Thermal conductivity of MgO in giant planetary interior conditions predicted by deep potential

Thermal conductivity $\kappa$ of MgO plays a fundamental role in understanding the thermal evolution and mantle convection in the interior of terrestrial planets. However, previous theoretical calculations deviate from each other and the $\kappa$ of high-pressure B2 phase remains undetermined. Here, by combining molecular dynamics and deep potential trained with first-principles data, we systematically investigate the $\kappa$ of MgO from ambient state to the core-mantle boundary (CMB) of super-Earth with $5M_{\oplus}$. We point out the significance of 4-phonon scatterings and modify the conventional thermal conductivity model of MgO by considering the density-dependent proportion of 3-phonon and 4-phonon scatterings. The $\kappa$ profiles of MgO in Earth and super-Earth are further estimated. For super-Earth, we predict a significant reduction of $\kappa$ at the B1-B2 phase transition area near the CMB. This work provides new insights into thermal transport under extreme conditions and an improved thermal model for terrestrial planets.Comment: 4 figure

An Efficient Multi-solution Solver for the Inverse Kinematics of 3-Section Constant-Curvature Robots

Piecewise constant curvature is a popular kinematics framework for continuum robots. Computing the model parameters from the desired end pose, known as the inverse kinematics problem, is fundamental in manipulation, tracking and planning tasks. In this paper, we propose an efficient multi-solution solver to address the inverse kinematics problem of 3-section constant-curvature robots by bridging both the theoretical reduction and numerical correction. We derive analytical conditions to simplify the original problem into a one-dimensional problem. Further, the equivalence of the two problems is formalised. In addition, we introduce an approximation with bounded error so that the one dimension becomes traversable while the remaining parameters analytically solvable. With the theoretical results, the global search and numerical correction are employed to implement the solver. The experiments validate the better efficiency and higher success rate of our solver than the numerical methods when one solution is required, and demonstrate the ability of obtaining multiple solutions with optimal path planning in a space with obstacles.Comment: Robotics: Science and Systems 202

Poly[diaqua­(μ2-oxalato-κ4 O 1,O 2:O 1′,O 2′)(μ2-pyrazine-2-carboxyl­ato-κ4 N 1,O:O,O′)neodymium(III)]

In the title complex, [Nd(C5H3N2O2)(C2O4)(H2O)2]n, the NdIII atom is ten-coordinated by one N atom and three O atoms from two pyrazine-2-carboxyl­ate ligands, four O atoms from two oxalate ligands and two water mol­ecules in a distorted bicapped square-anti­prismatic geometry. The two crystallographically independent oxalate ligands, each lying on an inversion center, act as bridging ligands, linking Nd atoms into an extended zigzag chain. Neighboring chains are linked by the pyrazine-2-carboxyl­ate ligands into a two-dimensional layerlike network in the (10) plane. The layers are further connected by O—H⋯O and O—H⋯N hydrogen bonds, forming a three-dimensional supra­molecular network

Exchange interactions and temperature dependence of the magnetization in half--metallic Heusler alloys

We study the exchange interactions in half-metallic Heusler alloys using first-principles calculations in conjunction with the frozen-magnon approximation. The Curie temperature is estimated within both mean-field (MF) and random-phase-approximation (RPA) approaches. For the half-Heusler alloys NiMnSb and CoMnSb the dominant interaction is between the nearest Mn atoms. In this case the MF and RPA estimations differ strongly. The RPA approach provides better agreement with experiment. The exchange interactions are more complex in the case of full-Heusler alloys Co$_2$MnSi and Co$_2$CrAl where the dominant effects are the inter-sublattice interactions between the Mn(Cr) and Co atoms and between Co atoms at different sublattices. For these compounds we find that both MF and RPA give very close values of the Curie temperature slightly underestimating experimental quantities. We study the influence of the lattice compression on the magnetic properties. The temperature dependence of the magnetization is calculated using the RPA method within both quantum mechanical and classical approaches.Comment: New figures and discussio

Supermassive Black Holes with High Accretion Rates in Active Galactic Nuclei. IV. Hβ\beta Time Lags and Implications for Super-Eddington Accretion

We have completed two years of photometric and spectroscopic monitoring of a large number of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) with very high accretion rates. In this paper, we report on the result of the second phase of the campaign, during 2013--2014, and the measurements of five new H$\beta$ time lags out of eight monitored AGNs. All five objects were identified as super-Eddington accreting massive black holes (SEAMBHs). The highest measured accretion rates for the objects in this campaign are $\dot{\mathscr{M}}\gtrsim 200$, where $\dot{\mathscr{M}}= \dot{M}_{\bullet}/L_{\rm Edd}c^{-2}$, $\dot{M}_{\bullet}$ is the mass accretion rates, $L_{\rm Edd}$ is the Eddington luminosity and $c$ is the speed of light. We find that the H$\beta$ time lags in SEAMBHs are significantly shorter than those measured in sub-Eddington AGNs, and the deviations increase with increasing accretion rates. Thus, the relationship between broad-line region size ($R_{_{\rm H\beta}}$) and optical luminosity at 5100\AA, $R_{_{\rm H\beta}}-L_{5100}$, requires accretion rate as an additional parameter. We propose that much of the effect may be due to the strong anisotropy of the emitted slim-disk radiation. Scaling $R_{_{\rm H\beta}}$ by the gravitational radius of the black hole, we define a new radius-mass parameter ($Y$) and show that it saturates at a critical accretion rate of $\dot{\mathscr{M}}_c=6\sim 30$, indicating a transition from thin to slim accretion disk and a saturated luminosity of the slim disks. The parameter $Y$ is a very useful probe for understanding the various types of accretion onto massive black holes. We briefly comment on implications to the general population of super-Eddington AGNs in the universe and applications to cosmology.Comment: 53 pages, 12 figures, 7 tables, accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journa

A simulation study on the measurement of D0-D0bar mixing parameter y at BES-III

We established a method on measuring the \dzdzb mixing parameter $y$ for BESIII experiment at the BEPCII $e^+e^-$ collider. In this method, the doubly tagged $\psi(3770) \to D^0 \overline{D^0}$ events, with one $D$ decays to CP-eigenstates and the other $D$ decays semileptonically, are used to reconstruct the signals. Since this analysis requires good $e/\pi$ separation, a likelihood approach, which combines the $dE/dx$, time of flight and the electromagnetic shower detectors information, is used for particle identification. We estimate the sensitivity of the measurement of $y$ to be 0.007 based on a $20fb^{-1}$ fully simulated MC sample.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figure