Ion-acoustic solitary waves in a dense pair-ion plasma containing degenerate electrons and positrons

Fully nonlinear propagation of ion-acoustic solitary waves in a collisionless dense/quantum electron–positron–ion plasma is investigated. The electrons and positrons are assumed to follow the Thomas–Fermi density distribution and the ions are described by the hydrodynamic equations. An energy balance-like equation involving a Sagdeev-type pseudo-potential is derived. Finite amplitude solutions are obtained numerically and their characteristics are discussed. The small-but finite-amplitude limit is also considered and an exact analytical solution is obtained. The present studies might be helpful to understand the excitation of nonlinear ion-acoustic solitary waves in a degenerate plasma such as in superdense white dwarfs.     

Method for determining the tritium concentration using the effects of dissociation of molecular beams of hydrogen isotopes on thin carbon films

Physical foundations of a new method for mass-spectrometric determination of tritium concentration in hydrogen-containing media, which is based on the effect of dissociation of molecular ions of hydrogen isotopes passing through thin carbon films, are formulated. The effects accompanying the interaction of particles with a solid (angular scattering, change in the charge state, energy losses in protons, deuterons, and tritons) are analyzed. The corresponding theoretical and experimental data indicate that the proposed technology can be implemented in practice for a comparatively low particle energy of ∼10 keV/nucleus.     

Towards a microchannel‐based X‐ray detector with two‐dimensional spatial and time resolution and high dynamic range

X‐ray detectors that combine two‐dimensional spatial resolution with a high time resolution are needed in numerous applications of synchrotron radiation. Most detectors with this combination of capabilities are based on semiconductor technology and are therefore limited in size. Furthermore, the time resolution is often realised through rapid time‐gating of the acquisition, followed by a slower readout. Here, a detector technology is realised based on relatively inexpensive microchannel plates that uses GHz waveform sampling for a millimeter‐scale spatial resolution and better than 100 ps time resolution. The technology is capable of continuous streaming of time‐ and location‐tagged events at rates greater than 10⁷ events per cm². Time‐gating can be used for improved dynamic range.     

Effect of implantation temperature on the blistering behavior of hydrogen implanted GaN

GaN epitaxial layers were implanted by 100 keV H⁺ ions at different implantation temperatures (LN₂, RT and 300 °C) with a fluence of 2.5×10¹⁷ cm^?2. The implanted samples were characterized using Nomarski optical microscopy, AFM, XRD, and TEM. Topographical investigations of the implanted surface revealed the formation of surface blistering in the as-implanted samples at 300 °C and after annealing at higher temperature for the implantation at LN₂ and RT. The physical dimensions of the surface blisters/craters were dependent on the implantation temperature. XRD showed the dependence of damage-induced stress on the implantation temperature with higher stress for the implantation at 300 °C. TEM investigations revealed the formation of a damage band in all the cases. The damage band was filled with large area microcracks for the implantation at 300 °C, which were responsible for the as-implanted surface blistering.     

Torsion and entropy driven denaturation of DNA

A unified theory of the denaturation transition having torsion energy as the control parameter has been formulated here in the framework of the mapping of a DNA molecule onto a Heisenberg spin system. The torsion energy incorporates the torque, tension and temperature, the latter being associated with the twist angle. The denaturation transition can be mapped onto the quantum phase transition induced by a quench when the temperature effect is incorporated in the quench time and torsion takes the role of the external field. The denaturation transition occurs when the entanglement entropy of the spin system vanishes.     

Absorbing phase transition in energy exchange models

We study energy exchange models with dissipation (λ) and noise (of amplitude σ) and show that in presence of a threshold these models undergo an absorbing phase transition when either dissipation or noise strength or both are varied. Using Monte Carlo simulations we find that the behaviour along the critical line, which separates the active phase from the absorbing one, belongs to directed percolation (DP) universality class. We claim that the conserved version with λ = 1 and σ = 0 also shows a DP transition; the apparent non-DP behaviour observed earlier is an artifact of undershooting in the decay of activity density starting from a random initial condition.     

Orientational glasses

This review summarizes experimental evidence for the freezing of reorienting moments in solids. The moments may be of dipolar or quadrupolar nature, or both; they belong to one of the constituents of a mixed-crystal solid. Extensive results are reported for the following systems: KCl doped with hydroxyl, potassium tantalate doped with Li, Na and Nb, alkali halide cyanides and alkali-alkali cyanides, rubidium ammonium dihydrogen phosphate, solid ortho-para hydrogen and argon-nitrogen mixtures. These have clearly glass-like properties. In other systems, results are limited to one or two methods hinting at glass formation; some of those are also reported. Clustering phenomena and the slowdown of reorientations at the freezing temperature are observed in susceptibility measurements and by local probing on nuclear spins. The modulation of the structure by cluster formation is revealed by diffraction experiments. These phenomena are confronted with model predictions and numerical simulations.     

Yb:CaF2 — a new old laser crystal

Here is presented and discussed the history, the spectroscopic, the thermo-mechanical and the laser properties of the new old laser crystal Yb:CaF₂, of its Sr and Ba isotypes as well as of an Yb and Na codoped compound. It will be shown that Yb:CaF₂ is a very particular luminescent material, in which the laser-active center probably consists of a complex hexameric cluster, that it is the most promising Yb-doped fluoride material for large-scale, high-power and high-energy laser systems and that it can compete in several aspects with the currently used Yb-doped oxide crystals and glasses. The opportunity of operating the crystals at cryogenic temperatures and the recently achieved improvements in the field of femtosecond pulsed laser operation and high peak power laser amplification is highlighted and evaluated.     

Direct measurements of (p, \gamma) cross-sections at astrophysical energies using radioactive beams and the Daresbury Recoil Separator

There are a number of astrophysical environments in which the path of nucleosynthesis proceeds through proton-rich nuclei. These nuclei have traditionally not been available as beams, and thus proton-capture reactions on these nuclei could only be studied indirectly. At the Holifield Radioactive Ion Beam Facility (HRIBF), some of the first direct measurements of (p, $ \gamma$ ) cross-sections on radioactive beams have been made. The Daresbury Recoil Separator (DRS) has been used to separate the recoils of interest from the unreacted primary beam and identify them in an isobutane-filled ionization counter. First data from ¹⁷F (p, $ \gamma$ ¹⁸Ne and ⁷Be (p, $ \gamma$ ⁸B measurements are presented.     

Superfluidity in dense nuclear matter

We discuss the onset of superfluidity in neutron stars, where the model of nuclear matter is realized in a high-density and asymmetry state. In particular, we present the study of the effects of microscopic three-body forces on the proton pairing in the ¹ S ₀ channel and neutron pairing in ³ PF ₁ channel for β-stable neutron star matter. It is found that the main effects of three-body forces are to shrink the domain of existence of the ¹ S ₀ below the threshold of the direct URCA process and to stretch the density range of the ³ PF ₁ pairing in a broad domain so to cover most part of the neutron-star core. The text was submitted by the authors in English.