566 research outputs found
A lattice gas model of II-VI(001) semiconductor surfaces
We introduce an anisotropic two-dimensional lattice gas model of metal
terminated II-IV(001) seminconductor surfaces. Important properties of this
class of materials are represented by effective NN and NNN interactions, which
result in the competition of two vacancy structures on the surface. We
demonstrate that the experimentally observed c(2x2)-(2x1) transition of the
CdTe(001) surface can be understood as a phase transition in thermal
equilbrium. The model is studied by means of transfer matrix and Monte Carlo
techniques. The analysis shows that the small energy difference of the
competing reconstructions determines to a large extent the nature of the
different phases. Possible implications for further experimental research are
discussed.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figure
A new type of reconstruction on the InSb() surface determined by grazing incidence X-ray diffraction
The (3×3) reconstruction of the InSb( ) surface has been investigated by grazing incidence X-ray diffraction and scanning tunneling microscopy. The structure is characterized by 6-atom rings on top of a slightly buckled InSb top double layer. Two types of rings have been found, an elliptic ring consisting of 4 In and 2 Sb atoms and a trigonal ring with 3 In and 3 Sb atoms. The bond angles and lengths are consistent with the concept of rehybridization and depolarization which explains the reconstructions of the (111) and (110) surfaces
Investigation of tellurium-implanted silicon
Hall and sheet−resistivity measurements as a function of temperature combined with layer removal have been used to study Si implanted with Te at energies up to 220 keV. At low doses (≲4×10^(12) cm^(−2)), Te has a donor level with a 140−meV activation energy. The activation energy decreases at higher Te doses and is approximately equal to zero for Te doses ≳10^(15) cm^(−2). At high dose levels, the number of conduction electrons per unit area N_s is more than an order of magnitude below the number of Te per unit area. High−temperature anneal treatments followed by quenching did not produce a substantial increase in N_s, suggesting that the formation of Te clusters was not responsible for the low value of N_s. Also, channeling measurements indicated a high substitutional fraction. Based on differential Hall measurements on samples implanted with phosphorus, with and without Si predamage, we conclude that residual radiation damage is not a major factor. A theoretical calculation, which includes the effect of decrease of activation energy with increasing impurity concentrations, indicated that the number of conduction electrons could be much less than the number of implanted Te even though the apparent activation energy is almost zero. Although the results of theoretical calculation do not give quantitative agreement with the experimental results, they do confirm the changes in apparent activation energy with concentration
Hydration interactions: aqueous solvent effects in electric double layers
A model for ionic solutions with an attractive short-range pair interaction
between the ions is presented. The short-range interaction is accounted for by
adding a quadratic non-local term to the Poisson-Boltzmann free energy. The
model is used to study solvent effects in a planar electric double layer. The
counter-ion density is found to increase near the charged surface, as compared
with the Poisson-Boltzmann theory, and to decrease at larger distances. The ion
density profile is studied analytically in the case where the ion distribution
near the plate is dominated only by counter-ions. Further away from the plate
the density distribution can be described using a Poisson-Boltzmann theory with
an effective surface charge that is smaller than the actual one.Comment: 11 Figures in 13 files + LaTex file. 20 pages. Accepted to Phys. Rev.
E. Corrected typos and reference
Unintentional high density p-type modulation doping of a GaAs/AlAs core-multi-shell nanowire
Achieving significant doping in GaAs/AlAs core/shell nanowires (NWs) is of
considerable technological importance but remains a challenge due to the
amphoteric behavior of the dopant atoms. Here we show that placing a narrow
GaAs quantum well in the AlAs shell effectively getters residual carbon
acceptors leading to an \emph{unintentional} p-type doping. Magneto-optical
studies of such a GaAs/AlAs core multi-shell NW reveal quantum confined
emission. Theoretical calculations of NW electronic structure confirm quantum
confinement of carriers at the core/shell interface due to the presence of
ionized carbon acceptors in the 1~nm GaAs layer in the shell.
Micro-photoluminescence in high magnetic field shows a clear signature of
avoided crossings of the Landau level emission line with the Landau
level TO phonon replica. The coupling is caused by the resonant hole-phonon
interaction, which points to a large 2D hole density in the structure.Comment: just published in Nano Letters
(http://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/nl500818k
Differentiation and displacement: Unpicking the relationship between accounts of illness and social structure
This article seeks to unpack the relationship between social structure and accounts of illness. Taking dentine hypersensitivity as an example, this article explores the perspective that accounts of illness are sense-making processes that draw on a readily available pool of meaning. This pool of meaning is composed of a series of distinctions that make available a range of different lines of communication and action about such conditions. Such lines of communication are condensed and preserved over time and are often formed around a concept and its counter concept. The study of such processes is referred to as semantic analysis and involves drawing on the tools and techniques of conceptual history. This article goes on to explore how the semantics of dentine hypersensitivity developed. It illustrates how processes of social differentiation led to the concept being separated from the more dominant concept of dentine sensitivity and how it was medicalised, scientised and economised. In short, this study seeks to present the story of how society has developed a specific language for communicating about sensitivity and hypersensitivity in teeth. In doing so, it proposes that accounts of dentine hypersensitivity draw on lines of communication that society has preserved over time
Fluid Mechanics in Dentinal Microtubules Provides Mechanistic Insights into the Difference between Hot and Cold Dental Pain
Dental thermal pain is a significant health problem in daily life and dentistry. There is a long-standing question regarding the phenomenon that cold stimulation evokes sharper and more shooting pain sensations than hot stimulation. This phenomenon, however, outlives the well-known hydrodynamic theory used to explain dental thermal pain mechanism. Here, we present a mathematical model based on the hypothesis that hot or cold stimulation-induced different directions of dentinal fluid flow and the corresponding odontoblast movements in dentinal microtubules contribute to different dental pain responses. We coupled a computational fluid dynamics model, describing the fluid mechanics in dentinal microtubules, with a modified Hodgkin-Huxley model, describing the discharge behavior of intradental neuron. The simulated results agreed well with existing experimental measurements. We thence demonstrated theoretically that intradental mechano-sensitive nociceptors are not “equally sensitive” to inward (into the pulp) and outward (away from the pulp) fluid flows, providing mechanistic insights into the difference between hot and cold dental pain. The model developed here could enable better diagnosis in endodontics which requires an understanding of pulpal histology, neurology and physiology, as well as their dynamic response to the thermal stimulation used in dental practices
Single-copy nuclear genes resolve the phylogeny of the holometabolous insects
Background: Evolutionary relationships among the 11 extant orders of insects that undergo complete metamorphosis, called Holometabola, remain either unresolved or contentious, but are extremely important as a context for accurate comparative biology of insect model organisms. The most phylogenetically enigmatic holometabolan insects are Strepsiptera or twisted wing parasites, whose evolutionary relationship to any other insect order is unconfirmed. They have been controversially proposed as the closest relatives of the flies, based on rDNA, and a possible homeotic transformation in the common ancestor of both groups that would make the reduced forewings of Strepsiptera homologous to the reduced hindwings of Diptera. Here we present evidence from nucleotide sequences of six single-copy nuclear protein coding genes used to reconstruct phylogenetic relationships and estimate evolutionary divergence times for all holometabolan orders. Results: Our results strongly support Hymenoptera as the earliest branching holometabolan lineage, the monophyly of the extant orders, including the fleas, and traditionally recognized groupings of Neuropteroidea and Mecopterida. Most significantly, we find strong support for a close relationship between Coleoptera (beetles) and Strepsiptera, a previously proposed, but analytically controversial relationship. Exploratory analyses reveal that this relationship cannot be explained by long-branch attraction or other systematic biases. Bayesian divergence times analysis, with reference to specific fossil constraints, places the origin of Holometabola in the Carboniferous (355 Ma), a date significantly older than previous paleontological and morphological phylogenetic reconstructions. The origin and diversification of most extant insect orders began in the Triassic, but flourished in the Jurassic, with multiple adaptive radiations producing the astounding diversity of insect species for which these groups are so well known. Conclusion: These findings provide the most complete evolutionary framework for future comparative studies on holometabolous model organisms and contribute strong evidence for the resolution of the 'Strepsiptera problem', a long-standing and hotly debated issue in insect phylogenetics
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