Study of uranium, radium and radon exhalation rate in soil samples from some areas of Kangra district, Himachal Pradesh, India using solid-state nuclear track detectors

LR-115 plastic track detectors have been used for the measurement of radon exhalation rate and radium concentration in soil samples collected from some villages of Kangra district, Himachal Pradesh, India. Uranium concentration has also been determined in these soil samples using fission track technique. Radium concentration in soil samples has been found to vary from 11.54 to 26.71 BqKg⁻¹, whereas uranium concentration varies from 0.75 to 2.06 ppm. The radon exhalation rate in these samples has been found to vary from 15.16 to 35.11 mBqKg⁻¹ h⁻¹ (502.12 to 1162.64 mBqm⁻² h⁻¹).     

Transmutation of radioactive nuclear waste — present status and requirement for the problem-oriented nuclear data base

Transmutation of long-lived actinides and fission products becomes an important issue of the overall nuclear fuel cycle assessment, both for existing and future reactor systems. Reliable nuclear data are required for analysis of associated neutronics. The present paper gives a review of the status of nuclear data analysis focusing on the waste transmutation problem.      

On the use of stimulated Brillouin scattering as a calibration method for group delay and differential group delay measurements

We propose a novel group delay and differential group delay calibration method for polarization-dependent optical spectral characterization measurements. The calibration method is based on the dispersive nature of stimulated Brillouin scattering and its polarization dependent spectral response. The main advantage of the calibration method is its tunability in wavelength, bandwidth and magnitude, what makes it suitable for different measurement setups.     

用于自由电子激光的光学速调管的设计与测试

 详述了用于合肥自由电子激光用的光学速调管的物理设计与测试,以及光学速调管实际运行结果与升级计划。测试结果表明,考虑三维效应的OPERA3D场有限元计算法比解析设计更精确,多周期波荡器中任意周期磁场峰值受该周期外其它周期波荡器磁体的影响小于10%。     

The use of surface photovoltage measurements for the surface characterisation of photoconductors

Measurements of the surface photovoltage as a function of wavelength of the exciting radiation show a number of features which change with variations in the surface conditions. In the case of photoconducting cadmium sulphide, it is shown that the changing spectral features, rather than being directly associated with surface states, are due to bulk transitions which give rise to changes in the bulk carrier concentrations and (indirectly) to changes in the surface potential as a result of redistribution of charge between bulk and surface states.     

The calibration of the solid state nuclear track detector LR 115 for radon measurements

An experimental calibration of indoor room and outdoor soil detector devices which are based on LR 115 as sensitive element has taken place at the Swedish Radiation Protection Institute in Stockholm (Sweden) in 1994 and 1996, at the Physikalisch-Technischen Bundesanstalt in Braunschweig (Germany) in 1997 and at the Umweltforschungszentrum Leipzig-Halle (Germany) in 1997. Special properties of the used solid state nuclear track detector (SSNTD) material LR 115^* have been measured to define the application of the experimental calibration.     

Principle of Unattainability of absolute zero temperature,the Third Law of Thermodynamics,and projective quantum measurements

The Principle of Unattainability rules out the attainment of absolute zero temperature by any finite physical means, no matter how idealised they could be. Nevertheless, we clarify that the Third Law of Thermodynamics, as defined by Nernst's heat theorem statement, is distinct from the Principle of Unattainability in the sense that the Third Law is mathematically equivalent only to the unattainability of absolute zero temperature by quasi-static adiabatic processes. This, on the one hand, leaves open the possibility of attainability of absolute zero by non-adiabatic means, without violating the Third Law. On the other hand, we point out some apparent incompatibility between the Postulate of Projective Measurement in quantum mechanics and the Principle of Unattainability in that projective measurements of energy could result in zero temperature.     

Outcome of Resonant Voice Therapy for Female Teachers With Voice Disorders: Perceptual, Physiological, Acoustic, Aerodynamic, and Functional Measurements

Teachers have a high percentage of voice problems. For voice disordered teachers, resonant voice therapy is hypothesized to reduce voice problems. No research has been done on the physiological, acoustic, and aerodynamic effects of resonant voice therapy for school teachers. The purpose of this study is to investigate resonant voice therapy outcome from perceptual, physiological, acoustic, aerodynamic, and functional aspects for female teachers with voice disorders. A prospective study was designed for this research. The research subjects were 24 female teachers in Taipei. All subjects received resonant voice therapy in groups of 4 subjects, 90 minutes per session, and 1 session per week for 8 weeks. The outcome of resonant voice therapy was assessed from auditory perceptual judgment, videostroboscopic examination, acoustic measurements, aerodynamic measurements, and functional measurements before and after therapy. After therapy the severity of roughness, strain, monotone, resonance, hard attack, and glottal fry in auditory perceptual judgments, the severity of vocal fold pathology, mucosal wave, amplitude, and vocal fold closure in videostroboscopic examinations, phonation threshold pressure, and the score of physical scale in the Voice Handicap Index were significantly reduced. The speaking Fo, maximum range of speaking Fo, and maximum range of speaking intensity were significantly increased after therapy. No significant change was found in perturbation and breathiness measurements after therapy. Resonant voice therapy is effective for school teachers and is suggested as one of the therapy approaches in clinics for this population.     

Design and development of original WSN sensor for suspended particulate matter measurements

This paper comprehensively presents key issues in design of an original optoelectronic measurement device built to assess amount of suspended particulate matter. The paper is introduced with a short explanation of concerns with a suspended particulate matter, what role it has in the air quality and how it affects health of human population. Then, problems of construction of the measurement device supported by a theoretical explanation on the basis of Mie theory are discussed. Subsequently, it is followed by an analysis of the device operation both in laboratory and in real conditions. Results obtained with the presented device are compared with the professional measurement equipment and an expensive, outdoor measurement station. Paper is concluded with observations of differences in spatio-temporal PM change at very close but significantly different city locations.     

Multi-target retrieval (MTR): the simultaneous retrieval of pressure, temperature and volume mixing ratio profiles from limb-scanning atmospheric measurements

In this paper we describe a retrieval approach for the simultaneous determination of the altitude distributions of p, T and VMR of atmospheric constituents from limb-scanning measurements of the atmosphere. This analysis method, named multi-target retrieval (MTR), has been designed and implemented in a computer code aimed at the analysis of MIPAS-ENVISAT observations; however, the concepts implemented in MTR have a general validity and can be extended to the analysis of all type of limb-scanning observations. In order to assess performance and advantages of the proposed approach, MTR has been compared with the sequential analysis system implemented by ESA as the level-2 processor for MIPAS measurements. The comparison has been performed on a common set of target species and spectral intervals. The performed tests have shown that MTR produces results of better quality than a sequential retrieval. However, the simultaneous retrieval of p, T and water VMR has not lead to satisfactory results below the tropopause, because of the high correlation occurring between p and water VMR in the troposphere. We have shown that this problem can be fixed extending the MTR analysis to at least one further target whose spectral features decouple the retrieval of pressure and water VMR. Ozone was found to be a suitable target for this purpose. The advantages of the MTR analysis system in terms of systematic errors have also been discussed.     

Optical and optoacoustic measurements of the absorption properties of spherical gold nanoparticles within a highly scattering medium

In the present paper the requirements for optical parameter characterization of absorbing materials located within a highly scattering medium has been addressed. The measurement scheme incorporates the optoacoustic technique where a single acoustic transducer is used to detect ultrasonic transients generated from laser irradiation. The absorbing medium is based on different concentrations of spherical gold nanoparticles (SGNP’s), these are currently being considered as non-toxic targeted optical contrast agents for both medical imaging and cancer therapeutics. In this paper we present results which demonstrate the two main advantages the optoacoustic technique has over other measurement schemes. These are the possibility to obtain information on the position and dimensions of absorbing bodies using a time of flight analysis (TOF) and secondly, the higher sensitivity of the optoacoustics compared to optical transmission techniques. The former advantage is of particular interest for imaging applications and the latter for detection and characterization of absorbing materials surrounded by high levels of high scattering mediums. We present for the first time the characterization of SGNP within a highly scattering medium. To further demonstrate the feasibility of the optoacoustic technique, the scattering coefficient of the surrounding medium has also been characterized.     

Measurement network for urban noise assessment: Comparison of mobile measurements and spatial interpolation approaches

This paper investigates the relevance of different interpolation techniques to improve the spatial resolution of urban noise maps, in complement to measurements achieved at fixed stations. Interpolation techniques based on mobile measurements are compared to usual spatial interpolations techniques, namely Inverse Distance Weighting and Kriging. The analyses rely on a measurement campaign, which consisted of nearly 8 h of geo-referenced mobile noise measurements performed at random moments of the day, conducted simultaneously with continuous measurements collected at five fixed stations located on the inner city of Gent, Belgium.Firstly, a procedure is proposed to build a noise map with a high spatial resolution (one point every 5 m). The procedure relies on both mobile and fixed measurements: the mobile measurements are used to capture spatial variations on the network, and the measurements at fixed stations are used to capture the temporal variations. The map produced is then used as reference to compare the interpolation techniques based on a significantly more sparse measurement set.The spatial interpolation techniques tested fail in predicting accurately the noise level variations within streets. The explanation given is that they do not offer a sufficient covering of the network, and assume spatial variations which are not coherent with traffic dynamics or street configurations. Inversely, mobile measurements cover the entire network. As a result, they allow a more accurate prediction of noise levels even if very short samples are used, provided that the procedure used to estimate noise levels includes a spatial aggregation, which aims at smoothing the high spatial variations inevitable with short samples. Moreover, mobile measurements can advantageously be used to optimize, through a Genetic Algorithm, the locations where to install fixed stations, promising an efficient noise monitoring at reduced operational costs.     

Laser spectroscopy of atoms in superfluid helium for the measurement of nuclear spins and electromagnetic moments of radioactive atoms

A new laser spectroscopic method named “OROCHI (Optical RI-atom Observation in Condensed Helium as Ion catcher)” has been developed for deriving the nuclear spins and electromagnetic moments of low-yield exotic nuclei. In this method, we observe atomic Zeeman and hyperfine structures using laser-radio-frequency/microwave double-resonance spectroscopy. In our previous works, double-resonance spectroscopy was performed successfully with laser-sputtered stable atoms including non-alkali Au atoms as well as alkali Rb and Cs atoms. Following these works, measurements with ^84?87Rb energetic ion beams were carried out in the RIKEN projectile fragment separator (RIPS). In this paper, we report the present status of OROCHI and discuss its feasibility, especially for low-yield nuclei such as unstable Au isotopes.     

Determination of reference values for optical characteristics in multiwavelength optical detection and ranging (lidar) measurements of atmospheric extinction coefficients

We have studied multiple regressions between the spectral aerosol extinction coefficient ε, backscatter indicatrix g_π, and light-scattering coefficients β_θ at angles of θ = 1–180°, which we used to select the optimal scattering angle for determining the extinction coefficient at the wavelengths 0.350, 0.532, and 1.060 μm. We have estimated the errors in determination of the values of ε and g_π at the given wavelengths for different atmospheric situations with different meteorological parameters. We have shown that it is possible to use the spectral β_θ values at a 33° angle to determine the reference values for ε(λ) and g_π(λ) at λ = 0.350, 0.532, and 1.060 μm in laser detection and ranging (lidar) measurements, and we give examples of recovering the vertical profiles of ε in a slightly turbid atmosphere from the results of simultaneous multiwavelength lidar and nephelometric measurements. __________ Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 74, No. 6, pp. 767–772, November–December, 2007.     

Determination of interface states and their time constant for Au/SnO2 /n-Si （MOS） capacitors using admittance measurements

The frequency dependence of admittance measurements (capacitance-voltage (C-V ) and conductance-voltage (G/ω-V )) of Au/SnO2 /n-Si (MOS) capacitors was investigated by taking into account the effects of the interface states (N ss ) and series resistance (Rs ) at room temperature. Admittance measurements were carried out in frequency and bias voltage ranges of 1 kHz-1 MHz and ( 5V)-(+9V), respectively. The values of N ss and R s were determined by using a conductance method and estimating from the admittance measurements of the MOS capacitors. At low frequencies, the interface states can follow the AC signal and yield excess capacitance and conductance. In addition, the parallel conductance (G p /ω) versus log(f) curves at various voltages include a peak due to the presence of interface states. It is observed that the N ss and their time constant (τ) range from 1.23 ×10 12 eV-1 ·cm-2 to 1.47 ×10 12 eV-1 ·cm-2 and from 7.29 ×10-5 s to 1.81 ×10-5s, respectively.     

~(252)Cf自发裂变中子发射率符合测量的回归分析

~(252)Cf同位素源具有标准的自发裂变中子能谱,但由于其半衰期较短,应用中常需要对源强进行标定修正.随着源年龄增加,来自源中~(250)Cf和~(248)Cm自发裂变的影响愈加凸显,不能简单按~(252)Cf的衰变规律计算源中子发射率,而通过锰浴活化的间接测量方法周期较长,且在源强低于10~4 n/s时误差较大.最近,基于中子多重性计数的源强绝对测量算法已得到验证.本文进一步从点模型假设的测量方程出发,在将符合计数率与总中子计数率关联的基础上,分别对符合计数率随源位置、符合门宽的变化关系进行回归分析,提取变化过程的特征系数,建立了两种避规效率变化的~(252)Cf中子发射率测量方法,并基于JCC-51型中子符合测量装置开展实验验证.结果表明:两种回归分析方法的测量值均与标称值的修正结果在2%的偏差范围内一致;反推求得装置中轴线上的探测效率也与基于MCNPX程序的蒙特卡罗模拟计算值相符.研究结果可为活度信息不明的~(252)Cf源强标定及符合测量装置的效率刻度提供便携准确的实验方法.     

Direct measurements of (p, \gamma) cross-sections at astrophysical energies using radioactive beams and the Daresbury Recoil Separator

There are a number of astrophysical environments in which the path of nucleosynthesis proceeds through proton-rich nuclei. These nuclei have traditionally not been available as beams, and thus proton-capture reactions on these nuclei could only be studied indirectly. At the Holifield Radioactive Ion Beam Facility (HRIBF), some of the first direct measurements of (p, $ \gamma$ ) cross-sections on radioactive beams have been made. The Daresbury Recoil Separator (DRS) has been used to separate the recoils of interest from the unreacted primary beam and identify them in an isobutane-filled ionization counter. First data from ¹⁷F (p, $ \gamma$ ¹⁸Ne and ⁷Be (p, $ \gamma$ ⁸B measurements are presented.     

The Mo(p, n)Tc reaction cross section and its use as a normalization for shuttle-system measurements

The ¹⁰⁰Mo(p, n)¹⁰⁰Tc reaction cross section was determined from 2 to 11 MeV (c.m.), by counting the delayed γ-rays from the ¹⁰⁰Tc decays (half-life = 15.8 s). These yields were measured with Ge(Li) and NaI(Tl) detectors and thick natural Mo targets. The use of this reaction as a normalizing reaction for cross-section measurements with a rapid target-transfer system is discussed. This technique was applied to the measurement of the astrophysically interesting ²³Na(p, n)²³Mg cross section (²³Mg HALF-LIFE = 11.57s). The results agree well with an independent ²³Na(p, n)²³Mg cross-section measurement.     

用DV－4光谱仪分析航空结构钢中Pb、Sn、As、Sb、Bi

本文介绍了分析航空结构钢中Ｐｂ、Ｓｎ、Ａｓ、Ｓｂ、Ｂｉ残余元素的一种新的快速方法──发射光谱分析法，找出了最佳分析参数，建立了校准曲线，经精密度和准确度试验后，相对标准偏差为１．２５％－９．１０％，结果令人满意。     

The effect of out-of-plane motion on 2D and 3D digital image correlation measurements

The effect of out-of-plane motion (including out-of-plane translation and rotation) on two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) digital image correlation measurements is demonstrated using basic theoretical pinhole image equations and experimentally through synchronized, multi-system measurements. Full-field results obtained during rigid body, out-of-plane motion using a single-camera vision system with (a-1) a standard f55mm Nikon lens and (a-2) a single Schneider–Kreuznach Xenoplan telecentric lens are compared with data obtained using a two-camera stereovision system with standard f55mm Nikon lenses.Results confirm that the theoretical equations are in excellent agreement with experimental measurements. Specifically, results show that (a) a single-camera, 2D imaging system is sensitive to out-of-plane motion, with in-plane strain errors (a-1) due to out-of-plane translation being proportional to ΔZ/Z, where Z is the distance from the object to the pin hole and ΔZ the out-of-plane translation displacement, and (a-2) due to out-of-plane rotation are shown to be a function of both rotation angle and the image distance Z; (b) the telecentric lens has an effective object distance, Z_eff, that is 50× larger than the 55 mm standard lens, with a corresponding reduction in strain errors from 1250 μs/mm of out-of-plane motion to 25 μs/mm; and (c) a stereovision system measures all components of displacement without introducing measurable, full-field, strain errors, even though an object may undergo appreciable out-of-plane translation and rotation.