Expatriate leaders’ leadership styles vs. local subordinates’ perspectives in a United Arab Emirates higher education institution

This is the final version. Available on open access from the Institute of Rhetoric and Communications via the link in this recordThe main aim of this small scale qualitative pilot exploratory study is to examine how the local subordinates in one of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) higher education institutions perceive their expatriate western leaders’ behaviors, what work and personal relationship is established between them, what leadership skills, if any, the UAE local subordinates think their expatriate leaders need to improve or develop to cope with their culture, and what strategies the UAE local subordinates use to adapt to their expatriate leaders’ behaviors. Semi-structured interviews were used to interview three UAE local subordinates in a higher education institution. The purpose was particularly to answer the following research questions as perceived by the local subordinates: 1) What were your expectations of the expatriate leadership? 2) How would you describe your relation with your expatriate leader? 3) What skills do you think your leader needs to develop to cope with your cultural norms? 4) What strategies do you use to cope with your leader’s behaviors? The main findings show a significant contradiction between what local subordinates expected from their expatriate leaders and their perceptions of leadership behavior

Vacancy complexes in nonequilibrium germanium-tin semiconductors

Understanding the nature and behavior of vacancy-like defects in epitaxial GeSn metastable alloys is crucial to elucidate the structural and optoelectronic properties of these emerging semiconductors. The formation of vacancies and their complexes is expected to be promoted by the relatively low substrate temperature required for the epitaxial growth of GeSn layers with Sn contents significantly above the equilibrium solubility of 1 at.%. These defects can impact both the microstructure and charge carrier lifetime. Herein, to identify the vacancy-related complexes and probe their evolution as a function of Sn content, depth-profiled pulsed low-energy positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy and Doppler broadening spectroscopy were combined to investigate GeSn epitaxial layers with Sn content in the 6.5-13.0 at.% range. The samples were grown by chemical vapor deposition method at temperatures between 300 and 330 {\deg}C. Regardless of the Sn content, all GeSn samples showed the same depth-dependent increase in the positron annihilation line broadening parameters, which confirmed the presence of open volume defects. The measured average positron lifetimes were the highest (380-395 ps) in the region near the surface and monotonically decrease across the analyzed thickness, but remain above 350 ps. All GeSn layers exhibit lifetimes that are 85 to 110 ps higher than the Ge reference layers. Surprisingly, these lifetimes were found to decrease as Sn content increases in GeSn layers. These measurements indicate that divacancies are the dominant defect in the as-grown GeSn layers. However, their corresponding lifetime was found to be shorter than in epitaxial Ge thus suggesting that the presence of Sn may alter the structure of divacancies. Additionally, GeSn layers were found to also contain a small fraction of vacancy clusters, which become less important as Sn content increases

Electronic structures of free-standing nanowires made from indirect bandgap semiconductor gallium phosphide

We present a theoretical study of the electronic structures of freestanding nanowires made from gallium phosphide (GaP)--a III-V semiconductor with an indirect bulk bandgap. We consider [001]-oriented GaP nanowires with square and rectangular cross sections, and [111]-oriented GaP nanowires with hexagonal cross sections. Based on tight binding models, both the band structures and wave functions of the nanowires are calculated. For the [001]-oriented GaP nanowires, the bands show anti-crossing structures, while the bands of the [111]-oriented nanowires display crossing structures. Two minima are observed in the conduction bands, while the maximum of the valence bands is always at the $\Gamma$-point. Using double group theory, we analyze the symmetry properties of the lowest conduction band states and highest valence band states of GaP nanowires with different sizes and directions. The band state wave functions of the lowest conduction bands and the highest valence bands of the nanowires are evaluated by spatial probability distributions. For practical use, we fit the confinement energies of the electrons and holes in the nanowires to obtain an empirical formula.Comment: 19 pages, 10 figure

Harnessing nuclear spin polarization fluctuations in a semiconductor nanowire

Soon after the first measurements of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) in a condensed matter system, Bloch predicted the presence of statistical fluctuations proportional to $1/\sqrt{N}$ in the polarization of an ensemble of $N$ spins. First observed by Sleator et al., so-called "spin noise" has recently emerged as a critical ingredient in nanometer-scale magnetic resonance imaging (nanoMRI). This prominence is a direct result of MRI resolution improving to better than 100 nm^3, a size-scale in which statistical spin fluctuations begin to dominate the polarization dynamics. We demonstrate a technique that creates spin order in nanometer-scale ensembles of nuclear spins by harnessing these fluctuations to produce polarizations both larger and narrower than the natural thermal distribution. We focus on ensembles containing ~10^6 phosphorus and hydrogen spins associated with single InP and GaP nanowires (NWs) and their hydrogen-containing adsorbate layers. We monitor, control, and capture fluctuations in the ensemble's spin polarization in real-time and store them for extended periods. This selective capture of large polarization fluctuations may provide a route for enhancing the weak magnetic signals produced by nanometer-scale volumes of nuclear spins. The scheme may also prove useful for initializing the nuclear hyperfine field of electron spin qubits in the solid-state.Comment: 18 pages, 5 figure

Knowledge synthesis about ecological stakes related to seabirds, marine mammals, sea turtles and canyon deep habitats

En el marco del proyecto MSPMED, se ha llevado a cabo un caso de estudio entre España y Francia en el Golfo de Léon. El presente deliverable ha permitido impulsar los conocimientos existentes para ofrecer una visión transfronteriza actualizada de los intereses ecológicos en el Golfo de León

Répartition des incendies de forêts en fonction des facteurs physiques et biophysiques dans la Région du Rif (Maroc)

L’évolution actuelle du régime des incendies de forêts pose de nouveaux défis quant aux pratiques habituelles des plans d’aménagement et stratégies de gestion de ce fléau. La mise en œuvre d’actions de prévention et de lutte nécessite une compréhension fine de l’occurrence et de propagation des feux. Le présent travail vise en une analyse spatio-temporelle des feux de forêt en fonction des facteurs physiques et biophysiques dans la région du Rif au Maroc, considérée comme une des régions les plus touchées par ce fléau à l’échelle nationale. Les incendies survenus dans cette région, entre 1997 et 2011, ont été analysés et classés en trois groupes de sévérité selon l’ampleur des superficies touchées. Cette analyse a montré que presque 80% des superficies incendiées ont été enregistrées durant les mois d’août et septembre. Par la suite, l’utilisation d’une analyse de variance déséquilibrée à deux facteurs a permis de montrer la présence d’une différence significative entre la sévérité de l’année et les types de bioclimat, notamment pour les bioclimats à hiver chaud caractérisés par une production abondante de biomasse. Aussi, l’étude révèle que pendant les années sévères, la végétation des hautes altitudes devient plus vulnérable aux feux, particulièrement pour les altitudes dépassant 2000 m, en revanche, l’effet de la pente et de la continentalité n’est pas significatif et ne présente aucune influence sur l’occurrence des feux

Analyse de la diversité génétique des plasmides d'Escherichia coli antibiorésistants causant la colibacillose aviaire

Les souches d’Escherichia coli aviaires antibiorésistantes sont porteuses de plasmides à une fréquence très élevée. Dans une étude antérieure, l’hétérogénéité de ces plasmides a été montrée. Une sonde d’ADN plasmidique (2 kb) extraite de l’une de ces souches a été utilisée dans la technique du Southern blot pour analyser les relations existantes entre les plasmides. À partir de poulets atteints de colibacillose et provenant de différentes fermes d’élevage, les plasmides de 22 souches d’E. coli ont été isolées. La sonde s’est hybridée avec tous les profils plasmidiques de ces souches, ce qui est en faveur de la présence d’une grande homologie de séquence entre ces plasmides ainsi que leur appartenance au même groupe d’hybridation. Le profil d’hybridation confirme l’hétérogénéité des plasmides contenus dans ces souches

MSPMED Case Study: Characterizing the ecological stakes and their interactions with offshore activities in the Gulf of Lion to support the Maritime Spatial Planning processes in the Mediterranean Sea

El Golfo de León es una zona transfronteriza entre Francia y España, siendo una zona excepcional para la biodiversidad marina (por ejemplo, aves marinas, cetáceos, tortugas marinas y hábitats bentónicos), así como una zona de desarrollo económico para el sector marítimo, como la pesca, el tráfico marítimo y nuevas actividades como los parques eólicos. Aunque España y Francia han llevado a cabo considerables investigaciones y proyectos en el Golfo de León, todavía hay una falta de conocimiento sobre los intereses ecológicos y sus interacciones con las actividades humanas. Para ello, y en el marco del proyecto MSPMED (Towards the operational implementation of Maritime Spatial Planning in our common Mediterranean Sea) cofinanciado por la Comisión Europea, se está desarrollando un estudio de caso transfronterizo entre España y Francia en una zona extensa del Golfo de León, cuyo objetivo principal se centra en la evaluación del conocimiento disponible sobre el medio marino de la zona y la identificación y caracterización de las interacciones entre los usos marítimos (especialmente los parques eólicos flotantes en alta mar), el ruido submarino, y los componentes del ecosistema marino en el contexto de la ordenación del espacio marino (OEM