Multi-kilohertz,ultrafast hard X-ray <Emphasis Type="Italic">K</Emphasis><Subscript><Emphasis Type="BoldItalic">α</Emphasis></Subscript> source

We report on the performance of a femtosecond laser-based hard X-ray K_α source operating up to 10 kHz repetition rate. Using chromium- or iron-containing tapes, spectrally narrow band K_α1 and K_α2 radiation at about 5.4 and 6.4 keV is generated. Employing up to 1 mJ pulse energy in the fundamental more than 10⁹ K_α photons s^-1 are generated in 4π steradian. PACS 07.58.Fv; 52.38.Ph; 52.50.Jm     

Higher <Emphasis Type="Italic">η</Emphasis><Subscript>c</Subscript>(<Emphasis Type="Italic">nS</Emphasis>) and <Emphasis Type="Italic">η</Emphasis><Subscript>b</Subscript>(<Emphasis Type="Italic">nS</Emphasis>) mesons

The hyperfine splittings in heavy quarkonia are studied in a model-independent way using experimental data on dielectron widths. Relativistic correlations are taken into account together with the smearing of spin-spin interaction. The radius of smearing is fixed by known G/ψ−η _c(1S), ψ(2S)−η _c′(2S) splittings, which appears to be small, r _ss ≅ 0.06 fm. Nevertheless, even with such a small radius, substantial suppression of hyperfine splittings (∼50%) is observed in bottomonium. For nS b states (n = 1, 2, ..., 6), our predicted splittings (in MeV) are 28, 12, 10, 5, 6, 3. For the 3S and 4S charmonium states, the splittings 16(2) and 12(4) MeV are obtained. The text was submitted by the authors in English.     

Inclusive <Emphasis Type="Italic">J</Emphasis>/<Emphasis Type="Italic">ψ</Emphasis> photoproduction and polarization at HERA in the <Emphasis Type="Italic">k</Emphasis><Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">T</Emphasis></Subscript>-factorization approach

We investigate the inclusive photoproduction of J/ψ mesons at HERA within the framework of the k _T -factorization QCD approach. Our study is based on the color singlet model supplemented with the relevant off-shell matrix elements and the CCFM and KMR unintegrated gluon densities in a proton and in a photon. Both the direct and resolved photon contributions are taken into account. Our predictions are compared with the recent experimental data taken by the H1 and ZEUS collaborations. Special attention is put on the J/ψ polarization parameters λ and ν, which are sensitive to the production dynamics.     

Contribution of final-state interaction to the branching ratio of <Emphasis Type="Italic">B</Emphasis>→<Emphasis Type="Italic">J</Emphasis>/<Emphasis Type="Italic">ψ</Emphasis><Emphasis Type="Italic">D</Emphasis>

To test the validity of perturbative QCD (pQCD) and investigate its range of application, one should look for a suitable process. B→J/ψ D is a promising candidate. The linear momentum of the products is relatively small, so that there may exist a region where exchanged gluons are soft and the perturbative treatment may fail, so that the non-perturbative effect would be significant. We attribute such non-perturbative QCD effects to the long-distance final-state interaction (FSI) which is estimated in this work. We find that the contribution from the FSI to the branching ratio is indeed sizable and may span the rather wide range of 10⁻⁶∼10⁻⁵ and cover a region where the pQCD prediction is of the same order. A more accurate measurement of its branching ratio may provide important information about the application region of pQCD and help to clarify the picture of inelastic rescattering (i.e. FSI), which is generally believed to play an important role in B decays.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">α</Emphasis>-cluster and <Emphasis Type="Italic">α</Emphasis>-binucleon states of 1<Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-shell nuclei

States that exhibit the properties of an α-cluster or an α-binucleon condensate are studied in 1p-shell nuclei. The generalized Hamiltonian of the Elliott SU(3) model is used to classify these states and to calculate their spectra. The results of the calculations are found to be in good agreement with experimental data. States not observed so far in the cluster spectra of the ¹²C, ¹⁶O, ¹⁰Be, and ¹²Be nuclei are predicted.     

Magnetocaloric properties of La<Subscript>1 − <Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>K<Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis>MnO<Subscript>3</Subscript> manganites

A technology for obtaining single-phase ceramic samples of La_{1 − x} K _x MnO₃ manganites, as well as the dependence of their structure parameters on the potassium content, is described. The magnetocaloric effect in the samples has been measured by two direct methods, the classical method and the magnetic field modulation method, and has been calculated from the specific heat data. The values of the magnetocaloric effect obtained by these methods are significantly different. The observed discrepancies have been explained. Correlation between the doping level and the value of the effect has been found. It has been shown that the magnetic-field dependence of variation of the magnetic entropy near T _C in weak fields corresponds to theoretical calculations and that the value of the magnetocaloric effect in high magnetic fields can be predicted using this dependence.     

Modelling and optimisation of fs laser-produced K<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">α</Emphasis></Subscript> sources

Recent theoretical and numerical studies of laser-driven femtosecond K _α sources are presented, aimed at understanding a recent experimental campaign to optimize emission from thin coating targets. Particular attention is given to control over the laser–plasma interaction conditions defined by the interplay between a controlled prepulse and the angle of incidence. It is found that the x-ray efficiency for poor-contrast laser systems in which a large preplasma is suspected can be enhanced by using a near-normal incidence geometry even at high laser intensities. With high laser contrast, similar efficiencies can be achieved by going to larger incidence angles, but only at the expense of larger x-ray spot size. New developments in three-dimensional modelling are also reported with the goal of handling interactions with geometrically complex targets and finite resistivity.     

Process <Emphasis Type="Italic">γ</Emphasis>*<Emphasis Type="Italic">γ</Emphasis> → <Emphasis Type="Italic">σ</Emphasis> at large virtuality of <Emphasis Type="Italic">γ</Emphasis>*

The process γ*γ → σ is investigated in the framework of the SU(2)×SU(2) chiral NJL model. The form factor of the process is derived for arbitrary virtuality of γ* in the Euclidean kinematic domain. The asymptotic behavior of this form factor resembles the asymptotic behavior of the γ*γ → π form factor.     

The 2009 world average of <Emphasis Type="Italic">α</Emphasis><Subscript><Emphasis Type="Bold">s</Emphasis></Subscript>

Measurements of α _s, the coupling strength of the Strong Interaction between quarks and gluons, are summarised and an updated value of the world average of a_s(M_Z⁰)\alpha_{\mathrm{s}}(M_{\mathrm{Z}^{0}}) is derived. Special emphasis is laid on the most recent determinations of α _s. These are obtained from τ-decays, from global fits of electroweak precision data and from measurements of the proton structure function F₂, which are based on perturbative QCD calculations up to O(a_s⁴)\mathcal{O}(\alpha_{\mathrm{s}}^{4}); from hadronic event shapes and jet production in e⁺e⁻ annihilation, based on O(a_s³)\mathcal{O}(\alpha_{\mathrm{s}}^{3}) QCD; from jet production in deep inelastic scattering and from ϒ decays, based on O(a_s²)\mathcal{O}(\alpha_{\mathrm{s}}^{2}) QCD; and from heavy quarkonia based on unquenched QCD lattice calculations. A pragmatic method is chosen to obtain the world average and an estimate of its overall uncertainty, resulting in

Time evolution of <Emphasis Type="Italic">T</Emphasis><Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">μν</Emphasis></Subscript> and the cosmological constant problem

We study the cosmic time evolution of an effective quantum field theory energy-momentum tensor T _μν and show that, as a consequence of the effective nature of the theory, T _μν is such that the vacuum energy decreases with time. We find that the zero point energy at present time is washed out by the cosmological evolution. The implications of this finding for the cosmological constant problem are investigated.     

QCD sum rules for the coupling constants <Emphasis Type="Italic">g</Emphasis><Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">KYN</Emphasis></Subscript> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">g</Emphasis><Subscript>KYΞ</Subscript>

New relations between Borel QCD sum rules for the strong couplings of baryons to kaons are derived. It is shown that, on the basis of the sum rules for the coupling constants g _πΣΣ and g _πΣΛ, the corresponding sum rules can be directly obtained for the coupling constants g _KYN and g _KYΞ, Y = Σ,Λ. The values of these coupling constants are calculated in the fiducial interval 1.0 ≤ M ² ≤ 1.4 GeV² at t = ?1.     

The role of the intermediate resonance <Emphasis Type="Italic">a</Emphasis><Subscript>0</Subscript>(980) in the decay <Emphasis Type="Italic">η</Emphasis> → <Emphasis Type="Italic">πγγ</Emphasis>

It is shown that if the a₀(980) boson is the scalar chiral partner of a π meson, its contribution to the transition η → πγγ has a value comparable to that originated by vector meson exchange. Together, these two mechanisms give the decay probability consistent with the experimental observation.     

High-temperature study of SrFe<Subscript>1 − <Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>Mo<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>O<Subscript>3−<Emphasis Type="Italic">z</Emphasis></Subscript> perovskites

The structure of high-temperature SrFe_{1 − x} Mo _x O_{3 − z} (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.5) phases was studied. Such studies are necessary to understand the mechanism of oxygen transport in membrane materials used for high-temperature oxygen separation.     

Search for <Emphasis Type="Italic">B</Emphasis><Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">s</Emphasis></Subscript> → <Emphasis Type="Italic">ϕ</Emphasis>µµ decay at the Large Hadron Collider

As B _s -mesons will be produced abundantly at the LHC, the observability of the flavour-changing-neutral-current decay mode B _s → ϕμ⁺μ⁻ has been studied in CMS at the LHC centre-of-mass energy of 10 TeV. With an integrated luminosity of 100 pb⁻¹, an upper limit of 6.7 × 10⁻⁶ on the branching ratio is expected to be obtained. The potential at 7 TeV with a luminosity of 1 fb⁻¹ is expected to be better.     

Magnetostriction of Fe<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>Mn<Subscript>1 − <Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>S (<Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis> = 0.27) crystals

The magnetostriction of Fe _x Mn_{1 − x} S (x = 0.27) single crystals in strong magnetic fields up to 120 kOe has been investigated. It has been found that the magnetostriction reaches colossal values (±3 × 10⁻⁴) atypical of compounds of 3d elements. It has been found that the magnetostriction changes sign when varying temperature and magnetic field; this behavior indicates an important role of the spin-phonon interactions in the formation of the magnetic order in solid solutions of iron-manganese sulfides.     

Density-functional study of Si<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis></Subscript>C<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis></Subscript> (<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis> = 10–15) clusters

Density-functional theory with generalized gradient approximation for the exchange-correlation potential has been used to calculate the structural and electronic properties of Si _n C _n (n = 10–15) clusters. We find that the Si _n C _n clusters prefer cagelike structures. An extensive isomer search shows that the lowest-energy arrangements are those in which the silicon atoms and the carbon atoms form two distinct subunits. It is found that the carbon atoms favor to form fullerene-like structure due to the sp ²-like bond. The silicon atoms are trying to cope with an unfavorable sp ² environment, but distorted tetrahedra still show up somewhere of the cagelike structures. On the basis of the lowest-energy geometries obtained, the binding energy, HOMO–LUMO gap, Mulliken charge, ionization potential and electron affinity of the clusters have been computed and analyzed. An electronic charge transfer from the Si-populated to the C-populated regions is observed.     

The cusp effect in <Emphasis Type="Italic">η</Emphasis>′→<Emphasis Type="Italic">η</Emphasis><Emphasis Type="Italic">π</Emphasis><Emphasis Type="Italic">π</Emphasis> decays

Strong final-state interactions create a pronounced cusp in η′→η π ⁰ π ⁰ decays. We adapt and generalize the non-relativistic effective field theory framework developed for the extraction of π π scattering lengths from K→3π decays to this case. The cusp effect is predicted to have an effect of more than 8% on the decay spectrum below the π ⁺ π ⁻ threshold.