347 research outputs found
Mott insulators in an optical lattice with high filling factors
We discuss the superfluid to Mott insulator transition of an atomic Bose gas
in an optical lattice with high filling factors. We show that also in this
multi-band situation, the long-wavelength physics is described by a single-band
Bose-Hubbard model. We determine the many-body renormalization of the tunneling
and interaction parameters in the effective Bose-Hubbard Hamiltonian, and
consider the resulting model at nonzero temperatures. We show that in
particular for a one or two-dimensional optical lattice, the Mott insulator
phase is more difficult to realize than anticipated previously.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, title changed, major restructuring, resubmitted
to PR
On the Role of Penning Ionization in Photoassociation Spectroscopy
We study the role of Penning ionization on the photoassociation spectra of
He(^3S)-He(^3S). The experimental setup is discussed and experimental results
for different intensities of the probe laser are shown. For modelling the
experimental results we consider coupled-channel calculations of the crossing
of the ground state with the excited state at the Condon point. The
coupled-channel calculations are first applied to model systems, where we
consider two coupled channels without ionization, two coupled channels with
ionization, and three coupled channels, for which only one of the excited
states is ionizing. Finally, coupled-channel calculations are applied to
photoassociation of He(^3S)-He(^3S) and good agreement is obtained between the
model and the experimental results.Comment: 14 pages, 18 figures, submitted to the special issue on Cold
Molecules of J. Phys.
Excitations of a Bose-Einstein condensate in a one-dimensional optical lattice
We investigate the low-lying excitations of a stack of weakly-coupled
two-dimensional Bose-Einstein condensates that is formed by a one-dimensional
optical lattice. In particular, we calculate the dispersion relations of the
monopole and quadrupole modes, both for the ground state as well as for the
case in which the system contains a vortex along the direction of the lasers
creating the optical lattice. Our variational approach enables us to determine
analytically the dispersion relations for an arbitrary number of atoms in every
two-dimensional condensate and for an arbitrary momentum. We also discuss the
feasibility of experimentally observing our results.Comment: 16 pages, 5 figures, minor changes,accepted for publication in Phys.
Rev.
Transmittivity of a Bose-Einstein condensate on a lattice: interference from period doubling and the effect of disorder
We evaluate the particle current flowing in steady state through a
Bose-Einstein condensate subject to a constant force in a quasi-onedimensional
lattice and to attractive interactions from fermionic atoms that are localized
in various configurations inside the lattice wells. The system is treated
within a Bose-Hubbard tight binding model by an out-of-equilibrium Green's
function approach. A new band gap opens up when the lattice period is doubled
by locating the fermions in alternate wells and yields an interference pattern
in the transmittivity on varying the intensity of the driving force. The
positions of the transmittivity minima are determined by matching the period of
Bloch oscillations and the time for tunnelling across the band gap. Massive
disorder in the distribution of the fermions will wash out the interference
pattern, but the same period doubling of the lattice can be experimentally
realized in a four-beam set-up. We report illustrative numerical results for a
mixture of 87Rb and 40K atoms in an optical lattice created by laser beams with
a wavelength of 763 nm.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figure
Proposal of an extended t-J Hamiltonian for high-Tc cuprates from ab initio calculations on embedded clusters
A series of accurate ab initio calculations on Cu_pO-q finite clusters,
properly embedded on the Madelung potential of the infinite lattice, have been
performed in order to determine the local effective interactions in the CuO_2
planes of La_{2-x}Sr_xCuO_4 compounds. The values of the first-neighbor
interactions, magnetic coupling (J_{NN}=125 meV) and hopping integral
(t_{NN}=-555 meV), have been confirmed. Important additional effects are
evidenced, concerning essentially the second-neighbor hopping integral
t_{NNN}=+110meV, the displacement of a singlet toward an adjacent colinear
hole, h_{SD}^{abc}=-80 meV, a non-negligible hole-hole repulsion
V_{NN}-V_{NNN}=0.8 eV and a strong anisotropic effect of the presence of an
adjacent hole on the values of the first-neighbor interactions. The dependence
of J_{NN} and t_{NN} on the position of neighbor hole(s) has been rationalized
from the two-band model and checked from a series of additional ab initio
calculations. An extended t-J model Hamiltonian has been proposed on the basis
of these results. It is argued that the here-proposed three-body effects may
play a role in the charge/spin separation observed in these compounds, that is,
in the formation and dynamic of stripes.Comment: 24 pages, 4 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Circulating Lipoproteins Are a Crucial Component of Host Defense against Invasive Salmonella typhimurium Infection
Contains fulltext :
79883.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Open Access)BACKGROUND: Circulating lipoproteins improve the outcome of severe Gram-negative infections through neutralizing lipopolysaccharides (LPS), thus inhibiting the release of proinflammatory cytokines. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Low density lipoprotein receptor deficient (LDLR-/-) mice, with a 7-fold increase in LDL, are resistant against infection with Salmonella typhimurium (survival 100% vs 5%, p<0.001), and 100 to 1000-fold lower bacterial burden in the organs, compared with LDLR+/+ mice. Protection was not due to differences in cytokine production, phagocytosis, and killing of Salmonella organisms. The differences were caused by the excess of lipoproteins, as hyperlipoproteinemic ApoE-/- mice were also highly resistant to Salmonella infection. Lipoproteins protect against infection by interfering with the binding of Salmonella to host cells, and preventing organ invasion. This leads to an altered biodistribution of the microorganisms during the first hours of infection: after intravenous injection of Salmonella into LDLR+/+ mice, the bacteria invaded the liver and spleen within 30 minutes of infection. In contrast, in LDLR-/- mice, Salmonella remained constrained to the circulation from where they were efficiently cleared, with decreased organ invasion. CONCLUSIONS: plasma lipoproteins are a potent host defense mechanism against invasive Salmonella infection, by blocking adhesion of Salmonella to the host cells and subsequent tissue invasion
How to detect fluctuating order in the high-temperature superconductors
We discuss fluctuating order in a quantum disordered phase proximate to a
quantum critical point, with particular emphasis on fluctuating stripe order.
Optimal strategies for extracting information concerning such local order from
experiments are derived with emphasis on neutron scattering and scanning
tunneling microscopy. These ideas are tested by application to two model
systems - the exactly solvable one dimensional electron gas with an impurity,
and a weakly-interacting 2D electron gas. We extensively review experiments on
the cuprate high-temperature superconductors which can be analyzed using these
strategies. We adduce evidence that stripe correlations are widespread in the
cuprates. Finally, we compare and contrast the advantages of two limiting
perspectives on the high-temperature superconductor: weak coupling, in which
correlation effects are treated as a perturbation on an underlying metallic
(although renormalized) Fermi liquid state, and strong coupling, in which the
magnetism is associated with well defined localized spins, and stripes are
viewed as a form of micro-phase separation. We present quantitative indicators
that the latter view better accounts for the observed stripe phenomena in the
cuprates.Comment: 43 pages, 11 figures, submitted to RMP; extensively revised and
greatly improved text; one new figure, one new section, two new appendices
and more reference
Second intravenous immunoglobulin dose in patients with Guillain-Barre syndrome with poor prognosis (SID-GBS):a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial
Background Treatment with one standard dose (2 g/kg) of intravenous immunoglobulin is insufficient in a proportion of patients with severe Guillain-Barre syndrome. Worldwide, around 25% of patients severely affected with the syndrome are given a second intravenous immunoglobulin dose (SID), although it has not been proven effective. We aimed to investigate whether a SID is effective in patients with Guillain-Barre syndrome with a predicted poor outcome. Methods In this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial (SID-GBS), we included patients (>= 12 years) with Guillain-Barre syndrome admitted to one of 59 participating hospitals in the Netherlands. Patients were included on the first day of standard intravenous immunoglobulin treatment (2 g/kg over 5 days). Only patients with a poor prognosis (score of >= 6) according to the modified Erasmus Guillain-Barre syndrome Outcome Score were randomly assigned, via block randomisation stratified by centre, to SID (2 g/kg over 5 days) or to placebo, 7-9 days after inclusion. Patients, outcome adjudicators, monitors, and the steering committee were masked to treatment allocation. The primary outcome measure was the Guillain-Barre syndrome disability score 4 weeks after inclusion. All patients in whom allocated trial medication was started were included in the modified intention-to-treat analysis. Findings Between Feb 16, 2010, and June 5, 2018, 327 of 339 patients assessed for eligibility were included. 112 had a poor prognosis. Of those, 93 patients with a poor prognosis were included in the modified intention-to-treat analysis: 49 (53%) received SID and 44 (47%) received placebo. The adjusted common odds ratio for improvement on the Guillain-Barre syndrome disability score at 4 weeks was 1.4 (95% CI 0.6-3.3; p=0.45). Patients given SID had more serious adverse events (35% vs 16% in the first 30 days), including thromboembolic events, than those in the placebo group. Four patients died in the intervention group (13-24 weeks after randomisation). Interpretation Our study does not provide evidence that patients with Guillain-Barre syndrome with a poor prognosis benefit from a second intravenous immunoglobulin course; moreover, it entails a risk of serious adverse events. Therefore, a second intravenous immunoglobulin course should not be considered for treatment of Guillain-Barre syndrome because of a poor prognosis. The results indicate the need for treatment trials with other immune modulators in patients severely affected by Guillain-Barre syndrome. Funding Prinses Beatrix Spierfonds and Sanquin Plasma Products. Copyright (C) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved
Electrical conductivity of lithium at megabar pressures
We report measurements of the electrical conductivity of a liquid alkali
metal - lithium - at pressures up to 1.8 Mbar and fourfold compression,
achieved through shock compression experiments. We find that the results are
consistent with a departure of the electronic properties of lithium from the
nearly free electron approximation at high pressures.Comment: RevTex, 4 pages, 4 figure
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