Charge transfer mechanisms in DNA at finite temperatures: From quasiballistic to anomalous subdiffusive charge transfer.

We address various regimes of charge transfer in DNA within the framework of the Peyrard-Bishop-Holstein model and analyze them from the standpoint of the characteristic size and timescales of the electronic and vibrational subsystems. It is demonstrated that a polaron is an unstable configuration within a broad range of temperatures and therefore polaronic contribution to the charge transport is irrelevant. We put forward an alternative fluctuation-governed charge transfer mechanism and show that the charge transfer can be quasiballistic at low temperatures, diffusive or mixed at intermediate temperatures, and subdiffusive close to the DNA denaturation transition point. Dynamic fluctuations in the vibrational subsystem is the key ingredient of our proposed mechanism which allows for explanation of all charge transfer regimes at finite temperatures. In particular, we demonstrate that in the most relevant regime of high temperatures (above the aqueous environment freezing point), the electron dynamics is completely governed by relatively slow fluctuations of the mechanical subsystem. We argue also that our proposed analysis methods and mechanisms can be relevant for the charge transfer in other organic systems, such as conjugated polymers, molecular aggregates, α-helices, etc.

Interplay between modulational instability and self-trapping of wavepackets in nonlinear discrete lattices.

We investigate the modulational instability of uniform wavepackets governed by the discrete nonlinear Schrodinger equation in finite linear chains and square lattices. We show that, while the critical nonlinear coupling χMI above which modulational instability occurs remains finite in square lattices, it decays as 1/L in linear chains. In square lattices, there is a direct transition between the regime of stable uniform wavefunctions and the regime of asymptotically localized solutions with stationary probability distributions. On the other hand, there is an intermediate regime in linear chains for which the wavefunction dynamics develops complex breathing patterns. We analytically compute the critical nonlinear strengths for modulational instability in both lattices, as well as the characteristic time τ governing the exponential increase of perturbations in the vicinity of the transition. We unveil that the interplay between modulational instability and self-trapping phenomena is responsible for the distinct wavefunction dynamics in linear and square lattices.

Screening effect on the exciton mediated nonlinear optical susceptibility of semiconductor quantum dots.

We study the exciton contribution to the third-order optical susceptibility of one-dimensional semiconductor quantum dots and show that the screening of the electron-hole interaction has a strong influence on the nonlinear optical properties in the weak confinement regime. Based on a density matrix formulation, we estimate the spectrum of the third-order optical susceptibility and its contribution to the refraction index and absorption coefficient. In particular, we show that the multipeaked spectrum of the nonlinear susceptibility, which results from the hydrogenoid character of the exciton eigenstates for a purely Coulombian electron-hole coupling, is reverted towards a single peaked structure as the interaction becomes strongly screened, thus leading to a substantial enhancement of the nonlinear optical properties of semiconductor quantum dots.

Effects of UV irradiation on the wettability of chitosan films containing dansyl derivatives.

The morphological and wetting properties of chitosan films containing dansyl derivatives have been investigated. By means of dynamic contact angle measurements, we study the modification of surface properties of chitosan-based films due to UV irradiation. The results were analyzed in the light of the molecular-kinetic theory which describes the wetting phenomena in terms of the statistical dynamics for the displacement of liquid molecules in a solid substrate. Our results show that the immobilization of dansyl groups in the chitosan backbone leads to a pronounced enhancement of the UV sensitivity of polymeric films.

Bose-Einstein condensation in the infinitely ramified star and wheel graphs.

In this work, we provide exact solutions for the ideal boson lattice gas on the infinitely ramified star and wheel graphs. Within a tight-binding description, we show that Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) takes place at a finite temperature after a proper rescaling of the hoping integral ɛ connecting a central site to the peripheral ones. Analytical expressions for the transition temperature, the condensed gas fraction, and the specific heat are given for the star graph as a function of the density of particles n. In particular, the specific heat has a mean-field character, being null in the high-temperature noncondensed phase with a discontinuity at T(c). In the wheel graph, on which the peripheral sites form a closed chain with hopping integral t, BEC takes place only above a critical value of the ratio ɛ/t for which a gap ΔE appears between the ground state and a one-dimensional band. A detailed analysis of the BEC characteristics as a function of n and ΔE is provided. The specific heat in the high-temperature phase of the wheel graph remains finite due to correlations among the peripheral sites.

Stable BLOCH oscillations of cold atoms with time-dependent interaction.

We investigate Bloch oscillations of interacting cold atoms in a mean-field framework. In general, atom-atom interaction causes dephasing and destroys Bloch oscillations. Here we show that Bloch oscillations are persistent if the interaction is modulated harmonically with suitable frequency and phase. For other modulations, Bloch oscillations are rapidly damped. We explain this behavior in terms of collective coordinates whose Hamiltonian dynamics permits one to predict a whole family of stable solutions. In order to describe also the unstable cases, we carry out a stability analysis for Bogoliubov excitations. Using Floquet theory, we are able to predict the unstable modes as well as their growth rate, found to be in excellent agreement with numerical simulations.

Trapping and motion of polarons in weakly disordered DNA molecules.

Polaron effects for charge migration in DNA molecules have been previously considered within the Peyrard-Bishop-Holstein model. When a uniform electric field is applied, the polaron moves asymptotically at a constant velocity, provided dissipative effects are taken into account, and then current flows through DNA. Disorder originating from interactions with a random environment of solute molecules and ions surrounding the DNA molecule could prevent charge migration due to the localization of the carrier wavefunction. We studied numerically the Peyrard-Bishop-Holstein model when the disordered DNA molecule is subjected to a uniform electric field. We found the threshold value of the electric field to observe polaron motion when disorder is present. We also calculated the fluctuations of the electric current and found that they provide valuable information about the polaron dynamics.

A solvable model of hydrogenic impurities in quantum dots.

A solvable model is developed for electronic structure calculations of shallow hydrogenic impurities in two-dimensional quantum dots. We replace the actual Coulomb interaction (local potential) between the electron and the hydrogenic impurity by a projective operator (non-local separable potential) to determine the resulting electronic states in closed form. It is shown that non-local separable potentials may be used to accurately calculate the energy shift of the electronic levels as a function of the size of the quantum dot and the impurity position.