500 research outputs found
Hybrid materials based on polyethylene and MCM-41 microparticles functionalized with silanes: catalytic aspects of in situ polymerization, crystalline features and mechanical properties
New nanocomposites based on polyethylene have been prepared by in situ polymerization of ethylene in
presence of mesoporous MCM-41. The polymerization reactions were performed using a zirconocene
catalyst either under homogenous conditions or supported onto mesoporous MCM-41 particles, which
are synthesized and decorated post-synthesis with two silanes before polymerization in order to promote
an enhanced interfacial adhesion. The existence of polyethylene chains able to crystallize within
the mesoporous channels in the resulting nanocomposites is figured out from the small endothermic
process, located at around 80 C, on heating calorimetric experiments, in addition to the main melting
endotherm. These results indicate that polyethylene macrochains can grow up during polymerization
either outside or inside the MCM-41 channels, these keeping their regular hexagonal arrangements.
Mechanical response is observed to be dependent on the content in mesoporous MCM-41 and on the
crystalline features of polyethylene. Accordingly, stiffness increases and deformability decreases in the
nanocomposites as much as MCM-41 content is enlarged and polyethylene amount within channels is
raised. Ultimate mechanical performance improves with MCM-41 incorporation without varying the
final processing temperature
Assembly and characterisation of a unique onion diversity set identifies resistance to Fusarium basal rot and improved seedling vigour
Conserving biodiversity is critical for safeguarding future crop production. Onion (Allium cepa L.) is a globally important crop with a very large (16 Gb per 1C) genome which has not been sequenced. While onions are self-fertile, they suffer from severe inbreeding depression and as such are highly heterozygous as a result of out-crossing. Bulb formation is driven by daylength, and accessions are adapted to the local photoperiod. Onion seed is often directly sown in the field, and hence seedling establishment is a critical trait for production. Furthermore, onion yield losses regularly occur worldwide due to Fusarium basal rot caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cepae. A globally relevant onion diversity set, consisting of 10 half-sib families for each of 95 accessions, was assembled and genotyping carried out using 892 SNP markers. A moderate level of heterozygosity (30–35%) was observed, reflecting the outbreeding nature of the crop. Using inferred phylogenies, population structure and principal component analyses, most accessions grouped according to local daylength. A high level of intra-accession diversity was observed, but this was less than inter-accession diversity. Accessions with strong basal rot resistance and increased seedling vigour were identified along with associated markers, confirming the utility of the diversity set for discovering beneficial traits. The onion diversity set and associated trait data therefore provide a valuable resource for future germplasm selection and onion breeding
Three-Charge Supertubes in a Rotating Black Hole Background
The low velocity scattering of a D0-F1 supertube in the background of a BMPV
black hole has been investigated in the moduli space approximation by Marolf
and Virmani. Here we extend the analysis to the case of the D0-D4-F1 supertube
of Bena and Kraus. We find that, similarly to the two-charge case, there is a
critical value of the supertube circumferential angular momentum; above this
value an adiabatic merger with the black hole cannot occur. By reconsidering
the calculation of supertube angular momentum in the transverse direction,
correspondence between the worldvolume and supergravity descriptions is
established. We also examine dynamical mergers and discuss their implications.Comment: 38 pages, 9 figures. New discussion of moduli space approximation vs.
exact DBI action, references adde
Random Convex Hulls and Extreme Value Statistics
In this paper we study the statistical properties of convex hulls of
random points in a plane chosen according to a given distribution. The points
may be chosen independently or they may be correlated. After a non-exhaustive
survey of the somewhat sporadic literature and diverse methods used in the
random convex hull problem, we present a unifying approach, based on the notion
of support function of a closed curve and the associated Cauchy's formulae,
that allows us to compute exactly the mean perimeter and the mean area enclosed
by the convex polygon both in case of independent as well as correlated points.
Our method demonstrates a beautiful link between the random convex hull problem
and the subject of extreme value statistics. As an example of correlated
points, we study here in detail the case when the points represent the vertices
of independent random walks. In the continuum time limit this reduces to
independent planar Brownian trajectories for which we compute exactly, for
all , the mean perimeter and the mean area of their global convex hull. Our
results have relevant applications in ecology in estimating the home range of a
herd of animals. Some of these results were announced recently in a short
communication [Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf 103}, 140602 (2009)].Comment: 61 pages (pedagogical review); invited contribution to the special
issue of J. Stat. Phys. celebrating the 50 years of Yeshiba/Rutgers meeting
Measurement of and charged current inclusive cross sections and their ratio with the T2K off-axis near detector
We report a measurement of cross section and the first measurements of the cross section
and their ratio
at (anti-)neutrino energies below 1.5
GeV. We determine the single momentum bin cross section measurements, averaged
over the T2K -flux, for the detector target material (mainly
Carbon, Oxygen, Hydrogen and Copper) with phase space restricted laboratory
frame kinematics of 500 MeV/c. The
results are and $\sigma(\nu)=\left( 2.41\
\pm0.022{\rm{(stat.)}}\pm0.231{\rm (syst.)}\ \right)\times10^{-39}^{2}R\left(\frac{\sigma(\bar{\nu})}{\sigma(\nu)}\right)=
0.373\pm0.012{\rm (stat.)}\pm0.015{\rm (syst.)}$.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figure
Demonstration of the temporal matter-wave Talbot effect for trapped matter waves
We demonstrate the temporal Talbot effect for trapped matter waves using
ultracold atoms in an optical lattice. We investigate the phase evolution of an
array of essentially non-interacting matter waves and observe matter-wave
collapse and revival in the form of a Talbot interference pattern. By using
long expansion times, we image momentum space with sub-recoil resolution,
allowing us to observe fractional Talbot fringes up to 10th order.Comment: 17 pages, 7 figure
Single Spin Asymmetry in Polarized Proton-Proton Elastic Scattering at GeV
We report a high precision measurement of the transverse single spin
asymmetry at the center of mass energy GeV in elastic
proton-proton scattering by the STAR experiment at RHIC. The was measured
in the four-momentum transfer squared range \GeVcSq, the region of a significant interference between the
electromagnetic and hadronic scattering amplitudes. The measured values of
and its -dependence are consistent with a vanishing hadronic spin-flip
amplitude, thus providing strong constraints on the ratio of the single
spin-flip to the non-flip amplitudes. Since the hadronic amplitude is dominated
by the Pomeron amplitude at this , we conclude that this measurement
addresses the question about the presence of a hadronic spin flip due to the
Pomeron exchange in polarized proton-proton elastic scattering.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figure
Longitudinal double-spin asymmetry and cross section for inclusive neutral pion production at midrapidity in polarized proton collisions at sqrt(s) = 200 GeV
We report a measurement of the longitudinal double-spin asymmetry A_LL and
the differential cross section for inclusive Pi0 production at midrapidity in
polarized proton collisions at sqrt(s) = 200 GeV. The cross section was
measured over a transverse momentum range of 1 < p_T < 17 GeV/c and found to be
in good agreement with a next-to-leading order perturbative QCD calculation.
The longitudinal double-spin asymmetry was measured in the range of 3.7 < p_T <
11 GeV/c and excludes a maximal positive gluon polarization in the proton. The
mean transverse momentum fraction of Pi0's in their parent jets was found to be
around 0.7 for electromagnetically triggered events.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. D (RC
Kaon Production and Kaon to Pion Ratio in Au+Au Collisions at \snn=130 GeV
Mid-rapidity transverse mass spectra and multiplicity densities of charged
and neutral kaons are reported for Au+Au collisions at \snn=130 GeV at RHIC.
The spectra are exponential in transverse mass, with an inverse slope of about
280 MeV in central collisions. The multiplicity densities for these particles
scale with the negative hadron pseudo-rapidity density. The charged kaon to
pion ratios are and
for the most central collisions. The ratio is lower than the same
ratio observed at the SPS while the is higher than the SPS result.
Both ratios are enhanced by about 50% relative to p+p and +p
collision data at similar energies.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, 1 tabl
Azimuthal anisotropy and correlations in p+p, d+Au and Au+Au collisions at 200 GeV
We present the first measurement of directed flow () at RHIC. is
found to be consistent with zero at pseudorapidities from -1.2 to 1.2,
then rises to the level of a couple of percent over the range . The latter observation is similar to data from NA49 if the SPS rapidities
are shifted by the difference in beam rapidity between RHIC and SPS.
Back-to-back jets emitted out-of-plane are found to be suppressed more if
compared to those emitted in-plane, which is consistent with {\it jet
quenching}. Using the scalar product method, we systematically compared
azimuthal correlations from p+p, d+Au and Au+Au collisions. Flow and non-flow
from these three different collision systems are discussed.Comment: Quark Matter 2004 proceeding, 4 pages, 3 figure
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