This research aims to improve the radiation shielding properties of polymer-based materials by mixing PVC with locally available building materials. Specifically, two key parameters of fast neutron attenuation (removal cross-section and half-value layer) were studied for composite materials comprising PVC reinforced with common building materials (cement, sand, gypsum and marble) in different proportions (10%, 30% and 50% by weight). To assess their effectiveness as protection against fast neutrons, the macroscopic neutron cross-section was calculated for each composite. Results show that neutron cross-section values are significantly affected by the reinforcement ratios, and that the composite material PVC + 50% gypsum is an effect

BOOK REVIEW

Lasers, with their unique characteristics in terms of excellent beam quality, especially directionality and coherency, make them the solution that is key for many processes that require high precision. Lasers have good susceptibility to integrate with automated systems, which provides high flexibility to reach difficult zones. In addition, as a processing tool, a laser can be considered as a contact-free tool of precise tip that became attractive for high precision machining at the micro and nanoscales for different materials. All of the above advantages may be not enough unless the laser technician/engineer has enough knowledge about the mechanism of interaction between the laser light with the processed material. Several sequential phenom

Pumping a BBO crystal by a violet diode laser with a wavelength of (405 nm) output power of (24 mW) and a line width of (3nm) was employed to generate entangled photons with a wavelength of 810 nm by achieving type II phase matching conditions.The coincidence count rate obtained in this experiment was in the range of (18000) counts/s. Two BBO crystals with different thicknesses of (4 mm and 2 mm) were tested, where maximum count rates of about (18000) counts/s was obtained with a (5*5*2) mm BBO crystal where the short coherence time for the pumping source was tolerated by using shorter BBO crystals. Also, the effect of compensating crystal on the walk-off effect was studied. The coincidence count rates were increased by using these crystal