31,238 research outputs found
High Fill-Out, Extreme Mass Ratio Overcontact Binary Systems. X. The new discovered binary XY Leonis Minoris
The new discovered short-period close binary star, XY LMi, was monitored
photometrically since 2006. It is shown that the light curves are typical
EW-type and show complete eclipses with an eclipse duration of about 80
minutes. By analyzing the complete B, V, R, and I light curves with the 2003
version of the W-D code, photometric solutions were determined. It is
discovered that XY LMi is a high fill-out, extreme mass ratio overcontact
binary system with a mass ratio of q=0.148 and a fill-out factor of f=74.1%,
suggesting that it is on the late evolutionary stage of late-type tidal-locked
binary stars. As observed in other overcontact binary stars, evidence for the
presence of two dark spots on both components are given. Based on our 19
epoches of eclipse times, it is found that the orbital period of the
overcontact binary is decreasing continuously at a rate of
dP/dt=-1.67\times10^{-7}\,days/year, which may be caused by the mass transfer
from the primary to the secondary or/and angular momentum loss via magnetic
stellar wind. The decrease of the orbital period may result in the increase of
the fill-out, and finally, it will evolve into a single rapid-rotation star
when the fluid surface reaching the outer critical Roche Lobe.Comment: 19 pages, 4 figures, 9 table
Subject-specific finite element modelling of the human hand complex : muscle-driven simulations and experimental validation
This paper aims to develop and validate a subject-specific framework for modelling the human hand. This was achieved by combining medical image-based finite element modelling, individualized muscle force and kinematic measurements. Firstly, a subject-specific human hand finite element (FE) model was developed. The geometries of the phalanges, carpal bones, wrist bones, ligaments, tendons, subcutaneous tissue and skin were all included. The material properties were derived from in-vivo and in-vitro experiment results available in the literature. The boundary and loading conditions were defined based on the kinematic data and muscle forces of a specific subject captured from the in-vivo grasping tests. The predicted contact pressure and contact area were in good agreement with the in-vivo test results of the same subject, with the relative errors for the contact pressures all being below 20%. Finally, sensitivity analysis was performed to investigate the effects of important modelling parameters on the predictions. The results showed that contact pressure and area were sensitive to the material properties and muscle forces. This FE human hand model can be used to make a detailed and quantitative evaluation into biomechanical and neurophysiological aspects of human hand contact during daily perception and manipulation. The findings can be applied to the design of the bionic hands or neuro-prosthetics in the future
A Circumbinary Planet in Orbit Around the Short-Period White-Dwarf Eclipsing Binary RR Cae
By using six new determined mid-eclipse times together with those collected
from the literature, we found that the Observed-Calculated (O-C) curve of RR
Cae shows a cyclic change with a period of 11.9 years and an amplitude of
14.3s, while it undergoes an upward parabolic variation (revealing a long-term
period increase at a rate of dP/dt =+4.18(+-0.20)x10^(-12). The cyclic change
was analyzed for the light-travel time effect that arises from the
gravitational influence of a third companion. The mass of the third body was
determined to be M_3*sin i' = 4.2(+-0.4) M_{Jup} suggesting that it is a
circumbinary giant planet when its orbital inclination is larger than 17.6
degree. The orbital separation of the circumbinary planet from the central
eclipsing binary is about 5.3(+-0.6)AU. The period increase is opposite to the
changes caused by angular momentum loss via magnetic braking or/and
gravitational radiation, nor can it be explained by the mass transfer between
both components because of its detached configuration. These indicate that the
observed upward parabolic change is only a part of a long-period (longer than
26.3 years) cyclic variation, which may reveal the presence of another giant
circumbinary planet in a wide orbit.Comment: It will be published in the MNRA
Valley Dependent Optoelectronics from Inversion Symmetry Breaking
Inversion symmetry breaking allows contrasted circular dichroism in different
k-space regions, which takes the extreme form of optical selection rules for
interband transitions at high symmetry points. In materials where band-edges
occur at noncentral valleys, this enables valley dependent interplay of
electrons with light of different circular polarizations, in analogy to spin
dependent optical activities in semiconductors. This discovery is in perfect
harmony with the previous finding of valley contrasted Bloch band features of
orbital magnetic moment and Berry curvatures from inversion symmetry breaking
[Phys. Rev. Lett. 99, 236809 (2007)]. A universal connection is revealed
between the k-resolved optical oscillator strength of interband transitions,
the orbital magnetic moment and the Berry curvatures, which also provides a
principle for optical measurement of orbital magnetization and intrinsic
anomalous Hall conductivity in ferromagnetic systems. The general physics is
demonstrated in graphene where inversion symmetry breaking leads to valley
contrasted optical selection rule for interband transitions. We discuss
graphene based valley optoelectronics applications where light polarization
information can be interconverted with electronic information.Comment: Expanded version, to appear in Phys. Rev.
Fluctuation of the Initial Conditions and Its Consequences on Some Observables
We show effects of the event-by-event fluctuation of the initial conditions
(IC) in hydrodynamic description of high-energy nuclear collisions on some
observables. Such IC produce not only fluctuations in observables but, due to
their bumpy structure, several non-trivial effects appear. They enhance
production of isotropically distributed high-pT particles, making v2 smaller
there. Also, they reduce v2 in the forward and backward regions where the
global matter density is smaller, so where such effects become more
efficacious. They may also produce the so-called ridge effect in the two
large-pT particle correlation.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figures, presented at the IV Workshop on Particle
Correlations and Femtoscopy (WPCF2008), Krakow, Poland, 11-14 Sep 200
- …