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We report on atomic layer deposition of an {approx} 2-nm-thick ZnO layer on the inner surface of ultralow-density ({approx} 0.5% of the full density) nanoporous silica aerogel monoliths with an extremely large effective aspect ratio of {approx} 10{sup 5} (defined as the ratio of the monolith thickness to the average pore size). The resultant monoliths are formed by amorphous-SiO{sub 2}/wurtzite-ZnO nanoparticles which are randomly oriented and interconnected into an open-cell network with an apparent density of {approx} 3% and a surface area of {approx} 100 m{sup 2} g{sup -1}. Secondary ion mass spectrometry and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy imaging reveal excellent uniformity and crystallinity of ZnO coating. Oxygen K-edge and Zn L{sub 3}-edge soft x-ray absorption near-edge structure spectroscopy shows broadened O 2p- as well as Zn 4s-, 5s-, and 3d-projected densities of states in the conduction band.

We have developed a cleaning procedure for aluminum alloys for effective minimization of surface-adsorbed sub-micron particles and non-volatile residue. The procedure consists of a phosphoric acid etch followed by an alkaline detergent wash. To better understand the mechanism whereby this procedure reduces surface contaminants, we characterized the aluminum surface as a function of cleaning step using Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS). SERS indicates that phosphoric acid etching re-establishes a surface oxide of different characteristics, including deposition of phosphate and increased hydration, while the subsequent alkaline detergent wash appears to remove the phosphate and modify the new surface oxide, possibly leading to a more compact surface oxide. We also studied the zeta potential of <5 micron pure aluminum and aluminum alloy 6061-T6 particles to determine how surface electrostatics may be affected during the cleaning process. The particles show a decrease in the magnitude of their zeta potential in the presence of detergent, and this effect is most pronounced for particles that have been etched with phosphoric acid. This reduction in magnitude of the surface attractive potential is in agreement with our observation that the phosphoric acid etch followed by detergent wash results in a decrease in surface-adsorbed sub-micron particulates.

EUVE and the ROSAT WFC have left a tremendous legacy in astrophysics at EUV wavelengths. More recently, Chandra and XMM-Newton have demonstrated at X-ray wavelengths the power of high-resolution astronomical spectroscopy, which allows the identification of weak emission lines, the measurement of Doppler shifts and line profiles, and the detection of narrow absorption features. This leads to a complete understanding of the density, temperature, abundance, magnetic, and dynamic structure of astrophysical plasmas. However, the termination of the EUVE mission has left a gaping hole in spectral coverage at crucial EUV wavelengths ({approx}100-300 Angstroms), where hot (10{sup 5}-10{sup 8} K) plasmas radiate most strongly and produce critical spectral diagnostics. CHIPS will fill this hole only partially as it is optimized for diffuse emission and has only moderate resolution (R{approx}150). For discrete sources, we have successfully flown a follow-on instrument to the EUVE spectrometer (A{sub eff} {approx}1 cm{sup 2}, R {approx}400), the high-resolution spectrometer J-PEX (A{sub eff} {approx}3 cm{sup 2}, R {approx}3000). Here we build on the J-PEX prototype and present a strawman design for an orbiting spectroscopic observatory, APEX, a SMEX-class instrument containing a suite of 8 spectrometers that together achieve both high effective area (A{sub eff}>20 cm{sup 2}) and high …

The Lynx arc, with a redshift of 3.357, was discovered during spectroscopic follow-up of the z = 0.570 cluster RX J0848+4456 from the ROSAT Deep Cluster Survey. The arc is characterized by a very red R - K color and strong, narrow emission lines. Analysis of HST WFPC 2 imaging and Keck optical and infrared spectroscopy shows that the arc is an H II galaxy magnified by a factor of {approx} 10 by a complex cluster environment. The high intrinsic luminosity, the emission line spectrum, the absorption components seen in Ly{alpha} and C IV, and the restframe ultraviolet continuum are all consistent with a simple H II region model containing {approx} 10{sup 6} hot O stars. The best fit parameters for this model imply a very hot ionizing continuum (T{sub BB} {approx} 80, 000 K), high ionization parameter (log U {approx} -1), and low nebular metallicity (Z/Z{sub {circle_dot}} {approx} 0.05). The narrowness of the emission lines requires a low mass-to-light ratio for the ionizing stars, suggestive of an extremely low metallicity stellar cluster. The apparent overabundance of silicon in the nebula could indicate enrichment by past pair instability supernovae, requiring stars more massive than {approx}140M{sub {circle_dot}}.

We investigate the Butcher-Oemler effect using samples of galaxies brighter than observed frame K* + 1.5 in 33 clusters at 0.1 {approx}< z {approx}< 0.9. We attempt to duplicate as closely as possible the methodology of Butcher & Oemler. Apart from selecting in the K-band, the most important difference is that we use a brightness limit fixed at 1.5 magnitudes below an observed frame K* rather than the nominal limit of rest frame M(V ) = -20 used by Butcher & Oemler. For an early type galaxy at z = 0.1 our sample cutoff is 0.2 magnitudes brighter than rest frame M(V ) = -20, while at z = 0.9 our cutoff is 0.9 magnitudes brighter. If the blue galaxies tend to be faint, then the difference in magnitude limits should result in our measuring lower blue fractions. A more minor difference from the Butcher & Oemler methodology is that the area covered by our galaxy samples has a radius of 0.5 or 0.7 Mpc at all redshifts rather than R{sub 30}, the radius containing 30% of the cluster population. In practice our field sizes are generally similar to those used by Butcher & Oemler. We find the fraction of …

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The character table of the fully non-rigid water pentamer, (H{sub 2}O){sub 5} is derived for the first time. The group of all feasible permutations is the wreath product group S{sub 5}[S{sub 2}] and it consists of 3840 operations divided into 36 conjugacy classes and irreducible representations. We have shown that the full character table can be constructed using elegant matrix type generator algebra. The character table has been applied to the water pentamer by obtaining the nuclear spin statistical weights of the rovibronic levels and tunneling splittings of the fully non-rigid pentamer. We have also obtained the statistical weights and tunneling splittings of a semi-rigid deuterated pentamer that exhibits pseudo rotation with an averaged C{sub 5h}(G{sub 10}) symmetry used in the assignment of vibration-rotation-tunneling spectra . The correlation tables have been constructed for the semirigid (G{sub 10}) to non-rigid (G{sub 3840}) groups for the rotational levels and tunneling levels. The nuclear spin statistical weights have also been derived for both the limits.

Accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) is a mass spectrometric method for quantifying rare isotopes. It has had great impact in geochronology and archaeology and is now being applied in biomedicine. AMS measures radioisotopes such as {sup 3}H, {sup 14}C, {sup 26}Al, {sup 36}Cl and {sup 41}Ca, with zepto- or attomole sensitivity and high precision and throughput, enabling safe human pharmacokinetic studies involving: microgram doses, agents having low bioavailability, or toxicology studies where administered doses must be kept low (<1 {micro}g/kg). It is used to study long-term pharmacokinetics, to identify biomolecular interactions, to determine chronic and low-dose effects or molecular targets of neurotoxic substances, to quantify transport across the blood-brain barrier and to resolve molecular turnover rates in the human brain on the timescale of decades. We will here review how AMS is applied in neurotoxicology and neuroscience.

Comparative sequence analysis of the human and the pufferfish Fugu rubripes (fugu) genomes has revealed several novel functional coding and noncoding regions in the human genome. In particular, the fugu genome has been extremely valuable for identifying transcriptional regulatory elements in human loci harboring unusually high levels of evolutionary conservation to rodent genomes. In such regions, the large evolutionary distance between human and fishes provides an additional filter through which functional noncoding elements can be detected with high efficiency.

Changes in the height of the tropopause provide a sensitive indicator of human effects on climate. A previous attempt to identify human effects on tropopause height relied on information from 'first-generation' reanalyses of past weather observations. Climate data from these initial model-based reanalyses have well-documented deficiencies, raising concerns regarding the robustness of earlier detection work that employed these data. Here, we address these concerns using information from the new second-generation ERA-40 reanalysis. Over 1979 to 2001, tropopause height increases by nearly 200 meters in ERA-40, partly due to tropospheric warming. The spatial pattern of height increase is consistent with climate model predictions of the expected response to anthropogenic influences alone, significantly strengthening earlier detection results. Atmospheric temperature changes in two different satellite datasets are more highly correlated with changes in ERA-40 than with those in a first-generation reanalysis, thus illustrating the improved quality of temperature information in ERA-40. Our results provide support for claims that human activities have warmed the troposphere and cooled the lower stratosphere over the last several decades of the 20th century, and that both of these changes in atmospheric temperature have contributed to an overall increase in tropopause height.

Void coalescence and interaction in dynamic fracture of ductile metals have been investigated using three-dimensional strain-controlled multi-million atom molecular dynamics simulations of copper. The correlated growth of two voids during the coalescence process leading to fracture is investigated, both in terms of its onset and the ensuing dynamical interactions. Void interactions are quantified through the rate of reduction of the distance between the voids, through the correlated directional growth of the voids, and through correlated shape evolution of the voids. The critical inter-void ligament distance marking the onset of coalescence is shown to be approximately one void radius based on the quantification measurements used, independent of the initial separation distance between the voids and the strain-rate of the expansion of the system. The interaction of the voids is not reflected in the volumetric asymptotic growth rate of the voids, as demonstrated here. Finally, the practice of using a single void and periodic boundary conditions to study coalescence is examined critically and shown to produce results markedly different than the coalescence of a pair of isolated voids.

Next generation x-ray sources require very high-brightness electron beams that are typically at or beyond the present state-of-the-art, and thus place stringent and demanding requirements upon the electron injector parameters. No one electron source concept is suitable for all the diverse applications envisaged, which have operating characteristics ranging from high-average-current, quasi-CW, to high-peak-current, single-pulse electron beams. Advanced Energy Systems, in collaboration with various partners, is developing several electron injector concepts for these x-ray source applications. The performance and design characteristics of five specific RF injectors, spanning ''L'' to ''X''-band, normal-conducting to superconducting, and low repetition rate to CW, which are presently in various stages of design, construction or testing, is described. We also discuss the status and schedule of each with respect to testing.

We present a preliminary investigation of damage localization as a model problem for adaptive sampling. The fine-scale material response involving void nucleation and growth is computed on the fly as needed at the coarse scale.

A modeling approach is presented for quantitative burn scar assessment. Emphases are given to: (1) constructing a finite element model from natural image features with an adaptive mesh, and (2) quantifying the Young's modulus of scars using the finite element model and the regularization method. A set of natural point features is extracted from the images of burn patients. A Delaunay triangle mesh is then generated that adapts to the point features. A 3D finite element model is built on top of the mesh with the aid of range images providing the depth information. The Young's modulus of scars is quantified with a simplified regularization functional, assuming that the knowledge of scar's geometry is available. The consistency between the Relative Elasticity Index and the physician's rating based on the Vancouver Scale (a relative scale used to rate burn scars) indicates that the proposed modeling approach has high potentials for image-based quantitative burn scar assessment.

Recent laser ignition experiments on octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-terrazocine (HMX) and 1,3,5-triamino-2,4,6-trinitrobenzene (TATB) subjected to laser fluxes ranging from 10 to 800 W/cm{sup 2} produced ignition times from seconds to milliseconds. Global chemical kinetic thermal decomposition models for HMX and TATB have been developed to calculate times to thermal explosion for experiments in the seconds to days time frame. These models are applied to the laser ignition experimental data in this paper. Excellent agreement was obtained for TATB, while the calculated ignition times were longer than experiment for HMX at lower laser fluxes. At the temperatures produced in the laser experiments, HMX melts. Melting generally increases condensed phase reaction rates so faster rates were used for three of the HMX reaction rates. This improved agreement with experiments at the lower laser fluxes but yielded very fast ignition at high fluxes. The calculated times to ignition are in reasonable agreement with the laser ignition experiments, and this justifies the use of these models for estimating reaction times at impact and shock ''hot spot'' temperatures.

Many experiments that require a highly accurate continuous time history of photon emission incorporate streak cameras into their setup. Nonlinear recordings both in time and spatial displacement are inherent to streak camera measurements. These nonlinearities can be attributed to sweep rate electronics, curvature of the electron optics, the magnification, and resolution of the electron optics. These nonlinearities are systematic; it has been shown that a short pulse laser source, an air-spaced etalon of known separation, and a defined spatial resolution mask can provide the proper image information to correct for the resulting distortion. A set of Interactive Data Language (IDL){sup 1} software routines were developed to take a series of calibration images showing temporally and spatially displaced points, and map these points from a nonlinear to a linear space-time resultant function. This correction function, in combination with standardized image correction techniques, can be applied to experiment data to minimize systematic errors and improve temporal and spatial resolution measurements.

The icosahedral symmetry is one of the most intriguing symmetries, as it not only presents challenge but it appears in many fullerenes and high energetic materials such as the dodecahedral N{sub 20}. We have considered the combinatorics of all irreducible representations of the icosahedral symmetry for a number of multinomial partitions for vertex, face and edge colorings in this work. We have constructed the combinatorial tables for all irreducible representations for various multinomial partitions of colorings for the vertices, edge and faces of the icosahedron. These techniques should have important applications to enumerations and spectroscopy of fullerenes and high-energy materials such as N{sub 20}.

We utilize new VLA Galactic plane catalogs at 5 and 1.4 GHz covering the first Galactic quadrant (350{sup o} {le} l {le} 42{sup o}, |b| {le} 0.4{sup o}) in conjunction with the MSX6C Galactic plane catalog to construct a large sample of ultra-compact H II regions. A radio catalog of this region was first published by Becker et al. (1994), but we have added new observations and re-reduced the data with significantly improved calibration and mosaicing procedures, resulting in a tripling of the number of 5 GHz sources detected. Comparison of the new 5 GHz catalog and the MSX6C Galactic plane catalog resulted in a sample of 687 matches, out of which we estimate only 15 to be chance coincidences. Most of the matches show red MSX colors and a thermal radio spectrum. The scale height of their Galactic latitude distribution is very small (FWHM of 16' or {approx} 40 pc). These properties suggest that the sample is dominated by young ultra-compact H II regions, most of which are previously uncataloged.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Regulatory Guide 1.145 requires an evaluation of the offsite atmospheric dispersion coefficient, {Chi}/Q, as a part of the acceptance criteria in the accident analysis. In it, it requires in sequence computations of (1) the overall site 95th percentile {Chi}/Q, (2) the maximum of the sixteen sector 99.5th percentile {Chi}/Q, and (3) comparison and selection of the worst of the two values for reporting in the safety analysis report (SAR). In all cases, the site-specific meteorology and sector-specific site boundary distances are employed in the evaluation. There are sixteen 22.5-sectors, the nearest site boundary of which is determined within the 45-arc centered on each of the sixteen compass directions.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Lawrence Livermore Laboratory (LLNL) designed and constructed an innovative containerized wetlands (bioreactor) system that began operation in November 2000 to biologically degrade perchlorate and nitrate under relatively low-flow conditions at a remote location at Site 300 known as Building 854. Since initial start-up, the system has processed over 3,463,000 liters of ground water and treated over 38 grams of perchlorate and 148 kilograms of nitrate. Site 300 is operated by the University of California as a high-explosives and materials testing facility supporting nuclear weapons research. The 11-square mile site located in northern California was added to the NPL in 1990 primarily due to the presence of elevated concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in ground water. At the urging of the regulatory agencies, perchlorate was looked for and detected in the ground water in 1999. VOCs, nitrate and perchlorate were released into the soil and ground water in the Building 854 area as the result of accidental leaks during stability testing of weapons or from waste discharge practices that are no longer permitted at Site 300. Design of the wetland bioreactors was based on earlier studies showing that indigenous chlorate-respiring bacteria could effectively …

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We address the texture level-of-detail problem for extremely large surfaces such as terrain during real-time, view-dependent rendering. A novel texture hierarchy is introduced based on 4-8 refinement of raster tiles, in which the texture grids in effect rotate 45 degrees for each level of refinement. This hierarchy provides twice as many levels of detail as conventional quad-tree-style refinement schemes such as mipmaps, and thus provides per-pixel view-dependent filtering that is twice as close to the ideal cutoff frequency for an average pixel. Because of this more gradual change in low-pass filtering, and due to the more precise emulation of the ideal cutoff frequency, we find in practice that the transitions between texture levels of detail are not perceptible. This allows rendering systems to avoid the complexity and performance costs of per-pixel blending between texture levels of detail. The 4-8 texturing scheme is integrated into a variant of the Real-time Optimally Adapting Meshes (ROAM) algorithm for view-dependent multiresolution mesh generation. Improvements to ROAM included here are: the diamond data structure as a streamlined replacement for the triangle bintree elements, the use of low-pass-filtered geometry patches in place of individual triangles, integration of 4-8 textures, and a simple out-of-core data access mechanism …

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