WorldWideScience

Sample records for high-resolution analytical techniques

  1. Studies on Pt–Mo phases using analytical techniques with high resolution

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Topic, M., E-mail: mtopic@tlabs.ac.za [iThemba LABS, National Research Foundation, P.O. Box 722, Somerset West 7129 (South Africa); Khumalo, Z. [iThemba LABS, National Research Foundation, P.O. Box 722, Somerset West 7129 (South Africa); University of Cape Town, Physics Department, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch 7701 (South Africa); Pineda-Vargas, C.A. [iThemba LABS, National Research Foundation, P.O. Box 722, Somerset West 7129 (South Africa); Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences, CPUT, Belville (South Africa)

    2014-01-01

    Pt–Mo coated system annealed at 1050 °C for 24 h was investigated using several analytical techniques with high resolution (SEM/EDX, μ-PIXE, RBS and XRD). These techniques provide structural and compositional data throughout the material depth and probing area. The results depend on the applied beam, its energy and size. They contribute to a better understanding of thermal annealing effects on the solid-state phase transformation and morphological changes in Pt–Mo coatings. The results indicate the presence of Pt- and Mo-solid solutions and two Pt–Mo phases (PtMo and Pt{sub 2}Mo{sub 3}), changes in the coating morphology, such as increased surface roughness and formation of “lace morphology”, as well as an increase in coating thickness.

  2. Advanced analytical techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mrochek, J.E.; Shumate, S.E.; Genung, R.K.; Bahner, C.T.; Lee, N.E.; Dinsmore, S.R.

    1976-01-01

    The development of several new analytical techniques for use in clinical diagnosis and biomedical research is reported. These include: high-resolution liquid chromatographic systems for the early detection of pathological molecular constituents in physiologic body fluids; gradient elution chromatography for the analysis of protein-bound carbohydrates in blood serum samples, with emphasis on changes in sera from breast cancer patients; electrophoretic separation techniques coupled with staining of specific proteins in cellular isoenzymes for the monitoring of genetic mutations and abnormal molecular constituents in blood samples; and the development of a centrifugal elution chromatographic technique for the assay of specific proteins and immunoglobulins in human blood serum samples

  3. High-resolution flurescence spectroscopy in immunoanalysis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Grubor, Nenad M. [Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States)

    2005-01-01

    The work presented in this dissertation combines highly sensitive and selective fluorescence line-narrowing spectroscopy (FLNS) detection with various modes of immunoanalytical techniques. It has been shown that FLNS is capable of directly probing molecules immunocomplexed with antibodies, eliminating analytical ambiguities that may arise from interferences that accompany traditional immunochemical techniques. Moreover, the utilization of highly cross-reactive antibodies for highly specific analyte determination has been demonstrated. Finally, they demonstrate the first example of the spectral resolution of diastereomeric analytes based on their interaction with a cross-reactive antibody.

  4. Analytical method for high resolution liquid chromatography for quality control French Macaw

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Garcia Penna, Caridad M; Torres Amaro, Leonid; Menendez Castillo, Rosa; Sanchez, Esther; Martinez Espinosa, Vivian; Gonzalez, Maria Lidia; Rodriguez, Carlos

    2007-01-01

    Was developed and validated an analytical method for high resolution liquid chromatography applicable to quality control of drugs dry French Macaw (Senna alata L. Roxb.) With ultraviolet detection at 340 nm. The method for high resolution liquid chromatography used to quantify the sennosides A and B, main components, was validated and proved to be specific, linear, precise and accurate. (Author)

  5. The high resolution shear wave seismic reflection technique

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Johnson, W.J.; Clark, J.C.

    1991-04-01

    This report presents the state-of-the-art of the high resolution S-wave reflection technique. Published and unpublished literature has been reviewed and discussions have been held with experts. Result is to confirm that the proposed theoretical and practical basis for identifying aquifer systems using both P- and S-wave reflections is sound. Knowledge of S-wave velocity and P-wave velocity is a powerful tool for assessing the fluid characteristics of subsurface layers. Material properties and lateral changes in material properties such as change from clay to sand, can be inferred from careful dual evaluation of P and S-wave records. The high resolution S-wave reflection technique has seen its greatest application to date as part of geotechnical studies for building foundations in the Far East. Information from this type of study has been evaluated and will be incorporated in field studies. In particular, useful information regarding S-wave sources, noise suppression and recording procedures will be incorporated within the field studies. Case histories indicate that the best type of site for demonstrating the power of the high resolution S-wave technique will be in unconsolidated soil without excessive structural complexities. More complex sites can form the basis for subsequent research after the basic principles of the technique can be established under relatively uncomplicated conditions

  6. Novel techniques in VUV high-resolution spectroscopy

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ubachs, W.M.G.; Salumbides, E.J.; Eikema, K.S.E.; de Oliveira, N.; Nahon, L.

    2014-01-01

    Novel VUV sources and techniques for VUV spectroscopy are reviewed. Laser-based VUV sources have been developed via non-linear upconversion of laser pulses in the nanosecond (ns), the picosecond (ps), and femtosecond (fs) domain, and are applied in high-resolution gas phase spectroscopic studies.

  7. A Simplified Analytical Technique for High Frequency Characterization of Resonant Tunneling Diode

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    DESSOUKI, A. A. S.

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available his paper proposes a simplified analytical technique for high frequency characterization of the resonant tunneling diode (RTD. An equivalent circuit of the RTD that consists of a parallel combination of conductance, G (V, f, and capacitance, C (V, f is formulated. The proposed approach uses the measured DC current versus voltage characteristic of the RTD to extract the equivalent circuit elements parameters in the entire bias range. Using the proposed analytical technique, the frequency response - including the high frequency range - of many characteristic aspects of the RTD is investigated. Also, the maximum oscillation frequency of the RTD is calculated. The results obtained have been compared with those concluded and reported in the literature. The reported results in literature were obtained through simulation of the RTD at high frequency using either a computationally complicated quantum simulator or through difficult RF measurements. A similar pattern of results and highly concordant conclusion are obtained. The proposed analytical technique is simple, correct, and appropriate to investigate the behavior of the RTD at high frequency. In addition, the proposed technique can be easily incorporated into SPICE program to simulate circuits containing RTD.

  8. Nuclear techniques in analytical chemistry

    CERN Document Server

    Moses, Alfred J; Gordon, L

    1964-01-01

    Nuclear Techniques in Analytical Chemistry discusses highly sensitive nuclear techniques that determine the micro- and macro-amounts or trace elements of materials. With the increasingly frequent demand for the chemical determination of trace amounts of elements in materials, the analytical chemist had to search for more sensitive methods of analysis. This book accustoms analytical chemists with nuclear techniques that possess the desired sensitivity and applicability at trace levels. The topics covered include safe handling of radioactivity; measurement of natural radioactivity; and neutron a

  9. Introduction to analytical techniques of beam-target interactions and resolutions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ruste, J.

    1995-08-01

    For several years, new analysis and observation techniques have been developed, which have considerably improved material research. Almost all these techniques are based on the interaction of a beam of 'primary particles' (electrons, photons, ions, particles, etc) with target. Correct and appropriate use of these techniques requires a good knowledge of these interactions and their consequences (emissions of 'secondary particles', modifications of the primary beam and target, etc). The first part of this report deals with the radiation/material interactions according to the nature of the radiation and its energy. The nature and consequences of the interaction of an electromagnetic wave, a beam of electrons, ions and neutrons are examined over an extended range of energy from MeV to MeV. Certain notions such as the analysis area, spatial resolutions or limits of detection can also be defined. In the second part, some of the most important and widespread techniques of analysis and observation are compared in terms of properties and performance. In particular, there is a brief principle of the technique, nature of the data obtained, spatial resolution, and the limits of detection with today's methods permit. (author). 5 refs., 23 figs., 9 tabs

  10. High Resolution Radar Imaging using Coherent MultiBand Processing Techniques

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dorp, Ph. van; Ebeling, R.P.; Huizing, A.G.

    2010-01-01

    High resolution radar imaging techniques can be used in ballistic missile defence systems to determine the type of ballistic missile during the boost phase (threat typing) and to discriminate different parts of a ballistic missile after the boost phase. The applied radar imaging technique is 2D

  11. High resolution techniques using scanning proton microprobe (SPM)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cholewa, M.; Saint, A.; Prawer, S.; Laird, J.S.; Legge, G.J.F.; Bardos, R.A.; Moorhead, G.F.; Taylor, G.N.; Stuart, S.A.; Howard, J.

    1994-01-01

    The very high resolution (down to 50 nm) achieved with low beam currents (fA) in a scanning ion microprobe have lead to many nondestructive techniques of microanalysis. This paper discusses recent developments and applications in the use of 3-D STIM (scanning transmission ion microscopy) Tomography, channeling STIM and IBIC (ion beam induced charge). (orig.)

  12. Visual analytics of inherently noisy crowdsourced data on ultra high resolution displays

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huynh, Andrew; Ponto, Kevin; Lin, Albert Yu-Min; Kuester, Falko

    The increasing prevalence of distributed human microtasking, crowdsourcing, has followed the exponential increase in data collection capabilities. The large scale and distributed nature of these microtasks produce overwhelming amounts of information that is inherently noisy due to the nature of human input. Furthermore, these inputs create a constantly changing dataset with additional information added on a daily basis. Methods to quickly visualize, filter, and understand this information over temporal and geospatial constraints is key to the success of crowdsourcing. This paper present novel methods to visually analyze geospatial data collected through crowdsourcing on top of remote sensing satellite imagery. An ultra high resolution tiled display system is used to explore the relationship between human and satellite remote sensing data at scale. A case study is provided that evaluates the presented technique in the context of an archaeological field expedition. A team in the field communicated in real-time with and was guided by researchers in the remote visual analytics laboratory, swiftly sifting through incoming crowdsourced data to identify target locations that were identified as viable archaeological sites.

  13. High resolution STEM of quantum dots and quantum wires

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kadkhodazadeh, Shima

    2013-01-01

    This article reviews the application of high resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) to semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) and quantum wires (QWRs). Different imaging and analytical techniques in STEM are introduced and key examples of their application to QDs and QWRs...

  14. Characterisation of phases in nanostructured, multilayered titanium alloys by analytical and high-resolution electron microscopy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Czyrska-Filemonowicz, A; Buffat, P A

    2009-01-01

    Surface processing of a Ti-6Al-4V alloy led to a complex multilayered microstructure containing several phases of the Ni-Ti-P-Al-O system, which improves the mechanical and tribological surface properties. The microstructure, chemical and phase compositions of the hard layer formed on the surface were investigated by LM, XRD, SEM as well as analytical/high-resolution TEM, STEM, EDS, electron diffraction and FIB. Phase identification based on electron diffraction, HRTEM and EDS microanalysis revealed the presence of several binary and ternary phases in the system Ti-Ni-P, sometimes with partial substitution of Ti by Al. However some phases, mainly nanoparticles, still remain not identified satisfactorily. Electron microscopy techniques used for identification of phases present in surface multilayers and some practical limits to their routine application are reminded here.

  15. Development of high resolution x-ray CT technique for irradiated fuel assembly

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ishimi, Akihiro; Katsuyama, Kozo; Maeda, Koji; Asaga, Takeo [Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Oarai Research and Development Center, Oarai, Ibaraki (Japan)

    2012-03-15

    High X-ray CT technique was developed to observe the irradiation performance of FBR fuel assembly and MOX fuel. In this technique, the high energy X-ray pulse (12MeV) was used synchronizing detection system with the X-ray pulse to reduce the effect of the gamma ray emissions from the irradiated fuel assembly. In this study, this technique was upgraded to obtain high resolution X-ray CT image. In this upgrading, the collimator which had slit width of 0.1 mm and X-ray detector of a highly sensitive silicon semiconductor detector (100 channels) was introduced in the X-ray CT system. As a result of these developments, high resolution X-ray CT images could be obtained on the transverse cross section of irradiated fuel assembly. (author)

  16. High-Resolution Mass Spectrometers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marshall, Alan G.; Hendrickson, Christopher L.

    2008-07-01

    Over the past decade, mass spectrometry has been revolutionized by access to instruments of increasingly high mass-resolving power. For small molecules up to ˜400 Da (e.g., drugs, metabolites, and various natural organic mixtures ranging from foods to petroleum), it is possible to determine elemental compositions (CcHhNnOoSsPp…) of thousands of chemical components simultaneously from accurate mass measurements (the same can be done up to 1000 Da if additional information is included). At higher mass, it becomes possible to identify proteins (including posttranslational modifications) from proteolytic peptides, as well as lipids, glycoconjugates, and other biological components. At even higher mass (˜100,000 Da or higher), it is possible to characterize posttranslational modifications of intact proteins and to map the binding surfaces of large biomolecule complexes. Here we review the principles and techniques of the highest-resolution analytical mass spectrometers (time-of-flight and Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance and orbitrap mass analyzers) and describe some representative high-resolution applications.

  17. Analytical detection techniques for droplet microfluidics—A review

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhu, Ying; Fang, Qun

    2013-01-01

    Graphical abstract: -- Highlights: •This is the first review paper focused on the analytical techniques for droplet-based microfluidics. •We summarized the analytical methods used in droplet-based microfluidic systems. •We discussed the advantage and disadvantage of each method through its application. •We also discuss the future development direction of analytical methods for droplet-based microfluidic systems. -- Abstract: In the last decade, droplet-based microfluidics has undergone rapid progress in the fields of single-cell analysis, digital PCR, protein crystallization and high throughput screening. It has been proved to be a promising platform for performing chemical and biological experiments with ultra-small volumes (picoliter to nanoliter) and ultra-high throughput. The ability to analyze the content in droplet qualitatively and quantitatively is playing an increasing role in the development and application of droplet-based microfluidic systems. In this review, we summarized the analytical detection techniques used in droplet systems and discussed the advantage and disadvantage of each technique through its application. The analytical techniques mentioned in this paper include bright-field microscopy, fluorescence microscopy, laser induced fluorescence, Raman spectroscopy, electrochemistry, capillary electrophoresis, mass spectrometry, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, absorption detection, chemiluminescence, and sample pretreatment techniques. The importance of analytical detection techniques in enabling new applications is highlighted. We also discuss the future development direction of analytical detection techniques for droplet-based microfluidic systems

  18. Advanced Ecosystem Mapping Techniques for Large Arctic Study Domains Using Calibrated High-Resolution Imagery

    Science.gov (United States)

    Macander, M. J.; Frost, G. V., Jr.

    2015-12-01

    Regional-scale mapping of vegetation and other ecosystem properties has traditionally relied on medium-resolution remote sensing such as Landsat (30 m) and MODIS (250 m). Yet, the burgeoning availability of high-resolution (environments has not been previously evaluated. Image segmentation, or object-based image analysis, automatically partitions high-resolution imagery into homogeneous image regions that can then be analyzed based on spectral, textural, and contextual information. We applied eCognition software to delineate waterbodies and vegetation classes, in combination with other techniques. Texture metrics were evaluated to determine the feasibility of using high-resolution imagery to algorithmically characterize periglacial surface forms (e.g., ice-wedge polygons), which are an important physical characteristic of permafrost-dominated regions but which cannot be distinguished by medium-resolution remote sensing. These advanced mapping techniques provide products which can provide essential information supporting a broad range of ecosystem science and land-use planning applications in northern Alaska and elsewhere in the circumpolar Arctic.

  19. Arc arrays: studies of high resolution techniques for multibeam bathymetric applications

    Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

    Chakraborty, B.; Schenke, H.W.

    . This geometry is tested using the Bartlett method for varying arc and linear arrays of 30 - elements. We also examine `high resolution techniques' such as the Maximum LIkelihood (ML) method and the Maximum Entropy (ME) methods (different orders), for 16-element...

  20. High-resolution ultrasonic spectroscopy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V. Buckin

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available High-resolution ultrasonic spectroscopy (HR-US is an analytical technique for direct and non-destructive monitoring of molecular and micro-structural transformations in liquids and semi-solid materials. It is based on precision measurements of ultrasonic velocity and attenuation in analysed samples. The application areas of HR-US in research, product development, and quality and process control include analysis of conformational transitions of polymers, ligand binding, molecular self-assembly and aggregation, crystallisation, gelation, characterisation of phase transitions and phase diagrams, and monitoring of chemical and biochemical reactions. The technique does not require optical markers or optical transparency. The HR-US measurements can be performed in small sample volumes (down to droplet size, over broad temperature range, at ambient and elevated pressures, and in various measuring regimes such as automatic temperature ramps, titrations and measurements in flow.

  1. The coupling of high-speed high resolution experimental data and LES through data assimilation techniques

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harris, S.; Labahn, J. W.; Frank, J. H.; Ihme, M.

    2017-11-01

    Data assimilation techniques can be integrated with time-resolved numerical simulations to improve predictions of transient phenomena. In this study, optimal interpolation and nudging are employed for assimilating high-speed high-resolution measurements obtained for an inert jet into high-fidelity large-eddy simulations. This experimental data set was chosen as it provides both high spacial and temporal resolution for the three-component velocity field in the shear layer of the jet. Our first objective is to investigate the impact that data assimilation has on the resulting flow field for this inert jet. This is accomplished by determining the region influenced by the data assimilation and corresponding effect on the instantaneous flow structures. The second objective is to determine optimal weightings for two data assimilation techniques. The third objective is to investigate how the frequency at which the data is assimilated affects the overall predictions. Graduate Research Assistant, Department of Mechanical Engineering.

  2. High resolution, high speed ultrahigh vacuum microscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Poppa, Helmut

    2004-01-01

    The history and future of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is discussed as it refers to the eventual development of instruments and techniques applicable to the real time in situ investigation of surface processes with high resolution. To reach this objective, it was necessary to transform conventional high resolution instruments so that an ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) environment at the sample site was created, that access to the sample by various in situ sample modification procedures was provided, and that in situ sample exchanges with other integrated surface analytical systems became possible. Furthermore, high resolution image acquisition systems had to be developed to take advantage of the high speed imaging capabilities of projection imaging microscopes. These changes to conventional electron microscopy and its uses were slowly realized in a few international laboratories over a period of almost 40 years by a relatively small number of researchers crucially interested in advancing the state of the art of electron microscopy and its applications to diverse areas of interest; often concentrating on the nucleation, growth, and properties of thin films on well defined material surfaces. A part of this review is dedicated to the recognition of the major contributions to surface and thin film science by these pioneers. Finally, some of the important current developments in aberration corrected electron optics and eventual adaptations to in situ UHV microscopy are discussed. As a result of all the path breaking developments that have led to today's highly sophisticated UHV-TEM systems, integrated fundamental studies are now possible that combine many traditional surface science approaches. Combined investigations to date have involved in situ and ex situ surface microscopies such as scanning tunneling microscopy/atomic force microscopy, scanning Auger microscopy, and photoemission electron microscopy, and area-integrating techniques such as x-ray photoelectron

  3. Bismuth Passivation Technique for High-Resolution X-Ray Detectors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chervenak, James; Hess, Larry

    2013-01-01

    The Athena-plus team requires X-ray sensors with energy resolution of better than one part in 3,000 at 6 keV X-rays. While bismuth is an excellent material for high X-ray stopping power and low heat capacity (for large signal when an X-ray is stopped by the absorber), oxidation of the bismuth surface can lead to electron traps and other effects that degrade the energy resolution. Bismuth oxide reduction and nitride passivation techniques analogous to those used in indium passivation are being applied in a new technique. The technique will enable improved energy resolution and resistance to aging in bismuth-absorber-coupled X-ray sensors. Elemental bismuth is lithographically integrated into X-ray detector circuits. It encounters several steps where the Bi oxidizes. The technology discussed here will remove oxide from the surface of the Bi and replace it with nitridized surface. Removal of the native oxide and passivating to prevent the growth of the oxide will improve detector performance and insulate the detector against future degradation from oxide growth. Placing the Bi coated sensor in a vacuum system, a reduction chemistry in a plasma (nitrogen/hydrogen (N2/H2) + argon) is used to remove the oxide and promote nitridization of the cleaned Bi surface. Once passivated, the Bi will perform as a better X-ray thermalizer since energy will not be trapped in the bismuth oxides on the surface. A simple additional step, which can be added at various stages of the current fabrication process, can then be applied to encapsulate the Bi film. After plasma passivation, the Bi can be capped with a non-diffusive layer of metal or dielectric. A non-superconducting layer is required such as tungsten or tungsten nitride (WNx).

  4. Low voltage EPMA: experiments on a new frontier in microanalysis - analytical lateral resolution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fournelle, J; Cathey, H; Pinard, P T; Richter, S

    2016-01-01

    Field emission (FE) electron gun sources provide new capabilities for high lateral resolution EPMA. The determination of analytical lateral resolution is not as straightforward as that for electron microscopy imaging. Results from two sets of experiments to determine the actual lateral resolution for accurate EPMA are presented for Kα X-ray lines of Si and Al and La of Fe at 5 and 7 keV in a silicate glass. These results are compared to theoretical predictions and Monte Carlo simulations of analytical lateral resolution. The experiments suggest little is gained in lateral resolution by dropping from 7 to 5 keV in EPMA of this silicate glass. (paper)

  5. Methods to assess high-resolution subsurface gas concentrations and gas fluxes in wetland ecosystems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Elberling, Bo; Kühl, Michael; Glud, Ronnie Nøhr

    2013-01-01

    The need for measurements of soil gas concentrations and surface fluxes of greenhouse gases at high temporal and spatial resolution in wetland ecosystem has lead to the introduction of several new analytical techniques and methods. In addition to the automated flux chamber methodology for high-re...

  6. Astronomy at high angular resolution a compendium of techniques in the visible and near-infrared

    CERN Document Server

    Hussain, Gaitee; Berger, Jean-Philippe; Schmidtobreick, Linda

    2016-01-01

    This book offers an essential compendium of astronomical high-resolution techniques. Recent years have seen considerable developments in such techniques, which are critical to advances in many areas of astronomy. As reflected in the book, these techniques can be divided into direct methods, interferometry, and reconstruction methods, and can be applied to a huge variety of astrophysical systems, ranging from planets, single stars and binaries to active galactic nuclei, providing angular resolution in the micro- to tens of milliarcsecond scales. Written by experts in their fields, the chapters cover adaptive optics, aperture masking imaging, spectra disentangling, interferometry, lucky imaging, Roche tomography, imaging with interferometry, interferometry of AGN, AGN reverberation mapping, Doppler- and magnetic imaging of stellar surfaces, Doppler tomography, eclipse mapping, Stokes imaging, and stellar tomography. This book is intended to enable a next generation of astronomers to apply high-resolution techni...

  7. Advances in high-resolution imaging--techniques for three-dimensional imaging of cellular structures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lidke, Diane S; Lidke, Keith A

    2012-06-01

    A fundamental goal in biology is to determine how cellular organization is coupled to function. To achieve this goal, a better understanding of organelle composition and structure is needed. Although visualization of cellular organelles using fluorescence or electron microscopy (EM) has become a common tool for the cell biologist, recent advances are providing a clearer picture of the cell than ever before. In particular, advanced light-microscopy techniques are achieving resolutions below the diffraction limit and EM tomography provides high-resolution three-dimensional (3D) images of cellular structures. The ability to perform both fluorescence and electron microscopy on the same sample (correlative light and electron microscopy, CLEM) makes it possible to identify where a fluorescently labeled protein is located with respect to organelle structures visualized by EM. Here, we review the current state of the art in 3D biological imaging techniques with a focus on recent advances in electron microscopy and fluorescence super-resolution techniques.

  8. Column ratio mapping: a processing technique for atomic resolution high-angle annular dark-field (HAADF) images.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robb, Paul D; Craven, Alan J

    2008-12-01

    An image processing technique is presented for atomic resolution high-angle annular dark-field (HAADF) images that have been acquired using scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). This technique is termed column ratio mapping and involves the automated process of measuring atomic column intensity ratios in high-resolution HAADF images. This technique was developed to provide a fuller analysis of HAADF images than the usual method of drawing single intensity line profiles across a few areas of interest. For instance, column ratio mapping reveals the compositional distribution across the whole HAADF image and allows a statistical analysis and an estimation of errors. This has proven to be a very valuable technique as it can provide a more detailed assessment of the sharpness of interfacial structures from HAADF images. The technique of column ratio mapping is described in terms of a [110]-oriented zinc-blende structured AlAs/GaAs superlattice using the 1 angstroms-scale resolution capability of the aberration-corrected SuperSTEM 1 instrument.

  9. Column ratio mapping: A processing technique for atomic resolution high-angle annular dark-field (HAADF) images

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Robb, Paul D.; Craven, Alan J.

    2008-01-01

    An image processing technique is presented for atomic resolution high-angle annular dark-field (HAADF) images that have been acquired using scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). This technique is termed column ratio mapping and involves the automated process of measuring atomic column intensity ratios in high-resolution HAADF images. This technique was developed to provide a fuller analysis of HAADF images than the usual method of drawing single intensity line profiles across a few areas of interest. For instance, column ratio mapping reveals the compositional distribution across the whole HAADF image and allows a statistical analysis and an estimation of errors. This has proven to be a very valuable technique as it can provide a more detailed assessment of the sharpness of interfacial structures from HAADF images. The technique of column ratio mapping is described in terms of a [1 1 0]-oriented zinc-blende structured AlAs/GaAs superlattice using the 1 A-scale resolution capability of the aberration-corrected SuperSTEM 1 instrument.

  10. Nuclear analytical techniques for nanotoxicology studies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang, Z.Y.; Zhao, Y.L.; Chai, Z.F.

    2011-01-01

    With the rapid development of nanotechnology and its applications, a wide variety of nanomaterials are now used in commodities, pharmaceutics, cosmetics, biomedical products, and industries. The potential interactions of nanomaterials with living systems and the environment have attracted increasing attention from the public, as well as from manufacturers of nanomaterial-based products, academic researchers and policymakers. It is important to consider the environmental, health and safety aspects at an early stage of nanomaterial development and application in order to more effectively identify and manage potential human and environmental health impacts from nanomaterial exposure. This will require research in a range of areas, including detection and characterization, environmental fate and transport, ecotoxicology and toxicology. Nuclear analytical techniques (NATs) can play an important role in such studies due to their intrinsic merits such as high sensitivity, good accuracy, high space resolution, ability to distinguish the endogenous or exogenous sources of materials, and ability of in situ and in vivo analysis. In this paper, the applications of NATs in nanotoxicological and nano-ecotoxicological studies are outlined, and some recent results obtained in our laboratory are reported. (orig.)

  11. Reference materials for micro-analytical nuclear techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Valkovic, V.; Zeisler, R.; Bernasconi, G.; Danesi, P.R.

    1994-01-01

    Direct application of many existing reference materials in micro-analytical procedures such as energy dispersive x-ray fluorescence (EDXRF), particle induced x-ray emission spectroscopy (PIXE) and ion probe techniques for the determination of trace elements is often impossible or difficult because: 1) other constituents present in large amounts interfere with the determination; 2) trace components are not sufficiently homogeneously distributed in the sample. Therefore specific natural-matrix reference materials containing very low levels of trace elements and having high degree of homogeneity are required for many micro-analytical procedures. In this report, selection of the types of environmental and biological materials which are suitable for micro-analytical techniques will be discussed. (author)

  12. Analytical model of SiPM time resolution and order statistics with crosstalk

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vinogradov, S.

    2015-01-01

    Time resolution is the most important parameter of photon detectors in a wide range of time-of-flight and time correlation applications within the areas of high energy physics, medical imaging, and others. Silicon photomultipliers (SiPM) have been initially recognized as perfect photon-number-resolving detectors; now they also provide outstanding results in the scintillator timing resolution. However, crosstalk and afterpulsing introduce false secondary non-Poissonian events, and SiPM time resolution models are experiencing significant difficulties with that. This study presents an attempt to develop an analytical model of the timing resolution of an SiPM taking into account statistics of secondary events resulting from a crosstalk. Two approaches have been utilized to derive an analytical expression for time resolution: the first one based on statistics of independent identically distributed detection event times and the second one based on order statistics of these times. The first approach is found to be more straightforward and “analytical-friendly” to model analog SiPMs. Comparisons of coincidence resolving times predicted by the model with the known experimental results from a LYSO:Ce scintillator and a Hamamatsu MPPC are presented

  13. Analytical model of SiPM time resolution and order statistics with crosstalk

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Vinogradov, S., E-mail: Sergey.Vinogradov@liverpool.ac.uk [University of Liverpool and Cockcroft Institute, Sci-Tech Daresbury, Keckwick Lane, Warrington WA4 4AD (United Kingdom); P.N. Lebedev Physical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Leninskiy Prospekt 53, Moscow (Russian Federation)

    2015-07-01

    Time resolution is the most important parameter of photon detectors in a wide range of time-of-flight and time correlation applications within the areas of high energy physics, medical imaging, and others. Silicon photomultipliers (SiPM) have been initially recognized as perfect photon-number-resolving detectors; now they also provide outstanding results in the scintillator timing resolution. However, crosstalk and afterpulsing introduce false secondary non-Poissonian events, and SiPM time resolution models are experiencing significant difficulties with that. This study presents an attempt to develop an analytical model of the timing resolution of an SiPM taking into account statistics of secondary events resulting from a crosstalk. Two approaches have been utilized to derive an analytical expression for time resolution: the first one based on statistics of independent identically distributed detection event times and the second one based on order statistics of these times. The first approach is found to be more straightforward and “analytical-friendly” to model analog SiPMs. Comparisons of coincidence resolving times predicted by the model with the known experimental results from a LYSO:Ce scintillator and a Hamamatsu MPPC are presented.

  14. Coherent Pound-Drever-Hall technique for high resolution fiber optic strain sensor at very low light power

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Mengxin; Liu, Qingwen; Chen, Jiageng; He, Zuyuan

    2017-04-01

    Pound-Drever-Hall (PDH) technique has been widely adopted for ultrahigh resolution fiber-optic sensors, but its performance degenerates seriously as the light power drops. To solve this problem, we developed a coherent PDH technique for weak optical signal detection, with which the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of demodulated PDH signal is dramatically improved. In the demonstrational experiments, a high resolution fiber-optic sensor using the proposed technique is realized, and n"-order strain resolution at a low light power down to -43 dBm is achieved, which is about 15 dB lower compared with classical PDH technique. The proposed coherent PDH technique has great potentials in longer distance and larger scale sensor networks.

  15. The measurement and calculation of the X-ray spatial resolution obtained in the analytical electron microscope

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Michael, J.R.; Williams, D.B.

    1990-01-01

    The X-ray microanalytical spatial resolution is determined experimentally in various analytical electron microscopes by measuring the degradation of an atomically discrete composition profile across an interphase interface in a thin-foil of Ni-Cr-Fe. The experimental spatial resolutions are then compared with calculated values. The calculated spatial resolutions are obtained by the mathematical convolution of the electron probe size with an assumed beam-broadening distribution and the single-scattering model of beam broadening. The probe size is measured directly from an image of the probe in a TEM/SETEM and indirectly from dark-field signal changes resulting from scanning the probe across the edge of an MgO crystal in a dedicated STEM. This study demonstrates the applicability of the convolution technique to the calculation of the microanalytical spatial resolution obtained in the analytical electron microscope. It is demonstrated that, contrary to popular opinion, the electron probe size has a major impact on the measured spatial resolution in foils < 150 nm thick. (author)

  16. Analysis and analytical techniques

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Batuecas Rodriguez, T [Department of Chemistry and Isotopes, Junta de Energia Nuclear, Madrid (Spain)

    1967-01-01

    The technology associated with the use of organic coolants in nuclear reactors depends to a large extent on the determination and control of their physical and chemical properties, and particularly on the viability, speed, sensitivity, precision and accuracy (depending on the intended usage) of the methods employed in detection and analytical determination. This has led to the study and development of numerous techniques, some specially designed for the extreme conditions involved in working with the types of product in question and others adapted from existing techniques. In the specific case of polyphenyl and hydropolyphenyl mixtures, which have been the principal subjects of study to date and offer greatest promise, the analytical problems are broadly as follows: Composition of initial product or virgin coolant composition of macro components and amounts of organic and inorganic impurities; Coolant during and after operation. Determination of gases and organic compounds produced by pyrolysis and radiolysis (degradation and polymerization products); Control of systems for purifying and regenerating the coolant after use. Dissolved pressurization gases; Detection of intermediate products during decomposition; these are generally very unstable (free radicals); Degree of fouling and film formation. Tests to determine potential formation of films; Corrosion of structural elements and canning materials; Health and safety. Toxicity, inflammability and impurities that can be activated. Although some of the above problems are closely interrelated and entail similar techniques, they vary as to degree of difficulty. Another question is the difficulty of distinguishing clearly between techniques for determining physical and physico-chemical properties, on one hand, and analytical techniques on the other. Any classification is therefore somewhat arbitrary (for example, in the case of dosimetry and techniques for determining mean molecular weights or electrical conductivity

  17. Analytical system availability techniques

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Brouwers, J.J.H.; Verbeek, P.H.J.; Thomson, W.R.

    1987-01-01

    Analytical techniques are presented to assess the probability distributions and related statistical parameters of loss of production from equipment networks subject to random failures and repairs. The techniques are based on a theoretical model for system availability, which was further developed

  18. Current use of high-resolution mass spectrometry in drug screening relevant to clinical and forensic toxicology and doping control.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ojanperä, Ilkka; Kolmonen, Marjo; Pelander, Anna

    2012-05-01

    Clinical and forensic toxicology and doping control deal with hundreds or thousands of drugs that may cause poisoning or are abused, are illicit, or are prohibited in sports. Rapid and reliable screening for all these compounds of different chemical and pharmaceutical nature, preferably in a single analytical method, is a substantial effort for analytical toxicologists. Combined chromatography-mass spectrometry techniques with standardised reference libraries have been most commonly used for the purpose. In the last ten years, the focus has shifted from gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, because of progress in instrument technology and partly because of the polarity and low volatility of many new relevant substances. High-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS), which enables accurate mass measurement at high resolving power, has recently evolved to the stage that is rapidly causing a shift from unit-resolution, quadrupole-dominated instrumentation. The main HRMS techniques today are time-of-flight mass spectrometry and Orbitrap Fourier-transform mass spectrometry. Both techniques enable a range of different drug-screening strategies that essentially rely on measuring a compound's or a fragment's mass with sufficiently high accuracy that its elemental composition can be determined directly. Accurate mass and isotopic pattern acts as a filter for confirming the identity of a compound or even identification of an unknown. High mass resolution is essential for improving confidence in accurate mass results in the analysis of complex biological samples. This review discusses recent applications of HRMS in analytical toxicology.

  19. Resolution enhancement techniques in microscopy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cremer, Christoph; Masters, Barry R.

    2013-05-01

    We survey the history of resolution enhancement techniques in microscopy and their impact on current research in biomedicine. Often these techniques are labeled superresolution, or enhanced resolution microscopy, or light-optical nanoscopy. First, we introduce the development of diffraction theory in its relation to enhanced resolution; then we explore the foundations of resolution as expounded by the astronomers and the physicists and describe the conditions for which they apply. Then we elucidate Ernst Abbe's theory of optical formation in the microscope, and its experimental verification and dissemination to the world wide microscope communities. Second, we describe and compare the early techniques that can enhance the resolution of the microscope. Third, we present the historical development of various techniques that substantially enhance the optical resolution of the light microscope. These enhanced resolution techniques in their modern form constitute an active area of research with seminal applications in biology and medicine. Our historical survey of the field of resolution enhancement uncovers many examples of reinvention, rediscovery, and independent invention and development of similar proposals, concepts, techniques, and instruments. Attribution of credit is therefore confounded by the fact that for understandable reasons authors stress the achievements from their own research groups and sometimes obfuscate their contributions and the prior art of others. In some cases, attribution of credit is also made more complex by the fact that long term developments are difficult to allocate to a specific individual because of the many mutual connections often existing between sometimes fiercely competing, sometimes strongly collaborating groups. Since applications in biology and medicine have been a major driving force in the development of resolution enhancing approaches, we focus on the contribution of enhanced resolution to these fields.

  20. Novel strategy for the determination of illegal adulterants in health foods and herbal medicines using high-performance liquid chromatography with high-resolution mass spectrometry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Zhe; Wu, Caisheng; Wang, Gangli; Zhang, Qingsheng; Zhang, Jinlan

    2015-03-01

    The detection, confirmation, and quantification of multiple illegal adulterants in health foods and herbal medicines by using a single analytical method are a challenge. This paper reports on a new strategy to meet this challenge by employing high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry and a mass spectral tree similarity filter technique. This analytical method can rapidly collect high-resolution, high-accuracy, optionally multistage mass data for compounds in samples. After a preliminary screening by retention time and high-resolution mass spectral data, known illegal adulterants can be detected. The mass spectral tree similarity filter technique has been applied to rapidly confirm these adulterants and simultaneously discover unknown ones. By using full-scan mass spectra as stem and data-dependent subsequent stage mass spectra to form branches, mass spectrometry data from detected compounds are converted into mass spectral trees. The known or unknown illegal adulterants in the samples are confirmed or discovered based on the similarity between their mass spectral trees and those of the references in a library, and they are finally quantified against standard curves. This new strategy has been tested by using 50 samples, and the illegal adulterants were rapidly and effectively detected, confirmed and quantified. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  1. In situ high-resolution thermal microscopy on integrated circuits.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhuo, Guan-Yu; Su, Hai-Ching; Wang, Hsien-Yi; Chan, Ming-Che

    2017-09-04

    The miniaturization of metal tracks in integrated circuits (ICs) can cause abnormal heat dissipation, resulting in electrostatic discharge, overvoltage breakdown, and other unwanted issues. Unfortunately, locating areas of abnormal heat dissipation is limited either by the spatial resolution or imaging acquisition speed of current thermal analytical techniques. A rapid, non-contact approach to the thermal imaging of ICs with sub-μm resolution could help to alleviate this issue. In this work, based on the intensity of the temperature-dependent two-photon fluorescence (TPF) of Rhodamine 6G (R6G) material, we developed a novel fast and non-invasive thermal microscopy with a sub-μm resolution. Its application to the location of hotspots that may evolve into thermally induced defects in ICs was also demonstrated. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to present high-resolution 2D thermal microscopic images of ICs, showing the generation, propagation, and distribution of heat during its operation. According to the demonstrated results, this scheme has considerable potential for future in situ hotspot analysis during the optimization stage of IC development.

  2. High-resolution 3D-GRE imaging of the abdomen using controlled aliasing acceleration technique - a feasibility study

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    AlObaidy, Mamdoh; Ramalho, Miguel; Busireddy, Kiran K.R.; Liu, Baodong; Burke, Lauren M.; Altun, Ersan; Semelka, Richard C. [University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Department of Radiology, Chapel Hill, NC (United States); Dale, Brian M. [Siemens Medical Solutions, MR Research and Development, Morrisville, NC (United States)

    2015-12-15

    To assess the feasibility of high-resolution 3D-gradient-recalled echo (GRE) fat-suppressed T1-weighted images using controlled aliasing acceleration technique (CAIPIRINHA-VIBE), and compare image quality and lesion detection to standard-resolution 3D-GRE images using conventional acceleration technique (GRAPPA-VIBE). Eighty-four patients (41 males, 43 females; age range: 14-90 years, 58.8 ± 15.6 years) underwent abdominal MRI at 1.5 T with CAIPIRINHA-VIBE [spatial resolution, 0.76 ± 0.04 mm] and GRAPPA-VIBE [spatial resolution, 1.17 ± 0.14 mm]. Two readers independently reviewed image quality, presence of artefacts, lesion conspicuity, and lesion detection. Kappa statistic was used to assess interobserver agreement. Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used for image qualitative pairwise comparisons. Logistic regression with post-hoc testing was used to evaluate statistical significance of lesions evaluation. Interobserver agreement ranged between 0.45-0.93. Pre-contrast CAIPIRINHA-VIBE showed significantly (p < 0.001) sharper images and lesion conspicuity with decreased residual aliasing, but more noise enhancement and inferior image quality. Post-contrast CAIPIRINHA-VIBE showed significantly (p < 0.001) sharper images and higher lesion conspicuity, with less respiratory motion and residual aliasing artefacts. Inferior fat-suppression was noticeable on CAIPIRINHA-VIBE sequences (p < 0.001). High in-plane resolution abdominal 3D-GRE fat-suppressed T1-weighted imaging using controlled-aliasing acceleration technique is feasible and yields sharper images compared to standard-resolution images using standard acceleration, with higher post-contrast image quality and trend for improved hepatic lesions detection. (orig.)

  3. High-resolution 3D-GRE imaging of the abdomen using controlled aliasing acceleration technique - a feasibility study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    AlObaidy, Mamdoh; Ramalho, Miguel; Busireddy, Kiran K.R.; Liu, Baodong; Burke, Lauren M.; Altun, Ersan; Semelka, Richard C.; Dale, Brian M.

    2015-01-01

    To assess the feasibility of high-resolution 3D-gradient-recalled echo (GRE) fat-suppressed T1-weighted images using controlled aliasing acceleration technique (CAIPIRINHA-VIBE), and compare image quality and lesion detection to standard-resolution 3D-GRE images using conventional acceleration technique (GRAPPA-VIBE). Eighty-four patients (41 males, 43 females; age range: 14-90 years, 58.8 ± 15.6 years) underwent abdominal MRI at 1.5 T with CAIPIRINHA-VIBE [spatial resolution, 0.76 ± 0.04 mm] and GRAPPA-VIBE [spatial resolution, 1.17 ± 0.14 mm]. Two readers independently reviewed image quality, presence of artefacts, lesion conspicuity, and lesion detection. Kappa statistic was used to assess interobserver agreement. Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used for image qualitative pairwise comparisons. Logistic regression with post-hoc testing was used to evaluate statistical significance of lesions evaluation. Interobserver agreement ranged between 0.45-0.93. Pre-contrast CAIPIRINHA-VIBE showed significantly (p < 0.001) sharper images and lesion conspicuity with decreased residual aliasing, but more noise enhancement and inferior image quality. Post-contrast CAIPIRINHA-VIBE showed significantly (p < 0.001) sharper images and higher lesion conspicuity, with less respiratory motion and residual aliasing artefacts. Inferior fat-suppression was noticeable on CAIPIRINHA-VIBE sequences (p < 0.001). High in-plane resolution abdominal 3D-GRE fat-suppressed T1-weighted imaging using controlled-aliasing acceleration technique is feasible and yields sharper images compared to standard-resolution images using standard acceleration, with higher post-contrast image quality and trend for improved hepatic lesions detection. (orig.)

  4. Role of nuclear analytical probe techniques in biological trace element research

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jones, K.W.; Pounds, J.G.

    1985-01-01

    Many biomedical experiments require the qualitative and quantitative localization of trace elements with high sensitivity and good spatial resolution. The feasibility of measuring the chemical form of the elements, the time course of trace elements metabolism, and of conducting experiments in living biological systems are also important requirements for biological trace element research. Nuclear analytical techniques that employ ion or photon beams have grown in importance in the past decade and have led to several new experimental approaches. Some of the important features of these methods are reviewed here along with their role in trace element research, and examples of their use are given to illustrate potential for new research directions. It is emphasized that the effective application of these methods necessitates a closely integrated multidisciplinary scientific team. 21 refs., 4 figs., 1 tab

  5. Resolution revival technique for subwavelength imaging

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Novitsky, Andrey; Repän, Taavi; Zhukovsky, Sergei

    2017-01-01

    The method to achieve a high resolution of subwavelength features (to improve the contrast function) for a dark-field hyperlens—hyperbolic metamaterial slab possessing metallic properties at the interface — is developed. The technique requires the introduction of the phase difference between the o...

  6. Resolution function in deep inelastic neutron scattering using the Foil Cycling Technique

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pietropaolo, A.; Andreani, C.; Filabozzi, A.; Pace, E.; Senesi, R.

    2007-01-01

    New perspectives for epithermal neutron spectroscopy are being opened up by the development of the Resonance Detector (RD) and its use on inverse geometry time of flight (TOF) spectrometers at spallation sources. The most recent result is the Foil Cycling Technique (FCT), which has been developed and applied on the VESUVIO spectrometer operating in the RD configuration. This technique has demonstrated its capability to improve the resolution function of the spectrometer and to provide an effective neutron and gamma background subtraction method. This paper reports a detailed analysis of the line shape of the resolution function in Deep Inelastic Neutron Scattering (DINS) measurements on VESUVIO spectrometer, operating in the RD configuration and employing the FCT. The aim is to provide an analytical approximation for the analyzer energy transfer function, an useful tool for data analysis on VESUVIO. Simulated and experimental results of DINS measurements on a lead sample are compared. The line shape analysis shows that the most reliable analytical approximation of the energy transfer function is a sum of a Gaussian and a power of a Lorentzian. A comparison with the Double Difference Method (DDM) is also discussed. It is shown that the energy resolution improvement for the FCT and the DDM is almost the same, while the counting efficiency is a factor of about 1.4 higher for the FCT

  7. Determination of uranium in ground water using different analytical techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sahu, S.K.; Maity, Sukanta; Bhangare, R.C.; Pandit, G.G.; Sharma, D.N.

    2014-10-01

    The concern over presence of natural radionuclides like uranium in drinking water is growing recently. The contamination of aquifers with radionuclides depends on number of factors. The geology of an area is the most important factor along with anthropogenic activities like mining, coal ash disposal from thermal power plants, use of phosphate fertilizers etc. Whatever may be the source, the presence of uranium in drinking waters is a matter of great concern for public health. Studies show that uranium is a chemo-toxic and nephrotoxic heavy metal. This chemotoxicity affects the kidneys and bones in particular. Seeing the potential health hazards from natural radionuclides in drinking water, many countries worldwide have adopted the guideline activity concentration for drinking water quality recommended by the WHO (2011). For uranium, WHO has set a limit of 30μgL-1 in drinking water. The geological distribution of uranium and its migration in environment is of interest because the element is having environmental and exposure concerns. It is of great interest to use an analytical technique for uranium analysis in water which is highly sensitive especially at trace levels, specific and precise in presence of other naturally occurring major and trace metals and needs small amount of sample. Various analytical methods based on the use of different techniques have been developed in the past for the determination of uranium in the geological samples. The determination of uranium requires high selectivity due to its strong association with other elements. Several trace level wet chemistry analytical techniques have been reported for uranium determination, but most of these involve tedious and pain staking procedures, high detection limits, interferences etc. Each analytical technique has its own merits and demerits. Comparative assessment by different techniques can provide better quality control and assurance. In present study, uranium was analysed in ground water samples

  8. High resolution UV spectroscopy and laser-focused nanofabrication

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Myszkiewicz, G.

    2005-01-01

    This thesis combines two at first glance different techniques: High Resolution Laser Induced Fluorescence Spectroscopy (LIF) of small aromatic molecules and Laser Focusing of atoms for Nanofabrication. The thesis starts with the introduction to the high resolution LIF technique of small aromatic

  9. Beta Autoradiography. An analytical technique to investigate radionuclides contamination on surface

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ficher, P.; Goutelard, F.; Siitari-Kauppi, M.

    2012-01-01

    In decommissioning of old buildings and after disposal of nuclear facilities (materials, glove boxes,...), the inventory of the radioactive contamination of various building materials needs to be obtained in order to fix the working condition for dismantling. The challenge of this study was to classify different building materials of a whole research laboratory that was dedicated to research on organic molecules labeled with H-3 and C-14. The problem of waste classification is essential for safety treatment of waste and also for its cost. The analytical technique of beta autoradiography particularly well known for biological researches has been tested to investigate radionuclides contamination on surface. This technique is mainly interesting for beta and alpha emitters but also sensitive to gamma radiation. The first step of this technique is the deposit of a film on the surface of material to be analyzed. Films can be deposited on the ground or also fixed on the walls or even on the ceiling. The film is a plastic sheet covered with an emulsion containing photostimulable crystals and Eu that is activated when the film is exposed on radioactive source. The exposed films are then scanned with the Cyclone Plus equipment to get a digitized image. This image represents the radioactivity of the surface studied. The possibility to re-use the films is very important to investigate a large area. This autoradiography technique has retained our attention for its sensitivity and moreover the possibility of 2-dimensional investigation has been found as a real advantage. However it remains now as a qualitative technique and new studies must be launched to prove its quantitative potentialities. The high spatial resolution was not as important as in biological observation, and the mm resolution is totally sufficient

  10. Recent Developments in the Speciation and Determination of Mercury Using Various Analytical Techniques

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lakshmi Narayana Suvarapu

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper reviews the speciation and determination of mercury by various analytical techniques such as atomic absorption spectrometry, voltammetry, inductively coupled plasma techniques, spectrophotometry, spectrofluorometry, high performance liquid chromatography, and gas chromatography. Approximately 126 research papers on the speciation and determination of mercury by various analytical techniques published in international journals since 2013 are reviewed.

  11. Beam modulation: A novel ToF-technique for high resolution diffraction at the Beamline for European Materials Engineering Research (BEER)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rouijaa, M.; Kampmann, R.; Šaroun, J.; Fenske, J.; Beran, P.; Müller, M.; Lukáš, P.; Schreyer, A.

    2018-05-01

    The Beamline for European Materials Engineering Research (BEER) is under construction at the European Spallation Source (ESS) in Lund, Sweden. A basic requirement on BEER is to make best use of the long ESS pulse (2.86 ms) for engineering investigations. High-resolution diffraction, however, demands timing resolution up to 0.1% corresponding to a pulse length down to about 70 μs for the case of thermal neutrons (λ ∼ 1.8 Å). Such timing resolution can be achieved by pulse shaping techniques cutting a short section out of the long pulse, and thus paying for resolution by strong loss of intensity. In contrast to this, BEER proposes a novel operation mode called pulse modulation technique based on a new chopper design, which extracts several short pulses out of the long ESS pulse, and hence leads to a remarkable gain of intensity compared to nowadays existing conventional pulse shaping techniques. The potential of the new technique can be used with full advantage for investigating strains and textures of highly symmetric materials. Due to its instrument design and the high brilliance of the ESS pulse, BEER is expected to become the European flagship for engineering research for strain mapping and texture analysis.

  12. Radio frequency phototube and optical clock: High resolution, high rate and highly stable single photon timing technique

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Margaryan, Amur

    2011-10-01

    A new timing technique for single photons based on the radio frequency phototube and optical clock or femtosecond optical frequency comb generator is proposed. The technique has a 20 ps resolution for single photons, is capable of operating with MHz frequencies and achieving 10 fs instability level.

  13. Analytical resolution of the mixture TBP-HDBP-H2MBP-H3PO4

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pires, M.A.F.

    1983-01-01

    Several schemes for the separation of dibutylphosphoric acid (HDBP), main degradation product of tributylphosphate (TBP), in TBP/diluent, TBP/diluent-uranyl nitrate and TBP/diluent-thorium nitrate mixture were studied. For the resolution of HDBP-TBP/diluent-heavy metal nitrates (U-VI,Th-IV) systems, techniques such as: in exchange chromatography, ion chromatography using common ion exchangers and chromatographic separation with alumina column were investigated. For the identification, determination and analytical resolution following up the several systems studied, techniques such as refraction index measurement, electrical conductivity measurement, molecular absorption spectrophotometry, gas chromatography and ion chromatography, were applied. The separation of HDBP component was achieved using an alumina column where it was adsorbed from the TBP/diluent-uranyl nitrate and selectively eluted. Several modifications of this procedure for samples from the Uranium Purification Pilot Plant at Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (Sao Paulo, Brazil) were made. Special emphasis was given to the determination of HDBP using the ion chromatography technique. HDBP along with any monobutylphosphate acid (H 2 MBP) and phosphoric acid (H 3 PO 4 ) were stripped from the organic phase into dilute sodium hydroxide. HDBP is separated from H 2 MBP and H 3 PO 4 by ion chromatography and determined by its peak height. The determination of degradation products from TBP in TBP/diluent-uranyl nitrate and TBP/diluent-thorium nitrate systems was then performed. The detection limit for dibutylphosphate is 1.0μg HDBP/ml of analyte solution. (Author) [pt

  14. Spatial resolution in depth-controlled surface sensitive x-ray techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yun, W.B.; Viccaro, P.J.

    1992-01-01

    The spatial resolution along the surface normal and the total depth probed are two important parameters in depth-controlled surface sensitive X-ray techniques employing grazing incidence geometry. The two parameters are analyzed in terms of optical properties (refractive indices) of the media involved and parameters of the incident X-ray beam: beam divergence, X-ray energy, and spectral bandwidth. We derive analytical expressions of the required beam divergence and spectral bandwidth of the incident beam as a function of the two parameters. Sample calculations are made for X-ray energies between 0.1 and 100 keV and for solid Be, Cu, and Au, representing material matrices consisting of low, medium, and high atomic number elements. A brief discussion on obtaining the required beam divergence and spectral bandwidth from present X-ray sources and optics is given

  15. Development of high-energy resolution inverse photoemission technique

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Asakura, D.; Fujii, Y.; Mizokawa, T.

    2005-01-01

    We developed a new inverse photoemission (IPES) machine based on a new idea to improve the energy resolution: off-plane Eagle mounting of the optical system in combination with dispersion matching between incoming electron and outgoing photon. In order to achieve dispersion matching, we have employed a parallel plate electron source and have investigated whether the electron beam is obtained as expected. In this paper, we present the principle and design of the new IPES method and report the current status of the high-energy resolution IPES machine

  16. High Resolution Eddy-Current Wire Testing Based on a Gmr Sensor-Array

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kreutzbruck, Marc; Allweins, Kai; Strackbein, Chris; Bernau, Hendrick

    2009-03-01

    Increasing demands in materials quality and cost effectiveness have led to advanced standards in manufacturing technology. Especially when dealing with high quality standards in conjunction with high throughput quantitative NDE techniques are vital to provide reliable and fast quality control systems. In this work we illuminate a modern electromagnetic NDE approach using a small GMR sensor array for testing superconducting wires. Four GMR sensors are positioned around the wire. Each GMR sensor provides a field sensitivity of 200 pT/√Hz and a spatial resolution of about 100 μm. This enables us to detect under surface defects of 100 μm in size in a depth of 200 μm with a signal-to-noise ratio of better than 400. Surface defects could be detected with a SNR of up to 10,000. Besides this remarkably SNR the small extent of GMR sensors results in a spatial resolution which offers new visualisation techniques for defect localisation, defect characterization and tomography-like mapping techniques. We also report on inverse algorithms based on either a Finite Element Method or an analytical approach. These allow for accurate defect localization on the urn scale and an estimation of the defect size.

  17. Glycoprotein Enrichment Analytical Techniques: Advantages and Disadvantages.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, R; Zacharias, L; Wooding, K M; Peng, W; Mechref, Y

    2017-01-01

    Protein glycosylation is one of the most important posttranslational modifications. Numerous biological functions are related to protein glycosylation. However, analytical challenges remain in the glycoprotein analysis. To overcome the challenges associated with glycoprotein analysis, many analytical techniques were developed in recent years. Enrichment methods were used to improve the sensitivity of detection, while HPLC and mass spectrometry methods were developed to facilitate the separation of glycopeptides/proteins and enhance detection, respectively. Fragmentation techniques applied in modern mass spectrometers allow the structural interpretation of glycopeptides/proteins, while automated software tools started replacing manual processing to improve the reliability and throughput of the analysis. In this chapter, the current methodologies of glycoprotein analysis were discussed. Multiple analytical techniques are compared, and advantages and disadvantages of each technique are highlighted. © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. High-resolution MRI in detecting subareolar breast abscess.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fu, Peifen; Kurihara, Yasuyuki; Kanemaki, Yoshihide; Okamoto, Kyoko; Nakajima, Yasuo; Fukuda, Mamoru; Maeda, Ichiro

    2007-06-01

    Because subareolar breast abscess has a high recurrence rate, a more effective imaging technique is needed to comprehensively visualize the lesions and guide surgery. We performed a high-resolution MRI technique using a microscopy coil to reveal the characteristics and extent of subareolar breast abscess. High-resolution MRI has potential diagnostic value in subareolar breast abscess. This technique can be used to guide surgery with the aim of reducing the recurrence rate.

  19. Multivariate curve resolution applied to infrared reflection measurements of soil contaminated with an organophosphorus analyte.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gallagher, Neal B; Blake, Thomas A; Gassman, Paul L; Shaver, Jeremy M; Windig, Willem

    2006-07-01

    Multivariate curve resolution (MCR) is a powerful technique for extracting chemical information from measured spectra of complex mixtures. A modified MCR technique that utilized both measured and second-derivative spectra to account for observed sample-to-sample variability attributable to changes in soil reflectivity was used to estimate the spectrum of dibutyl phosphate (DBP) adsorbed on two different soil types. This algorithm was applied directly to measurements of reflection spectra of soils coated with analyte without resorting to soil preparations such as grinding or dilution in potassium bromide. The results provided interpretable spectra that can be used to guide strategies for detection and classification of organic analytes adsorbed on soil. Comparisons to the neat DBP liquid spectrum showed that the recovered analyte spectra from both soils showed spectral features from methyl, methylene, hydroxyl, and P=O functional groups, but most conspicuous was the absence of the strong PO-(CH2)3CH3 stretch absorption at 1033 cm(-1). These results are consistent with those obtained previously using extended multiplicative scatter correction.

  20. High-resolution X-ray imaging - a powerful nondestructive technique for applications in semiconductor industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zschech, Ehrenfried; Yun, Wenbing; Schneider, Gerd

    2008-01-01

    The availability of high-brilliance X-ray sources, high-precision X-ray focusing optics and very efficient CCD area detectors has contributed essentially to the development of transmission X-ray microscopy (TXM) and X-ray computed tomography (XCT) with sub-50 nm resolution. Particularly, the fabrication of high aspect ratio Fresnel zone plates with zone widths approaching 15 nm has contributed to the enormous improvement in spatial resolution during the previous years. Currently, Fresnel zone plates give the ability to reach spatial resolutions of 15 to 20 nm in the soft and of about 30 to 50 nm in the hard X-ray energy range. X-ray microscopes with rotating anode X-ray sources that can be installed in an analytical lab next to a semiconductor fab have been developed recently. These unique TXM/XCT systems provide an important new capability of nondestructive 3D imaging of internal circuit structures without destructive sample preparation such as cross sectioning. These lab systems can be used for failure localization in micro- and nanoelectronic structures and devices, e.g., to visualize voids and residuals in on-chip metal interconnects without physical modification of the chip. Synchrotron radiation experiments have been used to study new processes and materials that have to be introduced into the semiconductor industry. The potential of TXM using synchrotron radiation in the soft X-ray energy range is shown for the nondestructive in situ imaging of void evolution in embedded on-chip copper interconnect structures during electromigration and for the imaging of different types of insulating thin films between the on-chip interconnects (spectromicroscopy). (orig.)

  1. Time-resolved PIV technique for high temporal resolution measurement of mechanical prosthetic aortic valve fluid dynamics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaminsky, R; Morbiducci, U; Rossi, M; Scalise, L; Verdonck, P; Grigioni, M

    2007-02-01

    Prosthetic heart valves (PHVs) have been used to replace diseased native valves for more than five decades. Among these, mechanical PHVs are the most frequently implanted. Unfortunately, these devices still do not achieve ideal behavior and lead to many complications, many of which are related to fluid mechanics. The fluid dynamics of mechanical PHVs are particularly complex and the fine-scale characteristics of such flows call for very accurate experimental techniques. Adequate temporal resolution can be reached by applying time-resolved PIV, a high-resolution dynamic technique which is able to capture detailed chronological changes in the velocity field. The aim of this experimental study is to investigate the evolution of the flow field in a detailed time domain of a commercial bileaflet PHV in a mock-loop mimicking unsteady conditions, by means of time-resolved 2D Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV). The investigated flow field corresponded to the region immediately downstream of the valve plane. Spatial resolution as in "standard" PIV analysis of prosthetic valve fluid dynamics was used. The combination of a Nd:YLF high-repetition-rate double-cavity laser with a high frame rate CMOS camera allowed a detailed, highly temporally resolved acquisition (up to 10000 fps depending on the resolution) of the flow downstream of the PHV. Features that were observed include the non-homogeneity and unsteadiness of the phenomenon and the presence of large-scale vortices within the field, especially in the wake of the valve leaflets. Furthermore, we observed that highly temporally cycle-resolved analysis allowed the different behaviors exhibited by the bileaflet valve at closure to be captured in different acquired cardiac cycles. By accurately capturing hemodynamically relevant time scales of motion, time-resolved PIV characterization can realistically be expected to help designers in improving PHV performance and in furnishing comprehensive validation with experimental data

  2. A high-resolution processing technique for improving the energy of weak signal based on matching pursuit

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shuyan Wang

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available This paper proposes a new method to improve the resolution of the seismic signal and to compensate the energy of weak seismic signal based on matching pursuit. With a dictionary of Morlet wavelets, matching pursuit algorithm can decompose a seismic trace into a series of wavelets. We abstract complex-trace attributes from analytical expressions to shrink the search range of amplitude, frequency and phase. In addition, considering the level of correlation between constituent wavelets and average wavelet abstracted from well-seismic calibration, we can obtain the search range of scale which is an important adaptive parameter to control the width of wavelet in time and the bandwidth of frequency. Hence, the efficiency of selection of proper wavelets is improved by making first a preliminary estimate and refining a local selecting range. After removal of noise wavelets, we integrate useful wavelets which should be firstly executed by adaptive spectral whitening technique. This approach can improve the resolutions of seismic signal and enhance the energy of weak wavelets simultaneously. The application results of real seismic data show this method has a good perspective of application.

  3. Hyphenated analytical techniques for materials characterisation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Armstrong, Gordon; Kailas, Lekshmi

    2017-01-01

    This topical review will provide a survey of the current state of the art in ‘hyphenated’ techniques for characterisation of bulk materials, surface, and interfaces, whereby two or more analytical methods investigating different properties are applied simultaneously to the same sample to better characterise the sample than can be achieved by conducting separate analyses in series using different instruments. It is intended for final year undergraduates and recent graduates, who may have some background knowledge of standard analytical techniques, but are not familiar with ‘hyphenated’ techniques or hybrid instrumentation. The review will begin by defining ‘complementary’, ‘hybrid’ and ‘hyphenated’ techniques, as there is not a broad consensus among analytical scientists as to what each term means. The motivating factors driving increased development of hyphenated analytical methods will also be discussed. This introduction will conclude with a brief discussion of gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy and energy dispersive x-ray analysis in electron microscopy as two examples, in the context that combining complementary techniques for chemical analysis were among the earliest examples of hyphenated characterisation methods. The emphasis of the main review will be on techniques which are sufficiently well-established that the instrumentation is commercially available, to examine physical properties including physical, mechanical, electrical and thermal, in addition to variations in composition, rather than methods solely to identify and quantify chemical species. Therefore, the proposed topical review will address three broad categories of techniques that the reader may expect to encounter in a well-equipped materials characterisation laboratory: microscopy based techniques, scanning probe-based techniques, and thermal analysis based techniques. Examples drawn from recent literature, and a concluding case study, will be used to explain the

  4. Hyphenated analytical techniques for materials characterisation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Armstrong, Gordon; Kailas, Lekshmi

    2017-09-01

    This topical review will provide a survey of the current state of the art in ‘hyphenated’ techniques for characterisation of bulk materials, surface, and interfaces, whereby two or more analytical methods investigating different properties are applied simultaneously to the same sample to better characterise the sample than can be achieved by conducting separate analyses in series using different instruments. It is intended for final year undergraduates and recent graduates, who may have some background knowledge of standard analytical techniques, but are not familiar with ‘hyphenated’ techniques or hybrid instrumentation. The review will begin by defining ‘complementary’, ‘hybrid’ and ‘hyphenated’ techniques, as there is not a broad consensus among analytical scientists as to what each term means. The motivating factors driving increased development of hyphenated analytical methods will also be discussed. This introduction will conclude with a brief discussion of gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy and energy dispersive x-ray analysis in electron microscopy as two examples, in the context that combining complementary techniques for chemical analysis were among the earliest examples of hyphenated characterisation methods. The emphasis of the main review will be on techniques which are sufficiently well-established that the instrumentation is commercially available, to examine physical properties including physical, mechanical, electrical and thermal, in addition to variations in composition, rather than methods solely to identify and quantify chemical species. Therefore, the proposed topical review will address three broad categories of techniques that the reader may expect to encounter in a well-equipped materials characterisation laboratory: microscopy based techniques, scanning probe-based techniques, and thermal analysis based techniques. Examples drawn from recent literature, and a concluding case study, will be used to explain the

  5. Determination and identification of synthetic cannabinoids and their metabolites in different matrices by modern analytical techniques – a review

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Znaleziona, Joanna; Ginterová, Pavlína; Petr, Jan; Ondra, Peter; Válka, Ivo; Ševčík, Juraj; Chrastina, Jan; Maier, Vítězslav

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Synthetic cannabinoids from analytical point of view. • Determination and identification methods of synthetic cannabinoids in different matrices. • Analytical techniques used from thin layer chromatography to high resolution mass spectrometry. • Detailed survey of gas and liquid chromatography methods for synthetic cannabinoids analysis. - Abstract: Synthetic cannabinoids have gained popularity due to their easy accessibility and psychoactive effects. Furthermore, they cannot be detected in urine by routine drug monitoring. The wide range of active ingredients in analyzed matrices hinders the development of a standard analytical method for their determination. Moreover, their possible side effects are not well known which increases the danger. This review is focused on the sample preparation and the determination of synthetic cannabinoids in different matrices (serum, urine, herbal blends, oral fluid, hair) published since 2004. The review includes separation and identification techniques, such as thin layer chromatography, gas and liquid chromatography and capillary electrophoresis, mostly coupled with mass spectrometry. The review also includes results by spectral methods like infrared spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance or direct-injection mass spectrometry

  6. Determination and identification of synthetic cannabinoids and their metabolites in different matrices by modern analytical techniques – a review

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Znaleziona, Joanna; Ginterová, Pavlína; Petr, Jan [Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacký University, 17. Listopadu 12, Olomouc CZ-77146 (Czech Republic); Ondra, Peter; Válka, Ivo [Department of Forensic Medicine and Medical Law Faculty Hospital, Hněvotínská 3, Olomouc CZ-77146 (Czech Republic); Ševčík, Juraj [Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacký University, 17. Listopadu 12, Olomouc CZ-77146 (Czech Republic); Chrastina, Jan [Institute of Special Education Studies, Faculty of Education, Palacký University, Žižkovo náměsti 5, Olomouc CZ-77146 (Czech Republic); Maier, Vítězslav, E-mail: vitezslav.maier@upol.cz [Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacký University, 17. Listopadu 12, Olomouc CZ-77146 (Czech Republic)

    2015-05-18

    Highlights: • Synthetic cannabinoids from analytical point of view. • Determination and identification methods of synthetic cannabinoids in different matrices. • Analytical techniques used from thin layer chromatography to high resolution mass spectrometry. • Detailed survey of gas and liquid chromatography methods for synthetic cannabinoids analysis. - Abstract: Synthetic cannabinoids have gained popularity due to their easy accessibility and psychoactive effects. Furthermore, they cannot be detected in urine by routine drug monitoring. The wide range of active ingredients in analyzed matrices hinders the development of a standard analytical method for their determination. Moreover, their possible side effects are not well known which increases the danger. This review is focused on the sample preparation and the determination of synthetic cannabinoids in different matrices (serum, urine, herbal blends, oral fluid, hair) published since 2004. The review includes separation and identification techniques, such as thin layer chromatography, gas and liquid chromatography and capillary electrophoresis, mostly coupled with mass spectrometry. The review also includes results by spectral methods like infrared spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance or direct-injection mass spectrometry.

  7. Semi-analytic techniques for calculating bubble wall profiles

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Akula, Sujeet; Balazs, Csaba; White, Graham A.

    2016-01-01

    We present semi-analytic techniques for finding bubble wall profiles during first order phase transitions with multiple scalar fields. Our method involves reducing the problem to an equation with a single field, finding an approximate analytic solution and perturbing around it. The perturbations can be written in a semi-analytic form. We assert that our technique lacks convergence problems and demonstrate the speed of convergence on an example potential. (orig.)

  8. Role of thermo-analytical techniques in compositional characterization of nuclear materials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Raje, Naina

    2015-01-01

    The study of heat effects on different materials has a long history. Extraction of metals from the ores, pottery production, glasses making etc. are the examples, where the performance of products obtained from raw materials depends on the processing temperatures. Concrete, pottery, bricks etc., are severely damaged due to uncontrolled high temperatures. Therefore, the heating of raw materials in controlled manner is of pivotal importance to get products of the desired quality. Thermo-analytical techniques provide the information on the effect of heat under controlled heating conditions. In thermo-analytical techniques, physical properties of materials are measured as a function of temperature. Simultaneous thermo-analytical techniques are beneficial in comparison to any single thermo-analytical technique. Simultaneous techniques refer to the measurement of two or more signals on the same sample at the same time in the same instrument. Nowadays, simultaneous thermo-analytical technique are extensively in use for the analysis of materials. Ammonium diuranate (ADU) and magnesium diuranate (MDU), also known as yellowcake, are intermediate precursors in fuel fabrication process, with stringent specifications along with the need to understand its thermal behavior. In the processing of lowgrade ores, higher levels of impurities are being encountered in the leach solution that affects the properties of ADU/MDU. In order to meet the fuel specifications, quality assurance of these nuclear materials is essential. Current studies describe the application of simultaneous Thermogravimetry (TG) - differential thermal analysis (DTA) - evolved gas analysis (EGA) techniques for the compositional characterization of ADU/MDU with respect to the impurities present in the matrices

  9. MR imaging of the pulmonary vasculature: Cine and high-resolution techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gefter, W.B.; Hatabu, H.; Kressel, H.Y.; Axel, L.; Lenkinski, R.E.; Schiebler, M.L.; Dougherty, L.; Douglas, P.S.; Reichek, N.

    1987-01-01

    Pulmonary vessels were evaluated on 43 cine examinations (12 normals, 31 with cardiopulmonary diseases) at 1.5 T (General Electric). Arteries and veins could be differentiated by characteristic intensity fluctuations in 90%. Abnormal patterns were observed with elevated left atrial pressure, pulmonary hypertension, pulmonic stenosis, and mitral regurgitation. A small arteriovenous malformation was identified. Approaches to high-resolution imaging included surface coils, 24-cm field of view, and 256 x 256 matrix. Spin-echo (SE) sequences gated in systole or diastole, and GRASS with and without breath-holding were evaluated. Surface-coil SE diastolic images (4 NEX) visualized sixth- and seventh-generation vessels. Breath-hold GRASS showed fifth- and sixth-generation vessels without respiratory artifact. These are promising techniques for displaying the pulmonary circulation

  10. Applications of Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance (FT-ICR) and Orbitrap Based High Resolution Mass Spectrometry in Metabolomics and Lipidomics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ghaste, Manoj; Mistrik, Robert; Shulaev, Vladimir

    2016-01-01

    Metabolomics, along with other “omics” approaches, is rapidly becoming one of the major approaches aimed at understanding the organization and dynamics of metabolic networks. Mass spectrometry is often a technique of choice for metabolomics studies due to its high sensitivity, reproducibility and wide dynamic range. High resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) is a widely practiced technique in analytical and bioanalytical sciences. It offers exceptionally high resolution and the highest degree of structural confirmation. Many metabolomics studies have been conducted using HRMS over the past decade. In this review, we will explore the latest developments in Fourier transform mass spectrometry (FTMS) and Orbitrap based metabolomics technology, its advantages and drawbacks for using in metabolomics and lipidomics studies, and development of novel approaches for processing HRMS data. PMID:27231903

  11. High resolution measurement of the velocity profiles of channel flows using the particle image velocimetry technique

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nor Azizi Mohamed

    2000-01-01

    The high resolution velocity profiles of a uniform steady channel flow and a flow beneath waves were obtained using the particle image velocimetry (PIV) technique. The velocity profiles for each flow were calculated for both components. It is shown that the profiles obtained are very precise, displaying the point velocities from a few millimeters from the bottom of the channel up to the water surface across the water depth. In the case of the wave-induced flow, the profiles are shown under the respective wave phases and given in a plane representation. High resolution measurement of point velocities in a flow is achievable using PIV and invaluable when applied to a complex flow. (Author)

  12. High-resolution magnetic resonance spectroscopy using a solid-state spin sensor

    Science.gov (United States)

    Glenn, David R.; Bucher, Dominik B.; Lee, Junghyun; Lukin, Mikhail D.; Park, Hongkun; Walsworth, Ronald L.

    2018-03-01

    Quantum systems that consist of solid-state electronic spins can be sensitive detectors of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) signals, particularly from very small samples. For example, nitrogen–vacancy centres in diamond have been used to record NMR signals from nanometre-scale samples, with sensitivity sufficient to detect the magnetic field produced by a single protein. However, the best reported spectral resolution for NMR of molecules using nitrogen–vacancy centres is about 100 hertz. This is insufficient to resolve the key spectral identifiers of molecular structure that are critical to NMR applications in chemistry, structural biology and materials research, such as scalar couplings (which require a resolution of less than ten hertz) and small chemical shifts (which require a resolution of around one part per million of the nuclear Larmor frequency). Conventional, inductively detected NMR can provide the necessary high spectral resolution, but its limited sensitivity typically requires millimetre-scale samples, precluding applications that involve smaller samples, such as picolitre-volume chemical analysis or correlated optical and NMR microscopy. Here we demonstrate a measurement technique that uses a solid-state spin sensor (a magnetometer) consisting of an ensemble of nitrogen–vacancy centres in combination with a narrowband synchronized readout protocol to obtain NMR spectral resolution of about one hertz. We use this technique to observe NMR scalar couplings in a micrometre-scale sample volume of approximately ten picolitres. We also use the ensemble of nitrogen–vacancy centres to apply NMR to thermally polarized nuclear spins and resolve chemical-shift spectra from small molecules. Our technique enables analytical NMR spectroscopy at the scale of single cells.

  13. Digital pulse processing techniques for high resolution amplitude measurement of radiation detector

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Singhai, P.; Roy, A.; Dhara, P.; Chatterjee, S.

    2012-01-01

    The digital pulse processing techniques for high resolution amplitude measurement of radiation detector pulse is an effective replacement of expensive and bulky analog processing as the digital domain offers higher channel density and at the same time it is cheaper. We have demonstrated a prototype digital setup with highspeed sampling ADC with sampling frequency of 80-125 MHz followed by series of IIR filters for pulse shaping in a trigger-less acquisition mode. The IIR filters, peak detection algorithm and the data write-out logic was written on VHDL and implemented on FPGA. We used CAMAC as the read out platform. In conjunction with the full hardware implementation we also used a mixed platform with VME digitizer card with raw-sample read out using C code. The rationale behind this mixed platform is to test out various filter algorithms quickly on C and also to benchmark the performance of the chip level ADCs against the standard commercial digitizer in terms of noise or resolution. The paper describes implementation of both the methods with performance obtained in both the methods. (author)

  14. High resolution optical DNA mapping

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baday, Murat

    Many types of diseases including cancer and autism are associated with copy-number variations in the genome. Most of these variations could not be identified with existing sequencing and optical DNA mapping methods. We have developed Multi-color Super-resolution technique, with potential for high throughput and low cost, which can allow us to recognize more of these variations. Our technique has made 10--fold improvement in the resolution of optical DNA mapping. Using a 180 kb BAC clone as a model system, we resolved dense patterns from 108 fluorescent labels of two different colors representing two different sequence-motifs. Overall, a detailed DNA map with 100 bp resolution was achieved, which has the potential to reveal detailed information about genetic variance and to facilitate medical diagnosis of genetic disease.

  15. Analytical research using synchrotron radiation based techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jha, Shambhu Nath

    2015-01-01

    There are many Synchrotron Radiation (SR) based techniques such as X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS), X-ray Fluorescence Analysis (XRF), SR-Fourier-transform Infrared (SRFTIR), Hard X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (HAXPS) etc. which are increasingly being employed worldwide in analytical research. With advent of modern synchrotron sources these analytical techniques have been further revitalized and paved ways for new techniques such as microprobe XRF and XAS, FTIR microscopy, Hard X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (HAXPS) etc. The talk will cover mainly two techniques illustrating its capability in analytical research namely XRF and XAS. XRF spectroscopy: XRF spectroscopy is an analytical technique which involves the detection of emitted characteristic X-rays following excitation of the elements within the sample. While electron, particle (protons or alpha particles), or X-ray beams can be employed as the exciting source for this analysis, the use of X-ray beams from a synchrotron source has been instrumental in the advancement of the technique in the area of microprobe XRF imaging and trace level compositional characterisation of any sample. Synchrotron radiation induced X-ray emission spectroscopy, has become competitive with the earlier microprobe and nanoprobe techniques following the advancements in manipulating and detecting these X-rays. There are two important features that contribute to the superb elemental sensitivities of microprobe SR induced XRF: (i) the absence of the continuum (Bremsstrahlung) background radiation that is a feature of spectra obtained from charged particle beams, and (ii) the increased X-ray flux on the sample associated with the use of tunable third generation synchrotron facilities. Detection sensitivities have been reported in the ppb range, with values of 10 -17 g - 10 -14 g (depending on the particular element and matrix). Keeping in mind its demand, a microprobe XRF beamline has been setup by RRCAT at Indus-2 synchrotron

  16. High resolution and comprehensive techniques to analyze aerobic methane oxidation in mesocosm experiments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chan, E. W.; Kessler, J. D.; Redmond, M. C.; Shiller, A. M.; Arrington, E. C.; Valentine, D. L.; Colombo, F.

    2015-12-01

    Many studies of microbially mediated aerobic methane oxidation in oceanic environments have examined the many different factors that control the rates of oxidation. However, there is debate on how quickly methane is oxidized once a microbial population is established and what factor(s) are limiting in these types of environments. These factors include the availability of CH4, O2, trace metals, nutrients, and the density of cell population. Limits to these factors can also control the temporal aspects of a methane oxidation event. In order to look at this process in its entirety and with higher temporal resolution, a mesocosm incubation system was developed with a Dissolved Gas Analyzer System (DGAS) coupled with a set of analytical tools to monitor aerobic methane oxidation in real time. With the addition of newer laser spectroscopy techniques (cavity ringdown spectroscopy), stable isotope fractionation caused by microbial processes can also be examined on a real time and automated basis. Cell counting, trace metal, nutrient, and DNA community analyses have also been carried out in conjunction with these mesocosm samples to provide a clear understanding of the biology in methane oxidation dynamics. This poster will detail the techniques involved to provide insights into the chemical and isotopic kinetics controlling aerobic methane oxidation. Proof of concept applications will be presented from seep sites in the Hudson Canyon and the Sleeping Dragon seep field, Mississippi Canyon 118 (MC 118). This system was used to conduct mesocosm experiments to examine methane consumption, O2 consumption, nutrient consumption, and biomass production.

  17. Ultraprecision motion control technique for high-resolution x-ray instrumentation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shu, D.; Toellner, T. S.; Alp, E. E.

    2000-07-17

    With the availability of third-generation hard x-ray synchrotron radiation sources, such as the Advanced Photon Source (APS) at Argonne National Laboratory, x-ray inelastic scattering and x-ray nuclear resonant scattering provide powerful means for investigating the vibrational dynamics of a variety of materials and condensed matter systems. Novel high-resolution hard x-ray optics with meV energy resolution requires a compact positioning mechanism with 20--50-nrad angular resolution and stability. In this paper, the authors technical approach to this design challenge is presented. Sensitivity and stability test results are also discussed.

  18. High resolution X-ray scattering techniques for studying the sliding CDWS distortions, in NbSe sub 3

    CERN Document Server

    Rideau, D; Currat, R; Requardt, H; Nad, F Y; Lorenzo, J E; Brazovskii, S; Detlefs, C; Grübel, G

    2001-01-01

    The phase gradient in a sliding-charge density wave (CDW), which is observable as a longitudinal shift, q propor to partial deriv phi/partial deriv x, of the CDW satellite peak position, is due to the conversion free-electrons CDW-condensate, at the current electrodes. Using high resolution X-ray scattering techniques and time-resolved techniques, we monitor, on thin NbSe sub 3 whiskers, the shift, q(x), and its relaxation, q(t), upon switching off the current.

  19. New high temperature plasmas and sample introduction systems for analytical atomic emission and mass spectrometry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Montaser, A.

    1993-01-01

    In this research, new high-temperature plasmas and new sample introduction systems are explored for rapid elemental and isotopic analysis of gases, solutions, and solids using mass spectrometry and atomic emission spectrometry. During the period January 1993--December 1993, emphasis was placed on (a) analytical investigations of atmospheric-pressure helium inductively coupled plasma (He ICP) that are suitable for atomization, excitation, and ionization of elements possessing high excitation and ionization energies; (b) simulation and computer modeling of plasma sources to predict their structure and fundamental and analytical properties without incurring the enormous cost of experimental studies; (c) spectrosopic imaging and diagnostic studies of high-temperature plasmas; (d) fundamental studies of He ICP discharges and argon-nitrogen plasma by high-resolution Fourier transform spectrometry; and (e) fundamental and analytical investigation of new, low-cost devices as sample introduction systems for atomic spectrometry and examination of new diagnostic techniques for probing aerosols. Only the most important achievements are included in this report to illustrate progress and obstacles. Detailed descriptions of the authors' investigations are outlined in the reprints and preprints that accompany this report. The technical progress expected next year is briefly described at the end of this report

  20. A high-resolution neutron spectra unfolding method using the Genetic Algorithm technique

    CERN Document Server

    Mukherjee, B

    2002-01-01

    The Bonner sphere spectrometers (BSS) are commonly used to determine the neutron spectra within various nuclear facilities. Sophisticated mathematical tools are used to unfold the neutron energy distribution from the output data of the BSS. This paper highlights a novel high-resolution neutron spectra-unfolding method using the Genetic Algorithm (GA) technique. The GA imitates the biological evolution process prevailing in the nature to solve complex optimisation problems. The GA method was utilised to evaluate the neutron energy distribution, average energy, fluence and equivalent dose rates at important work places of a DIDO class research reactor and a high-energy superconducting heavy ion cyclotron. The spectrometer was calibrated with a sup 2 sup 4 sup 1 Am/Be (alpha,n) neutron standard source. The results of the GA method agreed satisfactorily with the results obtained by using the well-known BUNKI neutron spectra unfolding code.

  1. High resolution sequence stratigraphy in China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang Shangfeng; Zhang Changmin; Yin Yanshi; Yin Taiju

    2008-01-01

    Since high resolution sequence stratigraphy was introduced into China by DENG Hong-wen in 1995, it has been experienced two development stages in China which are the beginning stage of theory research and development of theory research and application, and the stage of theoretical maturity and widely application that is going into. It is proved by practices that high resolution sequence stratigraphy plays more and more important roles in the exploration and development of oil and gas in Chinese continental oil-bearing basin and the research field spreads to the exploration of coal mine, uranium mine and other strata deposits. However, the theory of high resolution sequence stratigraphy still has some shortages, it should be improved in many aspects. The authors point out that high resolution sequence stratigraphy should be characterized quantitatively and modelized by computer techniques. (authors)

  2. An atlas of high-resolution IRAS maps on nearby galaxies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rice, Walter

    1993-01-01

    An atlas of far-infrared IRAS maps with near 1 arcmin angular resolution of 30 optically large galaxies is presented. The high-resolution IRAS maps were produced with the Maximum Correlation Method (MCM) image construction and enhancement technique developed at IPAC. The MCM technique, which recovers the spatial information contained in the overlapping detector data samples of the IRAS all-sky survey scans, is outlined and tests to verify the structural reliability and photometric integrity of the high-resolution maps are presented. The infrared structure revealed in individual galaxies is discussed. The atlas complements the IRAS Nearby Galaxy High-Resolution Image Atlas, the high-resolution galaxy images encoded in FITS format, which is provided to the astronomical community as an IPAC product.

  3. Visualization of intracranial vessel anatomy using high resolution MRI and a simple image fusion technique

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nasel, C.

    2005-01-01

    A new technique for fusion and 3D viewing of high resolution magnetic resonance (MR) angiography and morphological MR sequences is reported. Scanning and image fusion was possible within 20 min on a standard 1.5 T MR-scanner. The procedure was successfully performed in 10 consecutive cases with excellent visualization of wall and luminal aspects of the intracranial segments of the internal carotid artery, the vertebrobasilar system and the anterior, middle and posterior cerebral artery

  4. Visualization of intracranial vessel anatomy using high resolution MRI and a simple image fusion technique

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nasel, C. [Division of Neuroradiology, Department of Radiology, Medical University of Vienna, Waehringerguertel 18-20, A-1090 Vienna (Austria)]. E-mail: christian.nasel@perfusion.at

    2005-04-01

    A new technique for fusion and 3D viewing of high resolution magnetic resonance (MR) angiography and morphological MR sequences is reported. Scanning and image fusion was possible within 20 min on a standard 1.5 T MR-scanner. The procedure was successfully performed in 10 consecutive cases with excellent visualization of wall and luminal aspects of the intracranial segments of the internal carotid artery, the vertebrobasilar system and the anterior, middle and posterior cerebral artery.

  5. Ship Classification with High Resolution TerraSAR-X Imagery Based on Analytic Hierarchy Process

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhi Zhao

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Ship surveillance using space-borne synthetic aperture radar (SAR, taking advantages of high resolution over wide swaths and all-weather working capability, has attracted worldwide attention. Recent activity in this field has concentrated mainly on the study of ship detection, but the classification is largely still open. In this paper, we propose a novel ship classification scheme based on analytic hierarchy process (AHP in order to achieve better performance. The main idea is to apply AHP on both feature selection and classification decision. On one hand, the AHP based feature selection constructs a selection decision problem based on several feature evaluation measures (e.g., discriminability, stability, and information measure and provides objective criteria to make comprehensive decisions for their combinations quantitatively. On the other hand, we take the selected feature sets as the input of KNN classifiers and fuse the multiple classification results based on AHP, in which the feature sets’ confidence is taken into account when the AHP based classification decision is made. We analyze the proposed classification scheme and demonstrate its results on a ship dataset that comes from TerraSAR-X SAR images.

  6. Quality system implementation for nuclear analytical techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2004-01-01

    The international effort (UNIDO, ILAC, BIPM, etc.) to establish a functional infrastructure for metrology and accreditation in many developing countries needs to be complemented by assistance to implement high quality practices and high quality output by service providers and producers in the respective countries. Knowledge of how to approach QA systems that justify a formal accreditation is available in only a few countries and the dissemination of know how and development of skills is needed bottom up from the working level of laboratories and institutes. Awareness building, convincing of management, introduction of good management practices, technical expertise and good documentation will lead to the creation of a quality culture that assures a sustainability and inherent development of quality practices as a prerequisite of economic success. Quality assurance and quality control can be used as a valuable management tool and is a prerequisite for international trade and information exchange. This publication tries to assist quality managers, Laboratory Managers and staff involved in setting up a QA/QC system in a nuclear analytical laboratory to take appropriate action to start and complete the necessary steps for a successful quality system for ultimate national accreditation. This guidebook contributes to a better understanding of the basic ideas behind ISO/IEC 17025, the international standard for 'General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories'. It provides basic information and detailed explanation about the establishment of the QC system in analytical and nuclear analytical laboratories. It is a proper training material for training of trainers and makes managers with QC management and implementation familiar. This training material aims to facilitate the implementation of internationally accepted quality principles and to promote attempts by Member States' laboratories to obtain accreditation for nuclear analytical

  7. Hadronic energy resolution of a highly granular scintillator-steel hadron calorimeter using software compensation techniques

    CERN Document Server

    Adloff, C.; Blaising, J.J.; Drancourt, C.; Espargiliere, A.; Gaglione, R.; Geffroy, N.; Karyotakis, Y.; Prast, J.; Vouters, G.; Francis, K.; Repond, J.; Smith, J.; Xia, L.; Baldolemar, E.; Li, J.; Park, S.T.; Sosebee, M.; White, A.P.; Yu, J.; Buanes, T.; Eigen, G.; Mikami, Y.; Watson, N.K.; Goto, T.; Mavromanolakis, G.; Thomson, M.A.; Ward, D.R.; Yan, W.; Benchekroun, D.; Hoummada, A.; Khoulaki, Y.; Benyamna, M.; Carloganu, C.; Fehr, F.; Gay, P.; Manen, S.; Royer, L.; Blazey, G.C.; Dyshkant, A.; Lima, J.G.R.; Zutshi, V.; Hostachy, J.Y.; Morin, L.; Cornett, U.; David, D.; Falley, G.; Gadow, K.; Gottlicher, P.; Gunter, C.; Hermberg, B.; Karstensen, S.; Krivan, F.; Lucaci-Timoce, A.I.; Lu, S.; Lutz, B.; Morozov, S.; Morgunov, V.; Reinecke, M.; Sefkow, F.; Smirnov, P.; Terwort, M.; Vargas-Trevino, A.; Feege, N.; Garutti, E.; Marchesini, I.; Ramilli, M.; Eckert, P.; Harion, T.; Kaplan, A.; Schultz-Coulon, H.Ch; Shen, W.; Stamen, R.; Tadday, A.; Bilki, B.; Norbeck, E.; Onel, Y.; Wilson, G.W.; Kawagoe, K.; Dauncey, P.D.; Magnan, A.M.; Wing, M.; Salvatore, F.; Calvo Alamillo, E.; Fouz, M.C.; Puerta-Pelayo, J.; Balagura, V.; Bobchenko, B.; Chadeeva, M.; Danilov, M.; Epifantsev, A.; Markin, O.; Mizuk, R.; Novikov, E.; Rusinov, V.; Tarkovsky, E.; Kirikova, N.; Kozlov, V.; Smirnov, P.; Soloviev, Y.; Buzhan, P.; Dolgoshein, B.; Ilyin, A.; Kantserov, V.; Kaplin, V.; Karakash, A.; Popova, E.; Smirnov, S.; Kiesling, C.; Pfau, S.; Seidel, K.; Simon, F.; Soldner, C.; Szalay, M.; Tesar, M.; Weuste, L.; Bonis, J.; Bouquet, B.; Callier, S.; Cornebise, P.; Doublet, Ph; Dulucq, F.; Faucci Giannelli, M.; Fleury, J.; Li, H.; Martin-Chassard, G.; Richard, F.; de la Taille, Ch.; Poschl, R.; Raux, L.; Seguin-Moreau, N.; Wicek, F.; Anduze, M.; Boudry, V.; Brient, J.C.; Jeans, D.; Mora de Freitas, P.; Musat, G.; Reinhard, M.; Ruan, M.; Videau, H.; Bulanek, B.; Zacek, J.; Cvach, J.; Gallus, P.; Havranek, M.; Janata, M.; Kvasnicka, J.; Lednicky, D.; Marcisovsky, M.; Polak, I.; Popule, J.; Tomasek, L.; Tomasek, M.; Ruzicka, P.; Sicho, P.; Smolik, J.; Vrba, V.; Zalesak, J.; Belhorma, B.; Ghazlane, H.; Takeshita, T.; Uozumi, S.; Sauer, J.; Weber, S.; Zeitnitz, C.

    2012-01-01

    SPS. The energy resolution for single hadrons is determined to be approximately 58%/ √E/GeV. This resolution is improved to approximately 45%/ √E/GeV with software compensation techniques. These techniques take advantage of the event-by-event information about the substructure of hadronic showers which is provided by the imaging capabilities of the calorimeter. The energy reconstruction is improved either with corrections based on the local energy density or by applying a single correction factor to the event energy sum derived from a global measure of the shower energy density. The application of the compensation algorithms to GEANT4 simulations yield resolution improvements comparable to those observed for real data.

  8. SFC-MS/MS as an orthogonal technique for improved screening of polar analytes in anti-doping control.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parr, Maria Kristina; Wuest, Bernhard; Naegele, Edgar; Joseph, Jan F; Wenzel, Maxi; Schmidt, Alexander H; Stanic, Mijo; de la Torre, Xavier; Botrè, Francesco

    2016-09-01

    HPLC is considered the method of choice for the separation of various classes of drugs. However, some analytes are still challenging as HPLC shows limited resolution capabilities for highly polar analytes as they interact insufficiently on conventional reversed-phase (RP) columns. Especially in combination with mass spectrometric detection, limitations apply for alterations of stationary phases. Some highly polar sympathomimetic drugs and their metabolites showed almost no retention on different RP columns. Their retention remains poor even on phenylhexyl phases that show different selectivity due to π-π interactions. Supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) as an orthogonal separation technique to HPLC may help to overcome these issues. Selected polar drugs and metabolites were analyzed utilizing SFC separation. All compounds showed sharp peaks and good retention even for the very polar analytes, such as sulfoconjugates. Retention times and elution orders in SFC are different to both RP and HILIC separations as a result of the orthogonality. Short cycle times could be realized. As temperature and pressure strongly influence the polarity of supercritical fluids, precise regulation of temperature and backpressure is required for the stability of the retention times. As CO2 is the main constituent of the mobile phase in SFC, solvent consumption and solvent waste are considerably reduced. Graphical Abstract SFC-MS/MS vs. LC-MS/MS.

  9. High resolution spectroscopy in the microwave and far infrared

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pickett, Herbert M.

    1990-01-01

    High resolution rotational spectroscopy has long been central to remote sensing techniques in atmospheric sciences and astronomy. As such, laboratory measurements must supply the required data to make direct interpretation of data for instruments which sense atmospheres using rotational spectra. Spectral measurements in the microwave and far infrared regions are also very powerful tools when combined with infrared measurements for characterizing the rotational structure of vibrational spectra. In the past decade new techniques were developed which have pushed high resolution spectroscopy into the wavelength region between 25 micrometers and 2 mm. Techniques to be described include: (1) harmonic generation of microwave sources, (2) infrared laser difference frequency generation, (3) laser sideband generation, and (4) ultrahigh resolution interferometers.

  10. Finding an analytic description of the resolution function for n_TOF-EAR2 at CERN

    CERN Document Server

    Eriksson, John Benjamin

    2017-01-01

    At CERN's neutron time-of-flight facility n_TOF a high intensity pulsed neutron source is used to measure energy-dependent neutron-induced reaction cross sections of isotopes relevant to various fields of research such as nuclear astrophysics, -technology or -medicine. Neutron kinetic energies are determined using the time-of-flight (ToF) technique. A correct ToF to energy conversion is essential and is influenced by many factors, one of which is the so-called resolution function (RF). The RF is a characteristic unique to each experimental facility and can only be determined through simulations using Monte Carlo codes. The goal of this project is to find an analytic description of the RF for n_TOF-EAR2. Two functions for two different energy ranges were found, each a combination of linear, polynomial and exponential functions. Furthermore, the energy dependence of the function's parameters was investigated.

  11. High resolution NMR spectroscopy of synthetic polymers in bulk

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Komorski, R.A.

    1986-01-01

    The contents of this book are: Overview of high-resolution NMR of solid polymers; High-resolution NMR of glassy amorphous polymers; Carbon-13 solid-state NMR of semicrystalline polymers; Conformational analysis of polymers of solid-state NMR; High-resolution NMR studies of oriented polymers; High-resolution solid-state NMR of protons in polymers; and Deuterium NMR of solid polymers. This work brings together the various approaches for high-resolution NMR studies of bulk polymers into one volume. Heavy emphasis is, of course, given to 13C NMR studies both above and below Tg. Standard high-power pulse and wide-line techniques are not covered

  12. High resolution x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy - a new technique for site- and spin-selectivity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, Xin

    1996-12-01

    X-ray spectroscopy has long been used to elucidate electronic and structural information of molecules. One of the weaknesses of x-ray absorption is its sensitivity to all of the atoms of a particular element in a sample. Through out this thesis, a new technique for enhancing the site- and spin-selectivity of the x-ray absorption has been developed. By high resolution fluorescence detection, the chemical sensitivity of K emission spectra can be used to identify oxidation and spin states; it can also be used to facilitate site-selective X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure (XANES) and site-selective Extended X-ray Absorption Fine Structure (EXAFS). The spin polarization in K fluorescence could be used to generate spin selective XANES or spin-polarized EXAFS, which provides a new measure of the spin density, or the nature of magnetic neighboring atoms. Finally, dramatic line-sharpening effects by the combination of absorption and emission processes allow observation of structure that is normally unobservable. All these unique characters can enormously simplify a complex x-ray spectrum. Applications of this novel technique have generated information from various transition-metal model compounds to metalloproteins. The absorption and emission spectra by high resolution fluorescence detection are interdependent. The ligand field multiplet model has been used for the analysis of Kα and Kβ emission spectra. First demonstration on different chemical states of Fe compounds has shown the applicability of site selectivity and spin polarization. Different interatomic distances of the same element in different chemical forms have been detected using site-selective EXAFS

  13. Current applications of high-resolution mass spectrometry for the analysis of new psychoactive substances: a critical review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pasin, Daniel; Cawley, Adam; Bidny, Sergei; Fu, Shanlin

    2017-10-01

    The proliferation of new psychoactive substances (NPS) in recent years has resulted in the development of numerous analytical methods for the detection and identification of known and unknown NPS derivatives. High-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) has been identified as the method of choice for broad screening of NPS in a wide range of analytical contexts because of its ability to measure accurate masses using data-independent acquisition (DIA) techniques. Additionally, it has shown promise for non-targeted screening strategies that have been developed in order to detect and identify novel analogues without the need for certified reference materials (CRMs) or comprehensive mass spectral libraries. This paper reviews the applications of HRMS for the analysis of NPS in forensic drug chemistry and analytical toxicology. It provides an overview of the sample preparation procedures in addition to data acquisition, instrumental analysis, and data processing techniques. Furthermore, it gives an overview of the current state of non-targeted screening strategies with discussion on future directions and perspectives of this technique. Graphical Abstract Missing the bullseye - a graphical respresentation of non-targeted screening. Image courtesy of Christian Alonzo.

  14. High resolution (transformers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garcia-Souto, Jose A; Lamela-Rivera, Horacio

    2006-10-16

    A novel fiber-optic interferometric sensor is presented for vibrations measurements and analysis. In this approach, it is shown applied to the vibrations of electrical structures within power transformers. A main feature of the sensor is that an unambiguous optical phase measurement is performed using the direct detection of the interferometer output, without external modulation, for a more compact and stable implementation. High resolution of the interferometric measurement is obtained with this technique (transformers are also highlighted.

  15. High resolution drift chambers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Va'vra, J.

    1985-07-01

    High precision drift chambers capable of achieving less than or equal to 50 μm resolutions are discussed. In particular, we compare so called cool and hot gases, various charge collection geometries, several timing techniques and we also discuss some systematic problems. We also present what we would consider an ''ultimate'' design of the vertex chamber. 50 refs., 36 figs., 6 tabs

  16. Instrumental analytical techniques in geochemistry: Requirements and applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Willis, J.P.

    1986-01-01

    Geochemists must analyse an extremely wide range of terrestrial and planetary materials. The instrumental techniques necessary to cope with this difficult task are considered. The most important analytical techniques in use by the geochemist today are AAS, ICP-OES, INAA, MSID and XRFS, and the electron microscope for in situ mineral analysis. Some applications of these techniques to solving major problems in geochemistry are discussed. The importance of certified reference materials and of high quality geochemical data are emphasized. It is concluded that the general quality of trace element data has improved over the past 25 years, as a direct result of the application of modern instrumental techniques. Surprisingly, the quality of data reported for certain major elements has deteriorated over that time, when compared with data obtainable by classical chemical methods. Predictions are made concerning the instrumentation needs of the next generation of geochemists. (orig.) [de

  17. High-resolution X-ray crystal structure of bovine H-protein using the high-pressure cryocooling method

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Higashiura, Akifumi; Ohta, Kazunori; Masaki, Mika; Sato, Masaru; Inaka, Koji; Tanaka, Hiroaki; Nakagawa, Atsushi

    2013-01-01

    Using the high-pressure cryocooling method, the high-resolution X-ray crystal structure of bovine H-protein was determined at 0.86 Å resolution. This is the first ultra-high-resolution structure obtained from a high-pressure cryocooled crystal. Recently, many technical improvements in macromolecular X-ray crystallography have increased the number of structures deposited in the Protein Data Bank and improved the resolution limit of protein structures. Almost all high-resolution structures have been determined using a synchrotron radiation source in conjunction with cryocooling techniques, which are required in order to minimize radiation damage. However, optimization of cryoprotectant conditions is a time-consuming and difficult step. To overcome this problem, the high-pressure cryocooling method was developed (Kim et al., 2005 ▶) and successfully applied to many protein-structure analyses. In this report, using the high-pressure cryocooling method, the X-ray crystal structure of bovine H-protein was determined at 0.86 Å resolution. Structural comparisons between high- and ambient-pressure cryocooled crystals at ultra-high resolution illustrate the versatility of this technique. This is the first ultra-high-resolution X-ray structure obtained using the high-pressure cryocooling method

  18. High-resolution proton NMR spectroscopy of cerebrospinal fluid: methodological issues and potential clinical applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kriat, M.; Nicoli, F.; Vion-Dury, J.; Confort-Gouny, S.; Cozzone, P.J.; Nicoli, F.; Gastaut, J.L.; Dano, P.; Grisoli, F.

    1991-01-01

    High resolution proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is a new analytical technique which allows to readily identify and quantitate a variety of key metabolites in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in relation to normal and pathological brain activity. Proton NMR spectroscopy can be performed on native CSF, with or without addition of exchange reagent (NH 4 Cl). The analysis of native CSF provides qualitative information (identification) of metabolites or xenobiotics present in the fluid. Alternately, CSF can be lyophilized and dissolved in deuterated water. This concentration offers 2 advantages: additional compounds are detected and a precise quantification of all CSF metabolites can be obtained. Both protocols require a very small volume of CFS (1-2 ml). The high informational content available on the NMR spectra of CSF, the ease-of-use of NMR spectroscopy and its cost effectiveness concur to predict that this analytical approach will keep developing to completement the array of existing tests which are already routinely performed on CSF. 6 figs [fr

  19. Development of analytical techniques in support of waste and effluent characterization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Reed, W.J.

    1991-01-01

    The Analytical Services Group within Sellafield Technical Department has been established for >40 yr and employs >150 analysts. The group operates >400 analytical methods across a wide range of techniques and has a yearly workload of ∼250,000 determinations. The group operates under a quality system based on statistical process control that has achieved national recognition through the accreditation of its mass spectrometry and radiochemical services to the standard of national testing laboratories. The group offers services ranging from the characterization of highly active wastes to trace elemental and radiochemical measurements in environmental, biological, and effluent streams. The group has vast experience in the management of analytical services to tight time scales and has pioneered developments not only in analytical instrumentation, but also in the adaptation of equipment to radioactive environments and the design of dedicated analytical facilities

  20. A nanosecond high voltage pulse device for accelerator time analytical system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lou Binqiao; Ding Furong; Xue Zhihua; Wang Xuemei; Shen Dingyu

    2002-01-01

    A nanosecond high voltage pulse device has been designed. The pulse rise time is 10 ns. The pulse voltage reached 16000 V. This device has been used to accelerator time analytical system, its resolution time is less than 0.8%

  1. Analytical techniques for thin films treatise on materials science and technology

    CERN Document Server

    Tu, K N

    1988-01-01

    Treatise on Materials Science and Technology, Volume 27: Analytical Techniques for Thin Films covers a set of analytical techniques developed for thin films and interfaces, all based on scattering and excitation phenomena and theories. The book discusses photon beam and X-ray techniques; electron beam techniques; and ion beam techniques. Materials scientists, materials engineers, chemical engineers, and physicists will find the book invaluable.

  2. High-Resolution Electronics: Spontaneous Patterning of High-Resolution Electronics via Parallel Vacuum Ultraviolet (Adv. Mater. 31/2016).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Xuying; Kanehara, Masayuki; Liu, Chuan; Sakamoto, Kenji; Yasuda, Takeshi; Takeya, Jun; Minari, Takeo

    2016-08-01

    On page 6568, T. Minari and co-workers describe spontaneous patterning based on the parallel vacuum ultraviolet (PVUV) technique, enabling the homogeneous integration of complex, high-resolution electronic circuits, even on large-scale, flexible, transparent substrates. Irradiation of PVUV to the hydrophobic polymer surface precisely renders the selected surface into highly wettable regions with sharply defined boundaries, which spontaneously guides a metal nanoparticle ink into a series of circuit lines and gaps with the widths down to a resolution of 1 μm. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  3. Applied predictive analytics principles and techniques for the professional data analyst

    CERN Document Server

    Abbott, Dean

    2014-01-01

    Learn the art and science of predictive analytics - techniques that get results Predictive analytics is what translates big data into meaningful, usable business information. Written by a leading expert in the field, this guide examines the science of the underlying algorithms as well as the principles and best practices that govern the art of predictive analytics. It clearly explains the theory behind predictive analytics, teaches the methods, principles, and techniques for conducting predictive analytics projects, and offers tips and tricks that are essential for successful predictive mode

  4. Advanced analytical techniques for boiling water reactor chemistry control

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Alder, H P; Schenker, E [Paul Scherrer Inst. (PSI), Villigen (Switzerland)

    1997-02-01

    The analytical techniques applied can be divided into 5 classes: OFF-LINE (discontinuous, central lab), AT-LINE (discontinuous, analysis near loop), ON-LINE (continuous, analysis in bypass). In all cases pressure and temperature of the water sample are reduced. In a strict sense only IN-LINE (continuous, flow disturbance) and NON-INVASIVE (continuous, no flow disturbance) techniques are suitable for direct process control; - the ultimate goal. An overview of the analytical techniques tested in the pilot loop is given. Apart from process and overall water quality control, standard for BWR operation, the main emphasis is on water impurity characterization (crud particles, hot filtration, organic carbon); on stress corrosion crackling control for materials (corrosion potential, oxygen concentration) and on the characterization of the oxide layer on austenites (impedance spectroscopy, IR-reflection). The above mentioned examples of advanced analytical techniques have the potential of in-line or non-invasive application. They are different stages of development and are described in more detail. 28 refs, 1 fig., 5 tabs.

  5. High resolution imaging of particle interactions in a large bubble chamber using holographic techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Akbari, Homaira.

    1988-01-01

    Particle interactions were recorded holographically in a large volume of the 15-foot Bubble Chamber at Fermilab. This cryogenic bubble chamber was filled with a heavy Neon-Hydrogen mixture and was exposed to a wideband neutrino beam with mean energy of 150 GeV. The use of holography in combination with conventional photography provides a powerful tool for direct detection of short-lived particles. Holography gives a high resolution over a large depth of field which can not be achieved with conventional photography. A high-power pulsed ruby laser was used as the holographic light source. Since short pulses of some 50 ns duration at the required energy were found to give rise to boiling during the chamber's expansion, a reduction of the instantaneous power at a given energy was required to suppress this unwanted after-effect. This was achieved by developing a unique technique for stretching the pulses using an electro-optic feedback loop. One hundred thousand holograms were produced during a wide-band neutrino experiment (E-632, 1985) using a dark-field holographic system. Analysis of a sample of holograms shows a resolution of 150 μm was achieved in an ovoidal shape fiducial volume of 0.48 m 3 % of the 14 m 3 total fiducial volume of the chamber

  6. Application of on-line analytical processing technique in accelerator

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xie Dong; Li Weimin; He Duohui; Liu Gongfa; Xuan Ke

    2005-01-01

    A method of application of the on-line analytical processing technique in accelerator is described, which includes data pre-processing, the process of constructing of data warehouse and on-line analytical processing. (authors)

  7. Nuclear forensics: strategies and analytical techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Marin, Rafael C.; Sarkis, Jorge E.S.; Pestana, Rafael C.B.

    2013-01-01

    The development of nuclear forensics as a field of science arose in response to international demand for methods to investigate the illicit trafficking of nuclear materials. After being seized, unknown nuclear material is collected and analyzed by a set of analytical methods. The fingerprints of these materials can be identified and further used during the investigations. Data interpretation is an extensive process aiming to validate the hypotheses made by the experts, and can help confirm the origin of seized nuclear materials at the end of the process or investigation. This work presents the set of measures and analytical methods that have been inherited by nuclear forensics from several fields of science. The main characteristics of these methods are evaluated and the analytical techniques employed to determine the fingerprint of nuclear materials are described. (author)

  8. High resolution x-ray CMT: Reconstruction methods

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brown, J.K.

    1997-02-01

    This paper qualitatively discusses the primary characteristics of methods for reconstructing tomographic images from a set of projections. These reconstruction methods can be categorized as either {open_quotes}analytic{close_quotes} or {open_quotes}iterative{close_quotes} techniques. Analytic algorithms are derived from the formal inversion of equations describing the imaging process, while iterative algorithms incorporate a model of the imaging process and provide a mechanism to iteratively improve image estimates. Analytic reconstruction algorithms are typically computationally more efficient than iterative methods; however, analytic algorithms are available for a relatively limited set of imaging geometries and situations. Thus, the framework of iterative reconstruction methods is better suited for high accuracy, tomographic reconstruction codes.

  9. High-resolution analytical imaging and electron holography of magnetite particles in amyloid cores of Alzheimer’s disease

    Science.gov (United States)

    Plascencia-Villa, Germán; Ponce, Arturo; Collingwood, Joanna F.; Arellano-Jiménez, M. Josefina; Zhu, Xiongwei; Rogers, Jack T.; Betancourt, Israel; José-Yacamán, Miguel; Perry, George

    2016-01-01

    Abnormal accumulation of brain metals is a key feature of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Formation of amyloid-β plaque cores (APC) is related to interactions with biometals, especially Fe, Cu and Zn, but their particular structural associations and roles remain unclear. Using an integrative set of advanced transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques, including spherical aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy (Cs-STEM), nano-beam electron diffraction, electron holography and analytical spectroscopy techniques (EDX and EELS), we demonstrate that Fe in APC is present as iron oxide (Fe3O4) magnetite nanoparticles. Here we show that Fe was accumulated primarily as nanostructured particles within APC, whereas Cu and Zn were distributed through the amyloid fibers. Remarkably, these highly organized crystalline magnetite nanostructures directly bound into fibrillar Aβ showed characteristic superparamagnetic responses with saturated magnetization with circular contours, as observed for the first time by off-axis electron holography of nanometer scale particles. PMID:27121137

  10. Multispectral analytical image fusion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stubbings, T.C.

    2000-04-01

    With new and advanced analytical imaging methods emerging, the limits of physical analysis capabilities and furthermore of data acquisition quantities are constantly pushed, claiming high demands to the field of scientific data processing and visualisation. Physical analysis methods like Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS) or Auger Electron Spectroscopy (AES) and others are capable of delivering high-resolution multispectral two-dimensional and three-dimensional image data; usually this multispectral data is available in form of n separate image files with each showing one element or other singular aspect of the sample. There is high need for digital image processing methods enabling the analytical scientist, confronted with such amounts of data routinely, to get rapid insight into the composition of the sample examined, to filter the relevant data and to integrate the information of numerous separate multispectral images to get the complete picture. Sophisticated image processing methods like classification and fusion provide possible solution approaches to this challenge. Classification is a treatment by multivariate statistical means in order to extract analytical information. Image fusion on the other hand denotes a process where images obtained from various sensors or at different moments of time are combined together to provide a more complete picture of a scene or object under investigation. Both techniques are important for the task of information extraction and integration and often one technique depends on the other. Therefore overall aim of this thesis is to evaluate the possibilities of both techniques regarding the task of analytical image processing and to find solutions for the integration and condensation of multispectral analytical image data in order to facilitate the interpretation of the enormous amounts of data routinely acquired by modern physical analysis instruments. (author)

  11. Analytical chemistry: Principles and techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hargis, L.G.

    1988-01-01

    Although this text seems to have been intended for use in a one-semester course in undergraduate analytical chemistry, it includes the range of topics usually encountered in a two-semester introductory course in chemical analysis. The material is arranged logically for use in a two-semester course: the first 12 chapters contain the subjects most often covered in the first term, and the next 10 chapters pertain to the second (instrumental) term. Overall breadth and level of treatment are standards for an undergraduate text of this sort, and the only major omission is that of kinetic methods (which is a common omission in analytical texts). In the first 12 chapters coverage of the basic material is quite good. The emphasis on the underlying principles of the techniques rather than on specifics and design of instrumentation is welcomed. This text may be more useful for the instrumental portion of an analytical chemistry course than for the solution chemistry segment. The instrumental analysis portion is appropriate for an introductory textbook

  12. Comparison of high-resolution ultrasonic resonator technology and Raman spectroscopy as novel process analytical tools for drug quantification in self-emulsifying drug delivery systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stillhart, Cordula; Kuentz, Martin

    2012-02-05

    Self-emulsifying drug delivery systems (SEDDS) are complex mixtures in which drug quantification can become a challenging task. Thus, a general need exists for novel analytical methods and a particular interest lies in techniques with the potential for process monitoring. This article compares Raman spectroscopy with high-resolution ultrasonic resonator technology (URT) for drug quantification in SEDDS. The model drugs fenofibrate, indomethacin, and probucol were quantitatively assayed in different self-emulsifying formulations. We measured ultrasound velocity and attenuation in the bulk formulation containing drug at different concentrations. The formulations were also studied by Raman spectroscopy. We used both, an in-line immersion probe for the bulk formulation and a multi-fiber sensor for measuring through hard-gelatin capsules that were filled with SEDDS. Each method was assessed by calculating the relative standard error of prediction (RSEP) as well as the limit of quantification (LOQ) and the mean recovery. Raman spectroscopy led to excellent calibration models for the bulk formulation as well as the capsules. The RSEP depended on the SEDDS type with values of 1.5-3.8%, while LOQ was between 0.04 and 0.35% (w/w) for drug quantification in the bulk. Similarly, the analysis of the capsules led to RSEP of 1.9-6.5% and LOQ of 0.01-0.41% (w/w). On the other hand, ultrasound attenuation resulted in RSEP of 2.3-4.4% and LOQ of 0.1-0.6% (w/w). Moreover, ultrasound velocity provided an interesting analytical response in cases where the drug strongly affected the density or compressibility of the SEDDS. We conclude that ultrasonic resonator technology and Raman spectroscopy constitute suitable methods for drug quantification in SEDDS, which is promising for their use as process analytical technologies. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. High-resolution X-ray crystal structure of bovine H-protein using the high-pressure cryocooling method.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Higashiura, Akifumi; Ohta, Kazunori; Masaki, Mika; Sato, Masaru; Inaka, Koji; Tanaka, Hiroaki; Nakagawa, Atsushi

    2013-11-01

    Recently, many technical improvements in macromolecular X-ray crystallography have increased the number of structures deposited in the Protein Data Bank and improved the resolution limit of protein structures. Almost all high-resolution structures have been determined using a synchrotron radiation source in conjunction with cryocooling techniques, which are required in order to minimize radiation damage. However, optimization of cryoprotectant conditions is a time-consuming and difficult step. To overcome this problem, the high-pressure cryocooling method was developed (Kim et al., 2005) and successfully applied to many protein-structure analyses. In this report, using the high-pressure cryocooling method, the X-ray crystal structure of bovine H-protein was determined at 0.86 Å resolution. Structural comparisons between high- and ambient-pressure cryocooled crystals at ultra-high resolution illustrate the versatility of this technique. This is the first ultra-high-resolution X-ray structure obtained using the high-pressure cryocooling method.

  14. Recent applications of gas chromatography with high-resolution mass spectrometry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Špánik, Ivan; Machyňáková, Andrea

    2018-01-01

    Gas chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry is a powerful analytical method that combines excellent separation power of gas chromatography with improved identification based on an accurate mass measurement. These features designate gas chromatography with high-resolution mass spectrometry as the first choice for identification and structure elucidation of unknown volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds. Gas chromatography with high-resolution mass spectrometry quantitative analyses was previously focused on the determination of dioxins and related compounds using magnetic sector type analyzers, a standing requirement of many international standards. The introduction of a quadrupole high-resolution time-of-flight mass analyzer broadened interest in this method and novel applications were developed, especially for multi-target screening purposes. This review is focused on the development and the most interesting applications of gas chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry towards analysis of environmental matrices, biological fluids, and food safety since 2010. The main attention is paid to various approaches and applications of gas chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry for non-target screening to identify contaminants and to characterize the chemical composition of environmental, food, and biological samples. The most interesting quantitative applications, where a significant contribution of gas chromatography with high-resolution mass spectrometry over the currently used methods is expected, will be discussed as well. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  15. Prepared for the thirtieth annual conference on bioassay analytical and environmental chemistry. Reliable analysis of high resolution gamma spectra

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Spitz, H.B.; Buschbom, R.; Rieksts, G.A.; Palmer, H.E.

    1985-01-01

    A new method has been developed to reliably analyze pulse height-energy spectra obtained from measurements employing high resolution germanium detectors. The method employs a simple data transformation and smoothing function to calculate background and identify photopeaks and isotopic analysis. This technique is elegant in its simplicity because it avoids dependence upon complex spectrum deconvolution, stripping, or other least-square-fitting techniques which complicate the assessment of measurement reliability. A moving median was chosen for data smoothing because, unlike moving averages, medians are not dominated by extreme data points. Finally, peaks are identified whenever the difference between the background spectrum and the transformed spectrum exceeds a pre-determined number of standard deviations

  16. Analysis of Cultural Heritage by Accelerator Techniques and Analytical Imaging

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ide-Ektessabi, Ari; Toque, Jay Arre; Murayama, Yusuke

    2011-12-01

    In this paper we present the result of experimental investigation using two very important accelerator techniques: (1) synchrotron radiation XRF and XAFS; and (2) accelerator mass spectrometry and multispectral analytical imaging for the investigation of cultural heritage. We also want to introduce a complementary approach to the investigation of artworks which is noninvasive and nondestructive that can be applied in situ. Four major projects will be discussed to illustrate the potential applications of these accelerator and analytical imaging techniques: (1) investigation of Mongolian Textile (Genghis Khan and Kublai Khan Period) using XRF, AMS and electron microscopy; (2) XRF studies of pigments collected from Korean Buddhist paintings; (3) creating a database of elemental composition and spectral reflectance of more than 1000 Japanese pigments which have been used for traditional Japanese paintings; and (4) visible light-near infrared spectroscopy and multispectral imaging of degraded malachite and azurite. The XRF measurements of the Japanese and Korean pigments could be used to complement the results of pigment identification by analytical imaging through spectral reflectance reconstruction. On the other hand, analysis of the Mongolian textiles revealed that they were produced between 12th and 13th century. Elemental analysis of the samples showed that they contained traces of gold, copper, iron and titanium. Based on the age and trace elements in the samples, it was concluded that the textiles were produced during the height of power of the Mongol empire, which makes them a valuable cultural heritage. Finally, the analysis of the degraded and discolored malachite and azurite demonstrates how multispectral analytical imaging could be used to complement the results of high energy-based techniques.

  17. Development and analytical characterization of a Grimm-type glow discharge ion source operated with high gas flow rates and coupled to a mass spectrometer with high mass resolution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Beyer, Claus; Feldmann, Ingo; Gilmour, Dave; Hoffmann, Volker; Jakubowski, Norbert

    2002-01-01

    A Grimm-type glow discharge ion source has been developed and was coupled to a commercial inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) with high mass resolution (Axiom, ThermoElemental, Winsford, UK) by exchanging the front plate of the ICP-MS interface system only. In addition to high discharge powers of up to 70 W, which are typical for a Grimm-type design, this source could be operated with relative high gas flow rates of up to 240 ml min -1 . In combination with a high discharge voltage the signal intensities are reaching a constant level within the first 20 s after the discharge has started. An analytical characterization of this source is given utilizing a calibration using the steel standard reference material NIST 1261A-1265A. The sensitivity for the investigated elements measured with a resolution of 4000 is in the range of 500-6000 cps μg -1 g -1 , and a relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) of the measured isotope relative to Fe of less than 8% for the major and minor components of the sample has been achieved. Limits of detection at ng g -1 levels could be obtained

  18. Using DNase Hi-C techniques to map global and local three-dimensional genome architecture at high resolution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Wenxiu; Ay, Ferhat; Lee, Choli; Gulsoy, Gunhan; Deng, Xinxian; Cook, Savannah; Hesson, Jennifer; Cavanaugh, Christopher; Ware, Carol B; Krumm, Anton; Shendure, Jay; Blau, C Anthony; Disteche, Christine M; Noble, William S; Duan, ZhiJun

    2018-06-01

    The folding and three-dimensional (3D) organization of chromatin in the nucleus critically impacts genome function. The past decade has witnessed rapid advances in genomic tools for delineating 3D genome architecture. Among them, chromosome conformation capture (3C)-based methods such as Hi-C are the most widely used techniques for mapping chromatin interactions. However, traditional Hi-C protocols rely on restriction enzymes (REs) to fragment chromatin and are therefore limited in resolution. We recently developed DNase Hi-C for mapping 3D genome organization, which uses DNase I for chromatin fragmentation. DNase Hi-C overcomes RE-related limitations associated with traditional Hi-C methods, leading to improved methodological resolution. Furthermore, combining this method with DNA capture technology provides a high-throughput approach (targeted DNase Hi-C) that allows for mapping fine-scale chromatin architecture at exceptionally high resolution. Hence, targeted DNase Hi-C will be valuable for delineating the physical landscapes of cis-regulatory networks that control gene expression and for characterizing phenotype-associated chromatin 3D signatures. Here, we provide a detailed description of method design and step-by-step working protocols for these two methods. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. A method for generating high resolution satellite image time series

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guo, Tao

    2014-10-01

    There is an increasing demand for satellite remote sensing data with both high spatial and temporal resolution in many applications. But it still is a challenge to simultaneously improve spatial resolution and temporal frequency due to the technical limits of current satellite observation systems. To this end, much R&D efforts have been ongoing for years and lead to some successes roughly in two aspects, one includes super resolution, pan-sharpen etc. methods which can effectively enhance the spatial resolution and generate good visual effects, but hardly preserve spectral signatures and result in inadequate analytical value, on the other hand, time interpolation is a straight forward method to increase temporal frequency, however it increase little informative contents in fact. In this paper we presented a novel method to simulate high resolution time series data by combing low resolution time series data and a very small number of high resolution data only. Our method starts with a pair of high and low resolution data set, and then a spatial registration is done by introducing LDA model to map high and low resolution pixels correspondingly. Afterwards, temporal change information is captured through a comparison of low resolution time series data, and then projected onto the high resolution data plane and assigned to each high resolution pixel according to the predefined temporal change patterns of each type of ground objects. Finally the simulated high resolution data is generated. A preliminary experiment shows that our method can simulate a high resolution data with a reasonable accuracy. The contribution of our method is to enable timely monitoring of temporal changes through analysis of time sequence of low resolution images only, and usage of costly high resolution data can be reduces as much as possible, and it presents a highly effective way to build up an economically operational monitoring solution for agriculture, forest, land use investigation

  20. High-spatial-resolution sub-surface imaging using a laser-based acoustic microscopy technique.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Balogun, Oluwaseyi; Cole, Garrett D; Huber, Robert; Chinn, Diane; Murray, Todd W; Spicer, James B

    2011-01-01

    Scanning acoustic microscopy techniques operating at frequencies in the gigahertz range are suitable for the elastic characterization and interior imaging of solid media with micrometer-scale spatial resolution. Acoustic wave propagation at these frequencies is strongly limited by energy losses, particularly from attenuation in the coupling media used to transmit ultrasound to a specimen, leading to a decrease in the depth in a specimen that can be interrogated. In this work, a laser-based acoustic microscopy technique is presented that uses a pulsed laser source for the generation of broadband acoustic waves and an optical interferometer for detection. The use of a 900-ps microchip pulsed laser facilitates the generation of acoustic waves with frequencies extending up to 1 GHz which allows for the resolution of micrometer-scale features in a specimen. Furthermore, the combination of optical generation and detection approaches eliminates the use of an ultrasonic coupling medium, and allows for elastic characterization and interior imaging at penetration depths on the order of several hundred micrometers. Experimental results illustrating the use of the laser-based acoustic microscopy technique for imaging micrometer-scale subsurface geometrical features in a 70-μm-thick single-crystal silicon wafer with a (100) orientation are presented.

  1. Development of analytical techniques for safeguards environmental samples at JAEA

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sakurai, Satoshi; Magara, Masaaki; Usuda, Shigekazu; Watanabe, Kazuo; Esaka, Fumitaka; Hirayama, Fumio; Lee, Chi-Gyu; Yasuda, Kenichiro; Inagawa, Jun; Suzuki, Daisuke; Iguchi, Kazunari; Kokubu, Yoko S.; Miyamoto, Yutaka; Ohzu, Akira

    2007-01-01

    JAEA has been developing, under the auspices of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan, analytical techniques for ultra-trace amounts of nuclear materials in environmental samples in order to contribute to the strengthened safeguards system. Development of essential techniques for bulk and particle analysis, as well as screening, of the environmental swipe samples has been established as ultra-trace analytical methods of uranium and plutonium. In January 2003, JAEA was qualified, including its quality control system, as a member of the JAEA network analytical laboratories for environmental samples. Since 2004, JAEA has conducted the analysis of domestic and the IAEA samples, through which JAEA's analytical capability has been verified and improved. In parallel, advanced techniques have been developed in order to expand the applicability to the samples of various elemental composition and impurities and to improve analytical accuracy and efficiency. This paper summarizes the trace of the technical development in environmental sample analysis at JAEA, and refers to recent trends of research and development in this field. (author)

  2. Science with High Spatial Resolution Far-Infrared Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terebey, Susan (Editor); Mazzarella, Joseph M. (Editor)

    1994-01-01

    The goal of this workshop was to discuss new science and techniques relevant to high spatial resolution processing of far-infrared data, with particular focus on high resolution processing of IRAS data. Users of the maximum correlation method, maximum entropy, and other resolution enhancement algorithms applicable to far-infrared data gathered at the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center (IPAC) for two days in June 1993 to compare techniques and discuss new results. During a special session on the third day, interested astronomers were introduced to IRAS HIRES processing, which is IPAC's implementation of the maximum correlation method to the IRAS data. Topics discussed during the workshop included: (1) image reconstruction; (2) random noise; (3) imagery; (4) interacting galaxies; (5) spiral galaxies; (6) galactic dust and elliptical galaxies; (7) star formation in Seyfert galaxies; (8) wavelet analysis; and (9) supernova remnants.

  3. Resolution enhancement of low-quality videos using a high-resolution frame

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pham, Tuan Q.; van Vliet, Lucas J.; Schutte, Klamer

    2006-01-01

    This paper proposes an example-based Super-Resolution (SR) algorithm of compressed videos in the Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) domain. Input to the system is a Low-Resolution (LR) compressed video together with a High-Resolution (HR) still image of similar content. Using a training set of corresponding LR-HR pairs of image patches from the HR still image, high-frequency details are transferred from the HR source to the LR video. The DCT-domain algorithm is much faster than example-based SR in spatial domain 6 because of a reduction in search dimensionality, which is a direct result of the compact and uncorrelated DCT representation. Fast searching techniques like tree-structure vector quantization 16 and coherence search1 are also key to the improved efficiency. Preliminary results on MJPEG sequence show promising result of the DCT-domain SR synthesis approach.

  4. Activities at Forschungszentrum Juelich in Safeguards Analytical Techniques and Measurements

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Duerr, M.; Knott, A.; Middendorp, R.; Niemeyer, I.; Kueppers, S.; Zoriy, M.; Froning, M.; Bosbach, D.

    2015-01-01

    The application of safeguards by the IAEA involves analytical measurements of samples taken during inspections. The development and advancement of analytical techniques with support from the Member States contributes to strengthened and more efficient verification of compliance with non-proliferation obligations. Since recently, a cooperation agreement has been established between Forschungszentrum Juelich and the IAEA in the field of analytical services. The current working areas of Forschungszentrum Juelich are: (i) Production of synthetic micro-particles as calibration standard and reference material for particle analysis, (ii) qualification of the Forschungszentrum Juelich as a member of the IAEA network of analytical laboratories for safeguards (NWAL), and (iii) analysis of impurities in nuclear material samples. With respect to the synthesis of particles, a dedicated setup for the production of uranium particles is being developed, which addresses the urgent need for material tailored for its use in quality assurance and quality control measures for particle analysis of environmental swipe samples. Furthermore, Forschungszentrum Juelich has been nominated as a candidate laboratory for membership in the NWAL network. To this end, analytical capabilities at Forschungszentrum Juelich have been joined to form an analytical service within a dedicated quality management system. Another activity is the establishment of analytical techniques for impurity analysis of uranium-oxide, mainly focusing on inductively coupled mass spectrometry. This contribution will present the activities at Forschungszentrum Juelich in the area of analytical measurements and techniques for nuclear verification. (author)

  5. A flexible coil array for high resolution magnetic resonance imaging at 7 Tesla

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kriegl, R.

    2015-01-01

    Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), among other imaging techniques, has become a major backbone of modern medical diagnostics. MRI enables the non-invasive combined, identification of anatomical structures, functional and chemical properties, especially in soft tissues. Nonetheless, applications requiring very high spatial and/or temporal resolution are often limited by the available signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in MR experiments. Since first clinical applications, image quality in MRI has been constantly improved by applying one or several of the following strategies: increasing the static magnetic field strength, improvement of the radiofrequency (RF) detection system, development of specialized acquisition sequences and optimization of image reconstruction techniques. This work is concerned with the development of highly sensitive RF detection systems for biomedical ultra-high field MRI. In particular, auto-resonant RF coils based on transmission line technology are investigated. These resonators may be fabricated on flexible substrate which enables form-fitting of the RF detector to the target anatomy, leading to a significant SNR gain. The main objective of this work is the development of a flexible RF coil array for high-resolution MRI on a human whole-body 7 T MR scanner. With coil arrays, the intrinsically high SNR of small surface coils may be exploited for an extended field of view. Further, parallel imaging techniques are accessible with RF array technology, allowing acceleration of the image acquisition. Secondly, in this PhD project a novel design for transmission line resonators is developed, that brings an additional degree of freedom in geometric design and enables the fabrication of large multi-turn resonators for high field MR applications. This thesis describes the development, successful implementation and evaluation of novel, mechanically flexible RF devices by analytical and 3D electromagnetic simulations, in bench measurements and in MRI

  6. Analysis strategies for high-resolution UHF-fMRI data.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Polimeni, Jonathan R; Renvall, Ville; Zaretskaya, Natalia; Fischl, Bruce

    2018-03-01

    Functional MRI (fMRI) benefits from both increased sensitivity and specificity with increasing magnetic field strength, making it a key application for Ultra-High Field (UHF) MRI scanners. Most UHF-fMRI studies utilize the dramatic increases in sensitivity and specificity to acquire high-resolution data reaching sub-millimeter scales, which enable new classes of experiments to probe the functional organization of the human brain. This review article surveys advanced data analysis strategies developed for high-resolution fMRI at UHF. These include strategies designed to mitigate distortion and artifacts associated with higher fields in ways that attempt to preserve spatial resolution of the fMRI data, as well as recently introduced analysis techniques that are enabled by these extremely high-resolution data. Particular focus is placed on anatomically-informed analyses, including cortical surface-based analysis, which are powerful techniques that can guide each step of the analysis from preprocessing to statistical analysis to interpretation and visualization. New intracortical analysis techniques for laminar and columnar fMRI are also reviewed and discussed. Prospects for single-subject individualized analyses are also presented and discussed. Altogether, there are both specific challenges and opportunities presented by UHF-fMRI, and the use of proper analysis strategies can help these valuable data reach their full potential. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. High-resolution electron microscopy of advanced materials

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mitchell, T.E.; Kung, H.H.; Sickafus, K.E.; Gray, G.T. III; Field, R.D.; Smith, J.F. [Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States). Materials Science and Technology Div.

    1997-11-01

    This final report chronicles a three-year, Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) project at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). The High-Resolution Electron Microscopy Facility has doubled in size and tripled in quality since the beginning of the three-year period. The facility now includes a field-emission scanning electron microscope, a 100 kV field-emission scanning transmission electron microscope (FE-STEM), a 300 kV field-emission high-resolution transmission electron microscope (FE-HRTEM), and a 300 kV analytical transmission electron microscope. A new orientation imaging microscope is being installed. X-ray energy dispersive spectrometers for chemical analysis are available on all four microscopes; parallel electron energy loss spectrometers are operational on the FE-STEM and FE-HRTEM. These systems enable evaluation of local atomic bonding, as well as chemical composition in nanometer-scale regions. The FE-HRTEM has a point-to-point resolution of 1.6 {angstrom}, but the resolution can be pushed to its information limit of 1 {angstrom} by computer reconstruction of a focal series of images. HRTEM has been used to image the atomic structure of defects such as dislocations, grain boundaries, and interfaces in a variety of materials from superconductors and ferroelectrics to structural ceramics and intermetallics.

  8. Development of High Resolution Resonance Ionization Mass Spectrometry for Neutron Dosimetry Technique with93Nb(n,n'93mNb Reaction

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tomita Hideki

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available We have proposed an advanced technique to measure the 93mNb yield precisely by Resonance Ionization Mass Spectrometry, instead of conventional characteristic X-ray spectroscopy. 93mNb-selective resonance ionization is achievable by distinguishing the hyperfine splitting of the atomic energy levels between 93Nb and 93mNb at high resolution. In advance of 93mNb detection, we could successfully demonstrate high resolution resonant ionization spectroscopy of stable 93Nb using an all solid-state, narrow-band and tunable Ti:Sapphire laser system operated at 1 kHz repetition rate.

  9. Immersion Gratings for Infrared High-resolution Spectroscopy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sarugaku, Yuki; Ikeda, Yuji; Kobayashi, Naoto; Kaji, Sayumi; Sukegawa, Takashi; Sugiyama, Shigeru; Nakagawa, Takao; Arasaki, Takayuki; Kondo, Sohei; Nakanishi, Kenshi; Yasui, Chikako; Kawakita, Hideyo

    2016-10-01

    High-resolution spectroscopy in the infrared wavelength range is essential for observations of minor isotopologues, such as HDO for water, and prebiotic organic molecules like hydrocarbons/P-bearing molecules because numerous vibrational molecular bands (including non-polar molecules) are located in this wavelength range. High spectral resolution enables us to detect weak lines without spectral line confusion. This technique has been widely used in planetary sciences, e.g., cometary coma (H2O, CO, and organic molecules), the martian atmosphere (CH4, CO2, H2O and HDO), and the upper atmosphere of gas giants (H3+ and organic molecules such as C2H6). Spectrographs with higher resolution (and higher sensitivity) still have a potential to provide a plenty of findings. However, because the size of spectrographs scales with the spectral resolution, it is difficult to realize it.Immersion grating (IG), which is a diffraction grating wherein the diffraction surface is immersed in a material with a high refractive index (n > 2), provides n times higher spectral resolution compared to a reflective grating of the same size. Because IG reduces the size of spectrograph to 1/n compared to the spectrograph with the same spectral resolution using a conventional reflective grating, it is widely acknowledged as a key optical device to realize compact spectrographs with high spectral resolution.Recently, we succeeded in fabricating a CdZnTe immersion grating with the theoretically predicted diffraction efficiency by machining process using an ultrahigh-precision five-axis processing machine developed by Canon Inc. Using the same technique, we completed a practical germanium (Ge) immersion grating with both a reflection coating on the grating surface and the an AR coating on the entrance surface. It is noteworthy that the wide wavelength range from 2 to 20 um can be covered by the two immersion gratings.In this paper, we present the performances and the applications of the immersion

  10. Neutron spin echo and high resolution inelastic spectroscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mezei, F.; Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest. Central Research Inst. for Physics)

    1982-01-01

    The principles of neutrons spin echo (NSE) technique are considered. It is shown that the basis of NSE principle is a single step measurement of the change of the neutron velocity in the scattering process. The backscattering soectroscopy and the NSE techniques are compared. The NSF spectrometer is described. It is shown that 0.5 MeV energy resolution achieved in the NSE experiment is about 40 times superior to those achieved by the other techniques. The NSE technique has the unique feature that provides high resolution in neutron energy change independently of the monochromatization of the beam. The NSE instrument not only covers a wider dynamic range on a pulsed source that on a continuous one, but also collects data more efficiently

  11. Application of advanced nuclear and instrumental analytical techniques for characterisation of environmental materials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sudersanan, M.; Pawaskar, P.B.; Kayasth, S.R.; Kumar, S.C.

    2002-01-01

    Full text: Increasing realisation about the toxic effects of metal ions in environmental materials has given an impetus to research on analytical techniques for their characterization. The large number of analytes present at very low levels has necessitated the use of sensitive, selective and element specific techniques for their characterization. The concern about precision and accuracy on such analysis, which have socio-economic bearing, has emphasized the use of Certified Reference Materials and the use of multi-technique approach for the unambiguous characterization of analytes. The recent work carried out at Analytical Chemistry Division, BARC on these aspects is presented in this paper. Increasing use of fossil fuels has led to the generation of large quantities of fly ash which pose problems of safe disposal. The utilization of these materials for land filling is an attractive option but the presence of trace amounts of toxic metals like mercury, arsenic, lead etc may cause environmental problems. In view of the inhomogeneous nature of the material, efficient sample processing is an important factor, in addition to the validation of the results by the use of proper standards. Analysis was carried out on flyash samples received as reference materials and also as samples from commercial sources using a combination of both nuclear techniques like INAA and RNAA as well as other techniques like AAS, ICPAES, cold vapour AAS for mercury and hydride generation technique for arsenic. Similar analysis using nuclear techniques was employed for the characterization of air particulates. Biological materials often serve as sensitive indicator materials for pollution measurements. They are also employed for studies on the uptake of toxic metals like U, Th, Cd, Pb, Hg etc. The presence of large amounts of organic materials in them necessitate an appropriate sample dissolution procedure. In view of the possibility of loss of certain analytes like Cd, Hg, As, by high

  12. Analytical Techniques and Pharmacokinetics of Gastrodia elata Blume and Its Constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Jinyi; Wu, Bingchu; Tang, Chunlan; Zhao, Jinshun

    2017-07-08

    Gastrodia elata Blume ( G. elata ), commonly called Tianma in Chinese, is an important and notable traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), which has been used in China as an anticonvulsant, analgesic, sedative, anti-asthma, anti-immune drug since ancient times. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the abundant efforts of scientists in developing analytical techniques and performing pharmacokinetic studies of G. elata and its constituents, including sample pretreatment methods, analytical techniques, absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion (ADME) and influence factors to its pharmacokinetics. Based on the reported pharmacokinetic property data of G. elata and its constituents, it is hoped that more studies will focus on the development of rapid and sensitive analytical techniques, discovering new therapeutic uses and understanding the specific in vivo mechanisms of action of G. elata and its constituents from the pharmacokinetic viewpoint in the near future. The present review discusses analytical techniques and pharmacokinetics of G. elata and its constituents reported from 1985 onwards.

  13. Plasma-cavity ringdown spectroscopy for analytical measurement: Progress and prospectives

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhang, Sida; Liu, Wei [Research Center of Analytical Instrumentation, Analytical and Testing Center, College of Chemistry, Sichuan University, Chengdu (China); Zhang, Xiaohe [College of Water Resources and Hydropower, Sichuan University, Chengdu (China); Duan, Yixiang, E-mail: yduan@scu.edu.cn [Research Center of Analytical Instrumentation, Analytical and Testing Center, College of Chemistry, Sichuan University, Chengdu (China)

    2013-07-01

    Plasma-cavity ringdown spectroscopy is a powerful absorption technique for analytical measurement. It combines the inherent advantages of high sensitivity, absolute measurement, and relative insensitivity to light source intensity fluctuations of the cavity ringdown technique with use of plasma as an atomization/ionization source. In this review, we briefly describe the background and principles of plasma-cavity ringdown spectroscopy(CRDS) technology, the instrumental components, and various applications. The significant developments of the plasma sources, lasers, and cavity optics are illustrated. Analytical applications of plasma-CRDS for elemental detection and isotopic measurement in atomic spectrometry are outlined in this review. Plasma-CRDS is shown to have a promising future for various analytical applications, while some further efforts are still needed in fields such as cavity design, plasma source design, instrumental improvement and integration, as well as potential applications in radical and molecular measurements. - Highlights: • Plasma-based cavity ringdown spectroscopy • High sensitivity and high resolution • Elemental and isotopic measurements.

  14. Liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry for the analysis of phytochemicals in vegetal-derived food and beverages.

    Science.gov (United States)

    La Barbera, Giorgia; Capriotti, Anna Laura; Cavaliere, Chiara; Montone, Carmela Maria; Piovesana, Susy; Samperi, Roberto; Zenezini Chiozzi, Riccardo; Laganà, Aldo

    2017-10-01

    The recent years witnessed a change in the perception of nutrition. Diet does not only provide nutrients to meet the metabolic requirements of the body, but it also constitutes an active way for the consumption of compounds beneficial for human health. Fruit and vegetables are an excellent source of such compounds, thus the growing interest in characterizing phytochemical sources, structures and activities. Given the interest for phytochemicals in food, the development of advanced and suitable analytical techniques for their identification is fundamental for the advancement of food research. In this review, the state of the art of phytochemical research in food plants is described, starting from sample preparation, throughout extract clean-up and compound separation techniques, to the final analysis, considering both qualitative and quantitative investigations. In this regard, from an analytical point of view, fruit and vegetable extracts are complex matrices, which greatly benefit from the use of modern hyphenated techniques, in particular from the combination of high performance liquid chromatography separation and high resolution mass spectrometry, powerful tools which are being increasingly used in the recent years. Therefore, selected applications to real samples are presented and discussed, in particular for the analysis of phenols, polyphenols and phenolic acids. Finally, some hot points are discussed, such as waste characterization for high value-compounds recovery and the untargeted metabolomics approach. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  15. Comparison between energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence and other nuclear analytical techniques in mineral exploration and mining

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Clayton, C.G.; Packer, T.W.; Wormald, M.R.

    1979-01-01

    At the present time there is an increasing awareness of the value and need for in-situ analytical methods throughout the general area of mineral exploration and mining. Of the alternative techniques, the measurement of natural gamma radiation is well established for uranium exploration and it is now being developed for sea-bed and lake-bed surveying. Energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence equipment is becoming more generally accepted, especially for mine control. Neutron techniques, for so long used routinely in oil well logging, are now being developed for a wide range of applications in all aspects of exploration and mining. It is believed that these techniques will result in major applications in the future. The present paper compares the principal characteristics of energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence and neutron techniques in particular, with special emphasis being given to those factors which affect the accuracy of analytical content; such as elemental resolution, matrix effects, material heterogeneity and neutron transport. A generalised comparison between the techniques is difficult to achieve because of the different nature of radiation interactions, but a range of applications is described and these show the complementary nature of the methods and point to the areas for more active development in the future. (author)

  16. High-resolution spectroscopy of gases for industrial applications

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fateev, Alexander; Clausen, Sønnik

    High-resolution spectroscopy of gases is a powerful technique which has various fundamental and practical applications: in situ simultaneous measurements of gas temperature and gas composition, radiative transfer modeling, validation of existing and developing of new databases and etc. Existing...... databases (e.g. HITRAN, HITEMP or CDSD) can normally be used for absorption spectra calculations at limited temperature/pressure ranges. Therefore experimental measurements of absorption/transmission spectra gases (e.g. CO2, H2O or SO2) at high-resolution and elevated temperatures are essential both...... for analysis of complex experimental data and further development of the databases. High-temperature gas cell facilities available at DTU Chemical Engineering are presented and described. The gas cells and high-resolution spectrometers allow us to perform high-quality reference measurements of gases relevant...

  17. Rapid calibrated high-resolution hyperspectral imaging using tunable laser source

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nguyen, Lam K.; Margalith, Eli

    2009-05-01

    We present a novel hyperspectral imaging technique based on tunable laser technology. By replacing the broadband source and tunable filters of a typical NIR imaging instrument, several advantages are realized, including: high spectral resolution, highly variable field-of-views, fast scan-rates, high signal-to-noise ratio, and the ability to use optical fiber for efficient and flexible sample illumination. With this technique, high-resolution, calibrated hyperspectral images over the NIR range can be acquired in seconds. The performance of system features will be demonstrated on two example applications: detecting melamine contamination in wheat gluten and separating bovine protein from wheat protein in cattle feed.

  18. High-resolution computer-aided moire

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sciammarella, Cesar A.; Bhat, Gopalakrishna K.

    1991-12-01

    This paper presents a high resolution computer assisted moire technique for the measurement of displacements and strains at the microscopic level. The detection of micro-displacements using a moire grid and the problem associated with the recovery of displacement field from the sampled values of the grid intensity are discussed. A two dimensional Fourier transform method for the extraction of displacements from the image of the moire grid is outlined. An example of application of the technique to the measurement of strains and stresses in the vicinity of the crack tip in a compact tension specimen is given.

  19. High-spatial resolution and high-spectral resolution detector for use in the measurement of solar flare hard x rays

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Desai, U.D.; Orwig, L.E.

    1988-01-01

    In the areas of high spatial resolution, the evaluation of a hard X-ray detector with 65 micron spatial resolution for operation in the energy range from 30 to 400 keV is proposed. The basic detector is a thick large-area scintillator faceplate, composed of a matrix of high-density scintillating glass fibers, attached to a proximity type image intensifier tube with a resistive-anode digital readout system. Such a detector, combined with a coded-aperture mask, would be ideal for use as a modest-sized hard X-ray imaging instrument up to X-ray energies as high as several hundred keV. As an integral part of this study it was also proposed that several techniques be critically evaluated for X-ray image coding which could be used with this detector. In the area of high spectral resolution, it is proposed to evaluate two different types of detectors for use as X-ray spectrometers for solar flares: planar silicon detectors and high-purity germanium detectors (HPGe). Instruments utilizing these high-spatial-resolution detectors for hard X-ray imaging measurements from 30 to 400 keV and high-spectral-resolution detectors for measurements over a similar energy range would be ideally suited for making crucial solar flare observations during the upcoming maximum in the solar cycle

  20. Comparison of laser fluorimetry, high resolution gamma-ray spectrometry and neutron activation analysis techniques for determination of uranium content in soil samples

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ghods, A.; Asgharizadeh, F.; Salimi, B.; Abbasi, A.

    2004-01-01

    Much more concern is given nowadays for exposure of the world population to natural radiation especially to uranium since 57% of that exposure is due to radon-222, which is a member of uranium decay series. Most of the methods used for uranium determination is low concentration require either tedious separation and preconcentration or the accessibility to special instrumentation for detection of uranium at this low level. this study compares three techniques and methods for uranium analysis among different soil sample with variable uranium contents. Two of these techniques, neutron activation analysis and high resolution gamma-ray spectrometry , are non-destructive while the other, laser fluorimetry is done via chemical extraction of uranium. Analysis of standard materials is done also to control the quality and accuracy of the work. In spite of having quite variable ranges of detection limit, results obtained by high resolution gamma-ray spectrometry based on the assumption of having secular equilibrium between uranium and its daughters, which causes deviation whenever this condition was missed. For samples with reasonable uranium content, neutron activation analysis would be a rapid and reliable technique, while for low uranium content laser fluorimetry would be the most appropriate and accurate technique

  1. Analytical vs. Simulation Solution Techniques for Pulse Problems in Non-linear Stochastic Dynamics

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Iwankiewicz, R.; Nielsen, Søren R. K.

    Advantages and disadvantages of available analytical and simulation techniques for pulse problems in non-linear stochastic dynamics are discussed. First, random pulse problems, both those which do and do not lead to Markov theory, are presented. Next, the analytical and analytically-numerical tec......Advantages and disadvantages of available analytical and simulation techniques for pulse problems in non-linear stochastic dynamics are discussed. First, random pulse problems, both those which do and do not lead to Markov theory, are presented. Next, the analytical and analytically...

  2. Ground-glass opacity: High-resolution computed tomography and 64-multi-slice computed tomography findings comparison

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sergiacomi, Gianluigi; Ciccio, Carmelo; Boi, Luca; Velari, Luca; Crusco, Sonia; Orlacchio, Antonio; Simonetti, Giovanni

    2010-01-01

    Objective: Comparative evaluation of ground-glass opacity using conventional high-resolution computed tomography technique and volumetric computed tomography by 64-row multi-slice scanner, verifying advantage of volumetric acquisition and post-processing technique allowed by 64-row CT scanner. Methods: Thirty-four patients, in which was assessed ground-glass opacity pattern by previous high-resolution computed tomography during a clinical-radiological follow-up for their lung disease, were studied by means of 64-row multi-slice computed tomography. Comparative evaluation of image quality was done by both CT modalities. Results: It was reported good inter-observer agreement (k value 0.78-0.90) in detection of ground-glass opacity with high-resolution computed tomography technique and volumetric Computed Tomography acquisition with moderate increasing of intra-observer agreement (k value 0.46) using volumetric computed tomography than high-resolution computed tomography. Conclusions: In our experience, volumetric computed tomography with 64-row scanner shows good accuracy in detection of ground-glass opacity, providing a better spatial and temporal resolution and advanced post-processing technique than high-resolution computed tomography.

  3. Automated data processing of high-resolution mass spectra

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen, Michael Adsetts Edberg; Smedsgaard, Jørn

    of the massive amounts of data. We present an automated data processing method to quantitatively compare large numbers of spectra from the analysis of complex mixtures, exploiting the full quality of high-resolution mass spectra. By projecting all detected ions - within defined intervals on both the time...... infusion of crude extracts into the source taking advantage of the high sensitivity, high mass resolution and accuracy and the limited fragmentation. Unfortunately, there has not been a comparable development in the data processing techniques to fully exploit gain in high resolution and accuracy...... infusion analyses of crude extract to find the relationship between species from several species terverticillate Penicillium, and also that the ions responsible for the segregation can be identified. Furthermore the process can automate the process of detecting unique species and unique metabolites....

  4. Time lens for high-resolution neutron time-of-flight spectrometers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Baumann, K.; Gaehler, R.; Grigoriev, P.; Kats, E.I.

    2005-01-01

    We examine in analytic and numeric ways the imaging effects of temporal neutron lenses created by traveling magnetic fields. For fields of parabolic shape we derive the imaging equations, investigate the time magnification, the evolution of the phase-space element, the gain factor, and the effect of finite beam size. The main aberration effects are calculated numerically. The system is technologically feasible and should convert neutron time-of-flight instruments from pinhole to imaging configuration in time, thus enhancing intensity and/or time resolution. Further fields of application for high-resolution spectrometry may be opened

  5. Statistical evaluation of recorded knowledge in nuclear and other instrumental analytical techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Braun, T.

    1987-01-01

    The main points addressed in this study are the following: Statistical distribution patterns of published literature on instrumental analytical techniques 1981-1984; structure of scientific literature and heuristics for identifying active specialities and emerging hot spot research areas in instrumental analytical techniques; growth and growth rates of the literature in some of the identified hot research areas; quality and quantity in instrumental analytical research output. (orig.)

  6. Comparison of infrared spectroscopy techniques: developing an efficient method for high resolution analysis of sediment properties from long records

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hahn, Annette; Rosén, Peter; Kliem, Pierre; Ohlendorf, Christian; Persson, Per; Zolitschka, Bernd; Pasado Science Team

    2010-05-01

    The analysis of sediment samples in visible to mid-infrared spectra is ideal for high-resolution records. It requires only small amounts (0.01-0.1g dry weight) of sample material and facilitates rapid and cost efficient analysis of a wide variety of biogeochemical properties on minerogenic and organic substances (Kellner et al. 1998). One of these techniques, the Diffuse Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry (DRIFTS), has already been successfully applied to lake sediment from very different settings and has shown to be a promising technique for high resolution analyses of long sedimentary records on glacial-interglacial timescales (Rosén et al. 2009). However, the DRIFTS technique includes a time-consuming step where sediment samples are mixed with KBr. To assess if alternative and more rapid infrared (IR) techniques can be used, four different IR spectroscopy techniques are compared for core catcher sediment samples from Laguna Potrok Aike - an ICDP site located in southernmost South America. Partial least square (PLS) calibration models were developed using the DRIFTS technique. The correlation coefficients (R) for correlations between DRIFTS-inferred and conventionally measured biogeochemical properties show values of 0.80 for biogenic silica (BSi), 0.95 for total organic carbon (TOC), 0.91 for total nitrogen (TN), and 0.92 for total inorganic carbon (TIC). Good statistical performance was also obtained by using the Attenuated Total Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy ATR-FTIRS technique which requires less sample preparation. Two devices were used, the full-sized Bruker Equinox 252 and the smaller and less expensive Bruker Alpha. R for ATR-FTIRS-inferred and conventionally measured biogeochemical properties were 0.87 (BSi), 0.93 (TOC), 0.90 (TN), and 0.91 (TIC) for the Alpha, and 0.78 (TOC), 0.85 (TN), 0.79 (TIC) for the Equinox 252 device. As the penetration depth of the IR beam is frequency dependent, a firm surface contact of

  7. Innovative methods for data analysis in analytical chemistry using Bayesian statistics and machine learning

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Woldegebriel, M.T.

    2017-01-01

    In analytical chemistry, rapid advancement in instrumentation, especially in high resolution mass-spectrometry is making a significant contribution for further developments of the field. As such, in separation science, nowadays, several hyphenated techniques have proven to be the state-of-the-art

  8. Analytical method by high resolution liquid chromatography for the determination of carbamazepine in human plasma

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jimenez Aleman, Narda M; Calero Carbonell, Jorge E; Padron Yaquis, Alejandro S; Izquierdo Lozano, Julio C

    2007-01-01

    One of the requirements to develop the studies of bioavailability and bioequivalence is to have analytic methodologies validated for the work with samples in biological fluids. A method was developed by high resolution liquid chromatography for the determination of carbamazepine in human plasma. A mixture of hydrogen phosphate of sodium: acetonitrile (65:35) adjusted to pH= 3.3 with phosphoric acid, flow of 1.2 mL/min and ultraviolet detection at 210 nm, was used as mobile phase. Propylparabene was used as an internal standard. According to the established regulations for the validation of the methods in biological fluids, the following parameters were studied: stability of the samples, lineality, specificity, precision, accuracy and limit of detection and quantification. The method proved to be specific and sensitive with a detection and quantification limit of 0.9 and 1.0 ng, respectively. The method was lineal, precise and exact in the range of concentrations of 1. 07 at 12.67 μg/mL. The mean recovery was not statistically different from 100.0 %. The analito in the proposed biological matrix remained in the studied period. The methodology described in this work is applied in our case to the study that evaluates the bioavailability and bioequivalence of a Cuban formulation of carbamazepine in healthy volunteers. (Author)

  9. High resolution characterization of uranium in sediments by DGT and DET techniques ACA-S-12-2197

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Gregušová, Michaela; Dočekal, Bohumil

    2013-01-01

    Roč. 763, FEB 6 (2013), s. 50-56 ISSN 0003-2670 R&D Projects: GA ČR GAP503/10/2002 Institutional support: RVO:68081715 Keywords : Diffusive gradient in thin films technique * Diffusive equilibrium technique * Uranium * Sediment Subject RIV: CB - Analytical Chemistry , Separation Impact factor: 4.517, year: 2013 http://www.scopus.com/record/display.url?fedsrfIntegrator=COSMADRALI-SCOCIT&origin=fedsrf&view=basic&eid=2-s2.0-84872594514

  10. An analytical simulation technique for cone-beam CT and pinhole SPECT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang Xuezhu; Qi Yujin

    2011-01-01

    This study was aimed at developing an efficient simulation technique with an ordinary PC. The work involved derivation of mathematical operators, analytic phantom generations, and effective analytical projectors developing for cone-beam CT and pinhole SPECT imaging. The computer simulations based on the analytical projectors were developed by ray-tracing method for cone-beam CT and voxel-driven method for pinhole SPECT of degrading blurring. The 3D Shepp-Logan, Jaszczak and Defrise phantoms were used for simulation evaluations and image reconstructions. The reconstructed phantom images were of good accuracy with the phantoms. The results showed that the analytical simulation technique is an efficient tool for studying cone-beam CT and pinhole SPECT imaging. (authors)

  11. Setting up of a liquid chromatography-high resolution tandem mass spectrometry method for the detection of caseins in food. A comparison with ELISA method

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniela Gastaldi

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Determination of caseins in food matrices is usually performed by using the competitiveenzyme- linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA technique. However such a technique suffers from a number of limitations. Among these, the applicability to a narrow concentration range, a non linear (logarithmic response, a non-negligible cross-reactivity and a high cost per kit. At the time of the completion of this study, in case of ELISA positive feedback, there was poor availability in the literature of finding reliable instrumental methods able to determine both qualitatively and quantitatively this class of substances. In the present study, a liquid chromatography-high resolution tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-HRMS/MS instrumental method was developed with a high resolution mass spectrometer (Orbitrap. Real samples of sausages in which caseins were detected by ELISA technique were analysed. A casein-free sample of ham was used as a blank. The analytical characteristics of the instrumental method were compared with those of a commercial ELISA test, declared specific for α- and β-casein.

  12. Appendix 1: Analytical Techniques (Online supplementary material ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    HP

    Further details of analytical techniques are given in http://www.actlabs.com. Zircon U–Pb dating and trace element analysis. The zircons were separated using standard procedures including crushing (in iron mortar and pestle), sieving (375 to 75 micron), tabling, heavy liquid separation (bromoform and methylene iodide) ...

  13. Simplifying and expanding analytical capabilities for various classes of doping agents by means of direct urine injection high performance liquid chromatography high resolution/high accuracy mass spectrometry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Görgens, Christian; Guddat, Sven; Thomas, Andreas; Wachsmuth, Philipp; Orlovius, Anne-Katrin; Sigmund, Gerd; Thevis, Mario; Schänzer, Wilhelm

    2016-11-30

    So far, in sports drug testing compounds of different classes are processed and measured using different screening procedures. The constantly increasing number of samples in doping analysis, as well as the large number of substances with doping related, pharmacological effects require the development of even more powerful assays than those already employed in sports drug testing, indispensably with reduced sample preparation procedures. The analysis of native urine samples after direct injection provides a promising analytical approach, which thereby possesses a broad applicability to many different compounds and their metabolites, without a time-consuming sample preparation. In this study, a novel multi-target approach based on liquid chromatography and high resolution/high accuracy mass spectrometry is presented to screen for more than 200 analytes of various classes of doping agents far below the required detection limits in sports drug testing. Here, classic groups of drugs as diuretics, stimulants, β 2 -agonists, narcotics and anabolic androgenic steroids as well as various newer target compounds like hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) stabilizers, selective androgen receptor modulators (SARMs), selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs), plasma volume expanders and other doping related compounds, listed in the 2016 WADA prohibited list were implemented. As a main achievement, growth hormone releasing peptides could be implemented, which chemically belong to the group of small peptides (0.99), limit of detection (0.1-25ng/mL; 3'OH-stanozolol glucuronide: 50pg/mL; dextran/HES: 10μg/mL) and matrix effects. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Localization-based super-resolution imaging meets high-content screening.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beghin, Anne; Kechkar, Adel; Butler, Corey; Levet, Florian; Cabillic, Marine; Rossier, Olivier; Giannone, Gregory; Galland, Rémi; Choquet, Daniel; Sibarita, Jean-Baptiste

    2017-12-01

    Single-molecule localization microscopy techniques have proven to be essential tools for quantitatively monitoring biological processes at unprecedented spatial resolution. However, these techniques are very low throughput and are not yet compatible with fully automated, multiparametric cellular assays. This shortcoming is primarily due to the huge amount of data generated during imaging and the lack of software for automation and dedicated data mining. We describe an automated quantitative single-molecule-based super-resolution methodology that operates in standard multiwell plates and uses analysis based on high-content screening and data-mining software. The workflow is compatible with fixed- and live-cell imaging and allows extraction of quantitative data like fluorophore photophysics, protein clustering or dynamic behavior of biomolecules. We demonstrate that the method is compatible with high-content screening using 3D dSTORM and DNA-PAINT based super-resolution microscopy as well as single-particle tracking.

  15. Nanometric depth resolution from multi-focal images in microscopy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dalgarno, Heather I C; Dalgarno, Paul A; Dada, Adetunmise C; Towers, Catherine E; Gibson, Gavin J; Parton, Richard M; Davis, Ilan; Warburton, Richard J; Greenaway, Alan H

    2011-07-06

    We describe a method for tracking the position of small features in three dimensions from images recorded on a standard microscope with an inexpensive attachment between the microscope and the camera. The depth-measurement accuracy of this method is tested experimentally on a wide-field, inverted microscope and is shown to give approximately 8 nm depth resolution, over a specimen depth of approximately 6 µm, when using a 12-bit charge-coupled device (CCD) camera and very bright but unresolved particles. To assess low-flux limitations a theoretical model is used to derive an analytical expression for the minimum variance bound. The approximations used in the analytical treatment are tested using numerical simulations. It is concluded that approximately 14 nm depth resolution is achievable with flux levels available when tracking fluorescent sources in three dimensions in live-cell biology and that the method is suitable for three-dimensional photo-activated localization microscopy resolution. Sub-nanometre resolution could be achieved with photon-counting techniques at high flux levels.

  16. Progress in high-resolution x-ray holographic microscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jacobsen, C.; Kirz, J.; Howells, M.; McQuaid, K.; Rothman, S.; Feder, R.; Sayre, D.

    1987-07-01

    Among the various types of x-ray microscopes that have been demonstrated, the holographic microscope has had the largest gap between promise and performance. The difficulties of fabricating x-ray optical elements have led some to view holography as the most attractive method for obtaining the ultimate in high resolution x-ray micrographs; however, we know of no investigations prior to 1987 that clearly demonstrated submicron resolution in reconstructed images. Previous efforts suffered from problems such as limited resolution and dynamic range in the recording media, low coherent x-ray flux, and aberrations and diffraction limits in visible light reconstruction. We have addressed the recording limitations through the use of an undulator x-ray source and high-resolution photoresist recording media. For improved results in the readout and reconstruction steps, we have employed metal shadowing and transmission electron microscopy, along with numerical reconstruction techniques. We believe that this approach will allow holography to emerge as a practical method of high-resolution x-ray microscopy. 30 refs., 4 figs

  17. Progress in high-resolution x-ray holographic microscopy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jacobsen, C.; Kirz, J.; Howells, M.; McQuaid, K.; Rothman, S.; Feder, R.; Sayre, D.

    1987-07-01

    Among the various types of x-ray microscopes that have been demonstrated, the holographic microscope has had the largest gap between promise and performance. The difficulties of fabricating x-ray optical elements have led some to view holography as the most attractive method for obtaining the ultimate in high resolution x-ray micrographs; however, we know of no investigations prior to 1987 that clearly demonstrated submicron resolution in reconstructed images. Previous efforts suffered from problems such as limited resolution and dynamic range in the recording media, low coherent x-ray flux, and aberrations and diffraction limits in visible light reconstruction. We have addressed the recording limitations through the use of an undulator x-ray source and high-resolution photoresist recording media. For improved results in the readout and reconstruction steps, we have employed metal shadowing and transmission electron microscopy, along with numerical reconstruction techniques. We believe that this approach will allow holography to emerge as a practical method of high-resolution x-ray microscopy. 30 refs., 4 figs.

  18. Use of ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry for fast screening in high throughput doping control.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Musenga, Alessandro; Cowan, David A

    2013-05-03

    We describe a sensitive, comprehensive and fast screening method based on liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry for the detection of a large number of analytes in sports samples. UHPLC coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry with polarity switching capability is applied for the rapid screening of a large number of analytes in human urine samples. Full scan data are acquired alternating both positive and negative ionisation. Collision-induced dissociation with positive ionisation is also performed to produce fragment ions to improve selectivity for some analytes. Data are reviewed as extracted ion chromatograms based on narrow mass/charge windows (±5ppm). A simple sample preparation method was developed, using direct enzymatic hydrolysis of glucuronide conjugates, followed by solid phase extraction with mixed mode ion-exchange cartridges. Within a 10min run time (including re-equilibration) the method presented allows for the analysis of a large number of analytes from most of the classes in the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Prohibited List, including anabolic agents, β2-agonists, hormone antagonists and modulators, diuretics, stimulants, narcotics, glucocorticoids and β-blockers, and does so while meeting the WADA sensitivity requirements. The high throughput of the method and the fast sample pre-treatment reduces analysis cost and increases productivity. The method presented has been used for the analysis of over 5000 samples in about one month and proved to be reliable. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. Industrial and environmental applications of nuclear analytical techniques. Report of a workshop

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1999-11-01

    The IAEA has programme the utilisation of nuclear analytical techniques (NATs), in particular for industrial and environmental applications. A major purpose is to help the developing Member States apply their analytical capabilities optimally for socio-economic progress and development. A large number of institutions in Europe, Africa, Latin America and Asia have established X ray fluorescence (XRF) and gamma ray measurement techniques and facilities for neutron activation analysis (NAA) have been initiated in institutions in these regions. Moreover, there is a growing interest among many institutes in applying more advanced analytical techniques, such as particle induced X ray emission (PIXE) and microanalytical techniques based on X ray emission induced by conventional sources or synchrotron radiation to the analysis of environmental and biological materials and industrial products. In order to define new areas of application of NATs and to extend the range of these techniques, a number of initiatives have recently been taken. It includes a workshop on industrial and environmental applications of nuclear analytical techniques, organized by the IAEA in Vienna, 7-11 September 1998. The main objectives of the workshop were as follows: (1) to review recent applications of NATs in industrial and environmental studies; (2) to identify emerging trends in methodologies and applications of NATs; (3) to demonstrate analytical capabilities of selected NATs. The following topics were reviewed during the workshop: (1) XRF and accelerator based analytical techniques; (2) portable XRF systems and their applications in industry, mineral prospecting and processing, (3) portable gamma ray spectrometers; and (4) NAA and its applications in industry and environmental studies. Micro-XRF and micro-PIXE methods and their applications in the above fields were also discussed, including aspects of synchrotron radiation induced X ray emission.

  20. Industrial and environmental applications of nuclear analytical techniques. Report of a workshop

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1999-11-01

    The IAEA has programme the utilisation of nuclear analytical techniques (NATs), in particular for industrial and environmental applications. A major purpose is to help the developing Member States apply their analytical capabilities optimally for socio-economic progress and development. A large number of institutions in Europe, Africa, Latin America and Asia have established X ray fluorescence (XRF) and gamma ray measurement techniques and facilities for neutron activation analysis (NAA) have been initiated in institutions in these regions. Moreover, there is a growing interest among many institutes in applying more advanced analytical techniques, such as particle induced X ray emission (PIXE) and microanalytical techniques based on X ray emission induced by conventional sources or synchrotron radiation to the analysis of environmental and biological materials and industrial products. In order to define new areas of application of NATs and to extend the range of these techniques, a number of initiatives have recently been taken. It includes a workshop on industrial and environmental applications of nuclear analytical techniques, organized by the IAEA in Vienna, 7-11 September 1998. The main objectives of the workshop were as follows: (1) to review recent applications of NATs in industrial and environmental studies; (2) to identify emerging trends in methodologies and applications of NATs; (3) to demonstrate analytical capabilities of selected NATs. The following topics were reviewed during the workshop: (1) XRF and accelerator based analytical techniques; (2) portable XRF systems and their applications in industry, mineral prospecting and processing, (3) portable gamma ray spectrometers; and (4) NAA and its applications in industry and environmental studies. Micro-XRF and micro-PIXE methods and their applications in the above fields were also discussed, including aspects of synchrotron radiation induced X ray emission

  1. Principles of high resolution NMR in solids

    CERN Document Server

    Mehring, Michael

    1983-01-01

    The field of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) has developed at a fascinating pace during the last decade. It always has been an extremely valuable tool to the organic chemist by supplying molecular "finger print" spectra at the atomic level. Unfortunately the high resolution achievable in liquid solutions could not be obtained in solids and physicists and physical chemists had to live with unresolved lines open to a wealth of curve fitting procedures and a vast amount of speculations. High resolution NMR in solids seemed to be a paradoxon. Broad structure­ less lines are usually encountered when dealing with NMR in solids. Only with the recent advent of mUltiple pulse, magic angle, cross-polarization, two-dimen­ sional and multiple-quantum spectroscopy and other techniques during the last decade it became possible to resolve finer details of nuclear spin interactions in solids. I have felt that graduate students, researchers and others beginning to get involved with these techniques needed a book which trea...

  2. An Overview of Analytical Determination of Diltiazem, Cimetidine, Ranitidine, and Famotidine by UV Spectrophotometry and HPLC Technique

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nighat Shafi

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available This review article recapitulates the analytical methods for the quantitative determinations of diltiazem and three H2 receptor antagonists (cimetidine, ranitidine, and famotidine by one of the spectroscopic technique (UV spectrophotometery and separation technique such as high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC. The clinical and pharmaceutical analysis of these drugs requires effective analytical procedures for quality control, pharmaceutical dosage formulations, and biological fluids. An extensive survey of the literature published in various analytical and pharmaceutical chemistry-related journals has been compiled in its review. A synopsis of reported spectrophotometric and high-performance liquid chromatographic methods for individual drug is integrated. This appraisal illustrates that majority of the HPLC methods reviewed are based on the quantitative analysis of drugs in biological fluids, and they are appropriate for therapeutic drug monitoring purpose.

  3. Imaging of cellular spread on a three-dimensional scaffold by means of a novel cell-labeling technique for high-resolution computed tomography

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Thimm, B.W.; Hofmann, S.; Schneider, P.; Carretta, R.; Müller, R.

    2012-01-01

    Computed tomography (CT) represents a truly three-dimensional (3D) imaging technique that can provide high-resolution images on the cellular level. Thus, one approach to detect single cells is X-ray absorption-based CT, where cells are labeled with a dense, opaque material providing the required

  4. Real-time analytics techniques to analyze and visualize streaming data

    CERN Document Server

    Ellis, Byron

    2014-01-01

    Construct a robust end-to-end solution for analyzing and visualizing streaming data Real-time analytics is the hottest topic in data analytics today. In Real-Time Analytics: Techniques to Analyze and Visualize Streaming Data, expert Byron Ellis teaches data analysts technologies to build an effective real-time analytics platform. This platform can then be used to make sense of the constantly changing data that is beginning to outpace traditional batch-based analysis platforms. The author is among a very few leading experts in the field. He has a prestigious background in research, development,

  5. Recent Trends in Microextraction Techniques Employed in Analytical and Bioanalytical Sample Preparation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Abuzar Kabir

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Sample preparation has been recognized as a major step in the chemical analysis workflow. As such, substantial efforts have been made in recent years to simplify the overall sample preparation process. Major focusses of these efforts have included miniaturization of the extraction device; minimizing/eliminating toxic and hazardous organic solvent consumption; eliminating sample pre-treatment and post-treatment steps; reducing the sample volume requirement; reducing extraction equilibrium time, maximizing extraction efficiency etc. All these improved attributes are congruent with the Green Analytical Chemistry (GAC principles. Classical sample preparation techniques such as solid phase extraction (SPE and liquid-liquid extraction (LLE are being rapidly replaced with emerging miniaturized and environmentally friendly techniques such as Solid Phase Micro Extraction (SPME, Stir bar Sorptive Extraction (SBSE, Micro Extraction by Packed Sorbent (MEPS, Fabric Phase Sorptive Extraction (FPSE, and Dispersive Liquid-Liquid Micro Extraction (DLLME. In addition to the development of many new generic extraction sorbents in recent years, a large number of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs created using different template molecules have also enriched the large cache of microextraction sorbents. Application of nanoparticles as high-performance extraction sorbents has undoubtedly elevated the extraction efficiency and method sensitivity of modern chromatographic analyses to a new level. Combining magnetic nanoparticles with many microextraction sorbents has opened up new possibilities to extract target analytes from sample matrices containing high volumes of matrix interferents. The aim of the current review is to critically audit the progress of microextraction techniques in recent years, which has indisputably transformed the analytical chemistry practices, from biological and therapeutic drug monitoring to the environmental field; from foods to phyto

  6. The demonstration of the auditory ossicles by high resolution CT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lloyd, G.A.S.; Boulay, G.H. du; Phelps, P.D.; Pullicino, P.

    1979-01-01

    The high resolution CT scanning system introduced by EMI in 1978 has added a new dimension to computerised tomography in otology. The apparatus used for this study was an EMI CT 5005 body scanner adapted for head and neck scanning and incorporating a high resolution facility. The latter has proved most advantageous in areas of relatively high differential absorption, so that its application to the demonstration of abnormalities in the petrous temporal bone, and in particular middle ear disease, has been very rewarding. Traumatic ossicular disruptions may now be demonstrated and the high contrast of CT often shows them better than conventional hypocycloidal tomography. The stapes is also better visualised and congenital abnormalities of its superstructure have been recorded. These studies have been achieved with a very acceptable level of radiation to the eye, lens and cornea and the technique is clearly a rival to conventional pluridirectional tomography in the assessment of the petrous temporal bone. With further design improvements high resolution CT could completely replace existing techniques. (orig.) [de

  7. Investigation of ceramic devices by analytical electron microscopy techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shiojiri, M.; Saijo, H.; Isshiki, T.; Kawasaki, M.; Yoshioka, T.; Sato, S.; Nomura, T.

    1999-01-01

    Ceramics are widely used as capacitors and varistors. Their electrical properties depend on the structure, which is deeply influenced not only by the composition of raw materials and additives but also by heating treatments in the production process. This paper reviews our investigations of SrTiO 3 ceramic devices, which have been performed using various microscopy techniques such as high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), cathodoluminescence scanning electron microscopy (CLSEM), field emission SEM (FE-SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) and high angle annular dark field (HAADF) imaging method in a FE-(scanning) transmission electron microscope(FE-(S)TEM). (author)

  8. Nuclear analytical techniques in medicine

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cesareo, R.

    1988-01-01

    This book acquaints one with the fundamental principles and the instrumentation relevant to analytical technique based on atomic and nuclear physics, as well as present and future biomedical applications. Besides providing a theoretical description of the physical phenomena, a large part of the book is devoted to applications in the medical and biological field, particularly in hematology, forensic medicine and environmental science. This volume reviews methods such as the possibility of carrying out rapid multi-element analysis of trace elements on biomedical samples, in vitro and in vivo, by XRF-analysis; the ability of the PIXE-microprobe to analyze in detail and to map trace elements in fragments of biomedical samples or inside the cells; the potentiality of in vivo nuclear activation analysis for diagnostic purposes. Finally, techniques are described such as radiation scattering (elastic and inelastic scattering) and attenuation measurements which will undoubtedly see great development in the immediate future

  9. Nuclear analytical techniques in medicine

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cesareo, R.

    1988-01-01

    This book acquaints one with the fundamental principles and the instrumentation relevant to analytical technique based on atomic and nuclear physics, as well as present and future biomedical applications. Besides providing a theoretical description of the physical phenomena, a large part of the book is devoted to applications in the medical and biological field, particularly in hematology, forensic medicine and environmental science. This volume reviews methods such as the possibility of carrying out rapid multi-element analysis of trace elements on biomedical samples, in vitro and in vivo, by XRF-analysis; the ability of the PIXE-microprobe to analyze in detail and to map trace elements in fragments of biomedical samples or inside the cells; the potentiality of in vivo nuclear activation analysis for diagnostic purposes. Finally, techniques are described such as radiation scattering (elastic and inelastic scattering) and attenuation measurements which will undoubtedly see great development in the immediate future.

  10. Resolution of RNA using high-performance liquid chromatography

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Mclaughlin, L.W.; Bischoff, Rainer

    1987-01-01

    High-performance liquid chromatographic techniques can be very effective for the resolution and isolation of nucleic acids. The characteristic ionic (phosphodiesters) and hydrophobic (nucleobases) properties of RNAs can be exploited for their separation. In this respect anion-exchange and

  11. High-resolution measurement and mapping of tungstate in waters, soils and sediments using the low-disturbance DGT sampling technique

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Guan, Dong-Xing [State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023 (China); Williams, Paul N. [Institute for Global Food Security, School of Biological Sciences, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL (United Kingdom); Xu, Hua-Cheng [State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008 (China); Li, Gang [Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021 (China); Luo, Jun, E-mail: esluojun@nju.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023 (China); Ma, Lena Q. [State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023 (China); Soil and Water Science Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 (United States)

    2016-10-05

    Highlights: • Two high-resolution diffusive gradients in thin-films samplers were characterized. • For the first time DGT was applied to study the bioavailability of W in soils. • 1D and 2D high resolution profiling of W fluxes across the SWI were obtained. • The apparent diffusion W fluxes across two micro-interfaces were calculated. - Abstract: Increasing tungsten (W) use for industrial and military applications has resulted in greater W discharge into natural waters, soils and sediments. Risk modeling of W transport and fate in the environment relies on measurement of the release/mobilization flux of W in the bulk media and the interfaces between matrix compartments. Diffusive gradients in thin-films (DGT) is a promising passive sampling technique to acquire such information. DGT devices equipped with the newly developed high-resolution binding gels (precipitated zirconia, PZ, or ferrihydrite, PF, gels) or classic/conventional ferrihydrite slurry gel were comprehensively assessed for measuring W in waters. {sup Ferrihydrite}DGT can measure W at various ionic strengths (0.001–0.5 mol L{sup −1} NaNO{sub 3}) and pH (4–8), while {sup PZ}DGT can operate across slightly wider environmental conditions. The three DGT configurations gave comparable results for soil W measurement, showing that typically W resupply is relatively poorly sustained. 1D and 2D high-resolution W profiling across sediment—water and hotspot—bulk media interfaces from Lake Taihu were obtained using {sup PZ}DGT coupled with laser ablation ICP–MS measurement, and the apparent diffusion fluxes across the interfaces were calculated using a numerical model.

  12. ANALYTICAL TECHNIQUES FOR THE DETERMINATION OF MELOXICAM IN PHARMACEUTICAL FORMULATIONS AND BIOLOGICAL SAMPLES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aisha Noreen

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Meloxicam (MX belongs to the family of oxicams which is the most important group of non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs and is widely used for their analgesics and antipyretic activities. It inhibits both COX-I and COX-II enzymes with less gastric and local tissues irritation. A number of analytical techniques have been used for the determination of MX in pharmaceutical as well as in biological fluids. These techniques include titrimetry, spectrometry, chromatography, flow injection spectrometry, fluorescence spectrometry, capillary zone electrophoresis and electrochemical techniques. Many of these techniques have also been used for the simultaneous determination of MX with other compounds. A comprehensive review of these analytical techniques has been done which could be useful for the analytical chemists and quality control pharmacists.

  13. High Resolution Tracking Devices Based on Capillaries Filled with Liquid Scintillator

    CERN Multimedia

    Bonekamper, D; Vassiltchenko, V; Wolff, T

    2002-01-01

    %RD46 %title\\\\ \\\\The aim of the project is to develop high resolution tracking devices based on thin glass capillary arrays filled with liquid scintillator. This technique provides high hit densities and a position resolution better than 20 $\\mu$m. Further, their radiation hardness makes them superior to other types of tracking devices with comparable performance. Therefore, the technique is attractive for inner tracking in collider experiments, microvertex devices, or active targets for short-lived particle detection. High integration levels in the read-out based on the use of multi-pixel photon detectors and the possibility of optical multiplexing allow to reduce considerably the number of output channels, and, thus, the cost for the detector.\\\\ \\\\New optoelectronic devices have been developed and tested: the megapixel Electron Bombarded CCD (EBCCD), a high resolution image-detector having an outstanding capability of single photo-electron detection; the Vacuum Image Pipeline (VIP), a high-speed gateable pi...

  14. Imaging of cranial nerves with three-dimensional high resolution diffusion-weighted MR sequence based on SSFP technique

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang Zhongwei; Chen Yingming; Meng Quanfei

    2008-01-01

    Objective: To depict the normal anatomy of cranial nerves in detail and define the exact relationships between cranial nerves and adjacent structures with three-dimensional high resolution diffusion-weighted MR sequence based on SSFP technique (3D DW-SSFP). Methods: 3D DW- SSFP sequence was performed and axial images were obtained in 12 healthy volunteers Post-processing techniques were used to generate images of cranial nerves, and the images acquired were compared with anatomical sections and diagrams of textbook. Results: In all subjects, 3D DW-SSFP sequence could produce homogeneous images and high contrast between the cranial nerves and other solid structures. The intracranial portions of all cranial nerves except olfactory nerve were identified; the extracranial portions of nerve Ⅱ-Ⅻ were identified in all subjects bilaterally. Conclusion: The 3D DW-SSFP sequence can characterize the normal MR appearance of cranial nerves and its branches and the ability to define the nerves may provide greater sensitivity and specificity in detecting abnormalities of craniofacial structure. (authors)

  15. High-resolution continuum-source atomic absorption spectrometry: what can we expect?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Welz Bernhard

    2003-01-01

    Full Text Available A new instrumental concept has been developed for atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS, using a high-intensity xenon short-arc lamp as continuum radiation source, a high-resolution double-echelle monochromator and a CCD array detector, providing a resolution of ~2 pm per pixel. Among the major advantages of the system are: i an improved signal-to-noise ratio because of the high intensity of the radiation source, resulting in improved photometric precision and detection limits; ii for the same reason, there are no more 'weak' lines, i.e. secondary lines can be used without compromises; iii new elements might be determined, for which no radiation source has been available; iv the entire spectral environment around the analytical line becomes 'visible', giving a lot more information than current AAS instruments; v the CCD array detector allows a truly simultaneous background correction close to the analytical line; vi the software is capable of storing reference spectra, e.g. of a molecular absorption with rotational fine structure, and of subtracting such spectra from the spectra recorded for a sample, using a least squares algorithm; vii although not yet realized, the system makes possible a truly simultaneous multi-element AAS measurement when an appropriate two-dimensional detector is used, as is already common practice in optical emission spectrometry; vii preliminary experiments have indicated that the instrumental concept could result in a more rugged analytical performance in the determination of trace elements in complex matrices.

  16. Conference on Nuclear and Conventional Analytical Techniques and their Applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2010-01-01

    Full text : A panoply analytic techniques methods has emerged in recent decades due to the challenges of society in quality of products and the increasing demand of chemical analysis services. The industrial progress which came along with an instrumental perfection of devices with analytical use, led to the development of new techniques more and more advanced in this field. These come as well, to answer the disturbing effects of this industrialization and the wishes of a public increasingly conscious and requiring globally. The leaders in this field of analysis and material characterization are more than ever confronted with problems of identification and quantification of different chemical forms of a multitude of products in varied circles; Industrial pollutants, soil, water, air, food, medicines, ceramics, concrete, plants etc. It was from that perspective that the unifying theme ''geomaterials: characterization to applications '' of the conference on nuclear and conventional analytical techniques and their applications (TANCA 2010) was chosen. It contributes to the debate of these subjects and builds relationships between stakeholders in this field, both technically and practically [fr

  17. High-Resolution Adaptive Optics Test-Bed for Vision Science

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wilks, S.C.; Thomspon, C.A.; Olivier, S.S.; Bauman, B.J.; Barnes, T.; Werner, J.S.

    2001-01-01

    We discuss the design and implementation of a low-cost, high-resolution adaptive optics test-bed for vision research. It is well known that high-order aberrations in the human eye reduce optical resolution and limit visual acuity. However, the effects of aberration-free eyesight on vision are only now beginning to be studied using adaptive optics to sense and correct the aberrations in the eye. We are developing a high-resolution adaptive optics system for this purpose using a Hamamatsu Parallel Aligned Nematic Liquid Crystal Spatial Light Modulator. Phase-wrapping is used to extend the effective stroke of the device, and the wavefront sensing and wavefront correction are done at different wavelengths. Issues associated with these techniques will be discussed

  18. Methodology of high-resolution photography for mural condition database

    Science.gov (United States)

    Higuchi, R.; Suzuki, T.; Shibata, M.; Taniguchi, Y.

    2015-08-01

    Digital documentation is one of the most useful techniques to record the condition of cultural heritage. Recently, high-resolution images become increasingly useful because it is possible to show general views of mural paintings and also detailed mural conditions in a single image. As mural paintings are damaged by environmental stresses, it is necessary to record the details of painting condition on high-resolution base maps. Unfortunately, the cost of high-resolution photography and the difficulty of operating its instruments and software have commonly been an impediment for researchers and conservators. However, the recent development of graphic software makes its operation simpler and less expensive. In this paper, we suggest a new approach to make digital heritage inventories without special instruments, based on our recent our research project in Üzümlü church in Cappadocia, Turkey. This method enables us to achieve a high-resolution image database with low costs, short time, and limited human resources.

  19. Studies of high resolution array processing algorithms for multibeam bathymetric applications

    Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

    Chakraborty, B.; Schenke, H.W.

    In this paper a study is initiated to observe the usefulness of directional spectral estimation techniques for underwater bathymetric applications. High resolution techniques like the Maximum Likelihood (ML) method and the Maximum Entropy (ME...

  20. NOAA High-Resolution Sea Surface Temperature (SST) Analysis Products

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This archive covers two high resolution sea surface temperature (SST) analysis products developed using an optimum interpolation (OI) technique. The analyses have a...

  1. Super-Resolution Enhancement From Multiple Overlapping Images: A Fractional Area Technique

    Science.gov (United States)

    Michaels, Joshua A.

    With the availability of large quantities of relatively low-resolution data from several decades of space borne imaging, methods of creating an accurate, higher-resolution image from the multiple lower-resolution images (i.e. super-resolution), have been developed almost since such imagery has been around. The fractional-area super-resolution technique developed in this thesis has never before been documented. Satellite orbits, like Landsat, have a quantifiable variation, which means each image is not centered on the exact same spot more than once and the overlapping information from these multiple images may be used for super-resolution enhancement. By splitting a single initial pixel into many smaller, desired pixels, a relationship can be created between them using the ratio of the area within the initial pixel. The ideal goal for this technique is to obtain smaller pixels with exact values and no error, yielding a better potential result than those methods that yield interpolated pixel values with consequential loss of spatial resolution. A Fortran 95 program was developed to perform all calculations associated with the fractional-area super-resolution technique. The fractional areas are calculated using traditional trigonometry and coordinate geometry and Linear Algebra Package (LAPACK; Anderson et al., 1999) is used to solve for the higher-resolution pixel values. In order to demonstrate proof-of-concept, a synthetic dataset was created using the intrinsic Fortran random number generator and Adobe Illustrator CS4 (for geometry). To test the real-life application, digital pictures from a Sony DSC-S600 digital point-and-shoot camera with a tripod were taken of a large US geological map under fluorescent lighting. While the fractional-area super-resolution technique works in perfect synthetic conditions, it did not successfully produce a reasonable or consistent solution in the digital photograph enhancement test. The prohibitive amount of processing time (up to

  2. Analytic and heuristic processes in the detection and resolution of conflict.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ferreira, Mário B; Mata, André; Donkin, Christopher; Sherman, Steven J; Ihmels, Max

    2016-10-01

    Previous research with the ratio-bias task found larger response latencies for conflict trials where the heuristic- and analytic-based responses are assumed to be in opposition (e.g., choosing between 1/10 and 9/100 ratios of success) when compared to no-conflict trials where both processes converge on the same response (e.g., choosing between 1/10 and 11/100). This pattern is consistent with parallel dual-process models, which assume that there is effective, rather than lax, monitoring of the output of heuristic processing. It is, however, unclear why conflict resolution sometimes fails. Ratio-biased choices may increase because of a decline in analytical reasoning (leaving heuristic-based responses unopposed) or to a rise in heuristic processing (making it more difficult for analytic processes to override the heuristic preferences). Using the process-dissociation procedure, we found that instructions to respond logically and response speed affected analytic (controlled) processing (C), leaving heuristic processing (H) unchanged, whereas the intuitive preference for large nominators (as assessed by responses to equal ratio trials) affected H but not C. These findings create new challenges to the debate between dual-process and single-process accounts, which are discussed.

  3. Cold-target recoil-ion momentum-spectroscopy: First results and future perspectives of a novel high resolution technique for the investigation of collision induced many-particle reactions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ullrich, J.; Doerner, R.; Mergel, V.; Jagutzki, O.; Spielberger, L.; Schmidt-Boecking, H.

    1994-09-01

    In order to investigate many-particle reaction dynamics in atomic collisions a novel high-resolution technique has been developed, which determines the momentum and the charge state of the slowly recoiling target ions. Using a very cold, thin, and localized supersonic gas jet target a momentum resolution of better than 0.05 a.u. is obtained by measuring the recoil-ion time-of-flight and the recoil-ion trajectory. Because of the very high detection efficiency of nearly 100% this technique is well suited for many-particle coincidence measurements in ionizing collisions. First experimental results for fast ion and electron impact on helium targets are presented. Future applications in atomic collision physics and related areas are discussed. (orig.)

  4. High-resolution X-ray television and high-resolution video recorders

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haendle, J.; Horbaschek, H.; Alexandrescu, M.

    1977-01-01

    The improved transmission properties of the high-resolution X-ray television chain described here make it possible to transmit more information per television image. The resolution in the fluoroscopic image, which is visually determined, depends on the dose rate and the inertia of the television pick-up tube. This connection is discussed. In the last few years, video recorders have been increasingly used in X-ray diagnostics. The video recorder is a further quality-limiting element in X-ray television. The development of function patterns of high-resolution magnetic video recorders shows that this quality drop may be largely overcome. The influence of electrical band width and number of lines on the resolution in the X-ray television image stored is explained in more detail. (orig.) [de

  5. High-Resolution Esophageal Manometry: A Time Motion Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniel C Sadowski

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available INTRODUCTION: High-resolution manometry (HRM of the esophagus is a new technique that provides a more precise assessment of esophageal motility than conventional techniques. Because HRM measures pressure events along the entire length of the esophagus simultaneously, clinical procedure time should be shorter because less catheter manipulation is required. According to manufacturer advertising, the new HRM system is more accurate and up to 50% faster than conventional methods.

  6. Analytical method development of nifedipine and its degradants binary mixture using high performance liquid chromatography through a quality by design approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Choiri, S.; Ainurofiq, A.; Ratri, R.; Zulmi, M. U.

    2018-03-01

    Nifedipin (NIF) is a photo-labile drug that easily degrades when it exposures a sunlight. This research aimed to develop of an analytical method using a high-performance liquid chromatography and implemented a quality by design approach to obtain effective, efficient, and validated analytical methods of NIF and its degradants. A 22 full factorial design approach with a curvature as a center point was applied to optimize of the analytical condition of NIF and its degradants. Mobile phase composition (MPC) and flow rate (FR) as factors determined on the system suitability parameters. The selected condition was validated by cross-validation using a leave one out technique. Alteration of MPC affected on time retention significantly. Furthermore, an increase of FR reduced the tailing factor. In addition, the interaction of both factors affected on an increase of the theoretical plates and resolution of NIF and its degradants. The selected analytical condition of NIF and its degradants has been validated at range 1 – 16 µg/mL that had good linearity, precision, accuration and efficient due to an analysis time within 10 min.

  7. Bivariable analysis of ventricular late potentials in high resolution ECG records

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Orosco, L; Laciar, E

    2007-01-01

    In this study the bivariable analysis for ventricular late potentials detection in high-resolution electrocardiographic records is proposed. The standard time-domain analysis and the application of the time-frequency technique to high-resolution ECG records are briefly described as well as their corresponding results. In the proposed technique the time-domain parameter, QRSD and the most significant time-frequency index, EN QRS are used like variables. A bivariable index is defined, that combines the previous parameters. The propose technique allows evaluating the risk of ventricular tachycardia in post-myocardial infarct patients. The results show that the used bivariable index allows discriminating between the patient's population with ventricular tachycardia and the subjects of the control group. Also, it was found that the bivariable technique obtains a good valuation as diagnostic test. It is concluded that comparatively, the valuation of the bivariable technique as diagnostic test is superior to that of the time-domain method and the time-frequency technique evaluated individually

  8. High-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance studies of proteins.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jonas, Jiri

    2002-03-25

    The combination of advanced high-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) techniques with high-pressure capability represents a powerful experimental tool in studies of protein folding. This review is organized as follows: after a general introduction of high-pressure, high-resolution NMR spectroscopy of proteins, the experimental part deals with instrumentation. The main section of the review is devoted to NMR studies of reversible pressure unfolding of proteins with special emphasis on pressure-assisted cold denaturation and the detection of folding intermediates. Recent studies investigating local perturbations in proteins and the experiments following the effects of point mutations on pressure stability of proteins are also discussed. Ribonuclease A, lysozyme, ubiquitin, apomyoglobin, alpha-lactalbumin and troponin C were the model proteins investigated.

  9. Analytical Techniques and the Air Force Logistics Readiness Officer

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Main, Bryan D

    2008-01-01

    .... Over 500 LROs and supervisors provided inputs. Analysis of survey responses found that Forecasting, Graphical Statistics, and Descriptive Statistics are the analytical techniques valued most by both LROs and their supervisors...

  10. Applied research on air pollution using nuclear-related analytical techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1994-01-01

    A co-ordinated research programme (CRP) on applied research on air pollution using nuclear-related techniques is a global CRP which will run from 1992-1996, and will build upon the experience gained by the Agency from the laboratory support that it has been providing for several years to BAPMoN - the Background Air Pollution Monitoring Network programme organized under the auspices of the World Meterological Organization. The purpose of this CRP is to promote the use of nuclear analytical techniques in air pollution studies, e.g. NAA, XFR, and PIXE for the analysis of toxic and other trace elements in suspended particulate matter (including air filter samples), rainwater and fog-water samples, and in biological indicators of air pollution (e.g. lichens and mosses). The main purposes of the core programme are i) to support the use of nuclear and nuclear-related analytical techniques for practically-oriented research and monitoring studies on air pollution ii) to identify major sources of air pollution affecting each of the participating countries with particular reference to toxic heavy metals, and iii) to obtain comparative data on pollution levels in areas of high pollution (e.g. a city centre or a populated area downwind of a large pollution source) and low pollution (e.g. rural areas). This document reports the discussions held during the first Research Co-ordination Meeting (RCM) for the CRP which took place at the IAEA Headquarters in Vienna. Refs, figs and tabs

  11. Ultra high spatial and temporal resolution breast imaging at 7T.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van de Bank, B L; Voogt, I J; Italiaander, M; Stehouwer, B L; Boer, V O; Luijten, P R; Klomp, D W J

    2013-04-01

    There is a need to obtain higher specificity in the detection of breast lesions using MRI. To address this need, Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced (DCE) MRI has been combined with other structural and functional MRI techniques. Unfortunately, owing to time constraints structural images at ultra-high spatial resolution can generally not be obtained during contrast uptake, whereas the relatively low spatial resolution of functional imaging (e.g. diffusion and perfusion) limits the detection of small lesions. To be able to increase spatial as well as temporal resolution simultaneously, the sensitivity of MR detection needs to increase as well as the ability to effectively accelerate the acquisition. The required gain in signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) can be obtained at 7T, whereas acceleration can be obtained with high-density receiver coil arrays. In this case, morphological imaging can be merged with DCE-MRI, and other functional techniques can be obtained at higher spatial resolution, and with less distortion [e.g. Diffusion Weighted Imaging (DWI)]. To test the feasibility of this concept, we developed a unilateral breast coil for 7T. It comprises a volume optimized dual-channel transmit coil combined with a 30-channel receive array coil. The high density of small coil elements enabled efficient acceleration in any direction to acquire ultra high spatial resolution MRI of close to 0.6 mm isotropic detail within a temporal resolution of 69 s, high spatial resolution MRI of 1.5 mm isotropic within an ultra high temporal resolution of 6.7 s and low distortion DWI at 7T, all validated in phantoms, healthy volunteers and a patient with a lesion in the right breast classified as Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) IV. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  12. High-resolution photocurrent microscopy using near-field cathodoluminescence of quantum dots

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Heayoung P. Yoon

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available We report a fast, versatile photocurrent imaging technique to visualize the local photo response of solar energy devices and optoelectronics using near-field cathodoluminescence (CL from a homogeneous quantum dot layer. This approach is quantitatively compared with direct measurements of high-resolution Electron Beam Induced Current (EBIC using a thin film solar cell (n-CdS / p-CdTe. Qualitatively, the observed image contrast is similar, showing strong enhancement of the carrier collection efficiency at the p-n junction and near the grain boundaries. The spatial resolution of the new technique, termed Q-EBIC (EBIC using quantum dots, is determined by the absorption depth of photons. The results demonstrate a new method for high-resolution, sub-wavelength photocurrent imaging measurement relevant for a wide range of applications.

  13. High-resolution CT of the lungs: Anatomic-pathologic correlation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stein, M.G.; Webb, W.R.; Finkbeiner, W.; Gamsu, G.

    1986-01-01

    The interpretation of thin-section (1.5-mm), high-resolution CT scans of the lungs has been limited by lack of direct radiologic and pathologic correlation. The author scanned fresh inflated isolated lungs from ten healthy and five diseased subjects using thin-section, high-resolution techniques. The lungs were then fixed by inflation with endobronchial Formalin. Gough sections (1 mm thick) were obtained at the same levels as the CT scans. In healthy subjects, secondary lobules were identified by the presence of visible interlobular septa and central arterioles. In some patients with disease, septal thickening was visible. In patients with honeycombing cystic areas of destroyed lung were seen, along with areas of fibrosis. Emphysema was well evaluated. Thin-section, high-resolution CT can define lung architecture and may resolve mild changes of the interstitium

  14. High spatial resolution CT image reconstruction using parallel computing

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yin Yin; Liu Li; Sun Gongxing

    2003-01-01

    Using the PC cluster system with 16 dual CPU nodes, we accelerate the FBP and OR-OSEM reconstruction of high spatial resolution image (2048 x 2048). Based on the number of projections, we rewrite the reconstruction algorithms into parallel format and dispatch the tasks to each CPU. By parallel computing, the speedup factor is roughly equal to the number of CPUs, which can be up to about 25 times when 25 CPUs used. This technique is very suitable for real-time high spatial resolution CT image reconstruction. (authors)

  15. 3D ToF-SIMS Analysis of Peptide Incorporation into MALDI Matrix Crystals with Sub-micrometer Resolution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Körsgen, Martin; Pelster, Andreas; Dreisewerd, Klaus; Arlinghaus, Heinrich F

    2016-02-01

    The analytical sensitivity in matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) is largely affected by the specific analyte-matrix interaction, in particular by the possible incorporation of the analytes into crystalline MALDI matrices. Here we used time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) to visualize the incorporation of three peptides with different hydrophobicities, bradykinin, Substance P, and vasopressin, into two classic MALDI matrices, 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid (DHB) and α-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid (HCCA). For depth profiling, an Ar cluster ion beam was used to gradually sputter through the matrix crystals without causing significant degradation of matrix or biomolecules. A pulsed Bi3 ion cluster beam was used to image the lateral analyte distribution in the center of the sputter crater. Using this dual beam technique, the 3D distribution of the analytes and spatial segregation effects within the matrix crystals were imaged with sub-μm resolution. The technique could in the future enable matrix-enhanced (ME)-ToF-SIMS imaging of peptides in tissue slices at ultra-high resolution. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  16. Nuclear analytical techniques with neutron beams at the Univ. of Texas at Austin

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Uenlue, K.; Wehring, B.W.

    1996-01-01

    Neutron beams produced by nuclear research reactors can be used for analytical chemical analysis by measuring nuclear radiation produced by neutron capture. Prompt gamma activation analysis (PGAA) and neutron depth profiling (NDP) are two such analytical techniques. For the last three decades, these techniques have been applied at a number of research reactors around the world. Within the last 4 yr, we have developed NDP and PGAA facilities at The University of Texas at Austin research reactor, a 1-MW TRIGA Mark II reactor. Brief descriptions of the facilities and summaries of activities for these analytical techniques at the University of Texas at Austin are provided in this paper

  17. High Resolution Higher Energy X-ray Microscope for Mesoscopic Materials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Snigireva, I; Snigirev, A

    2013-01-01

    We developed a novel X-ray microscopy technique to study mesoscopically structured materials, employing compound refractive lenses. The easily seen advantage of lens-based methodology is the possibility to retrieve high resolution diffraction pattern and real-space images in the same experimental setup. Methodologically the proposed approach is similar to the studies of crystals by high resolution transmission electron microscopy. The proposed microscope was applied for studying of mesoscopic materials such as natural and synthetic opals, inverted photonic crystals

  18. Determination of total mercury for marine environmental monitoring studies by solid sampling continuum source high resolution atomic absorption spectrometry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mandjukov, Petko; Orani, Anna Maria; Han, Eunmi; Vassileva, Emilia

    2015-01-01

    The most critical step in almost all commonly used analytical procedures for Hg determination is the sample preparation due to its extreme volatility. One of the possible solutions of this problem is the application of methods for direct analysis of solid samples. The possibilities for solid sampling high resolution continuum source atomic absorption spectrometry (HR CS AAS) determination of total mercury in various marine environmental samples e.g. sediments and biota are object of the present study. The instrumental parameters were optimized in order to obtain reproducible and interference free analytical signal. A calibration technique based on the use of solid standard certified reference materials similar to the nature of the analyzed sample was developed and applied to various CRMs and real samples. This technique allows simple and reliable evaluation of the uncertainty of the result and the metrological characteristics of the method. A validation approach in line with the requirements of ISO 17025 standard and Eurachem guidelines was followed. With this in mind, selectivity, working range (0.06 to 25 ng for biota and 0.025 to 4 ng for sediment samples, expressed as total Hg) linearity (confirmed by Student's t-test), bias (1.6-4.3%), repeatability (4-9%), reproducibility (9-11%), and absolute limit of detection (0.025 ng for sediment, 0.096 ng for marine biota) were systematically assessed using solid CRMs. The relative expanded uncertainty was estimated at 15% for sediment sample and 8.5% for marine biota sample (k = 2). Demonstration of traceability of measurement results is also presented. The potential of the proposed analytical procedure, based on solid sampling HR CS AAS technique was demonstrated by direct analysis of sea sediments form the Caribbean region and various CRMs. Overall, the use of solid sampling HR CS AAS permits obtaining significant advantages for the determination of this complex analyte in marine samples, such as straightforward

  19. Constructing a WISE High Resolution Galaxy Atlas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jarrett, T. H.; Masci, F.; Tsai, C. W.; Petty, S.; Cluver, M.; Assef, Roberto J.; Benford, D.; Blain, A.; Bridge, C.; Donoso, E.; hide

    2012-01-01

    After eight months of continuous observations, the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) mapped the entire sky at 3.4 micron, 4.6 micron, 12 micron, and 22 micron. We have begun a dedicated WISE High Resolution Galaxy Atlas project to fully characterize large, nearby galaxies and produce a legacy image atlas and source catalog. Here we summarize the deconvolution techniques used to significantly improve the spatial resolution of WISE imaging, specifically designed to study the internal anatomy of nearby galaxies. As a case study, we present results for the galaxy NGC 1566, comparing the WISE enhanced-resolution image processing to that of Spitzer, Galaxy Evolution Explorer, and ground-based imaging. This is the first paper in a two-part series; results for a larger sample of nearby galaxies are presented in the second paper.

  20. High-resolution fiber-optic microendoscopy for in situ cellular imaging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pierce, Mark; Yu, Dihua; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca

    2011-01-11

    Many biological and clinical studies require the longitudinal study and analysis of morphology and function with cellular level resolution. Traditionally, multiple experiments are run in parallel, with individual samples removed from the study at sequential time points for evaluation by light microscopy. Several intravital techniques have been developed, with confocal, multiphoton, and second harmonic microscopy all demonstrating their ability to be used for imaging in situ. With these systems, however, the required infrastructure is complex and expensive, involving scanning laser systems and complex light sources. Here we present a protocol for the design and assembly of a high-resolution microendoscope which can be built in a day using off-the-shelf components for under US$5,000. The platform offers flexibility in terms of image resolution, field-of-view, and operating wavelength, and we describe how these parameters can be easily modified to meet the specific needs of the end user. We and others have explored the use of the high-resolution microendoscope (HRME) in in vitro cell culture, in excised and living animal tissues, and in human tissues in vivo. Users have reported the use of several different fluorescent contrast agents, including proflavine, benzoporphyrin-derivative monoacid ring A (BPD-MA), and fluoroscein, all of which have received full, or investigational approval from the FDA for use in human subjects. High-resolution microendoscopy, in the form described here, may appeal to a wide range of researchers working in the basic and clinical sciences. The technique offers an effective and economical approach which complements traditional benchtop microscopy, by enabling the user to perform high-resolution, longitudinal imaging in situ.

  1. Validation of an analytical method based on the high-resolution continuum source flame atomic absorption spectrometry for the fast-sequential determination of several hazardous/priority hazardous metals in soil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frentiu, Tiberiu; Ponta, Michaela; Hategan, Raluca

    2013-03-01

    The aim of this paper was the validation of a new analytical method based on the high-resolution continuum source flame atomic absorption spectrometry for the fast-sequential determination of several hazardous/priority hazardous metals (Ag, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn) in soil after microwave assisted digestion in aqua regia. Determinations were performed on the ContrAA 300 (Analytik Jena) air-acetylene flame spectrometer equipped with xenon short-arc lamp as a continuum radiation source for all elements, double monochromator consisting of a prism pre-monocromator and an echelle grating monochromator, and charge coupled device as detector. For validation a method-performance study was conducted involving the establishment of the analytical performance of the new method (limits of detection and quantification, precision and accuracy). Moreover, the Bland and Altman statistical method was used in analyzing the agreement between the proposed assay and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry as standardized method for the multielemental determination in soil. The limits of detection in soil sample (3σ criterion) in the high-resolution continuum source flame atomic absorption spectrometry method were (mg/kg): 0.18 (Ag), 0.14 (Cd), 0.36 (Co), 0.25 (Cr), 0.09 (Cu), 1.0 (Ni), 1.4 (Pb) and 0.18 (Zn), close to those in inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry: 0.12 (Ag), 0.05 (Cd), 0.15 (Co), 1.4 (Cr), 0.15 (Cu), 2.5 (Ni), 2.5 (Pb) and 0.04 (Zn). Accuracy was checked by analyzing 4 certified reference materials and a good agreement for 95% confidence interval was found in both methods, with recoveries in the range of 94-106% in atomic absorption and 97-103% in optical emission. Repeatability found by analyzing real soil samples was in the range 1.6-5.2% in atomic absorption, similar with that of 1.9-6.1% in optical emission spectrometry. The Bland and Altman method showed no statistical significant difference between the two spectrometric

  2. Coherent optical adaptive technique improves the spatial resolution of STED microscopy in thick samples

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yan, Wei; Yang, Yanlong; Tan, Yu; Chen, Xun; Li, Yang; Qu, Junle; Ye, Tong

    2018-01-01

    Stimulated emission depletion microscopy (STED) is one of far-field optical microscopy techniques that can provide sub-diffraction spatial resolution. The spatial resolution of the STED microscopy is determined by the specially engineered beam profile of the depletion beam and its power. However, the beam profile of the depletion beam may be distorted due to aberrations of optical systems and inhomogeneity of specimens’ optical properties, resulting in a compromised spatial resolution. The situation gets deteriorated when thick samples are imaged. In the worst case, the sever distortion of the depletion beam profile may cause complete loss of the super resolution effect no matter how much depletion power is applied to specimens. Previously several adaptive optics approaches have been explored to compensate aberrations of systems and specimens. However, it is hard to correct the complicated high-order optical aberrations of specimens. In this report, we demonstrate that the complicated distorted wavefront from a thick phantom sample can be measured by using the coherent optical adaptive technique (COAT). The full correction can effectively maintain and improve the spatial resolution in imaging thick samples. PMID:29400356

  3. Report on the ESO Workshop ''Astronomy at High Angular Resolution''

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boffin, H.; Schmidtobreick, L.; Hussain, G.; Berger, J.-Ph.

    2015-03-01

    A workshop took place in Brussels in 2000 on astrotomography, a generic term for indirect mapping techniques that can be applied to a huge variety of astrophysical systems, ranging from planets, single stars and binaries to active galactic nuclei. It appeared to be timely to revisit the topic given the many past, recent and forthcoming improvements in telescopes and instrumentation. We therefore decided to repeat the astrotomography workshop, but to put it into the much broader context of high angular resolution astronomy. Many techniques, from lucky and speckle imaging, adaptive optics to interferometry, are now widely employed to achieve high angular resolution and they have led to an amazing number of new discoveries. A summary of the workshop themes is presented.

  4. Contactless conductivity detection for analytical techniques — Developments from 2014 to 2016

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Kubáň, Pavel; Hauser, P.C.

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 38, č. 1 (2017), s. 95-114 ISSN 0173-0835 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA16-09135S Institutional support: RVO:68081715 Keywords : capacitively coupled contactless conductivity detection * capillary electrophoresis * contactless conductivity detection * analytical techniques * review Subject RIV: CB - Analytical Chemistry, Separation OBOR OECD: Analytical chemistry Impact factor: 2.744, year: 2016

  5. Peculiar velocity effects in high-resolution microwave background experiments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Challinor, Anthony; Leeuwen, Floor van

    2002-01-01

    We investigate the impact of peculiar velocity effects due to the motion of the solar system relative to the cosmic microwave background (CMB) on high resolution CMB experiments. It is well known that on the largest angular scales the combined effects of Doppler shifts and aberration are important; the lowest Legendre multipoles of total intensity receive power from the large CMB monopole in transforming from the CMB frame. On small angular scales aberration dominates and is shown here to lead to significant distortions of the total intensity and polarization multipoles in transforming from the rest frame of the CMB to the frame of the solar system. We provide convenient analytic results for the distortions as series expansions in the relative velocity of the two frames, but at the highest resolutions a numerical quadrature is required. Although many of the high resolution multipoles themselves are severely distorted by the frame transformations, we show that their statistical properties distort by only an insignificant amount. Therefore, the cosmological parameter estimation is insensitive to the transformation from the CMB frame (where theoretical predictions are calculated) to the rest frame of the experiment

  6. Detectors for high resolution dynamic positron emission tomography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Derenzo, S.E.; Budinger, T.F.; Huesman, R.H.

    1985-01-01

    Tomography is the technique of producing a photographic image of an opaque specimen by transmitting a beam of x-rays or gamma rays through the specimen onto an adjacent photographic film. The image results from variations in thickness, density, and chemical composition, of the specimen. This technique is used to study the metabolism of the human brain. This article examines the design of equipment used for high resolution dynamic positron emission tomography. 27 references, 5 figures, 3 tables

  7. Selection of bioindicators to detect lead pollution in Ebro delta microbial mats, using high-resolution microscopic techniques

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Maldonado, J.; Sole, A.; Puyen, Z.M. [Departament de Genetica i Microbiologia, Facultat de Biociencies, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Edifici C, Campus de la UAB, Cerdanyola del Valles, Bellaterra (Spain); Esteve, I., E-mail: isabel.esteve@uab.cat [Departament de Genetica i Microbiologia, Facultat de Biociencies, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Edifici C, Campus de la UAB, Cerdanyola del Valles, Bellaterra (Spain)

    2011-07-15

    Lead (Pb) is a metal that is non-essential to any metabolic process and, moreover, highly deleterious to life. In microbial mats - benthic stratified ecosystems - located in coastal areas, phototrophic microorganisms (algae and oxygenic phototrophic bacteria) are the primary producers and they are exposed to pollution by metals. In this paper we describe the search for bioindicators among phototrophic populations of Ebro delta microbial mats, using high-resolution microscopic techniques that we have optimized in previous studies. Confocal laser scanning microscopy coupled to a spectrofluorometric detector (CLSM-{lambda}scan) to determine in vivo sensitivity of different cyanobacteria to lead, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), both coupled to energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDX), to determine the extra- and intracellular sequestration of this metal in cells, were the techniques used for this purpose. Oscillatoria sp. PCC 7515, Chroococcus sp. PCC 9106 and Spirulina sp. PCC 6313 tested in this paper could be considered bioindicators for lead pollution, because all of these microorganisms are indigenous, have high tolerance to high concentrations of lead and are able to accumulate this metal externally in extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) and intracellularly in polyphosphate (PP) inclusions. Experiments made with microcosms demonstrated that Phormidium-like and Lyngbya-like organisms selected themselves at the highest concentrations of lead assayed. In the present study it is shown that all cyanobacteria studied (both in culture and in microcosms) present PP inclusions in their cytoplasm and that these increase in number in lead polluted cultures and microcosms. We believe that the application of these microscopic techniques open up broad prospects for future studies of metal ecotoxicity.

  8. Selection of bioindicators to detect lead pollution in Ebro delta microbial mats, using high-resolution microscopic techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Maldonado, J.; Sole, A.; Puyen, Z.M.; Esteve, I.

    2011-01-01

    Lead (Pb) is a metal that is non-essential to any metabolic process and, moreover, highly deleterious to life. In microbial mats - benthic stratified ecosystems - located in coastal areas, phototrophic microorganisms (algae and oxygenic phototrophic bacteria) are the primary producers and they are exposed to pollution by metals. In this paper we describe the search for bioindicators among phototrophic populations of Ebro delta microbial mats, using high-resolution microscopic techniques that we have optimized in previous studies. Confocal laser scanning microscopy coupled to a spectrofluorometric detector (CLSM-λscan) to determine in vivo sensitivity of different cyanobacteria to lead, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), both coupled to energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDX), to determine the extra- and intracellular sequestration of this metal in cells, were the techniques used for this purpose. Oscillatoria sp. PCC 7515, Chroococcus sp. PCC 9106 and Spirulina sp. PCC 6313 tested in this paper could be considered bioindicators for lead pollution, because all of these microorganisms are indigenous, have high tolerance to high concentrations of lead and are able to accumulate this metal externally in extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) and intracellularly in polyphosphate (PP) inclusions. Experiments made with microcosms demonstrated that Phormidium-like and Lyngbya-like organisms selected themselves at the highest concentrations of lead assayed. In the present study it is shown that all cyanobacteria studied (both in culture and in microcosms) present PP inclusions in their cytoplasm and that these increase in number in lead polluted cultures and microcosms. We believe that the application of these microscopic techniques open up broad prospects for future studies of metal ecotoxicity.

  9. Selection of bioindicators to detect lead pollution in Ebro delta microbial mats, using high-resolution microscopic techniques.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maldonado, J; Solé, A; Puyen, Z M; Esteve, I

    2011-07-01

    Lead (Pb) is a metal that is non-essential to any metabolic process and, moreover, highly deleterious to life. In microbial mats - benthic stratified ecosystems - located in coastal areas, phototrophic microorganisms (algae and oxygenic phototrophic bacteria) are the primary producers and they are exposed to pollution by metals. In this paper we describe the search for bioindicators among phototrophic populations of Ebro delta microbial mats, using high-resolution microscopic techniques that we have optimized in previous studies. Confocal laser scanning microscopy coupled to a spectrofluorometric detector (CLSM-λscan) to determine in vivo sensitivity of different cyanobacteria to lead, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), both coupled to energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDX), to determine the extra- and intracellular sequestration of this metal in cells, were the techniques used for this purpose. Oscillatoria sp. PCC 7515, Chroococcus sp. PCC 9106 and Spirulina sp. PCC 6313 tested in this paper could be considered bioindicators for lead pollution, because all of these microorganisms are indigenous, have high tolerance to high concentrations of lead and are able to accumulate this metal externally in extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) and intracellularly in polyphosphate (PP) inclusions. Experiments made with microcosms demonstrated that Phormidium-like and Lyngbya-like organisms selected themselves at the highest concentrations of lead assayed. In the present study it is shown that all cyanobacteria studied (both in culture and in microcosms) present PP inclusions in their cytoplasm and that these increase in number in lead polluted cultures and microcosms. We believe that the application of these microscopic techniques open up broad prospects for future studies of metal ecotoxicity. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. A Visual Analytics Technique for Identifying Heat Spots in Transportation Networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marian Sorin Nistor

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The decision takers of the public transportation system, as part of urban critical infrastructures, need to increase the system resilience. For doing so, we identified analysis tools for biological networks as an adequate basis for visual analytics in that domain. In the paper at hand we therefore translate such methods for transportation systems and show the benefits by applying them on the Munich subway network. Here, visual analytics is used to identify vulnerable stations from different perspectives. The applied technique is presented step by step. Furthermore, the key challenges in applying this technique on transportation systems are identified. Finally, we propose the implementation of the presented features in a management cockpit to integrate the visual analytics mantra for an adequate decision support on transportation systems.

  11. Pre-concentration technique for reduction in "Analytical instrument requirement and analysis"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pal, Sangita; Singha, Mousumi; Meena, Sher Singh

    2018-04-01

    Availability of analytical instruments for a methodical detection of known and unknown effluents imposes a serious hindrance in qualification and quantification. Several analytical instruments such as Elemental analyzer, ICP-MS, ICP-AES, EDXRF, ion chromatography, Electro-analytical instruments which are not only expensive but also time consuming, required maintenance, damaged essential parts replacement which are of serious concern. Move over for field study and instant detection installation of these instruments are not convenient to each and every place. Therefore, technique such as pre-concentration of metal ions especially for lean stream elaborated and justified. Chelation/sequestration is the key of immobilization technique which is simple, user friendly, most effective, least expensive, time efficient; easy to carry (10g - 20g vial) to experimental field/site has been demonstrated.

  12. New analytical techniques for cuticle chemical analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schulten, H.R.

    1994-01-01

    1) The analytical methodology of pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) and direct pyrolysis-mass spectrometry (Py-MS) using soft ionization techniques by high electric fields (FL) are briefly described. Recent advances of Py-GC/MS and Py-FIMS for the analyses of complex organic matter such as plant materials, humic substances, dissolved organic matter in water (DOM) and soil organic matter (SOM) in agricultural and forest soils are given to illustrate the potential and limitations of the applied methods. 2) Novel applications of Py-GC/MS and Py-MS in combination with conventional analytical data in an integrated, chemometric approach to investigate the dynamics of plant lipids are reported. This includes multivariate statistical investigations on maturation, senescence, humus genesis, and environmental damages in spruce ecosystems. 3) The focal point is the author's integrated investigations on emission-induced changes of selected conifer plant constituents. Pattern recognition of Py-MS data of desiccated spruce needles provides a method for distinguishing needles damaged in different ways and determining the cause. Spruce needles were collected from both controls and trees treated with sulphur dioxide (acid rain), nitrogen dioxide, and ozone under controlled conditions. Py-MS and chemometric data evaluation are employed to characterize and classify leaves and their epicuticular waxes. Preliminary mass spectrometric evaluations of isolated cuticles of different plants such as spruce, ivy, holly, and philodendron, as well as ivy cuticles treated in vivo with air pollutants such as surfactants and pesticides are given. (orig.)

  13. International conference on isotopic and nuclear analytical techniques for health and environment. Book of abstracts

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2003-07-01

    Decision makers and stakeholders are becoming increasingly dependent on reliable chemical measurements that serve as a basis for decisions related to health, consumer safety, commerce, environment protection and compliance to regulations. Several millions of analytical results are produced annually, thus consuming appreciable amounts of resources. Reliability of these data is of major concern if cost-benefit figures are applied. Nuclear and isotopic analytical techniques (NATs) have been supported by the IAEA as part of their mandate to foster the peaceful use of nuclear energy for many years. Nuclear analytical laboratories have been installed and upgraded through Technical Co-operation assistance in many Member State laboratories. These techniques, including INAA, XRF, PIXE, stable and radioisotopes, spectrometroscopy, etc. have been applied to a wide range of subjects with varying success. Nuclear analytical techniques, featuring some intrinsic quality control aspects, such as multi-nuclide analysis, frequently serve as 'reference methods' to cross-check critical results. As nuclear properties of elements are targeted, matrix problems seem to be negligible to a great extent. The International Conference on Isotopic and Nuclear Analytical Techniques for Health and Environment was held 10-13 June 2003 in Vienna, Austria. The main purpose of this Conference was to bring together scientists, technologists, representatives of industry and regulatory authorities to exchange information and review the status of current developments and applications of isotopic and nuclear analytical techniques, and to discuss future trends and developments. A further objective is to identify potential opportunities for developing countries for applying isotopic and nuclear analytical techniques in health and environmental studies, and to consider the promotion and transfer of such technology. International developments and trends in health care, nutrition, and environmental monitoring

  14. Very high resolution UV and X-ray spectroscopy and imagery of solar active regions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bruner, M.; Brown, W. A.; Haisch, B. M.

    1987-01-01

    A scientific investigation of the physics of the solar atmosphere, which uses the techniques of high resolution soft X-ray spectroscopy and high resolution UV imagery, is described. The experiments were conducted during a series of three sounding rocket flights. All three flights yielded excellent images in the UV range, showing unprecedented spatial resolution. The second flight recorded the X-ray spectrum of a solar flare, and the third that of an active region. A normal incidence multi-layer mirror was used during the third flight to make the first astronomical X-ray observations using this new technique.

  15. Analytical Technique of Selection of Constructive Parameters Pneumatichydraulic Springs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. A. Tsipilev

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The article "Technique for Analytical Selection of Design Parameters of Pneumatichydraulic Springs concerns the ride smoothness of high-speed vehicles. Author of article Tsipilev A.A. is an assistant at chair "Multi-purpose Tracked Vehicles and Mobile Robots" of BMSTU. The article represents a synthesis of known information on the springing systems and an analysis of relation between spring design data and running gear. It describes standard units of running gear of vehicle in the context of springing systems. Classification of springing systems is considered. Modernization general policy for existing suspensions and prospects for creation of new ones are given. The article considers a design of various pneumatic-hydraulic springs to be set on domestic tracked vehicles. A developed technique allows us to have elastic characteristics of pneumatic-hydraulic springs of various types using these design data and kinematics of the running gear. The article provides recommendations to calculate characteristics of springing systems. The adequacy analysis of the given technique based on the comparison of real and rated characteristics of the existing suspension is conducted. This article can be useful to the experts dealing with springing systems of wheel and tracked vehicles.

  16. High-Resolution Characterization of UMo Alloy Microstructure

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Devaraj, Arun [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Kovarik, Libor [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Joshi, Vineet V. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Jana, Saumyadeep [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Manandhar, Sandeep [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Arey, Bruce W. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Lavender, Curt A. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2016-11-30

    This report highlights the capabilities and procedure for high-resolution characterization of UMo fuels in PNNL. Uranium-molybdenum (UMo) fuel processing steps, from casting to forming final fuel, directly affect the microstructure of the fuel, which in turn dictates the in-reactor performance of the fuel under irradiation. In order to understand the influence of processing on UMo microstructure, microstructure characterization techniques are necessary. Higher-resolution characterization techniques like transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atom probe tomography (APT) are needed to interrogate the details of the microstructure. The findings from TEM and APT are also directly beneficial for developing predictive multiscale modeling tools that can predict the microstructure as a function of process parameters. This report provides background on focused-ion-beam–based TEM and APT sample preparation, TEM and APT analysis procedures, and the unique information achievable through such advanced characterization capabilities for UMo fuels, from a fuel fabrication capability viewpoint.

  17. Exploring the potential of high resolution mass spectrometry for the investigation of lignin-derived phenol substitutes in phenolic resin syntheses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dier, Tobias K F; Fleckenstein, Marco; Militz, Holger; Volmer, Dietrich A

    2017-05-01

    Chemical degradation is an efficient method to obtain bio-oils and other compounds from lignin. Lignin bio-oils are potential substitutes for the phenol component of phenol formaldehyde (PF) resins. Here, we developed an analytical method based on high resolution mass spectrometry that provided structural information for the synthesized lignin-derived resins and supported the prediction of their properties. Different model resins based on typical lignin degradation products were analyzed by electrospray ionization in negative ionization mode. Utilizing enhanced mass defect filter techniques provided detailed structural information of the lignin-based model resins and readily complemented the analytical data from differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis. Relative reactivity and chemical diversity of the phenol substitutes were significant determinants of the outcome of the PF resin synthesis and thus controlled the areas of application of the resulting polymers. Graphical abstract ᅟ.

  18. Hurricane Satellite (HURSAT) from Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Huricane Satellite (HURSAT)-Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) is used to extend the HURSAT data set such that appling the Objective Dvorak technique...

  19. Structure Identification in High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopic Images

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vestergaard, Jacob Schack; Kling, Jens; Dahl, Anders Bjorholm

    2014-01-01

    A connection between microscopic structure and macroscopic properties is expected for almost all material systems. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy is a technique offering insight into the atomic structure, but the analysis of large image series can be time consuming. The present ...

  20. High-resolution wave number spectrum using multi-point measurements in space – the Multi-point Signal Resonator (MSR technique

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Y. Narita

    2011-02-01

    Full Text Available A new analysis method is presented that provides a high-resolution power spectrum in a broad wave number domain based on multi-point measurements. The analysis technique is referred to as the Multi-point Signal Resonator (MSR and it benefits from Capon's minimum variance method for obtaining the proper power spectral density of the signal as well as the MUSIC algorithm (Multiple Signal Classification for considerably reducing the noise part in the spectrum. The mathematical foundation of the analysis method is presented and it is applied to synthetic data as well as Cluster observations of the interplanetary magnetic field. Using the MSR technique for Cluster data we find a wave in the solar wind propagating parallel to the mean magnetic field with relatively small amplitude, which is not identified by the Capon spectrum. The Cluster data analysis shows the potential of the MSR technique for studying waves and turbulence using multi-point measurements.

  1. High-resolution X-ray diffraction with no sample preparation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hansford, G M; Turner, S M R; Degryse, P; Shortland, A J

    2017-07-01

    It is shown that energy-dispersive X-ray diffraction (EDXRD) implemented in a back-reflection geometry is extremely insensitive to sample morphology and positioning even in a high-resolution configuration. This technique allows high-quality X-ray diffraction analysis of samples that have not been prepared and is therefore completely non-destructive. The experimental technique was implemented on beamline B18 at the Diamond Light Source synchrotron in Oxfordshire, UK. The majority of the experiments in this study were performed with pre-characterized geological materials in order to elucidate the characteristics of this novel technique and to develop the analysis methods. Results are presented that demonstrate phase identification, the derivation of precise unit-cell parameters and extraction of microstructural information on unprepared rock samples and other sample types. A particular highlight was the identification of a specific polytype of a muscovite in an unprepared mica schist sample, avoiding the time-consuming and difficult preparation steps normally required to make this type of identification. The technique was also demonstrated in application to a small number of fossil and archaeological samples. Back-reflection EDXRD implemented in a high-resolution configuration shows great potential in the crystallographic analysis of cultural heritage artefacts for the purposes of scientific research such as provenancing, as well as contributing to the formulation of conservation strategies. Possibilities for moving the technique from the synchrotron into museums are discussed. The avoidance of the need to extract samples from high-value and rare objects is a highly significant advantage, applicable also in other potential research areas such as palaeontology, and the study of meteorites and planetary materials brought to Earth by sample-return missions.

  2. Advances in high-resolution mass spectrometry based on metabolomics studies for food--a review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rubert, Josep; Zachariasova, Milena; Hajslova, Jana

    2015-01-01

    Food authenticity becomes a necessity for global food policies, since food placed in the market without fail has to be authentic. It has always been a challenge, since in the past minor components, called also markers, have been mainly monitored by chromatographic methods in order to authenticate the food. Nevertheless, nowadays, advanced analytical methods have allowed food fingerprints to be achieved. At the same time they have been also combined with chemometrics, which uses statistical methods in order to verify food and to provide maximum information by analysing chemical data. These sophisticated methods based on different separation techniques or stand alone have been recently coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) in order to verify the authenticity of food. The new generation of HRMS detectors have experienced significant advances in resolving power, sensitivity, robustness, extended dynamic range, easier mass calibration and tandem mass capabilities, making HRMS more attractive and useful to the food metabolomics community, therefore becoming a reliable tool for food authenticity. The purpose of this review is to summarise and describe the most recent metabolomics approaches in the area of food metabolomics, and to discuss the strengths and drawbacks of the HRMS analytical platforms combined with chemometrics.

  3. Isotope specific resolution recovery image reconstruction in high resolution PET imaging

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kotasidis, Fotis A. [Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Geneva University Hospital, CH-1211 Geneva, Switzerland and Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre, MAHSC, University of Manchester, M20 3LJ, Manchester (United Kingdom); Angelis, Georgios I. [Faculty of Health Sciences, Brain and Mind Research Institute, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Sydney (Australia); Anton-Rodriguez, Jose; Matthews, Julian C. [Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre, MAHSC, University of Manchester, Manchester M20 3LJ (United Kingdom); Reader, Andrew J. [Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal QC H3A 2B4, Canada and Department of Biomedical Engineering, Division of Imaging Sciences and Biomedical Engineering, King' s College London, St. Thomas’ Hospital, London SE1 7EH (United Kingdom); Zaidi, Habib [Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Geneva University Hospital, CH-1211 Geneva (Switzerland); Geneva Neuroscience Centre, Geneva University, CH-1205 Geneva (Switzerland); Department of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, PO Box 30 001, Groningen 9700 RB (Netherlands)

    2014-05-15

    Purpose: Measuring and incorporating a scanner-specific point spread function (PSF) within image reconstruction has been shown to improve spatial resolution in PET. However, due to the short half-life of clinically used isotopes, other long-lived isotopes not used in clinical practice are used to perform the PSF measurements. As such, non-optimal PSF models that do not correspond to those needed for the data to be reconstructed are used within resolution modeling (RM) image reconstruction, usually underestimating the true PSF owing to the difference in positron range. In high resolution brain and preclinical imaging, this effect is of particular importance since the PSFs become more positron range limited and isotope-specific PSFs can help maximize the performance benefit from using resolution recovery image reconstruction algorithms. Methods: In this work, the authors used a printing technique to simultaneously measure multiple point sources on the High Resolution Research Tomograph (HRRT), and the authors demonstrated the feasibility of deriving isotope-dependent system matrices from fluorine-18 and carbon-11 point sources. Furthermore, the authors evaluated the impact of incorporating them within RM image reconstruction, using carbon-11 phantom and clinical datasets on the HRRT. Results: The results obtained using these two isotopes illustrate that even small differences in positron range can result in different PSF maps, leading to further improvements in contrast recovery when used in image reconstruction. The difference is more pronounced in the centre of the field-of-view where the full width at half maximum (FWHM) from the positron range has a larger contribution to the overall FWHM compared to the edge where the parallax error dominates the overall FWHM. Conclusions: Based on the proposed methodology, measured isotope-specific and spatially variant PSFs can be reliably derived and used for improved spatial resolution and variance performance in resolution

  4. Isotope specific resolution recovery image reconstruction in high resolution PET imaging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kotasidis, Fotis A.; Angelis, Georgios I.; Anton-Rodriguez, Jose; Matthews, Julian C.; Reader, Andrew J.; Zaidi, Habib

    2014-01-01

    Purpose: Measuring and incorporating a scanner-specific point spread function (PSF) within image reconstruction has been shown to improve spatial resolution in PET. However, due to the short half-life of clinically used isotopes, other long-lived isotopes not used in clinical practice are used to perform the PSF measurements. As such, non-optimal PSF models that do not correspond to those needed for the data to be reconstructed are used within resolution modeling (RM) image reconstruction, usually underestimating the true PSF owing to the difference in positron range. In high resolution brain and preclinical imaging, this effect is of particular importance since the PSFs become more positron range limited and isotope-specific PSFs can help maximize the performance benefit from using resolution recovery image reconstruction algorithms. Methods: In this work, the authors used a printing technique to simultaneously measure multiple point sources on the High Resolution Research Tomograph (HRRT), and the authors demonstrated the feasibility of deriving isotope-dependent system matrices from fluorine-18 and carbon-11 point sources. Furthermore, the authors evaluated the impact of incorporating them within RM image reconstruction, using carbon-11 phantom and clinical datasets on the HRRT. Results: The results obtained using these two isotopes illustrate that even small differences in positron range can result in different PSF maps, leading to further improvements in contrast recovery when used in image reconstruction. The difference is more pronounced in the centre of the field-of-view where the full width at half maximum (FWHM) from the positron range has a larger contribution to the overall FWHM compared to the edge where the parallax error dominates the overall FWHM. Conclusions: Based on the proposed methodology, measured isotope-specific and spatially variant PSFs can be reliably derived and used for improved spatial resolution and variance performance in resolution

  5. Isotope specific resolution recovery image reconstruction in high resolution PET imaging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kotasidis, Fotis A; Angelis, Georgios I; Anton-Rodriguez, Jose; Matthews, Julian C; Reader, Andrew J; Zaidi, Habib

    2014-05-01

    Measuring and incorporating a scanner-specific point spread function (PSF) within image reconstruction has been shown to improve spatial resolution in PET. However, due to the short half-life of clinically used isotopes, other long-lived isotopes not used in clinical practice are used to perform the PSF measurements. As such, non-optimal PSF models that do not correspond to those needed for the data to be reconstructed are used within resolution modeling (RM) image reconstruction, usually underestimating the true PSF owing to the difference in positron range. In high resolution brain and preclinical imaging, this effect is of particular importance since the PSFs become more positron range limited and isotope-specific PSFs can help maximize the performance benefit from using resolution recovery image reconstruction algorithms. In this work, the authors used a printing technique to simultaneously measure multiple point sources on the High Resolution Research Tomograph (HRRT), and the authors demonstrated the feasibility of deriving isotope-dependent system matrices from fluorine-18 and carbon-11 point sources. Furthermore, the authors evaluated the impact of incorporating them within RM image reconstruction, using carbon-11 phantom and clinical datasets on the HRRT. The results obtained using these two isotopes illustrate that even small differences in positron range can result in different PSF maps, leading to further improvements in contrast recovery when used in image reconstruction. The difference is more pronounced in the centre of the field-of-view where the full width at half maximum (FWHM) from the positron range has a larger contribution to the overall FWHM compared to the edge where the parallax error dominates the overall FWHM. Based on the proposed methodology, measured isotope-specific and spatially variant PSFs can be reliably derived and used for improved spatial resolution and variance performance in resolution recovery image reconstruction. The

  6. Application of metabonomic analytical techniques in the modernization and toxicology research of traditional Chinese medicine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lao, Yong-Min; Jiang, Jian-Guo; Yan, Lu

    2009-08-01

    In the recent years, a wide range of metabonomic analytical techniques are widely used in the modern research of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). At the same time, the international community has attached increasing importance to TCM toxicity problems. Thus, many studies have been implemented to investigate the toxicity mechanisms of TCM. Among these studies, many metabonomic-based methods have been implemented to facilitate TCM toxicity investigation. At present, the most prevailing methods for TCM toxicity research are mainly single analysis techniques using only one analytical means. These techniques include nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS), etc.; with these techniques, some favourable outcomes have been gained in the toxic reaction studies of TCM, such as the action target organs assay, the establishment of action pattern, the elucidation of action mechanism and the exploration of action material foundation. However, every analytical technique has its advantages and drawbacks, no existing analytical technique can be versatile. Multi-analysed techniques can partially overcome the shortcomings of single-analysed techniques. Combination of GC-MS and LC-MS metabolic profiling approaches has unravelled the pathological outcomes of aristolochic acid-induced nephrotoxicity, which can not be achieved by single-analysed techniques. It is believed that with the further development of metabonomic analytical techniques, especially multi-analysed techniques, metabonomics will greatly promote TCM toxicity research and be beneficial to the modernization of TCM in terms of extending the application of modern means in the TCM safety assessment, assisting the formulation of TCM safety norms and establishing the international standards indicators.

  7. ANL high resolution injector

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Minehara, E.; Kutschera, W.; Hartog, P.D.; Billquist, P.

    1985-01-01

    The ANL (Argonne National Laboratory) high-resolution injector has been installed to obtain higher mass resolution and higher preacceleration, and to utilize effectively the full mass range of ATLAS (Argonne Tandem Linac Accelerator System). Preliminary results of the first beam test are reported briefly. The design and performance, in particular a high-mass-resolution magnet with aberration compensation, are discussed. 7 refs., 5 figs., 2 tabs

  8. Pattern of interstitial lung disease detected by high resolution ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Background: Diffuse lung diseases constitute a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. High Resolution Computed Tomography (HRCT) is the recommended imaging technique in the diagnosis, assessment and followup of these diseases. Objectives: To describe the pattern of HRCT findings in patients with ...

  9. Evaluating empirical/analytical techniques to predict structural integrity of pipe containing surface flaws

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Reuter, W.G.; Server, W.L.

    1982-01-01

    Data from flat-plate specimens containing either triangular-, ellipsoidal- or rectangular-shaped surface flaws were evaluated by several potential analytical techniques. These techniques were modified as needed to predict conditions for initiation of subcritical crack growth, for the defect to penetrate the 6.4 mm (0.25 in.) wall thickness, and for instability (plastic or unstable). The modified analytical techniques developed from the plate specimens were then used to make predictions which are compared with test results obtained from pipe specimens containing triangular-shaped surface flaws

  10. High-resolution typing of Chlamydia trachomatis: epidemiological and clinical uses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Vries, Henry J C; Schim van der Loeff, Maarten F; Bruisten, Sylvia M

    2015-02-01

    A state-of-the-art overview of molecular Chlamydia trachomatis typing methods that are used for routine diagnostics and scientific studies. Molecular epidemiology uses high-resolution typing techniques such as multilocus sequence typing, multilocus variable number of tandem repeats analysis, and whole-genome sequencing to identify strains based on their DNA sequence. These data can be used for cluster, network and phylogenetic analyses, and are used to unveil transmission networks, risk groups, and evolutionary pathways. High-resolution typing of C. trachomatis strains is applied to monitor treatment efficacy and re-infections, and to study the recent emergence of lymphogranuloma venereum (LGV) amongst men who have sex with men in high-income countries. Chlamydia strain typing has clinical relevance in disease management, as LGV needs longer treatment than non-LGV C. trachomatis. It has also led to the discovery of a new variant Chlamydia strain in Sweden, which was not detected by some commercial C. trachomatis diagnostic platforms. After a brief history and comparison of the various Chlamydia typing methods, the applications of the current techniques are described and future endeavors to extend scientific understanding are formulated. High-resolution typing will likely help to further unravel the pathophysiological mechanisms behind the wide clinical spectrum of chlamydial disease.

  11. High Resolution Spatio Temporal Moments Analysis of Solute Migration Captured using Pre-clinical Medical Imaging Techniques

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dogan, M.; Moysey, S. M.; Powell, B. A.; DeVol, T. A.

    2016-12-01

    Advances in medical imaging technologies are continuously expanding the range of applications enabled within the earth sciences. While computed x-ray tomography (CT) scans have traditionally been used for investigating the structure of geologic materials, it is now possible to perform 3D time-lapse imaging of dynamic processes, such as monitoring the infiltration of water into a soil, with sub-millimeter resolution. Likewise, single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) can provide information on the evolution of solute transport with spatial resolution on the order of a millimeter by tracking the migration of gamma-ray emitting isotopes like 99mTc and 111In. While these imaging techniques are revolutionizing our ability to look within porous media, techniques for the analysis of such rich and large data sets are limited. The spatial and temporal moments of a plume have long been used to provide quantitative measures to describe plume movement in a wide range of settings from the lab to field. Moment analysis can also be used to estimate the hydrologic properties of the porous media. In this research, we investigate the use of moments for analyzing a high resolution 4D SPECT data set collected during a 99mTc transport experiment performed in a heterogeneous column. The 4D nature of the data set makes it amenable to the use of data mining and pattern recognition methods, such as cluster analysis, to identify regions or zones within the data that exhibit abnormal or unexpected behaviors. We then compare anomalous features within the SPECT data to similar features identified within the CT image to relate the flow behavior to pore-scale structures, such as porosity differences and macropores. Such comparisons help to identify whether these features are good predictors of preferential transport. Likewise, we evaluate whether local analysis of moments can be used to infer apparent parameters governing non-conservative transport in a heterogeneous porous media, such

  12. Structural level characterization of base oils using advanced analytical techniques

    KAUST Repository

    Hourani, Nadim; Muller, Hendrik; Adam, Frederick M.; Panda, Saroj K.; Witt, Matthias; Al-Hajji, Adnan A.; Sarathy, Mani

    2015-01-01

    cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS) equipped with atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) and atmospheric pressure photoionization (APPI) sources. First, the capabilities and limitations of each analytical technique were evaluated

  13. An interferometer for high-resolution optical surveillance from geostationary orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bonino, L.; Bresciani, F.; Piasini, G.; Flebus, C.; Lecat, J.-H.; Roose, S.; Pisani, M.; Cabral, A.; Rebordão, J.; Proença, C.; Costal, J.; Lima, P. U.; Loix, N.; Musso, F.

    2017-11-01

    The activities described in this paper have been developed in the frame of the EUCLID CEPA 9 RTP 9.9 "High Resolution Optical Satellite Sensor" project of the WEAO Research Cell. They have been focused on the definition of an interferometric instrument optimised for the high-resolution optical surveillance from geostationary orbit (GEO) by means of the synthetic aperture technique, and on the definition and development of the related enabling technologies. In this paper we describe the industrial team, the selected mission specifications and overview of the whole design and manufacturing activities performed.

  14. Ultra high resolution soft x-ray tomography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haddad, W.S.; Trebes, J.E.; Goodman, D.M.

    1995-01-01

    Ultra high resolution three dimensional images of a microscopic test object were made with soft x-rays using a scanning transmission x-ray microscope. The test object consisted of two different patterns of gold bars on silicon nitride windows that were separated by ∼5μm. A series of nine 2-D images of the object were recorded at angles between -50 to +55 degrees with respect to the beam axis. The projections were then combined tomographically to form a 3-D image by means of an algebraic reconstruction technique (ART) algorithm. A transverse resolution of ∼1000 Angstrom was observed. Artifacts in the reconstruction limited the overall depth resolution to ∼6000 Angstrom, however some features were clearly reconstructed with a depth resolution of ∼1000 Angstrom. A specially modified ART algorithm and a constrained conjugate gradient (CCG) code were also developed as improvements over the standard ART algorithm. Both of these methods made significant improvements in the overall depth resolution bringing it down to ∼1200 Angstrom overall. Preliminary projection data sets were also recorded with both dry and re-hydrated human sperm cells over a similar angular range

  15. Ultra high resolution soft x-ray tomography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haddad, W.S.; Trebes, J.E.; Goodman, D.M.; Lee, H.R.; McNulty, I.; Zalensky, A.O.

    1995-01-01

    Ultra high resolution three dimensional images of a microscopic test object were made with soft x-rays using a scanning transmission x-ray microscope. The test object consisted of two different patterns of gold bars on silicon nitride windows that were separated by ∼5 microm. A series of nine 2-D images of the object were recorded at angles between -50 to +55 degrees with respect to the beam axis. The projections were then combined tomographically to form a 3-D image by means of an algebraic reconstruction technique (ART) algorithm. A transverse resolution of ∼ 1,000 angstrom was observed. Artifacts in the reconstruction limited the overall depth resolution to ∼ 6,000 angstrom, however some features were clearly reconstructed with a depth resolution of ∼ 1,000 angstrom. A specially modified ART algorithm and a constrained conjugate gradient (CCG) code were also developed as improvements over the standard ART algorithm. Both of these methods made significant improvements in the overall depth resolution, bringing it down to ∼ 1,200 angstrom overall. Preliminary projection data sets were also recorded with both dry and re-hydrated human sperm cells over a similar angular range

  16. Recent developments and future trends in solid phase microextraction techniques towards green analytical chemistry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spietelun, Agata; Marcinkowski, Łukasz; de la Guardia, Miguel; Namieśnik, Jacek

    2013-12-20

    Solid phase microextraction find increasing applications in the sample preparation step before chromatographic determination of analytes in samples with a complex composition. These techniques allow for integrating several operations, such as sample collection, extraction, analyte enrichment above the detection limit of a given measuring instrument and the isolation of analytes from sample matrix. In this work the information about novel methodological and instrumental solutions in relation to different variants of solid phase extraction techniques, solid-phase microextraction (SPME), stir bar sorptive extraction (SBSE) and magnetic solid phase extraction (MSPE) is presented, including practical applications of these techniques and a critical discussion about their advantages and disadvantages. The proposed solutions fulfill the requirements resulting from the concept of sustainable development, and specifically from the implementation of green chemistry principles in analytical laboratories. Therefore, particular attention was paid to the description of possible uses of novel, selective stationary phases in extraction techniques, inter alia, polymeric ionic liquids, carbon nanotubes, and silica- and carbon-based sorbents. The methodological solutions, together with properly matched sampling devices for collecting analytes from samples with varying matrix composition, enable us to reduce the number of errors during the sample preparation prior to chromatographic analysis as well as to limit the negative impact of this analytical step on the natural environment and the health of laboratory employees. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. MS-Based Analytical Techniques: Advances in Spray-Based Methods and EI-LC-MS Applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Medina, Isabel; Cappiello, Achille; Careri, Maria

    2018-01-01

    Mass spectrometry is the most powerful technique for the detection and identification of organic compounds. It can provide molecular weight information and a wealth of structural details that give a unique fingerprint for each analyte. Due to these characteristics, mass spectrometry-based analytical methods are showing an increasing interest in the scientific community, especially in food safety, environmental, and forensic investigation areas where the simultaneous detection of targeted and nontargeted compounds represents a key factor. In addition, safety risks can be identified at the early stage through online and real-time analytical methodologies. In this context, several efforts have been made to achieve analytical instrumentation able to perform real-time analysis in the native environment of samples and to generate highly informative spectra. This review article provides a survey of some instrumental innovations and their applications with particular attention to spray-based MS methods and food analysis issues. The survey will attempt to cover the state of the art from 2012 up to 2017.

  18. High resolution X-ray diffraction studies on unirradiated

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    High-resolution X-ray diffraction technique, employing a three-crystal monochromator–collimator combination is used to study the irradiation induced defects in flux grown Sr-hexaferrite crystals irradiated with 50 MeV Li3+ ion beams at room temperature with a fluence value of 1 × 1014 ions/cm2. The diffraction curves of the ...

  19. Evaluation of Medium Spatial Resolution BRDF-Adjustment Techniques Using Multi-Angular SPOT4 (Take5) Acquisitions

    OpenAIRE

    Claverie, Martin; Vermote, Eric; Franch, Belen; He, Tao; Hagolle, Olivier; Kadiri, Mohamed; Masek, Jeff

    2015-01-01

    High-resolution sensor Surface Reflectance (SR) data are affected by surface anisotropy but are difficult to adjust because of the low temporal frequency of the acquisitions and the low angular sampling. This paper evaluates five high spatial resolution Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF) adjustment techniques. The evaluation is based on the noise level of the SR Time Series (TS) corrected to a normalized geometry (nadir view, 45° sun zenith angle) extracted from the multi-...

  20. Computer simulation of high resolution transmission electron micrographs: theory and analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kilaas, R.

    1985-03-01

    Computer simulation of electron micrographs is an invaluable aid in their proper interpretation and in defining optimum conditions for obtaining images experimentally. Since modern instruments are capable of atomic resolution, simulation techniques employing high precision are required. This thesis makes contributions to four specific areas of this field. First, the validity of a new method for simulating high resolution electron microscope images has been critically examined. Second, three different methods for computing scattering amplitudes in High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HRTEM) have been investigated as to their ability to include upper Laue layer (ULL) interaction. Third, a new method for computing scattering amplitudes in high resolution transmission electron microscopy has been examined. Fourth, the effect of a surface layer of amorphous silicon dioxide on images of crystalline silicon has been investigated for a range of crystal thicknesses varying from zero to 2 1/2 times that of the surface layer

  1. Analytical techniques for wine analysis: An African perspective; a review

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Villiers, André de; Alberts, Phillipus; Tredoux, Andreas G.J.; Nieuwoudt, Hélène H.

    2012-01-01

    Highlights: ► Analytical techniques developed for grape and wine analysis in Africa are reviewed. ► The utility of infrared spectroscopic methods is demonstrated. ► An overview of separation of wine constituents by GC, HPLC, CE is presented. ► Novel LC and GC sample preparation methods for LC and GC are presented. ► Emerging methods for grape and wine analysis in Africa are discussed. - Abstract: Analytical chemistry is playing an ever-increasingly important role in the global wine industry. Chemical analysis of wine is essential in ensuring product safety and conformity to regulatory laws governing the international market, as well as understanding the fundamental aspects of grape and wine production to improve manufacturing processes. Within this field, advanced instrumental analysis methods have been exploited more extensively in recent years. Important advances in instrumental analytical techniques have also found application in the wine industry. This review aims to highlight the most important developments in the field of instrumental wine and grape analysis in the African context. The focus of this overview is specifically on the application of advanced instrumental techniques, including spectroscopic and chromatographic methods. Recent developments in wine and grape analysis and their application in the African context are highlighted, and future trends are discussed in terms of their potential contribution to the industry.

  2. Analytical techniques for wine analysis: An African perspective; a review

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Villiers, Andre de, E-mail: ajdevill@sun.ac.za [Department of Chemistry and Polymer Science, Stellenbosch University, Private Bag X1, Matieland 7602, Stellenbosch (South Africa); Alberts, Phillipus [Department of Chemistry and Polymer Science, Stellenbosch University, Private Bag X1, Matieland 7602, Stellenbosch (South Africa); Tredoux, Andreas G.J.; Nieuwoudt, Helene H. [Institute for Wine Biotechnology, Department of Viticulture and Oenology, Stellenbosch University, Private Bag X1, Matieland 7602, Stellenbosch (South Africa)

    2012-06-12

    Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Analytical techniques developed for grape and wine analysis in Africa are reviewed. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The utility of infrared spectroscopic methods is demonstrated. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer An overview of separation of wine constituents by GC, HPLC, CE is presented. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Novel LC and GC sample preparation methods for LC and GC are presented. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Emerging methods for grape and wine analysis in Africa are discussed. - Abstract: Analytical chemistry is playing an ever-increasingly important role in the global wine industry. Chemical analysis of wine is essential in ensuring product safety and conformity to regulatory laws governing the international market, as well as understanding the fundamental aspects of grape and wine production to improve manufacturing processes. Within this field, advanced instrumental analysis methods have been exploited more extensively in recent years. Important advances in instrumental analytical techniques have also found application in the wine industry. This review aims to highlight the most important developments in the field of instrumental wine and grape analysis in the African context. The focus of this overview is specifically on the application of advanced instrumental techniques, including spectroscopic and chromatographic methods. Recent developments in wine and grape analysis and their application in the African context are highlighted, and future trends are discussed in terms of their potential contribution to the industry.

  3. High-resolution inverse Raman and resonant-wave-mixing spectroscopy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rahn, L.A. [Sandia National Laboratories, Livermore, CA (United States)

    1993-12-01

    These research activities consist of high-resolution inverse Raman spectroscopy (IRS) and resonant wave-mixing spectroscopy to support the development of nonlinear-optical techniques for temperature and concentration measurements in combustion research. Objectives of this work include development of spectral models of important molecular species needed to perform coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy (CARS) measurements and the investigation of new nonlinear-optical processes as potential diagnostic techniques. Some of the techniques being investigated include frequency-degenerate and nearly frequency-degenerate resonant four-wave-mixing (DFWM and NDFWM), and resonant multi-wave mixing (RMWM).

  4. External scintigraphy in monitoring the behavior of pharmaceutical formulations in vivo I: technique for acquiring high-resolution images of tablets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Theodorakis, M.C.; Simpson, D.R.; Leung, D.M.; Devous, M. Sr.

    1983-01-01

    A new method for monitoring tablet disintegration in vivo was developed. In this method, the tablets were labeled with a short-lived radionuclide, technetium 99m, and monitored by a gamma camera. Several innovations were introduced with this method. First, computer reconstruction algorithms were used to enhance the scintigraphic images of the disintegrating tablet in vivo. Second, the use of a four-pinhole collimator to acquire multiple views of the tablet resulted in high count rates and reduced acquisition times of the scintigraphic images. Third, the magnification of the scintigraphic images achieved by pinhole collimation led to significant improvement in resolution. Fourth, the radioinuclide was incorporated into the granulation so that the whole mass of the tablet was uniformly labeled with high levels of activity. This technique allowed the continuous monitoring of the disintegration process of tablets in vivo in experimental animals. Multiple pinhole collimation and the labeling process permitted the acquisition of quality scintigraphic images of the labeled tablet every 30 sec. The resolution of the method was tested in vitro and in vivo

  5. Mobility and height detection of particle labels in an optical evanescent wave biosensor with single-label resolution

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Van Ommering, Kim; Koets, Marjo; Schleipen, Jean J H B; Prins, Menno W J [Philips Research Laboratories, 5656 AE Eindhoven (Netherlands); Somers, Philip A; Van IJzendoorn, Leo J, E-mail: menno.prins@philips.co [Department of Applied Physics, Eindhoven University of Technology, 5600 MB Eindhoven (Netherlands)

    2010-04-21

    Particle labels are used in biosensors to detect the presence and concentration of analyte molecules. In this paper we demonstrate an optical technique to measure the mobility and height of bound particle labels on a biosensor surface with single-label resolution. The technique is based on the detection of the particle-induced light scattering in an optical evanescent field. We show that the thermal particle motion in the optical evanescent field leads to intensity fluctuations that can accurately be detected. The technique is demonstrated using 290 bp (99 nm) DNA as an analyte and using polystyrene particles and magnetic particles with diameters between 500 and 1000 nm as labels. The particle intensity histograms show that quantitative height measurements are obtained for particles with uniform optical properties, and the intensity versus position plots reflect the analyte-antibody orientation and the analyte flexibility. The novel optical detection technique will lead to biosensors with very high sensitivity and specificity.

  6. Image Quality in High-resolution and High-cadence Solar Imaging

    Science.gov (United States)

    Denker, C.; Dineva, E.; Balthasar, H.; Verma, M.; Kuckein, C.; Diercke, A.; González Manrique, S. J.

    2018-03-01

    Broad-band imaging and even imaging with a moderate bandpass (about 1 nm) provides a photon-rich environment, where frame selection (lucky imaging) becomes a helpful tool in image restoration, allowing us to perform a cost-benefit analysis on how to design observing sequences for imaging with high spatial resolution in combination with real-time correction provided by an adaptive optics (AO) system. This study presents high-cadence (160 Hz) G-band and blue continuum image sequences obtained with the High-resolution Fast Imager (HiFI) at the 1.5-meter GREGOR solar telescope, where the speckle-masking technique is used to restore images with nearly diffraction-limited resolution. The HiFI employs two synchronized large-format and high-cadence sCMOS detectors. The median filter gradient similarity (MFGS) image-quality metric is applied, among others, to AO-corrected image sequences of a pore and a small sunspot observed on 2017 June 4 and 5. A small region of interest, which was selected for fast-imaging performance, covered these contrast-rich features and their neighborhood, which were part of Active Region NOAA 12661. Modifications of the MFGS algorithm uncover the field- and structure-dependency of this image-quality metric. However, MFGS still remains a good choice for determining image quality without a priori knowledge, which is an important characteristic when classifying the huge number of high-resolution images contained in data archives. In addition, this investigation demonstrates that a fast cadence and millisecond exposure times are still insufficient to reach the coherence time of daytime seeing. Nonetheless, the analysis shows that data acquisition rates exceeding 50 Hz are required to capture a substantial fraction of the best seeing moments, significantly boosting the performance of post-facto image restoration.

  7. A Framework to Combine Low- and High-resolution Spectroscopy for the Atmospheres of Transiting Exoplanets

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Brogi, M.; Line, M.; Bean, J.; Désert, J.-M.; Schwarz, H.

    2017-01-01

    Current observations of the atmospheres of close-in exoplanets are predominantly obtained with two techniques: low-resolution spectroscopy with space telescopes and high-resolution spectroscopy from the ground. Although the observables delivered by the two methods are in principle highly

  8. High-Resolution Graphene Films for Electrochemical Sensing via Inkjet Maskless Lithography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hondred, John A; Stromberg, Loreen R; Mosher, Curtis L; Claussen, Jonathan C

    2017-10-24

    Solution-phase printing of nanomaterial-based graphene inks are rapidly gaining interest for fabrication of flexible electronics. However, scalable manufacturing techniques for high-resolution printed graphene circuits are still lacking. Here, we report a patterning technique [i.e., inkjet maskless lithography (IML)] to form high-resolution, flexible, graphene films (line widths down to 20 μm) that significantly exceed the current inkjet printing resolution of graphene (line widths ∼60 μm). IML uses an inkjet printed polymer lacquer as a sacrificial pattern, viscous spin-coated graphene, and a subsequent graphene lift-off to pattern films without the need for prefabricated stencils, templates, or cleanroom technology (e.g., photolithography). Laser annealing is employed to increase conductivity on thermally sensitive, flexible substrates [polyethylene terephthalate (PET)]. Laser annealing and subsequent platinum nanoparticle deposition substantially increases the electroactive nature of graphene as illustrated by electrochemical hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) sensing [rapid response (5 s), broad linear sensing range (0.1-550 μm), high sensitivity (0.21 μM/μA), and low detection limit (0.21 μM)]. Moreover, high-resolution, complex graphene circuits [i.e., interdigitated electrodes (IDE) with varying finger width and spacing] were created with IML and characterized via potassium chloride (KCl) electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Results indicated that sensitivity directly correlates to electrode feature size as the IDE with the smallest finger width and spacing (50 and 50 μm) displayed the largest response to changes in KCl concentration (∼21 kΩ). These results indicate that the developed IML patterning technique is well-suited for rapid, solution-phase graphene film prototyping on flexible substrates for numerous applications including electrochemical sensing.

  9. Super Resolution and Interference Suppression Technique applied to SHARAD Radar Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raguso, M. C.; Mastrogiuseppe, M.; Seu, R.; Piazzo, L.

    2017-12-01

    We will present a super resolution and interference suppression technique applied to the data acquired by the SHAllow RADar (SHARAD) on board the NASA's 2005 Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) mission, currently operating around Mars [1]. The algorithms allow to improve the range resolution roughly by a factor of 3 and the Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) by a several decibels. Range compression algorithms usually adopt conventional Fourier transform techniques, which are limited in the resolution by the transmitted signal bandwidth, analogous to the Rayleigh's criterion in optics. In this work, we investigate a super resolution method based on autoregressive models and linear prediction techniques [2]. Starting from the estimation of the linear prediction coefficients from the spectral data, the algorithm performs the radar bandwidth extrapolation (BWE), thereby improving the range resolution of the pulse-compressed coherent radar data. Moreover, the EMIs (ElectroMagnetic Interferences) are detected and the spectra is interpolated in order to reconstruct an interference free spectrum, thereby improving the SNR. The algorithm can be applied to the single complex look image after synthetic aperture processing (SAR). We apply the proposed algorithm to simulated as well as to real radar data. We will demonstrate the effective enhancement on vertical resolution with respect to the classical spectral estimator. We will show that the imaging of the subsurface layered structures observed in radargrams is improved, allowing additional insights for the scientific community in the interpretation of the SHARAD radar data, which will help to further our understanding of the formation and evolution of known geological features on Mars. References: [1] Seu et al. 2007, Science, 2007, 317, 1715-1718 [2] K.M. Cuomo, "A Bandwidth Extrapolation Technique for Improved Range Resolution of Coherent Radar Data", Project Report CJP-60, Revision 1, MIT Lincoln Laboratory (4 Dec. 1992).

  10. An Automated Technique for Generating Georectified Mosaics from Ultra-High Resolution Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV Imagery, Based on Structure from Motion (SfM Point Clouds

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christopher Watson

    2012-05-01

    Full Text Available Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs are an exciting new remote sensing tool capable of acquiring high resolution spatial data. Remote sensing with UAVs has the potential to provide imagery at an unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution. The small footprint of UAV imagery, however, makes it necessary to develop automated techniques to geometrically rectify and mosaic the imagery such that larger areas can be monitored. In this paper, we present a technique for geometric correction and mosaicking of UAV photography using feature matching and Structure from Motion (SfM photogrammetric techniques. Images are processed to create three dimensional point clouds, initially in an arbitrary model space. The point clouds are transformed into a real-world coordinate system using either a direct georeferencing technique that uses estimated camera positions or via a Ground Control Point (GCP technique that uses automatically identified GCPs within the point cloud. The point cloud is then used to generate a Digital Terrain Model (DTM required for rectification of the images. Subsequent georeferenced images are then joined together to form a mosaic of the study area. The absolute spatial accuracy of the direct technique was found to be 65–120 cm whilst the GCP technique achieves an accuracy of approximately 10–15 cm.

  11. Highly sensitive high resolution Raman spectroscopy using resonant ionization methods

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Owyoung, A.; Esherick, P.

    1984-05-01

    In recent years, the introduction of stimulated Raman methods has offered orders of magnitude improvement in spectral resolving power for gas phase Raman studies. Nevertheless, the inherent weakness of the Raman process suggests the need for significantly more sensitive techniques in Raman spectroscopy. In this we describe a new approach to this problem. Our new technique, which we call ionization-detected stimulated Raman spectroscopy (IDSRS), combines high-resolution SRS with highly-sensitive resonant laser ionization to achieve an increase in sensitivity of over three orders of magnitude. The excitation/detection process involves three sequential steps: (1) population of a vibrationally excited state via stimulated Raman pumping; (2) selective ionization of the vibrationally excited molecule with a tunable uv source; and (3) collection of the ionized species at biased electrodes where they are detected as current in an external circuit

  12. High resolution SAW elastography for ex-vivo porcine skin specimen

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Kanheng; Feng, Kairui; Wang, Mingkai; Jamera, Tanatswa; Li, Chunhui; Huang, Zhihong

    2018-02-01

    Surface acoustic wave (SAW) elastography has been proven to be a non-invasive, non-destructive method for accurately characterizing tissue elastic properties. Current SAW elastography technique tracks generated surface acoustic wave impulse point by point which are a few millimeters away. Thus, reconstructed elastography has low lateral resolution. To improve the lateral resolution of current SAW elastography, a new method was proposed in this research. A M-B scan mode, high spatial resolution phase sensitive optical coherence tomography (PhS-OCT) system was employed to track the ultrasonically induced SAW impulse. Ex-vivo porcine skin specimen was tested using this proposed method. A 2D fast Fourier transform based algorithm was applied to process the acquired data for estimating the surface acoustic wave dispersion curve and its corresponding penetration depth. Then, the ex-vivo porcine skin elastogram was established by relating the surface acoustic wave dispersion curve and its corresponding penetration depth. The result from the proposed method shows higher lateral resolution than that from current SAW elastography technique, and the approximated skin elastogram could also distinguish the different layers in the skin specimen, i.e. epidermis, dermis and fat layer. This proposed SAW elastography technique may have a large potential to be widely applied in clinical use for skin disease diagnosis and treatment monitoring.

  13. Improvement of Analytical Technique for Determination of Gold in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This article elucidates the improvement of analytical technique for determination of gold in geological matrix. Samples suspected to have gold in them were subjected to neutron flux from the Nigeria Research Reactor (NRR-1), a Miniature Neutron Source Reactor (MNSR). Two geological samples – one sample was ...

  14. In-depth characterization of prebiotic galactooligosaccharides by a combination of analytical techniques

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Coulier, L.; Timmermans, J.; Richard, B.; Dool, R. van den; Haaksman, I.; Klarenbeek, B.; Slaghek, T.; Dongen, W. van

    2009-01-01

    A commercial prebiotic galacto-oligosaccharide mixture (Vivinal GOS) was extensively characterized using a combination of analytical techniques. The different techniques were integrated to give complementary information on specific characteristics of the oligosaccharide mixture, ranging from global

  15. Investigating the Effects of Group Practice Performed Using Psychodrama Techniques on Adolescents' Conflict Resolution Skills

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karatas, Zeynep

    2011-01-01

    The aim of this study is to examine the effects of group practice which is performed using psychodrama techniques on adolescents' conflict resolution skills. The subjects, for this study, were selected among the high school students who have high aggression levels and low problem solving levels attending Haci Zekiye Arslan High School, in Nigde.…

  16. Classification of High Spatial Resolution, Hyperspectral ...

    Science.gov (United States)

    EPA announced the availability of the final report,Classification of High Spatial Resolution, Hyperspectral Remote Sensing Imagery of the Little Miami River Watershed in Southwest Ohio, USA . This report and associated land use/land cover (LULC) coverage is the result of a collaborative effort among an interdisciplinary team of scientists with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (U.S. EPA's) Office of Research and Development in Cincinnati, Ohio. A primary goal of this project is to enhance the use of geography and spatial analytic tools in risk assessment, and to improve the scientific basis for risk management decisions affecting drinking water and water quality. The land use/land cover classification is derived from 82 flight lines of Compact Airborne Spectrographic Imager (CASI) hyperspectral imagery acquired from July 24 through August 9, 2002 via fixed-wing aircraft.

  17. Study of the analytic quality in the determinations of Cr, Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn, Pb and Hg through conventional and nuclear analytical techniques in mosses of the MATV

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Caballero S, B.

    2013-01-01

    To evaluate the environmental risks of air pollution and to facilitate the decision-making for control, is necessary to have the capacity to generate data with analytical quality. A comparison between nuclear (Neutron activation analysis and total reflection X-ray fluorescence spectrometry) and no nuclear analytical techniques (atomic absorption spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry) for simultaneous determination of metal content (Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, Pb and Zn) in mosses from Metropolitan Area of the Toluca Valley (MATV) was performed. Epiphytic mosses (Fabriona ciliaris and Leskea angustata) were sampled in two campaigns, 16 sites (urban, transition and natural) and were prepared for each technique. The biological certified reference materials were used for the quality control and to evaluate accuracy, precision, linearity, detection and quantification limits. Results show that nuclear analytical techniques and no nuclear applied in chemical analysis of Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, Pb and Zn in moss from MATV are comparable and therefore all of these can potentially be used for this purpose. However, if its considered both, the performance parameters and economic/operational characteristics is widely recommended inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry, conventional analytical technique, which showed the highest analytical grade quality. Also were observed spatial and temporal variations in the concentrations of Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, Pb and Zn in mosses from MATV and was discussed its potential origin. The urban sites had the highest concentration of anthropogenic elements as Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Pb and Zn because are strongly impacted by roads with high vehicle traffic. (Author)

  18. High-resolution intravital microscopy.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Volker Andresen

    Full Text Available Cellular communication constitutes a fundamental mechanism of life, for instance by permitting transfer of information through synapses in the nervous system and by leading to activation of cells during the course of immune responses. Monitoring cell-cell interactions within living adult organisms is crucial in order to draw conclusions on their behavior with respect to the fate of cells, tissues and organs. Until now, there is no technology available that enables dynamic imaging deep within the tissue of living adult organisms at sub-cellular resolution, i.e. detection at the level of few protein molecules. Here we present a novel approach called multi-beam striped-illumination which applies for the first time the principle and advantages of structured-illumination, spatial modulation of the excitation pattern, to laser-scanning-microscopy. We use this approach in two-photon-microscopy--the most adequate optical deep-tissue imaging-technique. As compared to standard two-photon-microscopy, it achieves significant contrast enhancement and up to 3-fold improved axial resolution (optical sectioning while photobleaching, photodamage and acquisition speed are similar. Its imaging depth is comparable to multifocal two-photon-microscopy and only slightly less than in standard single-beam two-photon-microscopy. Precisely, our studies within mouse lymph nodes demonstrated 216% improved axial and 23% improved lateral resolutions at a depth of 80 µm below the surface. Thus, we are for the first time able to visualize the dynamic interactions between B cells and immune complex deposits on follicular dendritic cells within germinal centers (GCs of live mice. These interactions play a decisive role in the process of clonal selection, leading to affinity maturation of the humoral immune response. This novel high-resolution intravital microscopy method has a huge potential for numerous applications in neurosciences, immunology, cancer research and

  19. High-Resolution Intravital Microscopy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Andresen, Volker; Pollok, Karolin; Rinnenthal, Jan-Leo; Oehme, Laura; Günther, Robert; Spiecker, Heinrich; Radbruch, Helena; Gerhard, Jenny; Sporbert, Anje; Cseresnyes, Zoltan; Hauser, Anja E.; Niesner, Raluca

    2012-01-01

    Cellular communication constitutes a fundamental mechanism of life, for instance by permitting transfer of information through synapses in the nervous system and by leading to activation of cells during the course of immune responses. Monitoring cell-cell interactions within living adult organisms is crucial in order to draw conclusions on their behavior with respect to the fate of cells, tissues and organs. Until now, there is no technology available that enables dynamic imaging deep within the tissue of living adult organisms at sub-cellular resolution, i.e. detection at the level of few protein molecules. Here we present a novel approach called multi-beam striped-illumination which applies for the first time the principle and advantages of structured-illumination, spatial modulation of the excitation pattern, to laser-scanning-microscopy. We use this approach in two-photon-microscopy - the most adequate optical deep-tissue imaging-technique. As compared to standard two-photon-microscopy, it achieves significant contrast enhancement and up to 3-fold improved axial resolution (optical sectioning) while photobleaching, photodamage and acquisition speed are similar. Its imaging depth is comparable to multifocal two-photon-microscopy and only slightly less than in standard single-beam two-photon-microscopy. Precisely, our studies within mouse lymph nodes demonstrated 216% improved axial and 23% improved lateral resolutions at a depth of 80 µm below the surface. Thus, we are for the first time able to visualize the dynamic interactions between B cells and immune complex deposits on follicular dendritic cells within germinal centers (GCs) of live mice. These interactions play a decisive role in the process of clonal selection, leading to affinity maturation of the humoral immune response. This novel high-resolution intravital microscopy method has a huge potential for numerous applications in neurosciences, immunology, cancer research and developmental biology

  20. Aircraft micro-doppler feature extraction from high range resolution profiles

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Berndt, RJ

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available The use of high range resolution measurements and the micro-Doppler effect produced by rotating or vibrating parts of a target has been well documented. This paper presents a technique for extracting features related to helicopter rotors...

  1. Development and applications of microanalytical techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cholewa, M.

    2005-05-01

    The development of new analytical techniques is an essential part of our everyday life and is dictated by strong progress in modern science and technology. Both these areas require more precise information about materials and processes involved. Due to these requirements we have been observing a rapid growth in the development of techniques that require both a high spatial resolution and high sensitivity. Modern analytical techniques provide an important interface between science and applications. The works presented in this habilitation thesis span the period of almost 20 years. During this time the author has been leading the development and applications of several new analytical and micro analytical techniques which have been documented in this thesis. This development has required development of ideas, strong leadership, organisational skills, organisation of funds and groups to carry out the necessary work. In chapter 3 the use of the PIXE and XANES techniques described an investigation of permeability for selected elements inside cells. It was important to develop new protocols for sample preparation and analysis and a large number of cells were necessary in order to obtain meaningful data. This development was closely associated with work presented in chapter 4 where the role of sample damage under the MeV ion beam bombardment was investigated. At that time we were the leading group in the world to perform such studies. Chapter 5 describes development of new analytical techniques and its possible applications. Development of the SIHF has been probably the most demanding and difficult project and was described in chapter 6 and it was closely related with development of a diamond detector described in chapter 7. A great part of these works were performed by the author at the Micro Analytical Research Centre (MARC) in the School of Physics at the University of Melbourne in Australia. However, some works were performed at GSI in Germany and BNL in USA. (author)

  2. Linearized inversion frameworks toward high-resolution seismic imaging

    KAUST Repository

    Aldawood, Ali

    2016-09-01

    Seismic exploration utilizes controlled sources, which emit seismic waves that propagate through the earth subsurface and get reflected off subsurface interfaces and scatterers. The reflected and scattered waves are recorded by recording stations installed along the earth surface or down boreholes. Seismic imaging is a powerful tool to map these reflected and scattered energy back to their subsurface scattering or reflection points. Seismic imaging is conventionally based on the single-scattering assumption, where only energy that bounces once off a subsurface scatterer and recorded by a receiver is projected back to its subsurface position. The internally multiply scattered seismic energy is considered as unwanted noise and is usually suppressed or removed from the recorded data. Conventional seismic imaging techniques yield subsurface images that suffer from low spatial resolution, migration artifacts, and acquisition fingerprint due to the limited acquisition aperture, number of sources and receivers, and bandwidth of the source wavelet. Hydrocarbon traps are becoming more challenging and considerable reserves are trapped in stratigraphic and pinch-out traps, which require highly resolved seismic images to delineate them. This thesis focuses on developing and implementing new advanced cost-effective seismic imaging techniques aiming at enhancing the resolution of the migrated images by exploiting the sparseness of the subsurface reflectivity distribution and utilizing the multiples that are usually neglected when imaging seismic data. I first formulate the seismic imaging problem as a Basis pursuit denoise problem, which I solve using an L1-minimization algorithm to obtain the sparsest migrated image corresponding to the recorded data. Imaging multiples may illuminate subsurface zones, which are not easily illuminated by conventional seismic imaging using primary reflections only. I then develop an L2-norm (i.e. least-squares) inversion technique to image

  3. High resolution spectroscopy in solids by nuclear magnetic resonance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bonagamba, T.J.

    1991-07-01

    The nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) techniques for High Resolution Spectroscopy in Solids are described. Also the construction project of a partially home made spectrometer and its applications in the characterization of solid samples are shown in detail. The high resolution spectrometer used is implemented with the double resonance multiple pulses sequences and magic angle spinning (MAS) and can be used with solid and liquid samples. The maximum spinning frequency for the MAS experiment is in excess of 5 Khz, the double resonance sequences can be performed with any type of nucleus, in the variable temperature operating range with nitrogen gas: -120 0 C to +160 0 C, and is fully controlled by a Macintosh IIci microcomputer. (author)

  4. Low-cost, high-resolution scanning laser ophthalmoscope for the clinical environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Soliz, P.; Larichev, A.; Zamora, G.; Murillo, S.; Barriga, E. S.

    2010-02-01

    Researchers have sought to gain greater insight into the mechanisms of the retina and the optic disc at high spatial resolutions that would enable the visualization of small structures such as photoreceptors and nerve fiber bundles. The sources of retinal image quality degradation are aberrations within the human eye, which limit the achievable resolution and the contrast of small image details. To overcome these fundamental limitations, researchers have been applying adaptive optics (AO) techniques to correct for the aberrations. Today, deformable mirror based adaptive optics devices have been developed to overcome the limitations of standard fundus cameras, but at prices that are typically unaffordable for most clinics. In this paper we demonstrate a clinically viable fundus camera with auto-focus and astigmatism correction that is easy to use and has improved resolution. We have shown that removal of low-order aberrations results in significantly better resolution and quality images. Additionally, through the application of image restoration and super-resolution techniques, the images present considerably improved quality. The improvements lead to enhanced visualization of retinal structures associated with pathology.

  5. Integrated High Resolution Monitoring of Mediterranean vegetation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cesaraccio, Carla; Piga, Alessandra; Ventura, Andrea; Arca, Angelo; Duce, Pierpaolo; Mereu, Simone

    2017-04-01

    The study of the vegetation features in a complex and highly vulnerable ecosystems, such as Mediterranean maquis, leads to the need of using continuous monitoring systems at high spatial and temporal resolution, for a better interpretation of the mechanisms of phenological and eco-physiological processes. Near-surface remote sensing techniques are used to quantify, at high temporal resolution, and with a certain degree of spatial integration, the seasonal variations of the surface optical and radiometric properties. In recent decades, the design and implementation of global monitoring networks involved the use of non-destructive and/or cheaper approaches such as (i) continuous surface fluxes measurement stations, (ii) phenological observation networks, and (iii) measurement of temporal and spatial variations of the vegetation spectral properties. In this work preliminary results from the ECO-SCALE (Integrated High Resolution Monitoring of Mediterranean vegetation) project are reported. The project was manly aimed to develop an integrated system for environmental monitoring based on digital photography, hyperspectral radiometry , and micrometeorological techniques during three years of experimentation (2013-2016) in a Mediterranean site of Italy (Capo Caccia, Alghero). The main results concerned the analysis of chromatic coordinates indices from digital images, to characterized the phenological patterns for typical shrubland species, determining start and duration of the growing season, and the physiological status in relation to different environmental drought conditions; then the seasonal patterns of canopy phenology, was compared to NEE (Net Ecosystem Exchange) patterns, showing similarities. However, maximum values of NEE and ER (Ecosystem respiration), and short term variation, seemed mainly tuned by inter annual pattern of meteorological variables, in particular of temperature recorded in the months preceding the vegetation green-up. Finally, green signals

  6. Trends in analytical techniques applied to particulate matter characterization: A critical review of fundaments and applications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Galvão, Elson Silva; Santos, Jane Meri; Lima, Ana Teresa; Reis, Neyval Costa; Orlando, Marcos Tadeu D'Azeredo; Stuetz, Richard Michael

    2018-05-01

    Epidemiological studies have shown the association of airborne particulate matter (PM) size and chemical composition with health problems affecting the cardiorespiratory and central nervous systems. PM also act as cloud condensation nuclei (CNN) or ice nuclei (IN), taking part in the clouds formation process, and therefore can impact the climate. There are several works using different analytical techniques in PM chemical and physical characterization to supply information to source apportionment models that help environmental agencies to assess damages accountability. Despite the numerous analytical techniques described in the literature available for PM characterization, laboratories are normally limited to the in-house available techniques, which raises the question if a given technique is suitable for the purpose of a specific experimental work. The aim of this work consists of summarizing the main available technologies for PM characterization, serving as a guide for readers to find the most appropriate technique(s) for their investigation. Elemental analysis techniques like atomic spectrometry based and X-ray based techniques, organic and carbonaceous techniques and surface analysis techniques are discussed, illustrating their main features as well as their advantages and drawbacks. We also discuss the trends in analytical techniques used over the last two decades. The choice among all techniques is a function of a number of parameters such as: the relevant particles physical properties, sampling and measuring time, access to available facilities and the costs associated to equipment acquisition, among other considerations. An analytical guide map is presented as a guideline for choosing the most appropriated technique for a given analytical information required. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. High resolution FISH on super-stretched flow-sorted plant chromosomes.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Valárik, M.; Bartos, J.; Kovarova, P.; Kubalakova, M.; Jong, de J.H.S.G.M.; Dolezel, J.

    2004-01-01

    A novel high-resolution fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) strategy, using super-stretched flow-sorted plant chromosomes as targets, is described. The technique that allows longitudinal extension of chromosomes of more than 100 times their original metaphase size is especially attractive for

  8. HPTA: High-Performance Text Analytics

    OpenAIRE

    Vandierendonck, Hans; Murphy, Karen; Arif, Mahwish; Nikolopoulos, Dimitrios S.

    2017-01-01

    One of the main targets of data analytics is unstructured data, which primarily involves textual data. High-performance processing of textual data is non-trivial. We present the HPTA library for high-performance text analytics. The library helps programmers to map textual data to a dense numeric representation, which can be handled more efficiently. HPTA encapsulates three performance optimizations: (i) efficient memory management for textual data, (ii) parallel computation on associative dat...

  9. Spectral interference of zirconium on 24 analyte elements using CCD based ICP-AES technique

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Adya, V.C.; Sengupta, Arijit; Godbole, S.V.

    2014-01-01

    In the present studies, the spectral interference of zirconium on different analytical lines of 24 critical analytes using CCD based ICP-AES technique is described. Suitable analytical lines for zirconium were identified along with their detection limits. The sensitivity and the detection limits of analytical channels for different elements in presence of Zr matrix were calculated. Subsequently analytical lines with least interference from Zr and better detection limits were selected for their determinations. (author)

  10. An Example of a Hakomi Technique Adapted for Functional Analytic Psychotherapy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Collis, Peter

    2012-01-01

    Functional Analytic Psychotherapy (FAP) is a model of therapy that lends itself to integration with other therapy models. This paper aims to provide an example to assist others in assimilating techniques from other forms of therapy into FAP. A technique from the Hakomi Method is outlined and modified for FAP. As, on the whole, psychotherapy…

  11. Low Power CMOS Circuit Techniques for Optical Interconnects and High Speed Pulse Compression Radar

    OpenAIRE

    Li, Jun

    2015-01-01

    High performance computing and high resolution range sensor motivates the intelligent system innovations such as smart car, smart home/community and 3D motion games. Most importantly, 3D graphics technique requires high performance computation to provide high quality and vivid real-time videos. Accurate motion sensing requires high resolution radar sensor. However, in general, data transmission limits the large scale computation while high resolution radar signal processor limits the detectio...

  12. High-resolution x-ray imaging using a structured scintillator

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hormozan, Yashar, E-mail: hormozan@kth.se; Sychugov, Ilya; Linnros, Jan [Materials and Nano Physics, School of Information and Communication Technology, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Electrum 229, Kista, Stockholm SE-16440 (Sweden)

    2016-02-15

    Purpose: In this study, the authors introduce a new generation of finely structured scintillators with a very high spatial resolution (a few micrometers) compared to conventional scintillators, yet maintaining a thick absorbing layer for improved detectivity. Methods: Their concept is based on a 2D array of high aspect ratio pores which are fabricated by ICP etching, with spacings (pitches) of a few micrometers, on silicon and oxidation of the pore walls. The pores were subsequently filled by melting of powdered CsI(Tl), as the scintillating agent. In order to couple the secondary emitted photons of the back of the scintillator array to a CCD device, having a larger pixel size than the pore pitch, an open optical microscope with adjustable magnification was designed and implemented. By imaging a sharp edge, the authors were able to calculate the modulation transfer function (MTF) of this finely structured scintillator. Results: The x-ray images of individually resolved pores suggest that they have been almost uniformly filled, and the MTF measurements show the feasibility of a few microns spatial resolution imaging, as set by the scintillator pore size. Compared to existing techniques utilizing CsI needles as a structured scintillator, their results imply an almost sevenfold improvement in resolution. Finally, high resolution images, taken by their detector, are presented. Conclusions: The presented work successfully shows the functionality of their detector concept for high resolution imaging and further fabrication developments are most likely to result in higher quantum efficiencies.

  13. Automated Identification of River Hydromorphological Features Using UAV High Resolution Aerial Imagery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Monica Rivas Casado

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available European legislation is driving the development of methods for river ecosystem protection in light of concerns over water quality and ecology. Key to their success is the accurate and rapid characterisation of physical features (i.e., hydromorphology along the river. Image pattern recognition techniques have been successfully used for this purpose. The reliability of the methodology depends on both the quality of the aerial imagery and the pattern recognition technique used. Recent studies have proved the potential of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs to increase the quality of the imagery by capturing high resolution photography. Similarly, Artificial Neural Networks (ANN have been shown to be a high precision tool for automated recognition of environmental patterns. This paper presents a UAV based framework for the identification of hydromorphological features from high resolution RGB aerial imagery using a novel classification technique based on ANNs. The framework is developed for a 1.4 km river reach along the river Dee in Wales, United Kingdom. For this purpose, a Falcon 8 octocopter was used to gather 2.5 cm resolution imagery. The results show that the accuracy of the framework is above 81%, performing particularly well at recognising vegetation. These results leverage the use of UAVs for environmental policy implementation and demonstrate the potential of ANNs and RGB imagery for high precision river monitoring and river management.

  14. High-resolution spectroscopy of gases for industrial applications

    OpenAIRE

    Fateev, Alexander; Clausen, Sønnik

    2012-01-01

    High-resolution spectroscopy of gases is a powerful technique which has various fundamental and practical applications: in situ simultaneous measurements of gas temperature and gas composition, radiative transfer modeling, validation of existing and developing of new databases and etc. Existing databases (e.g. HITRAN, HITEMP or CDSD) can normally be used for absorption spectra calculations at limited temperature/pressure ranges. Therefore experimental measurements of absorption/transmission s...

  15. High-resolution spatiotemporal strain mapping reveals non-uniform deformation in micropatterned elastomers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aksoy, B.; Rehman, A.; Bayraktar, H.; Alaca, B. E.

    2017-04-01

    Micropatterns are generated on a vast selection of polymeric substrates for various applications ranging from stretchable electronics to cellular mechanobiological systems. When these patterned substrates are exposed to external loading, strain field is primarily affected by the presence of microfabricated structures and similarly by fabrication-related defects. The capturing of such nonhomogeneous strain fields is of utmost importance in cases where study of the mechanical behavior with a high spatial resolution is necessary. Image-based non-contact strain measurement techniques are favorable and have recently been extended to scanning tunneling microscope and scanning electron microscope images for the characterization of mechanical properties of metallic materials, e.g. steel and aluminum, at the microscale. A similar real-time analysis of strain heterogeneity in elastomers is yet to be achieved during the entire loading sequence. The available measurement methods for polymeric materials mostly depend on cross-head displacement or precalibrated strain values. Thus, they suffer either from the lack of any real-time analysis, spatiotemporal distribution or high resolution in addition to a combination of these factors. In this work, these challenges are addressed by integrating a tensile stretcher with an inverted optical microscope and developing a subpixel particle tracking algorithm. As a proof of concept, the patterns with a critical dimension of 200 µm are generated on polydimethylsiloxane substrates and strain distribution in the vicinity of the patterns is captured with a high spatiotemporal resolution. In the field of strain measurement, there is always a tradeoff between minimum measurable strain value and spatial resolution. Current noncontact techniques on elastomers can deliver a strain resolution of 0.001% over a minimum length of 5 cm. More importantly, inhomogeneities within this quite large region cannot be captured. The proposed technique can

  16. High-resolution spatiotemporal strain mapping reveals non-uniform deformation in micropatterned elastomers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aksoy, B; Alaca, B E; Rehman, A; Bayraktar, H

    2017-01-01

    Micropatterns are generated on a vast selection of polymeric substrates for various applications ranging from stretchable electronics to cellular mechanobiological systems. When these patterned substrates are exposed to external loading, strain field is primarily affected by the presence of microfabricated structures and similarly by fabrication-related defects. The capturing of such nonhomogeneous strain fields is of utmost importance in cases where study of the mechanical behavior with a high spatial resolution is necessary. Image-based non-contact strain measurement techniques are favorable and have recently been extended to scanning tunneling microscope and scanning electron microscope images for the characterization of mechanical properties of metallic materials, e.g. steel and aluminum, at the microscale. A similar real-time analysis of strain heterogeneity in elastomers is yet to be achieved during the entire loading sequence. The available measurement methods for polymeric materials mostly depend on cross-head displacement or precalibrated strain values. Thus, they suffer either from the lack of any real-time analysis, spatiotemporal distribution or high resolution in addition to a combination of these factors. In this work, these challenges are addressed by integrating a tensile stretcher with an inverted optical microscope and developing a subpixel particle tracking algorithm. As a proof of concept, the patterns with a critical dimension of 200 µ m are generated on polydimethylsiloxane substrates and strain distribution in the vicinity of the patterns is captured with a high spatiotemporal resolution. In the field of strain measurement, there is always a tradeoff between minimum measurable strain value and spatial resolution. Current noncontact techniques on elastomers can deliver a strain resolution of 0.001% over a minimum length of 5 cm. More importantly, inhomogeneities within this quite large region cannot be captured. The proposed technique can

  17. High Resolution Powder Diffraction and Structure Determination

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cox, D. E.

    1999-01-01

    It is clear that high-resolution synchrotrons X-ray powder diffraction is a very powerful and convenient tool for material characterization and structure determination. Most investigations to date have been carried out under ambient conditions and have focused on structure solution and refinement. The application of high-resolution techniques to increasingly complex structures will certainly represent an important part of future studies, and it has been seen how ab initio solution of structures with perhaps 100 atoms in the asymmetric unit is within the realms of possibility. However, the ease with which temperature-dependence measurements can be made combined with improvements in the technology of position-sensitive detectors will undoubtedly stimulate precise in situ structural studies of phase transitions and related phenomena. One challenge in this area will be to develop high-resolution techniques for ultra-high pressure investigations in diamond anvil cells. This will require highly focused beams and very precise collimation in front of the cell down to dimensions of 50 (micro)m or less. Anomalous scattering offers many interesting possibilities as well. As a means of enhancing scattering contrast it has applications not only to the determination of cation distribution in mixed systems such as the superconducting oxides discussed in Section 9.5.3, but also to the location of specific cations in partially occupied sites, such as the extra-framework positions in zeolites, for example. Another possible application is to provide phasing information for ab initio structure solution. Finally, the precise determination of f as a function of energy through an absorption edge can provide useful information about cation oxidation states, particularly in conjunction with XANES data. In contrast to many experiments at a synchrotron facility, powder diffraction is a relatively simple and user-friendly technique, and most of the procedures and software for data analysis

  18. Shipboard Analytical Capabilities on the Renovated JOIDES Resolution, IODP Riserless Drilling Vessel

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blum, P.; Foster, P.; Houpt, D.; Bennight, C.; Brandt, L.; Cobine, T.; Crawford, W.; Fackler, D.; Fujine, K.; Hastedt, M.; Hornbacher, D.; Mateo, Z.; Moortgat, E.; Vasilyev, M.; Vasilyeva, Y.; Zeliadt, S.; Zhao, J.

    2008-12-01

    The JOIDES Resolution (JR) has conducted 121 scientific drilling expeditions during the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) and the first phase of the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) (1983-2006). The vessel and scientific systems have just completed an NSF-sponsored renovation (2005-2008). Shipboard analytical systems have been upgraded, within funding constraints imposed by market driven vessel conversion cost increases, to include: (1) enhanced shipboard analytical services including instruments and software for sampling and the capture of chemistry, physical properties, and geological data; (2) new data management capabilities built around a laboratory information management system (LIMS), digital asset management system, and web services; (3) operations data services with enhanced access to navigation and rig instrumentation data; and (4) a combination of commercial and home-made user applications for workflow- specific data extractions, generic and customized data reporting, and data visualization within a shipboard production environment. The instrumented data capture systems include a new set of core loggers for rapid and non-destructive acquisition of images and other physical properties data from drill cores. Line-scan imaging and natural gamma ray loggers capture data at unprecedented quality due to new and innovative designs. Many instruments used to characterize chemical compounds of rocks, sediments, and interstitial fluids were upgraded with the latest technology. The shipboard analytical environment features a new and innovative framework (DESCinfo) and application (DESClogik) for capturing descriptive and interpretive data from geological sub-domains such as sedimentology, petrology, paleontology, structural geology, stratigraphy, etc. This system fills a long-standing gap by providing a global database, controlled vocabularies and taxa name lists with version control, a highly configurable spreadsheet environment for data capture, and

  19. Expedient data mining for nontargeted high-resolution LC-MS profiles of biological samples.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hnatyshyn, Serhiy; Shipkova, Petia; Sanders, Mark

    2013-05-01

    The application of high-resolution LC-MS metabolomics for drug candidate toxicity screening reflects phenotypic changes of an organism caused by induced chemical interferences. Its success depends not only on the ability to translate the acquired analytical information into biological knowledge, but also on the timely delivery of the results to aid the decision making process in drug discovery and development. Recent improvements in analytical instrumentation have resulted in the ability to acquire extremely information-rich datasets. These new data collection abilities have shifted the bottleneck in the timeline of metabolomic studies to the data analysis step. This paper describes our approach to expedient data analysis of nontargeted high-resolution LC-MS profiles of biological samples. The workflow is illustrated with the example of metabolomics study of time-dependent fasting in male rats. The results from measurement of 220 endogenous metabolites in urine samples illustrate significant biochemical changes induced by fasting. The developed software enables the reporting of relative quantities of annotated components while maintaining practical turnaround times. Each component annotation in the report is validated using both calculated isotopic peaks patterns and experimentally determined retention time data on standards.

  20. ELECTRON BUNCH CHARACTERIZATION WITH SUBPICOSECOND RESOLUTION USING ELECTRO-OPTIC TECHNIQUE

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    SEMERTZIDIS, Y.K.; CASTILLO, V.; LARSEN, R.; LAZARUS, D.M.; NIKAS, D.; OZBEN, C.; SRINIVASAN-RAO, T.; STILLMAN, A.; TSANG, T.; KOWALSKI, L.

    2001-01-01

    In the past decade, the bunch lengths of electrons in accelerators have decreased dramatically and are in the range off a few millimeters. Measurement of the length as well as the longitudinal profile of these short bunches have been a topic of research in a number of institutions. One of the techniques uses the electric field induced by the passage of electrons in the vicinity of a birefringent crystal to change its optical characteristics. Well-established electro-optic techniques can then be used to measure the temporal characteristics of the electron bunch. The inherent fast response of the crystal facilitates the measurement to femtosecond time resolution. However, the resolution in experiments so far has been limited to 70 ps, by the bandwidth of the detection equipment. Use of a streak camera can improve this resolution to a few picoseconds. In this paper we present a novel, non-invasive, single-shot approach to improve the resolution to tens of femtoseconds so that sub mm bunch length can be measured

  1. International conference on isotopic and nuclear analytical techniques for health and environment. Unedited papers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2004-01-01

    The IAEA has been supporting nuclear and isotopic analytical techniques as part of its mandate to foster the peaceful uses of nuclear energy for many years. Nuclear analytical laboratories have been installed and upgraded through technical co-operation assistance in many laboratories of Member States. These techniques, including INAA, CRF, PIXE, stable isotopes and radioisotopes, α, β, γ spectrometry, Moessbauer spectrometry, etc., have been applied to a wide range of subjects with varying success. Nuclear analytical techniques, featuring some intrinsic quality control aspects, such as multi-nuclide analysis, frequently serve as 'reference methods' to crosscheck critical results. As nuclear properties of elements are targeted, matrix problems seem to be negligible. In light of its continued commitment and support, the IAEA organized the International Conference on Isotopic and Nuclear Analytical Techniques for Health and Environment. Out of 220 from 61 countries who applied for participation, 155 official participants and five observers from 47 countries were in attendance, with 67 from 32 developing countries and 21 from international organizations, including the World Health Organization. Eleven plenary sessions were held. Also conducted was a panel discussion on Human Capacity Development Needs in the Areas of Analytical Quality Control Services (AQCS), Radiochemistry and Nutrition. The scientific sessions were divided into several topics, which reflect some of the important activities of the IAEA's Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications (NA): - Isotopic and nuclear techniques (general); - Metrology and quality assurance in nuclear measurements; - Nuclear analytical techniques for environmental monitoring; - Radioecology; - Environmental monitoring; - Radiological safety of food and water; - Methodological aspects of stable isotope techniques in health and environment; - Applications of isotopic techniques in health and environment; - New

  2. Nuclear analytical techniques applied to characterization of atmospheric aerosols in Amazon Region

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gerab, Fabio; Artaxo, Paulo

    1996-01-01

    This work presents the atmospheric aerosols characterization that exist in different regions of Amazon basin. The biogenic aerosol emission by forest, as well as the atmospheric emissions of particulate materials due to biomass burning, were analyzed. Samples of aerosol particles were collected during three years in two different locations of Amazon region using Stacked Unit Filters. In order to study these samples some analytical nuclear techniques were used. The high concentrations of aerosols as a result of biomass burning process were observed in the period of june-september

  3. Ultra High-Mass Resolution Paper Spray by Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance Mass Spectrometry

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kevin D. Quinn

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Paper Spray Ionization is an atmospheric pressure ionization technique that utilizes an offline electro-osmotic flow to generate ions off a paper medium. This technique can be performed on a Bruker SolariX Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer by modifying the existing nanospray source. High-resolution paper spray spectra were obtained for both organic and biological samples to demonstrate the benefit of linking the technique with a high-resolution mass analyzer. Error values in the range 0.23 to 2.14 ppm were obtained for calf lung surfactant extract with broadband mass resolving power (m/Δm50% above 60,000 utilizing an external calibration standard.

  4. Facile room-temperature solution-phase synthesis of a spherical covalent organic framework for high-resolution chromatographic separation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Cheng-Xiong; Liu, Chang; Cao, Yi-Meng; Yan, Xiu-Ping

    2015-08-07

    A simple and facile room-temperature solution-phase synthesis was developed to fabricate a spherical covalent organic framework with large surface area, good solvent stability and high thermostability for high-resolution chromatographic separation of diverse important industrial analytes including alkanes, cyclohexane and benzene, α-pinene and β-pinene, and alcohols with high column efficiency and good precision.

  5. Self-triggered image intensifier tube for high-resolution UHECR imaging detector

    CERN Document Server

    Sasaki, M; Jobashi, M

    2003-01-01

    The authors have developed a self-triggered image intensifier tube with high-resolution imaging capability. An image detected by a first image intensifier tube as an electrostatic lens with a photocathode diameter of 100 mm is separated by a half-mirror into a path for CCD readout (768x494 pixels) and a fast control to recognize and trigger the image. The proposed system provides both a high signal-to-noise ratio to improve single photoelectron detection and excellent spatial resolution between 207 and 240 mu m rendering this device a potentially essential tool for high-energy physics and astrophysics experiments, as well as high-speed photography. When combined with a 1-arcmin resolution optical system with 50 deg. field-of-view proposed by the present authors, the observation of ultra high-energy cosmic rays and high-energy neutrinos using this device is expected, leading to revolutionary progress in particle astrophysics as a complementary technique to traditional astronomical observations at multiple wave...

  6. High resolution diffraction imaging of mercuric iodide: Demonstration of the necessity for alternate crystal processing techniques for highly purified material

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Steiner, B.; Berg, L. van den; Laor, U.

    1995-01-01

    The overall crystalline lattice uniformity in recently available, highly purified mercuric iodide single crystals has been shown to be impacted by crystal handling techniques that were previously satisfactory. High resolution diffraction imaging of the surface regularity of crystals of various levels of purity and growth orientation shows: (1) that the newer materials have a generally lower level of precipitates, (2) that the incidence of these precipitates is now closely correlated with growth direction, and (3) that the deformation resistance and resulting sensitivity to crystal handling procedures are also closely correlated with these factors in this soft material. As a result, gentler cutting and polishing procedures have been developed and are shown to be effective in preserving overall lattice regularity in the new material. The polishing required to remove residual surface scratches affect the lattice orientation of the softer, precipitate-free regions, while not affecting those regions with detectable levels of precipitates. These results correlate closely with the electrical properties of devices made from these crystals. Mercuric iodide single crystals have proved to be particularly useful for x and γ ray detectors because their room temperature operation allow for simple, efficient, and compact instrumentation

  7. Very high resolution UV and x-ray spectroscopy and imagery of solar active regions. Final report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bruner, M.; Brown, W.A.; Haisch, B.M.

    1987-01-01

    A scientific investigation of the physics of the solar atmosphere, which uses the techniques of high resolution soft x-ray spectroscopy and high resolution UV imagery, is described. The experiments were conducted during a series of three sounding rocket flights. All three flights yielded excellent images in the UV range, showing unprecedented spatial resolution. The second flight recorded the x-ray spectrum of a solar flare, and the third that of an active region. A normal incidence multi-layer mirror was used during the third flight to make the first astronomical x-ray observations using this new technique

  8. Ultra-high resolution protein crystallography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takeda, Kazuki; Hirano, Yu; Miki, Kunio

    2010-01-01

    Many protein structures have been determined by X-ray crystallography and deposited with the Protein Data Bank. However, these structures at usual resolution (1.5< d<3.0 A) are insufficient in their precision and quantity for elucidating the molecular mechanism of protein functions directly from structural information. Several studies at ultra-high resolution (d<0.8 A) have been performed with synchrotron radiation in the last decade. The highest resolution of the protein crystals was achieved at 0.54 A resolution for a small protein, crambin. In such high resolution crystals, almost all of hydrogen atoms of proteins and some hydrogen atoms of bound water molecules are experimentally observed. In addition, outer-shell electrons of proteins can be analyzed by the multipole refinement procedure. However, the influence of X-rays should be precisely estimated in order to derive meaningful information from the crystallographic results. In this review, we summarize refinement procedures, current status and perspectives for ultra high resolution protein crystallography. (author)

  9. Evaluation of high-resolution mass spectrometry for urine toxicology screening in a pain management setting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crews, Bridgit O; Pesce, Amadeo J; West, Robert; Nguyen, Hugh; Fitzgerald, Robert L

    2012-01-01

    To evaluate liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HR-MS) for urine toxicology screening, 29 analytes were quantitated in 152 urine specimens from patients with chronic pain using two unique mass spectrometry platforms. De-identified specimens were quantitated in April of 2011 by liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS) and by full-scan LC-HR-MS at Millennium Laboratories. Considering LC-MS-MS as the reference method, false positive results were identified in 19 specimens measured by LC-HR-MS. Application of relative retention times using deuterium labeled internal standards improved the rate of false positive detection to only five specimens, with four occurring for the same analyte. Ultra-high-resolution mass spectrometry (R = 100,000 at m/z 200) showed no improvement over high-resolution mass spectrometry (R = 10,000 at m/z 200) in the number of false positives detected. Quantitative results measured by LC-MS-MS and LC-HR-MS showed good agreement over four orders of dynamic range. This study demonstrates that LC-HR-MS is a suitable platform for toxicology screening for a pain management population and that quantitative accuracy and sensitivity are comparable to that achieved with LC-MS-MS. The specificity of LC-HR-MS is improved by the addition of deuterium labeled internal standards and the implementation of relative retention time matching.

  10. High resolution eddy current microscopy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lantz, M. A.; Jarvis, S. P.; Tokumoto, H.

    2001-01-01

    We describe a sensitive scanning force microscope based technique for measuring local variations in resistivity by monitoring changes in the eddy current induced damping of a cantilever with a magnetic tip oscillating above a conducting sample. To achieve a high sensitivity, we used a cantilever with an FeNdBLa particle mounted on the tip. Resistivity measurements are demonstrated on a silicon test structure with a staircase doping profile. Regions with resistivities of 0.0013, 0.0041, and 0.022 Ω cm are clearly resolved with a lateral resolution of approximately 180 nm. For this range of resistivities, the eddy current induced damping is found to depend linearly on the sample resistivity.

  11. GENERATION OF HIGH RESOLUTION AND HIGH PRECISION ORTHORECTIFIED ROAD IMAGERY FROM MOBILE MAPPING SYSTEM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Sakamoto

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, a novel technique to generate a high resolution and high precision Orthorectified Road Imagery (ORI by using spatial information acquired from a Mobile Mapping System (MMS is introduced. The MMS was equipped with multiple sensors such as GPS, IMU, odometer, 2-6 digital cameras and 2-4 laser scanners. In this study, a Triangulated Irregular Network (TIN based approach, similar to general aerial photogrammetry, was adopted to build a terrain model in order to generate ORI with high resolution and high geometric precision. Compared to aerial photogrammetry, there are several issues that are needed to be addressed. ORI is generated by merging multiple time sequence images of a short section. Hence, the influence of occlusion due to stationary objects, such as telephone poles, trees, footbridges, or moving objects, such as vehicles, pedestrians are very significant. Moreover, influences of light falloff at the edges of cameras, tone adjustment among images captured from different cameras or a round trip data acquisition of the same path, and time lag between image exposure and laser point acquisition also need to be addressed properly. The proposed method was applied to generate ORI with 1 cm resolution, from the actual MMS data sets. The ORI generated by the proposed technique was more clear, occlusion free and with higher resolution compared to the conventional orthorectified coloured point cloud imagery. Moreover, the visual interpretation of road features from the ORI was much easier. In addition, the experimental results also validated the effectiveness of proposed radiometric corrections. In occluded regions, the ORI was compensated by using other images captured from different angles. The validity of the image masking process, in the occluded regions, was also ascertained.

  12. Electrochemistry-High Resolution Mass Spectrometry to Study Oxidation Products of Trimethoprim

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marc-André Lecours

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The study of the fate of emerging organic contaminants (EOCs, especially the identification of transformation products, after water treatment or in the aquatic environment, is a topic of growing interest. In recent years, electrochemistry coupled to mass spectrometry has attracted a lot of attention as an alternative technique to investigate oxidation metabolites of organic compounds. The present study used different electrochemical approaches, such as cyclic voltammetry, electrolysis, electro-assisted Fenton reaction coupled offline to high resolution mass spectrometry and thin-layer flow cell coupled online to high resolution mass spectrometry, to study oxidation products of the anti-infective trimethoprim, a contaminant of emerging concern frequently reported in wastewaters and surface waters. Results showed that mono- and di-hydroxylated derivatives of trimethoprim were generated in electrochemically and possibly tri-hydroxylated derivatives as well. Those compounds have been previously reported as mammalian and bacterial metabolites as well as transformation products of advance oxidation processes applied to waters containing trimethoprim. Therefore, this study confirmed that electrochemical techniques are relevant not only to mimic specific biotransformation reactions of organic contaminants, as it has been suggested previously, but also to study the oxidation reactions of organic contaminants of interest in water treatment. The key role that redox reactions play in the environment make electrochemistry-high resolution mass spectrometry a sensitive and simple technique to improve our understanding of the fate of organic contaminants in the environment.

  13. Comparison of analytical techniques for dynamic trace metal speciation in natural freshwaters.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Sigg, Laura; Black, Frank; Buffle, Jacques; Cao, Jun; Cleven, Rob; Davison, William; Galceran, Josep; Gunkel, Peggy; Kalis, Erwin; Kistler, David; Martin, Michel; Noël, Stéphane; Nur, Yusuf; Odzak, Niksa; Puy, Jaume; Riemsdijk, Willem van; Temminghoff, Erwin; Tercier-Waeber, Mary-Lou; Toepperwien, Stefanie; Town, Raewyn M; Unsworth, Emily R; Warnken, Kent W; Weng, Liping; Xue, Hanbin; Zhang, Hao

    2006-01-01

    Several techniques for speciation analysis of Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb, and Ni are used in freshwater systems and compared with respect to their performance and to the metal species detected. The analytical techniques comprise the following: (i) diffusion gradients in thin-film gels (DGT); (ii) gel integrated

  14. Nuclear analytical techniques for on-line elemental analysis in industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1988-06-01

    This report is the result of an advisory group meeting held in Espoo, Finland, 1-5 June, 1987. The purpose of the meeting was to assess the present status and development of nuclear analytical techniques used for industrial process control. The report gives an overview of the different nuclear techniques used for process control and the most important applications. A separate abstract was prepared for each of the 7 papers presented at the meeting. Refs, figs and tabs

  15. High-emulation mask recognition with high-resolution hyperspectral video capture system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feng, Jiao; Fang, Xiaojing; Li, Shoufeng; Wang, Yongjin

    2014-11-01

    We present a method for distinguishing human face from high-emulation mask, which is increasingly used by criminals for activities such as stealing card numbers and passwords on ATM. Traditional facial recognition technique is difficult to detect such camouflaged criminals. In this paper, we use the high-resolution hyperspectral video capture system to detect high-emulation mask. A RGB camera is used for traditional facial recognition. A prism and a gray scale camera are used to capture spectral information of the observed face. Experiments show that mask made of silica gel has different spectral reflectance compared with the human skin. As multispectral image offers additional spectral information about physical characteristics, high-emulation mask can be easily recognized.

  16. D2B, a new high resolution neutron powder diffractometer at ILL Grenoble

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hewat, A.W.

    1987-01-01

    Applications of high resolution neutron powder diffraction to materials science have grown rapidly in the past 10 years, with the development of Rietveld methods of profile refinement, and new high resolution diffractometers and multidetectors. Materials studied range from catalysts to zeolites, and from battery electrodes to prestressed superconducting wires. Although the techniques have now been adapted for X-ray and synchrotron radiation, neutron powder diffraction retains unique advantages. In this paper we describe the design and first test measurements on the latest high resolution powder diffractometer D2B at ILL Grenoble. A review of the applications is published in Chemica Scripta (1986). (author) 9 refs., 6 figs., 2 tabs

  17. High-intensity x-ray holography: an approach to high-resolution snapshot imaging of biological specimens

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Solem, J.C.

    1982-08-01

    The crucial physical and technological issues pertaining to the holographic imaging of biological structures with a short-pulse, high-intensity, high-quantum-energy laser were examined. The limitations of x-ray optics are discussed. Alternative holographic techniques were considered, and it was concluded that far-field Fresnel transform holography (Fraunhofer holography) using a photoresist recording surface is most tractable with near term technology. The hydrodynamic expansion of inhomogeneities within the specimen is discussed. It is shown that expansion is the major source of image blurring. Analytic expressions were derived for the explosion of protein concentrations in an x-ray transparent cytoplasm, compared with numerical calculations, and corrections derived to account for the competitive transport processes by which these inhomogeneities lose energy. It is concluded that for the near term Fresnel transform holography, particularly, far-field or Fraunhofer holography, is more practical than Fourier transform holography. Of the alternative fine grain recording media for use with Fresnel transform holography, a photo-resist is most attractive. For best resolution, exposure times must be limited to a few picoseconds, and this calls for investigation of mechanisms to shutter the laser or gate the recording surface. The best contrast ratio between the nitrogen-bearing polymers (protein and the nucleic acids) and water is between the K-edges of oxygen and nitrogen

  18. High-intensity x-ray holography: an approach to high-resolution snapshot imaging of biological specimens

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Solem, J.C.

    1982-08-01

    The crucial physical and technological issues pertaining to the holographic imaging of biological structures with a short-pulse, high-intensity, high-quantum-energy laser were examined. The limitations of x-ray optics are discussed. Alternative holographic techniques were considered, and it was concluded that far-field Fresnel transform holography (Fraunhofer holography) using a photoresist recording surface is most tractable with near term technology. The hydrodynamic expansion of inhomogeneities within the specimen is discussed. It is shown that expansion is the major source of image blurring. Analytic expressions were derived for the explosion of protein concentrations in an x-ray transparent cytoplasm, compared with numerical calculations, and corrections derived to account for the competitive transport processes by which these inhomogeneities lose energy. It is concluded that for the near term Fresnel transform holography, particularly, far-field or Fraunhofer holography, is more practical than Fourier transform holography. Of the alternative fine grain recording media for use with Fresnel transform holography, a photo-resist is most attractive. For best resolution, exposure times must be limited to a few picoseconds, and this calls for investigation of mechanisms to shutter the laser or gate the recording surface. The best contrast ratio between the nitrogen-bearing polymers (protein and the nucleic acids) and water is between the K-edges of oxygen and nitrogen.

  19. Analysis of corrosion layers in ancient Roman silver coins with high resolution surface spectroscopic techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Keturakis, Christopher J.; Notis, Ben; Blenheim, Alex; Miller, Alfred C.; Pafchek, Rob; Notis, Michael R.; Wachs, Israel E.

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • Five ancient silver alloy coins (225 BCE–244 CE) were analyzed using surface characterization techniques. • Both destructive and non-destructive surface characterization methods were developed. • Alloying with copper, even in small amounts, leads to the formation of an outer Cu 2 O corrosion layer. - Abstract: Determination of the microchemistry of surface corrosion layers on ancient silver alloy coins is important both in terms of understanding the nature of archaeological environmental conditions to which these ancient coins were exposed and also to help in their conservation. In this present study, five ancient silver alloy coins (225 BCE–244 CE) were used as test vehicles to measure their immediate surface microchemistry and evaluate the appropriateness and limitations of High Sensitivity-Low Energy Ion Scattering Spectroscopy (HS-LEIS, 0.3 nm depth analysis), High Resolution-X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (HR-XPS, 1–3 nm depth analysis) and High Resolution-Raman Spectroscopy (HR-Raman, ∼1000 nm depth analysis). Additional information about the deeper corrosion layers, up to ∼300–1000 nm, was provided by dynamic HS-LEIS and HR-Raman spectroscopy. While not archeologically significant, the use of these coins of small commercial value provides data that is more representative of the weaker signals typically obtained from ancient corroded objects, which can be in stark contrast to pristine data often obtained from carefully prepared alloys of known composition. The oldest coins, from 225 to 214 BCE, possessed an outermost surface layer containing Cu 2 O, Na, Al, Pb, and adsorbed hydrocarbons, while the more recent coins, from 98 to 244 CE, contained Cu 2 O, Ag, N, F, Na, Al, S, Cl, and adsorbed hydrocarbons in similar corresponding surface layers. It thus appears that alloying with copper, even in small amounts, leads to the formation of an outer Cu 2 O layer. Depth profiling revealed the presence of K, Na, Cl, and S as key

  20. Semi-analytical wave functions in relativistic average atom model for high-temperature plasmas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Guo Yonghui; Duan Yaoyong; Kuai Bin

    2007-01-01

    The semi-analytical method is utilized for solving a relativistic average atom model for high-temperature plasmas. Semi-analytical wave function and the corresponding energy eigenvalue, containing only a numerical factor, are obtained by fitting the potential function in the average atom into hydrogen-like one. The full equations for the model are enumerated, and more attentions are paid upon the detailed procedures including the numerical techniques and computer code design. When the temperature of plasmas is comparatively high, the semi-analytical results agree quite well with those obtained by using a full numerical method for the same model and with those calculated by just a little different physical models, and the result's accuracy and computation efficiency are worthy of note. The drawbacks for this model are also analyzed. (authors)

  1. High resolution and high voltage electron microscopy at the University of California, Berkeley

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thomas, G.; Westmacott, K.H.

    1978-01-01

    Recent applications of high-resolution and high-voltage techniques at Berkely are described, using 100-kV TEMs and a standard 650-keV HVEM: grain boundary precipitation in Al--Zn, lattice imaging of grain boundaries in ceramics, steels, phase transitions and magnetic properties of ferrites, lattice defects, precipitation in Al--Si and behavior of interstitial dislocations under electron irradiation, effect of oxide films on loop formation in Al--Mg, and polytypism in magnesium Sialon. 13 refs. 12 figs

  2. Linear circuit transfer functions an introduction to fast analytical techniques

    CERN Document Server

    Basso, Christophe P

    2016-01-01

    Linear Circuit Transfer Functions: An introduction to Fast Analytical Techniques teaches readers how to determine transfer functions of linear passive and active circuits by applying Fast Analytical Circuits Techniques. Building on their existing knowledge of classical loop/nodal analysis, the book improves and expands their skills to unveil transfer functions in a swift and efficient manner. Starting with simple examples, the author explains step-by-step how expressing circuits time constants in different configurations leads to writing transfer functions in a compact and insightful way. By learning how to organize numerators and denominators in the fastest possible way, readers will speed-up analysis and predict the frequency resp nse of simple to complex circuits. In some cases, they will be able to derive the final expression by inspection, without writing a line of algebra. Key features: * Emphasizes analysis through employing time constant-based methods discussed in other text books but not widely us...

  3. High resolution solar observations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Title, A.

    1985-01-01

    Currently there is a world-wide effort to develop optical technology required for large diffraction limited telescopes that must operate with high optical fluxes. These developments can be used to significantly improve high resolution solar telescopes both on the ground and in space. When looking at the problem of high resolution observations it is essential to keep in mind that a diffraction limited telescope is an interferometer. Even a 30 cm aperture telescope, which is small for high resolution observations, is a big interferometer. Meter class and above diffraction limited telescopes can be expected to be very unforgiving of inattention to details. Unfortunately, even when an earth based telescope has perfect optics there are still problems with the quality of its optical path. The optical path includes not only the interior of the telescope, but also the immediate interface between the telescope and the atmosphere, and finally the atmosphere itself

  4. High speed, High resolution terahertz spectrometers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Youngchan; Yee, Dae Su; Yi, Miwoo; Ahn, Jaewook

    2008-01-01

    A variety of sources and methods have been developed for terahertz spectroscopy during almost two decades. Terahertz time domain spectroscopy (THz TDS)has attracted particular attention as a basic measurement method in the fields of THz science and technology. Recently, asynchronous optical sampling (AOS)THz TDS has been demonstrated, featuring rapid data acquisition and a high spectral resolution. Also, terahertz frequency comb spectroscopy (TFCS)possesses attractive features for high precision terahertz spectroscopy. In this presentation, we report on these two types of terahertz spectrometer. Our high speed, high resolution terahertz spectrometer is demonstrated using two mode locked femtosecond lasers with slightly different repetition frequencies without a mechanical delay stage. The repetition frequencies of the two femtosecond lasers are stabilized by use of two phase locked loops sharing the same reference oscillator. The time resolution of our terahertz spectrometer is measured using the cross correlation method to be 270 fs. AOS THz TDS is presented in Fig. 1, which shows a time domain waveform rapidly acquired on a 10ns time window. The inset shows a zoom into the signal with 100ps time window. The spectrum obtained by the fast Fourier Transformation (FFT)of the time domain waveform has a frequency resolution of 100MHz. The dependence of the signal to noise ratio (SNR)on the measurement time is also investigated

  5. Analytical method for the identification and assay of 12 phthalates in cosmetic products: application of the ISO 12787 international standard "Cosmetics-Analytical methods-Validation criteria for analytical results using chromatographic techniques".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gimeno, Pascal; Maggio, Annie-Françoise; Bousquet, Claudine; Quoirez, Audrey; Civade, Corinne; Bonnet, Pierre-Antoine

    2012-08-31

    Esters of phthalic acid, more commonly named phthalates, may be present in cosmetic products as ingredients or contaminants. Their presence as contaminant can be due to the manufacturing process, to raw materials used or to the migration of phthalates from packaging when plastic (polyvinyl chloride--PVC) is used. 8 phthalates (DBP, DEHP, BBP, DMEP, DnPP, DiPP, DPP, and DiBP), classified H360 or H361, are forbidden in cosmetics according to the European regulation on cosmetics 1223/2009. A GC/MS method was developed for the assay of 12 phthalates in cosmetics, including the 8 phthalates regulated. Analyses are carried out on a GC/MS system with electron impact ionization mode (EI). The separation of phthalates is obtained on a cross-linked 5%-phenyl/95%-dimethylpolysiloxane capillary column 30 m × 0.25 mm (i.d.) × 0.25 mm film thickness using a temperature gradient. Phthalate quantification is performed by external calibration using an internal standard. Validation elements obtained on standard solutions, highlight a satisfactory system conformity (resolution>1.5), a common quantification limit at 0.25 ng injected, an acceptable linearity between 0.5 μg mL⁻¹ and 5.0 μg mL⁻¹ as well as a precision and an accuracy in agreement with in-house specifications. Cosmetic samples ready for analytical injection are analyzed after a dilution in ethanol whereas more complex cosmetic matrices, like milks and creams, are assayed after a liquid/liquid extraction using ter-butyl methyl ether (TBME). Depending on the type of cosmetics analyzed, the common limits of quantification for the 12 phthalates were set at 0.5 or 2.5 μg g⁻¹. All samples were assayed using the analytical approach described in the ISO 12787 international standard "Cosmetics-Analytical methods-Validation criteria for analytical results using chromatographic techniques". This analytical protocol is particularly adapted when it is not possible to make reconstituted sample matrices. Copyright © 2012

  6. High-throughput screening and confirmation of 22 banned veterinary drugs in feedstuffs using LC-MS/MS and high-resolution Orbitrap mass spectrometry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Xufeng; Liu, Yanghong; Su, Yijuan; Yang, Jianwen; Bian, Kui; Wang, Zongnan; He, Li-Min

    2014-01-15

    A new analytical strategy based on liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) combined with accurate mass high-resolution Orbitrap mass spectrometry (HR-Orbitrap MS) was performed for high-throughput screening, confirmation, and quantification of 22 banned or unauthorized veterinary drugs in feedstuffs according to Bulletin 235 of the Ministry of Agriculture, China. Feed samples were extracted with acidified acetonitrile, followed by cleanup using solid-phase extraction cartridge. The extracts were first screened by LC-MS/MS in a single selected reaction monitoring mode. The suspected positive samples were subjected to a specific pretreatment for confirmation and quantification of analyte of interest with LC-MS/MS and HR-Orbitrap MS. Mean recoveries for all target analytes (except for carbofuran and chlordimeform, which were about 35 and 45%, respectively) ranged from 52.2 to 90.4%, and the relative standard deviations were screening of real samples obtained from local feed markets and confirmation of the suspected target analytes. It provides a high-throughput, sensitive, and reliable screening, identification, and quantification of banned veterinary drugs in routine monitoring programs of feedstuffs.

  7. SAGA GIS based processing of spatial high resolution temperature data

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gerlitz, Lars; Bechtel, Benjamin; Kawohl, Tobias; Boehner, Juergen; Zaksek, Klemen

    2013-01-01

    Many climate change impact studies require surface and near surface temperature data with high spatial and temporal resolution. The resolution of state of the art climate models and remote sensing data is often by far to coarse to represent the meso- and microscale distinctions of temperatures. This is particularly the case for regions with a huge variability of topoclimates, such as mountainous or urban areas. Statistical downscaling techniques are promising methods to refine gridded temperature data with limited spatial resolution, particularly due to their low demand for computer capacity. This paper presents two downscaling approaches - one for climate model output and one for remote sensing data. Both are methodically based on the FOSS-GIS platform SAGA. (orig.)

  8. PROFIL-360 high resolution steam generator tube profilometry system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Glass, S.W.

    1985-01-01

    A high-resolution profilometry system, PROFIL 360, has been developed to assess the condition of steam generator tubes and rapidly produce the data to evaluate the potential for developing in-service leaks. The probe has an electromechanical sensor in a rotating head. This technique has been demonstrated in the field, saving tubes that would have been plugged with the go-gauge criterion and indicating plugging other high-risk candidates that might otherwise not have been removed from service

  9. Profil-360 high resolution steam generator tube profilometry system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Glass, S.W.

    1985-01-01

    A high-resolution profilometry system, PROFIL 360, has been developed to assess the condition of steam generator tubes and rapidly produce the data to evaluate the potential for developing in-service leaks. The probe has an electromechanical sensor in a rotating head. This technique has been demonstrated in the field, saving tubes that would have been plugged with the go-gauge criterion and indicating plugging other high-risk candidates that might otherwise not have been removed from service

  10. Accelerated high-resolution photoacoustic tomography via compressed sensing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arridge, Simon; Beard, Paul; Betcke, Marta; Cox, Ben; Huynh, Nam; Lucka, Felix; Ogunlade, Olumide; Zhang, Edward

    2016-12-01

    Current 3D photoacoustic tomography (PAT) systems offer either high image quality or high frame rates but are not able to deliver high spatial and temporal resolution simultaneously, which limits their ability to image dynamic processes in living tissue (4D PAT). A particular example is the planar Fabry-Pérot (FP) photoacoustic scanner, which yields high-resolution 3D images but takes several minutes to sequentially map the incident photoacoustic field on the 2D sensor plane, point-by-point. However, as the spatio-temporal complexity of many absorbing tissue structures is rather low, the data recorded in such a conventional, regularly sampled fashion is often highly redundant. We demonstrate that combining model-based, variational image reconstruction methods using spatial sparsity constraints with the development of novel PAT acquisition systems capable of sub-sampling the acoustic wave field can dramatically increase the acquisition speed while maintaining a good spatial resolution: first, we describe and model two general spatial sub-sampling schemes. Then, we discuss how to implement them using the FP interferometer and demonstrate the potential of these novel compressed sensing PAT devices through simulated data from a realistic numerical phantom and through measured data from a dynamic experimental phantom as well as from in vivo experiments. Our results show that images with good spatial resolution and contrast can be obtained from highly sub-sampled PAT data if variational image reconstruction techniques that describe the tissues structures with suitable sparsity-constraints are used. In particular, we examine the use of total variation (TV) regularization enhanced by Bregman iterations. These novel reconstruction strategies offer new opportunities to dramatically increase the acquisition speed of photoacoustic scanners that employ point-by-point sequential scanning as well as reducing the channel count of parallelized schemes that use detector arrays.

  11. CO2-Tea pulse clipping using pulsed high voltage preionization for high spatial resolution I.R. Lidar systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gasmi Taieb

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available An extra-cavity CO2-TEA laser pulse clipper for high spatial resolution atmospheric monitoring is presented. The clipper uses pulsed high voltageto facilitate the breakdown of the gas within the clipper cell. Complete extinction of the nitrogen tail, that degrades the range resolution of LIDARS, is obtained at pressures from 375 up to 1500 Torr for nitrogen and argon gases whereas an attenuation coefficient of almost 102 is achieved for helium. Excellent energy stability and pulse width repeatability were achieved using high voltage pre-ionized gas technique.

  12. CO2-Tea pulse clipping using pulsed high voltage preionization for high spatial resolution I.R. Lidar systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gasmi, Taieb

    2018-04-01

    An extra-cavity CO2-TEA laser pulse clipper for high spatial resolution atmospheric monitoring is presented. The clipper uses pulsed high voltageto facilitate the breakdown of the gas within the clipper cell. Complete extinction of the nitrogen tail, that degrades the range resolution of LIDARS, is obtained at pressures from 375 up to 1500 Torr for nitrogen and argon gases whereas an attenuation coefficient of almost 102 is achieved for helium. Excellent energy stability and pulse width repeatability were achieved using high voltage pre-ionized gas technique.

  13. Optimization of PCR Condition: The First Study of High Resolution Melting Technique for Screening of APOA1 Variance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wahyuningsih, Hesty; K Cayami, Ferdy; Bahrudin, Udin; A Sobirin, Mochamad; Ep Mundhofir, Farmaditya; Mh Faradz, Sultana; Hisatome, Ichiro

    2017-03-01

    High resolution melting (HRM) is a post-PCR technique for variant screening and genotyping based on the different melting points of DNA fragments. The advantages of this technique are that it is fast, simple, and efficient and has a high output, particularly for screening of a large number of samples. APOA1 encodes apolipoprotein A1 (apoA1) which is a major component of high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). This study aimed to obtain an optimal quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR)-HRM condition for screening of APOA1 variance. Genomic DNA was isolated from a peripheral blood sample using the salting out method. APOA1 was amplified using the RotorGeneQ 5Plex HRM. The PCR product was visualized with the HRM amplification curve and confirmed using gel electrophoresis. The melting profile was confirmed by looking at the melting curve. Five sets of primers covering the translated region of APOA1 exons were designed with expected PCR product size of 100-400 bps. The amplified segments of DNA were amplicons 2, 3, 4A, 4B, and 4C. Amplicons 2, 3 and 4B were optimized at an annealing temperature of 60 °C at 40 PCR cycles. Amplicon 4A was optimized at an annealing temperature of 62 °C at 45 PCR cycles. Amplicon 4C was optimized at an annealing temperature of 63 °C at 50 PCR cycles. In addition to the suitable procedures of DNA isolation and quantification, primer design and an estimated PCR product size, the data of this study showed that appropriate annealing temperature and PCR cycles were important factors in optimization of HRM technique for variant screening in APOA1 .

  14. High-resolution electron microscopy and its applications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, F H

    1987-12-01

    A review of research on high-resolution electron microscopy (HREM) carried out at the Institute of Physics, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, is presented. Apart from the direct observation of crystal and quasicrystal defects for some alloys, oxides, minerals, etc., and the structure determination for some minute crystals, an approximate image-contrast theory named pseudo-weak-phase object approximation (PWPOA), which shows the image contrast change with crystal thickness, is described. Within the framework of PWPOA, the image contrast of lithium ions in the crystal of R-Li2Ti3O7 has been observed. The usefulness of diffraction analysis techniques such as the direct method and Patterson method in HREM is discussed. Image deconvolution and resolution enhancement for weak-phase objects by use of the direct method are illustrated. In addition, preliminary results of image restoration for thick crystals are given.

  15. Accurate and precise 40Ar/39Ar dating by high-resolution, multi-collection, mass spectrometry

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Storey, Michael; Rivera, Tiffany; Flude, Stephanie

    New generation, high resolution, multi-collector noble gas mass spectrometers equipped with ion-counting electron multipliers provide opportunities for improved accuracy and precision in 40Ar/39Ar dating. Here we report analytical protocols and age cross-calibration studies using a NU-Instruments......New generation, high resolution, multi-collector noble gas mass spectrometers equipped with ion-counting electron multipliers provide opportunities for improved accuracy and precision in 40Ar/39Ar dating. Here we report analytical protocols and age cross-calibration studies using a NU......-Instruments multi-collector Noblesse noble gas mass spectrometer configured with a faraday detector and three ion-counting electron multipliers. The instrument has the capability to measure several noble gas isotopes simultaneously and to change measurement configurations instantaneously by the use of QUAD lenses...... (zoom optics). The Noblesse offer several advantages over previous generation noble gas mass spectrometers and is particularly suited for single crystal 40Ar/39Ar dating because of: (i) improved source sensitivity (ii) ion-counting electron multipliers, which have much lower signal to noise ratios than...

  16. Quality assurance and quality control of nuclear analytical techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cincu, Emanuelathor

    2001-01-01

    Test and analytical laboratories in East and Central European countries need to prove the reliability and credibility of their economic, environmental, medical and legal decisions and their capacity of issuing reliable, verifiable reports. These demands imposed by the European Union aimed at avoiding a possible barrier to trade for the developing countries. In June 1999, in order to help Member States to develop according to EU objectives and the overall situation of the European market, IAEA launched a new co-operation programme designed to help the nuclear analytical laboratories in nuclear institutions and universities of Member States by training in the use of some Nuclear Analytical Techniques (NAT) that include: alpha, beta and gamma-ray spectrometry, radiochemical and neutron activation analysis, total reflection X-ray fluorescence. The Regional IAEA Project, named 'Quality Assurance/Quality Control of Nuclear Analytical Techniques' (NAT) aims at implementing the QA principles via a system of defined consecutive steps leading to a level on which the QA system is self-sustainable for formal accreditation or certification and satisfies the EU technical performance criteria; the requirements are in accordance with the new ISO/IEC 17025 Standard/Dec.1999 'General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories' - First edition. The Horia Hulubei National Institute for Nuclear Physics and Engineering, IFIN-HH, was admitted for participation in the IAEA Project in June 1999 account taken of its experience in the QA and metrology fields and its performance in the fields of beta and gamma-ray spectrometry, and radiochemical and neutron activation analysis, employed in both basic research and applications for external clients. Two working groups of specialists with the QA and Standardization and Metrology Departments and six analytical groups with the departments of Nuclear Applied Physics, Life Physics and Ionising Radiation Metrology are

  17. Twelfth ISAS national symposium on analytical techniques for safety and sufficiency of natural resources/products: technical papers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Padmanabhan, P.K.; Page, A.G.

    1997-02-01

    This volume contains the proceedings of the ISAS (Indian Society of Analytical Scientists) national symposium. The main thrust of the symposium was on new fuel cycle technologies relevant to thorium utilisation programmes. The technologies for different separation processes, techniques for measurements of various process parameters and highly sensitive analytical methods for the determination of the chemical constituents were among the other topics covered. Quality upgradation, standardisation of methods and validation of measurements which are integral parts of product evaluation were also discussed. Papers relevant to INIS are indexed separately

  18. A new simple and cheap, high-resolution planar optode imaging system: Application to oxgen and pH sensing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Morten; Borisov, Sergey M.; Gunwald, Björn

    2011-01-01

    A simple, high resolution colormetric planar optode imaging approach is presented. The approach is simple and inexpensive yet versatile, and can be used to study the two-dimensional distribution and dynamics of a range of analytes. The imaging approach utilizes the inbuilt color filter of standard...... commercial digital single lens reflex cameras to simultaneously record different colors (red, green, and blue) of luminophore emission light using only one excitation light source. Using the ratio between the intensity of the different colors recorded in a single image analyte concentrations can...... be calculated. The robustness of the approach is documented by obtaining high resolution data of O2 and pH distributions in marine sediments using easy synthesizable sensors. The sensors rely on the platinum(II)octaethylporphyrin (PtOEP) and lipophilic 8-Hydroxy-1,3,6-pyrenetrisulfonic acid trisodium (HPTS...

  19. High-Resolution Sonars: What Resolution Do We Need for Target Recognition?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pailhas Yan

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available Target recognition in sonar imagery has long been an active research area in the maritime domain, especially in the mine-counter measure context. Recently it has received even more attention as new sensors with increased resolution have been developed; new threats to critical maritime assets and a new paradigm for target recognition based on autonomous platforms have emerged. With the recent introduction of Synthetic Aperture Sonar systems and high-frequency sonars, sonar resolution has dramatically increased and noise levels decreased. Sonar images are distance images but at high resolution they tend to appear visually as optical images. Traditionally algorithms have been developed specifically for imaging sonars because of their limited resolution and high noise levels. With high-resolution sonars, algorithms developed in the image processing field for natural images become applicable. However, the lack of large datasets has hampered the development of such algorithms. Here we present a fast and realistic sonar simulator enabling development and evaluation of such algorithms.We develop a classifier and then analyse its performances using our simulated synthetic sonar images. Finally, we discuss sensor resolution requirements to achieve effective classification of various targets and demonstrate that with high resolution sonars target highlight analysis is the key for target recognition.

  20. Prompt nuclear analytical techniques for material research in accelerator driven transmutation technologies: Prospects and quantitative analyses

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vacik, J.; Hnatowicz, V.; Cervena, J.; Perina, V.; Mach, R.

    1998-01-01

    Accelerator driven transmutation technology (ADTT) is a promising way toward liquidation of spent nuclear fuel, nuclear wastes and weapon grade Pu. The ADTT facility comprises a high current (proton) accelerator supplying a sub-critical reactor assembly with spallation neutrons. The reactor part is supposed to be cooled by molten fluorides or metals which serve, at the same time, as a carrier of nuclear fuel. Assumed high working temperature (400-600 C) and high radiation load in the subcritical reactor and spallation neutron source put forward the problem of optimal choice of ADTT construction materials, especially from the point of their radiation and corrosion resistance when in contact with liquid working media. The use of prompt nuclear analytical techniques in ADTT related material research is considered and examples of preliminary analytical results obtained using neutron depth profiling method are shown for illustration. (orig.)

  1. Accessing High Spatial Resolution in Astronomy Using Interference Methods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carbonel, Cyril; Grasset, Sébastien; Maysonnave, Jean

    2018-04-01

    In astronomy, methods such as direct imaging or interferometry-based techniques (Michelson stellar interferometry for example) are used for observations. A particular advantage of interferometry is that it permits greater spatial resolution compared to direct imaging with a single telescope, which is limited by diffraction owing to the aperture of the instrument as shown by Rueckner et al. in a lecture demonstration. The focus of this paper, addressed to teachers and/or students in high schools and universities, is to easily underline both an application of interferometry in astronomy and stress its interest for resolution. To this end very simple optical experiments are presented to explain all the concepts. We show how an interference pattern resulting from the combined signals of two telescopes allows us to measure the distance between two stars with a resolution beyond the diffraction limit. Finally this work emphasizes the breathtaking resolution obtained in state-of-the-art instruments such as the VLTi (Very Large Telescope interferometer).

  2. High-resolution chemical composition of geothermal scalings from Hungary: Preliminary results

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boch, Ronny; Dietzel, Martin; Deák, József; Leis, Albrecht; Mindszenty, Andrea; Demeny, Attila

    2015-04-01

    Geothermal fluids originating from several hundreds to thousands meters depth mostly hold a high potential for secondary mineral precipitation (scaling) due to high total dissolved solid contents at elevated temperature and pressure conditions. The precipitation of e.g. carbonates, sulfates, sulfides, and silica has shown to cause severe problems in geothermal heat and electric power production, when clogging of drill-holes, downhole pumps, pipes and heat exchangers occurs (e.g. deep geothermal doublet systems). Ongoing scaling reduces the efficiency in energy extraction and might even question the abandonment of installations in worst cases. In an attempt to study scaling processes both temporally and spatially we collected mineral precipitates from selected sites in Hungary (Bükfürdo, Szechenyi, Szentes, Igal, Hajduszoboszlo). The samples of up to 8 cm thickness were recovered from different positions of the geothermal systems and precipitated from waters of various temperatures (40-120 °C) and variable overall chemical composition. Most of these scalings show fine lamination patterns representing mineral deposition from weeks up to 45 years at our study sites. Solid-fluid interaction over time captured in the samples are investigated applying high-resolution analytical techniques such as laser-ablation mass-spectrometry and electron microprobe, micromill-sampling for stable isotope analysis, and micro-XRD combined with hydrogeochemical modeling. A detailed investigation of the processes determining the formation and growth of precipitates can help to elucidate the short-term versus long-term geothermal performance with regard to anthropogenic and natural reservoir and production dynamics. Changes in fluid chemistry, temperature, pressure, pH, degassing rate (CO2) and flow rate are reflected by the mineralogical, chemical and isotopic composition of the precipitates. Consequently, this high-resolution approach is intended as a contribution to decipher the

  3. High-resolution, three-step resonance ionization mass spectrometry of gadolinium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Blaum, K.; Wendt, K.; Bushaw, B.A.; Noertershaeuser, W.

    2001-01-01

    High-resolution resonance ionization mass spectrometry has been used to measure triple-resonance autoionization (AI) spectra of gadolinium. Al resonances as narrow as 10 MHz have been observed and isotope shifts and hyperfine structure have been measured in selected AI states. The strongest AI state observed at 49663.576 cm-1 with a photoionization cross section of >3.6x10 -15 cm 2 was found to have an overall detection efficiency of >3x10 -5 , allowing application to a number of ultratrace determination problems. Analytical measurements with a diode-laser-based system have been successfully performed on bio-medical tissue samples

  4. Experimental demonstration of producing high resolution zone plates by spatial-frequency multiplication

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yun, W.B.; Howells, M.R.

    1987-01-01

    In an earlier publication, the possibility of producing high resolution zone plates for x-ray applications by spatial-frequency multiplication was analyzed theoretically. The theory predicted that for a daughter zone plate generated from the interference of mth and nth diffraction orders of a parent zone plate, its primary focal spot size and focal length are one (m + n)th of their counterparts of the parent zone plate, respectively. It was also shown that a zone plate with the outermost zone width of as small as 13.8 nm might be produced by this technique. In this paper, we report an experiment which we carried out with laser light (λ = 4166A) for demonstrating this technique. In addition, an outlook for producing high resolution zone plates for x-ray application is briefly discussed

  5. The convergence of analytic high-β equilibrium in a finite aspect ratio tokamak

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Neches, R. Y.; Cowley, S. C.; Gourdain, P. A.; Leboeuf, J. N.

    2008-01-01

    The characteristics of near-unity-β equilibria are investigated with two codes. CUBE is a multigrid Grad-Shafranov solver [Gourdain et al., J. Comput. Phys. 216, 275 (2006)], and Ophidian was written to compute solutions using analytic unity-β equilibria [Cowley et al., Phys. Fluids B 3, 2066 (1991)]. Results from each method are qualitatively and quantitatively compared across a spectrum of mutually relevant parameters. These comparisons corroborate the theoretical results and provide benchmarks for high-resolution numerical results available from CUBE. Both tools facilitate the exploration of the properties of high-β equilibria, such as a highly diamagnetic plasma and its ramifications for stability and transport.

  6. Evaluation of analytical techniques to determine matals in Sodium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Biancifiori, M.A.; Zappa, G.; Amico, A.

    1985-01-01

    The influence of some instrumental parameters on the analysis of CA, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, and Ni in Sodium solutions, by means of Flame Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (FAAS), is evaluated. The best operating parameters are established and the possibility of application of this analytical technique to the detection of the metallic impurities in Sodium is evaluated, considering the concentration values of nuclear interest

  7. A high resolution ion microscope for cold atoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stecker, Markus; Schefzyk, Hannah; Fortágh, József; Günther, Andreas

    2017-01-01

    We report on an ion-optical system that serves as a microscope for ultracold ground state and Rydberg atoms. The system is designed to achieve a magnification of up to 1000 and a spatial resolution in the 100 nm range, thereby surpassing many standard imaging techniques for cold atoms. The microscope consists of four electrostatic lenses and a microchannel plate in conjunction with a delay line detector in order to achieve single particle sensitivity with high temporal and spatial resolution. We describe the design process of the microscope including ion-optical simulations of the imaging system and characterize aberrations and the resolution limit. Furthermore, we present the experimental realization of the microscope in a cold atom setup and investigate its performance by patterned ionization with a structure size down to 2.7 μ m. The microscope meets the requirements for studying various many-body effects, ranging from correlations in cold quantum gases up to Rydberg molecule formation. (paper)

  8. Digital synthesis of pulse shapes in real time for high resolution radiation spectroscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jordanov, Valentin T.; Knoll, Glenn F.

    1994-01-01

    Techniques have been developed for the synthesis of pulse shapes using fast digital schemes in place of the traditional analog methods of pulse shaping. Efficient recursive algorithms have been developed that allow real time implementation of a shaper that can produce either trapezoidal or triangular pulse shapes. Other recursive techniques are presented which allow a synthesis of finite cusp-like shapes. Preliminary experimental tests show potential advantages of using these techniques in high resolution, high count rate pulse spectroscopy. ((orig.))

  9. Force scanning: a rapid, high-resolution approach for spatial mechanical property mapping

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Darling, E M

    2011-01-01

    Atomic force microscopy (AFM) can be used to co-localize mechanical properties and topographical features through property mapping techniques. The most common approach for testing biological materials at the microscale and nanoscale is force mapping, which involves taking individual force curves at discrete sites across a region of interest. The limitations of force mapping include long testing times and low resolution. While newer AFM methodologies, like modulated scanning and torsional oscillation, circumvent this problem, their adoption for biological materials has been limited. This could be due to their need for specialized software algorithms and/or hardware. The objective of this study is to develop a novel force scanning technique using AFM to rapidly capture high-resolution topographical images of soft biological materials while simultaneously quantifying their mechanical properties. Force scanning is a straightforward methodology applicable to a wide range of materials and testing environments, requiring no special modification to standard AFMs. Essentially, if a contact-mode image can be acquired, then force scanning can be used to produce a spatial modulus map. The current study first validates this technique using agarose gels, comparing results to ones achieved by the standard force mapping approach. Biologically relevant demonstrations are then presented for high-resolution modulus mapping of individual cells, cell-cell interfaces, and articular cartilage tissue.

  10. A data model and database for high-resolution pathology analytical image informatics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Fusheng; Kong, Jun; Cooper, Lee; Pan, Tony; Kurc, Tahsin; Chen, Wenjin; Sharma, Ashish; Niedermayr, Cristobal; Oh, Tae W; Brat, Daniel; Farris, Alton B; Foran, David J; Saltz, Joel

    2011-01-01

    The systematic analysis of imaged pathology specimens often results in a vast amount of morphological information at both the cellular and sub-cellular scales. While microscopy scanners and computerized analysis are capable of capturing and analyzing data rapidly, microscopy image data remain underutilized in research and clinical settings. One major obstacle which tends to reduce wider adoption of these new technologies throughout the clinical and scientific communities is the challenge of managing, querying, and integrating the vast amounts of data resulting from the analysis of large digital pathology datasets. This paper presents a data model, which addresses these challenges, and demonstrates its implementation in a relational database system. This paper describes a data model, referred to as Pathology Analytic Imaging Standards (PAIS), and a database implementation, which are designed to support the data management and query requirements of detailed characterization of micro-anatomic morphology through many interrelated analysis pipelines on whole-slide images and tissue microarrays (TMAs). (1) Development of a data model capable of efficiently representing and storing virtual slide related image, annotation, markup, and feature information. (2) Development of a database, based on the data model, capable of supporting queries for data retrieval based on analysis and image metadata, queries for comparison of results from different analyses, and spatial queries on segmented regions, features, and classified objects. The work described in this paper is motivated by the challenges associated with characterization of micro-scale features for comparative and correlative analyses involving whole-slides tissue images and TMAs. Technologies for digitizing tissues have advanced significantly in the past decade. Slide scanners are capable of producing high-magnification, high-resolution images from whole slides and TMAs within several minutes. Hence, it is becoming

  11. A data model and database for high-resolution pathology analytical image informatics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fusheng Wang

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Background: The systematic analysis of imaged pathology specimens often results in a vast amount of morphological information at both the cellular and sub-cellular scales. While microscopy scanners and computerized analysis are capable of capturing and analyzing data rapidly, microscopy image data remain underutilized in research and clinical settings. One major obstacle which tends to reduce wider adoption of these new technologies throughout the clinical and scientific communities is the challenge of managing, querying, and integrating the vast amounts of data resulting from the analysis of large digital pathology datasets. This paper presents a data model, which addresses these challenges, and demonstrates its implementation in a relational database system. Context: This paper describes a data model, referred to as Pathology Analytic Imaging Standards (PAIS, and a database implementation, which are designed to support the data management and query requirements of detailed characterization of micro-anatomic morphology through many interrelated analysis pipelines on whole-slide images and tissue microarrays (TMAs. Aims: (1 Development of a data model capable of efficiently representing and storing virtual slide related image, annotation, markup, and feature information. (2 Development of a database, based on the data model, capable of supporting queries for data retrieval based on analysis and image metadata, queries for comparison of results from different analyses, and spatial queries on segmented regions, features, and classified objects. Settings and Design: The work described in this paper is motivated by the challenges associated with characterization of micro-scale features for comparative and correlative analyses involving whole-slides tissue images and TMAs. Technologies for digitizing tissues have advanced significantly in the past decade. Slide scanners are capable of producing high-magnification, high-resolution images from whole

  12. Analytical characterization of high-level mixed wastes using multiple sample preparation treatments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    King, A.G.; Baldwin, D.L.; Urie, M.W.; McKinley, S.G.

    1994-01-01

    The Analytical Chemistry Laboratory at the Pacific Northwest Laboratory in Richland, Washington, is actively involved in performing analytical characterization of high-level mixed waste from Hanford's single shell and double shell tank characterization programs. A full suite of analyses is typically performed on homogenized tank core samples. These analytical techniques include inductively-coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy, total organic carbon methods and radiochemistry methods, as well as many others, all requiring some type of remote sample-preparation treatment to solubilize the tank sludge material for analysis. Most of these analytical methods typically use a single sample-preparation treatment, inherently providing elemental information only. To better understand and interpret tank chemistry and assist in identifying chemical compounds, selected analytical methods are performed using multiple sample-preparation treatments. The sample preparation treatments used at Pacific Northwest Laboratory for this work with high-level mixed waste include caustic fusion, acid digestion, and water leach. The type of information available by comparing results from different sample-prep treatments includes evidence for the presence of refractory compounds, acid-soluble compounds, or water-soluble compounds. Problems unique to the analysis of Hanford tank wastes are discussed. Selected results from the Hanford single shell ferrocyanide tank, 241-C-109, are presented, and the resulting conclusions are discussed

  13. Assessment of engineered surfaces roughness by high-resolution 3D SEM photogrammetry

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gontard, L.C., E-mail: lionelcg@gmail.com [Departamento de Ciencia de los Materiales e Ingeniería Metalúrgica y Química Inorgánica, Universidad de Cádiz, Puerto Real 11510 (Spain); López-Castro, J.D.; González-Rovira, L. [Departamento de Ciencia de los Materiales e Ingeniería Metalúrgica y Química Inorgánica, Escuela Superior de Ingeniería, Laboratorio de Corrosión, Universidad de Cádiz, Puerto Real 11519 (Spain); Vázquez-Martínez, J.M. [Departamento de Ingeniería Mecánica y Diseño Industrial, Escuela Superior de Ingeniería, Universidad de Cádiz, Puerto Real 11519 (Spain); Varela-Feria, F.M. [Servicio de Microscopía Centro de Investigación, Tecnología e Innovación (CITIUS), Universidad de Sevilla, Av. Reina Mercedes 4b, 41012 Sevilla (Spain); Marcos, M. [Departamento de Ingeniería Mecánica y Diseño Industrial, Escuela Superior de Ingeniería, Universidad de Cádiz, Puerto Real 11519 (Spain); and others

    2017-06-15

    Highlights: • We describe a method to acquire a high-angle tilt series of SEM images that is symmetrical respect to the zero tilt of the sample stage. The method can be applied in any SEM microscope. • Using the method, high-resolution 3D SEM photogrammetry can be applied on planar surfaces. • 3D models of three surfaces patterned with grooves are reconstructed with high resolution using multi-view freeware photogrammetry software as described in LC Gontard et al. Ultramicroscopy, 2016. • From the 3D models roughness parameters are measured • 3D SEM high-resolution photogrammetry is compared with two conventional methods used for roughness characetrization: stereophotogrammetry and contact profilometry. • It provides three-dimensional information with high-resolution that is out of reach for any other metrological technique. - Abstract: We describe a methodology to obtain three-dimensional models of engineered surfaces using scanning electron microscopy and multi-view photogrammetry (3DSEM). For the reconstruction of the 3D models of the surfaces we used freeware available in the cloud. The method was applied to study the surface roughness of metallic samples patterned with parallel grooves by means of laser. The results are compared with measurements obtained using stylus profilometry (PR) and SEM stereo-photogrammetry (SP). The application of 3DSEM is more time demanding than PR or SP, but it provides a more accurate representation of the surfaces. The results obtained with the three techniques are compared by investigating the influence of sampling step on roughness parameters.

  14. Line width and line shape analysis in the inductively coupled plasma by high resolution Fourier transform spectrometry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Faires, L.M.; Palmer, B.A.; Brault, J.W.

    1984-01-01

    High resolution Fourier transform spectrometry has been used to perform line width and line shape analysis of eighty-one iron I emision lines in the spectral range 290 to 390nm originating in the normal analytical zone of an inductively coupled plasma. Computer programs using non-linear least squares fitting techniques for line shape analysis were applied to the fully resolved spectra to determine Gaussian and Lorentzian components of the total observed line width. The effect of noise in the spectrum on the precision of the line fitting technique was assessed, and the importance of signal to noise ratio for line shape analysis is discussed. Translational (Doppler) temperatures were calculated from the Gaussian components of the line width and were found to be on the order of 6300 0 K. The excitation temperature of iron I was also determined from the same spectral data by the spectroscopic slope method based on the Einstein-Boltzmann expression for spectral intensity and was found to be on the order of 4700 0 K. 31 references

  15. Descriptive and predictive evaluation of high resolution Markov chain precipitation models

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sørup, Hjalte Jomo Danielsen; Madsen, Henrik; Arnbjerg-Nielsen, Karsten

    2012-01-01

    A time series of tipping bucket recordings of very high temporal and volumetric resolution precipitation is modelled using Markov chain models. Both first and second‐order Markov models as well as seasonal and diurnal models are investigated and evaluated using likelihood based techniques. The fi...

  16. High-resolution stratigraphy with strontium isotopes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Depaolo, D J; Ingram, B L

    1985-02-22

    The isotopic ratio of strontium-87 to strontium-86 shows no detectable variation in present-day ocean water but changes slowly over millions of years. The strontium contained in carbonate shells of marine organisms records the ratio of strontium-87 to strontium-86 of the oceans at the time that the shells form. Sedimentary rocks composed of accumulated fossil carbonate shells can be dated and correlated with the use of high precision measurements of the ratio of strontium-87 to strontium-86 with a resolution that is similar to that of other techniques used in age correlation. This method may prove valuable for many geological, paleontological, paleooceanographic, and geochemical problems.

  17. High-Resolution Ultrasound-Switchable Fluorescence Imaging in Centimeter-Deep Tissue Phantoms with High Signal-To-Noise Ratio and High Sensitivity via Novel Contrast Agents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cheng, Bingbing; Bandi, Venugopal; Wei, Ming-Yuan; Pei, Yanbo; D'Souza, Francis; Nguyen, Kytai T; Hong, Yi; Yuan, Baohong

    2016-01-01

    For many years, investigators have sought after high-resolution fluorescence imaging in centimeter-deep tissue because many interesting in vivo phenomena-such as the presence of immune system cells, tumor angiogenesis, and metastasis-may be located deep in tissue. Previously, we developed a new imaging technique to achieve high spatial resolution in sub-centimeter deep tissue phantoms named continuous-wave ultrasound-switchable fluorescence (CW-USF). The principle is to use a focused ultrasound wave to externally and locally switch on and off the fluorophore emission from a small volume (close to ultrasound focal volume). By making improvements in three aspects of this technique: excellent near-infrared USF contrast agents, a sensitive frequency-domain USF imaging system, and an effective signal processing algorithm, for the first time this study has achieved high spatial resolution (~ 900 μm) in 3-centimeter-deep tissue phantoms with high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and high sensitivity (3.4 picomoles of fluorophore in a volume of 68 nanoliters can be detected). We have achieved these results in both tissue-mimic phantoms and porcine muscle tissues. We have also demonstrated multi-color USF to image and distinguish two fluorophores with different wavelengths, which might be very useful for simultaneously imaging of multiple targets and observing their interactions in the future. This work has opened the door for future studies of high-resolution centimeter-deep tissue fluorescence imaging.

  18. Nuclear analytical techniques in Cuban Sugar Industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Diaz Riso, O.; Griffith Martinez, J.

    1996-01-01

    This paper is a review concerning the applications of Nuclear Analytical Techniques in the Cuban sugar industry. The most complete elemental composition of final molasses (34 elements ) and natural zeolites (38) this last one employed as an auxiliary agent in sugar technological processes has been performed by means of Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA) and X-Ray Fluorescence Analysis (XRFA). The trace elements sugar cane soil plant relationship and elemental composition of different types of Cuban sugar (rawr, blanco directo and refine) were also studied. As a result, valuable information referred to the possibilities of using these products in animal and human foodstuff so as in other applications are given

  19. Efficient methodologies for system matrix modelling in iterative image reconstruction for rotating high-resolution PET

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ortuno, J E; Kontaxakis, G; Rubio, J L; Santos, A [Departamento de Ingenieria Electronica (DIE), Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, Ciudad Universitaria s/n, 28040 Madrid (Spain); Guerra, P [Networking Research Center on Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN), Madrid (Spain)], E-mail: juanen@die.upm.es

    2010-04-07

    A fully 3D iterative image reconstruction algorithm has been developed for high-resolution PET cameras composed of pixelated scintillator crystal arrays and rotating planar detectors, based on the ordered subsets approach. The associated system matrix is precalculated with Monte Carlo methods that incorporate physical effects not included in analytical models, such as positron range effects and interaction of the incident gammas with the scintillator material. Custom Monte Carlo methodologies have been developed and optimized for modelling of system matrices for fast iterative image reconstruction adapted to specific scanner geometries, without redundant calculations. According to the methodology proposed here, only one-eighth of the voxels within two central transaxial slices need to be modelled in detail. The rest of the system matrix elements can be obtained with the aid of axial symmetries and redundancies, as well as in-plane symmetries within transaxial slices. Sparse matrix techniques for the non-zero system matrix elements are employed, allowing for fast execution of the image reconstruction process. This 3D image reconstruction scheme has been compared in terms of image quality to a 2D fast implementation of the OSEM algorithm combined with Fourier rebinning approaches. This work confirms the superiority of fully 3D OSEM in terms of spatial resolution, contrast recovery and noise reduction as compared to conventional 2D approaches based on rebinning schemes. At the same time it demonstrates that fully 3D methodologies can be efficiently applied to the image reconstruction problem for high-resolution rotational PET cameras by applying accurate pre-calculated system models and taking advantage of the system's symmetries.

  20. High spatial resolution in laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy of expanding plasmas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Siegel, J.; Epurescu, G.; Perea, A.; Gordillo-Vazquez, F.J.; Gonzalo, J.; Afonso, C.N.

    2005-01-01

    We report a technique that is able to achieve high spatial resolution in the measurement of the temporal and spectral emission characteristics of laser-induced expanding plasmas. The plasma is imaged directly onto the slit of an imaging spectrograph coupled to a time-gated intensified camera, with the plasma expansion direction being parallel to the slit extension. In this way, a single hybrid detection system is used to acquire the spatial, spectral and temporal characteristics of the laser induced plasma. The parallel acquisition approach of this technique ensures a much better spatial resolution in the expansion direction, reproducibility and data acquisition speed than commonly obtained by sequential measurements at different distances from the target. We have applied this technique to study the laser-induced plasma in LiNbO 3 and Bi 12 Ge 1 O 20 , revealing phenomena not seen in such detail with standard instruments. These include extreme line broadening up to a few nanometers accompanied by self-absorption near the target surface, as well as different ablation and expansion dynamics for the different species ejected. Overall, the high precision and wealth of quantitative information accessible with this technique open up new possibilities for the study of fundamental plasma expansion processes during pulsed laser ablation

  1. Navigating Earthquake Physics with High-Resolution Array Back-Projection

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meng, Lingsen

    Understanding earthquake source dynamics is a fundamental goal of geophysics. Progress toward this goal has been slow due to the gap between state-of-art earthquake simulations and the limited source imaging techniques based on conventional low-frequency finite fault inversions. Seismic array processing is an alternative source imaging technique that employs the higher frequency content of the earthquakes and provides finer detail of the source process with few prior assumptions. While the back-projection provides key observations of previous large earthquakes, the standard beamforming back-projection suffers from low resolution and severe artifacts. This thesis introduces the MUSIC technique, a high-resolution array processing method that aims to narrow the gap between the seismic observations and earthquake simulations. The MUSIC is a high-resolution method taking advantage of the higher order signal statistics. The method has not been widely used in seismology yet because of the nonstationary and incoherent nature of the seismic signal. We adapt MUSIC to transient seismic signal by incorporating the Multitaper cross-spectrum estimates. We also adopt a "reference window" strategy that mitigates the "swimming artifact," a systematic drift effect in back projection. The improved MUSIC back projections allow the imaging of recent large earthquakes in finer details which give rise to new perspectives on dynamic simulations. In the 2011 Tohoku-Oki earthquake, we observe frequency-dependent rupture behaviors which relate to the material variation along the dip of the subduction interface. In the 2012 off-Sumatra earthquake, we image the complicated ruptures involving orthogonal fault system and an usual branching direction. This result along with our complementary dynamic simulations probes the pressure-insensitive strength of the deep oceanic lithosphere. In another example, back projection is applied to the 2010 M7 Haiti earthquake recorded at regional distance. The

  2. Determination of total mercury for marine environmental monitoring studies by solid sampling continuum source high resolution atomic absorption spectrometry

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mandjukov, Petko; Orani, Anna Maria; Han, Eunmi; Vassileva, Emilia, E-mail: e.vasileva-veleva@iaea.org

    2015-01-01

    The most critical step in almost all commonly used analytical procedures for Hg determination is the sample preparation due to its extreme volatility. One of the possible solutions of this problem is the application of methods for direct analysis of solid samples. The possibilities for solid sampling high resolution continuum source atomic absorption spectrometry (HR CS AAS) determination of total mercury in various marine environmental samples e.g. sediments and biota are object of the present study. The instrumental parameters were optimized in order to obtain reproducible and interference free analytical signal. A calibration technique based on the use of solid standard certified reference materials similar to the nature of the analyzed sample was developed and applied to various CRMs and real samples. This technique allows simple and reliable evaluation of the uncertainty of the result and the metrological characteristics of the method. A validation approach in line with the requirements of ISO 17025 standard and Eurachem guidelines was followed. With this in mind, selectivity, working range (0.06 to 25 ng for biota and 0.025 to 4 ng for sediment samples, expressed as total Hg) linearity (confirmed by Student's t-test), bias (1.6–4.3%), repeatability (4–9%), reproducibility (9–11%), and absolute limit of detection (0.025 ng for sediment, 0.096 ng for marine biota) were systematically assessed using solid CRMs. The relative expanded uncertainty was estimated at 15% for sediment sample and 8.5% for marine biota sample (k = 2). Demonstration of traceability of measurement results is also presented. The potential of the proposed analytical procedure, based on solid sampling HR CS AAS technique was demonstrated by direct analysis of sea sediments form the Caribbean region and various CRMs. Overall, the use of solid sampling HR CS AAS permits obtaining significant advantages for the determination of this complex analyte in marine samples, such as

  3. High-resolution flow imaging of the carotid arteries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Masaryk, T.J.; Modic, M.T.; Haacke, E.M.; Lenz, G.W.; Ross, J.S.

    1986-01-01

    Recently, high-contrast vascular images have been demonstrated using short TEs, gating and subtraction. However, to obtain short TE values, large gradients are required. This potentially limits the field of view, signal-to-noise- ratio, and resolution. Furthermore, gating in different parts of the cardiac cycle can lead to pixel misregistration. In this study, additional refocusing gradients were applied so that no velocity-dependent dephasing occurs at the echo restoring signal from moving blood. Two cardiac-gated sequences using the same trigger delay and one acquisition were obtained. Preliminary results indicate that good quality vascular images of the carotid bifurcation can be obtained with modifications of the spin-echo technique of with short TEs utilizing a gradient echo technique

  4. A new omni-directional multi-camera system for high resolution surveillance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cogal, Omer; Akin, Abdulkadir; Seyid, Kerem; Popovic, Vladan; Schmid, Alexandre; Ott, Beat; Wellig, Peter; Leblebici, Yusuf

    2014-05-01

    Omni-directional high resolution surveillance has a wide application range in defense and security fields. Early systems used for this purpose are based on parabolic mirror or fisheye lens where distortion due to the nature of the optical elements cannot be avoided. Moreover, in such systems, the image resolution is limited to a single image sensor's image resolution. Recently, the Panoptic camera approach that mimics the eyes of flying insects using multiple imagers has been presented. This approach features a novel solution for constructing a spherically arranged wide FOV plenoptic imaging system where the omni-directional image quality is limited by low-end sensors. In this paper, an overview of current Panoptic camera designs is provided. New results for a very-high resolution visible spectrum imaging and recording system inspired from the Panoptic approach are presented. The GigaEye-1 system, with 44 single cameras and 22 FPGAs, is capable of recording omni-directional video in a 360°×100° FOV at 9.5 fps with a resolution over (17,700×4,650) pixels (82.3MP). Real-time video capturing capability is also verified at 30 fps for a resolution over (9,000×2,400) pixels (21.6MP). The next generation system with significantly higher resolution and real-time processing capacity, called GigaEye-2, is currently under development. The important capacity of GigaEye-1 opens the door to various post-processing techniques in surveillance domain such as large perimeter object tracking, very-high resolution depth map estimation and high dynamicrange imaging which are beyond standard stitching and panorama generation methods.

  5. Imaging collagen type I fibrillogenesis with high spatiotemporal resolution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stamov, Dimitar R; Stock, Erik; Franz, Clemens M; Jähnke, Torsten; Haschke, Heiko

    2015-01-01

    Fibrillar collagens, such as collagen type I, belong to the most abundant extracellular matrix proteins and they have received much attention over the last five decades due to their large interactome, complex hierarchical structure and high mechanical stability. Nevertheless, the collagen self-assembly process is still incompletely understood. Determining the real-time kinetics of collagen type I formation is therefore pivotal for better understanding of collagen type I structure and function, but visualising the dynamic self-assembly process of collagen I on the molecular scale requires imaging techniques offering high spatiotemporal resolution. Fast and high-speed scanning atomic force microscopes (AFM) provide the means to study such processes on the timescale of seconds under near-physiological conditions. In this study we have applied fast AFM tip scanning to study the assembly kinetics of fibrillar collagen type I nanomatrices with a temporal resolution reaching eight seconds for a frame size of 500 nm. By modifying the buffer composition and pH value, the kinetics of collagen fibrillogenesis can be adjusted for optimal analysis by fast AFM scanning. We furthermore show that amplitude-modulation imaging can be successfully applied to extract additional structural information from collagen samples even at high scan rates. Fast AFM scanning with controlled amplitude modulation therefore provides a versatile platform for studying dynamic collagen self-assembly processes at high resolution. - Highlights: • Continuous non-invasive time-lapse investigation of collagen I fibrillogenesis in situ. • Imaging of collagen I self-assembly with high spatiotemporal resolution. • Application of setpoint modulation to study the hierarchical structure of collagen I. • Observing real-time formation of the D-banding pattern in collagen I

  6. Imaging collagen type I fibrillogenesis with high spatiotemporal resolution

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Stamov, Dimitar R, E-mail: stamov@jpk.com [JPK Instruments AG, Bouchéstrasse 12, 12435 Berlin (Germany); Stock, Erik [JPK Instruments AG, Bouchéstrasse 12, 12435 Berlin (Germany); Franz, Clemens M [DFG-Center for Functional Nanostructures (CFN), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Wolfgang-Gaede-Strasse 1a, 76131 Karlsruhe (Germany); Jähnke, Torsten; Haschke, Heiko [JPK Instruments AG, Bouchéstrasse 12, 12435 Berlin (Germany)

    2015-02-15

    Fibrillar collagens, such as collagen type I, belong to the most abundant extracellular matrix proteins and they have received much attention over the last five decades due to their large interactome, complex hierarchical structure and high mechanical stability. Nevertheless, the collagen self-assembly process is still incompletely understood. Determining the real-time kinetics of collagen type I formation is therefore pivotal for better understanding of collagen type I structure and function, but visualising the dynamic self-assembly process of collagen I on the molecular scale requires imaging techniques offering high spatiotemporal resolution. Fast and high-speed scanning atomic force microscopes (AFM) provide the means to study such processes on the timescale of seconds under near-physiological conditions. In this study we have applied fast AFM tip scanning to study the assembly kinetics of fibrillar collagen type I nanomatrices with a temporal resolution reaching eight seconds for a frame size of 500 nm. By modifying the buffer composition and pH value, the kinetics of collagen fibrillogenesis can be adjusted for optimal analysis by fast AFM scanning. We furthermore show that amplitude-modulation imaging can be successfully applied to extract additional structural information from collagen samples even at high scan rates. Fast AFM scanning with controlled amplitude modulation therefore provides a versatile platform for studying dynamic collagen self-assembly processes at high resolution. - Highlights: • Continuous non-invasive time-lapse investigation of collagen I fibrillogenesis in situ. • Imaging of collagen I self-assembly with high spatiotemporal resolution. • Application of setpoint modulation to study the hierarchical structure of collagen I. • Observing real-time formation of the D-banding pattern in collagen I.

  7. Waste minimization in analytical chemistry through innovative sample preparation techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Smith, L. L.

    1998-01-01

    Because toxic solvents and other hazardous materials are commonly used in analytical methods, characterization procedures result in significant and costly amount of waste. We are developing alternative analytical methods in the radiological and organic areas to reduce the volume or form of the hazardous waste produced during sample analysis. For the radiological area, we have examined high-pressure, closed-vessel microwave digestion as a way to minimize waste from sample preparation operations. Heated solutions of strong mineral acids can be avoided for sample digestion by using the microwave approach. Because reactivity increases with pressure, we examined the use of less hazardous solvents to leach selected contaminants from soil for subsequent analysis. We demonstrated the feasibility of this approach by extracting plutonium from a NET reference material using citric and tartaric acids with microwave digestion. Analytical results were comparable to traditional digestion methods, while hazardous waste was reduced by a factor often. We also evaluated the suitability of other natural acids, determined the extraction performance on a wider variety of soil types, and examined the extraction efficiency of other contaminants. For the organic area, we examined ways to minimize the wastes associated with the determination of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in environmental samples. Conventional methods for analyzing semivolatile organic compounds are labor intensive and require copious amounts of hazardous solvents. For soil and sediment samples, we have a method to analyze PCBs that is based on microscale extraction using benign solvents (e.g., water or hexane). The extraction is performed at elevated temperatures in stainless steel cells containing the sample and solvent. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) was used to quantitate the analytes in the isolated extract. More recently, we developed a method utilizing solid-phase microextraction (SPME) for natural

  8. Microbeam high-resolution diffraction and x-ray standing wave methods applied to semiconductor structures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kazimirov, A; Bilderback, D H; Huang, R; Sirenko, A; Ougazzaden, A

    2004-01-01

    A new approach to conditioning x-ray microbeams for high angular resolution x-ray diffraction and scattering techniques is introduced. We combined focusing optics (one-bounce imaging capillary) and post-focusing collimating optics (miniature Si(004) channel-cut crystal) to generate an x-ray microbeam with a size of 10 μm and ultimate angular resolution of 14 μrad. The microbeam was used to analyse the strain in sub-micron thick InGaAsP epitaxial layers grown on an InP(100) substrate by the selective area growth technique in narrow openings between the oxide stripes. For the structures for which the diffraction peaks from the substrate and the film overlap, the x-ray standing wave technique was applied for precise measurements of the strain with a Δd/d resolution of better than 10 -4 . (rapid communication)

  9. Berkeley High-Resolution Ball

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Diamond, R.M.

    1984-10-01

    Criteria for a high-resolution γ-ray system are discussed. Desirable properties are high resolution, good response function, and moderate solid angle so as to achieve not only double- but triple-coincidences with good statistics. The Berkeley High-Resolution Ball involved the first use of bismuth germanate (BGO) for anti-Compton shield for Ge detectors. The resulting compact shield permitted rather close packing of 21 detectors around a target. In addition, a small central BGO ball gives the total γ-ray energy and multiplicity, as well as the angular pattern of the γ rays. The 21-detector array is nearly complete, and the central ball has been designed, but not yet constructed. First results taken with 9 detector modules are shown for the nucleus 156 Er. The complex decay scheme indicates a transition from collective rotation (prolate shape) to single- particle states (possibly oblate) near spin 30 h, and has other interesting features

  10. Analysis of corrosion layers in ancient Roman silver coins with high resolution surface spectroscopic techniques

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Keturakis, Christopher J. [Operando Molecular Spectroscopy and Catalysis Research Laboratory, Department of Chemical Engineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015 (United States); Notis, Ben [Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02453 (United States); Blenheim, Alex [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, College Park, PA 16802 (United States); Miller, Alfred C.; Pafchek, Rob [Zettlemoyer Center for Surface Studies, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015 (United States); Notis, Michael R., E-mail: mrn1@lehigh.edu [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015 (United States); Wachs, Israel E., E-mail: iew0@lehigh.edu [Operando Molecular Spectroscopy and Catalysis Research Laboratory, Department of Chemical Engineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015 (United States)

    2016-07-15

    Highlights: • Five ancient silver alloy coins (225 BCE–244 CE) were analyzed using surface characterization techniques. • Both destructive and non-destructive surface characterization methods were developed. • Alloying with copper, even in small amounts, leads to the formation of an outer Cu{sub 2}O corrosion layer. - Abstract: Determination of the microchemistry of surface corrosion layers on ancient silver alloy coins is important both in terms of understanding the nature of archaeological environmental conditions to which these ancient coins were exposed and also to help in their conservation. In this present study, five ancient silver alloy coins (225 BCE–244 CE) were used as test vehicles to measure their immediate surface microchemistry and evaluate the appropriateness and limitations of High Sensitivity-Low Energy Ion Scattering Spectroscopy (HS-LEIS, 0.3 nm depth analysis), High Resolution-X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (HR-XPS, 1–3 nm depth analysis) and High Resolution-Raman Spectroscopy (HR-Raman, ∼1000 nm depth analysis). Additional information about the deeper corrosion layers, up to ∼300–1000 nm, was provided by dynamic HS-LEIS and HR-Raman spectroscopy. While not archeologically significant, the use of these coins of small commercial value provides data that is more representative of the weaker signals typically obtained from ancient corroded objects, which can be in stark contrast to pristine data often obtained from carefully prepared alloys of known composition. The oldest coins, from 225 to 214 BCE, possessed an outermost surface layer containing Cu{sub 2}O, Na, Al, Pb, and adsorbed hydrocarbons, while the more recent coins, from 98 to 244 CE, contained Cu{sub 2}O, Ag, N, F, Na, Al, S, Cl, and adsorbed hydrocarbons in similar corresponding surface layers. It thus appears that alloying with copper, even in small amounts, leads to the formation of an outer Cu{sub 2}O layer. Depth profiling revealed the presence of K, Na, Cl, and

  11. Time resolution performance studies of contemporary high speed photomultipliers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Leskovar, B.; Lo, C.C.

    1978-01-01

    The time resolution capabilities of prototype microchannel plate and static crossed-field photomultipliers have been investigated. Measurements were made of electron transit time, rise time, time response, single phtoelectron time spread and multiphotoelectron time spread for LEP HR350 proximity focused high gain curved microchannel plate and VPM-154A/1.6L static crossed-field photomultipliers. The experimental data have been compared with results obtained with conventionally designed high speed photomultipliers. Descriptions are given of both the measuring techniques and the measuring systems. 16 refs

  12. Predicting core losses and efficiency of SRM in continuous current mode of operation using improved analytical technique

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Parsapour, Amir; Dehkordi, Behzad Mirzaeian; Moallem, Mehdi

    2015-01-01

    In applications in which the high torque per ampere at low speed and rated power at high speed are required, the continuous current method is the best solution. However, there is no report on calculating the core loss of SRM in continuous current mode of operation. Efficiency and iron loss calculation which are complex tasks in case of conventional mode of operation is even more involved in continuous current mode of operation. In this paper, the Switched Reluctance Motor (SRM) is modeled using finite element method and core loss and copper loss of SRM in discontinuous and continuous current modes of operation are calculated using improved analytical techniques to include the minor loop losses in continuous current mode of operation. Motor efficiency versus speed in both operation modes is obtained and compared. - Highlights: • Continuous current method for Switched Reluctance Motor (SRM) is explained. • An improved analytical technique is presented for SRM core loss calculation. • SRM losses in discontinuous and continuous current operation modes are presented. • Effect of mutual inductances on SRM performance is investigated

  13. Predicting core losses and efficiency of SRM in continuous current mode of operation using improved analytical technique

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Parsapour, Amir, E-mail: amirparsapour@gmail.com [Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Isfahan, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Dehkordi, Behzad Mirzaeian, E-mail: mirzaeian@eng.ui.ac.ir [Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Isfahan, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Moallem, Mehdi, E-mail: moallem@cc.iut.ac.ir [Department of Electrical Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

    2015-03-15

    In applications in which the high torque per ampere at low speed and rated power at high speed are required, the continuous current method is the best solution. However, there is no report on calculating the core loss of SRM in continuous current mode of operation. Efficiency and iron loss calculation which are complex tasks in case of conventional mode of operation is even more involved in continuous current mode of operation. In this paper, the Switched Reluctance Motor (SRM) is modeled using finite element method and core loss and copper loss of SRM in discontinuous and continuous current modes of operation are calculated using improved analytical techniques to include the minor loop losses in continuous current mode of operation. Motor efficiency versus speed in both operation modes is obtained and compared. - Highlights: • Continuous current method for Switched Reluctance Motor (SRM) is explained. • An improved analytical technique is presented for SRM core loss calculation. • SRM losses in discontinuous and continuous current operation modes are presented. • Effect of mutual inductances on SRM performance is investigated.

  14. A simple and inexpensive high resolution color ratiometric planar optode imaging approach: application to oxygen and pH sensing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, M.; Borisov, S. M.; Grunwald, B.

    2011-01-01

    A simple, high resolution colormetric planar optode imaging approach is presented. The approach is simple and inexpensive yet versatile, and can be used to study the two-dimensional distribution and dynamics of a range of analytes. The imaging approach utilizes the inbuilt color filter of standard...... commercial digital single lens reflex cameras to simultaneously record different colors (red, green, and blue) of luminophore emission light using only one excitation light source. Using the ratio between the intensity of the different colors recorded in a single image analyte concentrations can...... be calculated. The robustness of the approach is documented by obtaining high resolution data of O-2 and pH distributions in marine sediments using easy synthesizable sensors. The sensors rely on the platinum(II) octaethylporphyrin (PtOEP) and lipophilic 8-Hydroxy-1,3,6-pyrenetrisulfonic acid trisodium (HPTS...

  15. High resolution transmission electron microscopy and microdiffraction for radiation damage analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sinclair, R.

    1982-01-01

    High resolution TEM techniques have developed to quite a sophisticated level over the past few years. In addition TEM instruments with a scanning capability have become available commercially which permit in particular the formation of a small electron probe at the specimen. Thus direct resolution and microdiffraction investigations of thin specimens are now possible, neither of which have been employed to any great extent in the analysis of radiation damage. Some recent advances which are thought to be relevant to this specific area of research are highlighted

  16. Nuclear analytical techniques and their application to environmental samples

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lieser, K.H.

    1986-01-01

    A survey is given on nuclear analytical techniques and their application to environmental samples. Measurement of the inherent radioactivity of elements or radionuclides allows determination of natural radioelements (e.g. Ra), man-made radioelements (e.g. Pu) and radionuclides in the environment. Activation analysis, in particular instrumental neutron activation analysis, is a very reliable and sensitive method for determination of a great number of trace elements in environmental samples, because the most abundant main constituents are not activated. Tracer techniques are very useful for studies of the behaviour and of chemical reactions of trace elements and compounds in the environment. Radioactive sources are mainly applied for excitation of characteristic X-rays (X-ray fluorescence analysis). (author)

  17. Fusion of lens-free microscopy and mobile-phone microscopy images for high-color-accuracy and high-resolution pathology imaging

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yibo; Wu, Yichen; Zhang, Yun; Ozcan, Aydogan

    2017-03-01

    Digital pathology and telepathology require imaging tools with high-throughput, high-resolution and accurate color reproduction. Lens-free on-chip microscopy based on digital in-line holography is a promising technique towards these needs, as it offers a wide field of view (FOV >20 mm2) and high resolution with a compact, low-cost and portable setup. Color imaging has been previously demonstrated by combining reconstructed images at three discrete wavelengths in the red, green and blue parts of the visible spectrum, i.e., the RGB combination method. However, this RGB combination method is subject to color distortions. To improve the color performance of lens-free microscopy for pathology imaging, here we present a wavelet-based color fusion imaging framework, termed "digital color fusion microscopy" (DCFM), which digitally fuses together a grayscale lens-free microscope image taken at a single wavelength and a low-resolution and low-magnification color-calibrated image taken by a lens-based microscope, which can simply be a mobile phone based cost-effective microscope. We show that the imaging results of an H&E stained breast cancer tissue slide with the DCFM technique come very close to a color-calibrated microscope using a 40x objective lens with 0.75 NA. Quantitative comparison showed 2-fold reduction in the mean color distance using the DCFM method compared to the RGB combination method, while also preserving the high-resolution features of the lens-free microscope. Due to the cost-effective and field-portable nature of both lens-free and mobile-phone microscopy techniques, their combination through the DCFM framework could be useful for digital pathology and telepathology applications, in low-resource and point-of-care settings.

  18. Ultra-High Resolution Spectroscopic Remote Sensing: A Microscope on Planetary Atmospheres

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kostiuk, Theodor

    2010-01-01

    Remote sensing of planetary atmospheres is not complete without studies of all levels of the atmosphere, including the dense cloudy- and haze filled troposphere, relatively clear and important stratosphere and the upper atmosphere, which are the first levels to experience the effects of solar radiation. High-resolution spectroscopy can provide valuable information on these regions of the atmosphere. Ultra-high spectral resolution studies can directly measure atmospheric winds, composition, temperature and non-thermal phenomena, which describe the physics and chemistry of the atmosphere. Spectroscopy in the middle to long infrared wavelengths can also probe levels where dust of haze limit measurements at shorter wavelength or can provide ambiguous results on atmospheric species abundances or winds. A spectroscopic technique in the middle infrared wavelengths analogous to a radio receiver. infrared heterodyne spectroscopy [1], will be describe and used to illustrate the detailed study of atmospheric phenomena not readily possible with other methods. The heterodyne spectral resolution with resolving power greater than 1,000.000 measures the true line shapes of emission and absorption lines in planetary atmospheres. The information on the region of line formation is contained in the line shapes. The absolute frequency of the lines can be measured to I part in 100 ,000,000 and can be used to accurately measure the Doppler frequency shift of the lines, directly measuring the line-of-sight velocity of the gas to --Im/s precision (winds). The technical and analytical methods developed and used to measure and analyze infrared heterodyne measurements will be described. Examples of studies on Titan, Venus, Mars, Earth, and Jupiter will be presented. 'These include atmospheric dynamics on slowly rotating bodies (Titan [2] and Venus [3] and temperature, composition and chemistry on Mars 141, Venus and Earth. The discovery and studies of unique atmospheric phenomena will also be

  19. Laser-induced local activation of Mg-doped GaN with a high lateral resolution for high power vertical devices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kurose, Noriko; Matsumoto, Kota; Yamada, Fumihiko; Roffi, Teuku Muhammad; Kamiya, Itaru; Iwata, Naotaka; Aoyagi, Yoshinobu

    2018-01-01

    A method for laser-induced local p-type activation of an as-grown Mg-doped GaN sample with a high lateral resolution is developed for realizing high power vertical devices for the first time. As-grown Mg-doped GaN is converted to p-type GaN in a confined local area. The transition from an insulating to a p-type area is realized to take place within about 1-2 μm fine resolution. The results show that the technique can be applied in fabricating the devices such as vertical field effect transistors, vertical bipolar transistors and vertical Schottkey diode so on with a current confinement region using a p-type carrier-blocking layer formed by this technique.

  20. MR-Venography Using High Resolution True-FISP

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Spuentrup, E. [Technische Hochschule Aachen (Germany). Klinik fuer Radiologische Diagnostik; Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA (United States). Dept. of Medicine; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA (United States); Buecker, A.; Guenther, R.W. [Technische Hochschule Aachen (Germany). Klinik fuer Radiologische Diagnostik; Stuber, M. [Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA (United States). Dept. of Medicine; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA (United States); Philips Med. Syst., Best (Netherlands)

    2001-08-01

    A new fast MR-venography approach using a high resolution True-FISP imaging sequence was investigated in 20 patients suffering from 23 deep vein thromboses. Diagnosis was proven by X-ray venography, CT or ultrasound examination. The presented technique allowed for clear thrombus visualization with a high contrast to the surrounding blood pool even in calf veins. Acquisition time was less than 10 minutes for imaging the pelvis and the legs. No contrast media was needed. The presented high resolution True-FISP MR-veography is a promising non-invasive, fast MR-venography approach for detection of deep venous thrombosis. (orig.) [German] Eine neue schnelle, oertlich hochaufgeloeste MR-Phlebographietechnik mit einer axialen True-FISP Bildgebungssequenz wurde an 20 Patienten mit 23 nach-gewiesenen tiefen Beinvenenthrombosen untersucht. Die Befunde wurden mit einer konventionellen Roentgenphlebographie, einer CT oder einer Sonographie gesichert. Die vorgestellte Technik erlaubte in allen Faellen eine Thrombusdarstellung mit hohem Kontrast zum umgebenden venoesen Blut, wobei aufgrund der hohen Ortsaufloesung auch die Unterschenkelvenen beurteilt werden konnten. Die Datenaufnahmezeit zur Untersuchung des Beckens und der Beine betrug weniger als 10 Minuten. Kontrastmittel wurde nicht benoetigt. Die vorgestellte MR-Phlebographietechnik unter Verwendung einer oertlich hochauf-geloesten True-FISP Sequenz ist eine neue, vielversprechende, nicht-invasive Technik zur Diagnostik der tiefen Bein- und Beckenvenenthrombose. (orig.)

  1. Recent applications of lasers in analytical chemistry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lytle, F.E.

    1984-01-01

    This review primarily will update two recent articles concerning the use of lasers in analytical fluorimetry. The discussion will focus on the use of instrumental techniques developed to improve the working detection limit via increases in selectivity. Examples will include chromatography, time resolution and line narrowing. In addition, the topic of multiphoton ionization/mass spectrometry will be covered. 18 refs., 1 tab

  2. Design and Implementation of Wideband Exciter for an Ultra-high Resolution Airborne SAR System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jia Ying-xin

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available According to an ultra-high resolution airborne SAR system with better than 0.1 m resolution, a wideband Linear Frequency Modulated (LFM pulse compression exciter with 14.8 GHz carrier and 3.2 GHz bandwidth is designed and implemented. The selection of signal generation scheme and some key technique points for wideband LFM waveform is presented in detail. Then, an acute test and analysis of the LFM signal is performed. The final airborne experiments demonstrate the validity of the LFM source which is one of the subsystems in an ultra-high resolution airborne SAR system.

  3. A Novel Analytic Technique for the Service Station Reliability in a Discrete-Time Repairable Queue

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Renbin Liu

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents a decomposition technique for the service station reliability in a discrete-time repairable GeomX/G/1 queueing system, in which the server takes exhaustive service and multiple adaptive delayed vacation discipline. Using such a novel analytic technique, some important reliability indices and reliability relation equations of the service station are derived. Furthermore, the structures of the service station indices are also found. Finally, special cases and numerical examples validate the derived results and show that our analytic technique is applicable to reliability analysis of some complex discrete-time repairable bulk arrival queueing systems.

  4. Technical meeting on commercial applications of nuclear analytical techniques. Meeting report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2004-01-01

    This report summarizes the findings of the Technical Meeting on the Commercial Applications of Nuclear Analytical Techniques held in Vienna on 23-26 November 2004, where an assessment was initiated of the world capacity and market potentials for neutron activation analysis and nuclear spectroscopy, including an estimation of economic revenues. Industry and governmental agencies were identified as stakeholders for these laboratories. Examples are given of potential benefits of these techniques to the stakeholders. The potentials for commercial applications of neutron activation analysis and nuclear spectroscopy (measurement of alpha, beta and gamma ray emitting radionuclides) are addressed. First estimates are given of the worldwide capacity of these laboratories, suggestions and examples are given for potential markets and the typical organizational and technical constraints are discussed. Two case studies of commercial neutron activation analysis laboratories at a small and a medium-size reactor are given in the 'individual contributions' section of this document. An assessment of other nuclear analytical techniques such as X ray Fluorescence Spectrometry, Particle Induced X ray Emission Spectrometry or Ion Beam Analysis Spectrometry has been completed after a comprehensive collection of background information

  5. Technical meeting on commercial applications of nuclear analytical techniques. Meeting report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2004-07-01

    This report summarizes the findings of the Technical Meeting on the Commercial Applications of Nuclear Analytical Techniques held in Vienna on 23-26 November 2004, where an assessment was initiated of the world capacity and market potentials for neutron activation analysis and nuclear spectroscopy, including an estimation of economic revenues. Industry and governmental agencies were identified as stakeholders for these laboratories. Examples are given of potential benefits of these techniques to the stakeholders. The potentials for commercial applications of neutron activation analysis and nuclear spectroscopy (measurement of alpha, beta and gamma ray emitting radionuclides) are addressed. First estimates are given of the worldwide capacity of these laboratories, suggestions and examples are given for potential markets and the typical organizational and technical constraints are discussed. Two case studies of commercial neutron activation analysis laboratories at a small and a medium-size reactor are given in the 'individual contributions' section of this document. An assessment of other nuclear analytical techniques such as X ray Fluorescence Spectrometry, Particle Induced X ray Emission Spectrometry or Ion Beam Analysis Spectrometry has been completed after a comprehensive collection of background information.

  6. A high-resolution method for the localization of proanthocyanidins in plant tissues

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Panter Stephen

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Histochemical staining of plant tissues with 4-dimethylaminocinnamaldehyde (DMACA or vanillin-HCl is widely used to characterize spatial patterns of proanthocyanidin accumulation in plant tissues. These methods are limited in their ability to allow high-resolution imaging of proanthocyanidin deposits. Results Tissue embedding techniques were used in combination with DMACA staining to analyze the accumulation of proanthocyanidins in Lotus corniculatus (L. and Trifolium repens (L. tissues. Embedding of plant tissues in LR White or paraffin matrices, with or without DMACA staining, preserved the physical integrity of the plant tissues, allowing high-resolution imaging that facilitated cell-specific localization of proanthocyanidins. A brown coloration was seen in proanthocyanidin-producing cells when plant tissues were embedded without DMACA staining and this was likely to have been due to non-enzymatic oxidation of proanthocyanidins and the formation of colored semiquinones and quinones. Conclusions This paper presents a simple, high-resolution method for analysis of proanthocyanidin accumulation in organs, tissues and cells of two plant species with different patterns of proanthocyanidin accumulation, namely Lotus corniculatus (birdsfoot trefoil and Trifolium repens (white clover. This technique was used to characterize cell type-specific patterns of proanthocyanidin accumulation in white clover flowers at different stages of development.

  7. High Resolution Nature Runs and the Big Data Challenge

    Science.gov (United States)

    Webster, W. Phillip; Duffy, Daniel Q.

    2015-01-01

    NASA's Global Modeling and Assimilation Office at Goddard Space Flight Center is undertaking a series of very computationally intensive Nature Runs and a downscaled reanalysis. The nature runs use the GEOS-5 as an Atmospheric General Circulation Model (AGCM) while the reanalysis uses the GEOS-5 in Data Assimilation mode. This paper will present computational challenges from three runs, two of which are AGCM and one is downscaled reanalysis using the full DAS. The nature runs will be completed at two surface grid resolutions, 7 and 3 kilometers and 72 vertical levels. The 7 km run spanned 2 years (2005-2006) and produced 4 PB of data while the 3 km run will span one year and generate 4 BP of data. The downscaled reanalysis (MERRA-II Modern-Era Reanalysis for Research and Applications) will cover 15 years and generate 1 PB of data. Our efforts to address the big data challenges of climate science, we are moving toward a notion of Climate Analytics-as-a-Service (CAaaS), a specialization of the concept of business process-as-a-service that is an evolving extension of IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS enabled by cloud computing. In this presentation, we will describe two projects that demonstrate this shift. MERRA Analytic Services (MERRA/AS) is an example of cloud-enabled CAaaS. MERRA/AS enables MapReduce analytics over MERRA reanalysis data collection by bringing together the high-performance computing, scalable data management, and a domain-specific climate data services API. NASA's High-Performance Science Cloud (HPSC) is an example of the type of compute-storage fabric required to support CAaaS. The HPSC comprises a high speed Infinib and network, high performance file systems and object storage, and a virtual system environments specific for data intensive, science applications. These technologies are providing a new tier in the data and analytic services stack that helps connect earthbound, enterprise-level data and computational resources to new customers and new mobility

  8. Comparison of three-dimensional visualization techniques for depicting the scala vestibuli and scala tympani of the cochlea by using high-resolution MR imaging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hans, P; Grant, A J; Laitt, R D; Ramsden, R T; Kassner, A; Jackson, A

    1999-08-01

    Cochlear implantation requires introduction of a stimulating electrode array into the scala vestibuli or scala tympani. Although these structures can be separately identified on many high-resolution scans, it is often difficult to ascertain whether these channels are patent throughout their length. The aim of this study was to determine whether an optimized combination of an imaging protocol and a visualization technique allows routine 3D rendering of the scala vestibuli and scala tympani. A submillimeter T2 fast spin-echo imaging sequence was designed to optimize the performance of 3D visualization methods. The spatial resolution was determined experimentally using primary images and 3D surface and volume renderings from eight healthy subjects. These data were used to develop the imaging sequence and to compare the quality and signal-to-noise dependency of four data visualization algorithms: maximum intensity projection, ray casting with transparent voxels, ray casting with opaque voxels, and isosurface rendering. The ability of these methods to produce 3D renderings of the scala tympani and scala vestibuli was also examined. The imaging technique was used in five patients with sensorineural deafness. Visualization techniques produced optimal results in combination with an isotropic volume imaging sequence. Clinicians preferred the isosurface-rendered images to other 3D visualizations. Both isosurface and ray casting displayed the scala vestibuli and scala tympani throughout their length. Abnormalities were shown in three patients, and in one of these, a focal occlusion of the scala tympani was confirmed at surgery. Three-dimensional images of the scala vestibuli and scala tympani can be routinely produced. The combination of an MR sequence optimized for use with isosurface rendering or ray-casting algorithms can produce 3D images with greater spatial resolution and anatomic detail than has been possible previously.

  9. Toward greener analytical techniques for the absolute quantification of peptides in pharmaceutical and biological samples.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Eeckhaut, Ann; Mangelings, Debby

    2015-09-10

    Peptide-based biopharmaceuticals represent one of the fastest growing classes of new drug molecules. New reaction types included in the synthesis strategies to reduce the rapid metabolism of peptides, along with the availability of new formulation and delivery technologies, resulted in an increased marketing of peptide drug products. In this regard, the development of analytical methods for quantification of peptides in pharmaceutical and biological samples is of utmost importance. From the sample preparation step to their analysis by means of chromatographic or electrophoretic methods, many difficulties should be tackled to analyze them. Recent developments in analytical techniques emphasize more and more on the use of green analytical techniques. This review will discuss the progresses in and challenges observed during green analytical method development for the quantification of peptides in pharmaceutical and biological samples. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. High spatial resolution 3D MR cholangiography with high sampling efficiency technique (SPACE): Comparison of 3 T vs. 1.5 T

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Arizono, Shigeki [Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 54 Shogoin Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan)], E-mail: arizono@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp; Isoda, Hiroyoshi [Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 54 Shogoin Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan)], E-mail: sayuki@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp; Maetani, Yoji S. [Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 54 Shogoin Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan)], E-mail: mbo@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp; Hirokawa, Yuusuke [Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 54 Shogoin Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan)], E-mail: yuusuke@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp; Shimada, Kotaro [Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 54 Shogoin Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan)], E-mail: kotaro@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp; Nakamoto, Yuji [Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 54 Shogoin Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan)], E-mail: ynakamo1@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp; Shibata, Toshiya [Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 54 Shogoin Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan)], E-mail: ksj@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp; Togashi, Kaori [Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 54 Shogoin Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan)], E-mail: ktogashi@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp

    2010-01-15

    Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate image quality of 3D MR cholangiography (MRC) using high sampling efficiency technique (SPACE) at 3 T compared with 1.5 T. Methods and materials: An IRB approved prospective study was performed with 17 healthy volunteers using both 3 and 1.5 T MR scanners. MRC images were obtained with free-breathing navigator-triggered 3D T2-weighted turbo spin-echo sequence with SPACE (TR, >2700 ms; TE, 780 ms at 3 T and 801 ms at 1.5 T; echo-train length, 121; voxel size, 1.1 mm x 1.0 mm x 0.84 mm). The common bile duct (CBD) to liver contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs) were compared between 3 and 1.5 T. A five-point scale was used to compare overall image quality and visualization of the third branches of bile duct (B2, B6, and B8). The depiction of cystic duct insertion and the highest order of bile duct visible were also compared. The results were compared using the Wilcoxon signed-ranks test. Results: CNR between the CBD and liver was significantly higher at 3 T than 1.5 T (p = 0.0006). MRC at 3 T showed a significantly higher overall image quality (p = 0.0215) and clearer visualization of B2 (p = 0.0183) and B6 (p = 0.0106) than at 1.5 T. In all analyses of duct visibility, 3 T showed higher scores than 1.5 T. Conclusion: 3 T MRC using SPACE offered better image quality than 1.5 T. SPACE technique facilitated high-resolution 3D MRC with excellent image quality at 3 T.

  11. Background Contamination by Coplanar Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBS) in Trace Level High Resolution Gas Chromatography/High Resolution Mass Spectrometry (HRGC/HRMS) Analytical Procedures

    Science.gov (United States)

    The addition of the "dioxin-like" polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners to the assessment of risk associated with the 2,3,7,8-chlorine substituted dioxins and furans has dramatically increased the number of laboratories worldwide that are developing analytical procedures for t...

  12. High-Resolution PET Detector. Final report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Karp, Joel

    2014-01-01

    The objective of this project was to develop an understanding of the limits of performance for a high resolution PET detector using an approach based on continuous scintillation crystals rather than pixelated crystals. The overall goal was to design a high-resolution detector, which requires both high spatial resolution and high sensitivity for 511 keV gammas. Continuous scintillation detectors (Anger cameras) have been used extensively for both single-photon and PET scanners, however, these instruments were based on NaI(Tl) scintillators using relatively large, individual photo-multipliers. In this project we investigated the potential of this type of detector technology to achieve higher spatial resolution through the use of improved scintillator materials and photo-sensors, and modification of the detector surface to optimize the light response function.We achieved an average spatial resolution of 3-mm for a 25-mm thick, LYSO continuous detector using a maximum likelihood position algorithm and shallow slots cut into the entrance surface

  13. Optimizing multi-pinhole SPECT geometries using an analytical model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rentmeester, M C M; Have, F van der; Beekman, F J

    2007-01-01

    State-of-the-art multi-pinhole SPECT devices allow for sub-mm resolution imaging of radio-molecule distributions in small laboratory animals. The optimization of multi-pinhole and detector geometries using simulations based on ray-tracing or Monte Carlo algorithms is time-consuming, particularly because many system parameters need to be varied. As an efficient alternative we develop a continuous analytical model of a pinhole SPECT system with a stationary detector set-up, which we apply to focused imaging of a mouse. The model assumes that the multi-pinhole collimator and the detector both have the shape of a spherical layer, and uses analytical expressions for effective pinhole diameters, sensitivity and spatial resolution. For fixed fields-of-view, a pinhole-diameter adapting feedback loop allows for the comparison of the system resolution of different systems at equal system sensitivity, and vice versa. The model predicts that (i) for optimal resolution or sensitivity the collimator layer with pinholes should be placed as closely as possible around the animal given a fixed detector layer, (ii) with high-resolution detectors a resolution improvement up to 31% can be achieved compared to optimized systems, (iii) high-resolution detectors can be placed close to the collimator without significant resolution losses, (iv) interestingly, systems with a physical pinhole diameter of 0 mm can have an excellent resolution when high-resolution detectors are used

  14. High-resolution three-dimensional imaging of a depleted CMOS sensor using an edge Transient Current Technique based on the Two Photon Absorption process (TPA-eTCT)

    CERN Document Server

    García, Marcos Fernández; Echeverría, Richard Jaramillo; Moll, Michael; Santos, Raúl Montero; Moya, David; Pinto, Rogelio Palomo; Vila, Iván

    2016-01-01

    For the first time, the deep n-well (DNW) depletion space of a High Voltage CMOS sensor has been characterized using a Transient Current Technique based on the simultaneous absorption of two photons. This novel approach has allowed to resolve the DNW implant boundaries and therefore to accurately determine the real depleted volume and the effective doping concentration of the substrate. The unprecedented spatial resolution of this new method comes from the fact that measurable free carrier generation in two photon mode only occurs in a micrometric scale voxel around the focus of the beam. Real three-dimensional spatial resolution is achieved by scanning the beam focus within the sample.

  15. High-resolution three-dimensional imaging of a depleted CMOS sensor using an edge Transient Current Technique based on the Two Photon Absorption process (TPA-eTCT)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    García, Marcos Fernández; Sánchez, Javier González; Echeverría, Richard Jaramillo [Instituto de Física de Cantabria (CSIC-UC), Avda. los Castros s/n, E-39005 Santander (Spain); Moll, Michael [CERN, Organisation europénne pour la recherche nucléaire, CH-1211 Genéve 23 (Switzerland); Santos, Raúl Montero [SGIker Laser Facility, UPV/EHU, Sarriena, s/n - 48940 Leioa-Bizkaia (Spain); Moya, David [Instituto de Física de Cantabria (CSIC-UC), Avda. los Castros s/n, E-39005 Santander (Spain); Pinto, Rogelio Palomo [Departamento de Ingeniería Electrónica, Escuela Superior de Ingenieros Universidad de Sevilla (Spain); Vila, Iván [Instituto de Física de Cantabria (CSIC-UC), Avda. los Castros s/n, E-39005 Santander (Spain)

    2017-02-11

    For the first time, the deep n-well (DNW) depletion space of a High Voltage CMOS sensor has been characterized using a Transient Current Technique based on the simultaneous absorption of two photons. This novel approach has allowed to resolve the DNW implant boundaries and therefore to accurately determine the real depleted volume and the effective doping concentration of the substrate. The unprecedented spatial resolution of this new method comes from the fact that measurable free carrier generation in two photon mode only occurs in a micrometric scale voxel around the focus of the beam. Real three-dimensional spatial resolution is achieved by scanning the beam focus within the sample.

  16. Time resolution performance studies of contemporary high speed photomultipliers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Leskovar, B.; Lo, C.C.

    1977-01-01

    The time resolution capabilities of prototype microchannel plate and static crossed-field photomultipliers have been investigated. Measurements were made of electron transit time, rise time, time response, single photoelectron time spread and multiphotoelectron time spread for LEP HR350 proximity focused high gain curved microchannel plate and VPM-154A/1.6L static crossed-field photomultipliers. The experimental data have been compared with results obtained with conventionally designed RCS 8850 and C31024 high speed photomultipliers. Descriptions are given of both the measuring techniques and the measuring systems

  17. Cavity-enhanced resonant photoacoustic spectroscopy with optical feedback cw diode lasers: A novel technique for ultratrace gas analysis and high-resolution spectroscopy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hippler, Michael; Mohr, Christian; Keen, Katherine A; McNaghten, Edward D

    2010-07-28

    Cavity-enhanced resonant photoacoustic spectroscopy with optical feedback cw diode lasers (OF-CERPAS) is introduced as a novel technique for ultratrace gas analysis and high-resolution spectroscopy. In the scheme, a single-mode cw diode laser (3 mW, 635 nm) is coupled into a high-finesse linear cavity and stabilized to the cavity by optical feedback. Inside the cavity, a build-up of laser power to at least 2.5 W occurs. Absorbing gas phase species inside the cavity are detected with high sensitivity by the photoacoustic effect using a microphone embedded in the cavity. To increase sensitivity further, coupling into the cavity is modulated at a frequency corresponding to a longitudinal resonance of an organ pipe acoustic resonator (f=1.35 kHz and Q approximately 10). The technique has been characterized by measuring very weak water overtone transitions near 635 nm. Normalized noise-equivalent absorption coefficients are determined as alpha approximately 4.4x10(-9) cm(-1) s(1/2) (1 s integration time) and 2.6x10(-11) cm(-1) s(1/2) W (1 s integration time and 1 W laser power). These sensitivities compare favorably with existing state-of-the-art techniques. As an advantage, OF-CERPAS is a "zero-background" method which increases selectivity and sensitivity, and its sensitivity scales with laser power.

  18. Recovering the colour-dependent albedo of exoplanets with high-resolution spectroscopy: from ESPRESSO to the ELT.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martins, J. H. C.; Figueira, P.; Santos, N. C.; Melo, C.; Garcia Muñoz, A.; Faria, J.; Pepe, F.; Lovis, C.

    2018-05-01

    The characterization of planetary atmospheres is a daunting task, pushing current observing facilities to their limits. The next generation of high-resolution spectrographs mounted on large telescopes - such as ESPRESSO@VLT and HIRES@ELT - will allow us to probe and characterize exoplanetary atmospheres in greater detail than possible to this point. We present a method that permits the recovery of the colour-dependent reflectivity of exoplanets from high-resolution spectroscopic observations. Determining the wavelength-dependent albedo will provide insight into the chemical properties and weather of the exoplanet atmospheres. For this work, we simulated ESPRESSO@VLT and HIRES@ELT high-resolution observations of known planetary systems with several albedo configurations. We demonstrate how the cross correlation technique applied to theses simulated observations can be used to successfully recover the geometric albedo of exoplanets over a range of wavelengths. In all cases, we were able to recover the wavelength dependent albedo of the simulated exoplanets and distinguish between several atmospheric models representing different atmospheric configurations. In brief, we demonstrate that the cross correlation technique allows for the recovery of exoplanetary albedo functions from optical observations with the next generation of high-resolution spectrographs that will be mounted on large telescopes with reasonable exposure times. Its recovery will permit the characterization of exoplanetary atmospheres in terms of composition and dynamics and consolidates the cross correlation technique as a powerful tool for exoplanet characterization.

  19. Estimating Vegetation Rainfall Interception Using Remote Sensing Observations at Very High Resolution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cui, Y.; Zhao, P.; Hong, Y.; Fan, W.; Yan, B.; Xie, H.

    2017-12-01

    Abstract: As an important compont of evapotranspiration, vegetation rainfall interception is the proportion of gross rainfall that is intercepted, stored and subsequently evaporated from all parts of vegetation during or following rainfall. Accurately quantifying the vegetation rainfall interception at a high resolution is critical for rainfall-runoff modeling and flood forecasting, and is also essential for understanding its further impact on local, regional, and even global water cycle dynamics. In this study, the Remote Sensing-based Gash model (RS-Gash model) is developed based on a modified Gash model for interception loss estimation using remote sensing observations at the regional scale, and has been applied and validated in the upper reach of the Heihe River Basin of China for different types of vegetation. To eliminate the scale error and the effect of mixed pixels, the RS-Gash model is applied at a fine scale of 30 m with the high resolution vegetation area index retrieved by using the unified model of bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF-U) for the vegetation canopy. Field validation shows that the RMSE and R2 of the interception ratio are 3.7% and 0.9, respectively, indicating the model's strong stability and reliability at fine scale. The temporal variation of vegetation rainfall interception loss and its relationship with precipitation are further investigated. In summary, the RS-Gash model has demonstrated its effectiveness and reliability in estimating vegetation rainfall interception. When compared to the coarse resolution results, the application of this model at 30-m fine resolution is necessary to resolve the scaling issues as shown in this study. Keywords: rainfall interception; remote sensing; RS-Gash analytical model; high resolution

  20. Imaging of cellular spread on a three-dimensional scaffold by means of a novel cell-labeling technique for high-resolution computed tomography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thimm, Benjamin W; Hofmann, Sandra; Schneider, Philipp; Carretta, Roberto; Müller, Ralph

    2012-03-01

    Computed tomography (CT) represents a truly three-dimensional (3D) imaging technique that can provide high-resolution images on the cellular level. Thus, one approach to detect single cells is X-ray absorption-based CT, where cells are labeled with a dense, opaque material providing the required contrast for CT imaging. Within the present work, a novel cell-labeling method has been developed showing the feasibility of labeling fixed cells with iron oxide (FeO) particles for subsequent CT imaging and quantitative morphometry. A biotin-streptavidin detection system was exploited to bind FeO particles to its target endothelial cells. The binding of the particles was predominantly close to the cell centers on 2D surfaces as shown by light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and CT. When cells were cultured on porous, 3D polyurethane surfaces, significantly more FeO particles were detected compared with surfaces without cells and FeO particle labeling using CT. Here, we report on the implementation and evaluation of a novel cell detection method based on high-resolution CT. This system has potential in cell tracking for 3D in vitro imaging in the future.

  1. High resolution spectrometry for relativistic heavy ions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gabor, G; Schimmerling, W; Greiner, D; Bieser, F; Lindstrom, P [California Univ., Berkeley (USA). Lawrence Berkeley Lab.

    1975-12-01

    Several techniques are discussed for velocity and energy spectrometry of relativistic heavy ions with good resolution. A foil telescope with chevron channel plate detectors is described. A test of this telescope was performed using 2.1 GeV/A C/sup 6 +/ ions, and a time-of-flight resolution of 160 ps was measured. Qualitative information on the effect of foil thickness was also obtained.

  2. An appraisal of neutron activation analysis and other analytical techniques for the determination of arsenic, selenium and tin in environmental samples

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Peterson, P.J.; Girling, C.A.; Klumpp, D.W.; Minski, M.J.

    1979-01-01

    The paper presents an experimental comparison between neutron activation analysis, atomic absorption spectrophotometry and fluorescence spectrophotometry used for the determination of trace amounts of As, Se and Sn and the other two analytical techniques mentioned. Gamma-ray spectrometry has been used to determine 76 As (tsub(1/2)=26.3 h) after 1 day's irradiation at a thermal neutron flux of 1.6x10 12 n.cm -2 .s -1 . High sensitivity was also obtained using an atomic absorption spectrophotometer coupled with covalent hydride generation. Advantages of the latter technique include simplicity of operation, high speed of analysis and negligible background correction. When used in conjuction with selective reduction and a cold-trap this method quantitatively distinguishes between the valence states and some methylated derivatives. Selenium has been analysed by gamma-ray spectrometry using 77 Sesup(m) (tsub(1/2)=17.5 s) after cyclic activation at a thermal neutron flux of 2x10 12 n.cm -2 .s -1 . Atomic absorption spectrophotometry following hydride generation, or fluorescence spectrophotometry of the 2,3 diaminonaphthalene complex constitute additional sensitive analytical methods for the determination of Se. These have the added advantage that valence states can be selectively measured. Low concentrations of Sn have been determined by neutron activation analysis and by spectrophotometric techniques using phenylfluorone as the complexing reagent, but these methods depend on selective extraction of Sn(IV) iodide. Whilst maintaining high sensitivity, these problems were avoided by using the hydride generation technique with an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Comparative analytical values for Bowen's kale and NBS orchard leaves are presented

  3. Introduction to the virtual special issue on super-resolution imaging techniques

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cao, Liangcai; Liu, Zhengjun

    2017-12-01

    Until quite recently, the resolution of optical imaging instruments, including telescopes, cameras and microscopes, was considered to be limited by the diffraction of light and by image sensors. In the past few years, many exciting super-resolution approaches have emerged that demonstrate intriguing ways to bypass the classical limit in optics and detectors. More and more research groups are engaged in the study of advanced super-resolution schemes, devices, algorithms, systems, and applications [1-6]. Super-resolution techniques involve new methods in science and engineering of optics [7,8], measurements [9,10], chemistry [11,12] and information [13,14]. Promising applications, particularly in biomedical research and semiconductor industry, have been successfully demonstrated.

  4. Continuous electrophoretic purification of individual analytes from multicomponent mixtures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McLaren, David G; Chen, David D Y

    2004-04-15

    Individual analytes can be isolated from multicomponent mixtures and collected in the outlet vial by carrying out electrophoretic purification through a capillary column. Desired analytes are allowed to migrate continuously through the column under the electric field while undesired analytes are confined to the inlet vial by application of a hydrodynamic counter pressure. Using pressure ramping and buffer replenishment techniques, 18% of the total amount present in a bulk sample can be purified when the resolution to the adjacent peak is approximately 3. With a higher resolution, the yield could be further improved. Additionally, by periodically introducing fresh buffer into the sample, changes in pH and conductivity can be mediated, allowing higher purity (>or=99.5%) to be preserved in the collected fractions. With an additional reversed cycle of flow counterbalanced capillary electrophoresis, any individual component in a sample mixture can be purified providing it can be separated in an electrophoresis system.

  5. Machine vision-based high-resolution weed mapping and patch-sprayer performance simulation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Tang, L.; Tian, L.F.; Steward, B.L.

    1999-01-01

    An experimental machine vision-based patch-sprayer was developed. This sprayer was primarily designed to do real-time weed density estimation and variable herbicide application rate control. However, the sprayer also had the capability to do high-resolution weed mapping if proper mapping techniques

  6. Optimization of analytical techniques to characterize antibiotics in aquatic systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Al Mokh, S.

    2013-01-01

    Antibiotics are considered as pollutants when they are present in aquatic ecosystems, ultimate receptacles of anthropogenic substances. These compounds are studied as their persistence in the environment or their effects on natural organisms. Numerous efforts have been made worldwide to assess the environmental quality of different water resources for the survival of aquatic species, but also for human consumption and health risk related. Towards goal, the optimization of analytical techniques for these compounds in aquatic systems remains a necessity. Our objective is to develop extraction and detection methods for 12 molecules of aminoglycosides and colistin in sewage treatment plants and hospitals waters. The lack of analytical methods for analysis of these compounds and the deficiency of studies for their detection in water is the reason for their study. Solid Phase Extraction (SPE) in classic mode (offline) or online followed by Liquid Chromatography analysis coupled with Mass Spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) is the most method commonly used for this type of analysis. The parameters are optimized and validated to ensure the best conditions for the environmental analysis. This technique was applied to real samples of wastewater treatment plants in Bordeaux and Lebanon. (author)

  7. A review on high-resolution CMOS delay lines: towards sub-picosecond jitter performance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abdulrazzaq, Bilal I; Abdul Halin, Izhal; Kawahito, Shoji; Sidek, Roslina M; Shafie, Suhaidi; Yunus, Nurul Amziah Md

    2016-01-01

    A review on CMOS delay lines with a focus on the most frequently used techniques for high-resolution delay step is presented. The primary types, specifications, delay circuits, and operating principles are presented. The delay circuits reported in this paper are used for delaying digital inputs and clock signals. The most common analog and digitally-controlled delay elements topologies are presented, focusing on the main delay-tuning strategies. IC variables, namely, process, supply voltage, temperature, and noise sources that affect delay resolution through timing jitter are discussed. The design specifications of these delay elements are also discussed and compared for the common delay line circuits. As a result, the main findings of this paper are highlighting and discussing the followings: the most efficient high-resolution delay line techniques, the trade-off challenge found between CMOS delay lines designed using either analog or digitally-controlled delay elements, the trade-off challenge between delay resolution and delay range and the proposed solutions for this challenge, and how CMOS technology scaling can affect the performance of CMOS delay lines. Moreover, the current trends and efforts used in order to generate output delayed signal with low jitter in the sub-picosecond range are presented.

  8. Nuclear analytical techniques in Cuban sugar industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Diaz R, O.; Griffith M, J.

    1997-01-01

    This paper is a review concerning the application of Nuclear Analytical Techniques in the Cuban sugar industry. The most complete elemental composition of final molasses (34 elements) and natural zeolites (38) this last one employed as an auxiliary agent in sugar technological processe4s has been performed by means of instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA) and X-Ray Fluorescence Analysis (XRFA). The trace elemental sugar cane soill-plant relationship and elemental composition of different types of Cuban sugar (raw, blanco-directo and refine) were also studied. As a result, valuable information referred to the possibilities of using these products in animal and human foodstuff so as in the other applications are given. (author). 34 refs., 6 figs., 1 tab

  9. Development of AMS high resolution injector system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bao Yiwen; Guan Xialing; Hu Yueming

    2008-01-01

    The Beijing HI-13 tandem accelerator AMS high resolution injector system was developed. The high resolution energy achromatic system consists of an electrostatic analyzer and a magnetic analyzer, which mass resolution can reach 600 and transmission is better than 80%. (authors)

  10. In Situ Scanning Probe Microscopy and New Perspectives in Analytical Chemistry

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Jens Enevold Thaulov; Zhang, Jingdong; Chi, Qijin

    1999-01-01

    The resolution of scanning probe microscopies is unpresedented but the techniques are fraught with limitations as analytical tools. These limitations and their relationship to the physical mechanisms of image contrast are first discussed. Some new options based on in situ STM, which hold prospect...

  11. Resolution enhancement of low quality videos using a high-resolution frame

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Pham, T.Q.; Van Vliet, L.J.; Schutte, K.

    2006-01-01

    This paper proposes an example-based Super-Resolution (SR) algorithm of compressed videos in the Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) domain. Input to the system is a Low-Resolution (LR) compressed video together with a High-Resolution (HR) still image of similar content. Using a training set of

  12. High-Resolution Light Transmission Spectroscopy of Nanoparticles in Real Time

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tanner, Carol; Sun, Nan; Deatsch, Alison; Li, Frank; Ruggiero, Steven

    2017-04-01

    As implemented here, Light Transmission Spectroscopy (LTS) is a high-resolution real-time technique for eliminating spectral noise and systematic effects in wide band spectroscopic measurements of nanoparticles. In this work, we combine LTS with spectral inversion for the purpose of characterizing the size, shape, and number of nanoparticles in solution. The apparatus employs a wide-band multi-wavelength light source and grating spectrometers coupled to CCD detectors. The light source ranges from 210 to 2000 nm, and the wavelength dependent light detection system ranges from 200 to 1100 nm with model the total extinction cross-section, and spectral inversion is employed to obtain quantitative particle size distributions. Discussed are the precision, accuracy, resolution, and sensitivity of our results. The technique is quite versatile and can be applied to spectroscopic investigations where wideband, accurate, low-noise, real-time spectra are desired. University of Notre Dame Office of Research, College of Science, Department of Physics, and USDA.

  13. Development of high-spatial and high-mass resolution mass spectrometric imaging (MSI) and its application to the study of small metabolites and endogenous molecules of plants

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jun, Ji Hyun [Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States)

    2012-01-01

    distribution of targeted metabolites, mainly waxes and flavonoids, was systematically explored on various organs, including flowers, leaves, stems, and roots at high spatial resolution of ~ 12-50 μm and the changes in the abundance level of these metabolites were monitored on the cer1 mutant with respect to the wild-type. This study revealed the metabolic biology of CER1 gene on each individual organ level with very detailed high spatial resolution. The separate MS images of isobaric metabolites, i.e. C29 alkane vs. C28 aldehyde could be constructed on both genotypes from MS imaging at high mass resolution. This allows tracking of abundance changes for those compounds along with the genetic mutation, which is not achievable with low mass resolution mass spectrometry. This study supported previous hypothesis of molecular function of CER1 gene as aldehyde decarbonylase, especially by displaying hyper accumulation of aldehydes and C30 fatty acid and decrease in abundance of alkanes and ketones in several plant organs of cer1 mutant. The scope of analytes was further directed toward internal cell metabolites from the surface metabolites of the plant. MS profiling and imaging of internal cell metabolites were performed on the vibratome section of Arabidopsis leaf. Vibratome sectioning of the leaf was first conducted to remove the surface cuticle layer and it was followed by enzymatic treatment of the section to induce the digestion of primary cell walls, middle lamella, and expose the internal cells underneath to the surface for detection with the laser by LDI-MS. The subsequent MS imaging onto the enzymatically treated vibratome section allowed us to map the distribution of the metabolites in the internal cell layers, linolenic acid (C18:3 FA) and linoleic acid (C18:2 FA). The development of an assay for relative quantification of analytes at the single subcellular/organelle level by LDI-MS imaging was attempted and both plausibility and significant obstacles were seen. As a test

  14. Preparation of uranium targets and application of analytical techniques for its evaluation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Luna Z, D.

    1994-01-01

    The objective of this work is to establish a method to produce uranium targets. The method selected for this purpose was the molecular plating. The first part of this work is devoted to the proper selection of an analytical technique to evaluate the different steps of the molecular plating method. Neutron Activation Analysis was chosen, because its high sensitivity and can be adapted easily to follow the whole procedure. The second part presents the experimental procedure and the study of the different parameters involved in the molecular plating and the evaluation of its uniformity was made using plastic track detectors. The results obtained are presented and a procedure is suggested to produce uranium targets. (Author)

  15. Recent Studies on the Speciation and Determination of Mercury in Different Environmental Matrices Using Various Analytical Techniques

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lakshmi Narayana Suvarapu

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper reviews the current research on the speciation and determination of mercury by various analytical techniques, including the atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS, voltammetry, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES, ICP-mass spectrometry (MS, atomic fluorescence spectrometry (AFS, spectrophotometry, spectrofluorometry, and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC. Approximately 96 research papers on the speciation and determination of mercury by various analytical instruments published in international journals since 2015 were reviewed. All analytical parameters, including the limits of detection, linearity range, quality assurance and control, applicability, and interfering ions, evaluated in the reviewed articles were tabulated. In this review, we found a lack of information in speciation studies of mercury in recent years. Another important conclusion from this review was that there were few studies regarding the concentration of mercury in the atmosphere.

  16. Resolution enhancement for ultrasonic echographic technique in non destructive testing with an adaptive deconvolution method

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vivet, L.

    1989-01-01

    The ultrasonic echographic technique has specific advantages which makes it essential in a lot of Non Destructive Testing (NDT) investigations. However, the high acoustic power necessary to propagate through highly attenuating media can only be transmitted by resonant transducers, which induces severe limitations of the resolution on the received echograms. This resolution may be improved with deconvolution methods. But one-dimensional deconvolution methods come up against problems in non destructive testing when the investigated medium is highly anisotropic and inhomogeneous (i.e. austenitic steel). Numerous deconvolution techniques are well documented in the NDT literature. But they often come from other application fields (biomedical engineering, geophysics) and we show they do not apply well to specific NDT problems: frequency-dependent attenuation and non-minimum phase of the emitted wavelet. We therefore introduce a new time-domain approach which takes into account the wavelet features. Our method solves the deconvolution problem as an estimation one and is performed in two steps: (i) A phase correction step which takes into account the phase of the wavelet and estimates a phase-corrected echogram. The phase of the wavelet is only due to the transducer and is assumed time-invariant during the propagation. (ii) A band equalization step which restores the spectral content of the ideal reflectivity. The two steps of the method are performed using fast Kalman filters which allow a significant reduction of the computational effort. Synthetic and actual results are given to prove that this is a good approach for resolution improvement in attenuating media [fr

  17. Improved methods for high resolution electron microscopy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Taylor, J.R.

    1987-04-01

    Existing methods of making support films for high resolution transmission electron microscopy are investigated and novel methods are developed. Existing methods of fabricating fenestrated, metal reinforced specimen supports (microgrids) are evaluated for their potential to reduce beam induced movement of monolamellar crystals of C/sub 44/H/sub 90/ paraffin supported on thin carbon films. Improved methods of producing hydrophobic carbon films by vacuum evaporation, and improved methods of depositing well ordered monolamellar paraffin crystals on carbon films are developed. A novel technique for vacuum evaporation of metals is described which is used to reinforce microgrids. A technique is also developed to bond thin carbon films to microgrids with a polymer bonding agent. Unique biochemical methods are described to accomplish site specific covalent modification of membrane proteins. Protocols are given which covalently convert the carboxy terminus of papain cleaved bacteriorhodopsin to a free thiol. 53 refs., 19 figs., 1 tab.

  18. High resolution X-ray detector for synchrotron-based microtomography

    CERN Document Server

    Stampanoni, M; Wyss, P; Abela, R; Patterson, B; Hunt, S; Vermeulen, D; Rueegsegger, P

    2002-01-01

    Synchrotron-based microtomographic devices are powerful, non-destructive, high-resolution research tools. Highly brilliant and coherent X-rays extend the traditional absorption imaging techniques and enable edge-enhanced and phase-sensitive measurements. At the Materials Science Beamline MS of the Swiss Light Source (SLS), the X-ray microtomographic device is now operative. A high performance detector based on a scintillating screen optically coupled to a CCD camera has been developed and tested. Different configurations are available, covering a field of view ranging from 715x715 mu m sup 2 to 7.15x7.15 mm sup 2 with magnifications from 4x to 40x. With the highest magnification 480 lp/mm had been achieved at 10% modulation transfer function which corresponds to a spatial resolution of 1.04 mu m. A low-noise fast-readout CCD camera transfers 2048x2048 pixels within 100-250 ms at a dynamic range of 12-14 bit to the file server. A user-friendly graphical interface gives access to the main parameters needed for ...

  19. A high resolution solar atlas for fluorescence calculations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hearn, M. F.; Ohlmacher, J. T.; Schleicher, D. G.

    1983-01-01

    The characteristics required of a solar atlas to be used for studying the fluorescence process in comets are examined. Several sources of low resolution data were combined to provide an absolutely calibrated spectrum from 2250 A to 7000A. Three different sources of high resolution data were also used to cover this same spectral range. The low resolution data were then used to put each high resolution spectrum on an absolute scale. The three high resolution spectra were then combined in their overlap regions to produce a single, absolutely calibrated high resolution spectrum over the entire spectral range.

  20. Some new hydraulic and tracer measurement techniques for heterogeneous aquifer formations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ptak, T.; Teutsch, G.

    1990-01-01

    Groundwater contamination assessment and remediation activities demand reliable techniques for the determination of the governing aquifer parameters and their spatial distribution. In order to define guidelines and recommendations, some existing underground investigation techniques were tested and new methods have been developed as a part of the research program at the Horkheimer Insel experimental field site. In this paper, some new developed field and laboratory techniques are introduced and the results compared for two example monitoring wells located in the northern part of the field site. It is shown that highly conductive and highly heterogeneous aquifers demand high resolution investigation techniques. For transport predictions, new methods are needed that are able to detect preferential flow paths. Results from multilevel tracer tests show that simple analytical interpretations are not valid for this type of aquifer. (Author) (8 refs., 12 figs., tab.)

  1. Mastering high resolution tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy: towards a shift of perception.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Richard-Lacroix, Marie; Zhang, Yao; Dong, Zhenchao; Deckert, Volker

    2017-07-03

    Recent years have seen tremendous improvement of our understanding of high resolution reachable in TERS experiments, forcing us to re-evaluate our understanding of the intrinsic limits of this field, but also exposing several inconsistencies. On the one hand, more and more recent experimental results have provided us with clear indications of spatial resolutions down to a few nanometres or even on the subnanometre scale. Moreover, lessons learned from recent theoretical investigations clearly support such high resolutions, and vice versa the obvious theoretical impossibility to evade high resolution from a purely plasmonic point of view. On the other hand, most of the published TERS results still, to date, claim a resolution on the order of tens of nanometres that would be somehow limited by the tip apex, a statement well accepted for the past 2 decades. Overall, this now leads the field to a fundamental question: how can this divergence be justified? The answer to this question brings up an equally critical one: how can this gap be bridged? This review aims at raising a fundamental discussion related to the resolution limits of tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, at revisiting our comprehension of the factors limiting it both from a theoretical and an experimental point of view and at providing indications on how to move the field ahead. It is our belief that a much deeper understanding of the real accessible lateral resolution in TERS and the practical factors that limit them will simultaneously help us to fully explore the potential of this technique for studying nanoscale features in organic, inorganic and biological systems, and also to improve both the reproducibility and the accuracy of routine TERS studies. A significant improvement of our comprehension of the accessible resolution in TERS is thus critical for a broad audience, even in certain contexts where high resolution TERS is not the desired outcome.

  2. A new high-resolution electromagnetic method for subsurface imaging

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feng, Wanjie

    For most electromagnetic (EM) geophysical systems, the contamination of primary fields on secondary fields ultimately limits the capability of the controlled-source EM methods. Null coupling techniques were proposed to solve this problem. However, the small orientation errors in the null coupling systems greatly restrict the applications of these systems. Another problem encountered by most EM systems is the surface interference and geologic noise, which sometimes make the geophysical survey impossible to carry out. In order to solve these problems, the alternating target antenna coupling (ATAC) method was introduced, which greatly removed the influence of the primary field and reduced the surface interference. But this system has limitations on the maximum transmitter moment that can be used. The differential target antenna coupling (DTAC) method was proposed to allow much larger transmitter moments and at the same time maintain the advantages of the ATAC method. In this dissertation, first, the theoretical DTAC calculations were derived mathematically using Born and Wolf's complex magnetic vector. 1D layered and 2D blocked earth models were used to demonstrate that the DTAC method has no responses for 1D and 2D structures. Analytical studies of the plate model influenced by conductive and resistive backgrounds were presented to explain the physical phenomenology behind the DTAC method, which is the magnetic fields of the subsurface targets are required to be frequency dependent. Then, the advantages of the DTAC method, e.g., high-resolution, reducing the geologic noise and insensitive to surface interference, were analyzed using surface and subsurface numerical examples in the EMGIMA software. Next, the theoretical advantages, such as high resolution and insensitive to surface interference, were verified by designing and developing a low-power (moment of 50 Am 2) vertical-array DTAC system and testing it on controlled targets and scaled target coils. At last, a

  3. On the optical stability of high-resolution transmission electron microscopes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Barthel, J.; Thust, A.

    2013-01-01

    In the recent two decades the technique of high-resolution transmission electron microscopy experienced an unprecedented progress through the introduction of hardware aberration correctors and by the improvement of the achievable resolution to the sub-Ångström level. The important aspect that aberration correction at a given resolution requires also a well defined amount of optical stability has received little attention so far. Therefore we investigate the qualification of a variety of high-resolution electron microscopes to maintain an aberration corrected optical state in terms of an optical lifetime. We develop a comprehensive statistical framework for the estimation of the optical lifetime and find remarkably low values between tens of seconds and a couple of minutes. Probability curves are introduced, which inform the operator about the chance to work still in the fully aberration corrected state. - Highlights: • We investigate the temporal stability of optical aberrations in HRTEM. • We develop a statistical framework for the estimation of optical lifetimes. • We introduce plots showing the success probability for aberration-free work. • Optical lifetimes in sub-Ångström electron microscopy are surprisingly low. • The success of aberration correction depends strongly on the optical stability

  4. Multi-pinhole collimator design for small-object imaging with SiliSPECT: a high-resolution SPECT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shokouhi, S; Peterson, T E; Metzler, S D; Wilson, D W

    2009-01-01

    We have designed a multi-pinhole collimator for a dual-headed, stationary SPECT system that incorporates high-resolution silicon double-sided strip detectors. The compact camera design of our system enables imaging at source-collimator distances between 20 and 30 mm. Our analytical calculations show that using knife-edge pinholes with small-opening angles or cylindrically shaped pinholes in a focused, multi-pinhole configuration in combination with this camera geometry can generate narrow sensitivity profiles across the field of view that can be useful for imaging small objects at high sensitivity and resolution. The current prototype system uses two collimators each containing 127 cylindrically shaped pinholes that are focused toward a target volume. Our goal is imaging objects such as a mouse brain, which could find potential applications in molecular imaging.

  5. The use of selective adsorbents in capillary electrophoresis-mass spectrometry for analyte preconcentration and microreactions: a powerful three-dimensional tool for multiple chemical and biological applications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guzman, N A; Stubbs, R J

    2001-10-01

    Much attention has recently been directed to the development and application of online sample preconcentration and microreactions in capillary electrophoresis using selective adsorbents based on chemical or biological specificity. The basic principle involves two interacting chemical or biological systems with high selectivity and affinity for each other. These molecular interactions in nature usually involve noncovalent and reversible chemical processes. Properly bound to a solid support, an "affinity ligand" can selectively adsorb a "target analyte" found in a simple or complex mixture at a wide range of concentrations. As a result, the isolated analyte is enriched and highly purified. When this affinity technique, allowing noncovalent chemical interactions and biochemical reactions to occur, is coupled on-line to high-resolution capillary electrophoresis and mass spectrometry, a powerful tool of chemical and biological information is created. This paper describes the concept of biological recognition and affinity interaction on-line with high-resolution separation, the fabrication of an "analyte concentrator-microreactor", optimization conditions of adsorption and desorption, the coupling to mass spectrometry, and various applications of clinical and pharmaceutical interest.

  6. Sun, Ocean, Nuclear Bombs, and Fossil Fuels: Radiocarbon Variations and Implications for High-Resolution Dating

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dutta, Koushik

    2016-06-01

    Radiocarbon, or 14C, is a radiometric dating method ideally suited for providing a chronological framework in archaeology and geosciences for timescales spanning the last 50,000 years. 14C is easily detectable in most common natural organic materials and has a half-life (5,730±40 years) relevant to these timescales. 14C produced from large-scale detonations of nuclear bombs between the 1950s and the early 1960s can be used for dating modern organic materials formed after the 1950s. Often these studies demand high-resolution chronology to resolve ages within a few decades to less than a few years. Despite developments in modern, high-precision 14C analytical methods, the applicability of 14C in high-resolution chronology is limited by short-term variations in atmospheric 14C in the past. This article reviews the roles of the principal natural drivers (e.g., solar magnetic activity and ocean circulation) and the anthropogenic perturbations (e.g., fossil fuel CO2 and 14C from nuclear and thermonuclear bombs) that are responsible for short-term 14C variations in the environment. Methods and challenges of high-resolution 14C dating are discussed.

  7. High-resolution CT of lymphoid interstitial pneumonia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vilgrain, V.; Frija, J.; Yana, C.; Couderc, L.J.; David, M.; Clauvel, J.P.; Laval-Jeantet, M.

    1989-01-01

    Three patients with lymphoid interstitial pneumonia (two HIV 1+ patients with chronic lymphadenopathic syndromes and one with a not-characterized autoimmune disease) have been studied with high-resolution computed tomography (HR-CT). This technique reveals septal lines, small reticulonodular opacities, polyhedral micronodular opacities, 'ground-glass' opacities and a dense, subpleural, curved broken line in one patient. The lesions dominate in the bases of the lungs. They are not characteristic for lymphoid interstitial pneumonia. If a patient presents with a chronic lymphadenopathic syndrome, the diagnosis of an opportunistic infection should not be automatically made, since the syndrome can be caused by lymphoid interstitial pneumonia [fr

  8. Quadruplex MAPH: improvement of throughput in high-resolution copy number screening.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tyson, Jess; Majerus, Tamsin Mo; Walker, Susan; Armour, John Al

    2009-09-28

    Copy number variation (CNV) in the human genome is recognised as a widespread and important source of human genetic variation. Now the challenge is to screen for these CNVs at high resolution in a reliable, accurate and cost-effective way. Multiplex Amplifiable Probe Hybridisation (MAPH) is a sensitive, high-resolution technology appropriate for screening for CNVs in a defined region, for a targeted population. We have developed MAPH to a highly multiplexed format ("QuadMAPH") that allows the user a four-fold increase in the number of loci tested simultaneously. We have used this method to analyse a genomic region of 210 kb, including the MSH2 gene and 120 kb of flanking DNA. We show that the QuadMAPH probes report copy number with equivalent accuracy to simplex MAPH, reliably demonstrating diploid copy number in control samples and accurately detecting deletions in Hereditary Non-Polyposis Colorectal Cancer (HNPCC) samples. QuadMAPH is an accurate, high-resolution method that allows targeted screening of large numbers of subjects without the expense of genome-wide approaches. Whilst we have applied this technique to a region of the human genome, it is equally applicable to the genomes of other organisms.

  9. In-situ investigations of structural changes during cyclic loading by high resolution reciprocal space mapping

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Diederichs, Annika M.; Thiel, Felix; Lienert, Ulrich

    2017-01-01

    dislocation structures can be identified using advanced electron microscopy and synchrotron techniques. A detailed characterization of the microstructure during cyclic loading by in-situ monitoring the internal structure within individual grains with high energy x-rays can help to understand and predict...... the materials behavior during cyclic deformation and to improve the material design. While monitoring macroscopic stress and strain during cyclic loading, reciprocal space maps of diffraction peaks from single grains are obtained with high resolution. High Resolution Reciprocal Space Mapping was applied...

  10. Analytical TEM investigations of nanoscale magnetic materials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Meingast, A.

    2015-01-01

    Analytical transmission electron microscopy has been applied within this thesis to investigate several novel approaches to design and fabricate nanoscale magnetic materials. As the size of the features of interest rank in the sub-nanometer range, it is necessary to employ techniques with a resolution – both spatial and analytical – well below this magnitude. Only at this performance level it is possible to examine material properties, necessary for the further tailoring of materials. Within this work two key aspects have been covered: First, analytical TEM (transmission electron microscopy) investigations were carried out to get insight into novel magnetic materials with high detail. Second, new analytical and imaging possibilities enabled with the commissioning of the new ASTEM (Austrian scanning transmission electron microscope) were explored. The aberration corrected TITAN® microscope (© FEI Company) allows resolving features in scanning transmission mode (STEM) with 70 pm distance. Thereby, direct imaging of light elements in STEM mode by using the annular bright field method becomes possible. Facilitated through high beam currents within the electron probe, an increased acquisition speed of analytical signals is possible. For energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS) a new four detector disc geometry around the specimen was implemented, which increases the accessible collection angle. With the integration of the latest generation of image filter and electron spectrometer (GIF QuantumERS), electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) is boosted through the high acquisition speed and the dual spectroscopy mode. The high acquisition speed allows to record up to 1000 spectra per second and the possibility to record atomically resolved EELS maps is at hand. Hereby it is important to avoid beam damage and alteration of the material during imaging and analysis. With the simultaneous acquisition of the low and the high loss spectral region, an extended range for

  11. Applied research on air pollution using nuclear-related analytical techniques. Report on the second research co-ordination meeting

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1995-07-01

    A co-ordinated research programme (CRP) on applied research on air pollution using nuclear-related techniques is a global CRP which started in 1992, and is scheduled to run until early 1997. The purpose of this CRP is to promote the use of nuclear analytical techniques in air pollution studies, e.g. NAA, XRF, and PIXE for the analysis of toxic and other trace elements in air particulate matter. The main purposes of the core programme are i) to support the use of nuclear and nuclear-related analytical techniques for research and monitoring studies on air pollution, ii) to identify major sources of air pollution affecting each of the participating countries with particular reference to toxic heavy metals, and iii) to obtain comparative data on pollution levels in areas of high pollution (e.g. a city centre or a populated area downwind of a large pollution source) and low pollution (e.g. rural area). This document reports the discussions held during the second Research Co-ordination Meeting (RCM) for the CRP which took place at ANSTO in Menai, Australia. (author)

  12. Applied research on air pollution using nuclear-related analytical techniques. Report on the second research co-ordination meeting

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1995-01-01

    A co-ordinated research programme (CRP) on applied research on air pollution using nuclear-related techniques is a global CRP which started in 1992, and is scheduled to run until early 1997. The purpose of this CRP is to promote the use of nuclear analytical techniques in air pollution studies, e.g. NAA, XRF, and PIXE for the analysis of toxic and other trace elements in air particulate matter. The main purposes of the core programme are i) to support the use of nuclear and nuclear-related analytical techniques for research and monitoring studies on air pollution, ii) to identify major sources of air pollution affecting each of the participating countries with particular reference to toxic heavy metals, and iii) to obtain comparative data on pollution levels in areas of high pollution (e.g. a city centre or a populated area downwind of a large pollution source) and low pollution (e.g. rural area). This document reports the discussions held during the second Research Co-ordination Meeting (RCM) for the CRP which took place at ANSTO in Menai, Australia. (author)

  13. Monte Carlo treatment planning and high-resolution alpha-track autoradiography for neutron capture therapy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zamenhof, R.G.; Lin, K.; Ziegelmiller, D.; Clement, S.; Lui, C.; Harling, O.K.

    Monte Carlo simulations of thermal neutron flux distributions in a mathematical head model have been compared to experimental measurements in a corresponding anthropomorphic gelatin-based head phantom irradiated by a thermal neutron beam as presently available at the MITR-II Research Reactor. Excellent agreement between Monte Carlo and experimental measurements has encouraged us to employ the Monte Carlo simulation technique to approach treatment planning problems in neutron capture therapy. We have also implemented a high-resolution alpha-track autoradiography technique originally developed in our laboratory at MIT. Initial autoradiograms produced by this technique meet our expectations in terms of the high resolution available and the ability to etch tracks without concommitant destruction of stained tissue. Our preliminary results with computer-aided track distribution analysis indicate that this approach is very promising in being able to quantify boron distributions in tissue at the subcellular level with a minimum amount of operator effort necessary.

  14. A novel intra-operative, high-resolution atrial mapping approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yaksh, Ameeta; van der Does, Lisette J M E; Kik, Charles; Knops, Paul; Oei, Frans B S; van de Woestijne, Pieter C; Bekkers, Jos A; Bogers, Ad J J C; Allessie, Maurits A; de Groot, Natasja M S

    2015-12-01

    A new technique is demonstrated for extensive high-resolution intra-operative atrial mapping that will facilitate the localization of atrial fibrillation (AF) sources and identification of the substrate perpetuating AF. Prior to the start of extra-corporal circulation, a 8 × 24-electrode array (2-mm inter-electrode distance) is placed subsequently on all the right and left epicardial atrial sites, including Bachmann's bundle, for recording of unipolar electrograms during sinus rhythm and (induced) AF. AF is induced by high-frequency pacing at the right atrial free wall. A pacemaker wire stitched to the right atrium serves as a reference signal. The indifferent pole is connected to a steal wire fixed to subcutaneous tissue. Electrograms are recorded by a computerized mapping system and, after amplification (gain 1000), filtering (bandwidth 0.5-400 Hz), sampling (1 kHz) and analogue to digital conversion (16 bits), automatically stored on hard disk. During the mapping procedure, real-time visualization secures electrogram quality. Analysis will be performed offline. This technique was performed in 168 patients of 18 years and older, with coronary and/or structural heart disease, with or without AF, electively scheduled for cardiac surgery and a ventricular ejection fraction above 40 %. The mean duration of the entire mapping procedure including preparation time was 9 ± 2 min. Complications related to the mapping procedure during or after cardiac surgery were not observed. We introduce the first epicardial atrial mapping approach with a high resolution of ≥1728 recording sites which can be performed in a procedure time of only 9±2 mins. This mapping technique can potentially identify areas responsible for initiation and persistence of AF and hopefully can individualize both diagnosis and therapy of AF.

  15. High Accuracy Evaluation of the Finite Fourier Transform Using Sampled Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morelli, Eugene A.

    1997-01-01

    Many system identification and signal processing procedures can be done advantageously in the frequency domain. A required preliminary step for this approach is the transformation of sampled time domain data into the frequency domain. The analytical tool used for this transformation is the finite Fourier transform. Inaccuracy in the transformation can degrade system identification and signal processing results. This work presents a method for evaluating the finite Fourier transform using cubic interpolation of sampled time domain data for high accuracy, and the chirp Zeta-transform for arbitrary frequency resolution. The accuracy of the technique is demonstrated in example cases where the transformation can be evaluated analytically. Arbitrary frequency resolution is shown to be important for capturing details of the data in the frequency domain. The technique is demonstrated using flight test data from a longitudinal maneuver of the F-18 High Alpha Research Vehicle.

  16. Development of an absolute x-ray fluorescence technique and high accuracy analytical methods for the determination of metals in catalytic materials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    LaBrecque, J.J.; Parker, W.C.

    1982-09-01

    A technique to produce characteristic x-rays by direct beta excitation for x-ray fluorescence analysis is presented. This is carried out by the introduction of 100 uCi of Pm-147 or Ni-63 to a small sample, which is placed directly in the window of a modified Si(Li) semiconductor. Corrected intensities are only given at 300 seconds for synthetic standards oscillating within the range 22 3 was used, to which the radioisotope was directly added. Preliminary results of the determination of eleven different radionuclides by means of an elementary x-ray analysis by using a new analytical technique, are discussed. In this technique the radioisotope and the sample are directly mixed, then this source-sample in the detector window and is protected from contamination with a thin plastic film. Future and possible applications of this technique are presented

  17. High-resolution SPECT for small-animal imaging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qi Yujin

    2006-01-01

    This article presents a brief overview of the development of high-resolution SPECT for small-animal imaging. A pinhole collimator has been used for high-resolution animal SPECT to provide better spatial resolution and detection efficiency in comparison with a parallel-hole collimator. The theory of imaging characteristics of the pinhole collimator is presented and the designs of the pinhole aperture are discussed. The detector technologies used for the development of small-animal SPECT and the recent advances are presented. The evolving trend of small-animal SPECT is toward a multi-pinhole and a multi-detector system to obtain a high resolution and also a high detection efficiency. (authors)

  18. Nuclear Analytical Techniques for Commercial Applications in China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chai, Z.; Zhang, Z.; Feng, S.; Yang, J.; Ouyang, H.; Feng, X.; Mao, X.

    2013-01-01

    Since the establishment of the first Chinese nuclear reactor and accelerator in 1958, the nuclear analytical techniques (NATs) in China have dramatically developed in past half century. Nowadays 10 research nuclear reactors and over 100 small accelerators are available in China. Roughly, about 50 % of the machine time is applied for commercial purpose at the moment. The versatile nuclear analytical methods, mainly NAA, PIXE, XRF, etc., in China have been and are being applied widely and extensively in the following three fields: scientific, training, and commercial. This paper will briefly describe the past experience and present status about NATs for commercial applications. Some practical examples to demonstrate the role of NATs in this aspect will be given as well. Basically, the NATs used for the commercial applications in China can be divided into two types, i.e. off-line and on-line. The former mainly includes instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) for compositional determination, particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE) also for compositional analysis, accelerator-based mass-spectrometry (AMS) for analysis of C-14, Be-7, Cl-36 and other long-lived radioactive nuclides, solid state nuclear track detector

  19. High resolution x-ray lensless imaging by differential holographic encoding

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhu, D.; Guizar-Sicairos, M.; Wu, B.; Scherz, A.; Acremann, Y.; Tylisczcak, T.; Fischer, P.; Friedenberger, N.; Ollefs, K.; Farle, M.; Fienup, J. R.; Stohr, J.

    2009-11-02

    X-ray free electron lasers (X-FEL{sub s}) will soon offer femtosecond pulses of laterally coherent x-rays with sufficient intensity to record single-shot coherent scattering patterns for nanoscale imaging. Pulse trains created by splitand-delay techniques even open the door for cinematography on unprecedented nanometer length and femtosecond time scales. A key to real space ultrafast motion pictures is fast and reliable inversion of the recorded reciprocal space scattering patterns. Here we for the first time demonstrate in the x-ray regime the power of a novel technique for lensless high resolution imaging, previously suggested by Guizar-Sicairos and Fienup termed holography with extended reference by autocorrelation linear differential operation, HERALD0. We have achieved superior resolution over conventional x-ray Fourier transform holography (FTH) without sacrifices in SNR or significant increase in algorithmic complexity. By combining images obtained from individual sharp features on an extended reference, we further show that the resolution can be even extended beyond the reference fabrication limits. Direct comparison to iterative phase retrieval image reconstruction and images recorded with stateof- the-art zone plate microscopes is presented. Our results demonstrate the power of HERALDO as a favorable candidate for robust inversion of single-shot coherent scattering patterns.

  20. High-Resolution X-Ray Lensless Imaging by Differential Holographic Encoding

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhu, Diling [Stanford Univ., CA (United States). Dept. of Applied Physics; SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States). Stanford Inst. for Material and Energy Science; Guizar-Sicairos, Manuel [Univ. of Rochester, NY (United States). Inst. of Optics; Wu, Benny [Stanford Univ., CA (United States). Dept. of Applied Physics; SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States). Stanford Inst. for Material and Energy Science; Scherz, Andreas [SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States). Stanford Inst. for Material and Energy Science; Acremann, Yves [SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States). Photon Ultrafast Laser Science and Engineering Inst. (PULSE); Tyliszczak, Tolek [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Advanced Light Source (ALS); Fischer, Peter [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Center for X-ray Optics; Friedenberger, Nina [Universitat Duisburg-Essen (Germany). Dept. of Physics and Center for Nanointegration Duisburg-Essen (CeNIDE); Ollefs, Katharina [Universitat Duisburg-Essen (Germany). Dept. of Physics and Center for Nanointegration Duisburg-Essen (CeNIDE); Farle, Michael [Universitat Duisburg-Essen (Germany). Dept. of Physics and Center for Nanointegration Duisburg-Essen (CeNIDE); Fienup, James R. [Univ. of Rochester, NY (United States). Inst. of Optics; Stöhr, Joachim [SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States). Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS)

    2010-07-01

    X-ray free electron lasers (X-FELs) will soon offer femtosecond pulses of laterally coherent x-rays with sufficient intensity to record single-shot coherent scattering patterns for nanoscale imaging. Pulse trains created by split and- delay techniques even open the door for cinematography on unprecedented nanometer length and femtosecond time scales. A key to real space ultrafast motion pictures is fast and reliable inversion of the recorded reciprocal space scattering patterns. Here we for the first time demonstrate in the x-ray regime the power of a novel technique for lensless high resolution imaging, previously suggested by Guizar-Sicairos and Fienup termed holography with extended reference by autocorrelation linear differential operation, HERALD0. We have achieved superior resolution over conventional x-ray Fourier transform holography (FTH) without sacrifices in SNR or significant increase in algorithmic complexity. By combining images obtained from individual sharp features on an extended reference, we further show that the resolution can be even extended beyond the reference fabrication limits. Direct comparison to iterative phase retrieval image reconstruction and images recorded with state of-the-art zone plate microscopes is presented. Our results demonstrate the power of HERALDO as a favorable candidate for robust inversion of single-shot coherent scattering patterns.

  1. Vanishing lung syndrome: the importance of the high-resolution CT in its diagnostic

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rodriguez Cerezo, M.I.; Porres Azcona, E.; Pina Insausti, L.; Inchusta Sarasibar, M.I.; Mellado Rodriguez, M.

    1995-01-01

    Vanishing lung syndrome, also referred to as idiopathic giant bullions emphysema is a dissolver that has yet to be fully characterized. It is considered a different entry from classic pulmonary emphysema. It is characterized by the presence of large bullae associated with some type of emphysema. High-resolution CT is the best imaging technique to identify the underlying type of emphysema and it helps to determine the viability of the nonbullous lung. We present the case of an asymptomatic patient in whom the diagnosis was suspected on the basis of plain chest X ray and was confirmed by high-resolution CT. 13 refs

  2. High-resolution temperature-based optimization for hyperthermia treatment planning

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kok, H P; Haaren, P M A van; Kamer, J B Van de; Wiersma, J; Dijk, J D P Van; Crezee, J

    2005-01-01

    In regional hyperthermia, optimization techniques are valuable in order to obtain amplitude/phase settings for the applicators to achieve maximal tumour heating without toxicity to normal tissue. We implemented a temperature-based optimization technique and maximized tumour temperature with constraints on normal tissue temperature to prevent hot spots. E-field distributions are the primary input for the optimization method. Due to computer limitations we are restricted to a resolution of 1 x 1 x 1 cm 3 for E-field calculations, too low for reliable treatment planning. A major problem is the fact that hot spots at low-resolution (LR) do not always correspond to hot spots at high-resolution (HR), and vice versa. Thus, HR temperature-based optimization is necessary for adequate treatment planning and satisfactory results cannot be obtained with LR strategies. To obtain HR power density (PD) distributions from LR E-field calculations, a quasi-static zooming technique has been developed earlier at the UMC Utrecht. However, quasi-static zooming does not preserve phase information and therefore it does not provide the HR E-field information required for direct HR optimization. We combined quasi-static zooming with the optimization method to obtain a millimetre resolution temperature-based optimization strategy. First we performed a LR (1 cm) optimization and used the obtained settings to calculate the HR (2 mm) PD and corresponding HR temperature distribution. Next, we performed a HR optimization using an estimation of the new HR temperature distribution based on previous calculations. This estimation is based on the assumption that the HR and LR temperature distributions, though strongly different, respond in a similar way to amplitude/phase steering. To verify the newly obtained settings, we calculate the corresponding HR temperature distribution. This method was applied to several clinical situations and found to work very well. Deviations of this estimation method for

  3. High-throughput characterization of sediment organic matter by pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and multivariate curve resolution: A promising analytical tool in (paleo)limnology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tolu, Julie; Gerber, Lorenz; Boily, Jean-François; Bindler, Richard

    2015-06-23

    Molecular-level chemical information about organic matter (OM) in sediments helps to establish the sources of OM and the prevalent degradation/diagenetic processes, both essential for understanding the cycling of carbon (C) and of the elements associated with OM (toxic trace metals and nutrients) in lake ecosystems. Ideally, analytical methods for characterizing OM should allow high sample throughput, consume small amounts of sample and yield relevant chemical information, which are essential for multidisciplinary, high-temporal resolution and/or large spatial scale investigations. We have developed a high-throughput analytical method based on pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and automated data processing to characterize sedimentary OM in sediments. Our method consumes 200 μg of freeze-dried and ground sediment sample. Pyrolysis was performed at 450°C, which was found to avoid degradation of specific biomarkers (e.g., lignin compounds, fresh carbohydrates/cellulose) compared to 650°C, which is in the range of temperatures commonly applied for environmental samples. The optimization was conducted using the top ten sediment samples of an annually resolved sediment record (containing 16-18% and 1.3-1.9% of total carbon and nitrogen, respectively). Several hundred pyrolytic compound peaks were detected of which over 200 were identified, which represent different classes of organic compounds (i.e., n-alkanes, n-alkenes, 2-ketones, carboxylic acids, carbohydrates, proteins, other N compounds, (methoxy)phenols, (poly)aromatics, chlorophyll and steroids/hopanoids). Technical reproducibility measured as relative standard deviation of the identified peaks in triplicate analyses was 5.5±4.3%, with 90% of the RSD values within 10% and 98% within 15%. Finally, a multivariate calibration model was calculated between the pyrolytic degradation compounds and the sediment depth (i.e., sediment age), which is a function of degradation processes and changes in OM

  4. Assessing the Value of Structured Analytic Techniques in the U.S. Intelligence Community

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-01-01

    Analytic Techniques, and Why Do Analysts Use Them? SATs are methods of organizing and stimulating thinking about intelligence problems. These methods... thinking ; and imaginative thinking techniques encourage new perspectives, insights, and alternative scenarios. Among the many SATs in use today, the...more transparent, so that other analysts and customers can bet - ter understand how the judgments were reached. SATs also facilitate group involvement

  5. Intracavity optogalvanic spectroscopy. An analytical technique for 14C analysis with subattomole sensitivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murnick, Daniel E; Dogru, Ozgur; Ilkmen, Erhan

    2008-07-01

    We show a new ultrasensitive laser-based analytical technique, intracavity optogalvanic spectroscopy, allowing extremely high sensitivity for detection of (14)C-labeled carbon dioxide. Capable of replacing large accelerator mass spectrometers, the technique quantifies attomoles of (14)C in submicrogram samples. Based on the specificity of narrow laser resonances coupled with the sensitivity provided by standing waves in an optical cavity and detection via impedance variations, limits of detection near 10(-15) (14)C/(12)C ratios are obtained. Using a 15-W (14)CO2 laser, a linear calibration with samples from 10(-15) to >1.5 x 10(-12) in (14)C/(12)C ratios, as determined by accelerator mass spectrometry, is demonstrated. Possible applications include microdosing studies in drug development, individualized subtherapeutic tests of drug metabolism, carbon dating and real time monitoring of atmospheric radiocarbon. The method can also be applied to detection of other trace entities.

  6. Analytical admittance characterization of high mobility channel

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mammeri, A. M.; Mahi, F. Z., E-mail: fati-zo-mahi2002@yahoo.fr [Institute of Science and Technology, University of Bechar (Algeria); Varani, L. [Institute of Electronics of the South (IES - CNRS UMR 5214), University of Montpellier (France)

    2015-03-30

    In this contribution, we investigate the small-signal admittance of the high electron mobility transistors field-effect channels under a continuation branching of the current between channel and gate by using an analytical model. The analytical approach takes into account the linearization of the 2D Poisson equation and the drift current along the channel. The analytical equations discuss the frequency dependence of the admittance at source and drain terminals on the geometrical transistor parameters.

  7. Synopsis Session-I 'Chemical information under high spatial resolution'

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2013-01-01

    High spatial resolution in this research field is a prerequisite for a better understanding of governing processes, as individual clay particles are very small in dimension (clay size fraction typically defined as < 2μm). The phenomena that have been looked at under this resolution are narrow alteration zones either due to relatively short term laboratory experiments compared to the repository evolution time scale and/or due to the low reaction rates observed for clay minerals at ambient temperature. Another challenge in the field of chemical information to be extracted from compacted clay systems is that mostly the research is focused on the potential contaminants released from the repository near-field, which will be in the trace element concentration and analytical systems have to be tuned to increase the sensitivity under this high spatial resolution. Therefore, chemical information in form of element maps or correlation maps were shown on the initial clay material composition and its heterogeneities (e.g. phase assemblages), the water composition, sorption and migration effects of trace elements, reaction products of geochemical perturbation/alteration and the surface speciation/binding environment of the radionuclides or their chemical homologues. Overall, six invited presentation were given in this session plus additional poster presentations. Beside this, a number of presentations in the other sessions showed a great overlap presenting also chemical data under high spatial resolution. All these oral contributions have shown the progress in this field focusing on the current resolution limits set by the physics and instrumentation available (C. Jacobsen, APS), the micro-focusing instrumentation available at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) synchrotron light source ANKA (J. Goettlicher, KIT-ISS), the application of nano-SIMS to retrieve elemental/isotope maps on complex organo-mineral structures (C. Hoeschen, TU Muenchen), the application of a

  8. High resolution shadow mask patterning in deep holes and its application to an electrical wafer feed-through

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Burger, G.J.; Burger, G.J.; Smulders, E.J.T.; Berenschot, Johan W.; Lammerink, Theodorus S.J.; Fluitman, J.H.J.; Imai, S.

    1995-01-01

    This paper presents a technique to pattern materials in deep holes and/or on non-planar substrate surfaces. A rather old technique, E-beam evaporation of metals through a shadow mask, is used [1]. The realisation of high resolution shadow masks using micromachining techniques is described. Further,

  9. Application of X-ray fluorescence analytical techniques in phytoremediation and plant biology studies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Necemer, Marijan; Kump, Peter; Scancar, Janez; Jacimovic, Radojko; Simcic, Jurij; Pelicon, Primoz; Budnar, Milos; Jeran, Zvonka; Pongrac, Paula; Regvar, Marjana; Vogel-Mikus, Katarina

    2008-01-01

    Phytoremediation is an emerging technology that employs the use of higher plants for the clean-up of contaminated environments. Progress in the field is however handicapped by limited knowledge of the biological processes involved in plant metal uptake, translocation, tolerance and plant-microbe-soil interactions; therefore a better understanding of the basic biological mechanisms involved in plant/microbe/soil/contaminant interactions would allow further optimization of phytoremediation technologies. In view of the needs of global environmental protection, it is important that in phytoremediation and plant biology studies the analytical procedures for elemental determination in plant tissues and soil should be fast and cheap, with simple sample preparation, and of adequate accuracy and reproducibility. The aim of this study was therefore to present the main characteristics, sample preparation protocols and applications of X-ray fluorescence-based analytical techniques (energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry-EDXRF, total reflection X-ray fluorescence spectrometry-TXRF and micro-proton induced X-ray emission-micro-PIXE). Element concentrations in plant leaves from metal polluted and non-polluted sites, as well as standard reference materials, were analyzed by the mentioned techniques, and additionally by instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) and atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). The results were compared and critically evaluated in order to assess the performance and capability of X-ray fluorescence-based techniques in phytoremediation and plant biology studies. It is the EDXRF, which is recommended as suitable to be used in the analyses of a large number of samples, because it is multi-elemental, requires only simple preparation of sample material, and it is analytically comparable to the most frequently used instrumental chemical techniques. The TXRF is compatible to FAAS in sample preparation, but relative to AAS it is fast, sensitive and

  10. Development of Signal Processing Algorithms for High Resolution Airborne Millimeter Wave FMCW SAR

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Meta, A.; Hoogeboom, P.

    2005-01-01

    For airborne earth observation applications, there is a special interest in lightweight, cost effective, imaging sensors of high resolution. The combination of Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) technology and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) techniques can lead to such a sensor. In this

  11. High Resolution BPM Upgrade for the ATF Damping Ring at KEK

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eddy, N.; Briegel, C.; Fellenz, B.; Gianfelice-Wendt, E.; Prieto, P.; Rechenmacher, R.; Semenov, A.; Voy, D.; Wendt, M.; Zhang, D.; Terunuma, N.

    2011-01-01

    A beam position monitor (BPM) upgrade at the KEK Accelerator Test Facility (ATF) damping ring has been accomplished, carried out by a KEK/FNAL/SLAC collaboration under the umbrella of the global ILC R and D effort. The upgrade consists of a high resolution, high reproducibility read-out system, based on analog and digital down-conversion techniques, digital signal processing, and also implements a new automatic gain error correction schema. The technical concept and realization as well as results of beam studies are presented. The next generation of linear colliders require ultra-low vertical emittance of <2 pm-rad. The damping ring at the KEK Accelerator Test Facility (ATF) is designed to demonstrate this mission critical goal. A high resolution beam position monitor (BPM) system for the damping ring is one of the key tools for realizing this goal. The BPM system needs to provide two distnict measurements. First, a very high resolution (∼100-200nm) closed-orbit measurement which is averaged over many turns and realized with narrowband filter techniques - 'narrowband mode'. This is needed to monitor and steer the beam along an optimum orbit and to facilitate beam-based alignment to minimize non-linear field effects. Second, is the ability to make turn by turn (TBT) measurements to support optics studies and corrections necessary to achieve the design performance. As the TBT measurement necessitates a wider bandwidth, it is often referred to as 'wideband mode'. The BPM upgrade was initiated as a KEK/SLAC/FNAL collaboration in the frame of the Global Design Initiative of the International Linear Collider. The project was realized and completed using Japan-US funds with Fermilab as the core partner.

  12. A comparative study of 232Th and 238U activity estimation in soil samples by gamma spectrometry and neutron activation analysis technique

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anilkumar, Rekha; Anilkumar, S.; Narayani, K.; Babu, D.A.R.; Sharma, D.N.

    2012-01-01

    Neutron activation analysis (NAA) is a well-established analytical technique. It has many advantages as compared to the other commonly used techniques. NAA can be performed in a variety of ways depending on the element, its activity level in the sample, interference from the sample matrix and other elements, etc. This technique is used to get high analytical sensitivity and low detection limits (ppm to ppb). The high sensitivity is due to the irradiation at high neutron flux available from the research reactors and the activity measurement is done using high resolution HPGe detectors. In this paper, the activity estimation of soil samples using neutron activation and direct gamma spectrometry methods are compared. Even though the weights of samples considered and samples preparation methods are different for these two methods, the estimated activity values are comparable. (author)

  13. High resolution time integration for SN radiation transport

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thoreson, Greg; McClarren, Ryan G.; Chang, Jae H.

    2009-01-01

    First-order, second-order, and high resolution time discretization schemes are implemented and studied for the discrete ordinates (S N ) equations. The high resolution method employs a rate of convergence better than first-order, but also suppresses artificial oscillations introduced by second-order schemes in hyperbolic partial differential equations. The high resolution method achieves these properties by nonlinearly adapting the time stencil to use a first-order method in regions where oscillations could be created. We employ a quasi-linear solution scheme to solve the nonlinear equations that arise from the high resolution method. All three methods were compared for accuracy and convergence rates. For non-absorbing problems, both second-order and high resolution converged to the same solution as the first-order with better convergence rates. High resolution is more accurate than first-order and matches or exceeds the second-order method

  14. [Practical considerations for high resolution anoscopy in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iribarren-Díaz, Mauricio; Ocampo Hermida, Antonio; González-Carreró Fojón, Joaquín; Alonso-Parada, María; Rodríguez-Girondo, Mar

    2014-12-01

    Anal cancer is uncommon in the general population, however its incidence is increasing significantly in certain risk groups, mainly in men who have sex with men, and particularly those infected with human immunodeficiency virus. High resolution anoscopy technique is currently considered the standard in the diagnosis of anal intraepithelial neoplasia, but at present there is no agreed standard method between health areas. High resolution anoscopy is an affordable technique that can be critical in the screening of anal carcinoma and its precursor lesions, but is not without difficulties. We are currently studying the most effective strategy for managing premalignant anal lesions, and with this article we attempt to encourage other groups interested in reducing the incidence of an increasing neoplasia. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier España, S.L.U. y Sociedad Española de Enfermedades Infecciosas y Microbiología Clínica. All rights reserved.

  15. Inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry: analytical assessment of the technique at the beginning of the 90's

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sanz-Medel, A.

    1991-01-01

    The main application of the inductively coupled plasma (ICP) today is in atomic emission spectroscopy (AES), as an excitation spectrochemical source, although uses of an ICP for fluorescence as just an atomizer, and specially for mass spectrometry, as an ionization source, are rocketing in the last few years. Since its inception, only a quarter of a century ago, ICP-AES has rapidly evolved to one of the preferred routine analytical techniques for convenient determination of many elements with high speed, at low levels and in the most varied samples. Perhaps its comparatively high kinetic temperature (capable of atomizing virtually every compound of any sample), its high excitation and ionization temperatures, and its favourable spatial structure at the core of the ICP success. By now, the ICP-AES can be considered as having achieved maturity in that a huge amount of analytical problems can be tackled with this technique, while no major or fundamental changes have been adopted for several years. Despite this fact, important driving forces are still in operation to further improve the ICP-AES sensitivity, selectivity, precision, sample throughput, etc. Moreover, proposals to extend the scope of the technique to traditionally elusive fields (e.g. non-metals and organic compound analysis) are also appearing in the recent literature. In this paper the 'state of the art', the last developments and the expectations in trying to circumvent the limitations of the ICP-AES (on the light of literature data and personal experience) are reviewed. (author)

  16. In Vivo EPR Resolution Enhancement Using Techniques Known from Quantum Computing Spin Technology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rahimi, Robabeh; Halpern, Howard J; Takui, Takeji

    2017-01-01

    A crucial issue with in vivo biological/medical EPR is its low signal-to-noise ratio, giving rise to the low spectroscopic resolution. We propose quantum hyperpolarization techniques based on 'Heat Bath Algorithmic Cooling', allowing possible approaches for improving the resolution in magnetic resonance spectroscopy and imaging.

  17. High-resolution high-sensitivity elemental imaging by secondary ion mass spectrometry: from traditional 2D and 3D imaging to correlative microscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wirtz, T; Philipp, P; Audinot, J-N; Dowsett, D; Eswara, S

    2015-01-01

    Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) constitutes an extremely sensitive technique for imaging surfaces in 2D and 3D. Apart from its excellent sensitivity and high lateral resolution (50 nm on state-of-the-art SIMS instruments), advantages of SIMS include high dynamic range and the ability to differentiate between isotopes. This paper first reviews the underlying principles of SIMS as well as the performance and applications of 2D and 3D SIMS elemental imaging. The prospects for further improving the capabilities of SIMS imaging are discussed. The lateral resolution in SIMS imaging when using the microprobe mode is limited by (i) the ion probe size, which is dependent on the brightness of the primary ion source, the quality of the optics of the primary ion column and the electric fields in the near sample region used to extract secondary ions; (ii) the sensitivity of the analysis as a reasonable secondary ion signal, which must be detected from very tiny voxel sizes and thus from a very limited number of sputtered atoms; and (iii) the physical dimensions of the collision cascade determining the origin of the sputtered ions with respect to the impact site of the incident primary ion probe. One interesting prospect is the use of SIMS-based correlative microscopy. In this approach SIMS is combined with various high-resolution microscopy techniques, so that elemental/chemical information at the highest sensitivity can be obtained with SIMS, while excellent spatial resolution is provided by overlaying the SIMS images with high-resolution images obtained by these microscopy techniques. Examples of this approach are given by presenting in situ combinations of SIMS with transmission electron microscopy (TEM), helium ion microscopy (HIM) and scanning probe microscopy (SPM). (paper)

  18. High tracking resolution detectors. Final Technical Report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vasile, Stefan; Li, Zheng

    2010-01-01

    High-resolution tracking detectors based on Active Pixel Sensor (APS) have been valuable tools in Nuclear Physics and High-Energy Physics research, and have contributed to major discoveries. Their integration time, radiation length and readout rate is a limiting factor for the planed luminosity upgrades in nuclear and high-energy physics collider-based experiments. The goal of this program was to demonstrate and develop high-gain, high-resolution tracking detector arrays with faster readout, and shorter radiation length than APS arrays. These arrays may operate as direct charged particle detectors or as readouts of high resolution scintillating fiber arrays. During this program, we developed in CMOS large, high-resolution pixel sensor arrays with integrated readout, and reset at pixel level. Their intrinsic gain, high immunity to surface and moisture damage, will allow operating these detectors with minimal packaging/passivation requirements and will result in radiation length superior to APS. In Phase I, we designed and fabricated arrays with calorimetric output capable of sub-pixel resolution and sub-microsecond readout rate. The technical effort was dedicated to detector and readout structure development, performance verification, as well as to radiation damage and damage annealing.

  19. High-Resolution 3T MR Imaging of the Triangular Fibrocartilage Complex.

    Science.gov (United States)

    von Borstel, Donald; Wang, Michael; Small, Kirstin; Nozaki, Taiki; Yoshioka, Hiroshi

    2017-01-10

    This study is intended as a review of 3Tesla (T) magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of the triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC). The recent advances in MR imaging, which includes high field strength magnets, multi-channel coils, and isotropic 3-dimensional (3D) sequences have enabled the visualization of precise TFCC anatomy with high spatial and contrast resolution. In addition to the routine wrist protocol, there are specific techniques used to optimize 3T imaging of the wrist; including driven equilibrium sequence (DRIVE), parallel imaging, and 3D imaging. The coil choice for 3T imaging of the wrist depends on a number of variables, and the proper coil design selection is critical for high-resolution wrist imaging with high signal and contrast-to-noise ratio. The TFCC is a complex structure and is composed of the articular disc (disc proper), the triangular ligament, the dorsal and volar radioulnar ligaments, the meniscus homologue, the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL), the extensor carpi ulnaris (ECU) tendon sheath, and the ulnolunate and ulnotriquetral ligaments. The Palmer classification categorizes TFCC lesions as traumatic (type 1) or degenerative (type 2). In this review article, we present clinical high-resolution MR images of normal TFCC anatomy and TFCC injuries with this classification system.

  20. Assessment of analytical techniques for characterization of crystalline clopidogrel forms in patent applications

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luiz Marcelo Lira

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to evaluate two important aspects of patent applications of crystalline forms of drugs: (i the physicochemical characterization of the crystalline forms; and (ii the procedure for preparing crystals of the blockbuster drug clopidogrel. To this end, searches were conducted using online patent databases. The results showed that: (i the majority of patent applications for clopidogrel crystalline forms failed to comply with proposed Brazilian Patent Office guidelines. This was primarily due to insufficient number of analytical techniques evaluating the crystalline phase. In addition, some patent applications lacked assessment of chemical/crystallography purity; (ii use of more than two analytical techniques is important; and (iii the crystallization procedure for clopidogrel bisulfate form II were irreproducible based on the procedure given in the patent application.

  1. Signal Amplification Technique (SAT): an approach for improving resolution and reducing image noise in computed tomography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Phelps, M.E.; Huang, S.C.; Hoffman, E.J.; Plummer, D.; Carson, R.

    1981-01-01

    Spatial resolution improvements in computed tomography (CT) have been limited by the large and unique error propagation properties of this technique. The desire to provide maximum image resolution has resulted in the use of reconstruction filter functions designed to produce tomographic images with resolution as close as possible to the intrinsic detector resolution. Thus, many CT systems produce images with excessive noise with the system resolution determined by the detector resolution rather than the reconstruction algorithm. CT is a rigorous mathematical technique which applies an increasing amplification to increasing spatial frequencies in the measured data. This mathematical approach to spatial frequency amplification cannot distinguish between signal and noise and therefore both are amplified equally. We report here a method in which tomographic resolution is improved by using very small detectors to selectively amplify the signal and not noise. Thus, this approach is referred to as the signal amplification technique (SAT). SAT can provide dramatic improvements in image resolution without increases in statistical noise or dose because increases in the cutoff frequency of the reconstruction algorithm are not required to improve image resolution. Alternatively, in cases where image counts are low, such as in rapid dynamic or receptor studies, statistical noise can be reduced by lowering the cutoff frequency while still maintaining the best possible image resolution. A possible system design for a positron CT system with SAT is described

  2. Ultra high resolution tomography

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Haddad, W.S.

    1994-11-15

    Recent work and results on ultra high resolution three dimensional imaging with soft x-rays will be presented. This work is aimed at determining microscopic three dimensional structure of biological and material specimens. Three dimensional reconstructed images of a microscopic test object will be presented; the reconstruction has a resolution on the order of 1000 A in all three dimensions. Preliminary work with biological samples will also be shown, and the experimental and numerical methods used will be discussed.

  3. Analytical techniques for determination and control of silica content in the water in thermal power plants

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ignjatović Nataša R.

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Ultrapure water with minimum contents of impurities is used for the preparation of steam in thermal power plants. More recently it has been found that the corrosion process is also influenced by sodium ions, chloride ions, and all forms of silicon in water. At higher temperatures and under high pressure the less soluble compounds of silicon are extracted, which form deposits on the walls of the boiler, the piping system and the turbine blades. Silicon is found in water in the form of different types (species which are characterized by specific physical and chemical properties. Distinctions can be made between highly reactive species of ionic (silicate anions and molecular forms (silicic acid and relatively inert types (suspended, colloidal, and polymerized silicon. The determination of various forms of silicon in water is a complex analytical task. This paper covers relevant research in the field of silicon specification analysis. Maintaining the unchanged, original composition of silicon species during various stages of analysis (sample collection, storage, and conservation has been given special attention. A large number of methods and procedures have been developed for the analysis of species of silicon, including chromatographic, spectroscopic and electrochemical techniques and combinations thereof. The techniques used for determining both the total amount and individual forms of silicon have been singled out. There is also an overview of the coupled techniques used most frequently in practice by using the methodology which involves preliminary separation of species and then individual specification. The paper offers an overview of analytical properties, advantages and disadvantages of the most representative analytical methods developed specifically for the analysis of silicon species in ultrapure water. The most important studies focusing on the silicon species in water have been highlighted and presented in detail. The determination of

  4. ESSENSE: Ultra high resolution spectroscopy for the ESS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pasini, Stefano; Monkenbusch, Michael; Kozielewski, Tadeusz

    2016-01-01

    The instrument concept for a very high intensity neutron spin-echo spectrometer with ultimate resolution properties has been developed and submitted as an instrument proposal to ESS. Effective intensity gain factors up to 30 compared to the best current instruments are anticipated. In addition the resolution will be boosted to the technical limits by newly designed superconducting precession solenoids. The intensity gain results from the use of an optimized guide transporting the high flux from the ESS cold moderator on the one side and from the utilization of an extended wavelength frame of 8 Å yielding a multiplication of information collection rate on the other side. The instrument thus enables novel views on soft matter systems ranging from polymers, functional gels and more to to dynamics of biological molecules with relevance for MD development; the employment of new techniques for surface NSE (GINSE) may contribute to new knowledge in tribology and lubrication and other surface phenomena that currently are hampered by low intensity. New developments in “intelligent” polymers as e.g. self-healing, the properties of which depend on molecular mobility and dynamics, require observation at many 100 ns of correlation times with high intensity, which can be made with ESSENSE. (paper)

  5. An improved technique for the prediction of optimal image resolution ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    user

    2010-10-04

    Oct 4, 2010 ... Available online at http://www.academicjournals.org/AJEST ... robust technique for predicting optimal image resolution for the mapping of savannah ecosystems was developed. .... whether to purchase multi-spectral imagery acquired by GeoEye-2 ..... Analysis of the spectral behaviour of the pasture class in.

  6. Motion robust high resolution 3D free-breathing pulmonary MRI using dynamic 3D image self-navigator.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Wenwen; Ong, Frank; Johnson, Kevin M; Nagle, Scott K; Hope, Thomas A; Lustig, Michael; Larson, Peder E Z

    2018-06-01

    To achieve motion robust high resolution 3D free-breathing pulmonary MRI utilizing a novel dynamic 3D image navigator derived directly from imaging data. Five-minute free-breathing scans were acquired with a 3D ultrashort echo time (UTE) sequence with 1.25 mm isotropic resolution. From this data, dynamic 3D self-navigating images were reconstructed under locally low rank (LLR) constraints and used for motion compensation with one of two methods: a soft-gating technique to penalize the respiratory motion induced data inconsistency, and a respiratory motion-resolved technique to provide images of all respiratory motion states. Respiratory motion estimation derived from the proposed dynamic 3D self-navigator of 7.5 mm isotropic reconstruction resolution and a temporal resolution of 300 ms was successful for estimating complex respiratory motion patterns. This estimation improved image quality compared to respiratory belt and DC-based navigators. Respiratory motion compensation with soft-gating and respiratory motion-resolved techniques provided good image quality from highly undersampled data in volunteers and clinical patients. An optimized 3D UTE sequence combined with the proposed reconstruction methods can provide high-resolution motion robust pulmonary MRI. Feasibility was shown in patients who had irregular breathing patterns in which our approach could depict clinically relevant pulmonary pathologies. Magn Reson Med 79:2954-2967, 2018. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

  7. Single Photon Counting Large Format Imaging Sensors with High Spatial and Temporal Resolution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siegmund, O. H. W.; Ertley, C.; Vallerga, J. V.; Cremer, T.; Craven, C. A.; Lyashenko, A.; Minot, M. J.

    High time resolution astronomical and remote sensing applications have been addressed with microchannel plate based imaging, photon time tagging detector sealed tube schemes. These are being realized with the advent of cross strip readout techniques with high performance encoding electronics and atomic layer deposited (ALD) microchannel plate technologies. Sealed tube devices up to 20 cm square have now been successfully implemented with sub nanosecond timing and imaging. The objective is to provide sensors with large areas (25 cm2 to 400 cm2) with spatial resolutions of 5 MHz and event timing accuracy of 100 ps. High-performance ASIC versions of these electronics are in development with better event rate, power and mass suitable for spaceflight instruments.

  8. High resolution upgrade of the ATF damping ring BPM system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Terunuma, N.; Urakawa, J.; Frisch, J.; May, J.; McCormick, D.; Nelson, J.; Seryi, A.; Smith, T.; Woodley, M.; Briegel, C.; Dysert, R.

    2008-01-01

    A beam position monitor (BPM) upgrade at the KEK Accelerator Test Facility (ATF) damping ring has been accomplished in its first stage, carried out by a KEK/FNAL/SLAC collaboration under the umbrella of the global ILC R and D effort. The upgrade consists of a high resolution, high reproducibility read-out system, based on analog and digital downconversion techniques, digital signal processing, and also tests a new automatic gain error correction schema. The technical concept and realization, as well as preliminary results of beam studies are presented

  9. A comparison of high-throughput techniques for assaying circadian rhythms in plants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tindall, Andrew J; Waller, Jade; Greenwood, Mark; Gould, Peter D; Hartwell, James; Hall, Anthony

    2015-01-01

    Over the last two decades, the development of high-throughput techniques has enabled us to probe the plant circadian clock, a key coordinator of vital biological processes, in ways previously impossible. With the circadian clock increasingly implicated in key fitness and signalling pathways, this has opened up new avenues for understanding plant development and signalling. Our tool-kit has been constantly improving through continual development and novel techniques that increase throughput, reduce costs and allow higher resolution on the cellular and subcellular levels. With circadian assays becoming more accessible and relevant than ever to researchers, in this paper we offer a review of the techniques currently available before considering the horizons in circadian investigation at ever higher throughputs and resolutions.

  10. Comparative study between ultrahigh spatial frequency algorithm and high spatial frequency algorithm in high-resolution CT of the lungs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oh, Yu Whan; Kim, Jung Kyuk; Suh, Won Hyuck

    1994-01-01

    To date, the high spatial frequency algorithm (HSFA) which reduces image smoothing and increases spatial resolution has been used for the evaluation of parenchymal lung diseases in thin-section high-resolution CT. In this study, we compared the ultrahigh spatial frequency algorithm (UHSFA) with the high spatial frequency algorithm in the assessment of thin section images of the lung parenchyma. Three radiologists compared the UHSFA and HSFA on identical CT images in a line-pair resolution phantom, one lung specimen, 2 patients with normal lung and 18 patients with abnormal lung parenchyma. Scanning of a line-pair resolution phantom demonstrated no difference in resolution between two techniques but it showed that outer lines of the line pairs with maximal resolution looked thicker on UHSFA than those on HSFA. Lung parenchymal detail with UHSFA was judged equal or superior to HSFA in 95% of images. Lung parenchymal sharpness was improved with UHSFA in all images. Although UHSFA resulted in an increase in visible noise, observers did not found that image noise interfered with image interpretation. The visual CT attenuation of normal lung parenchyma is minimally increased in images with HSFA. The overall visual preference of the images reconstructed on UHSFA was considered equal to or greater than that of those reconstructed on HSFA in 78% of images. The ultrahigh spatial frequency algorithm improved the overall visual quality of the images in pulmonary parenchymal high-resolution CT

  11. On the limitations and optimisation of high-resolution 3D medical X-ray imaging systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhou Shuang; Brahme, Anders

    2011-01-01

    Based on a quantitative analysis of both attenuation and refractive properties of X-ray propagation in human body tissues and the introduction of a mathematical model for image quality analysis, some limitations and optimisation of high-resolution three-dimensional (3D) medical X-ray imaging techniques are studied. A comparison is made of conventional attenuation-based X-ray imaging methods with the phase-contrast X-ray imaging modalities that have been developed recently. The results indicate that it is theoretically possible through optimal design of the X-ray imaging system to achieve high spatial resolution (<100 μm) in 3D medical X-ray imaging of the human body at a clinically acceptable dose level (<10 mGy) by introducing a phase-contrast X-ray imaging technique.

  12. Next generation offline approaches to trace organic compound speciation: Approaching comprehensive speciation with soft ionization and very high resolution tandem mass spectrometry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khare, P.; Marcotte, A.; Sheu, R.; Ditto, J.; Gentner, D. R.

    2017-12-01

    Intermediate- and semi-volatile organic compounds (IVOCs and SVOCs) have high secondary organic aerosol (SOA) yields, as well as significant ozone formation potentials. Yet, their emission sources and oxidation pathways remain largely understudied due to limitations in current analytical capabilities. Online mass spectrometers are able to collect real time data but their limited mass resolving power renders molecular level characterization of IVOCs and SVOCs from the unresolved complex mixture unfeasible. With proper sampling techniques and powerful analytical instrumentation, our offline tandem mass spectrometry (i.e. MS×MS) techniques provide molecular-level and structural identification over wide polarity and volatility ranges. We have designed a novel analytical system for offline analysis of gas-phase SOA precursors collected on custom-made multi-bed adsorbent tubes. Samples are desorbed into helium via a gradual temperature ramp and sample flow is split equally for direct-MS×MS analysis and separation via gas chromatography (GC). The effluent from GC separation is split again for analysis via atmospheric pressure chemical ionization quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (APCI-Q×TOF) and traditional electron ionization mass spectrometry (EI-MS). The compounds for direct-MS×MS analysis are delivered via a transfer line maintained at 70ºC directly to APCI-Q×TOF, thus preserving the molecular integrity of thermally-labile, or other highly-reactive, organic compounds. Both our GC-MS×MS and direct-MS×MS analyses report high accuracy parent ion masses as well as information on molecular structure via MS×MS, which together increase the resolution of unidentified complex mixtures. We demonstrate instrument performance and present preliminary results from urban atmospheric samples collected from New York City with a wide range of compounds including highly-functionalized organic compounds previously understudied in outdoor air. Our work offers new

  13. Stochastic porous media modeling and high-resolution schemes for numerical simulation of subsurface immiscible fluid flow transport

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brantson, Eric Thompson; Ju, Binshan; Wu, Dan; Gyan, Patricia Semwaah

    2018-04-01

    This paper proposes stochastic petroleum porous media modeling for immiscible fluid flow simulation using Dykstra-Parson coefficient (V DP) and autocorrelation lengths to generate 2D stochastic permeability values which were also used to generate porosity fields through a linear interpolation technique based on Carman-Kozeny equation. The proposed method of permeability field generation in this study was compared to turning bands method (TBM) and uniform sampling randomization method (USRM). On the other hand, many studies have also reported that, upstream mobility weighting schemes, commonly used in conventional numerical reservoir simulators do not accurately capture immiscible displacement shocks and discontinuities through stochastically generated porous media. This can be attributed to high level of numerical smearing in first-order schemes, oftentimes misinterpreted as subsurface geological features. Therefore, this work employs high-resolution schemes of SUPERBEE flux limiter, weighted essentially non-oscillatory scheme (WENO), and monotone upstream-centered schemes for conservation laws (MUSCL) to accurately capture immiscible fluid flow transport in stochastic porous media. The high-order schemes results match well with Buckley Leverett (BL) analytical solution without any non-oscillatory solutions. The governing fluid flow equations were solved numerically using simultaneous solution (SS) technique, sequential solution (SEQ) technique and iterative implicit pressure and explicit saturation (IMPES) technique which produce acceptable numerical stability and convergence rate. A comparative and numerical examples study of flow transport through the proposed method, TBM and USRM permeability fields revealed detailed subsurface instabilities with their corresponding ultimate recovery factors. Also, the impact of autocorrelation lengths on immiscible fluid flow transport were analyzed and quantified. A finite number of lines used in the TBM resulted into visual

  14. High-Resolution Gas Metering and Nonintrusive Appliance Load Monitoring System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tewolde, Mahder

    This thesis deals with design and implementation of a high-resolution metering system for residential natural gas meters. Detailed experimental measurements are performed on the meter to characterize and understand its measurement properties. Results from these experiments are used to develop a simple, fast and accurate technique to non-intrusively monitor the gas consumption of individual appliances in homes by resolving small amounts of gas usage. The technique is applied on an existing meter retrofitted with a module that includes a high-resolution encoder to collect gas flow data and a microprocessor to analyze and identify appliance load profiles. This approach provides a number of appealing features including low cost, easy installation and integration with automated meter reading (AMR) systems. The application of this method to residential gas meters currently deployed is also given. This is done by performing a load simulation on realistic gas loads with the aim of identifying the necessary parameters that minimize the cost and complexity of the mechanical encoder module. The primary benefits of the system are efficiency analysis, appliance health monitoring and real-time customer feedback of gas usage. Additional benefits of include the ability to detect very small leaks and theft. This system has the potential for wide scale market adoption.

  15. Applications of molecules as high-resolution, high-sensitivity threshold electron detectors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chutjian, A.

    1991-01-01

    The goal of the work under the contract entitled ''Applications of Molecules as High-Resolution, High-Sensitivity Threshold Electron Detectors'' (DoE IAA No. DE-AI01-83ER13093 Mod. A006) was to explore the electron attachment properties of a variety of molecules at electron energies not accessible by other experimental techniques. As a result of this work, not only was a large body of basic data measured on attachment cross sections and rate constants; but also extensive theoretical calculations were carried out to verify the underlying phenomenon of s-wave attachment. Important outgrowths of this week were also realized in other areas of research. The basic data have applications in fields such as combustion, soot reduction, rocket-exhaust modification, threshold photoelectron spectroscopy, and trace species detection

  16. Proceedings of the workshop on high resolution computed microtomography (CMT)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1997-02-01

    The purpose of the workshop was to determine the status of the field, to define instrumental and computational requirements, and to establish minimum specifications required by possible users. The most important message sent by implementers was the remainder that CMT is a tool. It solves a wide spectrum of scientific problems and is complementary to other microscopy techniques, with certain important advantages that the other methods do not have. High-resolution CMT can be used non-invasively and non-destructively to study a variety of hierarchical three-dimensional microstructures, which in turn control body function. X-ray computed microtomography can also be used at the frontiers of physics, in the study of granular systems, for example. With high-resolution CMT, for example, three-dimensional pore geometries and topologies of soils and rocks can be obtained readily and implemented directly in transport models. In turn, these geometries can be used to calculate fundamental physical properties, such as permeability and electrical conductivity, from first principles. Clearly, use of the high-resolution CMT technique will contribute tremendously to the advancement of current R and D technologies in the production, transport, storage, and utilization of oil and natural gas. It can also be applied to problems related to environmental pollution, particularly to spilling and seepage of hazardous chemicals into the Earth's subsurface. Applications to energy and environmental problems will be far-ranging and may soon extend to disciplines such as materials science--where the method can be used in the manufacture of porous ceramics, filament-resin composites, and microelectronics components--and to biomedicine, where it could be used to design biocompatible materials such as artificial bones, contact lenses, or medication-releasing implants. Selected papers are indexed separately for inclusion in the Energy Science and Technology Database.

  17. Monte-Carlo simulation of a high-resolution inverse geometry spectrometer on the SNS. Long Wavelength Target Station

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bordallo, H.N.; Herwig, K.W.

    2001-01-01

    Using the Monte-Carlo simulation program McStas, we present the design principles of the proposed high-resolution inverse geometry spectrometer on the SNS-Long Wavelength Target Station (LWTS). The LWTS will provide the high flux of long wavelength neutrons at the requisite pulse rate required by the spectrometer design. The resolution of this spectrometer lies between that routinely achieved by spin echo techniques and the design goal of the high power target station backscattering spectrometer. Covering this niche in energy resolution will allow systematic studies over the large dynamic range required by many disciplines, such as protein dynamics. (author)

  18. [Application of liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry in toxicological screening].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Xiao-Wen; Shen, Bao-Hua; Zhuo, Xian-Yi

    2011-10-01

    Due to the diversity of toxicologically relevant substances, the uncertainty of target compounds and the specificity of samples, toxicological screening techniques have always been valued by the forensic toxicologists. Depending on its powerful separation ability, superhigh resolution and accurate mass measurement, combined with the two levels spectrum database matching and abundance ratio of isotope ion, the liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) analyzers have increasingly advantage in screening and identification of chemical compound. This review focuses on the applications of LC-HRMS in screening and identification of drug-of-abuse, prescription drugs, pesticide and stimulant. The prospect of LC-HRMS in forensic toxicology analysis is also included.

  19. Recent Advancements in DNA Damage-Transcription Crosstalk and High-Resolution Mapping of DNA Breaks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vitelli, Valerio; Galbiati, Alessandro; Iannelli, Fabio; Pessina, Fabio; Sharma, Sheetal; d'Adda di Fagagna, Fabrizio

    2017-08-31

    Until recently, DNA damage arising from physiological DNA metabolism was considered a detrimental by-product for cells. However, an increasing amount of evidence has shown that DNA damage could have a positive role in transcription activation. In particular, DNA damage has been detected in transcriptional elements following different stimuli. These physiological DNA breaks are thought to be instrumental for the correct expression of genomic loci through different mechanisms. In this regard, although a plethora of methods are available to precisely map transcribed regions and transcription start sites, commonly used techniques for mapping DNA breaks lack sufficient resolution and sensitivity to draw a robust correlation between DNA damage generation and transcription. Recently, however, several methods have been developed to map DNA damage at single-nucleotide resolution, thus providing a new set of tools to correlate DNA damage and transcription. Here, we review how DNA damage can positively regulate transcription initiation, the current techniques for mapping DNA breaks at high resolution, and how these techniques can benefit future studies of DNA damage and transcription.

  20. A high resolution portable spectroscopy system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kulkarni, C.P.; Vaidya, P.P.; Paulson, M.; Bhatnagar, P.V.; Pande, S.S.; Padmini, S.

    2003-01-01

    Full text: This paper describes the system details of a High Resolution Portable Spectroscopy System (HRPSS) developed at Electronics Division, BARC. The system can be used for laboratory class, high-resolution nuclear spectroscopy applications. The HRPSS consists of a specially designed compact NIM bin, with built-in power supplies, accommodating a low power, high resolution MCA, and on-board embedded computer for spectrum building and communication. A NIM based spectroscopy amplifier and a HV module for detector bias are integrated (plug-in) in the bin. The system communicates with a host PC via a serial link. Along-with a laptop PC, and a portable HP-Ge detector, the HRPSS offers a laboratory class performance for portable applications

  1. The use of decision analytic techniques in energy policy decisions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haemaelaeinen, R.P.; Seppaelaeinen, T.O.

    1986-08-01

    The report reviews decision analytic techniques and their applications to energy policy decision making. Decision analysis consists in techniques for structuring the essential elements of a decision problem and mathematical methods for ranking the alternatives from a set of simple judgments. Because modeling subjective judgments is characteristic of decision analysis, the models can incorporate qualitative factors and values, which escape traditional energy modeling. Decision analysis has been applied to choices among energy supply alternatives, siting energy facilities, selecting nuclear waste repositories, selecting research and development projects, risk analysis and prioritizing alternative energy futures. Many applications are done in universities and research institutions, but during the 70's the use of decision analysis has spread both to the public and the private sector. The settings where decision analysis has been applied range from aiding a single decision maker to clarifying opposing points of view. Decision analytic methods have also been linked with energy models. The most valuable result of decision analysis is the clarification of the problem at hand. Political decisions cannot be made solely on the basis of models, but models can be used to gain insight of the decision situation. Models inevitably simplify reality, so they must be regarded only as aids to judgment. So far there has been only one decision analysis of energy policy issues in Finland with actual political decision makers as participants. The experiences of this project and numerous foreign applications do however suggest that the decision analytic approach is useful in energy policy questions. The report presents a number of Finnish energy policy decisions where decision analysis might prove useful. However, the applicability of the methods depends crucially on the actual circumstances at hand

  2. High-resolution morphologic and ultrashort time-to-echo quantitative magnetic resonance imaging of the temporomandibular joint

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bae, Won C.; Chang, Eric Y.; Biswas, Reni; Statum, Sheronda; Chung, Christine B. [Veterans Administration San Diego Healthcare System, Department of Radiology, San Diego, CA (United States); University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, San Diego, CA (United States); Tafur, Monica; Du, Jiang; Healey, Robert [University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, San Diego, CA (United States); Kwack, Kyu-Sung [Ajou University Medical Center, Department of Radiology, Wonchon-dong, Yeongtong-gu, Gyeonggi-do, Suwon (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-03-15

    To implement high-resolution morphologic and quantitative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) using ultrashort time-to-echo (UTE) techniques in cadavers and volunteers. This study was approved by the institutional review board. TMJs of cadavers and volunteers were imaged on a 3-T MR system. High-resolution morphologic and quantitative sequences using conventional and UTE techniques were performed in cadaveric TMJs. Morphologic and UTE quantitative sequences were performed in asymptomatic and symptomatic volunteers. Morphologic evaluation demonstrated the TMJ structures in open- and closed-mouth position. UTE techniques facilitated the visualization of the disc and fibrocartilage. Quantitative UTE MRI was successfully performed ex vivo and in vivo, reflecting the degree of degeneration. There was a difference in the mean UTE T2* values between asymptomatic and symptomatic volunteers. MRI evaluation of the TMJ using UTE techniques allows characterization of the internal structure and quantification of the MR properties of the disc. Quantitative UTE MRI can be performed in vivo with short scan times. (orig.)

  3. High-Resolution UV Relay Lens for Particle Size Distribution Measurements Using Holography

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Malone, Robert M.; Capelle, Gene A.; Frogget, Brent C.; Grover, Mike; Kaufman, Morris I.; Pazuchanics, Peter; Sorenson, Danny S.; Stevens, Gerald D.; Tibbits, Aric; Turley, William D.

    2008-08-29

    Shock waves passing through a metal sample can produce ejecta particulates at a metal-vacuum interface. Holography records particle size distributions by using a high-power, short-pulse laser to freeze particle motion. The sizes of the ejecta particles are recorded using an in-line Fraunhofer holography technique. Because the holographic plate would be destroyed in an energetic environment, a high-resolution lens has been designed to relay the interference fringes to a safe environment. Particle sizes within a 12-mm-diameter, 5-mm-thick volume are recorded onto holographic film. To achieve resolution down to 0.5 μm, ultraviolet laser (UV) light is needed. The design and assembly of a nine-element lens that achieves >2000 lp/mm resolution and operates at f/0.89 will be described. To set up this lens system, a doublet lens is temporarily attached that enables operation with 532-nm laser light and 1100 lp/mm resolution. Thus, the setup and alignment are performed with green light, but the dynamic recording is done with UV light. During setup, the 532-nm beam provides enough focus shift to accommodate the placement of a resolution target outside the ejecta volume; this resolution target does not interfere with the calibrated wires and pegs surrounding the ejecta volume. A television microscope archives images of resolution patterns that prove that the calibration wires, interference filter, holographic plate, and relay lenses are in their correct positions. Part of this lens is under vacuum, at the point where the laser illumination passes through a focus. Alignment and tolerancing of this high-resolution lens will be presented, and resolution variation through the 5-mm depth of field will be discussed.

  4. Evaluation of available analytical techniques for monitoring the quality of space station potable water

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geer, Richard D.

    1989-01-01

    To assure the quality of potable water (PW) on the Space Station (SS) a number of chemical and physical tests must be conducted routinely. After reviewing the requirements for potable water, both direct and indirect analytical methods are evaluated that could make the required tests and improvements compatible with the Space Station operation. A variety of suggestions are made to improve the analytical techniques for SS operation. The most important recommendations are: (1) the silver/silver chloride electrode (SB) method of removing I sub 2/I (-) biocide from the water, since it may interfere with analytical procedures for PW and also its end uses; (2) the orbital reactor (OR) method of carrying out chemistry and electrochemistry in microgravity by using a disk shaped reactor on an orbital table to impart artificial G force to the contents, allowing solution mixing and separation of gases and liquids; and (3) a simple ultra low volume highly sensitive electrochemical/conductivity detector for use with a capillary zone electrophoresis apparatus. It is also recommended, since several different conductivity and resistance measurements are made during the analysis of PW, that the bipolar pulse measuring circuit be used in all these applications for maximum compatibility and redundancy of equipment.

  5. Pedestrian-vehicle crashes and analytical techniques for stratified contingency tables.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al-Ghamdi, Ali S

    2002-03-01

    In 1999 there were 450 fatalities due to road crashes in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, of which 130 were pedestrians. Hence, every fourth person killed on the roads is a pedestrian. The aim of this study is to investigate pedestrian-vehicle crashes in this fast-growing city with two objectives in mind: to analyze pedestrian collisions with regard to their causes, characteristics, location of injury on the victim's body, and most common patterns and to determine the potential for use of the odds ratio technique in the analysis of stratified contingency tables. Data from 638 pedestrian-vehicle crashes reported by police, during the period 1997-1999, were used. A systematic sampling technique was followed in which every third record was used. The analysis showed that the pedestrian fatality rate per 10(5) population is 2.8. The rates were relatively high within the childhood (1-9 years) and young adult (10-19 years) groups, and the old-age groups (60 - > 80 years), which indicate that young as well as the elderly people in this city are more likely to be involved in fatal accidents of this type than are those in other age groups. The analysis revealed that 77.1% of pedestrians were probably struck while crossing a roadway either not in a crosswalk or where no crosswalk existed. In addition, the distribution of injuries on the victims' bodies was determined from hospital records. More than one-third of the fatal injuries were located on the head and chest. An attempt was made to conduct an association analysis between crash severity (i.e. injury or fatal) and some of the study variables using chi-square and odds ratio techniques. The categorical nature of the data helped in using these analytical techniques.

  6. Screening new psychoactive substances in urban wastewater using high resolution mass spectrometry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    González-Mariño, Iria; Gracia-Lor, Emma; Bagnati, Renzo; Martins, Claudia P B; Zuccato, Ettore; Castiglioni, Sara

    2016-06-01

    Analysis of drug residues in urban wastewater could complement epidemiological studies in detecting the use of new psychoactive substances (NPS), a continuously changing group of drugs hard to monitor by classical methods. We initially selected 52 NPS potentially used in Italy based on seizure data and consumption alerts provided by the Antidrug Police Department and the National Early Warning System. Using a linear ion trap-Orbitrap high resolution mass spectrometer, we designed a suspect screening and a target method approach and compared them for the analysis of 24 h wastewater samples collected at the treatment plant influents of four Italian cities. This highlighted the main limitations of these two approaches, so we could propose requirements for future research. A library of MS/MS spectra of 16 synthetic cathinones and 19 synthetic cannabinoids, for which analytical standards were acquired, was built at different collision energies and is available on request. The stability of synthetic cannabinoids was studied in analytical standards and wastewater, identifying the best analytical conditions for future studies. To the best of our knowledge, these are the first stability data on NPS. Few suspects were identified in Italian wastewater samples, in accordance with recent epidemiological data reporting a very low prevalence of use of NPS in Italy. This study outlines an analytical approach for NPS identification and measurement in urban wastewater and for estimating their use in the population.

  7. High-resolution studies of momentum distributions using perfect crystal gamma diffractometry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Krexner, G.; Bischof, G.; Jentschel, M.; Boerner, H.

    2006-01-01

    Full text: Positron annihilation spectroscopy has turned out to be highly successful in the investigation of Fermi surfaces, electronic structures and various kinds of defects. On the other hand, algorithms based on density functional theory have made enormous progress in recent years and calculations for the contributions of both delocalized and core electrons in a rapidly increasing number of systems is either already feasible today or to be expected in the near future. By comparison, over the last decades there has been little improvement in the experimental limitations which are still set by the energy resolution of germanium detectors (slightly above 1 keV for annihilation photons close to 500 keV) and the angular resolution in ACAR studies (superior by about one order of magnitude). In addition, coincidence techniques are hampered by low count rates. An alternative is suggested by the fact that, in principle, Bragg diffraction techniques using perfect single crystals provide a way for the precise determination of wavelengths corresponding to energies in the MeV range. The single crystal analyzer instrument PN3 at the Institute Laue-Langevin (Grenoble, France) offers the unique possibility to determine the energy of annihilation photons with an accuracy close to about 1 eV, i.e. an improvement of up to three orders of magnitude in comparison to conventional semiconductor detectors. We discuss possible applications of this spectrometer in high-resolution studies of momentum distributions for both delocalized and core electrons. (author)

  8. Wireless network development for the automatic registration of parameters in laboratories of nuclear analytical techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tincopa, Jean Pierre; Baltuano, Oscar; Bedregal, Patricia

    2015-01-01

    This paper presents in detail the development of a low-cost wireless network for automatic recording of temperature and relative humidity parameters in the laboratory of nuclear analytical techniques. This prototype has a DHT22 sensor which gives us both parameters with high precision and are automatically read and displayed by a ATmega328P microcontroller. This data is then transmitted through transceivers Xbee Pro S2B forming a mesh network for real time storage using an RTC (Real Time Clock). We present the experimental results obtained in its implementation. (author)

  9. Fabricating high-resolution offset color-filter black matrix by integrating heterostructured substrate with inkjet printing

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lu, Guo-Shin; You, Po-Chin; Lin, Kai-Lun; Hong, Chien-Chong; Liou, Tong-Miin

    2014-01-01

    This paper presents a self-aligning ink by integrating an inkjet printing technique and heterostructures to fabricate a black matrix with a micrometer-scale tunable thickness. The black matrix is a grid-like structure used in color filters. Traditionally, a black matrix has been fabricated using photolithography techniques, the disadvantages of which are high material consumption, less fabrication flexibility, complex processing procedures, and high chemical pollution. Inkjet printing technology has garnered attention because of its low material costs, high fabrication flexibility, and reduced processing procedures and pollution. In this study, a fabricating process combining an inkjet printing technique with heterostructures to form stripe-arranged and delta-arranged thickness-tunable black matrices has been demonstrated. The deformation and self-aligning process of ink droplet impingement onto gutters are driven by designed heterogeneous surface properties. The minimum track width attained is 10 µm, which is competitive for color filter resolutions for thin-film transistor liquid crystal displays. The developed technology surmounts the bottlenecks of inkjet printing resolution, and saves more than 75% black material than modern photolithography. (paper)

  10. Analytical techniques applied to study cultural heritage objects

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rizzutto, M.A.; Curado, J.F.; Bernardes, S.; Campos, P.H.O.V.; Kajiya, E.A.M.; Silva, T.F.; Rodrigues, C.L.; Moro, M.; Tabacniks, M.; Added, N., E-mail: rizzutto@if.usp.br [Universidade de Sao Paulo (USP), SP (Brazil). Instituto de Fisica

    2015-07-01

    at LAMFI. Completely developed in the LAMFI laboratory this robotic stage enables 5-μm precision of positioning of samples in the external beam line. Due to high resolution it is possible to produce elemental maps of large areas of any kind of samples. This is the unique device for multi-technique analysis on mapping of large areas using ion beams. (author)

  11. Analytical techniques applied to study cultural heritage objects

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rizzutto, M.A.; Curado, J.F.; Bernardes, S.; Campos, P.H.O.V.; Kajiya, E.A.M.; Silva, T.F.; Rodrigues, C.L.; Moro, M.; Tabacniks, M.; Added, N.

    2015-01-01

    at LAMFI. Completely developed in the LAMFI laboratory this robotic stage enables 5-μm precision of positioning of samples in the external beam line. Due to high resolution it is possible to produce elemental maps of large areas of any kind of samples. This is the unique device for multi-technique analysis on mapping of large areas using ion beams. (author)

  12. Quadruplex MAPH: improvement of throughput in high-resolution copy number screening

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Walker Susan

    2009-09-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Copy number variation (CNV in the human genome is recognised as a widespread and important source of human genetic variation. Now the challenge is to screen for these CNVs at high resolution in a reliable, accurate and cost-effective way. Results Multiplex Amplifiable Probe Hybridisation (MAPH is a sensitive, high-resolution technology appropriate for screening for CNVs in a defined region, for a targeted population. We have developed MAPH to a highly multiplexed format ("QuadMAPH" that allows the user a four-fold increase in the number of loci tested simultaneously. We have used this method to analyse a genomic region of 210 kb, including the MSH2 gene and 120 kb of flanking DNA. We show that the QuadMAPH probes report copy number with equivalent accuracy to simplex MAPH, reliably demonstrating diploid copy number in control samples and accurately detecting deletions in Hereditary Non-Polyposis Colorectal Cancer (HNPCC samples. Conclusion QuadMAPH is an accurate, high-resolution method that allows targeted screening of large numbers of subjects without the expense of genome-wide approaches. Whilst we have applied this technique to a region of the human genome, it is equally applicable to the genomes of other organisms.

  13. The fusion of satellite and UAV data: simulation of high spatial resolution band

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jenerowicz, Agnieszka; Siok, Katarzyna; Woroszkiewicz, Malgorzata; Orych, Agata

    2017-10-01

    Remote sensing techniques used in the precision agriculture and farming that apply imagery data obtained with sensors mounted on UAV platforms became more popular in the last few years due to the availability of low- cost UAV platforms and low- cost sensors. Data obtained from low altitudes with low- cost sensors can be characterised by high spatial and radiometric resolution but quite low spectral resolution, therefore the application of imagery data obtained with such technology is quite limited and can be used only for the basic land cover classification. To enrich the spectral resolution of imagery data acquired with low- cost sensors from low altitudes, the authors proposed the fusion of RGB data obtained with UAV platform with multispectral satellite imagery. The fusion is based on the pansharpening process, that aims to integrate the spatial details of the high-resolution panchromatic image with the spectral information of lower resolution multispectral or hyperspectral imagery to obtain multispectral or hyperspectral images with high spatial resolution. The key of pansharpening is to properly estimate the missing spatial details of multispectral images while preserving their spectral properties. In the research, the authors presented the fusion of RGB images (with high spatial resolution) obtained with sensors mounted on low- cost UAV platforms and multispectral satellite imagery with satellite sensors, i.e. Landsat 8 OLI. To perform the fusion of UAV data with satellite imagery, the simulation of the panchromatic bands from RGB data based on the spectral channels linear combination, was conducted. Next, for simulated bands and multispectral satellite images, the Gram-Schmidt pansharpening method was applied. As a result of the fusion, the authors obtained several multispectral images with very high spatial resolution and then analysed the spatial and spectral accuracies of processed images.

  14. High Resolution Elevation Contours

    Data.gov (United States)

    Minnesota Department of Natural Resources — This dataset contains contours generated from high resolution data sources such as LiDAR. Generally speaking this data is 2 foot or less contour interval.

  15. Extension of least squares spectral resolution algorithm to high-resolution lipidomics data

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zeng, Ying-Xu [Department of Chemistry, University of Bergen, PO Box 7803, N-5020 Bergen (Norway); Mjøs, Svein Are, E-mail: svein.mjos@kj.uib.no [Department of Chemistry, University of Bergen, PO Box 7803, N-5020 Bergen (Norway); David, Fabrice P.A. [Bioinformatics and Biostatistics Core Facility, School of Life Sciences, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) and Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (SIB), Lausanne (Switzerland); Schmid, Adrien W. [Proteomics Core Facility, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne (Switzerland)

    2016-03-31

    Lipidomics, which focuses on the global study of molecular lipids in biological systems, has been driven tremendously by technical advances in mass spectrometry (MS) instrumentation, particularly high-resolution MS. This requires powerful computational tools that handle the high-throughput lipidomics data analysis. To address this issue, a novel computational tool has been developed for the analysis of high-resolution MS data, including the data pretreatment, visualization, automated identification, deconvolution and quantification of lipid species. The algorithm features the customized generation of a lipid compound library and mass spectral library, which covers the major lipid classes such as glycerolipids, glycerophospholipids and sphingolipids. Next, the algorithm performs least squares resolution of spectra and chromatograms based on the theoretical isotope distribution of molecular ions, which enables automated identification and quantification of molecular lipid species. Currently, this methodology supports analysis of both high and low resolution MS as well as liquid chromatography-MS (LC-MS) lipidomics data. The flexibility of the methodology allows it to be expanded to support more lipid classes and more data interpretation functions, making it a promising tool in lipidomic data analysis. - Highlights: • A flexible strategy for analyzing MS and LC-MS data of lipid molecules is proposed. • Isotope distribution spectra of theoretically possible compounds were generated. • High resolution MS and LC-MS data were resolved by least squares spectral resolution. • The method proposed compounds that are likely to occur in the analyzed samples. • The proposed compounds matched results from manual interpretation of fragment spectra.

  16. Extension of least squares spectral resolution algorithm to high-resolution lipidomics data

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zeng, Ying-Xu; Mjøs, Svein Are; David, Fabrice P.A.; Schmid, Adrien W.

    2016-01-01

    Lipidomics, which focuses on the global study of molecular lipids in biological systems, has been driven tremendously by technical advances in mass spectrometry (MS) instrumentation, particularly high-resolution MS. This requires powerful computational tools that handle the high-throughput lipidomics data analysis. To address this issue, a novel computational tool has been developed for the analysis of high-resolution MS data, including the data pretreatment, visualization, automated identification, deconvolution and quantification of lipid species. The algorithm features the customized generation of a lipid compound library and mass spectral library, which covers the major lipid classes such as glycerolipids, glycerophospholipids and sphingolipids. Next, the algorithm performs least squares resolution of spectra and chromatograms based on the theoretical isotope distribution of molecular ions, which enables automated identification and quantification of molecular lipid species. Currently, this methodology supports analysis of both high and low resolution MS as well as liquid chromatography-MS (LC-MS) lipidomics data. The flexibility of the methodology allows it to be expanded to support more lipid classes and more data interpretation functions, making it a promising tool in lipidomic data analysis. - Highlights: • A flexible strategy for analyzing MS and LC-MS data of lipid molecules is proposed. • Isotope distribution spectra of theoretically possible compounds were generated. • High resolution MS and LC-MS data were resolved by least squares spectral resolution. • The method proposed compounds that are likely to occur in the analyzed samples. • The proposed compounds matched results from manual interpretation of fragment spectra.

  17. Minimal exposure technique in the Cambridge University 600kV high resolution electron microscope

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fryer, J.R.; Cleaver, J.R.A.; Smith, D.J.

    1980-01-01

    Radiation damage due to the incident electron beam imposes a fundamental limitation on the information obtainable by electron microscopy about organic materials; it is desirable therefore that exposure of the specimen to the electron beam should be restricted to the actual period during which the image is being recorded. A description is given of methods employed in the observation of the organic aromatic hydrocarbons quaterrylene, ovalene and coronene with the Cambridge University 600kV high resolution electron microscope (HREM). In particular, the condenser-objective mode of operation of this microscope lends itself to the use of an area-defining aperture below the second condenser lens conjugate with the specimen. Furthermore, operation at the higher accelerating voltage of this instrument could be anticipated to reduce the rate of damage, depending on the dominant beam-specimen interaction, whilst the increased width of the first broad band of the contrast transfer function of this microscope at the optimum defocus may overcome the reported resolution limitation of current 100kV microscopes for the observation of related materials. (author)

  18. Ultra-high resolution coded wavefront sensor

    KAUST Repository

    Wang, Congli

    2017-06-08

    Wavefront sensors and more general phase retrieval methods have recently attracted a lot of attention in a host of application domains, ranging from astronomy to scientific imaging and microscopy. In this paper, we introduce a new class of sensor, the Coded Wavefront Sensor, which provides high spatio-temporal resolution using a simple masked sensor under white light illumination. Specifically, we demonstrate megapixel spatial resolution and phase accuracy better than 0.1 wavelengths at reconstruction rates of 50 Hz or more, thus opening up many new applications from high-resolution adaptive optics to real-time phase retrieval in microscopy.

  19. High resolution x-ray microtomography of biological samples: Requirements and strategies for satisfying them

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Loo, B.W. Jr. [Univ. of California, San Francisco, CA (United States)]|[Univ. of California, Davis, CA (United States)]|[Lawrence Berkeley National Lab., CA (United States); Rothman, S.S. [Univ. of California, San Francisco, CA (United States)]|[Lawrence Berkeley National Lab., CA (United States)

    1997-02-01

    High resolution x-ray microscopy has been made possible in recent years primarily by two new technologies: microfabricated diffractive lenses for soft x-rays with about 30-50 nm resolution, and high brightness synchrotron x-ray sources. X-ray microscopy occupies a special niche in the array of biological microscopic imaging methods. It extends the capabilities of existing techniques mainly in two areas: a previously unachievable combination of sub-visible resolution and multi-micrometer sample size, and new contrast mechanisms. Because of the soft x-ray wavelengths used in biological imaging (about 1-4 nm), XM is intermediate in resolution between visible light and electron microscopies. Similarly, the penetration depth of soft x-rays in biological materials is such that the ideal sample thickness for XM falls in the range of 0.25 - 10 {mu}m, between that of VLM and EM. XM is therefore valuable for imaging of intermediate level ultrastructure, requiring sub-visible resolutions, in intact cells and subcellular organelles, without artifacts produced by thin sectioning. Many of the contrast producing and sample preparation techniques developed for VLM and EM also work well with XM. These include, for example, molecule specific staining by antibodies with heavy metal or fluorescent labels attached, and sectioning of both frozen and plastic embedded tissue. However, there is also a contrast mechanism unique to XM that exists naturally because a number of elemental absorption edges lie in the wavelength range used. In particular, between the oxygen and carbon absorption edges (2.3 and 4.4 nm wavelength), organic molecules absorb photons much more strongly than does water, permitting element-specific imaging of cellular structure in aqueous media, with no artifically introduced contrast agents. For three-dimensional imaging applications requiring the capabilities of XM, an obvious extension of the technique would therefore be computerized x-ray microtomography (XMT).

  20. High resolution studies of barium Rydberg states

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eliel, E.R.

    1982-01-01

    The subtle structure of Rydberg states of barium with orbital angular momentum 0, 1, 2 and 3 is investigated. Some aspects of atomic theory for a configuration with two valence electrons are reviewed. The Multi Channel Quantum Defect Theory (MQDT) is concisely introduced as a convenient way to describe interactions between Rydberg series. Three high-resolution UV studies are presented. The first two, presenting results on a transition in indium and europium serve as an illustration of the frequency doubling technique. The third study is of hyperfine structure and isotope shifts in low-lying p states in Sr and Ba. An extensive study of the 6snp and 6snf Rydberg states of barium is presented with particular emphasis on the 6snf states. It is shown that the level structure cannot be fully explained with the model introduced earlier. Rather an effective two-body spin-orbit interaction has to be introduced to account for the observed splittings, illustrating that high resolution studies on Rydberg states offer an unique opportunity to determine the importance of such effects. Finally, the 6sns and 6snd series are considered. The hyperfine induced isotope shift in the simple excitation spectra to 6sns 1 S 0 is discussed and attention is paid to series perturbers. It is shown that level mixing parameters can easily be extracted from the experimental data. (Auth.)

  1. An Accurate Approximate-Analytical Technique for Solving Time-Fractional Partial Differential Equations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Bishehniasar

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The demand of many scientific areas for the usage of fractional partial differential equations (FPDEs to explain their real-world systems has been broadly identified. The solutions may portray dynamical behaviors of various particles such as chemicals and cells. The desire of obtaining approximate solutions to treat these equations aims to overcome the mathematical complexity of modeling the relevant phenomena in nature. This research proposes a promising approximate-analytical scheme that is an accurate technique for solving a variety of noninteger partial differential equations (PDEs. The proposed strategy is based on approximating the derivative of fractional-order and reducing the problem to the corresponding partial differential equation (PDE. Afterwards, the approximating PDE is solved by using a separation-variables technique. The method can be simply applied to nonhomogeneous problems and is proficient to diminish the span of computational cost as well as achieving an approximate-analytical solution that is in excellent concurrence with the exact solution of the original problem. In addition and to demonstrate the efficiency of the method, it compares with two finite difference methods including a nonstandard finite difference (NSFD method and standard finite difference (SFD technique, which are popular in the literature for solving engineering problems.

  2. Feasibility of the Shallow High Resolution Seismic Reflection Technique for Use at the Hanford Site

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    S.M., Narbutovskih.

    1993-01-01

    Data obtained during site characterization should be useful to assess the need for remediation, to evaluate and design effective remedial plans, and to allow long-term monitoring to discern remediation effectiveness. A valuable environmental tool that incorporates this data is a model that describes groundwater and vadose zone flow and transport characteristics. Data on geology and hydrology combined with information on contaminant sources are incorporated into these conceptual models that delineate the relative significance of the various fluid migration pathways. Downstream these same models also support risk assessment, remediation design, and long-term assessment of remediation effectiveness. Consequently, the building of coherent, accurate vadose zone and groundwater models is fundamental to a successful remediation. Among the important requirements for these models is accurate knowledge of flow domain boundaries and soil characteristics. At the Hanford Site, this knowledge is obtained primarily from borehole data, which provides information only at a point. In the high energy flood and fluvial deposits found at the Hanford Site, it can, at times, be difficult to correlate lithologic horizons between boreholes. Where there is no borehole control, our understanding of the geometry of hydrogeologic boundaries and thus of fluid migration paths is limited. Surface geophysical techniques are generally used to provide a measure of geologic control between boreholes. In particular, the seismic reflection method has the potential to provide the greatest resolution of the subsurface hydrogeology between and beyond boreholes

  3. Dynamic Raman imaging system with high spatial and temporal resolution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Lei; Dai, Yinzhen; He, Hao; Lv, Ruiqi; Zong, Cheng; Ren, Bin

    2017-09-01

    There is an increasing need to study dynamic changing systems with significantly high spatial and temporal resolutions. In this work, we integrated point-scanning, line-scanning, and wide-field Raman imaging techniques into a single system. By using an Electron Multiplying CCD (EMCCD) with a high gain and high frame rate, we significantly reduced the time required for wide-field imaging, making it possible to monitor the electrochemical reactions in situ. The highest frame rate of EMCDD was ˜50 fps, and the Raman images for a specific Raman peak can be obtained by passing the signal from the sample through the Liquid Crystal Tunable Filter. The spatial resolutions of scanning imaging and wide-field imaging with a 100× objective (NA = 0.9) are 0.5 × 0.5 μm2 and 0.36 × 0.36 μm2, respectively. The system was used to study the surface plasmon resonance of Au nanorods, the surface-enhanced Raman scattering signal distribution for Au Nanoparticle aggregates, and dynamic Raman imaging of an electrochemical reacting system.

  4. Various extraction and analytical techniques for isolation and identification of secondary metabolites from Nigella sativa seeds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, X; Abd El-Aty, A M; Shim, J-H

    2011-10-01

    Nigella sativa L. (black cumin), commonly known as black seed, is a member of the Ranunculaceae family. This seed is used as a natural remedy in many Middle Eastern and Far Eastern countries. Extracts prepared from N. sativa have, for centuries, been used for medical purposes. Thus far, the organic compounds in N. sativa, including alkaloids, steroids, carbohydrates, flavonoids, fatty acids, etc. have been fairly well characterized. Herein, we summarize some new extraction techniques, including microwave assisted extraction (MAE) and supercritical extraction techniques (SFE), in addition to the classical method of hydrodistillation (HD), which have been employed for isolation and various analytical techniques used for the identification of secondary metabolites in black seed. We believe that some compounds contained in N. sativa remain to be identified, and that high-throughput screening could help to identify new compounds. A study addressing environmentally-friendly techniques that have minimal or no environmental effects is currently underway in our laboratory.

  5. High Spectral Resolution Lidar Based on a Potassium Faraday Dispersive Filter for Daytime Temperature Measurement

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Abo Makoto

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, a new high-spectral-resolution lidar technique is proposed for measuring the profiles of atmospheric temperature in daytime. Based on the theory of high resolution Rayleigh scattering, the feasibility and advantages of using potassium (K Faraday dispersive optical filters as blocking filters for measuring atmospheric temperature are demonstrated with a numerical simulation. It was found that temperature profiles could be measured within 1K error for the height of 9 km with a 500 m range resolution in 60 min by using laser pulses with 1mJ/pulse and 1 kHz, and a 50 cm diameter telescope. Furthermore, we are developing compact pulsed laser system for temperature lidar transmitter.

  6. Critical review of analytical techniques for safeguarding the thorium-uranium fuel cycle

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hakkila, E.A.

    1978-10-01

    Conventional analytical methods applicable to the determination of thorium, uranium, and plutonium in feed, product, and waste streams from reprocessing thorium-based nuclear reactor fuels are reviewed. Separations methods of interest for these analyses are discussed. Recommendations concerning the applicability of various techniques to reprocessing samples are included. 15 tables, 218 references

  7. A novel Fast Gas Chromatography based technique for higher time resolution measurements of speciated monoterpenes in air

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, C. E.; Kato, S.; Nakashima, Y.; Kajii, Y.

    2013-12-01

    Biogenic emissions supply the largest fraction of non-methane volatile organic compounds (VOC) from the biosphere to the atmospheric boundary layer, and typically comprise a complex mixture of reactive terpenes. Due to this chemical complexity, achieving comprehensive measurements of biogenic VOC (BVOC) in air within a satisfactory time resolution is analytically challenging. To address this, we have developed a novel, fully automated Fast Gas Chromatography (Fast-GC) based technique to provide higher time resolution monitoring of monoterpenes (and selected other C9-C15 terpenes) during plant emission studies and in ambient air. To our knowledge, this is the first study to apply a Fast-GC based separation technique to achieve quantification of terpenes in air. Three chromatography methods have been developed for atmospheric terpene analysis under different sampling scenarios. Each method facilitates chromatographic separation of selected BVOC within a significantly reduced analysis time compared to conventional GC methods, whilst maintaining the ability to quantify individual monoterpene structural isomers. Using this approach, the C10-C15 BVOC composition of single plant emissions may be characterised within a ~ 14 min analysis time. Moreover, in situ quantification of 12 monoterpenes in unpolluted ambient air may be achieved within an ~ 11 min chromatographic separation time (increasing to ~ 19 min when simultaneous quantification of multiple oxygenated C9-C10 terpenoids is required, and/or when concentrations of anthropogenic VOC are significant). This corresponds to a two- to fivefold increase in measurement frequency compared to conventional GC methods. Here we outline the technical details and analytical capability of this chromatographic approach, and present the first in situ Fast-GC observations of 6 monoterpenes and the oxygenated BVOC linalool in ambient air. During this field deployment within a suburban forest ~ 30 km west of central Tokyo, Japan, the

  8. High resolution hard x-ray microscope on a second generation synchrotron source

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tian Yangchao; Li Wenjie; Chen Jie; Liu Longhua; Liu Gang; Tian Jinping; Xiong Ying; Tkachuk, Andrei; Gelb, Jeff; Hsu, George; Yun Wenbing

    2008-01-01

    A full-field, transmission x-ray microscope (TXM) operating in the energy range of 7-11 keV has been installed at the U7A beamline at the National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, a second generation synchrotron source operating at 0.8 GeV. Although the photon flux at sample position in the operating energy range is significantly low due to its relatively large emittance, the TXM can get high quality x-ray images with a spatial resolution down to 50 nm with acceptable exposure time. This TXM operates in either absorption or Zernike phase contrast mode with similar resolution. This TXM is a powerful analytical tool for a wide range of scientific areas, especially studies on nanoscale phenomena and structural imaging in biology, materials science, and environmental science. We present here the property of the x-ray source, beamline design, and the operation and key optical components of the x-ray TXM. Plans to improve the throughput of the TXM will be discussed.

  9. Evaluation of Medium Spatial Resolution BRDF-Adjustment Techniques Using Multi-Angular SPOT4 (Take5 Acquisitions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Martin Claverie

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available High-resolution sensor Surface Reflectance (SR data are affected by surface anisotropy but are difficult to adjust because of the low temporal frequency of the acquisitions and the low angular sampling. This paper evaluates five high spatial resolution Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF adjustment techniques. The evaluation is based on the noise level of the SR Time Series (TS corrected to a normalized geometry (nadir view, 45° sun zenith angle extracted from the multi-angular acquisitions of SPOT4 over three study areas (one in Arizona, two in France during the five-month SPOT4 (Take5 experiment. Two uniform techniques (Cst, for Constant, and Av, for Average, relying on the Vermote–Justice–Bréon (VJB BRDF method, assume no variation in space of the BRDF shape. Two methods (VI-dis, for NDVI-based disaggregation and LC-dis, for Land-Cover based disaggregation are based on disaggregation of the MODIS-derived BRDF VJB parameters using vegetation index and land cover, respectively. The last technique (LUM, for Look-Up Map relies on the MCD43 MODIS BRDF products and a crop type data layer. The VI-dis technique produced the lowest level of noise corresponding to the most effective adjustment: reduction from directional to normalized SR TS noises by 40% and 50% on average, for red and near-infrared bands, respectively. The uniform techniques displayed very good results, suggesting that a simple and uniform BRDF-shape assumption is good enough to adjust the BRDF in such geometric configuration (the view zenith angle varies from nadir to 25°. The most complex techniques relying on land cover (LC-dis and LUM displayed contrasting results depending on the land cover.

  10. Feasibility of high temporal resolution breast DCE-MRI using compressed sensing theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Haoyu; Miao, Yanwei; Zhou, Kun; Yu, Yanming; Bao, Shanglian; He, Qiang; Dai, Yongming; Xuan, Stephanie Y; Tarabishy, Bisher; Ye, Yongquan; Hu, Jiani

    2010-09-01

    To investigate the feasibility of high temporal resolution breast DCE-MRI using compressed sensing theory. Two experiments were designed to investigate the feasibility of using reference image based compressed sensing (RICS) technique in DCE-MRI of the breast. The first experiment examined the capability of RICS to faithfully reconstruct uptake curves using undersampled data sets extracted from fully sampled clinical breast DCE-MRI data. An average approach and an approach using motion estimation and motion compensation (ME/MC) were implemented to obtain reference images and to evaluate their efficacy in reducing motion related effects. The second experiment, an in vitro phantom study, tested the feasibility of RICS for improving temporal resolution without degrading the spatial resolution. For the uptake-curve reconstruction experiment, there was a high correlation between uptake curves reconstructed from fully sampled data by Fourier transform and from undersampled data by RICS, indicating high similarity between them. The mean Pearson correlation coefficients for RICS with the ME/MC approach and RICS with the average approach were 0.977 +/- 0.023 and 0.953 +/- 0.031, respectively. The comparisons of final reconstruction results between RICS with the average approach and RICS with the ME/MC approach suggested that the latter was superior to the former in reducing motion related effects. For the in vitro experiment, compared to the fully sampled method, RICS improved the temporal resolution by an acceleration factor of 10 without degrading the spatial resolution. The preliminary study demonstrates the feasibility of RICS for faithfully reconstructing uptake curves and improving temporal resolution of breast DCE-MRI without degrading the spatial resolution.

  11. A Virtual Study of Grid Resolution on Experiments of a Highly-Resolved Turbulent Plume

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maisto, Pietro M. F.; Marshall, Andre W.; Gollner, Michael J.; Fire Protection Engineering Department Collaboration

    2017-11-01

    An accurate representation of sub-grid scale turbulent mixing is critical for modeling fire plumes and smoke transport. In this study, PLIF and PIV diagnostics are used with the saltwater modeling technique to provide highly-resolved instantaneous field measurements in unconfined turbulent plumes useful for statistical analysis, physical insight, and model validation. The effect of resolution was investigated employing a virtual interrogation window (of varying size) applied to the high-resolution field measurements. Motivated by LES low-pass filtering concepts, the high-resolution experimental data in this study can be analyzed within the interrogation windows (i.e. statistics at the sub-grid scale) and on interrogation windows (i.e. statistics at the resolved scale). A dimensionless resolution threshold (L/D*) criterion was determined to achieve converged statistics on the filtered measurements. Such a criterion was then used to establish the relative importance between large and small-scale turbulence phenomena while investigating specific scales for the turbulent flow. First order data sets start to collapse at a resolution of 0.3D*, while for second and higher order statistical moments the interrogation window size drops down to 0.2D*.

  12. Analytical applications of ICP-FTS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Faires, L.M.; Palmer, B.A.; Cunningham, P.T.

    1986-01-01

    The Analytical Chemistry Group of the Chemistry Division at Los Alamos National Laboratory has been investigating the analytical utility of the inductively coupled plasma (ICP) - Fourier transform spectrometer (FTS) combination. While a new state-of-the-art FTS facility is under construction at Los Alamos, preliminary data has been obtained on the one-meter FTS at the National Solar Observatory at Kitt Peak, Arizona. This paper presents an update of the Los Alamos FTS facility, which is expected to be completed in 1986, and presents data showing the analytical potential of an ICP-FTS system. Some of the potential problems of the multiplex disadvantage are discussed, and the advantages of the high resolution obtainable with the FTS are illustrated

  13. High resolution data acquisition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thornton, Glenn W.; Fuller, Kenneth R.

    1993-01-01

    A high resolution event interval timing system measures short time intervals such as occur in high energy physics or laser ranging. Timing is provided from a clock (38) pulse train (37) and analog circuitry (44) for generating a triangular wave (46) synchronously with the pulse train (37). The triangular wave (46) has an amplitude and slope functionally related to the time elapsed during each clock pulse in the train. A converter (18, 32) forms a first digital value of the amplitude and slope of the triangle wave at the start of the event interval and a second digital value of the amplitude and slope of the triangle wave at the end of the event interval. A counter (26) counts the clock pulse train (37) during the interval to form a gross event interval time. A computer (52) then combines the gross event interval time and the first and second digital values to output a high resolution value for the event interval.

  14. A high resolution germanium detector array for hypernuclear studies at PANDA

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bleser, Sebastian; Sanchez Lorente, Alicia; Steinen, Marcell [Helmholtz-Institut Mainz (Germany); Gerl, Juergen; Kojouharova, Jasmina; Kojouharov, Ivan [GSI Darmstadt (Germany); Iazzi, Felice [Politecnico, Torino (Italy); INFN, Torino (Italy); Pochodzalla, Josef; Rittgen, Kai; Sahin, Cihan [Institute for Nuclear Physics, JGU Mainz (Germany)

    2014-07-01

    The PANDA experiment, planned at the FAIR facility in Darmstadt, aims at the high resolution γ-spectroscopy of double Λ hypernuclei. For this purpose a devoted detector setup is required, consisting of a primary nuclear target, an active secondary target and a germanium detector array for the γ-spectroscopy. Due to the limited space within the PANDA detector a compact design is required. In particular the conventional LN{sub 2} cooling system must be replaced by an electro mechanical device and a new arrangement of the crystals is needed. This presentation shows the progress in the development of the germanium detectors. First results of in-beam measurements at COSY with a new electro mechanically cooled single crystal prototype are presented. Digital pulse shape analysis is used to disentangle pile up events due to the high event rate. This analysis technique also allows to recover the high original energy resolution in case of neutron damage. Finally the status of the new triple crystal detector prototype is given.

  15. High resolution time integration for Sn radiation transport

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thoreson, Greg; McClarren, Ryan G.; Chang, Jae H.

    2008-01-01

    First order, second order and high resolution time discretization schemes are implemented and studied for the S n equations. The high resolution method employs a rate of convergence better than first order, but also suppresses artificial oscillations introduced by second order schemes in hyperbolic differential equations. All three methods were compared for accuracy and convergence rates. For non-absorbing problems, both second order and high resolution converged to the same solution as the first order with better convergence rates. High resolution is more accurate than first order and matches or exceeds the second order method. (authors)

  16. Pinhole diffraction holography for fabrication of high-resolution Fresnel zone plates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sarkar, Sankha S; Solak, Harun H; David, Christian; van der Veen, J Friso

    2014-01-27

    Fresnel zone plates (FZPs) play an essential role in high spatial resolution x-ray imaging and analysis of materials in many fields. These diffractive lenses are commonly made by serial writing techniques such as electron beam or focused ion beam lithography. Here we show that pinhole diffraction holography has potential to generate FZP patterns that are free from aberrations and imperfections that may be present in alternative fabrication techniques. In this presented method, FZPs are fabricated by recording interference pattern of a spherical wave generated by diffraction through a pinhole, illuminated with coherent plane wave at extreme ultraviolet (EUV) wavelength. Fundamental and practical issues involved in formation and recording of the interference pattern are considered. It is found that resolution of the produced FZP is directly related to the diameter of the pinhole used and the pinhole size cannot be made arbitrarily small as the transmission of EUV or x-ray light through small pinholes diminishes due to poor refractive index contrast found between materials in these spectral ranges. We also find that the practical restrictions on exposure time due to the light intensity available from current sources directly imposes a limit on the number of zones that can be printed with this method. Therefore a trade-off between the resolution and the FZP diameter exists. Overall, we find that this method can be used to fabricate aberration free FZPs down to a resolution of about 10 nm.

  17. Structure of high-resolution NMR spectra

    CERN Document Server

    Corio, PL

    2012-01-01

    Structure of High-Resolution NMR Spectra provides the principles, theories, and mathematical and physical concepts of high-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance spectra.The book presents the elementary theory of magnetic resonance; the quantum mechanical theory of angular momentum; the general theory of steady state spectra; and multiple quantum transitions, double resonance and spin echo experiments.Physicists, chemists, and researchers will find the book a valuable reference text.

  18. A digital approach for real time high-rate high-resolution radiation measurements

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gerardi, G.; Abbene, L.

    2014-01-01

    Modern spectrometers are currently developed by using digital pulse processing (DPP) systems, showing several advantages over traditional analog electronics. The aim of this work is to present digital strategies, in a time domain, for the development of real time high-rate high-resolution spectrometers. We propose a digital method, based on the single delay line (SDL) shaping technique, able to perform multi-parameter analysis with high performance even at high photon counting rates. A robust pulse shape and height analysis (PSHA), applied on single isolated time windows of the detector output waveforms, is presented. The potentialities of the proposed strategy are highlighted through both theoretical and experimental approaches. To strengthen our approach, the implementation of the method on a real-time system together with some experimental results are presented. X-ray spectra measurements with a semiconductor detector are performed both at low and high photon counting rates (up to 1.1 Mcps)

  19. A digital approach for real time high-rate high-resolution radiation measurements

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gerardi, G.; Abbene, L., E-mail: leonardo.abbene@unipa.it

    2014-12-21

    Modern spectrometers are currently developed by using digital pulse processing (DPP) systems, showing several advantages over traditional analog electronics. The aim of this work is to present digital strategies, in a time domain, for the development of real time high-rate high-resolution spectrometers. We propose a digital method, based on the single delay line (SDL) shaping technique, able to perform multi-parameter analysis with high performance even at high photon counting rates. A robust pulse shape and height analysis (PSHA), applied on single isolated time windows of the detector output waveforms, is presented. The potentialities of the proposed strategy are highlighted through both theoretical and experimental approaches. To strengthen our approach, the implementation of the method on a real-time system together with some experimental results are presented. X-ray spectra measurements with a semiconductor detector are performed both at low and high photon counting rates (up to 1.1 Mcps)

  20. Nuclear analytical techniques applied to forensic chemistry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nicolau, Veronica; Montoro, Silvia; Pratta, Nora; Giandomenico, Angel Di

    1999-01-01

    Gun shot residues produced by firing guns are mainly composed by visible particles. The individual characterization of these particles allows distinguishing those ones containing heavy metals, from gun shot residues, from those having a different origin or history. In this work, the results obtained from the study of gun shot residues particles collected from hands are presented. The aim of the analysis is to establish whether a person has shot a firing gun has been in contact with one after the shot has been produced. As reference samples, particles collected hands of persons affected to different activities were studied to make comparisons. The complete study was based on the application of nuclear analytical techniques such as Scanning Electron Microscopy, Energy Dispersive X Ray Electron Probe Microanalysis and Graphite Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectrometry. The essays allow to be completed within time compatible with the forensic requirements. (author)