Density perturbations in a Brans-Dicke cosmological model

A very general flat solution for Brans-Dicke cosmology with a perfect-fluid, Robertson-Walker metric and a perfect gas law of state is examined regarding density perturbations. The model has growing instabilities, but not of exponential character.     

Density perturbations in a flat universe

A well-known solution, for a flat model in general relativity obeying the Robertson-Walker metric, a perfect fluid energy-tensor and a perfect gas law of state, with constant deceleration parameter, is now shown to yield growing scalar density perturbations, provided thatq > 0. This study generalizes Weinberg's results for the radiation phase, and shows that any realistic model of this kind contains gravitational instabilities     

Nonperturbative gadget for topological quantum codes

Many-body entangled systems, in particular topologically ordered spin systems proposed as resources for quantum information processing tasks, often involve highly nonlocal interaction terms. While one may approximate such systems through two-body interactions perturbatively, these approaches have a number of drawbacks in practice. In this Letter, we propose a scheme to simulate many-body spin Hamiltonians with two-body Hamiltonians nonperturbatively. Unlike previous approaches, our Hamiltonians are not only exactly solvable with exact ground state degeneracy, but also support completely localized quasiparticle excitations, which are ideal for quantum information processing tasks. Our construction is limited to simulating the toric code and quantum double models, but generalizations to other nonlocal spin Hamiltonians may be possible.     

Surface characterizations of fluorescent-functionalized silica nanoparticles: from the macroscale to the nanoscale

Journal of Nanoparticle Research - Fluorescent silica nanoparticles are widely used for various applications from mechanical reinforcement to biology. In many cases, their surface has to be...     

Noise exposure of workers of the construction sector

Noise is one of the most highly found physical contaminants in the construction sector. The most negative effects caused by noise exposure are related to the hearing system and may produce professional deafness or even permanent deafness. As these effects have a very important influence on people’s health and well-being, it is necessary to assess the noise exposure and to develop mechanisms for studying and proposing preventive solutions.This work has studied the noise levels which the workers of the construction sector are exposed to. A number of representative measurements have been carried out using a sound level meter and a dosimeter to collect data from workers devoted to different tasks in the construction process. Analysis of the most important levels and indexes have been done with those data, and afterwards, they have been compared with the limits imposed by the different current regulations.     

A special anisotropic model of the universe (II)

By means of exponential laws we show a Bianchi Type I model of the universe where we define overall deceleration and Hubble's parameters that have constant values. We employ a convenient relation for defining the radius of the universe. Pressure and density have constant values, too.     

Fabrication of durable hydrophobic surfaces through surface texturing

Low surface energy polymer thin-films can be applied to surfaces to increase hydrophobicity and reduce friction for a variety of applications. However, wear of these thin films, resulting from repetitive rubbing against another surface, is of great concern. In this study, we show that highly hydrophobic surfaces with persistent abrasion resistance can be fabricated by depositing fluorinated carbon thin films on sandblasted glass surfaces. In our study, fluorinated carbon thin films were deposited on sandblasted and as-received smooth glass using deep reactive ion etching equipment by only activating the passivation step. The surfaces of the samples were then rubbed with FibrMet abrasive papers in a reciprocating motion using an automatic friction abrasion analyzer. During the rubbing, the static and kinetic friction forces were also measured. The surface wetting properties were then characterized using a video-based contact angle measuring system to determine the changes in water contact angle as a result of rubbing. Assessment of the wear properties of the thin films was based on the changes in the water contact angles of the coated surfaces after repetitive rubbing. It was found that, for sandblasted glass coated with fluorinated carbon film, the water contact angle remained constant throughout the entire rubbing process, contrary to the smooth glass coated with fluorinated carbon film which showed a drastic decrease in water contact angle with the increasing number of rubbing cycles. In addition, the static and kinetic friction coefficients of the sandblasted glass were also much lower than those of the smooth glass.     

Emulator with inverse trend in first-order and second-order polarisation mode dispersion

We design a polarisation mode dispersion (PMD) emulator through subdividing a polarisation maintaining fibre (PMF) of 22 m in length. The aim of this emulator design is to show that first-order and second-order PMD can be inversely proportional to each other. Furthermore, the emulator is also used to show that the magnitude of PMD is independent to whether its statistics approach theoretical distributions or not, of most importance is the degree of mode coupling. The same (as former) applies to its autocorrelation function (ACF). The PMD control mechanism for the emulator is not in real time.     

Rapid wavelength scanning based on acousto-optically tuned external-cavity laser diode

High-speed, wide-range wavelength scanning is demonstrated using a laser diode with an antireflection coating and an external cavity employing an acousto-optic deflector. The narrow spectral width of 0.2 nm observed in the experiment indicates the availability of a highly coherent laser beam. The scanning range of 15 nm under rapid modulation is confirmed in the prototype system. A tuning rate of more than 100 kHz is achieved without any mode hops. To the best of our knowledge, no such high-speed wavelength tuning based on an acousto-optical configuration has been demonstrated thus far.     

Applications of electronic speckle interferometry (ESI) techniques for spacecraft structural components

Laser-based electronic speckle interferometry (ESI) techniques, viz., electronic speckle pattern interferometry (ESPI) and electronic speckle shearographic interferometry (ESSI) are used for testing of spacecraft structural components. The combined ESPI and ESSI system developed in house was successfully used for the non-destructive evaluation (NDE) of honeycomb sandwich panels and propellant tanks of Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). Debonds between face sheet and the honeycomb core were identified using (i) thermal and (ii) dual vacuum stressing methods. On-line NDE of the propellant tanks under internal pressure loading for identification of the minute cracks and thickness reduction areas were successfully implemented by ESI.