Radiation-sustained nanocluster metastability in oxide dispersion strengthened materials

Science.gov (United States)

Ribis, J.; Bordas, E.; Trocellier, P.; Serruys, Y.; de Carlan, Y.; Legris, A.

2015-12-01

ODS materials constitute a new promising class of structural materials for advanced fission and fusion energy application. These Fe-Cr based ferritic steels contain ultra-high density of dispersion-strengthening nanoclusters conferring excellent mechanical properties to the alloy. Hence, guarantee the nanocluster stability under irradiation remain a critical issue. Nanoclusters are non-equilibrium multicomponent compounds (YTiCrO) forming through a complex nucleation pathway during the elaboration process. In this paper, it is proposed to observe the response of these nanoclusters when the system is placed far from equilibrium by means of ion beam. The results indicate that the Y, Ti, O and Cr atoms self-organized so that nanoclusters coarsened but maintain their non-equilibrium chemical composition. It is discussed that the radiation-sustained nanocluster metastability emerges from cooperative effects: radiation-induced Ostwald ripening, permanent creation of vacancies in the clusters, and fast Cr diffusion mediated by interstitials.

Radiation-sustained nanocluster metastability in oxide dispersion strengthened materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ribis, J.; Bordas, E.; Trocellier, P.; Serruys, Y.; Carlan, Y. de; Legris, A.

2015-01-01

ODS materials constitute a new promising class of structural materials for advanced fission and fusion energy application. These Fe–Cr based ferritic steels contain ultra-high density of dispersion-strengthening nanoclusters conferring excellent mechanical properties to the alloy. Hence, guarantee the nanocluster stability under irradiation remain a critical issue. Nanoclusters are non-equilibrium multicomponent compounds (YTiCrO) forming through a complex nucleation pathway during the elaboration process. In this paper, it is proposed to observe the response of these nanoclusters when the system is placed far from equilibrium by means of ion beam. The results indicate that the Y, Ti, O and Cr atoms self-organized so that nanoclusters coarsened but maintain their non-equilibrium chemical composition. It is discussed that the radiation-sustained nanocluster metastability emerges from cooperative effects: radiation-induced Ostwald ripening, permanent creation of vacancies in the clusters, and fast Cr diffusion mediated by interstitials.

Consitutive modeling of metastable austenitic stainless steel

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Perdahcioglu, Emin Semih; Perdahcioglu, Emin Semih

2008-01-01

Metastable austenitic stainless steels combine high formability and high strength, which are generally opposing properties in materials. This property is a consequence of the martensitic phase transformation that takes place during deformation. This transformation is purely mechanically induced

Heavy-ion irradiation induced diamond formation in carbonaceous materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Daulton, T. L.

1999-01-01

The basic mechanisms of metastable phase formation produced under highly non-equilibrium thermodynamic conditions within high-energy particle tracks are investigated. In particular, the possible formation of diamond by heavy-ion irradiation of graphite at ambient temperature is examined. This work was motivated, in part, by earlier studies which discovered nanometer-grain polycrystalline diamond aggregates of submicron-size in uranium-rich carbonaceous mineral assemblages of Precambrian age. It was proposed that the radioactive decay of uranium formed diamond in the fission particle tracks produced in the carbonaceous minerals. To test the hypothesis that nanodiamonds can form by ion irradiation, fine-grain polycrystalline graphite sheets were irradiated with 400 MeV Kr ions. The ion irradiated graphite (and unirradiated graphite control) were then subjected to acid dissolution treatments to remove the graphite and isolate any diamonds that were produced. The acid residues were then characterized by analytical and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The acid residues of the ion-irradiated graphite were found to contain ppm concentrations of nanodiamonds, suggesting that ion irradiation of bulk graphite at ambient temperature can produce diamond

Metastable gravity on classical defects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ringeval, Christophe; Rombouts, Jan-Willem

2005-01-01

We discuss the realization of metastable gravity on classical defects in infinite-volume extra dimensions. In dilatonic Einstein gravity, it is found that the existence of metastable gravity on the defect core requires violation of the dominant energy condition for codimension N c =2 defects. This is illustrated with a detailed analysis of a six-dimensional hyperstring minimally coupled to dilaton gravity. We present the general conditions under which a codimension N c >2 defect admits metastable modes, and find that they differ from lower codimensional models in that, under certain conditions, they do not require violation of energy conditions to support quasilocalized gravity

Desensitization of metastable intermolecular composites

Science.gov (United States)

Busse, James R [South Fork, CO; Dye, Robert C [Los Alamos, NM; Foley, Timothy J [Los Alamos, NM; Higa, Kelvin T [Ridgecrest, CA; Jorgensen, Betty S [Jemez Springs, NM; Sanders, Victor E [White Rock, NM; Son, Steven F [Los Alamos, NM

2011-04-26

A method to substantially desensitize a metastable intermolecular composite material to electrostatic discharge and friction comprising mixing the composite material with an organic diluent and removing enough organic diluent from the mixture to form a mixture with a substantially putty-like consistency, as well as a concomitant method of recovering the metastable intermolecular composite material.

Metastability-exchange optical pumping of 3He for neutron polarizers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gentile, T.R.; Thompson, A.K.; Snow, W.M.

1995-01-01

Research is underway at NIST and IU to develop neutron polarizers that are based on polarized 3 He. Such polarizers rely on the strong spin dependence of the cross section for neutron capture by polarized 3 He. Two methods can produce the high density of polarized 3 He gas (10 19 -10 20 cm -3 ) required for an effective neutron polarizer: spin-exchange optical pumping, which is performed directly at high pressure (1-10 bar), and metastability-exchange optical pumping, in which the gas is polarized at low pressure (1 mbar) and then compressed. While we are pursuing both methods, progress in the metastable method will be discussed. The features of the metastable method are the high rate at which the gas can be polarized and the inherent separation of the optical pumping and target cells. In a landmark achievement, researchers at the Univ. of Mainz have developed a piston compressor that can fill a 130 cm 3 cell to a pressure of 7 bar of 45% polarized 3 He gas in 2 hours. We plan to develop a compressor and test it at the NIST Cold Neutron Research Facility. We have constructed a metastable-pumping apparatus at NIST and have obtained 76% polarization with a pumping rate of 1.2 x 10 18 atoms/sec in a 0.4 mbar, 270 cm 3 cell

Metastable dark energy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ricardo G. Landim

2017-01-01

Full Text Available We build a model of metastable dark energy, in which the observed vacuum energy is the value of the scalar potential at the false vacuum. The scalar potential is given by a sum of even self-interactions up to order six. The deviation from the Minkowski vacuum is due to a term suppressed by the Planck scale. The decay time of the metastable vacuum can easily accommodate a mean life time compatible with the age of the universe. The metastable dark energy is also embedded into a model with SU(2R symmetry. The dark energy doublet and the dark matter doublet naturally interact with each other. A three-body decay of the dark energy particle into (cold and warm dark matter can be as long as large fraction of the age of the universe, if the mediator is massive enough, the lower bound being at intermediate energy level some orders below the grand unification scale. Such a decay shows a different form of interaction between dark matter and dark energy, and the model opens a new window to investigate the dark sector from the point-of-view of particle physics.

Cross sections of electron excitation out of metastable helium levels with a fast metastable target product produced via charge exchange

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lagus, M.E.; Boffard, J.B.; Anderson, L.W.; Lin, C.C.

1996-01-01

Absolute direct cross sections for electron excitation out of the 2 3 S level and into the 3 3 D, 4 3 D, and 3 3 S levels of the helium atom from threshold to 500 eV and into the 3 3 P level over a more limited energy range have been measured using a fast metastable atomic beam target. We produce the metastable atoms via near-resonant charge exchange between a 1.6-keV He + ion beam and Cs vapor. Because this reaction is highly nonresonant with the ground state of helium, the charge-transfer process yields a primarily metastable beam. We use a thermal detector which we calibrate with ions to measure absolutely the neutral beam flux. The atomic beam is crossed by an electron beam, and we collect the resulting fluorescence at right angles to both the electron and atomic beams. We obtain the cross sections for excitation out of the 2 3 S level into the various excited levels by monitoring the emission out of the excited level of interest. copyright 1996 The American Physical Society

Energetic Metastable Oxygen and Nitrogen Atoms in the Terrestrial Atmosphere

Science.gov (United States)

Kharchenko, Vasili; Dalgarno, A.

2005-01-01

This report summarizes our research performed under NASA Grant NAG5-11857. The three-year grant have been supported by the Geospace Sciences SR&T program. We have investigated the energetic metastable oxygen and nitrogen atoms in the terrestrial stratosphere, mesosphere and thermosphere. Hot atoms in the atmosphere are produced by solar radiation, the solar wind and various ionic reactions. Nascent hot atoms arise in ground and excited electronic states, and their translational energies are larger by two - three orders of magnitude than the thermal energies of the ambient gas. The relaxation kinetics of hot atoms determines the rate of atmospheric heating, the intensities of aeronomic reactions, and the rate of atom escape from the planet. Modeling of the non-Maxwellian energy distributions of metastable oxygen and nitrogen atoms have been focused on the determination of their impact on the energetics and chemistry of the terrestrial atmosphere between 25 and 250 km . At this altitudes, we have calculated the energy distribution functions of metastable O and N atoms and computed non-equilibrium rates of important aeronomic reactions, such as destruction of the water molecules by O(1D) atoms and production of highly excited nitric oxide molecules. In the upper atmosphere, the metastable O(lD) and N(2D) play important role in formation of the upward atomic fluxes. We have computed the upward fluxes of the metastable and ground state oxygen atoms in the upper atmosphere above 250 km. The accurate distributions of the metastable atoms have been evaluated for the day and night-time conditions.

Metastable hydrogen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dose, V.

1982-01-01

This paper deals with the basic physical properties of the metastable 2 2 sub(1/2) state of atomic hydrogen. Applications relying on its special properties, including measurement of the Lamb shift, production of spin-polarized protons and the measurement of molecular electric moments, are discussed. (author)

KSb(OH) samples previously treated with Co y - rays irradiated with neutrons

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Facetti, J F [Asuncion Nacional Univ. (Paraguay). Inst. de Ciencias

1969-01-01

When Ksb (OH) samples previously treated with Co y - rays or crushed are irradiated with neutrons, the yield of Sb and the annealing mechanism are apparently modified by the pretreatment. In addition it is shown that metastable species of Sb are formed under irradiation.

Strain release in metastable CdSe/CdS quantum dots

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gong, Ke; Beane, Gary; Kelley, David F., E-mail: dfkelley@ucmerced.edu

2016-06-01

Highlights: • We have synthesized CdSe/CdS core/shell quantum dots in the “stable” and “metastable” regimes. • Annealing of metastable particles causes lattice strain release, producing hole-trapping defects. • Electron microscopy imaging is relatively insensitive to defects that result in rapid radiationless decay. - Abstract: It has recently been shown (J. Phys. Chem. Lett., 2015, 6, 1559) that high quantum yields (QYs) in zincblende CdSe/CdS quantum dots can be achieved when the lattice strain energy density is in the stable (0–0.59 eV/nm{sup 2}) or metastable (0.59–0.85 eV/nm{sup 2}) regime. Annealing of metastable particles causes a dramatic reduction in the observed QY and a red shift of the absorbance and photoluminescence. In this work we demonstrate that the decline in QY upon annealing is due to the formation of hole traps. These traps, while dramatically affecting the observed QY, produce no significant changes in either morphology or crystallinity as determined by high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM).

Formation of metastable phases in magnesium–titanium system by high-pressure torsion and their hydrogen storage performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Edalati, Kaveh; Emami, Hoda; Staykov, Aleksandar; Smith, David J.; Akiba, Etsuo; Horita, Zenji

2015-01-01

No binary phases exist in the Mg–Ti binary equilibrium phase diagram and the two elements are totally immiscible even in liquid form. This study shows that four metastable phases (two with the bcc and fcc structures and two with the hcp structures) are formed in the Mg–Ti system by severe plastic deformation (SPD) through the process of high-pressure torsion (HPT). Investigation of hydrogenation properties reveals that these metastable phases are decomposed to pure Mg and Ti during heating before they can absorb the hydrogen in the form of ternary Mg–Ti hydrides. First-principles calculations show that the hydrogenation reaction should occur thermodynamically, and ternary Mg–Ti hydrides with the cubic structure should form at low temperature. However, the slow kinetics for this reaction appears to be the limiting step. Calculations show that the binding energy of hydrogen increases and the thermodynamic stability of hydrides undesirably increases by addition of Ti to Mg

Metastable Supersymmetry Breaking in a Cooling Universe

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaplunovsky, Vadim S.

2007-01-01

I put metastable supersymmetry breaking in a cosmological context. I argue that under reasonable assumptions, the cooling down early Universe favors metastable SUSY-breaking vacua over the stable supersymmetric vacua. To illustrate the general argument, I analyze the early-Universe history of the Intriligator-Seiberg-Shih model

On a metastable vacuum burning phenomenon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berezin, V.A.; Tkachev, I.I.; Kuzmin, V.A.; AN SSSR, Moscow. Inst. Yadernykh Issledovanij)

1983-02-01

Equations of motion of an interface between two phases with arbitrary equations of state are obtained. It is found that there may take place a process of metastable vacuum burning. It is shown that under some conditions the process of the new phase bubble expansion is described by the detonation wave equations. Possible cosmological consequences of the metastable phase burning effect are briefly discussed. (author)

Metastable enhancement of C+ and O+ capture reactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thomas, E.W.

1992-01-01

The project is devoted to the study of charge transfer neutralization of Carbon and oxygen ions in H and H 2 gases at energies from 10 to 500 eV. A major motivation was to provide cross section data to support analysis of edge plasmas in Tokamak Fusion devices. The first objective was to measure cross sections for metastable excited singly charged ions separately from the cross sections for ground state ions. Previously published values are confusing because the beams used included unknown fractions of metastables and these metastables have cross sections greatly different from the ground states. The program was fully accomplished, metastable cross sections were found to be over an order of magnitude greater than ones for the ground state and existing discrepancies in the literature were resolved. Considerable effort was devoted to the design and operation of ion source configurations were the metastable content of the ion beam was known. Subsequently study progressed to the neutralization of multiply charged C and 0 ions in the same targets. First there has been a need to develop ion sources which can produce useful beams of multiply charged species. This has now been accomplished. The intent is to use these sources for the measurement of cross sections with again an attempt to differentiate between the behavior of ground and metastably excited species

Self-organization in the localised failure regime: metastable attractors and their implications on force chain functionality

Science.gov (United States)

Pucilowski, Sebastian; Tordesillas, Antoinette; Froyland, Gary

2017-06-01

In transitive metastable chaotic dynamical systems, there are no invariant neighbourhoods in the phase space. The best that one can do is look for metastable or almost-invariant (AI) regions as a means to decompose the system into its basic self-organising building blocks. Here we study the metastable dynamics of a dense granular material embodying strain localization in 3D from the perspective of its conformational landscape: the state space of all observed conformations as defined by the local topology of individual grains relative to their first ring of contacting neighbors. We determine the metastable AI sets that divide this conformational landscape, such that grain rearrangements from one conformation to another conformation in the same AI set occurs with high probability: by contrast, grain rearrangements involving conformational transitions between AI sets are unlikely. The great majority of conformational transitions are identity transitions: grains rearrange and exchange contacts to preserve those topological properties with the greatest influence on cluster stability, namely, the number of contacts and 3-cycles. Force chains show a clear preference for that AI set with the most number of accessible and highly connected conformations. Here force chains continually explore the conformational landscape, wandering from one rarely inhabited conformation to another. As force chains become overloaded and buckle, the energy released enables member grains to overcome the high dynamical barriers that separate metastable regions and subsequently escape one region to enter another in the conformational landscape. Thus, compared to grains locked in stable force chains, those in buckling force chains, confined to the shear band, show a greater propensity for not only non-identity transitions within each metastable region but also inter-transitions between metastable regions.

Intracranial meningiomas after high-dose irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soffer, D.; Gomori, J.M.; Siegal, T.; Shalit, M.N.

1989-01-01

Three patients who presented with intracranial meningiomas 12, 15, and 20 years, respectively, after therapeutic high-dose irradiation of a primary brain tumor are described. Analysis of these cases and similar documented cases suggests that meningiomas after high-dose irradiation constitute a recognizable entity. Patients with such tumors received radiation therapy at a young age (mean age, 9.4 years). After a latent period of 2 to 47 years (mean, 19.8 years) they developed meningiomas at the site of irradiation, at a much younger age than patients with ''spontaneous'' meningiomas. Similar to the situation with meningiomas after low-dose irradiation, a relatively high proportion of meningiomas induced by high-dose irradiation tend to be malignant and biologically aggressive. A very young age at the time of irradiation seems to predispose to the induction of malignant meningiomas, rather than benign tumors. These unusual features provide indirect evidence that high-dose radiation may play a role in the pathogenesis of meningiomas.41 references

Detonation of Meta-stable Clusters

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kuhl, Allen; Kuhl, Allen L.; Fried, Laurence E.; Howard, W. Michael; Seizew, Michael R.; Bell, John B.; Beckner, Vincent; Grcar, Joseph F.

2008-05-31

We consider the energy accumulation in meta-stable clusters. This energy can be much larger than the typical chemical bond energy (~;;1 ev/atom). For example, polymeric nitrogen can accumulate 4 ev/atom in the N8 (fcc) structure, while helium can accumulate 9 ev/atom in the excited triplet state He2* . They release their energy by cluster fission: N8 -> 4N2 and He2* -> 2He. We study the locus of states in thermodynamic state space for the detonation of such meta-stable clusters. In particular, the equilibrium isentrope, starting at the Chapman-Jouguet state, and expanding down to 1 atmosphere was calculated with the Cheetah code. Large detonation pressures (3 and 16 Mbar), temperatures (12 and 34 kilo-K) and velocities (20 and 43 km/s) are a consequence of the large heats of detonation (6.6 and 50 kilo-cal/g) for nitrogen and helium clusters respectively. If such meta-stable clusters could be synthesized, they offer the potential for large increases in the energy density of materials.

Desensitization and recovery of metastable intermolecular composites

Science.gov (United States)

Busse, James R [South Fork, CO; Dye, Robert C [Los Alamos, NM; Foley, Timothy J [Los Alamos, NM; Higa, Kelvin T [Ridgecrest, CA; Jorgensen, Betty S [Jemez Springs, NM; Sanders, Victor E [White Rock, NM; Son, Steven F [Los Alamos, NM

2010-09-07

A method to substantially desensitize a metastable intermolecular composite material to electrostatic discharge and friction comprising mixing the composite material with an organic diluent and removing enough organic diluent from the mixture to form a mixture with a substantially putty-like consistency, as well as a concomitant method of recovering the metastable intermolecular composite material.

High-dose irradiation of food

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Diehl, J.F.

1999-01-01

Studies performed on behalf of the International Project on Food Irradiation in the period from 1971 until 1980 resulted in the concluding statement that ''.the irradiation of any food commodity up to an overall average dose of 10 kGy presents no toxicological hazard; hence, toxicological testing of foods so treated is no longer required.'' Since then, licenses for food irradiation have been restricted to this maximum dose in any country applying this technology. Further testing programmes have been carried out investigating the wholesomeness or hazards of high-dose irradiation, but there has been little demand so far by the food industry for licensing of high-dose irradiation, as there is only a small range of products whose irradiation at higher doses offers advantages for given, intended use. These include eg. spices, dried herbs, meat products in flexible pouch packagings for astronauts, or patients with immune deficiencies. (orig./CB) [de

Dynamical SUSY breaking in meta-stable vacua

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Intriligator, Kenneth; Seiberg, Nathan; Shih, David

2006-01-01

Dynamical supersymmetry breaking in a long-lived meta-stable vacuum is a phenomenologically viable possibility. This relatively unexplored avenue leads to many new models of dynamical supersymmetry breaking. Here, we present a surprisingly simple class of models with meta-stable dynamical supersymmetry breaking: N = 1 supersymmetric QCD, with massive flavors. Though these theories are strongly coupled, we definitively demonstrate the existence of meta-stable vacua by using the free-magnetic dual. Model building challenges, such as large flavor symmetries and the absence of an R-symmetry, are easily accommodated in these theories. Their simplicity also suggests that broken supersymmetry is generic in supersymmetric field theory and in the landscape of string vacua

Self-organization in the localised failure regime: metastable attractors and their implications on force chain functionality

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pucilowski Sebastian

2017-01-01

Full Text Available In transitive metastable chaotic dynamical systems, there are no invariant neighbourhoods in the phase space. The best that one can do is look for metastable or almost-invariant (AI regions as a means to decompose the system into its basic self-organising building blocks. Here we study the metastable dynamics of a dense granular material embodying strain localization in 3D from the perspective of its conformational landscape: the state space of all observed conformations as defined by the local topology of individual grains relative to their first ring of contacting neighbors. We determine the metastable AI sets that divide this conformational landscape, such that grain rearrangements from one conformation to another conformation in the same AI set occurs with high probability: by contrast, grain rearrangements involving conformational transitions between AI sets are unlikely. The great majority of conformational transitions are identity transitions: grains rearrange and exchange contacts to preserve those topological properties with the greatest influence on cluster stability, namely, the number of contacts and 3-cycles. Force chains show a clear preference for that AI set with the most number of accessible and highly connected conformations. Here force chains continually explore the conformational landscape, wandering from one rarely inhabited conformation to another. As force chains become overloaded and buckle, the energy released enables member grains to overcome the high dynamical barriers that separate metastable regions and subsequently escape one region to enter another in the conformational landscape. Thus, compared to grains locked in stable force chains, those in buckling force chains, confined to the shear band, show a greater propensity for not only non-identity transitions within each metastable region but also inter-transitions between metastable regions.

Metastable beta limit in DIII-D

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

La Haye, R.J.; Callen, J.D.; Gianakon, T.A.

1997-06-01

The long-pulse, slowly evolving single-null divertor (SND) discharges in DIII-D with H-mode, ELMs, and sawteeth are found to be limited significantly below (factor of 2) the predicted ideal limit β N = 4l i by the onset of tearing modes. The tearing modes are metastable in that they are explained by the neoclassical bootstrap current (high β θ ) destabilization of a seed island which occurs even if Δ' θ , there is a region of the modified Rutherford equation such that dw/dt > 0 for w larger than a threshold value; the plasma is metastable, awaiting the critical perturbation which is then amplified to the much larger saturated island. Experimental results from a large number of tokamaks indicate that the high beta operational envelope of the tokamak is well defined by ideal magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) theory. The highest beta values achieved have historically been obtained in fairly short pulse discharges, often <1-2 sawteeth periods and < 1-2 energy replacement times. The maximum operational beta in single-null divertor (SND), long-pulse discharges in DIII-D with a cross-sectional shape similar to the proposed ITER tokamak is found to be limited significantly below the threshold for ideal instabilities by the onset of resistive MHD instabilities

An investigation of Ar metastable state density in low pressure dual-frequency capacitively coupled argon and argon-diluted plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Wen-Yao; Xu, Yong; Peng, Fei; Guo, Qian; Li, Xiao-Song; Zhu, Ai-Min; Liu, Yong-Xin; Wang, You-Nian

2015-01-01

An tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy has been used to determine the Ar*( 3 P 2 ) and Ar*( 3 P 0 ) metastable atoms densities in dual-frequency capacitively coupled plasmas. The effects of different control parameters, such as high-frequency power, gas pressure and content of Ar, on the densities of two metastable atoms and electron density were discussed in single-frequency and dual-frequency Ar discharges, respectively. Particularly, the effects of the pressure on the axial profile of the electron and Ar metastable state densities were also discussed. Furthermore, a simple rate model was employed and its results were compared with experiments to analyze the main production and loss processes of Ar metastable states. It is found that Ar metastable state is mainly produced by electron impact excitation from the ground state, and decayed by diffusion and collision quenching with electrons and neutral molecules. Besides, the addition of CF 4 was found to significantly increase the metastable destruction rate by the CF 4 quenching, especially for large CF 4 content and high pressure, it becomes the dominant depopulation process

High-Resolution Spectroscopy of He{_2}^+ Using Rydberg-Series Extrapolation and Zeeman-Decelerated Supersonic Beams of Metastable He_2

Science.gov (United States)

Jansen, Paul; Semeria, Luca; Merkt, Frederic

2016-06-01

Having only three electrons, He{_2}^+ represents a system for which highly accurate ab initio calculations are possible. The latest calculations of rovibrational energies in He{_2}^+ do not include relativistic or QED corrections but claim an accuracy of 120 MHz We have performed high-resolution Rydberg spectroscopy of metastable He_2 molecules and employed multichannel-quantum-defect-theory extrapolation techniques to determine the rotational energy-level structure in the He{_2}^+ ion. To this end, we have produced samples of metastable helium molecules in supersonic beams with velocities tunable down to 100 m/s by combining a cryogenic supersonic-beam source with a multistage Zeeman decelerator. The metastable He_2 molecules are excited to np Rydberg states using the frequency-doubled output of a pulse-amplified ring dye laser. Although the bandwidth of the laser system is too large to observe the reduction of the Doppler width resulting from deceleration, the deceleration greatly simplifies the spectral assignments because of its spin-rotational state selectivity. Our approach enabled us to determine the rotational structure of He_2 with an unprecedented accuracy of 18 MHz, to quantify the size of the relativistic and QED corrections by comparison with the results of Tung et al. and to precisely measure the rotational structure of the metastable state for comparison with the results of Focsa et al. Here, we present an extension of these measurements in which we have measured higher rotational intervals of He{_2}^+. In addition, we have replaced the pulsed UV laser by a cw UV laser and improved the resolution of the spectra by a factor of more than five. W.-C. Tung, M. Pavanello and L. Adamowicz, J. Chem. Phys. 136, 104309 (2012). P. Jansen, L. Semeria, L. Esteban Hofer, S. Scheidegger, J.A. Agner, H. Schmutz, and F. Merkt, Phys. Rev. Lett. 115, 133202 (2015). D. Sprecher, J. Liu, T. Krähenmann, M. Schäfer, and F. Merkt, J. Chem. Phys. 140, 064304 (2014). M

Metastable states of plasma particles close to a charged surface

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shavlov, A. V., E-mail: shavlov@ikz.ru [The Institute of the Earth Cryosphere, RAS Siberian branch, 625000, P.O. 1230, Tyumen (Russian Federation); Tyumen State Oil and Gas University, 38, Volodarskogo St., 625000, Tyumen (Russian Federation); Dzhumandzhi, V. A. [The Institute of the Earth Cryosphere, RAS Siberian branch, 625000, P.O. 1230, Tyumen (Russian Federation)

2015-09-15

The free energy of the plasma particles and the charged surface that form an electroneutral system is calculated on the basis of the Poisson-Boltzmann equation. It is shown that, owing to correlation of light plasma particles near the charged surface and close to heavy particles of high charge, there can be metastable states in plasma. The corresponding phase charts of metastable states of the separate components of plasma, and plasma as a whole, are constructed. These charts depend on temperature, the charge magnitude, the size of the particles, and the share of the charge of the light carriers out of the total charge of the plasma particles.

Radical Rearrangement Chemistry in Ultraviolet Photodissociation of Iodotyrosine Systems: Insights from Metastable Dissociation, Infrared Ion Spectroscopy, and Reaction Pathway Calculations.

Science.gov (United States)

Ranka, Karnamohit; Zhao, Ning; Yu, Long; Stanton, John F; Polfer, Nicolas C

2018-05-29

We report on the ultraviolet photodissociation (UVPD) chemistry of protonated tyrosine, iodotyrosine, and diiodotyrosine. Distonic loss of the iodine creates a high-energy radical at the aromatic ring that engages in hydrogen/proton rearrangement chemistry. Based on UVPD kinetics measurements, the appearance of this radical is coincident with the UV irradiation pulse (8 ns). Conversely, sequential UVPD product ions exhibit metastable decay on ca. 100 ns timescales. Infrared ion spectroscopy is capable of confirming putative structures of the rearrangement products as proton transfers from the imine and β-carbon hydrogens. Potential energy surfaces for the various reaction pathways indicate that the rearrangement chemistry is highly complex, compatible with a cascade of rearrangements, and that there is no preferred rearrangement pathway even in small molecular systems like these. Graphical Abstract.

Chemi-ionization in the metastable neon--metastable argon system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Neynaber, R.N.; Tang, S.Y.

1980-01-01

Studies were made by a merging-beams technique of the associative ionization (AI) reaction (1) Ne/sup asterisk/+Ar/sup asterisk/→NeAr + +e and the Penning ionization (PI) reactions (2) Ne/sup asterisk/+Ar/sup asterisk/→Ne+Ar + +e and (3) Ne/sup asterisk/+Ar/sup asterisk/→Ne + +Ar+e. The relative kinetic energy of the reactants was varied from 0.01 to 10 eV. The Ne/sup asterisk/ and Ar/sup asterisk/ each represents a composite of the metastable 0 P/sub 2,0/ states. There is a complication in the present investigation which arises because AI and PI occur in collisions of Ne/sup asterisk/ with ground-state Ar. Since the reactant beams consist of metastable as well as ground-state species, the measurements are composites of chemi-ionization in both the Ne/sup asterisk/--Ar/sup asterisk/ and Ne/sup asterisk/--Ar systems. Information on AI and PI for the Ne/sup asterisk/--Ar/sup asterisk/ system is obtained by subtracting from these composite measurements known contributions of the Ne/sup asterisk/--Ar system. From such information it appears that the molecular states of the reactants are different for reactions (2) and

Entropy-driven metastable defects in silicon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hamilton, B.; Peaker, A.R.; Pantelides, S.T.

1989-01-01

The known metastable defects are usually describable by a configuration coordinate diagram in which two energy minima are separated by a barrier. This diagram does not change with temperature and each configuration is stable over some temperature range. Here we report the observation of a novel metastability: A configuration change occurs spontaneously and abruptly at a critical temperature, giving rise to a discontinuous DLTS (deep level transient spectroscopy) spectrum. We propose that this phenomenon is a manifestation of entropy variations in the configurational space. (author) 12 refs., 4 figs

Chalcogenides Metastability and Phase Change Phenomena

CERN Document Server

Kolobov, Alexander V

2012-01-01

A state-of-the-art description of metastability observed in chalcogenide alloys is presented with the accent on the underlying physics. A comparison is made between sulphur(selenium)-based chalcogenide glasses, where numerous photo-induced phenomena take place entirely within the amorphous phase, and tellurides where a reversible crystal-to-amorphous phase-change transformation is a major effect. Applications of metastability in devices¿optical memories and nonvolatile electronic phase-change random-access memories among others are discussed, including the latest trends. Background material essential for understanding current research in the field is also provided.

Metastable defect response in CZTSSe from admittance spectroscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Koeper, Mark J.; Hages, Charles J.; Li, Jian V.; Levi, Dean; Agrawal, Rakesh

2017-10-02

Admittance spectroscopy is a useful tool used to study defects in semiconductor materials. However, metastable defect responses in non-ideal semiconductors can greatly impact the measurement and therefore the interpretation of results. Here, admittance spectroscopy was performed on Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4 where metastable defect response is illustrated due to the trapping of injected carriers into a deep defect state. To investigate the metastable response, admittance measurements were performed under electrically and optically relaxed conditions in comparison to a device following a low level carrier-injection pretreatment. The relaxed measurement demonstrates a single capacitance signature while two capacitance signatures are observed for the device measured following carrier-injection. The deeper level signature, typically reported for kesterites, is activated by charge trapping following carrier injection. Both signatures are attributed to bulk level defects. The significant metastable response observed on kesterites due to charge trapping obscures accurate interpretation of defect levels from admittance spectroscopy and indicates that great care must be taken when performing and interpreting this measurement on non-ideal devices.

Metastability and Rydberg states of triatomic hydrogen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Helm, H.

1991-01-01

The np,nd and nf Rydberg series of H 3 have been studied by one- or two-photon excitation from the lowest metastable state of H 3 :B2p 2 A 2 ''. The lifetime of the metastable state has been measured and the influence of an external electric field on the Rydberg states has been studied under both aspects of dynamics (field-ionization and field-induced predissociation) and structure (Strak effect)

Interaction of rare gas metastable atoms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, A.Z.F.

1977-11-01

The physical and chemical properties of metastable rare gas atoms are discussed and summarized. This is followed by a detailed examination of the various possible pathways whereby the metastable's excess electronic energy can be dissipated. The phenomenon of chemi-ionization is given special emphasis, and a theoretical treatment based on the use of complex (optical) potential is presented. This is followed by a discussion on the unique advantages offered by elastic differential cross section measurements in the apprehension of the fundamental forces governing the ionization process. The methodology generally adopted to extract information about the interaction potential for scattering data is also systematically outlined. Two widely studied chemi-ionization systems are then closely examined in the light of accurate differential cross section measurements obtained in this work. The first system is He(2 3 S) + Ar for which one can obtain an interaction potential which is in good harmony with the experimental results of other investigators. The validity of using the first-order semiclassical approximation for the phase shifts calculation in the presence of significant opacities is also discussed. The second reaction studied is He*+D 2 for which measurements were made on both spin states of the metastable helium. A self-consistent interaction potential is obtained for the triplet system, and reasons are given for not being able to do likewise for the singlet system. The anomalous hump proposed by a number of laboratories is analyzed. Total elastic and ionization cross sections as well as rate constants are calculated for the triplet case. Good agreement with experimental data is found. Finally, the construction and operation of a high power repetitively pulsed nitrogen laser pumped dye laser system is described in great details. Details for the construction and operation of a flashlamp pumped dye laser are likewise given

Bitopic Ligands and Metastable Binding Sites

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fronik, Philipp; Gaiser, Birgit I; Sejer Pedersen, Daniel

2017-01-01

of orthosteric binding sites. Bitopic ligands have been employed to address the selectivity problem by combining (linking) an orthosteric ligand with an allosteric modulator, theoretically leading to high-affinity subtype selective ligands. However, it remains a challenge to identify suitable allosteric binding...... that have been reported to date, this type of bitopic ligands would be composed of two identical pharmacophores. Herein, we outline the concept of bitopic ligands, review metastable binding sites, and discuss their potential as a new source of allosteric binding sites....

The liquid metastable miscibility gap in Cu-based systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Curiotto, S.; Greco, R.; Pryds, Nini

2007-01-01

Some Cu-based alloys, like Cu–Co, Cu–Fe and Cu–Co–Fe, display a liquid metastable miscibility gap. When the melt is undercooled below a certain temperature depending on the alloy composition, they present a separation in two liquid phases, followed by coagulation before dendritic solidification....... In order to predict the phase equilibria and the mechanisms of microstructure formation, a determination of the metastable monotectics in the phase diagrams is essential. This paper focuses on the up-to-date findings on the Cu–Co, Cu–Fe and Cu–Co–Fe metastable miscibility gap in the liquid phase...

A few proofs for nonexistence of the metastable states

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blazjevski, Atanas

2007-01-01

This paper is the bigger part of one until now unpublished author's work, whose title is 'A few proofs for nonexistence of the metastable states'. Because of a big volume of the work, the problems of supersaturated (metastable) steam which appears at the following of slightly, superheated, saturated or wet steam in the convergent and Laval nozzles will be discussed in the main. This steam is mentioned in the literature as one between of the strongest proofs for existence of metastable states in the substances. In this work the steam is not one -phase gaseous metastable steam, as it was thought until now, but yat it is nonequilibrium wet steam in which during the expanding process in the nozzles extreme small particles condensate, consisted of two, three or only few agglomerated molecules are formed which stay in heat, mechanical and internal nonequilibrium with the rest of the expanding gaseous phase of the steam. It means, that this steam, which is called a supersaturated or metastable steam, in fact does not exist in reality because it is nothing else but only nonequilibrium wet steam consisted of tho phases: the expanding gaseous phase of the steam in the nozzle and the mentioned small and nonequilibrium particles condensate which are formed there...

Preparation and characterization of thick metastable sputter deposits

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Allen, R.P.; Dahlgren, S.D.; Merz, M.D.

1975-01-01

High-rate dc supported-discharge sputtering techniques were developed and used to prepare 0.1 mm to 5.0 mm-thick deposits of a variety of metastable materials including amorphous alloys representing more than 15 different rare-earth-transition metal systems and a wide range of compositions and deposition conditions. The ability to prepare thick, homogeneous deposits has made it possible for the first time to investigate the structure, properties, and annealing behavior of these unique sputtered alloys using neutron diffraction, ultrasonic, and other experimental techniques that are difficult or impractical for thin films. More importantly, these characterization studies show that the structure and properties of the massive sputter deposits are independent of thickness and can be reproduced from deposit to deposit. Other advantages and applications of this metastable materials preparation technique include the possibility of varying structure and properties by control of the deposition parameters and the ability to deposit even reactive alloys with a very low impurity content

Ion-irradiation-induced defects in bundles of carbon nanotubes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salonen, E.; Krasheninnikov, A.V.; Nordlund, K.

2002-01-01

We study the structure and formation yields of atomic-scale defects produced by low-dose Ar ion irradiation in bundles of single-wall carbon nanotubes. For this, we employ empirical potential molecular dynamics and simulate ion impact events over an energy range of 100-1000 eV. We show that the most common defects produced at all energies are vacancies on nanotube walls, which at low temperatures are metastable but long-lived defects. We further calculate the spatial distribution of the defects, which proved to be highly non-uniform. We also show that ion irradiation gives rise to the formations of inter-tube covalent bonds mediated by carbon recoils and nanotube lattice distortions due to dangling bond saturation. The number of inter-tube links, as well as the overall damage, linearly grows with the energy of incident ions

Magneto-optical trap for metastable helium at 389 nm

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Koelemeij, J.C.J.; Stas, R.J.W.; Hogervorst, W.; Vassen, W.

2003-01-01

We have constructed a magneto-optical trap (MOT) for metastable triplet helium atoms utilizing the 2 S-3(1)-->3 P-3(2) line at 389 nm as the trapping and cooling transition. The far-red-detuned MOT (detuning Delta=-41 MHz) typically contains few times 10(7) atoms at a relatively high (similar

Extension of equilibrium formation criteria to metastable microalloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaufmann, E.N.; Vianden, R.; Chelikowsky, J.R.; Phillips, J.C.

1977-01-01

Metastable microalloys of 25 metallic elements with beryllium have been prepared by ion implantation. The injected atoms have been found to occupy one of three sites available in the solvent lattice. A modified Laudau-Ginsburg expansion using bulk alloy variables proposed by Miedema is completely successful in predicting the observed metastable-site preferences and indicates a broader applicability of these variables than was heretofore anticipated

Metastable Behavior in Uniaxial Ferroelectrics TGS and TGSe near TC

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Fernández del Castillo, J.R.; Przeslawski, J.; Iglesias, T.; Noheda, B.; Gonzalo, J.A.

1998-01-01

High resolution hysteresis loops measurements in triglycine sulfate (ordinary critical point) and in triglycine selenate (tricritical point) allow the approximate characterization of the behavior in the metastable region (E < 0, P > 0, or vice versa) at T ≤ TC. The coercive field may be assumed to

Metastable states in magnetic nanorings

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Castaño, F. J.; Ross, C. A.; Frandsen, Cathrine

2003-01-01

Magnetization states and hysteresis behavior of small ferromagnetic rings, of diameters 180-520 nm, have been investigated using magnetic force microscopy. In addition to the expected bi-domain ("onion") and flux-closed ("vortex") magnetization states, a metastable state has been found. This "twi......Magnetization states and hysteresis behavior of small ferromagnetic rings, of diameters 180-520 nm, have been investigated using magnetic force microscopy. In addition to the expected bi-domain ("onion") and flux-closed ("vortex") magnetization states, a metastable state has been found....... This "twisted" state contains a 360degrees domain wall which can exist over a wide range of applied fields. Four possible configurations of the twisted state are possible. Micromagnetic modeling shows that the twisted state is stabilised in small diameter, narrow rings. Additionally, more complex configurations...

Metastable growth of pure wurtzite InGaAs microstructures.

Science.gov (United States)

Ng, Kar Wei; Ko, Wai Son; Lu, Fanglu; Chang-Hasnain, Connie J

2014-08-13

III-V compound semiconductors can exist in two major crystal phases, namely, zincblende (ZB) and wurtzite (WZ). While ZB is thermodynamically favorable in conventional III-V epitaxy, the pure WZ phase can be stable in nanowires with diameters smaller than certain critical values. However, thin nanowires are more vulnerable to surface recombination, and this can ultimately limit their performances as practical devices. In this work, we study a metastable growth mechanism that can yield purely WZ-phased InGaAs microstructures on silicon. InGaAs nucleates as sharp nanoneedles and expand along both axial and radial directions simultaneously in a core-shell fashion. While the base can scale from tens of nanometers to over a micron, the tip can remain sharp over the entire growth. The sharpness maintains a high local surface-to-volume ratio, favoring hexagonal lattice to grow axially. These unique features lead to the formation of microsized pure WZ InGaAs structures on silicon. To verify that the WZ microstructures are truly metastable, we demonstrate, for the first time, the in situ transformation from WZ to the energy-favorable ZB phase inside a transmission electron microscope. This unconventional core-shell growth mechanism can potentially be applied to other III-V materials systems, enabling the effective utilization of the extraordinary properties of the metastable wurtzite crystals.

Modeling of metastable phase formation diagrams for sputtered thin films.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Keke; Music, Denis; To Baben, Moritz; Lange, Dennis; Bolvardi, Hamid; Schneider, Jochen M

2016-01-01

A method to model the metastable phase formation in the Cu-W system based on the critical surface diffusion distance has been developed. The driver for the formation of a second phase is the critical diffusion distance which is dependent on the solubility of W in Cu and on the solubility of Cu in W. Based on comparative theoretical and experimental data, we can describe the relationship between the solubilities and the critical diffusion distances in order to model the metastable phase formation. Metastable phase formation diagrams for Cu-W and Cu-V thin films are predicted and validated by combinatorial magnetron sputtering experiments. The correlative experimental and theoretical research strategy adopted here enables us to efficiently describe the relationship between the solubilities and the critical diffusion distances in order to model the metastable phase formation during magnetron sputtering.

Investigating the Metastability of Clathrate Hydrates for Energy Storage

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Koh, Carolyn Ann [Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO (United States)

2014-11-18

Important breakthrough discoveries have been achieved from the DOE award on the key processes controlling the synthesis and structure-property relations of clathrate hydrates, which are critical to the development of clathrate hydrates as energy storage materials. Key achievements include: (i) the discovery of key clathrate hydrate building blocks (stable and metastable) leading to clathrate hydrate nucleation and growth; (ii) development of a rapid clathrate hydrate synthesis route via a seeding mechanism; (iii) synthesis-structure relations of H2 + CH4/CO2 binary hydrates to control thermodynamic requirements for energy storage and sequestration applications; (iv) discovery of a new metastable phase present during clathrate hydrate structural transitions. The success of our research to-date is demonstrated by the significant papers we have published in high impact journals, including Science, Angewandte Chemie, J. Am. Chem. Soc. Intellectual Merits of Project Accomplishments: The intellectual merits of the project accomplishments are significant and transformative, in which the fundamental coupled computational and experimental program has provided new and critical understanding on the key processes controlling the nucleation, growth, and thermodynamics of clathrate hydrates containing hydrogen, methane, carbon dioxide, and other guest molecules for energy storage. Key examples of the intellectual merits of the accomplishments include: the first discovery of the nucleation pathways and dominant stable and metastable structures leading to clathrate hydrate formation; the discovery and experimental confirmation of new metastable clathrate hydrate structures; the development of new synthesis methods for controlling clathrate hydrate formation and enclathration of molecular hydrogen. Broader Impacts of Project Accomplishments: The molecular investigations performed in this project on the synthesis (nucleation & growth)-structure-stability relations of clathrate

High activity gamma irradiators developed in Hungary

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stenger, V.

1997-01-01

The development of high activity Gamma irradiators began in Hungary already in the early years of 60s. The very first designs were serving research in irradiation chemistry, radiation physics, food and agricultural research, radiation sterilization, plastic radiation chemistry, radiobiology, cancer therapy, personal and high dose dosimetry, following the international trends. Domestic and new international demands forced us to design and construct High Activity Gamma Irradiators: Multipurpose Pilot, Portable and Large scale bulk, Multipurpose Industrial scale types

Atom diffraction with a 'natural' metastable atom nozzle beam

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Karam, J-C; Wipf, N; Grucker, J; Perales, F; Boustimi, M; Vassilev, G; Bocvarski, V; Mainos, C; Baudon, J; Robert, J

2005-01-01

The resonant metastability-exchange process is used to obtain a metastable atom beam with intrinsic properties close to those of a ground-state atom nozzle beam (small angular aperture, narrow velocity distribution). The estimated effective source diameter (15 μm) is small enough to provide at a distance of 597 mm a transverse coherence radius of about 873 nm for argon, 1236 nm for neon and 1660 nm for helium. It is demonstrated both by experiment and numerical calculations with He*, Ne* and Ar* metastable atoms, that this beam gives rise to diffraction effects on the transmitted angular pattern of a silicon-nitride nano-slit grating (period 100 nm). Observed patterns are in good agreement with previous measurements with He* and Ne* metastable atoms. For argon, a calculation taking into account the angular aperture of the beam (0.35 mrad) and the effect of the van der Waals interaction-the van der Waals constant C 3 1.83 +0.1 -0.15 au being derived from spectroscopic data-leads to a good agreement with experiment

Tumor ocular metastásico Metastatic ocular tumor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martha G Domínguez Expósito

2004-06-01

Full Text Available El carcinoma metastásico del ojo es considerado la neoplasia maligna que más frecuente se encuentra de forma intraocular. Solo cerca del 10 % de las personas que tienen una o más lesiones metastásicas intraoculares son detectadas clínicamente antes de la muerte. A menudo, el carcinoma metastásico ocular es diagnosticado por el oftalmólogo ante la presencia de síntomas oculares. Las lesiones están localizadas con preferencia en coroides. Nos motivo a realizar la presentación de este caso la presencia de lesiones intraoculares múltiples tumorales metastásicos en un paciente cuyo síntoma de presentación fue la disminución de la agudeza visualThe eye metastatic carcinoma is considered the most frequently found intraocular malignant neoplasia. Only 10 % of the persons with one or more metastatic intraocular injuries are clinically detected before death. The metastatic ocular carcinoma is often diagnosed by the ophthalmologist in the presence of ocular symptoms. The injuries are preferably located in the choroid. The appearance of multiple metastatic intraaocular tumoral injuries in a patient whose chief complaint was the reduction of visual acuity motivated us to presente this case

Capability of X-ray diffraction for the study of microstructure of metastable thin films

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David Rafaja

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Metastable phases are often used to design materials with outstanding properties, which cannot be achieved with thermodynamically stable compounds. In many cases, the metastable phases are employed as precursors for controlled formation of nanocomposites. This contribution shows how the microstructure of crystalline metastable phases and the formation of nanocomposites can be concluded from X-ray diffraction experiments by taking advantage of the high sensitivity of X-ray diffraction to macroscopic and microscopic lattice deformations and to the dependence of the lattice deformations on the crystallographic direction. The lattice deformations were determined from the positions and from the widths of the diffraction lines, the dependence of the lattice deformations on the crystallographic direction from the anisotropy of the line shift and the line broadening. As an example of the metastable system, the supersaturated solid solution of titanium nitride and aluminium nitride was investigated, which was prepared in the form of thin films by using cathodic arc evaporation of titanium and aluminium in a nitrogen atmosphere. The microstructure of the (Ti,AlN samples under study was tailored by modifying the [Al]/[Ti] ratio in the thin films and the surface mobility of the deposited species.

Experiments on state selection and Penning ionisation with fast metastable rare gas atoms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kroon, J.P.C.

1985-01-01

This thesis describes experiments with metastable He/Ne atoms. The experiments are performed in a crossed beam machine. Two different sources are used for the production of metastable atoms: a source for the production of metastable atoms in the thermal energy range and a hollow cathode arc for the production of metastable atoms in the superthermal energy range (1-7 eV). The progress made in the use of the hollow cathode arc is described as well as the experimental set-up. The rare gas energy-level diagram is characterized by two metastable levels. By optical pumping it is possible to select a single metastable level, both for He and Ne. For the case of He this is done by a recently built He quenchlamp which selectively quenches the metastable 2 1 S level population. In the thermal energy range the quenching is complete; in the superthermal energy range the 2 1 S level population is only partly quenched. For the optical pumping of Ne* atoms a cw dye laser is used. New experiments have been started on the measurement, in a crossed beam machine, of the fluorescence caused by inelastic collisions where metastable atoms are involved. The He* + Ne system is used as a pilot study for these experiments. The He-Ne laser is based on this collision system. (Auth.)

Searching for high magnetization density in bulk Fe: the new metastable Fe-6 phase

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Umemoto, K; Himmetoglu, B; Wang, JP; Wentzcovitch, RM; Cococcioni, M

2014-11-26

We report the discovery of a new allotrope of iron by first principles calculations. This phase has Pmn2(1) symmetry, a six-atom unit cell (hence the name Fe-6), and the highest magnetization density (M-s) among all the known crystalline phases of iron. Obtained from the structural optimizations of the Fe3C-cementite crystal upon carbon removal, Pmn2(1) Fe-6 is shown to result from the stabilization of a ferromagnetic FCC phase, further strained along the Bain path. Although metastable from 0 to 50 GPa, the new phase is more stable at low pressures than the other well-known HCP and FCC allotropes and smoothly transforms into the FCC phase under compression. If stabilized to room temperature, for example, by interstitial impurities, Fe-6 could become the basis material for high M-s rare-earth-free permament magnets and high-impact applications such as light-weight electric engine rotors or high-density recording media. The new phase could also be key to explaining the enigmatic high M-s of Fe16N2, which is currently attracting intense research activity.

Behavior of high Tc-superconductors and irradiated defects under reactor irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Atobe, Kozo; Honda, Makoto; Fukuoka, Noboru; Yoshida, Hiroyuki.

1991-01-01

It has been well known that the lattice defects of various types are introduced in ceramics without exception, and exert large effect to the function of these materials. Among oxides, the electronic materials positively using oxygen defect control have been already put in practical use. Also in the oxide high temperature superconductors which are Perovskite type composite oxides, the superconductive characteristics are affected largely by the concentration of the oxygen composing them. This is regarded as an important factor for causing superconductivity, related with the oxygen cavities arising at this time and the carriers bearing superconductivity. In this study, the irradiation effect with relatively low dose, the measurement under irradiation, the effect of irradiation temperature, and the effect of radiation quality were evaluated by the irradiation of YBCO, EBCO and LBCO. The experimental method, and the irradiation effect at low temperature and normal temperature, the effect of Co-60 gamma ray irradiation instead of reactor irradiation are reported. (K.I.)

Immune reactivity after high-dose irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gassmann, W.; Wottge, H.U.; von Kolzynski, M.; Mueller-Ruchholtz, W.

1986-01-01

Immune reactivity after total-body irradiation was investigated in rats using skin graft rejection as the indicator system. After sublethal irradiation with 10.5 Gy (approximately 50% lethality/6 weeks) the rejection of major histocompatibility complex allogeneic skin grafts was delayed significantly compared with nonirradiated control animals (28 versus 6.5 days). In contrast, skin grafts were rejected after 7.5 days in sublethally irradiated animals and 7 days in lethally irradiated animals if additional skin donor type alloantigens--namely, irradiated bone marrow cells--were given i.v. either simultaneously or with a delay of not more than 24 hr after the above conditioning regimen. These reactions were alloantigen-specific. They were observed in six different strain combinations with varying donors and recipients. Starting on day 2 after irradiation, i.v. injection of bone marrow gradually lost its effectivity and skin grafts were no longer rejected with uniform rapidity; skin donor marrow given on days 4 or 8 did not accelerate skin graft rejection at all. These data show that for approximately 1-2 days after high-dose total-body irradiation rats are still capable of starting a vigorous immune reaction against i.v.-injected alloantigens. The phenomenon of impaired rejection of skin grafted immediately after high-dose irradiation appears to result from the poor accessibility of skin graft alloantigens during the early postirradiation phase when vascularization of the grafted skin is insufficient

Metastable enhancement of C+ and O+ capture reactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thomas, E.W.; Moran, T.F.

1990-09-01

Single electron capture by 10- to 500-eV singly charged C and O ions traversing targets of H 2 and H was studied with emphasis on comparing cross sections for metastable species with those for the ground state. For an H 2 target cross sections are of the order 10 Angstrom and 20 to 30 times larger than for ground state species. Electron impact ion sources typically produce 5 to 30% of their output in the metastable state. Previous published work has largely ignored (or failed to detect) the presence of metastables and is incorrect by as much as an order of magnitude. Discrepancies between data sets have been resolved, and a reliable data set is provided for energies from 10 to 10 5 eV. Similar experiments for an atomic H target are underway. It is proposed to extend the program to similar studies with multiply charged projectile species

A metastable helium trap for atomic collision physics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Colla, M.; Gulley, R.; Uhlmann, L.; Hoogerland, M.D.; Baldwin, K.G.H.; Buckman, S.J.

1999-01-01

Full text: Metastable helium in the 2 3 S state is an important species for atom optics and atomic collision physics. Because of its large internal energy (20eV), long lifetime (∼8000s) and large collision cross section for a range of processes, metastable helium plays an important role in atmospheric physics, plasma discharges and gas laser physics. We have embarked on a program of studies on atom-atom and electron-atom collision processes involving cold metastable helium. We confine metastable helium atoms in a magneto-optic trap (MOT), which is loaded by a transversely collimated, slowed and 2-D focussed atomic beam. We employ diode laser tuned to the 1083 nm (2 3 S 1 - 2 3 P2 1 ) transition to generate laser cooling forces in both the loading beam and the trap. Approximately 10 million helium atoms are trapped at temperatures of ∼ 1mK. We use phase modulation spectroscopy to measure the trapped atomic density. The cold, trapped atoms can collide to produce either atomic He + or molecular He 2 + ions by Penning Ionisation (PI) or Associative Ionisation (AI). The rate of formation of these ions is dependant upon the detuning of the trapping laser from resonance. A further laser can be used to connect the 2 3 S 1 state to another higher lying excited state, and variation of the probe laser detuning used to measure interatomic collision potential. Electron-atom collision processes are studied using a monochromatic electron beam with a well defined spatial current distribution. The total trap loss due to electron collisions is measured as a function of electron energy. Results will be presented for these atomic collision physics measurements involving cold, trapped metastable helium atoms. Copyright (1999) Australian Optical Society

Synthesis, thermal properties and recrystallization of ball-milled high Tc superconductors. (Topological stabilization of metastable phases)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schulz, R.; Lanteigne, J.; Simoneau, M.; Tessier, P.; Neste, A. van; Strom Olsen, J.O.

1995-01-01

Amorphous and nanocrystalline phases have been formed by ball-milling Y-Ba-Cu-O and Bi-Ca-Sr-Cu-O. The strong mechanical deformations induce disorder on the oxygen sublattice and on the cation sites. These order-disorder transformations often produce simple cubic perovskite structures. During recrystallization, the chemical order is restored. Small ordered regions nucleate, grow and produce particular metastable configurations which minimize the total elastic strain energy. The sequence of events giving rise to the various metastable phases has been followed by x-ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry and is explained in terms of free energy diagrams. The stress and strain fields associated with the Y-Ba disorder are calculated using the elastic properties of the Y-Ba-Cu-O superconductor. A simple model is proposed to explain the stability of the structures observed after thermal treatments. (orig.)

Extended Neural Metastability in an Embodied Model of Sensorimotor Coupling

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miguel Aguilera

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The hypothesis that brain organization is based on mechanisms of metastable synchronization in neural assemblies has been popularized during the last decades of neuroscientific research. Nevertheless, the role of body and environment for understanding the functioning of metastable assemblies is frequently dismissed. The main goal of this paper is to investigate the contribution of sensorimotor coupling to neural and behavioural metastability using a minimal computational model of plastic neural ensembles embedded in a robotic agent in a behavioural preference task. Our hypothesis is that, under some conditions, the metastability of the system is not restricted to the brain but extends to the system composed by the interaction of brain, body and environment. We test this idea, comparing an agent in continuous interaction with its environment in a task demanding behavioural flexibility with an equivalent model from the point of view of 'internalist neuroscience'. A statistical characterization of our model and tools from information theory allows us to show how (1 the bidirectional coupling between agent and environment brings the system closer to a regime of criticality and triggers the emergence of additional metastable states which are not found in the brain in isolation but extended to the whole system of sensorimotor interaction, (2 the synaptic plasticity of the agent is fundamental to sustain open structures in the neural controller of the agent flexibly engaging and disengaging different behavioural patterns that sustain sensorimotor metastable states, and (3 these extended metastable states emerge when the agent generates an asymmetrical circular loop of causal interaction with its environment, in which the agent responds to variability of the environment at fast timescales while acting over the environment at slow timescales, suggesting the constitution of the agent as an autonomous entity actively modulating its sensorimotor coupling

Extended Neural Metastability in an Embodied Model of Sensorimotor Coupling.

Science.gov (United States)

Aguilera, Miguel; Bedia, Manuel G; Barandiaran, Xabier E

2016-01-01

The hypothesis that brain organization is based on mechanisms of metastable synchronization in neural assemblies has been popularized during the last decades of neuroscientific research. Nevertheless, the role of body and environment for understanding the functioning of metastable assemblies is frequently dismissed. The main goal of this paper is to investigate the contribution of sensorimotor coupling to neural and behavioral metastability using a minimal computational model of plastic neural ensembles embedded in a robotic agent in a behavioral preference task. Our hypothesis is that, under some conditions, the metastability of the system is not restricted to the brain but extends to the system composed by the interaction of brain, body and environment. We test this idea, comparing an agent in continuous interaction with its environment in a task demanding behavioral flexibility with an equivalent model from the point of view of "internalist neuroscience." A statistical characterization of our model and tools from information theory allow us to show how (1) the bidirectional coupling between agent and environment brings the system closer to a regime of criticality and triggers the emergence of additional metastable states which are not found in the brain in isolation but extended to the whole system of sensorimotor interaction, (2) the synaptic plasticity of the agent is fundamental to sustain open structures in the neural controller of the agent flexibly engaging and disengaging different behavioral patterns that sustain sensorimotor metastable states, and (3) these extended metastable states emerge when the agent generates an asymmetrical circular loop of causal interaction with its environment, in which the agent responds to variability of the environment at fast timescales while acting over the environment at slow timescales, suggesting the constitution of the agent as an autonomous entity actively modulating its sensorimotor coupling with the world. We

Excitation into 3p55p levels from the metastable levels of Ar

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jung, R. O.; Boffard, John B.; Anderson, L. W.; Lin, Chun C.

2007-01-01

Measurements of cross sections for electron-impact excitation out of the J=0 and J=2 3p 5 4s metastable levels of argon into nine of the ten levels of the 3p 5 5p manifold are presented in the energy range from threshold to 10 eV. A mixed target of atoms in both metastable levels was created by a hollow cathode discharge. Laser quenching was used to depopulate either one of the metastable levels, allowing separate measurements of the cross sections from each of the two metastable levels. Unlike the metastable excitation cross sections into 3p 5 4p levels, the cross sections into the 3p 5 5p levels are not found to be proportional to optical oscillator strengths

High Fidelity Ion Beam Simulation of High Dose Neutron Irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Was, Gary; Wirth, Brian; Motta, Athur; Morgan, Dane; Kaoumi, Djamel; Hosemann, Peter; Odette, Robert

2018-04-30

Project Objective: The objective of this proposal is to demonstrate the capability to predict the evolution of microstructure and properties of structural materials in-reactor and at high doses, using ion irradiation as a surrogate for reactor irradiations. “Properties” includes both physical properties (irradiated microstructure) and the mechanical properties of the material. Demonstration of the capability to predict properties has two components. One is ion irradiation of a set of alloys to yield an irradiated microstructure and corresponding mechanical behavior that are substantially the same as results from neutron exposure in the appropriate reactor environment. Second is the capability to predict the irradiated microstructure and corresponding mechanical behavior on the basis of improved models, validated against both ion and reactor irradiations and verified against ion irradiations. Taken together, achievement of these objectives will yield an enhanced capability for simulating the behavior of materials in reactor irradiations

Planktic foraminifera form their shells via metastable carbonate phases.

Science.gov (United States)

Jacob, D E; Wirth, R; Agbaje, O B A; Branson, O; Eggins, S M

2017-11-02

The calcium carbonate shells of planktic foraminifera provide our most valuable geochemical archive of ocean surface conditions and climate spanning the last 100 million years, and play an important role in the ocean carbon cycle. These shells are preserved in marine sediments as calcite, the stable polymorph of calcium carbonate. Here, we show that shells of living planktic foraminifers Orbulina universa and Neogloboquadrina dutertrei originally form from the unstable calcium carbonate polymorph vaterite, implying a non-classical crystallisation pathway involving metastable phases that transform ultimately to calcite. The current understanding of how planktic foraminifer shells record climate, and how they will fare in a future high-CO 2 world is underpinned by analogy to the precipitation and dissolution of inorganic calcite. Our findings require a re-evaluation of this paradigm to consider the formation and transformation of metastable phases, which could exert an influence on the geochemistry and solubility of the biomineral calcite.

Continuum model of tensile fracture of metal melts and its application to a problem of high-current electron irradiation of metals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mayer, Alexander E.; Mayer, Polina N.

2015-01-01

A continuum model of the metal melt fracture is formulated on the basis of the continuum mechanics and theory of metastable liquid. A character of temperature and strain rate dependences of the tensile strength that is predicted by the continuum model is verified, and parameters of the model are fitted with the use of the results of the molecular dynamics simulations for ultra-high strain rates (≥1–10/ns). A comparison with experimental data from literature is also presented for Al and Ni melts. Using the continuum model, the dynamic tensile strength of initially uniform melts of Al, Cu, Ni, Fe, Ti, and Pb within a wide range of strain rates (from 1–10/ms to 100/ns) and temperatures (from melting temperature up to 70–80% of critical temperature) is calculated. The model is applied to numerical investigation of a problem of the high-current electron irradiation of Al, Cu, and Fe targets

Nucleation of metastable aragonite CaCO3 in seawater.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Wenhao; Jayaraman, Saivenkataraman; Chen, Wei; Persson, Kristin A; Ceder, Gerbrand

2015-03-17

Predicting the conditions in which a compound adopts a metastable structure when it crystallizes out of solution is an unsolved and fundamental problem in materials synthesis, and one which, if understood and harnessed, could enable the rational design of synthesis pathways toward or away from metastable structures. Crystallization of metastable phases is particularly accessible via low-temperature solution-based routes, such as chimie douce and hydrothermal synthesis, but although the chemistry of the solution plays a crucial role in governing which polymorph forms, how it does so is poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate an ab initio technique to quantify thermodynamic parameters of surfaces and bulks in equilibrium with an aqueous environment, enabling the calculation of nucleation barriers of competing polymorphs as a function of solution chemistry, thereby predicting the solution conditions governing polymorph selection. We apply this approach to resolve the long-standing "calcite-aragonite problem"--the observation that calcium carbonate precipitates as the metastable aragonite polymorph in marine environments, rather than the stable phase calcite--which is of tremendous relevance to biomineralization, carbon sequestration, paleogeochemistry, and the vulnerability of marine life to ocean acidification. We identify a direct relationship between the calcite surface energy and solution Mg:Ca [corrected] ion concentrations, showing that the calcite nucleation barrier surpasses that of metastable aragonite in solutions with Mg:Ca ratios consistent with modern seawater, allowing aragonite to dominate the kinetics of nucleation. Our ability to quantify how solution parameters distinguish between polymorphs marks an important step toward the ab initio prediction of materials synthesis pathways in solution.

Photo-crystallography: from the structure towards the electron density of metastable states

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Legrand, V [Laboratoire de Cristallographie et de Modelisation des Materiaux Mineraux et Biologiques, CNRS UMR 7036, UHP Nancy 1, Faculte des sciences, Boulevard des Aiguillettes, BP 239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-les-Nancy Cedex (France); Carbonera, C [Institut de Chimie de la Matiere Condensee de Bordeaux, UPR CNRS 9048, Universite de Bordeaux 1, Groupe de Sciences Moleculaires, 87 Avenue du Docteur Schweitzer, 33608 Pessac cedex (France); Pillet, S [Laboratoire de Cristallographie et de Modelisation des Materiaux Mineraux et Biologiques, CNRS UMR 7036, UHP Nancy 1, Faculte des sciences, Boulevard des Aiguillettes, BP 239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-les-Nancy Cedex (France); Souhassou, M [Laboratoire de Cristallographie et de Modelisation des Materiaux Mineraux et Biologiques, CNRS UMR 7036, UHP Nancy 1, Faculte des sciences, Boulevard des Aiguillettes, BP 239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-les-Nancy Cedex (France); Letard, J F [Institut de Chimie de la Matiere Condensee de Bordeaux, UPR CNRS 9048, Universite de Bordeaux 1, Groupe de Sciences Moleculaires, 87 Avenue du Docteur Schweitzer, 33608 Pessac cedex (France); Guionneau, P [Institut de Chimie de la Matiere Condensee de Bordeaux, UPR CNRS 9048, Universite de Bordeaux 1, Groupe de Sciences Moleculaires, 87 Avenue du Docteur Schweitzer, 33608 Pessac cedex (France); Lecomte, C [Laboratoire de Cristallographie et de Modelisation des Materiaux Mineraux et Biologiques, CNRS UMR 7036, UHP Nancy 1, Faculte des sciences, Boulevard des Aiguillettes, BP 239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-les-Nancy Cedex (France)

2005-01-01

A photo-crystallographic study of Fe(btr){sub 2}(NCS){sub 2}{center_dot}H{sub 2}O was performed in order to describe the modification of structures and charge densities on going from the ground low spin (LS) state to the metastable high spin (HS) state during the LIESST phenomenon at 15 K. Related photo-magnetic and spectroscopic measurements are also described. We show that at 15 K, the thermally quenched and photo-induced structures of the metastable HS state are identical. For comparison, we also derived the structure of the HS and LS states at 130 K in the hysteresis loop; the thermal spin transition and the LIESST spin transition exhibit similar structural behaviours.

Classification of knotted tori in 2-metastable dimension

KAUST Repository

Cencelj, Matija

2012-11-30

This paper is devoted to the classical Knotting Problem: for a given manifold N and number m describe the set of isotopy classes of embeddings N → Sm. We study the specific case of knotted tori, that is, the embeddings Sp × Sq → Sm. The classification of knotted tori up to isotopy in the metastable dimension range m > p + 3 2 q + 2, p 6 q, was given by Haefliger, Zeeman and A. Skopenkov. We consider the dimensions below the metastable range and give an explicit criterion for the finiteness of this set of isotopy classes in the 2-metastable dimension: Theorem. Assume that p+ 4 3 q +2 < mp+ 3 2 q +2 and m > 2p+q +2. Then the set of isotopy classes of smooth embeddings Sp × Sq → Sm is infinite if and only if either q + 1 or p + q + 1 is divisible by 4. © 2012 RAS(DoM) and LMS.

Classification of knotted tori in 2-metastable dimension

KAUST Repository

Cencelj, Matija; Repovš, Dušan; Skopenkov, Mikhail

2012-01-01

This paper is devoted to the classical Knotting Problem: for a given manifold N and number m describe the set of isotopy classes of embeddings N → Sm. We study the specific case of knotted tori, that is, the embeddings Sp × Sq → Sm. The classification of knotted tori up to isotopy in the metastable dimension range m > p + 3 2 q + 2, p 6 q, was given by Haefliger, Zeeman and A. Skopenkov. We consider the dimensions below the metastable range and give an explicit criterion for the finiteness of this set of isotopy classes in the 2-metastable dimension: Theorem. Assume that p+ 4 3 q +2 < mp+ 3 2 q +2 and m > 2p+q +2. Then the set of isotopy classes of smooth embeddings Sp × Sq → Sm is infinite if and only if either q + 1 or p + q + 1 is divisible by 4. © 2012 RAS(DoM) and LMS.

High densities and optical collisions in a two-colour magneto-optical trap for metastable helium

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Koelemeij, J.C.J.; Tychkov, A.; Jeltes, T.; Hogervorst, W.; Vassen, W.

2004-01-01

We have studied a cloud of cold metastable helium (He*) atoms interacting with near-resonant light at 1083 nm and 389 nm. The 1083 nm light allows for efficient loading of a large magneto-optical trap (MOT) and the 389 nm light is subsequently used to increase the density and reduce the temperature

Metastable phase transformation and hcp-ω transformation pathways in Ti and Zr under high hydrostatic pressures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gao, Lei; Ding, Xiangdong; Sun, Jun; Lookman, Turab; Salje, E. K. H.

2016-01-01

The energy landscape of Zr at high hydrostatic pressure suggests that its transformation behavior is strongly pressure dependent. This is in contrast to the known transition mechanism in Ti, which is essentially independent of hydrostatic pressure. Generalized solid-state nudged elastic band calculations at constant pressure shows that α-Zr transforms like Ti only at the lowest pressure inside the stability field of ω-phase. Different pathways apply at higher pressures where the energy landscape contains several high barriers so that metastable states are expected, including the appearance of a transient bcc phase at ca. 23 GPa. The global driving force for the hcp-ω transition increases strongly with increasing pressure and reaches 23.7 meV/atom at 23 GPa. Much of this energy relates to the excess volume of the hcp phase compared with its ω phase.

Metastable phase transformation and hcp-ω transformation pathways in Ti and Zr under high hydrostatic pressures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gao, Lei; Ding, Xiangdong, E-mail: dingxd@mail.xjtu.edu.cn, E-mail: ekhard@esc.cam.ac.uk; Sun, Jun [State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials, Xi' an Jiaotong University, Xi' an 710049 (China); Lookman, Turab [Theoretical Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545 (United States); Salje, E. K. H., E-mail: dingxd@mail.xjtu.edu.cn, E-mail: ekhard@esc.cam.ac.uk [State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials, Xi' an Jiaotong University, Xi' an 710049 (China); Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EQ (United Kingdom)

2016-07-18

The energy landscape of Zr at high hydrostatic pressure suggests that its transformation behavior is strongly pressure dependent. This is in contrast to the known transition mechanism in Ti, which is essentially independent of hydrostatic pressure. Generalized solid-state nudged elastic band calculations at constant pressure shows that α-Zr transforms like Ti only at the lowest pressure inside the stability field of ω-phase. Different pathways apply at higher pressures where the energy landscape contains several high barriers so that metastable states are expected, including the appearance of a transient bcc phase at ca. 23 GPa. The global driving force for the hcp-ω transition increases strongly with increasing pressure and reaches 23.7 meV/atom at 23 GPa. Much of this energy relates to the excess volume of the hcp phase compared with its ω phase.

Stark--Zeeman effect of metastable hydrogen molecules

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kagann, R.H.

1975-01-01

The Stark effect of the N = 1 rotational level of orthohydrogen and the N = 2 rotational level of parahydrogen in the metastable c 3 PI/sub u/ electronic state has been measured using the molecular beam magnetic resonance method. The Stark effect of the metastable state is 10,000 times larger than that of the ground electronic state. The Stark effect of parahydrogen was found to be weakly dependent on static magnetic field strength, whereas the Stark effect of orthohydrogen was found to be more strongly dependent on the magnetic field strength. The Stark effect of orthohydrogen has been calculated using second-order perturbation theory with a pure Stark effect perturbation. The magnetic field dependence of the Stark effect was calculated using third-order perturbation theory with a mixed Stark--Zeeman effect double perturbation. A comparison of the experimental and theoretical values of α/sub perpendicular/ provides information on the electronic transition moment connecting the c 3 PI/sub u/ state to the a 3 Σ + /sub g/ state. The transition moment is needed to calculate the radiative lifetimes of the various vibrational levels of the c 3 PI/sub u/ state. The transition moment also enters the calculation of the quenching of this metastable state by an external electric field. There is a disagreement between theoretical predictions and the results of an experiment on the electric field quenching of the metastables. A test of the electronic transition moment may help shed light on this question. The experimental determination of the values of the transition moments allows one to test theory by comparing these values to those obtained by calculations employing ab initio wavefunctions

Numerical transfer-matrix study of a model with competing metastable states

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fiig, T.; Gorman, B.M.; Rikvold, P.A.

1994-01-01

transition. A recently developed transfer-matrix formalism is applied to the model to obtain complex-valued ''constrained'' free-energy densities f(alpha). For particular eigenvectors of the transfer matrix, the f(alpha) exhibit finite-rangescaling behavior in agreement with the analytically continued...... 'metastable free-energy density This transfer-matrix approach gives a free-energy cost of nucleation that supports the proportionality relation for the decay rate of the metastable phase T proportional to\\Imf alpha\\, even in cases where two metastable states compete. The picture that emerges from this study...

Cyclic cosmology, conformal symmetry and the metastability of the Higgs

Science.gov (United States)

Bars, Itzhak; Steinhardt, Paul J.; Turok, Neil

2013-10-01

Recent measurements at the LHC suggest that the current Higgs vacuum could be metastable with a modest barrier (height ( GeV)4) separating it from a ground state with negative vacuum density of order the Planck scale. We note that metastability is problematic for standard bang cosmology but is essential for cyclic cosmology in order to end one cycle, bounce, and begin the next. In this Letter, motivated by the approximate scaling symmetry of the standard model of particle physics and the primordial large-scale structure of the universe, we use our recent formulation of the Weyl-invariant version of the standard model coupled to gravity to track the evolution of the Higgs in a regularly bouncing cosmology. We find a band of solutions in which the Higgs field escapes from the metastable phase during each big crunch, passes through the bang into an expanding phase, and returns to the metastable vacuum, cycle after cycle after cycle. We show that, due to the effect of the Higgs, the infinitely cycling universe is geodesically complete, in contrast to inflation.

Cyclic cosmology, conformal symmetry and the metastability of the Higgs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bars, Itzhak; Steinhardt, Paul J.; Turok, Neil

2013-01-01

Recent measurements at the LHC suggest that the current Higgs vacuum could be metastable with a modest barrier (height (10 10–12 GeV) 4 ) separating it from a ground state with negative vacuum density of order the Planck scale. We note that metastability is problematic for standard bang cosmology but is essential for cyclic cosmology in order to end one cycle, bounce, and begin the next. In this Letter, motivated by the approximate scaling symmetry of the standard model of particle physics and the primordial large-scale structure of the universe, we use our recent formulation of the Weyl-invariant version of the standard model coupled to gravity to track the evolution of the Higgs in a regularly bouncing cosmology. We find a band of solutions in which the Higgs field escapes from the metastable phase during each big crunch, passes through the bang into an expanding phase, and returns to the metastable vacuum, cycle after cycle after cycle. We show that, due to the effect of the Higgs, the infinitely cycling universe is geodesically complete, in contrast to inflation

Sequences by Metastable Attractors: Interweaving Dynamical Systems and Experimental Data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Axel Hutt

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Metastable attractors and heteroclinic orbits are present in the dynamics of various complex systems. Although their occurrence is well-known, their identification and modeling is a challenging task. The present work reviews briefly the literature and proposes a novel combination of their identification in experimental data and their modeling by dynamical systems. This combination applies recurrence structure analysis permitting the derivation of an optimal symbolic representation of metastable states and their dynamical transitions. To derive heteroclinic sequences of metastable attractors in various experimental conditions, the work introduces a Hausdorff clustering algorithm for symbolic dynamics. The application to brain signals (event-related potentials utilizing neural field models illustrates the methodology.

From phase transitions to the topological renaissance. Comment on "Topodynamics of metastable brains" by Arturo Tozzi et al.

Science.gov (United States)

Somogyvári, Zoltán; Érdi, Péter

2017-07-01

The neural topodynamics theory of Tozzi et al. [13] has two main foci: metastable brain dynamics and the topological approach based on the Borsuk-Ulam theorem (BUT). Briefly, metastable brain dynamics theory hypothesizes that temporary stable synchronization and desynchronization of large number of individual dynamical systems, formed by local neural circuits, are responsible for coding of complex concepts in the brain and sudden changes of these synchronization patterns correspond to operational steps. But what dynamical network could form the substrate for this metastable dynamics, capable of entering into a combinatorially high number of metastable synchronization patterns and exhibit rapid transient changes between them? The general problem is related to the discrimination between ;Black Swans; and ;Dragon Kings;. While BSs are related to the theory of self-organized criticality, and suggests that high-impact extreme events are unpredictable, Dragon-kings are associated with the occurrence of a phase transition, whose emergent organization is based on intermittent criticality [9]. Widening the limits of predictability is one of the big open problems in the theory and practice of complex systems (Sect. 9.3 of Érdi [2]).

Decay of atomic metastable states in a plasma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kleiman, E.B.

1985-01-01

This paper discusses the influence of polarization plasma effects on the lifetime of metastable atomic levels. It is shown that plasma effects can also be important in the case when the distance between the metastable level and the closest emitting level exceeds the Langmuir frequency. The lifetime of the 2S level of a hydrogen atom in a rarefied plasma connected with the action of a longitudinal fluctuation field on the atom is estimated. It is found that this mechanism can determine the lifetime of the 2S level in a rarefied cosmic plasma

Structural Properties and Thermodynamic Stability of Metastable Phases in the Zr-Nb and Ti-V Systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aurelio, Gabriela

2003-01-01

The structural properties and relative stability of metastable phases have been studied in the Zr-Nb and Ti-V systems.The first part of this Thesis is connected to a previous work performed in our Group (G. Grad, PhD Thesis, Instituto Balseiro, Argentina, 1999).It presents a phenomenological analysis of the systematics of interatomic distances in the omega (Ω ) and bcc (β) phases of the transition metals, which concerns a parameter entering into Pauling's resonating-valence- bond-theory and the structural and bonding properties of the Ω and β phases.Neutron diffraction experiments in Zr-Nb and Ti-V alloys are reported, aimed at studying possible atomic ordering in the Ω phase and the composition dependence of its interatomic distances.An extensive neutron diffraction study was performed on a series of Zr-Nb and Ti-V alloys quenched from high temperatures, where β is the stable phase.Upon quenching, three metastable structures are formed, viz., the hcp (∝ q ) phase, the Ω q phase, and the untransformed β q phase.The structural properties of these metastable phases were determined as a function of the Nb and V contents to generate a reliable experimental database.With such data, a series of issues are discussed related to the structure, relative stability, and phase relations in the alloys and its constitutive elements.The effect of composition upon the lattice parameters of the metastable β q and Ω q phases was combined in a consistent way with a critical analysis of structural and thermophysical data on the metastable phases of Ti and Zr.The relative stability of the metastable ∝ q , Ω q and β q phases in Zr-Nb alloys, and its evolution towards thermodynamic equilibrium, were studied combining neutron thermodiffraction and analytical electron microscopy techniques.During isothermal heat treatments performed at high temperature, the structural properties of the alloys were determined as a function of temperature, time and composition.A method of

Design of high density gamma-phase uranium alloys for LEU dispersion fuel applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hofman, Gerard L.; Meyer, Mitchell K.; Ray, Allison E.

1998-01-01

Uranium alloys are candidates for the fuel phase in aluminium matrix dispersion fuels requiring high uranium loading. Certain uranium alloys have been shown to have good irradiation performance at intermediate burnup. previous studies have shown that acceptable fission gas swelling behavior and fuel-aluminium interaction is possible only if the fuel alloy can be maintained in the high temperature body-centered-cubic γ-phase during fabrication and irradiation, at temperatures at which αU is the equilibrium phase. transition metals in Groups V through VIII are known to allow metastable retention of the gamma phase below the equilibrium isotherm. These metals have varying degrees of effectiveness in stabilizing the gamma phase. Certain alloys are metastable for very long times at the relatively low fuel temperatures seen in research operation. In this paper, the existing data on the gamma stability of binary and ternary uranium alloys is analysed. The mechanism and kinetics of decomposition of the gamma phase are assessed with the help of metal alloy theory. Alloys with the highest possible uranium content, good gamma-phase stability, and good neutronic performance are identified for further metallurgical studies and irradiation tests. Results from theory will be compared with experimentally generated data. (author)

A study on metastable superconducting magnets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koyama, Kenichi

1976-01-01

It is important to construct superconducting magnets as cheap as possible. One of the methods to achieve such a purpose is to save the superconducting material and operate the magnets at a high current density. Therefore it is useful to investigate the requirements for the operation of metastable superconducting magnets which can work at a current higher than the recovery current. Using the theory of flux jump, we introduce a ''stable current'' below which no flux jump can occur. On a rough approximation, it is given by I sub(s) =√A P sub(i) H sub(e) T sub(o) f(x)/rho where A : cross-section of the composite conductor. P sub(i) : total perimeter of all the superconducting cores. h sub(e) : effective heat transfer coefficient to the liquid helium through the stabilizer. T sub(o) : a characteristic temperature of the superconducting cores. f(x) : a characteristic function for the relative core radius x. rho : effective resistivity of the composite. Then it is shown that superconducting magnets can operate without unexpected normal transitions in the region enclosed by the two curves of I sub(s) and I sub(c). Next, we discuss the characteristics of our saddle shaped superconducting magnet for an one-KW MHD generator. We found that, 1) the magnet does safely operate in the metastable state; 2) the characteristics of the magnet are consistent with our theoretical results. (auth.)

Lifetime of the metastable 23S1 state in stored Li+ ions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Knight, R.D.

1979-04-01

A laser-induced fluorescence technique combined with the observation of spontaneous magnetic dipole photons from the highly metastable 2 3 S 1 state of Li + was used to measure the radiative lifetime of this state. The ions are created by electron impact on a lithium atomic beam and are subsequently stored for periods of many seconds in an RF-quadrupole ion trap. A tunable dye laser excites the 2 3 S--2 3 P, transition at 5485A, and the intercombination electric dipole transition 2 3 P 1 --1 1 S 0 at 202A is observed. This process depletes the metastable population in a time tau/sub d/ 3 S 1 / and provides a measure of the total number of metastables. Comparison with the rate of 210A spontaneously emitted photons yields a measured value for the 2 3 S 1 radiative lifetime of tau/sub rad/ = 58.6 +- 12.9 sec, where the quoted error represents 95% confidence levels. The theoretical lifetime is tau/sub theory/ = 49.0 sec. The measured value includes data taken with both 6 Li + and 7 Li + isotopes and was corrected for the slightly different detector efficiencies at 202A and 210A. A careful study of nonradiative quenching of the metastable state was necessary to understand observed differences between tau/sub rad/ and tau/sub 3 S 1 /, the total metastable lifetime. Spatial density profiles of the ions within the trap, useful for determining the ion temperature, were obtained by scanning the laser beam horizontally across the ion trap while storing 2 3 P 1 -- 1 S 0 photon counts as a function of the laser beam's position. Agreement with a simple equilibrium model, including space charge effects, is satisfactory. A study of the optical pumping process is necessary to understand the laser-ion interaction, and observational and theoretical data are presented. 47 references

Isothermal α″ formation in β metastable titanium alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aeby-Gautier, E.; Settefrati, A.; Bruneseaux, F.; Appolaire, B.; Denand, B.; Dehmas, M.; Geandier, G.; Boulet, P.

2013-01-01

Highlights: ► Isothermal kinetics of orthorhombic α″ formation is characterized by HEXRD. ► Cell parameters of parent and product phases are obtained. ► Partitioning of solutes during the transformation and the ageing is discussed. -- Abstract: Thanks to time resolved high energy X-ray diffraction, isothermal decomposition of β metastable phase was studied, directly after solution treatment in the β temperature range, for temperatures ranging from 300 to 450 °C for two beta metastable alloys (Ti 17 and Ti 5553). The formation of an orthorhombic α″ phase is clearly identified at the beginning of the transformation whatever the alloy studied. If transformation occurs at the higher temperature an evolution of α″ is observed toward the hexagonal α phase. The phase amounts and the mean cell parameters of each phase were quantified by the Rietveld refinement method. The obtained cell parameters evolutions and the orthorhombicity of α″ are discussed. Moreover, the orthorhombicity of α″ compared to that obtained for stress induced martensite may indicate a slight partitioning of solutes in isothermal α″

Isothermal α″ formation in β metastable titanium alloys

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aeby-Gautier, E., E-mail: Elisabeth.Gautier@mines.inpl-nancy.fr [Institut Jean Lamour, UMR CNRS Nancy Université, UPVM 7198, Nancy (France); Settefrati, A. [Institut Jean Lamour, UMR CNRS Nancy Université, UPVM 7198, Nancy (France); Airbus Operations, Materials and Processes, Toulouse (France); Bruneseaux, F. [Institut Jean Lamour, UMR CNRS Nancy Université, UPVM 7198, Nancy (France); Appolaire, B. [Laboratoire d’Etudes des Microstructures ONERA – CNRS Chatillon (France); Denand, B.; Dehmas, M.; Geandier, G.; Boulet, P. [Institut Jean Lamour, UMR CNRS Nancy Université, UPVM 7198, Nancy (France)

2013-11-15

Highlights: ► Isothermal kinetics of orthorhombic α″ formation is characterized by HEXRD. ► Cell parameters of parent and product phases are obtained. ► Partitioning of solutes during the transformation and the ageing is discussed. -- Abstract: Thanks to time resolved high energy X-ray diffraction, isothermal decomposition of β metastable phase was studied, directly after solution treatment in the β temperature range, for temperatures ranging from 300 to 450 °C for two beta metastable alloys (Ti 17 and Ti 5553). The formation of an orthorhombic α″ phase is clearly identified at the beginning of the transformation whatever the alloy studied. If transformation occurs at the higher temperature an evolution of α″ is observed toward the hexagonal α phase. The phase amounts and the mean cell parameters of each phase were quantified by the Rietveld refinement method. The obtained cell parameters evolutions and the orthorhombicity of α″ are discussed. Moreover, the orthorhombicity of α″ compared to that obtained for stress induced martensite may indicate a slight partitioning of solutes in isothermal α″.

Cyclic cosmology, conformal symmetry and the metastability of the Higgs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bars, Itzhak [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0484 (United States); Steinhardt, Paul J., E-mail: steinh@princeton.edu [California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Department of Physics and Princeton Center for Theoretical Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States); Turok, Neil [Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, Waterloo, ON N2L 2Y5 (Canada)

2013-10-07

Recent measurements at the LHC suggest that the current Higgs vacuum could be metastable with a modest barrier (height (10{sup 10–12} GeV){sup 4}) separating it from a ground state with negative vacuum density of order the Planck scale. We note that metastability is problematic for standard bang cosmology but is essential for cyclic cosmology in order to end one cycle, bounce, and begin the next. In this Letter, motivated by the approximate scaling symmetry of the standard model of particle physics and the primordial large-scale structure of the universe, we use our recent formulation of the Weyl-invariant version of the standard model coupled to gravity to track the evolution of the Higgs in a regularly bouncing cosmology. We find a band of solutions in which the Higgs field escapes from the metastable phase during each big crunch, passes through the bang into an expanding phase, and returns to the metastable vacuum, cycle after cycle after cycle. We show that, due to the effect of the Higgs, the infinitely cycling universe is geodesically complete, in contrast to inflation.

Flux effect on neutron irradiation embrittlement of reactor pressure vessel steels irradiated to high fluences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soneda, N.; Dohi, K.; Nishida, K.; Nomoto, A.; Iwasaki, M.; Tsuno, S.; Akiyama, T.; Watanabe, S.; Ohta, T.

2011-01-01

Neutron irradiation embrittlement of reactor pressure vessel (RPV) steels is of great concern for the long term operation of light water reactors. In particular, the embrittlement of the RPV steels of pressurized water reactors (PWRs) at very high fluences beyond 6*10 19 n/cm 2 , E > 1 MeV, needs to be understood in more depth because materials irradiated in material test reactors (MTRs) to such high fluences show larger shifts than predicted by current embrittlement correlation equations available worldwide. The primary difference between the irradiation conditions of MTRs and surveillance capsules is the neutron flux. The neutron flux of MTR is typically more than one order of magnitude higher than that of surveillance capsule, but it is not necessarily clear if this difference in neutron flux causes difference in mechanical properties of RPV. In this paper, we perform direct comparison, in terms of mechanical property and microstructure, between the materials irradiated in surveillance capsules and MTRs to clarify the effect of flux at very high fluences and fluxes. We irradiate the archive materials of some of the commercial reactors in Japan in the MTR, LVR-15, of NRI Rez, Czech Republic. Charpy impact test results of the MTR-irradiated materials are compared with the data from surveillance tests. The comparison of the results of microstructural analyses by means of atom probe tomography is also described to demonstrate the similarity / differences in surveillance and MTR-irradiated materials in terms of solute atom behavior. It appears that high Cu material irradiated in a MTR presents larger shifts than those of surveillance data, while low Cu materials present similar embrittlement. The microstructural changes caused by MTR irradiation and surveillance irradiation are clearly different

Collisional interaction between metastable neon atoms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Drunen, Wouter Johannes van

2008-01-01

In this thesis, the study of cold gases of neon atoms in different metastable states is described. It contains measurements of the collisional parameters for both the 3s[3/2] 2 and the 3s'[1/2] 0 metastable state and the dependence of the inelastic loss on external fields. Furthermore, the investigation of frequency dependent laser-induced collisions, and the possibility to excite photoassociation resonances is presented. For the measurements described here, neon atoms have been confined in a magnetooptical trap, in a magnetostatic trap, or in an optical dipole trap, respectively. By laser cooling inside the magnetic trap, atomic samples with more than 95 percent occupation of the magnetic substate m J = +2 could be prepared. They have a typical temperature of 0.5 mK, central densities up to 10 11 cm -3 , and a central phase-space density of up to 2.2.10 -7 . After loading the optical dipole trap from the magnetic trap, 2.5.10 6 atoms with typical temperatures of 0.1 mK, and central densities up to 5.10 10 cm -3 were trapped. By evaporative cooling of the atoms in the magnetic trap we could increase the phase-space density by a factor of 200 to 5.10 -5 . Investigating the frequency dependence of laser-induced collisions did not reveal an experimental signature for the excitation of photoassociation resonances. For the 3 D 3 line a frequency dependence of laser enhanced Penning ionization was observed. Measurement of the two-body loss coefficient as function of the magnetic field showed a field dependence of the inelastic loss. These losses increase towards both small and large offset fields. The implementation of an optical dipole trap allowed us to trap the 3 P 0 metastable state. From the trap loss measurements we determined the two-body loss coefficient of the 3 P 0 metastable state for both bosonic isotopes 20 Ne and 22 Ne. For 20 Ne we obtained β=6 +5 -4 .10 -10 cm 3 /s and for 22 Ne β = 11 +7 -6 .10 -10 cm 3 /s. (orig.)

Metastable modular metastructures for on-demand reconfiguration of band structures and nonreciprocal wave propagation

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Z.; Zheng, Y.; Wang, K. W.

2018-02-01

We present an approach to achieve adaptable band structures and nonreciprocal wave propagation by exploring and exploiting the concept of metastable modular metastructures. Through studying the dynamics of wave propagation in a chain composed of finite metastable modules, we provide experimental and analytical results on nonreciprocal wave propagation and unveil the underlying mechanisms that facilitate such unidirectional energy transmission. In addition, we demonstrate that via transitioning among the numerous metastable states, the proposed metastructure is endowed with a large number of bandgap reconfiguration possibilities. As a result, we illustrate that unprecedented adaptable nonreciprocal wave propagation can be realized using the metastable modular metastructure. Overall, this research elucidates the rich dynamics attainable through the combinations of periodicity, nonlinearity, spatial asymmetry, and metastability and creates a class of adaptive structural and material systems capable of realizing tunable bandgaps and nonreciprocal wave transmissions.

Metastability at the Yield-Stress Transition in Soft Glasses

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matteo Lulli

2018-05-01

Full Text Available We study the solid-to-liquid transition in a two-dimensional fully periodic soft-glassy model with an imposed spatially heterogeneous stress. The model we consider consists of droplets of a dispersed phase jammed together in a continuous phase. When the peak value of the stress gets close to the yield stress of the material, we find that the whole system intermittently tunnels to a metastable “fluidized” state, which relaxes back to a metastable “solid” state by means of an elastic-wave dissipation. This macroscopic scenario is studied through the microscopic displacement field of the droplets, whose time statistics displays a remarkable bimodality. Metastability is rooted in the existence, in a given stress range, of two distinct stable rheological branches, as well as long-range correlations (e.g., large dynamic heterogeneity developed in the system. Finally, we show that a similar behavior holds for a pressure-driven flow, thus suggesting possible experimental tests.

Metastability at the Yield-Stress Transition in Soft Glasses

Science.gov (United States)

Lulli, Matteo; Benzi, Roberto; Sbragaglia, Mauro

2018-04-01

We study the solid-to-liquid transition in a two-dimensional fully periodic soft-glassy model with an imposed spatially heterogeneous stress. The model we consider consists of droplets of a dispersed phase jammed together in a continuous phase. When the peak value of the stress gets close to the yield stress of the material, we find that the whole system intermittently tunnels to a metastable "fluidized" state, which relaxes back to a metastable "solid" state by means of an elastic-wave dissipation. This macroscopic scenario is studied through the microscopic displacement field of the droplets, whose time statistics displays a remarkable bimodality. Metastability is rooted in the existence, in a given stress range, of two distinct stable rheological branches, as well as long-range correlations (e.g., large dynamic heterogeneity) developed in the system. Finally, we show that a similar behavior holds for a pressure-driven flow, thus suggesting possible experimental tests.

The effect of grain size on the mechanical response of a metastable austenitic stainless steel

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sinclair C.W.

2013-11-01

Full Text Available The combination of high environmental resistance and excellent strength, elongation and energy absorption make austenitic stainless steels potentially attractive for transportation applications. In the case of metastable grades that undergo a strain induced martensitic transformation it is possible to significantly change the mechanical properties simply by changing the austenite grain size. Predicting such behaviour using physically based models is, however, extremely challenging. Here, some recent work on the coupling between grain size and mechanical response will be presented for a metastable AISI 301 LN stainless steel. Successes and continuing challenges will be highlighted.

Strain hardening of cold-rolled lean-alloyed metastable ferritic-austenitic stainless steels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Papula, Suvi [Aalto University School of Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering, P.O. Box 14200, FI-00076 Aalto (Finland); Anttila, Severi [Centre for Advanced Steels Research, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 4200, 90014 Oulu (Finland); Talonen, Juho [Outokumpu Oyj, P.O. Box 245, FI-00181 Helsinki (Finland); Sarikka, Teemu; Virkkunen, Iikka; Hänninen, Hannu [Aalto University School of Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering, P.O. Box 14200, FI-00076 Aalto (Finland)

2016-11-20

Mechanical properties and strain hardening of two pilot-scale lean-alloyed ferritic-austenitic stainless steels having metastable austenite phase, present at 0.50 and 0.30 volume fractions, have been studied by means of tensile testing and nanoindentation. These ferritic-austenitic stainless steels have high strain-hardening capacity, due to the metastable austenite phase, which leads to an improved uniform elongation and higher tensile strength in comparison with most commercial lean duplex stainless steels. According to the results, even as low as 0.30 volume fraction of austenite seems efficient for achieving nearly 40% elongation. The austenite phase is initially the harder phase, and exhibits more strain hardening than the ferrite phase. The rate of strain hardening and the evolution of the martensite phase were found to depend on the loading direction: both are higher when strained in the rolling direction as compared to the transverse direction. Based on the mechanical testing, characterization of the microstructure by optical/electron microscopy, magnetic balance measurements and EBSD texture analysis, this anisotropy in mechanical properties of the cold-rolled metastable ferritic-austenitic stainless steels can be explained by the elongated dual-phase microstructure, fiber reinforcement effect of the harder austenite phase and the presence and interplay of rolling textures in the two phases.

Theory of hollow cathode arc discharges. II. Metastable state balance inside the cathode. Application to argon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ferreira, C.M.; Delcroix, J.L.

1975-01-01

In the hollow cathode the metastable species are created by fast electrons, which are emitted by the cathode wall and injected in the plasma across a space-charge sheath, and destroyed by Maxwellian electrons. A detailed analysis of the different electronic destruction mechanisms in argon shows that the re-excitation up to 3p 5 4p states plays a very important role. Solutions of the metastable balance equation were obtained in a wide range of variation of the discharge parameters displaying the best conditions of operation to obtain high concentrations [fr

Recovery characteristics of neutron-irradiated V-Ti alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leguey, T.; Pareja, R.

2000-01-01

The recovery characteristics of neutron-irradiated pure V and V-Ti alloys with 1.0 and 4.5 at.% Ti have been investigated by positron annihilation spectroscopy. Microvoid formation during irradiation at 320 K is produced in pure V and V-1Ti but not in V-4.5Ti. The results are consistent with a model of swelling inhibition induced by vacancy trapping by solute Ti during irradiation. The temperature dependencies of the parameter S in the range 8-300 K indicate a large dislocation bias for vacancies and solute Ti. This dislocation bias prevents the microvoid nucleation in V-4.5Ti, and the microvoid growth in V-1Ti, when vacancies become mobile during post-irradiation annealing treatments. A characteristic increase of the positron lifetime is found during recovery induced by isochronal annealing. It is attributed to a vacancy accumulation into the lattice of Ti oxides precipitated during cooling down, or at their matrix/precipitate interfaces. These precipitates could be produced by the decomposition of metastable phases of Ti oxides formed during post-irradiation annealing above 1000 K

Postmastectomy irradiation in high-risk breast cancer patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Overgaard, M.; Juul Christensen, J.; Johansen, H.; Nybo-Rasmussen, A.; Brincker, H.; Kooy, P. van der; Frederiksen, P.L.; Laursen, F.; Panduro, J.; Soerensen, N.E.; Gadeberg, C.C.; Hjelm-Hansen, M.; Overgaard, J.; West Andersen, K.; Zedeler, K.

1988-01-01

All pre- and postmenopausal high-risk breast cancer patients in the protocols DBCG 77 of the Danish Breast Cancer Cooperative Group received postmastectomy irradiation before randomization to either adjuvant systemic therapy or no such treatment. The actuarial loco-regional recurrence rate at 9 years was 6-17%, with the lowest rate in patients who also received additional adjuvant chemotherapy or tamoxifen. In a subsequent study (DBCG 82) the role of postmastectomy irradiation together with systemic treatment was evaluated in high-risk patients. Pre- and menopausal patients were randomized to postmastectomy irradiation+CMF (cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, 5-fluorouracil), CMF alone or CMF+TAM (tamoxifen). Postmenopausal patients were randomized to postmastectomy irradiation+TAM, TAM or CMF+TAM. At 4 years the loco-regional recurrence rate was significantly lower in the irradiated patients (5-7% vs. 23-33%). Further, disease-free survival was significantly improved in both pre- and postmenopausal irradiated patients compared with those who had only systemic treatment. At present, there are no significant differences between survival in the treatment groups. Thus, adjuvant systemic treatment alone (chemotherapy and/or tamoxifen) did not prevent loco-regional recurrences in high-risk patients after mastectomy and axillary lymph node sampling. However, a longer observation time is necessary to evaluate the consequence of primary optimal loco-regional tumour control in high-risk breast cancer patients with respect to survival. (orig.)

Decadal variability and metastability in the Southern Hemisphere

Science.gov (United States)

O'Kane, Terence; Risbey, James; Franzke, Christian; Horenko, Illia; Monselesan, Didier

2014-05-01

An examination of systematic changes in the metastability of the southern hemisphere 500hPa circulation is performed using both cluster analysis techniques and split flow blocking indices. The cluster methodology is a purely data-driven approach for parametrisation whereby a multi-scale approximation to non-stationary dynamical processes is achieved through optimal sequences of locally stationary fast Vector Auto-Regressive Factor (VARX) processes and some slow (or persistent) hidden process switching between them. Comparison is made with blocking indices commonly used in weather forecasting and climate analysis to identify dynamically relevant metastable regimes in the 500hPa circulation in both reanalysis and AMIP model data sets. Our analysis characterises the metastable regime in both reanalysis and model data sets prior to 1978 as positive and negative phases of a hemispheric mid-latitude blocking state with the Southern Annular Mode (SAM) associated with a transition state. Post 1978, SAM emerges as a true metastable state replacing the negative phase of the hemispheric blocking pattern. The hidden state frequency of occurrences exhibits strong trends. The blocking pattern dominates in the early 1980s then gradually decreases. There is a corresponding increase in the SAM frequency of occurrence. This trend is largely evident in the reanalysis summer and spring but was not evident in the AMIP data set. Non-stationary cluster analysis was then further used to identify the Southern Oceans response to the systematic changes in the mid-latitude atmospheric circulation and identify dynamical regimes associated with subsurface thermocline anomalies which were found to teleconnect the Pacific and Atlantic regions of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC).

Stable, metastable, and kinetically trapped amyloid aggregate phases.

Science.gov (United States)

Miti, Tatiana; Mulaj, Mentor; Schmit, Jeremy D; Muschol, Martin

2015-01-12

Self-assembly of proteins into amyloid fibrils plays a key role in a multitude of human disorders that range from Alzheimer's disease to type II diabetes. Compact oligomeric species, observed early during amyloid formation, are reported as the molecular entities responsible for the toxic effects of amyloid self-assembly. However, the relation between early-stage oligomeric aggregates and late-stage rigid fibrils, which are the hallmark structure of amyloid plaques, has remained unclear. We show that these different structures occupy well-defined regions in a peculiar phase diagram. Lysozyme amyloid oligomers and their curvilinear fibrils only form after they cross a salt and protein concentration-dependent threshold. We also determine a boundary for the onset of amyloid oligomer precipitation. The oligomeric aggregates are structurally distinct from rigid fibrils and are metastable against nucleation and growth of rigid fibrils. These experimentally determined boundaries match well with colloidal model predictions that account for salt-modulated charge repulsion. The model also incorporates the metastable and kinetic character of oligomer phases. Similarities and differences of amyloid oligomer assembly to metastable liquid-liquid phase separation of proteins and to surfactant aggregation are discussed.

Localization of metastable atom beams with optical standing waves: nanolithography at the heisenberg limit

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson; Thywissen; Dekker; Berggren; Chu; Younkin; Prentiss

1998-06-05

The spatially dependent de-excitation of a beam of metastable argon atoms, traveling through an optical standing wave, produced a periodic array of localized metastable atoms with position and momentum spreads approaching the limit stated by the Heisenberg uncertainty principle. Silicon and silicon dioxide substrates placed in the path of the atom beam were patterned by the metastable atoms. The de-excitation of metastable atoms upon collision with the surface promoted the deposition of a carbonaceous film from a vapor-phase hydrocarbon precursor. The resulting patterns were imaged both directly and after chemical etching. Thus, quantum-mechanical steady-state atom distributions can be used for sub-0.1-micrometer lithography.

Fundamentals of metastability exchange optical pumping in helium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Batz, M; Nacher, P-J; Tastevin, G

2011-01-01

Advances in metastability exchange optical pumping (MEOP) at high laser powers, but also at high gas pressures and high magnetic field strengths, has provided strong motivation for revisiting the understanding of the limitations of this powerful technique. A comprehensive model has been developed for improved description of the combined effects of OP, ME, and relaxation, and of detailed MEOP features observed over the broad range of operating conditions. A brief description is provided, with illustrative comparisons of computed and experimental results. This improved tool is used to explain the excellent photon efficiency of OP obtained at all field strengths. It is combined with an angular momentum budget approach to quantitatively investigate the newly discovered strong OP-enhanced polarisation losses that currently limits MEOP performance.

Fundamentals of metastability exchange optical pumping in helium

Science.gov (United States)

Batz, M.; Nacher, P.-J.; Tastevin, G.

2011-06-01

Advances in metastability exchange optical pumping (MEOP) at high laser powers, but also at high gas pressures and high magnetic field strengths, has provided strong motivation for revisiting the understanding of the limitations of this powerful technique. A comprehensive model has been developed for improved description of the combined effects of OP, ME, and relaxation, and of detailed MEOP features observed over the broad range of operating conditions. A brief description is provided, with illustrative comparisons of computed and experimental results. This improved tool is used to explain the excellent photon efficiency of OP obtained at all field strengths. It is combined with an angular momentum budget approach to quantitatively investigate the newly discovered strong OP-enhanced polarisation losses that currently limits MEOP performance.

Pre-Irradiation Chemotherapy in High Risk Medulloblastoma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abd-El-Aal, H.

2006-01-01

Rationale: The present study evaluates the effect of pre-irradiation chemotherapy in pediatric patients with high risk medulloblastoma. Twenty-four (24) pediatric patients attended the pediatric unit of Kasr-EI-Aini Center of Radiation Oncology and Nuclear Medicine (NEMROCK) from January 2000 to January 2003. Patients and Methods: Our patients were 13 boys and II girls aged 3-12 years with a median of 6.5 years. According to Chang staging system 6 cases had T2, 14 cases had T3 A and 4 cases had T3 B, 20 cases were M0, 3 cases were M I and I case was M2. All patients were treated by initial surgery, 2 cycles of pre-irradiation chemotherapy followed by craniospinal radiation then by 4 cycles of post-radiation chemotherapy. Results: Fifteen out of the 20 patients with M0 had objective response (10CR + 5PR) and no one had disease progression after pre-irradiation chemotherapy. Among 4 patients with M0 disease, 2 patients had PR and 2 had S.D. There was no disease progression among patients who received pre-irradiation chemotherapy. The 3-year overall survival and 3-year progression-free survival; (PFS) were 50% and 51 %, respectively, Myelosuppression was the main toxic effect observed during pre-irradiation chemotherapy; however, there was no delay or interruption of craniospinal irradiation. Conclusion: Pre-irradiation chemotherapy is effective in high risk medulloblastoma and is associated with acceptable side effects. The delay in craniospinal irradiation (CSI) for about 5 weeks to receive 2 courses of chemotherapy will not significantly increase disease progression. Multiple cycles of post-irradiation chemotherapy can be given safely after C51. A larger number of patients and longer follow-up is needed to confirm the results

Stabilization of metastable tetragonal zirconia nanocrystallites by surface modification

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Mette Skovgaard; Almdal, Kristoffer; Lelieveld, A. van

2011-01-01

Metastable tetragonal zirconia nanocrystallites were studied in humid air and in water at room temperature (RT). A stabilizing effect of different surfactants on the tetragonal phase was observed. Furthermore, the phase stability of silanized metastable tetragonal zirconia nanocrystallites was te...... exposure to humidity. Only silanes and phosphate esters of these were able to stabilize the tetragonal phase in water. Even as small amounts of silanes as 0.25 silane molecule per nm2 are able to stabilize the tetragonal phase in water at RT. Aminopropyl trimethoxy silane and γ...

Behavior of 23S metastable state He atoms in low-temperature recombining plasmas

Science.gov (United States)

Kajita, Shin; Tsujihara, Tadashi; Aramaki, Mitsutoshi; van der Meiden, Hennie; Oshima, Hiroshi; Ohno, Noriyasu; Tanaka, Hirohiko; Yasuhara, Ryo; Akiyama, Tsuyoshi; Fujii, Keisuke; Shikama, Taiichi

2017-07-01

We measured the electron density and temperature using laser Thomson scattering and metastable state (23S) of He atoms by laser absorption spectroscopy in the detached recombining plasmas in the divertor simulator NAGDIS-II. Using the measured electron density and temperature combined with the particle trajectory trace simulation, we discussed the behavior of the metastable state He atoms based on comparisons with the experimental results. It is shown that the metastable state atoms are mainly produced in the peripheral region of the plasma column, where the temperature is lower than the central part, and diffused in the vacuum vessel. It was shown that the 0D model is not valid and the transport of the metastable states is to be taken into account for the population distribution of He atoms in the detached plasmas.

Highly charged ions trapping for lifetime measurements; Piegeage d'ions tres charges pour la mesure de duree de vie d'etats metastables

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Attia, D

2007-10-15

A new experimental setup dedicated to highly charged ion trapping is presented in this work. The final goal is to perform lifetime measurement of metastable states produced by our ECR (Electron Cyclotron Resonance) ion source. Lifetimes to be measured are in the range of a few ms and more. We have measured the lifetimes of the M1 transitions of the metastable states of Ar{sup 9+}, Ar{sup 13+} and Ar{sup 14+}. These measurements are useful to test the N-body problem in the relativistic range. The trap we have built, was designed a few years ago at the Weizman Institute in Israel, it allows ions with an energy of several keV to be trapped for lifetimes of about 1 second. This trap was originally designed to study the dynamics of excited molecules. We have shown for the first time how the trap operates and that it can operate with highly charged ions. We have studied the beam dynamics of highly charged ions and the trap has been tested with various species of ions and different charge states: from O{sup +} to O{sup 6+}, from Ar{sup 8+} to Ar{sup 13+}, and from Kr{sup 13+} to Kr{sup 20+}.

Solid state photochemistry. Subpanel A-2(b): Metastability in hydrogenated amorphous silicon

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carlson, D. [Solarex Corporation, Newton, PA (United States)

1996-09-01

All device quality amorphous silicon based materials exhibit degradation in electronic properties when exposed to sunlight. The photo-induced defects are associated with Si dangling bonds that are created by the recombination and/or trapping of photogenerated carriers. The defects are metastable and can be annealed out at temperatures of about 150 to 200 degrees Centigrade. The density of metastable defects is larger in films that are contaminated with > 10{sup 19} per cubic cm of impurities such as oxygen, carbon and nitrogen. However, recent experimental results indicate that some metastable defects are still present in films with very low impurity concentrations. The photo-induced defects typically saturate after 100 to 1000 hours of exposure to one sun illumination depending on the deposition conditions. There is also experimental evidence that photo-induced structural changes are occurring in the amorphous silicon based materials and that hydrogen may be playing an important role in both the photo-induced structural changes and in the creation of metastable defects.

Syntheses and properties of several metastable and stable hydrides derived from intermetallic compounds under high hydrogen pressure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Filipek, S.M., E-mail: sfilipek@unipress.waw.pl [Institute of High Pressure Physics PAS, ul. Sokolowska 29, 01-142 Warsaw (Poland); Paul-Boncour, V. [ICMPE-CMTR, CNRS-UPEC, 2-8 rue Henri Dunant, 94320 Thiais (France); Liu, R.S. [Department of Chemistry, National Taiwan University, Taipei 106, Taiwan (China); Jacob, I. [Unit Nuclear Eng., Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva (Israel); Tsutaoka, T. [Dept. of Sci. Educ., Grad. School of Educ., Hiroshima University, Hiroshima (Japan); Budziak, A. [Institute of Nuclear Physics PAS, 31-342 Kraków (Poland); Morawski, A. [Institute of High Pressure Physics PAS, ul. Sokolowska 29, 01-142 Warsaw (Poland); Sugiura, H. [Yokohama City University, 22-2 Seto, Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama 236-0027 (Japan); Zachariasz, P. [Institute of Electron Technology Cracow Division, ul. Zablocie 39, 30-701 Krakow (Poland); Dybko, K. [Institute of Physics, PAS, 02-668 Warsaw (Poland); Diduszko, R. [Tele and Radio Research Institute, ul. Ratuszowa 11, Warsaw (Poland)

2016-12-01

Brief summary of our former work on high hydrogen pressure syntheses of novel hydrides and studies of their properties is supplemented with new results. Syntheses and properties of a number of hydrides (unstable, metastable or stable in ambient conditions) derived under high hydrogen pressure from intermetallic compounds, like MeT{sub 2}, MeNi{sub 5}, Me{sub 7}T{sub 3}, Y{sub 6}Mn{sub 23} and YMn{sub 12} (where Me = zirconium, yttrium or rare earth; T = transition metal) are presented. Stabilization of ZrFe{sub 2}H{sub 4} due to surface phenomena was revealed. Unusual role of manganese in hydride forming processes is pointed out. Hydrogen induced phase transitions, suppression of magnetism, antiferromagnetic-ferromagnetic and metal-insulator or semimetal-metal transitions are described. Equations of state (EOS) of hydrides submitted to hydrostatic pressures up to 30 GPa are presented and discussed.

Metastable enhancement of C+ and O+ capture reactions: Annual report, July 1, 1988--June 30,1989

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thomas, E.W.; Moran, T.F.

1989-01-01

The project seeks to study the charge capture reactions of C + and O + in various gases (principally H 2 and He) to determine the difference between cross sections for the ground and metastable excited states of the projectile species. Emphasis is on very low energy collisions close to threshold and data in practice extends over collision energies from 10 to 500 eV; comparison can be made with data from other sources at higher energies. In general terms cross sections for the metastable species are higher by a factor of ten than for the ground state at low energies (10 eV), are surprisingly invariant with energy, are approached by the ground state cross sections at about 10 5 eV, after which both cross sections fall. We have shown also that the metastable content of C + and O + fluxes produced by dissociative ionization of various carbon containing molecules is 15 to 30%. We conclude that in the consideration of a situation involving neutralization of C + and O + (as for example in the edge of a fusion plasma) the metastable content may be high and will influence the net cross section significantly. Present data are not always in agreement with previously published results

Metastable and bistable defects in silicon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mukashev, Bulat N; Abdullin, Kh A; Gorelkinskii, Yurii V

2000-01-01

Existing data on the properties and structure of metastable and bistable defects in silicon are analyzed. Primary radiation-induced defects (vacancies, self-interstitial atoms, and Frenkel pairs), complexes of oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, and other impurity atoms and defects with negative correlation energy are considered. (reviews of topical problems)

Inflating metastable quark-gluon plasma universe

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jenkovszky, L.L.; Kaempfer, B.; Sysoev, V.M.

1990-01-01

We show within the Friedmann model with the equation of state p(T)=aT 4 -AT that our universe has expanded exponentially when it was in a metastable quark-gluon plasma state. The scale factor during that epoch increased by many orders of magnitude. 13 refs.; 5 figs

Phase transformation of metastable cubic γ-phase in U-Mo alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sinha, V.P.; Hegde, P.V.; Prasad, G.J.; Dey, G.K.; Kamath, H.S.

2010-01-01

Over the past decade considerable efforts have been put by many fuel designers to develop low enriched uranium (LEU 235 ) base U-Mo alloy as a potential fuel for core conversion of existing research and test reactors which are running on high enriched uranium (HEU > 85%U 235 ) fuel and also for the upcoming new reactors. U-Mo alloy with minimum 8 wt% molybdenum shows excellent metastability with cubic γ-phase in cast condition. However, it is important to characterize the decomposition behaviour of metastable cubic γ-uranium in its equilibrium products for in reactor fuel performance point of view. The present paper describes the phase transformation behaviour of cubic γ-uranium phase in U-Mo alloys with three different molybdenum compositions (i.e. 8 wt%, 9 wt% and 10 wt%). U-Mo alloys were prepared in an induction melting furnace and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) method for phase determination. Microstructures were developed for samples in as cast condition. The alloys were hot rolled in cubic γ-phase to break the cast structure and then they were aged at 500 o C for 68 h and 240 h, so that metastable cubic γ-uranium will undergo eutectoid decomposition to form equilibrium phases of orthorhombic α-uranium and body centered tetragonal U 2 Mo intermetallic compound. U-Mo alloy samples with different ageing history were then characterized by XRD for phase and development of microstructure.

Instability of colliding metastable strings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hiramatsu, Takashi; Kobayashi, Tatsuo; Ookouchi, Yutaka; Kyoto Univ.

2013-04-01

We investigate the collision dynamics of two metastable strings which can be viewed as tube-like domain walls with winding numbers interpolating a false vacuum and a true vacuum. We find that depending on the relative angle and speed of two strings, instability of strings increases and the false vacuum is filled out by rapid expansion of the strings or of a remnant of the collision.

Instability of colliding metastable strings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hiramatsu, Takashi [Kyoto Univ. (Japan). Yukawa Inst. for Theoretical Physics; Eto, Minoru [Yamagata Univ. (Japan). Dept. of Physics; Kamada, Kohei [Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY), Hamburg (Germany); Kobayashi, Tatsuo [Kyoto Univ. (Japan). Dept. of Physics; Ookouchi, Yutaka [Kyoto Univ. (Japan). Dept. of Physics; Kyoto Univ. (Japan). The Hakubi Center for Advanced Research

2013-04-15

We investigate the collision dynamics of two metastable strings which can be viewed as tube-like domain walls with winding numbers interpolating a false vacuum and a true vacuum. We find that depending on the relative angle and speed of two strings, instability of strings increases and the false vacuum is filled out by rapid expansion of the strings or of a remnant of the collision.

Collisional interaction between metastable neon atoms

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Drunen, Wouter Johannes van

2008-07-07

In this thesis, the study of cold gases of neon atoms in different metastable states is described. It contains measurements of the collisional parameters for both the 3s[3/2]{sub 2} and the 3s'[1/2]{sub 0} metastable state and the dependence of the inelastic loss on external fields. Furthermore, the investigation of frequency dependent laser-induced collisions, and the possibility to excite photoassociation resonances is presented. For the measurements described here, neon atoms have been confined in a magnetooptical trap, in a magnetostatic trap, or in an optical dipole trap, respectively. By laser cooling inside the magnetic trap, atomic samples with more than 95 percent occupation of the magnetic substate m{sub J} = +2 could be prepared. They have a typical temperature of 0.5 mK, central densities up to 10{sup 11} cm{sup -3}, and a central phase-space density of up to 2.2.10{sup -7}. After loading the optical dipole trap from the magnetic trap, 2.5.10{sup 6} atoms with typical temperatures of 0.1 mK, and central densities up to 5.10{sup 10} cm{sup -3} were trapped. By evaporative cooling of the atoms in the magnetic trap we could increase the phase-space density by a factor of 200 to 5.10{sup -5}. Investigating the frequency dependence of laser-induced collisions did not reveal an experimental signature for the excitation of photoassociation resonances. For the {sup 3}D{sub 3} line a frequency dependence of laser enhanced Penning ionization was observed. Measurement of the two-body loss coefficient as function of the magnetic field showed a field dependence of the inelastic loss. These losses increase towards both small and large offset fields. The implementation of an optical dipole trap allowed us to trap the {sup 3}P{sub 0} metastable state. From the trap loss measurements we determined the two-body loss coefficient of the {sup 3}P{sub 0} metastable state for both bosonic isotopes {sup 20}Ne and {sup 22}Ne. For {sup 20}Ne we obtained {beta}=6{sup +5}{sub

In-situ high temperature irradiation setup for temperature dependent structural studies of materials under swift heavy ion irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kulriya, P.K.; Kumari, Renu; Kumar, Rajesh; Grover, V.; Shukla, R.; Tyagi, A.K.; Avasthi, D.K.

2015-01-01

An in-situ high temperature (1000 K) setup is designed and installed in the materials science beam line of superconducting linear accelerator at the Inter-University Accelerator Centre (IUAC) for temperature dependent ion irradiation studies on the materials exposed with swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation. The Gd 2 Ti 2 O 7 pyrochlore is irradiated using 120 MeV Au ion at 1000 K using the high temperature irradiation facility and characterized by ex-situ X-ray diffraction (XRD). Another set of Gd 2 Ti 2 O 7 samples are irradiated with the same ion beam parameter at 300 K and simultaneously characterized using in-situ XRD available in same beam line. The XRD studies along with the Raman spectroscopic investigations reveal that the structural modification induced by the ion irradiation is strongly dependent on the temperature of the sample. The Gd 2 Ti 2 O 7 is readily amorphized at an ion fluence 6 × 10 12 ions/cm 2 on irradiation at 300 K, whereas it is transformed to a radiation-resistant anion-deficient fluorite structure on high temperature irradiation, that amorphized at ion fluence higher than 1 × 10 13 ions/cm 2 . The temperature dependent ion irradiation studies showed that the ion fluence required to cause amorphization at 1000 K irradiation is significantly higher than that required at room temperature irradiation. In addition to testing the efficiency of the in-situ high temperature irradiation facility, the present study establishes that the radiation stability of the pyrochlore is enhanced at higher temperatures

Primary populations of metastable antiprotonic $^{4}He$ and $^{3}He$ atoms

CERN Document Server

Hori, Masaki; Hayano, R S; Ishikawa, T; Sakuguchi, J; Tasaki, T; Widmann, E; Yamaguchi, H; Torii, H A; Juhász, B; Horváth, D; Yamazaki, T

2002-01-01

Initial population distributions of metastable antiprotonic **4He and **3He atoms over principal and angular momentum quantum numbers were investigated using laser spectroscopy. The total fractions of antiprotons captured into the metastable states of the atoms were deduced. Cascade calculations were performed using the measure populations to reproduce the delayed annihilation time spectrum. Results showed agreement between the simulated and measured spectra. (Edited abstract) 30 Refs.

Effects of low priming dose irradiation on cell cycle arrest of HepG2 cells caused by high dose irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xia Jingguang; Jin Xiaodong; Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing; Li Wenjian; Wang Jufang; Guo Chuanling; Gao Qingxiang

2005-01-01

Human hepatoma cells hepG2 were irradiated twice by 60 Co γ-rays with a priming dose of 5 cGy and a higher dose of 3 Gy performed 4h or 8h after the low dose irradiation. Effects of the priming dose irradiation on cell cycle arrest caused by high dose were examined with flow cytometry. Cells in G 2 /M phase accumulated temporarily after the 5 cGy irradiation, and proliferation of tumor cells was promoted significantly by the low dose irradiation. After the 3 Gy irradiation, G 2 phase arrest occurred, and S phase delayed temporally. In comparison with 3 kGy irradiation only, the priming dose delivered 4h prior to the high dose irradiation facilitated accumulation of hepG2 cells in G 2 /M phase, whereas the priming dose delivered 8h prior to the high dose irradiation helped the cells to overcome G 2 arrest. It was concluded that effects of the priming dose treatment on cell cycle arrest caused by high dose irradiation were dependent on time interval between the two irradiations. (authors)

The Influence of Radiation on Pit Solution Chemistry as it Pertains to the Transition from Metastable to Stable Pitting in Steels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Galuszka-Muga, Barbara; Muga, Luis M.

2006-01-01

Previous work relevant to current efforts is summarized. A description of an improved version of a new electrochemical probe, the ArtPit, is given. The distinct feature of the probe for investigating metastable pitting of carbon steels is specified and compared to other approaches. The electrochemical response of the ArtPit under the gamma irradiation and elevated temperature conditions that occur at high level waste (HLW) storage tanks is presented. In particular, the Tafel slope determinations and chemical analyses of the ArtPit confined volume electrolyte are described. Based on results a possible approach for reducing the corrosion rate of HLW tank walls is suggested. Additional statistical analysis of the occurrence of short duration (passivated pits) and long term (stable pitting) electrochemical pulses (current surges) during exposure confirm that radiation enhances the occurrence of both more and smaller sized pits due to increased likelihood of repassivation

On the fermion pair production in the process of metastable vacuum decay

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lavrelashvili, G.V.; Rubakov, V.A.; Tinyakov, P.G.

1985-01-01

Production of fermion pairs during the tunneling process leading to the decay of metastable vacuum is considered. The technique based on non-unitary Bogolyubov transformations is developed and formulae for fermionic spectrum are obtained. As an example, the spectrum of fermionic pairs produced during the homogeneous decay of metastable vacuum is evaluated

Measurement of cross-sections for step-bystep excitation of inert gas atoms from metastable states by electron collisions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mityureva, A.A.; Penkin, N.P.; Smirnov, V.V.

1989-01-01

Excitation of argon atoms by electron collisions from metastable (MS) to high-lying states of inert gases (the so-called step-by-step excitation) is investigated. Formation of MS atoms m and their further step-by-step excitation up to k level is carried out by an electron beam with energy from 1 up to 40 eV. Time distribution of forming metastable and step-by-step electron collisions is used. The method used permits to measure the functions of step-by-step excitation and the absolute values of cross sections. Absolute values of cross-sections and functions of step-by-step excitation of some lines and argon levels are obtained

The application analysis of high energy electron accelerator in food irradiation processing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Deng Wenmin; Chen Hao; Feng Lei; Zhang Yaqun; Chen Xun; Li Wenjun; Xiang Chengfen; Pei Ying; Wang Zhidong

2012-01-01

Irradiation technology of high energy electron accelerator has been highly concerned in food processing industry with its fast development, especially in the field of food irradiation processing. In this paper, equipment and research situation of high energy electron accelerator were collected, meanwhile, the similarities and differences between high energy electron beam and 60 Co γ-rays were discussed. In order to provide more references of high energy electron beam irradiation, the usages of high energy electron in food irradiation processing was prospected. These information would promote the development of domestic food irradiation industry and give a useful message to irradiation enterprises and researchers. (authors)

Persistence of metastable vortex lattice domains in MgB2 in the presence of vortex motion.

Science.gov (United States)

Rastovski, C; Schlesinger, K J; Gannon, W J; Dewhurst, C D; DeBeer-Schmitt, L; Zhigadlo, N D; Karpinski, J; Eskildsen, M R

2013-09-06

Recently, extensive vortex lattice metastability was reported in MgB2 in connection with a second-order rotational phase transition. However, the mechanism responsible for these well-ordered metastable vortex lattice phases is not well understood. Using small-angle neutron scattering, we studied the vortex lattice in MgB2 as it was driven from a metastable to the ground state through a series of small changes in the applied magnetic field. Our results show that metastable vortex lattice domains persist in the presence of substantial vortex motion and directly demonstrate that the metastability is not due to vortex pinning. Instead, we propose that it is due to the jamming of counterrotated vortex lattice domains which prevents a rotation to the ground state orientation.

Constitutive modeling of metastable austenitic stainless steel

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Perdahcioglu, Emin Semih; Geijselaers, Hubertus J.M.; Huetink, Han; Khan, A.

2010-01-01

A physically based, macroscale constitutive model has been developed that can describe the complex mechanical behavior of metastable austenitic stainless steels. In the developed model a generalized model for the mechanically induced martensitic transformation is introduced. Mechanical tests have

Determination of nuclear moments and nuclear radii changes of the metastable silverisotopes sup(108m)Ag and sup(110m)Ag from the hyperfine structure of silver-I-resonance lines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meier, T.

1973-01-01

The hyperfine structure of the resonance lines of the metastable silver isotopes sup(108m), sup(110m)Ag were investigated by means of optical interference spectroscopy. Both radioactive silver isotopes were obtained by irradiating isotope-pure 107 Ag or 109 Ag with neutrons in the reactor. In spite of the slight enrichment of the isotopes to be investigated compared to the stable isotopes ( [de

The Decay of Optically Thick Helium Plasmas, Taking into Account Ionizing Collisions between Metastable Atoms or Molecules

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stevefelt, J.

1970-11-01

The effective recombination rate of a helium afterglow plasma, which is optically thick towards the resonance lines, is calculated from the coupled rate equations for the number densities of free electrons and of metastable atoms or molecules. The model employed is a neutral plasma, consisting of one kind of ions and one kind of metastables. The ions are lost by electron-ion recombination only, with subsequent formation of metastables, which are then deactivated in collisions with free electrons or with other metastables: in the latter case one electron is regained to the free state. When the rate constants for these various processes are time-independent, it is found that after a certain transition time a transient equilibrium between the number densities of electrons and metastables is attained. In a dense afterglow plasma, where the recombination coefficient may be large, the transient equilibrium density of metastables may become significantly higher than the qua si-equilibrium value obtained by equating the time derivative of the metastable density to zero, and the effective recombination coefficient may be reduced by much more than a factor of two

The Decay of Optically Thick Helium Plasmas, Taking into Account Ionizing Collisions between Metastable Atoms or Molecules

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stevefelt, J

1970-11-15

The effective recombination rate of a helium afterglow plasma, which is optically thick towards the resonance lines, is calculated from the coupled rate equations for the number densities of free electrons and of metastable atoms or molecules. The model employed is a neutral plasma, consisting of one kind of ions and one kind of metastables. The ions are lost by electron-ion recombination only, with subsequent formation of metastables, which are then deactivated in collisions with free electrons or with other metastables: in the latter case one electron is regained to the free state. When the rate constants for these various processes are time-independent, it is found that after a certain transition time a transient equilibrium between the number densities of electrons and metastables is attained. In a dense afterglow plasma, where the recombination coefficient may be large, the transient equilibrium density of metastables may become significantly higher than the qua si-equilibrium value obtained by equating the time derivative of the metastable density to zero, and the effective recombination coefficient may be reduced by much more than a factor of two

Irradiation effects of high temperature superconductor of lanthanoid oxides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ueda, Koh-ichi; Kohara, Takao [Himeji Inst. of Tech., Hyogo (Japan)

1996-04-01

Neutron irradiation effects on excess oxygen were studied by neutron irradiation on La{sub 2}CuO{sub 4} treated with high pressure oxygen. La{sub 2}CuO{sub 4} was prepared by the usual method and annealed for 10 h under the oxygen pressure of 800-2000 atm. at 600degC. The superconducting transition temperature (Tc) is 27-32K before irradiation (La{sub 2}CuO{sub 4+d}, amount of excess oxygen d=0.03-0.12). Neutron irradiation was carried out by two kinds of experiments. Low irradiation dose test at low temperature (LTL: {approx}20-200K, storage in LN{sub 2}) showed Tc decreased more slowly than that of high temperature range. Experiment at high temperature (Hyd:{approx}80deg{yields}, storage at room temperature) showed -10K/10{sup 18}n/cm{sup 2}, the decrease of Tc was three times larger than that of YBCO type superconductor. (S.Y.)

Silver nanoplates with ground or metastable structures obtained from template-free two-phase aqueous/organic synthesis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhelev, Doncho V., E-mail: dontcho.jelev@nih.gov; Zheleva, Tsvetanka S. [Army Research Laboratory, 2800 Adelphi, Maryland 20783 (United States)

2014-01-28

Silver has unique electrical, catalytic, and plasmonic characteristics and has been widely sought for fabrication of nanostructures. The properties of silver nanostructures are intimately coupled to the structure of silver crystals. Two crystal structures are known for silver: the stable (ground) state cubic face centered 3C-Ag structure and the metastable hexagonal 4H-Ag structure. Recently, Chackraborty et al. [J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 23, 325401 (2011)] discovered a low density, highly reactive metastable hexagonal 2H-Ag structure accessible during electrodeposition of silver nanowires in porous anodic alumina templates. This 2H-Ag structure has enhanced electrical and catalytic characteristics. In the present work we report template-free synthesis of silver nanoplates with the metastable 2H-Ag crystal structure, which appears together with the ground 3C-Ag and the metastable 4H-Ag structures in a two-phase solution synthesis with citric acid as the capping agent. The capacity of citric acid to stabilize both the stable and the metastable structures is explained by its preferential binding to the close packed facets of Ag crystals, which are the (111) planes for 3C-Ag and the (0001) planes for 4H-Ag and 2H-Ag. Nanoplate morphology and structure are characterized using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. The synthesized nanoplates have thickness from 15 to 17 nm and edge length from 1 to 10 μm. Transmission electron microscopy selected area electron diffraction is used to uniquely identify and distinguish between nanoplates with 2H-Ag or 4H-Ag or 3C-Ag structures.

Demonstration of a CW diode-pumped Ar metastable laser operating at 4  W.

Science.gov (United States)

Han, J; Heaven, M C; Moran, P J; Pitz, G A; Guild, E M; Sanderson, C R; Hokr, B

2017-11-15

Optically pumped rare gas lasers are being investigated as potential high-energy, high beam quality systems. The lasing medium consists of rare gas atoms (Rg=Ne, Ar, Kr, or Xe) that have been electric discharge excited to the metastable np 5 (n+1)s P3 2 state. Following optical excitation, helium (He) at pressures of 200-1000 Torr is used as the energy transfer agent to create a population inversion. The primary technical difficulty for this scheme is the discharge production of sufficient Rg* metastables in the presence of >200  Torr of He. In this Letter, we describe a pulsed discharge that yields >10 13   cm -3 Ar* in the presence of He at total pressures up to 750 Torr. Using this discharge, a diode-pumped Ar* laser providing 4.1 W has been demonstrated.

Glassy and Metastable Crystalline BaTi2O5 by Containerless Processing

Science.gov (United States)

Yoda, Shinichi; Kentei Yu, Yu; Kumar, Vijaya; Kameko, Masashi

Many efforts have been devoted to forming bulk glass from the melt of ferroelectric crystalline materials without adding any network-forming oxides such as SiO2 due to the potential for producing transparent glass ceramics with high dielectric constant and enhanced piezoelectric, pyroelectric and electro-optic use. The containerless processing is an attractive synthesis tech-nique as it can prevent melt contamination, minimize heterogeneous nucleation, and allow melt to achieve deep undercooling for forming metastable and glassy materials. We have fabricated a new ferroelectric materiel BaTi2 O5 [1] as bulk glass from melt by us-ing containerless processing and studied the phase relationship between microstructure and ferroelectric properties of BaTi2 O5 [2]. The structures of glassy and metastable crystalline BaTi2 O5 fabricated by the containerless pro-cessing were comprehensively investigated by combined X-ray and neutron diffractions, XANES analyses and computer simulations [3]. The 3-dimensional atomic structure of glassy BaTi2 O5 (g-BaTi2 O5 ), simulated by Reverse Monte Carlo (RMC) modelling on diffraction data, shows that extremely distorted TiO5 polyhedra interconnected with both corner-and edge-shared oxy-gen, formed a higher packing density structure than that of conventional silicate glass linked with only corner-sharing of SiO4 polyhedra. In addition, XANES measurement reveales that five-coordinated TiO5 polyhedra were formable in the crystallized metastable a-and b-BaTi2 O5 phases. The structure of metastable b-BaTi2 O5 was solved by ab initio calculation, and refined by Rietveld refinement as group Pnma with unit lattices a = 10.23784 ˚, b = 3.92715 ˚, c A A = 10.92757 A ˚. Our results show that the glass-forming ability enhanced by containerless pro-cessing, not by `strong glass former', fabricated new bulk oxide glasses with peculiar structures and properties. The intermediate-range structure of g-BaTi2 O5 and the crystalline structure of

Topodynamics of metastable brains

Science.gov (United States)

Tozzi, Arturo; Peters, James F.; Fingelkurts, Andrew A.; Fingelkurts, Alexander A.; Marijuán, Pedro C.

2017-07-01

The brain displays both the anatomical features of a vast amount of interconnected topological mappings as well as the functional features of a nonlinear, metastable system at the edge of chaos, equipped with a phase space where mental random walks tend towards lower energetic basins. Nevertheless, with the exception of some advanced neuro-anatomic descriptions and present-day connectomic research, very few studies have been addressing the topological path of a brain embedded or embodied in its external and internal environment. Herein, by using new formal tools derived from algebraic topology, we provide an account of the metastable brain, based on the neuro-scientific model of Operational Architectonics of brain-mind functioning. We introduce a ;topodynamic; description that shows how the relationships among the countless intertwined spatio-temporal levels of brain functioning can be assessed in terms of projections and mappings that take place on abstract structures, equipped with different dimensions, curvatures and energetic constraints. Such a topodynamical approach, apart from providing a biologically plausible model of brain function that can be operationalized, is also able to tackle the issue of a long-standing dichotomy: it throws indeed a bridge between the subjective, immediate datum of the naïve complex of sensations and mentations and the objective, quantitative, data extracted from experimental neuro-scientific procedures. Importantly, it opens the door to a series of new predictions and future directions of advancement for neuroscientific research.

A novel series of isoreticular metal organic frameworks: Realizing metastable structures by liquid phase epitaxy

KAUST Repository

Liu, Jinxuan; Lukose, Binit; Shekhah, Osama; Arslan, Hasan Kemal; Weidler, Peter; Gliemann, Hartmut; Brä se, Stefan; Grosjean, Sylvain; Godt, Adelheid; Feng, Xinliang; Mü llen, Klaus; Magdau, Ioan-Bogdan; Heine, Thomas; Wö ll, Christof

2012-01-01

A novel class of metal organic frameworks (MOFs) has been synthesized from Cu-acetate and dicarboxylic acids using liquid phase epitaxy. The SURMOF-2 isoreticular series exhibits P4 symmetry, for the longest linker a channel-size of 3 3 nm2 is obtained, one of the largest values reported for any MOF so far. High quality, ab-initio electronic structure calculations confirm the stability of a regular packing of (Cu++) 2-carboxylate paddle-wheel planes with P4 symmetry and reveal, that the SURMOF-2 structures are in fact metastable, with a fairly large activation barrier for the transition to the bulk MOF-2 structures exhibiting a lower, twofold (P2 or C2) symmetry. The theoretical calculations also allow identifying the mechanism for the low-temperature epitaxial growth process and to explain, why a synthesis of this highly interesting, new class of high-symmetry, metastable MOFs is not possible using the conventional solvothermal process.

A novel series of isoreticular metal organic frameworks: Realizing metastable structures by liquid phase epitaxy

KAUST Repository

Liu, Jinxuan

2012-12-04

A novel class of metal organic frameworks (MOFs) has been synthesized from Cu-acetate and dicarboxylic acids using liquid phase epitaxy. The SURMOF-2 isoreticular series exhibits P4 symmetry, for the longest linker a channel-size of 3 3 nm2 is obtained, one of the largest values reported for any MOF so far. High quality, ab-initio electronic structure calculations confirm the stability of a regular packing of (Cu++) 2-carboxylate paddle-wheel planes with P4 symmetry and reveal, that the SURMOF-2 structures are in fact metastable, with a fairly large activation barrier for the transition to the bulk MOF-2 structures exhibiting a lower, twofold (P2 or C2) symmetry. The theoretical calculations also allow identifying the mechanism for the low-temperature epitaxial growth process and to explain, why a synthesis of this highly interesting, new class of high-symmetry, metastable MOFs is not possible using the conventional solvothermal process.

High-water-base hydraulic fluid-irradiation experiments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bradley, E.C.; Meacham, S.A.

1981-10-01

A remote system for shearing spent nuclear fuel assemblies is being designed under the direction of the Consolidated Fuel Reprocessing Program (CFRP). The design incorporates a dual hydraulic fluid actuation system in which only one of the fluids, a high-water-base (HWBF), would be exposed to ionizing radiation and radioactive contamination. A commercially available synthetic, solution-type HWBF was selected as the reference. Single-sample irradiation experiments were conducted with three commercial fluids over a range of irradiation exposures. The physical and chemical properties of the irradiated HWBFs were analyzed and compared with unirradiated samples. In general, the results of the analyses showed increasing degradation of fluid properties with increasing irradiation dose. The results also indicated that a synthetic solution-type HWBF would perform satisfactorily in the remote shear system where irradiation doses up to 10 6 Gy (10 8 rad) are expected

High-water-base hydraulic fluid-irradiation experiments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bradley, E.C.; Meacham, S.A.

1981-10-01

A remote system for shearing spent nuclear fuel assemblies is being designed under the direction of the Consolidated Fuel Reprocessing Program (CFRP). The design incorporates a dual hydraulic fluid actuation system in which only one of the fluids, a high-water-base (HWBF), would be exposed to ionizing radiation and radioactive contamination. A commercially available synthetic, solution-type HWBF was selected as the reference. Single-sample irradiation experiments were conducted with three commercial fluids over a range of irradiation exposures. The physical and chemical properties of the irradiated HWBFs were analyzed and compared with unirradiated samples. In general, the results of the analyses showed increasing degradation of fluid properties with increasing irradiation dose. The results also indicated that a synthetic solution-type HWBF would perform satisfactorily in the remote shear system where irradiation doses up to 10/sup 6/ Gy (10/sup 8/ rad) are expected.

Formation of austenite in high Cr ferritic/martensitic steels by high fluence neutron irradiation

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Z.; Faulkner, R. G.; Morgan, T. S.

2008-12-01

High Cr ferritic/martensitic steels are leading candidates for structural components of future fusion reactors and new generation fission reactors due to their excellent swelling resistance and thermal properties. A commercial grade 12%CrMoVNb ferritic/martensitic stainless steel in the form of parent plate and off-normal weld materials was fast neutron irradiated up to 33 dpa (1.1 × 10 -6 dpa/s) at 400 °C and 28 dpa (1.7 × 10 -6 dpa/s) at 465 °C, respectively. TEM investigation shows that the fully martensitic weld metal transformed to a duplex austenite/ferrite structure due to high fluence neutron irradiation, the austenite was heavily voided (˜15 vol.%) and the ferrite was relatively void-free; whilst no austenite phases were detected in plate steel. Thermodynamic and phase equilibria software MTDATA has been employed for the first time to investigate neutron irradiation-induced phase transformations. The neutron irradiation effect is introduced by adding additional Gibbs free energy into the system. This additional energy is produced by high energy neutron irradiation and can be estimated from the increased dislocation loop density caused by irradiation. Modelling results show that neutron irradiation reduces the ferrite/austenite transformation temperature, especially for high Ni weld metal. The calculated results exhibit good agreement with experimental observation.

The measurement of argon metastable atoms in the barrier discharge plasma

Science.gov (United States)

Ghildina, Anna R.; Mikheyev, Pavel Anatolyevich; Chernyshov, Aleksandr Konstantinovich; Lunev, Nikolai Nikolaevich; Azyazov, Valeriy Nikolaevich

2018-04-01

The mandatory condition for efficient operation of an optically-pumped all-rare-gas laser (OPRGL) is the presence of rare gas metastable atoms in the discharge plasma with number density of the order of 1012-1013 cm-3. This requirement mainly depends on the choice of a discharge system. In this study the number density values of argon metastable atoms were obtained in the condition of the dielectric-barrier discharge (DBD) at an atmospheric pressure.

Supercrystallization of KCl from solution irradiated by soft X-rays

Science.gov (United States)

Janavičius, A. J.; Rinkūnas, R.; Purlys, R.

2016-10-01

The X-rays influence on KCl crystallization in a saturated water solution has been investigated for the aim of comparing it with previously considered NaCl crystallization. The rate of crystallization has been measured in the drying drop in the solution activated by the irradiation. We have measured the influence of the irradiation time of the solution on the rates of KCl crystallization as well as the beginning of the crystallization processes on drying drops. For a longer irradiation time of the solution early crystallization in the drops occurs. A saturated water solution of KCl was irradiated with the diffractometer DRON-3M (Russian device) and this had a great influence on the two-step processes of crystallization. The ionization of the solution by soft X-rays can produce ions, metastable radicals in water, excited crystals' seeds and vacancies in growing crystals by Auger's effect. The X-rays generate a very fast crystallization in the drying drop.

A popular metastable omega phase in body-centered cubic steels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ping, D.H., E-mail: ping.de-hai@nims.go.jp [National Institute for Materials Science, Sengen 1-2-1, Tsukuba 305-0047 (Japan); Geng, W.T., E-mail: geng@ustb.edu.cn [School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083 (China)

2013-05-15

Steel remains to be one of the most common structural materials in the world as human civilization advances from the Iron Age to the ongoing Silicon Age. Our knowledge of its microstructure evolution and structure–performance relationship is nevertheless still incomplete. We report the observation and characterization of a long ignored metastable phase formed in steels with body-centered cubic (bcc) structure using both transmission electron microscopy and density functional theory calculations. This ω phase has a hexagonal structure and coherent interface with the matrix: a{sub ω} = √2 × a{sub bcc} and c{sub ω} = √3/2 × a{sub bcc}. It is 3.6% smaller in volume and 0.18 eV higher in energy than bcc-Fe, with atoms in alternating close- and loose-packed layers couple anti-ferromagnetically. Carbon plays a crucial role in promoting bcc to ω transformation. At a concentration higher than 4 at.% they tend to segregate from the bcc matrix to the ω-phase; at about 14 at.%, they can induce bcc to ω transformation; and finally at 25 at.%, they stabilize the ω phase as ω-Fe{sub 3}C. The ω phase in bcc Fe can serve as sinks for vacancies, H, and He atoms, leading to improved resistance of martensitic steels to irradiation damage. - Highlights: ► A long-ignored metastable ω phase in body-centered cubic (bcc) steel. ► The ω phase has hexagonal structure with lattice parameters a{sub ω} = √2 × a{sub bcc} and c{sub ω} = √3/2 × a{sub bcc}. ► Carbon enrichment is found to play a crucial role on the bcc-to-ω phase transformation. ► The ω phase is strongly related to the martensitic transformation and twinning structure. ► The ω phase in bcc Fe can serve as sinks for vacancies, H, and He atoms.

Transient cognitive dynamics, metastability, and decision making.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mikhail I Rabinovich

2008-05-01

Full Text Available The idea that cognitive activity can be understood using nonlinear dynamics has been intensively discussed at length for the last 15 years. One of the popular points of view is that metastable states play a key role in the execution of cognitive functions. Experimental and modeling studies suggest that most of these functions are the result of transient activity of large-scale brain networks in the presence of noise. Such transients may consist of a sequential switching between different metastable cognitive states. The main problem faced when using dynamical theory to describe transient cognitive processes is the fundamental contradiction between reproducibility and flexibility of transient behavior. In this paper, we propose a theoretical description of transient cognitive dynamics based on the interaction of functionally dependent metastable cognitive states. The mathematical image of such transient activity is a stable heteroclinic channel, i.e., a set of trajectories in the vicinity of a heteroclinic skeleton that consists of saddles and unstable separatrices that connect their surroundings. We suggest a basic mathematical model, a strongly dissipative dynamical system, and formulate the conditions for the robustness and reproducibility of cognitive transients that satisfy the competing requirements for stability and flexibility. Based on this approach, we describe here an effective solution for the problem of sequential decision making, represented as a fixed time game: a player takes sequential actions in a changing noisy environment so as to maximize a cumulative reward. As we predict and verify in computer simulations, noise plays an important role in optimizing the gain.

Complexity, Metastability and Nonextensivity

Science.gov (United States)

Beck, C.; Benedek, G.; Rapisarda, A.; Tsallis, C.

Work and heat fluctuations in systems with deterministic and stochastic forces / E. G. D. Cohen and R. Van Zon -- Is the entropy S[symbol] extensive or nonextensive? / C. Tsallis -- Superstatistics: recent developments and applications / C. Beck -- Two stories outside Boltzmann-Gibbs statistics: Mori's Q-phase transitions and glassy dynamics at the onset of chaos / A. Robledo, F. Baldovin and E. Mayoral -- Time-averages and the heat theorem / A. Carati -- Fundamental formulae and numerical evidences for the central limit theorem in Tsallis statistics / H. Suyari -- Generalizing the Planck distribution / A. M. C. Soma and C. Tsallis -- The physical roots of complexity: renewal or modulation? / P. Grigolini -- Nonequivalent ensembles and metastability / H. Touchette and R. S. Ellis -- Statistical physics for cosmic structures / L. Pietronero and F. Sylos Labini -- Metastability and anomalous behavior in the HMF model: connections to nonextensive thermodynamics and glassy dynamics / A. Pluchino, A. Rapisarda and V. Latora -- Vlasov analysis of relaxation and meta-equilibrium / C. Anteneodo and R. O. Vallejos -- Weak chaos in large conservative systems - infinite-range coupled standard maps / L. G. Moyano, A. P. Majtey and C. Tsallis -- Deterministc aging / E. Barkai -- Edge of chaos of the classical kicked top map: sensitivity to initial conditions / S. M. Duarte Queirós and C. Tsallis -- What entropy at the edge of chaos? / M. Lissia, M. Coraddu and R. Tonelli -- Fractal growth of carbon schwarzites / G. Benedek ... [et al.] -- Clustering and interface propagation in interacting particle dynamics / A. Provata and V. K. Noussiou -- Resonant activation and noise enhanced stability in Josephson junctions / A. L. Pankratov and B. Spagnolo -- Symmetry breaking induced directed motions / C.-H. Chang and T. Y. Tsong -- General theory of Galilean-invariant entropic lattic Boltzmann models / B. M. Boghosian -- Unifying approach to the jamming transition in granular media and

Field Induced Magnetic Moments in a Metastable Iron-Mercury Alloy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, M.S.; Mørup, Steen; Linderoth, Søren

1996-01-01

The magnetic properties of a metastable iron-mercury alloy have been investigated in the temperature range from 5 to 200 K by Mossbauer spectroscopy and magnetization measurements. At low temperature the magnetic moment per iron atom is larger than af alpha-Fe. The effective spontaneous magnetic ....... It was found that the field-induced increase of the magnetic moment in the metastable iron-mecury alloy was about 0.06 Bohr magnetons per iron atom in the temperature range from 5 to 200 K for a field change from 6 to 12 T....

The biochemical changes of bone collagen after high-dose irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tajiri, Ken

1980-01-01

In our clinic, patients with malignant bone tumors have been treated by high-dose irradiation therapy, 10,000-20,000 rads, for primary lesions. In order to study the biochemical changes of normal bone around tumor tissue, especially bone collagen, after high-dose irradiation, the author performed the following experiments. The right knee joint of rabbits was irradiated with either 6,000, 10,000, or 15,000 rads by 60 Co-γ ray. The cortical bone of the right tibial metaphysis was used for analyses and compared with the left tibia of the same rabbit. These studies were followed for one year after the final irradiation. The calcium, phosphorous and collagen contents of irradiated bone were remarkably changed. These data indicate that collagen biosynthesis of irradiated bone was decreased and the calcification was disturbed. An increase in the amount of total soluble collagen and a decrease in the amount of hydroxylysine bound sugar were observed. The ratio of β to α chains of the collagen molecule was also changed by the irradiation. The amount of reducible cross-links per hydroxyproline residue was strikingly increased three months after the final irradiation. These changes were remarkable especially in the 10,000 and 15,000 rads irradiated group and found to be recovered approximately six months to one year after the final irradiation. These findings indicate that high-dose irradiation reduces the stability of bone collagen both with the destruction of sugar bonds of hydroxylysine residues and the replacement of matured collagen matrix to immatured one which contain mostly labile reducible cross-links. (author)

Modelling the material behaviour of metastable stainless

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Datta, K.; Geijselaers, Hubertus J.M.; Post, J.; Beyer, J.; Huetink, Han; Cesar de Sa, Jose M.A.; Santos, Abel D.

2007-01-01

Metastable austenitic stainless steels are designed to be thermodynamically unstable such that deformation even at room temperatures can bring about a change in the phase of face centred cubic austenite to either hexagonal close packed martensite and/or to body centred cubic martensite. This solid

High energy electron irradiation of flowable materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Offermann, B.P.

1975-01-01

In order to efficiently irradiate a flowable material with high energy electrons, a hollow body is disposed in a container for the material and the material is caused to flow in the form of a thin layer across a surface of the body from or to the interior of the container while the material flowing across the body surface is irradiated. (U.S.)

Spray Drying as a Reliable Route to Produce Metastable Carbamazepine Form IV.

Science.gov (United States)

Halliwell, Rebecca A; Bhardwaj, Rajni M; Brown, Cameron J; Briggs, Naomi E B; Dunn, Jaclyn; Robertson, John; Nordon, Alison; Florence, Alastair J

2017-07-01

Carbamazepine (CBZ) is an active pharmaceutical ingredient used in the treatment of epilepsy that can form at least 5 polymorphic forms. Metastable form IV was originally discovered from crystallization with polymer additives; however, it has not been observed from subsequent solvent-only crystallization efforts. This work reports the reproducible formation of phase pure crystalline form IV by spray drying of methanolic CBZ solution. Characterization of the material was carried out using diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and differential scanning calorimetry. In situ Raman spectroscopy was used to monitor the spray-dried product during the spray drying process. This work demonstrates that spray drying provides a robust method for the production of form IV CBZ, and the combination of high supersaturation and rapid solid isolation from solution overcomes the apparent limitation of more traditional solution crystallization approaches to produce metastable crystalline forms. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Quantum decay of metastable current states in rf squids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dmitrenko, I.M.; Khlus, V.A.; Tsoj, C.M.; Shnyrkov, V.I.

1985-01-01

Quantum decay of metastable current states in a rf SQUID superconducting ring of a hysteresis mode are considered. Point contacts are used as a Josephson weak link. The first derivative of rf IVC, dVsub(T)/dIsub(RF), is measured which gives the dependence of the density of decay probability on the amplitude of magnetic flux oscillations in the ring. The temperature dependence of probability distribution width between 4.2 and 0.5 K suggests that for most of high-ohmic contacts Nb-Nb, Nb-Ag-Nb the quantum mechanisms of decay become dominant beginning with the temperature of about 2 K. The experimental parameters of distribution of decay probability in the quantum limit are compared to those calculated by the theory of macroscopic quantum tunneling in the limit of high and low dissipation. The experimental values of probability density distribution width and characteristic quantum temperature are higher than the theoretical ones, the fact can be attributed to the deviation of current-phase relation of contact from a sinusoidal one. Besides, some contacts seem to correspond to the case of an intermediate value of dissipation. As the frequency of rf oscillations varies from 30 to 6 MHz, the distribution width remains unchanged in accordance with the theory of quantum tunneling decay of metastable current state in the ring in the limit of high damping. At low temperatures (T approximately 0.5 K), and rather small damping coefficient, the density of probability displays anomalous peaks when the amplitude of rf oscillations is lower considerably than the critical vaiue of magnetic flux in the ring

Electron beam irradiation facility for low to high dose irradiation applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Petwal, V.C.; Wanmode, Yashwant; Verma, Vijay Pal; Bhisikar, Abhay; Dwivedi, Jishnu; Shrivastava, P.; Gupta, P.D.

2013-01-01

Electron beam based irradiation facilities are becoming more and more popular over the conventional irradiator facilities due to many inherent advantages such as tunability of beam energy, availability of radiation both in electron mode and X-ray mode, wide range of the dose rate, control of radiation from a ON-OFF switch and other safety related merits. A prototype experimental facility based on electron accelerator has been set-up at RRCAT to meet the low-dose, medium dose and high-dose requirements for radiation processing of food, agricultural and medical products. The facility can be operated in the energy range from 7-10 MeV at variable power level from 0.05-3 kW to meet the dose rate requirement of 100 Gy to kGy. The facility is also equipped with a Bremsstrahlung converter optimized for X-ray irradiation at 7.5 MV. Availability of dose delivery in wide range with precision control and measurement has made the facility an excellent tool for researchers interested in electron/X-ray beam irradiation. A precision dosimetry lab based on alanine EPR and radiochromic film dosimetry system have been established to characterize the radiation field and precise dose measurements. Electron beam scattering technique has been developed to achieve low dose requirement for EB irradiation of various seeds such as groundnut, wheat, soybeans, moong beans, black gram etc. for mutation related studies. This paper describes various features of the facility together with the dosimetric measurements carried out for qualification of the facility and recent irradiation experiments carried out using this facility. (author)

Role of metastable atoms in argon-diluted silane Rf plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sansonnens, L.; Howling, A.A.; Hollenstein, C.; Dorier, J.L.; Kroll, U.

1994-01-01

The evolution of the argon metastable density has been studied by absorption spectroscopy in power-modulated plasmas of argon and a mixture of 4% silane in argon. A small concentration of silane suppresses the argon metastable density by molecular quenching. This molecular quenching adds to the electronic collisional dissociation to increase the silane dissociation rate as compared with pure silane plasmas. Using time-resolved emission spectroscopy, the role of metastables in excitation to the argon 2P 2 state has been determined in comparison with production from the ground state. In silane plasmas, emission from SiH* is due essentially to electron impact dissociation of silane, whereas in 4% silane-in-argon plasmas, emission from SiH* seems to be due to electron impact excitation of the SiH ground state. These studies demonstrate that argon is not simply a buffer gas but has an influence on the dissociation rate in the plasma-assisted deposition of amorphous silicon using argon-diluted silane plasmas. (author) 7 figs., 30 refs

Coherent and non coherent atom optics experiment with an ultra-narrow beam of metastable rare gas atoms; Experiences d'optique atomique coherente ou non avec un jet superfin d'atomes metastables de gaz rares

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grucker, J

2007-12-15

In this thesis, we present a new type of atomic source: an ultra-narrow beam of metastable atoms produced by resonant metastability exchange inside a supersonic beam of rare gas atoms. We used the coherence properties of this beam to observe the diffraction of metastable helium, argon and neon atoms by a nano-transmission grating and by micro-reflection-gratings. Then, we evidenced transitions between Zeeman sublevels of neon metastable {sup 3}P{sub 2} state due to the quadrupolar part of Van der Waals potential. After we showed experimental proofs of the observation of this phenomenon, we calculated the transition probabilities in the Landau - Zener model. We discussed the interest of Van der Waals - Zeeman transitions for atom interferometry. Last, we described the Zeeman cooling of the supersonic metastable argon beam ({sup 3}P{sub 2}). We have succeeded in slowing down atoms to speeds below 100 m/s. We gave experimental details and showed the first time-of-flight measurements of slowed atoms.

Metastable vacuum decay and θ dependence in gauge theory. Deformed QCD as a toy model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bhoonah, Amit; Thomas, Evan, E-mail: zucchini@phas.ubc.ca; Zhitnitsky, Ariel R., E-mail: arz@phas.ubc.ca

2015-01-15

We study a number of different ingredients related to the θ dependence, metastable excited vacuum states and other related subjects using a simplified version of QCD, the so-called “deformed QCD”. This model is a weakly coupled gauge theory, which, however, preserves all the relevant essential elements allowing us to study hard and nontrivial features which are known to be present in real strongly coupled QCD. Our main focus in this work is to test the ideas related to the metastable vacuum states (which are known to be present in strongly coupled QCD in large N limit) in a theoretically controllable manner using the “deformed QCD” as a toy model. We explicitly show how the metastable states emerge in the system, why their lifetime is large, and why these metastable states must be present in the system for the self-consistency of the entire picture of the QCD vacuum. We also speculate on possible relevance of the metastable vacuum states in explanation of the violation of local P and CP symmetries in heavy ion collisions.

Metastable vacuum decay and θ dependence in gauge theory. Deformed QCD as a toy model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhoonah, Amit; Thomas, Evan; Zhitnitsky, Ariel R.

2015-01-01

We study a number of different ingredients related to the θ dependence, metastable excited vacuum states and other related subjects using a simplified version of QCD, the so-called “deformed QCD”. This model is a weakly coupled gauge theory, which, however, preserves all the relevant essential elements allowing us to study hard and nontrivial features which are known to be present in real strongly coupled QCD. Our main focus in this work is to test the ideas related to the metastable vacuum states (which are known to be present in strongly coupled QCD in large N limit) in a theoretically controllable manner using the “deformed QCD” as a toy model. We explicitly show how the metastable states emerge in the system, why their lifetime is large, and why these metastable states must be present in the system for the self-consistency of the entire picture of the QCD vacuum. We also speculate on possible relevance of the metastable vacuum states in explanation of the violation of local P and CP symmetries in heavy ion collisions

Metastability in spin polarised Fermi gases and quasiparticle decays

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sadeghzadeh, Kayvan; Bruun, Georg; Lobo, Carlos

2011-01-01

We investigate the metastability associated with the first order transition from normal to superfluid phases in the phase diagram of two-component polarised Fermi gases.We begin by detailing the dominant decay processes of single quasiparticles.Having determined the momentum thresholds of each...... the interaction strength at which a polarised phase of molecules becomes the groundstate, to the one at which the single quasiparticle groundstate changes character from polaronic to molecular. Our argument in terms of a Fermi sea of polarons naturally suggests their use as an experimental probe. We propose...... experiments to observe the threshold of the predicted region of metastability, the interaction strength at which the quasiparticle groundstate changes character, and the decay rate of polarons....

Magnetic helices as metastable states of finite XY ferromagnetic chains: An analytical study

Science.gov (United States)

Popov, Alexander P.; Pini, Maria Gloria

2018-04-01

We investigated a simple but non trivial model, consisting of a chain of N classical XY spins with nearest neighbor ferromagnetic interaction, where each of the two end-point spins is assumed to be exchange-coupled to a fully-pinned fictitious spin. In the mean field approximation, the system might be representative of a soft ferromagnetic film sandwiched between two magnetically hard layers. We show that, while the ground state is ferromagnetic and collinear, the system can attain non-collinear metastable states in the form of magnetic helices. The helical solutions and their stability were studied analytically in the absence of an external magnetic field. There are four possible classes of solutions. Only one class is metastable, and its helical states contain an integer number of turns. Among the remaining unstable classes, there is a class of helices which contain an integer number of turns. Therefore, an integer number of turns in a helical configuration is a necessary, but not a sufficient, condition for metastability. These results may be useful to devise future applications of metastable magnetic helices as energy-storing elements.

Irradiation of single cells with individual high-LET particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nelson, J.M.; Braby, L.A.

1993-01-01

The dose-limiting normal tissue of concern when irradiating head and neck lesions is often the vascular endothelium within the treatment field. Consequently, the response of capillary endothelial cells exposed to moderate doses of high LET particles is essential for establishing exposure limits for neutron-capture therapy. In an effort to characterize the high-LET radiation biology of cultured endothelial cells, the authors are attempting to measure cellular response to single particles. The single-particle irradiation apparatus, described below, allows them to expose individual cells to known numbers of high-LET particles and follow these cells for extended periods, in order to assess the impact of individual particles on cell growth kinetics. Preliminary cell irradiation experiments have revealed complications related to the smooth and efficient operation of the equipment; these are being resolved. Therefore, the following paragraphs deal primarily with the manner by which high LET particles deposit energy, the requirements for single-cell irradiation, construction and assembly of such apparatus, and testing of experimental procedures, rather than with the radiation biology of endothelial cells

A Statistical Study on the Effect of Hydrostatic Pressure on Metastable Pitting Corrosion of X70 Pipeline Steel.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Zixuan; Kan, Bo; Li, Jinxu; Qiao, Lijie; Volinsky, Alex A; Su, Yanjing

2017-11-14

Hydrostatic pressure effects on pitting initiation and propagation in X70 steel are investigated by evaluating metastable pitting probability using electrochemical methods and immersion corrosion tests in containing chlorine ion solution. Potentiodynamic tests indicated that hydrostatic pressure can decrease the breakdown potential and lead to a reduced transpassivity region. Metastable test results revealed that hydrostatic pressure can increase metastable pitting formation frequency and promote stabilization of metastable pitting growth. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) results indicate that Hydrostatic pressure decreases the charge transfer resistance and increases the dissolution rate within the cavities. Corrosion test results also indicated that pitting initiation and propagation are accelerated by hydrostatic pressure. Result validity was verified by evaluating metastable pitting to predict pitting corrosion resistance.

Phase transition in metastable perovskite Pb(AlNb)0,5O3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhabko, T.E.; Olekhnovich, N.M.; Shilin, A.D.

1987-01-01

Dielectric properties of metastable perovskite Pb(AlNb) 0.5 O 3 and X-ray temperature investigations of both perovskite and pyrochlore modifications of the given compound are studied. Samples with the perovskite structure are prepared from the pyrochlorephase at 4-5 GPa pressure and 1170-1270 K. Ferroelectric phase transition is shown to occur in the metastable perovskite phase Pb(AlNb) 0.5 O 3 at 170 K

Combined transmission electron microscope and ion channeling study of metastable metal alloys formed by ion implantation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cullis, A.G.; Borders, J.A.; Hirvonen, J.K.; Poate, J.M.

1977-01-01

Recently, ion implantation has been used to produce metastable alloy layers with a range of structures from crystalline substitutional solid solutions to amorphous. The technique offers the possibility of producing metastable metal layers with unique physical properties. Its application in the formation of alloys exhibiting different although complementary types of metastability is described. The metal combinations chosen (Ag-Cu and Ta-Cu) show little mutual solubility under equilibrium conditions

New temperature monitoring devices for high-temperature irradiation experiments in the high flux reactor Petten

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Laurie, M.; Futterer, M. A.; Lapetite, J. M. [European Commission Joint Research Centre, Institute for Energy, P.O. Box 2, NL-1755 ZG Petten (Netherlands); Fourrez, S. [THERMOCOAX SAS, BP 26, Planquivon, 61438 Flers Cedex (France); Morice, R. [Laboratoire National de Metrologie et d' Essais, 1 rue Gaston Boissier, 75724 Paris (France)

2009-07-01

Within the European High Temperature Reactor Technology Network (HTR-TN) and related projects a number of HTR fuel irradiations are planned in the High Flux Reactor Petten (HFR), The Netherlands, with the objective to explore the potential of recently produced fuel for even higher temperature and burn-up. Irradiating fuel under defined conditions to extremely high burn-ups will provide a better understanding of fission product release and failure mechanisms if particle failure occurs. After an overview of the irradiation rigs used in the HFR, this paper sums up data collected from previous irradiation tests in terms of thermocouple data. Some research and development work for further improvement of thermocouples and other on-line instrumentation will be outlined. (authors)

Irradiation of graphene field effect transistors with highly charged ions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ernst, P.; Kozubek, R.; Madauß, L.; Sonntag, J.; Lorke, A.; Schleberger, M., E-mail: marika.schleberger@uni-due.de

2016-09-01

In this work, graphene field-effect transistors are used to detect defects due to irradiation with slow, highly charged ions. In order to avoid contamination effects, a dedicated ultra-high vacuum set up has been designed and installed for the in situ cleaning and electrical characterization of graphene field-effect transistors during irradiation. To investigate the electrical and structural modifications of irradiated graphene field-effect transistors, their transfer characteristics as well as the corresponding Raman spectra are analyzed as a function of ion fluence for two different charge states. The irradiation experiments show a decreasing mobility with increasing fluences. The mobility reduction scales with the potential energy of the ions. In comparison to Raman spectroscopy, the transport properties of graphene show an extremely high sensitivity with respect to ion irradiation: a significant drop of the mobility is observed already at fluences below 15 ions/μm{sup 2}, which is more than one order of magnitude lower than what is required for Raman spectroscopy.

First observation of laser-induced resonant annihilation in metastable antiprotonic helium atoms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morita, N.; Kumakura, M.; Yamazaki, T.

1993-11-01

We have observed the first laser-induced resonant transitions in antiprotonic helium atoms. These occur between metastable states and Auger dominated short lived states, and show that the anomalous longevity of antiprotons previously observed in helium media results from the formation of high-n high-l atomic states of p-barHe + . The observed transition with vacuum wavelength 597.259 ± 0.002 nm and lower-state lifetime 15 ± 1 ns is tentatively assigned to (n,l) = (39,35) → (38,34). (author)

Quantum mechanical look at the radioactive-like decay of metastable dark energy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Szydlowski, Marek [Jagiellonian University, Astronomical Observatory, Krakow (Poland); Jagiellonian University, Mark Kac Complex Systems Research Centre, Krakow (Poland); Stachowski, Aleksander [Jagiellonian University, Astronomical Observatory, Krakow (Poland); Urbanowski, Krzysztof [University of Zielona Gora, Institute of Physics, Zielona Gora (Poland)

2017-12-15

We derive the Shafieloo, Hazra, Sahni and Starobinsky (SHSS) phenomenological formula for the radioactive-like decay of metastable dark energy directly from the principles of quantum mechanics. To this aim we use the Fock-Krylov theory of quantum unstable states. We obtain deeper insight on the decay process as having three basic phases: the phase of radioactive decay, the next phase of damping oscillations, and finally the phase of power-law decay. We consider the cosmological model with matter and dark energy in the form of decaying metastable dark energy and study its dynamics in the framework of non-conservative cosmology with an interacting term determined by the running cosmological parameter. We study the cosmological implications of metastable dark energy and estimate the characteristic time of ending of the radioactive-like decay epoch to be 2.2 x 10{sup 4} of the present age of the Universe. We also confront the model with astronomical data which show that the model is in good agreement with the observations. Our general conclusion is that we are living in the epoch of the radioactive-like decay of metastable dark energy which is a relict of the quantum age of the Universe. (orig.)

Preservation of Minced Meats by Using Medium and High-doses Irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hammad, A.A.I.; Swailam, H.M.H.; Taha, S.M.A.

2003-01-01

The effect of medium (2.5-10 kGy) dose irradiation and high(20-70 kGy) dose irradiation on the microbiological, chemical and organoleptic properties of minced meat samples was studied. It was found that irradiation dose of only 5 kGy greatly reduced all microbial counts and completely eliminated all non-spore forming pathogenic bacteria contaminated minced meat samples. Consequently this irradiation dose extended the refrigerated (3 degree ±1) storage life of these products for more than 8 weeks. This irradiation dose almost did not affect the chemical composition, particularly the main amino acids and main fatty acids of minced meat samples. Panelists could not differentiate between irradiated minced meat samples at this dose and unirradiated samples. High doses irradiation, i.e.40 and 70 kGy were sufficient and efficient in sterilization of minced meat samples and in obtaining long-stable minced meat products (Two years) at ambient temperature. These irradiation doses slightly reduced (not more than 7%) aspartic acid, glutamic acid, methionine and lysine of minced meat. It also decreased the relative percentage of total unsaturated fatty acids by not more than 17 % . These high irradiation doses caused loss of C 18:3 and C 20:1

Effect of fast neutron irradiation upon the omega transformation process in zirconium--niobium alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bremer, B.W.

1974-01-01

The effect of fast neutrons (E greater than 1 MeV) upon the beta-omega transformation was investigated. Irradiation-produced vacancies promoted the omega transformation by migrating to the regions of high compressive stress associated with the one-dimensional omega embryos, thereby allowing rearrangement of the strain fields. This rearrangement allows the omega embryos to attain large sizes. Growth of these embryos is diffusion controlled. However, irradiation produced no increase in growth rate. It is concluded the vacancies are effectively trapped by these strain fields even at the aging temperature, 400 0 C. The omega hardening mechanism is shown to be related solely to lattice misfit, independent of irradiation, and to saturate when the magnitude of the strain causes a breakdown of the coherent interface, thereby creating one or two interfacial dislocations. Aging at 400 0 C results in alpha growth into the interomega beta phase, producing an additional hardness increase additive to that resulting from the omega phase. At higher aging temperatures 500 0 C, the omega is rapidly replaced by alpha. The alpha microstructure consists of ultra-fine grains, 1000 A, each composed of one 12 interrelated crystallographic variants. Fast neutron irradiation has no effect upon the omega metastable equilibrium phase diagram

Recombination and detachment in oxygen discharges: the role of metastable oxygen molecules

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gudmundsson, J T

2004-01-01

A global (volume averaged) model of oxygen discharges is used to study the transition from a recombination dominated discharge to a detachment dominated discharge. The model includes the metastable oxygen molecules O 2 (a 1 Δ g ) and O 2 (b 1 Σ g + ) and the three Herzberg states O 2 (A 3 Σ u + , A' 3 Δ u , c 1 Σ u - ). Dissociative attachment of the oxygen molecule in the ground state O 2 ( 3 Σ g - ) and the metastable oxygen molecule O 2 (a 1 Δ g ) are the dominating channels for creation of the negative oxygen ion O - . At high pressures, dissociative attachment of the Herzberg states contributes significantly to the creation of the negative oxygen ion, O - . The detachment by a collision of the metastable oxygen molecule O 2 (b 1 Σ g + ) with the oxygen ion, O - , is a significant loss process for the O - at pressures above 10 mTorr. Its contribution to the loss is more significant at a lower applied power, but at the higher pressures it is always significant. Detachment by collision with O( 3 P) is also an important loss mechanism for O - . We find that ion-ion recombination is the dominating loss process for negative ions in oxygen discharges at low pressures and calculate the critical pressure where the contributions of recombination reactions and detachment reactions are equal. This critical pressure depends on the applied power, increases with applied power and is in the range 5-14 mTorr in the pressure and power range investigated

Shear response of grain boundaries with metastable structures by molecular dynamics simulations

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Liang; Lu, Cheng; Shibuta, Yasushi

2018-04-01

Grain boundaries (GBs) can play a role as the favored locations to annihilate point defects, such as interstitial atoms and vacancies. It is thus highly probable that different boundary structures can be simultaneously present in equilibrium with each other in the same GB, and thus the GB achieves a metastable state. However, the structural transition and deformation mechanism of such GBs are currently not well understood. In this work, molecular dynamics simulations were carried out to study the multiple structures of a Σ5(310)/[001] GB in bicrystal Al and to investigate the effect of structural multiplicity on the mechanical and kinetic properties of such a GB. Different GB structures were obtained by changing the starting atomic configuration of the bicrystal model, and the GB structures had significantly different atomic density. For the Σ5(310) GB with metastable structures, GB sliding was the dominant mechanism at a low temperature (T = 10 K) under shear stress. The sliding mechanism resulted from the uncoordinated transformation of the inhomogeneous structural units. The nucleation of voids was observed during GB sliding at the low temperature, and the voids subsequently evolved to a nanocrack at the boundary plane. Increasing the temperature can induce the structural transition of local GB structures and can change their overall kinetic properties. GB migration with occasional GB sliding dominated the deformation mechanism at elevated temperatures (T = 300 and 600 K), and the migration process of the metastable GB structures is closely related to the thermally assisted diffusion mechanism.

Antibody-Unfolding and Metastable-State Binding in Force Spectroscopy and Recognition Imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Kaur, Parminder; Qiang-Fu; Fuhrmann, Alexander; Ros, Robert; Kutner, Linda Obenauer; Schneeweis, Lumelle A.; Navoa, Ryman; Steger, Kirby; Xie, Lei; Yonan, Christopher; Abraham, Ralph; Grace, Michael J.; Lindsay, Stuart

2011-01-01

Force spectroscopy and recognition imaging are important techniques for characterizing and mapping molecular interactions. In both cases, an antibody is pulled away from its target in times that are much less than the normal residence time of the antibody on its target. The distribution of pulling lengths in force spectroscopy shows the development of additional peaks at high loading rates, indicating that part of the antibody frequently unfolds. This propensity to unfold is reversible, indicating that exposure to high loading rates induces a structural transition to a metastable state. Weakened interactions of the antibody in this metastable state could account for reduced specificity in recognition imaging where the loading rates are always high. The much weaker interaction between the partially unfolded antibody and target, while still specific (as shown by control experiments), results in unbinding on millisecond timescales, giving rise to rapid switching noise in the recognition images. At the lower loading rates used in force spectroscopy, we still find discrepancies between the binding kinetics determined by force spectroscopy and those determined by surface plasmon resonance—possibly a consequence of the short tethers used in recognition imaging. Recognition imaging is nonetheless a powerful tool for interpreting complex atomic force microscopy images, so long as specificity is calibrated in situ, and not inferred from equilibrium binding kinetics. PMID:21190677

Analysis of high school students' perception and attitude toward irradiated food

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choi, Yoon Seok; Han, Eun Ok [Dept. of Education and Research, Korea Academy of Nuclear Safety, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2014-04-15

We chose high school students, who are expected to show significant response to education, to try to understand perception and behavior toward irradiated food, and derive evidential materials for education. High school students who had ever acquired information or received education on irradiated food, and students who had ever purchased or eaten irradiated food, tended to have aproper attitude regarding its necessity, safety, and purchase without prejudice. It is necessary to provide information and education to high school students. Additionally, exposure to the irradiated food could be helpful in changing perception and attitude toward irradiated food.

Analysis of high school students' perception and attitude toward irradiated food

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Yoon Seok; Han, Eun Ok

2014-01-01

We chose high school students, who are expected to show significant response to education, to try to understand perception and behavior toward irradiated food, and derive evidential materials for education. High school students who had ever acquired information or received education on irradiated food, and students who had ever purchased or eaten irradiated food, tended to have aproper attitude regarding its necessity, safety, and purchase without prejudice. It is necessary to provide information and education to high school students. Additionally, exposure to the irradiated food could be helpful in changing perception and attitude toward irradiated food

Fast production of Bose-Einstein condensates of metastable helium

Science.gov (United States)

Bouton, Q.; Chang, R.; Hoendervanger, A. L.; Nogrette, F.; Aspect, A.; Westbrook, C. I.; Clément, D.

2015-06-01

We report on the Bose-Einstein condensation of metastable 4He atoms using a hybrid approach, consisting of a magnetic quadrupole and an optical dipole trap. In our setup we cross the phase transition with 2 ×106 atoms, and we obtain pure condensates of 5 ×105 atoms in the optical trap. This approach to cooling 4He provides enhanced cycle stability, large optical access to the atoms and results in the production of a condensate every 6 s—a factor 2 faster than the state of the art. This speed-up will significantly reduce the data acquisition time needed for the measurement of many particle correlations, made possible by the ability of metastable helium atoms to be detected individually.

Electron-impact excitation out of the metastable levels of Krypton

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jung, R.O.; Stone, Tom E.; Boffard, John B.; Anderson, L.W.; Lin, Chun C.

2005-01-01

We have measured the electron-impact excitation cross sections out of the two metastable levels of Kr into the ten levels of the 4p 5 5p configuration. For a common 4p 5 5p final level, the peak excitation cross sections out of the two individual 4p 5 5s metastable levels are found to differ by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude. This is explained by the special features of the electronic structure of the two configurations involved. The peak cross sections are 10 to 1600 times larger than the corresponding peak cross sections out of the ground state

Metastable cosmic strings in realistic models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holman, R.

1992-01-01

The stability of the electroweak Z-string is investigated at high temperatures. The results show that, while finite temperature corrections can improve the stability of the Z-string, their effect is not strong enough to stabilize the Z-string in the standard electroweak model. Consequently, the Z-string will be unstable even under the conditions present during the electroweak phase transition. Phenomenologically viable models based on the gauge group SU(2) L x SU(2) R x U(1) B-L are then considered, and it is shown that metastable strings exist and are stable to small perturbations for a large region of the parameter space for these models. It is also shown that these strings are superconducting with bosonic charge carriers. The string superconductivity may be able to stabilize segments and loops against dynamical contraction. Possible implications of these strings for cosmology are discussed

Theoretical investigation of existence of meta-stability in iron and cobalt clusters

Science.gov (United States)

Berry, Habte Dulla; Zhang, Qinfang; Wang, Baolin

2018-03-01

Nowadays considerable attention has been given for researches on magnetic properties of transition metal clusters (specifically FeN and CoN). This is because these clusters offer big hopes for the possibility of presenting significant magnetic anisotropy energy which is critical for technological applications. This study intends to find out the causes for the existence of the two states (ground and meta-stable) in Iron and Cobalt clusters. The study also explains the role of valence electrons for the existence of magnetism in the two states by using the concept of ionization potential, electron dipole polarizabilities, chemical hardness and softness of the clusters. Assuming that, when all itinerant electrons are at s-level and also at the d-level (ns = n andns → 0.) the ground state and meta-stable state energies with distinct energy minima are (Egs = l / 2 n +εc n - 2μB hn andEms =εd n - gμB hn) respectively. The findings also showed that polarizability of small cluster of the specified elements are increased compared with the bulk value, which means that there is an effective increase in the cluster radius due to the spilling out of the electronic charge. Furthermore, it is obvious that 4s electrons are more delocalized than the 3d electrons so that they spill out more than the 3d electrons. This leads to the conclusion that 4s electrons are primarily responsible for the enhanced polarizabilities and for shell structure effects. This indicates that polarizability at the meta-stable state is less than that of the ground state i.e. the meta-stable state loses its s electron. Therefore the two minima represent a ground state of configuration 3 d↑5 3 d↓ 2 + δ 4s 2 - δ with energy Egs and meta-stable state of configuration 3 d↑5 3 d↓ 3 + δ 4s 1 - δ with energy Ems for Co clusters and a ground state configuration 3 d↑5 3 d↓ 1 + δ 4s 2 - δ with energy Egs an meta-stable state of configuration 3 d↑5 3 d↓ 2 + δ 4s 1 - δ with energy Ems for

Persistent photoconductivity and photo-responsible defect in 30 MeV-electron irradiated single crystal ZnO

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kuriyama, K.; Matsumoto, K.; Kushida, K.; Xu, Q.

2010-01-01

Persistent photoconductivity (PPC) in 30-MeV electron irradiated ZnO single crystals is studied by excitation using light emitting diodes (LEDs) with various wavelengths. The decay transient of the photoconductivity shows relaxation times in the range of a few ten days for the illumination at 90 K and a few hours at room temperature. An electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) signal with g-value = 2.005 appears after illumination of blue LED, suggesting the transfer from the artificially introduced oxygen vacancy of 2+ charge state to the metastable + charge state. Once generated, the metastable state does not immediately decay into the 2+ charge state because of energetic barriers of ∼190 meV, supporting the mechanism of PPC proposed by Van de Walle.

Colon mucosal cells after high-dose fractional irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zorc-Pleskovic, R.; Vraspir-Porenta, O.; Petrovic, D.; Zorc, M.; Pleskovic, L.

2000-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate histological and stereological changes in cryptal enterocytes, mucosal lymphocytes and mast cells 10 days after irradiation. For experimental model, 24 Beagle dogs 1-2 years old were used. Twelve dogs were irradiated 20 days with 32 Gy over the whole pelvis and tail. Another 12 dogs represented a control group. For the detection of apoptosis, the TUNEL technique was used. Histological and stereological analyses were performed using a Wild sampling microscope M 1000. In the irradiated group, volume density (P < 0.01), numerical density (P < 0.05) and average volume of lymphocytes (P < 0.001) were significantly lower than in the nonirradiated group. Numerical areal density of mast cells in the irradiated group was also significantly lower (P < 0.05). Volume density (P < 0.001) and average volume of mast cells (P < 0.001) were significantly higher in the irradiated group. The results of our experiments show that irradiation causes injury and loss of lymphocytes and mast cells in the colon mucosa. Apoptosis was detected in enterocytes and lymphocytes in the irradiated group and in nonirradiated group in equal numbers (2.5 ± 0.3 vs. 2.3 ± 0.3; ns.), suggesting that 10 days after high-dose irradiation, the cell loss is not due to apoptosis. (author)

Single high-dose irradiation aggravates eosinophil-mediated fibrosis through IL-33 secreted from impaired vessels in the skin compared to fractionated irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Eun-Jung; Kim, Jun Won; Yoo, Hyun; Kwak, Woori; Choi, Won Hoon; Cho, Seoae; Choi, Yu Jeong; Lee, Yoon-Jin; Cho, Jaeho

2015-01-01

We have revealed in a porcine skin injury model that eosinophil recruitment was dose-dependently enhanced by a single high-dose irradiation. In this study, we investigated the underlying mechanism of eosinophil-associated skin fibrosis and the effect of high-dose-per-fraction radiation. The dorsal skin of a mini-pig was divided into two sections containing 4-cm 2 fields that were irradiated with 30 Gy in a single fraction or 5 fractions and biopsied regularly over 14 weeks. Eosinophil-related Th2 cytokines such as interleukin (IL)-4, IL-5, and C–C motif chemokine-11 (CCL11/eotaxin) were evaluated by quantitative real-time PCR. RNA-sequencing using 30 Gy-irradiated mouse skin and functional assays in a co-culture system of THP-1 and irradiated-human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were performed to investigate the mechanism of eosinophil-mediated radiation fibrosis. Single high-dose-per-fraction irradiation caused pronounced eosinophil accumulation, increased profibrotic factors collagen and transforming growth factor-β, enhanced production of eosinophil-related cytokines including IL-4, IL-5, CCL11, IL-13, and IL-33, and reduced vessels compared with 5-fraction irradiation. IL-33 notably increased in pig and mouse skin vessels after single high-dose irradiation of 30 Gy, as well as in irradiated HUVECs following 12 Gy. Blocking IL-33 suppressed the migration ability of THP-1 cells and cytokine secretion in a co-culture system of THP-1 cells and irradiated HUVECs. Hence, high-dose-per-fraction irradiation appears to enhance eosinophil-mediated fibrotic responses, and IL-33 may be a key molecule operating in eosinophil-mediated fibrosis in high-dose-per fraction irradiated skin. - Highlights: • Single high-dose irradiation aggravates eosinophil-mediated fibrosis through IL-33. • Vascular endothelial cells damaged by high-dose radiation secrete IL-33. • Blocking IL-33 suppressed migration of inflammatory cells and cytokine secretion. • IL-33

Single high-dose irradiation aggravates eosinophil-mediated fibrosis through IL-33 secreted from impaired vessels in the skin compared to fractionated irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Eun-Jung, E-mail: forejs2@yuhs.ac [Department of Radiation Oncology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 120-752 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Jun Won, E-mail: JUNWON@yuhs.ac [Department of Radiation Oncology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 120-752 (Korea, Republic of); Yoo, Hyun, E-mail: gochunghee@yuhs.ac [Department of Radiation Oncology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 120-752 (Korea, Republic of); Kwak, Woori, E-mail: asleo02@snu.ac.kr [Interdisciplinary Program in Bioinformatics, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-747 (Korea, Republic of); Choi, Won Hoon, E-mail: wonhoon@yuhs.ac [Department of Radiation Oncology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 120-752 (Korea, Republic of); Cho, Seoae, E-mail: seoae@cnkgenomics.com [C& K Genomics, Seoul National University Mt.4-2, Main Bldg. #514, SNU Research Park, NakSeoungDae, Gwanakgu, Seoul 151-919 (Korea, Republic of); Choi, Yu Jeong, E-mail: yunk9275@daum.net [Department of Radiation Oncology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 120-752 (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Yoon-Jin, E-mail: yjlee8@kirams.re.kr [Division of Radiation Effects, Research Center for Radiotherapy, Korea Institute of Radiological & Medical Sciences, Seoul 139-760 (Korea, Republic of); Cho, Jaeho, E-mail: jjhmd@yuhs.ac [Department of Radiation Oncology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 120-752 (Korea, Republic of)

2015-08-14

We have revealed in a porcine skin injury model that eosinophil recruitment was dose-dependently enhanced by a single high-dose irradiation. In this study, we investigated the underlying mechanism of eosinophil-associated skin fibrosis and the effect of high-dose-per-fraction radiation. The dorsal skin of a mini-pig was divided into two sections containing 4-cm{sup 2} fields that were irradiated with 30 Gy in a single fraction or 5 fractions and biopsied regularly over 14 weeks. Eosinophil-related Th2 cytokines such as interleukin (IL)-4, IL-5, and C–C motif chemokine-11 (CCL11/eotaxin) were evaluated by quantitative real-time PCR. RNA-sequencing using 30 Gy-irradiated mouse skin and functional assays in a co-culture system of THP-1 and irradiated-human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were performed to investigate the mechanism of eosinophil-mediated radiation fibrosis. Single high-dose-per-fraction irradiation caused pronounced eosinophil accumulation, increased profibrotic factors collagen and transforming growth factor-β, enhanced production of eosinophil-related cytokines including IL-4, IL-5, CCL11, IL-13, and IL-33, and reduced vessels compared with 5-fraction irradiation. IL-33 notably increased in pig and mouse skin vessels after single high-dose irradiation of 30 Gy, as well as in irradiated HUVECs following 12 Gy. Blocking IL-33 suppressed the migration ability of THP-1 cells and cytokine secretion in a co-culture system of THP-1 cells and irradiated HUVECs. Hence, high-dose-per-fraction irradiation appears to enhance eosinophil-mediated fibrotic responses, and IL-33 may be a key molecule operating in eosinophil-mediated fibrosis in high-dose-per fraction irradiated skin. - Highlights: • Single high-dose irradiation aggravates eosinophil-mediated fibrosis through IL-33. • Vascular endothelial cells damaged by high-dose radiation secrete IL-33. • Blocking IL-33 suppressed migration of inflammatory cells and cytokine secretion. • IL

Solar-Blind Photodetector with High Avalanche Gains and Bias-Tunable Detecting Functionality Based on Metastable Phase α-Ga2O3/ZnO Isotype Heterostructures.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xuanhu; Xu, Yang; Zhou, Dong; Yang, Sen; Ren, Fang-Fang; Lu, Hai; Tang, Kun; Gu, Shulin; Zhang, Rong; Zheng, Youdou; Ye, Jiandong

2017-10-25

The metastable α-phase Ga 2 O 3 is an emerging material for developing solar-blind photodetectors and power electronic devices toward civil and military applications. Despite its superior physical properties, the high quality epitaxy of metastable phase α-Ga 2 O 3 remains challenging. To this end, single crystalline α-Ga 2 O 3 epilayers are achieved on nonpolar ZnO (112̅0) substrates for the first time and a high performance Au/α-Ga 2 O 3 /ZnO isotype heterostructure-based Schottky barrier avalanche diode is demonstrated. The device exhibits self-powered functions with a dark current lower than 1 pA, a UV/visible rejection ratio of 10 3 and a detectivity of 9.66 × 10 12 cm Hz 1/2 W -1 . Dual responsivity bands with cutoff wavelengths at 255 and 375 nm are observed with their peak responsivities of 0.50 and 0.071 A W -1 at -5 V, respectively. High photoconductive gain at low bias is governed by a barrier lowing effect at the Au/Ga 2 O 3 and Ga 2 O 3 /ZnO heterointerfaces. The device also allows avalanche multiplication processes initiated by pure electron and hole injections under different illumination conditions. High avalanche gains over 10 3 and a low ionization coefficient ratio of electrons and holes are yielded, leading to a total gain over 10 5 and a high responsivity of 1.10 × 10 4 A W -1 . Such avalanche heterostructures with ultrahigh gains and bias-tunable UV detecting functionality hold promise for developing high performance solar-blind photodetectors.

Inelastic collision rates of trapped metastable hydrogen

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Landhuis, D; Matos, L; Moss, SC; Steinberger, JK; Vant, K; Willmann, L; Greytak, TJ; Kleppner, D

We report the first detailed decay studies of trapped metastable (2S) hydrogen. By two-photon excitation of ultracold H samples, we have produced clouds of at least 5x10(7) magnetically trapped 2S atoms at densities greater than 4x10(10) cm(-3) and temperatures below 100 muK. At these densities and

A Note on Scenarios of Metastable Water

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Jirsák, Jan; Nezbeda, Ivo

2010-01-01

Roč. 75, č. 5 (2010), s. 593-605 ISSN 0010-0765 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA400720802; GA AV ČR IAA200760905; GA AV ČR IAA400720710 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z40720504 Keywords : metastable water * spinodal * scenarios Subject RIV: CF - Physical ; Theoretical Chemistry Impact factor: 0.853, year: 2010

Coherent and non coherent atom optics experiment with an ultra-narrow beam of metastable rare gas atoms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grucker, J.

2007-12-01

In this thesis, we present a new type of atomic source: an ultra-narrow beam of metastable atoms produced by resonant metastability exchange inside a supersonic beam of rare gas atoms. We used the coherence properties of this beam to observe the diffraction of metastable helium, argon and neon atoms by a nano-transmission grating and by micro-reflection-gratings. Then, we evidenced transitions between Zeeman sublevels of neon metastable 3 P 2 state due to the quadrupolar part of Van der Waals potential. After we showed experimental proofs of the observation of this phenomenon, we calculated the transition probabilities in the Landau - Zener model. We discussed the interest of Van der Waals - Zeeman transitions for atom interferometry. Last, we described the Zeeman cooling of the supersonic metastable argon beam ( 3 P 2 ). We have succeeded in slowing down atoms to speeds below 100 m/s. We gave experimental details and showed the first time-of-flight measurements of slowed atoms

Investigation of systematic errors of metastable "atomic pair" number

CERN Document Server

Yazkov, V

2015-01-01

Sources of systematic errors in analysis of data, collected in 2012, are analysed. Esti- mations of systematic errors in a number of “atomic pairs” fr om metastable π + π − atoms are presented.

High-energy irradiation in the management of chondrosarcoma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, R.Y.; Salter, M.M.; Brascho, D.J.

1983-01-01

We present a retrospective analysis of seven patients with chondrosarcoma of the bone treated by high-energy irradiation between 1961 and 1976. Its major role in this series was prevention of local recurrence in cases with inadequate resection. In three of the five cases in which radiation therapy was adjuvant rather than primary treatment, long-term local control was obtained in a dose of 5,000 to 6,500 rads in five to six weeks. Although primary treatment of chondrosarcoma is surgical, high-dose radiation therapy is indicated when surgical resection is not possible. Chondrosarcoma can respond to high doses of irradiation even though the response is slow

Material Characterization of Fatigue Specimens made from Meta-stable Austenitic Stainless Steel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Niffenegger, M.; Grosse, M.; Kalkhof, D.; Leber, H. [Paul Scherrer Institut Villigen (Switzerland); Vincent, A.; Pasco, L.; Morin, M. [Insa de Lyon (France)

2003-07-01

The main objective of the EU-project CRETE (Contract No.: FIS5-1999-00280) was to assess the capability and the reliability of innovative NDT-inspection techniques for the detection of material degradation, induced by thermal fatigue and neutron irradiation, of metastable austenitic and ferritic low-alloy steel. Several project partners tested aged or irradiated samples, using various techniques (acoustic, magnetic and thermoelectric). However, these indirect methods require a careful interpretation of the measured signal in terms of micro-structural evolutions due to ageing of the material. Therefore the material had to be characterized in its undamaged, as well as in its damaged state. The present report summarises only the material characterization of the fatigue specimens. It is issued simultaneously as an PSI Bericht and the CRETE work package 3 (WP3) report. Each partner according to their own specifications purchased three materials under investigation, namely AISI 347, AISI 321 and AISI 304L. After sending the material to PSI, all fatigue specimens were manufactured by the same Swiss company. Each partner was responsible for his fatigue tests which are documented in the report WP1, written by FANP. In order to characterize the material in its unfatigued as well as in its fatigued state and to consider microstructural changes related to fatigue damage the methods listed below were employed either by PSI or by INSA de Lyon: (1) Inductive Coupled Plasma Emission Photometry (ICP-OES) was applied to determine the chemical composition, (2) Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for observing cracks, slip bands between grain and twin boundaries, - Ferromaster for measuring the magnetic permeability, (3) Physical Properties Measuring System (PPMS) for measuring magnetization characteristics, (4) Neutron- and advanced X-ray diffraction methods for the quantitative determination of martensite, - Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) for the observation of crystalline

Fast neutron spectroscopy with tensioned metastable fluid detectors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grimes, T.F.; Taleyarkhan, R.P., E-mail: rusi@purdue.edu

2016-09-11

This paper describes research into development of a rapid-turnaround, neutron-spectroscopy capable (gamma-beta blind), high intrinsic efficiency sensor system utilizing the tensioned metastable fluid detector (TMFD) architecture. The inability of prevailing theoretical models (developed successfully for the classical bubble chamber) to adequately predict detection thresholds for tensioned metastable fluid conditions is described. Techniques are presented to overcome these inherent shortcomings, leading thereafter, to allow successful neutron spectroscopy using TMFDs – via the newly developed Single Atom Spectroscopy (SAS) approach. SAS also allows for a unique means for rapidly determining neutron energy thresholds with TMFDs. This is accomplished by simplifying the problem of determining Cavitation Detection Events (CDEs) arising from neutron interactions with one in which several recoiling atom species contribute to CDEs, to one in which only one dominant recoil atom need be considered. The chosen fluid is Heptane (C{sub 7}H{sub 16}) for which only recoiling C atoms contribute to CDEs. Using the SAS approach, the threshold curve for Heptane was derived using isotope neutron source data, and then validated against experiments with mono-energetic (2.45/14 MeV) neutrons from D-D and D-T accelerators. Thereafter the threshold curves were used to produce the response matrix for various geometries. The response matrices were in turn combined with experimental data to recover the continuous spectra of fission (Cf-252) and (α,n) Pu–Be isotopic neutron sources via an unfolding algorithm. A generalized algorithm is also presented for performing neutron spectroscopy using any other TMFD fluid that meets the SAS approach assumptions.

Lattice stability of metastable AlN and wurtzite-to-rock-salt structural transformation by CALPHAD modeling

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Yanhui, E-mail: yanhui.z@hotmail.com [Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute for Applied Materials-Applied Materials Physics (IAM-AWP), Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen (Germany); High-performance Ceramics Division, Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 110016, Shenyang (China); Franke, Peter; Li, Dajian; Seifert, Hans Jürgen [Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute for Applied Materials-Applied Materials Physics (IAM-AWP), Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen (Germany)

2016-12-01

Reliable lattice stability of cubic AlN with rock-salt structure (rs-AlN) is the prerequisite of accurate thermodynamic modeling of cubic (M, Al)N solid solutions (M = Ti, Zr, Cr etc.). In order to derive the Gibbs energy of metastable rs-AlN, and then its lattice stability, we did the pressure-temperature (P-T) assessment of AlN phases by equations-of-state modeling. Meanwhile, the molar volumes and the heat capacities of wurtzite and rock-salt AlN, as well as the wurtzite-to-rock-salt structural transition at high P&T were successfully incorporated in CALPHAD-type database by integrating thermodynamic data from experiments and ab-initio calculations. These results promise subsequent investigations on phase stabilities and transitions of solid solutions with AlN component and the development of novel multicomponent coatings. - Highlights: • Phase stability investigation for novel multi-component metastable coatings. • Structural transition at high temperature and high pressure. • Integrating thermodynamic data from ab-initio calculations and experiments. • Thermal expansion, isothermal compressibility and heat capacity of w-AlN and rs-AlN.

Colour chemistry - a study of metastable multiquark molecules

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chan, H.-M.; Fukugita, M.; Hansson, T.H.; Hoffman, H.J.; Konishi, K.; Hoegaasen, H.; Tsou, S.T.

1978-03-01

A framework is proposed for treating metastable multiquark states in general, borrowing some of the chemist's concepts and terminology. Lists of 'ions' and 'bonds' are are compiled which allow one in principle to construct models of complex 'molecules' and to predict their masses and decays. (author)

Stabilizing effect of driving and dissipation on quantum metastable states

Science.gov (United States)

Valenti, Davide; Carollo, Angelo; Spagnolo, Bernardo

2018-04-01

We investigate how the combined effects of strong Ohmic dissipation and monochromatic driving affect the stability of a quantum system with a metastable state. We find that, by increasing the coupling with the environment, the escape time makes a transition from a regime in which it is substantially controlled by the driving, displaying resonant peaks and dips, to a regime of frequency-independent escape time with a peak followed by a steep falloff. The escape time from the metastable state has a nonmonotonic behavior as a function of the thermal-bath coupling, the temperature, and the frequency of the driving. The quantum noise-enhanced stability phenomenon is observed in the investigated system.

Exciton-plasmon quantum metastates: self-induced oscillations of plasmon fields in the absence of decoherence in nanoparticle molecules

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sadeghi, S. M., E-mail: seyed.sadeghi@uah.edu [University of Alabama in Huntsville, Department of Physics and Nano and Mirco Device Center (United States)

2016-02-15

We investigate formation of unique quantum states (metastates) in quantum dot-metallic nanoparticle systems via self-induced coherent dynamics generated by interaction of these systems with a visible and an infrared laser fields. In such metastates, the quantum decoherence rates of the quantum dots can become zero and even negative while they start to rapidly change with time. Under these conditions, the energy dissipation rates and plasmon fields of the nanoparticle systems undergo undamped oscillations with gigahertz frequency, while the amplitudes of both visible and the infrared laser fields are considered to be time-independent. These dynamics also lead to variation of the plasmon absorption of the metallic nanoparticles between high and nearly zero values, forming electromagnetically induced transparency oscillations. We show that under these conditions, the effective transition energies and broadening of the quantum dots undergo oscillatory dynamics, highlighting the unique aspects of the metastates. These results extend the horizon for investigation of light-matter interaction in the presence of zero or negative polarization dephasing rates with strong time dependency.

High-voltage irradiation of xenotransplanted human ovarial, endometrial, and cervical carcinomas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kleine, W.; Wrzodek, W.; Stange, S.; Ladner, H.A.

1981-01-01

High-voltage irradiation of four ovarial carcinomas, four endometrial carcinomas and two carcinomas of the cervix is reported on which were transplanted subcutaneously to nu/nu mice. In all cases, the growth was stopped and the tumour receded under irradiation; in 8 cases, after stopping the irradiation with a dose of 30 to 60 Gy the growth went on. Of two carcinomas with decrease in the size and a stopped growth over 20 weeks, in one case no vital cells could be found any more while in the other one there were still numerous vital cells. These showed also after irradiation an unchanged radionucleotid incorporation in the single cell suspension. The effect of a high-voltage irradiation seems to be independent on the histologic picture, but dependent on the dose and the fractioning. The incorporation rates of 3 H-thymidine and 3 H-uridine in the single cell suspension reamined inchanged both before and after irradiation. Irradiation of the xenotransplantate of one side showed the exclusively local effect of this measure. This is confirmed by comparative examinations of the same tumours with a chemotherapy. Thus the nude mouse model offers the possibility of observing the effects of a high-voltage irradiation of human tissue in vivo without involving the total organism of the tumourous animal like in chemotherapy. This shows another field for future questions with nude mice. (orig.) [de

Radiation-induced epigenetic alterations after low and high LET irradiations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aypar, Umut; Morgan, William F.; Baulch, Janet E.

2011-01-01

Epigenetics, including DNA methylation and microRNA (miRNA) expression, could be the missing link in understanding radiation-induced genomic instability (RIGI). This study tests the hypothesis that irradiation induces epigenetic aberrations, which could eventually lead to RIGI, and that the epigenetic aberrations induced by low linear energy transfer (LET) irradiation are different than those induced by high LET irradiations. GM10115 cells were irradiated with low LET X-rays and high LET iron (Fe) ions and evaluated for DNA damage, cell survival and chromosomal instability. The cells were also evaluated for specific locus methylation of nuclear factor-kappa B (NFκB), tumor suppressor in lung cancer 1 (TSLC1) and cadherin 1 (CDH1) gene promoter regions, long interspersed nuclear element 1 (LINE-1) and Alu repeat element methylation, CpG and non-CpG global methylation and miRNA expression levels. Irradiated cells showed increased micronucleus induction and cell killing immediately following exposure, but were chromosomally stable at delayed times post-irradiation. At this same delayed time, alterations in repeat element and global DNA methylation and miRNA expression were observed. Analyses of DNA methylation predominantly showed hypomethylation, however hypermethylation was also observed. We demonstrate that miRNA expression levels can be altered after X-ray irradiation and that these miRNA are involved in chromatin remodeling and DNA methylation. A higher incidence of epigenetic changes was observed after exposure to X-rays than Fe ions even though Fe ions elicited more chromosomal damage and cell killing. This distinction is apparent at miRNA analyses at which only three miRNA involved in two major pathways were altered after high LET irradiations while six miRNA involved in five major pathways were altered after low LET irradiations. This study also shows that the irradiated cells acquire epigenetic changes suggesting that epigenetic aberrations may arise in the

Radiation-induced epigenetic alterations after low and high LET irradiations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aypar, Umut, E-mail: uaypa001@umaryland.edu [Department of Radiation Oncology, Radiation Oncology Research Laboratory, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21201 (United States); Morgan, William F. [Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA 99352 (United States); Baulch, Janet E. [Department of Radiation Oncology, Radiation Oncology Research Laboratory, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21201 (United States)

2011-02-10

Epigenetics, including DNA methylation and microRNA (miRNA) expression, could be the missing link in understanding radiation-induced genomic instability (RIGI). This study tests the hypothesis that irradiation induces epigenetic aberrations, which could eventually lead to RIGI, and that the epigenetic aberrations induced by low linear energy transfer (LET) irradiation are different than those induced by high LET irradiations. GM10115 cells were irradiated with low LET X-rays and high LET iron (Fe) ions and evaluated for DNA damage, cell survival and chromosomal instability. The cells were also evaluated for specific locus methylation of nuclear factor-kappa B (NF{kappa}B), tumor suppressor in lung cancer 1 (TSLC1) and cadherin 1 (CDH1) gene promoter regions, long interspersed nuclear element 1 (LINE-1) and Alu repeat element methylation, CpG and non-CpG global methylation and miRNA expression levels. Irradiated cells showed increased micronucleus induction and cell killing immediately following exposure, but were chromosomally stable at delayed times post-irradiation. At this same delayed time, alterations in repeat element and global DNA methylation and miRNA expression were observed. Analyses of DNA methylation predominantly showed hypomethylation, however hypermethylation was also observed. We demonstrate that miRNA expression levels can be altered after X-ray irradiation and that these miRNA are involved in chromatin remodeling and DNA methylation. A higher incidence of epigenetic changes was observed after exposure to X-rays than Fe ions even though Fe ions elicited more chromosomal damage and cell killing. This distinction is apparent at miRNA analyses at which only three miRNA involved in two major pathways were altered after high LET irradiations while six miRNA involved in five major pathways were altered after low LET irradiations. This study also shows that the irradiated cells acquire epigenetic changes suggesting that epigenetic aberrations may arise

Dislocation Strengthening without Ductility Trade-off in Metastable Austenitic Steels

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Jiabin; Jin, Yongbin; Fang, Xiaoyang; Chen, Chenxu; Feng, Qiong; Liu, Xiaowei; Chen, Yuzeng; Suo, Tao; Zhao, Feng; Huang, Tianlin; Wang, Hongtao; Wang, Xi; Fang, Youtong; Wei, Yujie; Meng, Liang; Lu, Jian; Yang, Wei

2016-10-01

Strength and ductility are mutually exclusive if they are manifested as consequence of the coupling between strengthening and toughening mechanisms. One notable example is dislocation strengthening in metals, which invariably leads to reduced ductility. However, this trend is averted in metastable austenitic steels. A one-step thermal mechanical treatment (TMT), i.e. hot rolling, can effectively enhance the yielding strength of the metastable austenitic steel from 322 ± 18 MPa to 675 ± 15 MPa, while retaining both the formability and hardenability. It is noted that no boundaries are introduced in the optimized TMT process and all strengthening effect originates from dislocations with inherited thermal stability. The success of this method relies on the decoupled strengthening and toughening mechanisms in metastable austenitic steels, in which yield strength is controlled by initial dislocation density while ductility is retained by the capability to nucleate new dislocations to carry plastic deformation. Especially, the simplicity in processing enables scaling and industrial applications to meet the challenging requirements of emissions reduction. On the other hand, the complexity in the underlying mechanism of dislocation strengthening in this case may shed light on a different route of material strengthening by stimulating dislocation activities, rather than impeding motion of dislocations.

On Metastability in FPU

CERN Document Server

Bambusi, D

2005-01-01

We present an analytical study of the Fermi--Pasta--Ulam (FPU) $\\alpha$--model with periodic boundary conditions. We analyze the dynamics corresponding to initial data with some low frequency Fourier modes excited. We show that, correspondignly, a pair of KdV equations constitute the resonant normal form of the system. We also use such a normal form in order to prove the existence of a metastability phenomenon. More precisely, we show that the time average of the modal energy spectrum rapidly attains a well defined distribution corresponding to a packet of low frequencies modes. Subsequently, the distribution remains unchanged up to the time scales of validity of our approximation. The phenomenon is controlled by the specific energy.

High-energy and high-fluence proton irradiation effects in silicon solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamaguchi, M.; Taylor, S.J.; Yang, M.; Matsuda, S.; Kawasaki, O.; Hisamatsu, T.

1996-01-01

We have examined proton irradiation damage in high-energy (1 endash 10 MeV) and high-fluence (approx-gt 10 13 cm -2 ) Si n + -p-p + structure space solar cells. Radiation testing has revealed an anomalous increase in short-circuit current I sc followed by an abrupt decrease and cell failure, induced by high-fluence proton irradiation. We propose a model to explain these phenomena by expressing the change in carrier concentration p of the base region as a function of the proton fluence in addition to the well-known model where the short-circuit current is decreased by minority-carrier lifetime reduction after irradiation. The reduction in carrier concentration due to majority-carrier trapping by radiation-induced defects has two effects. First, broadening of the depletion layer increases both the generation endash recombination current and also the contribution of the photocurrent generated in this region to the total photocurrent. Second, the resistivity of the base layer is increased, resulting in the abrupt decrease in the short circuit current and failure of the solar cells. copyright 1996 American Institute of Physics

Irradiation testing of high density uranium alloy dispersion fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hayes, S.L.; Trybus, C.L.; Meyer, M.K.

1997-10-01

Two irradiation test vehicles have been designed, fabricated, and inserted into the Advanced Test Reactor in Idaho. Irradiation of these experiments began in August 1997. These irradiation tests were designed to obtain irradiation performance information on a variety of potential new, high-density dispersion fuels. Each of the two irradiation vehicles contains 32 microplates. Each microplate is aluminum clad, having an aluminum matrix phase and containing one of the following compositions as the fuel phase: U-10Mo, U-8Mo, U-6Mo, U-4Mo, U-9Nb-3Zr, U-6Nb-4Zr, U-5Nb-3Zr, U-6Mo-1Pt, U-6Mo-0.6Ru, U-10Mo-0.05Sn, U 2 Mo, or U 3 Si 2 . These experiments will be discharged at peak fuel burnups of 40% and 80%. Of particular interest is the fission gas retention/swelling characteristics of these new fuel alloys. This paper presents the design of the irradiation vehicles and the irradiation conditions

Stability of uranium silicides during high energy ion irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Birtcher, R.C; Wang, L.M.

1991-11-01

Changes induced by 1.5 MeV Kr ion irradiation of both U 3 Si and U 3 Si 2 have been followed by in situ transmission electron microscopy. When irradiated at sufficiently low temperatures, both alloys transform from the crystalline to the amorphous state. When irradiated at temperatures above the temperature limit for ion beam amorphization, both compounds disorder with the Martensite twin structure in U 3 Si disappearing from view in TEM. Prolonged irradiation of the disordered crystalline phases results in nucleation of small crystallites within the initially large crystal grains. The new crystallites increase in number during continued irradiation until a fine grain structure is formed. Electron diffraction yields a powder-like diffraction pattern that indicates a random alignment of the small crystallites. During a second irradiation at lower temperatures, the small crystallizes retard amorphization. After 2 dpa at high temperatures, the amorphization dose is increased by over twenty times compared to that of initially unirradiated material

Experimental modeling of high burn-up structure in SIMFUEL with ion irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baranov, V.; Isaenkova, M.; Lunev, A.; Tenishev, A.; Khlunov, A.

2013-01-01

Experiments are conducted to simulate high burn-up structure in accelerator conditions. Three ion irradiation schemes are used: 1. Xe 27+ 160 MeV up to 5x10 15 cm -2 (thermal spikes). 2. Xe 16+ 320 keV up to 1x10 17 cm -2 (collision cascades). 3. He + 20 keV up to 5,5x10 17 cm -2 (implantation stage). Structural characterization performed by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray analysis and atomic force microscopy revealed prominent grain refinement in case of Xe 27+ irradiation. Artificial energy variation for incident ions showed varying size of subgrains. At maximum energy of incident ions, subgrain size amounts ∼ 320 nm. Moving to the edge of irradiated region changes the size to ∼ 170 nm. Typical size of coherent scattering regions matches subgrain size for high-energy irradiation. Low-energy irradiation results in less significant structural changes: flaky structure at random sites for samples irradiated with low-energy xenon ions and bubble nucleation for helium irradiation. Dislocation density increases significantly, and it is shown that a single fluence dependence exists for low- and high-energy irradiation. (authors)

Cooperative photoinduced metastable phase control in strained manganite films

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Jingdi; Tan, Xuelian; Liu, Mengkun; Teitelbaum, S. W.; Post, K. W.; Jin, Feng; Nelson, K. A.; Basov, D. N.; Wu, Wenbin; Averitt, R. D.

2016-09-01

A major challenge in condensed-matter physics is active control of quantum phases. Dynamic control with pulsed electromagnetic fields can overcome energetic barriers, enabling access to transient or metastable states that are not thermally accessible. Here we demonstrate strain-engineered tuning of La2/3Ca1/3MnO3 into an emergent charge-ordered insulating phase with extreme photo-susceptibility, where even a single optical pulse can initiate a transition to a long-lived metastable hidden metallic phase. Comprehensive single-shot pulsed excitation measurements demonstrate that the transition is cooperative and ultrafast, requiring a critical absorbed photon density to activate local charge excitations that mediate magnetic-lattice coupling that, in turn, stabilize the metallic phase. These results reveal that strain engineering can tune emergent functionality towards proximal macroscopic states to enable dynamic ultrafast optical phase switching and control.

Design practice and operational experience of highly irradiated, high-performance normal magnets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schultz, J.H.

1982-09-01

The limitations of high performance magnets are discussed in terms of mechanical, temperature, and electrical limits. The limitations of magnets that are highly irradiated by neutrons, gamma radiation, or x radiation are discussed

Constitutive modeling of metastable austenitic stainless steel (CD-rom)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Perdahcioglu, Emin Semih; Geijselaers, Hubertus J.M.; Huetink, Han; Boisse, P.

2008-01-01

A stress-update algorithm is developed for austenitic metastable steels which undergo phase evolution during deformation. The material initially comprises only the soft and ductile austenite phase which due to the phenomenon of mechanically induced martensitic transformation, transforms completely

Cross section TEM characterization of high-energy-Xe-irradiated U-Mo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ye, B., E-mail: bye@anl.gov [Nuclear Engineering Division, Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 S. Cass Ave. Lemont, IL 60439 (United States); Jamison, L.; Miao, Y. [Nuclear Engineering Division, Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 S. Cass Ave. Lemont, IL 60439 (United States); Bhattacharya, S. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, 2220 Campus Dr. Evanston, IL 60208 (United States); Hofman, G.L.; Yacout, A.M. [Nuclear Engineering Division, Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 S. Cass Ave. Lemont, IL 60439 (United States)

2017-05-15

U-Mo alloys irradiated with 84 MeV Xe ions to various doses were characterized with transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) techniques. The TEM thin foils were prepared perpendicular to the irradiated surface to allow a direct observation of the entire region modified by ions. Therefore, depth-selective microstructural information was revealed. Varied irradiation-induced phenomena such as gas bubble formation, phase reversal, and recrystallization were observed at different ion penetration depths in U-Mo. - Highlights: •Three distinct zones were observed along the ion traveling direction in U-7Mo irradiated with 84 MeV Xe ions at 350 °C. •The α-U particles within the Xe-implanted region were reverted to γ-U phase by irradiation. •High-density random intra-granular bubbles in a size of 4–5 nm were found in the irradiated region, coexisting with large inter-granular bubbles. •The high lattice stresses built up during the irradiation-induced phase reversal is probably the driving force for the small grain formation at cell boundaries.

Radiation-Induced Epigenetic Alterations after Low and High LET Irradiations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aypar, Umut; Morgan, William F.; Baulch, Janet E.

2011-02-01

Epigenetics, including DNA methylation and microRNA (miRNA) expression, could be the missing link in understanding the delayed, non-targeted effects of radiation including radiationinduced genomic instability (RIGI). This study tests the hypothesis that irradiation induces epigenetic aberrations, which could eventually lead to RIGI, and that the epigenetic aberrations induced by low linear energy transfer (LET) irradiation are different than those induced by high LET irradiations. GM10115 cells were irradiated with low LET x-rays and high LET iron (Fe) ions and evaluated for DNA damage, cell survival and chromosomal instability. The cells were also evaluated for specific locus methylation of nuclear factor-kappa B (NFκB), tumor suppressor in lung cancer 1 (TSLC1) and cadherin 1 (CDH1) gene promoter regions, long interspersed nuclear element 1 (LINE-1) and Alu repeat element methylation, CpG and non-CpG global methylation and miRNA expression levels. Irradiated cells showed increased micronucleus induction and cell killing immediately following exposure, but were chromosomally stable at delayed times post-irradiation. At this same delayed time, alterations in repeat element and global DNA methylation and miRNA expression were observed. Analyses of DNA methylation predominantly showed hypomethylation, however hypermethylation was also observed. MiRNA shown to be altered in expression level after x-ray irradiation are involved in chromatin remodeling and DNA methylation. Different and higher incidence of epigenetic changes were observed after exposure to low LET x-rays than high LET Fe ions even though Fe ions elicited more chromosomal damage and cell killing. This study also shows that the irradiated cells acquire epigenetic changes even though they are chromosomally stable suggesting that epigenetic aberrations may arise in the cell without initiating RIGI.

Growth kinetics of metastable (331) nanofacet on Au and Pt(110) surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ndongmouo, U.T.; Houngninou, E.; Hontinfinde, F.

2006-12-01

A theoretical epitaxial growth model with realistic barriers for surface diffusion is investigated by means of kinetic Monte Carlo simulations to study the growth modes of metastable (331) nanofacets on Au and Pt(110) surfaces. The results show that under experimental atomic fluxes, the (331) nanofacets grow by 2D nucleation at low temperature in the submonolayer regime. A metastable growth phase diagram that can be useful to experimentalists is presented and looks similar to the one found for the stationary growth of the bcc(001) surface in the kinetic 6-vertex model. (author)

Lifetimes of metastable levels of singly ionized titanium: theory and experiment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Palmeri, P; Quinet, P; Biemont, E; Gurell, J; Lundin, P; Royen, P; Mannervik, S; Norlin, L-O; Blagoev, K

2008-01-01

This paper presents new theoretical lifetimes of metastable levels in singly ionized titanium, Ti II. Along with the lifetimes, transition probabilities for several decay channels from these metastable levels are presented. The calculations are supported by experimental lifetime determinations of the 3d 3 b 2 D 5/2 and 3d 2 ( 3 P)4s b 2 P 3/2 levels along with revised values of the previously published lifetimes of the 3d 2 ( 3 P)4s b 4 P 5/2 and 3d 2 ( 3 P)4s b 2 P 1/2 levels originating partly from a reanalysis utilizing a recently developed method applied on the previously recorded data and partly from new measurements. The presented theoretical investigation of lifetimes of metastable levels in Ti II shows that the HFR calculations are in general compatible with measurements performed using the ion storage ring CRYRING of Stockholm University. The transition probabilities of forbidden lines derived from the new lifetime values will be useful for the diagnostics of low density laboratory or astrophysical plasmas, particularly those encountered in the strontium filament found in the ejecta of η Carinae

The irradiation behavior of atomized U-Mo alloy fuels at high temperature

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Jong-Man; Kim, Ki-Hwan; Kim, Chang-Kyu; Meyer, M. K.; Hofman, G. L.; Strain, R. V.

2001-04-01

Post-irradiation examinations of atomized U-10Mo, U-6Mo, and U-6Mo-1.7Os dispersion fuels from the RERTR-3 experiment irradiated in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) were carried out in order to investigate the fuel behavior of high uranium loading (8 gU/cc) at a high temperature (higher than 200°C). It was observed after about 40 at% BU that the U-Mo alloy fuels at a high temperature showed similar irradiation bubble morphologies compared to those at a lower temperature found in the RERTR-1 irradiation result, but there was a thick reaction layer with the aluminum matrix which was found to be greatly affected by the irradiation temperature and to a lesser degree by the fuel composition. In addition, the chemical analysis for the irradiated U-Mo fuels using the Electron Probe Micro Analysis (EPMA) method were conducted to investigate the compositional changes during the formation of the reaction product.

Vacuum metastability with black holes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Burda, Philipp [Centre for Particle Theory, Durham University,South Road, Durham, DH1 3LE (United Kingdom); Gregory, Ruth [Centre for Particle Theory, Durham University,South Road, Durham, DH1 3LE (United Kingdom); Perimeter Institute, 31 Caroline Street North,Waterloo, ON, N2L 2Y5 (Canada); Moss, Ian G. annd [School of Mathematics and Statistics, Newcastle University,Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 7RU (United Kingdom)

2015-08-24

We consider the possibility that small black holes can act as nucleation seeds for the decay of a metastable vacuum, focussing particularly on the Higgs potential. Using a thin-wall bubble approximation for the nucleation process, which is possible when generic quantum gravity corrections are added to the Higgs potential, we show that primordial black holes can stimulate vacuum decay. We demonstrate that for suitable parameter ranges, the vacuum decay process dominates over the Hawking evaporation process. Finally, we comment on the application of these results to vacuum decay seeded by black holes produced in particle collisions.

Vacuum metastability with black holes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burda, Philipp; Gregory, Ruth; Moss, Ian G. annd

2015-01-01

We consider the possibility that small black holes can act as nucleation seeds for the decay of a metastable vacuum, focussing particularly on the Higgs potential. Using a thin-wall bubble approximation for the nucleation process, which is possible when generic quantum gravity corrections are added to the Higgs potential, we show that primordial black holes can stimulate vacuum decay. We demonstrate that for suitable parameter ranges, the vacuum decay process dominates over the Hawking evaporation process. Finally, we comment on the application of these results to vacuum decay seeded by black holes produced in particle collisions.

Detailed investigation of current transients from metastable pitting events on stainless steel - the transition to stability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pistorius, P.C.; Burstein, G.T.

1992-01-01

Current transients which result from metastable pitting events (on Type 304 stainless steel in an acidic solution containing 1 M Cl - ) are presented. A criterion for the stable growth of open hemispherical pits is developed; the criterion states that the product of current density and pit depth must exceed a certain minimum value, to sustain rapid dissolution. Analysis of the transients from metastable pits shows that these pits fall short of this minimum, as do stable pits initially. The growth of these pits thus requires the presence of another barrier to diffusion, which is thought to be a remnant of the passive film; this forms a flawed cover over the pit mouth. When this cover ruptures under the influence of osmotic pressure, the pit repassivates. Pits growing at higher current densities approach the minimum requirement for stable growth more closely. A ''pitting potential'' results from the effect that metastable pits formed at more positive potentials grow at higher current densities, and are thus more likely to grow into stable pits. The effect of potential on the current density does not result from either activation control or ohmic control; rather, the pits grow under diffusion control. A change, with potential, of the type of pit site which can be activated, causes the potential dependence of the distribution of current densities in metastable pits. Although the distribution of current densities changes with potential, each metastable pit grows under diffusion control with a current density which is independent of the potential; this is confirmed by polarisation tests on growing metastable pits

Metastability in Field Theory and Statistical Mechanics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carvalho, C.A. de.

1984-01-01

After a phase transition analysis which can occur in the framework of a scalar field theory, at finite temperature and in presence of a external field, possibles metastable situations are studied and also how is their relationship with the transitions. In both cases it is used a semiclassical approximation to the theory which, in Statistical Mechanics, corresponds to the droplet-bubble model. (L.C.) [pt

Metastability of Queuing Networks with Mobile Servers

Science.gov (United States)

Baccelli, F.; Rybko, A.; Shlosman, S.; Vladimirov, A.

2018-04-01

We study symmetric queuing networks with moving servers and FIFO service discipline. The mean-field limit dynamics demonstrates unexpected behavior which we attribute to the metastability phenomenon. Large enough finite symmetric networks on regular graphs are proved to be transient for arbitrarily small inflow rates. However, the limiting non-linear Markov process possesses at least two stationary solutions. The proof of transience is based on martingale techniques.

Co thin film with metastable bcc structure formed on GaAs(111 substrate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Minakawa Shigeyuki

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Co thin films are prepared on GaAs(111 substrates at temperatures ranging from room temperature to 600 ºC by radio-frequency magnetron sputtering. The growth behavior and the detailed resulting film structure are investigated by in-situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction and X-ray diffraction. In early stages of film growth at temperatures lower than 200 ºC, Co crystals with metastable A2 (bcc structure are formed, where the crystal structure is stabilized through hetero-epitaxial growth. With increasing the film thickness beyond 2 nm, the metastable structure starts to transform into more stable A1 (fcc structure through atomic displacements parallel to the A2{110} close-packed planes. The crystallographic orientation relationship between the A2 and the transformed A1 crystals is A1{111} || A2{110}. When the substrate temperature is higher than 400 ºC, Ga atoms of substrate diffuse into the Co films and a Co-Ga alloy with bcc-based ordered structure of B2 is formed.

Dynamical SUSY Breaking at Meta-Stable Minima from D-branes at Obstructed Geometries

CERN Document Server

Franco, S; Franco, Sebastian; Uranga, Angel M .

2006-01-01

We study the existence of long-lived meta-stable supersymmetry breaking vacua in gauge theories with massless quarks, upon the addition of extra massive flavors. A simple realization is provided by a modified version of SQCD with N_{f,0} < N_c massless flavors, N_{f,1} massive flavors and additional singlet chiral fields. This theory has local meta-stable minima separated from a runaway behavior at infinity by a potential barrier. We find further examples of such meta-stable minima in flavored versions of quiver gauge theories on fractional branes at singularities with obstructed complex deformations, and study the case of the dP_1 theory in detail. Finally, we provide an explicit String Theory construction of such theories. The additional flavors arise from D7-branes on non-compact 4-cycles of the singularity, for which we find a new efficient description using dimer techniques.

INTERSTELLAR METASTABLE HELIUM ABSORPTION AS A PROBE OF THE COSMIC-RAY IONIZATION RATE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Indriolo, Nick; McCall, Benjamin J.; Hobbs, L. M.; Hinkle, K. H.

2009-01-01

The ionization rate of interstellar material by cosmic rays has been a major source of controversy, with different estimates varying by three orders of magnitude. Observational constraints of this rate have all depended on analyzing the chemistry of various molecules that are produced following cosmic-ray ionization, and in many cases these analyses contain significant uncertainties. Even in the simplest case (H + 3 ), the derived ionization rate depends on an (uncertain) estimate of the absorption path length. In this paper, we examine the feasibility of inferring the cosmic-ray ionization rate using the 10830 A absorption line of metastable helium. Observations through the diffuse clouds toward HD 183143 are presented, but yield only an upper limit on the metastable helium column density. A thorough investigation of He + chemistry reveals that only a small fraction of He + will recombine into the triplet state and populate the metastable level. In addition, excitation to the triplet manifold of helium by secondary electrons must be accounted for as it is the dominant mechanism which produces He* in some environments. Incorporating these various formation and destruction pathways, we derive new equations for the steady state abundance of metastable helium. Using these equations in concert with our observations, we find ζ He -15 s -1 , an upper limit about 5 times larger than the ionization rate previously inferred for this sight line using H + 3 . While observations of interstellar He* are extremely difficult at present, and the background chemistry is not nearly as simple as previously thought, potential future observations of metastable helium would provide an independent check on the cosmic-ray ionization rate derived from H + 3 in diffuse molecular clouds, and, perhaps more importantly, allow the first direct measurements of the ionization rate in diffuse atomic clouds.

Stepwise transformation behavior of the strain-induced martensitic transformation in a metastable stainless steel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hedstroem, Peter; Lienert, Ulrich; Almer, Jon; Oden, Magnus

2007-01-01

In situ high-energy X-ray diffraction during tensile loading has been used to investigate the evolution of lattice strains and the accompanying strain-induced martensitic transformation in cold-rolled sheets of a metastable stainless steel. At high applied strains the transformation to α-martensite occurs in stepwise bursts. These stepwise transformation events are correlated with stepwise increased lattice strains and peak broadening in the austenite phase. The stepwise transformation arises from growth of α-martensite embryos by autocatalytic transformation

Irradiation testing of high-density uranium alloy dispersion fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hayes, S.L.; Trybus, C.L.; Meyer, M.K.

1997-01-01

Two irradiation test vehicles have been designed, fabricated, and inserted into the Advanced Test Reactor in Idaho. Irradiation of these experiments began in August 1997. These irradiation tests were designed to obtain irradiation performance information on a variety of potential new, high-density dispersion fuels. Each of the two irradiation vehicles contains 32 'microplates'. Each microplate is aluminum clad, having an aluminum matrix phase and containing one of the following compositions as the fuel phase: U-10Mo, U-8Mo, U-6Mo, U-4Mo, U-9Nb-3Zr, U-6Nb-4Zr, U-5Nb-3Zr, U-6Mo-1Pt, U-6Mo-0.6Ru, U10Mo-0.05Sn, U2Mo, or U 3 Si 2 . These experiments will be discharged at peak fuel burnups of approximately 40 and 80 at.% U 235 . Of particular interest are the extent of reaction of the fuel and matrix phases and the fission gas retention/swelling characteristics of these new fuel alloys. This paper presents the design of the irradiation vehicles and the irradiation conditions. (author)

Accelerated Irradiations for High Dose Microstructures in Fast Reactor Alloys

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jiao, Zhijie [Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)

2017-03-31

The objective of this project is to determine the extent to which high dose rate, self-ion irradiation can be used as an accelerated irradiation tool to understand microstructure evolution at high doses and temperatures relevant to advanced fast reactors. We will accomplish the goal by evaluating phase stability and swelling of F-M alloys relevant to SFR systems at very high dose by combining experiment and modeling in an effort to obtain a quantitative description of the processes at high and low damage rates.

LVDT Development for High Temperature Irradiation Test and Application

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Chul Yong; Ban, Chae Min; Choo, Kee Nam; Jun, Byung Hyuk [KAERI, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-05-15

The LVDT (Linear Variable Differential Transformer) is used to measure the elongation and pressure of a nuclear fuel rod, or the creep and fatigue of the material during a reactor irradiation test. This device must be a radiation-resistant LVDT for use in a research reactor. Norway Halden has LVDTs for an irradiation test by the own development and commercialized. But Halden's LVDTs have limited the temperature of the use until to 350 .deg. C. So, KAERI has been developing a new LVDT for high temperature irradiation test. This paper describes the design of a LVDT, the fabrication process of a LVDT, and the result of the performance test. The designed LVDT uses thermocouple cable for coil wire material and one MI cable as signal cable. This LVDT for a high temperature irradiation test can be used until a maximum of 900 .deg. C. Welding is a very important factor for the fabrication of an LVDT. We are using a 150W fiber laser welding system that consists of a welding head, monitoring vision system and rotary index.

Metastability of a-SiO{sub x}:H thin films for c-Si surface passivation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Serenelli, L., E-mail: luca.serenelli@enea.it [ENEA Research centre “Casaccia”, via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Rome (Italy); DIET University of Rome “Sapienza”, via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome (Italy); Martini, L. [DIET University of Rome “Sapienza”, via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome (Italy); Imbimbo, L. [ENEA Research centre “Casaccia”, via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Rome (Italy); DIET University of Rome “Sapienza”, via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome (Italy); Asquini, R. [DIET University of Rome “Sapienza”, via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome (Italy); Menchini, F.; Izzi, M.; Tucci, M. [ENEA Research centre “Casaccia”, via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Rome (Italy)

2017-01-15

Highlights: • a-SiO{sub x}:H film deposition by RF-PECVD is optimized from SiH{sub 4}, CO{sub 2} and H{sub 2} gas mixture. • Metastability of a-SiO{sub x}:H/c-Si passivation is investigated under thermal annealing and UV exposure. • A correlation between passivation metastability and Si−H bonds is found by FTIR spectra. • A metastability model is proposed. - Abstract: The adoption of a-SiO{sub x}:H films obtained by PECVD in heterojunction solar cells is a key to further increase their efficiency, because of its transparency in the UV with respect to the commonly used a-Si:H. At the same time this layer must guarantee high surface passivation of the c-Si to be suitable in high efficiency solar cell manufacturing. On the other hand the application of amorphous materials like a-Si:H and SiN{sub x} on the cell frontside expose them to the mostly energetic part of the sun spectrum, leading to a metastability of their passivation properties. Moreover as for amorphous silicon, thermal annealing procedures are considered as valuable steps to enhance and stabilize thin film properties, when performed at opportune temperature. In this work we explored the reliability of a-SiO{sub x}:H thin film layers surface passivation on c-Si substrates under UV exposition, in combination with thermal annealing steps. Both p- and n-type doped c-Si substrates were considered. To understand the effect of UV light soaking we monitored the minority carriers lifetime and Si−H and Si−O bonding, by FTIR spectra, after different exposure times to light coming from a deuterium lamp, filtered to UV-A region, and focused on the sample to obtain a power density of 50 μW/cm{sup 2}. We found a certain lifetime decrease after UV light soaking in both p- and n-type c-Si passivated wafers according to a a-SiO{sub x}:H/c-Si/a-SiO{sub x}:H structure. The role of a thermal annealing, which usually enhances the as-deposited SiO{sub x} passivation properties, was furthermore considered. In

Photodetachment of metastable He-

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thompson, J.S.; Dellwo, J.; Compton, R.N.

1990-01-01

A crossed-beams apparatus has been used to measure angular distributions and cross sections for photoelectron detachment from metastable He - . Energy- and angle-resolved electron spectroscopy was used to investigate the spectral dependences of the angular distribution of the photoelectrons. The angular distributions along with photoelectron yield measurements were used to determine the cross sections for photodetachment of He - (2 4 P) via the energy resolved He(2 3 P) and He(2 3 S) exit channels. The precision of the cross section measurements was enhanced by exploiting the kinematic effects associated with detachment from a fast beam source. Calculated cross sections for the photodetachment of H - were used to establish an absolute scale for the He - cross section measurements

Study of irradiation effects in the silicon carbide cubic polytype by photoluminescence and electron spin resonance spectroscopies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lefevre, J.

2008-01-01

This experimental work has consisted in the study of point defects induced by an electronic irradiation in the cubic crystallographic structure of silicon carbide with low temperature photoluminescence and electron spin resonance spectroscopies. The first one of these measurement tools has allowed to estimate the displacement threshold energy in the silicon sub-lattice and then to analyze the thermal stability of the irradiation defects in the low temperature range: (10-300 K) and then in the high temperature range: (300-1400 K). Besides, on the base of a recent theoretical model, this thesis has confirmed the proposition of the isolated silicon antisite for the D1 center whose running beyond the nominal running temperature of fission nuclear reactors (generation IV), for which SiC is in part intended, seems to be particularly problematic. Measurements carried out by ESR under lighting have at last allowed to detect a new defect in its metastable spin state S=1, possibly associated to a silicon interstitial configuration. (O.M.)

Metastable Amyloid Phases and their Conversion to Mature Fibrils

Science.gov (United States)

Muschol, Martin; Miti, Tatiana; Mulaj, Mentor; Schmit, Jeremy

Self-assembly of proteins into amyloid fibrils plays a key role in both functional biological responses and pathogenic disorders which include Alzheimer's disease and type II diabetes. Amyloid fibril assembly frequently generates compact oligomeric and curvilinear polymeric intermediates which are implicated to be toxic to cells. Yet, the relation between these early-stage oligomeric aggregates and late-stage rigid fibrils, which are the hallmark structure of amyloid plaques, has remained unclear. Our measurements indicate that lysozyme amyloid oligomers and their curvilinear fibrils only form after crossing a salt and protein concentration dependent threshold. These oligomeric aggregates are structurally distinct from rigid fibrils and are metastable against nucleation and growth of rigid fibrils. Our experimental transition boundaries match well with colloidal model predictions accounting for salt-modulated charge repulsion. We also report our preliminary findings on the mechanism by which these metastable oligomeric phases are converted into stable amyloid fibrils.

Dependence of stability of metastable superconductors on copper fraction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elrod, S.A.; Lue, J.W.; Miller, J.R.; Dresner, L.

1980-12-01

The stability of composite superconductors operating in the metastable regime depends upon such factors as matrix resistivity, cooled surface dimensions, fraction of critical current, and volume fraction of stabilizer. By assuming constant thermophysical properties, we developed analytic expressions for the energy and voltage of the minimum propagating zone (MPZ). With other factors held constant, these expressions have been used to predict composite superconductor stability as a function of copper fraction: lower copper fractions lead to higher MPZ energies. MPZ voltages have been measured for three NbTi/Cu composites having different copper fractions and different critical current densities for several magnetic fields and transport currents. Experimental MPZ voltages have been used to calculate an effective heat transfer coefficient, which is subsequently used to calculate the MPZ energy. The experimental MPZ energies support the theoretical expectation that lower copper fractions lead to higher stability in the metastable regime

Evolution of metastable state molecules N2(A3Σu+) in a nanosecond pulsed discharge: A particle-in-cell/Monte Carlo collisions simulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gao Liang; Sun Jizhong; Feng Chunlei; Bai Jing; Ding Hongbin

2012-01-01

A particle-in-cell plus Monte Carlo collisions method has been employed to investigate the nitrogen discharge driven by a nanosecond pulse power source. To assess whether the production of the metastable state N 2 (A 3 Σ u + ) can be efficiently enhanced in a nanosecond pulsed discharge, the evolutions of metastable state N 2 (A 3 Σ u + ) density and electron energy distribution function have been examined in detail. The simulation results indicate that the ultra short pulse can modulate the electron energy effectively: during the early pulse-on time, high energy electrons give rise to quick electron avalanche and rapid growth of the metastable state N 2 (A 3 Σ u + ) density. It is estimated that for a single pulse with amplitude of -9 kV and pulse width 30 ns, the metastable state N 2 (A 3 Σ u + ) density can achieve a value in the order of 10 9 cm -3 . The N 2 (A 3 Σ u + ) density at such a value could be easily detected by laser-based experimental methods.

Evolution of metastable state molecules N2(A3 Σu+) in a nanosecond pulsed discharge: A particle-in-cell/Monte Carlo collisions simulation

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Liang; Sun, Jizhong; Feng, Chunlei; Bai, Jing; Ding, Hongbin

2012-01-01

A particle-in-cell plus Monte Carlo collisions method has been employed to investigate the nitrogen discharge driven by a nanosecond pulse power source. To assess whether the production of the metastable state N2(A3 Σu+) can be efficiently enhanced in a nanosecond pulsed discharge, the evolutions of metastable state N2(A3 Σu+) density and electron energy distribution function have been examined in detail. The simulation results indicate that the ultra short pulse can modulate the electron energy effectively: during the early pulse-on time, high energy electrons give rise to quick electron avalanche and rapid growth of the metastable state N2(A3 Σu+) density. It is estimated that for a single pulse with amplitude of -9 kV and pulse width 30 ns, the metastable state N2(A3 Σu+) density can achieve a value in the order of 109 cm-3. The N2(A3 Σu+) density at such a value could be easily detected by laser-based experimental methods.

A statistical physics of stationary and metastable states

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cabo, A; González, A; Curilef, S; Cabo-Bizet, N G; Vera, C A

2011-01-01

We present a generalization of Gibbs statistical mechanics designed to describe a general class of stationary and metastable equilibrium states. It is assumed that the physical system maximizes the entropy functional S subject to the standard conditions plus an extra conserved constraint function F, imposed to force the system to remain in the metastable configuration. After requiring additivity for two quasi-independent subsystems, and the commutation of the new constraint with the density matrix ρ, it is argued that F should be a homogeneous function of ρ, at least for systems in which the spectrum is sufficiently dense to be considered as continuous. Therefore, surprisingly, the analytic form of F turns out to be of the kind F(p i ) = p i q , where the p i are the eigenvalues of the density matrix and q is a real number to be determined. Thus, the discussion identifies the physical relevance of Lagrange multiplier constraints of the Tsallis kind and their q parameter, as enforced by the additivity of the constraint F which fixes the metastable state. An approximate analytic solution for the probability density is found for q close to unity. The procedure is applied to describe the results from the plasma experiment of Huang and Driscoll. For small and medium values of the radial distance, the measured density is predicted with a precision similar to that achieved by minimal enstrophy and Tsallis procedures. Also, the particle density is predicted at all the radial positions. Thus, the discussion gives a solution to the conceptual difficulties of the two above mentioned approaches as applied to this problem, which both predict a non-analytic abrupt vanishing of the density above a critical radial distance

Metastability of Reversible Random Walks in Potential Fields

Science.gov (United States)

Landim, C.; Misturini, R.; Tsunoda, K.

2015-09-01

Let be an open and bounded subset of , and let be a twice continuously differentiable function. Denote by the discretization of , , and denote by the continuous-time, nearest-neighbor, random walk on which jumps from to at rate . We examine in this article the metastable behavior of among the wells of the potential F.

Fabrication of high aspect ratio nanocell lattices by ion beam irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishikawa, Osamu; Nitta, Noriko; Taniwaki, Masafumi

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Nanocell lattice with a high aspect ratio on InSb semiconductor surface was fabricated by ion beam irradiation. • The fabrication technique consisting of top-down and bottom-up processes was performed in FIB. • High aspect ratio of 2 was achieved in nanocell lattice with a 100 nm interval. • The intermediate-flux irradiation is favorable for fabrication of nanocell with a high aspect ratio. - Abstract: A high aspect ratio nanocell lattice was fabricated on the InSb semiconductor surface using the migration of point defects induced by ion beam irradiation. The fabrication technique consisting of the top-down (formation of voids and holes) and bottom-up (growth of voids and holes into nanocells) processes was performed using a focused ion beam (FIB) system. A cell aspect ratio of 2 (cell height/cell diameter) was achieved for the nanocell lattice with a 100 nm dot interval The intermediate-flux ion irradiation during the bottom-up process was found to be optimal for the fabrication of a high aspect ratio nanocell.

Metastable and unstable cellular solidification of colloidal suspensions

Science.gov (United States)

Deville, Sylvain; Maire, Eric; Bernard-Granger, Guillaume; Lasalle, Audrey; Bogner, Agnès; Gauthier, Catherine; Leloup, Jérôme; Guizard, Christian

2009-12-01

Colloidal particles are often seen as big atoms that can be directly observed in real space. They are therefore becoming increasingly important as model systems to study processes of interest in condensed-matter physics such as melting, freezing and glass transitions. The solidification of colloidal suspensions has long been a puzzling phenomenon with many unexplained features. Here, we demonstrate and rationalize the existence of instability and metastability domains in cellular solidification of colloidal suspensions, by direct in situ high-resolution X-ray radiography and tomography observations. We explain such interface instabilities by a partial Brownian diffusion of the particles leading to constitutional supercooling situations. Processing under unstable conditions leads to localized and global kinetic instabilities of the solid/liquid interface, affecting the crystal morphology and particle redistribution behaviour.

Formation and metastable decomposition of unprotonated ammonia cluster ions upon femtosecond ionization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Buzza, S.A.; Wei, S.; Purnell, J.; Castleman, A.W. Jr.

1995-01-01

The formation and metastable dissociation mechanism of unprotonated ammonia cluster ions, (NH 3 ) + n , produced by multiphoton ionization (MPI) at 624 nm and a nominal pulse width of 350 fs, are investigated through a reflectron time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometric technique. Detection of the unprotonated ions after femtosecond and nanosecond multiphoton ionization under various intensity conditions is explained. The role of the energy of the ionizing photons, and the observation of these ions after femtosecond MPI is examined. The formation of the unprotonated series is found to be a function of intensity in the case of ionization on the nanosecond time scale, but not so for the femtosecond time domain. The results can be explained in terms of ionization mechanisms and ionizing pulse durations. The findings of the present study suggest that the unprotonated ions are trapped behind the barrier to intracluster proton transfer and/or concomitant NH 2 loss. The studies of metastable decomposition also reveal that the unprotonated ammonia cluster ions dissociate in the field-free region of the TOF by losing an NH 2 radical rather than via the evaporative loss of NH 3 as occurs for protonated clusters. Additionally, isotopic investigations of the unimolecular decay reveal a strong dependence on the conditions of cluster formation. The cluster formation condition dependence of the unimolecular decay is further investigated by altering formation temperatures and observing the consequences reflected by changes in the spontaneous metastable decay rate constant. This is a unique example of a cluster system whose metastable dissociation does not obey an evaporative ensemble model

Stability limit of liquid water in metastable equilibrium with subsaturated vapors.

Science.gov (United States)

Wheeler, Tobias D; Stroock, Abraham D

2009-07-07

A pure liquid can reach metastable equilibrium with its subsaturated vapor across an appropriate membrane. This situation is analogous to osmotic equilibrium: the reduced chemical potential of the dilute phase (the subsaturated vapor) is compensated by a difference in pressure between the phases. To equilibrate with subsaturated vapor, the liquid phase assumes a pressure that is lower than its standard vapor pressure, such that the liquid phase is metastable with respect to the vapor phase. For sufficiently subsaturated vapors, the liquid phase can even assume negative pressures. The appropriate membrane for this metastable equilibrium must provide the necessary mechanical support to sustain the difference in pressure between the two phases, limit nonhomogeneous mechanisms of cavitation, and resist the entry of the dilutant (gases) into the pure phase (liquid). In this article, we present a study of the limit of stability of liquid water--the degree of subsaturation at which the liquid cavitates--in this metastable state within microscale voids embedded in hydrogel membranes. We refer to these structures as vapor-coupled voids (VCVs). In these VCVs, we observed that liquid water cavitated when placed in equilibrium with vapors of activity aw,vapairhumiditynucleation theory or molecular simulations (Pcav=-140 to -180 MPa). To determine the cause of the disparity between the observed and predicted stability limit, we examine experimentally the likelihood of several nonhomogeneous mechanisms of nucleation: (i) heterogeneous nucleation caused by hydrophobic patches on void walls, (ii) nucleation caused by the presence of dissolved solute, (iii) nucleation caused by the presence of pre-existing vapor nuclei, and (iv) invasion of air through the hydrogel membrane into the voids. We conclude that, of these possibilities, (i) and (ii) cannot be discounted, whereas (iii) and (iv) are unlikely to play a role in determining the stability limit.

Model reduction for slow–fast stochastic systems with metastable behaviour

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bruna, Maria; Chapman, S. Jonathan; Smith, Matthew J.

2014-01-01

The quasi-steady-state approximation (or stochastic averaging principle) is a useful tool in the study of multiscale stochastic systems, giving a practical method by which to reduce the number of degrees of freedom in a model. The method is extended here to slow–fast systems in which the fast variables exhibit metastable behaviour. The key parameter that determines the form of the reduced model is the ratio of the timescale for the switching of the fast variables between metastable states to the timescale for the evolution of the slow variables. The method is illustrated with two examples: one from biochemistry (a fast-species-mediated chemical switch coupled to a slower varying species), and one from ecology (a predator–prey system). Numerical simulations of each model reduction are compared with those of the full system

Characterization of mechanical properties and microstructure of highly irradiated SS 316

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karthik, V., E-mail: karthik@igcar.gov.in [Metallurgy and Materials Group, Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam 603 102 (India); Kumar, RanVijay; Vijayaragavan, A.; Venkiteswaran, C.N.; Anandaraj, V.; Parameswaran, P.; Saroja, S.; Muralidharan, N.G.; Joseph, Jojo; Kasiviswanathan, K.V.; Jayakumar, T.; Raj, Baldev [Metallurgy and Materials Group, Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam 603 102 (India)

2013-08-15

Cold worked austenitic stainless steel type AISI 316 is used as the material for fuel cladding and wrapper of the Fast Breeder Test Reactor (FBTR), India. The evaluation of mechanical properties of these core structurals is very essential to assess its integrity and ensure safe and productive operation of FBTR to very high burn-ups. The changes in the mechanical properties of these core structurals are associated with microstructural changes caused by high fluence neutron irradiation and temperatures of 673–823 K. Remote tensile testing has been used for evaluating the tensile properties of irradiated clad tubes and shear punch test using small disk specimens for evaluating the properties of irradiated hexagonal wrapper. This paper will highlight the methods employed for evaluating the mechanical properties of the irradiated cladding and wrapper and discuss the trends in properties as a function of dpa (displacement per atom) and irradiation temperature.

Metastable decay and binding energies of van der Waals cluster ions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ernstberger, B.; Krause, H.; Neusser, H.J.

1991-01-01

In this work the appearance potentials for the metastable decay channel of a series of van der Waals dimer ions are presented. Ionization and metastable dissociation is achieved by resonance-enhanced two-photon absorption in a linear reflectron time-of-flight mass spectrometer. From the appearance potentials the binding energy of the neutral dimers is obtained and from the additionally measured ionization potentials binding energies of the dimer cations are achieved. The contribution of charge transfer resonance interaction to the binding in cluster ions is evaluated by investigation of several homo- and heterodimers of aromatic components and the heterodimer benzene/cyclohexane as an example for a dimer consisting of an aromatic and a nonaromatic component. (orig.)

The influence of Na on metastable defect kinetics in CIGS materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Erslev, Peter T.; Lee, Jin Woo; Shafarman, William N.; Cohen, J. David

2009-01-01

The electronic properties of matched pairs of Cu(In x Ga 1-x )Se 2 (CIGS) solar cells, with and without normal sodium levels, were studied by junction capacitance methods including admittance spectroscopy, drive level capacitance profiling (DLCP) and transient photocapacitance spectroscopy (TPC). The capacitance profiling measurements revealed a large deep defect density in the vicinity of the barrier interface that was likely responsible for the lower performance of the reduced Na samples. The metastable properties of CIGS solar cells were also examined, and these revealed marked differences between the two types of samples. These results directly address the predictions of theoretical microscopic models that have been proposed to account for metastable effects in CIGS

The irradiation creep characteristics of graphite to high fluences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kennedy, C.R.; Cundy, M.; Kleist, G.

1988-01-01

High-temperature gas-cooled reactors (HTGR) have massive blocks of graphite with thermal and neutron-flux gradients causing high internal stresses. Thermal stresses are transient; however, stresses generated by differential growth due to neutron damage continue to increase with time. Fortunately, graphite also experiences creep under irradiation allowing relaxation of stresses to nominally safe levels. Because of complexity of irradiation creep experiments, data demonstrating this phenomenon are generally limited to fairly low fluences compared to the overall fluences expected in most reactors. Notable exceptions have been experiments at 300/degree/C and 500/degree/C run at Petten under tension and compression creep stresses to fluences greater than 4 /times/ 10 26 (E > 50 keV) neutrons/m 2 . This study complements the previous results by extending the irradiation temperature to 900/degree/C. 2 refs., 3 figs

Irradiation Tests Supporting LEU Conversion of Very High Power Research Reactors in the US

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Woolstenhulme, N. E.; Cole, J. I.; Glagolenko, I.; Holdaway, K. K.; Housley, G. K.; Rabin, B. H.

2016-10-01

The US fuel development team is developing a high density uranium-molybdenum alloy monolithic fuel to enable conversion of five high-power research reactors. Previous irradiation tests have demonstrated promising behavior for this fuel design. A series of future irradiation tests will enable selection of final fuel fabrication process and provide data to qualify the fuel at moderately-high power conditions for use in three of these five reactors. The remaining two reactors, namely the Advanced Test Reactor and High Flux Isotope Reactor, require additional irradiation tests to develop and demonstrate the fuel’s performance with even higher power conditions, complex design features, and other unique conditions. This paper reviews the program’s current irradiation testing plans for these moderately-high irradiation conditions and presents conceptual testing strategies to illustrate how subsequent irradiation tests will build upon this initial data package to enable conversion of these two very-high power research reactors.

Phase transformations in ion-mixed metastable (GaSb)1/sub 1 -x/(Ge2)/sub x/ semiconducting alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cadien, K.C.; Muddle, B.C.; Greene, J.E.

1984-01-01

Low energy (75--175 eV) Ar + ion bombardment during film deposition has been used to produce well-mixed amorphous GaSb/Ge mixtures which, when annealed, transform first to single phase polycrystalline metastable (GaSb)/sub 1-x/(Ge 2 )/sub x/ alloys before eventually transforming to the equilibrium two-phase state. At 500 0 C, for example, the annealing time t/sub a/ required for the amorphous to crystalline metastable (ACM) transformation was approx.10 min, while t/sub a/ for the crystalline metastable to equilibrium (CME) transformation was >6 h. The exothermic enthalpy of crystallization and the onset temperature of the ACM transition were determined as a function of alloy composition using differential thermal analysis. The thermodynamic data was then used to calculate the surface energy per unit area sigma of the amorphous/metastable-crystal interface. sigma was found to exhibit a minimum between x = 0.3 and 0.4. The driving energy for the transition from the crystalline metastable state to the equilibrium two-phase state was of the order of 0.12 kJ cm -3 while the activation barrier was approx.19 kJ cm -3 . Thus, the metastable alloys, which had average grain sizes of 100--200 nm and a lattice constant which varied linearly with x, exhibited good thermal and temporal stability

High-resolution global irradiance monitoring from photovoltaic systems

Science.gov (United States)

Buchmann, Tina; Pfeilsticker, Klaus; Siegmund, Alexander; Meilinger, Stefanie; Mayer, Bernhard; Pinitz, Sven; Steinbrecht, Wolfgang

2016-04-01

Reliable and regional differentiated power forecasts are required to guarantee an efficient and economic energy transition towards renewable energies. Amongst other renewable energy technologies, e.g. wind mills, photovoltaic systems are an essential component of this transition being cost-efficient and simply to install. Reliable power forecasts are however required for a grid integration of photovoltaic systems, which among other data requires high-resolution spatio-temporal global irradiance data. Hence the generation of robust reviewed global irradiance data is an essential contribution for the energy transition. To achieve this goal our studies introduce a novel method which makes use of photovoltaic power generation in order to infer global irradiance. The method allows to determine high-resolution temporal global irradiance data (one data point every 15 minutes at each location) from power data of operated photovoltaic systems. Due to the multitude of installed photovoltaic systems (in Germany) the detailed spatial coverage is much better than for example only using global irradiance data from conventional pyranometer networks (e.g. from the German Weather Service). Our designated method is composed of two components: a forward component, i.e. to conclude from predicted global irradiance to photovoltaic (PV) power, and a backward component, i.e. from PV power with suitable calibration to global irradiance. The forward process is modelled by using the radiation transport model libRadtran (B. Mayer and A. Kylling (1)) for clear skies to obtain the characteristics (orientation, size, temperature dependence, …) of individual PV systems. For PV systems in the vicinity of a meteorological station, these data are validated against calibrated pyranometer readings. The forward-modelled global irradiance is used to determine the power efficiency for each photovoltaic system using non-linear optimisation techniques. The backward component uses the power efficiency

High-dose MeV electron irradiation of Si-SiO2 structures implanted with high doses Si+

Science.gov (United States)

Kaschieva, S.; Angelov, Ch; Dmitriev, S. N.

2018-03-01

The influence was studied of 22-MeV electron irradiation on Si-SiO2 structures implanted with high-fluence Si+ ions. Our earlier works demonstrated that Si redistribution is observed in Si+-ion-implanted Si-SiO2 structures (after MeV electron irradiation) only in the case when ion implantation is carried out with a higher fluence (1016 cm-2). We focused our attention on the interaction of high-dose MeV electron irradiation (6.0×1016 cm-2) with n-Si-SiO2 structures implanted with Si+ ions (fluence 5.4×1016 cm-2 of the same order magnitude). The redistribution of both oxygen and silicon atoms in the implanted Si-SiO2 samples after MeV electron irradiation was studied by Rutherford back-scattering (RBS) spectroscopy in combination with a channeling technique (RBS/C). Our results demonstrated that the redistribution of oxygen and silicon atoms in the implanted samples reaches saturation after these high doses of MeV electron irradiation. The transformation of amorphous SiO2 surface into crystalline Si nanostructures (after MeV electron irradiation) was evidenced by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Silicon nanocrystals are formed on the SiO2 surface after MeV electron irradiation. The shape and number of the Si nanocrystals on the SiO2 surface depend on the MeV electron irradiation, while their size increases with the dose. The mean Si nanocrystals height is 16-20 nm after irradiation with MeV electrons at the dose of 6.0×1016 cm-2.

Geometrically induced metastability and holography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aganagic, Mina; Aganagic, Mina; Beem, Christopher; Seo, Jihye; Vafa, Cumrun

2006-10-23

We construct metastable configurations of branes and anti-branes wrapping 2-spheres inside local Calabi-Yau manifolds and study their large N duals. These duals are Calabi-Yau manifolds in which the wrapped 2-spheres have been replaced by 3-spheres with flux through them, and supersymmetry is spontaneously broken. The geometry of the non-supersymmetric vacuum is exactly calculable to all orders of the't Hooft parameter, and to the leading order in 1/N. The computation utilizes the same matrix model techniques that were used in the supersymmetric context. This provides a novel mechanism for breaking supersymmetry in the context of flux compactifications.

Mass spectrometry of solid samples in open air using combined laser ionization and ambient metastable ionization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

He, X.N.; Xie, Z.Q.; Gao, Y.; Hu, W.; Guo, L.B.; Jiang, L.; Lu, Y.F.

2012-01-01

Mass spectrometry of solid samples in open air was carried out using combined laser ionization and metastable ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LI-MI-TOFMS) in ambient environment for qualitative and semiquantitative (relative analyte information, not absolute information) analysis. Ambient metastable ionization using a direct analysis in realtime (DART) ion source was combined with laser ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LI-TOFMS) to study the effects of combining metastable and laser ionization. A series of metallic samples from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST 494, 495, 498, 499, and 500) and a pure carbon target were characterized using LI-TOFMS in open air. LI-MI-TOFMS was found to be superior to laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). Laser pulse energies between 10 and 200 mJ at the second harmonic (532 nm) of an Nd:YAG laser were applied in the experiment to obtain a high degree of ionization in plasmas. Higher laser pulse energy improves signal intensities of trace elements (such as Fe, Cr, Mn, Ni, Ca, Al, and Ag). Data were analyzed by numerically calculating relative sensitivity coefficients (RSCs) and limit of detections (LODs) from mass spectrometry (MS) and LIBS spectra. Different parameters, such as boiling point, ionization potential, RSC, LOD, and atomic weight, were shown to analyze the ionization and MS detection processes in open air.

Irradiation effects on high efficiency Si solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nguyen Duy, T.; Amingual, D.; Colardelle, P.; Bernard, J.

1974-01-01

By optimizing the diffusion parameters, high efficiency cells are obtained with 2ohmsxcm (13.5% AMO) and 10ohmsxcm (12.5% AMO) silicon material. These new cells have been submitted to radiation tests under 1MeV, 2MeV electrons and 2.5MeV protons. Their behavior under irradiation is found to be dependent only on the bulk material. By using the same resistivity silicon, the rate of degradation is exactly the same than those of conventional cells. The power increase, due to a better superficial response of the cell, is maintained after irradiation. These results show that new high efficiency cells offer an E.O.L. power higher than conventional cells [fr

Metastability Thresholds for Anisotropic Bootstrap Percolation in Three Dimensions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Enter, Aernout C.D. van; Fey, Anne

In this paper we analyze several anisotropic bootstrap percolation models in three dimensions. We present the order of magnitude for the metastability thresholds for a fairly general class of models. In our proofs, we use an adaptation of the technique of dimensional reduction. We find that the

An investigation of high-temperature irradiation test program of new ceramic materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishino, Shiori; Terai, Takayuki; Oku, Tatsuo

1999-08-01

The Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute entrusted the Atomic Energy Society of Japan with an investigation into the trend of irradiation processing/damage research on new ceramic materials. The present report describes the result of the investigation, which was aimed at effective execution of irradiation programs using the High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR) by examining preferential research subjects and their concrete research methods. Objects of the investigation were currently on-going preliminary tests of functional materials (high-temperature oxide superconductor and high-temperature semiconductor) and structural materials (carbon/carbon and SiC/SiC composite materials), together with newly proposed subjects of, e.g., radiation effects on ceramics-coated materials and super-plastic ceramic materials as well as microscopic computer simulation of deformation and fracture of ceramics. These works have revealed 1) the background of each research subject, 2) its objective and significance from viewpoints of science and engineering, 3) research methodology in stages from preliminary tests to real HTTR irradiation, and 4) concrete HTTR-irradiation methods which include main specifications of test specimens, irradiation facilities and post-irradiation examination facilities and apparatuses. The present efforts have constructed the important fundamentals in the new ceramic materials field for further planning and execution of the innovative basic research on high-temperature engineering. (author)

Negative pion trapping by metastable state in liquid helium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakamura, S.N.; Iwasaki, M.; Outa, H.

1991-11-01

We found long-lived metastable states of stopped π - 's in liquid helium by measuring time spectra of two different delayed products: 1) protons emitted after π - absorption by 4 He nuclei and 2) 70-MeV electrons originating from free π - → e - (ν e )-bar decay. The lifetime and fraction of delayed π - absorption obtained by emitted protons are 7.26±0.12 nsec and 1.66±0.05%, respectively. The free-decay fraction was calculated to be 0.64±0.03% from this result, which is consistent with the observed free-decay fraction of π e2 decay. These results imply that 2.30±0.07% of stopped π - are trapped in metastable states which have an overall lifetime of 10.1±0.2 nsec. The same experiment and analysis were performed for stopped π - in liquid neon. No evidence for trapping was found in liquid neon. (author)

Preparation of the Crosslinked Polyethersulfone Films by High Temperature Electron-Beam Irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, J.

2006-01-01

The aromatic polymers, mainly so called engineering plastics, were famed for the good stability under irradiation. However, high temperature irradiation of the aromatic polymers can result the crosslinked structure, due to the improved molecular mobility. Polyethersulfone (PES) is a wide used engineering plastic because of the high performance and high thermal stability. PES films were irradiated by electron-beam under nitrogen atmosphere above the glass transition temperature and then the covalently crosslinked PES (RX-PES) films were obtained. The irradiations were also performed at ambient temperature for comparison. The network structure formation of the RX-PES films was confirmed by the appearance of the gel, which were measured by soaking the irradiated PES films in the N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) at room temperature. When the PES films were irradiated to 300 kGy, there was gel appeared. The gel percent increased with the increasing in the absorbed dose, and saturated when the absorbed dose exceeded 1200 kGy. However, there was no gel formed for the PES films irradiated at ambient temperature even to 2250 kGy. The G(S) and G(X) were calculated according to the Y-crosslinking mechanism. The results values are consistent in error range. G(S) of 0.10 and G(X) of 0.23 were obtained. As calculated, almost all the macromolecular radicals produced by chain scission were used for crosslinking. Also, the glass transition temperature of the RX-PES films increased with the increasing in the absorbed doses, while the glass transition temperature of the PES films irradiated at ambient temperature decreased with the increasing in the absorbed doses. The blending films of the PES with FEP or ETFE were prepared and the high temperature irradiation effects were also studies

Small-angle X-ray scattering studies of metastable intermediates of beta-lactoglobulin isolated after heat-induced aggregation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Carrotta, R.; Arleth, L.; Pedersen, J.S.

2003-01-01

Small-angle x-ray scattering was used for studying intermediate species, isolated after heat-induced aggregation of the A variant of bovine P-lactoglobulin. The intermediates were separated in two fractions, the heated metastable dimer and heated metastable oligomers larger than the dimer. The pa...

Synthesis and characterization of metastable, 20 nm-sized Pna21-LiCoPO4 nanospheres

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ludwig, Jennifer; Nordlund, Dennis; Doeff, Marca M.; Nilges, Tom

2017-01-01

The majority of research activities on LiCoPO 4 are focused on the phospho-olivine (space group Pnma), which is a promising high-voltage cathode material for Li-ion batteries. In contrast, comparably little is known about its metastable Pna2 1 modification. Herein, we present a comprehensive study on the structure–property relationships of 15–20 nm Pna2 1 -LiCoPO 4 nanospheres prepared by a simple microwave-assisted solvothermal process. Unlike previous reports, the results indicate that the compound is non-stoichiometric and shows cation-mixing with Co ions on the Li sites, which provides an explanation for the poor electrochemical performance. Co L 2,3 -edge X-ray absorption spectroscopic data confirm the local tetrahedral symmetry of Co 2+ . Comprehensive studies on the thermal stability using thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, and in situ powder X-ray diffraction show an exothermic phase transition to olivine Pnma-LiCoPO 4 at 527 °C. The influence of the atmosphere and the particle size on the thermal stability is also investigated. - Graphical abstract: Blue nano-sized Pna2 1 -LiCoPO 4, featuring tetrahedrally-coordinated Co 2+ , was synthesized in a rapid one-step microwave-assisted solvothermal process. The phase relation between this metastable and the stable polymorph was analyzed and electrochemical properties are discussed. - Highlights: • Preparation of uniform 15–20 nm nanospheres of metastable Pna2 1 -LiCoPO 4 polymorph. • Structure redetermination shows cation-mixing (Co blocking Li sites). • In situ investigation of phase transformation to olivine Pnma-LiCoPO 4 at 527 °C. • Pna2 1 -LiCoPO 4 reemerges as a stable high-temperature phase above 800 °C. • X-ray absorption spectroscopy confirms local tetrahedral symmetry (T d Co 2+ ).

Stock selection of high-dose-irradiation-resistant materials for filter press under high-dose irradiation operation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishiyama, Shintaro; Minami, Mamoru; Hara, Kouji; Yamashita, Manabu

2015-01-01

In a volume reduction process for the decontamination of contained soil, the performance degradation of a filter press is expected owing to material deterioration under high-dose irradiation. Eleven-stock selection of candidate materials including polymers, fibers and rubbers for the filter press was conducted to achieve a high performance of volume reduction of contaminated soil and the following results were derived. Crude rubber and nylon were selected as prime candidates for packing, diaphragm and filter plate materials. Polyethylene was also selected as a prime candidate for the filter cloth material. (author)

A comparison between the irradiation damage response of spinel and zirconia due to Xe ion bombardment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sickafus, K.E.; Wetteland, C.J.; Baker, N.P.; Yu Ning; Devanathan, R.; Nastasi, M.; Bordes, N.

1998-01-01

The mechanical properties of Xe-implanted spinel and cubic zirconia surfaces, as determined by nano-indentation measurements, are distinct and the differences can be related to their microstructures. Upon Xe 2+ ion irradiation to high dose at cryogenic temperature (120 K), the Young's modulus of irradiated spinel falls dramatically until the modulus is only about 3/4 the un-irradiated value. The maximum modulus occurs concurrent with the formation of a metastable crystalline phase of spinel. The subsequent elastic softening at higher Xe 2+ doses is an indication of the onset of amorphization of the spinel. Xe-implanted zirconia surfaces behave differently, in all cases showing almost no change in elastic modulus with increasing Xe 2+ ion dose. This is consistent with microstructural observations of Xe-implanted zirconia crystals which, unlike spinel, show no change in crystal structure with increasing ion dose. The hardness of both spinel and zirconia increases slightly for low Xe 2+ ion doses. At higher doses, zirconia shows little change in hardness, while the hardness of the implanted spinel falls by more than a factor of two. The initial increase in hardness of both spinel and zirconia is consistent with point defect accumulation and the precipitation of small interstitial clusters, while the drop in hardness of spinel at high Xe 2+ ion doses is due to the formation of an amorphous phase. (orig.)

Calcium carbonate as a possible dosimeter for high irradiation doses

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Negron M, A.; Ramos B, S.; Camargo R, C.; Uribe, R. M.; Gomez V, V.; Kobayashi, K.

2014-08-01

The aim of this work is to analyze the interactions of 5 MeV electron beam radiation and a 290 MeV/u Carbon beam with calcium carbonate (powder) at 298 K and at different irradiation doses, for the potential use of calcium carbonate as a high-dose dosimeter. The irradiation doses with the electron beam were from 0.015 to 9 MGy, and with Carbon beam from 1.5 kGy to 8 kGy. High-energy radiation induces the formation of free radicals in solid calcium carbonate that can be detected and measured by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR). An increase of the EPR response for some of the free radicals produced in the sample was observed as a function of the irradiation dose. The response of one of the radicals decreased with the dose. These measurements are reproducible; the preparation of the sample is simple and inexpensive; and the signal is stable for several months. The response curves show that the dosimeter tends to saturate at 10 MGy. Based on these properties, we propose this chemical compound as a high-dose dosimeter, mainly for electron irradiation. (author)

Calcium carbonate as a possible dosimeter for high irradiation doses

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Negron M, A.; Ramos B, S.; Camargo R, C. [UNAM, Instituto de Ciencias Nucleares, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510 Mexico D. F. (Mexico); Uribe, R. M. [Kent State University, College of Technology, Kent OH (United States); Gomez V, V. [UNAM, Instituto de Quimica, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510 Mexico D. F. (Mexico); Kobayashi, K., E-mail: negron@nucleares.unam.mx [Yokohama National University (Japan)

2014-08-15

The aim of this work is to analyze the interactions of 5 MeV electron beam radiation and a 290 MeV/u Carbon beam with calcium carbonate (powder) at 298 K and at different irradiation doses, for the potential use of calcium carbonate as a high-dose dosimeter. The irradiation doses with the electron beam were from 0.015 to 9 MGy, and with Carbon beam from 1.5 kGy to 8 kGy. High-energy radiation induces the formation of free radicals in solid calcium carbonate that can be detected and measured by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR). An increase of the EPR response for some of the free radicals produced in the sample was observed as a function of the irradiation dose. The response of one of the radicals decreased with the dose. These measurements are reproducible; the preparation of the sample is simple and inexpensive; and the signal is stable for several months. The response curves show that the dosimeter tends to saturate at 10 MGy. Based on these properties, we propose this chemical compound as a high-dose dosimeter, mainly for electron irradiation. (author)

Understanding metastable phase transformation during crystallization of RDX, HMX and CL-20: experimental and DFT studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Ghosh, Mrinal; Banerjee, Shaibal; Shafeeuulla Khan, Md Abdul; Sikder, Nirmala; Sikder, Arun Kanti

2016-09-14

Multiphase growth during crystallization severely affects deliverable output of explosive materials. Appearance and incomplete transformation of metastable phases are a major source of polymorphic impurities. This article presents a methodical and molecular level understanding of the metastable phase transformation mechanism during crystallization of cyclic nitramine explosives, viz. RDX, HMX and CL-20. Instantaneous reverse precipitation yielded metastable γ-HMX and β-CL-20 which undergo solution mediated transformation to the respective thermodynamic forms, β-HMX and ε-CL-20, following 'Ostwald's rule of stages'. However, no metastable phase, anticipated as β-RDX, was evidenced during precipitation of RDX, which rather directly yielded the thermodynamically stable α-phase. The γ→β-HMX and β→ε-CL-20 transformations took 20 and 60 minutes respectively, whereas formation of α-RDX was instantaneous. Density functional calculations were employed to identify the possible transition state conformations and to obtain activation barriers for transformations at wB97XD/6-311++G(d,p)(IEFPCM)//B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) level of theory. The computed activation barriers and lattice energies responsible for transformation of RDX, HMX and CL-20 metastable phases to thermodynamic ones conspicuously supported the experimentally observed order of phase stability. This precise result facilitated an understanding of the occurrence of a relatively more sensitive and less dense β-CL-20 phase in TNT based melt-cast explosive compositions, a persistent and critical problem unanswered in the literature. The crystalline material recovered from such compositions revealed a mixture of β- and ε-CL-20. However, similar compositions of RDX and HMX never showed any metastable phase. The relatively long stability with the highest activation barrier is believed to restrict complete β→ε-CL-20 transformation during processing. Therefore a method is suggested to overcome this issue.

Microstructure and Mechanical Strengths of Metastable FCC Solid Solutions in Al-Ce-Fe System

OpenAIRE

A., Inoue; H., Yamaguchi; M., Kikuchi; T., Masumoto; Institute for Materials Research; Institute for Materials Research; Institute for Materials Research; Institute for Materials Research

1990-01-01

A metastable fcc solid solution (SS) with high mechanical strengths and good bending ductility was found to be formed in rapidly solidified Al-Ce-Fe alloys containing the solute elements below about 6 at%. The SS consists of equiaxed grains with a size of about 2μm and contains a high density of internal defects. The highest hardness (H_v) and tensile fracture strengtn (σ_f) are 440 and 860 MPa in the as-quenched state and remain almost unchanged up to about 600 K for 1 h, though fine compoun...

Automatic acquisition and shape analysis of metastable peaks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maendli, H.; Robbiani, R.; Kuster, Th.; Seibl, J.

1979-01-01

A method for automatic acquisition and evaluation of metastable peaks due to transitions in the first field-free region of a double focussing mass spectrometer is presented. The data are acquired by computer-controlled repetitive scanning of the accelerating voltage and concomitant accumulation, the evaluation made by a mathematical derivatization of the resulting curve. Examples for application of the method are given. (Auth.)

Study of irradiation effects in the silicon carbide cubic polytype by photoluminescence and electron spin resonance spectroscopies; Etude des effets d'irradiation dans le polytype cubique du carbure de silicium par les techniques spectroscopiques de photoluminescence et de resonance paramagnetique electronique

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lefevre, J

2008-01-15

This experimental work has consisted in the study of point defects induced by an electronic irradiation in the cubic crystallographic structure of silicon carbide with low temperature photoluminescence and electron spin resonance spectroscopies. The first one of these measurement tools has allowed to estimate the displacement threshold energy in the silicon sub-lattice and then to analyze the thermal stability of the irradiation defects in the low temperature range: (10-300 K) and then in the high temperature range: (300-1400 K). Besides, on the base of a recent theoretical model, this thesis has confirmed the proposition of the isolated silicon antisite for the D1 center whose running beyond the nominal running temperature of fission nuclear reactors (generation IV), for which SiC is in part intended, seems to be particularly problematic. Measurements carried out by ESR under lighting have at last allowed to detect a new defect in its metastable spin state S=1, possibly associated to a silicon interstitial configuration. (O.M.)

Delivery of completed irradiation vehicles and the quality assurance document to the High Flux Isotope Reactor for irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Petrie, Christian M. [Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); McDuffee, Joel Lee [Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Katoh, Yutai [Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Terrani, Kurt A. [Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2015-10-01

This report details the initial fabrication and delivery of two Fuel Cycle Research and Development (FCRD) irradiation capsules (ATFSC01 and ATFSC02), with associated quality assurance documentation, to the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR). The capsules and documentation were delivered by September 30, 2015, thus meeting the deadline for milestone M3FT-15OR0202268. These irradiation experiments are testing silicon carbide composite tubes in order to obtain experimental validation of thermo-mechanical models of stress states in SiC cladding irradiated under a prototypic high heat flux. This document contains a copy of the completed capsule fabrication request sheets, which detail all constituent components, pertinent drawings, etc., along with a detailed summary of the capsule assembly process performed by the Thermal Hydraulics and Irradiation Engineering Group (THIEG) in the Reactor and Nuclear Systems Division (RNSD). A complete fabrication package record is maintained by the THIEG and is available upon request.

Influence of additive L-phenylalanine on stabilization of metastable α-form of L-glutamic acid in cooling crystallization

Science.gov (United States)

Quang, Khuu Chau; Nhan, Le Thi Hong; Huyen, Trinh Thi Thanh; Tuan, Nguyen Anh

2017-09-01

The influence of additive amino acid L-phenylalanine on stabilization of metastable α-form of L-glutamic acid was investigated in cooling crystallization. The present study found that the additive L-phenylalanine could be used to stabilize the pure metastable α-form in L-glutamic acid crystallization, where the additive concentration of 0.05-0.1 (g/L) was sufficient to stabilize the 100% wt metastable α-form in solid product at L-glutamic acid concentration of 30-45 (g/L). Additionally, the present results indicated that the adsorption of additive L-phenylalanine on the (001) surface of α-form was more favorable than that of the β-form molecular, so the nucleation sites of stable β-form was occupied by additive molecular, which resulted in inhibition of nucleation and growth of β-form, allowing stabilization of metastable α-form.

Deep Metastable Eutectic Nanometer-Scale Particles in the MgO-Al2O3-SiO2 System

Science.gov (United States)

Reitmeijer, Frans J. M.; Nash, J. A., III

2011-01-01

Laboratory vapor phase condensation experiments systematically yield amorphous, homogeneous, nanoparticles with unique deep metastable eutectic compositions. They formed during the nucleation stage in rapidly cooling vapor systems. These nanoparticles evidence the complexity of the nucleation stage. Similar complex behavior may occur during the nucleation stage in quenched-melt laboratory experiments. Because of the bulk size of the quenched system many of such deep metastable eutectic nanodomains will anneal and adjust to local equilibrium but some will persist metastably depending on the time-temperature regime and melt/glass transformation.

Hemorrhages and hemostasis in guinea-pigs exposed to irradiation at high altitude

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tartakovskij, V.N.; Daniyarov, S.B.

1988-01-01

Hemorrhagic intensity, hemostasis and blood vessel wall resistance to mechanical effects were studied in guinea-pigs exposed to whole-body irradiation (3.0 Gy). The animals were irradiated at low altitude (760 m above sea level) and at high altitude (3200 m above sea level) after 1 and 31 days of adaptation. It was demonstrated that hemorrhagic intensity in both groups of guinea-pigs irradiated at high altitude was significantly reduced in comparison with that at low altitude. The decrease of radiation-induced hemorrhages at high altitude is associated with less severe changes in thrombopoiesis, blood vessel wall and blood coagulation

Low- and high-dose laser irradiation effects on cell migration and destruction

Science.gov (United States)

Layton, Elivia; Gallagher, Kyra A.; Zukerman, Sara; Stevens, Brianna; Zhou, Feifan; Liu, Hong; Chen, Wei R.

2018-02-01

Metastases are the cause of more than 90 percent of cancer-related deaths. Current treatment methods, including chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery, fail to target the metastases effectively. One potential treatment for metastatic cancer is laser immunotherapy (LIT). LIT combines the use of a photothermal laser with an immunoadjuvant, Glycated Chitosan (GC). GC combined with single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) has proven to be a viable alternative to traditional cancer treatment methods, when under irradiation of laser with appropriate wavelength. In this study, the effects of low dose and high dose laser irradiation on metastatic pancreatic cancer cell migration were observed. It was found that low dose irradiation increased the migration rate, but the high dose irradiation significantly decreased the migration rate of the cancer cells. When using LIT, the goal is to kill tumor cells and to prompt the correct immune response. If the tumor were irradiated with a low dose, it would promote metastasis. If the dose of irradiation were too high, it would destroy the entire tumor and the immune response would not recognize the tumor. Therefore, the laser dose plays an important role in LIT, particularly when using SWNT as light absorbing agent. Our results from this study will delineate the optimal laser irradiation dose for destroying tumor cells and at the same time preserve and release tumor antigens as a precursor of antitumor immune response.

Void shrinkage in stainless steel during high energy electron irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Singh, B.N.; Foreman, A.J.E.

1976-03-01

During irradiation of thin foils of an austenitic stainless steel in a high voltage electron microscope, steadily growing voids have been observed to suddenly shrink and disappear at the irradiation temperature of 650 0 Cthe phenomenon has been observed in specimens both with and withoutimplanted helium. Possible mechanisms for void shrinkage during irradiation are considered. It is suggested that the dislocation-pipe-diffusion of vacancies from or of self-interstitial atoms to the voids can explain the shrinkage behaviour of voids observed during our experiments. (author)

Metastable α-AgVO3 microrods as peroxidase mimetics for colorimetric determination of H2O2.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yi; Zhang, Dun; Wang, Jin

2017-12-01

Single phase metastable α-AgVO 3 microrods with high crystallinity, tetragonal rod-like microstructure, uniform particle size distribution, and good dispersion were synthesized by direct coprecipitation at room temperature. They are shown to be viable peroxidase mimics that catalyze the oxidation of 3,3',5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine in the presence of H 2 O 2 . Kinetic analysis indicated typical Michaelis-Menten catalytic behavior. The findings were used to design a colorimetric assay for H 2 O 2 , best measured at 652 nm. The method has a linear response in the 60 to 200 μM H 2 O 2 concentration range, with a 2 μM detection limit. Benefitting from the chemical stability of the microrods, the method is well reproducible. It also is easily performed and highly specific. Graphic abstract Single phase metastable α-AgVO 3 microrods with high crystallinity, tetragonal rod-like microstructure, uniform particle size distribution, and good dispersion can efficiently catalyze the oxidation reaction of peroxidase substrate 3,3',5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) in the presence of H 2 O 2 to produce a blue color change.

Formation and microstructure of Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}-YAG eutectic ceramics by phase transformation from metastable system to equilibrium system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nagira, Tomoya; Yasuda, Hideyuki; Yoshiya, Masato [Department of Adaptive Machine Systems, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871 (Japan)], E-mail: nagira@ams.eng.osaka-u.ac.jp

2009-05-01

Unidirectionally solidified Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}-YAG(Y{sub 3}Al{sub 5}O{sub 12}: yttrium-aluminum-garnet) eutectic ceramic composites have been recognized as encouraging heat-resistance materials because of the superior mechanical properties at high temperatures. In addition to the excellent mechanical properties at high temperatures, some interesting solidification phenomena have been reported in the Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}-Y{sub 2}O{sub 3} system. The Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}-YAG equilibrium eutectic at 2099 K and the Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}-YAP metastable eutectic at 1975 K exist in the Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}-Y{sub 2}O{sub 3} system. The heating the metastable eutectic up to temperatures above the metastable eutectic temperature produced the undercooled melt. Solidification in the equilibrium path accompanied the melting of the metastable eutectic. The solidification process using undercooled melt resulted in the fine and uniform eutectic structure. In this study, the effect of the initial Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}-YAP particles size on the undercooled melt formation was examined. The Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}-YAP particles with diameters more than several {mu}m resulted in the transformation through the undercooled melt. EBSD analysis showed that the domains of Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} grains with same crystallographic orientation were observed and that their domain size depended on the Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}-YAP particles size. On the other hand, for the Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}-YAP particles with a diameter of 500 nm, the each Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} grain with diameter of about 1 {mu}m had the different crystallographic orientations, which suggested that the transformation from metastable eutectic to equilibrium eutectic occurred in the solid state. The increase in the Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}-YAP free surface area suppressed the undercooled melt formation.

Investigation of metastable ions by mass spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Szilagyi, Z.

1998-01-01

Metastable decompositions of ions was studied by various methods. The results are summarized in three chapters in this thesis. The development of a method can be used for evaluation of experimental data is described in the first chapter; the second one presents an example for the application of the developed method; and the laser power dependence of MALDI-TOF PSD (matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight post-source decay) spectra is discussed in chapter three. (author)

Disentangled solid state and metastable polymer melt; a solvent free route to high-modulus high-strength tapes and films of UHMWPE

Science.gov (United States)

Rastogi, Sanjay

2013-03-01

Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene (UHMWPE) having average molar mass greater than a million g/mol is an engineering polymer. Due to its light-weight, high abrasion resistance and biocompatibility it is used for demanding applications such as body armour, prostheses etc. At present, because of its high melt viscosity to achieve the uniaxial/biaxial properties in the form of fibers/films the polymer is processed via solution route where nearly 95wt% of the solvent is used to process 5wt% of the polymer. In past several attempts have been made to process the polymer without using any solvent. However, compared to the solvent processing route the achieved mechanical properties were rather poor. Here we show that by controlled synthesis it is feasible to obtain UHMWPE that could be processed free of solvent to make uniaxial tapes and biaxial films, having unprecedented mechanical properties, exceeding that of the solution spun fibers. We address some of the fundamental aspects of chemistry, physics, rheology and processing for the development of desired morphological features to achieve the ultimate mechanical properties in tapes and films. The paper will also address the metastable melt state obtained on melting of the disentangled crystals and its implication on rheology in linear and nonlinear viscoelastic region. Solid state NMR studies will be applied to establish disentangled state in solid state to the polymerisation conditions. References: Macromolecules 2011, 44(14), 5558-5568; Nature Materials 2005, 4, 635-641; Phys Rev Lett 2006, 96(21), 218303-218205. The authors acknowledge financial support by the Dutch Polymer Institute.

High burnup, high power irradiation behavior of helium-bonded mixed carbide fuel pins

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Levine, P.J.; Nayak, U.P.; Boltax, A.

1983-01-01

Large diameter (9.4 mm) helium-bonded mixed carbide fuel pins were successfully irradiated in EBR-II to high burnup (12%) at high power levels (100 kW/m) with peak cladding midwall temperatures of 550 0 C. The wire-wrapped pins were clad with 0.51-mm-thick, 20% cold-worked Type 316 stainless steel and contained hyperstoichiometric (Usub(0.8)Pusub(0.2))C fuel covering the smeared density range from 75-82% TD. Post-irradiation examinations revealed: extensive fuel-cladding mechanical interaction over the entire length of the fuel column, 35% fission gas release at 12% burnup, cladding carburization and fuel restructuring. (orig.)

Shelf-stable food through high dose irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Placek, V.; Svobodova, V.; Bartonicek, B.; Rosmus, J.; Camra, M.

2004-01-01

Irradiation of food with high doses (radappertization) is a way, how to prepare shelf-stable ready-to-eat food. The radappertization process requires that the food be heated at first to an internal temperature of at least 75 deg. C to inactivate autolytic enzyme, which could cause the spoilage during storage without refrigeration. In order to prevent radiation induced changes in sensory properties (off flavors, odors, undesirable color change, etc.) the food was vacuum packed and irradiated in frozen state at -30 deg. C or less to a minimum dose of 35 kGy. Such products have characteristics of fresh food prepared for eating even if they are stored for long time under tropical conditions. The wholesomeness (safety for consumption) has been confirmed during 40 years of testing. Within the NRI Rez 10 kinds of shelf-stable meat products have been prepared. The meat was cooked, vacuum packed in SiO x -containing pouch, freezed in liquid nitrogen and irradiated with electron beam accelerator. The microbial, chemical, and organoleptic properties have been tested

Shelf-stable food through high dose irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Placek, V. E-mail: pla@ujv.cz; Svobodova, V.; Bartonicek, B.; Rosmus, J.; Camra, M

2004-10-01

Irradiation of food with high doses (radappertization) is a way, how to prepare shelf-stable ready-to-eat food. The radappertization process requires that the food be heated at first to an internal temperature of at least 75 deg. C to inactivate autolytic enzyme, which could cause the spoilage during storage without refrigeration. In order to prevent radiation induced changes in sensory properties (off flavors, odors, undesirable color change, etc.) the food was vacuum packed and irradiated in frozen state at -30 deg. C or less to a minimum dose of 35 kGy. Such products have characteristics of fresh food prepared for eating even if they are stored for long time under tropical conditions. The wholesomeness (safety for consumption) has been confirmed during 40 years of testing. Within the NRI Rez 10 kinds of shelf-stable meat products have been prepared. The meat was cooked, vacuum packed in SiO{sub x}-containing pouch, freezed in liquid nitrogen and irradiated with electron beam accelerator. The microbial, chemical, and organoleptic properties have been tested.

Response of Superheated Droplet Detector (SDD) and Bubble Detector (BD) to interrupted irradiations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mondal, Prasanna Kumar, E-mail: prasanna_ind_82@yahoo.com; Sarkar, Rupa, E-mail: sarkar_rupa2003@yahoo.com; Chatterjee, Barun Kumar, E-mail: barun_k_chatterjee@yahoo.com

2017-06-11

Superheated droplet detectors (SDD) and bubble detectors (BD) are suspensions of micron-sized superheated liquid droplets in inert medium. The metastable droplets can vaporise upon interaction with ionising radiation generating visible bubbles. In this work, we investigated the response of SDD and BD to interrupted neutron irradiations. We observed that the droplet vaporisation rates for SDD and BD are different in nature. The unusual increase in droplet vaporisation rate observed when the SDD is exposed to neutrons after few minutes of radiation-off period is absent for BD. - Highlights: • Superheated droplet detectors (SDD) and bubble detectors (BD) are suspensions of superheated liquid droplets in inert medium. • The bubble nucleation in superheated droplets can be induced by ionising radiation. • The droplet vaporisation rate for SDD is non-monotonic when it is irradiated periodically to neutrons. • For BD the droplet vaporisation rate decrease monotonically when it is irradiated periodically to neutrons.

235U isotope enrichment in the metastable levels of UI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gagne, J.M.; Demers, Y.; Dreze, C.; Pianarosa, P.

1983-01-01

We have used optical pumping to produce a substantial 235 U enrichment in the metastable levels of UI in the discharge afterglow of a hollow-cathode vapor generator. The measured isotope-enrichment factor for the level at 3800 cm -1 is approximately 20

The alterations in high density polyethylene properties with gamma irradiation

Science.gov (United States)

Zaki, M. F.; Elshaer, Y. H.; Taha, Doaa. H.

2017-10-01

In the present investigation, high density polyethylene (HDPE) polymer has been used to study the alterations in its properties under gamma-irradiation. Physico-chemical properties have been investigated with different spectroscopy techniques, Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), biocompatibility properties, as well as, mechanical properties change. The FT-IR analysis shows the formation of new band at 1716 cm-1 that is attributed to the oxidation of irradiated polymer chains, which is due to the formation of carbonyl groups (C˭O). XRD patterns show that a decrease in the crystallite size and increase in the Full Width at Half Maximum (FWHM). This means that the crystallinity of irradiated samples is decreased with increase in gamma dose. The contact angle measurements show an increase in the surface free energy as the gamma irradiation increases. The measurements of mechanical properties of irradiated HDPE samples were discussed.

Acclimation strategy of Rhodopseudomonas palustris to high light irradiance.

Science.gov (United States)

Muzziotti, Dayana; Adessi, Alessandra; Faraloni, Cecilia; Torzillo, Giuseppe; De Philippis, Roberto

2017-04-01

The ability of Rhodopseudomonas palustris cells to rapidly acclimate to high light irradiance is an essential issue when cells are grown under sunlight. The aim of this study was to investigate the photo-acclimation process in Rhodopseudomonas palustris 42OL under different culturing conditions: (i) anaerobic (AnG), (ii) aerobic (AG), and (iii) under H 2 -producing (HP) conditions both at low (LL) and high light (HL) irradiances. The results obtained clearly showed that the photosynthetic unit was significantly affected by the light irradiance at which Rp. palustris 42OL was grown. The synthesis of carotenoids was affected by both illumination and culturing conditions. At LL, lycopene was the main carotenoid synthetized under all conditions tested, while at HL under HP conditions, it resulted the predominant carotenoid. Oppositely, under AnG and AG at HL, rhodovibrin was the major carotenoid detected. The increase in light intensity produced a deeper variation in light-harvesting complexes (LHC) ratio. These findings are important for understanding the ecological distribution of PNSB in natural environments, mostly characterized by high light intensities, and for its growth outdoors. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Irradiation of optically activated SI-GaAs high-voltage switches with low and high energy protons

CERN Document Server

Bertolucci, Ennio; Mettivier, G; Russo, P; Bisogni, M G; Bottigli, U; Fantacci, M E; Stefanini, A; Cola, A; Quaranta, F; Vasanelli, L; Stefanini, G

1999-01-01

Semi-Insulating Gallium Arsenide (SI-GaAs) devices have been tested for radiation hardness with 3-4 MeV or 24 GeV proton beams. These devices can be operated in dc mode as optically activated electrical switches up to 1 kV. Both single switches (vertical Schottky diodes) and multiple (8) switches (planar devices) have been studied, by analyzing their current-voltage (I-V) reverse characteristics in the dark and under red light illumination, both before and after irradiation. We propose to use them in the system of high-voltage (-600 V) switches for the microstrip gas chambers for the CMS experiment at CERN. Low energy protons (3-4 MeV) were used in order to produce a surface damage below the Schottky contact: their fluence (up to 2.6*10/sup 15/ p/cm/sup 2/) gives a high-dose irradiation. The high energy proton irradiation (energy: 24 GeV, fluence: 1.1*10/sup 14/ p/cm/sup 2/) reproduced a ten years long proton exposure of the devices in CMS experiment conditions. For low energy irradiation, limited changes of ...

Effects of high dose gamma irradiation on ITO thin film properties

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Alyamani, A. [National Nanotechnology Center, King Abdul-Aziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), Riyadh (Saudi Arabia); Mustapha, N., E-mail: nazirmustapha@hotmail.com [Dept. of Physics, College of Sciences, Al Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University, P.O. Box 90950, Riyadh 11623 (Saudi Arabia)

2016-07-29

Transparent thin-film Indium Tin Oxides (ITO) were prepared on 0.7 mm thick glass substrates using a pulsed laser deposition (PLD) process with average thickness of 150 nm. The samples were then exposed to high gamma γ radiation doses by {sup 60}Co radioisotope. The films have been irradiated by performing exposure cycles up to 250 kGy total doses at room temperature. The surface structures before and after irradiation were analysed by x-ray diffraction. Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) was performed on all samples before and after irradiation to investigate any change in the grain sizes, and also in the roughness of the ITO surface. We investigated the influence of γ irradiation on the spectra of transmittance T, in the ultraviolet-visible-near infrared spectrum using spectrophotometer measurements. Energy band gap E{sub g} was then calculated from the optical spectra for all ITO films. It was found that the optical band gap values decreased as the radiation dose was increased. To compare the effect of the irradiation on refractive index n and extinction coefficient k properties, additional measurements were done on the ITO samples before and after gamma irradiation using an ellipsometer. The optical constants n and k increased by increasing the irradiation doses. Electrical properties such as resistivity and sheet resistance were measured using the four-point probe method. The good optical, electrical and morphological properties maintained by the ITO films even after being exposed to high gamma irradiation doses, made them very favourable to be used as anodes for solar cells and as protective coatings in space windows. - Highlights: • Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) thin films were deposited by pulsed laser deposition. • Effects of Gamma irradiation were investigated. • Changes of optical transmission and electrical properties of ITO films were studied. • Intensity of the diffraction peaks and the film's structure changed with increasing irradiation doses. �

Metastable Features of Economic Networks and Responses to Exogenous Shocks.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ali Hosseiny

Full Text Available It is well known that a network structure plays an important role in addressing a collective behavior. In this paper we study a network of firms and corporations for addressing metastable features in an Ising based model. In our model we observe that if in a recession the government imposes a demand shock to stimulate the network, metastable features shape its response. Actually we find that there exists a minimum bound where any demand shock with a size below it is unable to trigger the market out of recession. We then investigate the impact of network characteristics on this minimum bound. We surprisingly observe that in a Watts-Strogatz network, although the minimum bound depends on the average of the degrees, when translated into the language of economics, such a bound is independent of the average degrees. This bound is about 0.44ΔGDP, where ΔGDP is the gap of GDP between recession and expansion. We examine our suggestions for the cases of the United States and the European Union in the recent recession, and compare them with the imposed stimulations. While the stimulation in the US has been above our threshold, in the EU it has been far below our threshold. Beside providing a minimum bound for a successful stimulation, our study on the metastable features suggests that in the time of crisis there is a "golden time passage" in which the minimum bound for successful stimulation can be much lower. Hence, our study strongly suggests stimulations to arise within this time passage.

Metastable Structural Phases of Metals in Columns IVB to Vib, and Rows 4 TO 6 OF the Periodic Table

Science.gov (United States)

Nnolim, Neme; Tyson, Trevor

2002-03-01

Total energy calculations as a function of strain along the direction have been carried out for the bcc metals V, Nb, Ta, Cr, Mo and W, and the hcp metals Ti, Zr and Hf, all in the block of the periodic table defined by columns IVB to VIB, and rows 4 to 6. Since strain along the direction corresponds to variation of the c lattice constant with respect to the a lattice constant, the total energy per unit cell has being calculated as a function of the c/a ratio. The highly accurate FP-LAPW (Full Potential Linearized Augmented Plane Wave) band structure method in the DFT (Density Functional Theory) formalism has been used for the calculations. In all cases except for the hcp column IVB elements, Zr, Hf and Ti, a metastable state was predicted from the calculations. Electronic properties are computed for all structures and are correlated with electrical and mechanical properties of metastable phases that have been observed experimentally. Properties of metastable phases, which were predicted in this work but which as of yet have not been observed experimentally, have also been predicted. Special attention is paid to the phases of tantalum and calculated transport properties are used to show that the observed high resistivity of the beta phase of tantalum relative to the alpha bcc phase cannot be explained solely by simple tetragonal distortions of the bcc phase.

Effect of High-Irradiance Light-Curing on Micromechanical Properties of Resin Cements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anne Peutzfeldt

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This study investigated the influence of light-curing at high irradiances on micromechanical properties of resin cements. Three dual-curing resin cements and a light-curing flowable resin composite were light-cured with an LED curing unit in Standard mode (SM, High Power mode (HPM, or Xtra Power mode (XPM. Maximum irradiances were determined using a MARC PS radiometer, and exposure duration was varied to obtain two or three levels of radiant exposure (SM: 13.2 and 27.2 J/cm2; HPM: 15.0 and 30.4 J/cm2; XPM: 9.5, 19.3, and 29.7 J/cm2 (n=17. Vickers hardness (HV and indentation modulus (EIT were measured at 15 min and 1 week. Data were analyzed with nonparametric ANOVA, Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney tests, and Spearman correlation analyses (α=0.05. Irradiation protocol, resin-based material, and storage time and all interactions influenced HV and EIT significantly (p≤0.0001. Statistically significant correlations between radiant exposure and HV or EIT were found, indicating that high-irradiance light-curing has no detrimental effect on the polymerization of resin-based materials (p≤0.0021. However, one resin cement was sensitive to the combination of irradiance and exposure duration, with high-irradiance light-curing resulting in a 20% drop in micromechanical properties. The results highlight the importance of manufacturers issuing specific recommendations for the light-curing procedure of each resin cement.

Investigation of high flux test module for the international fusion materials irradiation facilities (IFMIF)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miyashita, Makoto; Sugimoto, Masayoshi; Yutani, Toshiaki

2007-03-01

This report describes investigation on structure of a high neutron flux test module (HFTM) for the International Fusion Materials Irradiation Facilities (IFMIF). The HFTM is aimed for neutron irradiation of a specimen in a high neutron flux domain of the test cell for irradiation ground of IFMIF. We investigated the overall structure of the HFTM that was able to include specimens in a rig and thermocouple arrangement, an interface of control signal and support structure. Moreover, pressure and the amount of the bend in the module vessel (a rectangular section pressure vessel) were calculated. The module vessel did a rectangular section from limitation of a high neutron flux domain. Also, we investigated damage of thermocouples under neutron irradiation, which was a temperature sensor of irradiation materials temperature control demanded high precision. Based on these results, drawings on the HTFM structure. (author)

Development of high resolution x-ray CT technique for irradiated fuel assembly

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ishimi, Akihiro; Katsuyama, Kozo; Maeda, Koji; Asaga, Takeo [Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Oarai Research and Development Center, Oarai, Ibaraki (Japan)

2012-03-15

High X-ray CT technique was developed to observe the irradiation performance of FBR fuel assembly and MOX fuel. In this technique, the high energy X-ray pulse (12MeV) was used synchronizing detection system with the X-ray pulse to reduce the effect of the gamma ray emissions from the irradiated fuel assembly. In this study, this technique was upgraded to obtain high resolution X-ray CT image. In this upgrading, the collimator which had slit width of 0.1 mm and X-ray detector of a highly sensitive silicon semiconductor detector (100 channels) was introduced in the X-ray CT system. As a result of these developments, high resolution X-ray CT images could be obtained on the transverse cross section of irradiated fuel assembly. (author)

Metastable phases freezing from melts of reciprocal systems PbX + CdI2=CdX + PbI2 (X=S, Se, Te)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Odin, I.N.; Chukichev, M.V.

2001-01-01

The transformations in the mutual PbX + CdI 2 =CdX + PbI 2 (X=S, Se, Te) systems leading to the crystallization of metastable polytypical modifications of lead iodide in metastable ternary compounds are studied for the first time. Microstructural and X-ray diffraction analyses were conducted. Their phase diagrams were constructed. The luminescence properties of the stable and metastable modifications of the lead iodide and the metastable compound Pb 4 SeI 6 were investigated. The lines 504 and 512 nm are noted in the 2H-PbI 2 cathodoluminescence spectra. The close lines - 508 and 516 nm provide for the 6R-PbI 2 modification. The metastable compound Pb 4 SeI 6 is characterized by the 769 and 868 nm lines [ru

Investigation of structural materials of reactors using high-energy heavy-ion irradiations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Zhiguang

2007-01-01

Radiation damage in structural materials of fission/fusion reactors is mainly attributed to the evolution of intensive atom displacement damage induced by energetic particles (n, α and/or fission fragments) and high-rate helium doping by direct α particle bombardments and/or (n, α) reactions. It can cause severe degradation of reactor structural materials such as surface blistering, bulk void swelling, deformation, fatigue, embrittlement, stress erosion corrosion and so on that will significantly affect the operation safety of reactors. However, up to now, behavior of structural materials at the end of their service can hardly be fully tested in a real reactor. In the present work, damage process in reactor structural materials is briefly introduced, then the advantages of energetic ion implantation/irradiation especially high-energy heavy ion irradiation are discussed, and several typical examples on simulation of radiation effects in reactor candidate structural materials using high-energy heavy ion irradiations are pronounced. Experimental results and theoretical analysis suggested that irradiation with energetic particles especially high-energy heavy ions is very useful technique for simulating the evolution of microstructures and macro-properties of reactor structural materials. Furthermore, an on-going plan of material irradiation experiments using high energy H- and He-ions based on the Heavy Ion Research Facilities in Lanzhou (HIRFL) is also briefly interpreted. (authors)

High-vacuum chamber for the irradiation of targets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krimmel, E.; Dullnig, H.

1975-01-01

The high vacuum chamber for irradiating targets with X-rays, electron or ion beams is connected to a magazine storage vessel for the targets through a loading duct which can be evacuated. This duct is traversed by a carriage transporting a magazine to the irradiation position. The duct can be closed by a closing valve. Inside the chamber there is a grip attached to a swivel arm which takes a frame with a target from the magazine, or vice versa, and moves it into the irradiation position. This means that the chamber must always be kept at a constant internal pressure. The swiveling shaft for the swivel arm and the transport pinion of the carriage in addition are magnetically coupled to drive shafts located outside the chamber, which obviates the need for any seals. The grip may also deposit the frame on a goniometer, which allows the target to be aligned in the irradiation position. In addition, the measuring probes used to record the amount of reflected radiation are installed in the chamber under electrically insulated conditions relative to the chamber. (DG/RF) [de

Experimental research on fresh mussel meat irradiated by high-dose electron beam

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xiao Lin; Lu Ruifeng; Hu Huachao; Wang Chaoqi; Liu Yanna

2011-01-01

The sterilization storage of fresh mussel irradiated high-dose electron beam was studied. From the subjective assessment by the weighted average of the test and other determined parameters, it can be concluded that the flavor of fresh mussel meat sealed canned food irradiated by high-dose electron beam has not been significant affected, and various micro-organisms can be killed effectively, which means that the irradiated fresh mussel meat can be preserved for long-term at room temperature. Therefore the method might resolve the problems induced by traditional frozen preservation methods. (authors)

Zircaloy behaviour in high temperature irradiated water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Urbanic, V.F.

1982-04-01

The corrosion and hydriding of Zircaloy during irradiation in high temperature water is strongly dependent on the oxygen concentration of the water. Corrosion tests in the NRX and NRU research reactors using small samples have demonstrated the importance of water chemistry in maintaining Zircaloy corrosion and hydriding within acceptable limits. Zircaloy fuel cladding develops non-uniform, patch-type oxides during irradiation in hich temperature water containing dissolved oxygen. Results from examinations of prototype fuel cladding irradiated in the research reactors are presented to show how local variations in coolant flow, fast neutron flux, metallurgical structure and surface condition can influence the onset of non-uniform corrosion under these conditions. Destructive examinations of CANDU-PHW reactor fuel cladding have emphasized the importance of good chemistry control, especially the dissolved oxygen concentration of the water. When reactor coolants are maintained under normal reducing conditions at high pH (5 to 10 cm 3 D 2 /kg D 2 O; 2 /kg D 2 O; pH > 10 with LiOD), Zircaloy cladding develops non-uniform, patch-type oxides. These patch-type oxides tend to coalesce with time to form a thick, uniform oxide layer after extended exposure. Under reducing coolant conditions, Zircaloy cladding absorbs less than 200 mg D/kg Zr (approximately 2.5 mg/dm 2 equivalent hydrogen) in about 500 days. With oxygen in the coolant, deuterium absorption is considerably less despite the significant increase in corrosion under such conditions

Irradiation test HT-31: high-temperature irradiation behavior of LASL-made extruded fuel rods and LASL-made coated particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wagner, P.; Reiswig, R.D.; Hollabaugh, C.M.; White, R.W.; Davidson, K.V.; Schell, D.H.

1977-04-01

Three LASL-made extruded graphite and coated particle fuel rods have been irradiated in the Oak Ridge National Laboratory High Fluence Isotope Reactor test HT-31. Test conditions were about 9 x 10 21 nvt(E > .18 MeV) at 1250 0 C. The graphite matrix showed little or no effect of the irradiation. LASL-made ZrC containing coated particles with ZrC coats and ZrC-doped pyrolytic carbon coats showed no observable effects of the irradiation

Photoelectrochemical properties of orthorhombic and metastable phase SnS nanocrystals synthesized by a facile colloidal method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huang, Po-Chia [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan, ROC (China); Huang, Jow-Lay [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan, ROC (China); Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, National University of Kaohsiung, Kaohsiung 81148, Taiwan, ROC (China); Center for Micro/Nano Science and Technology, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 70101, Taiwan, ROC (China); Wang, Sheng-Chang; Shaikh, Muhammad Omar [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Southern Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Tainan 710, Taiwan, ROC (China); Lin, Chia-Yu [Department of Chemical Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan, ROC (China)

2015-12-01

SnS of orthorhombic (OR) and metastable (SnS) phases were synthesized by using a simple and facile colloidal method. The tin precursor was synthesized using tin oxide (SnO) and oleic acid (OA), while the sulfur precursor was prepared using sulfur powder (S) and oleyamine (OLA). The sulfur precursor was injected into the tin precursor and the prepared SnS nanocrystals were precipitated at a final reaction temperature of 180 °C. The results show that hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS) can be successfully used as a surfactant to synthesize monodisperse 20 nm metastable SnS nanoparticles, while OR phase SnS nanosheets were obtained without HMDS. The direct bandgap observed for the metastable SnS phase is higher (1.66 eV) as compared to the OR phase (1.46 eV). The large blueshift in the direct bandgap of metastable SnS is caused by the difference in crystal structure. The blueshift in the direct band gap value for OR-SnS could be explained by quantum confinement in two dimensions in the very thin nanosheets. SnS thin films used as a photo anode in a photoelectrochemical (PEC) cell were prepared by spin coating on the fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) substrates. The photocurrent density of the SnS (metastable SnS)/FTO and SnS (OR)/FTO are 191.8 μA/cm{sup 2} and 57.61 μA/cm{sup 2} at an applied voltage of − 1 V at 150 W, respectively. These narrow band gap and low cost nanocrystals can be used for applications in future optoelectronic devices. - Highlights: • A facile method to synthesize two different phases of SnS having different morphological and optical properties. • The phases and morphologies of SnS nanocrystal can be controlled by adding capping surfactant hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS). • As we know, this is the first metastable SnS photoanode for application in a photoelectrochemical cell.

Production of Sulfur Allotropes in Electron Irradiated Jupiter Trojans Ice Analogs

Science.gov (United States)

Mahjoub, Ahmed; Poston, Michael J.; Blacksberg, Jordana; Eiler, John M.; Brown, Michael E.; Ehlmann, Bethany L.; Hodyss, Robert; Hand, Kevin P.; Carlson, Robert; Choukroun, Mathieu

2017-09-01

In this paper, we investigate sulfur chemistry in laboratory analogs of Jupiter Trojans and Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs). Electron irradiation experiments of CH3OH-NH3-H2O and H2S-CH3OH-NH3-H2O ices were conducted to better understand the chemical differences between primordial planetesimals inside and outside the sublimation line of H2S. The main goal of this work is to test the chemical plausibility of the hypothesis correlating the color bimodality in Jupiter Trojans with sulfur chemistry in the incipient solar system. Temperature programmed desorption (TPD) of the irradiated mixtures allows the detection of small sulfur allotropes (S3 and S4) after the irradiation of H2S containing ice mixtures. These small, red polymers are metastable and could polymerize further under thermal processing and irradiation, producing larger sulfur polymers (mainly S8) that are spectroscopically neutral at wavelengths above 500 nm. This transformation may affect the spectral reflectance of Jupiter Trojans in a different way compared to KBOs, thereby providing a useful framework for possibly differentiating and determining the formation and history of small bodies. Along with allotropes, we report the production of organo-sulfur molecules. Sulfur molecules produced in our experiment have been recently detected by Rosetta in the coma of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. The very weak absorption of sulfur polymers in the infrared range hampers their identification on Trojans and KBOs, but these allotropes strongly absorb light at UV and Visible wavelengths. This suggests that high signal-to-noise ratio UV-Vis spectra of these objects could provide new constraints on their presence.

High dose rate intracavitary afterloading irradiation in malignant inoperable obturation of bile ducts

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Itami, J.; Saegusa, K.; Mamiya, T.; Miyoshi, T.; Arimizu, N.; Tsuchiya, Y.; Ohto, M.

1986-02-01

After decompression of the bile duct with PTCD, seven patients with carcinomas of the bile ducts were submitted to an intracavitary Ir-afterloading irradiation performed according to the high-dose-rate method with a Buchler device. Most of the patients were irradiated with 30 Gy in two fractions. Five patients were also exposed to percutaneous radiation with 40 to 50 Gy. Local control was achieved in six patients. One patient developed a locoregional recurrence which was possibly due to a so-called 'geographic miss'. In one patient a benign fibrotic stenosis of the bile duct was found at the site of most intensive irradiation. Intracavitary irradiation is very important in the treatment of malignant of bile ducts. However, there is an urgent need of research with regard to the combined method with percutaneous irradiation and to the optimum fractionation of intracavitary high dose rate irradiation.

Mechanical properties of Mo and TZM alloy neutron-irradiated at high temperatures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ueda, Kazukiyo; Satou, Manabu; Hasegawa, Akira; Abe, Katsunori

1997-01-01

This work reports the mechanical properties of irradiated molybdenum (Mo) and its alloy, TZM. Recrystallized and stress-relieved specimens were irradiated at five temperatures between 373 and 800degC in FFTF/MOTA to fluence levels of 6.8 to 34 dpa. Irradiation embrittlement and hardening were evaluated by three-point bend test and Vickers hardness test, respectively. Stress-relieved materials showed the enough ductility even after high fluence irradiation. The role of layered structure of stress-relieved specimen was discussed. (author)

An investigation of methods for neutron dose measurement in high temperature irradiation fields

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kosako, Toshisou; Sugiura, Nobuyuki [Tokyo Univ. (Japan); Kudo, Kazuhiko [Kyushu Univ., Fukuoka (Japan)] [and others

2000-10-01

The Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) has been conducting the innovative basic research on high temperature since 1994, which is a series of high temperature irradiation studies using the High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR). 'The Task Group for Evaluation of Irradiation Dose under High Temperature Radiation' was founded in the HTTR Utilization Research Committee, which is the promoting body of the innovative basic research. The present report is a summary of investigation which has been made by the Task Group on the present status and subjects of research and development of neutron detectors in high temperature irradiation fields, in view of contributing to high temperature irradiation research using the HTTR. Detectors investigated here in the domestic survey are the following five kinds of in-core detectors: 1) small fission counter, 2) small fission chamber, 3) self-powered detector, 4) activation detector, and 5) optical fiber. In addition, the research and development status in Russia has been investigated. The present report will also be useful as nuclear instrumentation of high temperature gas-cooled reactors. (author)

Chemical transformations associated with neutronic irradiation of telluric acid; Transformations chimiques associees a l'irradiation neutronique de l'acide teliurique

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bertet, M [Commissariat a l' Energie Atomique, Saclay (France). Centre d' Etudes Nucleaires

1963-01-15

The chemical transformations which arise from irradiation of telluric acid with neutrons have been studied under several experimental conditions. The effects of the reaction (n, {gamma} ) on Te{sup VI} and of the isomeric transitions {sup 131m}Te{sup VI} {yields} {sup 131}Te and {sup 129m}Te{sup VI} {yields} {sup 129}Te, and the oxidation states of {sup 131}I formed by {beta} decay of {sup 131}Te have been investigated in detail. The Szilard-Chalmers effect has been put in evidence. Retention (R) depends on the isomeric state of Rd-Te and is higher for the metastable isotopes. R increases with the time of irradiation. R seems to be independent of the medium which is used for dissolving telluric acid irradiated in the solid state. Higher values of R are found if the acid is irradiated in neutral or alkaline solution; irradiation in acid solution leads to lower values for R. Retention for {sup 131}Te{sup VI} and {sup 129}Te{sup VI} formed by isomeric transition depends on the pH of the solution where this disintegration occurs. For instance, with {sup 129}Te, R is greater in 6 M NaOH (80 per cent) than in 3 M HCI (40 per cent). The relative amounts of the oxidation states of {sup 131}I (reduced fraction (I{sup -}, IO{sup -}, I{sub 2}), iodate and periodate) depend on the medium, both if the acid is irradiated in the solid state and it is irradiated in solution. In the first case, the reduced fraction increases from 12 to 89 per cent when the dissolving medium is changed from neutral to 0.8 M HNO{sub 3}. In the second case, the reduced fraction is 90 per cent in neutral or acid solution and 64 per cent in 0.5 M KOH. It has been shown, furthermore, that microamounts of Te{sup VI} are formed in certain cases. (author) [French] Les transformations chimiques accompagnant l'irradiation neutronique de l'acide tellurique ont ete etudiees dans differentes conditions experimentales. On a examine notamment les consequences de la reaction (n, {gamma}) sur Te{sup VI}, des

Free radical production by high energy shock waves--comparison with ionizing irradiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Morgan, T R; Laudone, V P; Heston, W D; Zeitz, L; Fair, W R

1988-01-01

Fricke chemical dosimetry is used as an indirect measure of the free radical production of ionizing irradiation. We adapted the Fricke ferrous sulfate radiation dosimeter to examine the chemical effects of high energy shock waves. Significant free radical production was documented. The reaction was dose dependent, predictably increased by acoustic impedance, but curvilinear. A thousand shocks at 18 kilovolts induced the same free radical oxidation as 1100 rad cobalt-60 gamma ionizing irradiation, increasing to 2900 rad in the presence of an air-fluid zone of acoustic impedance. The biological effect of these free radicals was compared to that of cobalt-60 ionizing irradiation by measuring the affect on Chinese hamster cells by clonogenic assay. While cobalt-60 irradiation produced a marked decrease in clonogenic survivors, little effect was noted with high energy shock waves. This suggested that the chemical effects produced by shock waves were either absent or attenuated in the cells, or were inherently less toxic than those of ionizing irradiation.

Best use of high-voltage, high-powered electron beams: a new approach to contract irradiation services

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Watanabe, T.

2000-01-01

Japan's first high-voltage, high-powered electron beam processing center is scheduled to come on-line during the first half of 1999. The center explores both challenges and opportunities of how best to use the 200 kW 10 MeV unit and its 5 MeV X-ray line. In particular, Nuclear Fuel Industries, Ltd. (NFI) has expanded the traditional model of a contract irradiation facility to include a much broader scope of services such as door-to-door transport, storage, and direct distribution to its customer's end-users. The new business scope not only finds new value-added components in a competitive marketplace, but serves to provide a viable mechanism to take advantage of the processing logistics of high throughput irradiation units. As such, the center features a high-capacity warehousing system, monitored by a newly developed PCMS (plant control management system), which has been comprehensively integrated into the irradiation unit's handling system, and will require only minimal human resources for its high rate of material handling. The identification and development of initial markets for this first unit will be discussed, concluding with how this same operational philosophy can help break open new irradiation segments in medical devices, consumer goods, animal feed, and food markets and NFI's other efforts in these same areas. (author)

Novel criterion for formation of metastable phase from undercooled melt

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kuribayashi, Kazuhiko; Nagashio, Kosuke; Niwata, Kenji; Kumar, M.S. Vijaya; Hibiya, Taketoshi

2007-01-01

Undercooling a melt facilitates the preferential nucleation of a metastable phase. In the present study, the formation of metastable phases from undercooled melts was considered from the viewpoint of the competitive nucleation criterion. The classical nucleation theory shows us that the most critical factor for forming a critical nucleus is the interface free energy σ. Furthermore, Spaepen's negentropic model on σ generated the role of the scaling factor α that depends on the polyhedral order in the liquid and solid phases prominent in simple liquids such as the melt of monoatomic metals. In ionic materials such as oxides, however, in which oxygen polyhedrons including a cation at their center are the structural units both in the solid and liquid phases, the entropy of fusion, rather than α, can be expected to become dominant in the determination of σ. In accordance with this idea, using REFeO 3 as the model material (where RE denotes rare-earth elements) the entropy-undercooling regime criterion was proposed and verified

Quantitative analysis of the gas evolved from high polymers in γ-irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arakawa, Kazuo; Hayakawa, Naohiro; Kuriyama, Isamu

1977-09-01

Polymers are used as insulator of cables in nuclear-reactor radiation field. To estimate the evolution of gases when irradiated, total gas yield and composition were measured for variety of polymers. Samples were irradiated at room temperature in vacuo with 60 Co-γ rays. For ethylene propylene rubber (EPR), irradiation in high-temperature steam was also made. Composition of the gas was determined with a mass spectrometer. G-value of the total gaseous product was 3.2 to 3.4 for low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and 2.5 to 2.7 for high-density polyethylene (HDPE). In both polyethylene, hydrogen gas predominated. When an anti-radiation oil was added to LDPE, gas evolution was reduced drastically. For chloro-sulfonated PE (Hypalon), SO 2 gas was one of the major products even when the polymer contained only about 1% of sulfonyl groups. G-value of the total gas for EPR irradiated in high-temperature steam was 3.1, regardless of the temperature. (auth.)

Irradiation effects on C/C composite materials for high temperature nuclear applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eto, M.; Ugachi, H.; Baba, S.I.; Ishiyama, S.; Ishihara, M.; Hayashi, K.

2000-01-01

Excellent characteristics such as high strength and high thermal shock resistance of C/C composite materials have led us to try to apply them to the high temperature components in nuclear facilities. Such components include the armour tile of the first wall and divertor of fusion reactor and the elements of control rod for the use in HTGR. One of the most important aspects to be clarified about C/C composites for nuclear applications is the effect of neutron irradiation on their properties. At the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI), research on the irradiation effects on various properties of C/C composite materials has been carried out using fission reactors (JRR-3, JMTR), accelerators (TANDEM, TIARA) and the Fusion Neutronics Source (FNS). Additionally, strength tests of some neutron-irradiated elements for the control rod were carried out to investigate the feasibility of C/C composites. The paper summarises the R and D activities on the irradiation effects on C/C composites. (authors)

Accelerated Recombination in Cold Dense Plasmas with Metastable Ions due to Resonant Deexcitation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ralchenko, Yu.V.; Maron, M.

2001-01-01

In a recombining plasma the metastable states are known to accumulate population thereby slowing down the recombination process. We show that a proper account of the doubly-excited autoionizing states, populated through collisional 3-body recombination of metastable ions, results in a significant acceleration of recombination. 3-body recombination followed by collisional (de)excitations and autoionization effectively produces deexcitation via the following chain of elementary events: A fully time-dependent collisional-radiative (CR) modeling for stripped ions of carbon recombining in a cold dense plasma demonstrates an order of magnitude faster recombination of He-like ions. The CR model used in calculations is discussed in details

High-dose irradiated food: Current progress, applications, and prospects

Science.gov (United States)

Feliciano, Chitho P.

2018-03-01

Food irradiation as an established and mature technology has gained more attention in the food industry for ensuring food safety and quality. Primarily used for phytosanitary applications, its use has been expanded for developing various food products for varied purposes (e.g. ready-to-eat & ready-to-cook foods, hospital diets, etc.). This paper summarized and analyzed the recent progress and application of high-dose irradiation and discussed its prospects in the field of food product development, its safety and quality.

Deformation mechanisms induced under high cycle fatigue tests in a metastable austenitic stainless steel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roa, J.J., E-mail: joan.josep.roa@upc.edu [CIEFMA-Departament de Ciència dels Materials i Enginyeria Metallúrgica, ETSEIB, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Avda. Diagonal 647, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); CRnE, Campus Diagonal Sud, Edificio C’, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, C/ Pascual i Vila 15, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); Fargas, G. [CIEFMA-Departament de Ciència dels Materials i Enginyeria Metallúrgica, ETSEIB, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Avda. Diagonal 647, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); Jiménez-Piqué, E. [CIEFMA-Departament de Ciència dels Materials i Enginyeria Metallúrgica, ETSEIB, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Avda. Diagonal 647, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); CRnE, Campus Diagonal Sud, Edificio C’, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, C/ Pascual i Vila 15, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); Mateo, A. [CIEFMA-Departament de Ciència dels Materials i Enginyeria Metallúrgica, ETSEIB, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Avda. Diagonal 647, 08028 Barcelona (Spain)

2014-03-01

Advanced techniques were used to study the deformation mechanisms induced by fatigue tests in a metastable austenitic stainless steel AISI 301LN. Observations by Atomic Force Microscopy were carried out to study the evolution of a pre-existing martensite platelet at increasing number of cycles. The sub-superficial deformation mechanisms of the austenitic grains were studied considering the cross-section microstructure obtained by Focused Ion Beam and analysed by Scanning Electron Microscopy and Transmission Electron Microscopy. The results revealed no deformation surrounding the pre-existing martensitic platelet during fatigue tests, only the growth on height was observed. Martensite formation was associated with shear bands on austenite, mainly in the {111} plane, and with the activation of the other intersecting austenite {111}〈110〉 slip system. Furthermore, transmission electron microscopy results showed that the nucleation of ε-martensite follows a two stages phase transformation (γ{sub fcc}→ε{sub hcp}→α'{sub bcc})

Effect of high carbon dioxide storage and gamma irradiation on membrane deterioration in cauliflower florets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Voisine, R.; Hombourger, C.; Willemot, C.; Castaigne, F.; Makhlouf, J.

1993-01-01

Controlled atmospheres and gamma irradiation are technologies which extend storage-life of fruits and vegetables. Separate and combined effects of high CO 2 storage and gamma irradiation on cell membranes from cauliflower florets (Brassica oleracea L., Botrytis group) were investigated. Storage of the florets for 8 days at 13°C, either under 15% carbon dioxide or in air after irradiation at 2 kGy, accelerated the deterioration of microsomal membranes during storage. Both treatments caused an early loss in lipid phosphate. Irradiation enhanced the free fatty acid content of the membranes during storage and caused an extensive protein loss. When irradiation and high CO 2 storage were combined, electrolyte leakage significantly increased while protein loss was considerably reduced. The results indicate that high CO 2 and irradiation accelerate membrane degradation through different mechanisms. The combined effects of the treatments were not additive, but membrane yield was apparently reduced. CO 2 protected the membranes from protein loss induced by irradiation. The apparent increase in electrolyte leakage after irradiation may be caused by the release of ions following cell wall deterioration

Two new Np--Ga phases: α-NpGa2 and metastable m-NpGa2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Giessen, B.C.; Elliott, R.O.

1976-01-01

Following an earlier study of metastable Np-rich Np--Ga alloys, rapidly quenched Np--Ga alloys with 63 to 80 at. pct. Ga were prepared and studied. Two new NpGa 2 phases, both with an AlB 2 type structure, were found: α-NpGa 2 , with a = 4.246A, c = 4.060A, c/a = 0.956, and m-NpGa 2 , with a = 4.412A, c = 3.642A, c/a = 0.825. While m-NpGa 2 was observed only in very fast quenched (splat cooled) samples and appears to be metastable, α-NpGa 2 is probably an equilibrium phase. In a splat cooled alloy with 75 at. pct. Ga, another, unidentified, metastable phase was observed. Crystal chemical discussions of atomic volumes, interatomic distances and axial ratios are given; the volume difference between the two forms of NpGa 2 is correlated with a valence change of Np

Thermal compatibility of U-2wt.%Mo and U-10wt.%Mo fuel prepared by centrifugal atomization for high density research reactor fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim Ki Hwan; Lee Don Bae; Kim Chang Kyu; Kuk Il Hyun; Hofman, G.E.

1997-01-01

Research on the intermetallic compounds of uranium was revived in 1978 with the decision by the international research reactor community to develop proliferation-resistant fuels. The reduction of 93% 235 U (HEU) to 20% 235 U (LEU) necessitates the use of higher U-loading fuels to accommodate the addition 238 U in the LEU fuels. While the vast majority of reactors can be satisfied with U 3 Si 2 -Al dispersion fuel, several high performance reactors require high loadings of up to 8-9 g U cm -3 . Consequently, in the renewed fuel development program of the Reduced Enrichment for Research and Test Reactors (RERTR) Program, attention has shifted to high density uranium alloys. Early irradiation experiments with uranium alloys showed promise of acceptable irradiation behavior, if these alloys can be maintained in their cubic γ-U crystal structure. It has been reported that high density atomized U-Mo powders prepared by rapid cooling have metastable isotropic γ-U phase saturated with molybdenum, and good γ-U phase stability, especially in U-10wt.%Mo alloy fuel. If the alloy has good thermal compatibility with aluminium, and this metastable gamma phase can be maintained during irradiation, U-Mo alloy would be a prime candidate for dispersion fuel for research reactors. In this paper, U-2w.%Mo and U-10w.%Mo alloy powder which have high density (above 15 g-U/cm 3 ), are prepared by centrifugal atomization. The U-Mo alloy fuel meats are made into rods extruding the atomized powders. The characteristics related to the thermal compatibility of U-2w.%Mo and U-10w.%Mo alloy fuel meat at 400 o C for time up to 2000 hours are examined. (author)

Irradiation experiments and materials testing capabilities in High Flux Reactor in Petten

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luzginova, N.; Blagoeva, D.; Hegeman, H.; Van der Laan, J.

2011-01-01

The text of publication follows: The High Flux Reactor (HFR) in Petten is a powerful multi-purpose research and materials testing reactor operating for about 280 Full Power Days per year. In combination with hot cells facilities, HFR provides irradiation and post-irradiation examination services requested by nuclear energy research and development programs, as well as by industry and research organizations. Using a variety of the custom developed irradiation devices and a large experience in executing irradiation experiments, the HFR is suitable for fuel, materials and components testing for different reactor types. Irradiation experiments carried out at the HFR are mainly focused on the understanding of the irradiation effects on materials; and providing databases for irradiation behavior of materials to feed into safety cases. The irradiation experiments and materials testing at the HFR include the following issues. First, materials irradiation to support the nuclear plant life extensions, for instance, characterization of the reactor pressure vessel stainless steel claddings to insure structural integrity of the vessel, as well as irradiation of the weld material coupons to neutron fluence levels that are representative for Light Water Reactors (LWR) internals applications. Secondly, development and qualification of the structural materials for next generation nuclear fission reactors as well as thermo-nuclear fusion machines. The main areas of interest are in both conventional stainless steel and advanced reduced activation steels and special alloys such as Ni-base alloys. For instance safety-relevant aspects of High Temperature Reactors (HTR) such as the integrity of fuel and structural materials with increasing neutron fluence at typical HTR operating conditions has been recently assessed. Thirdly, support of the fuel safety through several fuel irradiation experiments including testing of pre-irradiated LWR fuel rods containing UO 2 or MOX fuel. Fourthly

Performance studies under high irradiation of resistive bulk-micromegas chambers at the CERN Gamma Irradiation Facility

CERN Document Server

Sidiropoulou, Ourania; Bortfeldt, J; Farina, E; Iengo, P; Longo, L; Sidiropoulou, O; Wotschack, J

2017-01-01

Radiation studies on several resistive bulk-Micromegas chambers produced at CERN will be viewed in this document. Two resistive bulk-Micromegas chambers have been installed at the CERN Gamma Irradiation Facility (GIF++) exposed to an intense gamma irradiation with the aim of evaluating the detector behaviour under high irradiation and carrying out a long-term age- ing study. The chambers under study have an active area of 10 x 10 cm 2 , a strip pitch of 400 m m , an ampli- fication gap of 128 m m , and a drift gap of 5 mm. The results on the detector performance as a function of the photon flux up to 44 MHz/cm 2 will be shown as well as the ageing properties as function of the integrated charge and the current intensity and its stability with time. In addition, the results of the efficiency measurements before, during, and after the irradiation will also be presented as a function of the amplification voltage at which the chambers are operated.

High-temperature annealing of proton irradiated beryllium – A dilatometry-based study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Simos, Nikolaos, E-mail: simos@bnl.gov [Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY, 11973 (United States); Elbakhshwan, Mohamed; Zhong, Zhong; Ghose, Sanjit [Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY, 11973 (United States); Savkliyildiz, Ilyas [Rutgers University (United States)

2016-08-15

S−200 F grade beryllium has been irradiated with 160 MeV protons up to 1.2 10{sup 20} cm{sup −2} peak fluence and irradiation temperatures in the range of 100–200 °C. To address the effect of proton irradiation on dimensional stability, an important parameter in its consideration in fusion reactor applications, and to simulate high temperature irradiation conditions, multi-stage annealing using high precision dilatometry to temperatures up to 740 °C were conducted in air. X-ray diffraction studies were also performed to compliment the macroscopic thermal study and offer a microscopic view of the irradiation effects on the crystal lattice. The primary objective was to qualify the competing dimensional change processes occurring at elevated temperatures namely manufacturing defect annealing, lattice parameter recovery, transmutation {sup 4}He and {sup 3}H diffusion and swelling and oxidation kinetics. Further, quantification of the effect of irradiation dose and annealing temperature and duration on dimensional changes is sought. The study revealed the presence of manufacturing porosity in the beryllium grade, the oxidation acceleration effect of irradiation including the discontinuous character of oxidation advancement, the effect of annealing duration on the recovery of lattice parameters recovery and the triggering temperature for transmutation gas diffusion leading to swelling.

Direct measurement of the concentration of metastable ions produced from neutral gas particles using laser-induced fluorescence

Science.gov (United States)

Chu, Feng; Skiff, Fred; Berumen, Jorge; Mattingly, Sean; Hood, Ryan

2017-10-01

Extensive information can be obtained on wave-particle interactions and wave fields by direct measurement of perturbed ion distribution functions using laser-induced fluorescence (LIF). For practical purposes, LIF is frequently performed on metastables that are produced from neutral gas particles and existing ions in other electronic states. We numerically simulate the ion velocity distribution measurement and wave-detection process using a Lagrangian model for the LIF signal. The results show that under circumstances where the metastable ion population is coming directly from the ionization of neutrals (as opposed to the excitation of ground-state ions), the velocity distribution will only faithfully represent processes which act on the ion dynamics in a time shorter than the metastable lifetime. Therefore, it is important to know the ratio of metastable population coming from neutrals to that from existing ions to correct the LIF measurements of plasma ion temperature and electrostatic waves. In this paper, we experimentally investigate the ratio of these two populations by externally launching an ion acoustic wave and comparing the wave amplitudes that are measured with LIF and a Langmuir probe using a lock-in amplifier. DE-FG02-99ER54543.

Final report of the HFIR [High Flux Isotope Reactor] irradiation facilities improvement project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Montgomery, B.H.; Thoms, K.R.; West, C.D.

1987-09-01

The High-Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) has outstanding neutronics characteristics for materials irradiation, but some relatively minor aspects of its mechanical design severely limited its usefulness for that purpose. In particular, though the flux trap region in the center of the annular fuel elements has a very high neutron flux, it had no provision for instrumentation access to irradiation capsules. The irradiation positions in the beryllium reflector outside the fuel elements also have a high flux; however, although instrumented, they were too small and too few to replace the facilities of a materials testing reactor. To address these drawbacks, the HFIR Irradiation Facilities Improvement Project consisted of modifications to the reactor vessel cover, internal structures, and reflector. Two instrumented facilities were provided in the flux trap region, and the number of materials irradiation positions in the removable beryllium (RB) was increased from four to eight, each with almost twice the available experimental space of the previous ones. The instrumented target facilities were completed in August 1986, and the RB facilities were completed in June 1987

Formation of metastable tetragonal zirconia nanoparticles: Competitive influence of the dopants and surface state

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gorban, Oksana, E-mail: matscidep@aim.com [Donetsk Institute for Physics and Engineering named after A.A. Galkin of the NAS of Ukraine, Nauki av. 46, Kyiv 03680 (Ukraine); Synyakina, Susanna; Volkova, Galina; Gorban, Sergey; Konstantiova, Tetyana [Donetsk Institute for Physics and Engineering named after A.A. Galkin of the NAS of Ukraine, Nauki av. 46, Kyiv 03680 (Ukraine); Lyubchik, Svetlana, E-mail: s_lyubchik@yahoo.com [REQUIMTE, Universida de Nova de Lisboa, 2829-516 Caparica (Portugal)

2015-12-15

The effect of the surface modification of the nanoparticles of amorphous and crystalline partially stabilized zirconia by fluoride ions on stability of the metastable tetragonal phase was investigated. Based on the DSC, titrimetry and FTIR spectroscopy data it was proven that surface modification of the xerogel resulted from an exchange of the fluoride ions with the basic OH groups. The effect of the powder pre-calcination temperature before modification on the formation of metastable tetragonal phase in partially stabilized zirconia was investigated. It was shown that the main factor of tetragonal zirconia stabilization is the state of nanoparticles surface at pre-crystallization temperatures.

Characterization of neutron-irradiated HT-UPS steel by high-energy X-ray diffraction microscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Xuan, E-mail: xuanzhang@anl.gov [Nuclear Engineering Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL 60439 (United States); Park, Jun-Sang; Almer, Jonathan [Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL 60439 (United States); Li, Meimei [Nuclear Engineering Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL 60439 (United States)

2016-04-01

This paper presents the first measurement of neutron-irradiated microstructure using far-field high-energy X-ray diffraction microscopy (FF-HEDM) in a high-temperature ultrafine-precipitate-strengthened (HT-UPS) austenitic stainless steel. Grain center of mass, grain size distribution, crystallographic orientation (texture), diffraction spot broadening and lattice constant distributions of individual grains were obtained for samples in three different conditions: non-irradiated, neutron-irradiated (3dpa/500 °C), and irradiated + annealed (3dpa/500 °C + 600 °C/1 h). It was found that irradiation caused significant increase in grain-level diffraction spot broadening, modified the texture, reduced the grain-averaged lattice constant, but had nearly no effect on the average grain size and grain size distribution, as well as the grain size-dependent lattice constant variations. Post-irradiation annealing largely reversed the irradiation effects on texture and average lattice constant, but inadequately restored the microstrain.

Metastability in reversible diffusion processes II. Precise asymptotics for small eigenvalues

CERN Document Server

Bovier, A; Klein, M

2002-01-01

We continue the analysis of the problem of metastability for reversible diffusion processes, initiated in \\cite{BEGK3}, with a precise analysis of the low-lying spectrum of the generator. Recall that we are considering processes with generators of the form $-\\e \\Delta +\

Instrumented indentation for characterization of irradiated metals at room and high temperatures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sacksteder, Irene

2011-01-01

The reliability and sustainability of future fusion power plants will highly depend on the aptitude of materials to withstand severe irradiation conditions induced by the burning plasma in reactors. The so-called reduced-activation ferritic-martensitic (RAFM) steels are the current promising candidates for the structural applications considering the reactor's first wall. These steels exhibit irradiation embrittlement and hardening for defined irradiation conditions that are mainly characterized by the irradiation temperature and the irradiation dose. A proper characterization of such irradiated steels implies the use of adapted mechanical testing tools. In the present study, the instrumented indentation technique makes use of a post-processing tool based on neural networks. This technique has been selected for its ability to examine tensile properties by multistage indents on miniaturized irradiated metallic samples. The steel specimens studied in this project have been neutron-irradiated up to a dose of 15 dpa. They have been subsequently tested at room temperature in a Hot Cell by means of an adapted commercial indentation device. The significant irradiation-induced hardening effect present in the range of 250-350 deg C could be observed in the hardness and material's strength parameters. These two material parameters show a similar evolution with increasing irradiation temperatures. Post-irradiation annealing treatments of Eurofer97 have been realized and leads to a partial recovery of the irradiation damage. Considering the demands for characterization in irradiated steels at high temperature and for post-irradiation annealing experiments, the existing instrumented indentation device has been further developed during this work. A conceptual design has been proposed for an indentation testing machine, operating at up to 650 deg C, while remaining the critical temperature limit for tensile strength of the newly developed oxide dispersion strengthening ferritic

Stress corrosion cracking of highly irradiated 316 stainless steels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nakano, Morihito; Fukuya, Koji; Fujii, Katsuhiko; Nakajima, Nobuo; Furutani, Gen [Institute of Nuclear Safety System Inc., Mihama, Fukui (Japan)

2001-09-01

Mechanical property tests, grain boundary (GB) composition analysis and slow strain rate test (SSRT) in simulated PWR primary water changing dissolved hydrogen (DH) and dissolved oxygen (DO) content were carried out on cold-worked (CW) 316 stainless steels which were irradiated to 1-8x10{sup 26} n/m{sup 2} (E>0.1 MeV) in a Japanese PWR in order to evaluate irradiation-assisted stress corrosion cracking (IASCC) susceptibility. Highly irradiated stainless steels were susceptible to intergranular stress corrosion cracking (IGSCC) in both hydrogenated water and oxygenated water and to intergranular cracking in inert gas atmosphere. IASCC susceptibility increased with increasing DH content (0-45 ccH{sub 2}/kgH{sub 2}O). Hydrogen content of the section containing fracture surface was higher than that of the section far from fracture surface. These results suggest that hydrogen would have an important role for IASCC. While mechanical property was saturated, GB segregation and IASCC susceptibility increased with an increase in fluence, suggesting that GB segregation would have a dominant role for an increase in IASCC susceptibility at this high fluence region. (author)

Simple and efficient method of spin-polarizing a metastable helium beam by diode laser optical pumping

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Granitza, B.; Salvietti, M.; Torello, E.; Mattera, L.; Sasso, A.

1995-01-01

Diode laser optical pumping to produce a highly spin-polarized metastable He beam to be used in a spin-polarized metastable atom deexcitation spectroscopy experiment on magnetized surfaces is described. Efficient pumping of the beam is performed by means of an SDL-6702 distributed Bragg reflector diode laser which yields 50 mW of output power in a single longitudinal mode at 1083 nm, the resonance wavelength for the 2 3 S→2 3 P 0,1,2 (D 0 , D 1 , and D 2 ) transitions of He*. The light is circularly polarized by a quarter-wave plate, allowing easy change of the sense of atomic polarization. The laser frequency can be locked to the atomic transition for several hours by phase-sensitive detection of the saturated absorption signal in a He discharge cell. Any of the three transitions of the triplet system can be pumped with the laser but the maximum level of atomic polarization of 98.5% is found pumping the D 2 line. copyright 1995 American Institute of Physics

Non-linear failure analysis of HCPB blanket for DEMO taking into account high dose irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aktaa, J., E-mail: jarir.aktaa@kit.edu [Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute for Applied Materials, Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen (Germany); Kecskés, S.; Pereslavtsev, P.; Fischer, U.; Boccaccini, L.V. [Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute for Neutron Physics and Reactor Technology, Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen (Germany)

2014-10-15

Highlights: • First non-linear structural analysis for the European Helium Cooled Pebble Bed Blanket Module taking into account high dose irradiation. • Most critical areas were identified and analyzed with regard to the effect of irradiation on predicted damage at these areas. • Despite the extensive computing time 100 cycles were simulated by using the sub-modelling technique investigating damage at most critical area. • The results show a positive effect of irradiation on calculated damage which is mainly attributed to the irradiation induced hardening. - Abstract: For the European helium cooled pebble bed (HCPB) blanket of DEMO the reduced activation ferritic martensitic steel EUROFER has been selected as structural material. During operation the HCPB blanket will be subjected to complex thermo-mechanical loadings and high irradiation doses. Taking into account the material and structural behaviour under these conditions is a precondition for a reliable blanket design. For considering high dose irradiation in structural analysis of the DEMO blanket, the coupled deformation damage model, extended recently taking into account the influence of high dose irradiation on the material behaviour of EUROFER and implemented in the finite element code ABAQUS, has been used. Non-linear finite element (FE) simulations of the DEMO HCPB blanket have been performed considering the design of the HCPB Test Blanket Module (TBM) as reference and the thermal and mechanical boundary conditions of previous analyses. The irradiation dose rate required at each position in the structure as an additional loading parameter is estimated by extrapolating the results available for the TBM in ITER scaling the value calculated in neutronics and activation analysis for ITER boundary conditions to the DEMO boundary conditions. The results of the FE simulations are evaluated considering damage at most critical highly loaded areas of the structure and discussed with regard to the impact of

Non-linear failure analysis of HCPB blanket for DEMO taking into account high dose irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aktaa, J.; Kecskés, S.; Pereslavtsev, P.; Fischer, U.; Boccaccini, L.V.

2014-01-01

Highlights: • First non-linear structural analysis for the European Helium Cooled Pebble Bed Blanket Module taking into account high dose irradiation. • Most critical areas were identified and analyzed with regard to the effect of irradiation on predicted damage at these areas. • Despite the extensive computing time 100 cycles were simulated by using the sub-modelling technique investigating damage at most critical area. • The results show a positive effect of irradiation on calculated damage which is mainly attributed to the irradiation induced hardening. - Abstract: For the European helium cooled pebble bed (HCPB) blanket of DEMO the reduced activation ferritic martensitic steel EUROFER has been selected as structural material. During operation the HCPB blanket will be subjected to complex thermo-mechanical loadings and high irradiation doses. Taking into account the material and structural behaviour under these conditions is a precondition for a reliable blanket design. For considering high dose irradiation in structural analysis of the DEMO blanket, the coupled deformation damage model, extended recently taking into account the influence of high dose irradiation on the material behaviour of EUROFER and implemented in the finite element code ABAQUS, has been used. Non-linear finite element (FE) simulations of the DEMO HCPB blanket have been performed considering the design of the HCPB Test Blanket Module (TBM) as reference and the thermal and mechanical boundary conditions of previous analyses. The irradiation dose rate required at each position in the structure as an additional loading parameter is estimated by extrapolating the results available for the TBM in ITER scaling the value calculated in neutronics and activation analysis for ITER boundary conditions to the DEMO boundary conditions. The results of the FE simulations are evaluated considering damage at most critical highly loaded areas of the structure and discussed with regard to the impact of

Chemical transformations associated with neutronic irradiation of telluric acid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bertet, M.

1963-01-01

The chemical transformations which arise from irradiation of telluric acid with neutrons have been studied under several experimental conditions. The effects of the reaction (n, γ ) on Te VI and of the isomeric transitions 131m Te VI → 131 Te and 129m Te VI → 129 Te, and the oxidation states of 131 I formed by β decay of 131 Te have been investigated in detail. The Szilard-Chalmers effect has been put in evidence. Retention (R) depends on the isomeric state of Rd-Te and is higher for the metastable isotopes. R increases with the time of irradiation. R seems to be independent of the medium which is used for dissolving telluric acid irradiated in the solid state. Higher values of R are found if the acid is irradiated in neutral or alkaline solution; irradiation in acid solution leads to lower values for R. Retention for 131 Te VI and 129 Te VI formed by isomeric transition depends on the pH of the solution where this disintegration occurs. For instance, with 129 Te, R is greater in 6 M NaOH (80 per cent) than in 3 M HCI (40 per cent). The relative amounts of the oxidation states of 131 I (reduced fraction (I - , IO - , I 2 ), iodate and periodate) depend on the medium, both if the acid is irradiated in the solid state and it is irradiated in solution. In the first case, the reduced fraction increases from 12 to 89 per cent when the dissolving medium is changed from neutral to 0.8 M HNO 3 . In the second case, the reduced fraction is 90 per cent in neutral or acid solution and 64 per cent in 0.5 M KOH. It has been shown, furthermore, that microamounts of Te VI are formed in certain cases. (author) [fr

High dose radiation damage in nuclear energy structural materials investigated by heavy ion irradiation simulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zheng Yongnan; Xu Yongjun; Yuan Daqing

2014-01-01

Structural materials in ITER, ADS and fast reactor suffer high dose irradiations of neutrons and/or protons, that leads to severe displacement damage up to lOO dpa per year. Investigation of radiation damage induced by such a high dose irradiation has attracted great attention along with the development of nuclear energy facilities of new generation. However, it is deeply hampered for the lacking of high dose neutron and proton sources. Irradiation simulation of heavy ions produced by accelerators opens up an effective way for laboratory investigation of high dose irradiation induced radiation damage encountered in the ITER, ADS, etc. Radiation damage is caused mainly by atomic displacement in materials. The displacement rate of heavy ions is about lO 3 ∼10 7 orders higher than those of neutrons and protons. High displacement rate of heavy ions significantly reduces the irradiation time. The heavy ion irradiation simulation technique (HIIS) technique has been developed at China Institute of Atomic Energy and a series of the HIIS experiments have been performed to investigate radiation damage in stainless steels, tungsten and tantalum at irradiation temperatures from room temperature to 800 ℃ and in the irradiation dose region up to 100 dpa. The experimental results show that he radiation swelling peak for the modified stainless steel appears in the temperature region around 580 ℃ and the radiation damage is more sensitive to the temperature, the size of the radiation induced vacancy cluster or void increase with the increasing of the irradiation dose, and among the three materials the home-made modified stainless steel has the best radiation resistant property. (authors)

Fabrication of Nonvolatile Memory Effects in High-k Dielectric Thin Films Using Electron Irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Chanrock; Cho, Daehee; Kim, Jeongeun; Hwang, Jinha

2010-01-01

Electron Irradiation can be applied towards nano-floating gate memories which are recognized as one of the next-generation nonvolatile memory semiconductors. NFGMs can overcome the preexisting limitations encountered in Dynamic Random Access Memories and Flash memories with the excellent advantages, i. e. high-density information storage, high response speed, high compactness, etc. The traditional nano-floating gate memories are fabricated through multi-layered nano structures of the dissimilar materials where the charge-trapping portions are sandwiched into the high-k dielectrics. However, this work reports the unique nonvolatile responses in single-layered high-k dielectric thin films if irradiated with highly accelerated electron beams. The implications of the electron irradiation will be discussed towards high-performance nano-floating gate memories

Cation disorder in high-dose, neutron-irradiated spinel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sickafus, K.E.; Larson, A.C.; Yu, N.; Nastasi, M.; Hollenberg, G.W.; Garner, F.A.; Bradt, R.C.

1994-08-01

The objective of this effort is to determine whether MgAl 2 O 4 spinel is a suitable ceramic for fusion applications. Here, the crystal structures of MgAl 2 O 4 spinel single crystals irradiated to high neutron fluences [>5·10 26 n/m 2 (E n > 0.1 MeV)] were examined by neutron diffraction. Crystal structure refinement of the highest dose sample indicated that the average scattering strength of the tetrahedral crystal sites decreased by ∼ 20% while increasing by ∼ 8% on octahedral sites. Since the neutron scattering length for Mg is considerably larger than for Al, this results is consistent with site exchange between Mg 2+ ions on tetrahedral sites and Al 3+ ions on octahedral sites. Least-squares refinements also indicated that, in all irradiated samples, at least 35% of Mg 2+ and Al 3+ ions in the crystal experienced disordering replacements. This retained dpa on the cation sublattices is the largest retained damage ever measured in an irradiated spinel material

Effect of high-dose irradiation on quality characteristics of ready-to-eat chicken breast

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yun, Hyejeong; Haeng Lee, Kyung; Jung Lee, Hyun; Woon Lee, Ju; Uk Ahn, Dong; Jo, Cheorun

2012-01-01

High-dose (higher than 30 kGy) irradiation has been used to sterilize specific-purposed foods for safe and long-term storage. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of high-dose irradiation on the quality characteristics of ready-to-eat chicken breast in comparison with those of the low-dose irradiation. Ready-to-eat chicken breast was manufactured, vacuum-packaged, and irradiated at 0, 5, and 40 kGy. The populations of total aerobic bacteria were 4.75 and 2.26 Log CFU/g in the samples irradiated at 0 and 5 kGy, respectively. However, no viable cells were detected in the samples irradiated at 40 kGy. On day 10, bacteria were not detected in the samples irradiated at 40 kGy but the number of bacteria in the samples irradiated at 5 kGy was increased. The pH at day 0 was higher in the samples irradiated at 40 kGy than those at 0 and 5 kGy. The 2-thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) values of the samples were not significantly different on day 0. However, on day 10, the TBARS value was significantly higher in the samples irradiated at 40 kGy than those at 0 and 5 kGy. There was no difference in the sensory scores of the samples, except for off-flavor, which was stronger in samples irradiated at 5 and 40 kGy than control. However, no difference in off-flavor between the irradiated ones was observed. After 10 days of storage, only the samples irradiated at 40 kGy showed higher off-flavor score. SPME-GC–MS analysis revealed that 5 kGy of irradiation produced 2-methylbutanal and 3-methylbutanal, which were not present in the control, whereas 40 kGy of irradiation produced hexane, heptane, pentanal, dimethly disulfide, heptanal, and nonanal, which were not detected in the control or the samples irradiated at 5 kGy. However, the amount of compounds such as allyl sulfide and diallyl disulfide decreased significantly in the samples irradiated at 5 kGy and 40 kGy. - Highlights: ► Comparison of high (40 kGy) and low-dose irradiation (5 kGy) on

Influence of relaxation processes on the evaluation of the metastable defect density in Cu(In,Ga)Se{sub 2}

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Maciaszek, M.; Zabierowski, P. [Faculty of Physics, Warsaw University of Technology, Koszykowa 75, Warszawa 00 662 (Poland)

2016-06-07

In this contribution, we investigated by means of numerical simulations the influence of relaxation processes related to metastable defects on electrical characteristics of Cu(In,Ga)Se{sub 2}. In particular, we analyzed the relaxation of a metastable state induced by illumination at a fixed temperature as well as the dependence of the hole concentration on the temperature during cooling. The knowledge of these two relaxation processes is crucial in the evaluation of the hole concentration in the relaxed state and after light soaking. We have shown that the distribution of the metastable defects can be considered frozen below 200 K. The hole capture cross section was estimated as ∼3 × 10{sup −15} cm{sup 2}. It was shown that the usually used cooling rates may lead to relevant changes of the hole concentration. We calculated the lower limit of the hole concentration after cooling, and we presented how it depends on densities of shallow acceptors and metastable defects. Moreover, we proposed a method which allows for the evaluation of shallow acceptor and metastable defect densities from two capacitance-voltage profiles measured in the relaxed and light soaking states. Finally, we indicated experimental conditions in which the influence of relaxation processes on the accuracy of this method is the smallest.

Finite-range-scaling analysis of metastability in an Ising model with long-range interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gorman, B.M.; Rikvold, P.A.; Novotny, M.A.

1994-01-01

We apply both a scalar field theory and a recently developed transfer-matrix method to study the stationary properties of metastability in a two-state model with weak, long-range interactions: the Nx∞ quasi-one-dimensional Ising model. Using the field theory, we find the analytic continuation f of the free energy across the first-order transition, assuming that the system escapes the metastable state by the nucleation of noninteracting droplets. We find that corrections to the field dependence are substantial, and, by solving the Euler-Lagrange equation for the model numerically, we have verified the form of the free-energy cost of nucleation, including the first correction. In the transfer-matrix method, we associate with the subdominant eigenvectors of the transfer matrix a complex-valued ''constrained'' free-energy density f α computed directly from the matrix. For the eigenvector with an associated magnetization most strongly opposed to the applied magnetic field, f α exhibits finite-range scaling behavior in agreement with f over a wide range of temperatures and fields, extending nearly to the classical spinodal. Some implications of these results for numerical studies of metastability are discussed

Production of Sulfur Allotropes in Electron Irradiated Jupiter Trojans Ice Analogs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mahjoub, Ahmed; Poston, Michael J.; Blacksberg, Jordana; Ehlmann, Bethany L.; Hodyss, Robert; Hand, Kevin P.; Carlson, Robert; Choukroun, Mathieu [Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109 (United States); Eiler, John M.; Brown, Michael E., E-mail: Mahjoub.Ahmed@jpl.nasa.gov [California Institute of Technology, Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States)

2017-09-10

In this paper, we investigate sulfur chemistry in laboratory analogs of Jupiter Trojans and Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs). Electron irradiation experiments of CH{sub 3}OH–NH{sub 3}–H{sub 2}O and H{sub 2}S–CH{sub 3}OH–NH{sub 3}–H{sub 2}O ices were conducted to better understand the chemical differences between primordial planetesimals inside and outside the sublimation line of H{sub 2}S. The main goal of this work is to test the chemical plausibility of the hypothesis correlating the color bimodality in Jupiter Trojans with sulfur chemistry in the incipient solar system. Temperature programmed desorption (TPD) of the irradiated mixtures allows the detection of small sulfur allotropes (S{sub 3} and S{sub 4}) after the irradiation of H{sub 2}S containing ice mixtures. These small, red polymers are metastable and could polymerize further under thermal processing and irradiation, producing larger sulfur polymers (mainly S{sub 8}) that are spectroscopically neutral at wavelengths above 500 nm. This transformation may affect the spectral reflectance of Jupiter Trojans in a different way compared to KBOs, thereby providing a useful framework for possibly differentiating and determining the formation and history of small bodies. Along with allotropes, we report the production of organo-sulfur molecules. Sulfur molecules produced in our experiment have been recently detected by Rosetta in the coma of 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko. The very weak absorption of sulfur polymers in the infrared range hampers their identification on Trojans and KBOs, but these allotropes strongly absorb light at UV and Visible wavelengths. This suggests that high signal-to-noise ratio UV–Vis spectra of these objects could provide new constraints on their presence.

Metastable argon atom density in complex argon/acetylene plasmas determined by means of optical absorption and emission spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sushkov, Vladimir; Herrendorf, Ann-Pierra; Hippler, Rainer

2016-01-01

Optical emission and absorption spectroscopy has been utilized to investigate the instability of acetylene-containing dusty plasmas induced by growing nano-particles. The density of Ar(1s 5 ) metastable atoms was derived by two methods: tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy and with the help of the branching ratio method of emitted spectral lines. Results of the two techniques agree well with each other. The density of Ar(1s 3 ) metastable atoms was also measured by means of optical emission spectroscopy. The observed growth instability leads to pronounced temporal variations of the metastable and other excited state densities. An analysis of optical line ratios provides evidence for a depletion of free electrons during the growth cycle but no indication for electron temperature variations. (paper)

Beam experiments with state selected Ne (3P0, 3P2) metastable atoms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Verheijen, M.J.

1984-01-01

Metastable rare gas atoms play an important role in all types of plasmas and gas discharges, e.g. in fluorescent lamps and in laser discharges (helium-neon laser or excimer lasers). In this thesis, the metastable states of NeI are studied. First, the theory of excited neon atoms and diatomic molecules is introduced, as well as Penning ionisation. Next, some experimental facilities are described (e.g. the dye laser system). With these instruments, natural lifetime measurements of the 2p fine structure states of NeI are carried out. Results are reported. Finally, total Penning ionisation cross sections are calculated using the optical potential model. (Auth.)

Relaxation height in energy landscapes : an application to multiple metastable states

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cirillo, E.N.M.; Nardi, F.R.

2012-01-01

The study of systems with multiple (not necessarily degenerate) metastable states presents subtle difficulties from the mathematical point of view related to the variational problem that has to be solved in these cases. We introduce the notion of relaxation height in a general energy landscape and

Thermal conductivity of beryllium under low temperature high dose neutron irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chakin, V.P.; Latypov, R.N.; Suslov, D.N.; Kupriyanov, I.B.

2004-01-01

Thermal conductivity of compact beryllium of several Russian grades such as TE-400, TE-56, TE-30, TIP and DIP differing in the production technology, grain size and impurity content has been investigated. The thermal diffusivity of beryllium was measured on the disks in the initial and irradiated conditions using the pulse method in the range from room temperature to 200degC. The thermal conductivity was calculated using the table values for the beryllium thermal capacity. The specimens and beryllium neutron source fragments were irradiation in the SM reactor at 70degC and 200degC to a neutron fluence of (0.5-11.4)·10 22 cm -2 (E>0.1 MeV) and in the BOR-60 reactor at 400degC to 16·10 22 cm -2 (E>0.1MeV), respectively. The low-temperature irradiation leads to the drop decrease of the beryllium thermal conductivity and the effect depends on the irradiation parameters. The paper analyses the effect of irradiation parameters (temperature, neutron fluence), measurement temperature and structural factors on beryllium conductivity. The experiments have revealed that the short time post-irradiation annealing at high temperature results in partial reduction of the thermal conductivity of irradiated beryllium. (author)

Metastability bounds on flavour-violating trilinear soft terms in the MSSM

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Park, Jae-hyeon

2010-11-15

The vacuum stability bounds on flavour-violating trilinear soft terms are revisited from the view-point that one should not ban a standard-model-like false vacuum as long as it is long-lived on a cosmological timescale. The vacuum transition rate is evaluated numerically by searching for the bounce configuration. Like stability, a metastability bound does not decouple even if sfermion masses grow. Apart from being more generous than stability, the new bounds are largely independent of Yukawa couplings except for the stop trilinears. With vacuum longevity imposed on otherwise arbitrary LR insertions, it is found that a super flavour factory has the potential to probe sparticle masses up to a few TeV through B and {tau} physics whereas the MEG experiment might cover a far wider range. In the stop sector, metastability is more restrictive than any existing experimental constraint such as from electroweak precision data. Also discussed are dependency on other parameters and reliability under radiative corrections. (orig.)

Metastability bounds on flavour-violating trilinear soft terms in the MSSM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Jae-hyeon

2010-11-01

The vacuum stability bounds on flavour-violating trilinear soft terms are revisited from the view-point that one should not ban a standard-model-like false vacuum as long as it is long-lived on a cosmological timescale. The vacuum transition rate is evaluated numerically by searching for the bounce configuration. Like stability, a metastability bound does not decouple even if sfermion masses grow. Apart from being more generous than stability, the new bounds are largely independent of Yukawa couplings except for the stop trilinears. With vacuum longevity imposed on otherwise arbitrary LR insertions, it is found that a super flavour factory has the potential to probe sparticle masses up to a few TeV through B and τ physics whereas the MEG experiment might cover a far wider range. In the stop sector, metastability is more restrictive than any existing experimental constraint such as from electroweak precision data. Also discussed are dependency on other parameters and reliability under radiative corrections. (orig.)

Development of radiation fusion technology with food technology by the application of high dose irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Juwoon; Kim, Jaehun; Choi, Jongil

2012-04-01

This study was performed to achieve stable food supply and food safety with radiation fusion technology as a preparation for food weaponization. Results at current stage are following: First, for the development of radiation and food engineering fusion technology using high dose irradiation, the effects of high dose irradiation on food components were evaluated. The combination treatment of irradiation with food engineering was developed. Irradiation condition to destroy radiation resistant foodborne bacteria were determined. Second, for the development of E-beam irradiation technology, the effects of radiation sources on food compounds, processing conditions, and food quality of final products were compared. Food processing conditions for agricultural/aquatic products with different radiation sources was developed and the domination of E-beam irradiation foods were determined. The physical marker for E-beam irradiated foods or not was developed. Third, for the fundamental researches to develop purposed foods to extreme environmental, ready-to-eat foods were developed using high dose irradiation. Food processing for export strategy foods such as process ginseng were developed. Food processing with irradiation to destroy mycotoxin and to inhibit production of mycotoxin was developed. Mathematical models to predict necessary irradiation doses and radiation sources were developed and validated. Through the fundamental researches, the legislation for irradiation approval on meat products, sea foods and dried sea foods, and use of E-beam was introduced. Results from this research project, the followings are expected. Improvement of customer acceptance and activation of irradiation technology by the use of various irradiation rays. Increase of indirect food productivity, and decrease of SOC and improvement of public health by prevention of foodborne outbreaks. Build of SPS/TBT system against imported products and acceleration of domestic product export. Systemized

Development of Radiation Fusion Technology with Food Technology by the Application of High Dose Irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Ju Won; Kim, Jae Hun; Choi, Jong Il

2010-04-01

This study was studied to achieve stable food supply and food safety with radiation fusion technology as a preparation for food weaponization. Results at current stage are following: First, for the development of radiation and food engineering fusion technology using high dose irradiation, the effects of high dose irradiation on food components were evaluated. The combination treatment of irradiation with food engineering were developed. Irradiation condition to destroy radiation resistant food borne bacteria were determined. Second, for the development of E-beam irradiation technology, the effects of radiation sources on food compounds, processing conditions, and food quality of final products were compared. Food processing conditions for agricultural/aquatic products with different radiation sources were developed and the domination of E-beam irradiation foods were determined. The physical marker for E-beam irradiated foods or not were developed. Third, for the fundamental researches to develop purposed foods to extreme environmental, ready-to-eat foods were developed using high dose irradiation. Food processing for export strategy foods such as process ginseng were developed. Food processing with irradiation to destroy mycotoxin and to inhibit production of mycotoxin were developed. Mathematical models to predict necessary irradiation doses and radiation sources were developed and validated. Through the fundamental researches, the legislation for irradiation approval on meat products, sea foods and dried sea foods, and use of E-beam were introduced. Results from this research project, the followings are expected. (1) Improvement of customer acceptance and activation of irradiation technology by the use of various irradiation rays. (2) Increase of indirect food productivity, and decrease of SOC and improvement of public health by prevention of food borne outbreaks. (3) Build of SPS/TBT system against imported products and acceleration of domestic product export

Development of Radiation Fusion Technology with Food Technology by the Application of High Dose Irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Ju Won; Kim, Jae Hun; Choi, Jong Il

2010-04-15

This study was studied to achieve stable food supply and food safety with radiation fusion technology as a preparation for food weaponization. Results at current stage are following: First, for the development of radiation and food engineering fusion technology using high dose irradiation, the effects of high dose irradiation on food components were evaluated. The combination treatment of irradiation with food engineering were developed. Irradiation condition to destroy radiation resistant food borne bacteria were determined. Second, for the development of E-beam irradiation technology, the effects of radiation sources on food compounds, processing conditions, and food quality of final products were compared. Food processing conditions for agricultural/aquatic products with different radiation sources were developed and the domination of E-beam irradiation foods were determined. The physical marker for E-beam irradiated foods or not were developed. Third, for the fundamental researches to develop purposed foods to extreme environmental, ready-to-eat foods were developed using high dose irradiation. Food processing for export strategy foods such as process ginseng were developed. Food processing with irradiation to destroy mycotoxin and to inhibit production of mycotoxin were developed. Mathematical models to predict necessary irradiation doses and radiation sources were developed and validated. Through the fundamental researches, the legislation for irradiation approval on meat products, sea foods and dried sea foods, and use of E-beam were introduced. Results from this research project, the followings are expected. (1) Improvement of customer acceptance and activation of irradiation technology by the use of various irradiation rays. (2) Increase of indirect food productivity, and decrease of SOC and improvement of public health by prevention of food borne outbreaks. (3) Build of SPS/TBT system against imported products and acceleration of domestic product export

Development of radiation fusion technology with food technology by the application of high dose irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Juwoon; Kim, Jaehun; Choi, Jongil; and others

2012-04-15

This study was performed to achieve stable food supply and food safety with radiation fusion technology as a preparation for food weaponization. Results at current stage are following: First, for the development of radiation and food engineering fusion technology using high dose irradiation, the effects of high dose irradiation on food components were evaluated. The combination treatment of irradiation with food engineering was developed. Irradiation condition to destroy radiation resistant foodborne bacteria were determined. Second, for the development of E-beam irradiation technology, the effects of radiation sources on food compounds, processing conditions, and food quality of final products were compared. Food processing conditions for agricultural/aquatic products with different radiation sources was developed and the domination of E-beam irradiation foods were determined. The physical marker for E-beam irradiated foods or not was developed. Third, for the fundamental researches to develop purposed foods to extreme environmental, ready-to-eat foods were developed using high dose irradiation. Food processing for export strategy foods such as process ginseng were developed. Food processing with irradiation to destroy mycotoxin and to inhibit production of mycotoxin was developed. Mathematical models to predict necessary irradiation doses and radiation sources were developed and validated. Through the fundamental researches, the legislation for irradiation approval on meat products, sea foods and dried sea foods, and use of E-beam was introduced. Results from this research project, the followings are expected. Improvement of customer acceptance and activation of irradiation technology by the use of various irradiation rays. Increase of indirect food productivity, and decrease of SOC and improvement of public health by prevention of foodborne outbreaks. Build of SPS/TBT system against imported products and acceleration of domestic product export. Systemized

Thermal effects on tenebrio molitor and lawn irradiated by high power centimeter wave

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Jie; Han Lijun; Qi Hongxing; Chen Shude; Qiao Dengjiang

2008-01-01

A system of high power centimeter wave(HPCW) was built up. The temperature change of tenebrio molitor and lawn was sampled during HPCW irradiation. It is shown that the relationship between the temperature increase of tenebrio molitor and irradiation time is approximately linear, and the relationship between the temperature increase of lawn and irradiation time is nonlinear. It is also considered that the temperature of lawn increases faster than that of tenebrio molitor does during the earlier stage of irradiation. The death percentage of tenebrio molitor and injury rate of lawn irradiated by HPCW could be fitted by normal distribution. The fitting curves of relations between death rate and irradiation time and between death rate and temperature are presented. (authors)

Self-ion emulation of high dose neutron irradiated microstructure in stainless steels

Science.gov (United States)

Jiao, Z.; Michalicka, J.; Was, G. S.

2018-04-01

Solution-annealed 304L stainless steel (SS) was irradiated to 130 dpa at 380 °C, and to 15 dpa at 500 °C and 600 °C, and cold-worked 316 SS (CW 316 SS) was irradiated to 130 dpa at 380 °C using 5 MeV Fe++/Ni++ to produce microstructures and radiation-induced segregation (RIS) for comparison with that from neutron irradiation at 320 °C to 46 dpa in the BOR60 reactor. For the 304L SS alloy, self-ion irradiation at 380 °C produced a dislocation loop microstructure that was comparable to that by neutron irradiation. No voids were observed in either the 380 °C self-ion irradiation or the neutron irradiation conditions. Irradiation at 600 °C produced the best match to radiation-induced segregation of Cr and Ni with the neutron irradiation, consistent with the prediction of a large temperature shift by Mansur's invariant relations for RIS. For the CW 316 SS alloy irradiated to 130 dpa at 380 °C, both the irradiated microstructure (dislocation loops, precipitates and voids) and RIS reasonably matched the neutron-irradiated sample. The smaller temperature shift for RIS in CW 316 SS was likely due to the high sink (dislocation) density induced by the cold work. A single self-ion irradiation condition at a dose rate ∼1000× that in reactor does not match both dislocation loops and RIS in solution-annealed 304L SS. However, a single irradiation temperature produced a reasonable match with both the dislocation/precipitate microstructure and RIS in CW 316 SS, indicating that sink density is a critical factor in determining the temperature shift for self-ion irradiations.

Experimental determination of the constitutive behaviour of a metastable austenitic stainless steel

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Post, J.; Nolles, H.; Datta, K.; Datta, K.; Geijselaers, Hubertus J.M.

2008-01-01

This article presents measurements to describe the constitutive behaviour of a semi-austenitic precipitation hardenable stainless steel called Sandvik Nanoflex™, during metal forming and hardening. The material is metastable, which causes strain-induced transformation during forming. Depending on

Production of nanodiamonds by high-energy ion irradiation of graphite at room temperature

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Daulton, T.L.; Kirk, M.A.; Lewis, R.S.; Rehn, L.E.

2001-01-01

It has previously been shown that graphite can be transformed into diamond by MeV electron and ion irradiation at temperatures above approximately 600 deg. C. However, there exists geological evidence suggesting that carbonaceous materials can be transformed to diamond by irradiation at substantially lower temperatures. For example, submicron-size diamond aggregates have been found in uranium-rich, Precambrian carbonaceous deposits that never experienced high temperature or pressure. To test if diamonds can be formed at lower irradiation temperatures, sheets of fine-grain polycrystalline graphite were bombarded at 20 deg. C with 350±50 MeV Kr ions to fluences of 6x10 12 cm -2 using the Argonne tandem linear accelerator system (ATLAS). Ion-irradiated (and unirradiated control) graphite specimens were then subjected to acid dissolution treatments to remove untransformed graphite and isolate diamonds that were produced; these acid residues were subsequently characterized by high-resolution and analytical electron microscopy. The acid residue of the ion-irradiated graphite was found to contain nanodiamonds, demonstrating that ion irradiation of graphite at ambient temperature can produce diamond. The diamond yield under our irradiation conditions is low, ∼0.01 diamonds/ion. An important observation that emerges from comparing the present result with previous observations of diamond formation during irradiation is that nanodiamonds form under a surprisingly wide range of irradiation conditions. This propensity may be related to the very small difference in the graphite and diamond free-energies coupled with surface-energy considerations that may alter the relative stability of diamond and graphite at nanometer sizes

Evolution of metastable state molecules N{sub 2}(A{sup 3}{Sigma}{sub u}{sup +}) in a nanosecond pulsed discharge: A particle-in-cell/Monte Carlo collisions simulation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gao Liang; Sun Jizhong; Feng Chunlei; Bai Jing; Ding Hongbin [School of Physics and Optical Electronic Technology, Key Laboratory of Materials Modification by Laser, Ion, and Electron Beams, Chinese Ministry of Education, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024 (China)

2012-01-15

A particle-in-cell plus Monte Carlo collisions method has been employed to investigate the nitrogen discharge driven by a nanosecond pulse power source. To assess whether the production of the metastable state N{sub 2}(A{sup 3}{Sigma}{sub u}{sup +}) can be efficiently enhanced in a nanosecond pulsed discharge, the evolutions of metastable state N{sub 2}(A{sup 3}{Sigma}{sub u}{sup +}) density and electron energy distribution function have been examined in detail. The simulation results indicate that the ultra short pulse can modulate the electron energy effectively: during the early pulse-on time, high energy electrons give rise to quick electron avalanche and rapid growth of the metastable state N{sub 2}(A{sup 3}{Sigma}{sub u}{sup +}) density. It is estimated that for a single pulse with amplitude of -9 kV and pulse width 30 ns, the metastable state N{sub 2}(A{sup 3}{Sigma}{sub u}{sup +}) density can achieve a value in the order of 10{sup 9} cm{sup -3}. The N{sub 2}(A{sup 3}{Sigma}{sub u}{sup +}) density at such a value could be easily detected by laser-based experimental methods.

Surface modification of ceramic materials induced by irradiation of high power pulsed ICP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishigaki, Takamasa; Okada, Nobuhiro; Ohashi, Naoki; Haneda, Hajime

2003-01-01

Newly developed pulse-modulated high-power inductively coupled plasma [ICP] is expected to offer the unique physico-chemical condition, such as the increased concentration of chemically reactive species, as well as the appropriate heat flux for materials processing. Two kinds of oxide materials, titanium and zinc oxide, were placed at the downstream of Ar-H 2 ICP and irradiated in the plasma of continuous [CN] and pulse-modulated [PM] modes. The CN-ICP irradiation at the position close to the plasma tail gave rise to the thermal reduction of oxides. In the PM-ICP irradiation, the degree of thermal reduction depended on the lower power level during pulse-off time, as well as the total electric power. Irradiation in PM-ICP led to the increased formation of oxygen vacancies in titanium dioxide. In the case of zinc oxide, the UV emission efficiency was improved by PM-ICP irradiation, while the green emission became predominant by CN-ICP irradiation at the appropriate position. Induced effects in the two oxides by PM-ICP would be related to the high concentration of hydrogen radicals in the plasma. (author)

Time-dose relationship of erythema in high energy photon irradiation therapy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kobayashi, Hidetoshi (Gifu Prefectural Tajimi Hospital (Japan)); Sakuma, Sadayuki

1992-01-01

Skin doses of 100 patients who were treated with high energy ionizing irradiation during conventional irradiation therapy were measured by thermoluminescence dosimeter (TLD). In 87 of the 100 patients, acute hyperemic change of the skin (erythema) of the irradiated region was observed. In the other 13 patients, alopetia of the scalp was observed. The following conclusions were reached. The time-dose relationship was linear when erythema tolerance was used as an index, but not when alopecia was used. The tolerance dose for erythema was lower than previously reported. The slope of the isoeffect curve on the log-log plot of total absorbed skin dose against total number of days after the first irradiation was 0.68 when erythema was used as an index. This number is larger than previously reported results. We considered that erythema is significantly influenced by fraction size and that hyperfractionation is a promising method of irradiation, especially in Japan. Combined use of chemotherapeutic agents, such as 5-FU, accelerated erythema. The slope of combined treatment was 0.86. Observing acute hyperemic change of skin is considered to be a useful method of investigating the combined effects of chemotherapeutic agents on irradiation. (author).

Fragmentations and rearrangements of metastable [C2H5OS]+ ions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Vries, Marcel; Oudman, D; Weringa, WD

1992-01-01

Several [C2H5OS]+ ions with different structures were generated from the appropriate precursors and their metastable ion spectra were determined. Deuterium labelled analogues of some of the [C2H5OS]+ ions were used to elucidate the nature of the observed fragmentations and their mechanisms.

High-field/ high-frequency EPR study on stable free radicals formed in sucrose by gamma-irradiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Georgieva, Elka R; Pardi, Luca; Jeschke, Gunnar; Gatteschi, Dante; Sorace, Lorenzo; Yordanov, Nicola D

2006-06-01

The EPR spectrum of sucrose irradiated by high-energy radiation is complex due to the presence of more than one radical species. In order to decompose the spectrum and elucidate the radical magnetic parameters a high-field (HF(-)EPR) study on stable free radicals in gamma-irradiated polycrystalline sucrose (table sugar) was performed at three different high frequencies--94, 190 and 285 GHz as well as at the conventional X-band. We suggest a presence of three stable radicals R1, R2 and R3 as the main radical species. Due to the increase of g-factor resolution at high fields the g-tensors of these radicals could be extracted by accurate simulations. The moderate g-anisotropy suggests that all three radicals are carbon-centred. Results from an earlier ENDOR study on X-irradiated sucrose single crystals (Vanhaelewyn et al., Appl Radiat Isot, 52, 1221 (2000)) were used for analyzing of the spectra in more details. It was confirmed that the strongest hyperfine interaction has a relatively small anisotropy, which indicates either the absence of alpha-protons or a strongly distorted geometry of the radicals.

Defect characterization in high-purity silicon after γ- and hadron irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stahl, J.

2004-07-01

The challenge for silicon particle detectors in future high energy physics experiments caused by extreme radiation fields can only be met by an appropriate defect engineering of the starting material. Appreciable improvements had already been obtained by enriching high resistivity float zone silicon with oxygen as demonstrated by the CERN RD48 collaboration. This thesis will focus on the difference observed after irradiation between standard and oxygenated float zone and detector grade Czochralski silicon. Results obtained with diodes manufactured on epitaxial layers are also included, envisioning effects arising from the possible migration of impurities during the crystal growth from the oxygen rich Czochralski substrate. Deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) and thermally stimulated current (TSC) measurements have been performed for defect characterization after γ- and hadron irradiation. Also a new high resolution DLTS technique has been used for the first time to separate defect levels with similar parameters. During the microscopic studies additionally to the well known defects like VO i , V 2 , C i O i or VP, four new radiation induced defects have been discovered and characterized. Two of these defects are closely correlated with the detector performance: A deep acceptor labeled as I-defect, and a bistable donor (BD). The formation of the I-defect is strongly suppressed in oxygen rich materials, while the formation of the BD is suppressed in oxygen lean material. With their properties the I- and the BD-defect are able to explain the different macroscopic behavior of standard and oxygen enriched float zone silicon after γ-irradiation. Furthermore, the BD defect is most probably responsible for the observation that in Cz and Epi diodes space charge sign inversion does not occur even after high fluences of proton irradiation. Additionally the γ-irradiated diodes were annealed at temperatures between 100 C and 350 C. During these studies some new reaction

Experimental confirmation of photon-induced spin-flip transitions in helium via triplet metastable yield spectra

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rubensson, Jan-Erik; Moise, Angelica; Richter, Robert; Mihelic, Andrej; Bucar, Klemen; Zitnik, Matjaz

2010-01-01

Doubly excited states below the N=2 ionization threshold are populated by exciting helium atoms in a supersonic beam with monochromatized synchrotron radiation. The fluorescence decay of these states triggers a radiative cascade back to the ground state with large probability to populate long lived singlet and triplet helium metastable states. The yield of metastables is measured using a multichannel plate detector after the beam has passed a singlet-quenching discharge lamp. The variation of the yield observed with the lamp switched on or off is related to the triplet-singlet mixing of the doubly excited states.

Stable and metastable equilibria in PbSe + SnI2=SnSe + PbI2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Odin, I.N.; Grin'ko, V.V.; Kozlovskij, V.F.; Demidova, E.D.

2003-01-01

T-x-y phase diagrams of the PbSe + SnI 2 =SnSe + PbI 2 mutual system (stable states) are plotted for the first time. It is shown that melt, solid solutions on the base of components of the mutual system and phase on the base of Sn 2 SeI 4 take part in phase equilibria. Transformations in the PbSe + SnI 2 =SnSe + PbI 2 mutual system leading to crystallization of metastable polytype modifications of lead iodides and metastable ternary compound forming in PbSe-PbI 2 system are investigated for the first time [ru

Radiation defects in InN irradiated with high-energy electrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhivul'ko, V.D.; Mudryj, A.V.; Yakushev, M.V.; Martin, R.; Shaff, V.; Lu, Kh.; Gurskij, A.L.

2013-01-01

The influence of high energy (6 MeV, fluencies 10 15 – 10 18 cm -2 ) electron irradiation on the fundamental absorption and luminescence properties of InN thin films which were grown on sapphire substrates by molecular bean epitaxial has been studied. It is found that electron irradiation increases the electron concentration and band gap energy E g of InN. The shift of the band gap energy E g is a manifestation of the Burshtein-Mossa effect. (authors)

Fluxes, hierarchies, and metastable vacua in supersymmetric field theories

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bruemmer, F.

2008-02-06

This thesis concerns topics both in low-energy effective field theories from type IIB superstring flux compactifications and in four-dimensional, rigidly supersymmetric gauge theories. We introduce flux compactifications with so-called ''warped throat'' regions, which lead to large hierarchies of scales in the effective four-dimensional theory. The correspondence between a particular such throat and a five-dimensional Randall-Sundrum-like model is established. We shown how certain string-theoretic features of the compactification, such as moduli stabilization by fluxes or the presence of an unstabilized Kaehler modulus, are incorporated in the five-dimensional picture. The KKLT construction for metastable de Sitter vacua is reviewed, as well as some possible modifications involving spontaneous F-term supersymmetry breaking. For KKLT-like models with their hidden sector localized inside a throat, the mediation of supersymmetry breaking to the visible sector is investigated. We review the mechanism of mixed modulus-anomaly mediation, and show that there can be additional equally important gravity-mediated contributions. We finally turn to the ISS model of metastable dynamical supersymmetry breaking in four dimensions, and present a renormalizable extension which generates a large hierarchy naturally. We also recapitulate how the ISS model may be obtained from a type IIB superstring model. (orig.)

Fluxes, hierarchies, and metastable vacua in supersymmetric field theories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bruemmer, F.

2008-01-01

This thesis concerns topics both in low-energy effective field theories from type IIB superstring flux compactifications and in four-dimensional, rigidly supersymmetric gauge theories. We introduce flux compactifications with so-called ''warped throat'' regions, which lead to large hierarchies of scales in the effective four-dimensional theory. The correspondence between a particular such throat and a five-dimensional Randall-Sundrum-like model is established. We shown how certain string-theoretic features of the compactification, such as moduli stabilization by fluxes or the presence of an unstabilized Kaehler modulus, are incorporated in the five-dimensional picture. The KKLT construction for metastable de Sitter vacua is reviewed, as well as some possible modifications involving spontaneous F-term supersymmetry breaking. For KKLT-like models with their hidden sector localized inside a throat, the mediation of supersymmetry breaking to the visible sector is investigated. We review the mechanism of mixed modulus-anomaly mediation, and show that there can be additional equally important gravity-mediated contributions. We finally turn to the ISS model of metastable dynamical supersymmetry breaking in four dimensions, and present a renormalizable extension which generates a large hierarchy naturally. We also recapitulate how the ISS model may be obtained from a type IIB superstring model. (orig.)

Tensorial analysis of the long-range interaction between metastable alkaline-earth-metal atoms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Santra, Robin; Greene, Chris H.

2003-01-01

Alkaline-earth-metal atoms in their lowest (nsnp) 3 P 2 state are exceptionally long lived and can be trapped magnetically. The nonspherical atomic structure leads to anisotropic long-range interactions between two metastable alkaline-earth-metal atoms. The anisotropy affects the rotational motion of the diatomic system and couples states of different rotational quantum numbers. This paper develops a tensorial decomposition of the most important long-range interaction operators, and a systematic inclusion of molecular rotations, in the presence of an external magnetic field. This analysis illuminates the nature of the coupling between the various degrees of freedom. The consequences are illustrated by application to a system of practical interest: metastable 88 Sr. Using atomic parameters determined in a nearly ab initio calculation, we compute adiabatic potential-energy curves. The anisotropic interatomic interaction, in combination with the applied magnetic field, is demonstrated to induce the formation of a long-range molecular potential well. This curve correlates to two fully polarized, low-field seeking atoms in a rotational s-wave state. The coupling among molecular rotational states controls the existence of the potential well, and its properties vary as a function of magnetic-field strength, thus allowing the scattering length in this state to be tuned. The scattering length of metastable 88 Sr displays a resonance at a field of 339 G

Examination of the metastable and stable pitting corrosion of aluminum modified with carbon by ion beam techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lensch, O.; Enders, B.; Knecht, J.; Ensinger, W.

2001-01-01

It is well known that aluminum and aluminum alloys are sensitive to pitting corrosion when exposed to aqueous solutions containing aggressive anions like halides. The destructive nature of pitting is due to its high local dissolution rates at electrode potentials above the so-called pitting potential U p . Recently, it has been realized that also at potentials below U p , in the passive and cathodic regions and around the free corrosion potential, anodic current transients appear which have been attributed to metastable pitting events. For the purpose of full characterization of the pitting behavior, a program routine has been developed where the occurrence frequency, lifetime and rate of metastable pitting events are extracted from potentiostatic current/time-measurements depending on the electrode potential. The routine has been applied to measurements of carbon modified pure aluminum. Carbon modifications were done with carbon evaporation and carbon sputtering under concurrent argon ion bombardment. The results are discussed in terms of the applied modification technique, their parameters and their effects on the corrosion protection ability of aluminum modified by carbon

Immediate remediation of heavy metal (Cr(VI)) contaminated soil by high energy electron beam irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Jing; Zhang, Guilong; Cai, Dongqing; Wu, Zhengyan

2015-01-01

Highlights: • An immediate remediation method for Cr(VI) contaminated soil (CCS) was developed. • High energy electron beam (HEEB) irradiation could reduce Cr(VI) in CCS to Cr(III). • This effect was attributed to electrons, hydrated electrons, and reductive radicals. • This remediation method was effective, environmentally friendly, and low-cost. - Abstract: This work developed an immediate and high-performance remediation method for Cr(VI) contaminated soil (CCS) using high energy electron beam (HEEB) irradiation. The result indicated that, compared with γ-ray irradiation, HEEB irradiation displayed a significant reduction efficiency on Cr(VI) in CCS to Cr(III) with substantially lower toxicity, which was mainly attributed to the reduction effects of electrons, hydrated electrons, and reductive radicals generated in the irradiation process of HEEB. This work could provide a one-step and effective method for the remediation of heavy metal contaminated soil (HMCS)

Immediate remediation of heavy metal (Cr(VI)) contaminated soil by high energy electron beam irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Jing; Zhang, Guilong [Key Laboratory of Ion Beam Bioengineering, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Anhui Province, Hefei 230031 (China); Bioenergy Forest Research Center of State Forestry Administration, Hefei 230031 (China); Cai, Dongqing, E-mail: dqcai@ipp.ac.cn [Key Laboratory of Ion Beam Bioengineering, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Anhui Province, Hefei 230031 (China); Bioenergy Forest Research Center of State Forestry Administration, Hefei 230031 (China); Wu, Zhengyan, E-mail: zywu@ipp.ac.cn [Key Laboratory of Ion Beam Bioengineering, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Anhui Province, Hefei 230031 (China); Bioenergy Forest Research Center of State Forestry Administration, Hefei 230031 (China)

2015-03-21

Highlights: • An immediate remediation method for Cr(VI) contaminated soil (CCS) was developed. • High energy electron beam (HEEB) irradiation could reduce Cr(VI) in CCS to Cr(III). • This effect was attributed to electrons, hydrated electrons, and reductive radicals. • This remediation method was effective, environmentally friendly, and low-cost. - Abstract: This work developed an immediate and high-performance remediation method for Cr(VI) contaminated soil (CCS) using high energy electron beam (HEEB) irradiation. The result indicated that, compared with γ-ray irradiation, HEEB irradiation displayed a significant reduction efficiency on Cr(VI) in CCS to Cr(III) with substantially lower toxicity, which was mainly attributed to the reduction effects of electrons, hydrated electrons, and reductive radicals generated in the irradiation process of HEEB. This work could provide a one-step and effective method for the remediation of heavy metal contaminated soil (HMCS)

Tensile stress corrosion cracking of type 304 stainless steel irradiated to very high dose

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chung, H. M.; Ruther, W. E.; Strain, R. V.; Shack, W. J.

2001-09-01

Certain safety-related core internal structural components of light water reactors, usually fabricated from Type 304 or 316 austenitic stainless steels (SSs), accumulate very high levels of irradiation damage (20--100 displacement per atom or dpa) by the end of life. The data bases and mechanistic understanding of, the degradation of such highly irradiated components, however, are not well established. A key question is the nature of irradiation-assisted intergranular cracking at very high dose, i.e., is it purely mechanical failure or is it stress-commotion cracking? In this work, hot-cell tests and microstructural characterization were performed on Type 304 SS from the hexagonal fuel can of the decommissioned EBR-11 reactor after irradiation to {approximately}50 dpa at {approximately}370 C. Slow-strain-rate tensile tests were conducted at 289 C in air and in water at several levels of electrochemical potential (ECP), and microstructural characteristics were analyzed by scanning and transmission electron microcopies. The material deformed significantly by twinning and exhibited surprisingly high ductility in air, but was susceptible to severe intergranular stress corrosion cracking (IGSCC) at high ECP. Low levels of dissolved O and ECP were effective in suppressing the susceptibility of the heavily irradiated material to IGSCC, indicating that the stress corrosion process associated with irradiation-induced grain-boundary Cr depletion, rather than purely mechanical separation of grain boundaries, plays the dominant role. However, although IGSCC was suppressed, the material was susceptible to dislocation channeling at low ECP, and this susceptibility led to poor work-hardening capability and low ductility.

Phase stability and microstructures of high entropy alloys ion irradiated to high doses

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xia, Songqin [State Key Laboratory for Advanced Metals and Materials, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, 100083 (China); Gao, Michael C. [National Energy Technology Laboratory, 1450 Queen Ave SW, Albany, OR, 97321 (United States); AECOM, P.O. Box 1959, Albany, OR, 97321 (United States); Yang, Tengfei [State Key Laboratory of Nuclear Physics and Technology, Center for Applied Physics and Technology, Peking University, Beijing, 100871 (China); Liaw, Peter K. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996 (United States); Zhang, Yong, E-mail: drzhangy@ustb.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory for Advanced Metals and Materials, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, 100083 (China)

2016-11-15

The microstructures of Al{sub x}CoCrFeNi (x = 0.1, 0.75 and 1.5 in molar ratio) high entropy alloys (HEAs) irradiated at room temperature with 3 MeV Au ions at the highest fluence of 105, 91, and 81 displacement per atom, respectively, were studied. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high-resolution TEM (HRTEM) analyses show that the initial microstructures and phase composition of all three alloys are retained after ion irradiation and no phase decomposition is observed. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that the disordered face-centered cubic (FCC) and disordered body-centered cubic (BCC) phases show much less defect cluster formation and structural damage than the NiAl-type ordered B2 phase. This effect is explained by higher entropy of mixing, higher defect formation/migration energies, substantially lower thermal conductivity, and higher atomic level stress in the disordered phases.

Charge collection and charge pulse formation in highly irradiated silicon planar detectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dezillie, B.; Li, Z.; Eremin, V.

1998-06-01

The interpretation of experimental data and predictions for future experiments for high-energy physics have been based on conventional methods like capacitance versus voltage (C-V) measurements. Experiments carried out on highly irradiated detectors show that the kinetics of the charge collection and the dependence of the charge pulse amplitude on the applied bias are deviated too far from those predicted by the conventional methods. The described results show that in highly irradiated detectors, at a bias lower than the real full depletion voltage (V fd ), the kinetics of the charge collection (Q) contains a fast and a slow component. At V = V fd *, which is the full depletion voltage traditionally determined by the extrapolation of the fast component amplitude of q versus bias to the maximum value or from the standard C-V measurements, the pulse has a slow component with significant amplitude. This slow component can only be eliminated by applying additional bias that amounts to the real full depletion voltage (V fd ) or more. The above mentioned regularities are explained in this paper in terms of a model of an irradiated detector with multiple regions. This model allows one to use C-V, in a modified way, as well as TChT (transient charge technique) measurements to determine the V fd for highly irradiated detectors

Analysis of volatile organic compounds and sensory characteristics of pork loin samples irradiated to high doses

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hou Zhengchi; Sun Dakuan; Qin Zongying; Jin Jiang; Zhu Liandi; Yao Side; Sheng Kanglong

2005-01-01

Fresh pork loin samples, protein enzyme inactivated at (72 ± 3) degree C and vacuum packaged, were irradiated to up to 45 kGy at -20 degree C by 60 Co γ-rays. The irradiated samples were examined by various kinds of method to study high dose irradiation effects of sensory changes (meat color and off-odor), transverse shearing strength, weight loss in steam cooking, volatile organic compounds, and lipid oxidation. The results showed that the high dose irradiation produced no serious effects to the pork loin samples, and volunteer responses showed fine acceptability to the irradiated meat. (authors)

Metastable electroweak vacuum. Implications for inflation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lebedev, Oleg; Westphal, Alexander

2012-10-01

Within the Standard Model, the current Higgs and top quark data favor metastability of the electroweak vacuum, although the uncertainties are still significant. The true vacuum is many orders of magnitude deeper than ours and the barrier separating the two is tiny compared to the depth of the well. This raises a cosmological question: how did the Higgs field get trapped in the shallow minimum and why did it stay there during inflation? The Higgs initial conditions before inflation must be fine-tuned to about one part in 10 8 in order for the Higgs field to end up in the right vacuum. In this note, we show that these problems can be resolved if there is a small positive coupling between the Higgs and the inflaton.

Ab initio study of metastability of Eu{sup 3+} defect complexes in GaN

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ouma, Cecil N.M., E-mail: Cecil.Ouma@up.ac.za; Meyer, Walter E.

2014-04-15

Density functional theory (DFT) within the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) has been used to study the structural and electronic properties of Eu{sup 3+} defect complexes in GaN under Ga-rich conditions. Two distinct configurations of the Eu{sub Ga}V{sub N} defect complex, the axial and basal configuration, have been investigated. We report two forms of metastable defects namely; the Negative U defect in the lower half of the GaN band-gap and a metastable defect with two distinct configurations each with levels at E{sub C} −0.46 eV and −0.56 eV in the upper half of the GaN band-gap.

The application of high dose food irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bruyn, I. De

1997-01-01

During the 1950's to end 1970's the United States Army developed the basic methodology to produce shelf stable irradiated meat, seafood and poultry products. These products are normally packed without gravy, sauce or brine, as liquid is not required to sterilize the product as in the canning process. This leads to the distinctive 'dried cooked' taste normally associated with roasts opposed to the casserole taste usually associated with tinned meats. The meats are cooked, chilled, portioned, vacuum packed and irradiated to the required minimum dose of 25 to 45 kGy (depending on the product) at a temperature of between -20 and -40 Centigrade to ensure absolute sterility even under tropical conditions. The product is packaged in a high quality four layer laminate pouch and will therefore not rust or burst even under adverse weather conditions. The product can be guaranteed for more than two years as long as the integrity of the packaging is maintained. (Author)

The application of high dose food irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bruyn, I. De [Atomic Energy Corporation of South Africa LTD, Building 2000, P.O. Box 582, Pretoria 0001, (South Africa)

1997-12-31

During the 1950`s to end 1970`s the United States Army developed the basic methodology to produce shelf stable irradiated meat, seafood and poultry products. These products are normally packed without gravy, sauce or brine, as liquid is not required to sterilize the product as in the canning process. This leads to the distinctive `dried cooked` taste normally associated with roasts opposed to the casserole taste usually associated with tinned meats. The meats are cooked, chilled, portioned, vacuum packed and irradiated to the required minimum dose of 25 to 45 kGy (depending on the product) at a temperature of between -20 and -40 Centigrade to ensure absolute sterility even under tropical conditions. The product is packaged in a high quality four layer laminate pouch and will therefore not rust or burst even under adverse weather conditions. The product can be guaranteed for more than two years as long as the integrity of the packaging is maintained. (Author)

Determination of metastable fraction in an ion beam extracted from ECR plasma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matsumoto, Atsushi; Ohtani, Shunsuke; Iwai, Tsuruji.

1982-04-01

The fraction of metastable-state Ar 2 + (3p 4 1 D) ions in Ar 2 + beam has been determined by an optical attenuation method (OAM) combined with the conventional beam attenuation method. The present OAM is based on observation of spatial decay of specified emission line intensities arising from charge-changed ions, along the beam axis in a target gas cell. The validity of the OAM is discussed in detail. The cross sections for one-electron capture by the ground-state Ar 2 + ( 3 P) ions, σ 21 , and by the metastable-state Ar 2 + ( 1 D) ions, σ 21 *, from Na have been measured independently by the OAM. Both the cross sections are of the order of 10 - 14 cm 2 and σ 21 * is about 1.3 times as large as σ 21 at the collision energy of 1.5 keV. (author)

High-fluence hyperthermal ion irradiation of gallium nitride surfaces at elevated temperatures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Finzel, A.; Gerlach, J.W., E-mail: juergen.gerlach@iom-leipzig.de; Lorbeer, J.; Frost, F.; Rauschenbach, B.

2014-10-30

Highlights: • Irradiation of gallium nitride films with hyperthermal nitrogen ions. • Surface roughening at elevated sample temperatures was observed. • No thermal decomposition of gallium nitride films during irradiation. • Asymmetric surface diffusion processes cause local roughening. - Abstract: Wurtzitic GaN films deposited on 6H-SiC(0001) substrates by ion-beam assisted molecular-beam epitaxy were irradiated with hyperthermal nitrogen ions with different fluences at different substrate temperatures. In situ observations with reflection high energy electron diffraction showed that during the irradiation process the surface structure of the GaN films changed from two dimensional to three dimensional at elevated temperatures, but not at room temperature. Atomic force microscopy revealed an enhancement of nanometric holes and canyons upon the ion irradiation at higher temperatures. The roughness of the irradiated and heated GaN films was clearly increased by the ion irradiation in accordance with x-ray reflectivity measurements. A sole thermal decomposition of the films at the chosen temperatures could be excluded. The results are discussed taking into account temperature dependent sputtering and surface uphill adatom diffusion as a function of temperature.

Fractal characteristics of fracture morphology of steels irradiated with high-energy ions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xian, Yongqiang; Liu, Juan [Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Science, Lanzhou 730000 (China); University of Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing 100049 (China); Zhang, Chonghong, E-mail: c.h.zhang@impcas.ac.cn [Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Science, Lanzhou 730000 (China); Chen, Jiachao [Paul Scherrer Institute, Villigen PSI (Switzerland); Yang, Yitao; Zhang, Liqing; Song, Yin [Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Science, Lanzhou 730000 (China)

2015-06-15

Highlights: • Fractal dimensions of fracture surfaces of steels before and after irradiation were calculated. • Fractal dimension can effectively describe change of fracture surfaces induced by irradiation. • Correlation of change of fractal dimension with embrittlement of irradiated steels is discussed. - Abstract: A fractal analysis of fracture surfaces of steels (a ferritic/martensitic steel and an oxide-dispersion-strengthened ferritic steel) before and after the irradiation with high-energy ions is presented. Fracture surfaces were acquired from a tensile test and a small-ball punch test (SP). Digital images of the fracture surfaces obtained from scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to calculate the fractal dimension (FD) by using the pixel covering method. Boundary of binary image and fractal dimension were determined with a MATLAB program. The results indicate that fractal dimension can be an effective parameter to describe the characteristics of fracture surfaces before and after irradiation. The rougher the fracture surface, the larger the fractal dimension. Correlation of the change of fractal dimension with the embrittlement of the irradiated steels is discussed.

Effect of high fluence neutron irradiation on transport properties of thermoelectrics

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, H.; Leonard, K. J.

2017-07-01

Thermoelectric materials were subjected to high fluence neutron irradiation in order to understand the effect of radiation damage on transport properties. This study is relevant to the NASA Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (RTG) program in which thermoelectric elements are exposed to radiation over a long period of time in space missions. Selected n-type and p-type bismuth telluride materials were irradiated at the High Flux Isotope Reactor with a neutron fluence of 1.3 × 1018 n/cm2 (E > 0.1 MeV). The increase in the Seebeck coefficient in the n-type material was partially off-set by an increase in electrical resistivity, making the power factor higher at lower temperatures. For the p-type materials, although the Seebeck coefficient was not affected by irradiation, electrical resistivity decreased slightly. The figure of merit, zT, showed a clear drop in the 300-400 K range for the p-type material and an increase for the n-type material. Considering that the p-type and n-type materials are connected in series in a module, the overall irradiation damages at the device level were limited. These results, at neutron fluences exceeding a typical space mission, are significant to ensure that the radiation damage to thermoelectrics does not affect the performance of RTGs.

The propagation of ionization waves - influenced by irradiation of suitable wavelength

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weltmann, K.D.; Deutsch, H.; Schmeissel, J.; Wilke, C.

1995-01-01

The impact of external irradiation mainly at metastable transitions on the propagation of ionization waves in the positive column of a neon a low discharge is investigated. Effects of hysteresis, regions of existence of moving striations and the static current/voltage characteristic depending on the external circuit and on the axial location of the applied irradiation are observed experimentally. The many published experimental contributions show that the presence of striations - either standing or moving - is the normal situation in the diffusion range of pressure and that the homogeneous (i.e. striation free) positive column is the exception existing only for a limited range of currents and pressures. A slight change of one or the other of these parameters results in a transition from the homogeneous column to one containing moving striations or vice versa. Different types of moving striations are known (p-,r- and s- waves) which differ in the product of wavelength λ and the electric field strength E (Novak-constant). It is assumed, that the metastable atoms are responsible for the appearance of p-waves and therefore the discharge was operated at a pressure of p 0 = 1,7 Torr-cm and dc-discharge currents i 0 = 1-20 mA. The length of the glass discharge tube was 1 = 500 mm with radius r 0 = 1 cm. A hollow cathode and a plane electrode were used. The external resistance was varied between 20 kOhm and 1 MOhm additionally. The radiation of suitable wavelength was generated by a second discharge tube with emissive electrodes operated at a pressure of about 5 Torr-cm and discharge currents between 0,5A and 2A. Two hollow mirrors where the open-quote radiation-tube close-quote was centered between, guaranteed a constant light intensity around the investigated tube

On the hardenability of Nb-modified metastable beta Ti-5553 alloy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Campo, K.N.; Andrade, D.R.; Opini, V.C.; Mello, M.G.; Lopes, E.S.N.; Caram, R., E-mail: caram@fem.unicamp.br

2016-05-15

Among the commercially available titanium alloys, the metastable β Ti-5553 alloy (Ti–5Al–5V–5Mo–3Cr–0.5Fe wt.%) is an object of great interest because it is employed in aerospace structural applications, primarily in the replacement of steel components. One of the primary advantages of this alloy is its high hardenability, which allows it to retain the β phase at room temperature, even at low cooling rates, thereby allowing the thermoprocessing of thick parts. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the effect of the replacement of V with Nb on the hardenability of Ti-5553. Based on the molybdenum equivalent criterion, the Nb-modified Ti-5553 alloy was designed to present 12 wt.% of Nb instead of 5 wt.% of V. Samples of both alloys were prepared by melting them in an arc furnace under an inert atmosphere, heat-treated at high temperatures for 12 h and plastic deformed using swage forging. Finally, these samples were solution heat-treated at temperatures above the β-transus followed by cooling at different rates using water quenching, furnace cooling and a modified Jominy end quench test. Characterization was performed by measuring Vickers hardness, X-ray diffraction, and light optical, scanning electron and transmission electron microscopy. The results obtained indicate that metastable β phase can be retained when the cooling rate is higher than 21 °C/s for both alloys. At lower cooling rates, α phase precipitation was observed, but it appeared to be less evident in the Nb-modified Ti-5553, suggesting that the replacement of V with Nb increased the hardenability of the alloy. - Highlights: • Hardenability of Ti alloys are assessed using a modified Jominy end quench test. • Ti-5553 and Nb-modified Ti-5553 are subjected to continuous cooling experiments. • β phase decomposition kinetics is reduced by replacing V with Nb in Ti-5553. • Nb-modified Ti-5553 features improved hardenability. • Replacement of V with Nb causes the �

Irradiation test OF-2: high-temperature irradiation behavior of LASL-made fuel rods and LASL-made coated particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wagner, P.; Reiswig, R.D.; Hollabaugh, C.M.; White, R.W.; O'Rourke, J.A.; Davidson, K.V.; Schell, D.H.

1977-10-01

Three LASL-made, substoichiometric ZrC-coated particles with inert kernels, and two high-density molded graphite fuel rods that contained LASL-made, ZrC-coated fissile particles were irradiated in the Oak Ridge Research Reactor test OF-2. The severest test conditions were 8.36 x 10 21 nvt (E greater than 0.18 MeV) at 1350 0 C. The graphite matrix showed no effect of the irradiation. There was no interaction between the matrix and any of the particle coats. The loose ZrC coated particles with inert kernels showed no irradiation effects. The graded ZrC-C coats on the fissile particles were cracked. It is postulated that the cracking is associated with the low LTI deposition rate and is not related to the ZrC

Studies on production of metastable core-excited atoms by laser-produced x-rays. Final report, 1 October 1984-30 September 1985

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harris, S.E.; Young, J.F.

1986-04-01

The overall objective of the work on this program was to study methods for production of core-excited metastable atoms by laser-generated x-rays. We are interested in the spectroscopy of these levels, their autoionizing and radiative rates, and their metastability in the presence of hot electrons and ions. The concept of using x-rays emitted from a laser-produced plasma to excite large densities of energetic excited levels in atoms and ions has been thoroughly experimentally investigated using modest, 100 mJ, plasma-producing lasers. One of the objectives of this work was to verify that these techniques could be scaled up to higher energies, such as 20 J. Thus a major effort this year has been devoted to the design and construction of the high energy (20 J) 1064 nm plasma-forming laser system and the tunable probe/transfer laser

Multilevel control of the metastable states in a manganite film

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Feng; Feng, Qiyuan; Guo, Zhuang; Lan, Da; Chen, Binbin; Xu, Haoran; Wang, Ze; Wang, Lingfei; Gao, Guanyin; Chen, Feng; Lu, Qingyou; Wu, Wenbin

2017-06-01

For high density memory applications, the dynamic switching between multilevel resistance states per cell is highly desirable, and for oxide-based memory devices, the multistate operation has been actively explored. We have previously shown that for La2/3Ca1/3MnO3 films, the antiferromagnetic charge-ordered-insulator (COI) phase can be induced via the anisotropic epitaxial strain, and it competes with the doping-determined ferromagnetic-metal (FMM) ground state in a wide temperature range. Here, we show that for the phase competitions, in various magnetic fields and/or thermal cycling, the reappearance of the COI phase and thus the resistance and magnetization can be manipulated and quantified in a multilevel manner at lower temperatures. Furthermore, by using a high-field magnetic force microscope, we image the COI/FMM domain structures in accordance with the transport measurements, and find that the evolving domains or the phase fraction ratios do underline the metastability of the reappeared COI droplets, possibly protected by the energy barriers due to accommodation strain. These results may add new insights into the design and fabrication of future multilevel memory cells.

Gauge/gravity duality and meta-stable dynamical supersymmetry breaking

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Argurio, Riccardo; Bertolini, Matteo; Franco, Sebastian; Kachru, Shamit

2007-01-01

We engineer a class of quiver gauge theories with several interesting features by studying D-branes at a simple Calabi-Yau singularity. At weak 't Hooft coupling we argue using field theory techniques that these theories admit both supersymmetric vacua and meta-stable non-supersymmetric vacua, though the arguments indicating the existence of the supersymmetry breaking states are not decisive. At strong 't Hooft coupling we find simple candidate gravity dual descriptions for both sets of vacua

Metastability and avalanche dynamics in strongly correlated gases with long-range interactions

Science.gov (United States)

Hruby, Lorenz; Dogra, Nishant; Landini, Manuele; Donner, Tobias; Esslinger, Tilman

2018-03-01

We experimentally study the stability of a bosonic Mott insulator against the formation of a density wave induced by long-range interactions and characterize the intrinsic dynamics between these two states. The Mott insulator is created in a quantum degenerate gas of 87-Rubidium atoms, trapped in a 3D optical lattice. The gas is located inside and globally coupled to an optical cavity. This causes interactions of global range, mediated by photons dispersively scattered between a transverse lattice and the cavity. The scattering comes with an atomic density modulation, which is measured by the photon flux leaking from the cavity. We initialize the system in a Mott-insulating state and then rapidly increase the global coupling strength. We observe that the system falls into either of two distinct final states. One is characterized by a low photon flux, signaling a Mott insulator, and the other is characterized by a high photon flux, which we associate with a density wave. Ramping the global coupling slowly, we observe a hysteresis loop between the two states—a further signature of metastability. A comparison with a theoretical model confirms that the metastability originates in the competition between short- and global-range interactions. From the increasing photon flux monitored during the switching process, we find that several thousand atoms tunnel to a neighboring site on the timescale of the single-particle dynamics. We argue that a density modulation, initially forming in the compressible surface of the trapped gas, triggers an avalanche tunneling process in the Mott-insulating region.

High dose effects in neutron irradiated face-centered cubic metals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garner, F.A.; Toloczko, M.B.

1993-06-01

During neutron irradiation, most face-centered cubic metals and alloys develop saturation or quasi-steady state microstructures. This, in turn, leads to saturation levels in mechanical properties and quasi-steady state rates of swelling and creep deformation. Swelling initially plays only a small role in determining these saturation states, but as swelling rises to higher levels, it exerts strong feedback on the microstructure and its response to environmental variables. The influence of swelling, either directly or indirectly via second order mechanisms, such as elemental segregation to void surfaces, eventually causes major changes, not only in irradiation creep and mechanical properties, but also on swelling itself. The feedback effects of swelling on irradiation creep are particularly complex and lead to problems in applying creep data derived from highly pressurized creep tubes to low stress situations, such as fuel pins in liquid metal reactors

Thermoluminescent characteristics of CaSO4:Dy+PTFE irradiated with high energy electron beams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alvarez, R.; Rivera, T.; Calderon, J. A.; Jimenez, Y.; Rodriguez, J.; Oviedo, O.; Azorin, J.

2011-10-01

In the present work thermoluminescent response of dysprosium doped calcium sulfate embedded in polytetrafluorethylene (CaSO 4 :Dy+PTFE) under high electron beam irradiations from linear accelerator for clinical applications was investigated. The irradiations were carried out using high electron beams (6 to 18 MeV) from a linear accelerator Varian, C linac 2300C/D, for clinical practice purpose. The electron irradiations were obtained by using the water solid in order to guarantee electronic equilibrium conditions. Field shaping for electron beams was obtained with electron cones. Glow curve and other thermoluminescent characteristics of CaSO 4 :Dy+PTFE were conducted under high electron beams irradiations. The thermoluminescent response of the pellets showed and intensity peak centered at around 235 C. Thermoluminescent response of CaSO 4 :Dy+PTFE as a function of high electron absorbed dose showed a linearity in a wide range. To obtain reproducibility characteristic, a set of pellets were exposed repeatedly for the same electron absorbed dose. The results obtained in this study can suggest the applicability of CaSO 4 :Dy+PTFE pellets for high electron beam dosimetry, provided fading is correctly accounted for. (Author)

Fuel temperature prediction during high burnup HTGR fuel irradiation test. US-JAERI irradiation test for HTGR fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sawa, Kazuhiro; Fukuda, Kousaku; Acharya, R.

1995-01-01

This report describes the preirradiation thermal analysis of the HRB-22 capsule designed for an irradiation test in a removable beryllium position of the High Flux Isotope Reactor(HFIR) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. This test is being carried out under Annex 2 of the Arrangement between the U.S. Department of Energy and the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute on Cooperation in Research and Development regarding High-Temperature Gas-cooled Reactors. The fuel used in the test is an advanced type. The advanced fuel was designed aiming at burnup of about 10%FIMA(% fissions per initial metallic atom) which was higher than that of the first charge fuel for the High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor(HTTR) and was produced in Japan. CACA-2, a heavy isotope and fission product concentration calculational code for experimental irradiation capsules, was used to determine time-dependent fission power for the fuel compacts. The Heat Engineering and Transfer in Nine Geometries(HEATING) code was used to solve the steady-state heat conduction problem. The diameters of the graphite fuel body, which contains the fuel compacts, and of the primary pressure vessel were determined such that the requirements of running the fuel compacts at an average temperature less than 1250degC and of not exceeding a maximum fuel temperature of 1350degC were met throughout the four cycles of irradiation. The detail design of the capsule was carried out based on this analysis. (author)

Effect of the subgap conductance on the metastable states in a Josephson tunnel junction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cristiano, R.; Pagano, S.; Silvestrini, P.; Gray, K.E.; Liengme, O.

1987-09-01

An investigation of the decay rate of metastable states in Josephson tunnel junctions in presence of thermal noise is presented. We have observed that, in the extremely underdamped regime, there is an exponential temperature dependence of the best fit value for the shunt conductance. Such a dependence shows a close relation with the temperature dependence of the subgap conductance, suggesting that the effective conductance for the escape from the metastable states obeys to a quasi-particle thermal activation mechanism. The introduction of this effective conductance into the lifetime expression for the zero-voltage states leads to significant changes in the width of the switching current distributions. A comparisons of the experimental data with the proposed model is reported. 7 refs., 2 figs

High temperature deformation behavior, thermal stability and irradiation performance in Grade 92 steel

Science.gov (United States)

Alsagabi, Sultan

The 9Cr-2W ferritic-martensitic steel (i.e. Grade 92 steel) possesses excellent mechanical and thermophysical properties; therefore, it has been considered to suit more challenging applications where high temperature strength and creep-rupture properties are required. The high temperature deformation mechanism was investigated through a set of tensile testing at elevated temperatures. Hence, the threshold stress concept was applied to elucidate the operating high temperature deformation mechanism. It was identified as the high temperature climb of edge dislocations due to the particle-dislocation interactions and the appropriate constitutive equation was developed. In addition, the microstructural evolution at room and elevated temperatures was investigated. For instance, the microstructural evolution under loading was more pronounced and carbide precipitation showed more coarsening tendency. The growth of these carbide precipitates, by removing W and Mo from matrix, significantly deteriorates the solid solution strengthening. The MX type carbonitrides exhibited better coarsening resistance. To better understand the thermal microstructural stability, long tempering schedules up to 1000 hours was conducted at 560, 660 and 760°C after normalizing the steel. Still, the coarsening rate of M23C 6 carbides was higher than the MX-type particles. Moreover, the Laves phase particles were detected after tempering the steel for long periods before they dissolve back into the matrix at high temperature (i.e. 720°C). The influence of the tempering temperature and time was studied for Grade 92 steel via Hollomon-Jaffe parameter. Finally, the irradiation performance of Grade 92 steel was evaluated to examine the feasibility of its eventual reactor use. To that end, Grade 92 steel was irradiated with iron (Fe2+) ions to 10, 50 and 100 dpa at 30 and 500°C. Overall, the irradiated samples showed some irradiation-induced hardening which was more noticeable at 30°C. Additionally

Metastable State Diamond Growth and its Applications to Electronic Devices.

Science.gov (United States)

Jeng, David Guang-Kai

Diamond which consists of a dense array of carbon atoms joined by strong covalent bonds and formed into a tetrahedral crystal structure has remarkable mechanical, thermal, optical and electrical properties suitable for many industrial applications. With a proper type of doping, diamond is also an ideal semiconductor for high performance electronic devices. Unfortunately, natural diamond is rare and limited by its size and cost, it is not surprising that people continuously look for a synthetic replacement. It was believed for long time that graphite, another form of carbon, may be converted into diamond under high pressure and temperature. However, the exact condition of conversion was not clear. In 1939, O. I. Leipunsky developed an equilibrium phase diagram between graphite and diamond based on thermodynamic considerations. In the phase diagram, there is a low temperature (below 1000^ circC) and low pressure (below 1 atm) region in which diamond is metastable and graphite is stable, therefore establishes the conditions for the coexistence of the two species. Leipunsky's pioneer work opened the door for diamond synthesis. In 1955, the General Electric company (GE) was able to produce artificial diamond at 55k atm pressure and a temperature of 2000^ circC. Contrary to GE, B. Derjaguin and B. V. Spitzyn in Soviet Union, developed a method of growing diamonds at 1000^circC and at a much lower pressure in 1956. Since then, researchers, particularly in Soviet Union, are continuously looking for methods to grow diamond and diamond film at lower temperatures and pressures with slow but steady progress. It was only in the early 80's that the importance of growing diamond films had attracted the attentions of researchers in the Western world and in Japan. Recent progress in plasma physics and chemical vapor deposition techniques in integrated electronics technology have pushed the diamond growth in its metastable states into a new era. In this research, a microwave plasma

Damage structure of gallium arsenide irradiated in a high-voltage electron microscope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Loretto, D.; Loretto, M.H.

1989-01-01

Semi-insulating undoped gallium arsenide has been irradiated in a high-voltage electron microscope between room temperature and about 500 0 C for doses of up to 5 x 10 22 electrons cm -2 at 1 MeV. Room-temperature irradiation produces small (less than 5 nm) damage clusters. As the temperature of the irradiation is increased, the size of these clusters increases, until at about 300 0 C a high density of dislocation loops can be resolved. The dislocation loops, 20 nm or less in diameter, which are produced at about 500 0 C have been analysed in a bright field using a two-beam inside-outside method which minimises the tilt necessary between micrographs. It is concluded that the loops are an interstitial perfect-edge type with a Burgers vector of (a/2) . (author)

Polymorphism in Elemental Silicon: Probabilistic Interpretation of the Realizability of Metastable Structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stevanovic, Vladan [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Jones, Eric [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

2017-11-03

With few systems of technological interest having been studied as extensively as elemental silicon, there currently exists a wide disparity between the number of predicted low-energy silicon polymorphs and those that have been experimentally realized as metastable at ambient conditions. We put forward an explanation for this disparity wherein the likelihood of formation of a given polymorph under near-equilibrium conditions can be estimated on the basis of mean-field isothermal-isobaric (N,p,T) ensemble statistics. The probability that a polymorph will be experimentally realized is shown to depend upon both the hypervolume of that structure's potential energy basin of attraction and a Boltzmann factor weight containing the polymorph's potential enthalpy per particle. Both attributes are calculated using density functional theory relaxations of randomly generated initial structures. We find that the metastable polymorphism displayed by silicon can be accounted for using this framework to the exclusion of a very large number of other low-energy structures.

Various categories of defects after surface alloying induced by high current pulsed electron beam irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Luo, Dian [State Key Laboratory of Advanced Welding and Joining, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001 (China); Tang, Guangze, E-mail: oaktang@hit.edu.cn [School of Material Science & Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001 (China); Ma, Xinxin [State Key Laboratory of Advanced Welding and Joining, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001 (China); Gu, Le [School of Mechatronics Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001 (China); Sun, Mingren [School of Material Science & Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001 (China); Wang, Liqin [School of Mechatronics Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001 (China)

2015-10-01

Highlights: • Four kinds of defects are found during surface alloying by high current electron beam. • Exploring the mechanism how these defects appear after irradiation. • Increasing pulsing cycles will help to get good surface quality. • Choosing proper energy density will increase surface quality. - Abstract: High current pulsed electron beam (HCPEB) is an attractive advanced materials processing method which could highly increase the mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. However, how to eliminate different kinds of defects during irradiation by HCPEB especially in condition of adding new elements is a challenging task. In the present research, the titanium and TaNb-TiW composite films was deposited on the carburizing steel (SAE9310 steel) by DC magnetron sputtering before irradiation. The process of surface alloying was induced by HCPEB with pulse duration of 2.5 μs and energy density ranging from 3 to 9 J/cm{sup 2}. Investigation of the microstructure indicated that there were several forms of defects after irradiation, such as surface unwetting, surface eruption, micro-cracks and layering. How the defects formed was explained by the results of electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy. The results also revealed that proper energy density (∼6 J/cm{sup 2}) and multi-number of irradiation (≥50 times) contributed to high quality of alloyed layers after irradiation.

Metastable electroweak vacuum. Implications for inflation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lebedev, Oleg; Westphal, Alexander [DESY Theory Group, Hamburg (Germany)

2012-10-15

Within the Standard Model, the current Higgs and top quark data favor metastability of the electroweak vacuum, although the uncertainties are still significant. The true vacuum is many orders of magnitude deeper than ours and the barrier separating the two is tiny compared to the depth of the well. This raises a cosmological question: how did the Higgs field get trapped in the shallow minimum and why did it stay there during inflation? The Higgs initial conditions before inflation must be fine-tuned to about one part in 10{sup 8} in order for the Higgs field to end up in the right vacuum. In this note, we show that these problems can be resolved if there is a small positive coupling between the Higgs and the inflaton.

Damage structures in fission-neutron irradiated Ni-based alloys at high temperatures

Science.gov (United States)

Yamakawa, K.; Shimomura, Y.

1999-01-01

The defects formed in Ni based (Ni-Si, Ni-Cu and Ni-Fe) alloys which were irradiated with fission-neutrons were examined by electron microscopy. Irradiations were carried out at 473 K and 573 K. In the 473 K irradiated specimens, a high density of large interstitial loops and small vacancy clusters with stacking fault tetrahedra (SFT) were observed. The number densities of these two types of defects did not strongly depend on the amount of solute atoms in each alloy. The density of the loops in Ni-Si alloys was much higher than those in Ni-Cu and Ni-Fe alloys, while the density of SFT only slightly depended on the kind of solute. Also, the size of the loops depended on the kinds and amounts of solute. In 573 K irradiated Ni-Cu specimens, a high density of dislocation lines developed during the growth of interstitial loops. In Ni-Si alloys, the number density and size of the interstitial loops changed as a function of the amount of solute. Voids were formed in Ni-Cu alloys but scarcely formed in Ni-Si alloys. The number density of voids was one hundredth of that of SFT observed in 473 K irradiated Ni-Cu alloys. Possible formation processes of interstitial loops, SFT dislocation lines and voids are discussed.

Damage structures in fission-neutron irradiated Ni-based alloys at high temperatures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yamakawa, K.; Shimomura, Y. [Hiroshima Univ. (Japan). Faculty of Engineering

1999-01-01

The defects formed in Ni based (Ni-Si, Ni-Cu and Ni-Fe) alloys which were irradiated with fission-neutrons were examined by electron microscopy. Irradiations were carried out at 473 K and 573 K. In the 473 K irradiated specimens, a high density of large interstitial loops and small vacancy clusters with stacking fault tetrahedra (SFT) were observed. The number densities of these two types of defects did not strongly depend on the amount of solute atoms in each alloy. The density of the loops in Ni-Si alloys was much higher than those in Ni-Cu and Ni-Fe alloys, while the density of SFT only slightly depended on the kind of solute. Also, the size of the loops depended on the kinds and amounts of solute. In 573 K irradiated Ni-Cu specimens, a high density of dislocation lines developed during the growth of interstitial loops. In Ni-Si alloys, the number density and size of the interstitial loops changed as a function of the amount of solute. Voids were formed in Ni-Cu alloys but scarcely formed in Ni-Si alloys. The number density of voids was one hundredth of that of SFT observed in 473 K irradiated Ni-Cu alloys. Possible formation processes of interstitial loops, SFT, dislocation lines and voids are discussed. (orig.) 8 refs.

Thermal decay rate of a metastable state with two degrees of ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

I I Gontchar

2017-06-01

Jun 1, 2017 ... expected to agree with the long time limit of the escape rate obtained using ..... distribution with zero averages and variances equal to 2. Although in the fission ... Here (t) is the probability that the metastable state has ..... the (kt)−1/2 dependence and has been adjusted to εR at some intermediate points.

Characteristics of heat shrinkable high density polyethylene crosslinked by γ-irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Phil Hyun; Nho, Young Chang

2001-01-01

The effects of γ-irradiation on the crosslinking of high density polyethylene (HDPE) was investigated for the purpose of obtaining a suitable formulation for heat shrinkable materials. In this study the HDPE specimens were prepared by blending with cross linking agents and pressed into a 0.2 mm sheet at 180 .deg. C. γ-irradiation was conducted at 40 to 100 kGy in nitrogen. The heat shrinkable property and thermal mechanical property of the HDPE sheets have been investigated. It was found that the degree of crosslinking of the irradiated HDPE samples were increased with irradiation dose. Compared with the HDPE containing triallylisocyanurate, the HDPE containing trimethlol propane triacrylate shows a slight increase in crosslinking density. The heat transformation and dimension change of HDPE decreased with increasing radiation dose. The heat shrinkage of the samples increased with increasing annealing temperatures. The thermal resistance of HDPE increased upon the crosslinking of HDPE

Irradiation performance of AGR-1 high temperature reactor fuel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Paul A. Demkowicz; John D. Hunn; Robert N. Morris; Charles A. Baldwin; Philip L. Winston; Jason M. Harp; Scott A. Ploger; Tyler Gerczak; Isabella J. van Rooyen; Fred C. Montgomery; Chinthaka M. Silva

2014-10-01

The AGR-1 experiment contained 72 low-enriched uranium oxide/uranium carbide TRISO-coated particle fuel compacts in six capsules irradiated to burnups of 11.2 to 19.5% FIMA, with zero TRISO coating failures detected during the irradiation. The irradiation performance of the fuel–including the extent of fission product release and the evolution of kernel and coating microstructures–was evaluated based on detailed examination of the irradiation capsules, the fuel compacts, and individual particles. Fractional release of 110mAg from the fuel compacts was often significant, with capsule-average values ranging from 0.01 to 0.38. Analysis of silver release from individual compacts indicated that it was primarily dependent on fuel temperature history. Europium and strontium were released in small amounts through intact coatings, but were found to be significantly retained in the outer pyrocrabon and compact matrix. The capsule-average fractional release from the compacts was 1×10 4 to 5×10 4 for 154Eu and 8×10 7 to 3×10 5 for 90Sr. The average 134Cs release from compacts was <3×10 6 when all particles maintained intact SiC. An estimated four particles out of 2.98×105 experienced partial cesium release due to SiC failure during the irradiation, driving 134Cs release in two capsules to approximately 10 5. Identification and characterization of these particles has provided unprecedented insight into the nature and causes of SiC coating failure in high-quality TRISO fuel. In general, changes in coating morphology were found to be dominated by the behavior of the buffer and inner pyrolytic carbon (IPyC), and infrequently observed SiC layer damage was usually related to cracks in the IPyC. Palladium attack of the SiC layer was relatively minor, except for the particles that released cesium during irradiation, where SiC corrosion was found adjacent to IPyC cracks. Palladium, silver, and uranium were found in the SiC layer of irradiated particles, and characterization

Proton-irradiation technology for high-frequency high-current silicon welding diode manufacturing

Science.gov (United States)

Lagov, P. B.; Drenin, A. S.; Zinoviev, M. A.

2017-05-01

Different proton irradiation regimes were tested to provide more than 20 kHz-frequency, soft reverse recovery “snap-less” behavior, low forward voltage drop and leakage current for 50 mm diameter 7 kA/400 V welding diode Al/Si/Mo structure. Silicon diode with such parameters is very suitable for high frequency resistance welding machines of new generation for robotic welding.

Chemically exfoliated Mo S2 layers: Spectroscopic evidence for the semiconducting nature of the dominant trigonal metastable phase

Science.gov (United States)

Pal, Banabir; Singh, Anjali; Sharada, G.; Mahale, Pratibha; Kumar, Abhinav; Thirupathaiah, S.; Sezen, H.; Amati, M.; Gregoratti, Luca; Waghmare, Umesh V.; Sarma, D. D.

2017-11-01

A metastable trigonal phase, existing only as small patches on a chemically exfoliated few-layered, thermodynamically stable 1 H phase of Mo S2 , is believed to critically influence the properties of Mo S2 -based devices. The electronic structure of this metastable phase is little understood in the absence of a direct experimental investigation of its electronic properties, complicated further by conflicting claims from theoretical investigations. We address this issue by investigating the electronic structure of this minority phase in chemically exfoliated Mo S2 few-layered systems by enhancing its contributions with the use of highly spatially resolved (≤120 nm resolution) photoemission spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy in conjunction with state-of-the-art electronic structure calculations. Based on these results, we establish that the ground state of this phase, arrived at by the chemical exfoliation of Mo S2 using the usual Li intercalation technique, is a small gap (˜90 ±40 meV ) semiconductor in contrast to most claims in the literature; we also identify the specific trigonal structure it has among many suggested ones.

Spin dynamics in tunneling decay of a metastable state

OpenAIRE

Ban, Yue; Sherman, E. Ya.

2012-01-01

We analyze spin dynamics in the tunneling decay of a metastable localized state in the presence of spin-orbit coupling. We find that the spin polarization at short time scales is affected by the initial state while at long time scales both the probability- and the spin density exhibit diffraction-in-time phenomenon. We find that in addition to the tunneling time the tunneling in general can be characterized by a new parameter, the tunneling length. Although the tunneling length is independent...

Evidence for single-chain magnet behavior in a Mn(III)-Ni(II) chain designed with high spin magnetic units: a route to high temperature metastable magnets.

Science.gov (United States)

Clérac, Rodolphe; Miyasaka, Hitoshi; Yamashita, Masahiro; Coulon, Claude

2002-10-30

. This result indicates the presence of a metastable state without magnetic long-range order. This material is the first experimental design of a heterometallic chain with ST = 3 magnetic units showing a "single-chain magnet" behavior predicted in 1963 by R. J. Glauber for an Ising one-dimensional system. This work opens new perspectives for one-dimensional systems to obtain high temperature metastable magnets by combining high spin magnetic units, strong interunit interactions, and uniaxial anisotropy.

A Metastable Equilibrium Model for the Relative Abundances of Microbial Phyla in a Hot Spring

Science.gov (United States)

Dick, Jeffrey M.; Shock, Everett L.

2013-01-01

Many studies link the compositions of microbial communities to their environments, but the energetics of organism-specific biomass synthesis as a function of geochemical variables have rarely been assessed. We describe a thermodynamic model that integrates geochemical and metagenomic data for biofilms sampled at five sites along a thermal and chemical gradient in the outflow channel of the hot spring known as “Bison Pool” in Yellowstone National Park. The relative abundances of major phyla in individual communities sampled along the outflow channel are modeled by computing metastable equilibrium among model proteins with amino acid compositions derived from metagenomic sequences. Geochemical conditions are represented by temperature and activities of basis species, including pH and oxidation-reduction potential quantified as the activity of dissolved hydrogen. By adjusting the activity of hydrogen, the model can be tuned to closely approximate the relative abundances of the phyla observed in the community profiles generated from BLAST assignments. The findings reveal an inverse relationship between the energy demand to form the proteins at equal thermodynamic activities and the abundance of phyla in the community. The distance from metastable equilibrium of the communities, assessed using an equation derived from energetic considerations that is also consistent with the information-theoretic entropy change, decreases along the outflow channel. Specific divergences from metastable equilibrium, such as an underprediction of the relative abundances of phototrophic organisms at lower temperatures, can be explained by considering additional sources of energy and/or differences in growth efficiency. Although the metabolisms used by many members of these communities are driven by chemical disequilibria, the results support the possibility that higher-level patterns of chemotrophic microbial ecosystems are shaped by metastable equilibrium states that depend on both the

Efficiency of radical yield in alkylthymine and alkyluracil by high-LET irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakagawa, Seiko; Ohta, Nobuaki; Murakami, Takeshi

2010-01-01

Penthylthymines and hexyl-, nonyl-, and decyl- uracils were irradiated by C-ion (3.5 GeV) and γ-ray at 77 K. ESR spectra were measured to study radiation induced radicals in the temperature range from 108 to 273 K. A dihydro-5-yl (5-yl) radical formed by H addition to C6 carbon and a secondary alkyl radical by C-H bond fission at the second carbon from the end of the alkyl group were produced at 108 K. A dihydrouracil-6-yl (6-yl) radical formed by H addition to C5 carbon increased with increasing temperature for alkyluracils. The spectral feature obtained by C-ion irradiation was coincident with that by γ-irradiation. Total radical yields increased by alkylation and with increasing the length of alkyl chain. Yields of both 5-yl and secondary alkyl radicals irradiated by C-ion were less than those by γ-ray for penthylthymines and hexyluracil. On the contrary, radical yields were almost the same between ion and γ-ray irradiation for nonyl- and decyl-uracil. Mechanism of radical formation and effect of high-LET irradiation were discussed.

First result of deuterium retention in neutron-irradiated tungsten exposed to high flux plasma in TPE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shimada, Masashi; Hatano, Y.; Calderoni, P.; Oda, T.; Oya, Y.; Sokolov, M.; Zhang, K.; Cao, G.; Kolasinski, R.; Sharpe, J.P.

2011-01-01

With the Japan-US joint research project Tritium, Irradiations, and Thermofluids for America and Nippon (TITAN), an initial set of tungsten samples (99.99% purity, A.L.M.T. Co.) were irradiated by high flux neutrons at 323 K to 0.025 dpa in High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Subsequently, one of the neutron-irradiated tungsten samples was exposed to a high-flux deuterium plasma (ion flux: 5 x 10 21 m -2 s -1 , ion fluence: 4 x 10 25 m -2 ) in the Tritium Plasma Experiment (TPE) at Idaho National Laboratory (INL). The deuterium retention in the neutron-irradiated tungsten was 40% higher in comparison to the unirradiated tungsten. The observed broad desorption spectrum from neutron-irradiated tungsten and associated TMAP modeling of the deuterium release suggest that trapping occurs in the bulk material at more than three different energy sites.

First result of deuterium retention in neutron-irradiated tungsten exposed to high flux plasma in TPE

Science.gov (United States)

Shimada, Masashi; Hatano, Y.; Calderoni, P.; Oda, T.; Oya, Y.; Sokolov, M.; Zhang, K.; Cao, G.; Kolasinski, R.; Sharpe, J. P.

2011-08-01

With the Japan-US joint research project Tritium, Irradiations, and Thermofluids for America and Nippon (TITAN), an initial set of tungsten samples (99.99% purity, A.L.M.T. Co.) were irradiated by high flux neutrons at 323 K to 0.025 dpa in High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Subsequently, one of the neutron-irradiated tungsten samples was exposed to a high-flux deuterium plasma (ion flux: 5 × 1021 m-2 s-1, ion fluence: 4 × 1025 m-2) in the Tritium Plasma Experiment (TPE) at Idaho National Laboratory (INL). The deuterium retention in the neutron-irradiated tungsten was 40% higher in comparison to the unirradiated tungsten. The observed broad desorption spectrum from neutron-irradiated tungsten and associated TMAP modeling of the deuterium release suggest that trapping occurs in the bulk material at more than three different energy sites.

Simple model for the dynamics towards metastable states

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meijer, P.H.E.; Keskin, M.; Bodegom, E.

1986-01-01

Circumstances under which a quenched system will freeze in a metastable state are studied in simple systems with long-range order. The model used is the time-dependent pair approximation, based on the most probable path (MPP) method. The time dependence of the solution is shown by means of flow diagrams. The fixed points and other features of the differential equations in time are independent of the choice of the rate constants. It is explained qualitatively how the system behaves under varying descending temperatures: the role of the initial conditions, the dependence on the quenching rate, and the response to precooling

Radiation-damage studies, irradiations and high-dose dosimetry for LHC detectors

CERN Document Server

Coninckx, F; León-Florián, E; Leutz, H; Schönbacher, Helmut; Sonderegger, P; Tavlet, Marc; Sopko, B; Henschel, H; Schmidt, H U; Boden, A; Bräunig, D; Wulf, F; Cramariuc, R; Ilie, D; Fattibene, P; Onori, S; Miljanic, S; Paic, G; Razen, B; Razem, D; Rendic, D; CERN. Geneva. Detector Research and Development Committee

1991-01-01

The proposal is divided into a main project and special projects. The main project consists of a service similar to the one given in the past to accelerator construction projects at CERN (ISR,SPS,LEP) on high-dose dosimetry, material irradiations, irradiations tests, standardization of test procedures and data compilations. Large experience in this field and numerous radiation damage test data of insulating and structural materials are available. The special projects cover three topics which are of specific interest for LHC detector physicists and engineers at CERN and in other high energy physics institutes, namely: Radiation effects in scintillators; Selection of radiation hard optical fibres for data transmission; and Selection and testing of radiation hard electronic components.

Epithelial regeneration of transposed intestine after high doses of X irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Both, N.J. de; Vermey, M [Erasmus Universiteit, Rotterdam (Netherlands)

1976-01-01

The regeneration capacities of normal and transposed small bowel epithelium were compared in rats after applying high doses of x irradiation. It has been shown that the potency of the mucosa to regenerate was much higher than assumed and that the mucosa could regenerate after single doses varying from 2000 to 5000 R. Even in the villus epithelium and in flat epithelium covering infiltrates of the lamina propria cells survived, which were still able to resume proliferative activity several days after irradiation.

Epithelial regeneration of transposed intestine after high doses of X-irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Both, N.J. de; Vermey, M.

1976-01-01

The regeneration capacities of normal and transposed small bowel epithelium were compared in rats after applying high doses of X-irradiation. It has been shown that the potency of the mucosa to regenerate was much higher than assumed and that the mucosa could regenerate after single doses varying from 2000 to 5000 R. Even in the villus epithelium and in flat epithelium covering infiltrates of the lamina propria cells survived, which were still able to resume proliferative activity several days after irradiation. (author)

Efficient production of NV colour centres in nanodiamonds using high-energy electron irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dantelle, G., E-mail: geraldine.dantelle@polytechnique.ed [Laboratoire de Physique Quantique et Moleculaire, ENS Cachan, 94 235 CACHAN Cedex (France); Laboratoire de Physique de la Matiere Condensee, Ecole Polytechnique, 91128 PALAISEAU Cedex (France); Slablab, A.; Rondin, L. [Laboratoire de Physique Quantique et Moleculaire, ENS Cachan, 94 235 CACHAN Cedex (France); Laine, F.; Carrel, F.; Bergonzo, Ph. [CEA-LIST, CEA/Saclay, 91 191 GIF-SUR-YVETTE Cedex (France); Perruchas, S.; Gacoin, T. [Laboratoire de Physique de la Matiere Condensee, Ecole Polytechnique, 91128 PALAISEAU Cedex (France); Treussart, F.; Roch, J.-F. [Laboratoire de Physique Quantique et Moleculaire, ENS Cachan, 94 235 CACHAN Cedex (France)

2010-09-15

Nanodiamond powders with an average size of 50 nm have been irradiated using high-energy electron beam. After annealing and chemical treatment, nanodiamond colloidal solutions were obtained and deposited on silica coverslips by spin-coating. The fluorescence of nanodiamonds was studied by confocal microscopy together with atomic force microscopy. We evaluated the proportion of luminescent nanodiamonds as a function of the irradiation duration and showed that large quantities, exceeding hundreds of mg, of luminescent nanodiamonds can be produced within 1 h of electron irradiation.

Efficient production of NV colour centres in nanodiamonds using high-energy electron irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dantelle, G.; Slablab, A.; Rondin, L.; Laine, F.; Carrel, F.; Bergonzo, Ph.; Perruchas, S.; Gacoin, T.; Treussart, F.; Roch, J.-F.

2010-01-01

Nanodiamond powders with an average size of 50 nm have been irradiated using high-energy electron beam. After annealing and chemical treatment, nanodiamond colloidal solutions were obtained and deposited on silica coverslips by spin-coating. The fluorescence of nanodiamonds was studied by confocal microscopy together with atomic force microscopy. We evaluated the proportion of luminescent nanodiamonds as a function of the irradiation duration and showed that large quantities, exceeding hundreds of mg, of luminescent nanodiamonds can be produced within 1 h of electron irradiation.

Proton-irradiation technology for high-frequency high-current silicon welding diode manufacturing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lagov, P B; Drenin, A S; Zinoviev, M A

2017-01-01

Different proton irradiation regimes were tested to provide more than 20 kHz-frequency, soft reverse recovery “snap-less” behavior, low forward voltage drop and leakage current for 50 mm diameter 7 kA/400 V welding diode Al/Si/Mo structure. Silicon diode with such parameters is very suitable for high frequency resistance welding machines of new generation for robotic welding. (paper)

Natural rubber/high density polyethylene/ground rubber composites vulcanized by gamma irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shaltout, N.A.; Abou zeid, M.M.; Khalil, A.M.; El Miligy, A.A.

2010-01-01

Natural rubber (NR) was blended mechanically with 50 phr high density polyethylene (HDPE). the mechanical, physical and thermal properties of NR/HDPE blend and its composites with different contents of ground tire rubber (GTR) before and after exposure to gamma irradiation to various doses up to 250 kGy were studied. Also, the change in structure morphology of irradiated NR/HDPE blend as well as NR/HDPE/GTR composites was examined by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The results showed that the substitution of a part of virgin NR with GTR decreases the mechanical and physical properties but not to the extent of deterioration . However, it was found that the mechanical and physical properties were improved after gamma irradiation . Composite of NR/GTR/HDPE (75/25/50) showed good properties. Scanning electron microscope showed homogeneity between the irradiated composites ingredients.

OBSERVATION OF MAGNETIC DOMAINS IN IRRADIATED TRANSITION METALS BY HIGH VOLTAGE ELECTRON MICROSCOPY

OpenAIRE

Ono , F.; Jakubovics , J.; Maeta , H.

1988-01-01

The effect of irradiation on the movement of domain walls was studied in ferromagnetic transition metals by using a high voltage electron microscope. In iron, a domain wall became easily movable at a 300 kV irradiation. The mobility was less affected in cobalt, while in nickel the effect was the greatest.

Decay of Metastable State with Account of Agglomeration and Relaxation Processes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Victor Kurasov

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Theoretical description of the metastable phase decay kinetics in the presence of specific connections between the embryos of small sizes has been given. The theory of the decay kinetics in the presence of relaxation processes is constructed in analytical manner. The m-mers nucleation is investigated and the global kinetics of decay is also constructed in this case analytically.

Evolution of metastable phases in silicon during nanoindentation: mechanism analysis and experimental verification

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mylvaganam, K [Centre for Advanced Materials Technology, University of Sydney, NSW 2006 (Australia); Zhang, L C [School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, University of New South Wales, NSW 2052 (Australia); Eyben, P; Vandervorst, W [IMEC, Kapeldreef 75, B-3001 Leuven (Belgium); Mody, J, E-mail: k.mylvaganam@usyd.edu.a, E-mail: Liangchi.zhang@unsw.edu.a, E-mail: eyben@imec.b, E-mail: jamody@imec.b, E-mail: vdvorst@imec.b [KU Leuven, Electrical Engineering Department, INSYS, Kasteelpark Arenberg 10, B-3001 Leuven (Belgium)

2009-07-29

This paper explores the evolution mechanisms of metastable phases during the nanoindentation on monocrystalline silicon. Both the molecular dynamics (MD) and the in situ scanning spreading resistance microscopy (SSRM) analyses were carried out on Si(100) orientation, and for the first time, experimental verification was achieved quantitatively at the same nanoscopic scale. It was found that under equivalent indentation loads, the MD prediction agrees extremely well with the result experimentally measured using SSRM, in terms of the depth of the residual indentation marks and the onset, evolution and dimension variation of the metastable phases, such as {beta}-Sn. A new six-coordinated silicon phase, Si-XIII, transformed directly from Si-I was discovered. The investigation showed that there is a critical size of contact between the indenter and silicon, beyond which a crystal particle of distorted diamond structure will emerge in between the indenter and the amorphous phase upon unloading.

First result of deuterium retention in neutron-irradiated tungsten exposed to high flux plasma in TPE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shimada, Masashi, E-mail: Masashi.Shimada@inl.gov [Fusion Safety Program, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Falls, ID 83415 (United States); Hatano, Y. [Hydrogen Isotope Research Center, University of Toyama, Toyama 930-8555 (Japan); Calderoni, P. [Fusion Safety Program, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Falls, ID 83415 (United States); Oda, T. [Department of Nuclear Engineering and Management, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8656 (Japan); Oya, Y. [Radioscience Research Laboratory, Faculty of Science, Shizuoka University, Shizuoka 422-8529 (Japan); Sokolov, M. [Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831 (United States); Zhang, K. [Hydrogen Isotope Research Center, University of Toyama, Toyama 930-8555 (Japan); Cao, G. [Department of Engineering Physics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706 (United States); Kolasinski, R. [Hydrogen and Metallurgical Science Department, Sandia National Laboratories, Livermore, CA 94551 (United States); Sharpe, J.P. [Fusion Safety Program, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Falls, ID 83415 (United States)

2011-08-01

With the Japan-US joint research project Tritium, Irradiations, and Thermofluids for America and Nippon (TITAN), an initial set of tungsten samples (99.99% purity, A.L.M.T. Co.) were irradiated by high flux neutrons at 323 K to 0.025 dpa in High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Subsequently, one of the neutron-irradiated tungsten samples was exposed to a high-flux deuterium plasma (ion flux: 5 x 10{sup 21} m{sup -2} s{sup -1}, ion fluence: 4 x 10{sup 25} m{sup -2}) in the Tritium Plasma Experiment (TPE) at Idaho National Laboratory (INL). The deuterium retention in the neutron-irradiated tungsten was 40% higher in comparison to the unirradiated tungsten. The observed broad desorption spectrum from neutron-irradiated tungsten and associated TMAP modeling of the deuterium release suggest that trapping occurs in the bulk material at more than three different energy sites.

Mathematical model to analyze the dissolution behavior of metastable crystals or amorphous drug accompanied with a solid-liquid interface reaction.

Science.gov (United States)

Hirai, Daiki; Iwao, Yasunori; Kimura, Shin-Ichiro; Noguchi, Shuji; Itai, Shigeru

2017-04-30

Metastable crystals and the amorphous state of poorly water-soluble drugs in solid dispersions (SDs), are subject to a solid-liquid interface reaction upon exposure to a solvent. The dissolution behavior during the solid-liquid interface reaction often shows that the concentration of drugs is supersaturated, with a high initial drug concentration compared with the solubility of stable crystals but finally approaching the latter solubility with time. However, a method for measuring the precipitation rate of stable crystals and/or the potential solubility of metastable crystals or amorphous drugs has not been established. In this study, a novel mathematical model that can represent the dissolution behavior of the solid-liquid interface reaction for metastable crystals or amorphous drug was developed and its validity was evaluated. The theory for this model was based on the Noyes-Whitney equation and assumes that the precipitation of stable crystals at the solid-liquid interface occurs through a first-order reaction. Moreover, two models were developed, one assuming that the surface area of the drug remains constant because of the presence of excess drug in the bulk and the other that the surface area changes in time-dependency because of agglomeration of the drug. SDs of Ibuprofen (IB)/polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) were prepared and their dissolution behaviors under non-sink conditions were fitted by the models to evaluate improvements in solubility. The model assuming time-dependent surface area showed good agreement with experimental values. Furthermore, by applying the model to the dissolution profile, parameters such as the precipitation rate and the potential solubility of the amorphous drug were successfully calculated. In addition, it was shown that the improvement in solubility with supersaturation was able to be evaluated quantitatively using this model. Therefore, this mathematical model would be a useful tool to quantitatively determine the supersaturation

Metastable carbon in two chondritic porous interplanetary dust particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rietmeijer, F.J.M.; Mackinnon, I.D.R.

1987-01-01

An analytical electron microscope study is presented on carbonaceous material in two chondritic porous aggregates, W7029* A and W7010* A2, from the Johnson Space Center Cosmic Dust Collection. The finding of well-ordered carbon-2H (lonsdaleite) in the two aggregates suggests that a record of hydrocarbon carbonization may be preserved in these materials. This carbon is a metastable phase resulting from hydrous pyrolysis below 300-350 0 C and may be a precursor to poorly graphitized carbons in primitive extra terrestrial materials. (UK)

Synthesis and characterization of metastable, 20 nm-sized Pna2{sub 1}-LiCoPO{sub 4} nanospheres

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ludwig, Jennifer [Technical University of Munich, Department of Chemistry, Synthesis and Characterization of Innovative Materials, Lichtenbergstr. 4, 85747 Garching (Germany); Nordlund, Dennis [Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Rd, Menlo Park, CA 94025 (United States); Doeff, Marca M. [Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Environmental Energy Technologies Division, 1 Cyclotron Rd, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States); Nilges, Tom, E-mail: tom.nilges@lrz.tum.de [Technical University of Munich, Department of Chemistry, Synthesis and Characterization of Innovative Materials, Lichtenbergstr. 4, 85747 Garching (Germany)

2017-04-15

The majority of research activities on LiCoPO{sub 4} are focused on the phospho-olivine (space group Pnma), which is a promising high-voltage cathode material for Li-ion batteries. In contrast, comparably little is known about its metastable Pna2{sub 1} modification. Herein, we present a comprehensive study on the structure–property relationships of 15–20 nm Pna2{sub 1}-LiCoPO{sub 4} nanospheres prepared by a simple microwave-assisted solvothermal process. Unlike previous reports, the results indicate that the compound is non-stoichiometric and shows cation-mixing with Co ions on the Li sites, which provides an explanation for the poor electrochemical performance. Co L{sub 2,3}-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopic data confirm the local tetrahedral symmetry of Co{sup 2+}. Comprehensive studies on the thermal stability using thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, and in situ powder X-ray diffraction show an exothermic phase transition to olivine Pnma-LiCoPO{sub 4} at 527 °C. The influence of the atmosphere and the particle size on the thermal stability is also investigated. - Graphical abstract: Blue nano-sized Pna2{sub 1}-LiCoPO{sub 4,} featuring tetrahedrally-coordinated Co{sup 2+}, was synthesized in a rapid one-step microwave-assisted solvothermal process. The phase relation between this metastable and the stable polymorph was analyzed and electrochemical properties are discussed. - Highlights: • Preparation of uniform 15–20 nm nanospheres of metastable Pna2{sub 1}-LiCoPO{sub 4} polymorph. • Structure redetermination shows cation-mixing (Co blocking Li sites). • In situ investigation of phase transformation to olivine Pnma-LiCoPO{sub 4} at 527 °C. • Pna2{sub 1}-LiCoPO{sub 4} reemerges as a stable high-temperature phase above 800 °C. • X-ray absorption spectroscopy confirms local tetrahedral symmetry (T{sub d} Co{sup 2+}).

Hardness enhancement and crosslinking mechanisms in polystyrene irradiated with high energy ion-beams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, E.H.; Rao, G.R.; Mansur, L.K.

1996-01-01

Surface hardness values several times larger than steel were produced using high energy ion beams at several hundred keV to MeV. High LET is important for crosslinking. Crosslinking is studied by analyzing hardness variations in response to irradiation parameter such as ion species, energy, and fluence. Effective crosslinking radii at hardness saturation are derived base on experimental data for 350 keV H + and 1 MeV Ar + irradiation of polystyrene. Saturation value for surface hardness is about 20 GPa

Inhomogeneous quantum diffusion and decay of a meta-stable state

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ghosh, Pulak Kumar [Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Jadavpur, Kolkata 700 032 (India); Barik, Debashis [Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Jadavpur, Kolkata 700 032 (India); Ray, Deb Shankar [Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Jadavpur, Kolkata 700 032 (India)

2007-01-29

We consider the quantum stochastic dynamics of a system whose interaction with the reservoir is considered to be linear in bath co-ordinates but nonlinear in system co-ordinates. The role of the space-dependent friction and diffusion has been examined in the decay rate of a particle from a meta-stable well. We show how the decay rate can be hindered by inhomogeneous dissipation due to nonlinear system-bath coupling strength.

Inhomogeneous quantum diffusion and decay of a meta-stable state

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ghosh, Pulak Kumar; Barik, Debashis; Ray, Deb Shankar

2007-01-01

We consider the quantum stochastic dynamics of a system whose interaction with the reservoir is considered to be linear in bath co-ordinates but nonlinear in system co-ordinates. The role of the space-dependent friction and diffusion has been examined in the decay rate of a particle from a meta-stable well. We show how the decay rate can be hindered by inhomogeneous dissipation due to nonlinear system-bath coupling strength

Inhomogeneous quantum diffusion and decay of a meta-stable state

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ghosh, Pulak Kumar [Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Jadavpur, Kolkata 700 032 (India); Barik, Debashis [Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Jadavpur, Kolkata 700 032 (India); Ray, Deb Shankar [Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Jadavpur, Kolkata 700 032 (India)

2006-12-18

We consider the quantum stochastic dynamics of a system whose interaction with the reservoir is considered to be linear in bath co-ordinates but nonlinear in system co-ordinates. The role of the space-dependent friction and diffusion has been examined in the decay rate of a particle from a meta-stable well. We show how the decay rate can be hindered by inhomogeneous dissipation due to nonlinear system-bath coupling strength.

Inhomogeneous quantum diffusion and decay of a meta-stable state

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ghosh, Pulak Kumar; Barik, Debashis; Ray, Deb Shankar

2006-01-01

We consider the quantum stochastic dynamics of a system whose interaction with the reservoir is considered to be linear in bath co-ordinates but nonlinear in system co-ordinates. The role of the space-dependent friction and diffusion has been examined in the decay rate of a particle from a meta-stable well. We show how the decay rate can be hindered by inhomogeneous dissipation due to nonlinear system-bath coupling strength

Thermodynamics and dynamics of the hard-sphere system: From stable to metastable states

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bomont, Jean-Marc, E-mail: jean-marc.bomont@univ-lorraine.fr; Bretonnet, Jean-Louis

2014-08-17

Highlights: • Three different scaling laws, devoted to transport properties of hard-sphere system, are investigated over a wide range of packing fractions. • A new semiempirical relation linking the transport properties to the excess pressure is derived. • The present relation allows to better understand the link between the thermodynamic and the dynamic properties of the hard-sphere system. - Abstract: A set of three different scaling laws is investigated, which are devoted to link the transport properties, i.e. diffusion coefficient, shear viscosity, bulk viscosity and thermal conductivity, to the thermodynamic properties for the athermal hard-sphere system, over the wider range of packing fraction covering the stable and metastable regimes. Except for the thermal conductivity, the Rosenfeld (1999) [15] relation is found to be applicable to the stable states while the Adam and Gibbs (1965) [24] relation holds well for the metastable states. In contrast, the modified Cohen and Turnbull (1959) [25] relation proposed here gives sound support for a universal scaling law connecting the dynamic and thermodynamic properties, over the domain of packing fraction including the stable and metastable states. In particular, it is found that the most relevant control parameter is not the excess entropy, but the logarithm derivative of the excess entropy with respect to the packing fraction. In the same context, the Stokes–Einstein relation between the diffusion coefficient and the shear viscosity is also examined. The possible violation of the Stokes–Einstein relation is investigated over a large domain of packing fractions.

Thermodynamics and dynamics of the hard-sphere system: From stable to metastable states

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bomont, Jean-Marc; Bretonnet, Jean-Louis

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Three different scaling laws, devoted to transport properties of hard-sphere system, are investigated over a wide range of packing fractions. • A new semiempirical relation linking the transport properties to the excess pressure is derived. • The present relation allows to better understand the link between the thermodynamic and the dynamic properties of the hard-sphere system. - Abstract: A set of three different scaling laws is investigated, which are devoted to link the transport properties, i.e. diffusion coefficient, shear viscosity, bulk viscosity and thermal conductivity, to the thermodynamic properties for the athermal hard-sphere system, over the wider range of packing fraction covering the stable and metastable regimes. Except for the thermal conductivity, the Rosenfeld (1999) [15] relation is found to be applicable to the stable states while the Adam and Gibbs (1965) [24] relation holds well for the metastable states. In contrast, the modified Cohen and Turnbull (1959) [25] relation proposed here gives sound support for a universal scaling law connecting the dynamic and thermodynamic properties, over the domain of packing fraction including the stable and metastable states. In particular, it is found that the most relevant control parameter is not the excess entropy, but the logarithm derivative of the excess entropy with respect to the packing fraction. In the same context, the Stokes–Einstein relation between the diffusion coefficient and the shear viscosity is also examined. The possible violation of the Stokes–Einstein relation is investigated over a large domain of packing fractions

Polymer escape from a metastable Kramers potential: path integral hyperdynamics study.

Science.gov (United States)

Shin, Jaeoh; Ikonen, Timo; Khandkar, Mahendra D; Ala-Nissila, Tapio; Sung, Wokyung

2010-11-14

We study the dynamics of flexible, semiflexible, and self-avoiding polymer chains moving under a Kramers metastable potential. Due to thermal noise, the polymers, initially placed in the metastable well, can cross the potential barrier, but these events are extremely rare if the barrier is much larger than thermal energy. To speed up the slow rate processes in computer simulations, we extend the recently proposed path integral hyperdynamics method to the cases of polymers. We consider the cases where the polymers' radii of gyration are comparable to the distance between the well bottom and the barrier top. We find that, for a flexible polymers, the crossing rate (R) monotonically decreases with chain contour length (L), but with the magnitude much larger than the Kramers rate in the globular limit. For a semiflexible polymer, the crossing rate decreases with L but becomes nearly constant for large L. For a fixed L, the crossing rate becomes maximum at an intermediate bending stiffness. For the self-avoiding chain, the rate is a nonmonotonic function of L, first decreasing with L, and then, above a certain length, increasing with L. These findings can be instrumental for efficient separation of biopolymers.

The application of high dose food irradiation in South Africa

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bruyn, Ingrid Nine de

2000-01-01

During the 1950s to the end of the 1970s the United States Army developed the basic methodology to produce shelf-stable irradiated meat, seafood and poultry products. These products are normally packed without gravy, sauce or brine, as liquid is not required to sterilize the product as in the canning process. This leads to the distinctive 'dried cooked' taste normally associated with roasts opposed to the casserole taste usually associated with tinned meats. The Biogam group at the Atomic Energy Corporation of South Africa is currently producing shelf-stable irradiated meats on a commercial basis. The meats are cooked, chilled, portioned, vacuum packed and irradiated to the required minimum dose of 45 kGy at a temperature of between -20 and -40 deg. C to ensure absolute sterility even under tropical conditions. The product is packaged in a high quality four layer laminate pouch and will therefore not rust or burst even under adverse weather conditions and can be guaranteed for more than two years as long as the integrity of the packaging is maintained. Safari operators in remote parts of Africa, mountaineers, yachtsmen, canoeists and geological survey teams currently use shelf-stable irradiated meat products produced in South Africa. (author)

The application of high dose food irradiation in South Africa

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bruyn, Ingrid Nine de E-mail: debruyni@mweb.co.za

2000-03-01

During the 1950s to the end of the 1970s the United States Army developed the basic methodology to produce shelf-stable irradiated meat, seafood and poultry products. These products are normally packed without gravy, sauce or brine, as liquid is not required to sterilize the product as in the canning process. This leads to the distinctive 'dried cooked' taste normally associated with roasts opposed to the casserole taste usually associated with tinned meats. The Biogam group at the Atomic Energy Corporation of South Africa is currently producing shelf-stable irradiated meats on a commercial basis. The meats are cooked, chilled, portioned, vacuum packed and irradiated to the required minimum dose of 45 kGy at a temperature of between -20 and -40 deg. C to ensure absolute sterility even under tropical conditions. The product is packaged in a high quality four layer laminate pouch and will therefore not rust or burst even under adverse weather conditions and can be guaranteed for more than two years as long as the integrity of the packaging is maintained. Safari operators in remote parts of Africa, mountaineers, yachtsmen, canoeists and geological survey teams currently use shelf-stable irradiated meat products produced in South Africa. (author)

The application of high dose food irradiation in South Africa

Science.gov (United States)

de Bruyn, Ingrid Nine

2000-03-01

During the 1950s to the end of the 1970s the United States Army developed the basic methodology to produce shelf-stable irradiated meat, seafood and poultry products. These products are normally packed without gravy, sauce or brine, as liquid is not required to sterilize the product as in the canning process. This leads to the distinctive "dried cooked" taste normally associated with roasts opposed to the casserole taste usually associated with tinned meats. The Biogam group at the Atomic Energy Corporation of South Africa is currently producing shelf-stable irradiated meats on a commercial basis. The meats are cooked, chilled, portioned, vacuum packed and irradiated to the required minimum dose of 45 kGy at a temperature of between -20 and -40°C to ensure absolute sterility even under tropical conditions. The product is packaged in a high quality four layer laminate pouch and will therefore not rust or burst even under adverse weather conditions and can be guaranteed for more than two years as long as the integrity of the packaging is maintained. Safari operators in remote parts of Africa, mountaineers, yachtsmen, canoeists and geological survey teams currently use shelf-stable irradiated meat products produced in South Africa.

High dose neutron irradiation damage in beryllium as blanket material

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chakin, V.P. E-mail: fae@niiar.ru; Kazakov, V.A.; Teykovtsev, A.A.; Pimenov, V.V.; Shimansky, G.A.; Ostrovsky, Z.E.; Suslov, D.N.; Latypov, R.N.; Belozerov, S.V.; Kupriyanov, I.B. E-mail: vniinm.400@g23.relkom.ru

2001-11-01

The paper presents the investigation results of beryllium products that operated in the SM and BOR-60 reactors up to neutron doses of 2.8x10{sup 22} and 8.0x10{sup 22} cm{sup -2} (E>1 MeV), respectively. The calculated and experimental data are given on helium and tritium accumulation, swelling, micro-hardness and thermal conductivity. The microstructural investigation results of irradiated beryllium are also presented. It is shown that the rate of helium and tritium accumulation in beryllium in the SM and BOR-60 reactors is high enough, which is of interest from the viewpoint of modeling the working conditions of the DEMO fusion reactor. Swelling of beryllium at irradiation temperature of 70-150 deg. C and neutron fluence of 2.8x10{sup 22} cm{sup -2} (E>1 MeV) makes up 0.8-1.5%, at 400 deg. C and fluence of 8x10{sup 22} cm{sup -2} (E>1 MeV)-3.2-5.0%. Irradiation hardening and decrease of thermal conductivity strongly depend on the irradiation temperature and are more significant at reduced temperatures. All results presented in the paper were analyzed with due account of the supposed working parameters of the DEMO fusion reactor blanket.

High dose neutron irradiation damage in beryllium as blanket material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chakin, V.P.; Kazakov, V.A.; Teykovtsev, A.A.; Pimenov, V.V.; Shimansky, G.A.; Ostrovsky, Z.E.; Suslov, D.N.; Latypov, R.N.; Belozerov, S.V.; Kupriyanov, I.B.

2001-01-01

The paper presents the investigation results of beryllium products that operated in the SM and BOR-60 reactors up to neutron doses of 2.8x10 22 and 8.0x10 22 cm -2 (E>1 MeV), respectively. The calculated and experimental data are given on helium and tritium accumulation, swelling, micro-hardness and thermal conductivity. The microstructural investigation results of irradiated beryllium are also presented. It is shown that the rate of helium and tritium accumulation in beryllium in the SM and BOR-60 reactors is high enough, which is of interest from the viewpoint of modeling the working conditions of the DEMO fusion reactor. Swelling of beryllium at irradiation temperature of 70-150 deg. C and neutron fluence of 2.8x10 22 cm -2 (E>1 MeV) makes up 0.8-1.5%, at 400 deg. C and fluence of 8x10 22 cm -2 (E>1 MeV)-3.2-5.0%. Irradiation hardening and decrease of thermal conductivity strongly depend on the irradiation temperature and are more significant at reduced temperatures. All results presented in the paper were analyzed with due account of the supposed working parameters of the DEMO fusion reactor blanket

Thermally stimulated current method applied to highly irradiated silicon diodes

CERN Document Server

Pintilie, I; Pintilie, I; Moll, Michael; Fretwurst, E; Lindström, G

2002-01-01

We propose an improved method for the analysis of Thermally Stimulated Currents (TSC) measured on highly irradiated silicon diodes. The proposed TSC formula for the evaluation of a set of TSC spectra obtained with different reverse biases leads not only to the concentration of electron and hole traps visible in the spectra but also gives an estimation for the concentration of defects which not give rise to a peak in the 30-220 K TSC temperature range (very shallow or very deep levels). The method is applied to a diode irradiated with a neutron fluence of phi sub n =1.82x10 sup 1 sup 3 n/cm sup 2.

Fast metastable hydrogen atoms from H2 molecules: twin atoms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Trimèche A.

2015-01-01

Full Text Available It is a difficult task to obtain “twin atoms”, i.e. pairs of massive particles such that one can perform experiments in the same fashion that is routinely done with “twin photons”. One possible route to obtain such pairs is by dissociating homonuclear diatomic molecules. We address this possibility by investigating the production of metastable H(2s atoms coming from the dissociation of cold H2 molecules produced in a Campargue nozzle beam crossing an electron beam from a high intensity pulsed electron gun. Dissociation by electron impact was chosen to avoid limitations of target molecular excited states due to selection rules. Detectors placed several centimeters away from the collision center, and aligned with respect to possible common molecular dissociation channel, analyze the neutral fragments as a function of their time-of-flight (TOF through Lyman-α detection. Evidence for the first time observed coincidence of pairs of H(2s atoms obtained this way is presented.

Development of highly fire-retardant irradiated polyolefin cables

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ueno, Keiji; Inui, Toshifumi; Uda, Ikujiro (Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd., Osaka (Japan))

1982-12-01

In recent years, motors, automobiles, heaters, etc., have been made into light weight and compact form in view of labour-saving and energy-saving. For this purpose, the wires for the electrical appliances used for these equipment are required to reduce insulation thickness and to improve heat resistance. On the other hand, the requirement for fire-retardant property has become severer than before from the viewpoint of safety. As an insulation for the wires which meets such requirement, the polyolefin cross-linked by irradiation was investigated, and the heat-resistant, highly fire-retardant, polyolefin-insulated wires have been developed, which have passed vertical combustion test (VW-1) and have the insulation thickness of 0.4 mm (voltage rating 300V) and UL standard 125 deg C and 150 deg C grades. Fire-retardant polyolefin resin is normally obtained by adding halogen series flame retarders. The selection of flame retarders requires the investigation on high thermal stability, high flame retardation, no impedance to cross-linking, and good dispersion into polymers. The evaluation of heat resistance performed on two points, thermal aging and thermal deformation. The use of oxidation inhibitors is indispensable to improve the anti-thermal aging capability, but it is important to balance the requirements well by combining oxidation inhibitors, considering thermal deformation, colouring and discolouration. By comparative test with silicone rubber, cross-linked polyethylene and cross-linked PVC-insulated wires, the characteristics of highly fire-retardant wires, insulated with polyethylene cross-linked by irradiation, are described about the fire retardation, thermal deformation, thermal aging resistance, electrical characteristics and oil resistance.

High-dose irradiation: Wholesomeness of food irradiated with doses above 10 kGy. Report of a joint FAO/IAEA/WHO study group

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1999-01-01

This report presents the recommendations of an international group of experts convened by the World Health Organization, in association with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the International Atomic Energy Agency, to consider the implications of food irradiated to doses higher than those recommended in 1980 by the Joint Expert Committee on the Wholesomeness of Irradiated Food. Irradiation ensures the hygienic quality of food and extends shelf-life. The public perception of the safety of food irradiation has generally precluded its widespread use. However, current applications of food irradiation to doses over 10 kGy have been in the development of high-quality shelf-stable convenience foods for specific target groups such as immunosuppressed individuals and those under medical care, astronauts and outdoor enthusiasts. The Study Group reviewed data relating to the toxicological, nutritional, radiation chemical and physical aspects of food irradiated to doses above 10kGy from a wide range and number of studies carried out over the last forty years. This report presents a comprehensive summary, along with references, of the effectiveness and safety of the irradiation process. It concludes that foods treated with doses greater than 10kGy can be considered safe and nutritionally adequate when produced under established Good Manufacturing Practice

Formation of stable and metastable phases in reciprocal systems PbSe + MI2 = MSe + PbI2 (M = Hg, Mn, Sn)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Odin, I.N.; Grin'ko, V.V.; Kozlovskij, V.F.; Safronov, E.V.; Gapanovich, M.V.

2004-01-01

Using data of differential thermal, X-ray phase and microstructural analyses, phase diagrams of reciprocal systems PbSe + MI 2 = MSe + PbI 2 (M=Hg (1), Mn (2), Sn (3)) were constructed. It was ascertained that the HgSe-PbI 2 diagonal in system 1 is stable. Transformations leading to crystallization of metastable ternary compound formed in the system PbSe-PbI 2 and metastable polytypes of lead iodide in systems 1 and 2 in the range of temperatures from 620 to 685 K were studied. New intermediate metastable phases in systems 1, 2 and 3 were prepared by melt quenching. Crystal lattice parameters of the phases crystallizing in the CdCl 2 structural type were defined [ru

Effects of High-Energy Proton-Beam Irradiation on the Magnetic Properties of ZnO Nanorods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Park, Jun Kue; Kwon, Hyeok-Jung; Cho, Yong Sub [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-10-15

There are still many problem for the application due to its unstable magnetism state and too small magnetization values. Here we investigate magnetic properties of ZnO nanorods after high-energy proton-beam irradiation. Electron spin resonance (ESR) measurement on temperature was made to identify intrinsic or extrinsic defects as well as to observe magnetic ordering after irradiation. Understanding the effects of proton beam irradiation on magnetic behavior may help to shed light on the mechanism responsible for the magnetic ordering in this material. We have investigated proton-beam irradiation effects on the magnetic properties of ZnO nanorods. After irradiation a broad ESR line is observed, indicating emergence of ferromagnetic ordering up to room temperature. In M-H curve, stronger coercive field is observed after irradiation.

From materials control to astrophysics: metastable superconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Waysand, G.

1984-01-01

The basic properties of metastable superconducting materials are reviewed: superheated domain, size of the granules, reading of the change of state. In the case of superheating, the phase transition can occur following two paths: a) increase of temperature (thermal nucleation) which allows an analysis of the calorimetric behavior for particle detection; b) increase of the applied magnetic field which allows the evaluation of surface defects promoting the nucleation of the normal state, and, more generally, the study of the superheated material as a disordered system. The thermal nucleation is useful for X-ray detection in non-destructive control as well as for the solar neutrino detection in real time. The magnetic nucleation is the basis for a proposal of detection of magnetic monopoles by induction [fr

Improvement of the High Fluence Irradiation Facility at the University of Tokyo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Murakami, Kenta, E-mail: murakami@tokai.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp [Nuclear Professional School, School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, 2-22 Shirakata-Shirane, Tokai-mura, Ibaraki 319-1188 (Japan); Iwai, Takeo, E-mail: iwai@med.id.yamagata-u.ac.jp [Faculty of Medicine, Yamagata University, 2-2-2 Iida-Nishi, Yamagata, Yamagata-shi 990-9585 (Japan); Abe, Hiroaki, E-mail: abe.hiroaki@n.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp [Nuclear Professional School, School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, 2-22 Shirakata-Shirane, Tokai-mura, Ibaraki 319-1188 (Japan); Sekimura, Naoto, E-mail: sekimura@n.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp [Department of Nuclear Engineering and Management, School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1, Tokyo, Hongo, Bunkyo, 113-8656 (Japan)

2016-08-15

This paper reports the modification of the High Fluence Irradiation Facility at the University of Tokyo (HIT). The HIT facility was severely damaged during the 2011 earthquake, which occurred off the Pacific coast of Tohoku. A damaged 1.0 MV tandem Cockcroft-Walton accelerator was replaced with a 1.7 MV accelerator, which was formerly used in another campus of the university. A decision was made to maintain dual-beam irradiation capability by repairing the 3.75 MV single-ended Van de Graaff accelerator and reconstructing the related beamlines. A new beamline was connected with a 200 kV transmission electron microscope (TEM) to perform in-situ TEM observation under ion irradiation.

CdTe/CZT under high flux irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Strassburg, Matthias; Schroeter, Christian; Hackenschmied, Peter

2011-01-01

Direct converting quantum counting detectors based on cadmium telluride and cadmium zinc telluride have been investigated with respect to their properties under intense X-ray irradiation. To derive a detailed picture of the performance of such detectors, the influence of the electric field, the detector thickness, the temperature and the intensity of the X-ray irradiation was studied. The results are discussed in terms of the ''polarization'' phenomenon, a reduction of the electric field strength inside the detector due to immobile charge carriers accumulating during irradiation. Furthermore, the impact of Te-inclusions and -precipitates is presented.

Development of Environment and Irradiation Effects of High Temperature Materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryu, Woo Seog; Kim, D. W.; Kim, S. H.

2009-11-01

Proposed materials, Mod.9Cr-1Mo steel (32 mm thickness) and 9Cr-1Mo-1W (100 mm thickness), for the reactor vessel were procured, and welded by the qualified welding technologies. Welding soundness was conformed by NDT, and mechanical testings were done along to weld depth. Two new irradiation capsules for use in the OR test hole of HANARO were designed and fabricated. specimens was irradiated in the OR5 test hole of HANARO with a 30MW thermal power at 390±10 .deg. C up to a fast neutron fluence of 4.4x10 19 (n/cm 2 ) (E>1.0 MeV). The dpa was evaluated to be 0.034∼0.07. Base metals and weldments of both Mod.9Cr-1Mo and 9Cr-1Mo-1W steels were tested tensile and impact properties in order to evaluate the irradiation hardening effects due to neutron irradiation. DBTT of base metal and weldment of Mod.9Cr-1Mo steel were -16 .deg. C and 1 .deg. C, respectively. After neutron irradiation, DBTT of weldment of Mod.9Cr-1Mo steel increased to 25 . deg. C. Alloy 617 and several nickel-base superalloys were studied to evaluate high temperature degradation mechanisms. Helium loop was developed to evaluate the oxidation behaviors of materials in the VHTR environments. In addition, creep behaviors in air and He environments were compared, and oxidation layers formed outer surfaces were measured as a function of applied stress and these results were investigated to the creep life

Capability for identification of gamma-irradiated bovine liver by new high sensitivity comet assay

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miyahara, Makoto; Toyoda, Masatake; Saito, Akiko; Ito, Hitoshi

2000-01-01

DNA in food will sustain damage by gamma radiation. The detection capability of the high sensitivity comet assay was studied using fluorescence-microscopy. Beef liver was irradiated at a range of 1 Gy to 8 kGy. Single cells were obtained from the irradiated liver, then analyzed by agaros-gel electrophoresis. The pH of the buffer for electrophoresis was pH 13, which is generally utilized for sensitive detection of DNA damage. The pattern formed by DNA was visualized by staining with ethidium bromide. The resulting comets were evaluated with a scale we developed, and Influence Scores were calculated based on the Tice method. It is possible to detect irradiation damage to beef liver at 10 Gy. Together with Influence Score, histogram of comet type is used for detection of irradiation. We elucidated those histograms were useful for distinguishing damage caused by irradiation from that of others. DNA damage can be caused not only by irradiation, but also by the other treatments. Therefore, the respective influences of freezing, preservation, irradiating temperature, atmosphere of irradiation, cooking, and homogenizing devices were also examined. This new comet assay will be a useful method of detecting DNA damage to identify irradiated foods. (author)

Metastable self-trapping of positrons in MgO

Science.gov (United States)

Monge, M. A.; Pareja, R.; González, R.; Chen, Y.

1997-01-01

Low-temperature positron annihilation measurements have been performed on MgO single crystals containing either cation or anion vacancies. The temperature dependence of the S parameter is explained in terms of metastable self-trapped positrons which thermally hop through the crystal lattice. The experimental results are analyzed using a three-state trapping model assuming transitions from both delocalized and self-trapped states to deep trapped states at vacancies. The energy level of the self-trapped state was determined to be (62+/-5) meV above the delocalized state. The activation enthalpy for the hopping process of self-trapped positrons appears to depend on the kind of defect present in the crystals.

Characteristics of recycled and electron beam irradiated high density polyethylene samples

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cardoso, Jessica R.; Gabriel, Leandro; Geraldo, Aurea B.C.; Moura, Eduardo

2015-01-01

Polymers modification by irradiation is a well-known process that allows degradation and cross-linking in concurrent events; this last is expected when an increase of mechanical properties is required. Actually, the interest of recycling and reuse of polymeric material is linked to the increase of plastics ending up in waste streams. Therefore, these both irradiation and recycling process may be conducted to allow a new use to this material that would be discarded by an improvement of its mechanical properties. In this work, the High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) matrix has been recycled five times from original substrate. The electron beam irradiation process was applied from 50 kGy to 200 kGy in both original and recycled samples; in this way, mechanical properties and thermal characteristics were evaluated. The results of applied process and material characterization are discussed. (author)

Characteristics of recycled and electron beam irradiated high density polyethylene samples

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cardoso, Jessica R.; Gabriel, Leandro; Geraldo, Aurea B.C.; Moura, Eduardo, E-mail: jrcardoso@ipen.br, E-mail: lgabriell@gmail.com, E-mail: ageraldo@ipen.br [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNEN-SP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)

2015-07-01

Polymers modification by irradiation is a well-known process that allows degradation and cross-linking in concurrent events; this last is expected when an increase of mechanical properties is required. Actually, the interest of recycling and reuse of polymeric material is linked to the increase of plastics ending up in waste streams. Therefore, these both irradiation and recycling process may be conducted to allow a new use to this material that would be discarded by an improvement of its mechanical properties. In this work, the High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) matrix has been recycled five times from original substrate. The electron beam irradiation process was applied from 50 kGy to 200 kGy in both original and recycled samples; in this way, mechanical properties and thermal characteristics were evaluated. The results of applied process and material characterization are discussed. (author)

Compositional redistribution in alloy films under high-voltage electron microscope irradiation

Science.gov (United States)

Lam, Nghi Q.; Leaf, O. K.; Minkoff, M.

1983-10-01

The problem of nonequilibrium segregation in alloy films under high-voltage electron microscope (HVEM) irradiation at elevated temperatures is re-examined in the present work, taking into account the damage-rate gradients caused by radial variation in the electron flux. Axial and radial compositional redistributions in model solid solutions, representative of concentrated Ni-Cu, Ni-Al and Ni-Si alloys, were calculated as a function of time, temperature, and film thickness, using a kinetic theory of segregation in binary alloys. The numerical results were achieved by means of a new software package (DISPL2) for solving convection-diffusion-kinetics problems with general orthogonal geometries. It was found that HVEM irradiation-induced segregation in thin films consists of two stages. Initially, due to the proximity of the film surfaces as sinks for point defects, the usual axial segregation (to surfaces) occurs at relatively short irradiation times, and rapidly attains quasi-steady state. Then, radial segregation becomes more and more competitive, gradually affecting the kinetics of axial segregation. At a given temperature, the buildup time to steady state is much longer in the present situation than in the simple case of one-dimensional segregation with uniform defect production. Changes in the alloy composition occur in a much larger zone than the irradiated volume. As a result, the average alloy composition within the irradiated region can differ greatly from that of the unirradiated alloy. The present calculations may be useful in the interpretation of the kinetics of certain HVEM irradiation-induced processes in alloys.

STATUS OF HIGH FLUX ISOTOPE REACTOR IRRADIATION OF SILICON CARBIDE/SILICON CARBIDE JOINTS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Katoh, Yutai [ORNL; Koyanagi, Takaaki [ORNL; Kiggans, Jim [ORNL; Cetiner, Nesrin [ORNL; McDuffee, Joel [ORNL

2014-09-01

Development of silicon carbide (SiC) joints that retain adequate structural and functional properties in the anticipated service conditions is a critical milestone toward establishment of advanced SiC composite technology for the accident-tolerant light water reactor (LWR) fuels and core structures. Neutron irradiation is among the most critical factors that define the harsh service condition of LWR fuel during the normal operation. The overarching goal of the present joining and irradiation studies is to establish technologies for joining SiC-based materials for use as the LWR fuel cladding. The purpose of this work is to fabricate SiC joint specimens, characterize those joints in an unirradiated condition, and prepare rabbit capsules for neutron irradiation study on the fabricated specimens in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR). Torsional shear test specimens of chemically vapor-deposited SiC were prepared by seven different joining methods either at Oak Ridge National Laboratory or by industrial partners. The joint test specimens were characterized for shear strength and microstructures in an unirradiated condition. Rabbit irradiation capsules were designed and fabricated for neutron irradiation of these joint specimens at an LWR-relevant temperature. These rabbit capsules, already started irradiation in HFIR, are scheduled to complete irradiation to an LWR-relevant dose level in early 2015.