Temperature and frequency dependence of the spin-lattice relaxation times of E′1 centers in neutron-irradiated quartz glass

Results are reported for measurements of the spin-lattice relaxation times of E′₁ centers in quartz glass, produced by neutron irradiation, with the measurements made at two frequencies 9.25 and 24.0 GHz over a wide temperature interval 1.5–300 K. The experimental data are interpreted on the basis of interaction mechanisms of the spins with two-level systems with excitation energies ∼6, ∼26, and ∼420 cm⁻¹. A small modification of the existing theory allows us to explain a number of features of the observed temperature and frequency dependence of the relaxation rate. The results are compared with the data available in the literature on spin-lattice relaxation of irradiation centers in crystalline quartz and quartz glass. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 39, 1335–1337 (August 1997)     

Improving the rate of convergence of Newton methods on Banach spaces with a convergence structure and applications

In this note, we use inexact Newton-like methods to find solutions of nonlinear operator equations on Banach spaces with a convergence structure. Our technique involves the introduction of a generalized norm as an operator from a linear space into a partially ordered Banach space. In this way, the metric properties of the examined problem can be analyzed more precisely. Moreover, this approach allows us to derive from the same theorem, on the one hand, semilocal results of Kantorovich-type, and on the other hand, global results based on monotonicity considerations. By imposing very general Lipschitz-like conditions on the operators involved, on the one hand, we cover a wider range of problems, and on the other hand, by choosing our operators appropriately, we can find sharper error bounds on the distances involved than before. Furthermore, we show that special cases of our results reduce to the corresponding ones already in the literature. Finally, several examples are being provided where our results compare favorably with earlier ones.     

Preparing Science Teachers in an Era of Reform: Practitioners' Perspectives of Methods Courses

With recent national calls for the reform of science education have come standards that delineate not only science content but also assessment, pedagogy, and teachers’ professional development. If teachers must teach science differently, then teacher preparation must change. This study asked 31 inservice secondary science teachers to complete a survey about topics for inclusion in a secondary science methods course. Respondents ranked a list of prespecified topics and had an opportunity to suggest other topics for inclusion in the course. Results showed that the majority of prespecified potential topics were judged important enough by these teachers to warrant inclusion in a methods course, though no individual added topic appeared on more than two surveys. Results demonstrate that these teachers believe teaching many of the traditional topics in science methods courses is still needed. In addition, they advocated the inclusion of several topics that either represent recent technological and theoretical advances, or longstanding ideas that have recently received considerable attention.     

Experimental studies of microwave amplification in the ion-focusedregime

Studies of microwave amplification with an in-focused electron beam drawn from an induction injector are reported. A free-electron laser (FEL) operating at 9.4 GHz and employing ion-focusing within the interaction region has achieved power in excess of 30 MW at 9.4 GHz, with a beam energy of 0.8 MeV and current of 0.7 kA. Peak gain is 20 dB/m, with no saturation after 15 wiggler periods. Also reported are the first evolution and detuning data for an ion-channel laser/maser (ICL). Two shortcomings of the prematurely halted ICL studies are poor frequency discrimination and a large axial plasma gradient. Prospects for operation with an upgraded 1.6 MeV accelerator are discussed     

Electrohydraulic effect in heterodisperse water-plant systems. II. Chemical nature of the suspended particles

On the basis of the results of acid hydrolysis, chromatographic analysis of the hydrolysates, and a study of IR spectra, it has been established that the suspended particles liberated under the action of electrohydraulic shocks on heterodisperse water—plant systems consist of small fragments of the lignocarbohydrate complex of the plant tissue.     

Isolation of phospholipase A2 from the venom of the green toadBufo viridis

Phospholipase A₂ has been isolated fromthe venom of he Central Asian green toad Bufo viridis in the electroophoretically homogeneous state for the first time by biospecific absorption chromatography. The affinity sorbent used was Affi-Gel 10 with covalently bound phosphatidylserine (PDS). The chemical inertness of the bound PDS to the hydrolytic action of phospholipase A2 and its high tendency to form biospecific complexes have been shown. Some biochemical characteristics of the enzyme isolated have been studied: influence of the pH and of the Ca²⁺ concentration and dependence of activity on substrate concentration.A. S. Sadykov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, fax 627071. Tashkent State University, fax 462472. Translated from Khimiya Prirodnykh Soedinenii, No. 1, pp. 105–109, January–February, 1994.     

Effect of absorbed pump power on the quality of output beam from monolithic microchip lasers

The dependence of the beam propagation factor (M ² parameter) with the absorbed pump power in the case of monolithic microchip laser under face-cooled configuration is extensively studied. Our investigations show that the M ₂ parameter is related to the absorbed pump power through two parameters (α and β) whose values depend on the laser material properties and laser configuration. We have shown that one parameter arises due to the oscillation of higher order modes in the microchip cavity and the other parameter accounts for the spherical aberration associated with the thermal lens induced by the pump beam. Such dependency of M ² parameter with the absorbed pump power is experimentally verified for a face-cooled monolithic microchip laser based on Nd³⁺ -doped GdVO₄ crystal and the values of α and β parameters were estimated from the experimentally measured data points.     

Quantum-well states and resonances in thin single-crystal layers of noble metals on W(110) substrates

This paper reports on the first experimental observation of quantum-well states and sp-type resonances in thin single-crystal gold, silver, and copper layers formed on single-crystal W(110) surfaces, which result from spatial localization of Bloch-type electronic wave functions in a quantum well with potential barriers at the vacuum/metal and metal/W(110) interfaces. The quantization of the valence-band electronic structure in Au/W(110), Ag/W(110), and Cu/W(110) systems was studied experimentally using angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy.