On a problem of H. N. Gupta

It is shown that the axiom For any points x, y, z such that y is between x and z, there is a right triangle having x and z as endpoints of the hypotenuse and y as foot of the altitude to the hypotenuse, when added to three-dimensional Euclidean geometry over arbitrary ordered fields, is weaker than the axiom Every line which passes through the interior of a sphere intersects that sphere.     

The combinatorics of the bar resolution in group cohomology

We study a combinatorially defined double complex structure on the ordered chains of any simplicial complex. Its columns are related to the cell complex K_n whose face poset is isomorphic to the subword ordering on words without repetition from an alphabet of size n. This complex is shellable and as an application we give a representation theoretic interpretation for derangement numbers and a related symmetric function considered by Désarménien and Wachs [11].

We analyze the two spectral sequences arising from the double complex in the case of the bar resolution for a group. This spectral sequence converges to the cohomology of the group and provides a method for computing group cohomology in terms of the cohomology of subgroups. Its behavior is influenced by the complex of oriented chains of the simplicial complex of finite subsets of the group, and we examine the Ext class of this complex.     

Spatial trapping of short pulses in Ti-indiffused LiNbO(3) waveguides

We show numerically and experimentally that spatial trapping can be induced in quadratic media even if the pump pulse's duration is shorter than the group-delay mismatch between fundamental wave and second-harmonic components. The influence of phase mismatch and pulse power on the trapping effect is discussed. Spatial, temporal, and spectral behaviors that accompany self-trapped propagation are highlighted.     

Optimization of spin-valve parameters for magnetic bead trapping and manipulation

Magneto-optic Kerr effect (MOKE) and magnetoresistance (MR) measurements were used to measure the switching characteristics of spin-valve (SV) arrays currently being developed to trap and release superparamagnetic beads within a fluid medium. The effect of SV size on switching observed by MOKE showed that a 1 μm×8 μm SV element was found to have optimal switching characteristics. MR measurements on a single 1 μm×8 μm SV switched with either an external applied magnetic field or a local magnetic field generated by an integrated write wire (current density ranging from 10⁶ to 10⁷ A/cm²) confirmed the MOKE findings. The 1 μm×8 μm SV low field switching was observed to be +8 and −2 mT with two stable states at zero field; the high field switching was observed to be −18 mT. The low switching fields and the large magnetic moment of the SV trap along with our observation of minimal magnetostatic effects for dense arrays are necessary design characteristics for high-force, “switchable-magnet,” microfluidic bead trap applications.     

Ideal-Symmetric and Semiprime Rings

Lambek extended the usual commutative ideal theory to ideals in noncommutative rings, calling an ideal A of a ring R symmetric if rst ∈ A implies rts ∈ A for r, s, t ∈ R. R is usually called symmetric if 0 is a symmetric ideal. This naturally gives rise to extending the study of symmetric ring property to the lattice of ideals. In the process, we introduce the concept of an ideal-symmetric ring. We first characterize the class of ideal-symmetric rings and show that this ideal-symmetric property is Morita invariant. We provide a method of constructing an ideal-symmetric ring (but not semiprime) from any given semiprime ring, noting that semiprime rings are ideal-symmetric. We investigate the structure of minimal ideal-symmetric rings completely, finding two kinds of basic forms of finite ideal-symmetric rings. It is also shown that the ideal-symmetric property can go up to right quotient rings in relation with regular elements. The polynomial ring R[x] over an ideal-symmetric ring R need not be ideal-symmetric, but it is shown that the factor ring R[x]/xⁿR[x] is ideal-symmetric over a semiprime ring R.     

Cohomology of GKM fiber bundles

The equivariant cohomology ring of a GKM manifold is isomorphic to the cohomology ring of its GKM graph. In this paper we explore the implications of this fact for equivariant fiber bundles for which the total space and the base space are both GKM and derive a graph theoretical version of the Leray–Hirsch theorem. Then we apply this result to the equivariant cohomology theory of flag varieties.     

Free Infinite Divisibility of Free Multiplicative Mixtures of the Wigner Distribution

Let I ^* and I ^⊞ be the classes of all classical infinitely divisible distributions and free infinitely divisible distributions, respectively, and let Λ be the Bercovici–Pata bijection between I ^* and I ^⊞ . The class type W of symmetric distributions in I ^⊞ that can be represented as free multiplicative convolutions of the Wigner distribution is studied. A characterization of this class under the condition that the mixing distribution is 2-divisible with respect to free multiplicative convolution is given. A correspondence between symmetric distributions in I ^⊞ and the free counterpart under Λ of the positive distributions in I ^* is established. It is shown that the class type W does not include all symmetric distributions in I ^⊞ and that it does not coincide with the image under Λ of the mixtures of the Gaussian distribution in I ^*. Similar results for free multiplicative convolutions with the symmetric arcsine measure are obtained. Several well-known and new concrete examples are presented.     

Exsolution of Nickel Nanoparticles from Mixed-Valence Metal Oxides: A Quantitative Evaluation by Magnetic Measurements

A fast and accurate experimental method is demonstrated to assess the fraction of exsolved metallic nanoparticles using magnetic measurements. As a benchmark, nanometric metallic nickel exsolved from (La_1−xSr_x)(Cr_1−yNi_y)O_3−δ is used for its high relevance as a solid oxide fuel cell component. The method is based on the difference in the magnetic response of the exsolved metallic nickel (ferromagnetic) and Sr-doped lanthanum chromite ceramic matrix (paramagnetic). The exsolved nickel results in coherent nanoparticles pinned on the surface of the Sr-doped lanthanum chromite ceramic matrix, as evidenced by electron microscopy analyses. The results obtained indicate the procedure as a fast and sensitive method to study the exsolution of ferromagnetic nanoparticles.     

Common supports as fixed points

A family S of sets in R ^d is sundered if for each way of choosing a point from rd+1 members of S, the chosen points form the vertex-set of an (r–1)-simplex. Bisztriczky proved that for each sundered family S of d convex bodies in R ^d , and for each partition (S , S ), of S, there are exactly two hyperplanes each of which supports all the members of S and separates the members of S from the members of S . This note provides an alternate proof by obtaining each of the desired supports as (in effect) a fixed point of a continuous self-mapping of the cartesian product of the bodies.