The Effect of Solvation in Conducting Polymers

The incorporation of solvent molecules into solid-state organic conductors affects both electrical and mechanical properties of the conducting complexes. Evidence for this has been appearing from the numerous laboratories currently involved in conducting polymer research. On compiling these examples, common rationale for the observed effects can be formulated based largely on the behavior of smaller molecules as found in the organic literature. Nonetheless, the examples must be considered on a case-to-case basis. In assigning the source of solvent effects, the determination of whether solvation is occurring on the charged polymer backbone or on the (oppositely charged) dopant counterion is critical. Among the proposed causes of solvent effects are solvent-separated ion pairing, charge depinning, and plasticization.     

The diffraction of sound by an impedance sphere in the vicinity of a ground surface

The problem of sound diffraction by an absorbing sphere due to a monopole point source was investigated. The theoretical models were extended to consider the case of sound diffraction by an absorbing sphere with a locally reacting boundary or an extended reaction boundary placed above an outdoor ground surface of finite impedance. The separation of variables techniques and appropriate wave field expansions were used to derive the analytical solutions. By adopting an image method, the solutions could be formulated to account for the multiple scattering of sound between the sphere and its image near a flat acoustically hard or an impedance ground. The effect of ground on the reflected sound fields was incorporated in the theoretical model by employing an approximate analytical solution known as the Weyl-van der Pol formula. An approximation solution was suggested to determine the scattering coefficients from a set of linearly coupled complex equations for an absorbing sphere not too close to the ground. The approximate method substantially reduced the computational time for calculating the sound field. Preliminary measurements were conducted to characterize the acoustical properties of an absorbing sphere made of open cell polyurethane foam. Subsequent experiments were carried out to demonstrate the validity of the proposed theoretical models for various source/receiver configurations around the sphere above an acoustically hard ground and an impedance ground. Satisfactory comparative results were obtained between the theoretical predictions and experimental data. It was found that the theoretical predictions derived from the approximate solution agreed well with the results obtained by using the exact solutions.     

Comparison of Brown's and Newton's method in the monotone case

Summary In many cases when Newton's method, applied to a nonlinear sytemF(x)=0, produces a monotonically decreasing sequence of iterates, Brown's method converges monotonically, too. We compare the iterates of Brown's and Newton's method in these monotone cases with respect to the natural partial ordering. It turns out that in most of the cases arising in applications Brown's method then produces better iterates than Newton's method.     

Algebraic theory of multiplicative Schwarz methods

The convergence of multiplicative Schwarz-type methods for solving linear systems when the coefficient matrix is either a nonsingular M-matrix or a symmetric positive definite matrix is studied using classical and new results from the theory of splittings. The effect on convergence of algorithmic parameters such as the number of subdomains, the amount of overlap, the result of inexact local solves and of “coarse grid” corrections (global coarse solves) is analyzed in an algebraic setting. Results on algebraic additive Schwarz are also included.     

Harnuntersuchung. Zuckernachweis

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Atomically flat gold on elastomeric substrate

We present a procedure to fabricate extremely smooth Au films supported on thin elastomeric (PDMS) substrates. Minimum rms roughness and largest grain size are obtained using Si wafers, coated with native oxide and release layers, as templates for the growth of thermally evaporated Au films. The wafers are held at a temperature of 300 degrees C during deposition. The Au films, up to 200 nm thick, are then transferred onto poly(dimethylsiloxane) substrates which have been previously surface-functionalized with a (3-mercaptopropyl)trimethoxysilane adhesion layer. The resulting Au films have been found by AFM to be extremely smooth with rms-roughness 2.5-4 angstroms and to exhibit a crystalline morphology with flat grains >500 nm in size. Thinner films, down to 20 nm, are grown at lower temperature and are comparably smooth, but with a loss in crystalline morphology. We compare the results of this optimized procedure with other gold films grown on mica sheets as templates and to those produced using Ti-O-Si interfacial chemistry.     

A unified approach to methods for the simultaneous computation of all zeros of generalized polynomials

Summary Applying Newton's method to a particular system of nonlinear equations we derive methods for the simultaneous computation of all zeros of generalized polynomials. These generalized polynomials are from a function space satisfying a condition similar to Haar's condition. By this approach we bring together recent methods for trigonometric and exponential polynomials and a well-known method for ordinary polynomials. The quadratic convergence of these methods is an immediate consequence of our approach and needs not to be proved explicitly. Moreover, our approach yields new interesting methods for ordinary, trigonometric and exponential polynomials and methods for other functions occuring in approximation theory.