Search for Higgs Bosons in SUSY Cascade Decays and Neutralino Dark Matter

The Minimal Supersymmetric Extension of the Standard Model (MSSM) is a well motivated theoretical framework, which contains an extended Higgs sector, including a light Higgs with Standard Model-like properties in most of the parameter space. Due to the large QCD background, searches for such a Higgs, decaying into a pair of bottom quarks, is very challenging at the LHC. It has been long realized that the situation may be ameliorated by searching for Higgs bosons in supersymmetric decay chains. Moreover, it has been recently suggested that the bobber decay channel may be observed in standard production channels by selecting boosted Higgs bosons, which may be easily identified from the QCD background. Such boosted Higgs bosons are frequent in the MSSM, since they are produced from decays of heavy colored supersymmetric particles. Previous works have emphasized the possibility of observing boosted Higgs bosons in the light higgsino region. In this work, we study the same question in the regions of parameter space consistent with a neutralino dark matter relic density, analyzing its dependence on the non-standard Higgs boson, slepton and squark masses, as well as on the condition of gaugino mass unification. In general, we conclude that, provided sleptons are heavier than the second lightest neutralinos, the presence of boosted Higgs is a common MSSM feature, implying excellent prospects for observation of the light MSSM Higgs boson in the near future.Comment: 30 pages, 9 figures. v2: New Xenon 100 results implemented, version to appear in PR

Thermoresponsive Colloidal Molecules

We fabricated thermoresponsive colloidal molecules of ca. 250 nm size. Electron- and scanning force microscopy reveal the dumbbell-shaped morphology. The temperature dependence of the size and aspect ratio (ca. 1.4 to 1.6) is analyzed by depolarized dynamic light scattering and found to be in good agreement with microscopic evidence

How frequent are close supermassive binary black holes in powerful jet sources?

24 pages, 36 figures. © 2018 The Author(s) Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society This article is published and distributed under the terms of the Oxford University Press, Standard Journals Publication Model (https://academic.oup.com/journals/pages/open_access/funder_policies/chorus/standard_publication_model)Supermassive black hole binariesmay be detectable by an upcoming suite of gravitationalwave experiments. Their binary nature can also be revealed by radio jets via a short-period precession driven by the orbital motion as well as the geodetic precession at typically longer periods. We have investigated Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array and Multi-Element Radio Linked Interferometer Network (MERLIN) radio maps of powerful jet sources for morphological evidence of geodetic precession. For perhaps the best-studied source, Cygnus A, we find strong evidence for geodetic precession. Projection effects can enhance precession features, for which we find indications in strongly projected sources. For a complete sample of 33 3CR radio sources, we find strong evidence for jet precession in 24 cases (73 per cent). The morphology of the radio maps suggests that the precession periods are of the order of 10 6- 10 7 yr. We consider different explanations for the morphological features and conclude that geodetic precession is the best explanation. The frequently observed gradual jet angle changes in samples of powerful blazars can be explained by orbital motion. Both observations can be explained simultaneously by postulating that a high fraction of powerful radio sources have subparsec supermassive black hole binaries.We consider complementary evidence and discuss if any jetted supermassive black hole with some indication of precession could be detected as individual gravitational wave source in the near future. This appears unlikely, with the possible exception of M87.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

Assessing parents preferences for the avoidance of undesirable anesthesia side effects in their children undergoing surgical procedures

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/75738/1/j.1460-9592.2007.02261.x.pd

Evaluating Maintainability Prejudices with a Large-Scale Study of Open-Source Projects

Exaggeration or context changes can render maintainability experience into prejudice. For example, JavaScript is often seen as least elegant language and hence of lowest maintainability. Such prejudice should not guide decisions without prior empirical validation. We formulated 10 hypotheses about maintainability based on prejudices and test them in a large set of open-source projects (6,897 GitHub repositories, 402 million lines, 5 programming languages). We operationalize maintainability with five static analysis metrics. We found that JavaScript code is not worse than other code, Java code shows higher maintainability than C# code and C code has longer methods than other code. The quality of interface documentation is better in Java code than in other code. Code developed by teams is not of higher and large code bases not of lower maintainability. Projects with high maintainability are not more popular or more often forked. Overall, most hypotheses are not supported by open-source data.Comment: 20 page

Local charge and spin currents in magnetothermal landscapes

A scannable laser beam is used to generate local thermal gradients in metallic (Co2FeAl) or insulating (Y3Fe5O12) ferromagnetic thin films. We study the resulting local charge and spin currents that arise due to the anomalous Nernst effect (ANE) and the spin Seebeck effect (SSE), respectively. In the local ANE experiments, we detect the voltage in the Co2FeAl thin film plane as a function of the laser spot position and external magnetic field magnitude and orientation. The local SSE effect is detected in a similar fashion by exploiting the inverse spin Hall effect in a Pt layer deposited on top of the Y3Fe5O12. Our findings establish local thermal spin and charge current generation as well as spin caloritronic domain imaging

Direct correlation of crystal structure and optical properties in wurtzite/zinc-blende GaAs nanowire heterostructures

A novel method for the direct correlation at the nanoscale of structural and optical properties of single GaAs nanowires is reported. Nanowires consisting of 100% wurtzite and nanowires presenting zinc-blende/wurtzite polytypism are investigated by photoluminescence spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The photoluminescence of wurtzite GaAs is consistent with a band gap of 1.5 eV. In the polytypic nanowires, it is shown that the regions that are predominantly composed of either zinc-blende or wurtzite phase show photoluminescence emission close to the bulk GaAs band gap, while regions composed of a nonperiodic superlattice of wurtzite and zinc-blende phases exhibit a redshift of the photoluminescence spectra as low as 1.455 eV. The dimensions of the quantum heterostructures are correlated with the light emission, allowing us to determine the band alignment between these two crystalline phases. Our first-principles electronic structure calculations within density functional theory, employing a hybrid-exchange functional, predict band offsets and effective masses in good agreement with experimental results

Move of a large but delicate apparatus on a trailer with air-ride suspension

When valuable delicate goods are shipped by truck, attention must be paid to vibrations that may cause damage. We present a case study of moving an extremely delicate 6230-kg superconducting magnet, immersed in liquid nitrogen, from Livermore, CA to Seattle, WA showing the steps of fatigue analysis of the load, a test move, and acceleration monitoring of the final move to ensure a successful damage-free transport

Efficacy against nematode and cestode infections and safety of a novel topical fipronil, (S)-methoprene, eprinomectin and praziquantel combination product in domestic cats under field conditions in Europe

AbstractA novel topical combination product (BROADLINE®, Merial) composed of fipronil, (S)-methoprene, eprinomectin and praziquantel was evaluated for safety and efficacy against nematode and cestode infections in domestic cats. The study comprised a multi-centre, positive control, blinded, field study, using a randomized block design based on order of presentation for allocation. In total 196 client-owned cats, confirmed as positive for naturally acquired infections of nematodes and/or cestodes by pre-treatment faecal examination, were studied in seven countries in Europe. Pre-treatment faecal examination revealed the presence of Toxocara, hookworm, Capillaria and/or spirurid nematode infections in 129, 73, 33 or 1 cat(s), respectively; infections with taeniid and Dipylidium cestodes were demonstrated in 39 and 17 cats, respectively. Cats were allocated randomly to one of two treatments in a ratio of 2, topical fipronil (8.3%, w/v), (S)-methoprene (10%, w/v), eprinomectin (0.4%, w/v) and praziquantel (8.3%, w/v) (BROADLINE®, Merial; 130 cats); and 1, topical PROFENDER® Spot-On (Bayer; 66 cats) and treated once on Day 0. For evaluation of efficacy, two faecal samples were collected, one prior to treatment (Day −4±4 days) and one at the end of the study (Day 14±5 days). These were examined for fecal forms of nematode and cestode parasites. For evaluation of safety, cats were examined by a veterinarian before treatment and at the end of the study, and cat owners recorded the health status of their cats daily until the end of the study.For cats treated with Broadline®, the efficacy was >99.9%, 100%, and 99.6% for Toxocara, hookworms, and Capillaria, respectively; and the efficacy was >99.9%, >99.9%, and 98.5%, respectively, for the cats treated with Profender® (p<0.001 for all nematodes and both treatments). Efficacy was 100% for both cestodes for both treatments (p<0.001).No treatment related adverse experiences were observed throughout the study. For both treatments, every cat that completed the study was given a safety score of ‘excellent’ for both local and systemic evaluations. The topical combination product of fipronil, (S)-methoprene, eprinomectin and praziquantel was shown to have an excellent safety profile and demonstrated high levels of efficacy when administered once as topical solution to cats infected with nematodes and cestodes under field conditions