1,182 research outputs found
Superconducting MoSi nanowires
We have fabricated disordered superconducting nanowires of molybdenium
silicide. A molybdenium nanowire is first deposited on top of silicon, and the
alloy is formed by rapid thermal annealing. The method allows tuning of the
crystal growth to optimise, e.g., the resistivity of the alloy for potential
applications in quantum phase slip devices and superconducting nanowire
single-photon detectors. The wires have effective diameters from 42 to 79 nm,
enabling the observation of crossover from conventional superconductivity to
regimes affected by thermal and quantum fluctuations. In the smallest diameter
wire and at temperatures well below the superconducting critical temperature,
we observe residual resistance and negative magnetoresistance, which can be
considered as fingerprints of quantum phase slips
Chemical equilibrium study in nucleus-nucleus collisions at relativistic energies
We present a detailed study of chemical freeze-out in nucleus-nucleus
collisions at beam energies of 11.6, 30, 40, 80 and 158A GeV. By analyzing
hadronic multiplicities within the statistical hadronization approach, we have
studied the strangeness production as a function of centre of mass energy and
of the parameters of the source. We have tested and compared different versions
of the statistical model, with special emphasis on possible explanations of the
observed strangeness hadronic phase space under-saturation. We show that, in
this energy range, the use of hadron yields at midrapidity instead of in full
phase space artificially enhances strangeness production and could lead to
incorrect conclusions as far as the occurrence of full chemical equilibrium is
concerned. In addition to the basic model with an extra strange quark
non-equilibrium parameter, we have tested three more schemes: a two-component
model superimposing hadrons coming out of single nucleon-nucleon interactions
to those emerging from large fireballs at equilibrium, a model with local
strangeness neutrality and a model with strange and light quark non-equilibrium
parameters. The behaviour of the source parameters as a function of colliding
system and collision energy is studied. The description of strangeness
production entails a non-monotonic energy dependence of strangeness saturation
parameter gamma_S with a maximum around 30A GeV. We also present predictions of
the production rates of still unmeasured hadrons including the newly discovered
Theta^+(1540) pentaquark baryon.Comment: 36 pages, 14 figures. Revised version published in Phys. Rev. C:
title changed, one paragraph added in section 2, other typos correcte
Long hold times in a two-junction electron trap
The hold time of a single-electron trap is shown to increase
significantly due to suppression of environmentally assisted tunneling events.
Using two rf-tight radiation shields instead of a single one, we demonstrate
increase of by a factor exceeding , up to about 10 hours, for a
trap with only two superconductor (S) -- normal-metal (N) tunnel junctions and
an on-chip resistor (R-SNS structure). In the normal state, the improved
shielding made it possible to observe 100 s, which is in reasonable
agreement with the quantum-leakage-limited level expected for the two-electron
cotunneling process.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Chemical equilibrium study at SPS 158A GeV
A detailed study of chemical freeze-out in nucleus-nucleus collisions at beam
energy 158A GeV is presented. By analyzing hadronic multiplicities within the
statistical hadronization approach, the chemical equilibration of p-p, C-C,
Si-Si and Pb-Pb systems is studied as a function of the number of participating
nucleons in the system. Additionally, Two Component statistical hadronization
model is applied to the data and is found to be able to explain the observed
strangeness hadronic phase space under-saturation.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures to appear in the proceedings of the ''Strangeness
in Quark Matter 2004'' conferenc
Chemical freeze-out in ultra-relativistic heavy ion collisions at sqrt(s)_NN = 130 and 200 GeV
A comprehensive and detailed analysis of hadronic abundances measured in
Au-Au collisions at RHIC at sqrt(s)_NN = 130 and 200 GeV is presented. The
rapidity densities measured in the central rapidity region have been fitted to
the statistical hadronization model and the chemical freeze-out parameters
determined as a function of centrality, using data from experiments BRAHMS,
PHENIX and STAR. The chemical freeze-out temperature turns out to be
independent of centrality to a few percent accuracy, whereas the strangeness
under-saturation parameter gamma_S decreases from almost unity in central
collisions to a significantly lower value in peripheral collisions. Our results
are in essential agreement with previous analyses, with the exception that fit
quality at sqrt(s)_NN = 200 GeV is not as good as previously found. From the
comparison of the two different energies, we conclude that the difference in
fit quality, as described by chi2 values, is owing to the improved resolution
of measurements which has probably exceeded the intrinsic accuracy of the
simplified theoretical formula used in the fits.Comment: 18 pages, 6 figures. PUblished versio
Vortices in fermion droplets with repulsive dipole-dipole interactions
Vortices are found in a fermion system with repulsive dipole-dipole
interactions, trapped by a rotating quasi-two-dimensional harmonic oscillator
potential. Such systems have much in common with electrons in quantum dots,
where rotation is induced via an external magnetic field. In contrast to the
Coulomb interactions between electrons, the (externally tunable) anisotropy of
the dipole-dipole interaction breaks the rotational symmetry of the
Hamiltonian. This may cause the otherwise rotationally symmetric exact
wavefunction to reveal its internal structure more directly.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
The driving mechanisms of particle precipitation during the moderate geomagnetic storm of 7 January 2005
International audienceThe arrival of an interplanetary coronal mass ejection (ICME) triggered a sudden storm commencement (SSC) at ~09:22 UT on the 7 January 2005. The ICME followed a quiet period in the solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field (IMF). We present global scale observations of energetic electron precipitation during the moderate geomagnetic storm driven by the ICME. Energetic electron precipitation is inferred from increases in cosmic noise absorption (CNA) recorded by stations in the Global Riometer Array (GLORIA). No evidence of CNA was observed during the first four hours of passage of the ICME or following the sudden commencement (SC) of the storm. This is consistent with the findings of Osepian and Kirkwood (2004) that SCs will only trigger precipitation during periods of geomagnetic activity or when the magnetic perturbation in the magnetosphere is substantial. CNA was only observed following enhanced coupling between the IMF and the magnetosphere, resulting from southward oriented IMF. Precipitation was observed due to substorm activity, as a result of the initial injection and particles drifting from the injection region. During the recovery phase of the storm, when substorm activity diminished, precipitation due to density driven increases in the solar wind dynamic pressure (Pdyn) were identified. A number of increases in Pdyn were shown to drive sudden impulses (SIs) in the geomagnetic field. While many of these SIs appear coincident with CNA, SIs without CNA were also observed. During this period, the threshold of geomagnetic activity required for SC driven precipitation was exceeded. This implies that solar wind density driven SIs occurring during storm recovery can drive a different response in particle precipitation to typical SCs
Vortex localization in rotating clouds of bosons and fermions
Finite quantal systems at high angular momenta may exhibit vortex formation
and localization. These phenomena occur independent of the statistics of the
repulsively interacting particles, which may be of bosonic or fermionic nature.
We analyze the relation between vortex localization and formation of stable
Wigner molecules at high angular momenta in the view of particle-hole
duality.Trial wave functions for the vortex states and the corresponding
fermion-boson relations are discussed.Comment: 12 pages, 12 figure
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