1,918 research outputs found
Novel designs for Penning ion traps
We present a number of alternative designs for Penning ion traps suitable for
quantum information processing (QIP) applications with atomic ions. The first
trap design is a simple array of long straight wires which allows easy optical
access. A prototype of this trap has been built to trap Ca+ and a simple
electronic detection scheme has been employed to demonstrate the operation of
the trap. Another trap design consists of a conducting plate with a hole in it
situated above a continuous conducting plane. The final trap design is based on
an array of pad electrodes. Although this trap design lacks the open geometry
of the traps described above, the pad design may prove useful in a hybrid
scheme in which information processing and qubit storage take place in
different types of trap. The behaviour of the pad traps is simulated
numerically and techniques for moving ions rapidly between traps are discussed.
Future experiments with these various designs are discussed. All of the designs
lend themselves to the construction of multiple trap arrays, as required for
scalable ion trap QIP.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figure
Characterization of Hybrid Ferroelectric/HTS Thin Films for Tunable Microwave Components
Since the discovery of High-Temperature-Superconductors (HTS) in 1986, a diversity of HTS-based microwave components has been demonstrated. Because of their low conductor losses, HTS-based components are very attractive for integration into microwave circuits for space communication systems. Recent advancements have made deposition of ferroelectric thin films onto HTS thin films possible. Due to the sensitivity of the ferroelectric's dielectric constant (epsilon(sub r)) to an externally applied electric field (E), ferroelectric/superconducting structures could be used in the fabrication of low loss, tunable microwave components. In this paper, we report on our study of Ba(0.5)Sr(0.5)TiO3/YBa2Cu3O(7-delta) and Ba(0.08)Sr(0.92)TiO3/YBa2Cu3O(7-delta) ferroelectric/superconducting thin films on lanthanum aluminate (LaAlO3) substrates. For the (Ba:Sr, 0.50:0.50) epitaxial sample, a epsilon(sub r) of 425 and a loss tangent (tan delta) of 0.040 were measured at 298 K, 1.0 MHz, and zero applied E. For the same sample, a epsilon(sub r) of 360 and tan delta of 0.036 were obtained at 77 K, 1.0 MHz, and zero applied E. Variations in epsilon(sub r) from 180 to 360 were observed over an applied E range of 0V/cm less than or equal to E less than or equal to 5.62 x 10(exp 4) V/cm with little change in tan delta. However, the range of epsilon(sub r) variation for the polycrystalline (Ba:Sr, 0.08:0.92) sample over 0V/cm less than or equal to E less than or equal to 4.00 x 10(exp 4) V/cm was only 3.6 percent while tan delta increased markedly. These results indicate that a lack of epitaxy between the ferroelectric and superconducting layers decreases tuning and increases microwave losses
Gap Formation by Planets in Turbulent Protostellar Disks
The processes of planet formation and migration depend intimately on the
interaction between planetesimals and the gaseous disks in which they form. The
formation of gaps in the disk can severely limit the mass of the planet and its
migration toward the protostar. We investigate the process of gap formation
through magnetohydrodynamic simulations in which internal stress arises
self-consistently from turbulence generated by the magnetorotational
instability. The simulations investigate three different planetary masses and
two disk temperatures to bracket the tidal (thermal) and viscous gap opening
conditions. The results are in general qualitative agreement with previous
simulations of gap formation, but show significant differences. In the presence
of MHD turbulence, the gaps produced are shallower and asymmetrically wider
than those produced with pure hydrodynamics. The rate of gap formation is also
slowed, with accretion occurring across the developing gap. Viscous
hydrodynamics does not adequately describe the evolution, however, because
planets capable of producing gaps also may be capable of affecting the level
MHD turbulence in different regions of the disk.Comment: accepted by Astrophysical Journal. For associated animations see
http://www.astro.virginia.edu/VITA/papers/planet1
Photo-disintegration cross section measurements on W, Re and Os: Implications for the Re-Os cosmochronology
Cross sections of the W, Re, Os() reactions
were measured using quasi-monochromatic photon beams from laser Compton
scattering (LCS) with average energies from 7.3 to 10.9 MeV. The results are
compared with the predictions of Hauser-Feshbach statistical calculations using
four different sets of input parameters. In addition, the inverse neutron
capture cross sections were evaluated by constraining the model parameters,
especially the strength function, on the basis of the experimental data.
The present experiment helps to further constrain the correction factor
for the neutron capture on the 9.75 keV state in Os.
Implications of to the Re-Os cosmochronology are discussed with a
focus on the uncertainty in the estimate of the age of the Galaxy.Comment: 11 page
Disk Planet Interactions and Early Evolution in Young Planetary Systems
We study and review disk protoplanet interactions using local shearing box
simulations. These suffer the disadvantage of having potential artefacts
arising from periodic boundary conditions but the advantage, when compared to
global simulations, of being able to capture much of the dynamics close to the
protoplanet at high resolution for low computational cost. Cases with and
without self sustained MHD turbulence are considered. The conditions for gap
formation and the transition from type I migration are investigated and found
to depend on whether the single parameter M_p R^3/(M_* H^3), with M_p, M_*, R
and H being the protoplanet mass, the central mass, the orbital radius and the
disk semi-thickness respectively exceeds a number of order unity. We also
investigate the coorbital torques experienced by a moving protoplanet in an
inviscid disk. This is done by demonstrating the equivalence of the problem for
a moving protoplanet to one where the protoplanet is in a fixed orbit which the
disk material flows through radially as a result of the action of an
appropriate external torque. For sustainable coorbital torques to be realized a
quasi steady state must be realized in which the planet migrates through the
disk without accreting significant mass. In that case although there is
sensitivity to computational parameters, in agreement with earlier work by
Masset & Papaloizou (2003) based on global simulations, the coorbital torques
are proportional to the migration speed and result in a positive feedback on
the migration, enhancing it and potentially leading to a runaway. This could
lead to a fast migration for protoplanets in the Saturn mass range in massive
disks and may be relevant to the mass period correlation for extrasolar planets
which gives a preponderance of sub Jovian masses at short orbital period.Comment: To appear in Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronomy (with higher
resolution figures
Design approaches in technology enhanced learning
Design is a critical to the successful development of any interactive learning environment (ILE). Moreover, in technology enhanced learning (TEL), the design process requires input from many diverse areas of expertise. As such, anyone undertaking tool development is required to directly address the design challenge from multiple perspectives. We provide a motivation and rationale for design approaches for learning technologies that draws upon Simon's seminal proposition of Design Science (Simon, 1969). We then review the application of Design Experiments (Brown, 1992) and Design Patterns (Alexander et al., 1977) and argue that a patterns approach has the potential to address many of the critical challenges faced by learning technologists
High-resolution measurement of the time-modulated orbital electron capture and of the decay of hydrogen-like Pm ions
The periodic time modulations, found recently in the two-body orbital
electron-capture (EC) decay of both, hydrogen-like Pr and
Pm ions, with periods near to 7s and amplitudes of about 20%,
were re-investigated for the case of Pm by using a 245 MHz
resonator cavity with a much improved sensitivity and time resolution. We
observed that the exponential EC decay is modulated with a period s, in accordance with a modulation period s as obtained
from simultaneous observations with a capacitive pick-up, employed also in the
previous experiments. The modulation amplitudes amount to and
for the 245 MHz resonator and the capacitive pick-up,
respectively. These new results corroborate for both detectors {\it exactly}
our previous findings of modulation periods near to 7s, though with {\it
distinctly smaller} amplitudes. Also the three-body decays have been
analyzed. For a supposed modulation period near to 7s we found an amplitude , compatible with and in agreement with the preliminary
result of our previous experiment. These observations could
point at weak interaction as origin of the observed 7s-modulation of the EC
decay. Furthermore, the data suggest that interference terms occur in the
two-body EC decay, although the neutrinos are not directly observed.Comment: In memoriam of Prof. Paul Kienle, 9 pages, 1 table, 5 figures Phys.
Lett. B (2013) onlin
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