Simultaneous Nodal Superconductivity and Time-Reversal Symmetry Breaking in the Noncentrosymmetric Superconductor CaPtAs.

By employing a series of experimental techniques, we provide clear evidence that CaPtAs represents a rare example of a noncentrosymmetric superconductor which simultaneously exhibits nodes in the superconducting gap and broken time-reversal symmetry (TRS) in its superconducting state (below T_{c}≈1.5 K). Unlike in fully gapped superconductors, the magnetic penetration depth λ(T) does not saturate at low temperatures, but instead it shows a T^{2} dependence, characteristic of gap nodes. Both the superfluid density and the electronic specific heat are best described by a two-gap model comprising of a nodeless gap and a gap with nodes, rather than by single-band models. At the same time, zero-field muon-spin relaxation spectra exhibit increased relaxation rates below the onset of superconductivity, implying that TRS is broken in the superconducting state of CaPtAs, hence indicating its unconventional nature. Our observations suggest CaPtAs to be a new remarkable material that links two apparently disparate classes, that of TRS-breaking correlated magnetic superconductors with nodal gaps and the weakly correlated noncentrosymmetric superconductors with broken TRS, normally exhibiting only a fully gapped behavior.

Two-Gap Superconductivity in LaNiGa_{2} with Nonunitary Triplet Pairing and Even Parity Gap Symmetry.

The nature of the pairing states of superconducting LaNiC_{2} and LaNiGa_{2} has to date remained a puzzling question. Broken time reversal symmetry has been observed in both compounds and a group theoretical analysis implies a nonunitary triplet pairing state. However, all the allowed nonunitary triplet states have nodal gap functions but most thermodynamic and NMR measurements indicate fully gapped superconductivity in LaNiC_{2}. Here we probe the gap symmetry of LaNiGa_{2} by measuring the London penetration depth, specific heat, and upper critical field. These measurements demonstrate two-gap nodeless superconductivity in LaNiGa_{2}, suggesting that this is a common feature of both compounds. These results allow us to propose a novel triplet superconducting state, where the pairing occurs between electrons of the same spin, but on different orbitals. In this case the superconducting wave function has a triplet spin component but isotropic even parity gap symmetry, yet the overall wave function remains antisymmetric under particle exchange. This model leads to a nodeless two-gap superconducting state which breaks time reversal symmetry, and therefore accounts well for the seemingly contradictory experimental results.

Cloning and bioinformatic analysis of transcription factor MYB10 from the red-leaf peach.

In higher plants, the transcription factor MYB10 is an important regulator of anthocyanin biosynthesis. In order to study its role in the development of red coloration in peach leaves, the full-length MYB10 complementary DNA sequence of the red-leaf peach cultivar 'Tsukuba No. 5' (Prunus persica f. atropurpurea) was successfully cloned using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. The sequence was assigned the GenBank accession No. KP315904. Bioinformatic analysis identified the complete MYB10 open reading frame, consisting of 678 bp encoding 225 amino acids. The predicted protein has a molecular weight of 26.56 kDa and a theoretical isoelectric point of 8.97. The secondary structure was found to comprise approximately 34.22% alpha helix, 15.11% extended strand, 10.67% beta turn, and 40% random coil. Subcellular analysis indicated that MYB10 may function in the cytoplasm. Assessment of the amino acid sequence suggested the presence of one serine and two threonine phosphorylation sites. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction revealed that MYB10 expression positively correlated with anthocyanin content in red-leaf peach, indicating that this transcription factor plays a role in the biosynthesis of this pigment in peach trees.

Reemergent superconductivity and avoided quantum criticality in Cd-doped CeIrIn(5) under pressure.

We investigated the electrical resistivity and heat capacity of 1% Cd-doped CeIrIn_{5} under hydrostatic pressure up to 2.7 GPa, near where long-range antiferromagnetic order is suppressed and bulk superconductivity suddenly reemerges. The pressure-induced T_{c} is close to that of pristine CeIrIn_{5} at 2.7 GPa, and no signatures of a quantum critical point under pressure support a local origin of the antiferromagnetic moments in Cd-CeIrIn_{5} at ambient pressure. Similarities between superconductors CeIrIn_{5} and CeCoIn_{5} in response to Cd substitutions suggest a common magnetic mechanism.

Cloning and expression of UDP-glucose: flavonoid 3-O-glucosyltransferase gene in peach flowers.

To elucidate the connection between flower coloration and the expression of genes associated with anthocyanin biosynthesis, a gene encoding UDP-glucose: flavonoid 3-O-glucosyltransferase (UFGT) was isolated, and the expression of the last four genes in the anthocyanin biosynthetic pathway during peach flower development was determined. The nucleotide sequence of the peach UFGT (GenBank accession No. JX149550) is highly similar to its homologs in other plants. Total anthocyanin content initially increased during peach flower development, and then decreased over time. Expression of the four anthocyanin biosynthesis genes increased until the full-bloom stage, and then decreased during late florescence. Expression of F3H, DFR, and UFGT increased dramatically at the full-bloom stage, coinciding with an increase in anthocyanin concentration. The UFGT gene may not be the only gene of the anthocyanin pathway to be differentially controlled in red peach flower tissues. Further studies are needed to genetically and physiologically characterize these genes and enzymes in peach flowers and to gain a better understanding of their functions and relationships with flower coloration.

Efficient identification of ornamental peach cultivars using RAPD markers with a manual cultivar identification diagram strategy.

One of the most important uses of DNA markers is cultivar identification. However, no DNA fingerprint analysis strategy is available for making DNA markers helpful in practical plant cultivar identification, especially for the identification of a large number of cultivars. We developed a manual cultivar identification diagram strategy for efficient identification of plant cultivars, from which a cultivar identification diagram (CID) of genotyped plant individuals can be constructed manually. This CID could be used as a reference for quick identification of plant cultivars of interest. We used 11-mer RAPD primers to amplify DNA samples of 32 ornamental peach genotypes; all the cultivars were well distinguished by fingerprints from 6 primers. The utility of this CID was verified by identification of three randomly chosen groups of cultivars among the 32 ones that we selected. This CID generated will be useful for the identification of commercially important ornamental peach cultivars.

Fast generation of Schrödinger cat states using a Kerr-tunable superconducting resonator.

Schrödinger cat states, quantum superpositions of macroscopically distinct classical states, are an important resource for quantum communication, quantum metrology and quantum computation. Especially, cat states in a phase space protected against phase-flip errors can be used as a logical qubit. However, cat states, normally generated in three-dimensional cavities and/or strong multi-photon drives, are facing the challenges of scalability and controllability. Here, we present a strategy to generate and preserve cat states in a coplanar superconducting circuit by the fast modulation of Kerr nonlinearity. At the Kerr-free work point, our cat states are passively preserved due to the vanishing Kerr effect. We are able to prepare a 2-component cat state in our chip-based device with a fidelity reaching 89.1% under a 96 ns gate time. Our scheme shows an excellent route to constructing a chip-based bosonic quantum processor.

[Development and clinical application of custom-made temporomandibular joint-skull base combined prosthesis].

Objective: To introduce the design, manufacture and clinical application of the custom-made temporomandibular joint (TMJ)-skull base combined prosthesis and evaluate its safety, effectiveness and accuracy. Methods: The patients diagnosed with the TMJ-skull base lesion in Department of Oral Surgery, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital from October 2016 to November 2020 were recruited in this study. The maxillofacial CT data for all the patients were obtained and transformed into the Mimics 18.0 software preoperatively. The custom-made TMJ-skull base combined prosthesis, included four components, was designed based on the anatomy, stress distribution and movement of the TMJ and skull base, and fabricated by three-dimensional printing and 5-axis milling technologies. The TMJ-skull base lesion was excised completely with the help of digital templates from modified preauricular and/or post and submandibular incisions. The combined prosthesis were implanted and fixed after the lesion resection. The examinations including general situation, cranio-maxillofacial structure and function were taken during and after surgery to assess its using effect. Results: Ten patients [6 females and 4 males, (43.2±13.6) years old] were included and all prostheses were positioned accurately and fixed excellently. After (29.4±17.3) months follow-up, the occlusion relationship was stable and no adverse symptoms such as dizziness, headache, meningeal irritation and permanent facial nerve injury occurred. The pain, diet, mandibular movement function, lateral movement to diseased side and mouth opening had significant improvements. The forward movement and lateral movement to normal side were not improved significantly. There were no prosthesis displacement, loosening and fracture in X-ray and CT postoperatively. With the pre and postoperative craniomaxillofacial model merging, the maximal implanted error was (0.52±0.17) mm for fossa and condyle and (1.62±0.26) mm for skull base and mandibular handle in surface deviation analysis. Conclusions: The custom-made TMJ-skull base combined prosthesis with customized design and 3D printing fabrication is safe, effective and precise in clinical application.

Customized skull base-temporomandibular joint combined prosthesis with 3D-printing fabrication for craniomaxillofacial reconstruction: a preliminary study.

Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) lesions, when large and extensive, will often involve skull base destruction and result in extensive resections, requiring a challenging reconstruction. This study introduces a special type of craniomaxillofacial prosthesis for massive combined skull base-TMJ lesions. Patients who presented with combined skull base-TMJ lesions were recruited. Enhanced computed tomography (CT) data were obtained for all patients and transformed into three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction models. The combined skull base-TMJ prosthesis was designed and fabricated with a customized principle by 3D-printing technology. Clinical follow-up and radiographic evaluations were performed to assess the feasibility of the combined prosthesis in clinical application. A series of five consecutive patients were included in this study. No severe complications occurred after surgery. Based on a mean follow-up period of 13.8 months, the preliminary results suggest that the combined prosthesis has a positive impact on clinical outcomes: there was a mean 75.0% reduction in pain, 55.6% improvement in diet, 54.5% improvement in mandibular function, and 33.6% increase in mouth opening, with significant differences when compared with the preoperative state (all P<0.05). This study suggests that the combined prosthesis represents a safe and reliable implantable reconstruction method for combined skull base-TMJ lesions.

Single crystal growth and anisotropic physical properties of Sm4Co3Ga16.

We have synthesized high quality single crystals of Sm4Co3Ga16 with gallium flux and investigated its physical properties with electrical resistivity, magnetization and specific-heat measurements. Antiferromagnetic transition below 6.7 K has been detected. No superconducting transitions have been dectected down to 0.5 K from our single crystals. Based on our experimental result, Sm3+ state in Sm4Co3Ga16 is likely well localized, in which stable magnetic moment in its doubly degenerated ground state contributes to the magnetic order with little interference of Kondo type of interaction.

Ising-type Magnetic Anisotropy in CePd2As2.

We investigated the anisotropic magnetic properties of CePd2As2 by magnetic, thermal and electrical transport studies. X-ray diffraction confirmed the tetragonal ThCr2Si2-type structure and the high-quality of the single crystals. Magnetisation and magnetic susceptibility data taken along the different crystallographic directions evidence a huge crystalline electric field (CEF) induced Ising-type magneto-crystalline anisotropy with a large c-axis moment and a small in-plane moment at low temperature. A detailed CEF analysis based on the magnetic susceptibility data indicates an almost pure |±5/2〉 CEF ground-state doublet with the dominantly |±3/2〉 and the |±1/2〉 doublets at 290 K and 330 K, respectively. At low temperature, we observe a uniaxial antiferromagnetic (AFM) transition at T N = 14.7 K with the crystallographic c-direction being the magnetic easy-axis. The magnetic entropy gain up to T N reaches almost R ln 2 indicating localised 4 f-electron magnetism without significant Kondo-type interactions. Below T N , the application of a magnetic field along the c-axis induces a metamagnetic transition from the AFM to a field-polarised phase at µ 0 H c0 = 0.95 T, exhibiting a text-book example of a spin-flip transition as anticipated for an Ising-type AFM.

Superconductivity and structural distortion in BaPt2As2.

We report the synthesis of BaPt2As2 single crystals and the discovery of superconductivity and a structural phase transition in this compound by measuring the electrical resistivity, magnetic susceptibility and specific heat as well as the x-ray diffraction at low temperatures. BaPt2As2 crystallizes in the CaBe2Ge2-type tetragonal structure (P4/nmm) at room temperature and undergoes a first-order structural transition at TS ≃ 275 K, which is likely to be associated with a charge-density-wave (CDW) instability. BCS-like superconductivity with two subsequent transitions Tc1 ≃ 1.67 K and Tc2 ≃ 1.33 K is observed. Our results demonstrate that BaPt2As2 may serve as a new system for studying the interplay of superconductivity and the CDW order.

Crossover from a heavy fermion to intermediate valence state in noncentrosymmetric Yb2Ni12(P,As)7.

We report measurements of the physical properties and electronic structure of the hexagonal compounds Yb2Ni12Pn7 (Pn = P, As) by measuring the electrical resistivity, magnetization, specific heat and partial fluorescence yield x-ray absorption spectroscopy (PFY-XAS). These demonstrate a crossover upon reducing the unit cell volume, from an intermediate valence state in Yb2Ni12As7 to a heavy-fermion paramagnetic state in Yb2Ni12P7, where the Yb is nearly trivalent. Application of pressure to Yb2Ni12P7 suppresses TFL, the temperature below which Fermi liquid behavior is recovered, suggesting the presence of a quantum critical point (QCP) under pressure. However, while there is little change in the Yb valence of Yb2Ni12P7 up to 30 GPa, there is a strong increase for Yb2Ni12As7 under pressure, before a near constant value is reached. These results indicate that any magnetic QCP in this system is well separated from strong valence fluctuations. The pressure dependence of the valence and lattice parameters of Yb2Ni12As7 are compared and at 1 GPa, there is an anomaly in the unit cell volume as well as a change in the slope of the Yb valence, indicating a correlation between structural and electronic changes.

[Forensic application of reverse dot blot with biotin incorporation].

A rapid and accurate reverse dot blot technique was successfully established. It could distinguish the 6 alleles of 0101, 0102, 0103, 0201, 0301 and 0401 of HLA-DQA locus. Alleles and genotype frequencies for HLA-DQA locus were determined in 200 unrelated individuals of northern Han population. The discrimination power (DP) was 0.928, heterozygocity (H) 0.75. By direct biotin incorperation, 1 ng genome DNA could be detected successfully. This method can be used for paternity test and individual identification in forensic science practice.

Tunable magnetic orders in CePd2As2-xPx.

We report the successful synthesis of the polycrystalline compounds CePd2As2-xPx (0 ≤ x ≤ 2) and their physical properties by measuring transport, magnetic and thermodynamic behaviors as a function of temperature and/or magnetic field. Powder x-ray diffraction indicates that CePd2As2-xPx crystallizes in the ThCr2Si2-type tetragonal structure. CePd2As2 exhibits a moderate Sommerfeld coefficient of γ ≈ 88 mJ mol(-1) K(-2), and undergoes an antiferromagnetic (AFM) transition at the Néel temperature TN ≈ 15 K. Upon substituting As with P, the TN is nearly unchanged up to x ≃ 0.6, while a ferromagnetic (FM) transition develops below TN for x ≃ 0.4. The Curie temperature TC increases with increasing x and eventually merges with the AFM transition at x ≃ 0.6. With further increase of x, the system follows typical FM behaviors and its TC monotonically increases and reaches TC ≈ 28 K in CePd2P2. Moreover, a metamagnetic transition is observed in the As-rich samples, but vanishes for x ≥ 0.4. Such a tunable magnetic ground state may provide an opportunity to explore the possible quantum critical behavior in CePd2As2-xPx.