383 research outputs found
Characterization of a CCD array for Bragg spectroscopy
The average pixel distance as well as the relative orientation of an array of
6 CCD detectors have been measured with accuracies of about 0.5 nm and 50
rad, respectively. Such a precision satisfies the needs of modern crystal
spectroscopy experiments in the field of exotic atoms and highly charged ions.
Two different measurements have been performed by illuminating masks in front
of the detector array by remote sources of radiation. In one case, an aluminum
mask was irradiated with X-rays and in a second attempt, a nanometric quartz
wafer was illuminated by a light bulb. Both methods gave consistent results
with a smaller error for the optical method. In addition, the thermal expansion
of the CCD detectors was characterized between -105 C and -40 C.Comment: Submitted to Review of Scientific Instrument
Measurement of the charged pion mass using X-ray spectroscopy of exotic atoms
The transitions in pionic nitrogen and muonic oxygen were measured
simultaneously by using a gaseous nitrogen-oxygen mixture at 1.4\,bar. Due to
the precise knowledge of the muon mass the muonic line provides the energy
calibration for the pionic transition. A value of
(139.57077\,\,0.00018)\,MeV/c (\,1.3ppm) is derived for the
mass of the negatively charged pion, which is 4.2ppm larger than the present
world average
Unification of the physics of nucleons and nuclei
I outline an ambitious program which aims to achieve a unified description of
nucleon and nuclear properties based on one chiral effective field theory.Comment: 9 pp, 6 figs, plenary talk at 17th International IUPAP Conference on
Few-body Problems in Physics, June 5-10, 2003, Durham, North Carolina, US
Isospin-breaking corrections in the pion-deuteron scattering length
It is shown that isospin-breaking corrections to the pion-deuteron scattering
length can be very large, because of the vanishing of the isospin-symmetric
contribution to this scattering length at leading order in chiral perturbation
theory. We further demonstrate that these corrections can explain the bulk of
the discrepancy between the recent experimental data on pionic hydrogen and
pionic deuterium. We also give the first determination of the electromagnetic
low-energy constant f1.Comment: 4 pages, 1 postscript figure, uses REVTEX styl
Guidelines for the study of subsidence triggered by hydrocarbon production
This study was carried out by the SEADOG Research Center at Politecnico di Torino (Italy). The purpose of this work was to evaluate which complexity degree would be required to reliably approach a subsidence study for different scenarios. The study was based on sensitivity analyses which were performed using a series of 3D synthetic numerical models of which the structural characteristics and geological and mechanical properties were based on available public data of onshore and offshore hydrocarbon fields in Italy. An array of simulations, both one-way and two-way coupled, were carried out to assess the magnitude and extension of subsidence potentially induced by hydrocarbon production. The results allowed the calculation of subsidence indices defined as the rate of compaction propagation (i.e., the ratio between the maximum surface displacement and the maximum reservoir compaction) and as the rate of volume loss (i.e. the ratio between the volume of the subsidence bowl or cone and the volume variation of the reservoir). These indices together with the degree of the underground systems’ heterogeneity led to the definition of the Intact Rock Qualitative Subsidence Index (IRQSI), upon which the needed complexity degree of a subsidence study can be discerned
Angular distributions of scattered excited muonic hydrogen atoms
Differential cross sections of the Coulomb deexcitation in the collisions of
excited muonic hydrogen with the hydrogen atom have been studied for the first
time. In the framework of the fully quantum-mechanical close-coupling approach
both the differential cross sections for the transitions and
-averaged differential cross sections have been calculated for exotic atom
in the initial states with the principle quantum number at relative
motion energies eV and at scattering angles
. The vacuum polarization shifts of the
-states are taken into account. The calculated in the same approach
differential cross sections of the elastic and Stark scattering are also
presented. The main features of the calculated differential cross sections are
discussed and a strong anisotropy of cross sections for the Coulomb
deexcitation is predicted.Comment: 5 pages, 9 figure
On radiative np -> 1s + gamma transitions, induced by strong low-energy interactions,in kaonic atoms
We calculate the rates of the radiative transitions np -> 1s + gamma in
kaonic hydrogen and kaonic deuterium, induced by strong low-energy interactions
and enhanced by Coulomb interactions. The obtained results should be taken into
account for the theoretical analysis of the experimental data on the X-ray
spectra and yields in kaonic atoms.Comment: 10 pages, 1 figur
Popillia japonica – Italian outbreak management
Popillia japonica, a priority pest for the EU, was first detected in Northern Italy in 2014. Since its discovery, the outbreak extended over an area of more than 16,000 square kilometers in Northern Italy and Southern Switzerland. In this review, we summarize the state-of-the-art of research conducted in Italy on both the spreading capacity and control measures of P. japonica. Chemical, physical, and biological control measures deployed since its detection are presented, by highlighting their strengths and weaknesses. An in-depth study of the ecosystems invaded by P. japonica disclosed the presence and pathogenicity of natural strains of entomopathogenic fungi and nematodes, some of which have shown to be particularly aggressive towards the larvae of this pest under laboratory conditions. The Plant Health authorities of the Lombardy and Piedmont regions, with the support of several research institutions, played a crucial role in the initial eradication attempt and subsequently in containing the spread of P. japonica. Control measures were performed in the infested area to suppress adult populations of P. japonica by installing several traps (e.g., for mass trapping, for auto-dissemination of the fungus Metarhizium anisopliae, and “attract & kill”). For larval control, the infested fields were treated with commercial strains of the entomopathogenic fungus M. anisopliae and nematode Heterorhabditis bacteriophora. Future studies will aim at integrating phenological and spread models developed with the most effective control measures, within an ecologically sustainable approach
Remarks on the pion-nucleon sigma-term
The pion-nucleon -term can be stringently constrained by the
combination of analyticity, unitarity, and crossing symmetry with
phenomenological information on the pion-nucleon scattering lengths. Recently,
lattice calculations at the physical point have been reported that find lower
values by about with respect to the phenomenological determination.
We point out that a lattice measurement of the pion-nucleon scattering lengths
could help resolve the situation by testing the values extracted from
spectroscopy measurements in pionic atoms.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures; version published in PL
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