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Results for “phase measurement”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 595 records · Page 33
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Field-induced partial disorder in a Shastry-Sutherland lattice

Abstract A 2-Q antiferromagnetic order of the ferromagnetic dimers was found below T N = 2.9 K in the Shastry-Sutherland lattice BaNd 2 ZnS 5 by single crystal neutron diffraction. The magnetic order can be understood by the orthogonal arrangement of local Ising Nd spins, identified by polarized neutrons. A field was applied along [1 -1 0] to probe the observed metamagnetic transition in the magnetization measurement. The field decouples two magnetic sublattices corresponding to the propagation vectors q 1 = (½, ½, 0) and q 2 = (−½, ½, 0), respectively. Each sublattice shows a “stripe” order with a Néel-type arrangement in each single layer. The “stripe” order with q 1 remains nearly intact up to 6 T, while the other one with q 2 is suppressed at a critical field H c ~1.7 T, indicating a partial disorder. The H c varies with temperature and is manifested in the H - T phase diagram constructed by measuring the magnetization in BaNd 2 ZnS 5 .

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2025

CROCUS Air Quality Dataset from the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), July 2024

This dataset was collected by the measurement system in the Atmosphere, Climate, and Ecosystems (ACE) Lab at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) from July 12 to July 31, 2024, as part of the Community Research on Climate and Urban Science (CROCUS) Urban Integrated Field Laboratory (UIFL) project, led by Argonne National Laboratory.To enhance understanding of urban air quality dynamics in Chicago, and as part of the CROCUS 2024 Urban Canyon Intensive Observation Period (IOP), several instruments were set up to provide continuous measurements of air quality parameters in Chicago during July 2024. These measurements cover both aerosols and gas-phase species. It focuses on particle size distribution (2.5–478 nm) measured by two Scanning Mobility Particle Sizers (SMPS) at a 4-min resolution, total particle number concentrations at a 1-s resolution, and chemical composition from a High-Resolution Time-of-Flight Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS) at a 1-min resolution. Key gas-phase species, including NO, NO₂, SO₂, and O₃, are measured at a 1-min resolution, along with high-resolution NO and dimethyl sulfide (DMS) data from a Chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometer (CIMS). Volatile organic compound (VOC) data for toluene, isoprene, and benzene are provided by a GC-PID with a time resolution of 25 minutes.The data are formatted as NetCDF (.nc) files, making them easily accessible using common software such as MATLAB, R, and Python. Each parameter is stored in an individual dataset, which includes detailed instrument information in the header, as well as the corresponding sample start time and concentration/distribution data for each sample.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2026

Combination and interpretation of differential Higgs boson production cross sections in proton-proton collisions at $ \sqrt{s}=13 $ TeV

Precision measurements of Higgs boson differential production cross sections are a key tool to probe the properties of the Higgs boson and test the standard model. New physics can affect both Higgs boson production and decay, leading to deviations from the distributions that are expected in the standard model. In this paper, combined measurements of differential spectra in a fiducial region matching the experimental selections are performed, based on analyses of four Higgs boson decay channels (γγ, ZZ$^{(*)}$, WW$^{(*)}$, and ττ) using proton-proton collision data recorded with the CMS detector at $ \sqrt{s}=13 $ TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb$^{−1}$. The differential measurements are extrapolated to the full phase space and combined to provide the differential spectra. A measurement of the total Higgs boson production cross section is also performed using the γγ and ZZ decay channels, with a result of $ {53.4}_{-2.9}^{+2.9}{\left(\textrm{stat}\right)}_{-1.8}^{+1.9}\left(\textrm{syst}\right) $ pb, consistent with the standard model prediction of 55.6 ± 2.5 pb. The fiducial measurements are used to compute limits on Higgs boson couplings using the κ-framework and the SM effective field theory.[graphic not available: see fulltext]

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Data-driven discovery of dynamics from time-resolved coherent scattering

Coherent X-ray scattering (CXS) techniques are capable of interrogating dynamics of nano- to mesoscale materials systems at time scales spanning several orders of magnitude. However, obtaining accurate theoretical descriptions of complex dynamics is often limited by one or more factors—the ability to visualize dynamics in real space, computational cost of high-fidelity simulations, and effectiveness of approximate or phenomenological models. In this work, we develop a data-driven framework to uncover mechanistic models of dynamics directly from time-resolved CXS measurements without solving the phase reconstruction problem for the entire time series of diffraction patterns. Our approach uses neural differential equations to parameterize unknown real-space dynamics and implements a computational scattering forward model to relate real-space predictions to reciprocal-space observations. This method is shown to recover the dynamics of several computational model systems under various simulated conditions of measurement resolution and noise. Moreover, the trained model enables estimation of long-term dynamics well beyond the maximum observation time, which can be used to inform and refine experimental parameters in practice. Finally, we demonstrate an experimental proof-of-concept by applying our framework to recover the probe trajectory from a ptychographic scan. Our proposed framework bridges the wide existing gap between approximate models and complex data.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Repulsive Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid in the quasi-one-dimensional alternating spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ antiferromagnet NaVOPO 4

Here, we probe the magnetic field-induced Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid (TLL) state in the bond-alternating spin1/2 antiferromagnetic (AFM) chain compound NaVOPO 4 using thermodynamic as well as local μSR and 31 P NMR probes down to mK temperatures in magnetic fields up to 14 T. The μSR and NMR relaxation rates in the gapless TLL regime decay slowly following characteristic power-law behavior, enabling us to directly determine the interaction parameter K as a function of the magnetic field. These estimates are crosschecked using magnetization and specific heat data. The field-dependent K lies in the range of 0.4 < K < 1 and indicates the repulsive nature of interactions between the spinless fermions, in line with the theoretical predictions. This renders NaVOPO 4 the first experimental realization of TLL with repulsive fermionic interactions in hitherto studied S = 1/2 bond-alternating AFM-AFM chain compounds.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2020

Measurement of Beam-Correlated Background Neutrons from the Fermilab Booster Neutrino Beam in ANNIE Phase-I

The Accelerator Neutrino Neutron Interaction Experiment (ANNIE) aims to make a unique measurement of neutron yield from neutrino-nucleus interactions and to perform R&D for the next generation of water-based neutrino detectors. In this paper, we characterize beam-induced neutron backgrounds in the experimental hall at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory. It is shown that the background levels are sufficiently low to allow the next stage of the experiment to proceed. These measurements are relevant to other Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB) [1] experiments located adjacent to ANNIE Hall, where dirt neutrons and sky-shine could present similar backgrounds.

Particle identification methods↗
DOE OSTI2022

Superconducting properties of the spin Hall candidate Ta 3 Sb with eightfold degeneracy

We report the synthesis and characterization of phase pure Ta 3 Sb, a material predicted to be topological with eightfold degenerate fermionic states [Bradlyn et al., Science 353, aaf5037 (2016)] and to exhibit a large spin Hall effect [Derunova et al., Sci. Adv. 5, eaav8575 (2019)]. We observe superconductivity in Ta 3 Sb with T c ~0.67 K in both electrical resistivity ρ(T) and specific heat c(T) measurements. Field-dependent measurements yield the superconducting phase diagram with an upper critical field of H c2 (0) ~0.95 T, corresponding to a superconducting coherence length of ξ ≈ 18.6 nm. The gap ratio deduced from specific heat anomaly, 2Δ 0 /k B T c is 3.46, a value close to the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer value of 3.53. From a detailed analysis of both the transport and thermodynamic data within the Ginsburg-Landau (GL) framework, a GL parameter of κ ≈ 90 is obtained, identifying Ta 3 Sb as an extreme type-II superconductor. The observation of superconductivity in an eightfold degenerate fermionic compound with topological surface states and predicted large spin Hall conductance positions Ta 3 Sb as an appealing platform to further explore exotic quantum states in multifold degenerate systems.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2025

Controlling structural phases of Sn through lattice engineering

Topology and superconductivity, two distinct phenomena, offer unique insight into quantum properties and their applications in quantum technologies, spintronics, and sustainable energy technologies. Tin (Sn) plays a pivotal role here as an element because of its two structural phases, α-Sn exhibiting topological characteristics and β-Sn showing superconductivity. Here, we demonstrate precise control of these phases in Sn thin films using molecular beam epitaxy with systematically varied lattice parameters of the buffer layer. The Sn films exhibit either β-Sn or α-Sn phases as the buffer layer's lattice constant varies from 6.10 Å to 6.48 Å, spanning the range from GaSb (like InAs) to InSb. Further, the crystal structures of α- and β-Sn films are characterized by x-ray diffraction and confirmed by Raman spectroscopy and scanning transmission electron microscopy. Atomic force microscopy validates the smooth, continuous surface morphology. Electrical transport measurements further verify the phases: resistance drop near 3.7 K for β-Sn superconductivity and Shubnikov-de Haas oscillations for α-Sn topological characteristics. Density functional theory shows that α-Sn is stable under tensile strain and β-Sn under compressive strain, aligning well with experimental findings. Hence, this study introduces a platform controlling Sn phases through lattice engineering, enabling innovative applications in quantum technologies and beyond.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

The Earth Model Column Collaboratory (EMC 2 ) v1.1: an open-source ground-based lidar and radar instrument simulator and subcolumn generator for large-scale models

Abstract. Climate models are essential for our comprehensive understanding of Earth's atmosphere and can provide critical insights on future changes decades ahead. Because of these critical roles, today's climate models are continuously being developed and evaluated using constraining observations and measurements obtained by satellites, airborne, and ground-based instruments. Instrument simulators can provide a bridge between the measured or retrieved quantities and their sampling in models and field observations while considering instrument sensitivity limitations. Here we present the Earth Model Column Collaboratory (EMC2), an open-source ground-based lidar and radar instrument simulator and subcolumn generator, specifically designed for large-scale models, in particular climate models, but also applicable to high-resolution model output. EMC2 provides a flexible framework enabling direct comparison of model output with ground-based observations, including generation of subcolumns that may statistically represent finer model spatial resolutions. In addition, EMC2 emulates ground-based (and air- or space-borne) measurements while remaining faithful to large-scale models' physical assumptions implemented in their cloud or radiation schemes. The simulator uses either single particle or bulk particle size distribution lookup tables, depending on the selected scheme approach, to perform the forward calculations. To facilitate model evaluation, EMC2 also includes three hydrometeor classification methods, namely, radar- and sounding-based cloud and precipitation detection and classification, lidar-based phase classification, and a Cloud Feedback Model Intercomparison Project Observational Simulator Package (COSP) lidar simulator emulator. The software is written in Python, is easy to use, and can be straightforwardly customized for different models, radars, and lidars. Following the description of the logic, functionality, features, and software structure of EMC2, we present a case study of highly supercooled mixed-phase cloud based on measurements from the U.S. Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) West Antarctic Radiation Experiment (AWARE). We compare observations with the application of EMC2 to outputs from four configurations of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) climate model (ModelE3) in single-column model (SCM) mode and from a large-eddy simulation (LES) model. We show that two of the four ModelE3 configurations can form and maintain highly supercooled precipitating cloud for several hours, consistent with observations and LES. While our focus is on one of these ModelE3 configurations, which performed slightly better in this case study, both of these configurations and the LES results post-processed with EMC2 generally provide reasonable agreement with observed lidar and radar variables. As briefly demonstrated here, EMC2 can provide a lightweight and flexible framework for comparing the results of both large-scale and high-resolution models directly with observations, with relatively little overhead and multiple options for achieving consistency with model microphysical or radiation scheme physics.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2021

Quantitative phase microscopy monitors subcellular dynamics in single cells exposed to nanosecond pulsed electric fields

A substantial body of literature exists to study the dynamics of single cells exposed to short duration (<1 μs), high peak power (~1 MV/m) transient electric fields. Much of this research is limited to traditional fluorescence-based microscopy techniques, which introduce exogenous agents to the culture and are only sensitive to a single molecular target. Quantitative phase imaging (QPI) is a coherent imaging modality which uses optical path length as a label-free contrast mechanism, and has proven highly effective for the study of single-cell dynamics. In this work, we introduce QPI as a useful imaging tool for the study of cells undergoing cytoskeletal remodeling after nanosecond pulsed electric field (nsPEF) exposure. In particular, we use cell swelling, dry mass and disorder strength measurements derived from QPI phase images to monitor the cellular response to nsPEFs. We hope this demonstration of QPI's utility will lead to a further adoption of the technique for the study

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Chemistry of Sugar Formation in the Gas Phase: Following the Activated Aldehyde

Sugars are produced by living organisms, and are required building blocks for life as we know it, which raises the foundational question of how sugars formed in a prebiotic environment. The abiotic formose reaction produces sugars from formaldehyde, but our understanding of its initiation step remains murky, with chemists invoking the concept of an “activated aldehyde” to seed this reaction. Singlet hydroxycarbenes, high-energy isomers of aldehydes, were recently reported to facilitate sugar formation under cold, nonaqueous conditions relevant to interstellar environments. Here, we generate singlet methylhydroxycarbene ( 1 CH 3 –C̈–OH) from the photodissociation of pyruvic acid and experimentally measure its gas-phase reaction with d 4 -acetaldehyde using multiplexed photoionization mass spectrometry. The C 4 H 4 D 4 O 2 isomer d 4 -acetoin is the sole product, which we kinetically link to the reactant CH 3 –C̈–OH, and attribute to a carbonyl-ene formation mechanism. We see no evidence of 3-hydroxybutanal, the C–H insertion product expected in carbene chemistry. Using automated exploration we calculate stationary points on the potential energy surface and report master equation rate coefficients from T = 20–600 K, providing quantitative kinetics of this fast reaction for use in chemical models. The prereactive complex in this reaction is stabilized by both hydrogen bonding and electrophilic carbene C═O interactions. These effects create a short-range dynamical bottleneck for the reaction besides the long- and midrange barrierless bottlenecks. Combined with recent reports of 1 HC̈OH production from methanol photodissociation and pyruvic acid production in cold irradiated ices, this work provides evidence that singlet hydroxycarbene + aldehyde chemistry is a feasible path to prebiotic sugar formation.

aldehydes↗
DOE OSTI2021

Visualization of Fast Ion Phase-Space Flow Driven by Alfvén Instabilities

Fast ion phase-space flow, driven by Alfven eigenmodes (AEs), is measured by an imaging neutral particle analyzer in the DIII-D tokamak. The flow firstly appears near the minimum safety factor at the injection energy of neutral beams, and then moves radially inward and outward by gaining and losing energy, respectively. The flow trajectories in phase space align well with the intersection lines of the constant magnetic moment surfaces and constant E – (ω/n)P ζ surfaces, where E, P ζ are energy and toroidal canonical momentum of ions; ω and n are angular frequencies and toroidal mode numbers of AEs. It is found that the flow is so destructive that the thermalization of fast ions is no longer observed in regions of strong interaction. Here, the measured phase-space flow is consistent with nonlinear hybrid kinetic-magnetohydrodynamics simulation. Calculations of the relatively narrow phase-space islands reveal that fast ions must transition between different flow trajectories to experience large-scale phase-space transport.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Identifying Topological Defects in Lamellar Phases through Contour Analysis of Complex Wave Fields

Lamellar phases frequently contain structural imperfections that significantly affect their behaviors and properties. Our previous research successfully reconstructed real-space configurations of defective lamellar phases from diffuse scattering patterns, indicating the presence of phase vortices as a potential method for identifying topological defects disrupting the smectic ordering. Here, this report presents a mathematical framework using regularized wave fields to represent defective lamellar structures in real space. Phase singularities, resulting from the interference of random waves and indicating lamellar order disruption, are identified through a contour integral. These wave fields, derived from coherent scattering in reciprocal space, were validated via computational benchmarks analyzing small-angle neutron scattering data from AOT surfactant solutions, facilitating further statistical analysis of the defects. Our study highlights the potential to extract meaningful information about topological defects in lyotropic phases by inversely analyzing experimentally measured two-point static correlations. Our method allows for detailed structural analysis of various lyotropic phases, both particulate and nonparticulate, in their quiescent states and facilitates quantitative investigation of defects’ role in phase transitions. By integrating small-angle scattering, deep learning, and vortex tangle analysis, our comprehensive approach shows promise in addressing complex challenges in the structural analysis of soft matter systems.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

X-ray scattering signatures of early-time accelerations in iodine dissociation

Ultrafast time-resolved x-ray scattering (TRXS) from a photoexcited molecular ensemble measures a distribution $S(Q, τ)$ of the x-ray momentum transfer Q and pump-probe delay τ in which all modes of motion induced by the excitation overlap. Frequency-resolved x-ray scattering (FRXS) based on $\tilde {S}\left(Q,\omega \right)$ separates each oscillation and dissociation channel in the TRXS data, enabling measurements of vibrational frequencies and phases, and dissociation velocities and time shifts. In this work, we extend FRXS analysis to study early-time accelerations as well. We show how these appear as diffuse scattering patterns with characteristic phase evolution in FXRS and we develop a set of transformations that isolate individual channels to measure the early-time accelerated motion. This procedure is used to analyze diatomic iodine x-ray scattering data with multiple dissociations, and the ability of this technique to characterize early-time accelerations of one dissociation channel even in the presence of another dissociation is demonstrated.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Imaging Field–Driven Melting of a Molecular Solid at the Atomic Scale

Solid–liquid phase transitions are basic physical processes, but atomically resolved microscopy has yet to capture their full dynamics. A new technique is developed for controlling the melting and freezing of self–assembled molecular structures on a graphene field–effect transistor (FET) that allows phase–transition behavior to be imaged using atomically resolved scanning tunneling microscopy. This is achieved by applying electric fields to 2,3,5,6–tetrafluoro–7,7,8,8–tetracyanoquinodimethane–decorated FETs to induce reversible transitions between molecular solid and liquid phases at the FET surface. Nonequilibrium melting dynamics are visualized by rapidly heating the graphene substrate with an electrical current and imaging the resulting evolution toward new 2D equilibrium states. An analytical model is developed that explains observed mixed–state phases based on spectroscopic measurement of solid and liquid molecular energy levels. The observed nonequilibrium melting dynamics are consistent with Monte Carlo simulations.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Measurement of the CKM angle γ with B ± → D[K ∓ π ± π ± π ∓ ]h ± decays using a binned phase-space approach

The CKM angle γ is determined from CP-violating observables measured in B ± → D[K ∓ π ± π ± π ∓ ]h ± , (h = K, π) decays, where the measurements are performed in bins of the decay phase-space of the D meson. Using proton-proton collision data collected by the LHCb experiment at centre-of-mass energies of 7, 8 and 13 TeV, corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of 9 fb –1 , γ is determined to be $\gamma ={\left(54.8\begin{array}{c}+6.0\\ {}-5.8\end{array}\begin{array}{c}+0.6\\ {}-0.6\end{array}\begin{array}{c}+6.7\\ {}-4.3\end{array}\right)}^{\circ },$ where the first uncertainty is statistical, the second systematic and the third from the external inputs on the coherence factors and strong phases of the D-meson decays.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Plutonium migration and phase evolution in irradiated U-Pu-Zr metallic fuels: An integrated EPMA-SEM-TEM study

Constituent redistribution is a defining feature of irradiated U-Pu-Zr metallic fuels, yet its mechanisms and effects on fuel performance are not sufficiently resolved to guide model development. Although decades of irradiation testing have established broad trends, a true mechanistic understanding of constituent redistribution has not been achieved. Here, in this study, we use electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy-based (TEM) selective area electron diffraction (SAED) on a EBR-II irradiated U-19 wt.% Pu-6 wt.% Zr fuel pin cross-section to correlate the composition, porosity, and crystallographic phases formed after irradiation. Constituent redistribution is thought to consist of three distinct zones, in which uranium and zirconium migrate while plutonium remains relatively unchanged. Our EPMA results resolve eight distinct compositional regions, and more importantly, show that plutonium redistributes alongside zirconium, contrary to historical assumptions. The distribution of fission products was highly asymmetric with a few large lanthanide precipitates observed at isolated sites on the pin periphery instead of a uniform distribution of smaller precipitates around the periphery. Using thermodynamic data from TAF-ID and the measured EPMA compositions, matrix phase fractions were predicted across the fuel radius. Phase predictions based on composition did not match TEM/SAED results, which revealed a much higher fraction of α−U phase than would be expected if phases were retained from reactor temperatures. These findings highlight the need for expanded SAED phase identification to capture post-irradiation and storage effects, as well as rigorous uncertainty quantification in fuel performance and phase diagram modeling to better constrain predictions from compositional data.

11 - NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Mapping nanocrystal orientations via scanning Laue diffraction microscopy for multi-peak Bragg coherent diffraction imaging

The recent commissioning of a movable monochromator at the 34-ID-C endstation of the Advanced Photon Source has vastly simplified the collection of Bragg coherent diffraction imaging (BCDI) data from multiple Bragg peaks of sub-micrometre scale samples. Laue patterns arising from the scattering of a polychromatic beam by arbitrarily oriented nanocrystals permit their crystal orientations to be computed, which are then used for locating and collecting several non-co-linear Bragg reflections. The volumetric six-component strain tensor is then constructed by combining the projected displacement fields that are imaged using each of the measured reflections via iterative phase retrieval algorithms. Complications arise when the sample is heterogeneous in composition and/or when multiple grains of a given lattice structure are simultaneously illuminated by the polychromatic beam. Here, a workflow is established for orienting and mapping nanocrystals on a substrate of a different material using scanning Laue diffraction microscopy. The capabilities of the developed algorithms and procedures with both synthetic and experimental data are demonstrated. The robustness is verified by comparing experimental texture maps obtained with Laue diffraction microscopy at the beamline with maps obtained from electron back-scattering diffraction measurements on the same patch of gold nanocrystals. Such tools provide reliable indexing for both isolated and densely distributed nanocrystals, which are challenging to image in three dimensions with other techniques.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗