Polycrystals of the intermetallic compound of the Dy{sub 5}(Si{sub x}Ge{sub 1-x}){sub 4} system, where x = 0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.625, 0.675, 0.725, 0.75, 0.775, 0.825, 0.875, and 1, have been prepared by electric-arc-melting on water-cooled copper hearth in an argon atmosphere. A study of phase relationships and crystallography in the pseudobinary system Dy{sub 5}(Si{sub x}Ge{sub 1-x}){sub 4} using X-ray powder diffraction data and optical metallography was completed. It revealed that silicides in the composition range from 0.825 to 1 crystallize in the Gd{sub 5}Si{sub 4}-type crystal structure: germanides in the composition range from 0 to 0.625 crystallize in the Sm{sub 5}Ge{sub 4}-type structure, and alloys with intermediate composition range from 0.675 to 0.775 crystallize in the monoclinic Gd{sub 5}Si{sub 2}Ge{sub 2}-type structure. The -{Delta}S{sub m} values were determined from magnetization measurements for 7 alloys. The alloys with a monoclinic crystal structure which belong to an intermediate phase region have large MCE value, which exceeds those observed in the other two phase regions by 300 to 500%. The nature of the observed magnetic and structural transformations in the Dy{sub 5}(Si{sub x}Ge{sub 1-x}){sub 4} system seems to be similar with those reported for the Gd{sub 5}(Si{sub x}Ge{sub 1-x}){sub 4} system. However, the …

A self stabilized, free standing, z-pinch plasma channel has been proposed to deliver the high intensity heavy ion beam from the end of a driver to the fuel target in a heavy ion inertial fusion power plant. The z-pinch relaxes emittance and energy spread requirements requiring a lower cost driver. A z-pinch transport would reduce the number of beam entry port holes to the target chamber from over a hundred to four as compared to neutralized ballistic focusing thus reducing the driver hardware exposure to neutron flux. Experiments where a double pulse discharge technique is used, z-pinch plasma channels with enhanced stability are achieved. Typical parameters are 7 kV pre-pulse discharge and 30 kV main bank discharge with 50 kA of channel current in a 7 torr background gas atmosphere. This work is an experimental study of these plasma channels examining the relevant physics necessary to understand and model such plasmas. Laser diagnostics measured the dynamical properties of neutrals and plasma. Schlieren and phase contrast techniques probe the pre-pulse gas dynamics and infrared interferometry and faraday effect polarimetry are used on the z-pinch to study its electron density and current distribution. Stability and repeatability of the z-pinch depend on the …

Single-molecule methods have the potential to provide information about conformational dynamics and molecular interactions that cannot be obtained by other methods. Removal of ensemble averaging provides several benefits, including the ability to detect heterogeneous populations and the ability to observe asynchronous reactions. Single-molecule diffusion methodologies using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) are developed to monitor conformational dynamics while minimizing perturbations introduced by interactions between molecules and surfaces. These methods are used to perform studies of the folding of Chymotrypsin Inhibitor 2, a small, single-domain protein, and of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) homopolymers. Confocal microscopy is used in combination with sensitive detectors to detect bursts of photons from fluorescently labeled biomolecules as they diffuse through the focal volume. These bursts are analyzed to extract fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) efficiency. Advances in data acquisition and analysis techniques that are providing a more complete picture of the accessible molecular information are discussed. Photon Arrival-time Interval Distribution (PAID) analysis is a new method for monitoring macromolecular interactions by fluorescence detection with simultaneous determination of coincidence, brightness, diffusion time, and occupancy (proportional to concentration) of fluorescently-labeled molecules undergoing diffusion in a confocal detection volume. This method is based on recording the time of arrival of …