Zero-energy state in graphene in a high magnetic field

The fate of the charge-neutral Dirac point in graphene in a high magnetic field H has been investigated at low temperatures (T approximately 0.3 K). In samples with small gate-voltage offset V0, the resistance R0 at the Dirac point diverges steeply with H, signaling a crossover to a state with a very large R0. The approach to this state is highly unusual. Despite the steep divergence in R0, the profile of R0 vs T in fixed H saturates to a T-independent value below 2 K, consistent with gapless charge-carrying excitations.     

Chaotic mixing in a steady flow in a microchannel

We report experiments on mixing of a passively advected fluorescent dye in a low Reynolds number flow in a microscopic channel. The channel is a chain of repeating segments with a custom designed profile that generates a steady three-dimensional flow with stretching and folding, and chaotic mixing. A few statistical characteristics of mixing in the flow are studied and are all found to agree with theoretical and experimental results for the flows in the Batchelor regime of mixing that are chaotic in time. The proposed microchannel provides fast and efficient mixing and is simple to fabricate.     

Water diffusion in the human hippocampus in epilepsy

The hippocampus plays a central role in the generation and propagation of seizures in patients with complex partial seizures. Hippocampal sclerosis (HS) is a common structural abnormality in patients with refractory epilepsy. The aim of this study was to quantify diffusion in the hippocampus in patients with epilepsy to evaluate the diffusion changes associated with HS. We scanned 20 subjects (14 patients and 6 controls) with a 1.5T magnetic resonance (MR) system using a cardiac-gated, navigated spin-echo diffusion-weighted sequence. Hippocampal ADC measurements were performed on maps of the ADC measured in three orthogonal directions labeled x, y, and z. The mean ADC (ADC_av) and an anisotropy index (AI) were calculated. Hippocampi which fulfilled the MR criteria for HS had a higher ADC_av (p < 0.001) and a lower AI (p = 0.04) than normal appearing hippocampi in patients and hippocampi in controls. These results imply a loss of structural organization in sclerotic hippocampi and an expansion of the extracellular space. Quantitative measurements of diffusion can be used as an independent parameter for the identification and characterization of abnormal hippocampi in epilepsy.     

Fano-type features in magnetoabsorption in semiconductors

It is shown that bulk semiconductors exhibit strongly asymmetric Fano-type resonance profiles in magnetoabsorption processes involving the formation of hot electron-hole pairs (EHPs) and accompanied by the scattering of the EHPs by defects. This result is valid for transitions to electronic states with large Landau quantum numbers, when the Coulomb interaction plays a small role. The physical reason for such a sharp change in the magnetoabsorption coefficient as compared with the expected result for the ordinary density of states in a quantizing magnetic field is that the electronic excitations are quasi-one-dimensional. The form of the resonance absorption is in good qualitative agreement with the experimental data. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 63, No. 8, 619–622 (25 April 1996)     

Hall effect in three-dimensional layered structures in strong magnetic fields

A three-dimensional electron system with a corrugated-cylinder-type Fermi surface is considered. We show that the quantum Hall effect must be observed in such a system with a smooth random potential. Our results are in qualitative agreement with available experimental data.     

Relaxation times in cyclotron resonance in metals

The relation between an effective relaxation time τ in cyclotron resonance, mass anisotropy and magnetic field tipping is studied and a true relaxation time τ₀ is extracted by comparison with measurements. It is found that for copper τ has a maximum value in a slightly tipped magnetic field and that in potassium τ decreases monotonically with increasing tip angle. This is explained in terms of the Fermi surfaces of these metals.     

Cascade processes in inelastic light scattering in ZnSe nanowire structures

The resonance Raman scattering of light in MBE-grown structures with ZnSe nanowires (10–20 nm in diameter) with an Au film deposited on the substrate used as a catalyst was investigated. The thicknesses of the Au layers were 2, 10, and 100 Å. The photon energy of the He-Cd pump laser (λ = 441.6 nm) was in excess of the band gap of bulk ZnSe, and the measurements were conducted at room temperature. Under these conditions, the Raman spectra are defined by a cascade process in which the electron interacting with a longitudinal optical phonon transfers between real band states with a certain probability of radiative recombination at each step. The blue shift of the luminescence maximum associated with the quantum confinement of carriers in the nanowire has been observed. The average nanowire diameter derived from the magnitude of this shift agrees well with electron microscopy measurements.     

Spin and charge ordering in three-leg ladders in oxyborates

We study the spin ordering within the three-leg ladders present in the oxyborate Fe3O2BO3 consisting of localized classical spins interacting with conduction electrons (one electron per rung). We also consider the competition with antiferromagnetic superexchange interactions to determine the magnetic phase diagram. Besides a ferromagnetic phase we find (i) a phase with ferromagnetic rungs ordered antiferromagnetically and (ii) a zigzag canted spin ordering along the legs. We also determine the induced charge ordering within the different phases and the interplay with lattice instability. Our model is discussed in connection with the lattice dimerization transition observed in this system, emphasizing the role of the magnetic structure.     

Avalanches in a nonlinear oscillator chain in a periodic potential

We consider the dynamics of a chain of coupled units evolving in a periodic substrate potential. The chain is initially in a flat state and situated in a potential well. A bias force, acting as a weak driving mechanism, is applied at a single unit of the chain. We study the instigation of directed transport in two types of system: (i) a microcanonical situation associated with deterministic and conservative dynamics and (ii) the Langevin dynamics when the system is in contact with a heat bath. Interestingly, for the deterministic and conservative dynamics the directed transport is drastically enhanced compared with its Langevin counterpart. In particular, in the deterministic and conservative regime a self-organised redistribution of energy triggers huge-sized avalanches yielding ultimately accelerated transport of the chain. In contrast, in the thermally-assisted process between avalanches the chain settles always into a pinned metastable state impeding continual accelerated chain motion.     

Focusing in microlenses close to a wavelength in diameter

Light focused from air into a spherical microlens is affected by diffraction at the lens surface as its diameter approaches the wavelength of light. Through an extension of Mie theory, we show that a converging wave that is incident upon a Si microlens with a diameter less than approximately 4lambda creates a spot as much as 25% smaller than predicted with vector diffraction theory. Si microlenses only a wavelength in diameter are shown to be virtually insensitive to variations in the maximum illumination angle, and changes in index of refraction are not found to cause the proportional changes in spot size that would be expected from vector diffraction theory.     

Chaos in spacecraft attitude motion in Earth's magnetic field

The rotational motion of a satellite with a magnetic stabilization system is discussed. The motion is described by a nonautonomous differential equation, with the magnetic moment of the satellite as a parameter. The global phase portrait of the problem is investigated in a wide range of magnetic-parameter values, using a numerical realization of the method of Poincare point maps. New periodic solutions of the problem are found, and an analysis is carried out of the evolution of the phase portrait and the bifurcation of periodic solutions with varying magnetic-parameter values. The values of the magnetic parameter that must be avoided in the design of the satellite magnetic stabilization system are discussed. (c) 1999 American Institute of Physics.     

Electrically induced luminescence in parabolic quantum wells in a magnetic field

Interband luminescence in a parabolic quantum well is studied in applied electric and magnetic fields. It is shown that the luminescence peak is displaced towards higher frequencies with increasing magnetic field strength, while an increase in the electric field strength causes a displacement of the emission peak towards the long-wave region and a decrease in its amplitude. The theoretical results are compared with the experimental data. The existence of a new electromagnetic-wave emission channel (electrically induced luminescence) associated with indirect optical transitions is predicted. The frequency dependence of the electrically induced radiation is computed, taking into account the interaction of an electron with acoustic and optical phonons. It is found that the half-width of the luminescence peak increases with the electric field strength.     

Effects of nonlocal hydromechanics in a flow in thin channels

An approach to viscous friction is described as nonlocal momentum exchange between different layers of a fluid. The Navier?Stokes equations are replaced by pseudo-differential equations hyperbolic in time. In this case, instead of zero velocity on the boundary, a nonlocal nonlinear boundary condition is set in the form of the velocity dependence of the coefficient before the intensity of the momentum exchange with the boundary. The non-newtonian character of the viscosity of water is shown in experiments with thin insulin needles and explained by the nonlinear character of the momentum exchange of water with the boundary. The calculations agree very well both with our experiments and with the experiments of other authors. Calculations show that the flow decreases more than one-and-a-half times in comparison with the Poiseuille flow for channels with a diameter of 360?390 μm, which is confirmed in experiments.     

Structure and dynamics of the Frenkel-Kontorova dislocations in electroconvection in liquid crystals

The Frenkel-Kontorova instability is studied in a 1D lattice of domains formed during electroconvection in nematic liquid crystals twisted by π/2. It is found that generation of defects by such instability can be observed in this model medium. Among other things, it is shown that several types of defects with singular and nonsingular cores, as well as with a extended core, are formed in the 1D domain structure above the electroconvective instability threshold. The extended cores of dislocations are dissociated into a line, and the entire structure is isomorphic to two partial dislocations spaced by a certain distance, which are not observed in free form. Defects with a nonsingular core (zero topological index) exist owing to spiral hydrodynamic flows in convective rolls and are not observed in layers with a homogeneous orientation of molecules. It is shown that the formation of both types of defects follows the scenario of decay of dislocations with extended cores via detachment of nonsingular defects (i.e., discretely); as a result, a dislocation with a singular core is left. “Breather” defects, which are the result of periodic creation and annihilation of dislocations with a topological index of ±1, are also observed. The effect of defects on the transition from the 1D to 2D structures is considered.     

Phase effects in masking related to dispersion in the inner ear

Phase effects in masking experiments using multitone maskers are usually associated with strong variations in the masker envelope. In this article, psychoacoustic experiments with such maskers that lead to phase-dependent threshold variations of up to 20 dB, although the phase transformation leaves the envelope unchanged, are described. However, after filtering the maskers with a realistic basilar membrane model, the envelopes are different owing to the models phase-dispersive properties. Comparison of model outputs with the experimental results reveals a strong correlation between the two for a wide range of parameters, provided one makes the additional assumption that the ear has a minimum integration time of a few milliseconds.     

Lactate observation in vivo by spectral editing in real time

We have developed a novel in vivo proton MR spectroscopy magnetization transfer method for detection of lactate in ischemic tissue in the presence of interfering fat proton resonances. Pyruvate is magnetically labeled with a saturation pulse and, when converted to lactate, the lactate retains the label. Difference of spectra obtained with and without a saturation pulse contain no fat resonances. High-resolution spectra (determined with a GE 1.5 T Signa) of low lactate levels were obtained in vivo by water suppression using a 2662 composite RF pulse and slice-selective gradients. Spectral subtraction was performed in real time allowing the monitoring of a buildup of the intensity of the lactate peak. Pyruvate-lactate saturation transfer techniques should find wide applicability in the study of ischemia.     

Acousto-optic interaction in laser vibrometry in a liquid

It is demonstrated that, when the classical method of laser vibrometry is used for measurements in a liquid, it gives erroneous results with measurement errors reaching 100% or more. The vibration pattern observed in this case exhibits a false structure with a spatial scale identical to the wavelength of acoustic waves in the liquid. In addition, the laser vibrometer shows displacements in the regions where they are actually absent. In the transient mode of operation, the image displays nonexistent surface waves, which propagate with the velocity of sound in the liquid. The origin of these distortions lies in the acoustooptic interaction that occurs in the condensed medium on the path of the probing laser beam. An analytic expression is obtained for the Green’s function characterizing laser vibrometry in the cases of harmonic and pulsed excitation of the surface under investigation. It is shown that this function explains all the artifacts observed in laser vibrometry in a liquid and can be used to correct the measurement data.     

Image features in medical vibro-acoustography: in vitro and in vivo results

Vibro-acoustography is an imaging method based on audio-frequency harmonic vibrations induced in the object by the radiation force of focused ultrasound. The purpose of this study is to investigate features of vibro-acoustography images and manifestation of various tissue structures and calcifications in such images. Our motivation for this study is to pave the way for further in vitro and in vivo applications of vibro-acoustography. Here, vibro-acoustography images of excised prostate and in vivo breast are presented and compared with images obtained with other modalities. Resulting vibro-acoustography images obtained with a 3 MHz ultrasound transducer and at a vibration frequency of 50-60 kHz show soft tissue structures, tissue borders, and microcalcifications with high contrast, high resolution, and no speckle. It is concluded that vibro-acoustography offers features that may be valuable for diagnostic purposes.     

Transients in a semiconductor diode having an electric field in the base

The transients in a diode with a finite inhomogeneous base (one with a dope gradient) are discussed, no condition being imposed on the recombination rate at the ohmic contact; it is assumed that the electric field is of constant strength along the base. It is found that the transients are shorter than those in a diode with a homogeneous base.     

Dynamics of nanoparticle agglomeration in a magnetic fluid in a varying magnetic field

It is found that the dependence of the magnetic nanoparticle agglomerate length in a magnetic fluid on the applied magnetic field has three characteristic segments: a substantial increase in the agglomerate length with the magnetic field in the range of weak fields, a segment with an insignificant increase in the average length of agglomerates upon an increase in the field, and a sharp increase in the agglomerate length with a further increase in the field. It is shown that the agglomerate length increases in the range of strong magnetic fields due to a decrease in the spacing between adjacent agglomerates down to their complete coalescence. The total number of agglomerates decreases thereby.