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At least 343 records · Page 19

Neutrino production of electron–positron pairs in a moderately strong magnetic field

Neutrino production of electron–positron pairs via the processes v v-bar → e{sup −}e{sup +} and ν → νe{sup −}e{sup +} in a moderately strong magnetic field is investigated. Under these conditions electrons and positrons can be produced in the states corresponding to excited Landau levels. The results can be used for calculating the efficiency of the electron–positron plasma production by neutrinos in the conditions of the accretion disk around a Kerr black hole.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Generation of strong magnetic fields by counterpropagating moderate-intensity laser pulses in a low-density plasma

A study is made of the generation of strong quasistatic magnetic fields by counterpropagating moderate-intensity laser pulses of different frequencies in a low-density plasma. Strong magnetic fields are generated by small-scale large-amplitude plasma waves excited at different frequencies by ponderomotive forces in the interaction region of laser pulses. It is shown that magnetic fields are generated most efficiently under resonance conditions such that the frequency difference between laser pulses coincides with the plasma frequency. The spatial distribution of quasistatic magnetic fields is investigated, and the pattern of the contour lines of the electric current is calculated.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Similarities and distinctions of defect production by fast electron and proton irradiation: Moderately doped silicon and silicon carbide of n-type

Effects of irradiation with 0.9 MeV electrons as well as 8 and 15 MeV protons on moderately doped n-Si grown by the floating zone (FZ) technique and n-SiC (4H) grown by chemical vapor deposition are studied in a comparative way. It has been established that the dominant radiation-produced defects with involvement of V group impurities differ dramatically in electron- and proton-irradiated n-Si (FZ), in spite of the opinion on their similarity widespread in literature. This dissimilarity in defect structures is attributed to a marked difference in distributions of primary radiation defects for the both kinds of irradiation. In contrast, DLTS spectra taken on electron- and proton-irradiated n-SiC (4H) appear to be similar. However, there are very much pronounced differences in the formation rates of radiation-produced defects. Despite a larger production rate of Frenkel pairs in SiC as compared to that in Si, the removal rates of charge carriers in n-SiC (4H) were found to be considerably smaller than those in n-Si (FZ) for the both electron and proton irradiation. Comparison between defect production rates in the both materials under electron and proton irradiation is drawn.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

A Moderately Relativistic Subgigawatt Microwave Oscillator of Twistron Type Operating with 50% Efficiency

A regime of quasi-stationary microwave generation in moderately relativistic microwave oscillator of the twistron type with 50 ± 20% efficiency of electron beam power conversion into electromagnetic radiation has been obtained in experiment through optimization of the electron–wave interaction. For the selected electron beam parameters (diode voltage, 210 kV; beam current. 1.36 kA) the output microwave power at 10.63 GHz frequency was 140 ± 40 MW in a guiding magnetic field of about 1.9 T. The duration of microwave pulses was about 16 ns.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Combining lattice QCD and phenomenological inputs on generalised parton distributions at moderate skewness

Abstract We present a systematic study demonstrating the impact of lattice QCD data on the extraction of generalised parton distributions (GPDs). For this purpose, we use a previously developed modelling of GPDs based on machine learning techniques fulfilling the theoretical requirements of polynomiality, a form of positivity constraint and known reduction limits. A special care is given to estimate the uncertainty stemming from the ill-posed character of the connection between GPDs and the experimental processes usually considered to constrain them, like deeply virtual Compton scattering (DVCS). Moke lattice QCD data inputs are included in a Bayesian framework to a prior model based on an Artificial Neural Network. This prior model is fitted to reproduce the most experimentally accessible information of a phenomenological extraction by Goloskokov and Kroll. We highlight the impact of the precision, correlation and kinematic coverage of lattice data on GPD extraction at moderate $$\xi $$ ξ which has only been brushed in the literature so far, paving the way for a joint extraction of GPDs.

Physics↗

Evolution of gluon TMD at low and moderate x

We study how the rapidity evolution of gluon transverse momentum dependent distribution changes from nonlinear evolution at small x << 1 to linear double-logarithmic evolution at moderate x ~ 1.

Tarasov, Andrey↗

Wind Gust Characterization at Wind Turbine Relevant Heights in Moderately Complex Terrain

Improved understanding of wind gusts in complex terrain is critically important to wind engineering and specifically the wind energy industry. Observational data from 3D sonic anemometers deployed at 3 and 65 m at a site in moderately complex terrain within the northeastern United States are used to calculate 10 descriptors of wind gusts and to determine the parent distributions that best describe these parameters. It is shown that the parent distributions exhibit consistency across different descriptors of the gust climate. Specifically, the parameters that describe the gust intensity (gust amplitude, rise magnitude, and lapse magnitude; i.e., properties that have units of length per time) fit the two-parameter Weibull distribution, those that are unitless ratios (gust factor and peak factor) are described by log-logistic distributions, and all other properties (peak gust, rise and lapse times, gust asymmetric factor, and gust length scale) are lognormally distributed. It is also shown that gust factors scale with turbulence intensity, but gusts are distinguishable in power spectra of the longitudinal wind component (i.e., they have demonstrably different length scales than the average eddy length scale). Gust periods at the lower measurement height (3 m) are consistent with shear production, whereas at 65 m they are not. At this site, there is only a weak directional dependence of gust properties on site terrain and land cover variability along sectorial transects, but large gust length scales and gust factors are more likely to be observed in unstable atmospheric conditions.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

Erratum to: Permanent draft genome of Thermithiobacillus tepidarius DSM 3134T, a moderately thermophilic, obligately chemolithoautotrophic member of the Acidithiobacillia

The errors and associated corrections described in this document concerning the original manuscript were accountable to the production department handling this manuscript, and thus are no fault of the authors of this paper. Additionally, the online manuscript has now been updated with these corrections accordingly. In the original publication of this article, the title was displayed incorrectly as "Permanent draft genome of Thermithiobaclillus tepidarius DSM 3134T, a moderately thermophilic, obligately chemolithoautotrophic member of the Acidithiobacillia". The genus name "Thermithiobacillus" was misspelt as "Thermithiobaclillus". This has now been corrected in the original article.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Rossi-α measurements on a system consisting of weapons grade plutonium moderated by polyethylene

A critical experiment was performed on the Planet critical assembly to provide nuclear data in a thermal neutron spectrum, in particular to provide experimental data to help validate thermal scattering laws for polyethylene. The fuel consisted of layers of weapons grade plutonium plates that were moderated and reflected by various thicknesses of high density polyethylene. Rossi-α measurements were performed on a slightly modified configuration from the configuration used for the critical measurements. The Rossi-α measurement techniques are discussed and results are presented. The neutron spectrum appears to be extremely thermal when compared to other thermal systems and the configuration will be able to validate thermal scattering law.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

Benchmark evaluation of one dimensional array of HEU moderated and reflected by Lucite

The evaluation of two HEU-Lucite experiments is presented. The critical experiments were performed using the Planet Universal Critical Assembly Machine at Los Alamos National Laboratory in 2019. In these experiments, HEU foils were interleaved with Lucite in a column stack and were moderated and reflected from the square Lucite plates. The neutron data produced were used to approximate the multiplication of each measured configuration. The evaluation of the experiments using calculational techniques is presented in the paper. A Monte-Carlo computational model to be used with MCNP6 was developed for the determination of uncertainties and the effects of various uncertainties on the multiplication factor were studied. The evaluation of the benchmark was performed for comparison of calculation results with the experimental data and validation of calculation techniques in particular the newly available thermal scattering data for the Lucite material. The sensitivity studies include parametric variations of material composition and geometry. Experimental uncertainties were low, with the overall height of the HEU/Lucite stack being the largest contributor to the overall uncertainty in k{sub eff}. (authors)

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

Update on the Benchmark Analysis of the Jupiter Experiments: Plutonium Moderated by Lead

The Jupiter experiment was a series of measurements in the summer of 2017 to analyze the effects of voids in lead moderated plutonium assemblies. This experiment was part of a larger campaign that took place at the National Criticality Experiments Research Center (NCERC) in collaboration with the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) that also investigated assemblies with differing uranium enrichments. The purpose for this campaign was to provide data useful for a potential lead-bismuth cooled accelerator driven system. This data is needed due to the low number of benchmarks involving lead. Given the wide use of lead for shielding in addition to new reactor designs, there is a need for further benchmarking that this experiment could help fulfill. In addition, adding more benchmarks to the International Criticality Safety Benchmark Evaluation Project (ICSBEP) is helpful for further validation of simulation methods used for criticality safety. This summary is an update on the current progress of this analysis, and all results shown are preliminary.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

A compact furnace to support in situ neutron imaging of hydrogen dynamics in yttrium hydride moderators

A compact, nuclear microreactor that utilizes low-enriched uranium fuel is a promising solution to meet U.S. energy demands in nonconventional nuclear markets such as remote and decentralized energy grids. Yttrium hydride (YHx) is a potential moderator material for a microreactor design that reduces the amount of required fuel and provides superior retention of hydrogen at high reactor operating temperatures. Hydrogen diffusion properties in YHx are highly sought after for computer model validation and reactor prototyping. To characterize hydrogen diffusion, a compact dual-zone furnace was developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory and analyzed via neutron imaging at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE). The goal of these measurements is to assess hydrogen diffusion in YHx samples as a function of applied temperature gradients. Included herein is recent progress in technique and furnace developments as well as initial results from concentration- and temperature-gradient measurements at LANSCE.

Torres, James↗

Improved Regional Moment Tensor Inversion for Moderately Large Earthquakes in the Western United States Using a 3D Earth Model Based on Full Waveform Tomography

The nature of seismic sources for moderately large (moment magnitude, M w 5.0–6.5) events are commonly characterized by their moment tensor (MT) solutions and obtained by inversion of regional distance (200–1600 km) long‐period (20–50 s) waveforms. Regional MT estimates are often calculated from average plane‐layered, one‐dimensional (1D) velocity models. However, 1D model calculations can produce misfits in the arrival times and waveform shapes that introduce errors, particularly at longer distances or for shorter periods, which are necessary for analyzing lower magnitude events. Approximate Earth models (e.g., 1D) representing broad areas may be inadequate, particularly in the crust and uppermost mantle of tectonically complex regions. In this study, we show how a three‐dimensional (3D) Earth model obtained from full waveform inversion tomography can improve waveform fits and decrease phase errors. We developed a platform and workflow to perform routine 3D MT inversions and inverted MTs for 25 earthquakes in the western United States and seven nuclear explosions using an average 1D and a recent 3D Earth model, WUS256 (Rodgers et al., 2022). Using the 3D model improves waveform fits (variance reduction and phase time shifts) compared with the 1D model, and the 3D MT solutions are stable across large distances. This study shows that 3D models obtained from full waveform tomography can improve MTs and source characterization especially at far regional distances (>800 km).

Geosciences↗

2 x 2 Polyethylene Reflected and Moderated Highly Enriched Uranium System with Rhenium

The 2 × 2 array HEU-Re experiment was performed on the Planet universal critical assembly machine on November 4th, 2003 at the Los Alamos Critical Experiments Facility (LACEF) at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). For this experiment, there were 10 ½ units, each full unit containing four HEU foils and two rhenium foils. The top unit contained only two HEU foils and two rhenium foils. A total of 42 HEU foils were used for this experiment. Rhenium is a desirable cladding material for space nuclear power applications. This experiment consisted of HEU foils interleaved with rhenium foils and is moderated and reflected by polyethylene plates. A unit consisted of a polyethylene plate, which has a recess for rhenium foils, and four HEU foils in a single layer in the top recess of each polyethylene plate. The Planet universal criticality assembly machine has been previously used in experiments containing HEU foils interspersed with SiO2 (HEU-MET-THERM-001), Al (HEU-MET-THERM-008), MgO (HEU-MET-THERM-009), Gd foils (HEU-MET-THERM-010), 2 × 2 × 26 Al (HEU-MET-THERM-012), Fe (HEU-MET-THERM-013 and HEU-MET-THERM-015), 2 × 2 × 23 SiO2 (HEU-MET-THERM-014), 2 × 2 × 11 hastalloy plates (HEU-MET-THERM-016), and concrete (HEU-MET-THERM-018). The 2 × 2 array of HEU-Re is considered acceptable for use as a benchmark critical experiment.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Search For a Consistent Mean-Field Treatment of Magnetic Properties of Yittrium-Cobalt-5 Under Moderate Hydrostatic Stress

We explore the use of particular variants of DFT + U and DFT + orbital polarization (OP) to calculate the electronic structure and magnetic properties of YCo5 under hydrostatic pressures up to 600 kbar. While the speci c DFT + U (with U= 0.75 eV) and DFT + OP schemes we employ produce magneto-crystalline anisotropy energies for YCo5 in good agreement with experiments performed in ambient conditions, our DFT + U results are shown to greatly overestimate the pressure at which a high-spin to low-spin (HS-LS) transition is known to occur. In contrast, our DFT + OP results predict the HS-LS transition to occur at the same stress as DFT, and in better agreement with experiment. This sensitivity suggests that care should be taken when attempting to model magnetic properties with self-interaction and/or correlation corrections to DFT for this and related materials, and highlights the usefulness of moderate pressure as an additional parameter to vary when discriminating between candidate theoretical schemes.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Energy Efficiency Financing for Low- and Moderate-Income Households: Current State of the Market, Issues, and Opportunities

Ensuring that low- and moderate-income (LMI) households have access to energy efficiency is equitable, provides energy savings as a resource to meet energy needs, and can support multiple policy goals, such as affordable energy, job creation, and improved public health. Although the need is great, many LMI households may not be able to afford efficiency improvements or may be inhibited from adopting efficiency for other reasons. Decision-makers across the country are currently exploring the challenges and potential solutions to ramping up adoption of efficiency in LMI households, including the use of financing. The report’s objective is to offer state and local policymakers, state utility regulators, program administrators, financial institutions, consumer advocates and other LMI stakeholders with an understanding of: -The relationship between LMI communities and financing for energy efficiency, including important considerations for its use such as consumer protections -The larger programmatic context of grant-based assistance and other related resources supporting LMI household energy efficiency -Lessons learned from existing energy efficiency financing programs serving LMI households -Financing products used by these programs and their relative advantages and disadvantages in addressing barriers to financing or to energy efficiency uptake for LMI households

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

Rooftop Solar Technical Potential for Low-to-Moderate Income Households in the United States

This report presents a first-of-kind assessment of the technical potential of rooftop solar for low and moderate-income households, as well as providing insight on the distribution of solar potential by tenure, income, and other building characteristics. We find that a substantial fraction of the national rooftop solar potential is located on LMI buildings and, for all incomes, a substantial fraction on multi-family and renter-occupied buildings. We also find that rooftop solar can significantly contribute to long-term penetration targets established by the U.S. DOE, though to do so requires deployment on multi-family and renter-occupied buildings. Traditional deployment models have insufficiently enabled access to solar for these income groups and building types. Without innovation either in regulatory, market, or policy factors, a large fraction of the U.S. potential is unlikely to be addressed, as well as leading to inequalities in solar access. Ironically, potential electric bill savings from rooftop solar would have the greatest material impact on the lives of low-income households as compared to their high-income counterparts.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗