The effect of tip vortex structure on helicopter noise due to blade/vortex interaction

A potential cause of helicopter impulsive noise, commonly called blade slap, is the unsteady lift fluctuation on a rotor blade due to interaction with the vortex trailed from another blade. The relationship between vortex structure and the intensity of the acoustic signal is investigated. The analysis is based on a theoretical model for blade/vortex interaction. Unsteady lift on the blades due to blade/vortex interaction is calculated using linear unsteady aerodynamic theory, and expressions are derived for the directivity, frequency spectrum, and transient signal of the radiated noise. An inviscid rollup model is used to calculate the velocity profile in the trailing vortex from the spanwise distribution of blade tip loading. A few cases of tip loading are investigated, and numerical results are presented for the unsteady lift and acoustic signal due to blade/vortex interaction. The intensity of the acoustic signal is shown to be quite sensitive to changes in tip vortex structure

Spectral Dependence of Polarized Radiation due to Spatial Correlations

We study the polarization of light emitted by spatially correlated sources. We show that in general polarization acquires nontrivial spectral dependence due to spatial correlations. The spectral dependence is found to be absent only for a special class of sources where the correlation length scales as the wavelength of light. We further study the cross correlations between two spatially distinct points that are generated due to propagation. It is found that such cross correlation leads to sufficiently strong spectral dependence of polarization which can be measured experimentally.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Shear band formation in granular media as a variational problem

Strain in sheared dense granular material is often localized in a narrow region called shear band. Recent experiments in a modified Couette cell provided localized shear flow in the bulk away from the confining walls. The non-trivial shape of the shear band was measured as the function of the cell geometry. First we present a geometric argument for narrow shear bands which connects the function of their surface position with the shape in the bulk. Assuming a simple dissipation mechanism we show that the principle of minimum dissipation of energy provides a good description of the shape function. Furthermore, we discuss the possibility and behavior of shear bands which are detached from the free surface and are entirely covered in the bulk.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures; minor changes, typos and journal-ref adde

The pseudogap in Bi2212 single crystals from tunneling measurements: a possible evidence for the Cooper pairs above Tc

We present electron-tunneling spectroscopy of slightly overdoped Bi2212 single crystals with Tc = 87 - 90 K in a temperature range between 14 K and 290 K using a break-junction technique. The pseudogap which has been detected above Tc appears at T* = 280 K. The analysis of the spectra shows that there is a contribution to the pseudogap above Tc, which disappears approximately at 110 - 115 K. We associate this contribution with the presence of incoherent Cooper pairs.Comment: 12 pages including 4 figures, to be published in Europhysics Letter

Eelgrass in Estuarine Research Reserves Along the East Coast, USA

Eelgrass, Zostera marina L., is a submerged marine vascular plant that provides the basic structure of an extensive and important estuarine and coastal ecosystem. Currently, eelgrass populations around the world are declining dramatically due primarily to two causes: human pollution and a disease. The extensive loss of eelgrass threatens major alterations to the coastal environment and to the waterfowl and fish that depend on these plant communities. However, the eelgrass declines represent natural experiments that provide and opportunity to investigate a disease\u27s impact on an ecosystem, the characteristics of pollution-related declines, and finally, how declines from both causes can be diminished or mitigated

Origin of the tetragonal-to-orthorhombic (nematic) phase transition in FeSe: a combined thermodynamic and NMR study

The nature of the tetragonal-to-orthorhombic structural transition at $T_s\approx90$ K in single crystalline FeSe is studied using shear-modulus, heat-capacity, magnetization and NMR measurements. The transition is shown to be accompanied by a large shear-modulus softening, which is practically identical to that of underdoped Ba(Fe,Co)$_2$As$_2$, suggesting very similar strength of the electron-lattice coupling. On the other hand, a spin-fluctuation contribution to the spin-lattice relaxation rate is only observed below $T_s$. This indicates that the structural, or "nematic", phase transition in FeSe is not driven by magnetic fluctuations