57,789 research outputs found
Adaptive high-order finite element solution of transient elastohydrodynamic lubrication problems
This article presents a new numerical method to solve transient line contact elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL) problems. A high-order discontinuous Galerkin (DG) finite element method is used for the spatial discretization, and the standard Crank-Nicolson method is employed to approximate the time derivative. An h-adaptivity method is used for grid adaptation with the time-stepping, and the penalty method is employed to handle the cavitation condition.
The roughness model employed here is a simple indentation, which is located on the upper surface. Numerical results are presented comparing the DG method to standard finite difference (FD) techniques. It is shown that micro-EHL features are captured with far fewer degrees of freedom than when using low-order FD methods
Correlation length by measuring empty space in simulated aggregates
We examine the geometry of the spaces between particles in diffusion-limited
cluster aggregation, a numerical model of aggregating suspensions. Computing
the distribution of distances from each point to the nearest particle, we show
that it has a scaled form independent of the concentration phi, for both two-
(2D) and three-dimensional (3D) model gels at low phi. The mean remoteness is
proportional to the density-density correlation length of the gel, xi, allowing
a more precise measurement of xi than by other methods. A simple analytical
form for the scaled remoteness distribution is developed, highlighting the
geometrical information content of the data. We show that the second moment of
the distribution gives a useful estimate of the permeability of porous media.Comment: 4 page
Localized excited charge carriers generate ultrafast inhomogeneous strain in the multiferroic BiFeO
We apply ultrafast X-ray diffraction with femtosecond temporal resolution to
monitor the lattice dynamics in a thin film of multiferroic BiFeO after
above-bandgap photoexcitation. The sound-velocity limited evolution of the
observed lattice strains indicates a quasi-instantaneous photoinduced stress
which decays on a nanosecond time scale. This stress exhibits an inhomogeneous
spatial profile evidenced by the broadening of the Bragg peak. These new data
require substantial modification of existing models of photogenerated stresses
in BiFeO: the relevant excited charge carriers must remain localized to be
consistent with the data
Searching for Machos (and other Dark Matter Candidates) in a Simulated Galaxy
We conduct gravitational microlensing experiments in a galaxy taken from a
cosmological N-body simulation. Hypothetical observers measure the optical
depth and event rate toward hypothetical LMCs and compare their results with
model predictions. Since we control the accuracy and sophistication of the
model, we can determine how good it has to be for statistical errors to
dominate over systematic ones. Several thousand independent microlensing
experiments are performed. When the ``best-fit'' triaxial model for the mass
distribution of the halo is used, the agreement between the measured and
predicted optical depths is quite good: by and large the discrepancies are
consistent with statistical fluctuations. If, on the other hand, a spherical
model is used, systematic errors dominate. Even with our ``best-fit'' model,
there are a few rare experiments where the deviation between the measured and
predicted optical depths cannot be understood in terms of statistical
fluctuations. In these experiments there is typically a clump of particles
crossing the line of sight to the hypothetical LMC. These clumps can be either
gravitationally bound systems or transient phenomena in a galaxy that is still
undergoing phase mixing. Substructure of this type, if present in the Galactic
distribution of Machos, can lead to large systematic errors in the analysis of
microlensing experiments. We also describe how hypothetical WIMP and axion
detection experiments might be conducted in a simulated N-body galaxy.Comment: 18 pages of text (LaTeX, AASTeX) with 12 figures. submitted to the
Astrophysical Journa
In vivo nuclear magnetic resonance imaging
A number of physiological changes have been demonstrated in bone, muscle and blood after exposure of humans and animals to microgravity. Determining mechanisms and the development of effective countermeasures for long duration space missions is an important NASA goal. The advent of tomographic nuclear magnetic resonance imaging (NMR or MRI) gives NASA a way to greatly extend early studies of this phenomena in ways not previously possible; NMR is also noninvasive and safe. NMR provides both superb anatomical images for volume assessments of individual organs and quantification of chemical/physical changes induced in the examined tissues. The feasibility of NMR as a tool for human physiological research as it is affected by microgravity is demonstrated. The animal studies employed the rear limb suspended rat as a model of mucle atrophy that results from microgravity. And bedrest of normal male subjects was used to simulate the effects of microgravity on bone and muscle
Discontinuous Phase Transition in an Exactly Solvable One-Dimensional Creation-Annihilation System
An exactly solvable reaction-diffusion model consisting of first-class
particles in the presence of a single second-class particle is introduced on a
one-dimensional lattice with periodic boundary condition. The number of
first-class particles can be changed due to creation and annihilation
reactions. It is shown that the system undergoes a discontinuous phase
transition in contrast to the case where the density of the second-class
particles is finite and the phase transition is continuous.Comment: Revised, 8 pages, 1 EPS figure. Accepted for publication in Journal
of Statistical Mechanics: theory and experimen
Lyapunov instability for a periodic Lorentz gas thermostated by deterministic scattering
In recent work a deterministic and time-reversible boundary thermostat called
thermostating by deterministic scattering has been introduced for the periodic
Lorentz gas [Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf 84}, 4268 (2000)]. Here we assess the
nonlinear properties of this new dynamical system by numerically calculating
its Lyapunov exponents. Based on a revised method for computing Lyapunov
exponents, which employs periodic orthonormalization with a constraint, we
present results for the Lyapunov exponents and related quantities in
equilibrium and nonequilibrium. Finally, we check whether we obtain the same
relations between quantities characterizing the microscopic chaotic dynamics
and quantities characterizing macroscopic transport as obtained for
conventional deterministic and time-reversible bulk thermostats.Comment: 18 pages (revtex), 7 figures (postscript
Searching for visual companions of close Cepheids. VLT/NACO lucky imaging of Y~Oph, FF~Aql, X~Sgr, W~Sgr and ~Aql
Aims: High-resolution imaging in several photometric bands can provide color
and astrometric information of the wide-orbit component of Cepheid stars. Such
measurements are needed to understand the age and evolution of pulsating stars.
In addition, binary Cepheids have the potential to provide direct and
model-independent distances and masses. Methods: We used the NAOS-CONICA
adaptive optics instrument (NACO) in the near-infrared to perform a deep search
for wide components around the classical Cepheids, Y~Oph, FF~Aql, X~Sgr, W~Sgr,
and ~Aql, within a field of view (FoV) of ( for ~Aql). Results: We were able to reach contrast -8\,mag and -7\,mag in the radius range ,
which enabled us to constrain the presence of wide companions. For Y~Oph,
FF~Aql, X~Sgr, W~Sgr, and ~Aql at , we ruled out the presence
of companions with a spectral type that is earlier than a B7V, A9V, A9V, A1V,
and G5V star, respectively. For , no companions earlier than
O9V, B3V, B4V, B2V, and B2V star, respectively, are detected. A component is
detected close to ~Aql at projected separation \,mas and a position angle . We estimated its
dereddened apparent magnitude to be and derived a
spectral type that ranges between an F1V and F6V star. Additional photometric
and astrometric measurements are necessary to better constrain this star and
check its physical association to the ~Aql system.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysic
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