44,130 research outputs found
Photoelectron spectrometer with means for stabilizing sample surface potential
An improved X-ray photoelectron spectrometer is disclosed, which includes circuit means to determine the surface potential of a sample, e.g., an insulator. The circuit means comprise an electron gun, whose potential is modulated at a preselected frequency above and below a selected potential with respect to the spectrometer common potential, e.g., ground. The beam of electrons is directed to the sample surface. The sample's surface potential is offset by an offset power supply with respect to the spectrometer common potential until the ac current which flows through the sample reaches a peak amplitude. A lock-in amplifier is included to measure the ac current in phase with the modulating frequency
Catalog of meteorites in the collections of Arizona State University, including the Nininger Meteorite Collection
Catalog of meteorites in Arizona State University collectio
The lens and source of the optical Einstein ring gravitational lens ER 0047-2808
(Abridged) We perform a detailed analysis of the optical gravitational lens
ER 0047-2808 imaged with WFPC2 on the Hubble Space Telescope. Using software
specifically designed for the analysis of resolved gravitational lens systems,
we focus on how the image alone can constrain the mass distribution in the lens
galaxy. We find the data are of sufficient quality to strongly constrain the
lens model with no a priori assumptions about the source. Using a variety of
mass models, we find statistically acceptable results for elliptical
isothermal-like models with an Einstein radius of 1.17''. An elliptical
power-law model (Sigma \propto R^-beta) for the surface mass density favours a
slope slightly steeper than isothermal with beta = 1.08 +/- 0.03. Other models
including a constant M/L, pure NFW halo and (surprisingly) an isothermal sphere
with external shear are ruled out by the data. We find the galaxy light profile
can only be fit with a Sersic plus point source model. The resulting total
M/L_B contained within the images is 4.7 h_65 +/-0.3. In addition, we find the
luminous matter is aligned with the total mass distribution within a few
degrees. The source, reconstructed by the software, is revealed to have two
bright regions, with an unresolved component inside the caustic and a resolved
component straddling a fold caustic. The angular size of the entire source is
approx. 0.1'' and its (unlensed) Lyman-alpha flux is 3 x 10^-17 erg/s/cm^2.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figures. Revised version accepted for publication in
MNRA
To what extent does severity of loneliness vary among different mental health diagnostic groups: A cross-sectional study.
Loneliness is a common and debilitating problem in individuals with mental health disorders. However, our knowledge on severity of loneliness in different mental health diagnostic groups and factors associated with loneliness is poor, thus limiting the ability to target and improve loneliness interventions. The current study investigated the association between diagnoses and loneliness and explored whether psychological and social factors were related to loneliness. This study employed a cross-sectional design using data from a completed study which developed a measure of social inclusion. It included 192 participants from secondary, specialist mental health services with a primary diagnosis of psychotic disorders (n = 106), common mental disorders (n = 49), or personality disorders (n = 37). The study explored differences in loneliness between these broad diagnostic groups, and the relationship to loneliness of: affective symptoms, social isolation, perceived discrimination, and internalized stigma. The study adhered to the STROBE checklist for observational research. People with common mental disorders (MD = 3.94, CI = 2.15 to 5.72, P < 0.001) and people with personality disorders (MD = 4.96, CI = 2.88 to 7.05, P < 0.001) reported higher levels of loneliness compared to people with psychosis. These differences remained significant after adjustment for all psychological and social variables. Perceived discrimination and internalized stigma were also independently associated with loneliness and substantially contributed to a final explanatory model. The severity of loneliness varies between different mental health diagnostic groups. Both people with common mental disorders and personality disorders reported higher levels of loneliness than people with psychosis. Addressing perceived mental health discrimination and stigma may help to reduce loneliness
The Kinetic Activation-Relaxation Technique: A Powerful Off-lattice On-the-fly Kinetic Monte Carlo Algorithm
Many materials science phenomena, such as growth and self-organisation, are
dominated by activated diffusion processes and occur on timescales that are
well beyond the reach of standard-molecular dynamics simulations. Kinetic Monte
Carlo (KMC) schemes make it possible to overcome this limitation and achieve
experimental timescales. However, most KMC approaches proceed by discretizing
the problem in space in order to identify, from the outset, a fixed set of
barriers that are used throughout the simulations, limiting the range of
problems that can be addressed. Here, we propose a more flexible approach --
the kinetic activation-relaxation technique (k-ART) -- which lifts these
constraints. Our method is based on an off-lattice, self-learning, on-the-fly
identification and evaluation of activation barriers using ART and a
topological description of events. The validity and power of the method are
demonstrated through the study of vacancy diffusion in crystalline silicon.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Coordinate Confusion in Conformal Cosmology
A straight-forward interpretation of standard
Friedmann-Lemaitre-Robertson-Walker (FLRW) cosmologies is that objects move
apart due to the expansion of space, and that sufficiently distant galaxies
must be receding at velocities exceeding the speed of light. Recently, however,
it has been suggested that a simple transformation into conformal coordinates
can remove superluminal recession velocities, and hence the concept of the
expansion of space should be abandoned. This work demonstrates that such
conformal transformations do not eliminate superluminal recession velocities
for open or flat matter-only FRLW cosmologies, and all possess superluminal
expansion. Hence, the attack on the concept of the expansion of space based on
this is poorly founded. This work concludes by emphasizing that the expansion
of space is perfectly valid in the general relativistic framework, however,
asking the question of whether space really expands is a futile exercise.Comment: 5 pages, accepted for publication in MNRAS Letter
Probing Sub-parsec Structure in the Lyman Alpha Forest with Gravitational Microlensing
We present the results of microlens ray-tracing simulations showing the
effect of absorbing material between a source quasar and a lensing galaxy in a
gravitational lens system. We find that, in addition to brightness fluctuations
due to microlensing, the strength of the absorption line relative to the
continuum varies with time, with the properties of the variations depending on
the structure of the absorbing material. We conclude that such variations will
be measurable via UV spectroscopy of image A of the gravitationally lensed
quasar Q2237+0305 if the Lyman Alpha clouds between the quasar and the lensing
galaxy possess structure on scales smaller than pc. The time scale
for the variations is on the order of order years to decades, although very
short term variability can occur. While the Lyman alpha lines may not be
accessible at all wavelengths, this approach is applicable to any absorption
system, including metal lines.Comment: 8 pages, 11 figures, to appear in MNRAS (note resolution of some
figures reduced due to size limitations
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