1,240 research outputs found
A Theory of Ferroelectric Phase Transition in SrTiO induced by Isotope Replacement
A theory to describe the dielectric anomalies and the ferroelectric phase
transition induced by oxygen isotope replacement in SrTiO is developed. The
proposed model gives consistent explanation between apparently contradictory
experimental results on macroscopic dielectric measurements versus microscopic
lattice dynamical measurements by neutron scattering studies. The essential
feature is described by a 3-state quantum order-disorder system characterizing
the degenerated excited states in addition to the ground state of TiO
cluster. The effect of isotope replacement is taken into account through the
tunneling frequency between the excited states. The dielectric properties are
analyzed by the mean field approximation (MFA), which gives qualitative
agreements with experimental results throughout full range of the isotope
concentration.The phase diagram in the temperature-tunneling
frequencycoordinate is studied by a QMC method to confirm the qualitative
validity of the MFA analysis.Comment: 26 pages, 8 figure
Traceability for Mutation Analysis in Model Transformation
International audienceModel transformation can't be directly tested using program techniques. Those have to be adapted to model characteristics. In this paper we focus on one test technique: mutation analysis. This technique aims to qualify a test data set by analyzing the execution results of intentionally faulty program versions. If the degree of qualification is not satisfactory, the test data set has to be improved. In the context of model, this step is currently relatively fastidious and manually performed. We propose an approach based on traceability mechanisms in order to ease the test model set improvement in the mutation analysis process. We illustrate with a benchmark the quick automatic identification of the input model to change. A new model is then created in order to raise the quality of the test data set
Effect of Sun and Planet-Bound Dark Matter on Planet and Satellite Dynamics in the Solar System
We apply our recent results on orbital dynamics around a mass-varying central
body to the phenomenon of accretion of Dark Matter-assumed not
self-annihilating-on the Sun and the major bodies of the solar system due to
its motion throughout the Milky Way halo. We inspect its consequences on the
orbits of the planets and their satellites over timescales of the order of the
age of the solar system. It turns out that a solar Dark Matter accretion rate
of \approx 10^-12 yr^-1, inferred from the upper limit \Delta M/M= 0.02-0.05 on
the Sun's Dark Matter content, assumed somehow accumulated during last 4.5 Gyr,
would have displaced the planets faraway by about 10^-2-10^1 au 4.5 Gyr ago.
Another consequence is that the semimajor axis of the Earth's orbit,
approximately equal to the Astronomical Unit, would undergo a secular increase
of 0.02-0.05 m yr^-1, in agreement with the latest observational determinations
of the Astronomical Unit secular increase of 0.07 +/- 0.02 m yr^-1 and 0.05 m
yr^-1. By assuming that the Sun will continue to accrete Dark Matter in the
next billions year at the same rate as in the past, the orbits of its planets
will shrink by about 10^-1-10^1 au (\approx 0.2-0.5 au for the Earth), with
consequences for their fate, especially of the inner planets. On the other
hand, lunar and planetary ephemerides set upper bounds on the secular variation
of the Sun's gravitational parameter GM which are one one order of magnitude
smaller than 10^-12 yr^-1. Dark Matter accretion on planets has, instead, less
relevant consequences for their satellites. Indeed, 4.5 Gyr ago their orbits
would have been just 10^-2-10^1 km wider than now. (Abridged)Comment: LaTex2e, 17 pages, no figures, 7 tables, 61 references. Small problem
with a reference fixed. To appear in Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle
Physics (JCAP
Manifestation of ageing in the low temperature conductance of disordered insulators
We are interested in the out of equilibrium phenomena observed in the
electrical conductance of disordered insulators at low temperature, which may
be signatures of the electron coulomb glass state. The present work is devoted
to the occurrence of ageing, a benchmark phenomenon for the glassy state. It is
the fact that the dynamical properties of a glass depend on its age, i.e. on
the time elapsed since it was quench-cooled. We first critically analyse
previous studies on disordered insulators and question their interpretation in
terms of ageing. We then present new measurements on insulating granular
aluminium thin films which demonstrate that the dynamics is indeed age
dependent. We also show that the results of different relaxation protocols are
related by a superposition principle. The implications of our findings for the
mechanism of the conductance slow relaxations are then discussed
Political Corporate Social Responsibility: Reviewing Theories and Setting New Agendas
There has been rising interest in political corporate social responsibility (political CSR), defined as activities where CSR has an intended or unintended political impact, or where intended or unintended political impacts on CSR exist. Based on a survey and content analysis of 146 peer-reviewed academic articles from 18 journals over the 14-year period 2000–2013, this paper systematically reviews the existing applications of general theories (such as legitimacy theory, the resource-based view and Habermasian political theory) within the political CSR literature.The survey indicates that the political CSR field is dominated by institutional theory and stakeholder theory, but future theory development needs to go beyond these theories in order to address a number of critical gaps. This review specifically points to several avenues for future political CSR research with regard to the individual level of analysis, domain integration and political CSR in multinational enterprises. The paper ends with a call for a new theory-informed and pluralist research agenda on political CSR to integrate different perspectives and re-examine the role of the state
Edge magnetoplasmons in periodically modulated structures
We present a microscopic treatment of edge magnetoplasmons (EMP's) within the
random-phase approximation for strong magnetic fields, low temperatures, and
filling factor , when a weak short-period superlattice potential is
imposed along the Hall bar. The modulation potential modifies both the spatial
structure and the dispersion relation of the fundamental EMP and leads to the
appearance of a novel gapless mode of the fundamental EMP. For sufficiently
weak modulation strengths the phase velocity of this novel mode is almost the
same as the group velocity of the edge states but it should be quite smaller
for stronger modulation. We discuss in detail the spatial structure of the
charge density of the renormalized and the novel fundamental EMP's.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure
A Model Driven Approach to the Analysis of Timeliness Properties
Abstract. The need for a design language that is rigorous but accessible and intuitive is often at odds with the formal and mathematical nature of languages used for analysis. UML and Petri Nets are a good example of this dichotomy. UML is a widely accepted modelling language capable of modelling the structural and behavioural aspects of a system. However UML lacks the mathematical foundation that is required for rigorous analysis. Petri Nets on the other hand have a strong mathematical base that is well suited for analysis of a system but lacks the appeal and ease-of-use of UML. Design in UML languages such as Sequence Diagrams and analysis in Petri Nets require on one hand some expertise in potentially two incompatible systems and their tools, and on the other a seamless transition from one system to the other. One way of addressing this impediment is to focus the software development mainly on the design language system and to facilitate the transition to the formal analysis by means of a combination of automation and tool support. The aim of this paper is to present a transformation system, which takes UML Sequence Diagrams augmented with time constraints and generates semantically equivalent Petri Nets that preserve the timing requirements. A case study on a small network is used in order to illustrate the proposed approach and in particular the design, the transformation and the analysis processes.
Magnetic Branes in Gauss-Bonnet Gravity
We present two new classes of magnetic brane solutions in
Einstein-Maxwell-Gauss-Bonnet gravity with a negative cosmological constant.
The first class of solutions yields an -dimensional spacetime with a
longitudinal magnetic field generated by a static magnetic brane. We also
generalize this solution to the case of spinning magnetic branes with one or
more rotation parameters. We find that these solutions have no curvature
singularity and no horizons, but have a conic geometry. In these spacetimes,
when all the rotation parameters are zero, the electric field vanishes, and
therefore the brane has no net electric charge. For the spinning brane, when
one or more rotation parameters are non zero, the brane has a net electric
charge which is proportional to the magnitude of the rotation parameter. The
second class of solutions yields a spacetime with an angular magnetic field.
These solutions have no curvature singularity, no horizon, and no conical
singularity. Again we find that the net electric charge of the branes in these
spacetimes is proportional to the magnitude of the velocity of the brane.
Finally, we use the counterterm method in the Gauss-Bonnet gravity and compute
the conserved quantities of these spacetimes.Comment: 17 pages, No figure, The version to be published in Phys. Rev.
Functional diversity of chemokines and chemokine receptors in response to viral infection of the central nervous system.
Encounters with neurotropic viruses result in varied outcomes ranging from encephalitis, paralytic poliomyelitis or other serious consequences to relatively benign infection. One of the principal factors that control the outcome of infection is the localized tissue response and subsequent immune response directed against the invading toxic agent. It is the role of the immune system to contain and control the spread of virus infection in the central nervous system (CNS), and paradoxically, this response may also be pathologic. Chemokines are potent proinflammatory molecules whose expression within virally infected tissues is often associated with protection and/or pathology which correlates with migration and accumulation of immune cells. Indeed, studies with a neurotropic murine coronavirus, mouse hepatitis virus (MHV), have provided important insight into the functional roles of chemokines and chemokine receptors in participating in various aspects of host defense as well as disease development within the CNS. This chapter will highlight recent discoveries that have provided insight into the diverse biologic roles of chemokines and their receptors in coordinating immune responses following viral infection of the CNS
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