Systems of correlated particles appear in many fields of modern science and represent some of the most intractable computational problems in nature. The computational challenge in these systems ...arises when interactions become comparable to other energy scales, which makes the state of each particle depend on all other particles
. The lack of general solutions for the three-body problem and acceptable theory for strongly correlated electrons shows that our understanding of correlated systems fades when the particle number or the interaction strength increases. One of the hallmarks of interacting systems is the formation of multiparticle bound states
. Here we develop a high-fidelity parameterizable fSim gate and implement the periodic quantum circuit of the spin-½ XXZ model in a ring of 24 superconducting qubits. We study the propagation of these excitations and observe their bound nature for up to five photons. We devise a phase-sensitive method for constructing the few-body spectrum of the bound states and extract their pseudo-charge by introducing a synthetic flux. By introducing interactions between the ring and additional qubits, we observe an unexpected resilience of the bound states to integrability breaking. This finding goes against the idea that bound states in non-integrable systems are unstable when their energies overlap with the continuum spectrum. Our work provides experimental evidence for bound states of interacting photons and discovers their stability beyond the integrability limit.
The structure of the manganese cluster in the S2 state with the g approximately 4 EPR signal (S2-g4 state) generated by 130 K illumination of photosystem II (PSII) membranes prepared from spinach has ...been investigated by X-ray absorption spectroscopy. The Mn X-ray, absorption K-edge spectra of the S2-g4 state not only show a shift of the inflection point to higher energy from the S1 state but also reveal a different edge shape from that of the S2 state with the multiline signal (S2-MLS state). Extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) studies of the Mn K-edge show that the structure of the Mn cluster in the S2-g4 state is distinctly different, from those in the S2-MLS or S1 states. In the S2-g4 state, the second shell of back-scatterers from the Mn absorber is found to contain two Mn-Mn distances of 2.73 and 2.85 angstroms. We interpret this to indicate the presence of two nonequivalent di-mu-oxo-bridged Mn binuclear structures in the Mn cluster of the S2-g4 state. The third shell of the S2-g4 state at about 3.3 angstroms also contains increased heterogeneity. By contrast, very little distance disorder was found to exist in the second shell of the S1 or S2-MLS states. A mechanism is proposed to explain these results in the context of our model for the Mn cluster and the EPR properties of the Mn complex in the S2 state
Background
Family genetic testing of patients newly diagnosed with a rare genetic disease can improve early diagnosis of family members, allowing patients to receive disease‐specific therapies when ...available. Fabry disease, an X‐linked lysosomal storage disorder caused by pathogenic variants in GLA, can lead to end‐stage renal disease, cardiac arrhythmias, and stroke. Diagnostic delays are common due to the rarity of the disease and non‐specificity of early symptoms. Newborn screening and screening of at‐risk populations, (e.g., patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy or undiagnosed nephropathies) can identify individuals with Fabry disease. Subsequent cascade genotyping of family members may disclose a greater number of affected individuals, often at younger age than they would have been diagnosed otherwise.
Methods
We conducted a literature search to identify all published data on family genetic testing for Fabry disease, and discussed these data, experts’ own experiences with family genetic testing, and the barriers to this type of screening that are present in their respective countries.
Results
There are potential barriers that make implementation of family genetic testing challenging in some countries. These include associated costs and low awareness of its importance, and cultural and societal issues. Regionally, there are barriers associated with population educational levels, national geography and infrastructures, and a lack of medical geneticists.
Conclusion
In this review, the worldwide experience of an international group of experts of Fabry disease highlights the issues faced in the family genetic testing of patients affected with rare genetic diseases.
This review article discusses the literature published on family genetic testing for Fabry disease and the experiences of 19 Fabry experts from 15 countries regarding family screening in their countries and the barriers they are facing. Together, this literature overview and combined global experience provides valuable insights to medical geneticists working to improve the diagnosis of rare diseases within their countries and globally.
A non-oxido V(v) complex with glutaroimide-dioxime (H
L), a ligand for recovering uranium from seawater, was synthesized from aqueous solution as NaV(L)
·2H
O, and the structure determined by X-ray ...diffraction. It is the first non-oxido V(v) complex that has been directly synthesized in and crystallized from aqueous solution. The distorted octahedral structure contains two fully deprotonated ligands (L
) coordinating to V
, each in a tridentate mode
the imide N (
= 1.96 Å) and oxime O atoms (
= 1.87-1.90 Å). Using
O-labelled vanadate as the starting material, concurrent
O/
V/
H/
C NMR, in conjunction with ESI-MS, unprecedentedly demonstrated the stepwise displacement of the oxido Vdouble bond, length as m-dashO bonds by glutaroimide-dioxime and verified the existence of the "bare" V
/glutaroimide-dioxime complex, V(L)
, in aqueous solution. In addition, the crystal structure of an intermediate 1 : 1 V(v)/glutaroimide-dioxime complex, VO
(HL)
, in which the oxido bonds of vanadate are only partially displaced, corroborates the observations by NMR and ESI-MS. Results from this work provide important insights into the strong sorption of vanadium on poly(amidoxime) sorbents in the recovery of uranium from seawater. Also, because vanadium plays important roles in biological systems, the syntheses of the oxido and non-oxido V
complexes and the unprecedented demonstration of the displacement of the oxido Vdouble bond, length as m-dashO bonds help with the on-going efforts to develop new vanadium compounds that could be of importance in biological applications.
Inherent symmetry of a quantum system may protect its otherwise fragile states. Leveraging such protection requires testing its robustness against uncontrolled environmental interactions. Using 47 ...superconducting qubits, we implement the one-dimensional kicked Ising model, which exhibits nonlocal Majorana edge modes (MEMs) with
ℤ
2
parity symmetry. We find that any multiqubit Pauli operator overlapping with the MEMs exhibits a uniform late-time decay rate comparable to single-qubit relaxation rates, irrespective of its size or composition. This characteristic allows us to accurately reconstruct the exponentially localized spatial profiles of the MEMs. Furthermore, the MEMs are found to be resilient against certain symmetry-breaking noise owing to a prethermalization mechanism. Our work elucidates the complex interplay between noise and symmetry-protected edge modes in a solid-state environment.
Tough edges
The dynamics of quantum many-body systems can be profoundly affected by their interaction with the environment. This includes systems that have topological protection from certain kinds of perturbations due to symmetry. Mi
et al
. studied the interplay between symmetry and noise using a chain of 47 superconducting qubits. They implemented a periodically driven transverse Ising spin model, and found that the system’s edge modes were surprisingly resilient to some types of symmetry-breaking noise. —JS
A 47-qubit chain was used to study the interplay of noise and symmetry in an open quantum system.
We report on Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) and density functional theory (DFT) investigations of charge transfers in vertical heterojunctions between tungsten diselenide (WSe
) layers and ...graphene on silicon carbide substrates. The experimental data reveal the existence of an interface dipole, which is shown by DFT to originate from the neutralization of the graphene n-doping by an electron transfer towards the transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) layer. The relative vacuum level shift probed by KPFM between the TMD and the substrate stays constant when passing from monolayer to bilayer graphene, which confirms that the Schottky-Mott model can be rigorously applied to these interfaces by taking into account the charge transfer from the substrate to the TMD. DFT calculations show that the first TMD layer absorbs almost all the excess charges contained in the graphene, and that the second TMD layer shall not play a significant role in the electrostatics of the system. Negatively charged defect at the TMD edges contribute however to the electrostatic landscape probed by KPFM on both TMD layers.
X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) has become a prominent tool for the element-specific analysis of transition metals at the catalytic center of metalloenzymes. In the present study the information ...content of X-ray spectra with respect to the nuclear geometry and, in particular, to the electronic structure of the protein-bound metal ions is explored using the manganese complex of photosystem II (PSIII) as a model system. The EXAFS range carries direct information on the number and distances of ligands as well as on the chemical type of the ligand donor function. For first-sphere ligands and second-sphere metals (in multinuclear complexes), the determination of precise distances is mostly straightforward, whereas the determination of coordination numbers clearly requires more effort. The EXAFS section starts with an exemplifying discussion of a PSII spectrum data set with focus on the coordination number problem. Subsequently, the method of linear dichroism EXAFS spectroscopy is introduced and it is shown how the EXAFS data leads to an atomic resolution model for the tetra-manganese complex of PSII. In the XANES section the following aspects are considered: (1) Alternative approaches are evaluated for determination of the metal-oxidation state by comparison with a series of model compounds. (2) The interpretation of XANES spectra in terms of molecular orbitals (MOs) is approached by comparative multiple-scattering calculations and MO calculations. (3) The underlying reasons for the oxidation-state dependence of the XANES spectra are explored. Furthermore, the potential of modern XANES theory is demonstrated by presenting first simulations of the dichroism in the XANES spectra of the PSII manganese complex.
Fingerprints of excitation spectra of chlorophyll (Chl) fluorescence can be used to differentiate 'spectral groups' of microalgae in vivo and in situ in, for example, vertical profiles within a few ...seconds. The investigated spectral groups of algae (green group, Chlorophyta; blue, Cyanobacteria; brown, Heterokontophyta, Haptophyta, Dinophyta; mixed, Cryptophyta) are each characterised by a specific composition of photosynthetic antenna pigments and, consequently, by a specific excitation spectrum of the Chl fluorescence. Particularly relevant are Chl a, Chl c, phycocyanobilin, phycoerythrobilin, fucoxanthin and peridinin. A laboratory-based instrument and a submersible instrument were constructed containing light-emitting diodes to excite Chl fluorescence in five distinct wavelength ranges. Norm spectra were determined for the four spectral algal groups (several species per group). Using these norm spectra and the actual five-point excitation spectrum of a water sample, a separate estimate of the respective Chl concentration is rapidly obtained for each algal group. The results of dilution experiments are presented. In vivo and in situ measurements are compared with results obtained by HPLC analysis. Depth profiles of the distribution of spectral algal groups taken over a time period of few seconds are shown. The method for algae differentiation described here opens up new research areas, monitoring and supervision tasks related to photosynthetic primary production in aquatic environments.
Recent efforts to activate the strong uranium–oxygen bonds in the dioxo uranyl cation have been limited to single oxo-group activation through either uranyl reduction and functionalization in ...solution, or by collision induced dissociation (CID) in the gas-phase, using mass spectrometry (MS). Here, we report and investigate the surprising double activation of uranyl by an organic ligand, 3,4,3-LI(CAM), leading to the formation of a formal U6+ chelate in the gas-phase. The cleavage of both uranyl oxo bonds was experimentally evidenced by CID, using deuterium and 18O isotopic substitutions, and by infrared multiple photon dissociation (IRMPD) spectroscopy. Density functional theory (DFT) computations predict that the overall reaction requires only 132 kJ/mol, with the first oxygen activation entailing about 107 kJ/mol. Combined with analysis of similar, but unreactive ligands, these results shed light on the chelation-driven mechanism of uranyl oxo bond cleavage, demonstrating its dependence on the presence of ligand hydroxyl protons available for direct interactions with the uranyl oxygens.
β-NaYF4 co-doped with Er3+ and Yb3+ ions were successfully synthesized at the reaction temperature as low as 180 °C by the two steps procedure using the rare-earth stearates as precursors. The XRD ...and TEM data show that the NaYF4 nanocrystals were relatively uniform with the approximate size of 50 nm and the dopants led to shrinking of NaYF4 crystals. Moreover, the EDX mapping analysis indicate that the Yb3+, Er3+ ions were distributed homogeneously in host matrix even the Yb3+ doping concentration as high as 25%. The PL spectroscopy was used to investigate the optical properties of these systems. The red/green emission ratio of Er3+ was controlled by changing the doping concentration in matrix. An increase of Yb3+ contents from 2 to 25 mol % induced a remarkably tunable emission from green to red. Addition, the highest red/green ratio was also achieved for the sample of 1% Er3+ and 20% Yb3+. Combining the results of the up-conversion emission intensity as a function of the pump power and luminescence data, the energy transfer mechanism between the Yb3+ sensitizers and Er3+ activators was demonstrated. The intense efficiency of red emission under 980 nm excitation provides the potential applications in bio-labeling and bio-imaging.
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•β-phase NaYF4 nanocrystals were achieved at low reaction temperature of 180 °C.•Nanocrystals size distributed uniformly in range of 40 ÷ 50 nm.•The doping ions dispersed homogeneously in host matrix even at high doping content.•Tunable green-to-red emission is controlled by changing the Yb3+ and Er3+ contents.•Energy transfer mechanism of Yb3+ sensitizer and Er3+ activator is demonstrated.