We propose a nanotube-based erbium-doped fiber laser that can deliver conventional soliton (CS) and stretched pulse (SP) based on D-shaped fiber saturable absorber (DF-SA) where evanescent-field interaction works. The novel Nanotube-based Fiber Laser can generate SP or CS by tuning pump power and polarization controller (PC) properly. The net cavity dispersion of laser is slightly negative. In our experiment, by optimizing the PC in the cavity, CS and SP can be obtained at the central wavelengths of 1530.6 nm and 1530.3 nm due to on carbon nanotubes and the spectral filtering effect induced by nonlinear polarization rotation. Although the acquired CS and SP nearly have the same central wavelengths, they show distinct optical spectra, 3-dB bandwidths. The proposed fiber laser with switchable CS and SP is attractive for ultrashort pulse generation and fast measurements in practical applications.
A new method is proposed here aiming at designing a shielding wall with the efficiency significantly higher than that of traditional designs. This new design arises from the idea of using channeling in multilayered shielding wall structure, each layer composed of bent crystallites distributed in a way that each layer covers a small section of 2π angular range of which wall is exposed. Part of the incident charged particles will get channeled in bent crystallites in each layer. Bending of channeled particles in bent crystallites will change their directions in the wall increasing their path lengths in the wall which would enhance its shielding efficiency for charged particle radiations. Proposed design is useful for radiation shielding in fission power plants, future fusion reactors and air travel.
The main reasons for the occurrence of temperature error and perspective directions of decreasing of its value are presented by improving the device design based on the phenomenon of surface plasmon resonance (SPR) and numerical methods of processing the results of measurements by this device. The most essential influence on changes in results of measurements can be rendered by temperature changes in the analyte refractive index. It is shown that the application of the integrated temperature stabilization of the device with the test substance, and numerical processing of the measurement results for compensation of temperature changes of the test substance and the use of film heaters it is possible to reduce the measurement error of the refractive index of the analyte at least 30 times from 2.4 × 10-4 to 7.6 × 10-6.
Scanning hardcopy non-metric images is one of the most important sources in digital mapping. Low-cost scanners are still widely used in many applications as they can produce digital images of comparable precisions to those produced by expensive professional scanners. Yet, inexpensive scanners introduce geometrical distortions in the measured image coordinates that must be assessed and compensated before using their products for further analysis. In this article, several 2D-to-2D transformation models were investigated to calibrate flatbed scanners with different resolutions and sizes. We evaluated the potential of each model using two gridded-crosses plotted on high-quality transparent sheets. Control coordinates were provided through a photogram-metric analytical plotter. After scanning the sheets, least squares matching was applied to determine the precise locations of the crosses. By comparing the control coordinates and those estimated from digitized images, it was found that the mathematical model based on the projective transformation gives the best results for standardizing the geometric properties of flatbed scanners. The results show that scanning resolution of 2400 dpi achieves the requirements for large-scale mapping applications.
Many agricultural applications, including improved crop production, precision agriculture, and phenotyping, rely on detailed field and crop information to detect and react to spatial variabilities. Mobile farm vehicles, such as tractors and sprayers, have the potential to operate as mobile sensing platforms, enabling the collection of large amounts of data while working. Open-source hardware and software components were integrated to develop a mobile plant-canopy sensing and monitoring system. The microcontroller-based system, which incorporated a Bluetooth radio, GPS receiver, infrared temperature and ultrasonic distance sensors, micro SD card storage, and voltage regulation components, was developed at a cost of US$292. The system was installed on an agricultural vehicle and tested in a soybean field. The monitoring system demonstrates an application of open-source hardware to agricultural research and provides a framework for similar or additional sensing applications.
In this work, it was developed the construction of a potentiostat for the execution of Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) experiments, using an Agilent 33220a signal generator, a RIGOL 1064b oscilloscope and a protoboard for the connection of operational amplifiers to an electrochemical cell. The coordination of the global operation, in addition to data acquisition, was performed using a code generated in the LabVIEW program. The system analyzed was the corrosion of an 1100 aluminum plate in water, in order to compare the results obtained by other authors. The data acquisition consisted in obtaining the values of amplitude, RMS voltage and phase angle between the generated power signals and the current output, in order to obtain the impedance of the system, for different signal frequencies. Finally, the values obtained were plotted on a Nyquist diagram. In this way, the objective of this article is to demonstrate that with conventional laboratory equipment it is possible to implement an experimental device, capable of delivering results similar to those obtained by commercial equipment.
The design and development of a cryogenic Ultra-Low-Noise Signal Amplification (ULNA) and detection system for spectroscopy of ultra-cold systems are reported here for the operation in the 0.5 - 4 GHz spectrum of frequencies (the “L” and “S” microwave bands). The design is suitable for weak RF signal detection and spectroscopy from ultra-cold systems confined in cryogenic RF cavities, as entailed in a number of physics, physical chemistry and analytical chemistry applications, such as NMR/NQR/EPR and microwave spectroscopy, Paul traps, Bose-Einstein Condensates (BEC’s) and cavity Quantum Electrodynamics (cQED). Using a generic Low-Noise Amplifier (LNA) architecture for a GaAs enhancement mode High-Electron Mobility FET device, our design has especially been devised for scientific applications where ultra-low-noise amplification systems are sought to amplify and detect weak RF signals under various conditions and environments, including cryogenic temperatures, with the least possible noise susceptibility. The amplifier offers a 16 dB gain and a 0.8 dB noise figure at 2.5 GHz, while operating at room temperature, which can improve significantly at low temperatures. Both dc and RF outputs are provided by the amplifier to integrate it in a closed-loop or continuous-wave spectroscopy system or connect it to a variety of instruments, a factor which is lacking in commercial LNA devices. Following the amplification stage, the RF signal detection is carried out with the help of a post-amplifier and detection system based upon a set of Zero-Bias Schottky Barrier Diodes (ZBD’s) and a high-precision ultra-low noise jFET operational amplifier. The scheme offers unique benefits of sensitive detection and very-low noise amplification for measuring extremely weak on-resonance signals with substantial low- noise response and excellent stability while eliminating complicated and expensive heterodyne schemes. The LNA stage is fully capable to be a part of low-temperature experiments while being operated in cryogenic conditions down to about 500 mK.
