Laser induced fluorescence has been used to measure the spatial distribution of the two lowest energy argon excited states, 1s{sub 5} and 1s{sub 4}, in inductively driven plasmas containing argon, chlorine and boron trichloride. The behavior of the two energy levels with plasma conditions was significantly different, probably because the 1s{sub 5} level is metastable and the 1s{sub 4} level is radiatively coupled to the ground state but is radiation trapped. The argon data is compared with a global model to identify the relative importance of processes such as electron collisional mixing and radiation trapping. The trends in the data suggest that both processes play a major role in determining the excited state density. At lower rfpower and pressure, excited state spatial distributions in pure argon were peaked in the center of the discharge, with an approximately Gaussian profile. However, for the highest rfpowers and pressures investigated, the spatial distributions tended to flatten in the center of the discharge while the density at the edge of the discharge was unaffected. The spatially resolved excited state density measurements were combined with previous line integrated measurements in the same discharge geometry to derive spatially resolved, absolute densities of the 1s{sub 5} and …

Low temperature techniques such as hydrolysis and reverse micelle syntheses provide the opportunity to determine the relationship between the structural properties and preparation conditions of zirconia powders as well as to tailor their physicochemical properties. The authors have performed small-angle neutron and synchrotron X-ray scattering (SANS and SAXS) experiments to study the nucleation and organization of zirconia nanoparticles via different preparation routes. First, the formation of reverse micelles in individual and mixed solutions of (ZrOCl{sub 2}+D{sub 2}O)/AOT/C{sub 6}D{sub 5}CD{sub 3}, and (NH{sub 4}OH+H{sub 2}O)/AOT/C{sub 6}D{sub 5}CD{sub 3} systems at water/AOT molar ratio of 20 was characterized. Second, the aggregation of zirconia gels obtained from the reaction of the reverse micelle solutions after heat treatments was studied. Third, the nanostructure of zirconia powders prepared by the reverse micelle method is compared with the corresponding powders prepared by hydrolysis after different heat treatments.

Article on the characterization of reaction pathways on the potential energy surfaces for H + SO2 and HS + O2.

The National Ignition Facility, or NIF, currently under construction at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory will contain the world's most powerful laser. By the year 2003 the NIF laser will be a research tool allowing scientists a glimpse into plasma interactions that are equivalent to those found in the center of the sun. Every eight hours the NIF will generate 1.8 MJ of 351-nm light carried by 192 pulsed laser beams and focus it onto a pea-sized target. This will result in a fusion reaction between two isotopes of hydrogen, creating for a few hundred picoseconds stellar conditions. Synchronizing the beams and diagnosing the fusion reaction requires generation and delivery of over 1000 precisely timed triggers to a multitude of systems. The NIF Integrated Timing System (ITS) was developed to provide reliable, accurately timed triggers that allow each client system to operate independently during periods of shot preparation and maintenance, yet be coordinated to a few tens of picoseconds during the experiment. The ITS applies technologies developed for fiber communications and Two-Way Time Transfer, and integrates them by way of a computer communications network to achieve distributed control, dynamically configurable coordination and independent among timing channels, and integrated self-diagnostics.

Several researchers have demonstrated the transformation if polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) by both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria. This transformation, or conversion, is characteristic and often dependent on PCB congener structure and in addition, dictates the products or endpoints. Since transformation is linked to microbial activities, bioremediation has been hailed as a possible solution for PCB-contaminated soils and sediments, and several demonstration activities have verified laboratory results. This paper presents results from mathematical modeling of PCB transformation as a means of predicting possible endpoints of bioremediation. Since transformation can be influenced by both starting composition of the PCBs and microbial activity, this paper systematically evaluates several of the most common transformation patterns. The predicted data are also compared with experimental results. For example, the correlation between laboratory-observed and predicted endpoint data was, in some cases, as good as 0.98 (perfect correlation = 1.0). In addition to predicting chemical endpoints, the possible human effects of the PCBs are discussed through the use of documented dioxin-like toxicity and accumulation in humans before and after transformation.

Electron and negative ion densities have been measured in inductively coupled discharges containing C{sub 2}F{sub 6} and CHF{sub 3}. Line integrated electron density was determined using a microwave interferometer, negative ion densities were inferred using laser photodetachment spectroscopy, and electron temperature was determined using a Langmuir probe. For the range of induction powers, pressures and bias power investigated, the electron density peaked at 9 x 10{sup 12} cm{sup -2} (line-integrated) or approximately 9 x 10{sup 11} cm{sup -3}. The negative ion density peaked at approximately 1.3 x 10{sup 11} cm{sup -3}. A maximum in the negative ion density as a function of induction coil power was observed. The maximum is attributed to a power dependent change in the density of one or more of the potential negative ion precursor species since the electron temperature did not depend strongly on power. The variation of photodetachment with laser wavelength indicated that the dominant negative ion was F{sup -}. Measurement of the decay of the negative ion density in the afterglow of a pulse modulated discharge was used to determine the ion-ion recombination rate for CF{sub 4}, C{sub 2}F{sub 6} and CHF{sub 3} discharges.

In a recent experiment to study the proton radioactivity of the highly deformed {sup 131}Eu nucleus, two proton lines were detected. The higher energy one was assigned to the ground-state to ground-state decay, while the lower energy, to the ground-state to the 2{sup +} state decay. This constitutes the first observation of fine structure in proton radioactivity. With these four measured quantities, proton energies, half-life and branching ratio, it is possible to determine the Nilsson configuration of the ground state of the proton emitting nucleus as well as the 2{sup +} energy and nuclear deformation of the daughter nucleus. These results will be presented and discussed.

In 1993, as the CWC ratification process was beginning, concerns arose that the complexity of integrating the CWC with national law could cause each nation to implement the Convention without regard to what other nations were doing, thereby causing inconsistencies among States as to how the CWC would be carried out. As a result, the author's colleagues and the author prepared the Manual for National Implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention and presented it to each national delegation at the December 1993 meeting of the Preparatory Commission in The Hague. During its preparation, the Committee of CWC Legal Experts, a group of distinguished international jurists, law professors, legally-trained diplomats, government officials, and Parliamentarians from every region of the world, including Central Europe, reviewed the Manual. In February 1998, they finished the second edition of the Manual in order to update it in light of developments since the CWC entered into force on 29 April 1997. The Manual tries to increase understanding of the Convention by identifying its obligations and suggesting methods of meeting them. Education about CWC obligations and available alternatives to comply with these requirements can facilitate national response that are consistent among States Parties. Thus, the Manual offers …

The load mitigation and energy capture characteristics of twist-coupled HAWT blades that are mounted on a variable speed rotor are investigated in this paper. These blades are designed to twist toward feather as they bend with pretwist set to achieve a desirable twist distribution at rated power. For this investigation, the ADAMS-WT software has been modified to include blade models with bending-twist coupling. Using twist-coupled and uncoupled models, the ADAMS software is exercised for steady wind environments to generate C{sub p} curves at a number of operating speeds to compare the efficiencies of the two models. The ADAMS software is also used to generate the response of a twist-coupled variable speed rotor to a spectrum of stochastic wind time series. This spectrum contains time series with two mean wind speeds at two turbulence levels. Power control is achieved by imposing a reactive torque on the low speed shaft proportional to the RPM squared with the coefficient specified so that the rotor operates at peak efficiency in the linear aerodynamic range, and by limiting the maximum RPM to take advantage of the stall controlled nature of the rotor. Fatigue calculations are done for the generated load histories using a range of …

The UO{sub 2} in spent nuclear fuel is unstable under moist oxidizing conditions and will be altered to uranyl oxide hydrate phases. The transuranics released during the corrosion of spent fuel may also be incorporated into the structures of secondary U{sup 6+} phases. The incorporation of radionuclides into alteration products will affect their mobility. A series of precipitation tests were conducted at either 150 or 90 C for seven days to determine the potential incorporation of Ce{sup 4+} and Nd{sup 3+} (surrogates for Pu{sup 4+} and Am{sup 3+}, respectively) into uranium phases. Ianthinite ([U{sub 2}{sup 4+}(UO{sub 2}){sub 4}O{sub 6}(OH){sub 4}(H{sub 2}O){sub 4}](H{sub 2}O){sub 5}) was produced by dissolving uranium oxyacetate in a solution containing copper acetate monohydrate as a reductant. The leachant used in these tests were doped with either 2.1 ppm cerium or 399 ppm neodymium. Inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) analysis of the solid phase reaction products which were dissolved in a HNO{sub 3} solution indicates that about 306 ppm Ce (K{sub d} = 146) was incorporated into ianthinite, while neodymium contents were much higher, being approximately 24,800 ppm (K{sub d} = 62). Solid phase examinations using an analytical transmission electron microscope/electron energy-loss spectrometer (AEM/EELS) indicate a uniform …

In an effort to reduce data transfer and rate requirements, the Higher Level Trigger of the ATLAS Detector uses Region of Interest (ROI) information forwarded from Level 1 Partitions on a Level 1 Accept. The ROI Builder receives these ROI fragments, which may be considerably skewed in time and may be interspersed with fragments from other events, organizes and formats from these fragments a record for each event accepted by Level 1, selects a processor to manage the event, and transfers via S-link the assembled ROI record to the target processor. The ROI Builder must fulfill these requirements at the Level 1 Trigger rate of 100 kHz while accommodating S-link flow control. A design for the ROI Builder was developed emphasizing parallelism, implemented in FPGA's, and has been run in testbeds at Saclay and CERN.

The current status of rare kaon decay experiments is reviewed. New limits in the search for Lipton Flavor Violation are discussed, as are new measurements of the CKM matrix.

The behavior of H in p-GaN(Mg) at temperatures >400 C is modeled by using energies and vibrational frequencies from density-functional theory to parameterize transport and reaction equations. Predictions agree semiquantitatively with experiment for the solubility, uptake, and release of the H when account is taken of a surface barrier. Hydrogen is introduced into GaN during growth by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) and subsequent device processing. This impurity affects electrical properties substantially, notably in p-type GaN doped with Mg where it reduces the effective acceptor concentration. Application of density-functional theory to the zincblende and wurtzite forms of GaN has indicated that dissociated H in interstitial solution assumes positive, neutral, and negative charge states. The neutral species is found to be less stable than one or the other of the charged states for all Fermi energies. Hydrogen is predicted to form a bound neutral complex with Mg, and a local vibrational mode ascribed to this complex has been observed. The authors are developing a unified mathematical description of the diffusion, reactions, uptake, and release of H in GaN at the elevated temperatures of growth and processing. Their treatment is based on zero-temperature energies from density functional theory. One objective is to …

Rosen's modeling relation is embedded in Popper's three worlds to provide an heuristic tool for model building and a guide for thinking about complex systems. The utility of this construct is demonstrated by suggesting a solution to the problem of pseudo science and a resolution of the famous Bohr-Einstein debates. A theory of bizarre systems is presented by an analogy with entangled particles of quantum mechanics. This theory underscores the poverty of present-day computational systems (e.g., computers) for creating complex and bizarre entities by distinguishing between mechanism and organism.

For several reasons, Bayesian parameter estimation is superior to other methods for inductively learning a model for an anticipatory system. Since it exploits prior knowledge, the analysis begins from a more advantageous starting point than other methods. Also, since "nuisance parameters" can be removed from the Bayesian analysis, the description of the model need not be as complete as is necessary for such methods as matched filtering. In the limit of perfectly random noise and a perfect description of the model, the signal-to-noise ratio improves as the square root of the number of samples in the data. Even with the imperfections of real-world data, Bayesian methods approach this ideal limit of performance more closely than other methods. These capabilities provide a strategy for addressing a major unsolved problem in pump operation: the identification of precursors of cavitation. Cavitation causes immediate degradation of pump performance and ultimate destruction of the pump. However, the most efficient point to operate a pump is just below the threshold of cavitation. It might be hoped that a straightforward method to minimize pump cavitation damage would be to simply adjust the operating point until the inception of cavitation is detected and then to slightly readjust the …

The monochromatic opacity, {kappa}{sub v}, quantifies the property of a material to remove energy of frequency v from a radiation field. A harmonic average of {kappa}{sub v}, known as the Rosseland mean, {kappa}{sub R}, is frequently used to simplify the calculation of energy transport in stars. The term ''opacity'' is commonly understood to refer to {kappa}{sub R}. Opacity plays an important role in stellar modeling because for most stars radiation is the primary mechanism for transporting energy from the nuclear burning region in the core to the surface. Depending on the mass, convection and electron thermal conduction can also be important modes of stellar energy transport. The efficiency of energy transport is related to the temperature gradient, which is directly proportional to the mean radiative opacity in radiation dominated regions. When the radiative opacity is large, convection can become the more efficient energy transport mechanism. Electron conductive opacity, the resistance of matter to thermal conduction, is inversely proportional to electron thermal conductivity. Thermal conduction becomes the dominant mode of energy transport at high density and low temperature.

A high-speed data link that would provide dramatically faster communication from downhole instruments to the surface and back again has the potential to revolutionize deep drilling for geothermal resources through Diagnostics-While-Drilling (DWD). Many aspects of the drilling process would significantly improve if downhole and surface data were acquired and processed in real-time at the surface, and used to guide the drilling operation. Such a closed-loop, driller-in-the-loop DWD system, would complete the loop between information and control, and greatly improve the performance of drilling systems. The main focus of this program is to demonstrate the value of real-time data for improving drilling. While high-rate transfer of down-hole data to the surface has been accomplished before, insufficient emphasis has been placed on utilization of the data to tune the drilling process to demonstrate the true merit of the concept. Consequently, there has been a lack of incentive on the part of industry to develop a simple, low-cost, effective high-speed data link. Demonstration of the benefits of DWD based on a high-speed data link will convince the drilling industry and stimulate the flow of private resources into the development of an economical high-speed data link for geothermal drilling applications. Such a downhole communication …

We present a unique modeling capability to understand the global distribution of trace gases and aerosols throughout both the troposphere and stratosphere. It includes the ability to simulate tropospheric chemistry that occurs both in the gas phase as well as on the surfaces of solid particles. We have used this capability to analyze observations from particular flight campaigns as well as averaged observed data. Results show the model to accurately simulate the complex chemistry occurring near the tropopause and throughout the troposphere and stratosphere.

A methodology has been established to predict the effect of atmospheric corrosion on the reliability of plastic encapsulated microelectronic (PEM) devices. New experimental techniques were developed to directly characterize the Al/Au wirebond interface where corrosion primarily occurs. A deterministic empirical model describing wirebond degradation as a function of environmental conditions was generated. To demonstrate how this model can be used to determine corrosion effects on device reliability, a numerical simulation was performed on a three-lead voltage reference device. Surface reaction rate constants, environmental variables and the defect characteristics of the encapsulant were treated as distributed parameters. A Sandia-developed analytical framework (CRAX{trademark}) was used to include uncertainty in the analysis and directly calculate reliability.

Coffinite (USiO{sub 4}) has been found in numerous sedimentary and hydrothermal environments including those considered as natural analogues of nuclear waste repositories. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and analytical electron microscopy (AEM) studies have been conducted on a uraninite sample from a U-deposit in Canada. It is observed that the uraninite (UO{sub 2+x}) is replaced by coffinite (U[SiO{sub 4}].nH{sub 2}O) and the replacing coffinite coexists with quartz. The TEM study shows {alpha}-recoil damage, lattice distortion, and low-angle boundaries among neighboring uraninite domains. Coffinitization seems more closely associated with {alpha}-recoil-damaged uraninite areas. Electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) spectrum indicates that the ratio of U(+6)U(+4) in the uraninite is about 2/3, while the coffinite is dominated by U(+4). A thermodynamic calculation indicates that coffinitization can take place most likely at temperatures below 130 C if dissolved silica concentrations are limited by amorphous silica mineral phase. In a sufficiently high silica concentration environment, coffinite can form under the oxygen fugacity of 10{sup -65}-10{sup -55} atm. The equilibrium model, however, is not able to explain the coexistence of coffinite with quartz. A kinetic model that takes account of Ostwald processes is thus proposed. The kinetic model indicates that the presence of U(+6) in uraninite and the …

Parallel microscopic experimentation (the combinatorial approach often used in solid-state science) was applied to characterize atmospheric copper corrosion behavior. Specifically, this technique permitted relative sulfidation rates to be determined for copper containing different levels of point defects and impurities (In, Al, O, and D). Corrosion studies are inherently difficult because of complex interactions between material interfaces and the environment. The combinatorial approach was demonstrated using micron-scale Cu lines that were exposed to a humid air environment containing sub-ppm levels of H{sub 2}S. The relative rate of Cu{sub 2}S growth was determined by measuring the change in resistance of the line. The data suggest that vacancy trapping by In and Al impurities slow the sulfidation rate. Increased sulfidation rates were found for samples containing excess point defects or deuterium. Furthermore, the sulfidation rate of 14 {micro}m wide Cu lines was increased above that for planar films.

A dependence of elastic response on the stress-state of a thin film has been demonstrated using the interfacial force microscope (IFM). Indentation response was measured as a function of the applied biaxial stress-state for 100 nm thick Au films. An increase in measured elastic modulus with applied compressive stress, and a decrease with applied tensile stress was observed. Measurements of elastic modulus before and after applying stress were identical indicating that the observed change in response is not due to a permanent change in film properties.

The author describes four serious defects of a widely discuss pion exchange model for interquark forces: it doesn't solve the ``spin-orbit problem'' as advertised, it fails to describe the internal structure of baryon resonances, it leads to disastrous conclusions when extended to mesons, and it is not reasonably connected to the physics of heavy-light systems.

This report focuses Sandia National Laboratories' effort to create high-temperature logging tools for geothermal applications not requiring heat-shielding. Tool electronics can operate up to 300 C with a few limiting components operating to 250 C. Second generation electronics are needed to increase measurement accuracy and extend the operating range to 300 and then 350 C are identified. Custom development of high-temperature batteries and assembling techniques are touched on. Outcomes of this work are discussed and new directions for developing high-temperature industry are suggested.