Domain wall pinning and potential landscapes created by constrictions and protrusions in ferromagnetic nanowires

The potential experienced by transverse domain walls (TDWs) in the vicinity of asymmetric constrictions or protrusions in thin Permalloy nanowires is probed using spatially resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect measurements. Both types of traps are found to act as pinning centers for DWs. The strength of pinning is found to depend on the trap type as well as on the chirality of the incoming DW; both types of traps are seen to act either as potential wells or potential barriers, also depending on the chirality of the DW. Micromagnetic simulations have been performed that are in good qualitative agreement with the experimental results.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figure

Mathematically Gifted Adolescents Have Deficiencies in Social Valuation and Mentalization

Many mathematically gifted adolescents are characterized as being indolent, underachieving and unsuccessful despite their high cognitive ability. This is often due to difficulties with social and emotional development. However, research on social and emotional interactions in gifted adolescents has been limited. The purpose of this study was to observe differences in complex social strategic behaviors between gifted and average adolescents of the same age using the repeated Ultimatum Game. Twenty-two gifted adolescents and 24 average adolescents participated in the Ultimatum Game. Two adolescents participate in the game, one as a proposer and the other as a responder. Because of its simplicity, the Ultimatum Game is an apt tool for investigating complex human emotional and cognitive decision-making in an empirical setting. We observed strategic but socially impaired offers from gifted proposers and lower acceptance rates from gifted responders, resulting in lower total earnings in the Ultimatum Game. Thus, our results indicate that mathematically gifted adolescents have deficiencies in social valuation and mentalization

Near-field interaction between domain walls in adjacent Permalloy nanowires

The magnetostatic interaction between two oppositely charged transverse domain walls (DWs)in adjacent Permalloy nanowires is experimentally demonstrated. The dependence of the pinning strength on wire separation is investigated for distances between 13 and 125 nm, and depinning fields up to 93 Oe are measured. The results can be described fully by considering the interaction between the full complex distribution of magnetic charge within rigid, isolated DWs. This suggests the DW internal structure is not appreciably disturbed by the pinning potential, and that they remain rigid although the pinning strength is significant. This work demonstrates the possibility of non-contact DW trapping without DW perturbation and full continuous flexibility of the pinning potential type and strength. The consequence of the interaction on DW based data storage schemes is evaluated.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, 1 page supplimentary material (supporting.ps

Validating a new methodology for optical probe design and image registration in fNIRS studies

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is an imaging technique that relies on the principle of shining near-infrared light through tissue to detect changes in hemodynamic activation. An important methodological issue encountered is the creation of optimized probe geometry for fNIRS recordings. Here, across three experiments, we describe and validate a processing pipeline designed to create an optimized, yet scalable probe geometry based on selected regions of interest (ROIs) from the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) literature. In experiment 1, we created a probe geometry optimized to record changes in activation from target ROIs important for visual working memory. Positions of the sources and detectors of the probe geometry on an adult head were digitized using a motion sensor and projected onto a generic adult atlas and a segmented head obtained from the subject's MRI scan. In experiment 2, the same probe geometry was scaled down to fit a child's head and later digitized and projected onto the generic adult atlas and a segmented volume obtained from the child's MRI scan. Using visualization tools and by quantifying the amount of intersection between target ROIs and channels, we show that out of 21 ROIs, 17 and 19 ROIs intersected with fNIRS channels from the adult and child probe geometries, respectively. Further, both the adult atlas and adult subject-specific MRI approaches yielded similar results and can be used interchangeably. However, results suggest that segmented heads obtained from MRI scans be used for registering children's data. Finally, in experiment 3, we further validated our processing pipeline by creating a different probe geometry designed to record from target ROIs involved in language and motor processing

Mechanism for domain wall pinning and potential landscape modification by artificially patterned traps in ferromagnetic nanowires

The interaction mechanism between transverse domain walls (TDWs) in Permalloy nanowires and artificially patterned traps is studied using high-sensitivity spatially resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect measurements and numerical simulations. T-shaped trap geometries are considered, where a DW traveling in the horizontal arm is pinned by the vertical arm. Pinning strengths as well as potential energy modifications created by the traps are measured, and the roles of the different DW characteristic parameters, such as the DW core orientation and the magnetic charge distribution within the DW, are presented. It is found that whether or not the core of the DW is aligned with the transverse arm of the T structure affects the shape of the main potential experienced by the DW, whereas the pinning strength strongly depends on which side of the V-shaped TDW interacts with the trap. The role of the magnetostatic interaction between the charge of the DW and the charge present at the junction is discussed

Understanding Aesthetic Evaluation using Deep Learning

A bottleneck in any evolutionary art system is aesthetic evaluation. Many different methods have been proposed to automate the evaluation of aesthetics, including measures of symmetry, coherence, complexity, contrast and grouping. The interactive genetic algorithm (IGA) relies on human-in-the-loop, subjective evaluation of aesthetics, but limits possibilities for large search due to user fatigue and small population sizes. In this paper we look at how recent advances in deep learning can assist in automating personal aesthetic judgement. Using a leading artist's computer art dataset, we use dimensionality reduction methods to visualise both genotype and phenotype space in order to support the exploration of new territory in any generative system. Convolutional Neural Networks trained on the user's prior aesthetic evaluations are used to suggest new possibilities similar or between known high quality genotype-phenotype mappings

High efficiency domain wall gate in ferromagnetic nanowires

A transverse domain wall (DW) switchable gate with a very high efficiency is experimentally demonstrated in Permalloy nanowires using a transverse T-shaped structure. DWs are found to either travel undisturbed through the open gate or to be strongly trapped in front of the closed gate only able to travel backwards. The opening and closing of the gate depends on the magnetic configuration of the gate and is controlled using externally applied magnetic fields. Micromagnetic simulations confirm the experimental results

Magnetic domain wall pinning by a curved conduit

The pinning of a magnetic domain wall in a curved Permalloy (NiFe) nanostrip is experimentally studied. We examine the dependence of the pinning on both the radius of curvature of the bend and the chirality of the transverse domain wall. We find that bends act as potential wells or potential barriers depending on the chirality of the domain wall; the pinning field in both cases increases with decreasing radius of curvature. Micromagnetic simulations are consistent with the experimental results and show that both exchange and demagnetizing energies play an important role

Combined electrical and magneto-optical measurements of the magnetization reversal process at a domain wall trap.

We have performed combined electrical and magneto-optical Kerr effect measurements on Permalloy nanowires containing artificial symmetric protrusions. This has enabled us to construct a detailed picture of the energy landscape of such a trap, in excellent agreement with predictions based on recent results. In addition with the aid of micromagnetic simulations, we demonstrate how variations in the observed resistance with respect to the applied field can give us insight into the entire depinning and nucleation processes at domain wall traps