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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 505 records · Page 28
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2024

Investigating Biases in VLBI Clock Functions and Position Solutions

A systematic bias causing a statistically significant drift between group delay and phase delay measurements in geodetic Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI)has long been present. The cause of this drift remains unknown, although it is readily reproduced in VLBI experiments including a short baseline such as those conducted with the twin 13-meter telescopes at the Wettzell observatory, given the station names WETTZ13N and WETTZELL. This statistical incompatibility has been an obstacle in adopting phase delays in routine VLBI processing. The aim of this study is to provide additional evidence to aid in identifying the source of this systematic bias. A series of four regular VLBI experiments are processed with both group delays and phase delays, and post fit residuals, estimated positions, and clock functions are presented with and without phase calibration applied. These results are also computed for individual intermediate frequency bands.

Geodesy↗
NASA NTRS2025

Mars Ground Level Enhancements in the Context of the Solar Energetic Particle Clock

In this work we discuss the growing ensemble of solar particle events registered on the Martian surface, including their temporal appearance and solar sources. Solar energetic particle events from the surface of Mars have been observed starting soon after the August 2012 landing of the Radiation Assessment Detector onboard Curiosity. The Martian atmosphere prevents protons and heavy ions of up to 180 MeV/n kinetic energy from directly reaching the Martian surface. This cut-off is high enough to limit the number of solar energetic particle events measured on the surface to only 15 in ~12 ½ years. Yet we find in this analysis that Mars ground level enhancements follow the distinct SEP clock pattern as proton events observed at lower energies as reported in Posner, Richardson and Strauss (2024). Proton acceleration occurs predominantly near the solar surface, while transport to Mars incurs a delay in onset, and, as we show here, peak, that is a function of the longitudinal magnetic connection distance. between the foot point of solar wind magnetic field lines that intersect the Mars environment with the source longitude of the solar magnetic eruption. A distinct clustering of relative solar source locations at or near the Mars foot points at the Sun’s western limb is apparent, indicating lower flux thresholds from such preferred locations. Our findings have implications for astronaut safety at Mars.

Mars Ground Level Enhancements↗
DOE OSTI2015

Einstein’s Clocks

One of the most non-intuitive physics theories ever devised is Einstein’s Theory of Special Relativity, which claim such crazy-sounding things as two people disagreeing on such familiar concepts as length and time. In this video, Fermilab’s Dr. Don Lincoln shows that every single day particle physicists prove that moving clocks tick more slowly than stationary ones. He uses an easy to understand example of particles that move for far longer distances than you would expect from combining their velocity and stationary lifetime.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2019

Time Dependence of MicroBooNE CRT-TPC Clock Frequency Difference

MicroBooNE is a surface-level liquid argon time projection chamber neutrino detector taking data on the Booster Neutrino Beamline at Fermilab. By matching signals from an internal photomultiplier tube (PMT) system and an external cosmic ray tagger (CRT) in time, MicroBooNE can reject cosmic ray backgrounds. In order to achieve the best PMT flash - CRT hit time matching resolution, the relative time drift in the clock frequencies used by these two systems needs to be calibrated.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2025

An Arbitrary Time Interval Generator Base on Vernier Clocks with 0.67 ps Adjustable Steps Implemented in FPGA

In TDC testing and timing system implementations, it is often necessary to generate signal pulses with finely adjustable time intervals. In delay cell–based schemes, the adjustment resolution is constrained by the propagation delay of the cells—typically 15–20 ps per step—and is sensitive to temperature and supply voltage variations. This document presents a fully digital approach that uses two vernier clocks, generated by two stages of cascaded phase-locked loops (PLLs) with a slight frequency difference, to achieve adjustable timing intervals through accumulated phase differences. The scheme was validated on two families of low-cost FPGA devices, achieving adjustable step sizes of 0.67 ps and 0.97 ps.

Wu, Jin-yuan [Fermilab] (ORCID:0000000344329521)↗
DOE OSTI2019

Effect of trapped-ion heating on generalised Ramsey methods for suppressing frequency shifts caused by a probe field in atomic clocks

Based on a simple one-dimensional model, we consider the effect of trapped-ion heating on the efficiency of generalised Ramsey methods for the probe-induced frequency shift suppression in optical frequency standards based on single ultracold ions. It is shown that ion heating reduces the efficiency of all previously proposed one-loop generalised Ramsey methods, leading in all cases to the appearance of a linear dependence of the reference frequency shift on the residual field frequency shift. Two versions of the most heating stable generalised Ramsey schemes, for which the proportionality coefficient in this dependence is minimal, are demonstrated. (paper)

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2026

Enhancing quantum clocks and sensors with randomization and decoherence

This letter shows how incoherent dynamics can lead to metrological advantages in quantum sensing. The results rely on the fact that incoherent dynamics lead to an additive contribution to the quantum Fisher information about time. Such an additive contribution can reduce the error of optimal estimation protocols, as implied by the quantum Cramér–Rao bound. I characterize regimes in which the estimation of a time interval or a frequency is enhanced by decoherence, thereby identifying cases in which incoherent dynamics serve as a metrological resource. The decoherence processes that yield enhanced precision of quantum sensors can be engineered by randomized Hamiltonian dynamics. I illustrate the results with protocols that display improved sensing of time intervals or global fields by qubit and photonic sensors. Enhanced precision of time intervals is achieved with Hamiltonians that include randomized global parameters. Enhanced precision in field estimation is obtained by randomized sensing times.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2011

Inelastic collisions and density-dependent excitation suppression in a {sup 87}Sr optical lattice clock

We observe two-body loss of {sup 3} P{sub 0} {sup 87}Sr atoms trapped in a one-dimensional optical lattice. We measure loss rate coefficients for atomic samples between 1 and 6 {mu}K that are prepared either in a single nuclear-spin sublevel or with equal populations in two sublevels. The measured temperature and nuclear-spin preparation dependence of rate coefficients agree well with calculations and reveal that rate coefficients for distinguishable atoms are only slightly enhanced over those of indistinguishable atoms. We further observe a suppression of excitation and losses during interrogation of the {sup 1} S{sub 0}-{sup 3} P{sub 0} transition as density increases and Rabi frequency decreases, which suggests the presence of strong interactions in our dynamically driven many-body system.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗