Degradation of LaMnO{3-y} surface layer in LaMnO{3-y}/ metal interface

We report electrical measurements showing the degradation processes of LaMnO$_{3-y}$ (LaMnO) in LaMnO/normal metal interface in both point contact and planar-type junctions. Immediately after the preparation of the interface, the degradation process was followed by measuring the evolution of the junction resistance versus time. This process is characterized by the appearance of a second maximum in the resistance vs. temperature (R-T) dependence at temperatures lower than the Curie temperature T$_c$, at which the metal-insulator transition occurs in the bulk. These effects are explained in terms of the formation of a depleted interface layer in LaMnO caused by an out-diffusion of oxygen from the manganite surface to the normal metal. This assumption is confirmed by XPS measurement. Similar results on LaSrMnO$_{3-y}$ interfaces are also obtained.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in Appl. Phys. Lett.(2002

Size and shape of supported zirconia nanoparticles determined by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

6 pages, 7 figures, 1 table.-- PACS: 68.55.Ac; 68.55.Jk; 79.60.DpThe initial stages of growth of zirconia nanoparticles deposited on SiO2, Y2O3, and CeO2 substrates have been studied by the x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy peak shape analysis. ZrO2 was deposited by plasma decomposition of a volatile Zr(OtBu)4 precursor. The electronic interactions at each particular interface formed have been followed by means of the modified Auger parameter of the deposited Zr cations. They were quantified by means of Wagner plots and the chemical state vectors of the systems. The observed changes in these local electronic probes as the amount of deposit was increased have been correlated to the particular ZrO2 nanostructures identified on each substrate considered. A Volmer-Weber (islands) growth mechanism has been found for all the substrates considered. Moreover, clear indications have been found of a columnar growth for the case of ZrO2 deposited on SiO2.We thank the Spanish Ministry of Science and Education (MAT2004-01558) for financial support.Peer reviewe

Determination of texture by infrared spectroscopy in titanium oxide–anatase thin films

12 pages, 6 figures, 4 tables, 2 appendix.-- PACS: 68.55.Jk; 78.66.Nk; 78.30.HvA theoretical model to determine the effective dielectric tensor of heterogeneous materials composed by anisotropic microcrystallites has been introduced to explain the infrared spectral features of textured thin films of uniaxial materials as the function of a textural parameter. This theoretical treatment is able to satisfactorily reproduce the experimental absorbance spectra of TiO2–anatase thin films chosen as a model system. Comparison of texture data obtained from infrared spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction are in good agreement which support the validity of the proposed model.Peer reviewe

The GALANTE photometric survey of the northern Galactic plane: Project description and pipeline

The GALANTE optical photometric survey is observing the northern Galactic plane and some adjacent regions using seven narrow- and intermediate-filters, covering a total of 1618 square degrees. The survey has been designed with multiple exposure times and at least two different air masses per field to maximize its photometric dynamic range, comparable to that of Gaia, and ensure the accuracy of its photometric calibration. The goal is to reach at least 1% accuracy and precision in the seven bands for all stars brighter than AB magnitude 17 while detecting fainter stars with lower values of the signal-to-noise ratio.The main purposes of GALANTE are the identification and study of extinguished O+B+WR stars, the derivation of their extinction characteristics, and the cataloguing of F and G stars in the solar neighbourhood. Its data will be also used for a variety of other stellar studies and to generate a high-resolution continuum-free map of the H{\alpha} emission in the Galactic plane. We describe the techniques and the pipeline that are being used to process the data, including the basis of an innovative calibration system based on Gaia DR2 and 2MASS photometry.Comment: 18 pages, accepted for publication in MNRA

High blood pressure and risk of dementia : a two-sample Mendelian randomization study in the UK biobank

This work was supported by Janssen Research and Development , LLC (of Johnson & Johnson).Background: Findings from randomized controlled trials have yielded conflicting results on the association between blood pressure (BP) and dementia traits. We tested the hypothesis that a causal relationship exists between systolic BP (SBP) and/or diastolic BP (DBP) and risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Methods: We performed a generalized summary Mendelian randomization (GSMR) analysis using summary statistics of a genome-wide association study meta-analysis of 299,024 individuals of SBP or DBP as exposure variables against three different outcomes: 1) AD diagnosis (International Genomics of Alzheimer's Project), 2) maternal family history of AD (UK Biobank), and 3) paternal family history of AD (UK Biobank). Finally, a combined meta-analysis of 368,440 individuals that included these three summary statistics was used as final outcome. Results: GSMR applied to the International Genomics of Alzheimer's Project dataset revealed a significant effect of high SBP lowering the risk of AD (βGSMR = −0.19, p =.04). GSMR applied to the maternal family history of AD UK Biobank dataset (SBP [βGSMR = −0.12, p =.02], DBP [βGSMR = −0.10, p =.05]) and to the paternal family history of AD UK Biobank dataset (SBP [βGSMR = −0.16, p =.02], DBP [βGSMR = −0.24, p = 7.4 × 10−4]) showed the same effect. A subsequent combined meta-analysis confirmed the overall significant effect for the other SBP analyses (βGSMR = −0.14, p =.03). The DBP analysis in the combined meta-analysis also confirmed a DBP effect on AD (βGSMR = −0.14, p =.03). Conclusions: A causal effect exists between high BP and a reduced late-life risk of AD. The results were obtained through careful consideration of confounding factors and the application of complementary MR methods on independent cohorts.Peer reviewe

Inventario de Pensamientos Distorsionados sobre la Mujer y el Uso de la ViolenciaRevisado (IPDMUV-R): propiedades psicométricas

Men who batter are often affected by cognitive distortions related to gender roles and the legitimization of violence as a valid way to solve conflicts. The objectives of this research were: to analyze the psychometric properties of the Inventory of Distorted Thoughts about Women and the Use of Violence-Revised (IPDMUV-R), to delete nonupdated items and to compare the predictive ability of the revised version (IPDMUV-R) with other measures of the nomological network. The sample consisted of 463 men (241 batterer men and 222 men of the normative population), with a mean age of 41.22 years (SD=11.34). The results showed good fit indices for a unidimensional structure of IPDMUV-R (new version of 20 items) with an alpha of .747 (higher than the original 3 version of 29 items). The score of IPDMUV-R showed statistically significant correlations with self-reports which measure social desirability and ambivalent sexism. When analyzing the cutoff points to differentiate between batterer men and the normative group, the IPDMUV-R had a higher discriminative ability compared to IPDMUV and hostile and benevolent sexism dimensions. To conclude, an instrument with adequate psychometric properties to detect cognitive biases in violent men against the partner is presented. This instrument is useful for clinical purposes.Los hombres violentos contra la pareja muestran numerosos sesgos cognitivos relacionados con los roles de género y la legitimación de la violencia. Los objetivos de esta investigación fueron analizar las propiedades psicométricas del Inventario de Pensamientos Distorsionados sobre la Mujer y el Uso de la Violencia-Revisado (IPDMUV-R), depurar sus ítems y comparar la capacidad de predicción de esta versión revisada con otras medidas de su red nomológica. La muestra constó de 463 hombres -241 maltratadores y 222 hombres de la población normativa-, con una edad media de 41.22 años (DT=11.34). Los resultados mostraron buenos índices de ajuste para una estructura unidimensional del IPDMUV-R (nueva versión de 20 ítems), con un alfa de .747 (superior a la versión inicial de 29 ítems). La puntuación total del IPDMUV-R mostró correlaciones estadísticamente significativas con autoinformes que miden deseabilidad social y sexismo ambivalente. Al analizar los puntos de corte para diferenciar entre agresores y grupo normativo, se observó una mayor capacidad discriminativa del IPDMUV-R en comparación con el IPDMUV y las dimensiones de sexismo hostil y benévolo. En conclusión, se presenta un instrumento con adecuadas propiedades psicométricas que permite detectar sesgos cognitivos en hombres maltratadores y que es de utilidad para el ámbito clínico

Critical Role of Oxygen in Silver-Catalyzed Glaser-Hay Coupling on Ag(100) under Vacuum and in Solution on Ag Particles

The essential role of oxygen in enabling heterogeneously catalyzed Glaser-Hay coupling of phenylacetylene on Ag(100) was elucidated by STM, laboratory and synchrotron photoemission, and DFT calculations. In the absence of coadsorbed oxygen, phenylacetylene formed well-ordered dense overlayers which, with increasing temperature, desorbed without reaction. In striking contrast, even at 120 K, the presence of oxygen led to immediate and complete disruption of the organic layer due to abstraction of acetylenic hydrogen with formation of a disordered mixed layer containing immobile adsorbed phenylacetylide. At higher temperatures phenylacetylide underwent Glaser-Hay coupling to form highly ordered domains of diphenyldiacetylene that eventually desorbed without decomposition, leaving the bare metal surface. DFT calculations showed that, while acetylenic H abstraction was otherwise an endothermic process, oxygen adatoms triggered a reaction-initiating exothermic pathway leading to OH(a) + phenylacetylide, consistent with the experimental observations. Moreover, it was found that, with a solution of phenylacetylene in nonane and in the presence of O, Ag particles catalyzed Glaser-Hay coupling with high selectivity. Rigorous exclusion of oxygen from the reactor strongly suppressed the catalytic reaction. Interestingly, too much oxygen lowers the selectivity toward diphenyldiacetylene. Thus, vacuum studies and theoretical calculations revealed the key role of oxygen in the reaction mechanism, subsequently borne out by catalytic studies with Ag particles that confirmed the presence of oxygen as a necessary and sufficient condition for the coupling reaction to occur. The direct relevance of model studies to a mechanistic understanding of coupling reactions under conditions of practical catalysis was reaffirmed.Support from the European Union FEDER Program and MINECO under projects MAT2013-40852-R and 201560E055 is acknowledged. Computational resources were provided by the Spanish Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, grant CTQ2015-64669-P, and the EU FEDER Program

The NANOGrav 11-Year Data Set: Limits on Gravitational Waves from Individual Supermassive Black Hole Binaries

Observations indicate that nearly all galaxies contain supermassive black holes (SMBHs) at their centers. When galaxies merge, their component black holes form SMBH binaries (SMBHBs), which emit low-frequency gravitational waves (GWs) that can be detected by pulsar timing arrays (PTAs). We have searched the recently-released North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav) 11-year data set for GWs from individual SMBHBs in circular orbits. As we did not find strong evidence for GWs in our data, we placed 95\% upper limits on the strength of GWs from such sources as a function of GW frequency and sky location. We placed a sky-averaged upper limit on the GW strain of $h_0 < 7.3(3) \times 10^{-15}$ at $f_\mathrm{gw}= 8$ nHz. We also developed a technique to determine the significance of a particular signal in each pulsar using ``dropout' parameters as a way of identifying spurious signals in measurements from individual pulsars. We used our upper limits on the GW strain to place lower limits on the distances to individual SMBHBs. At the most-sensitive sky location, we ruled out SMBHBs emitting GWs with $f_\mathrm{gw}= 8$ nHz within 120 Mpc for $\mathcal{M} = 10^9 \, M_\odot$, and within 5.5 Gpc for $\mathcal{M} = 10^{10} \, M_\odot$. We also determined that there are no SMBHBs with $\mathcal{M} > 1.6 \times 10^9 \, M_\odot$ emitting GWs in the Virgo Cluster. Finally, we estimated the number of potentially detectable sources given our current strain upper limits based on galaxies in Two Micron All-Sky Survey (2MASS) and merger rates from the Illustris cosmological simulation project. Only 34 out of 75,000 realizations of the local Universe contained a detectable source, from which we concluded it was unsurprising that we did not detect any individual sources given our current sensitivity to GWs.Comment: 10 pages, 11 figures. Accepted by Astrophysical Journal. Please send any comments/questions to S. J. Vigeland ([email protected]

A Dashboard to Support Decision-Making Processes in Learning Ecosystems

There are software solutions to solve most of the problems related to information management in any company or institutions, but still, there is a problem for transforming information into knowledge. Technological ecosystems emerge as a solution to combine existing tools and human resources to solve different problems of knowledge management. In particular, when the ecosystem is focused on learning processes associated with knowledge are named learning ecosystems. The learning ecosystem metamodel defined in previous works solves several problems related to the definition and implementation of these solutions. However, there are still challenges associated with improving the analysis and visualization of information as a way to discover knowledge and support decision making processes. On the other hand, there is a metamodel proposal to define customized dashboards for supporting decision-making processes. This proposal aims to integrate both metamodels as a way to improve the definition of learning ecosystems

Profiles of Cognitive Emotion Regulation and their Association with Emotional Traits

There is increasing research interest in the relationships between different emotion regulation strategies and symptoms or other emotional traits. This study considers these types of strategies as personal dispositions in relation to other factors, in an effort to identify different cognitive emotion regulation profiles and analyze their predictive capacity for positive and negative affect, emotional traits (anxiety and anger), and depressive symptomatology. Participants were 350 individuals (50% men) with a mean age of 35.69 (SD = 7.5). The data analysis methods employed were cluster, discriminant analyses, and comparison of means. We found idiosyncratic aspects suggesting the existence of diverse cognitive styles of emotional regulation. These styles would be differentiated by greater or lesser frequency in the use of strategies considered in the literature as “more adaptive” or “less adaptive” (the “protector” and “vulnerable” profiles), positive reappraisal being the strategy that best distinguishes between individuals as regards their emotional regulation profile