Charting the TeV Milky Way: H.E.S.S. Galactic plane survey maps, catalog and source populations

Very-high-energy (VHE, E>100 GeV) gamma-rays provide a unique view of the non-thermal universe, tracing the most violent and energetic phenomena at work inside our Galaxy and beyond. The latest results of the H.E.S.S. Galactic Plane Survey (HGPS) undertaken by the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.), an array of four imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes located in Namibia, are described here. The HGPS aims at the detection of cosmic accelerators with environments suitable for the production of photons at the highest energies and has led to the discovery of an unexpectedly large and diverse population of over 60 sources of TeV gamma rays within its current range of l = 250 to 65 degrees in longitude and |b|<3.5 degrees in latitude. The data set of the HGPS comprises 2800 hours of high-quality data, taken in the years 2004 to 2013. The sensitivity for the detection of point-like sources, assuming a power-law spectrum with a spectral index of 2.3 at a statistical significance of 5 sigma, is now at the level of 2% Crab or better in the core HGPS region. The latest maps of the inner Galaxy at TeV energies are shown alongside an introduction to the first H.E.S.S. Galactic Plane Survey catalog. Finally, in addition to an overview of the H.E.S.S. Galactic source population a few remarkable, recently discovered sources will be highlighted.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, in Proceedings of the 48th Rencontres de Moriond (2013), La Thuile (Italy

"Wet-to-Dry" Conformational Transition of Polymer Layers Grafted to Nanoparticles in Nanocomposite

The present communication reports the first direct measurement of the conformation of a polymer corona grafted around silica nano-particles dispersed inside a nanocomposite, a matrix of the same polymer. This measurement constitutes an experimental breakthrough based on a refined combination of chemical synthesis, which permits to match the contribution of the neutron silica signal inside the composite, and the use of complementary scattering methods SANS and SAXS to extract the grafted polymer layer form factor from the inter-particles silica structure factor. The modelization of the signal of the grafted polymer on nanoparticles inside the matrix and the direct comparison with the form factor of the same particles in solution show a clear-cut change of the polymer conformation from bulk to the nanocomposite: a transition from a stretched and swollen form in solution to a Gaussian conformation in the matrix followed with a compression of a factor two of the grafted corona. In the probed range, increasing the interactions between the grafted particles (by increasing the particle volume fraction) or between the grafted and the free matrix chains (decreasing the grafted-free chain length ratio) does not influence the amplitude of the grafted brush compression. This is the first direct observation of the wet-to-dry conformational transition theoretically expected to minimize the free energy of swelling of grafted chains in interaction with free matrix chains, illustrating the competition between the mixing entropy of grafted and free chains, and the elastic deformation of the grafted chains. In addition to the experimental validation of the theoretical prediction, this result constitutes a new insight for the nderstanding of the general problem of dispersion of nanoparticles inside a polymer matrix for the design of new nanocomposites materials

A Scintillating Fiber Tracker With SiPM Readout

We present a prototype for the first tracking detector consisting of 250 micron thin scintillating fibers and silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) arrays. The detector has a modular design, each module consists of a mechanical support structure of 10mm Rohacell foam between two 100 micron thin carbon fiber skins. Five layers of scintillating fibers are glued to both top and bottom of the support structure. SiPM arrays with a channel pitch of 250 micron are placed in front of the fibers. We show the results of the first module prototype using multiclad fibers of types Bicron BCF-20 and Kuraray SCSF-81M that were read out by novel 32-channel SiPM arrays from FBK-irst/INFN Perugia as well as 32-channel SiPM arrays produced by Hamamatsu. A spatial resolution of 88 micron +/- 6 micron at an average yield of 10 detected photons per minimal ionizig particle has been achieved.Comment: 5 pages, 7 figures, submitted as proceedings to the 11th Topical Seminar on Innovative Particle and Radiation Detectors (IPRD08

Critical phenomena in colloid-polymer mixtures: interfacial tension, order parameter, susceptibility and coexistence diameter

The critical behavior of a model colloid-polymer mixture, the so-called AO model, is studied using computer simulations and finite size scaling techniques. Investigated are the interfacial tension, the order parameter, the susceptibility and the coexistence diameter. Our results clearly show that the interfacial tension vanishes at the critical point with exponent 2\nu ~ 1.26. This is in good agreement with the 3D Ising exponent. Also calculated are critical amplitude ratios, which are shown to be compatible with the corresponding 3D Ising values. We additionally identify a number of subtleties that are encountered when finite size scaling is applied to the AO model. In particular, we find that the finite size extrapolation of the interfacial tension is most consistent when logarithmic size dependences are ignored. This finding is in agreement with the work of Berg et al.[Phys. Rev. B, V47 P497 (1993)]Comment: 13 pages, 16 figure

The role of the elementary school counselor in dealing with latchkey children

Children\u27s care of themselves in the absence of adult supervision has existed since the industrial revolution and is an important part of current reality. To ensure that 1 keys to houses are not lost, many children, responsible for letting themselves into their homes after school, are required by their parents to wear keys on a chain around their necks. This explains where the term latchkey originated and why these kids are called this today. The latchkey problem is not new; it was a concern more than 80 years ago. Stroman and Duff (1982) reported that the theme of the 1943 American Association of School Administrators annual meeting expressed concern for the doorkey child. This problem resulted during the wartime years when many mothers worked in defense plants and fathers were absent in military service. As early as 1894, charities and day nurseries provided care for school-aged children (Seligson, Genser, Gannell, & Gray, 1983)

Gel transitions in colloidal suspensions

The idealized mode coupling theory (MCT) is applied to colloidal systems interacting via short-range attractive interactions of Yukawa form. At low temperatures MCT predicts a slowing down of the local dynamics and ergodicity breaking transitions. The nonergodicity transitions share many features with the colloidal gel transition, and are proposed to be the source of gelation in colloidal systems. Previous calculations of the phase diagram are complemented with additional data for shorter ranges of the attractive interaction, showing that the path of the nonergodicity transition line is then unimpeded by the gas-liquid critical curve at low temperatures. Particular attention is given to the critical nonergodicity parameters, motivated by recent experimental measurements. An asymptotic model is developed, valid for dilute systems of spheres interacting via strong short-range attractions, and is shown to capture all aspects of the low temperature MCT nonergodicity transitions.Comment: 12 pages, LaTeX, 5 eps figures, uses ioplppt.sty, to appear in J. Phys.: Condens. Matte