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Sample records for cone-tipped stimulating microelectrodes

  1. Surface-modified microelectrode array with flake nanostructure for neural recording and stimulation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Ju-Hyun; Choi, Yang-Kyu [Nano-Oriented Bio-Electronics Lab, Department of Electrical Engineering, College of Information Science and Technology, KAIST, Daejeon 305-701 (Korea, Republic of); Kang, Gyumin; Nam, Yoonkey, E-mail: ynam@kaist.ac.kr, E-mail: ykchoi@ee.kaist.ac.kr [Department of Bio and Brain Engineering, KAIST, KAIST Institute for Nano-Century, Daejeon 305-701 (Korea, Republic of)

    2010-02-26

    A novel microelectrode modification method is reported for neural electrode engineering with a flake nanostructure (nanoflake). The nanoflake-modified electrodes are fabricated by combining conventional lithography and electrochemical deposition to implement a microelectrode array (MEA) on a glass substrate. The unique geometrical properties of nanoflake sharp tips and valleys are studied by optical, electrochemical and electrical methods in order to verify the advantages of using nanoflakes for neural recording devices. The in vitro recording and stimulation of cultured hippocampal neurons are demonstrated on the nanoflake-modified MEA and the clear action potentials are observed due to the nanoflake impedance reduction effect.

  2. Note: Microelectrode-shielding tip for scanning probe electron energy spectroscopy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Wei; Li, Zhean; Xu, Chunkai; Liu, Jian; Xu, Chunye; Chen, Xiangjun

    2018-04-01

    We report a novel microelectrode-shielding tip (ME tip) for scanning probe electron energy spectroscopy (SPEES). The shielding effect of this tip is studied through comparing the detection efficiency with the normal tip by both experiment and simulation. The results show that the backscattering count rate detected by the SPEES instrument using the normal tip begins to decrease as the tip approaches to the sample surface within 21 μm, while that using the ME tip only starts to drop off within 1 μm. This indicates that the electron energy spectra can be measured with the ME tip at a much closer tip-sample distance. Furthermore, it is also demonstrated that the ME tip can be used to obtain topography of the sample surface in situ simultaneously.

  3. Modeling and Simulation of Microelectrode-Retina Interactions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Beckerman, M

    2002-11-30

    The goal of the retinal prosthesis project is the development of an implantable microelectrode array that can be used to supply visually-driven electrical input to cells in the retina, bypassing nonfunctional rod and cone cells, thereby restoring vision to blind individuals. This goal will be achieved through the study of the fundamentals of electrical engineering, vision research, and biomedical engineering with the aim of acquiring the knowledge needed to engineer a high-density microelectrode-tissue hybrid sensor that will restore vision to millions of blind persons. The modeling and simulation task within this project is intended to address the question how best to stimulate, and communicate with, cells in the retina using implanted microelectrodes.

  4. Chronic, percutaneous connector for electrical recording and stimulation with microelectrode arrays.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shah, Kedar G; Lee, Kye Young; Tolosa, Vanessa; Tooker, Angela; Felix, Sarah; Benett, William; Pannu, Satinderpall

    2014-01-01

    The translation of advances in neural stimulation and recording research into clinical practice hinges on the ability to perform chronic experiments in awake and behaving animal models. Advances in microelectrode array technology, most notably flexible polymer arrays, have significantly improved reliability of the neural interface. However, electrical connector technology has lagged and is prone to failure from non-biocompatibility, large size, contamination, corrosion, and difficulty of use. We present a novel chronic, percutaneous electrical connector system that is suitable for neural stimulation and recording. This system features biocompatible materials, low connect and disconnect forces, passive alignment, and a protective cap during non-use. We have successfully designed, assembled, and tested in vitro both a 16-channel system and a high density 64-channel system. Custom, polyimide, 16-channel, microelectrode arrays were electrically assembled with the connector system and tested using cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. This connector system is versatile and can be used with a variety of microelectrode array technologies for chronic studies.

  5. Spectral characteristics of light sources for S-cone stimulation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schlegelmilch, F; Nolte, R; Schellhorn, K; Husar, P; Henning, G; Tornow, R P

    2002-11-01

    Electrophysiological investigations of the short-wavelength sensitive pathway of the human eye require the use of a suitable light source as a S-cone stimulator. Different light sources with their spectral distribution properties were investigated and compared with the ideal S-cone stimulator. First, the theoretical background of the calculation of relative cone energy absorption from the spectral distribution function of the light source is summarized. From the results of the calculation, the photometric properties of the ideal S-cone stimulator will be derived. The calculation procedure was applied to virtual light sources (computer generated spectral distribution functions with different medium wavelengths and spectrum widths) and to real light sources (blue and green light emitting diodes, blue phosphor of CRT-monitor, multimedia projector, LCD monitor and notebook display). The calculated relative cone absorbencies are compared to the conditions of an ideal S-cone stimulator. Monochromatic light sources with wavelengths of less than 456 nm are close to the conditions of an ideal S-cone stimulator. Spectrum widths up to 21 nm do not affect the S-cone activation significantly (S-cone activation change < 0.2%). Blue light emitting diodes with peak wavelength at 448 nm and spectrum bandwidth of 25 nm are very useful for S-cone stimulation (S-cone activation approximately 95%). A suitable display for S-cone stimulation is the Trinitron computer monitor (S-cone activation approximately 87%). The multimedia projector has a S-cone activation up to 91%, but their spectral distribution properties depends on the selected intensity. LCD monitor and notebook displays have a lower S-cone activation (< or = 74%). Carefully selecting the blue light source for S-cone stimulation can reduce the unwanted L-and M-cone activation down to 4% for M-cones and 1.5% for L-cones.

  6. Apparatus and method of inserting a microelectrode in body tissue or the like using vibration means

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feldstein, C.; Crawford, D. W.; Kanabus, E. W. (Inventor)

    1979-01-01

    An arrangement for and method of inserting a glass microelectrode having a tip in the micron range into body tissue is presented. The arrangement includes a microelectrode. The top of the microelectrode is attached to the diaphragm center of a first speaker. The microelectrode tip is brought into contact with the tissue by controlling a micromanipulator. Thereafter, an audio signal is applied to the speaker to cause the microelectrode to vibrate and thereby pierce the tissue surface without breaking the microelectrode tip. Thereafter, the tip is inserted into the tissue to the desired depth by operating the micromanipulator with the microelectrode in a vibratory or non-vibratory state.

  7. Physicochemical properties of peptide-coated microelectrode arrays and their in vitro effects on neuroblast cells

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ghane-Motlagh, Bahareh, E-mail: bahar.ghane@gmail.com [Polystim Neurotechnologies Laboratory, Department of Electrical Engineering, Polytechnique Montreal, QC H3C 3A7 (Canada); Javanbakht, Taraneh; Shoghi, Fatemeh; Wilkinson, Kevin J.; Martel, Richard [Department of Chemistry, University of Montreal, QC H3C 3J7 (Canada); Sawan, Mohamad [Polystim Neurotechnologies Laboratory, Department of Electrical Engineering, Polytechnique Montreal, QC H3C 3A7 (Canada)

    2016-11-01

    Silicon micromachined neural electrode arrays, which act as an interface between bioelectronic devices and neural tissues, play an important role in chronic implants, in vivo. The biological compatibility of chronic microelectrode arrays (MEA) is an essential factor that must be taken into account in their design and fabrication. In order to improve biocompatibility of the MEAs, the surface of the electrodes was coated with polyethylene glycol (PEG) and parylene-C, which are biocompatible polymers. An in vitro study was performed to test the capacity of poly-D-lysine (PDL) to improve neural-cell adhesion and proliferation. Increased proliferation of the neuroblast cells on the microelectrodes was observed in the presence of the PDL. The presence of the peptide on the electrode surface was confirmed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The impedance of the electrodes was not changed significantly before and after PDL deposition. Mouse neuroblast cells were seeded and cultured on the PDL coated and uncoated neural MEAs with different tip-coatings such as platinum, molybdenum, gold, sputtered iridium oxide, and carbon nanotubes. The neuroblast cells grew preferentially on and around peptide coated-microelectrode tips, as compared to the uncoated microelectrodes. - Highlights: • A novel high-density microelectrode array (MEA) for intracortical 3D recording and stimulation was designed and fabricated. • In order to improve neural-cell adhesion and proliferation, the surface of the electrodes was coated with poly-D-lysine (PDL). • An in vitro study was performed to test the capacity of PDL to improve cell adhesion and proliferation. • The neuroblast cells grew preferentially on peptide-coated microelectrode tips compared to the uncoated microelectrodes.

  8. Acute human brain responses to intracortical microelectrode arrays: Challenges and future prospects

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eduardo eFernandez

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available The emerging field of neuroprosthetics is focused on the development of new therapeutic interventions that will be able to restore some lost neural function by selective electrical stimulation or by harnessing activity recorded from populations of neurons. As more and more patients benefit from these approaches, the interest in neural interfaces has grown significantly and a new generation of penetrating microelectrode arrays are providing unprecedented access to the neurons of the CNS. These microelectrodes have active tip dimensions that are similar in size to neurons and because they penetrate the nervous system, they provide selective access to these cells (within a few microns. However, the very long-term viability of chronically implanted microelectrodes and the capability of recording the same spiking activity over long time periods still remain to be established and confirmed in human studies. Here we review the main responses to acute implantation of microelectrode arrays, and emphasize that it will become essential to control the neural tissue damage induced by these intracortical microelectrodes in order to achieve the high clinical potentials accompanying this technology.

  9. Carbon-Ring Microelectrode Arrays for Electrochemical Imaging of Single Cell Exocytosis: Fabrication and Characterization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Yuqing; Trouillon, Raphaël; Svensson, Maria I.; Keighron, Jacqueline D.; Cans, Ann-Sofie; Ewing, Andrew G.

    2012-01-01

    Fabrication of carbon microelectrode arrays, with up to 15 electrodes in total tips as small as 10 to 50 μm, is presented. The support structures of microelectrodes were obtained by pulling multiple quartz capillaries together to form hollow capillary arrays before carbon deposition. Carbon ring microelectrodes were deposited by pyrolysis of acetylene in the lumen of these quartz capillary arrays. Each carbon deposited array tip was filled with epoxy, followed by beveling of the tip of the array to form a deposited carbon-ring microelectrode array (CRMA). Both the number of the microelectrodes in the array and the tip size are independently tunable. These CRMAs have been characterized using scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and electrogenerated chemiluminescence. Additionally, the electrochemical properties were investigated with steady-state voltammetry. In order to demonstrate the utility of these fabricated microelectrodes in neurochemistry, CRMAs containing eight microring electrodes were used for electrochemical monitoring of exocytotic events from single PC12 cells. Subcellular temporal heterogeneities in exocytosis (ie. cold spots vs. hot spots) were successfully detected with the CRMAs. PMID:22339586

  10. Analysis of disturbances in a hypersonic boundary layer on a cone with heating/cooling of the nose tip

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bountin, Dmitry; Maslov, Anatoly; Gromyko, Yury

    2018-05-01

    Experimental results of the influence of local heating/cooling on the development of hypersonic boundary layer disturbances are reported. Local heating/cooling is applied at the cone nose tip. The experiments are carried out at the Mach number M = 5.95, stagnation temperature T0 = 360-418 K, and stagnation pressure P0 = 3.7-45 atm. The unit Reynolds number is varied in the interval Re1 = (4.5-63) × 106 m-1. The investigations are conducted in the boundary layer on a cone with an apex half-angle of 7° and varied bluntness radius of the nose tip [R = 0.03 (sharp nose), 0.75, and 1.5 mm] for different values of the local temperature factor. The nose tip is heated by an ohmic heater. Cooling is performed by supplying liquid nitrogen into the internal cavity of the model nose. A comparative analysis of pressure pulsation spectra on the cone surface is performed. It is demonstrated that heating/cooling in the case of a sharp cone leads to flow destabilization/stabilization. The opposite effect is observed for blunted cones: heating/cooling stabilizes/destabilizes the second-mode disturbances. This effect is enhanced by increasing the nose tip bluntness. All the observed effects vanish with distance downstream from the nose tip.

  11. A simple method to prevent hard X-ray-induced preheating effects inside the cone tip in indirect-drive fast ignition implosions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu, Dongxiao; Shan, Lianqiang; Zhou, Weimin; Wu, Yuchi; Zhu, Bin; Zhang, Feng; Bi, Bi; Zhang, Bo; Zhang, Zhimeng; Shui, Min; He, Yingling; Gu, Yuqiu; Zhang, Baohan; Peng, Xiaoshi; Xu, Tao; Wang, Feng; Yang, Zhiwen; Chen, Tao; Chen, Li; Chen, Ming

    2016-01-01

    During fast-ignition implosions, preheating of inside the cone tip caused by hard X-rays can strongly affect the generation and transport of hot electrons in the cone. Although indirect-drive implosions have a higher implosion symmetry, they cause stronger preheating effects than direct-drive implosions. To control the preheating of the cone tip, we propose the use of indirect-drive fast-ignition targets with thicker tips. Experiments carried out at the ShenGuang-III prototype laser facility confirmed that thicker tips are effective for controlling preheating. Moreover, these results were consistent with those of 1D radiation hydrodynamic simulations.

  12. A simple method to prevent hard X-ray-induced preheating effects inside the cone tip in indirect-drive fast ignition implosions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Liu, Dongxiao; Shan, Lianqiang; Zhou, Weimin; Wu, Yuchi; Zhu, Bin; Zhang, Feng; Bi, Bi; Zhang, Bo; Zhang, Zhimeng; Shui, Min; He, Yingling; Gu, Yuqiu, E-mail: yqgu@caep.cn; Zhang, Baohan [Science and Technology on Plasma Physics Laboratory, China Academy of Engineering Physics, Mianyang 621900 (China); Research Center of Laser Fusion, China Academy of Engineering Physics, Mianyang 621900 (China); Peng, Xiaoshi; Xu, Tao; Wang, Feng; Yang, Zhiwen; Chen, Tao; Chen, Li; Chen, Ming [Research Center of Laser Fusion, China Academy of Engineering Physics, Mianyang 621900 (China); and others

    2016-06-15

    During fast-ignition implosions, preheating of inside the cone tip caused by hard X-rays can strongly affect the generation and transport of hot electrons in the cone. Although indirect-drive implosions have a higher implosion symmetry, they cause stronger preheating effects than direct-drive implosions. To control the preheating of the cone tip, we propose the use of indirect-drive fast-ignition targets with thicker tips. Experiments carried out at the ShenGuang-III prototype laser facility confirmed that thicker tips are effective for controlling preheating. Moreover, these results were consistent with those of 1D radiation hydrodynamic simulations.

  13. Importance of Thickness in Human Cardiomyocyte Network for Effective Electrophysiological Stimulation Using On-Chip Extracellular Microelectrodes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamada, Tomoyo; Nomura, Fumimasa; Kaneko, Tomoyuki; Yasuda, Kenji

    2012-06-01

    We have developed a three-dimensionally controlled in vitro human cardiomyocyte network assay for the measurements of drug-induced conductivity changes and the appearance of fatal arrhythmia such as ventricular tachycardia/fibrillation for more precise in vitro predictive cardiotoxicity. To construct an artificial conductance propagation model of a human cardiomyocyte network, first, we examined the cell concentration dependence of the cell network heights and found the existence of a height limit of cell networks, which was double-layer height, whereas the cardiomyocytes were effectively and homogeneously cultivated within the microchamber maintaining their spatial distribution constant and their electrophysiological conductance and propagation were successfully recorded using a microelectrode array set on the bottom of the microchamber. The pacing ability of a cardiomyocyte's electrophysiological response has been evaluated using microelectrode extracellular stimulation, and the stimulation for pacing also successfully regulated the beating frequencies of two-layered cardiomyocyte networks, whereas monolayered cardiomyocyte networks were hardly stimulated by the external electrodes using the two-layered cardiomyocyte stimulation condition. The stability of the lined-up shape of human cardiomyocytes within the rectangularly arranged agarose microchambers was limited for a two-layered cardiomyocyte network because their stronger force generation shrunk those cells after peeling off the substrate. The results indicate the importance of fabrication technology of thickness control of cellular networks for effective extracellular stimulation and the potential concerning thick cardiomyocyte networks for long-term cultivation.

  14. A novel combinational pH-PCO2 microelectrode.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rao, X; Ma, Y

    1993-07-01

    A novel combinational pH-PCO2 microelectrode based on a neutral carrier hydrogen ion exchanger is described. It is easy to fabricate and allows pH and PCO2 to be measured simultaneously. The microelectrode has a 5-microns tip. The PCO2 microelectrode exhibits a linear response in the range 1.75 x 10(-5)-10(-2) mol/liter with a Nernstian slope of 57.0 mV/decade at 25 degrees C. The detection limit is 10(-5) mol/liter. The pH microelectrode exhibits a linear response in the range pH 4-12 with a Nernstian slope of 60.0 mV/decade at 25 degrees C. The 95% steady-state response time of the PCO2 microelectrode is about 2 min, while it is about 10 s for pH microelectrode. The electromotive force drift is 4.3 mV/h (PCO2) and 2.6 mV/h (pH), respectively. The lifetime is 3 to 4 days. The microelectrode can measure pH and PCO2 in body fluids simultaneously with satisfactory results. It is also a good basic electrode for enzyme microelectrolysis.

  15. Signal processing methods for reducing artifacts in microelectrode brain recordings caused by functional electrical stimulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Young, D.; Willett, F.; Memberg, W. D.; Murphy, B.; Walter, B.; Sweet, J.; Miller, J.; Hochberg, L. R.; Kirsch, R. F.; Ajiboye, A. B.

    2018-04-01

    Objective. Functional electrical stimulation (FES) is a promising technology for restoring movement to paralyzed limbs. Intracortical brain-computer interfaces (iBCIs) have enabled intuitive control over virtual and robotic movements, and more recently over upper extremity FES neuroprostheses. However, electrical stimulation of muscles creates artifacts in intracortical microelectrode recordings that could degrade iBCI performance. Here, we investigate methods for reducing the cortically recorded artifacts that result from peripheral electrical stimulation. Approach. One participant in the BrainGate2 pilot clinical trial had two intracortical microelectrode arrays placed in the motor cortex, and thirty-six stimulating intramuscular electrodes placed in the muscles of the contralateral limb. We characterized intracortically recorded electrical artifacts during both intramuscular and surface stimulation. We compared the performance of three artifact reduction methods: blanking, common average reference (CAR) and linear regression reference (LRR), which creates channel-specific reference signals, composed of weighted sums of other channels. Main results. Electrical artifacts resulting from surface stimulation were 175  ×  larger than baseline neural recordings (which were 110 µV peak-to-peak), while intramuscular stimulation artifacts were only 4  ×  larger. The artifact waveforms were highly consistent across electrodes within each array. Application of LRR reduced artifact magnitudes to less than 10 µV and largely preserved the original neural feature values used for decoding. Unmitigated stimulation artifacts decreased iBCI decoding performance, but performance was almost completely recovered using LRR, which outperformed CAR and blanking and extracted useful neural information during stimulation artifact periods. Significance. The LRR method was effective at reducing electrical artifacts resulting from both intramuscular and surface FES, and

  16. The impact of multichannel microelectrode recording (MER) in deep brain stimulation of the basal ganglia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kinfe, Thomas M; Vesper, Jan

    2013-01-01

    Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the basal ganglia (Ncl. subthalamicus, Ncl. ventralis intermedius thalami, globus pallidus internus) has become an evidence-based and well-established treatment option in otherwise refractory movement disorders. The Ncl. subthalamicus (STN) is the target of choice in Parkinson's disease.However, a considerable discussion is currently ongoing with regard to the necessity for micro-electrode recording (MER) in DBS surgery.The present review provides an overview on deep brain stimulation and (MER) of the STN in patients with Parkinson's disease. Detailed description is given concerning the multichannel MER systems nowadays available for DBS of the basal ganglia, especially of the STN, as a useful tool for target refinement. Furthermore, an overview is given of the historical aspects, spatial mapping of the STN by MER, and its impact for accuracy and precision in current functional stereotactic neurosurgery.The pros concerning target refinement by MER means on the one hand, and cons including increased bleeding risk, increased operation time, local or general anesthesia, and single versus multichannel microelectrode recording are discussed in detail. Finally, the authors favor the use of MER with intraoperative testing combined with imaging to achieve a more precise electrode placement, aiming to ameliorate clinical outcome in therapy-resistant movement disorders.

  17. Three-dimensional neuroelectronic interface for peripheral nerve stimulation and recording: realization steps and contacting technology

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Frieswijk, T.A.; Frieswijk, T.A.; Rutten, Wim

    1994-01-01

    A three-dimensional array of microelectrodes for use in intraneural stimulation and recording is presented. The 128 electrodes are at the tips of silicon needles, which are electrically insulated from each other. The needles in the array have differing heights, resulting in a true three-dimensional

  18. A wideband wireless neural stimulation platform for high-density microelectrode arrays.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Myers, Frank B; Simpson, Jim A; Ghovanloo, Maysam

    2006-01-01

    We describe a system that allows researchers to control an implantable neural microstimulator from a PC via a USB 2.0 interface and a novel dual-carrier wireless link, which provides separate data and power transmission. Our wireless stimulator, Interestim-2B (IS-2B), is a modular device capable of generating controlled-current stimulation pulse trains across 32 sites per module with support for a variety of stimulation schemes (biphasic/monophasic, bipolar/monopolar). We have developed software to generate multi-site stimulation commands for the IS-2B based on streaming data from artificial sensory devices such as cameras and microphones. For PC interfacing, we have developed a USB 2.0 microcontroller-based interface. Data is transmitted using frequency-shift keying (FSK) at 6/12 MHz to achieve a data rate of 3 Mb/s via a pair of rectangular coils. Power is generated using a class-E power amplifier operating at 1 MHz and transmitted via a separate pair of spiral planar coils which are oriented perpendicular to the data coils to minimize cross-coupling. We have successfully demonstrated the operation of the system by applying it as a visual prosthesis. Pulse-frequency modulated stimuli are generated in real-time based on a grayscale image from a webcam. These pulses are projected onto an 11x11 LED matrix that represents a 2D microelectrode array.

  19. Abscisic Acid Stimulates Elongation of Excised Pea Root Tips

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gaither, Douglas H.; Lutz, Donald H.; Forrence, Leonard E.

    1975-01-01

    Excised Pisum sativum L. root tips were incubated in a pH 5.2 sucrose medium containing abscisic acid. Elongation growth was inhibited by 100 μm abscisic acid. However, decreasing the abscisic acid concentration caused stimulation of elongation, the maximum response (25% to 30%) occurring at 1 μm abscisic acid. Prior to two hours, stimulation of elongation by 1 μm abscisic acid was not detectable. Increased elongation did not occur in abscisic acid-treated root tips of Lens culinaris L., Phaseolus vulgaris L., or Zea mays L. PMID:16659198

  20. Pencil lead microelectrode and the application on cell dielectrophoresis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hsieh, Bo-Chuan; Cheng, Tzong-Jih; Shih, Syuan-He [Department of Bio-Industrial Mechatronics Engineering, National Taiwan University, 136 Chou-Shan Rd., Taipei City 106, Taiwan (China); Chen, Richie L.C., E-mail: rlcchen@ntu.edu.tw [Department of Bio-Industrial Mechatronics Engineering, National Taiwan University, 136 Chou-Shan Rd., Taipei City 106, Taiwan (China)

    2011-11-30

    A microelectrode was fabricated by electrochemical etching of a pencil lead (0.5 mm in diameter) in 1.0 M NaOH aqueous solution. The pencil lead was dipped into the solution and then an ac voltage (3.0 V{sub rms} for 10 min) was imposed against a stainless plate under mild stirring (450 rpm). The electrochemically sharpened pencil tip was about 10 {mu}m in diameter (12 {+-} 3 {mu}m, n = 5), and the lateral part was insulated within a polypropylene micro-pipette tip (2-200 {mu}L volume range). The cyclic voltammograms conducted in 2.0 mM ferricyanide/ferrocyanide buffer solution (pH 7.0) are with low capacitive current and a typical sigmoidal signal of micro-sized electrodes. The microelectrode was used to perform dielectrophoresis of polystyrene latex microbeads (nominal diameter of 3 {mu}m) and human red blood cells. A conducting glass (indium tin oxide coated glass, 40 mm x 40 mm x 1 mm) served as the counter electrode (0.5 mm beneath the microelectrode) to generate the asymmetrical electric field and also as the window for microscopic observation. With the sinusoidal bias voltage (30 V{sub rms}) ranged from 20 Hz to 2 MHz, positive and negative dielectrophoretic phenomena were identified.

  1. Correlations between histology and neuronal activity recorded by microelectrodes implanted chronically in the cerebral cortex

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCreery, Douglas; Cogan, Stuart; Kane, Sheryl; Pikov, Victor

    2016-06-01

    Objective. To quantify relations between the neuronal activity recorded with chronically-implanted intracortical microelectrodes and the histology of the surrounding tissue, using radial distance from the tip sites and time after array implantation as parameters. Approach. ‘Utah’-type intracortical microelectrode arrays were implanted into cats’ sensorimotor cortex for 275-364 days. The brain tissue around the implants was immuno-stained for the neuronal marker NeuN and for the astrocyte marker GFAP. Pearson’s product-moment correlations were used to quantify the relations between these markers and the amplitudes of the recorded neuronal action potentials (APs) and their signal-to-noise ratios (S/N). Main results. S/N was more stable over post-implant time than was AP amplitude, but its increased correlation with neuronal density after many months indicates ongoing loss of neurons around the microelectrodes. S/N was correlated with neuron density out to at least 140 μm from the microelectrodes, while AP amplitude was correlated with neuron density and GFAP density within ˜80 μm. Correlations between AP amplitude and histology markers (GFAP and NeuN density) were strongest immediately after implantation, while correlation between the neuron density and S/N was strongest near the time the animals were sacrificed. Unlike AP amplitude, there was no significant correlation between S/N and density of GFAP around the tip sites. Significance. Our findings indicate an evolving interaction between changes in the tissue surrounding the microelectrodes and the microelectrode’s electrical properties. Ongoing loss of neurons around recording microelectrodes, and the interactions between their delayed electrical deterioration and early tissue scarring around the tips appear to pose the greatest threats to the microelectrodes’ long-term functionality.

  2. Glass pipette-carbon fiber microelectrodes for evoked potential recordings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Moraes M.F.D.

    1997-01-01

    Full Text Available Current methods for recording field potentials with tungsten electrodes make it virtually impossible to use the same recording electrode also as a lesioning electrode, for example for histological confirmation of the recorded site, because the lesioning procedure usually wears off the tungsten tip. Therefore, the electrode would have to be replaced after each lesioning procedure, which is a very high cost solution to the problem. We present here a low cost, easy to make, high quality glass pipette-carbon fiber microelectrode that shows resistive, signal/noise and electrochemical coupling advantages over tungsten electrodes. Also, currently used carbon fiber microelectrodes often show problems with electrical continuity, especially regarding electrochemical applications using a carbon-powder/resin mixture, with consequent low performance, besides the inconvenience of handling such a mixture. We propose here a new method for manufacturing glass pipette-carbon fiber microelectrodes with several advantages when recording intracerebral field potentials

  3. Ejecta evolution during cone impact

    KAUST Repository

    Marston, Jeremy

    2014-07-07

    We present findings from an experimental investigation into the impact of solid cone-shaped bodies onto liquid pools. Using a variety of cone angles and liquid physical properties, we show that the ejecta formed during the impact exhibits self-similarity for all impact speeds for very low surface tension liquids, whilst for high-surface tension liquids similarity is only achieved at high impact speeds. We find that the ejecta tip can detach from the cone and that this phenomenon can be attributed to the air entrainment phenomenon. We analyse of a range of cone angles, including some ogive cones, and impact speeds in terms of the spatiotemporal evolution of the ejecta tip. Using superhydrophobic cones, we also examine the entry of cones which entrain an air layer.

  4. Design of a cone target for fast ignition

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sunahara Atsushi

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available We propose a new type of target for the fast ignition of inertial confinement fusion. Pre-formed plasma inside a cone target can significantly reduce the energy coupling efficiency from the ultra-high intense short-pulse laser to the imploded core plasma. Also, in order to protect the tip of the cone and reduce generation of pre-formed plasma, we propose pointed shaped cone target. In our estimation, the shock traveling time can be delayed 20–30 ps by lower-Z material with larger areal density compared to the conventional gold flat tip. Also, the jet flow can sweep the blow-off plasma from the tip of the cone, and the implosion performance is not drastically affected by the existence of pointed tip. In addition, the self-generated magnetic field is generated along the boundary of cone tip and surrounding CD or DT plasma. This magnetic field can confine fast electrons and focus to the implosion core plasma. Resultant heating efficiency is improved by 30% compared to that with conventional gold flat tip.

  5. Techniques for optimizing nanotips derived from frozen taylor cones

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hirsch, Gregory

    2017-12-05

    Optimization techniques are disclosed for producing sharp and stable tips/nanotips relying on liquid Taylor cones created from electrically conductive materials with high melting points. A wire substrate of such a material with a preform end in the shape of a regular or concave cone, is first melted with a focused laser beam. Under the influence of a high positive potential, a Taylor cone in a liquid/molten state is formed at that end. The cone is then quenched upon cessation of the laser power, thus freezing the Taylor cone. The tip of the frozen Taylor cone is reheated by the laser to allow its precise localized melting and shaping. Tips thus obtained yield desirable end-forms suitable as electron field emission sources for a variety of applications. In-situ regeneration of the tip is readily accomplished. These tips can also be employed as regenerable bright ion sources using field ionization/desorption of introduced chemical species.

  6. Electrical Characterization of 3D Au Microelectrodes for Use in Retinal Prostheses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Sangmin; Ahn, Jae Hyun; Seo, Jong-Mo; Chung, Hum; Cho, Dong-Il Dan

    2015-06-17

    In order to provide high-quality visual information to patients who have implanted retinal prosthetic devices, the number of microelectrodes should be large. As the number of microelectrodes is increased, the dimensions of each microelectrode must be decreased, which in turn results in an increased microelectrode interface impedance and decreased injection current dynamic range. In order to improve the trade-off envelope between the number of microelectrodes and the current injection characteristics, a 3D microelectrode structure can be used as an alternative. In this paper, the electrical characteristics of 2D and 3D Au microelectrodes were investigated. In order to examine the effects of the structural difference, 2D and 3D Au microelectrodes with different base areas but similar effective surface areas were fabricated and evaluated. Interface impedances were measured and similar dynamic ranges were obtained for both 2D and 3D Au microelectrodes. These results indicate that more electrodes can be implemented in the same area if 3D designs are used. Furthermore, the 3D Au microelectrodes showed substantially enhanced electrical durability characteristics against over-injected stimulation currents, withstanding electrical currents that are much larger than the limit measured for 2D microelectrodes of similar area. This enhanced electrical durability property of 3D Au microelectrodes is a new finding in microelectrode research, and makes 3D microelectrodes very desirable devices.

  7. Electrical Characterization of 3D Au Microelectrodes for Use in Retinal Prostheses

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sangmin Lee

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available In order to provide high-quality visual information to patients who have implanted retinal prosthetic devices, the number of microelectrodes should be large. As the number of microelectrodes is increased, the dimensions of each microelectrode must be decreased, which in turn results in an increased microelectrode interface impedance and decreased injection current dynamic range. In order to improve the trade-off envelope between the number of microelectrodes and the current injection characteristics, a 3D microelectrode structure can be used as an alternative. In this paper, the electrical characteristics of 2D and 3D Au microelectrodes were investigated. In order to examine the effects of the structural difference, 2D and 3D Au microelectrodes with different base areas but similar effective surface areas were fabricated and evaluated. Interface impedances were measured and similar dynamic ranges were obtained for both 2D and 3D Au microelectrodes. These results indicate that more electrodes can be implemented in the same area if 3D designs are used. Furthermore, the 3D Au microelectrodes showed substantially enhanced electrical durability characteristics against over-injected stimulation currents, withstanding electrical currents that are much larger than the limit measured for 2D microelectrodes of similar area. This enhanced electrical durability property of 3D Au microelectrodes is a new finding in microelectrode research, and makes 3D microelectrodes very desirable devices.

  8. Microelectrode for energy and current control of nanotip field electron emitters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lüneburg, S.; Müller, M.; Paarmann, A.; Ernstorfer, R.

    2013-01-01

    Emerging experiments and applications in electron microscopy, holography, and diffraction benefit from miniaturized electron guns for compact experimental setups. We present a highly compact microelectrode integrated field emitter that consists of a tungsten nanotip coated with a few micrometers thick polyimide film followed by a several nanometers thick gold film, both positioned behind the exposed emitter apex by approximately 10–30 μm. The control of the electric field strength at the nanometer scale tip apex allows suppression, extraction, and energy tuning of field-emitted electrons. The performance of the microelectrode is demonstrated experimentally and supported by numerical simulations

  9. Monitoring Ion Activities In and Around Cells Using Ion-Selective Liquid-Membrane Microelectrodes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mark D. Parker

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Determining the effective concentration (i.e., activity of ions in and around living cells is important to our understanding of the contribution of those ions to cellular function. Moreover, monitoring changes in ion activities in and around cells is informative about the actions of the transporters and/or channels operating in the cell membrane. The activity of an ion can be measured using a glass microelectrode that includes in its tip a liquid-membrane doped with an ion-selective ionophore. Because these electrodes can be fabricated with tip diameters that are less than 1 μm, they can be used to impale single cells in order to monitor the activities of intracellular ions. This review summarizes the history, theory, and practice of ion-selective microelectrode use and brings together a number of classic and recent examples of their usefulness in the realm of physiological study.

  10. Chemically etched fiber tips for near-field optical microscopy: a process for smoother tips.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lambelet, P; Sayah, A; Pfeffer, M; Philipona, C; Marquis-Weible, F

    1998-11-01

    An improved method for producing fiber tips for scanning near-field optical microscopy is presented. The improvement consists of chemically etching quartz optical fibers through their acrylate jacket. This new method is compared with the previous one in which bare fibers were etched. With the new process the meniscus formed by the acid along the fiber does not move during etching, leading to a much smoother surface of the tip cone. Subsequent metallization is thus improved, resulting in better coverage of the tip with an aluminum opaque layer. Our results show that leakage can be avoided along the cone, and light transmission through the tip is spatially limited to an optical aperture of a 100-nm dimension.

  11. Electric potential microelectrode for studies of electrobiogeophysics

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Damgaard, Lars Riis; Risgaard-Petersen, Nils; Nielsen, Lars Peter

    2014-01-01

    were needle-shaped, shielded Ag/AgCl half-cells that were rendered insensitive to redox-active species in the environment. Tip diameters of 40 to 100 μm and signal resolution of approximately 10 μV were achieved. A test in marine sediments with active cable bacteria showed an electric potential......Spatially separated electron donors and acceptors in sediment can be exploited by the so-called “cable bacteria.” Electric potential microelectrodes (EPMs) were constructed to measure the electric fields that should appear when cable bacteria conduct electrons over centimeter distances. The EPMs...

  12. Microelectrodes as novel research tools for environmental biofilm studies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yu, T.; Lu, R.; Bishop, L.

    2002-01-01

    Biofilm processes are widely utilized in environmental engineering for biodegradation of contaminated waters, gases and soils. It is important to understand the structure and functions of biofilms. Microelectrodes are novel experimental tools for environmental biofilm studies. The authors reviewed the techniques of oxygen, sulfide, redox potential and pH microelectrode. These microelectrodes have tip diameters of 3 to 20 μm, resulting a high spatial resolution. They enable us directly measure the chemical conditions as results of microbial activities in biofilms. The authors also reported the laboratory and field studies of wastewater biofilms using microelectrode techniques. The results of these studies provided experimental evidence on the stratification of microbial processes and the associated redox potential change in wastewater biofilms: (1) The oxygen penetration depth was only a fraction of the biofilm thickness. This observation, first made under laboratory conditions, has been confirmed under field conditions. (2) The biofilms with both aerobic oxidation and sulfate reduction had a clearly stratified structure. This was evidenced by a sharp decrease of redox potential near the interface between the aerobic zone and the sulfate reduction zone within the biofilm. In this type of biofilms, aerobic oxidation took place only in a shallow layer near the biofilm surface and sulfate reduction occurred in the deeper anoxic zone. (3) The redox potential changed with the shift of primary microbial process in biofilms, indicating that it is possible to use redox potential to help illustrate the structure and functions of biofilms. (author)

  13. A nanoporous alumina microelectrode array for functional cell–chip coupling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wesche, Manuel; Hüske, Martin; Yakushenko, Alexey; Brüggemann, Dorothea; Mayer, Dirk; Offenhäusser, Andreas; Wolfrum, Bernhard

    2012-01-01

    The design of electrode interfaces has a strong impact on cell-based bioelectronic applications. We present a new type of microelectrode array chip featuring a nanoporous alumina interface. The chip is fabricated in a combination of top-down and bottom-up processes using state-of-the-art clean room technology and self-assembled generation of nanopores by aluminum anodization. The electrode characteristics are investigated in phosphate buffered saline as well as under cell culture conditions. We show that the modified microelectrodes exhibit decreased impedance compared to planar microelectrodes, which is caused by a nanostructuring effect of the underlying gold during anodization. The stability and biocompatibility of the device are demonstrated by measuring action potentials from cardiomyocyte-like cells growing on top of the chip. Cross sections of the cell–surface interface reveal that the cell membrane seals the nanoporous alumina layer without bending into the sub-50 nm apertures. The nanoporous microelectrode array device may be used as a platform for combining extracellular recording of cell activity with stimulating topographical cues. (paper)

  14. Stimulation of granulocytic cell iodination by pine cone antitumor substances

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Unten, S.; Sakagami, H.; Konno, K.

    1989-01-01

    Antitumor substances (Fractions VI and VII) prepared from the NaOH extract of pine cone significantly stimulated the iodination (incorporation of radioactive iodine into an acid-insoluble fraction) of human peripheral blood adherent mononuclear cells, polymorphonuclear cells (PMN), and human promyelocytic leukemic HL-60 cells. In contrast, these fractions did not significantly increase the iodination of nonadherent mononuclear cells, red blood cells, other human leukemic cell lines (U-937, THP-1, K-562), human diploid fibroblast (UT20Lu), or mouse cell lines (L-929, J774.1). Iodination of HL-60 cells, which were induced to differentiate by treatment with either retinoic acid or tumor necrosis factor, were stimulated less than untreated cells. The stimulation of iodination of both PMN and HL-60 cells required the continuous presence of these fractions and was almost completely abolished by the presence of myeloperoxidase inhibitors. The stimulation activity of these fractions was generally higher than that of various other immunopotentiators. Possible mechanisms of extract stimulation of myeloperoxidase-containing cell iodination are discussed

  15. Critical condition for the transformation from Taylor cone to cone-jet

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wei Cheng; Zhao Yang; Gang Tie-Qiang; Chen Li-Jie

    2014-01-01

    An energy method is proposed to investigate the critical transformation condition from a Taylor cone to a cone-jet. Based on the kinetic theorem, the system power allocation and the electrohydrodynamics stability are discussed. The numerical results indicate that the energy of the liquid cone tip experiences a maximum value during the transformation. With the proposed jetting energy, we give the critical transformation condition under which the derivative of jetting energy with respect to the surface area is greater than or equal to the energy required to form a unit of new liquid surface

  16. Stretchable microelectrode array using room-temperature liquid alloy interconnects

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wei, P; Ziaie, B; Taylor, R; Chung, C; Higgs, G; Pruitt, B L; Ding, Z; Abilez, O J

    2011-01-01

    In this paper, we present a stretchable microelectrode array for studying cell behavior under mechanical strain. The electrode array consists of gold-plated nail-head pins (250 µm tip diameter) or tungsten micro-wires (25.4 µm in diameter) inserted into a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) platform (25.4 × 25.4 mm 2 ). Stretchable interconnects to the outside were provided by fusible indium-alloy-filled microchannels. The alloy is liquid at room temperature, thus providing the necessary stretchability and electrical conductivity. The electrode platform can withstand strains of up to 40% and repeated (100 times) strains of up to 35% did not cause any failure in the electrodes or the PDMS substrate. We confirmed biocompatibility of short-term culture, and using the gold pin device, we demonstrated electric field pacing of adult murine heart cells. Further, using the tungsten microelectrode device, we successfully measured depolarizations of differentiated murine heart cells from embryoid body clusters

  17. A Multi-Functional Microelectrode Array Featuring 59760 Electrodes, 2048 Electrophysiology Channels, Stimulation, Impedance Measurement and Neurotransmitter Detection Channels.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dragas, Jelena; Viswam, Vijay; Shadmani, Amir; Chen, Yihui; Bounik, Raziyeh; Stettler, Alexander; Radivojevic, Milos; Geissler, Sydney; Obien, Marie; Müller, Jan; Hierlemann, Andreas

    2017-06-01

    Biological cells are characterized by highly complex phenomena and processes that are, to a great extent, interdependent. To gain detailed insights, devices designed to study cellular phenomena need to enable tracking and manipulation of multiple cell parameters in parallel; they have to provide high signal quality and high spatiotemporal resolution. To this end, we have developed a CMOS-based microelectrode array system that integrates six measurement and stimulation functions, the largest number to date. Moreover, the system features the largest active electrode array area to date (4.48×2.43 mm 2 ) to accommodate 59,760 electrodes, while its power consumption, noise characteristics, and spatial resolution (13.5 μm electrode pitch) are comparable to the best state-of-the-art devices. The system includes: 2,048 action-potential (AP, bandwidth: 300 Hz to 10 kHz) recording units, 32 local-field-potential (LFP, bandwidth: 1 Hz to 300 Hz) recording units, 32 current recording units, 32 impedance measurement units, and 28 neurotransmitter detection units, in addition to the 16 dual-mode voltage-only or current/voltage-controlled stimulation units. The electrode array architecture is based on a switch matrix, which allows for connecting any measurement/stimulation unit to any electrode in the array and for performing different measurement/stimulation functions in parallel.

  18. Localized electron transfer rates and microelectrode-based enrichment of microbial communities within a phototrophic microbial mat

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jerome eBabauta

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Phototrophic microbial mats frequently exhibit sharp, light-dependent redox gradients that regulate microbial respiration on specific electron acceptors as a function of depth. In this work, a benthic phototrophic microbial mat from Hot Lake, a hypersaline, epsomitic lake located near Oroville in north-central Washington, was used to develop a microscale electrochemical method to study local electron transfer processes within the mat. To characterize the physicochemical variables influencing electron transfer, we initially quantified redox potential, pH and dissolved oxygen gradients by depth in the mat under photic and aphotic conditions. We further demonstrated that power output of a mat fuel cell was light-dependent. To study local electron transfer processes, we deployed a microscale electrode (microelectrode with tip size ~20 µm. To enrich a subset of microorganisms capable of interacting with the microelectrode, we anodically polarized the microelectrode in the mat. Subsequently, to characterize the microelectrode-associated community and compare it to the neighboring mat community, we performed amplicon sequencing of the V1-V3 region of the 16S gene. Differences in Bray-Curtis beta diversity, illustrated by large changes in relative abundance at the phylum level, suggested successful enrichment of specific mat community members on the microelectrode surface. The microelectrode-associated community exhibited substantially reduced alpha diversity and elevated relative abundances of Prosthecochloris, Loktanella, Catellibacterium, other unclassified members of Rhodobacteraceae, Thiomicrospira, and Limnobacter, compared with the community at an equivalent depth in the mat. Our results suggest that local electron transfer to an anodically polarized microelectrode selected for a specific microbial population, with substantially more abundance and diversity of sulfur-oxidizing phylotypes compared with the neighboring mat community.

  19. Localized electron transfer rates and microelectrode-based enrichment of microbial communities within a phototrophic microbial mat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Babauta, Jerome T; Atci, Erhan; Ha, Phuc T; Lindemann, Stephen R; Ewing, Timothy; Call, Douglas R; Fredrickson, James K; Beyenal, Haluk

    2014-01-01

    Phototrophic microbial mats frequently exhibit sharp, light-dependent redox gradients that regulate microbial respiration on specific electron acceptors as a function of depth. In this work, a benthic phototrophic microbial mat from Hot Lake, a hypersaline, epsomitic lake located near Oroville in north-central Washington, was used to develop a microscale electrochemical method to study local electron transfer processes within the mat. To characterize the physicochemical variables influencing electron transfer, we initially quantified redox potential, pH, and dissolved oxygen gradients by depth in the mat under photic and aphotic conditions. We further demonstrated that power output of a mat fuel cell was light-dependent. To study local electron transfer processes, we deployed a microscale electrode (microelectrode) with tip size ~20 μm. To enrich a subset of microorganisms capable of interacting with the microelectrode, we anodically polarized the microelectrode at depth in the mat. Subsequently, to characterize the microelectrode-associated community and compare it to the neighboring mat community, we performed amplicon sequencing of the V1-V3 region of the 16S gene. Differences in Bray-Curtis beta diversity, illustrated by large changes in relative abundance at the phylum level, suggested successful enrichment of specific mat community members on the microelectrode surface. The microelectrode-associated community exhibited substantially reduced alpha diversity and elevated relative abundances of Prosthecochloris, Loktanella, Catellibacterium, other unclassified members of Rhodobacteraceae, Thiomicrospira, and Limnobacter, compared with the community at an equivalent depth in the mat. Our results suggest that local electron transfer to an anodically polarized microelectrode selected for a specific microbial population, with substantially more abundance and diversity of sulfur-oxidizing phylotypes compared with the neighboring mat community.

  20. Plate Tearing by a Cone

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Simonsen, Bo Cerup

    1997-01-01

    The present paper is concerned with steady-state plate tearing by a cone. This is a scenario where a cone is forced through a ductile metal plate with a constant lateral tip penetration in a motion in the plane of the plate. The considered process could be an idealisaton of the damage, which...... as for the out-of-plane reaction force....

  1. Percussion drilling cone penetrometer with wireless operating in-tip gaschromatograph

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bracht, C.; Matz, G. [Technische Univ. Hamburg-Harburg, Hamburg (Germany)

    2003-07-01

    Percussion drilling cone penetrometric analysis is the fast alternative to soil sampling and laboratory analyses. Online detection enables the characterization of a large variety of contaminants in soil. This becomes very important in the reactivation of contaminated sites. Therefore a new system has been constructed, which avoids tedious harness handling through the penetrometer drill rods and minimizes the time for an analysis down to 30 minutes per drill hole. This system enables the in-situ analysis of soil gases up to a depth of 10 to 15 meters. This system consists of a remote controlled in-tip mounted gaschromatograph, a special gas inlet module and a data transfer unit including a rechargeable battery pack. The modules are shock proved to be suitable for percussion drilling techniques and can be removed easily for maintenance. A PDA (Pocket PC) controls the subsoil gaschromatograph unit, calculates and displays the concentration of the detected compounds and stores the acquired data. The gaschromatograph until is optimized to analyze VOCs e.g. BTEX within 10 seconds per analysis. It consists of a loop inlet, a capillary column and a Photo Ionization Detector. It is microcontroller operated and battery powered. The inlet module is optimized soil gases. It includes a sensor and solenoid valve system for water protection and humidity acquisition while drilling. A completely charged battery pack provides up to three hours of analyses. It could be exchanged fast and easy to enable continuous analyses. Digital data transfer between subsoil unit and surface is provided wireless by IR light through the rods. On surface data is transferred wireless by BLUETOOTH radio link to the PDA. The depth of the penetrometer, global position and local time are acquired on-line onto the surface and are transferred on request by BLUETOOTH radio link to the PDA. The wireless data transfer and battery powered modules avoid time consuming cable handling and enable this cone

  2. Brain machine interfaces combining microelectrode arrays with nanostructured optical biochemical sensors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hajj-Hassan, Mohamad; Gonzalez, Timothy; Ghafer-Zadeh, Ebrahim; Chodavarapu, Vamsy; Musallam, Sam; Andrews, Mark

    2009-02-01

    Neural microelectrodes are an important component of neural prosthetic systems which assist paralyzed patients by allowing them to operate computers or robots using their neural activity. These microelectrodes are also used in clinical settings to localize the locus of seizure initiation in epilepsy or to stimulate sub-cortical structures in patients with Parkinson's disease. In neural prosthetic systems, implanted microelectrodes record the electrical potential generated by specific thoughts and relay the signals to algorithms trained to interpret these thoughts. In this paper, we describe novel elongated multi-site neural electrodes that can record electrical signals and specific neural biomarkers and that can reach depths greater than 8mm in the sulcus of non-human primates (monkeys). We hypothesize that additional signals recorded by the multimodal probes will increase the information yield when compared to standard probes that record just electropotentials. We describe integration of optical biochemical sensors with neural microelectrodes. The sensors are made using sol-gel derived xerogel thin films that encapsulate specific biomarker responsive luminophores in their nanostructured pores. The desired neural biomarkers are O2, pH, K+, and Na+ ions. As a prototype, we demonstrate direct-write patterning to create oxygen-responsive xerogel waveguide structures on the neural microelectrodes. The recording of neural biomarkers along with electrical activity could help the development of intelligent and more userfriendly neural prosthesis/brain machine interfaces as well as aid in providing answers to complex brain diseases and disorders.

  3. Carbon fiber on polyimide ultra-microelectrodes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gillis, Winthrop F.; Lissandrello, Charles A.; Shen, Jun; Pearre, Ben W.; Mertiri, Alket; Deku, Felix; Cogan, Stuart; Holinski, Bradley J.; Chew, Daniel J.; White, Alice E.; Otchy, Timothy M.; Gardner, Timothy J.

    2018-02-01

    Objective. Most preparations for making neural recordings degrade over time and eventually fail due to insertion trauma and reactive tissue response. The magnitudes of these responses are thought to be related to the electrode size (specifically, the cross-sectional area), the relative stiffness of the electrode, and the degree of tissue tolerance for the material. Flexible carbon fiber ultra-microelectrodes have a much smaller cross-section than traditional electrodes and low tissue reactivity, and thus may enable improved longevity of neural recordings in the central and peripheral nervous systems. Only two carbon fiber array designs have been described previously, each with limited channel densities due to limitations of the fabrication processes or interconnect strategies. Here, we describe a method for assembling carbon fiber electrodes on a flexible polyimide substrate that is expected to facilitate the construction of high-density recording and stimulating arrays. Approach. Individual carbon fibers were aligned using an alignment tool that was 3D-printed with sub-micron resolution using direct laser writing. Indium deposition on the carbon fibers, followed by low-temperature microsoldering, provided a robust and reliable method of electrical connection to the polyimide interconnect. Main results. Spontaneous multiunit activity and stimulation-evoked compound responses with SNR  >10 and  >120, respectively, were recorded from a small (125 µm) peripheral nerve. We also improved the typically poor charge injection capacity of small diameter carbon fibers by electrodepositing 100 nm-thick iridium oxide films, making the carbon fiber arrays usable for electrical stimulation as well as recording. Significance. Our innovations in fabrication technique pave the way for further miniaturization of carbon fiber ultra-microelectrode arrays. We believe these advances to be key steps to enable a shift from labor intensive, manual assembly to a more automated

  4. A novel method for the fabrication of a high-density carbon nanotube microelectrode array

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adam Khalifa

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available We present a novel method for fabricating a high-density carbon nanotube microelectrode array (MEA chip. Vertically aligned carbon nanotubes (VACNTs were synthesized by microwave plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition and thermal chemical vapor deposition. The device was characterized using electrochemical experiments such as cyclic voltammetry, impedance spectroscopy and potential transient measurements. Through-silicon vias (TSVs were fabricated and partially filled with polycrystalline silicon to allow electrical connection from the high-density electrodes to a stimulator microchip. In response to the demand for higher resolution implants, we have developed a unique process to obtain a high-density electrode array by making the microelectrodes smaller in size and designing new ways of routing the electrodes to current sources. Keywords: Microelectrode array, Neural implant, Carbon nanotubes, Through-silicon via interconnects, Microfabrication

  5. Plate Tearing by a Cone

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Simonsen, Bo Cerup

    1998-01-01

    The present paper is concerned with steady-state plate tearing by a cone. This is a scenario where a cone is forced through a ductile metal plate with a constant lateral tip penetration in a motion in the plane of the plate. The considered process could be an idealisation of the damage, which...... as for the out-of-plane reaction force. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved....

  6. Outcomes of Interventional-MRI Versus Microelectrode Recording-Guided Subthalamic Deep Brain Stimulation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Philip S. Lee

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available In deep brain stimulation (DBS of the subthalamic nucleus (STN for Parkinson’s disease (PD, there is debate concerning the use of neuroimaging alone to confirm correct anatomic placement of the DBS lead into the STN, versus the use of microelectrode recording (MER to confirm functional placement. We performed a retrospective study of a contemporaneous cohort of 45 consecutive patients who underwent either interventional-MRI (iMRI or MER-guided DBS lead implantation. We compared radial lead error, motor and sensory side effect, and clinical benefit programming thresholds, and pre- and post-operative unified PD rating scale scores, and levodopa equivalent dosages. MER-guided surgery was associated with greater radial error compared to the intended target. In general, side effect thresholds during initial programming were slightly lower in the MER group, but clinical benefit thresholds were similar. No significant difference in the reduction of clinical symptoms or medication dosage was observed. In summary, iMRI lead implantation occurred with greater anatomic accuracy, in locations demonstrated to be the appropriate functional region of the STN, based on the observation of similar programming side effect and benefit thresholds obtained with MER. The production of equivalent clinical outcomes suggests that surgeon and patient preference can be used to guide the decision of whether to recommend iMRI or MER-guided DBS lead implantation to appropriate patients with PD.

  7. A novel flexible cuff-like microelectrode for dual purpose, acute and chronic electrical interfacing with the mouse cervical vagus nerve

    Science.gov (United States)

    Caravaca, A. S.; Tsaava, T.; Goldman, L.; Silverman, H.; Riggott, G.; Chavan, S. S.; Bouton, C.; Tracey, K. J.; Desimone, R.; Boyden, E. S.; Sohal, H. S.; Olofsson, P. S.

    2017-12-01

    Objective. Neural reflexes regulate immune responses and homeostasis. Advances in bioelectronic medicine indicate that electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve can be used to treat inflammatory disease, yet the understanding of neural signals that regulate inflammation is incomplete. Current interfaces with the vagus nerve do not permit effective chronic stimulation or recording in mouse models, which is vital to studying the molecular and neurophysiological mechanisms that control inflammation homeostasis in health and disease. We developed an implantable, dual purpose, multi-channel, flexible ‘microelectrode’ array, for recording and stimulation of the mouse vagus nerve. Approach. The array was microfabricated on an 8 µm layer of highly biocompatible parylene configured with 16 sites. The microelectrode was evaluated by studying the recording and stimulation performance. Mice were chronically implanted with devices for up to 12 weeks. Main results. Using the microelectrode in vivo, high fidelity signals were recorded during physiological challenges (e.g potassium chloride and interleukin-1β), and electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve produced the expected significant reduction of blood levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) in endotoxemia. Inflammatory cell infiltration at the microelectrode 12 weeks of implantation was limited according to radial distribution analysis of inflammatory cells. Significance. This novel device provides an important step towards a viable chronic interface for cervical vagus nerve stimulation and recording in mice.

  8. Final Technical Report: Electrohydrodynamic Tip Streaming

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Basaran, Osman [Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States)

    2016-01-06

    When subjected to strong electric fields, liquid drops and films form conical tips and emit thin jets from their tips. Such electrodydrodynamic (EDH) tip streaming or cone-jetting phenomena, which are sometimes referred to as electrospraying, occur widely in nature, e.g., in ejection of streams of small charged drops from pointed tips of raindrops in thunderclouds, and technology, e.g., in electrospray mass spectrometry or electric field-driven solvent extraction. More recently, EHD cone-jetting has emerged as a powerful technique for direct printing of solar cells, micro- and nano- particle production, and microencapsulation for controlled release. In many of the aforementioned situations, of equal importance to the processes by which one drop disintegrates to form several drops are those by which (a) two drops come together and coalesce and (b) two drops are coupled to form a double droplet system (DDS) or a capillary switch (CS). the main objective of this research program is to advance through simulation, theory, and experiment the breakup, coalescence, and oscillatory dynamics of single and pairs of charged as well as uncharged drops.

  9. Effect of island shape on dielectrophoretic assembly of metal nanoparticle chains in a conductive-island-based microelectrode system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ding, Haitao; Shao, Jinyou; Ding, Yucheng; Liu, Weiyu; Li, Xiangming; Tian, Hongmiao; Zhou, Yaopei

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Conductive island shape influences the dynamic process occurring in DEP assembly of 10 nm gold nanoparticles in a conductive-island-based microelectrode system. • The DEP-assembled nanoparticle wires form a straighter conduction path with the increase in the geometric angle of conductive island tip. • The different island shapes distort the DEP force distribution and increase the local electrothermally induced fluid flow to different extents, which is important for the morphology and electrical conductance quality of the DEP-assembled metal nanoparticle chains. - Abstract: The electrical conduction quality of an electric circuit connection formed by dielectrophoretic (DEP)-assembled metal nanoparticle wires between small conductive elements plays a significant role in electronic devices. One of the major challenges for improving the electrical conductance of nanowires is optimizing their geometric morphology. So far, the electrical conduction quality has been enhanced by optimizing the AC frequency and conductivity of nanoparticle suspensions. Herein, the effect of the conductive island shapes on the dynamic process occurring in a DEP assembly of 10 nm gold nanoparticles was investigated in a conductive-island-based microelectrode system. The nanoparticle wires between the microelectrodes were assembled in situ from colloidal suspensions. The wires were grown in a much straighter route by increasing the geometric angle of the conductive-island tip. To validate the experiments, the effects of mutual DEP interactions and electrothermally induced fluid flow on the dynamic behavior of particle motion for different island geometric configurations in the conductive-island-based microelectrode system were determined by numerical simulations. The simulation results are consistent with those of experiments. This indicates that different conductive island shapes change the distribution of DEP force and increase the electrothermally induced fluid flow to

  10. Preparation of Au cone for fast ignition target

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Du Kai; Zhou Lan; Zhang Lin; Wan Xiaobo; Xiao Jiang

    2005-01-01

    Cone-shell target is typically used for the fast ignition experiments of inertial confinement fusion. In order to fabricate cone-shell target the Au cones with different angles were produced by electroplating and precise machining. The Au electroplating process was introduced in the paper, and the dependence of coating quality on the parameters, such as composition, temperature, pH of electroplating bath, current density and tip effect, were discussed. (author)

  11. Intraneural stimulation using wire-microelectrode arrays: analysis of force steps in recruitment curves

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Smit, J.P.A.; Rutten, Wim; Boom, H.B.K.

    1996-01-01

    In acute experiments on six Wistar rats, a wire-microelectrode array was inserted into the common peroneal nerve. A 5-channel array and a 24-channel array were available. Each electrode in the array was used to generate a twitch contraction force recruitment curve for the extensor digitorum longus

  12. Technical tips during implantation of selective upper airway stimulation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heiser, Clemens; Thaler, Erica; Soose, Ryan J; Woodson, B Tucker; Boon, Maurits

    2018-03-01

    Selective upper airway stimulation is now well-established in the United States and in several European countries, with more than 1,000 patients implanted since U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval in April 2014. The authors herein, all head and neck surgeons, account for approximately one of every five implants completed to date. Several of the authors also provide comprehensive longitudinal care of their patients as dual-specialty sleep medicine physicians. Multi-center, retrospective clinical analysis. More than 300 implants have been evaluated and reviewed in five different implant centers (Germany, United States). This analysis shares tips and techniques from the collective experiences with more than 300 implants, which can help newer implanters learn vicariously both for standard practices in executing routine implants through activation and, importantly, for working through more challenging encounters with anatomy, special patient phenotypes, system testing, and troubleshooting. These tips should help new implanters handle most of the situations arising during implantation and avoid common pitfalls. Laryngoscope, 128:756-762, 2018. © 2017 The American Laryngological, Rhinological and Otological Society, Inc.

  13. Single-blind, randomized, controlled trial of pelvic floor muscle training, electrical stimulation, vaginal cones, and no active treatment in the management of stress urinary incontinence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rodrigo A. Castro

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available PURPOSE: To compare the effectiveness of pelvic floor exercises, electrical stimulation, vaginal cones, and no active treatment in women with urodynamic stress urinary incontinence. PATIENTS AND METHODS: One hundred eighteen subjects were randomly selected to recieve pelvic floor exercises (n=31, ES (n=30, vaginal cones (n=27, or no treatment (untreated control (n=30. Women were evaluated before and after completion of six months of treatment by the pad test, quality of life questionnaire (I-QOL, urodynamic test, voiding diary, and subjective response. RESULTS: In the objective evaluation, we observed a statistically significant reduction in the pad test (p=0.003, in the number of stress urinary episodes (p<0.001, and a significant improvement in the quality of life (p<0.001 in subjects who used pelvic floor exercises, electrical stimulation, and vaginal cones compared to the control group. No significant difference was found between groups in the urodynamic parameters. In the subjective evaluation, 58%, 55%, and 54% of women who had used pelvic floor exercises, electrical stimulation, and vaginal cones, respectively, reported being satisfied after treatment. In the control group, only 21% patients were satisfied with the treatment. CONCLUSION: Based on this study, pelvic floor exercises, electrical stimulation, and vaginal cones are equally effective treatments and are far superior to no treatment in women with urodynamic stress urinary incontinence.

  14. Implantable liquid metal-based flexible neural microelectrode array and its application in recovering animal locomotion functions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guo, Rui; Liu, Jing

    2017-10-01

    With significant advantages in rapidly restoring the nerve function, electrical stimulation of nervous tissue is a crucial treatment of peripheral nerve injuries leading to common movement disorder. However, the currently available stimulating electrodes generally based on rigid conductive materials would cause a potential mechanical mismatch with soft neural tissues which thus reduces long-term effects of electrical stimulation. Here, we proposed and fabricated a flexible neural microelectrode array system based on the liquid metal GaIn alloy (75.5% Ga and 24.5% In by weight) and via printing approach. Such an alloy with a unique low melting point (10.35 °C) owns excellent electrical conductivity and high compliance, which are beneficial to serve as implantable flexible neural electrodes. The flexible neural microelectrode array embeds four liquid metal electrodes and stretchable interconnects in a PDMS membrane (500 µm in thickness) that possess a lower elastic modulus (1.055 MPa), which is similar to neural tissues with elastic moduli in the 0.1-1.5 MPa range. The electrical experiments indicate that the liquid metal interconnects could sustain over 7000 mechanical stretch cycles with resistance approximately staying at 4 Ω. Over the conceptual experiments on animal sciatic nerve electrical stimulation, the dead bullfrog implanted with flexible neural microelectrode array could even rhythmically contract and move its lower limbs under the electrical stimulations from the implant. This demonstrates a highly efficient way for quickly recovering biological nerve functions. Further, the good biocompatibility of the liquid metal material was justified via a series of biological experiments. This liquid metal modality for neural stimulation is expected to play important roles as biologic electrodes to overcome the fundamental mismatch in mechanics between biological tissues and electronic devices in the coming time.

  15. Implantable liquid metal-based flexible neural microelectrode array and its application in recovering animal locomotion functions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Guo, Rui; Liu, Jing

    2017-01-01

    With significant advantages in rapidly restoring the nerve function, electrical stimulation of nervous tissue is a crucial treatment of peripheral nerve injuries leading to common movement disorder. However, the currently available stimulating electrodes generally based on rigid conductive materials would cause a potential mechanical mismatch with soft neural tissues which thus reduces long-term effects of electrical stimulation. Here, we proposed and fabricated a flexible neural microelectrode array system based on the liquid metal GaIn alloy (75.5% Ga and 24.5% In by weight) and via printing approach. Such an alloy with a unique low melting point (10.35 °C) owns excellent electrical conductivity and high compliance, which are beneficial to serve as implantable flexible neural electrodes. The flexible neural microelectrode array embeds four liquid metal electrodes and stretchable interconnects in a PDMS membrane (500 µ m in thickness) that possess a lower elastic modulus (1.055 MPa), which is similar to neural tissues with elastic moduli in the 0.1–1.5 MPa range. The electrical experiments indicate that the liquid metal interconnects could sustain over 7000 mechanical stretch cycles with resistance approximately staying at 4 Ω. Over the conceptual experiments on animal sciatic nerve electrical stimulation, the dead bullfrog implanted with flexible neural microelectrode array could even rhythmically contract and move its lower limbs under the electrical stimulations from the implant. This demonstrates a highly efficient way for quickly recovering biological nerve functions. Further, the good biocompatibility of the liquid metal material was justified via a series of biological experiments. This liquid metal modality for neural stimulation is expected to play important roles as biologic electrodes to overcome the fundamental mismatch in mechanics between biological tissues and electronic devices in the coming time. (paper)

  16. Hanford waste tank cone penetrometer

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Seda, R.Y.

    1995-12-01

    A new tool is being developed to characterize tank waste at the Hanford Reservation. This tool, known as the cone penetrometer, is capable of obtaining chemical and physical properties in situ. For the past 50 years, this tool has been used extensively in soil applications and now has been modified for usage in Hanford Underground Storage tanks. These modifications include development of new ''waste'' data models as well as hardware design changes to accommodate the hazardous and radioactive environment of the tanks. The modified cone penetrometer is scheduled to be deployed at Hanford by Fall 1996. At Hanford, the cone penetrometer will be used as an instrumented pipe which measures chemical and physical properties as it pushes through tank waste. Physical data, such as tank waste stratification and mechanical properties, is obtained through three sensors measuring tip pressure, sleeve friction and pore pressure. Chemical data, such as chemical speciation, is measured using a Raman spectroscopy sensor. The sensor package contains other instrumentation as well, including a tip and side temperature sensor, tank bottom detection and an inclinometer. Once the cone penetrometer has reached the bottom of the tank, a moisture probe will be inserted into the pipe. This probe is used to measure waste moisture content, water level, waste surface moisture and tank temperature. This paper discusses the development of this new measurement system. Data from the cone penetrometer will aid in the selection of sampling tools, waste tank retrieval process, and addressing various tank safety issues. This paper will explore various waste models as well as the challenges associated with tank environment

  17. Band-type microelectrodes for amperometric immunoassays

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Ga-Yeon; Chang, Young Wook; Ko, Hyuk [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Yonsei University, 134 Shinchon-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, 120-749 (Korea, Republic of); Kang, Min-Jung [Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Pyun, Jae-Chul, E-mail: jcpyun@yonsei.ac.kr [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Yonsei University, 134 Shinchon-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, 120-749 (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-07-20

    A band-type microelectrode was made using a parylene-N film as a passivation layer. A circular-type, mm-scale electrode with the same diameter as the band-type microelectrode was also made with an electrode area that was 5000 times larger than the band-type microelectrode. By comparing the amperometric signals of 3,5,3′,5′-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) samples at different optical density (OD) values, the band-type microelectrode was determined to be 9 times more sensitive than the circular-type electrode. The properties of the circular-type and the band-type electrodes (e.g., the shape of their cyclic voltammograms, the type of diffusion layer used, and the diffusion layer thickness per unit electrode area) were characterized according to their electrode area using the COMSOL Multiphysics software. From these simulations, the band-type electrode was estimated to have the conventional microelectrode properties, even when the electrode area was 100 times larger than a conventional circular-type electrode. These results show that both the geometry and the area of an electrode can influence the properties of the electrode. Finally, amperometric analysis based on a band-type electrode was applied to commercial ELISA kits to analyze human hepatitis B surface antigen (hHBsAg) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) antibodies. - Highlights: • A band-type microelectrode was made using a parylene-N film as a passivation layer. • The band-type microelectrode was 14-times more sensitive than circular-type electrode. • The influence of geometry on microelectrode properties was simulated using COMSOL. • The band-type electrode was applied to ELISA kits for hHBsAg and hHIV-antibodies.

  18. Failure Mechanisms of a Gold Microelectrode in Bioelectronics Applications

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jonghun Kim

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The generation, growth, and collapse of tiny bubbles are inevitable for a microelectrode working in aqueous environment, thus resulting in physical damages on the microelectrode. The failure mechanisms of a microelectrode induced by tiny bubble collapsing are investigated by generating tiny hydrogen bubbles on a gold microelectrode through deionized water electrolysis. The surface of the microelectrode is modified with a thiol-functionalized arginine-glycine-aspartic acid peptide to generate perfectly spherical bubbles in proximity of the surface. The failure of an Au microelectrode is governed by two damage mechanisms, depending on the thickness of the microelectrode: a water-hammer pressure due to the violent collapse of a single large bubble, formed through merging of small bubbles, for ultrathin Au microelectrodes of 40–60 nm in thickness, and an energy accumulation resulting from the repetitive collapse of tiny bubbles for thick Au microelectrodes of 100–120 nm.

  19. Ejecta evolution during cone impact

    KAUST Repository

    Marston, Jeremy; Thoroddsen, Sigurdur T

    2014-01-01

    -similarity for all impact speeds for very low surface tension liquids, whilst for high-surface tension liquids similarity is only achieved at high impact speeds. We find that the ejecta tip can detach from the cone and that this phenomenon can be attributed

  20. Quadruple Cone Coil with improved focality than Figure-8 coil in Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rastogi, Priyam; Lee, Erik G.; Hadimani, Ravi L.; Jiles, David C.

    Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive therapy which uses a time varying magnetic field to induce an electric field in the brain and to cause neuron depolarization. Magnetic coils play an important role in the TMS therapy since their coil geometry determines the focality and penetration's depth of the induced electric field in the brain. Quadruple Cone Coil (QCC) is a novel coil with an improved focality when compared to commercial Figure-8 coil. The results of this newly designed QCC coil are compared with the Figure-8 coil at two different positions of the head - vertex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, over the 50 anatomically realistic MRI derived head models. Parameters such as volume of stimulation, maximum electric, area of stimulation and location of maximum electric field are determined with the help of computer modelling of both coils. There is a decrease in volume of brain stimulated by 11.6 % and a modest improvement of 8 % in the location of maximum electric field due to QCC in comparison to the Figure-8 coil. The Carver Charitable Trust and The Galloway Foundation.

  1. Development of a polymer based fully flexible electrode tip for neuronal micro-stimulation applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    David, Romain; Miki, Norihisa

    2017-06-01

    Neural stimulation systems design is highly impacted by the overall resolution and adaptability of the device to the targeted application and area to stimulate. In this paper, we report a novel design for neural micro-stimulation electrode presenting high resolution and adaptability to any targeted area via a high flexibility. We propose the use of liquid metal micro-channels encapsulated into a polymer volume, achieving micro-stimulation pads at the tip of the channels. It presents a high degree of patternability to match different possible targeted applications, and good flexibility and mechanic properties to make it insertable and adaptable into soft tissues. A stable fabrication process, including insertion of the liquid alloy into 50 µm half-channels, the necessity of the U-shape to produce functional conductive micro-channels and the mechanical integrity of the device are discussed.

  2. A study on hydrogen adsorption behaviors of open-tip carbon nanocones

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liao Mingliang

    2012-01-01

    Hydrogen adsorption behaviors of single-walled open-tip (tip-truncated) carbon nanocones (CNCs) with apex angles of 19.2° at temperatures of 77 and 300 K were investigated by the molecular dynamics simulations. Four nanomaterials (including three CNCs with different dimensions and a reference CNT) were analyzed to examine the hydrogen adsorption behaviors and influences of cone sharpness on the behaviors of the CNCs. Physisorption of hydrogen molecules could be observed from the distribution pattern of the hydrogen molecules adsorbed on the nanomaterials. Because of the cone geometry effect, the open-tip CNCs could have larger storage weight percentage and less desorption of hydrogen molecules (caused by the temperature growth) on their outer surfaces, as compared with those of the reference CNT. The hydrogen molecules inside the CNCs and the reference CNT, however, were noted to have similar desorption behaviors owing to the confinement effects from the structures of the nanomaterials. In addition, the sharper CNC could have higher storage weight percentage but the cone sharpness does not have evident enhancement in the average adsorption energy of the CNC. Combination of confinement and repulsion effects existing near the tip region of the CNC would be responsible for the non-enhancement feature.

  3. Characterization and fabrication of fully metal-coated scanning near-field optical microscopy SiO2 tips.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aeschimann, L; Akiyama, T; Staufer, U; De Rooij, N F; Thiery, L; Eckert, R; Heinzelmann, H

    2003-03-01

    The fabrication of silicon cantilever-based scanning near-field optical microscope probes with fully aluminium-coated quartz tips was optimized to increase production yield. Different cantilever designs for dynamic- and contact-mode force feedback were implemented. Light transmission through the tips was investigated experimentally in terms of the metal coating and the tip cone-angle. We found that transmittance varies with the skin depth of the metal coating and is inverse to the cone angle, meaning that slender tips showed higher transmission. Near-field optical images of individual fluorescing molecules showed a resolution thermocouple showed no evidence of mechanical defect or orifice formation by thermal effects.

  4. Double-Cone Coil TMS Stimulation of the Medial Cortex Inhibits Central Pain Habituation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Federico D'Agata

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to investigate whether Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS applied over the medial line of the scalp affects the subjective perception of continuous pain induced by means of electric stimulation. In addition, we wanted to identify the point of stimulation where this effect was maximum.Superficial electrical stimulation was used to induce continuous pain on the dominant hand. At the beginning of the experiment we reached a pain rating of 5 on an 11-point numeric rating scale (NRS; 0 = no pain and 10 = maximum tolerable pain for each subject by setting individually the current intensity. The TMS (five pulses at increasing intensities was applied on 5 equidistant points (one per session over the medial line of the scalp in 13 healthy volunteers using a double-cone coil to stimulate underlying parts of the brain cortex. In every experimental session the painful stimulation lasted 45 minutes, during which pain and distress intensities NRS were recorded continuously. We calculated the effect of adaptation and the immediate effect of the TMS stimulation for all locations. Additionally, an ALE (Activation Likelihood Estimation meta-analysis was performed to compare our results with the neuroimaging literature on subjective pain rating.TMS stimulation temporarily decreased the pain ratings, and pain adaptation was suppressed when applying the TMS over the FCz site on the scalp. No effect was found for distress ratings.The present data suggest that the medial cortex in proximity of the cingulated gyrus has a causal role in adaptation mechanisms and in processing ongoing pain and subjective sensation of pain intensity.

  5. Electromagnetic scattering of a vector Bessel beam in the presence of an impedance cone

    KAUST Repository

    Salem, Mohamed

    2013-07-01

    The electromagnetic field scattering of a vector Bessel beam in the presence of an infinite circular cone with an impedance boundary on its surface is considered. The impinging field is normal to the tip of the cone and is expanded in terms of vector spherical wave functions; a Kontorovich-Lebedev (KL) transform is employed to expand the scattered fields. The problem is reduced to a singular integral equation with a variable coefficient of the non-convolution type. The singularities of the spectral function are deduced and representations for the field at the tip of the cone as well as other regions are given together with the conditions of validity of these representations. © 2013 IEEE.

  6. Analysis of macular cone photoreceptors in a case of occult macular dystrophy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tojo N

    2013-05-01

    Full Text Available Naoki Tojo Tomoko Nakamura Hironori Ozaki Miyako Oka Toshihiko Oiwake Atsushi HayashiDepartment of Ophthalmology, University of Toyama, Toyama, JapanPurpose: To investigate changes in cone photoreceptors with adaptive optics (AO fundus imaging and spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT in a case of occult macular dystrophy (OMD.Patient and methods: Both eyes of a 42-year-old woman diagnosed with OMD were examined. We used an AO fundus camera to obtain images of cone photoreceptors in the macula of the OMD subject and five healthy control subjects. Correlations between the AO images and the SD-OCT images were examined. Cone photoreceptors in eight areas in the macula of OMD and healthy control subjects were analyzed and compared.Results: SD-OCT showed a loss of the cone outer-segment tips line outside of the fovea in both eyes of the subject with OMD. The left eye with decreased visual acuity showed a discontinuous photoreceptor inner-segment and outer-segment line and cone outer-segment tips line at the fovea in SD-OCT and loss of cone mosaics as a dark spot in the AO image. In panoramic AO images and cone-density maps, less cone density was observed in a ring-like region outside the fovea than in the peripheral retina. In most of the areas examined, the cone densities were lower in the OMD eyes than in the healthy control eyes.Conclusions: Cone densities in the macula of the OMD patient were greatly decreased. AO images were found to be useful to evaluate morphologic changes in cone photoreceptors in patients with OMD.Keywords: occult macular dystrophy, adaptive optics, cone photoreceptor, cone analysis, optical coherence tomography

  7. Screening metal nanoparticles using boron-doped diamond microelectrodes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ivandini, Tribidasari A., E-mail: ivandini.tri@sci.ui.ac.id; Rangkuti, Prasmita K. [Department of Chemistry, FMIPA, Universitas Indonesia, Kampus UI Depok (Indonesia); Einaga, Yasuaki [Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, Keio University (Japan); JST ACCEL, 3-14-1 Hiyoshi, Yokohama 223-8522 (Japan)

    2016-04-19

    Boron-doped diamond (BDD) microelectrodes were used to observe the correlation between electrocatalytic currents caused by individual Pt nanoparticle (Pt-np) collisions at the electrode. The BDD microelectrodes, ∼20 µm diameter and ∼2 µm particle size, were fabricated at the surface of tungsten wires. Pt-np with a size of 1 to 5 nm with agglomerations up to 20 nm was used for observation. The electrolytic currents were observed via catalytic reaction of 15 mM hydrazine in 50 mM phosphate buffer solution at Pt-np at 0.4 V when it collides with the surface of the microelectrodes. The low current noise and wider potential window in the measurements using BDD microelectrode produced a better results, which represents a better correlation to the TEM result of the Pt-np, compared to when gold microelectrodes was used.

  8. Screening metal nanoparticles using boron-doped diamond microelectrodes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ivandini, Tribidasari A.; Rangkuti, Prasmita K.; Einaga, Yasuaki

    2016-01-01

    Boron-doped diamond (BDD) microelectrodes were used to observe the correlation between electrocatalytic currents caused by individual Pt nanoparticle (Pt-np) collisions at the electrode. The BDD microelectrodes, ∼20 µm diameter and ∼2 µm particle size, were fabricated at the surface of tungsten wires. Pt-np with a size of 1 to 5 nm with agglomerations up to 20 nm was used for observation. The electrolytic currents were observed via catalytic reaction of 15 mM hydrazine in 50 mM phosphate buffer solution at Pt-np at 0.4 V when it collides with the surface of the microelectrodes. The low current noise and wider potential window in the measurements using BDD microelectrode produced a better results, which represents a better correlation to the TEM result of the Pt-np, compared to when gold microelectrodes was used.

  9. Spatial and temporal characteristics of V1 microstimulation during chronic implantation of a microelectrode array in a behaving macaque

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davis, T. S.; Parker, R. A.; House, P. A.; Bagley, E.; Wendelken, S.; Normann, R. A.; Greger, B.

    2012-12-01

    Objective. It has been hypothesized that a vision prosthesis capable of evoking useful visual percepts can be based upon electrically stimulating the primary visual cortex (V1) of a blind human subject via penetrating microelectrode arrays. As a continuation of earlier work, we examined several spatial and temporal characteristics of V1 microstimulation. Approach. An array of 100 penetrating microelectrodes was chronically implanted in V1 of a behaving macaque monkey. Microstimulation thresholds were measured using a two-alternative forced choice detection task. Relative locations of electrically-evoked percepts were measured using a memory saccade-to-target task. Main results. The principal finding was that two years after implantation we were able to evoke behavioural responses to electric stimulation across the spatial extent of the array using groups of contiguous electrodes. Consistent responses to stimulation were evoked at an average threshold current per electrode of 204 ± 49 µA (mean ± std) for groups of four electrodes and 91 ± 25 µA for groups of nine electrodes. Saccades to electrically-evoked percepts using groups of nine electrodes showed that the animal could discriminate spatially distinct percepts with groups having an average separation of 1.6 ± 0.3 mm (mean ± std) in cortex and 1.0° ± 0.2° in visual space. Significance. These results demonstrate chronic perceptual functionality and provide evidence for the feasibility of a cortically-based vision prosthesis for the blind using penetrating microelectrodes.

  10. A comparison of electrochemically pre-treated and spark-platinized carbon fiber microelectrode. Measurement of 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2′-deoxyguanosine in human urine and plasma

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bartosova, Z.; Riman, D. [Department of Analytical Chemistry, Palacky University, Faculty of Science, 17.listopadu 12, CZ-771 46 Olomouc (Czech Republic); Halouzka, V. [Department of Analytical Chemistry, Palacky University, Faculty of Science, 17.listopadu 12, CZ-771 46 Olomouc (Czech Republic); Department of Physics and Materials Engineering, Faculty of Technology, Tomas Bata University in Zlin, nam. T.G. Masaryka 275, CZ-76001 Zlin (Czech Republic); Vostalova, J.; Simanek, V. [Department of Medical Chemistry and Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacky University, Hnevotinska 3, CZ-775 15 Olomouc (Czech Republic); Hrbac, J., E-mail: jhrbac@atlas.cz [Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, CZ-625 00 Brno (Czech Republic); Jirovsky, D., E-mail: david.jirovsky@upol.cz [Department of Analytical Chemistry, Palacky University, Faculty of Science, 17.listopadu 12, CZ-771 46 Olomouc (Czech Republic)

    2016-09-07

    A novel method of carbon fiber microelectrode activation using spark discharge was demonstrated and compared to conventional electrochemical pretreatment by potential cycling. The spark discharge was performed at 800 V between the microelectrode connected to positive pole of the power supply and platinum counter electrode. Spark discharge led both to trimming of the fiber tip into conical shape and to the modification of carbon fiber microelectrode with platinum, as proven by scanning electron microscopy and electron dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. After the characterization of electrochemical properties using ferricyanide voltammetry, the activated electrodes were used for electrochemical analysis of 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2′-deoxyguanosine, an oxidative stress marker. Subnanomolar detection limits (0.55 nmol L{sup −1}) in high-performance liquid chromatography were achieved for spark platinized electrodes incorporated into the flow detection cell. - Highlights: • Novel method of carbon fiber microelectrode activation and platinization using spark discharge. • The activation procedure is efficient, fast and solvent-free. • Modification of the surface and the shape of the carbon fiber microelectrode during the process. • The spark-etched platinized carbon fiber sensors are highly sensitive. • The sensor was successfully applied to HPLC analysis of 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2′-deoxyguanosine in plasma and urine.

  11. Investigating brain functional evolution and plasticity using microelectrode array technology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Napoli, Alessandro; Obeid, Iyad

    2015-10-01

    The aim of this work was to investigate long and short-term plasticity responsible for memory formation in dissociated neuronal networks. In order to address this issue, a set of experiments was designed and implemented in which the microelectrode array electrode grid was divided into four quadrants, two of which were chronically stimulated, every two days for one hour with a stimulation paradigm that varied over time. Overall network and quadrant responses were then analyzed to quantify what level of plasticity took place in the network and how this was due to the stimulation interruption. The results demonstrate that there were no spatial differences in the stimulus-evoked activity within quadrants. Furthermore, the implemented stimulation protocol induced depression effects in the neuronal networks as demonstrated by the consistently lower network activity following stimulation sessions. Finally, the analysis demonstrated that the inhibitory effects of the stimulation decreased over time, thus suggesting a habituation phenomenon. These findings are sufficient to conclude that electrical stimulation is an important tool to interact with dissociated neuronal cultures, but localized stimuli are not enough to drive spatial synaptic potentiation or depression. On the contrary, the ability to modulate synaptic temporal plasticity was a feasible task to achieve by chronic network stimulation. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Vertically aligned carbon nanotubes for microelectrode arrays applications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castro Smirnov, J R; Jover, Eric; Amade, Roger; Gabriel, Gemma; Villa, Rosa; Bertran, Enric

    2012-09-01

    In this work a methodology to fabricate carbon nanotube based electrodes using plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition has been explored and defined. The final integrated microelectrode based devices should present specific properties that make them suitable for microelectrode arrays applications. The methodology studied has been focused on the preparation of highly regular and dense vertically aligned carbon nanotube (VACNT) mat compatible with the standard lithography used for microelectrode arrays technology.

  13. Electromagnetic scattering of a vector Bessel beam in the presence of an impedance cone

    KAUST Repository

    Salem, Mohamed; Bagci, Hakan

    2013-01-01

    The electromagnetic field scattering of a vector Bessel beam in the presence of an infinite circular cone with an impedance boundary on its surface is considered. The impinging field is normal to the tip of the cone and is expanded in terms

  14. Two-step controllable electrochemical etching of tungsten scanning probe microscopy tips

    KAUST Repository

    Khan, Yasser; Al-Falih, Hisham; Ng, Tien Khee; Ooi, Boon S.; Zhang, Yaping

    2012-01-01

    Dynamic electrochemical etching technique is optimized to produce tungsten tips with controllable shape and radius of curvature of less than 10 nm. Nascent features such as dynamic electrochemical etching and reverse biasing after drop-off are utilized, and two-step dynamic electrochemical etching is introduced to produce extremely sharp tips with controllable aspect ratio. Electronic current shut-off time for conventional dc drop-off technique is reduced to ?36 ns using high speed analog electronics. Undesirable variability in tip shape, which is innate to static dc electrochemical etching, is mitigated with novel dynamic electrochemical etching. Overall, we present a facile and robust approach, whereby using a novel etchant level adjustment mechanism, 30° variability in cone angle and 1.5 mm controllability in cone length were achieved, while routinely producing ultra-sharp probes. © 2012 American Institute of Physics.

  15. Pyrolytic 3D Carbon Microelectrodes for Electrochemistry

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hemanth, Suhith; Caviglia, Claudia; Amato, Letizia

    2016-01-01

    This work presents the fabrication and characterization of suspended three-dimensional (3D) pyrolytic carbon microelectrodes for electrochemical applications. For this purpose, an optimized process with multiple steps of UV photolithography with the negative tone photoresist SU-8 followed...... by pyrolysis at 900ºC for 1h was developed. With this process, microelectrode chips with a three electrode configuration were fabricated and characterized with cyclic voltammetry (CV) using a 10mM potassium ferri-ferrocyanide redox probe in a custom made batch system with magnetic clamping. The 3D pyrolytic...... carbon microelectrodes displayed twice the higher peak current compared to 2D....

  16. Assessment of consistency in the dimension of gutta-percha cones of ProTaper Next and WaveOne with their corresponding number files

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bajaj, Nitika; Monga, Prashant; Mahajan, Pardeep

    2017-01-01

    Objectives: To compare the dimensions of gutta-percha (GP) cones of ProTaper Next (25/0.06) and WaveOne (25/0.08) in relation to their corresponding instruments of the same dimension, respectively. Materials and Methods: Two groups of GP cones were made with 25 cones in each group. Group 1 consisted of 25 GP cones # 25/0.06 (ProTaper Next). Group 2 consisted of 25 GP cones # 25/0.08 (WaveOne). Measurements were done at D1 (1 mm short of the tip), D3 (3 mm short of the tip), and D11 (11 mm short of the tip) for GP cones of both groups and were compared with their corresponding instruments. Results: Group 1 (ProTaper) 25/.06 GP points showed greater diameters than those of the corresponding instrument, which was statistically significant. Group 2 (WaveOne) 25/0.08 GP points showed greater diameters than those of the corresponding instrument which was statistically significant whereas it was nonsignificant at level D1. Conclusion: Diameters of both ProTaper Next and WaveOne GP cones were greater than their corresponding instruments. Hence, there are chances of under obturation with both systems. PMID:28729793

  17. Suspended 3D pyrolytic carbon microelectrodes for electrochemistry

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hemanth, Suhith; Caviglia, Claudia; Keller, Stephan Sylvest

    2017-01-01

    with cyclic voltammetry (CV) and impedance spectroscopy (EIS) using potassium ferri-ferrocyanide redox probe in a custom made batch system with magnetic clamping. Different 3D pyrolytic carbon microelectrodes were compared and the optimal design displayed twice the peak current and half the charge transfer......Carbon microelectrodes have a wide range of applications because of their unique material properties and biocompatibility. This work presents the fabrication and characterization of suspended pyrolytic carbon microstructures serving as three-dimensional (3D) carbon microelectrodes...... for electrochemical applications. A 3D polymer template in epoxy based photoresist (SU-8) was fabricated with multiple steps of UV photolithography and pyrolysed at 900 °C to obtain 3D carbon microelectrodes. The pyrolytic carbon microstructures were characterized by SEM, Raman spectroscopy and XPS to determine...

  18. Fabrication of silver tips for scanning tunneling microscope induced luminescence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, C; Gao, B; Chen, L G; Meng, Q S; Yang, H; Zhang, R; Tao, X; Gao, H Y; Liao, Y; Dong, Z C

    2011-08-01

    We describe a reliable fabrication procedure of silver tips for scanning tunneling microscope (STM) induced luminescence experiments. The tip was first etched electrochemically to yield a sharp cone shape using selected electrolyte solutions and then sputter cleaned in ultrahigh vacuum to remove surface oxidation. The tip status, in particular the tip induced plasmon mode and its emission intensity, can be further tuned through field emission and voltage pulse. The quality of silver tips thus fabricated not only offers atomically resolved STM imaging, but more importantly, also allows us to perform challenging "color" photon mapping with emission spectra taken at each pixel simultaneously during the STM scan under relatively small tunnel currents and relatively short exposure time.

  19. Fabrication of cone-shaped boron doped diamond and gold nanoelectrodes for AFM-SECM

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Avdic, A; Lugstein, A; Bertagnolli, E [Solid State Electronics Institute, Vienna University of Technology, Floragasse 7, 1040 Vienna (Austria); Wu, M; Gollas, B [Competence Centre for Electrochemical Surface Technology, Viktor Kaplan Strasse 2, 2700 Wiener Neustadt (Austria); Pobelov, I; Wandlowski, T [Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Bern, Freiestrasse 3, 3012 Bern (Switzerland); Leonhardt, K; Denuault, G, E-mail: alois.lugstein@tuwien.ac.at [School of Chemistry, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ (United Kingdom)

    2011-04-08

    We demonstrate a reliable microfabrication process for a combined atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) measurement tool. Integrated cone-shaped sensors with boron doped diamond (BDD) or gold (Au) electrodes were fabricated from commercially available AFM probes. The sensor formation process is based on mature semiconductor processing techniques, including focused ion beam (FIB) machining, and highly selective reactive ion etching (RIE). The fabrication approach preserves the geometry of the original AFM tips resulting in well reproducible nanoscaled sensors. The feasibility and functionality of the fully featured tips are demonstrated by cyclic voltammetry, showing good agreement between the measured and calculated currents of the cone-shaped AFM-SECM electrodes.

  20. Superconducting phase transition in STM tips

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Eltschka, Matthias; Jaeck, Berthold; Assig, Maximilian; Etzkorn, Markus; Ast, Christian R. [Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research, Stuttgart (Germany); Kern, Klaus [Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research, Stuttgart (Germany); Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (Switzerland)

    2015-07-01

    The superconducting properties of systems with dimensions comparable to the London penetration depth considerably differ from macroscopic systems. We have studied the superconducting phase transition of vanadium STM tips in external magnetic fields. Employing Maki's theory we extract the superconducting parameters such as the gap or the Zeeman splitting from differential conductance spectra. While the Zeeman splitting follows the theoretical description of a system with s=1/2 and g=2, the superconducting gaps as well as the critical fields depend on the specific tip. For a better understanding of the experimental results, we solve a one dimensional Usadel equation modeling the superconducting tip as a cone with the opening angle α in an external magnetic field. We find that only a small region at the apex of the tip is superconducting in high magnetic fields and that the order of the phase transition is directly determined by α. Further, the spectral broadening increases with α indicating an intrinsic broadening mechanism due to the conical shape of the tip. Comparing these calculations to our experimental results reveals the order of the superconducting phase transition of the STM tips.

  1. Bright and durable field emission source derived from refractory taylor cones

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hirsch, Gregory

    2016-12-20

    A method of producing field emitters having improved brightness and durability relying on the creation of a liquid Taylor cone from electrically conductive materials having high melting points. The method calls for melting the end of a wire substrate with a focused laser beam, while imposing a high positive potential on the material. The resulting molten Taylor cone is subsequently rapidly quenched by cessation of the laser power. Rapid quenching is facilitated in large part by radiative cooling, resulting in structures having characteristics closely matching that of the original liquid Taylor cone. Frozen Taylor cones thus obtained yield desirable tip end forms for field emission sources in electron beam applications. Regeneration of the frozen Taylor cones in-situ is readily accomplished by repeating the initial formation procedures. The high temperature liquid Taylor cones can also be employed as bright ion sources with chemical elements previously considered impractical to implement.

  2. Batch fabrication of nanotubes suspended between microelectrodes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mateiu, Ramona Valentina; Stöckli, T.; Knapp, H. F.

    2007-01-01

    be done with a simple lift-off process with standard photolithographic resist. An applied electric field is sustained between the microelectrodes during CVD to guide the nanotube growth. Comparison with simulations shows that the location and the orientation of the grown carbon nanotubes (CNT) correspond...... to the regions of maximum electric field, enabling accurate positioning of a nanotube by controlling the shape of the microelectrodes. The CNT bridges are deflected tens of nm when a DC voltage is applied between the nanotube and a gate microelectrode indicating that the clamping through the catalyst particles...... is not only mechanically stable but also electrical conducting. This method could be used to fabricate nanoelectromechanical systems based on suspended double clamped CNTs depending only on photolithography and standard Cleanroom processes....

  3. DFT study of gases adsorption on sharp tip nano-catalysts surface for green fertilizer synthesis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yahya, Noorhana; Irfan, Muhammad; Shafie, Afza; Soleimani, Hassan; Alqasem, Bilal; Rehman, Zia Ur; Qureshi, Saima

    2016-11-01

    The energy minimization and spin modifications of sorbates with sorbents in magnetic induction method (MIM) play a vital role in yield of fertilizer. Hence, in this article the focus of study is the interaction of sorbates/reactants (H2, N2 and CO2) in term of average total adsorption energies, average isosteric heats of adsorption energies, magnetic moments, band gaps energies and spin modifications over identical cone tips nanocatalyst (sorbents) of Fe2O3, Fe3O4 (magnetic), CuO and Al2O3 (non-magnetic) for green nano-fertilizer synthesis. Study of adsorption energy, band structures and density of states of reactants with sorbents are purely classical and quantum mechanical based concepts that are vividly illustrated and supported by ADSORPTION LOCATOR and Cambridge Seriel Total Energy Package (CASTEP) modules following classical and first principle DFT simulation study respectively. Maximum values of total average energies, total average adsorption energies and average adsorption energies of H2, N2 and CO2 molecules are reported as -14.688 kcal/mol, -13.444 kcal/mol, -3.130 kcal/mol, - kcal/mol and -6.348 kcal/mol over Al2O3 cone tips respectively and minimum over magnetic cone tips. Whereas, the maximum and average minimum values of average isosteric heats of adsorption energies of H2, N2 and CO2 molecules are figured out to be 3.081 kcal/mol, 4.842 kcal/mol and 6.848 kcal/mol, 0.988 kcal/mol, 1.554 kcal/mol and 2.236 kcal/mol over aluminum oxide and Fe3O4 cone tips respectively. In addition to the adsorption of reactants over identical cone sorbents the maximum and minimum values of net spin, electrons and number of bands for magnetite and aluminum oxide cone structures are attributed to 82 and zero, 260 and 196, 206 and 118 for Fe3O4 and Al2O3 cones respectively. Maximum and least observed values of band gap energies are figured out to be 0.188 eV and 0.018 eV with Al2O3 and Fe3O4 cone structures respectively. Ultimately, with the adsorption of reactants an

  4. Nanoporous gold microelectrode prepared from potential modulated electrochemical alloying–dealloying in ionic liquid

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jiang, Junhua; Wang, Xinying; Zhang, Lei

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • A green chemistry method for producing nanoporous gold microelectrode was studied. • An ionic liquid plating bath was utilized for electrochemical alloying–dealloying. • Nanostructures of gold surface layers can be tuned by modulating potential. • Nanoporous gold microelectrode has high surface area and merit of a microelectrode. • Nitrite oxidation and reduction on nanoporous gold microelectrode were studied. -- Abstract: Nanoporous gold (NPG) microelectrodes with high surface area and open pore network were successfully prepared by applying modulated potential to a polycrystalline Au-disk microelectrode in ionic liquid electrolyte containing ZnCl 2 at elevated temperature. During cathodic process, Zn is electrodeposited and interacted with Au microdisk substrate to form a AuZn alloy phase. During subsequent anodic process, Zn is selectively dissolved from the alloy phase, leading to the formation of a NPG layer which can grow with repetitive potential modulation. Scanning-electron microscope and energy dispersive X-ray microscope measurements show that the NPG microelectrodes possessing nanoporous structures can be tuned via potential modulation, and chemically contain a small amount of Zn whose presence has no obvious influence on electrochemical responses of the electrodes. Steady-state and cyclic voltammetric studies suggest that the NPG microelectrodes have high surface area and keep diffusional properties of a microelectrode. Electrochemical nitrite reduction and oxidation are studied as model reactions to demonstrate potential applications of the NPG microelectrodes in electrocatalysis and electroanalysis. These facts suggest that the potential-modulated electrochemical alloying/dealloying in ionic liquid electrolyte offers a convenient green-chemistry method for the preparation of nanoporous microelectrodes

  5. Cones fabricated by 3D nanoimprint lithography for highly sensitive surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wu Wei; Hu Min; Ou Fungsuong; Li Zhiyong; Williams, R Stanley

    2010-01-01

    We demonstrated a cost-effective and deterministic method of patterning 3D cone arrays over a large area by using nanoimprint lithography (NIL). Cones with tip radius of less than 10 nm were successfully duplicated onto the UV-curable imprint resist materials from the silicon cone templates. Such cone structures were shown to be a versatile platform for developing reliable, highly sensitive surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) substrates. In contrast to the silicon nanocones, the SERS substrates based on the Au coated cones made by the NIL offered significant improvement of the SERS signal. A further improvement of the SERS signal was observed when the polymer cones were imprinted onto a reflective metallic mirror surface. A sub-zeptomole detection sensitivity for a model molecule, trans-1,2-bis(4-pyridyl)-ethylene (BPE), on the Au coated NIL cone surfaces was achieved.

  6. Fabrication of three-dimensional carbon microelectrodes for electrochemical sensing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hemanth, Suhith

    Carbon microelectrodes have a wide range of applications because of their unique material properties and biocompatibility. The aim of the research work carried out in this thesis was to develop three-dimensional (3D) carbon microelectrodes for electrochemical applications. Three different fabrica...

  7. Long-term neural recordings using MEMS based moveable microelectrodes in the brain

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nathan Jackson

    2010-06-01

    Full Text Available One of the critical requirements of the emerging class of neural prosthetic devices is to maintain good quality neural recordings over long time periods. We report here a novel (Micro-ElectroMechanical Systems based technology that can move microelectrodes in the event of deterioration in neural signal to sample a new set of neurons. Microscale electro-thermal actuators are used to controllably move microelectrodes post-implantation in steps of approximately 9 µm. In this study, a total of 12 moveable microelectrode chips were individually implanted in adult rats. Two of the 12 moveable microelectrode chips were not moved over a period of 3 weeks and were treated as control experiments. During the first three weeks of implantation, moving the microelectrodes led to an improvement in the average SNR from 14.61 ± 5.21 dB before movement to 18.13 ± 4.99 dB after movement across all microelectrodes and all days. However, the average RMS values of noise amplitudes were similar at 2.98 ± 1.22 µV and 3.01 ± 1.16 µV before and after microelectrode movement. Beyond three weeks, the primary observed failure mode was biological rejection of the PMMA (dental cement based skull mount resulting in the device loosening and eventually falling from the skull. Additionally, the average SNR for functioning devices beyond three weeks was 11.88 ± 2.02 dB before microelectrode movement and was significantly different (p<0.01 from the average SNR of 13.34 ± 0.919 dB after movement. The results of this study demonstrate that MEMS based technologies can move microelectrodes in rodent brains in long-term experiments resulting in improvements in signal quality. Further improvements in packaging and surgical techniques will potentially enable movable microelectrodes to record cortical neuronal activity in chronic experiments.

  8. Scattering of electromagnetic waves from a cone with conformal mapping: Application to scanning near-field optical microscope

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chui, S. T.; Chen, Xinzhong; Liu, Mengkun; Lin, Zhifang; Zi, Jian

    2018-02-01

    We study the response of a conical metallic surface to an external electromagnetic (em) field by representing the fields in basis functions containing the integrable singularity at the tip of the cone. A fast analytical solution is obtained by the conformal mapping between the cone and a round disk. We apply our calculation to the scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscope (s-SNOM) and successfully quantify the elastic light scattering from a vibrating metallic tip over a uniform sample. We find that the field-induced charge distribution consists of localized terms at the tip and the base and an extended bulk term along the body of the cone far away from the tip. In recent s-SNOM experiments at the visible and infrared range (600 nm to 1 μ m ) the fundamental of the demodulated near-field signal is found to be much larger than the higher harmonics whereas at THz range (100 μ m to 3 mm) the fundamental becomes comparable to the higher harmonics. We find that the localized tip charge dominates the contribution to the higher harmonics and becomes larger for the THz experiments, thus providing an intuitive understanding of the origin of the near-field signals. We demonstrate the application of our method by extracting a two-dimensional effective dielectric constant map from the s-SNOM image of a finite metallic disk, where the variation comes from the charge density induced by the em field.

  9. Porous-microelectrode study on Pt/C catalysts for methanol electrooxidation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Umeda, Minoru; Kokubo, Mitsuhiro; Mohamedi, Mohamed; Uchida, Isamu

    2003-01-01

    We have developed a porous-microelectrode (PME) to investigate the electroactivity of catalyst particles for proton exchange membrane fuel cells. The cavity at the tip of the PME was filled with Pt/C catalysts prepared by impregnation method. Cyclic voltammograms (CVs) recorded in 1 N H 2 SO 4 aqueous solution revealed that the active area of the stacked catalysts exist not only at the surface but also inside of the stack. For methanol electrooxidation, 30 wt.% Pt/C exhibited the highest electroactivity, whereas the 50 wt.% Pt/C showed extremely small current. The small current is considered as a result of a small active-surface area. Methanol oxidation peak potential shifted toward cathodic direction as Pt-loading decreased, which agrees well with the Pt-oxide formation potential. The activation energy for methanol oxidation was assessed to be 44±3 kJ mol -1 for all Pt/C catalysts and Pt-disc electrode

  10. Sonochemically Fabricated Microelectrode Arrays for Use as Sensing Platforms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stuart D. Collyer

    2010-05-01

    Full Text Available The development, manufacture, modification and subsequent utilisation of sonochemically-formed microelectrode arrays is described for a range of applications. Initial fabrication of the sensing platform utilises ultrasonic ablation of electrochemically insulating polymers deposited upon conductive carbon substrates, forming an array of up to 70,000 microelectrode pores cm–2. Electrochemical and optical analyses using these arrays, their enhanced signal response and stir-independence area are all discussed. The growth of conducting polymeric “mushroom” protrusion arrays with entrapped biological entities, thereby forming biosensors is detailed. The simplicity and inexpensiveness of this approach, lending itself ideally to mass fabrication coupled with unrivalled sensitivity and stir independence makes commercial viability of this process a reality. Application of microelectrode arrays as functional components within sensors include devices for detection of chlorine, glucose, ethanol and pesticides. Immunosensors based on microelectrode arrays are described within this monograph for antigens associated with prostate cancer and transient ischemic attacks (strokes.

  11. Determination of amphetamine-type stimulants (ATSs) and synthetic cathinones in urine using solid phase micro-extraction fibre tips and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

    OpenAIRE

    Alsenedi, Khalid A.; Morrison, Calum

    2018-01-01

    In recent years, an increasing number of stimulant drugs and new psychoactive substances (NPSs) have caused concern in scientific communities and therefore innovative methods to extract compounds from complex biological samples are required. This work is aimed at developing and validating a clean, convenient and straightforward extraction procedure with microliter amounts of organic solvent using Solid Phase Micro-Extraction tips (SPME tips) and analysis using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrom...

  12. [Positions of the implanted stimulating electrodes for artificial facial nerve for inducing contraction of the orbicularis oris muscle in rabbit with peripheral facial paralysis].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, D Y; Zhao, N J; Zhao, Y X; Luo, D; Sun, Y J; Li, K Y

    2017-11-07

    Objective: To explore the optimal positions of the implanted stimulating eletrodes for artificial facial nerve (AFN) for inducing contraction of the orbicularis oris muscle (OOM) in rabbit with peripheral facial paralysis. Methods: According to the four microelectrodes of the AFN stimulating side, four modes of the implanted positions were divided. In line with different modes, the electrodes were implanted into the affected OOM of the rabbits with unilateral peripheral facial paralysis. AFN output electric stimulation to induce contraction of the affected OOM with uniform stimulating frequency and pulse length in vitro. Then compared the stimulus threshold amplitude and the peak amplitude separately among different modes by SAS 9.3 version statistical software. Results: The differences of the stimulus threshold amplitude and the peak amplitude had no statistically significant separately between the first mode and the second mode ( P >0.05), but there were statistically significant differences between the third mode and the fourth mode ( P <0.05). Both kinds of the amplitudes were approximated between the first mode and the second mode respectively, and higher than those in the third mode or the fourth mode. Furthermore, both kinds of the amplitudes in the fourth mode were higher than those in the third mode. Conclusions: The microelectrodes of the AFN stimulating lateral are implanted into the upper lip with a public microelectrode and an output microelectrode, into the lower lip with an output microelectrode, and into the way, which is located to the angle 40° to 45° about the line joining between the midpoint of the ipsilateral auricle root and the corner of the mouth with an output microelectrode. This is the third positional mode which requires lowest effective stimulus current intensity. Thus the mode is suitable as the optimal placement programme.

  13. Tapered optical fiber tip probes based on focused ion beam-milled Fabry-Perot microcavities

    Science.gov (United States)

    André, Ricardo M.; Warren-Smith, Stephen C.; Becker, Martin; Dellith, Jan; Rothhardt, Manfred; Zibaii, M. I.; Latifi, H.; Marques, Manuel B.; Bartelt, Hartmut; Frazão, Orlando

    2016-09-01

    Focused ion beam technology is combined with dynamic chemical etching to create microcavities in tapered optical fiber tips, resulting in fiber probes for temperature and refractive index sensing. Dynamic chemical etching uses hydrofluoric acid and a syringe pump to etch standard optical fibers into cone structures called tapered fiber tips where the length, shape, and cone angle can be precisely controlled. On these tips, focused ion beam is used to mill several different types of Fabry-Perot microcavities. Two main cavity types are initially compared and then combined to form a third, complex cavity structure. In the first case, a gap is milled on the tapered fiber tip which allows the external medium to penetrate the light guiding region and thus presents sensitivity to external refractive index changes. In the second, two slots that function as mirrors are milled on the tip creating a silica cavity that is only sensitive to temperature changes. Finally, both cavities are combined on a single tapered fiber tip, resulting in a multi-cavity structure capable of discriminating between temperature and refractive index variations. This dual characterization is performed with the aid of a fast Fourier transform method to separate the contributions of each cavity and thus of temperature and refractive index. Ultimately, a tapered optical fiber tip probe with sub-standard dimensions containing a multi-cavity structure is projected, fabricated, characterized and applied as a sensing element for simultaneous temperature and refractive index discrimination.

  14. TIPsy tour guides: How microtubule plus-end tracking proteins (+TIPs facilitate axon guidance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elizabeth A Bearce

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available The growth cone is a dynamic cytoskeletal vehicle, which drives the end of a developing axon. It serves to interpret and navigate through the complex landscape and guidance cues of the early nervous system. The growth cone’s distinctive cytoskeletal organization offers a fascinating platform to study how extracellular cues can be translated into mechanical outgrowth and turning behaviors. While many studies of cell motility highlight the importance of actin networks in signaling, adhesion, and propulsion, both seminal and emerging works in the field have highlighted a unique and necessary role for microtubules in growth cone navigation. Here, we focus on the role of singular pioneer microtubules, which extend into the growth cone periphery and are regulated by a diverse family of microtubule plus-end tracking proteins (+TIPs. These +TIPs accumulate at the dynamic ends of microtubules, where they are well-positioned to encounter and respond to key signaling events downstream of guidance receptors, catalyzing immediate changes in microtubule stability and actin cross-talk, that facilitate both axonal outgrowth and turning events.

  15. Electrodes for bio-application: recording and stimulation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fontes, M B A

    2013-01-01

    Recording and stimulation electrodes applied on excitable tissue are the basis of electrophysiological research, such as brain, muscles, peripheral nerves or sensory systems. Electrode-electrolyte impedance is one of the important characteristics due to its influence on the signal/noise ratio, signal distortion and built-up voltage. Strategies to lowering and tuning the impedance are achieved by biasing iridium oxide modified platinum microelectrodes. Surface and impedance analysis after pulse stimulation are also addressed.

  16. Combined Reactor and Microelectrode Measurements in Laboratory Grown Biofilms

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Tove; Harremoës, Poul

    1994-01-01

    A combined biofilm reactor-/microelectrode experimental set-up has been constructed, allowing for simultaneous reactor mass balances and measurements of concentration profiles within the biofilm. The system consists of an annular biofilm reactor equipped with an oxygen microelectrode. Experiments...... were carried out with aerobic glucose and starch degrading biofilms. The well described aerobic glucose degradation biofilm system was used to test the combined reactor set-up. Results predicted from known biofilm kinetics were obtained. In the starch degrading biofilm, basic assumptions were tested...... with the microelectrode measurements. It was established, that even with a high molecular weight, non-diffusible substrate, degradation took place in the depths of the biofilm. Intrinsic enzymatic hydrolysis was not limiting and the volumetric removal rate of oxygen was zero order....

  17. Soldering of Nanotubes onto Microelectrodes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Madsen, Dorte Nørgaard; Mølhave, Kristian; Mateiu, Ramona Valentina

    2003-01-01

    Suspended bridges of individual multiwalled carbon nanotubes were fabricated inside a scanning electron microscope by soldering the nanotube onto microelectrodes with highly conducting gold-carbon material. By the decomposition of organometallic vapor with the electron beam, metal-containing sold...... bonds were consistently found to be mechanically stronger than the carbon nanotubes.......Suspended bridges of individual multiwalled carbon nanotubes were fabricated inside a scanning electron microscope by soldering the nanotube onto microelectrodes with highly conducting gold-carbon material. By the decomposition of organometallic vapor with the electron beam, metal-containing solder...... bonds were formed at the intersection of the nanotube and the electrodes. Current-voltage curves indicated metallic conduction of the nanotubes, with resistances in the range of 9-29 kOmega. Bridges made entirely of the soldering material exhibited resistances on the order of 100 Omega, and the solder...

  18. Ablation and cone formation mechanism on CR-39 by ArF laser irradiation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shakeri Jooybari, B., E-mail: baninshakery@gmail.com, E-mail: hafarideh@aut.ac.ir [Department of Energy Engineering and Physics, Amirkabir University of Technology, P.O. Box 15875-4413, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute NSRT, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Afarideh, H., E-mail: baninshakery@gmail.com, E-mail: hafarideh@aut.ac.ir [Department of Energy Engineering and Physics, Amirkabir University of Technology, P.O. Box 15875-4413, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Lamehi-Rachti, M. [Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute NSRT, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Ghergherehchi, M. [Department of Energy Engineering and Physics, Amirkabir University of Technology, P.O. Box 15875-4413, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); College of Information and Communication Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon (Korea, Republic of)

    2015-03-07

    In this work, chemical properties, surface modification, and micro structures formation on ablated polyallyl di-glycol carbonate (CR-39) polymer by ArF laser irradiation (λ = 193 nm) at various fluences and pulse number were investigated. CR-39 samples have been irradiated with an ArF laser (193 nm) at a repetition rate of 1 Hz. Threshold fluence of ablation and effective absorption coefficient of CR-39 were determined. Conical microstructures (Taylor cone) formed on laser-ablated CR-39 exhibit: smooth, Taylor cone shape walls and sharp tips together with interference and well defined fringe-structure with a period of 230 nm, around cone base. Mechanism of cone formation and cone evolution of CR-39 ablated surface were investigated by change of fluences (at a given pulse number) and pulse number (at a given fluence). Cone height, cone base, and region of interface were increased in micrometer steps by increasing the total fluence. Depression on the base of the cone and the circular fringe were simulated. FTIR spectra were measured and energy dispersive x-ray analysis of irradiated and un-irradiated samples was performed.

  19. Spectral sensitivity of the feedback signal from horizontal cells to cones in goldfish retina

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kraaij, D. A.; Kamermans, M.; Spekreijse, H.

    1998-01-01

    The spectral sensitivity of cones in isolated goldfish retina was determined with whole-cell recording techniques. Three spectral classes of cones were found with maximal sensitivities around 620 nm, 540 nm, and 460 nm. UV-cones were not found because our stimulator did not allow effective

  20. Functional complexity of the axonal growth cone: a proteomic analysis.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adriana Estrada-Bernal

    Full Text Available The growth cone, the tip of the emerging neurite, plays a crucial role in establishing the wiring of the developing nervous system. We performed an extensive proteomic analysis of axonal growth cones isolated from the brains of fetal Sprague-Dawley rats. Approximately 2000 proteins were identified at ≥ 99% confidence level. Using informatics, including functional annotation cluster and KEGG pathway analysis, we found great diversity of proteins involved in axonal pathfinding, cytoskeletal remodeling, vesicular traffic and carbohydrate metabolism, as expected. We also found a large and complex array of proteins involved in translation, protein folding, posttranslational processing, and proteasome/ubiquitination-dependent degradation. Immunofluorescence studies performed on hippocampal neurons in culture confirmed the presence in the axonal growth cone of proteins representative of these processes. These analyses also provide evidence for rough endoplasmic reticulum and reveal a reticular structure equipped with Golgi-like functions in the axonal growth cone. Furthermore, Western blot revealed the growth cone enrichment, relative to fetal brain homogenate, of some of the proteins involved in protein synthesis, folding and catabolism. Our study provides a resource for further research and amplifies the relatively recently developed concept that the axonal growth cone is equipped with proteins capable of performing a highly diverse range of functions.

  1. Pollen cone anatomy of Classostrobus crossii sp. nov. (Cheirolepidiaceae)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rothwell, Gar W.; Mapes, Gene [Department of Environmental and Plant Biology, Ohio University, Athens OH 45701 (United States); Hilton, Jason [Department of Earth Sciences, School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT (United Kingdom); Hollingworth, Neville T. [Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Winfrith Technology Centre, Winfrith Newburgh, Dorchester, Dorset, DT2 8ZD (United Kingdom)

    2007-01-02

    Discovery of a permineralized fossil cone in Mesozoic deposits of southern England provides an opportunity to document the first detailed evidence of internal pollen cone anatomy for the extinct conifer family Cheirolepidiaceae. The specimen, described here as Classostrobus crossii sp. nov., occurs in a calcareous nodule recovered from Middle Jurassic marine sediments of the Lower Callovian Sigaloceras calloviense biozone, Kellaways, near Cirencester, England. The cone is 2.0 cm long and 1.8 cm wide. Sporophylls diverge helically from the axis. Each sporophyll displays a narrow stalk and a distal lamina approx. 11 mm long that tapers to a pointed tip. There is also a basal keel that bends inward at the bottom and sides to form a shallow pocket. A single vascular bundle diverges from the cone axis, extends distally into the sporophyll stalk at the contact of two distinctly different histological zones, and further expands into the distal lamina as transfusion tracheids. Several pollen sacs are attached abaxially at the juncture of the sporophyll stalk and keel. Pollen is roughly spheroidal, 26-35 {mu}m in diameter, with unequal polar caps separated by a striated belt with a subequatorial furrow. This specimen helps clarify the range of variation in the morphology of Mesozoic conifer pollen cones. (author)

  2. Applying a foil queue micro-electrode in micro-EDM to fabricate a 3D micro-structure

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Bin; Guo, Kang; Wu, Xiao-yu; Lei, Jian-guo; Liang, Xiong; Guo, Deng-ji; Ma, Jiang; Cheng, Rong

    2018-05-01

    Applying a 3D micro-electrode in a micro electrical discharge machining (micro-EDM) can fabricate a 3D micro-structure with an up and down reciprocating method. However, this processing method has some shortcomings, such as a low success rate and a complex process for fabrication of 3D micro-electrodes. By focusing on these shortcomings, this paper proposed a novel 3D micro-EDM process based on the foil queue micro-electrode. Firstly, a 3D micro-electrode was discretized into several foil micro-electrodes and these foil micro-electrodes constituted a foil queue micro-electrode. Then, based on the planned process path, foil micro-electrodes were applied in micro-EDM sequentially and the micro-EDM results of each foil micro-electrode were able to superimpose the 3D micro-structure. However, the step effect will occur on the 3D micro-structure surface, which has an adverse effect on the 3D micro-structure. To tackle this problem, this paper proposes to reduce this adverse effect by rounded corner wear at the end of the foil micro-electrode and studies the impact of machining parameters on rounded corner wear and the step effect on the micro-structure surface. Finally, using a wire cutting voltage of 80 V, a current of 0.5 A and a pulse width modulation ratio of 1:4, the foil queue micro-electrode was fabricated by wire electrical discharge machining. Also, using a pulse width of 100 ns, a pulse interval of 200 ns, a voltage of 100 V and workpiece material of 304# stainless steel, the foil queue micro-electrode was applied in micro-EDM for processing of a 3D micro-structure with hemispherical features, which verified the feasibility of this process.

  3. Using Arrays of Microelectrodes Implanted in Residual Peripheral Nerves to Provide Dextrous Control of, and Modulated Sensory Feedback from, a Hand Prosthesis

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-10-01

    extended that work by investigating multiple aspects important for developing future bidirectional neural prostheses based on high-count microelectrode...Fan J M, Kao J C, Stavisky S D, Ryu S and Shenoy K 2012 A recurrent neural network for closed-loop intracortical brain-machine interface decoders J...Peripheral Nerve Interface, Prosthetic Hand, Neural Prosthesis, Sensory Feedback, Micro-stimulation, Electrophysiology, Action Potentials, Micro

  4. AFM tip characterization by using FFT filtered images of step structures

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yan, Yongda, E-mail: yanyongda@hit.edu.cn [Key Laboratory of Micro-systems and Micro-structures Manufacturing of Ministry of Education, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001 (China); Center For Precision Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001 (China); Xue, Bo [Key Laboratory of Micro-systems and Micro-structures Manufacturing of Ministry of Education, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001 (China); Center For Precision Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001 (China); Hu, Zhenjiang; Zhao, Xuesen [Center For Precision Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001 (China)

    2016-01-15

    The measurement resolution of an atomic force microscope (AFM) is largely dependent on the radius of the tip. Meanwhile, when using AFM to study nanoscale surface properties, the value of the tip radius is needed in calculations. As such, estimation of the tip radius is important for analyzing results taken using an AFM. In this study, a geometrical model created by scanning a step structure with an AFM tip was developed. The tip was assumed to have a hemispherical cone shape. Profiles simulated by tips with different scanning radii were calculated by fast Fourier transform (FFT). By analyzing the influence of tip radius variation on the spectra of simulated profiles, it was found that low-frequency harmonics were more susceptible, and that the relationship between the tip radius and the low-frequency harmonic amplitude of the step structure varied monotonically. Based on this regularity, we developed a new method to characterize the radius of the hemispherical tip. The tip radii estimated with this approach were comparable to the results obtained using scanning electron microscope imaging and blind reconstruction methods. - Highlights: • The AFM tips with different radii were simulated to scan a nano-step structure. • The spectra of the simulation scans under different radii were analyzed. • The functions of tip radius and harmonic amplitude were used for evaluating tip. • The proposed method has been validated by SEM imaging and blind reconstruction.

  5. Brain computer interface learning for systems based on electrocorticography and intracortical microelectrode arrays.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hiremath, Shivayogi V; Chen, Weidong; Wang, Wei; Foldes, Stephen; Yang, Ying; Tyler-Kabara, Elizabeth C; Collinger, Jennifer L; Boninger, Michael L

    2015-01-01

    A brain-computer interface (BCI) system transforms neural activity into control signals for external devices in real time. A BCI user needs to learn to generate specific cortical activity patterns to control external devices effectively. We call this process BCI learning, and it often requires significant effort and time. Therefore, it is important to study this process and develop novel and efficient approaches to accelerate BCI learning. This article reviews major approaches that have been used for BCI learning, including computer-assisted learning, co-adaptive learning, operant conditioning, and sensory feedback. We focus on BCIs based on electrocorticography and intracortical microelectrode arrays for restoring motor function. This article also explores the possibility of brain modulation techniques in promoting BCI learning, such as electrical cortical stimulation, transcranial magnetic stimulation, and optogenetics. Furthermore, as proposed by recent BCI studies, we suggest that BCI learning is in many ways analogous to motor and cognitive skill learning, and therefore skill learning should be a useful metaphor to model BCI learning.

  6. Twelve tips to stimulate intrinsic motivation in students through autonomy-supportive classroom teaching derived from self-determination theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kusurkar, R A; Croiset, G; Ten Cate, Th J

    2011-01-01

    Self-determination theory (SDT) of motivations distinguishes between intrinsic and extrinsic motivations. Intrinsic motivation is observed when one engages in an activity out of genuine interest and is truly self-determined. Intrinsic motivation is the desired type of motivation for study as it is associated with deep learning, better performance and positive well-being in comparison to extrinsic motivation. It is dependent on the fulfilment of three basic psychological needs described by SDT. These are the needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness. According to SDT, autonomy-supportive teaching is important, because it makes students feel autonomous and competent in their learning and also supported (relatedness) by their teachers. The concept of autonomy-supportive teaching is relevant to medical education, but less known. Through this article, we aim to make this concept understood and practically used by medical teachers. We used SDT literature as a basis to formulate these 12 tips. We present 12 practical tips derived from SDT, for teachers in health professions, on how to engage in autonomy-supportive teaching behaviours in order to stimulate intrinsic motivation in their students. These tips demonstrate that it is not difficult to engage in autonomy-supportive teaching behaviour. It can be learned through practice and self-reflection on teaching practices.

  7. Effect of sevoflurane on neuronal activity during deep brain stimulation surgery for epilepsy: A case report

    OpenAIRE

    Michaël J. Bos, MD; Linda Ackermans, MD, PhD; Frédéric L.W.V.J. Schaper, MD; Rob P.W. Rouhl, MD, PhD; Vivianne H.J.M. van Kranen-Mastenbroek, MD, PhD; Wolfgang F. Buhre, MD, PhD; Marcus L.F. Janssen, MD, PhD

    2018-01-01

    Deep brain stimulation of the anterior nucleus of the thalamus is an effective treatment for patients with refractory epilepsy who do not respond sufficiently to medical therapy. Optimal therapeutic effects of deep brain stimulation probably depend on accurate positioning of the stimulating electrodes. Microelectrode recordings show bursty firing neurons in the anterior nucleus of the thalamus region, which confirms the anatomical target determined by the surgeon. Deep brain stimulation elect...

  8. A microfluidic cell culture device with integrated microelectrodes for barrier studies

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tan, Hsih-Yin; Dufva, Martin; Kutter, Jörg P.

    We present an eight cell culture microfluidic device fabricated using thiol-ene ‘click’ chemistry with embedded microelectrodes for evaluating barrier properties of human intestinal epithelial cells. The capability of the microelectrodes for trans-epithelial electrical resistance (TEER) measureme......) measurements was demonstrated by using confluent human colorectal epithelial cells (Caco-2) and rat fibroblast (CT 26) cells cultured in the microfluidic device....

  9. Muscarinic receptor activation stimulates B-50/GAP43 phosphorylation in isolated nerve growth cones

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gispen, W.H.; Hooff, C.O.M. van; Graan, P.N.E. de; Oestreicher, A.B.

    1989-01-01

    A characteristic feature of neurite formation is high expression of the phosphoprotein B-50/GAP43. Previous studies with growth cone membranes have indicated that this neuron-specific protein kinase C substrate may be involved in transmembrane signal transduction at the growth cone. We monitored the

  10. Fast batch injection analysis of H{sub 2}O{sub 2} using an array of Pt-modified gold microelectrodes obtained from split electronic chips

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pacheco, Bruno D.; Valerio, Jaqueline [Centro de Ciencias e Humanidades - Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie, Rua da Consolacao, 896, 01302-907 Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil); Angnes, Lucio [Departamento de Quimica Fundamental, Instituto de Quimica da USP, Av. Prof. Lineu Prestes, 748, 05508-000 Cidade Universitaria, Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil); Pedrotti, Jairo J., E-mail: jpedrotti@mackenzie.br [Centro de Ciencias e Humanidades - Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie, Rua da Consolacao, 896, 01302-907 Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)

    2011-06-24

    Graphical abstract: Highlights: > An array of gold microelectrodes modified with Pt was used for batch injection analysis of H{sub 2}O{sub 2} in rainwater. > The microelectrode array (n = 14) was obtained from electronic chips developed for surface mounted device technology. > The analytical frequency of the method can attain 300 determinations per hour. > The volume-weighted mean concentration of H{sub 2}O{sub 2} in rainwater investigated (n = 25) was 14.2 {mu}mol L{sup -1}. - Abstract: A fast and robust analytical method for amperometric determination of hydrogen peroxide (H{sub 2}O{sub 2}) based on batch injection analysis (BIA) on an array of gold microelectrodes modified with platinum is proposed. The gold microelectrode array (n = 14) was obtained from electronic chips developed for surface mounted device technology (SMD), whose size offers advantages to adapt them in batch cells. The effect of the dispensing rate, volume injected, distance between the platinum microelectrodes and the pipette tip, as well as the volume of solution in the cell on the analytical response were evaluated. The method allows the H{sub 2}O{sub 2} amperometric determination in the concentration range from 0.8 {mu}mol L{sup -1} to 100 {mu}mol L{sup -1}. The analytical frequency can attain 300 determinations per hour and the detection limit was estimated in 0.34 {mu}mol L{sup -1} (3{sigma}). The anodic current peaks obtained after a series of 23 successive injections of 50 {mu}L of 25 {mu}mol L{sup -1} H{sub 2}O{sub 2} showed an RSD < 0.9%. To ensure the good selectivity to detect H{sub 2}O{sub 2}, its determination was performed in a differential mode, with selective destruction of the H{sub 2}O{sub 2} with catalase in 10 mmol L{sup -1} phosphate buffer solution. Practical application of the analytical procedure involved H{sub 2}O{sub 2} determination in rainwater of Sao Paulo City. A comparison of the results obtained by the proposed amperometric method with another one which

  11. An iridium oxide microelectrode for monitoring acute local pH changes of endothelial cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ng, Shu Rui; O'Hare, Danny

    2015-06-21

    pH sensors were fabricated by anodically electrodepositing iridium oxide films (AEIROFs) onto microelectrodes on chips and coated with poly(ethyleneimine) (PEI) for mechanical stability. These demonstrate super-Nernstian response to pH from pH 4.0 to 7.7 in chloride-free phosphate buffer. The surface of the chip was coated with fibronectin for the attachment of porcine aortic endothelial cells (PAECs). The working capability of the pH sensor for monitoring acute local pH changes was investigated by stimulating the PAECs with thrombin. Our results show that thrombin induced acute extracellular acidification of PAECs and dissolution of fibronectin, causing the local pH to decrease. The use of PD98059, a mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) inhibitor, reduced extracellular acidification and an increase in local pH was observed. This study shows that our pH sensors can facilitate the investigation of acute cellular responses to stimulation by monitoring the real-time, local pH changes of cells attached to the sensors.

  12. Bioelectronic tongue of taste buds on microelectrode array for salt sensing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Qingjun; Zhang, Fenni; Zhang, Diming; Hu, Ning; Wang, Hua; Hsia, K Jimmy; Wang, Ping

    2013-02-15

    Taste has received great attention for its potential applications. In this work, we combine the biological tissue with micro-chips to establish a novel bioelectronic tongue system for salt taste detection. Before experiment, we established a computational model of action potential in salt taste receptor cell, simulating the responsive results to natural salt stimuli of NaCl solution with various concentrations. Then 36-channel microelectrode arrays (MEA) with the diameter of 30 μm were fabricated on the glass substrate, and taste epithelium was stripped from rat and fixed on MEA. When stimulated by the salt stimuli, electrophysiological activities of taste receptor cells in taste buds were measured through a multi-channel recording system. Both simulation and experiment results showed a dose-dependent increase in NaCl-induced potentials of taste receptor cells, which indicated good applications in salt measurements. The multi-channel analysis demonstrated that different groups of MEA channels were activated during stimulations, indicating non-overlapping populations of receptor cells in taste buds involved in salt taste perception. The study provides an effective and reliable biosensor platform to help recognize and distinguish salt taste components. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. Conductive nanogel-interfaced neural microelectrode arrays with electrically controlled in-situ delivery of manganese ions enabling high-resolution MEMRI for synchronous neural tracing with deep brain stimulation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Wei-Chen; Lo, Yu-Chih; Chu, Chao-Yi; Lai, Hsin-Yi; Chen, You-Yin; Chen, San-Yuan

    2017-04-01

    Chronic brain stimulation has become a promising physical therapy with increased efficacy and efficiency in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. The application of deep brain electrical stimulation (DBS) combined with manganese-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MEMRI) provides an unbiased representation of the functional anatomy, which shows the communication between areas of the brain responding to the therapy. However, it is challenging for the current system to provide a real-time high-resolution image because the incorporated MnCl 2 solution through microinjection usually results in image blurring or toxicity due to the uncontrollable diffusion of Mn 2+ . In this study, we developed a new type of conductive nanogel-based neural interface composed of amphiphilic chitosan-modified poly(3,4 -ethylenedioxythiophene) (PMSDT) that can exhibit biomimic structural/mechanical properties and ionic/electrical conductivity comparable to that of Au. More importantly, the PMSDT enables metal-ligand bonding with Mn 2+ ions, so that the system can release Mn 2+ ions rather than MnCl 2 solution directly and precisely controlled by electrical stimulation (ES) to achieve real-time high-resolution MEMRI. With the integration of PMSDT nanogel-based coating in polyimide-based microelectrode arrays, the post-implantation DBS enables frequency-dependent MR imaging in vivo, as well as small focal imaging in response to channel site-specific stimulation on the implant. The MR imaging of the implanted brain treated with 5-min electrical stimulation showed a thalamocortical neuronal pathway after 36 h, confirming the effective activation of a downstream neuronal circuit following DBS. By eliminating the susceptibility to artifact and toxicity, this system, in combination with a MR-compatible implant and a bio-compliant neural interface, provides a harmless and synchronic functional anatomy for DBS. The study demonstrates a model of MEMRI-functionalized DBS based on functional

  14. Gold ultra-microelectrode arrays: application to the steady-state voltammetry of hydroxide ion in aqueous solution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ordeig, Olga; Banks, Craig E; Davies, Trevor J; del Campo, F Javier; Muñoz, Francesc Xavier; Compton, Richard G

    2006-05-01

    Gold ultra-microelectrode arrays are used to explore the electrochemical oxidation of hydroxide ions and are shown to be analytical useful. Two types of ultra-microelectrode arrays are used; the first consist of 256 individual electrodes of 5 microm in radius, 170 of which are electrochemically active in a cubic arrangement which are separated from their nearest neighbour by a distance of 100 microm. The second array compromises 2597 electrodes of 2.5 microm in radius and of which 1550 of which are electrochemically active in a hexagonal arrangement separated by the nearest neighbour by 55 microm. Well defined voltammetric waves are found with peak currents proportional to the concentration of hydroxide ions in the range 50 microM to 1 mM. Detection limits of 20 microM using the 170 ultra-microelectrode and 10 microM with the 1550 ultra-microelectrode array are shown to be possible but with a higher sensitivity of 4 mA M(-1) observed using the 1550 ultra-microelectrode array compared to 1.2 mA M(-1) with the 170 ultra-microelectrode array.

  15. Experiments on pumping of liquids using arrays of microelectrodes subjected to travelling wave potentials

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Garcia-Sanchez, P; Ramos, A [Dpto. de Electronica y Electromagnetismo, Universidad de Sevilla, 41012 Sevilla (Spain); Green, Nicolas G; Morgan, H [School of Electronics and Computer Science, University of Southampton, SO17 1BJ Southampton (United Kingdom)], E-mail: pablogarcia@us.es

    2008-12-01

    Net fluid flow of electrolytes driven on an array of microelectrodes subjected to a travelling-wave potential is presented. Two sizes of platinum microelectrodes have been studied. In both arrays, at low voltages the liquid flows according to the prediction given by ac electroosmotic theory. At voltages above a threshold the fluid flow is reversed. Measurements of the electrical current when the microelectrode array is pumping the liquid are also reported. Transient behaviours in both electrical current and fluid velocity have been observed.

  16. Experiments on pumping of liquids using arrays of microelectrodes subjected to travelling wave potentials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Garcia-Sanchez, P; Ramos, A; Green, Nicolas G; Morgan, H

    2008-01-01

    Net fluid flow of electrolytes driven on an array of microelectrodes subjected to a travelling-wave potential is presented. Two sizes of platinum microelectrodes have been studied. In both arrays, at low voltages the liquid flows according to the prediction given by ac electroosmotic theory. At voltages above a threshold the fluid flow is reversed. Measurements of the electrical current when the microelectrode array is pumping the liquid are also reported. Transient behaviours in both electrical current and fluid velocity have been observed.

  17. On the use of Kontorovich-Lebedev transform in electromagnetic diffraction by an impedance cone

    KAUST Repository

    Salem, Mohamed; Kamel, Aladin Hassan; Bagci, Hakan

    2012-01-01

    We consider the boundary-value problem for the Helmholtz equation connected with an infinite circular cone with an impedance boundary on its face. The scheme of solution includes applying the Kontorovich-Lebedev (KL) transform to reduce the problem to that of a KL spectral amplitude function satisfying a singular integral equation of the non-convolution type with a variable coefficient. The singularities of the spectral function are deduced and representations for the field at the tip of the cone and in the near and far field regions are given together with the conditions of validity of these representations. © 2012 IEEE.

  18. On the use of Kontorovich-Lebedev transform in electromagnetic diffraction by an impedance cone

    KAUST Repository

    Salem, Mohamed

    2012-08-01

    We consider the boundary-value problem for the Helmholtz equation connected with an infinite circular cone with an impedance boundary on its face. The scheme of solution includes applying the Kontorovich-Lebedev (KL) transform to reduce the problem to that of a KL spectral amplitude function satisfying a singular integral equation of the non-convolution type with a variable coefficient. The singularities of the spectral function are deduced and representations for the field at the tip of the cone and in the near and far field regions are given together with the conditions of validity of these representations. © 2012 IEEE.

  19. Brain Computer Interface Learning for Systems Based on Electrocorticography and Intracortical Microelectrode Arrays

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shivayogi V Hiremath

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available A brain-computer interface (BCI system transforms neural activity into control signals for external devices in real time. A BCI user needs to learn to generate specific cortical activity patterns to control external devices effectively. We call this process BCI learning, and it often requires significant effort and time. Therefore, it is important to study this process and develop novel and efficient approaches to accelerate BCI learning. This article reviews major approaches that have been used for BCI learning, including computer-assisted learning, co-adaptive learning, operant conditioning, and sensory feedback. We focus on BCIs based on electrocorticography and intracortical microelectrode arrays for restoring motor function. This article also explores the possibility of brain modulation techniques in promoting BCI learning, such as electrical cortical stimulation, transcranial magnetic stimulation, and optogenetics. Furthermore, as proposed by recent BCI studies, we suggest that BCI learning is in many ways analogous to motor and cognitive skill learning, and therefore skill learning should be a useful metaphor to model BCI learning.

  20. Carbon Nanotube-based microelectrodes for enhanced detection of neurotransmitters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jacobs, Christopher B.

    Fast-scan cyclic voltammetry (FSCV) is one of the common techniques used for rapid measurement of neurotransmitters in vivo. Carbon-fiber microelectrodes (CFMEs) are typically used for neurotransmitter detection because of sub-second measurement capabilities, ability to measure changes in neurotransmitter concentration during neurotransmission, and the small size electrode diameter, which limits the amount of damage caused to tissue. Cylinder CFMEs, typically 50 -- 100 microm long, are commonly used for in vivo experiments because the electrode sensitivity is directly related to the electrode surface area. However the length of the electrode can limit the spatial resolution of neurotransmitter detection, which can restrict experiments in Drosophila and other small model systems. In addition, the electrode sensitivity toward dopamine and serotonin detection drops significantly for measurements at rates faster than 10 Hz, limiting the temporal resolution of CFMEs. While the use of FSCV at carbon-fiber microelectrodes has led to substantial strides in our understanding of neurotransmission, techniques that expand the capabilities of CFMEs are crucial to fully maximize the potential uses of FSCV. This dissertation introduces new methods to integrate carbon nanotubes (CNT) into microelectrodes and discusses the electrochemical enhancements of these CNT-microelectrodes. The electrodes are specifically designed with simple fabrication procedures so that highly specialized equipment is not necessary, and they utilize commercially available materials so that the electrodes could be easily integrated into existing systems. The electrochemical properties of CNT modified CFMEs are characterized using FSCV and the effect of CNT functionalization on these properties is explored in Chapter 2. For example, CFME modification using carboxylic acid functionalized CNTs yield about a 6-fold increase in dopamine oxidation current, but modification with octadecylamine CNTs results in a

  1. Calculated shape dependence of electromagnetic field in tip-enhanced Raman scattering by using a monopole antenna model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kitahama, Yasutaka; Itoh, Tamitake; Suzuki, Toshiaki

    2018-05-01

    To evaluate the shape of an Ag tip with regard to tip-enhanced Raman scattering (TERS) signal, the enhanced electromagnetic (EM) field and scattering spectrum, arising from surface plasmon resonance at the apex of the tip, were calculated using a finite-difference time domain (FDTD) method. In the calculated forward scattering spectra from the smooth Ag tip, the band appeared within the visible region, similar to the experimental results and calculation for a corrugated Ag cone. In the FDTD calculation of TERS, the Ag tip acting as a monopole antenna was adopted by insertion of a perfect electric conductor between the root of the tip and a top boundary surface of the calculation space. As a result, the EM field was only enhanced at the apex. The shape dependence i.e. the EM field calculated at the apex with various curvatures on the different tapered tips, obtained using the monopole antenna model, was different from that simulated using a conventional dipole antenna model.

  2. Comparison of microelectrode sensing configurations for impedimetric cell monitoring

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Caviglia, Claudia; Heiskanen, Arto; Andresen, Thomas Lars

    2012-01-01

    interdigitated microelectrodes using a versatile custom-made monitoring platform including a 24-channel miniaturized potentiostat. As expected, characterization of bare microelectrodes in buffer and tracking experiments with HeLa cells over 16 hours demonstrate that the coplanar configuration provides a higher......A theoretical and experimental comparison between vertical and coplanar interdigitated sensing configurations for impedimetric cell growth tracking is presented. For the first time, these widely-adopted approaches are quantitatively compared on the same cell populations and on the same 10μm...... sensitivity to cell adhesion and spreading (Cell Index = 1.6 vs. 0.4) albeit at a higher frequency of maximum sensitivity (100kHz vs. 24 kHz)....

  3. Nanostructured gold microelectrodes for extracellular recording

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brueggemann, Dorothea; Wolfrum, Bernhard; Maybeck, Vanessa; Offenhaeusser, Andreas [CNI Center of Nanoelectronic Systems for Information Technology and Institute of Bio- and Nanosystems 2, Forschungszentrum Juelich (Germany)

    2010-07-01

    Electrophysiological activity of electrogenic cells is currently recorded with planar bioelectronic interfaces such as microelectrode arrays (MEAs). In this work, a novel concept of biocompatible nanostructured gold MEAs for extracellular signal recording is presented. MEAs were fabricated using clean room technologies, e.g. photolithography and metallization. Subsequently, they were modified with gold nanopillars of approximately 300 to 400 nm in height and 60 nm width. The nanostructuring process was carried out with a template-assisted approach using nanoporous aluminium oxide. Impedance spectroscopy of the resulting nanostructures showed higher capacitances compared to planar gold. This confirmed the expected increase of the surface area via nanostructuring. We used the nanostructured microelectrodes to record extracellular potentials from heart muscle cells (HL1), which were plated onto the chips. Good coupling between the HL1 cells and the nanostructured electrodes was observed. The resulting signal-to-noise ratio of nanopillar-MEAs was increased by a factor of 2 compared to planar MEAs. In future applications this nanopillar concept can be adopted for distinct interface materials and coupling to cellular and molecular sensing components.

  4. Microfabrication of an Implantable silicone Microelectrode array for an epiretinal prosthesis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Maghribi, Mariam Nader [Univ. of California, Davis, CA (United States)

    2003-06-10

    Millions of people suffering from diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa and macular degeneration are legally blind due to the loss of photoreceptor function. Fortunately a large percentage of the neural cells connected to the photoreceptors remain viable, and electrical stimulation of these cells has been shown to result in visual perception. These findings have generated worldwide efforts to develop a retinal prosthesis device, with the hope of restoring vision. Advances in microfabrication, integrated circuits, and wireless technologies provide the means to reach this challenging goal. This dissertation describes the development of innovative silicone-based microfabrication techniques for producing an implantable microelectrode array. The microelectrode array is a component of an epiretinal prosthesis being developed by a multi-laboratory consortium. This array will serve as the interface between an electronic imaging system and the human eye, directly stimulating retinal neurons via thin film conducting traces. Because the array is intended as a long-term implant, vital biological and physical design requirements must be met. A retinal implant poses difficult engineering challenges due to the size of the intraocular cavity and the delicate retina. Not only does it have to be biocompatible in terms of cytotoxicity and degradation, but it also has to be structurally biocompatible, with regard to smooth edges and high conformability; basically mimicking the biological tissue. This is vital to minimize stress and prevent physical damage to the retina. Also, the device must be robust to withstand the forces imposed on it during fabrication and implantation. In order to meet these biocompatibility needs, the use of non-conventional microfabrication materials such as silicone is required. This mandates the enhancement of currently available polymer-based fabrication techniques and the development of new microfabrication methods. Through an iterative process, devices

  5. INDUCTION OF NA+/K+-ATPASE ACTIVITY BY LONG-TERM STIMULATION OF NICOTINIC ACETYLCHOLINE-RECEPTORS IN C2CL2 MYOTUBES

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    HENNING, RH; NELEMANS, SA; VANDENAKKER, J; DENHERTOG, A

    1 To investigate the role of long-term stimulation of nicotinic acety]choline receptors (AChRs) on the regulation of membrane potential, non-contracting C2C12 myotubes were stimulated for 1-4 days with carbachol (10 mu M) and membrane potentials were measured by the intracellular microelectrode

  6. Cone pigments in a North American marsupial, the opossum (Didelphis virginiana).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jacobs, Gerald H; Williams, Gary A

    2010-05-01

    Only two of the four cone opsin gene families found in vertebrates are represented in contemporary eutherian and marsupial species. Recent genetic studies of two species of South American marsupial detected the presence of representatives from two of the classes of cone opsin genes and the structures of these genes predicted cone pigments with respective peaks in the ultraviolet and long-wavelength portions of the spectrum. The Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana), a profoundly nocturnal animal, is the only marsupial species found in North America. The prospects for cone-based vision in this species were examined through recordings of the electroretinogram (ERG), a commonly examined retinal response to photic stimulation. Recorded under flickering-light conditions that elicit signals from cone photoreceptors, the spectral sensitivity of the opossum eye is well accounted for by contributions from the presence of a single cone pigment having peak absorption at 561-562 nm. A series of additional experiments that employed various chromatic adaptation paradigms were conducted in a search for possible contributions from a second (short-wavelength sensitive) cone pigment. We found no evidence that such a mechanism contributes to the ERG in this marsupial.

  7. Electrochemical measurements on a droplet using gold microelectrodes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jenabi, Amin; Souri, Asma; Rastkhadiv, Ali

    2016-03-01

    Facile methods of ion recognition are important for the fabrication of electronic tongue systems. In this work, we demonstrate performing pulsed conductometry on microliter electrolyte droplets dropped on gold microelectrodes vapor deposited on soda lime glass slides. A droplet is dropped between two microelectrodes when a voltage waveform from a preprogramed power supply is applied on them. The temporal variation of the electric current passing through the droplet is recorded, digitized and stored. The obtained data are compared with the database formed out of the previous experiences for the classification of the sample electrolytes. It is shown that the shape of the voltage waveform is the important parameter of the process. We devised a method for the optimization of the voltage waveform profile for obtaining the maximum of discriminating information from the recorded current variations.

  8. Extracellular pH monitoring for use in closed-loop vagus nerve stimulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cork, Simon C.; Eftekhar, Amir; Mirza, Khalid B.; Zuliani, Claudio; Nikolic, Konstantin; Gardiner, James V.; Bloom, Stephen R.; Toumazou, Christofer

    2018-02-01

    Objective. Vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) has shown potential benefits for obesity treatment; however, current devices lack physiological feedback, which limit their efficacy. Changes in extracellular pH (pHe) have shown to be correlated with neural activity, but have traditionally been measured with glass microelectrodes, which limit their in vivo applicability. Approach. Iridium oxide has previously been shown to be sensitive to fluctuations in pH and is biocompatible. Iridium oxide microelectrodes were inserted into the subdiaphragmatic vagus nerve of anaesthetised rats. Introduction of the gut hormone cholecystokinin (CCK) or distension of the stomach was used to elicit vagal nerve activity. Main results. Iridium oxide microelectrodes have sufficient pH sensitivity to readily detect changes in pHe associated with both CCK and gastric distension. Furthermore, a custom-made Matlab script was able to use these changes in pHe to automatically trigger an implanted VNS device. Significance. This is the first study to show pHe changes in peripheral nerves in vivo. In addition, the demonstration that iridium oxide microelectrodes are sufficiently pH sensitive as to measure changes in pHe associated with physiological stimuli means they have the potential to be integrated into closed-loop neurostimulating devices.

  9. A three-dimensional microelectrode array composed of vertically aligned ultra-dense carbon nanotube networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nick, C.; Yadav, S.; Joshi, R.; Schneider, J. J.; Thielemann, C.

    2015-07-01

    Electrodes based on carbon nanotubes are a promising approach to manufacture highly sensitive sensors with a low limit of signal detection and a high signal-to-noise ratio. This is achieved by dramatically increasing the electrochemical active surface area without increasing the overall geometrical dimensions. Typically, carbon nanotube electrodes are nearly planar and composed of randomly distributed carbon nanotube networks having a limited surface gain for a specific geometrical surface area. To overcome this limitation, we have introduced vertically aligned carbon nanotube (VACNT) networks as electrodes, which are arranged in a microelectrode pattern of 60 single electrodes. Each microelectrode features a very high aspect ratio of more than 300 and thus a dramatically increased surface area. These microelectrodes composed of VACNT networks display dramatically decreased impedance over the entire frequency range compared to planar microelectrodes caused by the enormous capacity increase. This is experimentally verified by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry.

  10. Electrochemical measurements on a droplet using gold microelectrodes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jenabi, Amin; Souri, Asma; Rastkhadiv, Ali

    2016-01-01

    Facile methods of ion recognition are important for the fabrication of electronic tongue systems. In this work, we demonstrate performing pulsed conductometry on microliter electrolyte droplets dropped on gold microelectrodes vapor deposited on soda lime glass slides. A droplet is dropped between two microelectrodes when a voltage waveform from a preprogramed power supply is applied on them. The temporal variation of the electric current passing through the droplet is recorded, digitized and stored. The obtained data are compared with the database formed out of the previous experiences for the classification of the sample electrolytes. It is shown that the shape of the voltage waveform is the important parameter of the process. We devised a method for the optimization of the voltage waveform profile for obtaining the maximum of discriminating information from the recorded current variations. (paper)

  11. Root tips moving through soil

    Science.gov (United States)

    Curlango-Rivera, Gilberto

    2011-01-01

    Root elongation occurs by the generation of new cells from meristematic tissue within the apical 1–2 mm region of root tips. Therefore penetration of the soil environment is carried out by newly synthesized plant tissue, whose cells are inherently vulnerable to invasion by pathogens. This conundrum, on its face, would seem to reflect an intolerable risk to the successful establishment of root systems needed for plant life. Yet root tip regions housing the meristematic tissues repeatedly have been found to be free of microbial infection and colonization. Even when spore germination, chemotaxis, and/or growth of pathogens are stimulated by signals from the root tip, the underlying root tissue can escape invasion. Recent insights into the functions of root border cells, and the regulation of their production by transient exposure to external signals, may shed light on long-standing observations. PMID:21455030

  12. From Parkinsonian thalamic activity to restoring thalamic relay using deep brain stimulation: new insights from computational modeling

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Meijer, Hil Gaétan Ellart; Krupa, M.; Cagnan, H.; Lourens, Marcel Antonius Johannes; Heida, Tjitske; Martens, H.C.F.; Bour, L.J.; van Gils, Stephanus A.

    2011-01-01

    We present a computational model of a thalamocortical relay neuron for exploring basal ganglia thalamocortical loop behavior in relation to Parkinson's disease and deep brain stimulation (DBS). Previous microelectrode, single-unit recording studies demonstrated that oscillatory interaction within

  13. A Platform for Manufacturable Stretchable Micro-electrode Arrays

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Khoshfetrat Pakazad, S.; Savov, A.; Braam, S.R.; Dekker, R.

    2012-01-01

    A platform for the batch fabrication of pneumatically actuated Stretchable Micro-Electrode Arrays (SMEAs) by using state-of-the-art micro-fabrication techniques and materials is demonstrated. The proposed fabrication process avoids the problems normally associated with processing of thin film

  14. Conducting polymer 3D microelectrodes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sasso, Luigi; Vazquez, Patricia; Vedarethinam, Indumathi

    2010-01-01

    Conducting polymer 3D microelectrodes have been fabricated for possible future neurological applications. A combination of micro-fabrication techniques and chemical polymerization methods has been used to create pillar electrodes in polyaniline and polypyrrole. The thin polymer films obtained...... showed uniformity and good adhesion to both horizontal and vertical surfaces. Electrodes in combination with metal/conducting polymer materials have been characterized by cyclic voltammetry and the presence of the conducting polymer film has shown to increase the electrochemical activity when compared...

  15. Cone Algorithm of Spinning Vehicles under Dynamic Coning Environment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shuang-biao Zhang

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Due to the fact that attitude error of vehicles has an intense trend of divergence when vehicles undergo worsening coning environment, in this paper, the model of dynamic coning environment is derived firstly. Then, through investigation of the effect on Euler attitude algorithm for the equivalency of traditional attitude algorithm, it is found that attitude error is actually the roll angle error including drifting error and oscillating error, which is induced directly by dynamic coning environment and further affects the pitch angle and yaw angle through transferring. Based on definition of the cone frame and cone attitude, a cone algorithm is proposed by rotation relationship to calculate cone attitude, and the relationship between cone attitude and Euler attitude of spinning vehicle is established. Through numerical simulations with different conditions of dynamic coning environment, it is shown that the induced error of Euler attitude fluctuates by the variation of precession and nutation, especially by that of nutation, and the oscillating frequency of roll angle error is twice that of pitch angle error and yaw angle error. In addition, the rotation angle is more competent to describe the spinning process of vehicles under coning environment than Euler angle gamma, and the real pitch angle and yaw angle are calculated finally.

  16. Piezoelectric translator. A simple and inexpensive device to move microelectrodes and micropipettes small distances rapidly.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lederer, W J

    1983-09-01

    A device is described that is capable of rapidly moving microelectrodes and micropipettes over distances up to 15 mu. This piezoelectric transLator uses the diaphragm from virtually any available piezoelectric buzzer in combination with simple physical support and drive electronics. All of the necessary details for the construction of this small device are presented. Each finished unit is about 2 cm long with a diameter of 2 cm and can be readily adapted to existing manipulators. The translator has been found useful in aiding the independent penetration by one or more microelectrodes of single cells or of more complicated multicellular preparations (including those that lie behind a connective tissue layer). This new device offers fine control of microelectrode motion that cannot be obtained by the other methods used to aid microelectrode and micropipette penetration of cell membranes (e.g. capacitance overcompensation--"ringing in"' or "tickling"--or tapping the manipulator base). Finally, the device described in this paper is extremely simple and inexpensive to build.

  17. Integration of Polymer Micro-Electrodes for Bio-Sensing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Argyraki, Aikaterini; Larsen, Simon Tylsgaard; Tanzi, Simone

    We present the fabrication of PEDOT and pyrolyzed micro-electrodes for the detection of neurotransmitter exocytosis from single cells. The patterns of the electrodes are defined with photolithography. The micro-electro-fluidic-chips were fabricated by bonding two injection molded TOPAS parts. Pol...

  18. AFM cantilever with in situ renewable mercury microelectrode

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Schön, Peter Manfred; Geerlings, J.; Tas, Niels Roelof; Sarajlic, Edin

    2013-01-01

    We report here first results obtained on a novel, in situ renewable mercury microelectrode integrated into an atomic force microscopy (AFM) cantilever. Our approach is based on a fountain pen probe with appropriate dimensions enabling reversible filling with(nonwetting) mercury under changing the

  19. Study of the Behavior of the Mercury on Diverse Microelectrodes with Cell of Continuous Flow

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cruz Valldeperas, F

    2001-01-01

    A comparative study of six types of microelectrodes in two different support electrolytes was developed using a new analytic technique for analysis of mercury in liquid samples in the ambit of parts by million. For it, a new system of cell of continuous flow and platinum microelectrodes and of platinum with gold film was implemented using volt-amperemetry of anodized spoil with square wave. In a preliminary study, some parameters that characterize the analysis with this new cell were optimized, for example the sample's speed flow and the time of electrodeposition. The calibration curves were made for the different types of microelectrode that were used in an ambit of concentrations of 1-10 ppm. According to the obtained results, the microelectrode that better works is the platinum disk for possessing bigger superficial area exposed to the dissolution, which increases the analite's currents of pick. And as a support electrolyte, potassium tiocianato is recommended because of its effectiveness to solve the analytic sign of the mercury. Studies of answer of the current of mercury regarding the quantity of the placed sample and studies of interferences of the analysis with this type of microelectrode were also carried out. With regard to the study of the quantity of sample, it was obtained that the electrochemical answer of the cell is directly proportional to the concentration of the analite placed in it. In the study of interference, it was found that the copper, lead, and zinc ions affect the analysis of mercury in concentrations of 0.1 ppm and on in the case of the microelectrode of platinum disk. And in case that the same microelectrode is used recovered with gold, it only affects the copper in concentrations over 5 ppm, for what is necessary to take into account a previous treatment of the sample in the event of containing some of the interfering ions [es

  20. Chronic in vivo stability assessment of carbon fiber microelectrode arrays

    Science.gov (United States)

    Patel, Paras R.; Zhang, Huanan; Robbins, Matthew T.; Nofar, Justin B.; Marshall, Shaun P.; Kobylarek, Michael J.; Kozai, Takashi D. Y.; Kotov, Nicholas A.; Chestek, Cynthia A.

    2016-12-01

    Objective. Individual carbon fiber microelectrodes can record unit activity in both acute and semi-chronic (∼1 month) implants. Additionally, new methods have been developed to insert a 16 channel array of carbon fiber microelectrodes. Before assessing the in vivo long-term viability of these arrays, accelerated soak tests were carried out to determine the most stable site coating material. Next, a multi-animal, multi-month, chronic implantation study was carried out with carbon fiber microelectrode arrays and silicon electrodes. Approach. Carbon fibers were first functionalized with one of two different formulations of PEDOT and subjected to accelerated aging in a heated water bath. After determining the best PEDOT formula to use, carbon fiber arrays were chronically implanted in rat motor cortex. Some rodents were also implanted with a single silicon electrode, while others received both. At the end of the study a subset of animals were perfused and the brain tissue sliced. Tissue sections were stained for astrocytes, microglia, and neurons. The local reactive responses were assessed using qualitative and quantitative methods. Main results. Electrophysiology recordings showed the carbon fibers detecting unit activity for at least 3 months with average amplitudes of ∼200 μV. Histology analysis showed the carbon fiber arrays with a minimal to non-existent glial scarring response with no adverse effects on neuronal density. Silicon electrodes showed large glial scarring that impacted neuronal counts. Significance. This study has validated the use of carbon fiber microelectrode arrays as a chronic neural recording technology. These electrodes have demonstrated the ability to detect single units with high amplitude over 3 months, and show the potential to record for even longer periods. In addition, the minimal reactive response should hold stable indefinitely, as any response by the immune system may reach a steady state after 12 weeks.

  1. Vertically aligned carbon nanotube-sheathed carbon fibers as pristine microelectrodes for selective monitoring of ascorbate in vivo.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xiang, Ling; Yu, Ping; Hao, Jie; Zhang, Meining; Zhu, Lin; Dai, Liming; Mao, Lanqun

    2014-04-15

    Using as-synthesized vertically aligned carbon nanotube-sheathed carbon fibers (VACNT-CFs) as microelectrodes without any postsynthesis functionalization, we have developed in this study a new method for in vivo monitoring of ascorbate with high selectivity and reproducibility. The VACNT-CFs are formed via pyrolysis of iron phthalocyanine (FePc) on the carbon fiber support. After electrochemical pretreatment in 1.0 M NaOH solution, the pristine VACNT-CF microelectrodes exhibit typical microelectrode behavior with fast electron transfer kinetics for electrochemical oxidation of ascorbate and are useful for selective ascorbate monitoring even with other electroactive species (e.g., dopamine, uric acid, and 5-hydroxytryptamine) coexisting in rat brain. Pristine VACNT-CFs are further demonstrated to be a reliable and stable microelectrode for in vivo recording of the dynamic increase of ascorbate evoked by intracerebral infusion of glutamate. Use of a pristine VACNT-CF microelectrode can effectively avoid any manual electrode modification and is free from person-to-person and/or electrode-to-electrode deviations intrinsically associated with conventional CF electrode fabrication, which often involves electrode surface modification with randomly distributed CNTs or other pretreatments, and hence allows easy fabrication of highly selective, reproducible, and stable microelectrodes even by nonelectrochemists. Thus, this study offers a new and reliable platform for in vivo monitoring of neurochemicals (e.g., ascorbate) to largely facilitate future studies on the neurochemical processes involved in various physiological events.

  2. Preparation of metal nanoband microelectrode on poly(dimethylsiloxane) for chip-based amperometric detection

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chen Shaopeng; Wu Jian; Yu Xiaodong [Key Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry for Life Science, Ministry of Education of China, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093 (China); Xu Jingjuan, E-mail: xujj@nju.edu.cn [Key Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry for Life Science, Ministry of Education of China, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093 (China); Chen Hongyuan [Key Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry for Life Science, Ministry of Education of China, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093 (China)

    2010-04-30

    We proposed herein a novel approach for fabricating nanoband microelectrodes for electrochemical detection on an electrophoresis microchip. The metal films were first obtained via region-selective electroless deposition of gold or copper films on PDMS substrates by selective region plasma oxidation through shadow masking. Both metal films show uniform surfaces with the thickness at the level of 100 nm. By casting another PDMS layer on the metal films, the cross section of the sandwich structures can be used as nanoband microelectrodes, which can be renewed just by cutting. These nanoband microelectrodes are successfully used as electrochemical detectors in microchip electrophoresis for the detection of amino acids, proteins and neurotransmitter molecules. Moreover, integrating an Au-Cu double-metal detector with a double-channel electrophoresis system, we can easily distinguish electroactive amino acids from that of non-electroactive amino acids.

  3. Fast prototyping of conducting polymer microelectrodes using resistance-controlled high precision drilling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kafka, Jan Robert; Geschke, Oliver; Skaarup, Steen

    2011-01-01

    We present a straightforward method for fast prototyping of microelectrode arrays in the highly conductive polymer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT). Microelectrode arrays were produced by electrical resistance-controlled microdrilling through an insulating polymer layer (TOPAS® 5013...... approach the steady state currents predicted from modeling, but at a much slower rate than expected. This is shown to be caused by the use of electroactive PEDOT electrodes. Subtraction of the latter contribution gives approach to steady state currents within a few seconds, which is in very good agreement...

  4. Generation and Transport of Hot Electrons in Cone-Wire Targets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beg, Farhat

    2009-11-01

    We present results from a series of experiments where cone-wire targets in various configurations were employed both to assess hot electron coupling efficiency, and to reveal the source temperature of the hot electrons. Initial experiments were performed on the Vulcan petawatt laser at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory and Titan laser at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Results with aluminum cones joined to Cu wires of diameters from 10 to 40 μm show that the laser coupling efficiency to electron energy within the wire is proportional to the cross sectional area of the wire. In addition, coupling into the wire was observed to decrease with the laser prepulse and cone-wall thickness. More recently, this study was extended, using the OMEGA EP laser. The resulting changes in coupling energy give indications of the scaling as we approach FI-relevant conditions. Requirements for FI scale fast ignition cone parameters: tip thickness, wall thickness, laser prepulse and laser pulse length, will be discussed. In collaboration with T. Yabuuchi, T. Ma, D. Higginson, H. Sawada, J. King, M.H. Key, K.U. Akli, Al Elsholz, D. Batani, H. Chen, R.R. Freeman, L. Gizzi, J. Green, S. Hatchett, D. Hey, P. Jaanimagi, J. Koch, K. L. Lancaster, D.Larson, A.J. MacKinnon, H. McLean, A. MacPhee, P.A. Norreys, P.K Patel, R. B. Stephens, W. Theobald, R. Town, M. Wei, S. Wilks, Roger Van Maren, B. Westover and L. VanWoerkom.

  5. Cold knife cone biopsy

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... biopsy; Pap smear - cone biopsy; HPV - cone biopsy; Human papilloma virus - cone biopsy; Cervix - cone biopsy; Colposcopy - cone biopsy Images Female reproductive anatomy Cold cone biopsy Cold cone removal References Baggish ...

  6. Nano-Ampere Stimulation Window for Cultured Neurons on Micro-Electrode Arrays

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Buitenweg, J

    2001-01-01

    From experiments, it appears to be possible to stimulate a neuron by depolarization of the lower membrane patch, the sealing part of the membrane, using a nano-ampere current through the extracellular...

  7. Inhibition of the cluster of differentiation 14 innate immunity pathway with IAXO-101 improves chronic microelectrode performance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hermann, John K.; Ravikumar, Madhumitha; Shoffstall, Andrew J.; Ereifej, Evon S.; Kovach, Kyle M.; Chang, Jeremy; Soffer, Arielle; Wong, Chun; Srivastava, Vishnupriya; Smith, Patrick; Protasiewicz, Grace; Jiang, Jingle; Selkirk, Stephen M.; Miller, Robert H.; Sidik, Steven; Ziats, Nicholas P.; Taylor, Dawn M.; Capadona, Jeffrey R.

    2018-04-01

    Objective. Neuroinflammatory mechanisms are hypothesized to contribute to intracortical microelectrode failures. The cluster of differentiation 14 (CD14) molecule is an innate immunity receptor involved in the recognition of pathogens and tissue damage to promote inflammation. The goal of the study was to investigate the effect of CD14 inhibition on intracortical microelectrode recording performance and tissue integration. Approach. Mice implanted with intracortical microelectrodes in the motor cortex underwent electrophysiological characterization for 16 weeks, followed by endpoint histology. Three conditions were examined: (1) wildtype control mice, (2) knockout mice lacking CD14, and (3) wildtype control mice administered a small molecule inhibitor to CD14 called IAXO-101. Main results. The CD14 knockout mice exhibited acute but not chronic improvements in intracortical microelectrode performance without significant differences in endpoint histology. Mice receiving IAXO-101 exhibited significant improvements in recording performance over the entire 16 week duration without significant differences in endpoint histology. Significance. Full removal of CD14 is beneficial at acute time ranges, but limited CD14 signaling is beneficial at chronic time ranges. Innate immunity receptor inhibition strategies have the potential to improve long-term intracortical microelectrode performance.

  8. Implantable optical-electrode device for stimulation of spinal motoneurons

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Matveev, M V; Erofeev, A I; Zakharova, O A; Vlasova, O L; Pyatyshev, E N; Kazakin, A N

    2016-01-01

    Recent years, optogenetic method of scientific research has proved its effectiveness in the nerve cell stimulation tasks. In our article we demonstrate an implanted device for the spinal optogenetic motoneurons activation. This work is carried out in the Laboratory of Molecular Neurodegeneration of the Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, together with Nano and Microsystem Technology Laboratory. The work of the developed device is based on the principle of combining fiber optic light stimulation of genetically modified cells with the microelectrode multichannel recording of neurons biopotentials. The paper presents a part of the electrode implant manufacturing technique, combined with the optical waveguide of ThorLabs (USA). (paper)

  9. Integrated fast ignition simulation of cone-guided target with three codes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sakagami, H. [Hyogo Univ., Computer Engineering, Himeji, Hyogo (Japan); Johzaki, T.; Nagatomo, H.; Mima, K. [Osaka Univ., Institute of Laser Engineering, Suita, Osaka (Japan)

    2004-07-01

    It was reported that the fuel core was heated up to {approx} 0.8 keV in the fast ignition experiments with cone-guided targets, but they could not theoretically explain heating mechanisms and achievement of such high temperature. Thus simulations should play an important role in estimating the scheme performance, and we must simulate each phenomenon with individual codes and integrate them under the Fast Ignition Integrated Interconnecting code project. In the previous integrated simulations, fast electrons generated by the laser-plasma interaction were too hot to efficiently heat the core and we got only a 0.096 keV temperature rise. Including the density gap at the contact surface between the cone tip and the imploded plasma, the period of core heating became longer and the core was heated by 0.162 keV, about 69% higher increment compared with ignoring the density gap effect. (authors)

  10. Multi-microelectrode devices for intrafascicular use in peripheral nerve

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rutten, Wim

    1996-01-01

    This minisymposium paper gives an overview of experimental, modeling, design and microfabrication steps which lead towards the University of Twente three-dimensional 128-fold silicon microelectrode device. The device is meant for implantation in peripheral nerve for neuromuscular control purposes

  11. From Parkinsonian thalamic activity to restoring thalamic relay using deep brain stimulation: new insights from computational modeling

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meijer, H. G. E.; Krupa, M.; Cagnan, H.; Lourens, M. A. J.; Heida, T.; Martens, H. C. F.; Bour, L. J.; van Gils, S. A.

    2011-10-01

    We present a computational model of a thalamocortical relay neuron for exploring basal ganglia thalamocortical loop behavior in relation to Parkinson's disease and deep brain stimulation (DBS). Previous microelectrode, single-unit recording studies demonstrated that oscillatory interaction within and between basal ganglia nuclei is very often accompanied by synchronization at Parkinsonian rest tremor frequencies (3-10 Hz). These oscillations have a profound influence on thalamic projections and impair the thalamic relaying of cortical input by generating rebound action potentials. Our model describes convergent inhibitory input received from basal ganglia by the thalamocortical cells based on characteristics of normal activity, and/or low-frequency oscillations (activity associated with Parkinson's disease). In addition to simulated input, we also used microelectrode recordings as inputs for the model. In the resting state, and without additional sensorimotor input, pathological rebound activity is generated for even mild Parkinsonian input. We have found a specific stimulation window of amplitudes and frequencies for periodic input, which corresponds to high-frequency DBS, and which also suppresses rebound activity for mild and even more prominent Parkinsonian input. When low-frequency pathological rebound activity disables the thalamocortical cell's ability to relay excitatory cortical input, a stimulation signal with parameter settings corresponding to our stimulation window can restore the thalamocortical cell's relay functionality.

  12. Estimation of neural energy in microelectrode signals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gaumond, R. P.; Clement, R.; Silva, R.; Sander, D.

    2004-09-01

    We considered the problem of determining the neural contribution to the signal recorded by an intracortical electrode. We developed a linear least-squares approach to determine the energy fraction of a signal attributable to an arbitrary number of autocorrelation-defined signals buried in noise. Application of the method requires estimation of autocorrelation functions Rap(tgr) characterizing the action potential (AP) waveforms and Rn(tgr) characterizing background noise. This method was applied to the analysis of chronically implanted microelectrode signals from motor cortex of rat. We found that neural (AP) energy consisted of a large-signal component which grows linearly with the number of threshold-detected neural events and a small-signal component unrelated to the count of threshold-detected AP signals. The addition of pseudorandom noise to electrode signals demonstrated the algorithm's effectiveness for a wide range of noise-to-signal energy ratios (0.08 to 39). We suggest, therefore, that the method could be of use in providing a measure of neural response in situations where clearly identified spike waveforms cannot be isolated, or in providing an additional 'background' measure of microelectrode neural activity to supplement the traditional AP spike count.

  13. Implications of chronic daily anti-oxidant administration on the inflammatory response to intracortical microelectrodes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Potter-Baker, Kelsey A.; Stewart, Wade G.; Tomaszewski, William H.; Wong, Chun T.; Meador, William D.; Ziats, Nicholas P.; Capadona, Jeffrey R.

    2015-08-01

    Objective. Oxidative stress events have been implicated to occur and facilitate multiple failure modes of intracortical microelectrodes. The goal of the present study was to evaluate the ability of a sustained concentration of an anti-oxidant and to reduce oxidative stress-mediated neurodegeneration for the application of intracortical microelectrodes. Approach. Non-functional microelectrodes were implanted into the cortex of male Sprague Dawley rats for up to sixteen weeks. Half of the animals received a daily intraperitoneal injection of the natural anti-oxidant resveratrol, at 30 mg kg-1. The study was designed to investigate the biodistribution of the resveratrol, and the effects on neuroinflammation/neuroprotection following device implantation. Main results. Daily maintenance of a sustained range of resveratrol throughout the implantation period resulted in fewer degenerating neurons in comparison to control animals at both two and sixteen weeks post implantation. Initial and chronic improvements in neuronal viability in resveratrol-dosed animals were correlated with significant reductions in local superoxide anion accumulation around the implanted device at two weeks after implantation. Controls, receiving only saline injections, were also found to have reduced amounts of accumulated superoxide anion locally and less neurodegeneration than controls at sixteen weeks post-implantation. Despite observed benefits, thread-like adhesions were found between the liver and diaphragm in resveratrol-dosed animals. Significance. Overall, our chronic daily anti-oxidant dosing scheme resulted in improvements in neuronal viability surrounding implanted microelectrodes, which could result in improved device performance. However, due to the discovery of thread-like adhesions, further work is still required to optimize a chronic anti-oxidant dosing regime for the application of intracortical microelectrodes.

  14. Chronic microelectrode investigations of normal human brain physiology using a hybrid depth electrode.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Howard, M A; Volkov, I O; Noh, M D; Granner, M A; Mirsky, R; Garell, P C

    1997-01-01

    Neurosurgeons have unique access to in vivo human brain tissue, and in the course of clinical treatment important scientific advances have been made that further our understanding of normal brain physiology. In the modern era, microelectrode recordings have been used to systematically investigate the cellular properties of lateral temporal cerebral cortex. The current report describes a hybrid depth electrode (HDE) recording technique that was developed to enable neurosurgeons to simultaneously investigate normal cellular physiology during chronic intracranial EEG recordings. The HDE combines microelectrode and EEG recordings sites on a single shaft. Multiple microelectrode recordings are obtained from MRI defined brain sites and single-unit activity is discriminated from these data. To date, over 60 HDEs have been placed in 20 epilepsy surgery patients. Unique physiologic data have been gathered from neurons in numerous brain regions, including amygdala, hippocampus, frontal lobe, insula and Heschl's gyrus. Functional activation studies were carried out without risking patient safety or comfort.

  15. Chitosan coated carbon fiber microelectrode for selective in vivo detection of neurotransmitters in live zebrafish embryos

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ozel, Rifat Emrah; Wallace, Kenneth N.; Andreescu, Silvana

    2011-01-01

    Graphical abstract: Chitosan coated fiber electrodes are sensitive to serotonin detection while rejecting physiological levels of ascorbic acid interferences. - Abstract: We report the development of a chitosan modified carbon fiber microelectrode for in vivo detection of serotonin. We find that chitosan has the ability to reject physiological levels of ascorbic acid interferences and facilitate selective and sensitive detection of in vivo levels of serotonin, a common catecholamine neurotransmitter. Presence of chitosan on the microelectrode surface was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and cyclic voltammetry (CV). The electrode was characterized using differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). A detection limit of 1.6 nM serotonin with a sensitivity of 5.12 nA/μM, a linear range from 2 to 100 nM and a reproducibility of 6.5% for n = 6 electrodes were obtained. Chitosan modified microelectrodes selectively measure serotonin in presence of physiological levels of ascorbic acid. In vivo measurements were performed to measure concentration of serotonin in the live embryonic zebrafish intestine. The sensor quantifies in vivo intestinal levels of serotonin while successfully rejecting ascorbic acid interferences. We demonstrate that chitosan can be used as an effective coating to reject ascorbic acid interferences at carbon fiber microelectrodes, as an alternative to Nafion, and that chitosan modified microelectrodes are reliable tools for in vivo monitoring of changes in neurotransmitter levels.

  16. Chitosan coated carbon fiber microelectrode for selective in vivo detection of neurotransmitters in live zebrafish embryos

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ozel, Rifat Emrah [Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Science, 8 Clarkson Ave, Potsdam, NY 136995810 (United States); Wallace, Kenneth N. [Department of Biology, Clarkson University, Potsdam, NY 136995810 (United States); Andreescu, Silvana, E-mail: eandrees@clarkson.edu [Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Science, 8 Clarkson Ave, Potsdam, NY 136995810 (United States)

    2011-06-10

    Graphical abstract: Chitosan coated fiber electrodes are sensitive to serotonin detection while rejecting physiological levels of ascorbic acid interferences. - Abstract: We report the development of a chitosan modified carbon fiber microelectrode for in vivo detection of serotonin. We find that chitosan has the ability to reject physiological levels of ascorbic acid interferences and facilitate selective and sensitive detection of in vivo levels of serotonin, a common catecholamine neurotransmitter. Presence of chitosan on the microelectrode surface was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and cyclic voltammetry (CV). The electrode was characterized using differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). A detection limit of 1.6 nM serotonin with a sensitivity of 5.12 nA/{mu}M, a linear range from 2 to 100 nM and a reproducibility of 6.5% for n = 6 electrodes were obtained. Chitosan modified microelectrodes selectively measure serotonin in presence of physiological levels of ascorbic acid. In vivo measurements were performed to measure concentration of serotonin in the live embryonic zebrafish intestine. The sensor quantifies in vivo intestinal levels of serotonin while successfully rejecting ascorbic acid interferences. We demonstrate that chitosan can be used as an effective coating to reject ascorbic acid interferences at carbon fiber microelectrodes, as an alternative to Nafion, and that chitosan modified microelectrodes are reliable tools for in vivo monitoring of changes in neurotransmitter levels.

  17. Local electric stimulation causes conducted calcium response in rat interlobular arteries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Salomonsson, Max; Gustafsson, Finn; Andreasen, Ditte

    2002-01-01

    microscope. Local electrical pulse stimulation (200 ms, 100 V) was administered by means of an NaCl-filled microelectrode (0.7-1 M(Omega)) juxtaposed to one end of the vessel. Intracellular Ca(2+) concentration ([Ca(2+)](i)) was measured with an image system at a site approximately 500 microm from......The purpose of the present study was to investigate the conducted Ca(2+) response to local electrical stimulation in isolated rat interlobular arteries. Interlobular arteries were isolated from young Sprague-Dawley rats, loaded with fura 2, and attached to pipettes in a chamber on an inverted...

  18. Lability criteria for metal complexes in micro-electrode voltammetry

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Leeuwen, van H.P.; Pinheiro, J.P.

    1999-01-01

    Theoretical expressions are derived for the voltammetric lability criteria of metal complexes in the micro-electrode regime. The treatment includes three limiting situations: (i) the macro-electrode limit, where both the diffusion layer and the dissociation reaction layer are linear; (ii) an

  19. Some technical nuances for deep brain stimulator implantation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cole A. Giller, MD, PhD, MBA

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available Protocols for deep brain stimulator (DBS implantation vary significantly among movement disorders centers despite the need to address similar operative problems. The general steps of this procedure are well accepted, but there are many seemingly minor, yet important nuances not extensively discussed in published descriptions. A classification and the details of the nuances adopted by a single institution may therefore be helpful in providing a basis for discussion and comparison. We describe operative nuances adopted at the Georgia Regents Medical Center (GRMC for DBS implantation that may not be universally employed. The problems of DBS implantation considered here include stereotactic planning, draping, creation and use of the burhole, physiological testing, anchoring of the electrode, financial considerations, and overall technique. Fourteen categories of operative nuances were identified and described in detail. These include the use of specific anatomical relationships for planning, the use of clear and watertight drapes, countersinking of the burhole, the use of gelfoam and tissue glue to seal the burhole, methods to review the entire microelectrode data simultaneously, blinded communication with the patient during macrostimulation, fluoroscopic marking, MRI compatible protection of the electrode tip, financial considerations effecting choice of operative materials, and restriction to a single operator. The majority of these have not been extensively described but may be in use at other centers. The many operative problems arising during DBS implantation can be addressed with specific technical nuances.

  20. Vertical microbial community variability of carbonate-based cones may provide insight into ancient conical stromatolite formation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bradley, James; Daille, Leslie; Trivedi, Christopher; Bojanowski, Caitlin; Nunn, Heather; Stamps, Blake; Johnson, Hope; Stevenson, Bradley; Berelson, Will; Corsetti, Frank; Spear, John

    2016-04-01

    Stromatolite morphogenesis is poorly understood, and the process by which microbial mats become mineralized is a primary question in microbialite formation. Ancient conical stromatolites are primarily carbonate-based whereas the few modern analogues in hot springs are either non-mineralized or mineralized by silica. A team from the 2015 International GeoBiology Course investigated carbonate-rich microbial cones from near Little Hot Creek (LHC), Long Valley Caldera, California, to investigate how conical stromatolites might form in a hot spring carbonate system. The cones rise up from a layered microbial mat on the east side of a 45° C pool with very low flow that is super-saturated with respect to CaCO3. Cone structures are 8-30 mm in height, are rigid and do not deform when removed from the pool. Morphological characterization through environmental scanning electronic microscopy revealed that the cone structure is maintained by a matrix of intertwining microbial filaments around carbonate grains. This matrix gives rise to cone-filaments that are arranged vertically or horizontally, and provides further stability to the cone. Preliminary 16S rRNA gene analysis indicated variability of community composition between different vertical levels of the cone. The cone tip had comparatively greater abundance of filamentous cyanobacteria including Leptolingbya, Phormidium and Isosphaera and fewer heterotrophs (e.g. Chloroflexi) compared to the cone bottom. This supports the hypothesis that cone formation may depend on the differential abundance of the microbial community and their potential functional roles. Metagenomic analyses of the cones revealed potential genes related to chemotaxis and motility. Specifically, a genomic bin identified as a member of the genus Isosphaera contained an hmp chemotaxis operon implicated in gliding motility in the cyanobacterium Nostoc punctiforme. Isosphaera is a Planctomycete shown to have phototactic capabilities, and may play a role in

  1. Strain response of stretchable micro-electrodes: Controlling sensitivity with serpentine designs and encapsulation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gutruf, Philipp; Walia, Sumeet; Nur Ali, Md; Sriram, Sharath; Bhaskaran, Madhu

    2014-01-01

    The functionality of flexible electronics relies on stable performance of thin film micro-electrodes. This letter investigates the behavior of gold thin films on polyimide, a prevalent combination in flexible devices. The dynamic behavior of gold micro-electrodes has been studied by subjecting them to stress while monitoring their resistance in situ. The shape of the electrodes was systematically varied to examine resistive strain sensitivity, while an additional encapsulation was applied to characterize multilayer behavior. The realized designs show remarkable tolerance to repetitive strain, demonstrating that curvature and encapsulation are excellent approaches for minimizing resistive strain sensitivity to enable durable flexible electronics

  2. Characterization of metal-coated fiber tip for NSOM lithography by tip-to-tip scan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kubicova, I.; Pudis, D.; Suslik, L.; Skriniarova, J.

    2011-01-01

    For the optical field characterization, a tip-to-tip scan of two metal-coated fiber tips with circular aperture at the apex was performed. The optical field irradiated from the fiber probe in illumination mode was analyzed by NSOM represented by fiber probe in collection mode. The near-field intensity profile of the source fiber tip in the plane perpendicular to the axis of the tip was taken. Experimental stage requires high resolution 3D motion system controlled by computer (Fig. 1). The source and the detector fiber tip were placed on the moving and static part of the 3D nanoposition system, respectively. As a light source, a modulated 473 nm DPSS laser was used. After the source fiber tip characterization, the NSOM lithography was performed. In the experimental setup from Fig. 1, the detector fiber tip was replaced by a sample fixed in a vacuum holder. As a sample, a 600 nm positive photoresist AZ 5214E was spin-coated on a GaAs substrate. Exposure was carried out by irradiation of the sample at desired positions through the fiber tip aperture. The sample was developed in AZ 400K developer for 30 s and rinsed in DI water. A promising tip-to-tip scanning technique for characterization of metal-coated fiber tips with aperture at the apex was presented. Nearly-circular aperture shapes were documented from NSOM measurements with diameter estimated to be less than 460 nm. By knowing the source-detector distance and the FWHM of the near-field intensity profile, the tip-to-tip scan proves an easy and fast method to analyze the fiber tip aperture properties. The fiber tip resolution was confirmed by preparation of 2D planar structures in thin photoresist layer, where the NSOM lithography uses the metal-coated fiber tip characterized in previous section. (authors)

  3. Microelectrode measurements of the activity distribution in nitrifying bacterial aggregates

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Beer, de D.; Heuvel, van den J.C.; Ottengraf, S.P.P.

    1993-01-01

    Microelectrodes for ammonium, oxygen, nitrate, and pH were used to study nitrifying aggregates grown in a fluidized-bed reactor. Local reactant fluxes and distribution of microbial activity could be detd. from the microprofiles. The interfacial fluxes of the reactants closely reflected the

  4. Bio-inspired hybrid microelectrodes: a hybrid solution to improve long-term performance of chronic intracortical implants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Faveri, Sara; Maggiolini, Emma; Miele, Ermanno; De Angelis, Francesco; Cesca, Fabrizia; Benfenati, Fabio; Fadiga, Luciano

    2014-01-01

    The use of implants that allow chronic electrical stimulation and recording in the brain of human patients is currently limited by a series of events that cause the deterioration over time of both the electrode surface and the surrounding tissue. The main reason of failure is the tissue inflammatory reaction that eventually causes neuronal loss and glial encapsulation, resulting in a progressive increase of the electrode-electrolyte impedance. Here, we describe a new method to create bio-inspired electrodes to mimic the mechanical properties and biological composition of the host tissue. This combination has a great potential to increase the implant lifetime by reducing tissue reaction and improving electrical coupling. Our method implies coating the electrode with reprogrammed neural or glial cells encapsulated within a hydrogel layer. We chose fibrin as a hydrogel and primary hippocampal neurons or astrocytes from rat brain as cellular layer. We demonstrate that fibrin coating is highly biocompatible, forms uniform coatings of controllable thickness, does not alter the electrochemical properties of the microelectrode and allows good quality recordings. Moreover, it reduces the amount of host reactive astrocytes - over time - compared to a bare wire and is fully reabsorbed by the surrounding tissue within 7 days after implantation, avoiding the common problem of hydrogels swelling. Both astrocytes and neurons could be successfully grown onto the electrode surface within the fibrin hydrogel without altering the electrochemical properties of the microelectrode. This bio-hybrid device has therefore a good potential to improve the electrical integration at the neuron-electrode interface and support the long-term success of neural prostheses.

  5. Theoretical and experimental comparison of microelectrode sensing configurations for impedimetric cell monitoring

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Carminati, M.; Caviglia, Claudia; Heiskanen, Arto

    2013-01-01

    microelectrodes using a versatile custom-made monitoring platform including a 24-channel miniaturized potentiostat. The characterization of bare microelectrodes in buffer and tracking experiments with HeLa cells over 16 hours demonstrate that the coplanar configuration provides a higher sensitivity to cell......A theoretical and experimental comparison between vertical and coplanar interdigitated sensing configurations for impedimetric cell growth tracking is presented. These widely-adopted approaches are quantitatively compared on the same cell populations and on the same 10 μm interdigitated...... adhesion and spreading (Cell Index = 1.6 vs. 0.4) albeit at a higher frequency of maximum sensitivity (100 kHz vs. 24 kHz) shifting over time. © 2014 Taylor & Francis Group....

  6. Tip Effect of the Tapping Mode of Atomic Force Microscope in Viscous Fluid Environments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shih, Hua-Ju; Shih, Po-Jen

    2015-07-28

    Atomic force microscope with applicable types of operation in a liquid environment is widely used to scan the contours of biological specimens. The contact mode of operation allows a tip to touch a specimen directly but sometimes it damages the specimen; thus, a tapping mode of operation may replace the contact mode. The tapping mode triggers the cantilever of the microscope approximately at resonance frequencies, and so the tip periodically knocks the specimen. It is well known that the cantilever induces extra liquid pressure that leads to drift in the resonance frequency. Studies have noted that the heights of protein surfaces measured via the tapping mode of an atomic force microscope are ~25% smaller than those measured by other methods. This discrepancy may be attributable to the induced superficial hydrodynamic pressure, which is worth investigating. In this paper, we introduce a semi-analytical method to analyze the pressure distribution of various tip geometries. According to our analysis, the maximum hydrodynamic pressure on the specimen caused by a cone-shaped tip is ~0.5 Pa, which can, for example, pre-deform a cell by several nanometers in compression before the tip taps it. Moreover, the pressure calculated on the surface of the specimen is 20 times larger than the pressure without considering the tip effect; these results have not been motioned in other papers. Dominating factors, such as surface heights of protein surface, mechanical stiffness of protein increasing with loading velocity, and radius of tip affecting the local pressure of specimen, are also addressed in this study.

  7. Field-programmable lab-on-a-chip based on microelectrode dot array architecture.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Gary; Teng, Daniel; Lai, Yi-Tse; Lu, Yi-Wen; Ho, Yingchieh; Lee, Chen-Yi

    2014-09-01

    The fundamentals of electrowetting-on-dielectric (EWOD) digital microfluidics are very strong: advantageous capability in the manipulation of fluids, small test volumes, precise dynamic control and detection, and microscale systems. These advantages are very important for future biochip developments, but the development of EWOD microfluidics has been hindered by the absence of: integrated detector technology, standard commercial components, on-chip sample preparation, standard manufacturing technology and end-to-end system integration. A field-programmable lab-on-a-chip (FPLOC) system based on microelectrode dot array (MEDA) architecture is presented in this research. The MEDA architecture proposes a standard EWOD microfluidic component called 'microelectrode cell', which can be dynamically configured into microfluidic components to perform microfluidic operations of the biochip. A proof-of-concept prototype FPLOC, containing a 30 × 30 MEDA, was developed by using generic integrated circuits computer aided design tools, and it was manufactured with standard low-voltage complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor technology, which allows smooth on-chip integration of microfluidics and microelectronics. By integrating 900 droplet detection circuits into microelectrode cells, the FPLOC has achieved large-scale integration of microfluidics and microelectronics. Compared to the full-custom and bottom-up design methods, the FPLOC provides hierarchical top-down design approach, field-programmability and dynamic manipulations of droplets for advanced microfluidic operations.

  8. Geomorphometric variability of "monogenetic" volcanic cones: Evidence from Mauna Kea, Lanzarote and experimental cones

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kervyn, M.; Ernst, G. G. J.; Carracedo, J.-C.; Jacobs, P.

    2012-01-01

    Volcanic cones are the most common volcanic constructs on Earth. Their shape can be quantified using two morphometric ratios: the crater/cone base ratio (W cr/W co) and the cone height/width ratio (H co/W co). The average values for these ratios obtained over entire cone fields have been explained by the repose angle of loose granular material (i.e. scoria) controlling cone slopes. The observed variability in these ratios between individual cones has been attributed to the effect of erosional processes or contrasting eruptive conditions on cone morphometry. Using a GIS-based approach, high spatial resolution Digital Elevation Models and airphotos, two new geomorphometry datasets for cone fields at Mauna Kea (Hawaii, USA) and Lanzarote (Canary Islands, Spain) are extracted and analyzed here. The key observation in these datasets is the great variability in morphometric ratios, even for simple-shape and well-preserved cones. Simple analog experiments are presented to analyze factors influencing the morphometric ratios. The formation of a crater is simulated within an analog cone (i.e. a sand pile) by opening a drainage conduit at the cone base. Results from experiments show that variability in the morphometric ratios can be attributed to variations in the width, height and horizontal offset of the drainage point relative to the cone symmetry axis, to the dip of the underlying slope or to the influence of a small proportion of fine cohesive material. GIS analysis and analog experiments, together with specific examples of cones documented in the field, suggest that the morphometric ratios for well-preserved volcanic cones are controlled by a combination of 1) the intrinsic cone material properties, 2) time-dependent eruption conditions, 3) the local setting, and 4) the method used to estimate the cone height. Implications for interpreting cone morphometry solely as either an age or as an eruption condition indicator are highlighted.

  9. Foveal cone spacing and cone photopigment density difference: objective measurements in the same subjects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marcos, S; Tornow, R P; Elsner, A E; Navarro, R

    1997-07-01

    Foveal cone spacing was measured in vivo using an objective technique: ocular speckle interferometry. Cone packing density was computed from cone spacing data. Foveal cone photopigment density difference was measured in the same subjects using retinal densitometry with a scanning laser ophthalmoscope. Both the cone packing density and cone photopigment density difference decreased sharply with increasing retinal eccentricity. From the comparison of both sets of measurements, the computed amounts of photopigment per cone increased slightly with increasing retinal eccentricity. Consistent with previous results, decreases in cone outer segment length are over-compensated by an increase in the outer segment area, at least in retinal eccentricities up to 1 deg.

  10. Nanostructured gold microelectrodes for extracellular recording from electrogenic cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brüggemann, D; Wolfrum, B; Maybeck, V; Mourzina, Y; Jansen, M; Offenhäusser, A

    2011-07-01

    We present a new biocompatible nanostructured microelectrode array for extracellular signal recording from electrogenic cells. Microfabrication techniques were combined with a template-assisted approach using nanoporous aluminum oxide to develop gold nanopillar electrodes. The nanopillars were approximately 300-400 nm high and had a diameter of 60 nm. Thus, they yielded a higher surface area of the electrodes resulting in a decreased impedance compared to planar electrodes. The interaction between the large-scale gold nanopillar arrays and cardiac muscle cells (HL-1) was investigated via focused ion beam milling. In the resulting cross-sections we observed a tight coupling between the HL-1 cells and the gold nanostructures. However, the cell membranes did not bend into the cleft between adjacent nanopillars due to the high pillar density. We performed extracellular potential recordings from HL-1 cells with the nanostructured microelectrode arrays. The maximal amplitudes recorded with the nanopillar electrodes were up to 100% higher than those recorded with planar gold electrodes. Increasing the aspect ratio of the gold nanopillars and changing the geometrical layout can further enhance the signal quality in the future.

  11. Nanostructured gold microelectrodes for extracellular recording from electrogenic cells

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brueggemann, D; Wolfrum, B; Maybeck, V; Mourzina, Y; Jansen, M; Offenhaeusser, A, E-mail: a.offenhaeusser@fz-juelich.de [Institute of Complex Systems and Peter Gruenberg Institute: Bioelectronics (ICS8/PGI8), Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH, Leo-Brandt-Strasse, 52428 Juelich (Germany); Juelich-Aachen Research Alliance-Fundamental of Future Information Technology (JARA-FIT) (Germany)

    2011-07-01

    We present a new biocompatible nanostructured microelectrode array for extracellular signal recording from electrogenic cells. Microfabrication techniques were combined with a template-assisted approach using nanoporous aluminum oxide to develop gold nanopillar electrodes. The nanopillars were approximately 300-400 nm high and had a diameter of 60 nm. Thus, they yielded a higher surface area of the electrodes resulting in a decreased impedance compared to planar electrodes. The interaction between the large-scale gold nanopillar arrays and cardiac muscle cells (HL-1) was investigated via focused ion beam milling. In the resulting cross-sections we observed a tight coupling between the HL-1 cells and the gold nanostructures. However, the cell membranes did not bend into the cleft between adjacent nanopillars due to the high pillar density. We performed extracellular potential recordings from HL-1 cells with the nanostructured microelectrode arrays. The maximal amplitudes recorded with the nanopillar electrodes were up to 100% higher than those recorded with planar gold electrodes. Increasing the aspect ratio of the gold nanopillars and changing the geometrical layout can further enhance the signal quality in the future.

  12. Steady cone-jet mode in compound-fluidic electro-flow focusing for fabricating multicompartment microcapsules

    Science.gov (United States)

    Si, Ting; Yin, Chuansheng; Gao, Peng; Li, Guangbin; Ding, Hang; He, Xiaoming; Xie, Bin; Xu, Ronald X.

    2016-01-01

    A compound-fluidic electro-flow focusing (CEFF) process is proposed to produce multicompartment microcapsules. The central device mainly consists of a needle assembly of two parallel inner needles and one outer needle mounted in a gas chamber with their tips facing a small orifice at the bottom of the chamber. As the outer and the inner fluids flow through the needle assembly, a high-speed gas stream elongates the liquid menisci in the vicinity of the orifice entrance. An electric field is further integrated into capillary flow focusing to promote the formation of steady cone-jet mode in a wide range of operation parameters. The multiphase liquid jet is broken up into droplets due to perturbation propagation along the jet surface. To estimate the diameter of the multiphase liquid jet as a function of process parameters, a modified scaling law is derived and experimentally validated. Microcapsules of around 100 μm with an alginate shell and multiple cores at a production rate of 103-105 per second are produced. Technical feasibility of stimulation triggered coalescence and drug release is demonstrated by benchtop experiments. The proposed CEFF process can be potentially used to encapsulate therapeutic agents and biological cargos for controlled micro-reaction and drug delivery.

  13. Nerve growth factor stimulates axon outgrowth through negative regulation of growth cone actomyosin restraint of microtubule advance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Turney, Stephen G; Ahmed, Mostafa; Chandrasekar, Indra; Wysolmerski, Robert B; Goeckeler, Zoe M; Rioux, Robert M; Whitesides, George M; Bridgman, Paul C

    2016-02-01

    Nerve growth factor (NGF) promotes growth, differentiation, and survival of sensory neurons in the mammalian nervous system. Little is known about how NGF elicits faster axon outgrowth or how growth cones integrate and transform signal input to motor output. Using cultured mouse dorsal root ganglion neurons, we found that myosin II (MII) is required for NGF to stimulate faster axon outgrowth. From experiments inducing loss or gain of function of MII, specific MII isoforms, and vinculin-dependent adhesion-cytoskeletal coupling, we determined that NGF causes decreased vinculin-dependent actomyosin restraint of microtubule advance. Inhibition of MII blocked NGF stimulation, indicating the central role of restraint in directed outgrowth. The restraint consists of myosin IIB- and IIA-dependent processes: retrograde actin network flow and transverse actin bundling, respectively. The processes differentially contribute on laminin-1 and fibronectin due to selective actin tethering to adhesions. On laminin-1, NGF induced greater vinculin-dependent adhesion-cytoskeletal coupling, which slowed retrograde actin network flow (i.e., it regulated the molecular clutch). On fibronectin, NGF caused inactivation of myosin IIA, which negatively regulated actin bundling. On both substrates, the result was the same: NGF-induced weakening of MII-dependent restraint led to dynamic microtubules entering the actin-rich periphery more frequently, giving rise to faster elongation. © 2016 Turney et al. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). Two months after publication it is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

  14. Comparison of the induced fields using different coil configurations during deep transcranial magnetic stimulation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mai Lu

    Full Text Available Stimulation of deeper brain structures by transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS plays a role in the study of reward and motivation mechanisms, which may be beneficial in the treatment of several neurological and psychiatric disorders. However, electric field distributions induced in the brain by deep transcranial magnetic stimulation (dTMS are still unknown. In this paper, the double cone coil, H-coil and Halo-circular assembly (HCA coil which have been proposed for dTMS have been numerically designed. The distributions of magnetic flux density, induced electric field in an anatomically based realistic head model by applying the dTMS coils were numerically calculated by the impedance method. Results were compared with that of standard figure-of-eight (Fo8 coil. Simulation results show that double cone, H- and HCA coils have significantly deep field penetration compared to the conventional Fo8 coil, at the expense of induced higher and wider spread electrical fields in superficial cortical regions. Double cone and HCA coils have better ability to stimulate deep brain subregions compared to that of the H-coil. In the mean time, both double cone and HCA coils increase risk for optical nerve excitation. Our results suggest although the dTMS coils offer new tool with potential for both research and clinical applications for psychiatric and neurological disorders associated with dysfunctions of deep brain regions, the selection of the most suitable coil settings for a specific clinical application should be based on a balanced evaluation between stimulation depth and focality.

  15. Towards on-chip, in-cell recordings from cultured cardiomyocytes by arrays of gold mushroom-shaped microelectrodes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anna eFendyur

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available Cardiological research greatly rely on the use of cultured primary cardiomyocytes (CM. The prime methodology to assess CM network electrophysiology is based on the use of extracellular recordings by substrate-integrated planar Micro-Electrode Arrays (MEAs. Whereas this methodology permits simultaneous, long-term monitoring of the CM electrical activity, it limits the information to extracellular field potentials (FP. The alternative method of intracellular action potentials (AP recordings by sharp- or patch-microelectrodes is limited to a single cell at a time. Here, we began to merge the advantages of planar MEA and intracellular microelectrodes. To that end we cultured rat CM on micrometer size protruding gold mushroom-shaped microelectrode (gMµE arrays. Cultured CMs engulf the gMµE permitting FPs recordings from individual cells. Local electroporation of a CM converts the extracellular recording configuration to attenuated intracellular APs with shape and duration similar to those recorded intracellularly. The procedure enables to simultaneously record APs from an unlimited number of CMs. The electroporated membrane spontaneously recovers. This allows for repeated recordings from the same CM a number of times (>8 for over 10 days. The further development of CM-gMµE configuration opens up new venues for basic and applied biomedical research.

  16. DNA-barcode directed capture and electrochemical metabolic analysis of single mammalian cells on a microelectrode array.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Douglas, Erik S; Hsiao, Sonny C; Onoe, Hiroaki; Bertozzi, Carolyn R; Francis, Matthew B; Mathies, Richard A

    2009-07-21

    A microdevice is developed for DNA-barcode directed capture of single cells on an array of pH-sensitive microelectrodes for metabolic analysis. Cells are modified with membrane-bound single-stranded DNA, and specific single-cell capture is directed by the complementary strand bound in the sensor area of the iridium oxide pH microelectrodes within a microfluidic channel. This bifunctional microelectrode array is demonstrated for the pH monitoring and differentiation of primary T cells and Jurkat T lymphoma cells. Single Jurkat cells exhibited an extracellular acidification rate of 11 milli-pH min(-1), while primary T cells exhibited only 2 milli-pH min(-1). This system can be used to capture non-adherent cells specifically and to discriminate between visually similar healthy and cancerous cells in a heterogeneous ensemble based on their altered metabolic properties.

  17. Microelectrode array-induced neuronal alignment directs neurite outgrowth: analysis using a fast Fourier transform (FFT).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Radotić, Viktorija; Braeken, Dries; Kovačić, Damir

    2017-12-01

    Many studies have shown that the topography of the substrate on which neurons are cultured can promote neuronal adhesion and guide neurite outgrowth in the same direction as the underlying topography. To investigate this effect, isotropic substrate-complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) chips were used as one example of microelectrode arrays (MEAs) for directing neurite growth of spiral ganglion neurons. Neurons were isolated from 5 to 7-day-old rat pups, cultured 1 day in vitro (DIV) and 4 DIV, and then fixed with 4% paraformaldehyde. For analysis of neurite alignment and orientation, fast Fourier transformation (FFT) was used. Results revealed that on the micro-patterned surface of a CMOS chip, neurons orient their neurites along three directional axes at 30, 90, and 150° and that neurites aligned in straight lines between adjacent pillars and mostly followed a single direction while occasionally branching perpendicularly. We conclude that the CMOS substrate guides neurites towards electrodes by means of their structured pillar organization and can produce electrical stimulation of aligned neurons as well as monitoring their neural activities once neurites are in the vicinity of electrodes. These findings are of particular interest for neural tissue engineering with the ultimate goal of developing a new generation of MEA essential for improved electrical stimulation of auditory neurons.

  18. On-Line Monitoring the Growth of E. coli or HeLa Cells Using an Annular Microelectrode Piezoelectric Biosensor

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Feifei Tong

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Biological information is obtained from the interaction between the series detection electrode and the organism or the physical field of biological cultures in the non-mass responsive piezoelectric biosensor. Therefore, electric parameter of the electrode will affect the biosensor signal. The electric field distribution of the microelectrode used in this study was simulated using the COMSOL Multiphysics analytical tool. This process showed that the electric field spatial distribution is affected by the width of the electrode finger or the space between the electrodes. In addition, the characteristic response of the piezoelectric sensor constructed serially with an annular microelectrode was tested and applied for the continuous detection of Escherichia coli culture or HeLa cell culture. Results indicated that the piezoelectric biosensor with an annular microelectrode meets the requirements for the real-time detection of E. coli or HeLa cells in culture. Moreover, this kind of piezoelectric biosensor is more sensitive than the sensor with an interdigital microelectrode. Thus, the piezoelectric biosensor acts as an effective analysis tool for acquiring online cell or microbial culture information.

  19. On-Line Monitoring the Growth of E. coli or HeLa Cells Using an Annular Microelectrode Piezoelectric Biosensor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tong, Feifei; Lian, Yan; Han, Junliang

    2016-12-18

    Biological information is obtained from the interaction between the series detection electrode and the organism or the physical field of biological cultures in the non-mass responsive piezoelectric biosensor. Therefore, electric parameter of the electrode will affect the biosensor signal. The electric field distribution of the microelectrode used in this study was simulated using the COMSOL Multiphysics analytical tool. This process showed that the electric field spatial distribution is affected by the width of the electrode finger or the space between the electrodes. In addition, the characteristic response of the piezoelectric sensor constructed serially with an annular microelectrode was tested and applied for the continuous detection of Escherichia coli culture or HeLa cell culture. Results indicated that the piezoelectric biosensor with an annular microelectrode meets the requirements for the real-time detection of E. coli or HeLa cells in culture. Moreover, this kind of piezoelectric biosensor is more sensitive than the sensor with an interdigital microelectrode. Thus, the piezoelectric biosensor acts as an effective analysis tool for acquiring online cell or microbial culture information.

  20. Quotient normed cones

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    general setting of the space CL(X, Y ) of all continuous linear mappings from a normed cone (X, p) to a normed cone (Y, q), extending several well-known results related to open continuous linear mappings between normed linear spaces. Keywords. Normed cone; extended quasi-metric; continuous linear mapping; bicom-.

  1. Microelectrode Recording-Guided Versus Intraoperative Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Guided Subthalamic Nucleus Deep Brain Stimulation Surgery for Parkinson Disease: A 1-Year Follow-Up Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Xuemeng; Zhang, Jibo; Fu, Kai; Gong, Rui; Chen, Jincao; Zhang, Jie

    2017-11-01

    Microelectrode recording (MER) and intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging (iMRI) have been used in deep brain stimulation surgery for Parkinson disease (PD), but comparative methodology is lacking. Therefore, we compared the 1-year follow-up outcomes of MER-guided and iMRI-guided subthalamic nucleus (STN) deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery in PD patients. We conducted a review comparing PD patients who underwent MER-guided (n = 76, group A) and iMRI-guided STN DBS surgery (n = 61, group B) in our institution. Pre- and postoperative assessments included Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale-III (UPDRS-III) score, Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-39), Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), levodopa equivalent daily doses (LEDDs), and magnetic resonance images. The mean magnitudes of electrode discrepancy were x = 1.1 ± 0.2 mm, y = 1.3 ± 0.3 mm, and z = 2.1 ± 0.5 mm in group A and x = 1.3 ± 0.4 mm, y = 1.2 ± 0.2 mm, and z = 2.5 ± 0.7 mm in group B. Significant differences were not found between 2 groups for x, y, or z (P = 0.34, P = 0.26, and P = 0.41, respectively). At 1 year, when levodopa was withdrawn for 12 hours, the UPDRS-III score improved by 66.3% ± 13.5% in group A and 64.8% ± 12.7% in group B (P = 0.24); the PDQ-39 summary index score improved by 49.7% ± 14.3% in group A and 44.1% ± 12.7% in group B (P = 0.16); the MMSE score improved by 4.2% ± 2.1% in group A and 11.1% ± 3.2% in group B (P = 0.43); and LEDDs decreased by 48.7% ± 10.1% in group A and 56.9% ± 12.0% in group B (P = 0.32). MER and iMRI both are effective ways to ensure adequate electrode placement in DBS surgery, but there is no superiority between both techniques, at least in terms of 1-year follow-up outcomes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Amorphous silicon carbide ultramicroelectrode arrays for neural stimulation and recording

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deku, Felix; Cohen, Yarden; Joshi-Imre, Alexandra; Kanneganti, Aswini; Gardner, Timothy J.; Cogan, Stuart F.

    2018-02-01

    Objective. Foreign body response to indwelling cortical microelectrodes limits the reliability of neural stimulation and recording, particularly for extended chronic applications in behaving animals. The extent to which this response compromises the chronic stability of neural devices depends on many factors including the materials used in the electrode construction, the size, and geometry of the indwelling structure. Here, we report on the development of microelectrode arrays (MEAs) based on amorphous silicon carbide (a-SiC). Approach. This technology utilizes a-SiC for its chronic stability and employs semiconductor manufacturing processes to create MEAs with small shank dimensions. The a-SiC films were deposited by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition and patterned by thin-film photolithographic techniques. To improve stimulation and recording capabilities with small contact areas, we investigated low impedance coatings on the electrode sites. The assembled devices were characterized in phosphate buffered saline for their electrochemical properties. Main results. MEAs utilizing a-SiC as both the primary structural element and encapsulation were fabricated successfully. These a-SiC MEAs had 16 penetrating shanks. Each shank has a cross-sectional area less than 60 µm2 and electrode sites with a geometric surface area varying from 20 to 200 µm2. Electrode coatings of TiN and SIROF reduced 1 kHz electrode impedance to less than 100 kΩ from ~2.8 MΩ for 100 µm2 Au electrode sites and increased the charge injection capacities to values greater than 3 mC cm‑2. Finally, we demonstrated functionality by recording neural activity from basal ganglia nucleus of Zebra Finches and motor cortex of rat. Significance. The a-SiC MEAs provide a significant advancement in the development of microelectrodes that over the years has relied on silicon platforms for device manufacture. These flexible a-SiC MEAs have the potential for decreased tissue damage and reduced

  3. Bio-inspired hybrid microelectrodes. A hybrid solution to improve long-term performance of chronic intracortical implants.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sara eDe Faveri

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available The use of implants that allow chronic electrical stimulation and recording in the brain of human patients is currently limited by a series of events that cause the deterioration over time of both the electrode surface and the surrounding tissue. The main reason of failure is the tissue inflammatory reaction that eventually causes neuronal loss and glial encapsulation, resulting in a progressive increase of the electrode-electrolyte impedance. Here, we describe a new method to create bio-inspired electrodes to mimic the mechanical properties and biological composition of the host tissue. This combination has a great potential to increase the implant lifetime by reducing tissue reaction and improving electrical coupling. Our method implies coating the electrode with reprogrammed neural or glial cells encapsulated within a hydrogel layer. We chose fibrin as a hydrogel and primary hippocampal neurons or astrocytes from rat brain as cellular layer. We demonstrate that fibrin coating is highly biocompatible, forms uniform coatings of controllable thickness, does not alter the electrochemical properties of the microelectrode and allows good quality recordings. Moreover, it reduces the amount of host reactive astrocytes - over time - compared to a bare wire and is fully reabsorbed by the surrounding tissue within 7 days after implantation, avoiding the common problem of hydrogels swelling. Both astrocytes and neurons could be successfully grown onto the electrode surface within the fibrin hydrogel without altering the electrochemical properties of the microelectrode. This bio-hybrid device has therefore a good potential to improve the electrical integration at the neuron-electrode interface and support the long-term success of neural prostheses.

  4. Phylogenetic diversification of Early Cretaceous seed plants: The compound seed cone of Doylea tetrahedrasperma.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rothwell, Gar W; Stockey, Ruth A

    2016-05-01

    Discovery of cupulate ovules of Doylea tetrahedrasperma within a compact, compound seed cone highlights the rich diversity of fructification morphologies, pollination biologies, postpollination enclosure of seeds, and systematic diversity of Early Cretaceous gymnosperms. Specimens were studied using the cellulose acetate peel technique, three-dimensional reconstructions (in AVIZO), and morphological phylogenetic analyses (in TNT). Doylea tetrahedrasperma has bract/fertile short shoot complexes helically arranged within a compact, compound seed cone. Complexes diverge from the axis as a single unit and separate distally into a free bract tip and two sporophylls. Each sporophyll bears a single, abaxial seed, recurved toward the cone axis, that is enveloped after pollinaton by sporophyll tissue, forming a closed cupule. Ovules are pollinated by bisaccate grains captured by micropylar pollination horns. The unique combination of characters shown by D. tetrahedrasperma includes the presence of cupulate seeds borne in conifer-like compound seed cones, an ovuliferous scale analogue structurally equivalent to the ovulate stalk of Ginkgo biloba, gymnospermous pollination, and nearly complete enclosure of mature seeds. These features characterize the Doyleales ord. nov., clearly distinguish it from the seed fern order Corystospermales, and allow for recognition of another recently described Early Cretaceous seed plant as a second species in genus Doylea. A morphological phylogenetic analysis highlights systematic relationships of the Doyleales ord. nov. and emphasizes the explosive phylogenetic diversification of gymnosperms that was underway at the time when flowering plants may have originated and/or first began to radiate. © 2016 Botanical Society of America.

  5. Plasmonic optical antenna design for performing tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy and microscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kharintsev, S S; Fishman, A I; Salakhov, M Kh; Hoffmann, G G

    2013-01-01

    This paper highlights optical plasmonic antennas designed with dc-pulsed low-voltage electrochemical etching of a gold wire for implementing tip-enhanced Raman scattering (TERS) measurements. We demonstrate a versatile electrochemical system that allows one to engineer TERS-active metallic gold tips with diverse shapes and sizes in a highly reproducible fashion. The underlying etching mechanism at a voltage-driven meniscus around a gold wire immersed into an electrolyte is discussed in detail. We show that the developed method is suitable to produce not only the simplest geometries such as cones and spheroids, but more complex designs. Attempts have been made to design plasmonic tapered antennas with quasi-uniformly spaced nano-sized bumps on the mesoscopic zone for the extra surface plasmon-light coupling. The capability of the patterned antenna to enhance and localize optical fields is demonstrated with near-field Raman microscopy and spectroscopy of single-walled carbon nanotubes bundles. (paper)

  6. Selective wetting-induced micro-electrode patterning for flexible micro-supercapacitors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Sung-Kon; Koo, Hyung-Jun; Lee, Aeri; Braun, Paul V

    2014-08-13

    Selective wetting-induced micro-electrode patterning is used to fabricate flexible micro-supercapacitors (mSCs). The resulting mSCs exhibit high performance, mechanical stability, stable cycle life, and hold great promise for facile integration into flexible devices requiring on-chip energy storage. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  7. Leading tip drives soma translocation via forward F-actin flow during neuronal migration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    He, Min; Zhang, Zheng-hong; Guan, Chen-bing; Xia, Di; Yuan, Xiao-bing

    2010-08-11

    Neuronal migration involves coordinated extension of the leading process and translocation of the soma, but the relative contribution of different subcellular regions, including the leading process and cell rear, in driving soma translocation remains unclear. By local manipulation of cytoskeletal components in restricted regions of cultured neurons, we examined the molecular machinery underlying the generation of traction force for soma translocation during neuronal migration. In actively migrating cerebellar granule cells in culture, a growth cone (GC)-like structure at the leading tip exhibits high dynamics, and severing the tip or disrupting its dynamics suppressed soma translocation within minutes. Soma translocation was also suppressed by local disruption of F-actin along the leading process but not at the soma, whereas disrupting microtubules along the leading process or at the soma accelerated soma translocation. Fluorescent speckle microscopy using GFP-alpha-actinin showed that a forward F-actin flow along the leading process correlated with and was required for soma translocation, and such F-actin flow depended on myosin II activity. In migrating neurons, myosin II activity was high at the leading tip but low at the soma, and increasing or decreasing this front-to-rear difference accelerated or impeded soma advance. Thus, the tip of the leading process actively pulls the soma forward during neuronal migration through a myosin II-dependent forward F-actin flow along the leading process.

  8. A Single Platinum Microelectrode for Identifying Soft Drink Samples

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lígia Bueno

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Cyclic voltammograms recorded with a single platinum microelectrode were used along with a non-supervised pattern recognition, namely, Principal Component Analysis, to conduct a qualitative analysis of sixteen different brands of carbonated soft drinks (Kuat, Soda Antarctica, H2OH!, Sprite 2.0, Guarana Antarctica, Guarana Antarctica Zero, Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Zero, Coca-Cola Plus, Pepsi, Pepsi Light, Pepsi Twist, Pepsi Twist Light, Pepsi Twist 3, Schin Cola, and Classic Dillar’s. In this analysis, soft drink samples were not subjected to pre-treatment. Good differentiation among all the analysed soft drinks was achieved using the voltammetric data. An analysis of the loading plots shows that the potentials of −0.65 V, −0.4 V, 0.4 V, and 0.750 V facilitated the discrimination process. The electrochemical processes related to this potential are the reduction of hydrogen ions and inhibition of the platinum oxidation by the caffeine adsorption on the electrode surface. Additionally, the single platinum microelectrode was useful for the quality control of the soft drink samples, as it helped to identify the time at which the beverage was opened.

  9. Microfabrication, characterization and in vivo MRI compatibility of diamond microelectrodes array for neural interfacing

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hébert, Clément, E-mail: clement.hebert@cea.fr [Institut Néel, CNRS et Université Joseph Fourier, BP 166, F-38042 Grenoble Cedex 9 (France); Warnking, Jan; Depaulis, Antoine [INSERM, U836, Grenoble Institut des Neurosciences, Grenoble (France); Garçon, Laurie Amandine [Institut Néel, CNRS et Université Joseph Fourier, BP 166, F-38042 Grenoble Cedex 9 (France); CEA/INAC/SPrAM/CREAB, 17 rue des Martyrs, 38054 Grenoble Cedex 9 (France); Mermoux, Michel [Université Grenoble Alpes, LEPMI, F-38000 Grenoble (France); CNRS, LEPMI, F-38000 Grenoble (France); Eon, David [Institut Néel, CNRS et Université Joseph Fourier, BP 166, F-38042 Grenoble Cedex 9 (France); Mailley, Pascal [CEA-LETI-DTBS Minatec, 17 rue des Martyres, 38054 Grenoble (France); Omnès, Franck [Institut Néel, CNRS et Université Joseph Fourier, BP 166, F-38042 Grenoble Cedex 9 (France)

    2015-01-01

    Neural interfacing still requires highly stable and biocompatible materials, in particular for in vivo applications. Indeed, most of the currently used materials are degraded and/or encapsulated by the proximal tissue leading to a loss of efficiency. Here, we considered boron doped diamond microelectrodes to address this issue and we evaluated the performances of a diamond microelectrode array. We described the microfabrication process of the device and discuss its functionalities. We characterized its electrochemical performances by cyclic voltammetry and impedance spectroscopy in saline buffer and observed the typical diamond electrode electrochemical properties, wide potential window and low background current, allowing efficient electrochemical detection. The charge storage capacitance and the modulus of the electrochemical impedance were found to remain in the same range as platinum electrodes used for standard commercial devices. Finally we observed a reduced Magnetic Resonance Imaging artifact when the device was implanted on a rat cortex, suggesting that boron doped-diamond is a very promising electrode material allowing functional imaging. - Highlights: • Microfabrication of all-diamond microelectrode array • Evaluation of as-grown nanocrystalline boron-doped diamond for electrical neural interfacing • MRI compatibility of nanocrystalline boron-doped diamond.

  10. Intra-manufacture Diameter Variability of Rotary Files and Their Corresponding Gutta-Percha Cones Using Laser Scan Micrometre.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mirmohammadi, Hesam; Sitarz, Monika; Shemesh, Hagay

    2018-01-01

    Manufacturers offer gutta-percha (GP) cones matched with different sizes of endodontic files as an attempt to simplify the obturation process and create a tight seal in the canal. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether intra-manufacture GP diameters matched the diameters of their corresponding files at different levels using laser micrometre. Twenty files and corresponding GP master cones of Reciproc R40 (40/0.06) (VDW, Munich, Germany), WaveOne Large(40/0.08)(Dentsply Maillefer, Ballaigues, Switzerland), ProTaper F3 (30/0.09) (Dentsply Maillefer, Ballaigues, Switzerland), and Mtwo 40/0.06 (VDW, Munich, Germany) were examined using laser micrometre (LSM 6000 by Mitutoyo, Japan) with accuracy of 1 nm to establish their actual diameter at D 0 , D 1 , D 3 and D 6 . The data was analysed using the independent t -test. The differences were considered at 0.05. The diameter of GP master cones was significantly larger than that of the corresponding files at all levels in all brands. ProTaper GP diameter was closest to the file diameter at D1 (GP=0.35, File=0.35 mm), and D3 (GP=0.48, File=0.49). Within the same manufacturer, GP cone diameters do not match the diameters of their corresponding files. Clinicians are advised to use a GP gauge to cut the tip so as to appropriate the diameter from a smaller sized GP cone.

  11. Effects of Electrical Stimulation in Sympathetic Neuron-Cardiomyocyte Co-cultures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Takeuchi, Akimasa; Tani, Hiromasa; Mori, Masahide; Moriguchi, Hiroyuki; Kotani, Kiyoshi; Lee, Jong-Kook; Noshiro, Makoto; Jimbo, Yasuhiko

    The sympathetic nervous system is one of the principal sources for regulating cardiovascular functions. Little is known, however, about the network-level interactions between sympathetic neurons and cardiomyocytes. In this study, a semi-separated co-culture system of superior cervical ganglion (SCG) neurons and ventricular myocytes (VMs) was developed by using a polydimethylsyloxane (PDMS) chamber placed on a microelectrode-array (MEA) substrate. Neurites of SCG neurons passed through a conduit of the chamber and reached VMs. Evoked activities of SCG neurons were observed from several electrodes immediately after applying constant-voltage stimulation (1 V, 1 ms, biphasic square pulses) to SCG neurons by using 32 electrodes. Furthermore, this stimulation was applied to SCG neurons at the frequency of 1, 5 and 10 Hz. After applying these three kinds of stimulations, mean minute contraction rate of VMs increased with an increase in the frequency of stimulation. These results suggest that changes in contraction rate of VMs after applying electrical stimulations to SCG neurons depend on frequencies of these stimulations and that the heart-regulating mechanisms as well as that in the body were formed in this co-culture system.

  12. Berkeley Lighting Cone

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lask, Kathleen [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Gadgil, Ashok [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

    2016-10-24

    A lighting cone is a simple metal cone placed on the fuel bed of a stove during ignition to act as a chimney, increasing the draft through the fuel bed. Many stoves tend to be difficult to light due to poor draft through the fuel bed, so lighting cones are used in various parts of the world as an inexpensive accessory to help with ignition.

  13. Tip studies using CFD and comparison with tip loss models

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen, Martin Otto Laver; Johansen, J.

    2004-01-01

    The flow past a rotating LM8.2 blade equipped with two different tips are computed using CFD. The different tip flows are analysed and a comparison with two different tip loss models is made. Keywords: tip flow, aerodynamics, CFD......The flow past a rotating LM8.2 blade equipped with two different tips are computed using CFD. The different tip flows are analysed and a comparison with two different tip loss models is made. Keywords: tip flow, aerodynamics, CFD...

  14. Collection of gravitropic effectors from mucilage of electrotropically-stimulated roots of Zea mays L

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fondren, W. M.; Moore, R.

    1987-01-01

    We placed agar blocks adjacent to tips of electrotropically stimulated primary roots of Zea mays. Blocks placed adjacent to the anode-side of the roots for 3 h induced significant curvature when subsequently placed asymmetrically on tips of vertically-oriented roots. Curvature was always toward the side of the root unto which the agar block was placed. Agar blocks not contacting roots and blocks placed adjacent to the cathode-side of electrotropically stimulated roots did not induce significant curvature when placed asymmetrically on tips of vertically-oriented roots. Atomic absorption spectrophotometry indicated that blocks adjacent to the anode-side of electrotropically-stimulated roots contained significantly more calcium than (1) blocks not contacting roots, and (2) blocks contacting the cathode-side of roots. These results demonstrate the presence of a gradient of endogenous Ca in mucilage of electrotropically-stimulated roots (i.e. roots undergoing gravitropic-like curvature).

  15. Optical imaging of human cone photoreceptors directly following the capture of light.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Phillip Bedggood

    Full Text Available Capture of light in the photoreceptor outer segment initiates a cascade of chemical events that inhibit neurotransmitter release, ultimately resulting in vision. The massed response of the photoreceptor population can be measured non-invasively by electrical recordings, but responses from individual cells cannot be measured without dissecting the retina. Here we used optical imaging to observe individual human cones in the living eye as they underwent bleaching of photopigment and associated phototransduction. The retina was simultaneously stimulated and observed with high intensity visible light at 1 kHz, using adaptive optics. There was marked variability between individual cones in both photosensitivity and pigment optical density, challenging the conventional assumption that photoreceptors act as identical subunits (coefficient of variation in rate of photoisomerization = 23%. There was also a pronounced inverse correlation between these two parameters (p<10(-7; the temporal evolution of image statistics revealed this to be a dynamic relationship, with cone waveguiding efficiency beginning a dramatic increase within 3 ms of light onset. Beginning as early as 2 ms after light onset and including half of cells by ∼7 ms, cone intensity showed reversals characteristic of interference phenomena, with greater delays in reversal corresponding to cones with more photopigment (p<10(-3. The timing of these changes is argued to best correspond with either the cessation of dark current, or to related events such as changes in intracellular cGMP. Cone intensity also showed fluctuations of high frequency (332±25 Hz and low amplitude (3.0±0.85%. Other groups have shown similar fluctuations that were directly evoked by light; if this corresponds to the same phenomenon, we propose that the amplitude of fluctuation may be increased by the use of a bright flash followed by a brief pause, to allow recovery of cone circulating current.

  16. Modulating p56Lck in T-Cells by a Chimeric Peptide Comprising Two Functionally Different Motifs of Tip from Herpesvirus saimiri

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jean-Paul Vernot

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The Lck interacting protein Tip of Herpesvirus saimiri is responsible for T-cell transformation both in vitro and in vivo. Here we designed the chimeric peptide hTip-CSKH, comprising the Lck specific interacting motif CSKH of Tip and its hydrophobic transmembrane sequence (hTip, the latter as a vector targeting lipid rafts. We found that hTip-CSKH can induce a fivefold increase in proliferation of human and Aotus sp. T-cells. Costimulation with PMA did not enhance this proliferation rate, suggesting that hTip-CSKH is sufficient and independent of further PKC stimulation. We also found that human Lck phosphorylation was increased earlier after stimulation when T-cells were incubated previously with hTip-CSKH, supporting a strong signalling and proliferative effect of the chimeric peptide. Additionally, Lck downstream signalling was evident with hTip-CSKH but not with control peptides. Importantly, hTip-CSKH could be identified in heavy lipid rafts membrane fractions, a compartment where important T-cell signalling molecules (LAT, Ras, and Lck are present during T-cell activation. Interestingly, hTip-CSKH was inhibitory to Jurkat cells, in total agreement with the different signalling pathways and activation requirements of this leukemic cell line. These results provide the basis for the development of new compounds capable of modulating therapeutic targets present in lipid rafts.

  17. Modulating p56Lck in T-Cells by a Chimeric Peptide Comprising Two Functionally Different Motifs of Tip from Herpesvirus saimiri.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vernot, Jean-Paul; Perdomo-Arciniegas, Ana María; Pérez-Quintero, Luis Alberto; Martínez, Diego Fernando

    2015-01-01

    The Lck interacting protein Tip of Herpesvirus saimiri is responsible for T-cell transformation both in vitro and in vivo. Here we designed the chimeric peptide hTip-CSKH, comprising the Lck specific interacting motif CSKH of Tip and its hydrophobic transmembrane sequence (hTip), the latter as a vector targeting lipid rafts. We found that hTip-CSKH can induce a fivefold increase in proliferation of human and Aotus sp. T-cells. Costimulation with PMA did not enhance this proliferation rate, suggesting that hTip-CSKH is sufficient and independent of further PKC stimulation. We also found that human Lck phosphorylation was increased earlier after stimulation when T-cells were incubated previously with hTip-CSKH, supporting a strong signalling and proliferative effect of the chimeric peptide. Additionally, Lck downstream signalling was evident with hTip-CSKH but not with control peptides. Importantly, hTip-CSKH could be identified in heavy lipid rafts membrane fractions, a compartment where important T-cell signalling molecules (LAT, Ras, and Lck) are present during T-cell activation. Interestingly, hTip-CSKH was inhibitory to Jurkat cells, in total agreement with the different signalling pathways and activation requirements of this leukemic cell line. These results provide the basis for the development of new compounds capable of modulating therapeutic targets present in lipid rafts.

  18. Progress in light cone physics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Preparata, G.

    1973-01-01

    A very brief review is given of the progress made in the physics of the light cone in the past year. Included are the light cone expansion, gauge invariance and the consequences of precocious scaling near threshold, the light cone description of the muon pair experiment, light cone expansions, and the assessment and exploitation of analyticity properties in both mass and energy of light cone amplitudes. (U.S.)

  19. Conducting Polymer 3D Microelectrodes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jenny Emnéus

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available Conducting polymer 3D microelectrodes have been fabricated for possible future neurological applications. A combination of micro-fabrication techniques and chemical polymerization methods has been used to create pillar electrodes in polyaniline and polypyrrole. The thin polymer films obtained showed uniformity and good adhesion to both horizontal and vertical surfaces. Electrodes in combination with metal/conducting polymer materials have been characterized by cyclic voltammetry and the presence of the conducting polymer film has shown to increase the electrochemical activity when compared with electrodes coated with only metal. An electrochemical characterization of gold/polypyrrole electrodes showed exceptional electrochemical behavior and activity. PC12 cells were finally cultured on the investigated materials as a preliminary biocompatibility assessment. These results show that the described electrodes are possibly suitable for future in-vitro neurological measurements.

  20. Correlation Between Cone Penetration Rate And Measured Cone Penetration Parameters In Silty Soils

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Poulsen, Rikke; Nielsen, Benjaminn Nordahl; Ibsen, Lars Bo

    2013-01-01

    This paper shows, how a change in cone penetration rate affects the cone penetration measurements, hence the cone resistance, pore pressure, and sleeve friction in silty soil. The standard rate of penetration is 20 mm/s, and it is generally accepted that undrained penetration occurs in clay while...... drained penetration occurs in sand. When lowering the penetration rate, the soil pore water starts to dissipate and a change in the drainage condition is seen. In intermediate soils such as silty soils, the standard cone penetration rate may result in a drainage condition that could be undrained......, partially or fully drained. However, lowering the penetration rate in silty soils has a great significance because of the soil permeability, and only a small change in penetration rate will result in changed cone penetration measurements. In this paper, analyses will be done on data from 15 field cone...

  1. Discovery of Undescribed Brain Tissue Changes Around Implanted Microelectrode Arrays

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Himanshi Desai

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Brain-implantable microelectrode arrays are devicesdesigned to record or electrically stimulate the activity ofneurons in the brain. These devices hold the potential tohelp treat epilepsy, paralysis, blindness, and deafness, andalso provide researchers with insights into a varietyof neural processes, such as memory formation.While these devices have a very promising future,researchers are discovering that their long-termfunctionality is greatly limited by the brain’s naturalimmune response to foreign objects. To improve thefunctional lifetime of these devices, one solution lies infully characterizing and understanding this tissue response.Roles for microglia and astrocytes in this biologicalresponse have been characterized. However, changesto oligodendrocytes, cells that myelinate axons, remainpoorly understood. These cells provide insulationto the axons, which is required for proper neuralfunctioning. Here we report on the changes that occurwith oligodendrocyte processes in tissue aroundmicroelectrode implants in the brain.Six rats were surgically implanted with microelectrodearrays and allowed to recover for 1, 2, or 4 weeks.Subjects were then sacrificed and the brain tissue wasprocessed using our recently developed method, Device-Capture Histology. Immunohistochemistry and confocalmicroscopy was employed to assess the responsearound the device. Results indicated a decrease inoligodendrocyte density and a loss in typical directionalorientation of oligodendrocyte processes in tissue near thedevice. These results suggest alterations in the underlyingneuronal networks around these devices, which maygreatly impact the current functional utility of thesepromising devices.

  2. Investigation of parameters controlling the dielectrophoretic assembly of carbon nanotubes on microelectrodes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dimaki, Maria; Bøggild, Peter

    2008-01-01

    Networks of single-walled carbon nanotubes were assembled onto microelectrodes by dielectrophoresis. The dependence of the obtained networks on several assembly parameters such as bias voltage, field application time, frequency, electrode geometry and the nanotube solvent were investigated both s...

  3. Quantitative Analysis of Rat Dorsal Root Ganglion Neurons Cultured on Microelectrode Arrays Based on Fluorescence Microscopy Image Processing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mari, João Fernando; Saito, José Hiroki; Neves, Amanda Ferreira; Lotufo, Celina Monteiro da Cruz; Destro-Filho, João-Batista; Nicoletti, Maria do Carmo

    2015-12-01

    Microelectrode Arrays (MEA) are devices for long term electrophysiological recording of extracellular spontaneous or evocated activities on in vitro neuron culture. This work proposes and develops a framework for quantitative and morphological analysis of neuron cultures on MEAs, by processing their corresponding images, acquired by fluorescence microscopy. The neurons are segmented from the fluorescence channel images using a combination of segmentation by thresholding, watershed transform, and object classification. The positioning of microelectrodes is obtained from the transmitted light channel images using the circular Hough transform. The proposed method was applied to images of dissociated culture of rat dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neuronal cells. The morphological and topological quantitative analysis carried out produced information regarding the state of culture, such as population count, neuron-to-neuron and neuron-to-microelectrode distances, soma morphologies, neuron sizes, neuron and microelectrode spatial distributions. Most of the analysis of microscopy images taken from neuronal cultures on MEA only consider simple qualitative analysis. Also, the proposed framework aims to standardize the image processing and to compute quantitative useful measures for integrated image-signal studies and further computational simulations. As results show, the implemented microelectrode identification method is robust and so are the implemented neuron segmentation and classification one (with a correct segmentation rate up to 84%). The quantitative information retrieved by the method is highly relevant to assist the integrated signal-image study of recorded electrophysiological signals as well as the physical aspects of the neuron culture on MEA. Although the experiments deal with DRG cell images, cortical and hippocampal cell images could also be processed with small adjustments in the image processing parameter estimation.

  4. Performance Improvement by Layout Designs of Conductive Polymer Microelectrode Based Impedimetric Biosensors

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rosati, Giulio; Daprà, Johannes; Cherré, Solène

    2014-01-01

    In this work we present a theoretical, computational, and experimental evaluation of the performance of an impedimetric biosensor based on interdigitated conductive polymer (PEDOT:TsO) microelectrodes in a microfluidic system. The influence of the geometry of the electrodes and microchannels on t...

  5. Characterization of Early Cortical Neural Network Development in Multiwell Microelectrode Array Plates

    Science.gov (United States)

    We examined the development of neural network activity using microelectrode array (MEA) recordings made in multi-well MEA plates (mwMEAs) over the first 12 days in vitro (DIV). In primary cortical cultures made from postnatal rats, action potential spiking activity was essentiall...

  6. Atomic force and shear force based tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy and imaging

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kharintsev, S.S.; Hoffmann, G.G.; Dorozhkin, P.S.; With, de G.; Loos, J.

    2007-01-01

    Underlying near-field optibal effects on the nanoscale have stimulated the development of apertureless vibrational spectroscopy and imaging with ultrahigh spatial resolution. We demonstrate tip-enhanced Raman spectra of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), recorded with a scanning near-field

  7. Nanostructured gold microelectrodes for SERS and EIS measurements by incorporating ZnO nanorod growth with electroplating

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zong, Xianli; Zhu, Rong; Guo, Xiaoliang

    2015-01-01

    In this paper, a fine gold nanostructure synthesized on selective planar microelectrodes in micro-chip is realized by using an advanced hybrid fabrication approach incorporating growth of nanorods (NRs) with gold electroplating. By this developed nanostructure, integration of in-situ surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) detection with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurement for label-free, nondestructive, real-time and rapid monitoring on a single cell has been achieved. Moreover, parameters of Au nanostructures such as size of nanoholes/nanogaps can be controllably adjusted in the fabrication. We have demonstrated a SERS enhancement factor of up to ~2.24 × 106 and double-layer impedance decrease ratio of 90% ~ 95% at low frequency range below 200 kHz by using nanostructured microelectrodes. SERS detection and in-situ EIS measurement of a trapped single cell by using planar microelectrodes are realized to demonstrate the compatibility, multi-functions, high-sensitivity and simplicity of the micro-chip system. This dual function platform integrating SERS and EIS is of great significance in biological, biochemical and biomedical applications. PMID:26558325

  8. C-arm cone beam computed tomography needle path overlay for fluoroscopic guided vertebroplasty.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tam, Alda L; Mohamed, Ashraf; Pfister, Marcus; Chinndurai, Ponraj; Rohm, Esther; Hall, Andrew F; Wallace, Michael J

    2010-05-01

    Retrospective review. To report our early clinical experience using C-arm cone beam computed tomography (C-arm CBCT) with fluoroscopic overlay for needle guidance during vertebroplasty. C-arm CBCT is advanced three-dimensional (3-D) imaging technology that is currently available on state-of-the-art flat panel based angiography systems. The imaging information provided by C-arm CBCT allows for the acquisition and reconstruction of "CT-like" images in flat panel based angiography/interventional suites. As part of the evolution of this technology, enhancements allowing the overlay of cross-sectional imaging information can now be integrated with real time fluoroscopy. We report our early clinical experience with C-arm CBCT with fluoroscopic overlay for needle guidance during vertebroplasty. This is a retrospective review of 10 consecutive oncology patients who underwent vertebroplasty of 13 vertebral levels using C-arm CBCT with fluoroscopic overlay for needle guidance from November 2007 to December 2008. Procedural data including vertebral level, approach (transpedicular vs. extrapedicular), access (bilateral vs. unilateral) and complications were recorded. Technical success with the overlay technology was assessed based on accuracy which consisted of 4 measured parameters: distance from target to needle tip, distance from planned path to needle tip, distance from midline to needle tip, and distance from the anterior 1/3 of the vertebral body to needle tip. Success within each parameter required that the distance between the needle tip and parameter being evaluated be no more than 5 mm on multiplanar CBCT or fluoroscopy. Imaging data for 12 vertebral levels was available for review. All vertebral levels were treated using unilateral access and 9 levels were treated with an extrapedicular approach. Technical success rates were 92% for both distance from planned path and distance from midline to final needle tip, 100% when distance from needle tip to the anterior 1

  9. Chloride currents in cones modify feedback from horizontal cells to cones in goldfish retina

    Science.gov (United States)

    Endeman, Duco; Fahrenfort, Iris; Sjoerdsma, Trijntje; Steijaert, Marvin; ten Eikelder, Huub; Kamermans, Maarten

    2012-01-01

    In neuronal systems, excitation and inhibition must be well balanced to ensure reliable information transfer. The cone/horizontal cell (HC) interaction in the retina is an example of this. Because natural scenes encompass an enormous intensity range both in temporal and spatial domains, the balance between excitation and inhibition in the outer retina needs to be adaptable. How this is achieved is unknown. Using electrophysiological techniques in the isolated retina of the goldfish, it was found that opening Ca2+-dependent Cl− channels in recorded cones reduced the size of feedback responses measured in both cones and HCs. Furthermore, we show that cones express Cl− channels that are gated by GABA released from HCs. Similar to activation of ICl(Ca), opening of these GABA-gated Cl− channels reduced the size of light-induced feedback responses both in cones and HCs. Conversely, application of picrotoxin, a blocker of GABAA and GABAC receptors, had the opposite effect. In addition, reducing GABA release from HCs by blocking GABA transporters also led to an increase in the size of feedback. Because the independent manipulation of Ca2+-dependent Cl− currents in individual cones yielded results comparable to bath-applied GABA, it was concluded that activation of either Cl− current by itself is sufficient to reduce the size of HC feedback. However, additional effects of GABA on outer retinal processing cannot be excluded. These results can be accounted for by an ephaptic feedback model in which a cone Cl− current shunts the current flow in the synaptic cleft. The Ca2+-dependent Cl− current might be essential to set the initial balance between the feedforward and the feedback signals active in the cone HC synapse. It prevents that strong feedback from HCs to cones flood the cone with Ca2+. Modulation of the feedback strength by GABA might play a role during light/dark adaptation, adjusting the amount of negative feedback to the signal to noise ratio of the

  10. Stimulation of hair cells with ultraviolet light

    Science.gov (United States)

    Azimzadeh, Julien B.; Fabella, Brian A.; Hudspeth, A. J.

    2018-05-01

    Hair bundles are specialized organelles that transduce mechanical inputs into electrical outputs. To activate hair cells, physiologists have resorted to mechanical methods of hair-bundle stimulation. Here we describe a new method of hair-bundle stimulation, irradiation with ultraviolet light. A hair bundle illuminated by ultraviolet light rapidly moves towards its tall edge, a motion typically associated with excitatory stimulation. The motion disappears upon tip-link rupture and is associated with the opening of mechanotransduction channels. Hair bundles can be induced to move sinusoidally with oscillatory modulation of the stimulation power. We discuss the implications of ultraviolet stimulation as a novel hair-bundle stimulus.

  11. Modeling microelectrode biosensors: free-flow calibration can substantially underestimate tissue concentrations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Newton, Adam J H; Wall, Mark J; Richardson, Magnus J E

    2017-03-01

    Microelectrode amperometric biosensors are widely used to measure concentrations of analytes in solution and tissue including acetylcholine, adenosine, glucose, and glutamate. A great deal of experimental and modeling effort has been directed at quantifying the response of the biosensors themselves; however, the influence that the macroscopic tissue environment has on biosensor response has not been subjected to the same level of scrutiny. Here we identify an important issue in the way microelectrode biosensors are calibrated that is likely to have led to underestimations of analyte tissue concentrations. Concentration in tissue is typically determined by comparing the biosensor signal to that measured in free-flow calibration conditions. In a free-flow environment the concentration of the analyte at the outer surface of the biosensor can be considered constant. However, in tissue the analyte reaches the biosensor surface by diffusion through the extracellular space. Because the enzymes in the biosensor break down the analyte, a density gradient is set up resulting in a significantly lower concentration of analyte near the biosensor surface. This effect is compounded by the diminished volume fraction (porosity) and reduction in the diffusion coefficient due to obstructions (tortuosity) in tissue. We demonstrate this effect through modeling and experimentally verify our predictions in diffusive environments. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Microelectrode biosensors are typically calibrated in a free-flow environment where the concentrations at the biosensor surface are constant. However, when in tissue, the analyte reaches the biosensor via diffusion and so analyte breakdown by the biosensor results in a concentration gradient and consequently a lower concentration around the biosensor. This effect means that naive free-flow calibration will underestimate tissue concentration. We develop mathematical models to better quantify the discrepancy between the calibration and tissue

  12. Conductive Polymer Microelectrodes for on-chip measurement of transmitter release from living cells

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Simon Tylsgaard; Matteucci, Marco; Taboryski, Rafael J.

    2012-01-01

    driven cell trapping inside closed chip devices. Conductive polymer microelectrodes were used to measure transmitter release using electrochemical methods such as cyclic voltammetry and constant potential amperometry. By measuring the oxidation current at a cyclic voltammogram, the concentration...

  13. Room-temperature growth of a carbon nanofiber on the tip of conical carbon protrusions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tanemura, Masaki; Okita, T.; Yamauchi, H.; Tanemura, S.; Morishima, R.

    2004-01-01

    Glassy carbon was Ar + -ion bombarded with a simultaneous Mo supply under ultrahigh vacuum conditions using a microprotrusion fabrication system that consists of a differentially pumped ion gun and a seed-material supply source. Conical protrusions were formed by sputtering with a seed supply, and carbon nanofibers (CNFs) grew on the tips even at room temperature. The length of CNFs reached up to ∼10 μm, and their diameter was almost uniform (50 nm) in the growth direction. The short CNFs aligned in the ion beam direction, whereas the long ones were non-aligned. The CNF growth on a glassy carbon surface was ascribed to the enhanced surface texturing and to the massive redeposition of C atoms onto cones, both of which are specific to the oblique ion bombardment: The former would lead to an increase in the number of possible nucleation sites for the CNF growth, and the C atoms arising from the latter process would migrate toward the conical tips, thus forming CNFs

  14. Development and characterization of a voltammetric carbon-fiber microelectrode pH sensor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Makos, Monique A; Omiatek, Donna M; Ewing, Andrew G; Heien, Michael L

    2010-06-15

    This work describes the development and characterization of a modified carbon-fiber microelectrode sensor capable of measuring real-time physiological pH changes in biological microenvironments. The reagentless sensor was fabricated under ambient conditions from voltammetric reduction of the diazonium salt Fast Blue RR onto a carbon-fiber surface in aprotic media. Fast-scan cyclic voltammetry was used to probe redox activity of the p-quinone moiety of the surface-bound molecule as a function of pH. In vitro calibration of the sensor in solutions ranging from pH 6.5 to 8.0 resulted in a pH-dependent anodic peak potential response. Flow-injection analysis was used to characterize the modified microelectrode, revealing sensitivity to acidic and basic changes discernible to 0.005 pH units. Furthermore, the modified electrode was used to measure dynamic in vivo pH changes evoked during neurotransmitter release in the central nervous system of the microanalytical model organism Drosophila melanogaster.

  15. Nanowire-templated microelectrodes for high-sensitivity pH detection

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Antohe, V.A.; Radu, Adrian; Mátéfi-Tempfli, Mária

    2009-01-01

    A highly sensitive pH capacitive sensor has been designed by confined growth of vertically aligned nanowire arrays on interdigited microelectrodes. The active surface of the device has been functionalized with an electrochemical pH transducer (polyaniline). We easily tune the device features...... by combining lithographic techniques with electrochemical synthesis. The reported electrical LC resonance measurements show considerable sensitivity enhancement compared to conventional capacitive pH sensors realized with microfabricated interdigited electrodes. The sensitivity can be easily improved...

  16. Biofunctionalization of diamond microelectrodes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Reitinger, Andreas Adam; Lud, Simon Quartus; Stutzmann, Martin; Garrido, Jose Antonio [Walter Schottky Institut, TU Muenchen (Germany); Hutter, Naima Aurelia; Richter, Gerhard; Jordan, Rainer [WACKER-Chair of Macromolecular Chemistry, TU Muenchen (Germany)

    2010-07-01

    In this work we present two main routes for the biofunctionalization of nanocrystalline diamond films, aiming at the application of diamond microelectrodes as amperometric biosensors. We report on direct covalent grafting of biomolecules on nanocrystalline diamond films via diazonium monophenyls and biphenyls as well as other linker molecules, forming self-assembled monolayers on the diamond surface. Monolayers with different functional head groups have been characterized. Patterning of the available functional groups using electron beam-induced chemical lithography allows the selective preparation of well-localized docking sites for the immobilization of biomolecules. Furthermore, polymer brushes are expected to enable novel paths for designing more advanced biosensing schemes, incorporating multifunctional groups and a higher loading capacity for biomolecules. Here, we focus on the preparation of polymer grafts by self-initiated photografting and photopolymerization. Further chemical modification of the grafted polymer brushes results in the introduction of additional functional molecules, paving the way for the incorporation of more complex molecular structures such as proteins. In a comparative study we investigate the advantages and disadvantages of both approaches.

  17. Review on resonance cone fields

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ohnuma, Toshiro.

    1980-02-01

    Resonance cone fields and lower hybrid heating are reviewed in this report. The resonance cone fields were reported by Fisher and Gould, and they proposed the use of the measurement of resonance cones and structure as a diagnostic tool to determine the plasma density and electron temperature in magnetoplasma. After the resonance cone, a wave-like disturbance persists. Ohnuma et al. have measured bending, reflection and ducting of resonance cones in detail. The thermal modes in inhomogeneous magnetoplasma were seen. The reflection of thermal mode near an electron plasma frequency layer and an insulating plate has been observed. The non-linear effects of resonance cones is reported. Monochromatic electron beam produces the noise of broad band whistler mode. Lower hybrid waves have been the subject of propagation from the edge of plasma to the lower hybrid layer. Linear lower hybrid waves were studied. The lower hybrid and ion acoustic waves radiated from a point source were observed. The parametric decay of finite-extent, cold electron plasma waves was studied. The lower hybrid cone radiated from a point source going along magnetic field lines was observed. Several experimental data on the lower hybrid heating in tokamak devices have been reported. The theories on resonance cones and lower hybrid waves are introduced in this report. (Kato, T.)

  18. Understanding the cone scale in Cupressaceae: insights from seed-cone teratology in Glyptostrobus pensilis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dörken, Veit Martin; Rudall, Paula J

    2018-01-01

    Both wild-type and teratological seed cones are described in the monoecious conifer Glyptostrobus pensilis and compared with those of other Cupressaceae sensu lato and other conifers. Some Cupressaceae apparently possess a proliferation of axillary structures in their cone scales. In our interpretation, in Glyptostrobus each bract of both typical and atypical seed cones bears two descending accessory shoots, interpreted here as seed scales (ovuliferous scales). The primary seed scale is fertile and forms the ovules, the second is sterile and forms characteristic tooth-like structures. The bract and the two axillary seed scales are each supplied with a single distinct vascular bundle that enters the cone axis as a separate strand; this vasculature also characterises the descending accessory short shoots in the vegetative parts of the crown. In wild-type seed cones, the fertile seed scale is reduced to its ovules, and the ovules are always axillary. In contrast, the ovules of some of the teratological seed cones examined were located at the centre of the cone scale. An additional tissue found on the upper surface of the sterile lower seed scale is here interpreted as the axis of the fertile seed scale. Thus, the central position of the ovules can be explained by recaulescent fusion of the upper fertile and lower sterile seed scales. In several teratological cone scales, the ovules were enveloped by an additional sterile tissue that is uniseriate and represents an epidermal outgrowth of the fertile seed scale. Close to the ovules, the epidermis was detached from lower tissue and surrounded the ovule completely, except at the micropyle. These teratological features are potentially significant in understanding seed-cone homologies among extant conifers.

  19. The Polypyrrole/Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube Modified Au Microelectrode for Sensitive Electrochemical Detection of Trace Levels of Pb2+

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xuxing Zhu

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available The sensitive detection of trace levels of heavy metal ions such as Pb2+ is of significant importance due to the health hazard they pose. In this paper, we present a polypyrrole (PPy/multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT-modified Au microelectrode. The PPy/MWCNT composite film was electrochemically deposited on the microelectrode by cyclic voltammetry (CV. The composite film was investigated by scanning electron microscope (SEM, CV, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS, and the results show that this film presents a uniformly distributed and web-like entangled structure and good conductivity. Differential pulse stripping voltammetry (DPSV was applied to determine trace levels of Pb2+. Experimental conditions including accumulation time and deposition potential were optimized. In optimal conditions, the PPy/MWCNT-modified microelectrode performed sensitive detection of Pb2+ within a concentration range from 1 to 100 μg·L−1, and the limit of detection was 0.65 μg·L−1 at the signal-to-noise ratio of three.

  20. Static and Dynamic Measurement of Dopamine Adsorption in Carbon Fiber Microelectrodes Using Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rivera-Serrano, Nilka; Pagan, Miraida; Colón-Rodríguez, Joanisse; Fuster, Christian; Vélez, Román; Almodovar-Faria, Jose; Jiménez-Rivera, Carlos; Cunci, Lisandro

    2018-02-06

    In this study, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was used for the first time to study the adsorption of dopamine in carbon fiber microelectrodes. In order to show a proof-of-concept, static and dynamic measurements were taken at potentials ranging from -0.4 to 0.8 V versus Ag|AgCl to demonstrate the versatility of this technique to study dopamine without the need of its oxidation. We used electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and single frequency electrochemical impedance to measure different concentrations of dopamine as low as 1 nM. Moreover, the capacitance of the microelectrodes surface was found to decrease due to dopamine adsorption, which is dependent on its concentration. The effect of dissolved oxygen and electrochemical oxidation of the surface in the detection of dopamine was also studied. Nonoxidized and oxidized carbon fiber microelectrodes were prepared and characterized by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, cyclic voltammetry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Optimum working parameters of the electrodes, such as frequency and voltage, were obtained for better measurement. Electrochemical impedance of dopamine was determined at different concentration, voltages, and frequencies. Finally, dynamic experiments were conducted using a flow cell and single frequency impedance in order to study continuous and real-time measurements of dopamine.

  1. Subthalamic stimulation: toward a simplification of the electrophysiological procedure.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fetter, Damien; Derrey, Stephane; Lefaucheur, Romain; Borden, Alaina; Wallon, David; Chastan, Nathalie; Maltete, David

    2016-06-01

    The aim of the present study was to assess the consequences of a simplification of the electrophysiological procedure on the post-operative clinical outcome after subthalamic nucleus implantation in Parkinson disease. Microelectrode recordings were performed on 5 parallel trajectories in group 1 and less than 5 trajectories in group 2. Clinical evaluations were performed 1 month before and 6 months after surgery. After surgery, the UPDRS III score in the off-drug/on-stimulation and on-drug/on-stimulation conditions significantly improved by 66,9% and 82%, respectively in group 1, and by 65.8% and 82.3% in group 2 (P<0.05). Meanwhile, the total number of words (P<0.05) significantly decreased for fluency tasks in both groups. Motor disability improvement and medication reduction were similar in both groups. Our results suggest that the electrophysiological procedure should be simplified as the team's experience increases.

  2. Cones for dental radiography

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Butler, M J [National Radiological Protection Board, Harwell (UK)

    1977-04-01

    Dental radiographic techniques are summarized. The advantages and disadvantages of the use of both the conventional plastic pointer cone and the open-ended cylinders or divergent cones favoured both by the ICRP (Protection against Ionizing Radiation from External Sources, Oxford, Pergamon Press, 1973, ICRP Publication 15), and in the Code of Practice for the Protection of Persons against Ionizing Radiation arising from Medical and Dental Use (1972, 3rd edition, London, HMSO) are discussed. The use of the word 'should' in these recommendations to signify a desirable requirement, not an essential one, is noted. This wording is currently of interest both nationally and internationally in relation to regulations, standards and notes for guidance. The National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB) has been reviewing the position, and has concluded that open-ended cones have disadvantages which may sometimes outweigh their advantages. Although open-ended cones are preferable under some circumstances, the recommendation that they should be used ought not to be followed without an understanding of the issues involved. The hazards associated with the use of interchangeable cones are considered. The NRPB now proposes that the requirement for the replacement of pointer cones (for both new and existing equipment) should be withdrawn.

  3. Transcaval TIPS in patients with failed revision of occluded previous TIPS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Seong, Chang Kyu; Kim, Yong Joo; Shin, Tae Beom; Park, Hyo Yong; Kim, Tae Hun; Kang, Duk Sik [Kyungpook National University School of Medicine, Daegu (Korea, Republic of)

    2001-12-01

    To determine the feasibility of transcaval transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) in patients with occluded previous TIPS. Between February 1996 and December 2000 we performed five transcaval TIPS procedures in four patients with recurrent gastric cardiac variceal bleeding. All four had occluded TIPS, which was between the hepatic and portal vein. The interval between initial TIPS placement and revisional procedures with transcaval TIPS varied between three and 31 months; one patient underwent transcaval TIPS twice, with a 31-month interval. After revision of the occluded shunt failed, direct cavoportal puncture at the retrohepatic segment of the IVC was attempted. Transcaval TIPS placement was technically successful in all cases. In three, tractography revealed slight leakage of contrast materials into hepatic subcapsular or subdiaphragmatic pericaval space. There was no evidence of propagation of extravasated contrast materials through the retroperitoneal space or spillage into the peritoneal space. After the tract was dilated by a bare stent, no patient experienced trans-stent bleeding and no serious procedure-related complications occurred. After successful shunt creation, variceal bleeding ceased in all patients. Transcaval TIPS placement is an effective and safe alternative treatment in patients with occluded previous TIPS and no hepatic veins suitable for new TIPS.

  4. Impedance measurements on Au microelectrodes using controlled atmosphere high temperature scanning probe microscope

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wu, Yuehua; Hansen, Karin Vels; Jacobsen, Torben

    2011-01-01

    High temperature impedance measurements on Au microelectrodes deposited on polished yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) pellets were demonstrated using a newly designed controlled atmosphere high temperature scanning probe microscope (CAHT-SPM). Probes based on Pt0.8Ir0.2 were fabricated and employed...

  5. Understanding the cone scale in Cupressaceae: insights from seed-cone teratology in Glyptostrobus pensilis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Veit Martin Dörken

    2018-06-01

    Full Text Available Both wild-type and teratological seed cones are described in the monoecious conifer Glyptostrobus pensilis and compared with those of other Cupressaceae sensu lato and other conifers. Some Cupressaceae apparently possess a proliferation of axillary structures in their cone scales. In our interpretation, in Glyptostrobus each bract of both typical and atypical seed cones bears two descending accessory shoots, interpreted here as seed scales (ovuliferous scales. The primary seed scale is fertile and forms the ovules, the second is sterile and forms characteristic tooth-like structures. The bract and the two axillary seed scales are each supplied with a single distinct vascular bundle that enters the cone axis as a separate strand; this vasculature also characterises the descending accessory short shoots in the vegetative parts of the crown. In wild-type seed cones, the fertile seed scale is reduced to its ovules, and the ovules are always axillary. In contrast, the ovules of some of the teratological seed cones examined were located at the centre of the cone scale. An additional tissue found on the upper surface of the sterile lower seed scale is here interpreted as the axis of the fertile seed scale. Thus, the central position of the ovules can be explained by recaulescent fusion of the upper fertile and lower sterile seed scales. In several teratological cone scales, the ovules were enveloped by an additional sterile tissue that is uniseriate and represents an epidermal outgrowth of the fertile seed scale. Close to the ovules, the epidermis was detached from lower tissue and surrounded the ovule completely, except at the micropyle. These teratological features are potentially significant in understanding seed-cone homologies among extant conifers.

  6. Tipping Point

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... en español Blog About OnSafety CPSC Stands for Safety The Tipping Point Home > 60 Seconds of Safety (Videos) > The Tipping Point The Tipping Point by ... danger death electrical fall furniture head injury product safety television tipover tv Watch the video in Adobe ...

  7. Light-cone quantization of quantum chromodynamics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brodsky, S.J.; Pauli, H.C.

    1991-06-01

    We discuss the light-cone quantization of gauge theories from two perspectives: as a calculational tool for representing hadrons as QCD bound-states of relativistic quarks and gluons, and also as a novel method for simulating quantum field theory on a computer. The light-cone Fock state expansion of wavefunctions at fixed light cone time provides a precise definition of the parton model and a general calculus for hadronic matrix elements. We present several new applications of light-cone Fock methods, including calculations of exclusive weak decays of heavy hadrons, and intrinsic heavy-quark contributions to structure functions. A general nonperturbative method for numerically solving quantum field theories, ''discretized light-cone quantization,'' is outlined and applied to several gauge theories, including QCD in one space and one time dimension, and quantum electrodynamics in physical space-time at large coupling strength. The DLCQ method is invariant under the large class of light-cone Lorentz transformations, and it can be formulated such at ultraviolet regularization is independent of the momentum space discretization. Both the bound-state spectrum and the corresponding relativistic light-cone wavefunctions can be obtained by matrix diagonalization and related techniques. We also discuss the construction of the light-cone Fock basis, the structure of the light-cone vacuum, and outline the renormalization techniques required for solving gauge theories within the light-cone Hamiltonian formalism

  8. Light-cone quantization of quantum chromodynamics

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brodsky, S.J. (Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, Menlo Park, CA (USA)); Pauli, H.C. (Max-Planck-Institut fuer Kernphysik, Heidelberg (Germany, F.R.))

    1991-06-01

    We discuss the light-cone quantization of gauge theories from two perspectives: as a calculational tool for representing hadrons as QCD bound-states of relativistic quarks and gluons, and also as a novel method for simulating quantum field theory on a computer. The light-cone Fock state expansion of wavefunctions at fixed light cone time provides a precise definition of the parton model and a general calculus for hadronic matrix elements. We present several new applications of light-cone Fock methods, including calculations of exclusive weak decays of heavy hadrons, and intrinsic heavy-quark contributions to structure functions. A general nonperturbative method for numerically solving quantum field theories, discretized light-cone quantization,'' is outlined and applied to several gauge theories, including QCD in one space and one time dimension, and quantum electrodynamics in physical space-time at large coupling strength. The DLCQ method is invariant under the large class of light-cone Lorentz transformations, and it can be formulated such at ultraviolet regularization is independent of the momentum space discretization. Both the bound-state spectrum and the corresponding relativistic light-cone wavefunctions can be obtained by matrix diagonalization and related techniques. We also discuss the construction of the light-cone Fock basis, the structure of the light-cone vacuum, and outline the renormalization techniques required for solving gauge theories within the light-cone Hamiltonian formalism.

  9. Protection of Dentate Hilar Cells from Prolonged Stimulation by Intracellular Calcium Chelation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scharfman, Helen E.; Schwartzkroin, Philip A.

    1989-10-01

    Prolonged afferent stimulation of the rat dentate gyrus in vivo leads to degeneration only of those cells that lack immunoreactivity for the calcium binding proteins parvalbumin and calbindin. In order to test the hypothesis that calcium binding proteins protect against the effects of prolonged stimulation, intracellular recordings were made in hippocampal slices from cells that lack immunoreactivity for calcium binding proteins. Calcium binding protein--negative cells showed electrophysiological signs of deterioration during prolonged stimulation; cells containing calcium binding protein did not. When neurons without calcium binding proteins were impaled with microelectrodes containing the calcium chelator BAPTA, and BAPTA was allowed to diffuse into the cells, these cells showed no deterioration. These results indicate that, in a complex tissue of the central nervous system, an activity-induced increase in intracellular calcium can trigger processes leading to cell deterioration, and that increasing the calcium binding capacity of a cell decreases its vulnerability to damage.

  10. Gladwell and Group Communication: Using "The Tipping Point" as a Supplemental Text

    Science.gov (United States)

    Browning, Blair W.

    2011-01-01

    This article describes an activity using Malcolm Gladwell's "The Tipping Point" as a supplemental text in an undergraduate group communication course. This book will help stimulate conversation and promote easy avenues for classroom discussion. In addition to weekly quizzes over each chapter to help facilitate rich classroom discussions, the…

  11. Towards easy and reliable AFM tip shape determination using blind tip reconstruction

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Flater, Erin E.; Zacharakis-Jutz, George E.; Dumba, Braulio G.; White, Isaac A.; Clifford, Charles A.

    2014-01-01

    Quantitative determination of the geometry of an atomic force microscope (AFM) probe tip is critical for robust measurements of the nanoscale properties of surfaces, including accurate measurement of sample features and quantification of tribological characteristics. Blind tip reconstruction, which determines tip shape from an AFM image scan without knowledge of tip or sample shape, was established most notably by Villarrubia [J. Res. Natl. Inst. Stand. Tech. 102 (1997)] and has been further developed since that time. Nevertheless, the implementation of blind tip reconstruction for the general user to produce reliable and consistent estimates of tip shape has been hindered due to ambiguity about how to choose the key input parameters, such as tip matrix size and threshold value, which strongly impact the results of the tip reconstruction. These key parameters are investigated here via Villarrubia's blind tip reconstruction algorithms in which we have added the capability for users to systematically vary the key tip reconstruction parameters, evaluate the set of possible tip reconstructions, and determine the optimal tip reconstruction for a given sample. We demonstrate the capabilities of these algorithms through analysis of a set of simulated AFM images and provide practical guidelines for users of the blind tip reconstruction method. We present a reliable method to choose the threshold parameter corresponding to an optimal reconstructed tip shape for a given image. Specifically, we show that the trend in how the reconstructed tip shape varies with threshold number is so regular that the optimal, or Goldilocks, threshold value corresponds with the peak in the derivative of the RMS difference with respect to the zero threshold curve vs. threshold number. - Highlights: • Blind tip reconstruction algorithms have been implemented and augmented to determine the optimal input parameters. • We demonstrate the capabilities of the algorithms using a simulated AFM

  12. The discovery of the growth cone and its influence on the study of axon guidance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elisa eTamariz

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available For over a century, there has been a great deal of interest in understanding how neural connectivity is established during development and regeneration. Interest in the latter arises from the possibility that knowledge of this process can be used to reestablish lost connections after lesion or neurodegeneration. At the end of the XIX century, Santiago Ramón y Cajal discovered that the distal tip of growing axons contained a structure that he called the growth cone. He proposed that this structure enabled the axon’s oriented growth in response to attractants, now known as chemotropic molecules. He further proposed that the physical properties of the surrounding tissues could influence the growth cone and the direction of growth. This seminal discovery afforded a plausible explanation for directed axonal growth and has led to the discovery of axon guidance mechanisms that include diffusible attractants and repellants and guidance cues anchored to cell membranes or extracellular matrix. In this review the major events in the development of this field are discussed.

  13. Novel microelectrode-based online system for monitoring N2O gas emissions during wastewater treatment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marques, Ricardo; Oehmen, Adrian; Pijuan, Maite

    2014-11-04

    Clark-type nitrous oxide (N2O) microelectrodes are commonly used for measuring dissolved N2O levels, but have not previously been tested for gas-phase applications, where the N2O emitted from wastewater systems can be directly quantified. In this study, N2O microelectrodes were tested and validated for online gas measurements, and assessed with respect to their temperature, gas flow, composition dependence, gas pressure, and humidity. An exponential correlation between temperature and sensor signal was found, whereas gas flow, composition, pressure, and humidity did not have any influence on the signal. Two of the sensors were tested at different N2O concentration ranges (0-422.3, 0-50, 0-10, and 0-2 ppmv N2O) and exhibited a linear response over each range. The N2O emission dynamics from two laboratory scale sequencing batch reactors performing ammonia or nitrite oxidation were also monitored using one of the microsensors and results were compared with two other analytical methods. Results show that N2O emissions were accurately described with these microelectrodes and support their application for assessing gaseous N2O emissions from wastewater treatment systems. Advantages of the sensors as compared to conventional measurement techniques include a wider quantification range of N2O fluxes, and a single measurement system that can assess both liquid and gas-phase N2O dynamics.

  14. Fabrication of gas sensor based on field ionization from SWCNTs with tripolar microelectrode

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cai, Shengbing; Zhang, Yong; Duan, Zhemin

    2012-12-01

    We report the nanofabrication of a sulfur dioxide (SO2) sensor with a tripolar on-chip microelectrode utilizing a film of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) as the field ionization cathode, where the ion flow current and the partial discharge current generated by the field ionization process of gaseous molecules can be gauged to gas species and concentration. The variation of the sensitivity is less than 4% for all of the tested devices, and the sensor has selectivity against gases such as He, NO2, CO, H2, SO2 and O2. Further, the sensor response presents well-defined and reproducible linear behavior with regard to concentration in the range investigated and a detection limitation of tripolar on-chip microelectrode with SWCNTs as a cathode exhibits an impressive performance with respect to stability and anti-oxidation behavior, which are significantly better than had been possible before in the traditional bipolar sensor under explicit circumstances at room temperature.

  15. Cone photoreceptor structure in patients with x-linked cone dysfunction and red-green color vision deficiency

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Patterson, Emily J.; Wilk, Melissa; Langlo, Christopher S.

    2016-01-01

    encoded by exon 4, and two with a novel insertion in exon 2. Foveal cone structure and retinal thickness was disrupted to a variable degree, even among related individuals with the same L/M array. CONCLUSIONS. Our findings provide a direct link between disruption of the cone mosaic and L/ M opsin variants......PURPOSE. Mutations in the coding sequence of the L and M opsin genes are often associated with X-linked cone dysfunction (such as Bornholm Eye Disease, BED), though the exact color vision phenotype associated with these disorders is variable. We examined individuals with L/ M opsin gene mutations...... to clarify the link between color vision deficiency and cone dysfunction.  METHODS. We recruited 17 males for imaging. The thickness and integrity of the photoreceptor layers were evaluated using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography. Cone density was measured using high-resolution images of the cone...

  16. The Spatial Extent of Epiretinal Electrical Stimulation in the Healthy Mouse Retina

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zohreh Hosseinazdeh

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Background/Aims: Retinal prostheses use electrical stimulation to restore functional vision to patients blinded by retinitis pigmentosa. A key detail is the spatial pattern of ganglion cells activated by stimulation. Therefore, we characterized the spatial extent of network-mediated electrical activation of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs in the epiretinal monopolar electrode configuration. Methods: Healthy mouse RGC activities were recorded with a micro-electrode array (MEA. The stimuli consisted of monophasic rectangular cathodic voltage pulses and cycling full-field light flashes. Results: Voltage tuning curves exhibited significant hysteresis, reflecting adaptation to electrical stimulation on the time scale of seconds. Responses decreased from 0 to 300 µm, and were also dependent on the strength of stimulation. Applying the Rayleigh criterion to the half-width at half-maximum of the electrical point spread function suggests a visual acuity limit of no better than 20/946. Threshold voltage showed only a modest increase across these distances. Conclusion: The existence of significant hysteresis requires that future investigations of electrical retinal stimulation control for such long-memory adaptation. The spread of electrical activation beyond 200 µm suggests that neighbouring electrodes in epiretinal implants based on indirect stimulation of RGCs may be indiscriminable at interelectrode spacings as large as 400 µm.

  17. The NLO jet vertex in the small-cone approximation for kt and cone algorithms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Colferai, D.; Niccoli, A.

    2015-01-01

    We determine the jet vertex for Mueller-Navelet jets and forward jets in the small-cone approximation for two particular choices of jet algoritms: the kt algorithm and the cone algorithm. These choices are motivated by the extensive use of such algorithms in the phenomenology of jets. The differences with the original calculations of the small-cone jet vertex by Ivanov and Papa, which is found to be equivalent to a formerly algorithm proposed by Furman, are shown at both analytic and numerical level, and turn out to be sizeable. A detailed numerical study of the error introduced by the small-cone approximation is also presented, for various observables of phenomenological interest. For values of the jet “radius” R=0.5, the use of the small-cone approximation amounts to an error of about 5% at the level of cross section, while it reduces to less than 2% for ratios of distributions such as those involved in the measure of the azimuthal decorrelation of dijets.

  18. The NLO jet vertex in the small-cone approximation for kt and cone algorithms

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Colferai, D.; Niccoli, A. [Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Università di Firenze and INFN, Sezione di Firenze, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Italy)

    2015-04-15

    We determine the jet vertex for Mueller-Navelet jets and forward jets in the small-cone approximation for two particular choices of jet algoritms: the kt algorithm and the cone algorithm. These choices are motivated by the extensive use of such algorithms in the phenomenology of jets. The differences with the original calculations of the small-cone jet vertex by Ivanov and Papa, which is found to be equivalent to a formerly algorithm proposed by Furman, are shown at both analytic and numerical level, and turn out to be sizeable. A detailed numerical study of the error introduced by the small-cone approximation is also presented, for various observables of phenomenological interest. For values of the jet “radius” R=0.5, the use of the small-cone approximation amounts to an error of about 5% at the level of cross section, while it reduces to less than 2% for ratios of distributions such as those involved in the measure of the azimuthal decorrelation of dijets.

  19. QCD on the light cone

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brodsky, S.J.

    1992-09-01

    The quantization of gauge theory at fixed light-cone time τ = t - z/c provides new perspectives for solving non-perturbative problems in quantum chromodynamics. The light-cone Fock state expansion provides both a precise definition of the relativistic wavefunctions of hadrons as bound-states of quarks and gluons and a general calculus for predicting QCD processes at the amplitude level. Applications to exclusive processes and weak decay amplitudes are discussed. The problem of computing the hadronic spectrum and the corresponding light-cone wavefunctions of QCD in one space and one time dimension has been successfully reduced to the diagonalization of a discrete representation of the light-cone Hamiltonian. The problems confronting the solution of gauge theories in 3 + 1 dimensions in the light-cone quantization formalism,, including zero modes and non-perturbative renormalization, are reviewed

  20. All-diamond functional surface micro-electrode arrays for brain-slice neural analysis

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Vahidpour, F.; Curley, L.; Biró, I.; McDonald, M.; Croux, D.; Pobedinskas, P.; Haenen, K.; Giugliano, M.; Vlčková Živcová, Zuzana; Kavan, Ladislav; Nesládek, M.

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 214, č. 2 (2017), č. článku 1532347. ISSN 1862-6300 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA13-31783S Institutional support: RVO:61388955 Keywords : impedance spectroscopy * microelectrode arrays * surface termination Subject RIV: CG - Electrochemistry OBOR OECD: Electrochemistry (dry cells, batteries, fuel cells, corrosion metals, electrolysis) Impact factor: 1.775, year: 2016

  1. NMNAT1 variants cause cone and cone-rod dystrophy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nash, Benjamin M; Symes, Richard; Goel, Himanshu; Dinger, Marcel E; Bennetts, Bruce; Grigg, John R; Jamieson, Robyn V

    2018-03-01

    Cone and cone-rod dystrophies (CD and CRD, respectively) are degenerative retinal diseases that predominantly affect the cone photoreceptors. The underlying disease gene is not known in approximately 75% of autosomal recessive cases. Variants in NMNAT1 cause a severe, early-onset retinal dystrophy called Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA). We report two patients where clinical phenotyping indicated diagnoses of CD and CRD, respectively. NMNAT1 variants were identified, with Case 1 showing an extremely rare homozygous variant c.[271G > A] p.(Glu91Lys) and Case 2 compound heterozygous variants c.[53 A > G];[769G > A] p.(Asn18Ser);(Glu257Lys). The detailed variant analysis, in combination with the observation of an associated macular atrophy phenotype, indicated that these variants were disease-causing. This report demonstrates that the variants in NMNAT1 may cause CD or CRD associated with macular atrophy. Genetic investigations of the patients with CD or CRD should include NMNAT1 in the genes examined.

  2. Pyrolytic 3D Carbon Microelectrodes for Electrochemistry

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hemanth, Suhith; Caviglia, Claudia; Amato, Letizia

    2016-01-01

    electrochemical activity, chemical stability, and ease in surface functionalization [1]. The most common carbon microfabrication techniques (i.e. screen printing) produce two-dimensional (2D) electrodes, which limit the detection sensitivity. Hence several 3D microfabrication techniques have been explored......This work presents the fabrication and characterization of multi-layered three-dimensional (3D) pyrolysed carbon microelectrodes for electrochemical applications. For this purpose, an optimized UV photolithography and pyrolysis process with the negative tone photoresist SU-8 has been developed...... carbon [2]. This process enables fabrication of 2D and 3D electrodes with possibility for tailoring ad-hoc designs and unique sensitivities for specific applications. Due to this, pyrolysed carbon is becoming increasingly attractive for numerous applications, such as novel sensors and scaffolds for cell...

  3. Mitogenic activity of pine cone extracts against cultured splenocytes from normal and tumor-bearing animals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kurakata, Y; Sakagami, H; Takeda, M; Konno, K; Kitajima, K; Ichikawa, S; Hata, N; Sato, T

    1989-01-01

    An acidic pine cone extract, Fr. V. of Pinus parviflora Sieb. et Zucc. significantly stimulated DNA synthesis of isolated splenocytes from both mice and rats, but only marginally affected the DNA synthesis of leukemic cell lines. The maximum stimulation level attained by Fr. V slightly exceeded that of plant lectins, whereas much weaker stimulating activity was found in natural and chemically modified antitumor polysaccharides, sialic acid-rich glycoproteins, and polyphenolic compounds such as lignin and tannic acid. In mice with subcutaneously transplanted sarcoma-180, responses of splenocytes against Con A declines in the terminal stage of tumor development, whereas responses against Fr. V remained relatively constant throughout all periods of tumor progression. The suppression of Fr. V activity by acetylation or methylation suggests the importance of the hydroxyl group in the expression of its stimulation activity.

  4. Effects of gustatory stimulants of salivary secretion on salivary pH and flow: a randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    da Mata, A D S P; da Silva Marques, D N; Silveira, J M L; Marques, J R O F; de Melo Campos Felino, E T; Guilherme, N F R P M

    2009-04-01

    To compare salivary pH changes and stimulation efficacy of two different gustatory stimulants of salivary secretion (GSSS). Portuguese Dental Faculty Clinic. Double blind randomized controlled trial. One hundred and twenty volunteers were randomized to two intervention groups. Sample sized was calculated using an alpha error of 0.05 and a beta of 0.20. Participants were randomly assigned to receive a new gustatory stimulant of secretory secretion containing a weaker malic acid, fluoride and xylitol or a traditionally citric acid-based one. Saliva collection was obtained by established methods at different times. The salivary pH of the samples was determined with a pH meter and a microelectrode. Salivary pH variations and counts of subjects with pH below 5.5 for over 1 min and stimulated salivary flow were the main outcome measures. Both GSSS significantly stimulated salivary output without significant differences between the two groups. The new gustatory stimulant of salivary secretion presented a risk reduction of 80 +/- 10.6% (95% CI) when compared with the traditional one. Gustatory stimulants of salivary secretion with fluoride, xylitol and lower acid content maintain similar salivary stimulation capacity while reducing significantly the dental erosion predictive potential.

  5. Mach cones in space and laboratory dusty magnetoplasmas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mamun, A.A.; Shukla, P.K

    2004-07-01

    We present a rigorous theoretical investigation on the possibility for the formation of Mach cones in both space and laboratory dusty magnetoplasmas. We find the parametric regimes for which different types of Mach cones, such as dust acoustic Mach cones, dust magneto-acoustic Mach cones, oscillonic Mach cones, etc. are formed in space and laboratory dusty magnetoplasmas. We also identify the basic features of such different classes of Mach cones (viz. dust- acoustic, dust magneto-acoustic, oscillonic Mach cones, etc.), and clearly explain how they are relevant to space and laboratory dusty manetoplasmas. (author)

  6. Influence of the tip mass on the tip-sample interactions in TM-AFM

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pishkenari, Hossein Nejat, E-mail: nejat@mech.sharif.edu [Nano-Robotics Laboratory, Center of Excellence in Design, Robotics and Automation, School of Mechanical Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, P.O. Box 11365-9465 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Meghdari, Ali [Nano-Robotics Laboratory, Center of Excellence in Design, Robotics and Automation, School of Mechanical Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, P.O. Box 11365-9465 (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

    2011-07-15

    This paper focuses on the influences of the tip mass ratio (the ratio of the tip mass to the cantilever mass), on the excitation of higher oscillation eigenmodes and also on the tip-sample interaction forces in tapping mode atomic force microscopy (TM-AFM). A precise model for the cantilever dynamics capable of accurate simulations is essential for the investigation of the tip mass effects on the interaction forces. In the present work, the finite element method (FEM) is used for modeling the AFM cantilever to consider the oscillations of higher eigenmodes oscillations. In addition, molecular dynamics (MD) is used to calculate precise data for the tip-sample force as a function of tip vertical position with respect to the sample. The results demonstrate that in the presence of nonlinear tip-sample interaction forces, the tip mass ratio plays a significant role in the excitations of higher eigenmodes and also in the normal force applied on the surface. Furthermore, it has been shown that the difference between responses of the FEM and point-mass models in different system operational conditions is highly affected by the tip mass ratio. -- Highlights: {yields} A strong correlation exists between the tip mass ratio and the 18th harmonic amplitude. {yields} Near the critical tip mass ratio a small change in the tip mass may lead to a significant force change. {yields} Inaccuracy of the lumped model depends significantly on the tip mass ratio.

  7. Clinical Course, Genetic Etiology, and Visual Outcome in Cone and Cone-Rod Dystrophy

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Thiadens, Alberta A. H. J.; Phan, T. My Lan; Zekveld-Vroon, Renate C.; Leroy, Bart P.; van den Born, L. Ingeborgh; Hoyng, Carel B.; Klaver, Caroline C. W.; Roosing, Susanne; Pott, Jan-Willem R.; van Schooneveld, Mary J.; van Moll-Ramirez, Norka; van Genderen, Maria M.; Boon, Camiel J. F.; den Hollander, Anneke I.; Bergen, Arthur A. B.; De Baere, Elfride; Cremers, Frans P. M.; Lotery, Andrew J.

    Objective: To evaluate the clinical course, genetic etiology, and visual prognosis in patients with cone dystrophy (CD) and cone-rod dystrophy (CRD). Design: Clinic-based, longitudinal, multicenter study. Participants: Consecutive probands with CD (N = 98), CRD (N = 83), and affected relatives (N =

  8. Development and degeneration of cone bipolar cells are independent of cone photoreceptors in a mouse model of retinitis pigmentosa.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miao Chen

    Full Text Available Retinal photoreceptors die during retinal synaptogenesis in a portion of retinal degeneration. Whether cone bipolar cells establish regular retinal mosaics and mature morphologies, and resist degeneration are not completely understood. To explore these issues, we backcrossed a transgenic mouse expressing enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP in one subset of cone bipolar cells (type 7 into rd1 mice, a classic mouse model of retinal degeneration, to examine the development and survival of cone bipolar cells in a background of retinal degeneration. Our data revealed that both the development and degeneration of cone bipolar cells are independent of the normal activity of cone photoreceptors. We found that type 7 cone bipolar cells achieved a uniform tiling of the retinal surface and developed normal dendritic and axonal arbors without the influence of cone photoreceptor innervation. On the other hand, degeneration of type 7 cone bipolar cells, contrary to our belief of central-to-peripheral progression, was spatially uniform across the retina independent of the spatiotemporal pattern of cone degeneration. The results have important implications for the design of more effective therapies to restore vision in retinal degeneration.

  9. Design of a trichromatic cone array.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Patrick Garrigan

    2010-02-01

    Full Text Available Cones with peak sensitivity to light at long (L, medium (M and short (S wavelengths are unequal in number on the human retina: S cones are rare (<10% while increasing in fraction from center to periphery, and the L/M cone proportions are highly variable between individuals. What optical properties of the eye, and statistical properties of natural scenes, might drive this organization? We found that the spatial-chromatic structure of natural scenes was largely symmetric between the L, M and S sensitivity bands. Given this symmetry, short wavelength attenuation by ocular media gave L/M cones a modest signal-to-noise advantage, which was amplified, especially in the denser central retina, by long-wavelength accommodation of the lens. Meanwhile, total information represented by the cone mosaic remained relatively insensitive to L/M proportions. Thus, the observed cone array design along with a long-wavelength accommodated lens provides a selective advantage: it is maximally informative.

  10. Cone and Seed Maturation of Southern Pines

    Science.gov (United States)

    James P. Barnett

    1976-01-01

    If slightly reduced yields and viability are acceptable, loblolly and slash cone collections can begin 2 to 3 weeks before maturity if the cones are stored before processing. Longleaf(P. palestris Mill.) pine cones should be collected only when mature, as storage decreased germination of seeds from immature cones. Biochemical analyses to determine reducing sugar...

  11. Utility of a tripolar stimulating electrode for eliciting dopamine release in the rat striatum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bergstrom, B P; Garris, P A

    1999-03-01

    The present study evaluated tripolar stimulating electrodes for eliciting dopamine release in the rat brain in vivo. Stimulating electrodes were placed either in the medial forebrain bundle or in the ventral mesencephalon associated with the ventral tegmental area and substantia nigra. The concentration of extracellular dopamine was monitored in dopamine terminal fields at 100-ms intervals using fast-scan cyclic voltammetry at carbon-fiber microelectrodes. To characterize the stimulated area, recordings were collected in several striatal regions including the caudate putamen and the core and shell of the nucleus accumbens. The tripolar electrode was equally effective in stimulating dopamine release in medial and lateral regions of the striatum. In contrast, responses evoked by a bipolar electrode were typically greater in one mediolateral edge versus the other. The added size of the tripolar electrode did not appear to cause complications as signals were stable over the course of the experiment (3 h). Subsets of mesostriatal dopamine neurons could also be selectively activated using the tripolar electrode in excellent agreement with previously described topography. Taken together, these results suggested that the tripolar stimulating electrode is well suited for studying the regulation of midbrain dopamine neurons in vivo.

  12. Fabrication of gas sensor based on field ionization from SWCNTs with tripolar microelectrode

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cai, Shengbing; Zhang, Yong; Duan, Zhemin

    2012-01-01

    We report the nanofabrication of a sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ) sensor with a tripolar on-chip microelectrode utilizing a film of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) as the field ionization cathode, where the ion flow current and the partial discharge current generated by the field ionization process of gaseous molecules can be gauged to gas species and concentration. The variation of the sensitivity is less than 4% for all of the tested devices, and the sensor has selectivity against gases such as He, NO 2 , CO, H 2 , SO 2 and O 2 . Further, the sensor response presents well-defined and reproducible linear behavior with regard to concentration in the range investigated and a detection limitation of <∼0.5 ppm for SO 2 . More importantly, a tripolar on-chip microelectrode with SWCNTs as a cathode exhibits an impressive performance with respect to stability and anti-oxidation behavior, which are significantly better than had been possible before in the traditional bipolar sensor under explicit circumstances at room temperature. (paper)

  13. Dual-side and three-dimensional microelectrode arrays fabricated from ultra-thin silicon substrates

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Du, Jiangang; Masmanidis, Sotiris C; Roukes, Michael L

    2009-01-01

    A method for fabricating planar implantable microelectrode arrays was demonstrated using a process that relied on ultra-thin silicon substrates, which ranged in thickness from 25 to 50 µm. The challenge of handling these fragile materials was met via a temporary substrate support mechanism. In order to compensate for putative electrical shielding of extracellular neuronal fields, separately addressable electrode arrays were defined on each side of the silicon device. Deep reactive ion etching was employed to create sharp implantable shafts with lengths of up to 5 mm. The devices were flip-chip bonded onto printed circuit boards (PCBs) by means of an anisotropic conductive adhesive film. This scalable assembly technique enabled three-dimensional (3D) integration through formation of stacks of multiple silicon and PCB layers. Simulations and measurements of microelectrode noise appear to suggest that low impedance surfaces, which could be formed by electrodeposition of gold or other materials, are required to ensure an optimal signal-to-noise ratio as well a low level of interchannel crosstalk

  14. Depth-time interpolation of feature trends extracted from mobile microelectrode data with kernel functions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wong, Stephen; Hargreaves, Eric L; Baltuch, Gordon H; Jaggi, Jurg L; Danish, Shabbar F

    2012-01-01

    Microelectrode recording (MER) is necessary for precision localization of target structures such as the subthalamic nucleus during deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery. Attempts to automate this process have produced quantitative temporal trends (feature activity vs. time) extracted from mobile MER data. Our goal was to evaluate computational methods of generating spatial profiles (feature activity vs. depth) from temporal trends that would decouple automated MER localization from the clinical procedure and enhance functional localization in DBS surgery. We evaluated two methods of interpolation (standard vs. kernel) that generated spatial profiles from temporal trends. We compared interpolated spatial profiles to true spatial profiles that were calculated with depth windows, using correlation coefficient analysis. Excellent approximation of true spatial profiles is achieved by interpolation. Kernel-interpolated spatial profiles produced superior correlation coefficient values at optimal kernel widths (r = 0.932-0.940) compared to standard interpolation (r = 0.891). The choice of kernel function and kernel width resulted in trade-offs in smoothing and resolution. Interpolation of feature activity to create spatial profiles from temporal trends is accurate and can standardize and facilitate MER functional localization of subcortical structures. The methods are computationally efficient, enhancing localization without imposing additional constraints on the MER clinical procedure during DBS surgery. Copyright © 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  15. Scanning electron microscopy of chronically implanted intracortical microelectrode arrays in non-human primates

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barrese, James C.; Aceros, Juan; Donoghue, John P.

    2016-04-01

    Objective. Signal attenuation is a major problem facing intracortical sensors for chronic neuroprosthetic applications. Many studies suggest that failure is due to gliosis around the electrode tips, however, mechanical and material causes of failure are often overlooked. The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors contributing to progressive signal decline by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to visualize structural changes in chronically implanted arrays and histology to examine the tissue response at corresponding implant sites. Approach. We examined eight chronically implanted intracortical microelectrode arrays (MEAs) explanted from non-human primates at times ranging from 37 to 1051 days post-implant. We used SEM, in vivo neural recordings, and histology (GFAP, Iba-1, NeuN). Three MEAs that were never implanted were also imaged as controls. Main results. SEM revealed progressive corrosion of the platinum electrode tips and changes to the underlying silicon. The parylene insulation was prone to cracking and delamination, and in some instances the silicone elastomer also delaminated from the edges of the MEA. Substantial tissue encapsulation was observed and was often seen growing into defects in the platinum and parylene. These material defects became more common as the time in vivo increased. Histology at 37 and 1051 days post-implant showed gliosis, disruption of normal cortical architecture with minimal neuronal loss, and high Iba-1 reactivity, especially within the arachnoid and dura. Electrode tracts were either absent or barely visible in the cortex at 1051 days, but were seen in the fibrotic encapsulation material suggesting that the MEAs were lifted out of the brain. Neural recordings showed a progressive drop in impedance, signal amplitude, and viable channels over time. Significance. These results provide evidence that signal loss in MEAs is truly multifactorial. Gliosis occurs in the first few months after implantation but does

  16. Receptivity of Hypersonic Boundary Layers over Straight and Flared Cones

    Science.gov (United States)

    Balakumar, Ponnampalam; Kegerise, Michael A.

    2010-01-01

    The effects of adverse pressure gradients on the receptivity and stability of hypersonic boundary layers were numerically investigated. Simulations were performed for boundary layer flows over a straight cone and two flared cones. The steady and the unsteady flow fields were obtained by solving the two-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations in axi-symmetric coordinates using the 5th order accurate weighted essentially non-oscillatory (WENO) scheme for space discretization and using third-order total-variation-diminishing (TVD) Runge-Kutta scheme for time integration. The mean boundary layer profiles were analyzed using local stability and non-local parabolized stability equations (PSE) methods. After the most amplified disturbances were identified, two-dimensional plane acoustic waves were introduced at the outer boundary of the computational domain and time accurate simulations were performed. The adverse pressure gradient was found to affect the boundary layer stability in two important ways. Firstly, the frequency of the most amplified second-mode disturbance was increased relative to the zero pressure gradient case. Secondly, the amplification of first- and second-mode disturbances was increased. Although an adverse pressure gradient enhances instability wave growth rates, small nose-tip bluntness was found to delay transition due to the low receptivity coefficient and the resulting weak initial amplitude of the instability waves. The computed and measured amplitude-frequency spectrums in all three cases agree very well in terms of frequency and the shape except for the amplitude.

  17. Effect of 60Co γ irradiation with seed and shoot-tip of Brassica campestris L. var on its culture in vitro

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liao Feixiong; Yu Rangcai; Pan Ruichi

    2003-01-01

    The survival rate in vitro of shoot-tips of Brassica campestris L. var from seeds irradiated by 60 Co γ-rays decreased with the increase of dose. Irradiation inhibited proliferation of shoot-tip, induction of callus from cotyledons and differentiation of the callus. The age of explant contributed to the effect of irradiation in the culture. Irradiation stimulated the proliferation of shoot-tip with dose less than 50 Gy. Based on the effect of irradiation in the tissue culture, the effective dose recommended was about 200 Gy for seeds, 50-100 Gy for pre-soaked germinating seeds and 40-70 Gy for shoot-tips in vitro, respectively

  18. Tipping Point

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... death electrical fall furniture head injury product safety television tipover tv Watch the video in Adobe Flash ... tv tip-overs. The force of a large television falling from tipping furniture can be staggering. A ...

  19. Tipping Point

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... and furniture, appliance and tv tip-overs. The force of a large television falling from tipping furniture ... 50 lb. TV falls with about the same force as child falling from the third story of ...

  20. Tipping Point

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... Tipping Point by CPSC Blogger September 22, 2009 appliance child Childproofing CPSC danger death electrical fall furniture ... about horrible accidents involving young children and furniture, appliance and tv tip-overs. The force of a ...

  1. Light-cone observables and gauge-invariance in the geodesic light-cone formalism

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Scaccabarozzi, Fulvio; Yoo, Jaiyul, E-mail: fulvio@physik.uzh.ch, E-mail: jyoo@physik.uzh.ch [Center for Theoretical Astrophysics and Cosmology, Institute for Computational Science, University of Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057, Zürich (Switzerland)

    2017-06-01

    The remarkable properties of the geodesic light-cone (GLC) coordinates allow analytic expressions for the light-cone observables, providing a new non-perturbative way for calculating the effects of inhomogeneities in our Universe. However, the gauge-invariance of these expressions in the GLC formalism has not been shown explicitly. Here we provide this missing part of the GLC formalism by proving the gauge-invariance of the GLC expressions for the light-cone observables, such as the observed redshift, the luminosity distance, and the physical area and volume of the observed sources. Our study provides a new insight on the properties of the GLC coordinates and it complements the previous work by the GLC collaboration, leading to a comprehensive description of light propagation in the GLC representation.

  2. Plasma microinstabilities driven by loss-cone distributions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Summers, D.; Thorne, R.M.

    1995-01-01

    Electromagnetic and electrostatic instabilities driven by loss-cone particle distributions have been invoked to explain a variety of plasma phenomena observed in space and in the laboratory. In this paper we analyse how the loss-cone feature (as determined by the loss-cone index or indices) influences the growth of such instabilities in a fully ionized, homogeneous, hot plasma in a uniform magnetic field. Specifically, we consider three loss-cone distributions: a generalized Lorentzian (kappa) loss-cone distribution, the Dory-Guest-Harris distribution and the Ashour-Abdalla-Kennel distribution (involving a subtracted Maxwellian). Our findings are common to all three distributions. We find that, for parallel propagation, electromagnetic instabilities are only affected by the loss-cone indices in terms of their occurrence in the temperature anisotropy. However, for oblique propagation, even including propagation at small angles to the ambient magnetic field, the loss-cone indices do independently affect the growth of instabilities for electromagnetic waves, in contrast to certain claims in the literature. For electrostatic waves such that 1/2(κ perpendicular to ρ L σ 2 L σ is the Larmor radius for particle species σ, we find that the loss-cone indices only enter the dispersion equation via the temperature anisotropy, and so in this case the loss-cone feature and perpendicular effective thermal speed do not independently affect wave growth. (Author)

  3. HapTip: Displaying Haptic Shear Forces at the Fingertips for Multi-Finger Interaction in Virtual Environments

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adrien eGirard

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available The fingertips are one of the most important and sensitive parts of our body.They are the first stimulated areas of the hand when we interact with our environment.Providing haptic feedback to the fingertips in virtual reality could thus drastically improve perception and interaction with virtual environments.In this paper, we present a modular approach called HapTip to display such haptic sensations at the level of the fingertips.This approach relies on a wearable and compact haptic device able to simulate 2 Degree of Freedom (DoF shear forces on the fingertip with a displacement range of +/- 2 mm. Several modules can be added and used jointly in order to address multi-finger and/or bimanual scenarios in virtual environments.For that purpose, we introduce several haptic rendering techniques to cover different cases of 3D interaction such as touching a rough virtual surface, or feeling the inertia or weight of a virtual object.In order to illustrate the possibilities offered by HapTip, we provide four use cases focused on touching or grasping virtual objects.To validate the efficiency of our approach, we also conducted experiments to assess the tactile perception obtained with HapTip.Our results show that participants can successfully discriminate the directions of the 2 DoF stimulation of our haptic device.We found also that participants could well perceive different weights of virtual objects simulated using two HapTip devices. We believe that HapTip could be used in numerous applications in virtual reality for which 3D manipulation and tactile sensations are often crucial, such as in virtual prototyping or virtual training.

  4. Tips for TIPS

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Cuijpers, C.F.

    2015-01-01

    The transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) procedure is one of the most technically challenging procedures in interventional radiology. During the procedure, interventional radiologists (IRs) insert very thin and long instruments through a little incision in the patient’s neck. They

  5. CPAP Tips

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... now Try it free Find out why Close CPAP Tips from FDA USFoodandDrugAdmin Loading... Unsubscribe from USFoodandDrugAdmin? ... apnea and use a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device when sleeping? Here are some tips from ...

  6. Variability of silver fir (Abies alba Mill. cones – variability of cone parameters

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aniszewska Monika

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available This study aimed at determining the shape of closed silver fir cones from the Jawor Forest District (Wroclaw, based purely on measurements of their length and thickness. Using these two parameters, the most accurate estimations were achieved with a fourth-degree polynomial fitting function. We then calculated the cones’ surface area and volume in three different ways: 1 Using the fourth-degree polynomial shape estimation, 2 Introducing indicators of compliance (k1, k2, k3 to calculate the volume and then comparing it to its actual value as measured in a pitcher filled with water, 3 Comparing the surface area of the cones as calculated with the polynomial function to the value obtained from ratios of indicators of compliance (ratios k4 and k5. We found that the calculated surface area and volume were substantially higher than the corresponding measured values. Test values of cone volume and surface area as calculated by our model were 8% and 5% lower, respectively, compared to direct measurements. We also determined the fir cones apparent density to be 0.8 g·cm-3on average. The gathered data on cone surface area, volume and bulk density is a valuable tool for optimizing the thermal peeling process in mill cabinets to acquire high quality seeds.

  7. Tipping Point

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... OnSafety CPSC Stands for Safety The Tipping Point Home > 60 Seconds of Safety (Videos) > The Tipping Point ... 24 hours a day. For young children whose home is a playground, it’s the best way to ...

  8. Méthode analytique généralisée pour le calcul du coning. Nouvelle solution pour calculer le coning de gaz, d'eau et double coning dans les puits verticaux et horizontaux Generalized Analytical Method for Coning Calculation. New Solution to Calculation Both the Gas Coning, Water Coning and Dual Coning for Vertical and Horizontal Wells

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pietraru V.

    2006-11-01

    Full Text Available Une nouvelle méthode analytique d'évaluation du coning d'eau par bottom water drive et/ou de gaz par gas-cap drive dans les puits horizontaux et verticaux a été développée pour les réservoirs infinis [1]. Dans cet article, une généralisation de cette méthode est présentée pour les réservoirs confinés d'extension limitée dont le toit est horizontal. La généralisation proposée est basée sur la résolution des équations différentielles de la diffusivité avec prise en compte des effets de drainage par gravité et des conditions aux limites pour un réservoir confiné. La méthode est applicable aux réservoirs isotropes ou anisotropes. L'hypothèse de pression constante à la limite de l'aire de drainage dans l'eau et/ou dans le gaz a été adoptée. Les pertes de charge dans l'aquifère et dans le gas-cap sont donc négligées. Les principales contributions de cet article sont : - L'introduction de la notion de rayon de cône, différent du rayon de puits. La hauteur du cône et le débit critique dépendent du rayon de cône alors qu'ils sont indépendants du rayon du puits. - Une nouvelle corrélation pour le calcul du débit critique sous forme adimensionnelle en fonction de trois paramètres : le temps, la longueur du drain horizontal (nulle pour un puits vertical et le rayon de drainage. - Des corrélations pour le calcul du rapport des débits gaz/huile (GOR ou de la fraction en eau (fw, pendant les périodes critique et postcritique, qui tiennent compte de la pression capillaire et des perméabilités relatives. - Des corrélations pour le calcul des rapports de débits gaz/huile et eau/huile pendant les périodes pré, post et supercritique en double coning. - Des critères pour le calcul du temps de percée au puits en simple coning de gaz ou d'eau, ou en double coning de gaz et d'eau. A new analytical method for assessing water and/or gas coning in horizontal and vertical wells has been developed for infinite

  9. CPAP Tips

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... now Try it free Find out why Close CPAP Tips from FDA USFoodandDrugAdmin Loading... Unsubscribe from USFoodandDrugAdmin? ... apnea and use a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device when sleeping? Here are some tips from ...

  10. Use of RI-cone penetrometer in clay foundations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mimura, Mamoru; Shibata, Toru; Shrivastava, A.K.

    1993-01-01

    RI cone penetrometer tests are carried out at four different sites. The foundation grounds discussed here mainly consist of clayey materials. The measured results by RI cone penetrometers are shown for Kyobashi, Hachirougata, Kurihama and Kinkai Bay site. According to comparison of water content and density profiles by RI cone measurement with the conventional testing results, RI cone penetrometers are proved to be versatile tools for site investigation. Settlement assessment by RI cone penetrometer is also discussed by exemplifying the embankment at Kinkai Bay site. Elasto-vis-coplastic finite element analysis correspondingly performed strongly supports the RI cone based assessment. Repeated use of RI cone penetrometer with the advance of construction enables us to assess the consolidation process of the clay foundation. (author)

  11. Tipping Point

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... 60 Seconds of Safety (Videos) > The Tipping Point The Tipping Point by CPSC Blogger September 22, 2009 appliance child Childproofing CPSC danger death electrical fall furniture head injury product safety television tipover tv Watch the video in Adobe Flash ...

  12. Influence of droplet coverage on the electrochemical response of planar microelectrodes and potential solving strategies based on nesting concept

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yue Yu

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Recently, biosensors have been widely used for the detection of bacteria, viruses and other toxins. Electrodes, as commonly used transducers, are a vital part of electrochemical biosensors. The coverage of the droplets can change significantly based on the hydrophobicity of the microelectrode surface materials. In the present research, screen-printed interdigitated microelectrodes (SPIMs, as one type of planar microelectrode, were applied to investigate the influence of droplet coverage on electrochemical response. Furthermore, three dimensional (3D printing technology was employed to print smart devices with different diameters based on the nesting concept. Theoretical explanations were proposed to elucidate the influence of the droplet coverage on the electrochemical response. 3D-printed ring devices were used to incubate the SPIMs and the analytical performances of the SPIMs were tested. According to the results obtained, our device successfully improved the stability of the signal responses and eliminated irregular signal changes to a large extent. Our proposed method based on the nesting concept provides a promising method for the fabrication of stable electrochemical biosensors. We also introduced two types of electrode bases to improve the signal stability.

  13. Implementation of Tuy's cone-beam inversion formula

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zeng, G.L.; Clack, R.; Gullberg, G.T.

    1994-01-01

    Tuy's cone-beam inversion formula was modified to develop a cone-beam reconstruction algorithm. The algorithm was implemented for a cone-beam vertex orbit consisting of a circle and two orthogonal lines. This orbit geometry satisfies the cone-beam data sufficiency condition and is easy to implement on commercial single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) systems. The algorithm which consists of two derivative steps, one rebinning step, and one three-dimensional backprojection step, was verified by computer simulations and by reconstructing physical phantom data collected on a clinical SPECT system. The proposed algorithm gives equivalent results and is as efficient as other analytical cone-beam reconstruction algorithms. (Author)

  14. Ultra-nanocrystalline diamond electrodes: optimization towards neural stimulation applications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garrett, David J; Ganesan, Kumaravelu; Stacey, Alastair; Fox, Kate; Meffin, Hamish; Prawer, Steven

    2012-02-01

    Diamond is well known to possess many favourable qualities for implantation into living tissue including biocompatibility, biostability, and for some applications hardness. However, conducting diamond has not, to date, been exploited in neural stimulation electrodes due to very low electrochemical double layer capacitance values that have been previously reported. Here we present electrochemical characterization of ultra-nanocrystalline diamond electrodes grown in the presence of nitrogen (N-UNCD) that exhibit charge injection capacity values as high as 163 µC cm(-2) indicating that N-UNCD is a viable material for microelectrode fabrication. Furthermore, we show that the maximum charge injection of N-UNCD can be increased by tailoring growth conditions and by subsequent electrochemical activation. For applications requiring yet higher charge injection, we show that N-UNCD electrodes can be readily metalized with platinum or iridium, further increasing charge injection capacity. Using such materials an implantable neural stimulation device fabricated from a single piece of bio-permanent material becomes feasible. This has significant advantages in terms of the physical stability and hermeticity of a long-term bionic implant.

  15. Handling data redundancy in helical cone beam reconstruction with a cone-angle-based window function and its asymptotic approximation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tang Xiangyang; Hsieh Jiang

    2007-01-01

    A cone-angle-based window function is defined in this manuscript for image reconstruction using helical cone beam filtered backprojection (CB-FBP) algorithms. Rather than defining the window boundaries in a two-dimensional detector acquiring projection data for computed tomographic imaging, the cone-angle-based window function deals with data redundancy by selecting rays with the smallest cone angle relative to the reconstruction plane. To be computationally efficient, an asymptotic approximation of the cone-angle-based window function is also given and analyzed in this paper. The benefit of using such an asymptotic approximation also includes the avoidance of functional discontinuities that cause artifacts in reconstructed tomographic images. The cone-angle-based window function and its asymptotic approximation provide a way, equivalent to the Tam-Danielsson-window, for helical CB-FBP reconstruction algorithms to deal with data redundancy, regardless of where the helical pitch is constant or dynamically variable during a scan. By taking the cone-parallel geometry as an example, a computer simulation study is conducted to evaluate the proposed window function and its asymptotic approximation for helical CB-FBP reconstruction algorithm to handle data redundancy. The computer simulated Forbild head and thorax phantoms are utilized in the performance evaluation, showing that the proposed cone-angle-based window function and its asymptotic approximation can deal with data redundancy very well in cone beam image reconstruction from projection data acquired along helical source trajectories. Moreover, a numerical study carried out in this paper reveals that the proposed cone-angle-based window function is actually equivalent to the Tam-Danielsson-window, and rigorous mathematical proofs are being investigated

  16. Double Dirac cones in phononic crystals

    KAUST Repository

    Li, Yan

    2014-07-07

    A double Dirac cone is realized at the center of the Brillouin zone of a two-dimensional phononic crystal (PC) consisting of a triangular array of core-shell-structure cylinders in water. The double Dirac cone is induced by the accidental degeneracy of two double-degenerate Bloch states. Using a perturbation method, we demonstrate that the double Dirac cone is composed of two identical and overlapping Dirac cones whose linear slopes can also be accurately predicted from the method. Because the double Dirac cone occurs at a relatively low frequency, a slab of the PC can be mapped onto a slab of zero refractive index material by using a standard retrieval method. Total transmission without phase change and energy tunneling at the double Dirac point frequency are unambiguously demonstrated by two examples. Potential applications can be expected in diverse fields such as acoustic wave manipulations and energy flow control.

  17. Double Dirac cones in phononic crystals

    KAUST Repository

    Li, Yan; Wu, Ying; Mei, Jun

    2014-01-01

    A double Dirac cone is realized at the center of the Brillouin zone of a two-dimensional phononic crystal (PC) consisting of a triangular array of core-shell-structure cylinders in water. The double Dirac cone is induced by the accidental degeneracy of two double-degenerate Bloch states. Using a perturbation method, we demonstrate that the double Dirac cone is composed of two identical and overlapping Dirac cones whose linear slopes can also be accurately predicted from the method. Because the double Dirac cone occurs at a relatively low frequency, a slab of the PC can be mapped onto a slab of zero refractive index material by using a standard retrieval method. Total transmission without phase change and energy tunneling at the double Dirac point frequency are unambiguously demonstrated by two examples. Potential applications can be expected in diverse fields such as acoustic wave manipulations and energy flow control.

  18. The tipping point: A mathematical model for the profit-driven abandonment of restaurant tipping

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clifton, Sara M.; Herbers, Eileen; Chen, Jack; Abrams, Daniel M.

    2018-02-01

    The custom of voluntarily tipping for services rendered has gone in and out of fashion in America since its introduction in the 19th century. Restaurant owners that ban tipping in their establishments often claim that social justice drives their decisions, but we show that rational profit-maximization may also justify the decisions. Here, we propose a conceptual model of restaurant competition for staff and customers, and we show that there exists a critical conventional tip rate at which restaurant owners should eliminate tipping to maximize profits. Because the conventional tip rate has been increasing steadily for the last several decades, our model suggests that restaurant owners may abandon tipping en masse when that critical tip rate is reached.

  19. Thin film microelectrodes for electrochemical detection of neurotransmitters

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Simon Tylsgaard

    An important signaling process in the nervous system is the release of chemical messengers called neurotransmitters from neurons. In this thesis alternative thin film electrode materials for applications targeting electrochemical detection of neurotransmitters in chip devices were evaluated...... and conductive polymer microelectrodes made of Pedot:Pss were also fabricated and used successfully to measure transmitter release from cells. The use of different thin film electrodes for low-noise amperometric measurements of single events of transmitter release from neuronal cells was studied....... For this application a very low current noise is needed together with a large temporal resolution. It was shown, that resistive and capacitive properties of thin film electrode materials are determining their usefulness in low-noise amperometric measurements. An analytical expression for the noise was derived...

  20. A Microelectrode Array with Reproducible Performance Shows Loss of Consistency Following Functionalization with a Self-Assembled 6-Mercapto-1-hexanol Layer

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Damion K. Corrigan

    2018-06-01

    Full Text Available For analytical applications involving label-free biosensors and multiple measurements, i.e., across an electrode array, it is essential to develop complete sensor systems capable of functionalization and of producing highly consistent responses. To achieve this, a multi-microelectrode device bearing twenty-four equivalent 50 µm diameter Pt disc microelectrodes was designed in an integrated 3-electrode system configuration and then fabricated. Cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy were used for initial electrochemical characterization of the individual working electrodes. These confirmed the expected consistency of performance with a high degree of measurement reproducibility for each microelectrode across the array. With the aim of assessing the potential for production of an enhanced multi-electrode sensor for biomedical use, the working electrodes were then functionalized with 6-mercapto-1-hexanol (MCH. This is a well-known and commonly employed surface modification process, which involves the same principles of thiol attachment chemistry and self-assembled monolayer (SAM formation commonly employed in the functionalization of electrodes and the formation of biosensors. Following this SAM formation, the reproducibility of the observed electrochemical signal between electrodes was seen to decrease markedly, compromising the ability to achieve consistent analytical measurements from the sensor array following this relatively simple and well-established surface modification. To successfully and consistently functionalize the sensors, it was necessary to dilute the constituent molecules by a factor of ten thousand to support adequate SAM formation on microelectrodes. The use of this multi-electrode device therefore demonstrates in a high throughput manner irreproducibility in the SAM formation process at the higher concentration, even though these electrodes are apparently functionalized simultaneously in the same film

  1. Split Dirac cones in HgTe/CdTe quantum wells due to symmetry-enforced level anticrossing at interfaces

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tarasenko, S. A.; Durnev, M. V.; Nestoklon, M. O.; Ivchenko, E. L.; Luo, Jun-Wei; Zunger, Alex

    2015-02-01

    HgTe is a band-inverted compound which forms a two-dimensional topological insulator if sandwiched between CdTe barriers for a HgTe layer thickness above the critical value. We describe the fine structure of Dirac states in the HgTe/CdTe quantum wells of critical and close-to-critical thicknesses and show that the necessary creation of interfaces brings in another important physical effect: the opening of a significant anticrossing gap between the tips of the Dirac cones. The level repulsion driven by the natural interface inversion asymmetry of zinc-blende heterostructures considerably modifies the electron states and dispersion but preserves the topological transition at the critical thickness. By combining symmetry analysis, atomistic calculations, and extended k .p theory with interface terms, we obtain a quantitative description of the energy spectrum and extract the interface mixing coefficient. We discuss how the fingerprints of the predicted zero-magnetic-field splitting of the Dirac cones could be detected experimentally by studying magnetotransport phenomena, cyclotron resonance, Raman scattering, and THz radiation absorption.

  2. Low Frequency Activity of Cortical Networks on Microelectrode Arrays is Differentially Altered by Bicuculline and Carbaryl

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thousands of chemicals need to be characterized for their neurotoxicity potential. Neurons grown on microelectrode arrays (MEAs) are an in vitro model used to screen chemicals for functional effects on neuronal networks. Typically, after removal of low frequency components, effec...

  3. Cone-based Electrical Resistivity Tomography

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pidlisecky, A.; Knight, R.; Haber, E.

    2005-05-01

    Determining the 3D spatial distribution of subsurface properties is a critical part of managing the clean-up of contaminated sites. Most standard hydrologic methods sample small regions immediately adjacent to wells or testing devices. This provides data which are not representative of the entire region of interest. Furthermore, at many contaminated sites invasive methods are not acceptable, due to the risks associated with contacting and spreading the contaminants. To address these issues, we have developed a minimally invasive technology that provides information about the 3D distribution of electrical conductivity. This new technique, cone-based electrical resistivity tomography (C-bert), involves placing several permanent current electrodes in the subsurface and using electrodes mounted on a cone penetrometer to measure the resultant potential field while advancing the cone into the subsurface. In addition to potential field measurements, we obtain the standard suite of cone-penetration measurements, including high resolution resistivity logs; these data can then be used to constrain the inversion of the potential field data. A major challenge of working with these data is that the cone penetrometer is highly conductive, and thus presents a large local perturbation around the measurement location. As the cone is very small (approximately 30mm in diameter) with respect to the total model space, explicitly modeling the cone is computationally demanding. We developed a method for solving the forward model that reduces computational time by an order of magnitude. This solution method, iteratively determined boundary conditions, makes it possible to correct for the cone effect before inversion of the data. Results from synthetic experiments suggest that the C-bert method of data acquisition can result in high quality electrical conductivity images of the subsurface. We tested the practicality of this technique by performing a field test of the C-bert system to image

  4. Low-loss microelectrodes fabricated using reverse-side exposure for a tunable ferroelectric capacitor application

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yoon, Yong-Kyu; Stevenson Kenney, J.; Hunt, Andrew T.; Allen, Mark G.

    2006-02-01

    Narrowly spaced thick microelectrodes are fabricated using a self-aligned multiple reverse-side exposure scheme for an improved quality-factor tunable ferroelectric capacitor. The microelectrodes are fabricated on a functional substrate—a thin film ferroelectric (barium strontium titanate, BST; BaxSr1-xTiO3) coated sapphire substrate, which has an electric-field-dependent dielectric property providing tuning functionality, as well as UV transparency permitting an additional degree of freedom in photolithography steps. The microelectrode process has been applied to interdigitated capacitor fabrication, where a critical challenge is maintaining narrow gaps between electrodes for high tunability, while simultaneously forming thick electrodes to minimize conductor loss. A single mask, self-aligned reverse-side exposure through the transparent substrate achieves both these goals. A single-finger test capacitor with an electrode gap of 1.2 µm and an electrode thickness of 2.2 µm is fabricated and characterized. Tunability (T = 100 × (C0 - Cbias)/C0) of 33% at 10 V has been achieved at 100 kHz. The 2.2 µm thick structure shows improvement of Q-factor compared to that of a 0.1 µm thick structure. To demonstrate the scalability of this process, a 102-finger interdigitated capacitor is fabricated and characterized at 100 kHz and 1 GHz. The structure is embedded in a 25 µm thick epoxy resin SU-8 for passivation. A quality factor decrease of 15-25%, tunability decrease of 2-3% and capacitance increase of 6% are observed due to the expoxy resin after passivation. High frequency performance of the capacitor has been measured to be 15.9 pF of capacitance, 28.1% tunability at 10 V and a quality factor of 16 (at a 10 V dc bias) at 1 GHz.

  5. An evaluation of .06 tapered gutta-percha cones for filling of .06 taper prepared curved root canals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gordon, M P J; Love, R M; Chandler, N P

    2005-02-01

    To compare the area occupied by gutta-percha, sealer, or void in standardized .06 tapered prepared simulated curved canals and in mesio-buccal canals of extracted maxillary first molars filled with a single .06 gutta-percha point and sealer or lateral condensation of multiple .02 gutta-percha points and sealer. Simulated canals in resin blocks with either a 30 degrees curve and radius of 10.5 mm (n = 20) or a 58 degrees curve and 4.7 mm radius (n = 20) and curved mesio-buccal canals of extracted maxillary first molars (n = 20) were prepared using .06 ProFiles in a variable tip crown-down sequence to an apical size 35 at 0.5 mm from the canal terminus or apical foramen. Ten 30 degrees and 58 degrees curved resin canals and 10 canals in the extracted teeth group were obturated with .02 taper gutta-percha cones and AH 26 sealer using lateral condensation. The time required to obturate was recorded. The remaining canals were obturated with a single .06 taper gutta-percha cone and AH 26 sealer. Excess gutta-percha was removed from the specimens using heat and the warm mass vertically condensed. Horizontal sections were cut at 0.5, 1.5, 2.5, 4.5, 7.5 and 11.5 mm from the canal terminus or apical foramen. Colour photographs were taken using an Olympus 35 mm camera attached to a stereomicroscope set at x40 magnification, and then digitized using a flatbed scanner. The cross-sectional area of the canal contents was analysed using Adobe PhotoShop. The percentage of gutta-percha, sealer or voids to the total root canal area were derived and data analysed using unpaired Student's t-test and the Mann-Whitney U-test. In the 30 degrees curved canals the levels had between 94 and 100% of the area filled with gutta-percha with no significant difference (P > 0.05) between the lateral condensation and single cone techniques. In the 58 degrees curved canals the levels had 92-99% of the area filled with gutta-percha, with the single cone technique having significantly (P 0.05) between

  6. Dirac cones in isogonal hexagonal metallic structures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Kang

    2018-03-01

    A honeycomb hexagonal metallic lattice is equivalent to a triangular atomic one and cannot create Dirac cones in its electromagnetic wave spectrum. We study in this work the low-frequency electromagnetic band structures in isogonal hexagonal metallic lattices that are directly related to the honeycomb one and show that such structures can create Dirac cones. The band formation can be described by a tight-binding model that allows investigating, in terms of correlations between local resonance modes, the condition for the Dirac cones and the consequence of the third structure tile sustaining an extra resonance mode in the unit cell that induces band shifts and thus nonlinear deformation of the Dirac cones following the wave vectors departing from the Dirac points. We show further that, under structure deformation, the deformations of the Dirac cones result from two different correlation mechanisms, both reinforced by the lattice's metallic nature, which directly affects the resonance mode correlations. The isogonal structures provide new degrees of freedom for tuning the Dirac cones, allowing adjustment of the cone shape by modulating the structure tiles at the local scale without modifying the lattice periodicity and symmetry.

  7. Microfabrication, characterization and in vivo MRI compatibility of diamond microelectrodes array for neural interfacing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hébert, Clément; Warnking, Jan; Depaulis, Antoine; Garçon, Laurie Amandine; Mermoux, Michel; Eon, David; Mailley, Pascal; Omnès, Franck

    2015-01-01

    Neural interfacing still requires highly stable and biocompatible materials, in particular for in vivo applications. Indeed, most of the currently used materials are degraded and/or encapsulated by the proximal tissue leading to a loss of efficiency. Here, we considered boron doped diamond microelectrodes to address this issue and we evaluated the performances of a diamond microelectrode array. We described the microfabrication process of the device and discuss its functionalities. We characterized its electrochemical performances by cyclic voltammetry and impedance spectroscopy in saline buffer and observed the typical diamond electrode electrochemical properties, wide potential window and low background current, allowing efficient electrochemical detection. The charge storage capacitance and the modulus of the electrochemical impedance were found to remain in the same range as platinum electrodes used for standard commercial devices. Finally we observed a reduced Magnetic Resonance Imaging artifact when the device was implanted on a rat cortex, suggesting that boron doped-diamond is a very promising electrode material allowing functional imaging. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. g-Weak Contraction in Ordered Cone Rectangular Metric Spaces

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. K. Malhotra

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available We prove some common fixed-point theorems for the ordered g-weak contractions in cone rectangular metric spaces without assuming the normality of cone. Our results generalize some recent results from cone metric and cone rectangular metric spaces into ordered cone rectangular metric spaces. Examples are provided which illustrate the results.

  9. Technology Tips

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mathematics Teacher, 2004

    2004-01-01

    Some inexpensive or free ways that enable to capture and use images in work are mentioned. The first tip demonstrates the methods of using some of the built-in capabilities of the Macintosh and Windows-based PC operating systems, and the second tip describes methods to capture and create images using SnagIt.

  10. Singularities of plane complex curves and limits of Kähler metrics with cone singularities. I: Tangent Cones

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Borbon Martin de

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available The goal of this article is to provide a construction and classification, in the case of two complex dimensions, of the possible tangent cones at points of limit spaces of non-collapsed sequences of Kähler-Einstein metrics with cone singularities. The proofs and constructions are completely elementary, nevertheless they have an intrinsic beauty. In a few words; tangent cones correspond to spherical metrics with cone singularities in the projective line by means of the Kähler quotient construction with respect to the S1-action generated by the Reeb vector field, except in the irregular case ℂβ₁×ℂβ₂ with β₂/ β₁ ∉ Q.

  11. Light cone thermodynamics

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Lorenzo, Tommaso; Perez, Alejandro

    2018-02-01

    We show that null surfaces defined by the outgoing and infalling wave fronts emanating from and arriving at a sphere in Minkowski spacetime have thermodynamical properties that are in strict formal correspondence with those of black hole horizons in curved spacetimes. Such null surfaces, made of pieces of light cones, are bifurcate conformal Killing horizons for suitable conformally stationary observers. They can be extremal and nonextremal depending on the radius of the shining sphere. Such conformal Killing horizons have a constant light cone (conformal) temperature, given by the standard expression in terms of the generalization of surface gravity for conformal Killing horizons. Exchanges of conformally invariant energy across the horizon are described by a first law where entropy changes are given by 1 /(4 ℓp2) of the changes of a geometric quantity with the meaning of horizon area in a suitable conformal frame. These conformal horizons satisfy the zeroth to the third laws of thermodynamics in an appropriate way. In the extremal case they become light cones associated with a single event; these have vanishing temperature as well as vanishing entropy.

  12. Cone dystrophy with "supernormal" rod ERG: psychophysical testing shows comparable rod and cone temporal sensitivity losses with no gain in rod function.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stockman, Andrew; Henning, G Bruce; Michaelides, Michel; Moore, Anthony T; Webster, Andrew R; Cammack, Jocelyn; Ripamonti, Caterina

    2014-02-10

    We report a psychophysical investigation of 5 observers with the retinal disorder "cone dystrophy with supernormal rod ERG," caused by mutations in the gene KCNV2 that encodes a voltage-gated potassium channel found in rod and cone photoreceptors. We compared losses for rod- and for cone-mediated vision to further investigate the disorder and to assess whether the supernormal ERG is associated with any visual benefit. L-cone, S-cone, and rod temporal acuity (critical flicker fusion frequency) were measured as a function of target irradiance; L-cone temporal contrast sensitivity was measured as a function of temporal frequency. Temporal acuity measures revealed that losses for vision mediated by rods, S-cones, and L-cones are roughly equivalent. Further, the gain in rod function implied by the supernormal ERG provides no apparent benefit to near-threshold rod-mediated visual performance. The L-cone temporal contrast sensitivity function in affected observers was similar in shape to the mean normal function but only after the mean function was compressed by halving the logarithmic sensitivities. The name of this disorder is potentially misleading because the comparable losses found across rod and cone vision suggest that the disorder is a generalized cone-rod dystrophy. Temporal acuity and temporal contrast sensitivity measures are broadly consistent with the defect in the voltage-gated potassium channel producing a nonlinear distortion of the photoreceptor response but after otherwise normal transduction processes.

  13. The design, calibration, and use of a water microjet for stimulating hair cell sensory hair bundles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saunders, J C; Szymko, Y M

    1989-11-01

    The design, calibration, and use of a noninvasive, noncontact device for stimulating hair cell hair bundles in vitro are described. This device employed a piezoelectric crystal, driven at high frequencies, to generate sinusoidal pressure in a contained fluid volume. The pressure was propagated to the tip of a glass micropipette and the oscillating water jet stimulus produced at the tip was used to stimulate sensory hair bundles. The movements of glass microbeads, caught in the oscillating pressure field of the water jet, provided a means of calibrating this stimulus. The linearity of the jet, its waveform and frequency response, the influence of pipette shape and tip diameter, as well as models to explain the operation of the water jet, are described. The use of this stimulus for measuring hair bundle micromechanics at high frequencies is then demonstrated.

  14. A Novel Microdialysis Glucose Sensor System Based on Co-immobilizing on AU Micro-Electrode by SOL-GEL Technique

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Yu, Ping

    2001-01-01

    .... The sensor is based on co_immobilizing glucose oxidase (COD) with the catalase by sol-gel technique on the surface of the silicon bases with two pattern of An microelectrodes. A graduated ("sandwich...

  15. The TIPS Liquidity Premium

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andreasen, Martin Møller; Christensen, Jens H.E.; Simon Riddell, Simon

    We introduce an arbitrage-free term structure model of nominal and real yields that accounts for liquidity risk in Treasury inflation-protected securities (TIPS). The novel feature of our model is to identify liquidity risk from individual TIPS prices by accounting for the tendency that TIPS, lik...

  16. Local probing and stimulation of neuronal cells by optical manipulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cojoc, Dan

    2014-09-01

    During development and in the adult brain, neurons continuously explore the environment searching for guidance cues, leading to the appropriate connections. Elucidating these mechanisms represents a gold goal in neurobiology. Here, I discuss our recent achievements developing new approaches to locally probe the growth cones and stimulate neuronal cell compartments with high spatial and temporal resolution. Optical tweezers force spectroscopy applied in conjunction with metabolic inhibitors reveals new properties of the cytoskeleton dynamics. On the other hand, using optically manipulated microvectors as functionalized beads or filled liposomes, we demonstrate focal stimulation of neurons by small number of signaling molecules.

  17. Resistive and reactive changes to the impedance of intracortical microelectrodes can be mitigated with polyethylene glycol under acute in vitro and in vivo settings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Salah eSommakia

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available The reactive response of brain tissue to implantable intracortical microelectrodes is thought to negatively affect their recordable signal quality and impedance, resulting in unreliable longitudinal performance. The relationship between the progression of the reactive tissue into a glial scar and the decline in device performance is unclear. We show that exposure to a model protein solution in vitro and acute implantation result in both resistive and capacitive changes to electrode impedance, rather than purely resistive changes. We also show that applying 4000 MW polyethylene glycol (PEG prevents impedance increases in vitro, and reduces the percent change in impedance in vivo following implantation. Our results highlight the importance of considering the contributions of non-cellular components to the decline in neural microelectrode performance, and present a proof of concept for using a simple dip-coated PEG film to modulate changes in microelectrode impedance.

  18. Assessment of Rod, Cone, and Intrinsically Photosensitive Retinal Ganglion Cell Contributions to the Canine Chromatic Pupillary Response.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yeh, Connie Y; Koehl, Kristin L; Harman, Christine D; Iwabe, Simone; Guzman, José M; Petersen-Jones, Simon M; Kardon, Randy H; Komáromy, András M

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to evaluate a chromatic pupillometry protocol for specific functional assessment of rods, cones, and intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) in dogs. Chromatic pupillometry was tested and compared in 37 dogs in different stages of primary loss of rod, cone, and combined rod/cone and optic nerve function, and in 5 wild-type (WT) dogs. Eyes were stimulated with 1-s flashes of dim (1 cd/m2) and bright (400 cd/m2) blue light (for scotopic conditions) or bright red (400 cd/m2) light with 25-cd/m2 blue background (for photopic conditions). Canine retinal melanopsin/Opn4 was cloned, and its expression was evaluated using real-time quantitative reverse transcription-PCR and immunohistochemistry. Mean ± SD percentage of pupil constriction amplitudes induced by scotopic dim blue (scDB), scotopic bright blue (scBB), and photopic bright red (phBR) lights in WT dogs were 21.3% ± 10.6%, 50.0% ± 17.5%, and 19.4% ± 7.4%, respectively. Melanopsin-mediated responses to scBB persisted for several minutes (7.7 ± 4.6 min) after stimulus offset. In dogs with inherited retinal degeneration, loss of rod function resulted in absent scDB responses, followed by decreased phBR responses with disease progression and loss of cone function. Primary loss of cone function abolished phBR responses but preserved those responses to blue light (scDB and scBB). Although melanopsin/Opn4 expression was diminished with retinal degeneration, melanopsin-expressing ipRGCs were identified for the first time in both WT and degenerated canine retinas. Pupil responses elicited by light stimuli of different colors and intensities allowed differential functional assessment of canine rods, cones, and ipRGCs. Chromatic pupillometry offers an effective tool for diagnosing retinal and optic nerve diseases.

  19. Fiber-array based optogenetic prosthetic system for stimulation therapy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gu, Ling; Cote, Chris; Tejeda, Hector; Mohanty, Samarendra

    2012-02-01

    Recent advent of optogenetics has enabled activation of genetically-targeted neuronal cells using low intensity blue light with high temporal precision. Since blue light is attenuated rapidly due to scattering and absorption in neural tissue, optogenetic treatment of neurological disorders may require stimulation of specific cell types in multiple regions of the brain. Further, restoration of certain neural functions (vision, and auditory etc) requires accurate spatio-temporal stimulation patterns rather than just precise temporal stimulation. In order to activate multiple regions of the central nervous system in 3D, here, we report development of an optogenetic prosthetic comprising of array of fibers coupled to independently-controllable LEDs. This design avoids direct contact of LEDs with the brain tissue and thus does not require electrical and heat isolation, which can non-specifically stimulate and damage the local brain regions. The intensity, frequency, and duty cycle of light pulses from each fiber in the array was controlled independently using an inhouse developed LabView based program interfaced with a microcontroller driving the individual LEDs. While the temporal profile of the light pulses was controlled by varying the current driving the LED, the beam profile emanating from each fiber tip could be sculpted by microfabrication of the fiber tip. The fiber array was used to stimulate neurons, expressing channelrhodopsin-2, in different locations within the brain or retina. Control of neural activity in the mice cortex, using the fiber-array based prosthetic, is evaluated from recordings made with multi-electrode array (MEA). We also report construction of a μLED array based prosthetic for spatio-temporal stimulation of cortex.

  20. CRALBP supports the mammalian retinal visual cycle and cone vision.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xue, Yunlu; Shen, Susan Q; Jui, Jonathan; Rupp, Alan C; Byrne, Leah C; Hattar, Samer; Flannery, John G; Corbo, Joseph C; Kefalov, Vladimir J

    2015-02-01

    Mutations in the cellular retinaldehyde-binding protein (CRALBP, encoded by RLBP1) can lead to severe cone photoreceptor-mediated vision loss in patients. It is not known how CRALBP supports cone function or how altered CRALBP leads to cone dysfunction. Here, we determined that deletion of Rlbp1 in mice impairs the retinal visual cycle. Mice lacking CRALBP exhibited M-opsin mislocalization, M-cone loss, and impaired cone-driven visual behavior and light responses. Additionally, M-cone dark adaptation was largely suppressed in CRALBP-deficient animals. While rearing CRALBP-deficient mice in the dark prevented the deterioration of cone function, it did not rescue cone dark adaptation. Adeno-associated virus-mediated restoration of CRALBP expression specifically in Müller cells, but not retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells, rescued the retinal visual cycle and M-cone sensitivity in knockout mice. Our results identify Müller cell CRALBP as a key component of the retinal visual cycle and demonstrate that this pathway is important for maintaining normal cone-driven vision and accelerating cone dark adaptation.

  1. A cone-beam reconstruction algorithm using shift-variant filtering and cone-beam backprojection

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Defrise, M.; Clack, R.

    1994-01-01

    An exact inversion formula written in the form of shift-variant filtered-backprojection (FBP) is given for reconstruction from cone-beam data taken from any orbit satisfying Tuy's sufficiency conditions. The method is based on a result of Grangeat, involving the derivative of the three-dimensional (3-D) Radon transform, but unlike Grangeat's algorithm, no 3D rebinning step is required. Data redundancy, which occurs when several cone-beam projections supply the same values in the Radon domain, is handled using an elegant weighting function and without discarding data. The algorithm is expressed in a convenient cone-beam detector reference frame, and a specific example for the case of a dual orthogonal circular orbit is presented. When the method is applied to a single circular orbit, it is shown to be equivalent to the well-known algorithm of Feldkamp et al

  2. Correlations between specific patterns of spontaneous activity and stimulation efficiency in degenerated retina.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christine Haselier

    Full Text Available Retinal prostheses that are currently used to restore vision in patients suffering from retinal degeneration are not adjusted to the changes occurring during the remodeling process of the retina. Recent studies revealed abnormal rhythmic activity in the retina of genetic mouse models of retinitis pigmentosa. Here we describe this abnormal activity also in a pharmacologically-induced (MNU mouse model of retinal degeneration. To investigate how this abnormal activity affects the excitability of retinal ganglion cells, we recorded the electrical activity from whole mounted retinas of rd10 mice and MNU-treated mice using a microelectrode array system and applied biphasic current pulses of different amplitude and duration to stimulate ganglion cells electrically. We show that the electrical stimulation efficiency is strongly reduced in degenerated retinas, in particular when abnormal activity such as oscillations and rhythmic firing of bursts of action potentials can be observed. Using a prestimulus pulse sequence, we could abolish rhythmic retinal activity. Under these conditions, the stimulation efficiency was enhanced in a few cases but not in the majority of tested cells. Nevertheless, this approach supports the idea that modified stimulation protocols could help to improve the efficiency of retinal prostheses in the future.

  3. Cone rod dystrophies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamel, Christian P

    2007-01-01

    Cone rod dystrophies (CRDs) (prevalence 1/40,000) are inherited retinal dystrophies that belong to the group of pigmentary retinopathies. CRDs are characterized by retinal pigment deposits visible on fundus examination, predominantly localized to the macular region. In contrast to typical retinitis pigmentosa (RP), also called the rod cone dystrophies (RCDs) resulting from the primary loss in rod photoreceptors and later followed by the secondary loss in cone photoreceptors, CRDs reflect the opposite sequence of events. CRD is characterized by primary cone involvement, or, sometimes, by concomitant loss of both cones and rods that explains the predominant symptoms of CRDs: decreased visual acuity, color vision defects, photoaversion and decreased sensitivity in the central visual field, later followed by progressive loss in peripheral vision and night blindness. The clinical course of CRDs is generally more severe and rapid than that of RCDs, leading to earlier legal blindness and disability. At end stage, however, CRDs do not differ from RCDs. CRDs are most frequently non syndromic, but they may also be part of several syndromes, such as Bardet Biedl syndrome and Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 7 (SCA7). Non syndromic CRDs are genetically heterogeneous (ten cloned genes and three loci have been identified so far). The four major causative genes involved in the pathogenesis of CRDs are ABCA4 (which causes Stargardt disease and also 30 to 60% of autosomal recessive CRDs), CRX and GUCY2D (which are responsible for many reported cases of autosomal dominant CRDs), and RPGR (which causes about 2/3 of X-linked RP and also an undetermined percentage of X-linked CRDs). It is likely that highly deleterious mutations in genes that otherwise cause RP or macular dystrophy may also lead to CRDs. The diagnosis of CRDs is based on clinical history, fundus examination and electroretinogram. Molecular diagnosis can be made for some genes, genetic counseling is always advised. Currently

  4. Cone rod dystrophies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hamel Christian P

    2007-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Cone rod dystrophies (CRDs (prevalence 1/40,000 are inherited retinal dystrophies that belong to the group of pigmentary retinopathies. CRDs are characterized by retinal pigment deposits visible on fundus examination, predominantly localized to the macular region. In contrast to typical retinitis pigmentosa (RP, also called the rod cone dystrophies (RCDs resulting from the primary loss in rod photoreceptors and later followed by the secondary loss in cone photoreceptors, CRDs reflect the opposite sequence of events. CRD is characterized by primary cone involvement, or, sometimes, by concomitant loss of both cones and rods that explains the predominant symptoms of CRDs: decreased visual acuity, color vision defects, photoaversion and decreased sensitivity in the central visual field, later followed by progressive loss in peripheral vision and night blindness. The clinical course of CRDs is generally more severe and rapid than that of RCDs, leading to earlier legal blindness and disability. At end stage, however, CRDs do not differ from RCDs. CRDs are most frequently non syndromic, but they may also be part of several syndromes, such as Bardet Biedl syndrome and Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 7 (SCA7. Non syndromic CRDs are genetically heterogeneous (ten cloned genes and three loci have been identified so far. The four major causative genes involved in the pathogenesis of CRDs are ABCA4 (which causes Stargardt disease and also 30 to 60% of autosomal recessive CRDs, CRX and GUCY2D (which are responsible for many reported cases of autosomal dominant CRDs, and RPGR (which causes about 2/3 of X-linked RP and also an undetermined percentage of X-linked CRDs. It is likely that highly deleterious mutations in genes that otherwise cause RP or macular dystrophy may also lead to CRDs. The diagnosis of CRDs is based on clinical history, fundus examination and electroretinogram. Molecular diagnosis can be made for some genes, genetic counseling is

  5. AERODYNAMICS OF WING TIP SAILS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    MUSHTAK AL-ATABI

    2006-06-01

    Full Text Available Observers have always been fascinated by soaring birds. An interesting feature of these birds is the existence of few feathers extending from the tip of the wing. In this paper, small lifting surfaces were fitted to the tip of a NACA0012 wing in a fashion similar to that of wing tip feathers. Experimental measurements of induced drag, longitudinal static stability and trailing vortex structure were obtained.The tests showed that adding wing tip surfaces (sails decreased the induced drag factor and increased the longitudinal static stability. Results identified two discrete appositely rotated tip vortices and showed the ability of wing tip surfaces to break them down and to diffuse them.

  6. CRALBP supports the mammalian retinal visual cycle and cone vision

    OpenAIRE

    Xue, Yunlu; Shen, Susan Q.; Jui, Jonathan; Rupp, Alan C.; Byrne, Leah C.; Hattar, Samer; Flannery, John G.; Corbo, Joseph C.; Kefalov, Vladimir J.

    2015-01-01

    Mutations in the cellular retinaldehyde-binding protein (CRALBP, encoded by RLBP1) can lead to severe cone photoreceptor-mediated vision loss in patients. It is not known how CRALBP supports cone function or how altered CRALBP leads to cone dysfunction. Here, we determined that deletion of Rlbp1 in mice impairs the retinal visual cycle. Mice lacking CRALBP exhibited M-opsin mislocalization, M-cone loss, and impaired cone-driven visual behavior and light responses. Additionally, M-cone dark ad...

  7. Trimodal nanoelectrode array for precise deep brain stimulation: prospects of a new technology based on carbon nanofiber arrays.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, J; Andrews, R J

    2007-01-01

    Although deep brain stimulation (DBS) has recently been shown to be effective for neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease, there are many limitations of the current technology: the large size of current microelectrodes (approximately 1 mm diameter); the lack of monitoring of local brain electrical activity and neurotransmitters (e.g. dopamine in Parkinson's disease); the open-loop nature of the stimulation (i.e. not guided by brain electrochemical activity). Reducing the size of the monitoring and stimulating electrodes by orders of magnitude (to the size of neural elements) allows remarkable improvements in both monitoring (spatial resolution, temporal resolution, and sensitivity) and stimulation. Carbon nanofiber nanoelectrode technology offers the possibility of trimodal arrays (monitoring electrical activity, monitoring neurotransmitter levels, precise stimulation). DBS can then be guided by changes in brain electrical activity and/or neurotransmitter levels (i.e. closed-loop DBS). Here, we describe the basic manufacture and electrical characteristics of a prototype nanoelectrode array for DBS, as well as preliminary studies with electroconductive polymers necessary to optimize DBS in vivo. An approach such as the nanoelectrode array described here may offer a generic electrical-neural interface for use in various neural prostheses.

  8. Micro-fabrication of three dimensional pyrolysed carbon microelectrodes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    2017-01-01

    ; soft baking the photoresist layer; performing a full depth exposure with UV light through a first mask; performing a partial depth exposure with UV light through a second mask; wherein the full depth exposure and the partial depth exposure are aligned to ensure that the first and second latent images...... are connected to each other; post-exposure baking the photoresist layer; and developing the microscale patterned resist template as a free-standing structure of cross-linked resist with lateral hanging structures that are supported by vertical support structures at a free height above the substrate. The method...... is characterized by a soft baking temperature below 70 °C. Repetitive coating and partial depth exposure allows for the fabrication of multiple level laterally interconnected structures. Carbonization of the resist template provides truly three-dimensional carbon microelectrode structures....

  9. Heavy-to-light correlators beyond the light cone

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lucha, W.; Melikhov, D. I.; Simula, S.

    2008-01-01

    We present the first systematic analysis of the off-light-cone effects in correlators relevant for the extraction of the heavy-to-light form factors within the method of light-cone sum rules. In a model with scalar constituents, the correlator is calculated in two different ways: (i) by performing the expansion of the Bethe-Salpeter amplitude of the light meson near the light cone x 2 = 0 and (ii) by adopting the known solution for the Bethe-Salpeter amplitude which allows one to calculate the correlator without invoking any expansion. We demonstrate that the contributions to the correlator from the off-light-cone terms x 2 ≠ 0 are not suppressed by any large parameter compared to the contribution of the light-cone term x 2 0. For decays of heavy particles of mass in the range 1.5-5 GeV, the light-cone correlator is shown to systematically overestimate the full correlator, numerically the difference being 10-20%

  10. Heavy-to-light correlators beyond the light cone

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lucha, W.; Melikhov, D. I.; Simula, S.

    2008-01-01

    We present the first systematic analysis of the off-light-cone effects in correlators relevant for the extraction of the heavy-to-light form factors within the method of light-cone sum rules. In a model with scalar constituents, the correlator is calculated in two different ways: (i) by performing the expansion of the Bethe-Salpeter amplitude of the light meson near the light cone x 2 = 0 and (ii) by adopting the known solution for the Bethe-Salpeter amplitude which allows one to calculate the correlator without invoking any expansion. We demonstrate that the contributions to the correlator from the off-light-cone terms x 2 ≠ 0 are not suppressed by any large parameter compared to the contribution of the light-cone term x 2 = 0. For decays of heavy particles of mass in the range 1.5–5 GeV, the light-cone correlator is shown to systematically overestimate the full correlator, numerically the difference being 10–20%.

  11. Strain engineering of Dirac cones in graphyne

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang, Gaoxue; Kumar, Ashok; Pandey, Ravindra, E-mail: pandey@mtu.edu [Department of Physics, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan 49931 (United States); Si, Mingsu [Key Laboratory for Magnetism and Magnetic Materials of the Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000 (China)

    2014-05-26

    6,6,12-graphyne, one of the two-dimensional carbon allotropes with the rectangular lattice structure, has two kinds of non-equivalent anisotropic Dirac cones in the first Brillouin zone. We show that Dirac cones can be tuned independently by the uniaxial compressive strain applied to graphyne, which induces n-type and p-type self-doping effect, by shifting the energy of the Dirac cones in the opposite directions. On the other hand, application of the tensile strain results into a transition from gapless to finite gap system for the monolayer. For the AB-stacked bilayer, the results predict tunability of Dirac-cones by in-plane strains as well as the strain applied perpendicular to the plane. The group velocities of the Dirac cones show enhancement in the resistance anisotropy for bilayer relative to the case of monolayer. Such tunable and direction-dependent electronic properties predicted for 6,6,12-graphyne make it to be competitive for the next-generation electronic devices at nanoscale.

  12. Dielectrophoretic positioning of single nanoparticles on atomic force microscope tips for tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leiterer, Christian; Deckert-Gaudig, Tanja; Singh, Prabha; Wirth, Janina; Deckert, Volker; Fritzsche, Wolfgang

    2015-05-01

    Tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, a combination of Raman spectroscopy and scanning probe microscopy, is a powerful technique to detect the vibrational fingerprint of molecules at the nanometer scale. A metal nanoparticle at the apex of an atomic force microscope tip leads to a large enhancement of the electromagnetic field when illuminated with an appropriate wavelength, resulting in an increased Raman signal. A controlled positioning of individual nanoparticles at the tip would improve the reproducibility of the probes and is quite demanding due to usually serial and labor-intensive approaches. In contrast to commonly used submicron manipulation techniques, dielectrophoresis allows a parallel and scalable production, and provides a novel approach toward reproducible and at the same time affordable tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy tips. We demonstrate the successful positioning of an individual plasmonic nanoparticle on a commercial atomic force microscope tip by dielectrophoresis followed by experimental proof of the Raman signal enhancing capabilities of such tips. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  13. DOS cones along atomic chains

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kwapiński, Tomasz

    2017-01-01

    The electron transport properties of a linear atomic chain are studied theoretically within the tight-binding Hamiltonian and the Green’s function method. Variations of the local density of states (DOS) along the chain are investigated. They are crucial in scanning tunnelling experiments and give important insight into the electron transport mechanism and charge distribution inside chains. It is found that depending on the chain parity the local DOS at the Fermi level can form cone-like structures (DOS cones) along the chain. The general condition for the local DOS oscillations is obtained and the linear behaviour of the local density function is confirmed analytically. DOS cones are characterized by a linear decay towards the chain which is in contrast to the propagation properties of charge density waves, end states and Friedel oscillations in one-dimensional systems. We find that DOS cones can appear due to non-resonant electron transport, the spin–orbit scattering or for chains fabricated on a substrate with localized electrons. It is also shown that for imperfect chains (e.g. with a reduced coupling strength between two neighboring sites) a diamond-like structure of the local DOS along the chain appears. (paper)

  14. DOS cones along atomic chains

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kwapiński, Tomasz

    2017-03-01

    The electron transport properties of a linear atomic chain are studied theoretically within the tight-binding Hamiltonian and the Green’s function method. Variations of the local density of states (DOS) along the chain are investigated. They are crucial in scanning tunnelling experiments and give important insight into the electron transport mechanism and charge distribution inside chains. It is found that depending on the chain parity the local DOS at the Fermi level can form cone-like structures (DOS cones) along the chain. The general condition for the local DOS oscillations is obtained and the linear behaviour of the local density function is confirmed analytically. DOS cones are characterized by a linear decay towards the chain which is in contrast to the propagation properties of charge density waves, end states and Friedel oscillations in one-dimensional systems. We find that DOS cones can appear due to non-resonant electron transport, the spin-orbit scattering or for chains fabricated on a substrate with localized electrons. It is also shown that for imperfect chains (e.g. with a reduced coupling strength between two neighboring sites) a diamond-like structure of the local DOS along the chain appears.

  15. Safety Tips: Basketball (For Parents)

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Staying Safe Videos for Educators Search English Español Safety Tips: Basketball KidsHealth / For Parents / Safety Tips: Basketball ... make sure they follow these tips. Why Basketball Safety Is Important Fortunately, very few basketball injuries are ...

  16. Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt (TIPS)

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... the liver). Portal hypertension can also occur in children, although children are much less likely to require a TIPS. ... intentionally to solve the problem. Although extremely rare, children may also require a TIPS procedure. TIPS in ...

  17. Impedance Immunsensor Based on Interdigitated Array Microelectrode and its Experiment Parameter Optimization

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wen Ping Zhao

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available This article accounts for a novel impedance immunosensor based on the specificity reaction of the antigen-antibody and the sensitivity of the interdigitated array microelectrode (IDAM for the determination of chlorpyrifos residues. The basic knowledge of immunoassay was in relation to its IDAM electrode surface modification, antibody immobilization, bovine serum albumin (BSA blocking and sample detection. The SPA was dropped onto the surface of IDAM electrode, used for binding antibody Fc fragments. Next, antibody was immobilized on the SPA modified electrode. Finally, BSA was employed to block the possible remaining active sites avoiding any nonspecific adsorption. Target chlorpyrifos was then captured by the immobilized antibody, resulting in a change in the impedance of the IDAM microelectrode surface. The fabrication procedure of the immunosensor and the sample detection were characterized by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS. The influences of the experiment parameters were investigated. Under optimized conditions, an excellent biosensor was fabricated. Many of the antibodies, enzymes and other reagents integral to immunoassays were very expensive, often hundreds of dollars per milligram, therefore miniaturization reduces reagent costs drastically. In this article the volume of the reagents was micro upgrade, the antibodies, SPA and BSA were 30 mL, the chlorpyrifos sample and detection solution were 50mL. The advantages of the immunosensor were exhibited in its better specificity, stability, selectivity and regeneration. The proposed method was proven to be a feasible quantitative method for chlorpyrifos analysis in vegetables and fruits.

  18. Development of Li+ Selective Microelectrode Using PPy [3,3'-Co(1,2-C2B9H112] as a Solid Contact

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Safae MERZOUK

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available Planar all solid-contact ion-selective microelectrodes (ASC-µISEs with a conducting polymer (polypyrrole doped with cobaltabis(dicarbollide anion [3,3'-Co(1,2-C2B9H112] as a solid contact layer between the polymeric membrane sensitive to lithium (Li and the gold (Au substrate were prepared and investigated. The N,N-dicyclohexyl-N',N'-diisobutylyl-cis-cyclohexane-1,2- dicarboxamide (ETH 1810 was used as ionophore for Li recognition. The developed microelectrodes show a linear response for Li+ concentration between 6´10-5 M and 1´10-1 M with slope of 53±1 mV per decade and exhibits remarkably enhanced selectivity for Li over other cations. The calibration plots using artificial serum containing three different levels of sodium chloride (NaCl (135, 145 and 155 mM as a background electrolyte were shown a linear response with a slope of 50 mV per decade in the clinical range of interest (0.7-1.5´10-3 M Li+. The developed microelectrodes will be used to determine Li+ concentrations in serum samples of manic-depressive patients under Li treatment.

  19. In Situ Identification and Stratification of Monochloramine Inhibition Effects on Nitrifying Biofilms as Determined by the Use of Microelectrodes

    Science.gov (United States)

    The nitrifying biofilm grown in an annular biofilm reactor and the microbial deactivation achieved after monochloramine treatment were investigated using microelectrodes. The nitrifying biofilm ammonium microprofile was measured and the effect of monochloramine on nitrifying bio...

  20. Fast electron transport in shaped solid targets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anle Lei; Cao, L.H.; He, X.T.; Zhang, W.Y.; Tanaka, K.A.; Kodama, R.; Mima, K.; Nakamura, T.; Normatsu, T.; Yu, W.

    2010-01-01

    Complete text of publication follows. The scheme of fast ignition fusion energy relies on the ultra-intense ultra-short (UIUS) laser energy transport into the compressed core plasma. One solution is to insert a hollow cone in the fuel shell to block the UIUS laser from the coronal plasma, thus allowing it to reach the core plasma. The cone not only can guide the UIUS laser to its tip, but can play important roles in the specific cone-in-shell target designed for FI. It was found in a PIC simulation that the cone can guide the fast electrons generated at the inner wall to propagate along the wall surface toward its tip, which would increase the energy density at the tip and might enhance the heating of the core plasma. Surface guiding of fast electrons with planar foil targets has been demonstrated experimentally. However, the guided fast electrons will mix the electrons generated ahead by the laser light with a planar target, and hence one cannot experimentally quantitatively validate the guide of the fast electrons. We investigate the cone guiding of fast electrons with an inverse cone target. We found a novel surface current of fast electrons propagating along the cone wall. The fast electrons generated at the planar outer tip of the inverse cone are guided and confined to propagate along the inverse cone wall to form a surface current by induced transient electric and magnetic fields associated with the current itself. Once departing from the source at the outer tip, this surface current of fast electrons is 'clean', neither experiencing the interacting laser light nor mixing fast electrons ahead, unlike those in cone or planar targets. This surface current in the inverse cone may explicitly give the capability of the guide of fast electron energy by the cone wall. The guiding and confinement of fast electrons is of important for fast ignition in inertial confinement fusion and several applications in high energy density science.

  1. Tip off the HAT- Epigenetic control of learning and memory by Drosophila Tip60.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Songjun; Elefant, Felice

    2015-01-01

    Disruption of epigenetic gene control mechanisms involving histone acetylation in the brain causes cognitive impairment, a debilitating hallmark of most neurodegenerative disorders. Histone acetylation regulates cognitive gene expression via chromatin packaging control in neurons. Unfortunately, the histone acetyltransferases (HATs) that generate such neural epigenetic signatures and their mechanisms of action remain unclear. Our recent findings provide insight into this question by demonstrating that Tip60 HAT action is critical for morphology and function of the mushroom body (MB), the learning and memory center in the Drosophila brain. We show that Tip60 is robustly produced in MB Kenyon cells and extending axonal lobes and that targeted MB Tip60 HAT loss results in axonal outgrowth disruption. Functional consequences of loss and gain of Tip60 HAT levels in the MB are evidenced by defects in memory. Tip60 ChIP-Seq analysis reveals enrichment for genes that function in cognitive processes and accordingly, key genes representing these pathways are misregulated in the Tip60 HAT mutant fly brain. Remarkably, increasing levels of Tip60 in the MB rescues learning and memory deficits resulting from Alzheimer's disease associated amyloid precursor protein (APP) induced neurodegeneration. Our studies highlight the potential of HAT activators as a therapeutic option for cognitive disorders.

  2. Total Telephone Tips.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Corder, Lloyd E.; And Others

    This manual of telephone behavior tips for business and sales professionals offers ways to handle the disgruntled caller and makes suggestions on topics relevant to the telephone. The manual is divided into the following sections and subsections: (1) Common Courtesy (staff tips, answering the telephone, screening calls, transferring calls, taking…

  3. The effect of full coverage winglets on tip leakage aerodynamics over the plane tip in a turbine cascade

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Sang Woo; Cheon, Joo Hong; Zhang, Qiang

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • The effect of full coverage (FC) winglets on tip leakage aerodynamics is tested. • A qualitative tip gap flow model for the FC winglet is suggested. • The FC winglet of w/p = 10.55% is considered an optimal one for the plane tip. -- Abstract: The effect of full coverage (FC) winglets on tip leakage aerodynamics over the plane tip in a turbine cascade has been investigated with the variation of winglet width (w) up to w/p = 15.83% for a tip gap-to-span (chord) ratio of h/s = 1.36% (h/c = 2.0%). A qualitative tip gap flow model for the FC winglet is suggested on the bases of the near-tip surface flow visualizations. As w/p increases, the passage vortex tends to be weakened meanwhile the tip leakage vortex becomes stronger and wall-jet-like. With an increment of w/p, the mass-averaged aerodynamic loss all over the measurement plane decreases steeply up to w/p = 10.55% and then becomes almost unchanged. Thus, the FC winglet of w/p = 10.55% is considered an optimal one for the plane tip. With respect to the baseline plane tip without winglet, the maximum mass-averaged loss reduction by installing the FC winglet on the plane tip is still somewhat smaller than that by employing the cavity squealer rim on the plane tip surface

  4. Further Evaluation of DNT Hazard Screening using Neural Networks from Rat Cortical Neurons on Multi-well Microelectrode Arrays

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thousands of chemicals have not been characterized for their DNT potential. Due to the need for DNT hazard identification, efforts to develop screening assays for DNT potential is a high priority. Multi-well microelectrode arrays (MEA) measure the spontaneous activity of electr...

  5. Topology-optimized dual-polarization Dirac cones

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Zin; Christakis, Lysander; Li, Yang; Mazur, Eric; Rodriguez, Alejandro W.; Lončar, Marko

    2018-02-01

    We apply a large-scale computational technique, known as topology optimization, to the inverse design of photonic Dirac cones. In particular, we report on a variety of photonic crystal geometries, realizable in simple isotropic dielectric materials, which exhibit dual-polarization Dirac cones. We present photonic crystals of different symmetry types, such as fourfold and sixfold rotational symmetries, with Dirac cones at different points within the Brillouin zone. The demonstrated and related optimization techniques open avenues to band-structure engineering and manipulating the propagation of light in periodic media, with possible applications to exotic optical phenomena such as effective zero-index media and topological photonics.

  6. Demise of light cone field theory

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hagen, C.R.

    1977-01-01

    It is shown that the massive spin one-half field is noncovariant in two dimensional light cone coordinates. It is shown that spin one-half is noncovariant in four dimensions as well. It is concluded that since the case of the spin one-half field is an absolute necessity if one is to build a world containing fermions. It seems safe to infer that light cone quantization cannot be useful in the quark binding problem as currently conceived. It is suggested that further work on light cone quantization be focused solely upon the questions of consistency as discussed rather than on applications to model building. 9 references

  7. Integrity of the cone photoreceptor mosaic in oligocone trichromacy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Michaelides, Michel; Rha, Jungtae; Dees, Elise W

    2011-01-01

    Oligocone trichromacy (OT) is an unusual cone dysfunction syndrome characterized by reduced visual acuity, mild photophobia, reduced amplitude of the cone electroretinogram with normal rod responses, normal fundus appearance, and normal or near-normal color vision. It has been proposed that these...... that these patients have a reduced number of normal functioning cones (oligocone). This paper has sought to evaluate the integrity of the cone photoreceptor mosaic in four patients previously described as having OT....

  8. High-performance, polymer-based direct cellular interfaces for electrical stimulation and recording

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Seong-Min; Kim, Nara; Kim, Youngseok; Baik, Min-Seo; Yoo, Minsu; Kim, Dongyoon; Lee, Won-June; Kang, Dong-Hee; Kim, Sohee; Lee, Kwanghee; Yoon, Myung-Han

    2018-04-01

    Due to the trade-off between their electrical/electrochemical performance and underwater stability, realizing polymer-based, high-performance direct cellular interfaces for electrical stimulation and recording has been very challenging. Herein, we developed transparent and conductive direct cellular interfaces based on a water-stable, high-performance poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) film via solvent-assisted crystallization. The crystallized PEDOT:PSS on a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate exhibited excellent electrical/electrochemical/optical characteristics, long-term underwater stability without film dissolution/delamination, and good viability for primarily cultured cardiomyocytes and neurons over several weeks. Furthermore, the highly crystallized, nanofibrillar PEDOT:PSS networks enabled dramatically enlarged surface areas and electrochemical activities, which were successfully employed to modulate cardiomyocyte beating via direct electrical stimulation. Finally, the high-performance PEDOT:PSS layer was seamlessly incorporated into transparent microelectrode arrays for efficient, real-time recording of cardiomyocyte action potentials with a high signal fidelity. All these results demonstrate the strong potential of crystallized PEDOT:PSS as a crucial component for a variety of versatile bioelectronic interfaces.

  9. Correlations in V1 are reduced by stimulation outside the receptive field.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Snyder, Adam C; Morais, Michael J; Kohn, Adam; Smith, Matthew A

    2014-08-20

    The trial-to-trial response variability of nearby cortical neurons is correlated. These correlations may strongly influence population coding performance. Numerous studies have shown that correlations can be dynamically modified by attention, adaptation, learning, and potent stimulus drive. However, the mechanisms that influence correlation strength remain poorly understood. Here we test whether correlations are influenced by presenting stimuli outside the classical receptive field (RF) of visual neurons, where they recruit a normalization signal termed surround suppression. We recorded simultaneously the activity of dozens of cells using microelectrode arrays implanted in the superficial layers of V1 in anesthetized, paralyzed macaque monkeys. We presented annular stimuli that encircled--but did not impinge upon--the RFs of the recorded cells. We found that these "extra-classical" stimuli reduced correlations in the absence of stimulation of the RF, closely resembling the decorrelating effects of stimulating the RFs directly. Our results suggest that normalization signals may be an important mechanism for modulating correlations. Copyright © 2014 the authors 0270-6474/14/3411222-06$15.00/0.

  10. Voltammetric studies on the electrochemical determination of methylmercury in chloride medium at carbon microelectrodes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ribeiro, F. [Centro de Electroquimica e Cinetica da Universidade de Lisboa, Departamento de Quimica e Bioquimica, Faculdade de Ciencias, Universidade de Lisboa, Campo Grande, Ed. C8, 1749-016 Lisbon (Portugal); Neto, M.M.M. [Centro de Electroquimica e Cinetica da Universidade de Lisboa, Departamento de Quimica e Bioquimica, Faculdade de Ciencias, Universidade de Lisboa, Campo Grande, Ed. C8, 1749-016 Lisbon (Portugal) and Departamento de Quimica Agricola e Ambiental, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Tapada da Ajuda, 1349-017 Lisbon (Portugal)]. E-mail: mm.neto@netcabo.pt; Rocha, M.M. [Centro de Electroquimica e Cinetica da Universidade de Lisboa, Departamento de Quimica e Bioquimica, Faculdade de Ciencias, Universidade de Lisboa, Campo Grande, Ed. C8, 1749-016 Lisbon (Portugal); Fonseca, I.T.E. [Centro de Electroquimica e Cinetica da Universidade de Lisboa, Departamento de Quimica e Bioquimica, Faculdade de Ciencias, Universidade de Lisboa, Campo Grande, Ed. C8, 1749-016 Lisbon (Portugal)

    2006-10-10

    Electroanalytical techniques have been used to determine methylmercury at low levels in environmental matrices. The electrochemical behaviour of methylmercury at carbon microelectrodes in a hydrochloric acid medium using cyclic, square wave and fast-scan linear-sweep voltammetric techniques has been investigated. The analytical utility of the methylmercury reoxidation peak has been explored, but the recorded peak currents were found to be poorly reproducible. This is ascribed to two factors: the adsorption of insoluble chloromercury compounds on the electrode surface, which appears to be an important contribution to hinder the voltammetric signal of methylmercury; and the competition between the reoxidation of the methylmercury radical and its dimerization reaction, which limits the reproducibility of the methylmercury peak. These problems were successfully overcome by adopting the appropriate experimental conditions. Fast-scan rates were employed and an efficient electrochemical regeneration procedure of the electrode surface was achieved, under potentiostatic conditions in a mercury-free solution containing potassium thiocyanate-a strong complexing agent. The influence of chloride ion concentration was analysed. Interference by metals, such as lead and cadmium, was considered. Calibration plots were obtained in the micromolar and submicromolar concentration ranges, allowing the electrochemical determination of methylmercury in trace amounts. An estuarine water sample was analysed using the new method with a glassy carbon microelectrode.

  11. Voltammetric studies on the electrochemical determination of methylmercury in chloride medium at carbon microelectrodes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ribeiro, F.; Neto, M.M.M.; Rocha, M.M.; Fonseca, I.T.E.

    2006-01-01

    Electroanalytical techniques have been used to determine methylmercury at low levels in environmental matrices. The electrochemical behaviour of methylmercury at carbon microelectrodes in a hydrochloric acid medium using cyclic, square wave and fast-scan linear-sweep voltammetric techniques has been investigated. The analytical utility of the methylmercury reoxidation peak has been explored, but the recorded peak currents were found to be poorly reproducible. This is ascribed to two factors: the adsorption of insoluble chloromercury compounds on the electrode surface, which appears to be an important contribution to hinder the voltammetric signal of methylmercury; and the competition between the reoxidation of the methylmercury radical and its dimerization reaction, which limits the reproducibility of the methylmercury peak. These problems were successfully overcome by adopting the appropriate experimental conditions. Fast-scan rates were employed and an efficient electrochemical regeneration procedure of the electrode surface was achieved, under potentiostatic conditions in a mercury-free solution containing potassium thiocyanate-a strong complexing agent. The influence of chloride ion concentration was analysed. Interference by metals, such as lead and cadmium, was considered. Calibration plots were obtained in the micromolar and submicromolar concentration ranges, allowing the electrochemical determination of methylmercury in trace amounts. An estuarine water sample was analysed using the new method with a glassy carbon microelectrode

  12. O2 Plasma Etching and Antistatic Gun Surface Modifications for CNT Yarn Microelectrode Improve Sensitivity and Antifouling Properties.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Cheng; Wang, Ying; Jacobs, Christopher B; Ivanov, Ilia N; Venton, B Jill

    2017-05-16

    Carbon nanotube (CNT) based microelectrodes exhibit rapid and selective detection of neurotransmitters. While different fabrication strategies and geometries of CNT microelectrodes have been characterized, relatively little research has investigated ways to selectively enhance their electrochemical properties. In this work, we introduce two simple, reproducible, low-cost, and efficient surface modification methods for carbon nanotube yarn microelectrodes (CNTYMEs): O 2 plasma etching and antistatic gun treatment. O 2 plasma etching was performed by a microwave plasma system with oxygen gas flow and the optimized time for treatment was 1 min. The antistatic gun treatment flows ions by the electrode surface; two triggers of the antistatic gun was the optimized number on the CNTYME surface. Current for dopamine at CNTYMEs increased 3-fold after O 2 plasma etching and 4-fold after antistatic gun treatment. When the two treatments were combined, the current increased 12-fold, showing the two effects are due to independent mechanisms that tune the surface properties. O 2 plasma etching increased the sensitivity due to increased surface oxygen content but did not affect surface roughness while the antistatic gun treatment increased surface roughness but not oxygen content. The effect of tissue fouling on CNT yarns was studied for the first time, and the relatively hydrophilic surface after O 2 plasma etching provided better resistance to fouling than unmodified or antistatic gun treated CNTYMEs. Overall, O 2 plasma etching and antistatic gun treatment improve the sensitivity of CNTYMEs by different mechanisms, providing the possibility to tune the CNTYME surface and enhance sensitivity.

  13. Release from the cone ribbon synapse under bright light conditions can be controlled by the opening of only a few Ca(2+) channels.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bartoletti, Theodore M; Jackman, Skyler L; Babai, Norbert; Mercer, Aaron J; Kramer, Richard H; Thoreson, Wallace B

    2011-12-01

    Light hyperpolarizes cone photoreceptors, causing synaptic voltage-gated Ca(2+) channels to open infrequently. To understand neurotransmission under these conditions, we determined the number of L-type Ca(2+) channel openings necessary for vesicle fusion at the cone ribbon synapse. Ca(2+) currents (I(Ca)) were activated in voltage-clamped cones, and excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) were recorded from horizontal cells in the salamander retina slice preparation. Ca(2+) channel number and single-channel current amplitude were calculated by mean-variance analysis of I(Ca). Two different comparisons-one comparing average numbers of release events to average I(Ca) amplitude and the other involving deconvolution of both EPSCs and simultaneously recorded cone I(Ca)-suggested that fewer than three Ca(2+) channel openings accompanied fusion of each vesicle at the peak of release during the first few milliseconds of stimulation. Opening fewer Ca(2+) channels did not enhance fusion efficiency, suggesting that few unnecessary channel openings occurred during strong depolarization. We simulated release at the cone synapse, using empirically determined synaptic dimensions, vesicle pool size, Ca(2+) dependence of release, Ca(2+) channel number, and Ca(2+) channel properties. The model replicated observations when a barrier was added to slow Ca(2+) diffusion. Consistent with the presence of a diffusion barrier, dialyzing cones with diffusible Ca(2+) buffers did not affect release efficiency. The tight clustering of Ca(2+) channels, along with a high-Ca(2+) affinity release mechanism and diffusion barrier, promotes a linear coupling between Ca(2+) influx and vesicle fusion. This may improve detection of small light decrements when cones are hyperpolarized by bright light.

  14. CRYOVOLCANISM AND THE MYSTERY OF THE PATOM CONE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vladimir R. Alekseyev

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available In the Earth’s regions with cold climate, cryovolcanism is widespread. This phenomena is manifested as eruptions of material due to freezing of closed-type or open-type water-bearing systems which is accompanied by generation of effusive topographic forms, such as «pingo». The Patom cone is a typical structure created by cryovolcanism in fractured bedrocksof the Proterozoic age. The cone was shaped a result of the long-term, possibly multistage freezing of the hydrogeological structure during continuous and complicated phase of cryo- and speleo-genesis. The ice-saturated breccia containing limestone, sandstone and shale, which composed the cone, was subject to slow spreading due to its plastic properties; the top of the mound developed into a subsidence cone bordered by ring-shaped ramparts and a knoll in the middle, while thelongitudinal profile took on an asymmetric form. The absence of soil and vegetation cover on the surface of the cone, and a relatively weak degree of weathering of the rudaceous deposits bear no evidence that the geological object is young. The question as to the age of the cone is still open.

  15. A reconstruction algorithms for helical cone-beam SPECT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Weng, Y.; Zeng, G.L.; Gullberg, G.T.

    1993-01-01

    Cone-beam SPECT provides improved sensitivity for imaging small organs like the brain and heart. However, current cone-beam tomography with the focal point traversing a planar orbit does not acquire sufficient data to give an accurate reconstruction. In this paper, the authors employ a data-acquisition method which obtains complete data for cone-beam SPECT by simultaneously rotating the gamma camera and translating the patient bed, so that cone-beam projections can be obtained with the focal point traversing a helix surrounding the patient. An implementation of Grangeat's algorithm for helical cone-beam projections is developed. The algorithm requires a rebinning step to convert cone-beam data to parallel-beam data which are then reconstructed using the 3D Radon inversion. A fast new rebinning scheme is developed which uses all of the detected data to reconstruct the image and properly normalizes any multiply scanned data. This algorithm is shown to produce less artifacts than the commonly used Feldkamp algorithm when applied to either a circular planar orbit or a helical orbit acquisition. The algorithm can easily be extended to any arbitrary orbit

  16. Cone-Beam CT with Flat-Panel-Detector Digital Angiography System: Early Experience in Abdominal Interventional Procedures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hirota, Shozo; Nakao, Norio; Yamamoto, Satoshi; Kobayashi, Kaoru; Maeda, Hiroaki; Ishikura, Reiichi; Miura, Koui; Sakamoto, Kiyoshi; Ueda, Ken; Baba, Rika

    2006-01-01

    We developed a cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) system equipped with a large flat-panel detector. Data obtained by 200 o rotation imaging are reconstructed by means of CBCT to generate three-dimensional images. We report the use of CBCT angiography using CBCT in 10 patients with 8 liver malignancies and 2 hypersplenisms during abdominal interventional procedures. CBCT was very useful for interventional radiologists to confirm a perfusion area of the artery catheter wedged on CT by injection of contrast media through the catheter tip, although the image quality was slightly degraded, scoring as 2.60 on average by streak artifacts. CBCT is space-saving because it does not require a CT system with a gantry, and it is also time-saving because it does not require the transfer of patients

  17. Integrity of the cone photoreceptor mosaic in oligocone trichromacy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Michaelides, Michel; Rha, Jungtae; Dees, Elise W

    2011-01-01

    Oligocone trichromacy (OT) is an unusual cone dysfunction syndrome characterized by reduced visual acuity, mild photophobia, reduced amplitude of the cone electroretinogram with normal rod responses, normal fundus appearance, and normal or near-normal color vision. It has been proposed that these......Oligocone trichromacy (OT) is an unusual cone dysfunction syndrome characterized by reduced visual acuity, mild photophobia, reduced amplitude of the cone electroretinogram with normal rod responses, normal fundus appearance, and normal or near-normal color vision. It has been proposed...

  18. Simulation analysis of the effects of an initial cone position and opening angle on a cone-guided implosion

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yanagawa, T. [Department of Physics, Nagoya University, Furo-cho, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602 (Japan); Sakagami, H. [Fundamental Physics Simulation Division, National Institute for Fusion Science, Oroshi-cho, Toki, Gifu 509-5292 (Japan); Nagatomo, H. [Institute of Laser Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka 565-0871 (Japan)

    2013-10-15

    In inertial confinement fusion, the implosion process is important in forming a high-density plasma core. In the case of a fast ignition scheme using a cone-guided target, the fuel target is imploded with a cone inserted. This scheme is advantageous for efficiently heating the imploded fuel core; however, asymmetric implosion is essentially inevitable. Moreover, the effect of cone position and opening angle on implosion also becomes critical. Focusing on these problems, the effect of the asymmetric implosion, the initial position, and the opening angle on the compression rate of the fuel is investigated using a three-dimensional pure hydrodynamic code.

  19. External cervical resorption: an analysis using cone beam and microfocus computed tomography and scanning electron microscopy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gunst, V; Mavridou, A; Huybrechts, B; Van Gorp, G; Bergmans, L; Lambrechts, P

    2013-09-01

    To provide a three-dimensional representation of external cervical resorption (ECR) with microscopy, stereo microscopy, cone beam computed tomography (CT), microfocus CT and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). External cervical resorption is an aggressive form of root resorption, leading to a loss of dental hard tissues. This is due to clastic action, activated by a damage of the covering cementum and stimulated probably by infection. Clinically, it is a challenging situation as it is characterized by a late symptomatology. This is due to the pericanalar protection from a resorption-resistant sheet, composed of pre-dentine and surrounding dentine. The clastic activity is often associated with an attempt to repair, seen by the formation of osteoid tissue. Cone beam CT is extremely useful in the diagnoses and treatment planning of ECR. SEM analyses provide a better insight into the activity of osteoclasts. The root canal is surrounded by a layer of dentine that is resistant to resorption. © 2013 International Endodontic Journal. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  20. CFD analysis of cloud cavitation on three tip-modified propellers with systematically varied tip geometry

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Shin, K. W.; Andersen, Poul

    2015-01-01

    The blade tip loading is often reduced as an effort to restrain sheet and tip vortex cavitation in the design of marine propellers. This CFD analysis demonstrates that an excessive reduction of the tip loading can cause cloud cavitation responsible for much of noise and surface erosion. Detached...

  1. Electrohydrodynamic actuation of co-flowing liquids by means of microelectrode arrays

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Garcia-Sanchez, Pablo; Ferney, Mathieu; Ramos, Antonio

    2011-01-01

    Electric fields induce forces at the interface between liquids with different electrical properties (conductivity and/or permittivity). We explore how to use these forces for manipulating two coflowing streams of liquids in a microchannel. A microelectrode array is fabricated at the bottom of the channel and one of the two liquids is labelled with a fluorescent dye for observing the phenomenon. The diffuse interface between the two liquids is deflected depending on the ac signal and conductivity (or permittivity) ratio between the liquids. Only a few volts are needed for observing the interface destabilization, in contrast with other electrode configurations where hundreds of volts are applied.

  2. Electrohydrodynamic actuation of co-flowing liquids by means of microelectrode arrays

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Garcia-Sanchez, Pablo; Ferney, Mathieu; Ramos, Antonio, E-mail: pablogarcia@us.es [Depto. de Electronica y Electromagnetismo, University of Sevilla (Spain)

    2011-06-23

    Electric fields induce forces at the interface between liquids with different electrical properties (conductivity and/or permittivity). We explore how to use these forces for manipulating two coflowing streams of liquids in a microchannel. A microelectrode array is fabricated at the bottom of the channel and one of the two liquids is labelled with a fluorescent dye for observing the phenomenon. The diffuse interface between the two liquids is deflected depending on the ac signal and conductivity (or permittivity) ratio between the liquids. Only a few volts are needed for observing the interface destabilization, in contrast with other electrode configurations where hundreds of volts are applied.

  3. Optical coherence tomography and optical coherence domain reflectometry for deep brain stimulation probe guidance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jeon, Sung W.; Shure, Mark A.; Baker, Kenneth B.; Chahlavi, Ali; Hatoum, Nagi; Turbay, Massud; Rollins, Andrew M.; Rezai, Ali R.; Huang, David

    2005-04-01

    Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) is FDA-approved for the treatment of Parkinson's disease and essential tremor. Currently, placement of DBS leads is guided through a combination of anatomical targeting and intraoperative microelectrode recordings. The physiological mapping process requires several hours, and each pass of the microelectrode into the brain increases the risk of hemorrhage. Optical Coherence Domain Reflectometry (OCDR) in combination with current methodologies could reduce surgical time and increase accuracy and safety by providing data on structures some distance ahead of the probe. For this preliminary study, we scanned a rat brain in vitro using polarization-insensitive Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT). For accurate measurement of intensity and attenuation, polarization effects arising from tissue birefringence are removed by polarization diversity detection. A fresh rat brain was sectioned along the coronal plane and immersed in a 5 mm cuvette with saline solution. OCT images from a 1294 nm light source showed depth profiles up to 2 mm. Light intensity and attenuation rate distinguished various tissue structures such as hippocampus, cortex, external capsule, internal capsule, and optic tract. Attenuation coefficient is determined by linear fitting of the single scattering regime in averaged A-scans where Beer"s law is applicable. Histology showed very good correlation with OCT images. From the preliminary study using OCT, we conclude that OCDR is a promising approach for guiding DBS probe placement.

  4. Cone penetrometer moisture probe acceptance test report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Barnes, G.A.

    1996-01-01

    This Acceptance Test Report (ATR) documents the results of WHC-SD-WM-ATP-146 (Prototype Cone Penetrometer Moisture Probe Acceptance Test Procedure) and WHC-SD-WM-ATP-145 (Cone Penetrometer Moisture Probe Acceptance Test Procedure). The master copy of WHC-SD-WM-ATP-145 can be found in Appendix A and the master copy of WHC-SD-WM-ATP-146 can be found in Appendix B. Also included with this report is a matrix showing design criteria of the cone penetrometer moisture probe and the verification method used (Appendix C)

  5. An Analysis Model for Water Cone Subsidence in Bottom Water Drive Reservoirs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Jianjun; Xu, Hui; Wu, Shucheng; Yang, Chao; Kong, lingxiao; Zeng, Baoquan; Xu, Haixia; Qu, Tailai

    2017-12-01

    Water coning in bottom water drive reservoirs, which will result in earlier water breakthrough, rapid increase in water cut and low recovery level, has drawn tremendous attention in petroleum engineering field. As one simple and effective method to inhibit bottom water coning, shut-in coning control is usually preferred in oilfield to control the water cone and furthermore to enhance economic performance. However, most of the water coning researchers just have been done on investigation of the coning behavior as it grows up, the reported studies for water cone subsidence are very scarce. The goal of this work is to present an analytical model for water cone subsidence to analyze the subsidence of water cone when the well shut in. Based on Dupuit critical oil production rate formula, an analytical model is developed to estimate the initial water cone shape at the point of critical drawdown. Then, with the initial water cone shape equation, we propose an analysis model for water cone subsidence in bottom water reservoir reservoirs. Model analysis and several sensitivity studies are conducted. This work presents accurate and fast analytical model to perform the water cone subsidence in bottom water drive reservoirs. To consider the recent interests in development of bottom drive reservoirs, our approach provides a promising technique for better understanding the subsidence of water cone.

  6. Tips on Blood Testing

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Test Pain, Discomfort and Anxiety Tips to Help Children through Their Medical Tests Tips to Help the Elderly through Their Medical Tests Find Us On Social Media: Facebook Twitter Google Plus Footer Menu Home About ...

  7. Cone Penetrometer N Factor Determination Testing Results

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Follett, Jordan R.

    2014-03-05

    This document contains the results of testing activities to determine the empirical 'N Factor' for the cone penetrometer in kaolin clay simulant. The N Factor is used to releate resistance measurements taken with the cone penetrometer to shear strength.

  8. Loss and gain of cone types in vertebrate ciliary photoreceptor evolution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Musser, Jacob M; Arendt, Detlev

    2017-11-01

    Ciliary photoreceptors are a diverse cell type family that comprises the rods and cones of the retina and other related cell types such as pineal photoreceptors. Ciliary photoreceptor evolution has been dynamic during vertebrate evolution with numerous gains and losses of opsin and phototransduction genes, and changes in their expression. For example, early mammals lost all but two cone opsins, indicating loss of cone receptor types in response to nocturnal lifestyle. Our review focuses on the comparison of specifying transcription factors and cell type-specific transcriptome data in vertebrate retinae to build and test hypotheses on ciliary photoreceptor evolution. Regarding cones, recent data reveal that a combination of factors specific for long-wavelength sensitive opsin (Lws)- cones in non-mammalian vertebrates (Thrb and Rxrg) is found across all differentiating cone photoreceptors in mice. This suggests that mammalian ancestors lost all but one ancestral cone type, the Lws-cone. We test this hypothesis by a correlation analysis of cone transcriptomes in mouse and chick, and find that, indeed, transcriptomes of all mouse cones are most highly correlated to avian Lws-cones. These findings underscore the importance of specifying transcription factors in tracking cell type evolution, and shed new light on the mechanisms of cell type loss and gain in retina evolution. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. A pilot study to assess adductor canal catheter tip migration in a cadaver model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leng, Jody C; Harrison, T Kyle; Miller, Brett; Howard, Steven K; Conroy, Myles; Udani, Ankeet; Shum, Cynthia; Mariano, Edward R

    2015-04-01

    An adductor canal catheter may facilitate early ambulation after total knee arthroplasty, but there is concern over preoperative placement since intraoperative migration of catheters may occur from surgical manipulation and result in ineffective analgesia. We hypothesized that catheter type and subcutaneous tunneling may influence tip migration for preoperatively inserted adductor canal catheters. In a male unembalmed human cadaver, 20 catheter insertion trials were divided randomly into one of four groups: flexible epidural catheter either tunneled or not tunneled; or rigid stimulating catheter either tunneled or not tunneled. Intraoperative patient manipulation was simulated by five range-of-motion exercises of the knee. Distance and length measurements were performed by a blinded regional anesthesiologist. Changes in catheter tip to nerve distance (p = 0.225) and length of catheter within the adductor canal (p = 0.467) were not different between the four groups. Two of five non-tunneled stimulating catheters (40 %) were dislodged compared to 0/5 in all other groups (p = 0.187). A cadaver model may be useful for assessing migration of regional anesthesia catheters; catheter type and subcutaneous tunneling may not affect migration of adductor canal catheters based on this preliminary study. However, future studies involving a larger sample size, actual patients, and other catheter types are warranted.

  10. Feedback-induced glutamate spillover enhances negative feedback from horizontal cells to cones

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vroman, Rozan; Kamermans, M.

    2015-01-01

    KEY POINTS: In the retina, horizontal cells feed back negatively to cone photoreceptors. Glutamate released from cones can spill over to neighbouring cones. Here we show that cone glutamate release induced by negative feedback can also spill over to neighbouring cones. This glutamate activates the

  11. Feedback-induced glutamate spillover enhances negative feedback from horizontal cells to cones

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vroman, Rozan; Kamermans, Maarten

    2015-01-01

    In the retina, horizontal cells feed back negatively to cone photoreceptors. Glutamate released from cones can spill over to neighbouring cones. Here we show that cone glutamate release induced by negative feedback can also spill over to neighbouring cones. This glutamate activates the glutamate

  12. Cardiac cone-beam CT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Manzke, Robert

    2005-01-01

    This doctoral thesis addresses imaging of the heart with retrospectively gated helical cone-beam computed tomography (CT). A thorough review of the CT reconstruction literature is presented in combination with a historic overview of cardiac CT imaging and a brief introduction to other cardiac imaging modalities. The thesis includes a comprehensive chapter about the theory of CT reconstruction, familiarizing the reader with the problem of cone-beam reconstruction. The anatomic and dynamic properties of the heart are outlined and techniques to derive the gating information are reviewed. With the extended cardiac reconstruction (ECR) framework, a new approach is presented for the heart-rate-adaptive gated helical cardiac cone-beam CT reconstruction. Reconstruction assessment criteria such as the temporal resolution, the homogeneity in terms of the cardiac phase, and the smoothness at cycle-to-cycle transitions are developed. Several reconstruction optimization approaches are described: An approach for the heart-rate-adaptive optimization of the temporal resolution is presented. Streak artifacts at cycle-to-cycle transitions can be minimized by using an improved cardiac weighting scheme. The optimal quiescent cardiac phase for the reconstruction can be determined automatically with the motion map technique. Results for all optimization procedures applied to ECR are presented and discussed based on patient and phantom data. The ECR algorithm is analyzed for larger detector arrays of future cone-beam systems throughout an extensive simulation study based on a four-dimensional cardiac CT phantom. The results of the scientific work are summarized and an outlook proposing future directions is given. The presented thesis is available for public download at www.cardiac-ct.net

  13. Cone calorimeter tests of wood composites

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robert H. White; Kuma Sumathipala

    2013-01-01

    The cone calorimeter is widely used for the determination of the heat release rate (HRR) of building products and other materials. As part of an effort to increase the availability of cone calorimeter data on wood products, the U.S. Forest Products Laboratory and the American Wood Council conducted this study on composite wood products in cooperation with the Composite...

  14. Stimulated Raman spectroscopy and nanoscopy of molecules using near field photon induced forces without resonant electronic enhancement gain

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tamma, Venkata Ananth [CaSTL Center, Department of Chemistry, University of California, Irvine, California 92697 (United States); Huang, Fei; Kumar Wickramasinghe, H., E-mail: hkwick@uci.edu [Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 142 Engineering Tower, University of California, Irvine, California 92697 (United States); Nowak, Derek [Molecular Vista, Inc., 6840 Via Del Oro, San Jose, California 95119 (United States)

    2016-06-06

    We report on stimulated Raman spectroscopy and nanoscopy of molecules, excited without resonant electronic enhancement gain, and recorded using near field photon induced forces. Photon-induced interaction forces between the sharp metal coated silicon tip of an Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) and a sample resulting from stimulated Raman excitation were detected. We controlled the tip to sample spacing using the higher order flexural eigenmodes of the AFM cantilever, enabling the tip to come very close to the sample. As a result, the detection sensitivity was increased compared with previous work on Raman force microscopy. Raman vibrational spectra of azobenzene thiol and l-phenylalanine were measured and found to agree well with published results. Near-field force detection eliminates the need for far-field optical spectrometer detection. Recorded images show spatial resolution far below the optical diffraction limit. Further optimization and use of ultrafast pulsed lasers could push the detection sensitivity towards the single molecule limit.

  15. ADHD: Tips to Try

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Staying Safe Videos for Educators Search English Español ADHD: Tips to Try KidsHealth / For Teens / ADHD: Tips to Try Print en español TDAH: Consejos que puedes probar ADHD , short for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder , is a ...

  16. Cone penetrometer demonstration standard startup review checklist

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    KRIEG, S.A.

    1998-01-01

    Startup readiness for the Cone Penetrometer Demonstration in AX Tank Farm will be verified through the application of a Standard Startup Review Checklist. This is a listing of those items essential to demonstrating readiness to start the Cone Penetrometer Demonstration in AX Tank Farm

  17. Revision total knee arthroplasty with the use of trabecular metal cones

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Claus L; Petersen, Michael Mygind; Schrøder, Henrik

    2012-01-01

    "Trabecular Metal Cone" (TM Cone) (Zimmer, Inc, Warsaw, Ind) for reconstruction of bone loss in the proximal tibia during revision total knee arthroplasty is now optional. Forty patients were randomized to receive revision total knee arthroplasty with or without TM Cone (No TM Cone). The Anderson...

  18. Derivation of the gauge link in light cone gauge

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gao Jianhua

    2010-01-01

    In light cone gauge, a gauge link at light cone infinity is necessary for transverse momentum-dependent parton distribution to restore the gauge invariance in some specific boundary conditions. We derive such transverse gauge link in a more regular and general method. We find the gauge link at light cone infinity naturally arises from the contribution of the pinched poles: one is from the quark propagator and the other is hidden in the gauge vector field in light cone gauge. Actually, in the amplitude level, we have obtained a more general gauge link over the hypersurface at light cone infinity which is beyond the transverse direction. The difference of such gauge link between semi-inclusive deep inelastic scattering and Drell-Yan processes can also be obtained directly and clearly in our derivation.

  19. Venomics-Accelerated Cone Snail Venom Peptide Discovery

    Science.gov (United States)

    Himaya, S. W. A.

    2018-01-01

    Cone snail venoms are considered a treasure trove of bioactive peptides. Despite over 800 species of cone snails being known, each producing over 1000 venom peptides, only about 150 unique venom peptides are structurally and functionally characterized. To overcome the limitations of the traditional low-throughput bio-discovery approaches, multi-omics systems approaches have been introduced to accelerate venom peptide discovery and characterisation. This “venomic” approach is starting to unravel the full complexity of cone snail venoms and to provide new insights into their biology and evolution. The main challenge for venomics is the effective integration of transcriptomics, proteomics, and pharmacological data and the efficient analysis of big datasets. Novel database search tools and visualisation techniques are now being introduced that facilitate data exploration, with ongoing advances in related omics fields being expected to further enhance venomics studies. Despite these challenges and future opportunities, cone snail venomics has already exponentially expanded the number of novel venom peptide sequences identified from the species investigated, although most novel conotoxins remain to be pharmacologically characterised. Therefore, efficient high-throughput peptide production systems and/or banks of miniaturized discovery assays are required to overcome this bottleneck and thus enhance cone snail venom bioprospecting and accelerate the identification of novel drug leads. PMID:29522462

  20. Venomics-Accelerated Cone Snail Venom Peptide Discovery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. W. A. Himaya

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Cone snail venoms are considered a treasure trove of bioactive peptides. Despite over 800 species of cone snails being known, each producing over 1000 venom peptides, only about 150 unique venom peptides are structurally and functionally characterized. To overcome the limitations of the traditional low-throughput bio-discovery approaches, multi-omics systems approaches have been introduced to accelerate venom peptide discovery and characterisation. This “venomic” approach is starting to unravel the full complexity of cone snail venoms and to provide new insights into their biology and evolution. The main challenge for venomics is the effective integration of transcriptomics, proteomics, and pharmacological data and the efficient analysis of big datasets. Novel database search tools and visualisation techniques are now being introduced that facilitate data exploration, with ongoing advances in related omics fields being expected to further enhance venomics studies. Despite these challenges and future opportunities, cone snail venomics has already exponentially expanded the number of novel venom peptide sequences identified from the species investigated, although most novel conotoxins remain to be pharmacologically characterised. Therefore, efficient high-throughput peptide production systems and/or banks of miniaturized discovery assays are required to overcome this bottleneck and thus enhance cone snail venom bioprospecting and accelerate the identification of novel drug leads.

  1. Avian cone photoreceptors tile the retina as five independent, self-organizing mosaics.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yoseph A Kram

    2010-02-01

    Full Text Available The avian retina possesses one of the most sophisticated cone photoreceptor systems among vertebrates. Birds have five types of cones including four single cones, which support tetrachromatic color vision and a double cone, which is thought to mediate achromatic motion perception. Despite this richness, very little is known about the spatial organization of avian cones and its adaptive significance. Here we show that the five cone types of the chicken independently tile the retina as highly ordered mosaics with a characteristic spacing between cones of the same type. Measures of topological order indicate that double cones are more highly ordered than single cones, possibly reflecting their posited role in motion detection. Although cones show spacing interactions that are cell type-specific, all cone types use the same density-dependent yardstick to measure intercone distance. We propose a simple developmental model that can account for these observations. We also show that a single parameter, the global regularity index, defines the regularity of all five cone mosaics. Lastly, we demonstrate similar cone distributions in three additional avian species, suggesting that these patterning principles are universal among birds. Since regular photoreceptor spacing is critical for uniform sampling of visual space, the cone mosaics of the avian retina represent an elegant example of the emergence of adaptive global patterning secondary to simple local interactions between individual photoreceptors. Our results indicate that the evolutionary pressures that gave rise to the avian retina's various adaptations for enhanced color discrimination also acted to fine-tune its spatial sampling of color and luminance.

  2. Magnet pole tips

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thorn, Craig E.; Chasman, Chellis; Baltz, Anthony J.

    1984-04-24

    An improved magnet which more easily provides a radially increasing magnetic field, as well as reduced fringe field and requires less power for a given field intensity. The subject invention comprises a pair of spaced, opposed magnetic poles which further comprise a pair of pole roots, each having a pole tip attached to its center. The pole tips define the gap between the magnetic poles and at least a portion of each pole tip is separated from its associated pole root. The separation begins at a predetermined distance from the center of the pole root and increases with increasing radial distance while being constant with azimuth within that portion. Magnets in accordance with the subject invention have been found to be particularly advantageous for use in large isochronous cyclotrons.

  3. Evaluation of electrical nerve stimulation for epidural catheter positioning in the dog.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garcia-Pereira, Fernando L; Sanders, Robert; Shih, Andre C; Sonea, Ioana M; Hauptman, Joseph G

    2013-09-01

    To evaluate the accuracy of epidural catheter placement at different levels of the spinal cord guided solely by electrical nerve stimulation and resultant segmental muscle contraction. Prospective, experiment. Six male and two female Beagles, age (1 ± 0.17 years) and weight (12.9 ± 1.1 kg). Animals were anesthetized with propofol and maintained with isoflurane. An insulated epidural needle was used to reach the lumbosacral epidural space. A Tsui epidural catheter was inserted and connected to a nerve stimulator (1.0 mA, 0.1 ms, 2 Hz) to assess positioning of the tip at specific spinal cord segments. The catheter was advanced to three different levels of the spinal cord: lumbar (L2-L5), thoracic (T5-T10) and cervical (C4-C6). Subcutaneous needles were previously placed at these spinal levels and the catheter was advanced to match the needle location, guided only by corresponding muscle contractions. Catheter position was verified by fluoroscopy. If catheter tip and needle were at the same vertebral body a score of zero was assigned. When catheter tip was cranial or caudal to the needle, positive or negative numbers, respectively, corresponding to the number of vertebrae between them, were assigned. The mean and standard deviation of the number of vertebrae between catheter tip and needle were calculated to assess accuracy. Results are given as mean ± SD. The catheter position in relation to the needle was within 0.3 ± 2.0 vertebral bodies. Positive predictive values (PPV) were 57%, 83% and 71% for lumbar, thoracic and cervical regions respectively. Overall PPV was 70%. No significant difference in PPV among regions was found. Placement of an epidural catheter at specific spinal levels using electrical nerve stimulation was feasible without radiographic assistance in dogs. Two vertebral bodies difference from the target site may be clinically acceptable when performing segmental epidural regional anesthesia. © 2013 Association of Veterinary

  4. Noise masking of S-cone increments and decrements.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Quanhong; Richters, David P; Eskew, Rhea T

    2014-11-12

    S-cone increment and decrement detection thresholds were measured in the presence of bipolar, dynamic noise masks. Noise chromaticities were the L-, M-, and S-cone directions, as well as L-M, L+M, and achromatic (L+M+S) directions. Noise contrast power was varied to measure threshold Energy versus Noise (EvN) functions. S+ and S- thresholds were similarly, and weakly, raised by achromatic noise. However, S+ thresholds were much more elevated by S, L+M, L-M, L- and M-cone noises than were S- thresholds, even though the noises consisted of two symmetric chromatic polarities of equal contrast power. A linear cone combination model accounts for the overall pattern of masking of a single test polarity well. L and M cones have opposite signs in their effects upon raising S+ and S- thresholds. The results strongly indicate that the psychophysical mechanisms responsible for S+ and S- detection, presumably based on S-ON and S-OFF pathways, are distinct, unipolar mechanisms, and that they have different spatiotemporal sampling characteristics, or contrast gains, or both. © 2014 ARVO.

  5. Identifying Dirac cones in carbon allotropes with square symmetry

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang, Jinying [College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871 (China); Huang, Huaqing; Duan, Wenhui [Department of Physics, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084 (China); Liu, Zhirong, E-mail: LiuZhiRong@pku.edu.cn [College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871 (China); State Key Laboratory for Structural Chemistry of Unstable and Stable Species and Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences (BNLMS), Peking University, Beijing 100871 (China)

    2013-11-14

    A theoretical study is conducted to search for Dirac cones in two-dimensional carbon allotropes with square symmetry. By enumerating the carbon atoms in a unit cell up to 12, an allotrope with octatomic rings is recognized to possess Dirac cones under a simple tight-binding approach. The obtained Dirac cones are accompanied by flat bands at the Fermi level, and the resulting massless Dirac-Weyl fermions are chiral particles with a pseudospin of S = 1, rather than the conventional S = 1/2 of graphene. The spin-1 Dirac cones are also predicted to exist in hexagonal graphene antidot lattices.

  6. Conical Refraction: new observations and a dual cone model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sokolovskii, G S; Carnegie, D J; Kalkandjiev, T K; Rafailov, E U

    2013-05-06

    We propose a paraxial dual-cone model of conical refraction involving the interference of two cones of light behind the exit face of the crystal. The supporting experiment is based on beam selecting elements breaking down the conically refracted beam into two separate hollow cones which are symmetrical with one another. The shape of these cones of light is a product of a 'competition' between the divergence caused by the conical refraction and the convergence due to the focusing by the lens. The developed mathematical description of the conical refraction demonstrates an excellent agreement with experiment.

  7. Conceptual Design of Deployment Structure of Morphing Nose Cone

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Junlan Li

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available For a reusable space vehicle or a missile, the shape of the nose cone has a significant effect on the drag of the vehicle. In this paper, the concept of morphing nose cone is proposed to reduce the drag when the reentry vehicle flies back into the atmosphere. The conceptual design of the structure of morphing nose cone is conducted. Mechanical design and optimization approach are developed by employing genetic algorithm to find the optimal geometric parameters of the morphing structure. An example is analyzed by using the proposed method. The results show that optimal solution supplies the minimum position error. The concept of morphing nose cone will provide a novel way for the drag reduction of reentry vehicle. The proposed method could be practically used for the design and optimization of the deployable structure of morphing nose cone.

  8. Numerical investigation of three wind turbine blade tips

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Johansen, J.; Soerensen, N.N.

    2002-08-01

    The complex three-dimensional flow around three different tip shapes on a rotating wind turbine blade is investigated and analyzed using Computational Fluid Dynamics. Differences in production, flap wise bending moments and forces are discussed. A method for determining the local inflow angle of attack is presented and further analysis is performed on lift and drag coefficients. It is shown that the original Standard tip results in a more concentrated tip vortex leading to a steeper gradient on both tangential and normal forces when approaching the tip, whereas the two tapered tips show a more flat behavior. This again leads to lower flap wise bending moments and lower production for the Standard tip compared to the two tapered tips. At 12 m/s, though, the Swept tip shows a separation pattern on the surface. This separation causes a decrease in normal force and an increase in tangential force. The Taper tip keeps the higher loading causing the flap wise bending moment to be higher as seen in measurements. To determine the radial variation of lift and drag coefficients the local inflow angle of attack is determined. It is shown that the Standard tip experiences a slightly larger angle of attack at the tip compared to the two tapered tips. The lift coefficients are kept at a more constant level for the two tapered tips due to the decrease in chord, while the drag coefficients actually decrease for the two tapered tips, especially for the Swept tip. For the Swept tip at 12 m/s both lift and drag coefficients changed considerably due to the separation. Differences in aerodynamic damping of the three tips were investigated using HAWCDAMP. The Standard tip seems to be slightly less damped with respect to the edgewise vibrations. (au)

  9. Full utilization of semi-Dirac cones in photonics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yasa, Utku G.; Turduev, Mirbek; Giden, Ibrahim H.; Kurt, Hamza

    2018-05-01

    In this study, realization and applications of anisotropic zero-refractive-index materials are proposed by exposing the unit cells of photonic crystals that exhibit Dirac-like cone dispersion to rotational symmetry reduction. Accidental degeneracy of two Bloch modes in the Brillouin zone center of two-dimensional C2-symmetric photonic crystals gives rise to the semi-Dirac cone dispersion. The proposed C2-symmetric photonic crystals behave as epsilon-and-mu-near-zero materials (ɛeff≈ 0 , μeff≈ 0 ) along one propagation direction, but behave as epsilon-near-zero material (ɛeff≈ 0 , μeff≠ 0 ) for the perpendicular direction at semi-Dirac frequency. By extracting the effective medium parameters of the proposed C4- and C2-symmetric periodic media that exhibit Dirac-like and semi-Dirac cone dispersions, intrinsic differences between isotropic and anisotropic materials are investigated. Furthermore, advantages of utilizing semi-Dirac cone materials instead of Dirac-like cone materials in photonic applications are demonstrated in both frequency and time domains. By using anisotropic transmission behavior of the semi-Dirac materials, photonic application concepts such as beam deflectors, beam splitters, and light focusing are proposed. Furthermore, to the best of our knowledge, semi-Dirac cone dispersion is also experimentally demonstrated for the first time by including negative, zero, and positive refraction states of the given material.

  10. Preparation of high purity nickel film from industrial effluent by the distribution of charge over microelectrodes using newly designed free electrolytic diffusion approach

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahmed, Sheikh Asrar; Qadir, Muhammad Abdul; Zafar, Muhammad Nadeem; Hussain, Ishtiaq; Tufail, Shahid; Rashid, Saima; Shah, Hamid Ali

    2008-01-01

    The present work deals with the development of a newly designed free electrolytic diffusion approach (the distribution of charge over microelectrodes) for the purification of metals and was successfully applied for the purification of nickel from the industrial effluent containing high proportion of nickel. Atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS) analyzed the purified nickel deposited on working microelectrodes. The results obtained show that the purity of nickel was enhanced from 95% to 99.9% with traces of copper etc. It was concluded that distribution of charge over the microcathodes at a rate of 50 cycles per second (cps) shows better results for the production of high purity (HP) nickel as compared to 25 cycles per second (cps)

  11. Preparation of high purity nickel film from industrial effluent by the distribution of charge over microelectrodes using newly designed free electrolytic diffusion approach

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ahmed, Sheikh Asrar; Qadir, Muhammad Abdul [Institute of Chemistry, University of the Punjab, Lahore, 54590 (Pakistan); Zafar, Muhammad Nadeem [Institute of Chemistry, University of the Punjab, Lahore, 54590 (Pakistan)], E-mail: znadeempk@yahoo.com; Hussain, Ishtiaq [Institute of Chemistry, University of the Punjab, Lahore, 54590 (Pakistan); Tufail, Shahid [PCSIR Laboratories Complex, Feroz pur Road, Lahore (Pakistan); Rashid, Saima; Shah, Hamid Ali [Institute of Chemistry, University of the Punjab, Lahore, 54590 (Pakistan)

    2008-09-15

    The present work deals with the development of a newly designed free electrolytic diffusion approach (the distribution of charge over microelectrodes) for the purification of metals and was successfully applied for the purification of nickel from the industrial effluent containing high proportion of nickel. Atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS) analyzed the purified nickel deposited on working microelectrodes. The results obtained show that the purity of nickel was enhanced from 95% to 99.9% with traces of copper etc. It was concluded that distribution of charge over the microcathodes at a rate of 50 cycles per second (cps) shows better results for the production of high purity (HP) nickel as compared to 25 cycles per second (cps)

  12. Cadmium Removal from Aqueous Solutions by Ground Pine Cone

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H Izanloo, S Nasseri

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available A study on the removal of cadmium ions from aqueous solutions by pine cone was conducted in batch conditions. Kinetic data and equilibrium removal isotherms were obtained. The influence of different experimental parameters such as contact time, initial concentration of cadmium, pine cone mass and particle size, and temperature on the kinetics of cadmium removal was studied. Results showed that the main parameters that played an important role in removal phenomenon were initial cadmium concentration, particle size and pine cone mass. The necessary time to reach equilibrium was between 4 and 7 hours based on the initial concentration of cadmium. The capacity of cadmium adsorption at equilibrium increased with the decrease of pine cone particle size. The capacity of cadmium adsorption at equilibrium by pine cone increased with the quantity of pine cone introduced (1–4 g/L. Temperature in the range of 20-30°C showed a restricted effect on the removal kinetics (13.56 mg/g at 20°C and a low capacity of adsorption about 11.48 mg/g at 30°C. The process followed pseudo second-order kinetics. The cadmium uptake of pine cone was quantitatively evaluated using adsorption isotherms. Results indicated that the Langmuir model gave a better fit to the experimental data in comparison with the Freundlich equation.

  13. Simultaneous transcranial magnetic stimulation and single neuron recording in alert non-human primates

    OpenAIRE

    Mueller, Jerel K.; Grigsby, Erinn M.; Prevosto, Vincent; Petraglia, Frank W.; Rao, Hrishikesh; Deng, Zhi-De; Peterchev, Angel V.; Sommer, Marc A.; Egner, Tobias; Platt, Michael L.; Grill, Warren M.

    2014-01-01

    Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a widely used, noninvasive method for stimulating nervous tissue, yet its mechanisms of effect are poorly understood. Here we report novel methods for studying the influence of TMS on single neurons in the brain of alert non-human primates. We designed a TMS coil that focuses its effect near the tip of a recording electrode and recording electronics that enable direct acquisition of neuronal signals at the site of peak stimulus strength minimally per...

  14. Bidirectional remodeling of β1-integrin adhesions during chemotropic regulation of nerve growth

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carlstrom Lucas P

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Chemotropic factors in the extracellular microenvironment guide nerve growth by acting on the growth cone located at the tip of extending axons. Growth cone extension requires the coordination of cytoskeleton-dependent membrane protrusion and dynamic adhesion to the extracellular matrix, yet how chemotropic factors regulate these events remains an outstanding question. We demonstrated previously that the inhibitory factor myelin-associated glycoprotein (MAG triggers endocytic removal of the adhesion receptor β1-integrin from the growth cone surface membrane to negatively remodel substrate adhesions during chemorepulsion. Here, we tested how a neurotrophin might affect integrin adhesions. Results We report that brain-derived neurotropic factor (BDNF positively regulates the formation of substrate adhesions in axonal growth cones during stimulated outgrowth and prevents removal of β1-integrin adhesions by MAG. Treatment of Xenopus spinal neurons with BDNF rapidly triggered β1-integrin clustering and induced the dynamic formation of nascent vinculin-containing adhesion complexes in the growth cone periphery. Both the formation of nascent β1-integrin adhesions and the stimulation of axon extension by BDNF required cytoplasmic calcium ion signaling and integrin activation at the cell surface. Exposure to MAG decreased the number of β1-integrin adhesions in the growth cone during inhibition of axon extension. In contrast, the BDNF-induced adhesions were resistant to negative remodeling by MAG, correlating with the ability of BDNF pretreatment to counteract MAG-inhibition of axon extension. Pre-exposure to MAG prevented the BDNF-induced formation of β1-integrin adhesions and blocked the stimulation of axon extension by BDNF. Conclusions Altogether, these findings demonstrate the neurotrophin-dependent formation of integrin-based adhesions in the growth cone and reveal how a positive regulator of substrate adhesions can block

  15. A CMOS IC–based multisite measuring system for stimulation and recording in neural preparations in vitro

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Takashi eTateno

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available In this report, we describe the system integration of a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS integrated circuit (IC chip, capable of both stimulation and recording of neurons or neural tissues, to investigate electrical signal propagation within cellular networks in vitro. The overall system consisted of three major subunits: a 5.0 mm × 5.0 mm CMOS IC chip, a reconfigurable logic device (field-programmable gate array, FPGA, and a PC. To test the system, microelectrode arrays (MEAs were used to extracellularly measure the activity of cultured rat cortical neurons and mouse cortical slices. The MEA had 64 bidirectional (stimulation and recording electrodes. In addition, the CMOS IC chip was equipped with dedicated analog filters, amplification stages, and a stimulation buffer. Signals from the electrodes were sampled at 15.6 kHz with 16-bit resolution. The measured input-referred circuitry noise was 10.1 μV root mean square (10 Hz to 100 kHz, which allowed reliable detection of neural signals ranging from several millivolts down to approximately 33 μVpp. Experiments were performed involving the stimulation of neurons with several spatiotemporal patterns and the recording of the triggered activity. An advantage over current MEAs, as demonstrated by our experiments, includes the ability to stimulate (voltage stimulation, 5-bit resolution spatiotemporal patterns in arbitrary subsets of electrodes. Furthermore, the fast stimulation reset mechanism allowed us to record neuronal signals from a stimulating electrode around 3 ms after stimulation. We demonstrate that the system can be directly applied to, for example, auditory neural prostheses in conjunction with an acoustic sensor and a sound processing system.

  16. Lightning Safety Tips and Resources

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Services Careers Contact Us Glossary Safety National Program Lightning Safety Tips and Resources Weather.gov > Safety > Lightning Safety Tips and Resources Lightning Resources Lightning strikes ...

  17. Multilayer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-dexamethasone and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-polystyrene sulfonate-carbon nanotubes coatings on glassy carbon microelectrode arrays for controlled drug release.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castagnola, Elisa; Carli, Stefano; Vomero, Maria; Scarpellini, Alice; Prato, Mirko; Goshi, Noah; Fadiga, Luciano; Kassegne, Sam; Ricci, Davide

    2017-07-13

    The authors present an electrochemically controlled, drug releasing neural interface composed of a glassy carbon (GC) microelectrode array combined with a multilayer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) coating. The system integrates the high stability of the GC electrode substrate, ideal for electrical stimulation and electrochemical detection of neurotransmitters, with the on-demand drug-releasing capabilities of PEDOT-dexamethasone compound, through a mechanically stable interlayer of PEDOT-polystyrene sulfonate (PSS)-carbon nanotubes (CNT). The authors demonstrate that such interlayer improves both the mechanical and electrochemical properties of the neural interface, when compared with a single PEDOT-dexamethasone coating. Moreover, the multilayer coating is able to withstand 10 × 10 6 biphasic pulses and delamination test with negligible change to the impedance spectra. Cross-section scanning electron microscopy images support that the PEDOT-PSS-CNT interlayer significantly improves the adhesion between the GC substrate and PEDOT-dexamethasone coating, showing no discontinuities between the three well-interconnected layers. Furthermore, the multilayer coating has superior electrochemical properties, in terms of impedance and charge transfer capabilities as compared to a single layer of either PEDOT coating or the GC substrate alone. The authors verified the drug releasing capabilities of the PEDOT-dexamethasone layer when integrated into the multilayer interface through repeated stimulation protocols in vitro, and found a pharmacologically relevant release of dexamethasone.

  18. JWFront: Wavefronts and Light Cones for Kerr Spacetimes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frutos Alfaro, Francisco; Grave, Frank; Müller, Thomas; Adis, Daria

    2015-04-01

    JWFront visualizes wavefronts and light cones in general relativity. The interactive front-end allows users to enter the initial position values and choose the values for mass and angular momentum per unit mass. The wavefront animations are available in 2D and 3D; the light cones are visualized using the coordinate systems (t, x, y) or (t, z, x). JWFront can be easily modified to simulate wavefronts and light cones for other spacetime by providing the Christoffel symbols in the program.

  19. Tracking blue cone signals in the primate brain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jayakumar, Jaikishan; Dreher, Bogdan; Vidyasagar, Trichur R

    2013-05-01

    In this paper, we review the path taken by signals originating from the short wavelength sensitive cones (S-cones) in Old World and New World primates. Two types of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) carrying S-cone signals (blue-On and blue-Off cells) project to the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (dLGN) in the thalamus. In all primates, these S-cone signals are relayed through the 'dust-like' (konis in classical Greek) dLGN cells. In New World primates such as common marmoset, these very small cells are known to form distinct and spatially extensive, koniocellular layers. Although in Old World primates, such as macaques, koniocellular layers tend to be very thin, the adjacent parvocellular layers contain distinct koniocellular extensions. It appears that all S-cone signals are relayed through such konio cells, whether they are in the main koniocellular layers or in their colonies within the parvocellular layers of the dLGN. In the primary visual cortex, these signals begin to merge with the signals carried by the other two principal parallel channels, namely the magnocellular and parvocellular channels. This article will also review the possible routes taken by the S-cone signals to reach one of the topographically organised extrastriate visual cortical areas, the middle temporal area (area MT). This area is the major conduit for signals reaching the parietal cortex. Alternative visual inputs to area MT not relayed via the primary visual cortex area (V1) may provide the neurological basis for the phenomenon of 'blindsight' observed in human and non-human primates, who have partial or complete damage to the primary visual cortex. Short wavelength sensitive cone (S-cone) signals to area MT may also play a role in directing visual attention with possible implications for understanding the pathology in dyslexia and some of its treatment options. © 2012 The Authors. Clinical and Experimental Optometry © 2012 Optometrists Association Australia.

  20. Cinder cones of Mount Slamet, Central Java, Indonesia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Igan S. SutawIdjaja

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available http://dx.doi.org/10.17014/ijog.vol4no1.20096The Mount Slamet volcanic field in Central Java, Indonesia, contains thirty five cinder cones within an area of 90 sq. km in the east flank of the volcano. The cinder cones occur singly or in small groups, with diameter of the base ranges from 130 - 750 m and the height is around 250 m. Within the volcanic field, the cinder cones are spread over the volcanic area at the distance of 4 to 14 km from the eruption center of the Slamet Volcano. They are concentrated within latitudes 7°11’00” - 7°16’00” S,, and longitudes 109°15’00” - 109°18’00” E. The density of the cinder cones is about 1.5 cones/km2. Most of the cinder cones lie on the Tertiary sedimentary rocks along the NW-trending fault system and on radial fractures. The structural pattern may be related to the radial faults in this region. The cone surfaces are commonly blanketed by Slamet air-falls and lava flows. The deposits consist of poorly bedded, very coarse-grained, occasionally overlain by oxidized scoria, and large-sized of ballistic bombs and blocks. There are various kind of volcanic bombs originating from scoriae ballistic rock fragments. The other kind of volcanic bombs are breadcrust bomb, almond seed or contorted shape. All of the cinder cones have undergone degradation, which can be observed from the characters of gully density and surface morphology. By using Porter parameters, Hco is equal to 0.25 Wco, whilst Wcr is equal to 0.40 Wco. The Hco/Wco ratio is higher than Hco = 0.2 Wco reference line. A radiometric dating using K-Ar method carried out on a scoria bomb yields the age of 0.042 + 0.020 Ma.  

  1. Tip Cells in Angiogenesis

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    M.G. Dallinga (Marchien); S.E.M. Boas (Sonja); I. Klaassen (Ingeborg); R.M.H. Merks (Roeland); C.J.F. van Noorden; R.O. Schlingemann (Reinier)

    2015-01-01

    htmlabstractIn angiogenesis, the process in which blood vessel sprouts grow out from a pre-existing vascular network, the so-called endothelial tip cells play an essential role. Tip cells are the leading cells of the sprouts; they guide following endothelial cells and sense their environment for

  2. Potential for thermal damage to the blood–brain barrier during craniotomy: implications for intracortical recording microelectrodes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shoffstall, Andrew J.; Paiz, Jen E.; Miller, David M.; Rial, Griffin M.; Willis, Mitchell T.; Menendez, Dhariyat M.; Hostler, Stephen R.; Capadona, Jeffrey R.

    2018-06-01

    Objective. Our objective was to determine how readily disruption of the blood–brain barrier (BBB) occurred as a result of bone drilling during a craniotomy to implant microelectrodes in rat cortex. While the phenomenon of heat production during bone drilling is well known, practices to evade damage to the underlying brain tissue are inconsistently practiced and reported in the literature. Approach. We conducted a review of the intracortical microelectrode literature to summarize typical approaches to mitigate drill heating during rodent craniotomies. Post mortem skull-surface and transient brain-surface temperatures were experimentally recorded using an infrared camera and thermocouple, respectively. A number of drilling conditions were tested, including varying drill speed and continuous versus intermittent contact. In vivo BBB permeability was assayed 1 h after the craniotomy procedure using Evans blue dye. Main results. Of the reviewed papers that mentioned methods to mitigate thermal damage during craniotomy, saline irrigation was the most frequently cited (in six of seven papers). In post mortem tissues, we observed increases in skull-surface temperature ranging from  +3 °C to  +21 °C, dependent on drill speed. In vivo, pulsed-drilling (2 s-on/2 s-off) and slow-drilling speeds (1000 r.p.m.) were the most effective methods we studied to mitigate heating effects from drilling, while inconclusive results were obtained with saline irrigation. Significance. Neuroinflammation, initiated by damage to the BBB and perpetuated by the foreign body response, is thought to play a key role in premature failure of intracortical recording microelectrodes. This study demonstrates the extreme sensitivity of the BBB to overheating caused by bone drilling. To avoid damage to the BBB, the authors recommend that craniotomies be drilled with slow speeds and/or with intermittent drilling with complete removal of the drill from the skull during ‘off’ periods. While

  3. Tip model of cold fission

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Goennenwein, F.; Boersig, B.

    1991-01-01

    Cold fission is defined to be the limiting case of nuclear fission where virtually all of the available energy is converted into the total kinetic energy of the fragments. The fragments have, therefore, to be born in or at least close to their respective ground states. Starting from the viewpoint that cold fission corresponds to most compact scission configurations, energy constraints have been exploited to calculate minimum tip distances between the two nascent fragments in binary fission. Crucial input parameters to this tip model of cold fission are the ground-state deformations of fragment nuclei. It is shown that the minimum tip distances being compatible with energy conservation vary strongly with both the mass and charge fragmentation of the fission prone nucleus. The tip distances refer to nuclei with equivalent sharp surfaces. In keeping with the size of the surface width of leptodermous nuclei, only configurations where the tip distances are smaller than a few fm may be considered as valid scission configurations. From a comparison with experimental data on cold fission this critical tip distance appears to be 3.0 fm for the model parameters chosen. Whenever the model calculation yields tip distances being smaller than the critical value, a necessary condition for attaining cold fission is considered to be fulfilled. It is shown that this criterion allows to understand in fair agreement with experiment which mass fragmentations are susceptible to lead to cold fission and which fragment-charge divisions are the most favored in each isobaric mass chain. Being based merely on energy arguments, the model cannot aim at predicting fragment yields in cold fission. However, the tip model proposed appears well suited to delineate the phase space where cold fission phenomena may come into sight. (orig.)

  4. Jordan's algebra of a facially homogeneous autopolar cone

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bellissard, Jean; Iochum, Bruno

    1979-01-01

    It is shown that a Jordan-Banach algebra with predual may be canonically associated with a facially homogeneous autopolar cone. This construction generalizes the case where a trace vector exists in the cone [fr

  5. Modified superstring in light cone gauge

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kamimura, Kiyoshi; Tatewaki, Machiko.

    1988-01-01

    We analyze the covariant superstring theory proposed by Siegel in light cone gauge. The physical states are the direct product of those of Green-Schwarz Superstring and the additional internal space spanned by light cone spinors. At clasical level, there is no difference among observables in Siegel's modified Superstring theory (SMST) and Green-Schwarz's one (GSST). However SMST can not be quantized with additional constraints as the physical state conditions. (author)

  6. Comparison of the WSA-ENLIL model with three CME cone types

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jang, Soojeong; Moon, Y.; Na, H.

    2013-07-01

    We have made a comparison of the CME-associated shock propagation based on the WSA-ENLIL model with three cone types using 29 halo CMEs from 2001 to 2002. These halo CMEs have cone model parameters as well as their associated interplanetary (IP) shocks. For this study we consider three different cone types (an asymmetric cone model, an ice-cream cone model and an elliptical cone model) to determine 3-D CME parameters (radial velocity, angular width and source location), which are the input values of the WSA-ENLIL model. The mean absolute error (MAE) of the arrival times for the asymmetric cone model is 10.6 hours, which is about 1 hour smaller than those of the other models. Their ensemble average of MAE is 9.5 hours. However, this value is still larger than that (8.7 hours) of the empirical model of Kim et al. (2007). We will compare their IP shock velocities and densities with those from ACE in-situ measurements and discuss them in terms of the prediction of geomagnetic storms.Abstract (2,250 Maximum Characters): We have made a comparison of the CME-associated shock propagation based on the WSA-ENLIL model with three cone types using 29 halo CMEs from 2001 to 2002. These halo CMEs have cone model parameters as well as their associated interplanetary (IP) shocks. For this study we consider three different cone types (an asymmetric cone model, an ice-cream cone model and an elliptical cone model) to determine 3-D CME parameters (radial velocity, angular width and source location), which are the input values of the WSA-ENLIL model. The mean absolute error (MAE) of the arrival times for the asymmetric cone model is 10.6 hours, which is about 1 hour smaller than those of the other models. Their ensemble average of MAE is 9.5 hours. However, this value is still larger than that (8.7 hours) of the empirical model of Kim et al. (2007). We will compare their IP shock velocities and densities with those from ACE in-situ measurements and discuss them in terms of the

  7. The light-cone Fock state expansion and hadron physics phenomenology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brodsky, S.J.

    1997-06-01

    The light-cone Fock expansion is defined in the following way: one first constructs the light-cone time evolution operator and the invariant mass operator in light-cone gauge from the QCD Lagrangian. The total longitudinal momentum and transverse momenta are conserved, i.e. are independent of the interactions. The matrix elements of the invariant mass operator on the complete orthonormal basis of the free theory can then be constructed. The matrix elements connect Fock states differing by 0, 1, or 2 quark or gluon quanta, and they include the instantaneous quark and gluon contributions imposed by eliminating dependent degrees of freedom in light-cone gauge. Applications of light-cone methods to QCD phenomenology are briefly described

  8. Early warning of climate tipping points

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lenton, Timothy M.

    2011-07-01

    A climate 'tipping point' occurs when a small change in forcing triggers a strongly nonlinear response in the internal dynamics of part of the climate system, qualitatively changing its future state. Human-induced climate change could push several large-scale 'tipping elements' past a tipping point. Candidates include irreversible melt of the Greenland ice sheet, dieback of the Amazon rainforest and shift of the West African monsoon. Recent assessments give an increased probability of future tipping events, and the corresponding impacts are estimated to be large, making them significant risks. Recent work shows that early warning of an approaching climate tipping point is possible in principle, and could have considerable value in reducing the risk that they pose.

  9. Microelectrode voltammetry of multi-electron transfers complicated by coupled chemical equilibria: a general theory for the extended square scheme.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laborda, Eduardo; Gómez-Gil, José María; Molina, Angela

    2017-06-28

    A very general and simple theoretical solution is presented for the current-potential-time response of reversible multi-electron transfer processes complicated by homogeneous chemical equilibria (the so-called extended square scheme). The expressions presented here are applicable regardless of the number of electrons transferred and coupled chemical processes, and they are particularized for a wide variety of microelectrode geometries. The voltammetric response of very different systems presenting multi-electron transfers is considered for the most widely-used techniques (namely, cyclic voltammetry, square wave voltammetry, differential pulse voltammetry and steady state voltammetry), studying the influence of the microelectrode geometry and the number and thermodynamics of the (electro)chemical steps. Most appropriate techniques and procedures for the determination of the 'interaction' between successive transfers are discussed. Special attention is paid to those situations where homogeneous chemical processes, such as protonation, complexation or ion association, affect the electrochemical behaviour of the system by different stabilization of the oxidation states.

  10. Rapid Recovery of Visual Function Associated with Blue Cone Ablation in Zebrafish

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hagerman, Gordon F.; Noel, Nicole C. L.; Cao, Sylvia Y.; DuVal, Michèle G.; Oel, A. Phillip; Allison, W. Ted

    2016-01-01

    Hurdles in the treatment of retinal degeneration include managing the functional rewiring of surviving photoreceptors and integration of any newly added cells into the remaining second-order retinal neurons. Zebrafish are the premier genetic model for such questions, and we present two new transgenic lines allowing us to contrast vision loss and recovery following conditional ablation of specific cone types: UV or blue cones. The ablation of each cone type proved to be thorough (killing 80% of cells in each intended cone class), specific, and cell-autonomous. We assessed the loss and recovery of vision in larvae via the optomotor behavioural response (OMR). This visually mediated behaviour decreased to about 5% or 20% of control levels following ablation of UV or blue cones, respectively (Pvision recovery following UV cone ablation was robust, as measured by both assays, returning to control levels within four days. In contrast, robust functional recovery following blue cone ablation was unexpectedly rapid, returning to normal levels within 24 hours after ablation. Ablation of cones led to increased proliferation in the retina, though the rapid recovery of vision following blue cone ablation was demonstrated to not be mediated by blue cone regeneration. Thus rapid visual recovery occurs following ablation of some, but not all, cone subtypes, suggesting an opportunity to contrast and dissect the sources and mechanisms of outer retinal recovery during cone photoreceptor death and regeneration. PMID:27893779

  11. A remote control neutron cone scanner and measurement of the d(T,n) α neutron cone

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Suwanakachorn, D.; Vilaithong, T.; Vilaithong, C.; Boonyawan, D.; Chimooy, T.; Sornphorm, P.; Hoyce, G.; Pairsuwan, W.; Singkarat, S.

    1988-01-01

    We have measured the neutron cone associated with alpha particles from the d(T,n)α reaction by using a remote-control cone scanner. This scanner has two principal parts. The first part is the neutron detector scanner which can move the detector in the horizontal and vertical axis using to stepping-motors. The neutron detector can be moved in 0.5 cm increments over the whole rage of 30 cm. The second part is the remote-control electronic circuit using digital ICs. The rotation of stepping-motors is controlled by pulse signals from this circuit and the position of the detector is known by counting the number of pulses. The position of the neutron detector is indicated directly on a 3 digit display at the control panel. The method of measuring the neutron cone by the Time-of-Flight technique is also described

  12. AFM tip-sample convolution effects for cylinder protrusions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shen, Jian; Zhang, Dan; Zhang, Fei-Hu; Gan, Yang

    2017-11-01

    A thorough understanding about the AFM tip geometry dependent artifacts and tip-sample convolution effect is essential for reliable AFM topographic characterization and dimensional metrology. Using rigid sapphire cylinder protrusions (diameter: 2.25 μm, height: 575 nm) as the model system, a systematic and quantitative study about the imaging artifacts of four types of tips-two different pyramidal tips, one tetrahedral tip and one super sharp whisker tip-is carried out through comparing tip geometry dependent variations in AFM topography of cylinders and constructing the rigid tip-cylinder convolution models. We found that the imaging artifacts and the tip-sample convolution effect are critically related to the actual inclination of the working cantilever, the tip geometry, and the obstructive contacts between the working tip's planes/edges and the cylinder. Artifact-free images can only be obtained provided that all planes and edges of the working tip are steeper than the cylinder sidewalls. The findings reported here will contribute to reliable AFM characterization of surface features of micron or hundreds of nanometers in height that are frequently met in semiconductor, biology and materials fields.

  13. Improved flare tip design

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gogolek, P. [Natural Resources Canada, Ottawa, ON (Canada). CANMET Energy Technology Centre

    2004-07-01

    This paper discusses the testing procedures and development of an improved flare tip design. Design objectives included performance equal to or better than utility flares at low wind speed; conversion efficiency; fuel slip; smoking; significant improvement at high wind speed; and no increase in trace emissions. A description of the testing facility of the flare tip was provided, with reference to the fact that the facility allowed for realistic near full scale gas flares in a single-pass flare test facility. Other details of the facility included: an adjustable ceiling; high capacity variable speed fan; sampling ports along working section in stack; windows along working section; and air cooled walls, floor, and ceiling. The fuels used in the flare tip included natural gas, propane, gasoline and inert gases. Details of wind speed, appurtenances and turbulence generating grids were presented, with reference to continuous gas emission measurements. A list of design constraints was provided. Flare performance included wind speed, turbulence and fuel composition. A chart of conversion inefficiencies with a correlation of wind speed and turbulence, fuel flow and pipe size was also presented. Several new tip designs were fabricated for testing, with screening tests for comparison to basic pipe and ranking designs. Significant improvements were found in one of the new designs, including results with 30 per cent propane in fuel. Emissions reduction from 10 to 35 per cent were noted. It was concluded that future work should focus on evaluating improved tip for stability at low wind speeds. Fuel slips are the primary source of emissions, and it was recommended that further research is necessary to improve existing flare tips. tabs, figs.

  14. The Antagonistic Interaction of Cones in Human Eyes—a Pilot Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jenny Chun-Yee Lung

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Multifocal electroretinogram (mfERG by Sutter (1992 provides a measuring tool of the retinal responses at different locations. Traditional mfERG stimulus at each base period is a pseudorandom m-sequence focal flash. By interleaving seven dark frames between the focal flashes, a slow-sequence stimulus can be formed to trigger retinal responses which are originated predominantly from the bipolar cells and inner retinal cells. In this study, the antagonistic interaction of cones in human eye was investigated by this slow-flash mfERG (sfmfERG under different colour stimuli (white and blue colour conditions. The N1, P1 and photopic negative response (PhNR of the sfmfERG were used to investigate the effect on the local retinal responses. It was found that the blue stimulus could trigger greater amplitudes of the N1, P1 and PhNR than the white stimulus did. In terms of the implicit time, the white stimulus would trigger P1 and PhNR with longer implicit time than the blue stimulus. White stimulus provides a broader spectrum signal than blue stimulus. The changes of cone responses from a broad to narrow spectrum stimulation may illustrate a decrease in the involvement of retinal antagonism and thus leads to an increase in amplitude and a decrease in implicit time.

  15. Development of a full ice-cream cone model for halo CME structures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Na, Hyeonock; Moon, Yong-Jae

    2015-04-01

    The determination of three dimensional parameters (e.g., radial speed, angular width, source location) of Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) is very important for space weather forecast. To estimate these parameters, several cone models based on a flat cone or a shallow ice-cream cone with spherical front have been suggested. In this study, we investigate which cone model is proper for halo CME morphology using 33 CMEs which are identified as halo CMEs by one spacecraft (SOHO or STEREO-A or B) and as limb CMEs by the other ones. From geometrical parameters of these CMEs such as their front curvature, we find that near full ice-cream cone CMEs (28 events) are dominant over shallow ice-cream cone CMEs (5 events). So we develop a new full ice-cream cone model by assuming that a full ice-cream cone consists of many flat cones with different heights and angular widths. This model is carried out by the following steps: (1) construct a cone for given height and angular width, (2) project the cone onto the sky plane, (3) select points comprising the outer boundary, (4) minimize the difference between the estimated projection points with the observed ones. We apply this model to several halo CMEs and compare the results with those from other methods such as a Graduated Cylindrical Shell model and a geometrical triangulation method.

  16. Reconstruction of the Tip-Surface Interaction Potential by Analysis of the Brownian Motion of an Atomic Force Microscope Tip

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Willemsen, O.H.; Kuipers, L.; van der Werf, Kees; de Grooth, B.G.; Greve, Jan

    2000-01-01

    The thermal movement of an atomic force microscope (AFM) tip is used to reconstruct the tip-surface interaction potential. If a tip is brought into the vicinity of a surface, its movement is governed by the sum of the harmonic cantilever potential and the tip-surface interaction potential. By

  17. Exact cone beam CT with a spiral scan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tam, K.C.; Samarasekera, S.; Sauer, F.

    1998-01-01

    A method is developed which makes it possible to scan and reconstruct an object with cone beam x-rays in a spiral scan path with area detectors much shorter than the length of the object. The method is mathematically exact. If only a region of interest of the object is to be imaged, a top circle scan at the top level of the region of interest and a bottom circle scan at the bottom level of the region of interest are added. The height of the detector is required to cover only the distance between adjacent turns in the spiral projected at the detector. To reconstruct the object, the Radon transform for each plane intersecting the object is computed from the totality of the cone beam data. This is achieved by suitably combining the cone beam data taken at different source positions on the scan path; the angular range of the cone beam data required at each source position can be determined easily with a mask which is the spiral scan path projected on the detector from the current source position. The spiral scan algorithm has been successfully validated with simulated cone beam data. (author)

  18. Light-cone averaging in cosmology: formalism and applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gasperini, M.; Marozzi, G.; Veneziano, G.; Nugier, F.

    2011-01-01

    We present a general gauge invariant formalism for defining cosmological averages that are relevant for observations based on light-like signals. Such averages involve either null hypersurfaces corresponding to a family of past light-cones or compact surfaces given by their intersection with timelike hypersurfaces. Generalized Buchert-Ehlers commutation rules for derivatives of these light-cone averages are given. After introducing some adapted ''geodesic light-cone'' coordinates, we give explicit expressions for averaging the redshift to luminosity-distance relation and the so-called ''redshift drift'' in a generic inhomogeneous Universe

  19. Tokay gecko photoreceptors achieve rod-like physiology with cone-like proteins.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Xue; Wensel, Theodore G; Yuan, Ching

    2006-01-01

    The retinal photoreceptors of the nocturnal Tokay gecko (Gekko gekko) consist exclusively of rods by the criteria of morphology and key features of their light responses. Unlike cones, they display robust photoresponses and have relatively slow recovery times. Nonetheless, the major and minor visual pigments identified in gecko rods are of the cone type by sequence and spectroscopic behavior. In the ongoing search for the molecular bases for the physiological differences between cones and rods, we have characterized the molecular biology and biochemistry of the gecko rod phototransduction cascade. We have cloned cDNAs encoding all or part of major protein components of the phototransduction cascade by RT-PCR with degenerate oligonucleotides designed to amplify cone- or rod-like sequences. For all proteins examined we obtained only cone-like and never rod-like sequences. The proteins identified include transducin alpha (Galphat), phosphodiesterase (PDE6) catalytic and inhibitory subunits, cyclic nucleotide-gated channel (CNGalpha) and arrestin. We also cloned cDNA encoding gecko RGS9-1 (Regulator of G Protein Signaling 9, splice variant 1), which is expressed in both rods and cones of all species studied but is typically found at 10-fold higher concentrations in cones, and found that gecko rods contain slightly lower RGS9-1 levels than mammalian rods. Furthermore, we found that the levels of GTPase accelerating protein (GAP) activity and cyclic GMP (cGMP) phosphodiesterase activity were similar in gecko and mammalian rods. These results place substantial constraints on the critical changes needed to convert a cone into a rod in the course of evolution: The many features of phototransduction molecules conserved between those expressed in gecko rods and those expressed in cones cannot explain the physiological differences, whereas the higher levels of RGS9-1 and GAP activity in cones are likely among the essential requirements for the rapid photoresponses of cones.

  20. A comparative evaluation of root canal area increase using three different nickel-titanium rotary systems: An ex vivo cone-beam computed tomographic analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adrija Deka

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Background and Objectives: The present study was undertaken to compare and evaluate the area increase of root canals with ProTaper, iRaCe and Revo-S systems using cone beam computed tomography for analysis. Materials and Methodology: Forty five extracted human mandibular premolars having single canal and straight root were collected. Teeth were randomly assigned to three groups (n=15. Samples were decoronized by maintaining root length at 14 mm. Pre-instrumentation cone beam computed tomography scan was done after stabilizing the samples on wax blocks. The working length was determined at 1 mm short from the apical foramen by using a ISO 15 K-file tip protruding at apical foramen. Preparation was carried out according to the manufacturer′s instructions. Finally, canals were instrumented upto 30/.06 apically for each group. After each instrumentation, root canals were irrigated with 2ml of 3% sodium hypochlorite solution followed by 2 ml of 17% EDTA solution. Final irrigation was done with 5ml of saline. Post instrumentation cone beam computed tomography scans of all samples in the 3 groups were acquired. Results: Mean percentage of area increase in different thirds of the canal was highest for ProTaper followed by i-RaCe and Revo-s system which was statistically significant. Interpretation and Conclusion: Root canal area increase was highest for ProTaper followed by i-Race and Revo-S systems.

  1. A unified analysis of FBP-based algorithms in helical cone-beam and circular cone- and fan-beam scans

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pan Xiaochuan; Xia Dan; Zou Yu; Yu Lifeng

    2004-01-01

    A circular scanning trajectory is and will likely remain a popular choice of trajectory in computed tomography (CT) imaging because it is easy to implement and control. Filtered-backprojection (FBP)-based algorithms have been developed previously for approximate and exact reconstruction of the entire image or a region of interest within the image in circular cone-beam and fan-beam cases. Recently, we have developed a 3D FBP-based algorithm for image reconstruction on PI-line segments in a helical cone-beam scan. In this work, we demonstrated that the 3D FBP-based algorithm indeed provided a rather general formulation for image reconstruction from divergent projections (such as cone-beam and fan-beam projections). On the basis of this formulation we derived new approximate or exact algorithms for image reconstruction in circular cone-beam or fan-beam scans, which can be interpreted as special cases of the helical scan. Existing algorithms corresponding to the derived algorithms were identified. We also performed a preliminary numerical study to verify our theoretical results in each of the cases. The results in the work can readily be generalized to other non-circular trajectories

  2. Determination of HCME 3-D parameters using a full ice-cream cone model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Na, Hyeonock; Moon, Yong-Jae; Lee, Harim

    2016-05-01

    It is very essential to determine three dimensional parameters (e.g., radial speed, angular width, source location) of Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) for space weather forecast. Several cone models (e.g., an elliptical cone model, an ice-cream cone model, an asymmetric cone model) have been examined to estimate these parameters. In this study, we investigate which cone type is close to a halo CME morphology using 26 CMEs: halo CMEs by one spacecraft (SOHO or STEREO-A or B) and as limb CMEs by the other ones. From cone shape parameters of these CMEs such as their front curvature, we find that near full ice-cream cone type CMEs are much closer to observations than shallow ice-cream cone type CMEs. Thus we develop a new cone model in which a full ice-cream cone consists of many flat cones with different heights and angular widths. This model is carried out by the following steps: (1) construct a cone for given height and angular width, (2) project the cone onto the sky plane, (3) select points comprising the outer boundary, and (4) minimize the difference between the estimated projection speeds with the observed ones. By applying this model to 12 SOHO/LASCO halo CMEs, we find that 3-D parameters from our method are similar to those from other stereoscopic methods (a geometrical triangulation method and a Graduated Cylindrical Shell model) based on multi-spacecraft data. We are developing a general ice-cream cone model whose front shape is a free parameter determined by observations.

  3. The uniqueness of the solution of cone-like inversion models for halo CMEs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, X. P.

    2006-12-01

    Most of elliptic halo CMEs are believed to be formed by the Thompson scattering of the photospheric light by the 3-D cone-like shell of the CME plasma. To obtain the real propagation direction and angular width of the halo CMEs, such cone-like inversion models as the circular cone, the elliptic cone and the ice-cream cone models have been suggested recently. Because the number of given parameters that are used to characterize 2-D elliptic halo CMEs observed by one spacecraft are less than the number of unknown parameters that are used to characterize the 3-D elliptic cone model, the solution of the elliptic cone model is not unique. Since it is difficult to determine whether or not an observed halo CME is formed by an circular cone or elliptic cone shell, the solution of circular cone model may often be not unique too. To fix the problem of the uniqueness of the solution of various 3-D cone-like inversion models, this work tries to develop the algorithm for using the data from multi-spacecraft, such as the STEREO A and B, and the Solar Sentinels.

  4. An Optical Fiber Bundle Sensor for Tip Clearance and Tip Timing Measurements in a Turbine Rig

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    María Asunción Illarramendi

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available When it comes to measuring blade-tip clearance or blade-tip timing in turbines, reflective intensity-modulated optical fiber sensors overcome several traditional limitations of capacitive, inductive or discharging probe sensors. This paper presents the signals and results corresponding to the third stage of a multistage turbine rig, obtained from a transonic wind-tunnel test. The probe is based on a trifurcated bundle of optical fibers that is mounted on the turbine casing. To eliminate the influence of light source intensity variations and blade surface reflectivity, the sensing principle is based on the quotient of the voltages obtained from the two receiving bundle legs. A discrepancy lower than 3% with respect to a commercial sensor was observed in tip clearance measurements. Regarding tip timing measurements, the travel wave spectrum was obtained, which provides the average vibration amplitude for all blades at a particular nodal diameter. With this approach, both blade-tip timing and tip clearance measurements can be carried out simultaneously. The results obtained on the test turbine rig demonstrate the suitability and reliability of the type of sensor used, and suggest the possibility of performing these measurements in real turbines under real working conditions.

  5. Evaluation of the Neuroactivity of ToxCast Compounds Using Multi-well Microelectrode Array Recordings in Primary Cortical Neurons

    Science.gov (United States)

    Evaluation of the Neuroactivity of ToxCast Compounds Using Multi-well Microelectrode Array Recordings in Primary Cortical Neurons P Valdivia1, M Martin2, WR LeFew3, D Hall3, J Ross1, K Houck2 and TJ Shafer3 1Axion Biosystems, Atlanta GA and 2NCCT, 3ISTD, NHEERL, ORD, US EPA, RT...

  6. Tips for Living with Scleroderma

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Patients Tips for Living Tips for Living with Scleroderma Ways to help manage your symptoms The Scleroderma ... help find improved therapies and a cure for scleroderma! Your gift today will be matched to have ...

  7. Case of Unilateral Peripheral Cone Dysfunction

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yujin Mochizuki

    2012-05-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: Peripheral cone dystrophy is a subgroup of cone dystrophy, and only 4 cases have been reported. We present a patient with unilateral peripheral cone dysfunction and report the functional changes determined by electrophysiological tests and ultrastructural changes determined by spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT. Case: A 34-year-old woman complained of blurred vision in both eyes. Our examination showed that her visual acuity was 0.05 OD and 0.2 OS. A relative afferent pupillary defect was present in her right eye. The results of slit-lamp examination, ophthalmoscopy, and fluorescein angiography were normal except for pallor of the right optic disc. SD-OCT showed a diffuse thinning of the retina in the posterior pole of the right eye. A severe constriction of the visual fields was found in both eyes but more in the right eye. The photopic full-field electroretinograms (ERGs were reduced in the right eye but normal in the left eye. The multifocal ERGs were severely reduced throughout the visual field except in the central area of the right eye. The multifocal ERGs from the left eye were normal. The pattern visual evoked responses were within the normal range in both eyes. She had a 5-year history of sniffing paint thinner. Results: Although the visual dysfunction was initially suspected to be due to psychological problems from the results of subjective tests, objective tests indicated a peripheral cone dysfunction in the right eye. The pathophysiological mechanism and the relationship with thinner sniffing were not determined. Conclusions: Our findings indicate that peripheral cone dysfunction can occur unilaterally. Electrophysiology and SD-OCT are valuable tests to perform to determine the pathogenesis of unusual ocular findings objectively.

  8. Human Blue Cone Opsin Regeneration Involves Secondary Retinal Binding with Analog Specificity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Srinivasan, Sundaramoorthy; Fernández-Sampedro, Miguel A; Morillo, Margarita; Ramon, Eva; Jiménez-Rosés, Mireia; Cordomí, Arnau; Garriga, Pere

    2018-03-27

    Human color vision is mediated by the red, green, and blue cone visual pigments. Cone opsins are G-protein-coupled receptors consisting of an opsin apoprotein covalently linked to the 11-cis-retinal chromophore. All visual pigments share a common evolutionary origin, and red and green cone opsins exhibit a higher homology, whereas blue cone opsin shows more resemblance to the dim light receptor rhodopsin. Here we show that chromophore regeneration in photoactivated blue cone opsin exhibits intermediate transient conformations and a secondary retinoid binding event with slower binding kinetics. We also detected a fine-tuning of the conformational change in the photoactivated blue cone opsin binding site that alters the retinal isomer binding specificity. Furthermore, the molecular models of active and inactive blue cone opsins show specific molecular interactions in the retinal binding site that are not present in other opsins. These findings highlight the differential conformational versatility of human cone opsin pigments in the chromophore regeneration process, particularly compared to rhodopsin, and point to relevant functional, unexpected roles other than spectral tuning for the cone visual pigments. Copyright © 2018 Biophysical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. Accessibility analysis in manufacturing processes using visibility cones

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    尹周平; 丁汉; 熊有伦

    2002-01-01

    Accessibility is a kind of important design feature of products,and accessibility analysis has been acknowledged as a powerful tool for solving computational manufacturing problems arising from different manufacturing processes.After exploring the relations among approachability,accessibility and visibility,a general method for accessibility analysis using visibility cones (VC) is proposed.With the definition of VC of a point,three kinds of visibility of a feature,namely complete visibility cone (CVC),partial visibility cone (PVC) and local visibility cone (LVC),are defined.A novel approach to computing VCs is formulated by identifying C-obstacles in the C-space,for which a general and efficient algorithm is proposed and implemented by making use of visibility culling.Lastly,we discuss briefly how to realize accessibility analysis in numerically controlled (NC) machining planning,coordinate measuring machines (CMMs) inspection planning and assembly sequence planning with the proposed methods.

  10. Testing the reliability of ice-cream cone model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pan, Zonghao; Shen, Chenglong; Wang, Chuanbing; Liu, Kai; Xue, Xianghui; Wang, Yuming; Wang, Shui

    2015-04-01

    Coronal Mass Ejections (CME)'s properties are important to not only the physical scene itself but space-weather prediction. Several models (such as cone model, GCS model, and so on) have been raised to get rid of the projection effects within the properties observed by spacecraft. According to SOHO/ LASCO observations, we obtain the 'real' 3D parameters of all the FFHCMEs (front-side full halo Coronal Mass Ejections) within the 24th solar cycle till July 2012, by the ice-cream cone model. Considering that the method to obtain 3D parameters from the CME observations by multi-satellite and multi-angle has higher accuracy, we use the GCS model to obtain the real propagation parameters of these CMEs in 3D space and compare the results with which by ice-cream cone model. Then we could discuss the reliability of the ice-cream cone model.

  11. Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt (TIPS)

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... or bypass, without the risks that accompany open surgery. TIPS is a minimally invasive procedure that typically has a shorter recovery time than surgery. Your TIPS should have less of an effect ...

  12. Selective recurrent laryngeal nerve stimulation using a penetrating electrode array in the feline model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haidar, Yarah M; Sahyouni, Ronald; Moshtaghi, Omid; Wang, Beverly Y; Djalilian, Hamid R; Middlebrooks, John C; Verma, Sunil P; Lin, Harrison W

    2017-10-31

    Laryngeal muscles (LMs) are controlled by the recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN), injury of which can result in vocal fold (VF) paralysis (VFP). We aimed to introduce a bioelectric approach to selective stimulation of LMs and graded muscle contraction responses. Acute experiments in cats. The study included six anesthetized cats. In four cats, a multichannel penetrating microelectrode array (MEA) was placed into an uninjured RLN. For RLN injury experiments, one cat received a standardized hemostat-crush injury, and one cat received a transection-reapproximation injury 4 months prior to testing. In each experiment, three LMs (thyroarytenoid, posterior cricoarytenoid, and cricothyroid muscles) were monitored with an electromyographic (EMG) nerve integrity monitoring system. Electrical current pulses were delivered to each stimulating channel individually. Elicited EMG voltage outputs were recorded for each muscle. Direct videolaryngoscopy was performed for visualization of VF movement. Stimulation through individual channels led to selective activation of restricted nerve populations, resulting in selective contraction of individual LMs. Increasing current levels resulted in rising EMG voltage responses. Typically, activation of individual muscles was successfully achieved via single placement of the MEA by selection of appropriate stimulation channels. VF abduction was predominantly observed on videolaryngoscopy. Nerve histology confirmed injury in cases of RLN crush and transection experiments. We demonstrated the ability of a penetrating MEA to selectively stimulate restricted fiber populations within the feline RLN and selectively elicit contractions of discrete LMs in both acute and injury-model experiments, suggesting a potential role for intraneural MEA implantation in VFP management. NA Laryngoscope, 2017. © 2017 The American Laryngological, Rhinological and Otological Society, Inc.

  13. Prescriptionless light-cone integrals

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Suzuki, A.T.; Schmidt, A.G.M.

    2000-01-01

    Perturbative quantum gauge field theory as seen within the perspective of physical gauge choices such as the light-cone gauge entails the emergence of troublesome poles of the type (k.n) -α in the Feynman integrals. These come from the boson field propagator, where α=1,2,.. and n μ is the external arbitrary four-vector that defines the gauge properly. This becomes an additional hurdle in the computation of Feynman diagrams, since any graph containing internal boson lines will inevitably produce integrands with denominators bearing the characteristic gauge-fixing factor. How one deals with them has been the subject of research over decades, and several prescriptions have been suggested and tried in the course of time, with failures and successes. However, a more recent development at this fronteer which applies the negative dimensional technique to compute light-cone Feynman integrals shows that we can altogether dispense with prescriptions to perform the calculations. An additional bonus comes to us attached to this new technique, in that not only it renders the light-cone prescriptionless but, by the very nature of it, it can also dispense with decomposition formulas or partial fractioning tricks used in the standard approach to separate pole products of the type (k.n) -α [(k-p).n] -β (β=1,2,..). In this work we demonstrate how all this can be done. (orig.)

  14. Structure and dynamics of TIP3P, TIP4P, and TIP5P water near smooth and atomistic walls of different hydroaffinity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Harrach, Michael F.; Drossel, Barbara

    2014-01-01

    We perform molecular dynamics simulations to observe the structure and dynamics of water using different water models (TIP3P, TIP4P, TIP5P) at ambient conditions, constrained by planar walls, which are either modeled by smooth potentials or regular atomic lattices, imitating the honeycomb-structure of graphene. We implement walls of different hydroaffinity, different lattice constant, and different types of interaction with the water molecules. We find that in the hydrophobic regime the smooth wall generally represents a good abstraction of the atomically rough walls, while in the hydrophilic regime there are noticeable differences in structure and dynamics between all stages of wall roughness. For a small lattice constant however the smooth and the atomically rough wall still share a number of structural and dynamical similarities. Out of the three water models, TIP5P water shows the largest degree of tetrahedral ordering and is often the one that is least perturbed by the presence of the wall

  15. Microelectrode-assisted low-voltage atmospheric pressure glow discharge in air

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Wenzheng; Zhao, Shuai; Niu, Jiangqi; Chai, Maolin

    2017-09-01

    During the process of discharge, appropriately changing the paths corresponding to electric field lines and the field strength distribution along these paths, as well as increasing the number of initial electrons, can effectively enhance the uniformity of discharge and inhibit the formation of filamentary discharge. A method is proposed that uses a microelectrode to initiate the macroscopic discharge phenomenon. An asymmetric structure was designed comprising a single electrode of carbon fiber; this electrode structure is of helical-contact type. Benefitting from the special electric field distribution and the microdischarge process, a three-dimensional atmospheric pressure glow discharge was achieved in air, characterized by low discharge voltage, low energy consumption, good diffusion performance, and less ozone generation. The plasma studied is uniform and stable with good diffusion characteristics and low levels of contaminants and hence has potential applications in the field of air purification.

  16. Alopecia associated with unexpected leakage from electron cone

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wen, B.C.; Pennington, E.C.; Hussey, D.H.; Jani, S.K.

    1989-06-01

    Excessive irradiation due to unexpected leakage was found on a patient receiving electron beam therapy. The cause of this leakage was analyzed and the amount of leakage was measured for different electron beam energies. The highest leakage occurred with a 6 x 6 cm cone using a 12 MeV electron beam. The leakage dose measured along the side of the cone could be as great as 40%. Until the cones are modified or redesigned, it is advised that all patient setups be carefully reviewed to assure that no significant patient areas are in the side scatter region.

  17. RANS computations of tip vortex cavitation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Decaix, Jean; Balarac, Guillaume; Dreyer, Matthieu; Farhat, Mohamed; Münch, Cécile

    2015-12-01

    The present study is related to the development of the tip vortex cavitation in Kaplan turbines. The investigation is carried out on a simplified test case consisting of a NACA0009 blade with a gap between the blade tip and the side wall. Computations with and without cavitation are performed using a R ANS modelling and a transport equation for the liquid volume fraction. Compared with experimental data, the R ANS computations turn out to be able to capture accurately the development of the tip vortex. The simulations have also highlighted the influence of cavitation on the tip vortex trajectory.

  18. Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt (TIPS)

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... pressure. top of page How does the procedure work? A TIPS reroutes blood flow in the liver ... filtered out by the liver. The TIPS may cause too much of these substances to bypass the ...

  19. Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt (TIPS)

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... then placed in this tunnel to keep the pathway open. Patients who typically need a TIPS have ... and stomach. A TIPS procedure involves creating a pathway through the liver that connects the portal vein ( ...

  20. Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt (TIPS)

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... and/or hydrothorax (in the chest). Budd-Chiari syndrome , a blockage in one or more veins that ... intentionally to solve the problem. Although extremely rare, children may also require a TIPS procedure. TIPS in ...

  1. Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt (TIPS)

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... the esophagus and stomach. A TIPS procedure involves creating a pathway through the liver that connects the ... diseases. This can result in significant challenges in creating the TIPS. top of page Additional Information and ...

  2. Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt (TIPS)

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... TIPS. top of page What are some common uses of the procedure? A TIPS is used to ... community, you can search the ACR-accredited facilities database . This website does not provide cost information. The ...

  3. Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt (TIPS)

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... pressure. top of page How does the procedure work? A TIPS reroutes blood flow in the liver ... recovery time than surgery. Your TIPS should have less of an effect than open surgical bypass on ...

  4. Development of pits and cones on ion bombarded copper

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tanovic, L.A.; Carter, G.; Nobes, M.J.; Whitton, I.L.; Williams, J.S.

    1980-01-01

    The formation of pits and cones on Ar ion bombarded copper has been studied. Carefully polished surfaces of large grained 99.999% pure copper crystals have been bombarded at normal incidence with 40 keV argon ions. The cone formation has been investigated for annealed and non-annealed crystals at room temperature and at 30 K and in the case of monocrystal and polycrystal samples. Although in the most other studies the presence of impurities is as a necessary condition for generation of cones and pits the obtained experimental results show that under certain conditions these features are formed on clean surfaces. It is shown that the dominant parameter in the production of cones on copper is the crystal orientation [ru

  5. Formation of shatter cones by symmetric fracture bifurcation: Phenomenological modeling and validation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kenkmann, Thomas; Hergarten, Stefan; Kuhn, Thomas; Wilk, Jakob

    2016-08-01

    Several models of shatter cone formation require a heterogeneity at the cone apex of high impedance mismatch to the surrounding bulk rock. This heterogeneity is the source of spherically expanding waves that interact with the planar shock front or the following release wave. While these models are capable of explaining the overall conical shape of shatter cones, they are not capable of explaining the subcone structure and the diverging and branching striations that characterize the surface of shatter cones and lead to the so-called horse-tailing effect. Here, we use the hierarchical arrangement of subcone ridges of shatter cone surfaces as key for understanding their formation. Tracing a single subcone ridge from its apex downward reveals that each ridge branches after some distance into two symmetrically equivalent subcone ridges. This pattern is repeated to form new branches. We propose that subcone ridges represent convex-curved fracture surfaces and their intersection corresponds to the bifurcation axis. The characteristic diverging striations are interpreted as the intersection lineations delimiting each subcone. Multiple symmetric crack branching is the result of rapid fracture propagation that may approach the Raleigh wave speed. We present a phenomenological model that fully constructs the shatter cone geometry to any order. The overall cone geometry including apex angle of the enveloping cone and the degree of concavity (horse-tailing) is largely governed by the convexity of the subcone ridges. Straight cones of various apical angles, constant slope, and constant bifurcation angles form if the subcone convexity is low (30°). Increasing subcone convexity leads to a stronger horse-tailing effect and the bifurcation angles increase with increasing distance from the enveloping cone apex. The model predicts possible triples of enveloping cone angle, bifurcation angle, and subcone angle. Measurements of these quantities on four shatter cones from different

  6. Direct cone beam SPECT reconstruction with camera tilt

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jianying Li; Jaszczak, R.J.; Greer, K.L.; Coleman, R.E.; Zongjian Cao; Tsui, B.M.W.

    1993-01-01

    A filtered backprojection (FBP) algorithm is derived to perform cone beam (CB) single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) reconstruction with camera tilt using circular orbits. This algorithm reconstructs the tilted angle CB projection data directly by incorporating the tilt angle into it. When the tilt angle becomes zero, this algorithm reduces to that of Feldkamp. Experimentally acquired phantom studies using both a two-point source and the three-dimensional Hoffman brain phantom have been performed. The transaxial tilted cone beam brain images and profiles obtained using the new algorithm are compared with those without camera tilt. For those slices which have approximately the same distance from the detector in both tilt and non-tilt set-ups, the two transaxial reconstructions have similar profiles. The two-point source images reconstructed from this new algorithm and the tilted cone beam brain images are also compared with those reconstructed from the existing tilted cone beam algorithm. (author)

  7. Light depolarization induced by metallic tips in apertureless near-field optical microscopy and tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gucciardi, P G [CNR-Istituto per i Processi Chimico-Fisici, sezione Messina, Salita Sperone, Contrada Papardo, I-98158 Faro Superiore, Messina (Italy); Lopes, M; Deturche, R; Julien, C; Barchiesi, D; Chapelle, M Lamy de la [Institut Charles Delaunay-CNRS FRE 2848, Laboratoire de Nanotechnologie et d' Instrumentation Optique, Universite de Technologie de Troyes, 12 rue Marie Curie, BP2060, 10010 Troyes (France)

    2008-05-28

    We have investigated the depolarization effects of light scattered by sharp tips used for apertureless near-field optical microscopy. Dielectric and metal coated tips have been investigated and depolarization factors between 5 and 30% have been measured, changing as a function of the incident light polarization and of the tip shape. The experimental results are in good agreement with theoretical calculations performed by the finite element method, giving a near-field depolarization factor close to 10%. The effect of depolarization has been investigated in polarized tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (TERS) experiments; the depolarization gives rise to forbidden Raman modes in Si crystals.

  8. Serial 1H-MRS of thalamus during deep brain stimulation of bilateral globus pallidus internus for primary generalized dystonia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chernov, Mikhail F.; Iseki, Hiroshi; Takakura, Kintomo; Ochiai, Taku; Taira, Takaomi; Hori, Tomokatsu; Ono, Yuko; Nakamura, Ryoichi; Muragaki, Yoshihiro

    2008-01-01

    The physiological mechanisms of deep brain stimulation (DBS) are not completely clear. Our understanding of them may be facilitated with the use of proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy ( 1 H-MRS). Serial 1 H-MRS of both thalami was performed during the course of DBS of bilateral globus pallidus internus in a patient with primary generalized dystonia. Two days after microelectrode implantation, a pulse frequency of 185 Hz was applied for stimulation. It resulted in relief of symptoms and a decrease of Burke-Fahn-Marsden dystonia rating scale (BFMDRS) scores, and was accompanied by a prominent increase of N-acetylaspartate (NAA)/choline-containing compounds (Cho) ratio, a mild increase of NAA/creatine (Cr) ratio, and a moderate decrease of Cho/Cr ratio. Two weeks later, for a search of the optimal stimulation mode, the pulse frequency was switched to 60 Hz, which resulted in clinical deterioration and significant increase of BFMDRS scores. At that time, all investigated 1 H-MRS-detected metabolic parameters had nearly returned to the pretreatment levels. Use of serial 1 H-MRS investigations of various brain structures during DBS in cases of movement disorders permits detailed evaluation of the treatment response, has a potential for its possible prediction, and may facilitate understanding of the physiological mechanisms of stimulation. (orig.)

  9. Radiofrequency Wire Recanalization of Chronically Thrombosed TIPS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Majdalany, Bill S., E-mail: bmajdala@med.umich.edu [University of Michigan Health System, Division of Interventional Radiology, Department of Radiology (United States); Elliott, Eric D., E-mail: eric.elliott@osumc.edu [The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Division of Interventional Radiology, Department of Radiology (United States); Michaels, Anthony J., E-mail: Anthony.michaels@osumc.edu; Hanje, A. James, E-mail: James.Hanje@osumc.edu [The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine (United States); Saad, Wael E. A., E-mail: wsaad@med.umich.edu [University of Michigan Health System, Division of Interventional Radiology, Department of Radiology (United States)

    2016-07-15

    Radiofrequency (RF) guide wires have been applied to cardiac interventions, recanalization of central venous thromboses, and to cross biliary occlusions. Herein, the use of a RF wire technique to revise chronically occluded transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunts (TIPS) is described. In both cases, conventional TIPS revision techniques failed to revise the chronically thrombosed TIPS. RF wire recanalization was successfully performed through each of the chronically thrombosed TIPS, demonstrating initial safety and feasibility in this application.

  10. Tip Clearance Control Using Plasma Actuators

    Science.gov (United States)

    2007-03-01

    Clearance Control Using Plasma Actuators 4 posed by Denton (1993). A number of investigators have used partial shrouds, or " winglet " designs to...SDBD actuator Plasma enhanced aerodynamics has been demonstrated in a range of applications involving sepa- ration control, lift enhancement, drag... aerodynamic benefits of a squealer tip geometry. Specifically, the squealer tip is known to reduce the discharge coefficient of the tip gap, thereby

  11. Tips for Good Electronic Presentations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Strasser, Dennis

    1996-01-01

    Describes library uses of presentation graphics software and offers tips for creating electronic presentations. Tips include: audience retention; visual aid options; software package options; presentation planning; presentation showing; and use of text, colors, and graphics. Sidebars note common presentation errors and popular presentation…

  12. Instantaneous interactions of hadrons on the light cone

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hyer, T.

    1994-01-01

    Hadron wave functions are most naturally defined in the framework of light-cone quantization, a Hamiltonian formulation quantized at equal light-cone ''time'' τ≡t+z. One feature of the light-cone perturbation theory is the presence of instantaneous interactions, which complicate the consideration of processes involving bound states. We show that these interactions can be written in a simple and general form, parametrized by an instantaneous contribution ψ to the hadronic wave function. We use the rotational invariance of Feynman diagrams to relate this instantaneous piece of the meson wave function to the propagating part, and to obtain constraints relating wave functions and quark fragmentation amplitudes

  13. Treatment of Wide-Neck Bifurcation Aneurysm Using "WEB Device Waffle Cone Technique".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mihalea, Cristian; Caroff, Jildaz; Rouchaud, Aymeric; Pescariu, Sorin; Moret, Jacques; Spelle, Laurent

    2018-05-01

    The endovascular treatment of wide-neck bifurcation aneurysms can be challenging and often requires the use of adjunctive techniques and devices. We report our first experience of using a waffle-cone technique adapted to the Woven Endoluminal Bridge (WEB) device in a large-neck basilar tip aneurysm, suitable in cases where the use of Y stenting or other techniques is limited due to anatomic restrictions. The procedure was complete, and angiographic occlusion of the aneurysm was achieved 24 hours post treatment, as confirmed by digital subtraction angiography. No complications occurred. The case reported here was not suitable for Y stenting or deployment of the WEB device alone, due to the small caliber of both posterior cerebral arteries and their origin at the neck level. The main advantage of this technique is that both devices have a controlled detachment system and are fully independent. To our knowledge, this technique has not been reported previously and this modality of treatment has never been described in the literature. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Chloride equilibrium potential in salamander cones

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bryson Eric J

    2004-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background GABAergic inhibition and effects of intracellular chloride ions on calcium channel activity have been proposed to regulate neurotransmission from photoreceptors. To assess the impact of these and other chloride-dependent mechanisms on release from cones, the chloride equilibrium potential (ECl was determined in red-sensitive, large single cones from the tiger salamander retinal slice. Results Whole cell recordings were done using gramicidin perforated patch techniques to maintain endogenous Cl- levels. Membrane potentials were corrected for liquid junction potentials. Cone resting potentials were found to average -46 mV. To measure ECl, we applied long depolarizing steps to activate the calcium-activated chloride current (ICl(Ca and then determined the reversal potential for the current component that was inhibited by the Cl- channel blocker, niflumic acid. With this method, ECl was found to average -46 mV. In a complementary approach, we used a Cl-sensitive dye, MEQ, to measure the Cl- flux produced by depolarization with elevated concentrations of K+. The membrane potentials produced by the various high K+ solutions were measured in separate current clamp experiments. Consistent with electrophysiological experiments, MEQ fluorescence measurements indicated that ECl was below -36 mV. Conclusions The results of this study indicate that ECl is close to the dark resting potential. This will minimize the impact of chloride-dependent presynaptic mechanisms in cone terminals involving GABAa receptors, glutamate transporters and ICl(Ca.

  15. Effect of Drainage Conditions on Cone Penetration Testing in Silty Soils

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Poulsen, Rikke; Nielsen, Benjaminn Nordahl; Ibsen, Lars Bo

    2011-01-01

    This paper discusses the challenges that occur when performing Cone Penetration Tests (CPT) in silty soil due to changes in drainage conditions. In this paper, CPT results from various papers and researchers are collected and interpreted. Results from cone penetrations tests with various penetrat......This paper discusses the challenges that occur when performing Cone Penetration Tests (CPT) in silty soil due to changes in drainage conditions. In this paper, CPT results from various papers and researchers are collected and interpreted. Results from cone penetrations tests with various...

  16. Magnetron sputtered diamond-like carbon microelectrodes for on-chip measurement of quantal catecholamine release from cells

    OpenAIRE

    Gao, Yuanfang; Chen, Xiaohui; Gupta, Sanju; Gillis, Kevin D.; Gangopadhyay, Shubhra

    2008-01-01

    Carbon electrodes are widely used in electrochemistry due to their low cost, wide potential window, and low and stable background noise. Carbon-fiber electrodes (CFE) are commonly used to electrochemically measure “quantal” catecholamine release via exocytosis from individual cells, but it is difficult to integrate CFEs into lab-on-a-chip devices. Here we report the development of nitrogen doped diamond-like carbon (DLC:N) microelectrodes on a chip to monitor quantal release of catecholamines...

  17. Comparison of different types of phacoemulsification tips. I. Quantitative analysis of elemental composition and tip surface microroughness.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsaousis, Konstantinos T; Werner, Liliana; Perez, Jesus Paulo; Li, He J; Reiter, Nicholas; Guan, Jia J; Mamalis, Nick

    2016-09-01

    To evaluate the elemental composition of phacoemulsification tips and their surface roughness in the microscale. John A. Moran Eye Center and Utah Nanofab, College of Engineering, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. Experimental study. Seven types of phacoemulsification tips were studied. The phaco tips were examined through energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) for elemental composition. In addition, the roughness of the opening in all tips was assessed through 3-dimensional white-light interferometry. Elemental analysis showed considerable differences in the surface layers between manufacturers. Alcon tips had a thinner oxidized titanium (Ti) layer in their surface. Through XPS, vanadium was not detected in the superficial layers of any tip, but only in deeper levels. The microroughness surface analysis showed comparable results regarding their root-mean-square (RMS) metric. Maximum peak valley distance values varied and appeared to be dependent on the quality of material process rather than the material itself. Phacoemulsification tips are made of Ti alloys and showed differences between models, especially regarding their composition in the superficial layers. Their opening end roughness showed an overall appropriate RMS value of less than 1.0 μm in all cases. The existence of small defected areas highlights the importance of adequate quality control of these critical surgical instruments. None of the authors has a financial or proprietary interest in any material or method mentioned. Copyright © 2016 ASCRS and ESCRS. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Resonance in a Cone-Topped Tube

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Angus Cheng-Huan Chia

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available The relationship between ratio of the upper opening diameter of a cone-topped cylinder to the cylinder diameter,and the ratio of the length of the air column to resonant period was examined. Plastic cones with upper openings ranging from 1.3 cm to 3.6 cm and tuning forks with frequencies ranging from 261.6 Hz to 523.3 Hz were used. The transition from a standing wave in a cylindrical column to a Helmholtz-type resonance in a resonant cavity with a narrow opening was observed.

  19. Compact microelectrode array system: tool for in situ monitoring of drug effects on neurotransmitter release from neural cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Yu; Guo, Chunxian; Lim, Layhar; Cheong, Serchoong; Zhang, Qingxin; Tang, Kumcheong; Reboud, Julien

    2008-02-15

    This paper presents a compact microelectrode array (MEA) system, to study potassium ion-induced dopamine release from PC12 neural cells, without relying on a micromanipulator and a microscope. The MEA chip was integrated with a custom-made "test jig", which provides a robust electrical interfacing tool between the microchip and the macroenvironment, together with a potentiostat and a microfluidic syringe pump. This integrated system significantly simplifies the operation procedures, enhances sensing performance, and reduces fabrication costs. The achieved detection limit for dopamine is 3.8 x 10-2 muM (signal/noise, S/N = 3) and the dopamine linear calibration range is up to 7.39 +/- 0.06 muM (mean +/- SE). The effects of the extracelluar matrix collagen coating of the microelectrodes on dopamine sensing behaviors, as well as the influences of K+ and l-3,4-digydroxyphenylalanine concentrations and incubation times on dopamine release, were extensively studied. The results show that our system is well suited for biologists to study chemical release from living cells as well as drug effects on secreting cells. The current system also shows a potential for further improvements toward a multichip array system for drug screening applications.

  20. Dysflective cones: Visual function and cone reflectivity in long-term follow-up of acute bilateral foveolitis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joanna H. Tu

    2017-09-01

    Conclusions and importance: Fundus-referenced visual testing proved useful to identify functional cones despite apparent photoreceptor loss identified using AOSLO and SD-OCT. While AOSLO and SD-OCT appear to be sensitive for the detection of abnormal or absent photoreceptors, changes in photoreceptors that are identified with these imaging tools do not correlate completely with visual function in every patient. Fundus-referenced vision testing is a useful tool to indicate the presence of cones that may be amenable to recovery or response to experimental therapies despite not being visible on confocal AOSLO or SD-OCT images.

  1. Endodontic management of a maxillary lateral incisor with an unusual root dilaceration diagnosed with cone beam computed tomography

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mahmoud Mohammed Eid Mahgoub

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Anterior teeth may have aberrant anatomical variations in the roots and root canals. Root dilaceration is an anomaly characterized by the displacement of the root of a tooth from its normal alignment with the crown which may be a consequence of injury during tooth development. This report aims to present a successful root canal treatment of a maxillary lateral incisor with unusual palatal root dilaceration (diagnosed with cone beam computed tomography in which the access cavity was prepared from the labial aspect of the tooth to provide a straight line access to the root canal system which was instrumented using OneShape rotary file system and precurved K-files up to size 50 under copious irrigation of 2.5% NaOCl using a side-vented irrigation tip. The canal was then obturated using the warm vertical compaction technique.

  2. Noninvasive gene delivery to foveal cones for vision restoration

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khabou, Hanen; Garita-Hernandez, Marcela; Jaillard, Céline; Brazhnikova, Elena; Bertin, Stéphane; Forster, Valérie; Desrosiers, Mélissa; Winckler, Céline; Goureau, Olivier; Duebel, Jens; Sahel, José-Alain

    2018-01-01

    Intraocular injection of adeno-associated viral (AAV) vectors has been an evident route for delivering gene drugs into the retina. However, gaps in our understanding of AAV transduction patterns within the anatomically unique environments of the subretinal and intravitreal space of the primate eye impeded the establishment of noninvasive and efficient gene delivery to foveal cones in the clinic. Here, we establish new vector-promoter combinations to overcome the limitations associated with AAV-mediated cone transduction in the fovea with supporting studies in mouse models, human induced pluripotent stem cell–derived organoids, postmortem human retinal explants, and living macaques. We show that an AAV9 variant provides efficient foveal cone transduction when injected into the subretinal space several millimeters away from the fovea, without detaching this delicate region. An engineered AAV2 variant provides gene delivery to foveal cones with a well-tolerated dose administered intravitreally. Both delivery modalities rely on a cone-specific promoter and result in high-level transgene expression compatible with optogenetic vision restoration. The model systems described here provide insight into the behavior of AAV vectors across species to obtain safety and efficacy needed for gene therapy in neurodegenerative disorders. PMID:29367457

  3. Sound source location in cavitating tip vortices

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Higuchi, H.; Taghavi, R.; Arndt, R.E.A.

    1985-01-01

    Utilizing an array of three hydrophones, individual cavitation bursts in a tip vortex could be located. Theoretically, four hydrophones are necessary. Hence the data from three hydrophones are supplemented with photographic observation of the cavitating tip vortex. The cavitation sound sources are found to be localized to within one base chord length from the hydrofoil tip. This appears to correspond to the region of initial tip vortex roll-up. A more extensive study with a four sensor array is now in progress

  4. Computerized automatic tip scanning operation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nishikawa, K.; Fukushima, T.; Nakai, H.; Yanagisawa, A.

    1984-01-01

    In BWR nuclear power stations the Traversing Incore Probe (TIP) system is one of the most important components in reactor monitoring and control. In previous TIP systems, however, operators have suffered from the complexity of operation and long operation time required. The system presented in this paper realizes the automatic operation of the TIP system by monitoring and driving it with a process computer. This system significantly reduces the burden on customer operators and improves plant efficiency by simplifying the operating procedure, augmenting the accuracy of the measured data, and shortening operating time. The process computer is one of the PODIA (Plant Operation by Displayed Information Automation) systems. This computer transfers control signals to the TIP control panel, which in turn drives equipment by microprocessor control. The process computer contains such components as the CRT/KB unit, the printer plotter, the hard copier, and the message typers required for efficient man-machine communications. Its operation and interface properties are described

  5. Study of tip loss corrections using CFD rotor computations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Shen, Wen Zhong; Zhu, Wei Jun; Sørensen, Jens Nørkær

    2014-01-01

    Tip loss correction is known to play an important role for engineering prediction of wind turbine performance. There are two different types of tip loss corrections: tip corrections on momentum theory and tip corrections on airfoil data. In this paper, we study the latter using detailed CFD...... computations for wind turbines with sharp tip. Using the technique of determination of angle of attack and the CFD results for a NordTank 500 kW rotor, airfoil data are extracted and a new tip loss function on airfoil data is derived. To validate, BEM computations with the new tip loss function are carried out...... and compared with CFD results for the NordTank 500 kW turbine and the NREL 5 MW turbine. Comparisons show that BEM with the new tip loss function can predict correctly the loading near the blade tip....

  6. [TIPS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brazzini, Augusto; Carrillo, Alvaro; Cantella, Raúl

    1998-01-01

    Esophageal hemorrage due to variceal bleeding in cirrhotic patients represents a serious problem for the physician in charge, especially in this country where liver transplants are inexistent; and also, it is a drama for the patient and its familly. We propose here the Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt (TIPS). Twenty one patients were part of a study where 23 TIPS were placed, observing an immediate improval in 18 of them, a rebleeding in 2, within the first 24 and 48 hours. An embolization of the coronary veins was performed in the procedure in 15 patients, and a second intervention due to rebleeding in 2 of them. In the latter patients, the embolization of the coronary veins was rutinary.The survival of the patients has been outstanding.We conclude that this interventional procedure is a worldwide reality in the treatment of esophageal hemorrage by variceal bleeding due to portal hipertension, and it does not cut down the probability of liver transplant, unfortunately inexistent in our country. This procedure results in a low morbimortality with an adequate quality of life.

  7. Compensation of deformations in 3D cone beam tomography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Desbat, L.; Roux, S.; Roux, S.; Grangeat, P.

    2006-01-01

    In dynamic tomography, the measured objects or organs are no-longer supposed to be static in the scanner during the acquisition but are supposed to move or to be deformed. Our approach is the analytic deformation compensation during the reconstruction. Our work concentrates on 3-dimensional cone beam tomography. We introduce a new large class of deformations preserving the 3-dimensional cone beam geometry. We show that deformations from this class can be analytically compensated. We present numerical experiments on phantoms showing the compensation of these deformations in 3-dimensional cone beam tomography. (authors)

  8. Scientific designs of pine seeds and pine cones for species conservation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, Kahye; Yeom, Eunseop; Kim, Hyejeong; Lee, Sang Joon

    2015-11-01

    Reproduction and propagation of species are the most important missions of every living organism. For effective species propagation, pine cones fold their scales under wet condition to prevent seeds from short-distance dispersal. They open and release their embedded seeds on dry and windy days. In this study, the micro-/macro-scale structural characteristics of pine cones and pine seeds are studied using various imaging modalities. Since the scales of pine cones consist of dead cells, the folding motion is deeply related to structural changes. The scales of pine cones consist of three layers. Among them, bract scales are only involved in collecting water. This makes pine cones reduce the amount of water and minimize the time spent on structural changes. These systems also involve in drying and recovery of pine cones. In addition, pine cones and pine seeds have advantageous structures for long-distance dispersal and response to natural disaster. Owing to these structural features, pine seeds can be released safely and efficiently, and these types of structural advantages could be mimicked for practical applications. This research was financially supported by the Creative Research Initiative of the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (MSIP) and the National Research Foundation (NRF) of Korea (Contract grant number: 2008-0061991).

  9. CONE BIOPSY IN PREGNANCY*

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    1 Mei 1971. S.-A. TYDSKRIF VIR OBSTETRIE EN GINEKOLOGIE. CONE BIOPSY ... of the abnormal cervix in pregnancy is also no longer in question following the .... the concept of cancer prophylaxis to the majority of women, many of whom ...

  10. CPAP Tips

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... opinion count. Sign in ... and use a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device when sleeping? Here are some tips from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on how to safely ...

  11. In-Vivo Characterization of Glassy Carbon Micro-Electrode Arrays for Neural Applications and Histological Analysis of the Brain Tissue

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vomero, Maria

    The aim of this work is to fabricate and characterize glassy carbon Microelectrode Arrays (MEAs) for sensing and stimulating neural activity, and conduct histological analysis of the brain tissue after the implant to determine long-term performance. Neural applications often require robust electrical and electrochemical response over a long period of time, and for those applications we propose to replace the commonly used noble metals like platinum, gold and iridium with glassy carbon. We submit that such material has the potential to improve the performances of traditional neural prostheses, thanks to better charge transfer capabilities and higher electrochemical stability. Great interest and attention is given in this work, in particular, to the investigation of tissue response after several weeks of implants in rodents' brain motor cortex and the associated materials degradation. As part of this work, a new set of devices for Electrocorticography (ECoG) has been designed and fabricated to improve durability and quality of the previous generation of devices, designed and manufactured by the same research group in 2014. In-vivo long-term impedance measurements and brain activity recordings were performed to test the functionality of the neural devices. In-vitro electrical characterization of the carbon electrodes, as well as the study of the adhesion mechanisms between glassy carbon and different substrates is also part of the research described in this book.

  12. The tonoplast intrinsic aquaporin (TIP) subfamily of Eucalyptus grandis: Characterization of EgTIP2, a root-specific and osmotic stress-responsive gene.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodrigues, Marcela I; Bravo, Juliana P; Sassaki, Flávio T; Severino, Fábio E; Maia, Ivan G

    2013-12-01

    Aquaporins have important roles in various physiological processes in plants, including growth, development and adaptation to stress. In this study, a gene encoding a root-specific tonoplast intrinsic aquaporin (TIP) from Eucalyptus grandis (named EgTIP2) was investigated. The root-specific expression of EgTIP2 was validated over a panel of five eucalyptus organ/tissues. In eucalyptus roots, EgTIP2 expression was significantly induced by osmotic stress imposed by PEG treatment. Histochemical analysis of transgenic tobacco lines (Nicotiana tabacum SR1) harboring an EgTIP2 promoter:GUS reporter cassette revealed major GUS staining in the vasculature and in root tips. Consistent with its osmotic-stress inducible expression in eucalyptus, EgTIP2 promoter activity was up-regulated by mannitol treatment, but was down-regulated by abscisic acid. Taken together, these results suggest that EgTIP2 might be involved in eucalyptus response to drought. Additional searches in the eucalyptus genome revealed the presence of four additional putative TIP coding genes, which could be individually assigned to the classical TIP1-5 groups. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Simultaneous transcranial magnetic stimulation and single-neuron recording in alert non-human primates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mueller, Jerel K; Grigsby, Erinn M; Prevosto, Vincent; Petraglia, Frank W; Rao, Hrishikesh; Deng, Zhi-De; Peterchev, Angel V; Sommer, Marc A; Egner, Tobias; Platt, Michael L; Grill, Warren M

    2014-08-01

    Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a widely used, noninvasive method for stimulating nervous tissue, yet its mechanisms of effect are poorly understood. Here we report new methods for studying the influence of TMS on single neurons in the brain of alert non-human primates. We designed a TMS coil that focuses its effect near the tip of a recording electrode and recording electronics that enable direct acquisition of neuronal signals at the site of peak stimulus strength minimally perturbed by stimulation artifact in awake monkeys (Macaca mulatta). We recorded action potentials within ∼1 ms after 0.4-ms TMS pulses and observed changes in activity that differed significantly for active stimulation as compared with sham stimulation. This methodology is compatible with standard equipment in primate laboratories, allowing easy implementation. Application of these tools will facilitate the refinement of next generation TMS devices, experiments and treatment protocols.

  14. Simultaneous transcranial magnetic stimulation and single neuron recording in alert non-human primates

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mueller, Jerel K.; Grigsby, Erinn M.; Prevosto, Vincent; Petraglia, Frank W.; Rao, Hrishikesh; Deng, Zhi-De; Peterchev, Angel V.; Sommer, Marc A.; Egner, Tobias; Platt, Michael L.; Grill, Warren M.

    2014-01-01

    Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a widely used, noninvasive method for stimulating nervous tissue, yet its mechanisms of effect are poorly understood. Here we report novel methods for studying the influence of TMS on single neurons in the brain of alert non-human primates. We designed a TMS coil that focuses its effect near the tip of a recording electrode and recording electronics that enable direct acquisition of neuronal signals at the site of peak stimulus strength minimally perturbed by stimulation artifact in intact, awake monkeys (Macaca mulatta). We recorded action potentials within ~1 ms after 0.4 ms TMS pulses and observed changes in activity that differed significantly for active stimulation as compared to sham stimulation. The methodology is compatible with standard equipment in primate laboratories, allowing for easy implementation. Application of these new tools will facilitate the refinement of next generation TMS devices, experiments, and treatment protocols. PMID:24974797

  15. Polycrystalline-Diamond MEMS Biosensors Including Neural Microelectrode-Arrays

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Donna H. Wang

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available Diamond is a material of interest due to its unique combination of properties, including its chemical inertness and biocompatibility. Polycrystalline diamond (poly-C has been used in experimental biosensors that utilize electrochemical methods and antigen-antibody binding for the detection of biological molecules. Boron-doped poly-C electrodes have been found to be very advantageous for electrochemical applications due to their large potential window, low background current and noise, and low detection limits (as low as 500 fM. The biocompatibility of poly-C is found to be comparable, or superior to, other materials commonly used for implants, such as titanium and 316 stainless steel. We have developed a diamond-based, neural microelectrode-array (MEA, due to the desirability of poly-C as a biosensor. These diamond probes have been used for in vivo electrical recording and in vitro electrochemical detection. Poly-C electrodes have been used for electrical recording of neural activity. In vitro studies indicate that the diamond probe can detect norepinephrine at a 5 nM level. We propose a combination of diamond micro-machining and surface functionalization for manufacturing diamond pathogen-microsensors.

  16. Tip Induced Motion of Adatoms on Metal Surfaces

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kuerpick, U.; Rahman, T.S.

    1999-01-01

    From total energy calculations we show that for certain tip-adatom separations the activation barrier for the adatom to move towards the tip disappears and the adatom experiences an attractive force in the direction of the tip. For a Cu adatom at a (100) microfaceted step on Cu(111) this happens at a lateral separation of about one lattice constant, in agreement with recent experimental findings. Simultaneously, the activation barrier in the direction away from the tip increases significantly. The details of the changes in the potential energy surface induced by the tip are found to depend on the characteristics of the tip apex and its height above the adatom. copyright 1999 The American Physical Society

  17. Comparison of Asymmetric and Ice-cream Cone Models for Halo Coronal Mass Ejections

    Science.gov (United States)

    Na, H.; Moon, Y.

    2011-12-01

    Halo coronal mass ejections (HCMEs) are major cause of the geomagnetic storms. To minimize the projection effect by coronagraph observation, several cone models have been suggested: an ice-cream cone model, an asymmetric cone model etc. These models allow us to determine the three dimensional parameters of HCMEs such as radial speed, angular width, and the angle between sky plane and central axis of the cone. In this study, we compare these parameters obtained from different models using 48 well-observed HCMEs from 2001 to 2002. And we obtain the root mean square error (RMS error) between measured projection speeds and calculated projection speeds for both cone models. As a result, we find that the radial speeds obtained from the models are well correlated with each other (R = 0.86), and the correlation coefficient of angular width is 0.6. The correlation coefficient of the angle between sky plane and central axis of the cone is 0.31, which is much smaller than expected. The reason may be due to the fact that the source locations of the asymmetric cone model are distributed near the center, while those of the ice-cream cone model are located in a wide range. The average RMS error of the asymmetric cone model (85.6km/s) is slightly smaller than that of the ice-cream cone model (87.8km/s).

  18. Nontraumatic tibial polyethylene insert cone fracture in mobile-bearing posterior-stabilized total knee arthroplasty

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yohei Tanikake

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available A 72-year-old male patient underwent mobile-bearing posterior-stabilized total knee arthroplasty for osteoarthritis. He experienced a nontraumatic polyethylene tibial insert cone fracture 27 months after surgery. Scanning electron microscopy of the fracture surface of the tibial insert cone suggested progress of ductile breaking from the posterior toward the anterior of the cone due to repeated longitudinal bending stress, leading to fatigue breaking at the anterior side of the cone, followed by the tibial insert cone fracture at the anterior side of the cone, resulting in fracture at the base of the cone. This analysis shows the risk of tibial insert cone fracture due to longitudinal stress in mobile-bearing posterior-stabilized total knee arthroplasty in which an insert is designed to highly conform to the femoral component.

  19. In situ 2D maps of pH shifts across brass–lead galvanic joints using microelectrodes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ma, Xiangmeng; Lee, Woo Hyoung; Lytle, Darren A

    2017-01-01

    Galvanic corrosion in drinking water distribution systems, such as conditions following partial lead service line replacement, can be a significant source of lead in tap water. The objective of this work was to measure the pH directly near metal surfaces using a novel experimental tool in order to understand the water chemistry at a lead-containing galvanic couple in drinking water. Specifically, pH microprofiles in the proximity of corroding metal surfaces were measured using a microelectrode to construct detailed in situ 2D spatial maps of the pH across a galvanic couple at 100 µ m above the metal’s surface under flowing and stagnation conditions. The opposite pH trend was directly observed across the galvanic couple under flow and stagnation conditions. Water stagnation resulted in a pH at the anode (leaded solder) of 1.5 pH units lower than the bulk water pH (9.0) and as much as 2.5 pH units lower than the cathode (brass). These conditions can enhance lead release at the anode, which reflects different anodic–cathodic relationships of coupled metals primarily controlled by water flow. Most importantly, this work has demonstrated the ability to make real pH measurement at the surface of corroding metals using a novel microelectrode approach. (paper)

  20. Arctic tipping points in an Earth system perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wassmann, Paul; Lenton, Timothy M

    2012-02-01

    We provide an introduction to the volume The Arctic in the Earth System perspective: the role of tipping points. The terms tipping point and tipping element are described and their role in current science, general debates, and the Arctic are elucidated. From a wider perspective, the volume focuses upon the role of humans in the Arctic component of the Earth system and in particular the envelope for human existence, the Arctic ecosystems. The Arctic climate tipping elements, the tipping elements in Arctic ecosystems and societies, and the challenges of governance and anticipation are illuminated through short summaries of eight publications that derive from the Arctic Frontiers conference in 2011 and the EU FP7 project Arctic Tipping Points. Then some ideas based upon resilience thinking are developed to show how wise system management could ease pressures on Arctic systems in order to keep them away from tipping points.

  1. Directional tip control technique for optimal stent graft alignment in angulated proximal aortic landing zones

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Toshio Takayama, MD, PhD

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Angulated anatomy in the aorta, such as tortuous infrarenal aortic necks or steep aortic arches, is a significant challenge for endovascular aortic repair because it often causes inadequate sealing and fixation, which may lead to treatment failure. We have developed a technique using off-the-shelf equipment to precisely control the deployment of stent grafts in challenging landing zones. The key of this technique is to create a through-and-through wire between two access sites and to use a guiding device over the wire. This technique is best used with stent grafts without nose cones. We present an endovascular aneurysm repair case and a thoracic endovascular aortic repair case with challenging proximal landing zones treated by this technique. In both cases, technical success was attained, and follow-up imaging demonstrated well-aligned stent grafts. Our directional tip control technique is easy and effective. It can be a good technical solution for endovascular aortic treatment in angulated anatomy.

  2. Modeling shoot-tip temperature in the greenhouse environment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Faust, J.E.; Heins, R.D.

    1998-01-01

    An energy-balance model is described that predicts vinca (Catharanthus roseus L.) shoot-tip temperature using four environmental measurements: solar radiation and dry bulb, wet bulb, and glazing material temperature. The time and magnitude of the differences between shoot-tip and air temperature were determined in greenhouses maintained at air temperatures of 15, 20, 25, 30, or 35 °C. At night, shoot-tip temperature was always below air temperature. Shoot-tip temperature decreased from 0.5 to 5 °C below air temperature as greenhouse glass temperature decreased from 2 to 15 °C below air temperature. During the photoperiod under low vapor-pressure deficit (VPD) and low air temperature, shoot-tip temperature increased ≈4 °C as solar radiation increased from 0 to 600 W·m -2 . Under high VPD and high air temperature, shoot-tip temperature initially decreased 1 to 2 °C at sunrise, then increased later in the morning as solar radiation increased. The model predicted shoot-tip temperatures within ±1 °C of 81% of the observed 1-hour average shoot-tip temperatures. The model was used to simulate shoot-tip temperatures under different VPD, solar radiation, and air temperatures. Since the rate of leaf and flower development are influenced by the temperature of the meristematic tissues, a model of shoot-tip temperature will be a valuable tool to predict plant development in greenhouses and to control the greenhouse environment based on a plant temperature setpoint. (author)

  3. Compressor airfoil tip clearance optimization system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Little, David A.; Pu, Zhengxiang

    2015-08-18

    A compressor airfoil tip clearance optimization system for reducing a gap between a tip of a compressor airfoil and a radially adjacent component of a turbine engine is disclosed. The turbine engine may include ID and OD flowpath boundaries configured to minimize compressor airfoil tip clearances during turbine engine operation in cooperation with one or more clearance reduction systems that are configured to move the rotor assembly axially to reduce tip clearance. The configurations of the ID and OD flowpath boundaries enhance the effectiveness of the axial movement of the rotor assembly, which includes movement of the ID flowpath boundary. During operation of the turbine engine, the rotor assembly may be moved axially to increase the efficiency of the turbine engine.

  4. Expression Analysis of cPLA2 Alpha Interacting TIP60 in Diabetic KKAy and Non-Diabetic C57BL Wild-Type Mice: No Impact of Transient and Stable TIP60 Overexpression on Glucose-Stimulated Insulin Secretion in Pancreatic Beta-Cells

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nordentoft, Iver Kristiansen; Jeppesen, Per Bendix; Nielsen, Anders Lade

    2007-01-01

    In the present study we investigate the expression levels of cytosolic phospholipase A2 alpha (cPLA2alpha) interacting histone acetyl transferase proteins TIP60alpha and TIP60beta in non-diabetic C57BL wild-type mice and obese type 2 diabetic KKAy model mice. The aim was to test our hypothesis...

  5. Tips for Postpartum Dads and Partners

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Blues: Partners Interview with Wade Bowen Coping with Suicide & Loss Tips for Postpartum Dads and Partners Pregnancy and postpartum mood and anxiety disorders affect the whole family. Here are some tips ...

  6. Tipping Point

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... fall furniture head injury product safety television tipover tv Watch the video in Adobe Flash format. Almost ... accidents involving young children and furniture, appliance and tv tip-overs. The force of a large television ...

  7. CPAP Tips

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    Full Text Available ... sleeping? Here are some tips from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on how to safely and effectively use your CPAP device. Category Education License Standard YouTube License Show more Show ...

  8. Tipping Point

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... Point by CPSC Blogger September 22, 2009 appliance child Childproofing CPSC danger death electrical fall furniture head ... see news reports about horrible accidents involving young children and furniture, appliance and tv tip-overs. The ...

  9. Tipping Point

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... of a large television falling from tipping furniture can be staggering. A 50 lb. TV falls with ... story of a building. That kind of impact can kill a child or cause severe injuries. About ...

  10. Some Extensions of Banach's Contraction Principle in Complete Cone Metric Spaces

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Raja P

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract In this paper we consider complete cone metric spaces. We generalize some definitions such as -nonexpansive and -uniformly locally contractive functions -closure, -isometric in cone metric spaces, and certain fixed point theorems will be proved in those spaces. Among other results, we prove some interesting applications for the fixed point theorems in cone metric spaces.

  11. Loss-cone-driven ion cyclotron waves in the magnetosphere

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Denton, R.E.; Hudson, M.K.; Roth, I.

    1992-01-01

    The theoretical properties of linear ion cyclotron waves propagating in the magnetosphere at arbitrary angles to the background magnetic field are explored. It is found that in some cases the linear wave growth of modes with oblique propagation can dominate that of the parallel propagating electromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) wave. In particular, when the hot ring current protons have a loss cone and their temperature anisotropy A ≡ T perpendicular /T parallel - 1 is reduced, the parallel propagating EMIC wave becomes stable, while the obliquely propagating loss-cone-driven mode persists. The growth rate of the loss-cone-driven model depends strongly on the depth of the loss cone. Unlike the parallel propagating EMIC wave, it can be unstable with A = 0. Other conditions that favor the loss-cone-driven mode in comparison to the parallel mode are stronger background magnetic field, lower density of cold hydrogen, and a lower temperature for the hot anisotropic component of hydrogen. A simple analytical theory is presented which explains the scaling of the growth rate of the oblique mode with respect to various parameters. The loss-cone-driven mode is an electromagnetic mode which is preferentially nearly linearly polarized. It is nearly electrostatic in the sense that the wave electric field is aligned with the perpendicular (to B 0 ) component of the wave vector k and k perpendicular > k parallel . Since the electric and magnetic wave fields are perpendicular to B 0 , they would be difficult to distinguish from those of a linearly polarized parallel propagating electromagnetic wave with the same k parallel

  12. Topografia do cone medular em gatos sem raça definida Topography of the medullar cone in the domestic non-defined breed cat

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    P.H.C. Silva

    2009-10-01

    Full Text Available Estudou-se a topografia post mortem do cone medular em 30 gatos adultos sem raça definida. Procedeu-se à remoção da pele e da musculatura dorsal da coluna vertebral e expuseram-se a medula espinhal e seus envoltórios, após a secção dos arcos vertebrais. O cone medular foi evidenciado e mensurado. Avaliou-se a sua relação com as vértebras lombares (L, sacrais (S e caudais (Cd. O cone medular variou de 3,40 a 8,00cm (média=5,08cm. A esqueletopia foi variável, pois em 24 (80% animais o cone medular iniciou-se na vértebra L6; em quatro (13,3%, na L7; e em dois (6,7%, na L5. Em 12 (40% animais terminou na vértebra S2; em 10 (33,3%, na S3; em cinco (16,7%, na Cd1; em dois (6,7%, na S1; e em um (3,3% na Cd2.It was studied the post mortem topography of the medullar cone in 30 adult non-defined breed cats. The dorsal skin and muscles from the vertebral column were removed and the spinal cord and its wrappers were visualized, after the section of the vertebral arcs. The medullar cone was then exposed and measured. Its relationship with lumbar (L, sacral (S, and caudal (Cd vertebrae was determined. The length of the medullar cone presented a variation from 3.40 to 8.00cm (average 5.08cm. Its skeletopy was variable; since in 24 animals (80%, the medullar cone began at the L6 vertebra; in four (13.3%, at the L7; and in two (6.7% at the L5 vertebra. It ended in 12 (40% animals at the S2 vertebra; in 10 (33,33%, at the S3; in five (16.7% at the caudal (Cd vertebra; in two (6.7%, at the S1; and in one (3.3%, at the Cd2.

  13. CPAP Tips

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... sleeping? Here are some tips from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on how to safely and effectively use your CPAP device. Category ... Ambulance Service 21,588 views 4:34 Obstructive Sleep Apnea ...

  14. Tipping Point

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... third story of a building. That kind of impact can kill a child or cause severe injuries. ... to prevent a tip-over tragedy. Share Post Facebook Twitter Google Plus Reddit Connect with Me:  Visit ...

  15. Continuum damage mechanics analysis of crack tip zone

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yinchu, L.; Jianping, Z.

    1989-01-01

    The crack tip field and its intensity factor play an important role in fracture mechanics. Generally, the damage such as microcracks, microvoids etc. will initiate and grow in materials as the cracked body is subjected to external loadings, especially in the crack tip zone. The damage evolution will load to the crack tip damage field and the change of the stress, strain and displacement fields of cracks tip zone. In this paper, on the basis of continuum damage mechanics, the authors have derived the equations which the crack tip field and its intensity factor must satisfy in a loading process, calculated the angle distribution curves of stress, strain and displacement fields in a crack tip zone and have compared them with the corresponding curves of HRR field and linear elastic field in undamaged materials. The equations of crack tip field intensity factors have been solved and its solutions give the variation of the field intensity factors with the loading parameter

  16. Effect of loss cone on confinement in toroidal helical device

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Itoh, K.; Itoh, S.-I.; Fukuyama, A.; Hanatani, K.

    1988-12-01

    Analytical estimation is given on the loss cone in the toroidal helical devices in the presence of the radial electric field and the modulation of the helical ripple. The minimum energy of particles entering the loss cone is calculated. The modulation is not always effective in reducing the loss in the presence of the radial electric field. The plasma loss due to the loss cone is estimated in the collisionless limit. The radial electric field is estimated in the presence of the loss cone. It is found that the transition to the solution with positive radial electric field, which is necessary to achieve the high-ion-temperature mode, becomes difficult. This difficulty is large for the systems with the small helical ripple. (author)

  17. Response of Spectral Reflectances and Vegetation Indices on Varying Juniper Cone Densities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guillermo E. Ponce-Campos

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available Juniper trees are widely distributed throughout the world and are common sources of allergies when microscopic pollen grains are transported by wind and inhaled. In this study, we investigated the spectral influences of pollen-discharging male juniper cones within a juniper canopy. This was done through a controlled outdoor experiment involving ASD FieldSpec Pro Spectroradiometer measurements over juniper canopies of varying cone densities. Broadband and narrowband spectral reflectance and vegetation index (VI patterns were evaluated as to their sensitivity and their ability to discriminate the presence of cones. The overall aim of this research was to assess remotely sensed phenological capabilities to detect pollen-bearing juniper trees for public health applications. A general decrease in reflectance values with increasing juniper cone density was found, particularly in the Green (545–565 nm and NIR (750–1,350 nm regions. In contrast, reflectances in the shortwave-infrared (SWIR, 2,000 nm to 2,350 nm region decreased from no cone presence to intermediate amounts (90 g/m2 and then increased from intermediate levels to the highest cone densities (200 g/m2. Reflectance patterns in the Red (620–700 nm were more complex due to shifting contrast patterns in absorptance between cones and juniper foliage, where juniper foliage is more absorbing than cones only within the intense narrowband region of maximum chlorophyll absorption near 680 nm. Overall, narrowband reflectances were more sensitive to cone density changes than the equivalent MODIS broadbands. In all VIs analyzed, there were significant relationships with cone density levels, particularly with the narrowband versions and the two-band vegetation index (TBVI based on Green and Red bands, a promising outcome for the use of phenocams in juniper phenology trait studies. These results indicate that spectral indices are sensitive to certain juniper phenologic traits that can potentially be

  18. Tip enhancement

    CERN Document Server

    Kawata, Satoshi

    2007-01-01

    This book discusses the recent advances in the area of near-field Raman scattering, mainly focusing on tip-enhanced and surface-enhanced Raman scattering. Some of the key features covered here are the optical structuring and manipulations, single molecule sensitivity, analysis of single-walled carbon nanotubes, and analytic applications in chemistry, biology and material sciences. This book also discusses the plasmonic materials for better enhancement, and optical antennas. Further, near-field microscopy based on second harmonic generation is also discussed. Chapters have been written by some of the leading scientists in this field, who present some of their recent work in this field.·Near-field Raman scattering·Tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy·Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy·Nano-photonics·Nanoanalysis of Physical, chemical and biological materials beyond the diffraction limits·Single molecule detection

  19. Numerical investigation of tip leakage vortex

    OpenAIRE

    Fredriksen, Vegard

    2017-01-01

    The Kaplan turbine has a small clearance gap between the blade tip and casing to allow the blades to rotate freely. This clearance gap is the cause of an undesirable Tip Leakage Vortex (TLV). A TLV might reduce the turbine efficiency, erode the turbine blades or cause instabilities for the power output. A literature study indicated that the tip clearance gap was a critical parameter affecting the behavior of the TLV. A research gap was observed for an operating Kaplan turbine where the ...

  20. Non-invasive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS of the Motor Cortex for Neuropathic Pain—At the Tipping Point?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Roi Treister

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available The term “neuropathic pain” (NP refers to chronic pain caused by illnesses or injuries that damage peripheral or central pain-sensing neural pathways to cause them to fire inappropriately and signal pain without cause. Neuropathic pain is common, complicating diabetes, shingles, HIV, and cancer. Medications are often ineffective or cause various adverse effects, so better approaches are needed. Half a century ago, electrical stimulation of specific brain regions (neuromodulation was demonstrated to relieve refractory NP without distant effects, but the need for surgical electrode implantation limited use of deep brain stimulation. Next, electrodes applied to the dura outside the brain’s surface to stimulate the motor cortex were shown to relieve NP less invasively. Now, electromagnetic induction permits cortical neurons to be stimulated entirely non-invasively using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS. Repeated sessions of many TMS pulses (rTMS can trigger neuronal plasticity to produce long-lasting therapeutic benefit. Repeated TMS already has US and European regulatory approval for treating refractory depression, and multiple small studies report efficacy for neuropathic pain. Recent improvements include “frameless stereotactic” neuronavigation systems, in which patients’ head MRIs allow TMS to be applied to precise underlying cortical targets, minimizing variability between sessions and patients, which may enhance efficacy. Transcranial magnetic stimulation appears poised for the larger trials necessary for regulatory approval of a NP indication. Since few clinicians are familiar with TMS, we review its theoretical basis and historical development, summarize the neuropathic pain trial results, and identify issues to resolve before large-scale clinical trials.

  1. Optical fiber meta-tips

    Science.gov (United States)

    Principe, Maria; Micco, Alberto; Crescitelli, Alessio; Castaldi, Giuseppe; Consales, Marco; Esposito, Emanuela; La Ferrara, Vera; Galdi, Vincenzo; Cusano, Andrea

    2016-04-01

    We report on the first example of a "meta-tip" configuration that integrates a metasurface on the tip of an optical fiber. Our proposed design is based on an inverted-Babinet plasmonic metasurface obtained by patterning (via focused ion beam) a thin gold film deposited on the tip of an optical fiber, so as to realize an array of rectangular aperture nanoantennas with spatially modulated sizes. By properly tuning the resonances of the aperture nanoantennas, abrupt variations can be impressed in the field wavefront and polarization. We fabricated and characterized several proof-of-principle prototypes operating an near-infrared wavelengths, and implementing the beam-steering (with various angles) of the cross-polarized component, as well as the excitation of surface waves. Our results pave the way to the integration of the exceptional field-manipulation capabilities enabled by metasurfaces with the versatility and ubiquity of fiber-optics technological platforms.

  2. Comparison of three-dimensional parameters of Halo CMEs using three cone models

    Science.gov (United States)

    Na, H.; Moon, Y.; Jang, S.; Lee, K.

    2012-12-01

    Halo coronal mass ejections (HCMEs) are a major cause of geomagnetic storms and their three dimensional structures are important for space weather. In this study, we compare three cone models: an elliptical cone model, an ice-cream cone model, and an asymmetric cone model. These models allow us to determine the three dimensional parameters of HCMEs such as radial speed, angular width, and the angle (γ) between sky plane and cone axis. We compare these parameters obtained from three models using 62 well-observed HCMEs observed by SOHO/LASCO from 2001 to 2002. Then we obtain the root mean square error (RMS error) between maximum measured projection speeds and their calculated projection speeds from the cone models. As a result, we find that the radial speeds obtained from the models are well correlated with one another (R > 0.84). The correlation coefficients between angular widths are ranges from 0.04 to 0.53 and those between γ values are from -0.15 to 0.47, which are much smaller than expected. The reason may be due to different assumptions and methods. The RMS errors between the maximum measured projection speeds and the maximum estimated projection speeds of the elliptical cone model, the ice-cream cone model, and the asymmetric cone model are 213 km/s, 254 km/s, and 267 km/s, respectively. And we obtain the correlation coefficients between the location from the models and the flare location (R > 0.75). Finally, we discuss strengths and weaknesses of these models in terms of space weather application.

  3. CPAP Tips

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    Full Text Available ... Get YouTube Red. Working... Not now Try it free Find out why Close CPAP Tips from FDA ... safely and effectively use your CPAP device. Category Education License Standard YouTube License Show more Show less ...

  4. CPAP Tips

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    Full Text Available ... sleeping? Here are some tips from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on how to safely ... Developers +YouTube Terms Privacy Policy & Safety Send feedback Test new features Loading... Working... Sign in to add ...

  5. Recurrent abnormalities in conifer cones and the evolutionary origins of flower-like structures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rudall, Paula J; Hilton, Jason; Vergara-Silva, Francisco; Bateman, Richard M

    2011-03-01

    Conifer cones are reproductive structures that are typically of restricted growth and either exclusively pollen-bearing (male) or exclusively ovule-bearing (female). Here, we review two common spontaneous developmental abnormalities of conifer cones: proliferated cones, in which the apex grows vegetatively, and bisexual cones, which possess both male and female structures. Emerging developmental genetic data, combined with evidence from comparative morphology, ontogeny and palaeobotany, provide new insights into the evolution of both cones and flowers, and prompt novel strategies for understanding seed-plant evolution. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Predation and protection in the macroevolutionary history of conifer cones

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leslie, Andrew B.

    2011-01-01

    Conifers are an excellent group in which to explore how changing ecological interactions may have influenced the allocation of reproductive tissues in seed plants over long time scales, because of their extensive fossil record and their important role in terrestrial ecosystems since the Palaeozoic. Measurements of individual conifer pollen-producing and seed-producing cones from the Pennsylvanian to the Recent show that the relative amount of tissue invested in pollen cones has remained constant through time, while seed cones show a sharp increase in proportional tissue investment in the Jurassic that has continued to intensify to the present day. Since seed size in conifers has remained similar through time, this increase reflects greater investment in protective cone tissues such as robust, tightly packed scales. This shift in morphology and tissue allocation is broadly concurrent with the appearance of new vertebrate groups capable of browsing in tree canopies, as well as a diversification of insect-feeding strategies, suggesting that an important change in plant–animal interactions occurred over the Mesozoic that favoured an increase in seed cone protective tissues. PMID:21345864

  7. Numerical Investigation of Double-Cone Flows with High Enthalpy Effects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nompelis, I.; Candler, G. V.

    2009-01-01

    A numerical study of shock/shock and shock/boundary layer interactions generated by a double-cone model that is placed in a hypersonic free-stream is presented. Computational results are compared with the experimental measurements made at the CUBRC LENS facility for nitrogen flows at high enthalpy conditions. The CFD predictions agree well with surface pressure and heat-flux measurements for all but one of the double-cone cases that have been studied by the authors. Unsteadiness is observed in computations of one of the LENS cases, however for this case the experimental measurements show that the flowfield is steady. To understand this discrepancy, several double-cone experiments performed in two different facilities with both air and nitrogen as the working gas are examined in the present study. Computational results agree well with measurements made in both the AEDC tunnel 9 and the CUBRC LENS facility for double-cone flows at low free-stream Reynolds numbers where the flow is steady. It is shown that at higher free- stream pressures the double-cone simulations develop instabilities that result in an unsteady separation.

  8. Injector tip for an internal combustion engine

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shyu, Tsu Pin; Ye, Wen

    2003-05-20

    This invention relates to a the tip structure of a fuel injector as used in a internal combustion engine. Internal combustion engines using Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) technology require a tip structure that directs fuel spray in a downward direction. This requirement necessitates a tip design that is capable of withstanding mechanical stresses associated with the design.

  9. Modification of AFM Tips for Facilitating Picking-up of Nanoparticles

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Peng, Wang; Hai-Jun, Yang; Hua-Bin, Wang; Hai, Li; Xin-Yan, Wang; Ying, Wang; Jun-Hong, Lü; Bin, Li; Yi, Zhang; Jun, Hu

    2008-01-01

    The radius of atomic force microscope (AFM) tip is a key factor that influences nonspecific interactions between AFM tip and nanoparticles. Generally, a tip with larger radius contributes to a higher efficiency of picking up nanoparticles. We provide two methods for modifying the AFM tip: one is to wear a tip apex on a solid substrate and the other is to coat a tip with poly (dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS). Both the approaches can enhance the adhesion force between the tip and nanoparticles by increasing tip radius. The experimental results show that a modified tip, compared to an unmodified one, achieves six-fold efficiency improvement in the capture of targeted colloidal gold nanoparticles. (general)

  10. Dynamic of cold-atom tips in anharmonic potentials

    Science.gov (United States)

    Menold, Tobias; Federsel, Peter; Rogulj, Carola; Hölscher, Hendrik; Fortágh, József

    2016-01-01

    Background: Understanding the dynamics of ultracold quantum gases in an anharmonic potential is essential for applications in the new field of cold-atom scanning probe microscopy. Therein, cold atomic ensembles are used as sensitive probe tips to investigate nanostructured surfaces and surface-near potentials, which typically cause anharmonic tip motion. Results: Besides a theoretical description of this anharmonic tip motion, we introduce a novel method for detecting the cold-atom tip dynamics in situ and real time. In agreement with theory, the first measurements show that particle interactions and anharmonic motion have a significant impact on the tip dynamics. Conclusion: Our findings will be crucial for the realization of high-sensitivity force spectroscopy with cold-atom tips and could possibly allow for the development of advanced spectroscopic techniques such as Q-control. PMID:28144505

  11. Meaning of visualizing retinal cone mosaic on adaptive optics images.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jacob, Julie; Paques, Michel; Krivosic, Valérie; Dupas, Bénédicte; Couturier, Aude; Kulcsar, Caroline; Tadayoni, Ramin; Massin, Pascale; Gaudric, Alain

    2015-01-01

    To explore the anatomic correlation of the retinal cone mosaic on adaptive optics images. Retrospective nonconsecutive observational case series. A retrospective review of the multimodal imaging charts of 6 patients with focal alteration of the cone mosaic on adaptive optics was performed. Retinal diseases included acute posterior multifocal placoid pigment epitheliopathy (n = 1), hydroxychloroquine retinopathy (n = 1), and macular telangiectasia type 2 (n = 4). High-resolution retinal images were obtained using a flood-illumination adaptive optics camera. Images were recorded using standard imaging modalities: color and red-free fundus camera photography; infrared reflectance scanning laser ophthalmoscopy, fluorescein angiography, indocyanine green angiography, and spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) images. On OCT, in the marginal zone of the lesions, a disappearance of the interdigitation zone was observed, while the ellipsoid zone was preserved. Image recording demonstrated that such attenuation of the interdigitation zone co-localized with the disappearance of the cone mosaic on adaptive optics images. In 1 case, the restoration of the interdigitation zone paralleled that of the cone mosaic after a 2-month follow-up. Our results suggest that the interdigitation zone could contribute substantially to the reflectance of the cone photoreceptor mosaic. The absence of cones on adaptive optics images does not necessarily mean photoreceptor cell death. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Polynomial Primal-Dual Cone Affine Scaling for Semidefinite Programming

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    A.B. Berkelaar (Arjan); J.F. Sturm; S. Zhang (Shuzhong)

    1996-01-01

    textabstractIn this paper we generalize the primal--dual cone affine scaling algorithm of Sturm and Zhang to semidefinite programming. We show in this paper that the underlying ideas of the cone affine scaling algorithm can be naturely applied to semidefinite programming, resulting in a new

  13. CPAP Tips

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  14. Boron-doped nanocrystalline diamond microelectrode arrays monitor cardiac action potentials.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maybeck, Vanessa; Edgington, Robert; Bongrain, Alexandre; Welch, Joseph O; Scorsone, Emanuel; Bergonzo, Philippe; Jackman, Richard B; Offenhäusser, Andreas

    2014-02-01

    The expansion of diamond-based electronics in the area of biological interfacing has not been as thoroughly explored as applications in electrochemical sensing. However, the biocompatibility of diamond, large safe electrochemical window, stability, and tunable electronic properties provide opportunities to develop new devices for interfacing with electrogenic cells. Here, the fabrication of microelectrode arrays (MEAs) with boron-doped nanocrystalline diamond (BNCD) electrodes and their interfacing with cardiomyocyte-like HL-1 cells to detect cardiac action potentials are presented. A nonreductive means of structuring doped and undoped diamond on the same substrate is shown. The resulting BNCD electrodes show high stability under mechanical stress generated by the cells. It is shown that by fabricating the entire surface of the MEA with NCD, in patterns of conductive doped, and isolating undoped regions, signal detection may be improved up to four-fold over BNCD electrodes passivated with traditional isolators. Copyright © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  15. A 3-D Microelectrode System for Dielectrophoretic Manipulation of Microparticles

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, D F; Du, H; Gong, H Q; Li, W H

    2006-01-01

    This paper presents a microfluidic system for manipulation and separation of micron-sized particles based on the combined use of negative dielectrophoresis (DEP) and hydrodynamic forces. A 3-D microelectrode structure (so called paired electrode array) are constructed face to face on the top and bottom sides of the microchannel and driven with highfrequency AC voltage to generate dielectrophoretic gates. Depending on the relative strengths of the two forces, particles such as polystyrene beads or cells carrying by a laminar flow can either penetrate the gate or settle there. This gives rise to certain applications including selectively concentrating particles from the flow, separating particles depending on their sizes or dielectric properties, and automatically positioning particles to selective locations. For this purpose, a microfluidic device consisting of the paired electrode array sitting on the channel has been fabricated using microfabrication techniques. Polystyrene beads were used to study the performance of the device. Experimental results including the concentration and separation of particles are presented

  16. Selective and graded recruitment of cat hamstring muscles with intrafascicular stimulation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dowden, Brett R; Wilder, Andrew M; Hiatt, Scott D; Normann, Richard A; Brown, Nicholas A T; Clark, Gregory A

    2009-12-01

    The muscles of the hamstring group can produce different combinations of hip and knee torque. Thus, the ability to activate the different hamstring muscles selectively is of particular importance in eliciting functional movements such as stance and gait in a person with spinal cord injury. We investigated the ability of intrafascicular stimulation of the muscular branch of the sciatic nerve to recruit the feline hamstring muscles in a selective and graded fashion. A Utah Slanted Electrode Array, consisting of 100 penetrating microelectrodes, was implanted into the muscular branch of the sciatic nerve in six cats. Muscle twitches were evoked in the three compartments of biceps femoris (anterior, middle, and posterior), as well as semitendinosus and semimembranosus, using pulse-width modulated constant-voltage pulses. The resultant compound muscle action potentials were recorded using intramuscular fine-wire electrodes. 74% of the electrodes per implant were able to evoke a threshold response in these muscles, and these electrodes were evenly distributed among the instrumented muscles. Of the five muscles instrumented, on average 2.5 could be selectively activated to 90% of maximum EMG, and 3.5 could be selectively activated to 50% of maximum EMG. The muscles were recruited selectively with a mean stimulus dynamic range of 4.14 +/- 5.05 dB between threshold and either spillover to another muscle or a plateau in the response. This selective and graded activation afforded by intrafascicular stimulation of the muscular branch of the sciatic nerve suggests that it is a potentially useful stimulation paradigm for eliciting distinct forces in the hamstring muscle group in motor neuroprosthetic applications.

  17. Axial length and cone density as assessed with adaptive optics in myopia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Supriya Dabir

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Aim: To assess the variations in cone mosaic in myopia and its correlation with axial length (AL. Subjects and Methods: Twenty-five healthy myopic volunteers underwent assessment of photoreceptors using adaptive optics retinal camera at 2° and 3° from the foveal center in four quadrants superior, inferior, temporal and nasal. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 17 (IBM. Multivariable regression analysis was conducted to study the relation between cone density and AL, quadrant around the fovea and eccentricity from the fovea. Results: The mean cone density was significantly lower as the eccentricity increased from 2° from the fovea to 3° (18,560 ± 5455-16,404 ± 4494/mm 2 respectively. There was also a statistically significant difference between four quadrants around the fovea. The correlation of cone density and spacing with AL showed that there was a significant inverse relation of AL with the cone density. Conclusion: In myopic patients with good visual acuity cone density around the fovea depends on the quadrant, distance from the fovea as well as the AL. The strength of the relation of AL with cone density depends on the quadrant and distance.

  18. Performance of the coned-face end seal with regard to energy conservation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sehnal, J.; Sedy, J.; Zobens, A.; Etsion, I.

    1982-01-01

    The effects of face coning on seal performance are evaluated with particular regard to the energy saving potential of convex conedface end seals as indicated by torque reduction. Experiments were conducted using a conventional carbon flat-face pusher-type seal, a coned-face pusher-type seal, coned-face bellows-type seal, and a modified coned-face pusher-type seal intended for dynamically unstable operation, with shaft rotation at up to 8000 rpm, pressures of up to 2758 kPa, and a petroleum-based turbine oil as lubricant. Torque at the seal interface is found to be reduced by 42% when the standard flat-face seal is replaced by a coned seal, although the leakage of the cone-face seal was 11 times greater. Reduction of seal balance from 76.1 to 51.3% resulted in an additional 44% reduction in torque, although at the expense of excessive leakage, but did not produce unstable operation. Face temperatures were reduced by 33-56 C and wear was also reduced greatly on the cone face seals. Seal performance is noted to be in agreement with analytical calculations.

  19. Direct calculation of wind turbine tip loss

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wood, D.H.; Okulov, Valery; Bhattacharjee, D.

    2016-01-01

    . We develop three methods for the direct calculation of the tip loss. The first is the computationally expensive calculation of the velocities induced by the helicoidal wake which requires the evaluation of infinite sums of products of Bessel functions. The second uses the asymptotic evaluation......The usual method to account for a finite number of blades in blade element calculations of wind turbine performance is through a tip loss factor. Most analyses use the tip loss approximation due to Prandtl which is easily and cheaply calculated but is known to be inaccurate at low tip speed ratio...

  20. Shape measurement and vibration analysis of moving speaker cone

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Qican; Liu, Yuankun; Lehtonen, Petri

    2014-06-01

    Surface three-dimensional (3-D) shape information is needed for many fast processes such as structural testing of material, standing waves on loudspeaker cone, etc. Usually measurement is done from limited number of points using electrical sensors or laser distance meters. Fourier Transform Profilometry (FTP) enables fast shape measurement of the whole surface. Method is based on angled sinusoidal fringe pattern projection and image capturing. FTP requires only one image of the deformed fringe pattern to restore the 3-D shape of the measured object, which makes real-time or dynamic data processing possible. In our experiment the method was used for loudspeaker cone distortion measurement in dynamic conditions. For sound quality issues it is important that the whole cone moves in same phase and there are no partial waves. Our imaging resolution was 1280x1024 pixels and frame rate was 200 fps. Using our setup we found unwanted spatial waves in our sample cone.