1,152 research outputs found
On the variational homotopy perturbation method for nonlinear oscillators
In this paper we discuss a recent application of a variational homotopy
perturbation method to rather simple nonlinear oscillators . We show that the
main equations are inconsistent and for that reason the results may be of
scarce utility
Parametric resonances in electrostatically interacting carbon nanotube arrays
We study, numerically and analytically, a model of a one-dimensional array of
carbon nanotube resonators in a two-terminal configuration. The system is
brought into resonance upon application of an AC-signal superimposed on a
DC-bias voltage. When the tubes in the array are close to each other,
electrostatic interactions between tubes become important for the array
dynamics. We show that both transverse and longitudinal parametric resonances
can be excited in addition to primary resonances. The intertube electrostatic
interactions couple modes in orthogonal directions and affect the mode
stability.Comment: 11 pages, 12 figures, RevTeX
Nonparallel stability of two-dimensional nonuniformly heated boundary-layer flows
An analysis is presented for the linear stability of water boundary-layer flows over nonuniformly flat plates. Included in the analysis are disturbances due to velocity, pressure, temperatures, density, and transport properties as well as variations of the liquid properties with temperature. The method of multiple scales is used to account for the nonparallelism of the mean flow. In contrast with previous analyses, the nonsimilarity of the mean flow is taken into account. No analysis agrees, even qualitatively, with the experimental data when similar profiles are used. However, both the parallel and nonparallel results qualitatively agree with the experimental results of Strazisar and Reshotko when nonsimilar profiles are used
Breakdown of Conformal Invariance at Strongly Random Critical Points
We consider the breakdown of conformal and scale invariance in random systems
with strongly random critical points. Extending previous results on
one-dimensional systems, we provide an example of a three-dimensional system
which has a strongly random critical point. The average correlation functions
of this system demonstrate a breakdown of conformal invariance, while the
typical correlation functions demonstrate a breakdown of scale invariance. The
breakdown of conformal invariance is due to the vanishing of the correlation
functions at the infinite disorder fixed point, causing the critical
correlation functions to be controlled by a dangerously irrelevant operator
describing the approach to the fixed point. We relate the computation of
average correlation functions to a problem of persistence in the RG flow.Comment: 9 page
Geometric model and analysis of rod-like large space structures
The application of geometrical schemes to large sphere antenna reflectors was investigated. The purpose of these studies is to determine the shape and size of flat segmented surfaces which approximate general shells of revolution and in particular spherical and paraboloidal reflective surfaces. The extensive mathematical and computational geometry analyses of the reflector resulted in the development of a general purpose computer program. This program is capable of generating the complete design parameters of the dish and can meet stringent accuracy requirements. The computer program also includes a graphical self contained subroutine which graphically displays the required design
Noise-enabled precision measurements of a Duffing nanomechanical resonator
We report quantitative experimental measurements of the nonlinear response of
a radiofrequency mechanical resonator, with very high quality factor, driven by
a large swept-frequency force. We directly measure the noise-free transition
dynamics between the two basins of attraction that appear in the nonlinear
regime, and find good agreement with those predicted by the one-dimensional
Duffing equation of motion. We then measure the response of the transition
rates to controlled levels of white noise, and extract the activation energy
from each basin. The measurements of the noise-induced transitions allow us to
obtain precise values for the critical frequencies, the natural resonance
frequency, and the cubic nonlinear parameter in the Duffing oscillator, with
direct applications to high sensitivity parametric sensors based on these
resonators.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
Systematic perturbation calculation of integrals with applications to physics
In this paper we generalize and improve a method for calculating the period
of a classical oscillator and other integrals of physical interest, which was
recently developed by some of the authors. We derive analytical expressions
that prove to be more accurate than those commonly found in the literature, and
test the convergence of the series produced by the approach.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figure
Effective constitutive relations for large repetitive frame-like structures
Effective mechanical properties for large repetitive framelike structures are derived using combinations of strength of material and orthogonal transformation techniques. Symmetry considerations are used in order to identify independent property constants. The actual values of these constants are constructed according to a building block format which is carried out in the three consecutive steps: (1) all basic planar lattices are identified; (2) effective continuum properties are derived for each of these planar basic grids using matrix structural analysis methods; and (3) orthogonal transformations are used to determine the contribution of each basic set to the overall effective continuum properties of the structure
Importance of an Astrophysical Perspective for Textbook Relativity
The importance of a teaching a clear definition of the ``observer'' in
special relativity is highlighted using a simple astrophysical example from the
exciting current research area of ``Gamma-Ray Burst'' astrophysics. The example
shows that a source moving relativistically toward a single observer at rest
exhibits a time ``contraction'' rather than a ``dilation'' because the light
travel time between the source and observer decreases with time. Astrophysical
applications of special relativity complement idealized examples with real
applications and very effectively exemplify the role of a finite light travel
time.Comment: 5 pages TeX, European Journal of Physics, in pres
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