Un indice biologique lacustre basé sur l'examen des oligochètes

L'utilisation des indices oligochètes relevés dans la littérature pose un certain nombre de problèmes conceptuels et pratiques lorsque l'on étudie des lacs de taille réduite, le rôle des sédiments dans la distribution des oligochètes étant la plupart du temps ignoré.A partir d'analyses en composantes principales normées (ACP) comprenant, comme variables actives, 12 variables physico-chimiques des sédiments profonds de 12 lacs situés dans le Jura et les Vosges, nous avons projeté, en données supplémentaires, la physico-chimie des eaux et des variables biologiques (nombre d'espèces et effectifs d'oligochètes).Les analyses mettent en évidence un premier facteur F1, commun aux sédiments de tous les lacs étudiés et caractérisé par un antagonisme entre la matière organique (C, N, P) et les carbonates. Ce facteur est considéré ici comme exprimant une capacité métabolique des plans d'eau à minéraliser la matière organique. Les variables physico-chimiques des eaux se projettent sur cette structure et ne contredisent pas la signification accordée au facteur F1. Les variables biologiques ne se révèlent fortement corrélées qu'avec F1, et s'opposent aux variables décrivant les teneurs en matières organiques.Par une régression multiple où la variable à expliquer est constituée par la première coordonnée factorielle des stations d'échantillonnage, on obtient l'indice EOLA = nombre d'espèces d'oligochètes + 3.log10 des effectifs d'oligochètes/0,1 m2, qui est corrélé avec la structure physico-chimique mise en évidence dans les ACP. Cet indice est considéré comme une potentialité biologique liée à la capacité des lacs à minéraliser la matière organique, capacité qui peut se révéler faible en raison de la présence d'apports d'origine autochtone ou allochtone (en particulier les rejets humains).Oligochaetes are often considered as good descriptors of the ecological situation in lakes. Unfortunately, the rote of sediments in the distribution of species is not well known, particularly in mail lakes. This problem needed re-examination, the importance of the sediments being emphasized. Twelve physico-chemical variables of the sediments (table 2) were taken into account and analysed by means of a standardized principal component analysis (PCA). The physico-chemical variables of the waters as well as the biological variables (species richness and abundance of oligochaetes, table 2) were projected as supplementary data in the PCA.The first principal component is characterized by an opposition between the organic matter (C, N, P) and the CaCO3 contents of the sediments (table 3). The second factor represents the total phosphorus. Lakes from cristalline area (Longemer and Gérardmer) are very contributive to the factor 2 as the total phosphorus contents of their sediments are very high (fig. 1 and table 6). When these lakes are removed from the data set, the second PCA indicates no changes in the signification of factor 1 (table 4). In both analyses, physicochemical variables of waters are correlated with the first factor, and do not contradict its signification. Biological variables are only correlated with factor 1 and show an opposite direction to organic matter (fig. 2).It is suggested that the first factor represents the capacities of the lakes to mineralize the organic matter. The first co-ordinates of sampling stations (COF1), the mean number of oligochaete species (NSPS) and the mean log10 of their abundance/0.1 m2 (EFFE) were compared by means of a multiple regression (table 5). The following biological index is obtained : EOLA = NSPS + 3EFFE. This oligochaete index is related to the factor 1 and it is suggested that if gives an assessment of the biological potentialities of lakes, these potentialities being related to the mineralizing capacities. Low values of the index EOLA are obtained both from human and natural organic enrichment

The OPERA experiment Target Tracker

The main task of the Target Tracker detector of the long baseline neutrino oscillation OPERA experiment is to locate in which of the target elementary constituents, the lead/emulsion bricks, the neutrino interactions have occurred and also to give calorimetric information about each event. The technology used consists in walls of two planes of plastic scintillator strips, one per transverse direction. Wavelength shifting fibres collect the light signal emitted by the scintillator strips and guide it to both ends where it is read by multi-anode photomultiplier tubes. All the elements used in the construction of this detector and its main characteristics are described.Comment: 25 pages, submitted to Nuclear Instrument and Method

A linear RFQ ion trap for the Enriched Xenon Observatory

The design, construction, and performance of a linear radio-frequency ion trap (RFQ) intended for use in the Enriched Xenon Observatory (EXO) are described. EXO aims to detect the neutrinoless double-beta decay of $^{136}$Xe to $^{136}$Ba. To suppress possible backgrounds EXO will complement the measurement of decay energy and, to some extent, topology of candidate events in a Xe filled detector with the identification of the daughter nucleus ($^{136}$Ba). The ion trap described here is capable of accepting, cooling, and confining individual Ba ions extracted from the site of the candidate double-beta decay event. A single trapped ion can then be identified, with a large signal-to-noise ratio, via laser spectroscopy.Comment: 18 pages, pdflatex, submitted to NIM

Low energy tracking and particles identification in the MUNU Time Projection Chamber at 1 bar. Possible application in low energy solar neutrino spectroscopy

In this paper we present the results from the measurements made with the MUNU TPC at 1bar pressure of CF4 in the energy region below 1 MeV. Electron events down to 80 keV are successfully measured. The electron energy and direction are reconstructed for every contained single electron above 200 keV. As test the 137Cs photopeak is reconstructed by measuring both the energy and direction of the Compton electrons in the TPC.Comment: 19 pages, 9 figures (6 figures in color); Figure 10 has been deleted from [v1]. Additional paragraph has been included; Manuscript is submitted to Nuclear Inst. and Methods in Physics Research,

A magnetically-driven piston pump for ultra-clean applications

A magnetically driven piston pump for xenon gas recirculation is presented. The pump is designed to satisfy extreme purity and containment requirements, as is appropriate for the recirculation of isotopically enriched xenon through the purification system and large liquid xenon TPC of EXO-200. The pump, using sprung polymer gaskets, is capable of pumping more than 16 standard liters per minute (SLPM) of xenon gas with 750 torr differential pressure.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure

The LAGUNA design study- towards giant liquid based underground detectors for neutrino physics and astrophysics and proton decay searches

The feasibility of a next generation neutrino observatory in Europe is being considered within the LAGUNA design study. To accommodate giant neutrino detectors and shield them from cosmic rays, a new very large underground infrastructure is required. Seven potential candidate sites in different parts of Europe and at several distances from CERN are being studied: Boulby (UK), Canfranc (Spain), Fr\'ejus (France/Italy), Pyh\"asalmi (Finland), Polkowice-Sieroszowice (Poland), Slanic (Romania) and Umbria (Italy). The design study aims at the comprehensive and coordinated technical assessment of each site, at a coherent cost estimation, and at a prioritization of the sites within the summer 2010.Comment: 5 pages, contribution to the Workshop "European Strategy for Future Neutrino Physics", CERN, Oct. 200

Electron/pion separation with an Emulsion Cloud Chamber by using a Neural Network

We have studied the performance of a new algorithm for electron/pion separation in an Emulsion Cloud Chamber (ECC) made of lead and nuclear emulsion films. The software for separation consists of two parts: a shower reconstruction algorithm and a Neural Network that assigns to each reconstructed shower the probability to be an electron or a pion. The performance has been studied for the ECC of the OPERA experiment [1]. The $e/\pi$ separation algorithm has been optimized by using a detailed Monte Carlo simulation of the ECC and tested on real data taken at CERN (pion beams) and at DESY (electron beams). The algorithm allows to achieve a 90% electron identification efficiency with a pion misidentification smaller than 1% for energies higher than 2 GeV

Production properties of K*(892) vector mesons and their spin alignment as measured in the NOMAD experiment

First measurements of K*(892) mesons production properties and their spin alignment in nu_mu charged current (CC) and neutral current (NC) interactions are presented. The analysis of the full data sample of the NOMAD experiment is performed in different kinematic regions. For K*+ and K*- mesons produced in nu_mu CC interactions and decaying into K0 pi+/- we have found the following yields per event: (2.6 +/- 0.2 (stat.) +/- 0.2 (syst.))% and (1.6 +/- 0.1 (stat.) +/- 0.1 (syst.))% respectively, while for the K*+ and K*- mesons produced in nu NC interactions the corresponding yields per event are: (2.5 +/- 0.3 (stat.) +/- 0.3 (syst.))% and (1.0 +/- 0.3 (stat.) +/- 0.2 (syst.))%. The results obtained for the rho00 parameter, 0.40 +/- 0.06 (stat) +/- 0.03 (syst) and 0.28 +/- 0.07 (stat) +/- 0.03 (syst) for K*+ and K*- produced in nu_mu CC interactions, are compared to theoretical predictions tuned on LEP measurements in e+e- annihilation at the Z0 pole. For K*+ mesons produced in nu NC interactions the measured rho00 parameter is 0.66 +/- 0.10 (stat) +/- 0.05 (syst).Comment: 20 p

Search for the exotic Θ+\Theta^+ resonance in the NOMAD experiment

A search for exotic Theta baryon via Theta -> proton +Ks decay mode in the NOMAD muon neutrino DIS data is reported. The special background generation procedure was developed. The proton identification criteria are tuned to maximize the sensitivity to the Theta signal as a function of xF which allows to study the Theta production mechanism. We do not observe any evidence for the Theta state in the NOMAD data. We provide an upper limit on Theta production rate at 90% CL as 2.13 per 1000 of neutrino interactions.Comment: Accepted to European Physics Journal