A picosecond dye laser tunable in the 1.1μ m region

We report in this letter the characteristic of a picosecond dye laser, tunable in the 1.08–1.12 μm range. The dye is pumped by the fundamental of a mode-locked Nd-YAG laser. The energy conversion efficiency is higher than 10% and the pulse duration is less than 10 ps.     

Thermodynamic basis for viscoelastic and non-isothermal fracture mechanics

Stability criteria for crack propagation have been analysed which are based on the second law of thermodynamics. The isothermal case has been studied both for elastic and viscoelastic materials. The non-isothermal criteria have been considered with particular attention to a fast adiabatic loading process.The thermodynamic constitutive equations which are demanded and their relationships with the elastic energy have been analyzed.     

Partially dynamic maintenance of minimum weight hyperpaths

We address the problem of dynamically maintaining minimum weight hyperpaths in a directed hypergraph in a decremental setting. For such a problem, we provide a new efficient algorithm that works for a wide class of hyperpath weight measures. This algorithm explicitly updates minimum weight hyperpaths in

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worst case time under a sequence of L hyperarc weight increments and hyperarc deletions, where C is the maximum weight of minimum hyperpaths in and is the size of the representation of the hypergraph. Hyperpath weight measures are only required to belong to the class of strict weakly superior functions.     

Nitrogen,phosphorus and organics removal in two vertical flow experimental wetlands receiving pretreated municipal wastewater

Pollutants removal in two vertical flow experimental wetlands receiving pre-treated municipal wastewater was investigated. Laboratory investigations using microcosms were also carried out in order to identify key processes regulating pollutants removal. Results obtained from experimental wetlands seem to confirm the ability of a single stage installation, where nitrification and denitrification processes are jointly optimised using a gravel medium, always wet but not saturated with water. Results obtained from microcosm investigations show the prominent role of O2 supply, of microbial activity and of bio-available C from vegetal metabolism in the nitrogen removal.     

On existence of undominated pure strategy Nash equilibria in anonymous nonatomic games: a generalization

In this paper, we generalize the exitence result for pure strategy Nash equilibria in anonymous nonatomic games. By working directly on integrals of pure strategies, we also generalize, for the same class of games, the existence result for undominated pure strategy Nash equilibria even though, in general, the set of pure strategy Nash equilibria may fail to be weakly compact. Received August 2001     

Nonlinear mobility of a driven system: Temperature and disorder effects

We consider the dissipative nonlinear dynamics of a model of interacting atoms driven over a substrate potential. The substrate parameters can be suitably tuned in order to introduce disorder effects starting from two geometrically opposed ideal cases: commensurate and incommensurate interfaces. The role of temperature is also investigated through the inclusion of a stochastic force via a Langevin molecular dynamics approach. Here, we focus on the most interesting tribological case of underdamped sliding dynamics. For different values of the chain stiffness, we evaluate the static friction threshold and consider the depinning transition mechanisms as a function of the applied driving force. As experimentally observed in QCM frictional measurements of adsorbed layers, we find that disorder operates differently depending on the starting geometrical configuration. For commensurate interfaces, randomness lowers considerably the chain depinning threshold. On the contrary, for incommensurate mating contacts, disorder favors static pinning destroying the possible frictionless (superlubric) sliding states. Interestingly, thermal and disorder effects strongly influence also the occurrence of parametric resonances inside the chain, capable of converting the kinetic energy of the center-of-mass motion into internal vibrational excitations. We comment on the nature of the different dynamical states and hysteresis (due to system bi-stability) observed at different increasing and decreasing strengths of the external force.     

Fluorescence monitoring of microchip capillary electrophoresis separation with monolithically integrated waveguides

Using femtosecond laser writing, optical waveguides were monolithically integrated into a commercial microfluidic lab-on-a-chip device, with the waveguides intersecting a microfluidic channel. Continuous-wave laser excitation through these optical waveguides confines the excitation window to a width of 12 microm, enabling high-resolution monitoring of the passage of different types of fluorescent analytes when migrating and being separated in the microfluidic channel by microchip capillary electrophoresis. Furthermore, we demonstrate on-chip-integrated waveguide excitation and detection of a biologically relevant species, fluorescently labeled DNA molecules, during microchip capillary electrophoresis. Well-controlled plug formation as required for on-chip integrated capillary electrophoresis separation of DNA molecules, and the combination of waveguide excitation and a low limit of detection, will enable monitoring of extremely small quantities with high spatial resolution.     

Data‐Driven Optimal Transport

The problem of optimal transport between two distributions ρ(x) and μ(y) is extended to situations where the distributions are only known through a finite number of samples {x_i} and {y_j}. A weak formulation is proposed, based on the dual of the Kantorovich formulation, with two main modifications: replacing the expected values in the objective function by their empirical means over the {x_i} and {y_j}, and restricting the dual variables u(x) and v(y) to a suitable set of test functions adapted to the local availability of sample points. A procedure is proposed and tested for the numerical solution of this problem, based on a fluidlike flow in phase space, where the sample points play the role of active Lagrangian markers. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Synthesis, antimicrobial and antiproliferative activity of novel silver(I) tris(pyrazolyl)methanesulfonate and 1,3,5-triaza-7-phosphadamantane complexes

Five new silver(I) complexes of formulas [Ag(Tpms)] (1), [Ag(Tpms)(PPh(3))] (2), [Ag(Tpms)(PCy(3))] (3), [Ag(PTA)][BF(4)] (4), and [Ag(Tpms)(PTA)] (5) {Tpms = tris(pyrazol-1-yl)methanesulfonate, PPh(3) = triphenylphosphane, PCy(3) = tricyclohexylphosphane, PTA = 1,3,5-triaza-7-phosphaadamantane} have been synthesized and fully characterized by elemental analyses, (1)H, (13)C, and (31)P NMR, electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), and IR spectroscopic techniques. The single crystal X-ray diffraction study of 3 shows the Tpms ligand acting in the N(3)-facially coordinating mode, while in 2 and 5 a N(2)O-coordination is found, with the SO(3) group bonded to silver and a pendant free pyrazolyl ring. Features of the tilting in the coordinated pyrazolyl rings in these cases suggest that this inequivalence is related with the cone angles of the phosphanes. A detailed study of antimycobacterial and antiproliferative properties of all compounds has been carried out. They were screened for their in vitro antimicrobial activities against the standard strains Enterococcus faecalis (ATCC 29922), Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923), Streptococcus pneumoniae (ATCC 49619), Streptococcus pyogenes (SF37), Streptococcus sanguinis (SK36), Streptococcus mutans (UA159), Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922), and the fungus Candida albicans (ATCC 24443). Complexes 1-5 have been found to display effective antimicrobial activity against the series of bacteria and fungi, and some of them are potential candidates for antiseptic or disinfectant drugs. Interaction of Ag complexes with deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) has been studied by fluorescence spectroscopic techniques, using ethidium bromide (EB) as a fluorescence probe of DNA. The decrease in the fluorescence of DNA-EB system on addition of Ag complexes shows that the fluorescence quenching of DNA-EB complex occurs and compound 3 is particularly active. Complexes 1-5 exhibit pronounced antiproliferative activity against human malignant melanoma (A375) with an activity often higher than that of AgNO(3), which has been used as a control, following the same order of activity inhibition on DNA, i.e., 3 > 2 > 1 > 5 > AgNO(3)? 4.     

Electron capture ionization of explosives with a microflow rate particle beam interface

A method for the analysis of four widely used explosives based on reversed-phase liquid chromatography coupled to a quadrupole mass spectrometer is presented. A microflow rate particle beam interface was employed that offers simplified operation procedures and improved interfacing performance. A positive role played by the reduced size of the aerosol droplets generated by the microflow rate interface is outlined in this work. Greater vaporization efficiency and negligible thermal decomposition were observed for the selected compounds in the ion source of the mass spectrometer. Electron capture ionization allowed specific and sensitive determination of the analytes. Detection limits that ranged between 60 and 200 pg and had a signal-to-noise ratio of 5:1 were obtained in selected ion monitoring mode after column elution.