Search

The effect of the template nature and modification with MnO x on the catalytic efficiency of Ce0.8Zr0.2O2 (CZ) in oxidation of CO (2 vol% CO and 1 vol% O2 in He, pulse feeding) and soot particles (tight contact between soot and catalyst, TGA/DSC) was analyzed. The CZ catalysts were prepared using the CTAB and sawdust (SD) templates and modified with Mn (8 wt%) by wet impregnation followed by calcination at 400 °С. SEM-EDS, XRD, Raman and photoelectron spectroscopy, N2 adsorption, EPR, TPR-H2 and catalytic tests results demonstrated better catalytic activity of CZ(SD) in CO oxidation than of CZ(CTAB) because of the biomorphic texture, higher structural defectiveness and improved oxygen mobility of the former catalyst. Low surface reducibility and low concentration of active oxygen species on the CZ(SD) surface deteriorated its catalytic efficiency in the topochemical reaction of soot oxidation. Despite the different structure and degree of interaction between MnO x and CZ, the Mn-modified catalysts showed the similar catalytic properties: much better than of both unmodified catalysts in CO oxidation and worse than of CZ(CTAB) in soot oxidation. Mn2+ ions incorporated better into the surface layer of CZ(SD) than of CZ(CTAB), for which the inhomogeneous distribution of MnO x and decreased specific surface area were observed.

The physicochemical and catalytic properties of 6%Ni/Al2O3 catalysts in the gas-phase hydrodechlorination of chlorobenzene (CB) are studied. The catalysts are synthesized by supporting nickel nitrate on two types of alumina—A (synthesized by aluminum isopropoxide hydrolysis) and E (manufactured by Engelhard)—with different morphologies and textures; some of the samples are unmodified, and some are modified by depositing 20% heteropoly acid (HPA) H8Si(W2O7)6 ⋅ nH2O. To prevent the HPA from decomposition, the air calcining and reduction of the modified materials are conducted at relatively low temperatures (250 and 330°C, respectively). To provide an adequate comparison, the catalysts containing no HPA are subjected to a similar treatment. Temperature-programmed reduction (TPR) reveals that air calcining at 250°C does not provide the complete conversion of the original nickel nitrate to oxide; nickel nitrates and hydroxynitrates are present in the catalyst precursors; their content decreases upon modification with the HPA. Differences in the composition and strength of Lewis acid sites on the surface of two types of Al2O3 lead to dissimilar coordination of nitrate and differences in nickel reducibility, as revealed by TPR, diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform (DRIFT) spectroscopy with CO adsorption, and in situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Nickel contained in Ni/Al2O3(E) undergoes reduction somewhat more readily than nickel in Ni/Al2O3(A) does; however, the conditions used in this study provide the reduction of only a small portion of nickel in the two catalysts. According to in situ XPS, TPR, and DRIFT spectroscopy with CO adsorption, the modification of Ni/Al2O3 with the HPA leads to a further change in the acidic properties and the coordination of nickel nitrate during impregnation and an increase in nickel reducibility; it prevents nickel from migration from the surface into the bulk of the sample and leads to the formation of new active sites owing to the strong nickel–tungsten interaction in the HPA. Depending on the nature of the support, modification with the HPA leads to an improvement (Ni/HPA/Al2O3(A)) or deterioration (Ni/HPA/Al2O3(E)) of the catalytic efficiency of the samples. At high temperatures, the benzene selectivity of the HPA-modified catalysts decreases owing to the formation of cyclohexane. The catalyst efficiency increases in the following order: Ni/HPA/Al2O3(E) < Ni/Al2O3(A) < Ni/Al2O3(E) < Ni/HPA/Al2O3(A). The most active catalyst—Ni/HPA/Al2O3(A)—exhibits the highest stability in long-term tests with an increase and subsequent decrease in temperature. The effect of nickel reducibility on the catalyst efficiency in CB hydrodechlorination is more significant than the effect of differences in texture and nickel content.

The muscular system of the larva of the eastern fruit fly Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel, 1912) (Diptera, Tephritidae), a quarantine pest of many fruit crops, was studied by X-ray computed microtomography (micro-CT). The larval muscles of Bactrocera dorsalis were compared with those of Drosophila melanogaster Meigen, 1830 (Diptera, Drosophilidae), since the latter is the most thoroughly studied larva among the Diptera Cyclorrhapha. Although the two species belong to different unrelated families, they were found to possess similar sets of muscles, differing largely in places of attachment and degree of development. The more strongly developed muscles associated with the cephaloskeleton and mouth hooks in Bactrocera dorsalis as compared with Drosophila melanogaster may be related to the different density of their substrates: the larvae of Bactrocera dorsalis make tunnels in fruit tissues and (before pupation) in soil, while those of Drosophila melanogaster develop in decaying substrates.

DEAP-3600 is a liquid-argon scintillation detector looking for dark matter. Scintillation events in the liquid argon (LAr) are registered by 255 photomultiplier tubes (PMTs), and pulseshape discrimination (PSD) is used to suppress electromagnetic background events. The excellent PSD performance of LAr makes it a viable target for dark matter searches, and the LAr scintillation pulseshape discussed here is the basis of PSD. The observed pulseshape is a combination of LAr scintillation physics with detector effects. We present a model for the pulseshape of electromagnetic background events in the energy region of interest for dark matter searches. The model is composed of (a) LAr scintillation physics, including the so-called intermediate component, (b) the time response of the TPB wavelength shifter, including delayed TPB emission at $${\mathcal {O}}$$O(ms) time-scales, and c) PMT response. TPB is the wavelength shifter of choice in most LAr detectors. We find that approximately 10% of the intensity of the wavelength-shifted light is in a long-lived state of TPB. This causes light from an event to spill into subsequent events to an extent not usually accounted for in the design and data analysis of LAr-based detectors.

Ceria-tin (CS) oxide catalytic systems were synthesized using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and Pluronic 123 (P123) templates and modified with CuOx using two techniques: the “one-pot” method (Cu addition during CS synthesis) and the post-impregnation (IM). The catalysts were tested in CO oxidation in the stoichiometric CO/O2 mixture balanced with He. XRD, TPR, Raman spectroscopy, XPS, N2 physisorption, H2-TPR, HR TEM and SEM–EDS were used for catalysts characterization. CS P123 showed better CO conversion than CS CTAB at 100–200 °C and lower at higher temperatures, due to higher defectiveness and oxygen mobility in CS CTAB. Modification with copper improves catalytic action of all catalysts at low temperatures, but to a different degree depending on modification technique and template type. Cu–CS CTAB prepared by the “one-pot” technique was much more efficient than its IM counterpart and both P123-templated catalysts. The best efficiency of Cu–CS CTAB results from the strongest interaction of Cu with CS to form CuCeSnOx which provides accessibility of Cu+ adsorption sites, and low stability of surface carbonate groups improving low-temperature efficiency. Cu–CS P123 IM efficiency decreases in the oxygen-enriched reaction mixture, the reasons are discussed in terms of the ratio between oxidation and reduction stage rates in MvK mechanism.

The DEAP-3600 detector searches for the scintillation signal from dark matter particles scattering on a 3.3 tonne liquid argon target. The largest background comes from $^{39}$Ar beta decays and is suppressed using pulseshape discrimination (PSD). We use two types of PSD algorithm: the prompt-fraction, which considers the fraction of the scintillation signal in a narrow and a wide time window around the event peak, and the log-likelihood-ratio, which compares the observed photon arrival times to a signal and a background model. We furthermore use two algorithms to determine the number of photons detected at a given time: (1) simply dividing the charge of each PMT pulse by the charge of a single photoelectron, and (2) a likelihood analysis that considers the probability to detect a certain number of photons at a given time, based on a model for the scintillation pulseshape and for afterpulsing in the light detectors. The prompt-fraction performs approximately as well as the log-likelihood-ratio PSD algorithm if the photon detection times are not biased by detector effects. We explain this result using a model for the information carried by scintillation photons as a function of the time when they are detected., 14 pages, 9 figures

The paper analyzes the behavior of the deformation characteristics of welded joints made of TiNi alloy with a shape memory effect. Comparison of the level of tensile strength of welded samples made by the TIG method in an Ar and He atmosphere was carried out using a Instron 5985 universal machine. The study of the material structure in the weld zone and the heat-affected zone was carried out on longitudinal sections using a JSM-6490LV electron microscope. To estimate the mechanical parameters PMT-3 microhardness tester was used. The calorimetric parameters of the welded samples were obtained using a differential scanning calorimeters METTLER TOLEDO 822e and TA Instruments Q20. To analyze the gradient properties at the weld zone and the heat-affected zone, the temperature fields were calculated using the thermal conductivity equation included in the model of the residual stress mechanism.

Author(s): Ajaj, R; Araujo, GR; Batygov, M; Beltran, B; Bina, CE; Boulay, MG; Broerman, B; Bueno, JF; Burghardt, PM; Butcher, A; Cai, B; Cardenas-Montes, M; Cavuoti, S; Chen, M; Chen, Y; Cleveland, BT; Dering, K; Duncan, FA; Dunford, M; Erlandson, A; Fatemighomi, N; Fiorillo, G; Flower, A; Ford, RJ; Gagnon, R; Gallacher, D; Garcia Abia, P; Garg, S; Giampa, P; Goeldi, D; Golovko, VV; Gorel, P; Graham, K; Grant, DR; Hallin, AL; Hamstra, M; Harvey, PJ; Hearns, C; Joy, A; Jillings, CJ; Kamaev, O; Kaur, G; Kemp, A; Kochanek, I; Kuźniak, M; Langrock, S; La Zia, F; Lehnert, B; Li, X; Litvinov, O; Lock, J; Longo, G; Majewski, P; McDonald, AB; McElroy, T; McGinn, T; McLaughlin, JB; Mehdiyev, R; Mielnichuk, C; Monroe, J; Nadeau, P; Nantais, C; Ng, C; Noble, AJ; Ouellet, C; Pasuthip, P; Peeters, SJM; Pesudo, V; Piro, MC; Pollmann, TR; Rand, ET; Rethmeier, C; Retiere, F; Sanchez Garcia, E; Santorelli, R; Seeburn, N; Skensved, P; Smith, B; Smith, NJT; Sonley, T; Stainforth, R; Stone, C; Strickland, V; Sur, B; Vazquez-Jauregui, E | Abstract: The DEAP-3600 experiment is searching for weakly interacting massive particles dark matter with a 3.3 ×103 kg single phase liquid argon (LAr) target, located 2.1 km underground at SNOLAB. The experimental signature of dark matter interactions is kilo electron volt-scale Ar40 nuclear recoils producing 128 nm LAr scintillation photons observed by photomultiplier tubes. The largest backgrounds in DEAP-3600 are electronic recoils (ERs) induced by β and γ rays originating from internal and external radioactivity in the detector material. A background model of the ER interactions in DEAP-3600 was developed and is described in this work. The model is based on several components which are expected from radioisotopes in the LAr, from ex situ material assay measurements, and from dedicated independent in situ analyses. This prior information is used in a Bayesian fit of the ER components to a 247.2 d dataset to model the radioactivity in the surrounding detector materials. Pulse-shape discrimination separates ER and NR events. However, detailed knowledge of the ER background and activity of detector components sets valuable constraints on NR backgrounds including neutrons and alphas. In addition, the activity of Ar42 in LAr in DEAP-3600 is determined by measuring the daughter decay of K42. This cosmogenically activated trace isotope is a relevant background at higher energies for other rare event searches using atmospheric argon, e.g., DarkSide-20k, GERDA, or LEGEND. The specific activity of Ar42 in the atmosphere is found to be 40.4±5.9 μBq/kg of argon.

The Dark matter Experiment using Argon Pulse-shape discrimination (DEAP) has been designed for a direct detection search for particle dark matter using a single-phase liquid argon target. The projected cross section sensitivity for DEAP-3600 to the spin-independent scattering of Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) on nucleons is $10^{-46}~\rm{cm}^{2}$ for a 100 GeV/$c^2$ WIMP mass with a fiducial exposure of 3 tonne-years. This paper describes the physical properties and construction of the DEAP-3600 detector., minor corrections in version 2. 70 pages, 24 figures, to be submitted to Astroparticle Physics Journal

A mesoporous support based on silica and zirconia (ZS) was used to prepare monometallic 1 wt% Pd/ZS, 10 wt% Fe/ZS, and bimetallic FePd/ZS catalysts. The catalysts were characterized by TPR-H2, XRD, SEM-EDS, TEM, AAS, and DRIFT spectroscopy of adsorbed CO after H2 reduction in situ and tested in hydrodechlorination of environmental pollutant 4-chlorophelol in aqueous solution at 30 &deg, C. The bimetallic catalyst demonstrated an excellent activity, selectivity to phenol and stability in 10 consecutive runs. FePd/ZS has exceptional reducibility due to the high dispersion of palladium and strong interaction between FeOx and palladium, confirmed by TPR-H2, DRIFT spectroscopy, XRD, and TEM. Its reduction occurs during short-time treatment with hydrogen in an aqueous solution at RT. The Pd/ZS was more resistant to reduction but can be activated by aqueous phenol solution and H2. The study by DRIFT spectroscopy of CO adsorbed on Pd/ZS reduced in harsh (H2, 330 &deg, C), medium (H2, 200 &deg, C) and mild conditions (H2 + aqueous solution of phenol) helped to identify the reasons of the reducing action of phenol solution. It was found that phenol provided fast transformation of Pd+ to Pd0. Pd/ZS also can serve as an active and stable catalyst for 4-PhCl transformation to phenol after proper reduction.

The laser flash method is used to determine the temperature dependences of the thermal conductivity of graphite foams that differ in the defectiveness of their graphite matrix. It is shown that the heat capacity of the materials which were obtained is independent of the method used to make them. The thermal conductivity of specimens of graphite foam obtained at 1000°C decreases with an increase in temperature, while that of specimens of graphite foam obtained at 400°C remains nearly constant. The thermal conductivity 0.46 W/(m·K) that was achieved is comparable to the thermal conductivity of graphite felt.

The Hamamatsu R5912-HQE photomultiplier-tube (PMT) is a novel high-quantum efficiency PMT. It is currently used in the DEAP-3600 dark matter detector and is of significant interest for future dark matter and neutrino experiments where high signal yields are needed. We report on the methods developed for in-situ characterization and monitoring of DEAP's 255 R5912-HQE PMTs. This includes a detailed discussion of typical measured single-photoelectron charge distributions, correlated noise (afterpulsing), dark noise, double, and late pulsing characteristics. The characterization is performed during the detector commissioning phase using laser light injected through a light diffusing sphere and during normal detector operation using LED light injected through optical fibres.

We present measurements of the thermal conductivity between 0.05 and 1 K, and radioactive contamination levels, for some thermally isolating materials. TIMET Ti 15-3-3-3, Mersen grade 2020 graphite, Vespel SP-1, Vespel SP-22, Vespel SCP-5000, Vespel SCP-5050, Graphlite CFRP, and a Kapton/epoxy composite are all investigated. Thermal conductivities were measured using a single-heater longitudinal heat flow method. Material radioactivity was determined for the materials at a low background counting facility using a high-purity gamma detector and GEANT4 Monte Carlo simulations.

© 2016 American Physical Society. The CDMS low ionization threshold experiment (CDMSlite) uses cryogenic germanium detectors operated at a relatively high bias voltage to amplify the phonon signal in the search for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs). Results are presented from the second CDMSlite run with an exposure of 70 kg day, which reached an energy threshold for electron recoils as low as 56 eV. A fiducialization cut reduces backgrounds below those previously reported by CDMSlite. New parameter space for the WIMP-nucleon spin-independent cross section is excluded for WIMP masses between 1.6 and 5.5 GeV/c2.

Interleaved ionization electrode geometries offer the possibility of efficient rejection of near-surface events. The CDMS collaboration has implemented this interleaved approach for the charge and phonon readout for our germanium detectors. During a recent engineering run with negligible ambient radiation, the detectors were found to lose ionization stability more quickly than expected. This paper summarizes studies done in order to determine the underlying cause of the instability, as well as possible running modes that maintain stability without unacceptable loss of livetime. Additionally, first results are shown for the new version IZIP mask which attempts to improve the overall stability of the detectors.

The soil mesofauna was studied in two ecological series (oligotrophic and mesotrophic) of bogs in northwestern Karelia. The earlier found differences in the structural-functional organization of the soil mesofauna in the bogs investigated were confirmed. The high indices of the taxonomic diversity and abundance of mesopedobionts were characteristic of the mesotrophic biogeocenoses. Among the factors limiting the activity of the mesopedobionts, the hydrothermal regime and soil acidity played the leading part. In the series of the bog biogeocenoses studied, the abundance of mesopedobionts increased with the increasing soil acidity, lowering the groundwater table and decreasing the content of sodium extracted by the ammonium acetate solution. Zoophages predominated in the trophic structure of the oligotrophic bogs due to the unfavorable conditions for large invertebrates there; in the mesotrophic bogs, myxophages were the dominants. The abundance of myxophages increased in the mesotrophic series simultaneously with the increasing nitrogen content in the soil mesofauna-inhabited soil horizons. In the mesotrophic biogeocenoses, saprophages were not numerous (one species of litter earthworms). Probably, in the bog soils, they are substituted for myxophages.

We report a new measurement of the decay Ω − → Ξ − π + π − with 76 events and a first observation of the decay Ω ¯ + → Ξ ¯ + π + π − with 24 events, yielding a combined branching ratio ( 3.74 − 0.56 + 0.67 ) × 10 − 4 . This represents a factor 25 increase in statistics over the best previous measurement. No evidence is seen for CP violation, with B ( Ω − → Ξ − π + π − ) = 4.04 − 0.71 + 0.83 × 10 − 4 and B ( Ω ¯ + → Ξ ¯ + π + π − ) = 3.15 − 0.89 + 1.12 × 10 − 4 . Contrary to theoretical expectation, we see little evidence for the decays Ω − → Ξ 1530 ∗ 0 π − and Ω ¯ + → Ξ ¯ 1530 ∗ 0 π + and place a 90% C.L. upper limit on the combined branching ratio B ( Ω − ( Ω ¯ + ) → Ξ 1530 ∗ 0 ( Ξ ¯ 1530 ∗ 0 ) π ∓ ) 7.0 × 10 − 5 .

The MINERνA experiment at Fermilab will use a fully-active scintillator based fine grained neutrino detector and the high rate NuMI neutrino beam. MINERνA will measure low energy neutrino interaction properties and cross sections to a new level of precision. These measurements will be critical input to present and future accelerator-based neutrino oscillation experiments in this energy range.

We have calculated the dynamical charge and spin susceptibilities using the new analytical expression obtained beyond a conventional random phase approximation scheme. Both susceptibilities are strongly peaked along a contour around wave vector Q = (π, π). We have analyzed the dispersions of the collective excitations near Q = (π, π) corresponding to a spin density wave and charge density wave modes, respectively. In addition we have calculated the momentum dependence of the imaginary part of the charge and spin susceptibilities along the instability contour and show that both susceptibilities display a maximum around the points (π, ±q0), (±q0, π) in Brillouine zone with decreasing temperature that indicates that the stripe-like instability may become preferable.

We report a first search for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) using the background rejection capabilities of SuperCDMS. An exposure of 577 kg days was analyzed for WIMPs with mass

The SuperCDMS collaboration is presently operating a 9 kg Ge payload at the Soudan Underground Laboratory in their direct search for dark matter. The Ge detectors utilize double-sided athermal phonon sensors with an interdigitated electrode structure (iZIPs) to reject near-surface electron-recoil events. These detectors each have a mass of 0.6 kg and were fabricated with photolithographic techniques. The detector fabrication advances required and the production yield encountered are described.

We report results of a search for Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPS) with the silicon detectors of the CDMS II experiment. This blind analysis of 140.2 kg-days of data taken between July 2007 and September 2008 revealed three WIMP-candidate events with a surface-event background estimate of 0.41^{+0.20}_{-0.08}(stat.)^{+0.28}_{-0.24}(syst.). Other known backgrounds from neutrons and 206Pb are limited to < 0.13 and, 5 pages, 4 figures, as accepted by PRL

The SuperCDMS experiment in the Soudan Underground Laboratory searches for dark matter with a 9-kg array of cryogenic germanium detectors. Symmetric sensors on opposite sides measure both charge and phonons from each particle interaction, providing excellent discrimination between electron and nuclear recoils, and between surface and interior events. Surface event rejection capabilities were tested with two [superscript 210] Pb sources producing ∼130 beta decays/hr. In ∼800 live hours, no events leaked into the 8–115 keV signal region, giving upper limit leakage fraction 1.7 × 10[superscript −5] at 90% C.L., corresponding to, United States. Dept. of Energy (Contract No. DE-AC03-76SF00098), United States. Dept. of Energy (Contract No. DE-FG02-92ER40701), United States. Dept. of Energy (Contract No. DE-FG02-94ER40823), United States. Dept. of Energy (Contract No. DE-FG03-90ER40569), United States. Dept. of Energy (Contract No. DE-FG03-91ER40618), United States. Dept. of Energy (Contract No. DE-SC0004022), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. AST-9978911), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. NSF-0847342), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-1102795), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. NSF-1151869), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-0542066), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-0503729), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-0503629), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-0503641), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-0504224), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-0705052), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-0801708), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-0801712), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-0802575), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-0847342), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-0855299), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-0855525), National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. PHY-1205898)

Matter, as we know it, makes up less than 5% of the Universe. Various astrophysical observations have confirmed that one quarter of the Universe and most of the matter content in the Universe is made up of Dark Matter. The nature of Dark Matter is yet to be discovered and is one of the biggest questions in Physics. Particle Physics combined with astrophysical measurements of the abundance gives rise to a Dark Matter candidate called Weakly Interacting Massive Particle (WIMP). The low density of WIMPs in the galaxies and the extremely weak nature of the interaction with ordinary matter make detection of the WIMP an extraordinarily challenging task, with abundant fakes from various radioactive and cosmogenic backgrounds with much stronger electromagnetic interaction. The extremely weak nature of the WIMP interaction dictates detectors that have extremely low naturally occurring radioactive background, a large active volume (mass) of sensitive detector material to maximize statistics, a highly efficient detector based rejection mechanism for the dominant electromagnetic background and sophisticated analysis techniques to reject any residual background. This paper describes the status of the SuperCDMS experiment.

Artículo escrito por un elevado número de autores, solo se referencian el que aparece en primer lugar, el nombre del grupo de colaboración, si le hubiere, y los autores pertenecientes a la UAM, We report results of a search for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) with the Si detectors of the CDMS II experiment. This report describes a blind analysis of the first data taken with CDMS II’s full complement of detectors in 2006–2007; results from this exposure using the Ge detectors have already been presented. We observed no candidate WIMP-scattering events in an exposure of 55.9 kg-days before analysis cuts, with an expected background of ˞1.1 events. The exposure of this analysis is equivalent to 10.3 kg-days over a recoil energy range of 7–100 keV for an ideal Si detector and a WIMP mass of 10 GeV/c2. These data set an upper limit of 1.7 x 10-41 cm2 on the WIMP-nucleon spin-independent cross section of a 10 GeV/c2 WIMP. These data exclude parameter space for spin-independent WIMP-nucleon elastic scattering that is relevant to recent searches for low-mass WIMPs, This work is supported in part by the National Science Foundation (Grants No. AST-9978911, No. NSF-1102795, No. PHY- 0847342, No. PHY-0542066, No. PHY-0503729, No. PHY- 0503629, No. PHY-0503641, No. PHY-0504224, No. PHY-0705052, No. PHY-0801708, No. PHY-0801712, No. PHY-0802575, No. PHY-0847342, No. PHY-0855299, No. PHY-0855525, No. PHY-1151869, and No. PHY- 1205898), by the Department of Energy (Contracts No. DE-AC03-76SF00098, No. DE-FG02-92ER40701, No. DE-FG03-90ER40569, No. DE-FG03-91ER40618, and No. DE-SC0004022), by the Swiss National Foundation (SNF Grant No. 20-118119), by NSERC Canada (Grants No. SAPIN 341314 and No. SAPPJ 386399), and by MULTIDARK CSD2009-00064 and FPA2012-34694. Fermilab is operated by Fermi Research Alliance, LLC under Contract No. De-AC02-07CH11359, while SLAC is operated under Contract No. DE-AC02- 76SF00515 with the U.S. Department of Energy

The population of soil mesofauna in the basin of the small river subzone of the northern taiga (Karelia) has been investigated. It was shown that indexes of the number and mass of soil mesofauna in the landscape-ecological row ofbiogeocenosises are maximal in floodplain soils. The taxonomic composition and structure of domination of the soil mesofauna population depends on the location of biogeocenosis in the landscape: earthworms are dominants in riverine floodplain biogeocenosises, and larvae of elaterids and spiders prevail in the places outside of floodplains. The abundance of saprophytic invertebrates in floodplain biogeocenosises results in formation of humus of the mull type. A group of animals with mixed type of nutrition dominates in the places outside of floodplain soils that are related with humus of the moder-mor type. The population of rove beetles (Staphylinidae) allows the division of biogeocenosises into two groups according to their position in the landscape.

Results are presented from a reanalysis of the entire five-tower data set acquired with the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS II) experiment at the Soudan Underground Laboratory, with an exposure of 969 kg-days. The analysis window was extended to a recoil energy of 150 keV, and an improved surface-event background-rejection cut was defined to increase the sensitivity of the experiment to the inelastic dark matter (iDM) model. Three dark matter candidates were found between 25 keV and 150 keV. The probability to observe three or more background events in this energy range is 11%. Because of the occurrence of these events the constraints on the iDM parameter space are slightly less stringent than those from our previous analysis, which used an energy window of 10-100 keV., 10 pages, 10 figures, minor changes to match published version, conclusion unchanged

We report results from a reanalysis of data from the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS II) experiment at the Soudan Underground Laboratory. Data taken between October 2006 and September 2008 using eight germanium detectors are reanalyzed with a lowered, 2 keV recoil-energy threshold, to give increased sensitivity to interactions from Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) with masses below ~10 GeV/c^2. This analysis provides stronger constraints than previous CDMS II results for WIMP masses below 9 GeV/c^2 and excludes parameter space associated with possible low-mass WIMP signals from the DAMA/LIBRA and CoGeNT experiments., 9 pages, 8 figures. Supplemental material included as ancillary files. v3) Added appendix with additional details regarding energy scale and backgrounds

The CDMS and EDELWEISS collaborations have combined the results of their direct searches for dark matter using cryogenic germanium detectors. The total data set represents 614 kg.d equivalent exposure. A straightforward method of combination was chosen for its simplicity before data were exchanged between experiments. The results are interpreted in terms of limits on spin-independent WIMP-nucleon cross-section. For a WIMP mass of 90 GeV/c^2, where this analysis is most sensitive, a cross-section of 3.3 x 10^{-44} cm^2 is excluded at 90% CL. At higher WIMP masses, the combination improves the individual limits, by a factor 1.6 above 700 GeV/c^2. Alternative methods of combining the data provide stronger constraints for some ranges of WIMP masses and weaker constraints for others., Events, efficiencies, and main limit are available in text format (see README.txt)

We have measured cross sections for forward neutron production from a variety of targets using proton beams from the Fermilab Main Injector. Measurements were performed for proton beam momenta of 58 GeV/c, 84 GeV/c, and 120 GeV/c. The cross section dependence on the atomic weight (A) of the targets was found to vary as $A^(alpha)$ where $\alpha$ is $0.46\pm0.06$ for a beam momentum of 58 GeV/c and 0.54$\pm$0.05 for 120 GeV/c. The cross sections show reasonable agreement with FLUKA and DPMJET Monte Carlos. Comparisons have also been made with the LAQGSM Monte Carlo., Comment: Accepted for publication in Physical Review D. This version incorporates small changes suggested by referee and small corrections in the neutron production cross sections predicted by FLUKA

News from the Dark Side? Dark matter is thought to represent 85% of all matter in the universe and to have been responsible for the formation of structure in the early universe, but its nature is still a mystery. Ahmed et al. (p. 1619 , published online 11 February; see the Perspective by Lang ) describe the results from the completed Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS II) experiment, which searched for dark matter in the form of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMP). Two candidate signals were observed, whereas only one background event was expected. The probability of having two or more events from the background would have been 23%. The results of this analysis cannot be interpreted with confidence as evidence for WIMP interactions, but, at the same time, neither event can be ruled out as representing signal.

The Cryogenic Dark Matter Search experiment (CDMS) is using Phonon+Ionization detectors to search for Dark Matter in the form of Weakly Interactive Massive Particles (WIMPs). We report on new results from the operation of CDMS five “towers” at Soudan underground laboratory. With new and more massive detectors, SuperCDMS project has been started since March 2009. We report on the current status of SuperCDMS and its perspective.

The newly commissioned SuperCDMS Soudan experiment aims to search for WIMP dark matter with a sensitivity to cross sections of 5×10^(−45)cm^2 and larger (90% CL upper limit). This goal is facilitated by a new set of germanium detectors, 2.5 times more massive than the ones used in the CDMS-II experiment, and with a different athermal phonon sensor layout that eliminates radial degeneracy in position reconstruction of high radius events. We present characterization data on these detectors, as well as improved techniques for correcting position-dependent variations in pulse shape across the detector. These improvements provide surface-event discrimination sufficient for a reach of 5×10^(−45)cm^2.

The Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) searches for Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) with cryogenic germanium particle detectors. These detectors discriminate between nuclear‐recoil candidate and electron‐recoil background events by collecting both phonon and ionization energy from interactions in the crystal. Incomplete ionization collection results in the largest background in the CDMS detectors as this causes electron‐recoil background interactions to appear as false candidate events. Two primary causes of incomplete ionization collection are suface and bulk charge trapping. Recent work has been focused on reducing surface trapping through the modification of fabrication methods for future detectors. Analyzing data taken with test devices shows that hydrogen passivation of the amorphous silicon blocking layer does not reduce the effects of surface trapping. Other data shows that the iron‐ion implantation used to lower the critical temperature of the tungsten transition‐edge sensors increases surface trapping, causing a degradation of the ionization collection. Using selective implantation on future detectors may improve ionization collection for events near the phonon side detector surface. Bulk trapping is minimized by neutralizing ionized lattice impurities. Detector investigations at testing facilities and at the experimental site in Soudan, MN have provided methods to optimize the neutralization process and monitor running conditions to maintain maximal ionization collection.

We report on the first axion search results from the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) experiment at the Soudan Underground Laboratory. An energy threshold of 2 keV for electron-recoil events allows a search for possible solar axion conversion into photons or local Galactic axion conversion into electrons in the germanium crystal detectors. The solar axion search sets an upper limit on the Primakov coupling $g_{a\gamma\gamma}$ of 2.4$ \times 10^{-9}$ GeV$^{-1}$ at the 95% confidence level for an axion mass less than 0.1 keV/c$^2$. This limit benefits from the first precise measurement of the absolute crystal plane orientations in this type of experiment. The Galactic axion search analysis sets a world-leading experimental upper limit on the axio-electric coupling $g_{a\bar{e}e}$ of 1.4$ \times 10^{-12}$ at the 90 % confidence level for an axion mass of 2.5 keV/c$^2$. This analysis excludes an interpretation of the DAMA annual modulation result in terms of Galactic axion interactions for axion masses above 1.4 keV/c$^2$., Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures

SuperCDMS employs 1‐inch thick germanium crystals operated below 50mK in a dilution cryostat. Each detector produces ionization and phonon signals. Ionization signals are amplified by JFETs operating at 150K within an assembly mounted on the 4K cryostat stage. These high impedance signals are carried to the FETs by superconducting “vacuum coaxes” which minimize thermal conductivity, stray capacitance, and microphonics. Transition edge sensors produce low‐impedance phonon signals, amplified by SQUID arrays mounted on a 600mK stage. Detectors are mounted in a six‐sided wiring configuration called a “tower”, which carries signals from 40mK to 4K. A flex circuit 3 meters in length carries amplified signals for each detector from 4K to a vacuum bulkhead. We describe the methods used to support the detectors, wiring and amplifier elements at various thermal stages, minimizing electrical noise and thermal loads.

The CDMS collaboration utilizes Ge detectors for their Weakly Interacting Massive Particle (WIMP) search at the Soudan mine, Minnesota. The final data run of CDMS II is complete and a detector upgrade for SuperCDMS has commenced. A SuperTower of five 1‐inch thick Ge crystals has been installed and undergoing commissioning. Its surface‐event rejection capability should allow SuperCDMS to continue to run background free for the next proposed phases: 15 kg Ge deployment at Soudan, and up to 150 kg Ge deployment at SNOLAB. Recent detector advances to allow a 1 tonne Ge experiment are also discussed.

A clean signal of 78 (24) events has been observed in the rare nonleptonic particle (antiparticle) decay modes {Omega}{sup {-+}} {yields} {Xi}{sup {-+}}{pi}{sup {+-}}{pi}{sup {-+}} using data collected with the HyperCP spectrometer during Fermilab's 1999 fixed-target run. We obtain B({Omega}{sup -} {yields} {Xi}{sup -}{pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -}) = [4.32 {+-} 0.56(stat) {+-} 0.28(syst)] x 10{sup -4} and B({Omega}{sup +} {yields} {Xi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -}{pi}{sup +}) = 3.13 {+-} 0.71(stat) {+-} 0.20(syst) x 10{sup -4}. This is the first observation of the antiparticle mode. Our measurement for the particle mode agrees with the previous experimental result and has an order-of-magnitude better precision. We extract the contribution from the resonance decay mode {Omega}{sup {-+}} {yields} {Xi}*{sub 1530}{sup 0} ({ovr {Xi}*{sub 1530}{sup 0}}){pi}{sup {-+}} to the final state {Xi}{sup {-+}}{pi}{sup {+-}}{pi}{sup {-+}}. This the first actual measurement of the resonance-mode branching ratios, gives B({Omega}{sup -} {yields} {Xi}*{sub 1530}{sup 0} {pi}{sup -}) = [4.55 {+-} 2.33(stat) {+-} 0.38(syst)] x 10{sup -5}, B({Omega}{sup +} {yields} {ovr {Xi}*{sub 1530}{sup 0}}{pi}{sup +}) = [1.40 {+-} 2.83(stat) {+-} 0.12(syst)] x 10{sup -5} and disagrees with the current Particle Data Group review value, being {approx} 14 times smaller. Since the central value of the resonance-mode branching ratio is less than two more » standard deviations away from zero, we also calculate branching ratio upper limits at 90% confidence level: B({Omega}{sup -} {yields} {Xi}*{sub 1530}{sup 0} {pi}{sup -}) < 7.61 x 10{sup -5} and B({Omega}{sup +} {yields} {ovr {Xi}*{sub 1530}{sup 0}} {pi}{sup +}) < 5.61 x 10{sup -5}. This analysis provides new data on nonleptonic hyperon decays which allows studies of how weak interaction processes occur in the presence of strong interactions. « less

Within effective $t\ensuremath{-}J$ Hamiltonian we analyze the influence of electronic correlations and electron-phonon interaction on the dynamical spin susceptibility in layered cuprates. We find an isotope effect on the resonance peak in the magnetic spin susceptibility $\mathrm{Im}\mathrm{}\ensuremath{\chi}(\mathbf{q},\ensuremath{\omega}),$ seen by inelastic neutron scattering. It results from both the electron-phonon coupling and the electronic correlation effects taken into account beyond random-phase approximation scheme. We find at optimal doping the isotope coefficient ${\ensuremath{\alpha}}_{\mathrm{res}}\ensuremath{\approx}0.4$ which can be further tested experimentally.

The rat experiments were made to compare the wound-healing action of solubilized (aqueous) alpha-tocopherol acetate (SATA) prepared by the original techniques and its official oil-based preparation. A course intravenous SATA (2 mg four times at an interval of 4 days) administration was found to stimulate epithelial regeneration and suppress the formation of connective tissue of uncomplicated skin wounds. By healing the complicated wounds, SATA potentiated the occurrence of an inflammatory reaction and slowed down regeneration, whereas its oily solution failed to produce this effect.