Corner spontaneous magnetization

Details are given of a new method allowing an exact calculation of the spontaneous magnetization in the corner as well as along the edge at an arbitrary distance of the corner for a rectangular planar Ising ferromagnet.     

A Note on an Input Control Model of a Predictive Regression Interval

A well-known problem of prediction in linear regression models is to find a confidence interval for the random value of the dependent variable when the values of the independent variables are given. Such a situation may arise in economic quality control models when the independent variables are costly inputs and the dependent variable is some measure of quality or production. In such a circumstance, an important control objective may be to find values for the inputs that will maximize the lower limit of the prediction confidence interval for a fixed budget, or alternatively, to minimize the cost of the inputs for a fixed lower limit of the confidence interval. In this paper, we shall show that global optima can be found using known algorithms. The special case of simple linear regression is discussed and an illustrative example is provided.     

Some aerodynamic and acoustic characteristicsof acute laryngitis

The purpose of the present study was to describe the effects ofacute laryngitis on some aerodynamic, acoustic, and perceptual measures. Eleven subjects with diagnosed acute laryngitis due to upper respiratory infection were recorded during a laryngitic episode and 1 week to 10 days after amelioration of the laryngitic condition. Fundamental frequency values, collapsed across the five vowels, were significantly reduced in the laryngitic compared with the normal speaking condition. The decrease in fundamental frequency associated with acute laryngitis suggests an increase in the mass of the vocal folds. In addition, aerodynamic values differed significantly for the laryngitic condition compared with the normal speaking condition, suggesting the presence of laryngeal hypofunction. Perceptual data indicated that speakers in the laryngitic condition were judged to have a hoarse voice when compared with the normal speaking condition.     

Single nucleotide polymorphism data analysis - State-of-the-art review on this emerging field from a signal processing viewpoint

The basic structural units of the genome are nucleotides. A single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) is a mutation at a single nucleotide position. This paper discusses several major problems in SNP data analysis and review some existing solutions in this work. Generally speaking, a rich set of SNP analysis problems are cast in the signal processing framework. Our objective is to offer a state-of-the art review on this topic from a signal processing viewpoint so that researchers in the signal processing field can grasp the important domain knowledge to overcome the barrier between the two fields     

Test data compression and test time reduction using an embedded microprocessor

Systems-on-a-chip (SOCs) with many complex intellectual property cores require a large volume of data for manufacturing test. The computing power of the embedded processor in a SOC can be used to test the cores within the chip boundary, reducing the test time and memory requirements. This paper discusses techniques that use the computing power of the embedded processor in a more sophisticated way. The processor can generate and reuse random numbers to construct test patterns and selectively apply only those patterns that contribute to the fault coverage, significantly reducing the pattern generation time, the total number of test applications and, hence, the test time. It can also apply deterministic test patterns that have been compressed using the characteristics of the random patterns as well as those of the deterministic patterns themselves, which leads to high compression of test data. We compare three fast run-length coding schemes which are easily implemented and effective for test-data compression. We also demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach by applying it to some benchmark circuits and by comparing it with other available techniques.     

Effect of nanotube functionalization on the properties of single‐walled carbon nanotube/polyurethane composites

A commercially available aliphatic thermoplastic polyurethane formulated with a methylene bis(cyclohexyl) diisocyanate hard segment and a poly(tetramethylene oxide) soft segment and chain‐extended with 1,4‐butanediol was dissolved in dimethylformamide and mixed with dispersed single‐walled carbon nanotubes. The properties of composites made with unfunctionalized nanotubes were compared with the properties of composites made with nanotubes functionalized to contain hydroxyl groups. Functionalization almost eliminated the conductivity of the tubes according to the conductivity of the composites above the percolation threshold. In most cases, functionalized and unfunctionalized tubes yielded composites with statistically identical mechanical properties. However, composites made with functionalized tubes did have a slightly higher modulus in the rubbery plateau region at higher nanotube fractions. Small‐angle X‐ray scattering patterns indicated that the dispersion reached a plateau in the unfunctionalized composites that was consistent with the plateau in the rubbery plateau region. The room‐temperature modulus and tensile strength increase was proportionally higher than almost all increases seen previously in thermoplastic polyurethanes; however, the increase was still an order of magnitude below what has been reported for the best nanotube–polymer systems. Nanotube addition increased the hard‐segment glass transition temperature slightly, whereas the soft‐segment glass transition was so diffuse that no conclusions could be drawn. Unfunctionalized tubes suppressed the crystallization of the hard segment; whereas functionalized tubes had no effect. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 45: 490–501, 2007     

2,3,4,5,6‐Penta­nitro­aniline 1,2‐dichloro­ethane disolvate: `push–pull' deformation of aromatic rings by intra­molecular charge transfer

The title compound, C₆H₂N₆O₁₀·2C₂H₄Cl₂, forms layered stacks of penta­nitro­aniline mol­ecules, which possess twofold symmetry. The voids between these stacks are occupied by dichloro­ethane mol­ecules, which reside near a 2/m symmetry element and display pseudo‐inversion symmetry. The C atoms in one of the two solvent mol­ecules are threefold disordered. In the penta­nitro­aniline mol­ecule, considerable distortion of the benzenoid ring, coupled with the short C—N(H₂) bond and out‐of‐plane NO₂ twistings, point to significant intra­molecular `push–pull' charge transfer at the amino‐ and nitro‐substituted (ortho and para) positions, as theoretically quantified by natural bond orbital analysis of the π‐electron density.     

A Single-Die 124 dB Stereo Audio Delta-Sigma ADC With 111 dB THD

This paper presents a highly power-efficient stereo delta-sigma ADC designed for high-precision applications, with measured inter-channel isolation over 130 dB. This design adopts a single-loop, fifth-order, 33 level analog modulator with positive and negative feedforward paths. An interpolated multilevel quantizer with unevenly weighted quantization levels replaces a conventional 5-bit flash type quantizer. These new techniques suppress signal dependent energy inside the delta-sigma loop, reduce internal channel coupling and power consumption. Manufactured in 0.35 mum double poly, three metal CMOS process, the single-die chip includes two analog modulators, on-chip bandgap reference circuit, decimation filter and serial interface circuits. The core die area is around 14.8 mm². The ADC achieves 124 dB dynamic range (A-weighted), -111 dB THD over 20 kHz bandwidth. Total power consumption is less than 330 mW.     

Inhibitors of biotin biosynthesis as potential herbicides

Isosteric derivatives and analogues of the 7-keto-8-aminopelargonic acid (KAPA), 7,8-diaminopelargonic acid (DAPA) and desthiobiotin (DTB) vitamer intermediates involved in the biosynthetic pathway of biotin were prepared and evaluated as potential herbicides. The most active compound was desmethyl-KAPA which displayed a GR₅₀ (concentration of the active compound that causes a 50% growth inhibition) value of 8 ppm, where values <50 ppm are considered herbicidal. Other KAPA analogs where the terminal Me group was replaced by bulkier substituents such as Et, i-Pr and HOCH₂ showed moderate activity.