Optical properties of Ge-oxygen defect center embedded in silica films

The photo-luminescence features of Ge-oxygen defect centers in a 100nm thick Ge-doped silica film on a pure silica substrate were investigated by looking at the emission spectra and time decay detected under synchrotron radiation excitation in the 10-300 K temperature range. This center exhibits two luminescence bands centered at 4.3eV and 3.2eV associated with its de-excitation from singlet (S1) and triplet (T1) states, respectively, that are linked by an intersystem crossing process. The comparison with results obtained from a bulk Ge-doped silica sample evidences that the efficiency of the intersystem crossing rate depends on the properties of the matrix embedding the Ge-oxygen defect centers, being more effective in the film than in the bulk counterpart.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures, in press on J. Non cryst. solids (2007

VIRTUAL REALITY FOR HISTORICAL ARCHITECTURE

Abstract. This article shows a first step in the development of an immersive virtual tour of the Cathedral of Palermo, entering the fields of Digital Cultural Heritage and Edutainment. Its purpose is to help people to gain knowledge about the site, highlighting the complex stratifications that have characterized its history.The development of the project has been possible thanks to different phases of work: surveys were initially carried out by laser scanning, then assembled and processed to obtain the 3D model of the current state; at the same time, the model of reconstruction was processed in several phases, based on historical, archival and iconographic sources; both models were, later, subject to post-processing, preparatory to the development of virtual navigation. The tour scenario includes options in order to make it attractive for the player, such as interactive elements, interfaces and animations.</p

The A(Kstop−,π±Σ∓)A′A(K^-_{stop},\pi^\pm\Sigma^\mp)A' reaction on p-shell nuclei

This letter is concerned with the study of the $K^-_{stop}A\rightarrow \pi^\pm\Sigma^\mp A'$ reaction in p-shell nuclei, i.e., $^{6,7}Li$, $^9Be$, $^{13}C$ and $^{16}O$. The $\pi^\pm\Sigma^\mp / K^-_{stop}$ emission rates are reported as a function of $A$. These rates are discussed in comparison with previous findings. The ratio $\pi^-\Sigma^+/\pi^+\Sigma^-$ in p-shell nuclei is found to depart largely from that on hydrogen, which provides support for large in-medium effects possibly generated by the sub-threshold $\Lambda(1405)$. The continuum momentum spectra of prompt pions and free sigmas are also discussed as well as the $\pi^\pm\Sigma^\mp$ missing mass behavior and the link with the reaction mechanism. The apparatus used for the investigation is the FINUDA spectrometer operating at the DA$\Phi$NE $\phi$-factory (LNF-INFN, Italy).Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in Phys. Lett.

An Introduction to the Winograd Discrete Fourier Transform

This paper illustrates Winograd\u27s approach to computing the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT). This new approach changes the DFT into a cyclic convolution of 2 sequences, and illustrates shortcuts for computing this cyclic convolution. This method is known to reduce the number of multiplies required to about 20% less than the number of multiplies used by the techniques of the Fast Fourier Transform. Three approaches are discussed, one for prime numbers, one for products of primes, and lastly one for powers of odd primes. For powers of 2 Winograd\u27s algorithm is, in general, inefficient and best if it is not used. A computer simulation is illustrated for the 35 point transform and its execution time is compared with that of the Fast Fourier Transform algorithm for 32 points

The relevance of point defects in studying silica-based materials from bulk to nanosystems

The macroscopic properties of silica can be modified by the presence of local microscopic modifications at the scale of the basic molecular units (point defects). Such defects can be generated during the production of glass, devices, or by the environments where the latter have to operate, impacting on the devices’ performance. For these reasons, the identification of defects, their generation processes, and the knowledge of their electrical and optical features are relevant for microelectronics and optoelectronics. The aim of this manuscript is to report some examples of how defects can be generated, how they can impact device performance, and how a defect species or a physical phenomenon that is a disadvantage in some fields can be used as an advantage in others

29Si Hyperfine Structure of the E'_\alpha Center in Amorphous Silicon Dioxide

We report a study by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) on the E'_\alpha point defect in amorphous silicon dioxide (a-SiO2). Our experiments were performed on gamma-ray irradiated oxygen-deficient materials and pointed out that the 29Si hyperfine structure of the E'_alpha consists in a pair of lines split by 49 mT. On the basis of the experimental results a microscopic model is proposed for the E'_alpha center, consisting in a hole trapped in an oxygen vacancy with the unpaired electron sp3 orbital pointing away from the vacancy in a back-projected configuration and interacting with an extra oxygen atom of the a-SiO2 matrix.Comment: 4 page

K- absorption in nuclei by two and three nucleons

It will be shown that the peaks in the (Lambda p) and (Lambda d) invariant mass distributions, observed in recent FINUDA experiments and claimed to be signals of deeply bound kaonic states, are naturally explained in terms of K- absorption by two or three nucleons leaving the rest of the original nuclei as spectator. For reactions on heavy nuclei, the subsequent interactions of the particles produced in the primary absorption process with the residual nucleus play an important role. Our analyses leads to the conclusion that at present there is no experimental evidence of deeply bound K- state in nuclei. Although the FINUDA experiments have been done for reasons which are not supported a posteriori, some new physics can be extracted from the data.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures. Talk presented at the International Conference on Exotic Atoms "EXA 2008", Vienna, Austria, September 15-18, 200

Weak nonmesonic decay spectra of hypernuclei

We compute one- and two-nucleon kinetic-energy spectra and opening-angle distributions for the nonmesonic weak decay of several hypernuclei, and compare our results with some recent data. The decaymics is described by transition potentials of the one-meson-exchange type, and the nuclear structure aspects by two versions of the independent-particle shell model (IPSM). In version IPSM-a, the hole states are treated as stationary, while in version IPSM-b the deep hole states are considered to be quasi-stationary and are described by Breit-Wigner distributions.Comment: 3 pages 2 figures. To be published in Nucl. Phys. A; Contribution to the NN2009 International Conference, Beijing, China, August 200

Fruit Pest Events and Phenological Development According to Accumulated Heat Units

Mammals are "warm-blooded" and develop at a constant rate regardless of the environmental temperature, because they are able to maintain an internal temperature that allows their biochemical reactions to progress normally. Insects, which are "exothermic" (the same temperature as their environment; there is no such thing as "cold-blooded"), do not generate body heat, and are therefore limited in their development to periods of favorable external temperature. Below a certain temperature, which varies among species, the insect's biochemical reactions cannot proceed, and development stops. This temperature is known as the insect's developmental threshold ordevelopmental base. By charting the ambient temperature, it is possible to keep track of insect development, which is directly proportional to the amount of time accumulated above the developmental threshold (up to some maximum not often reached during the season). We arbitrarily divide this time into heat units, or degree-days (DD)

Root Weevils

NYS IPM Type: Fruits IPM Fact SheetThere are more than 20 species of root weevils that attack strawberry in the United States. In New York, the three major species are the black vine weevil, Otiorhynchus sulcatus (Fabricius), the strawberry root weevil, 0. ovatus L., and the rough strawberry weevil, 0. rugostriatus Goeze. Root weevils are also pests of raspberries and rhododendrons