Strong correlations in two-dimensional quantum fluids of4He and3He adsorbed on hectorite

A theory for the high temperature superconductors is proposed. The dispersion of carriers in the 2D t-J model is calculated using numerical and analytical techniques, and compared with recent photoemission experimental results that reported a flat dispersion near the X and Y points. Good agreement is observed between theory and experiments. The density of states (DOS) of these dressed quasiparticles has a van Hove singularity. From the two carriers problem in an antiferromagnet, an effective Hamiltonian for holes is proposed. This effective model has superconductivity in the d_x ²–y² channel, a critical temperature T_c 100Kat the optimal hole density, x = 0.15, and a quasiparticle lifetime linearly dependent with energy. The appearance of an optimal concentration is a consequence of the van Hove singularity in the DOS. Other experimental results are also quantitatively reproduced by the theory. The present contribution is based on two recent papers by the authors (Phys. Rev. Lett.73, 728 (1994) and NHMFL preprint, July 1994).     

Parametric polynomial spectral factorization using the sum of roots and its application to a control design problem

This paper presents an algebraic approach to polynomial spectral factorization, an important mathematical tool in signal processing and control. The approach exploits an intriguing relationship between the theory of Gröbner bases and polynomial spectral factorization which can be observed through the sum of roots, and allows us to perform polynomial spectral factorization in the presence of real parameters. It is discussed that parametric polynomial spectral factorization enables us to express quantities such as the optimal cost in terms of parameters and the sum of roots. Furthermore an optimization method over parameters is suggested that makes use of the results from parametric polynomial spectral factorization and also employs two quantifier elimination techniques. This proposed approach is demonstrated in a numerical example of a particular control problem.     

Patient views of adverse events: comparisons of self-reported healthcare staff attitudes with disclosure of accident information

In the present paper, we report results of surveys in 2003 in Japan and Denmark about patients' views about adverse events, focusing on the actions of healthcare staff involved in a medical accident. Results show that patients were more likely to indicate negative expectations to a doctor's reactions after a medical accident when asked in general terms than when asked in relation to concrete case stories. When asked in general terms, 66% (47%) of Japanese (Danish) respondents expected that doctors sometimes hold back on providing information to patients about a medical accident, while 37% (7%) did so when asked about a concrete, mild-outcome case. We examine some possible reasons for the relatively high level of distrust of Japanese patients, and we discuss whether the seemingly lower level of disclosure in Japan than in Denmark and the negative stories in the Japanese press may have an impact. We also suggest some implications for introducing a patient-centred or customer-centred approach to risk management in healthcare and other domains.     

Fractional power approximation and its generation

For an analog simulating system, an approximating system is proposed. Its mathematical form is expressed by an algebraic equation:

$\text{? (x) ≈ α + β χ + γχ}{}^{\mathrm{k}}$

with four parameters given by real numbers. Their values can be determined so as to satisfy a best fit in a Chebyshev sense. Then, the accuracy is of the same order with that obtained by any kind of ordinary power series up to terms o f the third order. It is noticeable that a given function can be accurately approximated by this equation without destroying its uniform continuity.As its electronic system, it is possible to utilize forward current-voltage characteristics o f p-n diodes near their origins. Different functions can be produced by adjusting an amount o f ordinary resistances connected to diodes in series.     

Analysis of Mg content of Zn_(1-x)Mg_xO film grown on sapphire substrates by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy

Semiconductor materials with wide band gap have been extensively used to fabri-cate the blue laser light emitting diodes and ultraviolet photodetectors, which are impor-tant elements of semiconductor instruments, such as displays, optical data storages, ul-traviolet sensors, electroluminescent devices and solar-blind detectors. This kind of ma-terials is now becoming a hot research object in semiconductor physics. GaN was the first suitable ultraviolet laser material people found in this real…     

Leak-tightness characteristics concerning the containment structures of the HTTR

The containment structures of the HTTR consist of the reactor containment vessel, the service area, and the emergency air purification system, which minimise the release of fission products in postulated accidents, which lead to fission product release from the reactor facilities. The reactor containment vessel is designed to withstand the temperature and pressure transients and to be leak-tight in the case of a rupture of the primary concentric hot-gas duct, etc. The pressure inside the service area is maintained at a negative pressure by the emergency air purification system. The emergency air purification system will also remove airborne radioactivity and will maintain a correct pressure in the service area.The leak-tightness characteristics of the containment structures are described in this paper. The measured leakage rates of the reactor containment vessel were enough less than the specified leakage limit of 0.1%/d confirmed during the commissioning tests and annual inspections. The service area was kept in a way that the design pressure becomes well below its allowable limitation by the emergency air purification system, which filters efficiency of particle removal and iodine removal well over the limited values.The obtained data demonstrate that the reactor containment structures were fabricated to minimise the release of fission products in the postulated accidents with fission product release from the reactor facilities.     

A two-degree-of-freedom motor-powered gait orthosis for spinal cord injury patients

A number of orthoses have been developed to restore stance and walking in paraplegic subjects. Compliance, however, has been limited, mainly owing to walking effort. Use of the forces produced by actuators is an effective way to solve the problem of the considerable effort required for orthotic gait, namely high muscular effort and high energy expenditure. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effects of assistance by external actuators on the orthotic gait of spinal cord injury (SCI) patients. Two kinds of linear actuator were developed by using direct current (d.c.) motors for assisting the knee and hip joint of a gait orthosis. They were mounted on the knee and hip joint of a commercial advanced reciprocating gait orthosis (ARGO), and a new two-degree-of-freedom externally powered gait orthosis was thus developed. The orthosis was assessed through inter-subject experiments on five male adult complete SCI patients. Owing to the short training period available for the assisted gait, simultaneous operation of both joint actuators was not conducted: either the knee actuation or the hip actuation was executed only. Thus, the knee actuator and the hip actuator were assessed with a T12 subject and with subjects for T5, T8, T11, and T12 respectively. The motions of the gaits, assisted by the linear actuators, were measured by a Vicon 370 system, and the general gait parameters and compensatory motions were evaluated. Results demonstrated that (a) all subjects could walk without falling, assisted either by the knee or the hip actuator; (b) both the knee and hip joint actuator increased the gait speed and the step length; (c) the knee flexion produced by the orthosis improved the dynamic cosmesis of walking; and (d) lateral compensatory motions as well as vertical ones tended to decrease when the hip joint was assisted, which could contribute to a reduction in walking effort.     

A framework for capacity planning and machine configuration in flexible assembly systems

We consider the problem of simultaneously determining the number of machines (and/or workers), the assignment of tasks (and related tools and components) to these machines, and the number of jobs circulating in a flexible assembly system (FAS), to satisfy steady-state throughput requirements for a family of similar products at minimum cost. We focus on situations where there are precedence relations among the various tasks, as is common in assembly systems. We present a framework for solving this problem based on a heuristic decomposition approach which involves the solution of only a few types of sub-problems. We demonstrate the efficiency and effectiveness of the overall procedure using a number of example problems.     

Te concentration dependent photoemission and inverse-photoemission study of FeSe1?xTex

We have characterized the electronic structure of FeSe_1−xTe_x for various x values using soft x-ray photoemission spectroscopy (SXPES), high-resolution photoemission spectroscopy (HRPES) and inverse photoemission spectroscopy (IPES). The SXPES valence band spectral shape shows that the 2 eV feature in FeSe, which was ascribed to the lower Hubbard band in previous theoretical studies, becomes less prominent with increasing x. HRPES exhibits systematic x dependence of the structure near the Fermi level (E_F): its splitting near E_F and filling of the pseudogap in FeSe. IPES shows two features, near E_F and approximately 6 eV above E_F; the former may be related to the Fe 3d states hybridized with chalcogenide p states, while the latter may consist of plane-wave-like and Se d components. In the incident electron energy dependence of IPES, the density of states near E_F for FeSe and FeTe has the Fano lineshape characteristic of resonant behavior. These compounds exhibit different resonance profiles, which may reflect the differences in their electronic structures. By combining the PES and IPES data the on-site Coulomb energy was estimated at 3.5 eV for FeSe.