Electron emission from La-doped Pb（Zr,Sn,Ti）O3 antiferroelectrics by pulse electric field and the relevant physical mechanism

We investigate the characteristics of emission current waves of antiferroelectric cathode material lanthanum-doped lead zirconate stannate titanate （PLZST） triggered by pulse field, and analyze the relationship of the emission current waveforms with the extraction voltage. The close correlation between the triggering pulse polarity and emission current waveform observed evidences the relevant physical process of electron emission. We speculate that the primary emission may result from local phase transition and field emission in the vicinity of triple junctions, and the plasma formation may enhance the electron emission.     

Numerical simulation on the evolution of sediment waves caused by turbidity currents

Interest in the forming mechanism of sediment waves increases recently because of its significance on submarine engineering, sedimentary dynamics and hydrocarbon reservoir prediction in deep water. In this paper, the time-averaged continuity equations and Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations are applied in the numerical simulation of fluid dynamics. The modeling results are used to illuminate the effects of topography on turbidity current and explore the origin of submarine sediment waves. The research results show that (1) deposition occurs firstly at the lower ramp due to the deceleration of fluid, increase of density, loss of flow capacity and longer duration of flow passage; (2) density increase at the upslope due to the local jam results in velocity decrease and pressure increase; (3) sediment waves begin to be formed and migrated toward upstream in an area far away from the source with in- crease of the turbidity events; (4) deposition becomes more slowly with decrease of grain sizes, but the shape and sequences of these deposits are controlled by topography, not grain size.     

Multiuser underwater acoustic communication using single-element virtual time reversal mirror

Pattern time delay shift coding (PDS) scheme is introduced and combined with spread spectrum technique called SS-PDS for short which is power-saving and competent for long-range underwater acoustic networks. Single-element virtual time reversal mirror (VTRM) is presented in this paper and validated by the lake trial results. Employing single-element VTRM in multiuser communication system based on SS-PDS can separate different users’ information simultaneously at master node as indicated in the simulation results. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 60802060) and Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education (Grant No. 200802171061)     

A novel approach of hybrid genetic optimization with elite ant colony: Application in the modulation recognition

A novel approach (HGO-EAC) for hybrid genetic op-timization (GO) with elite ant colony (EAC) is proposed for the automatic modulation recognition of communication signals,through which we improve the basic ant colony algorithms by referencing elite strategy and present a new fusion strategy for genetic optimization and elite ant colony. This approach is used to train the neural networks as the classifier for modulation. Simula-tion results indicate good performance on an additive white Gaus-sian noise (AWGN) channel,with recognition rate reaching to 70% especially for CW even at signal-to-noise ratios as low as 5 dB. This approach can achieve a high recognition rate for the typical modulations such as CW,4ASK,4FSK,BPSK,and QAM16. Test result shows that it has better performance than BP algorithm and basic ant colony algorithms by achieving faster training and stronger robustness.     

Data Location Mechanism in Agent-Based Autonomic Storage Systems

This paper introduces agent-based methodology to build a distributed autonomic storage system infrastructure, and an effectively negotiation mechanism based on agent is applied for data location. We present Availability-based Data Allocation （ADA） algorithm as a data placement strategy to achieve high efficient utilization of storage resources by employing multiple distributed storage resources. We use Bloom filter in each storage device to track the location of data. We present the data lookup strategy that small size of read request is handled directly, and large size of read request is handled by cooperation with storage devices.The performance evaluation shows that the data location mechanism is high available and can work well for heterogeneous autonomic storage systems.     

Microstructure evolution and thixoforming behavior of 7075 aluminum alloy in the semi-solid state prepared by RAP method

The effects of isothermal treatments on the microstructural evolution and coarsening rate of semi-solid 7075 aluminum alloy produced via the recrystallization and partial remelting (RAP) process were investigated. Samples of 7075 aluminum alloy were subjected to cold extrusion, and semi-solid treatment was carried out for 5–30 min at temperatures ranging from 580 to 605°C. A backward-extrusion experiment was conducted to investigate liquid segregation during the thixoforming process. The results revealed that obvious grain coarsening and spheroidization occurred during prolonged isothermal treatments. In addition, higher soaking temperatures promoted the spheroidization and coarsening process because of the increased liquid fraction and the melting of second phases. Segregation of the liquid phase caused by the difference in fluidity between the liquid and the solid phases was observed in different regions of the thixoformed specimens.     

Effects of the types of overlap on the mechanical properties of FSSW welded AZ series magnesium alloy joints

The effects of the types of overlap on the mechanical properties of the friction stir spot welding (FSSW) welded AZ series magnesium alloy joints were investigated by microstructural observations, microhardness tests, and tensile tests. The results show that the microstructure of the stir zone adjacent to the periphery of the rotating pin is mainly composed of the upper sheet. The average distance D between the longitudinal segment of the curved interface and the keyhole periphery, the tensile shear force, and the microhardness of the stir zone of the FSSW welded AZ61 alloy joint are the highest in all samples. During FSSW of AZ31 and AZ61 dissimilar magnesium alloys, the irregular deformation of the longitudinal segment of the curved interface appears, while the microhardness of the stir zone is higher when AZ61 alloy is the upper sheet. Moreover, the microhardness of the stir zone increases initially and then decreases sharply in the longitudinal test position.     

Knockdown of <Emphasis Type="Italic">MRP4</Emphasis> by lentivirus-mediated siRNA improves sensitivity to adriamycin in adriamycin-resistant acute myeloid leukemia cells

Chemotherapy remains the standard treatment for acute myeloid leukemia;however,the emergence of drug resistance is a major hurdle in the successful treatment of leukemia.The expression of multidrug resistance-associated protein 4(MRP4)induces re- sistance in the adriamycin-resistant acute myeloid leukemia cell line,K562/ADR.The aim of this study was to investigate whether knockdown of MRP4 by lentivirus-mediated siRNA could improve the sensitivity of K562/ADR cells to adriamycin.Five lenti- virus-mediated short hairpin RNAs(lv-shRNAs-MRP4)were designed to trigger the gene silencing RNA interference(RNAi) pathway.The efficiency of lentivirus-mediated siRNA infection into K562/ADR cells was determined using fluorescence mi- croscopy to observe lentivirus-mediated GFP expression.MRP4 expression in infected K562/ADR cells was evaluated by real- time PCR and Western blot analysis.The MTS assay was used to measure cell viability and flow cytometry was used to measure apoptosis.The transfection efficiency of K562/ADR cells was over 80 percent.The gene silencing efficacy of lv-shRNA1-MRP4 was superior to the other constructs.Infection of K562/ADR cells with lv-shRNA1-MRP4 led to strong inhibition of MRP4 mRNA and protein expression.Combined treatment with lv-shRNA1-MRP4 and adriamycin decreased cell growth and increased apoptosis compared to treatment with lv-shRNA1-MRP4 or adriamycin alone.These data indicate that in K562/ADR cells MRP4 is involved in drug resistance mechanisms and that lentivirus-mediated knockdown of MRP4 may enhance sensitivity to adriamycin.