Solar diurnal anisotropy measured using muons in GRAPES-3 experiment in 2006

The GRAPES-3 experiment at Ooty contains a large-area (560 m²) tracking muon detector. This detector consists of 16 modules, each 35 m² in area, that are grouped into four supermodules of 140 m² each. The threshold energy of muons is sec(θ) GeV along a direction with zenith angle θ and the angular resolution of the muon detector is 6°. Typically, it records ~4×10⁹ muons every day. The muon detector has been operating uninterruptedly since 2001, thus providing a high statistics record of the cosmic ray flux as a function of time over one decade. However, prior to using these data, the muon rate has to be corrected for two important atmospheric effects, namely, variations in atmospheric pressure and temperature. Because of the near equatorial location of Ooty (11.4°N), the seasonal variations in the atmospheric temperature are relatively small and shall be ignored here. Due to proximity to the equator, the pressure changes at Ooty display a dominant 12 h periodic behaviour in addition to other seasonal changes. Here, we discuss various aspects of a novel method for accurate pressure measurement and subsequent corrections applied to the GRAPES-3 muon data to correct these pressure-induced variations. The pressure-corrected muon data are used to measure the profile of the solar diurnal anisotropy during 2006. The data, when divided into four segments, display significant variation both in the amplitude (~45%) and phase (~42 m) of the solar diurnal anisotropy during 2006, which was a period of relatively low solar activity.     

The (γ, n) reaction on 16O between giant resonance and pion threshold

A new TOF facility has been built for measurements of differential (γ, n) cross sections to discrete final states of light nuclei in the photon energy range between giant resonance and pion threshold. The observed neutron angle θ_n can continuously be varied between 0° and 150°, and additionally measurements at 175° and 180° are possible. Differential cross sections for the reaction ¹⁶O(γ, n₀)¹⁵O are presented for E_γ = 60 MeV (40° ? θ_n ? 149°) and for θ_n = 90° (60 MeV ? E_γ ? 160 MeV). The results, combined with the corresponding (γ, p₀) cross sections, indicate an absorption mechanism of high energy photons by neutron-proton pairs.     

Weak neutral-current couplings of muons

Inversion of both the charge and the helicity of muon beams is considered as a possibility to determine the weak neutral-current couplings of muons, in particular the right-handed weak charge I^R₃(μ) and sin²θ without using the parton model.     

A family of angle-moments proportional to r-n,n = 1,2,…, in free space

The moments M_n(r) ≡ 1/2 ∝^2π₀ dθ sinⁿ θ I(r,θ) of the intensity I(r, θ) in free space surrounding a spherical object emitting radiation with an arbitrary directional dependence are shown to be exactly proportional to r^-(n+1), n = 0, 1,….     

The analyzing power Aγ(θ) for the elastic scattering of 12 MeV neutrons from deuterons

The analyzing power A_γ(θ) was obtained at 10° intervals between 30° (lab) to 120° (lab) for ²H(n, n)²H at 12.0 MeV. The polarized neutron beam employed in the measurement was obtained by using neutrons emitted at 0° from the polarization transfer reaction ${}^2\text{H}\text{(}\text{d}\text{,}\text{n}\text{)}{}^3\text{He}$. The accuracy in the A_γ(θ) values that was achieved ranged from ± 0.006 to ± 0.013. Comparison of the data to A_γ(θ) results obtained at 12 MeV for the charge symmetric reaction ²H(p, p)²H shows that the two A_γ(θ) distributions are equal to within the above accuracy.     

Messung der Winkelverteilung der Neutronenpolarisation bei Streuung von 15,85 MeV-Neutronen am Kohlenstoff

AtE _n=15.85 MeV the angular distributions of neutron polarizationP(θ) for¹²C(n, n)¹²C and of scattering asymmetry A(θ) for¹² C(n,n′)¹² C ^*(Q=?4.43 MeV) have been measured. In a neutron time-of-flight method with a plastic scintillator as scatterer carbon recoil nuclei were used for detection. Polarized neutrons were produced in thed-t reaction atE _d=1.90 MeV at a reaction angle of 70° (lab.). WithP _n=?0.135 scattering polarizations P(θ) are forθ _lab=30, 40, 50, 60, 70, and 80° respectively ?27.0±2.1, ?48.4±2.7, ?68.7±3.6, ?20.7±6.2, +5.3±3.9, and +2.1±4.5%.     

Interactions of μAl acceptor impurity in weakly and heavily doped silicon

The interactions of the aluminum acceptor impurity in silicon are investigated using polarized negative muons. The polarization of negative muons is studied as a function of temperature on crystalline silicon samples with phosphorus (1.6×10¹³ cm^?3) and boron (4.1×10¹⁸ cm^?3) impurities. The measurements are performed in a magnetic field of 4.1 kG perpendicular to the muon spin, in the temperature range from 4 to 300 K. The experimental results show that, in phosphorus-doped n-type silicon, an _μAl acceptor center is ionized in the temperature range T>50 K. For boron-doped silicon, the temperature dependence of the shift of the muon spin precession frequency is found to deviate from the 1/T Curie law in the temperature range T ? 50 K. The interactions of a _μAl acceptor that may be responsible for the effects observed in the experiment are analyzed.     

Impact of orientational distribution of adsorbing objects on dynamics of Random Sequential Ballistic Adsorption (RSBA) dynamics

Recently, by proposing a new variant of Random Sequential Adsorption (RSA) namely Random Sequential Ballistic Adsorption (RSBA) model [Pradip B. Shelke, A.G. Banpurkar, S.B. Ogale, A.V. Limaye, Surf. Sci. 601 (2007) 274], we addressed the issue of adsorption dynamics of extended objects where the objects, upon adsorption, protrude outside the substrate. This study brought out the role of the arriving trajectory in the adsorption dynamics. In the present work the possible role of the orientational distribution of the arriving objects in the RSBA dynamics is investigated. The dynamics of RSBA of needles (line segments) is studied analytically and by computer simulation for different types of θ distributions of arriving needles, θ being the angle made by the arriving needle with normal to the substrate. Three types of θ distributions, namely a uniform distribution over the range (0, π/2), a Gaussian distribution and a distribution uniform over the solid angle, are considered. Analytical treatment establishes that in all the three cases, the number n(t) of adsorbed objects at a late time t follows a power law n(t) ∼ t^α, and the exponent α depends on the specifics of the θ distribution. In general, for distribution f(θ) ∝ θ^β, for θ → 0, α is found to be 2/(β + 3). The simulation results are in excellent agreement with the analytical findings and together they reveal that the orientational distribution of arriving objects has significant consequences for the Random Sequential Ballistic Adsorption (RSBA) process.     

Electromagnetic contributions to proton- and neutron-4He scattering

A proper treatment of various electromagnetic contributions toN-⁴He scattering enables one to determinen(p)-⁴He observables fromp(n)-⁴He data. Several calculations ofn-⁴He observables considering different electromagnetic effects are presented. It is shown that the contribution of thep-⁴He Coulomb corrections ton-⁴He polarizations and differential cross sections dominates over other electromagnetic effects forθ _c.m.≧30°. For smaller scattering angles, neutron magnetic scattering is important and produces a divergingn-⁴He differential cross section atθ=0° and a large peak (Mott-Schwinger effect) in the polarization. The influence of thep- andn-⁴He vacuum polarizations on then-⁴He observables is found to be small.     

Diffusion in very chaotic hamiltonian systems

We study nonintegrable hamiltonian dynamics: H(I,θ) = H₀(I) + kH₁(I,θ), for large k, that is, far from integrability. An integral representation is given for the conditional probability P(I,θ, t¦I₀, θ₀, t₀) that the system is at I, θ at t, given it was at I₀, θ₀ at t₀. By discretizing time into steps of size ?, we show how to evaluate physical observables for large k, fixed ?. An explicit calculation of a diffusion coefficient in a two degrees of freedom problem is reported. Passage to ? = 0, the original hamiltonian flow, is discussed.     

Investigation of the 6Li(d, α)4He reaction between 1.5 and 11.5 MeV

The differential cross section σ₀(θ) and the analysing powers T₁₁(θ), T₂₀(θ), T₂₁(θ) and T₂₂(θ) of the reaction ⁶Li(d, α)⁴He have been measured for twelve energies between 1.5 and 11.5 MeV at c.m. angles between 3.5° and 90°. The results were fitted with Legendre polynomials. The energy dependence of the resulting coefficients indicates resonance-like behaviour at several energies corresponding to excitation between 22 and 32 MeV in ⁸Be. The reaction ⁶Li(d, α)⁴He shows excellent features as an analyser for deuteron vector and tensor polarization over the whole energy range investigated.     

The analyzing power Ay(θ) for the 9Be(p, n)9B reaction from 8 TO 15 MeV

The analyzing power A_y(θ) for the ⁹Be(p, n)⁹B reaction was measured at seven energies between 8.1 to 15.0 MeV for reaction angles between 0° and 100° (c.m.). The A_y(θ) values are predominantly negative and exhibit a smooth variation with energy. The significance of these results in Lane optical- model calculations for the ⁹Be + nucleon system and in comparisons between the observables P^y(θ) and A_y(θ) is indicated.     

Latitude effect of muons in the Earth’s atmosphere during solar activity minimum

The results of muon flux measurements (E ≥ 70 MeV) in the atmosphere during solar activity minimum are reported. The measurements were performed during Antarctic sea expedition in 1975–1976 at several geomagnetic locations (from 1 to 14 GV). The experimental data obtained made it possible to determine the latitude effect of muons in the distribution at different levels in the atmosphere. The Geant4 program was used to simulate the galactic cosmic ray transport in the Earth’s atmosphere and evaluate the angular and spectral distributions (p, e^?/e⁺, photons, muons) at different atmospheric levels. The experimental and simulated results are in satisfactory agreement.     

The temperature dependence of the angular variation of,and the critical point exponent for the EPR linewidth in the two-dimensional canted antiferromagnetic (C2H5NH3)2MnBr4: Evidence for a structural phase transition

The angular variation of the EPR linewidths in single crystals of (C₂H₅NH₃)₂MnBr₄ has been measured as a function of temperature. The angular dependence is well characterized by δH(θ) = a + b(3 cos²θ ? 1) + c(3 cos²θ ? 1)². The temperature dependence of the expansion coefficients is reported, and the effect of critical point fluctuations near the Néel temperature as well as a linear temperature dependence at high temperature are observed. A sharp decrease in linewidths at 160°K is attributed to a structural phase transition. The Néel temperature is determined to be 46°K (± 1°) from linewidth measurements of a powder sample. The linewidths diverge exponentially near the Néel temperature with a critical point exponent of 1.5.     

Angular distribution of cosmic muons using INO–ICAL prototype detector at TIFR

The India-based Neutrino Observatory Collaboration is planning to set up a magnetized 50 kt iron calorimeter (ICAL) with resistive plate chambers (RPC) as active detectors to study neutrino oscillations and precisely measure its parameters.?A prototype detector stack is set up at TIFR (18°54??N, 72°48??E) to track cosmic ray muons.?Using the muon data, angular distribution of cosmic ray muons at the sea level is studied here.     

On the mechanism of the (n, 2n) reaction with 14MeV projectiles on127I and209Bi

The angular and spectral distributions of coincident neutrons from the reactions¹²⁷I(n, 2n)¹²⁶I and²⁰⁹Bi(n, 2n)²⁰⁸Bi have been measured with two time-of-flight detectors at the incident energy 14.1 MeV. Neutron emission has been studied for reaction anglesθ _lab between 10° and 150° (relative angles from 60° to 270°). Energy spectra, angular distributions and coincidence yields are compared with statistical model calculations including preequilibrium decay modes, and nuclear level density and spin cut off parameters are derived.     

Analyzing Power of 3He(n, n)3He Between 1.60 and 5.54 MeV

We report the measurements of the analyzing power A _y (θ) of n-³He elastic scattering with unprecedented accuracy and angular coverage at five incident neutron energies between 1.60 and 5.54 MeV. To this end, we employed the polarization-transfer reactions ³H(p, n)³He and ²H(d, n)³He at 0° for neutron generation and a recently developed high-pressure ³He gas scintillator as an active target, enabling neutron-time-of-flight and ³He recoil-energy determinations. We obtained simultaneously the neutron polarization with a ⁴He-based polarimeter, capitalizing on the well-known n-⁴He A _y (θ). Our n-³He A _y (θ) data are compared to rigorous four-nucleon calculations using high-precision nucleon–nucleon potential models. The agreement between data and calculations is fair at the lower energies and becomes less satisfactory with increasing neutron energy. However, in comparison to the pure isotriplet p-³He system in the same energy region, the agreement between measured and calculated A _y is much better for the mixed (isotriplet and isosinglet) n-³He system, indicating large and somewhat counterintuitive isospin effects. We note that the incorporation of a Δ-mediated three-nucleon force in calculations of n-³He scattering was found to affect A _y (θ) negligibly, suggesting the need for the reconsideration of fundamental interactions in resolving the four-nucleon analyzing power puzzle first established about a decade ago in p-³He scattering.     

Study of the (p,pn) reaction in light nuclei

The (p, pn) reaction on ²H, ⁶Li, ⁷Li, ⁹Be has been studied at 47 MeV bombarding energy. Excitation energy spectra and energy sharing spectra are presented. Fragmentary information on ¹⁰B, ¹¹B and ¹²C was also obtained. Sequential decay contributions to the ⁶Li(p, pn)⁵Li¹ reaction suggest an admixture of parentage $\text{(α)π(}\text{p}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>1</mtext><mtext>2</mtext>}}\text{)π(}\text{d}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>5</mtext><mtext>2</mtext>}}\text{)}$ for the (3^?), 23 MeV excited state of ⁶Be. A possible 15.5 MeV excited state in ⁶Be is reported. An extensive study of the ⁹Be (p, pn)⁸Be reaction for 45 MeV protons was made. Results for θ_p = θ_n = 25°, 30°, 35°, 40°, 45°, 55°, 65°; θ_n = 40°, θ_p = 25°, 30°, 35°, 40°, 45°, 55°, 65°; θ_p/θ_n = 40°/45°, 38.5° are reported and compared to DWIA calculations. Agreement is good when the lower momentum components of the wave function are sampled, and deteriorates as higher momenta are required. Results are in agreement with the Cohen and Kurath spectroscopic factors for ⁹Be.     

Radio-frequency μSR experiments at the ISIS pulsed muon facility

This paper explores the use of pulsed radio-frequency (RF) techniques to remove the frequency limitations imposed on conventional transverse muon spin rotation (μSR) experiments at a pulsed muon source by the finite muon pulse width. The implementation of the 90° pulse technique is demonstrated by observing the free precession signal of diamagnetic muons implanted in polythene, the change in signal amplitude as a function of RF pulse length is plotted and the precise condition for a 90° pulse determined. The technique is evaluated by comparing measurements made using conventional spin rotation experiments to those employing pulsed RF methods. The potential for applying standard NMR multiple-pulse methods to the μSR experiment is considered and the use of two-pulse RF sequences (90° _x ?τ?90° _x and 90° _x ?τ?180° _x ) to form a muon spin echo demonstrated.     

Zenith-angle dependences of ρ s,600 and ρ μ,600, in giant air showers

Results of a global analysis of data from the Yakutsk array and AGASA are presented. The zenith-angle dependences ρ _s,600(θ) and ρ _μ,600(θ) of the densities of all charged particles and muons (the threshold energy is E _μ ≈ 1.0·secθ GeV) at a distance of 600 m from the axis of giant air showers (GAS) of energies E ₀≥10¹⁹ eV are considered. These dependences are compared with the results of the calculations based on the QGSJET model and performed for the case of primary protons. The results of the calculations within this model agree well with data from both arrays at E ₀≤2×10¹⁸ eV, but they are in a glaring contradiction with GAS data. The experiments indicate that the lateral structure of showers changes at E ₀≥(3–5)×10¹⁸ eV. In all probability this is due to some new processes accompanying their evolution. The neglect of this fact can lead to considerably overestimating the GAS energy (by a factor of 1.5–2.5).