An experimental and statistical study of the behavior of the vibration field in two coupled lightweight wooden joist floors

The aim of this study was to evaluate the vibration level attenuation of a common wooden floor structure and to present the results together with the statistical precision of the evaluation. Linear regression was used to determine the attenuation rate in the two main directions of the floor structure. The probability for the attenuation rate to be zero was calculated. The attenuation rate was found to be high in the direction perpendicular to the beams with a probability to be zero lower than 0.001. In the direction parallel to the beams the attenuation rate was found to be close to zero.     

Numbers,scale and symbols: the public understanding of nanotechnology

Nanotechnology will be an increasing part of the everyday lives of most people in the world. There is a general recognition that few people understand the implications of the technology, the technology itself or even the definition of the word. This lack of understanding stems from a lack of knowledge about science in general but more specifically difficulty in grasping the size scale and symbolism of nanotechnology. A potential key to informing the general public is establishing the ability to comprehend the scale of nanotechnology. Transitioning from the macro to the nanoscale seems to require an ability to comprehend scales of one-billion. Scaling is a skill not common in most individuals and tests of their ability to extrapolate size based upon scaling a common object demonstrates that most individuals cannot scale to the extent needed to make the transition to nanoscale. Symbolism is another important vehicle to providing the general public with a basis to understand the concepts of nanotechnology. With increasing age, individuals are able to draw representations of atomic scale objects, but these tend to be iconic and the different representations not easily translated. Ball and stick models are most recognized by the public, which provides an opportunity to present not only useful symbolism but also a reference point for the atomic scale.     

经典洛伦兹磁力和广义洛伦兹磁力解释电子感应加速器的本质

介绍了虚构的法拉第定律与电子感应加速器不合理,用完整洛伦兹磁力解释电子感应加速器合理有效。     

Deflagration to detonation transition in fast flames and tracking with chemical explosive mode analysis

In the context of vapour cloud explosion, the flame acceleration process can lead to conditions promoting deflagration to detonation transition (DDT), potentially leading to increased damages in accidental scenarios. This study focuses on this phenomenon by performing simulations of detonation reinitiation for fast flames in the Chapman–Jouguet deflagration regime. It is obtained experimentally by the attenuation of an incident detonation by an array of obstacles. A primary objective of the paper is to demonstrate the ability of the numerical model to reproduce the major experimental trends, namely the variation of the reinitiation propensity for different initial pressures and blockage ratios (BRs). Chemical explosive mode analysis (CEMA) is also adapted to the context of this study, in order to identify locally the propagation regime and to provide insights on the reinitiation mechanism. An a priori validation of the CEMA methodology is first performed on relevant canonical one-dimensional configurations. Subsequently, ensembles of five realizations are computed at different initial pressures and BRs and compared to experimental data. They are shown to reproduce the major observed trends in terms of detonation reinitiation length with respect to the operating conditions, with significant variability from one realization to another. In addition, the reinitiation mechanism is also found to be consistent with experimental observations and a previous numerical study of the same configuration. The CEMA methodology adapted to this context is able to identify locally the different propagation regimes, and to track the highly reactive zones that coherently couple with transverse pressure perturbations, leading to the formation of a strongly reacting kernel which eventually triggers the detonation reinitiation.     

Adaptive digital twins of combustion systems using sparse sensing strategies

This work proposes to implement a sparse sensing framework to build a hybrid numerical-experimental Digital Twin of a practical combustion system. The goal is to find the optimal sensor placement that minimizes the prediction error, and to predict the distribution of reacting scalars using few measurements. Three-dimensional CFD simulations with detailed chemistry were used to build the design space by varying the fuel composition (from pure methane to pure hydrogen), the equivalence ratio (from 0.7 to 1) and the air velocity. The Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) was applied to the numerical data to find a tailored basis for dimensionality reduction. Then, the QR decomposition with column pivoting was applied to the tailored basis to find the optimal sensor placement. Finally, the model was employed to predict the three-dimensional temperature distribution in the unexplored part of the design space, using the experimental samples as input. The optimal placement of the sensors provides valuable information on the key locations and features, which can then be used in the design of reactor network models, for example. Also, the results show that the hybrid Digital Twin could predict an adjusted temperature distribution which reduces the error with the experimental measurements, when compared to the original CFD temperature distribution.     

Gravitational critical phenomena in the realm of the galaxies and Ising magnets

In the non-relativistic and quasi-static limit, it is possible to map exactly the system of galaxies in the observable universe onto an Ising magnet. Techniques from the theory of critical phenomena as applied to magnets can then be employed to calculate rigorously the galaxy-to-galaxy correlation function, whose critical exponent is predicted to be between 1.530 to 1.862, to be compared to the empirical/observational value of 1.6 to 1.8.This essay received the fifth award from the Gravity Research Foundation, 1996—Ed.     

南海北部海域内波环境下声传播损失起伏统计特性

浅海内波会引起声传播能量随时间的起伏变化,进而影响水声设备的工作性能.本文利用2015年南海北部一次浅海声场起伏实验数据,对比分析了浅海线性内波和孤立子内波条件下的声传播损失统计特性.在孤立子内波条件下,声传播损失起伏明显加剧,可达11 dB,且分布明显展宽,相对于线性内波的环境,声传播损失起伏可增加5 dB.从简正波...     

One-loop quantum gravity repulsion in the early Universe

Perturbative quantum gravity formalism is applied to compute the lowest order corrections to the classical spatially flat cosmological Friedmann-Lema?tre-Robertson-Walker solution (for the radiation). The presented approach is analogous to the approach applied to compute quantum corrections to the Coulomb potential in electrodynamics, or rather to the approach applied to compute quantum corrections to the Schwarzschild solution in gravity. In the framework of the standard perturbative quantum gravity, it is shown that the corrections to the classical deceleration, coming from the one-loop graviton vacuum polarization (self-energy), have (UV cutoff free) opposite to the classical repulsive properties which are not negligible in the very early Universe. The repulsive "quantum forces" resemble those known from loop quantum cosmology.     

Flavor symmetry,EMC results and the spin content of the proton

The analysis of the EMC result on the quark contribution to the spin of the proton has caused considerable confusion and is unnecessarily complicated because of the completely unjustified and incorrect use of SU(3) flavor symmetry to provide input on the proton wave function from hyperon decays. There is no reliable method for obtaining information on the proton spin structure from data on the couplings of currents to hyperons. Interesting peculiar results obtained without use of SU(3) and hyperon data show the crucial point to be the apparent contradiction between the contribution of valence u quarks to the proton spin observed in the axial vector contribution to nucleon beta decay and the failure of this contribution to appear in the conventional quark-parton interpretation of the EMC results. When input from hyperon data is not used this paradox can be resolved without requiring the quark contribution to the proton spin to be near zero, but it can be large only if it is due to the strange quarks, with the nonstrange quark contribution opposite to the spin of the proton.     

Lattice dynamics of solid xenon under pressure

We use density-functional perturbation theory to obtain the phonon spectrum of fcc xenon under pressure. Thermodynamic properties obtained within the quasiharmonic approximation are in fair to good agreement with experiment at zero pressure. The transition pressure from the fcc to hcp phase is predicted to occur at 5 GPa. The fcc structure is found to be dynamically stable up to a pressure of 100 GPa, beyond which the phonon modes at the X and L symmetry points soften. We attribute the observed sluggish kinetics of the fcc-hcp transition to the small energy difference between the phases as well as to the high dynamical stability of the fcc phase.     

Limit of hanger linearity in suspension footbridge dynamics: A new section model

The mechanical behaviour of suspension bridges is characterised by nonlinearities due to the main cables geometric effects and to the inability of the hangers to sustain compressive loads. The nonlinear effects due to hanger slackening are expected to increase in suspension footbridges due to lightweight decks, that is, low dead to live load ratio, and to shallow plate-girder decks with very low flexural and torsional stiffness. In this paper a new section model is proposed to study the limit of hanger linearity in lightweight suspension footbridges. The model is inspired to a four degrees-of-freedom model already proposed in the literature, but is expressed with a new formalism that allows some interesting properties to be outlined. Specifically, the expression of a particular frequency, herein called relative antiresonance frequency, as a function of the model generalised properties is derived: if the system is loaded with a harmonic force having that frequency, the linear behaviour of the hangers is assured for every value of the force amplitude. The proposed section model is applied to a footbridge benchmark subject to the pedestrian harmonic load and results are compared with those obtained through a nonlinear dynamic analysis on a 3D Finite Element model of the bridge.     

The Wigner function for two dimensional tori: Uniform approximation and projections

The Wigner representation of a quantum state, corresponding to a classically integrable Hamiltonian, has been shown to be intimately tied to a classical phase space torus of the same energy. The fact that the semiclassical approximation of the Wigner function there derived turns out to be singular on the torus, as well as on the “Wigner caustic” which contains it, is due to well known limitations of the stationary phase method. The uniform approximation, here derived, does indeed ascribe to the Wigner function a high amplitude along the Wigner caustic, but this is modulated by rapid oscillations except at the torus itself. Asymptotic expansion away from the torus leads back to the semiclassical approximation. Close to the torus the Wigner function is described by a simple transitional approximation which can be resolved into a product of Wigner functions corresponding to one dimensional tori. These results permit one to explicitly project the Wigner function onto any (Lagrangian) coordinate plane so as to obtain the corresponding wave intensity.     

Lumped-element technique for the measurement of complex density.

A novel lumped-element technique is employed to measure the complex density of a gas in circular pores. The complex density expresses the geometry-dependent viscous coupling between the gas and the pore walls and is related to the thermoacoustic function f(mu), or equivalently, F(lambdaV). The acoustic impedance of a compliant region coupled to a pore (or pore-array) is measured and the impedance of the compliant region is subtracted to yield the impedance of the pore(s) alone, which is directly related to F(lambdaV). Pores of different lengths are measured in order to eliminate end effects. Working down to very low frequencies achieves a wide range of values for the ratio of the viscous penetration depth to the mean pore size. The results agree very well with analytical solutions for circular pores. The technique is also applied to two porous foam materials. Comparing the results to previous measurements of the complex compressibility, it is shown that two different shape factors (or equivalently, characteristic dimensions) are required to account for the data.     

Broad sub-continuum resonances and the case for finite-energy sum-rules

There is a need to go beyond the narrow resonance approximation for QCD sum-rule channels which are likely to exhibit sensitivity to broad resonance structures. We discuss how the first two Laplace sum rules are altered when one goes beyond the narrow resonance approximation to include possible subcontinuum resonances with nonzero widths. We show that the corresponding first two finite energy sum rules are insensitive to the widths of such resonances, provided their peaks are symmetric and entirely below the continuum threshold. We also discuss the reduced sensitivity of the first two finite energy sum rules to higher dimensional condensates, and show these sum rules to be insensitive to dimension condensates containing at least one pair. We extract the direct single-instanton contribution to the sum rule for the longitudinal component of the axial-vector correlation function from the known single-instanton contribution to the lowest Laplace sum rule for the pseudoscalar channel. Finally, we demonstrate how inclusion of this instanton contribution to the finite-energy sum rule leads to both a lighter quark mass and to more phenomenologically reasonable higher-mass-resonance contributions within the pseudoscalar channel. Received: 15 September 1997 / Revised version: 15 November 1997 / Published online: 26 February 1998     

Neuronal responses to amplitude-modulated and pure-tone stimuli in the guinea pig inferior colliculus, and their modification by broadband noise

Neuronal responses were recorded to pure and to sinusoidally amplitude-modulated (AM) tones at the characteristic frequency (CF) in the central nucleus of the inferior colliculus of anesthetized guinea pigs. Temporal (synchronized) and mean-rate measures were derived from period histograms locked to the stimulus modulation waveform to characterize the modulation response. For stimuli presented in quiet, the modulation gain at low frequencies of modulation (approx less than 50 Hz) was inversely proportional to the neuron's mean firing rate in response to both the modulated stimulus and to a pure tone at an equivalent level. In 43% of units the mean discharge rates in response to the AM stimuli were greatest for those modulation frequencies that generated the largest temporal responses. These discharge-rate maxima occurred at signal intensities corresponding to the steeply sloping part of the neuron's pure-tone rate-intensity function (RIF). The change in mean-rate response to modulated stimuli, as a function of intensity, was qualitatively similar to the pure-tone RIF. Adding broadband noise to the modulated stimulus increased the neuron's temporal response to low modulation frequencies. This increase in modulation gain was correlated with mean firing rate in response to the modulation but did not bear a simple relationship to the noise-induced shift in the RIF measured for a pure tone.     

宽波段单色仪多级谱高精度波长定标

通常利用单色仪输出的单色光对空间遥感光谱仪进行波长定标。提出以空间遥感光谱仪的置信度为标准,来评价宽波段单色仪高精度波长定标精度的方法。通过对仪器精度的分析,分别求出单色仪的波长的重复性误差和偏差。应用高压汞灯的本征谱和光栅衍射多级谱作为定标谱线,避免更换灯源带来的误差。通过粗细定标相结合的方法,缩短扫描时间,并且运用高斯拟合对波峰进行精确定位,缩小误差。最后利用高次拟合得到的关系式,测出单色仪波长精度,计算出空间遥感光谱仪定标的置信度。以1.5 M单色仪为例,单色仪在200～840 nm波段内波长精度±0.016 nm,则空间遥感光谱仪的波长精度达到±0.050 nm的置信度为99.82%。     

Fluctuation spectroscopy of granularity in superconducting structures

We suggest to use "fluctuation spectroscopy" as a method to detect granularity in a disordered metal close to a superconducting transition. We show that with lowering temperature T the resistance R(T) of a system of relatively large grains initially grows due to the fluctuation suppression of the one-electron tunneling but decreases with further lowering T due to the coherent charge transfer of the fluctuation Cooper pairs. Under certain conditions, such a maximum in R(T) turns out to be sensitive to weak magnetic fields due to a novel Maki-Thompson-type mechanism.     

Use of rigid-body motion for the investigation and estimation of the measurement errors related to digital image correlation technique

The aim of this work is to investigate the sources of errors related to digital image correlation (DIC) technique applied to strain measurements. The knowledge of such information is important before the measured kinematic fields can be exploited. After recalling the principle of DIC, some sources of errors related to this technique are listed. Both numerical and experimental tests, based on rigid-body motion, are proposed. These tests are simple and easy-to-implement. They permit to quickly assess the errors related to lighting, the optical lens (distortion), the CCD sensor, the out-of-plane displacement, the speckle pattern, the grid pitch, the size of the subset and the correlation algorithm. The errors sources that cannot be uncoupled were estimated by amplifying their contribution to the global error. The obtained results permit to address a classification of the error related to the used equipment. The paper ends by some suggestions proposed in order to minimize the errors.     

Superconducting energy gap anomalies in NbN films

Nine NbN films ranging in thickness from 0.02 to 0.03 μm were studied by measuring the temperature dependence from 1.5 K to over 20 K of the ultrasonic attenuation of 700 MHz surface acoustic waves. The resulting curves did not fit the predictions of BCS. When the curves were numerically inverted to show the temperature dependence that the superconducting energy gap would need to have to produce the observed attenuation, they were found to be nearly constant at a value less than half of the BCS value. An analysis prompted by the Anderson theories of 2-D localizations shows the attenuation per film thickness to be proportional to the logarithm of the thickness.