Synchronization Analysis of Coupled Noncoherent Oscillators

We present two different approaches to detect and quantify phase synchronization in the case of coupled non-phase coherent oscillators. The first one is based on the general idea of curvature of an arbitrary curve. The second one is based on recurrences of the trajectory in phase space. We illustrate both methods in the paradigmatic example of the R?ssler system in the funnel regime. We show that the second method is applicable even in the case of noisy data. Furthermore, we extend the second approach to the application of chains of coupled systems, which allows us to detect easily clusters of synchronized oscillators. In order to illustrate the applicability of this approach, we show the results of the algorithm applied to experimental data from a population of 64 electrochemical oscillators.     

Determination of heats of formation of praseodymium antimonides

A systematic investigation of the heats of formation in the Pr-Sb system has been performed using a small-furnace, isoperibolic calorimeter. The compositions and the equilibrium states of the samples have been checked by metallographic and X-ray analyses. The following values have been found for the various compounds (kJ/g atom±2): Pr₂Sb:-99; Pr₅Sb₃:-112; Pr₄Sb₃:-120; PrSb:-126; PrSb₂:-97.The data available (both the results obtained in this work and those already known) are discussed briefly and related to the possible shape of the phase diagram.

---

Zusammenfassung Es wurde eine systematische Untersuchung der Bildungswärmen im Pr/Sb-System unter Verwendung eines Kleinofen-Isoperibolkalorimeters ausgeführt. Die Zusammensetzung und der Gleichgewichtszustand der Proben wurden durch metallographische und röntgenographische Analyse ermittelt. Für die einzelnen Verbindungen wurden folgende Werte (kJ·mol^–1 ±2.0) gefunden: Pr₂Sb:-99; Pr₅Sb₃:-112; Pr₄Sb₃:-120;PrSb:-126; PrSb₂:-97. Die als Ergebnis dieser Arbeit erhaltenen und aus der Literatur bereits bekannte Daten werden kurz diskutiert und mit einem möglichen Phasendiagramm in Verbindung gebracht.

---

-Sb, . . ( (-)^–1 ±2.0): Pr₂Sb-99; Pr₅Sb₃-112; PrSb₃-120; PrSb-126; PrSb₂-97. .

     

Assessment of the influence of the eccentricity of tires on the whole-body vibration of tractor drivers during transport on asphalt roads

Agricultural vehicle operators are exposed to high levels of whole body vibrations (WBVs) which are related, above all, to surface irregularities, forward speed and vehicle setting. European Parliament Directive 2002/44/EEC sets the minimum requirements for the protection of workers from risks to their health and safety due to exposure to mechanical vibrations, and it is therefore of utmost to investigate any source of vibration during agricultural works and any machine-related transmission element. Tractor tires play a key role in damping vibrations; their response varies according to the tractor mass and tire inflation pressure and, during transport, they have to be taken into account at different forward speeds. The eccentricity of the tire is one of the factors thus influences the amplitude of the solicitations acting on the tire. This study was aimed at evaluating the influence of the “tire eccentricity” parameter on driver comfort and at introducing a test method for its assessment for validation purposes.     

5 μm thick 3C-SiC layers grown on Ge-modified Si(100) substrates

The effect of the germanium coverage prior to the epitaxial growth of 5 μm thick 3C-SiC on Si(100) substrates were evaluated with Atomic Force Microscopy and μ-Raman spectroscopy. The 3C-SiC layers were grown by atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition via a special procedure leading to layers with compressive instead of tensile stress. The Ge amount was varied from 0 up to 2 ML. The obtained results showed that the residual stress inside the layers is shifted in the compressive direction; the crystalline quality is improved with the Ge introduction but on the account of the surface roughness. These results open the route for the use of Ge-modified Si(100) as a potential substrate in order to improve the heteroepitaxial growth of 3C-SiC on silicon substrates.     

Phase diagram of trivalent and pentavalent patchy particles

We compute the equilibrium phase diagram of two simple models for patchy particles with three and five patches in a very broad range of pressure and temperature. The phase diagram presents low-density crystal structures which compete with the fluid phase. The phase diagram of the five-patch model shows re-entrant melting, in analogy with the previously studied four-patch case, a metastable gas-liquid critical point and a stable, high-density liquid. The three-patch model shows a stable gas-liquid critical point and, in the region of temperatures where equilibration is numerically feasible, a stable liquid phase, suggesting the possibility that in this small valence model the liquid retains its thermodynamic stability down to the vanishing range limit.     

Can smooth LTB models mimicking the cosmological constant for the luminosity distance also satisfy the age constraint?

The central smoothness of the functions defining a LTB solution plays a crucial role in their ability to mimic the effects of the cosmological constant. Even if non-smoothness is not physically inconsistent with the theory of general relativity, smoothness is still an important geometrical property characterizing the solution of the Einstein’s equations. So far attention has been focused on $C^{1}$ models while in this paper we approach it in a more general way, investigating the implications of higher order central smoothness conditions for LTB models reproducing the luminosity distance of a $\Lambda CDM$ Universe. Our analysis is based on a low red-shift expansion, and extends previous investigations by including also the constraint coming from the age of the Universe and re-expressing the equations for the solution of the inversion problem in a manifestly dimensionless form which makes evident the freedom to accommodate any value of $H_0$ as well. Higher order smoothness conditions strongly limit the number of possible solutions respect to the first order condition. Neither a $C^{1}$ or a $C^{i}$ LTB model can both satisfy the age constraint and mimic the cosmological constant for the luminosity distance. This implies that it is not necessary to include any additional observable to distinguish mathematically the theoretical predictions of a smooth LTB model from a $\Lambda CDM$ . One difference is in the case in which the age constraint is not included and the bang function is zero, in which there is a unique solution for $C^1$ models but no solution for the $C^{i}$ case. Another difference is in the case in which the age constraint is not included and the bang function is not zero, in which the solution is undetermined for both $C^1$ and $C^{i}$ models, but the latter ones have much less residual parametric freedom. Our results imply that any LTB model able to fit luminosity distance data and satisfy the age constraint is either not mimicking exactly the $\Lambda CDM$ red-shift space theoretical predictions or it is not smooth.     

Coupling atomistic and finite element approaches for the simulation of optoelectronic devices

Multiscale methods coupling quantum mechanical/atomistic models such as envelope function and tight binding approaches with continuous media models e.g. for strain or electronic transport are very useful for an accurate simulation of modern and emerging electronic and optoelectronic devices based on nanostructured active regions. We present simulations using TiberCAD whose main focus is on providing an integrated multiscale/multiphysics simulation environment.