Organic scintillators are often chosen as radiation detectors for their fast decay time and their low Z, while inorganic ones are used when high light yields are required. In this paper we show that ...a para-terphenyl based detector has a blend of properties of the two categories that can be optimal for energy and position measurements of low-energy charged particles. Using 0.1% diphenylbutadiene doped para-terphenyl samples we measured a light attenuation length λ = 4.73 ±0.06 mm, a quenching factor for α particles Q α = (10.7 ±0.6), and a rejection power ranging between 3 - 11% for 660 keV photons, with respect to electrons of the same energy, depending on the signal threshold. A simulation based on FLUKA properly reproduces the experimental data distributions.
A general purpose FPGA based DAQ module has been developed. This module has been built around a Virtex-4 FPGA and it is able to acquire up to 1024 different channels distributed over 10 slave cards. ...The module has an optical interface, a RS-232 port, a USB and a Gigabit Interface. The KLOE-2 experiment is going to use this module to acquire data from the Inner tracker. An embedded processor (Power PC) is present on the FPGA and a telnet server has been developed and installed. A new general purpose data taking system has been based on this new module to acquire the Inner Tracker. The system is presently working at LNF (Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati).
We present the analysis of K− absorption processes on He4 leading to Λπ− final states, measured with the KLOE spectrometer at the DAΦNE e+e− collider and extract, for the first time, the modulus of ...the non-resonant K−n →Λπ− direct production amplitude about 33 MeV below the K‾N threshold. This analysis also allows to disentangle the K− nuclear absorption at-rest from the in-flight capture, for K− momenta of about 120 MeV. The data are interpreted with the help of a phenomenological model, and the modulus of the non-resonant K−n →Λπ− amplitude for K− absorption at-rest is found to be |AK−n→Λπ−|=(0.334±0.018stat−0.058+0.034syst)fm.
Rising CO₂ is predicted to increase forest productivity, although the duration of the response and how it might be altered by variation in rainfall, temperature and other environmental variables are ...not well understood. We measured the basal area of rapidly growing Pinus taeda trees exposed to free-air CO₂ enrichment for 8 years and used these measurements to estimate monthly and annual growth. We used these measurements in a statistical model to estimate the start and end of growth in each year. Elevated CO₂ increased the basal area increment (BAI) of trees by 13-27%. In most years, exposure to elevated CO₂ increased the growth rate but not the duration of the active growth period. With the exception of 1 year following an extreme drought and a severe ice storm, BAI was positively correlated with the amount of rainfall during the active growth period. The interannual variation in the relative enhancement of BAI caused by elevated CO₂ was strongly related to temperature and rainfall, and was greatest in years with high vapor pressure deficit. There was no evidence of a systematic reduction in the stimulation of growth during the first 8 years of this experiment, suggesting that the hypothesized limitation of the CO₂ response caused by nitrogen availability has yet to occur.
Monitoring the dose delivered during proton and carbon ion therapy is still a matter of research. Among the possible solutions, several exploit the measurement of the single photon emission from ...nuclear decays induced by the irradiation. To fully characterize such emission the detectors need development, since the energy spectrum spans the range above the MeV that is not traditionally used in medical applications. On the other hand, a deeper understanding of the reactions involving gamma production is needed in order to improve the physic models of Monte Carlo codes, relevant for an accurate prediction of the prompt-gamma energy spectrum. This paper describes a calibration technique tailored for the range of energy of interest and reanalyzes the data of the interaction of a 80MeV/u fully stripped carbon ion beam with a Poly-methyl methacrylate target. By adopting the FLUKA simulation with the appropriate calibration and resolution a significant improvement in the agreement between data and simulation is reported.
In this study, a composite of zinc oxide and manganese ferrite was synthesized using co-precipitation and hydrothermal routes, to be used as photocatalysts in reactions with UV/Vis light source. The ...synthesized materials were characterized by FTIR, XRD, and SEM, where it was possible to verify the efficiency of the syntheses performed, through the identification of the resulting phases, the evaluation of the structural morphology of the particles, and the analysis of the detachments of the main vibration bonds present in these materials. The composite ZnO/MnFe
O
was used in photodegradation reactions of the antibiotic rifampicin, with catalyst dosage of 0.20; 0.40, and 0.60 g and 10 ppm of rifampicin, reactions using pure ZnO as a catalyst were also performed as a comparative parameter of the influence of MnFe
O
in this system. The composite ZnO/MnFe
O
showed a maximum percentage of rifampicin decontamination of 94.72% and ZnO, 74.20%using 0.20 g of photocatalyst after 90 min, which indicates a positive influence on this process. The solution treated with ZnO/MnFe
O
was subjected to magnetic field induction for attraction and consequently accelerated removal of the solids present, successfully, compacting for the application of ZnO/MnFe
O
to be presented as a promising material for decontamination of emerging pollutants through photocatalytic reactions.