462 research outputs found
Cost-effective aperture arrays for SKA Phase 1: single or dual-band?
An important design decision for the first phase of the Square Kilometre
Array is whether the low frequency component (SKA1-low) should be implemented
as a single or dual-band aperture array; that is, using one or two antenna
element designs to observe the 70-450 MHz frequency band. This memo uses an
elementary parametric analysis to make a quantitative, first-order cost
comparison of representative implementations of a single and dual-band system,
chosen for comparable performance characteristics. A direct comparison of the
SKA1-low station costs reveals that those costs are similar, although the
uncertainties are high. The cost impact on the broader telescope system varies:
the deployment and site preparation costs are higher for the dual-band array,
but the digital signal processing costs are higher for the single-band array.
This parametric analysis also shows that a first stage of analogue tile
beamforming, as opposed to only station-level, all-digital beamforming, has the
potential to significantly reduce the cost of the SKA1-low stations. However,
tile beamforming can limit flexibility and performance, principally in terms of
reducing accessible field of view. We examine the cost impacts in the context
of scientific performance, for which the spacing and intra-station layout of
the antenna elements are important derived parameters. We discuss the
implications of the many possible intra-station signal transport and processing
architectures and consider areas where future work could improve the accuracy
of SKA1-low costing.Comment: 64 pages, 23 figures, submitted to the SKA Memo serie
Wild Bootstrap for Counting Process-Based Statistics
The wild bootstrap is a popular resampling method in the context of
time-to-event data analyses. Previous works established the large sample
properties of it for applications to different estimators and test statistics.
It can be used to justify the accuracy of inference procedures such as
hypothesis tests or time-simultaneous confidence bands. This paper consists of
two parts: in Part~I, a general framework is developed in which the large
sample properties are established in a unified way by using martingale
structures. The framework includes most of the well-known non- and
semiparametric statistical methods in time-to-event analysis and parametric
approaches. In Part II, the Fine-Gray proportional sub-hazards model
exemplifies the theory for inference on cumulative incidence functions given
the covariates. The model falls within the framework if the data are
censoring-complete. A simulation study demonstrates the reliability of the
method and an application to a data set about hospital-acquired infections
illustrates the statistical procedure.Comment: 2 parts, 115 pages, 2 figures, 13 table
Inference via Wild Bootstrap and Multiple Imputation under Fine-Gray Models with Incomplete Data
Fine-Gray models specify the subdistribution hazards for one out of multiple
competing risks to be proportional. The estimators of parameters and cumulative
incidence functions under Fine-Gray models have a simpler structure when data
are censoring-complete than when they are more generally incomplete. This paper
considers the case of incomplete data but it exploits the above-mentioned
simpler estimator structure for which there exists a wild bootstrap approach
for inferential purposes. The present idea is to link the methodology under
censoring-completeness with the more general right-censoring regime with the
help of multiple imputation. In a simulation study, this approach is compared
to the estimation procedure proposed in the original paper by Fine and Gray
when it is combined with a bootstrap approach. An application to a data set
about hospital-acquired infections illustrates the method.Comment: 32 pages, 2 figures, 1 tabl
Influence of functional rider and horse asymmetries on saddle force distribution during stance and in sitting trot
Asymmetric forces exerted on the horse's back during riding are assumed to have a negative effect on rider–horse interaction, athletic performance, and health of the horse. Visualized on a saddle pressure mat, they are initially blamed on a nonfitting saddle. The contribution of horse and rider to an asymmetric loading pattern, however, is not well understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of horse and rider asymmetries during stance and in sitting trot on the force distribution on the horse's back using a saddle pressure mat and motion capture analysis simultaneously. Data of 80 horse-rider pairs (HRP) were collected and analyzed using linear (mixed) models to determine the influence of rider and horse variables on asymmetric force distribution. Results showed high variation between HRP. Both rider and horse variables revealed significant relationships to asymmetric saddle force distribution (P < .001). During sitting trot, the collapse of the rider in one hip increased the force on the contralateral side, and the tilt of the rider's upper body to one side led to more force on the same side of the pressure mat. Analyzing different subsets of data revealed that rider posture as well as horse movements and conformation can cause an asymmetric force distribution. Because neither horse nor rider movement can be assessed independently during riding, the interpretation of an asymmetric force distribution on the saddle pressure mat remains challenging, and all contributing factors (horse, rider, saddle) need to be considered
Method For Making 2-Electron Response Reduced Density Matrices Approximately N-representable
In methods like geminal-based approaches or coupled cluster that are solved
using the projected Schr\"odinger equation, direct computation of the
2-electron reduced density matrix (2-RDM) is impractical and one falls back to
a 2-RDM based on response theory. However, the 2-RDMs from response theory are
not -representable. That is, the response 2-RDM does not correspond to an
actual physical -electron wave function. We present a new algorithm for
making these non--representable 2-RDMs approximately -representable, i.e.
it has the right symmetry and normalization and it fulfills the -, - and
-conditions. Next to an algorithm which can be applied to any 2-RDM, we have
also developed a 2-RDM optimization procedure specifically for seniority-zero
2-RDMs. We aim to find the 2-RDM with the right properties that is the closest
(in the sense of the Frobenius norm) to the non-N-representable 2-RDM by
minimizing the square norm of the difference between the initial 2-RDM and the
targeted 2-RDM under the constraint that the trace is normalized and the 2-RDM,
- and -matrices are positive semidefinite, i.e. their eigenvalues are
non-negative. Our method is suitable for fixing non-N-respresentable 2-RDMs
which are close to being N-representable. Through the N-representability
optimization algorithm we add a small correction to the initial 2-RDM such that
it fulfills the most important N-representability conditions.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figure
Observation of Target Electron Momentum Effects in Single-Arm M\o ller Polarimetry
In 1992, L.G. Levchuk noted that the asymmetries measured in M\o ller
scattering polarimeters could be significantly affected by the intrinsic
momenta of the target electrons. This effect is largest in devices with very
small acceptance or very high resolution in laboratory scattering angle. We use
a high resolution polarimeter in the linac of the polarized SLAC Linear
Collider to study this effect. We observe that the inclusion of the effect
alters the measured beam polarization by -14% of itself and produces a result
that is consistent with measurements from a Compton polarimeter. Additionally,
the inclusion of the effect is necessary to correctly simulate the observed
shape of the two-body elastic scattering peak.Comment: 29 pages, uuencoded gzip-compressed postscript (351 kb). Uncompressed
postscript file (898 kb) available to DECNET users as
SLC::USER_DISK_SLC1:[MORRIS]levpre.p
The LOFAR ling baseline snapshot calibrator survey
Aims:\ud
An efficient means of locating calibrator sources for international LOw Frequency ARray (LOFAR) is developed and used to determine the average density of usable calibrator sources on the sky for subarcsecond observations at 140 MHz.\ud
\ud
Methods\ud
We used the multi-beaming capability of LOFAR to conduct a fast and computationally inexpensive survey with the full international LOFAR array. Sources were preselected on the basis of 325 MHz arcminute-scale flux density using existing catalogues. By observing 30 different sources in each of the 12 sets of pointings per hour, we were able to inspect 630 sources in two hours to determine if they possess a sufficiently bright compact component to be usable as LOFAR delay calibrators.\ud
\ud
Results:\ud
More than 40% of the observed sources are detected on multiple baselines between international stations and 86 are classified as satisfactory calibrators. We show that a flat low-frequency spectrum (from 74 to 325 MHz) is the best predictor of compactness at 140 MHz. We extrapolate from our sample to show that the sky density of calibrators that are sufficiently bright to calibrate dispersive and non-dispersive delays for the international LOFAR using existing methods is 1.0 per square degree.\ud
\ud
Conclusions:\ud
The observed density of satisfactory delay calibrator sources means that observations with international LOFAR should be possible at virtually any point in the sky provided that a fast and efficient search, using the methodology described here, is conducted prior to the observation to identify the best calibrator
QuantumATK: An integrated platform of electronic and atomic-scale modelling tools
QuantumATK is an integrated set of atomic-scale modelling tools developed
since 2003 by professional software engineers in collaboration with academic
researchers. While different aspects and individual modules of the platform
have been previously presented, the purpose of this paper is to give a general
overview of the platform. The QuantumATK simulation engines enable
electronic-structure calculations using density functional theory or
tight-binding model Hamiltonians, and also offers bonded or reactive empirical
force fields in many different parametrizations. Density functional theory is
implemented using either a plane-wave basis or expansion of electronic states
in a linear combination of atomic orbitals. The platform includes a long list
of advanced modules, including Green's-function methods for electron transport
simulations and surface calculations, first-principles electron-phonon and
electron-photon couplings, simulation of atomic-scale heat transport, ion
dynamics, spintronics, optical properties of materials, static polarization,
and more. Seamless integration of the different simulation engines into a
common platform allows for easy combination of different simulation methods
into complex workflows. Besides giving a general overview and presenting a
number of implementation details not previously published, we also present four
different application examples. These are calculations of the phonon-limited
mobility of Cu, Ag and Au, electron transport in a gated 2D device, multi-model
simulation of lithium ion drift through a battery cathode in an external
electric field, and electronic-structure calculations of the
composition-dependent band gap of SiGe alloys.Comment: Submitted to Journal of Physics: Condensed Matte
Boosting the Open Circuit Voltage of Cu<sub>2</sub>ZnSnS<sub>4</sub> Solar Cells by a Lattice-Matched CeO<sub>2</sub> Layer and Theoretical Understanding of Interface Defects
Different effects of deep inspirations on central and peripheral airways in healthy and allergen-challenged mice
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Deep inspirations (DI) have bronchodilatory and bronchoprotective effects in healthy human subjects, but these effects appear to be absent in asthmatic lungs. We have characterized the effects of DI on lung mechanics during mechanical ventilation in healthy mice and in a murine model of acute and chronic airway inflammation.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Balb/c mice were sensitized to ovalbumin (OVA) and exposed to nebulized OVA for 1 week or 12 weeks. Control mice were challenged with PBS. Mice were randomly selected to receive DI, which were given twice during the minute before assessment of lung mechanics.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>DI protected against bronchoconstriction of central airways in healthy mice and in mice with acute airway inflammation, but not when OVA-induced chronic inflammation was present. DI reduced lung resistance induced by methacholine from 3.8 ± 0.3 to 2.8 ± 0.1 cmH<sub>2</sub>O·s·mL<sup>-1 </sup>in healthy mice and 5.1 ± 0.3 to 3.5 ± 0.3 cmH<sub>2</sub>O·s·mL<sup>-1 </sup>in acute airway inflammation (both <it>P </it>< 0.001). In healthy mice, DI reduced the maximum decrease in lung compliance from 15.9 ± 1.5% to 5.6 ± 0.6% (<it>P </it>< 0.0001). This protective effect was even more pronounced in mice with chronic inflammation where DI attenuated maximum decrease in compliance from 44.1 ± 6.6% to 14.3 ± 1.3% (<it>P </it>< 0.001). DI largely prevented increased peripheral tissue damping (G) and tissue elastance (H) in both healthy (G and H both <it>P </it>< 0.0001) and chronic allergen-treated animals (G and H both <it>P </it>< 0.0001).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We have tested a mouse model of potential value for defining mechanisms and sites of action of DI in healthy and asthmatic human subjects. Our current results point to potent protective effects of DI on peripheral parts of chronically inflamed murine lungs and that the presence of DI may blunt airway hyperreactivity.</p
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