Wakefield stimulated terahertz radiation from a plasma grating

When a short laser pulse propagates in a corrugated plasma, its wakefield interacts with the density and electric field ripples of the plasma. In the present paper, the modulation of the plasma originates from two counter-propagating long laser pulses, i.e. the corrugated plasma can be as- sumed as a so called plasma grating. PIC (particle in cell) simulations show electromagnetic wave radiation at a frequency just above the plasma frequency when the wakefield interacts with the grating. An electromagnetic instability is proposed as the reason for the emission process. The electrostatic driver of the electromagnetic instability is the beat of wake and grating. That beat mode possess large wavenumber (originating from the small grating wavelength) and small fre- quency (of the order of the plasma frequency) when one concentrates on small ratios of the plasma modulation length to the wavelength of the wakefield. The latter situation occurs when the long laser pulses (which generate the grating) as well as the short laser pulse (which drives the wakefield) have similar frequency ω0 ≫ ωpe where ωpe is the plasma frequency. The coherent volume emission process lasts for a while. It is finally superseded by terahertz transition radiation at the boundaries of the original grating.

Early dynamics of the emission of solvated electrons from nanodiamonds in water

Solvated electrons are among the most reductive species in aqueous environment. Diamond materials have been proposed as a promising source for solvated electrons, but the underlying emission process in water remains elusive so far. Here, we show spectroscopic evidence for the emission of solvated electrons from nanodiamonds upon excitation with both deep ultraviolet (255 nm) and visible (400 nm) light using ultrafast transient absorption. The crucial role of surface termination for the emission process is evidenced by comparing hydrogenated, hydroxylated and carboxylated nanodiamonds. Especially, hydrogenated nanodiamonds are able to generate solvated electron upon visible light excitation, while they show a sub-ps recombination due to trap states when excited with deep ultraviolet light. The essential role of surface reconstructions on the nanodiamonds in these processes is proposed based on density functional theory calculations. These results open new perspectives for solar-driven emission of solvated electrons in aqueous phase using nanodiamonds.

Platinum(II) Complex of Benzimidazole-Derived N-Heterocyclic Carbene: Synthesis, Characterization, and Photophysical Properties

Platinum(II) complex of benzimidazole-derived N-heterocyclic carbene with formula [PtCl2(DMSO)(bimy)] was successfully synthesized via one pot reaction between 1,3-diisopropyl benzimidazolium (bimy×HBr), Ag2O and [PtCl2(DMSO)] (DMSO = dimethyl sulfoxide). The complex was characterized by means of multinuclear (1H and 13C{1H}) magnetic resonance and single crystal X-ray diffraction (XRD). The UV-Vis absorption spectra of the compound show an absorption shoulder above 300 nm. Under excitation by 285 nm UV lamp, solution of the compound in DCM is highly emissive showing emission maxima at around 410 nm. DFT calculations were also carried out for the complex to gain insight on its electronic structure and the nature of electronic transition involved in the absorption/emission process.

Secondary electron emission under magnetic constraint: from Monte Carlo simulations to analytical solution

The secondary electron emission process is essential for the optimal operation of a wide range of applications, including fusion reactors, high-energy accelerators, or spacecraft. The process can be influenced and controlled by the use of a magnetic field. An analytical solution is proposed to describe the secondary electron emission process in an oblique magnetic field. It was derived from Monte Carlo simulations. The analytical formula captures the influence of the magnetic field magnitude and tilt, electron emission energy, electron reflection on the surface, and electric field intensity on the secondary emission process. The last two parameters increase the effective emission while the others act the opposite. The electric field effect is equivalent to a reduction of the magnetic field tilt. A very good agreement is shown between the analytical and numerical results for a wide range of parameters. The analytical solution is a convenient tool for the theoretical study and design of magnetically assisted applications, providing realistic input for subsequent simulations.

Study of a new water jet thruster for robotic returnable jumping

A novel water jet thruster which is capable of conducting two sequential jumps is proposed for the amphibious jumping robot. The proposed water jet thruster adopted a unique structural design with a double-layered tank. Liquid nitrogen was injected to the tank to pressure the propellant water and generate propulsive force, which is safe and effective for both aquatic and terrestrial environment. Then a theoretical jumping model was built to evaluate the performances of two jumping actions. According to the tethered thrust measurement and free jumping experiments, the estimation from the model met well with their experimental verifications. Moreover, CFD simulation was conducted to compare the emission process of inner and outer chambers in detail. We believe the demonstration of the novel thruster would drive the innovation of future amphibious robots that capable of leaping from both aquatic and terrestrial environments.

Hidden Markov Model with Markovian emission

In our paper [A. Nasroallah and K. Elkimakh, HMM with emission process resulting from a special combination of independent Markovian emissions, Monte Carlo Methods Appl. 23 2017, 4, 287–306] we have studied, in a first scenario, the three fundamental hidden Markov problems assuming that, given the hidden process, the observed one selects emissions from a combination of independent Markov chains evolving at the same time. Here, we propose to conduct the same study with a second scenario assuming that given the hidden process, the emission process selects emissions from a combination of independent Markov chain evolving according to their own clock. Three basic numerical examples are studied to show the proper functioning of the iterative algorithm adapted to the proposed model.

Control of the half-cycle harmonic emission process for generating the intense and ultrashort single attosecond pulses (SAPs)

In this paper, the half-cycle harmonic generation process has been controlled by using the asymmetric inhomogeneous chirped pulse combined with the ultraviolet (UV) pulse. It is found that by properly optimizing the chirps and chirp delays of the fundamental two-color pulse, the optimal negative and positive half-cycle laser profiles for the harmonic cutoff extension can be obtained. Further, with the introduction of the negative and positive inhomogeneous effect, respectively, the harmonic cutoff from the negative and positive half-cycle laser profiles can be further improved. Next, with the assistance of the UV pulse, the harmonic intensity can be enhanced due to the UV resonance ionization. Moreover, the single and double UV photon resonance ionizations are much better for generating the higher harmonic intensity. As a result, the stronger and broader harmonic plateaus with the larger harmonic cutoff can be obtained, which can support the generation of the high-intensity ultrashort attosecond pulses with the pulse durations of sub-45 as.

Sub-waveform optimization for producing water window single-order harmonic

Through the sub-waveform optimization of the laser field, a potential method to produce the water window single-order harmonic (SOH) has been proposed. First, by properly introducing the chirps of two-color field, the SOHs from 303th order to 616th order can be obtained. Theoretical analyses show that the folding region on the harmonic emission process, caused by the multiple accelerations, is responsible for the enhanced SOH. Moreover, the folding region is dependent on the neighbor two half-cycle profiles. Thus, through further controlling the sub-waveform of the folding region by using the unipolar pulse, the folding region on the harmonic emission process will be extended to the higher photon energy region, including the water window region. Finally, by properly choosing the combinations of chirps and unipolar pulses, the water window SOH from 446th order to 833th order (from 345 eV to 645 eV) can be obtained.