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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 1,513 records · Page 84
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2015

Low-voltage harmonic multiplying gyrotron traveling-wave amplifier in G band

Harmonic multiplying operation in a gyrotron traveling-wave amplifier (gyro-TWA) permits for magnetic field reduction and frequency multiplication. Lowering a beam voltage is an important step toward miniaturization of a harmonic multiplying gyro-TWA. However, the additional degree of freedom that is provided by the multitude cyclotron harmonics in a low-voltage harmonic multiplying gyro-TWA still easily generates various competing modes. An improved mode-selective circuit, using circular waveguides with various radii, can provide the rejection points within the frequency range to suppress competing modes. Simulated results reveal that the mode-selective circuit can provide an attenuation of more than 14 dB to suppress the competing modes. Furthermore, the performance of the gyro-TWA is analyzed for studying the sensitivity of the saturated output power and full width at half maximum bandwidth of the gyro-TWA to the beam voltage and the magnetic field. A stable low-voltage harmonic multiplying gyro-TWA with the mode-selective circuit is predicted to yield a peak output power of 24 kW at 200.4 GHz, corresponding to a saturated gain of 56 dB at an interaction efficiency of 20%. The full width at half maximum bandwidth is 3.0 GHz.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2019

Vibrational analysis of methyl cation—Rare gas atom complexes: CH + 3 —Rg (Rg = He, Ne, Ar, Kr)

The vibrational spectra of simple CH + 3 —Rg (Rg = He, Ne, Ar, Kr) complexes have been studied by vibrational configuration interaction theory relying on multidimensional potential energy surfaces (PESs) obtained from explicitly correlated coupled cluster calculations, CCSD(T)-F12a. In agreement with experimental results, the series of rare gas atoms leads to rather unsystematic results and indicates huge zero point vibrational energy effects for the helium complex. In order to study these sensitive complexes more consistently, we also introduce configuration averaged vibrational self-consistent field theory, which is a generalization of standard vibrational self-consistent field theory to several configurations. The vibrational spectra of the complexes are compared to that of the methyl cation, for which corrections due to scalar-relativistic effects, high-order coupled-cluster terms, e.g., quadruple excitations, and core-valence correlation have explicitly been accounted for. The occurrence of tunneling splittings for the vibrational ground-state of CH + 3 —He has been investigated on the basis of semiclassical instanton theory. Furthermore these calculations and a direct comparison of the energy profiles along the intrinsic reaction coordinates with that of the hydronium cation, H 3 O + , suggest that tunneling effects for vibrationally excited states should be very small.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2014

Constraints on the progenitor system and the environs of SN 2014J from deep radio observations

We report deep EVN and eMERLIN observations of the Type Ia SN 2014J in the nearby galaxy M82. Our observations represent, together with JVLA observations of SNe 2011fe and 2014J, the most sensitive radio studies of Type Ia SNe ever. By combining data and a proper modeling of the radio emission, we constrain the mass-loss rate from the progenitor system of SN 2014J to M-dot ≲7.0×10{sup −10} M{sub ⊙} yr{sup −1} (for a wind speed of 100 km s{sup –1}). If the medium around the supernova is uniform, then n {sub ISM} ≲ 1.3 cm{sup –3}, which is the most stringent limit for the (uniform) density around a Type Ia SN. Our deep upper limits favor a double-degenerate (DD) scenario—involving two WD stars—for the progenitor system of SN 2014J, as such systems have less circumstellar gas than our upper limits. By contrast, most single-degenerate (SD) scenarios, i.e., the wide family of progenitor systems where a red giant, main-sequence, or sub-giant star donates mass to an exploding WD, are ruled out by our observations. (While completing our work, we noticed that a paper by Margutti et al. was submitted to The Astrophysical Journal. From a non-detection of X-ray emission from SN 2014J, the authors obtain limits of M-dot ≲1.2×10{sup −9} M {sub ☉} yr{sup –1} (for a wind speed of 100 km s{sup –1}) and n {sub ISM} ≲ 3.5 cm{sup –3}, for the ρ∝r {sup –2} wind and constant density cases, respectively. As these limits are less constraining than ours, the findings by Margutti et al. do not alter our conclusions. The X-ray results are, however, important to rule out free-free and synchrotron self-absorption as a reason for the radio non-detections.) Our estimates on the limits on the gas density surrounding SN2011fe, using the flux density limits from Chomiuk et al., agree well with their results. Although we discuss the possibilities of an SD scenario passing observational tests, as well as uncertainties in the modeling of the radio emission, the evidence from SNe 2011fe and 2014J points in the direction of a DD scenario for both.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

A critical assessment of stellar mass measurement methods

This is the second paper in a series aimed at investigating the main sources of uncertainty in measuring the observable parameters in galaxies from their spectral energy distributions (SEDs). In the first paper we presented a detailed account of the photometric redshift measurements and an error analysis of this process. In this paper we perform a comprehensive study of the main sources of random and systematic error in stellar mass estimates for galaxies, and their relative contributions to the associated error budget. Since there is no prior knowledge of the stellar mass of galaxies (unlike their photometric redshifts), we use mock galaxy catalogs with simulated multi-waveband photometry and known redshift, stellar mass, age and extinction for individual galaxies. The multi-waveband photometry for the simulated galaxies were generated in 13 filters spanning from U-band to mid-infrared wavelengths. Given different parameters affecting stellar mass measurement (photometric signal-to-noise ratios (S/N), SED fitting errors and systematic effects), the inherent degeneracies and correlated errors, we formulated different simulated galaxy catalogs to quantify these effects individually. For comparison, we also generated catalogs based on observed photometric data of real galaxies in the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey-South field, spanning the same passbands. The simulated and observed catalogs were provided to a number of teams within the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey collaboration to estimate the stellar masses for individual galaxies. A total of 11 teams participated, with different combinations of stellar mass measurement codes/methods, population synthesis models, star formation histories, extinction and age. For each simulated galaxy, the differences between the input stellar masses, M{sub input}, and those estimated by each team, M{sub est}, is defined as Δlog(M)≡log(M{sub estimated})−log(M{sub input}), and used to identify the most fundamental parameters affecting stellar mass estimate in galaxies, with the following results. (1) No significant bias in Δ log(M) was found among different codes, with all having comparable scatter (σ(Δlog(M))=0.136 dex). The estimated stellar mass values are seriously affected by low photometric S/N, with the rms scatter increasing for galaxies with H{sub AB}>26 mag; (2) A source of error contributing to the scatter in Δ log(M) is found to be due to photometric uncertainties (0.136 dex) and low resolution in age and extinction grids when generating the SED templates; (3) The median of stellar masses among different methods provides a stable measure of the mass associated with any given galaxy (σ(Δlog(M))=0.142 dex); (4) The Δ log(M) values are strongly correlated with deviations in age (defined as the difference between the estimated and expected values), with a weaker correlation with extinction; (5) The rms scatter in the estimated stellar masses due to free parameters (after fixing redshifts and initial mass function) are quantified and found to be σ(Δlog(M))=0.110 dex; (6) Using the observed data, we studied the sensitivity of stellar masses to both the population synthesis codes and inclusion of nebular emission lines and found them to affect the stellar mass by 0.2 and 0.3 dex respectively.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Neutrino physics with multi-ton scale liquid xenon detectors

We study the sensitivity of large-scale xenon detectors to low-energy solar neutrinos, to coherent neutrino-nucleus scattering and to neutrinoless double beta decay. As a concrete example, we consider the xenon part of the proposed DARWIN (Dark Matter WIMP Search with Noble Liquids) experiment. We perform detailed Monte Carlo simulations of the expected backgrounds, considering realistic energy resolutions and thresholds in the detector. In a low-energy window of 2–30 keV, where the sensitivity to solar pp and {sup 7}Be-neutrinos is highest, an integrated pp-neutrino rate of 5900 events can be reached in a fiducial mass of 14 tons of natural xenon, after 5 years of data. The pp-neutrino flux could thus be measured with a statistical uncertainty around 1%, reaching the precision of solar model predictions. These low-energy solar neutrinos will be the limiting background to the dark matter search channel for WIMP-nucleon cross sections below ∼ 2 × 10{sup −48} cm{sup 2} and WIMP masses around 50 GeV⋅c{sup −2}, for an assumed 99.5% rejection of electronic recoils due to elastic neutrino-electron scatters. Nuclear recoils from coherent scattering of solar neutrinos will limit the sensitivity to WIMP masses below ∼ 6 GeV⋅c{sup −2} to cross sections above ∼ 4 × 10{sup −45}cm{sup 2}. DARWIN could reach a competitive half-life sensitivity of 5.6 × 10{sup 26} y to the neutrinoless double beta decay of {sup 136}Xe after 5 years of data, using 6 tons of natural xenon in the central detector region.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Probing neutrinos from Planck and forthcoming galaxy redshift surveys

We investigate how much the constraints on the neutrino properties can be improved by combining the CMB, the photometric and spectroscopic galaxy redshift surveys which include the CMB lensing, galaxy lensing tomography, galaxy clustering and redshift space distortion observables. We pay a particular attention to the constraint on the neutrino mass in view of the forthcoming redshift surveys such as the Euclid satellite and the LSST survey along with the Planck CMB lensing measurements. Combining the transverse mode information from the angular power spectrum and the longitudinal mode information from the spectroscopic survey with the redshift space distortion measurements can determine the total neutrino mass with the projected error of O(0.02) eV. Our analysis fixes the mass splittings among the neutrino species to be consistent with the neutrino oscillation data, and we accordingly study the sensitivity of our parameter estimations on the minimal neutrino mass. The cosmological measurement of the total neutrino mass can distinguish between the normal and inverted mass hierarchy scenarios if the minimal neutrino mass ∼<0.005 eV with the predicted 1–σ uncertainties taken into account.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

An updated analysis of Inert Higgs Doublet Model in light of the recent results from LUX, PLANCK, AMS-02 and LHC

In light of the recent discovery by the ATLAS and CMS experiments at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) of a Higgs-like particle with a narrow mass range of 125–126 GeV, we perform an updated analysis on one of the popular scalar dark matter models, the Inert Higgs Doublet Model (IHDM). We take into account in our likelihood analysis of various experimental constraints, including recent relic density measurement, dark matter direct and indirect detection constraints as well as the latest collider constraints on the invisible decay width of the Higgs boson and monojet search at the LHC. It is shown that if the invisible decay of the standard model Higgs boson is open, LHC as well as direct detection experiments like LUX and XENON100 could put stringent limits on the Higgs boson couplings to dark matter. We find that the most favoured parameter space for IHDM corresponds to dark matter with a mass less than 100 GeV or so. In particular, the best-fit points are at the dark matter mass around 70 GeV where the invisible Higgs decay to dark matter is closed. Scalar dark matter in the higher mass range of 0.5–4 TeV is also explored in our study. Projected sensitivities for the future experiments of monojet at LHC-14, XENON1T and AMS-02 one year antiproton flux are shown to put further constraints on the existing parameter space of IHDM.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2015

CMB probes on the correlated axion isocurvature perturbation

We explore the possible cosmological consequence of the gravitational coupling between the inflaton and axion-like fields. In view of the forthcoming cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization and lensing data, we study the sensitivity of the CMB data on the cross-correlation between the curvature and axion isocurvature perturbations. Through a concrete example, we illustrate the explicit dependence of the scale dependent cross-correlation power spectrum on the axion parameters.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Search for magnetically-induced signatures in the arrival directions of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays measured at the Pierre Auger Observatory

We search for signals of magnetically-induced effects in the arrival directions of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays detected at the Pierre Auger Observatory. We apply two different methods. One is a search for sets of events that show a correlation between their arrival direction and the inverse of their energy, which would be expected if they come from the same point-like source, they have the same electric charge and their deflection is relatively small and coherent. We refer to these sets of events as “multiplets”. The second method, called “thrust”, is a principal axis analysis aimed to detect the elongated patterns in a region of interest. We study the sensitivity of both methods using a benchmark simulation and we apply them to data in two different searches. The first search is done assuming as source candidates a list of nearby active galactic nuclei and starburst galaxies. The second is an all-sky blind search. We report the results and we find no statistically significant features. We discuss the compatibility of these results with the indications on the mass composition inferred from data of the Pierre Auger Observatory.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Energy-dependent flavour ratios in neutrino telescopes from charm

Abstract The origin of the observed diffuse neutrino flux is not yet known. Studies of the relative flavour content of the neutrino flux detected at Earth can give information on the production mechanisms at the sources and on flavour mixing, complementary to measurements of the spectral index and normalization. Here we demonstrate the effects of neutrino fluxes with different spectral shapes and different initial flavour compositions dominating at different energies, and we study the sensitivity of future measurements with the IceCube Neutrino Observatory. Where one kind of flux gives way to another, this shows up as a non-trivial energy dependence in the flavour compositions. We explore this in the context of slow-jet supernovae and magnetar-driven supernovae — two examples of astrophysical sources where charm production may be effective. Using current best-fit neutrino mixing parameters and the projected 2040 IceCube uncertainties, we use event ratios of different event morphologies at IceCube to illustrate the possibilities of distinguishing the energy dependence of neutrino flavour ratios.

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2015

Murchison widefield array observations of anomalous variability: a serendipitous night-time detection of interplanetary scintillation

We present observations of high-amplitude rapid (2 s) variability toward two bright, compact extragalactic radio sources out of several hundred of the brightest radio sources in one of the 30{sup ∘}×30{sup ∘} Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) Epoch of Reionization fields using the MWA at 155 MHz. After rejecting intrinsic, instrumental, and ionospheric origins we consider the most likely explanation for this variability to be interplanetary scintillation (IPS), likely the result of a large coronal mass ejection propagating from the Sun. This is confirmed by roughly contemporaneous observations with the Ooty Radio Telescope. We see evidence for structure on spatial scales ranging from <1000 to >10{sup 6} km. The serendipitous night-time nature of these detections illustrates the new regime that the MWA has opened for IPS studies with sensitive night-time, wide-field, low-frequency observations. This regime complements traditional dedicated strategies for observing IPS and can be utilized in real-time to facilitate dedicated follow-up observations. At the same time, it allows large-scale surveys for compact (arcsec) structures in low-frequency radio sources despite the 2{sup ′} resolution of the array.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Evaluation of a pair-based, joint-likelihood association approach for regional infrasound event identification

SUMMARY A Bayesian framework for the association of infrasonic detections is presented and evaluated for analysis at regional propagation scales. A pair-based, joint-likelihood association approach is developed that identifies events by computing the probability that individual detection pairs are attributable to a hypothetical common source and applying hierarchical clustering to identify events from the pair-based analysis. The framework is based on a Bayesian formulation introduced for infrasonic source localization and utilizes the propagation models developed for that application with modifications to improve the numerical efficiency of the analysis. Clustering analysis is completed using hierarchical analysis via weighted linkage for a non-Euclidean distance matrix defined by the negative log-joint-likelihood values. The method is evaluated using regional synthetic data with propagation distances of hundreds of kilometres in order to study the sensitivity of the method to uncertainties and errors in backazimuth and time of arrival. The method is found to be robust and stable for typical uncertainties, able to effectively distinguish noise detections within the data set from those in events, and can be made numerically efficient due to its ease of parallelization.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Probing axionlike particles with multimessenger observations of neutron star mergers

Axion-like particles (ALPs) can be copiously produced in binary neutron star (BNS) mergers through nucleon-nucleon bremsstrahlung if the ALP-nucleon couplings 𝑔 𝑎⁢𝑁 are sizable. The ALP-photon coupling 𝑔 𝑎⁢𝛾 may trigger conversions of ultralight ALPs into photons in the magnetic fields of the merger remnant and of the Milky Way. This effect would lead to a potentially observable short gamma-ray signal, in coincidence with the gravitational-wave signal produced during the merging process. This event could be detected through multimessenger observation of BNS mergers employing the synergy between gravitational-wave detectors and gamma-ray telescopes. Here, we study the sensitivity of current and proposed MeV gamma-ray experiments to detect such a signal. As an explicit example, we consider ALP couplings related as in the Kim-Shifman-Vainshtein-Zakharov axion model, and show that in this case the proposed instruments can reach a sensitivity down to 𝑔 𝑎⁢𝛾 ≳ few ×10 −13 GeV −1 for 𝑚 𝑎 ≲ 10 −9 eV, comparable with the SN 1987A limit.

Axion-like particles↗
DOE OSTI2020

Origin of the multiphoton-regime harmonic-generation plateau structure

A physical interpretation is provided for the formation of the multiphoton-regime plateau feature in the spectra of nonlinear and correlated process of high-order harmonic generation (HHG) of two-active-electron atoms interacting with an intense linearly polarized laser field. While in the strong-field tunneling regime the plateau feature is well known to be due to rescattering effects of the freed electron, its counterpart in the multiphoton regime is due to atomic resonance effects involving both singly excited states and doubly excited states. Here, we propose a strategy to uncover which kind of these states are responsible for this phenomenon. By studying the sensitivity of HHG to the initial state in helium, in this work we show that this multiphoton-regime plateau structure mostly originates from singly excited states.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Depth-resolved resonant inelastic x-ray scattering at a superconductor/half-metallic-ferromagnet interface through standing wave excitation

We demonstrate that combining standing wave (SW) excitation with resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) can lead to depth resolution and interface sensitivity for studying orbital and magnetic excitations in correlated oxide heterostructures. SW-RIXS has been applied to multilayer heterostructures consisting of a superconductor La 1.85 Sr 0.15 CuO 4 (LSCO) and a half-metallic ferromagnet La 0.67 Sr 0.33 MnO 3 (LSMO). Easily observable SW effects on the RIXS excitations were found in these LSCO/LSMO multilayers. In addition, we observe different depth distribution of the RIXS excitations. Here, the magnetic excitations are found to arise from the LSCO/LSMO interfaces, and there is also a suggestion that one of the dd excitations comes from the interfaces. SW-RIXS measurements of correlated-oxide and other multilayer heterostructures should provide unique layer-resolved insights concerning their orbital and magnetic excitations, as well as a challenge for RIXS theory to specifically deal with interface effects.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Statistical error propagation in ab initio no-core full configuration calculations of light nuclei

We propagate the statistical uncertainty of experimental N N scattering data into the binding energy of 3 H and 4 He. Here, we also study the sensitivity of the magnetic moment and proton radius of the 3 H to changes in the N N interaction. The calculations are made with the no-core full configuration method in a sufficiently large harmonic oscillator basis. For those light nuclei we obtain Δ E stat (3H) = 0.015 MeV and Δ E stat ( 4 He) = 0.055 MeV .

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Giant resonances in 40,48 Ca, 68 Ni, 90 Zr, 116 Sn, 144 Sm, and 208 Pb

We present results of centroid energies E CEN , of the isoscalar (T = 0) and isovector (T = 1) giant resonances of multipolarities L = 0–3 in 40,48 Ca, 68 Ni, 90 Zr, 116 Sn, 144 Sm, and 208 Pb, calculated within the fully self-consistent Hartree-Fock-based random phase approximation theory, using 33 different Skyrme-type effective nucleon-nucleon interactions of the standard form commonly adopted in the literature. We compare the results of our theoretical calculations with the available experimental data. We also study the sensitivity of the calculated ECEN to physical properties of nuclear matter (NM), such as effective mass m*/m, nuclear matter incompressibility coefficient KNM, enhancement coefficient κ of the energy weighted sum rule for the isovector giant dipole resonance and symmetry energy at saturation density, associated with the Skyrme interactions used in the calculations. Furthermore, this is done by determining the Pearson linear correlation coefficient between the calculated ECEN and a certain NM property. Constraining the values of the NM properties, by comparing the calculated values of E CEN to the experimental data, we find that interactions associated with the values of K NM = 210–240 MeV and κ = 0.25–0.70 best reproduce the experimental data.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering with directional detectors

We study the sensitivity of detectors with directional sensitivity to coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CE$\textit{ν}$NS), and how these detectors complement measurements of the nuclear recoil energy. In this work we consider stopped pion and reactor neutrino sources, and use gaseous helium and fluorine as examples of detector material. We generate Standard Model predictions, and compare to scenarios that include new, light vector or scalar mediators. We show that directional detectors can provide valuable additional information in discerning new physics, and we identify prominent spectral features in both the angular and the recoil energy spectrum for light mediators, even for nuclear recoil energy thresholds as high as ~50 keV. Combined with energy and timing information, directional information can play an important role in extracting new physics from CE$\textit{ν}$NS experiments.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗