Dissolution mechanism and kinetics ofβ(Mg_(17)Al_(12))phases in AZ91 magnesium alloy

In this study,the phase transformations,crystallization kinetics and dissolution mechanism ofβphase(Mg_(17)Al_(12))in magnesium alloy AZ91 were investigated by optical microscopy,X-ray diffraction,differential scanning calorimetry and differential dilatometry.The results indicate that this AZ91 alloy undergoes a phase transformation during aging,a discontinuous precipitation of theβphase(Mg_(17)Al_(12))at 150℃at the grain boundaries and another continuous at 350℃within the grains.The activation energy of the dissolution reaction of theβphase(Mg_(17)Al_(12))under non-isothermal conditions is 116.781 kJ/mol,while it is 129.7383 kJ/mol under isothermal conditions.The Avrami coefficient,n,relevant for the dissolution kinetics of theβphase(Mg_(17)Al_(12))is 1.152 and 1.211 in the non-isothermal and isothermal conditions respectively.The numerical coefficients m and Avrami n are 0.993 and 1.152.

Formation of Natural Melanin/TiO_(2) Nanostructure Hybrids with Enhanced Optical,Thermal and Magnetic Properties as a Soft Material

The natural Melanin/TiO_(2) was synthesized by the use of ultrasonication under UV radiation.The influence of natural melanin on the structural,optical and thermal properties of TiO_(2) nanoparticles was investigated by using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy,thermogravimetric analysis and UV-Vis spectroscopy.It was observed that incorporating natural melanin on TiO_(2) nanoparticles(TiO_(2)-Mel)occurred at 2.01 eV with a low value of Urbach energy around 100 meV indicating improvement in the crystalline structure.Magnetic measurement at room temperature showed diamagnetic behavior.Furthermore,thermal results showed that TiO_(2)-Mel is stable even at temperatures up to 400℃.According to the results obtained by the thermal stability of melanin with titanium dioxide,it can be a good candidate in many applications such as solar cells and optoelectronics.

Origin of tradeoff between movement velocity and attachment duration of kinesin motor on a microtubule

Kinesin-1 motor protein is a homodimer containing two identical motor domains connected by a common long coiledcoil stalk via two flexible neck linkers. The motor can step on a microtubule with a velocity of about 1 μm·s-1and an attachment duration of about 1 s under physiological conditions. The available experimental data indicate a tradeoff between velocity and attachment duration under various experimental conditions, such as variation of the solution temperature,variation of the strain between the two motor domains, and so on. However, the underlying mechanism of the tradeoff is unknown. Here, the mechanism is explained by a theoretical study of the dynamics of the motor under various experimental conditions, reproducing quantitatively the available experimental data and providing additional predictions. How the various experimental conditions lead to different decreasing rates of attachment duration versus velocity is also explained.

Spectroscopy and molecule opacity investigation on excited states of SiS

The SiS molecule,which plays a significant role in space,has attracted a great deal of attention for many years.Due to complex interactions among its low-lying electronic states,precise information regarding the molecular structure of SiS is limited.To obtain accurate information about the structure of its excited states,the high-precision multireference configuration interaction(MRCI)method has been utilized.This method is used to calculate the potential energy curves(PECs)of the 18Λ–S states corresponding to the lowest dissociation limit of SiS.The core–valence correlation effect,Davidson’s correction and the scalar relativistic effect are also included to guarantee the precision of the MRCI calculation.Based on the calculated PECs,the spectroscopic constants of quasi-bound and bound electronic states are calculated and they are in accordance with previous experimental results.The transition dipole moments(TDMs)and dipole moments(DMs)are determined by the MRCI method.In addition,the abrupt variations of the DMs for the 1^(5)Σ^(+)and 2^(5)Σ^(+)states at the avoided crossing point are attributed to the variation of the electronic configuration.The opacity of SiS at a pressure of 100 atms is presented across a series of temperatures.With increasing temperature,the expanding population of excited states blurs the band boundaries.

Effect of Vacancy Defects on the Properties of CoS_(2) and FeS_(2)

In order to explore the effect of vacancy defects on the structural,electronic,magnetic and optical properties of CoS_(2) and FeS_(2),first-principles calculation method was used to investigate the alloys.The calculated results of materials without vacancy are consistent with those reported in the literatures,while the results of materials with vacancy defect were different from those of literatures due to the difference vacancy concentration.The Co vacancy defect hardly changes the half-metallic characteristic of CoS_(2).The Fe vacancy defect changes FeS_(2) from semiconductor to half-metal,and the bottom of the spin-down conduction band changes from the p orbital state of S to the d(t_(2g))orbital state of Fe,while the top of the valence band remains the d orbital d(eg)state of Fe.The half-metallic Co vacancy defects of CoS_(2) and Fe vacancy defects of FeS_(2) are expected to be used in spintronic devices.S vacancy defects make both CoS_(2) and FeS_(2) metallic.Both the Co and S vacancy defects lead to the decrease of the magnetic moment of CoS_(2),while both the Fe and S vacancy defects lead to the obvious magnetic property of FeS_(2).Vacancy defects enhance the absorption coefficient of infrared band and long band of visible light obviously,and produce obvious red shift phenomenon,which is expected to be used in photoelectric devices.

Mid-infrared Period-Luminosity Relations of Gaia DR3 Long Period Variables

Long period variable(LPV)stars are very promising distance indicators in the infrared bands.We selected asymptotic giant branch(AGB)stars in the Large and Small Magellanic Cloud(LMC and SMC)from the Gaia Data Release 3 LPV catalog,and classified them into oxygen-rich(O-rich)and carbon-rich(C-rich)AGB stars.Using the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer database,we determined the W1-and W2-band period-luminosity relations(PLRs)for each pulsation-mode sequence of AGB stars.The dispersion of the PLRs of O-rich AGB stars in sequences C'and C is relatively small,around 0.14 mag.The PLRs of LMC and SMC are consistent in each sequence.In the W2 band,the PLR of large-amplitude C-rich AGB stars is steeper than that of small-amplitude C-rich AGB stars,due to their more circumstellar dust.By two methods,we find that some PLR sequences of O-rich AGB stars in the LMC are dependent on metallicity.The coefficients of the metallicity effect areβ=-0.533±0.213 mag dex~1andβ=-0.767±0.158 mag dex~1for sequence C in W1 and W2 bands,respectively.The significance of the metallicity effect in W1 band for the four sequences is 2.2-3.5σ.Both of these imply that distance measurements using O-rich Mira may need to take the metallicity effect into account.

Quantification of Silicon (SI) and Silicon Dioxide (SiO2) from the Nafud Desert-Al-Qassim Region, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Using XRD Analysis

This research was conducted in the Qassim region, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The goal of this research is to determine the percentage of silicon in the Rub al-Khali desert. Samples were collected from four cities located in the Al-Qassim Region of Saudi Arabia (Uyun Al-Jawa, Al-Fuwailiq, Al-Sulaibiya, and Al-Qawara), from three distinct depths (the earth’s surface, 50 cm, and 100 cm). The percentages of silicon in these places vary between the highest value for silicon dioxide, which is 74.47 m/m%, and 34.8 m/m% for silicon in Al-Qawara city at a depth of 100 cm. We used an x-ray fluorescence (XRF) instrument to evaluate the samples. There are high percentage of both silica and silicon in the Nafud desert. Studies have shown that these ratios can help investors benefit from an element of Silicon and silicon dioxide, so the sands of the Nafud desert is sufficient for extracting Silicon and silica in huge quantities. This may transform the Kingdom into a leading country in the global computer technology industry that depends on silicon extracted from the desert sands, the most important of which are microcomputer data processing devices.

The electrical design of a membrane antenna for a lunar-based low-frequency radio telescope

Detecting primordial fluctuations from the cosmic dark ages requires extremely large low-frequency radio telescope arrays deployed on the far side of the Moon.The antenna of such an array must be lightweight,easily storable and transportable,deployable on a large scale,durable,and capable of good electrical performance.A membrane antenna is an excellent candidate to meet these criteria.We study the design of a low-frequency membrane antenna for a lunar-based low-frequency(<30 MHz)radio telescope constructed from polyimide film widely used in aerospace applications,owing to its excellent dielectric properties and high stability as a substrate material.We first design and optimize an antenna in free space through dipole deformation and coupling principles,then simulate an antenna on the lunar surface with a simple lunar soil model,yielding an efficiency greater than 90%in the range of 12-19 MHz and greater than 10%in the range of 5-35 MHz.The antenna inherits the omni-directional radiation pattern of a simple dipole antenna in the 5-30 MHz frequency band,giving a large field of view and allowing detection of the 21 cm global signal when used alone.A demonstration prototype is constructed,and its measured electrical property is found to be consistent with simulated results using|S11|measurements.This membrane antenna can potentially fulfill the requirements of a lunar low-frequency array,establishing a solid technical foundation for future large-scale arrays for exploring the cosmic dark ages.

Does the Redshift Distribution of Swift Long GRBs Trace the Star-Formation Rate?

Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are extremely powerful explosions that have been traditionally classified into two categories: long bursts (LGRBs) with an observed duration T90 > 2 s, and short bursts (SGRBs) with an observed duration T90 T90 is the time interval during which 90% of the fluence is detected. LGRBs are believed to emanate from the core-collapse of massive stars, while SGRBs are believed to result from the merging of two compact objects, like two neutron stars. Because LGRBs are produced by the violent death of massive stars, we expect that their redshift distribution should trace the star-formation rate (SFR). The purpose of our study is to investigate the extent to which the redshift distribution of LGRBs follows and reflects the SFR. We use a sample of 370 LGRBs taken from the Swift catalog, and we investigate different models for the LGRB redshift distribution. We also carry out Monte Carlo simulations to check the consistency of our results. Our results indicate that the SFR can describe the LGRB redshift distribution well for high redshift bursts, but it needs an evolution term to fit the distribution well at low redshift.

An analytical study of vibration in functionally graded piezoelectric nanoplates: nonlocal strain gradient theory

In this paper,we analytically study vibration of functionally graded piezoelectric(FGP)nanoplates based on the nonlocal strain gradient theory.The top and bottom surfaces of the nanoplate are made of PZT-5H and PZT-4,respectively.We employ Hamilton’s principle and derive the governing differential equations.Then,we use Navier’s solution to obtain the natural frequencies of the FGP nanoplate.In the first step,we compare our results with the obtained results for the piezoelectric nanoplates in the previous studies.In the second step,we neglect the piezoelectric effect and compare our results with those obtained for the functionally graded(FG)nanoplates.Finally,the effects of the FG power index,the nonlocal parameter,the aspect ratio,and the lengthto-thickness ratio,and the nanoplate shape on natural frequencies are investigated.

Probabilistic remote preparation of a two-atom entangled state

A scheme for remotely preparing a two-atom entangled state via entanglement swapping in cavity quantum electronic dynamics （QED） with the help of separate measurements is proposed. And the effect of cavity decay is eliminated in our scheme.

The influences of dipole-dipole interaction and detuning on the sudden death of entanglement between two atoms in the Tavis-Cummings model

The influences of dipole-dipole interaction and detuning on the entanglement between two atoms with different initial tripartite entangled W-like states in the Tavis Cummings model have been investigated by means of Wootters＇ concurrence, respectively. The results show that the entanglement between the two atoms can be enhanced via appropriately tuning the strength of dipole-dipole interaction of two atoms or the detunings between atom and cavity, and the so-called sudden death effect can he weakened simultaneously.

Improving performance of optical fibre chaotic communication by dispersion compensation techniques

This paper numerically investigates the effects of dispersion on optical fibre chaotic communication, and proposes a dispersion compensation scheme to improve the performance of optical fibre chaotic communication system. The obtained results show that the transmitter-receiver synchronization progressively degrades and the signal-to-noise ratio of the recovered message deteriorates as the fibre length increases due to the dispersion accumulation. Two segments of 2.5-km dispersion-compensating fibres are symmetrically placed at both ends of a segment of 245-km nonzero dispersionshifted fibre with low dispersion in one compensation period. The numerical results show that the signal-to-noise ratio of the extracted 1 GHz sinusoidal message is improved from -2.92 dB to 15.38 dB by this dispersion compensation for the transmission distance of 500 km.

Electronic structures and magnetism of Fe nanowires on Cu（001） and Ag（O01）： A first-principles study

The electronic structures and magnetism of Fe nanowires along the [110] direction on Cu（001） and Ag（001） [Fe（nw）/Cu（001） and Fe（nw）/Ag（001）] are investigated by using the all-electron full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method in the generalized gradient approximation. It is found that the magnetic moment of Fe atom for the Fe（nw）/Cu（001） is 2.99#B, which is slightly smaller than that （3.02μB） for the Fe（nw）/Ag（001） but much larger than that （2.22μB） for the bcc iron. The great enhancement of magnetic moment in the Fe nanowires can be explained by the Fe d-band narrowing and enhancement of the spin-splitting due to a reduction in coordination number, From the calculated spin-polarized layer-projected density of states, it is found that the Fe 3d-states are strongly hybridized with the adjacent Cu 3d-states in the Fe（nw）/Cu（001）, and there exists a strong hybridization between the Fe sp-and the adjacent Ag 4d-states in the Fe（nw）/Ag（001）.

Experimental Investigation of Chaos Synchronization in DFB Diode Lasers with Unsymmetrical Scheme

We experimentally generate high dimension chaotic waveforms with smooth spectrum using a distributed feedback （DFB） semiconductor laser with unidirectional fibre ring long-cavity feedback, and implement the stable chaos synchronization when the chaotic light is injected into a solitary DFB laser diode. The synchronization quality is investigated by time-domain and frequency-domain analysis separately, The frequency-domain analysis indicates that the synchronization has higher quality in the high frequency band. The influences of the injection strength and the frequency detuning on the synchronization are measured. Our experimental results show that the robust synchronization can be maintained with the optical frequency detuning from -11GHz to 40 GHz.

Origin of diffraction fringes in two-dimensional photoelectron momentum distributions for single ionization of atoms in few-cycle intense laser pulses

We use the strong field approximation with a time window function controlling the release time of electrons to study the intra-cycle and inter-cycle interferences in few-cycle intense laser pulses impinging on He. The diffraction fringes, i.e., the vertical stripe-like structure, observed in the experimental two-dimensional photoelectron momentum distributions of Gopal et al. （2009 Phys. Rev. Lett. 103 053001） have been attributed to the interplay of the intra- and inter-cycle interferences. The pure numerical calculations by solving the time-dependent Schrrdinger equation are also performed and the results are compared with the experimental measurements directly. It has been found that the position of the stripe-like structure can be used to determine the duration of the laser pulses used in experiments.

Entanglement dynamics of two distant atoms in two detuning cavities

We investigate the entanglement dynamics via the concurrence of two distant atoms interacting off-resonantly with two cavity fields in Fock states, respectively. We find that the evolution of entanglement has sudden death and sudden birth phenomena, that with the increase of photon numbers in the two cavities, the alternate frequency of sudden death and sudden birth turns fast, and that the amplitude of concurrence oscillates regularly with oscillation frequency becoming slow when the cavity fields have the same photon numbers. While, the maximum of concurrence declines and the amplitude of concurrence oscillates irregularly when the two cavity fields have different photon numbers. In addition, we find the length of death time is dependent on the initial entanglement.

Secret sharing of quantum information via entanglement swapping

Based on entanglement swapping, a scheme for the secret sharing of an arbitrary two-particle entangled state is proposed. If the controllers do not co-operate with the eavesdropper, the eavesdropper＇s successful probability decreases with the number of the controllers increasing. In addition, only the Bell-state measurements are required to realize the secret sharing scheme.

Structure and magnetic properties of Cu-Ni alloy nanoparticles prepared by rapid microwave combustion method

Cu-Ni alloy nanoparticles were prepared by a microwave combustion method with the molar ratios of CU2＋ to Ni2＋ as 3：7, 4：6, 5：5, 6：4 and 7：3. The as-prepared samples were characterized by XRD, HR-SEM, EDX and VSM. XRD and EDX analyses suggest the formation of pure alloy powders. The average crystallite sizes were found to be in the range of 21.56-33.25 nm. HR-SEM images show the clustered/agglomerated particle-like morphology structure. VSM results reveal that for low Ni content （CusNis, Cu6Ni4 and Cu7Ni3）, the system shows paramagnetic behaviors, whereas for high Ni content （Cu3Ni7 and Cu4Ni6）, it becomes ferromagnetic.

Effect of Valence Band Tail Width on the Open Circuit Voltage of P3HT:PCBM Bulk Heterojunction Solar Cell:AMPS-1D Simulation Study

The effect of the valence band tail width on the open circuit voltage of P3HT：PCBM bulk heterojunction solar cell is investigated by using the AMPS-1D computer program. An effective medium model with exponential valence and conduction band tail states is used to simulate the photovoltaic cell. The simulation result shows that the open circuit voltage depends Iinearly on the logarithm of the generation rate and the slope depends on the width of the valence band tail. The open circuit voltage decreases with the increasing width of the band tail. The dark and light ideality factors increase with the width of the valence band tail.