Saturation in “nonmagnetic” stainless steel

Scientific equipment often uses “nonmagnetic” stainless steel, relying on the steel’s nonmagnetic behavior to leave external magnetic fields unaltered. However, stainless steel’s permeability can rise significantly when it is welded or machined, possibly perturbing an external field. Such perturbations will diminish well above the stainless steel’s saturation point. The authors measured the permeability of both welded and machined 304 stainless steel as a function of an external magnetic field, and found that both saturate at fields of approximately 0.25 T

Electronic Structure and Stability of Hydrogen Halides and of Complex Ions XO4

(1) It is shown that in the hydrogen halide molecules (internuclear distance r0) the proton penetrates the electronic shell of the anion to a depth which for the simplified case of spherical symmetry can be characterized by the condition: The amount of negative charge beyond the sphere of radius r0 equals −1e. (2) From the dipole moments μ=xer0 of the hydrogen halide molecules it can be concluded: The wave mechanical distribution of the negative charge of the free halide ions is changed by the introduction of the proton in such a way that the center of gravity of an amount of charge equal to —(1−x)e is shifted from the halogen nucleus to the proton. The fraction (1—x) increases with the electronic polarizability of the anion, and would be equal to 1 for an ion of infinitely large polarizability, leading to a completely unpolar type of binding in this case. (3) It is shown that for the complex ions SiO44—, PO43—, SO4=, and ClO4−, the gradation of the X☒O distances and of the molar dispersion can be easily understood from the point of view used in 1924 for the case of the molar refraction: These ions represent the result of the polarization of O= by Si4+, P5+, S6+, and Cl7+, and the X☒O binding in them shows gradual changes toward the unpolar type. (4) It is pointed out that the relatively unstable HI and ClO4− approach the unpolar type of binding more closely than any other of the compounds considered here. The generalization of this connection between instability and the degree of deformation of electronic shells explains why compounds like FO4− and BrO4− are unknown.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/70366/2/JCPSA6-10-7-410-1.pd

Vacuum Compatibility of 3D-Printed Materials

The fabrication fidelity and vacuum properties are tested for currently available 3D-printed materials including polyamide, glass, acrylic, and sterling silver. The silver was the only material found to be suitable to ultrahigh vacuum environments due to outgassing and sublimation observed in other materials.Comment: 3 pages, 2 figures, preprin

Production of antihydrogen at reduced magnetic field for anti-atom trapping

We have demonstrated production of antihydrogen in a 1$,$T solenoidal magnetic field. This field strength is significantly smaller than that used in the first generation experiments ATHENA (3$,$T) and ATRAP (5$,$T). The motivation for using a smaller magnetic field is to facilitate trapping of antihydrogen atoms in a neutral atom trap surrounding the production region. We report the results of measurements with the ALPHA (Antihydrogen Laser PHysics Apparatus) device, which can capture and cool antiprotons at 3$,$T, and then mix the antiprotons with positrons at 1$,$T. We infer antihydrogen production from the time structure of antiproton annihilations during mixing, using mixing with heated positrons as the null experiment, as demonstrated in ATHENA. Implications for antihydrogen trapping are discussed

Antihydrogen formation dynamics in a multipolar neutral anti-atom trap

Antihydrogen production in a neutral atom trap formed by an octupole-based magnetic field minimum is demonstrated using field-ionization of weakly bound anti-atoms. Using our unique annihilation imaging detector, we correlate antihydrogen detection by imaging and by field-ionization for the first time. We further establish how field-ionization causes radial redistribution of the antiprotons during antihydrogen formation and use this effect for the first simultaneous measurements of strongly and weakly bound antihydrogen atoms. Distinguishing between these provides critical information needed in the process of optimizing for trappable antihydrogen. These observations are of crucial importance to the ultimate goal of performing CPT tests involving antihydrogen, which likely depends upon trapping the anti-atom

Search For Trapped Antihydrogen

We present the results of an experiment to search for trapped antihydrogen atoms with the ALPHA antihydrogen trap at the CERN Antiproton Decelerator. Sensitive diagnostics of the temperatures, sizes, and densities of the trapped antiproton and positron plasmas have been developed, which in turn permitted development of techniques to precisely and reproducibly control the initial experimental parameters. The use of a position-sensitive annihilation vertex detector, together with the capability of controllably quenching the superconducting magnetic minimum trap, enabled us to carry out a high-sensitivity and low-background search for trapped synthesised antihydrogen atoms. We aim to identify the annihilations of antihydrogen atoms held for at least 130 ms in the trap before being released over ~30 ms. After a three-week experimental run in 2009 involving mixing of 10^7 antiprotons with 1.3 10^9 positrons to produce 6 10^5 antihydrogen atoms, we have identified six antiproton annihilation events that are consistent with the release of trapped antihydrogen. The cosmic ray background, estimated to contribute 0.14 counts, is incompatible with this observation at a significance of 5.6 sigma. Extensive simulations predict that an alternative source of annihilations, the escape of mirror-trapped antiprotons, is highly unlikely, though this possibility has not yet been ruled out experimentally.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figure

A novel antiproton radial diagnostic based on octupole induced ballistic loss

We report results from a novel diagnostic that probes the outer radial profile of trapped antiproton clouds. The diagnostic allows us to determine the profile by monitoring the time-history of antiproton losses that occur as an octupole field in the antiproton confinement region is increased. We show several examples of how this diagnostic helps us to understand the radial dynamics of antiprotons in normal and nested Penning-Malmberg traps. Better understanding of these dynamics may aid current attempts to trap antihydrogen atoms

Compression of Antiproton Clouds for Antihydrogen Trapping

Control of the radial profile of trapped antiproton clouds is critical to trapping antihydrogen. We report the first detailed measurements of the radial manipulation of antiproton clouds, including areal density compressions by factors as large as ten, by manipulating spatially overlapped electron plasmas. We show detailed measurements of the near-axis antiproton radial profile and its relation to that of the electron plasma

Carriers of Loss-of-Function Mutations in ABCA1 Display Pancreatic β-Cell Dysfunction

OBJECTIVE: Abnormal cellular cholesterol handling in islets may contribute to beta-cell dysfunction in type 2 diabetes. beta-Cell deficiency for the ATP binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1), which mediates the efflux of cellular cholesterol, leads to altered intracellular cholesterol homeostasis and impaired insulin secretion in mice. We aimed to assess the impact of ABCA1 dysfunction on glucose homeostasis in humans. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: In heterozygous carriers of disruptive mutations in ABCA1 and family-based noncarriers of similar age, sex, and BMI, we performed oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTTs) (n = 15 vs. 14) and hyperglycemic clamps (n = 8 vs. 8). RESULTS: HDL cholesterol levels in carriers were less than half those in noncarriers, but LDL cholesterol levels did not differ. Although fasting plasma glucose was similar between groups, glucose curves after an OGTT were mildly higher in carriers than in noncarriers. During hyperglycemic clamps, carriers demonstrated lower first-phase insulin secretion than noncarriers but no difference in insulin sensitivity. The disposition index (a measure of beta-cell function adjusted for insulin sensitivity) of the carriers was significantly reduced in ABCA1 heterozygotes. CONCLUSIONS: Carriers of loss-of-function mutations in ABCA1 show impaired insulin secretion without insulin resistance. Our data provide evidence that ABCA1 is important for normal beta-cell function in human