Optical conductivity of perovskite manganites

We calculate the optical conductivity sigma(omega) for doped rare-earth manganites based on the recently proposed microscopic ``two fluid'' l-b model. We study the temperature dependence of sigma(omega) for La(0.825)Sr(0.175)MnO(3), which has a metallic ground state. At low temperatures, the calculated sigma(omega) shows a ``two-peak'' structure consisting of a far-infrared coherent Drude peak and a broad mid-infrared ``polaron'' peak, as observed in experiments. Upon heating, the Drude peak rapidly loses spectral weight, and sigma(omega) crosses over to having just a single broad mid-infrared peak. The temperature dependence of the mid-infrared peak and the spectral weight transfer between the two peaks are also in agreement with experimental findings. We also study the doping dependence of sigma(omega) for the same compound. The integrated spectral weight under the Drude peak increases rapidly as the doping level is increased from an underdoped, insulating state (x = 0.1) to a highly doped, metallic state (x = 0.3), again in agreement with trends seen experimentally.

Acoplamento de técnicas espectrométricas com métodos quimiométricos de classificação e calibração multivariada em alimentos

Este trabalho de pesquisa descreve três estudos de utilização de métodos quimiométricos para a classificação e caracterização de óleos comestíveis vegetais e seus parâmetros de qualidade através das técnicas de espectrometria de absorção molecular no infravermelho médio com transformada de Fourier e de espectrometria no infravermelho próximo, e o monitoramento da qualidade e estabilidade oxidativa do iogurte usando espectrometria de fluorescência molecular. O primeiro e segundo estudos visam à classificação e caracterização de parâmetros de qualidade de óleos comestíveis vegetais utilizando espectrometria no infravermelho médio com transformada de Fourier (FT-MIR) e no infravermelho próximo (NIR). O algoritmo de Kennard-Stone foi usado para a seleção do conjunto de validação após análise de componentes principais (PCA). A discriminação entre os óleos de canola, girassol, milho e soja foi investigada usando SVM-DA, SIMCA e PLS-DA. A predição dos parâmetros de qualidade, índice de refração e densidade relativa dos óleos, foi investigada usando os métodos de calibração multivariada dos mínimos quadrados parciais (PLS), iPLS e SVM para os dados de FT-MIR e NIR. Vários tipos de pré-processamentos, primeira derivada, correção do sinal multiplicativo (MSC), dados centrados na média, correção do sinal ortogonal (OSC) e variação normal padrão (SNV) foram utilizados, usando a raiz quadrada do erro médio quadrático de validação cruzada (RMSECV) e de predição (RMSEP) como parâmetros de avaliação. A metodologia desenvolvida para determinação de índice de refração e densidade relativa e classificação dos óleos vegetais é rápida e direta. O terceiro estudo visa à avaliação da estabilidade oxidativa e qualidade do iogurte armazenado a 4C submetido à luz direta e mantido no escuro, usando a análise dos fatores paralelos (PARAFAC) na luminescência exibida por três fluoróforos presentes no iogurte, onde pelo menos um deles está fortemente relacionado com as condições de armazenamento. O sinal fluorescente foi identificado pelo espectro de emissão e excitação das substâncias fluorescentes puras, que foram sugeridas serem vitamina A, triptofano e riboflavina. Modelos de regressão baseados nos escores do PARAFAC para a riboflavina foram desenvolvidos usando os escores obtidos no primeiro dia como variável dependente e os escores obtidos durante o armazenamento como variável independente. Foi visível o decaimento da curva analítica com o decurso do tempo da experimentação. Portanto, o teor de riboflavina pode ser considerado um bom indicador para a estabilidade do iogurte. Assim, é possível concluir que a espectroscopia de fluorescência combinada com métodos quimiométricos é um método rápido para monitorar a estabilidade oxidativa e a qualidade do iogurte

TeO2-AlF3氟碲酸盐玻璃的性质和结构

制备了不同氟化物含量的（1-x）TeO2-AlF3（x=10％，20％，30％，按摩尔计）透明氟碲酸盐玻璃。利用差热分析和Raman光谱对玻璃的性质和结构进行研究。结果显示：当x达到30％时，氟化铝以Al-F多面体的形式进入玻璃网络结构。随着氟化物含量增加，玻璃在中红外区的透过率提高，玻璃结构单元从[Te（O，F）4]三方双锥向[Te（O，F）3]三方锥转变。Raman光谱显示：1个宽的强峰出现在750～840cm^-1，表明玻璃中Te-O键长介于0．185-0．196nm之间。

TeO2-Nb2O5-YF3玻璃系统的形成区及性质研究

制备了一种新型的氧卤碲酸盐玻璃：TeO2-Nb2O5-YF3,给出并研究了TeO2-Nb2O5-YF3三元系统的玻璃形成范围。测试了玻璃的密度、折射率、差热(DTA)、拉曼光谱、红外透射光谱以及紫外吸收光谱,通过光谱分析研究了组分含量的变化对玻璃结构及红外透射特性的影响。实验结果表明,TeO2-Nb2O5-YF3玻璃系统具有优良的成玻璃性能和热稳定性等特性,而且在2.8～3.3 μm区域内无明显的[OH]基团吸收,在中红外3～5 μm区域具有优良透射性能,因此在中红外透射方面具有潜在应用价值。

TeO2-ZnCl2-BaO-NaF玻璃系统的结构及中红外透过特性的研究

制备了一种新型的氧卤碲酸盐玻璃：（80-x）TeO2—15ZnCl2-xBaO-5NaF（x=30、20、10、0mol％），对玻璃的机械强度、热稳定性、拉曼光谱、紫外吸收光谱、红外透过光谱等特性进行了研究．通过拉曼光谱分析研究了玻璃组分含量的变化对玻璃结构和红外透过性能的影响．结果表明，随着BaO含量的增加，玻璃在红外波段透过率显著增加，并且红外透过截止波长向长波方向移动，本文对这一实验结果进行了机理性的研究探讨．同时，通过在熔制过程中通入高纯O2，以及引入适量的卤化物有效地除去玻璃中的[OH]基团，使

SiO2 对Bi2O3-B2O3 玻璃体系光学、热学及结构的 影响

Glasses with compositions 50Bi2O3-xB2O3- (50-x)SiO2(x=0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50) in mol% have been prepared by using a normal melt-quench technique. The effect of SiO2 addition on thermal stability, optical properties and structural characteristic on Bi2O3-B2O3 glass were systematically investigated by using XRD, DTA, ultraviolet-visible transmittance spectra, midinfrared transmittance spectra and Raman spectra. The experimental results demonstrate that, with the addition of SiO2, thermal stability of glass samples has been obviously improved. Once the amount of SiO2 is too much, the glass samples tend to be phase seperation which results in the decrease of thermal stability. With increasing SiO2 content, the UV cutoff edge firstly shifts to short-wave band and then shifts to long-wave band, and the transmittance of mid-infrared has been greatly improved. With substitution of SiO2 for B2O3, the [BO3] triangles and [BO4] tetrahedral groups are gradually replaced by [SiO4]. [BiO6] octahedral and [SiO4] tetrahedral units are connected forming a vibrational mode of Bi-O-Si. The physical chemistry and optical performance of Bi2O3-B2O3 glass were greatly improved by addition of SiO2.

Estudo da previsão de propriedades do biodiesel utilizando espectros de infravermelho e calibração multivariada

O biodiesel tem sido amplamente utilizado como uma fonte de energia renovável, que contribui para a diminuição de demanda por diesel mineral. Portanto, existem várias propriedades que devem ser monitoradas, a fim de produzir e distribuir biodiesel com a qualidade exigida. Neste trabalho, as propriedades físicas do biodiesel, tais como massa específica, índice de refração e ponto de entupimento de filtro a frio foram medidas e associadas a espectrometria no infravermelho próximo (NIR) e espectrometria no infravermelho médio (Mid-IR) utilizando ferramentas quimiométricas. Os métodos de regressão por mínimos quadrados parciais (PLS), regressão de mínimos quadrados parciais por intervalos (iPLS), e regressão por máquinas de vetor de suporte (SVM) com seleção de variáveis por Algoritmo Genético (GA) foram utilizadas para modelar as propriedades mencionadas. As amostras de biodiesel foram sintetizadas a partir de diferentes fontes, tais como canola, girassol, milho e soja. Amostras adicionais de biodiesel foram adquiridas de um fornecedor da região sul do Brasil. Em primeiro lugar, o pré-processamento de correção de linha de base foi usado para normalizar os dados espectrais de NIR, seguidos de outros tipos de pré-processamentos que foram aplicados, tais como centralização dos dados na média, 1 derivada e variação de padrão normal. O melhor resultado para a previsão do ponto de entupimento de filtro a frio foi utilizando os espectros de Mid-IR e o método de regressão GA-SVM, com alto coeficiente de determinação da previsão, R2Pred=0,96 e baixo valor da Raiz Quadrada do Erro Médio Quadrático da previsão, RMSEP (C)= 0,6. Para o modelo de previsão da massa específica, o melhor resultado foi obtido utilizando os espectros de Mid-IR e regressão por PLS, com R2Pred=0,98 e RMSEP (g/cm3)= 0,0002. Quanto ao modelo de previsão para o índice de refração, o melhor resultado foi obtido utilizando os espectros de Mid-IR e regressão por PLS, com excelente R2Pred=0,98 e RMSEP= 0,0001. Para esses conjuntos de dados, o PLS e o SVM demonstraram sua robustez, apresentando-se como ferramentas úteis para a previsão das propriedades do biodiesel estudadas

Assessing the potential of VEGETATION sensor data for mapping snow and ice cover: a Normalized Difference Snow and Ice Index

The VEGETATION (VGT) sensor in SPOT 4 has four spectral bands that are equivalent to Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) bands (blue, red, near-infrared and mid-infrared spectral bands) and provides daily images of the global land surface at a 1-km spatial resolution. We propose a new index for identifying and mapping of snow ice cover, namely the Normalized Difference Snow/Ice Index (NDSII), which uses reflectance values of red and mid-infrared spectral bands of Landsat TM and VGT. For Landsat TM data, NDSII is calculated as NDSIITM =(TM3 -TM5)/(TM3 +TM5); for VGT data, NDSII is calculated as NDSIIVGT =(B2- MIR)/(B2 + MIR). As a case study we used a Landsat TM image that covers the eastern part of the Qilian mountain range in the Qinghai-Xizang (Tibetan) plateau of China. NDSIITM gave similar estimates of the area and spatial distribution of snow/ice cover to the Normalized Difference Snow Index (NDSI=(TM2-TM5)/(TM2+TM5)) which has been proposed by Hall et al. The results indicated that the VGT sensor might have the potential for operational monitoring and mapping of snow/ice cover from regional to global scales, when using NDSIIVGT.

SN 2008S: an electron-capture SN from a super-AGB progenitor?

We present comprehensive photometric and spectroscopic observations of the faint transient SN 2008S discovered in the nearby galaxy NGC 6946. SN 2008S exhibited slow photometric evolution and almost no spectral variability during the first nine months, implying a long photon diffusion time and a high-density circumstellar medium. Its bolometric luminosity (similar or equal to 10(41) erg s(-1) at peak) is low with respect to most core-collapse supernovae but is comparable to the faintest Type II-P events. Our quasi-bolometric light curve extends to 300 d and shows a tail phase decay rate consistent with that of Co-56. We propose that this is evidence for an explosion and formation of Ni-56 (0.0014 +/- 0.0003 M-circle dot). Spectra of SN 2008S show intense emission lines of H alpha, [Ca II] doublet and Ca II near-infrared (NIR) triplet, all without obvious P-Cygni absorption troughs. The large mid-infrared (MIR) flux detected shortly after explosion can be explained by a light echo from pre-existing dust. The late NIR flux excess is plausibly due to a combination of warm newly formed ejecta dust together with shock-heated dust in the circumstellar environment. We reassess the progenitor object detected previously in Spitzer archive images, supplementing this discussion with a model of the MIR spectral energy distribution. This supports the idea of a dusty, optically thick shell around SN 2008S with an inner radius of nearly 90 AU and outer radius of 450 AU, and an inferred heating source of 3000 K. The luminosity of the central star is L similar or equal to 10(4.6) L-circle dot. All the nearby progenitor dust was likely evaporated in the explosion leaving only the much older dust lying further out in the circumstellar environment. The combination of our long-term multiwavelength monitoring data and the evidence from the progenitor analysis leads us to support the scenario of a weak electron-capture supernova explosion in a super-asymptotic giant branch progenitor star (of initial mass 6-8 M-circle dot) embedded within a thick circumstellar gaseous envelope. We suggest that all of main properties of the electron-capture SN phenomenon are observed in SN 2008S and future observations may allow a definitive answer.

Dust and the Type II-Plateau Supernova 2004et

We present mid-infrared (MIR) observations of the Type II-plateau supernova (SN) 2004et, obtained with the Spitzer Space Telescope between 64 and 1406 days past explosion. Late-time optical spectra are also presented. For the period 300-795 days past explosion, we argue that the spectral energy distribution (SED) of SN 2004et comprises (1) a hot component due to emission from optically thick gas, as well as free-bound radiation; (2) a warm component due to newly formed, radioactively heated dust in the ejecta; and (3) a cold component due to an IR echo from the interstellar-medium dust of the host galaxy, NGC 6946. There may also have been a small contribution to the IR SED due to free-free emission from ionized gas in the ejecta. We reveal the first-ever spectroscopic evidence for silicate dust formed in the ejecta of a supernova. This is supported by our detection of a large, but progressively declining, mass of SiO. However, we conclude that the mass of directly detected ejecta dust grew to no more than a few times 10(-4) M-circle dot. We also provide evidence that the ejecta dust formed in comoving clumps of fixed size. We argue that, after about two years past explosion, the appearance of wide, box-shaped optical line profiles was due to the impact of the ejecta on the progenitor circumstellar medium and that the subsequent formation of a cool, dense shell was responsible for a later rise in the MIR flux. This study demonstrates the rich, multifaceted ways in which a typical core-collapse supernova and its progenitor can produce and/or interact with dust grains. The work presented here adds to the growing number of studies that do not support the contention that SNe are responsible for the large mass of observed dust in high-redshift galaxies.

Spitzer measurements of atomic and molecular abundances in the Type IIPSN 2005af

We present results based on mid-infrared (3.6-30 mm) observations with the Spitzer Space Telescope of the nearby Type IIP supernova 2005af. We report the first ever detection of the SiO molecule in a Type IIP supernova. Together with the detection of the CO fundamental, this is an exciting finding as it may signal the onset of dust condensation in the ejecta. From a wealth of fine-structure lines we provide abundance estimates for stable Ni, Ar, and Ne that, via spectral synthesis, may be used to constrain nucleosynthesis models.

Dust and the type II-Plateau supernova 2004dj

We present mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopy of a Type II-plateau supernova, SN 2004dj, obtained with the Spitzer Space Telescope, spanning 106--1393d after explosion. MIR photometry plus optical/near-IR observations are also reported. An early-time MIR excess is attributed to emission from non-silicate dust formed within a cool dense shell (CDS). Most of the CDS dust condensed between 50d and 165d, reaching a mass of $0.3x^(-5)Msun. Throughout the observations much of the longer wavelength (>10microns) part of the continuum is explained as an IR echo from interstellar dust. The MIR excess strengthened at later times. We show that this was due to thermal emission from warm, non-silicate dust formed in the ejecta. Using optical/near-IR line-profiles and the MIR continua, we show that the dust was distributed as a disk whose radius appeared to be slowly shrinking. The disk radius may correspond to a grain destruction zone caused by a reverse shock which also heated the dust. The dust-disk lay nearly face-on, had high opacities in the optical/near-IR regions, but remained optically thin in the MIR over much of the period studied. Assuming a uniform dust density, the ejecta dust mass by 996d was 0.5+/-0.1 x 10^(-4)Msun, and exceeded 10^(-4)Msun by 1393d. For a dust density rising toward the center the limit is higher. Nevertheless, this study suggests that the amount of freshly-synthesized dust in the SN 2004dj ejecta is consistent with that found from previous studies, and adds further weight to the claim that such events could not have been major contributors to the cosmic dust budget.

Chemical evolution of protoplanetary disks - the effects of viscous accretion, turbulent mixing and disk winds

We calculate the chemical evolution of protoplanetary disks considering radial viscous accretion, vertical turbulent mixing, and vertical disk winds. We study the effects on the disk chemical structure when different models for the formation of molecular hydrogen on dust grains are adopted. Our gas-phase chemistry is extracted from the UMIST Database for Astrochemistry (Rate06) to which we have added detailed gas-grain interactions. We use our chemical model results to generate synthetic near- and mid-infrared local thermodynamic equilibrium line emission spectra and compare these with recent Spitzer observations. Our results show that if H2 formation on warm grains is taken into consideration, the H2O and OH abundances in the disk surface increase significantly. We find that the radial accretion flow strongly influences the molecular abundances, with those in the cold midplane layers particularly affected. On the other hand, we show that diffusive turbulent mixing affects the disk chemistry in the warm molecular layers, influencing the line emission from the disk and subsequently improving agreement with observations. We find that NH3, CH3OH, C2H2, and sulfur-containing species are greatly enhanced by the inclusion of turbulent mixing. We demonstrate that disk winds potentially affect the disk chemistry and the resulting molecular line emission in a manner similar to that found when mixing is included.

The VLT-FLAMES Tarantula Survey I. Introduction and observational overview

The VLT-FLAMES Tarantula Survey (VFTS) is an ESO Large Programme that has obtained multi-epoch optical spectroscopy of over 800 massive stars in the 30 Doradus region of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). Here we introduce our scientific motivations and give an overview of the survey targets, including optical and near-infrared photometry and comprehensive details of the data reduction. One of the principal objectives was to detect massive binary systems via variations in their radial velocities, thus shaping the multi-epoch observing strategy. Spectral classifications are given for the massive emission-line stars observed by the survey, including the discovery of a new Wolf-Rayet star (VFTS 682, classified as WN5h), 2' to the northeast of R136. To illustrate the diversity of objects encompassed by the survey, we investigate the spectral properties of sixteen targets identified by Gruendl & Chu from Spitzer photometry as candidate young stellar objects or stars with notable mid-infrared excesses. Detailed spectral classification and quantitative analysis of the O- and B-type stars in the VFTS sample, paying particular attention to the effects of rotational mixing and binarity, will be presented in a series of future articles to address fundamental questions in both stellar and cluster evolution.

A Spitzer Space Telescope study of SN 2003gd: Still no direct evidence that core-collapse supernovae are major dust factories

We present a new, detailed analysis of late-time mid-infrared observations of the Type II-P supernova (SN) 2003gd. At about 16 months after the explosion, the mid-IR flux is consistent with emission from 4 x 10(-5) M. of newly condensed dust in the ejecta. At 22 months emission from pointlike sources close to the SN position was detected at 8 and 24 mu m. By 42 months the 24 mu m flux had faded. Considerations of luminosity and source size rule out the ejecta of SN 2003gd as the main origin of the emission at 22 months. A possible alternative explanation for the emission at this later epoch is an IR echo from preexisting circumstellar or interstellar dust. We conclude that, contrary to the claim of Sugerman and coworkers, the mid-IR emission from SN 2003gd does not support the presence of 0.02 M. of newly formed dust in the ejecta. There is, as yet, no direct evidence that core-collapse supernovae are major dust factories.