5,798 research outputs found
Ultraslow light propagation in an inhomogeneously broadened rare-earth ion-doped crystal
We show that Coherent Population Oscillations effect allows to burn a narrow
spectral hole (26Hz) within the homogeneous absorption line of the optical
transition of an Erbium ion-doped crystal. The large dispersion of the index of
refraction associated with this hole permits to achieve a group velocity as low
as 2.7m/s with a ransmission of 40%. We especially benefit from the
inhomogeneous absorption broadening of the ions to tune both the transmission
coefficient, from 40% to 90%, and the light group velocity from 2.7m/s to
100m/s
Social influence protects collective decision making from equality bias
A basic tenet of research on wisdom of the crowds – and key assumption of Condorcet’s Jury Theorem – is the independence of voters’ opinions before votes are aggregated. However, we often look for others’ opinions before casting our vote. Such social influence can push groups towards herding, leading to “madness of the crowds”. To investigate the role of social influence in joint decision making, we had dyads of participants perform a visual odd-ball search task together. In the Independent (IND) condition participants initially made a private decision. If disagreeing, discussion and collective decision ensued. In the Influence (INF) condition no private decisions were made and collective decision was immediately negotiated. Dyads that did not accrue collective benefit under IND condition improved with added social influence under INF condition. In Experiment 2, covertly, we added noise to one of the dyad members’ visual search display. The resulting increased heterogeneity in dyad members’ performances impaired the dyadic performance under IND condition (Bahrami et al., 2010). Importantly, dyadic performance improved with social influence under INF, replicating Experiment 1. Further analyses revealed that under IND condition, dyads exercised equality bias (Mahmoodi et al., 2015) by granting undue credit to the less reliable partner. Under INF condition, however, the more reliable partner (correctly) dominated the joint decisions. While social influence may impede collective success under ideal conditions, our results demonstrate how it can help the group members overcome factors such as equality bias, which could potentially lead to catastrophic failure
Near-infrared interferometric observation of the Herbig Ae star HD144432 with VLTI/AMBER
We study the sub-AU-scale circumstellar environment of the Herbig Ae star
HD144432 with near-infrared (NIR) VLTI/AMBER observations to investigate the
structure of its inner dust disk. The interferometric observations were carried
out with the AMBER instrument in the H and K band. We interpret the measured H-
and K-band visibilities, the near- and mid-infrared visibilities from the
literature, and the SED of HD144432 by using geometric ring models and
ring-shaped temperature-gradient disk models with power-law temperature
distributions. We derived a K-band ring-fit radius of 0.17 \pm 0.01 AU and an
H-band radius of 0.18 \pm 0.01 AU (for a distance of 145 pc). This measured
K-band radius of \sim0.17 AU lies in the range between the dust sublimation
radius of \sim0.13 AU (predicted for a dust sublimation temperature of 1500 K
and gray dust) and the prediction of models including backwarming (\sim0.27
AU). We found that an additional extended halo component is required in both
the geometric and temperature-gradient modeling. In the best temperature-
gradient model, the disk consists of two components. The inner part of the disk
is a thin ring with an inner radius of \sim0.21 AU, a temperature of \sim1600
K, and a ring thickness \sim0.02 AU. The outer part extends from \sim1 AU to
\sim10 AU with an inner temperature of \sim400 K. We find that the disk is
nearly face-on with an inclination angle of < 28 degree. Our
temperature-gradient modeling suggests that the NIR excess is dominated by
emission from a narrow, bright rim located at the dust sublimation radius,
while an extended halo component contributes \sim6% to the total flux at 2
{\mu}m. The MIR model emission has a two-component structure with \sim20% flux
from the inner ring and the rest from the outer part. This two-component
structure suggests a disk gap, which is possibly caused by the shadow of a
puffed-up inner rim.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, accepted by A&
Cricotracheal resection for laryngeal invasion by thyroid carcinoma: our experience.
Invasion of the laryngeal framework by thyroid carcinoma requires specific surgical techniques and carries a higher rate of complications that deserve to be highlighted. We reviewed our data from 1995 to 2012 and found six patients with laryngotracheal invasion by thyroid carcinoma. All underwent total thyroidectomy and single-stage cricotracheal resection, plus anterolateral neck dissection. Three had airway obstruction that necessitated prior endoscopic debulking. None of the patients needed a tracheotomy. There were four cases of papillary carcinoma, and two cases of undifferentiated carcinoma. One patient died of complications of the procedure (anastomotic dehiscence and tracheo-innominate artery fistula). Another died 2 months after the procedure from local recurrence and aspiration pneumonia. One case presented recurrence at 15 months, which was managed by re-excision and adjuvant radiotherapy; after 26 months of follow-up, he has no evidence of locoregional recurrence. The three other patients are alive without evidence of disease at 6, 18 and 41 months, respectively. Cricotracheal resection for subglottic invasion by thyroid carcinoma is an effective procedure, but carries significant risks of complications. This could be attributed to the devascularisation of the tracheal wall due to the simultaneous neck dissection, sacrifice of the strap muscles or of a patch of oesophageal muscle layer. We advocate a sternocleidomastoid flap to cover the anastomosis. Cricotracheal resection for subglottic invasion can be curative with good functional outcomes, even for the advanced stages of thyroid cancer. Endoscopic debulking of the airway prior to the procedure avoids tracheotomy
An infrared integrated optic astronomical beam combiner for stellar interferometry at 3-4 microns
Integrated-optic, astronomical, two-beam and three-beam, interferometric
combiners have been designed and fabricated for operation in the L band (3 - 4
microns) for the first time. The devices have been realized in
titanium-indiffused, x-cut lithium niobate substrates, and on-chip
electro-optic fringe scanning has been demonstrated. White light fringes were
produced in the laboratory using the two-beam combiner integrated with an
on-chip Y-splitter.Comment: This paper was published in Optics Express and is made available as
an electronic reprint with the permission of OSA. The paper can be found at
the following URL on the OSA website: http://www.opticsinfobase.org/oe.
Systematic or multiple reproduction or distribution to multiple locations via
electronic or other means is prohibited and is subject to penalties under la
Imaging the asymmetric dust shell around CI Cam with long baseline optical interferometry
We present the first high angular resolution observation of the B[e]
star/X-ray transient object CI Cam, performed with the two-telescope Infrared
Optical Telescope Array (IOTA), its upgraded three-telescope version (IOTA3T)
and the Palomar Testbed Interferometer (PTI). Visibilities and closure phases
were obtained using the IONIC-3 integrated optics beam combiner. CI Cam was
observed in the near-infrared H and K spectral bands, wavelengths well suited
to measure the size and study the geometry of the hot dust surrounding CI Cam.
The analysis of the visibility data over an 8 year period from soon after the
1998 outburst to 2006 shows that the dust visibility has not changed over the
years. The visibility data shows that CI Cam is elongated which confirms the
disc-shape of the circumstellar environment and totally rules out the
hypothesis of a spherical dust shell. Closure phase measurements show direct
evidence of asymmetries in the circumstellar environment of CI Cam and we
conclude that the dust surrounding CI Cam lies in an inhomogeneous disc seen at
an angle. The near-infrared dust emission appears as an elliptical skewed
Gaussian ring with a major axis a = 7.58 +/- 0.24 mas, an axis ratio r = 0.39
+/- 0.03 and a position angle theta = 35 +/- 2 deg.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, accepted MNRA
High-pressure transport properties of CeRu_2Ge_2
The pressure-induced changes in the temperature-dependent thermopower S(T)
and electrical resistivity \rho(T) of CeRu_2Ge_2 are described within the
single-site Anderson model. The Ce-ions are treated as impurities and the
coherent scattering on different Ce-sites is neglected. Changing the
hybridisation \Gamma between the 4f-states and the conduction band accounts for
the pressure effect. The transport coefficients are calculated in the
non-crossing approximation above the phase boundary line. The theoretical S(T)
and \rho(T) curves show many features of the experimental data. The seemingly
complicated temperature dependence of S(T) and \rho(T), and their evolution as
a function of pressure, is related to the crossovers between various fixed
points of the model.Comment: 9 pages, 10 figure
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