Environment-induced decoherence II. Effect of decoherence on Bell''s inequality for an EPR pair

According to Bell's theorem, the degree of correlation between spatially separated measurements on a quantum system is limited by certain inequalities if one assumes the condition of locality. Quantum mechanics predicts that this limit can be exceeded, making it nonlocal. We analyse the effect of an environment modelled by a fluctuating magnetic field on the quantum correlations in an EPR singlet as seen in the Bell inequality. We show that in an EPR setup, the system goes from the usual ‘violation’ of Bell's inequality to a ‘non-violation’ for times larger than a characteristic time scale which is related to the parameters of the fluctuating field. We also look at these inequalities as a function of the spatial separation between the EPR pair.     

Isotope shift studies in the spectra of Gadolinium in UV region and term shifts of high even levels of Gd I

Isotope shift Δσ(¹⁵⁶Gd?¹⁶⁰Gd) is reported in 70 spectral lines of neutral gadolinium atom (Gd I) in the 3290- 3920 Å region providing isotope shift data in UV lines of Gd I spectrum for the first time. The measurements were carried out on a photoelectric recording Fabry-Perot Spectrometer using highly enriched isotopic samples of gadolinium. Term isotope shifts ΔT(¹⁵⁶Gd?¹⁶⁰Gd) have been evaluated for 48 high lying even parity energy levels of Gd I using this data; new ΔT values have been obtained for 24 levels. Electronic configurations 4f⁷5d6s6p, 4ff⁷5df²6p and 4f⁸5d6s assigned earlier to these even levels have been either confirmed or configuration mixing pointed out in some of these levels. Probable assignment of 4f⁸5d6s configuration to 8 even levels between 32 930 and 35 500 cm^-1 have been confirmed.     

Efficient photocyclization of o-alkylbenzaldehydes in the solid state: direct observation of E-xylylenols en route to benzocyclobutenols

The photocyclization to benzocyclobutenols of o-alkyl aromatic aldehydes that are predestined for gamma-hydrogen abstraction is found to occur efficiently in the solid state; in contrast, solution-phase photolysis is known to afford a mixture of several products. It is shown that mesitaldehyde, which is a liquid, also undergoes efficient cyclization when subjected to photolysis as a solid inclusion complex. The marginal energy differences in the relative energies of the E-enols and the corresponding cyclobutenols in the case of cyano-substituted mesitaldehydes has permitted direct observation, for the first time, of the E-enols en route to benzocyclobutenols. The AM1 calculations suggest that the cyano-substitution causes intrinsic stabilization of the E-enols relative to the corresponding cyclobutenols, while the bromo groups do the opposite. The lack of observation of the red color in bromo- and formyl-substituted aldehydes is attributed to rapid cyclization of the E-enols to the their respective cyclobutenols even at low temperatures.     

Removal of actinides and fission products activity from intermediate alkaline waste using inorganic exchangers

Hydrated iron oxide or amorphous-Fe₂O₃·3.5 H₂O (HFeO), hydrated titanium oxide (HTiO) and hydrated thorium oxide (HThO) were synthesized and their applicability for the decontamination of intermediate level liquid wastes (ILLW) was tested. The sorption of a few actinides like plutonium and americium on HFeO, ¹³⁷Cs and ¹⁰⁶Ru on HTiO and ⁹⁰Sr on HThO was investigated as a function of pH, time and loading capacity of the hydrous oxide with metal ions. The influence of the total dissolved salt content was also monitored. Some of these parameters influenced the sorption behavior significantly. The radiation stability of these inorganic sorbents were studied by irradiating them up to 48 Mrad. Adsorbed actinides and fission products were successfully eluted from HFeO and from the mix-bed of HTiO and HThO by 0.5M nitric acid.The authors wish to thank Shri R. D. Changarani, Chief Superintendent NRG Facilities and Shri P. K. Dey, Head FRD for their valuable advice and constant support.