539 research outputs found
Partial discharges location in power transformers using piezoceramic sensors
The detection and the spatial localization of partial discharges in high-voltage electrical machines are considered as an effective method in predictive maintenance that can provide valuable information on the health of the insulation system and allow to determine accurately the location of the risky insulation elements, which in turn will avoid any premature equipment’s deterioration by scheduling preventive maintenance action. After confirming in a previous published paper the efficiency of a new generation of piezoceramics sensors (high temperature ultrasonic transducers) to detect and characterize partial discharges, we are going to investigate, in this work, a second potential of this technology to locate the partial discharge sources by relying on its ability to detect acoustic signals emitted by partial discharge sources. We will present experimental results, demonstrating the effectiveness of these sensors to locate partial discharges sources and, we will also present an algorithm for calculating the partial discharge foci, based on the acoustic wave flight time
Kinetic Monte Carlo Simulations of Crystal Growth in Ferroelectric Alloys
The growth rates and chemical ordering of ferroelectric alloys are studied
with kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) simulations using an electrostatic model with
long-range Coulomb interactions, as a function of temperature, chemical
composition, and substrate orientation. Crystal growth is characterized by
thermodynamic processes involving adsorption and evaporation, with
solid-on-solid restrictions and excluding diffusion. A KMC algorithm is
formulated to simulate this model efficiently in the presence of long-range
interactions. Simulations were carried out on Ba(Mg_{1/3}Nb_{2/3})O_3 (BMN)
type materials. Compared to the simple rocksalt ordered structures, ordered BMN
grows only at very low temperatures and only under finely tuned conditions. For
materials with tetravalent compositions, such as (1-x)Ba(Mg_{1/3}Nb_{2/3})O_3 +
xBaZrO_3 (BMN-BZ), the model does not incorporate tetravalent ions at
low-temperature, exhibiting a phase-separated ground state instead. At higher
temperatures, tetravalent ions can be incorporated, but the resulting crystals
show no chemical ordering in the absence of diffusive mechanisms.Comment: 13 pages, 16 postscript figures, submitted to Physics Review B
Journa
Spin Readout and Initialization in a Semiconductor Quantum Dot
Electron spin qubits in semiconductors are attractive from the viewpoint of
long coherence times. However, single spin measurement is challenging. Several
promising schemes incorporate ancillary tunnel couplings that may provide
unwanted channels for decoherence. Here, we propose a novel spin-charge
transduction scheme, converting spin information to orbital information within
a single quantum dot by microwave excitation. The same quantum dot can be used
for rapid initialization, gating, and readout. We present detailed modeling of
such a device in silicon to confirm its feasibility.Comment: Published versio
Phonitons as a sound-based analogue of cavity quantum electrodynamics
A quantum mechanical superposition of a long-lived, localized phonon and a
matter excitation is described. We identify a realization in strained silicon:
a low-lying donor transition (P or Li) driven solely by acoustic phonons at
wavelengths where high-Q phonon cavities can be built. This phonon-matter
resonance is shown to enter the strongly coupled regime where the "vacuum" Rabi
frequency exceeds the spontaneous phonon emission into non-cavity modes, phonon
leakage from the cavity, and phonon anharmonicity and scattering. We introduce
a micropillar distributed Bragg reflector Si/Ge cavity, where Q=10^5-10^6 and
mode volumes V<=25*lambda^3 are reachable. These results indicate that single
or many-body devices based on these systems are experimentally realizable.Comment: Published PRL version. Note that the previous arXiv version has more
commentary, figures, etc. Also see http://research.tahan.com
Rashba spin-orbit coupling and spin relaxation in silicon quantum wells
Silicon is a leading candidate material for spin-based devices, and
two-dimensional electron gases (2DEGs) formed in silicon heterostructures have
been proposed for both spin transport and quantum dot quantum computing
applications. The key parameter for these applications is the spin relaxation
time. Here we apply the theory of D'yakonov and Perel' (DP) to calculate the
electron spin resonance linewidth of a silicon 2DEG due to structural inversion
asymmetry for arbitrary static magnetic field direction at low temperatures. We
estimate the Rashba spin-orbit coupling coefficient in silicon quantum wells
and find the and times of the spins from this mechanism as a
function of momentum scattering time, magnetic field, and device-specific
parameters. We obtain agreement with existing data for the angular dependence
of the relaxation times and show that the magnitudes are consistent with the DP
mechanism. We suggest how to increase the relaxation times by appropriate
device design.Comment: Extended derivations and info, fixed typos and refs, updated figs and
data. Worth a re-downloa
SARS-CoV-2 E gene variant alters analytical sensitivity characteristics of viral detection using a commercial reverse transcription-PCR assay
Diagnostic assays for detecting severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) are essential for patient management, infection prevention, and the public health response for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The efficacy and reliability of these assays are of paramount importance in both tracking and controlling the spread of the virus. Real-time reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) assays rely on a fixed genetic sequence for primer and probe binding. Mutations can potentially alter the accuracy of these assays and lead to unpredictable analytical performance characteristics and false-negative results. Here, we identify a G-to-U transversion (nucleotide 26372) in the SARS-CoV-2 E gene in three specimens with reduced viral detection efficiency using a widely available commercial assay. Further analysis of the public GISAID repository led to the identification of 18 additional genomes with this mutation, which reflect five independent mutational events. This work supports the use of dual-target assays to reduce the number of false-negative PCR results
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