Electrical Discharge in a Cavitating Liquid under an Ultrasound Field.

A theoretical model for an electrical discharge in a cavitating liquid is developed and compared with experiments for the optimization of the water treatment device. The calculations based on solution of the Noltingk─Neppiras equation support the hypothesis that the electric field promotes the formation of vapor microchannels inside a liquid gap between the electrodes, where at a low gas pressure Paschen's conditions of rupture and abnormal glow discharge maintenance in those microchannels are fulfilled. Theoretical analysis of the cavitation processes and the discharge formation processes is in qualitative agreement with the experimental data obtained in this work in a water treatment device using a hydrodynamic emitter. The following graphic illustrates the experimental setup: (1) feeding tank, (2) hydrodynamic emitter, (3) zone of cavitation inside the plasma reactor, (4) high-frequency generator of electric impulses, and (5) outlet.

Environment-induced overheating phenomena in Au-nanowire based Josephson junctions.

Unlike conventional planar Josephson junctions, nanowire-based devices have a bridge geometry with a peculiar coupling to environment that can favor non-equilibrium electronic phenomena. Here we measure the influence of the electron bath overheating on critical current of several bridge-like junctions built on a single Au-nanowire. Using the Usadel theory and applying the two-fluid description for the normal and superconducting components of the flowing currents, we reveal and explain the mutual influence of the neighbouring junctions on their characteristics through various processes of the electron gas overheating. Our results provide additional ways to control nanowire-based superconducting devices.

Disorder-Promoted Splitting in Quasiparticle Interference at Nesting Vectors.

Inelastic interactions of quantum systems with the environment usually wash coherent effects out. In the case of Friedel oscillations, the presence of disorder leads to a fast decay of the oscillation amplitude. Here we show both experimentally and theoretically that in three-dimensional topological insulator Bi2Te3 there is a nesting-induced splitting of coherent scattering vectors which follows a peculiar evolution in energy. The effect becomes experimentally observable when the lifetime of quasiparticles shortens due to disorder. The amplitude of the splitting allows an evaluation of the lifetime of the electrons. A similar phenomenon should be observed in any system with a well-defined scattering vector regardless of its topological properties.

Anomalous magneto-resistance of Ni-nanowire/Nb hybrid system.

We examine the influence of superconductivity on the magneto-transport properties of a ferromagnetic Ni nanowire connected to Nb electrodes. We show experimentally and confirm theoretically that the Nb/Ni interface plays an essential role in the electron transport through the device. Just below the superconducting transition, a strong inverse proximity effect from the nanowire suppresses superconducting correlations at Nb/Ni interfaces, resulting in a conventional anisotropic magneto-resistive response. At lower temperatures however, the Nb electrodes operate as superconducting shunts. As the result, the magneto-resistance exhibits a strongly growing hysteretic behavior accompanied by a series of saw-like jumps. The latter are associated with the penetration/escape of individual Abrikosov vortices that influence non-equilibrium processes at the Nb/Ni interface. These effects should be taken into account when designing superconducting quantum nano-hybrids involving ferromagnetic nanowires.

Probing pairing symmetry in multi-band superconductors by quasiparticle interference.

We study momentum and energy dependencies of the quasiparticle interference (QPI) response function in multiband superconductors in the framework of the strong-coupling Eliashberg approach. Within an effective two-band model we study the s± and s++ symmetry cases, corresponding to opposite or equal signs of the order parameters in the bands. We demonstrate that the momentum dependence of the QPI function is strikingly different for s± and s++ symmetries of the order parameter at energies close to the small gap. At the same time, the QPI response becomes indistinguishable for both symmetries at higher energies around the large gap. This result may guide future experiments on probing pairing symmetry in iron pnictides as well as in other unconventional superconductors.

Global transcriptome profiling of mild relapsing-remitting versus primary progressive multiple sclerosis.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Genetic research in multiple sclerosis (MS) mostly compares patients with MS with healthy controls, but does not differentiate between MS disease courses. We compared peripheral blood gene expression patterns between extremes of MS phenotypes, i.e. patients with mild relapsing-remitting MS (mRRMS) and primary progressive MS (PPMS). METHODS: We analyzed global gene expression profiles of peripheral blood samples of age- and gender-matched patients with mRRMS and PPMS. Detailed bioinformatic and gene set enrichment analysis, pathway and principle component analyses were used to identify differentially expressed genes and pathways. RESULTS: A total of 84 genes were significantly deregulated between the groups. Of those, 19 had been previously reported to be deregulated in patients with MS as compared with healthy controls, including major histocompatibility complex, interferon receptor 2 and interleukin 6 receptor. Detailed molecular pathway analysis revealed significant up-regulation of antigen processing and presentation, leukocyte transendothelial migration, nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor signaling, chemokine signaling and down-regulation of RNA transport, spliceosome and aminoacyl-tRNA biosynthesis pathways in PPMS compared with mRRMS. CONCLUSION: Our analyses show significant differences between mRRMS and PPMS gene expression. Surprisingly, the differentially expressed genes were mostly involved in immunological and inflammatory pathways, suggesting that the difference in MS phenotypes is caused primarily by a difference in immune responses. It should be kept in mind that our analyses were in peripheral blood only, and that the observed differences in inflammatory pathways may be a substrate of the analysed tissue. Further research into gene expression differences between disease courses including analyses in central nervous system tissue is warranted.

Odd-frequency superconductivity induced in topological insulators with and without hexagonal warping.

We study the effect of the Fermi surface anisotropy on the odd-frequency spin-triplet pairing component of the induced pair potential. We consider a superconductor/ ferromagnetic insulator (S/FI) hybrid structure formed on the 3D topological insulator (TI) surface. In this case three ingredients ensure the possibility of the odd-frequency pairing: (1) the topological surface states, (2) the induced pair potential, and (3) the magnetic moment of a nearby ferromagnetic insulator. We take into account the strong anisotropy of the Dirac point in topological insulators when the chemical potential lies well above the Dirac cone and its constant energy contour has a snowflake shape. Within this model, we propose that the S/FI boundary should be properly aligned with respect to the snowflake constant energy contour to have an odd-frequency symmetry of the corresponding pairing component and to insure the Majorana bound state at the S/FI boundary. For arbitrary orientation of the boundary, the Majorana bound state is absent. This provides a selection rule to the realization of Majorana modes in S/FI hybrid structures, formed on the topological insulator surface.

Andreev Reflection in an s-Type Superconductor Proximized 3D Topological Insulator.

We investigate transport and shot noise in lateral normal-metal-3D topological-insulator-superconductor contacts, where the 3D topological insulator (TI) is based on Bi. In the normal state, the devices are in the elastic diffusive transport regime, as demonstrated by a nearly universal value of the shot noise Fano factor F_{N}≈1/3 in magnetic field and in a reference normal-metal contact. In the absence of magnetic field, we identify the Andreev reflection (AR) regime, which gives rise to the effective charge doubling in shot noise measurements. Surprisingly, the Fano factor F_{AR}≈0.22±0.02 is considerably reduced in the AR regime compared to F_{N}, in contrast to previous AR experiments in normal metals and semiconductors. We suggest that this effect is related to a finite thermal conduction of the proximized, superconducting TI owing to a residual density of states at low energies.

Observability of surface Andreev bound states in a topological insulator in proximity to an s-wave superconductor.

To guide experimental work on the search for Majorana zero-energy modes, we calculate the superconducting pairing symmetry of a three-dimensional topological insulator in combination with an s-wave superconductor. We show how the pairing symmetry changes across different topological regimes. We demonstrate that a dominant p-wave pairing relation is not sufficient to realise a Majorana zero-energy mode useful for quantum computation. Our main result is the relation between odd-frequency pairing and Majorana zero energy modes by using Green functions techniques in three-dimensional topological insulators in the so-called Majorana regime. We discuss thereafter how the pairing relations in the different regimes can be observed in the tunneling conductance of an s-wave proximised three-dimensional topological insulator. We discuss the necessity to incorporate a ferromagnetic insulator to localise the zero-energy bound state to the interface as a Majorana mode.

Stimulation of the fluctuation superconductivity by PT symmetry.

We discuss fluctuations near the second-order phase transition where the free energy has an additional non-Hermitian term. The spectrum of the fluctuations changes when the odd-parity potential amplitude exceeds the critical value corresponding to the PT-symmetry breakdown in the topological structure of the Hilbert space of the effective non-Hermitian Hamiltonian. We calculate the fluctuation contribution to the differential resistance of a superconducting weak link and find the manifestation of the PT-symmetry breaking in its temperature evolution. We successfully validate our theory by carrying out measurements of far from equilibrium transport in mesoscale-patterned superconducting wires.

Josephson supercurrent through a topological insulator surface state.

The long-sought yet elusive Majorana fermion is predicted to arise from a combination of a superconductor and a topological insulator. An essential step in the hunt for this emergent particle is the unequivocal observation of supercurrent in a topological phase. Here, direct evidence for Josephson supercurrents in superconductor (Nb)-topological insulator (Bi(2)Te(3))-superconductor electron-beam fabricated junctions is provided by the observation of clear Shapiro steps under microwave irradiation, and a Fraunhofer-type dependence of the critical current on magnetic field. Shubnikov-de Haas oscillations in magnetic fields up to 30 T reveal a topologically non-trivial two-dimensional surface state. This surface state is attributed to mediate the ballistic Josephson current despite the fact that the normal state transport is dominated by diffusive bulk conductivity. The lateral Nb-Bi(2)Te(3)-Nb junctions hence provide prospects for the realization of devices supporting Majorana fermions.

Specific heat measurements of Ba(0.68)K(0.32)Fe2As2 single crystals: evidence for a multiband strong-coupling superconducting state.

The specific heat of high-purity Ba(0.68)K(0.32)Fe2As2 single crystals with the highest reported superconducting Tc=38.5 K was studied. The electronic specific heat Cp below Tc shows two gap features, with Δ1≈11 meV and Δ2≈3.5 meV obtained from an α-model analysis. The reduced gap value, 2Δ(max)/kBTc≈6.6, the magnitude of the specific-heat jump, ΔCp(Tc)/Tc, and its slope below Tc exhibit a strong-coupling character. We also show that an Eliashberg model with two hole and two electron bands gives the correct values of Tc, the superconducting gaps, and the free-energy difference.

Andreev spectra and subgap bound states in multiband superconductors.

A theory of Andreev conductance is formulated for junctions involving normal metals (N) and multiband superconductors (S) and applied to the case of superconductors with nodeless extended s(+/-)-wave order parameter symmetry, as possibly realized in the recently discovered ferropnictides. We find qualitative differences from tunneling into s-wave or d-wave superconductors that may help to identify such a state. First, interband interference leads to a suppression of Andreev reflection in the case of a highly transparent N/S interface and to a current deficit in the tunneling regime. Second, surface bound states may appear, both at zero and at nonzero energies.

Odd-frequency pairing in superconducting heterostructures.

We review the theory of odd-frequency pairing in superconducting heterostructures, where an odd-frequency pairing component is induced near interfaces. A general description of the superconducting proximity effect in a normal metal or a ferromagnet attached to an unconventional superconductor (S) is given within quasiclassical kinetic theory for various types of symmetry state in S. Various possible symmetry classes in a superconductor are considered which are consistent with the Pauli principle: even-frequency spin-singlet even-parity (ESE) state, even-frequency spin-triplet odd-parity (ETO) state, odd-frequency spin-triplet even-parity (OTE) state and odd-frequency spin-singlet odd-parity (OSO) state. As an example, we consider a junction between a diffusive normal metal (DN) and a p-wave superconductor (even-frequency spin-triplet odd-parity symmetry), where the pairing amplitude in DN belongs to an odd-frequency spin-triplet even-parity symmetry class. We also discuss the manifestation of odd-frequency pairing in conventional superconductor/normal (S/N) proximity systems and its relation to the classical McMillan-Rowell oscillations.

Is LaFeAsO1-xFx an electron-phonon superconductor?

In this Letter, we calculate the electron-phonon coupling of the newly discovered superconductor LaFeAsO1-xFx using linear response. For pure LaFeAsO, the calculated electron-phonon coupling constant lambda=0.21 and logarithmic-averaged frequency omegaln=206 K give a maximum Tc of 0.8 K, using the standard Migdal-Eliashberg theory. For the F-doped compounds, we predict even smaller coupling constants. To reproduce the experimental Tc, a 5-6 times larger coupling constant would be needed. Our results indicate that electron-phonon coupling is not sufficient to explain superconductivity in the whole family of Fe-As-based superconductors, probably due to the importance of strong-correlation effects.

Theory of the proximity effect in junctions with unconventional superconductors.

We present a general theory of the proximity effect in junctions between diffusive normal metals (DN) and superconductors. Various possible symmetry classes in a superconductor are considered: even-frequency spin-singlet even-parity (ESE) state, even-frequency spin-triplet odd-parity state, odd-frequency spin-triplet even-parity (OTE) state and odd-frequency spin-singlet odd-parity state. It is shown that the pair amplitude in a DN belongs, respectively, to an ESE, OTE, OTE, and ESE pairing state since only the even-parity s-wave pairing is possible due to the impurity scattering.

Critical temperature and enhanced isotope effect in the presence of paramagnons in phonon-mediated superconductors.

We reconsider the long-standing problem of the effect of spin fluctuations on the critical temperature and isotope effect in a phonon-mediated superconductor. Although the general physics of the interplay between phonons and paramagnons has been rather well understood, the existing approximate formulas fail to describe the correct behavior of Tc for general phonon and paramagnon spectra. Using a controllable approximation, we derive an analytical formula for Tc which agrees well with exact numerical solutions of the Eliashberg equations for a broad range of parameters. Based on both numerical and analytical results, we predict a strong enhancement of the isotope effect when the frequencies of spin fluctuation and phonons are of the same order. This effect may have important consequences for near-magnetic superconductors such as MgCNi3.

Admixtures to d-wave gap symmetry in untwinned YBa2Cu3O7 superconducting films measured by angle-resolved electron tunneling.

We report on an ab anisotropy of Jc parallel b/Jc parallel a approximately/= 1.8 IcRn parallelb/IcRn parallel a approximately/= 1.2 and in ramp-edge junctions between untwinned YBa2Cu3O7 and s-wave Nb. For these junctions, the angle theta with the YBa2Cu3O7 crystal b axis is varied as a single parameter. The RnA(theta) dependence presents twofold symmetry. The minima in IcRn at theta approximately/= 50 degrees suggest a real s-wave subdominant component and negligible d(xy)-wave or imaginary s-wave admixtures. The IcRn(theta) dependence is well fitted by 83% dx2-y2-, 15% isotropic s-, and 2% anisotropic s-wave order parameter symmetry, consistent with deltab/deltaa approximately/= 1.5.