• Spatially covariant gravity with two degrees of freedom: perturbative analysis

    分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19

    摘要: We revisit the problem of building the Lagrangian of a large class of metric theories that respect spatial covariance, which propagate at most two degrees of freedom and in particular no scalar mode. The Lagrangians are polynomials built of the spatially covariant geometric quantities. By expanding the Lagrangian around a cosmological background and focusing on the scalar modes only, we find the conditions for the coefficients of the monomials in order to eliminate the scalar mode at the linear order in perturbations. We find the conditions up to $d=4$ with $d$ the total number of derivatives in the monomials and determine the explicit Lagrangians for the cases of $d=2$, $d=3$ as well as the combination of $d=2$ and $d=3$. We also expand the Lagrangian of $d=2$ to the cubic order in perturbations, and find additional conditions for the coefficients such that the scalar mode is eliminated up to the cubic order. This perturbative analysis can be performed order by order, and one expects to determine the final Lagrangian at some finite order such that the scalar mode is fully eliminated. Our analysis provides an alternative and complimentary approach to building spatially covariant gravity with only tensorial degrees of freedom. The resulting theories can be used as alternatives to the general relativity to describe the tensorial gravitational waves in a cosmological setting.

  • Non-Hermitian Edge Burst

    分类: 光学 >> 量子光学 提交时间: 2023-02-19

    摘要: We unveil an unexpected non-Hermitian phenomenon, dubbed edge burst, in non-Hermitian quantum dynamics. Specifically, in a class of non-Hermitian quantum walk in periodic lattices with open boundary condition, an exceptionally large portion of loss occurs at the system boundary. The physical origin of this edge burst is found to be an interplay between two unique non-Hermitian phenomena: non-Hermitian skin effect and imaginary gap closing. Furthermore, we establish a universal bulk-edge scaling relation underlying the non-Hermitian edge burst. Our predictions are experimentally accessible in various non-Hermitian systems including quantum-optical and cold-atom platforms.

  • Geometric Origin of Non-Bloch PT Symmetry Breaking

    分类: 光学 >> 量子光学 提交时间: 2023-02-19

    摘要: The parity-time (PT) symmetry of a non-Hermitian Hamiltonian leads to real (complex) energy spectrum when the non-Hermiticity is below (above) a threshold. Recently, it has been demonstrated that the non-Hermitian skin effect generates a new type of PT symmetry, dubbed the non-Bloch PT symmetry, featuring unique properties such as high sensitivity to the boundary condition. Despite its relevance to a wide range of non-Hermitian lattice systems, a general theory is still lacking for this generic phenomenon even in one spatial dimension. Here, we uncover the geometric mechanism of non-Bloch PT symmetry and its breaking. We find that non-Bloch PT symmetry breaking occurs by the formation of cusps in the generalized Brillouin zone (GBZ). Based on this geometric understanding, we propose an exact formula that efficiently determines the breaking threshold. Finally, we predict a new type of spectral singularities associated with the symmetry breaking, dubbed non-Bloch van Hove singularities, whose physical mechanism fundamentally differs from their Hermitian counterparts.

  • Simple formulas of directional amplification from non-Bloch band theory

    分类: 光学 >> 量子光学 提交时间: 2023-02-19

    摘要: Green's functions are fundamental quantities that determine the linear responses of physical systems. The recent developments of non-Hermitian systems, therefore, call for Green's function formulas of non-Hermitian bands. This task is complicated by the high sensitivity of energy spectrums to boundary conditions, which invalidates the straightforward generalization of Hermitian formulas. Here, based on the non-Bloch band theory, we obtain simple Green's function formulas of general one-dimensional non-Hermitian bands. Furthermore, in the large-size limit, these formulas dramatically reduce to finding the roots of a simple algebraic equation. As an application, our formulation provides the desirable formulas for the defining quantities, the gain and directionality, of directional amplification. Thus, our formulas provide an efficient guide for designing directional amplifiers.

  • Clinical remission of a critically ill COVID-19 patient treated by human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells

    分类: 医学、药学 >> 临床医学 提交时间: 2020-02-27

    摘要: BackgroundThe COVID-19 cases increased very fast in the last two months. The mortality among critically ill patients, especially the elder ones, was relatively high. Considering that most of the dead patients were caused by severe inflammation response, it is very urgent to develop effective therapeutic agents and strategies for these patients. The human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUCMSCs) have shown very good capability to modulate immune response and repair the injured tissue with good safety. Case PresentationHere, we reported the treatment process and clinical outcome of a 65-year-old female critically ill COVID-19 patient infected with 2019-nCoV (now called SARS-CoV-2). The significant clinical outcome and well tolerance was observed by the adoptive transfer of allogenic hUCMSCs.ConclusionsOur results suggested that the adoptive transfer therapy of hUCMSCs might be an ideal choice to be used or combined with other immune modulating agents to treat the critically ill COVID-19 patients.