This book is on inertial confinement fusion, an alternative way to produce electrical power from hydrogen fuel by using powerful lasers or particle beams. Two huge laser facilities are presently under construction to show that this method works. It involves the compression of tiny amounts (micrograms) of fuel to thousand times solid density and pressures otherwise existing only in the centre of stars. Thanks to advances in laser technology, it is now possible to produce such extreme states of matter in the laboratory. Recent developments have boosted laser intensities again with new possibilities for laser particle accelerators, laser nuclear physics, and fast ignition of fusion targets. This is a reference book for those working on beam plasma physics, be it in the context of fundamental research or applications to fusion energy or novel ultra-bright laser sources. The book combines quite different areas of physics: beam target interaction, dense plasmas, hydrodynamic implosion and instabilities, radiative energy transfer as well as fusion reactions. Particular attention is given to simple and useful modeling, including dimensional analysis and similarity solutions. Both authors have worked in this field for more than 20 years. They want to address in particular those teaching this topic to students and all those interested in understanding the technical basis.

This book focuses on the characteristics of optical radiation, or a spectrum, emitted by various plasmas. In plasma, the same atomic species can produce quite different spectra, or colors depending on the nature of the plasma. This book gives a theoretical framework, by which a particular spectrum can be interpreted correctly and coherently. The uniqueness of the book lies in its comprehensive treatment of the intensity distribution of spectral lines and the population density distribution among the atomic levels, in plasma. It is intended to provide beginners with a good perspective of the field, laying out the physics in an extremely clear manner, starting from an elementary level. A very useful feature of the book is the asterisked sections and chapters which can be skipped by readers, who only wish to gain a quick and basic introduction to plasma spectroscopy. It will also be very useful to researchers working actively in the field, acting as a guide for carrying out experiments and interpreting experimental observations.

This book summarizes the enormous amount of material accumulated in the field of nuclear density functional theory over the last few decades. The goal of the theory is to provide a complete quantum-mechanical description and explanation of nuclear phenomena in terms of the local density distribution as a basic ingredient rather than the many-particle wavefunction. This leads to a considerable reduction in the mathematical complexity of nuclear many-body problems and to a great conceptual simplicity and visual clarity in its theoretical treatment. The authors develop the mathematical framework on which the theory is based and consider the associated approaches used to analyse experimental data in a variety of nuclei and nuclear processes with widely differing properties.

Recent advances witness the potential to employ nanomedicine and game-changing methods to deliver drug molecules directly to diseased sites. To optimize and then enhance the efficacy and specificity, the control and guidance of drug carriers in vasculature has become crucial. Current bottlenecks in the optimal design of drug carrying particles are the lack of knowledge about the transport of particles, adhesion on endothelium wall and subsequent internalization into diseased cells. To study the transport and adhesion of particle in vasculature, the authors have made great efforts to numerically investigate the dynamic and adhesive motions of particles in the blood flow. This book discusses the recent achievements from the establishment of fundamental physical problem to development of multiscale model, and finally large scale simulations for understanding transport of particle-based drug carriers in blood flow.

The transport of electric charge through most materials is well described in terms of their electronic band structure. The present book deals with two cases where the charge transport in a solid is not described by the simple band structure picture of the solid. These cases are related to the phenomena of the quantum Hall effect and superconductivity. Part I of this book deals with the quantum Hall effect, which is a consequence of the behavior of electrons in solids when they are constrained to move in two dimensions. Part II of the present volume describes the behavior of superconductors, where electrons are bound together in Cooper pairs and travel through a material without resistance.

Optical properties, particularly in the infrared range of wavelengths, continue to be of enormous interest to both material scientists and device engineers. The need for the development of standards for data of optical properties in the infrared range of wavelengths is very timely considering the on-going transition of nano-technology from fundamental R&D to manufacturing. Radiative properties play a critical role in the processing, process control and manufacturing of semiconductor materials, devices, circuits and systems. The design and implementation of real-time process control methods in manufacturing requires the knowledge of the radiative properties of materials. Sensors and imagers operate on the basis of the radiative properties of materials. This book reviews the optical properties of various semiconductors in the infrared range of wavelengths. Theoretical and experimental studies of the radiative properties of semiconductors are presented. Previous studies, potential applications and future developments are outlined. In Chapter 1, an introduction to the radiative properties is presented. Examples of instrumentation for measurements of the radiative properties is described in Chapter 2. In Chapters 3-11, case studies of the radiative properties of several semiconductors are elucidated. The modeling and applications of these properties are explained in Chapters 12 and 13, respectively. In Chapter 14, examples of the global infrastructure for these measurements are illustrated.

Optics has been part of scientific enquiry from its beginning and remains a key element of modern science. This book provides a concise treatment of physical optics starting with a brief summary of geometrical optics. Scalar diffraction theory is introduced to describe wave propagation and diffraction effects and provides the basis for Fourier methods for treating more complex diffraction problems. The rest of the book treats the physics underlying some important instruments for spectral analysis and optical metrology, reflection and transmission at dielectric surfaces and the polarization of light. This undergraduate-level text aims to aid understanding of optical applications in physical, engineering and life sciences or more advanced topics in modern optics.

The effect which now bears his name, was discovered in 1958 by Rudolf Moessbauer at the Technical University of Munich. At first, this appeared to be a phenomenon related to nuclear energy levels that provided some information about excited state lifetimes and quantum properties. However, it soon became apparent that Moessbauer spectroscopy had applications in such diverse fields as general relativity, solid state physics, chemistry, materials science, biology, medical physics, archeology and art. It is the extreme sensitivity of the effect to the atomic environment around the probe atom as well as the ability to apply the technique to some interesting and important elements, most notably iron, that is responsible for the Moessbauer effect's extensive use. The present volume reviews the historical development of the Moessbauer effect, the experimental details, the basic physics of hyperfine interactions and some of the numerous applications of Moessbauer effect spectroscopy.

While neutron halos were discovered 30 years ago, this is the first book written on the subject of this exotic form of nuclei that typically contain many more neutrons than stable isotopes of those elements. It provides an introductory description of the halo and outlines the discovery and evidence for its existence. It also discusses different theoretical models of the halo's structure as well as models and techniques in reaction theory that have allowed us to study the halo. This is written at a level accessible to graduate students starting a PhD in nuclear physics. Halo nuclei are an exotic form of atomic nuclei that contain typically many more neutrons than stable isotopes of those elements. To give you a famous example, an atom of the element lithium has three electrons orbiting a nucleus with three protons and, usually, either 3 or 4 neutrons. The difference in the number of neutrons gives us two different isotopes of lithium, Li6 and Li7. But if you keep adding neutrons to the nucleus you will eventually reach Li11, with still 3 protons (that means it's lithium) but with 8 neutrons. This nucleus is so neutron-rich that the last two are very weakly bound to the rest of the nucleus (a Li9 core). What happens is a quantum mechanical effect: the two outer neutrons float around beyond the rest of the nuclear core at a distance that is beyond the range of the force that is holding them to the core. This is utterly counterintuitive. It means the nucleus looks like a core plus extended diffuse cloud of neutron probability: the halo. The author of the book, Jim Al-Khalili, is a theoretician who published some of the key papers on the structure of the halo in the mid and late 90s and was the first to determine its true size. This monograph is based on review articles he has written on the mathematical models used to determine the halo structure and the reactions used to model that structure.

Ours is an age of incredible breakthrough in science and technology. Man has blazed a trail into outer space, built 'thinking machines' and made a giant progress, but yet he is not fully aware of what exactly is inside the atom. The nucleus, however remains somewhat a riddle. How are the nucleons packed within a tiny nucleus? What is the nature of nuclear force? How can the nucleus be smashed open to harness the tremendous energy, it yields? The master theorists and experimenters have designed and built huge machines called accelerators to probe into the nucleus and solve nuclear mysteries. Particle science has gained prominence and has emerged as exciting field of research. It is imperative, therefore, that the young people interested in science read this book. It is our firm belief that this book will also help many with the crucial choice-their further studies and future occupation. We feel this will make very interesting reading without unnecessarily taxing the mind, but at the same time imparting the knowledge required to complement a prescribed course on the topic.

Progress in Optics, Volume 62, an ongoing series, contains more than 300 review articles by distinguished research workers that have become permanent records for many important developments. In this updated volume, users will find valuable updates on topics such as optical testing, the modern aspects of intensity interferometry with classical light, the generation of partially coherent beams, optical models and symmetries, and more. This book's contributions have become standard references in scientific articles, providing the state-of-the-art to researchers and practitioners who work in the field of optics.

The growing number of scientific and technological applications of plasma physics in the field of Aerospace Engineering requires that graduate students and professionals understand their principles. This introductory book is the expanded version of class notes of lectures I taught for several years to students of Aerospace Engineering and Physics. It is intended as a reading guide, addressed to students and non-specialists to tackle later with more advanced texts. To make the subject more accessible the book does not follow the usual organization of standard textbooks in this field and is divided in two parts. The first introduces the basic kinetic theory (molecular collisions, mean free path, etc.) of neutral gases in equilibrium in connection to the undergraduate physics courses. The basic properties of ionized gases and plasmas (Debye length, plasma frequencies, etc.) are addressed in relation to their equilibrium states and the collisional processes at the microscopic level. The physical description of short and long-range (Coulomb) collisions and the more relevant collisions (elementary processes) between electrons' ions and neutral atoms or molecules are discussed. The second part introduces the physical description of plasmas as a statistical system of interacting particles introducing advanced concepts of kinetic theory, (non-equilibrium distribution functions, Boltzmann collision operator, etc). The fluid transport equations for plasmas of electron ions and neutral atoms and the hydrodynamic models of interest in space science and plasma technology are derived. The plasma production in the laboratory in the context of the physics of electric breakdown is also discussed. Finally, among the myriad of aerospace applications of plasma physics, the low pressure microwave electron multipactor breakdown and plasma thrusters for space propulsion are presented in two separate chapters.

Volume 3 of this three-part series presents more advanced topics and applications of relativistic quantum field theory. The application of quantum chromodynamics to high-energy particle scattering is discussed with concrete examples for how to compute QCD scattering cross sections. Experimental evidence for the existence of quarks and gluons is then presented both within the context of the naive quark model and beyond. Dr Strickland then reviews our current understanding of the weak interaction, the unified electroweak theory, and the Brout-Higgs-Englert mechanism for the generation of gauge boson masses. The last two chapters contain a self-contained introduction to finite temperature quantum field theory with concrete examples focusing on the high-temperature thermodynamics of scalar field theories, QED, and QCD.

This book provides an itinerary to quantum mechanics taking into account the basic mathematics to formulate it. Specifically, it features the main experiments and postulates of quantum mechanics pointing out their mathematical prominent aspects showing how physical concepts and mathematical tools are deeply intertwined. The material covers topics such as analytic mechanics in Newtonian, Lagrangian, and Hamiltonian formulations, theory of light as formulated in special relativity, and then why quantum mechanics is necessary to explain experiments like the double-split, atomic spectra, and photoelectric effect. The Schroedinger equation and its solutions are developed in detail. It is pointed out that, starting from the concept of the harmonic oscillator, it is possible to develop advanced quantum mechanics. Furthermore, the mathematics behind the Heisenberg uncertainty principle is constructed towards advanced quantum mechanical principles. Relativistic quantum mechanics is finally considered.The book is devoted to undergraduate students from University courses of Physics, Mathematics, Chemistry, and Engineering. It consists of 50 self-contained lectures, and any statement and theorem are demonstrated in detail. It is the companion book of "A Mathematical Journey to Relativity", by the same Authors, published by Springer in 2020.

The present theme concerns the forces of nature, and what investigations of these forces can tell us about the world we see about us. The story of these forces is long and complex, and contains many episodes that are not atypical of the bulk of scientific research, which could have achieved greater acclaim 'if only...'.The intention of this book is to introduce ideas of how the visible world, and those parts of it that we cannot observe, either because they are too small or too large for our scale of perception, can be understood by consideration of only a few fundamental forces. The subject in these pages will be the authority of the commonly termed, laws of physics, which arise from the forces of nature, and the corresponding constants of nature (for example, the speed of light, c, the charge of the electron, e, or the mass of the electron, me).

This book introduces the research process and principles of the controlled super-coupling nuclear fusion experiment at the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) nuclear fusion reactor in Hefei, China. It uses straightforward language to explain how nuclear fusion can provide safe, environmentally friendly, clean, and inexhaustible energy in future. EAST is the world's first fully superconducting, non-circular cross-section tokamak nuclear fusion experimental device, independently developed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences. This book helps demonstrate China's cutting-edge scientific and technological advances to the rest of the world, helps spread the scientific spirit to people around the globe, and promotes prosperity and development. The book is intended for all non-experts who would like to learn more about nuclear energy and related technologies.

This thesis explores two distinct applications of laser spectroscopy: the study of nuclear ground state properties, and element selective radioactive ion beam production. It also presents the methods and results of an investigation into isotope shifts in the mercury isotopic chain. These Resonance Ionization Laser Ion Source (RILIS) developments are detailed, together with an RILIS ionization scheme that allowed laser ionized ion beams of chromium, germanium, radium and tellurium to be generated at the Isotope Mass Separator On-Line (ISOLDE) facility. A combination of laser spectroscopy with decay spectroscopy and mass spectrometry unambiguously demonstrated a cessation of the extreme shape staggering first observed in the 1970s and revealed the characteristic kink at the crossing of the N=126 shell closure. A series of RILIS developments were required to facilitate this experiment, including mercury "ionization scheme" development and the coupling of the RILIS with an arc discharge ion source. Laser spectroscopy has since become a powerful tool for nuclear physics and the Resonance Ionization Laser Ion Source (RILIS), of the ISOLDE facility at CERN, is a prime example. Highlighting important advances in this field, the thesis offers a unique and revealing resource.