Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Effective Regularization Method for Image Super Resolution

In this paper, we propose a new super resolution (SR) reconstruction method to handle license plate numbers of vehicles in real traffic videos. Recently, SR reconstruction shemes based on regularization have been demonstrated to be effective because SR reconstrction is an ill-posed problem. Working within this promising framework, the residual data (RD) term can be weighted according to the differences among the observed LR images in the SR reconstruction model. Moreover, L1 norm is used to measure the RD term in order to improve the robustness of our method. Experiments show the proposed method improves the subjective visual quality of the high resolution images.
Nanoscale Pattern Formation during Electrodeposition: Ru on Reconstructed Au(111)

Scanning tunneling microscopy results on Ru electrodeposition on reconstructed Au(111) are presented, which show a novel type of site-selective nucleation on this surface. At potentials around 0.0 V vs the Ag (cid:1) AgCl reference electrode, nucleation of Ru monolayer islands proceeds almost exclusively in the fcc regions of the reconstructed surface rather than at the elbow sites as commonly found for metal (cid:1) Au(111) systems. These results provide a link between nucleation on two-dimensional and uniaxial dislocation networks. The nucleation behavior allows the formation of well-deﬁned nm-scale admetal structures which replicate the reconstruction pattern.
Multi-pitch self-calibration measurement using a nano-accuracy surface profiler for X-ray mirror metrology

: For high accuracy X-ray mirror measurement, the analysis and corrections of minute systematic errors of the measuring instrument are required. As an X-ray mirror metrology tool, the nano-accuracy surface proﬁler (NSP) consists of two autocollimators (AC) serving its reference and sample beams, in which the sample-beam AC maintains a ﬁxed distance from the mirror. In this work, the multi-pitch self-calibration method is applied to an NSP instrument to reconstruct both the mirror slope and the instrument error of the sample-beam AC through a series of x scans and pitch angle scans. It is more technically sound to apply this multi-pitch self-calibration method to a working-distance-ﬁxed slope scanner, such as the NSP. First of all, we introduce the principle of the multi-pitch self-calibration method, discuss its ambiguities, and provide our regularization illustrated with simulations. Second, some real measurements of a spherical mirror with 10-mrad total slope are demonstrated to verify the eﬀectiveness of the multi-pitch self-calibration technique with an NSP. Furthermore, the experimental reconstruction of the low- and high-frequency signals of the instrument error with diﬀerent settings in x and pitch steps are addressed and studied in terms of repeatability, reproducibility, self-consistency, and eﬀectiveness in compensation for single-pitch scans
Path-dependent Preferences and Polarized Public Response to Pandemics∗

People with liberal traditions exhibit polar opposite views and behavior toward COVID-19. We analyze this phenomenon by employing a dynamic game model involving stochastic transmission-intensity rates, asymptomatic infections, and heterogeneous agents making communicable-activity decisions in each period under disease uncertainty. Active agents freely choose communicable activities that increase their utility flows along with infection probabilities. Our analysis reveals the following: (1) The polarized public response to the pandemic arises when the disease-probability function is more concave than the agents’ utility function for communicable activities, which suggests that polarization can be rooted in individual rationality. (2) Asymptomatic infection implies a path-dependent disease probability that declines with agents’past activities, which makes sense of a gradually relaxing lockdown policy even when the transmission intensity remains the same. (3) Monotone comparative statics results suggest that agents with lower discount factors, lower probability of being sick upon infection, or lower expectation of suffering upon being sick tend to choose higher equilibrium activities. (4) If the virus persists, then the only long-run equilibrium outcome without government intervention is herd immunity.
Prosodic correlates of communication: boundary tone choice as an instruction for message interpretation from a multilevel linguistic perspective

Most intonational studies of Spanish declarative sentences do not include a phonetic-phonological approach integrating the description of intonation tunes together with their pragmatic interpretations in the framework of a multilevel theory of communication. In this paper, we present a discourse-oriented analysis of read news speech in Spanish. Its integrated two-fold orientation in terms of the universally well-accepted intonational framework, the Autosegmental-Metrical Theory, together with another universally recognised cognitive theory of communication, Relevance Theory, reveals that boundary tones constitute a powerful phonological unit to lead subjects through a structured discourse, and a contextualised presentation of information. In addition, our multilevel model of boundary tone interpretations also accounts for the socio-cultural use of politeness together with its orientation towards the different individuals in the communicative act: the speaker, the hearer, or both.
Three-dimensional Hydrodynamical Simulation of the Exoplanet HD 209458b

HD 209458b is a Jovian planet orbiting around a star with characteristics similar to the Sun, which has repeated transits across the stellar disk. The orbital period is of 3.5 days, with a mean distance to the star of 0.045 AU. The peculiar characteristic of this system is that the planet shows a larger apparent size when observed in Lyα (1214-1217 Å) than at optical wavelengths. This discrepancy is thought to be due to the existence of an extended upper atmosphere and/or a cometary wake. In this work we present 3D numerical simulations of this system, and study the absorption produced by the extended atmosphere. This "exosphere" is modeled as a wind outflowing from the planet at the escape velocity (60 km s-1), which interacts with the stellar wind. Four runs where carried out with planetary mass loss rates in the 1.5 × 10-17 to 1.5 × 10-14 M☉ yr-1 range. By comparing the Lyα absorption predicted from the models with the observations, we determine an Ṁp = (1.8 ± 0.4) × 10-16 M☉ yr-1 value for the mass loss rate from HD 209458b (a value which is of course dependent on the model assumptions, the error reflecting only the propagation of the observational uncertainties). This mass loss rate is consistent with the lower limit for Ṁp (=1010 g s-1) determined by Vidal-Madjar and coworkers.
Morphology control of ordered Si nanowire arrays by nanosphere lithography and metal-assisted chemical etching

Metal-assisted chemical etching (MACE) using a nanosphere lithography (NSL) technique is regarded as a general fabrication method for silicon nanowire (SINW) arrays. However, morphology control of SiNWs using this method has not been reported. In this study, silicon nanowire (SINW) and silicon nanocone (SINC) arrays were fabricated by MACE using a NSL. Depending on the concentration of etchants in the etching solution, the morphology of the wires and etching rate were systemically changed. At high concentrations, the wires were etched cylindrically and at low concentrations, tapered (cone-like) wires were obtained. To quantify the degree of tapering, the volume ratio of the etched part was calculated from their morphology. The degree of tapering increased as the concentrations of etchants decreased. We suggest that the mechanism of the formation of nanocone is related to the degree of hole diffusion under the metal layer, which was supported by field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) images.
$(\alpha')^4$ Corrections in Holographic Large N_c QCD and $\pi - \pi$ Scattering

We calculate the ${\alpha'}^4$ corrections to the non-Abelian DBI action on the D8-brane in the holographic dual of large N_c QCD proposed by Sakai and Sugimoto. These give rise to higher derivative terms, in particular, four derivative contact terms for the pion field with the coupling uniquely determined. We calculate the pion-pion scattering amplitude near threshold. The results respecting unitarity are in qualitative agreement with the experimental curves.
DIRICHLET FORMS ASSOCIATED WITH HYPERCONTRACnVE SEMIGROUPS

We exhibit a class of probability measures on R" such that the associated Dirichlet form is represented by a selfadjoint operator A and such that e~tA is a hypercontractive semigroup of operators. The measures are of the form dp m Q2 dx where Q has classical first derivatives and Lp second derivatives, p determined by n.
An approach to electrical studies of single nanocrystals

We present electrical measurements of single Au and CdSe nanocrystals. The devices are fabricated using a hybrid scheme which combines electron beam lithography and wet chemistry to bind nanocrystals in tunneling contact between two closely spaced metallic leads. The current–voltage characteristics of these devices exhibit a Coulomb staircase with a charging energy of ∼50 meV. This technique is readily adapted to the study of a host of nanocrystals made by solution chemistry.
Raman spectroscopy of bismuth silicon oxide single crystals grown by the Czochralski technique

In this work, single crystals of bismuth silicon oxide (BSO; Bi12SiO20) have been grown by the Czochralski method. The growth conditions were studied. The critical diameter and the critical rate of rotation were calculated. Suitable polishing and etching solutions were determined. The structure of the Bi12SiO20 has been investigated by x-ray diffraction (XRD), and Raman and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) spectroscopy. The results obtained are discussed and compared with the published data. The pale yellow Bi12SiO20 single crystals prepared were without cores. Using spectroscopic measurements 19 Raman and 5 IR modes were observed.
Evidence of the Link between Broad Emission Line Regions and Accretion Disks in Active Galactic Nuclei

There is observational evidence that broad-line regions (BLRs) exist in most active galactic nuclei (AGNs), but their origin is still unclear. One scenario is that the BLRs originate from winds accelerated from the hot coronae of the disks, and the winds are suppressed when the black hole is accreting at low rates. This model predicts a relation between ( = /Edd) and the FWHM of broad emission lines. We estimate the central black hole masses for a sample of bright AGNs by using their broad Hβ line-widths and optical luminosities. The dimensionless accretion rates = /Edd are derived from the optical continuum luminosities by using two different models: using an empirical relation between the bolometric luminosity Lbol and the optical luminosity ( = Lbol/LEdd, a fixed radiative efficiency is adopted); and calculating the optical spectra of accretion disks as a function of . We find a significant correlation between the derived and the observed line width of Hβ, FWHM∝−0.37, which almost overlaps the disk-corona model calculations, if the viscosity α≈0.1−0.2 is adopted. Our results provide strong evidence for the physical link between the BLRs and accretion disks in AGNs.
Detonation wave velocity and curvature of a plastic-bonded, nonideal explosive PBXN-111 as a function of diameter and confinement

Detonation velocities and wave front curvatures are measured on various diameter cylinders of PBXN-111 (RDX/AP/Al/HTPB binder with 20/43/25/12 weight percent). The cylinders are either unconfined or encased in 5-mm-thick brass tubes. In all experiments with brass tubes (diameters from 19 to 100 mm) the detonation velocity of PBXN-111 was affected by the confinement. Steady detonation waves propagated in brass encased charges with diameters as small as 19 mm, which is about half of the 37.1 mm failure diameter for unconfined PBXN-111. The radii of curvature at the center of the detonation wave fronts ranged from 52 to 480 mm for charge diameters from 25 to 100 mm, respectively. Detonation velocity as a function of radius of curvature at the wave’s center is represented by a single curve for both cased and uncased cylindrical charges. The difference in the axial position of the detonation wave at the center of the charge and at the edge of the charge (i.e., lag distance) are between 1.6 and 6.7 mm. The angles between the detonation wave fronts and the brass/charge interfaces are between 73° and 82° while the angles at the cylindrical free surface for the uncased charges are between 61° and 64°. Calculation of this angle for brass encased charges using oblique shock equations and assuming no reaction in the shock front resulted in angles 8° higher than measured except for the 100-mm-diam charge which was in agreement. The calculated angles for the uncased charge are in agreement with the measured values.
An application of D-differentiation to solid-state physics

The operation of D-differentiation, introduced by Hurley and Vandyck (Hurley D and Vandyck M 1999 submitted), and briefly summarized here, is applied to the treatment of the semiclassical motion of electrons in crystals. It is shown that the corresponding trajectories are remarkable geometrical curves, called euthygrammes, which generalize the geodesics of Riemannian manifolds.
Consistent subgrid scale modelling for lattice Boltzmann methods

Abstract The lattice Boltzmann method has become a widely used tool for the numerical simulation of fluid flows and in particular of turbulent flows. In this frame the inclusion of subgrid scale closures is of crucial importance and is not completely understood from the theoretical point of view. Here, we propose a consistent way of introducing subgrid closures in the BGK Boltzmann equation for large eddy simulations of turbulent flows. Based on the Hermite expansion of the velocity distribution function, we construct a hierarchy of subgrid scale terms, which are similar to those obtained for the Navier–Stokes equations, and discuss their inclusion in the lattice Boltzmann method scheme. A link between our approach and the standard way on including eddy viscosity models in the lattice Boltzmann method is established. It is shown that the use of a single modified scalar relaxation time to account for subgrid viscosity effects is not consistent in the compressible case. Finally, we validate the approach in the weakly compressible case by simulating the time developing mixing layer and comparing with experimental results and direct numerical simulations.
Quantum Optics with Atom-like Systems in Diamond

Abstract : The nitrogen vacancy (NV) center in diamond is a unique quantum system that combines solid state spin qubits with coherent optical transitions. The spin states of the NV center can be initialized, read out, and controlled with RF fields at room temperature. It can be coupled to other spin systems in the environment while at the same time maintaining an extraordinary degree of quantum coherence. Experiments utilizing the NV center's spin states have led to a wide range of demonstrations from quantum error correction to high-sensitivity magnetometry. This thesis, however, focuses on creating an interface between NV centers and light in the visible domain by making use of its optical transitions. Such an interface connects the quantum system consisting of NV centers and nuclear spins to photons, which can then be used to both manipulate the spin qubits themselves or transport quantum information over large distances.
LOCAL MULTIPLICATIVE SCHWARZ ALGORITHMS FOR CONVECTION-DIFFUSION EQUATIONS

We develop a new class of overlapping Schwarz type algorithms for solving scalar convection-diffusion equations discretized by finite element or finite difference methods. The preconditioners consist of two components, namely, the usual two-level additive Schwarz preconditioner and the sum of some quadratic terms constructed by using products of ordered neighboring subdomain preconditioners. The ordering of the subdomain preconditioners is determined by considering the direction of the flow. We prove that the algorithms are optimal in the sense that the convergence rates are independent of the mesh size, as well as the number of subdomains. We show by numerical examples that the new algorithms are less sensitive to the direction of the flow than either the classical multiplicative Schwarz algorithms, and converge faster than the additive Schwarz algorithms. Thus, the new algorithms are more suitable for fluid flow applications than the classical additive or multiplicative Schwarz algorithms.
BIFURCATION ANALYSIS OF CALCIUM OSCILLATIONS: TIME-SCALE SEPARATION, CANARDS, AND FREQUENCY LOWERING

The behavior of calcium oscillations near bifurcations is analyzed for three different models. For the model developed by Somogyi and Stucki [42], it is shown that the range of oscillations is bounded by supercritical and subcritical Hopf bifurcations. Near the latter, canard orbits arise, that is, quasi-harmonic oscillations with a very small amplitude grow very fast to become pulsed oscillations. The potential biological significance of this behavior is discussed. A time-scale analysis of this model is performed and an approximation formula for the oscillation period is derived. For two models that we presented earlier [30, 31], it is shown that a homoclinic bifurcation and an infinite period bifurcation, respectively, occur. These imply that the oscillation period can reach arbitrarily high values. This behavior is discussed in the light of frequency encoding, and the scaling laws of the oscillation period are given.
Performance of titanium oxide–polymer insulation in superconducting coils made of Bi-2212/Ag-alloy round wire

Conductor insulation is one of the key components needed to make Ag-alloy clad Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x (Bi-2212/Ag) superconducting round wire (RW) successful for high field magnet applications, as dielectric standoff and high winding current densities (Jw) directly depend on it. In this study, a TiO2–polymer insulation coating developed by nGimat LLC was applied to test samples and a high field test coil. The insulation was investigated by differential thermal analysis (DTA), thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), dielectric property measurement, and transport critical current (Ic) property measurement. About 29% of the insulation by weight is polymer. When the Bi-2212/Ag wire is fully heat treated, this decomposes with slow heating to 400 ° C in pure O2. After the full reaction, we found that the TiO2 did not degrade the critical current properties, adhered well to the conductor, and provided a breakdown voltage of more than 100 V, which allowed the test coil to survive quenching in 31.2 T background field, while providing a 2.6 T field increment. For Bi-2212/Ag RW with a typical diameter of 1.0–1.5 mm, this ∼15 μm thick insulation allows a very high coil packing factor of ∼0.74, whereas earlier alumino-silicate braid insulation only allows packing factors of 0.38–0.48.
TRANSMISSIBILITY OF WHOLE BODY VIBRATION STIMULI THROUGH HUMAN BODY IN DIFFERENT STANDING POSTURES

This study focuses on the transmissibility of whole body vibration stimuli through human body in different standing postures to explore the mechanism in which vibration stimuli could be better used as a regimen for bone loss. Five volunteers were guided to stay at three standing postures and imposed of frequency-adjustable vibration stimuli on the plantar surfaces side-alternately. Motion capture system was used to acquire the vibration signals at head, pelvis, knee up, knee down and ankle, from which the transmissibility of vibration stimuli can be obtained. The results showed that transmissibility of vibration stimuli was closely correlated with frequency and skeletal sites. Transmissibility of vibration stimuli in head was much smaller than any other skeletal sites. Transmissibility in the ankle was always in the vicinity of unit one in all the three postures for the vibration stimuli applied side-alternately on the plantar surfaces of both feet. There was an obvious peak around 9 to 11 Hz in the trans.
Study on the Gas Holdup of Triangular Pitch and Square Pitch Sparger Geometry in Bubble Column

Gas holdup in a bubble column has been studied for triangular and square geometries of a pitch sparger. The investigation was carried out in a bubble column characterized by an aspect ratio equal to four. The column was made up of plexiglas, equipped with sparger. The top of the column was open to atmosphere. The column was also equipped with appropriate rotameters for gas phase flow measurement and control. The liquids used in experiments were: deionised water, glycerin (50 %) and butanol (1.5 %) with atmospheric air representing the gas phase. A high-speed digital video camera was employed for the measuring of bubble rise velocity. The recorded images are also used to obtain an insight into the coalescence/breakage mechanisms occurring during bubble formation at the vicinity of the sparger. Using the appropriate software, rise velocity of the bubbles after their detachment from the triangular and square pitch spargers can be obtained from recorded images for examined liquid and flow conditions. The effect of sparger’s geometry on the rise velocity of the bubbles was studied. An average gas holdup was estimated by bed expansion. The uncertainty of measurements is estimated to be less than 10 %. For two tested spargers, the transition point was determined to be independent from the pore size. It is also evident that the increase of liquid phase viscosity shifts the transition point to lower velocities. The only exception is a water whose transition velocity is lower than that of butanol solutions, despite of its higher viscosity. This behavior can be attributed to simultaneous effect of relatively low viscosity and high surface tension.
Design of two-channel nonuniform-division maximally decimated filter banks using L1 error criteria

The paper considers the optimal design of two-channel nonuniform-division maximally decimated filter bank (NDMDFB) systems with linear-phase analysis/synthesis filters. Based on L 1 error criterion, the authors formulate two design problems, namely, L 1 reconstruction error and stopband response for analysis filters, L 1 reconstruction error and least-squares stopband response for analysis filters. They are usually nonlinear optimisation problems. To avoid the requirement of performing any complicated nonlinear optimisation techniques for each design, the design problems are reformulated using a linearisation scheme. As a result, finding the optimal coefficients of the analysis/synthesis filters requires the solution of linear equations. A method for solving each of the resulting design problems is developed. Simulation examples for illustration are provided.
Aspects of bivariate time series

Exponential smoothing algorithms are very attractive for the practical world such as in industry. When considering bivariate exponential smoothing methods, in addition to the properties of univariate methods, additional properties give insight to relationships between the two components of a process, and also to the overall structure of the model. It is important to study these properties, but even with the merits the bivariate exponential smoothing algorithms have, exponential smoothing algorithms are nonstatistical/nonstochastic and to study the properties within exponential smoothing may be worthless. As an alternative approach, the (bivariate) ARIMA and the structural models which are classes of statistical models, are shown to generalize the exponential smoothing algorithms. We study these properties within these classes as they will have implications on exponential smoothing algorithms. Forecast properties are studied using the state space model and the Kalman filter. Comparison of ARIMA and structural model completes the study.