1,606 research outputs found
Geometries and energetics of methanol–ethanol clusters: a VUV laser/time-of-flight mass spectrometry and density functional theory study
Hydrogen-bonded clusters, formed above liquid methanol (Me) and ethanol (Et) mixtures of various compositions, were entrained in a supersonic jet and probed using 118 nm vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) laser single-photon ionization/time-of-flight mass spectrometry. The spectra are dominated by protonated cluster ions, formed by ionizing hydrogen-bonded MemEtn neutrals, m = 0–4, n = 0–3, and m + n = 2–5. The structures and energetics of the neutral and ionic species were investigated using both the all-atom optimized potential for liquid state, OPLS-AA, and the density functional (DFT) calculations. The energetic factors affecting the observed cluster distributions were examined. Calculations indicate that the large change in binding energy going from trimer to tetramer can be attributed more to pair-wise interactions than to cooperativity effects
Synchronization of Micromechanical Oscillators Using Light
Synchronization, the emergence of spontaneous order in coupled systems, is of
fundamental importance in both physical and biological systems. We demonstrate
the synchronization of two dissimilar silicon nitride micromechanical
oscillators, that are spaced apart by a few hundred nanometers and are coupled
through optical radiation field. The tunability of the optical coupling between
the oscillators enables one to externally control the dynamics and switch
between coupled and individual oscillation states. These results pave a path
towards reconfigurable massive synchronized oscillator networks
Exciton- and Light-induced Current in Molecular Nanojunctions
We consider exciton- and light-induced current in molecular nanojunctions.
Using a model comprising a two two-level sites bridge connecting free electron
reservoirs we show that the exciton coupling between the sites of the molecular
bridge can markedly effect the source-drain current through a molecular
junction. In some cases when excited and unexcited states of the sites are
coupled differently to the leads, the contribution from electron-hole
excitations can exceed the Landauer elastic current and dominate the observed
conduction. We have proposed an optical control method using chirped pulses for
enhancing charge transfer in unbiased junctions where the bridging molecule is
characterized by a strong charge-transfer transition.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures,submitted to the Canadian J. Phy
Open-Ended Evolutionary Robotics: an Information Theoretic Approach
This paper is concerned with designing self-driven fitness functions for
Embedded Evolutionary Robotics. The proposed approach considers the entropy of
the sensori-motor stream generated by the robot controller. This entropy is
computed using unsupervised learning; its maximization, achieved by an on-board
evolutionary algorithm, implements a "curiosity instinct", favouring
controllers visiting many diverse sensori-motor states (sms). Further, the set
of sms discovered by an individual can be transmitted to its offspring, making
a cultural evolution mode possible. Cumulative entropy (computed from ancestors
and current individual visits to the sms) defines another self-driven fitness;
its optimization implements a "discovery instinct", as it favours controllers
visiting new or rare sensori-motor states. Empirical results on the benchmark
problems proposed by Lehman and Stanley (2008) comparatively demonstrate the
merits of the approach
Perfect imaging: they don't do it with mirrors
Imaging with a spherical mirror in empty space is compared with the case when
the mirror is filled with the medium of Maxwell's fish eye. Exact
time-dependent solutions of Maxwell's equations show that perfect imaging is
not achievable with an electrical ideal mirror on its own, but with Maxwell's
fish eye in the regime when it implements a curved geometry for full
electromagnetic waves
Direct visualisation of collateral ventilation in COPD with hyperpolarised gas MRI
Abstract
Background Collateral ventilation has been proposed as a mechanism of compensation of respiratory function in obstructive lung diseases but observations of it in vivo are limited. The assessment of collateral ventilation with an imaging technique might help to gain insight into lung physiology and assist the planning of new bronchoscopic techniques for treating emphysema.
Objective
To obtain images of delayed ventilation that might be related to collateral ventilation over the period of a single breath-hold in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Methods
Time-resolved breath-hold hyperpolarised 3He MRI was used to obtain images of the progressive influx of polarised gas into initially non-ventilated defects.
Results
A time-series of images showed that 3He moves into lung regions which were initially non-ventilated. Ventilation defects with delayed filling were observed in 8 of the 10 patients scanned.
Conclusions
A method for direct imaging of delayed ventilation within a single breath-hold has been demonstrated in patients with COPD. Images of what is believed to be collateral ventilation and slow filling of peripheral airspaces due to increased flow resistance are presented. The technique provides 3D whole-lung coverage with sensitivity to regional information, and is non-invasive and non-ionising
Dynamic Response Characteristics in Variable Stiffness Soft Inflatable Links
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019. In soft robotics, there is the fundamental need to develop devices that are flexible and can change stiffness in order to work safely in the vicinity of humans. Moreover, these structures must be rigid enough to withstand the force application and accuracy in motion. To solve these issues, previous research proposed to add a compliance element between motor and load – Series Elastic Actuators (SEAs). This approach benefits from improved force control and shock tolerance due to the elasticity introduced at joint level. However, series compliance at the joint level comes at the cost of inferior position controllability and additional mechanical complexity. In this research, we move the elastic compliance to the link, and evaluate the characteristics of variable stiffness soft inflatable links. The detailed investigation of the dynamic behaviour of inflatable link takes into consideration different internal pressures and applied loads. Our results demonstrate that the use of soft inflatable links leads to good weight lifting capability whilst preserving compliance which is beneficial for safety critical applications
Complex networks theory for analyzing metabolic networks
One of the main tasks of post-genomic informatics is to systematically
investigate all molecules and their interactions within a living cell so as to
understand how these molecules and the interactions between them relate to the
function of the organism, while networks are appropriate abstract description
of all kinds of interactions. In the past few years, great achievement has been
made in developing theory of complex networks for revealing the organizing
principles that govern the formation and evolution of various complex
biological, technological and social networks. This paper reviews the
accomplishments in constructing genome-based metabolic networks and describes
how the theory of complex networks is applied to analyze metabolic networks.Comment: 13 pages, 2 figure
BlindBuilder : a new encoding to evolve Lego-like structures
This paper introduces a new representation for assemblies of small Lego-like elements: structures are indirectly encoded as construction plans. This representation shows some interesting properties such as hierarchy, modularity and easy constructibility checking by definition. Together with this representation, efficient GP operators are introduced that allow efficient and fast evolution, as witnessed by the results on two construction problems that demonstrate that the proposed approach is able to achieve both compactness and reusability of evolved components
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