6,252 research outputs found
Metric and topo-geometric properties of urban street networks: some convergences, divergences, and new results
The theory of cities, which has grown out of the use of space syntax techniques in urban studies, proposes a curious mathematical duality: that urban space is locally metric but globally topo-geometric. Evidence for local metricity comes from such generic phenomena as grid intensification to reduce mean trip lengths in live centres, the fall of movement from attractors with metric distance, and the commonly observed decay of shopping with metric distance from an intersection. Evidence for global topo-geometry come from the fact that we need to utilise both the geometry and connectedness of the larger scale space network to arrive at configurational measures which optimally approximate movement patterns in the urban network. It might be conjectured that there is some threshold above which human being use some geometrical and topological representation of the urban grid rather than the sense of bodily distance to making movement decisions, but this is unknown. The discarding of metric properties in the large scale urban grid has, however, been controversial. Here we cast a new light on this duality. We show first some phenomena in which metric and topo-geometric measures of urban space converge and diverge, and in doing so clarify the relation between the metric and topo-geometric properties of urban spatial networks. We then show how metric measures can be used to create a new urban phenomenon: the partitioning of the background network of urban space into a network of semi-discrete patches by applying metric universal distance measures at different metric radii, suggesting a natural spatial area-isation of the city at all scales. On this basis we suggest a key clarification of the generic structure of cities: that metric universal distance captures exactly the formally and functionally local patchwork properties of the network, most notably the spatial differentiation of areas, while the top-geometric measures identifying the structure which overcomes locality and links the urban patchwork into a whole at different scales
Metric and topo-geometric properties of urban street networks: some convergences, divergences and new results
The theory of cities, which has grown out of the use of space syntax techniques in urban studies, proposes a curious mathematical duality: that urban space is locally metric but globally topo-geometric. Evidence for local metricity comes from such generic phenomena as grid intensification to reduce mean trip lengths in live centres, the fall of movement from attractors with metric distance, and the commonly observed decay of shopping with metric distance from an intersection. Evidence for global topo-geometry come from the fact that we need to utilise both the geometry and connectedness of the larger scale space network to arrive at configurational measures which optimally approximate movement patterns in the urban network. It might be conjectured that there is some threshold above which human being use some geometrical and topological representation of the urban grid rather than the sense of bodily distance to making movement decisions, but this is unknown. The discarding of metric properties in the large scale urban grid has, however, been controversial. Here we cast a new light on this duality. We show first some phenomena in which metric and topo-geometric measures of urban space converge and diverge, and in doing so clarify the relation between the metric and topo-geometric properties of urban spatial networks. We then show how metric measures can be used to create a new urban phenomenon: the partitioning of the background network of urban space into a network of semi-discrete patches by applying metric universal distance measures at different metric radii, suggesting a natural spatial area-isation of the city at all scales. On this basis we suggest a key clarification of the generic structure of cities: that metric universal distance captures exactly the formally and functionally local patchwork properties of the network, most notably the spatial differentiation of areas, while the top-geometric measures identifying the structure which overcomes locality and links the urban patchwork into a whole at different scales
On the Importance of the Interclump Medium for Superionization: O VI Formation in the Wind of Zeta Pup
We have studied superionization and X-ray line formation in the spectra of
Zeta Pup using our new stellar atmosphere code (XCMFGEN) that can be used to
simultaneously analyze optical, UV, and X-ray observations. Here, we present
results on the formation of the O VI ll1032, 1038 doublet. Our simulations,
supported by simple theoretical calculations, show that clumped wind models
that assume void in the interclump space cannot reproduce the observed O VI
profiles. However, enough O VI can be produced if the voids are filled by a low
density gas. The recombination of O VI is very efficient in the dense material
but in the tenuous interclump region an observable amount of O VI can be
maintained. We also find that different UV resonance lines are sensitive to
different density regimes in Zeta Pup : C IV is almost exclusively formed
within the densest regions, while the majority of O VI resides between clumps.
N V is an intermediate case, with contributions from both the tenuous gas and
clumps.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJL, 4 pages with 3 figure
Unconventional superconductivity in the cage type compound ScRhSn
We have examined the superconducting ground state properties of the caged
type compound ScRhSn using magnetization, heat capacity, and
muon-spin relaxation or rotation (SR) measurements. Magnetization
measurements indicate type-II superconductivity with an upper critical field
= 7.24 T. The zero-field cooled and field cooled
susceptibility measurements unveil an onset of diamagnetic signal below = 4.4 K. The interpretation of the heat capacity results below
using the BCS model unveils the value of = 2.65, which gives
the dimensionless ratio 2 = 5.3, intimating that
ScRhSn is a strong-coupling BCS superconductor. The zero-field
SR measurements in the longitudinal geometry exhibit a signature of a
spontaneous appearance of the internal magnetic field below the superconducting
transition temperature, indicating that the superconducting state is
characterized by the broken time-reversal symmetry (TRS). We have compared the
results of broken TRS in ScRhSn with that observed in
RRhSn (R = Lu and Y).Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures. arXiv admin note: text overlap with
arXiv:1411.687
Studies of the superconducting properties of Sn1-xInxTe (x=0.38 to 0.45) using muon-spin spectroscopy
The superconducting properties of Sn1-xInxTe (x = 0.38 to 0.45) have been
studied using magnetization and muon-spin rotation or relaxation (muSR)
measurements. These measurements show that the superconducting critical
temperature Tc of Sn1-xInxTe increases with increasing x, reaching a maximum at
around 4.8 K for x = 0.45. Zero-field muSR results indicate that time-reversal
symmetry is preserved in this material. Transverse-field muon-spin rotation has
been used to study the temperature dependence of the magnetic penetration depth
lambda(T) in the mixed state. For all the compositions studied, lambda(T) can
be well described using a single-gap s-wave BCS model. The magnetic penetration
depth at zero temperature lambda(0) ranges from 500 to 580 nm. Both the
superconducting gap Delta(0) at 0 K and the gap ratio Delta(0)/kBTc indicate
that Sn1-xInxTe (x = 0.38 to 0.45) should be considered as a superconductor
with intermediate to strong coupling.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures, 3 table
Probing the superconducting ground state of the rare-earth ternary boride superconductors RuB ( = Lu,Y) using muon-spin rotation and relaxation
The superconductivity in the rare-earth transition metal ternary borides
RuB (where = Lu and Y) has been investigated using muon-spin
rotation and relaxation. Measurements made in zero-field suggest that
time-reversal symmetry is preserved upon entering the superconducting state in
both materials; a small difference in depolarization is observed above and
below the superconducting transition in both compounds, however this has been
attributed to quasistatic magnetic fluctuations. Transverse-field measurements
of the flux-line lattice indicate that the superconductivity in both materials
is fully gapped, with a conventional s-wave pairing symmetry and BCS-like
magnitudes for the zero-temperature gap energies. The electronic properties of
the charge carriers in the superconducting state have been calculated, with
effective masses and in the Lu
and Y compounds, respectively, with superconducting carrier densities
() m and ()
m. The materials have been classified according to the
Uemura scheme for superconductivity, with values for
of and , implying that
the superconductivity may not be entirely conventional in nature.Comment: 8 pages, 8 figure
Time-reversal symmetry breaking in noncentrosymmetric superconductor Re6Hf:further evidence for unconventional behaviour in the alpha-Mn family of materials
The discovery of new families of unconventional superconductors is important
both experimentally and theoretically, especially if it challenges current
models and thinking. By using muon spin relaxation in zero-field, time-reversal
symmetry breaking has been observed in Re6Hf. Moreover, the temperature
dependence of the superfluid density exhibits s-wave superconductivity with an
enhanced electron-phonon coupling. This, coupled with the results from
isostructural Re6Zr, shows that the Re6X family are indeed a new and important
group of unconventional superconductors.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures Accepted Physical Review B, Rapid Communicatio
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