Moderate Excitation Research Articles

Shaking table test on seismic response of a planar irregular structure with differential settlements of foundation

The differential settlement of the foundation not only causes the degradation of the static performance of structures, but also affects the seismic performance. To investigate the seismic response of a planar irregular steel frame structure under differential settlement of foundation, we proposed a method to mimic multi-point differential settlement of foundations of scaled models steel frame structures. Four columns in the settlement location are adjusted downward to the set settlement distance, and then, the columns are fixed with nuts to achieve the effect of settlement in one location. Then a shaking table test was carried out on a scaled-down building model to analyze the dynamic responses of the structure. Eight seismic waves and three ground shaking intensities were set to represent frequent, moderate, and rare earthquakes. The seismic response, location changes, and torsion of the irregular planar structure were analyzed via shaking table tests under different seismic waves with frequent, moderate, and rare earthquake excitation, as well as changing parameters such as settlement location and settlement depth. The results show that compared with other locations, when a differential settlement of the foundation occurs in the corner location of the structure plane, the structure is more likely to be torsional and more prone to seismic damage. For the same seismic intensity and settlement depth, the settlement location at the corner of the structure face exhibited the greatest seismic response to the structure. In contrast, the settlement located near the center of the structure face had the least effect on the seismic response of the structure. The proposed method enables a fast and efficient way to understand the dynamic response of the structures with differential settlement of foundations, which will further benefit the development and optimization of the seismic strengthening scheme for these structures.

Power characteristics of vibration-based piezoelectric energy harvesters: the effect of piezoelectric material nonlinearity

Piezoelectric energy harvesting has received tremendous interests in the past two decades as a viable solution to self-powered electronics and devices. Recently, significant emphasis has been given to nonlinear energy harvesters driven by the desire for broadband, high-performance energy harvesting. Numerous efforts have been devoted to the understanding and modeling of the electromechanical coupling and the effect of nonlinearities introduced by mechanical and electrical aspects of the system. However, very few works in the literature considered the effect of piezoelectric material nonlinearity on the system power performance. Nevertheless, it has been found that piezoelectric nonlinearity is significant even at low to moderate excitation level. This paper is motivated to study the power behavior of piezoelectric energy harvesters with piezoelectric nonlinearity, most importantly, the power limit and electromechanical coupling. For this purpose, an approximate model is developed from the nonlinear model in the literature to derive the closed-form expressions of important power characteristics. Analytical analysis shows that the effect of piezoelectric material nonlinearity results in a nonlinear damping term and a nonlinear stiffness term in the approximate model. The approximate solutions of optimal load resistance, maximum power, power limit, and critical electromechanical coupling are obtained and validated by numerical simulations first. The induced nonlinear damping reduces the power limit of the system compared to its linear counterpart. Interestingly, a harvester that exhibits strong electromechanical coupling under small excitation could become weakly coupled under large excitation. The analytical analysis and numerical results are validated by experiments.

Shake Table Testing of Masonry Infilled Chuandou Timber Frame Strengthened Using a Simple, Inexpensive Approach

ABSTRACT The seismic performance of traditional Chuandou timber frame structures having masonry infill is investigated through one-half scale shake table testing. First, the vulnerability of infilled Chuandou frames to out-of-plane collapse of the masonry infill is demonstrated. In view of this weakness, a novel low-cost seismic strengthened method based on flat steel strips and clasp nails was proposed and demonstrated. Results showed that masonry infilled Chuandou timber frames exhibit the dynamic characteristics of masonry structures when subject to low and moderate seismic excitation, and the dynamic characteristics of timber frames at high seismic excitation. The proposed strengthening method was demonstrated to improve the seismic performance of the infilled timber frame. Despite lateral drifts exceeding the recommended maximum value of 1/30, the timber frames themselves exhibited excellent performance with little evidence of distress to the vulnerable mortise-and-tenon connections.

High-spin states of $$^{204}$$At: isomeric states and shears band structure

High-spin states of neutron-deficient trans-lead nucleus \(^{204}\hbox {At}\) were populated up to \(\sim 8\,\mathrm{MeV}\) excitation through the \(^{12}\hbox {C} + ^{197}\hbox {Au}\) fusion evaporation reaction. Decay of the associated levels through prompt and delayed \(\gamma \)-ray emissions were studied to evaluate the underlying nuclear structure. The level scheme, which was partly known, was extended further. An isomeric \(16^+\) level with observed mean lifetime \(\tau =52 \pm 5\, \mathrm{ns}\), was established from our measurements. Attempts were made to interpret the excited states based on multi quasiparticle and hole structures involving \(2f_{5/2}\), \(1h_{9/2}\), and \(1i_{13/2}\) shell model states, along with moderate core excitation. Magnetic dipole band structure over the spin parity range: \(16^+\)–\(23^+\) was confirmed and evaluated in more detail, including the missing cross-over E2 transitions. Band-crossing along the shears band was observed and compared with the evidence of similar phenomena in the neighbouring \(^{202}\hbox {Bi}\), \(^{205}\hbox {Rn}\) isotones and the \(^{203}\hbox {At}\) isotope. Based on comparison of the measured B(M1)/B(E2) values for transitions along the band with the semiclassical model based estimates, the shears band of \(^{204}\hbox {At}\) was established along with the level scheme.

Model updating-based dynamic collapse analysis of a RC cable-stayed bridge under earthquakes

This study proposes a general framework for progressive seismic collapse analysis of reinforced concrete (RC) bridges and it begins with an introduction of the progressive seismic collapse framework, which is mainly composed of five procedures. Subsequently, a 1:12 scale RC cable-stayed bridge together with the measurement system are presented, and the bridge model is subjected to a series of shake table tests. A conventional nonlinear finite element (FE) model, representing the undamaged condition of the cable-stayed bridge, is established, and the FE model is then nonlinearly updated based on the measured data from the measurement system when the bridge model is under small and moderate shake table excitations. The reliability of the updating process is validated through comparisons against another independent group of the measured data during the same moderate excitation. A more destructive ground motion is finally applied to the damaged FE model, where the progressive seismic collapse responses are obtained. The simulated seismic collapse responses based on the nonlinearly updated FE model give a good agreement with the measured data from the shake table tests employing the same destructive excitation, indicating that the model updating strategy proposed in this paper is efficient and reliable.

Relative habitability of exoplanet systems with two giant planets

ABSTRACT The architecture of a planetary system can influence the habitability of a planet via orbital effects, particularly in the areas of stability and eccentricity. Some of these effects are readily apparent, particularly when they occur on short time-scales that are easily numerically calculable. However, the appearance and evolution of life can take place on gigayear time-scales, long enough that secular effects become important. These effects are difficult to investigate, as a direct integration requires significant computational time. In this paper, we apply a semi-analytic framework in conjunction with N-body integrations and predictive techniques to determine the relative habitability for an Earth-like planet in a system with two giant companions over a multidimensional parameter space. Relative habitability quantifies the integrated habitability probability compared to a system containing only a single Earth-like planet. We find trends with mass, eccentricity, location, spacing, inclination, and alignment of the giant planets, including configurations where the system is more habitable due to the giant planets. As long as the system remains stable, a moderate eccentricity excitation of the terrestrial planet can be beneficial by increasing the outer boundary of the habitable zone through higher mean irradiance. In our simulations, the median (±1σ) habitable planet has an eccentricity of $0.11^{+0.16}_{-0.08}$, though it started circular. Low-mass, widely separated, and moderately eccentric perturbing giants can accomplish this, an ‘ultra-habitable’ configuration of companions.

Excited state lifetime modulation in semiconductor nanocrystals for super-resolution imaging

We report on proof of principle measurements of a concept for a super-resolution imaging method that is based on excitation field density-dependent lifetime modulation of semiconductor nanocrystals. The prerequisite of the technique is access to semiconductor nanocrystals with emission lifetimes that depend on the excitation intensity. Experimentally, the method requires a confocal microscope with fluorescence-lifetime measurement capability that makes it easily accessible to a broad optical imaging community. We demonstrate with single particle imaging that the method allows one to achieve a spatial resolution of the order of several tens of nanometers at moderate fluorescence excitation intensity.

Comparison of Sedative Effects of Alfaxalone-Ketamine and Alfaxalone-Midazolam Administered Intramuscularly in Chickens.

The objective of this study was to compare the sedative effects of intramuscular alfaxalone combined with either ketamine or midazolam in chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus). A prospective, randomized blinded crossover study design with a 7-day washout period was used. Nine adult layer hens received alfaxalone 15 mg/kg with ketamine 5 mg/kg IM (treatment AK) or alfaxalone 15 mg/kg with midazolam 1 mg/kg IM (treatment AM). Time to lateral recumbency, time to loss of righting reflex, induction quality, duration of loss of righting reflex, time to sternal recumbency or vigorous response to stimulation, and time to standing were recorded. Muscle tone, response to noxious stimulation, heart rate, respiratory rate, and oxygen saturation were monitored once the righting reflex was absent. Induction and recovery times were not different between treatments. Lateral recumbency was induced in 8 of 9 birds receiving AK compared to 6 of 9 birds receiving AM. Righting reflex was absent in 7 of 9 and 5 of 9 chickens administered AK and AM, respectively. Median time to loss of righting reflex for AK and AM were 5.5 (4.3-9.3) minutes and 9.1 (4.8-15.0) minutes, respectively (P = .88). Median duration of loss of righting reflex was 21.6 (16.0-36.9) minutes for AK and 21.1 (11.9-26.4) minutes for AM (P = .38). Alfaxalone-ketamine resulted in moderate excitation during induction. Further investigations are warranted to investigate the effects of alfaxalone and midazolam or ketamine at different doses.

Nonlinear Multimodal Model for Tuned Sloshing Dampers With Nonflat Bottoms

Abstract A third-order nonlinear multimodal model is developed for tanks with nonflat bottoms. A six-node finite element model is used to determine the mode shapes of the velocity potential and the associated natural sloshing frequencies. Using this modal information, equations of motion are developed that accommodate the nonlinear coupling among the first three sloshing modes. Damping arising from screens is incorporated into the model using the principle of virtual work. The equations of motion are ordinary differential equations that are solved using the Runge–Kutta–Gill numerical time-stepping method. The model is evaluated with an existing third-order nonlinear multimodal model for a flat-bottom tank and is found to be in excellent agreement. Demonstrative simulations are conducted for tanks with sloped-, boxed-, and ramped-bottoms. The resulting sloshing forces and wave heights at the tank end wall are calculated and presented using time series plots and frequency response plots. The excitation of higher-order sloshing modes through modal coupling results in larger wave heights, and shallower wave troughs. The sloshing forces are less impacted by the responses of higher modes. Secondary resonances are clearly visible in several frequency response plots at frequencies that correspond to the natural sloshing frequency of a higher-order mode divided by an integer. The model is applicable to tanks that are of intermediate water depth with moderate excitation amplitudes, where the response of the second- and third-order sloshing modes are less than the fundamental mode.

Improving seismic performance of reinforced concrete structures by using ferrous based shape memory alloys

Improving design of new buildings and retrofitting existing build, to resist the action of earthquakes, constitute an issue of primary importance. Among the emerging techniques that can be used for this purpose, reinforcing with ferrous based shape memory alloys has given promising results. These materials are cost-effective; they have excellent recentering capabilities, high damping properties and elevated resistance to corrosion. The potential of using these reinforcements when placed at the extremities of structural members of the building was investigated in this work. A comparative study was performed between this variant and the reference case where conventional steel rebars are employed. This was conducted in the case of a simple reinforced concrete frame having a symmetric configuration. The comparison has targeted moderate and strong seismic excitation. The studied structure was modeled by using SeismoStruct software to perform both pushover analysis and full nonlinear time history analysis. The obtained results have indicated that the use of shape memory alloys yields lesser demand in terms of base shear and support moment, while reducing residual deformations thanks to the recentering property of these materials.

Transformation from Self-Focusing to Self-Defocusing of Silver Nanoparticles.

The nonlinear refraction of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in n-hexane was studied by using the closed-aperture Z-scan technique with a 532 nm nanosecond laser. It was found that, the nonlinear refraction of AgNPs shows the coexistence and transformation from self-focusing to self-defocusing. Specifically, self-focusing occurs at low excitation intensity, self-defocusing occurs at high excitation intensity, and coexistence of self-focusing and self-defocusing occurs at relatively moderate excitation intensity. The experimental results were analysed and discussed in terms of third-order and fifth-order nonlinear refractive effect. Specifically, the self-focusing is caused by the positive third-order nonlinear refraction, the self-defocusing is induced by the negative fifth-order nonlinear refraction, and the transformation from the self-focusing to self-defocusing at medium excitation intensity is caused by the competition of third-order and fifth-order nonlinear refraction. Finally, the third-order refractive index and fifth-order refractive index were obtained.

Photodissociation Dynamics of H2O via the Ẽ' (1B2) Electronic State.

Photodissociation dynamics of H2O via the Ẽ'1B2 state were studied using the high-resolution H atom photofragment translational spectroscopy method, in combination with the tunable vacuum ultraviolet free electron laser (VUV FEL). The measured translational energy spectra allow us to determine the respective quantum state population distributions for the nascent OH(X2Π) and OH(A2Σ+) photofragments. Analyses of the quantum state population distributions show both the ground and electronically excited OH fragments to be formed with moderate vibrational excitation but with highly rotational excitation. Unlike the dissociation via the lower-lying electronic states, where OH(X) is the major fragment, the OH(A) products are predominant via the Ẽ' state. These products are mainly ascribed to a fast dissociation on the B̃1A1 state surface after nonadiabatic transitions from the initial excited Ẽ' state to the B̃ state. Meanwhile, another dissociation pathway from the Ẽ' state to the 1B2 3pb2 state, followed by coupling to the 1A2 3pb2 state, is also observed, which yields the OH(X) + H and O(3P) + 2H products.

Super-resolution vibrational microscopy by stimulated Raman excited fluorescence

Inspired by the revolutionary impact of super-resolution fluorescence microscopy, super-resolution Raman imaging has been long pursued because of its much higher chemical specificity than the fluorescence counterpart. However, vibrational contrasts are intrinsically less sensitive compared with fluorescence, resulting in only mild resolution enhancement beyond the diffraction limit even with strong laser excitation power. As such, it is still a great challenge to achieve biocompatible super-resolution vibrational imaging in the optical far-field. In 2019 Stimulated Raman Excited Fluorescence (SREF) was discovered as an ultrasensitive vibrational spectroscopy that combines the high chemical specificity of Raman scattering and the superb sensitivity of fluorescence detection. Herein we developed a novel super-resolution vibrational imaging method by harnessing SREF as the contrast mechanism. We first identified the undesired role of anti-Stokes fluorescence background in preventing direct adoption of super-resolution fluorescence technique. We then devised a frequency-modulation (FM) strategy to remove the broadband backgrounds and achieved high-contrast SREF imaging. Assisted by newly synthesized SREF dyes, we realized multicolor FM-SREF imaging with nanometer spectral resolution. Finally, by integrating stimulated emission depletion (STED) with background-free FM-SREF, we accomplished high-contrast super-resolution vibrational imaging with STED-FM-SREF whose spatial resolution is only determined by the signal-to-noise ratio. In our proof-of-principle demonstration, more than two times of resolution improvement is achieved in biological systems with moderate laser excitation power, which shall be further refined with optimized instrumentation and imaging probes. With its super resolution, high sensitivity, vibrational contrast, and mild laser excitation power, STED-FM-SREF microscopy is envisioned to aid a wide variety of applications.

Auger Recombination and Multiple Exciton Generation in Colloidal Two-Dimensional Perovskite Nanoplatelets: Implications for Light-Emitting Devices

Improving the understanding of multiple exciton interactions and dynamics in semiconductor nanostructures is mandatory for their successful use as photoactive materials in light convertors such as electroluminescent diodes, lasers, or single-photon sources. Here high-fluence and high-energy excitation effects are investigated in strongly confined two-dimensional (2D) lead iodide perovskite nanoplatelets (NPLs) using time-resolved photoluminescence and femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy. Nonradiative Auger recombination (AR) is the dominant pathway for multiexciton recombination. Its dynamics are found to be subquadratic with the exciton density. Indeed, because of the limited exciton wave-function delocalization length, AR is limited by exciton diffusion in the 2D plane at moderate excitation fluence and takes place in several hundreds of picoseconds, with typical recombination rates on the order of 10–2 cm2/s. At high excitation fluence leading to an average interexciton distance comparable with the exciton delocalization length, the measured “intrinsic” AR time is faster than 10 ps and independent of the NPL composition. The strong dependence of the AR rate on the interexciton distance allows us to identify the recombination resulting from multiple exciton generation, involving the reaction of “geminate biexcitons”, upon excitation at low fluence with high-energy photons.

Dynamic rocking response of “SDOF-embedded foundation” systems using shake table experiments

Nonlinearity potential of soil-foundation interface has such unknown aspects inspired by dynamic inherence of earthquake for embedded foundations. Accordingly, in this paper, a set of shake table tests in 1 g condition for three reduced-scale rocking “SDOF-foundation” systems with different foundation embedment depths was carried out through applying harmonic waves with three successive increasing levels of acceleration amplitude. Test results showed, for all specimens, rocking isolation caused reduction of transferred acceleration to the superstructure during moderate and strong excitation levels. Moreover, based on results, difference between superstructure maximum acceleration (in dynamic tests) and calculated theoretical value was limited for embedded foundations in lieu of static results. Also, the influence of successive excitations on residual rocking stiffness, fundamental period and damping ratio at time instant were explored. Finally, from a comparative point of view, it was concluded that the maximum moment experienced in dynamic test was lower than one of static experiment.

Velocity map imaging studies of the photodissociation of CS2 by two-photon excitation at around 303–315 nm

ABSTRACT Two-photon dissociation dynamics of carbon disulfide (CS2) have been studied by using the time-sliced velocity map ion imaging technique. Images of the S (1D2) and S (3P0) photoproducts formed in the CS2 photodissociation are acquired at four photolysis wavelengths from 303 nm to 315 nm. Vibrational states of the CS co-products are partially resolved and identified in the images. The CS (X1Σ+) products are highly vibrationally excited with moderate rotational excitation. The spin–orbit state-specific dissociation dynamics are also investigated by measuring the images of three S (3PJ) spin–orbit states (J=0, 1, and 2) at photolysis wavelength 303.878 nm. The branching ratios of CS (a3Φ)/CS (X1Σg +) are determined to be 0.05 ± 0.02, 0.17 ± 0.04, and 0.26 ± 0.05 for the three spin–orbit states S (3P0), S (3P1), and S (3P2) respectively, implying a strong spin–orbit coupling exists in the dissociation process. The averaged anisotropy parameters β 2>0 and β 4∼0 suggest that the CS2 molecules undergo a sequential transition 21 B 2(21Σ+)←11 B 2(1Δu)←X 1Σg + with the intermediate state 11 B 2 having a long lifetime, followed by nonadiabatic and spin–orbit couplings to other electronic states and then dissociate.

Metastable interlayer Frenkel pair defects in black phosphorus

The low formation energy of atomic vacancies in black phosphorus allows it to serve as an ideal prototypical system for exploring the dynamics of interlayer interstitial-vacancy (I-V) pairs (i.e. Frenkel defects) which account for Wigner energy release. Based on a few-layer model of black phosphorus, we conduct discrete geometry analysis and investigate the structural dynamics of intimate interlayer Frenkel pairs from first-principles calculations. We reveal a highly metastable I-V pair state driven by anisotropic dipole-like strain fields which can build strong connections between neighbouring layers. In the 2D limit (monolayer), the intimate I-V pair exhibits a relatively low formation energy of 1.54 eV and is energetically favoured over its isolated constituents by up to 1.68 eV. The barrier for annihilation of the Frenkel pair is 1.46 eV in the bilayer, which is remarkably higher than that of similar defects in graphite. The findings reported in this work suggest that there exist rich bridging pathways in black phosphorus, leading to stable dimensional reduction and structural condensation on exposure to moderate electron excitation or thermal annealing. This study paves the way for creating novel dimensional-hybrid polymorphs of phosphorus via the introduction of such metastable interlayer I-V pair defects.

Quest of shape coexistence in Zr isotopes

The mass region with A~100 and Z~40 is known to experience a sudden onset of deformation. The presence of the subshell closure $Z=40$ makes feasible to create particle-hole excitations at a moderate excitation energy and, therefore, likely intruder states could be present in the low-lying spectrum. In other words, shape coexistence is expected to be a key ingredient to understand this mass region. The aim of this work is to describe excitation energies, transition rates, radii, and two-neutron separation energies for the even-even 94-110Zr nuclei and, moreover, to obtain information about wave functions and deformation. The interacting boson model with configuration mixing will be the framework to study the even-even Zr nuclei, considering only two types of configurations: 0particle-0hole and 2p-2h excitations. On one hand, the parameters appearing in the Hamiltonian and in the E2 transition operator are fixed trough a least-squares fit to the whole available experimental information. On the other hand, once the parameters have been fixed, the calculations allow to obtain a complete set of observables for the whole even-even Zr chain of isotopes. Spectra, transition rates, radii, $\rho^2(E0)$, and two-neutron separation energies have been calculated and a good agreement with the experimental information has been obtained. Moreover, a detailed study of the wave function has been conducted and mean-field energy surfaces and deformation have been computed too. The importance of shape coexistence has been shown to correctly describe the A~100 mass area for even-even Zr nuclei. This work confirmed the rather spherical nature of the ground state of 94-98Zr and its deformed nature for 100-110Zr isotopes. The sudden onset of deformation in 100Zr is owing to the rapid lowering of a deformed (intruder) configuration which is high-lying in lighter isotopes.

Effect of excitation frequency on flow characteristics around a square cylinder with a synthetic jet positioned at front surface

The flow over a square cylinder controlled by a slot synthetic jet positioned at the front surface is investigated experimentally at different excitation frequencies. The Reynolds number based on the free-stream velocity and the side length of the square cylinder is 1000. The flow visualization was conducted using the laser-induced fluorescence technique. The velocity fields upstream and downstream of the square cylinder were measured synchronously with the two-dimensional time-resolved particle image velocimetry technique. Both the evolution of vortex structures and the characteristic frequencies of upstream and downstream flow fields are presented. The flow dynamics vary significantly with the excitation frequency at a fixed stroke length. During one excitation cycle, the synthetic jet vortex pair deflects to one side and later swings to the other side at a quite small excitation frequency of $f_{e}/f_{0}=0.6$, while it only deflects toward one side and does not turn to the other side at $f_{e}/f_{0}=1.0$. Compared with the natural case, the wake characteristics for the above two cases are not changed much by the synthetic jet adopted. At a moderate excitation frequency of $f_{e}/f_{0}=2.0$, the synthetic jet deflects upwards and downwards alternatively. The upstream flow field has a dominant frequency identical to half of the excitation frequency. Under the perturbations of the synthetic jet, two wake vortex pairs are formed per shedding cycle with a shedding frequency equal to that of the square cylinder without control. At a higher excitation frequency of $f_{e}/f_{0}=3.4$, the synthetic jet keeps deflecting to one side, and the upstream flow field is governed by the excitation frequency. The flow separation on the deflected side is suppressed effectively, and no periodic vortex shedding can be observed in the wake. Statistically, the velocity profiles also change with control. The recirculation bubble length in the wake is shortened, and the time-averaged velocity fluctuation is weakened remarkably. The control effects of the synthetic jet and the continuous jet are compared in this paper when placed at the front surface of a square cylinder.

Coupled electron and nuclear motion in strong laser fields

Electron motion in molecules can be initiated by a laser pulse and, through the induced charge migration, can, in turn, trigger a response from the nuclei. The generated electron-nuclear wave packets can quickly decohere, but also lead to recurrence of coherences. Presented here is a quantum dynamics study of ${\mathrm{H}}_{2}$ and LiH in strong fields. No separation of electronic and nuclear motion is assumed, and no precomputed potential energy surface is required. It is shown that electron and nuclear motion are strongly coupled through the laser-pulse excitation, and already moderate nuclear excitation can substantially impact the electron dynamics. Through the full quantum dynamical treatment, coherence properties of electronic and nuclear wave function can be investigated. The nuclear motion leads to decoherences while it can also introduce recurrence of coherences.