33,116 research outputs found
Exchange-correlation functionals from the strongly-interacting limit of DFT: Applications to model chemical systems
We study model one-dimensional chemical systems (representative of their
three-dimensional counterparts) using the strictly-correlated electrons (SCE)
functional, which, by construction, becomes asymptotically exact in the limit
of infinite coupling strength. The SCE functional has a highly non-local
dependence on the density and is able to capture strong correlation within
Kohn- Sham theory without introducing any symmetry breaking. Chemical systems,
however, are not close enough to the strong-interaction limit so that, while
ionization energies and the stretched H2 molecule are accurately described,
total energies are in general way too low. A correction based on the exact next
leading order in the expansion at infinite coupling strength of the
Hohenberg-Kohn functional largely improves the results.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures. Submitted to PCCP's Themed Collection on Density
Functional Theory and its Application
The three-flavor chiral phase structure in hot and dense QCD matter
Chiral symmetry restoration at nonzero temperature and quark densities are
investigated in the framework of a linear sigma model with N_f=3 light quark
flavors. After the derivation of the grand potential in mean-field
approximation, the nonstrange and strange condensates, the in-medium masses of
the scalar and pseudoscalar nonets are analyzed in hot and dense medium. The
influence of the axial anomaly on the nonet masses and the isoscalar mixings on
the pseudoscalar \eta-\eta' and scalar \sigma(600)-f_0(1370) complex are
examined. The sensitivity of the chiral phase transition as well as the
existence and location of a critical end point in the phase diagram on the
value of the sigma mass is explored. The chiral critical surface with and
without the influence of the axial U(1)_A anomaly is elaborated as a function
of the pion and kaon masses for several values of the sigma mass.Comment: 19 pages, 12 figures, 2 tables, RevTex4; revised version, accepted
for publication in PR
COMPTEL Observations of the Gamma-Ray Blazar PKS 1622-297
We report results of observations and analyses on the gamma-ray blazar PKS
1622-297, with emphasis on the COMPTEL data (0.75 - 30 MeV) collected between
April 1991 and November 1997. PKS 1622-297 was detected as a source of
gamma-rays by the EGRET experiment aboard CGRO in 1995 during a gamma-ray
outburst at energies above 100 MeV lasting for five weeks.
In this time period the blazar was significantly (~ 5.9 sigma) detected by
COMPTEL at 10-30 MeV. At lower COMPTEL energies the detection is marginal,
resulting in a hard MeV spectrum.
The combined COMPTEL/EGRET energy spectrum shows a break at MeV energies. The
broad-band spectrum (radio - gamma-rays) shows that the gamma-ray emission
dominates the overall power output. On top of the 5-week gamma-ray outburst,
EGRET detected a huge flare lasting for > 1 day. Enhanced MeV emission (10 - 30
MeV) is found near the time of this flare, suggesting a possible time delay
with respect to the emission above 100 MeV. Outside the 5-week flaring period
in 1995, we do not detect MeV emission from PKS 1622-297.Comment: 10 pages including 9 figures, accepted for publication in A&
Time transfer between the Goddard Optical Research Facility and the U.S. Naval Observatory using 100 picosecond laser pulses
A horizontal two-way time comparison link in air between the University of Maryland laser ranging and time transfer equipment at the Goddard Optical Research Facility (GORF) 1.2 m telescope and the Time Services Division of the U.S. Naval Observatory (USNO) was established. Flat mirrors of 25 cm and 30 cm diameter respectively were placed on top of the Washington Cathedral and on a water tower at the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center. Two optical corner reflectors at the USNO reflect the laser pulses back to the GORF. Light pulses of 100 ps duration and an energy of several hundred microjoules are sent at the rate of 10 pulses per second. The detection at the USNO is by means of an RCA C30902E avalanche photodiode and the timing is accomplished by an HP 5370A computing counter and an HP 1000 computer with respect to a 10 pps pulse train from the Master Clock
Evaluation of the Lidar/Radiometer Inversion Code (LIRIC) to determine microphysical properties of volcanic and desert dust
© Author(s) 2013. This work is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 LicenseThe Lidar/Radiometer Inversion Code (LIRIC) combines the multiwavelength lidar technique with sun/sky photometry and allows us to retrieve vertical profiles of particle optical and microphysical properties separately for fine-mode and coarse-mode particles. After a brief presentation of the theoretical background, we evaluate the potential of LIRIC to retrieve the optical and microphysical properties of irregularly shaped dust particles. The method is applied to two very different aerosol scenarios: a strong Saharan dust outbreak towards central Europe and an Eyjafjallajökull volcanic dust event. LIRIC profiles of particle mass concentrations for the coarse-mode as well as for the non-spherical particle fraction are compared with results for the non-spherical particle fraction as obtained with the polarization-lidar- based POLIPHON method. Similar comparisons for fine-mode and spherical particle fractions are presented also. Acceptable agreement between the different dust mass concentration profiles is obtained. LIRIC profiles of optical properties such as particle backscatter coefficient, lidar ratio, Ångström exponent, and particle depolarization ratio are compared with direct Raman lidar observations. Systematic deviations between the LIRIC retrieval products and the Raman lidar measurements of the desert dust lidar ratio, depolarization ratio, and spectral dependencies of particle backscatter and lidar ratio point to the applied spheroidal-particle model as main source for these uncertainties in the LIRIC results.Peer reviewe
Incommensurate magnetic ordering in Cu2Te2O5X2 (X=Cl, Br) studied by single crystal neutron diffraction
Polarized and unpolarized neutron diffraction studies have been carried out
on single crystals of the coupled spin tetrahedra systems Cu2Te2O5X2 (X=Cl,
Br). A model of the magnetic structure associated with the propagation vectors
k'Cl ~ -0.150,0.422,1/2 and k'Br ~ -0.172,0.356,1/2 and stable below TN=18 K
for X=Cl and TN=11 K for X=Br is proposed. A feature of the model, common to
both the bromide and chloride, is a canted coplanar motif for the 4 Cu2+ spins
on each tetrahedron which rotates on a helix from cell to cell following the
propagation vector. The Cu2+magnetic moment determined for X=Br, 0.395(5)muB,
is significantly less than for X=Cl, 0.88(1)muB at 2K. The magnetic structure
of the chloride associated with the wave-vector k' differs from that determined
previously for the wave vector k~0.150,0.422,1/2 [O. Zaharko et.al. Phys. Rev.
Lett. 93, 217206 (2004)]
Vacancy complexes in nonequilibrium germanium-tin semiconductors
Understanding the nature and behavior of vacancy-like defects in epitaxial
GeSn metastable alloys is crucial to elucidate the structural and
optoelectronic properties of these emerging semiconductors. The formation of
vacancies and their complexes is expected to be promoted by the relatively low
substrate temperature required for the epitaxial growth of GeSn layers with Sn
contents significantly above the equilibrium solubility of 1 at.%. These
defects can impact both the microstructure and charge carrier lifetime. Herein,
to identify the vacancy-related complexes and probe their evolution as a
function of Sn content, depth-profiled pulsed low-energy positron annihilation
lifetime spectroscopy and Doppler broadening spectroscopy were combined to
investigate GeSn epitaxial layers with Sn content in the 6.5-13.0 at.% range.
The samples were grown by chemical vapor deposition method at temperatures
between 300 and 330 {\deg}C. Regardless of the Sn content, all GeSn samples
showed the same depth-dependent increase in the positron annihilation line
broadening parameters, which confirmed the presence of open volume defects. The
measured average positron lifetimes were the highest (380-395 ps) in the region
near the surface and monotonically decrease across the analyzed thickness, but
remain above 350 ps. All GeSn layers exhibit lifetimes that are 85 to 110 ps
higher than the Ge reference layers. Surprisingly, these lifetimes were found
to decrease as Sn content increases in GeSn layers. These measurements indicate
that divacancies are the dominant defect in the as-grown GeSn layers. However,
their corresponding lifetime was found to be shorter than in epitaxial Ge thus
suggesting that the presence of Sn may alter the structure of divacancies.
Additionally, GeSn layers were found to also contain a small fraction of
vacancy clusters, which become less important as Sn content increases
Ion-Size Effect at the Surface of a Silica Hydrosol
The author used synchrotron x-ray reflectivity to study the ion-size effect
for alkali ions (Na, K, Rb, and Cs), with densities as high as
m, suspended above the surface of a
colloidal solution of silica nanoparticles in the field generated by the
surface electric-double layer. According to the data, large alkali ions
preferentially accumulate at the sol's surface replacing smaller ions, a
finding that qualitatively agrees with the dependence of the Kharkats-Ulstrup
single-ion electrostatic free energy on the ion's radius.Comment: 17 pages, 4 figure
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