Properties of clinopyroxene LiFeGe2O6

The polycrystalline compound LiFeGe₂O₆ has been synthesized by the solid-phase reaction. The X-ray diffraction, Mössbauer, calorimetric, and magnetic investigations have been carried out. The Mössbauer spectrum at 300 K represents a single quadrupole doublet. The isomer shift with respect to the metal iron α-Fe is 0.40 mm/s, which is characteristic of the Fe³⁺ high-spin ion in the octahedral coordination. The quadrupole splitting of 0.42 mm/s indicates a distortion of the oxygen octahedron around the iron cation. The results of the measurement of the temperature dependence of the heat capacity in the range 2–300 K have shown the presence of the only anomaly with a maximum at T _m ～ 20.5 K, which indicates the occurrence of a magnetic phase transition in this point. The data of the measurement of the temperature dependence of the magnetization have confirmed that the magnetic order with the dominant antiferromagnetic interaction of magnetically active ions exists in LiFeGe₂O₆ at a temperature below 20.5 K. The investigation of the temperature dependence of the heat capacity in the magnetic field H up to 9 T has demonstrated that the external factor insignificantly changes the order-disorder transition point (at H = 9 T, there occurs a shift of ～0.5 K toward the low-temperature range).

     

Fast wave heating in a mirror during plasma build-up

A heating method for partially ionized plasma has been described in reference [V.E. Moiseenko, Sov. J. Plasma Phys. 12, 427 (1986)]. It exploits the collisional damping of fast waves that is large owing to the high rate of charge exchange collisions. Since the time of heating is limited by the duration of neutral gas ionization, the heating needs to be strong enough to achieve a high final ion temperature. This heating method has been studied numerically in the framework of MHD-like (magneto-hydrodynamic) equations in inhomogeneous cylindrical plasma. The influences of the ratio of the mean free path of the neutral atoms to the plasma radius, the initial ion concentration, the characteristics of the interaction of the neutral atoms with the chamber wall and other parameters on the plasma heating dynamics are examined. A scenario for RF plasma heating in one central cell of the multi-mirror device GOL3 (Novosibirsk, Russia) is developed, in which the final ion temperature exceeds the ion oscillation energy in the RF field by one order of magnitude. The energy efficiency is high; only a small portion of the power is transferred by the neutral atoms to the chamber wall.     

Point-contact Andreev-reflection spectroscopy in ReFeAsO1−xFx (Re = La,Sm): Possible evidence for two nodeless gaps

A deep understanding of the character of superconductivity in the recently discovered Fe-based oxypnictides ReFeAsO_1?xF_x (Re = rare-earth) necessarily requires the determination of the number of the gaps and their symmetry in k space, which are fundamental ingredients of any model for the pairing mechanism in these new superconductors. In the present paper, we show that point-contact Andreev-reflection spectroscopy experiments performed on LaFeAsO_1?xF_x (La-1111) polycrystals with T_c ～ 27 K and SmFeAsO_0.8F_0.2 (Sm-1111) polycrystals with T_c ～ 53 K gave differential conductance curves exhibiting two peaks at low bias and two additional structures (peaks or shoulders) at higher bias voltages, an experimental situation quite similar to that observed by the same technique in pure and doped MgB₂. The single-band Blonder–Tinkham–Klapwijk model is totally unable to properly fit the conductance curves, while the two-gap one accounts remarkably well for the shape of the whole experimental dI/dV vs. V curves. These results give direct evidence of two nodeless gaps in the superconducting state of ReFeAsO_1?xF_x (Re = La, Sm): a small gap, Δ₁, smaller than the BCS value (2Δ₁/k_BT_c ～ 2.2–3.2) and a much larger gap Δ₂ which gives a ratio 2Δ₂/k_BT_c ～ 6.5–9.0. In Sm-1111 both gaps close at the same temperature, very similar to the bulk T_c, and follow a BCS-like behaviour, while in La-1111 the situation is more complex, the temperature dependence of the gaps showing remarkable deviations from the BCS behaviour at T close to T_c.The normal-state conductance reproducibly shows an unusual, but different, shape in La-1111 and Sm-1111 with a depression or a hump at zero bias, respectively. These structures survive in the normal state up to T¹ ～ 140 K, close to the temperatures at which structural and magnetic transitions occur in the parent, undoped compound.     

Measurement of 10–100 TeV cosmic ray anisotropy at upgraded Carpet-2 installation

The first results obtained during one year of measurements at the upgraded shower Carpet-2 installation at the Baksan Neutrino Observatory of the Institute for Nuclear Research, Russian Academy of Sciences, are presented. The results of calculation of the energy response of the installation are given. The results of data analysis using the standard method and the East-West method are compared. The constraints on amplitudes of harmonics of solar anisotropy for three values of primary energy: E > 12 TeV, E > 40 TeV, and E > 70 TeV, are obtained.     

Formation of silver nanoparticles during deposition onto viscous-fluid epoxy resin

A new method is proposed for synthesizing metallic nanoparticles in a polymer matrix. These nanoparticles are synthesized during thermal vacuum evaporation of a metal (4.8 × 10⁻⁶ g/cm²) onto the surface of viscousfluid epoxy resin (at a viscosity of 20–120 Pa s) having room temperature, which is well below the glass transition temperature of the polymer. As a result, epoxy resin layers containing silver nanoparticles in their volume form; these nanoparticles are studied by transmission electron microscopy and optical absorption spectroscopy. Various types of disperse structures formed by metallic nanoparticles in the polymer are detected. The morphology of the composite material is found to be controlled by the polymer viscosity and the metal deposition time.     

Infinitesimal harmonic transformations and ricci solitons on complete Riemannian manifolds

Ricci solitons were introduced by R. Hamilton as natural generalizations of Einstein metrics. A Ricci soliton on a smooth manifold M is a triple (g₀,ξ, λ), where g₀ is a complete Riemannian metric, ξ a vector field, and λ a constant such that the Ricci tensor Ric₀ of the metric g₀ satisfies the equation ò2 Ric₀ = L_ξg₀ + 2λ_go. The following statement is one of the main results of the paper. Let (g₀,ξ, λ) be a Ricci soliton such that M,g₀ is a complete noncompact oriented Riemannian manifold, $ \int\limits_M {\left\| \xi \right\|dv < \infty } $ \int\limits_M {\left\| \xi \right\|dv < \infty } , and the scalar curvature s₀ of g₀ has a constant sign on M, then (M, g₀) is an Einstein manifold     

On the Duality of Grand Bochner–Lebesgue Spaces

The associate space of the grand Bochner–Lebesgue space L^p)(I; X) is obtained without assuming the Radon–Nikodým property.

     

Automating computations in the virtual Tokamak software system

We describe the concept, functional capabilities, graphic user interface (GUI), and operating technique of a specialized system for distributing the computational burden encountered in solving typical problems of controlled thermonuclear fusion. The system is employed in the Virtual Tokamak simulation modeling complex to automate the distribution of computing on a network of computers, making it possible to dramatically improve the productivity of a researcher??s work. The system is useful in various applications that require massive multivariate calculations using one or more application codes, and for supporting websites that provide computing services using locally stored science-intensive application software.