Cubane,Bicyclo[1.1.1]pentane and Bicyclo[2.2.2]octane: Impact and Thermal Sensitiveness of Carboxyl-, Hydroxymethyl- and Iodo-substituents

With the burgeoning interest in cage motifs for bioactive molecule discovery, and the recent disclosure of 1,4-cubane-dicarboxylic acid impact sensitivity, more research into the safety profiles of cage scaffolds is required. Therefore, the impact sensitivity and thermal decomposition behavior of judiciously selected starting materials and synthetic intermediates of cubane, bicyclo[1.1.1]pentane (BCP), and bicyclo[2.2.2]octane (BCO) were evaluated via hammer test and sealed cell differential scanning calorimetry, respectively. Iodo-substituted systems were found to be more impact sensitive, whereas hydroxymethyl substitution led to more rapid thermodecomposition. Cubane was more likely to be impact sensitive with these substituents, followed by BCP, whereas all BCOs were unresponsive. The majority of derivatives were placed substantially above Yoshida thresholds—a computational indicator of sensitivity.     

Anosov and expanding attractors

Science China Mathematics - An earlier conjecture is settled with an immersion of a 2-dimensional branched manifold. Possible obstructions in linear algebra and tiling theory are studied first.     

Analysis of crack propagation data for a strain ageing and a stabilized mild steel tested under R=0 and R=−1 loading conditions

Comparative studies of crack propagation in a strain ageing and a stabilized mild steel were carried out under axial loadings of the R = 0 and R = ?1 types. The results show the rate of fatigue crack propagation is dependent on both the tensile and the compressive stresses in the fatigue cycles, the compression stresses being less effective than the equivalent tensile stresses in causing crack growth. An equation is presented relating the rate of fatigue crack growth to a stress intensity range which is factored to allow for the variations in fatigue damage associated with the tensile and compressive parts of the stress cycle.     

The propagation of sound waves and neutron waves in bounded plane geometry

Integral equations are formulated for neutron wave propagation parallel to the faces of a slab and sound wave propagation in a gas confined between parallel plates. The main physical differences arise from the different conditions satisfied by the particle distribution functions at the boundaries of the systems, i.e. neutrons can pass through a boundary unhindered whilst gas atoms are reflected from it.     

Magneto-optical and micromagnetic simulation study of the current-driven domain wall motion in ferromagnetic (Ga,Mn)As

We have studied current-driven domain wall motion in modified Ga_0.95Mn_0.05As Hall bar structures with perpendicular anisotropy by using spatially resolved polar magneto-optical Kerr effect microscopy and micromagnetic simulation. Regardless of the initial magnetic configuration, the domain wall propagates in the opposite direction to the current with critical current of 1-2×10⁵ A/cm². Considering the spin-transfer torque term as well as various effective magnetic field terms, the micromagnetic simulation results are consistent with the experimental results. Our simulated and experimental results suggest that the spin-torque rather than Oersted field is the reason for current-driven domain wall motion in this material.     

Use of a microelectromechanical mirror for adaptive optics in the human eye

Ophthalmic instrumentation equipped with adaptive optics offers the possibility of rapid and automated correction of the eye's optics for improving vision and for improving images of the retina. One factor that limits the widespread implementation of adaptive optics is the cost of the wave-front corrector, such as a deformable mirror. In addition, the large apertures of these elements require high pupil magnification, and hence the systems tend to be physically large. We present what are believed to be the first closed-loop results when a compact, low-cost, surface micromachined, microelectromechanical mirror is used in a vision adaptive-optics system. The correction performance of the mirror is shown to be comparable to that of a Xinetics mirror for a 4.6-mm pupil size. Furthermore, for a pupil diameter of 6.0-mm, the residual rms error is reduced from 0.36 to 0.12 microm and individual photoreceptors are resolved at a pupil eccentricity of 1 degrees from the fovea.     

Application of organic and copper-oxide superconductors for EPR imaging

A new electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) imaging method on the surface of a super-conducting finite-size plate is experimentally demonstrated. The single crystals of the layered organic charge-transfer saltk-(ET)₂Cu(NCS)₂ and copper oxide YBa₂Cu₃O_6.95 are applied to create field gradients up to 0.5 and 5 kG/cm respectively. Surface gradient mapping at different temperatures and de field excursions is carried out. Qualitative explanation for the gradient mechanism in terms of the inhomogeneous critical state under field cycling is presented. Reconstruction of one-dimensional EPR images for model samples is presented at low temperatures. Spatial resolution of the order of 1 μm is experimentally reached on a standard X-band continuous-wave EPR spectrometer.     

Optimizing a phase gate using quantum interference

A controlled interference is proposed to reduce, by two orders of magnitude, the decoherence of a quantum gate for which the gate fidelity is limited by coupling to states other than the /0> and /1> qubit states. This phenomenon is demonstrated in an ultracold neutral atom implementation of a phase gate using qubits based on motional states in individual wells of an optical lattice.     

The dependency diagram of a linear programme

The Dependency Diagram of a Linear Programme (LP) shows how the successive inequalities of an LP depend on former inequalities, when variables are projected out by Fourier–Motzkin Elimination. It is also explained how redundant inequalities can be removed, using the method attributed to Chernikov and to Kohler. Some new results are given. The procedure also leads to a transparent explanation of Farkas’ Lemma, LP Duality, the dual form of Caratheodory’s Theorem as well as generating all vertices and extreme rays of the Dual Polytope.     

A New Heuristic for a Single Machine Scheduling Problem with Set-up Times

This paper examines the problem of scheduling jobs on a single machine with set-up times. The jobs are divided into mutually exclusive classes and a set-up task is required when processing switches from a job of one class to a job of another class. The set-up times are assumed to be sequence independent. A number of necessary conditions for a schedule to minimize mean flow time have previously been stated, but do not uniquely define the optimal solution, and the problem is apparently NP-complete. We propose a new polynomial-time heuristic, based on these conditions, and compare its performance with some existing heuristics.