Boosted Simon‐Wolff Spectral Criterion and Resonant Delocalization

Discussed here are criteria for the existence of continuous components in the spectra of operators with random potential. First, the essential condition for the Simon‐Wolff criterion is shown to be measurable at infinity. By implication, for the i.i.d. case and more generally potentials with the K‐property, the criterion is boosted by a zero‐one law. The boosted criterion, combined with tunneling estimates, is then applied for sufficiency conditions for the presence of continuous spectrum for random Schrödinger operators. The general proof strategy that this yields is modeled on the resonant delocalization arguments by which continuous spectrum in the presence of disorder was previously established for random operators on tree graphs. In another application of the Simon‐Wolff rank‐one analysis we prove the almost sure simplicity of the pure point spectrum for operators with random potentials of conditionally continuous distribution.© 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Equivalence of Non-equilibrium Ensembles and Representation of Friction in Turbulent Flows: The Lorenz 96 Model

We construct different equivalent non-equilibrium statistical ensembles in a simple yet instructive \(N\) -degrees of freedom model of atmospheric turbulence, introduced by Lorenz in 1996. The vector field can be decomposed into an energy-conserving, time-reversible part, plus a non-time reversible part, including forcing and dissipation. We construct a modified version of the model where viscosity varies with time, in such a way that energy is conserved, and the resulting dynamics is fully time-reversible. For each value of the forcing, the statistical properties of the irreversible and reversible model are in excellent agreement, if in the latter the energy is kept constant at a value equal to the time-average realized with the irreversible model. In particular, the average contraction rate of the phase space of the time-reversible model agrees with that of the irreversible model, where instead it is constant by construction. We also show that the phase space contraction rate obeys the fluctuation relation, and we relate its finite time corrections to the characteristic time scales of the system. A local version of the fluctuation relation is explored and successfully checked. The equivalence between the two non-equilibrium ensembles extends to dynamical properties such as the Lyapunov exponents, which are shown to obey to a good degree of approximation a pairing rule. These results have relevance in motivating the importance of the chaotic hypothesis. in explaining that we have the freedom to model non-equilibrium systems using different but equivalent approaches, and, in particular, that using a model of a fluid where viscosity is kept constant is just one option, and not necessarily the only option, for describing accurately its statistical and dynamical properties.     

Sub-Rayleigh imaging via N-photon detection

The Rayleigh diffraction bound sets the minimum separation for two point objects to be distinguishable in a conventional imaging system. We demonstrate sub-Rayleigh resolution by scanning a focused beam--in an arbitrary, object-covering pattern that is unknown to the imager--and using N-photon photodetection implemented with a single-photon avalanche detector array. Experiments show resolution improvement by a factor ～(N-N(max))(?) beyond the Rayleigh bound, where N(max) is the maximum average detected photon number in the image, in good agreement with theory.     

Extreme value theory for singular measures

In this paper, we perform an analytical and numerical study of the extreme values of specific observables of dynamical systems possessing an invariant singular measure. Such observables are expressed as functions of the distance of the orbit of initial conditions with respect to a given point of the attractor. Using the block maxima approach, we show that the extremes are distributed according to the generalised extreme value distribution, where the parameters can be written as functions of the information dimension of the attractor. The numerical analysis is performed on a few low dimensional maps. For the Cantor ternary set and the Sierpinskij triangle, which can be constructed as iterated function systems, the inferred parameters show a very good agreement with the theoretical values. For strange attractors like those corresponding to the Lozi and He?non maps, a slower convergence to the generalised extreme value distribution is observed. Nevertheless, the results are in good statistical agreement with the theoretical estimates. It is apparent that the analysis of extremes allows for capturing fundamental information of the geometrical structure of the attractor of the underlying dynamical system, the basic reason being that the chosen observables act as magnifying glass in the neighborhood of the point from which the distance is computed.     

Therapeutic Potential of Highly Selective A3 Adenosine Receptor Ligands in the Central and Peripheral Nervous System

Ligands of the G_i protein-coupled adenosine A₃ receptor (A₃R) are receiving increasing interest as attractive therapeutic tools for the treatment of a number of pathological conditions of the central and peripheral nervous systems (CNS and PNS, respectively). Their safe pharmacological profiles emerging from clinical trials on different pathologies (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and fatty liver diseases) confer a realistic translational potential to these compounds, thus encouraging the investigation of highly selective agonists and antagonists of A₃R. The present review summarizes information on the effect of latest-generation A₃R ligands, not yet available in commerce, obtained by using different in vitro and in vivo models of various PNS- or CNS-related disorders. This review places particular focus on brain ischemia insults and colitis, where the prototypical A₃R agonist, Cl-IB-MECA, and antagonist, MRS1523, have been used in research studies as reference compounds to explore the effects of latest-generation ligands on this receptor. The advantages and weaknesses of these compounds in terms of therapeutic potential are discussed.     

Effect of a reduced mobility layer on the interplay between molecular relaxations and diffusion-limited crystallization rate in ultrathin polymer films

In ultrathin polymer films, the coupling between the segmental mobility, precursor of the molecular diffusion, and the crystallization rate is broken down because of interfacial interactions. In particular, in the presence of a reduced mobility layer at the interface with the substrate, the crystallization kinetics slow down at a length scale bigger than the one connected with the deviation from bulk behavior of the structural relaxation. By modeling the influence of the substrate interactions on the parameters governing the temperature evolution of the main relaxation time, it was possible to reproduce the effect of geometrical confinement on the quantities connected to the diffusion-limited crystallization rate. Upon reduction of the thickness or increasing of the substrate interaction, the films show an apparent higher glass stability in terms of an increase of the cold crystallization temperature and of the crystallization time. The deviations from bulk behavior were found to vanish above a crossover temperature as already observed for the phenomena connected to the glass transition.     

Non-destructive method for determination of hydroxyl value of soybean polyol by LS-SVM using HATR/FT-IR

This paper presents the use of least-squares support vector machine (LS-SVM) for quantitative determination of hydroxyl value (OHV) of hydroxylated soybean oils by horizontal attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (HATR/FT-IR) spectroscopy. A least-squares support vector machine (LS-SVM) calibration model for the prediction of hydroxyl value (OHV) was developed using the range 1805.1-649.9 cm(-1). Validation of the method was carried out by comparing the OHV of a series of hydroxylated soybean oil predicted by the LS-SVM model to the values obtained by the AOCS standard method. A correlation coefficient equal to 0.989 and RMSEP = 4.96 mg of KOH/g was obtained. This study demonstrates a better prediction ability of the LS-SVM technique to determine OHV in hydroxylated soybean oil samples by HATR/FT-IR spectra.     

Binding of β-lactam antibiotics to a bioinspired dizinc complex reminiscent of the active site of metallo-β-lactamases

Metallo-β-lactamases (mβls) cause bacterial resistance toward a broad spectrum of β-lactam antibiotics by catalyzing the hydrolytic cleavage of the four-membered β-lactam ring, thus inactivating the drug. Minutiae of the mechanism of these enzymes are still not well understood, and reports about binding studies of the substrates to the enzymes as well as to synthetic model systems are rare. Here we report a new pyrazolate-based bioinspired dizinc complex (1) reminiscent of the active site of binuclear mβls. Since 1 does not mediate hydrolytic degradation of β-lactams, the binding of a series of common β-lactam antibiotics (benzylpenicillin, cephalotin, 6-aminopenicillanic acid, ampicillin) as well as the inhibitor sulbactam and the simplest β-lactam, 2-azetidinone, to the dizinc core of 1 could now be studied in detail by NMR and IR spectroscopy as well as mass spectrometry. X-ray crystallographic information was obtained for 1 and its complexes with 2-azetidinone (2) and sulbactam (3); the latter represents the first structurally characterized dizinc complex with a bound β-lactam drug. While 2-azetidinone was found deprotonated and bridging in the clamp of the two zinc ions in 2, in 3 and all other cases the substrates preferentially bind via their carboxylate group within the bimetallic pocket. The relevance of this binding mode for mβls and consequences for the design of functional model systems are discussed.