479 research outputs found
Interfaces and Grain Boundaries of Lamellar Phases
Interfaces between lamellar and disordered phases, and grain boundaries
within lamellar phases, are investigated employing a simple Landau free energy
functional. The former are examined using analytic, approximate methods in the
weak segregation limit, leading to density profiles which can extend over many
wavelengths of the lamellar phase. The latter are studied numerically and
exactly. We find a change from smooth chevron configurations typical of small
tilt angles to distorted omega configurations at large tilt angles in agreement
with experiment.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures 9 pages, 6 figure
The air pressure effect on the homogeneous nucleation of carbon dioxide by molecular simulation
Vapour-liquid equilibria (VLE) and the influence of an inert carrier gas on
homogeneous vapour to liquid nucleation are investigated by molecular
simulation for quaternary mixtures of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, oxygen, and
argon. Canonical ensemble molecular dynamics simulation using the
Yasuoka-Matsumoto method is applied to nucleation in supersaturated vapours
that contain more carbon dioxide than in the saturated state at the dew line.
Established molecular models are employed that are known to accurately
reproduce the VLE of the pure fluids as well as their binary and ternary
mixtures. On the basis of these models, also the quaternary VLE properties of
the bulk fluid are determined with the Grand Equilibrium method.
Simulation results for the carrier gas influence on the nucleation rate are
compared with the classical nucleation theory (CNT) considering the "pressure
effect" [Phys. Rev. Lett. 101: 125703 (2008)]. It is found that the presence of
air as a carrier gas decreases the nucleation rate only slightly and, in
particular, to a significantly lower extent than predicted by CNT. The
nucleation rate of carbon dioxide is generally underestimated by CNT, leading
to a deviation between one and two orders of magnitude for pure carbon dioxide
in the vicinity of the spinodal line and up to three orders of magnitude in
presence of air as a carrier gas. Furthermore, CNT predicts a temperature
dependence of the nucleation rate in the spinodal limit, which cannot be
confirmed by molecular simulation
A synoptic-scale overview of the TOGA COARE intensive observing period November 1992 to February 1993 based on analyses from US operational global data assimilation systems
The operational global analyses from the two major U.S. numerical weather prediction centers, the Navy's Fleet Numerical Oceanography Center and the National Meteorological Center, are used to describe the synoptic-scale features of the 1 Nov. 1992 to 28 Feb. 1993 TOGA COARE intensive observing period (IOP). TOGA COARE is an international field experiment in which a large number of research scientists from the Goddard Laboratory for Atmospheres (Code 910) and the Laboratory for Hydrospheres (Code 970) participated. Two high-amplitude intraseasonal (30-60 day) oscillations passed through the TOGA COARE observational network located in the equatorial western Pacific. Associated with the oscillations were two 6-10 day periods of persistent westerly surface winds at the equator or 'westerly wind bursts.' These events are depicted through time series and time-longitude cross sections of divergence/velocity potential, surface winds, precipitation, ocean mixed-layer depth, and sea surface temperature. The high and low frequency components of the flow in which the intraseasonal oscillations were embedded are shown using seasonal, monthly, and 5-day averages of the surface, 850 and 200 mb winds, precipitation, and sea-level pressure, and a time-longitude cross section of tropical cyclone activity. Independent verification of precipitation comes from near real-time satellite estimates, and a reference climatology is given based on 9 years of ECMWF analyses. Daily 00 UTC analyses of surface winds and sea-level pressure for the entire western Pacific and Indian Ocean are provided to trace the evolution of individual synoptic events
Coupling between Smectic and Twist Modes in Polymer Intercalated Smectics
We analyse the elastic energy of an intercalated smectic where
orientationally ordered polymers with an average orientation varying from layer
to layer are intercalated between smectic planes. The lowest order terms in the
coupling between polymer director and smectic layer curvature are added to the
smectic elastic energy. Integration over the smectic degrees of freedom leaves
an effective polymer twist energy that has to be included into the total
polymer elastic energy leading to a fluctuational renormalization of the
intercalated polymer twist modulus. If the polymers are chiral this in its turn
leads to a renormalization of the cholesteric pitch.Comment: 8 pages, 1 fig in ps available from [email protected] Replaced
version also contains title and abstract in the main tex
Interfaces of Modulated Phases
Numerically minimizing a continuous free-energy functional which yields
several modulated phases, we obtain the order-parameter profiles and
interfacial free energies of symmetric and non-symmetric tilt boundaries within
the lamellar phase, and of interfaces between coexisting lamellar, hexagonal,
and disordered phases. Our findings agree well with chevron, omega, and
T-junction tilt-boundary morphologies observed in diblock copolymers and
magnetic garnet films.Comment: 4 page
Marcas do gênero nas migraçoes internacionais das mulheres
O presente texto discute as questões de gênero e aculturação, considerando suas implicações nas migrações internacionais. Pretende-se compreender as transformações ocorridas nas relações de gênero decorrentes do processo migratório e, como consequência, a renegociação que membros de famílias imigrantes fazem no que concerne aos papéis de gênero. Considera-se que a aculturação promove o questionamento das relações de gênero, desestabilizando formas de ser homem e mulher cristalizadas na sociedade de origem. Nesse sentido, sublinha-se o fato de que a interface entre o conceito de aculturação e o de gênero é essencial para discutir as relações de gênero nas migrações internacionais contemporâneas, tornando visíveis as experiências de mulheres anteriormente negligenciadasThe present text discusses gender issues and acculturation, considering their implications in international migrations. We intend to learn the transformations occurred in gender relations after migration and consequently the renegotiating process that family members do regarding gender roles. We consider that acculturation fosters questions toward gender relations, disordering the traditional roles women and men play in their societies of origin. Therefore, we highlight the fact that the interface between acculturation concept and gender is essential to discuss gender relations in international migrations, making women's experience visible where they were previously neglecte
Fluctuation spectrum of fluid membranes coupled to an elastic meshwork: jump of the effective surface tension at the mesh size
We identify a class of composite membranes: fluid bilayers coupled to an
elastic meshwork, that are such that the meshwork's energy is a function
\textit{not} of the real microscopic membrane area ,
but of a \textit{smoothed} membrane's area , which corresponds to the
area of the membrane coarse-grained at the mesh size . We show that the
meshwork modifies the membrane tension both below and above the scale
, inducing a tension-jump . The
predictions of our model account for the fluctuation spectrum of red blood
cells membranes coupled to their cytoskeleton. Our results indicate that the
cytoskeleton might be under extensional stress, which would provide a means to
regulate available membrane area. We also predict an observable tension jump
for membranes decorated with polymer "brushes"
Boundary Effects in Chiral Polymer Hexatics
Boundary effects in liquid-crystalline phases can be large due to long-ranged
orientational correlations. We show that the chiral hexatic phase can be locked
into an apparent three-dimensional N+6 phase via such effects. Simple numerical
estimates suggest that the recently discovered "polymer hexatic" may actually
be this locked phase.Comment: 4 pages, RevTex, 3 included eps figure
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