Spin-polarized Quantum Transport in Mesoscopic Conductors: Computational Concepts and Physical Phenomena

Mesoscopic conductors are electronic systems of sizes in between nano- and micrometers, and often of reduced dimensionality. In the phase-coherent regime at low temperatures, the conductance of these devices is governed by quantum interference effects, such as the Aharonov-Bohm effect and conductance fluctuations as prominent examples. While first measurements of quantum charge transport date back to the 1980s, spin phenomena in mesoscopic transport have moved only recently into the focus of attention, as one branch of the field of spintronics. The interplay between quantum coherence with confinement-, disorder- or interaction-effects gives rise to a variety of unexpected spin phenomena in mesoscopic conductors and allows moreover to control and engineer the spin of the charge carriers: spin interference is often the basis for spin-valves, -filters, -switches or -pumps. Their underlying mechanisms may gain relevance on the way to possible future semiconductor-based spin devices. A quantitative theoretical understanding of spin-dependent mesoscopic transport calls for developing efficient and flexible numerical algorithms, including matrix-reordering techniques within Green function approaches, which we will explain, review and employ.Comment: To appear in the Encyclopedia of Complexity and System Scienc

Irrationality as a determinant of gender stereotyping towards women

Irrational thinking can be considered to be the key concept of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) and has been conceptualized as rigid und inflexible adherence to absolutistic thinking and person evaluations. Based on this definition we predicted a positive relation between irrationality and gender stereotyping towards women. Established reliable scales were used to assess the constructs in a non-student sample (N = 240). In line with assumptions we were able to detect a significant positive relation between irrationality and gender stereotyping while controlling for the Big Five, life satisfaction, sex and age. Implications for interventions concerning stereotypes are outlined

Development, modelling and analysis of Vacuum Assisted Multipoint Moulding for manufacturing fibre-reinforced plastic composites

Full version: Access restricted permanently due to 3rd party copyright restrictions. Restriction set on 12.11.2019 by SE, Doctoral CollegeMultipoint tooling is a mould making technology that enables the rapid reconfiguration of a mould to create individual components. It replaces the commonly used, elaborately designed, and costly manufactured solid die, with an array of individually adjustable pins. These pins can be set to represent a large variety of freeform surfaces. An elastic interpolation layer (IPL) is used to smoothen the pin array and forms the actual tooling surface. This technology is well established in sheet metal forming and other areas of manufacturing. However, only little research has been conducted in the area of fibre-reinforced plastic composites. In this thesis, a novel multipoint tooling technology is introduced, that is specifically designed for fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP) manufacturing. Different to existing solutions, this Vacuum Assisted Multipoint Moulding (VAMM) is capable of creating concave and convex geometries on a single sided mould. This enables the use of established FRP manufacturing processes without further adaptation. Two iterations of this technology are developed: A manually adjusted small-scale test bench is used to validate the VAMM concept and conduct experiments on, and a fully automated full scale manufacturing prototype then is used to demonstrate the feasibility of the technology for an industrial application. The elasticity of the IPL introduces two system immanent dimensional defects: the overall shape deviates due to the deformation of the IPL and the punctual support of the interpolation layer leads to a golf-ball-like surface effect. A process model was created to predict behaviour of the VAMM tool and the interpolation layer, and estimate the expected part quality. An iterative shape control algorithm was implemented, to improve the dimensional accuracy of the manufacturing process, by readjusting individual pins in the tool. On this model, a sensitivity analysis was conducted to quantify the influence of the process and pin array parameters on the dimpling of the tool surface. The most important parameters were identified and used in a Metamodel of Optimal Prognosis (MOP). This MOP enables the rapid estimation of the system behaviour. It was used to optimise the VAMM process and the interpolation layer in order to maximise the geometric part quality. With this method two IPL designs, one with a single, and one with two separate layers of silicone rubber, were evaluated. It turned out that the dual layer configuration can handle a 24 % higher process pressure, while using a 9 % thinner interpolation layer, to produce parts similar to the single layer configuration.Huber Kunststoff und Technik GmbHSGL Carbon SEPutzin Maschinenbau Gmb

Accelerating Parametric Probabilistic Verification

We present a novel method for computing reachability probabilities of parametric discrete-time Markov chains whose transition probabilities are fractions of polynomials over a set of parameters. Our algorithm is based on two key ingredients: a graph decomposition into strongly connected subgraphs combined with a novel factorization strategy for polynomials. Experimental evaluations show that these approaches can lead to a speed-up of up to several orders of magnitude in comparison to existing approache

Experiences with an Emotional Sales Agent

With COSIMA B2B we demonstrate a prototype of a complex and visionary e-procurement application. The embodied character agent named COSIMA is able to respect a customer's preferences and deals with him or her via natural speech. She expresses various emotions via mimic, gesture, combined with speech output, and COSIMA is even able to consider the customer's emotions via mimic recognition. As first observations show, this is a very promising approach to improve the bargaining with the customer or the recommendation of products