4,927 research outputs found
Anomalous time delays and quantum weak measurements in optical micro-resonators
We study inelastic resonant scattering of a Gaussian wave packet with the
parameters close to a zero of the complex scattering coefficient. We
demonstrate, both theoretically and experimentally, that such near-zero
scattering can result in anomalously-large time delays and frequency shifts of
the scattered wave packet. Furthermore, we reveal a close analogy of these
anomalous shifts with the spatial and angular Goos-H\"anchen optical beam
shifts, which are amplified via quantum weak measurements. However, in contrast
to other beam-shift and weak-measurement systems, we deal with a
one-dimensional scalar wave without any intrinsic degrees of freedom. It is the
non-Hermitian nature of the system that produces its rich and non-trivial
behaviour. Our results are generic for any scattering problem, either quantum
or classical. As an example, we consider the transmission of an optical pulse
through a nano-fiber with a side-coupled toroidal micro-resonator. The zero of
the transmission coefficient corresponds to the critical coupling conditions.
Experimental measurements of the time delays near the critical-coupling
parameters verify our weak-measurement theory and demonstrate amplification of
the time delay from the typical inverse resonator linewidth scale to the pulse
duration scale.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figure
Geodesic motion in the space-time of a cosmic string
We study the geodesic equation in the space-time of an Abelian-Higgs string
and discuss the motion of massless and massive test particles. The geodesics
can be classified according to the particles energy, angular momentum and
linear momentum along the string axis. We observe that bound orbits of massive
particles are only possible if the Higgs boson mass is smaller than the gauge
boson mass, while massless particles always move on escape orbits. Moreover,
neither massive nor massless particles can ever reach the string axis for
non-vanishing angular momentum. We also discuss the dependence of light
deflection by a cosmic string as well as the perihelion shift of bound orbits
of massive particles on the ratio between Higgs and gauge boson mass and the
ratio between symmetry breaking scale and Planck mass, respectively.Comment: 20 pages including 14 figures; v2: references added, discussion on
null geodesics extended, numerical results adde
Time-Kill Kinetics and In Vitro Antifungal Susceptibility of Non-fumigatus Aspergillus Species Isolated from Patients with Ocular Mycoses
Aspergillus species can cause ocular morbidity and blindness, and thus, appropriate antifungal therapy is needed. We investigated the in vitro activity of itraconazole, voriconazole, posaconazole, caspofungin, anidulafungin, and amphotericin B against 14 Aspergillus isolates obtained from patients with ocular mycoses, using the CLSI reference broth microdilution methodology. In addition, time-kill assays were performed, exposing each isolate separately to 1-, 4-, and 16-fold concentrations above the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of each antifungal agent. A sigmoid maximum-effect (Emax) model was used to fit the time-kill curve data. The drug effect was further evaluated by measuring an increase/decrease in the killing rate of the tested isolates. The MICs of amphotericin B, itraconazole, voriconazole, and posaconazole were 0.5–1.0, 1.0, 0.5–1.0, and 0.25 µg/ml for A. brasiliensis, A. niger, and A. tubingensis isolates, respectively, and 2.0–4.0, 0.5, 1.0 for A. flavus, and 0.12–0.25 µg/ml for A. nomius isolates, respectively. A. calidoustus had the highest MIC range for the azoles (4.0–16.0 µg/ml) among all isolates tested. The minimum effective concentrations of caspofungin and anidulafungin were ≤0.03–0.5 µg/ml and ≤0.03 µg/ml for all isolates, respectively. Posaconazole demonstrated maximal killing rates (Emax = 0.63 h−1, r2 = 0.71) against 14 ocular Aspergillus isolates, followed by amphotericin B (Emax = 0.39 h−1, r2 = 0.87), voriconazole (Emax = 0.35 h−1, r2 = 0.098), and itraconazole (Emax = 0.01 h−1, r2 = 0.98). Overall, the antifungal susceptibility of the non-fumigatusAspergillus isolates tested was species and antifungal agent dependent. Analysis of the kinetic growth assays, along with consideration of the killing rates, revealed that posaconazole was the most effective antifungal against all of the isolates
The SFXC software correlator for Very Long Baseline Interferometry: Algorithms and Implementation
In this paper a description is given of the SFXC software correlator,
developed and maintained at the Joint Institute for VLBI in Europe (JIVE). The
software is designed to run on generic Linux-based computing clusters. The
correlation algorithm is explained in detail, as are some of the novel modes
that software correlation has enabled, such as wide-field VLBI imaging through
the use of multiple phase centres and pulsar gating and binning. This is
followed by an overview of the software architecture. Finally, the performance
of the correlator as a function of number of CPU cores, telescopes and spectral
channels is shown.Comment: Accepted by Experimental Astronom
Hybrid cluster state proposal for a quantum game
We propose an experimental implementation of a quantum game algorithm in a
hybrid scheme combining the quantum circuit approach and the cluster state
model. An economical cluster configuration is suggested to embody a quantum
version of the Prisoners' Dilemma. Our proposal is shown to be within the
experimental state-of-art and can be realized with existing technology. The
effects of relevant experimental imperfections are also carefully examined.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, RevTeX
Nanometre-scale nuclear-spin device for quantum information processing
We have developed semiconductor point contact devices in which nuclear spins
in a nanoscale region are coherently controlled by all-electrical methods.
Different from the standard nuclear-magnetic resonance technique, the
longitudinal magnetization of nuclear spins is directly detected by measuring
resistance, resulting in ultra-sensitive detection of the microscopic quantity
of nuclear spins. All possible coherent oscillations have been successfully
demonstrated between two levels from four nuclear spin states of I = 3/2
nuclei. Quantum information processing is discussed based on two fictitious
qubits of an I = 3/2 system and methods are described for performing arbitrary
logical gates both on one and two qubits. A scheme for quantum state tomography
based on Mz-detection is also proposed. As the starting point of quantum
manipulations, we have experimentally prepared the effective pure states for
the I = 3/2 nuclear spin system.Comment: 16 pages, 5 figure
- …