Preliminary measurements of plasma fluctuations in an 8-cm mercury ion thruster

The rms magnitude, spectra, and cross correlations for the fluctuations in the beam current, the neutralizer keeper current, and the discharge current and voltage were measured for an 8-cm diameter, dished grid ion thruster for a beam current of 72 milliamps. The ratio of the rms magnitude of the fluctuations to the time-mean neutralizer keeper current was found to depend significantly on the neutralizer time-mean keeper current, the flow rate, and keeper hold diameter. The maxima of the spectra of the beam current fluctuations did not depend on the discharge fluctuations. It was found that: (1) the discharge current fluctuations do not directly contribute to the beam current fluctuations; and (2) the neutralizer contributions to the beam fluctuations are small (for good neutralizer-to-beam coupling) but not negligible and appear mostly in the higher frequency range measured

Toward an architecture for quantum programming

It is becoming increasingly clear that, if a useful device for quantum computation will ever be built, it will be embodied by a classical computing machine with control over a truly quantum subsystem, this apparatus performing a mixture of classical and quantum computation. This paper investigates a possible approach to the problem of programming such machines: a template high level quantum language is presented which complements a generic general purpose classical language with a set of quantum primitives. The underlying scheme involves a run-time environment which calculates the byte-code for the quantum operations and pipes it to a quantum device controller or to a simulator. This language can compactly express existing quantum algorithms and reduce them to sequences of elementary operations; it also easily lends itself to automatic, hardware independent, circuit simplification. A publicly available preliminary implementation of the proposed ideas has been realized using the C++ language.Comment: 23 pages, 5 figures, A4paper. Final version accepted by EJPD ("swap" replaced by "invert" for Qops). Preliminary implementation available at: http://sra.itc.it/people/serafini/quantum-computing/qlang.htm

Enhanced dynamical entanglement transfer with multiple qubits

We present two strategies to enhance the dynamical entanglement transfer from continuous variable (CV) to finite dimensional systems by employing multiple qubits. First, we consider the entanglement transfer to a composite finite dimensional system of many qubits simultaneously interacting with a bipartite CV field. We show that, considering realistic conditions in the generation of CV entanglement, a small number of qubits resonantly coupled to the CV system is sufficient for an almost complete dynamical transfer of the entanglement. Our analysis also sheds further light on the transition between microscopic and macroscopic behaviours of composite finite dimensional systems coupled to bosonic fields (like atomic clouds interacting with light). Furthermore, we present a protocol based on sequential interactions of the CV system with some ancillary qubit systems and on subsequent measurements, allowing to probabilistically convert CV entanglement into `almost perfect' Bell pairs of two qubits. Our proposals are suited for realizations in various experimental settings, ranging from cavity-QED to cavity-integrated superconducting devices.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures, RevTeX4; terminology revised; accepted for publicatio

A Method for Rapid Determination of the Icing Limit of a Body in Terms of the Stream Conditions

The effects of existing frictional heating were analyzed to determine the conditions under which ice formations on aircraft surfaces can be prevented. A method is presented for rapidly determining by means of charts the combination of-Mach number, altitude, and stream temperature which will maintain an ice-free surface in an icing cloud. The method can be applied to both subsonic and supersonic flow. The charts presented are for Mach numbers up to 1.8 and pressure altitudes from sea level to 45,000 feet

Plasma fluctuations in a Kaufman thruster

Measurements of the RMS magnitude, spectra, and cross correlations for the fluctuations in the beam, discharge, and neutralizer keeper currents are presented for a 30 cm diameter dished grid ion thruster for a range of magnetic baffle currents. The ratio of RMS to mean ion beam current varied from 0.04 to 0.23. The spectra of the amplitudes of the beam and discharge current fluctuations were taken up to 9 MHz and show that the predominant amplitudes occur at frequencies of 10 kHz or below. The falloff with increasing frequency is rapid. Frequencies above 100 kHz the spectral levels are 45 kb or more below the maximum peak amplitudes. The cross correlations revealed the ion beam fluctuations to have large radial and axial scales

A compact high-flux source of cold sodium atoms

We present a compact source of cold sodium atoms suitable for the production of quantum degenerate gases and versatile for a multi-species experiment. The magnetic field produced by permanent magnets allows to simultaneously realize a Zeeman slower and a two-dimensional MOT within an order of magnitude smaller length than standard sodium sources. We achieve an atomic flux exceeding 4x10^9 atoms/s loaded in a MOT, with a most probable longitudinal velocity of 20 m/s, and a brightness larger than 2.5x10^(12) atoms/s/sr. This atomic source allowed us to produce a pure BEC with more than 10^7 atoms and a background pressure limited lifetime of 5 minutes.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Laser-velocimeter flow-field measurements of an advanced turboprop

Non-intrusive measurements of velocity about a spinner-propeller-nacelle configuration at a Mach number of 0.8 were performed. A laser velocimeter, specifically developed for these measurements in the NASA Lewis 8-foot by 6-foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel, was used to measure the flow-field of the advanced swept SR-3 turboprop. The laser velocimeter uses an argon ion laser and a 2-color optics system to allow simultaneous measurements of 2-components of velocity. The axisymmetric nature of the propeller-nacelle flow-field permits two separate 2 dimensonal measurements to be combined into 3 dimensional velocity data. Presented are data ahead of and behind the prop blades and also a limited set in between the blades. Aspects of the observed flow-field such as the tip vortex are discussed

Impingement of Water Droplets on an NACA 65(sub 1) -212 Airfoil at an Angle of Attack of 4 Deg

The trajectories of droplets in the air flowing past an NACA 651-212 airfoil at an angle of attack of 40 were determined. The collection efficiency, the area of droplet impingement, and the rate of droplet impingement were calculated from the trajectories and are presented herein

Sub-picosecond compression by velocity bunching in a photo-injector

We present an experimental evidence of a bunch compression scheme that uses a traveling wave accelerating structure as a compressor. The bunch length issued from a laser-driven radio-frequency electron source was compressed by a factor >3 using an S-band traveling wave structure located immediately downstream from the electron source. Experimental data are found to be in good agreement with particle tracking simulations.Comment: 19 pages, 9 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Spec. Topics A&

Decoherence of number states in phase-sensitive reservoirs

The non-unitary evolution of initial number states in general Gaussian environments is solved analytically. Decoherence in the channels is quantified by determining explicitly the purity of the state at any time. The influence of the squeezing of the bath on decoherence is discussed. The behavior of coherent superpositions of number states is addressed as well.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, minor changes, references adde