Calculation of the number of partitions with constraints on the fragment size

This article introduces recursive relations allowing the calculation of the number of partitions with constraints on the minimum and/or on the maximum fragment size

Z-dependent Barriers in Multifragmentation from Poissonian Reducibility and Thermal Scaling

We explore the natural limit of binomial reducibility in nuclear multifragmentation by constructing excitation functions for intermediate mass fragments (IMF) of a given element Z. The resulting multiplicity distributions for each window of transverse energy are Poissonian. Thermal scaling is observed in the linear Arrhenius plots made from the average multiplicity of each element. ``Emission barriers'' are extracted from the slopes of the Arrhenius plots and their possible origin is discussed.Comment: 15 pages including 4 .ps figures. Submitted to Phys. Rev. Letters. Also available at http://csa5.lbl.gov/moretto

New Wrinkles on an Old Model: Correlation Between Liquid Drop Parameters and Curvature Term

The relationship between the volume and surface energy coefficients in the liquid drop A^{-1/3} expansion of nuclear masses is discussed. The volume and surface coefficients in the liquid drop expansion share the same physical origin and their physical connection is used to extend the expansion with a curvature term. A possible generalization of the Wigner term is also suggested. This connection between coefficients is used to fit the experimental nuclear masses. The excellent fit obtained with a smaller number of parameters validates the assumed physical connection.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figure

Laser-induced electron emission from a tungsten nanotip: identifying above threshold photoemission using energy-resolved laser power dependencies

We present an experiment studying the interaction of a strongly focused 25 fs laser pulse with a tungsten nanotip, investigating the different regimes of laser-induced electron emission. We study the dependence of the electron yield with respect to the static electric field applied to the tip. Photoelectron spectra are recorded using a retarding field spectrometer and peaks separated by the photon energy are observed with a 45 % contrast. They are a clear signature of above threshold photoemission (ATP), and are confirmed by extensive spectrally resolved studies of the laser power dependence. Understanding these mechanisms opens the route to control experiment in the strong-field regime on nanoscale objects.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure

Scaling Laws and Transient Times in 3He Induced Nuclear Fission

Fission excitation functions of compound nuclei in a mass region where shell effects are expected to be very strong are shown to scale exactly according to the transition state prediction once these shell effects are accounted for. The fact that no deviations from the transition state method have been observed within the experimentally investigated excitation energy regime allows one to assign an upper limit for the transient time of 10 zs.Comment: 7 pages, TeX type, psfig, submitted to Phys. Rev. C, also available at http://csa5.lbl.gov/moretto/ps/he3_paper.p

Fragment size correlations in finite systems - application to nuclear multifragmentation

We present a new method for the calculation of fragment size correlations in a discrete finite system in which correlations explicitly due to the finite extent of the system are suppressed. To this end, we introduce a combinatorial model, which describes the fragmentation of a finite system as a sequence of independent random emissions of fragments. The sequence is accepted when the sum of the sizes is equal to the total size. The parameters of the model, which may be used to calculate all partition probabilities, are the intrinsic probabilities associated with the fragments. Any fragment size correlation function can be built by calculating the ratio between the partition probabilities in the data sample (resulting from an experiment or from a Monte Carlo simulation) and the 'independent emission' model partition probabilities. This technique is applied to charge correlations introduced by Moretto and collaborators. It is shown that the percolation and the nuclear statistical multifragmentaion model ({\sc smm}) are almost independent emission models whereas the nuclear spinodal decomposition model ({\sc bob}) shows strong correlations corresponding to the break-up of the hot dilute nucleus into nearly equal size fragments

Investigating the auroral electrojets with low altitude polar orbiting satellites

International audienceThree geomagnetic satellite missions currently provide high precision magnetic field measurements from low altitude polar orbiting spacecraft. We demonstrate how these data can be used to determine the intensity and location of the horizontal currents that flow in the ionosphere, predominantly in the auroral electrojets. First, we examine the results during a recent geomagnetic storm. The currents derived from two satellites at different altitudes are in very good agreement, which verifies good stability of the method. Further, a very high degree of correlation (correlation coefficients of 0.8?0.9) is observed between the amplitudes of the derived currents and the commonly used auroral electrojet indices based on magnetic measurements at ground. This points to the potential of defining an auroral activity index based on the satellite observations, which could be useful for space weather monitoring. A specific advantage of the satellite observations over the ground-based magnetic measurements is their coverage of the Southern Hemisphere, as well as the Northern. We utilize this in an investigation of the ionospheric currents observed in both polar regions during a period of unusually steady interplanetary magnetic field with a large negative Y-component. A pronounced asymmetry is found between the currents in the two hemispheres, which indicates real inter-hemispheric differences beyond the mirror-asymmetry between hemispheres that earlier studies have revealed. The method is also applied to another event for which the combined measurements of the three satellites provide a comprehensive view of the current systems. The analysis hereof reveals some surprising results concerning the connection between solar wind driver and the resulting ionospheric currents. Specifically, preconditioning of the magnetosphere (history of the interplanetary magnetic field) is seen to play an important role, and in the winther hemisphere, it seems to be harder to drive currents on the nightside than on the dayside