Local Anisotropy Research Articles

Discrepancies in the late auditory potentials of post-anoxic patients: Watch out for focal brain lesions, a pilot retrospective study

AimsLate auditory evoked potentials, and notably mismatch negativity (MMN) and P3 responses, can be used as part of the multimodal prognostic evaluation in post-anoxic disorders of consciousness (DOC). MMN response preferentially stems from the temporal cortex and the arcuate fasciculus. Situations with discrepant evaluations, for example MMN absent but P3 present, are frequent and difficult to interpret. We hypothesize that discrepant MMN-/P3+ results could reflect a higher prevalence of lesions in MMN generating regions. This study presents correlations between neurophysiological and neuroradiological results. MethodsThis retrospective study was conducted on 38 post-anoxic DOC patients. Brain lesions were analyzed on 3T MRI both anatomically and through computation of the local arcuate fasciculus fractional anisotropy values on Diffusion Tensor Imaging sequences. Neurophysiological data and outcome were also analyzed. ResultsOur cohort included 8 MMN-/P3+, 7 MMN+/P3+, 21 MMN-/P3− and 2 MMN-/P3+ patients, assessed at a median delay of 20.5 days since cardiac arrest. Our results show that MMN-/P3+ patients tended to have fewer temporal and basal ganglia lesions than MMN-/P3− patients, and more than MMN+/P3+ patients (p-values for trend: p = 0.02 for temporal and p = 0.02 for basal ganglia lesions). There was a statistical difference across groups for mean fractional anisotropy values in the arcuate fasciculus (p = 0.008). The percentage of patients regaining consciousness at three months in MMN-/P3+ patients was higher than in MMN-/P3− patients and lower than in MMN+/P3+ patients. ConclusionThis study suggests that discrepancies in late auditory evoked potentials may be linked to focal post-anoxic brain lesions, visible on brain MRI.

Relativistic stellar modeling with perfect fluid core and anisotropic envelope fluid

We investigate the effect of density perturbations and local anisotropy on the stability of stellar matter structures in general relativity using the concept of cracking. Adopting a core-envelope model of a super-dense star, we examine the properties and stability conditions by introducing anisotropic pressure to the envelope region. Furthermore, we propose self-bound compact stars with an anisotropic envelope as a potential progenitor for starquakes. We show how the difference between sound propagation in radial and tangential directions would be used to identify potentially stable regions within a configuration. Due to an increase in the anisotropic parameter, strain energy accumulates in the envelope region and becomes a potential candidate for building-up quake like situation. This stress-energy stored in the envelope region that would be released during a starquake of a self-bound compact star is computed as a function of the magnitude of anisotropy at the core-envelope boundary. Numerical studies for spherically asymmetric compact stars indicate that the stress energy can be as high as $$10^{50}$$ erg if the tangential pressure is slightly more significant than the radial pressure. It is happened to be of the same order as the energy associated with giant $$\gamma $$ -ray bursts. Thus, the present study will be useful for the correlation studies between starquakes and GRBs.

Updating Local Anisotropies with Template Matching During Geostatistical Seismic Inversion

Iterative geostatistical seismic inversion methods are widely used to predict petro-elastic rock properties from seismic reflection data. When the model perturbation technique uses two-point geostatistics, these methods struggle to reproduce complex and nonstationary geological environments such as faults, folds and highly variable depositional systems. These limitations are often due to the use of a global variogram model to express the expected spatial continuity pattern of the property of interest. In complex geological environments a global variogram model might be unable to detect local heterogeneities and rapid variations of lithology, and result in nonrealistic geological models. Local heterogeneities might be predicted from the data using seismic attribute analysis, which can be imposed during geostatistical seismic inversion as local anisotropy models. In these approaches, the information about the local spatial continuity patterns is fixed and will guide and condition the entire inversion procedure, which can lead to errors and uncertainty in areas where this approach is not appropriate due to high local uncertainty of geological features, given the poor signal-to-noise ratio of the data or the presence of important geological features below the seismic resolution. This work proposes an iterative geostatistical seismic inversion method which iteratively updates the local spatial continuity models based on the trace-by-trace misfit between observed and predicted seismic data. The update of the local spatial continuity models aims at surpassing the limitations of the seismic inversion methods that use a fixed a priori variogram model. The method is successfully illustrated in a challenging two-dimensional synthetic data set and in a real case application. The results demonstrate the benefit of updating iteratively the imposed local spatial continuity patterns based on the data misfit. The inverted models are capable of better predicting the location of faults and reproducing the continuity of sinuous channels.

Front Cover: Static and Dynamic Magnetic Properties of a Co(II)‐Complex with N2O2 Donor Set – A Theoretical and Experimental Study (Eur. J. Inorg. Chem. 10/2023)

The Front Cover shows a Co(II) ion that is actually chelated by two monoanionic sulfur-containing Schiff base ligands. Each ligand contributes with a nitrogen and an oxygen atom to form the illustrated pseudo-tetrahedral coordination. A magnetic field prevents spin transversal by quantum tunnelling at very low temperature, since the spin transversal is connected to a Zeeman energy difference that needs to be compensated by energy from quantized atomic movements. At higher temperatures, the local anisotropy due to the strong orbital momentum mixing to the spin 3/2 of the Co(II) plays a more crucial role, and two-phonon spin-relaxation processes become more and more dominant. More information can be found in the Research Article by B. Schwarz, K. C. Mondal and co-workers.

Wavelet‐Based Wavenumber Spectral Estimate of Eddy Kinetic Energy: Idealized Quasi‐Geostrophic Flow

AbstractA wavelet‐based method is re‐introduced in an oceanographic and spectral context to estimate wavenumber spectrum and spectral flux of kinetic energy and enstrophy. We apply this to a numerical simulation of idealized, doubly periodic quasi‐geostrophic flows, that is, the flow is constrained by the Coriolis force and vertical stratification. The double periodicity allows for a straightforward Fourier analysis as the baseline method. Our wavelet spectra agree well with the canonical Fourier approach but with the additional strengths of negating the necessity for the data to be periodic and being able to extract local anisotropies in the flow. Caution is warranted, however, when computing higher‐order quantities, such as spectral flux.

Adjusting Surface Models of Cellular Structures for Making Physical Models Using FDM Technology.

In the planning stage of the fabrication process of physical models of cellular structures, a surface model of the structure needs to be adjusted to acquire the requisite properties, but errors emerge frequently at this stage. The main objective of this research was to repair or reduce the impact of deficiencies and errors before the fabrication of physical models. For this purpose, it was necessary to design models of cellular structures with different accuracy settings in PTC Creo and then compare them after the tessellation process using GOM Inspect. Subsequently, it was necessary to locate the errors occurring in the process of preparing models of cellular structures and propose an appropriate method of their repair. It was found that the Medium Accuracy setting is adequate for the fabrication of physical models of cellular structures. Subsequently, it was found that within regions where mesh models merged, duplicate surfaces emerged, and the entire model could be considered as manifesting non-manifold geometry. The manufacturability check showed that in the regions with duplicate surfaces inside the model, the toolpath creation strategy changed, causing local anisotropy within 40% of the fabricated model. A non-manifold mesh was repaired in the proposed manner of correction. A method of smoothing the model's surface was proposed, reducing the polygon mesh density and the file size. The findings and proposed methods of designing cellular models, error repair and smoothing methods of the models can be used to fabricate higher-quality physical models of cellular structures.

Short crack propagation near coherent twin boundaries in nickel-based superalloy

Short crack propagation near a coherent twin boundary in polycrystal nickel alloy is investigated with 3D crystal plasticity extended finite element modelling (CP-XFEM), utilising reconstructed experimentally characterised microstructures and crack path observations. Short 3D cracks at coherent twin boundaries are shown to grow on parallel (111) slip planes at very high rate so as to be an intrinsic part of the nucleation process. This is found to occur predominantly because of the stress states established by twin/parent constraint driven by the local elastic anisotropy. If elastic isotropy is modelled, crack growth is found to be non-planar and inclined to the twin boundary. The twin/parent twist angle is also found to influence local stress state, such that the actual 60° twist angle gives rise to the highest local stresses, preferential crack nucleation and rapid growth parallel to the twin boundary, and the deviations from 60° change the crack morphology and rate of growth.

Measurement of Microscopic Thermal Diffusivity Distribution for Ryugu Sample by Infrared Lock-in Periodic Heating Method

The thermophysical properties of small Solar System bodies are essential to be determined, on which the thermal evolution of small bodies largely depends. The carbonaceous asteroid Ryugu is one of the small undifferentiated bodies formed in the early Solar System. Hayabusa2 explored the asteroid Ryugu and returned the surface samples in 2020 for detailed on-ground investigation, including measurements of thermal properties. Because the available sample amount was limited, this study developed a novel method to measure the thermal diffusivity of small and irregularly shaped samples of about 1 mm in diameter by combining lock-in thermography and periodic heating methods on the microscale. This method enables us to measure the thermal diffusivity of both flat-plate and granular shape samples by selecting the suitable detecting direction of the temperature response. Especially, when the sample has a flat-plate shape, the anisotropic distribution of the in-plane thermal diffusivity can be evaluated. This method was applied to six Ryugu samples, and the detailed anisotropic distribution of the thermal diffusivity was obtained. The measurement results showed that the samples show local thermal anisotropy caused by cracks and voids. The average thermal diffusivity among all samples was (2.8 to 5.8) × 10−7 m2·s. Based on the density and specific heat of the samples obtained independently, the thermal effusivity was estimated to be 791 J·(s1/2·m2·K) to 1253 J·(s1/2·m2·K), which is defined as the resistance of surface temperature to the change of thermal input. The determined thermal effusivity, often called thermal inertia in planetary science, is larger than the observed value of 225 ± 45 J· (s1/2·m2·K) of the asteroid Ryugu's surface, obtained from the diurnal temperature change of the rotating asteroid by a thermal infrared camera onboard Hayabuas2. This difference is likely to be attributed to the difference in the analytical scale between the sample and the surface boulders compared with the thermal diffusion length. Consequently, it was found that the present result is more representative of the thermal diffusivity and thermal inertia of local part of individual Ryugu particles.

Light-driven biological actuators to probe the rheology of 3D microtissues

The mechanical properties of biological tissues are key to their physical integrity and function. Although external loading or biochemical treatments allow the estimation of these properties globally, it remains difficult to assess how such external stimuli compare with cell-generated contractions. Here we engineer microtissues composed of optogenetically-modified fibroblasts encapsulated within collagen. Using light to control the activity of RhoA, a major regulator of cellular contractility, we induce local contractions within microtissues, while monitoring microtissue stress and strain. We investigate the regulation of these local contractions and their spatio-temporal distribution. We demonstrate the potential of our technique for quantifying tissue elasticity and strain propagation, before examining the possibility of using light to create and map local anisotropies in mechanically heterogeneous microtissues. Altogether, our results open an avenue to guide the formation of tissues while non-destructively charting their rheology in real time, using their own constituting cells as internal actuators.

Transformation of 5I8→5F5 Ho absorption band in Ho0.75Nd0.25Fe3(BO3)4 crystal during spin-reorientation transition

Polarized absorption spectra of crystal Ho0.75Nd0.25Fe3(BO3)4 in the region of the 5I8→5F5 absorption band of Ho ions were investigated depending on temperature in the range of 5–20 K. Absorption spectra are decomposed into components of the Lorentz form. The spin-reorientation phase transition was detected at 6.9 K. The observed line position shifts during the reorientation transition were different for different lines, which indicated different local magnetic anisotropy of the Ho ion in its excited states. Significant changes in absorption line intensities as a function of temperature were observed during the reorientation transition and above. These were explained as a consequence of the change in even components of the local crystal field in excited states. These components mix the closely spaced 4f states. Distortion of local symmetry in the ground state was detected at one of the electron transitions.

Pressure and temperature effects on (TiZrTa)C medium-entropy carbide from first-principles

Multicomponent carbides have recently received considerable interest because of their remarkable material properties and vast material composition space compared to traditional carbides. However, the underlying physical mechanisms of multicomponent carbides remain poorly understood, particularly involving high pressure and temperature applications. Herein, the impacts of pressure and temperature on the stability, mechanical, and thermophysical properties of (TiZrTa)C are explored and evaluated by the density functional theory (DFT) computations. The study demonstrates that (TiZrTa)C is mechanically and thermally stable even at 100 GPa or 1500 K. (TiZrTa)C exhibits significant local lattice distortion, metallic conductivity, mechanical anisotropy, and covalent characteristics. Lattice distortion stems from the covalent bond length and angle variation caused by the random distribution of metal elements. Elevated pressure increases the elastic constants, Young's modulus, Bulk modulus, shear modulus, hardness, and fracture toughness of (TiZrTa)C. Increasing temperature leads to decrease the elastic constants and mechanical stiffness of (TiZrTa)C. The hybridization of C-p electrons and M-d electrons results in forming a pseudogap near the Fermi level and directional covalent bonds within the crystal. (TiZrTa)C has similar material properties to binary carbides, meaning that it has the potential to be used as a viable ultra-high temperature ceramic.

Modular Morphing Lattices for Large-Scale Underwater Continuum Robotic Structures.

In this study, we present a method to construct meter-scale deformable structures for underwater robotic applications by discretely assembling mechanical metamaterials. We address the challenge of scaling up nature-like deformable structures while remaining structurally efficient by combining rigid and compliant facets to form custom unit cells that assemble into lattices. The unit cells generate controlled local anisotropies that architect the global deformation of the robotic structure. The resulting flexibility allows better unsteady flow control that enables highly efficient propulsion and optimized force profile manipulations. We demonstrate the utility of this approach in two models. The first is a morphing beam snake-like robot that can generate thrust at specific anguilliform swimming parameters. The second is a morphing surface hydrofoil that, when compared with a rigid wing at the same angles of attack (AoAs), can increase the lift coefficient up to 0.6. In addition, in lower AoAs, the ratio improves by 5 times, whereas in higher angles it improves by 1.25 times. The resulting hydrodynamic performance demonstrates the potential to achieve accessible, scalable, and simple to design and assemble morphing structures for more efficient and effective future ocean exploration and exploitation.

High-coercivity heavy-rare-earth-free NdFeB sintered magnets developed by doping Ce85Al15 and grain boundary diffusion with Pr70Cu15Al15

Traditional NdFeB sintered magnets with coercivity larger than 20 kOe, called super-high (SH) level, usually contains considerable amount of high-cost heavy rare earth (HRE), such as Dy or Tb. In this work, high coercivity of 21.4 kOe, which corresponds to SH level, is achieved for HRE-free NdFeB magnet by doping with Ce85Al15 (CeAl) alloy and grain boundary diffusion (GBD) with Pr70Cu15Al15 (PrCuAl) alloy powders, where Ce/RE ratio is about 15% within the magnet. After GBD treatment with PrCuAl on Ce-containing NdFeB magnets, the formation of Pr-containing shell at 2:14:1 grain surface can increase the local magnetic anisotropy filed and therefore enhance the coercivity. Most of Cu and Al, and parts of Ce and Pr appear at grain boundary and triple junction, which can reduce the magnetization of grain boundary phase, strengthen the decoupling effect between grains and thus contribute to high coercivity. This study provides a cost-effective way to obtain high coercivity for HRE-free NdFeB sintered magnet via doping Ce85Al15 and then GBD with Pr70Cu15Al15.

Possible enhancements of collective flow anisotropy induced by uncertainty relation for fluid element

In the stochastic formulation of viscous hydrodynamics, the velocity of a fluid element fluctuates satisfying a similar relation to the quantum-mechanical uncertainty relation. Using a non-relativistic toy model, we show that the presence of a velocity fluctuation increases the local anisotropy of the momentum distributions of produced hadrons and, consequently, the collective flow parameters such as v 2 are enhanced.

Multi-Technique Experimental Benchmarking of the Local Magnetic Anisotropy of a Cobalt(II) Single-Ion Magnet.

A comprehensive understanding of the ligand field and its influence on the degeneracy and population of d-orbitals in a specific coordination environment are crucial for the rational design and enhancement of magnetic anisotropy of single-ion magnets (SIMs). Herein, we report the synthesis and comprehensive magnetic characterization of a highly anisotropic CoII SIM, [L2Co](TBA)2 (L is an N,N'-chelating oxanilido ligand), that is stable under ambient conditions. Dynamic magnetization measurements show that this SIM exhibits a large energy barrier to spin reversal U eff > 300 K and magnetic blocking up to 3.5 K, and the property is retained in a frozen solution. Low-temperature single-crystal synchrotron X-ray diffraction used to determine the experimental electron density gave access to Co d-orbital populations and a derived U eff, 261 cm-1, when the coupling between the d x 2-y 2 and dxy orbitals is taken into account, in very good agreement with ab initio calculations and superconducting quantum interference device results. Powder and single-crystal polarized neutron diffraction (PNPD, PND) have been used to quantify the magnetic anisotropy via the atomic susceptibility tensor, revealing that the easy axis of magnetization is pointing along the N-Co-N' bisectors of the N,N'-chelating ligands (3.4° offset), close to the molecular axis, in good agreement with complete active space self-consistent field/N-electron valence perturbation theory to second order ab initio calculations. This study provides benchmarking for two methods, PNPD and single-crystal PND, on the same 3d SIM, and key benchmarking for current theoretical methods to determine local magnetic anisotropy parameters.

Magnetic anisotropy of Nanostructured Fe-Ni-C Coating Produced by Electroless Deposition

The structural and magnetic properties of nanostructured Fe100-xNix-C (0<x<100) coatings produced by electroless plating with different carbohydrates as reducing agents have been investigated. The phase-structural state of the films was studied by diffraction and electron microscopy. The Ni concentration ranges of FCC and BCC phases existence in electroless deposited films were determined. The surface morphology, saturation magnetization, local magnetic anisotropy field and coercivities of films are dependent on the iron content and type of reducing agent. The correlation between coercivity Hc and the anisotropy field of the magnetic stochastic domain which were established by correlation magnetometry suggests that the magnitude of Hc is mainly determined by this anisotropy. Keywords: 3d-metal alloys, the approach to saturation magnetization law, coercivity.

Магнитная анизотропия наноструктурированных покрытий Fe-Ni-C, полученных методом химического осаждения

The structural and magnetic properties of nanostructured Fe-Ni‒C coatings produced by electroless plating with different carbohydrates as reducing agents have been investigated. The phase-structural state of the films was studied by X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy. The Ni concentration ranges of FCC and BCC phases existence in electroless deposited Fe-Ni‒C films were determined. The surface morphology, saturation magnetization, local magnetic anisotropy field and coercivities of FeNi-C films are dependent on the iron content and type of reducing agent. The correlation between coercivity and the anisotropy field of the magnetic stochastic domain which were established by correlation magnetometry suggests that the magnitude of Hc is mainly determined by this anisotropy

Toroidal moment and dynamical control in luminescent 1D and 3D terbium calixarene compounds.

A toroidal moment can be generated spontaneously in inorganic (atom-based) ferrotoroidic materials that breaks both time-reversal and space-inversion symmetries, attracting great attention in solid-state chemistry and physics. In the field of molecular magnetism, it can also be achieved in lanthanide (Ln) involved metal-organic complexes usually with a wheel-shaped topological structure. Such complexes are called single-molecule toroics (SMTs), presenting unique advantages in spin chirality qubits and magnetoelectric coupling. However, to date, the synthetic strategies of SMTs have remained elusive, and the covalently bonded three-dimensional (3D) extended SMT has not hitherto been synthesized. Here, two luminescent Tb(iii)-calixarene aggregates with architectures of 1D chain (1) and 3D network (2) both containing the square Tb4 unit have been prepared. Their SMT characteristics deriving from the toroidal arrangement of the local magnetic anisotropy axes of Tb(iii) ions in the Tb4 unit have been investigated experimentally with the support of ab initio calculations. To the best of our knowledge, 2 is the first covalently bonded 3D SMT polymer. Remarkably, solvato-switching of SMT behavior has also been achieved for the first time by desolvation and solvation processes of 1.

Плёнки FeZrN: статические и СВЧ магнитные свойства

The phase-structural state, magnetic structure parameters, static and microwave magnetic properties of Fe81 – 74Zr2 – 5N17 – 21 films prepared by reactive magnetron deposition were studied. As the Zr and N contents increase, the film structure changes from, so-called, mixed structure (grain size 3 – 6 nm of nanocrystalline α-Fe(Zr,N) + fcc nitride) to amorphous one. The film magnetic structure parameters (effective anisotropy field of stochastic domains D1/2〈Ha〉 = 11.8 ± 8 Oe and effective local anisotropy field D1/2Ha = 880 ± 700 Oe), saturation magnetization Ms (1.8 ± 0.3 T), coercive field Hc (11 ± 2 Oe), and the real permeability µ′ (80 ± 30), retaining its value at frequencies up to 3 GHz, were determined. The values of the initial permeability µ0 (70 ± 21) obtained from the hysteresis and the real permeability µ′ (80 ± 30) obtained from microwave measurements are in good agreement. The correlation between the static magnetic properties, the stochastic magnetic structure parameters and the real permeability µ′ was considered. There is no any sign on ferromagnetic resonance in the studied frequency range. However the Acher’s coefficient value (less than 0.38) for this frequency range indicates the possibility of ferromagnetic resonance at higher frequencies.

Local dimensionality and inverse persistence analysis of atmospheric turbulence in the stable boundary layer.

The dynamics across different scales in the stable atmospheric boundary layer has been investigated by means of two metrics, based on instantaneous fractal dimensions and grounded in dynamical systems theory. The wind velocity fluctuations obtained from data collected during the Cooperative Atmosphere-Surface Exchange Study-1999 experiment were analyzed to provide a local (in terms of scales) and an instantaneous (in terms of time) description of the fractal properties and predictability of the system. By analyzing the phase-space projections of the continuous turbulent, intermittent, and radiative regimes, a progressive transformation, characterized by the emergence of multiple low-dimensional clusters embedded in a high-dimensional shell and a two-lobe mirror symmetrical structure of the inverse persistence, have been found. The phase space becomes increasingly complex and anisotropic as the turbulent fluctuations become uncorrelated. The phase space is characterized by a three-dimensional structure for the continuous turbulent samples in a range of scales compatible with the inertial subrange, where the phase-space-filling turbulent fluctuations dominate the dynamics, and is low dimensional in the other regimes. Moreover, lower-dimensional structures present a stronger persistence than the higher-dimensional structures. Eventually, all samples recover a three-dimensional structure and higher persistence level at large scales, far from the inertial subrange. The two metrics obtained in the analysis can be considered as proxies for the decorrelation time and the local anisotropy in the turbulent flow.