Electromagnetic fluctuations during fast reconnection in a laboratory plasma

Experimental evidence for a positive correlation is established between the magnitude of electromagnetic fluctuations up to the lower-hybrid frequency range and enhancement of reconnection rates in a well-controlled laboratory plasma. The fluctuations belong to the right-hand polarized whistler wave branch, propagating obliquely to the reconnecting magnetic field, with a phase velocity comparable to the relative drift velocity between electrons and ions. The measured short coherence lengths indicate their strongly nonlinear nature.     

Hydrogen storage in graphite nanofibers: effect of synthesis catalyst and pretreatment conditions

A series of graphite nanofibers (GNFs) that were subjected to various pretreatments were used to determine how modifications in the carbon structure formed during either synthesis or pretreatment steps results in active or inactive materials for hydrogen storage. The nanofibers possessing a herringbone structure and a high degree of defects were found to exhibit the best performance for hydrogen storage. These materials were exposed to several pretreatment procedures, including oxidative, reductive, and inert environments. Significant hydrogen storage levels were found for several in situ pretreatments. Examination of the nanofibers by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM) after pretreatment and subsequent hydrogen storage revealed the existence of edge attack and an enhancement in the generation of structural defects. These findings suggest that pretreatment in certain environments results in the creation of catalytic sites that are favorable toward hydrogen storage. The best pretreatment resulted in a 3.8% hydrogen release after exposure at 69 bar and room temperature.     

Inverse energy transfer by near-resonant interactions with a damped-wave spectrum

The interaction of long-wavelength anisotropic drift waves with the plasma turbulence of electron density advection is shown to produce the inverse energy transfer that condenses onto zonal modes, despite the expectation of forward transfer on the basis of nonconservation of enstrophy. Wave triads with an unstable wave and two waves of a separate, damped spectrum carry the transfer, provided they satisfy a near-resonance condition dependent on turbulence level and wave number.     

A simple, inexpensive, and precise magic angle spinning speed controller

Certain magic-angle spinning heteronuclear dipolar recoupling experiments using rotor-synchronized pulse trains require very precise control of the sample-spinning rate. An inexpensive spinning speed controller for use in magic-angle solid-state NMR experiments is described which can control the spinning rate to within +/- 0.2 Hz. The apparatus is based on a simple micro-controller and is self-contained. Experimental results are presented that show the importance of good spinning speed control.     

Dendritic macromers as in situ polymerizing biomaterials for securing cataract incisions

Dendritic macromers are attractive macromolecules for hydrogel formation since high cross-linking densities at low polymer concentration can be obtained, varied physical properties can be observed based on the macromer structure, and low viscous aqueous solutions can be injected in an in vivo site of irregular shaped to form a well-integrated polymer network. A peptide dendron possessing terminal cysteine residues was synthesized and characterized. When this peptide dendron was mixed with poly(ethylene glycol dialdehyde) in aqueous solution at pH = 7.4, a hydrogel spontaneously formed as a consequence of thiazolidine linkages between the macromers. Such in situ polymerized hydrogels are of interest for tissue engineering and wound-repair applications. To evaluate the potential use of this hydrogel sealant in ophthalmic surgeries, a 3-mm clear corneal incision (i.e., the wounds created during a typical cataract surgery) was successfully sealed.     

Quadrupole deformation of the self-conjugate nucleus 72Kr

We report on the first determination of the absolute B(E2;0+(1)-->2+(1)) excitation strength in the N=Z nucleus 72Kr. 72Kr is the heaviest N=Z nucleus for which this quantity has been measured and provides a benchmark in a region of the nuclear chart dominated by rapidly changing deformations and shapes mediated by the interplay of strongly oblate and prolate-driving orbitals. The deduced quadrupole deformation strength is in agreement with a variety of self-consistent models that predict an oblate shape for the ground state of 72Kr. Large-scale shell-model Monte Carlo calculations reproduce the experimental B(E2) value and link the result to the occupation of the deformation-driving g9/2 orbit.     

Galois relations on knot invariants

We discuss the existence of Galois relations obeyed by certain link invariants. Some of these relations have recently been identified and exploited within the context of conformal field theory and Lie/Kac-Moody representation theory. These relations should aid in computing knot invariants. They probably have an interpretation in terms of quasitriangular (quasi) Hopf algebras. They could also have a topological interpretation, and may serve as a concrete model for related ideas of Grothendieck, Drinfeld, Degiovanni, Ihara, and others.     

Observation of velocity-independent electron transport in the reversed field pinch

Confinement of runaway electrons has been observed for the first time in a reversed field pinch during improved-confinement plasmas in the Madison Symmetric Torus. Energy-resolved hard-x-ray flux measurements have been used to determine the velocity dependence of the electron diffusion coefficient, utilizing computational solutions of the Fokker-Planck transport equation. With improved-confinement, the fast electron diffusivity drops by 2 orders of magnitude and is independent of velocity. This suggests a change in the transport mechanism away from stochastic magnetic field diffusion.