On the Theory of Quantum Oscillations of the Elastic Moduli in Layered Conductors

In this paper we study theoretically how the local geometry of the Fermi surface (FS) of a layered conductor can affect quantum oscillations in the thermodynamic observables. We introduce a concrete model of the FS of a layered conductor. The model permits us to analyze the characteristic features of quantum oscillatory phenomena in these materials which occure due to local anomalies of the Gaussian curvature of the FS. Our analysis takes into account strong interaction among quasiparticles and we study the effect of this interaction within the framework of Fermi-liquid theory. We show that the Fermi-liquid interaction strongly affects the density of states of quasiparticles (DOS) on the FS. As a result DOS can have singularities near the peaks of its oscillations in a strong magnetic field. These singularities can be significantly strengthened when the FS of the layered conductor is locally flattened. This can lead to magnetic and lattice instabilities of a special kind which are considered in the final part of the work.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figures, minor changes in the title are made, published versio

Quantum Oscillations of Elastic Moduli and Softening of Phonon Modes in Metals

In this paper we present a theoretical analysis of the effect of magnetostriction on quantum oscillations of elastic constants in metals under strong magnetic fields. It is shown that at low temperatures a significant softening of some acoustic modes could occur near peaks of quantum oscillations of the electron density of states (DOS) at the Fermi surface (FS). This effect is caused by a magnetic instability of a special kind, and it can give rise to a lattice instability. We also show that the most favorable conditions for this instability to be revealed occur in metals whose Fermi surfaces include nearly cylindrical segments.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figur

Resonant nonstationary amplification of polychromatic laser pulses and conical emission in an optically dense ensemble of neon metastable atoms

Experimental and numerical investigation of single-beam and pump-probe interaction with a resonantly absorbing dense extended medium under strong and weak field-matter coupling is presented. Significant probe beam amplification and conical emission were observed. Under relatively weak pumping and high medium density, when the condition of strong coupling between field and resonant matter is fulfilled, the probe amplification spectrum has a form of spectral doublet. Stronger pumping leads to the appearance of a single peak of the probe beam amplification at the transition frequency. The greater probe intensity results in an asymmetrical transmission spectrum with amplification at the blue wing of the absorption line and attenuation at the red one. Under high medium density, a broad band of amplification appears. Theoretical model is based on the solution of the Maxwell-Bloch equations for a two-level system. Different types of probe transmission spectra obtained are attributed to complex dynamics of a coherent medium response to broadband polychromatic radiation of a multimode dye laser.Comment: 9 pages, 13 figures, corrected, Fig.8 was changed, to be published in Phys. Rev.

Coherent interaction of laser pulses in a resonant optically dense extended medium under the regime of strong field-matter coupling

Nonstationary pump-probe interaction between short laser pulses propagating in a resonant optically dense coherent medium is considered. A special attention is paid to the case, where the density of two-level particles is high enough that a considerable part of the energy of relatively weak external laser-fields can be coherently absorbed and reemitted by the medium. Thus, the field of medium reaction plays a key role in the interaction processes, which leads to the collective behavior of an atomic ensemble in the strongly coupled light-matter system. Such behavior results in the fast excitation interchanges between the field and a medium in the form of the optical ringing, which is analogous to polariton beating in the solid-state optics. This collective oscillating response, which can be treated as successive beats between light wave-packets of different group velocities, is shown to significantly affect propagation and amplification of the probe field under its nonlinear interaction with a nearly copropagating pump pulse. Depending on the probe-pump time delay, the probe transmission spectra show the appearance of either specific doublet or coherent dip. The widths of these features are determined by the density-dependent field-matter coupling coefficient and increase during the propagation. Besides that, the widths of the coherent features, which appear close to the resonance in the broadband probe-spectrum, exceed the absorption-line width, since, under the strong-coupling regime, the frequency of the optical ringing exceeds the rate of incoherent relaxation. Contrary to the stationary strong-field effects, the density- and coordinate-dependent transmission spectra of the probe manifest the importance of the collective oscillations and cannot be obtained in the framework of the single-atom model.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures, to be published in Phys. Rev.

Exploring the pre-immune landscape of antigen-specific T cells

Abstract Background Adaptive immune responses to newly encountered pathogens depend on the mobilization of antigen-specific clonotypes from a vastly diverse pool of naive T cells. Using recent advances in immune repertoire sequencing technologies, models of the immune receptor rearrangement process, and a database of annotated T cell receptor (TCR) sequences with known specificities, we explored the baseline frequencies of T cells specific for defined human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I-restricted epitopes in healthy individuals. Methods We used a database of TCR sequences with known antigen specificities and a probabilistic TCR rearrangement model to estimate the baseline frequencies of TCRs specific to distinct antigens epitopespecificT-cells. We verified our estimates using a publicly available collection of TCR repertoires from healthy individuals. We also interrogated a database of immunogenic and non-immunogenic peptides is used to link baseline T-cell frequencies with epitope immunogenicity. Results Our findings revealed a high degree of variability in the prevalence of T cells specific for different antigens that could be explained by the physicochemical properties of the corresponding HLA class I-bound peptides. The occurrence of certain rearrangements was influenced by ancestry and HLA class I restriction, and umbilical cord blood samples contained higher frequencies of common pathogen-specific TCRs. We also identified a quantitative link between specific T cell frequencies and the immunogenicity of cognate epitopes presented by defined HLA class I molecules. Conclusions Our results suggest that the population frequencies of specific T cells are strikingly non-uniform across epitopes that are known to elicit immune responses. This inference leads to a new definition of epitope immunogenicity based on specific TCR frequencies, which can be estimated with a high degree of accuracy in silico, thereby providing a novel framework to integrate computational and experimental genomics with basic and translational research efforts in the field of T cell immunology

Magnetic properties of colloidal suspensions of interacting magnetic particles

We review equilibrium thermodynamic properties of systems of magnetic particles like ferrofluids in which dipolar interactions play an important role. The review is focussed on two subjects: ({\em i}) the magnetization with the initial magnetic susceptibility as a special case and ({\em ii}) the phase transition behavior. Here the condensation ("gas/liquid") transition in the subsystem of the suspended particles is treated as well as the isotropic/ferromagnetic transition to a state with spontaneously generated long--range magnetic order.Comment: Review. 62 pages, 4 figure

Гипербарическая оксигенация в комплексном лечении ран

Wound infection is one of the most frequent indications for using the method of hyperbaric oxygenation (HBO) in surgical practice. The effects of HBO are not always explainable from the point of general ideas about the "super-delivery" of oxygen. During the HBO it is modified a synthesis of a number of biologically active substances and can be noted persistent changes in various biochemical processes. Periodic increases of oxygen partial pressure (pO2 ) in damaged tissues afford evident effect on the dynamics of the wound process. Active forms of oxygen and nitrogen play the role of signaling molecules during the start of cascades of biochemical reactions leading to the synthesis of growth factors, cytokines and other hormonally active substances which are involved in wound healing. Раневая инфекция – одно из самых частых показаний к применению метода гипербарической оксигенации (ГБО) в хирургической практике. Эффекты ГБО не всегда объяснимы с точки зрения общих представлений о «сверхдоставке» кислорода. При проведении ГБО модифицируется синтез целого ряда биологически активных веществ, отмечаются стойкие изменения в различных биохимических процессах. Периодические подъемы парциального давления кислорода (рО2 ) в поврежденных тканях оказывают выраженное положительное действие на динамику раневого процесса. Активные формы кислорода и азота играют роль сигнальных молекул в запуске каскадов биохимических реакций, приводящих к синтезу факторов роста, цитокинов и других гормонально-активных веществ, участвующих в заживлении ран.

The physical oceanography of the transport of floating marine debris

Marine plastic debris floating on the ocean surface is a major environmental problem. However, its distribution in the ocean is poorly mapped, and most of the plastic waste estimated to have entered the ocean from land is unaccounted for. Better understanding of how plastic debris is transported from coastal and marine sources is crucial to quantify and close the global inventory of marine plastics, which in turn represents critical information for mitigation or policy strategies. At the same time, plastic is a unique tracer that provides an opportunity to learn more about the physics and dynamics of our ocean across multiple scales, from the Ekman convergence in basin-scale gyres to individual waves in the surfzone. In this review, we comprehensively discuss what is known about the different processes that govern the transport of floating marine plastic debris in both the open ocean and the coastal zones, based on the published literature and referring to insights from neighbouring fields such as oil spill dispersion, marine safety recovery, plankton connectivity, and others. We discuss how measurements of marine plastics (both in situ and in the laboratory), remote sensing, and numerical simulations can elucidate these processes and their interactions across spatio-temporal scales

Spectroscopic and photoluminescence characterization of Eu 3+-doped monoclinic KY(WO4)2 crystal

Monoclinic 2 at% Eu-doped KY(WO4)2 is grown by top-seeded solution growth method. Polarizationresolved absorption and stimulated-emission cross-section spectra are determined for this crystal. Spectroscopic properties of Eu:KY(WO4)2 are modeled within conventional Judd–Ofelt theory, as well as theory of f–f transition intensities for systems with anomalously strong configuration interaction, yielding absorption oscillator strengths, luminescence branching ratios and radiative lifetime of 5D0 state. The impact of excited-state absorption from this state on possibility of laser operation is discussed. Photoluminescent properties of Eu:KY(WO4)2 are determined. This crystal provides intense red emission with CIE coordinates x¼0.670, y¼0.329