Suppression of coherent population trapping upon spontaneous decay of an excited state

The interaction of a model three-level Λ system with electromagnetic radiation is considered under the conditions where a coherence (an off-diagonal matrix element) between lower sublevels arises upon spontaneous decay of an excited state. The cases of bichromatic and incoherent broadband fields are analyzed. It is shown that the occurrence of coherence may significantly change the character of evolution of the system under study with time. These changes are most pronounced for broadband fields. Some features of this phenomenon are considered for multilevel atomic systems.     

Thermo-oxidation of polypropylene in the presence of PbO

A significant retardation effect by PbO on the formation of volatile products from isotactic polypropylene (IPP) was found at temperatures up to 380°C. The effect is explained by the formation of a surface active form of PbO (possibly Pb₃O₄) which is formed by interaction of PbO with peroxy radicals. Primary and secondary alkyl radicals terminate effectively on the active surface and the kinetic length of the degradation reaction is thus decreased.A compensation effect exists between the Arrhenius parameters ln A and E for both inhibited and uninhibited formation of volatile products.     

Optimization of conditions for PTV large-volume injection combined with fast GC-MS

Large-volume injection utilizing programmable temperature vaporizer in solvent vent mode is combined with fast capillary gas chromatography and mass spectrometric detection. Optimized injection and chromatographic conditions made possible manual injection of a 20-microL ethyl acetate extract containing 15 organochlorine pesticides and their separation on a short, 0.1-mm-i.d. column in less than 8 min.     

Survey of low-level endocrine disrupting pesticides in food matrices in Slovakia

The search on endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in non-fatty food was evaluated. A fast, high-throughput, accurate, multiresidue method for the analysis of selected EDC pesticides in fruit and vegetable food samples was developed. The QuEChERS technique was used for sample preparation. Fast GC-MS was performed with a narrow-bore capillary column and a quadrupole benchtop detector with electron ionization (EI) and negative chemical ionization (NCI). A part of the work was devoted to the comparison of NCI versus EI approach concerning the sensitivity of detection and to the study of selectivity enhancement in NCI mode. Matrix-matched standard solutions were utilized for calibration. The methods validation was performed. Fortification studies at 1, 5, 10 and 250?µg?kg^?1 for 35 pesticides in EI mode and 0.1, 1, 5 and 250?µg?kg^?1 for 28 pesticides in NCI mode were performed. Average recoveries for each fortification level ranged from 70 to 110% with >80% of recoveries between 90 and 110%. Limits of quantification (LOQs) were established at 5?µg?kg^?1 for EI and at 1?µg?kg^?1 for NCI mode, which is lower than the lowest maximum residue level (MRL) value set by the European Commission in fruit and vegetables. The developed and validated fast GC-MS method was successfully applied to the search of EDC pesticides at ultratrace concentration level in real fruit and vegetable samples in Slovakia. Thirty-four samples of 20 different commodities were analyzed. Seven samples contained residues of three or more EDCs pesticides.     

Derivation of cooperative-dynamic equations for an ensemble of three-level atoms in a coherent electromagnetic field

Equations for the density matrix of three-level atoms interacting collectively with a two-mode radiation field are derived for level schemes of three types within the framework of a formalism with secondary quantization of the electromagnetic field. Saint Peterburg State Technical University. Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, No. 2, pp. 20–23, February, 1997.     

Fast gas chromatography for pesticide residues analysis

The importance of method development in the area of pesticide residues analysis is apparent from legislative requirements continuously decreasing the maximum acceptable concentration levels in food and water. This covers also contribution in the science in the field of ultra-trace analysis of organic pollutants in complex mixtures. Analysis time is one of the most important aspects that should be considered in the choice of analytical methods for routine application. With this fact, fast gas chromatography (GC) has acquired a real importance in the pesticide residue analysis. This paper provides an overview of fast GC methods for analysis of pesticide residues in variety of matrices at ultra-trace concentration levels. Emphasis is put on the development in the last 6 years.     

Double radiooptical resonance in <Superscript>87</Superscript>Rb atomic vapor in cells with antirelaxation wall coating

The object of investigation is double radiooptic resonance in ⁸⁷Rb atomic vapor contained in a cell covered by an antirelaxation coating. The Dicke narrowing is studied in terms of the quantum-kinetic approach. It is found that optical pumping using a laser with a “wide” radiation spectrum makes it possible to improve the short-term stability of the frequency standard by an order of magnitude compared with a narrow-spectrum laser.     

The influence of momentum diffusion on laser cooling of atoms

We show that laser cooling by coherent population trapping in case of zero radiation force — when atomic evolution is due to only momentum diffusion — can be effectively described by use of the Fokker-Planck equation for the atomic distribution function. Our quasiclassical approach allows numerically and analytically to investigate the dynamics and the efficiency of the cooling process. It is shown that both the evolution of the momentum distribution and the limit of the cooling are determined by the degree of incompleteness of coherent population trapping.