The complete exact solution of the T = 1 neutron-proton pairing Hamiltonian is presented in the context of the SO(5) Richardson-Gaudin model with non-degenerate single-particle levels and including isospin-symmetry breaking terms. The power of the method is illustrated with a numerical calculation for {sup 64}Ge for a pf + g{sub 9/2} model space which is out of reach of modern shell-model codes.

Simulations of the interactions of injected fluids with minerals within an engineered fracture in a sample of Desert Peak quartz monzonite were compared with experimental observations of fluid chemistry and fracture permeability. The observed decrease in permeability and effective hydraulic aperture was much more rapid ({approx}1.0 {micro}m/day) for a core injected with a mixed salt solution containing dissolved silica (near-saturation injectate), compared to cores injected with NaCl (far-from-saturation injectate) ({approx}0.1 {micro}m/day). Simulations were in qualitative agreement with these observations. Near-saturation injectate is predicted to result in net precipitation of secondary phases in the fracture ({approx}0.12 {micro}m/day), compared to a net dissolution of the rock for the far-from-saturation injectate ({approx}0.3 {micro}m/day). Permeability loss for the near-saturation-injectate is ascribed to precipitation in the fracture as well as potential dissolution of primary mineral asperities. Permeability loss for the far-from-saturation fluid is ascribed to dissolution of asperities and smoothing of the fracture. Post-test analysis of the fracture surface will be necessary to verify the processes occurring. The simplified geochemical models used do not account for mineral heterogeneity or for distributions of fluid residence times which could be important controls on permeability evolution. Further analysis is planned to explicitly account for these phenomena.

A search for the decays B {yields} {rho}(770){gamma} and B{sup 0} {yields} {omega}(782) is performed on a sample of 211 million {Upsilon}(4S) {yields} B{bar B} events collected by the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy e{sup +}e{sup -} storage ring. No evidence for the decays is seen. We set the following limits on the individual branching fractions {Beta}(B{sup +} {yields} {rho}{sup +}{gamma}) < 1.8 x 10{sup -6}, {Beta}(B{sup 0} {yields} {rho}{sup 0}{gamma}) < 0.4 x 10{sup -6}, and {Beta}(B{sup 0} {yields} {omega}{gamma}) < 1.0 x 10{sup -6} at the 90% confidence level (C.L.). We use the quark model to limit the combined branching fraction {bar {Beta}}[B {yields} ({rho}/{omega}){gamma}] < 1.2 x 10{sup -6} and constrain |V{sub td}|/|V{sub ts}|.

Moving highly-charged ions carry strong electromagnetic fields which act as a field of photons. In collisions at large impact parameters, hadronic interactions are not possible, and the ions interact through photon-ion and photon-photon collisions known as ultra-peripheral collisions (UPC). Hadron colliders like the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC), the Tevatron and the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) produce photonuclear and two-photon interactions at luminosities and energies beyond that accessible elsewhere; the LHC will reach a {gamma}p energy ten times that of the Hadron-Electron Ring Accelerator (HERA). Reactions as diverse as the production of anti-hydrogen, photoproduction of the {rho}{sup 0}, transmutation of lead into bismuth and excitation of collective nuclear resonances have already been studied. At the LHC, UPCs can study many types of ''new physics''.

The LCLS, the world's first x-ray free electron laser, will be constructed at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center and is expected to be completed in 2009. A two-mirror system will be used in order to reduce background radiation in near and far experimental hutches. This paper describes the layout of the two-mirror system and also reports on the shielding requirements for the experimental hutches. Two beam loss scenarios for radiation sources are discussed: losses from the high energy electron beam hitting beam components and x-rays produced in the 130 m long undulator and scattered on x-ray mirrors. The FLUKA Monte-Carlo particle transport code was used for the shielding design and for the determination of the radiation levels around the experimental hutches.

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Gas reactor systems are being considered as candidates for use in generating power for the Prometheus-1 spacecraft, along with other NASA missions as part of the Prometheus program. Gas reactors offer a benign coolant, which increases core and structural materials options. However, the gas coolant has inferior thermal transport properties, relative to other coolant candidates such as liquid metals. This leads to concerns for providing effective heat transfer and for minimizing pressure drop within the reactor core. In direct gas Brayton systems, i.e. those with one or more Brayton turbines in the reactor cooling loop, the ability to provide effective core cooling and low pressure drop is further constrained by the need for a low pressure, high molecular weight gas, typically a mixture of helium and xenon. Use of separate primary and secondary gas loops, one for the reactor and one or more for the Brayton system(s) separated by heat exchanger(s), allows for independent optimization of the pressure and gas composition of each loop. The reactor loop can use higher pressure pure helium, which provides improved heat transfer and heat transport properties, while the Brayton loop can utilize lower pressure He-Xe. However, this approach requires a separate primary gas circulator …

The transport of chemicals or heat in fractured reservoirs is strongly affected by the fracture-matrix interfacial area. In a vapor-dominated geothermal reservoir, this area can be estimated by inert gas tracer tests, where gas diffusion between the fracture and matrix causes the tracer breakthrough curve (BTC) to have a long tail determined by the interfacial area. For water-saturated conditions, recent studies suggest that sorbing solute tracers can also generate strong tails in BTCs that may allow a determination of the fracture-matrix interfacial area. To theoretically explore such a useful phenomenon, this paper develops an analytical solution for BTCs in slug-tracer tests in a water-saturated fractured reservoir. The solution shows that increased sorption should have the same effect on BTCs as an increase of the diffusion coefficient. The solution is useful for understanding transport mechanisms, verifying numerical codes, and for identifying appropriate chemicals as tracers for the characterization of fractured reservoirs.

The creation of ultra-high current, ultra-short pulse beams Q=3 nC, {sigma}{sub z} = 20{micro}m at the SLAC FFTB has opened the way for very high gradient plasma wakefield acceleration experiments. We study here the use of these beams in a proposed Cherenkov wakefield experiment, where one may excite electromagnetic wakes in a simple dielectric tube with inner diameter of few 100 microns that exceed the GV/m level. We discuss the scaling of the fields with design geometric design parameters, and choice of dielectric. We also examine measurable aspects of the experiment, such as the total coherent Cerenkov radiation energy one may collect, and the expected aspects of dielectric breakdown at high fields.

We study the density of states method to explore the phase diagram of the chiral transition on the temperature and quark chemical potential plane. Four quark flavors are used in the analysis. Though the method is quite expensive small lattices show an indication for a triple-point connecting three different phases on the phase diagram.

Article about a combined birthday party for Donaji Lira and Lance Avery Morgan held in Austin, Texas.