via their characteristic signal amplitude and signal length
distributions. Furthermore, the thermodynamic study of the monitored
interactions suggests the occurrence of DNA polymerization. This work
constitutes a proof-of-concept study of enzymatic activities via plasmonically
enhanced microcavities and establishes an alternative and label-free method
capable of investigating structural changes in single molecules
Whispering-gallery mode (WGM) sensors: review of established and WGM-based techniques to study protein conformational dynamics
This is the final version. Available on open access from Elsevier via the DOI in this recordMonitoring the conformational dynamics of proteins is crucial for a better understanding of their biological functions. To observe the structural dynamics of proteins, it is often necessary to study each molecule individually. To this end, single-molecule techniques have been developed such as Förster resonance energy transfer and optical tweezers. However, although powerful, these techniques do have their limitations, for example, limited temporal resolution, or necessity for fluorescent labelling, and they can often only access a limited set of all protein motions. Here, within the context of established structural biology techniques, we review a new class of highly sensitive optical devices based on WGM, which characterise protein dynamics on previously inaccessible timescales, visualise motions throughout a protein, and track movements of single atoms.Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC
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