10,298 research outputs found
Plasma optical shutter in ultraintense laser-foil interaction
We report on a plasma optical shutter to reduce the intensity level of a nanosecond-duration pedestal of amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) using an ultrathin foil. The foil is ionized by the ASE prepulse and forms an expanding underdense preplasma, which enables the main laser pulse transmission, leading to an enhancement in temporal contrast. When such a plasma shutter is placed in front of a main target of interest, the preplasma profiles observed are similar to that produced from a single-layer reference target irradiated by a high-contrast laser, and can be finely tuned by varying the shutter thickness. Proton beams with significantly reduced divergence and higher flux density were measured experimentally using the double-foil design. The reduction in beam divergence is a characteristic signature of higher contrast laser production as a combined consequence of less target deformation and flatter sheath-acceleration field, as supported by the two-dimensional (2D) hydrodynamic and particle-in-cell simulations. The plasma shutter holds the promise to enhance the laser contrast and manipulate the preplasma conditions for application in high-field-physics experiments
The DArk Matter Particle Explorer mission
The DArk Matter Particle Explorer (DAMPE), one of the four scientific space
science missions within the framework of the Strategic Pioneer Program on Space
Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, is a general purpose high energy
cosmic-ray and gamma-ray observatory, which was successfully launched on
December 17th, 2015 from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. The DAMPE
scientific objectives include the study of galactic cosmic rays up to
TeV and hundreds of TeV for electrons/gammas and nuclei respectively, and the
search for dark matter signatures in their spectra. In this paper we illustrate
the layout of the DAMPE instrument, and discuss the results of beam tests and
calibrations performed on ground. Finally we present the expected performance
in space and give an overview of the mission key scientific goals.Comment: 45 pages, including 29 figures and 6 tables. Published in Astropart.
Phy
A Unified Approach to the Classical Statistical Analysis of Small Signals
We give a classical confidence belt construction which unifies the treatment
of upper confidence limits for null results and two-sided confidence intervals
for non-null results. The unified treatment solves a problem (apparently not
previously recognized) that the choice of upper limit or two-sided intervals
leads to intervals which are not confidence intervals if the choice is based on
the data. We apply the construction to two related problems which have recently
been a battle-ground between classical and Bayesian statistics: Poisson
processes with background, and Gaussian errors with a bounded physical region.
In contrast with the usual classical construction for upper limits, our
construction avoids unphysical confidence intervals. In contrast with some
popular Bayesian intervals, our intervals eliminate conservatism (frequentist
coverage greater than the stated confidence) in the Gaussian case and reduce it
to a level dictated by discreteness in the Poisson case. We generalize the
method in order to apply it to analysis of experiments searching for neutrino
oscillations. We show that this technique both gives correct coverage and is
powerful, while other classical techniques that have been used by neutrino
oscillation search experiments fail one or both of these criteria.Comment: 40 pages, 15 figures. Changes 15-Dec-99 to agree more closely with
published version. A few small changes, plus the two substantive changes we
made in proof back in 1998: 1) The definition of "sensitivity" in Sec. V(C).
It was inconsistent with our actual definition in Sec. VI. 2) "Note added in
proof" at end of the Conclusio
Measurement of the branching fractions of psi(2S) -> 3(pi+pi-) and J/psi -> 2(pi+pi-)
Using data samples collected at sqrt(s) = 3.686GeV and 3.650GeV by the BESII
detector at the BEPC, the branching fraction of psi(2S) -> 3(pi+pi-) is
measured to be [4.83 +- 0.38(stat) +- 0.69(syst)] x 10^-4, and the relative
branching fraction of J/psi -> 2(pi+pi-) to that of J/psi -> mu+mu- is measured
to be [5.86 +- 0.19(stat) +- 0.39(syst)]% via psi(2S) -> (pi+pi-)J/psi, J/psi
-> 2(pi+pi-). The electromagnetic form factor of 3(pi+pi-) is determined to be
0.21 +- 0.02 and 0.20 +- 0.01 at sqrt(s) = 3.686GeV and 3.650GeV, respectively.Comment: 17pages, 7 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Search for psi(3770)\ra\rho\pi at the BESII detector at the Beijing Electron-Positron Collider
Non- decay \psppto \rhopi is searched for using a data sample of
taken at the center-of-mass energy of 3.773 GeV by the
BESII detector at the BEPC. No \rhopi signal is observed, and the upper limit
of the cross section is measured to be \sigma(\EETO \rhopi)<6.0 pb at 90% C.
L. Considering the interference between the continuum amplitude and the \pspp
resonance amplitude, the branching fraction of \pspp decays to is
determined to be \BR(\pspp\ra\rho\pi)\in(6.0\times10^{-6}, 2.4\times10^{-3})
at 90% C. L. This is in agreement with the prediction of the - and -wave
mixing scheme of the charmonium states for solving the ``\rhopi puzzle''
between \jpsi and \psp decays.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figure
Experimental study of decays to \K^+ K^- \pi^+ \pi^- \pi^0 final states
final states are studied using a sample of
decays collected with the Beijing Spectrometer
(BESII) at the Beijing Electron-Position Collider. The branching fractions of
decays to , , , , , and are determined. The first two agree with previous
measurements, and the last five are first measurements.Comment: 19 pages, 9 figure
Partial Wave Analysis of
A partial wave analysis of in
decay is presented using a sample of 14 million
events accumulated by the BES II detector. The data are fitted to
the sum of relativistic covariant tensor amplitudes for intermediate resonant
decay modes. From the fit, significant contributions to decays from
the channels , , ,
, , , and are found. Flavor-SU(3)-violating
asymmetry is observed. Values obtained for the masses and
widths of the resonances , , , and
are presented.Comment: 16 pages, 9 figures, and 4 table
Measurement of \psip Radiative Decays
Using 14 million psi(2S) events accumulated at the BESII detector, we report
first measurements of branching fractions or upper limits for psi(2S) decays
into gamma ppbar, gamma 2(pi^+pi^-), gamma K_s K^-pi^++c.c., gamma K^+ K^-
pi^+pi^-, gamma K^{*0} K^- pi^+ +c.c., gamma K^{*0}\bar K^{*0}, gamma pi^+pi^-
p pbar, gamma 2(K^+K^-), gamma 3(pi^+pi^-), and gamma 2(pi^+pi^-)K^+K^- with
the invariant mass of hadrons below 2.9GeV/c^2. We also report branching
fractions of psi(2S) decays into 2(pi^+pi^-) pi^0, omega pi^+pi^-, omega
f_2(1270), b_1^\pm pi^\mp, and pi^0 2(pi^+pi^-) K^+K^-.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
- …