% Year 2014; there are 5 entries. @ARTICLE{Davi2014, author = {M. Davidson}, title = {{Theories of variable mass particles and low energy nuclear phenomena}}, journal = {Found. Phys.}, volume = {44}, year = {2014}, pages = {144--174}, keyword = {Hydrated palladium Deuterated palladium LENR Fusion}, submitted = {05/2013}, published = {01/2014}, annote = {"Abstract Variable particle masses have sometimes been invoked to explain observed anomalies in low energy nuclear reactions (LENR). Such behavior has never been observed directly, and is not considered possible in theoretical nuclear physics. Nev- ertheless, there are covariant off-mass-shell theories of relativistic particle dynamics, based on works by Fock, Stueckelberg, Feynman, Greenberger, Horwitz, and others. We review some of these and we also consider virtual particles that arise in conventional Feynman diagrams in relativistic field theories. Effective Lagrangian models incorporating variable mass particle theories might be useful in describing anomalous nuclear reactions by combining mass shifts together with resonant tunneling and other effects. A detailed model for resonant fusion in a deuterium molecule with off-shell deuterons and electrons is presented as an example. Experimental means of observing such off-shell behavior directly, if it exists, is proposed and described. Brief explanations for elemental transmutation and formation of micro-craters are also given, and an alternative mechanism for the mass shift in the Widom-Larsen theory is presented. If variable mass theories were to find experimental support from LENR, then they would undoubtedly have important implications for the foundations of quantum mechanics, and practical applications may arise."} } @ARTICLE{Dodo2014, author = {A. V. Dodonov and V. V. Dodonov}, title = {{Tunneling of slow quantum packets through the high Coulomb barrier}}, journal = {Physics Lett. A}, volume = {378}, year = {2014}, pages = {1071--1073}, keyword = {Theory}, submitted = {01/2014}, published = {03/2014}, annote = {"We study the tunneling of slow quantum packets through a high Coulomb barrier. We show that the transmission coefficient can be quite different from the standard expression obtained in the plane wave (WKB) approximation (and larger by many orders of magnitude), even if the momentum dispersion is much smaller than the mean value of the momentum."} } @ARTICLE{Facc2014, author = {R. Faccini and A. Pilloni and A. D. Polosa and M. Angelone and E. Castagna and S. Lecci and A. Pietropaolo and M. Pillon and M. Sansovini and F. Sarto and V. Violante and R. Bedogni and A. Esposito}, title = {{Search for neutron flux generation in a plasma discharge electrolytic cell}}, journal = {Eur. Phys. J. C}, volume = {74:2894}, year = {2014}, pages = {1--5}, submitted = {03/2014}, published = {05/2014}, annote = {"Abstract Following some recent unexpected hints of neutron production in high-voltage atmospheric discharges, we present a measurement of the neutron flux in plasma dis- charges in electrolytic cells. We use two different types of neutron detectors, polyallyl diglycol carbonate (PADC, aka CR-39) tracers and indium disks. At 95 \% C.L. we provide an upper limit of 1.5 neutrons cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$ for the thermal neutron flux at $\approx$5 cm from the center of the cell. Allowing for a higher energy neutron component, the largest allowed flux is 64 neutrons cm$^{−2}$ s$^{−1}$ . T upper limit is two orders of magnitude smaller than the signal previously claimed in an electrolytic cell plasma discharge experiment. Furthermore the behavior of the CR-39 is discussed to point out possible sources of spurious signals."} } @ARTICLE{Sarg2014, author = {S. Sarg-Sargoytchev}, title = {{Nickel-hydrogen cold fusion by intermediate Rydberg state of hydrogen: selection of the isotopes for energy optimization and radioactive waste minimization}}, journal = {The General Science Journal}, year = {2014}, pages = {1--16}, keyword = {{cold fusion, LENR, Coulomb barrier, nuclear energy, radiooactive waste}}, url = {http://gsjournal.net/Science-Journals/Essays/View/5281}, annote = {"Abstract: The main objection against cold fusion is based on the theoretical understanding that the Coulomb barrier of the very small nucleus is extremely strong. The size of the atomic nucleus is determined by scattering experiments in which a metal target is usually struck by alpha particles. These experiments yield only energy and angular resolution and their interpretation rely on the assumption that the atomic nuclei and all elementary particles are spherical. A non-spherical nucleus made of thinner non-spherical particles like a torus or a twisted or folded torus will provide similar data for a limited range of the particle energy. At the time of Rutherford, alpha particles with energy from 4 to 8 MeV were used. Modern scattering experiments with energy above 25 MeV show a sharp deviation from the Rutherford theory. They also show a wavelike shape of the scattering cross section as a function of scattering angle. A new interpretation of the scattering experiments leads to the idea that the Coulomb field near the nucleus has a manifold shape with a much larger overall size and therefore is not so strong. The BSM-SG models of atomic nuclei are in excellent agreement with this conclusion. Applying the approach described in the monograph Structural Physics of Nuclear Fusion with BSM-SG atomic models, the highly exothermal process between nickel and hydrogen is analyzed."} } @ARTICLE{Vyso2014, author = {V. I. Vysotskii and M. V. Vysotskyy}, title = {{Correlated states and transparency of a barrier for low energy particles at monotonic deformation of a potential well with dissipation and a stochastic force}}, journal = {J. Exper. Theo. Phys.}, volume = {118}, year = {2014}, number = {4}, pages = {534--549}, note = {Originally in Russian in Zh. Eksp. Teo. Fiz. 145 (2014) 615--632}, keyword = {Theory}, submitted = {09/2013}, published = {04/2014}, annote = {"The features of the formation of correlated coherent states of a particle in a parabolic potential well at its monotonic deformation (expansion or compression) in finite limits have been considered in the presence of dissipation and a stochastic force. It has been shown that, in both deformation regimes, a corre lated coherent state is rapidly formed with a large correlation coefficient $|r| \rightarrow 1$, which corresponds at a low energy of the particle to a very significant (by a factor of $10^{50}-10^{100}$ or larger) increase in the transparency of the potential barrier at its interaction with atoms (nuclei) forming the "walls" of the potential well or other atoms located in the same well. The efficiency of the formation of correlated coherent states, as well as $|r|$ , increases with an increase in the deformation interval and with a decrease in the deformation time. The presence of the stochastic force acting on the particle can significantly reduce the maximum $|r|$ value and result in the fast relaxation of correlated coherent states with $|r| \rightarrow 0$. The effect of dissipation in real systems is weaker than the action of the stochastic force. It has been shown that the formation of correlated coherent states at the fast expansion of the well can underlie the mechanism of nuclear reactions at a low energy, e.g., in microcracks developing in the bulk of metal hydrides loaded with hydrogen or deuterium, as well as in a low pressure plasma in a variable magnetic field in which the motion of ions is similar to a harmonic oscillator with a variable frequency."} }