Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Active photonic crystal devices based on InP/InGaAsP/InP Slab waveguides

Line defect waveguides in photonic crystals (PhC) have a number of properties that make them interesting for photonic integrated circuits (PIC): Through modifications of the crystal geometry, the waveguide dispersion can be designed to exhibit a frequency range with slow light propagation. By slowing down the light, nonlinear effects can be enhanced, and the interaction length in an amplifier can be reduced. The building blocks of a PIC can potentially be reduced in size, and new building blocks can be conceived. The main challenge is to find a way of fabricating electrically pumped active components without dramatic propagation losses. Vertically pumped waveguides need cladding layers to separate the absorbing metal contact from the optical mode. Typically, such devices are formed by epitaxial growth of a guiding layer and a top cladding on a semiconductor substrate such as indium phosphide (InP). These so-called substrate-type PhC waveguides are known to be very lossy. But where exactly do the losses come from? What can we do to reduce them? Is it still possible to achieve gain in a single-moded PhC waveguide through electrical pumping? These are the essential questions discussed in the present dissertation. The first part of the dissertation deals with theoretical considerations about PhC waveguides. The principal achievement is the introduction of the so-called background line as a replacement for the light line. It is a widespread misconception that the light line is the separatrix in a dispersion diagram of any PhC waveguide that divides it into a region of guided modes and a region of lossy modes. We show that, for substrate-type waveguides with a strong lateral mode confinement, the light line concept is not quite correct. The background line concept can be viewed as a refinement of the light line concept, and it becomes relevant for narrow PhC waveguides. It enlarges the design flexibility for low-loss PhC waveguides. In the second part of the dissertation, advances in the fabrication of PhC waveguides are presented. A crucial step in the fabrication process is to provide a good hardmask for the dry-etching process of the InPbased semiconductor material. Silicon nitride (SiNx) was chosen as the hardmask material. Conventionally, nanostructures in SiNx with ver-
Interest Rate (In)sensitivity of Emerging Market Corporate Debt: Economic Analysis based on 2002-2015 Empirical Evidence

Interest rate sensitivity assessment framework based on fixed income yield indexes is developed and applied to two types of emerging market corporate debt: investment grade and high yield exposures. Our research advances beyond the correlation analyses focused on comovements in yields and/or spreads of risky and risk-free assets. We show that correlationbased analyses of interest rate sensitivity could appear rather inconclusive and, hence, we investigate the bottom line profit and loss of a hypothetical model portfolio of corporates. We consider historical data covering the period 2002 – 2015, which enable us to assess interest rate sensitivity of assets during the development, the apogee, and the aftermath of the global financial crisis. Based on empirical evidence, both for investment and speculative grades securities, we find that the emerging market corporates exhibit two different regimes of sensitivity to interest rate changes. We observe switching from a positive sensitivity under the normal market conditions to a negative one during distressed phases of business cycles. This research sheds light on how financial institutions may approach interest rate risk management, evidencing that even plain vanilla portfolios of emerging market corporates, which on average could appear rather insensitive to the interest rate risk in fact present a binary behavior of their interest rate sensitivities. Our findings allow banks and financial institutions for optimizing economic capital under Basel III regulatory capital rules. Key Words : Fixed Income, Portfolio Performance Evaluation, Downside Risk Management, Emerging Markets, Corporate Debt, Interest rate sensitivity.
Students’ mathematical understanding reviewed by gender through discourse learning assisted by mathematical bet line strategy

This study aims to pilot the discourse learning assisted by mathematical bet line strategy to students’ mathematical understanding reviewed by gender. The research used quasi experimental method and the subjects are the fourth grade students. Test experiment was used to collect data of mathematical understanding ability. As for the result, the average male students’ and female students’ mathematical understanding ability showed no difference after participating in discourse learning assisted by mathematical bet line strategy. It implies that male and female students have same mathematical understanding ability. We can see the difference in the arrangement strategy of question. Male students solved the question by picture or chart. In the other hand, female students solved the question by explain some words or find a pattern.
Evaluation of COI and ITS2 sequences ability to distinguish Lysiphlebus fabarum and Lysiphlebus confusus (Hymenoptera: Aphidiidae)

All wasp species in the genus Lysiphlebus Forster are solitary endoparasitoids of aphids and considered a taxonomically difficult group. In this study a part of COI and ITS2 was used to distinguish two closely related species L. fabarum (Marshall) and L. confusus Tremblay & Eady in Iran. The sequencing with a similarity about 99.5% showed COI's inability to separate the species L. fabarum and L. confusus. The ITS2 region of the rDNA partly separated the species with the similarity of 96.5-98.5%. The result is indicative of DNA barcoding deficiency in the identification of the species, as the two gene regions fail to efficiently separate the species.
High-Efficiency Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells

The current cost distribution of a crystalline silicon PV module is clearly dominated by material costs, especially by the costs of the silicon wafer. Therefore cell designs that allow the use of thinner wafers and the increase of energy conversion efficiency are of special interest to the PV industry. This article gives an overview of the most critical issues to achieve this aim and of the recent activities at Fraunhofer ISE and other institutes.
Measuring and Ranking Value Drivers : A Shareholder Value Perspective

Analysis of the strength of value drivers is crucial to understand their influence in the process of free cash flow generation. The paper addresses the issue of value driver measurement and ranking. The research reveals that, value drivers have similar pattern across industries. Furthermore, it is found that the effect of operating cost and interest expenses, on free cash flow, is much more important than sales (revenue).
Disrupted Resting-State Brain Functional Architecture in Amphetamine-Type Stimulant Abusers

Abstract Background: The abuse of amphetamine-type stimulants has continued to increase, leading to new challenges to human health. However, the effects of the abuse of amphetamine-type stimulants on brain functional networks are unclear. The aim of the current study was to use resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI), a technique that is used to study the brain’s intrinsic functional organization, to characterize the brain functional architecture influenced by amphetamine-type stimulant abuse. Methods: The present study recruited seventeen male amphetamine-type stimulant abusers (ATSAs) and twenty-two healthy male controls. We used degree centrality (DC) and seed-based resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) analyses to identify brain functional architecture differences between ATSAs and healthy controls (HCs). Results: The ATSA group showed a decreased DC, especially in a large cluster including the right anterior, middle, and posterior insula. Furthermore, seed-based RSFC analyses revealed decreased functional connectivity in a network composed of the right posterior insula, medial prefrontal cortex, visual and sensorimotor cortices as well as in a network composed of the right middle insula and visual cortices in the ATSA group. Conclusion: These results provide evidence that the resting-state brain functional architecture is disrupted in amphetamine-type stimulant abusers from a network perspective.
Concentration, Size Distribution and Electrostatic Charge of Laying Hen House Particulate Matter

Published data on indoor air contaminants in livestock buildings in Saudi Arabia are relatively scarce. The main objective of this study was to determine the airborne concentrations of particles and electrostatic charge acquired by airborne particles in a multiple tier housing system (Manure Belt Cage System) under the climatic conditions of Saudi Arabia. In this house, the mean of total suspended particle (TSP) concentration was 0.99 mg/m 3 , the PM 10 concentration (particulate matter with a diameter less than or equal to 10 µm) was 0.47 mg/m 3 , and the PM 2.5 concentration (particulate matter with a diameter less than or equal to 2.5 µm) was 0.05 mg/m 3 . The particle size distribution results obtained from the layer house revealed that the GMD (geometric mean diameter) was 6.95 µm, based on the mass concentration of the particles. Alternatively, based on the number concentration of particles, the GMD was 0.82 µm. The cumulative percentage of mass concentration for the particles ranging from 0.3–10 ? m showed that the major fraction of the particles was larger than 2.5 ? m (>85%). The net charge-to-mass ratio (q N ) of airborne particles was -0.86 mC/kg (s.d.=0.27). The measured q N value of airborne particles in the layer house varied due to the nature of the particles in addition to the environmental conditions and high concentration of airborne particles inside the poultry housing. In general, PM concentrations did not exceed the recommended values and those cited in literature.
Two-sample least squares projection

ABSTRACT This article investigates the problem of making inference about the coeﬃcients in the linear projection of an outcome variable y on covariates (x,z) when data are available from two independent random samples; the first sample contains information on only the variables (y,z), while the second sample contains information on only the covariates. In this context, the validity of existing inference procedures depends crucially on the assumptions imposed on the joint distribution of (y,z,x). This article introduces a novel characterization of the identified set of the coeﬃcients of interest when no assumption (except for the existence of second moments) on this joint distribution is imposed. One finding is that inference is necessarily nonstandard because the function characterizing the identified set is a nondifferentiable (yet directionally differentiable) function of the data. The article then introduces an estimator and a confidence interval based on the directional differential of the function characterizing the identified set. Monte Carlo experiments explore the numerical performance of the proposed estimator and confidence interval.
Updated study of the quintuple system V994 Herculis

Aims: We present a new updated study of the unique quintuple system of two eclipsing binaries, V994 Her. Methods: Based on new obtained photometric observations, we analysed the period variations of the two eclipsing pairs of V994 Her. Results: We found that the orbital period of the two eclipsing binaries around a common barycenter is about 2.9 yrs instead of the original period, which was reported as 6.3 yrs. Moreover, the system now seems to be close to coplanar (i ~ 84deg), and we also revised the individual masses of all four eclipsing components. The two eclipsing pairs show slow apsidal motion with periods of about 116 and 111 yrs, respectively. Pairs A and B are distant by about 17 mas on the sky, which is encouraging for observers because an interferometric detection may be possible in the next years. Conclusions: All of these results are based on the photometric observations of V994 Her and its detailed analysis of the period changes of the two eclipsing binaries.
PEERS(RTM): Long-term effects on social skills, social anxiety, and physiological regulation in adolescents with autism

PEERS: LONG-TERM EFFECTS ON SOCIAL SKILLS, SOCIAL ANXIETY, AND PHYSIOLOGICAL REGULATION IN ADOLESCENTS WITH AUTISM Kirsten A. Schohl, B.A., M.S. Marquette University, 2016 This study aimed to examine the efficacy and durability, through replication and extension, of the Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS: Laugeson & Frankel, 2010). PEERS is a parent-assisted social skills group intervention for high-functioning adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This study is the first to address replication of the long-term outcomes of PEERS outside of the site of development. Further, this study is the first to assess the effects that PEERS has on the plasticity of physiological regulation and social anxiety over time. 36 participants completed PEERS and were assessed at three different time points, pre-PEERS, post-PEERS, and 6 months following participation in PEERS. Assessment measures utilized parent report, adolescent self-report, and Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia (RSA), a measure of vagus nerve cardiac regulation. The RSA of 31 typically developing adolescents was also collected. Results indicated that adolescents who received PEERS maintained treatment gains at long-term follow-up, including increased knowledge of PEERS concepts and friendship skills, frequency of get-togethers, friendship quality, and overall social skills, as well as decreased problem behaviors, core autistic symptoms, and social anxiety. RSA was found to be significantly different than the typically developing group at long-term follow-up and, contrary to expectations, was positively correlated with social anxiety. This study leads to a better understanding of physiological responses to intervention as well as characteristics of RSA in autism. Moreover, it has significant implications in the widespread usage of PEERS and the development of other interventions.
Modeling and Enforcing Workflow Authorizations

Authorizations are fundamental in protecting information systems. In this dissertation, we study the modeling and enforcement of authorizations for workflows, which are a well-established abstraction of an organization’s business processes. We thereby make authorizations sensitive to their business environment. For example, they may be tailored to workflow-specific relations between tasks and may anticipate potential future task executions. A prevalent class of authorizations, whose realization benefits from this additional information, are Separation of Duty (SoD) constraints. They aim at reducing fraud and errors and are therefore commonplace in regulated environments, such as the financial industry. More specifically, we address two main problems. First, we study the refinement of abstract SoD constraints to concrete workflow models, and how to integrate an enforcement monitor for the resulting refinement into a heterogeneous workflow environment. We thereby bridge the gap between the formalization of high-level, workflow-independent authorization requirements and their enforcement. Our enforcement formalization and its service-oriented implementation account for the dynamics of today’s business environments. In particular, we model administrative activities that reflect organizational changes occurring during workflow execution, addressing a wellknown source of fraud. Second, we propose a novel approach to aligning the enforcement of authorizations with their workflow-based business environment. Existing workflow authorization models make strong restrictions on workflows’ control-flows; for example, they do not support loops. Our approach, in particular our novel technique for scoping authorizations within workflows, lifts this restriction. We proceed by identifying the notion of an obstruction, which generalizes deadlock caused by authorizations, and we study the construction of obstruction-free enforcement mechanisms. Finally, we introduce the concept of optimal authorizations for a workflow that maximize protection, yet allow for their obstructionfree enforcement. We provide tool support for our approach by extending a modeling platform and by building on algorithms from optimization theory.
Microgeneration Impact on LV Distribution Grids: A Review of Recent Research on Overvoltage Mitigation Techniques

Nowadays, due to the increasing rate of microgeneration penetration in Low Voltage distribution networks, overvoltage and power quality issues are more likely to occur in a more and more bidirectional operating grid. This paper offers a recent review on the main techniques available to mitigate and regulate feeder voltage profile, such as, PV generation active curtailment, reactive power support, On-Load Tap Changer transformers, or even recurring to Battery Energy Storage systems. Whenever possible, published results in real and test Low Voltage grids are called to support each given example.
Determining Heat Use In Residential Buildings Using High Resolution Gas And Domestic Hot Water Monitoring

Residential buildings consume about a third of the UKs total energy and the need to reduce this as part of achieving the 2050 CO2 emissions targets driving the interest the modelling and performance simulation of homes. While simulation and modelling tools are in wide spread use, the detailed empirical data with which to understand the effect of systems and operational complexities of households on the consumption of energy is less developed than it is for commercial buildings. This paper reports some early results from a whole house monitoring trial in the UK where high resolution measurements of gas, hot water and power are being used to disaggregate heat use. The study has shown that: equipment used for domestic heat generation varies considerably between households; gas demand is highly variable at the sub-hourly level, far greater than some of the available hourly monitored data would suggest; and that the current information on hot water consumption characteristics is poor and so some new, more comprehensive data is presented.
2 Remittances , Growth and Poverty : New Evidence from Asian Countries 1

The present study re-examines the effects of remittances on growth of GDP per capita using annual panel data for 24 Asia and Pacific countries. The results generally confirm that remittance flows have been beneficial to economic growth. However, our analysis also shows that the volatility of capital inflows such as remittances and FDI is harmful to economic growth. This means that, while remittances contribute to better economic performance, they are also a source of output shocks. Finally, remittances contribute to poverty reduction – especially through their direct effects. Migration and remittances are thus potentially a valuable complement to broad-based development efforts.
Origin of diffuse C II 158 micron and Si II 35 micron emission in the Carina nebula

We present the results of mapping observations with ISO of (O  )6 3µm, 145 µm, (N ) 122 µm, (C ) 158 µm, (Si  )3 5µm, and H2 9.66 µm line emissions for the Carina nebula, an active star-forming region in the Galactic plane. The observations were made for the central 40 � × 20 � area of the nebula, including the optically bright H  region and molecular cloud lying in front of the ionized gas. Around the center of the observed area is the interface between the H  region and the molecular cloud which creates a typical photodissociation region (PDR). The (C ) 158 µm emission shows a good correlation with the (O  )6 3µm emission and peaks around the H -molecular region interface. The correlated component has the ratio of (C ) 158 µ mt o (O )6 3µm of about 2.8. We estimate from the correlation that about 80% of (C ) emission comes from the PDR in the Carina nebula. The photoelectric heating efficiency estimated from the ratio of the ((C ) 158 µm + (O  )6 3µm) intensity to the total far-infrared intensity ranges from 0.06 to 1.2%. (O ) 145 µm is detected marginally at 10 positions. The average ratio of (O ) 145 µ mt o (O )6 3µm of these positions is about 0.09 ± 0.01 and is larger than model predictions. The observed (C ) 158 µ mt o (O )6 3µm ratio indicates a relatively low temperature (<500 K) of the gas, while the large (O ) 145 µ mt o 63µm ratio suggests a high temperature (∼1000 K). This discrepancy cannot be accounted for consistently by the latest PDR model with the efficient photoelectric heating via polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) even if absorption of (O  )6 3µm by foreground cold gas is taken into account. We suggest that absorption of (C ) 158 µm together with (O  )6 3µm by overlapping PDRs, in which the heating via PAHs is suppressed due to the charge-up effect, may resolve the discrepancy. Quite strong (Si  )3 5µm emission has been detected over the observed area. It shows a good correlation with (N ) 122 µm, but the correlation with (O  )6 3µm is very weak, indicating that (Si  )3 5µm comes mainly from the diffuse ionized gas rather than the PDR. The ratio of (Si  )3 5µ mt o (N) 122 µm is about 8 and Si of about 50% of the solar abundance relative to N should be present in the gas phase. The present results suggest that efficient dust destruction takes place and a large fraction of Si returns to the gas in the Carina star-forming region.
The Effects of Corporate Ownership Structure and Board Size on Earnings Management: Evidence from Turkey

This study investigates the impact of corporate ownership structure and board size on earnings management for asample of Turkish firms registered on the Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE) for the period of 2009 to 2012. The corporate ownership structure is measured with two variables: managerial ownership and institutional ownership. The board size can be defined as the number of members in the board. This study also uses three controlled variables: return on assets, size of the firm and financial leverage. The adjusted Jones Model (Dechow, Sloanand Sweeney, 1995) and the multivariate regression technique are utilized to examine the effect of corporate ownership structure and board size on earnings management. The results consistent with the previous studies show that the institutional ownership and the board size have a negative significant effect on the earnings management while the effect of the managerial ownership on the earnings management has positively statistically significant. The findings also reveal that the return on assets has a positively statistically significant effect on earnings management. However, the impact of the financial leverage on earnings management isnegatively statistically significant.