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We present an update of an existing implementation of WZjj production via vector-boson scattering in the framework of the POWHEG BOX program. In particular, previously unavailable semi-leptonic and fully hadronic decay modes of the intermediate vector bosons are provided, and operators of dimension six in an effective-field theory approach to account for physics beyond the Standard Model in the electroweak sector are included. For selected applications phenomenological results are provided to illustrate the capabilities of the new program. The impact of the considered dimension-six operators on experimentally accessible distributions is found to be small for current LHC energies, but enhanced in the kinematic reach of a potential future hadron collider with an energy of 100 TeV. The relevance of fully accounting for spin correlations and off-shell effects in the decay system is explored by a comparison with results obtained with the MadSpin tool that are based on an approximate treatment of the leptonic final state resulting from vector boson scattering processes. For selected semi-leptonic and hadronic decay modes we demonstrate the sensitivity of realistic signal selection procedures on QCD corrections and parton-shower effects.

In Josephson diodes the asymmetry between positive and negative current branch of the current-phase relation leads to a polarity-dependent critical current and Josephson inductance. The supercurrent nonreciprocity can be described as a consequence of the anomalous Josephson effect —a φ 0 -shift of the current-phase relation— in multichannel ballistic junctions with strong spin-orbit interaction. In this work, we simultaneously investigate φ 0 -shift and supercurrent diode efficiency on the same Josephson junction by means of a superconducting quantum interferometer. By electrostatic gating, we reveal a direct link between φ 0 -shift and diode effect. Our findings show that spin-orbit interaction in combination with a Zeeman field plays an important role in determining the magnetochiral anisotropy and the supercurrent diode effect. The authors study the intrinsic superconducting diode effect (SDE) in a single Josephson junction consisting of a InGaAs/InAs/InGaAs quantum well as the weak link, and an Al film as the superconductor. They find a correspondence between SDE and an offset in the relationship between critical current and the difference in phase of the superconducting order parameter across the junction.

We present an update of an existing implementation of WZjj production via vector-boson scattering in the framework of the POWHEG BOX program. In particular, previously unavailable semi-leptonic and fully hadronic decay modes of the intermediate vector bosons are provided, and operators of dimension six in an effective-field theory approach to account for physics beyond the Standard Model in the electroweak sector are included. For selected applications phenomenological results are provided to illustrate the capabilities of the new program. The impact of the considered dimension-six operators on experimentally accessible distributions is found to be small for current LHC energies, but enhanced in the kinematic reach of a potential future hadron collider with an energy of 100 TeV. The relevance of fully accounting for spin correlations and off-shell effects in the decay system is explored by a comparison with results obtained with the MadSpin tool that are based on an approximate treatment of the leptonic final state resulting from vector boson scattering processes. For selected semi-leptonic and hadronic decay modes we demonstrate the sensitivity of realistic signal selection procedures on QCD corrections and parton-shower effects.

The recent discovery of the intrinsic supercurrent diode effect, and its prompt observation in a rich variety of systems, has shown that non-reciprocal supercurrents naturally emerge when both space-inversion and time-inversion symmetries are broken. In Josephson junctions, non-reciprocal supercurrent can be conveniently described in terms of spin-split Andreev states. Here we demonstrate a sign reversal of the Josephson inductance magnetochiral anisotropy, a manifestation of the supercurrent diode effect. The asymmetry of the Josephson inductance as a function of the supercurrent allows us to probe the current–phase relation near equilibrium, and to probe jumps in the junction ground state. Using a minimal theoretical model, we can then link the sign reversal of the inductance magnetochiral anisotropy to the so-called 0−π-like transition, a predicted but still elusive feature of multichannel junctions. Our results demonstrate the potential of inductance measurements as sensitive probes of the fundamental properties of unconventional Josephson junctions. A sudden inversion of the supercurrent diode effect is revealed in both inductance and critical current measurements in ballistic Josephson junctions. A simple analytical model shows that the inversion is associated with a ground state jump, the elusive 0−π-like transition.

Epitaxial superconductor-semiconductor heterostructures combine superconductivity with strong spin-orbit interaction resulting in synthetic Rashba superconductors. The theoretical description of such superconductors involves Lifshitz invariants that are predicted to feature numerous exotic effects with so far sparse experimental evidence. Using a new observable—vortex inductance—we investigate the pinning properties of epitaxialAl/InAs-based heterostructures. We find a pronounced decrease of the vortex inductance with increasing in-plane field which corresponds to a counterintuitive increase of the pinning force. When rotating the in-plane component of the field with respect to the current direction, the pinning interaction turns out to be highly anisotropic. We analytically demonstrate that both the pinning enhancement and its anisotropy are consequences of the presence of Lifshitz invariant terms in the Ginzburg-Landau free energy. Hence, our experiment provides access to a fundamental property of Rashba superconductors and offers an entirely new approach to vortex manipulation.

Animals balance foraging with other activities, and activity patterns may differ between sexes due to differing physical requirements and reproductive investments. Sex-specific behavioural differences are common in sexually dimorphic mammals, but have received limited research attention in monomorphic mammals where the sexes are similar in body size. Eurasian beavers (Castor fiber) are obligate monogamous and monomorphic mammals and a good model species to study sex-specific differences. As females increase energy expenditure during reproduction, we hypothesized differing seasonal activity budgets, circadian activity rhythms and foraging patterns between male and reproducing female beavers. To test this hypothesis, we equipped adult beavers with VHF transmitters (N=41; 16 female, 25 male) and observed them throughout their active period at night from spring to late summer. Occurrence of their main activities (foraging, travelling and being in lodge) and use of food items (trees/shrubs, aquatic vegetation and herbs/grasses) were modelled to investigate sex-specific seasonal activity budgets and circadian activity rhythms. The sexes did not differ in time spent foraging across the season or night, but during spring, females resided more in the lodge and travelled less. Males and females both foraged on aquatic vegetation during spring, but females used this food source also during late summer, whereas males mostly foraged on trees/shrubs throughout the year. We conclude that seasonal activity budgets and foraging differ subtly between the sexes, which may relate to different energy budgets associated with reproduction and nutritional requirements. Such subtle seasonal behavioural adaptions may be vital for survival and reproduction of monomorphic species.

The new technology of laser-driven ion acceleration (LDA) has shown the potential for driving highly brilliant particle beams. Laser-driven ion acceleration differs from conventional proton sources by its ultra-high dose rate, whose radiobiological impact should be investigated thoroughly before adopting current clinical dose concepts. The growth of human FaDu tumors transplanted onto the hind leg of nude mice was measured sonographically. Tumors were irradiated with 20 Gy of 23 MeV protons at pulsed mode with single pulses of 1 ns duration or continuous mode (∼100 ms) in comparison to controls and to a dose-response curve for 6 MV photons. Tumor growth delay and the relative biological effectiveness (RBE) were calculated for all irradiation modes. The mean target dose reconstructed from Gafchromic films was 17.4 ± 0.8 Gy for the pulsed and 19.7 ± 1.1 Gy for the continuous irradiation mode. The mean tumor growth delay was 34 ± 6 days for pulsed, 35 ± 6 days for continuous protons, and 31 ± 7 days for photons 20 ± 1.2 Gy, resulting in RBEs of 1.22 ± 0.19 for pulsed and 1.10 ± 0.18 for continuous protons, respectively. In summary, protons were found to be significantly more effective in reducing the tumor volume than photons (P < 0.05). Together with the results of previous in vitro experiments, the in vivo data reveal no evidence for a substantially different radiobiology that is associated with the ultra-high dose rate of protons that might be generated from advanced laser technology in the future.

A Correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-021-03024-1

Radiochromic films such as Gafchromic EBT2 or EBT3 films are widely used for dose determination in radiation therapy because they offer a superior spatial resolution compared to any other digital dosimetric 2D detector array. The possibility to detect steep dose gradients is not only attractive for intensity-modulated radiation therapy with photons but also for intensity-modulated proton therapy. Their characteristic dose rate-independent response makes radiochromic films also attractive for dose determination in cell irradiation experiments using laser-driven ion accelerators, which are currently being investigated as future medical ion accelerators. However, when using these films in ion beams, the energy-dependent dose response in the vicinity of the Bragg peak has to be considered. In this work, the response of these films for low-energy protons is investigated. To allow for reproducible and background-free irradiation conditions, the films were exposed to mono-energetic protons from an electrostatic accelerator, in the 4–20 MeV energy range. For comparison, irradiation with clinical photons was also performed. It turned out that in general, EBT2 and EBT3 films show a comparable performance. For example, dose–response curves for photons and protons with energies as low as 11 MeV show almost no differences. However, corrections are required for proton energies below 11 MeV. Care has to be taken when correction factors are related to an average LET from depth–dose measurements, because only the dose-averaged LET yields similar results as obtained in mono-energetic measurements.

Background Major trauma is associated with chest injuries in nearly 50% of multiple injuries. Thoracic trauma is a relevant source of comorbidity throughout the period of multiply-injured patient care and may require swift and well-thought-out interventions in order to avert a deleterious outcome. In this epidemiological study we seek to characterize groups of different thoracic trauma severity in severely injured patients and identify related differences in prehospital and early clinical management. This may help to anticipate necessary treatment for chest injuries. Methods Patients documented between 2002 and 2012 in the TraumaRegister DGU®, aged ≥ 16 years, determined Injury Severity Score ≥ 16, and documentation from European trauma centers were analyzed. Isolated brain injury and severe head injury (Abbreviated Injury Scale Head  ≥ 4) led to patient exclusion. Patient subgroups were formed according to the Abbreviated Injury Scale Thorax as Controls, AIS-2, AIS-3, AIS-4, and AIS-5/6. Demographic and clinical characteristics comparing the aforementioned groups were evaluated using descriptive statistics. Results Twenty two thousand five hundred sixty five predominantly male (74%) patients, mean age 45.7 years (SD 19.3), suffering from blunt trauma (95%), and presenting a mean Injury Severity Score of 25.6 (SD 9.6) were analyzed. Higher thoracic injury severity was associated with more different thoracic injuries. The highest rate of prehospital intubation (58%) occurred in AIS Thorax -5/6. The worse the chest trauma, the more chest tubes were placed prehospitally, peaking at 22% in AIS Thorax -5/6. Out-of-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation was successfully performed in 11% in AIS Thorax -5/6 compared to 1%–3% in lesser thoracic trauma severity. Massive transfusion and emergency surgery was highest in AIS Thorax -5/6 compared to lesser thoracic injury (12% vs. 5%–7% and 17% vs. 3%–7%) and both were independently associated with thoracic injuries in patients with AIS Thorax  ≥ 4. Conclusions We provide epidemiological data on trauma mechanism, concomitant injuries, frequencies of emergency interventions and outcome associated with different thoracic trauma severity. Prehospital and early clinical management is more complex when AIS Thorax is ≥ 4. Severely injured patients with critical thoracic trauma are most challenging to take care of with highest rates in prehospital intubation, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, chest tube placements, blood transfusions as well as emergency surgery.