High resolution drift tube hodoscopes for cosmic ray studies

Thin-walled drift tubes have been used in conjunction with a superconducting magnet for the rigidity spectrometer aboard two recent particle astrophysics experiments flown on high altitude balloons: PBAR (a low energy antiproton search) and SMILI (the superconducting magnet instrument for light isotopes). The HEAT (high energy antimatter telescope) experiment currently under construction will also employ this technology. This paper reviews the design, construction, and in-flight operation of the PBAR and SMILI systems, as well as the design of the HEAT system which will be used in conjunction with a new superconducting magnet aboard an upcoming series of balloon experiments to study high energy positrons and antiprotons in the cosmic radiation. In addition to a brief account of the scientific goals for these flights, the prospects for future application of this technology to long duration exposures aboard antarctic balloon flights and spacecraft are discussed.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/29691/1/0000022.pd

Sub-Pixel Response Measurement of Near-Infrared Sensors

Wide-field survey instruments are used to efficiently observe large regions of the sky. To achieve the necessary field of view, and to provide a higher signal-to-noise ratio for faint sources, many modern instruments are undersampled. However, precision photometry with undersampled imagers requires a detailed understanding of the sensitivity variations on a scale much smaller than a pixel. To address this, a near-infrared spot projection system has been developed to precisely characterize near-infrared focal plane arrays and to study the effect of sub-pixel non uniformity on precision photometry. Measurements of large format near-infrared detectors demonstrate the power of this system for understanding sub-pixel response.Comment: 9 pages, 13 figures, submitted to PAS

Study of MILD combustion using LES and advanced analysis tools

© 2020 The Combustion Institute. A cylindrical confined combustor operating under MILD condition is investigated using LES. The combustion and its interaction with turbulence are modeled using two reactor based models, PaSR and EDC. Results show that the Partially Stirred Reactor (PaSR) model yields improved estimation for mean temperature and species mole fractions compared to Eddy Dissipation Concept (EDC). LES data are analysed using advanced post-processing methods such as the chemical Tangential Stretching Rate (TSR), balance analysis and local Principle Component (PCA) analysis. TSR can identify chemical explosive (ignition-like) and contractive (burnt) regions. With the balance analysis of the convective, diffusive and reactive terms in temperature equation, regions with substantial heat release coming from ignition or flame are identified. The local PCA analysis classifies the whole domain into clusters (regions with specific features) and provides the leading species in each cluster. The three analyses correlate well with one another and it is observed that the most chemically active region locates upstream (in the near-field). Also, both autoignition and flame-like structures play equally important roles in MILD combustion.EP/S025650/1 Norwegian Research council, Climit programme, project no. 268368, OxyFun Fundamentals of pressurized oxy/fuel combustion. AP acknowledges the European Research Council, Starting Grant no. 714605 UKCTRF (e649

Size-effects in the Density of States in NS and SNS junctions

The quasiparticle local density of states (LDOS) is studied in clean NS and SNS junctions with increasing transverse size, from quasi-one-dimensional to three-dimensional. It is shown that finite transverse dimensions are related to pronounced effects in the LDOS, such as fast oscillations superimposed on the quasiparticle interference oscillations (for NS) and additional peaks in the bound state spectrum in the subgap region (for SNS). Also, the validity of the Andreev approximation is discussed. It turns out to be an acceptable approximation in all situations tested.Comment: 9 pages, RevTex, 5 figures, accepted in Phys. Rev.

New Measurement of the Cosmic-Ray Positron Fraction from 5 to 15 GeV

We present a new measurement of the cosmic-ray positron fraction at energies between 5 and 15 GeV with the balloon-borne HEAT-pbar instrument in the spring of 2000. The data presented here are compatible with our previous measurements, obtained with a different instrument. The combined data from the three HEAT flights indicate a small positron flux of non-standard origin above 5 GeV. We compare the new measurement with earlier data obtained with the HEAT-e+- instrument, during the opposite epoch of the solar cycle, and conclude that our measurements do not support predictions of charge sign dependent solar modulation of the positron abundance at 5 GeV.Comment: accepted for publication in PR

The Effect of Surfaces on the Tunneling Density of States of an Anisotropically Paired Superconductor

We present calculations of the tunneling density of states in an anisotropically paired superconductor for two different sample geometries: a semi-infinite system with a single specular wall, and a slab of finite thickness and infinite lateral extent. In both cases we are interested in the effects of surface pair breaking on the tunneling spectrum. We take the stable bulk phase to be of $d_{x^2-y^2}$ symmetry. Our calculations are performed within two different band structure environments: an isotropic cylindrical Fermi surface with a bulk order parameter of the form $\Delta\sim k_x^2-k_y^2$, and a nontrivial tight-binding Fermi surface with the order parameter structure coming from an anti-ferromagnetic spin-fluctuation model. In each case we find additional structures in the energy spectrum coming from the surface layer. These structures are sensitive to the orientation of the surface with respect to the crystal lattice, and have their origins in the detailed form of the momentum and spatial dependence of the order parameter. By means of tunneling spectroscopy, one can obtain information on both the anisotropy of the energy gap, |\Delta(\p)|, as well as on the phase of the order parameter, \Delta(\p) = |\Delta(\p)|e^{i\varphi(\p)}.Comment: 14 pages of revtex text with 11 compressed and encoded figures. To appear in J. Low Temp. Phys., December, 199

Andreev Reflection In Ferromagnet-Superconductor Junctions

The transport properties of a ferromagnet-superconductor (FS) junction are studied in a scattering formulation. Andreev reflection at the FS interface is strongly affected by the exchange interaction in the ferromagnet. The conductance G_FS of a ballistic point contact between F and S can be both larger or smaller than the value G_FN with the superconductor in the normal state, depending on the ratio of the exchange and Fermi energies. If the ferromagnet contains a tunnel barrier (I), the conductance G_FIFS exhibits resonances which do not vanish in linear response -- in contrast to the Tomasch oscillations for non-ferromagnetic materials.Comment: 8 pages, RevTeX v3.0, including 3 encapsulated postscript figures; [2017: figures included in text

A Self-Consistent Microscopic Theory of Surface Superconductivity

The electronic structure of the superconducting surface sheath in a type-II superconductor in magnetic fields $H_{c2}<H<H_{c3}$ is calculated self-consistently using the Bogoliubov-de Gennes equations. We find that the pair potential $\Delta(x)$ exhibits pronounced Friedel oscillations near the surface, in marked contrast with the results of Ginzburg-Landau theory. The role of magnetic edge states is emphasized. The local density of states near the surface shows a significant depletion near the Fermi energy due to the development of local superconducting order. We suggest that this structure could be unveiled by scanning-tunneling microscopy studies performed near the edge of a superconducting sample.Comment: 12 pages, Revtex 3.0, 3 postscript figures appende

Inter-Edge interaction in the Quantum Hall Effect

We consider effects of the interaction between electrons drifting along the opposite sides of a narrow sample under the conditions of the quantum Hall effect. A spatial variation of this interaction leads to backward scattering of collective excitations propagating along the edges. Experiments on propagation of the edge modes in samples with constrictions may give information about the strength of the inter-edge electron interaction in the quantum Hall regime.Comment: 12 Pages, Latex, Accepted for publication in PRL

The Energy Spectra and Relative Abundances of Electrons and Positrons in the Galactic Cosmic Radiation

Observations of cosmic-ray electrons and positrons have been made with a new balloon-borne detector, HEAT (the "High-Energy Antimatter Telescope"), first flown in 1994 May from Fort Sumner, NM. We describe the instrumental approach and the data analysis procedures, and we present results from this flight. The measurement has provided a new determination of the individual energy spectra of electrons and positrons from 5 GeV to about 50 GeV, and of the combined "all-electron" intensity (e+ + e-) up to about 100 GeV. The single power-law spectral indices for electrons and positrons are alpha = 3.09 +/- 0.08 and 3.3 +/- 0.2, respectively. We find that a contribution from primary sources to the positron intensity in this energy region, if it exists, must be quite small.Comment: latex2e file, 30 pages, 15 figures, aas2pp4.sty and epsf.tex needed. To appear in May 10, 1998 issue of Ap.