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Extremely high pressures over a million of atmospheres are required to deform diamonds permanently. Under dynamic high-pressure conditions, even such strong materials lose their strengths so rapidly that the initially pristine lattice transforms into complex dynamics. Here, we report femtosecond x-ray diffraction observations that directly resolve how shock waves deform the crystal lattice in the isotropic nano-polycrystalline form of diamond. The results show that the nano-grain reinforced diamond retains its strength at shock pressures far beyond its elastic limit until it finally approaches zero at 707 GPa, indicating the existence of brittle-ductile transition of nano-polycrystalline diamond under high-strain rate shock compression. The atomic-level deformation process of the diamond observed in this study is a key benchmark for designing high strength materials and simulating their behavior under extreme conditions.

We present results from the SPring-8 Angstrom Compact free electron LAser (SACLA) XFEL facility, using a high intensity ($\sim\!10^{20}\,$W/cm$^2$) X-ray pump X-ray probe scheme to observe changes in the ionic structure of silicon induced by X-ray heating of the electrons. By avoiding Laue spots in the scattering signal from a single crystalline sample, we observe a rapid rise in diffuse scattering, which we attribute to a loss of lattice order and a transition to a liquid state within 100 fs of irradiation, a timescale which agrees well with first principles simulations, but is faster than that predicted by purely inertial behavior. This method is capable of observing liquid scattering without masking or filtering of signal from the ambient solid, allowing the liquid structure to be measured throughout and beyond the phase change., Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures. Updated title and abstract

The sudden decrease in molar volume exhibited by most lanthanides under high pressure is often attributed to changes in the degree of localization of their 4f-electrons. We give evidence, based on electrical resistivity measurements of dilute Y(Gd) and Y(Tb) alloys to 120 GPa, that the volume collapse transitions in Gd and Tb metals have different origins, despite their being neighbors in the periodic table. Remarkably, the change under pressure in the magnetic state of isolated Pr or Tb impurity ions in the nonmagnetic Y host appears to closely mirror corresponding changes in pure Pr or Tb metals. The collapse in Tb appears to be driven by an enhanced negative exchange interaction between 4f and conduction electrons under pressure (Kondo resonance) which, in the case of Y(Tb), dramatically alters the superconducting properties of the Y host, much like previously found for Y(Pr). In Gd our resistivity measurements suggest that a Kondo resonance is not the main driver for its volume collapse. X-ray absorption and emission spectroscopies clearly show that 4f local moments remain largely intact across both volume collapse transitions ruling out 4f band formation (delocalization) and valence transition models as possible drivers. The results highlight the richness of behavior behind the volume collapse transition in lanthanides and demonstrate the stability of the 4f level against band formation to extreme pressure., Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in the Physical Review B

Since their discovery in 1896, x-rays have had a profound impact on science, medicine and technology. Here we show that the x-rays from a novel tabletop source of bright coherent synchrotron radiation can be applied to phase contrast imaging of biological specimens, yielding superior image quality and avoiding the need for scarce or expensive conventional sources., Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures, 8 figure panels

We analyze the procedure of lifting in classical stochastic and quantum systems. It enables one to `lift' a state of a system into a state of `system+reservoir'. This procedure is important both in quantum information theory and the theory of open systems. We illustrate the general theory of liftings by a particular class related to so called circulant states., Comment: 25 pages

We analyze special class of bipartite states - so called Bell diagonal states. In particular we provide new examples of bound entangled Bell diagonal states and construct the class of entanglement witnesses diagonal in the magic basis., Comment: 17 pages

Each successive generation of x-ray machines has opened up new frontiers in science, such as the first radiographs and the determination of the structure of DNA. State-of-the-art x-ray sources can now produce coherent high brightness keV x-rays and promise a new revolution in imaging complex systems on nanometre and femtosecond scales. Despite the demand, only a few dedicated synchrotron facilities exist worldwide, partially due the size and cost of conventional (accelerator) technology. Here we demonstrate the use of a recently developed compact laser-plasma accelerator to produce a well-collimated, spatially-coherent, intrinsically ultrafast source of hard x-rays. This method reduces the size of the synchrotron source from the tens of metres to centimetre scale, accelerating and wiggling a high electron charge simultaneously. This leads to a narrow-energy spread electron beam and x-ray source that is >1000 times brighter than previously reported plasma wiggler and thus has the potential to facilitate a myriad of uses across the whole spectrum of light-source applications., Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures

A detailed characterization of PPT states, both in the Heisenberg and in the Schr\"odinger picture, is given. Measures of entanglement are defined and discussed in details. Illustrative examples are provided., Comment: We would be grateful for remarks

Divalent Eu (4f7, J=7/2) possesses a strong local magnetic moment which suppresses superconductivity. Under sufficient pressure it is anticipated that Eu will become trivalent (4f6, J=0) and a weak Van Vleck paramagnet, thus opening the door for a possible superconducting state, in analogy with Am metal (5f6, J=0) which superconducts at 0.79 K. We present ac susceptibility and electrical resistivity measurements on Eu metal for temperatures 1.5 - 297 K to pressures as high as 142 GPa. At approximately 80 GPa Eu becomes superconducting at Tc = 1.8 K; Tc increases linearly with pressure to 2.75 K at 142 GPa. Eu metal thus becomes the 53rd known elemental superconductor in the periodic table.

A thin layer of overdense plasma is created when an electromagnetic pulse interacts with a rapidly ionizing thin foil. This layer will reflect the incoming pulse, forming a so-called plasma mirror. A simple realistic model based on paired kinetic and wave equations is used to describe analytically the process of mirror formation and the reflection and transmission of the incident pulse. The model incorporates the exact description of the ionization process in the foil and the polarization and conduction currents that follow. The analytical description of the reflected and transmitted pulses as well as their dependence on foil parameters, and initial pulse amplitude and form are presented. Possible application and effectiveness of this process to improve laser pulse contrast are discussed. In the case of the linearly polarized incident pulse, there harmonic generation occurs, that is absent in the case of the circular polarization. The spectra of the reflected pulses for different initial forms and amplitudes are studied., Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures; to appear in Physics of Plasmas

A search for superconductivity has been carried out on the hexagonal polymorph of Laves-phase CaLi2, a compound for which Feng, Ashcroft, and Hoffmann predict highly anomalous behavior under pressure. No superconductivity is observed above 1.10 K at ambient pressure. However, high-pressure ac susceptibility and electrical resistivity studies to 81 GPa reveal bulk superconductivity in CaLi2 at temperatures as high as 13 K. The normal-state resistivity shows a dramatic increase with pressure., Comment: bulk superconductivity in CaLi2 now confirmed

Impurity effect is systematically studied in doped Haldane material Pb(Ni$_{1-x}$$M_x$)$_2$V$_2$O$_8$ ($M$ = Mn, Co, Cu, and Mg) by use of DC and AC susceptibility, and heat capacity measurements. The occurrence of three-dimensional ordered state is universally observed for all the impurities and the complete temperature -- concentration phase diagrams are obtained, which are qualitatively similar to that in other spin-gap materials. The unique feature is found in the drastic dependence of the transition temperatures on the species of the impurities. The consideration of effective Hamiltonian based on VBS model makes it clear that the ferromagnetic next-nearest-neighbor interaction and the antiferromagnetic nearest-neighbor interaction between impurity and edge spins play a key role in the unique feature., Comment: 10 pages 11 figures

We introduce the flavor symmetry ${\bf Z}_M \times {\bf Z}_N \times D_4$ into the $SU(6) \times SU(2)_R$ string-inspired model. The cyclic group ${\bf Z}_M$ and the dihedral group $D_4$ are R symmetries, while ${\bf Z}_N$ is a non-R symmetry. By imposing the anomaly-free conditions on the model, we obtain a viable solution under many phenomenological constraints coming from the particle spectra. For neutrino sector, we find a LMA-MSW solution but not SMA-MSW ones. The solution includes phenomenologically acceptable results concerning fermion masses and mixings and also concerning hierarchical energy scales including the GUT scale, the $\mu$ scale and the Majorana mass scale of R-handed neutrinos., Comment: 27 pages, Latex, no figures

In the four-dimensional effective theory from string compactification discrete flavor symmetries arise from symmetric structure of the compactified space and generally contain both the $R$ symmetry and non-$R$ symmetry. We point out that a new type of non-Abelian flavor symmetry can also appear if the compact space is non- commutative. Introducing the dihedral group $D_4$ as such a new type of flavor symmetry together with the $R$ symmetry and non-$R$ symmetry in $SU(6) \times SU(2)_R$ model, we explain not only fermion mass hierarchies but also hierarchical energy scales including the breaking scale of the GUT-type gauge symmetry, intermediate Majorana masses of R-handed neutrinos and the scale of $\mu$-term., Comment: 28pages, Latex, no figures, Revised version includes some details

The quark mixing matrix $V_{CKM}$ is studied in depth on the basis of superstring inspired $SU(6)\times SU(2)_R$ model with global flavor symmetries. The sizable mixings between right-handed down-type quark $D^c$ and colored Higgs field $g^c$ potentially occur but no such mixings in up-type quark sector. In the model the hierarchical pattern of $V_{CKM}$ is understood systematically. It is shown that due to large $D^c$-$g^c$ mixings $V_{ub}$ is naturally suppressed compared to $V_{td}$. It is pointed out that the observed suppression of $V_{ub}$ is in favor of the presence of $SU(2)_R$ gauge symmetry but not in accord with generic SU(5) GUT., Comment: 10pages with no figure, Latex file

In the context of the weakly coupled heterotic string, we propose a new model of mediating supersymmetry breaking. The breakdown of supersymmetry in the hidden sector is transmitted to anti-generation fields via gravitational interactions. Subsequent transmission of the breaking to the MSSM sector occurs via gauge interactions. It is shown that the mass spectra of superparticles are phenomenologically viable., Comment: 8pages, LaTeX, 1 figure, final version to appear in Prog. Theor. Phys. Vol.103, No.6 (2000)

We hypothesize that the vacuum is spontaneously shifted from the self-dual point in the moduli space, at which all dimensions are compact, and that the true vacuum results from the decompactification of the four space-time dimensions and remains in the vicinity of the self-dual point for extra dimensions. On the basis of our hypotheses we explore new types of the coupling unification which are not realized in the four-dimensional effective theory but in the framework of the higher dimensional theory. In the $SU(6) \times SU(2)_R$ string model, if the SU(6) gauge group lives in the world-volume of 9-branes and the $SU(2)_R$ in the world-volume of 5-branes, or {\it vice versa}, unification solutions can be found in the vicinity of the self-dual point., Comment: 12 pages, latex, no figures, final version to appear in Prog. Theor. Phys. Vol. 102 (1999) No. 4

Observational and theoretical results indicate that low-redshift BL Lacertae objects are the most likely extragalactic sources to be detectable at TeV energies. In this paper we present the results of observations of 4 BL Lacertae objects (PKS0521-365, EXO0423.4-0840, PKS2005-489 and PKS2316-423) made between 1993 and 1996 with the CANGAROO 3.8m imaging Cherenkov telescope. During the period of these observations the gamma-ray energy threshold of the 3.8m telescope was ~2TeV. Searches for steady long-term emission have been made, and, inspired by the TeV flares detected from Mkn421 and Mkn501, a search on a night-by-night timescale has also been performed for each source. Comprehensive Monte Carlo simulations are used to estimate upper limits for both steady and short timescale emission., Comment: 6 pages including 2 figures

This paper reports the first discovery of TeV gamma-ray emission from a supernova remnant made with the CANGAROO 3.8 m Telescope. TeV gamma rays were detected at the sky position and extension coincident with the north-east (NE) rim of shell-type Supernova remnant (SNR) SN1006 (Type Ia). SN1006 has been a most likely candidate for an extended TeV Gamma-ray source, since the clear synchrotron X-ray emission from the rims was recently observed by ASCA (Koyama et al. 1995), which is a strong evidence of the existence of very high energy electrons up to hundreds of TeV in the SNR. The observed TeV gamma-ray flux was $(2.4\pm 0.5(statistical) \pm 0.7(systematic)) \times 10^{-12}$ cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$ ($\ge 3.0\pm 0.9$ TeV) and $ (4.6\pm 0.6 \pm 1.4) \times 10^{-12}$ cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$ ($\ge 1.7\pm 0.5$ TeV) from the 1996 and 1997 observations, respectively. Also we set an upper limit on the TeV gamma-ray emission from the SW rim, estimated to be $ 1.1 \times 10^{-12}$ cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$ ($\ge 1.7\pm 0.5$ TeV, 95% CL) in the 1997 data. The TeV gamma rays can be attributed to the 2.7 K cosmic background photons up-scattered by electrons of energies up to about 10$^{14}$ eV by the inverse Compton (IC) process. The observed flux of the TeV gamma rays, together with that of the non-thermal X-rays, gives firm constraints on the acceleration process in the SNR shell; a magnetic field of $6.5\pm2$ $\mu$G is inferred from both the synchrotron X-rays and inverse Compton TeV gamma-rays, which gives entirely consistent mechanisms that electrons of energies up to 10$^{14}$ eV are produced via the shock acceleration in SN1006., Comment: 17 pages, 3 figures, LaTeX2.09 with AASTeX 4.0 maros, to appear in Astrophys. J. Lett

There are experimental indications of large flavor mixing between $\nu_{\mu }$ and $\nu_{\tau}$. In the unification models, in which the massless sector includes extra particles beyond the standard model, there possibly appear the mixings between quarks (leptons) and the extra particles. When large mixings occur, lepton flavor mixings can be quite different from quark flavor mixings. By taking the string inspired $SU(6) \times SU(2)_R$ model with global flavor symmetries, we obtain the neutrino flavor mixing $\sin \theta_{23} \simeq \lambda = \sin \theta_C$ around the unification scale. It can be expected that due to large Yukawa couplings of neutrinos, the renormalization effect increases $\sin 2 \theta_{23}$ naturally up to $\sim 1$ at the electroweak scale. Fermion mass spectra and the CKM matrix of quarks obtained in this paper are also phenomenologically viable., Comment: 15 pages, Latex, no figures, references added

We have observed the Vela pulsar region at TeV energies using the 3.8 m imaging Cherenkov telescope near Woomera, South Australia between January 1993 and March 1995. Evidence of an unpulsed gamma-ray signal has been detected at the 5.8 sigma level. The detected gamma-ray flux is (2.9 +/- 0.5 +/- 0.4) x 10^-12 photons cm^-2 sec^-1 above 2.5 +/- 1.0 TeV and the signal is consistent with steady emission over the two years. The gamma-ray emission region is offset from the Vela pulsar position to the southeast by about 0.13 deg. No pulsed emission modulated with the pulsar period has been detected and the 95 % confidence flux upper limit to the pulsed emission from the pulsar is (3.7 +/- 0.7) x 10^-13 photons cm^-2 sec^-1 above 2.5 +/- 1.0 TeV., Comment: 18 pages, 3 figures, LaTeX with AASTeX, accepted for publication in ApJ Letters

We propose a simple gauge-mediated supersymmetry breaking model in which suitable soft breaking masses are dynamically generated without relying on a messenger sector. This model is constructed as an extention of the 3-2 model and needs no fine-tuning of parameters. The dynamical supersymmetry breaking sector contains non-renormalizable interactions and vector-like fields. Non-renormalizable terms are characterized by the couplings of O(1) in units of the Planck scale. The vacuum of this model conserves the color and electro-weak symmetry., Comment: Revised version includes some corrections of the superpotential

In the context of Calabi-Yau string models we explore the origin of characteristic pattern of quark-lepton masses and the CKM matrix. The discrete $R$-symmetry $Z_K \times Z_2$ is introduced and the $Z_2$ is assigned to the $R$-parity. The gauge symmetry at the string scale, $SU(6) \times SU(2)_R$, is broken into the standard model gauge group at a very large intermediate energy scale. At energies below the intermediate scale down-type quarks and also leptons are mixed with unobserved heavy states, respectively. On the other hand, there are no such mixings for up-type quarks. Due to the large mixings between light states and heavy ones we can derive phenomenologically viable fermion mass hierarchies and the CKM matrix. Mass spectra for intermediate-scale matter beyond the MSSM are also determined. Within this framework proton lifetime is long enough to be consistent with experimental data. As for the string scale unification of gauge couplings, however, consistent solutions are not yet found., Comment: 49 pages, 1 figure, Latex Revised version includes discussion on FCNC problems. Final version to appear in Prog. Theor. Phys. Vol.96 No.6

In a certain type of Calabi-Yau superstring models it is clarified that the symmetry breaking occurs by stages at two large intermediate energy scales and that two large intermediate scales induce large Majorana-masses of right-handed neutrinos. Peculiar structure of the effective nonrenormalizable interactions is crucial in the models. In this scheme Majorana-masses possibly amount to $O(10^{9 \sim 10}\gev)$ and see-saw mechanism is at work for neutrinos. Based on this scheme we propose a viable model which explains the smallness of masses for three kind of neutrinos $\nu _e, \nu _{\mu} \ {\rm and}\ \nu _{\tau}$. Special forms of the nonrenormalizable interactions can be understood as a consequence of an appropriate discrete symmetry of the compactified manifold., Comment: 30-pages + 6-figures, LaTeX, Preprint DPNU-94-02, AUE-01-94