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Adapting the International System of Units to the twenty-first century
We review the proposal of the International Committee for Weights and Measures
(Comité International des Poids et Mesures, CIPM), currently being considered by
the General Conference on Weights and Measures (Conférences Générales des Poids et
Mesures, CGPM), to revise the International System of Units (Le SystĂšme International
dâUnitĂšs, SI). The proposal includes new definitions for four of the seven base units of
the SI, and a new form of words to present the definitions of all the units. The objective
of the proposed changes is to adopt definitions referenced to constants of nature, taken
in the widest sense, so that the definitions may be based on what are believed to be
true invariants. In particular, whereas in the current SI the kilogram, ampere, kelvin and
mole are linked to exact numerical values of the mass of the international prototype of the
kilogram, the magnetic constant (permeability of vacuum), the triple-point temperature
of water and the molar mass of carbon-12, respectively, in the new SI these units are linked
to exact numerical values of the Planck constant, the elementary charge, the Boltzmann
constant and the Avogadro constant, respectively. The new wording used expresses the
definitions in a simple and unambiguous manner without the need for the distinction
between base and derived units. The importance of relations among the fundamental
constants to the definitions, and the importance of establishing a mise en pratique for
the realization of each definition, are also discussed
Transfer Entropy as a Log-likelihood Ratio
Transfer entropy, an information-theoretic measure of time-directed
information transfer between joint processes, has steadily gained popularity in
the analysis of complex stochastic dynamics in diverse fields, including the
neurosciences, ecology, climatology and econometrics. We show that for a broad
class of predictive models, the log-likelihood ratio test statistic for the
null hypothesis of zero transfer entropy is a consistent estimator for the
transfer entropy itself. For finite Markov chains, furthermore, no explicit
model is required. In the general case, an asymptotic chi-squared distribution
is established for the transfer entropy estimator. The result generalises the
equivalence in the Gaussian case of transfer entropy and Granger causality, a
statistical notion of causal influence based on prediction via vector
autoregression, and establishes a fundamental connection between directed
information transfer and causality in the Wiener-Granger sense
Alignments of the Dominant Galaxies in Poor Clusters
We have examined the orientations of brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) in
poor MKW and AWM clusters and find that, like their counterparts in richer
Abell clusters, poor cluster BCGs exhibit a strong propensity to be aligned
with the principal axes of their host clusters as well as the surrounding
distribution of nearby (< 20/h Mpc) Abell clusters. The processes responsible
for dominant galaxy alignments are therefore independent of cluster richness.
We argue that these alignments most likely arise from anisotropic infall of
material into clusters along large-scale filaments.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure
LP 400-22, A very low-mass and high-velocity white dwarf
We report the identification of LP 400-22 (WD 2234+222) as a very low-mass
and high-velocity white dwarf. The ultraviolet GALEX and optical photometric
colors and a spectral line analysis of LP 400-22 show this star to have an
effective temperature of 11080+/-140 K and a surface gravity of log g =
6.32+/-0.08. Therefore, this is a helium core white dwarf with a mass of 0.17
M_solar. The tangential velocity of this white dwarf is 414+/-43 km/s, making
it one of the fastest moving white dwarfs known. We discuss probable
evolutionary scenarios for this remarkable object.Comment: accepted for publication in ApJ Letters, made minor correction
Low temperature characterization of modulation doped SiGe grown on bonded silicon-on-insulator
Modulation doped pseudomorphic Si0.87Ge0.13 strained quantum wells were grown on bonded silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrates. Comparison with similar structures grown on bulk Si(100) wafers shows that the SOI material has higher mobility at low temperatures with a maximum value of 16 810 cm 2/V s for 2.05 Ă 1011 cm â 2 carries at 298 mK. Effective masses obtained from the temperature dependence of Shubnikovâde Haas oscillations have a value of (0.27 ± 0.02) m0 compared to (0.23 ± 0.02) m0 for quantum wells on Si(100) while the cyclotron resonance effective masses obtained at higher magnetic fields without consideration for nonparabolicity effects have values between 0.25 and 0.29 m0. Ratios of the transport and quantum lifetimes, tau/tau q=2.13 ± 0.10, were obtained for the SOI material that are, we believe, the highest reported for any pseudomorphic SiGe modulation doped structure and demonstrates that there is less interface roughness or charge scattering in the SOI material than in metalâoxideâsemiconductor field effect transistors or other pseudomorphic SiGe modulation doped quantum wells
Magnetic Gaps related to Spin Glass Order in Fermionic Systems
We provide evidence for spin glass related magnetic gaps in the fermionic
density of states below the freezing temperature. Model calculations are
presented and proposed to be relevant for explaining resistivity measurements
which observe a crossover from variable-range- to activated behavior. The
magnetic field dependence of a hardgap and the low temperature decay of the
density of states are given. In models with fermion transport a new
metal-insulator transition is predicted to occur due to the spin-glass gap,
anteceding the spin glass to quantum paramagnet transition at smaller spin
density. Important fluctuation effects due to finite range frustrated
interactions are estimated and discussed.Comment: 4 pages, 1 Postscript figure, revised version accepted for
publication in Physical Review Letter
Magnetic shielding and ohmic losses from finite thickness Faraday Shields
A calculation method is developed by which the magnetic field can be calculated for some simple crossâsection shapes of Faraday Shields with finite thickness.(AIP)Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/87353/2/71_1.pd
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