2,094 research outputs found
Phase transitions in RbCoCl3 · 2H2O
Differential susceptibility measurements were performed on a single crystal of RbCoCl3 · 2H2O. An anti-ferromagnetic ordering was found at 2.975 K
The spin-dependent nd scattering length - a proposed high-accuracy measurement
The understanding of few-nucleon systems at low energies is essential, e.g.
for accurate predictions of element abundances in big-bang and stellar fusion.
Novel effective field theories, taking only nucleons, or nucleons and pions as
explicit degrees of freedom, provide a systematic approach, permitting an
estimate of theoretical uncertainties. Basic constants parameterising the short
range physics are derived from only a handful of experimental values. The
doublet neutron scattering length a_2 of the deuteron is particularly sensitive
to a three-nucleon contact interaction, but experimentally known with only 6%
accuracy. It can be deduced from the two experimentally accessible parameters
of the nd scattering length. We plan to measure the poorly known "incoherent"
nd scattering length a_{i,d} with 10^{-3} accuracy, using a Ramsey apparatus
for pseudomagnetic precession with a cold polarised neutron beam at PSI. A
polarised target containing both deuterons and protons will permit a
measurement relative to the incoherent np scattering length, which is know
experimentally with an accuracy of 2.4\times 10^{-4}.Comment: 5 pages LaTeX2e, 1 .eps figure. To be published in Nucl. Inst.
Methods A as part of the Proceedings of the 9th International Workshop on
Polarized Solid Targets and Techniques in Bad Honnef (Germany), 27th - 29th
October 200
Polarized Neutron Laue Diffraction on a Crystal Containing Dynamically Polarized Proton Spins
We report on a polarized-neutron Laue diffraction experiment on a single
crystal of neodynium doped lanthanum magnesium nitrate hydrate containing
polarized proton spins. By using dynamic nuclear polarization to polarize the
proton spins, we demonstrate that the intensities of the Bragg peaks can be
enhanced or diminished significantly, whilst the incoherent background, due to
proton spin disorder, is reduced. It follows that the method offers unique
possibilities to tune continuously the contrast of the Bragg reflections and
thereby represents a new tool for increasing substantially the signal-to-noise
ratio in neutron diffraction patterns of hydrogenous matter.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure
On the frequency and remnants of Hypernovae
Under the hypothesis that some fraction of massive stellar core collapses
give rise to unusually energetic events, termed hypernovae, I examine the
required rates assuming some fraction of such events yield gamma ray bursts. I
then discuss evidence from studies of pulsars and r-process nucleosynthesis
that independently suggests the existence of a class of unusually energetic
events. Finally I describe a scenario which links these different lines of
evidence as supporting the hypernova hypothesis.Comment: TeX, To appear in ApJ Letter
Ultracold neutrons extracted from a superfluid-helium converter coated with fluorinated grease
We report experiments on the production of ultracold neutrons (UCN) in a converter of superfluid helium coated with fluorinated grease (fomblin). We employed our special technique of window-free extraction of accumulated UCN from the superfluid helium, in which they were produced by downscattering neutrons of a cold beam from the Munich research reactor. The fomblin-coating reduced the time constant for UCN passage through the extraction hole by a factor three compared to our previous experiment employing an uncoated stainless steel vessel. AÂ time-of-flight measurement of the cold neutron spectrum incident on the converter, combined with a gold foil activation, allowed us to determine both the single-phonon and multi-phonon contributions to the UCN production. The UCN production rate is in reasonable agreement with the theoretical expectation
Clustering between high-mass X-ray binaries and OB associations in the Milky Way
We present the first direct measurement of the spatial cross-correlation
function of high-mass X-ray binaries (HMXBs) and active OB star-forming
complexes in the Milky Way. This result relied on a sample containing 79 hard
X-ray selected HMXBs and 458 OB associations. Clustering between the two
populations is detected with a significance above 7-sigmas for distances < 1
kpc. Thus, HMXBs closely trace the underlying distribution of the massive
star-forming regions that are expected to produce the progenitor stars of
HMXBs. The average offset of 0.4+-0.2 kpc between HMXBs and OB associations is
consistent with being due to natal kicks at velocities of the order of 100+-50
km/s. The characteristic scale of the correlation function suggests an average
kinematical age (since the supernova phase) of ~4 Myr for the HMXB population.
Despite being derived from a global view of our Galaxy, these signatures of
HMXB evolution are consistent with theoretical expectations as well as
observations of individual objects.Comment: 18 pages, 10 figures, 3 tables, accepted for publication in Ap
Magnesium intake and colorectal cancer risk in the Netherlands Cohort Study
Energy-adjusted magnesium intake was nonsignificantly inversely related to risk of colorectal cancer (n=2328) in the Netherlands Cohort Study on Diet and Cancer that started in 1986 (n=58 279 men and 62 573 women). Statistically significant inverse trends in risk were observed in overweight subjects for colon and proximal colon cancer across increasing quintiles of magnesium uptake (P-trend, 0.05 and 0.02, respectively). Although an overall protective effect was not afforded, our results suggest an effect of magnesium in overweight subjects, possibly through decreasing insulin resistance
Comparison of seven commercial RT-PCR diagnostic kits for COVID-19
The final months of 2019 witnessed the emergence of a novel coronavirus in the human population. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has since spread across the globe and is posing a major burden on society. Measures taken to reduce its spread critically depend on timely and accurate identification of virus-infected individuals by the most sensitive and specific method available, i.e. real-time reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR). Many commercial kits have recently become available, but their performance has not yet been independently assessed. The aim of this study was to compare basic analytical and clinical performance of selected RT-PCR kits from seven different manufacturers (Altona Diagnostics, BGI, CerTest Biotec, KH Medical, PrimerDesign, R-Biopharm AG, and Seegene). We used serial dilutions of viral RNA to establish PCR efficiency and estimate the 95 % limit of detection (LOD95). Furthermore, we ran a panel of SARS-CoV-2-positive clinical samples (n = 13) for a preliminary evaluation of clinical sensitivity. Finally, we used clinical samples positive for non-coronavirus respiratory viral infections (n = 6) and a panel of RNA from related human coronaviruses to evaluate assay specificity. PCR efficiency was ≥96 % for all assays and the estimated LOD95 varied within a 6-fold range. Using clinical samples, we observed some variations in detection rate between kits. Importantly, none of the assays showed cross-reactivity with other respiratory (corona)viruses, except as expected for the SARS-CoV-1 E-gene. We conclude that all RT-PCR kits assessed in this study may be used for routine diagnostics of COVID-19 in patients by experienced molecular diagnostic laboratories
Estimation of long-term average exposure to outdoor air pollution for a cohort study on mortality.
J Expo Anal Environ Epidemiol 2001 Nov-Dec;11(6):459-69 Related Articles, Books, LinkOut Estimation of long-term average exposure to outdoor air pollution for a cohort study on mortality. Hoek G, Fischer P, Van Den Brandt P, Goldbohm S, Brunekreef B. Environmental and Occupational Health Group, Utrecht University, Wageningen, The Netherlands. [email protected] Recent prospective cohort studies have suggested that long-term exposure to low levels of particulate matter (PM) air pollution is associated with increased mortality due to, especially, cardio-pulmonary disease. Exposure to ambient air pollution was estimated mostly as city average concentrations, assuming homogenous exposure within the city. We used an ongoing cohort study - The Netherlands Cohort Study (NLCS) on diet and cancer - to investigate the relationship between traffic-related air pollution and mortality. The baseline data collection took place in 1986. A study was conducted to develop methods for exposure assessment and evaluate the contrast in exposure to air pollution within the cohort. Assessment of long-term exposure to two traffic-related air pollutants, Black Smoke (BS) and Nitrogen Dioxide (NO(2)), consisted of separate estimation of regional background, urban background, and local traffic contributions at the home address. Interpolation of concentration data from a routine monitoring network was used to estimate the regional background concentration. A regression model relating degree of urbanization to air pollution was used to allow for differences between different towns/neighborhoods of cities. Distance to major roads was calculated to characterize local traffic contributions, using a Geographic Information System (GIS). Interpolation resulted in reasonably precise regional background estimation when distant sites were not used and distance squared was used as the weight. Cross-validation showed that prediction errors were about 15% of the range in regional background concentration. Urban and local scales contributed significantly to the contrast within the cohort. Prediction errors for estimating the urban background were about 25% of the range in background concentrations. When the developed model was applied to the study cohort, there was substantial contrast in estimated exposure to BS and NO(2). About 90% of the study population lived 10 years or more at its 1986 home address - supporting the use of the estimated concentration at the 1986 address as a relevant exposure variable
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