Jefferson Lab Weekly Briefs January 26, 2011

Jefferson Lab Weekly Briefs
January 26, 2011

12 GeV Upgrade

All but two of the 86 niobium cavities for the cryomodules are on site, which is sufficient for all 10 of the new 12 GeV cryomodules, plus four spare cavities.  Assembly of the first cavity string is complete and its installation into the first cryomodule has begun. All 36 four-meter dipole magnets for the beam transport lines have been received and testing is underway. All beam transport quadrupole magnets have been received and have passed their field quality, field strength and magnetic-vs-physical-center tests. Construction of the Central Helium Liquefier expansion’s coldbox is proceeding according to plan. Progress on the expansion of the Personnel Safety System to include the 10 new linac zones plus Hall D continues.

Physics

In Hall C, Q-weak is continuing production data taking. The high-power liquid hydrogen cryotarget is operating reliably at 150 microamps and above, with cooling power to spare. The Qtor power supply has seen more stable operation, possibly due to the placement of additional shielding around the supply. A donut shield has also been added around the beamline to reduce already small backgrounds in the main Q-weak detector (quartz bars).

JSA/JLab Graduate Fellowship Program
JSA, LLC, is now accepting applications for the JSA/JLab Graduate Fellowship Program. More information and an application can be found on the website. The application deadline is Jan. 28. If you have questions about the program, contact Elizabeth Lawson.

JSA/JLab Sabbatical Support Program
JSA is now accepting applications for the 2010-2011 academic year JSA/JLab Sabbatical Support Program. More information and an application can be found on the website. The application deadline is Jan. 28. If you have questions about the program, contact Elizabeth Lawson.

Accelerator

The accelerator was running with some downtime. Last Tuesday, the pre-buncher amplifier was replaced, which stabilized the high current to Hall C. The alignment of the injector chicane beamline was also corrected. On Saturday, the injector and the north linac were opened up for the U.S. Particle Accelerator School tour. The End Station Refrigerator tripped on Sunday and the Central Helium Liquefier tripped on Monday. Beam delivery was resumed on Monday.

Free-Electron Laser

The FEL team is hosting a two-week course called “Beam Measurements, Manipulation and Instrumentation at an ERL FEL Driver" through the U.S. Particle Accelerator School. The course is comprised of 12 students, and they are given the opportunity to make beam-based measurements and also learn about beam diagnostics with separate laboratory exercises. All is proceeding extremely well in the control room, the lab and the vault, and the team worked on the lab’s holiday on Monday to get a full program in.

Theoretical and Computational Physics

In a new paper <arXiv:1101.2165 [hep-ph]>, a model for generalized parton distributions (GPDs) is discussed that allows one to "implant" into GPDs the Regge behavior of the usual parton distributions at small momentum fractions of the nucleon carried by the parton. An essential element of the model is the form of the parton-hadron vertex. If such a vertex has a non-pointlike, wave function-type form, the resulting GPDs are shown to be free of singularities at the border point between the parton-like and wave function-like regions, contrary to earlier claims.

Environment, Safety, Health and Quality

Moves and relocations during the coming months may reveal old containers of chemicals that are no longer needed or may have expired. Generally, this is not an issue when the label is intact and you want to dispose of it; contact the JLab Hazardous Waste team for assistance: Brett Lewis, x6254, or Jennifer Williams, x7882.
 
However, unlabeled and/or “orphaned” chemicals are a danger. These materials may be in a container that no longer has its original label or may have been transferred to a new container without the required Hazard Communication label. These hazards can be avoided by maintaining the original label, re-labeling the container as directed or as needed, and properly labeling any non-original container used to store the chemical. For non-original containers, an acceptable label may be found in ES&H Manual 6610-T3.

If you discover an unlabeled and unknown container, check with your co-workers to see if it is theirs and help them get a proper label on it. If still not identifiable, then call the Hazardous Waste team for assistance. Under no circumstances should an unknown chemical container be dropped off or left without notification or prior communication with a team member.

Computing and Networking Infrastructure

JLab_guest Wireless Change On the Way
At 7 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 7, the 'jlab_guest' wireless network will be upgraded from WEP to WPA2 Personal (WPA2-PSK). If you plan to use this network following the upgrade, visit the Computer Center website for details on how to reconfigure 'jlab_guest' on your device after the upgrade. If you have any questions, contact the IT Division Helpdesk, x7155.

Announcements

Onsite TIAA-CREF Counseling Offered
TIAA-CREF will offer individual counseling sessions onsite on Feb. 17, April 1, May 19-20. In these sessions, employees can discuss their personal financial situation with a TIAA-CREF consultant on a confidential basis. To discuss your plan and options for managing your retirement savings or to schedule an appointment with a TIAA-CREF individual consultant, call TIAA-CREF at (800) 732-8353, Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-8 p.m.

Want to Play Softball?
The JLab co-ed softball team is considering re-forming for the 2011 spring/summer season. To express an interest in joining the team, send an e-mail to Kandice Carter by Tuesday, Feb. 1. The team would play in the Co-Ed Industrial League on Friday nights, April through July, at Chisman Creek Park in York County.

Colloquium: Nanotubes - 20 Years and Into the Future
Since the 1991 publication of the seminal paper describing the carbon nanotube, thousands of researchers have explored nanotubes' properties and potential applications. Few realize, however, that carbon’s immediate neighbors on the periodic chart, boron and nitrogen, can also form perfect nanotubes. Mike Smith of NASA Langley Research Center will describe the discovery of a new method for making BNNTs that was developed at JLab’s FEL. For applications from space elevators to nuclear physics, Smith will explore the possibility that better nanotubes have finally arrived in a Feb. 9 colloquium in the CEBAF Center auditorium at 4 p.m.

Results from Blood Drive
The Jan. 21 American Red Cross Blood Drive was very successful! A total of 72 people signed up to donate blood. Several people were deferred for various reasons; however, the Red Cross still collected 53 pints of whole blood and five donations of red cells, exceeding the lab's goal of 50 units. Occupational Medicine would like to extend a sincere thank you to everyone that participated with this blood drive and congratulate you for a job well done!

JLab Calendar of Events

Jan. 27: Protect Your Identify: The Newest Identity Theft Scams
Feb. 5: Va. Regional High School Science Bowl
Feb. 7: Safety Shoe vendor onsite
Feb. 9: Nanotubes Colloquium and Public Lecture
Feb. 21: Presidents Day holiday: JLab closed
Feb. 23-25: Excited Hadronic States and the Deconfinement Transition Workshop
Feb. 28: Safety Shoe vendor onsite