540 research outputs found
Structure and magnetism of self-organized Ge(1-x)Mn(x) nano-columns
We report on the structural and magnetic properties of thin Ge(1-x)Mn(x)films
grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) on Ge(001) substrates at temperatures
(Tg) ranging from 80deg C to 200deg C, with average Mn contents between 1 % and
11 %. Their crystalline structure, morphology and composition have been
investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), electron energy loss
spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction. In the whole range of growth temperatures
and Mn concentrations, we observed the formation of manganese rich
nanostructures embedded in a nearly pure germanium matrix. Growth temperature
mostly determines the structural properties of Mn-rich nanostructures. For low
growth temperatures (below 120deg C), we evidenced a two-dimensional spinodal
decomposition resulting in the formation of vertical one-dimensional
nanostructures (nanocolumns). Moreover we show in this paper the influence of
growth parameters (Tg and Mn content) on this decomposition i.e. on nanocolumns
size and density. For temperatures higher than 180deg C, we observed the
formation of Ge3Mn5 clusters. For intermediate growth temperatures nanocolumns
and nanoclusters coexist. Combining high resolution TEM and superconducting
quantum interference device magnetometry, we could evidence at least four
different magnetic phases in Ge(1-x)Mn(x) films: (i) paramagnetic diluted Mn
atoms in the germanium matrix, (ii) superparamagnetic and ferromagnetic low-Tc
nanocolumns (120 K 400 K) and
(iv) Ge3Mn5 clusters.Comment: 10 pages 2 colonnes revTex formatte
Strain and correlation of self-organized Ge_(1-x)Mn_x nanocolumns embedded in Ge (001)
We report on the structural properties of Ge_(1-x)Mn_x layers grown by
molecular beam epitaxy. In these layers, nanocolumns with a high Mn content are
embedded in an almost-pure Ge matrix. We have used grazing-incidence X-ray
scattering, atomic force and transmission electron microscopy to study the
structural properties of the columns. We demonstrate how the elastic
deformation of the matrix (as calculated using atomistic simulations) around
the columns, as well as the average inter-column distance can account for the
shape of the diffusion around Bragg peaks.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figure
About the Algebraic Solutions of Smallest Enclosing Cylinders Problems
Given n points in Euclidean space E^d, we propose an algebraic algorithm to
compute the best fitting (d-1)-cylinder. This algorithm computes the unknown
direction of the axis of the cylinder. The location of the axis and the radius
of the cylinder are deduced analytically from this direction. Special attention
is paid to the case d=3 when n=4 and n=5. For the former, the minimal radius
enclosing cylinder is computed algebrically from constrained minimization of a
quartic form of the unknown direction of the axis. For the latter, an
analytical condition of existence of the circumscribed cylinder is given, and
the algorithm reduces to find the zeroes of an one unknown polynomial of degree
at most 6. In both cases, the other parameters of the cylinder are deduced
analytically. The minimal radius enclosing cylinder is computed analytically
for the regular tetrahedron and for a trigonal bipyramids family with a
symmetry axis of order 3.Comment: 13 pages, 0 figure; revised version submitted to publication
(previous version is a copy of the original one of 2010
Exchange bias in GeMn nanocolumns: the role of surface oxidation
We report on the exchange biasing of self-assembled ferromagnetic GeMn
nanocolumns by GeMn-oxide caps. The x-ray absorption spectroscopy analysis of
this surface oxide shows a multiplet fine structure that is typical of the Mn2+
valence state in MnO. A magnetization hysteresis shift |HE|~100 Oe and a
coercivity enhancement of about 70 Oe have been obtained upon cooling (300-5 K)
in a magnetic field as low as 0.25 T. This exchange bias is attributed to the
interface coupling between the ferromagnetic nanocolumns and the
antiferromagnetic MnO-like caps. The effect enhancement is achieved by
depositing a MnO layer on the GeMn nanocolumns.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure
Experimental probing of exchange interactions between localized spins in the dilute magnetic insulator (Ga,Mn)N
The sign, magnitude, and range of the exchange couplings between pairs of Mn
ions is determined for (Ga,Mn)N and (Ga,Mn)N:Si with x < 3%. The samples have
been grown by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy and characterized by
secondary-ion mass spectroscopy; high-resolution transmission electron
microscopy with capabilities allowing for chemical analysis, including the
annular dark-field mode and electron energy loss spectroscopy; high-resolution
and synchrotron x-ray diffraction; synchrotron extended x-ray absorption
fine-structure; synchrotron x-ray absorption near-edge structure; infra-red
optics and electron spin resonance. The results of high resolution magnetic
measurements and their quantitative interpretation have allowed to verify a
series of ab initio predictions on the possibility of ferromagnetism in dilute
magnetic insulators and to demonstrate that the interaction changes from
ferromagnetic to antiferromagnetic when the charge state of the Mn ions is
reduced from 3+ to 2+.Comment: 12 pages, 14 figures; This version contains the detailed
characterization of the crystal structure as well as of the Mn distribution
and charge stat
Reinventing residual reserves in the sea: Are we favouring ease of establishment over need for protection?
© 2014 The Authors. As systems of marine protected areas (MPAs) expand globally, there is a risk that new MPAs will be biased toward places that are remote or unpromising for extractive activities, and hence follow the trend of terrestrial protected areas in being 'residual' to commercial uses. Such locations typically provide little protection to the species and ecosystems that are most exposed to threatening processes. There are strong political motivations to establish residual reserves that minimize costs and conflicts with users of natural resources. These motivations will likely remain in place as long as success continues to be measured in terms of area (km2) protected. The global pattern of MPAs was reviewed and appears to be residual, supported by a rapid growth of large, remote MPAs. The extent to which MPAs in Australia are residual nationally and also regionally within the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) Marine Park was also examined. Nationally, the recently announced Australian Commonwealth marine reserves were found to be strongly residual, making almost no difference to 'business as usual' for most ocean uses. Underlying this result was the imperative to minimize costs, but without the spatial constraints of explicit quantitative objectives for representing bioregions or the range of ecological features in highly protected zones. In contrast, the 2004 rezoning of the GBR was exemplary, and the potential for residual protection was limited by applying a systematic set of planning principles, such as representing a minimum percentage of finely subdivided bioregions. Nonetheless, even at this scale, protection was uneven between bioregions. Within-bioregion heterogeneity might have led to no-take zones being established in areas unsuitable for trawling with a risk that species assemblages differ between areas protected and areas left available for trawling. A simple four-step framework of questions for planners and policy makers is proposed to help reverse the emerging residual tendency of MPAs and maximize their effectiveness for conservation. This involves checks on the least-cost approach to establishing MPAs in order to avoid perverse outcomes
Load-Balancing for Parallel Delaunay Triangulations
Computing the Delaunay triangulation (DT) of a given point set in
is one of the fundamental operations in computational geometry.
Recently, Funke and Sanders (2017) presented a divide-and-conquer DT algorithm
that merges two partial triangulations by re-triangulating a small subset of
their vertices - the border vertices - and combining the three triangulations
efficiently via parallel hash table lookups. The input point division should
therefore yield roughly equal-sized partitions for good load-balancing and also
result in a small number of border vertices for fast merging. In this paper, we
present a novel divide-step based on partitioning the triangulation of a small
sample of the input points. In experiments on synthetic and real-world data
sets, we achieve nearly perfectly balanced partitions and small border
triangulations. This almost cuts running time in half compared to
non-data-sensitive division schemes on inputs exhibiting an exploitable
underlying structure.Comment: Short version submitted to EuroPar 201
Pipelined Algorithms to Detect Cheating in Long-Term Grid Computations
This paper studies pipelined algorithms for protecting distributed grid
computations from cheating participants, who wish to be rewarded for tasks they
receive but don't perform. We present improved cheater detection algorithms
that utilize natural delays that exist in long-term grid computations. In
particular, we partition the sequence of grid tasks into two interleaved
sequences of task rounds, and we show how to use those rounds to devise the
first general-purpose scheme that can catch all cheaters, even when cheaters
collude. The main idea of this algorithm might at first seem
counter-intuitive--we have the participants check each other's work. A naive
implementation of this approach would, of course, be susceptible to collusion
attacks, but we show that by, adapting efficient solutions to the parallel
processor diagnosis problem, we can tolerate collusions of lazy cheaters, even
if the number of such cheaters is a fraction of the total number of
participants. We also include a simple economic analysis of cheaters in grid
computations and a parameterization of the main deterrent that can be used
against them--the probability of being caught.Comment: Expanded version with an additional figure; ISSN 0304-397
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