Electron cyclotron resonance heating in a short cylindrical plasma system

Electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) plasma is produced and studied in a small cylindrical system. Microwave power is delivered by a CW magnetron at 2.45 GHz in TE¹⁰ mode and launched radially to have extraordinary (X) wave in plasma. The axial magnetic field required for ECR in the system is such that the first two ECR surfaces (B = 875.0 G andB = 437.5 G) reside in the system. ECR plasma is produced with hydrogen with typical plasma density n^e as 3.2 × 10¹⁰ cm^-3 and plasma temperature T^e between 9 and 15 eV. Various cut-off and resonance positions are identified in the plasma system. ECR heating (ECRH) of the plasma is observed experimentally. This heating is because of the mode conversion of X-wave to electron Bernstein wave (EBW) at the upper hybrid resonance (UHR) layer. The power mode conversion efficiency is estimated to be 0.85 for this system. The experimental results are presented in this paper.     

Normal-phase transport properties of highT c Y-Ba-Cu-O compounds

The normal state resistivity of highT _c Y-Ba-Cu-O compounds has been investigated and it is shown that the room temperature resistivity depends exponentially on the volume fraction of the non-superconducting phase. It is further shown that the dependence of normal state resistivity on temperature upto 300 K can be explained on the basis of a short-range co-operative electron-phonon coupling. This model also explains the observed positive Seebeck coefficient for the pure phase superconducting sample.     

Cosmic ray nuclei of chargeZ⩾3 during the period of low solar activity

A detailed study of the composition and energy spectra of heavy nuclei of charge Z?3 in the primary cosmic rays has been made during the period of low solar activity, using two stacks of nuclear emulsions exposed in balloon flights from Fort Churchill, Canada, in June 1963. Each of the stacks was composed of 120 nuclear emulsions of three different sensitivities and was exposed at about 3·5 g. cm.^?2 of residual air for about 11.1 hr. Reliable resolution of charges of nuclei from lithium to oxygen was obtained; for heavier nuclei, charge groups were determined. From the analysis of 793 tracks of nuclei with Z?3, results on the following aspects were obtained:

1. The differential energy spectra of L (Z=3–5), M (Z=6–9) and H (Z=10–28) nuclei were measured in the energy intervel 150–600 MeV/nucleon; integral fluxes were obtained for energy >600 MeV/nucleon;
2. The energy dependence of the L/M ratio at the top of the atmosphere was determined; the ratios were obtained as 0·45 ± 0·06 and 0·29 ± 0·03 in the energy intervals of 200–575, and >575 MeV/nucleon respectively;
3. Relative abundances of individual nuclei of Li, Be, B, C, N and O at the top of the atmosphere were determined as 36, 29, 55, 100, 60 and 106 respectively in the energy interval 150–600 MeV/nucleon; corresponding values were also obtained for energy >600 MeV/nucleon.
4. The differential fluxes of multiply charged nuclei measured by us and by other investigators were used to determine the solar modulation between solar maximum to solar minimum. It was found that solar modulation of the fluxes of M and He nuclei were consistent with Rβ dependence and that the modulation parameter Δη between 1965 and 1957 was about 1·1.

The implications of these results are discussed.     

Study of effects of dopants on structure of vitreous semiconductors (GeSe3.5)100-xMx (M = Bi,Sb) using high pressure techniques

An investigation of the problem of controlled doping of amorphous chalcogenide semiconductors utilizing a Bridgman anvil high pressure technique, has been undertaken. Bulk amorphous semiconducting materials (GeSe_3.5)_100-x doped with M = Bi (x = 2, 4, 10) and M = Sb (x = 10) respectively are studied up to a pressure of 100 kbar down to liquid nitrogen temperature, with a view to observe the impurity induced modifications. Measurement of the electrical conductivity of the doped samples under quasi-hydrostatic pressure reveals that the pressure induced effects in lightly doped (2 at % Bi) and heavily doped (x = 4, 10) semiconductors are markedly different. The pressure effects in Sb-doped semiconductors are quite different from those in Bi-doped material.     

Hydrolysis of acetylcholinesterase inhibitors--organophosphorus acid anhydrolase enzyme immobilization on photoluminescent porous silicon platforms

We report on the immobilization of an OPAA enzyme on luminescent porous silicon devices, and on the utilization of this new platform to hydrolyze p-nitrophenyl-soman.     

A redetermination of the lifetime of the 4s 5s (3S1) level in Ca by high-rate electron—photon stepwise pulse excitation

The radiative lifetime of the 4s 5s (³S₁) level in Ca was measured using two-step excitation of atoms in a beam which traverses a cold-cathode Penning discharge, where, by electron impact the atoms are excited to the metastable 4s 5p (³P_{2, 1, 0}) states. Immediately thereafter, the beam is crossed with a pulse-modulated cw dye laser beam to populate the final state selectively. Using a pulse-modulation frequency of 0.5 MHz, a preliminary value of 12.4 ± 0.5 ns was obtained with a statistical error of 0.4%. The wide limits of systematic error reflect an assumed uncertainty in the excitation function and possible distortion in the fluorescence decay requiring further study.     

Photochemical reduction of uranyl ion with triethylamine

Uranyl ion is photochemically reduced to uranium(IV) in the presence of triethylamine and triethylamine is oxidized to secondary amine and acetaldehyde. On the basis of product analysis, temperature independent quantum yields for uranium(IV) formation and abnormal Stern-Volmer plots rule out the simple collisional photochemical annihilation of excited uranyl ion with triethylamine. Static annihilation has a significant contribution in addition to dynamic annihilation.     

A study of nuclear transmutation of Th and <Superscript>nat</Superscript>U with neutrons produced in a Pb target and U blanket irradiated by 1.6 GeV deuterons

The spallation lead target in the “Energy plus Transmutation” set-up, covered with uranium blanket, was irradiated by the 1.6GeV deuteron beam from the Nuclotron accelerator at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Dubna. The neutrons generated in the subcritical uranium blanket are used to activate the radioactive uranium and thorium samples outside the blanket. Rates of the (n,g \gamma) , (n, f) and (n, 2n) reactions are determined for some residual nuclei. The ratio of the reaction rates R(n, 2n)/R(n, f) is estimated to be 27(9)%. Contributions of the neutrons with energy E _n > 20 MeV to the (n, f) reaction rate is ∼ 57% for ²³²Th and ∼ 37% for ^natU , respectively. To compare with the experimental results, the reaction rates are simulated by generating the neutron fluxes employing two different models, the beam shapes by the MCNPX 2.6.c code and making use of the appropriate libraries of cross-sections. The transmutation power of the set-up is estimated using the average (n,g \gamma) and (n, 2n) reaction rates and compared with some of the results of the TARC experiment.