18,289 research outputs found
Comparisons of soil suction induced by evapotranspiration and transpiration of S. <i>heptaphylla</i>
For a given evapotranspiration (ETr), both soil evaporation and plant transpiration (Tr) would induce soil suction. However, the relative contribution of these two processes to the amount of suction induced is not clear. The objective of this study is to quantify ETr- and Tr-induced suction by a selected tree species, Scheffllera heptaphylla, in silty sand. The relative contribution of transpiration and evaporation to the responses of suction is then explored based on observed differences in Tr- and ETr-induced suction. In total, 12 test boxes were used for testing: 10 for vegetated soil with different values of leaf area index (LAI) and root area index (RAI), while two were for bare soil as references. Each box was exposed to identical atmospheric conditions controlled in a plant room for monitoring suction responses over a week. Due to the additional effects of soil evaporation, ETr-induced suction could be 3%–47% higher than Tr-induced suction, depending on LAI. The significance of evaporation reduced substantially when LAI was higher, as relatively less radiant energy fell on the soil surface for evaporation. For a given LAI, the effects of evaporation were less significant at deeper depths within the root zone. The effects of RAI associated with root-water uptake upon transpiration were the dominant process of ETr affecting the suction responses.</jats:p
Spiral cracks in drying precipitates
We investigate the formation of spiral crack patterns during the desiccation
of thin layers of precipitates in contact with a substrate. This
symmetry-breaking fracturing mode is found to arise naturally not from torsion
forces, but from a propagating stress front induced by the fold-up of the
fragments. We model their formation mechanism using a coarse-grain model for
fragmentation and successfully reproduce the spiral cracks. Fittings of
experimental and simulation data show that the spirals are logarithmic,
corresponding to constant deviation from a circular crack path. Theoretical
aspects of the logarithmic spirals are discussed. In particular we show that
this occurs generally when the crack speed is proportional to the propagating
speed of stress front.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, RevTe
Quantum shape effects on Zeeman splittings in semiconductor nanostructures
We develop a general method to calculate Zeeman splittings of electrons and
holes in semiconductor nanostructures within the tight-binding framework. The
calculation is carried out in the electron-hole picture and is extensible to
the excitonic calculation by including the electron-hole Coulomb interaction.
The method is suitable for the investigation of quantum shape effects and the
anisotropy of the g-factors. Numerical results for CdSe and CdTe nanostructures
are presented
A Case of Dilated Cardiomyopathy Associated with 3-Hydroxy-3-Methylglutaryl-Coenzyme A (HMG CoA) Lyase Deficiency
3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG CoA) lyase deficiency is an inborn error of metabolism characterized by impairment of ketogenesis and leucine catabolism resulting in an organic acidopathy. In 1994, a case of dilated cardiomyopathy and fatal arrhythmia was reported in a 7-month-old infant. We report a case of dilated cardiomyopathy in association with HMG CoA lyase deficiency in a 23-year-old man with the acute presentation of heart failure. To our knowledge, this is the first case reported in an adult
Specific heat across the superconducting dome in the cuprates
The specific heat of the superconducting cuprates is calculated over the
entire phase diagram. A d-wave BCS approach based on the large Fermi surface of
Fermi liquid and band structure theory provides a good description of the
overdoped region. At underdoping it is essential to include the emergence of a
second energy scale, the pseudogap and its associated Gutzwiller factor, which
accounts for a reduction in the coherent piece of the electronic Green's
function due to increased correlations as the Mott insulating state is
approached. In agreement with experiment, we find that the slope of the linear
in T dependence of the low temperature specific heat rapidly increases above
optimum doping while it is nearly constant below optimum. Our theoretical
calculations also agree with recent data on BiSrLaCuO for which the normal state is accessed through the
application of a large magnetic field. A quantum critical point is located at a
doping slightly below optimum.Comment: submitted to PRB; 8 pages, 5 figure
Is the particle current a relevant feature in driven lattice gases?
By performing extensive MonteCarlo simulations we show that the infinitely
fast driven lattice gas (IDLG) shares its critical properties with the randomly
driven lattice gas (RDLG).
All the measured exponents, scaling functions and amplitudes are the same in
both cases. This strongly supports the idea that the main relevant
non-equilibrium effect in driven lattice gases is the anisotropy (present in
both IDLG and RDLG) and not the particle current (present only in the IDLG).
This result, at odds with the predictions from the standard theory for the
IDLG, supports a recently proposed alternative theory. The case of finite
driving fields is also briefly discussed.Comment: 4 pages. Slightly improved version. Journal Reference: To appear in
Phys. Rev. Let
Heuristic derivation of continuum kinetic equations from microscopic dynamics
We present an approximate and heuristic scheme for the derivation of
continuum kinetic equations from microscopic dynamics for stochastic,
interacting systems. The method consists of a mean-field type, decoupled
approximation of the master equation followed by the `naive' continuum limit.
The Ising model and driven diffusive systems are used as illustrations. The
equations derived are in agreement with other approaches, and consequences of
the microscopic dependences of coarse-grained parameters compare favorably with
exact or high-temperature expansions. The method is valuable when more
systematic and rigorous approaches fail, and when microscopic inputs in the
continuum theory are desirable.Comment: 7 pages, RevTeX, two-column, 4 PS figures include
Prelaunch absolute radiometric calibration of LANDSAT-4 protoflight Thematic Mapper
Results are summarized and analyzed from several prelaunch tests with a 122 cm integrating sphere used as part of the absolute radiometric calibration experiments for the protoflight TM sensor carried on the LANDSAT-4 satellite. The calibration procedure is presented and the radiometric sensitivity of the TM is assessed. The internal calibrator and dynamic range after calibration are considered. Tables show dynamic range after ground processing, spectral radiance to digital number and digital number to spectral radiance values for TM bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 and for channel 4 of band 6
Prelaunch absolute radiometric calibration of the reflective bands on the LANDSAT-4 protoflight Thematic Mapper
The results of the absolute radiometric calibration of the LANDSAT 4 thematic mapper, as determined during pre-launch tests with a 122 cm integrating sphere, are presented. Detailed results for the best calibration of the protoflight TM are given, as well as summaries of other tests performed on the sensor. The dynamic range of the TM is within a few per cent of that required in all bands, except bands 1 and 3. Three detectors failed to pass the minimum SNR specified for their respective bands: band 5, channel 3 (dead), band 2, and channels 2 and 4 (noisy or slow response). Estimates of the absolute calibration accuracy for the TM show that the detectors are typically calibrated to 5% absolute error for the reflective bands; 10% full-scale accuracy was specified. Ten tests performed to transfer the detector absolute calibration to the internal calibrator show a 5% range at full scale in the transfer calibration; however, in two cases band 5 showed a 10% and a 7% difference
- …