The Sustained Spheromak Physics Experiment (SSPX) will examine the confinement properties of spheromak plasmas sustained by DC helicity injection. Understanding the plasma-surface interactions is an important component of the experimental program since the spheromak plasma is in close contact with a stabilizing wall (flux conserver) and is maintained by a high-current discharge in the coaxial injector region. Peak electron temperatures in the range of 400 eV are expected, so the copper plasma facing surfaces in SSPX have been coated with tungsten to minimize sputtering and plasma contamination. Here the authors report on the characterization and conditioning of these surfaces used for the initial studies of spheromak formation in SSPX. The high-pressure plasma-sprayed tungsten facing the SSPX plasma was characterized in-situ using beta-backscattering and ex-situ using laboratory measurements on similarly prepared samples. Measurements indicate that water can be desorbed effectively through baking while hydrocarbon/oxide removal using glow discharge and shot conditioning is slow due to the coating's high porosity.

The following topics related to the treatment of cuttings, cavings and spallings releases to the surface environment in the 1996 performance assessment for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) are presented: (1) mathematical description of models. (2) uncertainty and sensitivity analysis results arising from subjective (i.e., epistemic) uncertainty for individual releases, (3) construction of complementary cumulative distribution functions (CCDFs) arising from stochastic (i.e., aleatory) uncertainty, and (4) uncertainty and sensitivity analysis results for CCDFs. The presented results indicate that direct releases due to cuttings, cavings and spallings do not constitute a serious threat to the effectiveness of the WIPP as a disposal facility for transuranic waste. Even when the effects of uncertain analysis inputs are taken into account, the CCDFs for cuttings, cavings and spallings releases fall substantially to the left of the boundary line specified in the US Environmental Protection Agency standard for the geologic disposal of radioactive waste (40 CFR 191, 40 CFR 194).

The disordered vortex phases induced by line and point pinning in YBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub x} are explored. At high defect densities there is a single disordered solid separated from the liquid phase by a melting line. At low defect densities the topology of the phase diagram changes dramatically, with a vortex lattice phase adjoining disordered phases at high or low field. Critical points at the termination of first order melting separate the lattice and disordered phases. The line defect disordered phases follow the expected Bose glass behavior, while the point defect disordered phases do not exhibit the expected vortex glass behavior.

A perspective on the contemporary application of Dyson-Schwinger equations, focusing on some recent phenomenological applications: a description and unification of light-meson observable using a one-parameter model of the effective quark-quark interaction, and studies of leptonic and nonleptonic nucleon form factors. The theory and phenomenological application of Dyson-Schwinger equations (DSEs) have seen something of a renaissance. For example, they have been applied simultaneously to phenomena as apparently unconnected as low-energy {pi}{pi} scattering, B {r_arrow} D{sup *} decays and the equation of state for a quark gluon plasma, and there are renewed attempts to understand the origin of the infrared enhancement necessary in the kernel of the quark DSE (QCD gap equation) to generate dynamical chiral symmetry breaking (DCSB). Also significant is the appreciation that in this approach current algebra's anomalies remain a feature of the global aspects of DCSB.

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Computer systems and applications are growing more complex. Consequently, performance analysis has become more difficult due to the complex, transient interrelationships among runtime components. To diagnose these types of performance issues, developers must use detailed instrumentation to capture a large number of performance metrics. Unfortunately, this instrumentation may actually influence the performance analysis, leading the developer to an ambiguous conclusion. In this paper, we introduce a technique for focusing a performance analysis on interesting performance metrics. This technique, called dynamic statistical projection pursuit, identifies interesting performance metrics that the monitoring system should capture across some number of processors. By reducing the number of performance metrics, projection pursuit can limit the impact of instrumentation on the performance of the target system and can reduce the volume of performance data.

The experimental measurement of K{sup +} {yields} {pi}{sup +} {nu}{bar {nu}} is reviewed. New results from experiment E787 at BNL are presented: with data from 1995-97 the branching ratio has been measured to be B(K{sup +} {yields} {pi}{sup +} {nu}{bar {nu}}) = (1.5{sub {minus}1.2}{sup +3.4}) x 10{sup {minus}10}. The future prospects for additional data in this mode are examined.

Laser deposits fabricated from two different compositions of 304L stainless steel powder were characterized to determine the nature of the solidification and solid state transformations. One of the goals of this work was to determine to what extent novel microstructure consisting of single-phase austenite could be achieved with the thermal conditions of the LENS [Laser Engineered Net Shape] process. Although ferrite-free deposits were not obtained, structures with very low ferrite content were achieved. It appeared that, with slight changes in alloy composition, this goal could be met via two different solidification and transformation mechanisms.

The ternary semiconductor GaAs{sub 1{minus}x}N{sub x} with 0 < x < 0.3 can be grown epitaxially on GaAs and has a very large bowing coefficient. The alloy bandgap can be reduced to about 1.0 eV with about a 3% nitrogen addition. In this work, the authors measured the internal spectral response and recombination lifetime of a number of alloys using the ultra-high frequency photoconductive decay (UHFPCD) method. The data shows that the photoconductive excitation spectra of the GaAs{sub 0.97}N{sub 0.03} alloy shows a gradual increase in response through the absorption edge near E{sub g}. This contrasts with most direct bandgap semiconductors that show a steep onset of photoresponse at E{sub g}. The recombination lifetimes frequently are much longer than expected from radiative recombination and often exceeded 1.0{mu}s. The data were analyzed in terms of a band model that includes large potential fluctuations in the conduction band due to the random distribution of nitrogen atoms in the alloy.

The following topics related to radionuclide and colloid transport in the Culebra Dolomite in the 1996 performance assessment for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) are presented: (1) mathematical description of models, (2) uncertainty and sensitivity analysis results arising from subjective (i.e., epistemic) uncertainty for individual releases, and (3) construction of complementary cumulative distribution functions (CCDFs) arising from stochastic (i.e., aleatory) uncertainty. The presented results indicate that radionuclide and colloid transport in the Culebra Dolomite does not constitute a serious threat to the effectiveness of the WIPP as a disposal facility for transuranic waste. Even when the effects of uncertain analysis inputs are taken into account, no radionuclide transport to the boundary with the accessible environment was observed; thus the associated CCDFs for comparison with the boundary line specified in the US Environmental Protection Agency's standard for the geologic disposal of radioactive waste (40 CFR 191, 40 CFR 194) are degenerate in the sense of having a probability of zero of exceeding a release of zero.

The following topics related to radionuclide transport in the vicinity of the repository in the 1996 performance assessment for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant are presented (1) mathematical description of models, (2) uncertainty and sensitivity analysis results arising from subjective (i.e., epistemic) uncertainty for individual releases, (3) construction of complementary cumulative distribution functions (CCDFs) arising from stochastic (i.e., aleatory) uncertainty, and (4) uncertainty and sensitivity analysis results for CCDFs. The presented results indicate that no releases to the accessible environment take place due to radionuclide movement through the anhydrite marker beds, through the Dewey Lake Red Beds or directly to the surface, and also that the releases to the Culebra Dolomite are small. Even when the effects of uncertain analysis inputs are taken into account, the CCDFs for release to the Culebra Dolomite fall to the left of the boundary line specified in the US Environmental Protection Agency's standard for the geologic disposal of radioactive waste (40 CFR 191, 40 CFR 194).

Enormous progress has been made in recent years on a number of photovoltaic (PV) materials and devices in terms of conversion efficiencies. Ultrahigh-efficiency (>30{percent}) PV cells have been fabricated from gallium arsenide (GaAs) and its ternary alloys such as gallium indium phosphide (GaInP{sub 2}). The high-efficiency GaAs-based solar cells are being produced on a commercial scale, particularly for space applications. Efficiencies in the range of 18{percent} to 24{percent} have been achieved in traditional silicon-based devices fabricated from both multicrystalline and single-crystal materials. Major advances in efficiency have also been made on various thin-film solar cells based on amorphous silicon (aSi:H), copper gallium indium diselenide (CIGS), and cadmium telluride materials. This paper gives a brief overview of the recent progress in PV cell efficiencies based on these materials and devices.

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) is the first operational repository designed for the safe disposal of transuranic (TRU) radioactive waste from the defense programs of the US Department of Energy (DOE). The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for certifications and regulation of the WIPP facility for the radioactive components of the waste. The EPA has promulgated general radioactive waste disposal standards at 40 CFR Part 191. and WIPP-specific criteria to implement and interpret the generic disposal standards at 40 CFR Part 194. In October 1996. the DOE submitted its Compliance Certification Application (CCA) to the EPA to demonstrate compliance with the disposal standards at Subparts B and C of 40 CFR Part 191. This paper summarizes the development of the overall legal framework for radioactive waste disposal at the WIPP, the parallel development of the WIPP performance assessment (PA), and how the EPA disposal standards and implementing criteria formed the basis for the CCA WIPP PA. The CCA resulted in a certification in May 1998 by the EPA of the WIPP'S compliance with the EPA's disposal standard, thus enabling the WIPP to begin radioactive waste disposal.

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant was licensed for disposal of transuranic wastes generated by the US Department of Energy. The facility consists of a repository mined in a bedded salt formation, approximately 650 m below the surface. Regulations promulgated by the US Environmental Protection Agency require that performance assessment calculations for the repository include the possibility that an exploratory drilling operation could penetrate the waste disposal areas at some time in the future. Release of contaminated solids could reach the surface during a drilling intrusion. One of the mechanisms for release, known as spallings, can occur if gas pressures in the repository exceed the hydrostatic pressure of a column of drilling mud. Calculation of solids releases for spallings depends critically on the conceptual models for the waste, for the spallings process, and assumptions regarding driller parameters and practices. The paper presents a review of the evolution of these models during regulatory review of the Compliance Certification Application for the repository. A summary and perspectives on the implementation of conservative assumptions in model development are also provided.

In high-energy nuclear collisions, the new phase of the quark-gluon plasma is indicated by an anomalous increase in pressure, an excess of direct photon production, an excess of strangeness production, and an anomalous J/{psi} suppression. We review these signatures and discuss how recent high-energy heavy-ion experiments at CERN are consistent with the production of the quark-gluon plasma in high-energy Pb+Pb collisions.

The fracture of highly-crosslinked networks is investigated by molecular dynamics simulations. The network is modeled as a bead-spring polymer network between two solid surfaces. The network is dynamically formed by crosslinking an equilibrated liquid mixture. Tensile pull fracture is simulated as a function of the number of interracial bonds. The sequence of molecular structural deformations that lead to failure are determined, and the connectivity is found to strongly control the stress-strain response and failure modes. The failure strain is related to the minimal paths in the network that connect the two solid surfaces. The failure stress is a fraction of the ideal stress required to fracture all the interracial bonds, and is linearly proportional to the number of interracial bonds. By allowing only a single bond between a crosslinker and the surface, interracial failure always occurs. Allowing up to half of the crosslinker's bonds to occur with the surface, cohesive failure can occur.

Most algorithms used in preconditioned iterative methods are generally applicable to complex valued linear systems, with real valued linear systems simply being a special case. However, most iterative solver packages available today focus exclusively on real valued systems, or deal with complex valued systems as an afterthought. One obvious approach to addressing this problem is to recast the complex problem into one of a several equivalent real forms and then use a real valued solver to solve the related system. However, well-known theoretical results showing unfavorable spectral properties for the equivalent real forms have diminished enthusiasm for this approach. At the same time, experience has shown that there are situations where using an equivalent real form can be very effective. In this paper, the authors explore this approach, giving both theoretical and experimental evidence that an equivalent real form can be useful for a number of practical situations. Furthermore, they show that by making good use of some of the advance features of modem solver packages, they can easily generate equivalent real form preconditioners that are computationally efficient and mathematically identical to their complex counterparts. Using their techniques, they are able to solve very ill-conditioned complex valued linear systems for …

Plasma facing components in TFTR contain an important record of plasma wall interactions in reactor grade DT plasmas. Tiles, flakes, wall coupons, a stainless steel shutter and dust samples have been retrieved from the TFTR vessel for analysis. Selected samples have been baked to release tritium and assay the tritium content. The in-vessel tritium inventory is estimated to be 0.56 g and is consistent with the in-vessel tritium inventory derived from the difference between tritium fueling and tritium exhaust. The distribution of tritium on the limiter and vessel wall showed complex patterns of co-deposition. Relatively high concentrations of tritium were found at the top and bottom of the bumper limiter, as predicted by earlier BBQ modeling.

An astonishing variety of inorganic networks templated by organic species have been reported over the last 10 years. A great deal of attention has been paid to the structure-directing role of the organic species, and the structural effect of variously coordinated cations, for example distorted octahedral vanadium and pyramidal tin. Less exploratory work has been carried out on the anionic part of the inorganic network, and most groups reported so far (phosphate, germanate, etc.) invariably adopt tetrahedral coordination. The possibilities of incorporating the pyramidal [HP0{sub 3}]{sup 2{minus}} hydrogen phosphite group into extended structures templated by inorganic, alkaline earth cations was explored a few years ago. In this paper the authors report the synthesis, crystal structure, and some properties of (CN{sub 3}H{sub 6}){sub 4}{center_dot}Zn{sub 3}(SeO{sub 3}){sub 5}, the first organically-templated phase to contain the pyramidal selenite [SeO{sub 3}]{sup 2{minus}} anion.

The authors present a new shape measure for tetrahedral elements that is optimal in that it gives the distance of a tetrahedron from the set of inverted elements. This measure is constructed from the condition number of the linear transformation between a unit equilateral tetrahedron and any tetrahedron with positive volume. Using this shape measure, they formulate two optimization objective functions that are differentiated by their goal: the first seeks to improve the average quality of the tetrahedral mesh; the second aims to improve the worst-quality element in the mesh. They review the optimization techniques used with each objective function and presents experimental results that demonstrate the effectiveness of the mesh improvement methods. They show that a combined optimization approach that uses both objective functions obtains the best-quality meshes for several complex geometries.

The authors have fabricated high-efficiency thin-film CuIn{sub 1{minus}x}Ga{sub x}Se{sub 2} (CIGS)-based photovoltaic devices from solution-based electroplated (EP) and auto-plated (AP) precursors. As-deposited precursors are Cu-rich CIGS. Compositions were adjusted to CuIn{sub 1{minus}x}Ga{sub x}Se{sub 2} with additional In and Ga by physical vapor deposition (PVD) to the EP and AP precursor films. Auger analysis and grazing incident X-ray diffraction (GIXRD) were performed on devices prepared from EP and AP precursor films. The authors have also analyzed and compared EP, AP, and an PVD CIGS device by deep-level transient spectroscopy (DLTS).

Transversely polarized {Lambda} production in hard scattering processes is discussed in terms of a leading twist T-odd fragmentation function which describes the fragmentation of an unpolarized quark into a transversely polarized {Lambda}. We focus on the properties of this function and its relevance for the RHIC and HERMES experiments.

Uncertainty and sensitivity analysis results obtained in the 1996 performance assessment (PA) for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) are presented for two-phase flow in the vicinity of the repository under disturbed conditions resulting from drilling intrusions. Techniques based on Latin hypercube sampling, examination of scatterplots, stepwise regression analysis, partial correlation analysis and rank transformations are used to investigate brine inflow, gas generation repository pressure, brine saturation and brine and gas outflow. Of the variables under study, repository pressure and brine flow from the repository to the Culebra Dolomite are potentially the most important in PA for the WIPP. Subsequent to a drilling intrusion repository pressure was dominated by borehole permeability and generally below the level (i.e., 8 MPa) that could potentially produce spallings and direct brine releases. Brine flow from the repository to the Culebra Dolomite tended to be small or nonexistent with its occurrence and size also dominated by borehole permeability.