Measurement of the total active 8B solar neutrino flux at the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory with enhanced neutral current sensitivity

The Sudbury Neutrino Observatory has precisely determined the total active (nu(x)) 8B solar neutrino flux without assumptions about the energy dependence of the nu(e) survival probability. The measurements were made with dissolved NaCl in heavy water to enhance the sensitivity and signature for neutral-current interactions. The flux is found to be 5.21 +/- 0.27(stat)+/-0.38(syst) x 10(6) cm(-2) s(-1), in agreement with previous measurements and standard solar models. A global analysis of these and other solar and reactor neutrino results yields Deltam(2)=7.1(+1.2)(-0.6) x 10(-5) eV(2) and theta=32.5(+2.4)(-2.3) degrees. Maximal mixing is rejected at the equivalent of 5.4 standard deviations.     

New approach to the measurement of the nonlinear refractive index of short (<25 m) lengths of silica and erbium-doped fibers

The nonlinear refractive index n2 of silica fiber (24 m) and erbium-doped fiber (10 m) is measured to within an accuracy of 5% by use of time-delayed photorefractive beam coupling of intense 53-ps, 1.064-microm pulses that experience self-phase modulation in the fibers. The resultant induced grating autocorrelation response yields a value of n2/A(eff) and a calibration standard for the fiber. A phase shift of the order of 0.19pi can be detected and is limited only by laser amplitude fluctuations. A unique advantage of this technique is its ability to measure n2 accurately in short lengths (z < or = 25 m) of fiber, whereas other approaches typically use much longer lengths of fiber (z > or = 100 m).     

Constructing Space for Science at the Royal Institution of Great Britain

Those who have worked in the Royal Institution of Great Britain have, since its foundation in 1799, made significant contributions to scientific knowledge, to its practical application, and to its communication to a wide variety of audiences. Such work cannot be carried out in an architectural vacuum, and in this paper we examine how the buildings of the Royal Institution, 20 and 21 Albemarle Street in central London, have shaped the work undertaken within its walls and how, on a number of occasions, the buildings have been reconfigured to take account of the evolving needs of scientific research and communication. This paper is based on the Conservation Plan of the Royal Institution that we wrote during 2003. The Conservation Plan did not examine the land owned by the Royal Institution to the north (i.e., 22 and 23 Albemarle Street; for this area see Richard Garnier, “Grafton Street, Mayfair,” Georgian Group Journal 13 (2003), 210–272), but it did discuss 18 and 19 Albemarle Street. In this paper we concentrate on the core Royal Institution buildings at 20 and 21 Albemarle Street. Other studies of the relationship of architecture,space, and science include Crosbie Smith and Jon Agar, ed., Making Space for Science: Territorial Themes in the Shaping of Knowledge (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1997); Peter Galison and Emily Thompson, ed., The Architecture of Science (Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1999); and Sophie Forgan,“The architecture of science and the idea of a university,” Studies in History and Philosophy of Science 20 (1989), 405–434. Frank A.J.L. James is Professor of the History of Science at the Royal Institution; he has written widely on the history of nineteenth-century science in its social and cultural contexts and is editor of the Correspondence of Michael Faraday. He is President of the British Society for the History of Science. Anthony Peers is an Associate of Rodney Melville and Partners where he works in the field of building conservation as an architectural historian. He is a Council member of the Ancient Monument Society.     

Interaction of H2S with α-Fe2O3(0 0 0 1) surface

The atomic-scale structural changes in an α-Fe₂O₃ (hematite) (0 0 0 1) surface induced by sulfidation and subsequent oxidation processes were studied by X-ray photoemission spectroscopy, LEED, and X-ray standing wave (XSW) measurements. Annealing the α-Fe₂O₃(0 0 0 1) with a H₂S partial pressure of 1 × 10⁻⁷ Torr produced iron sulfides on the surface as the sulfur atoms reacted with the substrate Fe ions. The oxidation state of the substrate Fe changed from 3+ to 2+ as a result of the sulfidation. The XSW measured distance of the sulfur atomic-layer from the unrelaxed substrate oxygen layer was 3.16 Å. The sulfide phase consisted of three surface domains identified by LEED. Formation of the two-dimensional FeS₂ phase with structural parameters consistent with an outermost layer of (1 1 1) pyrite has been proposed. Atomic oxygen exposure oxidized the surface sulfide to a sulfate () and regenerated the α-Fe₂O₃(0 0 0 1) substrate, which was indicated by a (1 × 1) LEED pattern and the re-oxidization of Fe to 3+.     

A moving zone of quiet for narrowband noise in a one-dimensional duct using virtual sensing

A frequent problem in active noise control is that the zone of quiet created at the error sensor tends to be very small. This means that the error sensor generally needs to be located close to an observer's ear, which might not always be a convenient or feasible solution. Virtual sensing is a method that can move the zone of quiet away from the error sensor to a desired location that is spatially fixed. This method has been investigated previously, and has shown potential to improve the performance of an active noise control system. However, it is very likely that the desired location of the zone of quiet is not spatially fixed. An active noise control system incorporating a virtual sensing method thus has to be able to create a moving zone of quiet that tracks the observer's ears. This paper presents a method for creating a moving zone of quiet based on the LMS virtual microphone technique. To illustrate the proposed method, it is implemented in an acoustic duct and narrowband control results are presented. These results show that a moving zone of quiet was effectively created inside the duct for narrowband noise.     

A theoretical analysis of a piezoelectric ultrasound device with an active matching layer

This paper investigates the use of magnetically active materials in the matching layer of a piezoelectric transducer. This then allows the performance of the device to be dynamically altered by applying an external field. The effect that this new matching layer has on the performance of a typical device is theoretically investigated here. It transpires that the additional flexibility of an active matching layer can be used to maintain the efficiency of the device as the external load is varied.     

A Fluorescent and Phosphorescent Nanoporous Solid: Crystalline Calix[4]arene

Calix[4]arene forms elongated nanoporous microcrystals. The pores are linear nano-channels (1.7 nm diameter) arranged in a honeycomb network. The crystals luminesce at room temperature according to a variety of processes that include monomer fluorescence (lifetime of ca. 1.1 ns), dimer fluorescence (lifetime of ca. 5.4 ns), and monomer phosphorescence (lifetime of ca. 2 s). The dimers result from pi-orbital overlap of adjacent phenol groups from neighboring nano-channels, with C-C distances of ca. 4 A.     

Ultrafast X‐ray imaging of laser–metal additive manufacturing processes

The high‐speed synchrotron X‐ray imaging technique was synchronized with a custom‐built laser‐melting setup to capture the dynamics of laser powder‐bed fusion processes in situ. Various significant phenomena, including vapor‐depression and melt‐pool dynamics and powder‐spatter ejection, were captured with high spatial and temporal resolution. Imaging frame rates of up to 10 MHz were used to capture the rapid changes in these highly dynamic phenomena. At the same time, relatively slow frame rates were employed to capture large‐scale changes during the process. This experimental platform will be vital in the further understanding of laser additive manufacturing processes and will be particularly helpful in guiding efforts to reduce or eliminate microstructural defects in additively manufactured parts.     

Formulae for null curves deriving from elliptic curves

Any elliptic curve can be realised in the tangent bundle of the complex projective line as a double cover branched at four distinct points on the zero section. Such a curve generates, via classical osculation duality, a null curve in C³${\mathbb{C}}^3$ and thus an algebraic minimal surface in R³${\mathbb{R}}^3$. We derive simple formulae for the coordinate functions of such a null curve.     

New evidence for a subshell gap at N=32

An 879.9(2) keV γ-ray transition has been identified following the β decay of ⁵⁸V and assigned as the 2⁺₁→0⁺₁ transition in ⁵⁸Cr₃₄. A peak in the energies of the first excited 2⁺ states for the even–even chromium isotopes is now evident at ⁵⁶Cr₃₂, providing empirical evidence for a significant subshell gap at N=32. The appearance of this neutron subshell closure for neutron-rich nuclides may be attributed to the diminished π1f_7/2–ν1f_5/2 monopole proton–neutron interaction as protons are removed from the 1f_7/2 single-particle orbital.