Images of a First‐Order Spin‐Reorientation Phase Transition in a Metallic Kagome Ferromagnet

First‐order phase transitions, where one phase replaces another by virtue of a simple crossing of free energies, are best known between solids, liquids, and vapors, but they also occur in a wide range of other contexts, including even elemental magnets. The key challenges are to establish whether a phase transition is indeed first order, and then to determine how the new phase emerges because this will determine thermodynamic and electronic properties. Here it is shown that both challenges are met for the spin reorientation transition in the topological metallic ferromagnet Fe₃Sn₂. The magnetometry and variable temperature magnetic force microscopy experiments reveal that, analogous to the liquid–gas transition in the temperature–pressure plane, this transition is centered on a first‐order line terminating in a critical end point in the field‐temperature plane. The nucleation and growth associated with the transition is directly imaged, indicating that the new phase emerges at the most convoluted magnetic domain walls for the high temperature phase and then moves to self‐organize at the domain centers of the high temperature phase. The dense domain patterns and phase coexistence imply a complex inhomogenous electronic structure, which can yield anomalous contributions to the electrical conductivity.     

An indexed atlas of digital mammograms for computer-aided diagnosis of breast cancer

Computer-aided diagnosis (cad) systems are being developed to assist radiologists in the interpretation of ambiguous mammographic features corresponding to possible signs of early breast cancer. Databases of digital mammograms are needed for testing such systems; we present an overview of a few such databases. Most databases are limited to single-exam sets of two or four mammograms on which the diagnosis was made, some ground-truth information related to the position of diagnostically significant mammographic features, and the diagnosis. We propose the design of a comprehensive, indexed atlas of digital mammograms. The design of an appropriate indexing scheme facilitates the implementation of content-based retrieval techniques needed for efficient access to and retrieval of relevant cases from the atlas. We also propose the use of mobile software agents for facilitating remote consultation of the atlas. Mobile agents can move between data sources such as the atlas and hospital repositories, perform computational tasks at each site, and return only relevant data to the user. These features reduce the computational requirements of the local computer system, bandwidth requirements, and overall network traffic. Proposed applications of the atlas include research, remote consultation, teaching, evaluation ofcad systems, and self-evaluation by radiologists.     

A Space-Time Trellis Code Design Method for OFDM Systems

We introduce a new design method for space-time trelliscodes (STTC's) in orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing(OFDM) systems with frequency-selective fading. First, byanalyzing the pairwise error probability (PEP), we conclude thatlarge effective length and random interleaving are twocritical principles in designing robust space-time codes (STC's)for OFDM systems. Then, based on the analogy between the proposedSTC design principles for multiple-antenna OFDM systems and thetrellis-coded modulation (TCM) code design criteria forsingle-antenna flat-fading channels, we develop a new STTC designmethod. At each trellis stage, this method converts the singleoutput code symbol of a traditional TCM code into several STTCcode symbols, which are to be simultaneously transmitted frommultiple transmitter-antennas, and hence results in a new class ofSTTC's. In this way, the effective lengths that have beenoptimized for traditional TCM codes are preserved in the resultingSTTC's; together with a random interleaver, the proposed new classof STTC's can robustly and efficiently exploit both the spatialand the frequency-selective fading diversity resources inmultiple-antenna OFDM systems. Finally, the excellent performanceof the proposed STTC's are demonstrated through computersimulations.     

Transfer Hydrogenation in Mesoporous Palladium: Polar Hydrogen Engineering to Realize High Selectivity of Alkyne Semi-Hydrogenation

Semi-hydrogenation of alkynes to industrially important alkenes is earnestly desirable in the fine chemical industry but energetically unfavorable. Herein, it is reported that mesoporous palladium (meso-Pd) catalyst changes the hydrogenation pathways in ethanol with ammonium borane as the hydrogen source, realizing the high catalytic selectivity of ≈99% in semi-hydrogenation of alkynes. Mechanism studies reveal that the active polar hydrogen can be produced and reserved well in the electron-rich mesoporous channels of meso-Pd catalyst, resulting in a transfer hydrogenation pathway, which selectively semi-hydrogenates alkynes into alkenes without over-hydrogenating alkenes into alkanes. Moreover, it is demonstrated that the polar hydrogen engineering of meso-Pd catalyst is highly efficient in various alkyne semi-hydrogenation and chemoselective hydrogenation reactions. The results thus establish metal catalyst mesostructuring as an alternative route for engineering polar hydrogen in the transfer hydrogenation reactions, thus realizing the high catalytic selectivity in various selective catalysis.     

InGaAs-GaAs脊波导DBR激光器双模运行特性研究

对一种新型InGaAs-GaAs脊波导分布式Bragg反射(DBR)半导体激光器双模运行特性进行了研究.该激光器由1个普通增益区和2个DBR区组成,两DBR区采用均匀蚀刻的Bragg光栅,中间加入50～100 μm的分隔区,以减小两DBR区间的热作用影响.实验发现,在增益区偏置电流强度满足双模(双波长)运行条件的情况下,在分隔区施加一电流Ispace,会对双模调谐特性产生非常大的影响.结果表明:施加适当的Ispace可使双波长的可调谐间隔显著增加,并同时提高2个激射模的边模抑制比;在一定的范围内,较大的Ispace对应较好的双模运行参数.测量了3种几何尺寸样品在多种偏置电流下的双模运行特性,对分隔区长度、Ispace以及两者组合对双模调谐特性的影响作了深入研究.研究结果对改善双波长DBR半导体激光器双模运行特性给出了有用的信息.     

Energetics of Donor‐Doping,Metal Vacancies,and Oxygen‐Loss in A‐Site Rare‐Earth‐Doped BaTiO3

The energetics of La‐doping in BaTiO₃ are reported for both (electronic) donor‐doping with the creation of Ti³⁺ cations and ionic doping with the creation of Ti vacancies. The experiments (for samples prepared in air) and simulations demonstrate that ionic doping is the preferred mechanism for all concentrations of La‐doping. The apparent disagreement with electrical conduction of these ionic doped samples is explained by subsequent oxygen‐loss, which leads to the creation of Ti³⁺ cations. Simulations show that oxygen‐loss is much more favorable in the ionic‐doped system than undoped BaTiO₃ due to the unique local structure created around the defect site. These findings resolve the so‐called “donor‐doping” anomaly in BaTiO₃ and explain the source of semiconductivity in positive temperature coefficient of resistance (PTCR) BaTiO₃ thermistors.     

Effective Level Set Image Segmentation With a Kernel Induced Data Term

This study investigates level set multiphase image segmentation by kernel mapping and piecewise constant modeling of the image data thereof. A kernel function maps implicitly the original data into data of a higher dimension so that the piecewise constant model becomes applicable. This leads to a flexible and effective alternative to complex modeling of the image data. The method uses an active curve objective functional with two terms: an original term which evaluates the deviation of the mapped image data within each segmentation region from the piecewise constant model and a classic length regularization term for smooth region boundaries. Functional minimization is carried out by iterations of two consecutive steps: 1) minimization with respect to the segmentation by curve evolution via Euler-Lagrange descent equations and 2) minimization with respect to the regions parameters via fixed point iterations. Using a common kernel function, this step amounts to a mean shift parameter update. We verified the effectiveness of the method by a quantitative and comparative performance evaluation over a large number of experiments on synthetic images, as well as experiments with a variety of real images such as medical, satellite, and natural images, as well as motion maps.     

A Parallel Concatenated Convolutional-Based Distributed Coded Cooperation Scheme for Relay Channels

In this paper, we investigate a coded cooperation diversity scheme suitable for L-relay channels operating in the soft-decode-and-forward (soft-DF) mode. The proposed scheme is based on parallel concatenated convolutional codes (PCCC). To improve the overall performance through diversity, the coded cooperation operates by sending the systematic and the first parity outputs via L?+?1 independent fading paths. Instead of using only a centralized turbo code system at the source node, we have proposed a DCC scheme, where the first recursive systematic coding is done at both source and relay nodes. At the destination, the received replicas are combined using the maximal ratio combining (MRC). The entire codeword, comprising the MRC sequence and the second parity part, is decoded via the maximum a-posteriori (MAP) algorithm and turbo decoding principle. We analyze the proposed scheme in terms of bit error rate (BER). In fact, we define the explicit upper bounds for error rate assuming Binary phase shift keying (BPSK) transmission for fully interleaved channels with channel state information (CSI). We use the Rayleigh fading channels with independent fading. Our study shows that the full diversity order is achieved when the source-relay link is more reliable than the other links. Otherwise, the diversity decreases. However, in both cases, it is shown that significant performance improvements are possible to achieve over non-cooperative coded systems. Theorical and simulation results are presented to demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed scheme.     

Efficient recursive least squares parameter estimation algorithm for accurate nanoCMOS variable gain amplifier performances

ABSTRACT

With the aggressive scaling of integrated circuit technology, parametric estimation is a critical task for designers who looked for solutions to the challenges of some Nanoscale CMOS parameters. This paper presented the prediction of primary parameters of CMOS transistor for 16 nm to 10 nm process nodes using both of Bisquare Weights (BW) method and a novel recursive least squares (RLS) parameter estimation algorithm. The proposed RLS algorithm consists of the minimisation of a quadratic criterion relating to the prediction error in order to attain the best estimated parameters of the developed mathematical model. The obtained results thanks to the proposed RLS algorithm were better than those reached using the BW method. Comparisons between Predictive Technology Model (PTM) data and parameters estimated with RLS algorithm were made to check the validity and the consistency of the proposed algorithm. These predicted primary parameters were helpful to estimate and to optimise the performances of the Variable Gain Amplifier (VGA) which was a basic circuit element with a key role in the design of new upcoming receivers.     

Facile Synthesis of Red/NIR AIE Luminogens with Simple Structures,Bright Emissions,and High Photostabilities,and Their Applications for Specific Imaging of Lipid Droplets and Image‐Guided Photodynamic Therapy

Red/near‐infrared (NIR) fluorescent molecules with aggregation‐induced emission (AIE) characteristics are of great interest in bioimaging and therapeutic applications. However, their complicated synthetic approaches remain the major barrier to implementing these applications. Herein, a one‐pot synthetic strategy to prepare a series of red/NIR‐emissive AIE luminogens (AIEgens) by fine‐tuning their molecular structures and substituents is reported. The obtained AIEgens possess simple structures, good solubilities, large Stokes shifts, and bright emissions, which enable their applications toward in vitro and in vivo imaging without any pre‐encapsulation or ‐modification steps. Excellent targeting specificities to lipid droplets (LDs), remarkable photostabilities, high brightness, and low working concentrations in cell imaging application make them remarkably impressive and superior to commercially available LD‐specific dyes. Interestingly, these AIEgens can efficiently generate reactive oxygen species upon visible light irradiation, endowing their effective application for photodynamic ablation of cancer cells. This study, thus, not only demonstrates a facile synthesis of red/NIR AIEgens for dual applications in simultaneous imaging and therapy, but also offers an ideal architecture for the construction of AIEgens with long emission wavelengths.