Accelerated convergence for a normal state layered superconductor’s transverse resistance expression,measured with strip contacts

The expression of the transverse resistance for an ohmic parallelepipedic layered conductor, measured with strip contacts, extended along its width, is a slowly convergent series. This series is reworked and transformed to the sum of an analytical part and an exponentially convergent series, which reduces considerably the number of terms needed for the numerical evaluation. In addition, an asymptotic formula is obtained, valid for Γ < 2, Γ is the effective anisotropy. This formula is used to determine the room temperature resistivity anisotropy of two small Γ layered superconductors, which are 2H–NbSe₂ and 2H–TaSe₂.     

Characterization and formation mechanism of nanocrystalline W–Al alloy prepared by mechanical alloying

Tungsten and aluminum elemental powders with composition W–20 wt.% Al were mechanical alloyed in high energy planetary ball mill. Structural and morphological changes of powder particles after different milling times were studied by X-ray diffractometer, scanning electron microscopy and microhardness measurements. Mechanical alloying of this system led to the formation of W–Al alloy as a result of formation of W/Al layered microstructure having faceted interface between layers. This alloy indicated high microhardness value of about 570 Hv.     

Noniterative blind data restoration by use of an extracted filter function

A signal-processing algorithm has been developed where a filter function is extracted from degraded data through mathematical operations. The filter function can then be used to restore much of the degraded content of the data through use of a deconvolution algorithm. This process can be performed without prior knowledge of the detection system, a technique known as blind deconvolution. The extraction process, designated self-deconvolving data reconstruction algorithm, has been used successfully to restore digitized photographs, digitized acoustic waveforms, and other forms of data. The process is noniterative, computationally efficient, and requires little user input. Implementation is straightforward, allowing inclusion into many types of signal-processing software and hardware. The novelty of the invention is the application of a power law and smoothing function to the degraded data in frequency space. Two methods for determining the value of the power law are discussed. The first method assumes the power law is frequency dependent. The function derived comparing the frequency spectrum of the degraded data with the spectrum of a signal with the desired frequency response. The second method assumes this function is a constant of frequency. This approach requires little knowledge of the original data or the degradation.     

Acquisition of high-precision images for non-contact atomic force microscopy

The atomic force microscope (AFM) system has evolved into a useful tool for direct measurements of intermolecular forces with atomic-resolution characterization that can be employed in a broad spectrum of applications. The distance between cantilever tip and sample surface in non-contact AFM is a time-varying parameter even for a fixed sample height, and typically difficult to identify. A remedy to this problem is to directly identify the sample height in order to generate high-precision atomic-resolution images. For this, the microcantilever (which forms the basis for the operation of AFM) is modeled as a single mode approximation and the interaction between the sample and cantilever is derived from a van der Waals potential. Since in most practical applications only the microcantilever deflection is accessible, we will use merely this measurement to identify the sample height. In most non-contact AFMs, cantilevers with high-quality factors are employed essentially for acquiring high-resolution images. However, due to high-quality factor, the settling time is relatively large and the required time to achieve a periodic motion is long. As a result, identification methods based on amplitude and phase measurements cannot be efficiently utilized. The proposed method overcomes this shortfall by using a small fraction of the transient motion for parameter identification, so the scanning speed can be increased significantly. Furthermore, for acquiring atomic-scale images of atomically flat samples, the need for feedback loop to achieve setpoint amplitude is basically eliminated. On the other hand, for acquiring atomic-scale images of highly uneven samples, a simple PI controller is designed to track the desired constant sample height. Simulation results are provided to demonstrate the feasibility of the approach for both sample height identification and tracking the desired sample height.     

Radar Scattering from a Diffuse Vegetation Layer over a Smooth Surface

A simple model is presented for the oblique backscatter and bistatic scatter from a smooth surface overlain by a diffuse layer. Only single scattering in the diffuse layer is taken into account. The model analysis shows that the combination of volume scattering and oblique reflection at the surface may increase appreciably the waves scattering. The scattering strongly depends on the properties of the smooth surface. These results support some of the observations made with the Seasat spaceborne imaging radar over flooded regions with heavy vegetation cover.     

Creeping flow relative to permeable spheres

The several possible solutions to the problem of creeping flow relative to an isolated permeable sphere are discussed and compared quantitatively. The most satisfactory solutions is that based upon Brinkman's extension of Darcy's Law. This solution is generalized, using Happel's free-surface model, to cover the practically important problem of flow relative to a swarm of permeable spheres. A physically realistic and mathematically consistent expression for the hydrodynamic resistance experienced by a typical sphere within such a system is derived. This expression is then used to predict the settling rate and the overall permeability of the swarm.     

High numerical aperture in multimode microstructured optical fibers

Microstructured or "air-clad" fibers, with air holes surrounding a large core, have recently demonstrated much wider light-acceptance angles than conventional fibers. An original and accurate method is presented for determining the numerical aperture of such fibers using leaky modes. The dependence on length, wavelength, and various microstructure dimensions are evaluated for the first time for a class of fibers that exhibit exceptionally high numerical apertures. These results show excellent agreement with published measurements on similar fibers and verify that bridge thicknesses much smaller than the wavelength are required for high numerical apertures.     

On Designing PAM Pulses Optimally Tolerant to Timing Jitter

This paper deals with the design of bandlimited baseband PAM pulses that are optimally tolerant to timing jitter in a maximally flat sense. In this design the bandwidth can be chosen arbitrarily. The resulting time responses are relatively insensitive to small amounts of timing jitter and so represent an optimal solution for this type of impairment. Analytic results are derived in the frequency domain after translating conditions on maximal flatness from the time domain into the frequency domain by means of the Poisson sum formula.     

Classes of Discrete Decreasing and Increasing Mean-Residual-Life Distributions

Discrete failure-time distributions can be appropriate to model lifetimes. This paper represents two well-known non-parametric families of discrete distributions: decreasing and increasing mean-residual-life. It provides two parametric families of discrete distributions which are suitable for fitting decreasing and increasing mean-residual-life models to discrete life-test data.     

Investigation of the indentation size effect through the measurement of the geometrically necessary dislocations beneath small indents of different depths using EBSD tomography

We study the link between the indentation size effect and the density of geometrically necessary dislocations (GNDs) through the following approach: four indents of different depth and hardness were placed in a Cu single crystal using a conical indenter with a spherical tip. The deformation-induced lattice rotations below the indents were monitored via a three-dimensional electron backscattering diffraction method with a step size of 50 nm. From these data we calculated the first-order gradients of strain and the GND densities below the indents. This approach allowed us to quantify both the mechanical parameters (depth, hardness) and the lattice defects (GNDs) that are believed to be responsible for the indentation size effect. We find that the GND density does not increase with decreasing indentation depth but rather drops instead. More precisely, while the hardness increases from 2.08 GPa for the largest indent (1230 nm depth) to 2.45 GPa for the smallest one (460 nm depth) the GND density decreases from ≈2.34 × 10¹⁵ m^?2 (largest indent) to ≈1.85 × 10¹⁵ m^?2 (smallest indent).