bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The STEAP1262–270 peptide encapsulated into PLGA microspheres elicits strong cytotoxic T cell immunity in HLA‐A*0201 transgenic mice—A new approach to immunotherapy against prostate carcinoma
Authors: Herrmann Valerie L. , Wieland Daniel E. , Legler Daniel F. , Wittmann Valentin , Groettrup Marcus
Published: December 2015

BACKGROUND

PLGA microsphere‐based vaccination has been proven to be effective in immunotherapy of syngeneic model tumors in mice. The critical step for the translation to humans is the identification of immunogenic tumor antigens and potent vaccine formulations to overcome immune tolerance.

METHODS

HLA‐A*0201 transgenic mice were immunized with eight different human prostate cancer peptide antigens co‐encapsulated with TLR ligands into PLGA microspheres and analyzed for antigen‐specific and functional cytotoxic T lymphocyte responses.

RESULTS

Only vaccination with STEAP1262‐270 peptide encapsulated in PLGA MS could effectively crossprime CTLs in vivo. These CTLs recognized STEAP1262–270/HLA‐A*0201 complexes on human dendritic cells and prostate cancer cell lines and specifically lysed target cells in vivo. Vaccination with PLGA microspheres was much more potent than with incomplete Freund's adjuvant.

CONCLUSIONS

Our data suggests that there exist great differences in the immunogenicity of human PCa peptide antigens despite comparable MHC class I binding characteristics. Immunogenic STEAP1262–270 peptide encapsulated into PLGA microspheres however was able to induce vigorous and functional antigen‐specific CTLs and therefore is a promising novel approach for immunotherapy against advanced stage prostate cancer. Prostate 76:456–468, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Equity stakes and exit: An experimental approach to decomposing exit delay
Authors: Elfenbein Daniel W. , Knott Anne Marie , Croson Rachel
Published: December 2015

Research summary: Exit delay is an important problem for entrepreneurs and managers alike, yet relatively little is known about its causes. We conduct a laboratory experiment in which optimal exit is well defined, and in which a treatment group with equity stakes—the actual cash flows of a firm and decision rights over its continuation—is compared to a control group whose compensation is based solely on its assessment of the firm's profitability. While treatment group participants make exit decisions that are nearly optimal given their beliefs, their beliefs are significantly distorted relative to the control group. The pattern of distortion is consistent with confirmatory bias and motivated reasoning. A fundamental finding of our study is that incentives may not only affect behavior, but belief formation as well.

Managerial summary: Managers and entrepreneurs frequently destroy significant value by failing to shut down underperforming businesses in a timely manner. To address this problem, we must understand the mechanisms causing exit delay. We examine behavioral mechanisms causing delay through a laboratory experiment in which subjects make decisions about when to exit a failing venture. We find that “equity stakes”—receiving the firm's cash flows and having decision rights over exit—cause participants to discount negative performance information, retain overly optimistic beliefs, and delay exit. By contrast, participants without these high‐powered incentives exit nearly optimally. Our findings suggest ways to reduce exit delay in managerial settings, including implementing automated decision rules, removing equity‐based compensation, and recruiting managers less susceptible to knowledge overconfidence, a trait associated with exit delay. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Exploring flavor-dependent long-range forces in long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments
Authors: Chatterjee Sabya Sachi , Dasgupta Arnab , Agarwalla Sanjib Kumar
Published: December 2015

Abstract

The Standard Model gauge group can be extended with minimal matter content by introducing anomaly free U(1) symmetry, such as L

e
− L

μ
or L

e
− L

τ
. If the neutral gauge boson corresponding to this abelian symmetry is ultra-light, then it will give rise to flavor-dependent long-range leptonic force, which can have significant impact on neutrino oscillations. For an instance, the electrons inside the Sun can generate a flavor-dependent long-range potential at the Earth surface, which can suppress the ν

μ
→ ν

e
appearance probability in terrestrial experiments. The sign of this potential is opposite for anti-neutrinos, and affects the oscillations of (anti-)neutrinos in different fashion. This feature invokes fake CP-asymmetry like the SM matter effect and can severely affect the leptonic CP-violation searches in long-baseline experiments. In this paper, we study in detail the possible impacts of these long-range flavor-diagonal neutral current interactions due to L

e
− L

μ
symmetry, when (anti-)neutrinos travel from Fermilab to Homestake (1300 km) and CERN to Pyhäsalmi (2290 km) in the context of future high-precision superbeam facilities, DUNE and LBNO respectively. If there is no signal of long-range force, DUNE (LBNO) can place stringent constraint on the effective gauge coupling α

eμ
< 1.9 × 10−53 (7.8 × 10−54) at 90% C.L., which is almost 30 (70) times better than the existing bound from the Super-Kamiokande experiment. We also observe that if α

eμ
≥ 2 × 10−52, the CP-violation discovery reach of these future facilities vanishes completely. The mass hierarchy measurement remains robust in DUNE (LBNO) if α

eμ
< 5 × 10−52 (10−52).
De Alfaro, Fubini and Furlan from multi matrix systems
Authors: Masuku Mthokozisi , Rodrigues João P.
Published: December 2015

Abstract

We consider the quantum mechanics of an even number of space indexed hermitian matrices. Upon complexification, we show that a closed subsector naturally parametrized by a matrix valued radial coordinate has a description in terms of non interacting s-state “radial fermions” with an emergent De Alfaro, Fubini and Furlan type potential, present only for two or more complex matrices. The concomitant AdS
2 symmetry is identified.The large N description in terms of the density of radial eigenvalues is also described.
Properties of Didecyldimethylammonium Formate and Sodium Fatty Alcohol Ether Carboxylate Mixed Systems
Authors: Tang Weiyue , Geng Tao , Jiang Yajie , Ju Hongbin , Wang Yakui
Published: December 2015

The surface activities and application properties of didecyldimethylammonium formate (DDAF) and sodium fatty alcohol ether carboxylate (AEC‐9Na) mixed systems were measured. The results showed that the critical micelle concentration and surface tension of mixed systems have lower values than that of a single surfactant solution, which is attributed to the synergism of DDAF and AEC‐9Na. It was found that the emulsifying properties for kerosene and wetting properties of the mixed systems were also better than single component surfactants. In addition, the mixed systems of AEC‐9Na (16 wt%) with DDAF showed both better detergency and excellent antibacterial properties.
Chemical Composition and Fatty Acid Profile of Khat (Catha edulis) Seed Oil
Authors: Murthy H. Niranjana , Joseph K. S. , Madiwal A. , Rajan G. Dinesh , Badiger M. , Kolkar Laxmi , Hiremath R. , Shirugumbi M.
Published: December 2015

The proximate, physicochemical, and fatty acid compositions of seed oil extracted from khat (Catha edulis) were determined. The oil, moisture, crude protein, crude fiber, crude carbohydrate, and ash content in seeds were 35.54, 6.63, 24, 1.01, 30.4 %, and 1.32 g/100 g DW respectively. The free fatty acids, peroxide value, saponification value, and iodine value were 2.98 %, 12.65 meq O2/kg, 190.60 mg KOH/g, and 145 g/100 g oil, respectively. Linolenic acid (C18:3, 50.80 %) and oleic (C18:1, 16.96 %) along with palmitic acid (C16:0, 14.60 %) were the dominant fatty acids. The seed oil of khat can be used in industry for the preparation of liquid soaps and shampoos. Furthermore, high levels of unsaturated fatty acids make it an important source of nutrition especially as an animal product substitute for omega‐3 fatty acids owing to the high content of linolenic acid.
Lipase‐Catalyzed Synthesis of Fatty Acid Pyridylcarbinol Ester for the Analysis of Seed Lipids
Authors: Kim Chang‐Su , Lim Do‐Hyung , Keum Young Soo
Published: December 2015

Numerous derivatives of fatty acids (FA), including esters of methanol/3‐hydroxymethylpyridine or dimethyloxazoline, are used for the analysis of FAs in biological specimens. Picolinyl derivatives are frequently prepared for structural determination by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC‐MS) since they provide characteristic fragments. The ester can be prepared by chemical methods‐multistep methodologies or basic transesterification. Microbial lipases catalyze a number of transesterification reactions, and their catalytic activities are often stable at extreme conditions. Although these characteristic features may be useful in the application of typical FA structure analysis by picolinyl ester, detailed studies have not been reported. To address the problems, a simple and quantitative methodology for the synthesis of picolinyl esters from lipids has been developed. It involves the transesterification with Novozym 435 (Novozymes Biopharma US Inc., Franklinton, USA), resin‐immobilized lipase from Candida antartica in toluene. Mild reaction conditions allow for complete derivatization of perilla seed oil in 30 min at 50 °C. The procedure was further studied with various TAGs and fatty wax from 17 plants. The optimized procedure was as follows; 1 mg lipid and 20 mg catalyst in 2 mL toluene at 50 °C for 1 h. Quantitative analysis of marker FAs was performed with the proposed method. The results coincided well with those from potassium t‐butoxide‐catalyzed reaction. The optimized method, however, was not applicable for the determination of some epoxy FAs, fatty wax, and parinaric acid.
Quantitative analysis of gene expression systems
Authors: Zhou Tianshou , Liu Tuoqi
Published: December 2015

Gene expression is a complex biochemical process, involving many specific processes such as transcription, translation, switching between promoter states, and regulation. All these biochemical processes inevitably lead to fluctuations in mRNA and protein abundances. This noise has been identified as an important factor underlying the observed phenotypic variability of genetically identical cells in homogeneous environments. Quantifying the contributions of different sources of noise using stochastic models of gene expression is an important step towards understanding fundamental cellular processes and cell‐to‐cell variability in expression levels. In this paper, we review progresses in quantitative study of simple gene expression systems, including some results that we have not published. We analytically show how specific processes associated with gene expression affect expression levels. In particular, we derive the analytical decomposition of expression noise, which is important for understanding the roles of the factorial noise in controlling phenotypic variability. We also introduce a new index (called attribute factor) to quantify expression noise, which has more advantages than the commonly‐used noise indices such as noise intensity and Fano factor.
Disclosure of positron emission tomography amyloid imaging results: A preliminary study of safety and tolerability
Authors: Lim Yen Ying , Maruff Paul , Getter Christine , Snyder Peter J.
Published: December 2015

Introduction

Three 18F‐labeled radiopharmaceuticals have been Food and Drug Administration‐approved for the identification of cortical amyloidosis in clinical settings. Although there has been strong debate among professionals as to the ethical and social consequences of disclosing such information, increasing numbers of participants are being recruited into secondary prevention trials for which they are likely to, and/or desire to, receive their positron emission tomography (PET) imaging results.

Methods

Healthy older adults (n = 63, mean age = 62 years) enrolled in a preclinical Alzheimer's disease (AD) biomarkers trial, and 11 requested disclosure of PET amyloid imaging results to their treating neurologist, per institutional review board–approved study protocol. These individuals completed a follow‐up psychoeducational program and structured interviews to assess impact of disclosure on several key psychological factors.

Results

Four of 11 subjects demonstrated increased amyloid aggregation and reported that they were not surprised, particularly given their family histories and subjective memory concerns. All indicated that they had shared this information with pertinent significant others; they were satisfied with their level of social support, and the imaging results had motivated them to change their lifestyle by exercising more, changing their diet, and planning ahead. Amyloid‐positive participants showed little change in levels of depressive, anxiety, and stress symptoms, subjective sense of memory impairment, or on measures of intrusion, avoidance, and hyperarousal, and reported risk of self‐harm.

Discussion

Disclosure of PET amyloid status did not significantly impact mood, subjective sense of memory impairment, or perceived risk of developing AD; nor was this associated with significant emotional impact, irrespective of actual amyloid burden status. Those subjects with increased amyloid burden were more likely than those without significant amyloidosis to make positive changes to their lifestyle (e.g., engaging in more exercise and changing their diet).
Do I Shoot Faster Because I Am Thinking about an Outgroup or a	Threatening Outgroup?
Authors: Mange Jessica , Sharvit Keren , Margas Nicolas , Sénémeaud Cécile
Published: December 2015

Abstract. This research examines if aggressive responses through a shooter bias are systematically generated by priming outgroups or if a threat stereotypically associated with the primed outgroup is required. First, a pilot study identified outgroups stereotypically associated and not associated with threat. Afterwards, the main study included a manipulation of target group accessibility – ingroup versus nonthreatening outgroup versus threatening outgroup. Following exposure to primes of the group categories, the participants in all conditions played a shooter game in which the targets were males and females with ambiguous ethnicity and religion. Results demonstrated that while only priming of an outgroup stereotypically associated with threat elicits aggressive responses, priming of both nonthreatening and threatening outgroups leads to an increase in the ability to distinguish between stimuli compared to ingroup priming. These effects are discussed in terms of priming effects, dimensions of threat, and possible interpretations of this ability increase.
The Validity of Crowdsourcing Data in Studying Anger and Aggressive Behavior
Authors: Lutz Johannes
Published: December 2015

Abstract. Crowdsourcing platforms provide an affordable approach for recruiting large and diverse samples in a short time. Past research has shown that researchers can obtain reliable data from these sources, at least in domains of research that are not affectively involving. The goal of the present study was to test if crowdsourcing platforms can also be used to conduct experiments that incorporate the induction of aversive affective states. First, a laboratory experiment with German university students was conducted in which a frustrating task induced anger and aggressive behavior. This experiment was then replicated online using five crowdsourcing samples. The results suggest that participants in the online samples reacted very similarly to the anger manipulation as participants in the laboratory experiments. However, effect sizes were smaller in crowdsourcing samples with non-German participants while a crowdsourcing sample with exclusively German participants yielded virtually the same effect size as in the laboratory.
Construal Level Shapes Associations Between Political Conservatism	and Reactions to Male Same-Sex Intimacy
Authors: Rogers Ross , Vess Matthew , Routlege Clay
Published: December 2015

Abstract. This research examined how construal level and the salience of moral values affect relationships between political ideology and moral reactions to same-sex issues. In Study 1 (N = 170), political conservatism was a stronger predictor of moral reactions to physical intimacy between a male same-sex couple (vs. an opposite-sex couple). However, this was only true among participants induced to adopt an abstract (vs. concrete) construal level. Study 2 (N = 152) found political conservatism was a stronger predictor of moral negativity to physical intimacy between men when the idea of moral purity (vs. fairness) was made salient. However, this effect only occurred among participants induced to adopt an abstract (vs. concrete) level of mental construal. The implications of this research for better understanding when social-cognitive factors interact with political ideology to influence moral reactions toward same-sex social policy issues are discussed.
Group Pushes for Using Earth Observations in Decision Making
Authors: Showstack Randy
Published: December 2015

Earth observation "system of systems" could help with disaster resilience, sustainability, and other objectives beneficial to society, according to one organization.
Three dimensional sensitivity characterization of plasmonic nanorods for refractometric biosensors
Authors: Leitgeb V. , Trügler A. , Köstler S. , Krug M. K. , Hohenester U. , Hohenau A. , Leitner A. , Krenn J. R.
Published: December 2015

The work shows an extensive experimental characterization of the local refractive index sensitivity of plasmonic particles in three dimensions.
CdSe/ZnS quantum dots as sensors for the local refractive index
Authors: Aubret Antoine , Pillonnet Anne , Houel Julien , Dujardin Christophe , Kulzer Florian
Published: December 2015

An effective medium approach was used to quantify the sensitivity of individual fluorescent nanocrystals to changes in their dielectric environment.
Hierarchical Nafion enhanced carbon aerogels for sensing applications
Authors: Weng Bo , Ding Ailing , Liu Yuqing , Diao Jianglin , Razal Joselito , Lau King Tong , Shepherd Roderick , Li Changming , Chen Jun
Published: December 2015

This work describes the fabrication of hierarchical Nafion enhanced carbon aerogels (NECAGs) for sensing applications via a fast freeze drying method.
A polyimide derivative containing different carbonyl groups for flexible lithium ion batteries
Authors: Wu H. P. , Yang Q. , Meng Q. H. , Ahmad A. , Zhang M. , Zhu L. Y. , Liu Y. G. , Wei Z. X.
Published: December 2015

A novel polyimide derivative is prepared by condensation polymerization and carbonyl groups on different repeating units contribute to the capacity.
Novel biocompatible electrospun gelatin fiber mats with antibiotic drug delivery properties
Authors: Nagarajan Sakthivel , Soussan Laurence , Bechelany Mikhael , Teyssier Catherine , Cavaillès Vincent , Pochat-Bohatier Céline , Miele Philippe , Kalkura Narayana , Janot Jean-Marc , Balme Sébastien
Published: December 2015

The aim of this study was to synthesize stable gelatin electrospun mats (ESMs) (cross-linked by glutaraldehyde (GTA) vapors) with tunable drug release properties using pH as a stimulus.
Photoluminescence tuning of Ca5(PO4)3Cl:Ce3+/Eu2+,Tb3+/Mn2+ phosphors: structure refinement, site occupancy, energy transfer and thermal stability
Authors: Tian Ying , Wei Yi , Zhao Yun , Quan Zewei , Li Guogang , Lin Jun
Published: December 2015

Highly efficient blue-green tunable emission from Ce3+/Eu2+ to Tb3+ and single-phase white emission from Ce3+, Mn2+-doped Ca5(PO4)3Cl can be obtained by dipole–quadrupole energy transfers.
Effect of tunable dot charging on photoresponse spectra of GaAs p-i-n diode with InAs quantum dots
Authors: Shang Xiangjun , Yu Ying , Li Mifeng , Wang Lijuan , Zha Guowei , Ni Haiqiao , Pettersson Håkan , Fu Ying , Niu Zhichuan
Published: December 2015

Quantum dot (QD)-embedded photodiodes have demonstrated great potential for use as detectors. A modulation of QD charging opens intriguing possibilities for adaptive sensing with bias-tunable detector characteristics. Here, we report on a p-i-n GaAs photodiode with InAs QDs whose charging is tunable due to unintentional Be diffusion and trap-assisted tunneling of holes, from bias- and temperature (T)-dependent photocurrent spectroscopy. For the sub-bandgap spectra, the T-dependent relative intensities “QD-s/WL” and “WL/GaAs” (WL: wetting layer) indicate dominant tunneling under −0.9 V (trap-assisted tunneling from the top QDs) and dominant thermal escape under −0.2 ∼ 0.5 V (from the bottom QDs since the top ones are charged and inactive for optical absorption) from the QD s-state, dominant tunneling from WL, and enhanced QD charging at >190 K (related to trap level ionization). For the above-bandgap spectra, the degradation of the spectral profile (especially near the GaAs bandedge) as the bias and T tune (especially under −0.2 ∼ 0.2 V and at >190 K) can be explained well by the enhanced photoelectron capture in QDs with tunable charging. The dominant spectral profile with no degradation under 0.5 V is due to a saturated electron capture in charged QDs (i.e., charging neutralization). QD level simulation and schematic bandstructures can help one understand these effects.
Designing field-controllable graphene-dot-graphene single molecule switches: A quantum-theoretical proof-of-concept under realistic operating conditions
Authors: Pejov Ljupčo , Petreska Irina , Kocarev Ljupčo
Published: December 2015

A theoretical proof of the concept that a particularly designed graphene-based moletronics device, constituted by two semi-infinite graphene subunits, acting as source and drain electrodes, and a central benzenoid ring rotator (a “quantum dot”), could act as a field-controllable molecular switch is outlined and analyzed with the density functional theory approach. Besides the ideal (0 K) case, we also consider the operation of such a device under realistic operating (i.e., finite-temperature) conditions. An in-depth insight into the physics behind device controllability by an external field was gained by thorough analyses of the torsional potential of the dot under various conditions (absence or presence of an external gating field with varying strength), computing the torsional correlation time and transition probabilities within the Bloembergen-Purcell-Pound formalism. Both classical and quantum mechanical tunneling contributions to the intramolecular rotation were considered in the model. The main idea that we put forward in the present study is that intramolecular rotors can be controlled by the gating field even in cases when these groups do not possess a permanent dipole moment (as in cases considered previously by us [I. Petreska et al., J. Chem. Phys. 134, 014708-1–014708-12 (2011)] and also by other groups [P. E. Kornilovitch et al., Phys. Rev. B 66, 245413-1–245413-7 (2002)]). Consequently, one can control the molecular switching properties by an external electrostatic field utilizing even nonpolar intramolecular rotors (i.e., in a more general case than those considered so far). Molecular admittance of the currently considered graphene-based molecular switch under various conditions is analyzed employing non-equilibrium Green’s function formalism, as well as by analysis of frontier molecular orbitals’ behavior.
A joint theoretical and experimental study on diiodomethane: Ions and neutrals in the gas phase
Authors: Satta Mauro , Bolognesi Paola , Cartoni Antonella , Casavola Anna Rita , Catone Daniele , Markus Pal , Avaldi Lorenzo
Published: December 2015

The chemical physics of halomethanes is an important and challenging topic in several areas of chemistry in particular in the chemistry of the atmosphere. Among the class of halomethanes, the diiodomethane molecule has attracted some interest in the last years, but despite this, the information on its radical cation [CH2I2]⋅+ is still limited. In this work, we measured and calculated the appearance energy (AE) of the ionic fragments I2⋅+ and CH2⋅+ and correlated the different fragmentation channels to the electronic states of the cation via photoelectron-photoion coincidence (PEPICO) experiments. In the case of the CH2/I2⋅+ channel, the experimentally determined AE is in excellent agreement with the adiabatic theoretical value while a discrepancy is observed for the CH2⋅+/I2 channel. This discrepancy can be understood accounting for a fragmentation involving the formation of two I atoms (CH2⋅+/2I channel), which, as explained by time dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) calculations, occurs when [CH2I2]⋅+ excited states are involved.
Associativity of the operator product expansion
Authors: Holland Jan , Hollands Stefan
Published: December 2015

We consider a recursive scheme for defining the coefficients in the operator product expansion (OPE) of an arbitrary number of composite operators in the context of perturbative, Euclidean quantum field theory in four dimensions. Our iterative scheme is consistent with previous definitions of OPE coefficients via the flow equation method or methods based on Feynman diagrams. It allows us to prove that a strong version of the “associativity” condition holds for the OPE to arbitrary orders in perturbation theory. Such a condition was previously proposed in an axiomatic setting in Hollands [SIGMA 5, 090 (2009)] and has interesting conceptual consequences: (1) One can characterise perturbations of quantum field theories abstractly in a sort of “Hochschild-like” cohomology setting, (2) one can prove a “coherence theorem” analogous to that in an ordinary algebra: the OPE coefficients for a product of two composite operators uniquely determine those for n composite operators. We concretely prove our main results for the Euclidean φ44 quantum field theory, covering also the massless case. Our methods are rather general, however, and would also apply to other, more involved, theories such as Yang-Mills theories.
Theory of activated glassy relaxation, mobility gradients, surface diffusion, and vitrification in free standing thin films
Authors: Mirigian Stephen , Schweizer Kenneth S.
Published: December 2015

We have constructed a quantitative, force level, statistical mechanical theory for how confinement in free standing thin films introduces a spatial mobility gradient of the alpha relaxation time as a function of temperature, film thickness, and location in the film. The crucial idea is that relaxation speeds up due to the reduction of both near-surface barriers associated with the loss of neighbors in the local cage and the spatial cutoff and dynamical softening near the vapor interface of the spatially longer range collective elasticity cost for large amplitude hopping. These two effects are fundamentally coupled. Quantitative predictions are made for how an apparent glass temperature depends on the film thickness and experimental probe technique, the emergence of a two-step decay and mobile layers in time domain measurements, signatures of confinement in frequency-domain dielectric loss experiments, the dependence of film-averaged relaxation times and dynamic fragility on temperature and film thickness, surface diffusion, and the relationship between kinetic experiments and pseudo-thermodynamic measurements such as ellipsometry.
A bi-layered quad-band metamaterial absorber at terahertz frequencies
Authors: Liu Shuo , Zhuge Junchuan , Ma Shaojie , Chen Haibin , Bao Di , He Qiong , Zhou Lei , Cui Tie Jun
Published: December 2015

In this work, a quad-band metamaterial absorber is proposed and experimentally demonstrated at terahertz frequency using a bi-layer isotropic structure. The absorber is designed by distributing four metallic square loops with different lengths on two polyimide layers (PI). The backside of PI is covered by an opaque gold film to eliminate the transmission of terahertz waves. The proposed absorber exhibits almost unity absorptions at 0.51, 0.69, 1.05, and 1.34 THz under the normal illuminance. As the incident angle increases from 0° to 50°, the absorption intensities remain above 95%, and the absorption frequencies almost keep stable for both transverse-electric and transverse-magnetic polarizations. The absorption mechanism is interpreted by giving the electromagnetic field distributions at each absorption peak. Experimental results show good agreement with numerical simulations both in the frequency and strength of the four absorption peaks.
Proof-of-concept experiment for on-line laser induced breakdown spectroscopy analysis of impurity layer deposited on optical window and other plasma facing components of Aditya tokamak
Authors: Maurya Gulab Singh , Kumar Rohit , Kumar Ajai , Rai Awadhesh Kumar
Published: December 2015

In the present manuscript, we demonstrate the design of an experimental setup for on-line laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) analysis of impurity layers deposited on specimens of interest for fusion technology, namely, plasma-facing components (PFCs) of a tokamak. For investigation of impurities deposited on PFCs, LIBS spectra of a tokamak wall material like a stainless steel sample (SS304) have been recorded through contaminated and cleaned optical windows. To address the problem of identification of dust and gases present inside the tokamak, we have shown the capability of the apparatus to record LIBS spectra of gases. A new approach known as “back collection method” to record LIBS spectra of impurities deposited on the inner surface of optical window is presented.
Higher triplet state of fullerene C70 revealed by electron spin relaxation
Authors: Uvarov Mikhail N. , Behrends Jan , Kulik Leonid V.
Published: December 2015

Spin-lattice relaxation times T1 of photoexcited triplets 3C70 in glassy decalin were obtained from electron spin echo inversion recovery dependences. In the range 30–100 K, the temperature dependence of T1 was fitted by the Arrhenius law with an activation energy of 172 cm−1. This indicates that the dominant relaxation process of 3C70 is described by an Orbach-Aminov mechanism involving the higher triplet state t2 which lies 172 cm−1 above the lowest triplet state t1. Chemical modification of C70 fullerene not only decreases the intrinsic triplet lifetime by about ten times but also increases T1 by several orders of magnitude. The reason for this is the presence of a low-lying excited triplet state in 3C70 and its absence in triplet C70 derivatives. The presence of the higher triplet state in C70 is in good agreement with the previous results from phosphorescence spectroscopy.
Vapor-deposited glasses of methyl-m-toluate: How uniform is stable glass transformation?
Authors: Tylinski M. , Sepúlveda A. , Walters Diane M. , Chua Y. Z. , Schick C. , Ediger M. D.
Published: December 2015

AC chip nanocalorimetry is used to characterize vapor-deposited glasses of methyl-m-toluate (MMT). Physical vapor deposition can prepare MMT glasses that have lower heat capacity and significantly higher kinetic stability compared to liquid-cooled glasses. When heated, highly stable MMT glasses transform into the supercooled liquid via propagating fronts. We present the first quantitative analysis of the temporal and spatial uniformities of these transformation fronts. The front velocity varies by less than 4% over the duration of the transformation. For films 280 nm thick, the transformation rates at different spatial positions in the film differ by about 25%; this quantity may be related to spatially heterogeneous dynamics in the stable glass. Our characterization of the kinetic stability of MMT stable glasses extends previous dielectric experiments and is in excellent agreement with these results.
Matrix-isolation andab initiostudy of HKrCCCl and HXeCCCl
Authors: Zhu Cheng , Räsänen Markku , Khriachtchev Leonid
Published: December 2015

We report on two new noble-gas molecules, HKrCCCl and HXeCCCl, prepared in low-temperature Kr and Xe matrices. These molecules are made by UV photolysis of HCCCl in the matrices and subsequent thermal annealing. The HCCCl precursor is produced by microwave discharge of a mixture of a matrix gas with trichloroethylene (HClC=CCl2). The assignments of the new noble-gas molecules are supported by deuteration experiments and quantum chemical calculations at the MP2(full) and CCSD(T) levels of theory with the def2-TZVPPD basis set. No evidence of ClXeCCH, which is computationally reliably stable, is found in the experiments. ClKrCCH as well as the Ar compounds HArCCCl and ClArCCH are not observed either, which is in agreement with the calculations.
Tabulation as a high-resolution alternative to coarse-graining protein interactions: Initial application to virus capsid subunits
Authors: Spiriti Justin , Zuckerman Daniel M.
Published: December 2015

Traditional coarse-graining based on a reduced number of interaction sites often entails a significant sacrifice of chemical accuracy. As an alternative, we present a method for simulating large systems composed of interacting macromolecules using an energy tabulation strategy previously devised for small rigid molecules or molecular fragments [S. Lettieri and D. M. Zuckerman, J. Comput. Chem. 33, 268-275 (2012); J. Spiriti and D. M. Zuckerman, J. Chem. Theory Comput. 10, 5161-5177 (2014)]. We treat proteins as rigid and construct distance and orientation-dependent tables of the interaction energy between them. Arbitrarily detailed interactions may be incorporated into the tables, but as a proof-of-principle, we tabulate a simple α-carbon Gō-like model for interactions between dimeric subunits of the hepatitis B viral capsid. This model is significantly more structurally realistic than previous models used in capsid assembly studies. We are able to increase the speed of Monte Carlo simulations by a factor of up to 6700 compared to simulations without tables, with only minimal further loss in accuracy. To obtain further enhancement of sampling, we combine tabulation with the weighted ensemble (WE) method, in which multiple parallel simulations are occasionally replicated or pruned in order to sample targeted regions of a reaction coordinate space. In the initial study reported here, WE is able to yield pathways of the final ∼25% of the assembly process.
A global potential energy surface and dipole moment surface for silane
Authors: Owens Alec , Yurchenko Sergei N. , Yachmenev Andrey , Thiel Walter
Published: December 2015

A new nine-dimensional potential energy surface (PES) and dipole moment surface (DMS) for silane have been generated using high-level ab initio theory. The PES, CBS-F12HL, reproduces all four fundamental term values for 28SiH4 with sub-wavenumber accuracy, resulting in an overall root-mean-square error of 0.63 cm−1. The PES is based on explicitly correlated coupled cluster calculations with extrapolation to the complete basis set limit, and incorporates a range of higher-level additive energy corrections to account for core-valence electron correlation, higher-order coupled cluster terms, and scalar relativistic effects. Systematic errors in computed intra-band rotational energy levels are reduced by empirically refining the equilibrium geometry. The resultant Si–H bond length is in excellent agreement with previous experimental and theoretical values. Vibrational transition moments, absolute line intensities of the ν3 band, and the infrared spectrum for 28SiH4 including states up to J = 20 and vibrational band origins up to 5000 cm−1 are calculated and compared with available experimental results. The DMS tends to marginally overestimate the strength of line intensities. Despite this, band shape and structure across the spectrum are well reproduced and show good agreement with experiment. We thus recommend the PES and DMS for future use.
Thermal microscopy of single biological cells
Authors: Legrand R. , Abi Ghanem M. , Plawinski L. , Durrieu M.-C. , Audoin B. , Dehoux T.
Published: December 2015

Techniques that can probe the thermal properties of cells are used in many applications ranging from cryogenic preservation to hyperthermia therapy, and provide powerful tools to investigate diseased conditions. The structural complexity of cells, however, requires innovative modalities operating at a subcell scale. We developed a label-free, non-ionizing technique based on a thermoelastic lens. With this device, we captured images of single cells with a ∼2 μm resolution based on thermal properties as the contrast mechanism. To investigate the thermorheological behaviour of cells, we present simultaneous acoustic imaging using an inverted opto-acoustic microscope. Acoustic impedances extracted from the acoustic images support the effusivity obtained from the thermal images. This technique should provide diagnostic tools at the single cell scale.
Measurement of radial profiles of density ratio of helium to hydrogen ion using charge exchange spectroscopy with two-wavelength spectrometer
Authors: Ida K. , Yoshinuma M. , Wieland B. , Goto M. , Nakamura Y. , Kobayashi M. , Murakami I. , Moon C.
Published: December 2015

Radial profiles of density ratio of helium to hydrogen ions are measured using the charge exchange spectroscopy technique with the two-wavelength spectrometer system in the large helical device. The two-wavelength spectrometer system consists of a dichroic mirror box, a spectrometer with two grating and two camera lenses, and one CCD detector. The dichroic mirror box is used to divide the light of one fiber from the plasma to two fibers, one for HeII (λ = 468.6 nm) and the other for Hα (λ = 656.3 nm), that are connected to the entrance slit of the spectrometer to eliminate the interference between the HeII and the Hα spectra on the CCD. This system provides a simultaneous measurement of helium and hydrogen ion density ratio at 8 exact same locations (8 spatial channels) with a time resolution of >40 ms in the wide range of the density ratio of 0.05–5.
Additive effects of electronic and nuclear energy losses in irradiation-induced amorphization of zircon
Authors: Zarkadoula Eva , Toulemonde Marcel , Weber William J.
Published: December 2015

We used a combination of ion cascades and the unified thermal spike model to study the electronic effects from 800 keV Kr and Xe ion irradiation in zircon. We compared the damage production for four cases: (a) due to ion cascades alone, (b) due to ion cascades with the electronic energy loss activated as a friction term, (c) due to the thermal spike from the combined electronic and nuclear energy losses, and (d) due to ion cascades with electronic stopping and the electron-phonon interactions superimposed. We found that taking the electronic energy loss out as a friction term results in reduced damage, while the electronic electron-phonon interactions have additive impact on the final damage created per ion.
A silicon-nanowire memory driven by optical gradient force induced bistability
Authors: Dong B. , Cai H. , Chin L. K. , Huang J. G. , Yang Z. C. , Gu Y. D. , Ng G. I. , Ser W. , Kwong D. L. , Liu A. Q.
Published: December 2015

In this paper, a bistable optical-driven silicon-nanowire memory is demonstrated, which employs ring resonator to generate optical gradient force over a doubly clamped silicon-nanowire. Two stable deformation positions of a doubly clamped silicon-nanowire represent two memory states (“0” and “1”) and can be set/reset by modulating the light intensity (<3 mW) based on the optical force induced bistability. The time response of the optical-driven memory is less than 250 ns. It has applications in the fields of all optical communication, quantum computing, and optomechanical circuits.
Resonance-induced enhancement of the energy harvesting performance of piezoelectric flags
Authors: Xia Yifan , Michelin Sébastien , Doaré Olivier
Published: December 2015

The spontaneous flapping of a flag can be used to produce electrical energy from a fluid flow when coupled to a generator. In this paper, the energy harvesting performance of a flag covered by a single pair of polyvinylidene difluoride piezoelectric electrodes is studied both experimentally and numerically. The electrodes are connected to a resistive-inductive circuit that forms a resonant circuit with the piezoelectric's intrinsic capacitance. Compared with purely resistive circuits, the resonance between the circuit and the flag's flapping motion leads to a significant increase in the harvested energy. Our experimental study also validates our fluid-solid-electric nonlinear numerical model.
Broadband parametric amplification with impedance engineering: Beyond the gain-bandwidth product
Authors: Roy Tanay , Kundu Suman , Chand Madhavi , Vadiraj A. M. , Ranadive A. , Nehra N. , Patankar Meghan P. , Aumentado J. , Clerk A. A. , Vijay R.
Published: December 2015

We present an impedance engineered Josephson parametric amplifier capable of providing bandwidth beyond the traditional gain-bandwidth product. We achieve this by introducing a positive linear slope in the imaginary component of the input impedance seen by the Josephson oscillator using a λ/2 transformer. Our theoretical model predicts an extremely flat gain profile with a bandwidth enhancement proportional to the square root of amplitude gain. We experimentally demonstrate a nearly flat 20 dB gain over a 640 MHz band, along with a mean 1-dB compression point of −110 dBm and near quantum-limited noise. The results are in a good agreement with our theoretical model.
Note: A large open ratio, time, and position sensitive detector for time of flight measurements in UHV
Authors: Lupone S. , Damoy S. , Husseen A. , Briand N. , Debiossac M. , Tall S. , Roncin P.
Published: December 2015

We report on the construction of an UHV compatible 40 mm active diameter detector based on micro channel plates and assembled directly on the feed-throughs of a DN63CF flange. It is based on the charge division technique and uses a standard 2 inch Si wafer as a collector. The front end electronic is placed directly on the air side of the flange allowing excellent immunity to noise and a very good timing signal with reduced ringing. The important aberrations are corrected empirically providing an absolute positioning accuracy of 500 μm while a 150 μm resolution is measured in the center.
Bias tuning charge-releasing leading to negative differential resistance in amorphous gallium oxide/Nb:SrTiO3 heterostructure
Authors: Wang P. C. , Li P. G. , Zhi Y. S. , Guo D. Y. , Pan A. Q. , Zhan J. M. , Liu H. , Shen J. Q. , Tang W. H.
Published: December 2015

Negative differential resistance (NDR) and bipolar resistive switching (RS) phenomena were observed in Au/Ga2O3−x/Nb:SrTiO3/Au heterostructures fabricated by growing amorphous gallium oxide thin films on 0.7%Nb-doped SrTiO3 substrates using pulsed laser deposition technique. The RS behavior is reproducible and stable without the forming process. The NDR phenomenon happened during the course of RS from low resistance state to high resistance state and was dependent much on the applied forward bias. The bias dependent charge releasing from oxygen vacancies was considered to contribute to the NDR behavior. The results show that there is a very close relationship between NDR and RS.
Study of the effect of dipole interactions on hyperthermia heating the cluster composed of superparamagnetic nanoparticles
Authors: Fu R. , Yan Y. Y. , Roberts C.
Published: December 2015

In the present work, we investigate the effect of dipole interactions on hyperthermia heating the cluster composed of multi superparamagnetic nanoparticles via time-quantified Monte Carlo simulation. The dynamic hysteresis loop area of non-interacting particles calculated by a modified Rosensweig’s model is shown to be proportional to the field frequency. The inverse of the total number of Monte Carlo steps per field cycle is considered as a computational frequency in our modelling. By comparing the two proportionality constants gained from the simulation and from the Rosensweig’s model, respectively, the time scale of one Monte Carlo step is estimated. The shape of the cluster is characterised by treating it as an equivalent ellipsoid. When the morphology of cluster is highly anisotropic such in a chain and cylinder, dipole interactions align the moments of the particles to the morphology anisotropy axis of the cluster. The strength of such alignment depends on the magnitude of morphology anisotropy of the cluster. The alignment helps improve heating capability of the chain and cylinder clusters at the most angles between the field direction and morphology anisotropy axis. However, when the field direction is away from the axis too much, the high energy barrier will hamper the cluster to maintain the magnetization, leading to a reduced heating efficiency. Once the cluster loses its morphology anisotropy (i.e. cube), the influence of dipole interactions on hysteresis losses is reduced to the minimum; the probability to obtain an improved heating becomes very low no matter with the type of particle arrangement.
Theory of the special Smith-Purcell radiation from a rectangular grating
Authors: Liu Weihao , Li Weiwei , He Zhigang , Jia Qika
Published: December 2015

The recently uncovered special Smith-Purcell radiation (S-SPR) from the rectangular grating has significantly higher intensity than the ordinary Smith-Purcell radiation (SPR). Its monochromaticity and directivity are also much better. Here we explored the mechanism of the S-SPR by applying the fundamental electromagnetic theory and simulations. We have confirmed that the S-SPR is exactly from the radiating eigen modes of the grating. Its frequency and direction are well correlated with the beam velocity and structure parameters, which indicates its promising applications in tunable wave generation and beam diagnostic.
Withdrawal and drainage of thin film flow of a generalized Oldroyd-B fluid on non-isothermal cylindrical surfaces
Authors: Ullah Saif , Ullah Arshad , Iqbal Mohsan
Published: December 2015

This investigation deals with analytical solutions of thin film flow for withdrawal and drainage of an incompressible generalized Oldroyd-B fluid on a vertical cylinder under the influence of non-isothermal effects. The derived solutions are presented under series form for velocity profile, temperature distribution, volume flux, average film velocity and shear stress in both cases. These solutions satisfy both the governing equations and all imposed initial and boundary conditions. The corresponding exact solutions for Newtonian fluid are also obtained as a special case of our derived solutions. Moreover, solutions for generalized Maxwell fluid and Power Law model, performing the same motion, can be obtained as limiting cases of our general solutions. The influence of pertinent parameters on the fluid motion is also underlined by graphical illustration.
Natural selection against a circadian clock gene mutation in mice
Authors: Spoelstra Kamiel , Wikelski Martin , Daan Serge , Loudon Andrew S. I. , Hau Michaela
Published: December 2015

Significance

The circadian clock has evolved to anticipate daily events and is assumed to be important for Darwinian fitness. The endogenous period of the clock runs close to 24 h, permitting accurate entrainment to the natural light/dark cycle. Circadian clocks with abnormal periods are therefore predicted to have negative consequences for fitness. We compared the fitness of mice with deviant circadian periods in populations living in a seminatural environment. Mice with near 24-h “resonant” rhythms survived longer and reproduced more than mice with rhythms shortened by a mutation in the circadian Ck1ε allele. Apart from the fundamental importance of such fitness effects in nature, this finding may have implications for humans subjected to circadian-rhythm deviations under abnormal work and lighting schedules.