Digital Commons Network^™

Design And Construction Of A Channel Electron Multiplier Based Mossbauer Spectroscopy System, Daniel J. Robbins

Theses and Dissertations

A channel electron multiplier (cem) detector system was designed and built to provide a signal to a Mossbauer spectroscopy system in an effort to obtain a better signal-to-noise ratio than achievable with a proportional counter system. Three cems are contained in a vacuum chamber built using standard components. Gamma, rays of 14.4-keV energy from a ⁵⁷Co source enter from outside the chamber through a window and are absorbed by an ⁵⁷Fe target near the cems. The target emits internal conversion electrons which are collected by the cems and a Mossbauer spectrometer collects the signal. The system produces a …

Coverage Dependence Of K Adsorption On Si(100)—2× 1 By Core-Level Photoemission, D. Mark Riffe, G. K. Wertheim, P. H. Citrin, J. E. Rowe

All Physics Faculty Publications

Using core-level photoemission, a coverage-dependent transition in the adsorption of K on Si(100)2×1 is observed. Below ∼0.25 monolayers, a single adsorption is occupied, the asymmetry of the Si-dimer reconstruction is enhanced, and no more than ∼0.05e is transferred from K to Si. Above this coverage, multiple sites are occupied, the dimer configuration becomes more symmetric, and the K overlayer becomes increasingly metallic. These findings resolve a number of conflicting studies of this system.

Mott Electron Polarimetry, Timothy J. Gay, F. B. Dunning

Timothy J. Gay Publications

Electron polarimeters based on Mott scattering are extensively used in atomic and molecular, solid state, nuclear, and high-energy physics. This use stems from the increasing realization that much additional information concerning many physical processes can be obtained through spin-dependent measurements. In this review we discuss the basic physics and application of Mott polarimetry. A number of different Mott polarimeter designs are described that illustrate the wide range of operating energies (10 eV-1 MeV) and geometries that can be used in such instruments. The calibration of Mott polarimeters is discussed together with the potential sources of systematic error that can arise …

Angular-Differential Cross Sections For H(2P) Formation In Intermediate-Energy Proton-Helium Collisions, D. G. Seely, S. W. Bross, A. D. Gaus, J. W. Edwards, D. R. Schultz, Timothy J. Gay, J. T. Park, J. L. Peacher

Timothy J. Gay Publications

Angular-differential cross sections for charge transfer with simultaneous emission of a photon in collisions of protons with helium atoms have been measured. The incident proton energies were 25, 50, and 100 keV and the center-of-mass scattering angles were between 0 and 2.0 mrad. In the experiment, hydrogen atoms that scattered through an angle θ were detected in coincidence with photons emitted perpendicular to the scattering plane with a wavelength between 1140 and 1400 Å. Differential cross sections for capture into the 2p state of the hydrogen atom were determined from the variation in the coincidence signal with θ. The …

Light Scattering In The Isotropic Phase Of Highly Chiral Liquid Crystals, J. E. Wyse, Peter J. Collings

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Works

Light-scattering measurements using circularly polarized light in a backscattering geometry are employed to measure the amplitude of fluctuations in two of the five structural modes present in the isotropic phase of chiral liquid crystals. From these measurements, the second-order transition temperatures for all five modes are then calculated. In order to investigate the effect of chirality on the fluctuations, the experiments are performed in various mixtures of the chiral liquid crystal 4’’-(2-methylbutylphenyl)-4’-(2-methylbutyl)-4-biphenylcarboxylate (CE2) and the nonchiral liquid crystal 4-n-pentylbenzenethio-4’-n-heptyloxybenzoate(7¯S5). The results show that fluctuations in the five modes are independent in low-chirality mixtures, and, as predicted by theory, the second-order …

Finite Thermal Diffusivity At Onset Of Convection In Autocatalytic Systems: Continuous Fluid Density, J. W. Wilder, Boyd F. Edwards, D. A. Vasquez

All Physics Faculty Publications

The linear stability of exothermic autocatalytic reaction fronts is considered using the viscous thermohydrodynamic equations for a fluid with finite thermal diffusivity. For upward front propagation and a thin front, the vertical thermal gradient near the front is reminiscent of the Rayleigh-Bénard problem of a fluid layer heated from below. The problem is also similar to flame propagation, except that here the front propagation speed is limited by catalyst diffusion rather than by activation kinetics. For small density changes in a laterally unbounded system, the curvature dependence of the front propagation speed stabilizes perturbations with short wavelengths λ<λ_c, …

Angular-Differential Cross Sections For H(2p) Formation In Intermediate-Energy Proton-Helium Collisions, Denver G. Seely, S. W. Bross, A. D. Gaus, John Wm Edwards, David R. Schultz, Timothy Gay, John T. Park, Jerry Peacher

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

Angular-differential cross sections for charge transfer with simultaneous emission of a photon in collisions of protons with helium atoms have been measured. The incident proton energies were 25, 50, and 100 keV and the center-of-mass scattering angles were between 0 and 2.0 mrad. In the experiment, hydrogen atoms that scattered through an angle θ were detected in coincidence with photons emitted perpendicular to the scattering plane with a wavelength between 1140 and 1400 Å. Differential cross sections for capture into the 2p state of the hydrogen atom were determined from the variation in the coincidence signal with θ. The experimental …

Evidence For Atomic Processes In Molecular Valence Double Ionization, U. Becker, Oliver Hemmers, B. Langer, A. Menzel, R. Wehlitz, W. B. Peatman

Environmental Studies Faculty Publications

Complete molecular valence-electron spectra were measured for CO. Unexpectedly, discrete lines at low kinetic energies were found, superimposed on a continuous energy spectrum representing direct double-ionization processes. The appearance of these lines is discussed in the context of the formation of the C⁺+O⁺ ion pair near its associated threshold at 38.4 eV. It is ascribed to valence-excited repulsive (CO⁺)^* states, which dissociate to a large part rapidly into atomic fragments before electronic relaxation takes place. From our spectra, partial cross sections for the different processes leading to dissociative valence double ionization are derived.

Determining The Chemical Composition Of Cloud Condensation Nuclei, Allen L. Williams, Jane E. Rothert, Kent E. Mcclure, Darryl J. Alofs, Donald E. Hagen, Daniel R. White, A. R. Hopkins, Max B. Trueblood

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This second progress report describes the status of the project one and one-half years after the start. The goal of the project is to develop the instrumentation to collect cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) in sufficient amounts to determine their chemical composition, and to survey the CCN composition in different climates through a series of field measurements. Our approach to CCN collection is to first form droplets on the nuclei under simulated cloud humidity conditions, which is the only known method of identifying CCN from the background aerosol. Under cloud chamber conditions, the droplets formed become larger than the surrounding aerosol, …

Molecular-Statistical Theory For Curvature Elasticity Of Thermotropic Main-Chain-Polymer Liquid Crystals, Rolfe G. Petschek, Eugene M. Terentjev

Faculty Scholarship

We develop a microscopic molecular-statistical theory for thermotropic nematic polymers, composed of semiflexible chains of bonded nematogenic monomers. In the framework of a mean-field approximation we account for pair-interaction forces between monomers, including long-range attraction, steric repulsion, and effective rigidity of the bonds between subsequent monomers on the same chain. The functional correction to the probability distribution in a nonuniform orienting field is obtained for the case of very-long-wavelength deformations. We then derive a curvature-elastic free energy for this system, in which the Frank elastic constants are expressed in terms of definite molecular and thermodynamic parameters. It is shown that …

The Effect Of Continuous Stirring On Off-Critical And Critical Samples Of A Phase Separating Binary Liquid Mixture, Nalini Easwar

Physics: Faculty Publications

The effect of shear on phase separation in a continuously stirred mixture of isobutyric acid and water has been studied. The data for the onset of phase separation in the stirred samples that are as far away as 500 mK from the critical point compare favorably with the theory of Onuki and Takasue and with similar measurements on very off-critical mixtures of 2-6 lutidine plus water reported by Min et al. However, as the composition gets closer to the critical composition significant differences arise. The main feature is that the measured suppression in temperature peaks at an off-critical composition …

Magnetism With Generalized-Gradient-Approximation Density Functionals, D.J. Singh, J. Ashkenazi

Physics Articles and Papers

We report generalized-gradient-approximation (GGA) density-functional studies of Cr, V, and Pd, using an all-electron, general-potential linearized-augmented-plane-wave technique. These calculations were undertaken in order to assess the utility of the GGA as an improvement over the local-density approximation in describing transition-metal magnetism. It is found that although the tendency towards magnetism is enhanced, both V and Pd are correctly predicted to be nonmagnetic with the recent GGA functional of Perdew (PW GGA-II) as with the Langreth-Mehl-Hu (LM) functional. Calculations for commensurate antiferromagnetic Cr show that the PW GGA-II predicts an overly large moment of 1.4μ_B while the LM functional yields …

Track Structure Model Of Cell Damage In Space Flight, Robert Katz, Francis A. Cucinotta, John W. Wilson, Judy L. Shinn, Duc M. Ngo

Robert Katz Publications

Cell damage by high linear energy transfer (LET) radiations has been described by a phenomenological model (track theory) for more than 20 years. With track theory, molecules of biological significance (dry enzymes and viruses) act as one-hit detectors. Recent additions to tire class of one-hit detectors arc Escherichia coil B, and single- and double-strand breaks in SV-40 virus in EO buffer, where indirect effects predominate. The response of cells (survival, transformation, and chromosome aberration) to these radiations is typically described by a four-parameter model whose numerical values are determined from the equations of the theory being fit to experimental …

Simulations Of Phase Transitions In Rb2Zncl4, H. M. Lu, John R. Hardy

John R. Hardy Papers

Structural relaxations, molecular-dynamics simulations, and lattice-dynamics calculations were performed to study the phase transitions in Rb₂ZnCl₄, using intermolecular and intramolecular potentials generated from ab initio quantum-chemistry calculations for the whole molecular ion ZnCl₄ ^2-. Compared with an earlier treatment of the system by a polarizable-ion model, the present approach emphasizes the static effect of the electron covalency within the molecular ions that affects strongly both the intermolecular and intramolecular interactions. The calculations gave a close agreement with experiment on the static structures of the Pnam and the Pna2₁ phases and the transition …

Extrapolation Procedures In Mott Electron Polarimetry, Timothy J. Gay, M. A. Khakoo, J. A. Brand, J. E. Furst, W. V. Meyer, W. M. K. P. Wijayaratna, F. B. Dunning

Timothy J. Gay Publications

In standard Mott electron polarimetry using thin gold film targets, extrapolation procedures must be used to reduce the experimentally measured asymmetries A to the values they would have for scattering from single atoms. These extrapolations involve the dependence of A on either the gold film thickness t or the maximum detected electron energy loss in the target ΔE. Using a concentric cylindrical-electrode Mott polarimeter, we have studied and compared these two types of extrapolations over the electron energy range 20-100 keV. The potential systematic errors which can result from such procedures are analyzed in detail, particularly with regard to the …

Su(3) X Su(2) X U(1)Su(3): The Residual Symmetry Of Conformal Gravity, James Thomas Wheeler

All Physics Faculty Publications

SUe 4) x SU(2) is shown to characterize the possible choices of spacetime metric constructible from the gauge fields of the conformal group. When this symmetry is broken by the choice of metric, exactly the SU(3) x SU(2) x U(l) symmetry of the standard model remains. The conformal group consists of Lorentz transformations, translations, inverse translations and dilations. Treated in the standard way, conformal symmetry fails as a unifying gauge group: dilations make the mass spectrum continuous, and the inverse translational gauge field is auxiliary. The theory reduces back to the Poincare group.

Production Of A High-Density State-Selected Metastable Neon Beam, J. A. Brand, J. E. Furst, Timothy J. Gay, L. D. Shearer

Timothy J. Gay Publications

We have developed a high-density source of metastable neon and have selectively quenched both metastable species using a standing-wave dye laser. The source is compact, stable, and produces an average intensity of 3.6 x 10¹⁴ sr ^-1 s ^-1 and a density on target of 7.7 x 10⁶ cm^-3.

Fragmentation Of Percolation Clusters At The Percolation Threshold, M. F. Gyure, Boyd F. Edwards

All Physics Faculty Publications

A scaling theory and simulation results are presented for fragmentation of percolation clusters by random bond dilution. At the percolation threshold, scaling forms describe the average number of fragmenting bonds and the distribution of cluster masses produced by fragmentation. A relationship between the scaling exponents and standard percolation exponents is verified in one dimension, on the Bethe lattice, and for Monte Carlo simulations on a square lattice. These results further describe the structure of percolation clusters and provide kernels relevant to rate equations for fragmentation.

Ionospheric Simulation Compared With Dynamics Explorer Observations For November 22, 1981, Jan Josef Sojka, M. D. Bowline, Robert W. Schunk, J. D. Craven, L. A. Frank, J. R. Sharber, J. D. Winningham, L. H. Brace

All Physics Faculty Publications

Dynamics Explorer (DE) 2 electric field and particle data have been used to constrain the inputs of a time-dependent ionospheric model (TDIM) for a simulation of the ionosphere on November 22, 1981. The simulated densities have then been critically compared with the DE 2 electron density observations. This comparison uncovers a model-data disagreement in the morning sector trough, generally good agreement of the background density in the polar cap and evening sector trough, and a difficulty in modelling the observed polar F layer patches. From this comparison, the consequences of structure in the electric field and precipitation inputs can be …

Solar Cycle Dependence Of Spacecraft Charging In Low Earth Orbit, T. B. Frooninckx, Jan Josef Sojka

All Physics Faculty Publications

Recent experimental evidence has shown that Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) polar orbiting spacecraft at 840 km can develop electric potentials as severe as −1430 V while at high magnetic latitudes. To explore this charging region, an analysis of DMSP F6, F7, F8, and F9 satellite precipitating particle and ambient plasma measurements taken during periods of high, medium, and low solar flux is performed. One hundred eighty-four charging events ranging from −46 to −1430 V are identified, and an extreme solar cycle dependence is found as charging is most frequent and severe during solar minimum. Satellite measurements and time-dependent ionospheric …

On The Standing Wave Mode Of Giant Pulsations, K. Takahashi, N. Sato, J. Warnecke, H. Luhr, Harlan E. Spence, Y. Tonegawa

Physics & Astronomy

Both odd-mode and even-mode standing wave structures have been proposed for giant pulsations. Unless a conclusion is drawn on the field-aligned mode structure, little progress can be made in understanding the excitation mechanism of giant pulsations. In order to determine the standing wave mode, we have made a systematic survey of magnetic field data from the AMPTE CCE spacecraft and from ground stations located near the geomagnetic foot point of CCE. We selected time intervals when CCE was close to the magnetic equator and also magnetically close to Syowa and stations in Iceland, and when either transverse or compressional Pc …

Alloy Scattering In P-Type Alxga1-Xas, David C. Look, D. K. Lorance, J. R. Sizelove, C. E. Stutz, K. R. Evans, D. W. Whitson

Physics Faculty Publications

The hole mobility of Be‐doped ( ~ 2 × 10¹⁷ cm^-3) AlxGa1-xAs, for x=0–1, is analyzed both theoretically and experimentally. Alloy scattering is very important, and in fact reduces the hole mobility from 150 to less than 90 cm²/V s at x=0.5. The main parameter in the alloy scattering formulation, the alloy potential Eal, is found to be about 0.5 eV for p‐type AlxGa1-xAs.

Translational Correlations In The Vortex Array At The Surface Of A Type-Ii Superconductor, M. Cristina Marchetti, David R. Nelson

Physics - All Scholarship

We discuss the statistical mechanics of magnetic flux lines in a finite-thickness slab of type-II superconductor. The long wavelength properties of a flux-line liquid in a slab geometry are described by a hydrodynamic free energy that incorporates the boundary conditions on the flux lines at the sample's surface as a surface contribution to the free energy. Bulk and surface weak disorder are modeled via Gaussian impurity potentials. This free energy is used to evaluate the two-dimensional structure factor of the flux-line tips at the sample surface. We find that surface interaction always dominates in determining the decay of translational correlations …

Empirical Relations Between Static And Dynamic Exponents For Ising Model Cluster Algorithms, Paul D. Coddington, Clive F. Baillie

Physics - All Scholarship

We have measured the autocorrelations for the Swendsen-Wang and the Wolff cluster update algorithms for the Ising model in 2, 3 and 4 dimensions. The data for the Wolff algorithm suggest that the autocorrelations are linearly related to the specific heat, in which case the dynamic critical exponent zW int,E = α/ν. For the Swendsen-Wang algorithm, scaling the autocorrelations by the average maximum cluster size gives either a constant or a logarithm, which implies that zSW int,E = β/ν for the Ising model.

Classical Calculation Of High-Energy Electron Capture In 5-Mev Proton-Hydrogen Collisions, D. R. Schultz, C. O. Reinhold, Ronald E. Olson

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

The existence of the classical Thomas peak in the angular distribution of projectiles undergoing capture in collisions of 5-MeV protons with atomic hydrogen is explored using the three-body, three-dimensional classical-trajectory Monte Carlo technique. A method that selects only that portion of the initial phase space which yields capture at this energy was developed to make the calculation tractable due to the extremely small cross section. The spectrum obtained displays only a small shoulder near the angle predicted by Thomas on the basis of successive classical binary collisions and the total (integral) cross section is overestimated by a factor of 26 …

Bounds On The Polymer-Length Distribution In Equilibrium Polymerization, Rolfe G. Petschek

Faculty Scholarship

We obtain upper bounds on the polymer-length distribution in a class of models for equilibrium polymerization. This rules out a recent claim for the existence of a collapsed phase in which a nonzero fraction of the monomers are in infinite polymer(s). We discuss the behavior of finite systems, in which a collapse of sorts does occur, and indicate how this collapse disappears in the thermodynamic limit.

Track Structure Model For Damage To Mammalian Cell Cultures During Solar Proton Events, Francis A. Cucinotta, J. W. Wilson, L. W. Townsend, J. L. Shinn, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

Solar proton events (SPEs) occur infrequently and unpredictably, thus representing a potential hazard to interplanetary space missions. Biological damage from SPEs will be produced principally through secondary electron production in tissue, including important contributions due to delta rays from nuclear reaction products. We review methods for estimating the biological effectiveness of SPEs using a high energy proton model and the parametric cellular track model. Results of the model are presented for several of the historically largest flares using typical levels and body shielding.

Phase Transitions In K2Zncl4, H. M. Lu, John R. Hardy

John R. Hardy Papers

It is shown that the potential-energy surface in K₂ZnCl₄ contains a double-well structure, very similar to some of the other A₂BX₄ compounds (e.g., K₂SeO₄, Rb₂ZnCl₄), except that the double well is much deeper and broader, giving rise to a highly disordered high-temperature phase as observed experimentally. A lattice-dynamics study of the Pna2₁ structure shows an instability with the wave vector q=0.5b^*+(0.5±δ)c^*, providing an explanation to the incommensurate phase transition reported recently.

Second-Order Parametrized-Post-Newtonian Lagrangian, Matthew J. Benacquista

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

A many-body Lagrangian to second post-Newtonian order using an extension of the parametrized-post-Newtonian (PPN) formalism is introduced and the properties of new parameters are explored. A parametrized gauge transformation is developed to permit comparison with theories of gravity in a variety of different coordinate systems. A procedure to impose Lorentz invariance on a general second-order post-Newtonian Lagrangian is developed. The Lagrangian is then constrained to possess Lorentz invariance and a "Lorentz-invariant" gauge is introduced. The constrained Lagrangian is found to be described by ten new second-order PPN parameters. When the Lagrangian is further constrained to describe theories of gravity for …

Atomic Collision Processes Of Interest In Controlled Thermonuclear Fusion Research, Victor Dewitt Irby

Doctoral Dissertations

"This thesis examines several atomic collisional processes involved in controlled thermonuclear fusion. Specifically, experimental studies have been made on the state- selective single capture reaction

³He²⁺ + He —> ³He⁺(n) + He⁺(n'), (1)

on the double capture reaction

³He²⁺ + H e—> ³He + He²⁺ , (2)

and on the single ionization of atomic targets X

A^q+ + X —> A^q+ + X⁺ + e^- (3)

by charged projectiles A^q+. Reactions (1) and (2) have an importance in plasma energy balance and in …