298 research outputs found
Criticality of the Mean-Field Spin-Boson Model: Boson State Truncation and Its Scaling Analysis
The spin-boson model has nontrivial quantum phase transitions at zero
temperature induced by the spin-boson coupling. The bosonic numerical
renormalization group (BNRG) study of the critical exponents and
of this model is hampered by the effects of boson Hilbert space
truncation. Here we analyze the mean-field spin boson model to figure out the
scaling behavior of magnetization under the cutoff of boson states . We
find that the truncation is a strong relevant operator with respect to the
Gaussian fixed point in and incurs the deviation of the exponents
from the classical values. The magnetization at zero bias near the critical
point is described by a generalized homogeneous function (GHF) of two variables
and . The universal function has a
double-power form and the powers are obtained analytically as well as
numerically. Similarly, is found to be a GHF of
and . In the regime , the truncation produces no effect.
Implications of these findings to the BNRG study are discussed.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figure
Plasmons in layered structures including graphene
We investigate the optical properties of layered structures with graphene at
the interface for arbitrary linear polarization at finite temperature including
full retardation by working in the Weyl gauge. As a special case, we obtain the
full response and the related dielectric function of a layered structure with
two interfaces. We apply our results to discuss the longitudinal plasmon
spectrum of several single and double layer devices such as systems with finite
and zero electronic densities. We further show that a nonhomogeneous dielectric
background can shift the relative weight of the in-phase and out-of-phase mode
and discuss how the plasmonic mode of the upper layer can be tuned into an
acoustic mode with specific sound velocity.Comment: 18 pages, 6 figure
Changing youth? : continuities and ruptures in transitions into adulthood among Catalan young people
The globalisation process has an impact at the micro-level on life-course patterns: concretely, the trajectories of young people into adulthood are being sharply modified. At a European level, the extension, de-linearisation, reversibility and diversification of youth trajectories have been identified as major changes. However, the extent to which these changes affect young people within each country depends on their respective welfare regimes. This article analyses how the Mediterranean welfare regime shapes youth trajectories among Catalan young people and explores the hypothesis that these constraints will make those trajectories less sensitive to the general trends of change identified at a European level. The research is based on an analysis of the Catalan Youth Survey, an official statistic that contains retrospective data on Educational, Work, Housing and Family transitions. The results offer an integrated typology of youth transitions in Catalonia and show how the persistence of traditional patterns of transition are the logical result of the particular articulation of the welfare regime and cultural patterns among Catalan young people
Intrinsic and Extrinsic Performance Limits of Graphene Devices on SiO2
The linear dispersion relation in graphene[1,2] gives rise to a surprising
prediction: the resistivity due to isotropic scatterers (e.g. white-noise
disorder[3] or phonons[4-8]) is independent of carrier density n. Here we show
that acoustic phonon scattering[4-6] is indeed independent of n, and places an
intrinsic limit on the resistivity in graphene of only 30 Ohm at room
temperature (RT). At a technologically-relevant carrier density of 10^12 cm^-2,
the mean free path for electron-acoustic phonon scattering is >2 microns, and
the intrinsic mobility limit is 2x10^5 cm^2/Vs, exceeding the highest known
inorganic semiconductor (InSb, ~7.7x10^4 cm^2/Vs[9]) and semiconducting carbon
nanotubes (~1x10^5 cm^2/Vs[10]). We also show that extrinsic scattering by
surface phonons of the SiO2 substrate[11,12] adds a strong temperature
dependent resistivity above ~200 K[8], limiting the RT mobility to ~4x10^4
cm^2/Vs, pointing out the importance of substrate choice for graphene
devices[13].Comment: 16 pages, 3 figure
Resonant Visible Light Modulation with Graphene
Fast modulation and switching of light at visible and near-infrared (vis-NIR)
frequencies is of utmost importance for optical signal processing and sensing
technologies. No fundamental limit appears to prevent us from designing
wavelength-sized devices capable of controlling the light phase and intensity
at gigaherts (and even terahertz) speeds in those spectral ranges. However,
this problem remains largely unsolved, despite recent advances in the use of
quantum wells and phase-change materials for that purpose. Here, we explore an
alternative solution based upon the remarkable electro-optical properties of
graphene. In particular, we predict unity-order changes in the transmission and
absorption of vis-NIR light produced upon electrical doping of graphene sheets
coupled to realistically engineered optical cavities. The light intensity is
enhanced at the graphene plane, and so is its absorption, which can be switched
and modulated via Pauli blocking through varying the level of doping.
Specifically, we explore dielectric planar cavities operating under either
tunneling or Fabry-Perot resonant transmission conditions, as well as Mie modes
in silicon nanospheres and lattice resonances in metal particle arrays. Our
simulations reveal absolute variations in transmission exceeding 90% as well as
an extinction ratio >15 dB with small insertion losses using feasible material
parameters, thus supporting the application of graphene in fast electro-optics
at vis-NIR frequencies.Comment: 17 pages, 13 figures, 54 reference
Dirac electrons in graphene-based quantum wires and quantum dots
In this paper we analyse the electronic properties of Dirac electrons in
finite-size ribbons and in circular and hexagonal quantum dots made of
graphene.Comment: Contribution for J. Phys.: Cond. Mat. special issue on graphene
physic
Entanglement in Many-Body Systems
The recent interest in aspects common to quantum information and condensed
matter has prompted a prosperous activity at the border of these disciplines
that were far distant until few years ago. Numerous interesting questions have
been addressed so far. Here we review an important part of this field, the
properties of the entanglement in many-body systems. We discuss the zero and
finite temperature properties of entanglement in interacting spin, fermionic
and bosonic model systems. Both bipartite and multipartite entanglement will be
considered. At equilibrium we emphasize on how entanglement is connected to the
phase diagram of the underlying model. The behavior of entanglement can be
related, via certain witnesses, to thermodynamic quantities thus offering
interesting possibilities for an experimental test. Out of equilibrium we
discuss how to generate and manipulate entangled states by means of many-body
Hamiltonians.Comment: 61 pages, 29 figure
Infrared nanoscopy of Dirac plasmons at the graphene-SiO2 interface
We report on infrared (IR) nanoscopy of 2D plasmon excitations of Dirac
fermions in graphene. This is achieved by confining mid-IR radiation at the
apex of a nanoscale tip: an approach yielding two orders of magnitude increase
in the value of in-plane component of incident wavevector q compared to free
space propagation. At these high wavevectors, the Dirac plasmon is found to
dramatically enhance the near-field interaction with mid-IR surface phonons of
SiO2 substrate. Our data augmented by detailed modeling establish graphene as a
new medium supporting plasmonic effects that can be controlled by gate voltage.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figure
Genotype and functional correlates of disease phenotype in deficiency of adenosine deaminase 2 (DADA2)
BACKGROUND
Deficiency of adenosine deaminase 2 (DADA2) is a syndrome with pleiotropic manifestations including vasculitis and hematologic compromise. A systematic definition of the relationship between ADA2 mutations and clinical phenotype remains unavailable.
OBJECTIVE
We tested whether the impact of ADA2 mutations on enzyme function correlates with clinical presentation.
METHODS
DADA2 patients with severe hematologic manifestations were compared with vasculitis-predominant patients. Enzymatic activity was assessed using expression constructs reflecting all 53 missense, nonsense, insertion and deletion genotypes from 152 patients across the DADA2 spectrum.
RESULTS
We identified DADA2 patients presenting with pure red cell aplasia (PRCA, n = 5) or bone marrow failure syndrome (BMF, n = 10). Most patients did not exhibit features of vasculitis. Recurrent infection, hepatosplenomegaly and gingivitis were common in patients with BMF, of whom half died from infection. Unlike DADA2 patients with vasculitis, patients with PRCA and BMF proved largely refractory to tumor necrosis factor inhibitors. ADA2 variants associated with vasculitis predominantly reflected missense mutations with at least 3% residual enzymatic activity. By contrast, PRCA and BMF were associated with missense mutations with minimal residual enzyme activity, nonsense variants, and insertions / deletions resulting in complete loss of function.
CONCLUSION
Functional interrogation of ADA2 mutations reveals an association of subtotal function loss with vasculitis, typically responsive to TNF blockade, whereas more extensive loss is observed in hematologic disease which may be refractory to treatment. These findings establish a genotype-phenotype spectrum in DADA2
The structure of IL2 bound to the three chains of the IL2 receptor and how signaling occurs
The interleukin-2 molecule and receptor were the first of the interleukins to be discovered and characterized at the molecular level. Now after 20 years of effort, two groups have succeeded in determining the structure of IL2 bound to the external domains of the three receptor chains in a quaternary complex. What do we know now that we did not know before this structural information was available, and how do these new data help us to develop new therapies
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