Coherence measurements on Rydberg wave packets kicked by a half-cycle pulse

A kick from a unipolar half-cycle pulse (HCP) can redistribute population and shift the relative phase between states in a radial Rydberg wave packet. We have measured the quantum coherence properties following the kick, and show that selected coherences can be destroyed by applying an HCP at specific times. Quantum mechanical simulations show that this is due to redistribution of the angular momentum in the presence of noise. These results have implications for the storage and retrieval of quantum information in the wave packet.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures (5 figure files

Probing the evolution of Stark wave packets by a weak half cycle pulse

We probe the dynamic evolution of a Stark wave packet in cesium using weak half-cycle pulses (HCP's). The state-selective field ionization(SSFI) spectra taken as a function of HCP delay reveal wave packet dynamics such as Kepler beats, Stark revivals and fractional revivals. A quantum-mechanical simulation explains the results as multi-mode interference induced by the HCP.Comment: 4 pages, incl. 3 figures, submitted to PR

Information hiding and retrieval in Rydberg wave packets using half-cycle pulses

We demonstrate an information hiding and retrieval scheme with the relative phases between states in a Rydberg wave packet acting as the bits of a data register. We use a terahertz half-cycle pulse (HCP) to transfer phase-encoded information from an optically accessible angular momentum manifold to another manifold which is not directly accessed by our laser pulses, effectively hiding the information from our optical interferometric measurement techniques. A subsequent HCP acting on these wave packets reintroduces the information back into the optically accessible data register manifold which can then be `read' out.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Measurement of gas bremsstrahlung from the insertion device beamlines of the advanced photon source

High energy electron storage rings generate energetic bremsstrahlung photons through radiative interaction of the electrons (or positrons) with the residual gas molecules inside the storage ring. The resulting radiation exits at an average emittance angle of (m{sub 0}c{sub 2}/E) radian with respect to the electron beam path, where m{sub 0}c{sup 2} is the rest mass of E the electron and E its kinetic energy. Thus, at straight sections of the storage rings, moving electrons will produce a narrow and intense monodirectional photon beam. At synchrotron radiation facilities, where beamlines are channeled out of the storage ring, a continuous gas bremsstrahlung spectrum, with a maximum energy of the electron beam, will be present. There are a number of compelling reasons that a measurement of the bremsstrahlung characteristics be conducted at the Advanced Photon Source (APS) storage ring. Although the number of residual gas molecules present in the storage ring at typical nTorr vacuum is low, because of the long straight paths of the electrons in the storage ring at APS, significant production of bremsstrahlung will be produced. This may pose a radiation hazard. It is then imperative that personnel be shielded from dose rates due to this radiation. There are not many measurements available for gas bremsstrahlung, especially for higher electron beam energies. The quantitative estimates of gas bremsstrahlung from storage rings as evaluated by Monte Carlo codes also have several uncertainties. They are in general calculated for air at atmospheric pressure, the results of which are then extrapolated to typical storage ring vacuum values (of the order of 10{sup -9} Torr). Realistically, the actual pressure profile can vary inside the narrow vacuum chamber. Also, the actual chemical composition of the residual gas inside the storage ring is generally different from that of air

Ozone mitigation tests at the APS

Ozone is generated in the APS experimental stations whenever the x-ray beam has a chance to interact with air. Ozone concentrations in an experimental station have to be below a certain defined limit (current OSHA regulations specify 0.08 ppm as the maximum limit) before an experimenter can reenter the hutch. This limit is said to be currently under study for a downward adjustment. One method of depleting the ozone generated in an experimental station is mitigation through either adsorption or direct destruction. In recent tests, both methods were tried using commercially available units. Test results and some analytical predictions are presented

Radiation damage effects in channeling applications

Use of a bent single crystal to split off a small fraction of an incident high energy (400 to 800 GeV) particle beam has been demonstrated. The question which remains to be answered is: Will radiation damage effects deteriorate crystal performance in too short a time for practical application. Single Si crystals exposed to 10/sup 17/ high energy protons per cm/sup 2/ have been examined previously using low energy (1.5 to 3.0 MeV) helium ion backscattering. The amount of radiation damage indicated by this low penetration technique was very small. This paper reports verification that such an exposed crystal still channels high energy particles. Furthermore, results using helium ion backscattering following an irradiation to 10/sup 18//cm/sup 2/ predict no deterioration in channeling performance

Reconstruction and control of a time-dependent two-electron wave packet

The concerted motion of two or more bound electrons governs atomic1 and molecular2,3 non-equilibrium processes including chemical reactions, and hence there is much interest in developing a detailed understanding of such electron dynamics in the quantum regime. However, there is no exact solution for the quantumthree-body problem, and as a result even the minimal system of two active electrons and a nucleus is analytically intractable4. This makes experimental measurements of the dynamics of two bound and correlated electrons, as found in the helium atom, an attractive prospect.However, although the motion of single active electrons and holes has been observed with attosecond time resolution5-7, comparable experiments on two-electron motion have so far remained out of reach. Here we showthat a correlated two-electron wave packet can be reconstructed froma 1.2-femtosecondquantumbeatamong low-lying doubly excited states in helium.The beat appears in attosecond transient-absorption spectra5,7-9 measured with unprecedentedly high spectral resolution and in the presence of an intensity-tunable visible laser field.Wetune the coupling10-12 between the two low-lying quantum states by adjusting the visible laser intensity, and use the Fano resonance as a phase-sensitive quantum interferometer13 to achieve coherent control of the two correlated electrons. Given the excellent agreement with large-scalequantum-mechanical calculations for thehelium atom, we anticipate thatmultidimensional spectroscopy experiments of the type we report here will provide benchmark data for testing fundamental few-body quantumdynamics theory in more complex systems. Theymight also provide a route to the site-specificmeasurement and control of metastable electronic transition states that are at the heart of fundamental chemical reactionsWe thank E. Lindroth for calculating the dipole moment (2p2|r|sp2,3+), and also A. Voitkiv, Z.-H. Loh, and R. Moshammer for helpful discussions. We acknowledge financial support by the Max-Planck Research Group Program of the Max-Planck Gesellschaft (MPG) and the European COST Action CM1204 XLIC. L. A. and F. M. acknowledge computer time from the CCC-UAM and Mare Nostrum supercomputer centers and financial support by the European Research Council under the ERC Advanced Grant no. 290853 XCHEM, the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad projects FIS2010-15127, FIS2013-42002-R and ERA-Chemistry PIM2010EEC-00751, and the European grant MC-ITN CORIN

What do we know about chronic kidney disease in India: first report of the Indian CKD registry

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There are no national data on the magnitude and pattern of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in India. The Indian CKD Registry documents the demographics, etiological spectrum, practice patterns, variations and special characteristics.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Data was collected for this cross-sectional study in a standardized format according to predetermined criteria. Of the 52,273 adult patients, 35.5%, 27.9%, 25.6% and 11% patients came from South, North, West and East zones respectively.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The mean age was 50.1 ± 14.6 years, with M:F ratio of 70:30. Patients from North Zone were younger and those from the East Zone older. Diabetic nephropathy was the commonest cause (31%), followed by CKD of undetermined etiology (16%), chronic glomerulonephritis (14%) and hypertensive nephrosclerosis (13%). About 48% cases presented in Stage V; they were younger than those in Stages III-IV. Diabetic nephropathy patients were older, more likely to present in earlier stages of CKD and had a higher frequency of males; whereas those with CKD of unexplained etiology were younger, had more females and more frequently presented in Stage V. Patients in lower income groups had more advanced CKD at presentation. Patients presenting to public sector hospitals were poorer, younger, and more frequently had CKD of unknown etiology.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This report confirms the emergence of diabetic nephropathy as the pre-eminent cause in India. Patients with CKD of unknown etiology are younger, poorer and more likely to present with advanced CKD. There were some geographic variations.</p

Wastewater-based surveillance identifies start to the pediatric respiratory syncytial virus season in two cities in Ontario, Canada

IntroductionDetection of community respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections informs the timing of immunoprophylaxis programs and hospital preparedness for surging pediatric volumes. In many jurisdictions, this relies upon RSV clinical test positivity and hospitalization (RSVH) trends, which are lagging indicators. Wastewater-based surveillance (WBS) may be a novel strategy to accurately identify the start of the RSV season and guide immunoprophylaxis administration and hospital preparedness.MethodsWe compared citywide wastewater samples and pediatric RSVH in Ottawa and Hamilton between August 1, 2022, and March 5, 2023. 24-h composite wastewater samples were collected daily and 5 days a week at the wastewater treatment facilities in Ottawa and Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, respectively. RSV WBS samples were analyzed in real-time for RSV by RT-qPCR.ResultsRSV WBS measurements in both Ottawa and Hamilton showed a lead time of 12 days when comparing the WBS data set to pediatric RSVH data set (Spearman’s ρ = 0.90). WBS identify early RSV community transmission and declared the start of the RSV season 36 and 12 days in advance of the provincial RSV season start (October 31) for the city of Ottawa and Hamilton, respectively. The differing RSV start dates in the two cities is likely associated with geographical and regional variation in the incidence of RSV between the cities.DiscussionQuantifying RSV in municipal wastewater forecasted a 12-day lead time of the pediatric RSVH surge and an earlier season start date compared to the provincial start date. These findings suggest an important role for RSV WBS to inform regional health system preparedness, reduce RSV burden, and understand variations in community-related illness as novel RSV vaccines and monoclonal antibodies become available