Daytime hiss-triggered chorus emissions observed at low latitude ground station Srinagar, India

The first observation of hiss-triggered discrete chorus riser emissions recorded during daytime at our newly setup low latitude ground station Srinagar (geomag. lat., 24° 10′ N; L = 1.28), India on March 30, 2009 are reported. From the spectral analysis of these emissions, it is found that the chorus is hiss-triggered and each chorus element has the tendency to originate from the hiss band. A possible generation mechanism of these hiss-triggered chorus riser emissions is proposed.     

Some unusual high dispersion whistler triplets recorded at a low L-value (L=1.17)

A detailed analysis of the VLF data collected during January to December, 2003 at the low latitude station Jammu (geomag. lat., 22° 26′ N; L = 1.17) has yielded some unusual VLF events like whistler triplets of very high dispersion D ∼ 70 − 90 sec^1/2. From the dispersion analysis of the whistler triplets, it is found that the individual whistlers of the triplets are one-hop high dispersion ducted whistlers having propagation path along higher and closely spaced L-values (L∼4.0) than the L-value of the recording station. The dispersion and occurrence characteristics of these high dispersion whistlers of the triplets are compared with those of the majority of low dispersion whistlers (D ∼ 30 − 40 sec^1/2) recorded during the same period. Generation and propagation mechanisms are briefly discussed.     

Observation of very low frequency emissions at Indian Antarctic station,Maitri

Recently, we have succeeded in recording VLF emissions at the Indian Antarctic station, Maitri (geom. lat. 62°S, geom. long. 57.23°E,L = 45) using a T-type antenna, pre/main amplifiers and digital audio tape recorder. VLF hiss in the frequency ranges 11–13 kHz and 13–14.5 kHz and some riser-type emissions in the frequency range 3–5 kHz and magnetospheric lines at about 6.2, 8.0 and 9.2 kHz are reported for the first time. The generation and propagation mechanism of these emissions are discussed briefly.     

Characteristics of nighttime VLF/ELF emissions with frequency drift and estimation of the large-scale electric field from the frequency drift observed at a low latitude Indian ground station, Jammu

Characteristics of nighttime VLF/ELF emissions are examined on the basis of the data obtained at our low latitude ground station Jammu (geomagnetic latitude, 22°26′ N; L = 1.17), India during our VLF/ELF campaign. From the detailed analysis of a huge amount of acquired VLF/ELF data at Jammu we have found three remarkable events which clearly exhibit a rise in their frequency in pre and past midnight sectors during magnetically quiet and substorm periods. Our analysis shows that the frequency drift in VLF/ELF emissions seems to be a rare phenomenon at low latitudes during magnetically quiet and substorm periods in pre and post midnight sectors. This property of temporal frequency drift (regular frequency increases with time) in VLF/ELF emissions observed at our station Jammu are interpreted in terms of a quasi-linear electron cyclotron instability model for wave excitation. The initial frequency increase is believed to be due to a combind effect of L-shell drift of energetic electrons. Further, the frequency drifts in VLF/ELF emissions observed at Jammu have been used to estimate the large scale electric field during quiet and substorm periods in pre and post midnight sectors. This investigation would be most useful for the study of the wave-particle interaction processes, magnetospheric plasma structure and particle dynamics, especially during quiet periods in premidnight sector at low latitudes.     

Theory of second-order cyclotron resonance as related to the origin of discrete VLF emissions in the magnetosphere

Recent analytical and numerical results concerning the role of the second-order cyclotron resonance effects in formation of discrete emissions in the magnetosphere are reviewed. Peculiarities of whistler cyclotron interactions with energetic particles having sharp (step-like or beam-like) distribution functions evolving in space and time are studied. Formation of such distributions is considered, and an analytical self-consistent theory of the second-order cyclotron resonance effects is developed. In particular, characteristics of electron beams produced by the interaction of a VLF wave packet from a ground-based transmitter are studied. It is shown that spatial and temporal gradients of the parallel velocity of the beams formed can be opposite to the case of a pure adiabatic motion of a single particle. Such a behavior can be significant for the generation of secondary emissions. It is proven that the optimal conditions for the instability occur for a nonstationary quasi-monochromatic wavelets whose frequency changes in time. The theory developed permits one to estimate the wave amplification and spatio-temporal characteristics of these wavelets. Numerical results on beam formation and generation of secondary emissions are presented. Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Radiofizika, Vol. 42, No. 8, pp. 713–727, August 1999.     

Spectrum and losses of surface magnetostatic waves in a 1D magnon crystal

The spectrum and propagation losses of a surface magnetostatic wave in a 1D ferrite magnon crystal are experimentally studied as a function of angle φ between the wavevectors of the surface magnetostatic wave and periodic crystal lattice. Variation in the positions of Bragg forbidden bands with angle φ is described. A wide transmission band is discovered near long-wave frequency boundary f ₀ of the surface magnetostatic wave in a narrow interval of angles around φ ≈ 57°. In the interval 70° < φ < 90° and at frequencies below f ₀, there exists a magnetostatic wave with a wavevector that is normal to the bias field.     

Structures responsible for quasisynchronism in second-harmonic generation in BaTiO3:Fe

Second harmonic generation (SHG) of light in iron-doped BaTiO₃ crystals occurs primarily at an angle of about 7° to incident λ=1.06 μm radiation. It is shown that the quasisynchronism is accounted for by a 90° domain structure with a spatial wave vector q∥[011] and a spatial period of about 3 μm. This result may serve as a basis for interpretation of the anomalous SHG enhancement near the phase transition. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 41, 1076–1079 (June 1999)     

VLF emissions from ionospheric/magnetospheric plasma

VLF emissions such as hiss, chorus, oscillating tones, hiss-triggered chorus and whistler triggered emissions have been observed at low latitude Indian stations. In this paper we present dynamic spectra of these emissions and discuss their various observed features. It is argued that most of the emissions are generated during Doppler shifted cyclotron resonance interaction between the whistler mode wave and counter streaming energetic electrons. Resonance energy of the participating electron and interaction length are evaluated to explain the generation mechanism of some of these emissions observed at Indian stations.     

Observation of signals of VLF radio stations and VLF noise during the solar eclipse on March 29, 2006

Effects of the solar eclipse on March 29, 2006 on signals of VLF radio stations, regular radio-noise intensity in the VLF range 0.3–10 kHz, and the number of atmospherics registered in Yakutsk mainly from the western direction are considered. The full lunar shadow zone consistently shaded the daytime section of the radio-signal propagation path from the western coast of Africa to Altai. A multichannel parallel analyzer-recorder (operating in the frequency range 0.47–8.7 kHz), one-point thunderstorm direction-and-range finder (0.3–100 kHz), narrow-sector radio-noise direction finder (0.3–10 kHz), recorder of VLF radio-station signals, and broadband radio-noise recorder (0.3–100 kHz) were used for observations. Time synchronization of the recorder of VLF radio-station signals was carried out with the help of GPS-clocks. The effect was observed in radio-station signals, radio-noise, and number of atmospherics from a direction of (270 ± 20)°, counted from the north clockwise, in the last stage of the eclipse (∼11–12 UT), when the lunar shadow approached the night terminator and crossed the signal propagation path. The effect was manifested through a ∼20% gain of the received signals, ∼40% increase in the number of atmospherics, and radio-station phase changes. The registered effects are similar to those we observed during the eclipse on March 9, 1997. __________ Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, No. 6, pp. 84–87, June, 2007.     

Ionospheric plasma by VHF waves

The amplitude scintillations of very high frequency electromagnetic wave transmitted from geo-stationary satellite at 244.168 MHz have been recorded at Varanasi (geom. lat. 14′ 55′N) during 1991 to 1999. The data are analyzed to determine the statistical features of overhead ionospheric plasma irregularities which are mostly of small duration <30 minutes and are predominant during pre-midnight period. The increase of solar activity generally increases the depth of scintillation. The auto-correlation functions and power spectra of scintillations predict that the scale length of these irregularities varies from 200–500 m having velocity of movement between 75 m/sec to 200 m/sec. These results agree well with the results obtained by other workers.     

Studies on the anomalies in the behaviour of transmitted subionospheric VLF electromagnetic signals and the changes in the fourth Schumann resonance mode as signatures of two pending earthquakes

Some anomalies are observed in the subinospheric VLF electromagnetic (EM) signals at 19.8 kHz transmitted from North West Cape, Australia (lat: 21.82° S; long: 114.16° E) and 40 kHz from Fukushima, Japan (lat: 36.18° N, long: 139.85° E), recorded by VLF receivers near Kolkata (lat: 22.56° N, long: 88.5° E) during the occurrence of the two earthquakes at Andaman Island (lat:14.018° N, long: 92.92° E), India and other at South Coast of Honsu (lat: 34.78° N, long: 138.27° E), Japan. The analyses of these seismo-ionospheric VLF EM anomalies at these two frequencies during some days before and after the occurrence of earthquake on August 11, 2009 will be presented here. VLF-LF transient variations of significant magnitude in the form of spikes are observed few days prior to the day of occurrence of the earthquakes that continued several days more, then decaying gradually and finally ceased. Signals are examined to describe their connectivity with earthquakes. The enhancements of the amplitude and frequency of the fourth mode of Schumann resonance spectra have been detected during the occurrence of the two earthquakes, which will also be reported here.     

Internal friction in directed-crystallization (Cu-Sn)-Nb alloys

The distinctive features of the low-frequency internal friction Q ⁻¹(T) of (Cu-Sn)-Nb composites at high temperatures (up to 400°C) are investigated for strains in the range 10⁻⁵–10⁻⁴. Considerable hysteresis of Q ⁻¹(T) in the heating-cooling cycle is recorded, including the presence of a minimum at ∼175°C when the sample is heated to 400°C and two peaks P ₂ (at 280°C) and P ₁ (at ∼100°C) when the sample is cooled from 400°C. The activation energy of the anomalous internal friction background (up to 175°C), the oxygen diffusion parameters, and the oxygen concentration in the niobium fibers (all of which govern the peak P ₂) are calculated, and the value and temperature dependence of the yield point of the bronze matrix (which govern the peak P ₁) are estimated. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 68, 114–117 (November 1998)     

Features of Excitation of Stimulated Electromagnetic Emission of the Ionosphere Modified by an Oblique High-Power Radio Wave

We present the results of measuring the characteristics of the stimulated electromagnetic emission (SEE) of the ionosphere with variation in the zenith angle of a pump beam of high-power O-mode radio waves in the geomagnetic-meridian plane. The experiments were performed at the midlatitude heating facility “Sura.” It is established that the maximum intensity of the DM and BC components of SEE is observed for southward inclination angles θ ≈ 8°--12° of the antenna beam, for which the most intense generation of artificial small-scale ionospheric irregularities also takes place. Based on the results of measurements near the fourth and fifth harmonics of the electron gyrofrequency, it is found that the first component of the BUM (BUM-1) is generated only when the pump wave reaches the plasma-resonance region. This allows one to assume that, unlike the second component of the BUM (BUM-2), whose generation is determined by development of instability in the upper-hybrid resonance region, the BUM-1 generation mechanism should be related to processes of interaction between a high-power radio wave and the plasma in the plasma-resonance region. __________ Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Radiofizika, Vol. 48, No. 9, pp. 743–756, September 2005.     

Dynamics of the magnetospheric cyclotron ELF/VLF maser in the backward-wave-oscillator regime. II. The influence of the magnetic-field inhomogeneity

We study the influence of the magnetic-field inhomogeneity on the nonlinear dynamics of the absolute instability of whistler-mode waves in the Earth’s magnetosphere in the presence of a step-like deformation in the distribution function of energetic electrons. Development of this instability, implying the transition of the magnetospheric cyclotron maser to the regime of a backward-wave oscillator (BWO), was proposed earlier as a generation mechanism of magnetospheric chorus emissions. We analyze the results of numerical simulations of the simplified nonlinear equations describing the magnetospheric-BWO dynamics in the case of low efficiency of wave-particle interactions. We found that the case of an inhomogeneous magnetic field where the system length is much greater than the length characterizing the linear stage of the BWO regime has important specific features compared with the case of a homogeneous medium. The main feature of the nonlinear wave dynamics in the magnetospheric BWO in an inhomogeneous magnetic field consists in the fact that for a sufficiently large excess over the generation threshold, a sequence of separate wave packets, i.e., discrete elements, is formed. The frequency within each packet varies in time, and these discrete elements are close in their properties to the chorus elements observed in the magnetosphere. The results of calculations confirm the quantitative estimates of parameters of chorus emissions, which were performed earlier on the basis of the BWO model. ^†Deceased Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Radiofizika, Vol. 51, No. 11, pp. 977–987, November 2008.     

A broadband reflector using a multilayered grating structure with multi-subpart profile

In this paper, a broadband reflector exhibiting a flattened bandstop spectral response is proposed by using a multilayered grating structure possessing multi-subpart profile. It is shown that with the properly configured profile and a strongly modulated grating layer, in transverse electric (TE) polarized wave the presented reflector experimentally demonstrated a 240 nm-wide reflection spectrum from 1.56 to 1.8 μm, very high reflectivity (>97%), and a low sensitivity to incident angle at the range of −13.8°<θ<+14°. Effects of deviation from the design parameters on the performance of the reflector are also illustrated, and a reasonably good tolerance of fabrication error is exhibited in the proposed device.     

Matched filtering-parameter estimation method and analysis of whistlers recorded at Varanasi

The matched filtering technique is based on the digital-construction of theoretical whistlers and their comparison with observed whistlers. The parameters estimated from the theoretical and experimental whistler curves are matched to have higher accuracy using digital filters. This yields a resolution ten times better in the time domain. We have tested the applicability of this technique for the analysis of whistlers recorded at Varanasi. It is found that the whistlers have propagated along L>2 and have wave normal angles after exiting from the ionosphere such that they propagate towards equator in the earth-ionosphere wave-guide. High-resolution analysis shows the presence of fine structures present in the dynamic spectrum. An effort is made to interpret the results.     

Structure and electrical properties of HfO<Subscript>2</Subscript> high-<Emphasis Type="Italic">k</Emphasis> films prepared by pulsed laser deposition on Si (100)

High-k gate dielectric hafnium dioxide films were grown on Si (100) substrate by pulsed laser deposition at room temperature. The as-deposited films were amorphous and that were monoclinic and orthorhombic after annealed at 500°C in air and N₂ atmosphere, respectively. After annealed, the accumulation capacitance values increase rapidly and the flat-band voltage shifts from −1.34 V to 0.449 V due to the generation of negative charges via post-annealing. The dielectric constant is in the range of 8–40 depending on the microstructure. The I–V curve indicates that the films possess of a promising low leakage current density of 4.2×10⁻⁸ A/cm² at the applied voltage of −1.5 V.     

A bouncing droplet on an inclined hydrophobic surface

Abstract  

A trajectory of a water droplet of volume 0.4 μL impacting and bouncing on the hydrophobic surface (143°) inclined with 12° is presented. The photograph was taken with a 35 mm format digital SLR camera in a long-time exposure of 2.5 s illuminated with a couple of continuous point lighting. Also, a selected comparison is shown for snapshots of a bouncing millimetric droplet, having volume of 10 μL, inclined angle of 15° and contact angle of 147°, during the first impact between the experimental results which were recorded with a high-speed camera at 1,222 frames/s and the 3D computation (using a Volume-of-Fluid method on 330 × 70 × 35 computational grids with dt = 1.0 × 10⁻⁴ s) which was carried out with FLUENT software. At the impact the droplet is found to deform and then dissipate the energy due to the surface tension.     

Hiss emissions during quiet and disturbed periods

The characteristic features of VLF hiss emissions during quiet and disturbed conditions observed at ground stations and on-board satellites are summarized. The increased intensity of the hiss emissions during magnetic storm period is explained by considering the enhanced flux of energetic electrons during magnetic storm period. The generation and propagation mechanism of VLF hiss are also briefly discussed.     

Spectra of Stimulated Electromagnetic Emission of the Ionosphere Upon Sweeping of the Pump Wave Frequency Near Gyroharmonics. I. Experimental Results

We present the results of experimental studies of the spectra of the stimulated electromagnetic emission excited in the ionosphere by powerful radio waves during the pump wave frequency sweeping near the forth (n = 4) and fifth (n = 5) harmonics of the electron cyclotron frequency nf _ce. The frequency sweep was carried out for long (continuous) pumping in vertical and inclined directions (at 14° and 18° south of the zenith), as well as for the pulse diagnostic wave both with and without additional pumping far from the gyroharmonics. The dependences of the spectral features of the stimulated electromagnetic emission on the ratio between the pump-wave frequency f ₀ (or on the diagnostic-wave frequency f_DW) and nf _ce were analyzed. It is found that near the multiple gyroresonance, different spectral features of the stimulated emission are quenched at the same frequency for different pump-wave frequencies. For a sufficiently large inclination of the pump wave beam from the vertical direction, the intensity of the stimulated electromagnetic emission is notably decreased for f ₀ ≲ nf _ce as compared with f ₀ > nf _ce. __________ Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Radiofizika, Vol. 51, No. 6, pp. 461–476, June 2008.