bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A landscape‐based approach for assessing spatiotemporal impacts of forest biomass‐based electricity generation on the age structure of surrounding forest plantations in theSouthernUnitedStates
Authors: Dwivedi Puneet , Bailis Robert , Carter Douglas R. , Sharma Ajay
Published: October 2011

Forest plantations support several ecosystem services including biodiversity conservation. Establishment of a forest biomass‐based industry could significantly change the age structure of forest plantations located in its vicinity and thus, could lead to a possible loss of biodiversity. Therefore, this study assesses spatiotemporal impacts of a forest biomass‐based power plant on the age structure of surrounding forest plantations at landscape level. A cellular automata approach was adopted and interactions between economic objectives of forest landowners and a power plant owner punctuated by forest growth and management characteristics were considered. These spatiotemporal impacts were jointly assessed for four separate scenarios and four different power plant capacities using appropriate landscape‐level indices. Slash pine (Pinus elliottiL.) was selected as a representative species. Results indicate that the age structure of surrounding forest plantations continuously fluctuates with respect to each year of power plant operation. However, the age structure, once disturbed, never becomes comparable to the original age structure. We also found that the mature plantations were harvested during early years of power plant operation and were never observed again for the remaining years of power plant operation. This was particularly true for high capacity power plants. Similarly, high value of selected spatial index at the end of power plant life for a high capacity power plant relative to the original low value of the same index indicates aggregation of remaining plantation ages at landscape level. Establishment of low capacity forest biomass‐based power plants and adoption of an integrated regional level planning approach could help in maintaining original age structure characteristics of surrounding forest plantations to a large extent. This might help in sustaining various ecosystem services including biodiversity conservation obtained from forest plantations in a long run.
Toward a Truly Social Epistemology: Babbage, the Division of Mental Labor, and the Possibility of Socially Distributed Warrant
Authors: Shieber Joseph
Published: October 2011

In what follows, I appeal to Charles Babbage’s discussion of the division of mental labor to provide evidence that—at least with respect to the social acquisition, storage, retrieval, and transmission of knowledge—epistemologists have, for a broad range of phenomena of crucial importance to actual knowers in their epistemic practices in everyday life, failed adequately to appreciate the significance of socially distributed cognition. If the discussion here is successful, I will have demonstrated that a particular presumption widely held within the contemporary discussion of the epistemology of testimony—a presumption that I will term the personalist requirement—fails to account for those very practices of knowers that I detail here. I will then conclude by suggesting that an alternate account of testimonial warrant, one that has heretofore been underappreciated, ought to be given more serious consideration—in particular because it is well suited to account for those actual practices of knowers that the personalist requirement leaves unrecognized.
Testimony as a Social Foundation of Knowledge
Authors: AUDI ROBERT
Published: October 2011

Testimony is the mainstay of human communication and essential for the spread of knowledge. But testimony may also spread error. Under what conditions does it yield knowledge in the person addressed? Must the recipient trust the attester? And does the attester have to know what is affirmed? A related question is what is required for the recipient to be justified in believing testimony. Is testimony‐based justification acquired in the same way as testimony‐based knowledge? This paper addresses these and other questions. It offers a theory of the role of testimony in producing knowledge and justification, a sketch of a conception of knowledge that supports this theory, a brief account of how trust of others can be squared with critical habits of mind, and an outline of some important standards for intellectual responsibility in giving and receiving testimony.
Trait gambling cognitions predict near‐miss experiences and persistence in laboratory slot machine gambling
Authors: Billieux Joël , Van der Linden Martial , Khazaal Yasser , Zullino Daniele , Clark Luke
Published: October 2011

‘Near‐miss’ outcomes (i.e., unsuccessful outcomes close to the jackpot) have been shown to promote gambling persistence. Although there have been recent advances in understanding the neurobiological responses to gambling near‐misses, the psychological mechanisms involved in these events remain unclear. The goal of this study was to explore whether trait‐related gambling cognitions (e.g., beliefs that certain skills or rituals may help to win in games of chance) influence behavioural and subjective responses during laboratory gambling. Eighty‐four individuals, who gambled at least monthly, performed a simplified slot machine task that delivered win, near‐miss, and full‐miss outcomes across 30 mandatory trials followed by a persistence phase in extinction. Participants completed the Gambling‐Related Cognitions Scale (GRCS; Raylu & Oei, 2004), as well as measures of disordered gambling (South Oaks Gambling Screen [SOGS]; Lesieur & Blume, 1987) and social desirability bias (DS‐36; Tournois, Mesnil, & Kop, 2000). Skill‐oriented gambling cognitions (illusion of control, fostered by internal factors such as reappraisal of losses, or perceived outcome sequences), but not ritual‐oriented gambling cognitions (illusion of control fostered by external factors such as luck or superstitions), predicted higher subjective ratings of desire to play after near‐miss outcomes. In contrast, perceived lack of self‐control predicted persistence on the slot machine task. These data indicate that the motivational impact of near‐miss outcomes is related to specific gambling cognitions pertaining to skill acquisition, supporting the idea that gambling near‐misses foster the illusion of control.
Delays in attentional processing when viewing sexual imagery: The development and comparison of two measures
Authors: Gress Carmen L.Z. , Anderson John O. , Laws D. Richard
Published: October 2011

Purpose. Critically important to effectively treating and managing sexual offending is the identification or validation of an offender's deviant sexual interests as the nature of their sexual interests is what demarcates repetitive sexual offenders from non‐offenders and lower risk offenders. As an alternative or verification to self‐report or phallometric measures, focus has turned to attention‐based measures. These measures assess sexual content‐induced delay (SCID), a specific form of attentional bias associated with preferred sexual content (images or text). Viewing time (VT) and choice reaction time (CRT) were developed and utilized to assess sexual interest via SCID (Geer & Bellard, 1996) and examine the measures’ clinical utility via estimates of sensitivity and specificity.

Method. Participants were 44 youth non‐sexual offenders, 60 university students, and 22 adult sexual offenders. Differences between groups were examined on various sub‐scores and receiver operator characteristic curves provided information on clinical utility.

Results. The VT and CRT measures produced subtest scores with high reliability in all three samples. There were significant differences in VT between the adult sexual offenders and the youth non‐sexual offenders, but not between the youth non‐sexual offenders and the university students. Some of the VT subtests demonstrated good clinical utility in their ability to differentiate adult heterosexual sexual offenders from non‐sexual offenders (e.g., area under the curve (AUC) = 0.87 female mature images, 0.88 male child images). Interestingly, the VT and CRT measures provided significantly different results.

Conclusion. The results of this study provide further evidence that measures of SCID are accurate and are useful as indications of sexual interest. Differences between measures suggest, however, that further work is required.
Taming the green‐eyed monster: Temporal responsivity to cognitive behavioural and cognitive analytic therapy for morbid jealousy
Authors: Kellett Stephen , Totterdell Peter
Published: October 2011

Objectives. Credible evaluations of the psychological treatment of morbid jealousy are rare. The aim of this study was to evaluate temporal responsivity to cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and cognitive analytic therapy (CAT) for morbid jealousy.

Design. The methodology involved matched A/B single‐case experimental designs (SCED) with extended follow‐up, in which two patients and their partners completed daily jealousy target symptom items across the phases of the study. Patients also completed traditional psychometric outcome measures at assessment, post‐therapy, and at final follow‐up.

Methods. Both patients received the same number of assessment (n = 3), treatment (n = 13), and follow‐up (n = 1) sessions.

Results. Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) models of the patients’ daily target symptom jealousy SCED data indicate the effectiveness of the CAT intervention and the ineffectiveness of the CBT intervention, but both therapies produced large effect sizes. The partner of the CBT patient felt less controlled following therapy, whilst the partner of CAT patient did not perceive any change to his partner.

Conclusion. The discussion calls for a stronger evidence base for the psychological treatment of morbid jealousy to be constructed and debates the routine measurement of outcomes for partners of morbidly jealous patients.

Practitioner points

Measuring outcomes for partners of jealous patients is indicated.

CAT shows promise as an intervention for morbid jealousy.

The evidence base for the treatment of morbid jealousy requires further development.
Green Cooling of High Performance Microprocessors: Parametric Study Between Flow Boiling and Water Cooling
Authors: Olivier Jonathan A. , Marcinichen Jackson B. , Bruch Arnaud , Thome John
Published: October 2011

Due to the increase in energy prices and spiralling consumption, there is a need to greatly reduce the cost of electricity within data centers, where it makes up to 50% of the total cost of the IT infrastructure. A technological solution to this is using on-chip cooling with a single-phase or evaporating liquid to replace energy intensive air-cooling. The energy carried away by the liquid or vapor can also potentially be used in district heating, as an example. Thus, the important issue here is “what is the most energy efficient heat removal process?” As an answer, this paper presents a direct comparison of single-phase water, a 50% water–ethylene glycol mixture and several two-phase refrigerants, including the new fourth generation refrigerants HFO1234yf and HFO1234ze. Two-phase cooling using HFC134a had an average junction temperature from 9 to 15 °C lower than for single-phase cooling, while the required pumping power for the central processing unit cooling element for single-phase cooling was on the order of 20–130 times higher to achieve the same junction temperature uniformity. Hot-spot simulations also showed that two-phase refrigerant cooling was able to adjust to local hot-spots because of flow boiling’s dependency on the local heat flux, with junction temperatures being 20 to 30 °C lower when compared to water and the 50% water–ethylene glycol mixture, respectively. An exergy analysis was developed considering a cooling cycle composed by a pump, a condenser, and a multimicrochannel cooler. The focus was to show the exergetic efficiency of each component and of the entire cycle when the subject energy recovery is considered. Water and HFC134a were the working fluids evaluated in such analysis. The overall exergetic efficiency was higher when using HFC134a (about 2%), and the exergy destroyed, i.e., irreversibilities, showed that the cooling cycle proposed still have a huge potential to increase the thermodynamic performance.
The Influence of Shear Layer Turbulence on Stationary Pseudoblades in Supersonic Pressure Exchange Inducing Flow Fields
Authors: Bulusu Kartik V. , Garris Charles A.
Published: October 2011

The pressure exchange process can be initiated by nonsteady pressure forces that arise due to moving fluid dynamic interfaces in the laboratory frame of reference. The fluid interfaces are flow features of “pseudoblades” that can be generated by an expanding supersonic primary flow, impinging on freely spinning cone-vane type of rotors. These pseudoblades are fluidic vanes that interface with an entrained, compressible secondary fluid and can mimic the action of impellers as in conventional turbomachinery. The overarching goal of this research is the development of a novel fluid impeller-based ejector. The authors’ motivation towards this study was in understanding the boundary conditions leading to spatial deterioration of pseudoblades. Flow around stationary, axisymmetrically aligned rotors (the ramp vane and double cone type), held in a primary supersonic flow field (Mach 1.44 jet), were investigated by laser Doppler velocimetry (LDV) measurements of shear layer turbulence intensity (TI) under alternative seeding of primary and entrained secondary flows. Rotors were tested and compared for shear layer TI distribution-based boundary conditions, anticipated pseudoblade conditions and an “effective persistence length of stationary pseudoblades.” The results suggest that the double cone rotor is most conducive for pseudoblade stability. The TI distribution-based boundary conditions for this rotor indicate that the effective pseudoblade persistence length approximately equals the exit diameter of the supersonic nozzle.
Nonlinear Dynamics of Inverted Pendulum Driven by Airflow
Authors: Nana Nbendjo B. R.
Published: October 2011

A nonlinear model of inverted pendulum that exhibit unbounded single well φ6 potential is described. The complete equation for one-dimensional wind-induced sway is derived. The harmonic balance method along with Melnikov theory are used to seek the effects of aerodynamic drag forces on the amplitude of vibration, on the structure failure, and on the appearance of horseshoes chaos. Numerical simulations have been performed to confirm analytical investigation.
Flexible poly(dimethyl siloxane) support layers for the evanescent characterization of near-field lithography systems
Authors: Moore Ciaran P. , Blaikie Richard J.
Published: October 2011

The authors present an improved near-field contact lithography technique that facilitates the characterization of superlens-based imaging systems. Pattern transfer is realized by discrete mask and photoresist components, in combination with water-soluble metal-dielectric superlens layers. Damage to imaging components is prevented by the inclusion of a flexible poly(dimethyl siloxane) (PDMS) layer in the photoresist stack. The AFM micrographs of near-field exposures performed using this technique show good fidelity between the mask and image patterns, which is not the case when the PDMS layer is omitted. The increased robustness and fidelity offered by this technique pave the way towards a full spatial frequency-domain characterization of optical superlenses, based entirely on experimentally measured data.
Analysis of shear strain imaging for classifying breast masses: Finite element and phantom results
Authors: Xu Haiyan , Varghese Tomy , Madsen Ernest L.
Published: October 2011

Purpose:

Features extracted from axial‐shear strain images of breast masses have been previously utilized to differentiate and classify benign from malignant breast masses. In this paper, we compare shear strain patterns exhibited by both the full‐shear (axial and lateral component) versus only the axial‐shear strain component for differentiating between bound masses (malignant) when compared to unbound masses (benign).

Methods:

We examine different breast mass characteristics such as mass shape, asymmetric location of masses, stiffness variations, and mass bonding characteristics to background tissue to assess their impact on shear strain patterns generated due to a uniaxial applied deformation. Two‐dimensional finite element simulations of both circular and elliptical inclusions embedded within a uniform background were utilized. Different degrees of bonding were characterized using friction coefficient values ranging from 0.01 to 100 denoting loosely bound to firmly bound masses. Single‐inclusion tissue‐mimicking phantoms mimicking firmly bound and loosely bound ellipsoidal masses oriented at four different angles to the applied deformation were studied to corroborate the mass differentiation performance.

Results:

Our results indicate that the normalized axial‐shear strain and full‐shear strain area features are larger for bound when compared to unbound masses. A higher stiffness ratio or contrast between the inclusion and background also improves differentiation. Larger applied deformations reduce the discrimination performance for masses with friction coefficients lower than 0.4, due to increased mass slippage with applied deformations. Potential errors with the use of these features would occur for unbound inclusions at larger applied deformations and for asymmetric mass positions within the background normal tissue.

Conclusions:

Finite element and tissue‐mimicking phantom results demonstrate the feasibility of utilizing both the normalized axial‐shear and full‐shear strain area features to classify breast masses. Differentiation between bound or unbound masses was not affected by the mass size or shape for masses where the applied deformation is normal to the mass surface. Shear strain patterns vary significantly especially within unbound masses, when the mass surface is not normal to the applied deformation. Discrimination performance for unbound masses was improved by utilizing only the normalized shear strain area patterns located outside the mass as illustrated in this paper.
K‐space reconstruction with anisotropic kernel support (KARAOKE) for ultrafast partially parallel imaging
Authors: Miao Jun , Wong Wilbur C. K. , Narayan Sreenath , Wilson David L.
Published: October 2011

Purpose:

Partially parallel imaging (PPI) greatly accelerates MR imaging by using surface coil arrays and under‐sampling k‐space. However, the reduction factor (R) in PPI is theoretically constrained by the number of coils (NC). A symmetrically shaped kernel is typically used, but this often prevents even the theoretically possible R from being achieved. Here, the authors propose a kernel design method to accelerate PPI faster than R = NC.

Methods:

K‐space data demonstrates an anisotropic pattern that is correlated with the object itself and to the asymmetry of the coil sensitivity profile, which is caused by coil placement and B1 inhomogeneity. From spatial analysis theory, reconstruction of such pattern is best achieved by a signal‐dependent anisotropic shape kernel. As a result, the authors propose the use of asymmetric kernels to improve k‐space reconstruction. The authors fit a bivariate Gaussian function to the local signal magnitude of each coil, then threshold this function to extract the kernel elements. A perceptual difference model (Case‐PDM) was employed to quantitatively evaluate image quality.

Results:

A MR phantom experiment showed that k‐space anisotropy increased as a function of magnetic field strength. The authors tested a K‐spAce Reconstruction with AnisOtropic KErnel support (“KARAOKE”) algorithm with both MR phantom andin vivo data sets, and compared the reconstructions to those produced by GRAPPA, a popular PPI reconstruction method. By exploiting k‐space anisotropy, KARAOKE was able to better preserve edges, which is particularly useful for cardiac imaging and motion correction, while GRAPPA failed at a high R near or exceeding NC. KARAOKE performed comparably to GRAPPA at low Rs.

Conclusions:

As a rule of thumb, KARAOKE reconstruction should always be used for higher quality k‐space reconstruction, particularly when PPI data is acquired at highRs and/or high field strength.
The synthesis, reactivity, and peripheral functionalization of corroles
Authors: Lemon Christopher M. , Brothers Penelope J.
Published: October 2011

Corroles are unusual macrocycles that often exhibit chemical reactivity that is distinct from their closely related porphyrin cousins. Standard organic transformations with corroles often result in the formation of unexpected products. A survey of synthetic methods for the preparation of both meso-substituted and β-substituted corroles will give an overview of the different synthetic strategies. This review provides a comprehensive description of the chemical reactivity and functionalization of corroles, focusing especially on reactions at the periphery of the macrocycle. Formylation, nitration, bromination and chlorosulfonation reactions will be explored in detail. In addition, demetalation processes, reactivity of the N-pyrrolic nitrogens and the lability of the macrocycle ring toward expansion and ring-opening reactions will be discussed. Finally, the synthesis of super-structured (picket-fence, capped, and strapped) corroles and isocorroles will be surveyed.
Formation and photoinduced properties of zinc porphyrin-SWCNT and zinc phthalocyanine-SWCNT nanohybrids using diameter sorted nanotubes assembled via metal-ligand coordination and π–π stacking
Authors: Das Sushanta K. , Subbaiyan Navaneetha K. , D'Souza Francis , Sandanayaka Atula S. D. , Wakahara Takatsugu , Ito Osamu
Published: October 2011

Photoinduced electron transfer processes in self-assembled zinc porphyrin ( ZnP ) or zinc phthalocyanine ( ZnPc ) with semiconducting (7,6)- and (6,5)-enriched SWCNTs were investigated. To bind photosensitizers to SWCNTs, first, pyrene covalently functionalized with a phenylimidazole (Im-Pyr) entity was treated with SWCNTs. Exfoliation of SWCNTs occurred due to π–π stacking of pyrene with nanotubes walls leaving the imidazole entity that was subsequently used to coordinate ZnP or ZnPc in o-dichlorobenzene (DCB). The donor-acceptor nanohybrids thus formed were characterized by TEM imaging, steady-state UV-visible-near IR absorption and fluorescence spectra. Free-energy calculations suggested possibility of electron transfer from the photoexcited ZnP or ZnPc to Im-Pyr/SWCNT(n,m) in the nanohybrids. Consequently, steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence studies revealed efficient quenching of the singlet excited state of ZnP or ZnPc with the rate constants of charge separation (k CS ) in the range of (3–6) × 109 s-1. Nanosecond transient absorption technique confirmed the electron transfer products, ZnP·+←Im-Pyr/SWCNT·- and ZnPc·+←Im-Pyr/SWCNT·- (and opposite charged pairs) having characteristic absorptions with the decay rate constants due to charge recombination (k CR ) in the range of (1.4–2.4) × 107 s-1, corresponding to lifetimes of radical ion-pairs in the 70–100 ns range. The SWCNT·- was further utilized to mediate electrons to hexyl-viologen dication (HV2+) resulting in an electron-accumulation process in the presence of sacrificial electron donor, offering additional proof for the occurrence of photoinduced charge-separation and potential utilization of these materials in light energy harvesting applications. Further, photoelectrochemical cells have been constructed on FTO/ SnO2 electrodes to verify their ability to directly convert light into electricity. An IPCE efficiency of up to 7% has been achieved in case of ZnP←Im-Pyr/SWCNT modified electrode.
BETWEEN POLICY-MAKING AND PLANNING
Authors: LYHNE IVAR
Published: October 2011

This article deals with the challenge of approaching decision-making processes through strategic environmental assessment (SEA). It is argued that the interaction between policy-making and planning in strategic decision-making processes is a neglected reason for problems with applying SEA, as legislation and guidance on SEA primarily approach either the policy or plan level. To substantiate the argument, the extent of interaction is empirically investigated. Four contemporary decision-making processes in the Danish energy sector are mapped as a series of choices. Fundamental changes with considerable environmental impacts are decided these years, often without preceding SEA processes. The mapping shows a profound interaction between policy-making and planning. In this interaction, public consultation, systematic environmental analyses, and transparency on alternatives are primarily related to choices of planning character. The findings lead to a discussion of the existing SEA guidance that is challenged in terms of adequacy of the guidance to approach the interaction.
BEST PRACTICES FOR PROMOTING PARTICIPATION AND LEARNING FOR SUSTAINABILITY: LESSONS FROM COMMUNITY-BASED ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT IN KENYA AND TANZANIA
Authors: SPALING HARRY , MONTES JESSE , SINCLAIR JOHN
Published: October 2011

This paper establishes best practices for community-based environmental assessment (CBEA) in Kenya and Tanzania and examines what participants in community-centered approaches to environmental assessment have learned. Three CBEA cases involving water supply projects were studied using interview methods and action research. Findings show that best practices for encouraging meaningful community involvement include providing access and adequate notice to participants, fairer cost sharing, broader representation of women and youth, participant understanding of the CBEA facilitator and culturally appropriate sharing of findings. Learning outcomes attributable to the CBEA process included technical skills for erosion control, new information about environmental assessment (EA) regulations and shared values of environmental sustainability and community unity. An application of selected best practice approaches in a test case, in order to encourage greater participation and learning, had mixed success. For example, attempts at providing early notice still resulted in it being far too late for most participants and only about one-third of the participants were women. However, a pictograph functioned as an effective tool for reporting CBEA results to the community and demonstrating learning outcomes.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT FOLLOW-UP IN INDIA: EXPLORING REGIONAL VARIATION
Authors: JHA-THAKUR URMILA
Published: October 2011

The aim of this paper is to explore regional variation in the implementation of Environmental Impact Assessment follow-up in India and to identify causes of such variations. In doing so, forty-three semi-structured interviews were carried out across the Indian mining and environment sector. The findings from the interviews confirm that regional variation in follow-up implementation is a result of social, environmental, economical and political factors. To further explore these factors, three case studies of open cast coal mining were conducted. The findings of the case studies offer insight as to how the factors identified during the interviews influence follow-up outcomes. Furthermore, it reflects how the nature of such variation is not always true to what is perceived about them. Subsequently, the findings from the interviews and case studies help in contributing to the existing best practice of EIA follow-up and developing recommendations for achieving better follow-up outcomes in India.
CLIMATE CHANGE IN DEVELOPMENT BANK COUNTRY ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSES
Authors: POSAS PAULA J.
Published: October 2011

The World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB) use an instrument called country environmental analysis (CEA) to help identify a client country's key environment-development issues and their likely relevance to future lending and technical assistance. This research examines the issue of climate change in the context of international development and then reviews existing practice on addressing climate change in World Bank and ADB CEAs between 2003 and 2009. It shows much greater attention over time to projected climate change impacts and climate change in relation to particular sectors. There is an overall upward trend toward increasing attention to climate change in other aspects as well. Based on review of CEA documents, resulting baseline data, and relevant literature, climate change review categories and guiding principles are proposed as a basis for the possible development of guidance materials and toward more systematic incorporation of the issue of climate change in future CEAs.
REALISING STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT IN ANTARCTICA
Authors: ROURA RICARDO M. , HEMMINGS ALAN D.
Published: October 2011

This paper discusses high-level environmental policy objectives under the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS), and their relation to Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). It reviews the need for SEA in Antarctica; discusses existing ATS strategic processes and the impediments to achieving the high-level environmental policy objectives agreed within the ATS, and suggests ways to improve strategic consideration of environmental issues. Whilst the concept of a strategic approach is already accepted in principle within the ATS, there remain difficulties in realising this. These include, inter alia, limitations in the established processes addressing environmental issues (particularly cumulative impacts), and ongoing tensions between the nominally agreed international objectives and national interests (including issues around unresolved territorial sovereignty claims) in practice. The article contends that given growing pressures on the Antarctic environment, high-level environmental policy objectives cannot be achieved through accumulated reactive ad hoc measures, or by industry self-regulation, but requires a systematic approach to strategic environmental considerations.
THE CONTROLLED SYNTHESIS AND STERILIZATION PERFORMANCE OF Ag/Au NANOCOMPOSITE CHAINS
Authors: LI DA , XIE HONG-ZHEN , ZHANG MIN , LIU JIN-KU , YANG XIAO-HONG
Published: October 2011

The controlled synthesis of one-dimensional Ag/Au nanocomposite chains with a length of several micrometers (up to 3 μm) was described in this paper. In this synthesis method, the artificial active membrane of celloidin is used and N2H4 ⋅ H2O acts as the reductive agent. The morphologies, structures and optical properties of the product were researched by TEM, SEM, EDS, XRD, and UV-Vis, etc. The synthesis mechanism of product was also postulated. Experiments proved that the synergic sterilization performances of Ag/Au nanocomposite chains were stronger than Ag/Au nanocomposite particles.
TREND EXTRACTION FOR SEASONAL TIME SERIES USING ENSEMBLE EMPIRICAL MODE DECOMPOSITION
Authors: MHAMDI FAROUK , POGGI JEAN-MICHEL , JAÏDANE MÉRIEM
Published: October 2011

In this paper, we investigate eligibility of trend extraction through the empirical mode decomposition (EMD) and performance improvement of applying the ensemble EMD (EEMD) instead of the EMD for trend extraction from seasonal time series. The proposed method is an approach that can be applied on any time series with any time scales fluctuations. In order to evaluate our algorithm, experimental comparisons with three other trend extraction methods: EMD-energy-ratio approach, EEMD-energy-ratio approach, and the Hodrick–Prescott filter are conducted.
AUTOMATIC PROTEIN SPOTS QUANTIFICATION IN TWO-DIMENSIONAL GEL IMAGES
Authors: RASHWAN SHAMS , SARHAN AMANY , FAHEEM MUHAMMAD TALAAT , YOUSSEF BAYUMY. A.
Published: October 2011

Two-dimensional (2D) polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of proteins is a robust and reproducible technique. It is the most widely used separation tool in proteomics. Current efforts in the field are directed at development of tools for expanding the range of proteins accessible with 2D gels. Proteomics was built around the 2D gel. The idea that multiple proteins can be analyzed in parallel grew from 2D gel maps. Proteomics researchers needed to identify interested protein spots by examining the gel. This is time-consuming, labor-extensive, and error-prone process. It is desired that the computer can analyze the proteins automatically by first detecting then quantifying the protein spots in the 2D gel images. In our previous work, we presented a new technique for segmentation of 2D gel images using the fuzzy c-means (FCM) algorithm using the notion of fuzzy relations. In this paper, we will describe the new relational FCM (RFCM) algorithm and use it for automatic protein spots quantification. We will also use two methods to evaluate its performance: the unsupervised evaluation method and comparison with the expert spots quantification.
CONDITIONAL AND MULTINOMIAL LOGITS AS BINARY LOGIT REGRESSIONS
Authors: LIPOVETSKY STAN
Published: October 2011

For a categorical variable with several outcomes, its dependence on the predictors is usually considered in the conditional or multinomial logit models. This work considers elasticity features of the binary and categorical logits and introduces the coefficients individual by observations. The paper shows that by a special rearrangement of data the more complicated conditional and multinomial models can be reduced to binary logistic regression. It suggests the usage of any software widely available for logit modeling to facilitate constructing for complex conditional and multinomial regressions. In addition, for binary logit, it is possible to obtain meaningful coefficients of regression by transforming data to the linear link function, which opens a possibility to obtain meaningful parameters of the complicated models with categorical dependent variables.
Structural and Electrical Properties of Radio Frequency Sputtered HfTaOx Films for High-k Gate Insulator
Authors: Hota Mrinal K. , Mallik Sandipan , Sarkar Chandan K. , Varma Shikha , Maiti Chinmay K.
Published: October 2011

Mixed HfTaO
x
dielectric has been deposited by radio frequency (RF) magnetron co-sputtering of HfO2 and Ta2O5 targets on Si substrates and with Pt bottom electrode for metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS) and metal–insulator–metal (MIM) structures, respectively. HfTaO
x
layers are characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) to examine the chemical composition. Surface morphology and crystallinity of the deposited film were examined, using by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXRD), respectively. For both the structures electrical properties have been studied in detail. MOS capacitor capacitance–voltage (C–V) characteristics have been utilized to determine the interface trap density and trap distribution in the silicon band gap. A small capacitance non-linearity and low dissipation factor were found in the Pt/HfTaO
x
/Pt MIM structures.
Transport and Magnetic Properties in the Gd1-xCaxVO3 System
Authors: Zhang Xue , Zhang Yan , Wang Xiao-Ming , An Xin-Xin , Chen Chin-Ping , Jing Xi-Ping
Published: October 2011

Solid solutions of the Gd1-x
Ca
x
VO3 system with 0.0≤x≤1 were prepared by solid state reactions, and a comprehensive study on their transport and magnetic properties was conducted. This system exhibits a composition-induced metal–insulator transition at x = 0.5–0.6 and an antiferromagnetic-to-paramagnetic transition at x = 0.1–0.2. The metal–insulator transition is mainly attributed to the filling-controlled mechanism. For the samples in the insulator range 0.0≤x≤0.5, the transport is subject to the variable range hopping mechanism at low temperatures and the thermally activated mechanism at high temperatures. For the samples in the metal range 0.6≤x < 1.0 with itinerant electrons, the magnetic properties show Curie–Weiss dependence rather than Pauli behavior. Pauli paramagnetic properties were observed only for CaVO3 (x = 1.0).
Ab-initio Electronic and Structural Properties of Rutile Titanium Dioxide
Authors: Ekuma Chinedu E. , Bagayoko Diola
Published: October 2011

Ab-initio, self-consistent electronic energy bands of rutile TiO2 are reported within the local density functional approximation (LDA). Our first principle, non-relativistic and ground state calculations employed a local density functional approximation (LDA) potential and the linear combination of atomic orbitals (LCAO). Within the framework of the Bagayoko–Zhao–Williams (BZW) method, we solved self-consistently both the Kohn–Sham equation and the equation giving the ground state charge density in terms of the wave functions of the occupied states. Our calculated band structure shows that there is significant O 2p–Ti 3d hybridization in the valence bands. These bands are well separated from the conduction bands by an indirect band gap of 2.95 eV, from Γ to R. Consequently, this work predicts that rutile TiO2 is an indirect band gap material, as all other gaps from our calculations are larger than 2.95 eV. We found a slightly larger, direct band gap of 3.05 eV, at the Γ point, in excellent agreement with experiment. Our calculations reproduced the peaks in the measured conduction and valence bands densities of states, within experimental uncertainties. We also calculated electron effective mass. Our structural optimization led to lattice parameters of 4.65 and 2.97 Å for a
0 and c
0, respectively with a u parameter of 0.3051 and a bulk modulus of 215 GPa.
Suppression of Leakage Current of Metal–Insulator–Semiconductor Ta2O5 Capacitors with Al2O3/SiON Buffer Layer
Authors: Tonomura Osamu , Miki Hiroshi , Takeda Ken-ichi
Published: October 2011

An Al2O3/SiO buffer layer was incorporated in a metal–insulator–semiconductor (MIS) Ta2O5 capacitor for dynamic random access memory (DRAM) application. Al2O3 was chosen for the buffer layer owing to its high band offset against silicon and oxidation resistance against increase in effective oxide thickness (EOT). It was clarified that post-deposition annealing in nitrogen at 800 °C for 600 s increased the band offset between Al2O3 and the lower electrode and decreased leakage current by two orders of magnitude at 1 V. Furthermore, we predicted and experimentally confirmed that there was an optimized value of y in (Si3N4)
y
(SiO2)(1-y), which is 0.58, for minimizing the leakage current and EOT of SiON. To clarify the oxidation resistance and appropriate thickness of Al2O3, a TiN/Ta2O5/Al2O3/SiON/polycrystalline-silicon capacitor was fabricated. It was confirmed that the lower electrode was not oxidized during the crystallization annealing of Ta2O5. By setting the Al2O3 thickness to 3.4 nm, the leakage current is lowered below the required value with an EOT of 3.6 nm.
Energy Dispersions of Anisotropic Refractive Indices of Thiophene/Phenylene Co-Oligomer Crystals
Authors: Bando Kazuki , Kumeta Shohei , Sasaki Fumio , Hotta Shu
Published: October 2011

We have determined the energy dispersions of the anisotropic refractive indices along the three a-, b-, and c-crystal axes of the thiophene/phenylene co-oligomer (TPCO) crystals with higher precision. The refractive indices were calculated from interference fringes observed in the vertical- and oblique-incidence transmission spectra of single crystal thin films. The optical constants of the TPCO crystals have large optical anisotropy and strong energy dispersion because of the molecular transition dipole moments oriented as H-aggregates. In particular, the refractive index of the c-axis and its energy dispersion are much larger than those of the other axes. The strong energy dispersion of the refractive indices results in the large effective refractive indices of the TPCO crystals. The determined refractive indices along the three crystal axes of BP1T crystals are very useful for optical device applications.
Phase-Change Characteristics and Crystal Structure in Multi Stacked GeTe/InTe Films
Authors: Kim Ki-Hong , Lee Jun-Ho , Kyoung Yong-Koo
Published: October 2011

The changes in the microstructural and electrical properties of multi stacked GeTe/InTe layers were investigated. When the GeTe layer was thicker than the InTe layer, a Ge(In)Te phase occurred only after annealing. Although crystallization should originate from the GeTe layers, there was a uniform distribution of Ge and In atoms in the Ge(In)Te phase after 400 °C annealing. The dropping temperature of sheet resistance was slightly increased with a decrease in GeTe thickness. If the GeTe layer was thinner than the InTe layer, the phases observed after annealing were not only the Ge(In)Te phase, but also the In7Te10 phase. The formation of the In7Te10 phase was the primary cause of the increasing sheet resistance after crystallization by subsequent annealing.
The Light Extraction Efficiency of p-GaN Patterned InGaN/GaN Light-Emitting Diodes Fabricated by Size-Controllable Nanosphere Lithography
Authors: Sim Jae In , Lee Byoung Gyu , Yang Ji Won , Yoon Hyung-do , Kim Tae Geun
Published: October 2011

The authors present a light extraction improvement at a low operation voltage from p-GaN patterned InGaN/GaN light-emitting diodes (LEDs) fabricated using size-controllable nanosphere lithography and subsequent inductively coupled plasma etching. A 300-nm polystyrene (PS) nanosphere array was used as an etching mask in order to produce ordered pillar patterns on the p-GaN layer, during which the top and bottom size of the pillars were tailored to optimize the electrical and optical properties by varying the diameter of the PS nanosphere masks. Three LEDs, without patterns and with pillar patterns of 210 nm and 240 nm diameter, were compared with each other, in which the LED with 240 nm diameter pillar patterns showed the highest output power (32.6% higher than that of the LEDs without patterns) in both its electroluminescence and photoluminescence measurements.
Finite-Difference Frequency-Domain Method to Study Photonic Crystals with Dispersive Metamaterials
Authors: Terao Takamichi
Published: October 2011

Numerical method to study photonic crystals containing dispersive negative-refractive-index materials is presented. The photonic band structure of the system is calculated using the finite-difference frequency-domain method. In the system of air rods embedded in a negative-refractive-index material, the existence of characteristic forbidden frequency regime (FFR) is suggested in the low-frequency regime, in addition to many flat dispersion curves in the higher-frequency regime. It is also shown that the spatial distribution of the electromagnetic eigenmode belonging to the low-frequency regime is localized in the vicinity of the air rods.
Liquid Crystal Polarization Converters Using Circular-Buffed Polystyrene Film
Authors: Xu Miao , Park Kyundo , Nah Changwoon , Lee Myong-Hoon , Ren Hongwen
Published: October 2011

Polystyrene is well known to align liquid crystal (LC) perpendicular to the rubbing direction. Based on this unique feature, we prepared two cells with special LC alignments using circular-buffed polystyrene as the alignment layer. For the cell with hybrid-radial LC alignment, it can convert a linear polarization light to axial polarization light; for the cell with twisted-radial LC alignment, it can change a linear polarization light into radial polarization light. The two LC polarization cell converters with polystyrene as their alignment layer have the advantages of easy fabrication, simple processing, and scalable size.
Two-Wave Mixing Amplification of Femtosecond Laser Pulses at 800 nm in Rh:BaTiO3 Photorefractive Crystal
Authors: Kabir Md. Masudul , Ito Daiki , Oishi Yu , Kannari Fumihiko
Published: October 2011

We report the photorefractive (PR) two-wave mixing amplification (TWMA) of broadband femtosecond laser pulses in a Rh:BaTiO3 crystal by one-photon absorption. Two-wave mixing (TWM) is performed in the crystal using 30 fs laser pulses at an 800 nm wavelength. A maximum two-wave mixing amplification gain coefficient of ∼11/cm was achieved using a chirped volume grating written at a grating spacing of 5 µm. The broadband spectrum and the original phase characteristics of the signal pulse are also maintained. Beam fanning for the femtosecond pulse laser is less pronounced than that for the cw laser, facilitating a higher two-wave mixing gain for femtosecond pulse lasers.
Tunable Dual-Wavelength Erbium-Doped Fiber Laser Using Single Fiber Bragg Grating with Two Coil Heaters
Authors: Sohn Kyung Rak
Published: October 2011

A tunable wavelength-selective fiber Bragg grating (FBG) filter was demonstrated in an erbium-doped fiber ring laser (EDFRL) configuration to achieve a stable and tunable dual-wavelength laser source. The tuning method was based on a thermo-optic effect of a single FBG divided into two segments by two identical coils. Using this coil heater, we showed a continuous wavelength spacing of dual-wavelength output from 0.25 to 5.5 nm. Furthermore, each wavelength could be independently changed during lasing operation without thermal crosstalk between adjacent channels.
Epitaxial Growth of Metastable hcp-Ni and hcp-NiFe Thin Films on Au(100)fcc Single-Crystal Underlayers and Their Structure Characterization
Authors: Ohtake Mitsuru , Sato Yoichi , Higuchi Jumpei , Tanaka Takahiro , Kirino Fumiyoshi , Futamoto Masaaki
Published: October 2011

Metastable hcp-Ni and hcp-NiFe epitaxial thin films are prepared on Au(100)fcc single-crystal underlayers by molecular beam epitaxy. The epitaxial growth and the transformation from metastable hcp to more stable fcc phase are studied by in-situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction. In an early stage of film growth, hcp(1120) crystal is stabilized through hetero-epitaxial growth. The epitaxial orientation relationship between the film and the underlayer is determined to be hcp(1120)[0001], hcp(1120)[1100] ∥ Au(100)[001]fcc. With increasing the film thickness, the hcp structure starts to transform into fcc structure. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy shows that the film consists of a mixture of hcp and fcc crystals and that a large number of stacking faults exist parallel to the close-packed plane. The results suggest that the hcp structure starts to transform from these stacking faults into fcc structure in the lateral direction by atomic displacement parallel to the hcp(0001) close-packed plane. The crystallographic orientation relationships between the hcp and transformed fcc crystals are determined to be fcc(110)[111], fcc(110)[111] ∥ hcp(1120)[0001] and fcc(110)[112], fcc(110)[112] ∥ hcp(1120)[1100].
Magnetic and Electronic Properties of Double Perovskite Sr2-xLaxVMoO6
Authors: Matsushima Hiroyuki , Gotoh Hirotaka , Takeda Yoichi , Ueda Kenji , Asano Hidefumi
Published: October 2011

The magnetic and electronic properties of double perovskite Sr2-x
La
x
VMoO6 (x = 0.9–1.2) polycrystalline bulk samples have been investigated. Magnetization and electrical resistivity measurements indicate that Sr2-x
La
x
VMoO6 is an antiferromagnetic metal with an antiferromagnetic transition temperature in the range 123–146 K. X-ray photoemission spectroscopy measurements reveal that Mo has a tetravalent state (Mo4+) and V has a trivalent state (V3+) in SrLaVMoO6. These results indicate that V3+ (3d2) ions are antiferromagnetically coupled with Mo4+ (4d2) ions. Electron-doping effects of Sr2-x
La
x
VMoO6 by La substitution differed from those of half-metallic Sr2-x
La
x
FeMoO6. This can be qualitatively explained by considering the different electron-doped orbitals and ordering ratios of B-site ions between Sr2-x
La
x
VMoO6 and Sr2-x
La
x
FeMoO6 (Mo/V or Mo/Fe).
Organic/Inorganic Hybrid p–n Junctions Made of Pentacene–SnO2Nanowires Network
Authors: Park Sung Chan , Huh Junghwan , Kim Daeil , Yee Seongmin , Kim Gyu Tae , Ha Jeong Sook
Published: October 2011

We have investigated the temperature-dependent electrical properties of the p–n junction formed between a p-type pentacene film and n-type SnO2nanowires. Rectifying current–voltage characteristics were observed and analyzed by a series resistance and a diode model. As temperature decreased, forward current decreased fitting to the diode equation ofI=I0[exp (ηkT)-1] with a large ideality factor reaching η∼420, indicating large surface states at the junction parts. The activation energy of the series resistance from the Arrhenius plot was estimated to be 35.6 meV indicating the dominant contribution of the pentacene layer as a series resistance in the equivalent model.