arXiv subjects

A. Li

Publications and source records attributed to A. Li.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

To Learn or Not to Learn: Deep Learning Assisted Wireless Modem Design

Deep learning is driving a radical paradigm shift in wireless communications, all the way from the application layer down to the physical layer. Despite this, there is an ongoing debate as to what additional values artificial intelligence (or machine learning) could bring to us, particularly on the physical layer design; and what penalties there may have? These questions motivate a fundamental rethinking of the wireless modem design in the artificial intelligence era. Through several physical-layer case studies, we argue for a significant role that machine learning could play, for instance in parallel error-control coding and decoding, channel equalization, interference cancellation, as well as multiuser and multiantenna detection. In addition, we will also discuss the fundamental bottlenecks of machine learning as well as their potential solutions in this paper.

eess.SP↗

arXiv2019

Measurement of the $^8$B Solar Neutrino Flux in SNO+ with Very Low Backgrounds

A measurement of the $^8$B solar neutrino flux has been made using a 69.2 kt-day dataset acquired with the SNO+ detector during its water commissioning phase. At energies above 6 MeV the dataset is an extremely pure sample of solar neutrino elastic scattering events, owing primarily to the detector's deep location, allowing an accurate measurement with relatively little exposure. In that energy region the best fit background rate is $0.25^{+0.09}_{-0.07}$ events/kt-day, significantly lower than the measured solar neutrino event rate in that energy range, which is $1.03^{+0.13}_{-0.12}$ events/kt-day. Also using data below this threshold, down to 5 MeV, fits of the solar neutrino event direction yielded an observed flux of $2.53^{+0.31}_{-0.28}$(stat.)$^{+0.13}_{-0.10}$(syst.)$\times10^6$ cm$^{-2}$s$^{-1}$, assuming no neutrino oscillations. This rate is consistent with matter enhanced neutrino oscillations and measurements from other experiments.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2018

Suppression of Cosmic Muon Spallation Backgrounds in Liquid Scintillator Detectors Using Convolutional Neural Networks

Cosmic muon spallation backgrounds are ubiquitous in low-background experiments. For liquid scintillator-based experiments searching for neutrinoless double-beta decay, the spallation product $^{10}$C is an important background in the region of interest between 2-3 MeV and determines the depth requirement for the experiment. We have developed an algorithm based on a convolutional neural network that uses the temporal and spatial correlations in light emissions to identify $^{10}$C background events. With a typical kiloton-scale detector configuration like the KamLAND detector, we find that the algorithm is capable of identifying 61.6% of the $^{10}$C at 90% signal acceptance. A detector with perfect light collection could identify 98.2% at 90% signal acceptance. The algorithm is independent of vertex and energy reconstruction, so it is complementary to current methods and can be expanded to other background sources.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2018

Spin-orbit interaction and induced superconductivity in an one-dimensional hole gas

Low dimensional semiconducting structures with strong spin-orbit interaction (SOI) and induced superconductivity attracted much interest in the search for topological superconductors. Both the strong SOI and hard superconducting gap are directly related to the topological protection of the predicted Majorana bound states. Here we explore the one-dimensional hole gas in germanium silicon (Ge-Si) core-shell nanowires (NWs) as a new material candidate for creating a topological superconductor. Fitting multiple Andreev reflection measurements shows that the NW has two transport channels only, underlining its one-dimensionality. Furthermore, we find anisotropy of the Lande g-factor, that, combined with band structure calculations, provides us qualitative evidence for direct Rashba SOI and a strong orbital effect of the magnetic field. Finally, a hard superconducting gap is found in the tunneling regime, and the open regime, where we use the Kondo peak as a new tool to gauge the quality of the superconducting gap.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2018

Ultrafast scanning electron microscope applied for studying the interaction between free electrons and optical near-fields of periodic nanostructures

In this paper we describe an ultrafast scanning electron microscope setup developed for the research of inelastic scattering of electrons at optical near-fields of periodic dielectric nanostructures. Electron emission from the Schottky cathode is controlled by ultraviolet femtosecond laser pulses. The electron pulse duration at the interaction site is characterized via cross-correlation of the electrons with an infrared laser pulse that excites a synchronous periodic near-field on the surface of a silicon nanostructure. The lower limit of 410 fs is found in the regime of a single electron per pulse. The role of pulse broadening due to Coulomb interaction in multielectron pulses is investigated. The setup is used to demonstrate an increase of the interaction distance between the electrons and the optical near-fields by introducing a pulse-front-tilt to the infrared laser beam. Further we show the dependence of the final electron spectra on the resonance condition between the phase velocity of the optical near-field and the electron propagation velocity. The resonance is controlled by adjusting the initial electron energy/velocity and by introducing a linear chirp to the structure period allowing to increase the final electron energy gain up to a demonstrated 3.8 keV.

physics.app-ph↗

arXiv2018

Single, double, and triple quantum dots in Ge/Si nanowires

We report highly tunable control of holes in Ge/Si core/shell nanowires (NWs). We demonstrate the ability to create single quantum dots (QDs) of various sizes, with low hole occupation numbers and clearly observable excited states. For the smallest dot size we observe indications of single-hole occupation. Moreover, we create double and triple tunnel-coupled quantum dot arrays. In the double quantum dot configuration we observe Pauli spin blockade (PSB). These results open the way to perform hole spin qubit experiments in these devices.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2018

Internal Plateau in Short GRBs and Quark Stars

I summarize our recent calculations on quark stars (QSs), for the purpose of explaining some short gamma-ray bursts characterized by internal plateau in their early X-ray afterglow. According to the present plateau sample, the QS central engine model is demonstrated to more preferred than the original neutron star (NS) one. New QS equation of states (PMQS1, PMQS2, PMQS3) are then proposed, respecting fully the observed burst data and the mass distribution of the Galactic NS-NS systems.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

Pulsar glitch and nuclear EoS: Applicability of superfluid model

In this contribution, we have made use of the contemporary equation of states (EOSs) for the complete neutron star structure, and confronted them with one particular glitch constrain for the crustal moment of inertia (MOI). We find that with these EOSs, the radii of three millisecond pulsars selected by NICER: PSR J0437-4715, PSR J1614-2230, PSR J0751+1807, are all around 12.5 km. Also, a star with $M \lesssim 1.55 M_{\odot}$ would fulfill the MOI calculation for glitch constrain with the latest neutron superfluidity density, and the glitch crisis might not be present.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

Note on fast spinning neutron stars with unified equations of states

For the propose of confronting updated pulsar observations with developed neutron star equation of states (EoSs), we employ four unified EoSs for both the core and the crust, namely BCPM, BSk20, BSk21, Shen-TM1, as well as two non-unified EoSs widely used in the literature, i.e. APR and GM1 EoS, which are commonly matched with the Negele-Vautherin and the Baym-Pethick-Sutherland crust EoS. All the core EoSs satisfy the recent observational constraints of the two massive pulsars whose masses are precisely measured. We show that the NS mass-equatorial radius relations are slightly affected by the smoothness at the core-crust matching interface. Moreover, the uncertainties in the crust EoS and the matching interface bring insignificant changes, even at maximally rotating (Keplerian) configurations. We also find that for all four unified EoSs, rotation can increase the star's gravitational mass up to $18\%-19\%$ and the equatorial radius by $29\%-36\%$, which are consistent with the previous calculations using non-unified EoSs. For stars as heavy as 1.4 M$_{\odot}$, the radius increase is more pronounced, reaching $41\%-43\%$, i.e. $5-6$ km. Moreover, by confronting the results using unified EoSs, which give the correct empirical values at saturation density, with two controversial determinations of the radius for the fast rotator 4U 1608-52, we address that a small radius may be better justified for this source.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2017

Dust emission at 8-mic and 24-mic as Diagnostics of HII Region Radiative Transfer

We use the Spitzer SAGE survey of the Magellanic Clouds to evaluate the relationship between the 8-mic PAH emission, 24-mic hot dust emission, and HII region radiative transfer. We confirm that in the higher-metallicity Large Magellanic Cloud, PAH destruction is sensitive to optically thin conditions in the nebular Lyman continuum: objects identified as optically thin candidates based on nebular ionization structure show 6 times lower median 8-mic surface brightness (0.18 mJy arcsec^-2) than their optically thick counterparts (1.2 mJy arcsec^-2). The 24-mic surface brightness also shows a factor of 3 offset between the two classes of objects (0.13 vs 0.44 mJy arcsec^-2, respectively), which is driven by the association between the very small dust grains and higher density gas found at higher nebular optical depths. In contrast, PAH and dust formation in the low-metallicity Small Magellanic Cloud is strongly inhibited such that we find no variation in either 8-mic or 24-mic emission between our optically thick and thin samples. This is attributable to extremely low PAH and dust production together with high, corrosive UV photon fluxes in this low-metallicity environment. The dust mass surface densities and gas-to-dust ratios determined from dust maps using Herschel HERITAGE survey data support this interpretation.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2017

Interface mediated mechanisms of plastic strain recovery in AgCu alloy

Through the combination of transmission electron microscopy analysis of the deformed microstructure and molecular dynamics computer simulations of the deformation processes, the mechanisms of plastic strain recovery in bulk AgCu eutectic with either incoherent twin or cube-on-cube interfaces between the Ag and Cu layers and a bilayer thickness of 500 nm have been revealed. The character of the incoherent twin interfaces changed uniquely after dynamic compressive loading for samples that exhibited plastic strain recovery and was found to drive the recovery, which is due to dislocation retraction and rearrangement of the interfaces. The magnitude of the recovery decreased with increasing strain as dislocation tangles and dislocation cell structures formed. No change in the orientation relationship was found at cube-on-cube interfaces and these exhibited a lesser amount of plastic strain recovery in the simulations and none experimentally in samples with larger layer thicknesses with predominantly cube-on-cube interfaces. Molecular dynamics computer simulations verified the importance of the change in the incoherent twin interface structure as the driving force for dislocation annihilation at the interfaces and the plastic strain recovery.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2017

Morphology and mechanical properties of nanocrystalline Cu/Ag alloy

Hybrid Monte Carlo (MC)/molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are conducted to study the microstructures of nanocrystalline (nc) Cu/Ag alloys with various Ag concentrations. When the Ag concentration is below 50 Ag atoms/nm!, an increase in Ag concentration leads to a gradual growth of monolayer grain boundary (GB) complexions into nanolayer complexions. Above the concentration of 50 Ag atoms/nm!, wetting layers with a bulk crystalline phase are observed. The effects of Ag on mechanical properties and deformation mechanisms of nc Cu/Ag alloys are investigated in MD simulations of uniaxial tension. GB sliding resistance is found to first increase and then decrease with an increase in Ag concentration. Surprisingly, we also find that the dislocation density decreases monotonically with an increase in Ag concentration, which suggests that the grain interiors are softened by the introduction of Ag dopants at GBs. In addition, there is a critical Ag concentration that maximizes flow stress of nc Cu/Ag alloys. The flow stress, GB sliding resistance, and the intragranular dislocation densities become less sensitive to Ag dopants when the grain diameter increases from 5nm to 40nm.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2016

Tip Pressure Induced Incoherent Energy Gap in CaFe2As2

In CaFe2As2, superconductivity can be achieved by applying a modest c-axis pressure of several kbar. Here we use scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/S) to explore the STM tip pressure effect on single crystals of CaFe2As2. When performing STM/S measurements, the tip-sample interaction can be controlled to act repulsive with reduction of the junction resistance, thus to apply a tip pressure on the sample. We find that an incoherent energy gap emerges at the Fermi level in the differential conductance spectrum when the tip pressure is increased. This energy gap is of the similar order of magnitude as the superconducting gap in the chemical doped compound Ca0.4Na0.6Fe2As2 and disappears at the temperature well below that of the bulk magnetic ordering. Moreover, we also observe the rhombic distortion of the As lattice, which agrees with the orthorhombic distortion of the underlying Fe lattice. These findings suggest that the STM tip pressure can induce the local Cooper pairing in the orthorhombic phase of CaFe2As2.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2016

High voltage testing for the MAJORANA Demonstrator

The MAJORANA Collaboration is constructing the MAJORANA Demonstrator, an ultra-low background, 44-kg modular high-purity Ge (HPGe) detector array to search for neutrinoless double-beta decay in Ge-76. The phenomenon of surface micro-discharge induced by high-voltage has been studied in the context of the MAJORANA Demonstrator. This effect can damage the front-end electronics or mimic detector signals. To ensure the correct performance, every high-voltage cable and feedthrough must be capable of supplying HPGe detector operating voltages as high as 5 kV without exhibiting discharge. R&D measurements were carried out to understand the testing system and determine the optimum design configuration of the high-voltage path, including different improvements of the cable layout and feedthrough flange model selection. Every cable and feedthrough to be used at the MAJORANA Demonstrator was characterized and the micro-discharge effects during the MAJORANA Demonstrator commissioning phase were studied. A stable configuration has been achieved, and the cables and connectors can supply HPGe detector operating voltages without exhibiting discharge.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2016

Nonrelativistic nucleon effective masses in nuclear matter: BHF versus RHF

The density and isospin dependences of the nonrelativistic nucleon effective mass ($m^*$) are studied, which is a measure of the nonlocality of the single particle (s.p.) potential. We decouple it further into the so called k-mass ($m^*_k$, i.e., the nonlocality in space) and E-mass ($m^*_E$, i.e., the nonlocality in time). Both masses are determined and compared from the latest versions of the nonrelativistic Brueckner-Hartree Fock (BHF) model and the relativistic Hartree-Fock (RHF) model. The latter are achieved based on the corresponding Schrödinger equivalent s.p. potential in a relativistic framework. We demonstrate the origins of different effective masses and discuss also their neutron-proton splitting in the asymmetric matter in different models. We find that the neutron-proton splittings of both the k-mass and the E-mass have the same asymmetry dependences at considered densities, namely $m^*_{k,n} > m^*_{k,p}$ and $m^*_{E,p} > m^*_{E,n}$. However, the resulting splittings of nucleon effective masses could have different asymmetry dependences in the two models, because they could be dominated either by that of the k-mass (then we have $m^*_n > m^*_p$ in the BHF model) or by that of the E-mass (then we have $m^*_p > m^*_n$ in the RHF model).

nucl-th↗

arXiv2015

Early Recognition of Emerging Flu Strain Clusters

Minimizing time delays in manufacturing vaccines appropriate to rapidly mutating viruses is the key step for improving vaccine effectiveness. The vaccine for the H3N2 flu type has failed for the last two years (~ 15% effective). Here we summarize the state of the predictive art and report the most current results for H3N2 flu vaccine design. Using a 2006 model of dimensional reduction of viral mutational complexity, we show that this model can reduce vaccine time delays by a year or more in some cases.

q-bio.PE↗

arXiv2015

Structures of the Vela pulsar and the glitch crisis from the Brueckner theory

Detailed structures of the Vela pulsar (PSR B0833-45, with a period of $89.33$ milliseconds) are predicted by adopting a recently-constructed unified treatment of all parts of neutron stars: the outer crust, the inner crust and the core based on modern microscopic Brueckner-Hartree-Fock calculations. To take the pulsar mass ranging from $1.0M_{\odot}$ to $2.0M_{\odot}$, we calculate the central density, the core/crust radii, the core/crust mass, the core/crustal thickness, the moment of inertia, and the crustal moment of inertia. Among them, the crustal moment of inertia could be effectively constrained from the accumulated glitch observations, which has been a great debate recently, known as "glitch crisis". Namely, superfluid neutrons contained in the inner crust, which are regarded as the origin of the glitch in the standard two-component model, could be largely entrained in the nuclei lattices, then there may not be enough superfluid neutrons ($\sim 4/5$ less than the previous value) to trigger the large glitches ($Δν/ν_0 \sim 10^{-6}$) in the Vela pulsar. We then provide the first analysis of the crisis based on the microscopic basis, by confronting the glitch observations with the theoretical calculations for the crustal moment of inertia. We find that despite some recent opposition to the crisis argument, the glitch crisis is still present, which means that besides the crust superfluid neutrons, core neutrons might be necessary for explaining the large glitches of the Vela pulsar.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2015

Massive hybrid stars with a first order phase transition

We develop our previous study of the transition to deconfined quark phase in neutron stars, including the interaction in the quark equation of state to the leading order in the perturbative expansion within the confinement density-dependent mass model. Using the Gibbs conditions the hadron-quark mixed phase is constructed matching the latter with the hadron equation of state derived from the microscopic Brueckner-Hartree-Fock approximation. The influence of quark interaction parameters on threshold properties and phase diagram of dense neutron star matter are discussed in detail. We find that the leading-order quark interaction expands the density range of the mixed phase, pushing forward the disappearance of the hadron phase. Moreover, since the equation of state could turn out to be stiffer, a high-mass hybrid star is possible with mixed-phase core with typical parameter sets.

astro-ph.SR↗