bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Facile modification and fixation of diaryl disulphide-containing dynamic covalent polyesters by iodine-catalysed insertion-like addition reactions of styrene derivatives to disulphide units
Authors: Nakai Yukako , Takahashi Akira , Goseki Raita , Otsuka Hideyuki
Published: June 2016

Insertion-like addition of disulphide-containing polyesters to styrene derivatives is reported, enabling facile control of various properties including dynamic covalent characteristics.
Intramolecular cyclization of long-chain hyperbranched polymers (HyperMacs) from A2 + Bn step-wise polymerization
Authors: Ban Qingfu , Kong Jie
Published: June 2016

We presented a precise topological analysis on intramolecular cyclization for long-chain hyperbranched polymers via the new parameter of the macro-cyclic index (m-CI).
Kinetic and isotherm studies of nitrate adsorption on granular Fe–Zr–chitosan complex and electrochemical reduction of nitrate from the spent regenerant solution
Authors: Hu Qili , Chen Nan , Feng Chuanping , Hu Weiwu , Liu Hengyuan
Published: June 2016

In this study, a granular Fe–Zr–chitosan complex was prepared to remove nitrate from aqueous solution and an undivided cylindrical electrochemical cell was constructed to treat the spent regenerant solution, thus achieving separation and conversion.
Random alloy fluctuations and structural inhomogeneities in c-plane InxGa1−xN quantum wells: theory of ground and excited electron and hole states
Authors: Tanner Daniel S. P. , Caro Miguel A. , O'Reilly Eoin P. , Schulz Stefan
Published: June 2016

Atomistic analysis of carrier localisation effects in ground and excited electron and hole states inc-plane InGaN quantum wells.
A profluorescent nitroxide probe for ascorbic acid detection and its application to quantitative analysis of diabetic rat plasma
Authors: Matsuoka Yuta , Ohkubo Kei , Yamasaki Toshihide , Yamato Mayumi , Ohtabu Hiroshi , Shirouzu Tomonori , Fukuzumi Shunichi , Yamada Ken-ichi
Published: June 2016

15-((9-(Ethylimino)-10-methyl-9Hbenzo[a]phenoxazin-5-yl)amino)-3,11-dioxa-7-azadispiro[5.1.58.36]hexadecan-7-yloxyl, (Nile-DiPy) has been synthesized and examined as an off–on profluorescent nitroxide probe for measuring ascorbic acid in plasma.
A novel amphoteric ion-exchange membrane prepared by the pore-filling technique for vanadium redox flow batteries
Authors: Lee M. S. , Kang H. G. , Jeon J. D. , Choi Y. W. , Yoon Y. G.
Published: June 2016

A novel amphoteric ion-exchange membrane (AIEM) was prepared through the pore-filling technique, for vanadium redox flow battery (VRBs) applications.
Synthesis of sub-100 nm biocompatible superparamagnetic Fe3O4 colloidal nanocrystal clusters as contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging
Authors: Tang Yuxia , Liu Ying , Li Wei , Xie Yuan , Li Yanjun , Wu Jiang , Wang Shouju , Tian Ying , Tian Wei , Teng Zhaogang , Lu Guangming
Published: June 2016

Sub-100 nm Fe3O4 particles have been synthesized via a solvothermal method by using water as a size-control agent. They show superparamagnetism, high magnetization, prominent biocompatibility, and great promising for magnetic resonance imaging.
Hypochlorite scavenging activity of cerium oxide nanoparticles
Authors: Pulido-Reyes G. , Das S. , Leganés F. , Silva S. O. , Wu S. , Self W. , Fernández-Piñas F. , Rosal R. , Seal S.
Published: June 2016

In this report, we provide evidence that specific synthesis of cerium oxide nanoparticles can scavenge the hypochlorite anion, which is a strong extracellular oxidant involved in the inflammatory processes.
Structure, optical properties and thermal stability of SS/TiC–ZrC/Al2O3 spectrally selective solar absorber
Authors: Gao Xiang-Hu , Guo Zhi-Ming , Geng Qing-Fen , Ma Peng-Jun , Wang Ai-Qin , Liu Gang
Published: June 2016

A tandem layer structured SS/TiC–ZrC/Al2O3 coating has been prepared by magnetron sputtering as a high temperature spectrally selective solar absorber.
DOTMA-based amides (DOTMAMs) as a platform for the development of PARACEST MRI contrast agents
Authors: Suchý M. , Li A. X. , Milne M. , Bartha R. , Hudson R. H. E.
Published: June 2016

A synthetic methodology leading to previously unknown DOTMA-based secondary amides (DOTMAMs) has been developed.
Ultrathin anatase nanosheets with high energy facets exposed and related photocatalytic performances
Authors: Wang Yongzheng , Ye Jing , Shen Yu , Xie Mingjiang , Yang Shuangshuang , Liu Chao , Guo Xiangke , Peng Luming , Ding Weiping , Guo Xuefeng
Published: June 2016

Ultrathin anatase nanosheets with high energy (116) facets exposed were fabricated from exfoliated titanate nanosheets and exhibited high photocatalytic performance.
Electrocatalytic activity of Nb-doped hexagonal WO3 nanowire-modified graphite felt as a positive electrode for vanadium redox flow batteries
Authors: Kabtamu Daniel Manaye , Chen Jian-Yu , Chang Yu-Chung , Wang Chen-Hao
Published: June 2016

We report a facile hydrothermal method to synthesize low-cost, high-catalytic-activity, and stable niobium-doped hexagonal tungsten trioxide nanowires; these were employed as catalysts to improve the electrocatalytic activity of graphite felt (GF) electrodes for use as positive electrodes in an all-vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB).
Rational design of cobalt–chromium layered double hydroxide as a highly efficient electrocatalyst for water oxidation
Authors: Dong Chenlong , Yuan Xiaotao , Wang Xin , Liu Xiangye , Dong Wujie , Wang Ruiqi , Duan Yuhang , Huang Fuqiang
Published: June 2016

The design of a high performance, stable and cost-effective electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution is crucial for H2 production from electrochemical water splitting.
An eco-friendly ultra-high performance ionic artificial muscle based on poly(2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid) and carboxylated bacterial cellulose
Authors: Wang Fan , Jeon Jin-Han , Kim Seong-Jun , Park Jong-Oh , Park Sukho
Published: June 2016

An eco-friendly ultra-high performance ionic artificial muscle based on carboxylated bacterial cellulose and PAMPS was fabricated.
Fluorescence enhancement in crystals tuned by a molecular torsion angle: a model to analyze structural impact
Authors: Srujana P. , Gera Tarun , Radhakrishnan T. P.
Published: June 2016

Alkyl group substitutions induce a systematic tuning of an intramolecular torsion angle and supramolecular organization resulting in a parallel increase in the fluorescence enhancement (solution to crystal) factor. A model is developed to probe the molecular and crystal structural impact on fluorescence enhancement, and provide a basis for rational design.
Variational Bayesian learning for background subtraction based on local fusion feature
Authors: Yan Junhua , Wang Shunfei , Xie Tianxia , Yang Yong , Wang Jiayi
Published: June 2016

To resist the adverse effect of shadow interference, illumination changes, indigent texture and scenario jitter in object detection and improve performance, a background modelling method based on local fusion feature and variational Bayesian learning is proposed. First, U‐LBSP (uniform‐local binary similarity patterns) texture feature, lab colour and location feature are used to construct local fusion feature. U‐LBSP is modified from local binary patterns in order to reduce computational complexity and better resist the influence of shadow and illumination changes. Joint colour and location feature are introduced to deal with the problem of indigent texture and scenario jitter. Then, LFGMM (Gaussian mixture model based on local fusion feature) is updated and learned by variational Bayes. In order to adapt to dynamic changing scenarios, the variational expectation maximisation algorithm is applied for distribution parameters optimisation. In this way, the optimal number of Gaussian components as well as their parameters can be automatically estimated with less time expended. Experimental results show that the authors’ method achieves outstanding detection performance especially under conditions of shadow disturbances, illumination changes, indigent texture and scenario jitter. Strong robustness and high accuracy have been achieved.
Power integrated circuit implementation of optimal adaptive voltage positioning scheme using progressive waveform shaping algorithm
Authors: Liu Chih‐Wei , Chang‐Chien Le‐Ren
Published: June 2016

Adaptive voltage positioning (AVP) scheme is widely adopted in the high‐load voltage regulation modules (VRMs) because it helps VRMs reducing almost half the number of output capacitors for the same design without using AVP. The AVP scheme is claimed to be optimal if its voltage transient behaviour is linear by tuning the current sensing parameter (Ri) to match the value of the output capacitor equivalent series resistor (ESR). In this study, a progressive waveform‐shaping method is proposed to automatically achieve optimal AVP for the VRMs without manually setting the optimal Ri. Hence, as long as a proper ESR of the output capacitor is determined, VRM designers can use the least output capacitor numbers to obtain the optimal AVP waveform. The proposed method is especially appealing for the power integrated circuit application. The overall controller design was implemented by the Taiwan semiconductor manufacturing company (TSMC) 0.18 μm manufacturing process. In the real implementation, an AVP‐based buck converter was devised to perform 5 μs linear transient in response to the 10 A/5 μs load current step at 1.2 V output voltage. Test of the circuit shows that the AVP performance is comparable to those state of the art.
Method to eliminate the limit cycle oscillation for digitally controlled DC–DC converter using reduced state Kalman filter
Authors: Girija Sajitha , Narayanasamy Selvaganesan , Kurian Thomas
Published: June 2016

This study proposes a novel method to eliminate the limit cycle caused by low resolution analogue‐to‐digital converter (ADC) in digitally controlled DC–DC converter. The reduced state Kalman filter is proposed to get the optimum estimate of the output voltage from the noisy measurement provided by the low resolution ADC. The proposed scheme is simulated with 6 bit resolution of ADC and the validation is performed with different resolutions using a prototype model which is implemented in16 bit digital signal processor. The results show that the proposed scheme eliminates limit cycle oscillation completely and is computationally more efficient.
Parallel inductor multilevel current source inverter with energy‐recovery scheme for inductor currents balancing
Authors: Nik Ismail Nik Fasdi , Rahim Nasrudin Abd. , Sheikh Raihan Siti Rohani , Al‐Turki Yusuf
Published: June 2016

Current source inverters (CSIs) have increasingly become popular because of their inherent advantages over voltage source inverter. In a single phase system, the operation of multilevel current source inverter (MCSI) requires large and bulky DC link inductor and the employment of switching state redundancy to balance the inductor currents limit the advantages of MCSI. This study proposed a new configuration for parallel MCSI. The proposed energy‐recovery scheme provides a major path to release its stored energy in order to balance the sharing inductor currents and introduces a novel single state switching technique for the generation of MCSI output current. In addition, a chopper circuit with smaller inductor size is employed to replace the large and bulky input DC link inductor. An integration of five‐level MCSI and a chopper based DC‐current source with energy recovery scheme circuits produce a five‐level MCSI with a simple converter structure. The performance of the proposed MCSI is analysed through MATLAB and is verified by constructing a prototype. The results demonstrate that the proposed circuit with the balancing inductor current scheme significantly reduces the input DC link inductor size, eliminate the control complexity in balancing the inductor currents and has excellent sharing inductor current characteristics.
Family of step‐up DC/DC converters with fast dynamic response for low power applications
Authors: Soltani Mohsen , Mostaan Ali , Siwakoti Yam Prasad , Davari Pooya , Blaabjerg Frede
Published: June 2016

This study presents a family of novel step‐up DC/DC converters which do not have a right half plane zero in their transfer function resulting in faster dynamic behaviour of the converters under the load variation. In addition, the voltage stress on all the active switches and diodes is as low as the input voltage level. The basic topology of this converter has a voltage gain of up to two in steady state. The derivatives of the converter are realised by adding a switched capacitor voltage multiplier cell in order to increase the voltage gain further. The most salient feature of these converters is presence of only two switches in the basic converter and its derivatives. The dynamic performance of the proposed converter and its first derivative is analysed by small‐signal model using the state‐space averaging method. The theoretical model is verified by experiments using GaN high‐electron‐mobility transistors with 1 MHz switching frequency.
Immediate Surgical Management of Traumatic Dislocation of the Eye Globe into the Maxillary Sinus: Report of a Rare Case and Literature Review
Authors: Noman Samer Abduljabar , Shindy Mostafa Ibrahim
Published: June 2016

We report a case of complete dislocation of the globe into the maxillary sinus, with immediate repositioning of the globe. This report highlights the importance of early surgical repair of orbital fracture and globe repositioning to regain the maximum amount of ocular functions. A review of literature found 19 cases of globe dislocation into the maxillary sinus: One case was enucleated 2 months after misdiagnosis as traumatic enucleation, six cases were documented no vision or no light perception, three cases did not have reported vision (patients did not survive), and nine cases with postoperative vision. We recommend early surgical intervention to restore the cosmetic and visual function of the dislocated eye.
Eye inside Out: Endonasal Endoscopic Reposition of Eye from Nose with Complete Vision Regainment
Authors: Mishra Girish S. , Bhatt SushenHarish
Published: June 2016

Faciomaxillary and ocular trauma is a common entity in most emergency and trauma units. We came across a 68-year-old female patient with a history of bull horn injury over the right eye. Examination revealed an empty orbital socket with unreliable perception of light present. Imaging showed that the eye had displaced posteroinferomedially to be lying in the ethmoid air cells in the nasal cavity. Under nasal endoscopic guidance, the eye was reposited back into the orbital socket and conjunctival sutures were taken to stabilize the position. The patient had vision of counting fingers at 1.5 m on the first postoperative day which improved to 6/24 on last follow-up. Such is the rarity that never before has such a case been described in literature where traumatic displacement of eyeball into the nose has been successfully repositioned by an endonasal endoscope with appreciable regaining of vision. It also further promotes endonasal endoscopic approach in the management of orbital blow out injuries.
Pädophile Neigungen offenbaren: Stigma-Management bei Patienten aus dem Berliner Präventionsprojekt Dunkelfeld
Authors: Wagner Tilmann , Jahnke Sara , Beier Klaus M. , Hoyer Jürgen , Scherner Gerold
Published: June 2016

Übersicht

Vor dem Hintergrund der enormen Stigmatisierung von Menschen mit pädophilen Neigungen ist davon auszugehen, dass sich Betroffene häufig entscheiden müssen, diese preiszugeben oder geheim zu halten – mit zum Teil dramatischen Konsequenzen für ihr soziales Leben und ihr Selbstbild. Obwohl Formen des Stigma-Managements für andere stigmatisierte Gruppen bereits intensiv erforscht wurden, liegen bisher keine Daten zu den Erfahrungen pädophiler Personen vor. Zur Identifikation typischer Strategien und deren Konsequenzen wurden in der vorliegenden Studie Erstgespräche von 186 Patienten des Präventionsprojekts Dunkelfeld (PPD) qualitativ ausgewertet. 48 % der Patienten hatten sich einer anderen Person anvertraut (direkte Offenlegung), bei 37 % wurden pädophile Neigungen durch andere Personen aufgedeckt, ohne dass die Betroffenen es selbst entschieden hatten (indirekte Offenlegung) und 15 % der Patienten hatten zuvor noch nie über ihre sexuellen Neigungen gesprochen
(Geheimhaltung). Unsere Analysen der berichteten Konsequenzen legen nahe, dass bei einer direkten Offenlegung das Verhältnis von Vor- und Nachteilen am günstigsten ausfällt. Die Ergebnisse werden hinsichtlich des Risikos für sexuellen Kindesmissbrauch und ihrer Implikationen für präventive therapeutische Strategien diskutiert.
Long-range energy transport in photosystem II
Authors: Roden Jan J. J. , Bennett Doran I. G. , Whaley K. Birgitta
Published: June 2016

We simulate the long-range inter-complex electronic energy transfer in photosystem II—from the antenna complex, via a core complex, to the reaction center—using a non-Markovian (ZOFE) quantum master equation description that allows the electronic coherence involved in the energy transfer to be explicitly included at all length scales. This allows us to identify all locations where coherence is manifested and to further identify the pathways of the energy transfer in the full network of coupled chromophores using a description based on excitation probability currents. We investigate how the energy transfer depends on the initial excitation—localized, coherent initial excitation versus delocalized, incoherent initial excitation—and find that the overall energy transfer is remarkably robust with respect to such strong variations of the initial condition. To explore the importance of vibrationally enhanced transfer and to address the question of optimization in the system parameters, we systematically vary the strength of the coupling between the electronic and the vibrational degrees of freedom. We find that the natural parameters lie in a (broad) region that enables optimal transfer efficiency and that the overall long-range energy transfer on a ns time scale appears to be very robust with respect to variations in the vibronic coupling of up to an order of magnitude. Nevertheless, vibrationally enhanced transfer appears to be crucial to obtain a high transfer efficiency, with the latter falling sharply for couplings outside the optimal range. Comparison of our full quantum simulations to results obtained with a “classical” rate equation based on a modified-Redfield/generalized-Förster description previously used to simulate energy transfer dynamics in the entire photosystem II complex shows good agreement for the overall time scales of excitation energy transport.
Electrical and thermal transports of binary copper sulfides CuxS with x from 1.8 to 1.96
Authors: Qiu Pengfei , Zhu Yaqin , Qin Yuting , Shi Xun , Chen Lidong
Published: June 2016

In this study, a series of copper sulfides CuxS with x spanning from 1.8 to 1.96 was prepared and their crystal structures, elemental valence states, and thermoelectric properties were systematically studied. The valence state of Cu in CuxS is unchanged as the ratio of Cu/S varies, while the thermoelectric properties are very sensitive to the deficiency of Cu. In addition, the type of sulfur arrangement in the crystal structure also plays an important role on the electrical transports. Finally, the optimum Cu/S atomic ratios in the binary CuxS system were identified for high power factor and thermoelectric figure of merit.
Single crystal CVD diamond membranes for betavoltaic cells
Authors: Delfaure C. , Pomorski M. , de Sanoit J. , Bergonzo P. , Saada S.
Published: June 2016

A single crystal diamond large area thin membrane was assembled as a p-doped/Intrinsic/Metal (PIM) structure and used in a betavoltaic configuration. When tested with a 20 keV electron beam from a high resolution scanning electron microscope, we measured an open circuit voltage (Voc) of 1.85 V, a charge collection efficiency (CCE) of 98%, a fill-factor of 80%, and a total conversion efficiency of 9.4%. These parameters are inherently linked to the diamond membrane PIM structure that allows full device depletion even at 0 V and are among the highest reported up to now for any other material tested for betavoltaic devices. It enables to drive a high short-circuit current Isc up to 7.12 μA, to reach a maximum power Pmax of 10.48 μW, a remarkable value demonstrating the high-benefit of diamond for the realization of long-life radioisotope based micro-batteries.
Phonon transport effects in one-dimensional width-modulated graphene nanoribbons
Authors: Karamitaheri Hossein , Neophytou Neophytos
Published: June 2016

We investigate the thermal conductance of one-dimensional periodic width-modulated graphene nanoribbons using lattice dynamics for the phonon spectrum and the Landauer formalism for phonon transport. We conduct a full investigation considering all relevant geometrical features, i.e., the various lengths and widths of the narrow and wide regions that form the channel. In all cases that we examine, we find that width-modulation suppresses the thermal conductance at values even up to ∼70% below those of the corresponding uniform narrow nanoribbon. We show that this can be explained by the fact that the phonon spectrum of the width-modulated channels acquires less dispersive bands with lower group velocities and several narrow bandgaps, which reduce the phonon transmission function significantly. The largest degradation in thermal conductance is determined by the geometry of the narrow regions. The geometry of the wider regions also influences thermal conductance, although modestly. Our results add to the ongoing efforts in understanding the details of phonon transport at the nanoscale, and our conclusions are generic and could also apply to other one-dimensional channel materials.
Longitudinal elastic wave propagation characteristics of inertant acoustic metamaterials
Authors: Kulkarni Prateek P. , Manimala James M.
Published: June 2016

Longitudinal elastic wave propagation characteristics of acoustic metamaterials with various inerter configurations are investigated using their representative one-dimensional discrete element lattice models. Inerters are dynamic mass-amplifying mechanical elements that are activated by a difference in acceleration across them. They have a small device mass but can provide a relatively large dynamic mass presence depending on accelerations in systems that employ them. The effect of introducing inerters both in local attachments and in the lattice was examined vis-à-vis the propagation characteristics of locally resonant acoustic metamaterials. A simple effective model based on mass, stiffness, or their combined equivalent was used to establish dispersion behavior and quantify attenuation within bandgaps. Depending on inerter configurations in local attachments or in the lattice, both up-shift and down-shift in the bandgap frequency range and their extent are shown to be possible while retaining static mass addition to the host structure to a minimum. Further, frequency-dependent negative and even extreme effective-stiffness regimes are encountered. The feasibility of employing tuned combinations of such mass-delimited inertant configurations to engineer acoustic metamaterials that act as high-pass filters without the use of grounded elements or even as complete longitudinal wave inhibitors is shown. Potential device implications and strategies for practical applications are also discussed.
LES investigation of the transport and decay of various-strengths wake vortices in ground effect and subjected to a turbulent crosswind
Authors: Bricteux L. , Duponcheel M. , De Visscher I. , Winckelmans G.
Published: June 2016

This study is concerned with the investigation of two-vortex systems (2VS) of various strengths that are released near the ground and evolve in the presence of a turbulent crosswind. We analyze the physics of the vortices interactions with the turbulent wind and with the ground during the rebound phase, and that lead to the fully developed turbulent flow and interactions. The transport and decay of the vortices are also analyzed. The turbulent wind itself is obtained by direct numerical simulation using a half channel flow. The flow is then supplemented with the 2VS, using vortices with a circulation distribution that is representative of vortices after roll-up of a near wake. The vortex strengths, Γ0, are such that ReΓ = Γ0/ν = 2.0 × 104 for the baseline; there is then a case with twice weaker vortices, and a case with twice stronger vortices. The simulations are run in wall-resolved Large Eddy Simulation (LES) mode. The baseline is in line with the wall-resolved LES study of a similar case [A. Stephan et al., “Aircraft wake-vortex decay in ground proximity—Physical mechanisms and artificial enhancement,” J. Aircr. 50(4), 1250–1260 (2013)]. They highlighted the significant effect that the near-wall streaks of the wind have on the development of instabilities in the secondary vortices, and the ensuing turbulence. Our analysis complements theirs by also showing the significant effect that the wind turbulent structures, away from the ground and that are stretched by the primary vortices, also have on the destabilization of the secondary vortices. Comparisons are also made with the most recent study [F. N. Holzäpfel et al., “Wind impact on single vortices and counter-rotating vortex pairs in ground proximity,” in 7th AIAA Atmospheric and Space Environments Conference, AIAA Aviation (American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 2015)], where ReΓ = 2.0 × 104 for all cases and where it is the wind intensity that is varied. Diagnostics on the vortex trajectories and circulation decay are provided, for the mean and for the envelopes of behaviour. The results are discussed and compared with the recent literature. In particular, for the case with relatively twice stronger wind relative to the vortices, the upwind vortex quickly looses its coherence when it comes closest to the ground and does not rebound; the physics of that are explained by a long wave instability excited by the turbulent wind. Finally, a case where the baseline wake is released at a lower altitude is also studied, to support an analysis on what is the proper length scale to use, and initial time, when comparing results of wakes released at different altitudes: indeed, when normalized using those quantities, the trajectory and decay curves of this case are seen to collapse very well with those of the baseline.
Double resonant absorption measurement of acetylene symmetric vibrational states probed with cavity ring down spectroscopy
Authors: Karhu J. , Nauta J. , Vainio M. , Metsälä M. , Hoekstra S. , Halonen L.
Published: June 2016

A novel mid-infrared/near-infrared double resonant absorption setup for studying infrared-inactive vibrational states is presented. A strong vibrational transition in the mid-infrared region is excited using an idler beam from a singly resonant continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator, to populate an intermediate vibrational state. High output power of the optical parametric oscillator and the strength of the mid-infrared transition result in efficient population transfer to the intermediate state, which allows measuring secondary transitions from this state with a high signal-to-noise ratio. A secondary, near-infrared transition from the intermediate state is probed using cavity ring-down spectroscopy, which provides high sensitivity in this wavelength region. Due to the narrow linewidths of the excitation sources, the rovibrational lines of the secondary transition are measured with sub-Doppler resolution. The setup is used to access a previously unreported symmetric vibrational state of acetylene, ν1+ν2+ν3+ν41+ν5−1 in the normal mode notation. Single-photon transitions to this state from the vibrational ground state are forbidden. Ten lines of the newly measured state are observed and fitted with the linear least-squares method to extract the band parameters. The vibrational term value was measured to be at 9775.0018(45) cm−1, the rotational parameter B was 1.162 222(37) cm−1, and the quartic centrifugal distortion parameter D was 3.998(62) × 10−6 cm−1, where the numbers in the parenthesis are one-standard errors in the least significant digits.
The electron localization as the information content of the conditional pair density
Authors: Urbina Andres S. , Torres F. Javier , Rincon Luis
Published: June 2016

In the present work, the information gained by an electron for “knowing” about the position of another electron with the same spin is calculated using the Kullback-Leibler divergence (DKL) between the same-spin conditional pair probability density and the marginal probability. DKL is proposed as an electron localization measurement, based on the observation that regions of the space with high information gain can be associated with strong correlated localized electrons. Taking into consideration the scaling of DKL with the number of σ-spin electrons of a system (Nσ), the quantity χ = (Nσ − 1) DKLfcut is introduced as a general descriptor that allows the quantification of the electron localization in the space. fcut is defined such that it goes smoothly to zero for negligible densities. χ is computed for a selection of atomic and molecular systems in order to test its capability to determine the region in space where electrons are localized. As a general conclusion, χ is able to explain the electron structure of molecules on the basis of chemical grounds with a high degree of success and to produce a clear differentiation of the localization of electrons that can be traced to the fluctuation in the average number of electrons in these regions.
The electrical characteristics of the dielectric barrier discharges
Authors: Yehia Ashraf
Published: June 2016

The electrical characteristics of the dielectric barrier discharges have been studied in this paper under different operating conditions. The dielectric barrier discharges were formed inside two reactors composed of electrodes in the shape of two parallel plates. The dielectric layers inside these reactors were pasted on the surface of one electrode only in the first reactor and on the surfaces of the two electrodes in the second reactor. The reactor under study has been fed by atmospheric air that flowed inside it with a constant rate at the normal temperature and pressure, in parallel with applying a sinusoidal ac voltage between the electrodes of the reactor. The amount of the electric charge that flows from the reactors to the external circuit has been studied experimentally versus the ac peak voltage applied to them. An analytical model has been obtained for calculating the electrical characteristics of the dielectric barrier discharges that were formed inside the reactors during a complete cycle of the ac voltage. The results that were calculated by using this model have agreed well with the experimental results under the different operating conditions.
Plasma heating via adiabatic magnetic compression-expansion cycle
Authors: Avinash K. , Sengupta M. , Ganesh R.
Published: June 2016

Heating of collisionless plasmas in closed adiabatic magnetic cycle comprising of a quasi static compression followed by a non quasi static constrained expansion against a constant external pressure is proposed. Thermodynamic constraints are derived to show that the plasma always gains heat in cycles having at least one non quasi static process. The turbulent relaxation of the plasma to the equilibrium state at the end of the non quasi static expansion is discussed and verified via 1D Particle in Cell (PIC) simulations. Applications of this scheme to heating plasmas in open configurations (mirror machines) and closed configurations (tokamak, reverse field pinche) are discussed.
Accelerated ions from pulsed-power-driven fast plasma flow in perpendicular magnetic field
Authors: Takezaki Taichi , Takahashi Kazumasa , Sasaki Toru , Kikuchi Takashi , Harada Nob.
Published: June 2016

To understand the interaction between fast plasma flow and perpendicular magnetic field, we have investigated the behavior of a one-dimensional fast plasma flow in a perpendicular magnetic field by a laboratory-scale experiment using a pulsed-power discharge. The velocity of the plasma flow generated by a tapered cone plasma focus device is about 30 km/s, and the magnetic Reynolds number is estimated to be 8.8. After flow through the perpendicular magnetic field, the accelerated ions are measured by an ion collector. To clarify the behavior of the accelerated ions and the electromagnetic fields, numerical simulations based on an electromagnetic hybrid particle-in-cell method have been carried out. The results show that the behavior of the accelerated ions corresponds qualitatively to the experimental results. Faster ions in the plasma flow are accelerated by the induced electromagnetic fields modulated with the plasma flow.
Effective interactions between nanoparticles: Creating temperature-independent solvation environments for self-assembly
Authors: Yadav Hari O. S. , Shrivastav Gourav , Agarwal Manish , Chakravarty Charusita
Published: June 2016

The extent to which solvent-mediated effective interactions between nanoparticles can be predicted based on structure and associated thermodynamic estimators for bulk solvents and for solvation of single and pairs of nanoparticles is studied here. As a test of the approach, we analyse the strategy for creating temperature-independent solvent environments using a series of homologous chain fluids as solvents, as suggested by an experimental paper [M. I. Bodnarchuk et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. 132, 11967 (2010)]. Our conclusions are based on molecular dynamics simulations of Au140(SC10H21)62 nanoparticles in n-alkane solvents, specifically hexane, octane, decane and dodecane, using the TraPPE-UA potential to model the alkanes and alkylthiols. The 140-atom gold core of the nanocrystal is held rigid in a truncated octahedral geometry and the gold-thiolate interaction is modeled using a Morse potential. The experimental observation was that the structural and rheological properties of n-alkane solvents are constant over a temperature range determined by equivalent solvent vapour pressures. We show that this is a consequence of the fact that long chain alkane liquids behave to a good approximation as simple liquids formed by packing of monomeric methyl/methylene units. Over the corresponding temperature range (233–361 K), the solvation environment is approximately constant at the single and pair nanoparticle levels under good solvent conditions. However, quantitative variations of the order of 10%–20% do exist in various quantities, such as molar volume of solute at infinite dilution, entropy of solvation, and onset distance for soft repulsions. In the opposite limit of a poor solvent, represented by vacuum in this study, the effective interactions between nanoparticles are no longer temperature-independent with attractive interactions increasing by up to 50% on decreasing the temperature from 361 K to 290 K, accompanied by an increase in emergent anisotropy due to correlation of mass dipoles on the two nanoparticles. One expects therefore that during self-assembly using solvent evaporation, temperature can be used as a structure-directing factor as long as good solvent conditions are maintained. It also suggests that disordered configurations may emerge as solvent quality decreases due to increasing role of short-range attractions and ligand fluctuation-driven anisotropy. The possibilities of using structural estimators of various thermodynamic quantities to analyse the interplay of ligand fluctuations and solvent quality in self-assembly as well as to design solvation environments are discussed.
Surface termination structure of α-Ga2O3 film grown by mist chemical vapor deposition
Authors: Tamba Daiki , Kubo Osamu , Oda Masaya , Osaka Shun , Takahashi Kazuki , Tabata Hiroshi , Kaneko Kentaro , Fujita Shizuo , Katayama Mitsuhiro
Published: June 2016

The surface structure of α-Ga2O3(0001) grown on an α-Al2O3(0001) substrate by mist chemical vapor deposition was studied by coaxial impact-collision ion scattering spectroscopy (CAICISS) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The minimum step height observed in the AFM image was 0.21 ± 0.01 nm, coinciding with the height of three atomic layers of α-Ga2O3(0001). It was revealed by CAICISS analysis that the surface of α-Ga2O3(0001) is terminated by a Ga layer followed by an O layer, which is consistent with the surface termination of α-Al2O3(0001). A structural model taking surface relaxation into account was also constructed by fitting the simulated curve for the azimuth angle dependence of the Ga intensity to the experimental dependence. The resultant structural model is similar to the model of an α-Al2O3(0001) surface, which indicates analogous behavior in corundum crystals.
Magnetic-field-induced changes in superparamagnetic cluster dynamics in the martensitic phase of Ni43Co7Mn40Sn10
Authors: Kuhns P. L. , Hoch M. J. R. , Yuan S. , Reyes A. P. , Srivastava V. , James R. D. , Leighton C.
Published: June 2016

The off-stoichiometric Heusler alloys, such as Ni50Mn25+yX25−y (X = Sn, In, Ga, etc.), have been extensively investigated using a variety of experimental techniques to probe their interesting and potentially useful magnetic properties. Recent 55Mn nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments, carried out largely in zero field (ZF) and making use of the large internal hyperfine field at the nuclear sites, have demonstrated the power of this approach in determining the ground state magnetic characteristics of these materials. In particular, the results reveal that distinct nanoscale ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic phases coexist. A key parameter used in interpreting the NMR data is the transverse relaxation time T2 which, inter alia, determines the NMR blocking temperature TBNMR of magnetic regions. The present experiments on a polycrystalline sample of a specific illustrative alloy, Ni43Co7Mn40Sn10, which has received considerable attention, show that the application of relatively small external fields, comparable to or greater than the local anisotropy field in the ferromagnetic cluster regions, produces dramatic changes in T2 and hence TBNMR. The experimental findings are discussed using an extended version of a recently proposed nanocluster model for superparamagnetic systems. It is demonstrated that the field and temperature induced changes in T2 provide a significant test of the model and lead to a notable advance in applying the NMR technique to the investigation of the magnetic properties of this type of alloy.
Diameter dependence of emission power in MgO-based nano-pillar spin-torque oscillators
Authors: Wang Bochong , Kubota Hitoshi , Yakushiji Kay , Tamaru Shingo , Arai Hiroko , Imamura Hiroshi , Fukushima Akio , Yuasa Shinji
Published: June 2016

The dependence on diameter of the emission power in MgO-based nano-pillar spin torque oscillators (STOs) was systematically investigated. A maximum emission power of over 2.5 μW was obtained around 300 nm in diameter, which is the largest reported to date among the out-of-plane precession STOs. By analyzing physical quantities, precession cone angle of the free-layer magnetization was evaluated. In the diameter range below 300 nm, the increase in power was mainly due to the increase of the injected current. The power decrease above 300 nm is possibly attributed to the decrease in the averaged precession cone angle, suggesting spatial phase difference of magnetization precession. This study provides the method for estimating the optimum STO diameter, which is of great importance in practical use.
Nanogranular SiO2 proton gated silicon layer transistor mimicking biological synapses
Authors: Liu M. J. , Huang G. S. , Feng P. , Guo Q. L. , Shao F. , Tian Z. A. , Li G. J. , Wan Q. , Mei Y. F.
Published: June 2016

Silicon on insulator (SOI)-based transistors gated by nanogranular SiO2 proton conducting electrolytes were fabricated to mimic synapse behaviors. This SOI-based device has both top proton gate and bottom buried oxide gate. Electrical transfer properties of top proton gate show hysteresis curves different from those of bottom gate, and therefore, excitatory post-synaptic current and paired pulse facilitation (PPF) behavior of biological synapses are mimicked. Moreover, we noticed that PPF index can be effectively tuned by the spike interval applied on the top proton gate. Synaptic behaviors and functions, like short-term memory, and its properties are also experimentally demonstrated in our device. Such SOI-based electronic synapses are promising for building neuromorphic systems.
Single-crystal-like GdNdOx thin films on silicon substrates by magnetron sputtering and high-temperature annealing for crystal seed layer application
Authors: Wang Ziwei , Xiao Lei , Liang Renrong , Shen Shanshan , Xu Jun , Wang Jing
Published: June 2016

Single-crystal-like rare earth oxide thin films on silicon (Si) substrates were fabricated by magnetron sputtering and high-temperature annealing processes. A 30-nm-thick high-quality GdNdOx (GNO) film was deposited using a high-temperature sputtering process at 500°C. A Gd2O3 and Nd2O3 mixture was used as the sputtering target, in which the proportions of Gd2O3 and Nd2O3 were controlled to make the GNO’s lattice parameter match that of the Si substrate. To further improve the quality of the GNO film, a post-deposition annealing process was performed at a temperature of 1000°C. The GNO films exhibited a strong preferred orientation on the Si substrate. In addition, an Al/GNO/Si capacitor was fabricated to evaluate the dielectric constant and leakage current of the GNO films. It was determined that the single-crystal-like GNO films on the Si substrates have potential for use as an insulator layer for semiconductor-on-insulator and semiconductor/insulator multilayer applications.
Characterization of radiative recombination in Ag(In,Ga)Se2 thin films by photoluminescence
Authors: Zhang X. F. , Liu J. , Liu G. F.
Published: June 2016

A detailed analysis of the radiative recombination processes in Ag(InGa)Se2 thin films grown by a three-stage method was carried out by photoluminescence. The temperature and excitation dependence of the photoluminescence spectra was used to identify the recombination types and determine the ionization energy of the defects in the films. Significant differences were observed between the spectra of the Ag-rich and Ag-poor samples. The Ag-rich films were dominated by two emission peaks of donor acceptor pairs (DAPs). The DAP at lower energy level is attributed to recombination of donor level 13.8 meV (Agi) with acceptor level 70.3 meV (AgIn), while the one at high energy level is assigned to recombination of donor level 18.5 meV (Agi) with acceptor level 108.9 (AgSe). When Ag/III atomic ratio was near 2.00, a phonon related-structure began to appear, which is attributed to the phonon replica of the high energy level DAP. In the case of Ag-poor AIGS samples, the dominant broad asymmetric peaks of AIGS films with different Ag/III atomic ratios were related to potential fluctuation at low temperature, and the compensation level decreased with increasing Ag/III atomic ratio. The emission line was assigned to recombination of donor level 12.7 meV (Agi) with acceptor level 175 meV (AgGa2). When the excitation power and temperature were increased, new free-bound and DAP emission lines began to appear. The free-bound was assigned to the transition from the conduction band to an acceptor level of 80 meV (AgIn). The DAP was assigned to recombination of donor level 20 meV (VSe) with acceptor level 145 meV (AgGa).
Three-dimensional (3D) α-Fe2O3/polypyrrole (PPy) nanocomposite for effective electromagnetic absorption
Authors: Jiang Wanchun , Sun Mengxiao , Zhang Kun , Wu Fan , Xie Aming , Wang Mingyang
Published: June 2016

The lightweight and 3-dimensional reticulated α-Fe2O3/PPy hybrids were successfully fabricated via a facile one-pot polyreaction. The measured complex permittivity and microwave attenuation performance suggest that the dielectric properties of PPy can be regulated by the mass ratio of added α-Fe2O3. The two dielectric resonance peaks of complex permittivity can be ascribed to the interface capacitor-like structure. An equivalent circuit model was established to explain the nonlinear resonance behavior of the α-Fe2O3/PPy wax composites. The addition of α-Fe2O3 properly tuned the dielectric constant to endow the composites with highly efficient microwave absorption. The minimum reflection loss of α-Fe2O3/PPy wax composites were enhanced to nearly −29dB with an effective bandwidth (RL≤ − 10dB) up to 5.0GHz. The numerical method was proposed to calculate the optimum thickness for minimum RL at expected frequency by detailed investigation on the transmission formula. Moreover, the required thickness for optimum absorption efficiency at expected frequency can be obtained directly.
Living in isolation: ecological, demographic and genetic patterns in northern Australia’s top marsupial predator on Koolan Island
Authors: Spencer Peter B. S. , Sandover Simon , Nihill Kimberley , Wale Celeste H. , How Richard A. , Schmitt Lincoln H.
Published: June 2016

Koolan Island supports an abundant population of the threatened northern quoll (Dasyurus hallucatus). We used a mark–release–recapture program that produced 2089 captures from 2009 to 2012 to examine demographic and genetic parameters in this insular population and compare to other localities. Every captured female was either lactating or carrying up to eight young over the breeding season, July–September. Unlike several other populations, males on Koolan Island can survive long after breeding, but never into a second breeding season. Females can survive and reproduce for two successive annual breeding seasons and occasionally survive to a third. There is marked sexual dimorphism but it is less pronounced, and both sexes are smaller than their mainland counterparts. Quolls were recorded moving over 4 km and apparent abundance was far higher on Koolan Island than the mainland. Genetic analyses of nuclear and mitochondrial markers demonstrate a distinctive signature. Koolan island has only 34% of the allelic richness of the entire species, and only 38% of the alleles in Kimberley mainland and near-shore island populations. There is no evidence of recent or long-term population decline. Kimberley island faunas have distinctive demographic and genetic profiles that should be appraised before considering translocations for conservation purposes.
Electrochemical Investigation of Gold Nanoparticle-Modified Glassy Carbon Electrode and its Application in Ketoconazole Determination
Authors: Alshalalfeh Mutasem M. , Sohail Manzar , Saleh Tawfik A. , Aziz Md. Abdul
Published: June 2016

Ketoconazole (KCZ) is an extensively used antifungal compound and is an active ingredient of anti-scaling shampoos, pomades, and skin ointments. In this work, the cyclic voltammetric behaviour of KCZ was studied with a gold nanoparticle (AuNP)-modified glassy carbon (GC) electrode. The conditions for KCZ determination with GC/AuNP were optimised to achieve the best possible response. A pre-adsorption voltage of –1.6 V, a deposition time of 120 s, pH 4.0, and stirring of the KCZ solution during deposition were chosen as the optimum conditions for KCZ determination. The anodic peak at 0.697 V was used for KCZ determination. A linear concentration range of 20–100 μM (R2 = 0.9986) and a detection limit of 2.3 μM (3σ) was achieved for KCZ using the GC/AuNP electrode.