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At least 937 records · Page 52

Shift Validation Plan for CASL

This document outlines the benchmarks that will be used for Shift validation for CASL. This plan is divided into five main types of problems, with each building upon the previous: small criticality benchmark problems, including small reactor configurations and critical assemblies; full-core reactor benchmarks for light water reactors; fixed source coupled neutron-photon dosimetry benchmarks; depletion/burnup benchmarks ranging from small pincell problems to full-core reactor depletion; and full-core reactor performance benchmarks. Some of these benchmarks have measured data for comparison and some only have simulated Monte Carlo radiation transport code results for comparison. Upon completion of this validation plan, we will have confidence in Shift to provide reference results for CASL benchmarking.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

Structural- and optical-property characterization of three-dimensional branched ZnO nanospikes

Current study reports the synthesis of three-dimensional (3-D) ZnO nanospikes with anomalous optical property, where zinc stearate is adopted as a safe, common and low-cost precursor that undergoes thermal pyrolysis under non-hydrolytic approach. High resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) result show that the as-synthesized 3-D ZnO nanospikes are constructed by bundle of nanorods that sprout radially outwards in random orientation. The possible growth mechanism is discussed by referring to the microscopy results. X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern confirms that the nanospikes are highly crystalline, which existed in hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure. Optical absorption characterization shows that the onset absorption for the nanospikes is slightly red-shifted if compared to commercial ZnO and the corresponding bandgap energy is estimated to be 3.1 eV. The photoluminescene (PL) result of ZnO nanospikes indicate that its optical emission exhibits weak UV emission but very intense visible-light emission that ranged from green- up to red-region. The factors that contributed to the intriguing PL characteristic are discussed. Current finding would offer a versatile synthesis scheme in engineering advanced nanostructures with new design that exhibit congruent optical property. - Graphical abstract: Display Omitted - Highlights: • Pyrolysis of zinc stearate in synthesizing 3-D ZnO nanospikes • ZnO nanospikes possess bundle of nanorods that sprout out from the hexagonal stump • Growth mechanism is deduced to elucidate the morphological evolution from nanobullet to nanospike with branching topology • PL spectrum indicate that the nanospike exhibit prominent visible-light emission that ranged from green- to red-region.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

(NH 3 (CH 2 ) 7 NH 3 ) 2 Sn 3 I 10 , a Vacancy-Ordered Three-Dimensional Tin(II) Perovskite-Derived Semiconductor

Ordering vacancies in hybrid Sn(II) halide semiconductors provides a strategy for preventing uncontrolled oxidation and formation of mobile holes. In this study, we report the structure and optical and electronic properties of (NH 3 (CH 2 ) 7 NH 3 ) 2 Sn 3 I 10 , a vacancy-ordered perovskite derivative with three-dimensional inorganic connectivity. The crystal structure resembles that of a Dion–Jacobson layered perovskite derivative, but with [SnI 5 ] square pyramids bridging the layers. UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy reveals a sharp onset of light absorption at 1.86(1) eV with the photoluminescence emission maximum at 1.90(1) eV. However, the maximum excitation occurs from 3.42 to 3.81 eV (325 to 370 nm), revealing a significant Stokes shift of 1.3 eV. The electronic properties determined from dark and time-resolved microwave conductivity measurements reveal a minimum carrier mobility of 4.3 × 10 –2 cm 2 V –1 s –1 and a maximum carrier density of 5.96 × 10 16 cm –3 , a uniquely low value for a hybrid Sn(II) halide semiconductor. The transport behavior in combination with first-principles calculations of the electronic band structure and dielectric permittivity suggest polaron-mediated electronic transport, yet the photogenerated carriers have a fast and fluence-dependent nonradiative recombination rate, suggestive of localized “defect-like” states at the band edge. The observed photoluminescence is most consistent with single-ion-like behavior of an asymmetric Sn(II) environment. Together, these results suggest that defect ordering presents a strategy for the reduction of mobile charge carriers at equilibrium.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Carrier behavior in special multilayer device composed of different transition metal oxide-based intermediate connectors

The impact of illumination on the connection part of the tandem organic light-emitting diodes was studied by using a special organic multilayer sample consisted of two organic active layers coupled with different transition metal oxide (TMO)-based intermediate connectors (ICs). Through measuring the current density-voltage characteristic, interfacial electronic structures, and capacitance-voltage characteristic, we observe an unsymmetrical phenomenon in current density-voltage and capacitance-voltage curves of Mg:Alq{sub 3}/MoO{sub 3} and MoO{sub 3} composed devices, which was induced by the charge spouting zone near the ICs region and the recombination state in the MoO{sub 3} layer. Moreover, Mg:Alq{sub 3}/MoO{sub 3} composed device displays a photovoltaic effect and the V{sub oc} shifts to forward bias under illumination. Our results demonstrate that the TMO-based IC structure coupled with photovoltaic effect can be a good approach for the study of photodetector, light sensor, and so on.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Industrial deposition of wavelength-shifting films for liquid argon photon detection systems

The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) Phase-II Far Detector is considering an approximately 2000 m 2 photon detection system to achieve a target mean light yield of 180 PE/MeV. Meeting this requirement demands scalable, cost-effective, and high-quality wavelength-shifter (WLS) coatings capable of converting 127 nm liquid-argon scintillation light into visible photons with controlled and reproducible optical performance. We report on the successful realization of an industrial physical vapor deposition (PVD) process forp-terphenyl (pTP) coatings, adapted from vacuum deposition techniques developed for OLED display manufacturing, to produce uniform WLS layers on large-area inorganic substrates, a task traditionally challenged by adhesion and uniformity issues at organic-inorganic interfaces. Surface characterization by profilometry and spectroscopic measurements demonstrates edge-region thickness variation below 10% and emission spectra consistent with high-quality pTP reference samples. The industrial process demonstrates reproducibility, scalability, and significantly reduced production time compared to laboratory-based methods, while maintaining optical characteristics consistent with established pTP reference samples. These results establish a viable pathway for mass production of high-performance pTP coatings for DUNE FD3 and future neutrino experiments, from a coating manufacturing and process standpoint. Detector-level performance validation, including quantitative VUV conversion efficiency measurements at 127 nm, is identified as future work.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

Virtually pure near-infrared electroluminescence from exciplexes at polyfluorene/hexaazatrinaphthylene interfaces

Electronic processes at the heterojunction between chemically different organic semiconductors are of special significance for devices such as light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and photovoltaic diodes. Here, we report the formation of an exciplex state at the heterojunction of an electron-transporting material, a functionalized hexaazatrinaphthylene, and a hole-transporting material, poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene-alt-N-(4-butylphenyl)diphenylamine) (TFB). The energetics of the exciplex state leads to a spectral shift of ∼1 eV between the exciton and the exciplex peak energies (at 2.58 eV and 1.58 eV, respectively). LEDs incorporating such bulk heterojunctions display complete quenching of the exciton luminescence, and a nearly pure near-infrared electroluminescence arising from the exciplex (at ∼1.52 eV) with >98% of the emission at wavelengths above 700 nm at any operational voltage.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Mitrocomin from the jellyfish Mitrocoma cellularia with deleted C-terminal tyrosine reveals a higher bioluminescence activity compared to wild type photoprotein

The full-length cDNA genes encoding five new isoforms of Ca2 +-regulated photoprotein mitrocomin from a small tissue sample of the outer bell margin containing photocytes of only one specimen of the luminous jellyfish Mitrocoma cellularia were cloned, sequenced, and characterized after their expression in Escherichia coli and subsequent purification. The analysis of cDNA nucleotide sequences encoding mitrocomin isoforms allowed suggestion that two isoforms might be the products of two allelic genes differing in one amino acid residue (64R/Q) whereas other isotypes appear as a result of transcriptional mutations. In addition, the crystal structure of mitrocomin was determined at 1.30 Å resolution which expectedly revealed a high similarity with the structures of other hydromedusan photoproteins. Although mitrocomin isoforms reveal a high degree of identity of amino acid sequences, they vary in specific bioluminescence activities. At that, all isotypes displayed the identical bioluminescence spectra (473–474 nm with no shoulder at 400 nm). Fluorescence spectra of Ca2 +-discharged mitrocomins were almost identical to their light emission spectra similar to the case of Ca2 +-discharged aequorin, but different from Ca2 +-discharged obelins and clytin which fluorescence is red-shifted by 25–30 nm from bioluminescence spectra. The main distinction of mitrocomin from other hydromedusan photoproteins is an additional Tyr at the C-terminus. Using site-directed mutagenesis, we showed that this Tyr is not important for bioluminescence because its deletion even increases specific activity and efficiency of apo-mitrocomin conversion into active photoprotein, in contrast to C-terminal Pro of other photoproteins. Since genes in a population generally exist as different isoforms, it makes us anticipate the cloning of even more isoforms of mitrocomin and other hydromedusan photoproteins with different bioluminescence properties.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Topologically trivial gap-filling in superconducting Fe(Se,Te) by one-dimensional defects

Abstract Structural distortions and imperfections are a crucial aspect of materials science, on the macroscopic scale providing strength, but also enhancing corrosion and reducing electrical and thermal conductivity. At the nanometre scale, multi-atom imperfections, such as atomic chains and crystalline domain walls have conversely been proposed as a route to topological superconductivity, whose most prominent characteristic is the emergence of Majorana Fermions that can be used for error-free quantum computing. Here, we shed more light on the nature of purported domain walls in Fe(Se,Te) that may host 1D dispersing Majorana modes. We show that the displacement shift of the atomic lattice at these line-defects results from sub-surface impurities that warp the topmost layer(s). Using the electric field between the tip and sample, we manage to reposition the sub-surface impurities, directly visualizing the displacement shift and the underlying defect-free lattice. These results, combined with observations of a completely different type of 1D defect where superconductivity remains fully gapped, highlight the topologically trivial nature of 1D defects in Fe(Se,Te).

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

The influence of chemical composition of aliphatic-aromatic copolyesters on their properties

The chain microstructure and properties of a series of aliphatic-aromatic copolyesters in a range of compositions from 10 to 100% of aromatic components were studied by examining melting and crystallization behaviors, dynamic mechanical response, morphology, wide- (WAXS) and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), and tensile deformation. Chain microstructure was analyzed by {sup 1}H NMR. The results indicate that most of copolyesters used in this study have essentially random distribution of comonomers. Copolyesters with more than 30 mol% of aromatic part crystallize with a crystal structure characteristic for homopolymer poly(butylene terephthalate) (PBT). However, some of the reflections from crystal planes are shifted towards lower diffraction angles as compared to butylene terephthalate homoplymer. The phase transition temperatures decrease with increasing aliphatic content. By means of polarized light microscopy (PLM), small-angle light scattering (SALS) and SAXS, crystallization behavior of a selected aliphatic-aromatic copolyester was further explored. Selected copolyester crystallizes in the form of thin fibrous crystals, few nanometers thick, which is the main factor influencing the depression of its melting temperature.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Gamow-shell-model description of Li isotopes and their mirror partners

Background: Weakly bound and unbound nuclei close to particle drip lines are laboratories of new nuclear structure physics at the extremes of neutron/proton excess. The comprehensive description of these systems requires an open quantum system framework that is capable of treating resonant and nonresonant many-body states on equal footing. Purpose: In this work, we develop the complex-energy configuration interaction approach to describe binding energies and spectra of selected 5 ≤ $\textit{A}$ ≤ 11 nuclei. Method: We employ the complex-energy Gamow shell model (GSM) assuming a rigid 4 He core. The effective Hamiltonian, consisting of a core-nucleon Woods-Saxon potential and a simplified version of the Furutani-Horiuchi-Tamagaki interaction with the mass-dependent scaling, is optimized in the $\textit{sp}$ space. To diagonalize the Hamiltonian matrix, we employ the Davidson method and the Density Matrix Renormalization Group technique. Results: We report our optimized GSM Hamiltonian offers a good reproduction of binding energies and spectra with the root-mean-square (rms) deviation from experiment of 160 keV. Since the model performs well when used to predict known excitations that have not been included in the fit, it can serve as a reliable tool to describe poorly known states. A case in point is our prediction for the pair of unbound mirror nuclei 10 Li – 10 N in which a huge Thomas-Ehrman shift dramatically alters the pattern of low-energy excitations. Conclusion: The new model will enable comprehensive studies of structure and reactions aspects of light drip-line nuclei.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Empirical Refinement of the GADRAS Detector Response Function

The Gamma Detector Response and Analysis Software (GADRAS) was augmented to enable empirical refinement of the Detector Response Function (DRF) for gamma-ray detectors. This capability is included in GADRAS starting with Version 18.8.2, which was released in February 2019 Empirical refinement enables improved computational accuracy for gamma-ray spectra when detectors exhibit characteristics that are essentially unique to a particular sensor. This report discusses how to perform the empirical refinement, and examples are presented for the following scenarios where empirical refinement is appropriate: Large plastic scintillators, which are generally composed of polyvinyl toluene (PVT), often exhibit low-energy peaks that are not associated with incident gamma rays. Regardless of whether they are artifacts produced by poor light collection or pulse processing methods, accurate spectral synthesis requires replication of these features; Some detectors, particularly those using Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPM), exhibit energy shifts of Compton edges and escape peaks relative to the same scintillator material attached to a photomultiplier tube. Empirical refinement compensates for these effects, which derive from nonlinearities in the detector response; The change in the DRF as a function of displacement of the source relative to the detector axis cannot always be replicated adequately using only the few shielding parameters that are used by the response function. Empirical refinement enables improved accuracy for computation of spectra during linear transits or when the detector is close to a large radiation source. This is a particularly important consideration for collimated detectors; and, Gamma-ray imagers exhibit complex relationships between spectral response and spatial locations. Empirical refinement enables substantial improvement of the DRF accuracy for imagers.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Redox Biochemistry of Energy Conservation in Methanogens and their Syntrophic Partners

The primary objective of this project was to uncover previously unknown modes by which living organisms harvested energy. Specifically, it queried microbial systems, which were once thought to not be able to utilize oxygen. Through the use of cutting-edge approaches, we were able to identify novel mechanistic processes that allow organisms to thrive under varying environmental conditions. This constitutes a paradigm shift in the field. Our work has opened new vistas for expanding the horizons of energy conservation in biological systems, as well as shed light on green energy innovations.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

On the Rayleigh-scattering optical depth of the atmosphere

It is pointed out that revised Rayleigh-scattering optical depths published by Hoyt (1977) are not correct, because King's (1923) formula, which was used by Hoyt, requires that the rotational lines be included in the polarization measurement. To exclude them is to exclude the contribution of the Raman-shifted photons to the total molecular extinction. Hoyt's error was repeated by Froehlich and Shaw (1980), who also confused the depolarization for natural light with that for (polarized) laser light. In an effort to clarify basic concepts, attention is given to the origin of the depolarization correction, depolarization ratios, vibrational Raman effects, and extinction measurements.

Young, A. T.↗

White-Light, Dispersed-Fringe Interferometric Keratometer

Proposed keratometer based on scheme involving spectral dispersal of white-light interference fringes. Instrument operates in "snapshot" mode: no scanning necessary, not necessary to immobilize patient's eye. Insensitive to vibration, involves no phase shifting, and has variable sensitivity. Intended primarily for use in medical assessments of human corneas, also used to measure shapes of animal corneas, lenses, and other aspherical or spherical reflective or partly reflective surfaces.

Hochberg, Eric B.↗

Detecting Trends in Tropical Rainfall Characteristics, 1979-2003

From analyses of blended space-based and ground-based global rainfall data, we found increasing trends in the occurrence of extreme heavy and light rain events, coupled to a decreasing trend in moderate rain events in the tropics during 1979-2003. The trends are consistent with a shift in the large-scale circulation associated with a) a relatively uniform increase in warm rain over the tropical oceans, b) enhanced ice-phase rain over the near-equatorial oceans, and c) reduced mixed-phase rain over the tropical ocean and land regions. Due to the large compensation among different rain categories, the total tropical rainfall trend remained undetectable.

Lau, K. M.↗

Dynamic refractometer

A refractometer computer controls the rotation of a rotary plate upon which are mounted a prism optically coupled via an optical window to a spectroscopic cell holding a resin exhibiting a dynamic refractive index during photocuring. The computer system positions the prism and spectroscopic cell relative to a visible light laser which illuminates the prism-resin interface at selected incidence angles. A photodetector mounted on the plate generates a signal to the computer proportional to intensity of an internally reflected light beam. A curing light is selectively transmitted through the prism and into the photocurable resin. The refractometer determines the intensity of the internally reflected beam a selected incidence angles and determines the effective refractive index curve of the resin at an uncured state and, optionally, at a completely cured state. Next, an amount of uncured resin and selected optical components to be joined by the resin is placed in the spectroscopic cell and irradiated with the UV light. The refractometer is fixed at a selected incidence angle and measures the intensity of an internally reflected light beam of light throughout the cure cycle. The refractometer determines the resin's refractive index of the polymeric mixture by means of extrapolation of a horizontal shift in the effective refractive index curve of the resin from an uncured state to a selected point in the cure cycle.

Curley, Michael J.↗