Potential-enstrophy lengthscale for the turbulent/nonturbulent interface in stratified flow

We study properties of the turbulent/nonturbulent interface (TNTI) between two layers of stratified fluids through direct numerical simulations (DNSs). Zero mean shear forcing creates moderate turbulence in one of the layers with the Taylor microscale Reynolds numbers in the mixed region of Re λ = 35 , 44 . We focus on the similarities and differences of the properties of stratified TNTIs due to two distinct types of forcing: (a) convection due to a boundary heat source and (b) agitation resembling a vertically oscillating grid experiment. Similarly to other stratified flows, the small scale dynamics of the TNTI in the present DNSs differ from what would be expected in comparable yet unstratified TNTIs. The interface cannot be indeed uniquely identified by the commonly used vorticity ω . Instead, the potential enstrophy Π 2 is shown to be the most appropriate marker in these flow cases. It is emphasized that the Kolmogorov lengthscale η K ∼ √ ν / ω is not representative of the small scale dynamics of the interface. Hence, an alternative lengthscale, η Π , is defined, in analogy to the Kolmogorov scale, based on the potential enstrophy, η Π = ( ν 3 / Π ∗ ) 1 / 6 , being Π ∗ = | g / ρ 0 Π | . The conditionally averaged profiles of potential enstrophy Π 2 , enstrophy ω 2 , and turbulent kinetic energy dissipation ε of the two distinctly different turbulence forcing cases collapsed when scaled by η Π at different time instants in each simulation. This implies not only the self-similarity of the small scale statistics of the TNTI in either of the two cases, but also the similarity between the statistics of the two different turbulent flows in the proximity of TNTI

Rare-Earth Doped Phosphate Glass Fibers

We report on the fabrication and characterization of phosphate fibers doped with Yb and Yb/Er ions. Optical amplification and laser operation are demonstrated in short-length devices

New Developments in Tellurite Glass Fibers

Recent developments on the manufacture of tellurite glass fibers are presented. Technical issues related to glass synthesis, preform manufacturing and fiber drawing as well as prospective of commercial exploitation are discussed

Single-frequency, pulsed Yb3+-doped multicomponent phosphate power fiber amplifier

High-power, single-frequency, pulsed fiber amplifiers are required in light detection and ranging, coherent laser detection, and remote sensing applications to reach long range within a short acquisition time. However, the power-scaling of these amplifiers is limited by nonlinearities generated in the optical fibers, in particular by stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS). In this regard, the use of multicomponent phosphate glasses maximizes the energy extraction and minimizes nonlinearities. Here, we present the development of a single-stage, hybrid, pulsed fiber amplifier using a custom-made multicomponent Yb-doped phosphate fiber. The performance of the phosphate fiber was compared to a commercial Yb-doped silica fiber. While the latter showed SBS limitation at nearly 6.5 kW for 40 cm length, the maximum achieved output peak power for the multicomponent Yb-doped phosphate fiber was 11.7 kW for 9 ns pulses using only 20 cm with no sign of SBS

Analysis of Faraday effect in multimode tellurite glass optical fiber for magneto-optical sensing and monitoring applications

The design and fabrication of a tellurite glass multimode optical fiber for magneto-optical applications are presented and discussed. The analysis of the polarization shows that an optical beam, linearly polarized at the fiber input, changes to elliptically polarized with an ellipticity of 1∶4.5 after propagating down the fiber. However, the elliptical distribution remains unchanged with or without an applied magnetic field, demonstrating that no circular dichroism occurs within the fiber. The Verdet constant of the tellurite glass in the fiber is measured to be 28 0.5 rad · T ·m−1, diverging by less than 3% from the Verdet constant found on the same glass composition in bulk form. These results demonstrate the feasibility to develop reliable tellurite glass fibers by the preform drawing method for magneto-optical applications

Bioresorbable optical fiber Bragg gratings

We demonstrate, for the first time, an inscription and wet dissolution study of Bragg gratings in a bioresorbable calcium-phosphate glass optical fiber. Bragg gratings, with average refractive index changes of 5.8 × 10^−4, were inscribed using 193 nm excimer laser radiation. Results on the dissolution of the irradiated fiber in simulated physiological conditions are presented after immersing a tilted Bragg grating in a phosphate buffered saline solution for 56 h; selective chemical etching effects are also reported. The investigations performed pave the way toward the use of such phosphate glass fiber Bragg gratings for the development of soluble photonic sensing probes for the efficient in vivo monitoring of vital mechanical or chemical parameters

The future of Cybersecurity in Italy: Strategic focus area

This volume has been created as a continuation of the previous one, with the aim of outlining a set of focus areas and actions that the Italian Nation research community considers essential. The book touches many aspects of cyber security, ranging from the definition of the infrastructure and controls needed to organize cyberdefence to the actions and technologies to be developed to be better protected, from the identification of the main technologies to be defended to the proposal of a set of horizontal actions for training, awareness raising, and risk management

Effect of Partial Crystallization on the Structural and Luminescence Properties of Er3+-Doped Phosphate Glasses

Er-doped phosphate glass ceramics were fabricated by melt-quenching technique followed by a heat treatment. The effect of the crystallization on the structural and luminescence properties of phosphate glasses containing Al2O3, TiO2, and ZnO was investigated. The morphological and structural properties of the glass ceramics were characterized by Field Emission-Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), and micro-Raman spectroscopy. Additionally, the luminescence spectra and the lifetime values were measured in order to study the influence of the crystallization on the spectroscopic properties of the glasses. The volume ratio between the crystal and the glassy phases increased along with the duration of the heat treatment. The crystallization of the glass ceramics was confirmed by the presence of sharp peaks in the XRD patterns and different crystal phases were identified depending on the glass composition. Sr(PO3)(2) crystals were found to precipitate in all the investigated glasses. As evidenced by the spectroscopic properties, the site of the Er3+ ions was not strongly affected by the heat treatment except for the fully crystallized glass ceramic which does not contain Al2O3, TiO2, and ZnO. An increase of the lifetime was also observed after the heat treatment of this glass. Therefore, we suspect that the Er3+ ions are incorporated in the precipitated crystals only in this glass ceramic