Production of cold bromine atoms at zero mean velocity by photodissociation

The production of a translationally cold (T < 1 K) sample of bromine atoms with estimated densities of up to 108 cm−3 using photodissociation is presented. A molecular beam of Br2 seeded in Kr is photodissociated into Br + Br* fragments, and the velocity distribution of the atomic fragments is determined using (2 + 1) REMPI and velocity map ion imaging. By recording images with varying delay times between the dissociation and probe lasers, we investigate the length of time after dissociation for which atoms remain in the laser focus, and determine the velocity spread of those atoms. By careful selection of the photolysis energy, it is found that a fraction of the atoms can be detected for delay times in excess of 100 μs. These are atoms for which the fragment recoil velocity vector is directly opposed and equal in magnitude to the parent beam velocity leading to a resultant lab frame velocity of approximately zero. The FWHM velocity spreads of detected atoms along the beam axis after 100 μs are less than 5 ms−1, corresponding to temperatures in the milliKelvin range, opening the possibility that this technique could be utilized as a slow Br atom source

Handshake electron transfer from hydrogen Rydberg atoms incident at a series of metallic thin films

Thin metallic films have a 1D quantum well along the surface normal direction, which yields particle-in-a-box style electronic quantum states. However the quantum well is not infinitely deep and the wavefunctions of these states penetrate outside the surface where the electron is bound by its own image-charge attraction. Therefore a series of discrete, vacant states reach out from the thin film into the vacuum increasing the probability of electron transfer from an external atom or molecule to the thin film, especially for the resonant case where the quantum well energy matches that of the Rydberg atom. We show that `handshake' electron transfer from a highly excited Rydberg atom to these thin-film states is experimentally measurable. Thicker films, have a wider 1D box, changing the energetic distribution and image-state contribution to the thin film wavefunctions, resulting in more resonances. Calculations successfully predict the number of resonances and the nature of the thin-film wavefunctions for a given film thickness.Comment: 7 pages 6 figure

Foreword: atomic and molecular collision mechanisms

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Special issue on atomic and molecular collision mechanisms

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The role of phase in molecular Rydberg wave packet dynamics

The dynamics of Rydberg wave packets in NO are investigated in the regime where the electronic period is comparable with the rotational motion of the molecular ion core. The presence of a rotating molecular core manifests itself in the wave packet dynamics as a series of peaks separated by the rotational beat period T ROT, but offset by ΔμT ROT, where Δμ is the difference in quantum defect between the two dominant Rydberg series in the superposition. We rationalize this by treating the dynamics of a wave packet created from a coherent superposition of two interleaved Rydberg series as two separate electron wave packets, which interfere with one another when they overlap spatially. There is a periodic phase difference between the two wave packets that depends on the rotational energy of the core in each Rydberg series and also on the quantum defects. The resulting interference pattern in the Rydberg population manifests itself as peaks in the wave packet spectrum at the stroboscopic period.Copyright 2003 American Institute of Physics. This article may be downloaded for personal use only. Any other use requires prior permission of the author and the American Institute of Physics. Citation: Smith, R. A. L. et al. (2003). 'The role of phase in molecular Rydberg wave packet dynamics', Journal of Chemical Physics 119 (6), 3085-3091. The article can be found at http://link.aip.org/link/?JCPSA6/119/3085/1.

Special issue: 23rd Colloquium on High Resolution Molecular Spectroscopy

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Manual versus Automated moNitoring Accuracy of GlucosE II (MANAGE II)

Background: Intravascular continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) may facilitate glycemic control in the intensive care unit (ICU). We compared the accuracy of a CGM device (OptiScanner®) with a standard reference method. Methods: Adult patients who had blood glucose (BG) levels >150 mg/dl and required insertion of an arterial and central venous catheter were included. The OptiScanner® was inserted into a multiple-lumen central venous catheter. Patients were treated using a dynamic-scale insulin algorithm to achieve BG values between 80 and 150 mg/dl. The BG values measured by the OptiScanner® were plotted against BG values measured using a reference analyzer. The correlation between the BG values measured using the two methods and the clinical relevance of any differences were assessed using the coefficient of determination (r 2) and the Clarke error grid, respectively; bias was assessed by the mean absolute relative difference (MARD). Three different standards of glucose monitoring were used to assess accuracy. Glycemic control was assessed using the time in range (TIR). Six indices of glycemic variability were calculated. Results: The analysis included 929 paired samples from 88 patients, monitored for a total of 2584 hours. Reference BG values ranged between 60 and 484 mg/dl. The r 2 value was 0.89. The percentage of BG values within zones A and B of the Clarke error grid was 99.9%; the MARD was 7.7%. Using the ISO 15197 standard and Food and Drug Administration and consensus standards, respectively, 80.4% of measurements were within 15 mg/dl and 88.2% within 15% of reference values, 40% of measurements were within 7 mg/dl and 72.5% within 10% of reference values, and 65.2% of measurements were within 10 mg/dl and 82.7% within 12.5% of reference values. The TIR was slightly lower with the OptiScanner® than with the reference method. The J-index, standard deviation and maximal glucose change were the indices of glycemic variability least affected by the measurement device. Conclusions: Based on the MARD, the performance of the OptiScanner® is adequate for use in ICU patients. Because recent standards for accuracy were not met, the OptiScanner® should not be used as a sole monitor. The assessment of glycemic variability is influenced by the time interval between BG determinations. Trial registration: Clinicaltrials.gov NCT01720381. Registered 31 October 2012.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

High-resolution room temperature and jet-cooled spectroscopic investigation of 1 5NH3 in the ν1+ν3 band region (1.51 μm)

Spectra of 99% isotopically pure 15NH3 were recorded using cavity ring-down (CRD, 6567-6639 cm-1) and Fourier transform (FT, 6350-6985 cm-1) spectroscopy under jet cooled and room temperature conditions, respectively. Measured line positions on both data sets improve on literature values, in particular by one order of magnitude for the ν1+ν3 band. A room temperature list of line positions, with approximate line intensities, is provided, much more complete and precise than presently available. Line broadening effects in the CRD spectrum allowed lines with J'''- values between 0 and 3 to be identified. Ground state combination differences were used to refine the assignments, further assisted by intensity ratios between the two data sets. Reliable values for J, K and inversion symmetry of the ground state vibrational levels, as well as further information on a/s doublets could be obtained, updating and extending literature assignments.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe