Publications
Active-site protein dynamics and solvent accessibility in native Achromobacter cycloclastes copper nitrite reductase
Microbial nitrite reductases are denitrifying enzymes that are a major component of the global nitrogen cycle. Multiple structures measured from one crystal (MSOX data) of copper nitrite reductase at 240K, together with molecular-dynamics simulations, have revealed protein dynamics at the type 2 copper site that are significant for its catalytic properties and for the entry and exit of solvent or ligands to and from the active site.
CBETA - Cornell university brookhaven national laboratory electron energy recovery test accelerator
Cornell's Lab of Accelerator-based Sciences and Education (CLASSE) and the Collider Accelerator Department (BNL-CAD) are developing the first Superconducting RF multi-turn energy recovery linac with Non-Scaling Fixed Field Alternating Gradient (NS-FFAG) racetrack. The existing injector and superconducting linac at Cornell University are installed together with a single NS-FFAG arcs and straight section at the opposite side of the linac to form an Electron Energy Recovery (ERL) system.
Impact of trapped magnetic flux and thermal gradients on the performance of Nb3Sn cavities
Trapped magnetic flux is known to degrade the quality factor of superconducting cavities by increasing the surface losses ascribed to the residual resistance. In Nb3Sn cavities, which consist of a thin layer of Nb3Sn coated on a bulk niobium substrate, the bimetallic interface results in a thermal current being generated in the presence of a thermal gradient, which will in turn generate flux that can be trapped. In this paper we quantify the impact of trapped flux, from either ambient fields or thermal gradients, on the performance of the cavity.
Quench studies in single-cell Nb3Sn cavities coated using vapour diffusion
The superconductor Nb3Sn is known to have a superheating field, Hsh, of approximately 400 mT. This critical field represents the ultimate achievable gradient in a superconducting cavity, and is equivalent to an accelerating gradient of 90 MV/m in an ILC single-cell cavity for this value of Hsh. However, the currently best performing Nb3Sn single-cell cavities remain limited to accelerating gradients of 17-18 MV/m, translating to a peak surface magnetic field of approx. 70 mT.
Using sloppy models for constrained emittance minimization at the Cornell Electron Storage Ring (CESR)
In order to minimize the emittance at the Cornell Electron Storage Ring (CESR), we measure and correct the orbit, dispersion, and transverse coupling of the beam. However, this method is limited by finite measurement resolution of the dispersion, and so a new procedure must be used to further reduce the emittance due to dispersion. In order to achieve this, we use a method based upon the theory of sloppy models. We use a model of the accelerator to create the Hessian matrix which encodes the effects of various corrector magnets on the vertical emittance.
X-ray reflectivity measurement of interdiffusion in metallic multilayers during rapid heating
A technique for measuring interdiffusion in multilayer materials during rapid heating using X-ray reflectivity is described. In this technique the sample is bent to achieve a range of incident angles simultaneously, and the scattered intensity is recorded on a fast high-dynamic-range mixed-mode pixel array detector. Heating of the multilayer is achieved by electrical resistive heating of the silicon substrate, monitored by an infrared pyrometer. As an example, reflectivity data from Al/Ni heated at rates up to 200Ks-1 are presented.
Sub-microsecond x-ray imaging using hole-collecting Schottky type CdTe with charge-integrating pixel array detectors
CdTe is increasingly being used as the x-ray sensing material in imaging pixel array detectors for x-rays, generally above 20 keV, where silicon sensors become unacceptably transparent. Unfortunately CdTe suffers from polarization, which can alter the response of the material over time and with accumulated dose. Most prior studies used long integration times or CdTe that was not of the hole-collecting Schottky type. We investigated the temporal response of hole-collecting Schottky type CdTe sensors on timescales ranging from tens of nanoseconds to several seconds.
Collective Modes of a Soliton Train in a Fermi Superfluid
We characterize the collective modes of a soliton train in a quasi-one-dimensional Fermi superfluid, using a mean-field formalism. In addition to the expected Goldstone and Higgs modes, we find novel long-lived gapped modes associated with oscillations of the soliton cores. The soliton train has an instability that depends strongly on the interaction strength and the spacing of solitons. It can be stabilized by filling each soliton with an unpaired fermion, thus forming a commensurate Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) phase.
Measuring the densities of aqueous glasses at cryogenic temperatures
We demonstrate a method for determining the vitreous phase cryogenic temperature densities of aqueous mixtures, and other samples that require rapid cooling, to prepare the desired cryogenic temperature phase. Microliter to picoliter size drops are cooled by projection into a liquid nitrogen-argon (N2-Ar) mixture. The cryogenic temperature phase of the drop is evaluated using a visual assay that correlates with X-ray diffraction measurements. The density of the liquid N2-Ar mixture is adjusted by adding N2 or Ar until the drop becomes neutrally buoyant.
Interface-induced phenomena in magnetism
This article reviews static and dynamic interfacial effects in magnetism, focusing on interfacially driven magnetic effects and phenomena associated with spin-orbit coupling and intrinsic symmetry breaking at interfaces. It provides a historical background and literature survey, but focuses on recent progress, identifying the most exciting new scientific results and pointing to promising future research directions.