180 research outputs found
Extrinsic electromagnetic chirality in all-photodesigned one-dimensional THz metamaterials
We suggest that all-photodesigned metamaterials, sub-wavelength custom
patterns of photo-excited carriers on a semiconductor, can display an exotic
extrinsic electromagnetic chirality in terahertz (THz) frequency range. We
consider a photo-induced pattern exhibiting 1D geometrical chirality, i.e. its
mirror image can not be superposed onto itself by translations without
rotations and, in the long wavelength limit, we evaluate its bianisotropic
response. The photo-induced extrinsic chirality turns out to be fully
reconfigurable by recasting the optical illumination which supports the
photo-excited carriers. The all-photodesigning technique represents a feasible,
easy and powerful method for achieving effective matter functionalization and,
combined with the chiral asymmetry, it could be the platform for a new
generation of reconfigurable devices for THz wave polarization manipulation.Comment: 11 page
Terahertz optically tunable dielectric metamaterials without microfabrication
We theoretically investigate the terahertz dielectric response of a
semiconductor slab hosting an infrared photoinduced grating. The periodic
structure is due to the charge carries photo-excited by the interference of two
tilted infrared plane waves so that the grating depth and period can be tuned
by modifying the beam intensities and incidence angles, respectively. In the
case where the grating period is much smaller than the terahertz wavelength, we
numerically evaluate the ordinary and extraordinary component of the effective
permittivity tensor by resorting to electromagnetic full-wave simulation
coupled to the dynamics of charge carries excited by infrared radiation. We
show that the photoinduced metamaterial optical response can be tailored by
varying the grating and it ranges from birefringent to hyperbolic to
anisotropic negative dielectric without resorting to microfabrication.Comment: 3 pages, 2 figure
Reconfigurable photoinduced metamaterials in the microwave regime
We investigate optically reconfigurable dielectric metamaterials at gigahertz
frequencies. More precisely, we study the microwave response of a subwavelength
grating optically imprinted into a semiconductor slab. In the homogenized
regime, we analytically evaluate the ordinary and extraordinary component of
the effective permittivity tensor by taking into account the photo-carrier
dynamics described by the ambipolar diffusion equation. We analyze the impact
of semiconductor parameters on the gigahertz metamaterial response which turns
out to be highly reconfigurable by varying the photogenerated grating and which
can show a marked anisotropic behavior.Comment: 6 figures, 7 page
Analysis of elliptically polarized states in vertical-cavity-surface-emitting lasers
We study the elliptically polarized states in the spin-flip model for vertical-cavity-surface-emitting lasers. The stability analysis reveals some unexpected features. In correspondence with particular values of the birefringence parameter, which are shown to scale very simply with the ratio of the spin-flip rate to the linewidth enhancement factor, the stability domain can be quite large. Moreover, in some cases two different dynamical regimes can arise from the destabilization of the elliptically polarized states, and they can coexist in a finite interval of the pump parameter. Finally, we show that the bifurcation from the lower frequency linearly polarized state to the elliptically polarized states can be subcritical when the linewidth enhancement factor is roughly smaller than 1
Dissipative phase solitons in semiconductor lasers
We experimentally demonstrate the existence of non dispersive solitary waves
associated with a 2 phase rotation in a strongly multimode ring
semiconductor laser with coherent forcing. Similarly to Bloch domain walls,
such structures host a chiral charge. The numerical simulations based on a set
of effective Maxwell-Bloch equations support the experimental evidence that
only one sign of chiral charge is stable, which strongly affects the motion of
the phase solitons. Furthermore, the reduction of the model to a modified
Ginzburg Landau equation with forcing demonstrates the generality of these
phenomena and exposes the impact of the lack of parity symmetry in propagative
optical systems.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
Assessment of ambient air quality in the port of Naples
Two experimental monitoring campaigns were carried out in 2012 to investigate the air quality in the port of Naples, the most
important in southern Italy for traffic of passengers and one of the most important for goods. Therefore, it represents an
important air pollution source located close to the city of Naples. The concentrations of sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide
(NO2), and BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes) in the air were measured at 15 points inside the Naples port area
through the use of passive samplers. In addition, a mobile laboratory was positioned in a fixed point inside the port area to
measure continuous concentration of pollutants together with particulate matter, ambient parameters, and wind direction and
intensity. The pollution levels monitored were compared with those observed in the urban area of Naples and in other
Mediterranean ports. Even though the observation time was limited, measured concentrations were also compared with limit
values established by European legislation. All the measured pollutants were below the limits with the exception of nitrogen
dioxide: its average concentration during the exposition time exceeded the yearly limit value. A spatial analysis of data,
according to the measured wind direction and intensity, provided information about the effects that ship emissions have on
ambient air quality in the port area. The main evidence indicates that ship emissions influence sulfur dioxide concentration more
than any other pollutants analyze
Characterization of soot produced by the mini inverted soot generator with an atmospheric simulation chamber
The performance of a mini inverted soot generator (MISG) has been investigated at ChAMBRe (Chamber for Aerosol Modelling and Bio-aerosol Research) by studying the properties of soot particles generated by ethylene and propane combustion. This work deepens and expands the existing characterization of the MISG, which also exploits an atmospheric simulation chamber (ASC). Different from previous works, MISG performance has been also tested at different fuel flows and higher global equivalence ratios. MISG exhausts were investigated after their injection inside the atmospheric simulation chamber, which is another novelty of this work. Starting from an extensive classification of combustion conditions and resulting flame shapes, the MISG exhaust was characterized in terms of concentration of emitted particles and gases, particle size distribution, and optical properties. Soot particles were also collected on quartz fibre filters and then analysed by optical and thermal\u2013optical techniques to measure the spectral dependence of the absorption coefficient babs and their composition in terms of elemental carbon and organic carbon (EC and OC). Significant differences could be observed when the MISG was fuelled with ethylene and propane in terms of particle size. In particular, the production of super-micrometric aggregates was observed for ethylene combustion. With equal combustion conditions, ethylene produced a higher number concentration of particles and smaller mode diameters. Soot particles produced by propane combustion resulted in higher EC : TC (total carbon) ratios and they were more light absorbing than particles generated by ethylene combustion. Values of the mass absorption cross section (MAC) and of the \uc5ngstr\uf6m absorption exponent (AAE) turned out to be compatible with the literature, even if there were some specific differences.
The comprehensive characterization of the MISG soot particles is an important piece of information to design and perform experiments in atmospheric simulation chambers. Particles with well-known properties can be used, for example, to investigate the possible interactions between soot and other
atmospheric pollutants, the effects of meteorological variables on soot properties, and the oxidative and toxicological potential of soot particles
The Suitability of Short Rotation Coppice Crops for Phytoremediation of Urban Soils
This experiment was aimed at verifying the usefulness of phytoremediation using Short Rotation Coppice (SRC) in an urban Zn-contaminated site. Besides elemental uptake and reclamation, the SRC method was applied to evaluate the additional benefits of a green infrastructure. Nine different plants with rapid growth and large biomass production were selected: three Populus clones, three Salix hybrids, and three Robinia genotypes. Annual and biennial coppicing were evaluated. Poplar clones were more productive using annual coppicing, while Salix and Robinia produced higher biomass in blocks not coppiced. Poplar had the highest phytoextraction rate during the second year, with 1077 g/ha. Salix clones S1 and S3 extracted similar quantities using biennial coppicing. After two years, the bioavailable fraction of Zn decreased significantly using all species, from the 26% decrease of Robinia to the 36% decrease of Salix. The short rotation coppice method proved to be useful in an urban context, for both landscape and limiting the access to the contaminated area. Improving the biomass yield through the phytomanagement options (fertilization, irrigation, coppicing, etc.) could make SRC phytoremediation an economic and effective solution to manage urban contaminated areas, coupling the added values of biomass production to the landscape benefits
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