Design of Flexure-based Precision Transmission Mechanisms using Screw Theory

This paper enables the synthesis of flexure-based transmission mechanisms that possess multiple decoupled inputs and outputs of any type (e.g. rotations, translations, and/or screw motions), which are linked by designer-specified transmission ratios. A comprehensive library of geometric shapes is utilized from which every feasible concept that possesses the desired transmission characteristics may be rapidly conceptualized and compared before an optimal concept is selected. These geometric shapes represent the rigorous mathematics of screw theory and uniquely link a body's desired motions to the flexible constraints that enable those motions. This paper's impact is most significant to the design of nano-positioners, microscopy stages, optical mounts, and sensors. A flexure-based microscopy stage was designed, fabricated, and tested to demonstrate the utility of the theory

Safety and patient outcomes with lubiprostone for up to 52 weeks in patients with irritable bowel syndrome with constipation

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/90244/1/apt4983.pd

Exploitation of Dynamic Communication Patterns through Static Analysis

Abstract not provide

Nonprofit governance: Improving performance in troubled economic times

Nonprofit management is currently pressured to perform effectively in a weak economy. Yet, nonprofit governance continues to suffer from unclear conceptions of the division of labor between board of directors and executive directors. This online survey of 114 executive directors aims to provide clarification and recommendations for social administration

Discontinuous transitions in double exchange materials

It is shown that the double exchange Hamiltonian, with weak antiferromagnetic interactions, has a rich variety of first order transitions between phases with different electronic densities and/or magnetizations. For band fillings in the range $0.3 \le x \le 0.5$, and at finite temperatures, a discontinuous transition between phases with similar electronic densities but different magnetizations takes place. This sharp transition, which is not suppressed by electrostatic effects, and survives in the presence of an applied field, is consistent with the phenomenology of the doped manganites near the transition temperature.Comment: three more variational ansatzs considere

Energy aware approach for HPC systems

International audienceHigh‐performance computing (HPC) systems require energy during their full life cycle from design and production to transportation to usage and recycling/dismanteling. Because of increase of ecological and cost awareness, energy performance is now a primary focus. This chapter focuses on the usage aspect of HPC and how adapted and optimized software solutions could improve energy efficiency. It provides a detailed explanation of server power consumption, and discusses the application of HPC, phase detection, and phase identification. The chapter also suggests that having the load and memory access profiles is insufficient for an effective evaluation of the power consumed by an application. The available leverages in HPC systems are also shown in detail. The chapter proposes some solutions for modeling the power consumption of servers, which allows designing power prediction models for better decision making.These approaches allow the deployment and usage of a set of available green leverages, permitting energy reduction

Characterization of 30 76^{76}Ge enriched Broad Energy Ge detectors for GERDA Phase II

The GERmanium Detector Array (GERDA) is a low background experiment located at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy, which searches for neutrinoless double beta decay of $^{76}$Ge into $^{76}$Se+2e$^-$. GERDA has been conceived in two phases. Phase II, which started in December 2015, features several novelties including 30 new Ge detectors. These were manufactured according to the Broad Energy Germanium (BEGe) detector design that has a better background discrimination capability and energy resolution compared to formerly widely-used types. Prior to their installation, the new BEGe detectors were mounted in vacuum cryostats and characterized in detail in the HADES underground laboratory in Belgium. This paper describes the properties and the overall performance of these detectors during operation in vacuum. The characterization campaign provided not only direct input for GERDA Phase II data collection and analyses, but also allowed to study detector phenomena, detector correlations as well as to test the strength of pulse shape simulation codes.Comment: 29 pages, 18 figure

Background free search for neutrinoless double beta decay with GERDA Phase II

The Standard Model of particle physics cannot explain the dominance of matter over anti-matter in our Universe. In many model extensions this is a very natural consequence of neutrinos being their own anti-particles (Majorana particles) which implies that a lepton number violating radioactive decay named neutrinoless double beta ($0\nu\beta\beta$) decay should exist. The detection of this extremely rare hypothetical process requires utmost suppression of any kind of backgrounds. The GERDA collaboration searches for $0\nu\beta\beta$ decay of $^{76}$Ge (^{76}\rm{Ge} \rightarrow\,^{76}\rm{Se} + 2e^-) by operating bare detectors made from germanium with enriched $^{76}$Ge fraction in liquid argon. Here, we report on first data of GERDA Phase II. A background level of $\approx10^{-3}$ cts/(keV$\cdot$kg$\cdot$yr) has been achieved which is the world-best if weighted by the narrow energy-signal region of germanium detectors. Combining Phase I and II data we find no signal and deduce a new lower limit for the half-life of $5.3\cdot10^{25}$ yr at 90 % C.L. Our sensitivity of $4.0\cdot10^{25}$ yr is competitive with the one of experiments with significantly larger isotope mass. GERDA is the first $0\nu\beta\beta$ experiment that will be background-free up to its design exposure. This progress relies on a novel active veto system, the superior germanium detector energy resolution and the improved background recognition of our new detectors. The unique discovery potential of an essentially background-free search for $0\nu\beta\beta$ decay motivates a larger germanium experiment with higher sensitivity.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figures, 1 table; ; data, figures and images available at http://www.mpi-hd.mpg/gerda/publi