Geometric nature of the environment-induced Berry phase and geometric dephasing

We investigate the geometric phase or Berry phase (BP) acquired by a spin-half which is both subject to a slowly varying magnetic field and weakly-coupled to a dissipative environment (either quantum or classical). We study how this phase is modified by the environment and find that the modification is of a geometric nature. While the original BP (for an isolated system) is the flux of a monopole-field through the loop traversed by the magnetic field, the environment-induced modification of the BP is the flux of a quadrupole-like field. We find that the environment-induced phase is complex, and its imaginary part is a geometric contribution to dephasing. Its sign depends on the direction of the loop. Unlike the BP, this geometric dephasing is gauge invariant for open paths of the magnetic field.Comment: new version : more discussion and less technicalities (4pages 2fig

Zero bias anomaly out of equilibrium

The non-equilibrium zero bias anomaly (ZBA) in the tunneling density of states of a diffusive metallic film is studied. An effective action describing virtual fluctuations out-of-equilibrium is derived. The singular behavior of the equilibrium ZBA is smoothed out by real processes of inelastic scattering.Comment: 4 page

Ferromagnetic phase transitions of inhomogeneous systems modelled by square Ising models with diamond-type bond-decorations

The two-dimensional Ising model defined on square lattices with diamond-type bond-decorations is employed to study the nature of the ferromagnetic phase transitions of inhomogeneous systems. The model is studied analytically under the bond-renormalization scheme. For an $n$-level decorated lattice, the long-range ordering occurs at the critical temperature given by the fitting function as $(k_{B}T_{c}/J)_{n}=1.6410+(0.6281) \exp [ -(0.5857) n]$, and the local ordering inside $n$-level decorated bonds occurs at the temperature given by the fitting function as $(k_{B}T_{m}/J)_{n}=1.6410-(0.8063) \exp [ -(0.7144) n]$. The critical amplitude $A_{\sin g}^{(n)}$ of the logrithmic singularity in specific heat characterizes the width of the critical region, and it varies with the decoration level $n$ as $A_{\sin g}^{(n)}=(0.2473) \exp [ -(0.3018) n]$, obtained by fitting the numerical results. The cross over from a finite-decorated system to an infinite-decorated system is not a smooth continuation. For the case of infinite decorations, the critical specific heat becomes a cusp with the height $c^{(n)}=0.639852$. The results are compared with those obtained in the cell-decorated Ising model.Comment: 18 pages, 7 figure

Non-Equilibrium Magnetization in a Ballistic Quantum Dot

We show that Aharonov-Bohm (AB) oscillations in the magnetic moment of an integrable ballistic quantum dot can be destroyed by a time dependent magnetic flux. The effect is due to a nonequilibrium population of perfectly coherent electronic states. For real ballistic systems the equilibrization process, which involves a special type of inelastic electron backscattering, can be so ineffective, that AB oscillations are suppressed when the flux varies with frequency $\omega\sim$ 10$^7$-10$^8$ s$^{-1}$. The effect can be used to measure relaxation times for inelastic backscattering.Comment: 11 pages LaTeX v3.14 with RevTeX v3.0, 3 post script figures available on request, APR 93-X2

Spin and Charge Correlations in Quantum Dots: An Exact Solution

The inclusion of charging and spin-exchange interactions within the Universal Hamiltonian description of quantum dots is challenging as it leads to a non-Abelian action. Here we present an {\it exact} analytical solution of the probem, in particular, in the vicinity of the Stoner instabilty point. We calculate several observables, including the tunneling density of states (TDOS) and the spin susceptibility. Near the instability point the TDOS exhibits a non-monotonous behavior as function of the tunneling energy, even at temperatures higher than the exchange energy. Our approach is generalizable to a broad set of observables, including the a.c. susceptibility and the absorption spectrum for anisotropic spin interaction. Our results could be tested in nearly ferromagnetic materials.Comment: JETPL class, 6 pages, 2 figure

Zero--Bias Anomaly in Finite Size Systems

The small energy anomaly in the single particle density of states of disordered interacting systems is studied for the zero dimensional case. This anomaly interpolates between the non--perturbative Coulomb blockade and the perturbative limit, the latter being an extension of the Altshuler--Aronov zero bias anomaly at d=0. Coupling of the zero dimensional system to a dissipative environment leads to an effective screening of the interaction and a modification of the density of states.Comment: 25 pages and 6 figure

Channel Interference in a Quasi Ballistic Aharonov-Bohm Experiment

New experiments are presented on the transmission of electron waves through a 2DEG (2 dimensional electron gas) ring with a gate on top of one of the branches. Magnetoconductance oscillations are observed, and the phase of the Aharanov-Bohm signal alternates between 0 and pi as the gate voltage is scanned. A Fourier transform of the data reveals a dominant period in the voltage which corresponds to the energy spacing between successive transverse modes.A theoretical model including random phase shifts between successive modes reproduces the essential features of the experiment.Comment: 4 pages, 6 Postscript figures, TEX, submitted to Physical Review Letter

Dynamics of the magnetic flux trapped in fractal clusters of normal phase in a superconductor

The influence of geometry and morphology of superconducting structure on critical currents and magnetic flux trapping in percolative type-II superconductor is considered. The superconductor contains the clusters of a normal phase, which act as pinning centers. It is found that such clusters have significant fractal properties. The main features of these clusters are studied in detail: the cluster statistics is analyzed; the fractal dimension of their boundary is estimated; the distribution of critical currents is obtained, and its peculiarities are explored. It is examined thoroughly how the finite resolution capacity of the cluster geometrical size measurement affects the estimated value of fractal dimension. The effect of fractal properties of the normal phase clusters on the electric field arising from magnetic flux motion is investigated in the case of an exponential distribution of cluster areas. The voltage-current characteristics of superconductors in the resistive state for an arbitrary fractal dimension are obtained. It is revealed that the fractality of the boundaries of the normal phase clusters intensifies the magnetic flux trapping and thereby raises the critical current of a superconductor.Comment: revtex, 16 pages with 1 table and 5 figures; text and figures are improved; more detailed version with geometric probability analisys of the distribution of entry points into weak links over the perimeter of a normal phase clusters and one additional figure is published in Phys.Rev.B; alternative e-mail of author is [email protected]

Many-body Landau-Zener dynamics in coupled 1D Bose liquids

The Landau-Zener model of a quantum mechanical two-level system driven with a linearly time dependent detuning has served over decades as a textbook paradigm of quantum dynamics. In their seminal work [L. D. Landau, Physik. Z. Sowjet. 2, 46 (1932); C. Zener, Proc. Royal Soc. London 137, 696 (1932)], Landau and Zener derived a non-perturbative prediction for the transition probability between two states, which often serves as a reference point for the analysis of more complex systems. A particularly intriguing question is whether that framework can be extended to describe many-body quantum dynamics. Here we report an experimental and theoretical study of a system of ultracold atoms, offering a direct many-body generalization of the Landau-Zener problem. In a system of pairwise tunnel-coupled 1D Bose liquids we show how tuning the correlations of the 1D gases, the tunnel coupling between the tubes and the inter-tube interactions strongly modify the original Landau-Zener picture. The results are explained using a mean-field description of the inter-tube condensate wave-function, coupled to the low-energy phonons of the 1D Bose liquid.Comment: 13 pages, 10 figures

Binding of NF-kappaB p65 subunit to the promoter elements is involved in LPS-induced transactivation of miRNA genes in human biliary epithelial cells

The majority of human miRNA genes is transcribed by polymerase II and can be classified as class II genes similar to protein-coding genes. Whereas current research on miRNAs has focused on the physiological and pathological functions, the molecular mechanisms underlying their transcriptional regulation are largely unknown. We recently reported that lipopolysaccharide (LPS) alters mature miRNA expression profile in human biliary epithelial cells. In this study, we tested the role of transcription factor NF-κB in LPS-induced transcription of select miRNA genes. Of the majority of LPS-up-regulated mature miRNAs in cultured human biliary epithelial cells, potential NF-κB binding sites were identified in the putative promoter elements of their corresponding genes. Inhibition of NF-κB activation by SC-514, an IKK2 inhibitor, blocked LPS-induced up-regulation of a subset of pri-miRNAs, including pri-miR-17-92, pri-miR-125b-1, pri-miR-21, pri-miR-23b-27b-24-1, pri-miR-30b, pri-miR-130a and pri-miR-29a. Moreover, direct binding of NF-κB p65 subunit to the promoter elements of mir-17-92, mir-125b-1, mir-21, mir-23b-27b-24-1, mir-30b and mir-130a genes was identified by chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis and confirmed by the luciferase reporter assay. Thus, a subset of miRNA genes is regulated in human biliary epithelial cells through NF-κB activation induced by LPS, suggesting a role of the NF-κB pathway in the transcriptional regulation of miRNA genes