A Grassman-Rayleigh quotient iteration for computing invariant subspaces

The classical Rayleigh Quotient Iteration (RQI) computes a 1-dimensional invariant subspace of a symmetric matrix A with cubic convergence. We propose a generalization of the RQI which computes a p-dimensional invariant subspace of A. The geometry of the algorithm on the Grassmann manifold Gr(p,n) is developed to show cubic convergence and to draw connections with recently proposed Newton algorithms on Riemannian manifolds.

Numerical modelling of chirality-Induced bi-Directional swimming of artificial flagella

Biomimetic micro-swimmers can be used for various medical applications, such as targeted drug delivery and micro-object (e.g. biological cells) manipulation, in lab-on-a-chip devices. Bacteria swim using a bundle of flagella (flexible hair-like structures) that form a rotating cork-screw of chiral shape. To mimic bacterial swimming, we employ a computational approach to design a bacterial (chirality-induced) swimmer whose chiral shape and rotational velocity can be controlled by an external magnetic field. In our model, we numerically solve the coupled governing equations that describe the system dynamics (i.e. solid mechanics, fluid dynamics and magnetostatics). We explore the swimming response as a function of the characteristic dimensionless parameters and put special emphasis on controlling the swimming direction. Our results provide fundamental physical insight on the chirality-induced propulsion, and it provides guidelines for the design of magnetic bi-directional micro-swimmers. © 2013 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

Directly and parametrically excited bi-stable vibration energy harvester for broadband operation

Despite many recent advances, the wide-spread adoption of vibrational energy harvesting has been limited by the low levels of generated output power and confined operational frequency band. Recent work by the authors on parametrically excited harvesters has demonstrated over an order of magnitude power improvement. This paper presents an investigation into the simultaneous employment of both direct and parametric resonance, as well as the incorporation of bi-stability, in an attempt to further improve the mechanical-to-electrical energy conversion efficiency by broadening the output power spectrum. Multiple direct and parametric resonant peaks from a multi-degree-of-freedom system were observed and an accumulative ∼10 Hz half-power bandwidth was recorded for the first 40 Hz. Real vibration data was also employed to analysis the rms power response effectiveness of the proposed system. © 2013 IEEE.

Mechanical and fracture properties of cement-based bi-materials after thermal cycling

This study investigates the effect of thermal cycles on the fracture properties of the cement-based bi-materials. Sixty eight cubes were exposed to a varied number of 24-hour thermal cycles ranging from 0 to 90 and subsequently were tested in a wedge splitting configuration. The mechanical and fracture properties of normal strength and high strength concretes are substantially improved after 30 thermal cycles, but less so after 90 thermal cycles both in isolation and when bonded to an ultra high-performance fibre-reinforced cement-based composite. © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Electrical properties of LiNbO3 (electrolyte)/Cu (anode) bi-layers

In this work specific film structures of Li-Nb-O/Li/Li-Nb-O are investigated by AC Impedance Spectroscopy measurements at different temperatures. This gives the opportunity to investigate properties of the material itself and, at the same time, to consider the influence of the grain boundaries on the ionic behavior of the polycrystalline Lithium Niobate. On the other hand, LiNbO3/Li/Cu multi-layers are studied as electrolyte/anode bi-layers and potential parts of "Li-free" microbatteries. The Li deficiency in the as deposited Li-Nb-O films is cured by forming a "sandwich" of Li-Nb-O/Li/Li-Nb-O, which after annealing becomes ionic conductor. The electrical behavior of an annealed film depends on two sources. The first is due to properties of the material itself and the second is based on the network of the grain boundaries. The average size of the grains is strongly influenced by the structure of the ohmic-contact/substrate. The electrical behavior of the electrolyte/anode interface of the "Li-free" structure LiNbO3/Li/Cu/Au is very similar to the impedance measurements of the single LiNbO3 single films. The whole multilayer structure, though, presents a third relaxation time which is consistent of a small resistance. This resistance is independent of temperature and it seems that is due to the metallic interface Li/Cu/Au. © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of several feeding stimulants on diet preference by juvenile gibel carp (Carassius auratus gibelio), fed diets with or without partial replacement of fish meal by meat and bone meal

The objectives of this work were to study the effects of several feeding stimulants on gibel carp fed diets with or without replacement of fish meal by meat and bone meal (MBM). The feeding stimulants tested were betaine, glycine, L-lysine, L-methionine, L-phenylalanine, and a commercial squid extract. Three inclusion levels were tested for each stimulant (0.18, 0.5%, and 1% for betaine and 0.1, 0.25 and 0.5% for the other stimulants). Two basal diets (40% crude protein) were used. one with 26% fish meal (FM), and the other with 21% fish meal and 6% MBM, Betaine at 0.1% in the fish meal group and at 0.5% in the meat and bone meal group was used in all experiments for comparison among stimulants. In the experiment on each stimulant, six tanks of fish were equally divided into two groups, one fed the FM diet, and the other fed the MBM diet. After 7 days' adaptation to the basal diet, in which the fish were fed to satiation twice a day, the fish were fed for another 7 days an equal mixture of diets containing varying levels of stimulants. Each diet contained a unique rare earth oxide as inert marker (Y2O3, Yb2O3, La2O3, Sm2O3 or Nd2O3). During the last 3 days of the experiment, faeces from each tank were collected. Preference for each diet was estimated based on the relative concentration of each marker in the faeces. Gibel carp fed the FM diet had higher intake than those fed the MBM diet, but the difference was significant only in the experiments on betaine, glycine and L-methionine. None of the feeding stimulants tested showed feeding enhancing effects in FM diets. All feeding stimulants showed feeding enhancing effects in MBM diets. and the optimum inclusion level was 0.5% for betaine, 0.1% for glycine, 0.25% for L-lysine, 0.1% for L-methionine. 0.25% For L-phenylalanine. and 0.1% for squid extract. The squid extract had the strongest stimulating effect among all the stimulants tested. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Role of Bi3+ ions for Er3+ ions efficient 1.54 mu m light emission in Er/Bi codoped SiO2 thin film prepared by sol-gel method

Er/Bi codoped SiO2 thin films were prepared by sol-gel method and spin-on technology with subsequent annealing process. The bismuth silicate crystal phase appeared at low annealing temperature while vanished as annealing temperature exceeded 1000 degrees C, characterized by X-ray diffraction, and Rutherford backscattering measurements well explained the structure change of the films, which was due to the decrease of bismuth concentration. Fine structures of the Er3+-related 1.54 mu m light emission (line width less than 7 nm) at room temperature was observed by photoluminescence (PL) measurement. The PL intensity at 1.54 gm reached maximum at 800 degrees C and decreased dramatically at 1000 degrees C. The PL dependent annealing temperature was studied and suggested a clear link with bismuth silicate phase. Excitation spectrum measurements further reveal the role of Bi3+ ions for Er3+ ions near infrared light emission. Through sol-gel method and thermal treatment, Bi3+ ions can provide a perfect environment for Er3+ ion light emission by forming Er-Bi-Si-O complex. Furthermore, energy transfer from Bi3+ ions to Er3+ ions is evidenced and found to be a more efficient way for Er3+ ions near infrared emission. This makes the Bi3+ ions doped material a promising application for future erbium-doped waveguide amplifier and infrared LED

Design and optimization of photonic crystal coupling layer for bi-color quantum well infrared photodetectors

Finite difference time domain (FDTD) method is used for the simulation and analysis of electromagnetic field in the top coupling layer of GaAs/AlGaAs quantum well infrared photodetector (QWIP). Simulation results demonstrated the coupling efficiencies and distributions of electromagnetic (EM) field in a variety of 2D photonic crystal coupling layer structures. A photonic crystal structure for bi-color-QWIP is demonstrated with high coupling efficiency for two wavelengths.

Theoretical investigation on the phase stability of Nd2Fe14B and site preference of V, Cr, Mn, Zr and Nb

The stability of the excellent permanent magnetic compound Nd2Fe14B and substitution of Fe in the compound by V, Cr, Mn, Zr and Nb are investigated by using interatomic pair potentials which are converted from lattice-inversion method. Calculation shows that the substitution always makes the cell volume larger, and the increase of the volume is almost linear with substituent concentration. The calculated cohesive energy shows that the preferential order of substitution of Fe is Nb, V, Cr, Mn, Zr. Nevertheless, all the five substituting elements should most preferentially replace Fe in the j(2)' site, which has the greatest space among all six Fe sites. (C) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

M_2RSbO_6:R~(3+)复合氧化物的合成组成结构和性能的研究(M = Ba、Sr、Ca, R = La、Gd、Y、Bi, R' = Sm、Eu、Dy、Ho、Er、Tm)

对于稀土与非稀土所组成的二元复合氧化物的研究国外已有较多的报导。但是，对于稀土和锑的复合氧化物只是近年来才开始有些研究工作。含锑与稀土的多元复合氧化物的报导就更少。本文在我们实验室张静筠等人三元复合氧化物研究的基础上，开展Mo—Sb_2O_5—R_2O_3—R'_2O_3—Bi_2O_3多元体系的研究工作，这对于我国丰产元素稀土和锑的应用以及利用Bi~(3+)的激活与敏化将是有益的。本文按Thornton等人的方法合成了Ba_2BiSbO_6，Ba_2GdSbO_6，按EγΦECEHKO等人的方法合成了M_2RSbO_6 (M = Ba、Sr、Ca, R = La Y)。并以M_2RSbO_6为基质，掺Sm~(3+)、Eu~(3+)、Dy~(3+)、Ho~(3+)、Er~(3+)、Tm~(3+)和Bi~(3+)，研究它们的化学组成，晶体结构与发光性能的关系及规律，Bi~(3+)的荧光和敏作用。同时研究了它们的磁学和热学性能。化学组成的分析结果表明，计算的含量与实验测得的含量符合较好，说明化学反应是按化学计量比进行的。通过X-射线粉沫物相分析和晶胞参数的理论计算确定M_2RSbO_6(M = Ba、Sr、R = La、Y、Gd、Bi)复合氧化物是属于立方钙钛太型化合物。空间群为Fm3m，点群为Oh。用计算机计算了Ca_2YSbO_6的晶胞参数并结合荧光光谱分析确定它属于畸变的单斜钙钛矿，空间群为P_(21)。用磁天平测量了样品M_2RSbO_6 (M = Ba、Sr、Ca; R = Gd、Y、Bi)的磁化率。除Ba_2GdSbO_6是顺磁性物质外共余的都是反磁性的物质。按所用原料Sb_2O_5计算的磁化率与测量值符合较好，表明在所研究的M_2RSbO_6化合物中锑是正五价的。用热重热差分析仪测量了样品在反应中的热性能，观察到在化合物形成的过程中所用原料Sb_2O_3大约在520 ℃左右氧化变为Sb_2O_5。除所用原料碳酸盐分解外没有挥发性的物质，这就进一步证明化学组成分析和磁化率测量的结果是正确的。光学测量的结果表明，所有的磷光体随着激活离子浓度的不同其光谱都发生规律性的变化。对于不同Eu~(3+)浓度的Ba_2YSbO_6:Eu~(3+)和Br_2YSbO_6:Eu~(3+), Bi~(3+)体系用254nm激发时均能观察到Eu~(3+)于595nm的尖峰发射。用基质和Bi~(3+)的激发峰325nm激发时，明显地看到敏化剂Bi~(3+)到Eu~(3+)的能量传递，使Eu~(3+)于595nm的发射大大增强，我们认为Bi~(3+)对Eu~(3+)的敏化作用是由于基质和Bi~(3+)的~1S。→ 3P_1的跃迁吸收了激发的能量，然后无辐射弛豫到Eu~(3+)的激发态~5D_0，产生~5D_0 → 7F_1的磁偶极跃迁。对于不同Eu~(3+)浓度的Sr_2YSbO_6:Eu~(3+)和Sr_2YSbO_6:Eu~(3+), Bi~(3+)体系用245nm激发时均能观察到Eu~(3+)于595nm的尖峰发射。用基质和Bi~(3+)的激发峰335nm激发时，观察到基质和Bi~(3+)对Eu~(3+)具有某种能量传递。敏化作用机理与上述的Ba_2YSbO_6:Eu~(3+)和Ba_2YSbO_6:Eu~(3+), Bi~(3+)体系相同。对于不同Eu~(3+)浓度的Ca_2YSbO_6:Eu~(3+)和Ca_2YSbO_6:Eu~(3+), Bi~(3+)体系用396nm激发时，均能观察到Eu~(3+)于613nm很强的尖峰发射。用基质和Bi~(3+)的激发峰313nm激发时，见到Bi~(3+)和基质对Eu~(3+)具有某种能量传递，这种敏化作用主要是由于基质和Bi~(3+)的3P_1 → ~1S_0的400nm的宽带发射和Eu~(3+)的~7F_0 → ~5L_6的396nm的吸收相匹配产生~5L_6→~5D_0→~7F_2的跃迁。通过对激发光谱和荧光光谱的分析给出了Ca_2Y_(0.96)Eu_(0.04)SbO_6的能级图，从实验上可见，Eu~(3+)的发光强烈地依赖于钙钛矿的结构，当Eu~(3+)在空间群为Fm3m 的Ba_2YSbO_6和Sr_2YSbO_6中处于Oh点对称性时，主要是~5D_0 → ~7F_1的磁偶极跃迁。当Eu~(3+)在空间群为P_(21)的单斜钙钛矿中时，主要是~5D_0 → ~7F_2的电偶极跃迁。对于不同掺杂浓度M_2YSbO_6:R~(13+)(M = Ba、Ca; R' = Sm、Dy、Ho、Er、Tm)体系，通过激发和荧光光谱的研究，合理地确定了谱项。发现基质对Sm~(3+)、Dy~(3+)、Ho~(3+)具有敏化作用。对不同Bi~(3+)浓度的Ca_2YSbO_6:Bi~(3+)，由激发和荧光光谱可见Bi~(3+)具有二个激发带，第一激发带位于240nm处相当于~1S_0 → ~1P_1的跃迁，第二激发带位于315nm处相当于~1S_0 → ~3P_1的跃迁。有一个很强的兰紫色发射位于400nm处相当于~3P_1 →~1S_0的跃迁。