Chromatic Effects Research Articles

Accurate measurement of absolute experimental inelastic mean free paths and EELS differential cross-sections

Methods are described for measuring accurate absolute experimental inelastic mean free paths and differential cross-sections using DualEELS. The methods remove the effects of surface layers and give the results for the bulk materials. The materials used are VC0.83, TiC0.98, VN0.97 and TiN0.88 but the method should be applicable to a wide range of materials. The data was taken at 200keV using a probe half angle of 29mrad and a collection angle of 36mrad. The background can be subtracted from under the ionisation edges, which can then be separated from each other. This is achieved by scaling Hartree-Slater calculated cross-sections to the edges in the atomic regions well above the threshold. The average scaling factors required are 1.00 for the non-metal K-edges and 1.01 for the metal L-edges (with uncertainties of a few percent). If preliminary measurements of the chromatic effects in the post-specimen lenses are correct, both drop to 0.99. The inelastic mean free path for TiC0.98 was measured as 103.6±0.5nm compared to the prediction of 126.9nm based on the widely used Iakoubovskii parameterisation.

Prospects for detecting the Rossiter–McLaughlin effect of Earth-like planets: the test case of TRAPPIST-1b and c

The Rossiter-McLaughlin effect is the principal method of determining the sky-projected spin--orbit angle ($\beta$) of transiting planets. Taking the example of the recently discovered TRAPPIST-1 system, we explore how ultracool dwarfs facilitate the measurement of the spin--orbit angle for Earth-sized planets by creating an effect that can be an order of magnitude more ample than the Doppler reflex motion caused by the planet if the star is undergoing rapid rotation. In TRAPPIST-1's case we expect the semi-amplitudes of the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect to be $40-50$ m/s for the known transiting planets. Accounting for stellar jitter expected for ultracool dwarfs, instrumental noise, and assuming radial velocity precisions both demonstrated and anticipated for upcoming near-infrared spectrographs, we quantify the observational effort required to measure the planets' masses and spin--orbit angles. We conclude that if the planetary system is well-aligned then $\beta$ can be measured to a precision of $\lesssim 10^{\circ}$ if the spectrograph is stable at the level of 2 m/s. We also investigate the measure of $\Delta \beta$, the mutual inclination, when multiple transiting planets are present in the system. Lastly, we note that the rapid rotation rate of many late M-dwarfs will amplify the Rossiter-McLaughlin signal to the point where variations in the chromatic Rossiter-McLaughlin effect from atmospheric absorbers should be detectable.

Novel xenon calibration scheme for two-photon absorption laser induced fluorescence of hydrogen.

Two photon absorption laser induced fluorescence (TALIF) measurements of neutral hydrogen and its isotopes are typically calibrated by performing TALIF measurements on krypton with the same diagnostic system and using the known ratio of the absorption cross sections [K. Niemi et al., J. Phys. D 34, 2330 (2001)]. Here we present the measurements of a new calibration method based on a ground state xenon scheme for which the fluorescent emission wavelength is nearly identical to that of hydrogen, thereby eliminating chromatic effects in the collection optics and simplifying detector calibration. We determine that the ratio of the TALIF cross sections of xenon and hydrogen is 0.024 ± 0.001.

43% Sunlight to Electricity Conversion Efficiency Using CPV

A concentrator standard test condition (CSTC) efficiency of 43.4% for the direct conversion of sunlight into electricity is demonstrated with a subunit of a concentrator photovoltaics (CPV) module. This is the highest reported CSTC efficiency for CPV applications thus far. This test device consists of a four-junction solar cell and uses an achromatic full-glass lens for concentrating the sunlight. The high efficiency is made possible by the combination of a high-efficiency solar cell (46%) and a high-efficiency lens (95%). The I–V curve of the solar cell has been measured for varying distances to the glass lens and compared with the results for a silicone-on-glass Fresnel lens. In this manner, chromatic aberration effects on solar cell performance are discussed in this study.

Chromatic Perceptual Learning but No Category Effects without Linguistic Input.

Perceptual learning involves an improvement in perceptual judgment with practice, which is often specific to stimulus or task factors. Perceptual learning has been shown on a range of visual tasks but very little research has explored chromatic perceptual learning. Here, we use two low level perceptual threshold tasks and a supra-threshold target detection task to assess chromatic perceptual learning and category effects. Experiment 1 investigates whether chromatic thresholds reduce as a result of training and at what level of analysis learning effects occur. Experiment 2 explores the effect of category training on chromatic thresholds, whether training of this nature is category specific and whether it can induce categorical responding. Experiment 3 investigates the effect of category training on a higher level, lateralized target detection task, previously found to be sensitive to category effects. The findings indicate that performance on a perceptual threshold task improves following training but improvements do not transfer across retinal location or hue. Therefore, chromatic perceptual learning is category specific and can occur at relatively early stages of visual analysis. Additionally, category training does not induce category effects on a low level perceptual threshold task, as indicated by comparable discrimination thresholds at the newly learned hue boundary and adjacent test points. However, category training does induce emerging category effects on a supra-threshold target detection task. Whilst chromatic perceptual learning is possible, learnt category effects appear to be a product of left hemisphere processing, and may require the input of higher level linguistic coding processes in order to manifest.

Study of Hypochlorite Reduction Related to the Sodium Chlorate Process

Reduction of hypochlorite is the most important side reaction in the sodium chlorate reactor leading to high energy losses. Today chromate is added to the reactor solution to minimize the hypochlorite reduction but a replacement is necessary due to health and environmental risks with chromate. In order to understand the effect of different substrates on the hypochlorite reduction, α-FeOOH, γ-FeOOH, Cr2O3 and CrOH3 were electrodeposited on titanium and subjected to electrochemical investigations. These substances are commonly found on cathodes in the chlorate process and can serve as model substances for the experimental investigation. The mechanism of hypochlorite reduction was also studied using DFT calculations in which the reaction at Fe(III) and Cr(III) surface sites were considered in order to single out the electrocatalytic properties. The experimental results clearly demonstrated that the chromium films completely block the reduction of hypochlorite, while for the iron oxyhydroxides the process can readily occur. Since the electrocatalytic properties per se were shown by the DFT calculations to be very similar for Fe(III) and Cr(III) sites in the oxide matrix, other explanations for the blocking ability of chromium films are addressed and discussed in the context of surface charging, reduction of anions and conduction in the deposited films. The main conclusion is that the combined effect of electronic properties and reduction of negatively charged ions can explain the reduction kinetics of hypochlorite and the effect of chromate in the chlorate process.

Effects of Acid Copper Chromate Preservative and Hydrothermal Treatment on the Dimensional Stability, Hardness, and Decay Resistance of Poplar Wood

The effects of acid copper chromate (ACC) and hydrothermal treatments were determined relative to the hardness, decay resistance, and dimensional stability of poplar wood. Test specimens, prepared from poplar wood (Populus nigra L.), were first heat-treated under saturated steam in a digester and then impregnated with ACC solution and by a long-term (21 days) dipping technique to reach complete saturation. Impregnated specimens were exposed to white-rot fungus (Trametes versicolor) for 14 weeks, using the Kolle flask method. The weight loss and Brinell hardness were determined after impregnation, thermal treatment, and exposure to T. versicolor. The combination of thermal treatment and ACC preservative on the poplar wood showed improved hardness and decay resistance properties of wood, depending on the treatment time and temperature. The highest weight loss (37.78%) was observed for control specimens, and the lowest (3.03%) occurred in 1% ACC-treated specimens. The highest Brinell hardness on a tangential surface was observed in 1% ACC-treated specimens (6.45 kN), and the lowest was noted in the specimens heat-treated at 130 °C and 180 min (0.52 kN).

Application of the longitudinal chromatic aberration effect for distances measurement on the basis of a single photo

Subject of Research. We propose a method for measuring the distances to the surfaces of photographed objects based on the effect of longitudinal chromatic aberration. According to this effect, the focal length of lens depends on the wavelength of refracted light, thus the defocus of image formed by lens depends not only on the distance from image plane to lens, but also on the wavelength of light the picture was taken for (red, green or blue color ranges). Method. The proposed method of distance measurement is based on comparison of image defocus for different wavelengths (e.g., red and blue). The comparison is performed in the spatial frequency domain and is based on analysis of image complex spectrograms (the Fourier spectrum calculated locally within a window scanning the image).The distance to each point of photographed surface is calculated in closed form by the analysis of local spatial spectrum with the use of Gaussian model of point spread function. Main Results. The working capacity of distance measurement technique is partially verified on the basis of image defocus imitation by different displacement of objective lens with respect to sensor matrix of camera. The presented analysis of chromatic parameters of traditionally applied optical materials also proves the physical realizability of proposed technique. A technology is also proposed for distance measuring based on really differing image defocus in different color channels applying a special calibration of electro-optical system. Practical Relevance. The proposed distance measurement technique could be practically useful in the cases where any active illumination of objects being photographed is prohibited. It is also worth to be applied in the inexpensive low-sized optical measuring devices like Kinect for Xbox-360.

Chromatic effects in beam wander correction for free-space quantum communications

Beam wander caused by atmospheric turbulence can significantly degrade the performance of horizontal free-space quantum communication links. Classical beam wander correction techniques cannot be applied due to the stronger requirements of transmitting single photons. One strategy to overcome this limitation consists in using a separate wavelength from that of the quantum signal to analyze the beam wander and use this information for its correction. For this strategy to work adequately, both wavelengths should be affected equally by atmospheric turbulence, i.e. no chromatic effects should be originated from beam wander. In this letter, a series of experiments are performed to prove that this is the case for {\lambda} ~ 850 nm as the quantum signal and {\lambda} ~ 1550 nm as the tracking signal of a quantum communication system.

Preservation of low slice emittance in bunch compressors

Minimizing the dilution of the electron beam emittance is crucial for the performance of accelerators, in particular for free electron laser facilities, where the length of the machine and the efficiency of the lasing process depend on it. Measurements performed at the SwissFEL Injector Test Facility revealed an increase in slice emittance after compressing the bunch even for moderate compression factors. The phenomenon was experimentally studied by characterizing the dependence of the effect on beam and machine parameters relevant for the bunch compression. The reproduction of these measurements in simulation required the use of a 3D beam dynamics model along the bunch compressor that includes coherent synchrotron radiation. Our investigations identified transverse effects, such as coherent synchrotron radiation and transverse space charge as the sources of the observed emittance dilution, excluding other effects, such as chromatic effects on single slices or spurious dispersion. We also present studies, both experimental and simulation based, on the effect of the optics mismatch of the slices on the variation of the slice emittance along the bunch. After a corresponding reoptimization of the beam optics in the test facility we reached slice emittances below 200 nm for the central slices along the longitudinal dimension with a moderate increase up to 300 nm in the head and tail for a compression factor of 7.5 and a bunch charge of 200 pC, equivalent to a final current of 150 A, at about 230 MeV energy.

Coherent Chromatic Effect in the Transmission Electron Microscope.

Under the assumption of local atomic scattering, elastic electron scattering at finite scattering angles implies a small but finite energy loss. This energy loss, which under conventional imaging conditions in high-resolution transmission electron microscopy is of the order of 0.1meV and thus negligible, increases by more than 2 orders of magnitude if light elements are investigated at sub-Ångström resolution. For a microscope of finite chromatic aberration, the energy loss leads to an element-specific chromatic effect which increases with the instrument resolution and with decreasing mass of the scattering atom. Despite that this effect is small, it can degrade the achievable image contrast. However, the effect can be considered in the optimization of the phase-contrast imaging conditions and even be beneficial to enhance the relative image contrast of light atoms in the presence of heavy atoms.

Design of off-axis mirrors for the phase-induced amplitude apodization complex mask coronagraph

The phase-induced amplitude apodization complex mask coronagraph (PIAACMC) provides an efficient way to control diffraction propagation effects caused by the central obstruction/segmented mirrors of the telescope. PIAACMC can be optimized in a way that takes into account both chromatic diffraction effects caused by the telescope obstructed aperture and the tip-tilt sensitivity of the coronagraph. As a result, unlike classic phase-induced amplitude apodization (PIAA), the PIAACMC mirror shapes are often slightly asymmetric even for an on-axis configuration and require more care in calculating off-axis shapes when an off-axis configuration is preferred. A method to design off-axis PIAA mirror shapes given an on-axis mirror design is presented. The algorithm is based on geometrical ray tracing and is able to calculate off-axis PIAA mirror shapes for an arbitrary geometry of the input and output beams. The method is demonstrated using the third generation PIAACMC design for WFIRST-AFTA telescope. Geometrical optics design issues related to the off-axis diffraction propagation effects are also discussed.

Achromatization of conical diffraction: application to the generation of a polychromatic optical vortex.

Vortex beams are plagued by the intrinsic chromaticity of the physical phenomenon used to generate them. To the authors' best knowledge, attempts to generate them in a broad spectral range remain quite scarce and limited in their results. Crystal optics and especially conical diffraction (CD) (or refraction) intrinsically create achromatic vortices. The vortex is created by a wavelength-independent topological charge, embedded directly in the Fresnel equations. However, for biaxial crystals of low crystallographic symmetry, which includes all crystals used practically for CD, the dispersion of the binormal axis creates a chromaticity effect. In this Letter, we propose a new way to compensate this dispersion of the binormal axis of a biaxial crystal in order to generate white-light vortex beams by CD in a 250 nm spectral range, covering almost all the visible range. The advantages of the ability to use CD in a wide spectral range vastly exceed the sole generation of vortex beams.

Modelling the photosphere of active stars for planet detection and characterization

Stellar activity patterns are responsible for jitter effects that are observed at different timescales and amplitudes. These effects are currently in the focus of many exoplanet search projects, since the lack of a well-defined characterization and correction strategy hampers the detection of the signals associated with small exoplanets. Accurate simulations of the stellar photosphere can provide synthetic time series data. These may help to investigate the relation between activity jitter and stellar parameters when considering different active region patterns. Moreover, jitters can be analysed at different wavelength scales in order to design strategies to remove or minimize them. In this work we present the StarSim tool, which is based on a model for a spotted rotating photosphere built from the integration of the spectral contribution of a fine grid of surface elements. The model includes all significant effects affecting the flux intensities and the wavelength of spectral features produced by active regions and planets. A specific application for the characterization and modelling of the spectral signature of active regions is considered, showing that the chromatic effects of faculae are dominant for low temperature contrasts of spots. Synthetic time series are modelled for HD 189733. Our algorithm reproduces both the photometry and the RVs to good precision, generally better than the studies published to date. We evaluate the RV signature of the activity in HD 189733 by exploring a grid of solutions from the photometry. We find that the use of RV data in the inverse problem could break degeneracies and allow for a better determination of some stellar and activity parameters. In addition, the effects of spots are studied for a set of simulated transit photometry, showing that these can introduce variations which are very similar to the signal of an atmosphere dominated by dust.

Two particle model for studying the effects of space-charge force on strong head-tail instabilities

In this paper, we present a new two particle model for studying the strong head-tail instabilities in the presence of the space-charge force. It is a simple expansion of the well-known two particle model for strong head-tail instability and is still analytically solvable. No chromaticity effect is included. It leads to a formula for the growth rate as a function of the two dimensionless parameters: the space-charge tune shift parameter (normalized by the synchrotron tune) and the wakefield strength, Upsilon. The three-dimensional contour plot of the growth rate as a function of those two dimensionless parameters reveals stopband structures. Many simulation results generally indicate that a strong head-tail instability can be damped by a weak space-charge force, but the beam becomes unstable again when the space-charge force is further increased. The new two particle model indicates a similar behavior. In weak space-charge regions, additional tune shifts by the space-charge force dissolve the mode coupling. As the space-charge force is increased, they conversely restore the mode coupling, but then a further increase of the space-charge force decouples the modes again. Lastly, this mode coupling/decoupling behavior creates the stopband structures.

Sulfate and chromate increased each other's uptake and translocation in As-hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata

We investigated the effects of chromate (CrVI) and sulfate on their uptake and translocation in As-hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata. Plants were exposed to 1) 0.1 mM CrVI and 0, 0.25, 1.25 or 2.5 mM sulfate or 2) 0.25 mM sulfate and 0, 0.5, 2.5 or 5.0 mM CrVI for 1 d in hydroponics. P. vittata accumulated 26 and 1261 mg kg−1 Cr in the fronds and roots at CrVI0.1, and 2197 and 1589 mg kg−1 S in the fronds and roots at S0.25. Increasing sulfate concentrations increased Cr root concentrations by 16–66% and helped CrVI reduction to CrIII whereas increasing CrVI concentrations increased frond sulfate concentrations by 3–27%. Increasing sulfate concentrations enhanced TBARS concentrations in the biomass, indicating oxidative stress caused lipid peroxidation in plant cell membranes. However, addition of 0.25–2.5 mM sulfate alleviated CrVI's toxic effects and decreased TBARS from 23.5 to 9.46–12.3 μmol g−1 FW. Though CrVI was supplied, 78–96% of CrIII was in the biomass, indicating efficient CrVI reduction to CrIII by P. vittata. The data indicated the amazing ability of P. vittata in Cr uptake at 289 mg kg−1 h−1 with little translocation to the fronds. These results indicated that P. vittata had potential in Cr phytoremediation in contaminated sites but further studies are needed to evaluate this potential. The facts that CrVI and sulfate helped each other in uptake by P. vittata suggest that CrVI was not competing with sulfate uptake in P. vittata. However, the mechanisms of how sulfate and CrVI enhance each other's accumulation in P. vittata need further investigation.

Depth position detection for fast moving objects in sealed microchannel utilizing chromatic aberration.

This research reports a novel method for depth position measurement of fast moving objects inside a microfluidic channel based on the chromatic aberration effect. Two band pass filters and two avalanche photodiodes (APD) are used for rapid detecting the scattered light from the passing objected. Chromatic aberration results in the lights of different wavelengths focus at different depth positions in a microchannel. The intensity ratio of two selected bands of 430 nm-470 nm (blue band) and 630 nm-670 nm (red band) scattered from the passing object becomes a significant index for the depth information of the passing object. Results show that microspheres with the size of 20 μm and 2 μm can be resolved while using PMMA (Abbe number, V = 52) and BK7 (V = 64) as the chromatic aberration lens, respectively. The throughput of the developed system is greatly enhanced by the high sensitive APDs as the optical detectors. Human erythrocytes are also successfully detected without fluorescence labeling at a high flow velocity of 2.8 mm/s. With this approach, quantitative measurement for the depth position of rapid moving objects inside a sealed microfluidic channel can be achieved in a simple and low cost way.

Limits on foreground subtraction from chromatic beam effects in global redshifted 21 cm measurements

Foreground subtraction in global redshifted 21 cm measurements is limited by frequency-dependent (chromatic) structure in antenna beam patterns. Chromatic beams couple angular structures in Galactic foreground emission to spectral structures that may not be removed by smooth functional forms. We report results for simulations based on two dipole antennas used by the Experiment to Detect the Global EoR Signature (EDGES). The residual levels in simulated foreground-subtracted spectra are found to differ substantially between the two antennas, suggesting that antenna design must be carefully considered. Residuals are also highly dependent on the right ascension and declination of the antenna pointing, with RMS values differing by as much as a factor of 20 across pointings. For EDGES and other ground-based experiments with zenith pointing antennas, right ascension and declination correspond directly to the local sidereal time and the latitude of the deployment site, hence chromatic beam effects should be taken into account when selecting sites. We introduce the "blade" dipole antenna and show, via simulations, that it has better chromatic performance than the "fourpoint" antenna previously used for EDGES. The blade antenna yields 1-5~mK residuals across the entire sky after a 5-term polynomial is removed from simulated spectra, whereas the fourpoint antenna typically requires a 6-term polynomial for comparable residuals. For both antennas, the signal-to-noise ratio of recovered 21 cm input signals peaks for a 5-term polynomial foreground fit given realistic thermal noise levels.

Electron beam final focus system for Thomson scattering at ELBE

The design of an electron beam final focus system (FFS) aiming for high-flux laser-Thomson backscattering X-ray sources at ELBE is presented. A telescope system consisting of four permanent magnet based quadrupoles was found to have significantly less chromatic aberrations than a quadrupole doublet or triplet as commonly used. Focusing properties like the position of the focal plane and the spot size are retained for electron beam energies between 20 and 30MeV by adjusting the position of the quadrupoles individually on a motorized stage. The desired ultra-short electron bunches require an increased relative energy spread up to a few percent and, thus, second order chromatic effects must be taken into account. We also present the design and test results of the permanent magnet quadrupoles. Adjustable shunts allow for correction of the field strength and compensation of deviations in the permanent magnet material.For a beam emittance of 13mmmrad, we predict focal spot sizes of about 40μm (rms) and divergences of about 10mrad using the FFS.

THE IMPACT OF THE IONOSPHERE ON GROUND-BASED DETECTION OF THE GLOBAL EPOCH OF REIONIZATION SIGNAL

The redshifted 21 cm line of neutral hydrogen (H i), potentially observable at low radio frequencies (∼50–200 MHz), is a promising probe of the physical conditions of the intergalactic medium during Cosmic Dawn and the Epoch of Reionization (EoR). The sky-averaged H i signal is expected to be extremely weak (∼100 mK) in comparison to the Galactic foreground emission (∼104 K). Moreover, the sky-averaged spectra measured by ground-based instruments are affected by chromatic propagation effects (∼tens of kelvin) originating in the ionosphere. We analyze data collected with the upgraded Broadband Instrument for Global Hydrogen Reionization Signal system deployed at the Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory to assess the significance of ionospheric effects on the detection of the global EoR signal. The ionospheric effects identified in these data are, particularly during nighttime, dominated by absorption and emission. We measure some properties of the ionosphere, such as the electron temperature (Te ≈ 470 K at nighttime), magnitude, and variability of optical depth (τ100 MHz ≈ 0.01 and δτ ≈ 0.005 at nighttime). According to the results of a statistical test applied on a large data sample, very long integrations (∼100 hr collected over approximately 2 months) lead to increased signal-to-noise ratio even in the presence of ionospheric variability. This is further supported by the structure of the power spectrum of the sky temperature fluctuations, which has flicker noise characteristics at frequencies ≳10−5 Hz, but becomes flat below ≈10−5 Hz. Hence, we conclude that the stochastic error introduced by the chromatic ionospheric effects tends to zero in an average. Therefore, the ionospheric effects and fluctuations are not fundamental impediments preventing ground-based instruments from integrating down to the precision required by global EoR experiments, provided that the ionospheric contribution is properly accounted for in the data analysis.