Derivation of phenomenological expressions for transition matrix elements for electron-phonon scattering

In the literature on electron-phonon scatterings very often a phenomenological expression for the transition matrix element is used which was derived in the textbooks of Ashcroft/Mermin and of Czycholl. There are various steps in the derivation of this expression. In the textbooks in part different arguments have been used in these steps, but the final result is the same. In the present paper again slightly different arguments are used which motivate the procedure in a more intuitive way. Furthermore, we generalize the phenomenological expression to describe the dependence of the matrix elements on the spin state of the initial and final electron state

Evolution and Modern Approaches for Thermal Analysis of Electrical Machines

In this paper, the authors present an extended survey on the evolution and the modern approaches in the thermal analysis of electrical machines. The improvements and the new techniques proposed in the last decade are analyzed in depth and compared in order to highlight the qualities and defects of each. In particular, thermal analysis based on lumped-parameter thermal network, finite-element analysis, and computational fluid dynamics are considered in this paper. In addition, an overview of the problems linked to the thermal parameter determination and computation is proposed and discussed. Taking into account the aims of this paper, a detailed list of books and papers is reported in the references to help researchers interested in these topics

Conductivity of disordered quantum lattice models at infinite temperature: Many-body localization

We reinvestigate the behavior of the conductivity of several disordered quantum lattice models at infinite temperature using exact diagonalization. Contrary to the conclusion drawn in a recent investigation of similar quantities in identical systems, we find evidence of a localized regime for strong random fields. We estimate the location of the critical field for the many-body localization transition for the random-field XXZ spin chain, and compare our findings with recent investigations in related systems.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

N/P GaAs concentrator solar cells with an improved grid and bushbar contact design

The major requirements for a solar cell used in space applications are high efficiency at AMO irradiance and resistance to high energy radiation. Gallium arsenide, with a band gap of 1.43 eV, is one of the most efficient sunlight to electricity converters (25%) when the the simple diode model is used to calculate efficiencies at AMO irradiance, GaAs solar cells are more radiation resistant than silicon solar cells and the N/P GaAs device has been reported to be more radiation resistant than similar P/N solar cells. This higher resistance is probably due to the fact that only 37% of the current is generated in the top N layer of the N/P cell compared to 69% in the top layer of a P/N solar cell. This top layer of the cell is most affected by radiation. It has also been theoretically calculated that the optimized N/P device will prove to have a higher efficiency than a similar P/N device. The use of a GaP window layer on a GaAs solar cell will avoid many of the inherent problems normally associated with a GaAlAs window while still proving good passivation of the GaAs surface. An optimized circular grid design for solar cell concentrators has been shown which incorporates a multi-layer metallization scheme. This multi-layer design allows for a greater current carrying capacity for a unit area of shading, which results in a better output efficiency

Ignition and combustion characteristics of metallized propellants

Research designed to develop detailed knowledge of the secondary atomization and ignition characteristics of aluminum slurry propellants was started. These processes are studied because they are the controlling factors limiting the combustion efficiency of aluminum slurry propellants in rocket applications. A burner and spray rig system allowing the study of individual slurry droplets having diameters from about 10 to 100 microns was designed and fabricated. The burner generates a near uniform high temperature environment from the merging of 72 small laminar diffusion flames above a honeycomb matrix. This design permits essentially adiabatic operation over a wide range of stoichiometries without danger of flashback. A single particle sizing system and velocimeter also were designed and assembled. Light scattered from a focused laser beam is related to the particle (droplet) size, while the particle velocity is determined by its transit time through the focal volume. Light from the combustion of aluminum is also sensed to determine if ignition was achieved. These size and velocity measurements will allow the determination of disruption and ignition times as functions of drop sizes and ambient conditions

Algorithm Developments for Discrete Adjoint Methods

This paper presents a number of algorithm developments for adjoint methods using the 'discrete' approach in which the discretisation of the non-linear equations is linearised and the resulting matrix is then transposed. With a new iterative procedure for solving the adjoint equations, exact numerical equivalence is maintained between the linear and adjoint discretisations. The incorporation of strong boundary conditions within the discrete approach is discussed, as well as a new application of adjoint methods to linear unsteady flow in turbomachinery