Superconductivity in Ti-doped Iron-Arsenide Compound Sr4Cr0.8Ti1.2O6Fe2As2

Superconductivity was achieved in Ti-doped iron-arsenide compound Sr4Cr0.8Ti1.2O6Fe2As2 (abbreviated as Cr-FeAs-42622). The x-ray diffraction measurement shows that this material has a layered structure with the space group of \emph{P4/nmm}, and with the lattice constants a = b = 3.9003 A and c = 15.8376 A. Clear diamagnetic signals in ac susceptibility data and zero-resistance in resistivity data were detected at about 6 K, confirming the occurrence of bulk superconductivity. Meanwhile we observed a superconducting transition in the resistive data with the onset transition temperature at 29.2 K, which may be induced by the nonuniform distribution of the Cr/Ti content in the FeAs-42622 phase, or due to some other minority phase.Comment: 3 pages, 3 figure

On the gravitational wave background from compact binary coalescences in the band of ground-based interferometers

This paper reports a comprehensive study on the gravitational wave (GW) background from compact binary coalescences. We consider in our calculations newly available observation-based neutron star and black hole mass distributions and complete analytical waveforms that include post-Newtonian amplitude corrections. Our results show that: (i) post-Newtonian effects cause a small reduction in the GW background signal; (ii) below 100 Hz the background depends primarily on the local coalescence rate $r_0$ and the average chirp mass and is independent of the chirp mass distribution; (iii) the effects of cosmic star formation rates and delay times between the formation and merger of binaries are linear below 100 Hz and can be represented by a single parameter within a factor of ~ 2; (iv) a simple power law model of the energy density parameter $\Omega_{GW}(f) ~ f^{2/3}$ up to 50-100 Hz is sufficient to be used as a search template for ground-based interferometers. In terms of the detection prospects of the background signal, we show that: (i) detection (a signal-to-noise ratio of 3) within one year of observation by the Advanced LIGO detectors (H1-L1) requires a coalescence rate of $r_0 = 3 (0.2) Mpc^{-3} Myr^{-1}$ for binary neutron stars (binary black holes); (ii) this limit on $r_0$ could be reduced 3-fold for two co-located detectors, whereas the currently proposed worldwide network of advanced instruments gives only ~ 30% improvement in detectability; (iii) the improved sensitivity of the planned Einstein Telescope allows not only confident detection of the background but also the high frequency components of the spectrum to be measured. Finally we show that sub-threshold binary neutron star merger events produce a strong foreground, which could be an issue for future terrestrial stochastic searches of primordial GWs.Comment: A few typos corrected to match the published version in MNRA

Modeling of the evolution of dielectric loss with processing temperature in ferroelectric and dielectric thin oxide films

It was experimentally found that the evolution of dielectric loss with processing temperature displays a common trend in ferroelectric and dielectric thin oxide films: firstly an increase and then a decrease in dielectric loss when the processing temperature is gradually raised. Such a dielectric response of ferroelectric/dielectric thin films has been theoretically addressed in this work. We propose that at the initial stage of the crystallization process in thin films, the transformation from amorphous to crystalline phase should increase substantially the dielectric loss; then, with further increase in the processing temperature, the coalescent growth of small crystalline grains into big ones could be helpful in reducing the dielectric loss by lowering grain boundary densities. The obtained experimental data for (Ba,Sr)TiO3 thin films with 500 nm in thickness were analyzed in terms of the model developed and shown to be in a reasonable agreement with the theoretical results.Comment: The experimentally observed dielectric loss responses in ferroelectric and dielectric thin oxide films have been theoretically addressed in this work, which paves the way for seeking methods in order to tailor the dielectric loss effectively for practical applications. Accepted for publication in Journal of Applied Physic

A rapid staining-assisted wood sampling method for PCR-based detection of pine wood nematode Bursaphelenchus xylophilus in Pinus massoniana wood tissue

For reasons of unequal distribution of more than one nematode species in wood, and limited availability of wood samples required for the PCR-based method for detecting pinewood nematodes in wood tissue of Pinus massoniana, a rapid staining-assisted wood sampling method aiding PCR-based detection of the pine wood nematode Bursaphelenchus xylophilus (Bx) in small wood samples of P. massoniana was developed in this study. This comprised a series of new techniques: sampling, mass estimations of nematodes using staining techniques, and lowest limit Bx nematode mass determination for PCR detection. The procedure was undertaken on three adjoining 5-mg wood cross-sections, of 0.5 · 0.5 · 0.015 cm dimension, that were cut from a wood sample of 0.5 · 0.5 · 0.5 cm initially, then the larger wood sample was stained by acid fuchsin, from which two 5-mg wood cross-sections (that adjoined the three 5-mg wood cross-sections, mentioned above) were cut. Nematode-staining-spots (NSSs) in each of the two stained sections were counted under a microscope at 100· magnification. If there were eight or more NSSs present, the adjoining three sections were used for PCR assays. The B. xylophilus – specific amplicon of 403 bp (DQ855275) was generated by PCR assay from 100.00% of 5-mg wood cross-sections that contained more than eight Bx NSSs by the PCR assay. The entire sampling procedure took only 10 min indicating that it is suitable for the fast estimation of nematode numbers in the wood of P. massonina as the prelimary sample selections for other more expensive Bx-detection methods such as PCR assay