1,441 research outputs found
Ripple Texturing of Suspended Graphene Atomic Membranes
Graphene is the nature's thinnest elastic membrane, with exceptional
mechanical and electrical properties. We report the direct observation and
creation of one-dimensional (1D) and 2D periodic ripples in suspended graphene
sheets, using spontaneously and thermally induced longitudinal strains on
patterned substrates, with control over their orientations and wavelengths. We
also provide the first measurement of graphene's thermal expansion coefficient,
which is anomalously large and negative, ~ -7x10^-6 K^-1 at 300K. Our work
enables novel strain-based engineering of graphene devices.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figure
Poor youths and ‘pacification’:dilemmas between discourse and practice from the perspective of young people about policing in Rio de Janeiro’s favelas
This article explores the social representations of youngsters from favelas in Rio de Janeiro on
police practices in the context of the implementation of ‘Pacifying Police Units’. Drawing from
fieldwork, participant observation and interviews, the authors analyse the narratives and practices
which influence relations between young people and the police in the Complexo do Alemão
area of the city. The interviewees expressed a demand for further public security and social
services. Young people noted some progress in police practices, although these changes appear
to be unstable. The permanence of violent practices and prejudice by the police was verified in
youngsters’ narratives. Any change in this scenario should be based on the replacement of the
war logic of ‘pacification’ for another logic, that of participation.2030-01-0
30 inch Roll-Based Production of High-Quality Graphene Films for Flexible Transparent Electrodes
We report that 30-inch scale multiple roll-to-roll transfer and wet chemical
doping considerably enhance the electrical properties of the graphene films
grown on roll-type Cu substrates by chemical vapor deposition. The resulting
graphene films shows a sheet resistance as low as ~30 Ohm/sq at ~90 %
transparency which is superior to commercial transparent electrodes such as
indium tin oxides (ITO). The monolayer of graphene shows sheet resistances as
low as ~125 Ohm/sq with 97.4% optical transmittance and half-integer quantum
Hall effect, indicating the high-quality of these graphene films. As a
practical application, we also fabricated a touch screen panel device based on
the graphene transparent electrodes, showing extraordinary mechanical and
electrical performances
The Universal One-Loop Effective Action
We present the universal one-loop effective action for all operators of
dimension up to six obtained by integrating out massive, non-degenerate
multiplets. Our general expression may be applied to loops of heavy fermions or
bosons, and has been checked against partial results available in the
literature. The broad applicability of this approach simplifies one-loop
matching from an ultraviolet model to a lower-energy effective field theory
(EFT), a procedure which is now reduced to the evaluation of a combination of
matrices in our universal expression, without any loop integrals to evaluate.
We illustrate the relationship of our results to the Standard Model (SM) EFT,
using as an example the supersymmetric stop and sbottom squark Lagrangian and
extracting from our universal expression the Wilson coefficients of
dimension-six operators composed of SM fields.Comment: 30 pages, v2 contains additional comments and corrects typos, version
accepted for publication in JHE
Hierarchy of Hofstadter states and replica quantum Hall ferromagnetism in graphene superlattices
This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Nature Publishing Group via the DOI in this record.Self-similarity and fractals have fascinated researchers across various disciplines. In graphene placed on boron nitride and subjected to a magnetic field, self-similarity appears in the form of numerous replicas of the original Dirac spectrum, and their quantization gives rise to a fractal pattern of Landau levels, referred to as the Hofstadter butterfly. Here we employ capacitance spectroscopy to probe directly the density of states (DoS) and energy gaps in this spectrum. Without a magnetic field, replica spectra are seen as pronounced DoS minima surrounded by van Hove singularities. The Hofstadter butterfly shows up as recurring Landau fan diagrams in high fields. Electron-electron interactions add another twist to the self-similar behaviour. We observe suppression of quantum Hall ferromagnetism, a reverse Stoner transition at commensurable fluxes and additional ferromagnetism within replica spectra. The strength and variety of the interaction effects indicate a large playground to study many-body physics in fractal Dirac systems.This work was supported by the European Research Council, the Royal Society, Graphene Flagship, Science and Innovation Award from the EPSRC (UK) and EuroMagNET II (EU Contract 228043)
Systematic review and meta-analysis of the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonography for deep vein thrombosis
Background
Ultrasound (US) has largely replaced contrast venography as the definitive diagnostic test for deep vein thrombosis (DVT). We aimed to derive a definitive estimate of the diagnostic accuracy of US for clinically suspected DVT and identify study-level factors that might predict accuracy.
Methods
We undertook a systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of diagnostic cohort studies that compared US to contrast venography in patients with suspected DVT. We searched Medline, EMBASE, CINAHL, Web of Science, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Controlled Trials Register, Database of Reviews of Effectiveness, the ACP Journal Club, and citation lists (1966 to April 2004). Random effects meta-analysis was used to derive pooled estimates of sensitivity and specificity. Random effects meta-regression was used to identify study-level covariates that predicted diagnostic performance.
Results
We identified 100 cohorts comparing US to venography in patients with suspected DVT. Overall sensitivity for proximal DVT (95% confidence interval) was 94.2% (93.2 to 95.0), for distal DVT was 63.5% (59.8 to 67.0), and specificity was 93.8% (93.1 to 94.4). Duplex US had pooled sensitivity of 96.5% (95.1 to 97.6) for proximal DVT, 71.2% (64.6 to 77.2) for distal DVT and specificity of 94.0% (92.8 to 95.1). Triplex US had pooled sensitivity of 96.4% (94.4 to 97.1%) for proximal DVT, 75.2% (67.7 to 81.6) for distal DVT and specificity of 94.3% (92.5 to 95.8). Compression US alone had pooled sensitivity of 93.8 % (92.0 to 95.3%) for proximal DVT, 56.8% (49.0 to 66.4) for distal DVT and specificity of 97.8% (97.0 to 98.4). Sensitivity was higher in more recently published studies and in cohorts with higher prevalence of DVT and more proximal DVT, and was lower in cohorts that reported interpretation by a radiologist. Specificity was higher in cohorts that excluded patients with previous DVT. No studies were identified that compared repeat US to venography in all patients. Repeat US appears to have a positive yield of 1.3%, with 89% of these being confirmed by venography.
Conclusion
Combined colour-doppler US techniques have optimal sensitivity, while compression US has optimal specificity for DVT. However, all estimates are subject to substantial unexplained heterogeneity. The role of repeat scanning is very uncertain and based upon limited data
A symbol of carnival or menace? Sojourner perceptions of the St George Cross flag during the FIFA 2010 World Cup
Type Ia Supernovae as Stellar Endpoints and Cosmological Tools
Empirically, Type Ia supernovae are the most useful, precise, and mature
tools for determining astronomical distances. Acting as calibrated candles they
revealed the presence of dark energy and are being used to measure its
properties. However, the nature of the SN Ia explosion, and the progenitors
involved, have remained elusive, even after seven decades of research. But now
new large surveys are bringing about a paradigm shift --- we can finally
compare samples of hundreds of supernovae to isolate critical variables. As a
result of this, and advances in modeling, breakthroughs in understanding all
aspects of SNe Ia are finally starting to happen.Comment: Invited review for Nature Communications. Final published version.
Shortened, update
Mapping an atlas of tissue-specific drosophila melanogaster metabolomes by high resolution mass spectrometry
Metabolomics can provide exciting insights into organismal function, but most work on simple models has focussed on the whole organism metabolome, so missing the contributions of individual tissues. Comprehensive metabolite profiles for ten tissues from adult Drosophila melanogaster were obtained here by two chromatographic methods, a hydrophilic interaction (HILIC) method for polar metabolites and a lipid profiling method also based on HILIC, in combination with an Orbitrap Exactive instrument. Two hundred and forty two polar metabolites were putatively identified in the various tissues, and 251 lipids were observed in positive ion mode and 61 in negative ion mode. Although many metabolites were detected in all tissues, every tissue showed characteristically abundant metabolites which could be rationalised against specific tissue functions. For example, the cuticle contained high levels of glutathione, reflecting a role in oxidative defence; the alimentary canal (like vertebrate gut) had high levels of acylcarnitines for fatty acid metabolism, and the head contained high levels of ether lipids. The male accessory gland uniquely contained decarboxylated S-adenosylmethionine. These data thus both provide valuable insights into tissue function, and a reference baseline, compatible with the FlyAtlas.org transcriptomic resource, for further metabolomic analysis of this important model organism, for example in the modelling of human inborn errors of metabolism, aging or metabolic imbalances such as diabetes
On the gauge boson's properties in a candidate technicolor theory
The technicolor scenario replaces the Higgs sector of the standard model with
a strongly interacting sector. One candidate for a realization of such a sector
is two-technicolor Yang-Mills theory coupled to two degenerate flavors of
adjoint, massless techniquarks. Using lattice gauge theory the properties of
the technigluons in this scenario are investigated as a function of the
techniquark mass towards the massless limit. For that purpose the minimal
Landau gauge two-point and three-point correlation functions are determined,
including a detailed systematic error analysis. The results are, within the
relatively large systematic uncertainties, compatible with a behavior very
similar to QCD at finite techniquark mass. However, the limit of massless
techniquarks exhibits features which could be compatible with a
(quasi-)conformal behavior.Comment: 27 pages, 17 figures, 1 table; v2: persistent notational error
corrected, some minor modification
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