Measurement of two-photon excitation cross-section of a new symmetric-type fluorene derivative

A new dye, 2,7-bis(4-methoxystyryl)-9,9-bis(2-ethylhexyl)-9H-fluorene, has been synthesized, which is a D-pi-D symmetrical-type fluorene derivative. The two-photon absorption (TPA) of this new dye has been experimentally studied by comparable two-photon-induced fluorescence method. This new dye has a TPA cross-section of 84 x 10(-50) cm(4) s/photon at 790 nm/13 fs. (c) 2004 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Inter-stage line ratio of He- and Li-like Ti emissions for the electron temperature measurement

Under coronal conditions, the steady state rate-equations are used to calculate the inter-stage line ratios between Li-like Is(2)2p(P-2(3/2))-> 1s(2)2s -> ((2) S-1/2) and He-like 1s2p (P-1(1))-> 1s(2) (S-1(0)) transitions for Ti in the electronic temperature ranges from 0.1 keV to 20 keV. The results show that the. temperature sensitivities are higher at the electronic temperature less than 5000 eV and the temperature sensitivities will decrease with the increase of electronic temperature.

Optimal Investment in Energy Efficiency under Uncertainty

41 p.

Future of earthquake early warning : quantifying uncertainty and making fast automated decisions for applications

Earthquake early warning (EEW) systems have been rapidly developing over the past decade. Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) has an EEW system that was operating during the 2011 M9 Tohoku earthquake in Japan, and this increased the awareness of EEW systems around the world. While longer-time earthquake prediction still faces many challenges to be practical, the availability of shorter-time EEW opens up a new door for earthquake loss mitigation. After an earthquake fault begins rupturing, an EEW system utilizes the first few seconds of recorded seismic waveform data to quickly predict the hypocenter location, magnitude, origin time and the expected shaking intensity level around the region. This early warning information is broadcast to different sites before the strong shaking arrives. The warning lead time of such a system is short, typically a few seconds to a minute or so, and the information is uncertain. These factors limit human intervention to activate mitigation actions and this must be addressed for engineering applications of EEW. This study applies a Bayesian probabilistic approach along with machine learning techniques and decision theories from economics to improve different aspects of EEW operation, including extending it to engineering applications.

Existing EEW systems are often based on a deterministic approach. Often, they assume that only a single event occurs within a short period of time, which led to many false alarms after the Tohoku earthquake in Japan. This study develops a probability-based EEW algorithm based on an existing deterministic model to extend the EEW system to the case of concurrent events, which are often observed during the aftershock sequence after a large earthquake.

To overcome the challenge of uncertain information and short lead time of EEW, this study also develops an earthquake probability-based automated decision-making (ePAD) framework to make robust decision for EEW mitigation applications. A cost-benefit model that can capture the uncertainties in EEW information and the decision process is used. This approach is called the Performance-Based Earthquake Early Warning, which is based on the PEER Performance-Based Earthquake Engineering method. Use of surrogate models is suggested to improve computational efficiency. Also, new models are proposed to add the influence of lead time into the cost-benefit analysis. For example, a value of information model is used to quantify the potential value of delaying the activation of a mitigation action for a possible reduction of the uncertainty of EEW information in the next update. Two practical examples, evacuation alert and elevator control, are studied to illustrate the ePAD framework. Potential advanced EEW applications, such as the case of multiple-action decisions and the synergy of EEW and structural health monitoring systems, are also discussed.

The gated integration technique for the accurate measurement of the autocorrelation function of speckle intensities scattered from random phase screens

A new approach based on the gated integration technique is proposed for the accurate measurement of the autocorrelation function of speckle intensities scattered from a random phase screen. The Boxcar used for this technique in the acquisition of the speckle intensity data integrates the photoelectric signal during its sampling gate open, and it repeats the sampling by a preset number, in. The average analog of the in samplings output by the Boxcar enhances the signal-to-noise ratio by root m, because the repeated sampling and the average make the useful speckle signals stable, while the randomly varied photoelectric noise is suppressed by 1/ root m. In the experiment, we use an analog-to-digital converter module to synchronize all the actions such as the stepped movement of the phase screen, the repeated sampling, the readout of the averaged output of the Boxcar, etc. The experimental results show that speckle signals are better recovered from contaminated signals, and the autocorrelation function with the secondary maximum is obtained, indicating that the accuracy of the measurement of the autocorrelation function is greatly improved by the gated integration technique. (C) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Measurement of the neutron beta decay asymmetry using ultracold neutrons

The free neutron beta decay correlation A₀ between neutron polarization and electron emission direction provides the strongest constraint on the ratio λ = g_A/g_V of the Axial-vector to Vector coupling constants in Weak decay. In conjunction with the CKM Matrix element V_ud and the neutron lifetime τ_n, λ provides a test of Standard Model assumptions for the Weak interaction. Leading high-precision measurements of A₀ and τ_n in the 1995-2005 time period showed discrepancies with prior measurements and Standard Model predictions for the relationship between λ, τ_n, and V_ud. The UCNA experiment was developed to measure A₀ from decay of polarized ultracold neutrons (UCN), providing a complementary determination of λ with different systematic uncertainties from prior cold neutron beam experiments. This dissertation describes analysis of the dataset collected by UCNA in 2010, with emphasis on detector response calibrations and systematics. The UCNA measurement is placed in the context of the most recent τ_n results and cold neutron A₀ experiments.

Essays in optimal resource allocation under uncertainty with capacity constraints

This thesis brings together four papers on optimal resource allocation under uncertainty with capacity constraints. The first is an extension of the Arrow-Debreu contingent claim model to a good subject to supply uncertainty for which delivery capacity has to be chosen before the uncertainty is resolved. The second compares an ex-ante contingent claims market to a dynamic market in which capacity is chosen ex-ante and output and consumption decisions are made ex-post. The third extends the analysis to a storable good subject to random supply. Finally, the fourth examines optimal allocation of water under an appropriative rights system.