Symmetry energy of strange quark matter and tidal deformability of strange quark stars

Research performed during the past decade revealed an important role of symmetry energy in the equation of state(EOS)of strange quark matter(SQM).By introducing an isospin-dependent term into the quark mass scaling,the SQM stability window in the equivparticle model was studied.The results show that a sufficiently strong isospin dependence C_(I)can significantly widen the SQM region of absolute stability,yielding results that simultaneously satisfy the constraints of the astrophysical observations of PSR J1614-2230 with 1.928±0.017 Mand tidal deformability 70≤Λ_(1:4)≤580 measured in the event GW170817.With increasing C_(I),the difference between the u,d,and s quark fractions for the SQM inβ-equilibrium becomes inconspicuous for C>0,leading to small isospin asymmetryδ,and further resulting in similar EOS and structures of strange quark stars(SQSs).Moreover,unlike the behavior of the maximum mass of ud QSs,which varies with C_(I)depending on the sign of the parameter C,the maximum mass of the SQSs decreases monotonously with increasing CI.

Yunnanilus chuanheensis, a new loach species(Cypriniformes: Nemacheilidae) from the upper Lixianjiang River in Yunnan, China

DEAR EDITOR,A new loach species(Cypriniformes: Nemacheilidae:Yunnanilini), Yunnanilus chuanheensis sp. nov., was caught from Chuanhe in the upper reaches of the Lixianjiang River, a tributary of the Red River in Nanjian County, Yunnan Province, China. This species is a member of the traditional Y.pleurotaenia species group based on the presence of a lateral line and cephalic lateral-line canals.

What is the destiny of a threatened fish, Ptychobarbus chungtienensis, now that non-native weatherfishes have been introduced into Bita Lake, Shangri-La？

Biological invasion is a pervasive negative force of global change, especially in its effects on sensitive freshwater ecosystems. Even protected areas are usually not immune. Ptychobarbus chungtienensis is a threatened freshwater fish now almost confined to Bita Lake, in the Shangri-La region of Yunnan province, China. Its existence is threatened by the introduction of non-native weatherfishes （Misgumus anguillicaudatus and Paramisgurnus dabryanus） by an unusual method known as ＇prayer animal release＇ Periodic surveys revealed the ratio of invasive weatherfishes to P. chungtienensis has been increasing since the former species was first recorded from the lake in August, 2009. Ptychobarbus chungtienensis shows low genetic diversity in the relict Lake Bita population. Weatherfishes, however, have highly successful survival strategies. The degree of dietary overlap between the species is alarming and perhaps critical if food is found to be a limiting factor.

Nonextensive effects on QCD chiral phase diagram and baryon-number fluctuations within Polyakov-Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model

In this paper,a version of the Polyakov-Nambu-Jona-Lasinio(PNJL)model based on nonextensive statistical mechanics is presented.This new statistics summarizes all possible factors that violate the assumptions of the Boltzmann-Gibbs(BG)statistics to a dimensionless nonextensivity parameter q.Thus,when q tends to 1,it returns to the BG case.Within the nonextensive PNJL model,we found that as q increases,the location of the critical end point(CEP)exhibits non-monotonic behavior.That is,for q<1.15,CEP moves in the direction of lower temperature and larger quark chemical potential.However,for q>1.15,CEP turns to move in the direction of lower temperature and lower quark chemical potential.In addition,we studied the moments of the net-baryon number distribution,that is,variance(σ^(2)),skewness(S),and kurtosis(k).Our results are generally consistent with the latest experimental data reported,especially for√SNN>19.6 GeV,when q is set to 1.07.

QCD chiral phase transition and critical exponents within the nonextensive Polyakov-Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model

We present a nonextensive version of the Polyakov-Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model that is based on nonextentive statistical mechanics.This new statistics model is characterized by a dimensionless nonextensivity parameter q that accounts for all possible effects violating the assumptions of the Boltzmann-Gibbs(BG) statistics(for q→ 1,it returns to the BG case).Based on the nonextensive Polyakov-Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model,we discussed the influence of nonextensive effects on the curvature of the phase diagram at μ=0 and especially on the location of the critical end point(CEP).A new and interesting phenomenon we found is that with an increase in q,the CEP position initially shifts toward the direction of larger chemical potential and lower temperature.However,when q is larger than a critical value qc,the CEP position moves in the opposite direction.In other words,as q increases,the CEP position moves in the direction of smaller chemical potential and higher temperature.This U-turn phenomenon may be important for the search of CEP in relativistic heavy-ion collisions,in which the validity of BG statistics is questionable due to strong fluctuations and long-range correlations,and nonextensive effects begin to manifest themselves.In addition,we calculated the influence of the nonextensive effects on the critical exponents and found that they remain almost constant with q.

Chiral phase transition from the Dyson-Schwinger equations in a finite spherical volume

Within the framework of the Dyson-Schwinger equations and by means of Multiple Reflection Expansion,we study the effect of finite volume on the chiral phase transition in a sphere, and discuss in particular its influence on the possible location of the critical end point(CEP). According to our calculations, when we take a sphere instead of a cube, the influence of finite volume on phase transition is not as significant as previously calculated. For instance,as the radius of the spherical volume decreases from infinite to 2 fm, the critical temperature T c, at zero chemical potential and finite temperature, drops only slightly. At finite chemical potential and finite temperature, the location of CEP shifts towards smaller temperature and higher chemical potential, but the amplitude of the variation does not exceed 20%. As a result, we find that not only the size of the volume but also its shape have a considerable impact on the phase transition.

Clarifying effect of welding conditions on microstructure and mechanical properties of friction stir spot-welded DH590 automotive high-strength steel plates

Friction stir spot welding was successfully applied to the 1.2-mm-thick DH590 dual-phase steel plates by using a polycrystalline cubic boron nitride rotating tool.During welding,the rotation speed ranged from 600 to 1000 r/min and the penetration depth ranged from 0.1 to 0.3 mm.In the spot joints,the size of the stir zone increased with the increase in rotation speed as well as the penetration depth of the tool.Comparing with the banded ferrite and martensite structure of the base metal,a mixed microstructure of ferrite and tempered martensite,refined bainite structure and coarse martensite structure were found in the heat-affected zone,thermomechanically affected zone and stir zone of the joints,respectively.Two kinds of interfacial shapes were formed between the upper and lower steel plates,and the formation of the bonded interface was dominated mainly by the penetration depth of the rotating tool rather than the rotation speed.It was revealed that the joints with straight interfaces showed higher shear tensile loads comparing with those with hook-like interfaces.Shear tensile tests showed that the maximum shear tensile load reached about 15.56 kN when the rotation speed and penetration depth were set as 800 r/min and 0.3 mm,respectively.The specimen was fractured through plug failure mode with a total elongation of about 5.6 mm.

Nonextensive effects on QCD chiral phase transition with a chiral chemical potential

In this study,we investigate the QCD chiral phase diagram in the presence of a chiral chemical potential μ based on nonextensive statistical mechanics.A feature of this new statistic is a dimensionless nonextensivity parameter q,which summarizes all possible effects violating the assumptions of Boltzmann-Gibbs(BG)statistics(when q→1,it returns to the BG case).Within the nonextensive Polyakov-Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model,we find that as μ increases,the critical end point(CEP)in the T-μ plane continues to CEP_(5)in the T-μ plane,and nonextensive effects have a significant impact on the evolution from the CEP to CEP_(5).Generally,with an increase in q,both the CEP and CEP_(5)move in the direction of a lower temperature T and larger chemical potentialμ(μ_(5)).In addition,we find that chiral charge density ngenerally increases with T,μ,μ_(5),and q.Our study may provide useful hints about lattice QCD and relativistic heavy-ion collision experiments.