Long-range memory effects in flows involving abrupt changes in geometry: Part I: flows associated with I-shaped and T-shaped geometries

This is a theoretical paper which attempts to study for the first time the effect of high elasticity in flow situations involving elastico-viscous liquids and abrupt changes in geometry. It is argued that implicit rheological models are essential in this exercise and, accordingly, the numerical method of solution is forced to recognise the equations of continuity, the stress equations of motion and the rheological equations as separate equations involving velocity, pressure and stress variables with appropriate boundary conditions on these variables.The present paper is concerned with L-shaped and T-shaped geometries, and the effect of elasticity is assessed by comparing the numerical predictions for an elastic liquid with those for an inelastic liquid with the same “viscosity” behaviour. This comparison is facilitated by a simple limiting procedure outlined in Section 2.The main conclusions from the work are that, in general terms, elasticity works against inertia, reducing the pressure drop caused by the abrupt change in geometry and reducing the area of influence of the bend (for finite Reynolds numbers). So far as the stress fields are concerned most interest centres on the corner region, as one would expect, but there is also a region of normal-stress activity, which is generated by “stretching” rather than “shearing”.In an appendix, some consideration is given to the entry-length and exit-length problems. It is concluded that the overall problem is a complex one, since it depends to a large measure on the criterion one uses for “fully-developed” flow. If a fairly crude criterion is used, fluid elasticity is found to decrease the entry-length and increase the exit-length.     

Pulse evolution in injection mode locked TECO2 lasers

The pulse train evolution in an injection mode locked TECO₂ laser has been investigated for a wide range of input pulse widths e.g., ranging from the cavity round-trip time to near the bandwidth-limited value for the system. Regimes in which pulse narrowing and pulse broadening occur have been identified and are discussed. The combined use of injection and saturable-absorber mode-locking techniques has produced reliable subnanosecond pulse trains from a large aperture TEACO₂ laser.     

First results from the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search in the Soudan Underground Laboratory

We report the first results from a search for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) in the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search experiment at the Soudan Underground Laboratory. Four Ge and two Si detectors were operated for 52.6 live days, providing 19.4 kg d of Ge net exposure after cuts for recoil energies between 10 and 100 keV. A blind analysis was performed using only calibration data to define the energy threshold and selection criteria for nuclear-recoil candidates. Using the standard dark-matter halo and nuclear-physics WIMP model, these data set the world's lowest exclusion limits on the coherent WIMP-nucleon scalar cross section for all WIMP masses above 15 GeV/c2, ruling out a significant range of neutralino supersymmetric models. The minimum of this limit curve at the 90% C.L. is 4 x 10(-43) cm2 at a WIMP mass of 60 GeV/c2.     

Dalitz plot analysis of the decay D(+)-->K(-)pi(+)pi(+) and indication of a low-mass scalar Kpi resonance

We study the Dalitz plot of the decay D(+)-->K(-)pi(+)pi(+) with a sample of 15090 events from Fermilab experiment E791. Modeling the decay amplitude as the coherent sum of known Kpi resonances and a uniform nonresonant term, we do not obtain an acceptable fit. If we allow the mass and width of the K(*)(0)(1430) to float, we obtain values consistent with those from PDG but the chi(2) per degree of freedom of the fit is still unsatisfactory. A good fit is found when we allow for the presence of an additional scalar resonance, with mass 797+/-19+/-43 MeV/c(2) and width 410+/-43+/-87 MeV/c(2). The mass and width of the K(*)(0)(1430) become 1459+/-7+/-5 MeV/c(2) and 175+/-12+/-12 MeV/c(2), respectively. Our results provide new information on the scalar sector in hadron spectroscopy.     

Thermal Stability Evaluation of PA6/LLDPE/SEBS-g-DEM Blends

Summary: The thermal stability of a polyamide-6/low linear density polyethylene blend (PA6/LLDPE) was studied using thermal analysis techniques. The thermogravimetric studies carried out showed that when a diethyl maleate grafted styrene- ethylene/butadiene-styrene terpolymer (SEBS-g-DEM) is added to the PA6/LLDPE blend there is an actual enhancement of the thermal stability due to the increase in the interfacial area within the blend. The Invariant Kinetic Parameter method (IKP) proved to be a qualitative technique unfolding the type of degradation mechanisms taking place in the material vicinity. Nucleation and phase boundary reactions are the kinetic models of thermal decomposition with the most significant probability of occurring.     

Refractive index measurements of solid parahydrogen

Solid para-H2 is a promising gain medium for stimulated Raman scattering, due to its high number density and narrow Raman linewidth. In preparation for the design of a cw solid hydrogen Raman laser, we have made the first measurements, to our knowledge, of the index of refraction of a solid para-H2 crystal, in the wavelength range of 430-1100?nm. For a crystal stabilized at 4.4?K, this refractive index is measured to be n(p-H2)=1.130±0.001 at 514?nm. A slight, but significant, dependence on the final crystal-growth temperature is observed, with higher n(p-H2) at higher crystal-growth temperatures. Once a crystal is grown, it can be heated up to 10?K with no change in n(p-H2). The refractive index varies only slightly over the observed wavelength range, and no significant birefringence was observed.     

Preparation and characterization of 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride–based gel polymer electrolyte in electrochemical double-layer capacitors

Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry - Electrochemical double-layer capacitors (EDLCs) have recently received an enormous attraction due to their ability to produce higher power density without...