Dynamic Looping of a Free-Draining Polymer

We revisit the celebrated Wilemski-Fixman (WF) treatment for the looping time of a free-draining polymer. The WF theory introduces a sink term into the Fokker-Planck equation for the $3(N+1)$-dimensional Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process of the polymer dynamics, which accounts for the appropriate boundary condition due to the formation of a loop. The assumption for WF theory is considerably relaxed. A perturbation method approach is developed that justifies and generalizes the previous results using either a Delta sink or a Heaviside sink. For both types of sinks, we show that under the condition of a small dimensionless $\epsilon$, the ratio of capture radius to the Kuhn length, we are able to systematically produce all known analytical and asymptotic results obtained by other methods. This includes most notably the transition regime between the $N^2$ scaling of Doi, and $N\sqrt{N}/\epsilon$ scaling of Szabo, Schulten, and Schulten. The mathematical issue at play is the non-uniform convergence of $\epsilon\to 0$ and $N\to\infty$, the latter being an inherent part of the theory of a Gaussian polymer. Our analysis yields a novel term in the analytical expression for the looping time with small $\epsilon$, which is previously unknown. Monte Carlo numerical simulations corroborate the analytical findings. The systematic method developed here can be applied to other systems modeled by multi-dimensional Smoluchowski equations.Comment: 20 pages, 4 figure

Multilabel region classification and semantic linking for colon segmentation in CT colonography

Accurate and automatic colon segmentation from CT images is a crucial step of many clinical applications in CT colonography, including computer-aided detection (CAD) of colon polyps, 3-D virtual flythrough of the colon, and prone/supine registration. However, the existence of adjacent air-filled organs such as the lung, stomach, and small intestine, and the collapse of the colon due to poor insufflation, render accurate segmentation of the colon a difficult problem. Extra-colonic components can be categorized into two types based on their 3-D connection to the colon: detached and attached extracolonic components (DEC and AEC, respectively). In this paper, we propose graph inference methods to remove extracolonic components to achieve a high quality segmentation. We first decompose each 3-D air-filled object into a set of 3-D regions. A classifier trained with region-level features can be used to identify the colon regions from noncolon regions. After removing obvious DEC, we remove the remaining DEC by modeling the global anatomic structure with an a priori topological constraint and solving a graph inference problem using semantic information provided by a multiclass classifier. Finally, we remove AEC by modeling regions within each 3-D object with a hierarchical conditional random field, solved by graph cut. Experimental results demonstrate that our method outperforms a purely discriminative learning method in detecting true colon regions, while decreasing extra-colonic components in challenging clinical data that includes collapsed cases

Precision spectroscopy and density-dependent frequency shifts in ultracold Sr

By varying the density of an ultracold $^{88}$Sr sample from $10^9$ cm$^{-3}$ to $> 10^{12}$ cm$^{-3}$, we make the first definitive measurement of the density-related frequency shift and linewidth broadening of the $^1S_0$ - $^3P_1$ optical clock transition in an alkaline earth system. In addition, we report the most accurate measurement to date of the $^{88}$Sr $^1S_0 - ^3P_1$ optical clock transition frequency. Including a detailed analysis of systematic errors, the frequency is ($434 829 121 312 334 \pm 20_{stat} \pm 33_{sys}$) Hz.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, 1 table. submitte

Diffraction measurement and analysis of slanted holographic polymer dispersed liquid crystal

Author name used in this publication: Xiao Hong SunAuthor name used in this publication: Xiao Ming TaoAuthor name used in this publication: Ting Jin YeAuthor name used in this publication: Xiao Yin Cheng2005-2006 > Academic research: refereed > Publication in refereed journalVersion of RecordPublishe

Fire responses and resistance of concrete-filled steel tubular frame structures

This paper presents the results of dynamic responses and fire resistance of concretefilled steel tubular (CFST) frame structures in fire conditions by using non-linear finite element method. Both strength and stability criteria are considered in the collapse analysis. The frame structures are constructed with circular CFST columns and steel beams of I-sections. In order to validate the finite element solutions, the numerical results are compared with those from a fire resistance test on CFST columns. The finite element model is then adopted to simulate the behaviour of frame structures in fire. The structural responses of the frames, including critical temperature and fire-resisting limit time, are obtained for the ISO-834 standard fire. Parametric studies are carried out to show their influence on the load capacity of the frame structures in fire. Suggestions and recommendations are presented for possible adoption in future construction and design of these structures