Steady-state dynamics and effective temperatures of quantum criticality in an open system

We study the thermal and non-thermal steady state scaling functions and the steady-state dynamics of a model of local quantum criticality. The model we consider, i.e. the pseudogap Kondo model, allows us to study the concept of effective temperatures near fully interacting as well as weak-coupling fixed points. In the vicinity of each fixed point we establish the existence of an effective temperature --different at each fixed point-- such that the equilibrium fluctuation-dissipation theorem is recovered. Most notably, steady-state scaling functions in terms of the effective temperatures coincide with the equilibrium scaling functions. This result extends to higher correlation functions as is explicitly demonstrated for the Kondo singlet strength. The non-linear charge transport is also studied and analyzed in terms of the effective temperature.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures; Supplementary Material (7 pages, 1 figure

Antagonistic effects of three species of Trichoderma sp. on Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, the causal agent of canola stem rot

Stem rot of canola (Brassica napus ) caused by Sclerotinia sclerotiorum is one of the most serious of plant diseases. From 30 Trichoderma isolates, three different species T. harzianum-8, T. atroviride PTCC5220 and T. longibrachiatum PTCC5140, were selected on the basis of their highlevel of chitinase and/or glucanase activity, along with their rapid growth rate in vitro. These showed high growth inhibition of two phytopathogenic isolates of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (S1and S2), with T. atroviride the greatest effect, reducing growth by 85-93%. They showed coilformation and penetration structures against the hyphae of the pathogenic isolates. T. atroviride PTCC5220 can be used for assessment of field biocontrol against S. sclerotiorum

Analytic height correlation function of rough surfaces derived from light scattering

We derive an analytic expression for the height correlation function of a rough surface based on the inverse wave scattering method of Kirchhoff theory. The expression directly relates the height correlation function to diffuse scattered intensity along a linear path at fixed polar angle. We test the solution by measuring the angular distribution of light scattered from rough silicon surfaces, and comparing extracted height correlation functions to those derived from atomic force microscopy (AFM). The results agree closely with AFM over a wider range of roughness parameters than previous formulations of the inverse scattering problem, while relying less on large-angle scatter data. Our expression thus provides an accurate analytical equation for the height correlation function of a wide range of surfaces based on measurements using a simple, fast experimental procedure.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, 1 tabl