skip to main content


Title: Advanced picosecond precision Radio Frequency Timer
Abstract

A new type of radio frequency (RF) timing technique is presented. It is based on a helical deflector, which performs circular or elliptical sweeps of photo- or secondary electrons, accelerated to keV energies, by means of RF fields in the 500–1000 MHz range. By converting a time distribution of the electrons to a hit position distribution on a circle or ellipse, this device achieves extremely precise timing, similar to streak cameras. Detection of the scanned electrons, using a position sensitive detector based on microchannel plates and a delay line anode, resulted in a timing resolution of 10 ps, which can be potentially improved to 1 ps. RF-Timer-based single photon and heavy ion detectors have potential applications in different fields of science and industry, which include high energy nuclear physics and imaging technologies. This technique could play a crucial role in developing of sub 10 ps Time-of-Flight Positron Emission Tomography.

 
more » « less
Award ID(s):
2310059 2011890
PAR ID:
10489795
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; more » ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; « less
Publisher / Repository:
IOP Publishing
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Journal of Instrumentation
Volume:
19
Issue:
02
ISSN:
1748-0221
Page Range / eLocation ID:
C02014
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. SUMMARY

    Seismic interrogation of the upper mantle from the base of the crust to the top of the mantle transition zone has revealed discontinuities that are variable in space, depth, lateral extent, amplitude and lack a unified explanation for their origin. Improved constraints on the detectability and properties of mantle discontinuities can be obtained with P-to-S receiver function (Ps-RF) where energy scatters from P to S as seismic waves propagate across discontinuities of interest. However, due to the interference of crustal multiples, uppermost mantle discontinuities are more commonly imaged with lower resolution S-to-P receiver function (Sp-RF). In this study, a new method called CRISP-RF (Clean Receiver-function Imaging using SParse Radon Filters) is proposed, which incorporates ideas from compressive sensing and model-based image reconstruction. The central idea involves applying a sparse Radon transform to effectively decompose the Ps-RF into its underlying wavefield contributions, that is direct conversions, multiples, and noise, based on the phase moveout and coherence. A masking filter is then designed and applied to create a multiple-free and denoised Ps-RF. We demonstrate, using synthetic experiment, that our implementation of the Radon transform using a sparsity-promoting regularization outperforms the conventional least-squares methods and can effectively isolate direct Ps conversions. We further apply the CRISP-RF workflow on real data, including single station data on cratons, common-conversion-point stack at continental margins and seismic data from ocean islands. The application of CRISP-RF to global data sets will advance our understanding of the enigmatic origins of the upper mantle discontinuities like the ubiquitous mid-lithospheric discontinuity and the elusive X-discontinuity.

     
    more » « less
  2. Abstract

    Seismological constraints obtained from receiver function (RF) analysis provide important information about the crust and mantle structure. Here, we explore the utility of the free‐surface multiple of the P‐wave (PP) and the corresponding conversions in RF analysis. Using earthquake records, we demonstrate the efficacy of PPs‐RFs before illustrating how they become especially useful when limited data is available in typical planetary missions. Using a transdimensional hierarchical Bayesian deconvolution approach, we compute robust P‐to‐S (Ps)‐ and PPs‐RFs withInSightrecordings of five marsquakes. Our Ps‐RF results verify the direct Ps converted phases reported by previous RF analyses with increased coherence and reveal other phases including the primary multiple reverberating within the uppermost layer of the Martian crust. Unlike the Ps‐RFs, our PPs‐RFs lack an arrival at 7.2 s lag time. Whereas Ps‐RFs on Mars could be equally well fit by a two‐ or three‐layer crust, synthetic modeling shows that the disappearance of the 7.2 s phase requires a three‐layer crust, and is highly sensitive to velocity and thickness of intra‐crustal layers. We show that a three‐layer crust is also preferred by S‐to‐P (Sp)‐RFs. While the deepest interface of the three‐layer crust represents the crust‐mantle interface beneath theInSightlanding site, the other two interfaces at shallower depths could represent a sharp transition between either fractured and unfractured materials or thick basaltic flows and pre‐existing crustal materials. PPs‐RFs can provide complementary constraints and maximize the extraction of information about crustal structure in data‐constrained circumstances such as planetary missions.

     
    more » « less
  3. Techniques to control the spectro-temporal properties of quantum states of light at ultrafast time scales are crucial for numerous applications in quantum information science. In this work, we report an all-optical time lens for quantum signals based on Bragg-scattering four-wave mixing with picosecond resolution. Our system achieves a temporal magnification factor of 158 with single-photon level inputs, which is sufficient to overcome the intrinsic timing jitter of superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors. We demonstrate discrimination of two terahertz-bandwidth, single-photon-level pulses with 2.1 ps resolution (electronic jitter corrected resolution of 1.25 ps). We draw on elegant tools from Fourier optics to further show that the time-lens framework can be extended to perform complex unitary spectro-temporal transformations by imparting optimized temporal and spectral phase profiles to the input waveforms. Using numerical optimization techniques, we show that a four-stage transformation can realize an efficient temporal mode sorter that demultiplexes 10 Hermite–Gaussian (HG) modes. Our time-lens-based framework represents a new toolkit for arbitrary spectro-temporal processing of single photons, with applications in temporal mode quantum processing, high-dimensional quantum key distribution, temporal mode matching for quantum networks, and quantum-enhanced sensing with time-frequency entangled states.

     
    more » « less
  4. Abstract

    In this study, a magnetic dip event in which a small‐scale magnetic dip is embedded within a large‐scale magnetic dip is analyzed based on the observations of the Van Allen Probes. The small‐scale dip is contributed by a sharp electron injection at the energy range of 1 to 10 keV, but the large‐scale dip is contributed by a smooth proton injection at the energy range higher than 10 keV. The formation of dip caused by the suprathermal electrons is supported by the self‐consistent magnetic model. Moreover, the echoes of butterfly distributions of relativistic electrons at the energy range of 0.5 to 3.4 MeV is observed. The time separations of the neighboring butterfly distributions are comparable to the drift periods of the electrons at the different energies. We suggest that the potential nonadiabatic processes in response to the magnetic dips possibly account for the butterfly distribution echoes.

     
    more » « less
  5. Purpose

    To assess RF‐induced heating hazards in 1.5T MR systems caused by body‐loop postures.

    Methods

    Twelve advanced high‐resolution anatomically correct human body models with different body‐loop postures are created based on poseable human adult male models. Numerical simulations are performed to assess the radiofrequency (RF)‐induced heating of these 12 models at 11 landmarks. A customized phantom is developed to validate the numerical simulations and quantitatively analyze factors affecting the RF‐induced heating, eg, the contact area, the loop size, and the loading position. The RF‐induced heating inside three differently posed phantoms is measured.

    Results

    The RF‐induced heating from the body‐loop postures can be up to 11 times higher than that from the original posture. The RF‐induced heating increases with increasing body‐loop size and decreasing contact area. The magnetic flux increases when the body‐loop center and the RF coil isocenter are close to each other, leading to increased RF‐induced heating. An air gap created in the body loop or generating a polarized magnetic field parallel to the body loop can reduce the heating by a factor of three at least. Experimental measurements are provided, validating the correctness of the numerical results.

    Conclusion

    Safe patient posture during MR examinations is recommended with the use of insulation materials to prevent loop formation and consequently avoiding high RF‐induced heating. If body loops cannot be avoided, the body loop should be placed outside the RF transmitting coil. In addition, linear polarization with magnetic fields parallel to the body loop can be used to circumvent high RF‐induced heating.

     
    more » « less