3,402 research outputs found
Electronic properties of very thin native SiO2/a-Si:H interfaces and their comparison with those prepared by both dielectric barrier discharge oxidation at atmospheric pressure and by chemical oxidation
The contribution deals with electronic properties of thin oxide/amorphous hydrogenated silicon (a-Si:H) measured by capacitance-voltage (C-V) and charge version of deep level transient spectroscopy (Q-DLTS). The interest was focused on the studies of the interface properties of very thin dielectrics formed by dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) or natively on the a-Si:H layer. These properties were compared with those of oxide layers prepared by chemical oxidation in HNO3. The DBD was used for the preparation of a very thin SiO2 layer on a-Si:H for the first time to our knowledge. Preliminary electrical measurements confirmed that a very low interface states density was detected in the case of the native oxide/a-Si:H and DBD oxide/a-Si:H
Modelling, Analysis and Experimental Validation of Clock Drift Effects in Low-Inertia Power Systems
Clock drift in digital controllers is of great relevance in many applications. Since almost all real clocks exhibit drifts, this applies in particular to networks composed of several individual units, each of which being operated with its individual clock. In the present paper, we demonstrate via extensive experiments on a microgrid in the megawatt range that clock drifts may impair frequency synchronization in low-inertia power systems. The experiments also show that-in the absence of a common clock-the standard model of an inverter as an ideal voltage source does not capture this phenomenon. As a consequence, we derive a suitably modified model of an inverter-interfaced unit that incorporates the phenomenon of clock drifts. By using the derived model, we investigate the effects of clock drifts on the performance of droop-controlled grid-forming inverters with regard to frequency synchronization and active power sharing. The modeling and analysis is validated via extensive experiments on a microgrid in the megawatt range
Secondary gas in debris discs released following the decay of long-lived radioactive nuclides, catastrophic or resurfacing collisions
Kuiper-like belts of planetesimals orbiting stars other than the Sun are most
commonly detected from the thermal emission of small dust produced in
collisions. Emission from gas, most notably CO, highlights the cometary nature
of these planetesimals. Here we present models for the release of gas from
comet-like bodies in these belts, both due to their thermophysical evolution,
most notably the decay of long-lived radioactive nuclides and collisional
evolution, including catastrophic and gentler resurfacing collisions. We show
that the rate of gas release is not proportional to the rate of dust release,
if non-catastrophic collisions or thermal evolution dominate the release of CO
gas. In this case, care must be taken when inferring the composition of comets.
Non-catastrophic collisions dominate the gas production at earlier times than
catastrophic collisions, depending on the properties of the planetesimal belt.
We highlight the importance of the thermal evolution of comets, including
crucially the decay of long-lived radioactive nuclides, as a source of CO gas
around young (<50Myr) planetary systems, if large (10-100s kms) planetesimals
are present.Comment: Submitted to MNRAS, 16 page
Circadian rhythms in the pineal organ persist in zebrafish larvae that lack ventral brain
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The mammalian suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), located in the ventral hypothalamus, is a major regulator of circadian rhythms in mammals and birds. However, the role of the SCN in lower vertebrates remains poorly understood. Zebrafish <it>cyclops </it>(<it>cyc</it>) mutants lack ventral brain, including the region that gives rise to the SCN. We have used <it>cyc </it>embryos to define the function of the zebrafish SCN in regulating circadian rhythms in the developing pineal organ. The pineal organ is the major source of the circadian hormone melatonin, which regulates rhythms such as daily rest/activity cycles. Mammalian pineal rhythms are controlled almost exclusively by the SCN. In zebrafish and many other lower vertebrates, the pineal has an endogenous clock that is responsible in part for cyclic melatonin biosynthesis and gene expression.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We find that pineal rhythms are present in <it>cyc </it>mutants despite the absence of an SCN. The arginine vasopressin-like protein (Avpl, formerly called Vasotocin) is a peptide hormone expressed in and around the SCN. We find <it>avpl </it>mRNA is absent in <it>cyc </it>mutants, supporting previous work suggesting the SCN is missing. In contrast, expression of the putative circadian clock genes, <it>cryptochrome 1b (cry1b) </it>and <it>cryptochrome 3 (cry3)</it>, in the brain of the developing fish is unaltered. Expression of two pineal rhythmic genes, <it>exo-rhodopsin </it>(<it>exorh) </it>and <it>serotonin-N-acetyltransferase </it>(<it>aanat2</it>), involved in photoreception and melatonin synthesis, respectively, is also similar between <it>cyc </it>embryos and their wildtype (WT) siblings. The timing of the peaks and troughs of expression are the same, although the amplitude of expression is slightly decreased in the mutants. Cyclic gene expression persists for two days in <it>cyc </it>embryos transferred to constant light or constant dark, suggesting a circadian clock is driving the rhythms. However, the amplitude of rhythms in <it>cyc </it>mutants kept in constant conditions decreased more quickly than in their WT siblings.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our data suggests that circadian rhythms can be initiated and maintained in the absence of SCN and other tissues in the ventral brain. However, the SCN may have a role in regulating the amplitude of rhythms when environmental cues are absent. This provides some of the first evidence that the SCN of teleosts is not essential for establishing circadian rhythms during development. Several SCN-independent circadian rhythms have also been found in mammalian species. Thus, zebrafish may serve as a model system for understanding how vertebrate embryos coordinate rhythms that are controlled by different circadian clocks.</p
Optical Holonomic Quantum Computer
In this paper the idea of holonomic quantum computation is realized within
quantum optics. In a non-linear Kerr medium the degenerate states of laser
beams are interpreted as qubits. Displacing devices, squeezing devices and
interferometers provide the classical control parameter space where the
adiabatic loops are performed. This results into logical gates acting on the
states of the combined degenerate subspaces of the lasers, producing any one
qubit rotations and interactions between any two qubits. Issues such as
universality, complexity and scalability are addressed and several steps are
taken towards the physical implementation of this model.Comment: 16 pages, 3 figures, REVTE
Search for weakly interacting sub-eV particles with the OSQAR laser-based experiment: results and perspectives
Recent theoretical and experimental studies highlight the possibility of new
fundamental particle physics beyond the Standard Model that can be probed by
sub-eV energy experiments. The OSQAR photon regeneration experiment looks for
"Light Shining through a Wall" (LSW) from the quantum oscillation of optical
photons into "Weakly Interacting Sub-eV Particles" (WISPs), like axion or
axion-like particles (ALPs), in a 9 T transverse magnetic field over the
unprecedented length of m. No excess of events has been
detected over the background. The di-photon couplings of possible new light
scalar and pseudo-scalar particles can be constrained in the massless limit to
be less than GeV. These results are very close to the
most stringent laboratory constraints obtained for the coupling of ALPs to two
photons. Plans for further improving the sensitivity of the OSQAR experiment
are presented.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figure
Visually targeted reaching in horse-head grasshoppers
Visually targeted reaching to a specific object is a demanding neuronal task requiring the translation of the location of the object from a two-dimensionsal set of retinotopic coordinates to a motor pattern that guides a limb to that point in three-dimensional space. This sensorimotor transformation has been intensively studied in mammals, but was not previously thought to occur in animals with smaller nervous systems such as insects. We studied horse-head grasshoppers (Orthoptera: Proscopididae) crossing gaps and found that visual inputs are sufficient for them to target their forelimbs to a foothold on the opposite side of the gap. High-speed video analysis showed that these reaches were targeted accurately and directly to footholds at different locations within the visual field through changes in forelimb trajectory and body position, and did not involve stereotyped searching movements. The proscopids estimated distant locations using peering to generate motion parallax, a monocular distance cue, but appeared to use binocular visual cues to estimate the distance of nearby footholds. Following occlusion of regions of binocular overlap, the proscopids resorted to peering to target reaches even to nearby locations. Monocular cues were sufficient for accurate targeting of the ipsilateral but not the contralateral forelimb. Thus, proscopids are capable not only of the sensorimotor transformations necessary for visually targeted reaching with their forelimbs but also of flexibly using different visual cues to target reaches. © 2012 The Royal Society
Gendered endings: Narratives of male and female suicides in the South African Lowveld
This is the author's accepted manuscript. The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11013-012-9258-y. Copyright @ Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2012.Durkheimâs classical theory of suicide rates being a negative index of social solidarity downplays the salience of gendered concerns in suicide. But gendered inequalities have had a negative impact: worldwide significantly more men than women perpetrate fatal suicides. Drawing on narratives of 52 fatal suicides in Bushbuckridge, South Africa, this article suggests that Bourdieuâs concepts of âsymbolic violenceâ and âmasculine dominationâ provide a more appropriate framework for understanding this paradox. I show that the thwarting of investments in dominant masculine positions have been the major precursor to suicides by men. Men tended to take their own lives as a means of escape. By contrast, women perpetrated suicide to protest against the miserable consequences of being dominated by men. However, contra the assumption of Bourdieuâs concept of âhabitusâ, the narrators of suicide stories did reflect critically upon gender constructs
Time-Dependent Partition-Free Approach in Resonant Tunneling Systems
An extended Keldysh formalism, well suited to properly take into account the
initial correlations, is used in order to deal with the time-dependent current
response of a resonant tunneling system. We use a \textit{partition-free}
approach by Cini in which the whole system is in equilibrium before an external
bias is switched on. No fictitious partitions are used. Besides the
steady-state responses one can also calculate physical dynamical responses. In
the noninteracting case we clarify under what circumstances a steady-state
current develops and compare our result with the one obtained in the
partitioned scheme. We prove a Theorem of asymptotic Equivalence between the
two schemes for arbitrary time-dependent disturbances. We also show that the
steady-state current is independent of the history of the external perturbation
(Memory Loss Theorem). In the so called wide-band limit an analytic result for
the time-dependent current is obtained. In the interacting case we propose an
exact non-equilibrium Green function approach based on Time Dependent Density
Functional Theory. The equations are no more difficult than an ordinary Mean
Field treatment. We show how the scattering-state scheme by Lang follows from
our formulation. An exact formula for the steady-state current of an arbitrary
interacting resonant tunneling system is obtained. As an example the
time-dependent current response is calculated in the Random Phase
Approximation.Comment: final version, 18 pages, 9 figure
- âŠ