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Recent success in strain engineering has triggered tremendous interest in its study and potential applications in nanodevice design. In this paper, we establish a coupled piezoelectric/semiconducting model for a wurtzite structure ZnO nanofiber under the local mechanical loading. The energy band structure tuned by the local mechanical loading and local length is calculated via an eight-band k · p method, which includes the coupling of valance and conduction bands. Poisson’s effect on the distribution of electric potential inversely depends on the local mechanical loading. Numerical results reveal that both the applied local mechanical loading and the local length exhibit obvious tuning effects on the electric potential and energy band. The band gap at band edges varies linearly with the applied loading. Changing the local length shifts the energy band which is far away from the band edges. This study will be useful in the electronic and optical enhancement of semiconductor devices.

This paper analyzes the characteristics of typical main rooms of biosafety laboratories and the potential energy-saving measures. We calculated the air-conditioning design load for different temperature and humidity ranges in a real high-level biosafety laboratory. The analysis results showed the air exchange rates were fallen into 15–30 times/h, and these ranges can be seen as the best design values without considering other biosafety equipment. In the case, the envelope structure is tightly rigorous, and the number of air change rates can be further reduced. In the next phase of the laboratory specification revision, it can be considered to reduce the required minimum air supply volume, which can bring objective energy-saving benefits.

We develop a theoretical framework that delineates the process by which customer-oriented perspective taking contributes to employees’ proactive service performance. Drawing from motivated information processing and proactivity perspectives, the model hypothesizes that employees’ customer-oriented perspective taking enhances their role breadth self-efficacy (RBSE), which in turn enhances proactive customer service performance and proactive complaint-handling performance. A three-wave, time-lagged study, involving 145 frontline employees and their immediate supervisors in the Chinese hospitality industry, tests the research model. The results of structural equation modelling show taking customers’ perspectives results in a high level of RBSE. This relationship grows stronger if employees exhibit a strongly proactive personality. A high level of RBSE also mediates the interactive effects of customer-oriented perspective taking and proactive personality on proactive customer service performance and proactive complaint-handling performance. These findings provide insights for research on perspective taking, RBSE, and proactive service performance.

This study draws on trait activation theory to examine the effects of frontline hospitality employees’ prosocial motivation on their taking charge and job performance and how job autonomy moderates these effects. We collected data in two stages from 185 pairs of frontline hospitality employees and their direct supervisors, and we found a positive relationship between employees’ prosocial motivation and their taking charge. In addition, job autonomy strengthened this positive relationship, and taking charge mediated the interactive effect of prosocial motivation and job autonomy on job performance. These results suggest that when frontline hospitality employees perceive their level of job autonomy to be high enough to activate their expression of prosocial motivation, they will be more likely to engage in taking charge, which should lead to a higher evaluation of their job performance. Theoretical and practical implications for hospitality industry were discussed at the end of the article.

Dynamic compact tension tests in concrete are investigated using an intermediately-homogenized peridynamic (IH-PD) model, and the results are compared with a fully-homogenized peridynamic (FH-PD) model as well as with experimental data from the literature. In the IH-PD model, concrete is considered as a two-phase material composed of aggregate and mortar, partially homogenized via a stochastic procedure. Both the FH and IH-PD models capture well the experimentally measured reaction-force time-evolution and crack paths for a wide range of dynamic loading rates, without the need for an explicit representation of microstructure geometry of the concrete material or of rate-dependent parameters. The IH-PD model is more accurate than the FH-PD in reproducing the peak loads and produces crack path tortuosity and randomness, similar to what is observed experimentally. These benefits come from the preservation of some micro-scale heterogeneity, stochastically generated to match the concrete’s aggregate volume fraction. We also find that it matters where one measures the reaction force when trying to connect it to fracture and damage progression in the sample: only when measured on the dynamically loaded side of the pre-notch are features in the reaction-force profile matching critical moments like crack initiation, crack branching, and sample final failure. These results provide guidance for future experiments seeking best placement of damage detection sensors and using elastic wave signal analysis in structural health-monitoring of concrete structures.

Based on the acousto-optic interaction, we propose a laser deflection method for rapidly, non-invasively and quantitatively measuring the peak positive pressure of HIFU fields. In the characterization of HIFU fields, the effect of nonlinear propagation is considered. The relation between the laser deflection length and the peak positive pressure is derived. Then the laser deflection method is assessed by comparing it with the hydrophone method. The experimental results show that the peak positive pressure measured by laser deflection method is little higher than that obtained by the hydrophone, confirming that they are in reasonable agreement. Considering that the peak pressure measured by hydrophones is always underestimated, the laser deflection method is assumed to be more accurate than the hydrophone method due to the absence of the errors in hydrophone spatial-averaging measurement and the influence of waveform distortion on hydrophone corrections. Moreover, noting that the Lorentz formula still remains applicable to high-pressure environments, the laser deflection method exhibits a great potential for measuring HIFU field under high-pressure amplitude. Additionally, the laser deflection method provides a rapid way for measuring the peak positive pressure, without the scan time, which is required by the hydrophones.

Conventional hydrophones are usually used below their resonance frequency over a wide frequency band. Resent study showed that the hydrophones operated around the resonance frequency had potential applications in weak signal diagnosis for improving the sensitivity or resolution. However, the conventional hydrostatic model based on off-resonance hydrophone design is incapable of analyzing the hydrophones operated around the resonance frequencies, where the electromechanical response is changed sharply with frequencies. To expand the operating limits of the hydrostatic model, a dynamic model of fluid–structure interaction for analyzing the 1–3 piezoelectric composite hydrophones is presented. An analytical solution for output voltage of the hydrophone operated in thickness-stretch vibration is derived. This dynamic model is sufficient to analyze the 1–3 piezoelectric composite hydrophones over the entire frequency range, especially around the resonance. In addition, the output voltage obtained by dynamic model in the off-resonance range agrees well with those obtained by hydrostatic model. To verify the theoretical analysis, we fabricated a 1–3 piezoelectric composite hydrophone and experimentally measured the output voltage. Experimental results around the resonance show good agreement with the dynamic theory. The output voltage which peaks at the anti-resonance frequency as expected is of three orders of magnitude higher than that of conventional off-resonance hydrophones.

Concrete fracture caused by corrosion of reinforcing bars may cause subsequent structure failure. To better predict this process, we introduce a partially-homogenized stochastic peridynamic model with the simplest constitutive relation (linear elastic with brittle failure). The model links microscale information (phase volume fractions of mortar, aggregates, interfaces) to macroscale fracture behavior, while costing the same as a fully homogenized model. We show, and explain why a fully-homogenized peridynamic model fails to capture the correct concrete fracture modes/patterns, while the new model succeeds. The multiscale model predicts the evolution of fracture in reinforced concrete caused by corrosion products expansion in samples with a single or multiple rebars. Non-uniform expansion of corrosion products is enforced here as preset, incremental radial displacements. The computed fracture patterns and the order in which various cracks develop match what is seen in experiments. The model’s robustness is tested under different stochastic realizations and discretization grid types.

Dynamic morphing of marine species to match with environment changes in color and texture is an advanced means for surviving, self-defense, and reproduction. Here we use colloids that are placed inside a multilayered structure to demonstrate color and texture morphing. The multilayer is composed of a thermal insulating base layer, a light absorbing mid layer, and a liquid top layer. When external light of moderate intensity (∼0.2 W cm(-2)) strikes the structure, colloids inside the liquid layer will be assembled to locations with an optimal absorption. When this system is exposed to continuous laser pulses, more than 18,000 times of reversible responses are recorded, where the system requests 20 ms to start the response and another 160 ms to complete. The flexibility of our concept further allows the system to be built on a variety of light-absorbing substrates, including dyed paper, gold thin film, and amorphous silicon, with the top layer even a solid.

In passive solar greenhouses, the solar energy obtained by the wall cannot be used efficiently for heating the indoor environment, due to a thermal-stable layer inside the wall, which is caused by the limitation in heat transfer properties of building materials. In order to solve this problem, a new system combining an active–passive triple phase change material wall (APTPCMW) and solar concentrators is proposed and introduced in this paper. To investigate the active heat storage performance of APTPCMW, an experiment is designed and carried out. From the experiment, the significant contribution of the new proposed system to improving the heat storage capacity of the middle layer of APTPCMW has been confirmed. Additionally, factors, namely, the gap between air tunnels, the flow direction of heated air, the temperature and velocity of the supply air, have been identified to have influence on the active heat storage performance of APTPCMW. For real applications, optimum operational conditions of APTPCMW have also been identified from the experiment.

This research aims to further improve the thermal performance and the heat charge and discharge efficiency of the developed vertical phase change thermal energy storage device (VPCTESD) in order to adapt the application of VPCTESD in solar energy utilization technology and waste heat utilization technology. Based on the developed heat transfer model of VPCTESD, with experiment and numerical simulation methods, this paper proposes the optimization design parameters of VPCTESD filled with PCMs (called DX-53), including the gap between DX-53 slabs, the velocity of HTF (water) in heat transfer unit's flow passage, the thickness of DX-53, the filling height of DX-53 and divergent length of entrance region. The research result provides the reference methods for evaluation of the thermal performance of VPCTESD.

Fast colloidal motions driven by surface tension gradient are created in a thin water layer. Unlike using solid boundaries to limit the colloidal flow, our work relaxes this condition by directly placing bulk fluid next to an open air environment. When the colloidal flow along the air/water interface is interfered with stationary objects, repetitive semicircular motions, that is, micro eddy, are frequently observed in domains as small as 2 μm. We assign the capillary convection between the liquid next to the air and that from the bulk as the driving force for the observed motions. Relationships among the maximum speed, temperature gradient, and thickness of the liquid layer are experimentally investigated and numerically analyzed. Our results could inspire future designs of micromechanical motors or fluidic mixing in a miniature device.

This article develops and tests a model of emotional labor in the hotel industry using affective event theory. A multiple-wave longitudinal analysis using data from 424 hotel service employees and their immediate supervisors reveals how work contexts (supervisory support) affect work events (interactional justice), and thereby influence the affective (negative emotions), attitudinal (job satisfaction), and behavioral (emotional labor, service quality, and voluntary turnover) reactions of hotel service employees. The results show that (1) supervisory support relates positively to supervisory interactional justice; (2) supervisory interactional justice is negatively associated with negative emotions; (3) negative emotions relate positively to surface acting and negatively to deep acting; (4) surface acting leads to lower job satisfaction, whereas deep acting leads to higher job satisfaction; and (5) job satisfaction leads to higher service quality and lower turnover. The implications suggest important recommendations for hotel managers.

We examined the relationship between leader–member exchange (LMX) quality and the attributions subordinates make about their supervisors’ coaching of them. Data were collected from 270 supervisor–subordinate dyads. Subordinates reported that LMX was positively related to attributions that their supervisor’s coaching was for the benefit of subordinates (other-focused interests), and negatively related to attributions that their supervisors’ coaching was for the benefit of themselves (self-focused interests). Moreover, attributions partially mediated the relationship between LMX quality and both objective and subjective performance with subordinate-attributed supervisors’ other-focused interests positively related to performance but subordinate-attributed supervisors’ self-focused interests negatively related to performance.

This paper documents how PRC-based Japanese affiliates can align their human resource management (HRM) policies and practices with their business strategies based on in-depth interview surveys of the five leading Japanese manufacturers in China. In particular, using a multiple-informant research design to interview both top and human resource managers in each site, the study has attempted to clarify the strategic fit between the business strategies pursued and HRM practices adopted in China. Our interviews with top management for each affiliate revealed three types of business strategies that the PRC-based affiliates adopt to gain competitiveness in the Chinese market. Separate interviews with HR managers further clarified that affiliates' HRM efforts are aligned with the strategy each affiliate is pursuing. The findings are used to suggest several hypothesized relationships between the particular strategies pursued and the HRM practices adopted in China. Furthermore, this study has provided some importan...

This current study investigates how employees' organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) mediates the relationships among perceived human resource management practices (i.e., retention-oriented compensation and formalized training) on the employees' intention to leave their jobs. The universalistic proposition framework provides the basis for this study. Using a sample of 152 respondents from a Sino-Japanese joint venture located in China, we found that retention-oriented compensation and formalized training are positively related to the engagement of OCB, while they are negatively associated with intention to leave the organization. In addition, we also discovered that OCB mediates the effects of retention-oriented compensation and formalized training on the said intention to leave. We likewise discuss their implications in this study.

Mass sensitivity of thickness-twist vibration modes in a rectangular plate piezoelectric resonator of 6 mm crystals are obtained from the three-dimensional equations of linear piezoelectricity. The boundary conditions at the finite-plate boundaries all have been taken into consideration. The solutions obtained are exact, which is relatively few for piezoelectric problems over finite domains. The results are fundamental and useful to the understanding and design of piezoelectric resonators and acoustic wave sensors made of polarized ceramics, ZnO and AlN.

We study thickness-twist vibrations and waves in an unbounded, multi-sectioned piezoelectric plate of crystals with 6 mm symmetry or polarized ceramics. An exact solution from the three-dimensional equations of piezoelectricity is obtained. Basic vibration and wave propagation characteristics are calculated based on the solution. The results are useful in the understanding and design of plate resonators, filters and acoustic wave sensors of ZnO, AlN and polarized ceramics.

Past research offers numerous “best practice” studies in New Product Development (NPD). One important characteristic of the earlier “best practice” studies is that they are primarily based on Western samples. Because management practices, cultures, and norms differ around the world it has been argued that the findings of the earlier studies will likely to be less applicable to firms managing NPD outside the West. This study fills this gap by surveying Hong Kong companies and comparing the NPD activities in Hong Kong with those in the US. The results revealed interesting similarities and differences between US and Hong Kong firms with regard to their NPD activities.

This study investigated to what extent the organizational context for managerial career progress perceived by managers, consisting of (1) the quality of the environment for career progress, (2) performance-based promotion practices and (3) in-house training opportunities, is different in Chinese and Japanese corporations. Also, the effects of corporate size, managers' age, management level and educational level on the perceived career progress environment were examined. MANCOVA results indicated that Japanese managers working for Japanese corporations in Japan enjoy more favourable career progress environment in all three aspects (Wilks' {\rm \mgreek{l} = .80,} F = 24.70, p < .0005 ) than Chinese managers in Chinese state-owned corporations (CSOCs) and Sino-foreign joint venture corporations (SFJVCs) in China. However, no meaningful differences were found between CSOCs and SFJVCs with respect to the organizational context for managerial career progress. Regarding the influence of environmental factors, co...

The purpose of the present study was to identify the pattern of HRM practices that would lead to an improvement in business performance in Chinese- and Taiwanese-based Japanese affiliates in the light of a configurational perspective, following the current debate in the field of strategic human resource management (SHRM). In particular, a set of working hypotheses regarding the structural relationship among HRM practices for producing enhanced business results was drawn from the organizational learning theoretical framework that emphasizes a linkage between the process of learning and firm performance. Our conceptual model and specific hypotheses were examined using a sample of 286 Japanese affiliates operating in Mainland China and Taiwan. The results provided basic support for the configurational hypothesis in predicting the financial aspect of an affiliate's performance. It is argued that the findings of the study have several important implications for the untested relationships between high commitment work practices (HCWPs) and high performance work systems (HPWSs) from a Japanese management perspective. In addition, the manner in which each HRM technique can be used by Japanese overseas affiliates to enhance their learning and adaptive capabilities is discussed.

This study tries to identify dimensions of managerial skill practices based on the business process model developed for the present study. The 22-item Managerial Skill instrument was developed to measure the level of practicing these skills by Japanese managers sampled for this study from 9 manufacturing companies in Tokyo and Nagoya areas (N=371). The result of a factor analysis of MS instrument identified the following four skill dimensions: Business Innovation (BI), Team Effectiveness Building (TEB), People Management (PM) and Result Producing (RP) skills. These factors were found compatible with skill requirements occurring in four phases in the business process model of this study. Hypotheses were presented stating that managerial skill practices will be highest among managers working for highly globalized companies engaging in market-oriented jobs, relative to those in other situations. Also, the manager's position level, exchange relations with the leader (LMX) and the quality of environment for managerial career progress will affect the level of managerial skill practices in four dimensions, in particular BI skill practices. Results of statistical analyses provided basic support to key hypotheses stated above. Discussions were made regarding how effective are Japanese managers' skill practices at the office level in a comparative perspective with those of Western and other Asian managers, and also with the effective Japanese production management systems at the shop-floor level.

The present study was conducted to explore managerial skills required formanagers working for the corporations in Japan, China and Taiwan. For thepurpose of comparing differences in the pattern of managerial skill practices, Chinese managers in state-owned (n=276) and joint venture (n=186) corporations, Japanese managers in Japanese corporations (n=377) and Taiwanesemanagers in Taiwanese corporations (n=139) were asked to respond the Managerial Skill Questionnaires (total N=978). The MSQ using the 22 skillitems asked managers to report how frequently they practice each skill based ona 5-point scale, and choose the five most important skills needed for them toimprove their managerial job performance in their organizations.Results of the comparative analyses indicated that both Chinese and Taiwanese managers were found practicing Human Management and Teamworkskills more frequently, while Japanese managers practicing Business Innovation skills relatively more than others. The analysis of critical skills forimproving managerial performance indicated that Japanese managers identifystrategic, problem identification and decision making skills to be most critical, while Chinese and Taiwanese managers do people-oriented and teamwork skillsmost critical for improving their job performance. These findings wereinterpreted based on differences in managing the cycle of business processes, culture, and the nature of market pressures in each country.

This study was designed to investigate differences in the organizational context for career progress among Chinese state-owned (SOCs), Sino-foreign joint venture (JVCs) in China, and Japanese corporations (JCs) in Japan. The sample for the questionnaire survey consisted of 880 managers: Japanese managers in JCs (n=365), and Chinese managers in SOCs (n=308) and JVCs (n=207). Results of the data analyses indicated that (1) the quality of managerial personnel was found improved considerably in recent years in Chinese corporations as a result of promoting young and college-graduate employees to the middle and lower-middle management levels since the end of 1970s. However, (2) the career progress environment for managers was found still meager in Chinese JVCs and SOCs relative to that of Japanese organizations. In addition, (3) the performance-based promotion criteria and in-company training were found less frequently practiced in SOCs and JVCs than in JCs. These results indicated that the organizational context for managerial HRD is more favorable for Japanese managers than for SOC and JVC colleagues, giving support to major hypotheses for this study. These findings implies that the accelerated management reform in Chinese corporations, particularly in SOCs, is required for generating more favorable career progress conditions to help Chinese managers develop themselves and their management organizations.

This study was designed to explore managerial skills required for managers working for the corporations in Japan, China and Taiwan. For the purpose of comparing differences in the pattern of managerial skill practices, Chinese managers in state-owned (n = 276) and joint venture (n = 186) corporations, Japanese managers (n = 377) in Japanese corporations and Taiwanese managers (n = 139) in Taiwanese corporations were asked to respond the Managerial Skill Questionnaires (total N=978) . The MSQ using the 22 skill items asked managers to report how frequently they practice each skill based on a 5-point scale, and choose the five most important skills needed for them to improve their managerial job performance in their organizations. Results of the data analyses indicated that the four major skill factors, namely Organizational Development (OD), Organizational Goal Attainment (OGA), Proper Use of Personnel (PUP) and Technical Skills (TS) are salient as common skill dimensions among sample managers. Particularly, both Chinese and Taiwanese managers were found practicing PUP and teamwork skills more frequently, while Japanese managers practicing OD skills relatively more than others. The analysis of critical skills for improving managerial performance indicated that Japanese managers identify strategic, problem identification and decision making skills to be most critical, while Chinese and Taiwanese managers do people-oriented and teamwork skills most critical for improving their job performance. But, Taiwanese were found different from Chinese managers in emphasizing the teamwork skill and technical expertise more than their Chinese colleagues who tend to choose fair treatment and quality control skills to be more critical. These findings were interpreted based on differences in culture and the nature of market pressures in which managers working in each country.

Recently, many Chinese state-owned corporations (SOCs) have started to change the traditional management system into the morden one. As a result, the quality of managers in SOCs has increased and their performance has improved. In this study, an effort was made to find ten most important skills for managers in Chinese SOCs:(1) that characterise their present level of managerial performance, (2) that are required for improving their managerial performance on the present job, and (3) that will be critical for Chinese managers to function effectively under the market economy situations. The results identified the common seven skills across these three different situations: namely skills of strategic thinking, profit consciousness, proper use of personnel, decision making, quality control, motivating, and innovativeness, but with a different order of importance for each situation. However, in different situations, some additional different skills were found important. In summary, most of the top ten skills were found to belong to the category of organizational development capabilities. Some differences that were found between different managerial levels and between high and low performing SOCs were discussed.

One of the important components of China's economic reform started in 1979 is to introduce foreign captial and to establish Chinese-foreign joint venture corporations (JVCs). Generally speaking, managers seem to enjoy more power to manage their business in JVCs than those in Chinese state-owned corporations (SOCs). Past research shows that organizations need to maintain practices which are consistent with the overall business strategy in order to remain competitive in the global market (Caligiuri and Stroh, 1995). This is particularly true for managerial human resources. Ishida (1996) reported that many Japanese globalizing corporations do not put the first priority on profit, but on strengthening network systems and HRM systems to cope with the international competition and technological changes. Contrary to these global business practices, Chinese managers are doing their job mainly within the changing domestic rather than global business environment, although they are quite aware of the strategic importance of linking the long-term plan with the changing global business environment (Chen, 1996; Chen and Wakabayashi, 1997). What is particularly important for Chinese managers in JVCs and SOCs in this connection is to acquire needed knowledge and skills to cope with the changing environment. For the purpose of identifying what kinds of managerial skills and abilities are required to achieve effective managerial performance, the present study was designed to isolate ten critical managerial skills for managers in SOCs and in Japanese JVCs in China. The results suggest there exist basically no significant difference in the critical managerial skills required between the two groups of managers. Discussions were made on opportunities to use managerial skills on the job and the career progress environment as determinates of skill utilization and learning.

Drawing upon conservation of resources theory, this study aims to examine when and how taking charge brings benefits and costs to employees. Using data collected from 392 employees and their superv...

We studied the effect of electrodes with varying thicknesses on thickness-twist modes in a piezoelectric plate resonator of crystals of 6 mm symmetry. The focus is on the effects of asymmetric electrodes, which do not seem to have been examined before. A theoretical analysis is performed using the theory of linear piezoelectricity. A trigonometric series solution is obtained that is relatively rare from the equations of piezoelectricity. Numerical calculations are made based on the series solution. Results show that asymmetric, nonuniform electrodes have a strong effect on vibration mode shapes. This effect offers the possibility of using nonuniform electrodes in design to achieve various goals. The quantitative results in this paper are useful for the purpose.

We study the propagation of thickness-twist waves through a joint between two semi-infinite piezoelectric plates of crystals with 6-mm symmetry or polarized ceramics. An exact solution from the three-dimensional equations of piezoelectricity is obtained. The solution shows the cutoff of certain waves and the presence of localized electromechanical fields near the joint. The results are of fundamental importance to the understanding and design of resonators and other devices made from plates of these materials, in particular thin film resonators of ZnO and AlN.

We study thickness-twist vibration of a finite, piezoelectric plate of polarized ceramics or 6-mm crystals driven by surface mechanical loads. An exact solution from the three-dimensional equations of piezoelectricity is obtained. The plate is properly electroded and connected to a circuit such that an electric output is generated. The structure analyzed represents a piezoelectric generator for converting mechanical energy to electrical energy. Analytical expressions for the output voltage, current, power, efficiency, and power density are given. The basic behaviors of the generator are shown by numerical results.

We identified two sources of decision-making authority that an employee has, namely authority from the job position and authority from a supervisor. Based on needs theory and social exchange theory...