Physics Potential of the ICAL detector at the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO)

The upcoming 50 kt magnetized iron calorimeter (ICAL) detector at the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO) is designed to study the atmospheric neutrinos and antineutrinos separately over a wide range of energies and path lengths. The primary focus of this experiment is to explore the Earth matter effects by observing the energy and zenith angle dependence of the atmospheric neutrinos in the multi-GeV range. This study will be crucial to address some of the outstanding issues in neutrino oscillation physics, including the fundamental issue of neutrino mass hierarchy. In this document, we present the physics potential of the detector as obtained from realistic detector simulations. We describe the simulation framework, the neutrino interactions in the detector, and the expected response of the detector to particles traversing it. The ICAL detector can determine the energy and direction of the muons to a high precision, and in addition, its sensitivity to multi-GeV hadrons increases its physics reach substantially. Its charge identification capability, and hence its ability to distinguish neutrinos from antineutrinos, makes it an efficient detector for determining the neutrino mass hierarchy. In this report, we outline the analyses carried out for the determination of neutrino mass hierarchy and precision measurements of atmospheric neutrino mixing parameters at ICAL, and give the expected physics reach of the detector with 10 years of runtime. We also explore the potential of ICAL for probing new physics scenarios like CPT violation and the presence of magnetic monopoles.Comment: 139 pages, Physics White Paper of the ICAL (INO) Collaboration, Contents identical with the version published in Pramana - J. Physic

Effects of magnetic field on resistive switching in multiferroic based Ag / BiFeO 3 / FTO RRAM device

We report the effects of the magnetic field on resistive switching behavior in the Ag / BiFeO 3 / FTO RRAM device through conventional I-V characteristics. The switching of the device from a high resistance state (HRS) to a low resistance state (LRS) at a certain threshold voltage (Vt) evidences a shift under the magnetic influence. The shifting of Vt toward higher voltage is due to the appearance of the Lorentz force and magnetoelectric effect when the magnetic field is applied perpendicular to the flow of current. The resistance of the HRS and LRS increases simultaneously under the application of the magnetic field due to the induced Hall resistance effect. The OFF / O N ratio ∼ 12, which is repeatable for 100 multiple cycles. The discrete RESET state of the device is achieved by pulse-width and pulse-height modulation. Substantially, the resistance of these states increases systematically under the action of the magnetic field. The control of resistance states with the pulse-height and magnetic field in Ag / BiFeO 3 / FTO shows promise for future multilevel non-volatile memory technology. © 2020 Author(s)

First record of a burrowing mole crab <em>Emerita emeritus</em> (Decapoda: Anomura: Hippidae) from Chilika Lake, East coast of India

109-113This paper provides the first information regarding the first record of a burrowing crab Emerita emeritus Linnaeus, 1767 (Family Hippidae) from the Chilika lake. It is first ever to record mole crab from a brackish water coastal ecosystem. The extensive sandy intertidal region of outer channel area becomes the suitable habitat for the preponderance of this crab species

Classification of cyclone hazard prone districts of India

Hazards associated with tropical cyclones are long-duration rotatory high-velocity winds, very heavy rain and storm tide. India has a coastline of about 7,516 km of which 5,400 km is along the mainland. The entire coast is affected by cyclones with varying frequency and intensity. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) is the nodal government agency that provides weather services related to cyclones in India. However, IMD has not identified cyclone-prone districts following any specific definition though the districts for which cyclone warnings are issued have been identified. On the other hand, for the purpose of better cyclone disaster management in the country, it is necessary to define cyclone proneness and identify cyclone-prone coastal districts. It is also necessary to decide degree of hazard proneness of a district by considering cyclone parameters so that mitigation measures are prioritised. In this context, an attempt has been made to prepare a list of cyclone hazard prone districts by adopting hazard criteria. Out of 96 districts under consideration, 12, 45, 31 and 08 districts are in very high, high, moderate and low categories of proneness, respectively. In general, the coastal districts of West Bengal, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu are more prone and are in the high to very high category. The cyclone hazard proneness factor is very high for the districts of Nellore, East Godawari, and Krishna in Andhra Pradesh; Yanam in Puducherry; Balasore, Bhadrak, Kendrapara and Jagatsinghpur in Orissa; and South and North 24 Parganas, Medinipur and Kolkata in West Bengal. The results give a realistic picture of degree of cyclone hazard proneness of districts, as they represent the frequency and intensity of land falling cyclones along with all other hazards like rainfall, wind and storm surge. The categorisation of districts with degree of proneness also tallies with observed pictures. Therefore, this classification of coastal districts based on hazard may be considered for all the required purposes including coastal zone management and planning. However, the vulnerability of the place has not been taken into consideration. Therefore, composite cyclone risk of a district, which is the product of hazard and vulnerability, needs to be assessed separately through detailed study

Gendered pattern and predictors of tobacco use in India: Evidence from the second round of global adult tobacco survey

Background: India has completed the second round of the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) to monitor adult tobacco use and progress in tobacco control efforts. This study assesses the gendered pattern of tobacco use and its predictors in the second rounds of GATS. Material and Methods: Publicly available GATS-2 (2016–2017) data was analyzed which contains self-reported tobacco use information of ≥15 years Indians (n = 74,037). The independent predictors of “smoking only,” “smokeless only,” and “dual use” among current male and female tobacco users were assessed using the multinomial regression model. Results: The burden of “smoking only,” “smokeless only,” and “dual-use” of tobacco were 8.9% (8.74–9.15), 16.69% (16.42–16.96), and 3.89% (3.75–4.03), respectively, in the second round with wide regional variation as well as male dominance in use. Region, age, education, caste, and religion were significantly and consistently associated with different types of tobacco use in both genders. Other contextual predictors of tobacco use were residence, marital status, occupation, awareness, and wealth index (WI). Conclusions: Tobacco use predictors and their gendered patterns are contextual. Monitoring the predictors for tobacco use, which may change over time, should be given priority in the national tobacco control program