We review the current state of efforts to use resonant soft X-ray scattering (RSXS), which is an elastic, momentum-resolved, valence band probe of strongly correlated electron systems, to study stripe-like phenomena in copper-oxide superconductors and related materials. We review the historical progress including RSXS studies of Wigner crystallization in spin ladder materials, stripe order in 214-phase nickelates, 214-phase cuprates, and other systems.

Recent advances in computational methods have made realistic large-scale simulations of animal locomotion possible. This has resulted in numerous mathematical and computational studies of animal movement through fluids and over substrates with the purpose of better understanding organisms' performance and improving the design of vehicles moving through air and water and on land. This work has also motivated the development of improved numerical methods and modeling techniques for animal locomotion that is characterized by the interactions of fluids, substrates, and structures.

Vortices in a type-II superconductor form a lattice structure that melts when the thermal displacement of the vortices is an appreciable fraction of the distance between vortices. In an anisotropic high-T c superconductor, such as YBa 2Cu 3O y, the magnetic field value where this melting occurs can be much lower than the mean-field critical field H c2. We examine this melting transition in YBa 2Cu 3O y with oxygen content y from 6.45 to 6.92, and we perform a quantitative analysis of this transition in the cuprates by fitting the data to a theory of vortex-lattice melting.

When external stresses in a system-physical, social or virtual-are relieved through impulsive events, it is natural to focus on the attributes of these avalanches. However, during the quiescent periods between them, stresses may be relieved through competing processes, such as slowly flowing water between earthquakes or thermally activated dislocation flow between plastic bursts in crystals. Such smooth responses can in turn have marked effects on the avalanche properties.

We report the room temperature formation of aminated mesoporous silica nanoparticles (NH 2-MSNs) by means of co-condensation of different molar ratios of tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) and 3-aminopropyl triethoxysilane (APTES) in the synthesis feed. The resulting materials are characterized by a combination of transmission electron microscopy (TEM), small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and N 2 adsorption/desorption measurements.

We study the primary root growth of wild-type Medicago truncatula plants in heterogeneous environments using 3D time-lapse imaging. The growth medium is a transparent hydrogel consisting of a stiff lower layer and a compliant upper layer. We find that the roots deform into a helical shape just above the gel layer interface before penetrating into the lower layer. This geometry is interpreted as a combination of growth-induced mechanical buckling modulated by the growth medium and a simultaneous twisting near the root tip.

Many correlated materials display a quantum-critical point between a paramagnetic and a spin-density wave (SDW) state. The SDW wave vector connects points, so-called hot spots, on opposite sides of the Fermi surface. The Fermi velocities at these pairs of points are in general not parallel. Here, we consider the case where pairs of hot spots coalesce, and the wave vector (π,π) of the SDW connects hot spots with parallel Fermi velocities.

New approaches for optical data storage (ODS) applications are needed to meet the future requirements of applications in multimedia, archiving, security, and many others. Commercial data storage technologies are moving to threedimensional (3D) materials, but the capacity is limited by the fabrication cost and the number of layers that can be addressed using the reflection-based storage mechanism. We demonstrate here storage systems based on co-extrusion of multilayer (ML) films that can overcome these problems.

Single-molecule techniques reveal short- and long-range dynamics of supercoiled DNA.

3D Optical data storage is demonstrated in co-extruded multilayer films using organic materials. Co-extrusion is able to produce films on a much larger scale at a much lower cost than current methods. The material compatibility and mechanical flexibility allow for new data formats with higher capacities to be realized. Copyright © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.