The reformulation of the mode-coupling theory (MCT) of the liquid-glass transition which incorporates the element of metastability is applied to the hard-sphere system. It is shown that the glass transition in this system is not a sharp one at the special value of the density or the packing fraction, which is in contrast to the prediction by the conventional MCT. Instead we find that the slowin...

Recent simulations indicate that ellipsoids can pack randomly more densely than spheres and, remarkably, for axes ratios near 1.25:1:0.8 can approach the densest crystal packing (fcc) of spheres, with a packing fraction of 74%. We demonstrate that such dense packings are realizable. We introduce a novel way of determining packing density for a finite sample that minimizes surface effects. We ha...

Close-packings of uniformly-sized spheres with centres on various lattices are described, with volume fractions equal or close to the maximum possible = p 18 (this value has long been `known' via Kepler's conjecture, and has been proved). Regular packings with two or three sized spheres can push this volume fraction to beyond 80%. The bulk of the paper studies irregular `packings' of a large sp...

Studies of random close packing of spheres have advanced our knowledge about the structure of systems such as liquids, glasses, emulsions, granular media, and amorphous solids. In confined geometries, the structural properties of random-packed systems will change. To understand these changes, we study random close packing in finite-sized confined systems, in both two and three dimensions. Each ...

We have investigated experimentally the influence of a magnetic interaction between the grains on the compaction dynamics of a granular pile submitted to a series of taps. The granular material used to perform this study is a mixture of metallic and glass grains. The packing is immersed in homogeneous external magnetic field. The magnetic field induces an interaction between the metallic grains...

BACKGROUND Rates of durable aneurysm occlusion following coil embolization vary widely, and a better understanding of coil mass mechanics is desired. The goal of this study is to evaluate the impact of packing density and coil uniformity on aneurysm permeability. METHODS Aneurysm models were coiled using either Guglielmi detachable coils or Target coils. The permeability was assessed by takin...

In a previous paper [Hidalgo et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 118001 (2009)] it was shown that square particles deposited in a silo tend to align with a diagonal parallel to the gravity, giving rise to a deposit with very particular properties. Here we explore, both experimentally and numerically, the effect on these properties of the filling mechanism. In particular, we modify the volume fraction...

The geometrical stability of the three lattices of the cubic crystal system, viz. face-centered cubic (fcc), body-centered cubic (bcc), and simple cubic (sc), consisting of bimodal discrete hard spheres, and the transition to amorphous packing is studied. First, the random close packing (rcp) fraction of binary mixtures of amorphously packed spheres is recapitulated. Next, the packing of a bina...

Purpose Intra-vaginal packing is used to fix the applicator and displace organs at risk (OAR) during high-dose-rate intracavitary tandem and ovoid brachytherapy (HDR-ICB). We retain the speculum from applicator placement as a dual-function bladder and rectum retractor during treatment. Our objective is to review salient techniques for OAR displacement, share our packing technique, and determine...