Traveling Wave Fronts and Localized Traveling Wave Convection in Binary Fluid Mixtures

Nonlinear fronts between spatially extended traveling wave convection (TW) and quiescent fluid and spatially localized traveling waves (LTWs) are investigated in quantitative detail in the bistable regime of binary fluid mixtures heated from below. A finite-difference method is used to solve the full hydrodynamic field equations in a vertical cross section of the layer perpendicular to the convection roll axes. Results are presented for ethanol-water parameters with several strongly negative separation ratios where TW solutions bifurcate subcritically. Fronts and LTWs are compared with each other and similarities and differences are elucidated. Phase propagation out of the quiescent fluid into the convective structure entails a unique selection of the latter while fronts and interfaces where the phase moves into the quiescent state behave differently. Interpretations of various experimental observations are suggested.Comment: 46 pages, 11 figures. Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Java Card:An analysis of the most successful smart card operating system

To explain why the Java Card operating system has become the most successful smart card operating system to date, we analyze the realized features of the current Java Card version, we argue it could be enhanced by adding a number of intended features and we discuss a set of complementary features that have been suggested. No technology can be successful without the right people and the right circumstances, so we provide some insights in the personal and historical historic aspects of the success of Java Card

Resolving singular forces in cavity flow: Multiscale modeling from atoms to millimeters

A multiscale approach for fluid flow is developed that retains an atomistic description in key regions. The method is applied to a classic problem where all scales contribute: The force on a moving wall bounding a fluid-filled cavity. Continuum equations predict an infinite force due to stress singularities. Following the stress over more than six decades in length in systems with characteristic scales of millimeters and milliseconds allows us to resolve the singularities and determine the force for the first time. The speedup over pure atomistic calculations is more than fourteen orders of magnitude. We find a universal dependence on the macroscopic Reynolds number, and large atomistic effects that depend on wall velocity and interactions.Comment: 4 pages,3 figure

Friction Drag on a Particle Moving in a Nematic Liquid Crystal

The flow of a liquid crystal around a particle does not only depend on its shape and the viscosity coefficients but also on the direction of the molecules. We studied the resulting drag force on a sphere moving in a nematic liquid crystal (MBBA) in a low Reynold's number approach for a fixed director field (low Ericksen number regime) using the computational artificial compressibility method. Taking the necessary disclination loop around the sphere into account, the value of the drag force anisotropy (F_\perp/F_\parallel=1.50) for an exactly computed field is in good agreement with experiments (~1.5) done by conductivity diffusion measurements. We also present data for weak anchoring of the molecules on the particle surface and of trial fields, which show to be sufficiently good for most applications. Furthermore, the behaviour of the friction close to the transition point nematic isotropic and for a rod-like and a disc-like liquid crystal will be given.Comment: 23 pages RevTeX, including 3 PS figures, 1 PS table and 1 PS-LaTeX figure; Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

A Method for Calculating the Structure of (Singular) Spacetimes in the Large

A formalism and its numerical implementation is presented which allows to calculate quantities determining the spacetime structure in the large directly. This is achieved by conformal techniques by which future null infinity (\Scri{}^+) and future timelike infinity ($i^+$) are mapped to grid points on the numerical grid. The determination of the causal structure of singularities, the localization of event horizons, the extraction of radiation, and the avoidance of unphysical reflections at the outer boundary of the grid, are demonstrated with calculations of spherically symmetric models with a scalar field as matter and radiation model.Comment: 29 pages, AGG2

Vortex disruption by magnetohydrodynamic feedback

In an electrically conducting fluid, vortices stretch out a weak, large-scale magnetic field to form strong current sheets on their edges. Associated with these current sheets are magnetic stresses, which are subsequently released through reconnection, leading to vortex disruption, and possibly even destruction. This disruption phenomenon is investigated here in the context of two-dimensional, homogeneous, incompressible magnetohydrodynamics. We derive a simple order of magnitude estimate for the magnetic stresses—and thus the degree of disruption—that depends on the strength of the background magnetic field (measured by the parameter M, a ratio between the Alfvén speed and a typical flow speed) and on the magnetic diffusivity (measured by the magnetic Reynolds number Rm). The resulting estimate suggests that significant disruption occurs when M²Rm=O(1). To test our prediction, we analyze direct numerical simulations of vortices generated by the breakup of unstable shear flows with an initially weak background magnetic field. Using the Okubo-Weiss vortex coherence criterion, we introduce a vortex disruption measure, and show that it is consistent with our predicted scaling, for vortices generated by instabilities of both a shear layer and a jet

Localized states in sheared electroconvection

Electroconvection in a thin, sheared fluid film displays a rich sequence of bifurcations between different flow states as the driving voltage is increased. We present a numerical study of an annular film in which a radial potential difference acts on induced surface charges to drive convection. The film is also sheared by independently rotating the inner edge of the annulus. This simulation models laboratory experiments on electroconvection in sheared smectic liquid crystal films. The applied shear competes with the electrical forces, resulting in oscillatory and strongly subcritical bifurcations between localized vortex states close to onset. At higher forcing, the flow becomes chaotic via a Ruelle-Takens-Newhouse scenario. The simulation allows flow visualization not available in the physical experiments, and sheds light on previously observed transitions in the current-voltage characteristics of electroconvecting smectic films.Comment: To be published in EuroPhysics Letters, 6 pages, 6 figures: final versio

The UV-A and visible solar irradiance spectrum: inter-comparison of absolutely calibrated, spectrally medium resolution solar irradiance spectra from balloon- and satellite-borne measurements

International audienceWithin the framework of the ENVISAT/-SCIAMACHY satellite validation, solar irradiance spectra are absolutely measured at moderate resolution in the UV/visible spectral range (in the UV from 316.7–418 nm and the visible from 400–652 nm at a full width half maximum resolution of 0.55 nm and 1.48 nm, respectively) from aboard the azimuth-controlled LPMA/DOAS balloon gondola at around 32 km balloon float altitude. After accounting for the atmospheric extinction due to Rayleigh scattering and gaseous absorption (O3, and NO2), the measured solar spectra are compared with previous observations. Our solar irradiance is +1.6% larger than the re-calibrated Kurucz et al. (1984) solar spectrum (Fontenla et al., 1999, called MODTRAN 3.5) in the visible spectral range (435–650 nm), +1.5% larger in the (370–415 nm) wavelength interval, but -4% smaller in the UV spectral range (316.7–370 nm), when the Kurucz spectrum is convolved to the spectral resolution of our instrument. The same comparison with the SOLSPEC solar spectrum (Thuillier et al., 1997, 1998a, b) confirms the somewhat larger solar irradiance (+1.7%) measured by the balloon instrument from 435–500 nm, but not from 500–650 nm, where the SOLSPEC is -1.3% lower than MODTRAN 3.5. Comparison of the SCIAMACHY solar spectrum from channels 1 to 4 (– re-calibrated by the University of Bremen –) with MODTRAN 3.5 indicates an agreement of +0.2% in the visible spectral range (435–585 nm). With this calibration, the SCIAMACHY solar spectrum is congruent with the balloon observations (-1%) in the 316.7–370 nm wavelength range, but both are up to -5%/-3% smaller than MODTRAN 3.5 and SOLSPEC, respectively. In agreement with findings of Skupin et al. (2002) our study emphasizes that the present ESA SCIAMACHY level 1 calibration is systematically +15% larger in the considered wavelength intervals when compared to all available other solar irradiance measurements

Recombinant expression of tandem-HBc virus-like particles (VLPs)

The hepatitis B virus (HBV) core protein (HBc) has formed the building block for virus-like particle (VLP) production for more than 30 years. The ease of production of the protein, the robust ability of the core monomers to dimerize and assemble into intact core particles, and the strong immune responses they elicit when presenting antigenic epitopes all demonstrate its promise for vaccine development (reviewed in Pumpens and Grens (Intervirology 44: 98–114, 2001)). HBc has been modified in a number of ways in attempts to expand its potential as a novel vaccine platform. The HBc protein is predominantly α-helical in structure and folds to form an L-shaped molecule. The structural subunit of the HBc particle is a dimer of monomeric HBc proteins which together form an inverted T-shaped structure. In the assembled HBc particle the four-helix bundle formed at each dimer interface appears at the surface as a prominent “spike.” The tips of the “spikes” are the preferred sites for the insertion of foreign sequences for vaccine purposes as they are the most highly exposed regions of the assembled particles. In the tandem-core modification two copies of the HBc protein are covalently linked by a flexible amino acid sequence which allows the fused dimer to fold correctly and assemble into HBc particles. The advantage of the modified structure is that the assembly of the dimeric subunits is defined and not formed by random association. This facilitates the introduction of single, larger sequences at the tip of each surface “spike,” thus overcoming the conformational clashes contingent on insertion of large structures into monomeric HBc proteins. Differences in inserted sequences influence the assembly characteristics of the modified proteins, and it is important to optimize the design of each novel construct to maximize efficiency of assembly into regular VLPs. In addition to optimization of the construct, the expression system used can also influence the ability of recombinant structures to assemble into regular isometric particles. Here, we describe the production of recombinant tandem-core particles in bacterial, yeast and plant expression systems

Nonequilibrium effects in DNA microarrays: a multiplatform study

It has recently been shown that in some DNA microarrays the time needed to reach thermal equilibrium may largely exceed the typical experimental time, which is about 15h in standard protocols (Hooyberghs et al. Phys. Rev. E 81, 012901 (2010)). In this paper we discuss how this breakdown of thermodynamic equilibrium could be detected in microarray experiments without resorting to real time hybridization data, which are difficult to implement in standard experimental conditions. The method is based on the analysis of the distribution of fluorescence intensities I from different spots for probes carrying base mismatches. In thermal equilibrium and at sufficiently low concentrations, log I is expected to be linearly related to the hybridization free energy $\Delta G$ with a slope equal to $1/RT_{exp}$, where $T_{exp}$ is the experimental temperature and R is the gas constant. The breakdown of equilibrium results in the deviation from this law. A model for hybridization kinetics explaining the observed experimental behavior is discussed, the so-called 3-state model. It predicts that deviations from equilibrium yield a proportionality of $\log I$ to $\Delta G/RT_{eff}$. Here, $T_{eff}$ is an effective temperature, higher than the experimental one. This behavior is indeed observed in some experiments on Agilent arrays. We analyze experimental data from two other microarray platforms and discuss, on the basis of the results, the attainment of equilibrium in these cases. Interestingly, the same 3-state model predicts a (dynamical) saturation of the signal at values below the expected one at equilibrium.Comment: 27 pages, 9 figures, 1 tabl