Formation of diffuse and spark discharges between two needle electrodes with the scattering of particles

The development of a nanosecond discharge in a pin-to-pin gap filled with air at atmospheric pressure has been studied with high temporal and spatial resolutions from a breakdown start to the spark decay.Positive and negative nanosecond voltage pulses with an amplitude of tens of kilovolts were applied.Time-resolved images of the discharge development were taken with a fourchannel Intensified Charge Coupled Device(ICCD)camera.The minimum delay between the camera channels could be as short as≈0.1 ns.This made it possible to study the gap breakdown process with subnanosecond resolution.It was observed that a wide-diameter streamer develops from the high-voltage pointed electrode.The ionization processes near the grounded pin electrode started when the streamer crossed half of the gap.After bridging the gap by the streamer,a diffuse discharge was formed.The development of spark leaders from bright spots on the surface of the pointed electrodes was observed at the next stage.It was found that the rate of development of the spark leader is an order of magnitude lower than that of the wide-diameter streamer.Long thin luminous tracks were observed against the background of a discharge plasma glow.It has been established that the tracks are adjacent to brightly glowing spots on the electrodes and are associated with the flight of small particles.

Defect Cluster-Induced X-Ray Diffuse Scattering in GaN Films Grown by MOCVD

High-resolution X-ray diffraction has been employed to investigate the diffuse scattering in a （0001） oriented GaN epitaxial film grown on sapphire substrate. The analysis reveals that defect clusters are present in GaN films and their concentration increases as the density of threading dislocations increases. Meanwhile, the mean radius of these defect clus- ters shows a reverse tendency. This result is explained by the effect of clusters preferentially forming around dislocations, which act as effective sinks for the segregation of point defects. The electric mobility is found to decrease as the cluster concentration increases.

Time-resolved ultra-small-angle X-ray scattering beamline(BL10U1)at SSRF

The construction of a new beamline,BL10U1,was completed at the Shanghai synchrotron radiation facility in 2020.This multipurpose beamline was designed to provide X-ray scattering techniques such as ultra-small-angle X-ray scattering(USAXS),small-angle X-ray scattering(SAXS),wide-angle X-ray scattering,and microfocus SAXS(μSAXS)for a broad user community.To realize fast time-resolved USAXS experiments,the beamline adopted an in-vacuum undulator with a total length of 1.6 m as the photon source.An in-house cryogenic-cooled double multilayer monochromator was installed to deliver a photon flux of approximately 10^(13) photons/s at a photon energy of 10 keV.The three-year successful operation of this beamline demonstrated that the monochromator operated smoothly,as expected.BL10U1 has three end stations in succession:USAXS end station,μSAXS end station,and end station for industrial applications.The minimum scattering vector q~0.0042 nm^(-1) at 10 keV can be achieved at the USAXS end station equipped with a 28 m-long and 1.8 m-diameter vacuum flight tube.At theμSAXS end station,a beam spot of less than 10×8μm was achieved for micro-SAXS experiments.In contrast,in situ experimental instruments up to 5 m high and 8 m wide can be mounted at the industrial application end station,which offers industrial scientists the opportunity to use their large industrial equipment.BL10U1 opens up a new capability to investigate phenomena such as non-equilibrium and dynamic processes of materials with a wide length scale from angstroms to micrometers with millisecond time resolution.In this paper,we also report beamline design considerations and commissioning results.

Simultaneous fluorescence and Compton scattering computed tomography based on linear polarization X-ray

Purpose To propose a method for simultaneous fluorescence and Compton scattering computed tomography by using linearly polarized X-rays.Methods Monte Carlo simulations were adopted to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed method.In the simulations,the phantom is a polytetrafluoroethylene cylinder inside which are cylindrical columns containing aluminum,water,and gold(Au)-loaded water solutions with Au concentrations ranging between 0.5 and 4.0 wt%,and a parallel-hole collimator imaging geometry was adopted.The light source was modeled based on a Thomson scattering X-ray source.The phantom images for both imaging modalities were reconstructed using a maximumlikelihood expectation maximization algorithm.Results Both the X-ray fluorescence computed tomography(XFCT)and Compton scattering computed tomography(CSCT)images of the phantom were accurately reconstructed.A similar attenuation contrast problem for the different cylindrical columns in the phantom can be resolved in the XFCT and CSCT images.The interplay between XFCT and CSCT was analyzed,and the contrast-to-noise ratio(CNR)of the reconstruction was improved by correcting for the mutual influence between the two imaging modalities.Compared with K-edge subtraction imaging,XFCT exhibits a CNR advantage for the phantom.Conclusion Simultaneous XFCT and CSCT can be realized by using linearly polarized X-rays.The synergy between the two imaging modalities would have an important application in cancer radiation therapy.

Atmospheric transmission algorithm for pulsed X-rays from high-altitude nuclear detonations based on scattering correction

In high-altitude nuclear detonations,the proportion of pulsed X-ray energy can exceed 70%,making it a specific monitoring signal for such events.These pulsed X-rays can be captured using a satellite-borne X-ray detector following atmospheric transmission.To quantitatively analyze the effects of different satellite detection altitudes,burst heights,and transmission angles on the physical processes of X-ray transport and energy fluence,we developed an atmospheric transmission algorithm for pulsed X-rays from high-altitude nuclear detonations based on scattering correction.The proposed method is an improvement over the traditional analytical method that only computes direct-transmission X-rays.The traditional analytical method exhibits a maximum relative error of 67.79% compared with the Monte Carlo method.Our improved method reduces this error to within 10% under the same conditions,even reaching 1% in certain scenarios.Moreover,its computation time is 48,000 times faster than that of the Monte Carlo method.These results have important theoretical significance and engineering application value for designing satellite-borne nuclear detonation pulsed X-ray detectors,inverting nuclear detonation source terms,and assessing ionospheric effects.

Study of Raman Spectroscopy to detect the Underlying Substance Concealed below Diffusely Scattering Medium

Measurement and comparison of NaNO3 powder concealed in opaque and semi-transparent plastic bottles are carried out through conventional Raman spectroscopy and spatially offset Raman spectroscopy individually. The action mechanism why the spatially offset Raman spectroscopy can effectively detect the medium concealed in the non-transparent bottle is analyzed. The spatially offset Raman spectroscopy breaks through the detection neck of the conventional Raman spectroscopy (the detection depth is small and cannot detect the ingredient of the subsurface under non-transparent medium), and the measurement and identification of the substance concealed in the non-transparent medium (opaque/semi-transparent plastic) bottle have been realized.

BL19U2:Small-angle X-ray scattering beamline for biological macromolecules in solution at SSRF

The BL19U2 at the Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility is a small-angle X-ray scattering beamline dedicated to structural studies pertaining to biological macromolecules in solution.The beamline has been officially opened to users in March 2015,and since then,a series of technological innovations has been developed to optimize beamline performance,thereby significantly improving the data collection efficiency and broadening the application scope of biological small-angle X-ray scattering.BL19U2 is ideal for the high-throughput screening of weakly scattered proteins,protein assemblies,nucleic acids,inorganic nanomaterials,and organic drug molecules.This paper describes the design and overview of the BL19U2 beamline.Versatile sample environments at the experimental station and some recent scientific highlights are presented.

Small-angle X-ray scattering investigation of aging behavior of Al-Cu-Mg-Ag alloys using synchrotron radiation

The aging behavior of Al-Cu-Mg-Ag alloys with high Cu/Mg was studied by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) using synchrotron radiation. TEM study reveals that the major strengthening phases of the alloy after aging at 160?C for 10 h are Ω and less θ′. SAXS study shows that the scattering patterns are composed of several concentric circles at the beginning of aging process, which is replaced by the butterfly-wings scattering patterns with the increase of aging time. The butterfly-wings scattering patterns are composed of several branches. The angles between the branches are roughly equal to that between the habit planes of precipitates. The evolution of Guinier radius with aging time indicates the good coarsening resistance of the precipitates. The evolution of integrated intensity is consistent with the classical two-step precipitation process.

Small Angle X-ray Scattering Study of Precipitation Kinetics in Al-Zn-Mg-Cu Alloys

The evolution of microstructure parameters （precipitate size and volume fraction） for two types of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys （7075 and 7055） during aging has been studied by synchrotron-radiation small angle X-ray scattering （SAXS）.The results show that the precipitates are only a few nanorneters for both alloys ageing even at higher temperature of 160℃ for 72 h （4.44 and 5.82 nm, respectively）. The maximum of the precipitate volume fraction increases with in creasing Zn content and is about 0.023-0.028 and 0.052-0.054, respectively. The coarsening of precipitate is consistent with LSW （Lifshitz-Slyozov-Wagner） model even at the initial stage where volume fraction is still varying.The activation energy of coarsening regime has been determined to be about 1.22±0.02 eV and 1.25±0.02 eV for alloys 7075 and 7055, respectively.

Growth Kinetics of Nanocrystals and Nanorods by Employing Small-angle X-ray Scattering (SAXS) and Other Techniques

In this article, we report the results of our detailed investigations of the growth kinetics of zero-dimensional nanocrystals as well as one-dimensional nanorods by the combined use of small angel X-ray scattering （SAXS）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM） along with other physical techniques. The study includes growth kinetics of gold nanocrystals formed by the reduction of HAuCl4 by tetrakis（hydroxymethyl） phosphonium chloride in aqueous solution, of CdSe nanocrystals formed by the reaction of cadmium stearate and selenium under solvothermal conditions, and of ZnO nanorods formed by the reaction of zinc acetate with sodium hydroxide under solvothermal conditions in the absence and presence of capping agents. The growth of gold nanocrystals does not follow the diffusion-limited Ostwald ripening, and instead follows a Sigmoidal rate curve. The heat change associated with the growth determined by isothermal titration calorimetry is about 10 kcal·mol^-1 per I nm increase in the diameter of the nanocrystals. In the case of CdSe nanocrystals also, the growth mechanism deviates from diffusion-limited growth and follows a combined model containing both diffusion and surface reaction terms. Our study of the growth kinetics of uncapped and poly（vinyl pyrollidone） （PVP）-capped ZnO nanorods has yielded interesting insights. We observe small nanocrystals next to the ZnO nanorods after a lapse of time in addition to periodic focusing and defocusing of the width of the length distribution. These observations lend support to the diffusion-limited growth model for the growth of uncapped ZnO nanorods. Accordingly, the time dependence on the length of uncapped nanorods follows the L3 law as required for diffusion-limited Ostwald ripening. The PVP-capped nanorods, however, show a time dependence, which is best described by a combination of diffusion （L^3） and surface reaction （L^2） terms.

Small Angle X-ray Scattering Study of PS Conformation in Tetrahydrofuran Solvent with Gas Anti-solvent

Small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) was used to study the effect of dissolved CO2 on the conformation of polystyrene (PS) in PS/tetrahydrofuran(THF) solution at 308.15 K and at pressures up to 3 MPa. The cloud pressure and the expansion curve of the solution were also determined. The dependence of the conformation on pressure was discussed.

Understanding fluorine-free electrolytes via small-angle X-ray scattering

Fluorine-free electrolytes have attracted great attention because of its low-cost and environmental friendliness. However, so far, little is known about the solution structures of these electrolytes. Here,we compare the solvation phenomenon of sodium tetraphenylborate(NaBPh_(4)) salt dissolved in organic solvents of propylene carbonate(PC), 1,2-dimethoxyethane(DME), acetonitrile(ACN) and tetrahydrofuran(THF). Small-angle X-ray scattering(SAXS) reveals a unique two-peak structural feature in this saltconcentrated PC electrolyte, while solutions using other solvents only have one scattering peak.Molecular dynamics(MD) simulations further reveal that there are anion-based clusters in addition to the short-range charge ordering in the concentrated NaBPh4/PC electrolyte. Raman spectroscopy confirms the existence of considerable contact ion pairs(CIPs). This work emphasizes the importance of global and local structural analysis, which will provide valuable clues for understanding the structureperformance relationship of electrolytes.

High-pressure effect on inverse spinel LiCuVO_4:X-ray diffraction and Raman scattering

The effect of external quasi-hydrostatic pressure on the inverse spinel structure of LiCuVO4 was studied in this paper. High-pressure synchrotron X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy measurements were carried out at room temperature up to 35.7 and 40.3 GPa, respectively. At a pressure of about 20 GPa, both Raman spectra and X-ray diffraction results indicate that LiCuVO4 was transformed into a monoclinic phase, which remained stable up to at least 35.7 GPa. Upon release of pressure, the high-pressure phase returned to the initial phase. The pressure dependence of the volume of low pressure orthorhombic phase and high-pressure monoclinic phase were described by a second-order Birch-Murnaghan equation of state, which yielded bulk modulus values of B0 = 197 （5） and 232（8） GPa, respectively. The results support the empirical suggestion that the oxide spinels have similar bulk modulus around 200 GPa.

Alternative scattering kernels for the first estimates of a reactor:diffusion length

Diffusion-length calculations of neutrons are performed using the Chebyshev polynomials of the second kind. The neutrons are assumed to move with constant energy in a uniform homogeneous slab. An alternative scattering kernel called an Anl?–Gngr phase function and a traditional Henyey–Greenstein phase function are used for the scattering function in the stationary neutron transport equation. First, analytic expressions and then numerical results are obtained for the diffusion length for various values of the scattering and cross-sectional parameters.Numerical results obtained from both scattering kernels for the diffusion length of the neutrons are given in tables side by side for comparison. The applicability of the method is easily demonstrated by these results.

DYNAMIC LIGHT SCATTERING STUDY ON TRANSLATION DIFFUSION OF 8-ARM STAR POLYSTYRENE IN GOOD AND THETA SOLVENTS

The technique of dynamic light scattering has been used to investigate the translation diffusion behavior of 8-arm star polystyrene (SPS)in a good solvent, tetrahydrofuran (THF) or benzene (BZ) and a theta solvent, cyclohexane (CH), by homodyne photon correlation spectroscopy .The intensityintensity autocorrelation function was analyzed by the method of cumulant. The translation diffusion coefficients have been obtained as a function of temperature and concentration. Under theta condition ,the non-concentration dependence of diffusion coefficient showed the unperturbed Gaussian state o the SPS molecular chain. The different hydrodynamic radii estimated from Stokes- Einstein equation reflected the stretch extent of the arm chain for regular star polymer. The data of diffusion activation energy of SPS in THF, BZ and CH were also obtained respectively.

Attosecond x-Ray Pulse Generation by Linear Thomson Scattering of Intense Laser Beam with Relativistic Electron

Abstract Linear Thomson scattering of a short pulse laser by relativistic electron has been investigated using computer simulations. It is shown that scattering of an intense laser pulse of -33 fs full width at half maximum, with an electron of γ0 = 10 initial energy, generates an ultrashort, pulsed radiation of 76 attoseconds with a photon wavelength of 2.5 nm in the backward direction. The scattered radiation generated by a highly relativistic electron has superior quality in terms of its pulse width and angular distribution in comparison to the one generated by lower relativistic energy electron.

Numerical simulation for all-optical Thomson scattering X-ray source

Energy spectra, angular distributions, and temporal profiles of the photons produced by an all-optical Thomson scat- tering X-ray source are explored through numerical simulations based on the parameters of the SILEX-I laser system （800 nm, 30 fs, 300 TW） and the previous wakefield acceleration experimental results. The simulation results show that X-ray pulses with a duration of 30 fs and an emission angle of 50 mrad can be produced from such a source. Using the optimized electron parameters, X-ray pulses with better directivity and narrower energy spectra can be obtained. Besides the electron parameters, the laser parameters such as the wavelength, pulse duration, and spot size also affect the X-ray yield, the angular distribution, and the maximum photon energy, except the X-ray pulse duration which is slightly changed for the case of ultrafast laser-electron interaction.

In-situ study of precipitates in Al–Zn–Mg–Cu alloys using anomalous small-angle x-ray scattering

In the present work,the precipitate compositions and precipitate amounts of these elements（including the size distribution,volume fraction,and inter-precipitate distance） on the Cu-containing 7000 series aluminum alloys（7150 and 7085 Al alloys）,are investigated by anomalous small-angle x-ray scattering（ASAXS） at various energies.The scattering intensity of 7150 alloy with T6 aging treatment decreases as the incident x-ray energy approaches the Zn absorption edge from the lower energy side,while scattering intensity does not show a noticeable energy dependence near the Cu absorption edge.Similar results are observed in the 7085 alloy in an aging process（120℃） by employing in-situ ASAXS measurements,indicating that the precipitate compositions should include Zn element and should not be strongly related to Cu element at the early stage after 10 min.In the aging process,the precipitate particles with an initial average size of ~ 8 ？A increase with aging time at an energy of 9.60 ke V,while the increase with a slower rate is observed at an energy of 9.65 ke V as near the Zn absorption edge.

Scanning Microfocus Small Angle X-ray Scattering Study of the Avian Eggshell

Synchrotron microfocus small angle X-ray scattering was used to investigate the nanostructure and microscopic variation of eggshells. It uses a microbeam allowing the ability to probe interactions between the organic and inorganic components at nanometer level and is ideal for mapping over small areas to obtain a detailed analysis of structural variations. Thin sections of eggshells were scanned from the shell membrane （inner） to the cuticle （outer） surface. The data collected was used to produce two-dimensional maps showing microscopic changes within the different layers of the eggshell. The structural alterations ap- parently could have implications at the macroscopic level of the resulting eggshell. As the organic matrix is embedded within the eggshell this may contribute to the variations observed in calcite crystal form and texture, Structural information obtained about a biomaterial at different length scales is important in relating the structure to its functional properties. This knowledge and the principles behind the formation of biomaterials could be used in the attempt of bioengineering new systems.

Structural modeling of proteins by integrating small-angle x-ray scattering data

Elucidating the structure of large biomolecules such as multi-domain proteins or protein complexes is challenging due to their high flexibility in solution. Recently, an ＂integrative structural biology＂ approach has been proposed, which aims to determine the protein structure and characterize protein flexibility by combining complementary high- and lowresolution experimental data using computer simulations. Small-angle x-ray scattering（SAXS） is an efficient technique that can yield low-resolution structural information, including protein size and shape. Here, we review computational methods that integrate SAXS with other experimental datasets for structural modeling. Finally, we provide a case study of determination of the structure of a protein complex formed between the tandem SH3 domains in c-Cb1-associated protein and the proline-rich loop in human vinculin.