1,548 research outputs found
Characterisation of high-performance cold bitumen emulsion mixtures for surface courses
Cold bitumen emulsion mixture (CBEM) is not yet widely used as a surface course around the world. In this study, 0/14-mm-size dense-graded surface course CBEMs have been investigated. The mechanical performance was evaluated in terms of stiffness modulus over 3 months and resistance to permanent deformation under three different stress levels (100, 200, 300 kPa), whilst durability evaluation was carried out in terms of resistance to moisture and frost damage. The study has also investigated the incorporation of low cement content (1%) with relatively sustainable by-product fillers, namely ground-granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) and fly ash (FA) type 450-S on both mechanical and durability performance. A comparison has been carried out between the low and high cement content CBEM, as well as with respect to corresponding hot mix asphalt (HMA). The results revealed that the incorporation of GGBS and FA in CBEMs leads to superior performance, similar to CBEMs treated with high cement content and comparable to an equivalent HMA. Furthermore, GGBS replacement exhibited better performance than that of FA replacement. The findings suggest that the new sustainable types of CBEM can be developed for using as a surface layer for medium- to heavy-trafficked roads
Ultrafast carrier relaxation in GaN, In_(0.05)Ga_(0.95)N and an In_(0.05)Ga_(0.95)/In_(0.15)Ga_(0.85)N Multiple Quantum Well
Room temperature, wavelength non-degenerate ultrafast pump/probe measurements
were performed on GaN and InGaN epilayers and an InGaN multiple quantum well
structure. Carrier relaxation dynamics were investigated as a function of
excitation wavelength and intensity. Spectrally-resolved sub-picosecond
relaxation due to carrier redistribution and QW capture was found to depend
sensitively on the wavelength of pump excitation. Moreover, for pump
intensities above a threshold of 100 microJ/cm2, all samples demonstrated an
additional emission feature arising from stimulated emission (SE). SE is
evidenced as accelerated relaxation (< 10 ps) in the pump-probe data,
fundamentally altering the re-distribution of carriers. Once SE and carrier
redistribution is completed, a slower relaxation of up to 1 ns for GaN and
InGaN epilayers, and 660 ps for the MQW sample, indicates carrier recombination
through spontaneous emission.Comment: submitted to Phys. Rev.
Guiding center picture of magnetoresistance oscillations in rectangular superlattices
We calculate the magneto-resistivities of a two-dimensional electron gas
subjected to a lateral superlattice (LSL) of rectangular symmetry within the
guiding-center picture, which approximates the classical electron motion as a
rapid cyclotron motion around a slowly drifting guiding center. We explicitly
evaluate the velocity auto-correlation function along the trajectories of the
guiding centers, which are equipotentials of a magnetic-field dependent
effective LSL potential. The existence of closed equipotentials may lead to a
suppression of the commensurability oscillations, if the mean free path and the
LSL modulation potential are large enough. We present numerical and analytical
results for this suppression, which allow, in contrast to previous quantum
arguments, a classical explanation of similar suppression effects observed
experimentally on square-symmetric LSL. Furthermore, for rectangular LSLs of
lower symmetry they lead us to predict a strongly anisotropic resistance
tensor, with high- and low-resistance directions which can be interchanged by
tuning the externally applied magnetic field.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figure
Photon-photon correlations and entanglement in doped photonic crystals
We consider a photonic crystal (PC) doped with four-level atoms whose
intermediate transition is coupled near-resonantly with a photonic band-gap
edge. We show that two photons, each coupled to a different atomic transition
in such atoms, can manifest strong phase or amplitude correlations: One photon
can induce a large phase shift on the other photon or trigger its absorption
and thus operate as an ultrasensitive nonlinear photon-switch. These features
allow the creation of entangled two-photon states and have unique advantages
over previously considered media: (i) no control lasers are needed; (ii) the
system parameters can be chosen to cause full two-photon entanglement via
absorption; (iii) a number of PCs can be combined in a network.Comment: Modified, expanded text; added reference
GATA3-driven Th2 responses inhibit TGF-beta1-induced FOXP3 expression and the formation of regulatory T cells.
Transcription factors act in concert to induce lineage commitment towards Th1, Th2, or T regulatory (Treg) cells, and their counter-regulatory mechanisms were shown to be critical for polarization between Th1 and Th2 phenotypes. FOXP3 is an essential transcription factor for natural, thymus-derived (nTreg) and inducible Treg (iTreg) commitment; however, the mechanisms regulating its expression are as yet unknown. We describe a mechanism controlling iTreg polarization, which is overruled by the Th2 differentiation pathway. We demonstrated that interleukin 4 (IL-4) present at the time of T cell priming inhibits FOXP3. This inhibitory mechanism was also confirmed in Th2 cells and in T cells of transgenic mice overexpressing GATA-3 in T cells, which are shown to be deficient in transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta-mediated FOXP3 induction. This inhibition is mediated by direct binding of GATA3 to the FOXP3 promoter, which represses its transactivation process. Therefore, this study provides a new understanding of tolerance development, controlled by a type 2 immune response. IL-4 treatment in mice reduces iTreg cell frequency, highlighting that therapeutic approaches that target IL-4 or GATA3 might provide new preventive strategies facilitating tolerance induction particularly in Th2-mediated diseases, such as allergy
Diquarks: condensation without bound states
We employ a bispinor gap equation to study superfluidity at nonzero chemical
potential: mu .neq. 0, in two- and three-colour QCD. The two-colour theory,
QC2D, is an excellent exemplar: the order of truncation of the quark-quark
scattering kernel: K, has no qualitative impact, which allows a straightforward
elucidation of the effects of mu when the coupling is strong. In rainbow-ladder
truncation, diquark bound states appear in the spectrum of the three-colour
theory, a defect that is eliminated by an improvement of K. The corrected gap
equation describes a superfluid phase that is semi-quantitatively similar to
that obtained using the rainbow truncation. A model study suggests that the
width of the superfluid gap and the transition point in QC2D provide reliable
quantitative estimates of those quantities in QCD.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, REVTEX, epsfi
- …