Non-volatile memory based on the ferroelectric photovoltaic effect

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Rui; You, Lu; Zhou, Yang; Shiuh Lim, Zhi; Zou, Xi; Chen, Lang; Ramesh, R.; Wang, Junling

2013-01-01

The quest for a solid state universal memory with high-storage density, high read/write speed, random access and non-volatility has triggered intense research into new materials and novel device architectures. Though the non-volatile memory market is dominated by flash memory now, it has very low operation speed with ~10 μs programming and ~10 ms erasing time. Furthermore, it can only withstand ~105 rewriting cycles, which prevents it from becoming the universal memory. Here we demonstrate that the significant photovoltaic effect of a ferroelectric material, such as BiFeO3 with a band gap in the visible range, can be used to sense the polarization direction non-destructively in a ferroelectric memory. A prototype 16-cell memory based on the cross-bar architecture has been prepared and tested, demonstrating the feasibility of this technique. PMID:23756366

Identification of nonvolatile compounds in clove (Syzygium aromaticum) from Manado

Science.gov (United States)

Fathoni, A.; Saepudin, E.; Cahyana, A. H.; Rahayu, D. U. C.; Haib, J.

2017-07-01

Syzygium aromaticum (clove) are native to Indonesia and have been widely used in food industry due to their flavor. Nonvolatile compounds contribute to flavor, mainly in their taste. Currently, there is very little information available about nonvolatile compounds in clove. Identification of nonvolatile compounds is important to improve clove's value. Compound extraction was conducted by maceration in ethanol. Fractionations of the extract were performed by using gravity column chromatography on silica gel and Sephadex LH-20 as stationary phase. Nonvolatile compounds were identified by Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). LC-MS/MS was operated in negative mode with 0.1 % formic acid in water and acetonitrile as mobile phase. Nonvolatile compounds were identified by fragment analysis and compared to references. Several compounds had been identified and characterized asquinic acid, monogalloylglucose, gallic acid, digalloylglucose, isobiflorin, biflorin, ellagic acid, hydroxygallic acid, luteolin, quercetin, naringenin, kaempferol, isorhamnetin, dimethoxyluteolin, and rhamnetin. These compounds had two main flavor perceptions, i.e. astringent, and bitter.

Channel equalization techniques for non-volatile memristor memories

KAUST Repository

Naous, Rawan

2016-03-16

Channel coding and information theoretic approaches have been utilized in conventional non-volatile memories to overcome their inherent design limitations of leakage, coupling and refresh rates. However, the continuous scaling and integration constraints set on the current devices directed the attention towards emerging memory technologies as suitable alternatives. Memristive devices are prominent candidates to replace the conventional electronics due to its non-volatility and small feature size. Nonetheless, memristor-based memories still encounter an accuracy limitation throughout the read operation addressed as the sneak path phenomenon. The readout data is corrupted with added distortion that increases significantly the bit error rate and jeopardizes the reliability of the read operation. A novel technique is applied to alleviate this distorting effect where the communication channel model is proposed for the memory array. Noise cancellation principles are applied with the aid of preset pilots to extract channel information and adjust the readout values accordingly. The proposed technique has the virtue of high speed, energy efficiency, and low complexity design while achieving high reliability and error-free decoding.

Channel equalization techniques for non-volatile memristor memories

KAUST Repository

Naous, Rawan; Zidan, Mohammed A.; Salem, Ahmed Sultan; Salama, Khaled N.

2016-01-01

Channel coding and information theoretic approaches have been utilized in conventional non-volatile memories to overcome their inherent design limitations of leakage, coupling and refresh rates. However, the continuous scaling and integration constraints set on the current devices directed the attention towards emerging memory technologies as suitable alternatives. Memristive devices are prominent candidates to replace the conventional electronics due to its non-volatility and small feature size. Nonetheless, memristor-based memories still encounter an accuracy limitation throughout the read operation addressed as the sneak path phenomenon. The readout data is corrupted with added distortion that increases significantly the bit error rate and jeopardizes the reliability of the read operation. A novel technique is applied to alleviate this distorting effect where the communication channel model is proposed for the memory array. Noise cancellation principles are applied with the aid of preset pilots to extract channel information and adjust the readout values accordingly. The proposed technique has the virtue of high speed, energy efficiency, and low complexity design while achieving high reliability and error-free decoding.

Nonvolatile Memory Technology for Space Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Oldham, Timothy R.; Irom, Farokh; Friendlich, Mark; Nguyen, Duc; Kim, Hak; Berg, Melanie; LaBel, Kenneth A.

2010-01-01

This slide presentation reviews several forms of nonvolatile memory for use in space applications. The intent is to: (1) Determine inherent radiation tolerance and sensitivities, (2) Identify challenges for future radiation hardening efforts, (3) Investigate new failure modes and effects, and technology modeling programs. Testing includes total dose, single event (proton, laser, heavy ion), and proton damage (where appropriate). Test vehicles are expected to be a variety of non-volatile memory devices as available including Flash (NAND and NOR), Charge Trap, Nanocrystal Flash, Magnetic Memory (MRAM), Phase Change--Chalcogenide, (CRAM), Ferroelectric (FRAM), CNT, and Resistive RAM.

Highly conducting leakage-free electrolyte for SrCoOx-based non-volatile memory device

Science.gov (United States)

Katase, Takayoshi; Suzuki, Yuki; Ohta, Hiromichi

2017-10-01

The electrochemical switching of SrCoOx-based non-volatile memory with a thin-film-transistor structure was examined by using liquid-leakage-free electrolytes with different conductivities (σ) as the gate insulator. We first examined leakage-free water, which is incorporated in the amorphous (a-) 12CaO.7Al2O3 film with a nanoporous structure (Calcium Aluminate with Nanopore), but the electrochemical oxidation/reduction of the SrCoOx layer required the application of a high gate voltage (Vg) up to 20 V for a very long current-flowing-time (t) ˜40 min, primarily due to the low σ [2.0 × 10-8 S cm-1 at room temperature (RT)] of leakage-free water. We then controlled the σ of the leakage-free electrolyte, infiltrated in the a-NaxTaO3 film with a nanopillar array structure, from 8.0 × 10-8 S cm-1 to 2.5 × 10-6 S cm-1 at RT by changing the x = 0.01-1.0. As the result, the t, required for the metallization of the SrCoOx layer under small Vg = -3 V, becomes two orders of magnitude shorter with increase of the σ of the a-NaxTaO3 leakage-free electrolyte. These results indicate that the ion migration in the leakage-free electrolyte is the rate-determining step for the electrochemical switching, compared to the other electrochemical process, and the high σ of the leakage-free electrolyte is the key factor for the development of the non-volatile SrCoOx-based electro-magnetic phase switching device.

Strain-controlled nonvolatile magnetization switching

Science.gov (United States)

Geprägs, S.; Brandlmaier, A.; Brandt, M. S.; Gross, R.; Goennenwein, S. T. B.

2014-11-01

We investigate different approaches towards a nonvolatile switching of the remanent magnetization in single-crystalline ferromagnets at room temperature via elastic strain using ferromagnetic thin film/piezoelectric actuator hybrids. The piezoelectric actuator induces a voltage-controllable strain along different crystalline directions of the ferromagnetic thin film, resulting in modifications of its magnetization by converse magnetoelastic effects. We quantify the magnetization changes in the hybrids via ferromagnetic resonance spectroscopy and superconducting quantum interference device magnetometry. These measurements demonstrate a significant strain-induced change of the magnetization, limited by an inefficient strain transfer and domain formation in the particular system studied. To overcome these obstacles, we address practicable engineering concepts and use a model to demonstrate that a strain-controlled, nonvolatile magnetization switching should be possible in appropriately engineered ferromagnetic/piezoelectric actuator hybrids.

High-Performance Nonvolatile Organic Field-Effect Transistor Memory Based on Organic Semiconductor Heterostructures of Pentacene/P13/Pentacene as Both Charge Transport and Trapping Layers.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Wen; Guo, Fengning; Ling, Haifeng; Zhang, Peng; Yi, Mingdong; Wang, Laiyuan; Wu, Dequn; Xie, Linghai; Huang, Wei

2017-08-01

Nonvolatile organic field-effect transistor (OFET) memory devices based on pentacene/ N , N '-ditridecylperylene-3,4,9,10-tetracarboxylic diimide (P13)/pentacene trilayer organic heterostructures have been proposed. The discontinuous n-type P13 embedded in p-type pentacene layers can not only provide electrons in the semiconductor layer that facilitates electron trapping process; it also works as charge trapping sites, which is attributed to the quantum well-like pentacene/P13/pentacene organic heterostructures. The synergistic effects of charge trapping in the discontinuous P13 and the charge-trapping property of the poly(4-vinylphenol) (PVP) layer remarkably improve the memory performance. In addition, the trilayer organic heterostructures have also been successfully applied to multilevel and flexible nonvolatile memory devices. The results provide a novel design strategy to achieve high-performance nonvolatile OFET memory devices and allow potential applications for different combinations of various organic semiconductor materials in OFET memory.

Phase change materials in non-volatile storage

OpenAIRE

Ielmini, Daniele; Lacaita, Andrea L.

2011-01-01

After revolutionizing the technology of optical data storage, phase change materials are being adopted in non-volatile semiconductor memories. Their success in electronic storage is mostly due to the unique properties of the amorphous state where carrier transport phenomena and thermally-induced phase change cooperate to enable high-speed, low-voltage operation and stable data retention possible within the same material. This paper reviews the key physical properties that make this phase so s...

EPA Method 8321B (SW-846): Solvent-Extractable Nonvolatile Compounds by High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Thermospray-Mass Spectrometry (HPLC-TS-MS) or Ultraviolet (UV) Detection

Science.gov (United States)

Method 8321B describes procedures for preparation and analysis of solid, aqueous liquid, drinking water and wipe samples using high performance liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry for extractable non-volatile compounds.

Evaluation of non-volatile metabolites in beer stored at high temperature and utility as an accelerated method to predict flavour stability.

Science.gov (United States)

Heuberger, Adam L; Broeckling, Corey D; Sedin, Dana; Holbrook, Christian; Barr, Lindsay; Kirkpatrick, Kaylyn; Prenni, Jessica E

2016-06-01

Flavour stability is vital to the brewing industry as beer is often stored for an extended time under variable conditions. Developing an accelerated model to evaluate brewing techniques that affect flavour stability is an important area of research. Here, we performed metabolomics on non-volatile compounds in beer stored at 37 °C between 1 and 14 days for two beer types: an amber ale and an India pale ale. The experiment determined high temperature to influence non-volatile metabolites, including the purine 5-methylthioadenosine (5-MTA). In a second experiment, three brewing techniques were evaluated for improved flavour stability: use of antioxidant crowns, chelation of pro-oxidants, and varying plant content in hops. Sensory analysis determined the hop method was associated with improved flavour stability, and this was consistent with reduced 5-MTA at both regular and high temperature storage. Future studies are warranted to understand the influence of 5-MTA on flavour and aging within different beer types. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Nonvolatile memory design magnetic, resistive, and phase change

CERN Document Server

Li, Hai

2011-01-01

The manufacture of flash memory, which is the dominant nonvolatile memory technology, is facing severe technical barriers. So much so, that some emerging technologies have been proposed as alternatives to flash memory in the nano-regime. Nonvolatile Memory Design: Magnetic, Resistive, and Phase Changing introduces three promising candidates: phase-change memory, magnetic random access memory, and resistive random access memory. The text illustrates the fundamental storage mechanism of these technologies and examines their differences from flash memory techniques. Based on the latest advances,

Nonvolatile memory characteristics in metal-oxide-semiconductors containing metal nanoparticles fabricated by using a unique laser irradiation method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, JungYup; Yoon, KapSoo; Kim, JuHyung; Choi, WonJun; Do, YoungHo; Kim, ChaeOk; Hong, JinPyo

2006-01-01

Metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) capacitors with metal nanoparticles (Co NP) were successfully fabricated by utilizing an external laser exposure technique for application of non-volatile memories. Images of high-resolution transmission electron microscopy reveal that the spherically shaped Co NP are clearly embedded in the gate oxide layer. Capacitance-voltage measurements exhibit typical charging and discharging effects with a large flat-band shift. The effects of the tunnel oxide thickness and the different tunnel materials are analyzed using capacitance-voltage and retention characteristics. In addition, the memory characteristics of the NP embedded in a high-permittivity material are investigated because the thickness of conventionally available SiO 2 gates is approaching the quantum tunneling limit as devices are scaled down. Finally, the suitability of NP memory devices for nonvolatile memory applications is also discussed. The present results suggest that our unique laser exposure technique holds promise for the NP formation as floating gate elements in nonvolatile NP memories and that the quality of the tunnel oxide is very important for enhancing the retention properties of nonvolatile memory.

Organic non-volatile memories from ferroelectric phase-separated blends

Science.gov (United States)

Asadi, Kamal; de Leeuw, Dago M.; de Boer, Bert; Blom, Paul W. M.

2008-07-01

New non-volatile memories are being investigated to keep up with the organic-electronics road map. Ferroelectric polarization is an attractive physical property as the mechanism for non-volatile switching, because the two polarizations can be used as two binary levels. However, in ferroelectric capacitors the read-out of the polarization charge is destructive. The functionality of the targeted memory should be based on resistive switching. In inorganic ferroelectrics conductivity and ferroelectricity cannot be tuned independently. The challenge is to develop a storage medium in which the favourable properties of ferroelectrics such as bistability and non-volatility can be combined with the beneficial properties provided by semiconductors such as conductivity and rectification. Here we present an integrated solution by blending semiconducting and ferroelectric polymers into phase-separated networks. The polarization field of the ferroelectric modulates the injection barrier at the semiconductor-metal contact. The combination of ferroelectric bistability with (semi)conductivity and rectification allows for solution-processed non-volatile memory arrays with a simple cross-bar architecture that can be read out non-destructively. The concept of an electrically tunable injection barrier as presented here is general and can be applied to other electronic devices such as light-emitting diodes with an integrated on/off switch.

A New Concept for Non-Volatile Memory: The Electric-Pulse Induced Resistive Change Effect in Colossal Magnetoresistive Thin Films

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, S. Q.; Wu, N. J.; Ignatiev, A.

2001-01-01

A novel electric pulse-induced resistive change (EPIR) effect has been found in thin film colossal magnetoresistive (CMR) materials, and has shown promise for the development of resistive, nonvolatile memory. The EPIR effect is induced by the application of low voltage (resistance of the thin film sample depending on pulse polarity. The sample resistance change has been shown to be over two orders of magnitude, and is nonvolatile after pulsing. The sample resistance can also be changed through multiple levels - as many as 50 have been shown. Such a device can provide a way for the development of a new kind of nonvolatile multiple-valued memory with high density, fast write/read speed, low power-consumption, and potential high radiation-hardness.

Future Trend of Non-Volatile Semiconductor Memory and Feasibility Study of BiCS Type Stacked Structure

OpenAIRE

渡辺, 重佳

2009-01-01

Future trend of non-volatile semiconductor memory—FeRAM, MRAM, PRAM, ReRAM—compared with NAND typeflash memory has been described based on its history, application and performance. In the realistic point of view,FeRAM and MRAM are suitable for embedded memory and main memory, and PRAM and ReRAM are promising candidatesfor main memory and mass-storage memory for multimedia. Furthermore, the feasibility study of aggressiveultra-low-cost high-speed universal non-volatile semiconductor memory has...

Reduced-Contrast Approximations for High-Contrast Multiscale Flow Problems

KAUST Repository

Chung, Eric T.; Efendiev, Yalchin

2010-01-01

In this paper, we study multiscale methods for high-contrast elliptic problems where the media properties change dramatically. The disparity in the media properties (also referred to as high contrast in the paper) introduces an additional scale that needs to be resolved in multiscale simulations. First, we present a construction that uses an integral equation to represent the highcontrast component of the solution. This representation involves solving an integral equation along the interface where the coefficients are discontinuous. The integral representation suggests some multiscale approaches that are discussed in the paper. One of these approaches entails the use of interface functions in addition to multiscale basis functions representing the heterogeneities without high contrast. In this paper, we propose an approximation for the solution of the integral equation using the interface problems in reduced-contrast media. Reduced-contrast media are obtained by lowering the variance of the coefficients. We also propose a similar approach for the solution of the elliptic equation without using an integral representation. This approach is simpler to use in the computations because it does not involve setting up integral equations. The main idea of this approach is to approximate the solution of the high-contrast problem by the solutions of the problems formulated in reduced-contrast media. In this approach, a rapidly converging sequence is proposed where only problems with lower contrast are solved. It was shown that this sequence possesses the convergence rate that is inversely proportional to the reduced contrast. This approximation allows choosing the reduced-contrast problem based on the coarse-mesh size as discussed in this paper. We present a simple application of this approach to homogenization of elliptic equations with high-contrast coefficients. The presented approaches are limited to the cases where there are sharp changes in the contrast (i.e., the high

Nonvolatile resistive switching in Pt/laALO3/srTiO3 heterostructures

KAUST Repository

Wu, S.

2013-12-12

Resistive switching heterojunctions, which are promising for nonvolatile memory applications, usually share a capacitorlike metal-oxide-metal configuration. Here, we report on the nonvolatile resistive switching in Pt/LaAlO3/SrTiO3 heterostructures, where the conducting layer near the LaAlO3/SrTiO3 interface serves as the "unconventional"bottom electrode although both oxides are band insulators. Interestingly, the switching between low-resistance and high-resistance states is accompanied by reversible transitions between tunneling and Ohmic characteristics in the current transport perpendicular to the planes of the heterojunctions. We propose that the observed resistive switching is likely caused by the electric-field-induced drift of charged oxygen vacancies across the LaAlO3/SrTiO3 interface and the creation of defect-induced gap states within the ultrathin LaAlO3 layer. These metal-oxide-oxide heterojunctions with atomically smooth interfaces and defect-controlled transport provide a platform for the development of nonvolatile oxide nanoelectronics that integrate logic and memory devices.

Method for refreshing a non-volatile memory

Science.gov (United States)

Riekels, James E.; Schlesinger, Samuel

2008-11-04

A non-volatile memory and a method of refreshing a memory are described. The method includes allowing an external system to control refreshing operations within the memory. The memory may generate a refresh request signal and transmit the refresh request signal to the external system. When the external system finds an available time to process the refresh request, the external system acknowledges the refresh request and transmits a refresh acknowledge signal to the memory. The memory may also comprise a page register for reading and rewriting a data state back to the memory. The page register may comprise latches in lieu of supplemental non-volatile storage elements, thereby conserving real estate within the memory.

Organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories utilizing sputtered C nanoparticles as nano-floating-gate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu, Jie; Liu, Chang-Hai; She, Xiao-Jian; Sun, Qi-Jun; Gao, Xu; Wang, Sui-Dong, E-mail: wangsd@suda.edu.cn [Institute of Functional Nano and Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215123 (China)

2014-10-20

High-performance organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories have been achieved using sputtered C nanoparticles as the nano-floating-gate. The sputtered C nano-floating-gate is prepared with low-cost material and simple process, forming uniform and discrete charge trapping sites covered by a smooth and complete polystyrene layer. The devices show large memory window, excellent retention capability, and programming/reading/erasing/reading endurance. The sputtered C nano-floating-gate can effectively trap both holes and electrons, and it is demonstrated to be suitable for not only p-type but also n-type organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories.

Organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories utilizing sputtered C nanoparticles as nano-floating-gate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Jie; Liu, Chang-Hai; She, Xiao-Jian; Sun, Qi-Jun; Gao, Xu; Wang, Sui-Dong

2014-01-01

High-performance organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories have been achieved using sputtered C nanoparticles as the nano-floating-gate. The sputtered C nano-floating-gate is prepared with low-cost material and simple process, forming uniform and discrete charge trapping sites covered by a smooth and complete polystyrene layer. The devices show large memory window, excellent retention capability, and programming/reading/erasing/reading endurance. The sputtered C nano-floating-gate can effectively trap both holes and electrons, and it is demonstrated to be suitable for not only p-type but also n-type organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories.

Physical principles and current status of emerging non-volatile solid state memories

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, L.; Yang, C.-H.; Wen, J.

2015-07-01

Today the influence of non-volatile solid-state memories on persons' lives has become more prominent because of their non-volatility, low data latency, and high robustness. As a pioneering technology that is representative of non-volatile solidstate memories, flash memory has recently seen widespread application in many areas ranging from electronic appliances, such as cell phones and digital cameras, to external storage devices such as universal serial bus (USB) memory. Moreover, owing to its large storage capacity, it is expected that in the near future, flash memory will replace hard-disk drives as a dominant technology in the mass storage market, especially because of recently emerging solid-state drives. However, the rapid growth of the global digital data has led to the need for flash memories to have larger storage capacity, thus requiring a further downscaling of the cell size. Such a miniaturization is expected to be extremely difficult because of the well-known scaling limit of flash memories. It is therefore necessary to either explore innovative technologies that can extend the areal density of flash memories beyond the scaling limits, or to vigorously develop alternative non-volatile solid-state memories including ferroelectric random-access memory, magnetoresistive random-access memory, phase-change random-access memory, and resistive random-access memory. In this paper, we review the physical principles of flash memories and their technical challenges that affect our ability to enhance the storage capacity. We then present a detailed discussion of novel technologies that can extend the storage density of flash memories beyond the commonly accepted limits. In each case, we subsequently discuss the physical principles of these new types of non-volatile solid-state memories as well as their respective merits and weakness when utilized for data storage applications. Finally, we predict the future prospects for the aforementioned solid-state memories for

Electrostatically telescoping nanotube nonvolatile memory device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Jeong Won; Jiang Qing

2007-01-01

We propose a nonvolatile memory based on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) serving as the key building blocks for molecular-scale computers and investigate the dynamic operations of a double-walled CNT memory element by classical molecular dynamics simulations. The localized potential energy wells achieved from both the interwall van der Waals energy and CNT-metal binding energy make the bistability of the CNT positions and the electrostatic attractive forces induced by the voltage differences lead to the reversibility of this CNT memory. The material for the electrodes should be carefully chosen to achieve the nonvolatility of this memory. The kinetic energy of the CNT shuttle experiences several rebounds induced by the collisions of the CNT onto the metal electrodes, and this is critically important to the performance of such an electrostatically telescoping CNT memory because the collision time is sufficiently long to cause a delay of the state transition

Nonvolatile Resistive Switching in Pt/LaAlO_{3}/SrTiO_{3} Heterostructures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shuxiang Wu

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Resistive switching heterojunctions, which are promising for nonvolatile memory applications, usually share a capacitorlike metal-oxide-metal configuration. Here, we report on the nonvolatile resistive switching in Pt/LaAlO_{3}/SrTiO_{3} heterostructures, where the conducting layer near the LaAlO_{3}/SrTiO_{3} interface serves as the “unconventional” bottom electrode although both oxides are band insulators. Interestingly, the switching between low-resistance and high-resistance states is accompanied by reversible transitions between tunneling and Ohmic characteristics in the current transport perpendicular to the planes of the heterojunctions. We propose that the observed resistive switching is likely caused by the electric-field-induced drift of charged oxygen vacancies across the LaAlO_{3}/SrTiO_{3} interface and the creation of defect-induced gap states within the ultrathin LaAlO_{3} layer. These metal-oxide-oxide heterojunctions with atomically smooth interfaces and defect-controlled transport provide a platform for the development of nonvolatile oxide nanoelectronics that integrate logic and memory devices.

Nonvolatile resistive switching in Pt/laALO3/srTiO3 heterostructures

KAUST Repository

Wu, S.; Luo, X.; Turner, S.; Peng, H.; Lin, W.; Ding, J.; David, A.; Wang, B.; Van, Tendeloo, G.; Wang, J.; Wu, Tao

2013-01-01

Resistive switching heterojunctions, which are promising for nonvolatile memory applications, usually share a capacitorlike metal-oxide-metal configuration. Here, we report on the nonvolatile resistive switching in Pt/LaAlO3/SrTiO3 heterostructures

Low-power non-volatile spintronic memory: STT-RAM and beyond

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, K L; Alzate, J G; Khalili Amiri, P

2013-01-01

The quest for novel low-dissipation devices is one of the most critical for the future of semiconductor technology and nano-systems. The development of a low-power, universal memory will enable a new paradigm of non-volatile computation. Here we consider STT-RAM as one of the emerging candidates for low-power non-volatile memory. We show different configurations for STT memory and demonstrate strategies to optimize key performance parameters such as switching current and energy. The energy and scaling limits of STT-RAM are discussed, leading us to argue that alternative writing mechanisms may be required to achieve ultralow power dissipation, a necessary condition for direct integration with CMOS at the gate level for non-volatile logic purposes. As an example, we discuss the use of the giant spin Hall effect as a possible alternative to induce magnetization reversal in magnetic tunnel junctions using pure spin currents. Further, we concentrate on magnetoelectric effects, where electric fields are used instead of spin-polarized currents to manipulate the nanomagnets, as another candidate solution to address the challenges of energy efficiency and density. The possibility of an electric-field-controlled magnetoelectric RAM as a promising candidate for ultralow-power non-volatile memory is discussed in the light of experimental data demonstrating voltage-induced switching of the magnetization and reorientation of the magnetic easy axis by electric fields in nanomagnets. (paper)

Design considerations for a radiation hardened nonvolatile memory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murray, J.R.

1993-01-01

Sub-optimal design practices can reduce the radiation hardness of a circuit even though it is fabricated in a radiation hardened process. This is especially true for a nonvolatile memory, as compared to a standard digital circuit, where high voltages and unusual bias conditions are required. This paper will discuss the design technique's used in the development of a 64K EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory) to maximize radiation hardness. The circuit radiation test results will be reviewed in order to provide validation of the techniques

Measurements of non-volatile aerosols with a VTDMA and their correlations with carbonaceous aerosols in Guangzhou, China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. H. Y. Cheung

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Simultaneous measurements of aerosol volatility and carbonaceous matters were conducted at a suburban site in Guangzhou, China, in February and March 2014 using a volatility tandem differential mobility analyzer (VTDMA and an organic carbon/elemental carbon (OC ∕ EC analyzer. Low volatility (LV particles, with a volatility shrink factor (VSF at 300 °C exceeding 0.9, contributed 5 % of number concentrations of the 40 nm particles and 11–15 % of the 80–300 nm particles. They were composed of non-volatile material externally mixed with volatile material, and therefore did not evaporate significantly at 300 °C. Non-volatile material mixed internally with the volatile material was referred to as medium volatility (MV, 0.4  <  VSF  <  0.9 and high volatility (HV, VSF  <  0.4 particles. The MV and HV particles contributed 57–71 % of number concentration for the particles between 40 and 300 nm in size. The average EC and OC concentrations measured by the OC ∕ EC analyzer were 3.4 ± 3.0 and 9.0 ± 6.0 µg m−3, respectively. Non-volatile OC evaporating at 475 °C or above, together with EC, contributed 67 % of the total carbon mass. In spite of the daily maximum and minimum, the diurnal variations in the volume fractions of the volatile material, HV, MV and LV residuals were less than 15 % for the 80–300 nm particles. Back trajectory analysis also suggests that over 90 % of the air masses influencing the sampling site were well aged as they were transported at low altitudes (below 1500 m for over 40 h before arrival. Further comparison with the diurnal variations in the mass fractions of EC and the non-volatile OC in PM2.5 suggests that the non-volatile residuals may be related to both EC and non-volatile OC in the afternoon, during which the concentration of aged organics increased. A closure analysis of the total mass of LV and MV residuals and the mass of EC or the

Measurements of non-volatile aerosols with a VTDMA and their correlations with carbonaceous aerosols in Guangzhou, China

Science.gov (United States)

Cheung, Heidi H. Y.; Tan, Haobo; Xu, Hanbing; Li, Fei; Wu, Cheng; Yu, Jian Z.; Chan, Chak K.

2016-07-01

Simultaneous measurements of aerosol volatility and carbonaceous matters were conducted at a suburban site in Guangzhou, China, in February and March 2014 using a volatility tandem differential mobility analyzer (VTDMA) and an organic carbon/elemental carbon (OC / EC) analyzer. Low volatility (LV) particles, with a volatility shrink factor (VSF) at 300 °C exceeding 0.9, contributed 5 % of number concentrations of the 40 nm particles and 11-15 % of the 80-300 nm particles. They were composed of non-volatile material externally mixed with volatile material, and therefore did not evaporate significantly at 300 °C. Non-volatile material mixed internally with the volatile material was referred to as medium volatility (MV, 0.4 transported at low altitudes (below 1500 m) for over 40 h before arrival. Further comparison with the diurnal variations in the mass fractions of EC and the non-volatile OC in PM2.5 suggests that the non-volatile residuals may be related to both EC and non-volatile OC in the afternoon, during which the concentration of aged organics increased. A closure analysis of the total mass of LV and MV residuals and the mass of EC or the sum of EC and non-volatile OC was conducted. It suggests that non-volatile OC, in addition to EC, was one of the components of the non-volatile residuals measured by the VTDMA in this study.

Non-volatile flash memory with discrete bionanodot floating gate assembled by protein template

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miura, Atsushi; Yamashita, Ichiro; Uraoka, Yukiharu; Fuyuki, Takashi; Tsukamoto, Rikako; Yoshii, Shigeo

2008-01-01

We demonstrated non-volatile flash memory fabrication by utilizing uniformly sized cobalt oxide (Co 3 O 4 ) bionanodot (Co-BND) architecture assembled by a cage-shaped supramolecular protein template. A fabricated high-density Co-BND array was buried in a metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect-transistor (MOSFET) structure to use as the charge storage node of a floating nanodot gate memory. We observed a clockwise hysteresis in the drain current-gate voltage characteristics of fabricated BND-embedded MOSFETs. Observed hysteresis obviously indicates a memory operation of Co-BND-embedded MOSFETs due to the charge confinement in the embedded BND and successful functioning of embedded BNDs as the charge storage nodes of the non-volatile flash memory. Fabricated Co-BND-embedded MOSFETs showed good memory properties such as wide memory windows, long charge retention and high tolerance to repeated write/erase operations. A new pathway for device fabrication by utilizing the versatile functionality of biomolecules is presented

A review of emerging non-volatile memory (NVM) technologies and applications

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, An

2016-11-01

This paper will review emerging non-volatile memory (NVM) technologies, with the focus on phase change memory (PCM), spin-transfer-torque random-access-memory (STTRAM), resistive random-access-memory (RRAM), and ferroelectric field-effect-transistor (FeFET) memory. These promising NVM devices are evaluated in terms of their advantages, challenges, and applications. Their performance is compared based on reported parameters of major industrial test chips. Memory selector devices and cell structures are discussed. Changing market trends toward low power (e.g., mobile, IoT) and data-centric applications create opportunities for emerging NVMs. High-performance and low-cost emerging NVMs may simplify memory hierarchy, introduce non-volatility in logic gates and circuits, reduce system power, and enable novel architectures. Storage-class memory (SCM) based on high-density NVMs could fill the performance and density gap between memory and storage. Some unique characteristics of emerging NVMs can be utilized for novel applications beyond the memory space, e.g., neuromorphic computing, hardware security, etc. In the beyond-CMOS era, emerging NVMs have the potential to fulfill more important functions and enable more efficient, intelligent, and secure computing systems.

Evaluation of Recent Technologies of Nonvolatile RAM

Science.gov (United States)

Nuns, Thierry; Duzellier, Sophie; Bertrand, Jean; Hubert, Guillaume; Pouget, Vincent; Darracq, FrÉdÉric; David, Jean-Pierre; Soonckindt, Sabine

2008-08-01

Two types of recent nonvolatile random access memories (NVRAM) were evaluated for radiation effects: total dose and single event upset and latch-up under heavy ions and protons. Complementary irradiation with a laser beam provides information on sensitive areas of the devices.

Ferroelectric memories: A possible answer to the hardened nonvolatile question

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Messenger, G.C.; Coppage, F.N.

1988-01-01

Ferroelectric memory cells have been fabricated using a process compatible with semiconductor VLSI (Very Large-Scale Integration) manufacturing techniques which are basically nonvolatile and radiation hard. The memory can be made NDRO (Nondestructive Readout) for strategic systems using several techniques; the most practical is probably a rapid read/restore in combination with EDAC software. This memory can replace plated wire and will have substantial advantages in cost, weight, size, power and speed. It provides a practical cost-competitive solution to the need for nonvolatile RAM in all hardened tactical, avionic, and space systems

Role of Non-Volatile Memories in Automotive and IoT Markets

Science.gov (United States)

2017-03-01

Standard Manufacturing Supply Long Term Short to Medium Term Density Up to 16MB Up to 2MB IO Configuration Up to x128 Up to x32 Design for Test...Role of Non-Volatile Memories in Automotive and IoT Markets Vipin Tiwari Director, Business Development and Product Marketing SST – A Wholly Own...microcontrollers (MCU) and certainly one of the most challenging elements to master. This paper addresses the role of non-volatile memories for

Organic Nonvolatile Memory Devices Based on Ferroelectricity

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Naber, Ronald C. G.; Asadi, Kamal; Blom, Paul W. M.; de Leeuw, Dago M.; de Boer, Bert

2010-01-01

A memory functionality is a prerequisite for many applications of electronic devices. Organic nonvolatile memory devices based on ferroelectricity are a promising approach toward the development of a low-cost memory technology. In this Review Article we discuss the latest developments in this area

Organic nonvolatile memory devices based on ferroelectricity

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Naber, R.C.G.; Asadi, K.; Blom, P.W.M.; Leeuw, D.M. de; Boer, B. de

2010-01-01

A memory functionality is a prerequisite for many applications of electronic devices. Organic nonvolatile memory devices based on ferroelectricity are a promising approach toward the development of a low-cost memory technology. In this Review Article we discuss the latest developments in this area

Coexistence of nonvolatility and volatility in Pt/Nb-doped SrTiO3/In memristive devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, M; Bao, D H; Li, S W

2013-01-01

Memristive devices are triggering innovations in the fields of nonvolatile memory, digital logic, analogue circuits, neuromorphic engineering, and so on. Creating new memristive devices with unique characteristics would be significant for these emergent applications. Here we report the coexistence of nonvolatility and volatility in Pt/Nb-doped SrTiO 3 (NSTO)/In memristive devices. The Pt/NSTO interface contributes a nonvolatile resistive switching behaviour, whereas the NSTO/In interface displays a volatile hysteresis loop. Combining the two interfaces in the Pt/NSTO/In devices leads to the unique coexistence of nonvolatility and volatility. The results imply more opportunities to invent new memristive devices by engineering both interfaces in metal/insulator/metal structures. (paper)

High performance non-volatile ferroelectric copolymer memory based on a ZnO nanowire transistor fabricated on a transparent substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nedic, Stanko; Welland, Mark; Tea Chun, Young; Chu, Daping; Hong, Woong-Ki

2014-01-01

A high performance ferroelectric non-volatile memory device based on a top-gate ZnO nanowire (NW) transistor fabricated on a glass substrate is demonstrated. The ZnO NW channel was spin-coated with a poly (vinylidenefluoride-co-trifluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE)) layer acting as a top-gate dielectric without buffer layer. Electrical conductance modulation and memory hysteresis are achieved by a gate electric field induced reversible electrical polarization switching of the P(VDF-TrFE) thin film. Furthermore, the fabricated device exhibits a memory window of ∼16.5 V, a high drain current on/off ratio of ∼10 5 , a gate leakage current below ∼300 pA, and excellent retention characteristics for over 10 4 s

Overview of emerging nonvolatile memory technologies.

Science.gov (United States)

Meena, Jagan Singh; Sze, Simon Min; Chand, Umesh; Tseng, Tseung-Yuen

2014-01-01

Nonvolatile memory technologies in Si-based electronics date back to the 1990s. Ferroelectric field-effect transistor (FeFET) was one of the most promising devices replacing the conventional Flash memory facing physical scaling limitations at those times. A variant of charge storage memory referred to as Flash memory is widely used in consumer electronic products such as cell phones and music players while NAND Flash-based solid-state disks (SSDs) are increasingly displacing hard disk drives as the primary storage device in laptops, desktops, and even data centers. The integration limit of Flash memories is approaching, and many new types of memory to replace conventional Flash memories have been proposed. Emerging memory technologies promise new memories to store more data at less cost than the expensive-to-build silicon chips used by popular consumer gadgets including digital cameras, cell phones and portable music players. They are being investigated and lead to the future as potential alternatives to existing memories in future computing systems. Emerging nonvolatile memory technologies such as magnetic random-access memory (MRAM), spin-transfer torque random-access memory (STT-RAM), ferroelectric random-access memory (FeRAM), phase-change memory (PCM), and resistive random-access memory (RRAM) combine the speed of static random-access memory (SRAM), the density of dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), and the nonvolatility of Flash memory and so become very attractive as another possibility for future memory hierarchies. Many other new classes of emerging memory technologies such as transparent and plastic, three-dimensional (3-D), and quantum dot memory technologies have also gained tremendous popularity in recent years. Subsequently, not an exaggeration to say that computer memory could soon earn the ultimate commercial validation for commercial scale-up and production the cheap plastic knockoff. Therefore, this review is devoted to the rapidly developing new

Overview of emerging nonvolatile memory technologies

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Nonvolatile memory technologies in Si-based electronics date back to the 1990s. Ferroelectric field-effect transistor (FeFET) was one of the most promising devices replacing the conventional Flash memory facing physical scaling limitations at those times. A variant of charge storage memory referred to as Flash memory is widely used in consumer electronic products such as cell phones and music players while NAND Flash-based solid-state disks (SSDs) are increasingly displacing hard disk drives as the primary storage device in laptops, desktops, and even data centers. The integration limit of Flash memories is approaching, and many new types of memory to replace conventional Flash memories have been proposed. Emerging memory technologies promise new memories to store more data at less cost than the expensive-to-build silicon chips used by popular consumer gadgets including digital cameras, cell phones and portable music players. They are being investigated and lead to the future as potential alternatives to existing memories in future computing systems. Emerging nonvolatile memory technologies such as magnetic random-access memory (MRAM), spin-transfer torque random-access memory (STT-RAM), ferroelectric random-access memory (FeRAM), phase-change memory (PCM), and resistive random-access memory (RRAM) combine the speed of static random-access memory (SRAM), the density of dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), and the nonvolatility of Flash memory and so become very attractive as another possibility for future memory hierarchies. Many other new classes of emerging memory technologies such as transparent and plastic, three-dimensional (3-D), and quantum dot memory technologies have also gained tremendous popularity in recent years. Subsequently, not an exaggeration to say that computer memory could soon earn the ultimate commercial validation for commercial scale-up and production the cheap plastic knockoff. Therefore, this review is devoted to the rapidly developing new

Nonvolatile “AND,” “OR,” and “NOT” Boolean logic gates based on phase-change memory

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Y.; Zhong, Y. P.; Deng, Y. F.; Zhou, Y. X.; Xu, L.; Miao, X. S., E-mail: miaoxs@mail.hust.edu.cn [Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics (WNLO), Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST), Wuhan 430074 (China); School of Optical and Electronic Information, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074 (China)

2013-12-21

Electronic devices or circuits that can implement both logic and memory functions are regarded as the building blocks for future massive parallel computing beyond von Neumann architecture. Here we proposed phase-change memory (PCM)-based nonvolatile logic gates capable of AND, OR, and NOT Boolean logic operations verified in SPICE simulations and circuit experiments. The logic operations are parallel computing and results can be stored directly in the states of the logic gates, facilitating the combination of computing and memory in the same circuit. These results are encouraging for ultralow-power and high-speed nonvolatile logic circuit design based on novel memory devices.

Nonvolatile “AND,” “OR,” and “NOT” Boolean logic gates based on phase-change memory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Y.; Zhong, Y. P.; Deng, Y. F.; Zhou, Y. X.; Xu, L.; Miao, X. S.

2013-01-01

Electronic devices or circuits that can implement both logic and memory functions are regarded as the building blocks for future massive parallel computing beyond von Neumann architecture. Here we proposed phase-change memory (PCM)-based nonvolatile logic gates capable of AND, OR, and NOT Boolean logic operations verified in SPICE simulations and circuit experiments. The logic operations are parallel computing and results can be stored directly in the states of the logic gates, facilitating the combination of computing and memory in the same circuit. These results are encouraging for ultralow-power and high-speed nonvolatile logic circuit design based on novel memory devices

Investigation of High-k Dielectrics and Metal Gate Electrodes for Non-volatile Memory Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Jayanti, Srikant

Due to the increasing demand of non-volatile flash memories in the portable electronics, the device structures need to be scaled down drastically. However, the scalability of traditional floating gate structures beyond 20 nm NAND flash technology node is uncertain. In this regard, the use of metal gates and high-k dielectrics as the gate and interpoly dielectrics respectively, seem to be promising substitutes in order to continue the flash scaling beyond 20nm. Furthermore, research of novel memory structures to overcome the scaling challenges need to be explored. Through this work, the use of high-k dielectrics as IPDs in a memory structure has been studied. For this purpose, IPD process optimization and barrier engineering were explored to determine and improve the memory performance. Specifically, the concept of high-k / low-k barrier engineering was studied in corroboration with simulations. In addition, a novel memory structure comprising a continuous metal floating gate was investigated in combination with high-k blocking oxides. Integration of thin metal FGs and high-k dielectrics into a dual floating gate memory structure to result in both volatile and non-volatile modes of operation has been demonstrated, for plausible application in future unified memory architectures. The electrical characterization was performed on simple MIS/MIM and memory capacitors, fabricated through CMOS compatible processes. Various analytical characterization techniques were done to gain more insight into the material behavior of the layers in the device structure. In the first part of this study, interfacial engineering was investigated by exploring La2O3 as SiO2 scavenging layer. Through the silicate formation, the consumption of low-k SiO2 was controlled and resulted in a significant improvement in dielectric leakage. The performance improvement was also gauged through memory capacitors. In the second part of the study, a novel memory structure consisting of continuous metal FG

Active non-volatile memory post-processing

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kannan, Sudarsun; Milojicic, Dejan S.; Talwar, Vanish

2017-04-11

A computing node includes an active Non-Volatile Random Access Memory (NVRAM) component which includes memory and a sub-processor component. The memory is to store data chunks received from a processor core, the data chunks comprising metadata indicating a type of post-processing to be performed on data within the data chunks. The sub-processor component is to perform post-processing of said data chunks based on said metadata.

Enhanced non-volatile and updatable holography using a polymer composite system.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Pengfei; Sun, Sam Q; Baig, Sarfaraz; Wang, Michael R

2012-03-12

Updatable holography is considered as the ultimate technique for true 3D information recording and display. However, there is no practical solution to preserve the required features of both non-volatility and reversibility which conflict with each other when the reading has the same wavelength as the recording. We demonstrate a non-volatile and updatable holographic approach by exploiting new features of molecular transformations in a polymer recording system. In addition, by using a new composite recording film containing photo-reconfigurable liquid-crystal (LC) polymer, the holographic recording is enhanced due to the collective reorientation of LC molecules around the reconfigured polymer chains.

Radiation-hardened nonvolatile MNOS RAM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wrobel, T.F.; Dodson, W.H.; Hash, G.L.; Jones, R.V.; Nasby, R.D.; Olson, R.J.

1983-01-01

A radiation hardened nonvolatile MNOS RAM is being developed at Sandia National Laboratories. The memory organization is 128 x 8 bits and utilizes two p-channel MNOS transistors per memory cell. The peripheral circuitry is constructed with CMOS metal gate and is processed with standard Sandia rad-hard processing techniques. The devices have memory retention after a dose-rate exposure of 1E12 rad(Si)/s, are functional after total dose exposure of 1E6 rad(Si), and are dose-rate upset resistant to levels of 7E8 rad(Si)/s

Overview of radiation effects on emerging non-volatile memory technologies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fetahović Irfan S.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper we give an overview of radiation effects in emergent, non-volatile memory technologies. Investigations into radiation hardness of resistive random access memory, ferroelectric random access memory, magneto-resistive random access memory, and phase change memory are presented in cases where these memory devices were subjected to different types of radiation. The obtained results proved high radiation tolerance of studied devices making them good candidates for application in radiation-intensive environments. [Project of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Grant no. 171007

Volatile and Nonvolatile Characteristics of Asymmetric Dual-Gate Thyristor RAM with Vertical Structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Hyun-Min; Kwon, Dae Woong; Kim, Sihyun; Lee, Kitae; Lee, Junil; Park, Euyhwan; Lee, Ryoongbin; Kim, Hyungjin; Kim, Sangwan; Park, Byung-Gook

2018-09-01

In this paper, the volatile and nonvolatile characteristics of asymmetric dual-gate thyristor random access memory (TRAM) are investigated using the technology of a computer-aided design (TCAD) simulation. Owing to the use of two independent gates having different gate dielectric layers, volatile and nonvolatile memory functions can be realized in a single device. The first gate with a silicon oxide layer controls the one-transistor dynamic random access memory (1T-DRAM) characteristics of the device. From the simulation results, a rapid write speed (107) can be achieved. The second gate, whose dielectric material is composed of oxide/nitride/oxide (O/N/O) layers, is used to implement the nonvolatile property by trapping charges in the nitride layer. In addition, this offers an advantage when processing the 3D-stack memory application, as the device has a vertical channel structure with polycrystalline silicon.

High Contrast Vacuum Nuller Testbed (VNT) Contrast, Performance and Null Control

Science.gov (United States)

Lyon, Richard G.; Clampin, Mark; Petrone, Peter; Mallik, Udayan; Madison, Timothy; Bolcar, Matthew R.

2012-01-01

Herein we report on our Visible Nulling Coronagraph high-contrast result of 109 contrast averaged over a focal planeregion extending from 14 D with the Vacuum Nuller Testbed (VNT) in a vibration isolated vacuum chamber. TheVNC is a hybrid interferometriccoronagraphic approach for exoplanet science. It operates with high Lyot stopefficiency for filled, segmented and sparse or diluted-aperture telescopes, thereby spanning the range of potential futureNASA flight telescopes. NASAGoddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) has a well-established effort to develop the VNCand its technologies, and has developed an incremental sequence of VNC testbeds to advance this approach and itsenabling technologies. These testbeds have enabled advancement of high-contrast, visible light, nulling interferometry tounprecedented levels. The VNC is based on a modified Mach-Zehnder nulling interferometer, with a W configurationto accommodate a hex-packed MEMS based deformable mirror, a coherent fiber bundle and achromatic phase shifters.We give an overview of the VNT and discuss the high-contrast laboratory results, the optical configuration, criticaltechnologies and null sensing and control.

High contrast vacuum nuller testbed (VNT) contrast, performance, and null control

Science.gov (United States)

Lyon, Richard G.; Clampin, Mark; Petrone, Peter; Mallik, Udayan; Madison, Timothy; Bolcar, Matthew R.

2012-09-01

Herein we report on our Visible Nulling Coronagraph high-contrast result of 109 contrast averaged over a focal plane region extending from 1 - 4 λ/D with the Vacuum Nuller Testbed (VNT) in a vibration isolated vacuum chamber. The VNC is a hybrid interferometric/coronagraphic approach for exoplanet science. It operates with high Lyot stop efficiency for filled, segmented and sparse or diluted-aperture telescopes, thereby spanning the range of potential future NASA flight telescopes. NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) has a well-established effort to develop the VNC and its technologies, and has developed an incremental sequence of VNC testbeds to advance this approach and its enabling technologies. These testbeds have enabled advancement of high-contrast, visible light, nulling interferometry to unprecedented levels. The VNC is based on a modified Mach-Zehnder nulling interferometer, with a “W” configuration to accommodate a hex-packed MEMS based deformable mirror, a coherent fiber bundle and achromatic phase shifters. We give an overview of the VNT and discuss the high-contrast laboratory results, the optical configuration, critical technologies and null sensing and control.

Application of polarization in high speed, high contrast inspection

Science.gov (United States)

Novak, Matthew J.

2017-08-01

Industrial optical inspection often requires high speed and high throughput of materials. Engineers use a variety of techniques to handle these inspection needs. Some examples include line scan cameras, high speed multi-spectral and laser-based systems. High-volume manufacturing presents different challenges for inspection engineers. For example, manufacturers produce some components in quantities of millions per month, per week or even per day. Quality control of so many parts requires creativity to achieve the measurement needs. At times, traditional vision systems lack the contrast to provide the data required. In this paper, we show how dynamic polarization imaging captures high contrast images. These images are useful for engineers to perform inspection tasks in some cases where optical contrast is low. We will cover basic theory of polarization. We show how to exploit polarization as a contrast enhancement technique. We also show results of modeling for a polarization inspection application. Specifically, we explore polarization techniques for inspection of adhesives on glass.

Migration of residual nonvolatile and inorganic compounds from recycled post-consumer PET and HDPE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dutra, Camila; Reyes, Felix G.R., E-mail: reyesfgr@fea.unicamp.br [Universidade de Campinas (UNICAMP), SP (Brazil). Escola de Engenharia dos Alimentos. Dept. de Ciencias dos Alimentos; Freire, Maria Teresa de A. [Universidade de Sao Paulo (USP), Pirassununga, SP (Brazil). Fac. de Ciencia Animal e Engenharia dos Alimentos. Dept. de Engenharia dos Alimentos; Nerin, Cristina; Bentayeb, Karim; Rodriguez-Lafuente, Angel; Aznar, Margarita [Dept. of Analytical Chemistry, Arago Inst. of Engineering Research, University of Zaragoza (Spain)

2014-04-15

Migration of nonvolatile and inorganic residual compounds from post-consumer recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) submitted to cleaning processes for subsequent production of materials intended to food contact, as well as from multilayer packaging material containing post-consumer recycled high-density polyethylene (HDPE) was determined. Tests were carried out using food simulant. Nonvolatile organic contaminants from PET, determined by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-QqQ/MS), showed significant migration reduction as consequence of the more complex cleaning technologies applied. However, contaminants not allowed by Brazilian and European Union regulations were identified even in deep cleaning samples. Results from multilayer HDPE showed a greater number of contaminants when compared to recycled pellets. Inorganic contaminants, determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry were below the acceptable levels. Additional studies for identification and quantitation of unknown molecules which were not possible to identify in this study by UPLC-QqQ/MS are required to ascertain the safety of using post-consumer recycled packaging material. (author)

Two-dimensional non-volatile programmable p-n junctions

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Dong; Chen, Mingyuan; Sun, Zhengzong; Yu, Peng; Liu, Zheng; Ajayan, Pulickel M.; Zhang, Zengxing

2017-09-01

Semiconductor p-n junctions are the elementary building blocks of most electronic and optoelectronic devices. The need for their miniaturization has fuelled the rapid growth of interest in two-dimensional (2D) materials. However, the performance of a p-n junction considerably degrades as its thickness approaches a few nanometres and traditional technologies, such as doping and implantation, become invalid at the nanoscale. Here we report stable non-volatile programmable p-n junctions fabricated from the vertically stacked all-2D semiconductor/insulator/metal layers (WSe2/hexagonal boron nitride/graphene) in a semifloating gate field-effect transistor configuration. The junction exhibits a good rectifying behaviour with a rectification ratio of 104 and photovoltaic properties with a power conversion efficiency up to 4.1% under a 6.8 nW light. Based on the non-volatile programmable properties controlled by gate voltages, the 2D p-n junctions have been exploited for various electronic and optoelectronic applications, such as memories, photovoltaics, logic rectifiers and logic optoelectronic circuits.

Flexible All-Inorganic Perovskite CsPbBr3 Nonvolatile Memory Device.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Dongjue; Lin, Qiqi; Zang, Zhigang; Wang, Ming; Wangyang, Peihua; Tang, Xiaosheng; Zhou, Miao; Hu, Wei

2017-02-22

All-inorganic perovskite CsPbX 3 (X = Cl, Br, or I) is widely used in a variety of photoelectric devices such as solar cells, light-emitting diodes, lasers, and photodetectors. However, studies to understand the flexible CsPbX 3 electrical application are relatively scarce, mainly due to the limitations of the low-temperature fabricating process. In this study, all-inorganic perovskite CsPbBr 3 films were successfully fabricated at 75 °C through a two-step method. The highly crystallized films were first employed as a resistive switching layer in the Al/CsPbBr 3 /PEDOT:PSS/ITO/PET structure for flexible nonvolatile memory application. The resistive switching operations and endurance performance demonstrated the as-prepared flexible resistive random access memory devices possess reproducible and reliable memory characteristics. Electrical reliability and mechanical stability of the nonvolatile device were further tested by the robust current-voltage curves under different bending angles and consecutive flexing cycles. Moreover, a model of the formation and rupture of filaments through the CsPbBr 3 layer was proposed to explain the resistive switching effect. It is believed that this study will offer a new setting to understand and design all-inorganic perovskite materials for future stable flexible electronic devices.

Design exploration of emerging nano-scale non-volatile memory

CERN Document Server

Yu, Hao

2014-01-01

This book presents the latest techniques for characterization, modeling and design for nano-scale non-volatile memory (NVM) devices.  Coverage focuses on fundamental NVM device fabrication and characterization, internal state identification of memristic dynamics with physics modeling, NVM circuit design, and hybrid NVM memory system design-space optimization. The authors discuss design methodologies for nano-scale NVM devices from a circuits/systems perspective, including the general foundations for the fundamental memristic dynamics in NVM devices.  Coverage includes physical modeling, as well as the development of a platform to explore novel hybrid CMOS and NVM circuit and system design.   • Offers readers a systematic and comprehensive treatment of emerging nano-scale non-volatile memory (NVM) devices; • Focuses on the internal state of NVM memristic dynamics, novel NVM readout and memory cell circuit design, and hybrid NVM memory system optimization; • Provides both theoretical analysis and pr...

The influence of thickness on memory characteristic based on nonvolatile tuning behavior in poly(N-vinylcarbazole) films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun, Yanmei; Ai, Chunpeng; Lu, Junguo; Li, Lei; Wen, Dianzhong; Bai, Xuduo

2016-01-01

The memory characteristic based on nonvolatile tuning behavior in indium tin oxide/poly(N-vinylcarbazole)/aluminum (ITO/PVK/Al) was investigated, the different memory behaviors were first observed in PVK film as the film thickness changing. By control of PVK film thickness with different spinning speeds, the nonvolatile behavior of ITO/PVK/Al sandwich structure can be tuned in a controlled manner. Obviously different nonvolatile behaviors, such as (i) flash memory behavior and (ii) write-once-read-many times (WORM) memory behavior are from the current–voltage (I–V) characteristics of the PVK films. The results suggest that the film thickness plays a key part in determining the memory type of the PVK. - Highlights: • The different memory behaviors were observed in PVK film. • The nonvolatile behavior of ITO/PVK/Al sandwich structure can be tuned. • The film thickness plays a key part in determining the memory type of the PVK.

Volatile and non-volatile compounds in green tea affected in harvesting time and their correlation to consumer preference.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Youngmok; Lee, Kwang-Geun; Kim, Mina K

2016-10-01

Current study was designed to find out how tea harvesting time affects the volatile and non-volatile compounds profiles of green tea. In addition, correlation of instrumental volatile and non-volatile compounds analyses to consumer perception were analyzed. Overall, earlier harvested green tea had stronger antioxidant capacity (~61.0%) due to the polyphenolic compounds from catechin (23,164 mg/L), in comparison to later harvested green teas (11,961 mg/L). However, high catechin content in green tea influenced negatively the consumer likings of green tea, due to high bitterness (27.6%) and astringency (13.4%). Volatile compounds drive consumer liking of green tea products were also identified, that included linalool, 2,3-methyl butanal, 2-heptanone, (E,E)-3,5-Octadien-2-one. Finding from current study are useful for green tea industry as it provide the difference in physiochemical properties of green tea harvested at different intervals.

Asymptotic expansions for high-contrast elliptic equations

KAUST Repository

Calo, Victor M.; Efendiev, Yalchin R.; Galvis, Juan

2014-01-01

In this paper, we present a high-order expansion for elliptic equations in high-contrast media. The background conductivity is taken to be one and we assume the medium contains high (or low) conductivity inclusions. We derive an asymptotic expansion with respect to the contrast and provide a procedure to compute the terms in the expansion. The computation of the expansion does not depend on the contrast which is important for simulations. The latter allows avoiding increased mesh resolution around high conductivity features. This work is partly motivated by our earlier work in [Domain decomposition preconditioners for multiscale flows in high-contrast media, Multiscale Model Simul. 8 (2010) 1461-1483] where we design efficient numerical procedures for solving high-contrast problems. These multiscale approaches require local solutions and our proposed high-order expansion can be used to approximate these local solutions inexpensively. In the case of a large-number of inclusions, the proposed analysis can help to design localization techniques for computing the terms in the expansion. In the paper, we present a rigorous analysis of the proposed high-order expansion and estimate the remainder of it. We consider both high-and low-conductivity inclusions. © 2014 World Scientific Publishing Company.

Asymptotic expansions for high-contrast elliptic equations

KAUST Repository

Calo, Victor M.

2014-03-01

In this paper, we present a high-order expansion for elliptic equations in high-contrast media. The background conductivity is taken to be one and we assume the medium contains high (or low) conductivity inclusions. We derive an asymptotic expansion with respect to the contrast and provide a procedure to compute the terms in the expansion. The computation of the expansion does not depend on the contrast which is important for simulations. The latter allows avoiding increased mesh resolution around high conductivity features. This work is partly motivated by our earlier work in [Domain decomposition preconditioners for multiscale flows in high-contrast media, Multiscale Model Simul. 8 (2010) 1461-1483] where we design efficient numerical procedures for solving high-contrast problems. These multiscale approaches require local solutions and our proposed high-order expansion can be used to approximate these local solutions inexpensively. In the case of a large-number of inclusions, the proposed analysis can help to design localization techniques for computing the terms in the expansion. In the paper, we present a rigorous analysis of the proposed high-order expansion and estimate the remainder of it. We consider both high-and low-conductivity inclusions. © 2014 World Scientific Publishing Company.

Organic nonvolatile memory devices with charge trapping multilayer graphene film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ji, Yongsung; Choe, Minhyeok; Cho, Byungjin; Song, Sunghoon; Yoon, Jongwon; Ko, Heung Cho; Lee, Takhee

2012-01-01

We fabricated an array-type organic nonvolatile memory device with multilayer graphene (MLG) film embedded in polyimide (PI) layers. The memory devices showed a high ON/OFF ratio (over 10 6 ) and a long retention time (over 10 4 s). The switching of the Al/PI/MLG/PI/Al memory devices was due to the presence of the MLG film inserted into the PI layers. The double-log current–voltage characteristics could be explained by the space-charge-limited current conduction based on a charge-trap model. A conductive atomic force microscopy found that the conduction paths in the low-resistance ON state were distributed in a highly localized area, which was associated with a carbon-rich filamentary switching mechanism. (paper)

Overview of one transistor type of hybrid organic ferroelectric non-volatile memory

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Young; Tea; Chun; Daping; Chu

2015-01-01

Organic ferroelectric memory devices based on field effect transistors that can be configured between two stable states of on and off have been widely researched as the next generation data storage media in recent years.This emerging type of memory devices can lead to a new instrument system as a potential alternative to previous non-volatile memory building blocks in future processing units because of their numerous merits such as cost-effective process,simple structure and freedom in substrate choices.This bi-stable non-volatile memory device of information storage has been investigated using several organic or inorganic semiconductors with organic ferroelectric polymer materials.Recent progresses in this ferroelectric memory field,hybrid system have attracted a lot of attention due to their excellent device performance in comparison with that of all organic systems.In this paper,a general review of this type of ferroelectric non-volatile memory is provided,which include the device structure,organic ferroelectric materials,electrical characteristics and working principles.We also present some snapshots of our previous study on hybrid ferroelectric memories including our recent work based on zinc oxide nanowire channels.

ZnO as dielectric for optically transparent non-volatile memory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salim, N. Tjitra; Aw, K.C.; Gao, W.; Wright, Bryon E.

2009-01-01

This paper discusses the application of a DC sputtered ZnO thin film as a dielectric in an optically transparent non-volatile memory. The main motivation for using ZnO as a dielectric is due to its optical transparency and mechanical flexibility. We have established the relationship between the electrical resistivity (ρ) and the activation energy (E a ) of the electron transport in the conduction band of the ZnO film. The ρ of 2 x 10 4 -5 x 10 7 Ω-cm corresponds to E a of 0.36-0.76 eV, respectively. The k-value and optical band-gap for films sputtered with Ar:O 2 ratio of 4:1 are 53 ± 3.6 and 3.23 eV, respectively. In this paper, the basic charge storage element for a non-volatile memory is a triple layer dielectric structure in which a 50 nm thick ZnO film is sandwiched between two layers of methyl silsesquioxane sol-gel dielectric of varying thickness. A pronounced clockwise capacitance-voltage (C-V) hysteresis was observed with a memory window of 6 V. The integration with a solution-processable pentacene, 13,6-N-Sulfinylacetamodipentacene resulted in an optically transparent organic field effect transistor non-volatile memory (OFET-NVM). We have demonstrated that this OFET-NVM can be electrically programmed and erased at low voltage (± 10 V) with a threshold voltage shift of 4.0 V.

Integration of ammonia-plasma-functionalized graphene nanodiscs as charge trapping centers for nonvolatile memory applications

KAUST Repository

Wang, Jer-Chyi

2016-11-23

Graphene nanodiscs (GNDs), functionalized using NH3 plasma, as charge trapping sites (CTSs) for non-volatile memory applications have been investigated in this study. The fabrication process relies on the patterning of Au nanoparticles (Au-NPs), whose thicknesses are tuned to adjust the GND density and size upon etching. A GND density as high as 8 × 1011 cm−2 and a diameter of approximately 20 nm are achieved. The functionalization of GNDs by NH3 plasma creates Nsingle bondH+ functional groups that act as CTSs, as observed by Raman and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. This inherently enhances the density of CTSs in the GNDs, as a result, the memory window becomes more than 2.4 V and remains stable after 104 operating cycles. The charge loss is less than 10% for a 10-year data retention testing, making this low-temperature process suitable for low-cost non-volatile memory applications on flexible substrates.

Novel Quantum Dot Gate FETs and Nonvolatile Memories Using Lattice-Matched II-VI Gate Insulators

Science.gov (United States)

Jain, F. C.; Suarez, E.; Gogna, M.; Alamoody, F.; Butkiewicus, D.; Hohner, R.; Liaskas, T.; Karmakar, S.; Chan, P.-Y.; Miller, B.; Chandy, J.; Heller, E.

2009-08-01

This paper presents the successful use of ZnS/ZnMgS and other II-VI layers (lattice-matched or pseudomorphic) as high- k gate dielectrics in the fabrication of quantum dot (QD) gate Si field-effect transistors (FETs) and nonvolatile memory structures. Quantum dot gate FETs and nonvolatile memories have been fabricated in two basic configurations: (1) monodispersed cladded Ge nanocrystals (e.g., GeO x -cladded-Ge quantum dots) site-specifically self-assembled over the lattice-matched ZnMgS gate insulator in the channel region, and (2) ZnTe-ZnMgTe quantum dots formed by self-organization, using metalorganic chemical vapor-phase deposition (MOCVD), on ZnS-ZnMgS gate insulator layers grown epitaxially on Si substrates. Self-assembled GeO x -cladded Ge QD gate FETs, exhibiting three-state behavior, are also described. Preliminary results on InGaAs-on-InP FETs, using ZnMgSeTe/ZnSe gate insulator layers, are presented.

Unipolar resistive switching in metal oxide/organic semiconductor non-volatile memories as a critical phenomenon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bory, Benjamin F.; Meskers, Stefan C. J.; Rocha, Paulo R. F.; Gomes, Henrique L.; Leeuw, Dago M. de

2015-01-01

Diodes incorporating a bilayer of an organic semiconductor and a wide bandgap metal oxide can show unipolar, non-volatile memory behavior after electroforming. The prolonged bias voltage stress induces defects in the metal oxide with an areal density exceeding 10 17  m −2 . We explain the electrical bistability by the coexistence of two thermodynamically stable phases at the interface between an organic semiconductor and metal oxide. One phase contains mainly ionized defects and has a low work function, while the other phase has mainly neutral defects and a high work function. In the diodes, domains of the phase with a low work function constitute current filaments. The phase composition and critical temperature are derived from a 2D Ising model as a function of chemical potential. The model predicts filamentary conduction exhibiting a negative differential resistance and nonvolatile memory behavior. The model is expected to be generally applicable to any bilayer system that shows unipolar resistive switching

Evaluation of reinitialization-free nonvolatile computer systems for energy-harvesting Internet of things applications

Science.gov (United States)

Onizawa, Naoya; Tamakoshi, Akira; Hanyu, Takahiro

2017-08-01

In this paper, reinitialization-free nonvolatile computer systems are designed and evaluated for energy-harvesting Internet of things (IoT) applications. In energy-harvesting applications, as power supplies generated from renewable power sources cause frequent power failures, data processed need to be backed up when power failures occur. Unless data are safely backed up before power supplies diminish, reinitialization processes are required when power supplies are recovered, which results in low energy efficiencies and slow operations. Using nonvolatile devices in processors and memories can realize a faster backup than a conventional volatile computer system, leading to a higher energy efficiency. To evaluate the energy efficiency upon frequent power failures, typical computer systems including processors and memories are designed using 90 nm CMOS or CMOS/magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) technologies. Nonvolatile ARM Cortex-M0 processors with 4 kB MRAMs are evaluated using a typical computing benchmark program, Dhrystone, which shows a few order-of-magnitude reductions in energy in comparison with a volatile processor with SRAM.

Large non-volatile tuning of magnetism mediated by electric field in Fe–Al/Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3–PbTiO3 heterostructure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Zhendong; Gao, Cunxu; Wei, Yanping; Zhang, Peng; Wang, Yutian; Zhang, Chao; Ma, Zhikun

2017-01-01

Electric-field control of magnetism is now an attractive trend to approach a new kind of fast, low-power-cost memory device. In this work, we report a strong non-volatile electric control of magnetism in an Fe–Al/Pb(Mg 1/3 Nb 2/3 )O 3 –PbTiO 3 heterostructure. In this system, a 90° rotation of the in-plane uniaxial magnetic anisotropy is exhibited during the increase of the external electric field, which means the easy axis turns into a hard axis and the hard axis turns into an easy one. Additionally, a non-volatile switch of the remanence is observed after a sweeping of the electric field from 0 kV cm −1 to  ±  10 kV cm −1 , then back to 0 kV cm −1 . More interestingly, a 20% non-volatile magnetic state tuning driven by individual pulse electric fields is shown in contrast to large tuning up to 120% caused by pulse electric fields with small assistant pulse magnetic fields, which means a 180° reverse of the magnetization. These remarkable behaviors demonstrated in this heterostructure reveal a promising potential application in magnetic memory devices mediated by electric fields. (paper)

Feasibility and limitations of anti-fuses based on bistable non-volatile switches for power electronic applications

Science.gov (United States)

Erlbacher, T.; Huerner, A.; Bauer, A. J.; Frey, L.

2012-09-01

Anti-fuse devices based on non-volatile memory cells and suitable for power electronic applications are demonstrated for the first time using silicon technology. These devices may be applied as stand alone devices or integrated using standard junction-isolation into application-specific and smart-power integrated circuits. The on-resistance of such devices can be permanently switched by nine orders of magnitude by triggering the anti-fuse with a positive voltage pulse. Extrapolation of measurement data and 2D TCAD process and device simulations indicate that 20 A anti-fuses with 10 mΩ can be reliably fabricated in 0.35 μm technology with a footprint of 2.5 mm2. Moreover, this concept offers distinguished added-values compared to existing mechanical relays, e.g. pre-test, temporary and permanent reset functions, gradual turn-on mode, non-volatility, and extendibility to high voltage capability.

High reliable and stable organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memory with a poly(4-vinyl phenol) charge trapping layer based on a pn-heterojunction active layer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xiang, Lanyi; Ying, Jun; Han, Jinhua; Zhang, Letian, E-mail: zlt@jlu.edu.cn, E-mail: wwei99@jlu.edu.cn; Wang, Wei, E-mail: zlt@jlu.edu.cn, E-mail: wwei99@jlu.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory on Integrated Optoelectronics, College of Electronic Science and Engineering, Jilin University, 2699 Qianjin Street, Changchun 130012 (China)

2016-04-25

In this letter, we demonstrate a high reliable and stable organic field-effect transistor (OFET) based nonvolatile memory (NVM) with a polymer poly(4-vinyl phenol) (PVP) as the charge trapping layer. In the unipolar OFETs, the inreversible shifts of the turn-on voltage (V{sub on}) and severe degradation of the memory window (ΔV{sub on}) at programming (P) and erasing (E) voltages, respectively, block their application in NVMs. The obstacle is overcome by using a pn-heterojunction as the active layer in the OFET memory, which supplied a holes and electrons accumulating channel at the supplied P and E voltages, respectively. Both holes and electrons transferring from the channels to PVP layer and overwriting the trapped charges with an opposite polarity result in the reliable bidirectional shifts of V{sub on} at P and E voltages, respectively. The heterojunction OFET exhibits excellent nonvolatile memory characteristics, with a large ΔV{sub on} of 8.5 V, desired reading (R) voltage at 0 V, reliable P/R/E/R dynamic endurance over 100 cycles and a long retention time over 10 years.

Microwave oven fabricated hybrid memristor devices for non-volatile memory storage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Verrelli, E; Gray, R J; O’Neill, M; Kemp, N T; Kelly, S M

2014-01-01

Novel hybrid non-volatile memories made using an ultra-fast microwave heating method are reported for the first time. The devices, consisting of aligned ZnO nanorods embedded in poly (methyl methacrylate), require no forming step and exhibit reliable and reproducible bipolar resistive switching at low voltages and with low power usage. We attribute these properties to a combination of the high aspect ratio of the nanorods and the polymeric hybrid structure of the device. The extremely easy, fast and low-cost solution based method of fabrication makes possible the simple and quick production of cheap memory cells. (paper)

Multistate nonvolatile straintronics controlled by a lateral electric field.

Science.gov (United States)

Iurchuk, V; Doudin, B; Kundys, B

2014-07-23

We present a multifunctional and multistate permanent memory device based on lateral electric field control of a strained surface. Sub-coercive electrical writing of a remnant strain of a PZT substrate imprints stable and rewritable resistance changes on a CoFe overlayer. A proof-of-principle device, with the simplest resistance strain gage design, is shown as a memory cell exhibiting 17-memory states of high reproducibility and reliability for nonvolatile operations. Magnetoresistance of the film also depends on the cell state, and indicates a rewritable change of magnetic properties persisting in the remnant strain of the substrate. This makes it possible to combine strain, magnetic and resistive functionalities in a single memory element, and suggests that sub-coercive stress studies are of interest for straintronics applications.

Metal-organic molecular device for non-volatile memory storage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Radha, B.; Sagade, Abhay A.; Kulkarni, G. U.

2014-01-01

Non-volatile memory devices have been of immense research interest for their use in active memory storage in powered off-state of electronic chips. In literature, various molecules and metal compounds have been investigated in this regard. Molecular memory devices are particularly attractive as they offer the ease of storing multiple memory states in a unique way and also represent ubiquitous choice for miniaturized devices. However, molecules are fragile and thus the device breakdown at nominal voltages during repeated cycles hinders their practical applicability. Here, in this report, a synergetic combination of an organic molecule and an inorganic metal, i.e., a metal-organic complex, namely, palladium hexadecylthiolate is investigated for memory device characteristics. Palladium hexadecylthiolate following partial thermolysis is converted to a molecular nanocomposite of Pd(II), Pd(0), and long chain hydrocarbons, which is shown to exhibit non-volatile memory characteristics with exceptional stability and retention. The devices are all solution-processed and the memory action stems from filament formation across the pre-formed cracks in the nanocomposite film.

Characteristics of a non-volatile liquid propellant in liquid-fed ablative pulsed plasma thrusters

Science.gov (United States)

Ling, William Yeong Liang; Schönherr, Tony; Koizumi, Hiroyuki

2017-02-01

In the past several decades, the use of electric propulsion in spacecraft has experienced tremendous growth. With the increasing adoption of small satellites in the kilogram range, suitable propulsion systems will be necessary in the near future. Pulsed plasma thrusters (PPTs) were the first form of electric propulsion to be deployed in orbit, and are highly suitable for small satellites due to their inherent simplicity. However, their lifetime is limited by disadvantages such as carbon deposition leading to thruster failure, and complicated feeding systems required due to the conventional use of solid propellants (usually polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE)). A promising alternative to solid propellants has recently emerged in the form of non-volatile liquids that are stable in vacuum. This study presents a broad comparison of the non-volatile liquid perfluoropolyether (PFPE) and solid PTFE as propellants on a PPT with a common design base. We show that liquid PFPE can be successfully used as a propellant, and exhibits similar plasma discharge properties to conventional solid PTFE, but with a mass bit that is an order of magnitude higher for an identical ablation area. We also demonstrate that the liquid PFPE propellant has exceptional resistance to carbon deposition, completely negating one of the major causes of thruster failure, while solid PTFE exhibited considerable carbon build-up. Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy was used to examine the elemental compositions of the surface deposition on the electrodes and the ablation area of the propellant (or PFPE encapsulator). The results show that based on its physical characteristics and behavior, non-volatile liquid PFPE is an extremely promising propellant for use in PPTs, with an extensive scope available for future research and development.

Supercritical fluid extraction of volatile and non-volatile compounds from Schinus molle L.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. S. T. Barroso

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Schinus molle L., also known as pepper tree, has been reported to have antimicrobial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, antipyretic, antitumoural and cicatrizing properties. This work studies supercritical fluid extraction (SFE to obtain volatile and non-volatile compounds from the aerial parts of Schinus molle L. and the influence of the process on the composition of the extracts. Experiments were performed in a pilot-scale extractor with a capacity of 1 L at pressures of 9, 10, 12, 15 and 20 MPa at 323.15 K. The volatile compounds were obtained by CO2 supercritical extraction with moderate pressure (9 MPa, whereas the non-volatile compounds were extracted at higher pressure (12 to 20 MPa. The analysis of the essential oil was carried out by GC-MS and the main compounds identified were sabinene, limonene, D-germacrene, bicyclogermacrene, and spathulenol. For the non-volatile extracts, the total phenolic content was determined by the Folin-Ciocalteau method. Moreover, one of the goals of this study was to compare the experimental data with the simulated yields predicted by a mathematical model based on mass transfer. The model used requires three adjustable parameters to predict the experimental extraction yield curves.

Multistate storage nonvolatile memory device based on ferroelectricity and resistive switching effects of SrBi2Ta2O9 films

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Zhiwei; Li, Gang; Xiong, Ying; Cheng, Chuanpin; Zhang, Wanli; Tang, Minghua; Li, Zheng; He, Jiangheng

2018-05-01

A memory device with a Pt/SrBi2Ta2O9(SBT)/Pt(111) structure was shown to have excellent combined ferroelectricity and resistive switching properties, leading to higher multistate storage memory capacity in contrast to ferroelectric memory devices. In this device, SBT polycrystalline thin films with significant (115) orientation were fabricated on Pt(111)/Ti/SiO2/Si(100) substrates using CVD (chemical vapor deposition) method. Measurement results of the electric properties exhibit reproducible and reliable ferroelectricity switching behavior and bipolar resistive switching effects (BRS) without an electroforming process. The ON/OFF ratio of the resistive switching was found to be about 103. Switching mechanisms for the low resistance state (LRS) and high resistance state (HRS) currents are likely attributed to the Ohmic and space charge-limited current (SCLC) behavior, respectively. Moreover, the ferroelectricity and resistive switching effects were found to be mutually independent, and the four logic states were obtained by controlling the periodic sweeping voltage. This work holds great promise for nonvolatile multistate memory devices with high capacity and low cost.

Advancing High Contrast Adaptive Optics

Science.gov (United States)

Ammons, M.; Poyneer, L.; GPI Team

2014-09-01

A long-standing challenge has been to directly image faint extrasolar planets adjacent to their host suns, which may be ~1-10 million times brighter than the planet. Several extreme AO systems designed for high-contrast observations have been tested at this point, including SPHERE, Magellan AO, PALM-3000, Project 1640, NICI, and the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI, Macintosh et al. 2014). The GPI is the world's most advanced high-contrast adaptive optics system on an 8-meter telescope for detecting and characterizing planets outside of our solar system. GPI will detect a previously unstudied population of young analogs to the giant planets of our solar system and help determine how planetary systems form. GPI employs a 44x44 woofer-tweeter adaptive optics system with a Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor operating at 1 kHz. The controller uses Fourier-based reconstruction and modal gains optimized from system telemetry (Poyneer et al. 2005, 2007). GPI has an apodized Lyot coronal graph to suppress diffraction and a near-infrared integral field spectrograph for obtaining planetary spectra. This paper discusses current performance limitations and presents the necessary instrumental modifications and sensitivity calculations for scenarios related to high-contrast observations of non-sidereal targets.

Physical implication of transition voltage in organic nano-floating-gate nonvolatile memories

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Shun; Gao, Xu, E-mail: wangsd@suda.edu.cn, E-mail: gaoxu@suda.edu.cn; Zhong, Ya-Nan; Zhang, Zhong-Da; Xu, Jian-Long; Wang, Sui-Dong, E-mail: wangsd@suda.edu.cn, E-mail: gaoxu@suda.edu.cn [Institute of Functional Nano and Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Carbon-Based Functional Materials and Devices, Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215123 (China)

2016-07-11

High-performance pentacene-based organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories, using polystyrene as a tunneling dielectric and Au nanoparticles as a nano-floating-gate, show parallelogram-like transfer characteristics with a featured transition point. The transition voltage at the transition point corresponds to a threshold electric field in the tunneling dielectric, over which stored electrons in the nano-floating-gate will start to leak out. The transition voltage can be modulated depending on the bias configuration and device structure. For p-type active layers, optimized transition voltage should be on the negative side of but close to the reading voltage, which can simultaneously achieve a high ON/OFF ratio and good memory retention.

Multistate nonvolatile straintronics controlled by a lateral electric field

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iurchuk, V; Doudin, B; Kundys, B

2014-01-01

We present a multifunctional and multistate permanent memory device based on lateral electric field control of a strained surface. Sub-coercive electrical writing of a remnant strain of a PZT substrate imprints stable and rewritable resistance changes on a CoFe overlayer. A proof-of-principle device, with the simplest resistance strain gage design, is shown as a memory cell exhibiting 17-memory states of high reproducibility and reliability for nonvolatile operations. Magnetoresistance of the film also depends on the cell state, and indicates a rewritable change of magnetic properties persisting in the remnant strain of the substrate. This makes it possible to combine strain, magnetic and resistive functionalities in a single memory element, and suggests that sub-coercive stress studies are of interest for straintronics applications. (fast track communication)

Expression of MEP Pathway Genes and Non-volatile Sequestration Are Associated with Circadian Rhythm of Dominant Terpenoids Emission in Osmanthus fragrans Lour. Flowers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Riru Zheng

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Osmanthus fragrans Lour. is one of the top 10 traditional ornamental flowers in China famous for its unique fragrance. Preliminary study proved that the terpenoids including ionone, linalool, and ocimene and their derivatives are the dominant aroma-active compounds that contribute greatly to the scent bouquet. Pollination observation implies the emission of aromatic terpenoids may follow a circadian rhythm. In this study, we investigated the variation of volatile terpenoids and its potential regulators. The results showed that both volatile and non-volatile terpenoids presented circadian oscillation with high emission or accumulation during the day and low emission or accumulation during the night. The volatile terpenoids always increased to reach their maximum values at 12:00 h, while free and glycosylated compounds continued increasing throughout the day. The depletion of non-volatile pool might provide the substrates for volatile emission at 0:00–6:00, suggesting the sequestration of non-volatile compounds acted like a buffer regulating emission of terpenoids. Further detection of MEP pathway genes demonstrated that their expressions increased significantly in parallel with the evident increase of both volatile and non-volatile terpenoids during the day, indicating that the gene expressions were also closely associated with terpenoid formation. Thus, the expression of MEP pathway genes and internal sequestration both played crucial roles in modulating circadian rhythm of terpenoid emission in O. fragrans.

Carbon nanotube network-silicon oxide non-volatile switches.

Science.gov (United States)

Liao, Albert D; Araujo, Paulo T; Xu, Runjie; Dresselhaus, Mildred S

2014-12-08

The integration of carbon nanotubes with silicon is important for their incorporation into next-generation nano-electronics. Here we demonstrate a non-volatile switch that utilizes carbon nanotube networks to electrically contact a conductive nanocrystal silicon filament in silicon dioxide. We form this device by biasing a nanotube network until it physically breaks in vacuum, creating the conductive silicon filament connected across a small nano-gap. From Raman spectroscopy, we observe coalescence of nanotubes during breakdown, which stabilizes the system to form very small gaps in the network~15 nm. We report that carbon nanotubes themselves are involved in switching the device to a high resistive state. Calculations reveal that this switching event occurs at ~600 °C, the temperature associated with the oxidation of nanotubes. Therefore, we propose that, in switching to a resistive state, the nanotube oxidizes by extracting oxygen from the substrate.

Nonvolatile Memory Elements Based on the Intercalation of Organic Molecules Inside Carbon Nanotubes

Science.gov (United States)

Meunier, Vincent; Kalinin, Sergei V.; Sumpter, Bobby G.

2007-02-01

We propose a novel class of nonvolatile memory elements based on the modification of the transport properties of a conducting carbon nanotube by the presence of an encapsulated molecule. The guest molecule has two stable orientational positions relative to the nanotube that correspond to conducting and nonconducting states. The mechanism, governed by a local gating effect of the molecule on the electronic properties of the nanotube host, is studied using density functional theory. The mechanisms of reversible reading and writing of information are illustrated with a F4TCNQ molecule encapsulated inside a metallic carbon nanotube. Our results suggest that this new type of nonvolatile memory element is robust, fatigue-free, and can operate at room temperature.

Profiling of nonvolatiles in whiskeys using ultra high pressure liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QTOF MS).

Science.gov (United States)

Collins, Thomas S; Zweigenbaum, Jerry; Ebeler, Susan E

2014-11-15

Commercial samples of 63 American whiskeys, including bourbon whiskeys, Tennessee whiskeys, rye whiskeys and other blended whiskeys were analysed using ultra high pressure liquid chromatography (UHPLC) coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight (QTOF) mass spectrometry (MS). The non-volatile composition of the whiskeys was used to model differences among the samples using discriminant analysis. The blended American whiskeys were readily distinguished from the remaining types. Additionally, most Tennessee whiskeys could be differentiated from bourbon and rye whiskeys. Similarly, younger (8 years old) whiskeys could be separated. The compounds important for differentiating among these whiskeys included wood derived phenolic compounds, lignan derived compounds and several C8 and larger lipids. A number of additional compounds differentiated the whiskeys but could not be identified using MS and MS/MS data alone. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Potential of Mass Spectrometry in Developing Clinical Laboratory Biomarkers of Nonvolatiles in Exhaled Breath.

Science.gov (United States)

Beck, Olof; Olin, Anna-Carin; Mirgorodskaya, Ekaterina

2016-01-01

Exhaled breath contains nonvolatile substances that are part of aerosol particles of submicrometer size. These particles are formed and exhaled as a result of normal breathing and contain material from distal airways of the respiratory system. Exhaled breath can be used to monitor biomarkers of both endogenous and exogenous origin and constitutes an attractive specimen for medical investigations. This review summarizes the present status regarding potential biomarkers of nonvolatile compounds in exhaled breath. The field of exhaled breath condensate is briefly reviewed, together with more recent work on more selective collection procedures for exhaled particles. The relation of these particles to the surfactant in the terminal parts of the respiratory system is described. The literature on potential endogenous low molecular weight compounds as well as protein biomarkers is reviewed. The possibility to measure exposure to therapeutic and abused drugs is demonstrated. Finally, the potential future role and importance of mass spectrometry is discussed. Nonvolatile compounds exit the lung as aerosol particles that can be sampled easily and selectively. The clinical applications of potential biomarkers in exhaled breath comprise diagnosis of disease, monitoring of disease progress, monitoring of drug therapy, and toxicological investigations. © 2015 American Association for Clinical Chemistry.

Homogenization of High-Contrast Brinkman Flows

KAUST Repository

Brown, Donald L.

2015-04-16

Modeling porous flow in complex media is a challenging problem. Not only is the problem inherently multiscale but, due to high contrast in permeability values, flow velocities may differ greatly throughout the medium. To avoid complicated interface conditions, the Brinkman model is often used for such flows [O. Iliev, R. Lazarov, and J. Willems, Multiscale Model. Simul., 9 (2011), pp. 1350--1372]. Instead of permeability variations and contrast being contained in the geometric media structure, this information is contained in a highly varying and high-contrast coefficient. In this work, we present two main contributions. First, we develop a novel homogenization procedure for the high-contrast Brinkman equations by constructing correctors and carefully estimating the residuals. Understanding the relationship between scales and contrast values is critical to obtaining useful estimates. Therefore, standard convergence-based homogenization techniques [G. A. Chechkin, A. L. Piatniski, and A. S. Shamev, Homogenization: Methods and Applications, Transl. Math. Monogr. 234, American Mathematical Society, Providence, RI, 2007, G. Allaire, SIAM J. Math. Anal., 23 (1992), pp. 1482--1518], although a powerful tool, are not applicable here. Our second point is that the Brinkman equations, in certain scaling regimes, are invariant under homogenization. Unlike in the case of Stokes-to-Darcy homogenization [D. Brown, P. Popov, and Y. Efendiev, GEM Int. J. Geomath., 2 (2011), pp. 281--305, E. Marusic-Paloka and A. Mikelic, Boll. Un. Mat. Ital. A (7), 10 (1996), pp. 661--671], the results presented here under certain velocity regimes yield a Brinkman-to-Brinkman upscaling that allows using a single software platform to compute on both microscales and macroscales. In this paper, we discuss the homogenized Brinkman equations. We derive auxiliary cell problems to build correctors and calculate effective coefficients for certain velocity regimes. Due to the boundary effects, we construct

Stable isotopic carbon composition of apples and their subfractions--juice, seeds, sugars, and nonvolatile acids.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, H S; Wrolstad, R E

1988-01-01

The 13C:12C ratios of 8 authentic apple juice samples and their subfractions were determined by mass spectrometry. Apples from Argentina, Mexico, New Zealand, and the United States were processed into juice; pulp was collected from the milled fruit and seeds were collected from the press-cake. Sugars, nonvolatile acids, and phenolics were isolated from the juice by treatment with ion-exchange resins and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVPP). The mean value for all juice samples was -24.2% which is close to the values reported by other investigators. Juice from apples grown in Argentina, Mexico, and New Zealand did not differ from U.S. samples. The isotopic composition of the subfractions ranged from -22.0 to -31.0%. The values for the pulp were essentially the same as for juice. The sugar fraction was slightly less negative than the juice; the nonvolatile acid and phenolic fractions were more negative. The levels of nonvolatile acids and phenolics in apple juice are low, however, so these compounds contribute little to overall delta 13C values in juice.

Size distributions of non-volatile particle residuals (Dp<800 nm at a rural site in Germany and relation to air mass origin

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. Tuch

2007-11-01

Full Text Available Atmospheric aerosol particle size distributions at a continental background site in Eastern Germany were examined for a one-year period. Particles were classified using a twin differential mobility particle sizer in a size range between 3 and 800 nm. As a novelty, every second measurement of this experiment involved the removal of volatile chemical compounds in a thermodenuder at 300°C. This concept allowed to quantify the number size distribution of non-volatile particle cores – primarily associated with elemental carbon, and to compare this to the original non-conditioned size distribution. As a byproduct of the volatility analysis, new particles originating from nucleation inside the thermodenuder can be observed, however, overwhelmingly at diameters below 6 nm. Within the measurement uncertainty, every particle down to particle sizes of 15 nm is concluded to contain a non-volatile core. The volume fraction of non-volatile particulate matter (non-conditioned diameter < 800 nm varied between 10 and 30% and was largely consistent with the experimentally determined mass fraction of elemental carbon. The average size of the non-volatile particle cores was estimated as a function of original non-conditioned size using a summation method, which showed that larger particles (>200 nm contained more non-volatile compounds than smaller particles (<50 nm, thus indicating a significantly different chemical composition. Two alternative air mass classification schemes based on either, synoptic chart analysis (Berliner Wetterkarte or back trajectories showed that the volume and number fraction of non-volatile cores depended less on air mass than the total particle number concentration. In all air masses, the non-volatile size distributions showed a more and a less volatile ("soot" mode, the latter being located at about 50 nm. During unstable conditions and in maritime air masses, smaller values were observed compared to stable or continental conditions

Low-temperature process steps for realization of non-volatile memory devices

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brunets, I.; Boogaard, A.; Aarnink, Antonius A.I.; Kovalgin, Alexeij Y.; Wolters, Robertus A.M.; Holleman, J.; Schmitz, Jurriaan

2007-01-01

In this work, the low-temperature process steps required for the realization of nano-crystal non-volatile memory cells are discussed. An amorphous silicon film, crystallized using a diode pumped solid state green laser irradiating at 532 nm, is proposed as an active layer. The deposition of the

Volatiles and Nonvolatiles in Flourensia campestris Griseb. (Asteraceae), How Much Do Capitate Glandular Trichomes Matter?

Science.gov (United States)

Piazza, Leonardo A; López, Daniela; Silva, Mariana P; López Rivilli, Marisa J; Tourn, Mónica G; Cantero, Juan J; Scopel, Ana L

2018-03-01

The distribution and ultrastructure of capitate glandular trichomes (GTs) in Flourensia species (Asteraceae) have been recently elucidated, but their metabolic activity and potential biological function remain unexplored. Selective nonvolatile metabolites from isolated GTs were strikingly similar to those found on leaf surfaces. The phytotoxic allelochemical sesquiterpene (-)-hamanasic acid A ((-)-HAA) was the major constituent (ca. 40%) in GTs. Although GTs are quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs)-accumulating species, glycine betaine was not found in GTs; it was only present in the leaf mesophyll. Two (-)-HAA accompanying surface secreted products: compounds 4-hydroxyacetophenone (piceol; 1) and 2-hydroxy-5-methoxyacetophenone (2), which were isolated and fully characterized (GC/MS, NMR), were present in the volatiles found in GTs. The essential oils of fresh leaves revealed ca. 33% monoterpenes, 26% hydrocarbon- and 30% oxygenated sesquiterpenes, most of them related to cadinene and bisabolene derivatives. Present results suggest a main role of GTs in determining the volatile and nonvolatile composition of F. campestris leaves. Based on the known activities of the compounds identified, it can be suggested that GTs in F. campestris would play key ecological functions in plant-pathogen and plant-plant interactions. In addition, the strikingly high contribution of compounds derived from cadinene and bisabolene pathways, highlights the potential of this species as a source of high-valued bioproducts. © 2018 Wiley-VHCA AG, Zurich, Switzerland.

Demonstration of Novel Sampling Techniques for Measurement of Turbine Engine Volatile and Non-Volatile Particulate Matter (PM) Emissions

Science.gov (United States)

2017-03-06

WP-201317) Demonstration of Novel Sampling Techniques for Measurement of Turbine Engine Volatile and Non-volatile Particulate Matter (PM... Engine Volatile and Non-Volatile Particulate Matter (PM) Emissions 6. AUTHOR(S) E. Corporan, M. DeWitt, C. Klingshirn, M.D. Cheng, R. Miake-Lye, J. Peck...the performance and viability of two devices to condition aircraft turbine engine exhaust to allow the accurate measurement of total (volatile and non

Effects of biodiesel, engine load and diesel particulate filter on nonvolatile particle number size distributions in heavy-duty diesel engine exhaust

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Young, Li-Hao; Liou, Yi-Jyun; Cheng, Man-Ting; Lu, Jau-Huai; Yang, Hsi-Hsien; Tsai, Ying I.; Wang, Lin-Chi; Chen, Chung-Bang; Lai, Jim-Shoung

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► The effects of waste cooking oil biodiesel, engine load and DOC + DPF on nonvolatile particle size distributions in HDDE exhaust. ► Increasing biodiesel blends cause slight decreases in the total particle number concentrations and negligible changes in size distributions. ► Increasing load results in modest increases in both the total particle number concentrations and sizes. ► The effects of semivolatile materials are strongest at idle, during which nonvolatile cores TOT ) decrease slightly, while the mode diameters show negligible changes with increasing biodiesel blends. For a given biodiesel blend, both the N TOT and mode diameters increase modestly with increasing load of above 25%. The N TOT at idle are highest and their size distributions are strongly affected by condensation and possible nucleation of semivolatile materials. Nonvolatile cores of diameters less than 16 nm are only observed at idle mode. The DOC + DPF shows remarkable filtration efficiency for both the core and soot particles, irrespective of the biodiesel blend and engine load under study. The N TOT post the DOC + DPF are comparable to typical ambient levels of ∼10 4 cm −3 . This implies that, without concurrent reductions of semivolatile materials, the formation of semivolatile nucleation mode particles post the aftertreatment is highly favored.

Non-volatile resistive switching in the Mott insulator (V1-xCrx)2O3

Science.gov (United States)

Querré, M.; Tranchant, J.; Corraze, B.; Cordier, S.; Bouquet, V.; Députier, S.; Guilloux-Viry, M.; Besland, M.-P.; Janod, E.; Cario, L.

2018-05-01

The discovery of non-volatile resistive switching in Mott insulators related to an electric-field-induced insulator to metal transition (IMT) has paved the way for their use in a new type of non-volatile memories, the Mott memories. While most of the previous studies were dedicated to uncover the resistive switching mechanism and explore the memory potential of chalcogenide Mott insulators, we present here a comprehensive study of resistive switching in the canonical oxide Mott insulator (V1-xCrx)2O3. Our work demonstrates that this compound undergoes a non-volatile resistive switching under electric field. This resistive switching is induced by a Mott transition at the local scale which creates metallic domains closely related to existing phases of the temperature-pressure phase diagram of (V1-xCrx)2O3. Our work demonstrates also reversible resistive switching in (V1-xCrx)2O3 crystals and thin film devices. Preliminary performances obtained on 880 nm thick layers with 500 nm electrodes show the strong potential of Mott memories based on the Mott insulator (V1-xCrx)2O3.

Zinc Cadmium Selenide Cladded Quantum Dot Based Electroluminescent and Nonvolatile Memory Devices

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Amody, Fuad H.

This dissertation presents electroluminescent (EL) and nonvolatile memory devices fabricated using pseudomorphic ZnCdSe-based cladded quantum dots (QDs). These dots were grown using our own in-school built novel reactor. The EL device was fabricated on a substrate of ITO (indium tin oxide) coated glass with the quantum dots sandwiched between anode and cathode contacts with a small barrier layer on top of the QDs. The importance of these cladded dots is to increase the quantum yield of device. This device is unique as they utilize quantum dots that are pseudomorphic (nearly lattice-matched core and the shell of the dot). In the case of floating quantum dot gate nonvolatile memory, cladded ZnCdSe quantum dots are deposited on single crystalline gate insulator (ZnMgS/ZnMgSe), which is grown using metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). The control gate dielectric layer of the nonvolatile memory is Si3N4 or SiO2 and is grown using plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). The cladded dots are grown using an improved methodology of photo-assisted microwave plasma metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (PMP-MOCVD) enhanced reactor. The cladding composition of the core and shell of the dots was engineered by the help of ultraviolet light which changed the incorporation of zinc (and hence composition of ZnCdSe). This makes ZnxCd1--xSe-ZnyCd1--y Se QDs to have a low composition of zinc in the core than the cladding (x

Asymptotic expansions for high-contrast linear elasticity

KAUST Repository

Poveda, Leonardo A.; Huepo, Sebastian; Calo, Victor M.; Galvis, Juan

2015-01-01

We study linear elasticity problems with high contrast in the coefficients using asymptotic limits recently introduced. We derive an asymptotic expansion to solve heterogeneous elasticity problems in terms of the contrast in the coefficients. We study the convergence of the expansion in the H1 norm. © 2015 Elsevier B.V.

Asymptotic expansions for high-contrast linear elasticity

KAUST Repository

Poveda, Leonardo A.

2015-03-01

We study linear elasticity problems with high contrast in the coefficients using asymptotic limits recently introduced. We derive an asymptotic expansion to solve heterogeneous elasticity problems in terms of the contrast in the coefficients. We study the convergence of the expansion in the H1 norm. © 2015 Elsevier B.V.

Halftoning for high-contrast imaging

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kasper M.

2011-07-01

Full Text Available High-contrast instruments, such as SPHERE (upcoming planet finder instrument for the ESO-VLT, or EPICS (planet hunter project for the future E-ELT, will require customized components with spatially varying transmission (e.g. coronagraphs, optical components that reduce the contrast between a companion and its parent star. The goal of these sub-systems is to control the spatial transmission, either in a pupil plane (pupil apodization, or in a focal plane of the instrument (occulting mask, i.e. low-frequency filter. Reliably producing components with spatially varying transmission is not trivial, and different techniques have been already investigated for application to astronomy (e.g. metal deposition with spatially-varying thickness, or high-energy beam sensitive glass using e-beam lithography. We present some results related to the recent development of components with spatially varying transmission using a relatively simple technique analogous to the digital halftoning process used for printing applications.

Determination of non-volatile radiolytic compounds in ethylene co-vinyl alcohol

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kothapalli, A.; Sadler, G.

2003-01-01

The use of ionizing radiation on food contact polymers is increasing due to the critical role of the package in holding or containing the irradiated foods [Food Add. Contam. 18(6) (2001) 475]. Irradiation benefits the food if properly applied and the food is pre-packaged prior to irradiation to protect it from subsequent recontamination. The United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) has approved the use of ionizing radiation within the dosage range of 0-60 kGy on limited films since the 1960s [USFDA 21CFR 179.45]. The obstacle in the way of approval of additional polymers is that FDA fears that these materials may undergo changes during irradiation producing toxic radiolytic fragments. Ethylene co-vinyl alcohol (EVOH), which is often used in food applications, is not approved by the FDA for pre-packaged irradiated foods. The present work examines the non-volatile radiolytic compounds, which may be formed due to exposure to gamma irradiation at the dosage levels of 3 and 10 kGy versus a non-radiated control. Irradiated EVOH is subjected to extraction with 95:5 ethanol and water (by volume) as the food simulating solvent (FSS) for a period of 10 days at 40 deg. C, which models the amount of radiolytic compound a food would extract in 1 year [USFDA Chemistry Requirement for Food Contact Notification]. The FSS is then analyzed for the presence of non-volatile compounds using advanced liquid chromatographic techniques. The chromatograms obtained from different dosages show that non-volatile radiolytic compounds are not formed in EVOH and it would, therefore be in compliance with safety demands of USFDA [Available at: http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/opa-guid.htmlref and http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/cfr-table-search.htmlpage1

Determination of non-volatile radiolytic compounds in ethylene co-vinyl alcohol

Science.gov (United States)

Kothapalli, A.; Sadler, G.

2003-08-01

The use of ionizing radiation on food contact polymers is increasing due to the critical role of the package in holding or containing the irradiated foods [Food Add. Contam. 18(6) (2001) 475]. Irradiation benefits the food if properly applied and the food is pre-packaged prior to irradiation to protect it from subsequent recontamination. The United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) has approved the use of ionizing radiation within the dosage range of 0-60 kGy on limited films since the 1960s [USFDA 21CFR 179.45]. The obstacle in the way of approval of additional polymers is that FDA fears that these materials may undergo changes during irradiation producing toxic radiolytic fragments. Ethylene co-vinyl alcohol (EVOH), which is often used in food applications, is not approved by the FDA for pre-packaged irradiated foods. The present work examines the non-volatile radiolytic compounds, which may be formed due to exposure to gamma irradiation at the dosage levels of 3 and 10 kGy versus a non-radiated control. Irradiated EVOH is subjected to extraction with 95:5 ethanol and water (by volume) as the food simulating solvent (FSS) for a period of 10 days at 40 °C, which models the amount of radiolytic compound a food would extract in 1 year [USFDA Chemistry Requirement for Food Contact Notification]. The FSS is then analyzed for the presence of non-volatile compounds using advanced liquid chromatographic techniques. The chromatograms obtained from different dosages show that non-volatile radiolytic compounds are not formed in EVOH and it would, therefore be in compliance with safety demands of USFDA [Available at: http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/opa-guid.html#ref and http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/cfr-table-search.html#page1].

Bioorganic nanodots for non-volatile memory devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Amdursky, Nadav; Shalev, Gil; Handelman, Amir; Natan, Amir; Rosenwaks, Yossi; Litsyn, Simon; Szwarcman, Daniel; Rosenman, Gil; Roizin, Yakov

2013-01-01

In recent years we are witnessing an intensive integration of bio-organic nanomaterials in electronic devices. Here we show that the diphenylalanine bio-molecule can self-assemble into tiny peptide nanodots (PNDs) of ∼2 nm size, and can be embedded into metal-oxide-semiconductor devices as charge storage nanounits in non-volatile memory. For that purpose, we first directly observe the crystallinity of a single PND by electron microscopy. We use these nanocrystalline PNDs units for the formation of a dense monolayer on SiO 2 surface, and study the electron/hole trapping mechanisms and charge retention ability of the monolayer, followed by fabrication of PND-based memory cell device

Review on Physically Flexible Nonvolatile Memory for Internet of Everything Electronics

KAUST Repository

Ghoneim, Mohamed T.; Hussain, Muhammad Mustafa

2015-01-01

Solid-state memory is an essential component of the digital age. With advancements in healthcare technology and the Internet of Things (IoT), the demand for ultra-dense, ultra-low-power memory is increasing. In this review, we present a comprehensive perspective on the most notable approaches to the fabrication of physically flexible memory devices. With the future goal of replacing traditional mechanical hard disks with solid-state storage devices, a fully flexible electronic system will need two basic devices: transistors and nonvolatile memory. Transistors are used for logic operations and gating memory arrays, while nonvolatile memory (NVM) devices are required for storing information in the main memory and cache storage. Since the highest density of transistors and storage structures is manifested in memories, the focus of this review is flexible NVM. Flexible NVM components are discussed in terms of their functionality, performance metrics, and reliability aspects, all of which are critical components for NVM technology to be part of mainstream consumer electronics, IoT, and advanced healthcare devices. Finally, flexible NVMs are benchmarked and future prospects are provided.

Review on Physically Flexible Nonvolatile Memory for Internet of Everything Electronics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohamed T. Ghoneim

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Solid-state memory is an essential component of the digital age. With advancements in healthcare technology and the Internet of Things (IoT, the demand for ultra-dense, ultra-low-power memory is increasing. In this review, we present a comprehensive perspective on the most notable approaches to the fabrication of physically flexible memory devices. With the future goal of replacing traditional mechanical hard disks with solid-state storage devices, a fully flexible electronic system will need two basic devices: transistors and nonvolatile memory. Transistors are used for logic operations and gating memory arrays, while nonvolatile memory (NVM devices are required for storing information in the main memory and cache storage. Since the highest density of transistors and storage structures is manifested in memories, the focus of this review is flexible NVM. Flexible NVM components are discussed in terms of their functionality, performance metrics, and reliability aspects, all of which are critical components for NVM technology to be part of mainstream consumer electronics, IoT, and advanced healthcare devices. Finally, flexible NVMs are benchmarked and future prospects are provided.

Review on Physically Flexible Nonvolatile Memory for Internet of Everything Electronics

KAUST Repository

Ghoneim, Mohamed T.

2015-07-23

Solid-state memory is an essential component of the digital age. With advancements in healthcare technology and the Internet of Things (IoT), the demand for ultra-dense, ultra-low-power memory is increasing. In this review, we present a comprehensive perspective on the most notable approaches to the fabrication of physically flexible memory devices. With the future goal of replacing traditional mechanical hard disks with solid-state storage devices, a fully flexible electronic system will need two basic devices: transistors and nonvolatile memory. Transistors are used for logic operations and gating memory arrays, while nonvolatile memory (NVM) devices are required for storing information in the main memory and cache storage. Since the highest density of transistors and storage structures is manifested in memories, the focus of this review is flexible NVM. Flexible NVM components are discussed in terms of their functionality, performance metrics, and reliability aspects, all of which are critical components for NVM technology to be part of mainstream consumer electronics, IoT, and advanced healthcare devices. Finally, flexible NVMs are benchmarked and future prospects are provided.

Non-volatile MOS RAM cell with capacitor-isolated nodes that are radiation accessible for rendering a non-permanent programmed information in the cell of a non-volatile one

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Widdershoven, Franciscus P.; Annema, Anne J.; Storms, Maurits M.N.; Pelgrom, Marcellinus J.M.; Pelgrom, Marcel J M

2001-01-01

A non-volatile, random access memory cell comprises first and second inverters each having an output node cross-coupled by cross-coupling means to an input node of the other inverter for forming a MOS RAM cell. The output node of each inverter is selectively connected via the conductor paths of

Discrete Charge Storage Nonvolatile Memory Based on Si Nanocrystals with Nitridation Treatment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xian-Gao, Zhang; Kun-Ji, Chen; Zhong-Hui, Fang; Xin-Ye, Qian; Guang-Yuan, Liu; Xiao-Fan, Jiang; Zhong-Yuan, Ma; Jun, Xu; Xin-Fan, Huang; Jian-Xin, Ji; Fei, He; Kuang-Bao, Song; Jun, Zhang; Hui, Wan; Rong-Hua, Wang

2010-01-01

A nonvolatile memory device with nitrided Si nanocrystals embedded in a Boating gate was fabricated. The uniform Si nanocrystals with high density (3 × 10 11 cm −2 ) were deposited on ultra-thin tunnel oxide layer (∼ 3 nm) and followed by a nitridation treatment in ammonia to form a thin silicon nitride layer on the surface of nanocrystals. A memory window of 2.4 V was obtained and it would be larger than 1.3 V after ten years from the extrapolated retention data. The results can be explained by the nitrogen passivation of the surface traps of Si nanocrystals, which slows the charge loss rate. (condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties)

Solution-Processed Wide-Bandgap Organic Semiconductor Nanostructures Arrays for Nonvolatile Organic Field-Effect Transistor Memory.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Wen; Guo, Fengning; Ling, Haifeng; Liu, Hui; Yi, Mingdong; Zhang, Peng; Wang, Wenjun; Xie, Linghai; Huang, Wei

2018-01-01

In this paper, the development of organic field-effect transistor (OFET) memory device based on isolated and ordered nanostructures (NSs) arrays of wide-bandgap (WBG) small-molecule organic semiconductor material [2-(9-(4-(octyloxy)phenyl)-9H-fluoren-2-yl)thiophene]3 (WG 3 ) is reported. The WG 3 NSs are prepared from phase separation by spin-coating blend solutions of WG 3 /trimethylolpropane (TMP), and then introduced as charge storage elements for nonvolatile OFET memory devices. Compared to the OFET memory device with smooth WG 3 film, the device based on WG 3 NSs arrays exhibits significant improvements in memory performance including larger memory window (≈45 V), faster switching speed (≈1 s), stable retention capability (>10 4 s), and reliable switching properties. A quantitative study of the WG 3 NSs morphology reveals that enhanced memory performance is attributed to the improved charge trapping/charge-exciton annihilation efficiency induced by increased contact area between the WG 3 NSs and pentacene layer. This versatile solution-processing approach to preparing WG 3 NSs arrays as charge trapping sites allows for fabrication of high-performance nonvolatile OFET memory devices, which could be applicable to a wide range of WBG organic semiconductor materials. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Identifying Non-Volatile Data Storage Areas: Unique Notebook Identification Information as Digital Evidence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nikica Budimir

2007-03-01

Full Text Available The research reported in this paper introduces new techniques to aid in the identification of recovered notebook computers so they may be returned to the rightful owner. We identify non-volatile data storage areas as a means of facilitating the safe storing of computer identification information. A forensic proof of concept tool has been designed to test the feasibility of several storage locations identified within this work to hold the data needed to uniquely identify a computer. The tool was used to perform the creation and extraction of created information in order to allow the analysis of the non-volatile storage locations as valid storage areas capable of holding and preserving the data created within them.  While the format of the information used to identify the machine itself is important, this research only discusses the insertion, storage and ability to retain such information.

Semiconductor-Free Nonvolatile Resistive Switching Memory Devices Based on Metal Nanogaps Fabricated on Flexible Substrates via Adhesion Lithography

KAUST Repository

Semple, James; Wyatt-Moon, Gwenhivir; Georgiadou, Dimitra G.; McLachlan, Martyn A.; Anthopoulos, Thomas D.

2017-01-01

Electronic memory cells are of critical importance in modern-day computing devices, including emerging technology sectors such as large-area printed electronics. One technology that has being receiving significant interest in recent years is resistive switching primarily due to its low dimensionality and nonvolatility. Here, we describe the development of resistive switching memory device arrays based on empty aluminum nanogap electrodes. By employing adhesion lithography, a low-temperature and large-area compatible nanogap fabrication technique, dense arrays of memory devices are demonstrated on both rigid and flexible plastic substrates. As-prepared devices exhibit nonvolatile memory operation with stable endurance, resistance ratios >10⁴ and retention times of several months. An intermittent analysis of the electrode microstructure reveals that controlled resistive switching is due to migration of metal from the electrodes into the nanogap under the application of an external electric field. This alternative form of resistive random access memory is promising for use in emerging sectors such as large-area electronics as well as in electronics for harsh environments, e.g., space, high/low temperature, magnetic influences, radiation, vibration, and pressure.

Semiconductor-Free Nonvolatile Resistive Switching Memory Devices Based on Metal Nanogaps Fabricated on Flexible Substrates via Adhesion Lithography

KAUST Repository

Semple, James

2017-01-02

Electronic memory cells are of critical importance in modern-day computing devices, including emerging technology sectors such as large-area printed electronics. One technology that has being receiving significant interest in recent years is resistive switching primarily due to its low dimensionality and nonvolatility. Here, we describe the development of resistive switching memory device arrays based on empty aluminum nanogap electrodes. By employing adhesion lithography, a low-temperature and large-area compatible nanogap fabrication technique, dense arrays of memory devices are demonstrated on both rigid and flexible plastic substrates. As-prepared devices exhibit nonvolatile memory operation with stable endurance, resistance ratios >10⁴ and retention times of several months. An intermittent analysis of the electrode microstructure reveals that controlled resistive switching is due to migration of metal from the electrodes into the nanogap under the application of an external electric field. This alternative form of resistive random access memory is promising for use in emerging sectors such as large-area electronics as well as in electronics for harsh environments, e.g., space, high/low temperature, magnetic influences, radiation, vibration, and pressure.

Electric field mediated non-volatile tuning magnetism in CoPt/PMN-PT heterostructure for magnetoelectric memory devices

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Y. T.; Li, J.; Peng, X. L.; Wang, X. Q.; Wang, D. H.; Cao, Q. Q.; Du, Y. W.

2016-02-01

We report a power efficient non-volatile magnetoelectric memory in the CoPt/(011)PMN-PT heterostructure. Two reversible and stable electric field induced coercivity states (i.e., high-HC or low-HC) are obtained due to the strain mediated converse magnetoelectric effect. The reading process of the different coercive field information written by electric fields is demonstrated by using a magnetoresistance read head. This result shows good prospects in the application of novel multiferroic devices.

Bioorganic nanodots for non-volatile memory devices

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Amdursky, Nadav; Shalev, Gil; Handelman, Amir; Natan, Amir; Rosenwaks, Yossi [School of Electrical Engineering, Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978 (Israel); Litsyn, Simon; Szwarcman, Daniel; Rosenman, Gil, E-mail: rgil@post.tau.ac.il [School of Electrical Engineering, Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978 (Israel); StoreDot LTD, 16 Menahem Begin St., Ramat Gan (Israel); Roizin, Yakov [School of Electrical Engineering, Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978 (Israel); TowerJazz, P.O. Box 619, Migdal HaEmek 23105 (Israel)

2013-12-01

In recent years we are witnessing an intensive integration of bio-organic nanomaterials in electronic devices. Here we show that the diphenylalanine bio-molecule can self-assemble into tiny peptide nanodots (PNDs) of ∼2 nm size, and can be embedded into metal-oxide-semiconductor devices as charge storage nanounits in non-volatile memory. For that purpose, we first directly observe the crystallinity of a single PND by electron microscopy. We use these nanocrystalline PNDs units for the formation of a dense monolayer on SiO{sub 2} surface, and study the electron/hole trapping mechanisms and charge retention ability of the monolayer, followed by fabrication of PND-based memory cell device.

Radiation evaluation of commercial ferroelectric nonvolatile memories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benedetto, J.M.; DeLancey, W.M.; Oldham, T.R.; McGarrity, J.M.; Tipton, C.W.; Brassington, M.; Fisch, D.E.

1991-01-01

This paper reports on ferroelectric (FE) on complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) 4-kbit nonvolatile memories, 8-bit octal latches (with and without FE), and process control test chips that were used to establish a baseline characterization of the radiation response of CMOS/FE integrated devices and to determine whether the additional FE processing caused significant degradation to the baseline CMOS process. Functional failure of all 4-kbit memories and octal latches occurred at total doses of between 2 and 4 krad(Si), most likely due to field- oxide effects in the underlying CMOS. No significant difference was observed between the radiation responses of devices with and without the FE film in this commercial process

Feasibility of nonvolatile buffers in capillary electrophoresis-electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry of proteins

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Eriksson, Jonas H.C.; Mol, Roelof; Somsen, Govert W.; Hinrichs, Wouter L.J.; Frijlink, Henderik W.; de Jong, Gerhardus J.

2004-01-01

The combination of capillary electrophoresis (CE) and electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) via a triaxial interface was studied as a potential means for the characterization of intact proteins. To evaluate the possibility to use a nonvolatile electrolyte for CE, the effect of sodium

'J-KAREN' - high intensity, high contrast laser

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kiriyama, Hiromitsu; Mori, Michiaki; Nakai, Yoshiki; Okada, Hajime; Sasao, Hajime; Sagisaka, Akito; Ochi, Yoshihiro; Tanaka, Momoko; Kondo, Kiminori; Tateno, Ryo; Sugiyama, Akira; Daido, Hiroyuki; Koike, Masato; Kawanishi, Syunichi; Shimomura, Takuya; Tanoue, Manabu; Wakai, Daisuke; Kondo, Shuji; Kanazawa, Shuhei

2010-01-01

We report on the high intensity, high contrast double chirped-pulse amplification (CPA) Ti:sapphire laser system (named J-KAREN). By use of an optical parametric chirped-pulse amplification (OPCPA) preamplifier that is seeded by a cleaned high-energy pulse, a background amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) level of 10 -10 relative to the peak main femtosecond pulse on the picosecond timescales demonstrated with an output energy of 1.7 J and a pulse duration of 30 fs, corresponding to a peak power of 60TW at a 10 Hz repetition rate. This system which uses a cryogenically-cooled Ti:sapphire final amplifier generates focused peak intensity in excess of 10 20 W/cm 2 at a 10 Hz repetition rate. (author)

Mass transfer of nonvolatile organic compounds from porous media

Science.gov (United States)

Khachikian, Crist Simon

This thesis presents data pertaining to the mass transfer of nonvolatile organic compounds from porous media. Physical properties of porous solids, including surface and pore areas, are studied. Information from these studies, along with dissolution data, are used to develop correlations relating the Sherwood Number to the Peclet Number. The contaminant used in this study is naphthalene; the solids used are Moffett Sand (MS), Borden Sand (BS), Lampblack (LB), and Silica Gel (SG). Surface area results indicate that contamination at 0.1% reduces the area of MS and SG by 48 and 37%, respectively, while contamination at 1.0% reduces the area of MS, BS, and SG by 59, 56, and 40%, respectively. Most of the reduction in area originates in the reduction of pore areas and volumes, where the contaminant precipitates. After long-term storage, surface areas did not recover to their original values due to an "irreversible" fraction of naphthalene. Treatment with heat or solvent or both was necessary to completely remove the contamination. For lampblack, treatment at 100°C decreased areas while treatment at 250°C increased them. Treatment at 250°°C probably opened pores while that at 100°C may have blocked more pores by redistributing the tar-like contaminant characteristic of lampblack. Contaminated MS and SG solids are packed in columns through which water is pumped. The effluent began at a relatively high concentration (˜70% of solubility) for both samples. However, SG column concentrations dropped quickly, never achieving steady state while the MS samples declined more gradually towards steady state. The high pore areas of the SG samples are believed to cause this behavior. The steady state portion of the MS dissolution history is used to develop mass transfer correlations. The correlation in this study differs from previous work in two major ways: (1) the exponent on the Pe is three times larger and (2) the limiting Sh is 106 times smaller. These results suggest that

Broadband nonvolatile photonic switching based on optical phase change materials: beyond the classical figure-of-merit.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Qihang; Zhang, Yifei; Li, Junying; Soref, Richard; Gu, Tian; Hu, Juejun

2018-01-01

In this Letter, we propose a broadband, nonvolatile on-chip switch design in the telecommunication C-band with record low loss and crosstalk. The unprecedented device performance builds on: 1) a new optical phase change material (O-PCM) Ge 2 Sb 2 Se 4 Te 1 (GSST), which exhibits significantly reduced optical attenuation compared to traditional O-PCMs, and 2) a nonperturbative design that enables low-loss device operation beyond the classical figure-of-merit (FOM) limit. We further demonstrate that the 1-by-2 and 2-by-2 switches can serve as basic building blocks to construct nonblocking and nonvolatile on-chip switching fabric supporting arbitrary numbers of input and output ports.

Occurence and dietary exposure of volatile and non-volatile N-Nitrosamines in processed meat products

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Herrmann, Susan Strange; Duedahl-Olesen, Lene; Granby, Kit

Nitrite and nitrate have for many decades been used for preservation of meat. However, nitrite can react with secondary amines in meat to form N-Nitrosamines (NAs), many of which have been shown to be genotoxic1 . The use of nitrite therefore ought to be limited as much as possible. To maintain...... a high level of consumer protection Denmark obtains National low limits of the nitrite use in meat products. An estimation of the dietary exposure to volatile NAs (VNA) and non-volatile NAs (NVNA) is necessary when performing a risk assessment of the use of nitrite and nitrate for meat preservation....

Effects of biodiesel, engine load and diesel particulate filter on nonvolatile particle number size distributions in heavy-duty diesel engine exhaust

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Young, Li-Hao, E-mail: lhy@mail.cmu.edu.tw [Department of Occupational Safety and Health, China Medical University, 91, Hsueh-Shih Road, Taichung 40402, Taiwan (China); Liou, Yi-Jyun [Department of Occupational Safety and Health, China Medical University, 91, Hsueh-Shih Road, Taichung 40402, Taiwan (China); Cheng, Man-Ting [Department of Environmental Engineering, National Chung Hsing University, 250, Kuo-Kuang Road, Taichung 40254, Taiwan (China); Lu, Jau-Huai [Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Chung Hsing University, 250, Kuo-Kuang Road, Taichung 40254, Taiwan (China); Yang, Hsi-Hsien [Department of Environmental Engineering and Management, Chaoyang University of Technology, 168, Jifeng E. Road, Taichung 41349, Taiwan (China); Tsai, Ying I. [Department of Environmental Engineering and Science, Chia Nan University of Pharmacy and Science, 60, Sec. 1, Erh-Jen Road, Tainan 71710, Taiwan (China); Wang, Lin-Chi [Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, Cheng Shiu University, 840, Chengcing Road, Kaohsiung 83347, Taiwan (China); Chen, Chung-Bang [Fuel Quality and Engine Performance Research, Refining and Manufacturing Research Institute, Chinese Petroleum Corporation, 217, Minsheng S. Road, Chiayi 60036, Taiwan (China); Lai, Jim-Shoung [Department of Occupational Safety and Health, China Medical University, 91, Hsueh-Shih Road, Taichung 40402, Taiwan (China)

2012-01-15

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The effects of waste cooking oil biodiesel, engine load and DOC + DPF on nonvolatile particle size distributions in HDDE exhaust. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Increasing biodiesel blends cause slight decreases in the total particle number concentrations and negligible changes in size distributions. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Increasing load results in modest increases in both the total particle number concentrations and sizes. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The effects of semivolatile materials are strongest at idle, during which nonvolatile cores <16 nm were observed. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The DOC + DPF shows remarkable filtration efficiency for both the core and soot particles, irrespective of biodiesel blend and load. - Abstract: Diesel engine exhaust contains large numbers of submicrometer particles that degrade air quality and human health. This study examines the number emission characteristics of 10-1000 nm nonvolatile particles from a heavy-duty diesel engine, operating with various waste cooking oil biodiesel blends (B2, B10 and B20), engine loads (0%, 25%, 50% and 75%) and a diesel oxidation catalyst plus diesel particulate filter (DOC + DPF) under steady modes. For a given load, the total particle number concentrations (N{sub TOT}) decrease slightly, while the mode diameters show negligible changes with increasing biodiesel blends. For a given biodiesel blend, both the N{sub TOT} and mode diameters increase modestly with increasing load of above 25%. The N{sub TOT} at idle are highest and their size distributions are strongly affected by condensation and possible nucleation of semivolatile materials. Nonvolatile cores of diameters less than 16 nm are only observed at idle mode. The DOC + DPF shows remarkable filtration efficiency for both the core and soot particles, irrespective of the biodiesel blend and engine load under study. The N{sub TOT} post the DOC + DPF are comparable to typical ambient levels of

Resistance Switching Characteristics in ZnO-Based Nonvolatile Memory Devices

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fu-Chien Chiu

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Bipolar resistance switching characteristics are demonstrated in Pt/ZnO/Pt nonvolatile memory devices. A negative differential resistance or snapback characteristic can be observed when the memory device switches from a high resistance state to a low resistance state due to the formation of filamentary conducting path. The dependence of pulse width and temperature on set/reset voltages was examined in this work. The exponentially decreasing trend of set/reset voltage with increasing pulse width is observed except when pulse width is larger than 1 s. Hence, to switch the ZnO memory devices, a minimum set/reset voltage is required. The set voltage decreases linearly with the temperature whereas the reset voltage is nearly temperature-independent. In addition, the ac cycling endurance can be over 106 switching cycles, whereas, the dependence of HRS/LRS resistance distribution indicates that a significant memory window closure may take place after about 102  dc switching cycles.

Pluto's Nonvolatile Chemical Compounds

Science.gov (United States)

Grundy, William M.; Binzel, Richard; Cook, Jason C.; Cruikshank, Dale P.; Dalle Ore, Cristina M.; Earle, Alissa M.; Ennico, Kimberly; Jennings, Donald; Howett, Carly; Kaiser, Ralf-Ingo; Linscott, Ivan; Lunsford, A. W.; Olkin, Catherine B.; Parker, Alex Harrison; Parker, Joel Wm.; Philippe, Sylvain; Protopapa, Silvia; Quirico, Eric; Reuter, D. C.; Schmitt, Bernard; Singer, Kelsi N.; Spencer, John R.; Stansberry, John A.; Stern, S. Alan; Tsang, Constantine; Verbiscer, Anne J.; Weaver, Harold A.; Weigle, G. E.; Young, Leslie

2016-10-01

Despite the migration of Pluto's volatile ices (N2, CO, and CH4) around the surface on seasonal timescales, the planet's non-volatile materials are not completely hidden from view. They occur in a variety of provinces formed over a wide range of timescales, including rugged mountains and chasms, the floors of mid-latitude craters, and an equatorial belt of especially dark and reddish material typified by the informally named Cthulhu Regio. NASA's New Horizons probe observed several of these regions at spatial resolutions as fine as 3 km/pixel with its LEISA imaging spectrometer, covering wavelengths from 1.25 to 2.5 microns. Various compounds that are much lighter than the tholin-like macromolecules responsible for the reddish coloration, but that are not volatile at Pluto surface temperatures such as methanol (CH3OH) and ethane (C2H6) have characteristic absorption bands within LEISA's wavelength range. This presentation will describe their geographic distributions and attempt to constrain their origins. Possibilities include an inheritance from Pluto's primordial composition (the likely source of H2O ice seen on Pluto's surface) or ongoing production from volatile precursors through photochemistry in Pluto's atmosphere or through radiolysis on Pluto's surface. New laboratory data inform the analysis.This work was supported by NASA's New Horizons project.

Embedded high-contrast distributed grating structures

Science.gov (United States)

Zubrzycki, Walter J.; Vawter, Gregory A.; Allerman, Andrew A.

2002-01-01

A new class of fabrication methods for embedded distributed grating structures is claimed, together with optical devices which include such structures. These new methods are the only known approach to making defect-free high-dielectric contrast grating structures, which are smaller and more efficient than are conventional grating structures.

Effect of AlN layer on the bipolar resistive switching behavior in TiN thin film based ReRAM device for non-volatile memory application

Science.gov (United States)

Prakash, Ravi; Kaur, Davinder

2018-05-01

The effect of an additional AlN layer in the Cu/TiN/AlN/Pt stack configuration deposited using sputtering has been investigated. The Cu/TiN/AlN/Pt device shows a tristate resistive switching. Multilevel switching is facilitated by ionic and metallic filament formation, and the nature of the filaments formed is confirmed by performing a resistance vs. temperature measurement. Ohmic behaviour and trap controlled space charge limited current (SCLC) conduction mechanisms are confirmed as dominant conduction mechanism at low resistance state (LRS) and high resistance state (HRS). High resistance ratio (102) corresponding to HRS and LRS, good write/erase endurance (105) and non-volatile long retention (105s) are also observed. Higher thermal conductivity of the AlN layer is the main reasons for the enhancement of resistive switching performance in Cu/TiN/AlN/Pt cell. The above result suggests the feasibility of Cu/TiN/AlN/Pt devices for multilevel nonvolatile ReRAM application.

Intrinsic Ge nanowire nonvolatile memory based on a simple core–shell structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Wen-Hua; Liu, Chang-Hai; Li, Qin-Liang; Sun, Qi-Jun; Liu, Jie; Gao, Xu; Sun, Xuhui; Wang, Sui-Dong

2014-01-01

Intrinsic Ge nanowires (NWs) with a Ge core covered by a thick Ge oxide shell are utilized to achieve nanoscale field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories, which show a large memory window and a high ON/OFF ratio with good retention. The retainable surface charge trapping is considered to be responsible for the memory effect, and the Ge oxide shell plays a key role as the insulating tunneling dielectric which must be thick enough to prevent stored surface charges from leaking out. Annealing the device in air is demonstrated to be a simple and effective way to attain thick Ge oxide on the Ge NW surface, and the Ge-NW-based memory corresponding to thick Ge oxide exhibits a much better retention capability compared with the case of thin Ge oxide. (paper)

Use of non-volatile memories for SSC detector readout

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fennelly, A.J.; Woosley, J.K.; Johnson, M.B.

1990-01-01

Use of non-volatile memory units at the end of each fiber optic bunch/strand would substantially increase information available from experiments by providing a complete event history, in addition to easing real time processing requirements. This may be an alternative to enhancing technology to optical computing techniques. Available and low-risk projected technologies will be surveyed, with costing addressed. Some discussion will be given to covnersion of optical signals, to electronic information, concepts for providing timing pulses to the memory units, and to the magnetoresistive (MRAM) and ferroelectric (FERAM) random access memory technologies that may be utilized in the prototype system

Preparation of NiFe binary alloy nanocrystals for nonvolatile memory applications

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

无

2010-01-01

In this work,an idea which applies binary alloy nanocrystal floating gate to nonvolatile memory application was introduced.The relationship between binary alloy’s work function and its composition was discussed theoretically.A nanocrystal floating gate structure with NiFe nanocrystals embedded in SiO2 dielectric layers was fabricated by magnetron sputtering.The micro-structure and composition deviation of the prepared NiFe nanocrystals were also investigated by TEM and EDS.

Nonvolatile memory thin-film transistors using biodegradable chicken albumen gate insulator and oxide semiconductor channel on eco-friendly paper substrate.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, So-Jung; Jeon, Da-Bin; Park, Jung-Ho; Ryu, Min-Ki; Yang, Jong-Heon; Hwang, Chi-Sun; Kim, Gi-Heon; Yoon, Sung-Min

2015-03-04

Nonvolatile memory thin-film transistors (TFTs) fabricated on paper substrates were proposed as one of the eco-friendly electronic devices. The gate stack was composed of chicken albumen gate insulator and In-Ga-Zn-O semiconducting channel layers. All the fabrication processes were performed below 120 °C. To improve the process compatibility of the synthethic paper substrate, an Al2O3 thin film was introduced as adhesion and barrier layers by atomic layer deposition. The dielectric properties of biomaterial albumen gate insulator were also enhanced by the preparation of Al2O3 capping layer. The nonvolatile bistabilities were realized by the switching phenomena of residual polarization within the albumen thin film. The fabricated device exhibited a counterclockwise hysteresis with a memory window of 11.8 V, high on/off ratio of approximately 1.1 × 10(6), and high saturation mobility (μsat) of 11.5 cm(2)/(V s). Furthermore, these device characteristics were not markedly degraded even after the delamination and under the bending situration. When the curvature radius was set as 5.3 cm, the ION/IOFF ratio and μsat were obtained to be 5.9 × 10(6) and 7.9 cm(2)/(V s), respectively.

Nonvolatile Memories Using Quantum Dot (QD) Floating Gates Assembled on II-VI Tunnel Insulators

Science.gov (United States)

Suarez, E.; Gogna, M.; Al-Amoody, F.; Karmakar, S.; Ayers, J.; Heller, E.; Jain, F.

2010-07-01

This paper presents preliminary data on quantum dot gate nonvolatile memories using nearly lattice-matched ZnS/Zn0.95Mg0.05S/ZnS tunnel insulators. The GeO x -cladded Ge and SiO x -cladded Si quantum dots (QDs) are self-assembled site-specifically on the II-VI insulator grown epitaxially over the Si channel (formed between the source and drain region). The pseudomorphic II-VI stack serves both as a tunnel insulator and a high- κ dielectric. The effect of Mg incorporation in ZnMgS is also investigated. For the control gate insulator, we have used Si3N4 and SiO2 layers grown by plasma- enhanced chemical vapor deposition.

Efficacy of high iodine concentration contrast medium with saline pushing in hepatic CT in patients with chronic liver disease. Comparison of high doses-standard contrast medium concentration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matoba, Munetaka; Kondo, Tamaki; Nishikawa, Takahiro; Kuginuki, Yasuaki; Yokota, Hajime; Higashi, Kotaro; Tonami, Hisao

2006-01-01

The aim of this study was to compare the enhancement of liver parenchyama with high iodine concentration contrast medium with saline pushing to that with high doses standard iodine concentration in hepatic CT in patients with chronic liver disease. There was no statistically significant difference regarding to the enhancement of liver parenchyama between the 370 mgI/ml of contrast medium with saline pushing and high doses standard iodine concentration contrast medium. (author)

High spatial resolution and high contrast visualization of brain arteries and veins. Impact of blood pool contrast agent and water-selective excitation imaging at 3T

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spuentrup, E.; Jacobs, J.E.; Kleimann, J.F.

2010-01-01

Purpose: To investigate a blood pool contrast agent and water-selective excitation imaging at 3 T for high spatial and high contrast imaging of brain vessels including the veins. Methods and Results: 48 clinical patients (47 ± 18 years old) were included. Based on clinical findings, twenty-four patients received a single dose of standard extracellular Gadoterate-meglumine (Dotarem registered ) and 24 received the blood pool contrast agent Gadofosveset (Vasovist registered ). After finishing routine MR protocols, all patients were investigated with two high spatial resolution (0.15 mm 3 voxel size) gradient echo sequences in random order in the equilibrium phase (steady-state) as approved by the review board: A standard RF-spoiled gradient-echo sequence (HR-SS, TR/TE 5.1 / 2.3 msec, FA 30 ) and a fat-suppressed gradient-echo sequence with water-selective excitation (HR-FS, 1331 binominal-pulse, TR/TE 8.8 / 3.8 msec, FA 30 ). The images were subjectively assessed (image quality with vessel contrast, artifacts, depiction of lesions) by two investigators and contrast-to-noise ratios (CNR) were compared using the Student's t-test. The image quality and CNR in the HR-FS were significantly superior compared to the HR-SS for both contrast agents (p < 0.05). The CNR was also improved when using the blood pool agent but only to a minor extent while the subjective image quality was similar for both contrast agents. Conclusion: The utilized sequence with water-selective excitation improved image quality and CNR properties in high spatial resolution imaging of brain arteries and veins. The used blood pool contrast agent improved the CNR only to a minor extent over the extracellular contrast agent. (orig.)

A Novel Non-Destructive Silicon-on-Insulator Nonvolatile Memory - LDRD 99-0750 Final Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

DRAPER,BRUCE L.; FLEETWOOD,D. M.; MEISENHEIMER,TIMOTHY L.; MURRAY,JAMES R.; SCHWANK,JAMES R.; SHANEYFELT,MARTY R.; SMITH,PAUL M.; VANHEUSDEN,KAREL J.; WARREN,WILLIAM L.

1999-11-01

Defects in silicon-on-insulator (SOI) buried oxides are normally considered deleterious to device operation. Similarly, exposing devices to hydrogen at elevated temperatures often can lead to radiation-induced charge buildup. However, in this work, we take advantage of as-processed defects in SOI buried oxides and moderate temperature hydrogen anneals to generate mobile protons in the buried oxide to form the basis of a ''protonic'' nonvolatile memory. Capacitors and fully-processed transistors were fabricated. SOI buried oxides are exposed to hydrogen at moderate temperatures using a variety of anneal conditions to optimize the density of mobile protons. A fast ramp cool down anneal was found to yield the maximum number of mobile protons. Unfortunately, we were unable to obtain uniform mobile proton concentrations across a wafer. Capacitors were irradiated to investigate the potential use of protonic memories for space and weapon applications. Irradiating under a negative top-gate bias or with no applied bias was observed to cause little degradation in the number of mobile protons. However, irradiating to a total dose of 100 krad(SiO{sub 2}) under a positive top-gate bias caused approximately a 100% reduction in the number of mobile protons. Cycling capacitors up to 10{sup 4} cycles had little effect on the switching characteristics. No change in the retention characteristics were observed for times up to 3 x 10{sup 4} s for capacitors stored unbiased at 200 C. These results show the proof-of-concept for a protonic nonvolatile memory. Two memory architectures are proposed for a protonic non-destructive, nonvolatile memory.

High contrast laser marking of alumina

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Penide, J.; Quintero, F.; Riveiro, A.; Fernández, A.; Val, J. del; Comesaña, R.; Lusquiños, F.; Pou, J.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Laser marking of alumina using near infrared (NIR) lasers was experimentally analyzed. • Color change produced by NIR lasers is due to thermally induced oxygen vacancies. • Laser marking results obtained using NIR lasers and green laser are compared. • High contrast marks on alumina were achieved. - Abstract: Alumina serves as raw material for a broad range of advanced ceramic products. These elements should usually be identified by some characters or symbols printed directly on them. In this sense, laser marking is an efficient, reliable and widely implemented process in industry. However, laser marking of alumina still leads to poor results since the process is not able to produce a dark mark, yielding bad contrast. In this paper, we present an experimental study on the process of marking alumina by three different lasers working in two wavelengths: 1064 nm (Near-infrared) and 532 nm (visible, green radiation). A colorimetric analysis has been carried out in order to compare the resulting marks and its contrast. The most suitable laser operating conditions were also defined and are reported here. Moreover, the physical process of marking by NIR lasers is discussed in detail. Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy, High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy were also employed to analyze the results. Finally, we propose an explanation for the differences of the coloration induced under different atmospheres and laser parameters. We concluded that the atmosphere is the key parameter, being the inert one the best choice to produce the darkest marks

High-contrast MacNeille-PBS-based LCOS projection systems

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Jianmin; Robinson, Michael G.; Sharp, Gary D.

2005-04-01

Contrast limits are investigated for MacNeille PBS based LCOS projection systems that use retarder stack filters (RSF). The two contributing factors are considered separately; namely the color management system and the panel port. To enhance performance of the former, skew ray compensated RSFs are introduced. For the latter, a general methodology is presented to optimize contrast by compensating the LCOS panel. It is shown that the orientation of the LCOS panel and compensator, relative to the MacNeille PBS, is critical. The significant impact of AR coating performance on system contrast is also revealed. A high contrast architecture will be presented by way of example.

Gd-HOPO Based High Relaxivity MRI Contrast Agents

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Datta, Ankona; Raymond, Kenneth

2008-11-06

Tris-bidentate HOPO-based ligands developed in our laboratory were designed to complement the coordination preferences of Gd{sup 3+}, especially its oxophilicity. The HOPO ligands provide a hexadentate coordination environment for Gd{sup 3+} in which all he donor atoms are oxygen. Because Gd{sup 3+} favors eight or nine coordination, this design provides two to three open sites for inner-sphere water molecules. These water molecules rapidly exchange with bulk solution, hence affecting the relaxation rates of bulk water olecules. The parameters affecting the efficiency of these contrast agents have been tuned to improve contrast while still maintaining a high thermodynamic stability for Gd{sup 3+} binding. The Gd- HOPO-based contrast agents surpass current commercially available agents ecause of a higher number of inner-sphere water molecules, rapid exchange of inner-sphere water molecules via an associative mechanism, and a long electronic relaxation time. The contrast enhancement provided by these agents is at least twice that of commercial contrast gents, which are based on polyaminocarboxylate ligands.

Release and nonvolatile operation of carbon nanotube nanorelay by resonant vibration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kagota, Tatsuya; Takei, Kuniharu; Arie, Takayuki; Akita, Seiji, E-mail: akita@pe.osakafu-u.ac.jp [Department of Physics and Electronics, Osaka Prefecture University, 1-1 Gakuen-cho, Nakaku, Sakai, Osaka 599-8531 (Japan); Nagataki, Atsuko [Department of Physics and Electronics, Osaka Prefecture University, 1-1 Gakuen-cho, Nakaku, Sakai, Osaka 599-8531 (Japan); Materials Analysis Research Center, KRI, Inc., Osaka 554-0051 (Japan)

2013-11-11

We investigated the release of a stuck carbon nanotube (CNT) cantilever beam in nanorelay applications using a nano-manipulator. Even with strong adhesion induced by electrostatic attraction that is 100 times stronger than the van der Waals interaction, successful release of a nanotube arm from a stuck state was realized by the application of a resonant vibration to the stuck CNT arm. Furthermore, nonvolatile operation of the nanotube nanorelay was demonstrated by the application of the resonant vibration to the stuck CNT arm.

Influence of mineral salts upon activity of Trichoderma harzianum non-volatile metabolites on Armillaria spp. rhizomorphs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Krystyna Przybył

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Effect of non-volatile metabolites of Trichoderma harzianum together with certain salts containing Mg++, Fe+++, Mn++, Cu++, Al+++, Ca++, K++, Na+, PO4--- and SO3--- on the production and length of rhizomorphs of Armillaria borealis, A. gallica and A. ostoyae was studied. In pure medium, T. harzianum exhibited stimulating effect on rhizomorphs of A. borealis (both number and length and A. ostoyae (only initiation. Cu++ salt totaly inhibited the initiation of rhizomorphs of Armillaria borealis, A. gallica and A. ostoyae. Effect of other compounds on the activity of T. harzianum depended on Armillaria species. The majority of chemical compounds tested supressed the activity of non-volatile metabolites of T. harzianum. Evident stimulating effect was observed under influence of sulphate salts consisting Al++ and Fe+++ on the rhizomorph number of A. borealis and A. gallica, respectively.

Phase-change materials for non-volatile memory devices: from technological challenges to materials science issues

Science.gov (United States)

Noé, Pierre; Vallée, Christophe; Hippert, Françoise; Fillot, Frédéric; Raty, Jean-Yves

2018-01-01

Chalcogenide phase-change materials (PCMs), such as Ge-Sb-Te alloys, have shown outstanding properties, which has led to their successful use for a long time in optical memories (DVDs) and, recently, in non-volatile resistive memories. The latter, known as PCM memories or phase-change random access memories (PCRAMs), are the most promising candidates among emerging non-volatile memory (NVM) technologies to replace the current FLASH memories at CMOS technology nodes under 28 nm. Chalcogenide PCMs exhibit fast and reversible phase transformations between crystalline and amorphous states with very different transport and optical properties leading to a unique set of features for PCRAMs, such as fast programming, good cyclability, high scalability, multi-level storage capability, and good data retention. Nevertheless, PCM memory technology has to overcome several challenges to definitively invade the NVM market. In this review paper, we examine the main technological challenges that PCM memory technology must face and we illustrate how new memory architecture, innovative deposition methods, and PCM composition optimization can contribute to further improvements of this technology. In particular, we examine how to lower the programming currents and increase data retention. Scaling down PCM memories for large-scale integration means the incorporation of the PCM into more and more confined structures and raises materials science issues in order to understand interface and size effects on crystallization. Other materials science issues are related to the stability and ageing of the amorphous state of PCMs. The stability of the amorphous phase, which determines data retention in memory devices, can be increased by doping the PCM. Ageing of the amorphous phase leads to a large increase of the resistivity with time (resistance drift), which has up to now hindered the development of ultra-high multi-level storage devices. A review of the current understanding of all these

WORKSHOP REPORT - CONSIDERATIONS FOR DEVELOPING LEACHING TEST METHODS FOR SEMI- AND NON-VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS

Science.gov (United States)

The report provides a summary of the information exchange at a workshop on the potential for release of semi- or non-volatile organic constituents at contaminated sites where sub-surface treatment has been used to control migration, and from waste that is disposed or re-used. The...

Negative effect of Au nanoparticles on an IGZO TFT-based nonvolatile memory device

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lim, Myunghoon; Yoo, Gwangwe; Lee, Jongtaek; Jeong, Seokwon; Roh, Yonghan; Park, Jinhong; Kwon, Namyong [Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon (Korea, Republic of); Jung, Wooshik [Stanford University, Stanford, CA (United States)

2014-02-15

In this letter, the electrical characteristics of nonvolatile memory devices based on back gate type indium gallium zinc oxide (IGZO) thin-film transistors (TFTs) are investigated in terms of the Au nanoparticles (NPs) employed in the floating gate-stack of the device. The size of the Au NPs is controlled using a by 500 .deg. C annealing process after the Au thin-film deposition. The size and the roughness of the Au NPs were observed by using scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. In order to analyze the electrical properties according to Au NP size, we measured the current-voltage (I{sub D}-V{sub G}) characteristics of the nonvolatile memory devices fabricated without Au NPs and with Au NPs of various sizes. The size of the Au NP increased, so did the surface roughness of the gate. This resulted in increased carrier scattering, which subsequently degraded the on-current of the memory device. In addition, inter-diffusion between the Au and the α-IGZO through the non-uniform Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} tunneling layer seemed to further degrade the device performance.

High contrast computed tomography with synchrotron radiation

Science.gov (United States)

Itai, Yuji; Takeda, Tohoru; Akatsuka, Takao; Maeda, Tomokazu; Hyodo, Kazuyuki; Uchida, Akira; Yuasa, Tetsuya; Kazama, Masahiro; Wu, Jin; Ando, Masami

1995-02-01

This article describes a new monochromatic x-ray CT system using synchrotron radiation with applications in biomedical diagnosis which is currently under development. The system is designed to provide clear images and to detect contrast materials at low concentration for the quantitative functional evaluation of organs in correspondence with their anatomical structures. In this system, with x-ray energy changing from 30 to 52 keV, images can be obtained to detect various contrast materials (iodine, barium, and gadolinium), and K-edge energy subtraction is applied. Herein, the features of the new system designed to enhance the advantages of SR are reported. With the introduction of a double-crystal monochromator, the high-order x-ray contamination is eliminated. The newly designed CCD detector with a wide dynamic range of 60 000:1 has a spatial resolution of 200 μm. The resulting image quality, which is expected to show improved contrast and spatial resolution, is currently under investigation.

Phase contrast imaging with coherent high energy X-rays

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Snigireva, I. [ESRF, Grenoble (France)

1997-02-01

X-ray imaging concern high energy domain (>6 keV) like a contact radiography, projection microscopy and tomography is used for many years to discern the features of the internal structure non destructively in material science, medicine and biology. In so doing the main contrast formation is absorption that makes some limitations for imaging of the light density materials and what is more the resolution of these techniques is not better than 10-100 {mu}m. It was turned out that there is now way in which to overcome 1{mu}m or even sub-{mu}m resolution limit except phase contrast imaging. It is well known in optics that the phase contrast is realised when interference between reference wave front and transmitted through the sample take place. Examples of this imaging are: phase contrast microscopy suggested by Zernike and Gabor (in-line) holography. Both of this techniques: phase contrast x-ray microscopy and holography are successfully progressing now in soft x-ray region. For imaging in the hard X-rays to enhance the contrast and to be able to resolve phase variations across the beam the high degree of the time and more importantly spatial coherence is needed. Because of this it was reasonable that the perfect crystal optics was involved like Bonse-Hart interferometry, double-crystal and even triple-crystal set-up using Laue and Bragg geometry with asymmetrically cut crystals.

Progress in high index contrast integrated optics

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Baets, R.G.F.; Bienstman, P.; Bogaerts, W.; Brouckaert, J.; De Backere, P.; Dumon, P.; Roelkens, G.; Scheerlinck, S.; Smit, M.K.; Taillaert, D.; Van Campenhout, J.; Van Laere, F.; Thourhout, Van D.

2007-01-01

A large fraction of the recent innovation in integrated optics is enabled by the use of high index contrast structures and devices. The strong confinement achievable in such devices allows for dramatic performance benefits and downscaling. In this paper the progress in this field is reviewed.

A graphene-based non-volatile memory

Science.gov (United States)

Loisel, Loïc.; Maurice, Ange; Lebental, Bérengère; Vezzoli, Stefano; Cojocaru, Costel-Sorin; Tay, Beng Kang

2015-09-01

We report on the development and characterization of a simple two-terminal non-volatile graphene switch. After an initial electroforming step during which Joule heating leads to the formation of a nano-gap impeding the current flow, the devices can be switched reversibly between two well-separated resistance states. To do so, either voltage sweeps or pulses can be used, with the condition that VSET achieve reversible switching on more than 100 cycles with resistance ratio values of 104. This approach of graphene memory is competitive as compared to other graphene approaches such as redox of graphene oxide, or electro-mechanical switches with suspended graphene. We suggest a switching model based on a planar electro-mechanical switch, whereby electrostatic, elastic and friction forces are competing to switch devices ON and OFF, and the stability in the ON state is achieved by the formation of covalent bonds between the two stretched sides of the graphene, hence bridging the nano-gap. Developing a planar electro-mechanical switch enables to obtain the advantages of electro-mechanical switches while avoiding most of their drawbacks.

Flavor Compounds in Pixian Broad-Bean Paste: Non-Volatile Organic Acids and Amino Acids

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hongbin Lin

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Non-volatile organic acids and amino acids are important flavor compounds in Pixian broad-bean paste, which is a traditional Chinese seasoning product. In this study, non-volatile organic acids, formed in the broad-bean paste due to the metabolism of large molecular compounds, are qualitatively and quantitatively determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC. Amino acids, mainly produced by hydrolysis of soybean proteins, were determined by the amino acid automatic analyzer. Results indicated that seven common organic acids and eighteen common amino acids were found in six Pixian broad-bean paste samples. The content of citric acid was found to be the highest in each sample, between 4.1 mg/g to 6.3 mg/g, and malic acid were between 2.1 mg/g to 3.6 mg/g ranked as the second. Moreover, fumaric acid was first detected in fermented bean pastes albeit with a low content. For amino acids, savory with lower sour taste including glutamine (Gln, glutamic acid (Glu, aspartic acid (Asp and asparagines (Asn were the most abundant, noted to be 6.5 mg/g, 4.0 mg/g, 6.4 mg/g, 4.9 mg/g, 6.2 mg/g and 10.2 mg/g, and bitter taste amino acids followed. More importantly, as important flavor materials in Pixian broad-bean paste, these two groups of substances are expected to be used to evaluate and represent the flavor quality of Pixian broad-bean paste. Moreover, the results revealed that citric acid, glutamic acid, methionine and proline were the most important flavor compounds. These findings are agreat contribution for evaluating the quality and further assessment of Pixian broad-bean paste.

Flavor Compounds in Pixian Broad-Bean Paste: Non-Volatile Organic Acids and Amino Acids.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Hongbin; Yu, Xiaoyu; Fang, Jiaxing; Lu, Yunhao; Liu, Ping; Xing, Yage; Wang, Qin; Che, Zhenming; He, Qiang

2018-05-29

Non-volatile organic acids and amino acids are important flavor compounds in Pixian broad-bean paste, which is a traditional Chinese seasoning product. In this study, non-volatile organic acids, formed in the broad-bean paste due to the metabolism of large molecular compounds, are qualitatively and quantitatively determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Amino acids, mainly produced by hydrolysis of soybean proteins, were determined by the amino acid automatic analyzer. Results indicated that seven common organic acids and eighteen common amino acids were found in six Pixian broad-bean paste samples. The content of citric acid was found to be the highest in each sample, between 4.1 mg/g to 6.3 mg/g, and malic acid were between 2.1 mg/g to 3.6 mg/g ranked as the second. Moreover, fumaric acid was first detected in fermented bean pastes albeit with a low content. For amino acids, savory with lower sour taste including glutamine (Gln), glutamic acid (Glu), aspartic acid (Asp) and asparagines (Asn) were the most abundant, noted to be 6.5 mg/g, 4.0 mg/g, 6.4 mg/g, 4.9 mg/g, 6.2 mg/g and 10.2 mg/g, and bitter taste amino acids followed. More importantly, as important flavor materials in Pixian broad-bean paste, these two groups of substances are expected to be used to evaluate and represent the flavor quality of Pixian broad-bean paste. Moreover, the results revealed that citric acid, glutamic acid, methionine and proline were the most important flavor compounds. These findings are agreat contribution for evaluating the quality and further assessment of Pixian broad-bean paste.

Ferroelectric polymer gates for non-volatile field effect control of ferromagnetism in (Ga, Mn)As layers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stolichnov, I; Riester, S W E; Mikheev, E; Setter, N; Rushforth, A W; Edmonds, K W; Campion, R P; Foxon, C T; Gallagher, B L; Jungwirth, T; Trodahl, H J

2011-01-01

(Ga, Mn)As and other diluted magnetic semiconductors (DMS) attract a great deal of attention for potential spintronic applications because of the possibility of controlling the magnetic properties via electrical gating. Integration of a ferroelectric gate on the DMS channel adds to the system a non-volatile memory functionality and permits nanopatterning via the polarization domain engineering. This topical review is focused on the multiferroic system, where the ferromagnetism in the (Ga, Mn)As DMS channel is controlled by the non-volatile field effect of the spontaneous polarization. Use of ferroelectric polymer gates in such heterostructures offers a viable alternative to the traditional oxide ferroelectrics generally incompatible with DMS. Here we review the proof-of-concept experiments demonstrating the ferroelectric control of ferromagnetism, analyze the performance issues of the ferroelectric gates and discuss prospects for further development of the ferroelectric/DMS heterostructures toward the multiferroic field effect transistor. (topical review)

Comparison of volatile and non-volatile metabolites in rice wine fermented by Koji inoculated with Saccharomycopsis fibuligera and Aspergillus oryzae.

Science.gov (United States)

Son, Eun Yeong; Lee, Sang Mi; Kim, Minjoo; Seo, Jeong-Ah; Kim, Young-Suk

2018-07-01

This study investigated volatile and nonvolatile metabolite profiles of makgeolli (a traditional rice wine in Korea) fermented by koji inoculated with Saccharomycopsis fibuligera and/or Aspergillus oryzae. The enzyme activities in koji were also examined to determine their effects on the formation of metabolites. The contents of all 18 amino acids detected were the highest in makgeolli fermented by S. fibuligera CN2601-09, and increased after combining with A. oryzae CN1102-08, unlike the contents of most fatty acids. On the other hand, major volatile metabolites were fusel alcohols, acetate esters, and ethyl esters. The contents of most fusel alcohols and acetate esters were the highest in makgeolli fermented by S. fibuligera CN2601-09, for which the protease activity was the highest, leading to the largest amounts of amino acods. The makgeolli samples fermented only by koji inoculated with S. fibuligera could be discriminated on PCA plots from the makgeolli samples fermented in combination with A. oryzae. In the case of nonvolatile metabolites, all amino acids and some metabolites such as xylose, 2-methylbenzoic acid, and oxalic acid contributed mainly to the characteristics of makgeolli fermented by koji inoculated with S. fibuligera and A. oryzae. These results showed that the formations of volatile and nonvolatile metabolites in makgeolli can be significantly affected by microbial strains with different enzyme activities in koji. To our knowledge, this study is the first report on the effects of S. fibuligera strains on the formation of volatile and non-volatile metabolites in rice wine, facilitating their use in brewing rice wine. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Improvements in gastric diagnosis by using high density contrast media with low viscosity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Toischer, H.P.

1983-01-01

In a retrospective clinical study, 150 unselected double contrast examinations of the stomach using conventional contrast media (100 g/100 ml barium sulphate) were compared with a similar number of examinations using a high density contrast medium of flow viscosity (250 g/100 ml barium sulphate). The high density contrast medium was distinctly better for demonstrating detail of the gastric mucosa. The uneveness of coating and instability of the older high density contrast media was observed in 15.5% of cases and, in no instance, did this make it impossible to reach a diagnosis. (orig.) [de

Scalable printed electronics: an organic decoder addressing ferroelectric non-volatile memory

Science.gov (United States)

Ng, Tse Nga; Schwartz, David E.; Lavery, Leah L.; Whiting, Gregory L.; Russo, Beverly; Krusor, Brent; Veres, Janos; Bröms, Per; Herlogsson, Lars; Alam, Naveed; Hagel, Olle; Nilsson, Jakob; Karlsson, Christer

2012-01-01

Scalable circuits of organic logic and memory are realized using all-additive printing processes. A 3-bit organic complementary decoder is fabricated and used to read and write non-volatile, rewritable ferroelectric memory. The decoder-memory array is patterned by inkjet and gravure printing on flexible plastics. Simulation models for the organic transistors are developed, enabling circuit designs tolerant of the variations in printed devices. We explain the key design rules in fabrication of complex printed circuits and elucidate the performance requirements of materials and devices for reliable organic digital logic. PMID:22900143

The retention characteristics of nonvolatile SNOS memory transistors in a radiation environment: Experiment and model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McWhorter, P.J.; Miller, S.L.; Dellin, T.A.; Axness, C.L.

1987-01-01

Experimental data and a model to accurately and quantitatively predict the data are presented for retention of SNOS memory devices over a wide range of dose rates. A wide range of SNOS stack geometries are examined. The model is designed to aid in screening nonvolatile memories for use in a radiation environment

The advantage of high relaxivity contrast agents in brain perfusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cotton, F.; Hermier, M.

2006-01-01

Accurate MRI characterization of brain lesions is critical for planning therapeutic strategy, assessing prognosis and monitoring response to therapy. Conventional MRI with gadolinium-based contrast agents is useful for the evaluation of brain lesions, but this approach primarily depicts areas of disruption of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) rather than tissue perfusion. Advanced MR imaging techniques such as dynamic contrast agent-enhanced perfusion MRI provide physiological information that complements the anatomic data available from conventional MRI. We evaluated brain perfusion imaging with gadobenate dimeglumine (Gd-BOPTA, MultiHance; Bracco Imaging, Milan, Italy). The contrast-enhanced perfusion technique was performed on a Philips Intera 1.5-T MR system. The technique used to obtain perfusion images was dynamic susceptibility contrast-enhanced MRI, which is highly sensitive to T2* changes. Combined with PRESTO perfusion imaging, SENSE is applied to double the temporal resolution, thereby improving the signal intensity curve fit and, accordingly, the accuracy of the derived parametric images. MultiHance is the first gadolinium MR contrast agent with significantly higher T1 and T2 relaxivities than conventional MR contrast agents. The higher T1 relaxivity, and therefore better contrast-enhanced T1-weighted imaging, leads to significantly improved detection of BBB breakdown and hence improved brain tumor conspicuity and delineation. The higher T2 relaxivity allows high-quality T2*-weighted perfusion MRI and the derivation of good quality relative cerebral blood volume (rCBV) maps. We determined the value of MultiHance for enhanced T2*-weighted perfusion imaging of histologically proven (by surgery or stereotaxic biopsy) intraaxial brain tumors (n=80), multiple sclerosis lesions (n=10), abscesses (n=4), neurolupus (n=15) and stroke (n=16). All the procedures carried out were safe and no adverse events occurred. The acquired perfusion images were of good quality in

EqualChance: Addressing Intra-set Write Variation to Increase Lifetime of Non-volatile Caches

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mittal, Sparsh [ORNL; Vetter, Jeffrey S [ORNL

2014-01-01

To address the limitations of SRAM such as high-leakage and low-density, researchers have explored use of non-volatile memory (NVM) devices, such as ReRAM (resistive RAM) and STT-RAM (spin transfer torque RAM) for designing on-chip caches. A crucial limitation of NVMs, however, is that their write endurance is low and the large intra-set write variation introduced by existing cache management policies may further exacerbate this problem, thereby reducing the cache lifetime significantly. We present EqualChance, a technique to increase cache lifetime by reducing intra-set write variation. EqualChance works by periodically changing the physical cache-block location of a write-intensive data item within a set to achieve wear-leveling. Simulations using workloads from SPEC CPU2006 suite and HPC (high-performance computing) field show that EqualChance improves the cache lifetime by 4.29X. Also, its implementation overhead is small, and it incurs very small performance and energy loss.

Domain Decomposition Preconditioners for Multiscale Flows in High-Contrast Media

KAUST Repository

Galvis, Juan; Efendiev, Yalchin

2010-01-01

In this paper, we study domain decomposition preconditioners for multiscale flows in high-contrast media. We consider flow equations governed by elliptic equations in heterogeneous media with a large contrast in the coefficients. Our main goal is to develop domain decomposition preconditioners with the condition number that is independent of the contrast when there are variations within coarse regions. This is accomplished by designing coarse-scale spaces and interpolators that represent important features of the solution within each coarse region. The important features are characterized by the connectivities of high-conductivity regions. To detect these connectivities, we introduce an eigenvalue problem that automatically detects high-conductivity regions via a large gap in the spectrum. A main observation is that this eigenvalue problem has a few small, asymptotically vanishing eigenvalues. The number of these small eigenvalues is the same as the number of connected high-conductivity regions. The coarse spaces are constructed such that they span eigenfunctions corresponding to these small eigenvalues. These spaces are used within two-level additive Schwarz preconditioners as well as overlapping methods for the Schur complement to design preconditioners. We show that the condition number of the preconditioned systems is independent of the contrast. More detailed studies are performed for the case when the high-conductivity region is connected within coarse block neighborhoods. Our numerical experiments confirm the theoretical results presented in this paper. © 2010 Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.

Effect of Ag nanoparticles on resistive switching of polyfluorene-based organic non-volatile memory devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Tae-Wook; Oh, Seung-Hwan; Choi, Hye-Jung; Wang, Gun-Uk; Kim, Dong-Yu; Hwang, Hyun-Sang; Lee, Tak-Hee

2010-01-01

The effects of Ag nanoparticles on the switching behavior of polyfluorene-based organic nonvolatile memory devices were investigated. Polyfluorene-derivatives (WPF-oxy-F) with and without Ag nanoparticles were synthesized, and the presence of Ag nanoparticles in Ag-WPF-oxy-F was identified by transmission electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses. The Ag-nanoparticles did not significantly affect the basic switching performances, such as the current-voltage characteristics, the distribution of on/off resistance, and the retention. The pulse switching time of Ag-WPF-oxy-F was faster than that of WPF-oxy-F. Ag-WPF-oxy-F memory devices showed an area dependence in the high resistance state, implying that formation of a Ag metallic channel for current conduction.

Properties of nonvolatile and antibacterial bioboard produced from bamboo macromolecules by hot pressing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shengbo Ge

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Employing the antibacterial property of industrial bamboo vinegar (IBV and the photocatalytic degradation of TiO2, bamboo macromolecules were pretreated and processed into nonvolatile and antibacterial bio board (NVABB. The NVABB was then analyzed by conducting Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis and differential thermal analysis. Results show that NVABB samples had average density of 0.96 g/cm3, which is appropriate for application. In terms of physical and mechanical properties, the best NVABB sample obtained from IBV, TiO2 and bamboo had an IBV pretreatment time of 10 min, 2% TiO2 and 1% bamboo charcoal. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy demonstrated that optimum conditions for hot pressing were a temperature of 170 °C, duration of 15 min and the addition of IBV and TiO2. Thermogravimetric analysis/differential thermal analysis curves suggest that the thermal degradation of NVABB was less than that of bamboo and that hot pressing obviously increased the thermal stability of HDBB samples. Analysis of the antimicrobial effect revealed that IBV pretreatment improves the antibacterial property of NVABB. Keywords: Industrial bamboo vinegar, Nonvolatile and antibacterial bio board, Bamboo macromolecules, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, Thermogravimetric analysis/differential thermal analysis

Dietary exposure to volatile and non-volatile N-nitrosamines from processed meat products in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Herrmann, Susan Strange; Duedahl-Olesen, Lene; Christensen, Tue

2015-01-01

the carcinogenicity for the majority of the non-volatile NA (NVNA) remains to be elucidated. Danish adults (15–75 years) and children (4–6 years) consume 20 g and 16 g of processed meat per day (95th percentile), respectively. The consumption is primarily accounted for by sausages, salami, pork flank (spiced...

Non-volatile polarization switch of magnetic domain wall velocity

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huang, Z.; Stolichnov, I.; Setter, N. [Ceramics Laboratory, EPFL-Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne 1015 (Switzerland); Bernand-Mantel, A.; Schott, Marine; Pizzini, S.; Ranno, L. [University of Grenoble Alpes, Institut Néel, F-38042 Grenoble (France); CNRS, Institut Néel, F-38042 Grenoble (France); Auffret, S.; Gaudin, G. [SPINTEC, UMR-8191, CEA/CNRS/UJF/GINP, INAC, F-38054 Grenoble (France)

2015-12-21

Controlled propagation speed of individual magnetic domains in metal channels at the room temperature is obtained via the non-volatile field effect associated with the switchable polarization of P(VDF-TrFE) (polyvinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) ferroelectric polymer. Polarization domains directly written using conducting atomic force microscope probe locally accelerate/decelerate the magnetic domains in the 0.6 nm thick Co film. The change of the magnetic domain wall velocity is consistent with the magnetic anisotropy energy modulation through the polarization upward/downward orientation. Excellent retention is observed. The demonstrated local non-destructive and reversible change of magnetic properties via rewritable patterning of ferroelectric domains could be attractive for exploring the ultimate limit of miniaturization in devices based on ferromagnetic/ferroelectric bilayers.

Method for the Collection, Gravimetric and Chemical Analysis of Nonvolatile Residue (NVR) on Surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Gordon, Keith; Rutherford, Gugu; Aranda, Denisse

2017-01-01

Nonvolatile residue (NVR), sometimes referred to as molecular contamination is the term used for the total composition of the inorganic and high boiling point organic components in particulates and molecular films deposited on critical surfaces surrounding space structures, with the particulate and NVR contamination originating primarily from pre-launch operations. The "nonvolatile" suggestion from the terminology NVR implies that the collected residue will not experience much loss under ambient conditions. NVR has been shown to have a dramatic impact on the ability to perform optical measurements from platforms based in space. Such contaminants can be detected early by the controlled application of various detection techniques and contamination analyses. Contamination analyses are the techniques used to determine if materials, components, and subsystems can be expected to meet the performance requirements of a system. Of particular concern is the quantity of NVR contaminants that might be deposited on critical payload surfaces from these sources. Subsequent chemical analysis of the contaminant samples by infrared spectroscopy and gas chromatography mass spectrometry identifies the components, gives semi-quantitative estimates of contaminant thickness, indicates possible sources of the NVR, and provides guidance for effective cleanup procedures. In this report, a method for the collection and determination of the mass of NVR was generated by the authors at NASA Langley Research Center. This report describes the method developed and implemented for collecting NVR contaminants, and procedures for gravimetric and chemical analysis of the residue obtained. The result of this NVR analysis collaboration will help pave the way for Langley's ability to certify flight hardware outgassing requirements in support of flight projects such as Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment III (SAGE III), Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES), Materials International

Nonvolatile two-step, two-color holography with continuous-wave lights for both congruent and near-stoichiometric LiNbO3:Fe

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shen Yan; Zhang Guoquan; Fu Bo; Xu Qingjun; Xu Jingjun

2004-01-01

We have studied theoretically the steady-state nonvolatile two-step, two-color holographic recording performance for both the congruent and the near-stoichiometric LiNbO 3 :Fe based on the two-center model (the deep-trap and the shallow-trap centers are Fe 2+ /Fe 3+ and Nb Li 4+ /Nb Li 5+ , respectively). The results show that the direct electron exchange between the Fe 2+ /Fe 3+ centers and the Nb Li 4+ /Nb Li 5+ centers due to the tunneling effect dominates the charge-transfer process during the nonvolatile two-step, two-color holography and determines the two-step, two-color holography performance in LiNbO 3 :Fe. We have further studied the effects of the crystal stoichiometry on the performance of the two-step, two-color holography. It is shown that, as far as the total space-charge field is considered, the nonvolatile two-step, two-color holography performance in the near-stoichiometric LiNbO 3 :Fe is much better than that in the congruent LiNbO 3 :Fe within the intensity range reachable by the continuous-wave lights

Design of a memory-access controller with 3.71-times-enhanced energy efficiency for Internet-of-Things-oriented nonvolatile microcontroller unit

Science.gov (United States)

Natsui, Masanori; Hanyu, Takahiro

2018-04-01

In realizing a nonvolatile microcontroller unit (MCU) for sensor nodes in Internet-of-Things (IoT) applications, it is important to solve the data-transfer bottleneck between the central processing unit (CPU) and the nonvolatile memory constituting the MCU. As one circuit-oriented approach to solving this problem, we propose a memory access minimization technique for magnetoresistive-random-access-memory (MRAM)-embedded nonvolatile MCUs. In addition to multiplexing and prefetching of memory access, the proposed technique realizes efficient instruction fetch by eliminating redundant memory access while considering the code length of the instruction to be fetched and the transition of the memory address to be accessed. As a result, the performance of the MCU can be improved while relaxing the performance requirement for the embedded MRAM, and compact and low-power implementation can be performed as compared with the conventional cache-based one. Through the evaluation using a system consisting of a general purpose 32-bit CPU and embedded MRAM, it is demonstrated that the proposed technique increases the peak efficiency of the system up to 3.71 times, while a 2.29-fold area reduction is achieved compared with the cache-based one.

The charge storage characteristics of ZrO2 nanocrystallite-based charge trap nonvolatile memory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang Zhen-Jie; Li Rong; Yin Jiang

2013-01-01

ZrO 2 nanocrystallite-based charge trap flash memory capacitors incorporating a (ZrO 2 ) 0.6 (SiO 2 ) 0.4 pseudobinary high-k oxide film as the charge trapping layer were prepared and investigated. The precipitation reaction in the charge trapping layer, forming ZrO 2 nanocrystallites during rapid thermal annealing, was investigated by transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. It was observed that a ZrO 2 nanocrystallite-based memory capacitor after post-annealing at 850 °C for 60 s exhibits a maximum memory window of about 6.8 V, good endurance and a low charge loss of ∼25% over a period of 10 years (determined by extrapolating the charge loss curve measured experimentally), even at 85 °C. Such 850 °C-annealed memory capacitors appear to be candidates for future nonvolatile flash memory device applications

High-contrast coronagraph performance in the presence of DM actuator defects

Science.gov (United States)

Sidick, Erkin; Shaklan, Stuart; Cady, Eric

2015-09-01

Deformable Mirrors (DMs) are critical elements in high contrast coronagraphs, requiring precision and stability measured in picometers to enable detection of Earth-like exoplanets. Occasionally DM actuators or their associated cables or electronics fail, requiring a wavefront control algorithm to compensate for actuators that may be displaced from their neighbors by hundreds of nanometers. We have carried out experiments on our High-Contrast Imaging Testbed (HCIT) to study the impact of failed actuators in partial fulfilment of the Terrestrial Planet Finder Coronagraph optical model validation milestone. We show that the wavefront control algorithm adapts to several broken actuators and maintains dark-hole contrast in broadband light.

High-Contrast Coronagraph Performance in the Presence of DM Actuator Defects

Science.gov (United States)

Sidick, Erkin; Shaklan, Stuart; Cady, Eric

2015-01-01

Deformable Mirrors (DMs) are critical elements in high contrast coronagraphs, requiring precision and stability measured in picometers to enable detection of Earth-like exoplanets. Occasionally DM actuators or their associated cables or electronics fail, requiring a wavefront control algorithm to compensate for actuators that may be displaced from their neighbors by hundreds of nanometers. We have carried out experiments on our High-Contrast Imaging Testbed (HCIT) to study the impact of failed actuators in partial fulfillment of the Terrestrial Planet Finder Coronagraph optical model validation milestone. We show that the wavefront control algorithm adapts to several broken actuators and maintains dark-hole contrast in broadband light.

High-contrast x-ray microtomography in dental research

Science.gov (United States)

Davis, Graham; Mills, David

2017-09-01

X-ray microtomography (XMT) is a well-established technique in dental research. The technique has been used extensively to explore the complex morphology of the root canal system, and to qualitatively and quantitatively evaluate root canal instrumentation and filling efficacy in extracted teeth; enabling different techniques to be compared. Densitometric information can be used to identify and map demineralized tissue resulting from tooth decay (caries) and, in extracted teeth, the method can be used to evaluate different methods of excavation. More recently, high contrast XMT is being used to investigate the relationship between external insults to teeth and the pulpal reaction. When such insults occur, fluid may flow through dentinal tubules as a result of cracking or porosity in enamel. Over time, there is an increase in mineralization along the paths of the tubules from the pulp to the damaged region in enamel and this can be visualized using high contrast XMT. The scanner used for this employs time-delay integration to minimize the effects of detector inhomogeneity in order to greatly increase the upper limit on signal-to-noise ratio that can be achieved with long exposure times. When enamel cracks are present in extracted teeth, the presence of these pathways indicates that the cracking occurred prior to extraction. At high contrast, growth lines are occasionally seen in deciduous teeth which may have resulted from periods of maternal illness. Various other anomalies in mineralization resulting from trauma or genetic abnormalities can also be investigated using this technique.

Polarization-Independent Wideband High-Index-Contrast Grating Mirror

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bekele, Dagmawi Alemayehu; Park, Gyeong Cheol; Malureanu, Radu

2015-01-01

Island-type two-dimensional high-index-contrast grating mirror based on a standard silicon-on-insulator wafer have been experimentally demonstrated. The measured spectra shows a bandwidth of ∼192 nm with a reflectivity over 99% as well as polarization independence. Numerical simulations show...

Liver imaging with MDCT and high concentration contrast media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spielmann, Audrey L.

2003-01-01

Liver imaging has advanced greatly over the last 10 years with helical CT capability and more recently the addition of multidetector-row CT (MDCT). Multidetector CT technology facilitates imaging at faster speeds with improved image quality and less breathing artifact [Abdom. Imaging 25 (2000) 643]. Exquisite three-dimensional data sets can be obtained with thin collimation providing improved lesion detection, multiplanar imaging, and the ability to perform CT angiography of the liver and mesenteric vessels. New challenges arise with this advance in technology including safety considerations. The radiation dose to the patient has increased with MDCT and this is compounded by the ability to perform multi-phase liver imaging. Furthermore, issues of contrast media administration require reconsideration including optimal timing and rate of administration, the total volume of contrast needed and the ideal iodine concentration of the contrast media. Recently, the use of high concentration contrast media (HCCM) has been explored and study results to date will be reviewed

The optimal use of contrast agents at high field MRI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trattnig, Siegfried; Pinker, Kathia; Ba-Ssalamah, Ahmed; Noebauer-Huhmann, Iris-Melanie

2006-01-01

The intravenous administration of a standard dose of conventional gadolinium-based contrast agents produces higher contrast between the tumor and normal brain at 3.0 Tesla (T) than at 1.5 T, which allows reducing the dose to half of the standard one to produce similar contrast at 3.0 T compared to 1.5 T. The assessment of cumulative triple-dose 3.0 T images obtained the best results in the detection of brain metastases compared to other sequences. The contrast agent dose for dynamic susceptibility-weighted contrast-enhanced perfusion MR imaging at 3.0 T can be reduced to 0.1 mmol compared to 0.2 mmol at 1.5 T due to the increased susceptibility effects at higher magnetic field strengths. Contrast agent application makes susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI) at 3.0 T clinically attractive, with an increase in spatial resolution within the same scan time. Whereas a double dose of conventional gadolinium-based contrast agents was optimal in SWI with respect to sensitivity and image quality, a standard dose of gadobenate dimeglumine, which has a two-fold higher T1-relaxivity in blood, produced the same effect. For MR-arthrography, optimized concentrations of gadolinium-based contrast agents are similar at 3.0 and 1.5 T. In summary, high field MRI requires the optimization of the contrast agent dose in different clinical applications. (orig.)

Non-exponential resistive switching in Ag2S memristors: a key to nanometer-scale non-volatile memory devices.

Science.gov (United States)

Gubicza, Agnes; Csontos, Miklós; Halbritter, András; Mihály, György

2015-03-14

The dynamics of resistive switchings in nanometer-scale metallic junctions formed between an inert metallic tip and an Ag film covered by a thin Ag2S layer are investigated. Our thorough experimental analysis and numerical simulations revealed that the resistance change upon a switching bias voltage pulse exhibits a strongly non-exponential behaviour yielding markedly different response times at different bias levels. Our results demonstrate the merits of Ag2S nanojunctions as nanometer-scale non-volatile memory cells with stable switching ratios, high endurance as well as fast response to write/erase, and an outstanding stability against read operations at technologically optimal bias and current levels.

Atomically Smooth Epitaxial Ferroelectric Thin Films for the Development of a Nonvolatile, Ultrahigh Density, Fast, Low Voltage, Radiation-Hard Memory

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Ahn, Charles H

2006-01-01

The goal of this research is to fabricate atomically smooth, single crystalline, complex oxide thin film nanostructures for use in a nonvolatile, ultrahigh density, fast, low voltage, radiation-hard memory...

High-contrast multimodel nonlinear optical imaging of collagen and elastin

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhuo, S M [Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Science and Technology for Medicine (Fujian Normal University), Ministry of Education, Fuzhou 350007 (China); Chen, J X [Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Science and Technology for Medicine (Fujian Normal University), Ministry of Education, Fuzhou 350007 (China); Luo, T S [Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Science and Technology for Medicine (Fujian Normal University), Ministry of Education, Fuzhou 350007 (China); Chen, H L [Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Science and Technology for Medicine (Fujian Normal University), Ministry of Education, Fuzhou 350007 (China); Zhao, J J [Department of Skin, Affiliated Xiehe Hospital, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350001 (China)

2007-07-15

Collagen and elastin, as the major components in the extracellular matrix (ECM), are intrinsic indicators of physiological and pathological states. Here, we have developed a high-contrast multimodel nonlinear optical imaging technique to imaging collagen and elastin by detecting simultaneously two photon-excited fluorescence (TPEF) from elastin and second-harmonic generation (SHG) from collagen. Our results show that this technique can obtain a high-contrast TPEF/SHG image in human dermis and permit direct visualization of collagen and elastin. It was shown that the technique can provide collagen and elastin structural information to determine collagen and elastin fibril orientation and distribution and acquire some morphometric properties. It was found that the in-depth TPEF/SHG imaging and 3-D reconstruction of TPEF/SHG images can extract more collagen and elastin structural and biochemical information. The study results suggest that the high-contrast multimodel nonlinear imaging provides a powerful tool to study ECM intrinsic components and has the potential to provide more important information for the diagnosis of tissue.

High-contrast multimodel nonlinear optical imaging of collagen and elastin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhuo, S M; Chen, J X; Luo, T S; Chen, H L; Zhao, J J

2007-01-01

Collagen and elastin, as the major components in the extracellular matrix (ECM), are intrinsic indicators of physiological and pathological states. Here, we have developed a high-contrast multimodel nonlinear optical imaging technique to imaging collagen and elastin by detecting simultaneously two photon-excited fluorescence (TPEF) from elastin and second-harmonic generation (SHG) from collagen. Our results show that this technique can obtain a high-contrast TPEF/SHG image in human dermis and permit direct visualization of collagen and elastin. It was shown that the technique can provide collagen and elastin structural information to determine collagen and elastin fibril orientation and distribution and acquire some morphometric properties. It was found that the in-depth TPEF/SHG imaging and 3-D reconstruction of TPEF/SHG images can extract more collagen and elastin structural and biochemical information. The study results suggest that the high-contrast multimodel nonlinear imaging provides a powerful tool to study ECM intrinsic components and has the potential to provide more important information for the diagnosis of tissue

Nonvolatile rewritable memory device based on solution-processable graphene/poly(3-hexylthiophene) nanocomposite

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Li, E-mail: lizhang9@zzu.edu.cn [School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450052 (China); Li, Ye; Shi, Jun [School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450052 (China); Shi, Gaoquan [Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084 (China); Cao, Shaokui, E-mail: Caoshaokui@zzu.edu.cn [School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450052 (China)

2013-11-01

An electrically bistable device utilizing a nanocomposite of hexadecylamine-functionalized graphene oxide (HDAGO) with poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) is demonstrated. The device has an ITO/P3HT-HDAGO/Al sandwich structure, in which the composite film of P3HT-HDAGO was prepared by simple solution phase mixing of the exfoliated HDAGO monolayers with P3HT matrix and a spin-coating method. The memory device exhibits typical bistable electrical switching behavior and a nonvolatile rewritable memory effect, with a turn-on voltage of about 1.5 V and an ON/OFF-state current ratio of 10{sup 5}. Under ambient conditions, both the ON and OFF states are stable under a constant voltage stress or a continuous pulse voltage stress at a read voltage of 1 V. The conduction mechanism is deduced from the modeling of the nature of currents in both states, and the electrical switching behavior can be attributed to the electric-field-induced charge transfer between P3HT and HDAGO nanosheets. - Highlights: • Nonvolatile rewritable memory effect in P3HT–graphene composite is demonstrated. • The memory device was fabricated through a simple solution processing technique. • The device shows a remarkable electrical bistable behavior and excellent stability. • Memory mechanism is deduced from the modeling of the currents in both states.

Interlaboratory study of a method for determining nonvolatile organic carbon in aquifer materials

Science.gov (United States)

Caughey, M.E.; Barcelona, M.J.; Powell, R.M.; Cahill, R.A.; Gron, C.; Lawrenz, D.; Meschi, P.L.

1995-01-01

The organic carbon fraction in aquifer materials exerts a major influence on the subsurface mobilities of organic and organic-associated contaminants. The spatial distribution of total organic carbon (TOC) in aquifer materials must be determined before the transport of hydrophobic organic pollutants in aquifers can be modeled accurately. Previous interlaboratory studies showed that it is difficult to measure TOC concentrations 1%. We have tested a new analytical method designed to improve the accuracy and precision of nonvolatile TOC quantitation in geologic materials that also contain carbonate minerals. Four authentic aquifer materials and one NIST standard reference material were selected as test materials for a blind collaborative study. Nonvolatile TOC in these materials ranged from 0.05 to 1.4%, while TIC ranged from 0.46 to 12.6%. Sample replicates were digested with sulfurous acid, dried at 40??C, and then combusted at 950??C using LECO or UIC instruments. For the three test materials that contained >2% TIC, incomplete acidification resulted in a systematic positive bias of TOC values reported by five of the six laboratories that used the test method. Participants did not have enough time to become proficient with the new method before they analyzed the test materials. A seventh laboratory successfully used an alternative method that analyzed separate liquid and solid fractions of the acidified sample residues. ?? 1995 Springer-Verlag.

Nonvolatile rewritable memory device based on solution-processable graphene/poly(3-hexylthiophene) nanocomposite

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Li; Li, Ye; Shi, Jun; Shi, Gaoquan; Cao, Shaokui

2013-01-01

An electrically bistable device utilizing a nanocomposite of hexadecylamine-functionalized graphene oxide (HDAGO) with poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) is demonstrated. The device has an ITO/P3HT-HDAGO/Al sandwich structure, in which the composite film of P3HT-HDAGO was prepared by simple solution phase mixing of the exfoliated HDAGO monolayers with P3HT matrix and a spin-coating method. The memory device exhibits typical bistable electrical switching behavior and a nonvolatile rewritable memory effect, with a turn-on voltage of about 1.5 V and an ON/OFF-state current ratio of 10 5 . Under ambient conditions, both the ON and OFF states are stable under a constant voltage stress or a continuous pulse voltage stress at a read voltage of 1 V. The conduction mechanism is deduced from the modeling of the nature of currents in both states, and the electrical switching behavior can be attributed to the electric-field-induced charge transfer between P3HT and HDAGO nanosheets. - Highlights: • Nonvolatile rewritable memory effect in P3HT–graphene composite is demonstrated. • The memory device was fabricated through a simple solution processing technique. • The device shows a remarkable electrical bistable behavior and excellent stability. • Memory mechanism is deduced from the modeling of the currents in both states

High‐Performance Nonvolatile Organic Field‐Effect Transistor Memory Based on Organic Semiconductor Heterostructures of Pentacene/P13/Pentacene as Both Charge Transport and Trapping Layers

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Wen; Guo, Fengning; Ling, Haifeng; Zhang, Peng; Wang, Laiyuan; Wu, Dequn

2017-01-01

Nonvolatile organic field‐effect transistor (OFET) memory devices based on pentacene/N,N′‐ditridecylperylene‐3,4,9,10‐tetracarboxylic diimide (P13)/pentacene trilayer organic heterostructures have been proposed. The discontinuous n‐type P13 embedded in p‐type pentacene layers can not only provide electrons in the semiconductor layer that facilitates electron trapping process; it also works as charge trapping sites, which is attributed to the quantum well‐like pentacene/P13/pentacene organic heterostructures. The synergistic effects of charge trapping in the discontinuous P13 and the charge‐trapping property of the poly(4‐vinylphenol) (PVP) layer remarkably improve the memory performance. In addition, the trilayer organic heterostructures have also been successfully applied to multilevel and flexible nonvolatile memory devices. The results provide a novel design strategy to achieve high‐performance nonvolatile OFET memory devices and allow potential applications for different combinations of various organic semiconductor materials in OFET memory. PMID:28852619

Discharge characteristics of an ablative pulsed plasma thruster with non-volatile liquid propellant

Science.gov (United States)

Ling, William Yeong Liang; Schönherr, Tony; Koizumi, Hiroyuki

2017-07-01

Pulsed plasma thrusters (PPTs) are a form of electric spacecraft propulsion. They have an extremely simple structure and are highly suitable for nano/micro-spacecraft with weights in the kilogram range. Such small spacecraft have recently experienced increased growth but still lack suitable efficient propulsion systems. PPTs operate in a pulsed mode (one discharge = one shot) and typically use solid polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) as a propellant. However, new non-volatile liquids in the perfluoropolyether (PFPE) family have recently been found to be promising alternatives. A recent study presented results on the physical characteristics of PFPE vs. PTFE, showing that PFPE is superior in terms of physical characteristics such as its resistance to carbon deposition. This letter will examine the electrical discharge characteristics of PFPE vs. PTFE. The results demonstrate that PFPE has excellent shot-to-shot repeatability and a lower discharge resistance when compared with PTFE. Taken together with its physical characteristics, PFPE appears to be a strong contender to PTFE as a PPT propellant.

Controlled data storage for non-volatile memory cells embedded in nano magnetic logic

Science.gov (United States)

Riente, Fabrizio; Ziemys, Grazvydas; Mattersdorfer, Clemens; Boche, Silke; Turvani, Giovanna; Raberg, Wolfgang; Luber, Sebastian; Breitkreutz-v. Gamm, Stephan

2017-05-01

Among the beyond-CMOS technologies, perpendicular Nano Magnetic Logic (pNML) is a promising candidate due to its low power consumption, its non-volatility and its monolithic 3D integrability, which makes it possible to integrate memory and logic into the same device by exploiting the interaction of bi-stable nanomagnets with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. Logic computation and signal synchronization are achieved by focus ion beam irradiation and by pinning domain walls in magnetic notches. However, in realistic circuits, the information storage and their read-out are crucial issues, often ignored in the exploration of beyond-CMOS devices. In this paper we address these issues by experimentally demonstrating a pNML memory element, whose read and write operations can be controlled by two independent pulsed currents. Our results prove the correct behavior of the proposed structure that enables high density memory embedded in the logic plane of 3D-integrated pNML circuits.

Controlled data storage for non-volatile memory cells embedded in nano magnetic logic

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fabrizio Riente

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Among the beyond-CMOS technologies, perpendicular Nano Magnetic Logic (pNML is a promising candidate due to its low power consumption, its non-volatility and its monolithic 3D integrability, which makes it possible to integrate memory and logic into the same device by exploiting the interaction of bi-stable nanomagnets with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. Logic computation and signal synchronization are achieved by focus ion beam irradiation and by pinning domain walls in magnetic notches. However, in realistic circuits, the information storage and their read-out are crucial issues, often ignored in the exploration of beyond-CMOS devices. In this paper we address these issues by experimentally demonstrating a pNML memory element, whose read and write operations can be controlled by two independent pulsed currents. Our results prove the correct behavior of the proposed structure that enables high density memory embedded in the logic plane of 3D-integrated pNML circuits.

Comparison of non-volatile umami components in chicken soup and chicken enzymatic hydrolysate.

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Yan; Yang, Xiao; Ding, Qi; Zhang, Yu-Yu; Sun, Bao-Guo; Chen, Hai-Tao; Sun, Ying

2017-12-01

Umami taste is an important part to the taste of chicken. To isolate and identify non-volatile umami compounds, fractions from chicken soup and hydrolysate were prepared and analyzed. Amino acids were analyzed by amino acid analyzer. Organic acids and nucleotides were determined by ultra-performance liquid chromatography. Separation procedures utilizing ultrafiltration, Sephadex G-15 and reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography were used to isolate umami taste peptides. Combined with sensory evaluation and LC-Q-TOF-MS, the amino acid sequences of 12 oligopeptides were determined. The amount of taste compounds was higher in chicken enzymatic hydrolysate than that of chicken soup. Eight oligopeptides from chicken enzymatic hydrolysate were identified, including Ala-Asp, Ala-Met, His-Ser, Val-Glu, Ala-Glu, Asp-Ala-Gly, Glu-Asp and Ala-Glu-Ala. Four oligopeptides from chicken soup were identified, including Val-Thr, Ala-His, Ala-Phe and Thr-Glu. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Laser-matter interaction at high intensity and high temporal contrast

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doumy, G.

2006-01-01

The continuous progress in the development of laser installations has already lead to ultra-short pulses capable of achieving very high focalized intensities (I > 10 18 W/cm 2 ). At these intensities, matter presents new non-linear behaviours, due to the fact that the electrons are accelerated to relativistic speeds. The experimental access to this interaction regime on solid targets has long been forbidden because of the presence, alongside the femtosecond pulse, of a pedestal (mainly due to the amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) which occurs in the laser chain) intense enough to modify the state of the target. In this thesis, we first characterized, both experimentally and theoretically, a device which allows an improvement of the temporal contrast of the pulse: the Plasma Mirror. It consists in adjusting the focusing of the pulse on a dielectric target, so that the pedestal is mainly transmitted, while the main pulse is reflected by the overcritical plasma that it forms at the surface. The implementation of such a device on the UHI 10 laser facility (CEA Saclay - 10 TW - 60 fs) then allowed us to study the interaction between ultra-intense, high contrast pulses with solid targets. In a first part, we managed to generate and characterize dense plasmas resulting directly from the interaction between the main pulse and very thin foils (100 nm). This characterization was realized by using an XUV source obtained by high order harmonics generation in a rare gas jet. In a second part, we studied experimentally the phenomenon of high order harmonics generation on solid targets, which is still badly understood, but could potentially lead to a new kind of energetic ultra-short XUV sources. (author)

Ambipolar organic thin-film transistor-based nano-floating-gate nonvolatile memory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han, Jinhua; Wang, Wei; Ying, Jun; Xie, Wenfa

2014-01-01

An ambipolar organic thin-film transistor-based nano-floating-gate nonvolatile memory was demonstrated, with discrete distributed gold nanoparticles, tetratetracontane (TTC), pentacene as the floating-gate layer, tunneling layer, and active layer, respectively. The electron traps at the TTC/pentacene interface were significantly suppressed, which resulted in an ambipolar operation in present memory. As both electrons and holes were supplied in the channel and trapped in the floating-gate by programming/erasing operations, respectively, i.e., one type of charge carriers was used to overwrite the other, trapped, one, a large memory window, extending on both sides of the initial threshold voltage, was realized

Ambipolar organic thin-film transistor-based nano-floating-gate nonvolatile memory

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Han, Jinhua; Wang, Wei, E-mail: wwei99@jlu.edu.cn; Ying, Jun; Xie, Wenfa [State Key Laboratory on Integrated Optoelectronics, College of Electronic Science and Engineering, Jilin University, 2699 Qianjin Street, Changchun 130012 (China)

2014-01-06

An ambipolar organic thin-film transistor-based nano-floating-gate nonvolatile memory was demonstrated, with discrete distributed gold nanoparticles, tetratetracontane (TTC), pentacene as the floating-gate layer, tunneling layer, and active layer, respectively. The electron traps at the TTC/pentacene interface were significantly suppressed, which resulted in an ambipolar operation in present memory. As both electrons and holes were supplied in the channel and trapped in the floating-gate by programming/erasing operations, respectively, i.e., one type of charge carriers was used to overwrite the other, trapped, one, a large memory window, extending on both sides of the initial threshold voltage, was realized.

High-throughput, high-resolution X-ray phase contrast tomographic microscopy for visualisation of soft tissue

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

McDonald, S A; Marone, F; Hintermueller, C; Stampanoni, M [Swiss Light Source, Paul Scherrer Institut, 5232 Villigen PSI (Switzerland); Bensadoun, J-C; Aebischer, P, E-mail: samuel.mcdonald@psi.c [EPFL, School of Life Sciences, Station 15, 1015 Lausanne (Switzerland)

2009-09-01

The use of conventional absorption based X-ray microtomography can become limited for samples showing only very weak absorption contrast. However, a wide range of samples studied in biology and materials science can produce significant phase shifts of the X-ray beam, and thus the use of the phase signal can provide substantially increased contrast and therefore new and otherwise inaccessible information. The application of two approaches for high-throughput, high-resolution X-ray phase contrast tomography, both available on the TOMCAT beamline of the SLS, is illustrated. Differential Phase Contrast (DPC) imaging uses a grating interferometer and a phase-stepping technique. It has been integrated into the beamline environment on TOMCAT in terms of the fast acquisition and reconstruction of data and the availability to scan samples within an aqueous environment. The second phase contrast approach is a modified transfer of intensity approach that can yield the 3D distribution of the phase (refractive index) of a weakly absorbing object from a single tomographic dataset. These methods are being used for the evaluation of cell integrity in 3D, with the specific aim of following and analyzing progressive cell degeneration to increase knowledge of the mechanistic events of neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's disease.

The V-SHARK high contrast imager at LBT

Science.gov (United States)

Pedichini, F.; Ambrosino, F.; Centrone, M.; Farinato, J.; Li Causi, G.; Pinna, E.; Puglisi, A.; Stangalini, M.; Testa, V.

2016-08-01

In the framework of the SHARK project the visible channel is a novel instrument synergic to the NIR channel and exploiting the performances of the LBT XAO at visible wavelengths. The status of the project is presented together with the design study of this innovative instrument optimized for high contrast imaging by means of high frame rate. Its expected results will be presented comparing the simulations with the real data of the "Forerunner" experiment taken at 630nm.

High-speed nonvolatile CMOS/MNOS RAM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Derbenwick, G.F.; Dodson, W.D.; Sokel, R.J.

1979-01-01

A bulk silicon technology for a high-speed static CMOS/MNOS RAM has been developed. Radiation-hardened, high voltage CMOS circuits have been fabricated for the memory array driving circuits and the enhancement-mode p-channel MNOS memory transistors have been fabricated using a native tunneling oxide with a 45 nm CVD Si 3 N 4 insulator deposited at 750 0 C. Read cycle times less than 350 ns and write cycle times of 1 μs are projected for the final 1Kx1 design. The CMOS circuits provide adequate speed for the write and read cycles and minimize the standby power dissipation. Retention times well in excess of 30 min are projected

Contrast-enhanced CT with a High-Affinity Cationic Contrast Agent for Imaging ex Vivo Bovine, Intact ex Vivo Rabbit, and in Vivo Rabbit Cartilage

OpenAIRE

Stewart, Rachel C.; Bansal, Prashant N.; Entezari, Vahid; Lusic, Hrvoje; Nazarian, Rosalynn M.; Snyder, Brian D.; Grinstaff, Mark W.

2013-01-01

The high affinity of a cationic iodinated contrast agent for cartilage provides better tissue visualization, easier segmentation, higher contrast-to-noise ratios, and longer usable imaging windows and requires a lower dose of injected contrast agent compared with an anionic contrast agent.

Investigation of non-volatile additives on the process of distillation of hydrocarbon mixtures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

М.Б. Степанов

2009-02-01

Full Text Available  The given results of researches of influence of nonvolatile additives on processes of distillation of individual hydrocarbons and their mixes, including petroleum and mineral oil. With the help of the developed computer system of the continuous control of distillation it is shown, that at the presence of small amounts of the additive decrease of temperature of the beginning of boiling of hydrocarbons is observed, their speeds of banish and exits of light fuel mineral oil grow during initial oil refining

Anomalous Threshold Voltage Variability of Nitride Based Charge Storage Nonvolatile Memory Devices

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Meng Chuan Lee

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Conventional technology scaling is implemented to meet the insatiable demand of high memory density and low cost per bit of charge storage nonvolatile memory (NVM devices. In this study, effect of technology scaling to anomalous threshold voltage ( variability is investigated thoroughly on postcycled and baked nitride based charge storage NVM devices. After long annealing bake of high temperature, cell’s variability of each subsequent bake increases within stable distribution and found exacerbate by technology scaling. Apparent activation energy of this anomalous variability was derived through Arrhenius plots. Apparent activation energy (Eaa of this anomalous variability is 0.67 eV at sub-40 nm devices which is a reduction of approximately 2 times from 110 nm devices. Technology scaling clearly aggravates this anomalous variability, and this poses reliability challenges to applications that demand strict control, for example, reference cells that govern fundamental program, erase, and verify operations of NVM devices. Based on critical evidence, this anomalous variability is attributed to lateral displacement of trapped charges in nitride storage layer. Reliability implications of this study are elucidated. Moreover, potential mitigation methods are proposed to complement technology scaling to prolong the front-runner role of nitride based charge storage NVM in semiconductor flash memory market.

Inkjet-printing of non-volatile organic resistive devices and crossbar array structures

Science.gov (United States)

Sax, Stefan; Nau, Sebastian; Popovic, Karl; Bluemel, Alexander; Klug, Andreas; List-Kratochvil, Emil J. W.

2015-09-01

Due to the increasing demand for storage capacity in various electronic gadgets like mobile phones or tablets, new types of non-volatile memory devices have gained a lot of attention over the last few years. Especially multilevel conductance switching elements based on organic semiconductors are of great interest due to their relatively simple device architecture and their small feature size. Since organic semiconductors combine the electronic properties of inorganic materials with the mechanical characteristics of polymers, this class of materials is suitable for solution based large area device preparation techniques. Consequently, inkjet based deposition techniques are highly capable of facing preparation related challenges. By gradually replacing the evaporated electrodes with inkjet printed silver, the preparation related influence onto device performance parameters such as the ON/OFF ratio was investigated with IV measurements and high resolution transmission electron microscopy. Due to the electrode surface roughness the solvent load during the printing of the top electrode as well as organic layer inhomogeneity's the utilization in array applications is hampered. As a prototypical example a 1diode-1resistor element and a 2×2 subarray from 5×5 array matrix were fully characterized demonstrating the versatility of inkjet printing for device preparation.

Use of high concentration contrast media: principles and rationale--vascular district

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fleischmann, Dominik.

2003-01-01

Optimal contrast medium delivery remains a crucial issue in CT angiography and it will become even more critical with continuously evolving, faster CT scanner technology. This review article first explains the fundamentals of arterial enhancement using mathematical models of early contrast medium dynamics. The relationship of contrast medium volume, injection flow rates and injection duration are explicitly illustrated. Next, current techniques of contrast medium application are reviewed, with particular attention to methods of accurate timing of the scanning delay (test-bolus and automated bolus triggering), tools for automated saline-flushing of the veins (double-syringe power injectors) and the use of high-concentration contrast medium. From there, rational CT angiographic injection protocols for a wide range of selectable acquisition times for 4-, 8- and 16-channel MDCT are proposed

Resistive switching characteristics of polymer non-volatile memory devices in a scalable via-hole structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Tae-Wook; Choi, Hyejung; Oh, Seung-Hwan; Jo, Minseok; Wang, Gunuk; Cho, Byungjin; Kim, Dong-Yu; Hwang, Hyunsang; Lee, Takhee

2009-01-01

The resistive switching characteristics of polyfluorene-derivative polymer material in a sub-micron scale via-hole device structure were investigated. The scalable via-hole sub-microstructure was fabricated using an e-beam lithographic technique. The polymer non-volatile memory devices varied in size from 40 x 40 μm 2 to 200 x 200 nm 2 . From the scaling of junction size, the memory mechanism can be attributed to the space-charge-limited current with filamentary conduction. Sub-micron scale polymer memory devices showed excellent resistive switching behaviours such as a large ON/OFF ratio (I ON /I OFF ∼10 4 ), excellent device-to-device switching uniformity, good sweep endurance, and good retention times (more than 10 000 s). The successful operation of sub-micron scale memory devices of our polyfluorene-derivative polymer shows promise to fabricate high-density polymer memory devices.

High-dose contrast-enhanced MRI in multiple sclerosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koudriavtseva, T.; Pozzilli, C.; Di Biasi, C.; Iannilli, M.; Trasimeni, G.; Gasperini, C.; Argentino, C.; Gualdi, G.F.

1996-01-01

Contrast-enhanced MRI is effective for assessing disease activity in multiple sclerosis (MS) and may provide an outcome measure for testing the efficacy of treatment in clinical trials. To compare the sensitivity of high-dose gadolinium-HP-DO3A with that of a standard dose of gadolinium-DTPA, we studied 16 patients with relapsing-remitting MS in the acute phase of the disease. Each underwent two MRI examinations within at most 48 h. The initial MRI study was with a standard dose of gadolinium-DTPA (0.1 mmol/kg), and the second one an experimental dose of gadolinium-HP-DO3A (0.3 mmol/kg). No adverse effects were attributed to the contrast media. The high-dose study revealed more enhancing lesions than the standard-dose study (56 vs 38). This difference was found to be more relevant for infratentorial and small lesions. Furthermore, with the higher dose, there was a marked qualitative improvement in the visibility and delineation of the lesions. (orig.). With 4 figs., 2 tabs

High-dose contrast-enhanced MRI in multiple sclerosis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Koudriavtseva, T. [Department of Neurosciences, University of Rome ``La Sapienza`` Rome (Italy); Pozzilli, C. [Department of Neurosciences, University of Rome ``La Sapienza`` Rome (Italy); Di Biasi, C. [MR Unit, Clinica Medica 1, University of Rome ``La Sapienza``, Rome (Italy); Iannilli, M. [MR Unit, Clinica Medica 1, University of Rome ``La Sapienza``, Rome (Italy); Trasimeni, G. [MR Unit, Clinica Medica 1, University of Rome ``La Sapienza``, Rome (Italy); Gasperini, C. [Department of Neurosciences, University of Rome ``La Sapienza`` Rome (Italy); Argentino, C. [Department of Neurosciences, University of Rome ``La Sapienza`` Rome (Italy); Gualdi, G.F. [MR Unit, Clinica Medica 1, University of Rome ``La Sapienza``, Rome (Italy)

1996-05-01

Contrast-enhanced MRI is effective for assessing disease activity in multiple sclerosis (MS) and may provide an outcome measure for testing the efficacy of treatment in clinical trials. To compare the sensitivity of high-dose gadolinium-HP-DO3A with that of a standard dose of gadolinium-DTPA, we studied 16 patients with relapsing-remitting MS in the acute phase of the disease. Each underwent two MRI examinations within at most 48 h. The initial MRI study was with a standard dose of gadolinium-DTPA (0.1 mmol/kg), and the second one an experimental dose of gadolinium-HP-DO3A (0.3 mmol/kg). No adverse effects were attributed to the contrast media. The high-dose study revealed more enhancing lesions than the standard-dose study (56 vs 38). This difference was found to be more relevant for infratentorial and small lesions. Furthermore, with the higher dose, there was a marked qualitative improvement in the visibility and delineation of the lesions. (orig.). With 4 figs., 2 tabs.

A radiation-tolerant, low-power non-volatile memory based on silicon nanocrystal quantum dots

OpenAIRE

Bell, L. D.; Boer, E.; Ostraat, M.; Brongersma, M. L.; Flagan, R. C.; Atwater, H. A.; De Blauwe, J.; Green, M. L.

2001-01-01

Nanocrystal nonvolatile floating-gate memories are a good candidate for space applications - initial results suggest they are fast, more reliable and consume less power than conventional floating gate memories. In the nanocrystal based NVM device, charge is not stored on a continuous polysilicon layer (so-called floating gate), but instead on a layer of discrete nanocrystals. Charge injection and storage in dense arrays of silicon nanocrystals in SiO_2 is a critical aspect of the performance ...

Characterization of a high-energy in-line phase contrast tomosynthesis prototype.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Di; Yan, Aimin; Li, Yuhua; Wong, Molly D; Zheng, Bin; Wu, Xizeng; Liu, Hong

2015-05-01

In this research, a high-energy in-line phase contrast tomosynthesis prototype was developed and characterized through quantitative investigations and phantom studies. The prototype system consists of an x-ray source, a motorized rotation stage, and a CMOS detector with a pixel pitch of 0.05 mm. The x-ray source was operated at 120 kVp for this study, and the objects were mounted on the rotation stage 76.2 cm (R1) from the source and 114.3 cm (R2) from the detector. The large air gap between the object and detector guarantees sufficient phase-shift effects. The quantitative evaluation of this prototype included modulation transfer function and noise power spectrum measurements conducted under both projection mode and tomosynthesis mode. Phantom studies were performed including three custom designed phantoms with complex structures: a five-layer bubble wrap phantom, a fishbone phantom, and a chicken breast phantom with embedded fibrils and mass structures extracted from an ACR phantom. In-plane images of the phantoms were acquired to investigate their image qualities through observation, intensity profile plots, edge enhancement evaluations, and/or contrast-to-noise ratio calculations. In addition, the robust phase-attenuation duality (PAD)-based phase retrieval method was applied to tomosynthesis for the first time in this research. It was utilized as a preprocessing method to fully exhibit phase contrast on the angular projection before reconstruction. The resolution and noise characteristics of this high-energy in-line phase contrast tomosynthesis prototype were successfully investigated and demonstrated. The phantom studies demonstrated that this imaging prototype can successfully remove the structure overlapping in phantom projections, obtain delineate interfaces, and achieve better contrast-to-noise ratio after applying phase retrieval to the angular projections. This research successfully demonstrated a high-energy in-line phase contrast tomosynthesis

Renal streaky artifact during contrast-enhanced abdominal and pelvic CT: Comparison of high versus low osmolality contrast media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Dae Hong; Kim, Jong Chul; Lee, Chung Keun; Shin, Kyoung Suk

1994-01-01

Introduction of low osmolality contrast agent(LOCA) has allowed safer, more comfortable contrast-enhanced CT examination, but there has been significant increase in image degradation when evaluating the kidneys due to streaky artifact. The authors reviewed findings of contrast- enhanced abdominal and pelvic computed tomography(CT) to know the difference of renal streaky artifact between a high osmolality contrast agent (HOCA) and LOCA. This study included two hundred contrast-enhanced CT in 200 patients, 100 performed with HOCA(meglumine ioglicate, 150 ml) and 100 performed with LOCA (iopromide,150 ml). The severity of renal streaky artifact was compared between HOCA and LOCA groups. Of the scans performed with HOCA, 40 had no artifact, 52 had grade I artifact, 6 had grade II artifact, and 2 had grade III artifact. Of the scans preformed with LOCA, 23 had no artifact, 44 had grade I artifact, 29 had grade II artifact, and 4 had grade III artifact. There was significant difference in the degree of the streaky artifact depending upon the osmolality of the contrast media used(by χ 2 -test, P=.0001). The results of this study revealed a statistically significant increased incidence of artifacts and distortions of renal image with LOCA when compared with HOCA

High-contrast imaging with an arbitrary aperture: Active compensation of aperture discontinuities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pueyo, Laurent; Norman, Colin

2013-01-01

We present a new method to achieve high-contrast images using segmented and/or on-axis telescopes. Our approach relies on using two sequential deformable mirrors (DMs) to compensate for the large amplitude excursions in the telescope aperture due to secondary support structures and/or segment gaps. In this configuration the parameter landscape of DM surfaces that yield high-contrast point-spread functions is not linear, and nonlinear methods are needed to find the true minimum in the optimization topology. We solve the highly nonlinear Monge-Ampere equation that is the fundamental equation describing the physics of phase-induced amplitude modulation. We determine the optimum configuration for our two sequential DM system and show that high-throughput and high-contrast solutions can be achieved using realistic surface deformations that are accessible using existing technologies. We name this process Active Compensation of Aperture Discontinuities (ACAD). We show that for geometries similar to the James Webb Space Telescope, ACAD can attain at least 10 –7 in contrast and an order of magnitude higher for both the future extremely large telescopes and on-axis architectures reminiscent of the Hubble Space Telescope. We show that the converging nonlinear mappings resulting from our DM shapes actually damp near-field diffraction artifacts in the vicinity of the discontinuities. Thus, ACAD actually lowers the chromatic ringing due to diffraction by segment gaps and struts while not amplifying the diffraction at the aperture edges beyond the Fresnel regime. This outer Fresnel ringing can be mitigated by properly designing the optical system. Consequently, ACAD is a true broadband solution to the problem of high-contrast imaging with segmented and/or on-axis apertures. We finally show that once the nonlinear solution is found, fine tuning with linear methods used in wavefront control can be applied to further contrast by another order of magnitude. Generally speaking, the

High contrast laser marking of alumina

Science.gov (United States)

Penide, J.; Quintero, F.; Riveiro, A.; Fernández, A.; del Val, J.; Comesaña, R.; Lusquiños, F.; Pou, J.

2015-05-01

Alumina serves as raw material for a broad range of advanced ceramic products. These elements should usually be identified by some characters or symbols printed directly on them. In this sense, laser marking is an efficient, reliable and widely implemented process in industry. However, laser marking of alumina still leads to poor results since the process is not able to produce a dark mark, yielding bad contrast. In this paper, we present an experimental study on the process of marking alumina by three different lasers working in two wavelengths: 1064 nm (Near-infrared) and 532 nm (visible, green radiation). A colorimetric analysis has been carried out in order to compare the resulting marks and its contrast. The most suitable laser operating conditions were also defined and are reported here. Moreover, the physical process of marking by NIR lasers is discussed in detail. Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy, High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy were also employed to analyze the results. Finally, we propose an explanation for the differences of the coloration induced under different atmospheres and laser parameters. We concluded that the atmosphere is the key parameter, being the inert one the best choice to produce the darkest marks.

A study on low-power, nanosecond operation and multilevel bipolar resistance switching in Ti/ZrO2/Pt nonvolatile memory with 1T1R architecture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu, Ming-Chi; Tseng, Tseung-Yuen; Jang, Wen-Yueh; Lin, Chen-Hsi

2012-01-01

Low-power, bipolar resistive switching (RS) characteristics in the Ti/ZrO 2 /Pt nonvolatile memory with one transistor and one resistor (1T1R) architecture were reported. Multilevel storage behavior was observed by modulating the amplitude of the MOSFET gate voltage, in which the transistor functions as a current limiter. Furthermore, multilevel storage was also executed by controlling the reset voltage, leading the resistive random access memory (RRAM) to the multiple metastable low resistance state (LRS). The experimental results on the measured electrical properties of the various sized devices confirm that the RS mechanism of the Ti/ZrO 2 /Pt structure obeys the conducting filaments model. In application, the devices exhibit high-speed switching performances (250 ns) with suitable high/low resistance state ratio (HRS/LRS > 10). The LRS of the devices with 10 year retention ability at 80 °C, based on the Arrhenius equation, is also demonstrated in the thermal accelerating test. Furthermore, the ramping gate voltage method with fixed drain voltage is used to switch the 1T1R memory cells for upgrading the memory performances. Our experimental results suggest that the ZrO 2 -based RRAM is a prospective alternative for nonvolatile multilevel memory device applications. (paper)

High-Fidelity Contrast Reaction Simulation Training: Performance Comparison of Faculty, Fellows, and Residents.

Science.gov (United States)

Pfeifer, Kyle; Staib, Lawrence; Arango, Jennifer; Kirsch, John; Arici, Mel; Kappus, Liana; Pahade, Jay

2016-01-01

Reactions to contrast material are uncommon in diagnostic radiology, and vary in clinical presentation from urticaria to life-threatening anaphylaxis. Prior studies have demonstrated a high error rate in contrast reaction management, with smaller studies using simulation demonstrating variable data on effectiveness. We sought to assess the effectiveness of high-fidelity simulation in teaching contrast reaction management for residents, fellows, and attendings. A 20-question multiple-choice test assessing contrast reaction knowledge, with Likert-scale questions assessing subjective comfort levels of management of contrast reactions, was created. Three simulation scenarios that represented a moderate reaction, a severe reaction, and a contrast reaction mimic were completed in a one-hour period in a simulation laboratory. All participants completed a pretest and a posttest at one month. A six-month delayed posttest was given, but was optional for all participants. A total of 150 radiologists participated (residents = 52; fellows = 24; faculty = 74) in the pretest and posttest; and 105 participants completed the delayed posttest (residents = 31; fellows = 17; faculty = 57). A statistically significant increase was found in the one-month posttest (P < .00001) and the six-month posttest scores (P < .00001) and Likert scores (P < .001) assessing comfort level in managing all contrast reactions, compared with the pretest. Test scores and comfort level for moderate and severe reactions significantly decreased at six months, compared with the one-month posttest (P < .05). High-fidelity simulation is an effective learning tool, allowing practice of "high-acuity" situation management in a nonthreatening environment; the simulation training resulted in significant improvement in test scores, as well as an increase in subjective comfort in management of reactions, across all levels of training. A six-month refresher course is suggested, to maintain knowledge and comfort level in

Nonvolatile Solid-State Charged-Polymer Gating of Topological Insulators into the Topological Insulating Regime

Science.gov (United States)

Ireland, R. M.; Wu, Liang; Salehi, M.; Oh, S.; Armitage, N. P.; Katz, H. E.

2018-04-01

We demonstrate the ability to reduce the carrier concentration of thin films of the topological insulator (TI) Bi2 Se3 by utilizing a nonvolatile electrostatic gating via corona charging of electret polymers. Sufficient electric field can be imparted to a polymer-TI bilayer to result in significant electron density depletion, even without the continuous connection of a gate electrode or the chemical modification of the TI. We show that the Fermi level of Bi2 Se3 is shifted toward the Dirac point with this method. Using terahertz spectroscopy, we find that the surface chemical potential is lowered into the bulk band gap (approximately 50 meV above the Dirac point and 170 meV below the conduction-band minimum), and it is stabilized in the intrinsic regime while enhancing electron mobility. The mobility of surface state electrons is enhanced to a value as high as approximately 1600 cm2/V s at 5 K.

Experimental determination of net protein charge, [A]tot, and Ka of nonvolatile buffers in bird plasma.

Science.gov (United States)

Stämpfli, Henry; Taylor, Michael; McNicoll, Carl; Gancz, Ady Y; Constable, Peter D

2006-06-01

The quantitative mechanistic acid-base approach to clinical assessment of acid-base status requires species-specific values for [A]tot (the total concentration of nonvolatile buffers in plasma) and Ka (the effective dissociation constant for weak acids in plasma). The aim of this study was to determine [A]tot and Ka values for plasma in domestic pigeons. Plasma from 12 healthy commercial domestic pigeons was tonometered with 20% CO2 at 37 degrees C. Plasma pH, Pco2, and plasma concentrations of strong cations (Na, K, Ca), strong anions (Cl, L-lactate), and nonvolatile buffer ions (total protein, albumin, phosphate) were measured over a pH range of 6.8-7.7. Strong ion difference (SID) (SID5=Na+K+Ca-Cl-lactate) was used to calculate [A]tot and Ka from the measured pH and Pco2 and SID5. Mean (+/-SD) values for bird plasma were as follows: [A]tot=7.76+/-2.15 mmol/l (equivalent to 0.32 mmol/g of total protein, 0.51 mmol/g of albumin, 0.23 mmol/g of total solids); Ka=2.15+/-1.15x10(-7); and pKa=6.67. The net protein charge at normal pH (7.43) was estimated to be 6 meq/l; this value indicates that pigeon plasma has a much lower anion gap value than mammals after adjusting for high mean L-lactate concentrations induced by restraint during blood sampling. This finding indicates that plasma proteins in pigeons have a much lower net anion charge than mammalian plasma protein. An incidental finding was that total protein concentration measured by a multianalyzer system was consistently lower than the value for total solids measured by refractometer.

Effects of biodiesel, engine load and diesel particulate filter on nonvolatile particle number size distributions in heavy-duty diesel engine exhaust.

Science.gov (United States)

Young, Li-Hao; Liou, Yi-Jyun; Cheng, Man-Ting; Lu, Jau-Huai; Yang, Hsi-Hsien; Tsai, Ying I; Wang, Lin-Chi; Chen, Chung-Bang; Lai, Jim-Shoung

2012-01-15

Diesel engine exhaust contains large numbers of submicrometer particles that degrade air quality and human health. This study examines the number emission characteristics of 10-1000 nm nonvolatile particles from a heavy-duty diesel engine, operating with various waste cooking oil biodiesel blends (B2, B10 and B20), engine loads (0%, 25%, 50% and 75%) and a diesel oxidation catalyst plus diesel particulate filter (DOC+DPF) under steady modes. For a given load, the total particle number concentrations (N(TOT)) decrease slightly, while the mode diameters show negligible changes with increasing biodiesel blends. For a given biodiesel blend, both the N(TOT) and mode diameters increase modestly with increasing load of above 25%. The N(TOT) at idle are highest and their size distributions are strongly affected by condensation and possible nucleation of semivolatile materials. Nonvolatile cores of diameters less than 16 nm are only observed at idle mode. The DOC+DPF shows remarkable filtration efficiency for both the core and soot particles, irrespective of the biodiesel blend and engine load under study. The N(TOT) post the DOC+DPF are comparable to typical ambient levels of ≈ 10(4)cm(-3). This implies that, without concurrent reductions of semivolatile materials, the formation of semivolatile nucleation mode particles post the after treatment is highly favored. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Ultra-High-Contrast Laser Acceleration of Relativistic Electrons in Solid Targets

Science.gov (United States)

Higginson, Drew Pitney

The cone-guided fast ignition approach to Inertial Confinement Fusion requires laser-accelerated relativistic electrons to deposit kilojoules of energy within an imploded fuel core to initiate fusion burn. One obstacle to coupling electron energy into the core is the ablation of material, known as preplasma, by laser energy proceeding nanoseconds prior to the main pulse. This causes the laser-absorption surface to be pushed back hundreds of microns from the initial target surface; thus increasing the distance that electrons must travel to reach the imploded core. Previous experiments have shown an order of magnitude decrease in coupling into surrogate targets when intentionally increasing the amount of preplasma. Additionally, for electrons to deposit energy within the core, they should have kinetic energies on the order of a few MeV, as less energetic electrons will be stopped prior to the core and more energetic electrons will pass through the core without depositing much energy. Thus a quantitative understanding of the electron energy spectrum and how it responds to varied laser parameters is paramount for fast ignition. For the first time, this dissertation quantitatively investigates the acceleration of electrons using an ultra-high-contrast laser. Ultra-high-contrast lasers reduce the laser energy that reaches the target prior to the main pulse; drastically reducing the amount of preplasma. Experiments were performed in a cone-wire geometry relevant to fast ignition. These experiments irradiated the inner-tip of a Au cone with the laser and observed electrons that passed through a Cu wire attached to the outer-tip of the cone. The total emission of Kalpha x-rays is used as a diagnostic to infer the electron energy coupled into the wire. Imaging the x-ray emission allowed an effective path-length of electrons within the wire to be determined, which constrained the electron energy spectrum. Experiments were carried out on the ultra-high-contrast Trident laser

Core-Shell Zn x Cd1- x Se/Zn y Cd1- y Se Quantum Dots for Nonvolatile Memory and Electroluminescent Device Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Amoody, Fuad; Suarez, Ernesto; Rodriguez, Angel; Heller, E.; Huang, Wenli; Jain, F.

2011-08-01

This paper presents a floating quantum dot (QD) gate nonvolatile memory device using high-energy-gap Zn y Cd1- y Se-cladded Zn x Cd1- x Se quantum dots ( y > x) with tunneling layers comprising nearly lattice-matched semiconductors (e.g., ZnS/ZnMgS) on Si channels. Also presented is the fabrication of an electroluminescent (EL) device with embedded cladded ZnCdSe quantum dots. These ZnCdSe quantum dots were embedded between indium tin oxide (ITO) on glass and a top Schottky metal electrode deposited on a thin CsF barrier. These QDs, which were nucleated in a photo-assisted microwave plasma (PMP) metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) reactor, were grown between the source and drain regions on a p-type silicon substrate of the nonvolatile memory device. The composition of QD cladding, which relates to the value of y in Zn y Cd1- y Se, was engineered by the intensity of ultraviolet light, which controlled the incorporation of zinc in ZnCdSe. The QD quality is comparable to those deposited by other methods. Characteristics and modeling of the II-VI quantum dots as well as two diverse types of devices are presented in this paper.

The origin of traps and the effect of nitrogen plasma in oxide-nitride-oxide structures for non-volatile memories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, W. S.; Kwak, D. W.; Oh, J. S.; Lee, D. W.; Cho, H. Y.

2010-01-01

Ultrathin oxide-nitride-oxide (ONO) dielectric stacked layers are fundamental structures of silicon-oxide-nitride-oxide-silicon (SONOS) non-volatile memory devices in which information is known to be stored as charges trapped in silicon nitride. Deep-level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) and a capacitance-voltage (CV) analysis were introduced to observe the trap behavior related to the memory effect in memory devices. The DLTS results verified that the nitride-related traps were a dominant factor in the memory effect. The energy of hole traps was 0.307 eV above the balance band. To improve the memory effects of the non-volatile memory devices with ONO structures, we introduced a nitrogen plasma treatment. After the N-plasma treatment, the flat-band voltage shift (ΔV FB ) was increased by about 1.5 times. The program and the erase (P-E) characteristics were also shown to be better than those for the as-ONO structure. In addition, the retention characteristics were improved by over 2.4 times.

Floating-Gate Manipulated Graphene-Black Phosphorus Heterojunction for Nonvolatile Ambipolar Schottky Junction Memories, Memory Inverter Circuits, and Logic Rectifiers.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Dong; Chen, Mingyuan; Zong, Qijun; Zhang, Zengxing

2017-10-11

The Schottky junction is an important unit in electronics and optoelectronics. However, its properties greatly degrade with device miniaturization. The fast development of circuits has fueled a rapid growth in the study of two-dimensional (2D) crystals, which may lead to breakthroughs in the semiconductor industry. Here we report a floating-gate manipulated nonvolatile ambipolar Schottky junction memory from stacked all-2D layers of graphene-BP/h-BN/graphene (BP, black phosphorus; h-BN, hexagonal boron nitride) in a designed floating-gate field-effect Schottky barrier transistor configuration. By manipulating the voltage pulse applied to the control gate, the device exhibits ambipolar characteristics and can be tuned to act as graphene-p-BP or graphene-n-BP junctions with reverse rectification behavior. Moreover, the junction exhibits good storability properties of more than 10 years and is also programmable. On the basis of these characteristics, we further demonstrate the application of the device to dual-mode nonvolatile Schottky junction memories, memory inverter circuits, and logic rectifiers.

Non-volatile main memory management methods based on a file system.

Science.gov (United States)

Oikawa, Shuichi

2014-01-01

There are upcoming non-volatile (NV) memory technologies that provide byte addressability and high performance. PCM, MRAM, and STT-RAM are such examples. Such NV memory can be used as storage because of its data persistency without power supply while it can be used as main memory because of its high performance that matches up with DRAM. There are a number of researches that investigated its uses for main memory and storage. They were, however, conducted independently. This paper presents the methods that enables the integration of the main memory and file system management for NV memory. Such integration makes NV memory simultaneously utilized as both main memory and storage. The presented methods use a file system as their basis for the NV memory management. We implemented the proposed methods in the Linux kernel, and performed the evaluation on the QEMU system emulator. The evaluation results show that 1) the proposed methods can perform comparably to the existing DRAM memory allocator and significantly better than the page swapping, 2) their performance is affected by the internal data structures of a file system, and 3) the data structures appropriate for traditional hard disk drives do not always work effectively for byte addressable NV memory. We also performed the evaluation of the effects caused by the longer access latency of NV memory by cycle-accurate full-system simulation. The results show that the effect on page allocation cost is limited if the increase of latency is moderate.

Super-nonlinear fluorescence microscopy for high-contrast deep tissue imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Lu; Zhu, Xinxin; Chen, Zhixing; Min, Wei

2014-02-01

Two-photon excited fluorescence microscopy (TPFM) offers the highest penetration depth with subcellular resolution in light microscopy, due to its unique advantage of nonlinear excitation. However, a fundamental imaging-depth limit, accompanied by a vanishing signal-to-background contrast, still exists for TPFM when imaging deep into scattering samples. Formally, the focusing depth, at which the in-focus signal and the out-of-focus background are equal to each other, is defined as the fundamental imaging-depth limit. To go beyond this imaging-depth limit of TPFM, we report a new class of super-nonlinear fluorescence microscopy for high-contrast deep tissue imaging, including multiphoton activation and imaging (MPAI) harnessing novel photo-activatable fluorophores, stimulated emission reduced fluorescence (SERF) microscopy by adding a weak laser beam for stimulated emission, and two-photon induced focal saturation imaging with preferential depletion of ground-state fluorophores at focus. The resulting image contrasts all exhibit a higher-order (third- or fourth- order) nonlinear signal dependence on laser intensity than that in the standard TPFM. Both the physical principles and the imaging demonstrations will be provided for each super-nonlinear microscopy. In all these techniques, the created super-nonlinearity significantly enhances the imaging contrast and concurrently extends the imaging depth-limit of TPFM. Conceptually different from conventional multiphoton processes mediated by virtual states, our strategy constitutes a new class of fluorescence microscopy where high-order nonlinearity is mediated by real population transfer.

Surface-type nonvolatile electric memory elements based on organic-on-organic CuPc-H2Pc heterojunction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Karimov, Khasan S.; Muqeet Rehman, M.; Zameer Abbas, S.; Ahmad, Zubair; Touati, Farid; Mahroof-Tahir, M.

2015-01-01

A novel surface-type nonvolatile electric memory elements based on organic semiconductors CuPc and H 2 Pc are fabricated by vacuum deposition of the CuPc and H 2 Pc films on preliminary deposited metallic (Ag and Cu) electrodes. The gap between Ag and Cu electrodes is 30–40 μm. For the current–voltage (I–V) characteristics the memory effect, switching effect, and negative differential resistance regions are observed. The switching mechanism is attributed to the electric-field-induced charge transfer. As a result the device switches from a low to a high-conductivity state and then back to a low conductivity state if the opposite polarity voltage is applied. The ratio of resistance at the high resistance state to that at the low resistance state is equal to 120–150. Under the switching condition, the electric current increases ∼ 80–100 times. A comparison between the forward and reverse I–V characteristics shows the presence of rectifying behavior. (paper)

High-energy x-ray grating-based phase-contrast radiography of human anatomy

Science.gov (United States)

Horn, Florian; Hauke, Christian; Lachner, Sebastian; Ludwig, Veronika; Pelzer, Georg; Rieger, Jens; Schuster, Max; Seifert, Maria; Wandner, Johannes; Wolf, Andreas; Michel, Thilo; Anton, Gisela

2016-03-01

X-ray grating-based phase-contrast Talbot-Lau interferometry is a promising imaging technology that has the potential to raise soft tissue contrast in comparison to conventional attenuation-based imaging. Additionally, it is sensitive to attenuation, refraction and scattering of the radiation and thus provides complementary and otherwise inaccessible information due to the dark-field image, which shows the sub-pixel size granularity of the measured object. Until recent progress the method has been mainly limited to photon energies below 40 keV. Scaling the method to photon energies that are sufficient to pass large and spacious objects represents a challenging task. This is caused by increasing demands regarding the fabrication process of the gratings and the broad spectra that come along with the use of polychromatic X-ray sources operated at high acceleration voltages. We designed a setup that is capable to reach high visibilities in the range from 50 to 120 kV. Therefore, spacious and dense parts of the human body with high attenuation can be measured, such as a human knee. The authors will show investigations on the resulting attenuation, differential phase-contrast and dark-field images. The images experimentally show that X-ray grating-based phase-contrast radiography is feasible with highly absorbing parts of the human body containing massive bones.

High-contrast imaging in the cloud with klipReduce and Findr

Science.gov (United States)

Haug-Baltzell, Asher; Males, Jared R.; Morzinski, Katie M.; Wu, Ya-Lin; Merchant, Nirav; Lyons, Eric; Close, Laird M.

2016-08-01

Astronomical data sets are growing ever larger, and the area of high contrast imaging of exoplanets is no exception. With the advent of fast, low-noise detectors operating at 10 to 1000 Hz, huge numbers of images can be taken during a single hours-long observation. High frame rates offer several advantages, such as improved registration, frame selection, and improved speckle calibration. However, advanced image processing algorithms are computationally challenging to apply. Here we describe a parallelized, cloud-based data reduction system developed for the Magellan Adaptive Optics VisAO camera, which is capable of rapidly exploring tens of thousands of parameter sets affecting the Karhunen-Loève image processing (KLIP) algorithm to produce high-quality direct images of exoplanets. We demonstrate these capabilities with a visible wavelength high contrast data set of a hydrogen-accreting brown dwarf companion.

Apple juice composition: sugar, nonvolatile acid, and phenolic profiles.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, H S; Wrolstad, R E

1988-01-01

Apples from Michigan, Washington, Argentina, Mexico, and New Zealand were processed into juice; the 8 samples included Golden Delicious, Jonathan, Granny Smith, and McIntosh varieties. Liquid chromatography was used for quantitation of sugars (glucose, fructose, sucrose, and sorbitol), nonvolatile acids (malic, quinic, citric, shikimic, and fumaric), and phenolics (chlorogenic acid and hydroxymethylfurfural [HMF]). Other determinations included pH, 0Brix, and L-malic acid. A number of compositional indices for these authentic juices, e.g., chlorogenic acid content, total malic - L-malic difference, and the HMF:chlorogenic ratio, were at variance with recommended standards. The phenolic profile was shown to be particularly influenced by gelatin fining, with peak areas decreasing by as much as 50%. The L-malic:total malic ratio serves as a better index for presence of synthetic malic acid than does the difference between the 2 determinations. No apparent differences in chemical composition could be attributed to geographic origin.

Piezoelectric control of magnetoelectric coupling driven non-volatile memory switching and self cooling effects in FE/FSMA multiferroic heterostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Kirandeep; Kaur, Davinder

2017-02-01

The manipulation of magnetic states and materials' spin degree-of-freedom via a control of an electric (E-) field has been recently pursued to develop magnetoelectric (ME) coupling-driven electronic data storage devices with high read/write endurance, fast dynamic response, and low energy dissipation. One major hurdle for this approach is to develop reliable materials which should be compatible with prevailing silicon (Si)-based complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology, simultaneously allowing small voltage for the tuning of magnetization switching. In this regard, multiferroic heterostructures where ferromagnetic (FM) and ferroelectric (FE) layers are alternatively grown on conventional Si substrates are promising as the piezoelectric control of magnetization switching is anticipated to be possible by an E-field. In this work, we study the ferromagnetic shape memory alloys based PbZr0.52Ti0.48O3/Ni50Mn35In15 (PZT/Ni-Mn-In) multiferroic heterostructures, and investigate their potential for CMOS compatible non-volatile magnetic data storage applications. We demonstrate the voltage-impulse controlled nonvolatile, reversible, and bistable magnetization switching at room temperature in Si-integrated PZT/Ni-Mn-In thin film multiferroic heterostructures. We also thoroughly unveil the various intriguing features in these materials, such as E-field tuned ME coupling and magnetocaloric effect, shape memory induced ferroelectric modulation, improved fatigue endurance as well as Refrigeration Capacity (RC). This comprehensive study suggests that these novel materials have a great potential for the development of unconventional nanoscale memory and refrigeration devices with self-cooling effect and enhanced refrigeration efficiency, thus providing a new venue for their applications.

Cathode and ion-luminescence of Eu:ZnO thin films prepared by reactive magnetron sputtering and plasma decomposition of non-volatile precursors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gil-Rostra, Jorge [Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Sevilla, CSIC, Univ. Sevilla, C/Américo Vespucio 49, E-41092 Sevilla (Spain); Ferrer, Francisco J. [Centro Nacional de Aceleradores, CSIC, Univ. Sevilla, Av. Thomas A. Edison 7, E-41092 Sevilla (Spain); Martín, Inocencio R. [Departamento de Física Fundamental y Experimental, Electrónica y Sistemas, U. La Laguna, C/Astrofísico Francisco Sánchez s/n, E-38206 La Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Spain); González-Elipe, Agustín R.; Yubero, Francisco [Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Sevilla, CSIC, Univ. Sevilla, C/Américo Vespucio 49, E-41092 Sevilla (Spain)

2016-10-15

This paper reports the luminescent behavior of Eu:ZnO thin films prepared by an one-step procedure that combines reactive magnetron sputtering deposition of ZnO with the plasma activated decomposition of a non-volatile acetylacetonate precursor of Eu sublimated in an effusion cell. Chemical composition and microstructure of the Eu:ZnO thin films have been characterized by several methods and their photo-, cathode- and ion-luminescent properties studied as a function of Eu concentration. The high transparency and well controlled optical properties of the films have demonstrated to be ideal for the development of cathode- and ion- luminescence sensors.

Nonvolatile memory effect of tungsten nanocrystals under oxygen plasma treatments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Shih-Cheng; Chang, Ting-Chang; Chen, Wei-Ren; Lo, Yuan-Chun; Wu, Kai-Ting; Sze, S.M.; Chen, Jason; Liao, I.H.; Yeh, Fon-Shan

2010-01-01

In this work, an oxygen plasma treatment was used to improve the memory effect of nonvolatile W nanocrystal memory, including memory window, retention and endurance. To investigate the role of the oxygen plasma treatment in charge storage characteristics, the X-ray photon-emission spectra (XPS) were performed to analyze the variation of chemical composition for W nanocrystal embedded oxide both with and without the oxygen plasma treatment. In addition, the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analyses were also used to identify the microstructure in the thin film and the size and density of W nanocrystals. The device with the oxygen plasma treatment shows a significant improvement of charge storage effect, because the oxygen plasma treatment enhanced the quality of silicon oxide surrounding the W nanocrystals. Therefore, the data retention and endurance characteristics were also improved by the passivation.

Contamination aspects in integrating high dielectric constant and ferroelectric materials into CMOS processes

OpenAIRE

Boubekeur, Hocine

2004-01-01

n memory technology, new materials are being intensively investigated to overcome the integration limits of conventional dielectrics for Giga-bit scale integration, or to be able to produce new types of non-volatile low power memories such as FeRAM. Perovskite type high dielectric constant films for use in Giga-bit scale memories or layered perovskite films for use in non-volatile memories involve materials to semiconductor process flows, which entail a high risk of contamination. The introdu...

Development of novel nonvolatile memory devices using the colossal magnetoresistive oxide praseodymium-calcium-manganese trioxide

Science.gov (United States)

Papagianni, Christina

Pr0.7Ca0.3MnO3 (PCMO) manganese oxide belongs in the family of materials known as transition metal oxides. These compounds have received increased attention due to their perplexing properties such as Colossal Magnetoresistance effect, Charge-Ordered phase, existence of phase-separated states etc. In addition, it was recently discovered that short electrical pulses in amplitude and duration are sufficient to induce reversible and non-volatile resistance changes in manganese perovskite oxide thin films at room temperature, known as the EPIR effect. The existence of the EPIR effect in PCMO thin films at room temperature opens a viable way for the realization of fast, high-density, low power non-volatile memory devices in the near future. The purpose of this study is to investigate, optimize and understand the properties of Pr0.7Ca0.3MnO 3 (PCMO) thin film devices and to identify how these properties affect the EPIR effect. PCMO thin films were deposited on various substrates, such as metals, and conducting and insulating oxides, by pulsed laser and radio frequency sputtering methods. Our objective was to understand and compare the induced resistive states. We attempted to identify the induced resistance changes by considering two resistive models to be equivalent to our devices. Impedance spectroscopy was also utilized in a wide temperature range that was extended down to 70K. Fitted results of the temperature dependence of the resistance states were also included in this study. In the same temperature range, we probed the resistance changes in PCMO thin films and we examined whether the phase transitions affect the EPIR effect. In addition, we included a comparison of devices with electrodes consisting of different size and different materials. We demonstrated a direct relation between the EPIR effect and the phase diagram of bulk PCMO samples. A model that could account for the observed EPIR effect is presented.

Nonvolatile Memory Materials for Neuromorphic Intelligent Machines.

Science.gov (United States)

Jeong, Doo Seok; Hwang, Cheol Seong

2018-04-18

Recent progress in deep learning extends the capability of artificial intelligence to various practical tasks, making the deep neural network (DNN) an extremely versatile hypothesis. While such DNN is virtually built on contemporary data centers of the von Neumann architecture, physical (in part) DNN of non-von Neumann architecture, also known as neuromorphic computing, can remarkably improve learning and inference efficiency. Particularly, resistance-based nonvolatile random access memory (NVRAM) highlights its handy and efficient application to the multiply-accumulate (MAC) operation in an analog manner. Here, an overview is given of the available types of resistance-based NVRAMs and their technological maturity from the material- and device-points of view. Examples within the strategy are subsequently addressed in comparison with their benchmarks (virtual DNN in deep learning). A spiking neural network (SNN) is another type of neural network that is more biologically plausible than the DNN. The successful incorporation of resistance-based NVRAM in SNN-based neuromorphic computing offers an efficient solution to the MAC operation and spike timing-based learning in nature. This strategy is exemplified from a material perspective. Intelligent machines are categorized according to their architecture and learning type. Also, the functionality and usefulness of NVRAM-based neuromorphic computing are addressed. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

High-resolution short-exposure small-animal laboratory x-ray phase-contrast tomography

Science.gov (United States)

Larsson, Daniel H.; Vågberg, William; Yaroshenko, Andre; Yildirim, Ali Önder; Hertz, Hans M.

2016-12-01

X-ray computed tomography of small animals and their organs is an essential tool in basic and preclinical biomedical research. In both phase-contrast and absorption tomography high spatial resolution and short exposure times are of key importance. However, the observable spatial resolutions and achievable exposure times are presently limited by system parameters rather than more fundamental constraints like, e.g., dose. Here we demonstrate laboratory tomography with few-ten μm spatial resolution and few-minute exposure time at an acceptable dose for small-animal imaging, both with absorption contrast and phase contrast. The method relies on a magnifying imaging scheme in combination with a high-power small-spot liquid-metal-jet electron-impact source. The tomographic imaging is demonstrated on intact mouse, phantoms and excised lungs, both healthy and with pulmonary emphysema.

Laser-matter interaction at high intensity and high temporal contrast; Interaction laser matiere a haut flux et fort contraste temporel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Doumy, G

2006-01-15

The continuous progress in the development of laser installations has already lead to ultra-short pulses capable of achieving very high focalized intensities (I > 10{sup 18} W/cm{sup 2}). At these intensities, matter presents new non-linear behaviours, due to the fact that the electrons are accelerated to relativistic speeds. The experimental access to this interaction regime on solid targets has long been forbidden because of the presence, alongside the femtosecond pulse, of a pedestal (mainly due to the amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) which occurs in the laser chain) intense enough to modify the state of the target. In this thesis, we first characterized, both experimentally and theoretically, a device which allows an improvement of the temporal contrast of the pulse: the Plasma Mirror. It consists in adjusting the focusing of the pulse on a dielectric target, so that the pedestal is mainly transmitted, while the main pulse is reflected by the overcritical plasma that it forms at the surface. The implementation of such a device on the UHI 10 laser facility (CEA Saclay - 10 TW - 60 fs) then allowed us to study the interaction between ultra-intense, high contrast pulses with solid targets. In a first part, we managed to generate and characterize dense plasmas resulting directly from the interaction between the main pulse and very thin foils (100 nm). This characterization was realized by using an XUV source obtained by high order harmonics generation in a rare gas jet. In a second part, we studied experimentally the phenomenon of high order harmonics generation on solid targets, which is still badly understood, but could potentially lead to a new kind of energetic ultra-short XUV sources. (author)

VIP: Vortex Image Processing Package for High-contrast Direct Imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Gomez Gonzalez, Carlos Alberto; Wertz, Olivier; Absil, Olivier; Christiaens, Valentin; Defrère, Denis; Mawet, Dimitri; Milli, Julien; Absil, Pierre-Antoine; Van Droogenbroeck, Marc; Cantalloube, Faustine; Hinz, Philip M.; Skemer, Andrew J.; Karlsson, Mikael; Surdej, Jean

2017-07-01

We present the Vortex Image Processing (VIP) library, a python package dedicated to astronomical high-contrast imaging. Our package relies on the extensive python stack of scientific libraries and aims to provide a flexible framework for high-contrast data and image processing. In this paper, we describe the capabilities of VIP related to processing image sequences acquired using the angular differential imaging (ADI) observing technique. VIP implements functionalities for building high-contrast data processing pipelines, encompassing pre- and post-processing algorithms, potential source position and flux estimation, and sensitivity curve generation. Among the reference point-spread function subtraction techniques for ADI post-processing, VIP includes several flavors of principal component analysis (PCA) based algorithms, such as annular PCA and incremental PCA algorithms capable of processing big datacubes (of several gigabytes) on a computer with limited memory. Also, we present a novel ADI algorithm based on non-negative matrix factorization, which comes from the same family of low-rank matrix approximations as PCA and provides fairly similar results. We showcase the ADI capabilities of the VIP library using a deep sequence on HR 8799 taken with the LBTI/LMIRCam and its recently commissioned L-band vortex coronagraph. Using VIP, we investigated the presence of additional companions around HR 8799 and did not find any significant additional point source beyond the four known planets. VIP is available at http://github.com/vortex-exoplanet/VIP and is accompanied with Jupyter notebook tutorials illustrating the main functionalities of the library.

High and low osmolar contrast media: Who pays?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goethlin, J.H.

1988-01-01

To possibly avoid a case of contrast medium-related death in Norway every second or third year will mean a cost of many millions of dollars. It is not feasible without many patients being deprived of diagnostic possibilities. The solution is at present to use LOCM in high risk patients and small children until sufficient data (large, controlled series) can give a reliable answer to if or when LOCM should be used. (orig.)

Low-field Switching Four-state Nonvolatile Memory Based on Multiferroic Tunnel Junctions

Science.gov (United States)

Yau, H. M.; Yan, Z. B.; Chan, N. Y.; Au, K.; Wong, C. M.; Leung, C. W.; Zhang, F. Y.; Gao, X. S.; Dai, J. Y.

2015-08-01

Multiferroic tunneling junction based four-state non-volatile memories are very promising for future memory industry since this kind of memories hold the advantages of not only the higher density by scaling down memory cell but also the function of magnetically written and electrically reading. In this work, we demonstrate a success of this four-state memory in a material system of NiFe/BaTiO3/La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 with improved memory characteristics such as lower switching field and larger tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR). Ferroelectric switching induced resistive change memory with OFF/ON ratio of 16 and 0.3% TMR effect have been achieved in this multiferroic tunneling structure.

Poly (vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene/barium titanate nanocomposite for ferroelectric nonvolatile memory devices

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Uvais Valiyaneerilakkal

2013-04-01

Full Text Available The effect of barium titanate (BaTiO3 nanoparticles (particle size <100nm on the ferroelectric properties of poly (vinylidenefluoride-trifluoroethylene P(VDF-TrFE copolymer has been studied. Different concentrations of nanoparticles were added to P(VDF-TrFE using probe sonication, and uniform thin films were made. Polarisation - Electric field (P-E hysteresis analysis shows an increase in remnant polarization (Pr and decrease in coercive voltage (Vc. Piezo-response force microscopy analysis shows the switching capability of the polymer composite. The topography and surface roughness was studied using atomic force microscopy. It has been observed that this nanocomposite can be used for the fabrication of non-volatile ferroelectric memory devices.

High-resolution breast tomography at high energy: a feasibility study of phase contrast imaging on a whole breast

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sztrókay, A; Schlossbauer, T; Bamberg, F; Reiser, M F; Coan, P; Diemoz, P C; Brun, E; Bravin, A; Mayr, D

2012-01-01

Previous studies on phase contrast imaging (PCI) mammography have demonstrated an enhancement of breast morphology and cancerous tissue visualization compared to conventional imaging. We show here the first results of the PCI analyser-based imaging (ABI) in computed tomography (CT) mode on whole and large (>12 cm) tumour-bearing breast tissues. We demonstrate in this work the capability of the technique of working at high x-ray energies and producing high-contrast images of large and complex specimens. One entire breast of an 80-year-old woman with invasive ductal cancer was imaged using ABI-CT with monochromatic 70 keV x-rays and an area detector of 92×92 µm 2 pixel size. Sagittal slices were reconstructed from the acquired data, and compared to corresponding histological sections. Comparison with conventional absorption-based CT was also performed. Five blinded radiologists quantitatively evaluated the visual aspects of the ABI-CT images with respect to sharpness, soft tissue contrast, tissue boundaries and the discrimination of different structures/tissues. ABI-CT excellently depicted the entire 3D architecture of the breast volume by providing high-resolution and high-contrast images of the normal and cancerous breast tissues. These results are an important step in the evolution of PCI-CT towards its clinical implementation. (paper)

High-resolution breast tomography at high energy: a feasibility study of phase contrast imaging on a whole breast

Science.gov (United States)

Sztrókay, A.; Diemoz, P. C.; Schlossbauer, T.; Brun, E.; Bamberg, F.; Mayr, D.; Reiser, M. F.; Bravin, A.; Coan, P.

2012-05-01

Previous studies on phase contrast imaging (PCI) mammography have demonstrated an enhancement of breast morphology and cancerous tissue visualization compared to conventional imaging. We show here the first results of the PCI analyser-based imaging (ABI) in computed tomography (CT) mode on whole and large (>12 cm) tumour-bearing breast tissues. We demonstrate in this work the capability of the technique of working at high x-ray energies and producing high-contrast images of large and complex specimens. One entire breast of an 80-year-old woman with invasive ductal cancer was imaged using ABI-CT with monochromatic 70 keV x-rays and an area detector of 92×92 µm2 pixel size. Sagittal slices were reconstructed from the acquired data, and compared to corresponding histological sections. Comparison with conventional absorption-based CT was also performed. Five blinded radiologists quantitatively evaluated the visual aspects of the ABI-CT images with respect to sharpness, soft tissue contrast, tissue boundaries and the discrimination of different structures/tissues. ABI-CT excellently depicted the entire 3D architecture of the breast volume by providing high-resolution and high-contrast images of the normal and cancerous breast tissues. These results are an important step in the evolution of PCI-CT towards its clinical implementation.

Nanopatterned ferroelectrics for ultrahigh density rad-hard nonvolatile memories.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brennecka, Geoffrey L.; Stevens, Jeffrey; Scrymgeour, David; Gin, Aaron V.; Tuttle, Bruce Andrew

2010-09-01

Radiation hard nonvolatile random access memory (NVRAM) is a crucial component for DOE and DOD surveillance and defense applications. NVRAMs based upon ferroelectric materials (also known as FERAMs) are proven to work in radiation-rich environments and inherently require less power than many other NVRAM technologies. However, fabrication and integration challenges have led to state-of-the-art FERAMs still being fabricated using a 130nm process while competing phase-change memory (PRAM) has been demonstrated with a 20nm process. Use of block copolymer lithography is a promising approach to patterning at the sub-32nm scale, but is currently limited to self-assembly directly on Si or SiO{sub 2} layers. Successful integration of ferroelectrics with discrete and addressable features of {approx}15-20nm would represent a 100-fold improvement in areal memory density and would enable more highly integrated electronic devices required for systems advances. Towards this end, we have developed a technique that allows us to carry out block copolymer self-assembly directly on a huge variety of different materials and have investigated the fabrication, integration, and characterization of electroceramic materials - primarily focused on solution-derived ferroelectrics - with discrete features of {approx}20nm and below. Significant challenges remain before such techniques will be capable of fabricating fully integrated NVRAM devices, but the tools developed for this effort are already finding broader use. This report introduces the nanopatterned NVRAM device concept as a mechanism for motivating the subsequent studies, but the bulk of the document will focus on the platform and technology development.

Bipolar resistive switching in graphene oxide based metal insulator metal structure for non-volatile memory applications

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Rakesh; Kumar, Ravi; Kumar, Anil; Kashyap, Rajesh; Kumar, Mukesh; Kumar, Dinesh

2018-05-01

Graphene oxide based devices have attracted much attention recently because of their possible application in next generation electronic devices. In this study, bipolar resistive switching characteristics of graphene oxide based metal insulator metal structure were investigated for nonvolatile memories. The graphene oxide was prepared by the conventional Hummer's method and deposited on ITO coated glass by spin-coating technique. The dominant mechanism of resistive switching is the formation and rupture of the conductive filament inside the graphene oxide. The conduction mechanism for low and high resistance states are dominated by two mechanism the ohmic conduction and space charge limited current (SCLC) mechanism, respectively. Atomic Force Microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Cyclic-Voltammetry were conducted to observe the morphology, structure and behavior of the material. The fabricated device with Al/GO/ITO structure exhibited reliable bipolar resistive switching with set & reset voltage of -2.3 V and 3V respectively.

A Survey of Soft-Error Mitigation Techniques for Non-Volatile Memories

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sparsh Mittal

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Non-volatile memories (NVMs offer superior density and energy characteristics compared to the conventional memories; however, NVMs suffer from severe reliability issues that can easily eclipse their energy efficiency advantages. In this paper, we survey architectural techniques for improving the soft-error reliability of NVMs, specifically PCM (phase change memory and STT-RAM (spin transfer torque RAM. We focus on soft-errors, such as resistance drift and write disturbance, in PCM and read disturbance and write failures in STT-RAM. By classifying the research works based on key parameters, we highlight their similarities and distinctions. We hope that this survey will underline the crucial importance of addressing NVM reliability for ensuring their system integration and will be useful for researchers, computer architects and processor designers.

1060-nm Tunable Monolithic High Index Contrast Subwavelength Grating VCSEL

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ansbæk, Thor; Chung, Il-Sug; Semenova, Elizaveta

2013-01-01

We present the first tunable vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) where the top distributed Bragg reflector has been completely substituted by an air-cladded high-index-contrast subwavelength grating (HCG) mirror. In this way, an extended cavity design can be realized by reducing...

Novel Gd nanoparticles enhance vascular contrast for high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tot Bui

2010-09-01

Full Text Available Gadolinium (Gd, with its 7 unpaired electrons in 4f orbitals that provide a very large magnetic moment, is proven to be among the best agents for contrast enhanced MRI. Unfortunately, the most potent MR contrast agent based on Gd requires relatively high doses of Gd. The Gd-chelated to diethylene-triamine-penta-acetic acid (DTPA, or other derivatives (at 0.1 mmole/kg recommended dose, distribute broadly into tissues and clear through the kidney. These contrast agents carry the risk of Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (NSF, particularly in kidney impaired subjects. Thus, Gd contrast agents that produce higher resolution images using a much lower Gd dose could address both imaging sensitivity and Gd safety.To determine whether a biocompatible lipid nanoparticle with surface bound Gd can improve MRI contrast sensitivity, we constructed Gd-lipid nanoparticles (Gd-LNP containing lipid bound DTPA and Gd. The Gd-LNP were intravenously administered to rats and MR images collected. We found that Gd in Gd-LNP produced a greater than 33-fold higher longitudinal (T(1 relaxivity, r(1, constant than the current FDA approved Gd-chelated contrast agents. Intravenous administration of these Gd-LNP at only 3% of the recommended clinical Gd dose produced MRI signal-to-noise ratios of greater than 300 in all vasculatures. Unlike current Gd contrast agents, these Gd-LNP stably retained Gd in normal vasculature, and are eliminated predominately through the biliary, instead of the renal system. Gd-LNP did not appear to accumulate in the liver or kidney, and was eliminated completely within 24 hrs.The novel Gd-nanoparticles provide high quality contrast enhanced vascular MRI at 97% reduced dose of Gd and do not rely on renal clearance. This new agent is likely to be suitable for patients exhibiting varying degrees of renal impairment. The simple and adaptive nanoparticle design could accommodate ligand or receptor coating for drug delivery optimization and in vivo drug

Thin PZT-Based Ferroelectric Capacitors on Flexible Silicon for Nonvolatile Memory Applications

KAUST Repository

Ghoneim, Mohamed T.

2015-04-24

A flexible version of traditional thin lead zirconium titanate ((Pb1.1Zr0.48Ti0.52O3)-(PZT)) based ferroelectric random access memory (FeRAM) on silicon shows record performance in flexible arena. The thin PZT layer requires lower operational voltages to achieve coercive electric fields, reduces the sol-gel coating cycles required (i.e., more cost-effective), and, fabrication wise, is more suitable for further scaling of lateral dimensions to the nano-scale due to the larger feature size-to-depth aspect ratio (critical for ultra-high density non-volatile memory applications). Utilizing the inverse proportionality between substrate\\'s thickness and its flexibility, traditional PZT based FeRAM on silicon is transformed through a transfer-less manufacturable process into a flexible form that matches organic electronics\\' flexibility while preserving the superior performance of silicon CMOS electronics. Each memory cell in a FeRAM array consists of two main elements; a select/access transistor, and a storage ferroelectric capacitor. Flexible transistors on silicon have already been reported. In this work, we focus on the storage ferroelectric capacitors, and report, for the first time, its performance after transformation into a flexible version, and assess its key memory parameters while bent at 0.5 cm minimum bending radius.

Electric Field Tuning Non-volatile Magnetism in Half-Metallic Alloys Co2FeAl/Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-PbTiO3 Heterostructure

Science.gov (United States)

Dunzhu, Gesang; Wang, Fenglong; Zhou, Cai; Jiang, Changjun

2018-03-01

We reported the non-volatile electric field-mediated magnetic properties in the half-metallic Heusler alloy Co2FeAl/Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-PbTiO3 heterostructure at room temperature. The remanent magnetization with different applied electric field along [100] and [01-1] directions was achieved, which showed the non-volatile remanent magnetization driven by an electric field. The two giant reversible and stable remanent magnetization states were obtained by applying pulsed electric field. This can be attributed to the piezostrain effect originating from the piezoelectric substrate, which can be used for magnetoelectric-based memory devices.

Logic gates realized by nonvolatile GeTe/Sb2Te3 super lattice phase-change memory with a magnetic field input

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Bin; Cheng, Xiaomin; Feng, Jinlong; Guan, Xiawei; Miao, Xiangshui

2016-07-01

Nonvolatile memory devices or circuits that can implement both storage and calculation are a crucial requirement for the efficiency improvement of modern computer. In this work, we realize logic functions by using [GeTe/Sb2Te3]n super lattice phase change memory (PCM) cell in which higher threshold voltage is needed for phase change with a magnetic field applied. First, the [GeTe/Sb2Te3]n super lattice cells were fabricated and the R-V curve was measured. Then we designed the logic circuits with the super lattice PCM cell verified by HSPICE simulation and experiments. Seven basic logic functions are first demonstrated in this letter; then several multi-input logic gates are presented. The proposed logic devices offer the advantages of simple structures and low power consumption, indicating that the super lattice PCM has the potential in the future nonvolatile central processing unit design, facilitating the development of massive parallel computing architecture.

Contrast nephropathy in high-risk patients undergoing coronary angiography and intervention

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Uddin, M.A.; Rabbani, M.A.; Jafary, F.H.; Bhatti, M.A.; Islam, M.

2005-01-01

Objective: To determine the incidence of contrast nephropathy in high-risk patients undergoing coronary angiography and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), and to define the characteristics of this cohort. Design: Descriptive study. Place and Duration of Study: The Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi from January to December 2002. Patients and Methods: One hundred and fifteen patients with serum creatinine greater than 1.4mg/dl who underwent coronary angiography or PCI were included. All patients received non-ionic contrast dye. Acute contrast nephropathy was defined as rise in serum creatinine of >0.5mg/dl within 48 hours following the index procedure. Means and standard deviations were calculated for continuous variables and frequencies for categorical variables. Results: Mean age of patients was 62.3 year + 8.83. Mean pre-contrast creatinine was 1.9+0.9mg/dl. Eleven (9.65%) patients developed contrast nephropathy. 4.4% of patients with serum creatinine 4.0(p-value 0.001). 11.9% diabetic patients developed nephropathy compared to 6.3% of non-diabetics (p-value 0.355). 11.4% of hypertensive and 3.7% of non-hypertensive patients developed contrast-nephropathy (p-value 0.454). 12.9% of low dose group ( 100ml) developed nephropathy (p-value 0.188). Mean serum creatinine in low dose group was higher (3.0mg/dl vs. 1.7 mg/dl). Conclusion: The incidence of contrast nephropathy in this study was similar to that reported in literature. Risk of CIN was found to be significantly proportional to the severity of baseline renal disease. Trends towards higher risk of CIN were seen in patients with diabetes and hypertension. Higher incidence of CIN in patients receiving low-dose contrast was confounded by higher baseline serum creatinine in that group. (author)

A room-temperature non-volatile CNT-based molecular memory cell

Science.gov (United States)

Ye, Senbin; Jing, Qingshen; Han, Ray P. S.

2013-04-01

Recent experiments with a carbon nanotube (CNT) system confirmed that the innertube can oscillate back-and-forth even under a room-temperature excitation. This demonstration of relative motion suggests that it is now feasible to build a CNT-based molecular memory cell (MC), and the key to bring the concept to reality is the precision control of the moving tube for sustained and reliable read/write (RW) operations. Here, we show that by using a 2-section outertube design, we are able to suitably recalibrate the system energetics and obtain the designed performance characteristics of a MC. Further, the resulting energy modification enables the MC to operate as a non-volatile memory element at room temperatures. Our paper explores a fundamental understanding of a MC and its response at the molecular level to roadmap a novel approach in memory technologies that can be harnessed to overcome the miniaturization limit and memory volatility in memory technologies.

Ultra-High-Contrast Laser Acceleration of Relativistic Electrons in Solid Targets

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Higginson, Drew Pitney [Univ. of California, San Diego, CA (United States)

2013-01-01

The cone-guided fast ignition approach to Inertial Con nement Fusion requires laser-accelerated relativistic electrons to deposit kilojoules of energy within an imploded fuel core to initiate fusion burn. One obstacle to coupling electron energy into the core is the ablation of material, known as preplasma, by laser energy proceeding nanoseconds prior to the main pulse. This causes the laser-absorption surface to be pushed back hundreds of microns from the initial target surface; thus increasing the distance that electrons must travel to reach the imploded core. Previous experiments have shown an order of magnitude decrease in coupling into surrogate targets when intentionally increasing the amount of preplasma. Additionally, for electrons to deposit energy within the core, they should have kinetic energies on the order of a few MeV, as less energetic electrons will be stopped prior to the core and more energetic electrons will pass through the core without depositing much energy. Thus a quantitative understanding of the electron energy spectrum and how it responds to varied laser parameters is paramount for fast ignition. For the rst time, this dissertation quantitatively investigates the acceleration of electrons using an ultra-high-contrast laser. Ultra-high-contrast lasers reduce the laser energy that reaches the target prior to the main pulse; drastically reducing the amount of preplasma. Experiments were performed in a cone-wire geometry relevant to fast ignition. These experiments irradiated the inner-tip of a Au cone with the laser and observed electrons that passed through a Cu wire attached to the outer-tip of the cone. The total emission of K x-rays is used as a diagnostic to infer the electron energy coupled into the wire. Imaging the x-ray emission allowed an e ective path-length of electrons within the wire to be determined, which constrained the electron energy spectrum. Experiments were carried out on the ultra-high-contrast Trident laser at Los

Breast tumor segmentation in high resolution x-ray phase contrast analyzer based computed tomography.

Science.gov (United States)

Brun, E; Grandl, S; Sztrókay-Gaul, A; Barbone, G; Mittone, A; Gasilov, S; Bravin, A; Coan, P

2014-11-01

Phase contrast computed tomography has emerged as an imaging method, which is able to outperform present day clinical mammography in breast tumor visualization while maintaining an equivalent average dose. To this day, no segmentation technique takes into account the specificity of the phase contrast signal. In this study, the authors propose a new mathematical framework for human-guided breast tumor segmentation. This method has been applied to high-resolution images of excised human organs, each of several gigabytes. The authors present a segmentation procedure based on the viscous watershed transform and demonstrate the efficacy of this method on analyzer based phase contrast images. The segmentation of tumors inside two full human breasts is then shown as an example of this procedure's possible applications. A correct and precise identification of the tumor boundaries was obtained and confirmed by manual contouring performed independently by four experienced radiologists. The authors demonstrate that applying the watershed viscous transform allows them to perform the segmentation of tumors in high-resolution x-ray analyzer based phase contrast breast computed tomography images. Combining the additional information provided by the segmentation procedure with the already high definition of morphological details and tissue boundaries offered by phase contrast imaging techniques, will represent a valuable multistep procedure to be used in future medical diagnostic applications.

Use of high concentration contrast media (HCCM): principles and rationale--body CT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brink, James A.

2003-01-01

Numerous complex pharmacokinetic interrelationships affect the use of contrast media for computed tomography (CT) imaging. The volume, concentration, and rate of injection, all affect the degree of enhancement that is achieved with an injection of contrast material. In addition, the injection technique, whether the contrast is infused with a constant injection rate (uniphasic injection) or whether the rate is altered during the injection (multiphasic injection) also affect the magnitude and duration of contrast enhancement. In body CT imaging, the liver poses unique challenges in managing the use of intravenous contrast material because of its dual blood supply and the need to complete imaging before equilibrium occurs between the intravascular and extravascular compartments. The magnitude of hepatic enhancement that is ultimately achieved is related primarily to the amount of iodinated contrast material that accumulates in the extravascular space within the target organ, independent of the speed of the CT scanner. The key determinant of the onset of the equilibrium phase is the injection duration. Given that a high injection flow rate (4-5 ml/s) is desirable for arterial phase imaging, the injection duration is maintained with use of an appropriate contrast volume. Thus, modifications of total iodine dose are best done with alterations in contrast concentration. The magnitude of arterial enhancement that is achieved is related to both the concentration and rate of contrast administration. The speed of the scanner determines its ability to record image data during the most advantageous time period, the peak of arterial enhancement. Thus, rapid imaging is particularly advantageous for optimal contrast use in CT angiography as well as in multiphasic imaging of the parenchymal organs

Depiction of normal gastrointestinal anatomy with MDCT: Comparison of low- and high-attenuation oral contrast media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Erturk, Sukru Mehmet; Mortele, Koenraad J.; Oliva, Maria-Raquel; Ichikawa, Tomoaki; Silverman, Stuart G.; Cantisani, Vito; Pagliara, Elisa; Ros, Pablo R.

2008-01-01

Purpose: To compare low- and high-attenuation oral contrast media for depiction of normal gastrointestinal anatomy with multidetector-row computed tomography (MDCT). Materials and methods: A prospective, randomized study of 90 consecutive patients without known or suspected gastrointestinal disease was conducted after the approval of our Institutional Review Board. All patients underwent IV contrast-enhanced abdominal and pelvic CT scans after oral administration of 900 ml of either low- or high-attenuation barium sulphate suspension. Using a five-point scale, two radiologists independently graded distention and wall visualization of stomach, duodenum, jejunum, and ileum. The degree of distention and wall visualization was compared using Mann-Whitney U-test. Results: Duodenal, jejunal and ileal distention (p < 0.05, <0.001, <0.001, respectively) and wall visualization (p < 0.05, <0.01, <0.05, respectively) scores with low-attenuation contrast medium were significantly higher than those with high-attenuation barium sulphate preparation, for reader 1. Duodenal and jejunal wall visualization scores with low-attenuation contrast medium (p < 0.05, <0.01, respectively) were significantly higher than those with high-attenuation contrast medium, for reader 2. Interobserver agreement was fair to good for both distention (κ-range: 0.41-0.74) and wall visualization (κ-range: 0.48-0.71). Conclusion: MDCT with low-attenuation contrast medium provides distention and wall visualization of the GI tract that is equal or better than high-attenuation contrast medium

Laboratory Validation of Four Black Carbon Measurement Methods for Determination of the Nonvolatile Particulate Matter (nvPM) Mass Emissions from Commercial Aircraft Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Four candidate black carbon (BC) measurement techniques have been identified by the SAE International E-31 Committee for possible use in determining nonvolatile particulate matter (nvPM) mass emissions during commercial aircraft engine certification. These techniques are carbon b...

Characterization of low-mass deformable mirrors and ASIC drivers for high-contrast imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Mejia Prada, Camilo; Yao, Li; Wu, Yuqian; Roberts, Lewis C.; Shelton, Chris; Wu, Xingtao

2017-09-01

The development of compact, high performance Deformable Mirrors (DMs) is one of the most important technological challenges for high-contrast imaging on space missions. Microscale Inc. has fabricated and characterized piezoelectric stack actuator deformable mirrors (PZT-DMs) and Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) drivers for direct integration. The DM-ASIC system is designed to eliminate almost all cables, enabling a very compact optical system with low mass and low power consumption. We report on the optical tests used to evaluate the performance of the DM and ASIC units. We also compare the results to the requirements for space-based high-contrast imaging of exoplanets.

Large scale integration of flexible non-volatile, re-addressable memories using P(VDF-TrFE) and amorphous oxide transistors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gelinck, Gerwin H; Cobb, Brian; Van Breemen, Albert J J M; Myny, Kris

2015-01-01

Ferroelectric polymers and amorphous metal oxide semiconductors have emerged as important materials for re-programmable non-volatile memories and high-performance, flexible thin-film transistors, respectively. However, realizing sophisticated transistor memory arrays has proven to be a challenge, and demonstrating reliable writing to and reading from such a large scale memory has thus far not been demonstrated. Here, we report an integration of ferroelectric, P(VDF-TrFE), transistor memory arrays with thin-film circuitry that can address each individual memory element in that array. n-type indium gallium zinc oxide is used as the active channel material in both the memory and logic thin-film transistors. The maximum process temperature is 200 °C, allowing plastic films to be used as substrate material. The technology was scaled up to 150 mm wafer size, and offers good reproducibility, high device yield and low device variation. This forms the basis for successful demonstration of memory arrays, read and write circuitry, and the integration of these. (paper)

BLACKCOMB2: Hardware-software co-design for non-volatile memory in exascale systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mudge, Trevor [Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)

2017-12-15

This work was part of a larger project, Blackcomb2, centered at Oak Ridge National Labs (Jeff Vetter PI) to investigate the opportunities for replacing or supplementing DRAM main memory with nonvolatile memory (NVmemory) in Exascale memory systems. The goal was to reduce the energy consumed by in future supercomputer memory systems and to improve their resiliency. Building on the accomplishments of the original Blackcomb Project, funded in 2010, the goal for Blackcomb2 was to identify, evaluate, and optimize the most promising emerging memory technologies, architecture hardware and software technologies, which are essential to provide the necessary memory capacity, performance, resilience, and energy efficiency in Exascale systems. Capacity and energy are the key drivers.

The floating-gate non-volatile semiconductor memory--from invention to the digital age.

Science.gov (United States)

Sze, S M

2012-10-01

In the past 45 years (from 1967 to 2012), the non-volatile semiconductor memory (NVSM) has emerged from a floating-gate concept to the prime technology driver of the largest industry in the world-the electronics industry. In this paper, we briefly review the historical development of NVSM and project its future trends to the year 2020. In addition, we consider NVSM's wide-range of applications from the digital cellular phone to tablet computer to digital television. As the device dimension is scaled down to the deca-nanometer regime, we expect that many innovations will be made to meet the scaling challenges, and NVSM-inspired technology will continue to enrich and improve our lives for decades to come.

The Nonlinear Statistics of High-contrast Patches in Natural Images

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lee, Ann; Pedersen, Kim Steenstrup; Mumford, David

2003-01-01

described. In this study, we explore the space of data points representing the values of 3 × 3 high-contrast patches from optical and 3D range images. We find that the distribution of data is extremely sparse with the majority of the data points concentrated in clusters and non-linear low...

Graphene-quantum-dot nonvolatile charge-trap flash memories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sin Joo, Soong; Kim, Jungkil; Seok Kang, Soo; Kim, Sung; Choi, Suk-Ho; Won Hwang, Sung

2014-01-01

Nonvolatile flash-memory capacitors containing graphene quantum dots (GQDs) of 6, 12, and 27 nm average sizes (d) between SiO 2 layers for use as charge traps have been prepared by sequential processes: ion-beam sputtering deposition (IBSD) of 10 nm SiO 2 on a p-type wafer, spin-coating of GQDs on the SiO 2 layer, and IBSD of 20 nm SiO 2 on the GQD layer. The presence of almost a single array of GQDs at a distance of ∼13 nm from the SiO 2 /Si wafer interface is confirmed by transmission electron microscopy and photoluminescence. The memory window estimated by capacitance–voltage curves is proportional to d for sweep voltages wider than  ± 3 V, and for d = 27 nm the GQD memories show a maximum memory window of 8 V at a sweep voltage of  ± 10 V. The program and erase speeds are largest at d = 12 and 27 nm, respectively, and the endurance and data-retention properties are the best at d = 27 nm. These memory behaviors can be attributed to combined effects of edge state and quantum confinement. (papers)

Breast tumor segmentation in high resolution x-ray phase contrast analyzer based computed tomography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brun, E., E-mail: emmanuel.brun@esrf.fr [European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF), Grenoble 380000, France and Department of Physics, Ludwig-Maximilians University, Garching 85748 (Germany); Grandl, S.; Sztrókay-Gaul, A.; Gasilov, S. [Institute for Clinical Radiology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Hospital Munich, 81377 Munich (Germany); Barbone, G. [Department of Physics, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138 (United States); Mittone, A.; Coan, P. [Department of Physics, Ludwig-Maximilians University, Garching 85748, Germany and Institute for Clinical Radiology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Hospital Munich, 81377 Munich (Germany); Bravin, A. [European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF), Grenoble 380000 (France)

2014-11-01

Purpose: Phase contrast computed tomography has emerged as an imaging method, which is able to outperform present day clinical mammography in breast tumor visualization while maintaining an equivalent average dose. To this day, no segmentation technique takes into account the specificity of the phase contrast signal. In this study, the authors propose a new mathematical framework for human-guided breast tumor segmentation. This method has been applied to high-resolution images of excised human organs, each of several gigabytes. Methods: The authors present a segmentation procedure based on the viscous watershed transform and demonstrate the efficacy of this method on analyzer based phase contrast images. The segmentation of tumors inside two full human breasts is then shown as an example of this procedure’s possible applications. Results: A correct and precise identification of the tumor boundaries was obtained and confirmed by manual contouring performed independently by four experienced radiologists. Conclusions: The authors demonstrate that applying the watershed viscous transform allows them to perform the segmentation of tumors in high-resolution x-ray analyzer based phase contrast breast computed tomography images. Combining the additional information provided by the segmentation procedure with the already high definition of morphological details and tissue boundaries offered by phase contrast imaging techniques, will represent a valuable multistep procedure to be used in future medical diagnostic applications.

Subthreshold-swing-adjustable tunneling-field-effect-transistor-based random-access memory for nonvolatile operation

Science.gov (United States)

Huh, In; Cheon, Woo Young; Choi, Woo Young

2016-04-01

A subthreshold-swing-adjustable tunneling-field-effect-transistor-based random-access memory (SAT RAM) has been proposed and fabricated for low-power nonvolatile memory applications. The proposed SAT RAM cell demonstrates adjustable subthreshold swing (SS) depending on stored information: small SS in the erase state ("1" state) and large SS in the program state ("0" state). Thus, SAT RAM cells can achieve low read voltage (Vread) with a large memory window in addition to the effective suppression of ambipolar behavior. These unique features of the SAT RAM are originated from the locally stored charge, which modulates the tunneling barrier width (Wtun) of the source-to-channel tunneling junction.

A direct metal transfer method for cross-bar type polymer non-volatile memory applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Tae-Wook; Lee, Kyeongmi; Oh, Seung-Hwan; Wang, Gunuk; Kim, Dong-Yu; Jung, Gun-Young; Lee, Takhee

2008-01-01

Polymer non-volatile memory devices in 8 x 8 array cross-bar architecture were fabricated by a non-aqueous direct metal transfer (DMT) method using a two-step thermal treatment. Top electrodes with a linewidth of 2 μm were transferred onto the polymer layer by the DMT method. The switching behaviour of memory devices fabricated by the DMT method was very similar to that of devices fabricated by the conventional shadow mask method. The devices fabricated using the DMT method showed three orders of magnitude of on/off ratio with stable resistance switching, demonstrating that the DMT method can be a simple process to fabricate organic memory array devices

Voltage control of metal-insulator transition and non-volatile ferroelastic switching of resistance in VOx/PMN-PT heterostructures.

Science.gov (United States)

Nan, Tianxiang; Liu, Ming; Ren, Wei; Ye, Zuo-Guang; Sun, Nian X

2014-08-04

The central challenge in realizing electronics based on strongly correlated electronic states, or 'Mottronics', lies in finding an energy efficient way to switch between the distinct collective phases with a control voltage in a reversible and reproducible manner. In this work, we demonstrate that a voltage-impulse-induced ferroelastic domain switching in the (011)-oriented 0.71Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-0.29PbTiO3 (PMN-PT) substrates allows a robust non-volatile tuning of the metal-insulator transition in the VOx films deposited onto them. In such a VOx/PMN-PT heterostructure, the unique two-step electric polarization switching covers up to 90% of the entire poled area and contributes to a homogeneous in-plane anisotropic biaxial strain, which, in turn, enables the lattice changes and results in the suppression of metal-insulator transition in the mechanically coupled VOx films by 6 K with a resistance change up to 40% over a broad range of temperature. These findings provide a framework for realizing in situ and non-volatile tuning of strain-sensitive order parameters in strongly correlated materials, and demonstrate great potentials in delivering reconfigurable, compactable, and energy-efficient electronic devices.

The effects of biodiesels on semivolatile and nonvolatile particulate matter emissions from a light-duty diesel engine.

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Yuan; Li, Shao-Meng; Liggio, John; Hayden, Katherine; Han, Yuemei; Stroud, Craig; Chan, Tak; Poitras, Marie-Josée

2017-11-01

Semivolatile organic compounds (SVOCs) represent a dominant category of secondary organic aerosol precursors that are increasingly included in air quality models. In the present study, an experimental system was developed and applied to a light-duty diesel engine to determine the emission factors of particulate SVOCs (pSVOCs) and nonvolatile particulate matter (PM) components at dilution ratios representative of ambient conditions. The engine was tested under three steady-state operation modes, using ultra-low-sulfur diesel (ULSD), three types of pure biodiesels and their blends with ULSD. For ULSD, the contribution of pSVOCs to total particulate organic matter (POM) mass in the engine exhaust ranged between 21 and 85%. Evaporation of pSVOCs from the diesel particles during dilution led to decreases in the hydrogen to carbon ratio of POM and the PM number emission factor of the particles. Substituting biodiesels for ULSD could increase pSVOCs emissions but brought on large reductions in black carbon (BC) emissions. Among the biodiesels tested, tallow/used cooking oil (UCO) biodiesel showed advantages over soybean and canola biodiesels in terms of both pSVOCs and nonvolatile PM emissions. It is noteworthy that PM properties, such as particle size and BC mass fraction, differed substantially between emissions from conventional diesel and biodiesels. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

High Energy Resolution Hyperspectral X-Ray Imaging for Low-Dose Contrast-Enhanced Digital Mammography.

Science.gov (United States)

Pani, Silvia; Saifuddin, Sarene C; Ferreira, Filipa I M; Henthorn, Nicholas; Seller, Paul; Sellin, Paul J; Stratmann, Philipp; Veale, Matthew C; Wilson, Matthew D; Cernik, Robert J

2017-09-01

Contrast-enhanced digital mammography (CEDM) is an alternative to conventional X-ray mammography for imaging dense breasts. However, conventional approaches to CEDM require a double exposure of the patient, implying higher dose, and risk of incorrect image registration due to motion artifacts. A novel approach is presented, based on hyperspectral imaging, where a detector combining positional and high-resolution spectral information (in this case based on Cadmium Telluride) is used. This allows simultaneous acquisition of the two images required for CEDM. The approach was tested on a custom breast-equivalent phantom containing iodinated contrast agent (Niopam 150®). Two algorithms were used to obtain images of the contrast agent distribution: K-edge subtraction (KES), providing images of the distribution of the contrast agent with the background structures removed, and a dual-energy (DE) algorithm, providing an iodine-equivalent image and a water-equivalent image. The high energy resolution of the detector allowed the selection of two close-by energies, maximising the signal in KES images, and enhancing the visibility of details with the low surface concentration of contrast agent. DE performed consistently better than KES in terms of contrast-to-noise ratio of the details; moreover, it allowed a correct reconstruction of the surface concentration of the contrast agent in the iodine image. Comparison with CEDM with a conventional detector proved the superior performance of hyperspectral CEDM in terms of the image quality/dose tradeoff.

Fabrication of Pb (Zr, Ti) O3 Thin Film for Non-Volatile Memory Device Application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mar Lar Win

2011-12-01

Ferroelectric lead zirconate titanate powder was composed of mainly the oxides of titanium, zirconium and lead. PZT powder was firstly prepared by thermal synthesis at different Zr/Ti ratios with various sintering temperatures. PZT thin film was fabricated on SiO2/Si substrate by using thermal evaporation method. Physical and elemental analysis were carried out by using SEM, EDX and XRD The ferroelectric properties and the switching behaviour of the PZT thin films were investigated. The ferroelectric properties and switching properties of the PZT thin film (near morphotropic phase boundary sintered at 800 C) could function as a nonvolatile memory.

Moderate Contrast in the Evaluation of Paintings Is Liked More but Remembered Less than High Contrast

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katinka Dijkstra

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Many visual aspects of paintings, as well as exposure to art and cultural norms, contribute to the aesthetic evaluation of paintings. The current study looked at heightened visual contrast as an important factor in the appreciation of paintings. Participants evaluated abstract digitized paintings that were manipulated in contrast for an appreciation task and were later presented with these paintings in a memory task. The results indicated that for art appreciation, a moderate increase in contrast resulted in the highest appreciation for paintings whereas recognition memory was better for paintings with a higher increase in contrast. These results replicate earlier findings with regard to the role of contrast in aesthetic perception and extend these findings by demonstrating a surprising different effect of contrast manipulation for recognition memory. Confidence with which memory decisions were made was in line with art appreciation decisions not memory performance.

Depiction of normal gastrointestinal anatomy with MDCT: comparison of low- and high-attenuation oral contrast media.

Science.gov (United States)

Erturk, Sukru Mehmet; Mortelé, Koenraad J; Oliva, Maria-Raquel; Ichikawa, Tomoaki; Silverman, Stuart G; Cantisani, Vito; Pagliara, Elisa; Ros, Pablo R

2008-04-01

To compare low- and high-attenuation oral contrast media for depiction of normal gastrointestinal anatomy with multidetector-row computed tomography (MDCT). A prospective, randomized study of 90 consecutive patients without known or suspected gastrointestinal disease was conducted after the approval of our Institutional Review Board. All patients underwent IV contrast-enhanced abdominal and pelvic CT scans after oral administration of 900 ml of either low- or high-attenuation barium sulphate suspension. Using a five-point scale, two radiologists independently graded distention and wall visualization of stomach, duodenum, jejunum, and ileum. The degree of distention and wall visualization was compared using Mann-Whitney U-test. Duodenal, jejunal and ileal distention (pcontrast medium were significantly higher than those with high-attenuation barium sulphate preparation, for reader 1. Duodenal and jejunal wall visualization scores with low-attenuation contrast medium (pcontrast medium, for reader 2. Interobserver agreement was fair to good for both distention (kappa-range: 0.41-0.74) and wall visualization (kappa-range: 0.48-0.71). MDCT with low-attenuation contrast medium provides distention and wall visualization of the GI tract that is equal or better than high-attenuation contrast medium.

Nonvolatile flexible organic bistable devices fabricated utilizing CdSe/ZnS nanoparticles embedded in a conducting poly N-vinylcarbazole polymer layer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Son, Dong-Ick; Kim, Ji-Hwan; Park, Dong-Hee; Choi, Won Kook; Li, Fushan; Ham, Jung Hun; Kim, Tae Whan

2008-01-01

The bistable effects of CdSe/ZnS nanoparticles embedded in a conducting poly N-vinylcarbazole (PVK) polymer layer by using flexible poly-vinylidene difluoride (PVDF) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates were investigated. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images revealed that CdSe/ZnS nanoparticles were formed inside the PVK polymer layer. Current-voltage (I-V) measurement on the Al/[CdSe/ZnS nanoparticles+ PVK]/ITO/PVDF and Al/[CdSe/ZnS nanoparticles+ PVK ]/ITO/PET structures at 300 K showed a nonvolatile electrical bistability behavior with a flat-band voltage shift due to the existence of the CdSe/ZnS nanoparticles, indicative of trapping, storing and emission of charges in the electronic states of the CdSe nanoparticles. A bistable behavior for the fabricated organic bistable device (OBD) structures is described on the basis of the I-V results. These results indicate that OBDs fabricated by embedding inorganic CdSe/ZnS nanoparticles in a conducting polymer matrix on flexible substrates are prospects for potential applications in flexible nonvolatile flash memory devices

Specular Reflectivity and Hot-Electron Generation in High-Contrast Relativistic Laser-Plasma Interactions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kemp, Gregory Elijah [The Ohio State Univ., Columbus, OH (United States)

2013-01-01

Ultra-intense laser (> 1018 W/cm2) interactions with matter are capable of producing relativistic electrons which have a variety of applications in state-of-the-art scientific and medical research conducted at universities and national laboratories across the world. Control of various aspects of these hot-electron distributions is highly desired to optimize a particular outcome. Hot-electron generation in low-contrast interactions, where significant amounts of under-dense pre-plasma are present, can be plagued by highly non-linear relativistic laser-plasma instabilities and quasi-static magnetic field generation, often resulting in less than desirable and predictable electron source characteristics. High-contrast interactions offer more controlled interactions but often at the cost of overall lower coupling and increased sensitivity to initial target conditions. An experiment studying the differences in hot-electron generation between high and low-contrast pulse interactions with solid density targets was performed on the Titan laser platform at the Jupiter Laser Facility at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, CA. To date, these hot-electrons generated in the laboratory are not directly observable at the source of the interaction. Instead, indirect studies are performed using state-of-the-art simulations, constrained by the various experimental measurements. These measurements, more-often-than-not, rely on secondary processes generated by the transport of these electrons through the solid density materials which can susceptible to a variety instabilities and target material/geometry effects. Although often neglected in these types of studies, the specularly reflected light can provide invaluable insight as it is directly influenced by the interaction. In this thesis, I address the use of (personally obtained) experimental specular reflectivity measurements to indirectly study hot-electron generation in the context of high-contrast, relativistic

Casimir Force Contrast Between Amorphous and Crystalline Phases of AIST

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Torricelli, Gauthier; van Zwol, Peter J.; Shpak, Olex; Palasantzas, George; Svetovoy, Vitaly B.; Binns, Chris; Kooi, Bart J.; Jost, Peter; Wuttig, Matthias

2012-01-01

Phase change materials (PCMs) can be rapidly and reversibly switched between the amorphous and crystalline state. The structural transformation is accompanied by a significant change of optical and electronic properties rendering PCMs suitable for rewritable optical data storage and non-volatile

Casimir Force Contrast Between Amorphous and Crystalline Phases of AIST

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Torrichelli, G.; van Zwol, P.J.; Shpak, O.; Palasantzas, G.; Svetovoy, Vitaly; Binns, C.; Kooi, B.J.; Jost, P.; Wittig, M.

2012-01-01

Phase change materials (PCMs) can be rapidly and reversibly switched between the amorphous and crystalline state. The structural transformation is accompanied by a signifi cant change of optical and electronic properties rendering PCMs suitable for rewritable optical data storage and nonvolatile

Mode decomposition methods for flows in high-contrast porous media. Global-local approach

KAUST Repository

Ghommem, Mehdi; Presho, Michael; Calo, Victor M.; Efendiev, Yalchin R.

2013-01-01

In this paper, we combine concepts of the generalized multiscale finite element method (GMsFEM) and mode decomposition methods to construct a robust global-local approach for model reduction of flows in high-contrast porous media. This is achieved by implementing Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) and Dynamic Mode Decomposition (DMD) techniques on a coarse grid computed using GMsFEM. The resulting reduced-order approach enables a significant reduction in the flow problem size while accurately capturing the behavior of fully-resolved solutions. We consider a variety of high-contrast coefficients and present the corresponding numerical results to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed technique. This paper is a continuation of our work presented in Ghommem et al. (2013) [1] where we examine the applicability of POD and DMD to derive simplified and reliable representations of flows in high-contrast porous media on fully resolved models. In the current paper, we discuss how these global model reduction approaches can be combined with local techniques to speed-up the simulations. The speed-up is due to inexpensive, while sufficiently accurate, computations of global snapshots. © 2013 Elsevier Inc.

Mode decomposition methods for flows in high-contrast porous media. Global-local approach

KAUST Repository

Ghommem, Mehdi

2013-11-01

In this paper, we combine concepts of the generalized multiscale finite element method (GMsFEM) and mode decomposition methods to construct a robust global-local approach for model reduction of flows in high-contrast porous media. This is achieved by implementing Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) and Dynamic Mode Decomposition (DMD) techniques on a coarse grid computed using GMsFEM. The resulting reduced-order approach enables a significant reduction in the flow problem size while accurately capturing the behavior of fully-resolved solutions. We consider a variety of high-contrast coefficients and present the corresponding numerical results to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed technique. This paper is a continuation of our work presented in Ghommem et al. (2013) [1] where we examine the applicability of POD and DMD to derive simplified and reliable representations of flows in high-contrast porous media on fully resolved models. In the current paper, we discuss how these global model reduction approaches can be combined with local techniques to speed-up the simulations. The speed-up is due to inexpensive, while sufficiently accurate, computations of global snapshots. © 2013 Elsevier Inc.

Asymmetric-detection time-stretch optical microscopy (ATOM) for ultrafast high-contrast cellular imaging in flow

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Terence T. W.; Lau, Andy K. S.; Ho, Kenneth K. Y.; Tang, Matthew Y. H.; Robles, Joseph D. F.; Wei, Xiaoming; Chan, Antony C. S.; Tang, Anson H. L.; Lam, Edmund Y.; Wong, Kenneth K. Y.; Chan, Godfrey C. F.; Shum, Ho Cheung; Tsia, Kevin K.

2014-01-01

Accelerating imaging speed in optical microscopy is often realized at the expense of image contrast, image resolution, and detection sensitivity – a common predicament for advancing high-speed and high-throughput cellular imaging. We here demonstrate a new imaging approach, called asymmetric-detection time-stretch optical microscopy (ATOM), which can deliver ultrafast label-free high-contrast flow imaging with well delineated cellular morphological resolution and in-line optical image amplification to overcome the compromised imaging sensitivity at high speed. We show that ATOM can separately reveal the enhanced phase-gradient and absorption contrast in microfluidic live-cell imaging at a flow speed as high as ~10 m/s, corresponding to an imaging throughput of ~100,000 cells/sec. ATOM could thus be the enabling platform to meet the pressing need for intercalating optical microscopy in cellular assay, e.g. imaging flow cytometry – permitting high-throughput access to the morphological information of the individual cells simultaneously with a multitude of parameters obtained in the standard assay. PMID:24413677

[Comparison of diagnostic quality in hysterosalpingography between iodinated non-ionic contrast media with low and high osmolarity].

Science.gov (United States)

Piccotti, K; Guida, D; Carbonetti, F; Stefanetti, L; Macioce, A; Cremona, A; David, V

Comparison of diagnostic quality in hysterosalpingography between low and high-osmolality contrast media. We performed a retrospective evaluation of two cohorts of patients who underwent HSG using contrast media with different osmolarity: the first group ,47 patients, underwent hysterosalpingography in the period September 2011-December 2012 using Iopromide 370 mg/ml; the second group, 50 patients, underwent HSG from January 2013 to October 2013 using Iomeprol 400 mg/ml. Three radiologists, in consensus reading,, reviewed the radiographs by assessing the following four parameters: opacification of the uterine cavity, uterine profiles definition, Fallopian tubes visualization, contrast media spillage into peritoneum. A score-scale from 0 to 3 was assigned for each of the mentioned parameter (0 = minimum non-diagnostic exam, 1 = sufficient examination; 2 = good quality examination; maximum 3 = high quality images). We documented a statistically significant higher quality in displaying Fallopian tubes among patients studied through high osmolarity contrast medium (Iopromide 370 mg/ml) than what obtained through lower osmolarity contrast medium (Iomeprol 400 mg/ml). The use of high osmolarity contrast medium enabled better visualization of the tubes and a greater number of diagnoses of chronic aspecific salpigintis due to the increased osmolality and viscosity of Iomeprol 400 mg/ml. There were no significant differences between the two contrast agents in the evaluation of intra-uterine pathology and in the evaluation of the tubal patency.

Calculation of the total plasma concentration of nonvolatile weak acids and the effective dissociation constant of nonvolatile buffers in plasma for use in the strong ion approach to acid-base balance in cats.

Science.gov (United States)

McCullough, Sheila M; Constable, Peter D

2003-08-01

To determine values for the total concentration of nonvolatile weak acids (Atot) and effective dissociation constant of nonvolatile weak acids (Ka) in plasma of cats. Convenience plasma samples of 5 male and 5 female healthy adult cats. Cats were sedated, and 20 mL of blood was obtained from the jugular vein. Plasma was tonometered at 37 degrees C to systematically vary PCO2 from 8 to 156 mm Hg, thereby altering plasma pH from 6.90 to 7.97. Plasma pH, PCO2, and concentrations of quantitatively important strong cations (Na+, K+, and Ca2+), strong anions (Cl-, lactate), and buffer ions (total protein, albumin, and phosphate) were determined. Strong ion difference was estimated from the measured strong ion concentrations and nonlinear regression used to calculate Atot and Ka from the measured pH and PCO2 and estimated strong ion difference. Mean (+/- SD) values were as follows: Atot = 24.3 +/- 4.6 mmol/L (equivalent to 0.35 mmol/g of protein or 0.76 mmol/g of albumin); Ka = 0.67 +/- 0.40 x 10(-7); and the negative logarithm (base 10) of Ka (pKa) = 7.17. At 37 degrees C, pH of 7.35, and a partial pressure of CO2 (PCO2) of 30 mm Hg, the calculated venous strong ion difference was 30 mEq/L. These results indicate that at a plasma pH of 7.35, a 1 mEq/L decrease in strong ion difference will decrease pH by 0.020, a 1 mm Hg decrease in PCO2 will increase plasma pH by 0.011, and a 1 g/dL decrease in albumin concentration will increase plasma pH by 0.093.

Graphene-ferroelectric metadevices for nonvolatile memory and reconfigurable logic-gate operations

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Woo Young; Kim, Hyeon-Don; Kim, Teun-Teun; Park, Hyun-Sung; Lee, Kanghee; Choi, Hyun Joo; Lee, Seung Hoon; Son, Jaehyeon; Park, Namkyoo; Min, Bumki

2016-01-01

Memory metamaterials are artificial media that sustain transformed electromagnetic properties without persistent external stimuli. Previous memory metamaterials were realized with phase-change materials, such as vanadium dioxide or chalcogenide glasses, which exhibit memory behaviour with respect to electrically/optically induced thermal stimuli. However, they require a thermally isolated environment for longer retention or strong optical pump for phase-change. Here we demonstrate electrically programmable nonvolatile memory metadevices realised by the hybridization of graphene, a ferroelectric and meta-atoms/meta-molecules, and extend the concept further to establish reconfigurable logic-gate metadevices. For a memory metadevice having a single electrical input, amplitude, phase and even the polarization multi-states were clearly distinguishable with a retention time of over 10 years at room temperature. Furthermore, logic-gate functionalities were demonstrated with reconfigurable logic-gate metadevices having two electrical inputs, with each connected to separate ferroelectric layers that act as the multi-level controller for the doping level of the sandwiched graphene layer.

Nonvolatile organic write-once-read-many-times memory devices based on hexadecafluoro-copper-phthalocyanine

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Lidan; Su, Zisheng; Wang, Cheng

2012-05-01

Nonvolatile organic write-once-read-many-times memory device was demonstrated based on hexadecafluoro-copper-phthalocyanine (F16CuPc) single layer sandwiched between indium tin oxide (ITO) anode and Al cathode. The as fabricated device remains in ON state and it can be tuned to OFF state by applying a reverse bias. The ON/OFF current ratio of the device can reach up to 2.3 × 103. Simultaneously, the device shows long-term storage stability and long retention time in air. The ON/OFF transition is attributed to the formation and destruction of the interfacial dipole layer in the ITO/F16CuPc interface, and such a mechanism is different from previously reported ones.

Measurements of the size dependence of the concentration of nonvolatile material in fog droplets

Science.gov (United States)

Ogren, J. A.; Noone, K. J.; Hallberg, A.; Heintzenberg, J.; Schell, D.; Berner, A.; Solly, I.; Kruisz, C.; Reischl, G.; Arends, B. G.; Wobrock, W.

1992-11-01

Measurements of the size dependence of the mass concentration of nonvolatile material dissolved and suspended in fog droplets were obtained with three complementary approaches, covering a size range from c. 1 50µm diameter: a counterflow virtual impactor, an eight-stage aerosol impactor, and a two-stage fogwater impactor. Concentrations were observed to decrease with size over the entire range, contrary to expectations of increasing concentrations at larger sizes. It is possible that the larger droplets had solute concentrations that increased with increasing size, but that the increase was too weak for the measurements to resolve. Future studies should consider the hypothesis that the droplets were coated with a surface-active substance that hindered their uptake of water.

Tunable Resonant-Cavity-Enhanced Photodetector with Double High-Index-Contrast Grating Mirrors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Learkthanakhachon, Supannee; Yvind, Kresten; Chung, Il-Sug

2013-01-01

In this paper, we propose a broadband-tunable resonant-cavity-enhanced photodetector (RCE-PD) structure with double high-index-contrast grating (HCG) mirrors and numerically investigate its characteristics. The detector is designed to operate at 1550-nm wavelength. The detector structure consists....... Furthermore, the fact that it can be fabricated on a silicon platform offers us a possibility of integration with electronics.......In this paper, we propose a broadband-tunable resonant-cavity-enhanced photodetector (RCE-PD) structure with double high-index-contrast grating (HCG) mirrors and numerically investigate its characteristics. The detector is designed to operate at 1550-nm wavelength. The detector structure consists...... of a top InP HCG mirror, a p-i-n photodiode embedding multiple quantum wells, and a Si HCG mirror formed in the Si layer of a silicon-on-insulator wafer. The detection wavelength can be changed by moving the top InP HCG mirror suspended in the air. High reflectivity and small penetration length of HCGs...

PHASE QUANTIZATION STUDY OF SPATIAL LIGHT MODULATOR FOR EXTREME HIGH-CONTRAST IMAGING

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dou, Jiangpei; Ren, Deqing, E-mail: jpdou@niaot.ac.cn, E-mail: jiangpeidou@gmail.com [Physics and Astronomy Department, California State University Northridge, 18111 Nordhoff Street, Northridge, CA 91330 (United States)

2016-11-20

Direct imaging of exoplanets by reflected starlight is extremely challenging due to the large luminosity ratio to the primary star. Wave-front control is a critical technique to attenuate the speckle noise in order to achieve an extremely high contrast. We present a phase quantization study of a spatial light modulator (SLM) for wave-front control to meet the contrast requirement of detection of a terrestrial planet in the habitable zone of a solar-type star. We perform the numerical simulation by employing the SLM with different phase accuracy and actuator numbers, which are related to the achievable contrast. We use an optimization algorithm to solve the quantization problems that is matched to the controllable phase step of the SLM. Two optical configurations are discussed with the SLM located before and after the coronagraph focal plane mask. The simulation result has constrained the specification for SLM phase accuracy in the above two optical configurations, which gives us a phase accuracy of 0.4/1000 and 1/1000 waves to achieve a contrast of 10{sup -10}. Finally, we have demonstrated that an SLM with more actuators can deliver a competitive contrast performance on the order of 10{sup -10} in comparison to that by using a deformable mirror.

High ambient contrast ratio OLED and QLED without a circular polarizer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tan, Guanjun; Zhu, Ruidong; Luo, Zhenyue; Wu, Shin-Tson; Tsai, Yi-Shou; Lee, Kuo-Chang; Lee, Yuh-Zheng

2016-01-01

A high ambient contrast ratio display device using a transparent organic light emitting diode (OLED) or transparent quantum-dot light-emitting diode (QLED) with embedded multilayered structure and absorber is proposed and its performance is simulated. With the help of multilayered structure, the device structure allows almost all ambient light to get through the display device and be absorbed by the absorber. Because the reflected ambient light is greatly reduced, the ambient contrast ratio of the display system is improved significantly. Meanwhile, the multilayered structure helps to lower the effective refractive index, which in turn improves the out-coupling efficiency of the display system. Potential applications for sunlight readable flexible and rollable displays are emphasized. (paper)

Safety of contrast media. Focus on contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kuwatsuru, Ryohei

2011-01-01

Despite advances in imaging diagnosis, contrast media still play an important role in diagnosing the existence of the disease, demonstrating the extent of disease, and determining the perfusion of the disease, which is important to make a differential diagnosis. However, the administration of contrast media may cause contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN), especially in patients with renal impairment. It is estimated that 20-30% of patients with renal impairment who received contrast media develop CIN. Though the precise cause of CIN currently remains unknown, almost all injected contrast media are excreted through the kidney and the effects of contrast media on the kidney are easily understood. As CIN is the most common cause of death due to complications after receiving contrast media, prevention of CIN is important. There are several known risk factors for CIN. Patients with renal impairment, diabetes mellitus, and dehydration are at high risk for CIN. Furthermore, a high osmolar contrast media, excessive amount of contrast media, and ionic contrast media are also risk factors for CIN. CIN can be prevented in several ways. Certain drugs seem to be useful to prevent CIN, while others are harmful. Hydration is useful to prevent CIN, although there is no widely acceptable hydration method to prevent CIN. Both sodium bicarbonate and N-acetylcysteine are promising candidates for prevention of CIN. There are few reports to study CIN after intravenous administration, although reports of CIN after percutaneous cardiac intervention (PCI) and angiography are well recognized. In clinical situations, intravenous administration of contrast media is common. Therefore, a study of CIN after intravenous administration of contrast media should be performed. (author)

Nonvolatile memory characteristics influenced by the different crystallization of Ni-Si and Ni-N nanocrystals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, W.-R.; Yeh, J.-L.; Chang, C.-Y.; Chang, T.-C.; Chen, S.-C.

2008-01-01

The formation of Ni-Si and Ni-N nanocrystals by sputtering a Ni 0.3 Si 0.7 target in argon and nitrogen environment were proposed in this paper. A transmission electron microscope analysis shows the nanocrystals embedded in the nitride layer. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction also offer the chemical material analysis of nanocrystals with surrounding dielectric and the crystallization of nanocrystals for different thermal annealing treatments. Nonvolatile Ni-Si nanocrystal memories reveal superior electrical characteristics for charge storage capacity and reliability due to the improvement of thermal annealing treatment. In addition, we used energy band diagrams to explain the significance of surrounding dielectric for reliability

Contribution of non-volatile and aroma fractions to in-mouth sensory properties of red wines: wine reconstitution strategies and sensory sorting task.

Science.gov (United States)

Sáenz-Navajas, María-Pilar; Campo, Eva; Avizcuri, José Miguel; Valentin, Dominique; Fernández-Zurbano, Purificación; Ferreira, Vicente

2012-06-30

This work explores to what extent the aroma or the non-volatile fractions of red wines are responsible for the overall flavor differences perceived in-mouth. For this purpose, 14 samples (4 commercial and 10 reconstituted wines), were sorted by a panel of 30 trained assessors according to their sensory in-mouth similarities. Reconstituted wines were prepared by adding the same volatile fraction (coming from a red wine) to the non-volatile fraction of 10 different red wines showing large differences in perceived astringency. Sorting was performed under three different conditions: (a) no aroma perception: nose-close condition (NA), (b) retronasal aroma perception only (RA), and (c) allowing retro- and involuntary orthonasal aroma perception (ROA). Similarity estimates were derived from the sorting and submitted to multidimensional scaling (MDS) followed by hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA). Results have clearly shown that, globally, aroma perception is not the major driver of the in-mouth sensory perception of red wine, which is undoubtedly primarily driven by the perception of astringency and by the chemical compounds causing it, particularly protein precipitable proanthocyanidins (PAs). However, aroma perception plays a significant role on the perception of sweetness and bitterness. The impact of aroma seems to be more important whenever astringency, total polyphenols and protein precipitable PAs levels are smaller. Results also indicate that when a red-black fruit odor nuance is clearly perceived in conditions in which orthonasal odor perception is allowed, a strong reduction in astringency takes place. Such red-black fruit odor nuance seems to be the result of a specific aroma release pattern as a consequence of the interaction between aroma compounds and the non-volatile matrix. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

High-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry.

Science.gov (United States)

Vestal, Marvin L.

1984-01-01

Reviews techniques for online coupling of high-performance liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry, emphasizing those suitable for application to nonvolatile samples. Also summarizes the present status, strengths, and weaknesses of various techniques and discusses potential applications of recently developed techniques for combined liquid…

A hybrid magnetic/complementary metal oxide semiconductor three-context memory bit cell for non-volatile circuit design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jovanović, B.; Brum, R. M.; Torres, L.

2014-01-01

After decades of continued scaling to the beat of Moore's law, it now appears that conventional silicon based devices are approaching their physical limits. In today's deep-submicron nodes, a number of short-channel and quantum effects are emerging that affect the manufacturing process, as well as, the functionality of the microelectronic systems-on-chip. Spintronics devices that exploit both the intrinsic spin of the electron and its associated magnetic moment, in addition to its fundamental electronic charge, are promising solutions to circumvent these scaling threats. Being compatible with the CMOS technology, such devices offer a promising synergy of radiation immunity, infinite endurance, non-volatility, increased density, etc. In this paper, we present a hybrid (magnetic/CMOS) cell that is able to store and process data both electrically and magnetically. The cell is based on perpendicular spin-transfer torque magnetic tunnel junctions (STT-MTJs) and is suitable for use in magnetic random access memories and reprogrammable computing (non-volatile registers, processor cache memories, magnetic field-programmable gate arrays, etc). To demonstrate the potential our hybrid cell, we physically implemented a small hybrid memory block using 45 nm × 45 nm round MTJs for the magnetic part and 28 nm fully depleted silicon on insulator (FD-SOI) technology for the CMOS part. We also report the cells measured performances in terms of area, robustness, read/write speed and energy consumption

A hybrid magnetic/complementary metal oxide semiconductor three-context memory bit cell for non-volatile circuit design

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jovanović, B., E-mail: bojan.jovanovic@lirmm.fr, E-mail: lionel.torres@lirmm.fr; Brum, R. M.; Torres, L. [LIRMM—University of Montpellier 2/UMR CNRS 5506, 161 Rue Ada, 34095 Montpellier (France)

2014-04-07

After decades of continued scaling to the beat of Moore's law, it now appears that conventional silicon based devices are approaching their physical limits. In today's deep-submicron nodes, a number of short-channel and quantum effects are emerging that affect the manufacturing process, as well as, the functionality of the microelectronic systems-on-chip. Spintronics devices that exploit both the intrinsic spin of the electron and its associated magnetic moment, in addition to its fundamental electronic charge, are promising solutions to circumvent these scaling threats. Being compatible with the CMOS technology, such devices offer a promising synergy of radiation immunity, infinite endurance, non-volatility, increased density, etc. In this paper, we present a hybrid (magnetic/CMOS) cell that is able to store and process data both electrically and magnetically. The cell is based on perpendicular spin-transfer torque magnetic tunnel junctions (STT-MTJs) and is suitable for use in magnetic random access memories and reprogrammable computing (non-volatile registers, processor cache memories, magnetic field-programmable gate arrays, etc). To demonstrate the potential our hybrid cell, we physically implemented a small hybrid memory block using 45 nm × 45 nm round MTJs for the magnetic part and 28 nm fully depleted silicon on insulator (FD-SOI) technology for the CMOS part. We also report the cells measured performances in terms of area, robustness, read/write speed and energy consumption.

Highly stable silica-coated manganese ferrite nanoparticles as high-efficacy T2 contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmad, Ashfaq; Bae, Hongsub; Rhee, Ilsu

2018-05-01

Highly stable silica-coated manganese ferrite nanoparticles were fabricated for application as magnetic resonance imagining (MRI) contrast agents. The manganese ferrite nanoparticles were synthesized using a hydrothermal technique and coated with silica. The particle size was investigated using transmission electron microscopy and was found to be 40-60 nm. The presence of the silica coating on the particle surface was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The crystalline structure was investigated by X-ray diffraction, and the particles were revealed to have an inverse spinel structure. Superparamagnetism was confirmed by the magnetic hysteresis curves obtained using a vibrating sample magnetometer. The efficiency of the MRI contrast agents was investigated by using aqueous solutions of the particles in a 4.7 T MRI scanner. The T1 and T2 relaxivities of the particles were 1.42 and 60.65 s-1 mM-1, respectively, in water. The ratio r2/r1 was 48.91, confirming that the silica-coated manganese ferrite nanoparticles were suitable high-efficacy T2 contrast agents.

DARKNESS: A Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detector Integral Field Spectrograph for High-contrast Astronomy

Science.gov (United States)

Meeker, Seth R.; Mazin, Benjamin A.; Walter, Alex B.; Strader, Paschal; Fruitwala, Neelay; Bockstiegel, Clint; Szypryt, Paul; Ulbricht, Gerhard; Coiffard, Grégoire; Bumble, Bruce; Cancelo, Gustavo; Zmuda, Ted; Treptow, Ken; Wilcer, Neal; Collura, Giulia; Dodkins, Rupert; Lipartito, Isabel; Zobrist, Nicholas; Bottom, Michael; Shelton, J. Chris; Mawet, Dimitri; van Eyken, Julian C.; Vasisht, Gautam; Serabyn, Eugene

2018-06-01

We present DARKNESS (the DARK-speckle Near-infrared Energy-resolving Superconducting Spectrophotometer), the first of several planned integral field spectrographs to use optical/near-infrared Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detectors (MKIDs) for high-contrast imaging. The photon counting and simultaneous low-resolution spectroscopy provided by MKIDs will enable real-time speckle control techniques and post-processing speckle suppression at frame rates capable of resolving the atmospheric speckles that currently limit high-contrast imaging from the ground. DARKNESS is now operational behind the PALM-3000 extreme adaptive optics system and the Stellar Double Coronagraph at Palomar Observatory. Here, we describe the motivation, design, and characterization of the instrument, early on-sky results, and future prospects.

Renal clearance of an ionic high-osmolar and a nonionic low-osmolar contrast medium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thomsen, H.S.; Vestergaard, A.; Nielsen, S.L.; Fogh-Andersen, N.; Golman, K.; Dorph, S.

1991-01-01

One hundred patients with normal serum creatinine concentration underwent intravenous urography with either an ionic high-osmolar (diatrizoate) or a nonionic low-osmolar (iopamidol) contrast medium after randomization. Before injection of the contrast medium, a blood sample was drawn for determinating serum creatinine concentration, and a urine sample for measurement of urine osmolality. Using x-ray fluorescence, the plasma concentration of iodine (contrast medium) was determined on blood samples drawn approximately 3 and 4 hours after injection of the contrast medium. The glomerular filtration rate was calculated by two different formulas: one requiring only a single sample and one requiring at least two samples (standard). There were poor correlations between the standard contrast medium clearance and the serum creatinine concentration, the estimated creatinine clearance (calculated from a nomogram), as well as the urine osmolality. The 3-hour and the 4-hour single-sample values correlated well with the two-sample values for both contrast media. In patients with normal serum creatinine, the glomerular filtration rate determined by measuring the contrast medium concentration in a single plasma sample obtained at 3 hours, is almost identical to the value determined from two samples. Consequently, two samples are unnecessary

Bounds and Estimates for Transport Coefficients of Random and Porous Media with High Contrasts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berryman, J G

2004-01-01

Bounds on transport coefficients of random polycrystals of laminates are presented, including the well-known Hashin-Shtrikman bounds and some newly formulated bounds involving two formation factors for a two-component porous medium. Some new types of self-consistent estimates are then formulated based on the observed analytical structure both of these bounds and also of earlier self-consistent estimates (of the CPA or coherent potential approximation type). A numerical study is made, assuming first that the internal structure (i.e., the laminated grain structure) is not known, and then that it is known. The purpose of this aspect of the study is to attempt to quantify the differences in the predictions of properties of a system being modeled when such organized internal structure is present in the medium but detailed spatial correlation information may or (more commonly) may not be available. Some methods of estimating formation factors from data are also presented and then applied to a high-contrast fluid-permeability data set. Hashin-Shtrikman bounds are found to be very accurate estimates for low contrast heterogeneous media. But formation factor lower bounds are superior estimates for high contrast situations. The new self-consistent estimators also tend to agree better with data than either the bounds or the CPA estimates, which themselves tend to overestimate values for high contrast conducting composites

Geometric variations in high index-contrast waveguides, coupled mode theory in curvilinear coordinates.

Science.gov (United States)

Skorobogatiy, Maksim; Jacobs, Steven; Johnson, Steven; Fink, Yoel

2002-10-21

Perturbation theory formulation of Maxwell's equations gives a theoretically elegant and computationally efficient way of describing small imperfections and weak interactions in electro-magnetic systems. It is generally appreciated that due to the discontinuous field boundary conditions in the systems employing high dielectric contrast profiles standard perturbation formulations fail when applied to the problem of shifted material boundaries. In this paper we developed a novel coupled mode and perturbation theory formulations for treating generic non-uniform (varying along the direction of propagation) perturbations of a waveguide cross-section based on Hamiltonian formulation of Maxwell equations in curvilinear coordinates. We show that our formulation is accurate and rapidly converges to an exact result when used in a coupled mode theory framework even for the high index-contrast discontinuous dielectric profiles. Among others, our formulation allows for an efficient numerical evaluation of induced PMD due to a generic distortion of a waveguide profile, analysis of mode filters, mode converters and other optical elements such as strong Bragg gratings, tapers, bends etc., and arbitrary combinations of thereof. To our knowledge, this is the first time perturbation and coupled mode theories are developed to deal with arbitrary non-uniform profile variations in high index-contrast waveguides.

High-contrast controllable switching based on polystyrene nonlinear cavities in 2D hole-type photonic crystals

Science.gov (United States)

Paghousi, Roohollah; Fasihi, Kiazand

2018-05-01

We present a new high-contrast controllable switch, which is based on a polystyrene nonlinear cavity, and is implemented in a two dimensional (2D) hole-type photonic crystal (PC). We show that by applying a control signal, the input power can be transmitted to the output waveguide with a high contrast ratio. The operation of the proposed device is investigated through the use of coupled-mode theory (CMT) and finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method. The contrast ratio of the proposed device varies between 18 and 23, which is higher than the corresponding value in the previous investigations. Based on the simulation results, with increasing the control power the range of operating power will be increased, while the contrast ratio will be decreased. It has been shown that in a modified structure, at the expense of the range of operating power and the contrast ratio, the control power can be decreased, considerably.

Radiographic contrast media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Golman, K.; Holtz, E.; Almen, T.

1987-01-01

Contrast media are used in diagnostic radiology to enhance the X-ray attenuation between a body structure of interest and the surrounding tissue. A detail becomes perceptible on a roentgenogram only when its contrast exceeds a minimum value in relation to the background. Small areas of interest must have higher contrast than the background. The contrast effect depends on concentration of the contrast media with the body. A high contrast media concentration difference thus gives rise to more morphological details in the radiographs. Contrast media can be divided into negative contrast media such as air and gas which attenuate X-rays less than the body tissues, and positive contrast materials which attenuate X-rays more than the body tissues. The positive contrast media all contain either iodine (atomic number 53) or barium (atomic number 56) and can be divided into water-insoluble and water-soluble contrast media

High Contrast Imaging of Exoplanets and Exoplanetary Systems with JWST

Science.gov (United States)

Hinkley, Sasha; Skemer, Andrew; Biller, Beth; Baraffe, I.; Bonnefoy, M.; Bowler, B.; Carter, A.; Chen, C.; Choquet, E.; Currie, T.; Danielski, C.; Fortney, J.; Grady, C.; Greenbaum, A.; Hines, D.; Janson, M.; Kalas, P.; Kennedy, G.; Kraus, A.; Lagrange, A.; Liu, M.; Marley, M.; Marois, C.; Matthews, B.; Mawet, D.; Metchev, S.; Meyer, M.; Millar-Blanchaer, M.; Perrin, M.; Pueyo, L.; Quanz, S.; Rameau, J.; Rodigas, T.; Sallum, S.; Sargent, B.; Schlieder, J.; Schneider, G.; Stapelfeldt, K.; Tremblin, P.; Vigan, A.; Ygouf, M.

2017-11-01

JWST will transform our ability to characterize directly imaged planets and circumstellar debris disks, including the first spectroscopic characterization of directly imaged exoplanets at wavelengths beyond 5 microns, providing a powerful diagnostic of cloud particle properties, atmospheric structure, and composition. To lay the groundwork for these science goals, we propose a 39-hour ERS program to rapidly establish optimal strategies for JWST high contrast imaging. We will acquire: a) coronagraphic imaging of a newly discovered exoplanet companion, and a well-studied circumstellar debris disk with NIRCam & MIRI; b) spectroscopy of a wide separation planetary mass companion with NIRSPEC & MIRI; and c) deep aperture masking interferometry with NIRISS. Our primary goals are to: 1) generate representative datasets in modes to be commonly used by the exoplanet and disk imaging communities; 2) deliver science enabling products to empower a broad user base to develop successful future investigations; and 3) carry out breakthrough science by characterizing exoplanets for the first time over their full spectral range from 2-28 microns, and debris disk spectrophotometry out to 15 microns sampling the 3 micron water ice feature. Our team represents the majority of the community dedicated to exoplanet and disk imaging and has decades of experience with high contrast imaging algorithms and pipelines. We have developed a collaboration management plan and several organized working groups to ensure we can rapidly and effectively deliver high quality Science Enabling Products to the community.

Teachable, high-content analytics for live-cell, phase contrast movies.

Science.gov (United States)

Alworth, Samuel V; Watanabe, Hirotada; Lee, James S J

2010-09-01

CL-Quant is a new solution platform for broad, high-content, live-cell image analysis. Powered by novel machine learning technologies and teach-by-example interfaces, CL-Quant provides a platform for the rapid development and application of scalable, high-performance, and fully automated analytics for a broad range of live-cell microscopy imaging applications, including label-free phase contrast imaging. The authors used CL-Quant to teach off-the-shelf universal analytics, called standard recipes, for cell proliferation, wound healing, cell counting, and cell motility assays using phase contrast movies collected on the BioStation CT and BioStation IM platforms. Similar to application modules, standard recipes are intended to work robustly across a wide range of imaging conditions without requiring customization by the end user. The authors validated the performance of the standard recipes by comparing their performance with truth created manually, or by custom analytics optimized for each individual movie (and therefore yielding the best possible result for the image), and validated by independent review. The validation data show that the standard recipes' performance is comparable with the validated truth with low variation. The data validate that the CL-Quant standard recipes can provide robust results without customization for live-cell assays in broad cell types and laboratory settings.

Low-cost fabrication of ternary CuInSe{sub 2} nanocrystals by colloidal route using a novel combination of volatile and non-volatile capping agents

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chawla, Parul; Narain Sharma, Shailesh, E-mail: shailesh@nplindia.org; Singh, Son

2014-11-15

Wet-route synthesis of CuInSe{sub 2} (CISe) nanocrystals has been envisaged with the utilization of the unique combination of coordinating ligand and non coordinating solvent. Our work demonstrates the formation of a single-phase, nearly stoichiometric and monodispersive, stable and well-passivated colloidal ternary CISe nanocrystals (band gap (E{sub g})∼1.16 eV) using a novel combination of ligands; viz. volatile arylamine aniline and non-volatile solvent 1-octadecene. The synthesis and growth conditions have been manoeuvred using the colligative properties of the mixture and thus higher growth temperature (∼250 °C) could be attained that promoted larger grain growth. The beneficial influence of the capping agents (aniline and 1-octadecene) on the properties of chalcopyrite nanocrystals has enabled us to pictorally model the structural, morphological and optoelectronic aspects of CISe nanoparticles. - Graphical abstract: Without resorting to any post-selenization process and using the colligative properties of the mixture comprising of volatile aniline and non-volatile 1-octadecene to manoeuvre the growth conditions to promote Ostwald ripening, a single phase, monodispersive and nearly stoichiometric ternary CISe nanocrystals are formed by wet-synthesis route. - Highlights: • Wet-route synthesis of CISe nanocrystals reported without post-selenization process. • Single-phase, stable and well-passivated colloidal ternary CISe nanocrystals formed. • Novel combination of capping agents: volatile aniline and non-volatile 1-octadecene. • Higher growth temperature attained using the colligative properties of the mixture. • Metallic salts presence explains exp. and theoretical boiling point difference.

High-contrast gratings for long-wavelength laser integration on silicon

Science.gov (United States)

Sciancalepore, Corrado; Descos, Antoine; Bordel, Damien; Duprez, Hélène; Letartre, Xavier; Menezo, Sylvie; Ben Bakir, Badhise

2014-02-01

Silicon photonics is increasingly considered as the most promising way-out to the relentless growth of data traffic in today's telecommunications infrastructures, driving an increase in transmission rates and computing capabilities. This is in fact challenging the intrinsic limit of copper-based, short-reach interconnects and microelectronic circuits in data centers and server architectures to offer enough modulation bandwidth at reasonable power dissipation. In the context of the heterogeneous integration of III-V direct-bandgap materials on silicon, optics with high-contrast metastructures enables the efficient implementation of optical functions such as laser feedback, input/output (I/O) to active/passive components, and optical filtering, while heterogeneous integration of III-V layers provides sufficient optical gain, resulting in silicon-integrated laser sources. The latest ensure reduced packaging costs and reduced footprint for the optical transceivers, a key point for the short reach communications. The invited talk will introduce the audience to the latest breakthroughs concerning the use of high-contrast gratings (HCGs) for the integration of III-V-on-Si verticalcavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) as well as Fabry-Perot edge-emitters (EELs) in the main telecom band around 1.55 μm. The strong near-field mode overlap within HCG mirrors can be exploited to implement unique optical functions such as dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM): a 16-λ100-GHz-spaced channels VCSEL array is demonstrated. On the other hand, high fabrication yields obtained via molecular wafer bonding of III-V alloys on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) conjugate excellent device performances with cost-effective high-throughput production, supporting industrial needs for a rapid research-to-market transfer.

Prospective randomized comparison of standard didactic lecture versus high-fidelity simulation for radiology resident contrast reaction management training.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Carolyn L; Schopp, Jennifer G; Petscavage, Jonelle M; Paladin, Angelisa M; Richardson, Michael L; Bush, William H

2011-06-01

The objective of our study was to assess whether high-fidelity simulation-based training is more effective than traditional didactic lecture to train radiology residents in the management of contrast reactions. This was a prospective study of 44 radiology residents randomized into a simulation group versus a lecture group. All residents attended a contrast reaction didactic lecture. Four months later, baseline knowledge was assessed with a written test, which we refer to as the "pretest." After the pretest, the 21 residents in the lecture group attended a repeat didactic lecture and the 23 residents in the simulation group underwent high-fidelity simulation-based training with five contrast reaction scenarios. Next, all residents took a second written test, which we refer to as the "posttest." Two months after the posttest, both groups took a third written test, which we refer to as the "delayed posttest," and underwent performance testing with a high-fidelity severe contrast reaction scenario graded on predefined critical actions. There was no statistically significant difference between the simulation and lecture group pretest, immediate posttest, or delayed posttest scores. The simulation group performed better than the lecture group on the severe contrast reaction simulation scenario (p = 0.001). The simulation group reported improved comfort in identifying and managing contrast reactions and administering medications after the simulation training (p ≤ 0.04) and was more comfortable than the control group (p = 0.03), which reported no change in comfort level after the repeat didactic lecture. When compared with didactic lecture, high-fidelity simulation-based training of contrast reaction management shows equal results on written test scores but improved performance during a high-fidelity severe contrast reaction simulation scenario.

Mode decomposition methods for flows in high-contrast porous media. A global approach

KAUST Repository

Ghommem, Mehdi; Calo, Victor M.; Efendiev, Yalchin R.

2014-01-01

We apply dynamic mode decomposition (DMD) and proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) methods to flows in highly-heterogeneous porous media to extract the dominant coherent structures and derive reduced-order models via Galerkin projection. Permeability fields with high contrast are considered to investigate the capability of these techniques to capture the main flow features and forecast the flow evolution within a certain accuracy. A DMD-based approach shows a better predictive capability due to its ability to accurately extract the information relevant to long-time dynamics, in particular, the slowly-decaying eigenmodes corresponding to largest eigenvalues. Our study enables a better understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the applicability of these techniques for flows in high-contrast porous media. Furthermore, we discuss the robustness of DMD- and POD-based reduced-order models with respect to variations in initial conditions, permeability fields, and forcing terms. © 2013 Elsevier Inc.

High spatial resolution magnetic resonance imaging of experimental cerebral venous thrombosis with a blood pool contrast agent

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spuentrup, E.; Wiethoff, A.J.; Parsons, E.C.; Spangenberg, P.; Stracke, C.P.

2010-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the feasibility of clot visualization in small sinus and cortical veins with contrast enhanced MRA in a cerebral venous thrombosis animal model using a blood pool contrast agent, Gadofosveset, and high spatial resolution imaging. Material and methods: For induction of cerebral venous thrombosis a recently developed combined interventional and microsurgical model was used. Cerebral sinus and cortical vein thrombosis was induced in six pigs. Two further pigs died during the procedure. Standard structural, time-of-flight- and phase contrast-angiograms were followed by fast time resolved high resolution 3D MRA (4D MRA) and subsequent high spatial resolution 3D MRA in the equilibrium phase with and without addition of parallel imaging. Visualization of the clots using the different sequences was subjectively compared and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) was assessed. Results: In the remaining six animals the procedure and MR-imaging protocol including administration of Gadofosveset was successfully completed. The 3D high resolution MRA in the equilibrium phase without the addition of parallel imaging was superior to all the other applied MR measurement techniques in terms of visualization of the clots. Only applying this sequence bridging vein thromboses were also seen as a small filling defect with a high CNR of >18. Conclusion: Only the non-accelerated high spatial resolution 3D MRA in the equilibrium in conjunction with the blood pool agent Gadofosveset allows for high-contrast visualization of very small clots in the cerebral sinus and cortical veins. Statement clinical impact: Detection of cortical vein thrombosis is of high clinical impact. Conventional MRI sequences often fail to visualize the clot. We could demonstrate that, in contrast to conventional sequences, with high spatial resolution 3D MRA in the equilibrium in conjunction with the blood pool agent Gadofosveset very small clots in the cerebral sinus and

Analysis of drugs of forensic interest with capillary zone electrophoresis/time-of-flight mass spectrometry based on the use of non-volatile buffers

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Gottardo, R.; Mikšík, Ivan; Aturki, Z.; Sorio, D.; Seri, C.; Fanali, S.; Tagliaro, F.

2012-01-01

Roč. 33, č. 4 (2012), s. 599-606 ISSN 0173-0835 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA203/08/1428 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z50110509 Keywords : capillary electrophoresis * drugs of abuse * non-volatile buffer * CE-MS Subject RIV: CB - Analytical Chemistry, Separation Impact factor: 3.261, year: 2012

Non-volatile memory devices with redox-active diruthenium molecular compound

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pookpanratana, S; Zhu, H; Bittle, E G; Richter, C A; Li, Q; Hacker, C A; Natoli, S N; Ren, T

2016-01-01

Reduction-oxidation (redox) active molecules hold potential for memory devices due to their many unique properties. We report the use of a novel diruthenium-based redox molecule incorporated into a non-volatile Flash-based memory device architecture. The memory capacitor device structure consists of a Pd/Al 2 O 3 /molecule/SiO 2 /Si structure. The bulky ruthenium redox molecule is attached to the surface by using a ‘click’ reaction and the monolayer structure is characterized by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to verify the Ru attachment and molecular density. The ‘click’ reaction is particularly advantageous for memory applications because of (1) ease of chemical design and synthesis, and (2) provides an additional spatial barrier between the oxide/silicon to the diruthenium molecule. Ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy data identified the energy of the electronic levels of the surface before and after surface modification. The molecular memory devices display an unsaturated charge storage window attributed to the intrinsic properties of the redox-active molecule. Our findings demonstrate the strengths and challenges with integrating molecular layers within solid-state devices, which will influence the future design of molecular memory devices. (paper)

Identification and Quantification of Oxidoselina-1,3,7(11)-Trien-8-One and Cyanidin-3-Glucoside as One of the Major Volatile and Non-Volatile Low-Molecular-Weight Constituents in Pitanga Pulp.

Science.gov (United States)

Josino Soares, Denise; Pignitter, Marc; Ehrnhöfer-Ressler, Miriam Margit; Walker, Jessica; Montenegro Brasil, Isabella; Somoza, Veronika

2015-01-01

The pulp of pitanga (Eugenia uniflora L.) is used to prepare pitanga juice. However, there are no reports on the identification and quantification of the main constituents in pitanga pulp. The aim of this study was to identify and quantify the major volatile and non-volatile low-molecular-weight constituents of the pulp. Isolation of volatile compounds was performed by solvent-assisted flavor evaporation technique. Characterization of the main volatile and non-volatile constituents was performed by GC-MS, LC-MS and NMR spectroscopy. For quantitative measurements, the main volatile compound needed to be isolated from pitanga pulp to obtain a commercially not available reference standard. Cyanidin-3-glucoside was determined as one of the most abundant non-volatile pulp compound yielding 53.8% of the sum of the intensities of all ions detected by LC-MS. Quantification of cyanidin-3-glucoside in pitanga pulp resulted in a concentration of 344 ± 66.4 μg/mL corresponding to 688 ± 133 μg/g dried pulp and 530 ± 102 μg/g fruit. For the volatile fraction, oxidoselina-1,3,7(11)-trien-8-one was identified as the main volatile pulp constituent (27.7% of the sum of the intensities of all ions detected by GC-MS), reaching a concentration of 89.0 ± 16.9 μg/mL corresponding to 1.34 ± 0.25 μg/g fresh pulp and 1.03 ± 0.19 μg/g fruit. The results provide quantitative evidence for the occurrence of an anthocyanin and an oxygenated sesquiterpene as one of the major volatile and non-volatile low-molecular-weight compounds in pitanga pulp.

CT Image Contrast of High-Z Elements: Phantom Imaging Studies and Clinical Implications.

Science.gov (United States)

FitzGerald, Paul F; Colborn, Robert E; Edic, Peter M; Lambert, Jack W; Torres, Andrew S; Bonitatibus, Peter J; Yeh, Benjamin M

2016-03-01

To quantify the computed tomographic (CT) image contrast produced by potentially useful contrast material elements in clinically relevant imaging conditions. Equal mass concentrations (grams of active element per milliliter of solution) of seven radiodense elements, including iodine, barium, gadolinium, tantalum, ytterbium, gold, and bismuth, were formulated as compounds in aqueous solutions. The compounds were chosen such that the active element dominated the x-ray attenuation of the solution. The solutions were imaged within a modified 32-cm CT dose index phantom at 80, 100, 120, and 140 kVp at CT. To simulate larger body sizes, 0.2-, 0.5-, and 1.0-mm-thick copper filters were applied. CT image contrast was measured and corrected for measured concentrations and presence of chlorine in some compounds. Each element tested provided higher image contrast than iodine at some tube potential levels. Over the range of tube potentials that are clinically practical for average-sized and larger adults-that is, 100 kVp and higher-barium, gadolinium, ytterbium, and tantalum provided consistently increased image contrast compared with iodine, respectively demonstrating 39%, 56%, 34%, and 24% increases at 100 kVp; 39%, 66%, 53%, and 46% increases at 120 kVp; and 40%, 72%, 65%, and 60% increases at 140 kVp, with no added x-ray filter. The consistently high image contrast produced with 100-140 kVp by tantalum compared with bismuth and iodine at equal mass concentration suggests that tantalum could potentially be favorable for use as a clinical CT contrast agent.

Conjugated donor-acceptor-acceptor (D-A-A) molecule for organic nonvolatile resistor memory.

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Lei; Li, Guangwu; Yu, An-Dih; Bo, Zhishan; Liu, Cheng-Liang; Chen, Wen-Chang

2014-12-01

A new donor-acceptor-acceptor (D-A-A) type of conjugated molecule, N-(4-(N',N'-diphenyl)phenylamine)-4-(4'-(2,2-dicyanovinyl)phenyl) naphthalene-1,8-dicarboxylic monoimide (TPA-NI-DCN), consisting of triphenylamine (TPA) donors and naphthalimide (NI)/dicyanovinylene (DCN) acceptors was synthesized and characterized. In conjunction with previously reported D-A based materials, the additional DCN moiety attached as end group in the D-A-A configuration can result in a stable charge transfer (CT) and charge-separated state to maintain the ON state current. The vacuum-deposited TPA-NI-DCN device fabricated as an active memory layer was demonstrated to exhibit write-once-read-many (WORM) switching characteristics of organic nonvolatile memory due to the strong polarity of the TPA-NI-DCN moiety. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Fabrication and operation methods of a one-time programmable (OTP) nonvolatile memory (NVM) based on a metal-oxide-semiconductor structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, Seongjae; Lee, Junghoon; Jung, Sunghun; Park, Sehwan; Park, Byunggook

2011-01-01

In this paper, a novel one-time programmable (OTP) nonvolatile memory (NVM) device and its array based on a metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) structure is proposed. The Iindividual memory device has a vertical channel of a silicon diode. Historically, OTP memories were widely used for read-only-memories (ROMs), in which the most basic system architecture model was to store central processing unit (CPU) instructions. By grafting the nanoscale fabrication technology and novel structuring onto the concept of the OTP memory, innovative high-density NVM appliances for mobile storage media may be possible. The program operation is performed by breaking down the thin oxide layer between the pn diode structure and the wordline (WL). The programmed state can be identified by an operation that reads the leakage currents through the broken oxide. Since the proposed OTP NVM is based on neither a transistor structure nor a charge storing mechanism, it is highly reliable and functional for realizing the ultra-large scale integration. The operation physics and the fabrication processes are also explained in detail.

Changes in non-volatile taste components of button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) during different stages of freeze drying and freeze drying combined with microwave vacuum drying.

Science.gov (United States)

Pei, Fei; Shi, Ying; Gao, Xingyang; Wu, Fangning; Mariga, Alfred Mugambi; Yang, Wenjian; Zhao, Liyan; An, Xinxin; Xin, Zhihong; Yang, Fangmei; Hu, Qiuhui

2014-12-15

Button mushroom slices were dehydrated using freeze drying (FD) or FD combined with microwave vacuum drying (FMVD), and the non-volatile component profiles were studied. The results showed that the level of non-volatile components in button mushroom firstly increased during sublimation of FD/FMVD process and then fell during desorption in FD process and MVD in FMVD process. Compared to FD products, the contents of soluble sugars and polyols in FMVD products were relatively low, whereas the contents of total free amino acids were significantly higher, close to the level of fresh mushroom. However, there was no significant difference in the contents of 5'-nucleotides and organic acids between FD and FMVD products. The equivalent umami concentration (EUC) values for FD and FMVD products did not differ from fresh, indicating that both drying methods could effectively preserve MSG (monosodium glutamate)-like components in button mushroom. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Determination of Nonvolatile Amines in Foods by Improved Dansyl Derivatization Reaction.

Science.gov (United States)

Handa, Ayami; Kawanabe, Hitomi; Ibe, Akihiro

2017-01-01

An analytical method for the determination of nonvolatile amines (putrescine, cadaverine, histamine, tyramine, and spermidine) in foods was developed, using an improved dansyl derivatization technique. The five amines were extracted from food with 1% trichloroacetic acid. Three milliliter of extract was applied to a polymer-based strong cation exchange resin mini-column, which was washed with 5 mL of water, and eluted with 5 mL of 1 mol/L potassium carbonate solution. The eluate was dansylated, then 5 mL of toluene was added with shaking. The toluene layer was evaporated. The residue was taken up in 1 mL of acetonitrile and shaken with 1 mL of 5% proline in 1 mol/L potassium carbonate solution. The upper acetonitrile layer was collected, filtered, and subjected to HPLC. The limits of quantitation for putrescine and cadaverine in the samples were both 0.2 μg/g; those of spermidine, tyramine, and histamine were 0.8, 2.0, and 5.0 μg/g, respectively. The average recoveries of the five amines from nine foods exceeded 80%.

Standard Test Method for Gravimetric Determination of Nonvolatile Residue from Cleanroom Gloves

CERN Document Server

American Society for Testing and Materials. Philadelphia

2011-01-01

1.1 This test method covers the determination of solvent extractable nonvolatile residue (NVR) from gloves used in cleanrooms where spacecraft are assembled, cleaned, or tested. 1.2 The NVR of interest is that which can be extracted from gloves using a specified solvent that has been selected for its extracting qualities, or because it is representative of solvents used in the particular facility. Alternative solvents may be used, but since their use may result in different values being generated, they must be identified in the procedure data sheet. 1.3 The values stated in SI units are to be regarded as standard. No other units of measurement are included in this standard. 1.4 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.

Standard Test Method for Gravimetric Determination of Nonvolatile Residue From Cleanroom Wipers

CERN Document Server

American Society for Testing and Materials. Philadelphia

2006-01-01

1.1 This test method covers the determination of solvent extractable nonvolatile residue (NVR) from wipers used in assembly, cleaning, or testing of spacecraft, but not from those used for analytical surface sampling of hardware. 1.2 The values stated in SI units are to be regarded as the standard. No other units of measurement are included in this standard. 1.3 The NVR of interest is that which can be extracted from cleanroom wipers using a specified solvent that has been selected for its extractive qualities. Alternative solvents may be selected, but since their use may result in different values being generated, they must be identified in the procedure data sheet. This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.

Four-state non-volatile memory in a multiferroic spin filter tunnel junction

Science.gov (United States)

Ruan, Jieji; Li, Chen; Yuan, Zhoushen; Wang, Peng; Li, Aidong; Wu, Di

2016-12-01

We report a spin filter type multiferroic tunnel junction with a ferromagnetic/ferroelectric bilayer barrier. Memory functions of a spin filter magnetic tunnel junction and a ferroelectric tunnel junction are combined in this single device, producing four non-volatile resistive states that can be read out in a non-destructive manner. This concept is demonstrated in a LaNiO3/Pr0.8Ca0.2MnO3/BaTiO3/La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 all-oxide tunnel junction. The ferromagnetic insulator Pr0.8Ca0.2MnO3 serves as the spin filter and the ferromagnetic metal La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 is the spin analyzer. The ferroelectric polarization reversal in the BaTiO3 barrier switches the tunneling barrier height to produce a tunneling electroresistance. The ferroelectric switching also modulates the spin polarization and the spin filtering efficiency in Pr0.8Ca0.2MnO3.

Functionalized Graphitic Carbon Nitride for Metal-free, Flexible and Rewritable Nonvolatile Memory Device via Direct Laser-Writing

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Fei; Cheng, Huhu; Hu, Yue; Song, Long; Zhang, Zhipan; Jiang, Lan; Qu, Liangti

2014-07-01

Graphitic carbon nitride nanosheet (g-C3N4-NS) has layered structure similar with graphene nanosheet and presents unusual physicochemical properties due to the s-triazine fragments. But their electronic and electrochemical applications are limited by the relatively poor conductivity. The current work provides the first example that atomically thick g-C3N4-NSs are the ideal candidate as the active insulator layer with tunable conductivity for achieving the high performance memory devices with electrical bistability. Unlike in conventional memory diodes, the g-C3N4-NSs based devices combined with graphene layer electrodes are flexible, metal-free and low cost. The functionalized g-C3N4-NSs exhibit desirable dispersibility and dielectricity which support the all-solution fabrication and high performance of the memory diodes. Moreover, the flexible memory diodes are conveniently fabricated through the fast laser writing process on graphene oxide/g-C3N4-NSs/graphene oxide thin film. The obtained devices not only have the nonvolatile electrical bistability with great retention and endurance, but also show the rewritable memory effect with a reliable ON/OFF ratio of up to 105, which is the highest among all the metal-free flexible memory diodes reported so far, and even higher than those of metal-containing devices.

High-contrast laser acceleration of relativistic electrons in solid cone-wire targets

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Higginson, D. P. [Univ. of California-San Diego, La Jolla, CA (United States); Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Link, A. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Sawada, H. [Univ. of California-San Diego, La Jolla, CA (United States); Wilks, S. C. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Chawla, S. R. [Univ. of California-San Diego, La Jolla, CA (United States); Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Chen, C. D. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Jarrott, L. C. [Univ. of California-San Diego, La Jolla, CA (United States); Flippo, K. A. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); McLean, H. S. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Patel, P. K. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Perez, F. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Beg, F. N. [Univ. of California-San Diego, La Jolla, CA (United States); Bartal, T. [Univ. of California-San Diego, La Jolla, CA (United States); Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Wei, M. S. [General Atomics, San Diego, CA (United States)

2015-12-31

Optimization of electron coupling into small solid angles is of extreme importance to applications, such as Fast Ignition, that require maximum electron energy deposition within a small volume. To optimize this coupling, we use the ultra-high-contrast Trident laser, which remains below intensity of 10¹¹ W/cm² until < 0.1 ns before the main pulse, while still attaining high-energy, 75 J, and peak intensity of 5 x 10¹⁹ W/cm². Using a cone-wire target, we find that the coupling into the 40 μm diameter wire is increased by a factor of 2.7x over the low-contrast Titan laser at similar peak intensity. Full-scale simulations are used to model the laser interaction and quantitatively reproduce the experimental results. These show that increase in coupling is due to both a closer interaction, as well as the reduction of laser filamentation and self-focusing.

Multiscale modeling of high contrast brinkman equations with applications to deformable porous media

KAUST Repository

Brown, Donald

2013-06-18

Simulating porous media flows has a wide range of applications. Often, these applications involve many scales and multi-physical processes. A useful tool in the analysis of such problems in that of homogenization as an averaged description is derived circumventing the need for complicated simulation of the fine scale features. In this work, we recall recent developments of homogenization techniques in the application of flows in deformable porous media. In addition, homogenization of media with high-contrast. In particular, we recall the main ideas of the homogenization of slowly varying Stokes flow and summarize the results of [4]. We also present the ideas for extending these techniques to high-contrast deformable media [3]. These ideas are connected by the modeling of multiscale fluid-structure interaction problems. © 2013 American Society of Civil Engineers.

Memory characteristics of silicon nitride with silicon nanocrystals as a charge trapping layer of nonvolatile memory devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Sangmoo; Yang, Hyundeok; Chang, Man; Baek, Sungkweon; Hwang, Hyunsang; Jeon, Sanghun; Kim, Juhyung; Kim, Chungwoo

2005-01-01

Silicon nitride with silicon nanocrystals formed by low-energy silicon plasma immersion ion implantation has been investigated as a charge trapping layer of a polycrystalline silicon-oxide-nitride-oxide-silicon-type nonvolatile memory device. Compared with the control sample without silicon nanocrystals, silicon nitride with silicon nanocrystals provides excellent memory characteristics, such as larger width of capacitance-voltage hysteresis, higher program/erase speed, and lower charge loss rate at elevated temperature. These improved memory characteristics are derived by incorporation of silicon nanocrystals into the charge trapping layer as additional accessible charge traps with a deeper effective trap energy level

Phase change memory based on SnSe{sub 4} alloy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karanja, J.M.; Karimi, P.M.; Njoroge, W.K. [Physics Department, Kenyatta University, P.O. Box 43844, Nairobi (Kenya); Wamwangi, D.M., E-mail: Daniel.Wamwangi@wits.ac.za [School of Physics, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, 2050 (South Africa)

2013-01-01

A phase change alloy has been synthesized and characterized. The reversible phase transitions between amorphous and crystalline states of SnSe{sub 4} films have been studied using variable electrical pulses and X-ray diffraction. Temperature dependent sheet resistance measurements have shown two distinct resistivity states of more than two orders of magnitude. This high electrical contrast makes the alloy suitable for nonvolatile phase change memory applications. X-ray diffraction has attributed the large electrical contrast to an amorphous–crystalline phase transition. The nonvolatile memory cells have been fabricated using a simple sandwich structure (metal/chalcogenide thin film/metal). A threshold voltage of 3.71 V has been determined for this phase change random access memory cell. Memory switching was initiated using the voltage pulses of 3.71 V, 90 ns, 1.3 V and 26 μs, for the crystallization and amorphization process, respectively. - Highlights: ► Phase transition of SnSe{sub 4} alloys with high set resistivity of 1.43 Ωm ► High transition temperatures of 174 °C ► Transition due to amorphous–crystalline changes ► Threshold switching at a high threshold voltage of 3.71 V.

Prospective randomized study of contrast reaction management curricula: Computer-based interactive simulation versus high-fidelity hands-on simulation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Carolyn L., E-mail: wangcl@uw.edu [Department of Radiology, University of Washington, Box 357115, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195-7115 (United States); Schopp, Jennifer G.; Kani, Kimia [Department of Radiology, University of Washington, Box 357115, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195-7115 (United States); Petscavage-Thomas, Jonelle M. [Penn State Hershey Medical Center, Department of Radiology, 500 University Drive, Hershey, PA 17033 (United States); Zaidi, Sadaf; Hippe, Dan S.; Paladin, Angelisa M.; Bush, William H. [Department of Radiology, University of Washington, Box 357115, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195-7115 (United States)

2013-12-01

Purpose: We developed a computer-based interactive simulation program for teaching contrast reaction management to radiology trainees and compared its effectiveness to high-fidelity hands-on simulation training. Materials and methods: IRB approved HIPAA compliant prospective study of 44 radiology residents, fellows and faculty who were randomized into either the high-fidelity hands-on simulation group or computer-based simulation group. All participants took separate written tests prior to and immediately after their intervention. Four months later participants took a delayed written test and a hands-on high-fidelity severe contrast reaction scenario performance test graded on predefined critical actions. Results: There was no statistically significant difference between the computer and hands-on groups’ written pretest, immediate post-test, or delayed post-test scores (p > 0.6 for all). Both groups’ scores improved immediately following the intervention (p < 0.001). The delayed test scores 4 months later were still significantly higher than the pre-test scores (p ≤ 0.02). The computer group's performance was similar to the hands-on group on the severe contrast reaction simulation scenario test (p = 0.7). There were also no significant differences between the computer and hands-on groups in performance on the individual core competencies of contrast reaction management during the contrast reaction scenario. Conclusion: It is feasible to develop a computer-based interactive simulation program to teach contrast reaction management. Trainees that underwent computer-based simulation training scored similarly on written tests and on a hands-on high-fidelity severe contrast reaction scenario performance test as those trained with hands-on high-fidelity simulation.

Prospective randomized study of contrast reaction management curricula: Computer-based interactive simulation versus high-fidelity hands-on simulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Carolyn L.; Schopp, Jennifer G.; Kani, Kimia; Petscavage-Thomas, Jonelle M.; Zaidi, Sadaf; Hippe, Dan S.; Paladin, Angelisa M.; Bush, William H.

2013-01-01

Purpose: We developed a computer-based interactive simulation program for teaching contrast reaction management to radiology trainees and compared its effectiveness to high-fidelity hands-on simulation training. Materials and methods: IRB approved HIPAA compliant prospective study of 44 radiology residents, fellows and faculty who were randomized into either the high-fidelity hands-on simulation group or computer-based simulation group. All participants took separate written tests prior to and immediately after their intervention. Four months later participants took a delayed written test and a hands-on high-fidelity severe contrast reaction scenario performance test graded on predefined critical actions. Results: There was no statistically significant difference between the computer and hands-on groups’ written pretest, immediate post-test, or delayed post-test scores (p > 0.6 for all). Both groups’ scores improved immediately following the intervention (p < 0.001). The delayed test scores 4 months later were still significantly higher than the pre-test scores (p ≤ 0.02). The computer group's performance was similar to the hands-on group on the severe contrast reaction simulation scenario test (p = 0.7). There were also no significant differences between the computer and hands-on groups in performance on the individual core competencies of contrast reaction management during the contrast reaction scenario. Conclusion: It is feasible to develop a computer-based interactive simulation program to teach contrast reaction management. Trainees that underwent computer-based simulation training scored similarly on written tests and on a hands-on high-fidelity severe contrast reaction scenario performance test as those trained with hands-on high-fidelity simulation

Evaluation of fast highly undersampled contrast-enhanced MR angiography (sparse CE-MRA) in intracranial applications - initial study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gratz, Marcel; Quick, Harald H.; Schlamann, Marc; Goericke, Sophia; Maderwald, Stefan

2017-01-01

To assess the image quality of sparsely sampled contrast-enhanced MR angiography (sparse CE-MRA) providing high spatial resolution and whole-head coverage. Twenty-three patients scheduled for contrast-enhanced MR imaging of the head, (N = 19 with intracranial pathologies, N = 9 with vascular diseases), were included. Sparse CE-MRA at 3 Tesla was conducted using a single dose of contrast agent. Two neuroradiologists independently evaluated the data regarding vascular visibility and diagnostic value of overall 24 parameters and vascular segments on a 5-point ordinary scale (5 = very good, 1 = insufficient vascular visibility). Contrast bolus timing and the resulting arterio-venous overlap was also evaluated. Where available (N = 9), sparse CE-MRA was compared to intracranial Time-of-Flight MRA. The overall rating across all patients for sparse CE-MRA was 3.50 ± 1.07. Direct influence of the contrast bolus timing on the resulting image quality was observed. Overall mean vascular visibility and image quality across different features was rated good to intermediate (3.56 ± 0.95). The average performance of intracranial Time-of-Flight was rated 3.84 ± 0.87 across all patients and 3.54 ± 0.62 across all features. Sparse CE-MRA provides high-quality 3D MRA with high spatial resolution and whole-head coverage within short acquisition time. Accurate contrast bolus timing is mandatory. (orig.)

Evaluation of fast highly undersampled contrast-enhanced MR angiography (sparse CE-MRA) in intracranial applications - initial study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gratz, Marcel; Quick, Harald H. [University of Duisburg-Essen, Erwin L. Hahn Institute for MR Imaging, Essen (Germany); University Hospital Essen, High Field and Hybrid MR Imaging, Essen (Germany); Schlamann, Marc [University Hospital Giessen and Marburg GmbH, Neuroradiology, Giessen (Germany); University Hospital Essen, Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, Essen (Germany); Goericke, Sophia [University Hospital Essen, Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, Essen (Germany); Maderwald, Stefan [University of Duisburg-Essen, Erwin L. Hahn Institute for MR Imaging, Essen (Germany)

2017-03-15

To assess the image quality of sparsely sampled contrast-enhanced MR angiography (sparse CE-MRA) providing high spatial resolution and whole-head coverage. Twenty-three patients scheduled for contrast-enhanced MR imaging of the head, (N = 19 with intracranial pathologies, N = 9 with vascular diseases), were included. Sparse CE-MRA at 3 Tesla was conducted using a single dose of contrast agent. Two neuroradiologists independently evaluated the data regarding vascular visibility and diagnostic value of overall 24 parameters and vascular segments on a 5-point ordinary scale (5 = very good, 1 = insufficient vascular visibility). Contrast bolus timing and the resulting arterio-venous overlap was also evaluated. Where available (N = 9), sparse CE-MRA was compared to intracranial Time-of-Flight MRA. The overall rating across all patients for sparse CE-MRA was 3.50 ± 1.07. Direct influence of the contrast bolus timing on the resulting image quality was observed. Overall mean vascular visibility and image quality across different features was rated good to intermediate (3.56 ± 0.95). The average performance of intracranial Time-of-Flight was rated 3.84 ± 0.87 across all patients and 3.54 ± 0.62 across all features. Sparse CE-MRA provides high-quality 3D MRA with high spatial resolution and whole-head coverage within short acquisition time. Accurate contrast bolus timing is mandatory. (orig.)

Semiconducting polymer dot as a highly effective contrast agent for photoacoustic imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Zhen; Zhang, Jian

2018-02-01

In this study, we developed a novel PIID-DTBT based semiconducting polymer dots (Pdots) that have broad and strong optical absorption in the visible-light region (500 nm - 700 nm). Gold nanoparticles (GNPs) and gold nanorods (GNRs) that have been verified as an excellent photoacoustic contrast agent were compared with Pdots based on photoacoustic imaging method. Both ex vivo and in vivo experiment demonstrated Pdots have a better photoacoustic conversion efficiency at 532 nm than GNPs and similar photoacoustic performance with GNRs at 700 nm at the same mass concentration. Our work demonstrates the great potential of Pdots as a highly effective contrast agent for precise localization of lesions relative to the blood vessels based on photoacoustic tomography imaging.

High contrast enhancement aspect of dynamic computed tomography with arterial infusion - DCT-AI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kato, Seishi; Iwasaki, Naoya; Matsumura, Yoshimitsu; Kuramae, Shigeru; Mishiro, Tadashi

1983-01-01

Dynamic computed tomography was performed on 112 cases possibly having hepatic tumors with intraarterial infusion of undiluted contrast into a selectively placed catheter following angiographies. Our dynamic program could evaluate not only early phase of enhancement but also late phase up to 120 sec. Reconstructed views from early scans and magnified views were very useful to evaluate minute sequential changes. Hepatic masses less than 5 cm in size were found in thirty-one cases. Patterns of tumor enhancement and time-density curves have been analysed to correlate them with histology. Four types of tumor enhancement were noted: (1) homogeneous (2) patchy (3) mottled (4) ringed. Characteristic changes were observed in hepatocellular carcinoma - HCC - (mostly mottled) and haemangioma (mostly patchy). The former was divided in two groups reflecting the cellular maturity. The metastatic tumor could be enhanced in a ringed form with dendritic pattern of supplying vascularities in some cases. To support the use of undiluted contrast and to investigate the diagnostic efficacy of high contrast enhancement, experiments were performed by taking transaxial views of an acrylic phantom immersed in different concentrations of contrast. Analysis of CT images taken at different HU values ranging from 0 to 450 demonstrated that the higher the concentration of contrast, the better the spatial resolution was. Also larger magnification could be expected by using higher concentration of contrast. Although our Dynamic Computed Tomography with Arterial Infusion of Contrast still has drawbacks and limited indications, we advocate it as a better way of enhancement to detect and evaluate the hepatic masses, which sometimes elude the examiner's grasp with conventional way of enhancement. (author)

First application of liquid-metal-jet sources for small-animal imaging: High-resolution CT and phase-contrast tumor demarcation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Larsson, Daniel H.; Lundstroem, Ulf; Burvall, Anna; Hertz, Hans M. [Department of Applied Physics, KTH Royal Institute of Technology/Albanova, 10691 Stockholm (Sweden); Westermark, Ulrica K.; Arsenian Henriksson, Marie [Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology (MTC), Karolinska Institutet, 17177 Stockholm (Sweden)

2013-02-15

Purpose: Small-animal studies require images with high spatial resolution and high contrast due to the small scale of the structures. X-ray imaging systems for small animals are often limited by the microfocus source. Here, the authors investigate the applicability of liquid-metal-jet x-ray sources for such high-resolution small-animal imaging, both in tomography based on absorption and in soft-tissue tumor imaging based on in-line phase contrast. Methods: The experimental arrangement consists of a liquid-metal-jet x-ray source, the small-animal object on a rotating stage, and an imaging detector. The source-to-object and object-to-detector distances are adjusted for the preferred contrast mechanism. Two different liquid-metal-jet sources are used, one circulating a Ga/In/Sn alloy and the other an In/Ga alloy for higher penetration through thick tissue. Both sources are operated at 40-50 W electron-beam power with {approx}7 {mu}m x-ray spots, providing high spatial resolution in absorption imaging and high spatial coherence for the phase-contrast imaging. Results: High-resolution absorption imaging is demonstrated on mice with CT, showing 50 {mu}m bone details in the reconstructed slices. High-resolution phase-contrast soft-tissue imaging shows clear demarcation of mm-sized tumors at much lower dose than is required in absorption. Conclusions: This is the first application of liquid-metal-jet x-ray sources for whole-body small-animal x-ray imaging. In absorption, the method allows high-resolution tomographic skeletal imaging with potential for significantly shorter exposure times due to the power scalability of liquid-metal-jet sources. In phase contrast, the authors use a simple in-line arrangement to show distinct tumor demarcation of few-mm-sized tumors. This is, to their knowledge, the first small-animal tumor visualization with a laboratory phase-contrast system.

Embedded nonvolatile memory devices with various silicon nitride energy band gaps on glass used for flat panel display applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Son, Dang Ngoc; Van Duy, Nguyen; Jung, Sungwook; Yi, Junsin

2010-01-01

Nonvolatile memory (NVM) devices with a nitride–nitride–oxynitride stack structure on a rough poly-silicon (poly-Si) surface were fabricated using a low-temperature poly-Si (LTPS) thin film transistor technology on glass substrates for application of flat panel display (FPD). The plasma-assisted oxidation/nitridation method is used to form a uniform oxynitride with an ultrathin tunneling layer on a rough LTPS surface. The NVMs, using a Si-rich silicon nitride film as a charge-trapping layer, were proposed as one of the solutions for the improvement of device performance such as the program/erase speed, the memory window and the charge retention characteristics. To further improve the vertical scaling and charge retention characteristics of NVM devices, the high-κ high-density N-rich SiN x films are used as a blocking layer. The fabricated NVM devices have outstanding electrical properties, such as a low threshold voltage, a high ON/OFF current ratio, a low subthreshold swing, a low operating voltage of less than ±9 V and a large memory window of 3.7 V, which remained about 1.9 V over a period of 10 years. These characteristics are suitable for electrical switching and data storage with in FPD application

X-ray phase-contrast tomography for high-spatial-resolution zebrafish muscle imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Vågberg, William; Larsson, Daniel H.; Li, Mei; Arner, Anders; Hertz, Hans M.

2015-11-01

Imaging of muscular structure with cellular or subcellular detail in whole-body animal models is of key importance for understanding muscular disease and assessing interventions. Classical histological methods for high-resolution imaging methods require excision, fixation and staining. Here we show that the three-dimensional muscular structure of unstained whole zebrafish can be imaged with sub-5 μm detail with X-ray phase-contrast tomography. Our method relies on a laboratory propagation-based phase-contrast system tailored for detection of low-contrast 4-6 μm subcellular myofibrils. The method is demonstrated on 20 days post fertilization zebrafish larvae and comparative histology confirms that we resolve individual myofibrils in the whole-body animal. X-ray imaging of healthy zebrafish show the expected structured muscle pattern while specimen with a dystrophin deficiency (sapje) displays an unstructured pattern, typical of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The method opens up for whole-body imaging with sub-cellular detail also of other types of soft tissue and in different animal models.

Identification and Quantification of Oxidoselina-1,3,7(11-Trien-8-One and Cyanidin-3-Glucoside as One of the Major Volatile and Non-Volatile Low-Molecular-Weight Constituents in Pitanga Pulp.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Denise Josino Soares

Full Text Available The pulp of pitanga (Eugenia uniflora L. is used to prepare pitanga juice. However, there are no reports on the identification and quantification of the main constituents in pitanga pulp. The aim of this study was to identify and quantify the major volatile and non-volatile low-molecular-weight constituents of the pulp. Isolation of volatile compounds was performed by solvent-assisted flavor evaporation technique. Characterization of the main volatile and non-volatile constituents was performed by GC-MS, LC-MS and NMR spectroscopy. For quantitative measurements, the main volatile compound needed to be isolated from pitanga pulp to obtain a commercially not available reference standard. Cyanidin-3-glucoside was determined as one of the most abundant non-volatile pulp compound yielding 53.8% of the sum of the intensities of all ions detected by LC-MS. Quantification of cyanidin-3-glucoside in pitanga pulp resulted in a concentration of 344 ± 66.4 μg/mL corresponding to 688 ± 133 μg/g dried pulp and 530 ± 102 μg/g fruit. For the volatile fraction, oxidoselina-1,3,7(11-trien-8-one was identified as the main volatile pulp constituent (27.7% of the sum of the intensities of all ions detected by GC-MS, reaching a concentration of 89.0 ± 16.9 μg/mL corresponding to 1.34 ± 0.25 μg/g fresh pulp and 1.03 ± 0.19 μg/g fruit. The results provide quantitative evidence for the occurrence of an anthocyanin and an oxygenated sesquiterpene as one of the major volatile and non-volatile low-molecular-weight compounds in pitanga pulp.

High-intensity, thin-target He-jet production source

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bai, Y.; Vieira, D.J.; Wouters, J.M.; Butler, G.W.; Rosenauer, Dk; Loebner, K.E.G.; Lind, V.G.; Phillips, D.R.

1996-01-01

A thin-target He-jet system suited to the production and rapid transport of non-volatile radioactive species has been successfully operated with proton beam intensities of up to 700 μA. The system consists of a water-cooled, thin-target chamber, capillary gas transport system, moving tape/Ge detection system, and an aerosol generator/gas recirculator. The yields for a wide variety of uranium fission and deep spallation products have been measured and robust operation of the system demonstrated for several weeks. He-jet transport and collection efficiencies ranged between 15 and 25% with collection rates of 10 7 to 10 8 atoms/sec/isotope. The high-intensity, thin-target He-jet approach represents a robust production source for nonvolatile radioactive heavy ion beams

Exogenous contrast agents for thermoacoustic imaging: An investigation into the underlying sources of contrast

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ogunlade, Olumide; Beard, Paul

2015-01-01

Purpose: Thermoacoustic imaging at microwave excitation frequencies is limited by the low differential contrast exhibited by high water content tissues. To overcome this, exogenous thermoacoustic contrast agents based on gadolinium compounds, iron oxide, and single wall carbon nanotubes have previously been suggested and investigated. However, these previous studies did not fully characterize the electric, magnetic, and thermodynamic properties of these agents thus precluding identification of the underlying sources of contrast. To address this, measurements of the complex permittivity, complex permeability, DC conductivity, and Grüneisen parameter have been made. These measurements allowed the origins of the contrast provided by each substance to be identified. Methods: The electric and magnetic properties of the contrast agents were characterized at 3 GHz using two rectangular waveguide cavities. The DC conductivity was measured separately using a conductivity meter. Thermoacoustic signals were then acquired and compared to those generated in water. Finally, 3D electromagnetic simulations were used to decouple the different contributions to the absorbed power density. Results: It was found that the gadolinium compounds provided appreciable electric contrast but not originating from the gadolinium itself. The contrast was either due to dissociation of the gadolinium salt which increased ionic conductivity or its nondissociated polar fraction which increased dielectric polarization loss or a combination of both. In addition, very high concentrations were required to achieve appreciable contrast, to the extent that the Grüneisen parameter increased significantly and became a source of contrast. Iron oxide particles were found to produce low but measurable dielectric contrast due to dielectric polarization loss, but this is attributed to the coating of the particles not the iron oxide. Single wall carbon nanotubes did not provide measurable contrast of any type

Exogenous contrast agents for thermoacoustic imaging: An investigation into the underlying sources of contrast

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ogunlade, Olumide, E-mail: o.ogunlade@ucl.ac.uk; Beard, Paul [Department of Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, University College London, London WC1E 6BT (United Kingdom)

2015-01-15

Purpose: Thermoacoustic imaging at microwave excitation frequencies is limited by the low differential contrast exhibited by high water content tissues. To overcome this, exogenous thermoacoustic contrast agents based on gadolinium compounds, iron oxide, and single wall carbon nanotubes have previously been suggested and investigated. However, these previous studies did not fully characterize the electric, magnetic, and thermodynamic properties of these agents thus precluding identification of the underlying sources of contrast. To address this, measurements of the complex permittivity, complex permeability, DC conductivity, and Grüneisen parameter have been made. These measurements allowed the origins of the contrast provided by each substance to be identified. Methods: The electric and magnetic properties of the contrast agents were characterized at 3 GHz using two rectangular waveguide cavities. The DC conductivity was measured separately using a conductivity meter. Thermoacoustic signals were then acquired and compared to those generated in water. Finally, 3D electromagnetic simulations were used to decouple the different contributions to the absorbed power density. Results: It was found that the gadolinium compounds provided appreciable electric contrast but not originating from the gadolinium itself. The contrast was either due to dissociation of the gadolinium salt which increased ionic conductivity or its nondissociated polar fraction which increased dielectric polarization loss or a combination of both. In addition, very high concentrations were required to achieve appreciable contrast, to the extent that the Grüneisen parameter increased significantly and became a source of contrast. Iron oxide particles were found to produce low but measurable dielectric contrast due to dielectric polarization loss, but this is attributed to the coating of the particles not the iron oxide. Single wall carbon nanotubes did not provide measurable contrast of any type

Edge Contrast of the FLAIR Hyperintense Region Predicts Survival in Patients with High-Grade Gliomas following Treatment with Bevacizumab.

Science.gov (United States)

Bahrami, N; Piccioni, D; Karunamuni, R; Chang, Y-H; White, N; Delfanti, R; Seibert, T M; Hattangadi-Gluth, J A; Dale, A; Farid, N; McDonald, C R

2018-04-05

Treatment with bevacizumab is standard of care for recurrent high-grade gliomas; however, monitoring response to treatment following bevacizumab remains a challenge. The purpose of this study was to determine whether quantifying the sharpness of the fluid-attenuated inversion recovery hyperintense border using a measure derived from texture analysis-edge contrast-improves the evaluation of response to bevacizumab in patients with high-grade gliomas. MRIs were evaluated in 33 patients with high-grade gliomas before and after the initiation of bevacizumab. Volumes of interest within the FLAIR hyperintense region were segmented. Edge contrast magnitude for each VOI was extracted using gradients of the 3D FLAIR images. Cox proportional hazards models were generated to determine the relationship between edge contrast and progression-free survival/overall survival using age and the extent of surgical resection as covariates. After bevacizumab, lower edge contrast of the FLAIR hyperintense region was associated with poorer progression-free survival ( P = .009) and overall survival ( P = .022) among patients with high-grade gliomas. Kaplan-Meier curves revealed that edge contrast cutoff significantly stratified patients for both progression-free survival (log-rank χ 2 = 8.3, P = .003) and overall survival (log-rank χ 2 = 5.5, P = .019). Texture analysis using edge contrast of the FLAIR hyperintense region may be an important predictive indicator in patients with high-grade gliomas following treatment with bevacizumab. Specifically, low FLAIR edge contrast may partially reflect areas of early tumor infiltration. This study adds to a growing body of literature proposing that quantifying features may be important for determining outcomes in patients with high-grade gliomas. © 2018 by American Journal of Neuroradiology.

Microbubble Composition and Preparation for High-Frequency Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Imaging: In Vitro and in Vivo Evaluation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

V. Daeichin (Verya); T. van Rooij (Tom); I. Skachkov (Ilya); B. Ergin (Bulent); P. Specht (Patricia); A.A.P. Lima (Alexandre ); C. Ince (Can); J.G. Bosch (Hans); A.F.W. van der Steen (Ton); N. de Jong (Nico); K. Kooiman (Klazina)

2017-01-01

textabstractAlthough high-frequency ultrasound imaging is gaining attention in various applications, hardly any ultrasound contrast agents (UCAs) dedicated to such frequencies (>15 MHz) are available for contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) imaging. Moreover, the composition of the limited

Semi-analytical approach for guided mode resonance in high-index-contrast photonic crystal slab: TE polarization.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Yi; Peng, Chao; Li, Zhengbin

2013-09-09

In high-contrast (HC) photonic crystals (PC) slabs, the high-order coupling is so intense that it is indispensable for analyzing the guided mode resonance (GMR) effect. In this paper, a semi-analytical approach is proposed for analyzing GMR in HC PC slabs with TE-like polarization. The intense high-order coupling is included by using a convergent recursive procedure. The reflection of radiative waves at high-index-contrast interfaces is also considered by adopting a strict Green's function for multi-layer structures. Modal properties of interest like band structure, radiation constant, field profile are calculated, agreeing well with numerical finite-difference time-domain simulations. This analysis is promising for the design and optimization of various HC PC devices.

Microbubble Composition and Preparation for High-Frequency Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Imaging : In Vitro and in Vivo Evaluation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Daeichin, Verya; van Rooij, Tom; Skachkov, Ilya; Ergin, Bulent; Specht, Patricia A.C.; Lima, Alexandre; Ince, Can; Bosch, Johan G.; van der Steen, A.F.W.; de Jong, N.; Kooiman, Klazina

2017-01-01

Although high-frequency ultrasound imaging is gaining attention in various applications, hardly any ultrasound contrast agents (UCAs) dedicated to such frequencies (>15 MHz) are available for contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) imaging. Moreover, the composition of the limited commercially

Microbubble Composition and Preparation for High-Frequency Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Imaging: In Vitro and In Vivo Evaluation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Daeichin, Verya; van Rooij, Tom; Skachkov, Ilya; Ergin, Bulent; Specht, Patricia A. C.; Lima, Alexandre; Ince, Can; Bosch, Johan G.; van der Steen, Antonius F. W.; de Jong, Nico; Kooiman, Klazina

2017-01-01

Although high-frequency ultrasound imaging is gaining attention in various applications, hardly any ultrasound contrast agents (UCAs) dedicated to such frequencies (>15 MHz) are available for contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) imaging. Moreover, the composition of the limited commercially available

Electron acceleration via high contrast laser interacting with submicron clusters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Lu; Chen Liming; Wang Weiming; Yan Wenchao; Yuan Dawei; Mao Jingyi; Wang Zhaohua; Liu Cheng; Shen Zhongwei; Li Yutong; Dong Quanli; Lu Xin; Ma Jinglong; Wei Zhiyi; Faenov, Anatoly; Pikuz, Tatiana; Li Dazhang; Sheng Zhengming; Zhang Jie

2012-01-01

We experimentally investigated electron acceleration from submicron size argon clusters-gas target irradiated by a 100 fs, 10 TW laser pulses having a high-contrast. Electron beams are observed in the longitudinal and transverse directions to the laser propagation. The measured energy of the longitudinal electron reaches 600 MeV and the charge of the electron beam in the transverse direction is more than 3 nC. A two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulation of the interaction has been performed and it shows an enhancement of electron charge by using the cluster-gas target.

Polarization-independent high-index contrast grating and its fabrication tolerances

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ikeda, Kazuhiro; Takeuchi, Kazuma; Takayose, Kentaro

2013-01-01

also investigated the fabrication tolerances of the structure and found that, assuming careful optimizations of electron beam lithography for the precise grating width and dry-etching for the vertical sidewall, the suggested polarization-independent HCG can be fabricated using standard technologies.......A polarization-independent, high-index contrast grating (HCG) with a single layer of cross stripes allowing simple fabrication is proposed. Since the cross stripes structure can be suspended in air by selectively wet-etching the layer below, all the layers can be grown at once when implemented...

Photoacoustic contrast imaging of biological tissues with nanodiamonds fabricated for high near-infrared absorbance.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Ti; Cui, Huizhong; Fang, Chia-Yi; Su, Long-Jyun; Ren, Shenqiang; Chang, Huan-Cheng; Yang, Xinmai; Forrest, M Laird

2013-02-01

Radiation-damaged nanodiamonds (DNDs) are potentially ideal optical contrast agents for photoacoustic (PA) imaging in biological tissues due to their low toxicity and high optical absorbance. PA imaging contrast agents have been limited to quantum dots and gold particles, since most existing carbon-based nanoparticles, including fluorescent nanodiamonds, do not have sufficient optical absorption in the near-infrared (NIR) range. A new DND by He+ ion beam irradiation with very high NIR absorption was synthesized. These DNDs produced a 71-fold higher PA signal on a molar basis than similarly dimensioned gold nanorods, and 7.1 fmol of DNDs injected into rodents could be clearly imaged 3 mm below the skin surface with PA signal enhancement of 567% using an 820-nm laser wavelength.

Quantitative reconstruction of the nonvolatile sensometabolome of a red wine.

Science.gov (United States)

Hufnagel, Jan Carlos; Hofmann, Thomas

2008-10-08

The first comprehensive quantitative determination of 82 putative taste-active metabolites and mineral salts, the ranking of these compounds in their sensory impact based on dose-over-threshold (DoT) factors, followed by the confirmation of their sensory relevance by taste reconstruction and omission experiments enabled the decoding of the nonvolatile sensometabolome of a red wine. For the first time, the bitterness of the red wine could be demonstrated to be induced by subthreshold concentrations of phenolic acid ethyl esters and flavan-3-ols. Whereas the velvety astringent onset was imparted by three flavon-3-ol glucosides and dihydroflavon-3-ol rhamnosides, the puckering astringent offset was caused by a polymeric fraction exhibiting molecular masses above >5 kDa and was found to be amplified by the organic acids. The perceived sourness was imparted by l-tartaric acid, d-galacturonic acid, acetic acid, succinic acid, l-malic acid, and l-lactic acid and was slightly suppressed by the chlorides of potassium, magnesium, and ammonium, respectively. In addition, d-fructose and glycerol as well as subthreshold concentrations of glucose, 1,2-propandiol, and myo-inositol were found to be responsible for the sweetness, whereas the mouthfulness and body of the red wine were induced only by glycerol, 1,2-propandiol, and myo-inositol.

Design of a compact high-energy setup for x-ray phase-contrast imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Schüttler, Markus; Yaroshenko, Andre; Bech, Martin; Potdevin, Guillaume; Malecki, Andreas; Chabior, Michael; Wolf, Johannes; Tapfer, Arne; Meiser, Jan; Kunka, Danays; Amberger, Maximilian; Mohr, Jürgen; Pfeiffer, Franz

2014-03-01

The main shortcoming of conventional biomedical x-ray imaging is the weak soft-tissue contrast caused by the small differences in the absorption coefficients between different materials. This issue can be addressed by x-ray phasesensitive imaging approaches, e.g. x-ray Talbot-Lau grating interferometry. The advantage of the three-grating Talbot-Lau approach is that it allows to acquire x-ray phase-contrast and dark-field images with a conventional lab source. However, through the introduction of the grating interferometer some constraints are imposed on the setup geometry. In general, the grating pitch and the mean x-ray energy determine the setup dimensions. The minimal length of the setup increases linearly with energy and is proportional to p2, where p is the grating pitch. Thus, a high-energy (100 keV) compact grating-based setup for x-ray imaging can be realized only if gratings with aspect-ratio of approximately 300 and a pitch of 1-2 μm were available. However, production challenges limit the availability of such gratings. In this study we consider the use of non-binary phase-gratings as means of designing a more compact grating interferometer for phase-contrast imaging. We present simulation and experimental data for both monochromatic and polychromatic case. The results reveal that phase-gratings with triangular-shaped structures yield visibilities that can be used for imaging purposes at significantly shorter distances than binary gratings. This opens the possibility to design a high-energy compact setup for x-ray phase-contrast imaging. Furthermore, we discuss different techniques to achieve triangular-shaped phase-shifting structures.

High sensitivity phase retrieval method in grating-based x-ray phase contrast imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wu, Zhao; Gao, Kun; Chen, Jian; Wang, Dajiang; Wang, Shenghao; Chen, Heng; Bao, Yuan; Shao, Qigang; Wang, Zhili, E-mail: wangnsrl@ustc.edu.cn [National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230029 (China); Zhang, Kai [Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049 (China); Zhu, Peiping; Wu, Ziyu, E-mail: wuzy@ustc.edu.cn [National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230029, China and Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049 (China)

2015-02-15

Purpose: Grating-based x-ray phase contrast imaging is considered as one of the most promising techniques for future medical imaging. Many different methods have been developed to retrieve phase signal, among which the phase stepping (PS) method is widely used. However, further practical implementations are hindered, due to its complex scanning mode and high radiation dose. In contrast, the reverse projection (RP) method is a novel fast and low dose extraction approach. In this contribution, the authors present a quantitative analysis of the noise properties of the refraction signals retrieved by the two methods and compare their sensitivities. Methods: Using the error propagation formula, the authors analyze theoretically the signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) of the refraction images retrieved by the two methods. Then, the sensitivities of the two extraction methods are compared under an identical exposure dose. Numerical experiments are performed to validate the theoretical results and provide some quantitative insight. Results: The SNRs of the two methods are both dependent on the system parameters, but in different ways. Comparison between their sensitivities reveals that for the refraction signal, the RP method possesses a higher sensitivity, especially in the case of high visibility and/or at the edge of the object. Conclusions: Compared with the PS method, the RP method has a superior sensitivity and provides refraction images with a higher SNR. Therefore, one can obtain highly sensitive refraction images in grating-based phase contrast imaging. This is very important for future preclinical and clinical implementations.

High sensitivity phase retrieval method in grating-based x-ray phase contrast imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu, Zhao; Gao, Kun; Chen, Jian; Wang, Dajiang; Wang, Shenghao; Chen, Heng; Bao, Yuan; Shao, Qigang; Wang, Zhili; Zhang, Kai; Zhu, Peiping; Wu, Ziyu

2015-01-01

Purpose: Grating-based x-ray phase contrast imaging is considered as one of the most promising techniques for future medical imaging. Many different methods have been developed to retrieve phase signal, among which the phase stepping (PS) method is widely used. However, further practical implementations are hindered, due to its complex scanning mode and high radiation dose. In contrast, the reverse projection (RP) method is a novel fast and low dose extraction approach. In this contribution, the authors present a quantitative analysis of the noise properties of the refraction signals retrieved by the two methods and compare their sensitivities. Methods: Using the error propagation formula, the authors analyze theoretically the signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) of the refraction images retrieved by the two methods. Then, the sensitivities of the two extraction methods are compared under an identical exposure dose. Numerical experiments are performed to validate the theoretical results and provide some quantitative insight. Results: The SNRs of the two methods are both dependent on the system parameters, but in different ways. Comparison between their sensitivities reveals that for the refraction signal, the RP method possesses a higher sensitivity, especially in the case of high visibility and/or at the edge of the object. Conclusions: Compared with the PS method, the RP method has a superior sensitivity and provides refraction images with a higher SNR. Therefore, one can obtain highly sensitive refraction images in grating-based phase contrast imaging. This is very important for future preclinical and clinical implementations

Low osmolar (non-ionic) contrast media versus high osmolar (ionic) contrast media in intravenous urography and enhanced computerized tomography: a cost-effectiveness analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Wangsuphachart, S

1991-12-01

The cost-effectiveness of three alternative policies for the use of intravenous contrast media for urography and enhanced computerized tomography (CT) are analyzed. Alternative #1 is to use high osmolar contrast media (HOCM) in all patients, the historical policy. Alternative #2 is to replace it with low osmolar contrast media (LOCM) in all patients. Alternative #3 is to use LOCM only in the high risk patients. Data on the 6,242 patients who underwent intravenous urography and enhanced CT at the Department of Radiology, Chulalongkorn Hospital in 1989 were used. Both societal and hospital viewpoints were analyzed. The incremental cost-effectiveness (ICE) between #2 and #1 was 26,739 Baht (US$1,070) per healthy day saved (HDS), while the ICE between #3 and #1 was 12,057 Baht (US$482) per HDS. For fatal cases only, ICE between #2 and #1 was 35,111 Baht (US$1,404) per HDS, while the ICE between #3 and #1 was 18,266 Baht (US$731) per HDS. The incremental cost (IC) per patient was 2,341 Baht (US$94) and 681 Baht (US$27) respectively. For the hospital viewpoint the ICE between #2 and #1 was 13,744 (US$550) and between #3 and #1 was 6,127 Baht (US$245) per HDS. The IC per patient was 1,203 Baht (US$48) and 346 Baht (US$14), respectively. From the sensitivity analysis, #3 should be used if the LOCM price is reduced more than 75% (equal to 626 Baht or less) and more than 80% of the patients are able to pay for the contrast media.

NEW TECHNIQUES FOR HIGH-CONTRAST IMAGING WITH ADI: THE ACORNS-ADI SEEDS DATA REDUCTION PIPELINE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brandt, Timothy D.; Turner, Edwin L.; McElwain, Michael W.; Grady, C. A.; Abe, L.; Brandner, W.; Feldt, M.; Henning, T.; Carson, J.; Egner, S.; Golota, T.; Guyon, O.; Hayano, Y.; Hayashi, S.; Ishii, M.; Goto, M.; Hashimoto, J.; Hayashi, M.; Iye, M.; Hodapp, K. W.

2013-01-01

We describe Algorithms for Calibration, Optimized Registration, and Nulling the Star in Angular Differential Imaging (ACORNS-ADI), a new, parallelized software package to reduce high-contrast imaging data, and its application to data from the SEEDS survey. We implement several new algorithms, including a method to register saturated images, a trimmed mean for combining an image sequence that reduces noise by up to ∼20%, and a robust and computationally fast method to compute the sensitivity of a high-contrast observation everywhere on the field of view without introducing artificial sources. We also include a description of image processing steps to remove electronic artifacts specific to Hawaii2-RG detectors like the one used for SEEDS, and a detailed analysis of the Locally Optimized Combination of Images (LOCI) algorithm commonly used to reduce high-contrast imaging data. ACORNS-ADI is written in python. It is efficient and open-source, and includes several optional features which may improve performance on data from other instruments. ACORNS-ADI requires minimal modification to reduce data from instruments other than HiCIAO. It is freely available for download at www.github.com/t-brandt/acorns-adi under a Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD) license.

Origami-based tunable truss structures for non-volatile mechanical memory operation.

Science.gov (United States)

Yasuda, Hiromi; Tachi, Tomohiro; Lee, Mia; Yang, Jinkyu

2017-10-17

Origami has recently received significant interest from the scientific community as a method for designing building blocks to construct metamaterials. However, the primary focus has been placed on their kinematic applications by leveraging the compactness and auxeticity of planar origami platforms. Here, we present volumetric origami cells-specifically triangulated cylindrical origami (TCO)-with tunable stability and stiffness, and demonstrate their feasibility as non-volatile mechanical memory storage devices. We show that a pair of TCO cells can develop a double-well potential to store bit information. What makes this origami-based approach more appealing is the realization of two-bit mechanical memory, in which two pairs of TCO cells are interconnected and one pair acts as a control for the other pair. By assembling TCO-based truss structures, we experimentally verify the tunable nature of the TCO units and demonstrate the operation of purely mechanical one- and two-bit memory storage prototypes.Origami is a popular method to design building blocks for mechanical metamaterials. Here, the authors assemble a volumetric origami-based structure, predict its axial and rotational movements during folding, and demonstrate the operation of mechanical one- and two-bit memory storage.

The MONOS memory transistor: application in a radiation-hard nonvolatile RAM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brown, W.D.

1985-01-01

The MONOS (metal-oxide-nitride-oxide-silicon) device is a prime candidate for use as the nonvolatile memory element in a radiation-hardened RAM (random-access memory). The endurance, retention and radiation properties of MONOS memory transistors have been studied as a function of post nitride deposition annealing. Following the nitride layer deposition, all devices were subjected to an 800 0 C oxidation step and some were then annealed at 900 0 C in nitrogen. The nitrogen anneal produces an increase in memory window size of approximately 40%. The memory window center of the annealed devices is shifted toward more positive voltages and is more stable with endurance cycling. Endurance cycling to 10 9 cycles produces a 20% increase in memory window size and a 60% increase in decay rate. For a radiation total dose of 10 6 rads (Si), the memory window size is essentially unchanged and the decay rate increases approximately 13%. A combination of 10 9 cycles and 10 6 rads (Si) reduces the decades of retention (in sec) from 6.3 to 4.3 for a +- 23-V 16-μsec write/erase pulse. (author)

Multi-floor cascading ferroelectric nanostructures: multiple data writing-based multi-level non-volatile memory devices

Science.gov (United States)

Hyun, Seung; Kwon, Owoong; Lee, Bom-Yi; Seol, Daehee; Park, Beomjin; Lee, Jae Yong; Lee, Ju Hyun; Kim, Yunseok; Kim, Jin Kon

2016-01-01

Multiple data writing-based multi-level non-volatile memory has gained strong attention for next-generation memory devices to quickly accommodate an extremely large number of data bits because it is capable of storing multiple data bits in a single memory cell at once. However, all previously reported devices have failed to store a large number of data bits due to the macroscale cell size and have not allowed fast access to the stored data due to slow single data writing. Here, we introduce a novel three-dimensional multi-floor cascading polymeric ferroelectric nanostructure, successfully operating as an individual cell. In one cell, each floor has its own piezoresponse and the piezoresponse of one floor can be modulated by the bias voltage applied to the other floor, which means simultaneously written data bits in both floors can be identified. This could achieve multi-level memory through a multiple data writing process.Multiple data writing-based multi-level non-volatile memory has gained strong attention for next-generation memory devices to quickly accommodate an extremely large number of data bits because it is capable of storing multiple data bits in a single memory cell at once. However, all previously reported devices have failed to store a large number of data bits due to the macroscale cell size and have not allowed fast access to the stored data due to slow single data writing. Here, we introduce a novel three-dimensional multi-floor cascading polymeric ferroelectric nanostructure, successfully operating as an individual cell. In one cell, each floor has its own piezoresponse and the piezoresponse of one floor can be modulated by the bias voltage applied to the other floor, which means simultaneously written data bits in both floors can be identified. This could achieve multi-level memory through a multiple data writing process. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr07377d

Contrast-enhanced ultra-high-field liver MRI: A feasibility trial

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Umutlu, Lale, E-mail: Lale.Umutlu@uk-essen.de [Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Hospital Essen (Germany); Erwin L. Hahn Institute for Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Essen (Germany); Bitz, Andreas K.; Maderwald, Stefan; Orzada, Stephan; Kinner, Sonja; Kraff, Oliver; Brote, Irina; Ladd, Susanne C.; Schroeder, Tobias; Forsting, Michael; Antoch, Gerald; Ladd, Mark E. [Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Hospital Essen (Germany); Erwin L. Hahn Institute for Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Essen (Germany); Quick, Harald H. [Erwin L. Hahn Institute for Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Essen (Germany); Institute of Medical Physics, University Nuernberg-Erlangen (Germany); Lauenstein, Thomas C. [Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Hospital Essen (Germany); Erwin L. Hahn Institute for Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Essen (Germany)

2013-05-15

The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of dynamic contrast-enhanced 7 T MRI of the liver using an eight-channel radiofrequency (RF) transmit/receive body-coil. 16 healthy subjects were examined on a 7 T MR system utilizing a custom-built eight-channel RF body-coil suitable for RF-shimming. The following data were acquired: (1) steady state free precession imaging, (2) T2w turbo spin echo imaging, (3) T1w in and opposed-phase imaging, (4) T1w 3D FLASH images pre-contrast and in arterial, portal-venous and venous phase and (5) a fat-saturated pre- and post-contrast 2D FLASH sequence. Visual evaluation of (1) the delineation of liver vasculature, (2) the overall image quality, and (3) artifact presence and consequent image impairment was performed. SNR of the liver parenchyma was measured for the contrast-enhanced 2D and 3D FLASH sequences. For statistical analysis, a Wilcoxon-Rank Test was used. Best delineation of non-enhanced liver vasculature and overall image quality was found for 2D FLASH MRI, with only slight improvement in vessel conspicuity after the application of contrast media. T2-weighted TSE imaging remained strongly impaired, falling short of diagnostic relevance and precluding a clinical application. Our results demonstrate the feasibility and diagnostic potential of dedicated contrast-enhanced 7 T liver MRI as well as the potential for non-contrast-enhanced angiographic application.

Functionalized Graphitic Carbon Nitride for Metal-free, Flexible and Rewritable Nonvolatile Memory Device via Direct Laser-Writing

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Fei; Cheng, Huhu; Hu, Yue; Song, Long; Zhang, Zhipan; Jiang, Lan; Qu, Liangti

2014-01-01

Graphitic carbon nitride nanosheet (g-C3N4-NS) has layered structure similar with graphene nanosheet and presents unusual physicochemical properties due to the s-triazine fragments. But their electronic and electrochemical applications are limited by the relatively poor conductivity. The current work provides the first example that atomically thick g-C3N4-NSs are the ideal candidate as the active insulator layer with tunable conductivity for achieving the high performance memory devices with electrical bistability. Unlike in conventional memory diodes, the g-C3N4-NSs based devices combined with graphene layer electrodes are flexible, metal-free and low cost. The functionalized g-C3N4-NSs exhibit desirable dispersibility and dielectricity which support the all-solution fabrication and high performance of the memory diodes. Moreover, the flexible memory diodes are conveniently fabricated through the fast laser writing process on graphene oxide/g-C3N4-NSs/graphene oxide thin film. The obtained devices not only have the nonvolatile electrical bistability with great retention and endurance, but also show the rewritable memory effect with a reliable ON/OFF ratio of up to 105, which is the highest among all the metal-free flexible memory diodes reported so far, and even higher than those of metal-containing devices. PMID:25073687

High-resolution observation of phase contrast at 1MeV. Amorphous or crystalline objects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bourret, A.; Desseaux, J.

1975-01-01

Many authors have stressed the possibilities of high voltage to improve resolution, but owing to numerous experimental difficulties the resolution limit at 1MeV, which lies around 1A for conventional lenses, has so far been unattainable. Thus the phase contrast at 1MeV has not been studied on evaporated objects. On the other hand the fringes of crystal planes have been observed at 1MeV. the CEN-G microscope having been considerably modified it has been possible to observe the phase contrast of amorphous or crystalline objects [fr

Probing ultrafast dynamics of solid-density plasma generated by high-contrast intense laser pulses

Science.gov (United States)

Jana, Kamalesh; Blackman, David R.; Shaikh, Moniruzzaman; Lad, Amit D.; Sarkar, Deep; Dey, Indranuj; Robinson, Alex P. L.; Pasley, John; Ravindra Kumar, G.

2018-01-01

We present ultrafast dynamics of solid-density plasma created by high-contrast (picosecond contrast ˜10-9), high-intensity (˜4 × 1018 W/cm2) laser pulses using time-resolved pump-probe Doppler spectrometry. Experiments show a rapid rise in blue-shift at early time delay (2-4.3 ps) followed by a rapid fall (4.3-8.3 ps) and then a slow rise in blue-shift at later time delays (>8.3 ps). Simulations show that the early-time observations, specifically the absence of any red-shifting of the reflected probe, can only be reproduced if the front surface is unperturbed by the laser pre-pulse at the moment that the high intensity pulse arrives. A flexible diagnostic which is capable of diagnosing the presence of low-levels of pre-plasma formation would be useful for potential applications in laser-produced proton and ion production, such as cancer therapy and security imaging.

High-contrast imaging of mycobacterium tuberculosis using third-harmonic generation microscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Bo Ram; Lee, Eungjang; Park, Seung-Han

2015-07-01

Nonlinear optical microcopy has become an important tool in investigating biomaterials due to its various advantages such as label-free imaging capabilities. In particular, it has been shown that third-harmonic generation (THG) signals can be produced at interfaces between an aqueous medium (e.g. cytoplasm, interstitial fluid) and a mineralized lipidic surface. In this work, we have demonstrated that label-free high-contrast THG images of the mycobacterium tuberculosis can be obtained using THG microscopy.

An eigenfunction method for reconstruction of large-scale and high-contrast objects.

Science.gov (United States)

Waag, Robert C; Lin, Feng; Varslot, Trond K; Astheimer, Jeffrey P

2007-07-01

A multiple-frequency inverse scattering method that uses eigenfunctions of a scattering operator is extended to image large-scale and high-contrast objects. The extension uses an estimate of the scattering object to form the difference between the scattering by the object and the scattering by the estimate of the object. The scattering potential defined by this difference is expanded in a basis of products of acoustic fields. These fields are defined by eigenfunctions of the scattering operator associated with the estimate. In the case of scattering objects for which the estimate is radial, symmetries in the expressions used to reconstruct the scattering potential greatly reduce the amount of computation. The range of parameters over which the reconstruction method works well is illustrated using calculated scattering by different objects. The method is applied to experimental data from a 48-mm diameter scattering object with tissue-like properties. The image reconstructed from measurements has, relative to a conventional B-scan formed using a low f-number at the same center frequency, significantly higher resolution and less speckle, implying that small, high-contrast structures can be demonstrated clearly using the extended method.

Iodinated contrast media nephrotoxicity. Nephrotoxicite des produits de contraste iodes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Meyrier, A. (Hopital Avicenne, 93 - Bobigny (France))

1994-01-01

In the late seventies, iodinated contrast agents (ICA) were considered to be a major cause of acute iatrogenic renal failure. Over the last decade new contrast agents have been synthesized, nonionic and less hyperosmolar. The incidence of acute renal failure due to ICAs, varies from 3.7 to 70% of cases according to the series, with an average figure of 10.2%. The pathophysiology of ICA nephrotoxicity was mainly studied in laboratory animal models. Three main factors are involved in an inducing ICA-mediated decrease in glomerular filtration rate: reduction of the renal plasma flow, a direct cytotoxic effect on renal tubular cells and erythrocyte alteration leading to intra-renal sludge. Excluding dysglobulinemias with urinary excretion of immunoglobulin light chains, which represent a special case of maximum nephrotoxicity, 4 main risk factors of renal toxicity have been identified in nondiabetic subjects: previous renal failure with serum creatinine levels greater than 140 [mu]mol per liter, extracellular dehydration, age over 60 and use of high doses of ICA and/or repeated ICA injections before serum creatinine levels return to baseline. Preventive measures for avoiding ICA nephrotoxicity are threefold: maintain or restore adequate hydration with saline infusion, stop NSAID treatment several days before ICA administration, and allow a 5 day interval before repeating contrast media injections. New, nonionic and moderately hyperosmolar contrast agents appear to be much less nephrotoxic than conventional ICAs in laboratory animals and in high-risk patients. It is advisable to select such contrast media for investigating high-risk patients. This approach was recently substantiated in well designed, randomized clinical studies which included more than 2 000 patients. (author).

High frequency nonlinear scattering from a micrometer to submicrometer sized lipid encapsulated contrast agent

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Goertz, David E.; Frijlink, Martijn E.; de Jong, N.; van der Steen, A.F.W.

2006-01-01

An experimental lipid encapsulated contrast agent comprised substantially of micrometer to submicrometer diameter bubbles was evaluated for its capacity to produce nonlinear scattering in response to high transmit frequencies. Agent characterization experiments were conducted at transmit frequencies

Nonvolatile, semivolatile, or volatile: redefining volatile for volatile organic compounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Võ, Uyên-Uyén T; Morris, Michael P

2014-06-01

Although widely used in air quality regulatory frameworks, the term "volatile organic compound" (VOC) is poorly defined. Numerous standardized tests are currently used in regulations to determine VOC content (and thus volatility), but in many cases the tests do not agree with each other, nor do they always accurately represent actual evaporation rates under ambient conditions. The parameters (time, temperature, reference material, column polarity, etc.) used in the definitions and the associated test methods were created without a significant evaluation of volatilization characteristics in real world settings. Not only do these differences lead to varying VOC content results, but occasionally they conflict with one another. An ambient evaporation study of selected compounds and a few formulated products was conducted and the results were compared to several current VOC test methodologies: SCAQMD Method 313 (M313), ASTM Standard Test Method E 1868-10 (E1868), and US. EPA Reference Method 24 (M24). The ambient evaporation study showed a definite distinction between nonvolatile, semivolatile, and volatile compounds. Some low vapor pressure (LVP) solvents, currently considered exempt as VOCs by some methods, volatilize at ambient conditions nearly as rapidly as the traditional high-volatility solvents they are meant to replace. Conversely, bio-based and heavy hydrocarbons did not readily volatilize, though they often are calculated as VOCs in some traditional test methods. The study suggests that regulatory standards should be reevaluated to more accurately reflect real-world emission from the use of VOC containing products. The definition of VOC in current test methods may lead to regulations that exclude otherwise viable alternatives or allow substitutions of chemicals that may limit the environmental benefits sought in the regulation. A study was conducted to examine volatility of several compounds and a few formulated products under several current VOC test

Contrast-enhanced peripheral MRA. Technique and contrast agents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nielsen, Yousef W.; Thomsen, Henrik S.

2012-01-01

In the last decade contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography (CE-MRA) has gained wide acceptance as a valuable tool in the diagnostic work-up of patients with peripheral arterial disease. This review presents current concepts in peripheral CE-MRA with emphasis on MRI technique and contrast agents. Peripheral CE-MRA is defined as an MR angiogram of the arteries from the aortic bifurcation to the feet. Advantages of CE-MRA include minimal invasiveness and lack of ionizing radiation. The basic technique employed for peripheral CE-MRA is the bolus-chase method. With this method a paramagnetic MRI contrast agent is injected intravenously and T1-weighted images are acquired in the subsequent arterial first-pass phase. In order to achieve high quality MR angiograms without interfering venous contamination or artifacts, a number of factors need to be taken into account. This includes magnetic field strength of the MRI system, receiver coil configuration, use of parallel imaging, contrast bolus timing technique, and k-space filling strategies. Furthermore, it is possible to optimize peripheral CE-MRA using venous compression techniques, hybrid scan protocols, time-resolved imaging, and steady-state MRA. Gadolinium(Gd)-based contrast agents are used for CE-MRA of the peripheral arteries. Extracellular Gd agents have a pharmacokinetic profile similar to iodinated contrast media. Accordingly, these agents are employed for first-pass MRA. Blood-pool Gd-based agents are characterized by prolonged intravascular stay, due to macromolecular structure or protein binding. These agents can be used for first-pass, as well as steady-state MRA. Some Gd-based contrast agents with low thermodynamic stability have been linked to development of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis in patients with severe renal insufficiency. Using optimized technique and a stable MRI contrast agent, peripheral CE-MRA is a safe procedure with diagnostic accuracy close to that of conventional catheter X

Current Status and Future Prospects of "J-KAREN" — High Contrast, High Intensity Laser for Studying Relativistic Laser-Matter Interactions

Science.gov (United States)

Kiriyama, Hiromitsu; Mori, Michiaki; Okada, Hajime; Shimomura, Takuya; Nakai, Yoshiki; Tanoue, Manabu; Kondo, Shuji; Kanazawa, Shuhei; Yogo, Akifumi; Sagisaka, Akito; Ogura, Koichi; Hayashi, Yukio; Sakaki, Hironao; Pirozhkov, Alexander S.; Kotaki, Hideyuki; Fukuda, Yuji; Nishiuchi, Mamiko; Kando, Masaki; Bulanov, Sergei V.; Yamagiwa, Mitsuru; Kondo, Kiminori; Sugiyama, Akira; Bolton, Paul R.

We present the design and characterization of a high-contrast, petawatt-class Ti:sapphire chirped-pulse amplification (CPA) laser system. Two saturable absorbers and low-gain optical parametric chirped-pulse amplification (OPCPA) preamplifier in the double CPA laser chain have improved the temporal contrast to 1.4 × 1012 on the subnanosecond time scale at 70 terawatt level. Final uncompressed broadband pulse energy is 28 J, indicating the potential for reaching peak power near 600 terawatt. We also discuss the going upgrade to over petawatt level at a 0.1 Hz repetition rate briefly.

Experimental determination of net protein charge and A(tot) and K(a) of nonvolatile buffers in canine plasma.

Science.gov (United States)

Constable, Peter D; Stämpfli, Henry R

2005-01-01

Acid-base abnormalities frequently are present in sick dogs. The mechanism for an acid-base disturbance can be determined with the simplified strong ion approach, which requires accurate values for the total concentration of plasma nonvolatile buffers (A(tot)) and the effective dissociation constant for plasma weak acids (K(a)). The aims of this study were to experimentally determine A(tot) and K(a) values for canine plasma. Plasma was harvested from 10 healthy dogs; the concentrations of quantitatively important strong ions (Na+, K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Cl-, L-lactate) and nonvolatile buffer ions (total protein, albumin, phosphate) were determined; and the plasma was tonometered with CO2 at 37 degrees C. Strong ion difference (SID) was calculated from the measured strong ion concentrations, and nonlinear regression was used to estimate values for A(tot) and K(a), which were validated with data from an in vitro and in vivo study. Mean (+/- SD) values for canine plasma were A(tot) = (17.4 +/- 8.6) mM (equivalent to 0.273 mmol/g of total protein or 0.469 mmol/g of albumin); K(a) = (0.17 +/- 0.11) x 10(-7); pK(a) = 7.77. The calculated SID for normal canine plasma (pH = 7.40; P(CO2) = 37 mm Hg; [total protein] = 64 g/L) was 27 mEq/L. The net protein charge for normal canine plasma was 0.25 mEq/g of total protein or 0.42 mEq/g of albumin. Application of the experimentally determined values for A(tot), K(a), and net protein charge should improve understanding of the mechanism for complex acid-base disturbances in dogs.

Untargeted metabolomic analysis using liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry for non-volatile profiling of wines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arbulu, M.; Sampedro, M.C.; Gómez-Caballero, A.; Goicolea, M.A.; Barrio, R.J.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • An untargeted metabolomic method for the non-volatile profile of the Graciano wine was developed. • 411 different metabolites in Graciano Vitis vinifera red wine were identified. • 15 compounds could serve to differentiate Graciano and Tempranillo wines. • An enological database (WinMet) with 2080 compounds was constructed. - Abstract: The current study presents a method for comprehensive untargeted metabolomic fingerprinting of the non-volatile profile of the Graciano Vitis vinifera wine variety, using liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization time of flight mass spectrometry (LC–ESI-QTOF). Pre-treatment of samples, chromatographic columns, mobile phases, elution gradients and ionization sources, were evaluated for the extraction of the maximum number of metabolites in red wine. Putative compounds were extracted from the raw data using the extraction algorithm, molecular feature extractor (MFE). For the metabolite identification the WinMet database was designed based on electronic databases and literature research and includes only the putative metabolites reported to be present in oenological matrices. The results from WinMet were compared with those in the METLIN database to evaluate how much the databases overlap for performing identifications. The reproducibility of the analysis was assessed using manual processing following replicate injections of Vitis vinifera cv. Graciano wine spiked with external standards. In the present work, 411 different metabolites in Graciano Vitis vinifera red wine were identified, including primary wine metabolites such as sugars (4%), amino acids (23%), biogenic amines (4%), fatty acids (2%), and organic acids (32%) and secondary metabolites such as phenols (27%) and esters (8%). Significant differences between varieties Tempranillo and Graciano were related to the presence of fifteen specific compounds

Untargeted metabolomic analysis using liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry for non-volatile profiling of wines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Arbulu, M. [Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of the Basque Country, 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz (Spain); Sampedro, M.C. [Central Service of Analysis, SGIker, University of the Basque Country, 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz (Spain); Gómez-Caballero, A.; Goicolea, M.A. [Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of the Basque Country, 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz (Spain); Barrio, R.J., E-mail: r.barrio@ehu.es [Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of the Basque Country, 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz (Spain)

2015-02-09

Highlights: • An untargeted metabolomic method for the non-volatile profile of the Graciano wine was developed. • 411 different metabolites in Graciano Vitis vinifera red wine were identified. • 15 compounds could serve to differentiate Graciano and Tempranillo wines. • An enological database (WinMet) with 2080 compounds was constructed. - Abstract: The current study presents a method for comprehensive untargeted metabolomic fingerprinting of the non-volatile profile of the Graciano Vitis vinifera wine variety, using liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization time of flight mass spectrometry (LC–ESI-QTOF). Pre-treatment of samples, chromatographic columns, mobile phases, elution gradients and ionization sources, were evaluated for the extraction of the maximum number of metabolites in red wine. Putative compounds were extracted from the raw data using the extraction algorithm, molecular feature extractor (MFE). For the metabolite identification the WinMet database was designed based on electronic databases and literature research and includes only the putative metabolites reported to be present in oenological matrices. The results from WinMet were compared with those in the METLIN database to evaluate how much the databases overlap for performing identifications. The reproducibility of the analysis was assessed using manual processing following replicate injections of Vitis vinifera cv. Graciano wine spiked with external standards. In the present work, 411 different metabolites in Graciano Vitis vinifera red wine were identified, including primary wine metabolites such as sugars (4%), amino acids (23%), biogenic amines (4%), fatty acids (2%), and organic acids (32%) and secondary metabolites such as phenols (27%) and esters (8%). Significant differences between varieties Tempranillo and Graciano were related to the presence of fifteen specific compounds.

Guideline adherence for identification and hydration of high-risk hospital patients for contrast-induced nephropathy.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schilp, J.; Blok, C. de; Langelaan, M.; Spreeuwenberg, P.; Wagner, C.

2014-01-01

Background: Contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) is a common cause of acute renal failure in hospital patients. To prevent CIN, identification and hydration of high-risk patients is important. Prevention of CIN by hydration of high-risk patients was one of the themes to be implemented in the Dutch

Guideline adherence for identification and hydration of high-risk hospital patients for contrast-induced nephropathy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schilp, J.; de Blok, C.; Langelaan, M.; Spreeuwenberg, P.; Wagner, C.

2014-01-01

Background: Contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) is a common cause of acute renal failure in hospital patients. To prevent CIN, identification and hydration of high-risk patients is important. Prevention of CIN by hydration of high-risk patients was one of the themes to be implemented in the Dutch

ARTIFICIAL INCOHERENT SPECKLES ENABLE PRECISION ASTROMETRY AND PHOTOMETRY IN HIGH-CONTRAST IMAGING

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jovanovic, N.; Guyon, O.; Pathak, P.; Kudo, T. [National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, Subaru Telescope, 650 North A’Ohoku Place, Hilo, HI, 96720 (United States); Martinache, F. [Observatoire de la Cote d’Azur, Boulevard de l’Observatoire, F-06304 Nice (France); Hagelberg, J., E-mail: jovanovic.nem@gmail.com [Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii, 2680 Woodlawn Drive, Honolulu, HI 96822 (United States)

2015-11-10

State-of-the-art coronagraphs employed on extreme adaptive optics enabled instruments are constantly improving the contrast detection limit for companions at ever-closer separations from the host star. In order to constrain their properties and, ultimately, compositions, it is important to precisely determine orbital parameters and contrasts with respect to the stars they orbit. This can be difficult in the post-coronagraphic image plane, as by definition the central star has been occulted by the coronagraph. We demonstrate the flexibility of utilizing the deformable mirror in the adaptive optics system of the Subaru Coronagraphic Extreme Adaptive Optics system to generate a field of speckles for the purposes of calibration. Speckles can be placed up to 22.5 λ/D from the star, with any position angle, brightness, and abundance required. Most importantly, we show that a fast modulation of the added speckle phase, between 0 and π, during a long science integration renders these speckles effectively incoherent with the underlying halo. We quantitatively show for the first time that this incoherence, in turn, increases the robustness and stability of the adaptive speckles, which will improve the precision of astrometric and photometric calibration procedures. This technique will be valuable for high-contrast imaging observations with imagers and integral field spectrographs alike.

Electrostatic Switching in Vertically Oriented Nanotubes for Nonvolatile Memory Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Kaul, Anupama B.; Khan, Paul; Jennings, Andrew T.; Greer, Julia R.; Megerian, Krikor G.; Allmen, Paul von

2009-01-01

We have demonstrated electrostatic switching in vertically oriented nanotubes or nanofibers, where a nanoprobe was used as the actuating electrode inside an SEM. When the nanoprobe was manipulated to be in close proximity to a single tube, switching voltages between 10 V - 40 V were observed, depending on the geometrical parameters. The turn-on transitions appeared to be much sharper than the turn-off transitions which were limited by the tube-to-probe contact resistances. In many cases, stiction forces at these dimensions were dominant, since the tube appeared stuck to the probe even after the voltage returned to 0 V, suggesting that such structures are promising for nonvolatile memory applications. The stiction effects, to some extent, can be adjusted by engineering the switch geometry appropriately. Nanoscale mechanical measurements were also conducted on the tubes using a custom-built anoindentor inside an SEM, from which preliminary material parameters, such as the elastic modulus, were extracted. The mechanical measurements also revealed that the tubes appear to be well adhered to the substrate. The material parameters gathered from the mechanical measurements were then used in developing an electrostatic model of the switch using a commercially available finite-element simulator. The calculated pull-in voltages appeared to be in agreement to the experimentally obtained switching voltages to first order.

Direct probing of electron and hole trapping into nano-floating-gate in organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cui, Ze-Qun; Wang, Shun; Chen, Jian-Mei; Gao, Xu; Dong, Bin, E-mail: wangsd@suda.edu.cn, E-mail: chilf@suda.edu.cn, E-mail: bdong@suda.edu.cn; Chi, Li-Feng, E-mail: wangsd@suda.edu.cn, E-mail: chilf@suda.edu.cn, E-mail: bdong@suda.edu.cn; Wang, Sui-Dong, E-mail: wangsd@suda.edu.cn, E-mail: chilf@suda.edu.cn, E-mail: bdong@suda.edu.cn [Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Carbon-Based Functional Materials and Devices, Institute of Functional Nano and Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215123 (China)

2015-03-23

Electron and hole trapping into the nano-floating-gate of a pentacene-based organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memory is directly probed by Kelvin probe force microscopy. The probing is straightforward and non-destructive. The measured surface potential change can quantitatively profile the charge trapping, and the surface characterization results are in good accord with the corresponding device behavior. Both electrons and holes can be trapped into the nano-floating-gate, with a preference of electron trapping than hole trapping. The trapped charge quantity has an approximately linear relation with the programming/erasing gate bias, indicating that the charge trapping in the device is a field-controlled process.

Direct probing of electron and hole trapping into nano-floating-gate in organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cui, Ze-Qun; Wang, Shun; Chen, Jian-Mei; Gao, Xu; Dong, Bin; Chi, Li-Feng; Wang, Sui-Dong

2015-01-01

Electron and hole trapping into the nano-floating-gate of a pentacene-based organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memory is directly probed by Kelvin probe force microscopy. The probing is straightforward and non-destructive. The measured surface potential change can quantitatively profile the charge trapping, and the surface characterization results are in good accord with the corresponding device behavior. Both electrons and holes can be trapped into the nano-floating-gate, with a preference of electron trapping than hole trapping. The trapped charge quantity has an approximately linear relation with the programming/erasing gate bias, indicating that the charge trapping in the device is a field-controlled process

Multiphase contrast-enhanced CT with highly concentrated contrast agent can be used for PET attenuation correction in integrated PET/CT imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aschoff, Philip; Plathow, Christian; Lichy, Matthias P.; Claussen, Claus D.; Pfannenberg, Christina; Beyer, Thomas; Erb, Gunter; Oeksuez, Mehmet Oe.

2012-01-01

State-of-the-art positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) systems incorporate multislice CT technology, thus facilitating the acquisition of multiphase, contrast-enhanced CT data as part of integrated PET/CT imaging protocols. We assess the influence of a highly concentrated iodinated contrast medium (CM) on quantification and image quality following CT-based attenuation correction (CT-AC) in PET/CT. Twenty-eight patients with suspected malignant liver lesions were enrolled prospectively. PET/CT was performed 60 min after injection of 400 MBq of 18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) and following the biphasic administration of an intravenous CM (400 mg iodine/ml, Iomeron 400). PET images were reconstructed with CT-AC using any of four acquired CT image sets: non-enhanced, pre-contrast (n-PET), arterial phase (art-PET), portal venous phase (pv-PET) and late phase (late-PET). Normal tissue activity and liver lesions were assessed visually and quantitatively on each PET/CT image set. Visual assessment of PET following CT-AC revealed no noticeable difference in image appearance or quality when using any of the four CT data sets for CT-AC. A total of 44 PET-positive liver lesions was identified in 21 of 28 patients. There were no false-negative or false-positive lesions on PET. Mean standardized uptake values (SUV) in 36 evaluable lesions were: 5.5 (n-PET), 5.8 (art-PET), 5.8 (pv-PET) and 5.8 (late-PET), with the highest mean increase in mean SUV of 6%. Mean SUV changes in liver background increased by up to 10% from n-PET to pv-PET. Multiphase CT data acquired with the use of highly concentrated CM can be used for qualitative assessment of liver lesions in torso FDG PET/CT. The influence on quantification of FDG uptake is small and negligible for most clinical applications. (orig.)

The TRIDENT laser at LANL: New “dial-a-contrast” and high-contrast experimental capabilities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Flippo K.A.

2013-11-01

Full Text Available The Trident laser facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL has served for more than 20 years as an important tool in inertial confinement fusion (ICF and Material Dynamics research. An energy and power upgrade of the short-pulse beam line to 100J / 200 TW was made in 2007 and contrast improvements have been made continually since. The combination of this powerful new short-pulse beamline with the two flexible long pulse beamlines, and a total of three different target areas, makes Trident a highly flexible and versatile research tool for high energy density laboratory plasma (HEDLP research. The newest “Dial-a-Contrast” (DaC features are described, along with nominal performance of the laser at the presently available highest contrast.

High Contrast Coherent Population Trapping Resonances in Cs Vapour Cells with a Simple-Architecture Laser System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Xiaochi

2013-01-01

This thesis reports the development of a simple-architecture laser system resonant at 895 nm used for the detection of high-contrast coherent population trapping (CPT) resonances in Cs vapor cells. The laser system combines a distributed feedback-diode (DFB) laser, a pigtailed Mach-Zehnder intensity electro-optic modulator (EOM) driven at 4.596 GHz for the generation of optical sidebands frequency-split by 9.192 GHz and a Michelson delay-line system to produce a bi-chromatic optical field that alternates between right and left circular polarization. This polarization pumping scheme, first proposed by Happer's group in Princeton on K atoms, allows to optically pump a maximum number of Cs atoms into the 0-0 magnetic field insensitive clock transition. Advanced noise reduction techniques were implemented in order to stabilize the laser power, the optical carrier suppression at the output of the EOM and the DFB laser frequency. Using this system, we demonstrated the detection of CPT resonances with a contrast of 80% in cm-scale Cs vapor cells. This contrast was measured to be increased until a saturation effect with the laser power at the expense of the CPT line broadening. To circumvent this issue, we proposed with a simple setup Ramsey spectroscopy of CPT resonances in vapor cells to combine high-contrast and narrow line width of the CPT resonances. In this setup, the EOM is used both for optical sidebands generation and light switch to produce Ramsey interaction. Ramsey fringes of 166 Hz line width with a contrast better than 30% were detected with this setup. This laser system will be in a near future devoted to be used for the development of a high-performance CPT-based atomic clock. (author)

1,2-Dibromoethane and chloroform in the rainbow trout (salmo gairdneri): Studies on the distribution of nonvolatile and irreversibly bound metabolites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Darnerud, P.O.; Lund, B.O.; Brittebo, E.B.; Brandt, I.

1989-01-01

The disposition of metabolites from 14 C-labeled 1,2-dibromoethane (DBE) and chloroform (CF) in juvenile rainbow trout was studied by autoradiography and quantitation of tissue radioactivity. Whole-body autoradiography of heated tissue sections showed a considerable level of nonvolatile metabolites of DBE and CF in the liver and certain areas of the body kidney. A lower level of metabolites appeared in the gills, intestinal mucosa, and olfactory rosettes in trouts exposed to DBE- or CF-containing water. Unlike previous studies in rodents, no specific uptake or binding of DBE or CF occurred in the surface epithelia of the upper alimentary tract. Microautoradiography and exhaustive tissue extraction confirmed a high irreversible binding of DBE metabolites in the liver and in a proximal tubular segment of the body kidney in fish exposed to DBE-containing water. A high level of radioactivity in the bile indicated fecal excretion of metabolites from both compounds. The results suggest that there is marked metabolism of DBE and CF in the liver and kidney, whereas the metabolism in the surface epithelia is low. The liver and kidney are proposed to be target organs of toxicity in fish

Non-volatile nano-floating gate memory with Pt-Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} composite nanoparticles and indium gallium zinc oxide channel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hu, Quanli [Myongji University, Department of Nano Science and Engineering (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Seung Chang; Baek, Yoon-Jae [Myongji University, Department of Materials Science and Engineering (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Hyun Ho [Myongji University, Department of Chemical Engineering (Korea, Republic of); Kang, Chi Jung [Myongji University, Department of Nano Science and Engineering (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Hyun-Mi; Kim, Ki-Bum [Seoul National University, Department of Materials Science and Engineering (Korea, Republic of); Yoon, Tae-Sik, E-mail: tsyoon@mju.ac.kr [Myongji University, Department of Nano Science and Engineering (Korea, Republic of)

2013-02-15

Non-volatile nano-floating gate memory characteristics with colloidal Pt-Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} composite nanoparticles with a mostly core-shell structure and indium gallium zinc oxide channel layer were investigated. The Pt-Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} nanoparticles were chemically synthesized through the preferential oxidation of Fe and subsequent pileup of Pt into the core in the colloidal solution. The uniformly assembled nanoparticles' layer could be formed with a density of {approx}3 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 11} cm{sup -2} by a solution-based dip-coating process. The Pt core ({approx}3 nm in diameter) and Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3}-shell ({approx}6 nm in thickness) played the roles of the charge storage node and tunneling barrier, respectively. The device exhibited the hysteresis in current-voltage measurement with a threshold voltage shift of {approx}4.76 V by gate voltage sweeping to +30 V. It also showed the threshold shift of {approx}0.66 V after pulse programming at +20 V for 1 s with retention > {approx}65 % after 10{sup 4} s. These results demonstrate the feasibility of using colloidal nanoparticles with core-shell structure as gate stacks of the charge storage node and tunneling dielectric for low-temperature and solution-based processed non-volatile memory devices.

High Relaxivity Gadolinium Hydroxypyridonate-Viral Capsid Conjugates: Nano-sized MRI Contrast Agents

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Meux, Susan C.; Datta, Ankona; Hooker, Jacob M.; Botta, Mauro; Francis, Matthew B.; Aime, Silvio; Raymond, Kenneth N.

2007-08-29

High relaxivity macromolecular contrast agents based on the conjugation of gadolinium chelates to the interior and exterior surfaces of MS2 viral capsids are assessed. The proton nuclear magnetic relaxation dispersion (NMRD) profiles of the conjugates show up to a five-fold increase in relaxivity, leading to a peak relaxivity (per Gd{sup 3+} ion) of 41.6 mM{sup -1}s{sup -1} at 30 MHz for the internally modified capsids. Modification of the exterior was achieved through conjugation to flexible lysines, while internal modification was accomplished by conjugation to relatively rigid tyrosines. Higher relaxivities were obtained for the internally modified capsids, showing that (1) there is facile diffusion of water to the interior of capsids and (2) the rigidity of the linker attaching the complex to the macromolecule is important for obtaining high relaxivity enhancements. The viral capsid conjugated gadolinium hydroxypyridonate complexes appear to possess two inner-sphere water molecules (q = 2) and the NMRD fittings highlight the differences in the local motion for the internal ({tau}{sub RI} = 440 ps) and external ({tau}{sub RI} = 310 ps) conjugates. These results indicate that there are significant advantages of using the internal surface of the capsids for contrast agent attachment, leaving the exterior surface available for the installation of tissue targeting groups.

Continuously tunable photonic fractional Hilbert transformer using a high-contrast germanium-doped silica-on-silicon microring resonator.

Science.gov (United States)

Shahoei, Hiva; Dumais, Patrick; Yao, Jianping

2014-05-01

We propose and experimentally demonstrate a continuously tunable fractional Hilbert transformer (FHT) based on a high-contrast germanium-doped silica-on-silicon (SOS) microring resonator (MRR). The propagation loss of a high-contrast germanium-doped SOS waveguide can be very small (0.02 dB/cm) while the lossless bend radius can be less than 1 mm. These characteristics lead to the fabrication of an MRR with a high Q-factor and a large free-spectral range (FSR), which is needed to implement a Hilbert transformer (HT). The SOS MRR is strongly polarization dependent. By changing the polarization direction of the input signal, the phase shift introduced at the center of the resonance spectrum is changed. The tunable phase shift at the resonance wavelength can be used to implement a tunable FHT. A germanium-doped SOS MRR with a high-index contrast of 3.8% is fabricated. The use of the fabricated MRR for the implementation of a tunable FHT with tunable orders at 1, 0.85, 0.95, 1.05, and 1.13 for a Gaussian pulse with the temporal full width at half-maximum of 80 ps is experimentally demonstrated.

Dynamics and structure of self-generated magnetics fields on solids following high contrast, high intensity laser irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Albertazzi, B. [LULI, École Polytechnique, CNRS, CEA, UPMC, 91128 Palaiseau (France); INRS-EMT, 1650 bd L. Boulet, J3X1S2, Varennes, Québec (Canada); Graduate School of Engineering, University of Osaka, Suita, Osaka 565-087 (Japan); Chen, S. N.; Fuchs, J., E-mail: julien.fuchs@polytechnique.fr [LULI, École Polytechnique, CNRS, CEA, UPMC, 91128 Palaiseau (France); Institute of Applied Physics, 46 Ulyanov Street, 603950 Nizhny Novgorod (Russian Federation); Antici, P. [INRS-EMT, 1650 bd L. Boulet, J3X1S2, Varennes, Québec (Canada); Dept. SBAI, Universita di Roma “La Sapienza,” Via A. Scarpa 14, 00161 Rome (Italy); Böker, J.; Swantusch, M.; Willi, O. [Institut für Laser-und Plasmaphysik, Heinrich-Heine-Universität, Düsseldorf (Germany); Borghesi, M. [School of Mathematics and Physics, The Queen' s University, Belfast (United Kingdom); Breil, J.; Feugeas, J. L.; Nicolaï, Ph.; Tikhonchuk, V. T.; D' Humières, E. [CELIA, University of Bordeaux - CNRS - CEA, 33405 Talence (France); Dervieux, V.; Nakatsutsumi, M.; Romagnagni, L. [LULI, École Polytechnique, CNRS, CEA, UPMC, 91128 Palaiseau (France); Lancia, L. [Dept. SBAI, Universita di Roma “La Sapienza,” Via A. Scarpa 14, 00161 Rome (Italy); Shepherd, R. [LLNL, East Av., Livermore, California 94550 (United States); Sentoku, Y. [Department of Physics, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada 89557-0058 (United States); Starodubtsev, M. [Institute of Applied Physics, 46 Ulyanov Street, 603950 Nizhny Novgorod (Russian Federation); and others

2015-12-15

The dynamics of self-generated magnetic B-fields produced following the interaction of a high contrast, high intensity (I > 10{sup 19 }W cm{sup −2}) laser beam with thin (3 μm thick) solid (Al or Au) targets is investigated experimentally and numerically. Two main sources drive the growth of B-fields on the target surfaces. B-fields are first driven by laser-generated hot electron currents that relax over ∼10–20 ps. Over longer timescales, the hydrodynamic expansion of the bulk of the target into vacuum also generates B-field induced by non-collinear gradients of density and temperature. The laser irradiation of the target front side strongly localizes the energy deposition at the target front, in contrast to the target rear side, which is heated by fast electrons over a much larger area. This induces an asymmetry in the hydrodynamic expansion between the front and rear target surfaces, and consequently the associated B-fields are found strongly asymmetric. The sole long-lasting (>30 ps) B-fields are the ones growing on the target front surface, where they remain of extremely high strength (∼8–10 MG). These B-fields have been recently put by us in practical use for focusing laser-accelerated protons [B. Albertazzi et al., Rev. Sci. Instrum. 86, 043502 (2015)]; here we analyze in detail their dynamics and structure.

Contrast enhanced cartilage imaging: Comparison of ionic and non-ionic contrast agents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wiener, Edzard; Woertler, Klaus; Weirich, Gregor; Rummeny, Ernst J.; Settles, Marcus

2007-01-01

Our objective was to compare relaxation effects, dynamics and spatial distributions of ionic and non-ionic contrast agents in articular cartilage at concentrations typically used for direct MR arthrography at 1.5 T. Dynamic MR-studies over 11 h were performed in 15 bovine patella specimens. For each of the contrast agents gadopentetate dimeglumine, gadobenate dimeglumine, gadoteridol and mangafodipir trinatrium three patellae were placed in 2.5 mmol/L contrast solution. Simultaneous measurements of T 1 and T 2 were performed every 30 min using a high-spatial-resolution 'MIX'-sequence. T 1 , T 2 and ΔR 1 , ΔR 2 profile plots across cartilage thickness were calculated to demonstrate the spatial and temporal distributions. The charge is one of the main factors which controls the amount of the contrast media diffusing into intact cartilage, but independent of the charge, the spatial distribution across cartilage thickness remains highly inhomogeneous even after 11 h of diffusion. The absolute ΔR 2 -effect in cartilage is at least as large as the ΔR 1 -effect for all contrast agents. Maximum changes were 5-12 s -1 for ΔR 1 and 8-15 s -1 for ΔR 2 . This study indicates that for morphologically intact cartilage only the amount of contrast agents within cartilage is determined by the charge but not the spatial distribution across cartilage thickness. In addition, ΔR 2 can be considered for quantification of contrast agent concentrations, since it is of the same magnitude and less time consuming to measure than ΔR 1

Nonvolatile field effect transistors based on protons and Si/SiO2Si structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Warren, W.L.; Vanheusden, K.; Fleetwood, D.M.; Schwank, J.R.; Winokur, P.S.; Knoll, M.G.; Devine, R.A.B.

1997-01-01

Recently, the authors have demonstrated that annealing Si/SiO 2 /Si structures in a hydrogen containing ambient introduces mobile H + ions into the buried SiO 2 layer. Changes in the H + spatial distribution within the SiO 2 layer were electrically monitored by current-voltage (I-V) measurements. The ability to directly probe reversible protonic motion in Si/SiO 2 /Si structures makes this an exemplar system to explore the physics and chemistry of hydrogen in the technologically relevant Si/SiO 2 structure. In this work, they illustrate that this effect can be used as the basis for a programmable nonvolatile field effect transistor (NVFET) memory that may compete with other Si-based memory devices. The power of this novel device is its simplicity; it is based upon standard Si/SiO 2 /Si technology and forming gas annealing, a common treatment used in integrated circuit processing. They also briefly discuss the effects of radiation on its retention properties

Investigations concerning the exchange of iodine from non-volatile organic iodine compounds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Psarros, N.; Duschner, H.; Molzahn, D.; Schmidt, L.; Heise, S.; Jungclas, H.; Brandt, R.; Patzelt, P.

1990-10-01

The iodine produced by nuclear fission is removed during the reprocessing of exhausted nuclear fuel elements by desorption achieving good decontamination factors. Nevertheless the further optimization of the process requires detailed information about the iodine speciation during fuel reprocessing, and about possible reactions. For the study of decomposition reactions of iodo-alcanes, which are built up during the fuel recycling process, we developed a method for the synthesis of labelled iodo-dodecane, which was used as tracer. In order to identify the iodo species in the organic phase of the reprocessing cycle we applied plasma desorption time-of-flight mass spectroscopy. The problem of the volatility of the iodo-compounds in the ultra vacuum of the mass spectrometer was overcome by derivatization of the iodo-alcanes with dithizon, which yielded non-volatile ionic alcyltetrazolium iodides. Beta-spectrometric analysis of the exhaust condensates collected from the organic phase of the WAK reprocessing cycle revealed beside iodine-129 the existence of a low-energetic beta emitter, which has yet to be identified. A literature survey on the topic was also performed. (orig.) With 42 refs., 9 figs [de

An Investigation of Quantum Dot Super Lattice Use in Nonvolatile Memory and Transistors

Science.gov (United States)

Mirdha, P.; Parthasarathy, B.; Kondo, J.; Chan, P.-Y.; Heller, E.; Jain, F. C.

2018-02-01

Site-specific self-assembled colloidal quantum dots (QDs) will deposit in two layers only on p-type substrate to form a QD superlattice (QDSL). The QDSL structure has been integrated into the floating gate of a nonvolatile memory component and has demonstrated promising results in multi-bit storage, ease of fabrication, and memory retention. Additionally, multi-valued logic devices and circuits have been created by using QDSL structures which demonstrated ternary and quaternary logic. With increasing use of site-specific self-assembled QDSLs, fundamental understanding of silicon and germanium QDSL charge storage capability, self-assembly on specific surfaces, uniform distribution, and mini-band formation has to be understood for successful implementation in devices. In this work, we investigate the differences in electron charge storage by building metal-oxide semiconductor (MOS) capacitors and using capacitance and voltage measurements to quantify the storage capabilities. The self-assembly process and distribution density of the QDSL is done by obtaining atomic force microscopy (AFM) results on line samples. Additionally, we present a summary of the theoretical density of states in each of the QDSLs.

Contrast Media: Are There Differences in Nephrotoxicity among Contrast Media?

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Iodinated contrast agents are usually classified based upon their osmolality—high, low, and isosmolar. Iodinated contrast agents are also nephrotoxic in some but not all patients resulting in loss of glomerular filtration rate. Over the past 30 years, nephrotoxicity has been linked to osmolality although the precise mechanism underlying such a link has been elusive. Improvements in our understanding of the pathogenesis of nephrotoxicity and prospective randomized clinical trials have attempted to further explore the relationship between osmolality and nephrotoxicity. In this review, the basis for our current understanding that there are little if any differences in nephrotoxic potential between low and isosmolar contrast media will be detailed using data from clinical studies. PMID:24587997

High-contrast imager for Complex Aperture Telescopes (HiCAT): testbed design and coronagraph developments

Science.gov (United States)

N'Diaye, Mamadou; Choquet, E.; Pueyo, L.; Elliot, E.; Perrin, M. D.; Wallace, J.; Anderson, R. E.; Carlotti, A.; Groff, T. D.; Hartig, G. F.; Kasdin, J.; Lajoie, C.; Levecq, O.; Long, C.; Macintosh, B.; Mawet, D.; Norman, C. A.; Shaklan, S.; Sheckells, M.; Sivaramakrishnan, A.; Soummer, R.

2014-01-01

We present a new high-contrast imaging testbed designed to provide complete solutions for wavefront sensing and control and starlight suppression with complex aperture telescopes (NASA APRA; Soummer PI). This includes geometries with central obstruction, support structures, and/or primary mirror segmentation. Complex aperture telescopes are often associated with large telescope designs, which are considered for future space missions. However, these designs makes high-contrast imaging challenging because of additional diffraction features in the point spread function. We present a novel optimization approach for the testbed optical and opto-mechanical design that minimizes the impact of both phase and amplitude errors from the wave propagation of testbed optics surface errors. This design approach allows us to define the specification for the bench optics, which we then compare to the manufactured parts. We discuss the testbed alignment and first results. We also present our coronagraph design for different testbed pupil shapes (AFTA or ATLAST), which involves a new method for the optimization of Apodized Pupil Lyot Coronagraphs (APLC).

CT of multiple sclerosis: reassessment of delayed scanning with high doses of contrast material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spiegel, S.M.; Vinuela, F.; Fox, A.J.; Pelz, D.M.

1985-01-01

A prospective study involving 87 patients was carried out to evaluate the necessity for a high dose of contrast material in addition to delayed computed tomographic (CT) scanning for optimal detection of the lesions of multiple sclerosis in the brain. In patients with either clinically definite multiple sclerosis or laboratory-supported definite multiple sclerosis, CT scans were obtained with a uniform protocol. Lesions consistent with multiple sclerosis were demonstrated on the second scan in 54 patients. In 36 of these 54 patients, the high-dose delayed scan added information. These results are quite similar to those of a previous study from this institution using different patients, in whom the second scan was obtained immediately after the bolus injection of contrast material containing 40 g of organically bound iodine. The lack of real difference in the results of the two studies indicate that the increased dose, not just the delay in scanning, is necessary for a proper study

Transient analysis of electromagnetic wave interactions on high-contrast scatterers using volume electric field integral equation

KAUST Repository

Sayed, Sadeed Bin

2014-07-01

A marching on-in-time (MOT)-based time domain volume electric field integral equation (TD-VEFIE) solver is proposed for accurate and stable analysis of electromagnetic wave interactions on high-contrast scatterers. The stability is achieved using band-limited but two-sided (non-causal) temporal interpolation functions and an extrapolation scheme to cast the time marching into a causal form. The extrapolation scheme is designed to be highly accurate for oscillating and exponentially decaying fields, hence it accurately captures the physical behavior of the resonant modes that are excited inside the dielectric scatterer. Numerical results demonstrate that the resulting MOT scheme maintains its stability as the number of resonant modes increases with the contrast of the scatterer.

High-contrast coronagraph performance in the presence of focal plane mask defects

Science.gov (United States)

Sidick, Erkin; Shaklan, Stuart; Balasubramanian, Kunjithapatham; Cady, Eric

2014-08-01

We have carried out a study of the performance of high-contrast coronagraphs in the presence of mask defects. We have considered the effects of opaque and dielectric particles of various dimensions, as well as systematic mask fabrication errors and the limitations of material properties in creating dark holes. We employ sequential deformable mirrors to compensate for phase and amplitude errors, and show the limitations of this approach in the presence of coronagraph image-mask defects.

Search for Non-Volatile Components with Low Polarity Characterizing Tobacco Leaves Using Liquid Chromatography / Atmospheric Pressure Chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometry Detector

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ishida Naoyuki

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Alors que les regards se sont principalement tournés sur les composants à faible polarité dans la résine de feuilles de tabac en raison de leur lien probable avec le goût et l’arôme des produits du tabac, l’absence d’une méthode praticable et d’un outil analytique a longtemps fait obstacle à l’identification des composants non-volatils à faible polarité. L’auteur a, en l’occurrence, porté son attention sur l’analyse recourant à la chromatographie en phase inverse non aqueuse couplée à un détecteur à barrettes de photodiodes et à un détecteur de spectrométrie de masse par ionisation chimique à pression atmosphérique. Cette analyse fut considérée applicable à la séparation des composants nonvolatils significatifs mais inconnus. Son application a permis, avec succès, de séparer, détecter et quantifier simultanément plus de 100 composants non-volatils présentant des polarités faibles et différenciées. Ces composantes furent, entre autres, des solanésols, des triacylglycérides, des phytostérols et des chlorophylles. Cependant, les données concernant les différences de composition parmi les diverses feuilles de tabac demeurent encore partielles et basées sur une analyse ciblée plutôt que globales et basées sur une analyse exhaustive. Aucune étude n’a été, à ce jour, accomplie qui recense les composants essentiels permettant de distinguer, parmi les feuilles de tabac, les différents goûts, arômes, variétés, cultivars, processus de séchage et régions de culture. Par conséquent, toutes les données de quantification ont été consolidées dans le but de former une matrice multidimensionnelle complète et ont subi un traitement statistique qui a mis en exergue les catégories et les composants-clés des diverses feuilles de tabac grâce à une analyse en composantes principales et une classification hiérarchique. Les feuilles de tabac ont, dans un premier temps, été ventilées en

Different importance of the volatile and non-volatile fractions of an olfactory signature for individual social recognition in rats versus mice and short-term versus long-term memory.

Science.gov (United States)

Noack, Julia; Richter, Karin; Laube, Gregor; Haghgoo, Hojjat Allah; Veh, Rüdiger W; Engelmann, Mario

2010-11-01

When tested in the olfactory cued social recognition/discrimination test, rats and mice differ in their retention of a recognition memory for a previously encountered conspecific juvenile: Rats are able to recognize a given juvenile for approximately 45 min only whereas mice show not only short-term, but also long-term recognition memory (≥ 24 h). Here we modified the social recognition/social discrimination procedure to investigate the neurobiological mechanism(s) underlying the species differences. We presented a conspecific juvenile repeatedly to the experimental subjects and monitored the investigation duration as a measure for recognition. Presentation of only the volatile fraction of the juvenile olfactory signature was sufficient for both short- and long-term recognition in mice but not rats. Applying additional volatile, mono-molecular odours to the "to be recognized" juveniles failed to affect short-term memory in both species, but interfered with long-term recognition in mice. Finally immunocytochemical analysis of c-Fos as a marker for cellular activation, revealed that juvenile exposure stimulated areas involved in the processing of olfactory signals in both the main and the accessory olfactory bulb in mice. In rats, we measured an increased c-Fos synthesis almost exclusively in cells of the accessory olfactory bulb. Our data suggest that the species difference in the retention of social recognition memory is based on differences in the processing of the volatile versus non-volatile fraction of the individuals' olfactory signature. The non-volatile fraction is sufficient for retaining a short-term social memory only. Long-term social memory - as observed in mice - requires a processing of both the volatile and non-volatile fractions of the olfactory signature. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of high frequency ultrasound methods and contrast agents for characterising tumor response to anti-angiogenic treatment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rix, Anne, E-mail: arix@ukaachen.de [Department of Experimental Molecular Imaging, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, RWTH-Aachen University, Aachen (Germany); Lederle, Wiltrud, E-mail: wlederle@ukaachen.de [Department of Experimental Molecular Imaging, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, RWTH-Aachen University, Aachen (Germany); Siepmann, Monica, E-mail: monica.siepmann@rub.de [Department of Medical Engineering, Universitätstraße 150, 44780 Bochum, Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum (Germany); Fokong, Stanley, E-mail: sfokong@ukaachen.de [Department of Experimental Molecular Imaging, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, RWTH-Aachen University, Aachen (Germany); Behrendt, Florian F., E-mail: fbehrendt@ukaachen.de [Department of Nuclear Medicine, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, RWTH-Aachen University, Aachen (Germany); Bzyl, Jessica, E-mail: jbzyl@ukaachen.de [Department of Experimental Molecular Imaging, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, RWTH-Aachen University, Aachen (Germany); Grouls, Christoph, E-mail: cgrouls@ukaachen.de [Department of Experimental Molecular Imaging, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, RWTH-Aachen University, Aachen (Germany); Kiessling, Fabian, E-mail: fkiessling@ukaachen.de [Department of Experimental Molecular Imaging, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, RWTH-Aachen University, Aachen (Germany); Palmowski, Moritz, E-mail: mpalmowski@ukaachen.de [Department of Experimental Molecular Imaging, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, RWTH-Aachen University, Aachen (Germany); Department of Nuclear Medicine, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, RWTH-Aachen University, Aachen (Germany)

2012-10-15

Purpose: To compare non-enhanced and contrast-enhanced high-frequency 3D Doppler ultrasound with contrast-enhanced 2D and 3D B-mode imaging for assessing tumor vascularity during antiangiogenic treatment using soft-shell and hard-shell microbubbles. Materials and methods: Antiangiogenic therapy effects (SU11248) on vascularity of subcutaneous epidermoid-carcinoma xenografts (A431) in female CD1 nude mice were investigated longitudinally using non-enhanced and contrast-enhanced 3D Doppler at 25 MHz. Additionally, contrast-enhanced 2D and 3D B-mode scans were performed by injecting hard-shell (poly-butyl-cyanoacrylate-based) and soft-shell (phospholipid-based) microbubbles. Suitability of both contrast agents for high frequency imaging and the sensitivity of the different ultrasound methods to assess early antiangiogenic therapy effects were investigated. Ultrasound data were validated by immunohistology. Results: Hard-shell microbubbles induced higher signal intensity changes in tumors than soft-shell microbubbles in 2D B-mode measurements (424 ± 7 vs. 169 ± 8 A.U.; p < 0.01). In 3D measurements, signals of soft-shell microbubbles were hardly above the background (5.48 ± 4.57 vs. 3.86 ± 2.92 A.U.), while signals from hard-shell microbubbles were sufficiently high (30.5 ± 8.06 A.U). Using hard-shell microbubbles 2D and 3D B-mode imaging depicted a significant decrease in tumor vascularity during antiangiogenic therapy from day 1 on. Using soft-shell microbubbles significant therapy effects were observed at day 4 after therapy in 2D B-mode imaging but could not be detected in the 3D mode. With non-enhanced and contrast-enhanced Doppler imaging significant differences between treated and untreated tumors were found from day 2 on. Conclusion: Hard-shell microbubble-enhanced 2D and 3D B-mode ultrasound achieved highest sensitivity for assessing therapy effects on tumor vascularisation and were superior to B-mode ultrasound with soft-shell microbubbles and to Doppler

Measurements of incoherent light and background structure at exo-Earth detection levels in the High Contrast Imaging Testbed

Science.gov (United States)

Cady, Eric; Shaklan, Stuart

2014-08-01

A major component of the estimation and correction of starlight at very high contrasts is the creation of a dark hole: a region in the vicinity of the core of the stellar point spread function (PSF) where speckles in the PSF wings have been greatly attenuated, up to a factor of 1010 for the imaging of terrestrial exoplanets. At these very high contrasts, removing these speckles requires distinguishing between light from the stellar PSF scattered by instrument imperfections, which may be partially corrected across a broad band using deformable mirrors in the system, from light from other sources which generally may not. These other sources may be external or internal to the instrument (e.g. planets, exozodiacal light), but in either case, their distinguishing characteristic is their inability to interfere coherently with the PSF. In the following we discuss the estimation, structure, and expected origin of this incoherent" signal, primarily in the context of a series of experiments made with a linear band-limited mask in Jan-Mar 2013. We find that the incoherent" signal at moderate contrasts is largely estimation error of the coherent signal, while at very high contrasts it represents a true floor which is stable over week-timescales.

High-Relaxivity MRI Contrast Agents: Where Coordination Chemistry Meets Medical Imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Werner, Eric J.; Datta, Ankona; Jocher, Christoph J.; Raymond, Kenneth N.

2008-01-15

The desire to improve and expand the scope of clinical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has prompted the search for contrast agents of higher efficiency. The development of better agents requires consideration of the fundamental coordination chemistry of the gadolinium(III) ion and the parameters that affect its efficacy as a proton relaxation agent. In optimizing each parameter, other practical issues such as solubility and in vivo toxicity must also be addressed, making the attainment of safe, high-relaxivity agents a challenging goal. Here we present recent advances in the field, with an emphasis on the hydroxypyridinone family of Gd{sup III} chelates.

Dose Tc-99m MIBI scintimammography provide more information additive to contrast enhanced MRI in highly suspected breast cancer patients?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Seong Jang; Kim, In Ju; Kim, Yong Ki; Bae, Young Tae

2000-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate whether Tc-99m MIBI scintimammography (SMM) provide more information than contrast enhanced MRI in highly suspected breast cancer patients. This study included 32 breast lesions of 29 highly suspected patients having breast cancer. All patients were performed SMM and contrast enhanced MRI. The SMMs and contrast enhanced MRI were correlated with histopathologic results. Thirty breast lesions were diagnosed malignant diseases and 2 were diagnosed benign diseases. SMM showed 29 true positives (TP), 1 true negative (TN), 1 false positive (FP), and 1 false negative (FN). The sensitivity was 96.6%. Contrast enhanced MRI revealed 24 TP, 0 TN, 1 FP, 3 FN and 4 indeterminate cases. The sensitivity was 88.8%. In the assessment of axillary lymph node metastasis, SMM showed 9 TP, 10 TN, 0 FP, and 3 FN. The sensitivity and specificity were 75% and 100%. Contrast enhanced MRI revealed 6 TP, 9 TN, 1 FP, and 6 FN. The sensitivity and specificity were 50% and 90%. Among 4 indeterminate cases with MRI findings, SMM correctly diagnosed malignant breast diseases in 3 lesions. However, SMM showed false positive in 1 lesion. SMM could correctly diagnosed malignant breast diseases more 5 lesions than contrast enhanced MRI. SMM revealed higher sensitivity in detection of primary breast cancer and axillary LN metastasis than contrast enhanced MRI. SMMs could correctly diagnosed malignant breast diseases even if the MRI showed indeterminate findings. In highly suspected patients having breast cancer, SMM may provide additive information in detection of breast cancer if contrast enhanced MRI showed indeterminate findings but this is to be determined later by large population based study

Effect of tunneling layers on the performances of floating-gate based organic thin-film transistor nonvolatile memories

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Wei; Han, Jinhua; Ying, Jun; Xiang, Lanyi; Xie, Wenfa

2014-09-01

Two types of floating-gate based organic thin-film transistor nonvolatile memories (FG-OTFT-NVMs) were demonstrated, with poly(methyl methacrylate co glycidyl methacrylate) (P(MMA-GMA)) and tetratetracontane (TTC) as the tunneling layer, respectively. Their device performances were measured and compared. In the memory with a P(MMA-GMA) tunneling layer, typical unipolar hole transport was obtained with a relatively small mobility of 0.16 cm2/V s. The unidirectional shift of turn-on voltage (Von) due to only holes trapped/detrapped in/from the floating gate resulted in a small memory window of 12.5 V at programming/erasing voltages (VP/VE) of ±100 V and a nonzero reading voltage. Benefited from the well-ordered molecule orientation and the trap-free surface of TTC layer, a considerably high hole mobility of 1.7 cm2/V s and a visible feature of electrons accumulated in channel and trapped in floating-gate were achieved in the memory with a TTC tunneling layer. High hole mobility resulted in a high on current and a large memory on/off ratio of 600 at the VP/VE of ±100 V. Both holes and electrons were injected into floating-gate and overwritten each other, which resulted in a bidirectional Von shift. As a result, an enlarged memory window of 28.6 V at the VP/VE of ±100 V and a zero reading voltage were achieved. Based on our results, a strategy is proposed to optimize FG-OTFT-NVMs by choosing a right tunneling layer to improve the majority carrier mobility and realize ambipolar carriers injecting and trapping in the floating-gate.

Highly stabilized gadolinium chelates functionalized on metal nanoparticles as magnetic resonance imaging contrast agent

Science.gov (United States)

Siddiqui, Talha S.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a non-invasive method for imaging and diagnosing tissue damage, organ function and the vascular system. Magnevist(TM) a complex of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) and Gd3+ is a clinically approved contrast agent for MRI. A derivative of DTPA was formed by the addition of two cysteine groups (DTPA-L-Cys) through amide linkage. The Gd complex of this ligand bonds with the silver surfaces through the cysteine thiols. GdDTPA-L-Cys was bound to ˜10nm diameter Ag nanoparticles for use as a multifunctional MRI contrast agent. The ligand and complex were characterized by 1H and 13C NMR, ESI-MS and IR spectroscopy. The silver construct was characterized by TEM, TGA and UV-Vis absorption spectra. The per metal complex r1 relaxivity of GdDTPA-L-Cys{Ag} greater than that of Magnavist(TM) with the same molarity for both compounds. The synthesis of a DTPA derivative is described that allows it to bind to silver or gold nanoparticles through a single thiol linkage (DTPASH). The resulting Gd complex, GdDTPASH, was bound to Ag nanoparticles to create a single monolayer on the surface. The construct was further stabilized in buffered solution with the addition of a thiolated PEG chain. The highly stabilized nanoparticle construct delivers a high payload of Gd compelex and is an effective T1 brightening agent. The production of this type of construct opens the way for engineered multimodal MRI contrast agents.

Generation of 25-TW Femtosecond Laser Pulses at 515 nm with Extremely High Temporal Contrast

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marco Hornung

2015-12-01

Full Text Available We report on the frequency doubling of femtosecond laser pulses at 1030 nm center wavelength generated from the fully diode-pumped laser system POLARIS. The newly generated pulses at a center wavelength of 515 nm have a pulse energy of 3 J with a pulse duration of 120 fs. On the basis of initially ultra-high contrast seed pulses we expect a temporal intensity contrast better 10 17 200 ps before the peak of the main pulse. We analyzed the temporal intensity contrast from milliseconds to femtoseconds with a dynamic range covering more than 20 orders of magnitude. The pulses were focussed with a f/2-focussing parabola resulting in a peak intensity exceeding 10 20 W / cm 2 . The peak power and intensity are to the best of our knowledge the highest values for 515 nm-laser-pulses achieved so far.

Optimization of Broadband Wavefront Correction at the Princeton High Contrast Imaging Laboratory

Science.gov (United States)

Groff, Tyler Dean; Kasdin, N.; Carlotti, A.

2011-01-01

Wavefront control for imaging of terrestrial planets using coronagraphic techniques requires improving the performance of the wavefront control techniques to expand the correction bandwidth and the size of the dark hole over which it is effective. At the Princeton High Contrast Imaging Laboratory we have focused on increasing the search area using two deformable mirrors (DMs) in series to achieve symmetric correction by correcting both amplitude and phase aberrations. Here we are concerned with increasing the bandwidth of light over which this correction is effective so we include a finite bandwidth into the optimization problem to generate a new stroke minimization algorithm. This allows us to minimize the actuator stroke on the DMs given contrast constraints at multiple wavelengths which define a window over which the dark hole will persist. This windowed stroke minimization algorithm is written in such a way that a weight may be applied to dictate the relative importance of the outer wavelengths to the central wavelength. In order to supply the estimates at multiple wavelengths a functional relationship to a central estimation wavelength is formed. Computational overhead and new experimental results of this windowed stroke minimization algorithm are discussed. The tradeoff between symmetric correction and achievable bandwidth is compared to the observed contrast degradation with wavelength in the experimental results. This work is supported by NASA APRA Grant #NNX09AB96G. The author is also supported under an NESSF Fellowship.

Ultra-high field upper extremity peripheral nerve and non-contrast enhanced vascular imaging.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shailesh B Raval

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to explore the efficacy of Ultra-high field [UHF] 7 Tesla [T] MRI as compared to 3T MRI in non-contrast enhanced [nCE] imaging of structural anatomy in the elbow, forearm, and hand [upper extremity].A wide range of sequences including T1 weighted [T1] volumetric interpolate breath-hold exam [VIBE], T2 weighted [T2] double-echo steady state [DESS], susceptibility weighted imaging [SWI], time-of-flight [TOF], diffusion tensor imaging [DTI], and diffusion spectrum imaging [DSI] were optimized and incorporated with a radiofrequency [RF] coil system composed of a transverse electromagnetic [TEM] transmit coil combined with an 8-channel receive-only array for 7T upper extremity [UE] imaging. In addition, Siemens optimized protocol/sequences were used on a 3T scanner and the resulting images from T1 VIBE and T2 DESS were compared to that obtained at 7T qualitatively and quantitatively [SWI was only qualitatively compared]. DSI studio was utilized to identify nerves based on analysis of diffusion weighted derived fractional anisotropy images. Images of forearm vasculature were extracted using a paint grow manual segmentation method based on MIPAV [Medical Image Processing, Analysis, and Visualization].High resolution and high quality signal-to-noise ratio [SNR] and contrast-to-noise ratio [CNR]-images of the hand, forearm, and elbow were acquired with nearly homogeneous 7T excitation. Measured [performed on the T1 VIBE and T2 DESS sequences] SNR and CNR values were almost doubled at 7T vs. 3T. Cartilage, synovial fluid and tendon structures could be seen with higher clarity in the 7T T1 and T2 weighted images. SWI allowed high resolution and better quality imaging of large and medium sized arteries and veins, capillary networks and arteriovenous anastomoses at 7T when compared to 3T. 7T diffusion weighted sequence [not performed at 3T] demonstrates that the forearm nerves are clearly delineated by fiber tractography. The

Standard Test Method for Gravimetric Determination of Nonvolatile Residue (NVR) in Environmentally Controlled Areas for Spacecraft

CERN Document Server

American Society for Testing and Materials. Philadelphia

2008-01-01

1.1 This test method covers the determination of nonvolatile residue (NVR) fallout in environmentally controlled areas used for the assembly, testing, and processing of spacecraft. 1.2 The NVR of interest is that which is deposited on sampling plate surfaces at room temperature: it is left to the user to infer the relationship between the NVR found on the sampling plate surface and that found on any other surfaces. 1.3 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use. 1.4 The values stated in SI units are to be regarded as standard. No other units of measurement are included in this standard.

New tubes and techniques for flash X-ray diffraction and high contrast radiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Charbonnier, F.M.; Barbour, J.P.; Brewster, J.L.

High energy electrons are particularly efficient in producing characteristic X-rays and soft polychromatic. A line of wide spectrum beryllium window flash X-ray tubes, ranging from 150 to 600kV, has been developed to exploit this property. Laue and Debye Scherrer flash X-ray diffraction patterns have been obtained using a single 30 ns pulse exposure. X-ray diffraction tests obtained are shown. Extremely high contrast flash radiography of small, low density objects has been obtained using industrial film without screen. Alternatively, particularly at high voltages and for subjects which include a broad range of materials and thicknesses, special film techniques can be used to produce extremely wide latitudes. Equipment, techniques and results are discussed

Flexible nonvolatile memory devices based on Au/PMMA nanocomposites deposited on PEDOT:PSS/Ag nanowire hybrid electrodes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sung, Sihyun; Kim, Tae Whan

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Flexible nonvolatile memory (NVM) devices fabricated utilizing Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) embedded in a PMMA layer were fabricated. • The insertion of the PEDOT:PSS layer enhanced the surface uniformity of the AgNW bottom electrode, resulting in improved device performances. • Current-voltage curves for the Al/PMMA:AuNP/PEDOT:PSS/AgNW/PET devices showed clockwise current hysteresis behaviors. • ON/OFF ratio of 1 × 10 3 was maintained for retention times longer than 1 × 10 4 s. • Memory characteristics of the NVM devices before and after bending were similar. - Abstract: Flexible nonvolatile memory (NVM) devices fabricated utilizing Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) embedded in a poly(methylmethacrylate) (PMMA) layer were fabricated on a silver nanowire (AgNW) or a poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS)/AgNW coated on poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) substrates. The transmittance and the sheet resistance of the PEDOT:PSS/AgNW hybrid layer were approximately 89% and 50 Ω/sq, respectively, which were comparable to the values for commercial indium-tin-oxide (ITO) electrodes. Current-voltage curves for the Al/PMMA:AuNP/PEDOT:PSS/AgNW/PET devices at 300 K showed clockwise current hysteresis behaviors due to the existence of the AuNPs. The endurance number of ON/OFF switching for the NVM devices was above 30 cycles. An ON/OFF ratio of 1 × 10 3 was maintained for retention times longer than 1 × 10 4 s. The maximum memory margins of the NVM devices before and after bending were approximately 3.4 × 10 3 and 1.4 × 10 3 , respectively. The retention times of the devices before and after bending remained same 1 × 10 4 s. The memory margin and the stability of flexible NVMs fabricated on AgNW electrodes were enhanced due to the embedded PEDOT:PSS buffer layer.

Flexible nonvolatile memory devices based on Au/PMMA nanocomposites deposited on PEDOT:PSS/Ag nanowire hybrid electrodes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sung, Sihyun; Kim, Tae Whan, E-mail: twk@hanyang.ac.kr

2017-07-31

Highlights: • Flexible nonvolatile memory (NVM) devices fabricated utilizing Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) embedded in a PMMA layer were fabricated. • The insertion of the PEDOT:PSS layer enhanced the surface uniformity of the AgNW bottom electrode, resulting in improved device performances. • Current-voltage curves for the Al/PMMA:AuNP/PEDOT:PSS/AgNW/PET devices showed clockwise current hysteresis behaviors. • ON/OFF ratio of 1 × 10{sup 3} was maintained for retention times longer than 1 × 10{sup 4} s. • Memory characteristics of the NVM devices before and after bending were similar. - Abstract: Flexible nonvolatile memory (NVM) devices fabricated utilizing Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) embedded in a poly(methylmethacrylate) (PMMA) layer were fabricated on a silver nanowire (AgNW) or a poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS)/AgNW coated on poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) substrates. The transmittance and the sheet resistance of the PEDOT:PSS/AgNW hybrid layer were approximately 89% and 50 Ω/sq, respectively, which were comparable to the values for commercial indium-tin-oxide (ITO) electrodes. Current-voltage curves for the Al/PMMA:AuNP/PEDOT:PSS/AgNW/PET devices at 300 K showed clockwise current hysteresis behaviors due to the existence of the AuNPs. The endurance number of ON/OFF switching for the NVM devices was above 30 cycles. An ON/OFF ratio of 1 × 10{sup 3} was maintained for retention times longer than 1 × 10{sup 4} s. The maximum memory margins of the NVM devices before and after bending were approximately 3.4 × 10{sup 3} and 1.4 × 10{sup 3}, respectively. The retention times of the devices before and after bending remained same 1 × 10{sup 4} s. The memory margin and the stability of flexible NVMs fabricated on AgNW electrodes were enhanced due to the embedded PEDOT:PSS buffer layer.

High contrast high intensity petawatt J-KAREN-P laser facility at QST

Science.gov (United States)

Nishiuchi, Mamiko; Kiriyama, Hiromitsu; Sakaki, Hironao; Dover, Nicholas P.; Kondo, Kotaro; Pirozhkov, Alexander S.; Sagisaka, Akito; Fukuda, Yuji; Nishitani, Keita; Miyahara, Takumi; Ogura, Koichi; Alkhimova, Mariya A.; Pikuz, Tatiana A.; Faenov, Anatoly Y.; Watanabe, Yukinobu; Koga, James; Bulanov, Sergei V.; Kando, Masaki; Kondo, Kiminori

2017-05-01

We report on the J-KAREN-P laser facility at QST, which can provide PW peak power at 0.1 Hz on target. The system can deliver short pulses with an energy of 30 J and pulse duration of 30 fs after compression with a contrast level of better than 1012. Such performance in high field science will give rise to the birth of new applications and breakthroughs, which include relativistic particle acceleration, bright x-ray source generation, and nuclear activation. The current achieved laser intensity on target is up to > 9x1021 Wcm-2 with an energy of 9 J on target. The interaction with a 3 to 5- μm stainless steel tape target provides us electrons with a typical temperature of more than 10 MeV and energetic proton beams with typical maximum energies of > 40 MeV with good reproducibility. The protons are accelerated in the Target Normal Sheath Acceleration regime, which is suitable for many applications including as an injector into a beamline for medical use, which is one of our objectives.

Grating-based X-ray phase-contrast tomography of atherosclerotic plaque at high photon energies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hetterich, Holger; Fill, Sandra [Klinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Univ., Muenchen (Germany). Inst. fuer Klinische Radiologie; Herzen, Julia [Technische Univ. Muenchen, Garching (Germany). Physik-Dept. und Inst. fuer Medizintechnik; Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht, Geesthacht (Germany). Zentrum fuer Materialforschung] [and others

2013-10-01

Background: Tissue characterization of atherosclerosis by absorption-based imaging methods is limited due to low soft-tissue contrast. Grating-based phase-contrast computed tomography (PC-CT) may become an alternative for plaque assessment if the phase signal can be retrieved at clinically applicable photon energies. The aims of this feasibility study were (i) to characterize arterial vessels at low and high photon energies, (ii) to extract qualitative features and (iii) quantitative phase-contrast Hounsfield units (HU-phase) of plaque components at 53 keV using histopathology as gold standard. Materials and methods: Five human carotid artery specimens underwent grating-based PC-CT using synchrotron radiation of either 23 keV or 53 keV and histological work-up. Specimens without advanced atherosclerosis were used to extract signal criteria of vessel layers. Diseased specimens were screened for important plaque components including fibrous tissue (FT), lipid (LIP), necrotic core (NEC), intraplaque hemorrhage (IPH), inflammatory cell infiltration (INF) and calcifications (CA). Qualitative features as well as quantitative HU-phase were analyzed. Results: Thirty-three regions in 6 corresponding PC-CT scans and histology sections were identified. Healthy samples had the same signal characteristics at 23 keV and 53 keV with bright tunica intima and adventitia and dark media. Plaque components showed differences in signal intensity and texture at 53 keV. Quantitative analysis demonstrated the highest HU-phase of soft plaque in dense FT. Less organized LIP, NEC and INF were associated with lower HU-phase values. The highest HU-phase were measured in CA. Conclusion: PC-CT of atherosclerosis is feasible at high, clinically relevant photon energies and provides detailed information about plaque structure including features of high risk vulnerable plaques. (orig.)

Contrast-enhanced harmonic endoscopic ultrasound

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Săftoiu, A; Dietrich, C F; Vilmann, P

2012-01-01

Second-generation intravenous blood-pool ultrasound contrast agents are increasingly used in endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) for characterization of microvascularization, differential diagnosis of benign and malignant focal lesions, and improving staging and guidance of therapeutic procedures. Although...... initially used as Doppler signal enhancers, second-generation microbubble contrast agents are now used with specific contrast harmonic imaging techniques, which benefit from the highly nonlinear behavior of the microbubbles. Contrast-specific modes based on multi-pulse technology are used to perform...... contrast-enhanced harmonic EUS based on a very low mechanical index (0.08 - 0.12). Quantification techniques based on dynamic contrast-enhanced ultrasound have been recommended for perfusion imaging and monitoring of anti-angiogenic treatment, mainly based on time-intensity curve analysis. Most...

Design of a magnetic-tunnel-junction-oriented nonvolatile lookup table circuit with write-operation-minimized data shifting

Science.gov (United States)

Suzuki, Daisuke; Hanyu, Takahiro

2018-04-01

A magnetic-tunnel-junction (MTJ)-oriented nonvolatile lookup table (LUT) circuit, in which a low-power data-shift function is performed by minimizing the number of write operations in MTJ devices is proposed. The permutation of the configuration memory cell for read/write access is performed as opposed to conventional direct data shifting to minimize the number of write operations, which results in significant write energy savings in the data-shift function. Moreover, the hardware cost of the proposed LUT circuit is small since the selector is shared between read access and write access. In fact, the power consumption in the data-shift function and the transistor count are reduced by 82 and 52%, respectively, compared with those in a conventional static random-access memory-based implementation using a 90 nm CMOS technology.

MR angiography of the carotid arteries and intracranial circulation: advantage of a high relaxivity contrast agent

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anzalone, N.; Scotti, R.; Iadanza, A.

2006-01-01

Several studies have shown the usefulness of contrast-enhanced MR angiography (CE-MRA) for imaging the supraortic vessels, and, as a consequence, it has rapidly become a routine imaging modality. The main advantage over unenhanced techniques is the possibility to acquire larger volumes, allowing demonstration of the carotid artery from its origin to the intracranial portion. Most published studies on CE-MRA of the carotid arteries have been performed with standard Gd-based chelates whose T1 relaxivity values are similar. Recently new gadolinium chelates such as gadobenate dimeglumine (Gd-BOP-TA, MultiHance; Bracco Imaging, Milan, Italy) have been developed which have markedly higher intravascular T1 relaxivity values. When administered at an equivalent dose to that of a standard agent, these newer contrast agents produce significantly greater intravascular signal enhancement. The availability of an appropriate high-relaxivity contrast agent might also help to overcome some of the intrinsic technical problems (e. g. those related to flow) that affect time-of-flight (TOF) and phase contrast (PC) MR angiography of the intracranial vasculature. To avoid the problem of superimposition of veins, ultrafast gradient echo MRA techniques with very short TR and TE have been developed. Although the precise sequence parameters vary between manufacturers, they are basically similar. The choice between performing a time-resolved or high spatial resolution CE-MRA examination depends upon the precise clinical application. The most common applications include the study of cerebral aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations, dural arteriovenous fistulas and dural venous diseases

80-nm-tunable high-index-contrast subwavelength grating long-wavelength VCSEL: Proposal and numerical simulations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chung, Il-Sug; Mørk, Jesper; Sirbu, Alexei

2010-01-01

A widely-tunable single-mode long wavelength vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser structure employing a MEMStunable high-index-contrast subwavelength grating (HCG) is suggested and numerically investigated. A very large 80- nm linear tuning range was obtained as the HCG was actuated by -220 to ...

Optical spatial differentiator based on subwavelength high-contrast gratings

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Zhewei; Si, Jiangnan; Yu, Xuanyi; Deng, Xiaoxu

2018-04-01

An optical spatial differentiator based on subwavelength high-contrast gratings (HCGs) is proposed experimentally. The spatial differentiation property of the subwavelength HCG is analyzed by calculating its spatial spectral transfer function based on the periodic waveguide theory. By employing the FDTD solutions, the performance of the subwavelength HCG spatial differentiator was investigated numerically. The subwavelength HCG differentiator with the thickness at the nanoscale was fabricated on the quartz substrate by electron beam lithography and Bosch deep silicon etching. Observed under an optical microscope with a CCD camera, the spatial differentiation of the incident field profile was obtained by the subwavelength HCG differentiator in transmission without Fourier lens. By projecting the images of slits, letter "X," and a cross on the subwavelength HCG differentiator, edge detections of images were obtained in transmission. With the nanoscale HCG structure and simple optical implementation, the proposed optical spatial differentiator provides the prospects for applications in optical computing systems and parallel data processing.

Nonvolatile ferroelectric memory based on PbTiO3 gated single-layer MoS2 field-effect transistor

Science.gov (United States)

Shin, Hyun Wook; Son, Jong Yeog

2018-01-01

We fabricated ferroelectric non-volatile random access memory (FeRAM) based on a field effect transistor (FET) consisting of a monolayer MoS2 channel and a ferroelectric PbTiO3 (PTO) thin film of gate insulator. An epitaxial PTO thin film was deposited on a Nb-doped SrTiO3 (Nb:STO) substrate via pulsed laser deposition. A monolayer MoS2 sheet was exfoliated from a bulk crystal and transferred to the surface of the PTO/Nb:STO. Structural and surface properties of the PTO thin film were characterized by X-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy, respectively. Raman spectroscopy analysis was performed to identify the single-layer MoS2 sheet on the PTO/Nb:STO. We obtained mobility value (327 cm2/V·s) of the MoS2 channel at room temperature. The MoS2-PTO FeRAM FET showed a wide memory window with 17 kΩ of resistance variation which was attributed to high remnant polarization of the epitaxially grown PTO thin film. According to the fatigue resistance test for the FeRAM FET, however, the resistance states gradually varied during the switching cycles of 109. [Figure not available: see fulltext.

High Contrast Internal and External Coronagraph Masks Produced by Various Techniques

Science.gov (United States)

Balasubramanian, Kunjithapatha; Wilson, Daniel; White, Victor; Muller, Richard; Dickie, Matthew; Yee, Karl; Ruiz, Ronald; Shaklan, Stuart; Cady, Eric; Kern, Brian;

Carcinoma of the uterine cervix. High-resolution turbo spin-echo MR imaging with contrast-enhanced dynamic scanning and T2-weighting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abe, Y.; Yamashita, Y.; Namimoto, T.; Takahashi, M.; Katabuchi, H.; Tanaka, N.; Okamura, H.

1998-01-01

Purpose: To compare high-resolution contrast-enhanced (Gd-DTPA) dynamic MR imaging with T2-weighted turbo spin-echo (TSE) imaging in the evaluation of uterine cervical carcinoma. Material and Methods: Thirty-two patients with cervical carcinoma underwent MR imaging on a 1.5 T superconductive unit to have the extension of the disease assessed before treatment. A phased-array coil was used in all patients. In 25 patients, surgical confirmation of the diagnosis was obtained after imaging. Radiation therapy was selected for the remaining 7 patients with advanced carcinoma. Qualitative and quantitative image analyses were also performed. Results: The cervical carcinomas showed maximum contrast in the cervical stroma and myometrium in the early dynamic phase. The tumor/cervical-stroma contrast in the early dynamic phase obtained with the T1-weighted TSE technique (contrast-to-noise ratio 22.6) was significantly higher than that obtained in T2-weighted TSE imaging (contrast-to-noise ratio 4.3). In the evaluation of parametrial invasion, the accuracy of T2-weighted imaging was 71.8% and contrast-enhanced dynamic imaging 81.2%. Conclusion: High-resolution contrast-enhanced (Gd-DTPA) dynamic MR imaging in cervical cancer offers improved tumor/cervical-stroma contrast and provides useful information on parametrial invasion. (orig.)

Highly stable polymer coated nano-clustered silver plates: a multimodal optical contrast agent for biomedical imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ray, Aniruddha; Mukundan, Ananya; Karamchand, Leshern; Kopelman, Raoul; Xie, Zhixing; Wang, Xueding

2014-01-01

Here, we present a new optical contrast agent based on silver nanoplate clusters embedded inside of a polymer nano matrix. Unlike nanosphere clusters, which have been well studied, nanoplate clusters have unique properties due to the different possible orientations of interaction between the individual plates, resulting in a significant broadening of the absorption spectra. These nanoclusters were immobilized inside of a polymer cladding so as to maintain their stability and optical properties under in vivo conditions. The polymer-coated silver nanoplate clusters show a lower toxicity compared to the uncoated nanoparticles. At high nanoparticle concentrations, cell death occurs mostly due to apoptosis. These nanoparticles were used for targeted fluorescence imaging in a rat glioma cell line by incorporating a fluorescent dye into the matrix, followed by conjugation of a tumor targeting an F3 peptide. We further used these nanoparticles as photoacoustic contrast agents in vivo to enhance the contrast of the vasculature structures in a rat ear model. We observed a contrast enhancement of over 90% following the nanoparticle injection. It is also shown that these NPs can serve as efficient contrast agents, with specific targeting abilities for broadband multimodal imaging that are usable for diagnostic applications and that extend into use as therapeutic agents as well. (paper)

Electrical bistabilities and memory stabilities of nonvolatile bistable devices fabricated utilizing C60 molecules embedded in a polymethyl methacrylate layer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, Sung Hwan; Lee, Dong Ik; Jung, Jae Hun; Kim, Tae Whan

2009-01-01

Current-voltage (I-V) measurements on Al/fullerene (C 60 ) molecules embedded in polymethyl methacrylate/Al devices at 300 K showed a current bistability due to the existence of the C 60 molecules. The on/off ratio of the current bistability for the memory devices was as large as 10 3 . The retention time of the devices was above 2.5 x 10 4 s at room temperature, and cycling endurance tests on these devices indicated that the ON and OFF currents showed no degradation until 50 000 cycles. Carrier transport mechanisms for the nonvolatile bistable devices are described on the basis of the I-V experimental and fitting results.

Quasi-unipolar pentacene films embedded with fullerene for non-volatile organic transistor memories

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Juhee; Lee, Sungpyo; Lee, Moo Hyung; Kang, Moon Sung, E-mail: mskang@ssu.ac.kr [Department of Chemical Engineering, Soongsil University, Seoul 156-743 (Korea, Republic of)

2015-02-09

Quasi-unipolar non-volatile organic transistor memory (NOTM) can combine the best characteristics of conventional unipolar and ambipolar NOTMs and, as a result, exhibit improved device performance. Unipolar NOTMs typically exhibit a large signal ratio between the programmed and erased current signals but also require a large voltage to program and erase the memory cells. Meanwhile, an ambipolar NOTM can be programmed and erased at lower voltages, but the resulting signal ratio is small. By embedding a discontinuous n-type fullerene layer within a p-type pentacene film, quasi-unipolar NOTMs are fabricated, of which the signal storage utilizes both electrons and holes while the electrical signal relies on only hole conduction. These devices exhibit superior memory performance relative to both pristine unipolar pentacene devices and ambipolar fullerene/pentacene bilayer devices. The quasi-unipolar NOTM exhibited a larger signal ratio between the programmed and erased states while also reducing the voltage required to program and erase a memory cell. This simple approach should be readily applicable for various combinations of advanced organic semiconductors that have been recently developed and thereby should make a significant impact on organic memory research.

High-Density Stacked Ru Nanocrystals for Nonvolatile Memory Application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ping, Mao; Zhi-Gang, Zhang; Li-Yang, Pan; Jun, Xu; Pei-Yi, Chen

2009-01-01

Stacked ruthenium (Ru) nanocrystals (NCs) are formed by rapid thermal annealing for the whole gate stacks and embedded in memory structure, which is compatible with conventional CMOS technology. Ru NCs with high density (3 × 10 12 cm −2 ), small size (2–4 nm) and good uniformity both in aerial distribution and morphology are formed. Attributed to the higher surface trap density, a memory window of 5.2 V is obtained with stacked Ru NCs in comparison to that of 3.5 V with single-layer samples. The stacked Ru NCs device also exhibits much better retention performance because of Coulomb blockade and vertical uniformity between stacked Ru NCs

Efficient quality-eactor estimation of a vertical cavity employing a high-contrast grating

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Taghizadeh, Alireza; Mørk, Jesper; Chung, Il-Sug

2017-01-01

Hybrid vertical cavity lasers employing high-contrast grating reflectors are attractive for Si-integrated light source applications. Here, a method for reducing a three-dimensional (3D) optical simulation of this laser structure to lower-dimensional simulations is suggested, which allows for very...... fast and approximate analysis of the quality-factor of the 3D cavity. This approach enables us to efficiently optimize the laser cavity design without performing cumbersome 3D simulations....

High-contrast grating hollow-core waveguide splitter applied to optical phased array

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Che; Xue, Ping; Zhang, Hanxing; Chen, Te; Peng, Chao; Hu, Weiwei

2014-11-01

A novel hollow-core (HW) Y-branch waveguide splitter based on high-contrast grating (HCG) is presented. We calculated and designed the HCG-HW splitter using Rigorous Coupled Wave Analysis (RCWA). Finite-different timedomain (FDTD) simulation shows that the splitter has a broad bandwidth and the branching loss is as low as 0.23 dB. Fabrication is accomplished with standard Silicon-On-Insulator (SOI) process. The experimental measurement results indicate its good performance on beam splitting near the central wavelength λ = 1550 nm with a total insertion loss of 7.0 dB.

Do intravenous N-acetylcysteine and sodium bicarbonate prevent high osmolal contrast-induced acute kidney injury? A randomized controlled trial.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Antonio Jose Inda-Filho

Full Text Available N-acetylcysteine (NAC or sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3, singly or combined, inconsistently prevent patients exposed to radiographic contrast media from developing contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI.We asked whether intravenous isotonic saline and either NaHCO3 in 5% dextrose or else a high dose of NAC in 5% dextrose prevent CI-AKI in outpatients exposed to high-osmolal iodinated contrast medium more than does saline alone.This completed prospective, parallel, superiority, open-label, controlled, computer-randomized, single-center, Brazilian trial (NCT01612013 hydrated 500 adult outpatients (214 at high risk of developing CI-AKI exposed to ioxitalamate during elective coronary angiography and ventriculography. From 1 hour before through 6 hours after exposure, 126 patients (group 1 received a high dose of NAC and saline, 125 (group 2 received NaHCO3 and saline, 124 (group 3 received both treatments, and 125 (group 4 received only saline.Groups were similar with respect to age, gender, weight, pre-existing renal dysfunction, hypertension, medication, and baseline serum creatinine and serum cystatin C, but diabetes mellitus was significantly less prevalent in group 1. CI-AKI incidence 72 hours after exposure to contrast medium was 51.4% (257/500, measured as serum creatinine > (baseline+0.3 mg/dL and/or serum cystatin C > (1.1 · baseline, and 7.6% (38/500, measured as both serum creatinine and serum cystatin C > (baseline+0.3 mg/dL or > (1.25 · baseline. CI-AKI incidence measured less sensitively was similar among groups. Measured more sensitively, incidence in group 1 was significantly (p<0.05 lower than in groups 2 and 3 but not group 4; adjustment for confounding by infused volume equalized incidence in groups 1 and 3.We found no evidence that intravenous isotonic saline and either NaHCO3 or else a high dose of NAC prevent CI-AKI in outpatients exposed to high osmolal iodinated contrast medium more than does saline alone

Iodinated contrast media nephrotoxicity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meyrier, A.

1994-01-01

In the late seventies, iodinated contrast agents (ICA) were considered to be a major cause of acute iatrogenic renal failure. Over the last decade new contrast agents have been synthesized, nonionic and less hyperosmolar. The incidence of acute renal failure due to ICAs, varies from 3.7 to 70% of cases according to the series, with an average figure of 10.2%. The pathophysiology of ICA nephrotoxicity was mainly studied in laboratory animal models. Three main factors are involved in an inducing ICA-mediated decrease in glomerular filtration rate: reduction of the renal plasma flow, a direct cytotoxic effect on renal tubular cells and erythrocyte alteration leading to intra-renal sludge. Excluding dysglobulinemias with urinary excretion of immunoglobulin light chains, which represent a special case of maximum nephrotoxicity, 4 main risk factors of renal toxicity have been identified in nondiabetic subjects: previous renal failure with serum creatinine levels greater than 140 μmol per liter, extracellular dehydration, age over 60 and use of high doses of ICA and/or repeated ICA injections before serum creatinine levels return to baseline. Preventive measures for avoiding ICA nephrotoxicity are threefold: maintain or restore adequate hydration with saline infusion, stop NSAID treatment several days before ICA administration, and allow a 5 day interval before repeating contrast media injections. New, nonionic and moderately hyperosmolar contrast agents appear to be much less nephrotoxic than conventional ICAs in laboratory animals and in high-risk patients. It is advisable to select such contrast media for investigating high-risk patients. This approach was recently substantiated in well designed, randomized clinical studies which included more than 2 000 patients. (author)

Electrical and ferroelectric properties of RF sputtered PZT/SBN on silicon for non-volatile memory applications

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Prashant; Jha, Rajesh Kumar; Singh, Rajat Kumar; Singh, B. R.

2018-02-01

We report the integration of multilayer ferroelectric film deposited by RF magnetron sputtering and explore the electrical characteristics for its application as the gate of ferroelectric field effect transistor for non-volatile memories. PZT (Pb[Zr0.35Ti0.65]O3) and SBN (SrBi2Nb2O9) ferroelectric materials were selected for the stack fabrication due to their large polarization and fatigue free properties respectively. Electrical characterization has been carried out to obtain memory window, leakage current density, PUND and endurance characteristics. Fabricated multilayer ferroelectric film capacitor structure shows large memory window of 17.73 V and leakage current density of the order 10-6 A cm-2 for the voltage sweep of -30 to +30 V. This multilayer gate stack of PZT/SBN shows promising endurance property with no degradation in the remnant polarization for the read/write iteration cycles upto 108.

Nonvolatile Resistive Switching Memory Utilizing Cobalt Embedded in Gelatin

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cheng-Jung Lee

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This study investigates the preparation and electrical properties of Al/cobalt-embedded gelatin (CoG/ indium tin oxide (ITO resistive switching memories. Co. elements can be uniformly distributed in gelatin without a conventional dispersion procedure, as confirmed through energy dispersive X-ray analyzer and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy observations. With an appropriate Co. concentration, Co. ions can assist the formation of an interfacial AlOx layer and improve the memory properties. High ON/OFF ratio, good retention capability, and good endurance switching cycles are demonstrated with 1 M Co. concentration, in contrast to 0.5 M and 2 M memory devices. This result can be attributed to the suitable thickness of the interfacial AlOx layer, which acts as an oxygen reservoir and stores and releases oxygen during switching. The Co. element in a solution-processed gelatin matrix has high potential for bio-electronic applications.

Transient analysis of electromagnetic wave interactions on high-contrast scatterers using volume electric field integral equation

KAUST Repository

Sayed, Sadeed Bin; Ulku, Huseyin Arda; Bagci, Hakan

2014-01-01

A marching on-in-time (MOT)-based time domain volume electric field integral equation (TD-VEFIE) solver is proposed for accurate and stable analysis of electromagnetic wave interactions on high-contrast scatterers. The stability is achieved using

High contrast sensitivity for visually guided flight control in bumblebees.

Science.gov (United States)

Chakravarthi, Aravin; Kelber, Almut; Baird, Emily; Dacke, Marie

2017-12-01

Many insects rely on vision to find food, to return to their nest and to carefully control their flight between these two locations. The amount of information available to support these tasks is, in part, dictated by the spatial resolution and contrast sensitivity of their visual systems. Here, we investigate the absolute limits of these visual properties for visually guided position and speed control in Bombus terrestris. Our results indicate that the limit of spatial vision in the translational motion detection system of B. terrestris lies at 0.21 cycles deg -1 with a peak contrast sensitivity of at least 33. In the perspective of earlier findings, these results indicate that bumblebees have higher contrast sensitivity in the motion detection system underlying position control than in their object discrimination system. This suggests that bumblebees, and most likely also other insects, have different visual thresholds depending on the behavioral context.

Applications of energy loss contrast STIM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bench, G.; Saint, A.; Legge, G.J.F.; Cholewa, M.

1992-01-01

Scanning Transmission Ion Microscopy (STIM) with energy loss contrast is a quantitative imaging technique. A focussed MeV ion microbeam is scanned over the sample and measured energy losses of residual ions at each beam location are used to provide the contrast in the image. The technique is highly efficient as almost every ion carries useful information from which quantitative data can be obtained. The high efficiency of data collection at present necessitates the use of small beam currents. Therefore small apertures can be used and fine spatial resolution can be achieved. High efficiency also makes it possible to collect large data sets for high definition imaging with a small radiation dose. Owing to the simple relationship between energy loss and areal density, STIM with energy loss contrast can provide a quantitative image that can be used to obtain areal density information on the sample. These areal density maps can be used not only to provide a high resolution image of the sample but also to normalise Particle Induced Xray Emission (PIXE) data. The small radiation dose required to form these areal density maps also allows one to use STIM with energy loss contrast to quantitatively monitor ion beam induced specimen changes caused by higher doses and dose rates used in other microanalytical techniques. STIM with energy loss contrast also provides the possibility of stereo imaging and ion microtomography. STIM has also been used in conjunction with channeling to explore transmission channeling in thin crystals. This paper will discuss these applications of STIM with energy loss contrast and look at further developments from them

Effect of tunneling layers on the performances of floating-gate based organic thin-film transistor nonvolatile memories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Wei; Han, Jinhua; Ying, Jun; Xiang, Lanyi; Xie, Wenfa

2014-01-01

Two types of floating-gate based organic thin-film transistor nonvolatile memories (FG-OTFT-NVMs) were demonstrated, with poly(methyl methacrylate co glycidyl methacrylate) (P(MMA-GMA)) and tetratetracontane (TTC) as the tunneling layer, respectively. Their device performances were measured and compared. In the memory with a P(MMA-GMA) tunneling layer, typical unipolar hole transport was obtained with a relatively small mobility of 0.16 cm 2 /V s. The unidirectional shift of turn-on voltage (V on ) due to only holes trapped/detrapped in/from the floating gate resulted in a small memory window of 12.5 V at programming/erasing voltages (V P /V E ) of ±100 V and a nonzero reading voltage. Benefited from the well-ordered molecule orientation and the trap-free surface of TTC layer, a considerably high hole mobility of 1.7 cm 2 /V s and a visible feature of electrons accumulated in channel and trapped in floating-gate were achieved in the memory with a TTC tunneling layer. High hole mobility resulted in a high on current and a large memory on/off ratio of 600 at the V P /V E of ±100 V. Both holes and electrons were injected into floating-gate and overwritten each other, which resulted in a bidirectional V on shift. As a result, an enlarged memory window of 28.6 V at the V P /V E of ±100 V and a zero reading voltage were achieved. Based on our results, a strategy is proposed to optimize FG-OTFT-NVMs by choosing a right tunneling layer to improve the majority carrier mobility and realize ambipolar carriers injecting and trapping in the floating-gate.

Interaction of a high-order Bessel beam with a submerged spherical ultrasound contrast agent shell - Scattering theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitri, F G

2010-03-01

Acoustic scattering properties of ultrasound contrast agents are useful in extending existing or developing new techniques for biomedical imaging applications. A useful first step in this direction is to investigate the acoustic scattering of a new class of acoustic beams, known as helicoidal high-order Bessel beams, to improve the understanding of their scattering characteristics by an ultrasound contrast agent, which at present is very limited. The transverse acoustic scattering of a commercially available albuminoidal ultrasound contrast agent shell filled with air or a denser gas such as perfluoropropane and placed in a helicoidal Bessel beam of any order is examined numerically. The shell is assumed to possess an outer radius a=3.5 microns and a thickness of approximately 105 nm. Moduli of the total and resonance transverse acoustic scattering form functions are numerically evaluated in the bandwidth 0scattering of a helicoidal Bessel beam of order m1 so that the dynamics of contrast agents would be significantly altered. The main finding of the present theory is the suppression or enhancement for a particular resonance that may be used to advantage in imaging with ultrasound contrast agents for clinical applications. 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Uncorrelated multiple conductive filament nucleation and rupture in ultra-thin high-κ dielectric based resistive random access memory

KAUST Repository

Wu, Xing; Li, Kun; Raghavan, Nagarajan; Bosman, Michel; Wang, Qing-Xiao; Cha, Dong Kyu; Zhang, Xixiang; Pey, Kin-Leong

2011-01-01

Resistive switching in transition metal oxides could form the basis for next-generation non-volatile memory (NVM). It has been reported that the current in the high-conductivity state of several technologically relevant oxide materials flows through

Compressive Phase Contrast Tomography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maia, Filipe; MacDowell, Alastair; Marchesini, Stefano; Padmore, Howard A.; Parkinson, Dula Y.; Pien, Jack; Schirotzek, Andre; Yang, Chao

2010-01-01

When x-rays penetrate soft matter, their phase changes more rapidly than their amplitude. Interference effects visible with high brightness sources creates higher contrast, edge enhanced images. When the object is piecewise smooth (made of big blocks of a few components), such higher contrast datasets have a sparse solution. We apply basis pursuit solvers to improve SNR, remove ring artifacts, reduce the number of views and radiation dose from phase contrast datasets collected at the Hard X-Ray Micro Tomography Beamline at the Advanced Light Source. We report a GPU code for the most computationally intensive task, the gridding and inverse gridding algorithm (non uniform sampled Fourier transform).

Experiencing More Mathematics Anxiety than Expected? Contrasting Trait and State Anxiety in High Achieving Students

Science.gov (United States)

Roos, A.-L.; Bieg, M.; Goetz, T.; Frenzel, A. C.; Taxer, J.; Zeidner, M.

2015-01-01

This study examined mathematics anxiety among high and low achieving students (N = 237, grades 9 and 10) by contrasting trait (habitual) and state (momentary) assessments of anxiety. Previous studies have found that trait anxiety measures are typically rated higher than state measures. Furthermore, the academic self-concept has been identified to…

The Value of Contrast Echocardiography

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shannon C. Treiber

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Purpose: There is much evidence-based research proving the effectiveness of contrast echocardiography, but there are still questions and concerns about its specific uses. This study tested the effectiveness of contrast echocardiography in defining the left ventricular endocardial border. Methods: From 30 patients, a total of 60 echocardiograms –– 30 with and 30 without use of contrast –– were retrospectively reviewed by four blinded cardiologists with advanced training in echocardiography. No single cardiologist reviewed contrast and noncontrast images of the same patient. Each set of 30 echocardiograms was then studied for wall-motion scoring. Visualization of left ventricular wall segments and a global visualization confidence level of interpretation were recorded. Results: Of all wall segments (N = 510, 91% were visualized in echocardiograms with use of contrast, whereas 75% of the walls were visualized in echocardiograms without contrast (P < 0.001. Of 30 examinations, 17 contrast echocardiograms were read with high confidence compared to 6 without contrast use (P = 0.004. The number of walls visualized with contrast was increased in 18 patients (60%, whereas noncontrast echocardiograms yielded more visualized walls in 6 patients (20%, P = 0.002. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that contrast is valuable to echocardiographic imaging. Its use should be supported throughout echocardiography clinics and encouraged in certain patients for whom resting and stress echocardiography results without contrast often prove uninterpretable.

A cross-stacked plasmonic nanowire network for high-contrast femtosecond optical switching.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Yuanhai; Zhang, Xinping; Fang, Xiaohui; Liang, Shuyan

2016-01-21

We report an ultrafast optical switching device constructed by stacking two layers of gold nanowires into a perpendicularly crossed network, which works at a speed faster than 280 fs with an on/off modulation depth of about 22.4%. The two stacks play different roles in enhancing consistently the optical switching performance due to their different dependence on the polarization of optical electric fields. The cross-plasmon resonance based on the interaction between the perpendicularly stacked gold nanowires and its Fano-coupling with Rayleigh anomaly is the dominant mechanism for such a high-contrast optical switching device.

Evaluation of the acute adverse reaction of contrast medium with high and moderate iodine concentration in patients undergoing computed tomography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagamoto, Masashi; Gomi, Tatsuya; Terada, Hitoshi; Terada, Shigehiko; Kohda, Eiichi

2006-01-01

The aim of this prospective study was to evaluate and compare acute adverse reactions between contrast medium containing moderate and high concentrations of iodine in patients undergoing computed tomography (CT). A total of 945 patients undergoing enhanced CT were randomly assigned to receive one of two doses of contrast medium. We then prospectively investigated the incidence of adverse reactions. Iopamidol was used as the contrast medium, with a high concentration of 370 mgI/ml and a moderate concentration of 300 mgI/ml. The frequency of adverse reactions, such as pain at the injection site and heat sensation, were determined. Acute adverse reactions were observed in 2.4% (11/458) of the moderate-concentration group compared to 3.11% (15/482) of the high-concentration group; there was no significant difference in incidence between the two groups. Most adverse reactions were mild, and there was no significant difference in severity. One patient in the high-concentration group was seen to have a moderate adverse reaction. No correlation existed between the incidence of adverse reactions and patient characteristics such as sex, age, weight, flow amount, and flow rate. The incidence of pain was not significantly different between the two groups. In contrast, the incidence of heat sensation was significantly higher in the high-concentration group. The incidence and severity of acute adverse reactions were not significantly different between the two groups, and there were no severe adverse reactions in either group. (author)

Contrast-enhanced peripheral MRA

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Yousef W; Thomsen, Henrik S

2012-01-01

MRI contrast agent is injected intravenously and T1-weighted images are acquired in the subsequent arterial first-pass phase. In order to achieve high quality MR angiograms without interfering venous contamination or artifacts, a number of factors need to be taken into account. This includes magnetic......-state MRA. Gadolinium(Gd)-based contrast agents are used for CE-MRA of the peripheral arteries. Extracellular Gd agents have a pharmacokinetic profile similar to iodinated contrast media. Accordingly, these agents are employed for first-pass MRA. Blood-pool Gd-based agents are characterized by prolonged...... intravascular stay, due to macromolecular structure or protein binding. These agents can be used for first-pass, as well as steady-state MRA. Some Gd-based contrast agents with low thermodynamic stability have been linked to development of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis in patients with severe renal...

Dual-energy contrast-enhanced spectral mammography (CESM).

Science.gov (United States)

Daniaux, Martin; De Zordo, Tobias; Santner, Wolfram; Amort, Birgit; Koppelstätter, Florian; Jaschke, Werner; Dromain, Clarisse; Oberaigner, Willi; Hubalek, Michael; Marth, Christian

2015-10-01

Dual-energy contrast-enhanced mammography is one of the latest developments in breast care. Imaging with contrast agents in breast cancer was already known from previous magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography studies. However, high costs, limited availability-or high radiation dose-led to the development of contrast-enhanced spectral mammography (CESM). We reviewed the current literature, present our experience, discuss the advantages and drawbacks of CESM and look at the future of this innovative technique.

Moderate contrast in the evaluation of paintings is liked more but remembered less than high contrast

NARCIS (Netherlands)

K. Dijkstra (Katinka); van Dongen, N.N.N. (Noah N.N.)

2017-01-01

textabstractMany visual aspects of paintings, as well as exposure to art and cultural norms, contribute to the aesthetic evaluation of paintings. The current study looked at heightened visual contrast as an important factor in the appreciation of paintings. Participants evaluated abstract digitized

Enhancement tuning and control for high dynamic range images in multi-scale locally adaptive contrast enhancement algorithms

Science.gov (United States)

Cvetkovic, Sascha D.; Schirris, Johan; de With, Peter H. N.

2009-01-01

For real-time imaging in surveillance applications, visibility of details is of primary importance to ensure customer confidence. If we display High Dynamic-Range (HDR) scenes whose contrast spans four or more orders of magnitude on a conventional monitor without additional processing, results are unacceptable. Compression of the dynamic range is therefore a compulsory part of any high-end video processing chain because standard monitors are inherently Low- Dynamic Range (LDR) devices with maximally two orders of display dynamic range. In real-time camera processing, many complex scenes are improved with local contrast enhancements, bringing details to the best possible visibility. In this paper, we show how a multi-scale high-frequency enhancement scheme, in which gain is a non-linear function of the detail energy, can be used for the dynamic range compression of HDR real-time video camera signals. We also show the connection of our enhancement scheme to the processing way of the Human Visual System (HVS). Our algorithm simultaneously controls perceived sharpness, ringing ("halo") artifacts (contrast) and noise, resulting in a good balance between visibility of details and non-disturbance of artifacts. The overall quality enhancement, suitable for both HDR and LDR scenes, is based on a careful selection of the filter types for the multi-band decomposition and a detailed analysis of the signal per frequency band.

Controlled fabrication of Si nanocrystal delta-layers in thin SiO2 layers by plasma immersion ion implantation for nonvolatile memories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bonafos, C.; Ben-Assayag, G.; Groenen, J.; Carrada, M.; Spiegel, Y.; Torregrosa, F.; Normand, P.; Dimitrakis, P.; Kapetanakis, E.; Sahu, B. S.; Slaoui, A.

2013-01-01

Plasma Immersion Ion Implantation (PIII) is a promising alternative to beam line implantation to produce a single layer of nanocrystals (NCs) in the gate insulator of metal-oxide semiconductor devices. We report herein the fabrication of two-dimensional Si-NCs arrays in thin SiO 2 films using PIII and rapid thermal annealing. The effect of plasma and implantation conditions on the structural properties of the NC layers is examined by transmission electron microscopy. A fine tuning of the NCs characteristics is possible by optimizing the oxide thickness, implantation energy, and dose. Electrical characterization revealed that the PIII-produced-Si NC structures are appealing for nonvolatile memories

Ultrashort Echo Time Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Lung Using a High-Relaxivity T1 Blood-Pool Contrast Agent

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joris Tchouala Nofiele

2014-10-01

Full Text Available The lung remains one of the most challenging organs to image using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI due to intrinsic rapid signal decay. However, unlike conventional modalities such as computed tomography, MRI does not involve radiation and can provide functional and morphologic information on a regional basis. Here we demonstrate proof of concept for a new MRI approach to achieve substantial gains in a signal to noise ratio (SNR in the lung parenchyma: contrast-enhanced ultrashort echo time (UTE imaging following intravenous injection of a high-relaxivity blood-pool manganese porphyrin T1 contrast agent. The new contrast agent increased relative enhancement of the lung parenchyma by over 10-fold compared to gadolinium diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid (Gd-DTPA, and the use of UTE boosted the SNR by a factor of 4 over conventional T1-weighted gradient echo acquisitions. The new agent also maintains steady enhancement over at least 60 minutes, thus providing a long time window for obtaining high-resolution, high-quality images and the ability to measure a number of physiologic parameters.

Application of iodic contrast media in roentgen examinations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mielecki, T.; Januszkiewicz-Mielecka, K.; Kukula, A.; Szechinski, J.

1993-01-01

An analysis of adverse reactions after administration of iodic contrast media in 1780 patients in 1952 various X-ray examinations is presented. Various preparations by different producers were used. As a rule, domestic contrast media were administered in non high-risk patients, whereas imported contrast media were applied in patients with documented high-risk factors (20%) and nonionic compounds were intended for patients of severe clinical condition (10%). Adverse reactions occurred in 6.9% of non high-risk patients and in 10.9% of high-risk patients. Nonionic preparations caused adverse reactions in 5.6%. Considering the significant differences in prices of domestic, imported and nonionic contrast media, authors advice to use safer but clearly more expensive preparations in patients with documented factors of increased risk. (author)

Local contrast-enhanced MR images via high dynamic range processing.

Science.gov (United States)

Chandra, Shekhar S; Engstrom, Craig; Fripp, Jurgen; Neubert, Ales; Jin, Jin; Walker, Duncan; Salvado, Olivier; Ho, Charles; Crozier, Stuart

2018-09-01

To develop a local contrast-enhancing and feature-preserving high dynamic range (HDR) image processing algorithm for multichannel and multisequence MR images of multiple body regions and tissues, and to evaluate its performance for structure visualization, bias field (correction) mitigation, and automated tissue segmentation. A multiscale-shape and detail-enhancement HDR-MRI algorithm is applied to data sets of multichannel and multisequence MR images of the brain, knee, breast, and hip. In multisequence 3T hip images, agreement between automatic cartilage segmentations and corresponding synthesized HDR-MRI series were computed for mean voxel overlap established from manual segmentations for a series of cases. Qualitative comparisons between the developed HDR-MRI and standard synthesis methods were performed on multichannel 7T brain and knee data, and multisequence 3T breast and knee data. The synthesized HDR-MRI series provided excellent enhancement of fine-scale structure from multiple scales and contrasts, while substantially reducing bias field effects in 7T brain gradient echo, T 1 and T 2 breast images and 7T knee multichannel images. Evaluation of the HDR-MRI approach on 3T hip multisequence images showed superior outcomes for automatic cartilage segmentations with respect to manual segmentation, particularly around regions with hyperintense synovial fluid, across a set of 3D sequences. The successful combination of multichannel/sequence MR images into a single-fused HDR-MR image format provided consolidated visualization of tissues within 1 omnibus image, enhanced definition of thin, complex anatomical structures in the presence of variable or hyperintense signals, and improved tissue (cartilage) segmentation outcomes. © 2018 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Peripheral Vasculature: High-Temporal- and High-Spatial-Resolution Three-dimensional Contrast-enhanced MR Angiography1

Science.gov (United States)

Haider, Clifton R.; Glockner, James F.; Stanson, Anthony W.; Riederer, Stephen J.

2009-01-01

Purpose: To prospectively evaluate the feasibility of performing high-spatial-resolution (1-mm isotropic) time-resolved three-dimensional (3D) contrast material–enhanced magnetic resonance (MR) angiography of the peripheral vasculature with Cartesian acquisition with projection-reconstruction–like sampling (CAPR) and eightfold accelerated two-dimensional (2D) sensitivity encoding (SENSE). Materials and Methods: All studies were approved by the institutional review board and were HIPAA compliant; written informed consent was obtained from all participants. There were 13 volunteers (mean age, 41.9; range, 27–53 years). The CAPR sequence was adapted to provide 1-mm isotropic spatial resolution and a 5-second frame time. Use of different receiver coil element sizes for those placed on the anterior-to-posterior versus left-to-right sides of the field of view reduced signal-to-noise ratio loss due to acceleration. Results from eight volunteers were rated independently by two radiologists according to prominence of artifact, arterial to venous separation, vessel sharpness, continuity of arterial signal intensity in major arteries (anterior and posterior tibial, peroneal), demarcation of origin of major arteries, and overall diagnostic image quality. MR angiographic results in two patients with peripheral vascular disease were compared with their results at computed tomographic angiography. Results: The sequence exhibited no image artifact adversely affecting diagnostic image quality. Temporal resolution was evaluated to be sufficient in all cases, even with known rapid arterial to venous transit. The vessels were graded to have excellent sharpness, continuity, and demarcation of the origins of the major arteries. Distal muscular branches and the communicating and perforating arteries were routinely seen. Excellent diagnostic quality rating was given for 15 (94%) of 16 evaluations. Conclusion: The feasibility of performing high-diagnostic-quality time-resolved 3D

Contrast enhanced MRA: do contrast agents with a higher T1 relaxitivity improve the visualization of carotid artery stenoses?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Friese, S.; Krapf, H.; Skalej, M.; Kueker, W.; Fetter, M.; Vonthein, R.

2001-01-01

CE-MRA is a powerful tool for the non-invasive evaluation of carotid artery occlusive disease. However, due to certain drawbacks, it has not completely replaced DSA. The purpose of this study was to evaluate if Gd-BOPTA, a contrast agent with high T 1 relaxivity, can increase the diagnostic accuracy of CE-MRA. Material and Methods: The CE-MRA examinations of 54 consecutive patients were evaluated by two experienced radiologists, independently. The examinations of 27 patients were contrasted either with 20 ml Gd-BOPTA or with 20 ml Gd-DTPA. The reviewers were blinded to the contrast agent chosen and to the ultrasound results. They rated the overall image quality and the degree of the ICA stenoses. Results: For the estimation of the degree of the ICA stenoses there was a high interrater validity. In comparison to the ultrasound findings, 6 of 50 high-degree stenoses were underestimated as moderate stenoses. In one of seven sonographically occluded vessels, MRA revealed residual patency in the vessel lumen. It was not possible to identify the contrast agent that was taken for a study. Subjective estimation of the image quality (arterial contrast of the ICA, contrast of the other vessels, and general impression) did not significantly change with the contrast agent employed. Conclusion: The diagnostic accuracy of CE-MRA for the evaluation of internal carotid artery stenoses is not improved by Gd-BOPTA if identical volumina of contrast media are applied. The potential of this contrast agent can be the reduction of the amount of contrast without loss of diagnostic information. Further studies are necessary. (orig.) [de

Scaling Limit of Symmetric Random Walk in High-Contrast Periodic Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Piatnitski, A.; Zhizhina, E.

2017-11-01

The paper deals with the asymptotic properties of a symmetric random walk in a high contrast periodic medium in Z^d, d≥1. From the existing homogenization results it follows that under diffusive scaling the limit behaviour of this random walk need not be Markovian. The goal of this work is to show that if in addition to the coordinate of the random walk in Z^d we introduce an extra variable that characterizes the position of the random walk inside the period then the limit dynamics of this two-component process is Markov. We describe the limit process and observe that the components of the limit process are coupled. We also prove the convergence in the path space for the said random walk.

Low Cost, High-Throughput 3-D Pulmonary Imager Using Hyperpolarized Contrast Agents and Low-Field MRI

Science.gov (United States)

2017-10-01

greater gas polarizations and production amounts/ throughputs- benefiting in particular from the advent of com- pact, high-power, relatively low- cost ...Award Number: W81XWH-15-1-0271 TITLE: Low- Cost , High-Throughput 3-D Pulmonary Imager Using Hyperpolarized Contrast Agents and Low-Field MRI...DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT: Approved for Public Release; Distribution Unlimited The views, opinions and/or findings contained in this report are those of the

Novel Organic Phototransistor-Based Nonvolatile Memory Integrated with UV-Sensing/Green-Emissive Aggregation Enhanced Emission (AEE)-Active Aromatic Polyamide Electret Layer.

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Shun-Wen; Han, Ting; Huang, Teng-Yung; Chang Chien, Yu-Hsin; Liu, Cheng-Liang; Tang, Ben Zhong; Liou, Guey-Sheng

2018-05-30

A novel aggregation enhanced emission (AEE)-active polyamide TPA-CN-TPE with a high photoluminesence characteristic was successfully synthesized by the direct polymerization of 4-cyanotriphenyl diamine (TPA-CN) and tetraphenylethene (TPE)-containing dicarboxylic acid. The obtained luminescent polyamide plays a significant role as the polymer electret layer in organic field-effect transistors (OFETs)-type memory. The strong green emission of TPA-CN-TPE under ultraviolet (UV) irradiation can be directly absorbed by the pentacene channel, displaying a light-induced programming and voltage-driven erasing organic phototransistor-based nonvolatile memory. Memory window can be effectively manipulated between the programming and erasing states by applying UV light illumination and electrical field, respectively. The photoinduced memory behavior can be maintained for over 10 4 s between these two states with an on/off ratio of 10 4 , and the memory switching can be steadily operated for many cycles. With high photoresponsivity ( R) and photosensitivity ( S), this organic phototransistor integrated with AEE-active polyamide electret layer could serve as an excellent candidate for UV photodetectors in optical applications. For comparison, an AEE-inactive aromatic polyimide TPA-PIS electret with much weaker solid-state emission was also applied in the same OFETs device architecture, but this device did not show any UV-sensitive and UV-induced memory characteristics, which further confirmed the significance of the light-emitting capability of the electret layer.

Density-controllable nonvolatile memory devices having metal nanocrystals through chemical synthesis and assembled by spin-coating technique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Guangli; Chen Yubin; Shi Yi; Pu Lin; Pan Lijia; Zhang Rong; Zheng Youdou

2010-01-01

A novel two-step method is employed, for the first time, to fabricate nonvolatile memory devices that have metal nanocrystals. First, size-averaged Au nanocrystals are synthesized chemically; second, they are assembled into memory devices by a spin-coating technique at room temperature. This attractive approach makes it possible to tailor the diameter and control the density of nanocrystals individually. In addition, processes at room temperature prevent Au diffusion, which is a main concern for the application of metal nanocrystal-based memory. The experimental results, both the morphology characterization and the electrical measurements, reveal that there is an optimum density of nanocrystal monolayer to balance between long data retention and a large hysteresis memory window. At the same time, density-controllable devices could also feed the preferential emphasis on either memory window or retention time. All these facts confirm the advantages and novelty of our two-step method. (semiconductor devices)

Gap-enhanced Raman tags for high-contrast sentinel lymph node imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Bao, Zhouzhou; Zhang, Yuqing; Tan, Ziyang; Yin, Xia; Di, Wen; Ye, Jian

2018-05-01

The sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy is gaining in popularity as a procedure to investigate the lymphatic metastasis of malignant tumors. The commonly used techniques to identify the SLNs in clinical practice are blue dyes-guided visualization, radioisotope-based detection and near-infrared fluorescence imaging. However, all these methods have not been found to perfectly fit the clinical criteria with issues such as short retention time in SLN, poor spatial resolution, autofluorescence, low photostability and high cost. In this study, we have reported a new type of nanoprobes, named, gap-enhanced Raman tags (GERTs) for the SLN Raman imaging. With the advantageous features including unique "fingerprint" Raman signal, strong Raman enhancement, high photostability, good biocompatibility and extra-long retention time, we have demonstrated that GERTs are greatly favorable for high-contrast and deep SLN Raman imaging, which meanwhile reveals the dynamic migration behavior of the probes entering the SLN. In addition, a quantitative volumetric Raman imaging (qVRI) data-processing method is employed to acquire a high-resolution 3-dimensional (3D) margin of SLN as well as the content variation of GERTs in the SLN. Moreover, SLN detection could be realized via a cost-effective commercial portable Raman scanner. Therefore, GERTs hold the great potential to be translated in clinical application for accurate and intraoperative location of the SLN. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Benchtop phase-contrast X-ray imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gundogdu, O. [Department of Physics, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7XH (United Kingdom)], E-mail: o.gundogdu@surrey.ac.uk; Nirgianaki, E.; Che Ismail, E.; Jenneson, P.M.; Bradley, D.A. [Department of Physics, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7XH (United Kingdom)

2007-12-15

Clinical radiography has traditionally been based on contrast obtained from absorption when X-rays pass through the body. The contrast obtained from traditional radiography can be rather poor, particularly when it comes to soft tissue. A wide range of media of interest in materials science, biology and medicine exhibit very weak absorption contrast, but they nevertheless produce significant phase shifts with X-rays. The use of phase information for imaging purposes is therefore an attractive prospect. Some of the X-ray phase-contrast imaging methods require highly monochromatic plane wave radiation and sophisticated X-ray optics. However, the propagation-based phase-contrast imaging method adapted in this paper is a relatively simple method to implement, essentially requiring only a microfocal X-ray tube and electronic detection. In this paper, we present imaging results obtained from two different benchtop X-ray sources employing the free space propagation method. X-ray phase-contrast imaging provides higher contrast in many samples, including biological tissues that have negligible absorption contrast.

Detection of admittivity anomaly on high-contrast heterogeneous backgrounds using frequency difference EIT.

Science.gov (United States)

Jang, J; Seo, J K

2015-06-01

This paper describes a multiple background subtraction method in frequency difference electrical impedance tomography (fdEIT) to detect an admittivity anomaly from a high-contrast background conductivity distribution. The proposed method expands the use of the conventional weighted frequency difference EIT method, which has been used limitedly to detect admittivity anomalies in a roughly homogeneous background. The proposed method can be viewed as multiple weighted difference imaging in fdEIT. Although the spatial resolutions of the output images by fdEIT are very low due to the inherent ill-posedness, numerical simulations and phantom experiments of the proposed method demonstrate its feasibility to detect anomalies. It has potential application in stroke detection in a head model, which is highly heterogeneous due to the skull.

Low-voltage operating flexible ferroelectric organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memory with a vertical phase separation P(VDF-TrFE-CTFE)/PS dielectric

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Meili; Xiang, Lanyi; Xu, Ting; Wang, Wei; Xie, Wenfa; Zhou, Dayu

2017-10-01

Future flexible electronic systems require memory devices combining low-power operation and mechanical bendability. However, high programming/erasing voltages, which are universally needed to switch the storage states in previously reported ferroelectric organic field-effect transistor (Fe-OFET) nonvolatile memories (NVMs), severely prevent their practical applications. In this work, we develop a route to achieve a low-voltage operating flexible Fe-OFET NVM. Utilizing vertical phase separation, an ultrathin self-organized poly(styrene) (PS) buffering layer covers the surface of the ferroelectric polymer layer by one-step spin-coating from their blending solution. The ferroelectric polymer with a low coercive field contributes to low-voltage operation in the Fe-OFET NVM. The polymer PS contributes to the improvement of mobility, attributing to screening the charge scattering and decreasing the surface roughness. As a result, a high performance flexible Fe-OFET NVM is achieved at the low P/E voltages of ±10 V, with a mobility larger than 0.2 cm2 V-1 s-1, a reliable P/E endurance over 150 cycles, stable data storage retention capability over 104 s, and excellent mechanical bending durability with a slight performance degradation after 1000 repetitive tensile bending cycles at a curvature radius of 5.5 mm.

Using NVMe Gen3 PCIe SSD Cards in High-density Servers for High-performance Big Data Transfer Over Multiple Network Channels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fang, Chin [SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States)

2015-02-07

This Technical Note describes how the Zettar team came up with a data transfer cluster design that convincingly proved the feasibility of using high-density servers for high-performance Big Data transfers. It then outlines the tests, operations, and observations that address a potential over-heating concern regarding the use of Non-Volatile Memory Host Controller Interface Specification (NVMHCI aka NVM Express or NVMe) Gen 3 PCIe SSD cards in high-density servers. Finally, it points out the possibility of developing a new generation of high-performance Science DMZ data transfer system for the data-intensive research community and commercial enterprises.

High Contrast CRT.

Science.gov (United States)

1980-02-01

barium dioxide contains about 0.02% iron. For economical reasons, glass manufacturer’s probably use materials of lesser purity than reagent grade...otherwise the same procedure is followed. 2.4 Nonreflecting (NR) Film The NR film is a light abosrbing inhomogeneous film utilized to achieve a high...hour. No surface distortion of the disc occurred, thus ruling out any reaction between the carbon support plate and the glass disc that might have

Development of microbubble contrast agents for high frequency ultrasound microscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jun, Se Jung; Kim, Eun A; Park, Sung Hoon; Lee, Hye Jin; Jun, Hong Young; Byun, Seung Jae; Yoon, Kwon Ha [Wonkwang University School of Medicine, Iksan (Korea, Republic of)

2007-05-15

To develop optimal microbubble contrast agents (MBCAs) for performing ultrasound microscopy when examining small animals. We prepared three types of MBCAs. First, a mixture of three parts of 40% dextran and one part of 5% human serum albumin were sonicated with perfluorocarbon (PFC) (MB{sub 1}-D40A5P). Second, three parts of 40% dextran and one part of 1% human serum albumin were sonicated with PFC (MB{sub 2}-D40A1P). Third, all parts of 1% bovine serum albumin were sonicated with PFC (MB{sub 3}-A1P). We measured the microbubbles' sizes and concentrations with using image analysis software. The acoustic properties of the microbubbles were assessed both in vitro and in vivo. The majority of the MB{sub 1}-D40A5Ps had a diameter of 2-5 {mu} m, the mean diameter of the MB{sub 2}-D40A1Ps was 2.5 {mu} m, and the mean diameter of the MB{sub 3}-A1Ps was less than 2.0 {mu} m. Among the microbubbles, the MB{sub 1}-D40A5Ps and MB{sub 2}-D40A1Ps showed increased echogenicity in the abdominal vessels, but the duration of their contrast effect was less than 30 sec. On the contrary, the MB3-A1Ps exhibited strong enhancement in the vessels and their duration was greater than 120 sec. A microbubble contrast agent consisting of all parts of 1% serum albumin sonicated with PFC is an effective contrast agent for ultrasound microscopy.

Low-Cost, High-Throughput 3-D Pulmonary Imager Using Hyperpolarized Contrast Agents and Low-Field MRI

Science.gov (United States)

2017-10-01

low- cost and high-throughput was a key element proposed for this project, which we believe will be of significant benefit to the patients suffering...Award Number: W81XWH-15-1-0272 TITLE: Low- Cost , High-Throughput 3-D Pulmonary Imager Using Hyperpolarized Contrast Agents and Low-Field MRI...STATEMENT: Approved for Public Release; Distribution Unlimited The views, opinions and/or findings contained in this report are those of the author(s

3.0 Tesla high spatial resolution contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography (CE-MRA) of the pulmonary circulation: initial experience with a 32-channel phased array coil using a high relaxivity contrast agent.

Science.gov (United States)

Nael, Kambiz; Fenchel, Michael; Krishnam, Mayil; Finn, J Paul; Laub, Gerhard; Ruehm, Stefan G

2007-06-01

To evaluate the technical feasibility of high spatial resolution contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography (CE-MRA) with highly accelerated parallel acquisition at 3.0 T using a 32-channel phased array coil, and a high relaxivity contrast agent. Ten adult healthy volunteers (5 men, 5 women, aged 21-66 years) underwent high spatial resolution CE-MRA of the pulmonary circulation. Imaging was performed at 3 T using a 32-channel phase array coil. After intravenous injection of 1 mL of gadobenate dimeglumine (Gd-BOPTA) at 1.5 mL/s, a timing bolus was used to measure the transit time from the arm vein to the main pulmonary artery. Subsequently following intravenous injection of 0.1 mmol/kg of Gd-BOPTA at the same rate, isotropic high spatial resolution data sets (1 x 1 x 1 mm3) CE-MRA of the entire pulmonary circulation were acquired using a fast gradient-recalled echo sequence (TR/TE 3/1.2 milliseconds, FA 18 degrees) and highly accelerated parallel acquisition (GRAPPA x 6) during a 20-second breath hold. The presence of artifact, noise, and image quality of the pulmonary arterial segments were evaluated independently by 2 radiologists. Phantom measurements were performed to assess the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Statistical analysis of data was performed by using Wilcoxon rank sum test and 2-sample Student t test. The interobserver variability was tested by kappa coefficient. All studies were of diagnostic quality as determined by both observers. The pulmonary arteries were routinely identified up to fifth-order branches, with definition in the diagnostic range and excellent interobserver agreement (kappa = 0.84, 95% confidence interval 0.77-0.90). Phantom measurements showed significantly lower SNR (P < 0.01) using GRAPPA (17.3 +/- 18.8) compared with measurements without parallel acquisition (58 +/- 49.4). The described 3 T CE-MRA protocol in addition to high T1 relaxivity of Gd-BOPTA provides sufficient SNR to support highly accelerated parallel acquisition

MRI and CT contrast media extravasation

Science.gov (United States)

Heshmatzadeh Behzadi, Ashkan; Farooq, Zerwa; Newhouse, Jeffery H.; Prince, Martin R.

2018-01-01

Abstract Background: This systematic review combines data from multiple papers on contrast media extravasation to identify factors contributing to increased extravasation risk. Methods: Data were extracted from 17 papers reporting 2191 extravasations in 1,104,872 patients (0.2%) undergoing computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Results: Extravasation rates were 0.045% for gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCA) and nearly 6-fold higher, 0.26% for iodinated contrast agents. Factors associated with increased contrast media extravasations included: older age, female gender, using an existing intravenous (IV) instead of placing a new IV in radiology, in-patient status, use of automated power injection, high injection rates, catheter location, and failing to warm up the more viscous contrast media to body temperature. Conclusion: Contrast media extravasation is infrequent but nearly 6 times less frequent with GBCA for MRI compared with iodinated contrast used in CT. PMID:29489663

Front-End Light Source for aWaveform-Controlled High-Contrast Few-Cycle Laser System for High-Repetition Rate Relativistic Optics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rodrigo Lopez-Martens

2013-03-01

Full Text Available We present the current development of an injector for a high-contrast, ultrashort laser system devoted to relativistic laser-plasma interaction in the few-cycle regime. The front-end is based on CEP-stabilized Ti:Sa CPA followed by XPW filter designed at the mJ level for temporal cleaning and shortening. Accurate characterization highlights the fidelity of the proposed injector. Measured CEP drift is 170 mrad rms.

Pulsed EM Field Response of a Thin, High-Contrast, Finely Layered Structure With Dielectric and Conductive Properties

NARCIS (Netherlands)

De Hoop, A.T.; Jiang, L.

2009-01-01

The response of a thin, high-contrast, finely layered structure with dielectric and conductive properties to an incident, pulsed, electromagnetic field is investigated theoretically. The fine layering causes the standard spatial discretization techniques to solve Maxwell's equations numerically to

A Compute Capable SSD Architecture for Next-Generation Non-volatile Memories

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

De, Arup [Univ. of California, San Diego, CA (United States)

2014-01-01

Existing storage technologies (e.g., disks and ash) are failing to cope with the processor and main memory speed and are limiting the overall perfor- mance of many large scale I/O or data-intensive applications. Emerging fast byte-addressable non-volatile memory (NVM) technologies, such as phase-change memory (PCM), spin-transfer torque memory (STTM) and memristor are very promising and are approaching DRAM-like performance with lower power con- sumption and higher density as process technology scales. These new memories are narrowing down the performance gap between the storage and the main mem- ory and are putting forward challenging problems on existing SSD architecture, I/O interface (e.g, SATA, PCIe) and software. This dissertation addresses those challenges and presents a novel SSD architecture called XSSD. XSSD o oads com- putation in storage to exploit fast NVMs and reduce the redundant data tra c across the I/O bus. XSSD o ers a exible RPC-based programming framework that developers can use for application development on SSD without dealing with the complication of the underlying architecture and communication management. We have built a prototype of XSSD on the BEE3 FPGA prototyping system. We implement various data-intensive applications and achieve speedup and energy ef- ciency of 1.5-8.9 and 1.7-10.27 respectively. This dissertation also compares XSSD with previous work on intelligent storage and intelligent memory. The existing ecosystem and these new enabling technologies make this system more viable than earlier ones.

Controlled fabrication of Si nanocrystal delta-layers in thin SiO{sub 2} layers by plasma immersion ion implantation for nonvolatile memories

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bonafos, C.; Ben-Assayag, G.; Groenen, J.; Carrada, M. [CEMES-CNRS and Université de Toulouse, 29 rue J. Marvig, 31055 Toulouse Cedex 04 (France); Spiegel, Y.; Torregrosa, F. [IBS, Rue G Imbert Prolongée, ZI Peynier-Rousset, 13790 Peynier (France); Normand, P.; Dimitrakis, P.; Kapetanakis, E. [NCSRD, Terma Patriarchou Gregoriou, 15310 Aghia Paraskevi (Greece); Sahu, B. S.; Slaoui, A. [ICube, 23 Rue du Loess, 67037 Strasbourg Cedex 2 (France)

2013-12-16

Plasma Immersion Ion Implantation (PIII) is a promising alternative to beam line implantation to produce a single layer of nanocrystals (NCs) in the gate insulator of metal-oxide semiconductor devices. We report herein the fabrication of two-dimensional Si-NCs arrays in thin SiO{sub 2} films using PIII and rapid thermal annealing. The effect of plasma and implantation conditions on the structural properties of the NC layers is examined by transmission electron microscopy. A fine tuning of the NCs characteristics is possible by optimizing the oxide thickness, implantation energy, and dose. Electrical characterization revealed that the PIII-produced-Si NC structures are appealing for nonvolatile memories.

A survey of contrast media used in coronary angiograph

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weikl, A.; Hubmann, M.

1982-01-01

In recent years, various contrast media have been developed for use in coronary angiography. These contrast media may be divided into ionic contrast media of high osmolality, those of low osmolality, and nonionic contrast materials. We conducted our own clinical studies with 40 patients. In random succession a standard contrast medium (ionic, of high osmolality) and a new-generation contrast medium (either nonionic or ionic with low osmolality) were injected into the right and left coronary arteries. After each injection we measured the systolic and diastolic blood pressure using a liquid-filled coronary catheter. In addition, the change in the length of the cardiac cycle was registered in terms of the R-R interval (in ms) and at the same time, leads I, II, and III of the ECG were recorded. We studied the influence of the various contrast media on the activity of ATPase in in vitro experiments, using Lasser and Lang's. When ionic contrast media of low osmolality and nonionic contrast media were utilized the heart rate showed no change. Disturbances of rhythm such as ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation were not observed. All of the contrast media used produced the same ECG changes. These changes can be ascribed to the inhibition of ATPase. The arterial blood pressure was lowered significantly only by ionic contrast media of high osmolality only. (orig.)

Text accessibility by people with reduced contrast sensitivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Crossland, Michael D; Rubin, Gary S

2012-09-01

Contrast sensitivity is reduced in people with eye disease, and also in older adults without eye disease. In this article, we compare contrast of text presented in print and digital formats with contrast sensitivity values for a large cohort of subjects in a population-based study of older adults (the Salisbury Eye Evaluation). Contrast sensitivity values were recorded for 2520 adults aged 65 to 84 years living in Salisbury, Maryland. The proportion of the sample likely to be unable to read text of different formats (electronic books, newsprint, paperback books, laser print, and LED computer monitors) was calculated using published contrast reserve levels required to perform spot reading, to read with fluency, high fluency, and under optimal conditions. One percent of this sample had contrast sensitivity less than that required to read newsprint fluently. Text presented on an LED computer monitor had the highest contrast. Ninety-eight percent of the sample had contrast sensitivity sufficient for high fluent reading of text (at least 160 words/min) on a monitor. However, 29.6% were still unlikely to be able to read this text with optimal fluency. Reduced contrast of print limits text accessibility for many people in the developed world. Presenting text in a high-contrast format, such as black laser print on a white page, would increase the number of people able to access such information. Additionally, making text available in a format that can be presented on an LED computer monitor will increase access to written documents.

GaAs metal-oxide-semiconductor based non-volatile flash memory devices with InAs quantum dots as charge storage nodes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Islam, Sk Masiul, E-mail: masiulelt@gmail.com; Chowdhury, Sisir; Sarkar, Krishnendu; Nagabhushan, B.; Banerji, P. [Materials Science Centre, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur 721 302 (India); Chakraborty, S. [Applied Materials Science Division, Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, 1/AF Bidhannagar, Sector-I, Kolkata 700 064 (India); Mukherjee, Rabibrata [Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur 721302 (India)

2015-06-24

Ultra-thin InP passivated GaAs metal-oxide-semiconductor based non-volatile flash memory devices were fabricated using InAs quantum dots (QDs) as charge storing elements by metal organic chemical vapor deposition technique to study the efficacy of the QDs as charge storage elements. The grown QDs were embedded between two high-k dielectric such as HfO{sub 2} and ZrO{sub 2}, which were used for tunneling and control oxide layers, respectively. The size and density of the QDs were found to be 5 nm and 1.8×10{sup 11} cm{sup −2}, respectively. The device with a structure Metal/ZrO{sub 2}/InAs QDs/HfO{sub 2}/GaAs/Metal shows maximum memory window equivalent to 6.87 V. The device also exhibits low leakage current density of the order of 10{sup −6} A/cm{sup 2} and reasonably good charge retention characteristics. The low value of leakage current in the fabricated memory device is attributed to the Coulomb blockade effect influenced by quantum confinement as well as reduction of interface trap states by ultra-thin InP passivation on GaAs prior to HfO{sub 2} deposition.

Magnetic resonance imaging contrast agents: Overview and perspectives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yan Guoping; Robinson, Leslie; Hogg, Peter

2007-01-01

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a non-invasive clinical imaging modality, which has become widely used in the diagnosis and/or staging of human diseases around the world. Some MRI examinations include the use of contrast agents. The categorizations of currently available contrast agents have been described according to their effect on the image, magnetic behavior and biodistribution in the body, respectively. In this field, superparamagnetic iron oxide particles and soluble paramagnetic metal chelates are two main classes of contrast agents for MRI. This review outlines the research and development of MRI contrast agents. In future, the ideal MRI contrast agent will be focused on the neutral tissue- or organ-targeting materials with high relaxivity and specificity, low toxicity and side effects, suitable long intravascular duration and excretion time, high contrast enhancement with low dose in vivo, and with minimal cost

Contrast Enhanced US in the Abdomen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chung, Yong Eun; Kim, Ki Whang

2012-01-01

Contrast enhanced ultrasound, which was introduced in 1996, has been widely used in Europe and Eastern Asia. Ultrasound contrast agent can be classified as first generation and second generation, depending on the gas within the microbubble. With the first generation contrast agent, the high MI technique was used, and only intermittent scanning was possible due to destruction of the microbubble during scanning. Use of the second generation contrast agent with the low MI technique makes continuous scanning possible. Contrast enhanced US can be used in detection and differentiation of focal liver lesions. It is also helpful for monitoring of radiofrequency ablation and for targeting of US guided biopsy. Currently, because morphologic criteria alone may not reflect the response of the tumor to treatment, new criteria are needed for treatment evaluation after administration of anti-angiogenic agents. Contrast enhanced US could provide quantitative markers for evaluation of the response to treatment via use of dynamic contrast enhanced US. Due to cost-effectiveness, contrast enhanced US is not yet widely used in Korea; however, considering recent issues regarding contrast agent related adverse reaction, such as contrast induced nephropathy and nephrogenic systemic fibrosis, and radiation exposure, contrast enhanced US might be more widely used in Korea, as an alternative imaging modality in the future.

Transport and Fatigue Properties of Ferroelectric Polymer P(VDF-TrFE) For Nonvolatile Memory Applications

KAUST Repository

Hanna, Amir

2012-06-01

Organic ferroelectrics polymers have recently received much interest for use in nonvolatile memory devices. The ferroelectric copolymer poly(vinylidene fluoride- trifluoroethylene) , P(VDF-TrFE), is a promising candidate due to its relatively high remnant polarization, low coercive field, fast switching times, easy processability, and low Curie transition. However, no detailed study of charge injection and current transport properties in P(VDF-TrFE) have been reported in the literature yet. Charge injection and transport are believed to affect various properties of ferroelectric films such as remnant polarization values and polarization fatigue behavior.. Thus, this thesis aims to study charge injection in P(VDF-TrFE) and its transport properties as a function of electrode material. Injection was studied for Al, Ag, Au and Pt electrodes. Higher work function metals such as Pt have shown less leakage current compared to lower work function metals such as Al for more than an order of magnitude. That implied n-type conduction behavior for P(VDF-TrFE), as well as electrons being the dominant injected carrier type. Charge transport was also studied as a function of temperature, and two major transport regimes were identified: 1) Thermionic emission over a Schottky barrier for low fields (E < 25 MV/m). 2) Space-Charge-Limited regime at higher fields (25 < E <120 MV/m). We have also studied the optical imprint phenomenon, the polarization fatigue resulting from a combination of broad band optical illumination and DC bias near the switching field. A setup was designed for the experiment, and validated by reproducing the reported effect in polycrystalline Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 , PZT, film. On the other hand, P(VDF-TrFE) film showed no polarization fatigue as a result of optical imprint test, which could be attributed to the large band gap of the material, and the low intensity of the UV portion of the arc lamp white light used for the experiment. Results suggest using high work

Neutron and high-contrast X-ray micro-radiography as complementary tools for monitoring organosilicon consolidants in natural building stones

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Slavíková, Monika, E-mail: Monika.Slavikova@vscht.cz [Department of Chemical Technology of Monuments Conservation, Institute of Chemical Technology in Prague, Prague 6 CZ-16628 (Czech Republic); Krejčí, František [Institute of Experimental and Applied Physics, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague 2 CZ-12800 (Czech Republic); Kotlík, Petr [Department of Chemical Technology of Monuments Conservation, Institute of Chemical Technology in Prague, Prague 6 CZ-16628 (Czech Republic); Jakůbek, Jan [Institute of Experimental and Applied Physics, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague 2 CZ-12800 (Czech Republic); Tomandl, Ivo; Vacík, Jiří [Nuclear Physics Institute, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, CZ-25800, Rez Near Prague (Czech Republic)

2014-11-01

The monitoring of consolidants and other treatment product in stones is currently of great importance in various restoration studies. We use neutron and high-contrast X-ray micro-radiography as complementary non-destructive techniques for monitoring of organosilicon consolidants in the Opuka stone. Thanks to different sensitivities of both techniques in relation to the elemental composition, the effect of addition of the contrast agent (3-iodopropyl)trimethoxysilane commonly used in stone consolidation monitoring with X-ray radiography is evaluated. As the addition of the contrast agent to the original consolidation product alters important parameters such as the penetration depth, the understanding of the behaviour of the modified consolidation mixture is essential for verification of the reliability of the method. By comparing results from both methods, the respective radiographs show consistency in terms of homogeneity and penetration depth for all investigated concentrations of the used contrast agent. The presented results further demonstrate that the application of the contrast agent apparently changes the penetration depth, but these changes are, especially for very low concentrations (up to 1%) for most of the studies needed, negligible.

High-field, high-resolution, susceptibility-weighted magnetic resonance imaging: improved image quality by addition of contrast agent and higher field strength in patients with brain tumors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pinker, K.; Noebauer-Huhmann, I.M.; Szomolanyi, P.; Weber, M.; Grabner, G.; Trattnig, S.; Stavrou, I.; Knosp, E.; Hoeftberger, R.; Stadlbauer, A.

2008-01-01

To demonstrate intratumoral susceptibility effects in malignant brain tumors and to assess visualization of susceptibility effects before and after administration of the paramagnetic contrast agent MultiHance (gadobenate dimeglumine; Bracco Imaging), an agent known to have high relaxivity, with respect to susceptibility effects, image quality, and reduction of scan time. Included in the study were 19 patients with malignant brain tumors who underwent high-resolution, susceptibility-weighted (SW) MR imaging at 3 T before and after administration of contrast agent. In all patients, Multihance was administered intravenously as a bolus (0.1 mmol/kg body weight). MR images were individually evaluated by two radiologists with previous experience in the evaluation of pre- and postcontrast 3-T SW MR images with respect to susceptibility effects, image quality, and reduction of scan time. In the 19 patients 21 tumors were diagnosed, of which 18 demonstrated intralesional susceptibility effects both in pre- and postcontrast SW images, and 19 demonstrated contrast enhancement in both SW images and T1-weighted spin-echo MR images. Conspicuity of susceptibility effects and image quality were improved in postcontrast images compared with precontrast images and the scan time was also reduced due to decreased TE values from 9 min (precontrast) to 7 min (postcontrast). The intravenous administration of MultiHance, an agent with high relaxivity, allowed a reduction of scan time from 9 min to 7 min while preserving excellent susceptibility effects and image quality in SW images obtained at 3 T. Contrast enhancement and intralesional susceptibility effects can be assessed in one sequence. (orig.)

Ionic liquid electrolytes for dye-sensitized solar cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Gorlov, Mikhail; Kloo, Lars

2008-05-28

The potential of room-temperature molten salts (ionic liquids) as solvents for electrolytes for dye-sensitized solar cells has been investigated during the last decade. The non-volatility, good solvent properties and high electrochemical stability of ionic liquids make them attractive solvents in contrast to volatile organic solvents. Despite this, the relatively high viscosity of ionic liquids leads to mass-transport limitations. Here we review recent developments in the application of different ionic liquids as solvents or components of liquid and quasi-solid electrolytes for dye-sensitized solar cells.

The effect of intravenous contrast on SUV value in 18F-FDG PET/CT using diagnostic high energy CT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeong, Young Jin; Kang, Do Young

2006-01-01

According to the development of CT scanner in PET/CT system, the role of CT unit as a diagnostic tool has been more important. To improve the diagnostic ability of CT scanner, it is a key aspect that CT scanning has to be performed with high dose energy and intravenous (IV) contrast. So we investigated the effect of IV contrast media on the maximum SUV (maxSUV) of normal tissues and pathologic lesions using PET/CT scanner with high dose CT scanning. The study enrolled 13 patients who required PET/CT evaluation. At first, the patients were performed whole body non-contrast CT (NCCT - 120 kVp, 130 mAs) scan. Than contrast enhanced CT (CECT) scan was performed immediately. Finally PET scan was followed. The PET emission data were reconstructed twice, once with the NCCT and again with the CECT. We measured the maxSUV of 10 different body regions that were considered as normal in all patients. Also pathologic lesions were investigated. There were not seen focal artifacts in PET images based on CT with IV contrast agent. Firstly, 130 normal regions in 13 patients were evaluated. The maxSUV was significantly different between two PET images (p < 0.001). The maxSUV was 1.1 ± 0.5 in PET images with CECT-corrected attenuation and 1.0 ± 0.5 in PET images with NCCT-corrected attenuation. The limit of agreement was 0.1 ± 0.3 in Bland-Altman analysis. Especially there were significant differences in 6 of 10 regions, apex and base of the right lung, ascending aorta, segment 6 and segment 8 of the liver and spleen (p <0.05). Secondly, 39 pathologic lesions were evaluated. The maxSUV was significantly different between two PET images (p < 0.001). The maxSUV was 4.7 ± 2.0 in PET images with CECT-corrected attenuation and 4.4 ± 2.0 in PET images with NCCT- corrected attenuation. The limit of agreement was 0.4 ± 0.8 in Bland-Altman analysis. Although there were increases of maxSUVs in the PET images based on CT with IV contrast agent, it was very narrow in the range of limit of

Effects of high iodine doses given parenterally as contrast medium on parameter of the pro/antioxidative balance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Winkler, R.; Griebenow, S.; Scheidleder, B.; Bailer, H.

2002-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate effects of high iodine doses given parenterally as contrast medium on parameters of lipid status and thyroid hormone status as well as on parameters of the pro/antioxidative balance of spa patients. 29 patients with a comparable indication who had to undergo an angiography were chosen. The blood parameters of these patients were determined before and after the angiographic treatment. No provable changes of the thyroid parameters f-T 3 , f-T 4 and TSH were found after the angiography. In case of enzyme activities, the protective enzymes SOD and GSHPX showed no changes, while the concentrations of peroxides and MDA were increased significantly. Corresponding to this, the total antioxidative status and the vitamin E level decreased significantly. Altogether these results stand for a moderate deterioration of the antioxidative protective potential by the highly iodine containing contrast medium. (author)

Parametric based morphological transformation for contrast ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

for contrast enhancement of color images in poor-lighting ... high and low mean brightness value, there is a significant change in the view of the enhanced ... The two most fundamental morphological operations dilation and erosion are defined by ..... Menotti David 2007 Multi-histogram equalization methods for contrast ...

Comparative study of pneumocystography, positive contrast cystography and double contrast cystography in dogs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thibaut, J.; Parada, E.; Vargas, L.; Deppe, R.; Born, R.

1997-01-01

In order to compare three radiographic techniques: pneumocystography, positive contrast cystography and double contrast cystography, three series of 24 radiographs each in lateral and ventrodorsal projections were made. Six healthy adult male dogs with weight ranging between 7 and 16 kg were used. Food was withheld for 24 hours and two enemas were made before the series of radiographs were taken. Dogs were anaesthetized with sodium thiopental (20 mg/kg i.v.). The contrast medium was introduced through a urethral catheter. Pneumocystography was performed in the first series introducing air (10 ml/kg) in the bladder. Positive contrast cystography was performed in the second series introducing Hypaque M-60% diluted, contributing 100 mg of iodine per ml (10 ml/kg). In the double contrast cystography Hypaque M-60% diluted (10 ml) was introduced, in concentration of 150 mg of iodine per ml. Then air was introduced (10 ml/kg) through a catheter. Plates were taken in both projections at 1 and 10 minutes for each technique. The radiographic plates of each series were analized comparing the characteristics of radiographic density, outline and size. In neumocystography, positive contrast and double contrast cystography, the radiographic density was predominantly low, high and intermediate, respectively. The radiographic outline was mainly regular for the three techniques. With respect to bladder size, there was a decrease of height and an increase of length and width at 10 minutes. Comparing these three radiographic techniques, it can be concluded that the one that best outlines the bladder mucosa is double contrast. Pneumocystography provides the best image for opaque structures and cystography best shows the position of the urinary bladder [es

High-contrast direct imaging of exo-planets and circumstellar disks: from the self-coherent camera to NICI data analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mazoyer, Johan

2014-01-01

Out of the 1800 exo-planets detected to date, only 50 were by direct imaging. However, by allowing the observation of circumstellar disks and planets (sometimes simultaneously around the same star, as in the case of β-pictoris), this method is a fundamental tool for the understanding of planetary formation. In addition, direct access to the light of the detected objects allows spectroscopy, paving the way for the first time to the chemical and thermal analysis of their atmosphere and surface. However, direct imaging raises specific challenges: accessing objects fainter than their star (with a ration up to 10"-"8 to 10"-"1"1), and separated only by a fraction of arc-second. To obtain these values, several techniques must be implemented. A corona-graph, used in complement with a deformable mirror and active optical aberration correction methods, produces high-contrast images, which can be further processed by differential imaging techniques. My PhD thesis work took place at the intersection of these techniques. At first, I analyzed, in simulation and experimentally on the THD 'French acronym for very high contrast' bench of the Paris Observatory, the performance of the self-coherent camera, a wavefront sensing technique used to correct the optical aberrations in the focal plane. I managed to obtained high-contrast zones (called dark holes) with performance up to 3.10"-"8 between 5 and 12?/D, in monochromatic light. I also started an analysis of the performance in narrow spectral bands. In the second part of my thesis, I applied the latest differential imaging techniques to high contrast images from another corona-graphic instrument, NICI. The processing of these data revealed unprecedented views of the dust disk orbiting HD 15115. (author)

Short term high dose atorvastatin for the prevention of contrast-induced nephropathy in patients undergoing computed tomography angiography

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hamid Sanei

2014-09-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Statins are shown effective by some studies in preventing contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN. We evaluated the effectiveness of atorvastatin in the prevention of CIN in computed tomography angiography (CTA candidates. METHODS: This study was conducted on patients referring for elective CTA with normal renal function. Patients received atorvastatin (80 mg/day or placebo from 24 h before to 48 h after administration of the contrast material. Serum creatinine was measured before and 48 h after contrast material injection. CIN was defined as an increase in serum creatinine level of ≥ 0.5 mg/dl or ≥ 25% of the baseline creatinine. RESULTS: A total of 236 patients completed the study; 115 atorvastatin, 121 placebo, mean age = 58.40 ± 9.80 year, 68.6% male. Serum creatinine increased after contrast material injection in both the atorvastatin (1.00 ± 0.16-1.02 ± 0.15 mg/dl, P = 0.017 and placebo groups (1.03 ± 0.17-1.08 ± 0.18 mg/dl, P < 0.001. Controlling for age, gender, comorbidities, drug history, and baseline serum creatinine level, patients who received atorvastatin experienced less increase in serum creatinine after contrast material injection (beta = 0.127, P = 0.034. However, there was no difference between the atorvastatin and placebo groups in the incidence of CIN (4.3 vs. 5.0%, P = 0.535. CONCLUSION: In patients undergoing CTA, a short-term treatment with high dose atorvastatin is effective in preventing contrast-induced renal dysfunction, in terms of less increase in serum creatinine level after contrast material injection. Further trials including larger sample of patients and longer follow-ups are warranted.   Keywords: Kidney Diseases, Multidetector Computed Tomography, Contrast Media, Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors, Atorvastatin 

Enhancement tuning and control for high dynamic range images in multi-scale locally adaptive contrast enhancement algorithms

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cvetkovic, S.D.; Schirris, J.; With, de P.H.N.

2009-01-01

For real-time imaging in surveillance applications, visibility of details is of primary importance to ensure customer confidence. If we display High Dynamic-Range (HDR) scenes whose contrast spans four or more orders of magnitude on a conventional monitor without additional processing, results are

Contrast sensitivity abnormalities in deaf individuals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Masoud Khorrami-Nejad

2018-01-01

Conclusion: Hearing impaired boys are at a greater risk for contrast sensitivity abnormalities than boys with normal hearing. The larger frequency of contrast sensitivity abnormalities in high spatial frequencies than in other frequencies may demonstrate greater defects in the central visual system compared with the periphery in individuals with hearing loss.

Low index contrast heterostructure photonic crystal cavities with high quality factors and vertical radiation coupling

Science.gov (United States)

Ge, Xiaochen; Minkov, Momchil; Fan, Shanhui; Li, Xiuling; Zhou, Weidong

2018-04-01

We report here design and experimental demonstration of heterostructure photonic crystal cavities resonating near the Γ point with simultaneous strong lateral confinement and highly directional vertical radiation patterns. The lateral confinement is provided by a mode gap originating from a gradual modulation of the hole radii. High quality factor resonance is realized with a low index contrast between silicon nitride and quartz. The near surface-normal directional emission is preserved when the size of the core region is scaled down. The influence of the cavity size parameters on the resonant modes is also investigated theoretically and experimentally.

Ultrasound-induced Gas Release from Contrast Agent Microbubbles

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Postema, M.A.B.; Postema, Michiel; Bouakaz, Ayache; Versluis, Michel; de Jong, N.

2005-01-01

We investigated gas release from two hard-shelled ultrasound contrast agents by subjecting them to high-mechanical index (MI) ultrasound and simultaneously capturing high-speed photographs. At an insonifying frequency of 1.7 MHz, a larger percentage of contrast bubbles is seen to crack than at 0.5

Dependence of the organic nonvolatile memory performance on the location of ultra-thin Ag film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiao Bo; Wu Zhaoxin; He Qiang; Mao Guilin; Hou Xun; Tian Yuan

2010-01-01

We demonstrated organic nonvolatile memory devices based on 4,4',4''-tris[N-(3-methylphenyl)-N-phenylamino] triphenylamine (m-MTDATA) inserted by an ultra-thin Ag film. The memory devices with different locations of ultra-thin Ag film in m-MTDATA were investigated, and it was found that the location of the Ag film could affect the performance of the organic memory, such as ON/OFF ratio, retention time and cycling endurance. When the Ag film was located at the ITO/m-MTDATA interface, the largest ON/OFF ratio (about 10 5 ) could be achieved, but the cycling endurance was poor. When the Ag film was located in the middle region of the m-MTDATA layer, the ON/OFF ratios came down by about 10 3 , but better performance of cycling endurance was exhibited. When the Ag film was located close to the Al electrode, the ON/OFF ratios and the retention time of this device decreased sharply and the bistable phenomenon almost disappeared. Our works show a simple approach to improve the performance of organic memory by adjusting the location of the metal film.

NVL-C: Static Analysis Techniques for Efficient, Correct Programming of Non-Volatile Main Memory Systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Seyong [ORNL; Vetter, Jeffrey S [ORNL

2016-01-01

Computer architecture experts expect that non-volatile memory (NVM) hierarchies will play a more significant role in future systems including mobile, enterprise, and HPC architectures. With this expectation in mind, we present NVL-C: a novel programming system that facilitates the efficient and correct programming of NVM main memory systems. The NVL-C programming abstraction extends C with a small set of intuitive language features that target NVM main memory, and can be combined directly with traditional C memory model features for DRAM. We have designed these new features to enable compiler analyses and run-time checks that can improve performance and guard against a number of subtle programming errors, which, when left uncorrected, can corrupt NVM-stored data. Moreover, to enable recovery of data across application or system failures, these NVL-C features include a flexible directive for specifying NVM transactions. So that our implementation might be extended to other compiler front ends and languages, the majority of our compiler analyses are implemented in an extended version of LLVM's intermediate representation (LLVM IR). We evaluate NVL-C on a number of applications to show its flexibility, performance, and correctness.

Laser Nanosoldering of Golden and Magnetite Particles and its Possible Application in 3D Printing Devices and Four-Valued Non-Volatile Memories

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jaworski Jacek

2015-12-01

Full Text Available In recent years the 3D printing methods have been developing rapidly. This article presents researches about a new composite consisted of golden and magnetite nanoparticles which could be used for this technique. Preparation of golden nanoparticles by laser ablation and their soldering by laser green light irradiation proceeded in water environment. Magnetite was obtained on chemical way. During experiments it was tested a change of a size of nanoparticles during laser irradiation, surface plasmon resonance, zeta potential. The obtained golden - magnetite composite material was magnetic after laser irradiation. On the end there was considered the application it for 3D printing devices, water filters and four-valued non-volatile memories.

Detection of Nonvolatile Inorganic Oxidizer-Based Explosives from Wipe Collections by Infrared Thermal Desorption-Direct Analysis in Real Time Mass Spectrometry.

Science.gov (United States)

Forbes, Thomas P; Sisco, Edward; Staymates, Matthew

2018-05-07

Infrared thermal desorption (IRTD) was coupled with direct analysis in real time mass spectrometry (DART-MS) for the detection of both inorganic and organic explosives from wipe collected samples. This platform generated discrete and rapid heating rates that allowed volatile and semivolatile organic explosives to thermally desorb at relatively lower temperatures, while still achieving elevated temperatures required to desorb nonvolatile inorganic oxidizer-based explosives. IRTD-DART-MS demonstrated the thermal desorption and detection of refractory potassium chlorate and potassium perchlorate oxidizers, compounds difficult to desorb with traditional moderate-temperature resistance-based thermal desorbers. Nanogram to sub-nanogram sensitivities were established for analysis of a range of organic and inorganic oxidizer-based explosive compounds, with further enhancement limited by the thermal properties of the most common commercial wipe materials. Detailed investigations and high-speed visualization revealed conduction from the heated glass-mica base plate as the dominant process for heating of the wipe and analyte materials, resulting in thermal desorption through boiling, aerosolization, and vaporization of samples. The thermal desorption and ionization characteristics of the IRTD-DART technique resulted in optimal sensitivity for the formation of nitrate adducts with both organic and inorganic species. The IRTD-DART-MS coupling and IRTD in general offer promising explosive detection capabilities to the defense, security, and law enforcement arenas.

Max CAPR: high-resolution 3D contrast-enhanced MR angiography with acquisition times under 5 seconds.

Science.gov (United States)

Haider, Clifton R; Borisch, Eric A; Glockner, James F; Mostardi, Petrice M; Rossman, Phillip J; Young, Phillip M; Riederer, Stephen J

2010-10-01

High temporal and spatial resolution is desired in imaging of vascular abnormalities having short arterial-to-venous transit times. Methods that exploit temporal correlation to reduce the observed frame time demonstrate temporal blurring, obfuscating bolus dynamics. Previously, a Cartesian acquisition with projection reconstruction-like (CAPR) sampling method has been demonstrated for three-dimensional contrast-enhanced angiographic imaging of the lower legs using two-dimensional sensitivity-encoding acceleration and partial Fourier acceleration, providing 1mm isotropic resolution of the calves, with 4.9-sec frame time and 17.6-sec temporal footprint. In this work, the CAPR acquisition is further undersampled to provide a net acceleration approaching 40 by eliminating all view sharing. The tradeoff of frame time and temporal footprint in view sharing is presented and characterized in phantom experiments. It is shown that the resultant 4.9-sec acquisition time, three-dimensional images sets have sufficient spatial and temporal resolution to clearly portray arterial and venous phases of contrast passage. It is further hypothesized that these short temporal footprint sequences provide diagnostic quality images. This is tested and shown in a series of nine contrast-enhanced MR angiography patient studies performed with the new method.

Anisotropic photoconductivity and current deflection induced in Bi12SiO20 by high contrast interference pattern

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kukhtarev, N.V.; Lyuksyutov, S; Buchhave, Preben

1996-01-01

We have predicted and observed an anisotropic photocurrent induced in the cubic crystal Bi/sub 12/SiO/sub 20/ by a high-contrast interference pattern. The transverse current detected when the interference pattern is tilted is caused by deflection of the direct current generated by an external...

Adriamycin nephrosis and contrast media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thomsen, H.S.; Golman, K.; Hemmingsen, L.; Larsen, S.; Skaarup, P.; Koebenhavns Amts Sygehus, Herlev; Koebenhavns Amts Sygehus, Herlev; Centralsygehuset, Nykoebing Falster; Malmoe Allmaenna Sjukhus

1990-01-01

Urine profiles (albumin, glucose, NAG, LDH, GGT and sodium) were followed for 9 days after intravenous injection of either diatrizoate, iohexol, or saline in 27 Wistar rats with nephrosis induced by Adriamycin 42 days before. Another 9 rats exposed to neither Adriamycin nor contrast media served as controls. None of the contrast media caused further increased albuminuria of significance, whereas both induced significantly increased excretion of all 5 tubular components. The excretion of NAG and sodium was significantly higher following diatrizoate than following iohexol. From 24 h post injection there was no significantly greater excretion of any of the components after either diatrizoate or iohexol than after saline among the rats given Adriamycin. At the end of day 9 after contrast medium injection neither serum sodium, potassium, glucose, urea, creatinine, nor albumin revealed any contrast media related changes. Kidney histology showed quantitatively larger lesions in kidneys exposed to Adriamycin and contrast media than in kidneys exposed to Adriamycin and saline. There were no differences between the two contrast media groups. It is thus concluded, that both high osmolar ionic and low osmolar non-ionic contrast media cause temporary tubular dysfunction but no further glomerular dysfunction in rats with nephrosis induced by Adriamycin. The histologic findings indicate that both media may worsen non-reversible renal lesions. (orig.)

Unidirectional threshold switching in Ag/Si-based electrochemical metallization cells for high-density bipolar RRAM applications

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chao; Song, Bing; Li, Qingjiang; Zeng, Zhongming

2018-03-01

We herein present a novel unidirectional threshold selector for cross-point bipolar RRAM array. The proposed Ag/amorphous Si based threshold selector showed excellent threshold characteristics in positive field, such as high selectivity ( 105), steep slope (type RRAM. By integrating a bipolar RRAM device with the selector, experiments showed that the undesired sneak was significantly suppressed, indicating its potentiality for high-density integrated nonvolatile memory applications.

Post-processing of high-contrast observations of exoplanets

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gladysz S.

2011-07-01