Exponential Stability of Interval Dynamical Systems with Quadratic Nonlinearity

This article proposes an approach for investigating the exponential stability of a nonlinear interval dynamical system with the nonlinearity of a quadratic type on the basis of the Lyapunov’s direct method. It also constructs an inner estimate of the attraction domain to the origin for the system under consideration.     

Evaluation of Soybean Seedcoat Cracking During Drying:PART II. Using MRI

MRI techniques were developed and employed for non-destructive and noninvasive study of seedcoat cracking in low moisture soybean kernels during heated air drying. Proton density image and transient moisture distribution profile of a single soybean kernel can be obtained using MRI. These MRI techniques proved to be particularly useful for the continuous observation of initiation and propagation of seedcoat cracking during the entire period of drying process without interruption.

The proton density images of soybean kernels showed that seedcoat cracking was initiated perpendicular to the long axis of the kernel near the hilum. The transient moisture distribution profiles in soybean kernels during drying indicate that moisture gradient developed during drying was higher in the seedcoat than in the cotyledon. Drying temperature and initial average moisture content were positively correlated with the soyhean seedcoat crackig. The location of the     

Characterization of proton-exchanged optical waveguides in ZnO:LiNbO3

We report the first demonstration of proton-exchanged optical planar waveguides in x-cut and z-cut LiNbO₃ doped with 6 mol% ZnO using adipic acid as proton source. These waveguides exhibit a graded index profile which can be modeled by a linear step function with a surface index increase of 0.135 and 0.14 for x-cut and z-cut waveguides, respectively. The diffusion constant D_o and the activation energy Q are characterized optically to be 1.64×10⁹ μm²/h and 88.8 KJ/mol for x-cut waveguides, and 1.478×10⁹ μm²/h and 91.25 KJ/mol for z-cut waveguides, respectively. The diffusion rate along the z-axis is slower than that along the x-axis, whereas the surface index increase on z-cut waveguides is larger than that on x-cut waveguides.