Radiative decays of the (0+,1+)(0^+,1^+) strange-bottom mesons

In this article, we assume that the $(0^+,1^+)$ strange-bottom mesons are the conventional $b\bar{s}$ mesons, and calculate the electromagnetic coupling constants $d$, $g_1$, $g_2$ and $g_3$ using the light-cone QCD sum rules. Then we study the radiative decays $B_{s0}\to B_s^* \gamma$, $B_{s1}\to B_s \gamma$, $B_{s1}\to B_s^* \gamma$ and $B_{s1}\to B_{s0} \gamma$, and observe that the widths are rather narrow. We can search for the $(0^+,1^+)$ strange-bottom mesons in the invariant $B_s \pi^0$ and $B^*_s \pi^0$ mass distributions in the strong decays or in the invariant $B_s^*\gamma$ and $B_s\gamma$ mass distributions in the radiative decays.Comment: 16 pages, 4 figures, revised versio

Analysis of the vertex D∗D∗ρD^*D^* \rho with the light-cone QCD sum rules

In this article, we analyze the vertex $D^*D^*\rho$ with the light-cone QCD sum rules. The strong coupling constant $g_{D^*D^*\rho}$ is an important parameter in evaluating the charmonium absorption cross sections in searching for the quark-gluon plasmas. Our numerical value for the $g_{D^*D^*\rho}$ is consistent with the prediction of the effective SU(4) symmetry and vector meson dominance theory.Comment: 6 pages, 1 figure, revised versio

Strange Particles and Neutron Stars - Experiments at Gsi

Experiments on strangeness production in nucleus-nucleus collisions at SIS energies address fundamental aspects of modern nuclear physics: the determination of the nuclear equation-of-state at high baryon densities and the properties of hadrons in dense nuclear matter. Experimental data and theoretical results will be reviewed. Future experiments at the FAIR accelerator aim at the exploration of the QCD phase diagram at highest baryon densities.Comment: %Invited talk given at the International Invited talk given at the International Symposium on Heavy Ion Physics (ISHIP 2006) April 3-6 2006, FIAS, Frankfurt, Germany Frankfurt, German

To mesh or not to mesh: flexible wireless indoor communication among mobile robots in industrial environments

Mobile robots such as automated guided vehicles become increasingly important in industry as they can greatly increase efficiency. For their operation such robots must rely on wireless communication, typically realized by connecting them to an existing enterprise network. In this paper we motivate that such an approach is not always economically viable or might result in performance issues. Therefore we propose a flexible and configurable mixed architecture that leverages on mesh capabilities whenever appropriate. Through experiments on a wireless testbed for a variety of scenarios, we analyse the impact of roaming, mobility and traffic separation and demonstrate the potential of our approach

Magnesium and magnesium alloys as degradable metallic biomaterials

Drawbacks associated with permanent metallic implants lead to the search for degradable metallic biomaterials. Magnesium has been considered as it is essential to bodies and has a high biodegradation potential. For magnesium and its alloys to be used as biodegradable implant materials, their degradation rates should be consistent with the rate of healing of the affected tissue, and the release of the degradation products should be within the body's acceptable absorption levels. Conventional magnesium degrades rapidly, which is undesirable. In this study, biodegradation behaviours of high purity magnesium and commercial purity magnesium alloy AZ31 in both static and dynamic Hank's solution have been systematically investigated. The results show that magnesium purification and selective alloying are effective approaches to reduce the degradation rate of magnesium. In the static condition, the corrosion products accumulate on the materials surface as a protective layer, which results in a lower degradation rate than the dynamic condition. Anodised coating can significantly further reduce the degradation rate of magnesium. This study indicates that magnesium can be used as degradable implant materials as long as the degradation is controlled at a low rate. Magnesium purification, selective alloying and anodised coating are three effective approaches to reduce the rate of degradation

Periodicities in Solar Coronal Mass Ejections

Mid-term quasi-periodicities in solar coronal mass ejections (CMEs) during the most recent solar maximum cycle 23 are reported here for the first time using the four-year data (February 5, 1999 to February 10, 2003) of the Large Angle Spectrometric Coronagraph (LASCO) onboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). In parallel, mid-term quasi-periodicities in solar X-ray flares (class >M5.0) from the Geosynchronous Operational Environment Satellites (GOES) and in daily averages of Ap index for geomagnetic disturbances from the World Data Center (WDC) at the International Association for Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA) are also examined for the same four-year time span. Several conceptual aspects of possible equatorially trapped Rossby-type waves at and beneath the solar photosphere are discussed.Comment: Accepted by MNRAS, 6 figure