Many-body orbital paramagnetism in doped graphene sheets

The orbital magnetic susceptibility (OMS) of a gas of noninteracting massless Dirac fermions is zero when the Fermi energy is away from the Dirac point. Making use of diagrammatic perturbation theory, we calculate exactly the OMS of massless Dirac fermions to first order in the Coulomb interaction demonstrating that it is finite and positive. Doped graphene sheets are thus unique systems in which the OMS is completely controlled by many-body effects.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, submitte

Theory of Coulomb drag for massless Dirac fermions

Coulomb drag between two unhybridized graphene sheets separated by a dielectric spacer has recently attracted considerable theoretical interest. We first review, for the sake of completeness, the main analytical results which have been obtained by other authors. We then illustrate pedagogically the minimal theory of Coulomb drag between two spatially-separated two-dimensional systems of massless Dirac fermions which are both away from the charge-neutrality point. This relies on second-order perturbation theory in the screened interlayer interaction and on Boltzmann transport theory. In this theoretical framework and in the low-temperature limit, we demonstrate that, to leading (i.e. quadratic) order in temperature, the drag transresistivity is completely insensitive to the precise intralayer momentum-relaxation mechanism (i.e. to the functional dependence of the scattering time on energy). We also provide analytical results for the low-temperature drag transresistivity for both cases of "thick" and "thin" spacers and for arbitrary values of the dielectric constants of the media surrounding the two Dirac-fermion layers. Finally, we present numerical results for the low-temperature drag transresistivity in the case in which one of the media surrounding the Dirac-fermion layers has a frequency-dependent dielectric constant. We conclude by suggesting an experiment that can potentially allow for the observation of departures from the canonical Fermi-liquid quadratic-in-temperature behavior of the transresistivity.Comment: 20 pages, 4 figure

Water vapour permeability of clay bricks

The water vapour permeability of clay bricks has been experimentally measured in order to draw a representative outline of industrial products without pore-forming additives. The correlations between water vapour permeability and the main compositional and microstructural parameters of both bricks and clay bodies have been investigated. A statistical model was set up in order to predict with reasonable precision and reliability, the water vapour permeability on the basis of open porosity, bulk density, mean pore size and pore specific surface values of bricks, and the finer particle size of clay bodies

On Coulomb drag in double layer systems

We argue, for a wide class of systems including graphene, that in the low temperature, high density, large separation and strong screening limits the drag resistivity behaves as d^{-4}, where d is the separation between the two layers. The results are independent of the energy dispersion relation, the dependence on momentum of the transport time, and the wave function structure factors. We discuss how a correct treatment of the electron-electron interactions in an inhomogeneous dielectric background changes the theoretical analysis of the experimental drag results of Ref. [1]. We find that a quantitative understanding of the available experimental data [1] for drag in graphene is lacking.Comment: http://iopscience.iop.org/0953-8984/24/33/335602

Thermal conductivity of clay bricks

In the present work the thermal conductivity of 29 samples of clay bricks was measured and the correlations of the thermal performance with the compositional, physical, and microstructural features of products were investigated. The results obtained directed our attention toward a better understanding of the role played by some parameters (i.e., mineralogical components and pore size distribution), other than bulk density, in improving or depressing the insulating properties of bricks. Among them, the unfavorable role of quartz, Ca-rich silicates, and amorphous phase came out, while the role of pore size and specific surface should be more accurately evaluated in the structural design of materials

THE LATE EARLY CRETACEOUS TRANSGRESSION ON THE LATERITES IN VOURINOS AND VERMION MASSIFS (WESTERN MACEDONIA, GREECE)

Τρεις στρωματογραφικές τομές, από τον ανατολικό Βούρινο (περιοχή Ροδιανής) και το ανατολικό Βέρμιο, απεκάλυψαν την ίδια ηλικία των φαινομένων που σχετίζονται με τις λατεριτιώσεις που προσέβαλαν το σερπεντινιωμένο οφιολιθικό σύμπλεγμα μετά την τοποθέτηση του πάνω στην πελαγονική επικράτεια. Στις τομές παρατηρούνται τεμάχη σερπεντινιωμένων χαρτσβουργιτών που φέρουν λατεριτικές ασυμφωνίες στην κορυφή, καλυπτόμενες από επικλυσιγενείς υστερο-ηωκρητιδικούς νηριτικούς ασβεστόλιθους. Κοντά στο χωρίο Κτένι (περιοχή Ροδιανής), ένας ορίζοντας λατερίτη, που κάθεται στην κορυφή σερπεντινιτών, καλύπτεται από επικλυσιγενείς νηριτικούς ασβεστόλιθους με Salpingoporella urladanasi, η οποία προσδιορίζει ηλικία Βαρρέμιο - Άλβιο, ακολουθούμενους από ασβεστόλιθους με Orbitolinidae. Στη θέση Τσιμοδιά (ΒΒΔ της προηγουμένης), ο λατεριτικός ορίζοντας, που κάθεται πάνω σε καρστικοποιημένους ανωιουρασικούς υφαλογενείς ασβεστόλιθους (οι οποίοι είναι το κορυφαίο μέλος ενός σώματος ανθρακικής πλατφόρμας που κάθεται τεκτονικός πάνω στους οφιολίθους), καλύπτεται επικλυσιγενώς από ένα σιδηρούχο πισσολιθικό στρωματίδιο και ασβεστόλιθους του Απτίου, που έχουν υφή wackes tone-muds tone και επίσης περιέχουν Salpingoporella urladanasi, ακολουθούμενους από ασβεστόλιθους με Orbitolina του Κενομανίου. Τέλος, η τρίτη εξετασθείσα τοποθεσία, αρκετά ΒΑ των προηγουμένων, βρίσκεται στις ανατολικές παρυφές του Βερμίου και συγκεκριμένα στα ΒΔ του χωρίου Κουμαριά. Εκεί, ομοίως παρατηρείται ότι τα λατεριτιωμένα τεμάχη σερπεντινιτών καλύπτονται επικλυσιγενώς από νηριτικούς ασβεστόλιθους με Salpingoporella urladanasi, που περνούν προς τα πάνω σε ανακρυσταλλωμένους ανωκρητιδικούς ασβεστόλιθους με Orbitolinidae και θραύσματα ρουδιστών και, εν τέλει, στο φλύσχη. Οι παραπάνω χαρακτήρες οδηγούν στο συμπέρασμα ότι η ανάδυση και η επακόλουθη λατεριτίωση των επωθημένων οφιολίθων του Βούρινου και του Βερμίου, στη βόρεια πελαγονική επικράτεια, που έλαβε χώρα αρχής γενομένης από το ύστατο Ιουρασικό, ακολουθήθηκε από μια θαλάσσια επίκλυση που άρχισε μέσα στο διάστημα Βαρρέμιο - Άλβιο, σε συνθήκες ανθρακικής πλατφόρμας, αρχικώς κλειστής και υφάλμυρης, που σημαδεύονται από την παρουσία του φύκους Salpingoporella urladanasi, ακολουθούμενες από κανονικής αλμυρότητας συνθήκες ανθρακικής πλατφόρμας. Η νηριτική ιζηματογένεση έμεινε ακλόνητη μέχρι το κατώτερο Κενομάνιο. Στη συνέχεια, μία βάθυνση, νωρίτερα στο Βούρινο και αργότερα στο Βέρμιο, οδήγησε στην απόθεση πελαγικών και τουρβιδιτικών ασβεστόλιθων και στη συνέχεια του φλύσχη.Three stratigraphical sections from eastern Vourinos (Rhodiani area) to eastern Vermion massifs revealed the same age of the latérite events affecting the serpentinized ophiolite complex after its emplacement on the Pelagonian domain. All of them consist from their base upwards of serpentinized harzburgite slivers with lateritic unconformities on the top, followed by transgressive upper Lower Cretaceous neritic limestones. At Kteni locality (Rhodiani area), a laterite horizon, lying on top of serpentinites, is covered by transgressive neritic limestones with Salpingoporella urladanasi, assigning a Barremian - Albian age, followed by Orbitolinidae limestones. At Tsimodia locality (NNW to the previous), the latente horizon, lying on karstified Upper Jurassic reef limestones (which are the top member of a carbonate platform body tectonically lying on the ophiolites), is trans gres s ively overlain by iron-rich pisolith levels and Aptian limestones of the wackes tone-muds tone type, also containing Salpingoporella urladanasi, followed by Cenomanian Orbitolina limestones. Finally, the third examined locality, further north-eastward to the previous, is situated at the eastern slopes of Vermion massif and more precisely at the NWpart of Koumaria village. There, it can again be observed that the lateritized serpentinite slivers are overlain transgress ively by neritic limestones with Salpingoporella urladanasi, passing upwards into Upper Cretaceous recrystallized limestones with Orbitolinidae and rudist fragments and, finally, toflysch deposition. These features allow to recognize that the emersion and the consecutive lateritization of the thrust-emplaced ophiolites in Vourinos and Vermion massifs in the northern Pelagonian domain, starting from the Latest Jurassic, was followed by a marine transgression beginning from the Barremian - Albian, firstly under restricted and brackish carbonate platform conditions, marked by the presence of the dasycladalean alga Salpingoporella urladanasi, followed by normal salinity carbonate platform conditions. The neritic sedimentation was stable until the Early Cenomanian. Subsequently, a deepening, earlier at Vourinos and later at Vermion, resulted in deposition of pelagic and turbiditic carbonates and then offlysch