Suppression of the intrinsic stochastic pinning of domain walls in magnetic nanostripes

Nanofabrication has allowed the development of new concepts such as magnetic logic and race-track memory, both of which are based on the displacement of magnetic domain walls on magnetic nanostripes. One of the issues that has to be solved before devices can meet the market demands is the stochastic behaviour of the domain wall movement in magnetic nanostripes. Here we show that the stochastic nature of the domain wall motion in permalloy nanostripes can be suppressed at very low fields (0.6-2.7 Oe). We also find different field regimes for this stochastic motion that match well with the domain wall propagation modes. The highest pinning probability is found around the precessional mode and, interestingly, it does not depend on the external field in this regime. These results constitute an experimental evidence of the intrinsic nature of the stochastic pinning of domain walls in soft magnetic nanostripe

The diffuse Nitsche method: Dirichlet constraints on phase-field boundaries

We explore diffuse formulations of Nitsche's method for consistently imposing Dirichlet boundary conditions on phase-field approximations of sharp domains. Leveraging the properties of the phase-field gradient, we derive the variational formulation of the diffuse Nitsche method by transferring all integrals associated with the Dirichlet boundary from a geometrically sharp surface format in the standard Nitsche method to a geometrically diffuse volumetric format. We also derive conditions for the stability of the discrete system and formulate a diffuse local eigenvalue problem, from which the stabilization parameter can be estimated automatically in each element. We advertise metastable phase-field solutions of the Allen-Cahn problem for transferring complex imaging data into diffuse geometric models. In particular, we discuss the use of mixed meshes, that is, an adaptively refined mesh for the phase-field in the diffuse boundary region and a uniform mesh for the representation of the physics-based solution fields. We illustrate accuracy and convergence properties of the diffuse Nitsche method and demonstrate its advantages over diffuse penalty-type methods. In the context of imaging based analysis, we show that the diffuse Nitsche method achieves the same accuracy as the standard Nitsche method with sharp surfaces, if the inherent length scales, i.e., the interface width of the phase-field, the voxel spacing and the mesh size, are properly related. We demonstrate the flexibility of the new method by analyzing stresses in a human vertebral body

REAL-TIME RASTERIZATION SIMULATION OF TIR IMAGES

Thermal/Infrared (TIR) sensors are being considered for Guidance, Navigation and Control (GNC) systems, in addition to the existing roster of visible light spectrum (VIS) sensors. The real-time generation of synthetic data used to supplement and extend existing datasets used in closed-loop testing should also be extended to the TIR spectral range. For spacecraft this has previously been limited to ‘stateless’ methods in rasterisation based systems, i.e. with no consideration of TIR effects that occur over time, such as thermal conduction and thermal capacitance; or to computationally expensive methods in more traditional engineering software, such as Monte-Carlo basedray tracing and Finite Element Analysis (FEA). This paper reports on the progress of a technique being developed for synthetic TIR image generation in rasterisation based systems: a ‘capacitance model’ that involves the creation of a Thermal Mathematical Model (TMM), to keep track of the temperature of each node, and the assignment of thermal properties to each node. This allows the examinination of the time-based thermal-infrared (TIR) effect of thermal inertia (also known as thermal lag), a result of thermal mass that affects the temperature change of an object as the input and/or output energy changes i.e. during transient stages of heat transfer. An OpenGL prototype was developed, aiming to recreate a set of thermal inertia functions to show how simulation of this effect can improve the accuracy of real-time generatedimages, in particular during the simulation of important transitional phases of spacecraft orbits, e.g. the entry or exit of eclipse. Mathematical functions can be used to effectively simulate time-based thermal inertia as an extension of previously used standard thermal equations, and in future these functions could be combined to simulate complex thermal profiles, e.g. those of a spacecraft in planetary orbit

REAL-TIME RASTERIZATION SIMULATION OF TIR IMAGES

Thermal/Infrared (TIR) sensors are being considered for Guidance, Navigation and Control (GNC) systems, in addition to the existing roster of visible light spectrum (VIS) sensors. The real-time generation of synthetic data used to supplement and extend existing datasets used in closed-loop testing should also be extended to the TIR spectral range. For spacecraft this has previously been limited to ‘stateless’ methods in rasterisation based systems, i.e. with no consideration of TIR effects that occur over time, such as thermal conduction and thermal capacitance; or to computationally expensive methods in more traditional engineering software, such as Monte-Carlo basedray tracing and Finite Element Analysis (FEA). This paper reports on the progress of a technique being developed for synthetic TIR image generation in rasterisation based systems: a ‘capacitance model’ that involves the creation of a Thermal Mathematical Model (TMM), to keep track of the temperature of each node, and the assignment of thermal properties to each node. This allows the examinination of the time-based thermal-infrared (TIR) effect of thermal inertia (also known as thermal lag), a result of thermal mass that affects the temperature change of an object as the input and/or output energy changes i.e. during transient stages of heat transfer. An OpenGL prototype was developed, aiming to recreate a set of thermal inertia functions to show how simulation of this effect can improve the accuracy of real-time generatedimages, in particular during the simulation of important transitional phases of spacecraft orbits, e.g. the entry or exit of eclipse. Mathematical functions can be used to effectively simulate time-based thermal inertia as an extension of previously used standard thermal equations, and in future these functions could be combined to simulate complex thermal profiles, e.g. those of a spacecraft in planetary orbit

Soccer small-sided games activities vary according to the interval regime and their order of presentation within the session

In order to investigate the physical demands of widely used in soccer small-sided games (SSGs), we compared game variations performed under different interval (fixed or variable) and timing regimens (beginning or end of a training session). Twelve male players wore GPS devices during the SSGs to record total distance, relative distance, distance at different speeds, and maximum velocity variables. Four variations of SSGs (4x4) were randomly applied: beginning of a training session with fixed and variable recovery, or end of a training session with fixed and variable recovery. During the beginning or end of a training session settings with fixed recovery duration, 2-min of playing and 2-min of recovery were provided. During the beginning and end of a training session settings with variable recovery, athletes kept playing until a goal was scored, or up to 2-min if no goals were scored. Results were analysed using MANOVA. Total distance and relative distance were higher in the beginning compared to end of training sessions for both fixed and variable recovery duration (small to moderate effect sizes). Distance at various speed ranges (i.e., 13-18 km/h and >18 km/h) was higher (p = 0.01) at the beginning than at the end of training sessions with variable recovery. In addition, distance >18 km/h was higher at the beginning of a training session with variable recovery than fixed recovery and at the end of a training session with variable recovery than fixed recovery. In conclusion, several physical demand characteristics are affected by the moment of SSG application, while others respond to the recovery regime during SSGs, thus providing indications to the coaches to prescribe the intended training intensity by manipulating the context

Tuning the antimicrobial behaviour of Cu 85 Zr 15 thin films in “wet” and “dry” conditions through structural modifications

The antimicrobial behaviour of Cu85Zr15 at.% thin films prepared by magnetron sputtering was studied in both wet and dry conditions. Small variations in key deposition processing parameters (pressure and substrate temperature) enabled the growth of thin films with similar nanostructures but different degrees of compactness, according to the Thornton's structural zone model. This model has proven its effectiveness in providing sensitive structural information to explain significant differences in antimicrobial behaviour of the CuZr thin films, even when processing conditions lie within the same structural zone. The antimicrobial behaviour has been studied for E. coli and S. aureus for up to 4 h of “dry” contact. Structures of lower compactness, grown at higher deposition pressure, are shown to provide higher antimicrobial activity for “dry” conditions than for “wet” conditions. For thin films of CuZr deposited at 0.5 Pa, the reduction percentage of bacteria is 99.47%, which is much higher than the results of 70–80% obtained for the films deposited at 0.1 and 0.3 Pa. Microscopy studies indicate that for 4 h of contact time, bacteria exhibit inner damage and even lysis, however, no morphological changes are detected because of the short timeframes used

Analysis of documental heritage of CETA in standardization of the Spanish manufacturing automotive industry

El presente trabajo muestra el proceso de recopilación, análisis, revisión y gestión realizada sobre el conjunto de normas CETA (Centro de Estudios Técnicos de Automoción), que constituyeron un interesante proceso de normalización llevado a cabo en el sector industrial relacionado con la fabricación de vehículos automóviles y que es uno de los elementos más desconocidos del patrimonio normalizador español. Asimismo, se ha realizado una evaluación comparativa con la normativa UNE vigente. La normativa analizada presenta una serie de características que la diferencian de la normalización actual. Los resultados muestran la influencia positiva que las normas CETA ejercieron en el desarrollo del propio sector así como la importancia que las mismas tuvieron en la generación de contenidos de actuales normas UNE.Universidad de Málaga – Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tec