Showing 1–50 of 53 results for author: Dao, V

Pressure-Induced Irreversible Disorder in $β^{\prime}$-Mn$_3$(PO$_4$)$_2$: A High-Pressure X-ray Diffraction and Density-Functional Theory Study

Authors: Ana Melissa P. Brito, Neha Bura, Pablo Botella, Robert Oliva, Alanna Khesley L. da Costa, Fabiana V. da Motta, Mauricio R. D. Bomio, Alfonso Munoz, Joao Elias Rodrigues, Daniel Errandonea

Abstract: The high-pressure structural behavior of $β^\prime$-Mn$_3$(PO$_4$)$_2$ was investigated using synchrotron X-ray diffraction up to 20 GPa combined with density-functional theory calculations. At ambient conditions, $β^\prime$-Mn$_3$(PO$_4$)$_2$ crystallizes in a monoclinic structure that exhibits strongly anisotropic compression. The pressure dependence of the unit-cell volume was described using a… ▽ More The high-pressure structural behavior of $β^\prime$-Mn$_3$(PO$_4$)$_2$ was investigated using synchrotron X-ray diffraction up to 20 GPa combined with density-functional theory calculations. At ambient conditions, $β^\prime$-Mn$_3$(PO$_4$)$_2$ crystallizes in a monoclinic structure that exhibits strongly anisotropic compression. The pressure dependence of the unit-cell volume was described using a third-order Birch--Murnaghan equation of state, and the principal axes of compressibility were determined. Above 14.1 GPa, significant broadening and weakening of the diffraction peaks are attributed to the onset of irreversible pressure-induced structural disorder associated with the loss of long-range crystallographic order. The disordered state persists after decompression to ambient pressure, demonstrating the irreversible nature of the transformation. The calculations accurately reproduce the experimental compressional behavior and provide insights into the microscopic structural evolution under pressure. Compression is mainly accommodated through distortions of the Mn--O polyhedra, whereas the PO$_4$ tetrahedra behave as comparatively rigid units. Several initially penta-coordinated Mn sites progressively evolve toward octahedral coordination under compression, while selected MnO$_6$ polyhedra exhibit anomalous distortions and elastic softening preceding the onset of disorder. Elastic constant calculations further reveal that the crystalline phase becomes mechanically unstable near the experimentally observed transition pressure. The combined experimental and computational results suggest that the HP response of $β^\prime$-Mn$_3$(PO$_4$)$_2$ is influenced by the interplay between framework complexity, anisotropic polyhedral compressibility, and elastic instability, providing new insight into pressure-induced structural degradation in structurally complex phosphate frameworks. △ Less

Submitted 28 July, 2026; originally announced July 2026.

Comments: 33 pages, 9 figures, 3 tables

Journal ref: Dalton Transactions (2026)

TCAD + Allpi$\text{x}^2$ Simulation study of MALTA2, a Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensor for future tracking

Authors: L. Li, P. Behera, D. V. Berlea, D. Bortoletto, C. Buttar, T. Chembakan, V. Dao, G. Dash, Y. Enari, L. Fasselt, S. Haberl, T. Inada, F. K. Isik, C. Issever, X. Li, Y. Okazaki, H. Pernegger, P. Riedler, W. Snoeys, C. A Solans Sanchez, A. Swoboda, I. Turk Cakir, M. van Rijnbach, A. Vijay, S. Worm

Abstract: In this work, a hybrid simulation framework combining TCAD and Allpi$\text{x}^2$ is presented to investigate the sensor properties of MALTA2, a depleted monolithic active pixel sensor designed for future tracking. The study starts from 3D modeling and transient simulations in TCAD, with generic doping profiles and simple well structures. The resulting doping profiles and electric field are extract… ▽ More In this work, a hybrid simulation framework combining TCAD and Allpi$\text{x}^2$ is presented to investigate the sensor properties of MALTA2, a depleted monolithic active pixel sensor designed for future tracking. The study starts from 3D modeling and transient simulations in TCAD, with generic doping profiles and simple well structures. The resulting doping profiles and electric field are extracted and fed into Allpi$\text{x}^2$ for high-statistics Monte Carlo simulations in both DUT-only and full-telescope mode. Simulations reveal a strong dependence of sensor performance, specifically the detection efficiency and cluster size, on the doping concentration of the N-type blanket at the sensor surface. The doping concentration is then optimized by comparing simulations with measurement data. The active depth of the depleted region of the MALTA2 sensor is estimated in both simulations and measurements using a grazing angle method, in which the sensor is positioned at various inclinations relative to the beam, covering angles from 0 to 60 degrees. Excellent agreement on active depth is obtained with the optimal doping concentration, showing a deviation of 2\% from the measured value at a threshold of 450\,$\text{e}^-$. Consequently, the framework offers a generic toolkit for sensor studies without requiring proprietary information. △ Less

Submitted 22 May, 2026; originally announced May 2026.

Comments: 21 pages, 15 figures

A Data-Driven Fast Simulation Approach for MAPS-based Detectors and their Optimization

Authors: Dumitru Vlad Berlea, Lucian Fasselt, Prafulla Behera, Daniela Bortoletto, Craig Buttar, Theertha Chembakan, Valerio Dao, Ganapati Dash, Sebastian Haberl, Tomohiro Inada, Fuat Kerem Isik, Cigdem Issever, Xuan Li, Long Li, Heinz Pernegger, Petra Riedler, Walter Snoeys, Carlos Solans Sánchez, Anna Swoboda, Ilkay Turk Cakir, Milou van Rijnbach, Anusree Vijay, Julian Weick, Steven Worm

Abstract: A parametric simulation tool for pixel sensors is presented. A realistic pixel response is simulated purely based on measurement input, without requiring detailed knowledge of the underlying manufacturing process. As such, it provides an efficient alternative to the use of Technology Computer-Aided Design simulations, which typically depend on proprietary process information. Due to its parametric… ▽ More A parametric simulation tool for pixel sensors is presented. A realistic pixel response is simulated purely based on measurement input, without requiring detailed knowledge of the underlying manufacturing process. As such, it provides an efficient alternative to the use of Technology Computer-Aided Design simulations, which typically depend on proprietary process information. Due to its parametric approach, the package is fast and thus particularly useful for larger detector systems and high hit rate environments. This work presents measurements, simulation and its validation for the MALTA2 sensor. It is a small collection electrode monolithic active pixel sensor produced in the Tower 180nm Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor imaging process. Modifications to the sensor's periphery, mainly in the hit merger, are studied in order to optimize the performance for tracking and calorimetry. This optimization is of special interest as part of the MALTA3 sensor redesign in the 65nm Tower Partners Semiconductor Co. process. △ Less

Submitted 7 April, 2026; originally announced April 2026.

Uncovering sustainable personal care ingredient combinations using scientific modelling

Authors: Sandip Bhattacharya, Vanessa da Silva, Christina Kohlmann

Abstract: Personal care formulations often contain synthetic and non-biodegradable ingredients, such as silicone and mineral oils, which can offer a unique performance. However, due to regulations like the EU ban of Octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D4), Decamethyl-cyclopentasiloxane (D5), Dodecamethylcyclohexasiloxane (D6) already in effect for rinse off and for leave on cosmetics by June 2027 coupled with gro… ▽ More Personal care formulations often contain synthetic and non-biodegradable ingredients, such as silicone and mineral oils, which can offer a unique performance. However, due to regulations like the EU ban of Octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D4), Decamethyl-cyclopentasiloxane (D5), Dodecamethylcyclohexasiloxane (D6) already in effect for rinse off and for leave on cosmetics by June 2027 coupled with growing consumer awareness and expectations on sustainability, personal care brands face significant pressure to replace these synthetic ingredients with natural alternatives without compromising performance and cost. As a result, formulators are confronted with the challenge to find natural-based solutions within a short timeframe. In this study, we propose a pioneering approach that utilizes predicting modelling and simulation-based digital services to obtain natural-based ingredient combinations as recommendations to commonly used synthetic ingredients. We will demonstrate the effectiveness of our predictions through the application of these proposals in specific formulations. By offering a platform of digital services, it is aimed to empower formulators to explore good performing novel and environmentally friendly alternatives, ultimately driving a substantial and genuine transformation in the personal care industry. △ Less

Submitted 27 February, 2026; originally announced February 2026.

Comments: Paper submitted and part of 35th IFSCC Congress, Brazil, 14-17 October 2024

Charge collection parameterization of MALTA2, a depleted monolithic active pixel sensor

Authors: L. Fasselt, P. Behera, D. V. Berlea, D. Bortoletto, C. Buttar, T. Chembakan, V. Dao, G. Dash, S. Haberl, T. Inada, F. K. Isik, P. Jana, X. Li, L. Li, H. Pernegger, P. Riedler, W. Snoeys, C. A. Solans Sánchez, A. Swoboda, I. Turk Cakir, M. van Rijnbach, M. Vázquez Núñez, A. Vijay, J. Weick, S. Worm

Abstract: A fast simulation method is presented for a depleted monolithic active pixel sensor, which uses a data driven parameterization of the charge collection and propagation. This approach provides an efficient alternative to TCAD simulations, particularly for sensors whose proprietary process details - such as doping profiles or implant geometries - are unavailable. Data was obtained with a MALTA2 sens… ▽ More A fast simulation method is presented for a depleted monolithic active pixel sensor, which uses a data driven parameterization of the charge collection and propagation. This approach provides an efficient alternative to TCAD simulations, particularly for sensors whose proprietary process details - such as doping profiles or implant geometries - are unavailable. Data was obtained with a MALTA2 sensor fabricated in a 180 nm CMOS imaging technology on 30 μm epitaxial silicon using the MALTA beam telescope at CERN SPS. The model reproduces the measured inpixel efficiency with high accuracy and enables a realistic yet computationally lightweight analog pixel simulation. This method will be further employed in optimizing the digital sensor design for applications in high-rate particle tracking and high-granularity calorimetry. △ Less

Submitted 26 February, 2026; originally announced February 2026.

Comments: 7 pages, 5 figures, submitted to JINST for TWEPP 2025

The COHERENT Experiment: 2026 Update

Authors: M. Adhikari, M. Ahn, D. Amaya Matamoros, P. S. Barbeau, V. Belov, I. Bernardi, C. Bock, A. Bolozdynya, R. Bouabid, J. Browning, B. Cabrera-Palmer, N. Cedarblade-Jones, S. Chen, A. I. Colón Rivera, V. da Silva, J. Daughhetee, Y. Efremenko, S. R. Elliott, A. Erlandson, L. Fabris, M. L. Fischer, S. Foster, A. Galindo-Uribarri, E. Granados Vazquez, M. P. Green , et al. (85 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: The COHERENT experiment measures neutrino-induced recoils from coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CEvNS) with multiple nuclear targets at the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), USA. Several successful CEvNS measurements have been achieved in recent years with tens-of-kg detector masses, with a CsI scintillating crystal, a liquid argon single-pha… ▽ More The COHERENT experiment measures neutrino-induced recoils from coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CEvNS) with multiple nuclear targets at the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), USA. Several successful CEvNS measurements have been achieved in recent years with tens-of-kg detector masses, with a CsI scintillating crystal, a liquid argon single-phase detector, and high-purity germanium spectrometers. For the next phase, COHERENT aims at high-statistics detection of CEvNS events for precision tests of the standard model of particle physics, and to probe new physics beyond-the-standard model. Percent-level precision can be achieved by lowering thresholds, reducing backgrounds, and by scaling up the detector masses. It goes hand in hand with benchmarking the neutrino flux from the SNS. Further detectors will measure CEvNS in additional nuclei, including lighter target nuclei such as sodium and neon, to continue to test the expected neutron-number-squared dependence of the cross section. COHERENT can furthermore study charged-current and neutral-current inelastic neutrino-nucleus cross sections on various nuclei at neutrino energies below $\sim$50 MeV. Many of these cross sections have never been measured before, but are critical input for the interpretation of core-collapse supernova detection in large-scale neutrino experiments such as DUNE, Super-K, Hyper-K, and HALO. △ Less

Submitted 17 February, 2026; originally announced February 2026.

Comments: originally prepared in response to a request from the Neutrinos & Cosmic Messengers section of the Update of the European Strategy for Particle Physics

Future Circular Collider Feasibility Study Report: Volume 2, Accelerators, Technical Infrastructure and Safety

Authors: M. Benedikt, F. Zimmermann, B. Auchmann, W. Bartmann, J. P. Burnet, C. Carli, A. Chancé, P. Craievich, M. Giovannozzi, C. Grojean, J. Gutleber, K. Hanke, A. Henriques, P. Janot, C. Lourenço, M. Mangano, T. Otto, J. Poole, S. Rajagopalan, T. Raubenheimer, E. Todesco, L. Ulrici, T. Watson, G. Wilkinson, A. Abada , et al. (1439 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: In response to the 2020 Update of the European Strategy for Particle Physics, the Future Circular Collider (FCC) Feasibility Study was launched as an international collaboration hosted by CERN. This report describes the FCC integrated programme, which consists of two stages: an electron-positron collider (FCC-ee) in the first phase, serving as a high-luminosity Higgs, top, and electroweak factory;… ▽ More In response to the 2020 Update of the European Strategy for Particle Physics, the Future Circular Collider (FCC) Feasibility Study was launched as an international collaboration hosted by CERN. This report describes the FCC integrated programme, which consists of two stages: an electron-positron collider (FCC-ee) in the first phase, serving as a high-luminosity Higgs, top, and electroweak factory; followed by a proton-proton collider (FCC-hh) at the energy frontier in the second phase. FCC-ee is designed to operate at four key centre-of-mass energies: the Z pole, the WW production threshold, the ZH production peak, and the top/anti-top production threshold - delivering the highest possible luminosities to four experiments. Over 15 years of operation, FCC-ee will produce more than 6 trillion Z bosons, 200 million WW pairs, nearly 3 million Higgs bosons, and 2 million top anti-top pairs. Precise energy calibration at the Z pole and WW threshold will be achieved through frequent resonant depolarisation of pilot bunches. The sequence of operation modes remains flexible. FCC-hh will operate at a centre-of-mass energy of approximately 85 TeV - nearly an order of magnitude higher than the LHC - and is designed to deliver 5 to 10 times the integrated luminosity of the HL-LHC. Its mass reach for direct discovery extends to several tens of TeV. In addition to proton-proton collisions, FCC-hh is capable of supporting ion-ion, ion-proton, and lepton-hadron collision modes. This second volume of the Feasibility Study Report presents the complete design of the FCC-ee collider, its operation and staging strategy, the full-energy booster and injector complex, required accelerator technologies, safety concepts, and technical infrastructure. It also includes the design of the FCC-hh hadron collider, development of high-field magnets, hadron injector options, and key technical systems for FCC-hh. △ Less

Submitted 25 April, 2025; originally announced May 2025.

Comments: 627 pages. Please address any comment or request to fcc.secretariat@cern.ch

Report number: CERN-FCC-ACC-2025-0004

Future Circular Collider Feasibility Study Report: Volume 3, Civil Engineering, Implementation and Sustainability

Authors: M. Benedikt, F. Zimmermann, B. Auchmann, W. Bartmann, J. P. Burnet, C. Carli, A. Chancé, P. Craievich, M. Giovannozzi, C. Grojean, J. Gutleber, K. Hanke, A. Henriques, P. Janot, C. Lourenço, M. Mangano, T. Otto, J. Poole, S. Rajagopalan, T. Raubenheimer, E. Todesco, L. Ulrici, T. Watson, G. Wilkinson, P. Azzi , et al. (1439 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: Volume 3 of the FCC Feasibility Report presents studies related to civil engineering, the development of a project implementation scenario, and environmental and sustainability aspects. The report details the iterative improvements made to the civil engineering concepts since 2018, taking into account subsurface conditions, accelerator and experiment requirements, and territorial considerations. I… ▽ More Volume 3 of the FCC Feasibility Report presents studies related to civil engineering, the development of a project implementation scenario, and environmental and sustainability aspects. The report details the iterative improvements made to the civil engineering concepts since 2018, taking into account subsurface conditions, accelerator and experiment requirements, and territorial considerations. It outlines a technically feasible and economically viable civil engineering configuration that serves as the baseline for detailed subsurface investigations, construction design, cost estimation, and project implementation planning. Additionally, the report highlights ongoing subsurface investigations in key areas to support the development of an improved 3D subsurface model of the region. The report describes development of the project scenario based on the 'avoid-reduce-compensate' iterative optimisation approach. The reference scenario balances optimal physics performance with territorial compatibility, implementation risks, and costs. Environmental field investigations covering almost 600 hectares of terrain - including numerous urban, economic, social, and technical aspects - confirmed the project's technical feasibility and contributed to the preparation of essential input documents for the formal project authorisation phase. The summary also highlights the initiation of public dialogue as part of the authorisation process. The results of a comprehensive socio-economic impact assessment, which included significant environmental effects, are presented. Even under the most conservative and stringent conditions, a positive benefit-cost ratio for the FCC-ee is obtained. Finally, the report provides a concise summary of the studies conducted to document the current state of the environment. △ Less

Submitted 25 April, 2025; originally announced May 2025.

Comments: 357 pages. Please address any comment or request to fcc.secretariat@cern.ch

Report number: CERN-FCC-ACC-2025-0003

Future Circular Collider Feasibility Study Report: Volume 1, Physics, Experiments, Detectors

Authors: M. Benedikt, F. Zimmermann, B. Auchmann, W. Bartmann, J. P. Burnet, C. Carli, A. Chancé, P. Craievich, M. Giovannozzi, C. Grojean, J. Gutleber, K. Hanke, A. Henriques, P. Janot, C. Lourenço, M. Mangano, T. Otto, J. Poole, S. Rajagopalan, T. Raubenheimer, E. Todesco, L. Ulrici, T. Watson, G. Wilkinson, P. Azzi , et al. (1439 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: Volume 1 of the FCC Feasibility Report presents an overview of the physics case, experimental programme, and detector concepts for the Future Circular Collider (FCC). This volume outlines how FCC would address some of the most profound open questions in particle physics, from precision studies of the Higgs and EW bosons and of the top quark, to the exploration of physics beyond the Standard Model.… ▽ More Volume 1 of the FCC Feasibility Report presents an overview of the physics case, experimental programme, and detector concepts for the Future Circular Collider (FCC). This volume outlines how FCC would address some of the most profound open questions in particle physics, from precision studies of the Higgs and EW bosons and of the top quark, to the exploration of physics beyond the Standard Model. The report reviews the experimental opportunities offered by the staged implementation of FCC, beginning with an electron-positron collider (FCC-ee), operating at several centre-of-mass energies, followed by a hadron collider (FCC-hh). Benchmark examples are given of the expected physics performance, in terms of precision and sensitivity to new phenomena, of each collider stage. Detector requirements and conceptual designs for FCC-ee experiments are discussed, as are the specific demands that the physics programme imposes on the accelerator in the domains of the calibration of the collision energy, and the interface region between the accelerator and the detector. The report also highlights advances in detector, software and computing technologies, as well as the theoretical tools /reconstruction techniques that will enable the precision measurements and discovery potential of the FCC experimental programme. This volume reflects the outcome of a global collaborative effort involving hundreds of scientists and institutions, aided by a dedicated community-building coordination, and provides a targeted assessment of the scientific opportunities and experimental foundations of the FCC programme. △ Less

Submitted 25 April, 2025; originally announced May 2025.

Comments: 290 pages. Please address any comment or request to fcc.secretariat@cern.ch

Report number: CERN-FCC-PHYS-2025-0002

Study of MALTA2, a Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensor, with grazing angles at CERN SPS 180 GeV/c hadron beam

Authors: L. Li, P. Allport, I. Asensi Tortajada, P. Behera, D. V. Berlea, D. Bortoletto, C. Buttar, V. Dao, G. Dash, L. Fasselt, L. Flores Sanz de Acedo, M. Gazi, L. Gonella, V. Gonzalez, G. Gustavino, S. Haberl, T. Inada, P. Jana, H. Pernegger, P. Riedler, W. Snoeys, C. A Solans Sanchez, M. van Rijnbach, M. Vazquez Nunez, A. Vijay , et al. (2 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: MALTA2 is a Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensor designed to meet the challenging requirements of future collider experiments, in particularly extreme radiation tolerance and high hit rate. The sensor is fabricated in a modified Tower 180 nm CMOS imaging technology to mitigate performance degradation caused by 100 MRad of Total Ionising Dose and greater than 10^{15} 1 MeV n_{eq}/cm^2 of Non-Ion… ▽ More MALTA2 is a Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensor designed to meet the challenging requirements of future collider experiments, in particularly extreme radiation tolerance and high hit rate. The sensor is fabricated in a modified Tower 180 nm CMOS imaging technology to mitigate performance degradation caused by 100 MRad of Total Ionising Dose and greater than 10^{15} 1 MeV n_{eq}/cm^2 of Non-Ionising Energy Loss. MALTA2 samples have been tested during the CERN SPS test beam campaign in 2023-2024, before and after irradiation at a fluence of 1 $\times$ 10^{15} 1 MeV n_{eq}/cm^2. The sensors were positioned at various inclinations relative to the beam, covering grazing angles from 0 to 60 degrees. This contribution presents measurements of detection efficiency and cluster size as functions of these angles, along with an estimation of the active depth of the depleted region based on the test beam results. △ Less

Submitted 19 February, 2025; originally announced February 2025.

Comments: 5 pages, 3 figures, 11th PIXEL International Workshop on Semiconductor Pixel Detectors for Particles and Imaging

Timing characterization of MALTA and MALTA2 pixel detectors using Micro X-ray source

Authors: G. Dash, P. Allport, I. Asensi Tortajada, P. Behera, D. V. Berlea, D. Bortoletto, C. Buttar, V. Dao, L. Fasselt, L. Flores Sanz de Acedo, M. Gazi, L. Gonella, V. Gonzalez, G. Gustavino, S. Haberl, T. Inada, P. Jana, L. Li, H. Pernegger, P. Riedler, W. Snoeys, C. A Solans Sanchez, M. van Rijnbach, M. Vazquez Nunez, A. Vijay , et al. (2 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: The MALTA monolithic active pixel detector is developed to address some of the challenges anticipated in future high-energy physics detectors. As part of its characterization, we conducted timing studies necessary to provide a figure of merit for this family of monolithic pixel detectors. MALTA has a metal layer in front-end electronics, and the conventional laser technique is not suitable for tim… ▽ More The MALTA monolithic active pixel detector is developed to address some of the challenges anticipated in future high-energy physics detectors. As part of its characterization, we conducted timing studies necessary to provide a figure of merit for this family of monolithic pixel detectors. MALTA has a metal layer in front-end electronics, and the conventional laser technique is not suitable for timing studies due to the reflection of the laser from the metallic surface. X-rays have been employed as a more effective alternative for penetration through these layers. The triggered X-ray set-up is designed to study timing measurements of monolithic detectors. The timing response of the X-ray set-up is characterized using an LGAD. The timing response of the MALTA and MALTA2 pixel detectors is studied, and the best response time of MALTA2 pixel detectors is measured at about 2.6 ns. △ Less

Submitted 8 September, 2025; v1 submitted 18 February, 2025; originally announced February 2025.

Comments: 15 pages, 11 figures, Accepted for publication by JINST

ACM Class: J.2

Charge calibration of MALTA2, a radiation hard depleted monolithic active pixel sensor

Authors: Lucian Fasselt, Ignacio Asensi Tortajada, Prafulla Behera, Dumitru Vlad Berlea, Daniela Bortoletto, Craig Buttar, Valerio Dao, Ganapati Dash, Leyre Flores Sanz de Acedo, Martin Gazi, Laura Gonella, Vicente González, Sebastian Haberl, Tomohiro Inada, Pranati Jana, Long Li, Heinz Pernegger, Petra Riedler, Walter Snoeys, Carlos Solans Sánchez, Milou van Rijnbach, Marcos Vázquez Núñez, Anusree Vijay, Julian Weick, Steven Worm

Abstract: MALTA2 is a depleted monolithic active pixel sensor (DMAPS) designed for tracking at high rates and typically low detection threshold of $\sim150\,\mathrm{e^-}$. A precise knowledge of the threshold is crucial to understanding the charge collection in the pixel and specifying the environment for sensor application. A simple procedure is developed to calibrate the threshold to unit electrons making… ▽ More MALTA2 is a depleted monolithic active pixel sensor (DMAPS) designed for tracking at high rates and typically low detection threshold of $\sim150\,\mathrm{e^-}$. A precise knowledge of the threshold is crucial to understanding the charge collection in the pixel and specifying the environment for sensor application. A simple procedure is developed to calibrate the threshold to unit electrons making use of a dedicated charge injection circuit and an Fe-55 source with dominant charge deposition of $1600\, \mathrm{e^-}$. The injection voltage is determined which corresponds to the injection under Fe-55 exposure and is the basis for charge calibration. The charge injection circuit incorporates a capacitance with design value of $\mathrm{C_{inj}}=$ 230 aF. Experimentally, the average capacitance value for non-irradiated samples is found to be $\mathrm{C_{inj,exp}}=$ 257 aF. The 12 % divergence motivates the need for the presented precise calibration procedure, which is proposed to be performed for each MALTA2 sensor. △ Less

Submitted 23 January, 2025; originally announced January 2025.

Encouraging the teaching of science through composting

Authors: Michele Cristina Muniz, Emanuele Vitoria da Silva, João Pedro Ribeiro Barrile, Raquel Martins Porto, James Alves de Souza

Abstract: The integration of environmental education into the school curriculum can be inspiring for students to assimilate scientific concepts and methods presented in the Science subjects in a contextualized and interdisciplinary way. To carry out such integration in the classroom it is important that a link between teacher training courses and practical activities on the subject during the training of th… ▽ More The integration of environmental education into the school curriculum can be inspiring for students to assimilate scientific concepts and methods presented in the Science subjects in a contextualized and interdisciplinary way. To carry out such integration in the classroom it is important that a link between teacher training courses and practical activities on the subject during the training of the student teachers exist, to provide them conditions for testing hypotheses, pedagogical methodologies and evaluate their feasibility, considering real limitations of the school environment. The Institutional Program of Scholarships for Teaching Initiation (PIBID - Programa Institucional de Bolsas de Iniciação à Docência) is a Brazilian government policy developed to improve the training of student teachers which provides an ideal scenario for this. In this work, students from PIBID carried out this proposal through the windrow composting process. This was developed at the school considering the selective separation of waste, the construction of compost bins, the introduction and discussion of scientific concepts and experimentation, by monitoring the process. In addition to the beneficial experience for the training of student teachers, we show that the proposal is promising for developing student's skills such as scientific literacy and protagonism, and also the establishment of a school composting program. △ Less

Submitted 22 January, 2025; originally announced January 2025.

Comments: 22 pages, in Portuguese language, 4 figures

Measuring the ATLAS ITk Pixel Detector Material via Multiple Scattering of Positrons at the CERN PS

Authors: Simon Florian Koch, Brian Moser, Antonín Lindner, Valerio Dao, Ignacio Asensi, Daniela Bortoletto, Marianne Brekkum, Florian Dachs, Hans Ludwig Joos, Milou van Rijnbach, Abhishek Sharma, Ismet Siral, Carlos Solans, Yingjie Wei

Abstract: The ITk is a new silicon tracker for the ATLAS experiment designed to increase detector resolution, readout capacity, and radiation hardness, in preparation for the larger number of simultaneous proton-proton interactions at the High Luminosity LHC. This paper presents the first direct measurement of the material budget of an ATLAS ITk pixel module, performed at a testbeam at the CERN Proton Synch… ▽ More The ITk is a new silicon tracker for the ATLAS experiment designed to increase detector resolution, readout capacity, and radiation hardness, in preparation for the larger number of simultaneous proton-proton interactions at the High Luminosity LHC. This paper presents the first direct measurement of the material budget of an ATLAS ITk pixel module, performed at a testbeam at the CERN Proton Synchrotron via the multiple scattering of low energy positrons within the module volume. Using a four plane telescope of thin monolithic pixel detectors from the MALTA collaboration, scattering datasets were recorded at a beam energy of $1.2\,\text{GeV}$. Kink angle distributions were extracted from tracks derived with and without information from the ITk pixel module, and were fit to extract the RMS scattering angle, which was converted to a fractional radiation length $x/X_0$. The average $x/X_0$ across the module was measured as $[0.89 \pm 0.01 \text{ (resolution)} \pm 0.01 \text{ (subtraction)} \pm 0.08 \text{ (beam momentum band)}]\%$, which agrees within uncertainties with an estimate of $0.88\%$ derived from material component expectations. △ Less

Submitted 5 December, 2024; originally announced December 2024.

Comments: 12 pages, 12 figures

Journal ref: Eur. Phys. J. C 85, 381 (2025)

Accessing new physics with an undoped, cryogenic CsI CEvNS detector for COHERENT at the SNS

Authors: P. S. Barbeau, V. Belov, I. Bernardi, C. Bock, A. Bolozdynya, R. Bouabid, J. Browning, B. Cabrera-Palmer, E. Conley, V. da Silva, J. Daughhetee, J. Detwiler, K. Ding, M. R. Durand, Y. Efremenko, S. R. Elliott, A. Erlandson, L. Fabris, M. Febbraro, A. Galindo-Uribarri, M. P. Green, J. Hakenmüller, M. R. Heath, S. Hedges, B. A. Johnson , et al. (55 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: We consider the potential for a 10-kg undoped cryogenic CsI detector operating at the Spallation Neutron Source to measure coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering and its sensitivity to discover new physics beyond the standard model. Through a combination of increased event rate, lower threshold, and good timing resolution, such a detector would significantly improve on past measurements. We… ▽ More We consider the potential for a 10-kg undoped cryogenic CsI detector operating at the Spallation Neutron Source to measure coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering and its sensitivity to discover new physics beyond the standard model. Through a combination of increased event rate, lower threshold, and good timing resolution, such a detector would significantly improve on past measurements. We considered tests of several beyond-the-standard-model scenarios such as neutrino non-standard interactions and accelerator-produced dark matter. This detector's performance was also studied for relevant questions in nuclear physics and neutrino astronomy, namely the weak charge distribution of CsI nuclei and detection of neutrinos from a core-collapse supernova. △ Less

Submitted 21 November, 2023; originally announced November 2023.

Optical trapping and manipulation of fluorescent polymer-based nanostructures: measuring optical properties of materials in the nanoscale range

Authors: T. A. Moura, M. L. Lana Júnior, C. H. V. da Silva, L. R. Américo, J. B. S. Mendes, M. C. N. P. Brandão, A. G. S. Subtil, M. S. Rocha

Abstract: We present a novel approach to determine the optical properties of materials in the nanoscale range using optical tweezers (OT). Fluorescent polymer-based nanostructures (pdots) are optically trapped in a Gaussian beam OT and the trap stiffness is studied as a function of various parameters of interest. We explicitly show that properties such as the refractive index and the optical anisotropy of t… ▽ More We present a novel approach to determine the optical properties of materials in the nanoscale range using optical tweezers (OT). Fluorescent polymer-based nanostructures (pdots) are optically trapped in a Gaussian beam OT and the trap stiffness is studied as a function of various parameters of interest. We explicitly show that properties such as the refractive index and the optical anisotropy of these nanostructures can be determined with high accuracy by comparing the experimental data to an optical force model. In particular, we demonstrate that the effective optical properties of these pdots can be modulated by changing the light wavelength that excites the sample, opening the door for a fine tuning of their optical response, with possible applications in the development of new sensors and/or other optoelectronic devices. △ Less

Submitted 31 October, 2023; v1 submitted 6 October, 2023; originally announced October 2023.

Como o Uso de Máscaras Ajudou no Combate a COVID Durante a Pandemia nos Anos de 2020-2022. Análise Comparativa da Estrutura de Filtragem das Máscaras

Authors: Maurício S. Almeida, Francisco Rodrigo de L. Caldas, Rodrigo Q. de Almeida, José A. Eleutério, Letícia V. da Silva

Abstract: The use of facial masks played a pivotal role in combating COVID-19 during the pandemic period, particularly in the absence of vaccines for the disease. This study elucidates how this type of equipment can effectively contain viruses and bacteria of nanometric dimensions, smaller than the pores of the masks themselves. To achieve this, three types of masks were chosen: cloth, surgical, and PFF2 ma… ▽ More The use of facial masks played a pivotal role in combating COVID-19 during the pandemic period, particularly in the absence of vaccines for the disease. This study elucidates how this type of equipment can effectively contain viruses and bacteria of nanometric dimensions, smaller than the pores of the masks themselves. To achieve this, three types of masks were chosen: cloth, surgical, and PFF2 masks. In order to compare the structure of each, a scanning electron microscopy analysis was conducted, revealing the intricate filtration layers within each mask type. △ Less

Submitted 27 August, 2023; originally announced September 2023.

Comments: in Portuguese language

Radiation Hardness of MALTA2 Monolithic CMOS Sensors on Czochralski Substrates

Authors: Milou van Rijnbach, Dumitru Vlad Berlea, Valerio Dao, Martin Gaži, Phil Allport, Ignacio Asensi Tortajada, Prafulla Behera, Daniela Bortoletto, Craig Buttar, Florian Dachs, Ganapati Dash, Dominik Dobrijević, Lucian Fasselt, Leyre Flores Sanz de Acedo, Andrea Gabrielli, Vicente González, Giuliano Gustavino, Pranati Jana, Heinz Pernegger, Petra Riedler, Heidi Sandaker, Carlos Solans Sánchez, Walter Snoeys, Tomislav Suligoj, Marcos Vázquez Núñez , et al. (4 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: MALTA2 is the latest full-scale prototype of the MALTA family of Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensors (DMAPS) produced in Tower Semiconductor 180 nm CMOS technology. In order to comply with the requirements of High Energy Physics (HEP) experiments, various process modifications and front-end changes have been implemented to achieve low power consumption, reduce Random Telegraph Signal (RTS) no… ▽ More MALTA2 is the latest full-scale prototype of the MALTA family of Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensors (DMAPS) produced in Tower Semiconductor 180 nm CMOS technology. In order to comply with the requirements of High Energy Physics (HEP) experiments, various process modifications and front-end changes have been implemented to achieve low power consumption, reduce Random Telegraph Signal (RTS) noise, and optimise the charge collection geometry. Compared to its predecessors, MALTA2 targets the use of a high-resistivity, thick Czochralski (Cz) substrates in order to demonstrate radiation hardness in terms of detection efficiency and timing resolution up to 3E15 1 MeV neq/cm2 with backside metallisation to achieve good propagation of the bias voltage. This manuscript shows the results that were obtained with non-irradiated and irradiated MALTA2 samples on Cz substrates from the CERN SPS test beam campaign from 2021-2023 using the MALTA telescope. △ Less

Submitted 25 August, 2023; originally announced August 2023.

Particle monitoring capability of the Solar Orbiter Metis coronagraph through the increasing phase of solar cycle 25

Authors: Catia Grimani, Vincenzo Andretta, Ester Antonucci, Paolo Chioetto, Vania Da Deppo, Michele Fabi, Samuel Gissot, Giovanna Jerse, Mauro Messerotti, Giampiero Naletto, Maurizio Pancrazzi, Andrea Persici, Christina Plainaki, Marco Romoli, Federico Sabbatini, Daniele Spadaro, Marco Stangalini, Daniele Telloni, Luca Teriaca, Michela Uslenghi, Mattia Villani, Lucia Abbo, Aleksandr Burtovoi, Federica Frassati, Federico Landini , et al. (4 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: Context. Galactic cosmic rays (GCRs) and solar particles with energies greater than tens of MeV penetrate spacecraft and instruments hosted aboard space missions. The Solar Orbiter Metis coronagraph is aimed at observing the solar corona in both visible (VL) and ultraviolet (UV) light. Particle tracks are observed in the Metis images of the corona. An algorithm has been implemented in the Metis pr… ▽ More Context. Galactic cosmic rays (GCRs) and solar particles with energies greater than tens of MeV penetrate spacecraft and instruments hosted aboard space missions. The Solar Orbiter Metis coronagraph is aimed at observing the solar corona in both visible (VL) and ultraviolet (UV) light. Particle tracks are observed in the Metis images of the corona. An algorithm has been implemented in the Metis processing electronics to detect the VL image pixels crossed by cosmic rays. This algorithm was initially enabled for the VL instrument only, since the process of separating the particle tracks in the UV images has proven to be very challenging. Aims. We study the impact of the overall bulk of particles of galactic and solar origin on the Metis coronagraph images. We discuss the effects of the increasing solar activity after the Solar Orbiter mission launch on the secondary particle production in the spacecraft. Methods. We compared Monte Carlo simulations of GCRs crossing or interacting in the Metis VL CMOS sensor to observations gathered in 2020 and 2022. We also evaluated the impact of solar energetic particle events of different intensities on the Metis images. Results. The study of the role of abundant and rare cosmic rays in firing pixels in the Metis VL images of the corona allows us to estimate the efficiency of the algorithm applied for cosmic-ray track removal from the images and to demonstrate that the instrument performance had remained unchanged during the first two years of the Solar Orbiter operations. The outcome of this work can be used to estimate the Solar Orbiter instrument's deep charging and the order of magnitude for energetic particles crossing the images of Metis and other instruments such as STIX and EUI. △ Less

Submitted 24 July, 2023; v1 submitted 21 July, 2023; originally announced July 2023.

Comments: 8 pages, 6 figures

Journal ref: A&A 677, A45 (2023)

Disfavoring the Schroedinger-Newton equation

Authors: Joao V. B. da Silva, Gabriel H. S. Aguiar, George E. A. Matsas

Abstract: The main goal of this brief report is to provide some new insight into how promising the Schroedinger-Newton equation would be to explain the emergence of classicality. Based on the similarity of the Newton and Coulomb potentials, we add an electric self-interacting term to the Schroedinger-Newton equation for the hydrogen atom. Our results rule out the possibility that single electrons self-inter… ▽ More The main goal of this brief report is to provide some new insight into how promising the Schroedinger-Newton equation would be to explain the emergence of classicality. Based on the similarity of the Newton and Coulomb potentials, we add an electric self-interacting term to the Schroedinger-Newton equation for the hydrogen atom. Our results rule out the possibility that single electrons self-interact through their electromagnetic field. Next, we use the hydrogen atom to get insight into the intrinsic difficulty of testing the Schroedinger-Newton equation itself and conclude that the Planck scale must be approached before sound constraints are established. Although our results cannot be used to rule out the Schroedinger-Newton equation at all, they might be seen as disfavoring it if we underpin on the resemblance between the gravitational and electromagnetic interactions at low energies. △ Less

Submitted 10 July, 2023; originally announced July 2023.

Comments: 6 pages, 3 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev. A

Coronal Heating Rate in the Slow Solar Wind

Authors: Daniele Telloni, Marco Romoli, Marco Velli, Gary P. Zank, Laxman Adhikari, Cooper Downs, Aleksandr Burtovoi, Roberto Susino, Daniele Spadaro, Lingling Zhao, Alessandro Liberatore, Chen Shi, Yara De Leo, Lucia Abbo, Federica Frassati, Giovanna Jerse, Federico Landini, Gianalfredo Nicolini, Maurizio Pancrazzi, Giuliana Russano, Clementina Sasso, Vincenzo Andretta, Vania Da Deppo, Silvano Fineschi, Catia Grimani , et al. (37 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: This Letter reports the first observational estimate of the heating rate in the slowly expanding solar corona. The analysis exploits the simultaneous remote and local observations of the same coronal plasma volume with the Solar Orbiter/Metis and the Parker Solar Probe instruments, respectively, and relies on the basic solar wind magnetohydrodynamic equations. As expected, energy losses are a mino… ▽ More This Letter reports the first observational estimate of the heating rate in the slowly expanding solar corona. The analysis exploits the simultaneous remote and local observations of the same coronal plasma volume with the Solar Orbiter/Metis and the Parker Solar Probe instruments, respectively, and relies on the basic solar wind magnetohydrodynamic equations. As expected, energy losses are a minor fraction of the solar wind energy flux, since most of the energy dissipation that feeds the heating and acceleration of the coronal flow occurs much closer to the Sun than the heights probed in the present study, which range from 6.3 to 13.3 solar radii. The energy deposited to the supersonic wind is then used to explain the observed slight residual wind acceleration and to maintain the plasma in a non-adiabatic state. As derived in the Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin limit, the present energy transfer rate estimates provide a lower limit, which can be very useful in refining the turbulence-based modeling of coronal heating and subsequent solar wind acceleration. △ Less

Submitted 19 June, 2023; originally announced June 2023.

Performance in beam tests of Carbon-enriched irradiated Low Gain Avalanche Detectors for the ATLAS High Granularity Timing Detector

Authors: S. Ali, H. Arnold, S. L. Auwens, L. A. Beresford, D. E. Boumediene, A. M. Burger, L. Cadamuro, L. Castillo García, L. D. Corpe, M. J. Da Cunha Sargedas de Sousa, D. Dannheim, V. Dao, A. Gabrielli, Y. El Ghazali, H. El Jarrari, V. Gautam, S. Grinstein, J. Guimarães da Costa, S. Guindon, X. Jia, G. Kramberger, Y. Liu, K. Ma, N. Makovec, S. Manzoni , et al. (12 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: The High Granularity Timing Detector (HGTD) will be installed in the ATLAS experiment to mitigate pile-up effects during the High Luminosity (HL) phase of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN. Low Gain Avalanche Detectors (LGADs) will provide high-precision measurements of the time of arrival of particles at the HGTD, improving the particle-vertex assignment. To cope with the high-radiation env… ▽ More The High Granularity Timing Detector (HGTD) will be installed in the ATLAS experiment to mitigate pile-up effects during the High Luminosity (HL) phase of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN. Low Gain Avalanche Detectors (LGADs) will provide high-precision measurements of the time of arrival of particles at the HGTD, improving the particle-vertex assignment. To cope with the high-radiation environment, LGADs have been optimized by adding carbon in the gain layer, thus reducing the acceptor removal rate after irradiation. Performances of several carbon-enriched LGAD sensors from different vendors, and irradiated with high fluences of 1.5 and 2.5 x 10^15 neq/cm2, have been measured in beam test campaigns during the years 2021 and 2022 at CERN SPS and DESY. This paper presents the results obtained with data recorded by an oscilloscope synchronized with a beam telescope which provides particle position information within a resolution of a few um. Collected charge, time resolution and hit efficiency measurements are presented. In addition, the efficiency uniformity is also studied as a function of the position of the incident particle inside the sensor pad. △ Less

Submitted 17 March, 2023; v1 submitted 14 March, 2023; originally announced March 2023.

Development of novel low-mass module concepts based on MALTA monolithic pixel sensors

Authors: J Weick, F Dachs, P Riedler, M Vicente Barreto Pinto, A M. Zoubir, L Flores Sanz de Acedo, I Asensi Tortajada, V Dao, D Dobrijevic, H Pernegger, M Van Rijnbach, A Sharma, C Solans Sanchez, R de Oliveira, D Dannheim, J V Schmidt

Abstract: The MALTA CMOS monolithic silicon pixel sensors has been developed in the Tower 180 nm CMOS imaging process. It includes an asynchronous readout scheme and complies with the ATLAS inner tracker requirements for the HL-LHC. Several 4-chip MALTA modules have been built using Al wedge wire bonding to demonstrate the direct transfer of data from chip-to-chip and to read out the data of the entire modu… ▽ More The MALTA CMOS monolithic silicon pixel sensors has been developed in the Tower 180 nm CMOS imaging process. It includes an asynchronous readout scheme and complies with the ATLAS inner tracker requirements for the HL-LHC. Several 4-chip MALTA modules have been built using Al wedge wire bonding to demonstrate the direct transfer of data from chip-to-chip and to read out the data of the entire module via one chip only. Novel technologies such as Anisotropic Conductive Films (ACF) and nanowires have been investigated to build a compact module. A lightweight flex with 17 μm trace spacing has been designed, allowing compact packaging with a direct attachment of the chip connection pads to the flex using these interconnection technologies. This contribution shows the current state of our work towards a flexible, low material, dense and reliable packaging and modularization of pixel detectors. △ Less

Submitted 10 March, 2023; originally announced March 2023.

Comments: 5 pages + 1 page references,8 figures

Quantum Rate as a Spectroscopic Methodology for Measuring the Electronic Structure of Quantum Dots

Authors: Edgar Fabian Pinzón, Laís Cristine Lopes, André Felipe Vale da Fonseca, Marco Antonio Schiavon, Paulo Roberto Bueno

Abstract: The electronic structure of nanoscale moieties (such as molecules and quantum dots) governs the properties and performance of the bottom-up fabricated devices based on their assemblies. Accordingly, simple and faster experimental methods that permit to resolve the electronic density of states of these nanoscale materials (of which quantum dots are a particular example) are of great importance for… ▽ More The electronic structure of nanoscale moieties (such as molecules and quantum dots) governs the properties and performance of the bottom-up fabricated devices based on their assemblies. Accordingly, simple and faster experimental methods that permit to resolve the electronic density of states of these nanoscale materials (of which quantum dots are a particular example) are of great importance for the development of man-made nanoscale interfaces and nanoelectronics. In the present work, we propose the quantum rate spectroscopy methodology (and introduce the fundamental physical basis of this technique) as a tool for resolving the electronic structure of zero-dimensional (quantum dot) structures at room temperature and environmental pressure conditions. This method is simpler than the traditional methods based on scanning tunneling microscopy. This spectroscopic approach based on the quantum rate theory was demonstrated for CdTe quantum dots, and was used to measure a spectrum that provides discrete energy levels that are consistent with those obtained by tunneling microscopy measurements. △ Less

Submitted 22 February, 2024; v1 submitted 18 February, 2023; originally announced February 2023.

Comments: Journal of Materials Chemistry C, 2024

Slow wind belt in the quiet solar corona

Authors: E. Antonucci, C. Downs, G. E. Capuano, D. Spadaro, R. Susino, D. Telloni, V. Andretta, V. Da Deppo, Y. De Leo, S. Fineschi, F. Frassetto, F. Landini, G. Naletto, G. Nicolini, M. Pancrazzi, M. Romoli, M. Stangalini, L. Teriaca, M. Uslenghi

Abstract: The slow solar wind belt in the quiet corona, observed with the Metis coronagraph on board Solar Orbiter on May 15, 2020, during the activity minimum of the cycle 24, in a field of view extending from 3.8 $R_\odot$ to 7.0 $R_\odot$, is formed by a slow and dense wind stream running along the coronal current sheet, accelerating in the radial direction and reaching at 6.8 $R_\odot$ a speed within 15… ▽ More The slow solar wind belt in the quiet corona, observed with the Metis coronagraph on board Solar Orbiter on May 15, 2020, during the activity minimum of the cycle 24, in a field of view extending from 3.8 $R_\odot$ to 7.0 $R_\odot$, is formed by a slow and dense wind stream running along the coronal current sheet, accelerating in the radial direction and reaching at 6.8 $R_\odot$ a speed within 150 km s$^{-1}$ and 190 km s$^{-1}$, depending on the assumptions on the velocity distribution of the neutral hydrogen atoms in the coronal plasma. The slow stream is separated by thin regions of high velocity shear from faster streams, almost symmetric relative to the current sheet, with peak velocity within 175 km s$^{-1}$ and 230 km s$^{-1}$ at the same coronal level. The density-velocity structure of the slow wind zone is discussed in terms of the expansion factor of the open magnetic field lines that is known to be related to the speed of the quasi-steady solar wind, and in relation to the presence of a web of quasi separatrix layers, S-web, the potential sites of reconnection that release coronal plasma into the wind. The parameters characterizing the coronal magnetic field lines are derived from 3D MHD model calculations. The S-web is found to coincide with the latitudinal region where the slow wind is observed in the outer corona and is surrounded by thin layers of open field lines expanding in a non-monotonic way. △ Less

Submitted 16 February, 2023; originally announced February 2023.

MALTA-Cz: A radiation hard full-size monolithic CMOS sensor with small electrodes on high-resistivity Czochralski substrate

Authors: H. Pernegger, P. Allport, D. V. Berlea, A. Birman, D. Bortoletto, C. Buttar, E. Charbon, F. Dachs, V. Dao, H. Denizli, D. Dobrijevic, M. Dyndal, A. Fenigstein, L. Flores Sanz de Acedo, P. Freeman, A. Gabrielli, M. Gazi, L. Gonella, V. Gonzalez, G. Gustavino, A. Haim, T. Kugathasan, M. LeBlanc, M. Munker, K. Y. Oyulmaz , et al. (14 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensor (DMAPS) sensors developed in the Tower Semiconductor 180 nm CMOS imaging process have been designed in the context of the ATLAS ITk upgrade Phase-II at the HL-LHC and for future collider experiments. The "MALTA-Czochralski (MALTA-Cz)" full size DMAPS sensor has been developed with the goal to demonstrate a radiation hard, thin CMOS sensor with high granulari… ▽ More Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensor (DMAPS) sensors developed in the Tower Semiconductor 180 nm CMOS imaging process have been designed in the context of the ATLAS ITk upgrade Phase-II at the HL-LHC and for future collider experiments. The "MALTA-Czochralski (MALTA-Cz)" full size DMAPS sensor has been developed with the goal to demonstrate a radiation hard, thin CMOS sensor with high granularity, high hit-rate capability, fast response time and superior radiation tolerance. The small pixel size ($36.4\times 36.4$~$μ$m$^2$) provides high spatial resolution. Its asynchronous readout architecture is designed for high hit-rates and fast time response in triggered and trigger-less detector applications. The readout architecture is designed to stream all hit data to the multi-channel output which allows an off-sensor trigger formation and the use of hit-time information for event tagging. The sensor manufacturing has been optimised through process adaptation and special implant designs to allow the manufacturing of small electrode DMAPS on thick high-resistivity p-type Czochralski substrate. The special processing ensures excellent charge collection and charge particle detection efficiency even after a high level of radiation. Furthermore the special implant design and use of a Czochralski substrate improves the sensor's time resolution. This paper presents a summary of sensor design optimisation through process and implant choices and TCAD simulation to model the signal response. Beam and laboratory test results on unirradiated and irradiated sensors have shown excellent detection efficiency after a dose of $2\times10^{15}$ 1 MeV n$_{eq}$/cm$^{2}$. The time resolution of the sensor is measured to be $σ=2$~ns. △ Less

Submitted 13 September, 2023; v1 submitted 10 January, 2023; originally announced January 2023.

Journal ref: JINST 18 P09018 (2023)

Connecting Solar Orbiter remote-sensing observations and Parker Solar Probe in-situ measurements with a numerical MHD reconstruction of the Parker spiral

Authors: Ruggero Biondo, Alessandro Bemporad, Paolo Pagano, Daniele Telloni, Fabio Reale, Marco Romoli, Vincenzo Andretta, Ester Antonucci, Vania Da Deppo, Yara De Leo, Silvano Fineschi, Petr Heinzel, Daniel Moses, Giampiero Naletto, Gianalfredo Nicolini, Daniele Spadaro, Marco Stangalini, Luca Teriaca, Federico Landini, Clementina Sasso, Roberto Susino, Giovanna Jerse, Michela Uslenghi, Maurizio Pancrazzi

Abstract: As a key feature, NASA's Parker Solar Probe (PSP) and ESA-NASA's Solar Orbiter (SO) missions cooperate to trace solar wind and transients from their sources on the Sun to the inner interplanetary space. The goal of this work is to accurately reconstruct the interplanetary Parker spiral and the connection between coronal features observed remotely by the Metis coronagraph on-board SO and those dete… ▽ More As a key feature, NASA's Parker Solar Probe (PSP) and ESA-NASA's Solar Orbiter (SO) missions cooperate to trace solar wind and transients from their sources on the Sun to the inner interplanetary space. The goal of this work is to accurately reconstruct the interplanetary Parker spiral and the connection between coronal features observed remotely by the Metis coronagraph on-board SO and those detected in situ by PSP at the time of the first PSP-SO quadrature of January 2021. We use the Reverse In-situ and MHD Approach (RIMAP), a hybrid analytical-numerical method performing data-driven reconstructions of the Parker spiral. RIMAP solves the MHD equations on the equatorial plane with the PLUTO code, using the measurements collected by PSP between 0.1 and 0.2 AU as boundary conditions. Our reconstruction connects density and wind speed measurements provided by Metis (3-6 solar radii) to those acquired by PSP (21.5 solar radii) along a single streamline. The capability of our MHD model to connect the inner corona observed by Metis and the super Alfvénic wind measured by PSP, not only confirms the research pathways provided by multi-spacecraft observations, but also the validity and accuracy of RIMAP reconstructions as a possible test bench to verify models of transient phenomena propagating across the heliosphere, such as coronal mass ejections, solar energetic particles and solar wind switchbacks. △ Less

Submitted 23 November, 2022; originally announced November 2022.

Comments: Astronomy & Astrophysics, Solar Orbiter First Results (Nominal Mission Phase), (in press) DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/202244535

Journal ref: A&A 668, A144 (2022)

Timing performance of radiation hard MALTA monolithic Pixel sensors

Authors: G. Gustavino, P. Allport, I. Asensi, D. V. Berlea, D. Bortoletto, C. Buttar, F. Dachs, V. Dao, H. Denizli, D. Dobrijevic, L. Flores, A. Gabrielli, L. Gonella, V. González, M. LeBlanc, K. Oyulmaz, H. Pernegger, F. Piro, P. Riedler, H. Sandaker, C. Solans, W. Snoeys, T. Suligoj, M. van Rijnbach, A. Sharma , et al. (4 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: The MALTA family of Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensor (DMAPS) produced in Tower 180 nm CMOS technology targets radiation hard applications for the HL-LHC and beyond. Several process modifications and front-end improvements have resulted in radiation hardness up to $2 \times 10^{15}~1~\text{MeV}~\text{n}_{eq}/\text{cm}^2$ and time resolution below 2 ns, with uniform charge collection efficien… ▽ More The MALTA family of Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensor (DMAPS) produced in Tower 180 nm CMOS technology targets radiation hard applications for the HL-LHC and beyond. Several process modifications and front-end improvements have resulted in radiation hardness up to $2 \times 10^{15}~1~\text{MeV}~\text{n}_{eq}/\text{cm}^2$ and time resolution below 2 ns, with uniform charge collection efficiency across the Pixel of size $36.4 \times 36.4~μ\text{m}^2$ with a $3~μ\text{m}^2$ electrode size. The MALTA2 demonstrator produced in 2021 on high-resistivity epitaxial silicon and on Czochralski substrates implements a new cascoded front-end that reduces the RTS noise and has a higher gain. This contribution shows results from MALTA2 on timing resolution at the nanosecond level from the CERN SPS test-beam campaign of 2021. △ Less

Submitted 31 January, 2023; v1 submitted 29 September, 2022; originally announced September 2022.

Comments: 8 pages, 8 figures. Submitted to Journal of Instrumentation (JINST). Proceedings of the 23rd International Workshop on Radiation Imaging Detectors IWORID 2022

Recent results with radiation-tolerant TowerJazz 180 nm MALTA Sensors

Authors: Matt LeBlanc, Phil Allport, Igancio Asensi, Dumitru-Vlad Berlea, Daniela Bortoletto, Craig Buttar, Florian Dachs, Valerio Dao, Haluk Denizli, Dominik Dobrijevic, Leyre Flores, Andrea Gabrielli, Laura Gonella, Vicente González, Giuliano Gustavino, Kaan Oyulmaz, Heinz Pernegger, Francesco Piro, Petra Riedler, Heidi Sandaker, Carlos Solans, Walter Snoeys, Tomislav Suligoj, Milou van Rijnbach, Abhishek Sharma , et al. (4 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: To achieve the physics goals of future colliders, it is necessary to develop novel, radiation-hard silicon sensors for their tracking detectors. We target the replacement of hybrid pixel detectors with Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensors (DMAPS) that are radiation-hard, monolithic CMOS sensors. We have designed, manufactured and tested the MALTA series of sensors, which are DMAPS in the 180 n… ▽ More To achieve the physics goals of future colliders, it is necessary to develop novel, radiation-hard silicon sensors for their tracking detectors. We target the replacement of hybrid pixel detectors with Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensors (DMAPS) that are radiation-hard, monolithic CMOS sensors. We have designed, manufactured and tested the MALTA series of sensors, which are DMAPS in the 180 nm TowerJazz CMOS imaging technology. MALTA have a pixel pitch well below current hybrid pixel detectors, high time resolution (< 2 ns) and excellent charge collection efficiency across pixel geometries. These sensors have a total silicon thickness of between 50-300 $μ$m, implying reduced material budgets and multiple scattering rates for future detectors which utilize such technology. Furthermore, their monolithic design bypasses the costly stage of bump-bonding in hybrid sensors and can substantially reduce detector costs. This contribution presents the latest results from characterization studies of the MALTA2 sensors, including results demonstrating the radiation tolerance of these sensors. △ Less

Submitted 9 September, 2022; originally announced September 2022.

Comments: 4 pages, 4 figures. Accepted by Nuclear Inst. and Methods in Physics Research, A (Proceedings of VCI 2022)

Using the Energy probability distribution zeros to obtain the critical properties of the two-dimensional anisotropic Heisenberg model

Authors: Gabriel Bruno Garcia de Souza, Bismarck Vaz da Costa

Abstract: In this paper we present a Monte Carlo study of the critical behavior of the easy axis anisotropic Heisenberg spin model in two dimensions. Based on the partial knowledge of the zeros of the energy probability distribution we determine with good precision the phase diagram of the model obtaining the critical temperature and exponents for several values of the anisotropy. Our results indicate that… ▽ More In this paper we present a Monte Carlo study of the critical behavior of the easy axis anisotropic Heisenberg spin model in two dimensions. Based on the partial knowledge of the zeros of the energy probability distribution we determine with good precision the phase diagram of the model obtaining the critical temperature and exponents for several values of the anisotropy. Our results indicate that the model is in the Ising universality class for any anisotropy. △ Less

Submitted 7 July, 2022; v1 submitted 1 March, 2022; originally announced March 2022.

Comments: 13 figures, 9 pages

A Coronal Mass Ejection followed by a prominence eruption and a plasma blob as observed by Solar Orbiter

Authors: A. Bemporad, V. Andretta, R. Susino, S. Mancuso, D. Spadaro, M. Mierla, D. Berghmans, E. D'Huys, A. N. Zhukov, D. -C. Talpeanu, R. Colaninno, P. Hess, J. Koza, S. Jejcic, P. Heinzel, E. Antonucci, V. Da Deppo, S. Fineschi, F. Frassati, G. Jerse, F. Landini, G. Naletto, G. Nicolini, M. Pancrazzi, M. Romoli , et al. (4 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: On February 12, 2021 two subsequent eruptions occurred above the West limb, as seen along the Sun-Earth line. The first event was a typical slow Coronal Mass Ejection (CME), followed $\sim 7$ hours later by a smaller and collimated prominence eruption, originating Southward with respect to the CME, followed by a plasma blob. These events were observed not only by SOHO and STEREO-A missions, but al… ▽ More On February 12, 2021 two subsequent eruptions occurred above the West limb, as seen along the Sun-Earth line. The first event was a typical slow Coronal Mass Ejection (CME), followed $\sim 7$ hours later by a smaller and collimated prominence eruption, originating Southward with respect to the CME, followed by a plasma blob. These events were observed not only by SOHO and STEREO-A missions, but also by the suite of remote sensing instruments on-board Solar Orbiter (SolO). This work shows how data acquired by the Full Sun Imager (FSI), Metis coronagraph, and Heliospheric Imager (SoloHI) from the SolO perspective can be combined to study the eruptions and the different source regions. Moreover, we show how Metis data can be analyzed to provide new information about solar eruptions. Different 3D reconstruction methods were applied to the data acquired by different spacecraft including remote sensing instruments on-board SolO. Images acquired by both Metis channels in the Visible Light (VL) and H I Lyman$-α$ line (UV) were combined to derive physical information on the expanding plasma. The polarization ratio technique was also applied for the first time to the Metis images acquired in the VL channel. The two eruptions were followed in 3D from their source region to their expansion in the intermediate corona. Thanks to the combination of VL and UV Metis data, the formation of a post-CME Current Sheet (CS) was followed for the first time in the intermediate corona. The plasma temperature gradient across a post-CME blob propagating along the CS was also measured for the first time. Application of the polarization ratio technique to Metis data shows that, thanks to the combination of four different polarization measurements, the errors are reduced by $\sim 5-7$\%, thus better constraining the 3D distribution of plasma. △ Less

Submitted 21 February, 2022; originally announced February 2022.

Comments: 15 pages, 14 figures, accepted for publication on A&A

Journal ref: A&A 665, A7 (2022)

Exploring the Solar Wind from its Source on the Corona into the Inner Heliosphere during the First Solar Orbiter - Parker Solar Probe Quadrature

Authors: Daniele Telloni, Vincenzo Andretta, Ester Antonucci, Alessandro Bemporad, Giuseppe E. Capuano, Silvano Fineschi, Silvio Giordano, Shadia Habbal, Denise Perrone, Rui F. Pinto, Luca Sorriso-Valvo, Daniele Spadaro, Roberto Susino, Lloyd D. Woodham, Gary P. Zank, Marco Romoli, Stuart D. Bale, Justin C. Kasper, Frédéric Auchère, Roberto Bruno, Gerardo Capobianco, Anthony W. Case, Chiara Casini, Marta Casti, Paolo Chioetto , et al. (46 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: This Letter addresses the first Solar Orbiter (SO) -- Parker Solar Probe (PSP) quadrature, occurring on January 18, 2021, to investigate the evolution of solar wind from the extended corona to the inner heliosphere. Assuming ballistic propagation, the same plasma volume observed remotely in corona at altitudes between 3.5 and 6.3 solar radii above the solar limb with the Metis coronagraph on SO ca… ▽ More This Letter addresses the first Solar Orbiter (SO) -- Parker Solar Probe (PSP) quadrature, occurring on January 18, 2021, to investigate the evolution of solar wind from the extended corona to the inner heliosphere. Assuming ballistic propagation, the same plasma volume observed remotely in corona at altitudes between 3.5 and 6.3 solar radii above the solar limb with the Metis coronagraph on SO can be tracked to PSP, orbiting at 0.1 au, thus allowing the local properties of the solar wind to be linked to the coronal source region from where it originated. Thanks to the close approach of PSP to the Sun and the simultaneous Metis observation of the solar corona, the flow-aligned magnetic field and the bulk kinetic energy flux density can be empirically inferred along the coronal current sheet with an unprecedented accuracy, allowing in particular estimation of the Alfvén radius at 8.7 solar radii during the time of this event. This is thus the very first study of the same solar wind plasma as it expands from the sub-Alfvénic solar corona to just above the Alfvén surface. △ Less

Submitted 21 October, 2021; originally announced October 2021.

Comments: 10 pages, 4 figures

Journal ref: Telloni, D., Andretta, V., Antonucci, E., et al. 2021, ApJL, 920, L14

Nanoscale reversal of stable room temperature ferroelectric polarization in organic croconic acid thin films

Authors: Sambit Mohapatra, Eric Beaurepaire, Wolfgang Weber, Martin Bowen, Samy Boukari, Victor Da Costa

Abstract: It was discovered in 2010 that Croconic Acid, in its crystal form, has the highest polarization among organic ferroelectrics. In the context of eliminating toxic substances from electronic devices, Croconic Acid has a great potential as a sublimable lead-free ferroelectric. However, studies on ferroelectric properties of its thin films are only in their early stages and its capability to be incorp… ▽ More It was discovered in 2010 that Croconic Acid, in its crystal form, has the highest polarization among organic ferroelectrics. In the context of eliminating toxic substances from electronic devices, Croconic Acid has a great potential as a sublimable lead-free ferroelectric. However, studies on ferroelectric properties of its thin films are only in their early stages and its capability to be incorporated in nanoscale devices is unknown. In this work, we demonstrate, upon ferroelectric switching at the nanoscale, stable and enduring room temperature polarization with no leakage current in Croconic Acid thin films. We thus show that it is a promising lead-free organic ferroelectric toward integration in nanoscale devices. The challenging switching current and polarization reversal characterization at the nanoscale was done using a unique combination of piezoresponse force microscopy, polarization switching current spectroscopy and the concurrent electromechanical strain response. Indeed, this combination can help to rationalize otherwise asymmetric polarization-voltage data and distorted hysteresis due to current jumps below the background noise, which are statistically washed away in macrojunctions but become prevalent at the nanoscale. These results are valid irrespective of the ferroelectrics' nature, organic or inorganic. Beyond the potential of Croconic Acid as an ecological ferroelectric material in devices, our detection of a clear nanoscopic polarization switching current thus paves the way for a fundamental understanding and technological applications of the polarization reversal mechanism at the nanoscale. △ Less

Submitted 7 April, 2021; originally announced April 2021.

An analytical study of flatness and intermittency through Riemann's non-differentiable functions

Authors: Daniel Eceizabarrena, Victor Vilaça Da Rocha

Abstract: In the study of turbulence, intermittency is a measure of how much Kolmogorov's theory of 1941 deviates from experiments. It is quantified with the flatness of the velocity of the fluid, usually based on structure functions in the physical space. However, it can also be defined with Fourier high-pass filters. Experimental and numerical simulations suggest that the two approaches do not always give… ▽ More In the study of turbulence, intermittency is a measure of how much Kolmogorov's theory of 1941 deviates from experiments. It is quantified with the flatness of the velocity of the fluid, usually based on structure functions in the physical space. However, it can also be defined with Fourier high-pass filters. Experimental and numerical simulations suggest that the two approaches do not always give the same results. Our purpose is to compare them from the analytical point of view of functions. We do that by studying generalizations of Riemann's non-differentiable function, yielding computations that are related to some classical problems in Fourier analysis. The conclusion is that the result strongly depends on regularity. To visualize this, we establish an analogy between these generalizations and the influence of viscosity in turbulent flows. This article is motivated by the mathematical works on the multifractal formalism and the discovery of Riemann's non-differentiable function as a trajectory of polygonal vortex filaments. △ Less

Submitted 24 February, 2022; v1 submitted 23 March, 2021; originally announced March 2021.

Comments: Accepted manuscript. To appear in SIAM Journal on Mathematical Analysis

MSC Class: 76F99; 42A16; 33E20; 28A80

Journal ref: SIAM J. Math. Anal 54 (2022) 3575-3608

Teaching Physics within STS Approach: Contributions Between Sciences and Act 10.639/2003

Authors: Marcelo Vilela da Silva, Eduardo Folco Capossoli

Abstract: This paper is aimed to develop formative actions about Science Technology and Society (STS) relations in the teaching of Physics in order to integrate Act 10.639/2003, which includes African, and Afro-Brazilian history and culture in school syllabuses. Besides we also aim to overcome the challenges found in the educational system and to enable students to learn about the contributions made by Afri… ▽ More This paper is aimed to develop formative actions about Science Technology and Society (STS) relations in the teaching of Physics in order to integrate Act 10.639/2003, which includes African, and Afro-Brazilian history and culture in school syllabuses. Besides we also aim to overcome the challenges found in the educational system and to enable students to learn about the contributions made by African societies regarding to the Science and technology. The methodological procedure included a written questionnaire, pre- and post-test, both with the students. The results have been proven relevant for the teaching of racial relations in the classroom. △ Less

Submitted 20 January, 2021; originally announced January 2021.

Comments: V1: In Portuguese, 20 pages, 3 frames, 6 figures. This version matches the published one in Cadernos de Educação Básica (CEB)

Journal ref: Cadernos de Educação Básica, Vol. 5, No 3 (2020), ISSN 2525-2879

Are bacteria claustrophobic? The problem of micrometric spatial confinement for the culture of micro-organisms

Authors: Céline Molinaro, Violette Da Cunha, Aurore Gorlas, François Iv, Laurent Gallais, Ryan Catchpole, Patrick Forterre, Guillaume Baffou

Abstract: Culturing cells confined in microscale geometries has been reported in many studies this last decade, in particular following the development of microfluidic-based applications and lab-on-a-chip devices. Such studies usually examine growth of Escherichia coli. In this article, we show that E. coli may be a poor model and that spatial confinement can severely prevent the growth of many micro-organi… ▽ More Culturing cells confined in microscale geometries has been reported in many studies this last decade, in particular following the development of microfluidic-based applications and lab-on-a-chip devices. Such studies usually examine growth of Escherichia coli. In this article, we show that E. coli may be a poor model and that spatial confinement can severely prevent the growth of many micro-organisms. By studying different bacteria and confinement geometries, we determine that the growth inhibition observed for some bacteria results from fast dioxygen depletion, inherent to spatial confinement, and not to any depletion of nutriments. This article unravels the physical origin of confinement problems in cell culture, highlighting the importance of oxygen depletion, and paves the way for the effective culture of bacteria in confined geometries by demonstrating enhanced cell growth in confined geometries in the proximity of air bubbles. △ Less

Submitted 11 December, 2020; originally announced December 2020.

Comments: 6 pages, 4 figures

Journal ref: RSC Advances 11, 12500-12506 (2021)

A Parametrized Nonlinear Predictive Control Strategy for Relaxing COVID-19 Social Distancing Measures in Brazil

Authors: Marcelo M. Morato, Igor M. L. Pataro, Marcus V. Americano da Costa, Julio E. Normey-Rico

Abstract: In this paper, we formulate a Nonlinear Model Predictive Control (NMPC) to plan appropriate social distancing measures (and relaxations) in order to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic effects, considering the contagion development in Brazil. The NMPC strategy is designed upon an adapted data-driven Susceptible-Infected-Recovered-Deceased (SIRD) contagion model, which takes into account the effects of… ▽ More In this paper, we formulate a Nonlinear Model Predictive Control (NMPC) to plan appropriate social distancing measures (and relaxations) in order to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic effects, considering the contagion development in Brazil. The NMPC strategy is designed upon an adapted data-driven Susceptible-Infected-Recovered-Deceased (SIRD) contagion model, which takes into account the effects of social distancing. Furthermore, the adapted SIRD model includes time-varying auto-regressive contagion parameters, which dynamically converge according to the stage of the pandemic. This new model is identified through a three-layered procedures, with analytical regressions, Least-Squares optimization runs and auto-regressive model fits. The data-driven model is validated and shown to adequately describe the contagion curves over large forecast horizons. In this model, control input is defined as finitely parametrized values for social distancing guidelines, which directly affect the transmission and infection rates of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The NMPC strategy generates piece-wise constant quarantine guidelines which can be relaxed/strengthen as each week passes. The implementation of the method is pursued through a search mechanism, since the control is finitely parametrized and, thus, there exist a finite number of possible control sequences. Simulation essays are shown to illustrate the results obtained with the proposed closed-loop NMPC strategy, which is able to mitigate the number of infections and progressively loosen social distancing measures. With respect to an "open-loop"/no control condition, the number of deaths still could be reduced in up to 30 %. The forecast preview an infection peak to September 2nd, 2020, which could lead to over 1.5 million deaths if no coordinate health policy is enacted. The framework serves as guidelines for possible public health policies in Brazil. △ Less

Submitted 19 July, 2020; originally announced July 2020.

Comments: 32 Pages, 21 Figures, 2 Tables, Preprint to ISA Transactions

Optimal Control Concerns Regarding the COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) Pandemic in Bahia and Santa Catarina, Brazil

Authors: Marcelo M. Morato, Igor M. L. Pataro, Marcus V. Americano da Costa, Julio E. Normey-Rico

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic is the profoundest health crisis of the 21rst century. The SARS-CoV-2 virus arrived in Brazil around March, 2020 and its social and economical backlashes are catastrophic. In this paper, it is investigated how Model Predictive Control (MPC) could be used to plan appropriate social distancing policies to mitigate the pandemic effects in Bahia and Santa Catarina, two states of… ▽ More The COVID-19 pandemic is the profoundest health crisis of the 21rst century. The SARS-CoV-2 virus arrived in Brazil around March, 2020 and its social and economical backlashes are catastrophic. In this paper, it is investigated how Model Predictive Control (MPC) could be used to plan appropriate social distancing policies to mitigate the pandemic effects in Bahia and Santa Catarina, two states of different regions, culture, and population demography in Brazil. In addition, the parameters of Susceptible-Infected-Recovered-Deceased (SIRD) models for these two states are identified using an optimization procedure. The control input to the process is a social isolation guideline passed to the population. Two MPC strategies are designed: a) a centralized MPC, which coordinates a single control policy for both states; and b) a decentralized strategy, for which one optimization is solved for each state. Simulation results are shown to illustrate and compare both control strategies. The framework serves as guidelines to deals with such pandemic phenomena. △ Less

Submitted 24 June, 2020; originally announced June 2020.

Comments: 17 pages, 7 figures, 3 tables, submitted for the XXIII Congresso Brasileiro de Automatica - XXIII Brazilian Congress of Automatica

MSC Class: 93B45

Vortices in Kekulene Molecules

Authors: Lucas Menicucci, Francisco César Sá Barreto, Bismarck vaz da Costa

Abstract: Kekulene is an aromatic hydrocarbon with formula C48H24 arranged in the shape of a closed super-ring as shown in Fig. 2. It consists of a sublattice with 48 C atoms with spin 5/2 and a 24 hydrogen sublattice with spin 2. In this communication, we use Monte Carlo simulations to determine the magnetic structures present in Kekulene for several temperatures (T) and dipole anisotropies (δ = D/J). Our… ▽ More Kekulene is an aromatic hydrocarbon with formula C48H24 arranged in the shape of a closed super-ring as shown in Fig. 2. It consists of a sublattice with 48 C atoms with spin 5/2 and a 24 hydrogen sublattice with spin 2. In this communication, we use Monte Carlo simulations to determine the magnetic structures present in Kekulene for several temperatures (T) and dipole anisotropies (δ = D/J). Our results show that there are two regimes at low temperature separated by a crossover at 2.5 < δcross < 3.0. For δ < δcross the ground state has a unique vortex configuration. In the region δ > δcross arrangements of vortices-antivortices (V-AV) appears. As temperature raises the vortex structure disorders and small oscillations take over. The importance on synthesizing this molecule grounds in the possibility of building real planar structures of sizes at least 10 times smaller than the earlier proposed permalloy nanodots. It is worthy to mention that Kekulene is a planar structure with atomic thickness, which is a great advantage compared with other nanomagnetic structures. △ Less

Submitted 22 June, 2020; originally announced June 2020.

Comments: 8 pages, 5 figures

Intermittency of Riemann's non-differentiable function through the fourth-order flatness

Authors: Alexandre Boritchev, Daniel Eceizabarrena, Victor Vilaça da Rocha

Abstract: Riemann's non-differentiable function is one of the most famous examples of continuous but nowhere differentiable functions, but it has also been shown to be relevant from a physical point of view. Indeed, it satisfies the Frisch-Parisi multifractal formalism, which establishes a relationship with turbulence and implies some intermittent nature. It also plays a surprising role as a physical trajec… ▽ More Riemann's non-differentiable function is one of the most famous examples of continuous but nowhere differentiable functions, but it has also been shown to be relevant from a physical point of view. Indeed, it satisfies the Frisch-Parisi multifractal formalism, which establishes a relationship with turbulence and implies some intermittent nature. It also plays a surprising role as a physical trajectory in the evolution of regular polygonal vortices that follow the binormal flow. With this motivation, we focus on one more classic tool to measure intermittency, namely the fourth-order flatness, and we refine the results that can be deduced from the multifractal analysis to show that it diverges logarithmically. We approach the problem in two ways: with structure functions in the physical space and with high-pass filters in the Fourier space. △ Less

Submitted 17 August, 2021; v1 submitted 29 October, 2019; originally announced October 2019.

Comments: 17 pages, 2 figures. v2: Major revision. v3: Accepted manuscript

MSC Class: 42A16; 76B47; 76F05

Journal ref: J. Math. Phys. 62 (2021), 093101

Magnetoresistance and spintronic anisotropy induced by spin excitations along molecular spin chains

Authors: K. Katcko, E. Urbain, L. Kandpal, B. Chowrira, F. Schleicher, U. Halisdemir, F. Ngassamnyakam, D. Mertz, B. Leconte, N. Beyer, D. Spor, P. Panissod, A. Boulard, J. Arabski, C. Kieber, E. Sternitsky, V. Da Costa, M. Alouani, M. Hehn, F. Montaigne, A. Bahouka, W. Weber, E. Beaurepaire, D. Lacour, S. Boukari , et al. (1 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: Electrically manipulating the quantum properties of nano-objects, such as atoms or molecules, is typically done using scanning tunnelling microscopes and lateral junctions. The resulting nanotransport path is well established in these model devices. Societal applications require transposing this knowledge to nano-objects embedded within vertical solid-state junctions, which can advantageously harn… ▽ More Electrically manipulating the quantum properties of nano-objects, such as atoms or molecules, is typically done using scanning tunnelling microscopes and lateral junctions. The resulting nanotransport path is well established in these model devices. Societal applications require transposing this knowledge to nano-objects embedded within vertical solid-state junctions, which can advantageously harness spintronics to address these quantum properties thanks to ferromagnetic electrodes and high-quality interfaces. The challenge here is to ascertain the device's effective, buried nanotransport path, and to electrically involve these nano-objects in this path by shrinking the device area from the macro- to the nano-scale while maintaining high structural/chemical quality across the heterostructure. We've developed a low-tech, resist- and solvent-free technological process that can craft nanopillar devices from entire in-situ grown heterostructures, and use it to study magnetotransport between two Fe and Co ferromagnetic electrodes across a functional magnetic CoPc molecular layer. We observe how spin-flip transport across CoPc molecular spin chains promotes a specific magnetoresistance effect, and alters the nanojunction's magnetism through spintronic anisotropy. In the process, we identify three magnetic units along the effective nanotransport path thanks to a macrospin model of magnetotransport. Our work elegantly connects the until now loosely associated concepts of spin-flip spectroscopy, magnetic exchange bias and magnetotransport due to molecular spin chains, within a solid-state device. We notably measure a 5.9meV energy threshold for magnetic decoupling between the Fe layer's buried atoms and those in contact with the CoPc layer forming the so-called 'spinterface'. This provides a first insight into the experimental energetics of this promising low-power information encoding unit. △ Less

Submitted 22 November, 2019; v1 submitted 23 October, 2019; originally announced October 2019.

Mini-MALTA: Radiation hard pixel designs for small-electrode monolithic CMOS sensors for the High Luminosity LHC

Authors: M. Dyndal, V. Dao, P. Allport, I. Asensi Tortajada, M. Barbero, S. Bhat, D. Bortoletto, I. Berdalovic, C. Bespin, C. Buttar, I. Caicedo, R. Cardella, F. Dachs, Y. Degerli, H. Denizli, L. Flores Sanz de Acedo, P. Freeman, L. Gonella, A. Habib, T. Hemperek, T. Hirono, B. Hiti, T. Kugathasan, I. Mandić, D. Maneuski , et al. (19 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensor (DMAPS) prototypes developed in the TowerJazz 180 nm CMOS imaging process have been designed in the context of the ATLAS upgrade Phase-II at the HL-LHC. The pixel sensors are characterized by a small collection electrode (3 $μ$m) to minimize capacitance, a small pixel size ($36.4\times 36.4$ $μ$m), and are produced on high resistivity epitaxial p-type silico… ▽ More Depleted Monolithic Active Pixel Sensor (DMAPS) prototypes developed in the TowerJazz 180 nm CMOS imaging process have been designed in the context of the ATLAS upgrade Phase-II at the HL-LHC. The pixel sensors are characterized by a small collection electrode (3 $μ$m) to minimize capacitance, a small pixel size ($36.4\times 36.4$ $μ$m), and are produced on high resistivity epitaxial p-type silicon. The design targets a radiation hardness of $1\times10^{15}$ 1 MeV n$_{eq}$/cm$^{2}$, compatible with the outermost layer of the ATLAS ITK Pixel detector. This paper presents the results from characterization in particle beam tests of the Mini-MALTA prototype that implements a mask change or an additional implant to address the inefficiencies on the pixel edges. Results show full efficiency after a dose of $1\times10^{15}$ 1 MeV n$_{eq}$/cm$^{2}$. △ Less

Submitted 14 December, 2019; v1 submitted 26 September, 2019; originally announced September 2019.

Measurement of the relative response of TowerJazz Mini-MALTA CMOS prototypes at Diamond Light Source

Authors: Maria Mironova, Kaloyan Metodiev, Phil Allport, Ivan Berdalovic, Daniela Bortoletto, Craig Buttar, Roberto Cardella, Valerio Dao, Mateusz Dyndal, Patrick Freeman, Leyre Flores Sanz de Acedo, Laura Gonella, Thanushan Kugathasan, Heinz Pernegger, Francesco Piro, Richard Plackett, Petra Riedler, Abhishek Sharma, Enrico Junior Schioppa, Ian Shipsey, Carlos Solans Sanchez, Walter Snoeys, Hakan Wennloef, Daniel Weatherill, Daniel Wood , et al. (1 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: This paper outlines the results of investigations into the effects of radiation damage in the mini-MALTA prototype. Measurements were carried out at Diamond Light Source using a micro-focus X-ray beam, which scanned across the surface of the device in 2 $\mathrm{μm}$ steps. This allowed the in-pixel photon response to be measured directly with high statistics. Three pixel design variations were co… ▽ More This paper outlines the results of investigations into the effects of radiation damage in the mini-MALTA prototype. Measurements were carried out at Diamond Light Source using a micro-focus X-ray beam, which scanned across the surface of the device in 2 $\mathrm{μm}$ steps. This allowed the in-pixel photon response to be measured directly with high statistics. Three pixel design variations were considered: one with the standard continuous $\mathrm{n^-}$ layer layout and front-end, and extra deep p-well and $\mathrm{n^-}$ gap designs with a modified front-end. Five chips were measured: one unirradiated, one neutron irradiated, and three proton irradiated. △ Less

Submitted 2 October, 2019; v1 submitted 18 September, 2019; originally announced September 2019.

Comparing extrapolations of the coronal magnetic field structure at 2.5 solar radii with multi-viewpoint coronagraphic observations

Authors: C. Sasso, R. F. Pinto, V. Andretta, R. A. Howard, A. Vourlidas, A. Bemporad, S. Dolei, D. Spadaro, R. Susino, E. Antonucci, L. Abbo, V. Da Deppo, S. Fineschi, F. Frassetto, F. Landini, G. Naletto, G. Nicolini, P. Nicolosi, M. Pancrazzi, M. Romoli, D. Telloni, R. Ventura

Abstract: The magnetic field shapes the structure of the solar corona but we still know little about the interrelationships between the coronal magnetic field configurations and the resulting quasi-stationary structures observed in coronagraphic images (as streamers, plumes, coronal holes). One way to obtain information on the large-scale structure of the coronal magnetic field is to extrapolate it from pho… ▽ More The magnetic field shapes the structure of the solar corona but we still know little about the interrelationships between the coronal magnetic field configurations and the resulting quasi-stationary structures observed in coronagraphic images (as streamers, plumes, coronal holes). One way to obtain information on the large-scale structure of the coronal magnetic field is to extrapolate it from photospheric data and compare the results with coronagraphic images. Our aim is to verify if this comparison can be a fast method to check systematically the reliability of the many methods available to reconstruct the coronal magnetic field. Coronal fields are usually extrapolated from photospheric measurements typically in a region close to the central meridian on the solar disk and then compared with coronagraphic images at the limbs, acquired at least 7 days before or after to account for solar rotation, implicitly assuming that no significant changes occurred in the corona during that period. In this work, we combine images from three coronagraphs (SOHO/LASCO-C2 and the two STEREO/SECCHI-COR1) observing the Sun from different viewing angles to build Carrington maps covering the entire corona to reduce the effect of temporal evolution to ~ 5 days. We then compare the position of the observed streamers in these Carrington maps with that of the neutral lines obtained from four different magnetic field extrapolations, to evaluate the performances of the latter in the solar corona. Our results show that the location of coronal streamers can provide important indications to discriminate between different magnetic field extrapolations. △ Less

Submitted 22 May, 2019; originally announced May 2019.

Comments: Accepted by A&A the 20th of May, 2019

Journal ref: A&A 627, A9 (2019)

Epidemic spreading with awareness and different timescales in multiplex networks

Authors: Paulo Cesar Ventura da Silva, Fatima Velasquez-Rojas, Colm Connaughton, Federico Vazquez, Yamir Moreno, Francisco A. Rodrigues

Abstract: One of the major issues in the theoretical modeling of epidemic spreading is the development of methods to control the transmission of an infectious agent. Human behavior plays a fundamental role in the spreading dynamics and can be used to stop a disease from spreading or to reduce its burden, as individuals aware of the presence of a disease can take measures to reduce their exposure to contagio… ▽ More One of the major issues in the theoretical modeling of epidemic spreading is the development of methods to control the transmission of an infectious agent. Human behavior plays a fundamental role in the spreading dynamics and can be used to stop a disease from spreading or to reduce its burden, as individuals aware of the presence of a disease can take measures to reduce their exposure to contagion. In this paper, we propose a mathematical model for the spread of diseases with awareness in complex networks. Unlike previous models, the information is propagated following a generalized Maki-Thompson rumor model. Flexibility on the timescale between information and disease spreading is also included. We verify that the velocity characterizing the diffusion of information awareness greatly influences the disease prevalence. We also show that a reduction in the fraction of unaware individuals does not always imply a decrease of the prevalence, as the relative timescale between disease and awareness spreading plays a crucial role in the systems' dynamics. This result is shown to be independent of the network topology. We finally calculate the epidemic threshold of our model, and show that it does not depend on the relative timescale. Our results provide a new view on how information influence disease spreading and can be used for the development of more efficient methods for disease control. △ Less

Submitted 21 September, 2019; v1 submitted 4 December, 2018; originally announced December 2018.

Comments: 12 pages, 8 figures

Journal ref: Phys. Rev. E 100, 032313 (2019)

An empirical characterization of community structures in complex networks using a bivariate map of quality metrics

Authors: Vinh-Loc Dao, Cécile Bothorel, Philippe Lenca

Abstract: Community detection emerges as an important task in the discovery of network mesoscopic structures. However, the concept of a "good" community is very context-dependent and it is relatively complicated to deduce community characteristics using available community detection techniques. In reality, the existence of a gap between structural goodness quality metrics and expected topological patterns c… ▽ More Community detection emerges as an important task in the discovery of network mesoscopic structures. However, the concept of a "good" community is very context-dependent and it is relatively complicated to deduce community characteristics using available community detection techniques. In reality, the existence of a gap between structural goodness quality metrics and expected topological patterns creates a confusion in evaluating community structures. In this paper, we introduce an empirical multivariate analysis of different structural goodness properties in order to characterize several detectable community topologies. Specifically, we show that a combination of two representative structural dimensions including community transitivity and hub dominance allows to distinguish different topologies such as star-based, clique-based, string-based and grid-based structures. Additionally, these classes of topology disclose structural proximities with those of graphs created by Erdős-Rényi, Watts-Strogatz and Barabási-Albert generative models. We illustrate popular community topologies identified by different detection methods on a large dataset composing many network categories and associate their structures with the most related graph generative model. Interestingly, this conjunctive representation sheds light on fundamental differences between mesoscopic structures in various network categories including: communication, information, biological, technological, social, ecological, synthetic networks and more. △ Less

Submitted 1 June, 2018; originally announced June 2018.

Comments: 18 pages, 12 figures, 41 reference items

Production and Integration of the ATLAS Insertable B-Layer

Authors: B. Abbott, J. Albert, F. Alberti, M. Alex, G. Alimonti, S. Alkire, P. Allport, S. Altenheiner, L. Ancu, E. Anderssen, A. Andreani, A. Andreazza, B. Axen, J. Arguin, M. Backhaus, G. Balbi, J. Ballansat, M. Barbero, G. Barbier, A. Bassalat, R. Bates, P. Baudin, M. Battaglia, T. Beau, R. Beccherle , et al. (352 additional authors not shown)

Abstract: During the shutdown of the CERN Large Hadron Collider in 2013-2014, an additional pixel layer was installed between the existing Pixel detector of the ATLAS experiment and a new, smaller radius beam pipe. The motivation for this new pixel layer, the Insertable B-Layer (IBL), was to maintain or improve the robustness and performance of the ATLAS tracking system, given the higher instantaneous and i… ▽ More During the shutdown of the CERN Large Hadron Collider in 2013-2014, an additional pixel layer was installed between the existing Pixel detector of the ATLAS experiment and a new, smaller radius beam pipe. The motivation for this new pixel layer, the Insertable B-Layer (IBL), was to maintain or improve the robustness and performance of the ATLAS tracking system, given the higher instantaneous and integrated luminosities realised following the shutdown. Because of the extreme radiation and collision rate environment, several new radiation-tolerant sensor and electronic technologies were utilised for this layer. This paper reports on the IBL construction and integration prior to its operation in the ATLAS detector. △ Less

Submitted 6 June, 2018; v1 submitted 2 March, 2018; originally announced March 2018.

Comments: 90 pages in total. Author list: ATLAS IBL Collaboration, starting page 2. 69 figures, 20 tables. Published in Journal of Instrumentation. All figures available at: https://atlas.web.cern.ch/Atlas/GROUPS/PHYSICS/PLOTS/PIX-2018-001

Journal ref: Journal of Instrumentation JINST 13 T05008 (2018)

Strain effect in highly-doped n-type 3C-SiC-on-glass substrate for mechanical sensors and mobility enhancement

Authors: Hoan-Phuong Phan, Tuan-Khoa Nguyen, Toan Dinh, Han-Hao Cheng, Fengwen Mu, Alan Iacopi, Leonie Hold, Tadatomo Suga, Dzung Viet Dao, Debbie G. Senesky, Nam-Trung Nguyen

Abstract: This work reports the strain effect on the electrical properties of highly doped n-type single crystalline cubic silicon carbide (3C-SiC) transferred onto a 6-inch glass substrate employing an anodic bonding technique. The experimental data shows high gauge factors of -8.6 in longitudinal direction and 10.5 in transverse direction along the [100] orientation. The piezoresistive effect in the highl… ▽ More This work reports the strain effect on the electrical properties of highly doped n-type single crystalline cubic silicon carbide (3C-SiC) transferred onto a 6-inch glass substrate employing an anodic bonding technique. The experimental data shows high gauge factors of -8.6 in longitudinal direction and 10.5 in transverse direction along the [100] orientation. The piezoresistive effect in the highly doped 3C-SiC film also exhibits an excellent linearity and consistent reproducibility after several bending cycles. The experimental result was in good agreement with the theoretical analysis based on the phenomenon of electron transfer between many valleys in the conduction band of n-type 3C-SiC. Our finding for the large gauge factor in n-type 3C- SiC coupled with the elimination of the current leak to the insulated substrate could pave the way for the development of single crystal SiC-on-glass based MEMS applications. △ Less

Submitted 22 February, 2018; originally announced February 2018.

Reconstruction of Electrical Impedance Tomography Using Fish School Search, Non-Blind Search, and Genetic Algorithm

Authors: Valter Augusto de Freitas Barbosa, Reiga Ramalho Ribeiro, Allan Rivalles Souza Feitosa, Victor Luiz Bezerra Araújo da Silva, Arthur Diego Dias Rocha, Rafaela Covello de Freitas, Ricardo Emmanuel de Souza, Wellington Pinheiro dos Santos

Abstract: Electrical Impedance Tomography (EIT) is a noninvasive imaging technique that does not use ionizing radiation, with application both in environmental sciences and in health. Image reconstruction is performed by solving an inverse problem and ill-posed. Evolutionary Computation and Swarm Intelligence have become a source of methods for solving inverse problems. Fish School Search (FSS) is a promisi… ▽ More Electrical Impedance Tomography (EIT) is a noninvasive imaging technique that does not use ionizing radiation, with application both in environmental sciences and in health. Image reconstruction is performed by solving an inverse problem and ill-posed. Evolutionary Computation and Swarm Intelligence have become a source of methods for solving inverse problems. Fish School Search (FSS) is a promising search and optimization method, based on the dynamics of schools of fish. In this article the authors present a method for reconstruction of EIT images based on FSS and Non-Blind Search (NBS). The method was evaluated using numerical phantoms consisting of electrical conductivity images with subjects in the center, between the center and the edge and on the edge of a circular section, with meshes of 415 finite elements. The authors performed 20 simulations for each configuration. Results showed that both FSS and FSS-NBS were able to converge faster than genetic algorithms. △ Less

Submitted 3 December, 2017; originally announced December 2017.

Journal ref: International Journal of Swarm Intelligence Research, Volume 8, Issue 2, 2017

Nano strain-amplifier: making ultra-sensitive piezoresistance in nanowires possible without the need of quantum and surface charge effects

Authors: Hoang-Phuong Phan, Toan Dinh, Takahiro Kozeki, Tuan-Khoa Nguyen, Afzaal Qamar, Takahiro Namazu, Nam-Trung Nguyen, Dzung Viet Dao

Abstract: This paper presents an innovative nano strain-amplifier employed to significantly enhance the sensitivity of piezoresistive strain sensors. Inspired from the dogbone structure, the nano strain-amplifier consists of a nano thin frame released from the substrate, where nanowires were formed at the centre of the frame. Analytical and numerical results indicated that a nano strain-amplifier significan… ▽ More This paper presents an innovative nano strain-amplifier employed to significantly enhance the sensitivity of piezoresistive strain sensors. Inspired from the dogbone structure, the nano strain-amplifier consists of a nano thin frame released from the substrate, where nanowires were formed at the centre of the frame. Analytical and numerical results indicated that a nano strain-amplifier significantly increases the strain induced into a free standing nanowire, resulting in a large change in their electrical conductance. The proposed structure was demonstrated in p-type cubic silicon carbide nanowires fabricated using a top down process. The experimental data showed that the nano strain-amplifier can enhance the sensitivity of SiC strain sensors at least 5.4 times larger than that of the conventional structures. This result indicates the potential of the proposed strain-amplifier for ultra-sensitive mechanical sensing applications. △ Less

Submitted 15 July, 2016; originally announced July 2016.

Comments: 4 pages, 5 figures