29,240 research outputs found
Ageing of Natural Rubber under Stress
We report a dynamical-mechanical study of stress relaxation at small
deformation in a natural (polyisoprene) rubber well above its glass transition
temperature Tg. We find that an almost complete relaxation of stress takes
place over very long periods of time, even though the elastic network integrity
is fully retained. The relaxation rate and the long-time equilibrium modulus
are sensitive functions of temperature which do not follow time-temperature
superposition. Many characteristic features of non-ergodic ageing response are
apparent at both short and very long times. We interpret the observed behaviour
in terms of the properties of rubber crosslinks, capable of isomerisation under
stress, and relate the results to recent models of soft glassy rheology.Comment: Latex 2e (EPJ style), 5 EPS figure
Hyperopic Cops and Robbers
We introduce a new variant of the game of Cops and Robbers played on graphs,
where the robber is invisible unless outside the neighbor set of a cop. The
hyperopic cop number is the corresponding analogue of the cop number, and we
investigate bounds and other properties of this parameter. We characterize the
cop-win graphs for this variant, along with graphs with the largest possible
hyperopic cop number. We analyze the cases of graphs with diameter 2 or at
least 3, focusing on when the hyperopic cop number is at most one greater than
the cop number. We show that for planar graphs, as with the usual cop number,
the hyperopic cop number is at most 3. The hyperopic cop number is considered
for countable graphs, and it is shown that for connected chains of graphs, the
hyperopic cop density can be any real number in $[0,1/2].
Swath Mapping on the Continental Shelf and Slope: The Eel River Basin, Northern California
First Paragraph
The STRATAFORM program sponsored by the Office of Naval Research (Nittrouer and Kravitz, 1996, this issue) seeks to understand how sedimentary processes lead to the formation of the stratigraphic sequences on continental margins. A central challenge facing this effort is to understand the transport of sediments in shore-parallel as well as shore-perpendicular directions• Multidimensionality is necessary to describe, for example, the accumulation of sediments from river inputs, the distribution of gullies and canyons on the slope, the meandering of channels, and the structure of slumps and slides
The spectral index image of the radio halo in the cluster Abell 520 hosting a famous bow shock
Synchrotron radio emission is being detected from an increasing number of
galaxy clusters. Spectral index images are a powerful tool to investigate the
origin, nature, and connection of these sources with the dynamical state of the
cluster. The aim of this work is to investigate the spectral index distribution
of the radio halo in the galaxy cluster A520, a complex system from an optical,
radio, and X-ray point of view. We present deep Very Large Array observations
in total intensity at 325 and 1400 MHz. We produced and analyzed spectral index
images of the radio halo in this frequency range at a resolution of 39" and 60"
and looked for possible correlations with the thermal properties of the
cluster. We find an integrated radio halo spectral index alpha(325-1400) ~
1.12. No strong radial steepening is present and the spectral index
distribution is intrinsically complex with fluctuations only partially due to
measurement errors. The radio halo integrated spectral index and the cluster
temperature follow the global trend observed in other galaxy clusters although
a strong point-to-point correlation between the spectral index and the thermal
gas temperature has not been observed. The complex morphology in the spectral
index image of the radio halo in A520 is in agreement with the primary models
for radio halo formation. The flatness of the radial profile suggests that the
merger is still ongoing and is uniformly and continuously (re-) accelerating
the population of relativistic electrons responsible of the radio emission even
at large (~ 1 Mpc) distances from the cluster center.Comment: 12 pages, 10 figures, A&A accepte
Rich Counter-Examples for Temporal-Epistemic Logic Model Checking
Model checking verifies that a model of a system satisfies a given property,
and otherwise produces a counter-example explaining the violation. The verified
properties are formally expressed in temporal logics. Some temporal logics,
such as CTL, are branching: they allow to express facts about the whole
computation tree of the model, rather than on each single linear computation.
This branching aspect is even more critical when dealing with multi-modal
logics, i.e. logics expressing facts about systems with several transition
relations. A prominent example is CTLK, a logic that reasons about temporal and
epistemic properties of multi-agent systems. In general, model checkers produce
linear counter-examples for failed properties, composed of a single computation
path of the model. But some branching properties are only poorly and partially
explained by a linear counter-example.
This paper proposes richer counter-example structures called tree-like
annotated counter-examples (TLACEs), for properties in Action-Restricted CTL
(ARCTL), an extension of CTL quantifying paths restricted in terms of actions
labeling transitions of the model. These counter-examples have a branching
structure that supports more complete description of property violations.
Elements of these counter-examples are annotated with parts of the property to
give a better understanding of their structure. Visualization and browsing of
these richer counter-examples become a critical issue, as the number of
branches and states can grow exponentially for deeply-nested properties.
This paper formally defines the structure of TLACEs, characterizes adequate
counter-examples w.r.t. models and failed properties, and gives a generation
algorithm for ARCTL properties. It also illustrates the approach with examples
in CTLK, using a reduction of CTLK to ARCTL. The proposed approach has been
implemented, first by extending the NuSMV model checker to generate and export
branching counter-examples, secondly by providing an interactive graphical
interface to visualize and browse them.Comment: In Proceedings IWIGP 2012, arXiv:1202.422
The Dynamical State fo the Starless Dense Core FeSt 1-457: A Pulsating Globule?
High resolution molecular line observations of CS, HCO+, C18O and N2H+ were
obtained toward the starless globule FeSt 1-457 in order to investigate its
kinematics and chemistry. The HCO+ and CS spectra show clear self-reversed and
asymmetric profiles across the face of the globule. The sense of the observed
asymmetry is indicative of the global presence of expansion motions in the
outer layers of the globule. These motions appear to be subsonic and
significantly below the escape velocity of the globule. Comparison of our
observations with near-infrared extinction data indicate that the globule is
gravitationally bound. Taken together these considerations lead us to suggest
that the observed expansion has its origin in an oscillatory motion of the
outer layers of the globule which itself is likely in a quasi-stable state near
hydrostatic equilibrium. Analysis of the observed linewidths of CO and N2H+
confirm that thermal pressure is the dominant component of the cloud's internal
support. A simple calculation suggests that the dominant mode of pulsation
would be an l = 2 mode with a period of 0.3 Myr. Deformation of the globule due
to the large amplitude l = 2 oscillation may be responsible for the
double-peaked structure of the core detected in high resolution extinction
maps. Detailed comparison of the molecular-line observations and extinction
data provides evidence for significant depletion of C18O and perhaps HCO+ while
N2H+ may be undepleted to a cloud depth of about 40 magnitudes of visual
extinction.Comment: to appear in ApJ vol 665 20 August 2007
Entangling flux qubits with a bipolar dynamic inductance
We propose a scheme to implement variable coupling between two flux qubits
using the screening current response of a dc Superconducting QUantum
Interference Device (SQUID). The coupling strength is adjusted by the current
bias applied to the SQUID and can be varied continuously from positive to
negative values, allowing cancellation of the direct mutual inductance between
the qubits. We show that this variable coupling scheme permits efficient
realization of universal quantum logic. The same SQUID can be used to determine
the flux states of the qubits.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Octahedral tilting, monoclinic phase and the phase diagram of PZT
Anelastic and dielectric spectroscopy measurements on PZT close to the
morphotropic (MPB) and antiferroelectric boundaries provide new insight in some
controversial aspects of its phase diagram. No evidence is found of a border
separating monoclinic (M) from rhombohedral (R) phases, in agreement with
recent structural studies supporting a coexistence of the two phases over a
broad composition range x < 0.5, with the fraction of M increasing toward the
MPB. It is also discussed why the observed maximum of elastic compliance
appears to be due to a rotational instability of the polarisation and therefore
cannot be explained by extrinsic softening from finely twinned R phase alone,
but indicates the presence also of M phase, not necessarily homogeneous.
A new diffuse transition is found within the ferroelectric phase near x ~
0.1, at a temperature T_IT higher than the well established boundary T_T to the
phase with tilted octahedra. It is proposed that around T_IT the octahedra
start rotating in a disordered manner and finally become ordered below T_T. In
this interpretation, the onset temperature for octahedral tilting monotonically
increases up to the antiferroelectric transition of PbZrO3, and the depression
of T_T(x) below x = 0.18 would be a consequence of the partial relieve of the
mismatch between the cation radii with the initial stage of tilting below T_IT.Comment: submitted to J. Phys.: Condens. Matte
Edwards-Wilkinson surface over a spherical substrate: noise in the height fluctuations
We study the steady state fluctuations of an Edwards-Wilkinson type surface
with the substrate taken to be a sphere. We show that the height fluctuations
on circles at a given latitude has the effective action of a perfect Gaussian
noise, just as in the case of fixed radius circles on an infinite planar
substrate. The effective surface tension, which is the overall coefficient of
the action, does not depend on the latitude angle of the circles.Comment: 6 page
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