XAFS analyses of molten metal fluorides

X-ray absorption fine structure studies of molten metal fluorides containing the materials related to nuclear engineering are intensively summarized. By using XAFS spectra data of divalent and trivalent cation metal fluorides in molten state which have been collected by authors’ group for a few years, local structure have been extracted and discussed systematically in conjunction with other spectroscopic studies and numerical calculations. In molten divalent fluorides, tetrahedral coordination of fluorides around a cation is predominant. In the case of pure molten trivalent fluorides, structure with more than 6-coordination has been suggested in some cases, but octahedral coordination structure is much stabilized at heavier rare earth metal fluorides. By mixing with alkali metal fluorides, it is a general trend that inter-ionic distances keep constant, but coordination number of fluorides decreases. In experimental chapter, all the details of sample preparation, furnace installation, X-ray optics setups and data analyses procedures are explained. Finally, future expectations of XAFS technique are also suggested

Solution-based self-aligned hybrid organic/metal-oxide complementary logic with megahertz operation

We have developed a novel solution-based integration scheme featuring organic and metal-oxide semiconductors with a polymeric gate dielectric. The integration relies on a facile subtractive patterning technique for the semiconductors, which, through the selection of an appropriate etch stopper, leads to ideal transistor performance. We utilized this novel integration scheme to fabricate self-aligned transistors and logic circuits with a high-mobility p-type conjugated polymer and an n-type amorphous oxide semiconductor, along with a composite polymeric gate dielectric, all solution-deposited by spin coating. The resulting complementary logic gates are capable of rail-to-rail transitions, low-voltage operation down to a 3.5 V power supply, and ample noise margins. Thanks to the self-aligned-gate approach and the state-of-the-art balanced mobilities of the selected semiconductors, our logic gates achieve megahertz operation, thus demonstrating the strength of our hybrid integration scheme.We gratefully acknowledge Mike Hurhangee and Iain McCulloch of Imperial College for supplying the IDT-BT conjugated polymer. We also acknowledge financial support from the European Commission through the POINTS project (FP7-NMP- 2010-Small-4).This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available via Elsevier at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1566119915000956

Electrical determination of the valence-band discontinuity in HgTe-CdTe heterojunctions

Current-voltage behavior is studied experimentally in a Hg0.78Cd0.22Te-CdTe-Hg0.78Cd0.22Te heterostructure grown by molecular beam epitaxy. At temperatures above 160 K, energy-band diagrams suggest that the dominant low-bias current is thermionic hole emission across the CdTe barrier layer. This interpretation yields a direct determination of 390±75 meV for the HgTe-CdTe valence-band discontinuity at 300 K. Similar analyses of current-voltage data taken at 190–300 K suggest that the valence-band offset decreases at low temperatures in this heterojunction

Adaptive V2V routing with RSUs and gateway support to enhance network performance in VANET

In a VANET communication, link stability can neither be guaranteed nor make the established route link permanent due to the dynamic nature of the network. In V2V communication without the involvement of any infrastructural units like RSU access points or gateway, the probability of successful link establishment decreases when vehicle’s speed varies, red traffic light increases, cross-road increases and finally when the density of the running vehicles is sparse. To ensure route establishment and control route request broadcast in a sparse VANET with crossroad layout, RSUs are used in this paper for route discovery within one gateway zone when a next hop vehicle to relay the route request packet is unavailable. RSUs are static but the vehicles are dynamic in nature, so relying completely on RSU for forwarding data is not recommended because chances of link failure, link re-establishment, and handoff overhead will be high. So, in this paper, RSUs and Gateways are evoked for route discovery and data forwarding only when necessary. Moreover, a local route repair is attempted in this paper when the path length is high to reduce or avoid loss of buffered packets along the route and to maintain a more stable link with the help of RSUs

How equitable is vocational rehabilitation in Sweden? A review of evidence on the implementation of a national policy framework

Purpose. Under the national framework law in Sweden, all eligible people should have equal chances of receiving vocational rehabilitation. We aimed to review the evidence on (1) whether access to vocational rehabilitation is equitable in practice and (2) whether the outcomes vary for different groups in the population. Method. Systematic review of studies in Sweden that reported diagnostic or socio-demographic characteristics of people offered or taking up rehabilitation programmes and outcomes of such programmes for different diagnostic and socio-demographic groups. Searches of 11 relevant electronic databases, 15 organisational websites, citation searching and contact with experts in the field, for the period 1990–2009. Results. A total of 11 studies were included in the final review, six of which addressed review question (1) and seven addressed review question (2). All the six observational studies of access reported biased selection into vocational rehabilitation: greater likelihood for men, younger people, those with longer-term sick leave, those with lower income, employed rather than unemployed people and those with musculoskeletal and mental disorders or alcohol abuse. Having had a rehabilitation investigation also increased the likelihood of receiving vocational rehabilitation. Differential outcome of rehabilitation was reported in seven studies: outcomes were better for men, younger people, employed individuals, those with shorter sick leave and those with higher income. Selection into vocational rehabilitation was perceived as important for successful outcomes, but success also depended on the state of the local labour market. Conclusions. There is evidence of socio-demographic differences in access to and outcomes of vocational rehabilitation in Sweden, even though the national framework law is meant to apply to everyone. Few studies have deliberately measured differential access or outcomes, and there is a need for this kind of equity analysis of population-wide policies. Studies evaluating the effects of vocational rehabilitation must consider selection into the programmes for adequate interpretation of impact results

Scaling violations: Connections between elastic and inelastic hadron scattering in a geometrical approach

Starting from a short range expansion of the inelastic overlap function, capable of describing quite well the elastic pp and $\bar{p}p$ scattering data, we obtain extensions to the inelastic channel, through unitarity and an impact parameter approach. Based on geometrical arguments we infer some characteristics of the elementary hadronic process and this allows an excellent description of the inclusive multiplicity distributions in $pp$ and $\bar{p}p$ collisions. With this approach we quantitatively correlate the violations of both geometrical and KNO scaling in an analytical way. The physical picture from both channels is that the geometrical evolution of the hadronic constituents is principally reponsible for the energy dependence of the physical quantities rather than the dynamical (elementary) interaction itself.Comment: 16 pages, aps-revtex, 11 figure

Neoliberalism, managerialism and the reconfiguring of social work in Sweden and the United Kingdom

This is the author's manuscript of an article published in Archaeological Dialogues. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1350508412448222This paper considers some of the ways in which neoliberalism, through the processes of managerialism, has impacted on the occupation of social work in Sweden and the UK. It is argued that there are similar implications in both countries, through the managerial drive for increased performance in economy, efficiency and effectiveness, but also in the development of evidence based practice. Whilst the key focus of the paper is on similarities between these two countries, differences are also noted. There is also recognition of the way in which resistance to the reconfiguration of social work is taking shape

Robust two-dimensional superconductivity and vortex system in Bi2Te3/FeTe heterostructures

The discovery of two-dimensional superconductivity in Bi2Te3/FeTe heterostructure provides a new platform for the search of Majorana fermions in condensed matter systems. Since Majorana fermions are expected to reside at the core of the vortices, a close examination of the vortex dynamics in superconducting interface is of paramount importance. Here, we report the robustness of the interfacial superconductivity and 2D vortex dynamics in four as-grown and aged Bi2Te3/FeTe heterostructure with different Bi2Te3 epilayer thickness (3, 5, 7, 14 nm). After two years' air exposure, superconductivity remains robust even when the thickness of Bi2Te3 epilayer is down to 3 nm. Meanwhile, a new feature at ~13 K is induced in the aged samples, and the high field studies reveal its relevance to superconductivity. The resistance of all as-grown and aged heterostructures, just below the superconducting transition temperature follows the Arrhenius relation, indicating the thermally activated flux flow behavior at the interface of Bi2Te3 and FeTe. Moreover, the activation energy exhibits a logarithmic dependence on the magnetic field, providing a compelling evidence for the 2D vortex dynamics in this novel system. The weak disorder associated with aging-induced Te vacancies is possibly responsible for these observed phenomena.Comment: 21 pages, article+supplemental information, published in Scientific Report