32,778 research outputs found
Thematic mapper studies of central Andean volcanoes
A series of false color composite images covering the volcanic cordillera was written. Each image is 45 km (1536 x 1536 pixels) and was constructed using bands 7, 4, and 2 of the Thematic Mapper (TM) data. Approximately 100 images were prepared to date. A set of LANDSAT Multispectral Scanner (MSS) images was used in conjunction with the TM hardcopy to compile a computer data base of all volcanic structure in the Central Andean province. Over 500 individual structures were identified. About 75 major volcanoes were identified as active, or potentially active. A pilot study was begun combining Shuttle Imaging Radar (SIR) data with TM for a test area in north Chile and Bolivia
Thermal stress cycling of GaAs solar cells
Thermal stress cycling was performed on gallium arsenide solar cells to investigate their electrical, mechanical, and structural integrity. Cells were cycled under low Earth orbit (LEO) simulated temperature conditions in vacuum. Cell evaluations consisted of power output values, spectral response, optical microscopy and ion microprobe mass analysis, and depth profiles on both front surface inter-grid areas and metallization contact grid lines. Cells were examined for degradation after 500, 5,000, 10,000 and 15,245 thermal cycles. No indication of performance degradation was found for any vendor's cell lot
Model for Assembly and Gelation of Four-Armed DNA Dendrimers
We introduce and numerically study a model designed to mimic the bulk
behavior of a system composed of single-stranded DNA dendrimers.
Complementarity of the base sequences of different strands results in the
formation of strong cooperative intermolecular links. We find that in an
extremely narrow temperature range the system forms a large-scale, low-density
disordered network via a thermo-reversible gel transition. By controlling the
strand length, the gel transition temperature can be made arbitrarily close to
the percolation transition, in contrast with recent model systems of physical
gelation. This study helps the understanding of self-assembly in this class of
new biomaterials and provides an excellent bridge between physical and chemical
gels
Interpenetration as a Mechanism for Liquid-Liquid Phase Transitions
We study simple lattice systems to demonstrate the influence of
interpenetrating bond networks on phase behavior. We promote interpenetration
by using a Hamiltonian with a weakly repulsive interaction with nearest
neighbors and an attractive interaction with second-nearest neighbors. In this
way, bond networks will form between second-nearest neighbors, allowing for two
(locally) distinct networks to form. We obtain the phase behavior from analytic
solution in the mean-field approximation and exact solution on the Bethe
lattice. We compare these results with exact numerical results for the phase
behavior from grand canonical Monte Carlo simulations on square, cubic, and
tetrahedral lattices. All results show that these simple systems exhibit rich
phase diagrams with two fluid-fluid critical points and three thermodynamically
distinct phases. We also consider including third-nearest-neighbor
interactions, which give rise to a phase diagram with four critical points and
five thermodynamically distinct phases. Thus the interpenetration mechanism
provides a simple route to generate multiple liquid phases in single-component
systems, such as hypothesized in water and observed in several model and
experimental systems. Additionally, interpenetration of many such networks
appears plausible in a recently considered material made from nanoparticles
functionalized by single strands of DNA.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Modifying Fragility and Collective Motion in Polymer Melts with Nanoparticles
We investigate the impact of nanoparticles (NP) on the fragility and
cooperative string-like motion in a model glass-forming polymer melt by
molecular dynamics simulation. The NP cause significant changes to both the
fragility and the average length of string-like motion, where the effect
depends on the NP-polymer interaction and the NP concentration. We interpret
these changes via the Adam-Gibbs (AG) theory, assuming the strings can be
identified with the "cooperatively rearranging regions" of AG. Our findings
indicate fragility is primarily a measure of the temperature dependence of the
cooperativity of molecular motion.Comment: To appear in Physical Review Letter
- …