An Arctic-Tibetan Connection on Subseasonal to Seasonal Time Scale

Recent research indicates the great potentials of springtime land surface temperature (LST) as a new source of predictability to improve the subseasonal to seasonal climate prediction. In this study, we explore the initial cause of the springtime large-scale LST in Tibetan Plateau (TP) and disentangle its close connection with the February wave activities from the Arctic region. Our Maximum Covariance Analysis show that the spring LST in TP is significantly coupled with the regional snow cover in the preceding months. The latter is further strongly coupled with the February atmospheric circulation and wave activities in mid-to-high latitudes. When the atmospheric circulation is in a combined pattern of Arctic Oscillation and West Pacific teleconnection pattern, wave trains from the Arctic can propagate and reach the TP through northern and southern pathways. This brings dynamical and moisture conditions for the TP snowfall and builds a bridge for Arctic-Tibetan connection

Electron transport in semiconducting carbon nanotubes with hetero-metallic contacts

We present an atomistic self-consistent study of the electronic and transport properties of semiconducting carbon nanotube in contact with metal electrodes of different work functions, which shows simultaneous electron and hole doping inside the nanotube junction through contact-induced charge transfer. We find that the band lineup in the nanotube bulk region is determined by the effective work function difference between the nanotube channel and source/drain electrodes, while electron transmission through the SWNT junction is affected by the local band structure modulation at the two metal-nanotube interfaces, leading to an effective decoupling of interface and bulk effects in electron transport through nanotube junction devices.Comment: Higher quality figures available at http://www.albany.edu/~yx15212

Automatic collision avoidance of ships

One of the key elements in automatic simulation of ship manoeuvring in confined waterways is route finding and collision avoidance. This paper presents a new practical method of automatic trajectory planning and collision avoidance based on an artificial potential field and speed vector. Collision prevention regulations and international navigational rules have been incorporated into the algorithm. The algorithm is fairly straightforward and simple to implement, but has been shown to be effective in finding safe paths for all ships concerned in complex situations. The method has been applied to some typical test cases and the results are very encouraging

Transonic blade-vortex interactions noise: A parametric study

Transonic Blade-Vortex Interactions (BVI) are simulated numerically and the noise mechanisms are investigated. The 2-D high frequency transonic small disturbance equation is solved numerically (VTRAN2 code). An Alternating Direction Implicit (ADI) scheme with monotone switches is used; viscous effects are included on the boundary and the vortex is simulated by the cloud-in-cell method. The Kirchoff method is used for the extension of the numerical 2-D near field aerodynamic results to the linear acoustic 3-D far field. The viscous effect (shock/boundary layer interaction) on BVI is investigated. The different types of shock motion are identified and compared. Two important disturbances with different directivity exist in the pressure signal and are believed to be related to the fluctuating lift and drag forces. Noise directivity for different cases is shown. The maximum radiation occurs at an angle between 60 and 90 deg below the horizontal for an airfoil fixed coordinate system and depends on the details of the airfoil shape. Different airfoil shapes are studied and classified according to the BVI noise produced

Microscopic theory of single-electron tunneling through molecular-assembled metallic nanoparticles

We present a microscopic theory of single-electron tunneling through metallic nanoparticles connected to the electrodes through molecular bridges. It combines the theory of electron transport through molecular junctions with the description of the charging dynamics on the nanoparticles. We apply the theory to study single-electron tunneling through a gold nanoparticle connected to the gold electrodes through two representative benzene-based molecules. We calculate the background charge on the nanoparticle induced by the charge transfer between the nanoparticle and linker molecules, the capacitance and resistance of molecular junction using a first-principles based Non-Equilibrium Green's Function theory. We demonstrate the variety of transport characteristics that can be achieved through ``engineering'' of the metal-molecule interaction.Comment: To appear in Phys. Rev.