Minimizing maximum completion time in a proportionate flow shop with one machine of different speed

A flow shop with identical machines is called a proportionate flow shop. In this paper, we consider the variant of the n-job, m-machine proportionate flow shop scheduling problem in which only one machine is different and job processing times are inversely proportional to machine speeds. The objective is to minimize maximum completion time. We describe some optimality conditions and show that the problem is NP-complete. We provide two heuristic procedures whose worst-case performance ratio is less than two. Extensive experiments with various sizes are conducted to show the performance of the proposed heuristics.     

Application of magnetomechanical sensors for modal testing

A new modal testing technique using magnetomechanical sensors is proposed in this paper. To list some advantages of this technique, sensors are cost-effective and require no direct physical contact with a structure. The specific application made in this paper is the modal testing for the bending vibration of a solid circular beam. The theoretical analysis explaining the principle of the magnetostrictive sensor-based modal testing is presented for beam bending. The present results are compared with those obtained by the use of standard accelerometers. Although the application of this technique is made to relatively simple problems, the potential of magnetomechanical sensors for modal testing has been revealed.     

Mobility and aggregation of free clusters soft landed on amorphous and crystalline carbon substrates

Neutral antimony clusters produced by a gas aggregation source have been deposited at room temperature on thin films of amorphous carbon and cleavage surfaces (0001) of graphite. Antimony islands generated from different mean size distributions of preformed clusters Sb_n(n = 4, 90, 150, 250, 600, 2000) have been investigated by transmission electron microscopy. Only compact islands have been observed on amorphous carbon, whereas an evolution from compact to dendritic shapes occurs on graphite substrate as the mean size of the deposited clusters increases. For clusters containing more than 150 atoms the dendritic islands exhibit a fractal character whose dimensional analysis yields a fractal dimension of 1.63 ± 0.07. The different models for island growth are discussed in the light of these results.     

Magnetic properties and microstructure of cobalt nanoparticles in a polymer film

Superparamagnetic properties of self-aggregated cobalt nanoparticles in the perfluorinated sulfo-cation membrane (MF-4SK) prepared by ion-exchange method were investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) magnetometry at various temperatures. Our experimental results show that cobalt nanoparticles in MF-4SK exhibit superparamagnetic properties above the blocking temperature (T_B), which varies from ∼80 to ∼300 K depending on the cobalt concentration at 100 Oe applied field. The average particle radius of 3.8 nm inferred from Langevin function fit for the concentration of 7.8×10¹⁹ cobalt atoms per 1 g of polymer film is in good agreement with TEM observation. This experimental evidence suggests that cobalt nanoparticles in the polymer film obey a single-domain theory. The results are discussed in the light of current theory for the superparamagnetic behavior of magnetic nanoparticles.     

Probabilistic representation of quantum evolution

A possibility of a choice of a complex phase space for the probabilistic representation of the solution of the Schrödinger equation has been given.Translated from Ukrainskii Matematicheskii Zhurnal, Vol. 44, No. 10, pp. 1314–1319, 1992.     

Multiphonon ionization of deep centers in amorphous silicon nitride: Experiment and numerical simulations

The conductivity of amorphous silicon nitride has been studied experimentally in a wide range of electric fields and temperatures. The experimental results are in a quantitative agreement with the theory of multiphonon ionization of deep centers for the bipolar model of conductivity. The best agreement between experiment and the calculation has been obtained for the same parameters of deep electron and hole centers.     

Large-Area Graphene Films as Target Surfaces for Highly Reproducible Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization Suitable for Quantitative Mass Spectrometry

Due to the known sweet-spot issues that intrinsically arise from inhomogeneous formation of matrix-analyte crystals utilized as samples in matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) mass spectrometry, its reproducibility and thus its applications for quantification have been somewhat limited. In this paper, we report a simple strategy to improve the uniformity of matrix-analyte crystal spots, which we realized by adapting large-area graphene films, i.e., non-inert, interacting surfaces, as target surfaces. In this example, the graphitic surfaces of the graphene films interact with excess matrix molecules during the sample drying process, which induces spontaneous formation of optically uniform MALDI sample crystal layers on the film surfaces. Further, mass spectrometric imaging reveals that the visible uniformity is indeed accompanied by reproducible MALDI ionization over an entire sample spot, which greatly suppresses the appearance of sweet spots. The results of this study confirm that the proposed method achieves good linear responses of ion intensity to the analyte concentration (R² > 0.99) with small relative standard deviations (σ < 10%), which is a range applicable for quantitative measurements using MALDI mass spectrometry.

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Study of Photocatalytic Nano-Particle Effects on the Low Temperature Plasma Ionization Mass Spectrometry

Although the low temperature plasma mass spectrometry (LTP-MS) is widely used as an analysis tool for many biochemical samples, its application window is somehow limited to the analytes of low molecular mass and high volatility. For this reason, there have been attempts to enhance the ionization/desorption efficiencies with extra heating, for instance. In this study, another enhancement method was suggested using the photocatalytic nano-particles (NPs). In order to assess the NP effects on the LTP-MS, two fatty acid ethyl ester samples of ethyl myristate and ethyl palmitate were used, and the NP of titanium dioxide (TiO₂) was mainly employed. The results showed that the signal intensities of the LTP-MS were largely increased with the TiO₂ addition for both samples. In addition, the cholesterol sample was analyzed using the TiO₂ assisted LTP-MS, also resulting in the enhancement of the signal intensity. The overall results inferred that the photocatalytic NP confirmed its role as an effective assist tool for the LTP-MS, especially suitable because of the facile method and the heat-free nature.

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Polyheteroarylenes based on 2,3,7,8-tetraaminodibenzo-<Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-dioxin and aromatic polyfunctional carboxylic acids

Polynaphthoylene benzimidazole and polybenzimidazole were obtained via polycondensation of 2,3,7,8-tetraaminodibenzo-p-dioxin with aromatic di- and tetracarboxylic acids in polyphosphoric acid. From a solution of polynaphthoylene benzimidazole in methanesulfonic acid a heat-resistant fiber with high tensile strength was obtained. Aromatic polybenzimidazoles are promising materials for producing membranes of medium-temperature fuel cells.