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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 1,153 records · Page 64

In Situ TEM Study of Radiation Resistance of Metallic Glass–Metal Core–Shell Nanocubes

Radiation damage can cause significantly more surface damage in metallic nanostructures than bulk materials. Structural changes from displacement damage compromise the performance of nanostructures in radiation environments such as nuclear reactors and outer space, or used in radiation therapy for biomedical treatments. As such, it is important to develop strategies to prevent this from occurring if nanostructures are to be incorporated into these applications. In this work, in situ transmission electron microscope ion irradiation was used to investigate whether a metallic glass (MG) coating mitigates sputtering and morphological changes in metallic nanostructures. Dislocation-free Au nanocubes and Au nanocubes coated with a Ni–B MG were bombarded with 2.8 MeV Au 4+ ions. The formation of internal defects in bare Au nanocubes was observed at a fluence of 7.5 × 10 11 ions/cm 2 (0.008 dpa), and morphological changes such as surface roughening, rounding of corners, and formation of nanofilaments began at 4 × 10 12 ions/cm 2 (0.04 dpa). In contrast, the Ni–B MG-coated Au nanocubes (Au@NiB) showed minimal morphological changes at a fluence of 1.9 × 10 13 ions/cm 2 (0.2 dpa). Finally, the MG coating maintains its amorphous nature under all irradiation conditions investigated.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

The scale dependence of single-nucleon shell structure

We address the scale dependence of (effective) single-particle energies, non-observable quantities that are commonly used for interpreting nuclear structure observables measured in experiments and computed in many-body theories. We first demonstrate their scale dependence on a formal level, making them intrinsically theoretical objects, before illustrating this point via ab initio calculations in the oxygen isotopes. Finally, we consider a modified definition of effective single-particle energy and investigate its running properties.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Impact of pion dynamics on nuclear shell structure

Spin-isospin response in exotic nuclear systems is investigated. It is found that in some nuclei excitations with pionic quantum numbers (0{sup −}, 1{sup +}, 2{sup −}, …) appear at very low energies with large transition probabilities, which is an indication of the vicinity of the onset of pion condensation. As an example, 2{sup −} components of the spin-dipole resonance in {sup 78}Ni and {sup 132}Sn are considered. The existence of such modes points out to the necessity of taking into account their coupling to other elementary modes of excitation, e.g. single-quasiparticle ones. This coupling is introduced in the theory for the first time. Thereby, both rho-meson and pion-exchange contributions to the nucleon-nucleon interaction are included in the relativistic framework beyond the Hartree-Fock approximation. Namely, classes of Feynman diagrams are selected according to their significance for nuclear spectroscopic characteristics, such as single-particle energies and strength functions, and included into the nucleonic self-energy in all orders of meson-exchange. As an illustration, the impact of these new contributions on the single-particle energies of {sup 100}Sn is discussed.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Primary biomolecular adsorption energetics of core–shell nanocomplexes: Implications for biological interactions

Molecular organization at the nano-bio interface governing the colloidal stability, reactivity, immune recognition, and drug delivery performance of nanoparticles remains difficult to predict. Quantifying the primary hydration energetics of biomolecule-coated nanomaterials can determine those interactions and provide a basis for engineered nanocarriers with tailored behavior in biological systems. Here, we measured the thermodynamics of water adsorption on patchy dry magnetite (Fe 3 O 4 ) nanoparticles coated with three model biomolecules, bovine serum albumin, potato starch, and lauric acid and compared these properties to the hydration energetics of the corresponding free dry biomolecules. The results demonstrate how the surface functionalization alters the hydrophilicity, the accessible hydrophilic surface, and the interaction potential of the nanocomplex surface with biological media. The protein coating increases the interaction potential of the surface of the nanocomplex. The weaker interaction potential of the polysaccharide coating and the relatively large hydrophilic surface area allow dynamic and reversible binding, while the fatty acid rearranges into a partial bilayer with very strong hydrophilicity. The findings establish the hydration enthalpy as a quantitative basis to determine and interpret nanoparticle interactions with proteins, membranes, and biological fluids, and provide a thermodynamic foundation for designing nanocarriers with predictable biological reactivity.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Structure of Cl 38 and the quest for a comprehensive shell model interaction

The higher-spin structure of 38 Cl ($N=21$) was investigated following the 26 Mg( 14 C, $pn$) reaction at 30 and 37 MeV beam energies. The outgoing protons were detected in an $E-ΔE$ Si telescope placed at 0° close to the target with a Ta beam stopper between the target and telescope. Multiple $γ$ rays were detected in time coincidence with the protons using an enhanced version of the FSU $γ$-detection array. The level scheme was extended up to 8420 keV with a likely spin of 10 $ℏ$. A new multishell interaction was developed guided by the experimental information. This FSU interaction was built by fitting to the energies of 270 experimental states from 13 C to 51 Ti. Calculations using the FSU interaction reproduce observed properties of 38 Cl rather well, including the spectroscopic factors. The interaction has been successfully used to interpret the 1p1h and 2p2h configurations in some nearby nuclei as well.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Resonances of A = 4T = 1 isospin triplet states within the ab initio no-core Gamow shell model

Here, the A = 4 nuclei, i.e., 4 H, 4 He, and 4 Li , establish an interesting isospin T = 1 isobaric system. 4 H and 4 Li are unbound broad resonances, whereas 4 He is deeply bound in its ground state but unbound in all its excited states. The present situation is that experiments so far have not given consistent data on the resonances. Few-body calculations have well studied the scatterings of the 4N systems. In the present work, we provide many-body calculations of the broad resonance structures, in an ab initio framework with modern realistic interactions. It occurs that, indeed, 4 H, 4 Li, and excited 4 He are broad resonances, which is in accordance with experimental observations. The calculations also show that the first 1 - excited state almost degenerates with the 2 - ground state in the pair of mirror isobars of 4 H and 4 Li, which may suggest that the experimental data on energy and width are the mixture of the ground state and the first excited state. The T = 1 isospin triplet formed with an excited state of 4 He and ground states of 4 H and 4 Li is studied, focusing on the effect of isospin symmetry breaking.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Configuration splitting and gamma-decay transition rates in the two-group shell model

Expressions for reduced gamma-decay transition rates were obtained on the basis of the twogroup configuration model for the case of transitions between particles belonging to identical groups of nucleons. In practical applications, the present treatment is the most appropriate for describing decays for odd–odd nuclei in the vicinity of magic nuclei or for nuclei where the corresponding subshells stand out in energy. Also, a simple approximation is applicable to describing configuration splitting in those cases. The present calculations were performed for nuclei whose mass numbers are close to A ∼ 90, including N = 51 odd—odd isotones.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Final Report: Spectral Analysis of L-shell Data in the Extreme Ultraviolet from Tokamak Plasmas

We performed detailed analyses of extreme ultraviolet spectra taken by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory on the National Spherical Torus Experiment at Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory and on the Alcator CKmod tokamak at the M.I.T. Plasma Science and Fusion Center. We focused on the emission of iron, carbon, and other elements in several spectral band pass regions covered by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly on the Solar Dynamics Observatory. We documented emission lines of carbon not found in currently used solar databases and demonstrated that this emission was due to charge exchange.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Hybrid Magnetic Core-Shell Nanophotocatalysts for Environmental Applications

This research study describes a facile sol-gel method to creating hybrid iron (III) oxide/silica/titania nanomaterials decorated with gold nanoparticles for use in environmental applications. The multi-functional composition of the nanomaterials allows for photocatalyzed reactions to occur in both the visible and the UV range. The morphologies, elemental composition, and surface charge of the nanoparticles were determined by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS), and Phase Analysis Light Scattering (PALS), respectively. The photocatalytic activity of the synthesized hybrid nanoparticles for breaking down a model analyte, methyl orange (MO), was then evaluated using UV-Vis Spectroscopy. The efficiency of the photocatalyst under UV light irradiation was measured and compared to other well-studied nanophotocatalysts, namely titanium oxide and iron oxide nanoparticles. The concentration dependence of both the photocatalyst and the analyte was also investigated. By utilizing the known UV-active properties of TiO 2 , the magnetic properties of Fe 2 O 3 , the optical properties of gold in the visible range of the spectrum, and the high stability of silica, a novel, highly efficient photocatalyst that is active on a broad range of the spectrum (UV-Vis) can be created to destroy organic pollutants in wastewater streams.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗