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At least 379 records · Page 21

Aftershock sequence of the 2011 Virginia earthquake derived from the dense AIDA array and backprojection

After the 23 August 2011 Mineral, Virginia, earthquake, a temporary dense array (Aftershock Imaging with Dense Arrays (AIDA)) consisting of ~200 stations was deployed at 200-400 m spacing near the epicenter for 12 days. Backprojection of the data was used to automatically detect and locate aftershocks. The co-deployment of a traditional aftershock network of 36 stations at ~2-10 km spacing enables a quantitative comparison. The AIDA backprojection aftershock catalog is complete to magnitude -1.0 and includes events as small as M-1.8. For comparison, the traditional network was complete to M-0.3 for the same time period. The AIDA backprojection catalog observes the same major patterns of seismicity in the epicentral region, but additional details are illuminated. The primary zone of seismicity is not a single fault but is a tabular zone of multiple small faults, this zone has a subtle concave shape along strike and with depth, and a broader zone of new events is observed at shallow depth. In addition, a new separate, shallow cluster was detected and located to the east of the main aftershock zone. The addition of smaller events to the catalog did not change the b-value or the temporal decay constant, but illuminated spatial and temporal patterns. Both the b-value and temporal decay constant are different for 12 days than for 4 months and are different at < 3km depth than at greater depth. Very low b-value, especially at greater depth, is consistent with observed very high stress drops. Conclusively, the results indicate the benefits of dense arrays and auto-detection by backprojection for aftershock studies. And finally, the reduced detection threshold and higher spatial resolution enabled the study of earthquake mechanisms and strain transfer at an unprecedented small scale.

Beskardes, Gungor Didem↗

Significant enhancement in structural, dielectric, piezoelectric and ferromagnetic properties of Ba0.9Sr0.1Zr0.1Ti0.9O3-CoFe2O4 multiferroic composites

Highlights: • (1-x)Ba{sub 0.9}Sr{sub 0.1}Zr{sub 0.1}Ti{sub 0.9}O{sub 3}-(x)CoFe{sub 2}O{sub 4} multiferroic composite has been synthesized using mechano-chemical activation technique. • An improvement in dielectric, ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties over the pristine BSZT sample has been observed. • The composite samples also show a substantial enhancement in ferromagnetic characteristics compare to bare BSZT sample. - Abstract: Multiferroic composites (1 − x)Ba{sub 0.9}Sr{sub 0.1}Zr{sub 0.1}Ti{sub 0.9}O{sub 3}-(x)CoFe{sub 2}O{sub 4} (x = 0.0, 0.05, 0.10, 0.20 & 0.30) were prepared using mechanochemical activation method. Rietveld refined XRD patterns confirm the diphasic nature of composite samples. All of the diffraction peaks of (1 − x)BSZT-(x)CFO can be identified for the separate perovskite (BSZT) and inverse spinal (CFO) phases and no other impurity phase were observed for the composites. (1 − x)BSZT-(x)CFO sample with x = 0.05 have shown significant improvement in microstructural, dielectric, ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties over the pristine BSZT sample. Such an improvement in electrical properties can be attributed to larger grain size, improved density and easier ferroelectric domain wall motion inside the grain. Dielectric breakdown strength of the composites also shows a similar trend and is observed to be maximum for the sample with x = 0.05 CFO concentration. The composite samples also show a substantial enhancement in ferromagnetic characteristics and increases progressively with increase in ferrite (CFO) content.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Structured interactions drive abrupt transitions in the spatial organization of microbial communities

Bacteria possess diverse mechanisms to regulate their motility in response to environmental and physiological signals, enabling them to navigate complex habitats and adapt their behavior. Some of these mechanisms are species specific and enable cells to modulate their movement based on the ecological identity of neighboring species. Here, we introduce a model in which bacteria interact via local signals that either enhance or suppress the motility of neighboring cells depending on species type. Through large-scale simulations and a coarse-grained stochastic model, we demonstrate the emergence of a sharp transition driven by nucleation processes: increasing the density of motility-suppressing interactions drives the system from a fully mixed, motile phase to a state characterized by large, stationary bacterial clusters. Remarkably, in systems with a large number of interacting species, this transition can be triggered solely by altering the structure of the motility-regulation interaction matrix while maintaining species and interaction densities constant. In particular, we find that heterogeneous and modular interactions promote the transition more readily than homogeneous random ones. These findings add a dimension to the theory of motility-induced phase separation and contribute to the ongoing effort to understand microbial interactions, suggesting that structured, nonrandom ones may be key to reproducing commonly observed spatial patterns in microbial communities.

bacterial communities↗

Operational results of simultaneous four-beam delivery at Jefferson Lab

A concept for simultaneous beam delivery to all four CEBAF experimental halls from a single injector and a single main accelerator for the 12 GeV era was proposed in 2012. The original 12 GeV beam delivery plan was for a maximum of three experimental halls at a time as in the 6 GeV era. Therefore, the new concept increases the potential beam time for the experiments up to 33%. This change required minimal modifications to the existing machine. The modifications were mainly timing and pattern changes to the beams in the injector, adding a fourth laser to the photo-cathode gun, and the addition of new RF separators to the highest pass of CEBAF. These changes are now all in place and, for the first time, the full system is operating, producing four simultaneous beams through the accelerator to four different destina-tions. In this paper, in addition to presenting the results of the full system commissioning, we will discuss im-portant details about the new configuration plus some of our operational challenges.

Kazimi, Reza↗

Oscillatory phase separation during expulsion of daughter GUVs

A video assembled from time-lapse fluorescence images of phase-separating GUVs containing internal ‘organelle’ vesicles. GUVs consisting of POPC:SM:Ch (2:2:1) labeled with 0.5 mol% Sphingomyelin-Atto647N (SM-647N) (pseudo-colored green), encapsulate 1 M sucrose, and diluted in MilliQ water at 25°C. The video reveals shifting patterns of osmotic pressure and tension during expulsion of the internal vesicles after an osmotic differential had been established. Key steps include (A) a homogeneous, flaccid mother vesicle encapsulating tense daughter vesicles, at a time point prior to vesicle expulsion; (B) just after expulsion, the daughter GUV remains tense exhibiting oscillatory phase separation, while the mother GUV is left deflated and homogenous due to the sudden loss of volume; (C) The mother GUV subsequently becomes inflated by influx of water; and (D) the mother GUV begins to exhibit oscillatory phase separation.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Search for patterns by combining cosmic-ray energy and arrival directions at the Pierre Auger Observatory

Energy-dependent patterns in the arrival directions of cosmic rays are searched for using data of the Pierre Auger Observatory. We investigate local regions around the highest-energy cosmic rays with E ≥ 6×10 19 eV by analyzing cosmic rays with energies above E ≥ 5×10 18 eV arriving within an angular separation of approximately 15°. We characterize the energy distributions inside these regions by two independent methods, one searching for angular dependence of energy-energy correlations and one searching for collimation of energy along the local system of principal axes of the energy distribution. No significant patterns are found with this analysis. As a result, the comparison of these measurements with astrophysical scenarios can therefore be used to obtain constraints on related model parameters such as strength of cosmic-ray deflection and density of point sources.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

NMR spin relaxation in proteins: The patterns of motion that dissipate power to the bath

We developed in recent years the two-body coupled-rotator slowly relaxing local structure (SRLS) approach for the analysis of NMR relaxation in proteins. The two bodies/rotators are the protein (diffusion tensor D{sub 1}) and the spin-bearing probe, e.g., the {sup 15}N−{sup 1}H bond (diffusion tensor, D{sub 2}), coupled by a local potential (u). A Smoluchowski equation is solved to yield the generic time correlation functions (TCFs), which are sums of weighted exponentials (eigenmodes). By Fourier transformation one obtains the generic spectral density functions (SDFs) which underlie the experimental relaxation parameters. The typical paradigm is to characterize structural dynamics in terms of the best-fit values of D{sub 1}, D{sub 2}, and u. Additional approaches we pursued employ the SRLS TCFs, SDFs, or eigenmodes as descriptors. In this study we develop yet another perspective. We consider the SDF as function of the angular velocity associated with the fluctuating fields underlying NMR relaxation. A parameter called j-fraction, which represents the relative contribution of eigenmode, i, to a given value of the SDF function at a specific frequency, ω, is defined. j-fraction profiles of the dominant eigenmodes are derived for 0 ≤ ω ≤ 10{sup 12} rad/s. They reveal which patterns of motion actuate power dissipation at given ω-values, what are their rates, and what is their relative contribution. Simulations are carried out to determine the effect of timescale separation, D{sub 1}/D{sub 2}, axial potential strength, and local diffusion axiality. For D{sub 1}/D{sub 2} ≤ 0.01 and strong local potential of 15 k{sub B}T, power is dissipated by global diffusion, renormalized (by the strong potential) local diffusion, and probe diffusion on the surface of a cone (to be called cone diffusion). For D{sub 1}/D{sub 2} = 0.1, power is dissipated by mixed eigenmodes largely of a global-diffusion-type or cone-diffusion-type, and a nearly bare renormalized-local-diffusion eigenmode. For D{sub 1}/D{sub 2} > 0.1, most eigenmodes are of a mixed type. The analysis is affected substantially by reducing the potential strength from 15 to 5 k{sub B}T, and/or allowing for axial D{sub 2} with D{sub 2,∥}/D{sub 2,⊥} = 10. The scheme developed is applied to {sup 15}N−{sup 1}H relaxation from the β-sheet residue K19 and the α-helix residue A34 of the third immunoglobulin-binding domain of streptococcal protein G. Previous studies revealed rhombic local potentials with different rhombicity around C{sub i−1}{sup α}−C{sub i}{sup α}, and different timescale separation (0.047 for K19 and 0.102 for A34). Here, we find that K19 and A34 dissipate power to the bath through global diffusion, mixed cone-diffusion-related and mixed renormalized-local-diffusion-related motions. At small ω-values, A34 is more effective than K19 in dissipating power. In general, it executes faster cone-diffusion-type, and slower renormalized-local-diffusion-type and local-probe-fluctuation-type motions. K19 experiences faster N−H fluctuations than A34. Eigenmode clustering, experienced by K19 to a larger extent, is observed in the fast-probe-fluctuation regime. New information on the effect of the structural context on N−H bond dynamics has been obtained. The patterns of motion that dissipate NMR-relaxation-related power illuminate protein dynamics from a new perspective. They constitute yet another qualifier of N−H bond dynamics. This study sets the stage for developing ways for enhancing the contribution of desired pathways for power dissipation at selected angular velocities.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Coherent 3D nanostructure of γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}: Simulation of whole X-ray powder diffraction pattern

The structure and nanostructure features of nanocrystalline γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} obtained by dehydration of boehmite with anisotropic platelet-shaped particles were investigated. The original models of 3D coherent nanostructure of γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} were constructed. The models of nanostructured γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} particles were first confirmed by a direct simulation of powder X–Ray diffraction (XRD) patterns using the Debye Scattering Equation (DSE) with assistance of high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) study. The average crystal structure of γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} was shown to be tetragonally distorted. The experimental results revealed that thin γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} platelets were heterogeneous on a nanometer scale and nanometer-sized building blocks were separated by partially coherent interfaces. The XRD simulation results showed that a specific packing of the primary crystalline blocks in the nanostructured γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} particles with formation of planar defects on (001), (100), and (101) planes nicely accounted for pronounced diffuse scattering, anisotropic peak broadening and peak shifts in the experimental XRD pattern. The identified planar defects in cation sublattice seem to be described as filling cation non-spinel sites in existing crystallographic models of γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} structure. The overall findings provided an insight into the complex nanostructure, which is intrinsic to the metastable γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} oxide. - Highlights: • Thin plate-like crystallites of γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} were obtained. • Models of 3D coherent nanostructure of γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} were constructed. • Models were verified by simulating XRD patterns using the Debye Scattering Equation. • Specific broadening of XRD peaks was explained in terms of planar defects. • Primary crystalline blocks in γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} are separated by partially coherent interfaces.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Exchange anisotropy, engineered coercivity and spintronics in atomically engineered L1 0 heterostructures

We identified and investigated some of the scientific and technically most challenging issues in thin film magnetism focusing on epitaxially grown layers of specific L1 0 ordered, intermetallic, heterostructures with well-controlled crystallography and interface structures. Specifically, we addressed antiferromagnetic/ferromagnetic heterostructures, exhibiting exchange bias (EB) in both in-plane (MnPd/Fe) and perpendicular (IrMn/(Co/Pt) n ) geometries, and ferromagnetic/ferrimagnetic (Co/Y 3 Fe 5 O 12 ) bilayers with strong interlayer exchange coupling and exhibiting spin reorientation transitions. In the former case, the work included experimental and theoretical studies to gain more fundamental insight into the origin and magnitude of EB, as well as to address important aspects of EB such as the asymmetry in the magnetic reversal mechanism, the role of interfacial structure, including compensated or uncompensated spins, AF domains, competing anisotropies and the angular dependence of the magnetization reversal process. Exchange bias is central to many magnetic technologies and driven by the fast development of nanotechnology, there is much interest in understanding the phenomenon of exchange bias on the nanoscale. By patterning, as the FM domain size reaches a lateral scale comparable to the AF domain size (~100nm), each nano-element can be treated as a separate and isolated exchange bias system that behaves independently. Therefore, the non-averaged, intrinsic, exchange bias, in all its complexity, can be studied. Such size and dimensionality effects, particularly in structures with lateral dimension of the order of their domain sizes, were studied by developing and implementing a novel Nano-imprint as well as convention optical lithography/patterning. However, one limitation of the NIL method is that after imprinting the material-deposition or -evaporation has to be done at around room temperature in order to keep the resists structure undisturbed. As a result, the method is unsuitable for epitaxial growth, since the latter often involves growth at elevated temperatures higher than the glass transition temperature of the resist. Therefore, a mask transfer NIL process was developed to grow epitaxial nanostructure arrays at elevated temperatures where organic resists are rendered unstable. In the case of the metal/oxide heterostructures, the domain structure of the metal is carefully modulated by that of the underlying oxide, opening the possibility of carrying out novel experiments to study spin-dependent domain-wall scattering and quantify domain wall resistance in mesoscopic geometries. Utilizing state-of-the-art characterization methods, using synchrotron radiation and electron holography, we addressed the critical role of all aspects of the microstructure, at relevant length scales, in determining these specific magnetic properties. Two significant highlights of this project were the use of photoemission electron microscopy (PEEM) work to elucidate their asymmetric magnetization reversal mechanism and the use of element-specific X-ray magnetic reflectivity and x-ray resonant scattering to probe buried interfaces, both of importance in understanding the fundamental physics of exchange bias. In the latter case, a complex magnetic interfacial configuration in Fe/MnPd, consisting of a 2-monolayer-thick induced ferromagnetic region, and pinned uncompensated Mn moments that reach far deeper (~13 Å), both in the antiferromagnet, were found. Such epitaxial EB samples also show in-plane reorientation transitions, determined by the competition between the interface exchange coupling and the intrinsic uniaxial energies, and is driven by the temperature, as well as the thickness of MnPd and Fe layers. Complementing these results, work on multilayers show that perpendicular EB arise from a complex interplay between unidirectional anisotropy at the terminating FM/AFM interface, the perpendicular anisotropy of the FM/nonmagnet(NM) multilayer stack and the overall magnetostatic energy of the structure. Collaborative work with Prof. R. Stamps (UWA) in modeling and analysis of slow-dynamics, using an inductive ferromagnetic resonance technique, were also carried out. Further details of our research is presented below broadly in five thematic areas. Overall, this research allowed us to obtain a deeper understanding of the range of related magnetic phenomena and establish pathways for potential technological applications of these thin film and patterned heterostructures.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

A network approach for multiscale catchment classification using traits

Abstract. The classification of river catchments into groups with similar biophysical characteristics is useful to understand and predict their hydrological behavior. The increasing availability of remote sensing and other large-scale geospatial datasets has enabled the use of advanced data-driven approaches to classify catchments using traits such as topography, geology, climate, land cover, land use, and human influence. Unsupervised clustering algorithms based on the Euclidean distance are commonly used for trait-based classification but are not suitable for highly dimensional data. In this study we present a new network-based method for multi-scale catchment classification, which can be applied to large datasets and used to determine the traits associated with different catchment groups. In this framework, two networks are analyzed in parallel: the first being where the nodes are traits and the second being where the nodes are catchments. In both cases, edges represent pairwise similarity, and a network cluster detection algorithm is used for the classification. The trait network is used to investigate redundancy in the trait data and to condense this information into a small number of interpretable categories. The catchments network is used to classify the catchments into clusters and to identify representative catchments for the different groups using the degree centrality metric. We apply this method to classify 9067 river catchments across the contiguous United States at both regional and continental scales using 274 non-categorical traits. At the continental scale, we identify 25 interpretable trait categories and 34 catchment clusters of sizes greater than 50. We find that catchments with similar trait categories are typically located in the same region, with different spatial patterns emerging among clusters dominated by natural and anthropogenic traits. We also find that the catchment clusters exhibit distinct hydrological behavior based on an analysis of streamflow indices. This network approach provides several advantages over traditional means of classification, including better separation of clusters, the use of alternate similarity metrics that are more suitable for highly dimensional data, and reducing redundancy in the trait information. The paired catchment–trait networks enable analysis of hydrological behavior using the dominant trait categories for each catchment cluster. The approach can be used at multiple spatial scales since the network topologies adjust automatically to reflect the trait patterns at the scale of investigation. Finally, the representative catchments identified as hub nodes in the network can be used to guide transferable observational and modeling strategies. The method is broadly applicable beyond hydrology for classification of other complex systems that utilize different types of trait datasets.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Fabrication of model ultrafiltration membranes with uniform, high aspect ratio pores

Here, in this manuscript, we report the facile fabrication of large-area model membranes with highly uniform and high aspect ratio pores with diameters <20 nm. These membranes are useful for fundamental investigations of separation by size exclusion in the ultrafiltration regime, where species to be separated from solution have dimensions of 1–100 nm. Such investigations require membranes with narrow pores and high aspect ratios such that the Hagen–Poiseuille equation is followed, enabling well-known models such as the hindered transport model to be evaluated and other affecting factors to be ignored. We demonstrate that the sub-20 nm pores in the membrane are of sufficiently high aspect ratio such that water flux through the membrane is consistent with the Hagen–Poiseuille equation. The fabrication relies on self-assembling block copolymers to form uniform, densely packed patterns with sub-20 nm resolution, sequential infiltration synthesis to convert the block copolymer in situ into a mask with adequate contrast to etch pores with an aspect ratio >5, and low-resolution photolithography to transfer the pattern over a large area into a silicon nitride membrane. Model membranes with narrow pore-size distribution fabricated in this way provide the means to investigate parameters that impact size-selective ultrafiltration separations such as the relationships between solute or particle size and pore size, their distributions, and rejection profiles, and, therefore, test the validity or limits of separation models.

Chen, Wen↗

A Model of Cyclic Transcriptomic Behavior in Cyanobacterium Cyanothece sp. ATCC 51142

Systems biology attempts to reconcile large amounts of disparate data with existing knowledge to provide models of functioning biological systems. Useful and predictive models aim to summarize complex and dynamic processes and represent the relationships between these processes. The cyanobacterial Cyanothece species Strain sp. ATCC 51142 is an excellent candidate for such systems studies because: (i) it displays tight functional regulation as it must separate the opposing processes of oxygen-generating photosynthesis and oxygen-sensitive nitrogen fixation temporally in the same cell, ; (ii) it has robust cyclic patterns at the genetic, protein and metabolomic levels, ; and (iii) and it has potential applications for bioenergy and carbon sequestration, and thus a predictive model of its function is of practical use. We have represented the transcriptomic data from Cyanothece 51142 under diurnal light/dark cycles as a high-level functional abstraction and describe development of a predictive in silico model of diurnal and circadian behavior in terms of regulatory and metabolic processes in Cyanothece 51142. Our model provides a way to integrate disparate data types into a framework that can be used to explain behavior, generate high-quality predictions for validation, and to suggest future experiments. We show that incorporating network topology into the model improves performance in terms of our ability to explain the behavior of the system under new conditions. The model presented robustly describes transcriptomic behavior of Cyanothece 51142 under different cyclic and non-cyclic growth conditions robustly, and represents a significant advance in the understanding of gene regulation in this important organism.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Improved molecular level identification of organic compounds using comprehensive two-dimensional chromatography, dual ionization energies and high resolution mass spectrometry

A new analytical methodology combining comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC×GC), dual ionization energies and high resolution time of flight mass spectrometry has been developed that improves molecular level identification of organic compounds in complex environmental samples. GC×GC maximizes compound separation providing cleaner mass spectra by minimizing erroneous fragments from interferences and co-eluting peaks. Traditional electron ionization (EI, 70 eV) provides MS fragmentation patterns that can be matched to published EI MS libraries while vacuum ultraviolet photoionization (VUV, 10.5 eV) yields MS with reduced fragmentation enhancing the abundance of the molecular ion providing molecular formulas when combined with high resolution mass spectrometry. We demonstrate this new approach by applying it to a sample of organic aerosol. In this sample, 238 peaks were matched to EI MS library data with FM ≥ 800 but a fifth (42 compounds) were determined to be incorrectly identified because the molecular formula was not confirmed by the VUV MS data. This highlights the importance of using a complementary technique to confirm compound identifications even for peaks with very good matching statistics. In total, 171 compounds were identified by EI MS matching to library spectra with confirmation of the molecular formula from the high resolution VUV MS data and were not dependent on the matching statistics being above a threshold value. A large number of unidentified peaks were still observed with FM < 800, which in routine analysis would typically be neglected. Where possible, these peaks were assigned molecular formulas from the VUV MS data (211 in total). In total, the combination of EI and VUV MS data provides more than twice as much molecular level peak information than traditional approaches and improves confidence in the identification of individual organic compounds. The molecular formula data from the VUV MS data was used, in conjunction with GC×GC retention times and the observed EI MS, to generate a new, searchable EI MS library compatible with the standard NIST MS search program. This library is deliberately dynamic and editable so that other end users can add new entries and update existing entries as new information becomes available.A new analytical methodology has been developed to improve molecular level identification of organic compounds in complex samples.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Excitation two-center interference and the orbital geometry in laser-induced nonsequential double ionization of diatomic molecules

We address the influence of the molecular orbital geometry and of the molecular alignment with respect to the laser-field polarization on laser-induced nonsequential double ionization of diatomic molecules for different molecular species, namely N{sub 2} and Li{sub 2}. We focus on the recollision excitation with subsequent tunneling ionization (RESI) mechanism, in which the first electron, upon return, promotes the second electron to an excited state, from where it subsequently tunnels. We assume that both electrons are initially in the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and that the second electron is excited to the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO). We show that the electron-momentum distributions exhibit interference maxima and minima due to the electron emission at spatially separated centers. We provide generalized analytical expressions for such maxima or minima, which take into account s-p mixing and the orbital geometry. The patterns caused by the two-center interference are sharpest for vanishing alignment angle and get washed out as this parameter increases. Apart from that, there exist features due to the geometry of the LUMO, which may be observed for a wide range of alignment angles. Such features manifest themselves as the suppression of probability density in specific momentum regions due to the shape of the LUMO wave function, or as an overall decrease in the RESI yield due to the presence of nodal planes.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Inference and learning in sparse systems with multiple states

We discuss how inference can be performed when data are sampled from the nonergodic phase of systems with multiple attractors. We take as a model system the finite connectivity Hopfield model in the memory phase and suggest a cavity method approach to reconstruct the couplings when the data are separately sampled from few attractor states. We also show how the inference results can be converted into a learning protocol for neural networks in which patterns are presented through weak external fields. The protocol is simple and fully local, and is able to store patterns with a finite overlap with the input patterns without ever reaching a spin-glass phase where all memories are lost.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Intrinsic inhomogeneities of low-doped lanthanum manganites in the paramagnetic temperature range

The nature of the electrical resistivity for low-doped lanthanum manganites is elucidated. The electrical resistivity is described by the Efros-Shklovskii law (ln{rho} {radical} (T{sub 0}/T){sup -1/2}, where T{sub 0} {radical} 1/R{sub ls}) in the temperature range from T* Almost-Equal-To 300 K Almost-Equal-To T{sub C} (T{sub C} is the Curie temperature for conducting manganites) to their T{sub C} and is explained by the tunneling of carriers between localized states. The magnetoresistance is explained by a change in the size of localized states R{sub ls} in a magnetic field. The patterns of change in R{sub ls} with temperature and magnetic field strength determined from magnetotransport properties are satisfactorily described in the model of phase separation into small-radius metallic droplets in a paramagnetic matrix. The sizes R{sub ls} and their temperature dependence have been estimated through magnetic measurements. The results confirm the existence of a Griffith phase. The intrinsic inhomogeneities produced by thermodynamic phase separation determine the electrical resistivity and magnetoresistance of lanthanum manganites.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Track vs Shower Discrimination in the Event Reconstruction of the ICARUS Experiment

The ICARUS collaboration has employed the 760-ton T600 liquid argon TPC detector in a successful three-year physics run at the underground LNGS laboratory, performing a sensitive search for LSND-like anomalous appearance in the CERN Neutrino to Gran Sasso beam, which contributed to the constraints on the allowed neutrino oscillation parameters to a narrow region around 1 eV. After a significant overhaul at CERN, the T600 detector has been installed at Fermilab. The detector commissioning phase lasted until June 2022, then ICARUS moved to data taking for neutrino oscillation physics collecting events from the Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB) and the Neutrinos at the Main Injector (NuMI) beam off-axis. The initial experiment goals are to either confirm or refute the claim by Neutrino-4 short-baseline reactor experiment, perform measurements of neutrino cross sections with the NuMI beam and several Beyond Standard Model searches. Then, ICARUS will jointly search for evidence of sterile neutrinos with the Short-Baseline Near Detector (SBND). In this contribution, we discuss recent changes to the standard TPC event reconstruction that uses Pandora, a pattern recognition software common to liquid argon-based detectors. In particular, we performed a new training of the Boosted Decision Tree (BDT) employed to separate track-like and shower-like reconstructed particles using Monte Carlo simulations of neutrino events from BNB in ICARUS. We compare the discrimination capabilities of the old and new BDT training and discuss further improvements of this algorithm.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗