Acceptance checkout equipment - Spacecraft Monthly progress report, 15 Jan. - 15 Feb. 1966

Acceptance checkout equipment and spacecraft testin

Application of Single-Station Sigma and Site-Response Characterization in a Probabilistic Seismic-Hazard Analysis for a New Nuclear Site

Aleatory variability in ground-motion prediction, represented by the standard deviation (sigma) of a ground-motion prediction equation, exerts a very strong influence on the results of probabilistic seismic-hazard analysis (PSHA). This is especially so at the low annual exceedance frequencies considered for nuclear facilities; in these cases, even small reductions in sigma can have a marked effect on the hazard estimates. Proper separation and quantification of aleatory variability and epistemic uncertainty can lead to defensible reductions in sigma. One such approach is the single-station sigma concept, which removes that part of sigma corresponding to repeatable site-specific effects. However, the site-to-site component must then be constrained by site-specific measurements or else modeled as epistemic uncertainty and incorporated into the modeling of site effects. The practical application of the single-station sigma concept, including the characterization of the dynamic properties of the site and the incorporation of site-response effects into the hazard calculations, is illustrated for a PSHA conducted at a rock site under consideration for the potential construction of a nuclear power plant.Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineerin

Jahn-Teller Distortions and the Supershell Effect in Metal Nanowires

A stability analysis of metal nanowires shows that a Jahn-Teller deformation breaking cylindrical symmetry can be energetically favorable, leading to stable nanowires with elliptic cross sections. The sequence of stable cylindrical and elliptical nanowires allows for a consistent interpretation of experimental conductance histograms for alkali metals, including both the shell and supershell structures. It is predicted that for gold, elliptical nanowires are even more likely to form since their eccentricity is smaller than for alkali metals. The existence of certain metastable ``superdeformed'' nanowires is also predicted

Correlated charge polarization in a chain of coupled quantum dots

Coherent charge transfer in a linear array of tunnel-coupled quantum dots, electrostatically coupled to external gates, is investigated using the Bethe ansatz for a symmetrically biased Hubbard chain. Charge polarization in this correlated system is shown to proceed via two distinct processes: formation of bound states in the metallic phase, and charge transfer processes corresponding to a superposition of antibound states at opposite ends of the chain in the Mott-insulating phase. The polarizability in the insulating phase of the chain exhibits a universal scaling behavior, while the polarization charge in the metallic phase of the model is shown to be quantized in units of $e/2$.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures, 1 tabl

Electronic and atomic shell structure in aluminum nanowires

We report experiments on aluminum nanowires in ultra-high vacuum at room temperature that reveal a periodic spectrum of exceptionally stable structures. Two "magic" series of stable structures are observed: At low conductance, the formation of stable nanowires is governed by electronic shell effects whereas for larger contacts atomic packing dominates. The crossover between the two regimes is found to be smooth. A detailed comparison of the experimental results to a theoretical stability analysis indicates that while the main features of the observed electron-shell structure are similar to those of alkali and noble metals, a sequence of extremely stable wires plays a unique role in Aluminum. This series appears isolated in conductance histograms and can be attributed to "superdeformed" non-axisymmetric nanowires.Comment: 15 pages, 9 figure

Distribution and Abundance of Introduced Fishes in Florida\u27s Charlotte Harbor Estuary

A growing number of non-native fishes have been introduced into Florida waters in recent years, yet little information has been available on their distribution and abundance in southwest Florida. The ichthyofauna of the Charlotte Harbor estuary, Florida, was intensively sampled from 1989 through 2007. We collected eight introduced fish taxa: African jewelfish (Hemichromis letourneuxi), blue tilapia (Oreochromis aureus), brown hoplo (Hoplosternum littorale), grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella), Mayan cichlid (Cichlasoma urophthalmus), sailfin catfishes (Pterygoplichthys spp.), spotted tilapia (Tilapia mariae), and walking catfish (Clarias batrachus). These fishes were found principally in tidal rivers, especially the Caloosahatchee River. Other introduced species, such as Asian swamp eel (Monopterus albus), blackchin tilapia (Sarotherodon melanotheron), and pike killifish (Belonesox belizanus), are known to occur in neighboring bay systems but have yet to be reported in the Charlotte Harbor estuary. Continued monitoring will help us detect additional species that are introduced to the estuary, expansions in the ranges of documented species, and assemblage-level changes

Unusual low-temperature thermopower in the one-dimensional Hubbard model

The low-temperature thermoelectric power of the repulsive-interaction one-dimensional Hubbard model is calculated using an asymptotic Bethe ansatz for holons and spinons. The competition between the entropy carried by the holons and that carried by the backflow of the spinons gives rise to an unusual temperature and doping dependence of the thermopower which is qualitatively similar to that observed in the normal state of high-$T_{c}$ superconductors.Comment: 11 pages, REVTEX 3.

On the Stability and Structural Dynamics of Metal Nanowires

This article presents a brief review of the nanoscale free-electron model, which provides a continuum description of metal nanostructures. It is argued that surface and quantum-size effects are the two dominant factors in the energetics of metal nanowires, and that much of the phenomenology of nanowire stability and structural dynamics can be understood based on the interplay of these two competing factors. A linear stability analysis reveals that metal nanocylinders with certain magic conductance values G=1, 3, 6, 12, 17, 23, 34, 42, 51, 67, 78, 96, ... times the conductance quantum are exceptionally stable. A nonlinear dynamical simulation of nanowire structural evolution reveals a universal equilibrium shape consisting of a magic cylinder suspended between unduloidal contacts. The lifetimes of these metastable structures are also computed.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figure