Study on human-induced vibration of a cable-stayed bridge without backstays located in abrupt valley

This research aims to assess the pedestrian comfort and to control human-induced vibration of an arch tower cable-stayed bridge without backstays located in canyon. Dynamic simulations of human-induced vibration were carried out with a mode-by-mode approach, and the results indicated that a total of seven lateral and vertical modes of the bridge may suffer from excessive vibrations at the design crowd density. Based on the periodic walking force, the structure response under pedestrian loads was evaluated performing dynamic analyses with two Finite Element models of the footbridge. A single tuned mass damper (STMD) control system was developed for control of human-induced vibration, which consisted of four tuned mass dampers mounted on the mid-span of bridge to enhance damping ratios of lively modes. The results indicate that the maximum acceleration for the first-order lateral and second-order vertical vibration at the design crowd density exceed the associated threshold values referring to the comfort level 1 (CL1) Criteria. The critical pedestrian number of lateral dynamic instability estimated by the Dallard’s empirical formula is much smaller than the dynamic design pedestrian number; and the Dallard’s empirical formula is applicable to estimate the critical pedestrian number of lateral dynamic instability for this bridge by comparing with Pedroe Inês footbridge. The damping ratios for both the vertical and lateral modes increase appreciably after installing the tuned mass dampers and no evidence of large-amplitude vibrations has been observed, leading to the realization of satisfactory comfort levels, which can provide reference for vibration reduction design of this kind of bridge.

Impact of an Antiresonant Oxide Island on the Lasing of Lateral Modes in VCSELs

Use of antiresonant structures is a proven, efficient method of improving lateral mode selectivity in VCSELs. In this paper, we analyze the impact of a low-refractive antiresonant oxide island buried in a top VCSEL mirror on the lasing conditions of lateral modes of different orders. By performing comprehensive thermal, electrical, and optical numerical analysis of the VCSEL device, we show the impact of the size and location of the oxide island on the current-crowding effect and compute threshold currents for various lateral modes. If the island is placed close to the cavity, the threshold shows strong oscillations, which for moderate island distances can be tuned to increase the side mode discrimination. We are therefore able to pinpoint the most important factors influencing mode discrimination and to identify oxide island parameters capable of providing single-lateral-mode emission.

Dynamic modulation of modal coupling in microelectromechanical gyroscopic ring resonators

Understanding and controlling modal coupling in micro/nanomechanical devices is integral to the design of high-accuracy timing references and inertial sensors. However, insight into specific physical mechanisms underlying modal coupling, and the ability to tune such interactions is limited. Here, we demonstrate that tuneable mode coupling can be achieved in capacitive microelectromechanical devices with dynamic electrostatic fields enabling strong coupling between otherwise uncoupled modes. A vacuum-sealed microelectromechanical silicon ring resonator is employed in this work, with relevance to the gyroscopic lateral modes of vibration. It is shown that a parametric pumping scheme can be implemented through capacitive electrodes surrounding the device that allows for the mode coupling strength to be dynamically tuned, as well as allowing greater flexibility in the control of the coupling stiffness. Electrostatic pump based sideband coupling is demonstrated, and compared to conventional strain-mediated sideband operations. Electrostatic coupling is shown to be very efficient, enabling strong, tunable dynamical coupling.

Дискриминация поперечных мод в торцевых полупроводниковых лазерах с пространственной модуляцией отражения выходных зеркал

A post-growth technique aimed at spatial modification of facet reflectance of edge-emitting diode lasers has been proposed. It is based on the deposition of an anti-reflection coating and subsequent precise etching with a focused ion beam. The technique allowed suppressing of high-order lateral modes in 10 μm stripe lasers based on ten layers of InAs/InGaAs quantum dots.

Is patellofemoral pain a precursor to osteoarthritis?

Objectives It has been hypothesized that patellofemoral pain, a common knee condition in adolescents and young adults, may be a precursor of degenerative joint changes and may ultimately lead to patellofemoral osteoarthritis. Since both conditions share several mechanical disease characteristics, such as altered contact area between the femur and patella and increased joint stress, we investigated whether these conditions share similar and different shape characteristics of the patella compared with normal controls. Methods This cross-sectional study compared three different study populations: 32 patellofemoral pain subjects (mean age, 32 years (22 to 45); 72% female); 56 isolated radiological patellofemoral osteoarthritis subjects (mean age, 54 years (44 to 58); 89% female); and 80 healthy control subjects (mean age, 52 years (44 to 58); 74% female). Measurements included questionnaires, and lateral and skyline radiographs of the knee. Two separate 30-point 2D statistical shape models of the patella were created from the lateral and skyline radiographs. A general linear model was used to test for differences in standardized shape modes (a specific shape variant of the patella) between patellofemoral osteoarthritis, patellofemoral pain, and controls, using Bonferroni correction and adjustment for body mass index and gender. Results Five shape modes showed statistically significant differences between groups: skyline modes 1 (p < 0.001), 8 (p = 0.004), and 10 (p < 0.001); and lateral modes 5 (p = 0.002) and 7 (p = 0.002). Skyline mode 8 and lateral mode 5 were similar for patellofemoral osteoarthritis and patellofemoral pain populations, while being statistically significant different from the control group. Conclusion Our results indicate that patellofemoral pain and patellofemoral osteoarthritis share similar shape characteristics, which are different from control subjects. These findings support the proposed continuum disease model of patellofemoral pain predisposing to the development of patellofemoral osteoarthritis. Cite this article: J. F. A. Eijkenboom, J. H. Waarsing, E. H. G. Oei, S. M. A. Bierma-Zeinstra, M. van Middelkoop. Is patellofemoral pain a precursor to osteoarthritis? Patellofemoral osteoarthritis and patellofemoral pain patients share aberrant patellar shape compared with healthy controls. Bone Joint Res 2018;7:541–547. DOI: 10.1302/2046-3758.79.BJR-2018-0112.R1.

Helical Buckling of Drill-Strings

This paper presents experimental and numerical investigations of the complex drill-string vibration, with particular attention to the helical buckling of drill-strings and its influence on the system dynamics. The analysis is conducted using a novel experimental drilling rig, capable of exhibiting of all major types of drill-string vibration, including torsional, axial and lateral modes, which utilizes real industrial drill-bits and rock samples. A good qualitative and quantitative agreement between the experiments and numerical model is demonstrated.