1,664 research outputs found
Simulation of Welding Deformation for Accurate Ship Assembling (Report II) : Influence of Initial Geometrical Imperfection on Butt Welded Plate(Mechanics, Strength & Structural Design)
Structural phase control of (LaNdSr)CuO thin films by epitaxial growth technique
Epitaxial growth of (LaNdSr)CuO thin films was
studied by pulsed-laser deposition technique on three different substrates,
SrTiO (100), LaSrAlO (001), and YAlO (001). The
(Nd,Sr,Ce)CuO-type structure appears at the initial growth stage on
SrTiO (100) when the film is deposited under the growth conditions
optimized for (La,Sr)CuO. This (Nd,Sr,Ce)CuO-type structure can
be eliminated by increasing the substrate temperature and the laser repetition
frequency. Films on LaSrAlO (001) maintain a LaCuO-type structure
as bulk samples, but those on YAlO (001) show phase separation into
LaCuO- and NdCuO-type structures. Such complicated results are
explained in terms of the competition between lattice misfit and thermodynamic
conditions. Interestingly the films with LaCuO-type structure prepared
on SrTiO and LaSrAlO show different surface structures and transport
properties. The results indicate the possibility of controlling charge stripes
of (LaNdSr)CuO as was demonstrated in
(La,Ba)CuO thin films by Sato et al. (Phys. Rev. B {\bf 62}, R799
(2000)).Comment: 5 pages, 6 EPS figure, accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.
A Poissonian explanation for heavy-tails in e-mail communication
Patterns of deliberate human activity and behavior are of utmost importance
in areas as diverse as disease spread, resource allocation, and emergency
response. Because of its widespread availability and use, e-mail correspondence
provides an attractive proxy for studying human activity. Recently, it was
reported that the probability density for the inter-event time between
consecutively sent e-mails decays asymptotically as , with
. The slower than exponential decay of the inter-event time
distribution suggests that deliberate human activity is inherently
non-Poissonian. Here, we demonstrate that the approximate power-law scaling of
the inter-event time distribution is a consequence of circadian and weekly
cycles of human activity. We propose a cascading non-homogeneous Poisson
process which explicitly integrates these periodic patterns in activity with an
individual's tendency to continue participating in an activity. Using standard
statistical techniques, we show that our model is consistent with the empirical
data. Our findings may also provide insight into the origins of heavy-tailed
distributions in other complex systems.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figure
Magnetic Properties of Ab initio Model for Iron-Based Superconductors LaFeAsO
By using variational Monte Carlo method, we examine an effective low-energy
model for LaFeAsO derived from an ab initio downfolding scheme. We show that
quantum and many-body fluctuations near a quantum critical point largely reduce
the antiferromagnetic (AF) ordered moment and the model not only quantitatively
reproduces the small ordered moment in LaFeAsO, but also explains the diverse
dependence on LaFePO, BaFe2As2 and FeTe. We also find that LaFeAsO is under
large orbital fluctuations, sandwiched by the AF Mott insulator and weakly
correlated metals. The orbital fluctuations and Dirac-cone dispersion hold keys
for the diverse magnetic properties.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Coexistence of, and Competition between, Superconductivity and Charge-Stripe Order in La(1.6-x)Nd(0.4)Sr(x)CuO(4)
Previously we have presented evidence for stripe order of holes and spins in
La(1.6-x)Nd(0.4)Sr(x)CuO(4) with x=0.12. Here we show, via neutron diffraction
measurements of magnetic scattering, that similar order occurs in crystals with
x=0.15 and 0.20. Zero-field-cooled magnetization measurements show that all 3
compositions are also superconducting, with the superconducting transition
temperature increasing as the low-temperature staggered magnetization
decreases.Comment: REVTEX, 5 pages, 2 col., 4 epsf figures included with psfig.st
The T2-Shortening Effect of Gadolinium and the Optimal Conditions for Maximizing the CNR for Evaluating the Biliary System: a Phantom Study
OBJECTIVE: Clear depiction of the common bile duct is important when evaluating neonatal cholestasis in order to differentiate biliary atresia from other diseases. During MR cholangiopancreatography, the T2-shortening effect of gadolinium can increase the contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) of the bile duct and enhance its depiction. The purpose of this study was to confirm, by performing a phantom study, the T2-shortening effect of gadolinium, to evaluate the effect of different gadolinium chelates with different gadolinium concentrations and different magnetic field strengths for investigating the optimal combination of these conditions, and for identifying the maximum CNR for the evaluation of the biliary system.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: MR imaging using a T2-weighted single-shot fast spin echo sequence and T2 relaxometry was performed with a sponge phantom in a syringe tube. Two kinds of contrast agents (Gd-DTPA and Gd-EOB-DTPA) with different gadolinium concentrations were evaluated with 1.5T and 3T scanners. The signal intensities, the CNRs and the T2 relaxation time were analyzed.
RESULTS: The signal intensities significantly decreased as the gadolinium concentrations increased (p < 0.001) with both contrast agents. These signal intensities were higher on a 3T (p < 0.001) scanner. The CNRs were higher on a 1.5T (p < 0.001) scanner and they showed no significant change with different gadolinium concentrations. The T2 relaxation time also showed a negative correlation with the gadolinium concentrations (p < 0.001) and the CNRs showed decrease more with Gd-EOB-DTPA (versus Gd-DTPA; p < 0.001) on a 3T scanner (versus 1.5T; p < 0.001).
CONCLUSION: A T2-shortening effect of gadolinium exhibits a negative correlation with the gadolinium concentration for both the signal intensities and the T2 relaxation time. A higher CNR can be obtained with Gd-DTPA on a 1.5T MRI scannerope
Characterization of BNL and HPK AC-LGAD sensors with a 120 GeV proton beam
We present measurements of AC-LGADs performed at the Fermilab's test beam
facility using 120 GeV protons. We studied the performance of various strip and
pad AC-LGAD sensors that were produced by BNL and HPK. The measurements are
performed with our upgraded test beam setup that utilizes a high precision
telescope tracker, and a simultaneous readout of up to 7 channels per sensor,
which allows detailed studies of signal sharing characteristics. These
measurements allow us to assess the differences in designs between different
manufacturers, and optimize them based on experimental performance. We then
study several reconstruction algorithms to optimize position and time
resolutions that utilize the signal sharing properties of each sensor. We
present a world's first demonstration of silicon sensors in a test beam that
simultaneously achieve better than 6-10 micron position and 30 ps time
resolution. This represents a substantial improvement to the spatial resolution
than would be obtained with binary readout of sensors with similar pitch
FADS2 Function Loss at the Cancer Hotspot 11q13 Locus Diverts Lipid Signaling Precursor Synthesis to Unusual Eicosanoid Fatty Acids
Background: Genes coding for the fatty acid desaturases (FADS1, 2, 3) localized at the cancer genomic hotspot 11q13 locus are required for the biosynthesis of 20 carbon polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) that are direct eicosanoid precursors. In several cancer cell lines, FADS2 encoded D6 and D8 desaturation is not functional. Methodology/Principal Findings: Analyzing MCF7 cell fatty acids with detailed structural mass spectrometry, we show that in the absence of FADS2 activity, the FADS1 product D5-desaturase operates to produce 5,11,14–20:3 and 5,11,14,17–20:4. These PUFA are missing the 8–9 double bond of the eicosanoid signaling precursors arachidonic acid (5,8,11,14–20:4) and eicosapentaenoic acid (5,8,11,14,17–20:5). Heterologous expression of FADS2 restores D6 and D8-desaturase activity and normal eicosanoid precursor synthesis. Conclusions/Significance: The loss of FADS2-encoded activities in cancer cells shuts down normal PUFA biosynthesis, deleting the endogenous supply of eicosanoid and downstream docosanoid precursors, and replacing them with unusual butylene-interrupted fatty acids. If recapitulated in vivo, the normal eicosanoid and docosanoid cell signaling milieu would be depleted and altered due to reduction and substitution of normal substrates with unusual substrates, with unpredictable consequences for cellular communication
Semi-local quantum liquids
Gauge/gravity duality applied to strongly interacting systems at finite
density predicts a universal intermediate energy phase to which we refer as a
semi-local quantum liquid. Such a phase is characterized by a finite spatial
correlation length, but an infinite correlation time and associated nontrivial
scaling behavior in the time direction, as well as a nonzero entropy density.
For a holographic system at a nonzero chemical potential, this unstable phase
sets in at an energy scale of order of the chemical potential, and orders at
lower energies into other phases; examples include superconductors and
antiferromagnetic-type states. In this paper we give examples in which it also
orders into Fermi liquids of "heavy" fermions. While the precise nature of the
lower energy state depends on the specific dynamics of the individual system,
we argue that the semi-local quantum liquid emerges universally at intermediate
energies through deconfinement (or equivalently fractionalization). We also
discuss the possible relevance of such a semi-local quantum liquid to heavy
electron systems and the strange metal phase of high temperature cuprate
superconductors.Comment: 31 pages, 7 figure
Astrophysical and Cosmological Implications of Large Volume String Compactifications
We study the spectrum, couplings and cosmological and astrophysical
implications of the moduli fields for the class of Calabi-Yau IIB string
compactifications for which moduli stabilisation leads to an exponentially
large volume V ~ 10^{15} l_s^6 and an intermediate string scale m_s ~
10^{11}GeV, with TeV-scale observable supersymmetry breaking. All K\"ahler
moduli except for the overall volume are heavier than the susy breaking scale,
with m ~ ln(M_P/m_{3/2}) m_{3/2} ~ (\ln(M_P/m_{3/2}))^2 m_{susy} ~ 500 TeV and,
contrary to standard expectations, have matter couplings suppressed only by the
string scale rather than the Planck scale. These decay to matter early in the
history of the universe, with a reheat temperature T ~ 10^7 GeV, and are free
from the cosmological moduli problem (CMP). The heavy moduli have a branching
ratio to gravitino pairs of 10^{-30} and do not suffer from the gravitino
overproduction problem. The overall volume modulus is a distinctive feature of
these models and is an M_{planck}-coupled scalar of mass m ~ 1 MeV and subject
to the CMP. A period of thermal inflation can help relax this problem. This
field has a lifetime ~ 10^{24}s and can contribute to dark matter. It may be
detected through its decays to 2\gamma or e^+e^-. If accessible the e^+e^-
decay mode dominates, with Br(\chi \to 2 \gamma) suppressed by a factor
(ln(M_P/m_{3/2}))^2. We consider the potential for detection of this field
through different astrophysical sources and find that the observed gamma-ray
background constrains \Omega_{\chi} <~ 10^{-4}. The decays of this field may
generate the 511 keV emission line from the galactic centre observed by
INTEGRAL/SPI.Comment: 31 pages, 2 figures; v2. refs adde
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