Structure of liquid and glassy methanol confined in cylindrical pores

We present a neutron scattering analysis of the density and the static structure factor of confined methanol at various temperatures. Confinement is performed in the cylindrical pores of MCM-41 silicates with pore diameters D=24 angstrom and D=35 angstrom. A change of the thermal expansivity of confined methanol at low temperature is the signature of a glass transition, which occurs at higher temperature for the smallest pore. This is an evidence of a surface induced slowing down of the dynamics of the fluid. The structure factor presents a systematic evolution with the pore diameter, which has been analyzed in terms of excluded volume effects and fluid-matrix cross-correlation. Conversely to the case of Van der Waals fluids, it shows that stronger fluid-matrix correlations must be invoked most probably in relation with the H-bonding character of both methanol and silicate surface.Comment: version March 12 200

New complexity results for parallel identical machine scheduling problems with preemption, release dates and regular criteria

In this paper, we are interested in parallel identical machine scheduling problems with preemption and release dates in case of a regular criterion to be minimized. We show that solutions having a permutation flow shop structure are dominant if there exists an optimal solution with completion times scheduled in the same order as the release dates, or if there is no release date. We also prove that, for a subclass of these problems, the completion times of all jobs can be ordered in an optimal solution. Using these two results, we provide new results on polynomially solvable problems and hence refine the boundary between P and NP for these problems

Dynamics of 8CB confined into porous silicon probed by incoherent neutron backscattering experiments

Confinement in the nanochannels of porous silicon strongly affects the phase behavior of the archetype liquid-crystal 4-n-octyl-4-cyanobiphenyl (8CB). A very striking phenom- enon is the development of a short-range smectic order, which occurs on a very broad temperature range. It suggests in this case that quenched disorder effects add to usual finite size and surface interaction effects. We have monitored the temperature variation of the molecular dynamics of the confined fluid by incoherent quasielastic neutron scat- tering. A strongly reduced mobility is observed at the highest temperatures in the liquid phase, which suggests that the interfacial molecular dynamics is strongly hindered. A continuously increasing slowdown appears on cooling together with a progressive growth of the static correlation lengt

Methyl group dynamics in a confined glass

We present a neutron scattering investigation on methyl group dynamics in glassy toluene confined in mesoporous silicates of different pore sizes. The experimental results have been analysed in terms of a barrier distribution model, such a distribution following from the structural disorder in the glassy state. Confinement results in a strong decreasing of the average rotational barrier in comparison to the bulk state. We have roughly separated the distribution for the confined state in a bulk-like and a surface-like contribution, corresponding to rotors at a distance from the pore wall respectively larger and smaller than the spatial range of the interactions which contribute to the rotational potential for the methyl groups. We have estimated a distance of 7 Amstrong as a lower limit of the interaction range, beyond the typical nearest-neighbour distance between centers-of-mass (4.7 Amstrong).Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures. To be published in European Physical Journal E Direct. Proceedings of the 2nd International Workshop on Dynamics in Confinemen

Rich polymorphism of a rod-like liquid crystal (8CB) confined in two types of unidirectional nanopores

We present a neutron and X-rays scattering study of the phase transitions of 4-n-octyl-4'-cyanobiphenyl (8CB) confined in unidirectional nanopores of porous alumina and porous silicon (PSi) membranes with an average diameter of 30 nm. Spatial confinement reveals a rich polymorphism, with at least four different low temperature phases in addition to the smectic A phase. The structural study as a function of thermal treatments and conditions of spatial confinement allows us to get insights into the formation of these phases and their relative stability. It gives the first description of the complete phase behavior of 8CB confined in PSi and provides a direct comparison with results obtained in bulk conditions and in similar geometric conditions of confinement but with reduced quenched disorder effects using alumina anopore membranesComment: Accepted in EPJ E - Soft Matte

First evidence of anisotropic quenched disorder effects on a smectic liquid crystal confined in porous silicon

We present a neutron scattering analysis of the structure of the smectic liquid crystal octylcyanobiphenyl (8CB) confined in one-dimensional nanopores of porous silicon films (PS). The smectic transition is completely suppressed, leading to the extension of a short-range ordered smectic phase aligned along the pore axis. It evolves reversibly over an extended temperature range, down to 50 K below the \textit{N-SmA} transition in pure 8CB. This behavior strongly differs from previous observations of smectics in different one-dimensional porous materials. A coherent picture of this striking behavior requires that quenched disorder effects are invoked. The strongly disordered nature of the inner surface of PS acts as random fields coupling to the smectic order. The one-dimensionality of PS nano-channels offers new perspectives on quenched disorder effects, which observation has been restricted to homogeneous random porous materials so far.Comment: Submitted to Phys. Rev.

Recovering Beam Search Approach for the Multi-Skill Project Scheduling Problem

International audienc

Evolution of the magnetic phase transition in MnO confined to channel type matrices. Neutron diffraction study

Neutron diffraction studies of antiferromagnetic MnO confined to MCM-41 type matrices with channel diameters 24-87 A demonstrate a continuous magnetic phase transition in contrast to a discontinuous first order transition in the bulk. The character of the magnetic transition transforms with decreasing channel diameter, showing the decreasing critical exponent and transition temperature, however the latter turns out to be above the N\'eel temperature for the bulk. This enhancement is explained within the framework of Landau theory taking into consideration the ternary interaction of the magnetic and associated structural order parameters.Comment: 6 pages pdf file, including 4 figures, uses revtex4.cl