Preliminary testing of a prototype portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometer

A portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometer for use as an analyzer in mineral resource investigative work was built and tested. The prototype battery powered spectrometer, measuring 11 by 12 by 5 inches and weighing only about 15 pounds, was designed specifically for field use. The spectrometer has two gas proportional counters and two radioactive sources, Cd (10a) and Fe (55). Preliminary field and laboratory tests on rock specimens and rock pulps have demonstrated the capability of the spectrometer to detect 33 elements to date. Characteristics of the system present some limitations, however, and further improvements are recommended

Mobile radio alternative systems study, executive summary

Present day mobile communication technologies, systems and equipment are described from background in evaluating the concepts generated in the study. Average propagation ranges are calculated for terrestrial installations in each of seven physiographic areas of the contiguous states to determine the number of installations that would be required for nationwide coverage. Four system concepts are defined and analyzed to determine how well terrestrial systems can fulfill the requirements at acceptable costs

Coarse-graining a restricted solid-on-solid model

A procedure suggested by Vvedensky for obtaining continuum equations as the coarse-grained limit of discrete models is applied to the restricted solid-on-solid model with both adsorption and desorption. Using an expansion of the master equation, discrete Langevin equations are derived; these agree quantitatively with direct simulation of the model. From these, a continuum differential equation is derived, and the model is found to exhibit either Edwards-Wilkinson or Kardar-Parisi-Zhang exponents, as expected from symmetry arguments. The coefficients of the resulting continuum equation remain well-defined in the coarse-grained limit.Comment: Accepted for pubication in PR

Supercurrent induced by tunneling Bogoliubov excitations in a Bose-Einstein condensate

We study the tunneling of Bogoliubov excitations through a barrier in a Bose-Einstein condensate. We extend our previous work [Phys. Rev. A \textbf{78}, 013628 (2008)] to the case when condensate densities are different between the left and right of the barrier potential. In the framework of the Bogoliubov mean-field theory, we calculate the transmission probability and phase shift, as well as the energy flux and quasiparticle current carried by Bogoliubov excitations. We find that Bogoliubov phonons twist the condensate phase due to a back-reaction effect, which induces the Josephson supercurrent. While the total current given by the sum of quasiparticle current and induced supercurrent is conserved, the quasiparticle current flowing through the barrier potential is shown to be remarkably enhanced in the low energy region. When the condensate densities are different between the left and right of the barrier, the excess quasiparticle current, as well as the induced supercurrent, remains finite far away from the barrier. We also consider the tunneling of excitations and atoms through the boundary between the normal and superfluid regions. We show that supercurrent can be generated inside the condensate by injecting free atoms from outside. On the other hand, atoms are emitted when the Bogoliubov phonons propagate toward the phase boundary from the superfluid region.Comment: 36 pages, 12 figures, revised version as accepted by Phys. Rev.

Lorentz-covariant reduced spin density matrix and EPR-Bohm correlations

We show that it is possible to define a Lorentz-covariant reduced spin density matrix for massive particles. Such a matrix allows one to calculate the mean values of observables connected with spin measurements (average polarizations). Moreover, it contains not only information about polarization of the particle but also information about its average kinematical state. We also use our formalism to calculate the correlation function in the Einstein--Podolsky--Rosen--Bohm type experiment with massive relativistic particles.Comment: 7 pages, 1 figur

Fractionalization and confinement in the U(1) and Z2Z_2 gauge theories of strongly correlated systems

Recently, we have elucidated the physics of electron fractionalization in strongly interacting electron systems using a $Z_2$ gauge theory formulation. Here we discuss the connection with the earlier U(1) gauge theory approaches based on the slave boson mean field theory. In particular, we identify the relationship between the holons and Spinons of the slave-boson theory and the true physical excitations of the fractionalized phases that are readily described in the $Z_2$ approach.Comment: 4 page

The Link between General Relativity and Shape Dynamics

We show that one can construct two equivalent gauge theories from a linking theory and give a general construction principle for linking theories which we use to construct a linking theory that proves the equivalence of General Relativity and Shape Dynamics, a theory with fixed foliation but spatial conformal invariance. This streamlines the rather complicated construction of this equivalence performed previously. We use this streamlined argument to extend the result to General Relativity with asymptotically flat boundary conditions. The improved understanding of linking theories naturally leads to the Lagrangian formulation of Shape Dynamics, which allows us to partially relate the degrees of freedom.Comment: 19 pages, LaTeX, no figure

New interpretation of variational principles for gauge theories. I. Cyclic coordinate alternative to ADM split

I show how there is an ambiguity in how one treats auxiliary variables in gauge theories including general relativity cast as 3 + 1 geometrodynamics. Auxiliary variables may be treated pre-variationally as multiplier coordinates or as the velocities corresponding to cyclic coordinates. The latter treatment works through the physical meaninglessness of auxiliary variables' values applying also to the end points (or end spatial hypersurfaces) of the variation, so that these are free rather than fixed. [This is also known as variation with natural boundary conditions.] Further principles of dynamics workings such as Routhian reduction and the Dirac procedure are shown to have parallel counterparts for this new formalism. One advantage of the new scheme is that the corresponding actions are more manifestly relational. While the electric potential is usually regarded as a multiplier coordinate and Arnowitt, Deser and Misner have regarded the lapse and shift likewise, this paper's scheme considers new {\it flux}, {\it instant} and {\it grid} variables whose corresponding velocities are, respectively, the abovementioned previously used variables. This paper's way of thinking about gauge theory furthermore admits interesting generalizations, which shall be provided in a second paper.Comment: 11 page

Coking-Resistant Sub-Nano Dehydrogenation Catalysts: PtnSnx/SiO2 (n=4, 7)

We present a combined experimental/theoretical study of Pt$_n$/SiO$_2$ and Pt$_n$Sn$_x$/SiO$_2$ (n = 4, 7) model catalysts for the endothermic dehydrogenation of hydrocarbons, using the ethylene intermediate as a model reactant. Supported pure Ptn clusters are found to be highly active toward dehydrogenation of C2D4, quickly deactivating due to a combination of carbon deposition and sintering, resulting in loss of accessible Pt sites. Addition of Sn to Ptn clusters results in the complete suppression of C2D4 dehydrogenation and carbon deposition, and also stabilizes the clusters against thermal sintering. Theory shows that both systems have thermal access to a multitude of cluster structures and adsorbate configurations that form a statistical ensemble. While Pt4/SiO2 clusters bind ethylene in both di-sigma and pi-bonded configurations, Pt$_4$Sn$_3$/SiO$_2$ binds C2H4 only in the pi-mode, with di-sigma bonding suppressed by a combination of electronic and geometric features of the PtSn clusters. Dehydrogenation reaction profiles on the accessible cluster isomers were calculated using the climbing image nudged elastic band (CI-NEB) method