2,803 research outputs found
Woodwork in Search of Beauty
This seventh grade adventure sprang from the conjunction of three disparate elements: a cumbersome map of the United States left behind by a French visitor, a longtime love for Louise Nevelson's work, and a storage room overfilled with old lumber. The map was hanging above my dresser. One morning when, from my distant bed, I was one more time weighing Nebraska versus Iowa for that pink square under Minnesota, I was struck by the idea of FIFTY. There were fifty of them, and we were fifty of us, fifty seventh graders and me. It was thrilling - even Louise Nevelson did not seem to have thought of boxing the United States. I leaped to my desk and began, with a godlike audacity, to straighten up frontiers and assemble a new square version of our country. The game was on
Carrier dynamics in ion-implanted GaAs studied by simulation and observation of terahertz emission
We have studied terahertz (THz) emission from arsenic-ion implanted GaAs both
experimentally and using a three-dimensional carrier dynamics simulation. A
uniform density of vacancies was formed over the optical absorption depth of
bulk GaAs samples by performing multi-energy implantations of arsenic ions (1
and 2.4MeV) and subsequent thermal annealing. In a series of THz emission
experiments the frequency of peak THz power was found to increase significantly
from 1.4 to 2.2THz when the ion implantation dose was increased from 10^13 to
10^16 cm-3. We used a semi-classical Monte-Carlo simulation of ultra-fast
carrier dynamics to reproduce and explain these results. The effect of the
ion-induced damage was included in the simulation by considering carrier
scattering at neutral and charged impurities, as well as carrier trapping at
defect sites. Higher vacancy concentrations and shorter carrier trapping times
both contributed to shorter simulated THz pulses, the latter being more
important over experimentally realistic parameter ranges.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figure
Polarization-dependence of anomalous scattering in brominated DNA and RNA molecules, and importance of crystal orientation in single- and multiple-wavelength anomalous diffraction phasing
In this paper the anisotropy of anomalous scattering at the Br K-absorption edge in brominated nucleotides is investigated, and it is shown that this effect can give rise to a marked directional dependence of the anomalous signal strength in X-ray diffraction data. This implies that choosing the correct orientation for crystals of such molecules can be a crucial determinant of success or failure when using single- and multiple-wavelength anomalous diffraction (SAD or MAD) methods to solve their structure. In particular, polarized absorption spectra on an oriented crystal of a brominated DNA molecule were measured, and were used to determine the orientation that yields a maximum anomalous signal in the diffraction data. Out of several SAD data sets, only those collected at or near that optimal orientation allowed interpretable electron density maps to be obtained. The findings of this study have implications for instrumental choices in experimental stations at synchrotron beamlines, as well as for the development of data collection strategy programs
Charge trapping in polymer transistors probed by terahertz spectroscopy and scanning probe potentiometry
Terahertz time-domain spectroscopy and scanning probe potentiometry were used
to investigate charge trapping in polymer field-effect transistors fabricated
on a silicon gate. The hole density in the transistor channel was determined
from the reduction in the transmitted terahertz radiation under an applied gate
voltage. Prolonged device operation creates an exponential decay in the
differential terahertz transmission, compatible with an increase in the density
of trapped holes in the polymer channel. Taken in combination with scanning
probe potentionmetry measurements, these results indicate that device
degradation is largely a consequence of hole trapping, rather than of changes
to the mobility of free holes in the polymer.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Recueil des données climatologiques et pluviométriques 1989-1991 : station de Bled Retsmaia (bassin versant de l'oued El Hissiane)
Polarisation-sensitive terahertz detection by multicontact photoconductive receivers
We have developed a terahertz radiation detector that measures both the
amplitude and polarization of the electric field as a function of time. The
device is a three-contact photoconductive receiver designed so that two
orthogonal electric-field components of an arbitrary polarized electromagnetic
wave may be detected simultaneously. The detector was fabricated on Fe+
ion-implanted InP. Polarization-sensitive detection is demonstrated with an
extinction ratio better than 100:1. This type of device will have immediate
application in studies of birefringent and optically active materials in the
far-infrared region of the spectrum.Comment: 3 pages, 3 figure
Mitonuclear interactions modulate nutritional preference
In nature, organisms are faced with constant nutritional options which fuel key life-history traits. Studies have shown that species can actively make nutritional decisions based on internal and external cues. Metabolism itself is underpinned by complex genomic interactions involving components from both nuclear and mitochondrial genomes. Products from these two genomes must coordinate how nutrients are extracted, used and recycled. Given the complicated nature of metabolism, it is not well understood how nutritional choices are affected by mitonuclear interactions. This is under the rationale that changes in genomic interactions will affect metabolic flux and change physiological requirements. To this end we used a large Drosophila mitonuclear genetic panel, comprising nine isogenic nuclear genomes coupled to nine mitochondrial haplotypes, giving a total of 81 different mitonuclear genotypes. We use a capillary-based feeding assay to screen this panel for dietary preference between carbohydrate and protein. We find significant mitonuclear interactions modulating nutritional choices, with these epistatic interactions also being dependent on sex. Our findings support the notion that complex genomic interactions can place a constraint on metabolic flux. This work gives us deeper insights into how key metabolic interactions can have broad implications on behaviour
Ecoulement et érosion sur le bassin versant de l'oued El Hissiane (campagnes 1989-90 et 1990-91)
Analyse de la pluie à l'échelle journalière, mensuelle et annuelle sur le bassin versant de l'oued el Hissiane. Analyse de l'écoulement à l'échelle de l'averse, étude des transports solides et en suspension. Caractéristiques des crues et bilan hydrologique annuel sur les 5 bassins versants. (Résumé d'auteur
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