Controlling the dynamics of a single atom in lateral atom manipulation

We studied the dynamics of a single cobalt (Co) atom during lateral manipulation on a copper (111) surface in a low-temperature scanning tunneling microscope. The Co binding site locations were revealed in a detailed image that resulted from lateral Co atom motion within the trapping potential of the scanning tip. Random telegraph noise, corresponding to the Co atom switching between hexagonal close-packed (hcp) and face-centered cubic (fcc) sites, was seen when the tip was used to try to position the Co atom over the higher energy hcp site. Varying the probe tip height modified the normal copper (111) potential landscape and allowed the residence time of the Co atom in these sites to be varied. At low tunneling voltages (less than approximately 5 millielectron volts), the transfer rate between sites was independent of tunneling voltage, current, and temperature. At higher voltages, the transfer rate exhibited a strong dependence on tunneling voltage, indicative of vibrational heating by inelastic electron scattering.     

Protein carbon-13 spin systems by a single two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance experiment

By applying a two-dimensional double-quantum carbon-13 nuclear magnetic resonance experiment to a protein uniformly enriched to 26 percent carbon-13, networks of directly bonded carbon atoms were identified by virtue of their one-bond spin-spin couplings and were classified by amino acid type according to their particular single- and double-quantum chemical shift patterns. Spin systems of 75 of the 98 amino acid residues in a protein, oxidized Anabaena 7120 ferredoxin (molecular weight 11,000), were identified by this approach, which represents a key step in an improved methodology for assigning protein nuclear magnetic resonance spectra. Missing spin systems corresponded primarily to residues located adjacent to the paramagnetic iron-sulfur cluster.     

Controlled single-photon emission from a single trapped two-level atom

By illuminating an individual rubidium atom stored in a tight optical tweezer with short resonant light pulses, we created an efficient triggered source of single photons with a well-defined polarization. The measured intensity correlation of the emitted light pulses exhibits almost perfect antibunching. Such a source of high-rate, fully controlled single-photon pulses has many potential applications for quantum information processing.     

Echo-planar imaging: magnetic resonance imaging in a fraction of a second

Progress has recently been made in implementing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques that can be used to obtain images in a fraction of a second rather than in minutes. Echo-planar imaging (EPI) uses only one nuclear spin excitation per image and lends itself to a variety of critical medical and scientific applications. Among these are evaluation of cardiac function in real time, mapping of water diffusion and temperature in tissue, mapping of organ blood pool and perfusion, functional imaging of the central nervous system, depiction of blood and cerebrospinal fluid flow dynamics, and movie imaging of the mobile fetus in utero. Through shortened patient examination times, higher patient throughput, and lower cost per MRI examination, EPI may become a powerful tool for early diagnosis of some common and potentially treatable diseases such as ischemic heart disease, stroke, and cancer.     

Nuclear magnetic resonance measurement of oil "unsaturation" in single viable corn kernels

High-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy has been used to demonstrate the feasibility of determining iodine value and average molecular weight of oil in individual corn kernels. The procedure is rapid and nondestructive. Depending on heritability of individual fatty acids, this technique may greatly increase selection efficiency in breeding programs to alter the fatty acid composition of corn oil.     

Deterministic generation of single photons from one atom trapped in a cavity

A single cesium atom trapped within the mode of an optical cavity is used to generate single photons on demand. The photon wave packets are emitted as a Gaussian beam with temporal profile and repetition rate controlled by external driving fields. Each generation attempt is inferred to succeed with a probability near unity, whereas the efficiency for creating an unpolarized photon in the total cavity output is 0.69 +/- 0.10, as limited by passive cavity losses. An average of 1.4 x 10(4) photons are produced by each trapped atom. These results constitute an important step in quantum information science, for example, toward the realization of distributed quantum networking.     

Polywater: proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectrum

In the presence of water, the resonance of the strongly hydrogenbonded protons characteristic of polywater appears at 5 parts per million lower applied magnetic field than water. Polywater made by a new method confirms the infrared spectrum reported originally.     

Structure of human serum lipoproteins: nuclear magnetic resonance supports a micellar model

High-resolution proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectra of low- and high-density lipoproteins from human serum closely resemble those of dispersions of lipoprotein lipids in water. Linewidths of hydrocarbon proton absorptions are not increased in the lipoproteins. In contrast, apolar binding of lysolecithin on serum albumin causes extensive line-broadening and an upfield chemical shift of the hydrocarbon proton resonances of lysolecithin. The results are consistent with a predominantly micellar structure for the lipoproteins rather than with extensive hydrophobic association of lipid and protein.     

Molecular imaging using a targeted magnetic resonance hyperpolarized biosensor

A magnetic resonance approach is presented that enables high-sensitivity, high-contrast molecular imaging by exploiting xenon biosensors. These sensors link xenon atoms to specific biomolecular targets, coupling the high sensitivity of hyperpolarized nuclei with the specificity of biochemical interactions. We demonstrated spatial resolution of a specific target protein in vitro at micromolar concentration, with a readout scheme that reduces the required acquisition time by >3300-fold relative to direct detection. This technique uses the signal of free hyperpolarized xenon to dramatically amplify the sensor signal via chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST). Because it is approximately 10,000 times more sensitive than previous CEST methods and other molecular magnetic resonance imaging techniques, it marks a critical step toward the application of xenon biosensors as selective contrast agents in biomedical applications.     

High-resolution proton magnetic resonance spectra of a rabbit sciatic nerve

Proton magnetic resonance spectra (220-megahertz field) of an isolated rabbit sciatic nerve in its native state have been observed and assigned to the extracellular water, intracellular water, and phospholipids of the nerve. This study indicates that the nerve fibers contain fluid-like hydrophobic regions, in agreement with the results of recent electron spin resonance spin-labeled studies of excitable membranes of nerve and muscle.     

Nuclear magnetic resonance imaging of the vitreous body

Imaging with proton nuclear magnetic resonance is a valuable new tool for studying the vitreous body of the eye. It is particularly suited for the detection of vitreal liquefaction and intraocular hemorrhage because of the dependence of the signal on the physical environment of water. Conversely, the vitreous body provides a new model for studying changes in proton relaxation times of protein solutions in biological systems.     

Group I intron self-splicing with adenosine: evidence for a single nucleoside-binding site

For self-splicing of Tetrahymena ribosomal RNA precursor, guanosine binding is required for 5' splice-site cleavage and exon ligation. Whether these two reactions use the same or different guanosine-binding sites has been debated. A double mutation in a previously identified guanosine-binding site within the intron resulted in preference for adenosine (or adenosine triphosphate) as the substrate for cleavage at the 5' splice site. However, splicing was blocked in the exon ligation step. Blockage was reversed by a change from guanine to adenine at the 3' splice site. These results indicate that a single determinant specifies nucleoside binding for both steps of splicing. Furthermore, it suggests that RNA could form an active site specific for adenosine triphosphate.     

Crossing the termination shock into the heliosheath: magnetic fields

Magnetic fields measured by Voyager 1 show that the spacecraft crossed or was crossed by the termination shock on about 16 December 2004 at 94.0 astronomical units. An estimate of the compression ratio of the magnetic field strength B (+/- standard error of the mean) across the shock is B2/B1 = 3.05 +/- 0.04, but ratios in the range from 2 to 4 are admissible. The average B in the heliosheath from day 1 through day 110 of 2005 was 0.136 +/- 0.035 nanoteslas, approximately 4.2 times that predicted by Parker's model for B. The magnetic field in the heliosheath from day 361 of 2004 through day 110 of 2005 was pointing away from the Sun along the Parker spiral. The probability distribution of hourly averages of B in the heliosheath is a Gaussian distribution. The cosmic ray intensity increased when B was relatively large in the heliosheath.     

Molecular loops in the galactic center: evidence for magnetic flotation

The central few hundred parsecs of the Milky Way host a massive black hole and exhibit very violent gas motion and high temperatures in molecular gas. The origin of these properties has been a mystery for the past four decades. Wide-field imaging of the (12)CO (rotational quantum number J = 1 to 0) 2.6-millimeter spectrum has revealed huge loops of dense molecular gas with strong velocity dispersions in the galactic center. We present a magnetic flotation model to explain that the formation of the loops is due to magnetic buoyancy caused by the Parker instability. The model has the potential to offer a coherent explanation for the origin of the violent motion and extensive heating of the molecular gas in the galactic center.     

High-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance of solids

The development of line-narrowing techniques, such as magic-angle spinning (MAS) and high-power decoupling, has led to powerful high-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance approaches for solid samples. In favorable cases (for instance, where high abundances of protons are present) cross polarization (CP) provides a means of circumventing the time bottleneck caused by inefficient spinlattice relaxation in many solids. The combined CP-MAS approach for carbon-13 with proton decoupling has become a popular and routine experiment for organic solids. For many nuclides with spin quantum number /> (1/2) the central nuclear magnetic resonance transition can be employed in high-resolution experiments that involve rapid sample spinning. A continuing stream of advances holds great promise for the use of high-resolution techniques for the characterization of solids by a wide range of nuclides.     

Single molecule electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy: hyperfine splitting owing to a single nucleus

Individual pentacene-d(14) molecules doped into a p-terphenyl-d(14) host crystal have been studied by optically detected electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy. The magnetic resonance transitions between the triplet sublevels of the pentacene molecule and the splitting of the resonance lines for a molecule that contains a carbon-13 nucleus have been observed in an external magnetic field. This splitting is caused by the hyperfine interaction of the triplet electron spin with the single carbon-13 nuclear spin.     

Proton magnetic resonance spectrum of polywater

With the aid of a time average computer, the proton magnetic resonance spectrum of anomalous water (polywater) is obtained. The spectrum conisists of a single broad resonance shifted approximately 300 hertz downfield from the resonance of ordinary water.     

Force detection of nuclear magnetic resonance

Micromechanical sensing of magnetic force was used to detect nuclear magnetic resonance with exceptional sensitivity and spatial resolution. With a 900 angstrom thick silicon nitride cantilever capable of detecting subfemtonewton forces, a single shot sensitivity of 1.6 x 10(13) protons was achieved for an ammonium nitrate sample mounted on the cantilever. A nearby millimeter-size iron particle produced a 600 tesla per meter magnetic field gradient, resulting in a spatial resolution of 2.6 micrometers in one dimension. These results suggest that magnetic force sensing is a viable approach for enhancing the sensitivity and spatial resolution of nuclear magnetic resonance microimaging.