Energy losses of fast heavy-ion projectiles in dense hydrogen plasmas

It has been recently shown that the Bethe-Larkin formula for the energy losses of fast heavy-ion projectiles in dense hydrogen plasmas is corrected by the electron-ion correlations [Phys. Rev. Lett. \textbf{101}, 075002 (2008)]. We report numerical estimates of this correction based on the values of $g_{ei}(0)$ obtained by numerical simulations in [Phys. Rev. E \textbf{61}, 3470 (2000)]. We also extend this result to the case of projectiles with dicluster charge distribution. We show that the experimental visibility of the electron-ion correlation correction is enhanced in the case of dicluster projectiles with randomly orientated charge centers. Although we consider here the hydrogen plasmas to make the effect physically more clear, the generalization to multispecies plasmas is straightforward.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure. International Conference on Strongly Coupled Coulomb Systems 2008, Camerino (Italy). To appear in J. Phys.

Automated data reduction workflows for astronomy

Data from complex modern astronomical instruments often consist of a large number of different science and calibration files, and their reduction requires a variety of software tools. The execution chain of the tools represents a complex workflow that needs to be tuned and supervised, often by individual researchers that are not necessarily experts for any specific instrument. The efficiency of data reduction can be improved by using automatic workflows to organise data and execute the sequence of data reduction steps. To realize such efficiency gains, we designed a system that allows intuitive representation, execution and modification of the data reduction workflow, and has facilities for inspection and interaction with the data. The European Southern Observatory (ESO) has developed Reflex, an environment to automate data reduction workflows. Reflex is implemented as a package of customized components for the Kepler workflow engine. Kepler provides the graphical user interface to create an executable flowchart-like representation of the data reduction process. Key features of Reflex are a rule-based data organiser, infrastructure to re-use results, thorough book-keeping, data progeny tracking, interactive user interfaces, and a novel concept to exploit information created during data organisation for the workflow execution. Reflex includes novel concepts to increase the efficiency of astronomical data processing. While Reflex is a specific implementation of astronomical scientific workflows within the Kepler workflow engine, the overall design choices and methods can also be applied to other environments for running automated science workflows.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figure

Long-term variation in the Sun's activity caused by magnetic Rossby waves in the tachocline

Long-term records of sunspot number and concentrations of cosmogenic radionuclides (10Be and 14C) on the Earth reveal the variation of the Sun's magnetic activity over hundreds and thousands of years. We identify several clear periods in sunspot, 10Be, and 14C data as 1000, 500, 350, 200 and 100 years. We found that the periods of the first five spherical harmonics of the slow magnetic Rossby mode in the presence of a steady toroidal magnetic field of 1200-1300 G in the lower tachocline are in perfect agreement with the time scales of observed variations. The steady toroidal magnetic field can be generated in the lower tachocline either due to the steady dynamo magnetic field for low magnetic diffusivity or due to the action of the latitudinal differential rotation on the weak poloidal primordial magnetic field, which penetrates from the radiative interior. The slow magnetic Rossby waves lead to variations of the steady toroidal magnetic field in the lower tachocline, which modulate the dynamo magnetic field and consequently the solar cycle strength. This result constitutes a key point for long-term prediction of the cycle strength. According to our model, the next deep minimum in solar activity is expected during the first half of this century.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, accepted in ApJ

Estimativa dos valores de saldo de radiação e fluxo de calor no solo em diferentes condições antrópicas na bacia do rio Ji-Paraná, Rondônia.

Use change and land cover has significant influence on energy flows. Thus, this study aimed to compare the net radiation and soil heat flux on two dates, 19/07/1984 and 25/06/2010 from a locality of river basin Ji-Paraná, Rondônia. To develop the study, an algorithm Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL) allowing the estimation of energy flows according to the cover. The model was applied in the study area in a sequence of steps, where the outcome of interest was the net radiation at the surface and the flow of heat in the soil. The results show that on average the net radiation was greater in the scene where the predominant areas of forest, 19/07/1984, since the albedo of the vegetation is lower than in surface of bare ground or with less dense vegetation as observed in the scene 25/06/2010. The values of soil heat flux are larger at the scene of 25/06/2010 and occupy a larger surface due to human action. This shows that the replacement of forest for agriculture, grazing and urbanization are causing decrease the net radiation and increase the flow of heat in the soil, thereby increasing the emission of long wave radiation that affect the surface temperature, air temperature and the hydrological cycle

Collective and static properties of model two-component plasmas

Classical MD data on the charge-charge dynamic structure factor of two-component plasmas (TCP) modeled in Phys. Rev. A 23, 2041 (1981) are analyzed using the sum rules and other exact relations. The convergent power moments of the imaginary part of the model system dielectric function are expressed in terms of its partial static structure factors, which are computed by the method of hypernetted chains using the Deutsch effective potential. High-frequency asymptotic behavior of the dielectric function is specified to include the effects of inverse bremsstrahlung. The agreement with the MD data is improved, and important statistical characteristics of the model TCP, such as the probability to find both electron and ion at one point, are determined.Comment: 25 pages, 6 figures, 5 tables. Published in Physical Review E http://link.aps.org/abstract/PRE/v76/e02640

Ultrafast Quantum Gates in Circuit QED

We present a method of implementing ultrafast two-qubit gates valid for the ultrastrong coupling (USC) and deep strong coupling (DSC) regimes of light-matter interaction, considering state-of-the-art circuit quantum electrodynamics (QED) technology. Our proposal includes a suitable qubit architecture and is based on a four-step sequential displacement of an intracavity mode, operating at a time proportional to the inverse of the resonator frequency. Through ab initio calculations, we show that these quantum gates can be performed at subnanosecond time scales, while keeping the fidelity above 99%.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures. Updated version to be published in Physical Review Letter

Variação espacial e temporal da evapotranspiração diária nas bacias dos rios JI-Paraná e Urupá em Rondônia.

Com a finalidade de avaliar o impacto do desmatamento na evapotranspiração diária nas bacias dos rios Ji-Paraná e Urupá em Rondônia, foi utilizado o algoritmo Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (Sebal). Tal algoritmo foi sensível às mudanças ocorridas no uso do solo nos últimos 25 anos na área de estudo e mostrou que as áreas onde a floresta foi substituída por agricultura e pastagens apresentaram redução de 33 % na evapotranspiração diária

Social inequalities in heat-attributable mortality in the city of Turin, northwest of Italy: a time series analysis from 1982 to 2018

Background: Understanding context specific heat-health risks in urban areas is important, especially given anticipated severe increases in summer temperatures due to climate change effects. We investigate social inequalities in the association between daily temperatures and mortality in summer in the city of Turin for the period 1982–2018 among different social and demographic groups such as sex, age, educational level, marital status and household occupants. Methods: Mortality data are represented by individual all-cause mortality counts for the summer months between 1982 and 2018. Socioeconomic level and daily mean temperature were assigned to each deceased. A time series Poisson regression with distributed lag non-linear models was fitted to capture the complex nonlinear dependency between daily mortality and temperature in summer. The mortality risk due to heat is represented by the Relative Risk (RR) at the 99th percentile of daily summer temperatures for each population subgroup. Results: All-cause mortality risk is higher among women (1.88; 95% CI = 1.77, 2.00) and the elderly (2.13; 95% CI = 1.94, 2.33). With regard to education, the highest significant effects for men is observed among higher education levels (1.66; 95% CI = 1.38, 1.99), while risks for women is higher for the lower educational level (1.93; 95% CI = 1.79, 2.08). Results on marital status highlighted a stronger association for widower in men (1.66; 95% CI = 1.38, 2.00) and for separated and divorced in women (2.11; 95% CI = 1.51, 2.94). The risk ratio of household occupants reveals a stronger association for men who lived alone (1.61; 95% CI = 1.39, 1.86), while for women results are almost equivalent between alone and not alone groups. Conclusions: The associations between heat and mortality is unequal across different aspects of social vulnerability, and, inter alia, factors influencing the population vulnerability to temperatures can be related to demographic, social, and economic aspects. A number of issues are identified and recommendations for the prioritisation of further research are provided. A better knowledge of these effect modifiers is needed to identify the axes of social inequality across the most vulnerable population sub-groups

The effect of the presence of silicone films on the corrosion resistance of Zn and ZnFe coated steel

Chromatation pre-treatments have been widely used to improve galvanized steel corrosion resistance. However, due to the high toxicity of chromate ions, chromatation pre-treatments tend to be banned and, in last years, alternative coating systems are under investigation. Recently, polysiloxanes have been developed for application as coatings. Among them, and due to their specific properties, such as hardness, chemical resistance and hydrophobicity, silicone resins may be considered as promising substitutes for chromatation pre-treatments. In this work silicone films, obtained from the hydrolysis of a methoxy functional silicone reactive intermediate, were applied on galvanized steel and on steel electroplated with a ZnFe alloy. Electrochemical techniques were used to characterise the degradation behaviour of the samples. These consisted on the monitoring of the open circuit potential (OCP), and on the potentiodynamic polarization of the samples, which was performed in a 3% NaCl aqueous solution. Additionally, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was used as a complementary technique for the evaluation of the corrosion mechanisms of the coating system. SEM and EDS were employed to inspect the surface of the samples before and after the electrochemical tests. EIS data was fitted to an equivalent circuit from which the electrochemical parameters were obtained. Results show the protective character of the resin films, when compared with uncovered specimens. The capacitance of the films increased with the immersion time, in accordance to the behaviour expected for an organic film. The overall performance of the coating systems appears to be highly dependent on the type of metallic coating applied to the steel. During the first three days of immersion the coatings applied upon galvanized steel showed larger |Z| values when compared with those applied to the electroplated steel, indicating a superior corrosion resistance of the former. However, after that time, an abrupt drop of |Z| is observed in the film applied on galvanized steel. In comparison, the coating system involving ZnFe alloy evidences a better stability throughout the immersion time.CAPES - Brasil CNPq - Brasi