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At least 667 records · Page 37

A semi-Lagrangian direct-interaction closure of the spectra of isotropic variable-density turbulence

A study of variable-density homogeneous stationary isotropic turbulence based on the sparse direct-interaction perturbation (SDIP) and supporting direct numerical simulations (DNS) is presented. The non-solenoidal flow considered here is an example of turbulent mixing of gases with different densities. The spectral statistics of this type of flow are substantially more difficult to understand theoretically than those of the similar solenoidal flows. In the approach described here, the nonlinearly coupled velocity and scalar (which determine the density of the fluid) equations are expanded in terms of a normalised density ratio parameter. A new set of coupled integro-differential SDIP equations are derived and then solved numerically for the first-order correction to the incompressible equations in the variable-density expansion parameter. By adopting a regular expansion approach, one obtains leading-order corrections that are universal and therefore interesting in their own right. The predictions are then compared with DNS of forced variable-density flow with different density contrasts. It is found that the velocity spectrum owing to variable density is indistinguishable from that of constant-density turbulence, as it is supported by a wealth of indirect experimental evidence, but the scalar spectra show significant deviations, and even loss of monotonicity, as a function of the type and strength of the large-scale source of the mixing. Furthermore, the analysis helps clarify what may be the proper approach to interpret the power spectrum of variable-density turbulence.

Mechanics↗

Quantifying the Variation in the Number of Donors in Quantum Dots Created Using Atomic Precision Advanced Manufacturing

Atomic-precision advanced manufacturing enables unique silicon quantum electronics built on quantum dots fabricated from small numbers of phosphorus dopants. The number of dopant atoms comprising a dot plays a central role in determining the behavior of charge and spin confined to the dots and thus overall device performance. Here in this work, we use both theoretical and experimental techniques to explore the combined impact of lithographic variation and stochastic kinetics on the number of P incorporations in quantum dots made using these techniques and how this variation changes as a function of the size of the dot. Using a kinetic model of PH3 dissociation augmented with novel reaction barriers, we demonstrate that for a 2 × 3 silicon dimer window the probability that no donor incorporates goes to zero, allowing for certainty in the placement of at least one donor. However, this still comes with some uncertainty in the precise number of incorporated donors (either one or two), and this variability may still impact certain applications. We also examine the impact of the size of the initial lithographic window, finding that the incorporation fraction saturates to δ-layer-like coverage as the circumference-to-area ratio decreases. We predict that this incorporation fraction depends strongly on the dosage of the precursor and that the standard deviation of the number of incorporations scales as ~√n, as would be expected for a sequence of largely independent incorporation events. Finally, we characterize an array of 36 experimentally prepared multidonor 3 × 3 nm lithographic windows with scanning tunneling microscopy, measuring the fidelity of the lithography to the desired array and the final location of PH x fragments within these lithographic windows. We use our kinetic model to examine the expected variability due to the observed lithographic error, predicting a negligible impact on incorporation statistics. We find good agreement between our model and the inferred incorporation locations in these windows from scanning tunneling microscope measurements.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Large polarization gradients and temperature-stable responses in compositionally-graded ferroelectrics

A range of modern applications require large and tunable dielectric, piezoelectric or pyroelectric response of ferroelectrics. Such effects are intimately connected to the nature of polarization and how it responds to externally applied stimuli. Ferroelectric susceptibilities are, in general, strongly temperature dependent, diminishing rapidly as one transitions away from the ferroelectric phase transition (T C ). In turn, researchers seek new routes to manipulate polarization to simultaneously enhance susceptibilities and broaden operational temperature ranges. Here, we demonstrate such a capability by creating composition and strain gradients in Ba 1-x Sr x TiO 3 films which result in spatial polarization gradients as large as 35 μC cm -2 across a 150 nm thick film. These polarization gradients allow for large dielectric permittivity with low loss (ε r ≈775, tan δ<0.05), negligible temperature-dependence (13% deviation over 500 °C) and high-dielectric tunability (greater than 70% across a 300 °C range). The role of space charges in stabilizing polarization gradients is also discussed.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Multiband effects on the upper critical field angular dependence of 122-family iron pnictide superconductors

Detailed measurements of the in-plane resistivity were performed in a high-quality Ba(Fe 1-x Co x ) 2 As 2 (x=0.065) single crystal, in magnetic fields up to 9 T and with different orientations θ relative to the crystal c axis. A significant ρ(T) H,θ rounding is observed just above the superconducting critical temperature T c due to Cooper pairs created by superconducting fluctuations. These data are analyzed in terms of a generalization of the Aslamazov-Larkin approach, that extends its applicability to high reduced-temperatures and magnetic fields. This method allows us to carry out a criterion-independent determination of the angular dependence of the upper critical field, H c2 (θ). In spite of the relatively small anisotropy of this compound, it is found that H c2 (θ) presents a significant deviation from the single-band 3D anisotropic Ginzburg-Landau (3D-aGL) approach, particularly for large θ (typically above ~60o). These results are interpreted in terms of the multiband nature of these materials, in contrast with other proposals for similar H c2 (θ) anomalies. Our results are also consistent with an effective anisotropy factor almost temperature independent near T c , a result that differs from the ones obtained by using a single-band model.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

A group finder algorithm optimised for the study of local galaxy environments

Context. The majority of galaxy group catalogues available in the literature use the popular friends-of-friends algorithm which links galaxies using a linking length. One potential drawback to this approach is that clusters of points can be linked with thin bridges which may not be desirable. In order to study galaxy groups, it is important to obtain realistic group structures. Aim. Here, in this study, we present a new simple group finder algorithm, TD-ENCLOSER, that finds the group that encloses a target galaxy of interest. Methods. TD-ENCLOSER is based on the kernel density estimation method which treats each galaxy, represented by a zero-dimensional particle, as a two-dimensional circular Gaussian. The algorithm assigns galaxies to peaks in the density field in order of density in descending order (‘top down’) so that galaxy groups ‘grow’ around the density peaks. Outliers in under-dense regions are prevented from joining groups by a specified hard threshold, while outliers at the group edges are clipped below a soft (blurred) interior density level. Results. The group assignments are largely insensitive to all free parameter variations apart from the hard density threshold and the kernel standard deviation, although this is a known feature of density-based group finder algorithms and it operates with a computing speed that increases linearly with the size of the input sample. In preparation for a companion paper, we also present a simple algorithm to select unique representative groups when duplicates occur. Conclusions. TD-ENCLOSER is tested on a mock galaxy catalogue using a smoothing scale of 0.3 Mpc and is found to be able to recover the input group distribution with sufficient accuracy to be applied to observed galaxy distributions.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Effect of the intra-layer potential distributions and spatial currents on the performance of graphene SymFETs

In this paper, a two-dimensional (2-D) model for a graphene symmetric field effect transistor (SymFET), which considers (a) the intra-graphene layer potential distributions and (b) the internal current flows through the device, is presented and discussed. The local voltages along the graphene electrodes as well as the current-voltage characteristics of the device are numerically calculated based on a single-particle tunneling model. Our numerical results show that: (i) when the tunneling current is small, due to either a large tunneling thickness (≥ 2 atomic layers of BN) or a small coherence length, the voltage distributions along the graphene electrodes have almost zero variations upon including these distributed effects, (ii) when the tunnel current is large, due to either a small tunneling thickness (∼ 1 atomic layer of BN) or due to a large coherence length, the local voltage distributions along the graphene electrodes become appreciable and the device behavior deviates from that predicted by a 1-D approximation. These effects, which are not captured in one-dimensional SymFET models, can provide a better understanding about the electron dynamics in the device and might indicate potential novel applications for this proposed device.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

QED plasma and magnetars

Magnetars are surrounded by diffuse plasma in magnetic field strengths well above the quantum electrodynamic critical value. We derive equations of ''quantum force-free electrodynamics'' for this plasma using effective field theory arguments. We argue that quantum effects do not modify the large scale structure of the magnetosphere, and in particular that the spin-down rate does not deviate significantly from the classical result. We provide definite evolution equations that can be used to explore potentially important small-scale corrections, such as shock formation, which has been proposed as a mechanism for both burst and quiescent emission from magnetars.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Non-linearities in the Lyman-α forest and in its cross-correlation with dark matter halos

Here three-dimensional correlations of the Lyman-α (Lyα) forest and cross correlations between the Lyα forest and quasars have been measured on large scales, allowing a precise measurement of the baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO) feature at redshifts z > 2. These 3D correlations are often modelled using linear perturbation theory, but full-shape analyses to extract cosmological information beyond BAO will require more realistic models capable of describing non-linearities present at smaller scales. We present a measurement of the Lyα forest flux power spectrum from large hydrodynamic simulations — the Sherwood simulations — and compare it to different models describing the small-scale deviations from linear theory. We confirm that the model presented in Arinyo-i-Prats et al. (2015) fits the measured 3D power up to k = 10 h Mpc -1 with an accuracy better than 5%, and show that the same model can also describe the 1D correlations with similar precision. We also present, for the first time, an equivalent study for the cross-power spectrum of halos with the Lyα forest, and we discuss different challenges we face when modelling the cross-power spectrum beyond linear scales. We make all our measured power spectra public in https://github.com/andreufont/sherwoo_p3d. This study is a step towards joint analyses of 1D and 3D flux correlations, and towards using the quasar-Lyα cross-correlation beyond BAO analyses.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Measurement of the Drell –Yan Angular Coefficients with the CMS Experiment at LHC

Results of the angular coefficients measurement with the Drell-Yan muon pairs at 8 TeV are presented. A 0 through A 4 coefficients were measured in bins of muon pair transverse momentum and rapidity using the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) data collected during the first Large Hadron Collider (LHC) run (Run 1) in 2011 and 2012 corresponding to $19.7 fb^{-1}$. No deviations from the Standard Model (SM) predictions observed within uncertainties in the leading and next-to-leading orders.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Relaxation of nonequilibrium populations after a pump: the breaking of Mathiessen's rule

From the early days of many-body physics, it was realized that the self-energy governs the relaxation or lifetime of the retarded Green’s function. So it seems reasonable to directly extend those results into the nonequilibrium domain. But experiments and calculations of the response of quantum materials to a pump show that the relationship between the relaxation and the self-energy only holds in special cases. Experimentally, the decay time for a population to relax back to equilibrium and the linewidth measured in a linear-response angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy differ by large amounts. Theoretically, aside from the weak-coupling regime where the relationship holds, one also finds deviations and additionally one sees violations of Mathiessen’s rule. In this study, we examine whether looking at an effective transport relaxation time helps to analyze the decay times of excited populations as they relax back to equilibrium. We conclude that it may do a little better, but it has a fitting parameter for the overall scale which must be determined.

42 ENGINEERING↗

A SEARCH FOR SUB-SECOND RADIO VARIABILITY PREDICTED TO ARISE TOWARD 3C 84 FROM INTERGALACTIC DISPERSION

We empirically evaluate the scheme proposed by Lieu and Duan in which the light curve of a time-steady radio source is predicted to exhibit increased variability on a characteristic timescale set by the sightline’s electron column density. Application to extragalactic sources is of significant appeal, as it would enable a unique and reliable probe of cosmic baryons. We examine temporal power spectra for 3C 84, observed at 1.7 GHz with the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array and the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope. These data constrain the ratio between standard deviation and mean intensity for 3C 84 to less than 0.05% at temporal frequencies ranging between 0.1 and 200 Hz. This limit is 3 orders of magnitude below the variability predicted by Lieu and Duan and is in accord with theoretical arguments presented by Hirata and McQuinn rebutting electron density dependence. We identify other spectral features in the data consistent with the slow solar wind, a coronal mass ejection, and the ionosphere.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

EPCAPE-PT-LANL Measurements: Single Particle Soot Photometer

Coastal cities offer a unique environment for studying aerosol-cloud interactions and the effects of urban emissions on cloud properties. As part of the Eastern Pacific Cloud Aerosol Precipitation Experiment (EPCAPE), the Partitioning Thrust by Los Alamos National Laboratory (EPCAPE-PT-LANL) was conducted. Our campaign focused on measuring the optical and chemical properties of aerosols and their interactions within marine stratocumulus clouds in La Jolla, California. EPCAPE-PT-LANL enhances the primary goals of EPCAPE through innovative observations of vapor-phase transitions between aerosols and cloud droplets, the impact of black carbon on aerosol-cloud dynamics, and the effects of cloud processing on aerosol optical properties. Instrument: Single Particle Soot Photometer (Droplet Measurements Technology) Data Notes: Contact us if you want additional data products from this instrument. Reported data is the black carbon (rBC) number and mass concentration with diagnostic flags. The SP2 measures incandescence from particles that is induced with a 1064 Nd-YAG laser. Particles that absorb the laser energy and then emit radiation is assumed to contain black carbon. The amount of intensity of radiation is related to the mass of absorbing material in the particle. Here, we calibrate the incandescence intensity to size selected Regal Black (Cabot) nebulized from solution. Data provided for the EPCAPE campaign used the combined broadband high-gain + low-gain channels (BHBL). Each channel has a lower threshold of detection equivalent to 2-s of the respective channel noise. Thresholding has been applied to select between the high-gain and low-gain channels. The detection limit is 80-540 nm (Deq) or 0.36- 55 fg. It is assumed that rBC is the only aerosol type that is in significant concentration in the sampled atmosphere that absorbs the laser energy. Particle data are integrated over 10 second windows to calculate a rBC number and mass concentration. QC/QA: • Diagnostic flags that impacted measured concentration: - Sample, Sheath, and Purge Flow Rates: Despite observing fluctuations in all flows, the rBC detection and mass quantification are generally observed to be stable, although large changes in sample flow rate did impact detection efficiency. A flag was implemented for sample flow deviations >12 cm3/min from the set point averaged over 30 seconds - Laser Power: Detection efficiency decreases with laser power and deviations in laser power also affect mass quantification. Flag for laser power is set for deviations in laser current from the set value >5 mA. - Primary Detector Threshold: Primary thresholding is the signal value which determines whether a “particle” is recorded. Thresholding errors occur when the threshold value is too HIGH and real particles are ignored. • Several periods without data: - 16-18 Nov: Ultra Zero Air generator failure, flows deviated significantly from set points. rBC # conc recovered but questionable. - 20-21 Nov: Offline for calibrations for several hours each day. - 25-27 Nov: Data is missing. - 30 Nov: Power outage 3 Dec: SP2 hard-drive full. - 3 Dec: Power Outage Header: - BHBL_NumbConc[#/cc]: Refers to the number concentration of refractory black carbon (rBC) measured from combined broadband high-gain and low-gain channels, expressed in particles per cubic centimeter. - BHBL_BCMass_Conc[ug/m3]: Refers to the mass concentration of refractory black carbon (rBC) measured from combined broadband high-gain and low-gain channels, expressed in micrograms per cubic meter. - NoData_Flag[bool]: A boolean flag that indicates whether no data was recorded during a measurement. - NoBC_Flag[bool]: A boolean flag indicating whether no black carbon particles were recorded during the measurement. - Laser_Flag[bool]: A boolean flag indicating deviations in laser current during the measurement. - SampleFlow_Flag[bool]: A boolean flag indicating deviations from the set sample flow rate during the measurement. - PrimThresh_Flag[bool]: A boolean flag indicating deviations from the set primary threshold during the measurement, potentially ignoring real particles. - Manual_Flag[bool]: A boolean flag indicating manual intervention or adjustments during the measurement. - CVI_Flag[bool]: A boolean flag indicating whether the Counterflow Virtual Impactor (CVI) was active or inactive during the measurement.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

N2 broadening parameters of ozone at 9.6 microns

Pressure-broadening coefficients were determined for 156 O3 absorption lines made with the Fourier-transform spectrometer at the McMath Solar Telescope of the Kitt Peak National Observatory in the 9-micron region, with a resolution of 0.005/cm. O3 prepared from O2 by silent arc discharge and collected on cold silica gel was held at stable concentrations over 50 percent in a glass or stainless-steel cell with a rock-salt window, and broadened with dry N2. Interferograms were made in several scans of the interferometer during 30 min. The pressure-broadening coefficients were calculated by an iterative least-squares approach, a synthetic spectrum was constructed and compared to the actual spectrum, and the parameters were varied to achieve the best fit. It is shown that the estimated precision of the values reported is about 7 percent, and that the deviation from the theoretical calculations of Tejwani and Yeung (1975) averaged 7.6 percent (a small number of large discrepancies having been excluded).

Margolis, J. S.↗

Minimal cosmic background fluctuations implied by streaming motions

The minimal cosmic background radiation (CBR) anisotropy implied by the presence of peculiar motions of a given amplitude on some specified scale is calculated using a new, power spectrum-independent approach. If the tentative evidence for deviations from the Hubble flow of magnitude delta V/V roughly 0.1 at V roughly 5000 km/s is confirmed, microwave background fluctuations with a coherence scale of about 2 deg and dispersion delta T/T greater than 10 to the -5th are predicted. It is found that the existing upper limits on delta T/T are not inconsistent with v(r) = 500 km/s at r = 50/h Mpc. A reduction of the observational limits on the CBR anisotropy below the authors' minimal predictions for delta T/T would challenge the current interpretation of measurements of deviations from the Hubble flow. Gravitational instability without reheating as a mechanism for generation of the large-scale structure of the universe would be in severe difficulty.

Juszkiewicz, Roman↗

Average motion, structure and orientation of the distant magnetotail determined from remote sensing of the edge of the plasma sheet boundary layer with E greater than 35 keV ions

We study gradients of the energetic ion intesity observed at the edge of the plasma sheet boundary layer (PSBL) by the energetic ion anisotropy spectrometer (EPAS) on International Sun Earth Explorer 3 (ISEE 3). In particular, we have determined the velocity of the boundary relative to the spacecraft in the direction perpendicular to the tail axis and the angle which the boundary normal makes to the spacecraft spin axis for 1160 PSBL encounters at X(sub GSM) greater than -240 R(sub E). By asuming that, on average, the edge of the PSBL is parallel to the cross-tail current sheet, we are then able to determine a number of properties of the structure, orientation and motion of the deep geomagnetic tail. We conclude the following: (1) Most crossings of the edge of the PSBL are caused by transverse motuion of the entire tail induced by solar wind direction variations, although some are caused by reconfiguration of the tail due to geomagnetic activity. (2) The typical velocity of the PSBL (and hence of the tail) in the direction perpendicular to the tail axis is 50-85 km/s. (3) The average twist of the tail is near zero, with the edge of the PSBL (and by inference the cross-tail current sheet) lying parallel to the ecliptic plane (however, large twists are found in individual events and the distribution of twists is broad, with one standard deviation of approximately 50 deg. (4) The width of the distribution decreases with downtail distance. (5) The variation of the distributions with cross-tail position reveals that this decreas in width is most likely due to the edge of the PSBL being concave, or significantly flared at the tail flanks, in the near-Earth region. (6) During days on which the Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF) has 'away' sector structure, the north lobe of the trail is twisted on average towards dawn by 7.0 +/-2.4 deg. (7) During days on which the IMF has 'toward' sector structure, the north lobe is tilted towards duskby 3.8 +/- 2.3. (8) A subset of events for which IMP 8 solar wind data are available show that, for southward IMF BH(sub z) the tail has a mean twist of -12.3 +/- 5.0 deg for IMF B(sub Y) greater than 0 and 5.5 +/- 3.8 deg for IMF B(sub Y) less than 0 (positive twist angles correspond to a tilt of the northern lobe towards dusk). (9) For northward IMF B(sub z) the tail has a twist of -23.9 +/- 5.0 deg for IMF B(sub Y) greater than 0 and 13.4 +/- 6.0 deg for IMF B(sub y) less than 0. Hence the tail appears more twisted on average for the IMF B(sub Z) northward case. (10) The distribution of tail twist is wider for lower levels of geomagnetic activity, indicating that the tail is able to twist more at lower levels of activity. (11) The data set reveals no evident effect of the earth's dipole wobble; tail orientation appears to be controlled by the solar wind and IMF, such that the GSE coordinate system may be appropriate for the study of field and plasma structures in the distant tail region.

Owen, C. J.↗

Flow properties along field lines in a 3-D tilted-dipole geometry

A 3-D MHD simulation of a global, tilted-dipole solar wind flow pattern is analyzed to determine flow properties along individual magnetic field lines. In the model, flow conditions near the Sun are chosen to provide a reasonable match to the interplanetary configuration prevailing during the recent south polar passage by Ulysses, i.e., a streamer belt inclined approximately 30 deg to the solar equator and speeds ranging from 325-800 km/s. Field lines all across the stream pattern are traced from 1 to 10 AU by following the motion of marker particles embedded in the flow. It is found that those field lines threading the core of the interaction region are subject to significant latitudinal and relative longitudinal displacement over this range of heliocentric distance. Thus, observations taken at a fixed latitude in the inner solar system sample, over the course of a solar rotation, field lines which connect to a range of latitudes in the outer heliosphere. Maps of the field line displacements are presented to help visualize these connections. In addition, it is found that depending upon the location relative to the CIR structure, the radial evolution of fluid elements frozen to different field lines can deviate considerably from that of the canonical solar wind. That is, for selected subsets of field lines, large speed changes (not just at shocks) can be experienced; the density variation can be far from 1/r(exp 2), and the magnetic field intensity need not decay monotonically with distance.

Pizzo, V. J.↗

Application of Statistical Methods of Rain Rate Estimation to Data From The TRMM Precipitation Radar

The TRMM Precipitation Radar is well suited to statistical methods in that the measurements over any given region are sparsely sampled in time. Moreover, the instantaneous rain rate estimates are often of limited accuracy at high rain rates because of attenuation effects and at light rain rates because of receiver sensitivity. For the estimation of the time-averaged rain characteristics over an area both errors are relevant. By enlarging the space-time region over which the data are collected, the sampling error can be reduced. However. the bias and distortion of the estimated rain distribution generally will remain if estimates at the high and low rain rates are not corrected. In this paper we use the TRMM PR data to investigate the behavior of 2 statistical methods the purpose of which is to estimate the rain rate over large space-time domains. Examination of large-scale rain characteristics provides a useful starting point. The high correlation between the mean and standard deviation of rain rate implies that the conditional distribution of this quantity can be approximated by a one-parameter distribution. This property is used to explore the behavior of the area-time-integral (ATI) methods where fractional area above a threshold is related to the mean rain rate. In the usual application of the ATI method a correlation is established between these quantities. However, if a particular form of the rain rate distribution is assumed and if the ratio of the mean to standard deviation is known, then not only the mean but the full distribution can be extracted from a measurement of fractional area above a threshold. The second method is an extension of this idea where the distribution is estimated from data over a range of rain rates chosen in an intermediate range where the effects of attenuation and poor sensitivity can be neglected. The advantage of estimating the distribution itself rather than the mean value is that it yields the fraction of rain contributed by the light and heavy rain rates. This is useful in estimating the fraction of rainfall contributed by the rain rates that go undetected by the radar. The results at high rain rates provide a cross-check on the usual attenuation correction methods that are applied at the highest resolution of the instrument.

Meneghini, R.↗

Spurious States-Free Solution of the k dot p Hamiltonian for Heterostructures

A method for eliminating spurious solution in the k dot p Hamiltonian has been proposed. Introduction of additional off-diagonal alpha k(exp 2) term converts spurious solution with large real wave vector to evanescent solution with large imaginary wave vector. This modification keeps the same effective masses at Gamma point and introduces negligible deviation from original nonparabolicity. A set of unphysical fast oscillation eigenfunctions in confined states of heterostructures are removed.

Kolokolov, Konstantin I.↗