Universal Ratios of Characteristic Lengths in Semidilute Polymer Solutions

We use experimental and simulation data from the literature to infer five characteristic lengths, denoted $\xi_s$, $\xi_f$, $\xi_\Pi$, $\xi_\phi$, and $\xi_D$ of a semidilute polymer solution. The first two of these are defined in terms of scattering from the solution, the third is defined in terms of osmotic pressure, the fourth by the spatial monomer concentration profile, and the last by co-operative diffusion. In a given solution the ratios of any of these five lengths are expected to be universal constants. Knowing these constants thus allows one to use one measured property of a solution as a means of inferring others. We calculate these ratios and estimate their uncertainties for solutions in theta as well as good-solvent conditions. The analysis is strengthened by use of scattering properties of isolated polymers inferred from computer simulations.Comment: 15 pages(pdf), to be submitted to Macromolecules or J. Chem. Phy

Ubiquitination accomplished: E1 and E2 enzymes were not necessary

Qiu et al. (2016) show that a mono-ADP-ribosyltransferase, SdeA, from Legionella pneumophila catalyzes ADP-ribosylation of ubiquitin, allowing SdeA to modify substrate with ubiquitin in the absence of E1 and E2 enzymes

Transition Temperature of a Uniform Imperfect Bose Gas

We calculate the transition temperature of a uniform dilute Bose gas with repulsive interactions, using a known virial expansion of the equation of state. We find that the transition temperature is higher than that of an ideal gas, with a fractional increase K_0(na^3)^{1/6}, where n is the density and a is the S-wave scattering length, and K_0 is a constant given in the paper. This disagrees with all existing results, analytical or numerical. It agrees exactly in magnitude with a result due to Toyoda, but has the opposite sign.Comment: Email correspondence to [email protected] ; 2 pages using REVTe

Decay of weak turbulence

Weak turbulence fields generated by single and multiple stage grids covering Reynolds numbers between 7 and 70 showing decay of energy spectr

Accurate measurement of the piezoelectric coefficient of thin films by eliminating the substrate bending effect using spatial scanning laser vibrometry

One of the major difficulties in measuring the piezoelectric coefficient d(33,f) for thin films is the elimination of the contribution from substrate bending. We show by theoretical analysis and experimental measurements that by bonding thin film piezoelectric samples to a substantial holder, the substrate bending can be minimized to a negligible level. Once the substrate bending can be effectively eliminated, single-beam laser scanning vibrometry can be used to measure the precise strain distribution of a piezoelectric thin film under converse actuation. A significant strain increase toward the inside edge of the top electrode (assuming a fully covered bottom electrode) and a corresponding strain peak in the opposite direction just outside the electrode edge were observed. These peaks were found to increase with the increasing Poisson's ratio and transverse piezoelectric coefficient of the piezoelectric thin film. This is due to the non-continuity of the electric field at the edge of the top electrode, which leads to the concentration of shear stress and electric field in the vicinity of the electrode edge. The measured d(33,f) was found to depend not only on the material properties such as the electromechanical coefficients of the piezoelectric thin films and elastic coefficients of the thin film and the substrate, but also on the geometry factors such as the thickness of the piezoelectric films, the dimensions of the electrode, and also the thickness of the substrate