Dynamics of Primordial Hydrogen Recombination with Allowance for a Recoil for Scattering in the Ly-alpha Line

It is shown that taking into account a recoil for radiation scattering in the Ly-alpha line can lead to a noticable acceleration of primordial hydrogen recombination. Thus for LambdaCDM model a decrease of ionization degree exceeds 1% for redshifts z in a range 800 - 1050 achieving approximately 1.3% at z=900. Corresponding corrections to the cosmic microwave background power spectra can achieve 1.1% for TT spectra and 1.7% for EE ones. Radiative transfer in these calculations was treated in a quasistationary approximation. Numerical solutions are also obtained in diffusion approximation for a nonstationary problem of Ly-alpha line radiative transfer under partial frequency redistribution with a recoil. An evolution of a local line profile is traced to as well as an evolution of a relative number of uncompensated transitions from 2p state down to 1s one. It is shown that taking into account nonstationarity of Ly-alpha line radiative transfer can lead to an additional acceleration of primordial hydrogen recombination.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures; accepted for publication in Astronomy Letter

Continuous families of isospectral Heisenberg spin systems and the limits of inference from measurements

We investigate classes of quantum Heisenberg spin systems which have different coupling constants but the same energy spectrum and hence the same thermodynamical properties. To this end we define various types of isospectrality and establish conditions for their occurence. The triangle and the tetrahedron whose vertices are occupied by spins 1/2 are investigated in some detail. The problem is also of practical interest since isospectrality presents an obstacle to the experimental determination of the coupling constants of small interacting spin systems such as magnetic molecules

Process based model sheds light on climate sensitivity of Mediterranean tree-ring width

We use the process-based VS (Vaganov-Shashkin) model to investigate whether a regional <i>Pinus halepensis</i> tree-ring chronology from Tunisia can be simulated as a function of climate alone by employing a biological model linking day length and daily temperature and precipitation (AD 1959–2004) from a climate station to ring-width variations. We check performance of the model on independent data by a validation exercise in which the model's parameters are tuned using data for 1982–2004 and the model is applied to generate tree-ring indices for 1959–1981. The validation exercise yields a highly significant positive correlation between the residual chronology and estimated growth curve (<i>r</i>=0.76 <i>p</i><0.0001, <i>n</i>=23). The model shows that the average duration of the growing season is 191 days, with considerable variation from year to year. On average, soil moisture limits tree-ring growth for 128 days and temperature for 63 days. Model results depend on chosen values of parameters, in particular a parameter specifying a balance ratio between soil moisture and precipitation. Future work in the Mediterranean region should include multi-year natural experiments to verify patterns of cambial-growth variation suggested by the VS model

Optical Absorption and Raman Spectroscopy Study of the Fluorinated Double-Wall Carbon Nanotubes

Double-wall carbon nanotube (DWNT) samples have been fluorinated at room temperature with varied concentration of a fluorinating agent BrF3. Content of the products estimated from X-ray photoelectron data was equal to CF0.20 and CF0.29 in the case of deficit and excess of BrF3. Raman spectroscopy showed considerable decrease of carbon nanotube amount in the fluorinated samples. Analysis of optical absorption spectra measured for pristine and fluorinated DWNT samples revealed a selectivity of carbon nanotube fluorination. Nanotubes with large chiral angle are more inert to the fluorinating agent used

Spatial-temporal dynamics of the terahertz field generated by femtosecond filament

We present the study on spatial distribution of the maximum of terahertz field amplitude in time domain when generated by a femtosecond filament. It is shown that as a result of the propagation of the terahertz field forms a spherical wave front, on the edge of which the maximum of amplitude has a temporary delay in contrary to its central part

INCREASING EFFICIENCY OF REPAIRING, MANUFACTURING AND OPERATION OF THE TPP FACILITIES BY TECHNOLOGY OF GAS-THERMAL COATING AND LASER SURFACE MELTING

The article considers effectiveness increase of the TPP heat-mechanical equipment repair, manufacturing and maintenance as exemplified by gas-thermal technique for hardening laststages rotor blades of the steam turbines. The rotor blades work under conditions of intense power loading, their airfoil being erosion-corrosion destructed by the action of the moist-steam flow. Repairing companies employ quite a number of technologies to restore some of erosion-worn rotor blades. Inter alia, argon-arc, plasma and gas-powder weld deposition of the original material with subsequent machining, stellite protection recovery, electrical spark alloying the entry edge mat surface, spraying ion-plasma coating on the blade airfoil surface. In domestic turbine building, rotor blades of the steam turbines last stages are manufactured of martensitic class stainless steel. The key condition for successful blade restoration is thermal effect minimizing on the base material for excluding the slag areas possible forming. The laser surface coating technology provides these conditions. They coat the surface of an item being processed by way of melting the base and the adding material. In as much the base melts smallest, the coating characteristics depend mainly on the properties of adding material. The procedure of laser coating passes through several stages including physical contact creation, chemical interaction (laser radiation absorption), volumetrical processes resulting in formation of stable bonds in volume of the materials that have reacted. For the low-pressure cylinder rotor blades supplementary protection against erosion destruction, LLC ‘Technological Systems of Protective Coating’ developed technology of the blade airfoil protective finish by method of high-speed gas-flame sputter. The company realized this technology in 2012 during K-200-12,8 turbine (of the Leningrad Metallurgical Works – LMZ) repairing in Zainsk SDPP by JSC ‘Tatenergo’. The feature of the technology is performing the rotor blade airfoil surface hardening without extracting the rotor out of the low-pressure cylinder and with rotor blades remaining on the rotor. According the SDPP data, as for the beginning of 2015 there are no traces of the rotor blade erosive wear detected

Elastic Spin Relaxation Processes in Semiconductor Quantum Dots

Electron spin decoherence caused by elastic spin-phonon processes is investigated comprehensively in a zero-dimensional environment. Specifically, a theoretical treatment is developed for the processes associated with the fluctuations in the phonon potential as well as in the electron procession frequency through the spin-orbit and hyperfine interactions in the semiconductor quantum dots. The analysis identifies the conditions (magnetic field, temperature, etc.) in which the elastic spin-phonon processes can dominate over the inelastic counterparts with the electron spin-flip transitions. Particularly, the calculation results illustrate the potential significance of an elastic decoherence mechanism originating from the intervalley transitions in semiconductor quantum dots with multiple equivalent energy minima (e.g., the X valleys in SiGe). The role of lattice anharmonicity and phonon decay in spin relaxation is also examined along with that of the local effective field fluctuations caused by the stochastic electronic transitions between the orbital states. Numerical estimations are provided for typical GaAs and Si-based quantum dots.Comment: 57 pages, 14 figure