Flexible Structures Based on a Short Pitch Cholesteric Liquid Crystals

We report on the realization and characterization of electro-responsive and pressure sensitive polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) conductive photonic structures combined with the reconfigurable properties of short pitch cholesteric liquid crystals (aligned in Grandjean configuration). By combining ion-implantation process and surface chemistry functionalization, we have overcome the insulating properties of PDMS and induced long range organization of cholesteric liquid crystals, thus controlling both diffraction and selective Bragg reflection of light by means of external perturbations (electric field, pressure). We have characterized our devices in terms of morphological, optical and electro-optical properties.     

High-frequency lengthwise diffraction by the curve separating soft and hard part of the surface

The paper examines the model problem of high-frequency diffraction by a convex surface consisting of two parts. One is soft, the other is hard. The incident wave falls at a small angle to the line which separates soft and hard parts of the surface. The change in the boundary condition provokes the field in the Fock zone to have a rapid transverse variation. This causes a special boundary-layer to be formed. The boundary value problem for the three dimensional parabolic equation is reduced to the Riemann problem solved by the factorization in the form of infinite products containing the zeros of the Airy function and zeros of its derivative. the results of this factorization appear under the sign of double Fourier integral in the representation of the field. Both numerical and asymptotic analysis of this representation is carried out and illustrates the effects of high-frequency diffraction caused by the line of the boundary condition discontinuity.     

The study of wave motion in the Talbot interferometer with a lens

We present the study of the wave motion in the Talbot interferometer with an additional element such as a lens for all related audiences. Our solutions are in the analytic form. A general principle of the Talbot effect, which is the optical near-field effect, is the Fresnel diffraction. The Fresnel integral is rather complicated. We therefore introduce an alternative method which is based on the wave propagation through the transmission functions of the grating and the lens. Our method has been proved by a simple experimental setup.     

Cyanide Binding to [FeFe]-Hydrogenase Stabilizes the Alternative Configuration of the Proton Transfer Pathway

Hydrogenases are H₂ converting enzymes that harbor catalytic cofactors in which iron (Fe) ions are coordinated by biologically unusual carbon monoxide (CO) and cyanide (CN⁻) ligands. Extrinsic CO and CN⁻, however, inhibit hydrogenases. The mechanism by which CN⁻ binds to [FeFe]-hydrogenases is not known. Here, we obtained crystal structures of the CN⁻-treated [FeFe]-hydrogenase CpI from Clostridium pasteurianum. The high resolution of 1.39 Å allowed us to distinguish intrinsic CN⁻ and CO ligands and to show that extrinsic CN⁻ binds to the open coordination site of the cofactor where CO is known to bind. In contrast to other inhibitors, CN⁻ treated crystals show conformational changes of conserved residues within the proton transfer pathway which could allow a direct proton transfer between E279 and S319. This configuration has been proposed to be vital for efficient proton transfer, but has never been observed structurally.     

On the application of the Wiener–Hopf technique to problems in dynamic elasticity

Many problems in linear elastodynamics, or dynamic fracture mechanics, can be reduced to Wiener–Hopf functional equations defined in a strip in a complex transform plane. Apart from a few special cases, the inherent coupling between shear and compressional body motions gives rise to coupled systems of equations, and so the resulting Wiener–Hopf kernels are of matrix form. The key step in the solution of a Wiener–Hopf equation, which is to decompose the kernel into a product of two factors with particular analyticity properties, can be accomplished explicitly for scalar kernels. However, apart from special matrices which yield commutative factorizations, no procedure has yet been devised to factorize exactly general matrix kernels.

This paper shall demonstrate, by way of example, that the Wiener–Hopf approximant matrix (WHAM) procedure for obtaining approximate factors of matrix kernels (recently introduced by the author in [SIAM J. Appl. Math. 57 (2) (1997) 541]) is applicable to the class of matrix kernels found in elasticity, and in particular to problems in QNDE. First, as a motivating example, the kernel arising in the model of diffraction of skew incident elastic waves on a semi-infinite crack in an isotropic elastic space is studied. This was first examined in a seminal work by Achenbach and Gautesen [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 61 (2) (1977) 413] and here three methods are offered for deriving distinct non-commutative factorizations of the kernel. Second, the WHAM method is employed to factorize the matrix kernel arising in the problem of radiation into an elastic half-space with mixed boundary conditions on its face. Third, brief mention is made of kernel factorization related to the problems of flexural wave diffraction by a crack in a thin (Mindlin) plate, and body wave scattering by an interfacial crack.     

非均匀螺旋相位调制下对称破缺角向偏振光束的聚焦特性

提出了一种多参量调控角向偏振光束焦场强度和横向能流的方法.基于矢量衍射积分理论,数值模拟了非均匀螺旋相位和旋转对称振幅挡板调制下角向偏振光束的聚焦特性,讨论了螺旋相位结构和对称振幅挡板联合调制下,角向偏振光束焦场横向能流和偏振态的分布.结果表明:非均匀螺旋相位的引入改变了光场的聚焦特性,导致聚焦场重心产生了偏移;在偶数重旋转对称振幅挡板的联合调制下,焦场中出现了局部的椭圆偏振态和圆偏振态,且焦平面上出现了横向能流;通过调节螺旋相位,不仅可以实现焦场重心的特殊控制,还能进一步丰富焦场偏振态和横向能流分布.这种基于多参量调控焦场强度和能流分布的方法为实现操控特定区域的粒子提供了新的思路.     

掺杂PbSe/PVA量子点的光致聚合物全息特性

通过原位合成法以聚乙烯醇辅助合成了6.5nm、10nm和15nm的PbSe量子点,研究了掺杂PbSe量子点的光致聚合物的全息特性.将三种尺寸的PbSe量子点按不同浓度分别掺入光致聚合物中,制成无机-有机复合型光致聚合物膜,并对其全息性能进行研究.复合聚合物膜的UV-Vis吸收光谱表明掺入的PbSe量子点并未与聚合物中的有机组分发生化学反应.采用氩氪离子激光器输出的647nm红光研究了复合聚合物膜的透过率和全息记录光栅的布喇格偏移与衍射效率.透过率曲线表明PbSe量子点在复合聚合物膜中分散良好,膜表面均匀.由于PbSe量子点在聚合物链中起支撑作用,复合聚合物膜在全息记录过程中不易发生形变,从而增加了聚合物膜的抗缩皱能力.衍射效率曲线表明掺入PbSe量子点的复合聚合物膜的衍射效率比未掺杂的有所提高.此外,体系存在一个最优值,当掺入平均粒径为10nm且浓度为3.6×10-6 mol/L的PbSe量子点时,样品的透过率达到84%,衍射效率从67.2%提升到89.7%,缩皱率降低到0.8%,极大提高了材料的全息性能.     

In-plane ESPI using an achromatic interferometer with low-coherence laser source

The use of an achromatic interferometer is explored as a means of doing in-plane ESPI measurements using a laser diode as the light source. This interferometer type, which uses a diffraction grating in place of the conventional beamsplitter, has two features that make it suitable for making ESPI measurements over extended areas, even when using a low-coherence laser diode source. First, the parallelogram optical geometry of the interferometer causes all rays passing through to have the same optical path lengths. Second, the interferometer is achromatic, whereby the piezo-actuated mirror that steps the illumination light does so by the same phase angle, independent of wavelength. This latter feature accommodates the spectral impurity of a laser diode source. A periodic variation of fringe visibility is observed in experiments, where narrow ranges of high visibility occur at regular spatial intervals. This behavior derives from the clustered discrete spectral character of laser diode light output. A method to “tune” the interferometer by slightly rotating the diffraction grating is described so as to achieve consistent high fringe visibility throughout the measured images.     

Switching on a two-dimensional time-harmonic scalar wave in the presence of a diffracting edge

This paper concerns the switching on of two-dimensional time-harmonic scalar waves. We first review the switch-on problem for a point source in free space, then proceed to analyse the analogous problem for the diffraction of a plane wave by a half-line (the ‘Sommerfeld problem’), determining in both cases the conditions under which the field is well-approximated by the solution of the corresponding frequency domain problem. In both cases the rate of convergence to the frequency domain solution is found to be dependent on the strength of the singularity on the leading wavefront. In the case of plane wave diffraction at grazing incidence the frequency domain solution is immediately attained along the shadow boundary after the arrival of the leading wavefront. The case of non-grazing incidence is also considered.     

Shock waves from an open-ended shock tube with different shapes

A new method for decreasing the attenuation of a shock wave emerging from an open-ended shock tube exit into a large free space has been developed to improve the shock wave technique for cleaning deposits on the surfaces in industrial equipments by changing the tube exit geometry. Three tube exits (the simple tube exit, a tube exit with ring and a coaxial tube exit) were used to study the propagation processes of the shock waves. The detailed flow features were experimentally investigated by use of a two-dimensional color schlieren method and by pressure measurements. By comparing the results for different tube exits, it is shown that the expansion of the shock waves near the mouth can be restricted by using the tube exit with ring or the coaxial tube exit. Thus, the attenuation of the shock waves is reduced. The time histories of overpressure have illustrated that the best results are obtained for the coaxial tube exit. But the pressure signals for the tube exit with ring showed comparable results with the advantage of a relatively simple geometry. The flow structures of diffracting shock waves have also been simulated by using an upwind finite volume scheme based on a high order extension of Godunov's method as well as an adaptive unstructured triangular mesh refinement/unrefinement algorithm. The numberical results agree remarkably with the experimental ones.