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Sharma, K.

Publications and source records attributed to Sharma, K..

Production and discovery of neutron-rich isotopes by fragmentation of 198 Pt

Production cross sections were measured for fragments produced by an 85 MeV/u 198 Pt beam incident on a beryllium target. Event-by-event particle identification of A, Z, and q for the reaction products was performed by employing energy loss, time-of-flight, magnetic rigidity, and total kinetic energy measurements. Over 70 nuclei in the Hf-Pt region were identified, including three isotopes first observed in this work: 191,192 Hf and 189 Lu. Due to the existence of multiple charge states between H-like and C-like ions, a new analysis method was introduced, incorporating Monte Carlo calculations of charge state fractions for a given charge state of the projectile residue just after the reaction. For the first time, charge-state probability distribution functions after the reaction have been deduced from experimental data. Furthermore, this study provides insight into how to produce key nuclides near N = 126 and the ability of a fragmentation residue to retain electrons from the primary beam.

190 ≤ A ≤ 219↗

Discovery of the new isotope 251 Lr and the α-decay fine structure in 253 L

The products of the 203, 205 Tl ( 50 Ti, 2n) fusion-evaporation reactions were studied using the recently commissioned Argonne Gas-Filled Analyzer at Argonne National Laboratory. Two α-decay activities with energies of 9210(19) and 9246(19) keV and half-lives of $42^{+42}_{-14}$ and $24.4^{+7.0}_{-4.5}$ ms were observed which were followed by the known α decays of 247 Md and 243 Es . They are interpreted as originating from the 1/2 ⁻ [521] and 7/2 ⁻ [514] single-proton Nilsson states in the hitherto unknown isotope 251 Lr . From the measured Q α values the 1/2 ⁻ level was placed 117(27) keV above the 7/2 - level in 251 Lr in contrast to 255 Lr where the 1/2 ⁻ level is the lowest. Also, the α decay of 253 Lr was studied in more detail and a new α line at 8660(20) keV was found and a new half-life value of 2.46(32) s for an isomeric state in 253 Lr was measured. The 251, 253, 255 Lr Q α values were compared with predictions of various mass models. The relative energies of the 1/2 ⁻ [521] and 7/2 ⁻ [514] single-proton Nilsson states in 251, 253, 255 Lr isotopes were compared with results of the cranking shell model with pairing treated using the particle-number-conserving method. The level separation and, in particular, the level order change between 251 Lr and 255 Lr was reproduced only when the hexacontetrapole deformation ϵ 6 was included in the calculations.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Potential limits of capacitive deionization and membrane capacitive deionization for water electrolysis

Water electrolysis can delay the operation of capacitive deionization (CDI) and membrane CDI (MCDI). Here, we investigate the overpotential limits of CDI and MCDI (OP-MCDI) for water electrolysis and desalination performance. For sodium chloride concentrations of ~28,460 ppm, MCDI with mesoporous carbon electrodes could be operated at up to 2.4 V without water electrolysis, and the salt-adsorption capacity of the OP-MCDI system at 2.4 V was about two times greater than that of the MCDI at 1.2 V. This study offers an opportunity to extend the applicability of conventional CDI and MCDI systems for desalination of low-salinity solutions.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

A magnetic field cloak for charged particle beams

Shielding charged particle beams from transverse magnetic fields is a common challenge for particle accelerators and experiments. In this study, we demonstrate that a magnetic field cloak is a viable solution. It allows for the use of dipole magnets in the forward regions of experiments at an Electron Ion Collider (EIC) and other facilities without interfering with the incoming beams. The dipoles can improve the momentum measurements of charged final state particles at angles close to the beam line and therefore increase the physics reach of these experiments. In contrast to other magnetic shielding options (such as active coils), a cloak requires no external powering. We discuss the design parameters, fabrication, and limitations of a magnetic field cloak and demonstrate that cylinders made from 45 layers of YBCO high-temperature superconductor, combined with a ferromagnetic shell made from epoxy and stainless steel powder, shield more than 99% of a transverse magnetic field of up to 0.45 T (95% shielding at 0.5 T) at liquid nitrogen temperature. Lastly, the ferromagnetic shell reduces field distortions caused by the superconductor alone by 90% at 0.45 T.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Magnetic field assisted self-assembly of ferrite-ferroelectric core-shell nanofibers and studies on magneto-electric interactions

Core-shell nanofibers of nickel ferrite and lead zirconate titanate have been synthesized by electrospinning, assembled into superstructure in uniform or non-uniform magnetic fields, and have been characterized in terms of ferroic order parameters and strain mediated magneto-electric (ME) coupling. The core-shell structure was confirmed by electron microscopy and scanning probe microscopy. Studies on magnetic field induced polarization P in assembled samples showed a decrease or increase in P, depending on the nature of fibers and strengthening of ME coupling with change in remnant-P as high as 32%. Strong ME interactions were evident from H-induced variation in permittivity at 20–22 GHz.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Adsorption modeling for off-gas treatment

Off-gas generated from the reprocessing of used nuclear fuel contains a mixture of several radioactive gases including {sup 129}I{sub 2}, {sup 85}Kr, HTO, and {sup 14}CO{sub 2}. Over the past few decades, various separation and recovery processes have been studied for capturing these gases. Adsorption data for gaseous mixtures of species can be difficult to determine experimentally. Therefore, procedures capable of predicting the adsorption behavior of mixtures need to be developed from the individual isotherms of each of the pure species. A particular isotherm model of interest for the pure species is the Generalized Statistical Thermodynamic Adsorption isotherm. This model contains an adjustable number of parameters and will therefore describe a wide range of adsorption isotherms for a variety of components. A code has been developed in C++ to perform the non-linear regression analysis necessary for the determination of the isotherm parameters, as well as the least number of parameters needed to describe an entire set of data. (authors)

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗