Argon and krypton ion-induced changes in permalloy thin films

The effects of 75-keV Ar and 100-keV Kr ion irradiations of 72-nm thin DC-sputtered permalloy (Ni₈₁Fe₁₉) films on Si(100) wafers were studied at fluences of up to 10¹⁶ ions/cm². The changes of the structural and magnetic properties were measured via X-ray diffraction, Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy, and magneto-optical Kerr effect. The irradiations increase the lattice constant and improve the crystallinity of the samples. They induce also strong changes of the magnetic polarisation and the coercive field for increasing ion fluence. The hysteresis loops suggest that, with increasing ion fluence, the reversal of the magnetisation changes gradually from rotation-dominated in the as-deposited films to domain-wall-motion dominated at the highest ion fluences. The results are compared with those obtained for Ni-, Cr-and Xe-ion irradiated permalloy films.     

Large roomtemperature magnetocaloric effect with negligible magnetic hysteresis losses in Mn1−xVxCoGe alloys

The magnetic and magnetocaloric properties have been investigated in a series of Mn_1−xV_xCoGe (x=0.01, 0.02, 0.03, and 0.05) alloys. The substitution of V for Mn reduces the structural transformation temperature of MnCoGe alloy effectively and results in a second-order magnetic transition in Mn_0.95V_0.05CoGe alloys. Large room temperature magnetocaloric effect and almost zero magnetic hysteresis losses are simultaneously achieved in the alloys with x=0.01, 0.02, and 0.03. The reasons for the negligible magnetic hysteresis losses and the potential application for the roomtemperature magnetic refrigeration are discussed.     

A conceptual high flux reactor design with scope for use in ADS applications

A 100 MWt reactor design has been conceived to support flux level of the order of 10¹⁵ n/cm²/s in selected flux trap zones. The physics design considers high enriched metallic alloy fuel in the form of annular plates placed in a D₂O moderator tank in a hexagonal lattice arrangement. By choosing a tight lattice pitch in the central region and double the lattice pitch in the outer region, it is possible to have both high fast flux and thermal flux trap zones. By design the flux level in the seed fuel has been kept lower than in the high flux trap zones so that the burning rate of the seed is reduced. Another important objective of the design is to maximize the time interval of refueling. As against a typical refueling interval of a few weeks in such high flux reactor cores, it is desired to maximize this period to as much as six months or even one year. This is possible to achieve by eliminating the conventional control absorbers and replacing them with a suitable amount of fertile material loading in the reactor. Requisite number of seedless thorium-aluminum alloy plates are placed at regular lattice locations vacated by seed fuel in alternate fuel layers. It is seen that these thorium plates are capable of acquiring asymptotic fissile content of 14 g/kg in about 100 days of irradiation at a flux level of 8 × 10¹⁴ n/cm²/s. In summary, the core has a relatively higher fast flux in the central region and high thermal flux in the outer region. The present physics design envisages a flat core excess reactivity for the longest possible cycle length of 6 months to one year. It is also possible to modify the design for constant subcriticality for about the same period or longer duration by considering neutron spallation source at the centre and curtailing the power density in the inner core region by shielding it with a layer of thoria fuel loading.      

Effect of temperature-dependent surface heat transfer coefficient on the maximum surface stress in ceramics during quenching

We study the difference in the maximum stress on a cylinder surface σ_max using the measured surface heat transfer coefficient h_m instead of its average value h_a during quenching. In the quenching temperatures of 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 and 800°C, the maximum surface stress σ_mmax calculated by h_m is always smaller than σ_amax calculated by h_a, except in the case of 800°C; while the time to reach σ_max calculated by h_m (f_mmax) is always earlier than that by h_a (f_amax). It is inconsistent with the traditional view that σ_max increases with increasing Biot number and the time to reach σ_max decreases with increasing Biot number. Other temperature-dependent properties also have a small effect on the trend of their mutual ratios with quenching temperatures. Such a difference between the two maximum surface stresses is caused by the dramatic variation of h_m with temperature, which needs to be considered in engineering analysis.     

The Thermal Conductivity Theory of Non-uniform Granular Flow and the Mechanism Analysis

According to the fractal characteristics appearing in non-uniform granular system, we found the fractalmodel to study the effective thermal conductivity in the mixed system. Considering the quasi-equilibrium, we bringforward the fractal velocity probability distribution function. The equipartition of energy is employed to the non-uniform granular system, and the granular temperature is derived. We investigate the thermal conductivity in granularflow due to the movement of the particles, namely the heat transfer induced by the streaming mode only. The thermalconductivity in the mixed system changes with the fractal parameters such as the solid fraction v, structural characterparameter η, and fractal dimension D of size distribution. These parameters depict the characteristics of the thermalconductivity in the actual complex granular system. Comparing our conclusion with the correlative experimental dataand the theoretical conclusion of binary mixture of granular materials, the results can qualitatively confirm the generalityof our prediction on the granular system.     

SOME PROGRESS IN THE LATTICE BOLTZMANN MODEL

A lattice Boltzmann equation model has been developed by using the equilibrium distribution function of the Maxwell－Boltzmann-like form, which is third order in fluid velocity u_α. The criteria of energy conservation between the macroscopic physical quantities and the microscopic particles are introduced into the model, thus the thermal hydrodynamic equations containing the effect of buoyancy force can be recovered in terms of the Taylor and Chapman－Enskog asymptotic expansion methods. The two-dimensional thermal convection phenomena in a square cavity and between two concentric cylinders have been calculated by implementing a heat flux boundary condition. Both numerical results are in good agreement with the conventional numerical results.     

Thermal Resistance Measurement across a Wick Structure Using a Novel Thermosyphon Test Chamber

A novel system is developed for measuring the thermal resistance across thin layers of sintered copper wicks of varying porosity. Wicks to be tested are integrated into a passive vertical thermosyphon system, and the resistance is measured for a series of input power levels. The wicks are sintered to a thermally conducting pedestal above a pool of deionized water and heated from below. The apparent thermal resistance across the wick (from the pedestal/wick interface to the vapor space) under the evaporative operating conditions encountered in heat pipes is measured using thermocouples. The apparent thermal resistance across the wick is measured to be as low as 0.01°C/W, corresponding to an evaporative heat transfer coefficient of greater than 128,000 W/m²K.     

Pulsed pump: Thermal effects in solid state lasers under super-Gaussian pulses

Solid state laser (SSL) powers can be realistically scaled when pumped by a real, efficient and multimode pulse. In this work, a fourth-order super-Gaussian pulse was assumed as a pump for SSL’s and a complete analytical expression for the thermal phase shift is given. Moreover, the focal length of thermal lens in paraxial ray approximation regime was studied. The results when applied to a Ti: sapphire crystal show an appreciable correction for abberation compared to a top-hat pulse.     

Nonlinear flutter analysis of stiffened composite panels in super-sonic flow

The flutter instability of stiffened composite panels subjected to aerodynamic forces in the supersonic flow is investigated. Based on Hamilton's principle,the aeroelastic model of the composite panel is established by using the von Karman large deflection plate theory,piston theory aerodynamics and the quasi-steady thermal stress theory. Then,using the finite element method along with Bogner-Fox-Schmit elements and three-dimensional beam elements,the nonlinear equations of motion are derived. The effect of...     

Thermal Quantum Discord in Anisotropic Heisenberg XXZ Model withDzyaloshinskii-Moriya Interaction

The thermal quantum discord (QD) is studied in a two-qubit Heisenberg XXZ system with Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya (DM) interaction. We compare the thermal QD with thermal entanglement in this system and find remarkable differences between them. For instance, we show situations where QD decreases asymptotically to zero with temperature T while entanglement decreases to zero at the point of critical temperature, situations where QD decreases with certain tunable parameters such as D_z and D_x when entanglement increases. We find that the characteristic of QD is exotic in this system and this possibly offers a potential solution to enhance entanglement of a system. We also show that tunable parameter D_x is more efficient than parameter D_z in most regions for controlling the QD.