No abstract

Over a period of eight months, we have monitored transition frequencies between nearly degenerate, opposite-parity levels in two isotopes of atomic dysprosium (Dy). These transition frequencies are highly sensitive to temporal variation of the fine-structure constant (α) due to relativistic corrections of large and opposite sign for the opposite-parity levels. In this unique system, in contrast to atomic-clock comparisons, the difference of the electronic energies of the opposite-parity levels can be monitored directly utilizing a radio-frequency (rf) electric-dipole transition between them. Our measurements show that the frequency variation of the 3.1-MHz transition in 163 Dy and the 235-MHz transition in 162 Dy are 9.0±6.7 Hz/yr and -0.6±6.5 Hz/yr, respectively. These results provide a value for the rate of fractional variation of α of (−2.7 ± 2.6) × 10 −15 yr −1 (1 σ) without any assumptions on the constancy of other fundamental constants, indicating absence of significant variation at the present level of sensitivity.

It has been proposed that the radio-frequency electric-dipole (E1) transition between two nearly degenerate opposite-parity states in atomic dysprosium should be highly sensitive to possible temporal variation of the fine structure constant (α) [V. A. Dzuba, V. V. Flambaum, and J. K. Webb, Phys. Rev. A 59, 230 (1999)]. We analyze here an experimental realization of the proposed search in progress in our laboratory, which involves monitoring the E1 transition frequency over a period of time using direct frequency counting techniques. We estimate that a statistical sensitivity of |α/α| ∼ 10 −18 /yr may be achieved and discuss possible systematic effects that may limit such a measurement.

BackgroundAchieving adequate response rates is an ongoing challenge for longitudinal studies. The World Trade Center Health Registry is a longitudinal health study that periodically surveys a cohort of ~71,000 people exposed to the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York City. Since Wave 1, the Registry has conducted three follow-up surveys (Waves 2–4) every 3–4 years and utilized various strategies to increase survey participation. A promised monetary incentive was offered for the first time to survey non-respondents in the recent Wave 4 survey, conducted 13–14 years after 9/11.MethodsWe evaluated the effectiveness of a monetary incentive in improving the response rate five months after survey launch, and assessed whether or not response completeness was compromised due to incentive use. The study compared the likelihood of returning a survey for those who received an incentive offer to those who did not, using logistic regression models. Among those who returned surveys, we also examined whether those receiving an incentive notification had higher rate of response completeness than those who did not, using negative binomial regression models and logistic regression models.ResultsWe found that a $10 monetary incentive offer was effective in increasing Wave 4 response rates. Specifically, the $10 incentive offer was useful in encouraging initially reluctant participants to respond to the survey. The likelihood of returning a survey increased by 30% for those who received an incentive offer (AOR = 1.3, 95% CI: 1.1, 1.4), and the incentive increased the number of returned surveys by 18%. Moreover, our results did not reveal any significant differences on response completeness between those who received an incentive offer and those who did not.ConclusionsIn the face of the growing challenge of maintaining a high response rate for the World Trade Center Health Registry follow-up surveys, this study showed the value of offering a monetary incentive as an additional refusal conversion strategy. Our findings also suggest that an incentive offer could be particularly useful near the end of data collection period when an immediate boost in response rate is needed.

Radio-frequency E1 transitions between nearly degenerate, opposite parity levels of atomic dysprosium were monitored over an eight month period to search for a variation in the fine-structure constant. During this time period, data were taken at different points in the gravitational potential of the Sun. The data are fitted to the variation in the gravitational potential yielding a value of (−8.7 ± 6.6) × 10 −6 for the fit parameter kα. This value gives the current best laboratory limit. In addition, our value of kα combined with other experimental constraints is used to extract the first limits on ke and kq. These coefficients characterize the variation of me/mp and mq/mp in a changing gravitational potential, where me, mp, and mq are electron, proton, and quark masses. The results are ke = (4.9 ± 3.9) × 10 −5 and kq = (6.6 ± 5.2) × 10 −5 .Similarly, the change of the rf transition frequency between levels A and B, as shown in Fig. 1, is given by