206 research outputs found
Laboratory Tests of Low Density Astrophysical Equations of State
Clustering in low density nuclear matter has been investigated using the
NIMROD multi-detector at Texas A&M University. Thermal coalescence modes were
employed to extract densities, , and temperatures, , for evolving
systems formed in collisions of 47 MeV Ar + Sn,Sn
and Zn + Sn, Sn. The yields of , , He, and
He have been determined at = 0.002 to 0.032 nucleons/fm and
= 5 to 10 MeV. The experimentally derived equilibrium constants for
particle production are compared with those predicted by a number of
astrophysical equations of state. The data provide important new constraints on
the model calculations.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure
Evidence of Critical Behavior in the Disassembly of Nuclei with A ~ 36
A wide variety of observables indicate that maximal fluctuations in the
disassembly of hot nuclei with A ~ 36 occur at an excitation energy of 5.6 +-
0.5 MeV/u and temperature of 8.3 +- 0.5 MeV. Associated with this point of
maximal fluctuations are a number of quantitative indicators of apparent
critical behavior. The associated caloric curve does not appear to show a
flattening such as that seen for heavier systems. This suggests that, in
contrast to similar signals seen for liquid-gas transitions in heavier nuclei,
the observed behavior in these very light nuclei is associated with a
transition much closer to the critical point.Comment: v2: Major changes, new model calculations, new figure
Critical Behavior in Light Nuclear Systems: Experimental Aspects
An extensive experimental survey of the features of the disassembly of a
small quasi-projectile system with 36, produced in the reactions of 47
MeV/nucleon Ar + Al, Ti and Ni, has been carried
out. Nuclei in the excitation energy range of 1-9 MeV/u have been investigated
employing a new method to reconstruct the quasi-projectile source. At an
excitation energy 5.6 MeV/nucleon many observables indicate the presence
of maximal fluctuations in the de-excitation processes. The fragment
topological structure shows that the rank sorted fragments obey Zipf's law at
the point of largest fluctuations providing another indication of a liquid gas
phase transition. The caloric curve for this system shows a monotonic increase
of temperature with excitation energy and no apparent plateau. The temperature
at the point of maximal fluctuations is MeV. Taking this
temperature as the critical temperature and employing the caloric curve
information we have extracted the critical exponents , and
from the data. Their values are also consistent with the values of the
universality class of the liquid gas phase transition. Taken together, this
body of evidence strongly suggests a phase change in an equilibrated mesoscopic
system at, or extremely close to, the critical point.Comment: Physical Review C, in press; some discussions about the validity of
excitation energy in peripheral collisions have been added; 24 pages and 32
figures; longer abstract in the preprin
Experimental Determination of In-Medium Cluster Binding Energies and Mott Points in Nuclear Matter
In medium binding energies and Mott points for , , He and
clusters in low density nuclear matter have been determined at specific
combinations of temperature and density in low density nuclear matter produced
in collisions of 47 MeV Ar and Zn projectiles with Sn
and Sn target nuclei. The experimentally derived values of the in
medium modified binding energies are in good agreement with recent theoretical
predictions based upon the implementation of Pauli blocking effects in a
quantum statistical approach.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure
Tracing the Evolution of Temperature in Near Fermi Energy Heavy Ion Collisions
The kinetic energy variation of emitted light clusters has been employed as a
clock to explore the time evolution of the temperature for thermalizing
composite systems produced in the reactions of 26A, 35A and 47A MeV Zn
with Ni, Mo and Au. For each system investigated, the
double isotope ratio temperature curve exhibits a high maximum apparent
temperature, in the range of 10-25 MeV, at high ejectile velocity. These
maximum values increase with increasing projectile energy and decrease with
increasing target mass. The time at which the maximum in the temperature curve
is reached ranges from 80 to 130 fm/c after contact. For each different target,
the subsequent cooling curves for all three projectile energies are quite
similar. Temperatures comparable to those of limiting temperature systematics
are reached 30 to 40 fm/c after the times corresponding to the maxima, at a
time when AMD-V transport model calculations predict entry into the final
evaporative or fragmentation stage of de-excitation of the hot composite
systems. Evidence for the establishment of thermal and chemical equilibrium is
discussed.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figure
A Ghoshal-like Test of Equilibration in Near-Fermi-Energy Heavy Ion Collisions
Calorimetric and coalescence techniques have been employed to probe
equilibration for hot nuclei produced in heavy ion collisions of 35 to 55 MeV/u
projectiles with medium mass targets. Entrance channel mass asymmetries and
energies were selected in order that very hot composite nuclei of similar mass
and excitation would remain after early stage pre-equilibrium particle
emission. Inter-comparison of the properties and de-excitation patterns for
these different systems provides evidence for the production of hot nuclei with
decay patterns relatively independent of the specific entrance channel.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figure
Properties of the Initial Participant Matter Interaction Zone in Near Fermi-Energy Heavy Ion Collisions
The sizes, temperatures and free neutron to proton ratios of the initial
interaction zones produced in the collisions of 40 MeV/nucleon Ar +
Sn and 55 MeV/nucleonAl + Sn are derived using total
detected neutron plus charged particle multiplicity as a measure of the impact
parameter range and number of participant nucleons. The size of the initial
interaction zone, determined from a coalescence model analysis, increases
significantly with decreasing impact parameter. The temperatures and free
neutron to proton ratios in the interaction zones are relatively similar for
different impact parameter ranges and evolve in a similar fashion.Comment: 7 pages, 8 figure
Towards the critical behavior for the light nuclei by NIMROD detector
The critical behavior for the light nuclei with A has been
investigated experimentally by the NIMROD multi-detectors. The wide variety of
observables indicate the critical point has been reached in the disassembly of
hot nuclei at an excitation energy of 5.60.5 MeV/u.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures; Proceeding of 18th Nuclear Physics Division
Conference of the Euro. Phys. Society (NPDC18) "Phase transitions in strongly
interacting matter", Prague, 23.8.-29.8. 2004. To be published in Nuclear
Physics
The Physics of the Colloidal Glass Transition
As one increases the concentration of a colloidal suspension, the system
exhibits a dramatic increase in viscosity. Structurally, the system resembles a
liquid, yet motions within the suspension are slow enough that it can be
considered essentially frozen. This kinetic arrest is the colloidal glass
transition. For several decades, colloids have served as a valuable model
system for understanding the glass transition in molecular systems. The spatial
and temporal scales involved allow these systems to be studied by a wide
variety of experimental techniques. The focus of this review is the current
state of understanding of the colloidal glass transition. A brief introduction
is given to important experimental techniques used to study the glass
transition in colloids. We describe features of colloidal systems near and in
glassy states, including tremendous increases in viscosity and relaxation
times, dynamical heterogeneity, and ageing, among others. We also compare and
contrast the glass transition in colloids to that in molecular liquids. Other
glassy systems are briefly discussed, as well as recently developed synthesis
techniques that will keep these systems rich with interesting physics for years
to come.Comment: 56 pages, 18 figures, Revie
Simulation Study of Photon-to-Digital Converter (PDC) Timing Specifications for LoLX Experiment
The Light only Liquid Xenon (LoLX) experiment is a prototype detector aimed
to study liquid xenon (LXe) light properties and various photodetection
technologies. LoLX is also aimed to quantify LXe's time resolution as a
potential scintillator for 10~ps time-of-flight (TOF) PET. Another key goal of
LoLX is to perform a time-based separation of Cerenkov and scintillation
photons for new background rejection methods in LXe experiments. To achieve
this separation, LoLX is set to be equipped with photon-to-digital converters
(PDCs), a photosensor type that provides a timestamp for each observed photon.
To guide the PDC design, we explore requirements for time-based Cerenkov
separation. We use a PDC simulator, whose input is the light information from
the Geant4-based LoLX simulation model, and evaluate the separation quality
against time-to-digital converter (TDC) parameters. Simulation results with TDC
parameters offer possible configurations supporting a good separation. Compared
with the current filter-based approach, simulations show Cerenkov separation
level increases from 54% to 71% when using PDC and time-based separation. With
the current photon time profile of LoLX simulation, the results also show 71%
separation is achievable with just 4 TDCs per PDC. These simulation results
will lead to a specification guide for the PDC as well as expected results to
compare against future PDC-based experimental measurements. In the longer term,
the overall LoLX results will assist large LXe-based experiments and motivate
the assembly of a LXe-based TOF-PET demonstrator system.Comment: 5 pages, 7 figure
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