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Validation of a Pseudospectral Time-Domain (PSTD) Planetary Radar Sounding Simulator With SHARAD Radar Sounding Data
No full textIn a recent study, a 2-D pseudospectral time-domain (PSTD) full-wave simulator was developed and demonstrated to be capable of efficiently solving large-scale low-frequency (e.g., HF) electromagnetic scattering problems, for example, on the application of radar sounding simulations of planetary clutter and subsurfaces. In this article, the 2-D PSTD simulator is applied to simulate a domain as large as 4000 λ (along-track) ×1666.67λ (cross-track) ×33.33λ (depth) with λ=15 m at an HF frequency of 20 MHz. To accomplish the goal, the simulator is further improved to efficiently model/simulate large cross-track slices of dielectric scenes by allowing nonuniform grid sampling in horizontal (lateral) and vertical directions, and the cross-track results are then stitched together along the track to form the simulated radargram. By combining the SHAllow RADar (SHARAD) viewing geometry and Mars Orbital Laser Altimeter (MOLA) digital elevation model (DEM), we simulate SHARAD returns at three different sites on Mars: one at the North Pole and two at Oxia Planum. At all three sites, the PSTD simulated radargrams are compared with measured SHARAD radargrams. Through power-level calibration and reference time adjustment, the PSTD simulated power estimates are further validated by comparing with real power observations from SHARAD with a 5-dB uncertainty and Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.3–0.4 (a p -value on the order of 10⁻⁹), which justifies the use of the 2-D PSTD simulator for emulating surface clutter in planetary radar sounding. This simulator is open source and can be easily modified to support radar sounding simulations in support of other planetary missions with radar sounding instruments
Cu₃(PO₄)₂/BiVO₄ photoelectrochemical sensor for sensitive and selective determination of synthetic antioxidant propyl gallate
No full textPropyl gallate (PG) as one of the most important additives has been widely used to prevent or slow the oxidation of foods in the food industry. In this work, Cu₃(PO₄)₂/BiVO₄ composite is synthesized through two hydrothermal processes. With visible light irradiation, the Cu₃(PO₄)₂/BiVO₄ composites modified PEC platform displays a superior anode photocurrent signal. The PEC sensor showed a wide linear range from 1 × 10⁻¹⁰ to 1 × 10⁻³ mol L⁻¹ with a detection limit as low as 0.05 × 10⁻¹⁰ mol L⁻¹. The Cu₃(PO₄)₂/BiVO₄ photoelectrochemical (PEC) sensor is designed and characterized by electrochemical impedance. Compared with GCE/BiVO4 and GCE/Cu₃ (PO₄)₂, the GCE/Cu₃(PO₄)₂/BiVO₄ has a higher photocurrent response. In addition, the sensor is highly selective for samples containing other antioxidants. Furthermore, the sensor can be used to detect PG in edible oil samples with satisfactory results. The recoveries of propyl gallate in edible oil ranged from 95.5 to 101.8%. The results show that Cu₃(PO₄)₂/BiVO₄ composites can be used to analyze PG in different edible oil samples, which are beneficial for food quality monitoring and reduce the risk of PG overuse in food
The Dirichlet-to-Neumann map, the boundary Laplacian, and Hörmander’s rediscovered manuscript
No full textHow close is the Dirichlet-to-Neumann (DtN) map to the square root of the corresponding boundary Laplacian? This question has been actively investigated in recent years. Somewhat surprisingly, a lot of techniques involved can be traced back to a newly rediscovered manuscript of Hörmander from the 1950s. We present Hörmander’s approach and its applications, with an emphasis on eigenvalue estimates and spectral asymptotics. In particular, we obtain results for the DtN maps on non-smooth boundaries in the Riemannian setting, the DtN operators for the Helmholtz equation and the DtN operators on differential forms
Performance of a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor sensor for laser guide star wavefront sensing
No full textThe adaptive optics systems of future Extremely Large Telescopes (ELTs) will be assisted with laser guide stars (LGS) which will be created in the sodium layer at a height of ≈90 km above the telescopes. In a Shack–Hartmann wavefront sensor, the long elongation of LGS spots on the sub-pupils far apart from the laser beam axis constraints the design of the wavefront sensor (WFS) which must be able to fully sample the elongated spots without undersampling the non-elongated spots. To fulfill these requirements, a newly released large complementary metal oxide semiconductor sensor with 1100 × 1600 pixels and 9 μm pixel pitch could be employed. Here, we report on the characterization of such a sensor in terms of noise and linearity, and we evaluate its performance for wavefront sensing based on the spot centroid variations. We then illustrate how this new detector can be integrated into a full LGS WFS for both the European Southern Observatory’s ELT and the Thirty Meter Telescope
The POKEMON Speckle Survey of Nearby M Dwarfs. I. New Discoveries
No full textM dwarfs are favorable targets for exoplanet detection with current instrumentation, but stellar companions can induce false positives and inhibit planet characterization. Knowledge of stellar companions is also critical to our understanding of how binary stars form and evolve. We have therefore conducted a survey of stellar companions around nearby M dwarfs, and here we present our new discoveries. Using the Differential Speckle Survey Instrument at the 4.3 m Lowell Discovery Telescope, and the similar NN-EXPLORE Exoplanet Stellar Speckle Imager at the 3.5 m WIYN telescope, we carried out a volume-limited survey of M-dwarf multiplicity to 15 parsecs, with a special emphasis on including the later M dwarfs that were overlooked in previous surveys. Additional brighter targets at larger distances were included for a total sample size of 1070 M dwarfs. Observations of these 1070 targets revealed 26 new companions; 22 of these systems were previously thought to be single. If all new discoveries are confirmed, then the number of known multiples in the sample will increase by 7.6%. Using our observed properties, as well as the parallaxes and 2MASS K magnitudes for these objects, we calculate the projected separation, and estimate the mass ratio and component spectral types, for these systems. We report the discovery of a new M-dwarf companion to the white dwarf Wolf 672 A, which hosts a known M-dwarf companion as well, making the system trinary. We also examine the possibility that the new companion to 2MASS J13092185-2330350 is a brown dwarf. Finally, we discuss initial insights from the POKEMON survey
Two episodes of Eocene mafic magmatism in the southern Lhasa terrane imply an eastward propagation of slab breakoff
No full textPast geodynamic events can be reconstructed using the spatial and temporal patterns of geochemical variability in igneous rocks. Here we apply this principle to define the timing and geometry of breakoff of the Neo-Tethyan slab after the India-Asia collision. Two episodes of mafic magmatism (∼53 Ma and ∼ 48 Ma) are preserved in the Quxu area of the southern Lhasa terrane (SL). We present their whole-rock geochemistry, zircon U-Pb ages, and in situ zircon Hf isotope ratios. The early gabbro (∼53 Ma) exhibits typical arc basalt characteristics, including enrichment of large-ion lithophile elements (LILEs), depletion of high-field strength elements (HFSEs), and radiogenic Nd and zircon Hf isotopes, implying that they were formed by partial melting of metasomatized lithospheric mantle. In comparison to the early gabbro, the late hornblende gabbro (∼48 Ma) contains higher contents of HFSEs (e.g., Nb, Zr) and relatively less radiogenic Nd and zircon Hf isotopes, suggesting interaction between the enriched sub-continental lithospheric mantle and asthenospheric mantle. It is likely that upwelling asthenosphere reached the central SL around 50 Ma and that the Neo-Tethyan slab tore off under this area at this time. The spatial and temporal distribution of mafic rocks across the whole southern Lhasa terrane show that this geochemical transition and hence, presumably, the tearing off of the Neo-Tethyan slab, propagated eastward along the collision zone throughout Paleocene-Eocene time
Linear stability analysis of the condition for vibration during frictional slip
No full textSlip along a frictional contact between elastic bodies can be stable or unstable, leading to stick-slip motion. Frictional slip can also be associated with vibrations. The condition for these vibrations and their characteristics remains poorly understood. To address this issue, which is relevant to engineering and earth science, we carry out a linear stability analysis of a spring-and-slider system obeying rate and state friction. We first identify the solution space for the linearized equation and define the conditions for different slip modes from the real and imaginary parts of the solution. We then derive asymptotic equations for all boundaries between overdamped stable sliding, inertial/non-inertial underdamped oscillation, stick-slip, and harmonic vibration. Finally, we verified the conditions with numerical simulations. Our work provides rigorous criteria regarding the conditions for the various frictional slip modes and the emergence of vibrations. It can help design appropriate approaches for suppressing undesired vibrations in mechanical systems and investigate the mechanisms generating vibrations (tremor) associated with fault slip in nature
Safe Control for Nonlinear Systems With Stochastic Uncertainty via Risk Control Barrier Functions
No full textGuaranteeing safety for robotic and autonomous systems in real-world environments is a challenging task that requires the mitigation of stochastic uncertainties. Control barrier functions have, in recent years, been widely used for enforcing safety related set-theoretic properties, such as forward invariance and reachability, of nonlinear dynamical systems. In this letter, we extend this rich framework to nonlinear discrete-time systems subject to stochastic uncertainty and propose a framework for assuring risk-sensitive safety in terms of coherent risk measures. To this end, we introduce risk control barrier functions (RCBFs), which are compositions of barrier functions and dynamic, coherent risk measures. We show that the existence of such barrier functions implies invariance in a coherent risk sense. Furthermore, we formulate conditions based on finite-time RCBFs to guarantee finite-time reachability to a desired set in the coherent risk. Conditions for risk-sensitive safety and finite-time reachability of sets composed of Boolean compositions of multiple RCBF are also formulated. We show the efficacy of the proposed method through its application to a cart-pole system in a safety-critical scenario
Slow convection and fast rotation in crystallization-driven white dwarf dynamos
No full textIt has been recently suggested that white dwarfs generate magnetic fields in a process analogous to the Earth. The crystallization of the core creates a compositional inversion that drives convection, and combined with rotation, this can sustain a magnetic dynamo. We reanalyse the dynamo mechanism, arising from the slow crystallization of the core, and find convective turnover times tconv of weeks to months – longer by orders of magnitude than previously thought. With white dwarf spin periods P ≪ t_(conv), crystallization-driven dynamos are almost always in the fast-rotating regime, where the magnetic field B is at least in equipartition with the convective motion and is possibly further enhanced by a factor of B ∝ (t_(conv)/P)^(1/2), depending on the assumed dynamo scaling law. We track the growth of the crystallized core using mesa and compute the magnetic field B(T_(eff)) as a function of the white dwarf’s effective temperature T_(eff). We compare this prediction with observations and show that crystallization-driven dynamos can explain some – but not all – of the ∼MG magnetic fields measured for single white dwarfs, as well as the stronger fields measured for white dwarfs in cataclysmic variables, which were spun up by mass accretion to short P. Our B(T_(eff)) curves might also explain the clustering of white dwarfs with Balmer emission lines around T_(eff) ≈ 7500 K
Mechanism for the Efficient Homogeneous Nucleation of Ice in a Weakly Ionized, Ultracold Plasma
No full textIt is proposed that the rapid observed homogeneous nucleation of ice dust in a cold, weakly-ionized plasma depends on the formation of negative hydroxyl ions by fast electrons impacting water molecules. These OH⁻ ions attract neutral water molecules because of the high dipole moment of the water molecules and so hydrates of the form (OH)⁻(H₂O)ₙ are formed. The hydrates continuously grow in the cold environment to become macroscopic ice grains. These ice grains are negatively charged as a result of electron impact and so continue to attract water molecules. Because the hydroxyl ions are negative, unlike positive ions they do not suffer recombination loss from collision with plasma electrons. Recombination with positive ions is minimal because positive ions are few in number (weak ionization) and slow-moving as result of being in thermal equilibrium with the cold background gas