Generic Behavior Research Articles

Thermopower scaling in conducting polymers

By directly converting heat into electricity, thermoelectric effects provide a unique physical process from heat waste to energy harvesting. Requiring the highest possible power factor defined as α2σ, with the thermopower α and the electrical conductivity σ, such a technology necessitates the best knowledge of transport phenomena in order to be able to control and optimize both α and σ. While conducting polymers have already demonstrated their great potentiality with enhanced thermoelectric performance, the full understanding of the transport mechanisms in these compounds is still lacking. Here we show that the thermoelectric properties of one of the most promising conducting polymer, the poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) doped with tosylate ions (PEDOT-Tos), follows actually a very generic behavior with a scaling relation as α ∝ σ−1/4. Whereas conventional transport theories have failed to explain such an exponent, we demonstrate that it is in fact a characteristic of massless pseudo-relativistic quasiparticles, namely Dirac fermions, scattered by unscreened ionized impurities.

Hierarchy of Relaxation Timescales in Local Random Liouvillians.

To characterize the generic behavior of open quantum systems, we consider random, purely dissipative Liouvillians with a notion of locality. We find that the positivity of the map implies a sharp separation of the relaxation timescales according to the locality of observables. Specifically, we analyze a spin-1/2 system of size ℓ with up to n-body Lindblad operators, which are n local in the complexity-theory sense. Without locality (n=ℓ), the complex Liouvillian spectrum densely covers a "lemon"-shaped support, in agreement with recent findings [S. Denisov etal., Phys. Rev. Lett. 123, 140403 (2019)PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.123.140403]. However, for local Liouvillians (n<ℓ), we find that the spectrum is composed of several dense clusters with random matrix spacing statistics, each featuring a lemon-shaped support wherein all eigenvectors correspond to n-body decay modes. This implies a hierarchy of relaxation timescales of n-body observables, which we verify to be robust in the thermodynamic limit. Our findings for n locality generalize immediately to the case of spatial locality, introducing further splitting of timescales due to the additional structure.

Geodesic congruences in exact plane wave spacetimes and the memory effect

Displacement and velocity memory effects in the exact, vacuum, plane gravitational wave line element have been studied recently by looking at the behaviour of pairs of geodesics or via geodesic deviation. Instead, one may investigate the evolution of geodesic congruences. In our work here, we obtain the evolution of the kinematic variables which characterise timelike geodesic congruences, using chosen pulse profiles (square and sech-squared) in the exact, plane gravitational wave line element. We also analyse the behaviour of geodesic congruences in possible physical scenarios describable using derivatives (first, second and third) of one of the chosen pulses. Beginning with a discussion on the generic behaviour of such congruences and consequences thereof, we find exact analytical expressions for shear and expansion with the two chosen pulse profiles. Qualitatively similar numerical results are noted when various derivatives of the sech-squared pulse are used. We conclude that for geodesic congruences, a growth (or decay) of shear causes focusing of an initially parallel congruence, after the departure of the pulse. A correlation between the `focusing time (or $u$ value, $u$ being the affine parameter)' and the amplitude of the pulse (or its derivatives) is found. Such features distinctly suggest a memory effect, named in recent literature as ${\cal B}$ memory.

Probing the concept of line tension down to the nanoscale

A novel mechanical approach is developed to explore by means of atom-scale simulation the concept of line tension at a solid-liquid-vapor contact line as well as its dependence on temperature, confinement, and solid/fluid interactions. More precisely, by estimating the stresses exerted along and normal to a straight contact line formed within a partially wet pore, the line tension can be estimated while avoiding the pitfalls inherent to the geometrical scaling methodology based on hemispherical drops. The line tension for Lennard-Jones fluids is found to follow a generic behavior with temperature and chemical potential effects that are all included in a simple contact angle parameterization. Former discrepancies between theoretical modeling and molecular simulation are resolved, and the line tension concept is shown to be robust down to molecular confinements. The same qualitative behavior is observed for water, but the line tension at the wetting transition diverges or converges toward a finite value depending on the range of solid/fluid interactions at play.

Ultrafine Fe-Fe2Ti eutectics by directed energy deposition: Insights into microstructure formation based on experimental techniques and phase field modelling

We investigated the Fe-Fe2Ti eutectic microstructure obtained by Directed Energy Deposition (DED) with a hypereutectic composition of Fe-17.6 at.% Ti. Ultrafine lamellar spacings as low as 200 nm were achieved, features which otherwise can only be obtained in thin specimens, e.g. by suction casting. However, at interlayer boundaries (ILBs) a globular morphology of the primary Fe2Ti phase is observed with halos of the Fe phase. For the given DED conditions the crystalline structure is thus discontinuous across the ILBs. Both 2D and 3D analysis methods were used to quantify the microstructure, including high resolution synchrotron holographic X-ray computed tomography (HXCT). The generic behaviour of eutectic systems under conditions that qualitatively correspond to those of laser additive manufacturing was explored by phase-field modelling for selected nucleation scenarios and alloy compositions spanning from eutectic to hyper-eutectic. While providing valuable insights into microstructure formation, the simulations point out the need to further deepen our understanding about melting under additive manufacturing conditions in order to implement suitable nucleation and / or free growth models. The simulations also show that globular ILBs can be prevented when using exactly eutectic alloy compositions.

Aspects of high energy scattering

Scattering amplitudes in quantum field theories are of widespread interest, due to a large number of theoretical and phenomenological applications. Much is known about the possible behaviour of amplitudes, that is independent of the details of the underlying theory. This knowledge is often neglected in modern QFT courses, and the aim of these notes - aimed at graduate students - is to redress this. We review the possible singularities that amplitudes can have, before examining the generic behaviour that can arise in the high-energy limit. Finally, we illustrate the results using examples from QCD and gravity.

Lines of Affine Principal Curvatures of Surfaces in 3-Space

In this work we study the affine principal lines of surfaces in 3-space. We consider the binary differential equation of the affine curvature lines and obtain the topological models of these curves near the affine umbilic points (elliptic and hyperbolic). We also describe the generic behavior of affine curvature lines in the neighborhood of points with double eigenvalues (but not umbilics) of the affine shape operator and parabolic points

Dependence of photoactivity of niobium pentoxide (Nb2O5) on crystalline phase and electrokinetic potential of the hydrocolloid

Multiphasic crystallite complex of the most popular photocatalyst – TiO2 has consistently shown better UV and/or visible photoactivity than its pristine monophasic counterparts. An identical behaviour is reported in the studies conducted on ZnO as well. This motivated the present study i) to explore the possibility to establish this as generic behavior for all such materials, and ii) to look for a better material with high photocatalytic activity. The choice of niobium pentoxide for the purpose lies in its uniqueness in terms of its existence in different oxidation states and crystalline phases. Additionally it offers a novel and promising alternative to the existing photoactive nanomaterials due to its apposite band gap, band edge location, stability, sorption characteristics and recyclability. Herein, an attempt has been made to prepare niobium pentoxide with different crystalline phases, including mixed, and analyze their photoactivity in UV and visible ranges. The results show that niobium pentoxide, calcined between 500-800°C, crystallizes predominantly in orthorhombic and 900°C and above in monoclinic phase. The results reveal that under both UV and visible radiation the monophasic (monoclinic phase) niobia has high photoactivity as compared to the other phases in degradation of aqueous probe pollutant. This result is contrary to the expected result. The samples have been characterized by X-ray diffraction(XRD), UV-VIS spectroscopy (UV-VIS DRS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS), photoluminescence(PL) spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy(TEM), and scanning electron microscopy(SEM) to arrive at a conclusive explanation of the results. The sorption characteristics of the hydrocolloid system, among others, have been found to be responsible for this behavior.

Flow phenomenon of micron-sized particles during cold spray additive manufacturing: High-speed optic observation and characterization

A high-speed laser shadowgraph observation of the particles flow during cold spraying enables a good phenomenological characterization. The particles in-flight behaviour develops a kinematics with two regimes regardless the powder nature. When leaving the nozzle, the particles form a regime of uniform jet over a certain distance along the flow direction, and then a regime of sparse jet while particles deviate in the radial direction. This dispersion increases away from the nozzle exit and exhibits thereby an event of oblique collision during an additive route process. Under such conditions, kinematic deficiency prevails since oblique collision has shown to alter the deposition efficiency, in the literature. Albeit these particles flow regimes represent a generic behaviour, there are differences in the powder’s response depending of their features that can be combined using the parameter ρpDp. The variance ρpDp in cold spraying is scaled through a few cases of powders (copper, aluminium, magnesium, cermet, and PEEK). The powders dispersion becomes more and more important as ρpDp decreases from high value (large Cu powders) down to low value (case of Mg powders). However, this tendency cannot be extrapolated to lightweight powders represented by the fine PEEK powders (low ρpDp) which are more stable over a larger distance due to a higher sensitivity to the axial component of the gas velocity. They get unstable later in the jet since they become sensitive to the radial component of the gas velocity due to a progressive decrease of the axial gas velocity. The fine WC-Co powders adopt similar behaviour since they are lightweight as the PEEK powders due to their porous structure.

Chromatic homotopy theory is asymptotically algebraic

Inspired by the Ax–Kochen isomorphism theorem, we develop a notion of categorical ultraproducts to capture the generic behavior of an infinite collection of mathematical objects. We employ this theory to give an asymptotic solution to the approximation problem in chromatic homotopy theory. More precisely, we show that the ultraproduct of the E(n, p)-local categories over any non-principal ultrafilter on the set of prime numbers is equivalent to the ultraproduct of certain algebraic categories introduced by Franke. This shows that chromatic homotopy theory at a fixed height is asymptotically algebraic.

Stick-slip dynamics of cell adhesion triggers spontaneous symmetry breaking and directional migration of mesenchymal cells on one-dimensional lines.

Directional cell motility relies on the ability of single cells to establish a front-rear polarity and can occur in the absence of external cues. The initiation of migration has often been attributed to the spontaneous polarization of cytoskeleton components, while the spatiotemporal evolution of cell-substrate interaction forces has yet to be resolved. Here, we establish a one-dimensional microfabricated migration assay that mimics the complex in vivo fibrillar environment while being compatible with high-resolution force measurements, quantitative microscopy, and optogenetics. Quantification of morphometric and mechanical parameters of NIH-3T3 fibroblasts and RPE1 epithelial cells reveals a generic stick-slip behavior initiated by contractility-dependent stochastic detachment of adhesive contacts at one side of the cell, which is sufficient to trigger cell motility in 1D in the absence of pre-established polarity. A theoretical model validates the crucial role of adhesion dynamics, proposing that front-rear polarity can emerge independently of a complex self-polarizing system.

The generic unfolding of a biomimetic polymer during force spectroscopy.

With the help of force spectroscopy, several analytical theories aim at estimating the rate coefficient of folding for various proteins. Nevertheless, a chief bottleneck lies in the fact that there is still no perfect consensus on how does a force generally perturb the crystal-coil transition. Consequently, the goal of our work is in clarifying the generic behavior of most proteins in force spectroscopy; in other words, what general signature does an arbitrary protein exhibit for its rate coefficient as a function of the applied force? By employing a biomimetic polymer in molecular simulations, we focus on evaluating its respective activation energy for unfolding, while pulling on various pairs of its monomers. Above all, we find that in the vicinity of the force-free scenario, this activation energy possesses a negative slope and a negative curvature as a function of the applied force. Our work is in line with the most recent theories for unfolding, which suggest that such a signature is expected for most proteins, and thus, we further reiterate that many of the classical formulae, that estimate the rate coefficient of the crystal-coil transition, are inadequate. Besides, we also present here an analytical expression which experimentalists can use for approximating the activation energy for unfolding; importantly, it is based on measurements for the mean and variance of the distance between the beads which are being pulled. In summary, our work presents an interesting view for protein folding in force spectroscopy.

A Casimir preserving scheme for long-time simulation of spherical ideal hydrodynamics

The incompressible 2D Euler equations on a sphere constitute a fundamental model in hydrodynamics. The long-time behaviour of solutions is largely unknown; statistical mechanics predicts a steady vorticity configuration, but detailed numerical results in the literature contradict this theory, yielding instead persistent unsteadiness. Such numerical results were obtained using artificial hyperviscosity to account for the cascade of enstrophy into smaller scales. Hyperviscosity, however, destroys the underlying geometry of the phase flow (such as conservation of Casimir functions), and therefore might affect the qualitative long-time behaviour. Here we develop an efficient numerical method for long-time simulations that preserve the geometric features of the exact flow, in particular conservation of Casimirs. Long-time simulations on a non-rotating sphere then reveal three possible outcomes for generic initial conditions: the formation of either 2, 3, or 4 coherent vortex structures. These numerical results contradict the statistical mechanics theory and show that previous numerical results, suggesting 4 coherent vortex structures as the generic behaviour, display only a special case. Through integrability theory for point vortex dynamics on the sphere we present a theoretical model which describes the mechanism by which the three observed regimes appear. We show that there is a correlation between a first integral $\gamma$ (the ratio of total angular momentum and the square root of enstrophy) and the long-time behaviour: $\gamma$ small, intermediate, and large yields most likely 4, 3, or 2 coherent vortex formations. Our findings thus suggest that the likely long-time behaviour can be predicted from the first integral $\gamma$.

A disorder-specific group cognitive behavior therapy for social anxiety disorder in adolescents: study protocol for a randomized controlled study

BackgroundSocial anxiety disorder (SAD) is a common disorder in adolescence associated with extensive distress and long-term impairment. Generic cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) programs for anxiety disorders have shown poorer outcomes for adolescents with SAD than for other anxiety disorders.AimThe aim of the present study is to investigate the efficacy of a disorder-specific group cognitive behavior therapy (G-CBT) program for youth SAD, the Cool Kids Anxiety Program - Social Enhanced (CK-E), developed at Macquarie University, Sidney, Australia.MethodsThe study is a randomized controlled trial comparing CK-E to a generic G-CBT program for anxiety disorders. Approximately 96 adolescents aged 12 to 17 years are included with data points at pre- and post-treatment, and at 3 months and 1 year follow-ups.DiscussionThe current study will provide more information about the efficacy of diagnosis-specific G-CBT treatment for youth SAD.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03986827. Registered on 14 June 2019.

Reminiscent capillarity in subnanopores

Fluids in large and small pores display different behaviors with a crossover described through the concept of critical capillarity. Here we report experimental and simulation data for various siliceous zeolites and adsorbates that show unexpected reminiscent capillarity for such nanoporous materials. For pore sizes D exceeding the fluid molecule size, the filling pressures p are found to follow a generic behavior kBT ln p ∼ γ/ρD where γ and ρ are the fluid surface tension and density. This result is rationalized by showing that the filling chemical potential for such ultra-small pores is the sum of an adsorption energy and a capillary energy that remains meaningful even for severe confinements. A phenomenological model, based on Derjaguin’s formalism to bridge macroscopic and molecular theories for condensation in porous materials, is developed to account for the behavior of fluids confined down to the molecular scale from simple parameters.

A First Look at Lattice Effects in Coarse-Grained Protein Models via Wang-Landau Simulations

In order to study the effects of lattice constraints on coarse-grained protein models, we apply Wang-Landau sampling to the continuum analogue of the hydrophobic-polar (HP) lattice protein model. The continuum version is inspired by the AB polymer model but incorporates potentials chosen specifically to mimic those of the lattice case. Because of their relative simplicity, both the lattice and continuum models offer significant computational advantage over all-atom simulations, but the impact of the additional lattice constraint on generic folding behavior is unknown. In this preliminary study, we compare and contrast thermodynamics during the folding process of the continuum model to the original HP lattice protein model for sequences mapped from Crambin, a 46 amino acid plant protein. We find that the folding process for both of these coarse-grained models is quite similar, with major structural transitions occurring at almost exactly the same temperatures.

Construction and stability of type I blowup solutions for non-variational semilinear parabolic systems

AbstractIn this note, we consider the semilinear heat system\partial_{t}u=\Delta u+f(v),\quad\partial_{t}v=\mu\Delta v+g(u),\quad\mu&gt;0,where the nonlinearity has no gradient structure taking of the particular formf(v)=v\lvert v\rvert^{p-1}\quad\text{and}\quad g(u)=u\lvert u\rvert^{q-1}\quad% \text{with }p,q&gt;1,orf(v)=e^{pv}\quad\text{and}\quad g(u)=e^{qu}\quad\text{with }p,q&gt;0.We exhibit type I blowup solutions for this system and give a precise description of its blowup profiles. The method relies on a two-step procedure: the reduction of the problem to a finite-dimensional one via a spectral analysis, and then solving the finite-dimensional problem by a classical topological argument based on index theory. As a consequence of our technique, the constructed solutions are stable under a small perturbation of initial data. The results and the main arguments presented in this note can be found in our papers [T.-E. Ghoul, V. T. Nguyen and H. Zaag, Construction and stability of blowup solutions for a non-variational semilinear parabolic system, Ann. Inst. H. Poincaré Anal. Non Linéaire 35 2018, 6, 1577–1630] and [M. A. Herrero and J. J. L. Velázquez, Generic behaviour of one-dimensional blow up patterns, Ann. Sc. Norm. Super. Pisa Cl. Sci. (4) 19 1992, 3, 381–450].

Progress in SolidOxide Technologies: From Fundamentals to Systems – EFCF2018

AbstractNo abstract.

Refined scales of weak-mixing dynamical systems: typical behaviour

We study sets of measure-preserving transformations on Lebesgue spaces with continuous measures taking into account extreme scales of variations of weak mixing. It is shown that the generic dynamical behaviour depends on subsequences of time going to infinity. We also present corresponding generic sets of (probability) invariant measures with respect to topological shifts over finite alphabets and Axiom A diffeomorphisms over topologically mixing basic sets.

Insight Into the Drift Motion of a Bouncing Asymmetric Dimer

The drift motion of an asymmetric dimer bouncing on a harmonically vibrating plate is addressed in this paper. The direction of this motion is determined by the behavior of the dimer during a double impact. Namely, if the system parameters allow a sticking impact as a generic behavior, the dimer drifts in one direction, whereas if all impacts end in a reverse slip, the dimer drifts in the opposite direction. By this mechanism, the bifurcation coefficients dominating the drift direction are obtained and discussed. But strictly speaking, the drift direction does not change unless the reverse slipping displacement after a double impact is big enough. Thus, numerical simulations are carried out to find a more accurate threshold and check the rationality of theoretical results.