Bernstein-Greene-Kruskal modes in a three-dimensional plasma

Bernstein-Greene-Kruskal modes in a three-dimensional (3D) unmagnetized plasma are constructed. It is shown that 3D solutions that depend only on energy do not exist. However, 3D solutions that depend on energy and additional constants of motion (such as angular momentum) do exist. Exact analytical as well as numerical solutions are constructed assuming spherical symmetry, and their properties are contrasted with those of 1D solutions. Possible extensions to solutions with cylindrical symmetry with or without a finite magnetic guide field are discussed.     

Complete spectrum of kinetic eigenmodes for plasma oscillations in a weakly collisional plasma

Kinetic eigenmodes of plasma oscillations in a weakly collisional plasma, described by a collision operator of the Fokker-Planck type, are obtained in closed form for initial-value as well as for boundary-value problems. These eigenmodes, which are smooth and compose a complete discrete spectrum, play the same role for weakly collisional plasmas as the Case-Van Kampen modes do for collisionless plasmas.     

Nonlinear theory of void formation in colloidal plasmas

A nonlinear time-dependent model for void formation in colloidal plasmas is proposed. For experimentally relevant initial conditions, the model describes the nonlinear evolution of a zero-frequency linear instability that grows rapidly in the nonlinear regime and subsequently saturates to form a void. A number of features of the model are consistent with experimental observations under laboratory and microgravity conditions.     

Studies on CdS nanoparticles dispersed in silica matrix prepared by sol-gel technique

SiO₂/CdS-nanoparticle composite films (SiO₂:CdS=85:15, 80:20, 75:25 and 70:30) were prepared by the sol-gel route. The films were characterized by studying microstructural (XRD and TEM) and optical (transmittance and photoluminescence) properties. Band gaps of these films annealed at different temperatures (373-473 K) for different times (10-120 min) indicated that the signature of nanocrystallinity is retained throughout the range of our experimental conditions. A thermal diffusion process controlled growth in the crystallite size with increasing annealing time and temperature. The average radii of the nanoparticles varied as the cube root of the annealing time but showed exponential dependence on the inverse of annealing temperature. Photoluminescence (PL) studies of the composite films indicated excitonic transitions. Theoretical analysis of the line shapes of the PL peaks recorded at 300 K and 80 K could be accounted for by the combined effects of size distribution and phonon broadening. It was observed that the deformation potential (E _d) effectively controlled the line shapes of the PL measurements. Received 24 May 2002 Published online 27 January 2003 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: msakp@mahendra.iacs.res.in     

Search for heavy particles decaying into electron-positron pairs in pp collisions

We present results of searches for technirho (rho(T)), techniomega (omega(T)), and Z' particles, using the decay channels rho(T),omega(T),Z'-->e(+)e(-). The search is based on 124.8 pb(-1) of data collected by the D0 detector at the Fermilab Tevatron during 1992-1996. In the absence of a signal, we set 95% C.L. upper limits on the cross sections for the processes pp-->rho(T),omega(T),Z'-->e(+)e(-) as a function of the mass of the decaying particle. For certain model parameters, we exclude the existence of degenerate rho(T) and omega(T) states with masses below about 200 GeV. We exclude a Z' with mass below 670 GeV, assuming that it has the same couplings to fermions as the Z boson.     

Dispersion of nano-silicon carbide (SiC) powder in aqueous suspensions

The dispersion characteristics of nanosize silicon carbide (SiC) suspension were investigated in terms of surface charge, particle size, rheological measurement and adsorption study. Ammonium polycarboxylate has been used as dispersant to stabilize the suspension. It was found that the isoelectric point (iep) of SiC powder was pH_iep (4.9). The surface charge of powder changed significantly in presence of the ammonium polycarboxylate dispersant and iep shifted significantly towards lower acidic pH (3.6). The shift in iep has been quantified in terms of ΔG ⁰ _SP, the specific free energy of adsorption between the surface sites and the adsorbing polyelectrolyte (APC). The values of ΔG ⁰ _SP (−10.85 RT unit) estimated by the electro kinetic data compare well with those obtained from adsorption isotherms (−9.521 RT unit). The experimentally determined optimum concentration of dispersant required for maximizing the dispersion was found to be 2.4 mg/g of SiC (corresponding to an adsorbed amount of 1.10 mg/g), at pH 7.5. This is much below the full monolayer coverage (corresponding to adsorbed amount of 1.75 mg/g) of the particles surface by the dispersant. The surface charge quantity, rheological, pH, electro kinetic and adsorption isotherm results were used to explain and correlate the stability of the nanosize silicon carbide in aqueous media. At pH 7.5, where both SiC surface and APC are negatively charged, the adsorption of APC was low because of limited availability of favourable adsorption sites. In addition, the brush-like configuration of the adsorbed polymer prevented close approach of any additional dispersant; hence stabilization of the slurry happens at a comparatively lower concentration than the monolayer coverage.     

Synthesis of high molecular weight polymer nanoparticles by [Cp2ZrCl2] catalyzed emulsion polymerization

An early transition metal metallocene compound, Cp₂ZrCl₂, with an anionic surfactant, sodium n‐dodecyl sulfate (SDS) as emulsifier and NaBPh₄ as cocatalyst has been found to be an effective catalytic system for polymerization and copolymerization of monomers like styrene and methyl methacrylate in aqueous medium. The diameters of the latex particles were found to be in between 20 and 40 nm. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011     

Period adding bifurcation in a logistic map with memory

We introduce a single step memory dependence in the fully chaotic logistic map. This makes it a two dimensional system in general. However, we show that by using composite functions to define two one dimensional maps, it is possible to obtain some analytic results for the bifurcation structure. Numerical results support the calculated bifurcation scheme and, in addition, yield a further insight which allows the calculation of the convergence ratio for a new period adding scenario.     

Early Detection of Breast Cancer: Synthesis and Characterization of Novel Target Specific NIR-Fluorescent Estrogen Conjugate for Molecular Optical Imaging

Estrogen induced proliferation of existing mutant cells is widely understood to be the major risk determining factor in the development of breast cancer. Hence determination of the Estrogen Receptor[ER] status is of paramount importance. We have carried out the synthesis and characterization of a novel NIR fluorescent dye conjugate aimed at measuring ER+ve status in-vivo. The conjugate was synthesized by ester formation between 17-β estradiol and a cyanine dye namely: bis-1, 1-(4-sulfobutyl) indotricarbocyanine-5-carboxylic acid, sodium salt. The replacement of the sodium ion in the ester by a larger glucosammonium ion was found to enhance the hydrophilicity and reduce the toxic effect on cell lines. The excitation and emission peaks for the dye were recorded as 750 and 788 nm respectively; ideal for non-invasive optical imaging owing to minimal tissue attenuation and auto-fluorescence at these wavelengths. The dye (NIRDC1) has a significant drop in plasma-protein binding therefore leading to marked improvement in pharmacokinetic profile such as dye evacuation in comparison to ICG. In addition the dye showed enhanced fluorescence quantum yield, molar extinction coefficient and linearity in fluorescence relative to ICG. This dye can be potentially used as a target specific exogenous contrast agent in molecular optical imaging for early detection of breast cancer.     

Periodic orbits in glycolytic oscillators: From elliptic orbits to relaxation oscillations

We consider the Sel’kov model of glycolytic oscillator for a quantitative study of the limit cycle oscillations in the system. We identify a region of parameter space where perturbation theory holds and use both Linstedt Poincaré technique and harmonic balance to obtain the shape and frequency of the limit cycle. The agreement with the numerically obtained result is excellent. We also find a different extreme, where the limit cycle is of the relaxation oscillator variety, has a large time period and it is seen that, as a particular parameter in the model is varied, the time period increases indefinitely. We characterize this divergence numerically. A calculational method is devised to capture the divergence approximately.