Muon localization site in U(Pt,Pd)3

The angular and temperature (10-250 K) variation of the Knight shift of single-crystalline U(Pt0.95Pd0.05)3 has been measured in transverse field (B=0.6 T) mSR experiments. By analysing the temperature variation of the Knight shift with a modified Curie-Weiss expression the muon localization site in this hexagonal material is determined at (0,0,0).Comment: 12 pages (including 4 figures); postscript file; Proc. 8th Int. Conf. on Muon Spin Rotation, Relaxation and Resonance (Aug.30-Sept.3, Les Diablerets); 2nd version with minor correction

Tetragonal zirconia: Wet chemical preparation, mechanical and electrical properties

Yttria-stabilized zirconia powders were prepared in the composition range of 3 to 13 at% yttria. The hydrolysis-gel precipitation technique was used, starting from metal alkoxides or chlorides. In the composition range between 5 and 10 at% yttria, the materials sintered at 1250°C have a fully tetragonal structure. The density was higher than 95% and the grain sizes can be varied between 0.1 and 0.5μm depending on the preparation conditions. The fracture toughness KIC amounts 6 to 11 MPam but is not dependent on the composition. The transformation toughening mechanism and the properties of the tetragonal phase itself play an important role in the increase of KIC compared with cubic materials. The magnitude of the oxygen-ion conductivity value is comparable with that for cubic materials

Bone metastasis in a case of primary acquired melanosis with atypia resulting from conjunctiva melanoma

A 66-year-old woman presented to a tertiary referral centre with a diagnosis of limbal stem cell deficiency secondary to multiple treatments for primary acquired melanosis (PAM) by her referring ophthalmologists. She was known with primary acquired melanosis with severe atypia of the right eye which had been treated with several excisions, cryotherapy and topical chemotherapy. She had PAM over 360° of alternating intensity. Throughout the follow-up period, she developed a cataract and subsequent a retinal detachment for which she underwent a phacovitrectomy on the right eye. There was no nodule present nor did the routine lymph nodes inspection show any enlargement. No abnormalities were observed on intranasal examination. Seven years after the last excision, a metastasis to the spine (Th3) was diagnosed. A complete systemic work-up and a pathological examination did not show any alternative primary melanoma in the body. The original histological material was reviewed again by an ophthalmopathologist. After a new round of stains and immunohistochemistry, the presence of atypical melanocytes in both the epithelium and stroma were found in a scar region leading to a renewed conclusion that the PAM in question was actually the primary melanoma

Trajectory Deflection of Spinning Magnetic Microparticles, the Magnus Effect at the Microscale

The deflection due to the Magnus force of magnetic particles with a diameter of 80 micrometer dropping through fluids and rotating in a magnetic field was measured. With Reynolds number for this experiment around 1, we found trajectory deflections of the order of 1 degree, in agreement within measurement error with theory. This method holds promise for the sorting and analysis of the distribution in magnetic moment and particle diameter of suspensions of microparticles, such as applied in catalysis, or objects loaded with magnetic particles.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figures. Appendix with 6 figure

Magnetism in heavy-fermion U(Pt,Pd)3 studied by mSR

We report mSR experiments carried out on a series of heavy-electron pseudobinary compounds U(Pt1-xPdx)3 (x<=0.05). For x<=0.005 the zero-field muon depolarisation is described by the Kubo-Toyabe function. However the temperature variation of the Kubo-Toyabe relaxation rate does not show any sign of the small-moment antiferromagnetic phase with TN~6 K (signalled by neutron diffraction), in contrast to previous reports. The failure to detect the small ordered moment suggests it has a fluctuating (> 10 MHz) nature, which is consistent with the interpretation of NMR data. For 0.01<=x<=0.05 the muon depolarisation in the ordered state is described by two terms of equal amplitude: an exponentially damped spontaneous oscillation and a Lorentzian Kubo-Toyabe function. These terms are associated with antiferromagnetic order with substantial moments. The Knight-shift measured in a magnetic field of 0.6 T on single-crystalline U(Pt0.95Pd0.05)3 in the paramagnetic state shows two signals for B perpendicular to c, while only one signal is observed for B||c. The observation of two signals for B perpendicular to c, while there is only one muon localisation site (0,0,0), points to the presence of two spatially distinct regions of different magnetic response.Comment: 25 pages including 12 figures (PS), J. Phys.: Condens. Matter, in prin

Paired and altruistic kidney donation in the UK: algorithms and experimentation

We study the computational problem of identifying optimal sets of kidney exchanges in the UK. We show how to expand an integer programming-based formulation [1, 19] in order to model the criteria that constitute the UK definition of optimality. The software arising from this work has been used by the National Health Service Blood and Transplant to find optimal sets of kidney exchanges for their National Living Donor Kidney Sharing Schemes since July 2008.We report on the characteristics of the solutions that have been obtained in matching runs of the scheme since this time. We then present empirical results arising from the real datasets that stem from these matching runs, with the aim of establishing the extent to which the particular optimality criteria that are present in the UK influence the structure of the solutions that are ultimately computed. A key observation is that allowing 4-way exchanges would be likely to lead to a significant number of additional transplants

Innovative Logistics Concepts in the Floriculture Sector

Today most flowers physically pass through the auction houses on their fixed routes from (inter)national growers to (inter)national customers. Physical presence is necessary to allow for physical inspection, quality control and break-bulk activities. Several developments, such as new markets in Eastern Europe and increased virtualization, stimulate the chain to become an efficient florticultural hub-network, in which cut flowers, plants and other products are delivered to customers taking different (direct) routes and using different logistics concepts. The Dutch sector aims to (continue to) be the (virtual) florticultural trading hub of Europe, and has therefore started a 4-year new project called DAVINC3I. The project’s objective is to strengthen the international leading competitive position of the Dutch floriculture sector in a global, virtualized trade network by researching (1) the opportunities for new logistics coordination, consolidation and collaboration concepts in extended international tradeparc networks, and (2) the possibilities for making chain information directly and real-time available and usable to support decision making of all partners in the horticultural network. The aim of this paper is to discuss current floriculture sector developments in supply and demand and identify the main logistics bottlenecks and opportunities for improvement. Based on literature reviews and expert knowledge the research (logistics) challenges that arise from the market developments are revealed