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The COVID-19 pandemic, alternatively known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an unfolding pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) across the entire globe in an unprecedented proportion. COVID-19 is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. The mode of transmission of COVID-19 is a subject of intense research. The airborne transmission is one prime possibility. Breathing and talking are natural processes which generate exhaled particles. The exhaled air is an aerosol/droplet composed of naturally produced particulates of varying size. The duration over which the aerosols/droplets are suspended in the air is an important factor. Long suspended aerosols/droplets are potential source of transmission, particularly in confined spaces. We have calculated times of suspension by considering various environmental factors, namely, the ambient temperature and relative humidity in a confined space, in this work. Both temperature and relative humidity affect the suspension time of the exhaled aerosols/droplets with varying degree. The effects of environmental factors are significant for aerosols, particularly for those with small radii. We have discussed the possible implications of our findings in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hole doped high-Tc cuprate superconductors are strongly correlated electronic systems. In these materials, various electronic orders are often found, but whether they support or compete with superconducting order is not unambiguous. Superconductivity normally manifests itself by a superconducting gap in the electronic density of states (EDOS). In cuprates, a gap appears even in the normal state called the pseudogap (PG). For certain doping range, spin density wave and charge density wave coexist with superconductivity by inducing corresponding additional gaps in the EDOS. In this study, we have tried to obtain expression for superconducting transition temperature, Tc by solving the BCS (Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer) energy gap equation in the presence of depleted EDOS of various origins and types. We have been successful to solve the weak-coupling BCS integral equation analytically in some special cases and also in the general case by using numerical integration. We have found that depending on conditions these non-pairing gaps/orders can enhance as well as reduce Tc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have investigated Vickers hardness and the thermodynamic properties of the recently discovered nanolaminate carbide Ti3SnC2 polymorphs using the first-principles calculations. The chemical bonding shows a combination of covalent, ionic and metallic types. The strong covalent bonding is mainly responsible for high Vickers hardness of Ti3SnC2olymorphs. Thermodynamic properties are studied using the quasi-harmonic Debye model. The variation of bulk modulus, thermal expansion coefficient, specific heats, and Debye temperature with applied pressure (P) and temperature (T) are investigated systematically within the ranges of 0 - 50 GPa and 0 - 1000 K. The calculated results have been compared with available experimental and theoretical data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is the first DFT-based first-principles prediction of the detailed optical and thermodynamic properties, including Vickers hardness and Fermi surface of 211 MAX phase Ti2GeC for which superconductivity (Tc~ 9.5 K) was reported very recently. The calculated structural properties are in excellent agreement with experiments. Our results on elastic parameters indicate a slight elastic anisotropy and brittleness of the compound. The chemical bonding is seen to be a combination of covalent, ionic and metallic nature. The rather stronger covalent bonding is responsible for its high Vickers hardness of 11.6 GPa. The investigated Fermi surface is formed mainly by the low-dispersive bands, which should be responsible for the presence of superconductivity in Ti2GeC. All the optical properties are evaluated and analyzed for two different polarization directions of incident photon. The temperature and pressure dependence of primitive cell volume, thermal expansion coefficient, specific heats, bulk modulus, and Debye temperature of Ti2GeC are derived from the quasi-harmonic Debye model with phononic effect and the various implications are discussed in details. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nature of the temperature dependence of the zero-field critical current density, Jc0(T), in the CuO2 planes has been investigated for c-axis oriented YBa2Cu3O7-δ (Y123) thin films over a range of hole content, p. The hole concentration was varied by changing the oxygen deficiency, δ, in the CuO1-δ chains by annealing the films under different oxygen partial pressures and temperatures. The Jc0(T) values were extracted from the magnetic hysteresis (M-H) loops obtained at different temperatures. From the analysis of the Jc0(T) data for different sample compositions, we have extracted valuable information regarding the nature of the underlying magnetic flux pinning mechanisms in Y123 superconductors. We have found that the oxygen defects play only a secondary role in pinning of the vortices, the superfluid density, on the other hand plays a significant role. The exponent, n, governing the Jc0(T) behavior for a given sample composition showed a systematic behavior as hole contents are changed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In view of continuing interest in the parent compound of the recently discovered superconducting iron-oxypnictide (LaO1-xFxFeAs) we present fresh results and analyses of ab-initio calculations of the electronic band structure, lattice dynamical properties, and elastic constants assuming it to be insulating as well as metallic. The total and partial electronic density of states (EDOS) of the undoped LaOFeAs in both states are extracted from the electronic band structure. The phonon dispersion and the phonon density of states (PDOS) are also studied. Possible implications of the band structure, EDOS, and PDOS of LaOFeAs on the eventual appearance of high-Tc superconductivity upon carrier doping are discussed. Our findings reveal that phonons are unlikely to mediate Cooper pairing in RE- OFeAs. In addition, the values of various independent elastic constants of the compound assuming both insulating and metallic states are estimated and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]