Suppression of acoustic noise in the measurements of wall pressure fluctuations

It is shown that, in hydrodynamic noise measurements in the presence of acoustic noise acting upon the pressure fluctuation receiver, spatial filtering methods should provide the best results. Active methods are developed for suppressing the acoustic noise that affects a miniature receiver in the course of turbulent pressure fluctuation measurements. The methods are based on complicating the structure of the measuring transducer by introducing an extra compensating sensing element whose characteristics are identical with those of the main sensing element. The spatial filtering of small-scale turbulent pressure fluctuations by a finite-size electroacoustic transducer is used as the basis for the development of noise-compensated measuring systems, as well as methods of measuring the turbulent pressure fluctuations by receivers with noise compensation. A numerical study of the wave-number filtering of acoustic noise in wall pressure measurements by a noise-compensated receiver is performed.     

The focusing problem for the Eikonal equation

We study the focusing problem for the eikonal equation¶¶ ?_tu=| ?u| ², \partial _{t}u=\left| \nabla u\right| ^{2}, ¶¶i.e., the initial value problem in which the support of the initial datum is outside some compact set in R^d \mathbf{R}^{d} . The hole in the support will be filled in finite time and we are interested in the asymptotics of the hole as it closes. We show that in the radially symmetric case there are self-similar asymptotics, while in the absence of radial symmetry essentially any convex final shape is possible. However in R² \mathbf{R}^2 , for generic initial data the asymptotic shape will be either a vanishing triangle or the region between two parabolas moving in opposite directions (a closing eye). We compare these results with the known results for the porous medium pressure equation which approaches the eikonal equation in the limit as m? 1 m\rightarrow 1 .     

The role of finite kinematic bounds in the induced gluon emission from fast quarks in a finite size quark-gluon plasma

We study the influence of finite kinematic boundaries on the induced gluon radiation from a fast quark in a finite size quark-gluon plasma. The calculations are carried out for fixed and running coupling constant. We find that, for running coupling constant, the kinematic correction to the radiative energy loss is small for quark energy ?5 GeV. Our results differ both analytically and numerically from that obtained by the GLV group [6]. The effect of the kinematic cutoffs is considerably smaller than reported in [6].     

Surface plasmon polariton scattering by small ellipsoid particles

Scattering of surface plasmon polaritons (SPP’s) by small ellipsoid particles placed near a dielectric–metal interface is theoretically considered. Using the Green’s function formalism and the dipole approximation, we consider the differential and total scattering cross-sections associated with the SPP-to-SPP scattering as well as with the SPP scattering into waves propagating away from the interface, analyzing the influence of system parameters. As an example, scattering cross-sections of differently shaped gold spheroid particles placed near an air–gold interface are evaluated at the light wavelength of 800 nm. It is shown that the differential and total cross-sections depend strongly upon the particle-to-surface distance, the ratio between the major and minor axes and their orientation with respect to both the interface and the direction of SPP incidence. Implications of the obtained results to the design of SPP micro-optical components are also discussed.     

WITCH: A Penning Trap Retardation Spectrometer Combination for Precision Studies of the Weak Interaction

We present data from three seasons of experimental field work designed to recreate ancient Andean coastal ceramic firing techniques. Based on the recent discovery of two different archaeological ceramic production sites in the La Leche river valley of northern coastal Peru, the opportunity arose to apply Mössbauer spectroscopy and other analytical methods to reconstruct ancient firing procedures. Two sets of firings took place in 1993 and 1997 in Batán Grande using a partially restored Formative kiln from about 800 BC, local hardwood and cow dung as fuel. A third experiment followed in 2000 after the discovery of a Middle Sicán ceramics workshop in use between ca. AD 950 and 1050 at Huaca Sialupe, where an exact replica of an ancient kiln was built from local clay, and fired with local wood and cow dung. Additionally, inverted urns found at Huaca Sialupe were tested for their potential use as furnaces for metal working. Mössbauer spectroscopy was used to compare the physical and chemical state of specimens produced in the field experiments with ancient ceramics and with specimens produced in controlled laboratory experiments.     

Enhancement of the emission yield of silicon nanocrystals in silica due to surface passivation

The ability of surface passivation to enhance the photoluminescence (PL) emission of Si nanocrystals in SiO₂ has been investigated. Silicon precipitation in implanted samples takes place in a time scale of few minutes at 1100°C. For longer annealing at the same temperature, the PL intensity of the Si nanocrystals increases and eventually reaches saturation, while it correlates inversely with the amount of Si dangling bonds at the Si–SiO₂ interface (P_b centers), as measured by electron spin resonance. This combined behavior is independent on the silica matrix properties, implantation profiles and annealing atmosphere and duration. The observation that the light emission enhancement is directly related to the annealing of P_b centers is confirmed by treatment in forming gas. This mild hydrogenation at much lower temperature (450°C) leads to a complete passivation of the P_b defects, increasing at the same time the PL yield and the lifetime.     

Synthesis of Protein A Conjugates with Silver Nanoparticles

The single-stage synthesis of the conjugates of protein A with silver nanoparticles is performed. The dependence of the dispersity of the prepared sols on the composition of reaction mixture is investigated by optical spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The relative stability of the obtained preparations with respect to the coagulation by NaCl is estimated.