Couplings of hybrid operators to ground and excited states of bottomonia

We analyze the overlap of local color-octet meson operators with the $\Upsilon$ and the $\eta_b$ and their low-lying excited states, especially the first radial excitations. Our analysis is based on NRQCD and includes all terms up to order $v^4$. We use a variety of source and sink operators as a basis for the variational method, which enables us to clearly separate the mass eigenstates and hence to extract the desired amplitudes. The results show the usefulness of the variational method for determining couplings to excited hadronic states.Comment: 24 pages, 15 figures, references added, typos fixed, further analysis adde

High-speed Fabrication of Micro-channels using Line-based Laser Induced Plasma Micromachining (L-LIPMM)

Micro-texturing of surfaces has various applications that often involve texturing over large (macro-scale) areas with high precision and resolution. This demands scalability and speed of texturing while retaining feature sizes on the order of a few ?m. Moreover, micro-channels are a versatile micro-feature that are often used in microfluidic devices and can be arrayed or joined to form patterns and free-form geometries. We present a technique to fabricate micro-channels on surfaces with high-speed and by using a multi-materials process, namely Laser Induced Plasma Micromachining (LIPMM). The process has the potential to machine metals, ceramics, polymers and other transparent, brittle and hard-to-machine materials. The presented technique uses an optical system to modify the laser spot into the shape of a line, to fabricate micro-channels directly without scanning as in the case of a regular circular spot. The process schematics are shown, and micro-machining experiments on polished Aluminum are discussed. Moreover, it is shown that the depth and width of the channels may be varied by changing the process parameters like the pulse energy, pulse frequency and number of exposures

American Splendor

Artist Statement My photographs and paintings are reflective of a simpler and slower paced, rural life. This focus is in high contrast to what contemporary urban life often requires. I depict scenes of tranquil landscapes, farm animals, old barns, fields of grasses, and growing crops. I alter my digital photographic images with computer software. I use various filters that transform color, clarity, and value to give the photographs of nature an intentionally peaceful mood. These photographs are a basis for my paintings where I soften nature’s contours and emphasize tranquility. My desire is that viewers will look at my work and take a moment to stop, think, and breathe. Like myself, I want them to slow down and take in the simplicity and beauty of country life

The impact of face-to-face street fundraising on organizational reputation

Although many stakeholders perceive face-to-face street fundraising as unpleasant, nonprofit managers encourage it as a way to attract donors. To understand the long-term effects of this fundraising method, we used a mixed-methods experimental design to investigate how face-to-face street fundraising affects organizational reputation and stakeholder support intentions in comparison with letter fundraising. The findings reveal that face-to-face street fundraising has a significant negative influence on the stakeholders' perceptions of an organization. Further, qualitative datashow that the negative perception originates primarily from perceived pressure, distrust, and obtrusion, which are triggered by face-to-face street fundraising. Our studythus reveals long-term reputational consequences that nonprofit organizations should consider before deciding on fundraising methods

The Influence of geometrical and operational parameters on internal flow characteristics of Internally Mixing Twin-Fluid Y-Jet Atomizers

Internally mixing twin-fluid Y-jet atomizers are widely used in coal fired thermal power plants for start-up, oil-fired thermal power plants and industrial boilers. The flow through internally mixing Y-jet atomizers is numerically modeled using the compressible Navier-Stokes equations; Wall Modeled Large Eddy Simulations (WMLES) is used to resolve the turbulence with Large Eddy Simulations whereas the Prandtl Mixing Length Model is used for modeling the subgrid scale structures, which are affected by geometric and operational parameters. Moreover, the Volume-of-Fluid (VOF) method is used to capture the development and fragmentation of the liquid-gas interface within the Y-jet atomizer. The numerical results are compared with correlations available in open literature for the pressure drop; further results are presented for the multiphase flow regime maps available for vertical pipes. The results show that the mixing point pressure is strongly dependent on the mixing port diameter to airport diameter ratio, specifically for gas to liquid mass flowrate ratio (GLR) in the range 0.1 < GLR < 0.4; the mixing port length moderately affects the mixing point pressure while the angle between mixing and liquid ports is found not to have an appreciable effect. Moreover, it is found that the vertical pipe multiphase flow regime maps in the literature could be applied to the flow through the mixing port of the twin-fluid Y-jet atomizer. The main flow regimes found under the studied operational conditions are annular and wispy annular flow

The barium iron ruthenium oxide system

In the system BaFe(1-x)Ru(x)O(3-y), three phases, separated by immiscibility gaps, are present: an Fe-rich phase (x = 0 to 0.75) with hexagonal BaTiO3 structure (6H; sequence (hcc)2), a Ru-rich phase (x = 0.9) of hexagonal 4H-type (sequence (hc)2), and the pure Ru compounds BaRuO3 with rhombohedral 9R structure (sequence (hhc)3). By vibrational spectroscopic investigations in the 6H phase a transition from n-type semiconduction (Fe-rich compounds with complete O lattice) can be detected. The 4H and 9R stacking polytypes are good, metal-like conductors. The lattice parameters are given