Simulated cosmic strings in a “big bang” in superfluid3He at 100 μK

During studies of the impact of single neutrons on superfluid³He at around 100μK we have measured the thermal energy released in the superfluid following the nuclear reaction, n+³He→p+³H+764keV. However, we find that the measured energy deposited in the quasiparticle system shortly after this reaction is substantially less than what we expect. We believe that this energy deficit represents that energy which has gone into the creation of vortices, in analogy to the creation of cosmic strings in the early universe via the Kibble mechanism. Furthermore, from the magnitude of the deficit, we can infer the vortex density which compares favorably with that predicted in Zurek’s scenairo.     

Coulomb blockade electrometer with a high-T c island

We report on a successful attempt to fabricate a Coulomb blockade electrometer consisting of an ultrasmall YBa₂Cu₃O_7−δ (YBCO) island coupled to two gold electrodes through a high-resistance native surface tunnel barrier. A third electrode placed near the island was used as an electrostatic gate. Spectra typical for tunneling into the YBCO superconductor were reproducibly measured. At temperatures below 0.5 K the low-bias conductance was suppressed by the Coulomb blockade. The blockade could be periodically varied by the gate potential. An external magnetic field of up to 5 T strongly influenced the transport via the island but without any change in the period of the Coulomb oscillations. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 63, No. 2, 112–117 (25 January 1996) Published in English in the original Russian journal. Edited by Steve Torstveit.     

Monte-Carlo calculations of cloud returns for ground-based and space-based LIDARS

A Monte-Carlo model is described which has been developed for calculation of multiply scattered LIDAR returns. Results are shown for the common problem selected by the MUSCLE (MUltiple SCattering LIDAR Experiments) group for intercomparison, which represents a typical ground-based cloud-sensing scenario. This is contrasted with returns from the same cloud sensed by a space-based LIDAR, where multiple-scattering effects are much greater. The magnitude of multiple-scattering effects is seen to be largely determined by the optical depth across the receiver field of view at the cloud.     

SrZrO3-based proton conducting materials with La additions

The behaviour of La-containing strontium zirconate based ceramics is revised. La additions contribute to improve the sinterability of these materials, but transport properties are also affected. Sr_1−xLa_xZrO_3+δ show some unusual changes in transport properties when samples are exposed to H₂-containing atmospheres and then reoxidized. Nevertheless, the transport properties of (Sr,La)(Zr,Y)O_3−δ, are still mainly dependent on Y additions, at least for cases when the fraction of Y exceeds the fraction of La. In addition, lanthanum causes significant changes in lattice parameters. A combination of conductivity measurements in different atmospheres, ion blocking experiments, and emf measurements has been used to demonstrate that electron hole conductivity increases with temperature, and the protonic contribution drops. The transport properties at temperatures lower than about 800 °C might be affected by structural changes. Paper presented at the 2nd Euroconference on Solid State Ionics, Funchal, Madeira, Portugal, Sept. 10–16, 1995     

An embedded atom method study of the equilibrium shapes of small platinum and palladium clusters

The embedded atom method (EAM) was used to determine the equilibrium shapes of small platinum and palladium clusters (N=5–60 atoms). The stability of various polyhedral symmetries was performed at 0K. A search for the presence of any other lower energy structures was also carried out. Pt clusters reconstructed to lower energy clusters even at the magic numbers. Pd also reconstructed to lower energy structures except at the magic number sizes where the icosahedron was found to be the most stable.     

One-dimensional fluid and circuit simulation of an AC plasmadisplay cell

A one-dimensional multispecies model of a helium filled AC plasma display cell is described. The model includes a continuity equation for each species. Poisson's equation and a circuit equation. The fill gas is helium for which the cross sections for ionization and excitation for the various atomic states are well known. The reaction rates for the different species were parametrized as functions of E/N using a zero-dimensional spatial and two velocity multispecies Boltzmann kinetic code. Calculations are performed using address and sustain voltages operating at a frequency of 50 kHz to model the pulse behavior of a dielectric barrier discharge which occurs over a time scale on the order of 200 ns or less. The code simulates multipulse behavior and shows reasonably good agreement with experimental data. The simulations show that the circuit filters out the discharge dynamics and that the pulse width of the discharge current depends on the circuit RC time constant. Using a 123 V sustain voltage, the calculated discharge current is 0.4 A with a full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 28 ns. Experimental values using a 120 V sustain voltage are 0.32 A discharge current and 42 ns FWHM