7,837 research outputs found
Measurement of the ^8B solar neutrino flux with the KamLAND liquid scintillator detector
We report a measurement of the neutrino-electron elastic scattering rate from ^8B solar neutrinos based on a 123 kton-day exposure of KamLAND. The background-subtracted electron recoil rate, above a 5.5-MeV analysis threshold is 1.49 ± 0.14(stat) ± 0.17(syst) events per kton-day. Interpreted as due to a pure electron flavor flux with a ^8B neutrino spectrum, this corresponds to a spectrum integrated flux of 2.77 ± 0.26(stat) ± 0.32(syst) Ă10^6 cm^(â2_s^(â1). The analysis threshold is driven by ^(208)Tl present in the liquid scintillator, and the main source of systematic uncertainty is due to background from cosmogenic ^(11)Be. The measured rate is consistent with existing measurements and with standard solar model predictions which include matter-enhanced neutrino oscillation
The phase shift of an ultrasonic pulse at an oil layer and determination of film thickness
An ultrasonic pulse incident on a lubricating oil film in a machine element will be partially reflected and partially transmitted. The proportion of the wave amplitude reflected, termed the reflection coefficient, depends on the film thickness and the acoustic properties of the oil. When the appropriate ultrasonic frequency is used, the magnitude of the reflection coefficient can be used to determine the oil film thickness. However, the reflected wave has both a real component and an imaginary component, and both the amplitude and the phase are functions of the film thickness. The phase of the reflected wave will be shifted from that of the incident wave when it is reflected. In the present study, this phase shift is explored as the film changes and is evaluated as an alternative means to measure oil film thickness. A quas i-static theoretical model of the reflection response from an oil film has been, developed. This model relates the phase shift to the wave frequency and the film properties. Measurements of reflection coefficient from a static model oil film and also from a rotating journal bearing have been recorded. These have been used to determine the oil film thickness using both amplitude and phase shift methods. In both cases, the results agree closely with independent assessments of the oil film thickness. The model of ultrasonic reflection is further extended to incorporate mass and damping terms. Experiments show that both the mass and the internal damping of the oil films tested in this work have a negligible effect on ultrasonic reflection. A potentially v ery useful application for the simultaneous measurement of reflection coefficient amplitude and phase is that the data can be used to negate the need for a reference. The theoretical relationship between phase and amplitude is fitted to the data. An extrapolation is performed to determine the values of amplitude and phase for an infinitely thick layer. This is equivalent to the reference signal determined by measuring the reflection coefficient directly, but importantly does not require the materials to be separated. This provides a simple and effective means of continuously calibrating the film measurement approach
Production of radioactive isotopes through cosmic muon spallation in KamLAND
Radioactive isotopes produced through cosmic muon spallation are a background for rare-event detection in Îœ detectors, double-ÎČ-decay experiments, and dark-matter searches. Understanding the nature of cosmogenic backgrounds is particularly important for future experiments aiming to determine the pep and CNO solar neutrino fluxes, for which the background is dominated by the spallation production of ^(11)C. Data from the Kamioka liquid-scintillator antineutrino detector (KamLAND) provides valuable information for better understanding these backgrounds, especially in liquid scintillators, and for checking estimates from current simulations based upon MUSIC, FLUKA, and GEANT4. Using the time correlation between detected muons and neutron captures, the neutron production yield in the KamLAND liquid scintillator is measured to be Y_n=(2.8±0.3)Ă10^(-4)âÎŒ^(-1)âg^(-1)âcm^2. For other isotopes, the production yield is determined from the observed time correlation related to known isotope lifetimes. We find some yields are inconsistent with extrapolations based on an accelerator muon beam experiment
Characterizing upward lightning with and without a terrestrial gamma-ray flash
We compare two observations of gamma-rays before, during, and after lightning
flashes initiated by upward leaders from a tower during low-altitude winter
thunderstorms on the western coast of Honshu, Japan. While the two leaders
appear similar, one produced a terrestrial gamma-ray flash (TGF) so bright that
it paralyzed the gamma-ray detectors while it was occurring, and could be
observed only via the weaker flux of neutrons created in its wake, while the
other produced no detectable TGF gamma-rays at all. The ratio between the
indirectly derived gamma-ray fluence for the TGF and the 95% confidence
gamma-ray upper limit for the gamma-ray quiet flash is a factor of
. With the only two observations of this type providing such
dramatically different results -- a TGF probably as bright as those seen from
space and a powerful upper limit -- we recognize that weak, sub-luminous TGFs
in this situation are probably not common, and we quantify this conclusion.
While the gamma-ray quiet flash appeared to have a faster leader and more
powerful initial continuous current pulse than the flash that produced a TGF,
the TGF-producing flash occurred during a weak gamma-ray "glow", while the
gamma-ray quiet flash did not, implying a higher electric field aloft when the
TGF was produced. We suggest that the field in the high-field region approached
by a leader may be more important for whether a TGF is produced than the
characteristics of the leader itself.Comment: 21 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication by the Journal of
Geophysical Research - Atmosphere
The mean and standard deviation of the distribution of group assembly sums
An interesting problem in linear programming is the group assembly problem which is mathematically equivalent to the general transportation problem of economics. Computer programs designed for the determination of exact and approximate optimal group assemblies have been available for some time. This paper presents formulas for the mean and squared standard deviation of the distribution of all possible group assembly sums. Computational techniques are presented and the results are related to those of the analysis of variance of a k -factor problem with n levels of each factor.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/45717/1/11336_2005_Article_BF02289606.pd
Contestable adulthood: variability and disparity in markers for negotiating the transition to adulthood
Recent research has identified a discreet set of subjective markers that are seen as characterizing the transition to adulthood. The current study challenges this coherence by examining the disparity and variability in young peopleâs selection of such criteria. Four sentence-completion cues corresponding to four differentcontexts in which adult status might be contested were given to 156 British 16- to 17-year-olds. Their qualitative responses were analyzed to
explore patterns whilst capturing some of their richness and diversity. An astonishing amount of variability emerged, both within and between cued contexts.The implications of this variability for how the transition to adulthood is experienced are explored. The argument is made that markers of the transition to adulthood are not merely reflective of the bioâpsychoâsocial development of
young people. Rather, adulthood here is seen as an essentially contested concept,located within the discursive interactional environment in which young people participate
New collections of p-subgroups and homology decompositions for classifying spaces of finite groups
Let G be a finite group and p a prime dividing its order. We define new
collections of p-subgroups of G. We study the homotopy relations among them and
with the standard collections of p-subgroups. We determine their ampleness and
sharpness properties.Comment: 14 pages, some revisions made, final version to appear in
Communications in Algebr
The measurement of lubricant-film thickness using ultrasound
Ultrasound is reflected from a liquid layer between two solid bodies. This reflection depends on the ultrasonic frequency, the acoustic properties of the liquid and solid, and the layer thickness. If the wavelength is much greater than the liquid-layer thickness, then the response is governed by the stiffness of the layer. If the wavelength and layer thickness are similar, then the interaction of ultrasound with the layer is controlled by its resonant behaviour. This stiffness governed response and resonant response can be used to determine the thickness of the liquid layer, if the other parameters are known.
In this paper, ultrasound has been developed as a method to determine the thickness of lubricating films in bearing systems. An ultrasonic transducer is positioned on the outside of a bearing shell such that the wave is focused on the lubricant-film layer. The transducer is used to both emit and receive wide-band ultrasonic pulses. For a particular lubricant film, the reflected pulse is processed to give a reflection-coefficient spectrum. The lubricant-film thickness is then obtained from either the layer stiffness or the resonant frequency.
The method has been validated using fluid wedges at ambient pressure between flat and curved surfaces. Experiments on the elastohydrodynamic film formed between a sliding ball and a flat surface were performed. Film-thickness values in the range 50-500 nm were recorded, which agreed well with theoretical film-formation predictions. Similar measurements have been made on the oil film between the balls and outer raceway of a deep-groove ball bearing
Neutron Calibration Sources in the Daya Bay Experiment
We describe the design and construction of the low rate neutron calibration
sources used in the Daya Bay Reactor Anti-neutrino Experiment. Such sources are
free of correlated gamma-neutron emission, which is essential in minimizing
induced background in the anti-neutrino detector. The design characteristics
have been validated in the Daya Bay anti-neutrino detector.Comment: 13 pages, 7 figure
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