The National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX) produces plasmas with toroidal aspect ratio as low as 1.25, which can be heated by up to 6 MW High-Harmonic Fast Waves and up to 7 MW of deuterium Neutral Beam Injection. Using new poloidal fields coils, plasmas with cross-section elongation up to 2.7, triangularity 0.8, plasma currents Ip up to 1.5 MA and normalized currents Ip/a⋅BT up to 7.5 MA/m⋅T have been achieved. A significant extension of the plasma pulse length, to 1.5 s at a plasma current of 0.7 MA, has been achieved by exploiting the bootstrap and NBI-driven currents to reduce the dissipation of poloidal flux. Inductive plasma startup has been supplemented by Coaxial Helicity Injection (CHI) and the production of persistent current on closed flux surfaces by CHI has now been demonstrated in NSTX. The plasma response to magnetic field perturbations with toroidal mode numbers n = 1 or 3 and the effects on the plasma rotation have been investigated using three pairs of coils outside the vacuum vessel. Recent studies of both MHD stability and of transport benefitted from improved diagnostics, including measurements of the internal poloidal field using the motional Stark effect (MSE). In plasmas with a region …

The 5s-5p electric-dipole resonance transitions in highly ionized promethiumlike ions have been studied applying relativistic multi-reference Moeller-Plesset second-order perturbation theory. The transition wavelengths are determined to within 0.2 {angstrom} in the more highly charged ions, where the level degeneracies are small. For somewhat lighter ions a very large reference space was used in order to account for the many degeneracies. In order to calculate transition probabilities and lifetimes, correlation corrections have been added to the transition operator in the next order. The contributions from the higher orders of the theory, that is, frequency-dependent Breit correction, Lamb shift, and mass shifts, have been estimated. The results are used to re-assess spectroscopic data from beam-foil, electron beam ion trap, and tokamak observations.

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The primary motivation for building neutrino telescopes is to open the road for neutrino astronomy, and to offer another observational window for the study of cosmic ray origins. Other physics topics, such as the search for WIMPs, can also be developed with neutrino telescope. As of March 2008, the IceCube detector, with half of its strings deployed, is the world largest neutrino telescope taking data to date and it will reach its completion in 2011. Data taken with the growing detector are being analyzed. The results of some of these works are summarized here. AMANDA has been successfully integrated into IceCube data acquisition system and continues to accumulate data. Results obtained using only AMANDA data taken between the years 2000 and 2006 are also presented. The future of IceCube and the extensions in both low and high energy regions will finally be discussed in the last section.

Approximately 6,200 cubic meters of waste containing about 2.0E8 MBq of radium-226 are stored in two large silos at the Fernald Site in southwest Ohio. The material is scheduled for retrieval, packaging, off site shipment and disposal by burial. Air in the silos above the stored material contained radon-222 at a concentration of 7.4 E5 Bq/L. Short-lived daughters formed by decay in these headspaces generated dose rates at contact with the top of the silos up to 1.05 mSv/hr and there complicate the process of retrieval. A Radon Control System (RCS) employing carbon adsorption beds has been designed under contract with the Fluor Fernald to remove most of the radon in the headspaces and maintain lower concentrations during periods when work on or above the domes is needed. Removing the radon also removes the short-lived daughters and reduces the dose rate near the domes to 20 to 30 {mu}Sv/hr. Failing to remove the radon would be costly, in the exposure of personnel needed to work extended periods at these moderate dose rates, or in dollars for the application of remote retrieval techniques. In addition, the RCS minimizes the potential for environmental releases. This paper describes the RCS, its mode of …

A series of experiments is described in which a novel prescription for the identification of plastic strain is tested to determine its validity in the context of the strain-space formulation of rate-independent plasticity. Biaxial experiments were performed on several thin-walled aluminum 1100-O cylindrical specimens.

Ultra-thin oxynitride films were grown on Si by direct rapid thermal processing (RTP) oxynitridation in NO/O{sub 2} ambients with NO concentrations from 5% to 50%. During oxynitridation, nitrogen accumulated at the Si/dielectric interface and the average concentration of in N through the resulting films ranged from 0.3 to 3.0 atomic percent. The average concentration of N in the films increased with increasing NO in the ambient gas, but decreased with longer RTP times. The maximum N concentration remained relatively constant for all RTP times and a given NO/O{sub 2} ambient. Re-oxidation following oxynitridation altered L the N profile and improved the electrical characteristics, with an optimal NO/O{sub 2} mixture in the range of 10% to 25% NO. Re-oxidation by RTP improves the electrical characteristics with respect to the films that were not re-oxidized and produces only slight changes in the N distribution or maximum concentration. The electrical results also indicate that oxynitride films are superior to comparably grown oxide films.

The Department of Energy has over 200 different fuel types which will be placed in a geologic repository for ultimate disposal. At the present time, DOE EM is responsible for assuring safe existing conditions, achieving interim storage, and preparing for final disposition. Each task is governed by regulations which dictate a certain degree of knowledge regarding the contents and condition of the fuel. This knowledge and other associated characteristics are referred to as data needs. It is the stance of DOE EM, that personnel and economic resources are not available to obtain the necessary data to characterize such individual fuel type for final disposal documentation purposes. In addition, it is beyond the need of DOE to do so. This report describes the effort to classify the 200+ fuel types into a subset of fuel types for the purpose of non-destructive analysis (NDA) measurement system development and demonstration testing in support of the DOE National Spent Nuclear Fuel (NSNFP) Program. The fuel types have been grouped into 37 groups based on fuel composition, fuel form, assembly size, enrichment, and other characteristics which affect NDA measurements (e.g., neutron poisons).

In the US, there are two sets of key decommissioning records clearly identified -- those that are essential for planning the D and D of a facility and then those that are the result of the decommissioning process itself. In some cases, the regulatory authorities require and in others advise the licensees of the records that may be useful or which are required to be kept from the decommissioning. In the remainder of the paper, the author attempts to highlight some important aspects of decommissioning recordkeeping.

Several concepts (and assumptions) from the literature for porous metals and ceramics have been synthesized into a consistent model that predicts an admissibility limit on a material's porous yield surface. To ensure positive plastic work, the rate at which a yield surface can collapse as pores grow in tension must be constrained.

Structural dynamic systems are often attached to a support structure to simulate proper boundary conditions during testing. In some cases the support structure is fairly simple and can be modeled by discrete springs and dampers. In other cases the desired test conditions necessitate the use of a support structural that introduces dynamics of its own. For such cases a more complex structural dynamic model is required to simulate the response of the full combined system. In this paper experimental frequency response functions, admittance function modeling concepts, and least squares reductions are used to develop a support structure model including both translational and rotational degrees of freedom at an attachment location. Subsequently, the modes of the support structure are estimated, and a NASTRAN model is created for attachment to the tested system.

A co-simulation tool based on finite element principles has been developed to solve coupled electrostatic-structural problems. An automated mesh morphing algorithm has been employed to update the field mesh after structural deformation. The co-simulation tool has been successfully applied to the hysteric behavior of a MEMS switch.

This paper describes the fabrication and measurement of the linewidths of the reference segments of cross-bridge resistors patterned in (100) Bonded and Etched Back Silicon-on-Insulator (BESOI) material. The critical dimensions (CD) of the reference segments of a selection of the cross-bridge resistor test structures were measured both electrically and by Scanning-Electron Microscopy (SEM) cross-section imaging. The reference-segment features were aligned with <110> directions in the BESOI surface material and had drawn linewidths ranging from 0.35 to 3.0 {micro}m. They were defined by a silicon micro-machining process which results in their sidewalls being atomically-planar and smooth and inclined at 54.737{degree} to the surface (100) plane of the substrate. This (100) implementation may usefully complement the attributes of the previously-reported vertical-sidewall one for selected reference-material applications. For example, the non-orthogonal intersection of the sidewalls and top-surface planes of the reference-segment features may alleviate difficulties encountered with atomic-force microscope measurements. In such applications it has been reported that it may be difficult to maintain probe-tip control at the sharp 90{degree} outside corner of the sidewalls and the upper surface. A second application is refining to-down image-processing algorithms and checking instrument performance. Novel aspects of the (100) SOI implementation that are reported here include …

Finding a q{sup th} root in GF(p), where p and q are prunes, q is large and q{sup 2} divides (p{minus}1) is a difficult problem equivalent to the discrete logarithm problem using an element of order q as the base. This paper describes an authenticated key exchange algorithm utilizing this hard problem.

Electrical test structures of the type known as cross-bridge resistors have been patterned in (100) epitaxial silicon material that was grown on Bonded and Etched-Back Silicon-on-Insulator (BESOI) substrates. The CDs (Critical Dimensions) of a selection of their reference segments have been measured electrically, by SEM (Scanning-Electron Microscopy) cross-section imaging, and by lattice-plane counting. The lattice-plane counting is performed on phase-contrast images made by High-Resolution Transmission-Electron Microscopy (HRTEM). The reference-segment features were aligned with <110> directions in the BESOI surface material. They were defined by a silicon micromachining process which results in their sidewalls being atomically-planar and smooth and inclined at 54.737{degree} to the surface (100) plane of the substrate. This (100) implementation may usefully complement the attributes of the previously-reported vertical-sidewall one for selected reference-material applications. The SEM, HRTEM, and electrical CD (ECD) linewidth measurements that are made on BESOI features of various drawn dimensions on the same substrate is being investigated to determine the feasibility of a CD traceability path that combines the low cost, robustness, and repeatability of the ECD technique and the absolute measurement of the HRTEM lattice-plane counting technique. Other novel aspects of the (100) SOI implementation that are reported here are the ECD test-structure architecture …

Argonne National Laboratory is developing a fuel processor for converting liquid hydrocarbon fuels to a hydrogen-rich product suitable for a polymer electrolyte fuel cell stack. The processor uses an autothermal reformer to convert the feed to a mixture of hydrogen, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and water with trace quantities of other components. The carbon monoxide in the product gas is then converted to carbon dioxide in water-gas shift and preferential oxidation reactors. Fuels that have been tested include standard and low-sulfur gasoline and diesel fuel, and Fischer-Tropsch fuels. Iso-octane and n-hexadecane were also examined as surrogates for gasoline and diesel, respectively. Complete conversion of gasoline was achieved at 750 C in a microreactor over a novel catalyst developed at Argonne. Diesel fuel was completely converted at 850 C over this same catalyst. Product streams contained greater than 60% hydrogen on a dry, nitrogen-free basis with iso-octane, gasoline, and n-hexadecane. For a diesel fuel, product streams contained >50% hydrogen on a dry, nitrogen-free basis. The catalyst activity did not significantly decrease over >16 hours operation with the diesel fuel feed. Coke formation was not observed. The carbon monoxide fraction of the product gas could be reduced to as low as 1% …

A project to develop non-intrusive active sensors that can be applied on existing aging aerospace structures for monitoring the onset and progress of structural damage (fatigue cracks and corrosion) is presented. The state of the art in active sensors structural health monitoring and damage detection is reviewed. Methods based on (a) elastic wave propagation and (b) electro-mechanical (E/M) impedance technique are cited and briefly discussed. The instrumentation of these specimens with piezoelectric active sensors is illustrated. The main detection strategies (E/M impedance for local area detection and wave propagation for wide area interrogation) are discussed. The signal processing and damage interpretation algorithms are tuned to the specific structural interrogation method used. In the high-frequency E/M impedance approach, pattern recognition methods are used to compare impedance signatures taken at various time intervals and to identify damage presence and progression from the change in these signatures. In the wave propagation approach, the acousto-ultrasonic methods identifying additional reflection generated from the damage site and changes in transmission velocity and phase are used. Both approaches benefit from the use of artificial intelligence neural networks algorithms that can extract damage features based on a learning process. Design and fabrication of a set of structural specimens …

Nanotechnology is based on the ability to create and utilize materials, devices and systems through control of the matter at the nanometer scale. If successful, nanotechnology is expected to lead to broad new technological developments. The efficiency of energy conversion can be increased through the use of nanostructured materials with enhanced magnetic, light emission or wear resistant properties. Energy generation using nanostructured photovoltaics or nanocluster driven photocatalysis could fundamentally change the economic viability of renewable energy sources. In addition, the ability to imitate molecular processes found in living organisms may be key to developing highly sensitive and discriminating chemical and biological sensors. Such sensors could greatly expand the range of medical home testing as well as provide new technologies to counter the spread of chemical and biological weapons. Even the production of chemicals and materials could be revolutionized through the development of molecular reactors that can promote low energy chemical pathways for materials synthesis. Although nanotechnologies hold great promise, significant scientific challenges must be addressed before they can convert that promise into a reality. A key challenge in nanoscience is to understand how nano-scale tailoring of materials can lead to novel and enhanced functions. The authors' laboratory, for example, is …

Segmentation of features is often a necessary step in the analysis of volumetric data. The authors have developed a simple technique for extracting voids from irregular volumetric data sets. In this work they look at extracting pores from soil aggregates. First, they identify a threshold that gives good separability of the object from the background. They then segment the object, and perform connected components analysis on the pores within the object. Using their technique pores that break the surface can be segmented along with pores completely contained in the initially segmented object.

Collective impact ionization has been used to explain lock-on in semi-insulating GaAs under high-voltage bias. The authors have used this theory to study some of the steady state properties of lock-on current filaments. In steady state, the heat gained from the field is exactly compensated by the cooling due to phonon scattering. In the simplest approximation, the carrier distribution approaches a quasi-equilibrium Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution. In this report they examine the validity of this approximation. They find that this approximation leads to a filament carrier density which is much lower than the high density needed to achieve a quasiequilibrium distribution. Further work on this subject is in progress.

A great deal of research has been done to understand the photosensitive optical response of inorganic glasses, which exhibit a permanent, photo-induced refractive index change due to the presence of optically active point defects in the glass structure. In the present work, the authors have performed a preliminary study of the intrinsic photosensitivity of a polyester containing a cinnamylindene malonate group (CPE, a photo- and thermal-crosslinkable group) for use in photonic waveguide devices. Thin films of CPE (approximately 0.5 microns thick) were spun onto fused silica substrates. Optical absorption in the thin films was evaluated both before and after exposure to UV radiation sources. It was found that the polyester exhibits two dominant UV absorption bands centered about 240 nm and 330 nm. Under exposure to 337 nm radiation (nitrogen laser) a marked bleaching of the 330 nm band was observed. This band bleaching is a direct result of the photo-induced crosslinking in the cinnamylindene malonate group. Exposure to 248 nm radiation (excimer laser), conversely, resulted in similar bleaching of the 330 nm band but was accompanied by nearly complete bleaching of the higher energy 240 nm band. Based on a Kramers-Kronig analysis of the absorption changes, refractive index changes …

A new generation of specialized scientific instruments called synchrotron light sources allow the imaging of materials at very fine scales. However, in contrast to a traditional microscope, interactive use has not previously been possible because of the large amounts of data generated and the considerable computation required translating this data into a useful image. The authors describe a new software architecture that uses high-speed networks and supercomputers to enable quasi-real-time and hence interactive analysis of synchrotron light source data. This architecture uses technologies provided by the Globus computational grid toolkit to allow dynamic creation of a reconstruction pipeline that transfers data from a synchrotron source beamline to a preprocessing station, next to a parallel reconstruction system, and then to multiple visualization stations. Collaborative analysis tools allow multiple users to control data visualization. As a result, local and remote scientists can see and discuss preliminary results just minutes after data collection starts. The implications for more efficient use of this scarce resource and for more effective science appear tremendous.

Severe plastic deformation in an eutectic tin-lead alloy is studied by imposing fast bending at room temperature, in an attempt to examine the microstructural response in the absence of thermally activated diffusion processes. A change in microstructure due to this purely mechanically imposed load is observed: the tin-rich matrix phase appears to be extruded out of the narrow region between neighboring layers of the lead-rich phase and alterations in the colony structure occur. A micromechanism is proposed to rationalize the experimental observations.