1,720,979 research outputs found
Simulation of the measured ionisation-cluster distributions of alpha-particles in nanometric volumes of propane
In the last years, the probability of the formation of ionisation clusters by primary alpha particles at 5.4 MeV in nanometric volumes of propane (20.6 and 24.0 nm in a material of density 1.0 g cm(-3)) was studied experimentally and by Monte Carlo simulation. Calculations were performed taking into account the single electron detection efficiency of the track-nanodosimetric counter, which was estimated on the base of Monte Carlo calculations of electron transport inside the detector. Now a new evaluation of the efficiency has been performed, pointing out a value lower than previously estimated. Besides, the efficiency of the counter in resolving temporally the collected electrons has been calculated, together with its effect on the measured distribution. On the base of these evaluations, a new comparison has been performed between measurements and calculations, pointing out a better agreement than previously reported
Bayesian reconstruction of nanodosimetric cluster distributions at 100% detection efficiency
Ionisation spectra in nanometric volumes at a given distance from a charged particle track are obtained by using electron (or ion) gas detectors, having non-uniformly distributed detection efficiency. Therefore, such spectra should be properly processed in order to reconstruct the frequency distribution of clusters really produced in the detector gas. A Bayesian unfolding has been applied to ionisation distributions due to 5.4 MeV alpha particles in a 20-mn site obtained by Monte Carlo simulations, taking into account different detection efficiency conditions. It will be shown that Bayesian analysis provides a valid tool for reconstructing the true ionisation distributions, well beyond the maximum measured cluster size
BAYESIAN ANALYSIS OF NANODOSIMETRIC IONISATION DISTRIBUTIONS DUE TO ALPHA PARTICLES AND PROTONS
Track-nanodosimetry has the objective to investigate the stochastic aspect of ionisation events in particle tracks, by evaluating the probability distribution of the number of ionisations produced in a nanometric target volume positioned at distance d from a particle track. Such kind of measurements makes use of electron (or ion) gas detectors with detecting efficiencies non-uniformly distributed inside the target volume. This fact makes the reconstruction of true ionisation distributions, which correspond to an ideal efficiency of 100%, non-trivial. Bayesian unfolding has been applied to ionisation distributions produced by 5.4 MeV alpha particles and 20 MeV protons in cylindrical volumes of propane of 20 nm equivalent size, positioned at different impact parameters with respect to the primary beam. It will be shown that a Bayesian analysis performed by subdividing the target volume in sub-regions of different detection efficiencies is able to provide a good reconstruction of the true nanodosimetric ionisation distributions
Ionization-cluster distributions of alpha-particles in nanometric volumes of propane: measurement and calculation
The probability of the formation of ionization clusters by primary alpha-particles at 5.4 MeV in nanometric volumes of propane was studied experimentally and by Monte Carlo simulation, as a function of the distance between the center line of the particle beam and the center of the target volume. The volumes were of cylindrical shape, 3.7 mm in diameter and height. As the investigations were performed at gas pressures of 300 Pa and 350 Pa, the dimensions of the target volume were equivalent to 20.6 nm or 24.0 nm in a material of density 1.0 g/cm(3). The dependence of ionization-cluster formation on distance was studied up to values equivalent to about 70 nm. To validate the measurements, a Monte Carlo model was developed which allows the experimental arrangement and the interactions of alpha-particles and secondary electrons in the counter gas to be properly simulated. This model is supplemented by a mathematical formulation of cluster size formation in nanometric targets. The main results of our study are (i) that the mean ionization-cluster size in the delta-electron cloud of an alpha-particle track segment, decreases as a function of the distance between the center line of the a-particle beam and the center of the sensitive target volume to the power of 2.6, and (ii) that the mean cluster size in critical volumes and the relative variance of mean cluster size due to delta-electrons are invariant at distances greater than about 20 nm. We could imagine that the ionization-cluster formation in nanometric volumes might in future provide the physical basis for a redefinition of radiation quality
Experimental equivalent cluster-size distributions in nanometric volumes of liquid water
Ionisation cluster-size distributions in nanometric volumes of liquid water were determined for alpha particles at 4.6 and 5.4 MeV by measuring cluster-size frequencies in small gaseous volumes of nitrogen or propane at low gas pressure as well as by applying a suitable scaling procedure. This scaling procedure was based on the mean free ionisation lengths of alpha particles in water and in the gases measured. For validation, the measurements of cluster sizes in gaseous volumes and the cluster-size formation in volumes of liquid water of equivalent size were simulated by Monte Carlo methods. The experimental water-equivalent cluster-size distributions in nitrogen and propane are compared with those in liquid water and show that cluster-size formation by alpha particles in nitrogen or propane can directly be related to those in liquid water
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
We provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
TRACK NANODOSIMETRY OF 20-MeV PROTONS AT 20 nm
Track nanodosimetry is the theoretical and experimental research which studies the stochastic aspects of ionisation yield produced by ionising particles in nanometric target volumes, positioned at different distances from the primary particle track. The STARTRACK experimental set-up, mounted on the +50° beam line at the Tandem-Alpi particle accelerator of Legnaro National Laboratories, has been conceived to give an experimental basis to nanodosimetric calculations. STARTRACK is a detection system able to measure the ionisation cluster-size distributions in a 20 nm propane site, by counting the electrons set in motion by different ion tracks, with the resolution of one electron. The ‘sensitive volume’ SV can be moved at different distances from the primary particle track (different impact parameter). Distributions of 20-MeV protons have been measured and compared with Monte Carlo calculations
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