604 research outputs found
Autonomic cardiac control in animal models of cardiovascular diseases II. Variability analysis in transgenic rats with alpha-tropomyosin mutations Asp175Asn and Glu180Gly
Animal models of cardiovascular diseases allow to investigate relevant pathogenetic mechanisms in detail. In the present study, the mutations Asp175Asn and Glu180Gly in alpha-tropomyosin (TPM1), known cause familiar hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (FHC) were studied for changes in hemodynamic parameters and spontaneous baroreflex regulation in transgenic rats in comparison to transgenic and non-transgenic controls by telemetry. Heart rate variability (HRV) and blood pressure variability (BPV) were analyzed using time- and frequency domain, as well as non-linear measures. The dual sequence method was used for the estimation of the baroreflex regulation. In transgenic rats harboring mutated TPM1, changes in HRV were detected during exercise, but not at rest. Both mutations, Asp175Asn and Glu180Gly, caused increased low frequency power. In addition, in animals with mutation Asp175Asn a reduced total HRV was observed. BPV did not show any differences between all transgenic animal lines. During exercise, a strong increase in the number of bradycardic and tachycardic fluctuations accompanied with decreased baroreflex sensitivity (BRS) was detected in animals with either TPM1 mutation, Asp175Asn or Glu180Gly. These data suggest, that the analysis of cardiac autonomic control, particularly of baroreflex regulation, represents a powerful non-invasive approach to investigate the effects of subtle changes in sarcomeric architecture on cardiac physiology in vivo. In case of mutations Asp175Asn or Glu180Gly in TPM1, early detection of alterations in autonomic cardiac control could help to prevent sudden cardiac death in affected persons
Tunnelling Studies of Two-Dimensional States in Semiconductors with Inverted Band Structure: Spin-orbit Splitting, Resonant Broadening
The results of tunnelling studies of the energy spectrum of two-dimensional
(2D) states in a surface quantum well in a semiconductor with inverted band
structure are presented. The energy dependence of quasimomentum of the 2D
states over a wide energy range is obtained from the analysis of tunnelling
conductivity oscillations in a quantizing magnetic field. The spin-orbit
splitting of the energy spectrum of 2D states, due to inversion asymmetry of
the surface quantum well, and the broadening of 2D states at the energies, when
they are in resonance with the heavy hole valence band, are investigated in
structures with different strength of the surface quantum well. A quantitative
analysis is carried out within the framework of the Kane model of the energy
spectrum. The theoretical results are in good agreement with the tunnelling
spectroscopy data.Comment: 29 pages, RevTeX, submitted in Phys.Rev.B. Figures available on
request from [email protected]
Josephson current through a Luttinger liquid
We study the Josephson effect through a one-dimensional system of interacting
electrons, connected to two superconductors by tunnel junctions. The
interactions are treated in the framework of the one-channel Luttinger model.
At zero temperature, the Josephson critical current is found to decay
algebraically with increasing distance between the junctions. The exponent is
proportional to the strength of the Coulomb interaction. If the Luttinger
liquid has a finite size, the Josephson current depends on the total number of
electrons modulo 4. These parity effects are studied for the ring, coupled
capacitively to a gate-voltage and threaded by a magnetic flux. The Josephson
current changes continuously as a function of the gate voltage and {\em
stepwise} as a function of the magnetic flux. The electron-electron interaction
introduces {\em qualitatively} new features compared to the non-interacting
case.Comment: 8 pages REVTEX , 4 figures available upon reques
First Order Static Excitation Potential: Scheme for Excitation Energies and Transition Moments
We present an approximation scheme for the calculation of the principal
excitation energies and transition moments of finite many-body systems. The
scheme is derived from a first order approximation to the self energy of a
recently proposed extended particle-hole Green's function. A hermitian
eigenvalue problem is encountered of the same size as the well-known Random
Phase Approximation (RPA). We find that it yields a size consistent description
of the excitation properties and removes an inconsistent treatment of the
ground state correlation by the RPA. By presenting a hermitian eigenvalue
problem the new scheme avoids the instabilities of the RPA and should be well
suited for large scale numerical calculations. These and additional properties
of the new approximation scheme are illuminated by a very simple exactly
solvable model.Comment: 15 pages revtex, 1 eps figure included, corrections in Eq. (A1) and
Sec. II
Optical response of small silver clusters
The time-dependent local density approximation is applied to the optical
response of the silver clusters, Ag_2, Ag_3, Ag_8 and Ag_9^+. The calculation
includes all the electrons beyond the closed-shell Ag^{+11} ionic core, thus
including for the first time explicitly the filled d-shell in the response. The
excitation energy of the strong surface plasmon near 4 eV agrees well with
experiment. The theoretical transition strength is quenched by a factor of 4
with respect to the pure s-electron sum rule in Ag_8 due to the d-electrons. A
comparable amount of strength lies in complex states below 6 eV excitation. The
total below 6 eV, about 50% of the s sum rule, is consistent with published
experiments.Comment: 13 pages RevTex and 9 Postscript figure
DC and AC Josephson Effect in a Superconductor-Luttinger Liquid-Superconductor System
We calculate both the DC and the AC Josephson current through a
one-dimensional system of interacting electrons, connected to two
superconductors by tunnel junctions. We treat the (repulsive) Coulomb
interaction in the framework of the one-channel, spin- Luttinger model.
The Josephson current is obtained for two geometries of experimental relevance:
a quantum wire and a ring. At zero temperature, the critical current is found
to decay algebraically with increasing distance between the junctions. The
decay is characterized by an exponent which depends on the strength of the
interaction. At finite temperatures , lower than the superconducting
transition temperature , there is a crossover from algebraic to
exponential decay of the critical current as a function of , at a distance
of the order of . Moreover, the dependence of critical current
on temperature shows non-monotonic behavior. If the Luttinger liquid is
confined to a ring of circumference , coupled capacitively to a gate voltage
and threaded by a magnetic flux, the Josephson current shows remarkable parity
effects under the variation of these parameters. For some values of the gate
voltage and applied flux, the ring acts as a -junction. These features are
robust against thermal fluctuations up to temperatures on the order of . For the wire-geometry, we have also studied the AC-Josephson
effect. The amplitude and the phase of the time-dependent Josephson current are
affected by electron-electron interactions. Specifically, the amplitude shows
pronounced oscillations as a function of the bias voltage due to the difference
between the velocities of spin and charge excitations in the Luttinger liquid.
Therefore, the AC Josephson effect can be used as a tool for the observation o
Group theoretical analysis of symmetry breaking in two-dimensional quantum dots
We present a group theoretical study of the symmetry-broken unrestricted
Hartree-Fock orbitals and electron densities in the case of a two-dimensional
N-electron single quantum dot (with and without an external magnetic field).
The breaking of rotational symmetry results in canonical orbitals that (1) are
associated with the eigenvectors of a Hueckel hamiltonian having sites at the
positions determined by the equilibrium molecular configuration of the
classical N-electron problem, and (2) transform according to the irreducible
representations of the point group specified by the discrete symmetries of this
classical molecular configuration. Through restoration of the total-spin and
rotational symmetries via projection techniques, we show that the point-group
discrete symmetry of the unrestricted Hartree-Fock wave function underlies the
appearance of magic angular momenta (familiar from exact-diagonalization
studies) in the excitation spectra of the quantum dot. Furthermore, this
two-step symmetry-breaking/symmetry-restoration method accurately describes the
energy spectra associated with the magic angular momenta.Comment: A section VI.B entitled "Quantitative description of the lowest
rotational band" has been added. 16 pages. Revtex with 10 EPS figures. A
version of the manuscript with high quality figures is available at
http://calcite.physics.gatech.edu/~costas/uhf_group.html For related papers,
see http://www.prism.gatech.edu/~ph274c
The triplet excited state of the biocative compound thiabendazole. Characterization and suitability as reporter for cyclodextrin complexation
Fluorescence spectroscopy, laser flash photolysis (LPF), and density functional theory calculations have been performed to characterize the photobehavior of thiabendazole (1). Direct LFP of 1 results in the generation of a transient absorbing at λmax = 570 nm identified as the triplet excited state (31∗). The intersystem crossing quantum yield is 0.91, and the triplet energy is 288 kJ mol−1. The singlet–triplet energy gap is 84 kJ mol−1.
The behavior of thiabendazole within CDs results in a marked enhancement of the triplet lifetime, this change is attributed to the mobility restrictions of included 1 imposed by the cyclodextrin cavities.Financial support from the MICINN (Grants: CTQ2009-11027/BQU, CTQ2010-19909 and pre-doctoral fellowship to P.B.) and the Generalitat Valenciana (Prometeo Program) is gratefully acknowledged.Bartovsky, P.; Domingo, LR.; Jornet Olivé, MD.; Miranda Alonso, MÁ.; Tormos Faus, RE. (2012). The triplet excited state of the biocative compound thiabendazole. Characterization and suitability as reporter for cyclodextrin complexation. Chemical Physics Letters. 525-526:166-170. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cplett.2012.01.001S166170525-52
Xanthone-photosensitized detoxification of the veterinary anthelmintic fenbendazole
Fenbendazole (1) is a common veterinary anthelmintic, toxic to water living microorganisms. Fluorescence quantum yields of 1 were found to be 0.11 in acetonitrile, 0.068 in methanol, 0.034 in cyclohexane, and 0.013 in water. The singlet excited state energy was ca. 96 kcal mol(-1) in all solvents. The phosphorescence spectrum of 1 in ethanol at 77 K displayed a maximum at 450 nm, leading to a triplet energy of 75 kcal mol(-1). Experimental excited state energies agree well with the results of OFT calculations at the time-dependent B3LYP/6-311+G(d,p)//B3LYP/6-31G(d) level. Laser flash photolysis (LFP) of 1 at 266 nm led to transients absorbing in the 300-700 nm range, ascribed to radical cation 1(.+), which were also observed upon 355 nm LFP of xanthone (XA) in the presence of 1. Solar-simulated photolysis revealed XA-enhanced photodegradation of 1 and led to decreased toxicity, as shown by Daphnia magna assays. (c) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Financial support from the MICINN (CTQ2010-19909) and the Generalitat Valenciana (Prometeo Program) is gratefully acknowledged.Jornet Olivé, MD.; Castillo López, MÁ.; Sabater Marco, C.; R. Domingo, L.; Tormos Faus, RE.; Miranda Alonso, MÁ. (2013). Xanthone-photosensitized detoxification of the veterinary anthelmintic fenbendazole. Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology A: Chemistry. 264:34-40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jphotochem.2013.05.002S344026
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