Entangling different degrees of freedom by quadrature squeezing cylindrically polarized modes

Quantum systems such as, for example, photons, atoms, or Bose-Einstein condensates, prepared in complex states where entanglement between distinct degrees of freedom is present, may display several intriguing features. In this Letter we introduce the concept of such complex quantum states for intense beams of light by exploiting the properties of cylindrically polarized modes. We show that already in a classical picture the spatial and polarization field variables of these modes cannot be factorized. Theoretically it is proven that by quadrature squeezing cylindrically polarized modes one generates entanglement between these two different degrees of freedom. Experimentally we demonstrate amplitude squeezing of an azimuthally polarized mode by exploiting the nonlinear Kerr effect in a specially tailored photonic crystal fiber. These results display that such novel continuous-variable entangled systems can, in principle, be realized.     

Miniaturized 3-D surface profilometer using a fiber optic coupler

A 3-D surface profilometer is described which uses a simple fiber optic coupler to form a Young's double pinhole interferometer. The Young's fringes are projected onto a surface, captured by a camera and analyzed using the Fourier transform method. The phase of the fringe pattern on the object is used to reconstruct the surface profile. System analysis, results from a simulation, and preliminary experimental results are provided which indicate a system resolution on the order of a tenth of a millimeter.     

Goal Programming and Agricultural Planning

Goal Programming is similar in structure to linear programming, but offers a more flexible approach to planning problems by allowing a number of goals which are not necessarily compatible to be taken into account, simultaneously. The use of linear programming in farm planning is reviewed briefly. Consideration is given to published evidence of the goals of farmers, and ways in which these goals can be represented. A goal programming model of a 600 acre mixed farm is described and evaluated. Advantages and shortcomings of goal programming in relation to linear programming are considered. It is found that goal programming can be used as a means of generating a range of possible solutions to the planning problem.     

An efficient step size control for continuation methods

In solving a nonlinear equation by the use of a continuation method one of the crucial problems is the choice of the step sizes. We present a model for the total computational cost of a standard numerical continuation process and solve the problem of optimal step size control for this model. Using the theoretical results as a basis, we develop an adaptive step size algorithm for Newton's method. This procedure is computationally inexpensive and it gives quite satisfactory results compared to some other numerical experiments found in the literature.     

Tandem Use of Optical Sensing and Machine Learning for the Determination of Absolute Configuration,Enantiomeric and Diastereomeric Ratios,and Concentration of Chiral Samples

We have developed an optical method for accurate concentration, er, and dr analysis of amino alcohols based on a simple mix‐and‐measure workflow that is fully adaptable to multiwell plate technology and microscale analysis. The conversion of the four aminoindanol stereoisomers with salicylaldehyde to the corresponding Schiff base allows analysis of the dr based on a change in the UV maximum at 420 nm that is very different for the homo‐ and heterochiral diastereomers and of the concentration of the sample using a hypsochromic shift of another absorption band around 340 nm that is independent of the analyte stereochemistry. Subsequent in situ formation of Cu^II assemblies in the absence and presence of base enables quantification of the er values for each diastereomeric pair by CD analysis. Applying a linear programming method and a parameter sweep algorithm, we determined the concentration and relative amounts of each of the four stereoisomers in 20 samples of vastly different stereoisomeric compositions with an averaged absolute percent error of 1.7 %.     

Highly oriented and ordered microstructures in block copolymer films

Block copolymer (BCP) films with long-range lateral ordering and orientation are crucial for many applications. Here, we report a simple, versatile strategy based on a solution casting procedure, to produce millimeter thick film of BCPs with highly oriented nanostructures. Transmission electron microscope (TEM), small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), and Hansen solubility parameters were used to study the morphology and interactions of the system. A variety of BCP-solvent pairs were investigated. Factors including set-up geometry, BCP characteristics, solvent evaporation, surface tension, and interactions, such as solvent-BCP, solvent-substrate, and BCP-substrate were examined. A mechanism is proposed to describe the observed long-range lateral ordering and orientation in films up to 1 mm in thickness. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2018 , 56, 1369–1375