406 research outputs found
Effect of pressure cycling on Iron: Signatures of an electronic instability and unconventional superconductivity
High pressure electrical resistivity and x-ray diffraction experiments have
been performed on Fe single crystals. The crystallographic investigation
provides direct evidence that in the martensitic
transition at 14 GPa the become the directions. During a pressure cycle, resistivity shows a
broad hysteresis of 6.5 GPa, whereas superconductivity, observed between 13 and
31 GPa, remains unaffected. Upon increasing pressure an electronic instability,
probably a quantum critical point, is observed at around 19 GPa and, close to
this pressure, the superconducting and the isothermal resistivity
(K) attain maximum values. In the superconducting pressure domain,
the exponent of the temperature power law of resistivity and its
prefactor, which mimics , indicate that ferromagnetic fluctuations may
provide the glue for the Cooper pairs, yielding unconventional
superconductivity
Verification and Control of Partially Observable Probabilistic Real-Time Systems
We propose automated techniques for the verification and control of
probabilistic real-time systems that are only partially observable. To formally
model such systems, we define an extension of probabilistic timed automata in
which local states are partially visible to an observer or controller. We give
a probabilistic temporal logic that can express a range of quantitative
properties of these models, relating to the probability of an event's
occurrence or the expected value of a reward measure. We then propose
techniques to either verify that such a property holds or to synthesise a
controller for the model which makes it true. Our approach is based on an
integer discretisation of the model's dense-time behaviour and a grid-based
abstraction of the uncountable belief space induced by partial observability.
The latter is necessarily approximate since the underlying problem is
undecidable, however we show how both lower and upper bounds on numerical
results can be generated. We illustrate the effectiveness of the approach by
implementing it in the PRISM model checker and applying it to several case
studies, from the domains of computer security and task scheduling
Synchronizing Random Almost-Group Automata
In this paper we address the question of synchronizing random automata in the
critical settings of almost-group automata. Group automata are automata where
all letters act as permutations on the set of states, and they are not
synchronizing (unless they have one state). In almost-group automata, one of
the letters acts as a permutation on states, and the others as
permutations. We prove that this small change is enough for automata to become
synchronizing with high probability. More precisely, we establish that the
probability that a strongly connected almost-group automaton is not
synchronizing is , for a -letter
alphabet.Comment: full version prepared for CIAA 201
Recommended from our members
Numeraire-invariant quadratic hedging and mean-variance portfolio allocation
The paper investigates quadratic hedging in a semimartingale market that does not necessarily contain a risk-free asset. An equivalence result for hedging with and without numeraire change is established. This permits direct computation of the optimal strategy without choosing a reference asset and/or performing a numeraire change. New explicit expressions for optimal strategies are obtained, featuring the use of oblique projections that provide unified treatment of the case with and without a risk-free asset. The analysis yields a streamlined computation of the efficient frontier for the pure investment problem in terms of three easily interpreted processes. The main result advances our understanding of the efficient frontier formation in the most general case where a risk-free asset may not be present. Several illustrations of the numeraire-invariant approach are given
Abstract Learning Frameworks for Synthesis
We develop abstract learning frameworks (ALFs) for synthesis that embody the
principles of CEGIS (counter-example based inductive synthesis) strategies that
have become widely applicable in recent years. Our framework defines a general
abstract framework of iterative learning, based on a hypothesis space that
captures the synthesized objects, a sample space that forms the space on which
induction is performed, and a concept space that abstractly defines the
semantics of the learning process. We show that a variety of synthesis
algorithms in current literature can be embedded in this general framework.
While studying these embeddings, we also generalize some of the synthesis
problems these instances are of, resulting in new ways of looking at synthesis
problems using learning. We also investigate convergence issues for the general
framework, and exhibit three recipes for convergence in finite time. The first
two recipes generalize current techniques for convergence used by existing
synthesis engines. The third technique is a more involved technique of which we
know of no existing instantiation, and we instantiate it to concrete synthesis
problems
Consistency of data on soft photon production in hadronic interactions
The glob model of Lichard and Van Hove and the modified soft annihilation
model (MSAM) of Lichard and Thompson are used as a phenomenological tool for
relating results from various experiments on soft photon production in high
energy collisions. The total phenomenological expectation is composed of
contributions from classical bremsstrahlung, the soft annihilation model and
the glob model. The empirical excess above the background from hadronic decays
at very small longitudinal momenta of photons is well reproduced, as well as
that for transverse momenta pT >~ 10 MeV/c. Some data do not require the glob
model and MSAM components in the phenomenological mixture, but do not exclude
them. On the basis of consistency of all data with the total theoretical
expectation we argue that the results of all experiments are mutually
consistent. The models are unable to describe the excess of ultrasoft photons
(pT <~ 10 MeV/c), seen by some, but not all, experiments. This may indicate an
as yet unknown projectile-mass-dependent production mechanism. Possible
relations of soft photon production to other phenomena are discussed. A
simple-to-use, but physically equivalent version of the glob model is
developed, which enables an easy check of presented results.Comment: 25 pages, RevTeX, epsf.sty, 12 embedded figure
Analysis of coupled heat and moisture transfer in masonry structures
Evaluation of effective or macroscopic coefficients of thermal conductivity
under coupled heat and moisture transfer is presented. The paper first gives a
detailed summary on the solution of a simple steady state heat conduction
problem with an emphasis on various types of boundary conditions applied to the
representative volume element -- a periodic unit cell. Since the results
essentially suggest no superiority of any type of boundary conditions, the
paper proceeds with the coupled nonlinear heat and moisture problem subjecting
the selected representative volume element to the prescribed macroscopically
uniform heat flux. This allows for a direct use of the academic or commercially
available codes. Here, the presented results are derived with the help of the
SIFEL (SIimple Finite Elements) system.Comment: 23 pages, 11 figure
Trapping in the random conductance model
We consider random walks on among nearest-neighbor random conductances
which are i.i.d., positive, bounded uniformly from above but whose support
extends all the way to zero. Our focus is on the detailed properties of the
paths of the random walk conditioned to return back to the starting point at
time . We show that in the situations when the heat kernel exhibits
subdiffusive decay --- which is known to occur in dimensions --- the
walk gets trapped for a time of order in a small spatial region. This shows
that the strategy used earlier to infer subdiffusive lower bounds on the heat
kernel in specific examples is in fact dominant. In addition, we settle a
conjecture concerning the worst possible subdiffusive decay in four dimensions.Comment: 21 pages, version to appear in J. Statist. Phy
New Insights into the Lake Chad Basin Population Structure Revealed by High-Throughput Genotyping of Mitochondrial DNA Coding SNPs
BACKGROUND: Located in the Sudan belt, the Chad Basin forms a remarkable ecosystem, where several unique agricultural and pastoral techniques have been developed. Both from an archaeological and a genetic point of view, this region has been interpreted to be the center of a bidirectional corridor connecting West and East Africa, as well as a meeting point for populations coming from North Africa through the Saharan desert. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Samples from twelve ethnic groups from the Chad Basin (n = 542) have been high-throughput genotyped for 230 coding region mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (mtSNPs) using Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Time-Of-Flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry. This set of mtSNPs allowed for much better phylogenetic resolution than previous studies of this geographic region, enabling new insights into its population history. Notable haplogroup (hg) heterogeneity has been observed in the Chad Basin mirroring the different demographic histories of these ethnic groups. As estimated using a Bayesian framework, nomadic populations showed negative growth which was not always correlated to their estimated effective population sizes. Nomads also showed lower diversity values than sedentary groups. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Compared to sedentary population, nomads showed signals of stronger genetic drift occurring in their ancestral populations. These populations, however, retained more haplotype diversity in their hypervariable segments I (HVS-I), but not their mtSNPs, suggesting a more ancestral ethnogenesis. Whereas the nomadic population showed a higher Mediterranean influence signaled mainly by sub-lineages of M1, R0, U6, and U5, the other populations showed a more consistent sub-Saharan pattern. Although lifestyle may have an influence on diversity patterns and hg composition, analysis of molecular variance has not identified these differences. The present study indicates that analysis of mtSNPs at high resolution could be a fast and extensive approach for screening variation in population studies where labor-intensive techniques such as entire genome sequencing remain unfeasible
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