Experimental study of soft X-ray intensity with different anode tips in Amirkabir plasma focus device

To study the effect of different anode tip geometries on the intensity of soft X-rays emitted from a 4 kJ plasma focus device (PFD), we considered five different anode tips which were cylindrical-flat, cylindrical-hollow, spherical-convex, cone-flat and cone-hollow tips. BPX-65 PIN diodes covered by four different filters are used to register the intensity of soft X-rays. The use of cone-flat anode tip has augmented the emitted X-ray three times compared to the conventional cylindrical-flat anode.     

Argon ion beam interaction on polyethylene terephthalate surface by a 4 kJ plasma focus device

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) has a wide variety of applications ranging from making regular bottles to biosensors. However, for many of these applications, surface treatment is needed to improve its surface characteristics such as adhesion to other materials. In this study, we focussed on treating PET foils by dense Ar pulsed plasma produced by a 4.5 kJ Mather-type plasma focus device (20 kV, 40 µf, 115 nH) to examine its ability to make the PET surface hydrophilic. The most common method to examine this characteristic is measuring the water contact angle on a polymer surface. The results show that while the energy and density of plasma in our device are higher compared to other devices, as the exposure time is very low, the device can enhance the wettability of PET film surfaces.     

Performance assessment of nanoscale Schottky MOSFET as resonant tunnelling device: Non-equilibrium Green’s function formalism

A comprehensive study is performed on the electrical characteristics of Schottky barrier MOSFET (SBMOSFET) in nanoscale regime, by employing the non-equilibrium Green’s function (NEGF) approach. Quantum confinement results in the enhancement of effective Schottky barrier height (SBH). High enough Schottky barriers at the source/drain and the channel form a double barrier profile along the channel that results in the formation of resonance states. We have, for the first time, proposed a resonant tunnelling device based on SBMOSFET in which multiple resonance states are modulated by the gate voltage. Role of essential factors such as temperature, SBH, bias voltage and structural parameters on the feasibility of this device for silicon-based resonant tunnelling applications are extensively studied. Resonant tunnelling appears at low temperatures and low drain voltages and as a result negative differential resistance (NDR) is apparent in the transfer characteristic. Scaling down the gate length to 6 nm increases the peak-to-valley ratio (PVR) of the drain current. As the effective SBH reduces, the curvature of the double barrier profile is gradually diminished. Therefore, multiple resonant states are contributed to the current and consequently resonant tunnelling is smoothed out.     

A new source of radiation in single-bubble sonoluminescence

An unsolved challenge of sonoluminescence phenomenon is the mechanism of light emission at the moment of collapse. In this article, by considering single-bubble sonoluminescence and based on the hydrochemical model and thermal bremsstrahlung approach, for the first time two different origins of light have numerically been studied to describe the Ar bubble radiation in water at the moment of collapse: (a) radiation from the Ar gas inside the bubble and (b) radiation from the thin layer of the surrounding fluid. The results indicate that, contrary to the previous studies, the radiation from the water shell is dominant, and it is about one order of magnitude stronger than the radiation from the gas inside the bubble. This result can decrease the difference between the theoretical results and the previous experimental data. In addition, based on the role of acoustic pressure amplitude on the characteristics of single-bubble sonoluminescence, various parameters such as degree of ionization, gas pressure, temperature and power were calculated. The results are in excellent agreement with the reported experimental measurements.     

A benchmark study on uncertainty of ALICE ASH 1.0, TALYS 1.0 and MCNPX 2.6 codes to estimate production yield of accelerator-based radioisotopes

Radioisotopes find very important applications in various sectors of economic significance and their production is an important activity of many national programmes. Some deterministic codes such as ALICE ASH 1.0 and TALYS 1.0 are extensively used to calculate the yield of a radioisotope via numerical integral over the calculated cross-sections. MCNPX 2.6 stochastic code is more interesting among the other Monte Carlo-based computational codes for accessibility of different intranuclear cascade physical models to calculate the yield using experiment-based cross-sections. A benchmark study has been proposed to determine the codes’ uncertainty in such calculations. ¹⁰⁹Cd, ⁸⁶Y and ⁸⁵Sr production yields by proton irradiation of silver, rubidium chloride and strontium carbonate targets are studied. ¹⁰⁹Cd, ⁸⁶Y and ⁸⁵Sr cross-sections are calculated using ALICE ASH 1.0 and TALYS 1.0 codes. The evaluated yields are compared with the experimental yields. The targets are modelled using MCNPX 2.6 code. The production yields are calculated using the available physical models of the code. The study shows acceptable relative discrepancies between theoretical and experimental results. Minimum relative discrepancy between experimental and theoretical yields is achievable using ISABEL intranuclear model in most of the targets simulated by MCNPX 2.6. The stochastic code utilization can be suggested for calculating ¹⁰⁹Cd, ⁸⁶Y and ⁸⁵Sr production yields. It results in more valid data than TALYS 1.0 and ALICE ASH 1.0 in noticeably less average relative discrepancies.     

Neutronic simulation of a research reactor core of (232Th, 235U)O 2 fuel using MCNPX2.6 code

The small reactor design for the remote and less developed areas of the user countries should have simple features in view of the lack of infra-structure and resources. Many researchers consider long core life with no on-site refuelling activity as a primary feature for the small reactor design. Long core life can be achieved by enhancing internal conversion rate of fertile to fissile materials. For that purpose, thorium cycle can be adopted because a high fissile production rate of ²³³U converted from ²³²Th can be expected in the thermal energy region. A simple nuclear reactor core arranged 19 assemblies in hexagonal structure, using thorium-based fuel and heavy water as coolant and moderator was simulated using MCNPX2.6 code, aiming an optimized critical assembly. Optimized reflector thickness and gap between assemblies were determined to achieve minimum neutron leakage and void reactivity. The result was a more compact core, where assemblies were designed having 19-fuel pins in 1.25 pitch-to-diameter ratio. Optimum reflector thickness of 15 cm resulted in minimal neutron leakage in view of economic limitations. A 0.5 cm gap between assembles achieved more safety and 2.2% enrichment requirements. The present feasibility study suggests a thermal core of acceptable neutronic parameters to achieve a simple and safe core.