Kinetics of orientation of a side-chain liquid–crystal polymer as measured by a high-temperature SQUID-magnetometer

A superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) magnetometer suitable for measurements of the magnetic susceptibility up to 600 K has been used to follow the kinetics of realignment in the nematic phase of a side-chain liquid–crystal polymer. Experiments are performed using monodomain and polydomain samples. Results obtained in monodomain samples are in quantitative agreement with the prediction of the continuum theory up to an angle of approximately 60°. Experiments conducted at higher starting angles give clear indication of backflow effects. Data obtained from experiments on polydomain samples have been compared with model calculations using the data on the monodomain samples. This comparison leads to the conclusion that in this case backflow effects play an important role, too. All results show that SQUID magnetometry allows monitoring of the kinetics of realignment with highest precision. © 1992 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Thiamorphinans. I

The present paper deals with the synthesis of 5,5a,6,7,8,9-hexahydro-5,9a-iminoethano-4H-naphtho[2,1-b] -thiophenes (I) as derivatives of the first of three novel isomeric S-heterocycles with morphinan-like structure (“thiamorphinans”).     

On maximal ideals in two algebras of operator valued analytic functions

The maximal ideals in two algebras of operator valued analytic functions in the unit disc are described.     

On the elementary divisors of the Sylvester and Lyapunov maps

The paper addresses the problem of computing the elementary divisors of the tensor product of linear transformations using the analysis of the tensor products of polynomial models, as developed in Fuhrmann and Helmke [5]. We use this to study the elementary divisors of the Lyapunov and complementary Lyapunov maps.     

Some abstract error estimates of a finite volume scheme for a nonstationary heat equation on general nonconforming multidimensional spatial meshes

A general class of nonconforming meshes has been recently studied for stationary anisotropic heterogeneous diffusion problems, see Eymard et al. (IMA J. Numer. Anal. 30 (2010), 1009–1043). Thanks to the basic ideas developed in the stated reference for stationary problems, we derive a new discretization scheme in order to approximate the nonstationary heat problem. The unknowns of this scheme are the values at the centre of the control volumes, at some internal interfaces, and at the mesh points of the time discretization. We derive error estimates in discrete norms L ^∞(0, T;H ₀ ¹ (Ω)) and W ^1,∞(0, T;L ²(Ω)), and an error estimate for an approximation of the gradient, in a general framework in which the discrete bilinear form involved in the finite volume scheme satisfies some ellipticity condition.     

On the mono-exponential fitting of phosphorescence decays

Several methods for mono-exponential fitting of decay curves are presented and compared among each other in terms of precision, accuracy and computational time. Simulated noisy data sets are generated and evaluated in order to determine the main contributors to a loss in performance. The influence of the temporal discretization of the decay curve on the precision of the fitting methods is discussed. Correlations between the background offset and the decay time are analyzed. Variations of the signal-to-noise ratio are shown, allowing for evaluation of systematic errors and precision in the presence of noise. Finally, the algorithms are applied to experimental data, and the computational efforts for the different algorithms are compared. The results of this latter investigation confirm the conclusions drawn from the simulated data and the following conclusions are drawn: The frequently applied method of performing a linear regression to the logarithm of a background-corrected decay showed systematic errors in the presence of noise. Best results in terms of precision and accuracy were obtained by a nonlinear least-squares approximation and a method denoted as the linear regression of the sum. Additionally, this latter method required the lowest computational time and is finally recommended for determining decay times from experimental data.     

Cylinder head temperature determination using high-speed phosphor thermometry in a fired internal combustion engine

This paper documents the application of high-speed phosphor thermometry to measure cylinder head temperatures under fired engine conditions. The thermographic phosphor Gd₃Ga₅O₁₂:Cr,Ce was synthesized with a special composition to meet the requirements of the measurement technique and the device under test. Calibration measurements are given in the first section, providing the temperature lifetime characteristic and temporal standard deviations in order to quantify single-shot precision. Accuracy was investigated for laser-induced heating. Measurements inside an optically accessible combustion engine are presented in the second section. Measurement locations at the cylinder head were determined, as well as temperature evolutions for variations in spark timing and air–fuel ratio.