87,394 research outputs found
One-step deposition of nano-to-micron-scalable, high-quality digital image correlation patterns for high-strain in-situ multi-microscopy testing
Digital Image Correlation (DIC) is of vital importance in the field of
experimental mechanics, yet, producing suitable DIC patterns for demanding
in-situ mechanical tests remains challenging, especially for ultra-fine
patterns, despite the large number of patterning techniques in the literature.
Therefore, we propose a simple, flexible, one-step technique (only requiring a
conventional deposition machine) to obtain scalable, high-quality, robust DIC
patterns, suitable for a range of microscopic techniques, by deposition of a
low melting temperature solder alloy in so-called 'island growth' mode, without
elevating the substrate temperature. Proof of principle is shown by
(near-)room-temperature deposition of InSn patterns, yielding highly dense,
homogeneous DIC patterns over large areas with a feature size that can be tuned
from as small as 10nm to 2um and with control over the feature shape and
density by changing the deposition parameters. Pattern optimization, in terms
of feature size, density, and contrast, is demonstrated for imaging with atomic
force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), optical microscopy and
profilometry. Moreover, the performance of the InSn DIC patterns and their
robustness to large deformations is validated in two challenging case studies
of in-situ micro-mechanical testing: (i) self-adaptive isogeometric digital
height correlation of optical surface height profiles of a coarse, bimodal InSn
pattern providing microscopic 3D deformation fields (illustrated for
delamination of aluminum interconnects on a polyimide substrate) and (ii) DIC
on SEM images of a much finer InSn pattern allowing quantification of high
strains near fracture locations (illustrated for rupture of a Fe foil). As
such, the high controllability, performance and scalability of the DIC patterns
offers a promising step towards more routine DIC-based in-situ micro-mechanical
testing.Comment: Accepted for publication in Strai
Graphene-Based Nanostructures in Electrocatalytic Oxygen Reduction
Application of graphene-type materials in electrocatalysis is a topic of
growing scientific and technological interest. A tremendous amount of research
has been carried out in the field of oxygen electroreduction, particularly with
respect to potential applications in the fuel cell research also with use of
graphene-type catalytic components. This work addresses fundamental aspects and
potential applications of graphene structures in the oxygen reduction
electrocatalysis. Special attention will be paid to creation of catalytically
active sites by using non-metallic heteroatoms as dopants, formation of
hierarchical nanostructured electrocatalysts, their long-term stability, and
application as supports for dispersed metals (activating interactions)
Ceria-Based Dual-Phase Membranes for High-Temperature Carbon Dioxide Separation: Effect of Iron Doping and Pore Generation with MgO Template
Dual-phase membranes for high-temperature carbon dioxide separation have emerged as promising technology to mitigate anthropogenic greenhouse gases emissions, especially as a pre- and post-combustion separation technique in coal burning power plants. To implement these membranes industrially, the carbon dioxide permeability must be improved. In this study, Ce0.8Sm0.2O2−δ (SDC) and Ce0.8Sm0.19Fe0.01O2−δ (FSDC) ceramic powders were used to form the skeleton in dual-phase membranes. The use of MgO as an environmentally friendly pore generator allows control over the membrane porosity and microstructure in order to compare the effect of the membrane’s ceramic phase. The ceramic powders and the resulting membranes were characterized using ICP-OES, HSM, gravimetric analysis, SEM/EDX, and XRD, and the carbon dioxide flux density was quantified using a high-temperature membrane permeation setup. The carbon dioxide permeability slightly increases with the addition of iron in the FSDC membranes compared to the SDC membranes mainly due to the reported scavenging effect of iron with the siliceous impurities, with an additional potential contribution of an increased crystallite size due to viscous flow sintering. The increased permeability of the FSDC system and the proper microstructure control by MgO can be further extended to optimize carbon dioxide permeability in this membrane system.DFG, 414044773, Open Access Publizieren 2019 - 2020 / Technische Universität Berli
Bound to the dual-sex/gender system: (trans) gendering and body modification as narcissistic self regard
This chapter looks at the way that transsexuals neotiate their body projects, by balancing their ego ideals, bodily intactness and social roles. I draw on a reconstituted notion of (positive) narcissism to eplain the various modalities of transsexual body modification
A close-pair binary in a distant triple supermassive black-hole system
Galaxies are believed to evolve through merging, which should lead to
multiple supermassive black holes in some. There are four known triple black
hole systems, with the closest pair being 2.4 kiloparsecs apart (the third
component is more distant at 3 kiloparsecs), which is far from the
gravitational sphere of influence of a black hole with mass 10
M (about 100 parsecs). Previous searches for compact black hole systems
concluded that they were rare, with the tightest binary system having a
separation of 7 parsecs. Here we report observations of a triple black hole
system at redshift z=0.39, with the closest pair separated by 140
parsecs. The presence of the tight pair is imprinted onto the properties of the
large-scale radio jets, as a rotationally-symmetric helical modulation, which
provides a useful way to search for other tight pairs without needing extremely
high resolution observations. As we found this tight pair after searching only
six galaxies, we conclude that tight pairs are more common than hitherto
believed, which is an important observational constraint for low-frequency
gravitational wave experiments.Comment: 21 pages, 6 figures. Published online by Nature on 25 June 2014.
Extremely minor differences with published version exis
A Cosmic Watershed: the WVF Void Detection Technique
On megaparsec scales the Universe is permeated by an intricate filigree of
clusters, filaments, sheets and voids, the Cosmic Web. For the understanding of
its dynamical and hierarchical history it is crucial to identify objectively
its complex morphological components. One of the most characteristic aspects is
that of the dominant underdense Voids, the product of a hierarchical process
driven by the collapse of minor voids in addition to the merging of large ones.
In this study we present an objective void finder technique which involves a
minimum of assumptions about the scale, structure and shape of voids. Our void
finding method, the Watershed Void Finder (WVF), is based upon the Watershed
Transform, a well-known technique for the segmentation of images. Importantly,
the technique has the potential to trace the existing manifestations of a void
hierarchy. The basic watershed transform is augmented by a variety of
correction procedures to remove spurious structure resulting from sampling
noise. This study contains a detailed description of the WVF. We demonstrate
how it is able to trace and identify, relatively parameter free, voids and
their surrounding (filamentary and planar) boundaries. We test the technique on
a set of Kinematic Voronoi models, heuristic spatial models for a cellular
distribution of matter. Comparison of the WVF segmentations of low noise and
high noise Voronoi models with the quantitatively known spatial characteristics
of the intrinsic Voronoi tessellation shows that the size and shape of the
voids are succesfully retrieved. WVF manages to even reproduce the full void
size distribution function.Comment: 24 pages, 15 figures, MNRAS accepted, for full resolution, see
http://www.astro.rug.nl/~weygaert/tim1publication/watershed.pd
Assortative mixing in close-packed spatial networks
Background
In recent years, there is aroused interest in expressing complex systems as networks of interacting nodes. Using descriptors from graph theory, it has been possible to classify many diverse systems derived from social and physical sciences alike. In particular, folded proteins as examples of self-assembled complex molecules have also been investigated intensely using these tools. However, we need to develop additional measures to classify different systems, in order to dissect the underlying hierarchy.
Methodology and Principal Findings
In this study, a general analytical relation for the dependence of nearest neighbor degree correlations on degree is derived. Dependence of local clustering on degree is shown to be the sole determining factor of assortative versus disassortative mixing in networks. The characteristics of networks constructed from spatial atomic/molecular systems exemplified by self-organized residue networks built from folded protein structures and block copolymers, atomic clusters and well-compressed polymeric melts are studied. Distributions of statistical properties of the networks are presented. For these densely-packed systems, assortative mixing in the network construction is found to apply, and conditions are derived for a simple linear dependence.
Conclusions
Our analyses (i) reveal patterns that are common to close-packed clusters of atoms/molecules, (ii) identify the type of surface effects prominent in different close-packed systems, and (iii) associate fingerprints that may be used to classify networks with varying types of correlations
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