Development of a very low energy μ+ beam at PSI

At PSI we are investigating the technique of decelerating an existing very intense secondary beam of surface ⁺ (4 MeV) to an energy of 10 eV using appropriate moderators. These ⁺ can then be used as a source of a tertiary beam of low energy muons with tunable kinetic energy between 10 eV and 10 keV.With a 1000 A layer of solid Argon deposited on an Al substrate we obtain a moderation efficiency (with respect to the number of incoming surface ⁺) of the order of 10^–4.Results of our investigations and the present status of the project are presented together with future plans and possibilities.     

Transmission of positrons with aβ + energy distribution through thin films

The transmission through Al foils of isotropically implanted positrons from a²²Na ⁺ source has been measured. It is shown that the transmission is reasonably well-described using an exponential profile once backscattering is accounted for, except for thicknesses below approximately 7 mg/cm². Below this thickness, the measured transmission is slightly less than that predicted by the exponential profile. Such a deviation has previously been observed for collimated positrons, suggesting that the implantation profile has no significant dependence on the spatial distribution of the incident positrons. This deviation is critical for the proper interpretation of positron lifetime experiments on thin films using a conventional positron lifetime spectrometer.     

Inclusive production of charged kaons in p+p collisions at 158 GeV/c beam momentum and a new evaluation of the energy dependence of kaon production up to collider energies

New data on the production of charged kaons in p+p interactions are presented. The data come from a sample of 4.8 million inelastic events obtained with the NA49 detector at the CERN SPS at 158 GeV/c beam momentum. The kaons are identified by energy loss in a large TPC tracking system. Inclusive invariant cross sections are obtained in intervals from 0 to 1.7 GeV/c in transverse momentum and from 0 to 0.5 in Feynman x. Using these data as a reference, a new evaluation of the energy dependence of kaon production, including neutral kaons, is conducted over a range from 3 GeV to $\mathrm{p}+\overline{\mathrm{p}}$ collider energies.     

Effect of 100 MeV O7+ ion beam irradiation on structural,optical and electronic properties of SnO2 thin films

In this paper, we present the impact of swift heavy ion beam irradiation on the structural, optical and electronic properties of SnO₂ thin films. Thin films were deposited using the pulsed laser deposition technique on Al₂O₃ substrates. Atomic force microscopy, X-ray diffraction, UV–visible absorption and temperature-dependent resistivity measurements were performed to explore the morphological, structural, optical and electronic properties of the as-deposited and irradiated samples. The peak intensity of the (200) peak was found to decrease monotonously with increasing irradiation fluence. The band gap energy of the 1×10¹¹ ion/cm² irradiated sample was found to increase. The electrical resistivity of the samples showed a continuous increase with the irradiation fluence.     

Growth of YBa2Cu3O7−x thin films on sapphire with a cerium-oxide sublayer

The possibility is demonstrated of preparing high-quality films of the high-temperature superconductor YBa₂Cu₃C_7-δ with thicknesses up to 2.6 μm by dc magnetron sputtering. It is found that inclusions consisting of CuO and YBa₂Cu₃O₈ coexist with the growing film and are “sinks” for defects, nonstoichiometric atoms, and mechanical stresses. Using x-ray diffraction and Rutherford backscattering, we find that the structural perfection of the films is improved by increasing the thickness when using the proposed fabrication technique. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 69, 94–98 (January 1999)     

Effects of the littlest Higgs model on the process e~+ e~- → μ~+ μ~- at a Z~0-factory

We investigate the possibilities of finding the effects of the littlest Higgs (LH) model on the process e + e - →μ + μ - at the leadingorder at a possible Z 0-factory.We study the impacts of the LH model on the observables,such as,the total cross section,the distribution of the transverse momentum of μ-,and the forward-backward charge asymmetry of μin polarized and unpolarized electron-positron collision modes.Besides,we analyze the relations between the observables and the LH model parameters,and discuss the observables of process e + e→μ + μ-in different incoming electron-positron polarization modes.We conclude that one could observe the effects contributed by the LH model on the process e + e-→μ + μin a reasonable parameter space,or might put more stringent constraints on the LH parameters in the future experiments at the possible Z 0-factory.     

Epitaxial growth of Ge1-xSnx films with x up to 0.14 grown on Ge （001） at low temperature

We characterize the structures of Ge1-xSnx films with x up to 0.14 grown on Ge （001） by molecular-beam epitaxy at low temperature. The results show that Ge1-xSnx films are fully strained even at high Sn composition. The in-plane lattice parameters remain exactly the same as that of the substrate. Depth sensitivity analysis of the lattice parameters indicates that the strains of the epitaxial films are all in homogeneity. The films are fully strained. Poisson ratios, the force constants for the bonds between Ge and Sn are estimated and discussed in the present paper. Raman results show Ge-Ge, Ge-Sn, Sn-Sn vibrational modes. The Sn-Sn bond aggregation may respond to the high quality of our films. The fully strained epitaxy films with high content of Sn may be useful in designing the high quality GeSn films.     

Growth of non-polar Zn1−x Mg x O thin films with different Mg contents on r-plane sapphire substrates by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy

We report the growth and characterization of a series of non-polar Zn_1?x Mg _x O thin films with different Mg contents, which have been prepared on r-plane sapphire substrates by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy. Structural properties are anisotropic and surfaces of films show stripes running along the c-axis direction. The films exhibit atomically smooth surface with the minimal root mean square surface roughness of 0.36 nm. Non-polar Zn_1?x Mg _x O thin film is much easier to obtain pure a-plane single crystal orientation when Mg content is high. The quality of the non-polar Zn_1?x Mg _x O thin films is evidenced by X-ray diffraction (XRD) rocking curves full-width at half-maximum of 1,350 arcsec for the ( \( 11\overline{2} 0 \) ) reflection and 1,760 arcsec for the ( \( 10\overline{1} 1 \) ) reflection, respectively. Room temperature photoluminescence peak shifts monotonously from 3.29 to 3.56 eV as Mg content increases from 0 to 0.13. Alloying with Mg is found to widen the bandgap energy of the ZnO.     

Quasi-classical trajectory study of H+LiH(v=0,1,2,j=0)→Li+H_2 reaction on a new global potential energy surface

Quasi-classical trajectory(QCT) calculations are reported for the H+LiH(v = 0–2, j = 0)→Li+H_2 reaction on a new ground electronic state global potential energy surface(PES) of the LiH_2 system. Reaction probability and integral cross sections(ICSs) are calculated for collision energies in the range of 0 eV–0.5 eV. Reasonable agreement is found in the comparison between present results and previous available theoretical results. We carried out statistical analyses with all the trajectories and found two main distinct reaction mechanisms in the collision process, in which the stripping mechanism(i.e., without roaming process) is dominated over the collision energy range. The polarization dependent differential cross sections(PDDCSs) indicate that forward scattering dominates the reaction due to the dominated mechanism. Furthermore,the reactant vibration leads to a reduction of the reactivity because of the barrierless and attractive features of PES and mass combination of the system.     

Spreading of an SR beam spot (diameter 0.5 μm, 95 eV) photoelectron image on the surface of WO<Subscript>3 − <Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript> films

The 2D-photoemission image of the beam spot was obtained for the first time for the W⁵⁺ oxidation state on the preliminary irradiated WO_{3 − x} thin film surface, created by scanning of the SR beam over the film surface. The W⁵⁺ beam profile intensity was found to spread up to a distance of 3.2 μm for an amorphous film and 5.5 μm for a polycrystalline film, it exceeds considerably the beam spot size. The image saturation dose was reached faster for a polycrystalline film. Among the possible mechanisms explaining this phenomenon, for the case of an almost unchangeable O2s state under irradiation, a choice was made in favor of a photon-generated charge diffusion due to low-energy secondary electrons from photoemission, which produce the “coloration” effect, e⁻ + W⁶⁺ (W⁵⁺) W⁵⁺ → W⁵⁺(W⁴⁺). The O512-eV Auger peak was found to degrade at the distance of 1.5–2 mm outside the beam spot under long-time electron beam irradiation, which is attributed to electron-stimulated oxygen desorption and outdiffusion.     

Measurement of the e + e − → ηπ+π− cross section in the \sqrt s = 1.04–1.38-GeV energy range with a spherical neutral detector at the VEPP-2M collider

The e ⁺ e ^? → ηπ⁺π^? cross section in the η → 2γ channel has been measured in the $ \sqrt s $ = 1.04- to 1.38-GeV energy range. The data with a total integrated luminosity of 9.05 pb^?1 were collected on a spherical neutral detector at the VEPP-2M collider. The results are consistent with the BaBar and CMD2 data and have a higher statistical accuracy.     

Study of the coordinate prediction accuracy for galactic particles with an energy of 10–1000 TeV/particle using a new method for searching and tracking particles in nuclear emulsion films. (Data of the Russia–Nippon Joint Balloon (RUNJOB) experiment)

Experimental and methodological errors in the coordinate prediction for primary cosmic ray nucleons and nuclei in nuclear emulsions using a new method for searching and tracing particle tracks in emulsion films of X-ray emulsion chambers (XRECs) exposed in the stratosphere in the Russia–Nippon Joint Balloon (RUNJOB) experiment are considered in detail. The dependence of errors on the relation between angular characteristics of the sought particle and auxiliary multiply charged nuclei is analyzed. Angular selection criteria for auxiliary nuclei, at which the methodological error of the particle track coordinate prediction decreases, are found.     

Enhanced energy storage and pyroelectric properties of highly (100)-oriented (Pb1−x−yLaxCay)Ti1−x/4O3 thin films derived at low temperature

Highly (100)-oriented (Pb_1?x?yLa_xCa_y)Ti_1?x/4O₃ ($x=0.15$, $y=0.05$; $x=0.1$, $y=0.1$; $x=0.05$, $y=0.15$) thin films were deposited on Pt/Ti/SiO₂/Si substrates at a low temperature of 450?°C via a sol–gel route. It was found that all the (Pb_1?x?yLa_xCa_y)Ti_1?x/4O₃ thin films could be completely crystallized and the content of La/Ca showed a significant effect on the electrical properties of films. Among the three films, the (Pb_1?x?yLa_xCa_y)Ti_1?x/4O₃ ($x=0.1$, $y=0.1$) thin film exhibited the enhanced overall electrical properties, such as a low dielectric loss ($\tan ?\delta <0.08$) and leakage current ($J～4.6\times {10}^{?5}$ A/cm²), a high recoverable energy density (W_re ～ 15 J/cm³), as well as a large pyroelectric coefficient (p ～ 190 μC/m²K) and figure of merit ($F_{\mathrm{d}}^{\prime }～77\mathrm{\mu }\text{C}/{\text{m}}^2$K). The findings suggest that the fabricated thin films with a good (100) orientation can be an attractive candidate for applications in Si-based energy storage and pyroelectric devices.