Dependence of surface distribution of self-assembled InSb nanodots on surface morphology and spacer layer thickness

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Godbole, M., E-mail: mohit.godbole@nmmu.ac.za [Department of Physics, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, PO Box 77000, Port Elizabeth 6031 (South Africa); Olivier, E.J. [Department of Physics, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, PO Box 77000, Port Elizabeth 6031 (South Africa); Coetsee, E.; Swart, H.C. [Department of Physics, University of the Free State, PO Box 339, Bloemfontein 9300 (South Africa); Neethling, J.H.; Botha, J.R. [Department of Physics, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, PO Box 77000, Port Elizabeth 6031 (South Africa)

2012-05-15

Self-assembled InSb nanodots (NDs) were grown on a GaSb (1 0 0) substrate using metal-organic vapour phase epitaxy (MOVPE). The effects of etching depth of the substrate and thickness of the GaSb buffer layer on the density and size distribution of single and double layer dots were studied for detector applications. The etch depth of the substrate was varied up to 30 {mu}m. In this particular study, the dots were grown at 450 Degree-Sign C and the GaSb spacer thickness was varied between 50 nm and 200 nm. The optimum substrate etch depth was found to be 30 {mu}m while the best spacer thickness was found to be 200 nm.

Dependence of surface distribution of self-assembled InSb nanodots on surface morphology and spacer layer thickness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Godbole, M.; Olivier, E.J.; Coetsee, E.; Swart, H.C.; Neethling, J.H.; Botha, J.R.

2012-01-01

Self-assembled InSb nanodots (NDs) were grown on a GaSb (1 0 0) substrate using metal-organic vapour phase epitaxy (MOVPE). The effects of etching depth of the substrate and thickness of the GaSb buffer layer on the density and size distribution of single and double layer dots were studied for detector applications. The etch depth of the substrate was varied up to 30 μm. In this particular study, the dots were grown at 450 °C and the GaSb spacer thickness was varied between 50 nm and 200 nm. The optimum substrate etch depth was found to be 30 μm while the best spacer thickness was found to be 200 nm.

Influence of the spacer layer on microstructure and magnetic properties of [NdFeB/(NbCu)]xn thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chiriac, H. [National Institute of R and D for Technical Physics, 47 Mangeron Blvd., 700050 Iasi (Romania); Grigoras, M. [National Institute of R and D for Technical Physics, 47 Mangeron Blvd., 700050 Iasi (Romania); Urse, M. [National Institute of R and D for Technical Physics, 47 Mangeron Blvd., 700050 Iasi (Romania)]. E-mail: urse@phys-iasi.ro

2007-09-15

Some results concerning the influence of the composition and thickness of NbCu spacer layer on the microstructure and magnetic properties of multilayer [NdFeB/(NbCu)]xn films, in view of their utilization for manufacturing the thin film permanent magnets are presented. A comparison between the microstructure and magnetic properties of NdFeB single layer and [NdFeB/(NbCu)]xn multilayer is also presented. The multilayer [NdFeB/(NbCu)]xn thin films with the thickness of the NdFeB layer of 180nm and the thickness of the NbCu spacer layer of 3nm, exhibit good hard magnetic characteristics such as coercive force H{sub c} of about 1510kA/m and the remanence ratio M{sub r}/M{sub s} of about 0.8.

Influence of the spacer layer on microstructure and magnetic properties of [NdFeB/(NbCu)]xn thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chiriac, H.; Grigoras, M.; Urse, M.

2007-01-01

Some results concerning the influence of the composition and thickness of NbCu spacer layer on the microstructure and magnetic properties of multilayer [NdFeB/(NbCu)]xn films, in view of their utilization for manufacturing the thin film permanent magnets are presented. A comparison between the microstructure and magnetic properties of NdFeB single layer and [NdFeB/(NbCu)]xn multilayer is also presented. The multilayer [NdFeB/(NbCu)]xn thin films with the thickness of the NdFeB layer of 180nm and the thickness of the NbCu spacer layer of 3nm, exhibit good hard magnetic characteristics such as coercive force H c of about 1510kA/m and the remanence ratio M r /M s of about 0.8

Role of Ta-spacer layer on tuning the tilt angle magnetic anisotropy of L1{sub 1}-CoPt/Ta/NiFe exchange springs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saravanan, P., E-mail: psdrdo@gmail.com [Defence Metallurgical Research Laboratory, Hyderabad 500058 (India); Talapatra, A.; Mohanty, J. [Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad, Hyderabad 502285 (India); Hsu, Jen-Hwa, E-mail: jhhsu@phys.ntu.edu.tw [Department of Physics, National Taiwan University, Taipei 106, Taiwan (China); Kamat, S.V. [Defence Metallurgical Research Laboratory, Hyderabad 500058 (India)

2017-06-15

Highlights: • Role of Ta-spacer layer in L1{sub 1}-CoPt(10 nm)/Ta//NiFe(4 nm) trilayers was investigated. • Domain size increased at the expense of magnetic phase contrast with increasing t{sub Ta}. • Tilt angle magnetization increased from 43° to 77° upon increasing t{sub Ta} (0–2.5 nm). • Micromagnetic studies confirmed the existence of tilted magnetic anisotropy. • Ta-spacer is effective in preserving competing anisotropies of CoPt and NiFe-layers. - Abstract: L1{sub 1}-CoPt/Ta/NiFe trilayers are chosen as model films for probing the role of spacer layer on tuning the tilt angle magnetization (θ{sub M}) in such exchange springs. For this purpose, a non-magnetic layer (Ta) with varying thickness (t{sub Ta}) from 0 to 2.5 nm was inserted between 10-nm thick CoPt film exhibiting strong perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) and 4-nm thick NiFe film having in-plane magnetic anisotropy (IMA). With the insertion of Ta-spacer, the magnetic hysteresis loops become more and more tilted as t{sub Ta} increases. Upon increasing the t{sub Ta} from 0 to 2.5 nm, the estimated SQR{sub ⊥} (=M{sub r⊥}/M{sub s⊥}) from the M–H loops is found to decrease moderately; while the θ{sub M} increases significantly from 43° to 77°. MFM images revealed maze-like domain patterns and the domain size tends to increase at the expense of magnetic phase contrast with increasing t{sub Ta}. Micro-magnetic simulation of tilt in the anisotropy axis with respect to the bare CoPt-layer showed a trend similar to that of those observed with the M–H loops obtained by VSM measurements. The results of present study suggest that the insertion of Ta-spacer is not only beneficial in terms of preserving the competing anisotropies such as PMA and IMA of CoPt and NiFe-layers respectively through weakened exchange coupling; but also, act as an appropriate means for realizing tunable tilted magnetic anisotropy in the L1{sub 1}-CoPt/NiFe exchange springs.

Nanoparticle-Based Brachytherapy Spacers for Delivery of Localized Combined Chemoradiation Therapy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kumar, Rajiv, E-mail: r.kumar@neu.edu [Nanomedicine Science and Technology Center, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts (United States); Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women' s Hospital, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (United States); Belz, Jodi [Nanomedicine Science and Technology Center, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts (United States); Markovic, Stacey [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts (United States); Jadhav, Tej; Fowle, William [Nanomedicine Science and Technology Center, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts (United States); Niedre, Mark [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts (United States); Cormack, Robert; Makrigiorgos, Mike G. [Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women' s Hospital, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (United States); Sridhar, Srinivas [Nanomedicine Science and Technology Center, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts (United States); Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women' s Hospital, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (United States)

2015-02-01

Purpose: In radiation therapy (RT), brachytherapy-inert source spacers are commonly used in clinical practice to achieve high spatial accuracy. These implanted devices are critical technical components of precise radiation delivery but provide no direct therapeutic benefits. Methods and Materials: Here we have fabricated implantable nanoplatforms or chemoradiation therapy (INCeRT) spacers loaded with silica nanoparticles (SNPs) conjugated containing a drug, to act as a slow-release drug depot for simultaneous localized chemoradiation therapy. The spacers are made of poly(lactic-co-glycolic) acid (PLGA) as matrix and are physically identical in size to the commercially available brachytherapy spacers (5 mm × 0.8 mm). The silica nanoparticles, 250 nm in diameter, were conjugated with near infrared fluorophore Cy7.5 as a model drug, and the INCeRT spacers were characterized in terms of size, morphology, and composition using different instrumentation techniques. The spacers were further doped with an anticancer drug, docetaxel. We evaluated the in vivo stability, biocompatibility, and biodegradation of these spacers in live mouse tissues. Results: The electron microscopy studies showed that nanoparticles were distributed throughout the spacers. These INCeRT spacers remained stable and can be tracked by the use of optical fluorescence. In vivo optical imaging studies showed a slow diffusion of nanoparticles from the spacer to the adjacent tissue in contrast to the control Cy7.5-PLGA spacer, which showed rapid disintegration in a few days with a burst release of Cy7.5. The docetaxel spacers showed suppression of tumor growth in contrast to control mice over 16 days. Conclusions: The imaging with the Cy7.5 spacer and therapeutic efficacy with docetaxel spacers supports the hypothesis that INCeRT spacers can be used for delivering the drugs in a slow, sustained manner in conjunction with brachytherapy, in contrast to the rapid clearance of the drugs when

Nanoparticle-Based Brachytherapy Spacers for Delivery of Localized Combined Chemoradiation Therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumar, Rajiv; Belz, Jodi; Markovic, Stacey; Jadhav, Tej; Fowle, William; Niedre, Mark; Cormack, Robert; Makrigiorgos, Mike G.; Sridhar, Srinivas

2015-01-01

Purpose: In radiation therapy (RT), brachytherapy-inert source spacers are commonly used in clinical practice to achieve high spatial accuracy. These implanted devices are critical technical components of precise radiation delivery but provide no direct therapeutic benefits. Methods and Materials: Here we have fabricated implantable nanoplatforms or chemoradiation therapy (INCeRT) spacers loaded with silica nanoparticles (SNPs) conjugated containing a drug, to act as a slow-release drug depot for simultaneous localized chemoradiation therapy. The spacers are made of poly(lactic-co-glycolic) acid (PLGA) as matrix and are physically identical in size to the commercially available brachytherapy spacers (5 mm × 0.8 mm). The silica nanoparticles, 250 nm in diameter, were conjugated with near infrared fluorophore Cy7.5 as a model drug, and the INCeRT spacers were characterized in terms of size, morphology, and composition using different instrumentation techniques. The spacers were further doped with an anticancer drug, docetaxel. We evaluated the in vivo stability, biocompatibility, and biodegradation of these spacers in live mouse tissues. Results: The electron microscopy studies showed that nanoparticles were distributed throughout the spacers. These INCeRT spacers remained stable and can be tracked by the use of optical fluorescence. In vivo optical imaging studies showed a slow diffusion of nanoparticles from the spacer to the adjacent tissue in contrast to the control Cy7.5-PLGA spacer, which showed rapid disintegration in a few days with a burst release of Cy7.5. The docetaxel spacers showed suppression of tumor growth in contrast to control mice over 16 days. Conclusions: The imaging with the Cy7.5 spacer and therapeutic efficacy with docetaxel spacers supports the hypothesis that INCeRT spacers can be used for delivering the drugs in a slow, sustained manner in conjunction with brachytherapy, in contrast to the rapid clearance of the drugs when

Cross-layer design in optical networks

CERN Document Server

Brandt-Pearce, Maïté; Demeester, Piet; Saradhi, Chava

2013-01-01

Optical networks have become an integral part of the communications infrastructure needed to support society’s demand for high-speed connectivity.  Cross-Layer Design in Optical Networks addresses topics in optical network design and analysis with a focus on physical-layer impairment awareness and network layer service requirements, essential for the implementation and management of robust scalable networks.  The cross-layer treatment includes bottom-up impacts of the physical and lambda layers, such as dispersion, noise, nonlinearity, crosstalk, dense wavelength packing, and wavelength line rates, as well as top-down approaches to handle physical-layer impairments and service requirements.

Cavity nonlinear optics with layered materials

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fryett Taylor

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Unprecedented material compatibility and ease of integration, in addition to the unique and diverse optoelectronic properties of layered materials, have generated significant interest in their utilization in nanophotonic devices. While initial nanophotonic experiments with layered materials primarily focused on light sources, modulators, and detectors, recent efforts have included nonlinear optical devices. In this paper, we review the current state of cavity-enhanced nonlinear optics with layered materials. Along with conventional nonlinear optics related to harmonic generation, we report on emerging directions of nonlinear optics, where layered materials can potentially play a significant role.

Effect of Ti seed and spacer layers on structure and magnetic properties of FeNi thin films and FeNi-based multilayers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Svalov, A.V., E-mail: andrey.svalov@ehu.es [Departamento de Electricidad y Electrónica, Universidad del País Vasco (UPV/EHU), 48080 Bilbao (Spain); Department of Magnetism and Magnetic Nanomaterials, Ural Federal University, 620002 Ekaterinburg (Russian Federation); Larrañaga, A. [SGIker, Servicios Generales de Investigación, Universidad del País Vasco (UPV/EHU), 48080 Bilbao (Spain); Kurlyandskaya, G.V. [Departamento de Electricidad y Electrónica, Universidad del País Vasco (UPV/EHU), 48080 Bilbao (Spain); Department of Magnetism and Magnetic Nanomaterials, Ural Federal University, 620002 Ekaterinburg (Russian Federation)

2014-10-15

Highlights: • Fe{sub 19}Ni{sub 81} films and FeNi-based multilayers were prepared by magnetron sputtering. • The samples were deposited onto glass substrates at room temperature. • Ti/FeNi films exhibit good (1 1 1) texture and crystallinity. • The thick Cu seed increases the coercive force of the magnetic layer. • The thin Ti spacer restores the magnetic softness of the Cu/Ti/FeNi multilayers. - Abstract: The microstructure and magnetic properties of sputtered permalloy films and FeNi-based multilayers prepared by magnetron sputtering have been studied. X-ray diffraction measurements indicate that Ti/FeNi films exhibit good (1 1 1) texture and crystallinity. Ti/FeNi bilayers with high crystallographic quality have relatively low resistivity. The Ti seed layer does not influence the magnetic properties of FeNi film in Ti/FeNi bilayers, but the thick Cu seed layer leads to an increase of the coercive force of the magnetic layer. For the FeNi films deposited on thick Cu seed layer, the (0 1 0) and (0 0 2) diffraction peaks of hcp nickel were clearly observed. The thin Ti spacer between Cu and FeNi layers prevents the formation of the nickel phase and restores the magnetic softness of the FeNi layer in the Cu/Ti/FeNi sample. Obtained results can be important for the development of multilayer sensitive elements for giant magnetoimpedance or magnetoresistance detectors.

Mapping bound plasmon propagation on a nanoscale stripe waveguide using quantum dots: influence of spacer layer thickness

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chamanei S. Perera

2015-10-01

Full Text Available In this paper we image the highly confined long range plasmons of a nanoscale metal stripe waveguide using quantum emitters. Plasmons were excited using a highly focused 633 nm laser beam and a specially designed grating structure to provide stronger incoupling to the desired mode. A homogeneous thin layer of quantum dots was used to image the near field intensity of the propagating plasmons on the waveguide. We observed that the photoluminescence is quenched when the QD to metal surface distance is less than 10 nm. The optimised spacer layer thickness for the stripe waveguides was found to be around 20 nm. Authors believe that the findings of this paper prove beneficial for the development of plasmonic devices utilising stripe waveguides.

Effect of spacers on the thermal performance of an annular multi-layer insulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haim, Y.; Weiss, Y.; Letan, R.

2014-01-01

The current study presents a model and is experimentally conducted in a system of 40 stainless steel coaxial foils, of nitrogen gas, entrapped between the foils, and of spacers, which are zirconia, spherical, 50 μm in size particles, widely dispersed in the gaps between the foils. The model, experimentally verified, relates to radiation between the foils, unobstructed by particles, to conduction in the nitrogen gas, and to conduction across the particles. The study was, in particular, aimed to measure the effective thermal conductivity of the particles and to assess its effect upon the array. At vacuum of 0.092 Pa, the effective thermal conductivity of the particles was 2.13 × 10 −4  W/m K, while the effective thermal conductivity of the array was 4.74 × 10 −4  W/m K. Thus, the low contribution of the particles conduction at vacuum conditions improves the insulation. It reaches 45% of the heat transfer rate. At atmospheric pressure, the effective thermal conductivity of the array reaches 4.5 × 10 −2  W/m K. There, the spacers contribution is negligible. - Highlights: •The multi-layer insulation of cylinder consists of foils separated by particles. •The particles are widely spaced in gaps. •Particles heat transfer rate is almost half of the total in vacuum. •At higher pressures the particles contribution is negligible. •The predicted thermal performance agrees with experimental results

Optical properties of single-layer, double-layer, and bulk MoS2

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Molina-Sanchez, Alejandro; Wirtz, Ludger [University of Luxembourg (Luxembourg); Hummer, Kerstin [University of Vienna, Vienna (Austria)

2013-07-01

The rise of graphene has brought attention also to other layered materials that can complement graphene or that can be an alternative in applications as transistors. Single-layer MoS{sub 2} has shown interesting electronic and optical properties such as as high electron mobility at room temperature and an optical bandgap of 1.8 eV. This makes the material suitable for transistors or optoelectronic devices. We present a theoretical study of the optical absorption and photoluminescence spectra of single-layer, double-layer and bulk MoS{sub 2}. The excitonic states have been calculated in the framework of the Bethe-Salpeter equation, taking into account the electron-hole interaction via the screened Coulomb potential. In addition to the step-function like behaviour that is typical for the joint-density of states of 2D materials with parabolic band dispersion, we find a bound excitonic peak that is dominating the luminescence spectra. The peak is split due to spin-orbit coupling for the single-layer and split due to layer-layer interaction for few-layer and bulk MoS{sub 2}. We discuss the changes of the optical bandgap and of the exciton binding energy with the number of layers, comparing our results with the reported experimental data.

Study of ion beam sputtered Fe/Si interfaces as a function of Si layer thickness

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Anil; Brajpuriya, Ranjeet; Singh, Priti

2018-01-01

The exchange interaction in metal/semiconductor interfaces is far from being completely understood. Therefore, in this paper, we have investigated the nature of silicon on the Fe interface in the ion beam deposited Fe/Si/Fe trilayers keeping the thickness of the Fe layers fixed at 3 nm and varying the thickness of the silicon sandwich layer from 1.5 nm to 4 nm. Grazing incidence x-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy techniques were used, respectively, to study the structural and morphological changes in the deposited films as a function of layer thickness. The structural studies show silicide formation at the interfaces during deposition and better crystalline structure of Fe layers at a lower spacer layer thickness. The magnetization behavior was investigated using magneto-optical Kerr effect, which clearly shows that coupling between the ferromagnetic layers is highly influenced by the semiconductor spacer layer thickness. A strong antiferromagnetic coupling was observed for a value of tSi = 2.5 nm but above this value an unexpected behavior of hysteresis loop (step like) with two coercivity values is recorded. For spacer layer thickness greater than 2.5 nm, an elemental amorphous Si layer starts to appear in the spacer layer in addition to the silicide layer at the interfaces. It is observed that in the trilayer structure, Fe layers consist of various stacks, viz., Si doped Fe layers, ferromagnetic silicide layer, and nonmagnetic silicide layer at the interfaces. The two phase hysteresis loop is explained on the basis of magnetization reversal of two ferromagnetic layers, independent of each other, with different coercivities. X-ray photo electron spectroscopy technique was also used to study interfaces characteristics as a function of tSi.

Study of the influence of temperature and time on the electroplating nickel layer in Inconel 718 strips used in spacer grid of Pressurized Water Cooled nuclear reactors (PWR)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rezende, Renato; Abati, Amanda; Verne, Júlio; Panossian, Zehbour, E-mail: amanda.abati@marinha.mil.br, E-mail: jvernegropp@gmail.com, E-mail: renato.rezende@marinha.mil.br, E-mail: zep@ipt.br [Centro Tecnológico da Marinha em São Paulo (CTMSP), São Paulo, SP (Brazil). Laboratório de Desenvolvimento e Instrumentação de Combustível Nuclear; Instituto de Pesquisas Tecnológicas (IPT), São Paulo, SP (Brazil)

2017-07-01

The Inconel 718 (UNS N07718: Ni-{sup 19}Cr-{sup 18}Fe-{sup 5}Nb-3 Mo) is a precipitation hardenable nickel alloy that has good corrosion resistance and high mechanical strength. These strips are used for assembling the spacer grid of fuel element of pressurized water cooled nuclear reactors (PWR). The spacer grid is a structural component of fundamental importance in fuel elements of PWR reactors, maintaining the position and necessary spacing of the fuel rods within the arrangement of the fuel element. The spacer grid is formed by joining the points of intersection of the strips, by a joint process called brazing. For this process, these strips are stamped and plated with a thin layer of nickel by means of electroplating in order to protect against oxidation and allow a better flowability and wettability of the addition metal in the strips during brazing. Oxidation at the surface of the base material harms wettability and inhibits spreading of the liquid addition metal on the substrate surface during the brazing process. The use of coatings such as nickel plating is used to ensure such conditions. The results showed that there is a process of diffusion de some chemical elements such as chromium, iron, titanium and aluminum from the substrate to the nickel layer and nickel from the layer to the substrate. These chemical elements are responsible for the oxidation at the surface of the strip. (author)

Investigation on effect of methylene spacer in holographic grating formation in eosin containing polymethacrylates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Manickasundaram, S. [Department of Chemistry, Anna University, Sardar Vallabai Patel Road, Chennai 600025 (India); Kannan, P. [Department of Chemistry, Anna University, Sardar Vallabai Patel Road, Chennai 600025 (India)]. E-mail: pakannan@annauniv.edu; Deepa, S. [Centre for Laser Technology, Department of Physics, Anna University, Chennai 600025 (India); Palanisamy, P.K. [Centre for Laser Technology, Department of Physics, Anna University, Chennai 600025 (India)

2007-01-15

A new series of eosin dye based poly(alkyloxymethacrylate)s was synthesized with an even number of side-chain methylene spacers by a free radical addition polymerization method for holographic optical data storage applications. These polymers were characterized by UV, IR and {sup 1}H NMR spectroscopy. The glass transition temperature and thermal stability of the polymers were investigated by DSC and TGA, respectively. As the spacer length increases in the side-chain, Tg, Tm and thermal stability of the polymers decrease, while a reverse trend was observed with film forming ability of the polymers. The optical characterization of the polymers was investigated by forming holographic grating using an Argon ion laser. The grating diffraction efficiency was found to depend not only on the concentration of polymeric film but also on the spacer length of the polymers.

Investigation on effect of methylene spacer in holographic grating formation in eosin containing polymethacrylates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Manickasundaram, S.; Kannan, P.; Deepa, S.; Palanisamy, P.K.

2007-01-01

A new series of eosin dye based poly(alkyloxymethacrylate)s was synthesized with an even number of side-chain methylene spacers by a free radical addition polymerization method for holographic optical data storage applications. These polymers were characterized by UV, IR and 1 H NMR spectroscopy. The glass transition temperature and thermal stability of the polymers were investigated by DSC and TGA, respectively. As the spacer length increases in the side-chain, Tg, Tm and thermal stability of the polymers decrease, while a reverse trend was observed with film forming ability of the polymers. The optical characterization of the polymers was investigated by forming holographic grating using an Argon ion laser. The grating diffraction efficiency was found to depend not only on the concentration of polymeric film but also on the spacer length of the polymers

Dependency of Tunneling-Magnetoresistance Ratio on Nanoscale Spacer Thickness and Material for Double MgO Based Perpendicular-Magnetic-Tunneling-Junction

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Du-Yeong; Hong, Song-Hwa; Lee, Seung-Eun; Park, Jea-Gun

2016-12-01

It was found that in double MgO based perpendicular magnetic tunneling junction spin-valves ex-situ annealed at 400 °C, the tunneling magnetoresistance ratio was extremely sensitive to the material and thickness of the nanoscale spacer: it peaked at a specific thickness (0.40~0.53 nm), and the TMR ratio for W spacers (~134%) was higher than that for Ta spacers (~98%). This dependency on the spacer material and thickness was associated with the (100) body-centered-cubic crystallinity of the MgO layers: the strain enhanced diffusion length in the MgO layers of W atoms (~1.40 nm) was much shorter than that of Ta atoms (~2.85 nm) and the shorter diffusion length led to the MgO layers having better (100) body-centered-cubic crystallinity.

CFD application to advanced design for high efficiency spacer grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ikeda, Kazuo

2014-01-01

Highlights: • A new LDV was developed to investigate the local velocity in a rod bundle and inside a spacer grid. • The design information that utilizes for high efficiency spacer grid has been obtained. • CFD methodology that predicts flow field in a PWR fuel has been developed. • The high efficiency spacer grid was designed using the CFD methodology. - Abstract: Pressurized water reactor (PWR) fuels have been developed to meet the needs of the market. A spacer grid is a key component to improve thermal hydraulic performance of a PWR fuel assembly. Mixing structures (vanes) of a spacer grid promote coolant mixing and enhance heat removal from fuel rods. A larger mixing vane would improve mixing effect, which would increase the departure from nucleate boiling (DNB) benefit for fuel. However, the increased pressure loss at large mixing vanes would reduce the coolant flow at the mixed fuel core, which would reduce the DNB margin. The solution is to develop a spacer grid whose pressure loss is equal to or less than the current spacer grid and that has higher critical heat flux (CHF) performance. For this reason, a requirement of design tool for predicting the pressure loss and CHF performance of spacer grids has been increased. The author and co-workers have been worked for development of high efficiency spacer grid using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for nearly 20 years. A new laser Doppler velocimetry (LDV), which is miniaturized with fiber optics embedded in a fuel cladding, was developed to investigate the local velocity profile in a rod bundle and inside a spacer grid. The rod-embedded fiber LDV (rod LDV) can be inserted in an arbitrary grid cell instead of a fuel rod, and has the advantage of not disturbing the flow field since it is the same shape as a fuel rod. The probe volume of the rod LDV is small enough to measure spatial velocity profile in a rod gap and inside a spacer grid. According to benchmark experiments such as flow velocity

CFD application to advanced design for high efficiency spacer grid

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ikeda, Kazuo, E-mail: kazuo3_ikeda@ndc.mhi.co.jp

2014-11-15

Highlights: • A new LDV was developed to investigate the local velocity in a rod bundle and inside a spacer grid. • The design information that utilizes for high efficiency spacer grid has been obtained. • CFD methodology that predicts flow field in a PWR fuel has been developed. • The high efficiency spacer grid was designed using the CFD methodology. - Abstract: Pressurized water reactor (PWR) fuels have been developed to meet the needs of the market. A spacer grid is a key component to improve thermal hydraulic performance of a PWR fuel assembly. Mixing structures (vanes) of a spacer grid promote coolant mixing and enhance heat removal from fuel rods. A larger mixing vane would improve mixing effect, which would increase the departure from nucleate boiling (DNB) benefit for fuel. However, the increased pressure loss at large mixing vanes would reduce the coolant flow at the mixed fuel core, which would reduce the DNB margin. The solution is to develop a spacer grid whose pressure loss is equal to or less than the current spacer grid and that has higher critical heat flux (CHF) performance. For this reason, a requirement of design tool for predicting the pressure loss and CHF performance of spacer grids has been increased. The author and co-workers have been worked for development of high efficiency spacer grid using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for nearly 20 years. A new laser Doppler velocimetry (LDV), which is miniaturized with fiber optics embedded in a fuel cladding, was developed to investigate the local velocity profile in a rod bundle and inside a spacer grid. The rod-embedded fiber LDV (rod LDV) can be inserted in an arbitrary grid cell instead of a fuel rod, and has the advantage of not disturbing the flow field since it is the same shape as a fuel rod. The probe volume of the rod LDV is small enough to measure spatial velocity profile in a rod gap and inside a spacer grid. According to benchmark experiments such as flow velocity

Organic light-emitting diodes with a spacer enhanced exciplex emission

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Fei; Chen, Rui; Sun, Handong; Wei Sun, Xiao

2014-04-01

By introducing a spacer molecule into the blended exciplex emissive layer, the performance of the bulk heterojunction exciplex organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) was improved dramatically; the maximum luminous efficiency was enhanced by about 22% from 7.9 cd/A to 9.7 cd/A, and the luminous efficiency drop was reduced by 28% at 400 mA/cm2. Besides the suppressed annihilation of exciton, the time-resolved photoluminescence measurements indicated that the spacer enhanced the delayed fluorescence through increasing the backward intersystem crossing rate from the triplet to singlet exciplex state. This method is useful for developing high performance exciplex OLEDs.

Mixing vane grid spacer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Patterson, J.F.; Galbraith, K.P.

1978-01-01

An improved mixing vane grid spacer having enhanced flow mixing capability by virtue of mixing vanes being positioned at welded intersecting joints of the spacer wherein each mixing vane has an opening or window formed therein substantially directly over the welded joint to provide improved flow mixing capability is described. Some of the vanes are slotted, depending on their particular location in the spacers. The intersecting joints are welded by initially providing consumable tabs at and within each window, which are consumed during the welding of the spacer joints

Experimental investigation on aero-optics of supersonic turbulent boundary layers.

Science.gov (United States)

Ding, Haolin; Yi, Shihe; Zhu, Yangzhu; He, Lin

2017-09-20

Nanoparticle-based planar laser scattering was used to measure the density distribution of the supersonic (Ma=3.0) turbulent boundary layer and the optical path difference (OPD), which is quite crucial for aero-optics study. Results were obtained using ray tracing. The influences of different layers in the boundary layer, turbulence scales, and light incident angle on aero-optics were examined, and the underlying flow physics were analyzed. The inner layer plays a dominant role, followed by the outer layer. One hundred OPD rms of the outer layer at different times satisfy the normal distribution better than that of the inner layer. Aero-optics induced by the outer layer is sensitive to the filter scale. When induced by the inner layer, it is not sensitive to the filter scale. The vortices with scales less than the Kolmogorov scale (=46.0  μm) have little influence on the aero-optics and could be ignored; the validity of the smallest optically active scale (=88.1  μm) proposed by Mani is verified, and vortices with scales less than that are ignored, resulting in a 1.62% decay of aero-optics; the filter with a width of 16-grid spacing (=182.4  μm) decreases OPD rms by 7.04%. With the increase of the angle between the wall-normal direction and the light-incident direction, the aero-optics becomes more serious, and the difference between the distribution of the OPD rms and the normal distribution increases. The difficulty of aero-optics correction is increased. Light tilted toward downstream experiences more distortions than when tilted toward upstream at the same angle relative to the wall-normal direction.

Influence of the GaN spacer thickness on the structural and photoluminescence properties of multi-stack InN/GaN quantum dots

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ke, Wen-Cheng; Lee, Shuo-Jen; Chen, Shiow-Long; Kao, Chia-Yu; Houng, Wei-Chung; Wei, Chih-An; Su, Yi-Ru

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► We present structural and photoluminescence characteristics of multi-stack InN/GaN QDs. ► A single crystalline 10-nm thick GaN capping layer is grown on the InN QDs. ► The PL intensity of the three-layer stacked sample is about 3 times that of the single-layer sample. - Abstract: This paper reports the structural and photoluminescence (PL) characteristics of single-layer and multi-stack InN/GaN quantum dots (QDs) with varying spacer thickness. A single crystalline 10-nm thick GaN capping layer is grown on the InN QDs by the flow-rate modulation epitaxy (FME) method. The PL peak is red shifted down to 18 meV and its full width at half maximum (FWHM) was narrowed from 104 meV to 77 meV as increasing GaN capping layer thickness to 20-nm. The red-shift and the linewidth narrowing of the PL spectra for the single-layer InN QDs as a result of the increase in capping thickness are believed to be due to the fact that the GaN capping layer decreases the surface defect density thereby decreasing the surface electron concentration of the InN QDs. However, the PL intensity decreases rapidly with the increase in GaN spacer thickness for the three-layer stacked InN/GaN QDs. Because of kinetic roughening, the 20-nm thick GaN capping layer shows a roughened surface. This roughened GaN capping layer degrades the InN QDs growth in the next layer of multi-stack InN QDs. In addition, the increased compressive strain on the InN QDs with the increase in GaN spacer thickness increases the defect density at the InN/GaN capped interface and will further decrease the PL intensity. After the GaN spacer thickness is modified, the PL intensity of the three-layer stacked sample with a 10-nm thick GaN spacer layer is about 3 times that of the single-layer sample.

Optical response of heterogeneous polymer layers containing silver nanostructures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miriam Carlberg

2017-05-01

Full Text Available This work is focused on the study of the optical properties of silver nanostructures embedded in a polymer host matrix. The introduction of silver nanostructures in polymer thin films is assumed to result in layers having adaptable optical properties. Thin film layers with inclusions of differently shaped nanoparticles, such as nanospheres and nanoprisms, and of different sizes, are optically characterized. The nanoparticles are produced by a simple chemical synthesis at room temperature in water. The plasmonic resonance peaks of the different colloidal solutions range from 390 to 1300 nm. The non-absorbing, transparent polymer matrix poly(vinylpyrrolidone (PVP was chosen because of its suitable optical and chemical properties. The optical studies of the layers include spectrophotometry and spectroscopic ellipsometry measurements, which provide information about the reflection, transmission, absorption of the material as well as the complex optical indices, n and k. Finite difference time domain simulations of nanoparticles in thin film layers allow the visualization of the nanoparticle interactions or the electric field enhancement on and around the nanoparticles to complete the optical characterization. A simple analysis method is proposed to obtain the complex refractive index of nanospheres and nanoprisms in a polymer matrix.

Fuel spacer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishida, Koji; Yokomizo, Osamu; Kanazawa, Toru; Kashiwai, Shin-ichi; Orii, Akihito.

1992-01-01

The present invention concerns a fuel spacer for a fuel assembly of a BWR type reactor and a PTR type reactor. Springs each having a vane are disposed on the side surface of a circular cell which supports a fuel rods. A vortex streams having a vertical component are formed by the vanes in the flowing direction of a flowing channel between adjacent cylindrical cells. Liquid droplets carried by streams are deposited on liquid membrane streams flowing along the fuel rod at the downstream of the spacer by the vortex streams. In view of the above, the liquid droplets can be deposited to the fuel rod without increasing the amount of metal of the spacer. Accordingly, the thermal margin of the fuel assembly can be improved without losing neutron economy. (I.N.)

Optical phased array using guided resonance with backside reflectors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Horie, Yu; Arbabi, Amir; Faraon, Andrei

2018-03-13

Methods and systems for controlling the phase of electromagnetic waves are disclosed. A device can consist of a guided resonance grating layer, a spacer, and a reflector. A plurality of devices, arranged in a grid pattern, can control the phase of reflected electromagnetic phase, through refractive index control. Carrier injection, temperature control, and optical beams can be applied to control the refractive index.

Effects of spacer layer on growth, stress and magnetic properties of sputtered permalloy film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cheng, S.F.; Lubitz, P.; Zheng, Y.; Edelstein, A.S.

2004-01-01

A microelectromechanical (MEMS) flux concentrator (J. Appl. phys. 91 (2002) 7795), is a device that will minimize 1/f noise in magnetic sensors by modulating the magnetic field at the position of the sensor. This requires high permeability and low stress permalloy (Py) films to be deposited on the MEMS flaps (J. Appl. phys. 91 (2002) 7795). Py (Ni 80 Fe 20 ) films from 100 to 560 nm thick were deposited on Si substrates using DC magnetron sputtering. The effects of deposition conditions on the grain morphology, texture, stress and magnetic properties were studied. Lower sputtering pressure changes film stress from tension to compression and increases the out of film plane texture, while higher power increases tension and texture. Neutral film stress was obtained with 100 W of sputtering power and 1.25 mTorr of Ar gas pressure. With increasing thickness, the Py film was found to develop a stripe-like domain configuration at low fields because of strong out-of-plane magnetic anisotropy. The critical thickness is around 180 nm.This may be explained by a competition between planar demagnetization fields and columnar magnetic anisotropy. Adding 5 nm of Ta or Cr layer as spacer successfully broke up the continuity of the magnetic structure and allowed us to produce high-permeability films by fabricating (Ta/Py) or (Cr/Py) multilayer films with each Py layer thinner than the critical thickness

Structural Stator Spacers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Peter Omand; Andreasen, Jens H.; Pijanowski, J. M.

2001-01-01

This paper presents a powerful new design aspect to reduce acoustic noise and vibration of electro-magnetic origin for electrical machines, by introducing improved slot wedges referred to as "Structural Stator Spacers". These spacers, by using a very stiff dielectric and non magnetic material...

Effect of NiAl underlayer and spacer on magnetoresistance of current-perpendicular-to-plane spin valves using Co2Mn(Ga0.5Sn0.5) Heusler alloy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hase, N.; Nakatani, T.M.; Kasai, S.; Takahashi, Y.K.; Furubayashi, T.; Hono, K.

2012-01-01

We investigated the effect of a NiAl underlayer and spacer on magnetoresistive (MR) properties in current-perpendicular-to-plane spin valves (CPP-SVs) using Co 2 Mn(Ga 0.5 Sn 0.5 ) (CMGS) Heusler alloy ferromagnetic layers. The usage of a NiAl underlayer allowed a high temperature annealing for the L2 1 ordering of the bottom CMGS layer, giving rise to a MR ratio of 10.2% at room temperature. We found that the usage of a NiAl spacer layer also improved the tolerance of the multilayer structure against thermal delamination, which allowed annealing to induce the L2 1 structure in both the bottom and top CMGS layers. However, the short spin diffusion length of NiAl resulted in a lower MR ratio compared to that obtained using a Ag spacer. Transmission electron microscopy of the multilayer structure of CPP-SVs showed that the atomically flat layered structure was maintained after the annealing. - Highlights: → CPP spin valves using Co 2 Mn(Ga 0.5 Sn 0.5 ) ferromagnetic layers with a new underlayer material. → NiAl underlayer and spacer improve the thermal tolerance of the spin valve structure. → NiAl underlayer improves MR ratio compared to Ag because of higher annealing temperature. → NiAl spacer degrades MR ratios compared to Ag because of short spin diffusion length. → Potential of heat resistant underlayer and spacer layer for CPP-SV using Heusler alloy.

Optical characterizations of silver nanoprisms embedded in polymer thin film layers

Science.gov (United States)

Carlberg, Miriam; Pourcin, Florent; Margeat, Olivier; Le Rouzo, Judikael; Berginc, Gerard; Sauvage, Rose-Marie; Ackermann, Jorg; Escoubas, Ludovic

2017-10-01

The precise control of light-matter interaction has a wide range of applications and is currently driven by the use of nanoparticles (NPs) by the recent advances in nanotechnology. Taking advantage of the material, size, shape, and surrounding media dependence of the optical properties of plasmonic NPs, thin film layers with tunable optical properties are achieved. The NPs are synthesized by wet chemistry and embedded in a polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) polymer thin film layer. Spectrophotometer and spectroscopic ellipsometry measurements are coupled to finite-difference time domain numerical modeling to optically characterize the heterogeneous thin film layers. Silver nanoprisms of 10 to 50 nm edge size exhibit high absorption through the visible wavelength range. A simple optical model composed of a Cauchy law and a Lorentz law, accounting for the optical properties of the nonabsorbing polymer and the absorbing property of the nanoprisms, fits the spectroscopic ellipsometry measurements. Knowing the complex optical indices of heterogeneous thin film layers let us design layers of any optical properties.

Improved contrast polymer light-emitting diode with optical interference layers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, H.Y.; Sun, R.G.; Yang, K.X.; Peng, J.B.; Cao, Y.; Joo, S.K.

2007-01-01

An improved contrast polymer light diode based on the destructive optical interference layers deposited between the glass substrate and ITO anode is fabricated. It is unnecessary to be considered that the additional optical interference structure will impede carrier injection from the electrode to the carrier-transporting layer. Due to the quarter-wavelength thickness of medial ITO layer, the reflected light from first Cr layer is inverted 180 o out of phase with the reflected light from second Cr layer, resulting in the destructive interference. It is evident that the contrast ratio of the device with the optical interference structure is about three times higher than that of the conventional device

Multi-layered fabrication of large area PDMS flexible optical light guide sheets

Science.gov (United States)

Green, Robert; Knopf, George K.; Bordatchev, Evgueni V.

2017-02-01

Large area polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) flexible optical light guide sheets can be used to create a variety of passive light harvesting and illumination systems for wearable technology, advanced indoor lighting, non-planar solar light collectors, customized signature lighting, and enhanced safety illumination for motorized vehicles. These thin optically transparent micro-patterned polymer sheets can be draped over a flat or arbitrarily curved surface. The light guiding behavior of the optical light guides depends on the geometry and spatial distribution of micro-optical structures, thickness and shape of the flexible sheet, refractive indices of the constituent layers, and the wavelength of the incident light. A scalable fabrication method that combines soft-lithography, closed thin cavity molding, partial curing, and centrifugal casting is described in this paper for building thin large area multi-layered PDMS optical light guide sheets. The proposed fabrication methodology enables the of internal micro-optical structures (MOSs) in the monolithic PDMS light guide by building the optical system layer-by-layer. Each PDMS layer in the optical light guide can have the similar, or a slightly different, indices of refraction that permit total internal reflection within the optical sheet. The individual molded layers may also be defect free or micro-patterned with microlens or reflecting micro-features. In addition, the bond between adjacent layers is ensured because each layer is only partially cured before the next functional layer is added. To illustrate the scalable build-by-layers fabrication method a three-layer mechanically flexible illuminator with an embedded LED strip is constructed and demonstrated.

Spatially-resolved in-situ quantification of biofouling using optical coherence tomography (OCT) and 3D image analysis in a spacer filled channel

KAUST Repository

Fortunato, Luca

2016-11-21

The use of optical coherence tomography (OCT) to investigate biomass in membrane systems has increased with time. OCT is able to characterize the biomass in-situ and non-destructively. In this study, a novel approach to process three-dimensional (3D) OCT scans is proposed. The approach allows obtaining spatially-resolved detailed structural biomass information. The 3D biomass reconstruction enables analysis of the biomass only, obtained by subtracting the time zero scan to all images. A 3D time series analysis of biomass development in a spacer filled channel under representative conditions (cross flow velocity) for a spiral wound membrane element was performed. The flow cell was operated for five days with monitoring of ultrafiltration membrane performance: feed channel pressure drop and permeate flux. The biomass development in the flow cell was detected by OCT before a performance decline was observed. Feed channel pressure drop continuously increased with increasing biomass volume, while flux decline was mainly affected in the initial phase of biomass accumulation. The novel OCT imaging approach enabled the assessment of spatial biomass distribution in the flow cell, discriminating the total biomass volume between the membrane, feed spacer and glass window. Biomass accumulation was stronger on the feed spacer during the early stage of biofouling, impacting the feed channel pressure drop stronger than permeate flux.

Spacer Thickness-Dependent Electron Transport Performance of Titanium Dioxide Thick Film for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Reda E. El-Shater

2015-01-01

Full Text Available A titanium dioxide (P25 film was deposited by cast coating as conductive photoelectrode and subsequently immersed in dye solution (N719 to fabricate the photoanode of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs. A plastic spacer was used as a separation and sealant layer between the photoanode and the counter electrode. The effect of the thickness of this spacer on the transfer of electrons in the liquid electrolyte of the DSSCs was studied by means of both IV curves and electrochemical impedance. Using a spacer thickness range of 20 μm to 50 μm, efficiency ranges from 3.73% to 7.22%. The highest efficiency of 7.22% was obtained with an optimal spacer thickness of 40 μm.

Spacer device for nuclear reactor fuel elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anthony, A.J.; Gaines, A.L.; Krawiec, D.M.

1974-01-01

The grid-type spacer device consists of two rows of main spacers arranged parallel to each other with some space in between, the first row extending perpendicular to the second row. Parallel to the respective rows of main spacers there are rows of secondary spacers interlocked with the main spacers. The individual spacers are welded together at their points of intersection. A large number of spring cages are installed within the spacer device to hold in place the main spacers which are oriented at right angles relative to each other. In addition, the spring cages serve for supporting the fuel elements. The spacers are made of zirconium which does not greatly influence the neutron capture cross section of the reactor. The material of the spring cages with the spring elements is a nickel alloy. It has the necessary stress relaxation properties to be able to force the fuel elements against the spacers under the action of the spring. (DG) [de

Spacer st4ructure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Masetti, W.R.

1978-01-01

A spacer structure is described for maintaining a spaced relation between a plurality of generally parallel fuel rods within a housing in a nuclear reactor. The spacer structure is comprised of a grid pattern of ribs slotted to interlock with each other. The slots are arranged in such a way that when the ribs are welded to each other, the weld shrinkage is distributed uniformly in all directions to reduce or eliminate the amount of rework necessary in manufacturing the spacer structure

3-D flow analyses for design of nuclear fuel spacer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karouta, Z. [ABB Combustion Engineering, Windsor, CT (United States); GU, Chun-Yuan [ABB Corporate Research, Vaesteras (Sweden); Schoelin, B. [ABB Atom AB, Vaesteras (Sweden)

1995-09-01

The Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code, CFDS-FLOW3D, was used to develop improved fuel designs for PWR cores. It was used primarily to understand the fluid dynamics of grid spacers, the mass transfer between subchannels caused by spacers and in the long term to develop two-phase models which enable prediction of critical heat flux in PWR fuel. A single subchannel of one grid span was modeled. In this model different spacer designs with mixing devices were analyzed. A special treatment of the boundary condition was developed making use of flow symmetry to model the mass transfer between different subchannels and minimize the size of the computational model. This reduced the computational model to a fraction of a subchannel using traditional periodic boundary conditions. The Navier-Stokes equation was solved for the liquid and the flow turbulence was modeled by k-{xi} turbulence model. The spacer and mixing device were treated as infinite thin surfaces in the model and a zero velocity condition and turbulent wall function were applied on each side of the thin surfaces. This approach simulated the swirl from the mixing devices well, but had the drawback of not predicting pressure drop accurately since the wake behind the plates and the acceleration effect of the spacers were ignored. CFDS-FLOW3D models with mixing devices were applied in the single-phase flow regime. Velocity profiles from the CFDS-FLOW3D models were compared to Laser Doppler Velocimeter measurements taken from the flow field downstream of spaces in a full scale, cold water test loop. The predicted axial and lateral velocity profiles were in good agreement with the measurements. The evaluation of the performance of different spacer devices was made by comparing the swirl ratio downstream of the grid spacers. It is planned to evaluate heat transfer coefficient downstream of the spaces, to implement two-phase flow models, and to model the superheated boundary layer on the surface of the fuel rod.

Influence of the spacer dielectric processes on PMOS junction properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morin, Pierre; Wacquant, Francois; Juhel, Marc; Laviron, Cyrille; Lenoble, D.

2005-01-01

In this paper, the interaction observed in PMOS transistor between the boron lightly doped drain (LDD) extensions and the spacer oxide and nitride dielectrics have been studied, with a simple experimental methodology. Low thermal budget oxide obtained by sub-atmospheric chemical vapor deposition (SACVD) and nitride deposited by plasma process have been evaluated as spacer layers. The influence of the oxide liner hydrogen content is shown to be critical for the p type shallow junction. Indeed, during the activation anneal, hydrogen content increases the boron out diffusion from the extension into the oxide liner and yield to a significant dose loss in this area. Nitride porosity has also been studied. A lower boron dose loss is observed with a porous layer because hydrogen can degas out significantly from the oxide, during anneal, through the porous nitride film. These results confirm the model of boron out diffusion based on oxide hydrogen content proposed by Kohli. Finally, a boron diffusion mechanism driven by chemistry and enhanced by hydrogen defects is proposed

Reentrainment of droplet from grid spacer in mist flow portion of LOCA reflood of PWR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, S.L.; Cho, S.K.; Sheen, H.J.

1983-01-01

An investigation is made on the influence of a quenched grid spacer on the greatly enhanced heat transfer from heated fuel rods during the mist flow phase of emergency reflood of loss of coolant accident (LOCA) of a pressurized water reactor (PWR). The situation for the case of a dry grid spacer before its quenching has not been covered in this study. The experimental technique used is a relatively simple optical scheme which combines the reference-mode laser-Doppler anemometry making use of the scattering of a light beam from a droplet. The results reveal that the large droplets in the mist flow, which are intercepted by the grid spacer, are responsible for the creation of a large number of smaller droplets. These small droplets, due to their large surface area to mass ratios, can serve as superb evaporative cooling agents to heat transfer downstream of the grid spacer

Polarization-insensitive optical gain characteristics of highly stacked InAs/GaAs quantum dots

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kita, Takashi; Suwa, Masaya; Kaizu, Toshiyuki; Harada, Yukihiro

2014-01-01

The polarized optical gain characteristics of highly stacked InAs/GaAs quantum dots (QDs) with a thin spacer layer fabricated on an n + -GaAs (001) substrate were studied in the sub-threshold gain region. Using a 4.0-nm-thick spacer layer, we realized an electronically coupled QD superlattice structure along the stacking direction, which enabled the enhancement of the optical gain of the [001] transverse-magnetic (TM) polarization component. We systematically studied the polarized electroluminescence properties of laser devices containing 30 and 40 stacked InAs/GaAs QDs. The net modal gain was analyzed using the Hakki-Paoli method. Owing to the in-plane shape anisotropy of QDs, the polarization sensitivity of the gain depends on the waveguide direction. The gain showing polarization isotropy between the TM and transverse-electric polarization components is high for the [110] waveguide structure, which occurs for higher amounts of stacked QDs. Conversely, the isotropy of the [−110] waveguide is easily achieved even if the stacking is relatively low, although the gain is small.

Mechanical Properties Of 3D-Structure Composites Based On Warp-Knitted Spacer Fabrics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chen Si

2015-06-01

Full Text Available In this paper, the mechanical properties (compression and impact behaviours of three-dimension structure (3D-structure composites based on warp-knitted spacer fabrics have been thoroughly investigated. In order to discuss the effect of fabric structural parameters on the mechanical performance of composites, six different types of warp-knitted spacer fabrics having different structural parameters (such as outer layer structure, diameter of spacer yarn, spacer yarn inclination angle and thickness were involved for comparison study. The 3D-structure composites were fabricated based on a flexible polyurethane foam. The produced composites were characterised for compression and impact properties. The findings obtained indicate that the fabric structural parameters have strong influence on the compression and impact responses of 3D-structure composites. Additionally, the impact test carried out on the 3D-structure composites shows that the impact loads do not affect the integrity of composite structure. All the results reveal that the product exhibits promising mechanical performance and its service life can be sustained.

Evaluation of interlayer ferromagnetic coupling for stacked media by adding reference layer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tham, K K; Saito, S; Itagaki, N; Hinata, S; Takahashi, M; Hasegawa, D

2011-01-01

The trial for quantitative evaluation of interlayer ferromagnetic coupling between granular and cap layer in stacked media is reported. The evaluation is realized by analyzing M-H loop of stacked media with another reference layer added on the cap layer. The reference layer is antiferromagnetically coupled with the cap layer through non-magnetic spacer layer. In this experiment, Rh which leads to antiferromagnetic coupling constant along film normal direction of around 2 erg/cm 2 was used as non-magnetic spacer layer. According to the evaluation result done by this method, when thickness of the spacer Pd layer between granular layer and cap layer is increased to 1.1 nm, ferromagnetic coupling constant is weakened to 7.2 erg/cm 2 which results in reduction of saturation field.

Photo-induced antiferromagnetic interlayer coupling in Fe superlattices with iron silicide spacers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mattson, J.E.; Fullerton, E.E.; Kumar, S.; Lee, S.R.; Sowers, C.H.; Grimsditch, M.; Bader, S.D. [Argonne National Lab., IL (United States); Parker, F.T. [California Univ., San Diego, La Jolla, CA (United States). Center for Magnetic Recording Research

1993-09-01

Sputtered Fe/FeSi films possessing antiferromagnetic (AF) interlayer coupling at room temperature develop ferromagnetic remanence when cooled below 100K, but the AF coupling can be restored at low temperature by exposure to visible light of sufficient intensity (>10 mW/mm{sup 2}). We attribute these effects to charge carriers in the FeSi spacer layer which, when thermally or photo-generated, are capable of communicating spin information between the Fe layers.

Electron stimulated desorption of cations from C sub 6 H sub 6 and C sub 6 H sub 1 sub 2 molecules adsorbed on Pt(1 1 1) and Ar spacer layer

CERN Document Server

Kawanowa, H; Hanatani, K; Gotoh, Y; Souda, R

2003-01-01

Mechanisms of electron stimulated cation desorption have been investigated for adsorbed C sub 6 H sub 6 and C sub 6 H sub 1 sub 2 molecules on the Pt(1 1 1) surface and the Ar spacer layer formed on it. The ion yields from the molecules adsorbed on the Ar spacer layer are highly enhanced at the smallest coverage and decay steeply with increasing coverage. No such enhancement was observed when they are adsorbed directly on the Pt(1 1 1) substrate. This behavior is explained in terms of the Coulombic repulsion of cations confined in nanoclusters, together with the delocalization of valence holes on the Pt(1 1 1) substrate as well as in the multilayer hydrocarbons. The holes in the C sub 6 H sub 6 molecule are more delocalized than those in the C sub 6 H sub 1 sub 2 molecule due to the overlap of pi orbitals.

Optical properties of metallic multi-layer films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dimmich, R.

1991-09-01

Optical properties of multi-layer films consisting of alternating layers of two different metals are studied on the basis of the Maxwell equations and the Boltzmann transport theory. The influence of free-electron scattering at the film external surface and at the interfaces is taken into account and considered as a function of the electromagnetic field frequency and the structure modulation wavelength. Derived formulas for optical coefficients are valid at low frequencies, where the skin effect is nearly classical, as well as in the near-infrared, visible and ultraviolet spectral ranges, where the skin effect has the anomalous nature. It is shown that the obtained results are apparently dependent on the values of the scattering parameters. What is more, the oscillatory nature of analyzed spectra is observed, where the two oscillation periods may appear on certain conditions. The oscillations result from the electron surface and interface scattering and their amplitudes and periods depend on the boundary conditions for free-electron scattering. Finally, the application of the interference phenomenon in dielectric layers is proposed to obtain the enhancement of the non distinct details which can appear in optical spectra of metallic films. (author). 31 refs, 6 figs

Flow behavior of droplets downstream of the spacer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kodama, Eiichiro; Morishita, Kiyohide; Aritomi, Masanori; Yano, Takashi

1998-01-01

The fuel spacer, of which role is to maintain an appropriate rod-to-rod clearance, is one of the components of a Boiling Water Reactor (BWR) fuel rod bundles. The fuel spacer influences flow characteristics of the liquid film in fuel rod bundles, so that its geometry influences greatly thermal hydraulics such as critical power and pressure drop therein. The purpose of this study is to clarify the effect of the spacer geometry on the core flow split downstream of the spacer. Phase Doppler Anemometry (PDA) was used for their meausrement under the conditions of a small amount of droplets in mist flows. From the experimental results, the normalized droplet velocity profiles with a spacer were split by the spacer and were different between a wider and a narrower regions in the channel, however, they became uniform at the distance far 100mm from the spacer. In the case without a spacer, the velocity was monotonously increasing nearer the rod surface with going toward the center of the channel. In the case with a spacer, the velocity profile downstream of the spacer changed in the narrower region of the channel. This tendency became more remarkable with thickening the spacer and widening clearance between the spacer and the wall. In this paper, 'drift' velocity effect was applied for the spacer model, due to the gas flows were split by the spacer which is based on the momentum balance between the narrower and wider channels. This model was confirmed from the experimental results that the droplet flowed from a wider region to a narrower one. This drift effect appeared more strongly as the spacer became thicker and the clearance did narrower. The analytical results explained qualitatively the measured ones. It is clarified that the drift effect proposed in this work was a dominant factor on droplet deposition downstream of the spacer

Fouling Resilient Perforated Feed Spacers for Membrane Filtration

KAUST Repository

Kerdi, Sarah

2018-04-24

The improvement of feed spacers with optimal geometry remains a key challenge for spiral-wound membrane systems in water treatment due to their impact on the hydrodynamic performance and fouling development. In this work, novel spacer designs are proposed by intrinsically modifying cylindrical filaments through perforations. Three symmetric perforated spacers (1-Hole, 2-Hole, and 3-Hole) were in-house 3D-printed and experimentally evaluated in terms of permeate flux, feed channel pressure drop and membrane fouling. Spacer performance is characterized and compared with standard no perforated (0-Hole) design under constant feed pressure and constant feed flow rate. Perforations in the spacer filaments resulted in significantly lowering the net pressure drop across the spacer filled channel. The 3-Hole spacer was found to have the lowest pressure drop (50% - 61%) compared to 0-Hole spacer for various average flow velocities. Regarding permeate flux production, the 0-Hole spacer produced 5.7 L.m-2.h-1 and 6.6 L.m-2.h-1 steady state flux for constant pressure and constant feed flow rate, respectively. The 1-Hole spacer was found to be the most efficient among the perforated spacers with 75% and 23% increase in permeate production at constant pressure and constant feed flow, respectively. Furthermore, membrane surface of 1-Hole spacer was found to be cleanest in terms of fouling, contributing to maintain higher permeate flux production. Hydrodynamic understanding of these perforated spacers is also quantified by performing Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS). The performance enhancement of these perforated spacers is attributed to the formation of micro-jets in the spacer cell that aided in producing enough unsteadiness/turbulence to clean the membrane surface and mitigate fouling phenomena. In the case of 1-Hole spacer, the unsteadiness intensity at the outlet of micro-jets and the shear stress fluctuations created inside the cells are higher than those observed with

Fouling resilient perforated feed spacers for membrane filtration.

Science.gov (United States)

Kerdi, Sarah; Qamar, Adnan; Vrouwenvelder, Johannes S; Ghaffour, Noreddine

2018-04-24

The improvement of feed spacers with optimal geometry remains a key challenge for spiral-wound membrane systems in water treatment due to their impact on the hydrodynamic performance and fouling development. In this work, novel spacer designs are proposed by intrinsically modifying cylindrical filaments through perforations. Three symmetric perforated spacers (1-Hole, 2-Hole, and 3-Hole) were in-house 3D-printed and experimentally evaluated in terms of permeate flux, feed channel pressure drop and membrane fouling. Spacer performance is characterized and compared with standard no perforated (0-Hole) design under constant feed pressure and constant feed flow rate. Perforations in the spacer filaments resulted in significantly lowering the net pressure drop across the spacer filled channel. The 3-Hole spacer was found to have the lowest pressure drop (50%-61%) compared to 0-Hole spacer for various average flow velocities. Regarding permeate flux production, the 0-Hole spacer produced 5.7 L m -2 .h -1 and 6.6 L m -2 .h -1 steady state flux for constant pressure and constant feed flow rate, respectively. The 1-Hole spacer was found to be the most efficient among the perforated spacers with 75% and 23% increase in permeate production at constant pressure and constant feed flow, respectively. Furthermore, membrane surface of 1-Hole spacer was found to be cleanest in terms of fouling, contributing to maintain higher permeate flux production. Hydrodynamic understanding of these perforated spacers is also quantified by performing Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS). The performance enhancement of these perforated spacers is attributed to the formation of micro-jets in the spacer cell that aided in producing enough unsteadiness/turbulence to clean the membrane surface and mitigate fouling phenomena. In the case of 1-Hole spacer, the unsteadiness intensity at the outlet of micro-jets and the shear stress fluctuations created inside the cells are higher than those

Design and analysis of three-layer-core optical fiber

Science.gov (United States)

Zheng, Siwen; Liu, Yazhuo; Chang, Guangjian

2018-03-01

A three-layer-core single-mode large-mode-area fiber is investigated. The three-layer structure in the core, which is composed of a core-index layer, a cladding-index layer, and a depression-index layer, could achieve a large effective area Aeff while maintaining an ultralow bending loss without deteriorating cutoff behaviors. The single-mode large mode area of 100 to 330 μm2 could be achieved in the fiber. The effective area Aeff can be further enlarged by adjusting the layer parameters. Furthermore, the bending property could be improved in this three-layer-core structure. The bending loss could decrease by 2 to 4 orders of magnitude compared with the conventional step-index fiber with the same Aeff. These characteristics of three-layer-core fiber suggest that it can be used in large-mode-area wide-bandwidth high-capacity transmission or high-power optical fiber laser and amplifier in optical communications, which could be used for the basic physical layer structure of big data storage, reading, calculation, and transmission applications.

Dual-layer ultrathin film optics: I. Theory and analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Qian; Lim, Kim Peng

2015-01-01

This paper revisits dual-layer ultrathin film optics, which can be used for functional graded refractive index thin film stack. We present the detailed derivation including s-polarized and p-polarized light under arbitrary incidence angle showing the equivalence between the dual-layer ultrathin films and a negative birefringent thin film and also the approximations made during the derivation. Analysis of the approximations shows the influence of thickness of dual-layer thin films, the incidence angle and desired refractive index of the birefringent film. Numerical comparison between the titanium dioxide/aluminum oxide based dual-layer ultrathin film stack and the equivalent birefringent film verifies the theoretical analysis. The detailed theoretical study and numerical comparison provide a physical insight and design guidelines for dual-layer ultrathin film based optical devices. (paper)

Development of a High Performance Spacer Grid

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Song, Kee Nam; Song, K. N.; Yoon, K. H. (and others)

2007-03-15

A spacer grid in a LWR fuel assembly is a key structural component to support fuel rods and to enhance the heat transfer from the fuel rod to the coolant. In this research, the main research items are the development of inherent and high performance spacer grid shapes, the establishment of mechanical/structural analysis and test technology, and the set-up of basic test facilities for the spacer grid. The main research areas and results are as follows. 1. 18 different spacer grid candidates have been invented and applied for domestic and US patents. Among the candidates 16 are chosen from the patent. 2. Two kinds of spacer grids are finally selected for the advanced LWR fuel after detailed performance tests on the candidates and commercial spacer grids from a mechanical/structural point of view. According to the test results the features of the selected spacer grids are better than those of the commercial spacer grids. 3. Four kinds of basic test facilities are set up and the relevant test technologies are established. 4. Mechanical/structural analysis models and technology for spacer grid performance are developed and the analysis results are compared with the test results to enhance the reliability of the models.

Photonic layer security in fiber-optic networks and optical OFDM transmission

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Zhenxing

Currently the Internet is experiencing an explosive growth in the world. Such growth leads to an increased data transmission rate demand in fiber-optical networks. Optical orthogonal frequency multiplexing (OFDM) is considered as a promising solution to achieve data rate beyond 100Gb/s per wavelength channel. In the meanwhile, because of extensive data transmission and sharing, data security has become an important problem and receives considerable attention in current research literature. This thesis focuses on data security issues at the physical layer of optical networks involving code-division multiple access (CDMA) systems and steganography methods. The thesis also covers several implementation issues in optical OFDM transmission. Optical CDMA is regarded as a good candidate to provide photonic layer security in multi-access channels. In this thesis we provide a systematic analysis of the security performance of incoherent optical CDMA codes. Based on the analysis, we proposed and experimentally demonstrated several methods to improve the security performance of the optical CDMA systems, such as applying all-optical encryption, and code hopping using nonlinear wavelength conversion. Moreover, we demonstrate that the use of wireless CDMA codes in optical systems can enhance the security in one single-user end-to-end optical channel. Optical steganography is another method to provide photonic data security and involves hiding the existence of data transmissions. In the thesis, we demonstrate that an optical steganography channel can exist in phase modulated public channels as well as traditional on-off-keying (OOK) modulated channels, without data synchronization. We also demonstrate an optical steganography system with enhanced security by utilizing temporal phase modulation techniques. Additionally, as one type of an overlay channel, the optical steganography technology can carry the sensor data collected by wireless sensor network on top of public optical

Spacer for supporting fuel element boxes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wild, E.

1979-01-01

A spacer plate unit arranged externally on each side and at a predetermined level of a polygonal fuel element box for mutually supporting, with respect to one another, a plurality of the fuel element boxes forming a fuel element bundle, is formed of a first and a second spacer plate part each having the same length and the same width and being constituted of unlike first and second materials, respectively. The first and second spacer plate parts of the several spacer plate units situated at the predetermined level are arranged in an alternating continuous series when viewed in the peripheral direction of the fuel element box, so that any two spacer plate units belonging to face-to-face oriented sides of two adjoining fuel element boxes in the fuel element bundle define interfaces of unlike materials

Measurement of droplet dynamics across grid spacer in mist cooling of subchannel of PWR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, S.L.; Sheen, H.J.; Cho, S.K.; Issapour, I.

1984-01-01

An experiment was conducted of the dynamics and heat transfer of a droplet-vapor mist flow across a test grid spacer in a flow channel of 2 x 2 electrically heated simulation fuel rods. Embedded thermocouples were used to measure the rod cladding temperature and an unshielded Chromel-Alumel thermocouple was transversed in the center of the subchannel to measure the temperature of the water and steam coolant phases at various axial locations. Thermocouples were also embedded in the test grid spacer. Optical measurements of the size and velocity distributions of droplets and the velocity distribution of the superheated steam were made by special laser-Doppler anemometry techniques through quartz glass windows immediately upstream and downstream of the test grid spacer. Experiments over a range of steam and injected water flow rates and rod heat flux have been performed and some representative results and discussions are presented

Side insertable spacer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Patterson, J.F.; Ewing, R.H.

1992-01-01

This patent describes a spacer for restraining the fuel rods of a nuclear fuel assembly, the assembly being formed of a plurality of parallel, elongated fuel rods so arranged that the assembly is bounded by a polygon having an even number of sides, the rods being so arranged as to lie in a plurality of sets of parallel rows, the rows of each set being perpendicular to one of the sides of the polygon. It comprises a number of spacer combs equal to at least half the number of the sides of the polygon, the spacer combs being superposed on each other, each of the spacer combs comprising: a single base strip having a length equal to that of one of the sides of the polygon and grid strips equal in number to the spaces between rows in one of the sets, and at least a majority of the grid strips being of a length sufficient to extend substantially the full length of the rows; the grid strips being provided with spring members positioned to engage each of the rods; the grid strips being provided with spring members positioned to engage each of the rods; the grid strips being secured to and extending at right angles to the base strip; the grid strips of different combs being positioned at angles to each other, so as to occupy the spaces between rows in different sets

Fouling Resilient Perforated Feed Spacers for Membrane Filtration

KAUST Repository

Kerdi, Sarah; Qamar, Adnan; Vrouwenvelder, Johannes S.; Ghaffour, NorEddine

2018-01-01

drop across the spacer filled channel. The 3-Hole spacer was found to have the lowest pressure drop (50% - 61%) compared to 0-Hole spacer for various average flow velocities. Regarding permeate flux production, the 0-Hole spacer produced 5.7 L.m-2.h-1

Antibiotic impregnated total femur spacers: a technical tip

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Colin D. Canham, MD

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Simultaneous prosthetic joint infection of ipsilateral hip and knee arthroplasties is often accompanied by significant bone loss and presents a challenging reconstructive problem. Two-stage reconstruction is favored and requires the placement of a total femur spacer, which is not a commercially available device. We describe a surgical technique, reporting on 2 cases in which a customized total femur antibiotic impregnated spacer was created by combining an articulating knee spacer and an articulating hip spacer with a reinforced cement dowel construct connecting the 2 spacers. Custom total femoral spacers are useful in the management of infected femoral megaprostheses and cases with ipsilateral injected hip and knee arthroplasties and severe femoral bone loss. Keywords: total femur spacer, revision arthroplasty, total hip arthroplasty, total knee arthroplasty, prosthetic joint infection

Physical-layer network coding in coherent optical OFDM systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Guan, Xun; Chan, Chun-Kit

2015-04-20

We present the first experimental demonstration and characterization of the application of optical physical-layer network coding in coherent optical OFDM systems. It combines two optical OFDM frames to share the same link so as to enhance system throughput, while individual OFDM frames can be recovered with digital signal processing at the destined node.

Investigation of optical and magneto-optical constants and their surface-oxide-layer effects of single-crystalline GdCo2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, S.J.; Kim, K.J.; Canfield, P.C.; Lynch, D.W.

2000-01-01

We investigated the optical and magneto-optical properties of single-crystalline GdCo 2 by spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) and magneto-optical Kerr spectrometry (MOKS). The diagonal component of the optical conductivity tensor of the compound was obtained by SE in the 1.5-5.5 eV region and the off-diagonal component by using the measured magneto-optical parameters (Kerr rotation and ellipticity) by MOKS and the SE data. The measured spectra were corrected for the surface oxide layer by employing a three-phase model treating the oxide layer as nonmagnetic with constant refractive index. The magnitude of the diagonal component becomes enhanced and the optical transition structures of the off-diagonal component become more pronounced by the oxide correction. The overall optical and magneto-optical data are discussed in terms of the calculated spin-polarized band structure and optical absorption of the compound and the effect of the surface oxide layer

Si/SiC heterojunction optically controlled transistor with charge compensation layer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pu Hongbin

2016-01-01

Full Text Available A novel n-SiC/p-Si/n-Si optically controlled transistor with charge compensation layer has been studied in the paper. The performance of the device is simulated using Silvaco Atlas tools, which indicates excellent performances of the device in both blocking state and conducting state. The device also has a good switching characteristic with 0.54μs as rising time and 0.66μs as falling time. With the charge compensation layer, the breakdown voltage and the spectral response intensity of the device are improved by 90V and 33A/W respectively. Compared with optically controlled transistor without charge compensation layer, the n-SiC/p-Si/n-Si optically controlled transistor with charge compensation layer has a better performance.

Evaluation of epoxy for use on NuSTAR optics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

An, H.; Christensen, Finn Erland; Doll, M.

2009-01-01

The Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) is a NASA Small Explorer (SMEX) mission which employs two focusing optics. The optics are composed of stacks of thin mirror shells and spacers. Epoxy is used to bond the mirror shells to the spacers and is a crucial component in determining...

Optical properties of quasiperiodically arranged semiconductor nanostructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Werchner, Marco

2009-12-18

This work consists of two parts which are entitled ''One-Dimensional Resonant Fibonacci Quasicrystals'' and ''Resonant Tunneling of Light in Silicon Nanostructures''. A microscopic theory has been applied to investigate the optical properties of the respective semiconductor nanostructures. The studied one-dimensional resonant Fibonacci quasicrystals consist of GaAs quantum wells (QW) that are separated by either a large spacer L or a small one S. These spacers are arranged according to the Fibonacci sequence LSLLSLSL.. The average spacing satisfies a generalized Bragg condition with respect to the 1s-exciton resonance of the QWs. A theory, that makes use of the transfer-matrix method and that allows for the microscopic description of many-body effects such as excitation-induced dephasing caused by the Coulomb scattering of carriers, has been applied to compute the optical spectra of such structures. A pronounced sharp reflectivity minimum is found in the vicinity of the heavy-hole resonance both in the measured as well as in the calculated linear 54-QW spectra. Specifically, the influence of the carrier density, of the QW arrangement, of a detuning away from the exact Bragg condition, of the average spacing as well as of the ratio of the optical path lengths of the large and small spacers L and S, respectively, and of the QW number on the optical properties of the samples have been studied. Additionally, self-similarity among reflection spectra corresponding to different QW numbers that exceed a Fibonacci number by one is observed, which identifies certain spectral features as true fingerprints of the Fibonacci spacing. In the second part, resonant tunneling of light in stacked structures consisting of alternating parallel layers of silicon and air have been studied theoretically.Light may tunnel through the air barrier due to the existence of evanescent waves inside the air layers if the neighboring silicon layer is close

In-situ biofouling assessment in spacer filled channels using optical coherence tomography (OCT): 3D biofilm thickness mapping

KAUST Repository

Fortunato, Luca

2017-01-13

Membrane systems for water purification can be seriously hampered by biofouling. The use of optical coherence tomography (OCT) to investigate biofilms in membrane systems has recently increased due to the ability to do the characterization in-situ and non-destructively The OCT biofilm thickness map is presented for the first time as a tool to assess biofilm spatial distribution on a surface. The map allows the visualization and evaluation of the biofilm formation and growth in membrane filtration systems through the use of a false color scale. The biofilm development was monitored with OCT to evaluate the suitability of the proposed approach. A 3D time series analysis of biofilm development in a spacer filled channel representative of a spiral-wound membrane element was performed. The biofilm thickness map enables the time-resolved and spatial-resolved evaluation and visualization of the biofilm deposition pattern in-situ non-destructively.

Optical spacing effect in organic photovoltaic cells incorporating a dilute acceptor layer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Menke, S. Matthew; Lindsay, Christopher D.; Holmes, Russell J. [Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455 (United States)

2014-06-16

The addition of spacing layers in organic photovoltaic cells (OPVs) can enhance light absorption by optimizing the spatial distribution of the incident optical field in the multilayer structure. We explore the optical spacing effect in OPVs achieved using a diluted electron acceptor layer of C{sub 60}. While optical spacing is often realized by optimizing buffer layer thickness, we find that optical spacing via dilution leads to cells with similar or enhanced photocurrent. This is observed despite a smaller quantity of absorbing molecules, suggesting a more efficient use of absorbed photons. In fact, dilution is found to concentrate optical absorption near the electron donor-acceptor interface, resulting in a marked increase in the exciton diffusion efficiency. Contrasting the use of changes in thickness to engineer optical absorption, the use of dilution does not significantly alter the overall thickness of the OPV. Optical spacing via dilution is shown to be a viable alternative to more traditional optical spacing techniques and may be especially useful in the continued optimization of next-generation, tandem OPVs where it is important to minimize competition for optical absorption between individual sub-cells.

Optical spacing effect in organic photovoltaic cells incorporating a dilute acceptor layer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Menke, S. Matthew; Lindsay, Christopher D.; Holmes, Russell J.

2014-01-01

The addition of spacing layers in organic photovoltaic cells (OPVs) can enhance light absorption by optimizing the spatial distribution of the incident optical field in the multilayer structure. We explore the optical spacing effect in OPVs achieved using a diluted electron acceptor layer of C 60 . While optical spacing is often realized by optimizing buffer layer thickness, we find that optical spacing via dilution leads to cells with similar or enhanced photocurrent. This is observed despite a smaller quantity of absorbing molecules, suggesting a more efficient use of absorbed photons. In fact, dilution is found to concentrate optical absorption near the electron donor-acceptor interface, resulting in a marked increase in the exciton diffusion efficiency. Contrasting the use of changes in thickness to engineer optical absorption, the use of dilution does not significantly alter the overall thickness of the OPV. Optical spacing via dilution is shown to be a viable alternative to more traditional optical spacing techniques and may be especially useful in the continued optimization of next-generation, tandem OPVs where it is important to minimize competition for optical absorption between individual sub-cells.

Sub-15 nm nano-pattern generation by spacer width control for high density precisely positioned self-assembled device nanomanufacturing

KAUST Repository

Rojas, Jhonathan Prieto; Hussain, Muhammad Mustafa

2012-01-01

We present a conventional micro-fabrication based thin film vertical sidewall (spacer) width controlled nano-gap fabrication process to create arrays of nanopatterns for high density precisely positioned self-assembled nanoelectronics device integration. We have used conventional optical lithography to create base structures and then silicon nitride (Si 3N4) based spacer formation via reactive ion etching. Control of Si3N4 thickness provides accurate control of vertical sidewall (spacer) besides the base structures. Nano-gaps are fabricated between two adjacent spacers whereas the width of the gap depends on the gap between two adjacent base structures minus width of adjacent spacers. We demonstrate the process using a 32 nm node complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) platform to show its compatibility for very large scale heterogeneous integration of top-down and bottom-up fabrication as well as conventional and selfassembled nanodevices. This process opens up clear opportunity to overcome the decade long challenge of high density integration of self-assembled devices with precise position control. © 2012 IEEE.

Sub-15 nm nano-pattern generation by spacer width control for high density precisely positioned self-assembled device nanomanufacturing

KAUST Repository

Rojas, Jhonathan Prieto

2012-08-01

We present a conventional micro-fabrication based thin film vertical sidewall (spacer) width controlled nano-gap fabrication process to create arrays of nanopatterns for high density precisely positioned self-assembled nanoelectronics device integration. We have used conventional optical lithography to create base structures and then silicon nitride (Si 3N4) based spacer formation via reactive ion etching. Control of Si3N4 thickness provides accurate control of vertical sidewall (spacer) besides the base structures. Nano-gaps are fabricated between two adjacent spacers whereas the width of the gap depends on the gap between two adjacent base structures minus width of adjacent spacers. We demonstrate the process using a 32 nm node complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) platform to show its compatibility for very large scale heterogeneous integration of top-down and bottom-up fabrication as well as conventional and selfassembled nanodevices. This process opens up clear opportunity to overcome the decade long challenge of high density integration of self-assembled devices with precise position control. © 2012 IEEE.

Pressure Drop Test of Hybrid Mixing Vane Spacer Grid

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oh, D. S.; Chang, S. K.; Kim, B. D.; Chun, S. Y.; Chun, T. H

2007-08-15

The pressure loss test has been accomplished in the test section containing 5x5 rod bundle with a length of 2 m including 3 spacer grids. The test has been performed for the 5 kinds of spacer grids to compare the pressure loss characteristics: 1. Plain spacer grid which has the same body of the Hybrid but without vane (Plain), 2. Hybrid Vane spacer grid (Hybrid), 3. Hybrid-SC spacer grid which is constructed with coined, chamfered strip and is fabricated by spot welding, 4. Hybrid-LC spacer grid which is constructed with coined, chamfered strip and is fabricated by line welding along intersection line, 5. Westinghouse spacer grid with split vane (Plus-7). The pressure loss coefficient of the Plain, Hybrid, Hybrid-SC, Hybrid-LC, and Plus-7 spacer grid is 0.93, 1.15, 1.02, 1.04, and 1.08, respectively.

Optically Tunable Magnetoresistance Effect: From Mechanism to Novel Device Application.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Pan; Lin, Xiaoyang; Xu, Yong; Zhang, Boyu; Si, Zhizhong; Cao, Kaihua; Wei, Jiaqi; Zhao, Weisheng

2017-12-28

The magnetoresistance effect in sandwiched structure describes the appreciable magnetoresistance effect of a device with a stacking of two ferromagnetic layers separated by a non-magnetic layer (i.e., a sandwiched structure). The development of this effect has led to the revolution of memory applications during the past decades. In this review, we revisited the magnetoresistance effect and the interlayer exchange coupling (IEC) effect in magnetic sandwiched structures with a spacer layer of non-magnetic metal, semiconductor or organic thin film. We then discussed the optical modulation of this effect via different methods. Finally, we discuss various applications of these effects and present a perspective to realize ultralow-power, high-speed data writing and inter-chip connection based on this tunable magnetoresistance effect.

Comparative studies of 111In-labeled monoclonal antibody using spacer-containing and non-spacer bifunctional chelates. 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun, Baofu

1994-01-01

Indium-111-labeled A7 monoclonal antibodies using two spacer-containing chelates, succinimido-EGS-DTPA (EGS-DTPA: diester spacer) and maleimido-C10-Bz-EDTA (C10-Bz-EDTA: hydrocarbon spacer) were investigated in human LS180 colon tumor bearing nude mice and were compared with two non-spacer chelates, cyclic DTPA dianhydride (cDTPAA) and isothiocyanatobenzyl-EDTA (SCN-Bz-EDTA). Compared with immunoconjugates using non-spacer chelates, immunoconjugates using spacer-containing chelates, especially C10-Bz-EDTA-A7 showed lower 111 In activity in normal organs. The radioactivity in the liver for C10-Bz-EDTA-A7 decreased continuously till 96 hrs postinjection, however, this liver radioactivity for EGS-DTPA-A7 showed little change after 24 hrs. Moreover, in liver subcellular distribution study, EGS-DTPA-A7 showed a higher activity retention in mitochondrial fraction which contained lysosome, a place for metabolizing and storing of 111 In labeled antibody, than that of C10-Bz-EDTA-A7. The C10-Bz-EDTA-A7 conjugate demonstrated more preferable tumor-to-non tumor contrast on the scintigrams than that found with other three immunoconjugates. Up to 96 hrs postinjection, tumor bearing nude mice injecting with immunoconjugates using spacer-containing chelates exreted twice radioactivity from whole body than that excreted by using non-spacer chelates. Interestingly, different from other three chelates, C10-Bz-EDTA-A7 were mainly excreted via feces. We conclude that the decrease of radioactivity in normal tissues in the case of EGS-DTPA-A7 was due to the rapid decrease of activity in the blood, while in the case of C10-Bz-EDTA-A7 it was due to the quickly excreted small metabolite through faces. 111 In labeled C10-Bz-EDTA conjugate is superior, at least when conjugated with A7, to other three chelate conjugates used in this study. (author)

Thermal Performance Testing of Cryogenic Multilayer Insulation with Silk Net Spacers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johnson, W L; Frank, D J; Nast, T C; Fesmire, J E

2015-01-01

Early comprehensive testing of cryogenic multilayer insulation focused on the use of silk netting as a spacer material. Silk netting was used for multiple test campaigns that were designed to provide baseline thermal performance estimates for cryogenic insulation systems. As more focus was put on larger systems, the cost of silk netting became a deterrent and most aerospace insulation firms were using Dacron (or polyester) netting spacers by the early 1970s. In the midst of the switch away from silk netting there was no attempt to understand the difference between silk and polyester netting, though it was widely believed that the silk netting provided slightly better performance. Without any better reference for thermal performance data, the silk netting performance correlations continued to be used. In order to attempt to quantify the difference between the silk netting and polyester netting, a brief test program was developed. The silk netting material was obtained from Lockheed Martin and was tested on the Cryostat-100 instrument in three different configurations, 20 layers with both single and double netting and 10 layers with single netting only. The data show agreement within 15 - 30% with the historical silk netting based correlations and show a substantial performance improvement when compared to previous testing performed using polyester netting and aluminum foil/fiberglass paper multilayer insulation. Additionally, the data further reinforce a recently observed trend that the heat flux is not directly proportional to the number of layers installed on a system. (paper)

Pressure Drop of Chamfer on Spacer Grid Strap

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Euijae; Kim, Kanghoon; Kim, Kyounghong; Nahm, Keeyil [KEPCO Nuclear Fuel Co., Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2014-05-15

A swirl flow and cross flow are generated by the spacer grid with mixing vane that enhances the thermal performance and critical heat flux (CHF). The additional pressure drop makes it difficult to meet acceptance criteria for overall pressure drop in fuel assembly depending upon the pump capacity. The chamfer on the end of spacer grid strap is one solution to reduce additional pressure drop without any adverse effect on flow fields. In this research, the pressure drop tests for spacer grid with and without chamfer were carried out at the hydraulic test facility. The result can be applied to develop high performance nuclear fuel assemblies for Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) plants. The pressure drop tests for 5x5 spacer grid with and without chamfer as well as 6x6 spacer grid with and without chamfer were carried out at the INFINIT test facility. The Reynolds number ranged about from 16000 to 75000. The sweep-up and sweep-down test showed that the direction of sweep did not affect the pressure drop. The chamfer on spacer grid strap reduced the pressure drop due to the decreased in ratio of inlet area to outlet area. The pressure loss coefficient for spacer grid with chamfer was by up to 13.8 % lower than that for spacer grid without chamfer. Hence, the chamfer on spacer grid strap was one of effective ways to reduce the pressure drop.

Influence of a ZnO Buffer Layer on the Structural, Optical, and Electrical Properties of ITO/ZnO Bi-Layered Films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heo, Sung-Bo; Moon, Hyun-Joo; Kim, Daeil; Kim, Jun-Ho

2016-01-01

Sn-doped indium oxide (ITO) films and ITO/ZnO bi-layered films were prepared on polycarbonate substrates by RF magnetron sputtering without intentional substrate heating. In order to consider the influence of the ZnO thickness on the structural, optical, and electrical properties of ITO/ZnO films, the thickness of the ZnO buffer layer was varied from 5 to 20 nm. As-deposited ITO films show an average optical transmittance of 79.2% in the visible range and an electrical resistivity of 3.0×10"-"4 Ωcm, while films with a 5-nm thick ZnO buffer layer film show an electrical resistivity of 2.6×10"-"4 Ωcm and films with a 20-nm thick ZnO buffer layer show an optical transmittance of 82.0%. Based on the figure of merit, it is concluded that the ZnO buffer layer enhances the optical and electrical performance of ITO films used as transparent conducting oxides in flexible display applications.

The potential of standard and modified feed spacers for biofouling control

KAUST Repository

Araú jo, Paula A.; Kruithof, Joop C.; van Loosdrecht, Mark C.M.; Vrouwenvelder, Johannes S.

2012-01-01

The impact of feed spacers on initial feed channel pressure (FCP) drop, FCP increase and biomass accumulation has been studied in membrane fouling simulators using feed spacers applied in commercially available nanofiltration and reverse osmosis spiral wound membrane modules. All spacers had a similar geometry.Our studies showed that biofouling was not prevented by (i) variation of spacer thickness, (ii) feed spacer orientation, (iii) feed spacer coating with silver, copper or gold and (iv) using a biostatic feed spacer. At constant feed flow, a lower FCP and FCP increase were observed for a thicker feed spacer. At constant linear flow velocity, roughly the same FCP development and biomass accumulation were found irrespective of the feed spacer thickness: hydrodynamics and substrate load were more important for development and impact of biofouling than the thickness of currently applied spacers. Use of biostatic and metal coated spacers were not effective for biofouling control. The same small reduction of biofouling rate was observed with copper and silver coated spacers as well as uncoated 45° rotated spacers.The studied modified spacers were not effective for biofouling prevention and control. The impact of biofouling on FCP increase was reduced significantly by a lower linear flow velocity, while spacer orientation and spacer thickness in membrane modules had a smaller but still significant effect. © 2012 Elsevier B.V.

The potential of standard and modified feed spacers for biofouling control

KAUST Repository

Araújo, Paula A.

2012-06-01

The impact of feed spacers on initial feed channel pressure (FCP) drop, FCP increase and biomass accumulation has been studied in membrane fouling simulators using feed spacers applied in commercially available nanofiltration and reverse osmosis spiral wound membrane modules. All spacers had a similar geometry.Our studies showed that biofouling was not prevented by (i) variation of spacer thickness, (ii) feed spacer orientation, (iii) feed spacer coating with silver, copper or gold and (iv) using a biostatic feed spacer. At constant feed flow, a lower FCP and FCP increase were observed for a thicker feed spacer. At constant linear flow velocity, roughly the same FCP development and biomass accumulation were found irrespective of the feed spacer thickness: hydrodynamics and substrate load were more important for development and impact of biofouling than the thickness of currently applied spacers. Use of biostatic and metal coated spacers were not effective for biofouling control. The same small reduction of biofouling rate was observed with copper and silver coated spacers as well as uncoated 45° rotated spacers.The studied modified spacers were not effective for biofouling prevention and control. The impact of biofouling on FCP increase was reduced significantly by a lower linear flow velocity, while spacer orientation and spacer thickness in membrane modules had a smaller but still significant effect. © 2012 Elsevier B.V.

Optical measurements of absorption changes in two-layered diffusive media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fabbri, Francesco; Sassaroli, Angelo; Henry, Michael E; Fantini, Sergio

2004-01-01

We have used Monte Carlo simulations for a two-layered diffusive medium to investigate the effect of a superficial layer on the measurement of absorption variations from optical diffuse reflectance data processed by using: (a) a multidistance, frequency-domain method based on diffusion theory for a semi-infinite homogeneous medium; (b) a differential-pathlength-factor method based on a modified Lambert-Beer law for a homogeneous medium and (c) a two-distance, partial-pathlength method based on a modified Lambert-Beer law for a two-layered medium. Methods (a) and (b) lead to a single value for the absorption variation, whereas method (c) yields absorption variations for each layer. In the simulations, the optical coefficients of the medium were representative of those of biological tissue in the near-infrared. The thickness of the first layer was in the range 0.3-1.4 cm, and the source-detector distances were in the range 1-5 cm, which is typical of near-infrared diffuse reflectance measurements in tissue. The simulations have shown that (1) method (a) is mostly sensitive to absorption changes in the underlying layer, provided that the thickness of the superficial layer is ∼0.6 cm or less; (2) method (b) is significantly affected by absorption changes in the superficial layer and (3) method (c) yields the absorption changes for both layers with a relatively good accuracy of ∼4% for the superficial layer and ∼10% for the underlying layer (provided that the absorption changes are less than 20-30% of the baseline value). We have applied all three methods of data analysis to near-infrared data collected on the forehead of a human subject during electroconvulsive therapy. Our results suggest that the multidistance method (a) and the two-distance partial-pathlength method (c) may better decouple the contributions to the optical signals that originate in deeper tissue (brain) from those that originate in more superficial tissue layers

Experimental benchmark data for PWR rod bundle with spacer-grids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dominguez-Ontiveros, Elvis E.; Hassan, Yassin A.; Conner, Michael E.; Karoutas, Zeses

2012-01-01

In numerical simulations of fuel rod bundle flow fields, the unsteady Navier–Stokes equations have to be solved in order to determine the time (phase) dependent characteristics of the flow. In order to validate the simulations results, detailed comparison with experimental data must be done. Experiments investigating complex flows in rod bundles with spacer grids that have mixing devices (such as flow mixing vanes) have mostly been performed using single-point measurements. In order to obtain more details and insight on the discrepancies between experimental and numerical data as well as to obtain a global understanding of the causes of these discrepancies, comparisons of the distributions of complete phase-averaged velocity and turbulence fields for various locations near spacer-grids should be performed. The experimental technique Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) is capable of providing such benchmark data. This paper describes an experimental database obtained using two-dimensional Time Resolved Particle Image Velocimetry (TR-PIV) measurements within a 5 × 5 PWR rod bundle with spacer-grids that have flow mixing vanes. One of the unique characteristic of this set-up is the use of the Matched Index of Refraction technique employed in this investigation to allow complete optical access to the rod bundle. This unique feature allows flow visualization and measurement within the bundle without rod obstruction. This approach also allows the use of high temporal and spatial non-intrusive dynamic measurement techniques namely TR-PIV to investigate the flow evolution below and immediately above the spacer. The experimental data presented in this paper includes explanation of the various cases tested such as test rig dimensions, measurement zones, the test equipment and the boundary conditions in order to provide appropriate data for comparison with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations. Turbulence parameters of the obtained data are presented in order to gain

A non-electrostatic spacer for aerosol delivery

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bisgaard, H; Anhøj, J; Klug, B

1995-01-01

to 6 years, suspected to have asthma the non-electrostatic spacer delivered a mean total dose of budesonide aerosol of 39% of the nominal dose, which was significantly higher than the Babyhaler (28%), the Nebuhaler (21%), and the AeroChamber (19%). These differences were most pronounced in children......A pear shaped non-electrostatic spacer, composed of steel with a volume of 250 ml and equipped with a facemask containing integrated inlet and outlet valves for inspiration and expiration, was compared with three plastic spacers. The plastic spacers were primed with repeated puffs from a budesonide...... was 27 seconds and independent of the use of p-MDI. In vitro the maximum dose of budesonide from a p-MDI, expressed as a percentage of the nominal dose, was 56% from the non-electrostatic spacer, 61% from the Nebuhaler, 45% from the Babyhaler, and 30% from the AeroChamber. In 124 children, age 6 months...

A non-electrostatic spacer for aerosol delivery

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bisgaard, H; Anhøj, J; Klug, B

1995-01-01

A pear shaped non-electrostatic spacer, composed of steel with a volume of 250 ml and equipped with a facemask containing integrated inlet and outlet valves for inspiration and expiration, was compared with three plastic spacers. The plastic spacers were primed with repeated puffs from a budesonide...... pressurised metered dose inhaler (p-MDI) to minimise the electrostatic charge on the plastic. The procedure prolonged the half life (t1/2) of the aerosol in the Nebuhaler from nine to 32 seconds. A normal cleaning procedure reduced the aerosol t1/2 back to baseline. The t1/2 of the aerosol in the metal spacer...... was 27 seconds and independent of the use of p-MDI. In vitro the maximum dose of budesonide from a p-MDI, expressed as a percentage of the nominal dose, was 56% from the non-electrostatic spacer, 61% from the Nebuhaler, 45% from the Babyhaler, and 30% from the AeroChamber. In 124 children, age 6 months...

Wavelength dependent pH optical sensor using the layer-by-layer technique

OpenAIRE

Raoufi, N.; Surre, F.; Sun, T.; Rajarajan, M.; Grattan, K. T. V.

2012-01-01

In this work, the design and characteristics of a wavelength-dependent pH optical sensor have been studied. To create the sensor itself, brilliant yellow (BY) as a pH indicator and poly (allylamine hydrochloride) [PAH] as a cross-linker have been deposited on the end of a bare silica core of an optical fibre by use of a ‘layer-by-layer’ technique. In the experiments carried out to characterize the sensor, it was observed that the value of pKa (the dissociation constant) of the thin film is de...

Electrically tunable coherent optical absorption in graphene with ion gel.

Science.gov (United States)

Thareja, Vrinda; Kang, Ju-Hyung; Yuan, Hongtao; Milaninia, Kaveh M; Hwang, Harold Y; Cui, Yi; Kik, Pieter G; Brongersma, Mark L

2015-03-11

We demonstrate electrical control over coherent optical absorption in a graphene-based Salisbury screen consisting of a single layer of graphene placed in close proximity to a gold back reflector. The screen was designed to enhance light absorption at a target wavelength of 3.2 μm by using a 600 nm-thick, nonabsorbing silica spacer layer. An ionic gel layer placed on top of the screen was used to electrically gate the charge density in the graphene layer. Spectroscopic reflectance measurements were performed in situ as a function of gate bias. The changes in the reflectance spectra were analyzed using a Fresnel based transfer matrix model in which graphene was treated as an infinitesimally thin sheet with a conductivity given by the Kubo formula. The analysis reveals that a careful choice of the ionic gel layer thickness can lead to optical absorption enhancements of up to 5.5 times for the Salisbury screen compared to a suspended sheet of graphene. In addition to these absorption enhancements, we demonstrate very large electrically induced changes in the optical absorption of graphene of ∼3.3% per volt, the highest attained so far in a device that features an atomically thick active layer. This is attributable in part to the more effective gating achieved with the ion gel over the conventional dielectric back gates and partially by achieving a desirable coherent absorption effect linked to the presence of the thin ion gel that boosts the absorption by 40%.

High corrosion-resistant fuel spacers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoshida, Toshimi; Takase, Iwao; Ikeda, Shinzo; Masaoka, Isao; Nakajima, Junjiro.

1986-01-01

Purpose: To enable manufacturing BWR fuel spacers by prior-art production process, using a zirconium-base alloy having very excellent corrosion resistance. Method: A highly improved nodular-resistant, corrosion-resistant zirconium alloy is devised by adding a slight amount of niobium, titanium and vanadium to zircaloy, of which fuel spacers are produced. That is, there can be obtained an alloy having much more excellent nodular resistance than conventional zircaloy, and free from a large change in plasticity, workability, and weldability, by adding to zirconium about 1.5 % of tin, about 0.15 % of iron, about 0.05 % of chromium, about 0.05 % of nickel, and 0.05 to 0.5 % of at least one or two kinds of niobium, titanium and vanadium. Using this zirconium-base alloy can manufacture fuel spacers by the same manufacturing process, thus improving economy and reliability. (Kamimura, M.)

Vibrational modes and strain in GaN/AlN quantum dot stacks: dependence on spacer thickness

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fresneda, J.; Cros, A.; Llorens, J.M.; Garcia-Cristobal, A.; Cantarero, A. [Institut de Ciencia del Materials, Universitat de Valencia, 46071 Valencia (Spain); Amstatt, B.; Bellet-Amalric, E.; Daudin, B. [CEA-CNRS Group, Nanophysique et Semiconducteurs, DRFMC/SP2M/PSC, CEA-Grenoble, 17 rue des Martyrs, 38054 Grenoble cedex 9 (France)

2007-06-15

We have investigated the influence of spacer thickness on the vibrational and strain characteristics of GaN/AlN quantum dot multilayers (QD). The Raman shift corresponding to the E{sub 2h} vibrational mode related to the QDs has been analyzed for AlN thicknesses ranging from 4.4 nm to 13 nm, while the amount of GaN deposited in each layer remained constant from sample to sample. It is shown that there is a rapid blue shift of the GaN vibrational mode with spacer thickness when its value is smaller than 7 nm while it remains almost constant for thicker spacers. A rapid increase of the Raman line-width in the thicker samples is also observed. The experimental behavior is discussed in comparison with the results of a theoretical model for the strain in the QDs. (copyright 2007 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

Silver-graphene oxide based plasmonic spacer for surface plasmon-coupled fluorescence emission enhancements

Science.gov (United States)

Badiya, Pradeep Kumar; Srinivasan, Venkatesh; Sathish Ramamurthy, Sai

2017-06-01

We report the application of single layered graphene oxide (SLGO) and silver decorated SLGO (Ag-SLGO) as plasmonic spacer material for obtaining enhanced fluorescence from a Rhodamine 6G (Rh6G) radiating dipole in a surface plasmon-coupled emission platform. To this end, we have decorated SLGO with biphasic silver nanoparticles using an in situ deposition technique to achieve 112-fold fluorescence enhancements.

UV/Vis visible optical waveguides fabricated using organic-inorganic nanocomposite layers.

Science.gov (United States)

Simone, Giuseppina; Perozziello, Gerardo

2011-03-01

Nanocomposite layers based on silica nanoparticles and a methacrylate matrix are synthesized by a solvent-free process and characterized in order to realize UV/Vis transparent optical waveguides. Chemical functionalization of the silica nanoparticles permits to interface the polymers and the silica. The refractive index, roughness and wettability and the machinability of the layers can be tuned changing the silica nanoparticle concentration and chemical modification of the surface of the nanoparticles. The optical transparency of the layers is affected by the nanoparticles organization between the organic chains, while it increased proportionally with respect to silica concentration. Nanocomposite layers with a concentration of 40 wt% in silica reached UV transparency for a wavelength of 250 nm. UV/Vis transparent waveguides were micromilled through nanocomposite layers and characterized. Propagation losses were measured to be around 1 dB cm(-1) at a wavelength of 350 nm.

Invariance of the magnetic behavior and AMI in ferromagnetic biphase films with distinct non-magnetic metallic spacers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Silva, E.F. [Departamento de Física, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, 59078-900 Natal, RN (Brazil); Departamento de Física, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, 50670-901 Recife, PE (Brazil); Gamino, M. [Departamento de Física, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, 50670-901 Recife, PE (Brazil); Instituto de Física, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande de Sul, 91501-970 Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Andrade, A.M.H. de [Instituto de Física, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande de Sul, 91501-970 Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Vázquez, M. [Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid, CSIC, 28049 Madrid (Spain); Correa, M.A. [Departamento de Física, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, 59078-900 Natal, RN (Brazil); Bohn, F., E-mail: felipebohn@fisica.ufrn.br [Departamento de Física, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, 59078-900 Natal, RN (Brazil)

2017-02-01

We investigate the quasi-static magnetic, magnetotransport, and dynamic magnetic properties in ferromagnetic biphase films with distinct non-magnetic metallic spacer layers. We observe that the nature of the non-magnetic metallic spacer material does not have significant influence on the overall biphase magnetic behavior, and, consequently, on the magnetotransport and dynamic magnetic responses. We focus on the magnetoimpedance effect and verify that the films present asymmetric magnetoimpedance effect. Moreover, we explore the possibility of tuning the linear region of the magnetoimpedance curves around zero magnetic field by varying the probe current frequency in order to achieve higher sensitivity values. The invariance of the magnetic behavior and the asymmetric magnetoimpedance effect in ferromagnetic biphase films with distinct non-magnetic metallic spacers place them as promising candidates for probe element and open possibilities to the development of lower-cost high sensitivity linear magnetic field sensor devices.

Optical absorption in silicon layers in the presence of charge inversion/accumulation or ion implantation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alloatti, L.; Lauermann, M.; Koos, C.; Freude, W.; Sürgers, C.; Leuthold, J.

2013-01-01

We determine the optical losses in gate-induced charge accumulation/inversion layers at a Si/SiO 2 interface. Comparison between gate-induced charge layers and ion-implanted thin silicon films having an identical sheet resistance shows that optical losses can be significantly lower for gate-induced layers. For a given sheet resistance, holes produce higher optical loss than electrons. Measurements have been performed at λ = 1550 nm

Magnetic decoupling of ferromagnetic metals through a graphene spacer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grimaldi, I.; Papagno, M. [Dipartimento di Fisica, Universitá della Calabria, Arcavacata di Rende (CS), 87036 (Italy); Ferrari, L. [Istituto dei Sistemi Complessi, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Roma I-00133 (Italy); Istituto di Struttura della Materia, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Trieste (Italy); Sheverdyaeva, P.M.; Mahatha, S.K. [Istituto di Struttura della Materia, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Trieste (Italy); Pacilé, D., E-mail: daniela.pacile@fis.unical.it [Dipartimento di Fisica, Universitá della Calabria, Arcavacata di Rende (CS), 87036 (Italy); Istituto di Struttura della Materia, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Trieste (Italy); Carbone, C. [Istituto di Struttura della Materia, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Trieste (Italy)

2017-03-15

We study the magnetic coupling between different ferromagnetic metals (FMs) across a graphene (G) layer, and the role of graphene as a thin covalent spacer. Starting with G grown on a FM substrate (Ni or Co), we deposited on top at room temperature several FM metals (Fe, Ni, Co). By measuring the dichroic effect of 3p photoemission lines we detect the magnetization of the substrate and the sign of the exchange coupling in FM overlayer at room temperature. We show that the G layer magnetically decouples the FM metals. - Highlights: • The magnetic coupling between ferromagnets mediated by graphene is studied. • To this end, the linear dichroic effect in 3p photoemission lines is employed. • For selected junctions no magnetic coupling is attained through graphene. • Graphene inhibits the magnetic alignment that normally occurs between ferromagnets.

Nonlinear Optics with 2D Layered Materials.

Science.gov (United States)

Autere, Anton; Jussila, Henri; Dai, Yunyun; Wang, Yadong; Lipsanen, Harri; Sun, Zhipei

2018-03-25

2D layered materials (2DLMs) are a subject of intense research for a wide variety of applications (e.g., electronics, photonics, and optoelectronics) due to their unique physical properties. Most recently, increasing research efforts on 2DLMs are projected toward the nonlinear optical properties of 2DLMs, which are not only fascinating from the fundamental science point of view but also intriguing for various potential applications. Here, the current state of the art in the field of nonlinear optics based on 2DLMs and their hybrid structures (e.g., mixed-dimensional heterostructures, plasmonic structures, and silicon/fiber integrated structures) is reviewed. Several potential perspectives and possible future research directions of these promising nanomaterials for nonlinear optics are also presented. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Protrusion Associated with Tilted Optic Discs.

Science.gov (United States)

Chiang, Jaclyn; Yapp, Michael; Ly, Angelica; Hennessy, Michael P; Kalloniatis, Michael; Zangerl, Barbara

2018-03-01

This study resulted in the identification of an optic nerve head (ONH) feature associated with tilted optic discs, which might potentially contribute to ONH pathologies. Knowledge of such findings will enhance clinical insights and drive future opportunities to understand disease processes related to tilted optic discs. The aim of this study was to identify novel retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) anomalies by evaluating tilted optic discs using optical coherence tomography. An observed retinal nerve fiber protrusion was further investigated for association with other morphological or functional parameters. A retrospective review of 400 randomly selected adult patients with ONH examinations was conducted in a referral-only, diagnostic imaging center. After excluding other ONH pathologies, 215 patients were enrolled and evaluated for optic disc tilt and/or torsion. Gross anatomical ONH features, including size and rim or parapapillary region elevation, were assessed with stereoscopic fundus photography. Optical coherence tomography provided detailed morphological information of individual retinal layers. Statistical analysis was applied to identify significant changes between individual patient cohorts. A dome-shaped hyperreflective RNFL bulge, protruding into the neurosensory retina at the optic disc margins, was identified in 17 eyes with tilted optic discs. Available follow-up data were inconclusive regarding natural changes with this ONH feature. This RNFL herniation was significantly correlated with smaller than average optic disc size (P = .005), congenital disc tilt (P optic discs, which has not previously been assessed as an independent ONH structure. The feature is predominantly related to congenital crowded, small optic discs and variable between patients. This study is an important first step to elucidate diagnostic capabilities of tilted disc morphological changes and understanding associated functional deficits.

A flexible optically re-writable color liquid crystal display

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yihong; Sun, Jiatong; Liu, Yang; Shang, Jianhua; Liu, Hao; Liu, Huashan; Gong, Xiaohui; Chigrinov, Vladimir; Kowk, Hoi Sing

2018-03-01

It is very difficult to make a liquid crystal display (LCD) that is flexible. However, for an optically re-writable LCD (ORWLCD), only the spacers and the substrates need to be flexible because the driving unit and the display unit are separate and there are no electronics in the display part of ORWLCD. In this paper, three flexible-spacer methods are proposed to achieve this goal. A cholesteric liquid crystal colored mirror with a polarizer behind it is used as the colored reflective backboard of an ORWLCD. Polyethersulfone substrates and flexible spacers are used to make the optically re-writable cell insensitive to mechanical force.

Development of structural technology for a high performance spacer grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song, Kee Nam; Kim, H. K.; Kang, H. S.

2003-03-01

A spacer grid in a LWR fuel assembly is a key structural component to support fuel rods and to enhance the heat transfer from the fuel rod to the coolant. In this research, the main research items are the development of inherent and high performance spacer grid shapes, the establishment of mechanical/structural analysis and test technology, and the set-up of basic test facilities for the spacer grid. The main research areas and results are as follows. 1. 14 different spacer grid candidates have been invented and applied for domestic and US patents. Among the candidates six are chosen from the patent. 2. Two kinds of spacer grids are finally selected for the advanced LWR fuel after detailed performance tests on the candidates and commercial spacer grids from a mechanical/structural point of view. According to the test results the features of the selected spacer grids are better than those of the commercial spacer grids. 3. Four kinds of basic test facilities are set up and the relevant test technologies are established. 4. Mechanical/structural analysis models and technology for spacer grid performance are developed and the analysis results are compared with the test results to enhance the reliability of the models

Quenching Mo optical losses in CIGS solar cells by a point contacted dual-layer dielectric spacer: a 3-D optical study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rezaei, N.; Isabella, O.; Vroon, Z.; Zeman, M.

2018-01-01

A 3-D optical modelling was calibrated to calculate the light absorption and the total reflection of fabricated CIGS solar cells. Absorption losses at molybdenum (Mo) / CIGS interface were explained in terms of plasmonic waves. To quench these losses, we assumed the insertion of a lossless

Quenching Mo optical losses in CIGS solar cells by a point contacted dual-layer dielectric spacer : A 3-D optical study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rezaei, N.; Isabella, O.; Vroon, Zeger; Zeman, M.

2018-01-01

A 3-D optical modelling was calibrated to calculate the light absorption and the total reflection of fabricated CIGS solar cells. Absorption losses at molybdenum (Mo) / CIGS interface were explained in terms of plasmonic waves. To quench these losses, we assumed the insertion of a lossless

Layered ACO-OFDM for intensity-modulated direct-detection optical wireless transmission.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Qi; Qian, Chen; Guo, Xuhan; Wang, Zhaocheng; Cunningham, David G; White, Ian H

2015-05-04

Layered asymmetrically clipped optical orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (ACO-OFDM) with high spectral efficiency is proposed in this paper for optical wireless transmission employing intensity modulation with direct detection. In contrast to the conventional ACO-OFDM, which only utilizes odd subcarriers for modulation, leading to an obvious spectral efficiency loss, in layered ACO-OFDM, the subcarriers are divided into different layers and modulated by different kinds of ACO-OFDM, which are combined for simultaneous transmission. In this way, more subcarriers are used for data transmission and the spectral efficiency is improved. An iterative receiver is also proposed for layered ACO-OFDM, where the negative clipping distortion of each layer is subtracted once it is detected so that the signals from different layers can be recovered. Theoretical analysis shows that the proposed scheme can improve the spectral efficiency by up to 2 times compared with conventional ACO-OFDM approaches with the same modulation order. Meanwhile, simulation results confirm a considerable signal-to-noise ratio gain over ACO-OFDM at the same spectral efficiency.

Multi-layer service function chaining scheduling based on auxiliary graph in IP over optical network

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Yixuan; Li, Hui; Liu, Yuze; Ji, Yuefeng

2017-10-01

Software Defined Optical Network (SDON) can be considered as extension of Software Defined Network (SDN) in optical networks. SDON offers a unified control plane and makes optical network an intelligent transport network with dynamic flexibility and service adaptability. For this reason, a comprehensive optical transmission service, able to achieve service differentiation all the way down to the optical transport layer, can be provided to service function chaining (SFC). IP over optical network, as a promising networking architecture to interconnect data centers, is the most widely used scenarios of SFC. In this paper, we offer a flexible and dynamic resource allocation method for diverse SFC service requests in the IP over optical network. To do so, we firstly propose the concept of optical service function (OSF) and a multi-layer SFC model. OSF represents the comprehensive optical transmission service (e.g., multicast, low latency, quality of service, etc.), which can be achieved in multi-layer SFC model. OSF can also be considered as a special SF. Secondly, we design a resource allocation algorithm, which we call OSF-oriented optical service scheduling algorithm. It is able to address multi-layer SFC optical service scheduling and provide comprehensive optical transmission service, while meeting multiple optical transmission requirements (e.g., bandwidth, latency, availability). Moreover, the algorithm exploits the concept of Auxiliary Graph. Finally, we compare our algorithm with the Baseline algorithm in simulation. And simulation results show that our algorithm achieves superior performance than Baseline algorithm in low traffic load condition.

THz - ToF Optical Layer Analysis (OLA) to determine optical properties of dielectric materials

Science.gov (United States)

Spranger, Holger; Beckmann, Jörg

2017-02-01

Electromagnetic waves with frequencies between 0.1 and 10 THz are described as THz-radiation (T-ray). The ability to penetrate dielectric materials makes T-rays attractive to reveal discontinuities in polymer and ceramic materials. THz-Time Domain Spectroscopy Systems (THz-TDS) are available on the market today which operates with THz-pulses transmitted and received by optically pumped semiconductor antennas. In THz-TDS the travelling time (ToF) and shape of the pulse is changed if it interacts with the dielectric material and its inherent discontinuities. A tomogram of the object under the test can be reconstructed from time of flight diffraction (ToFD) scans if a synthetic focusing aperture (SAFT) algorithm is applied. The knowledge of the base materials shape and optical properties is essential for a proper reconstruction result. To obtain these properties a model is assumed which describes the device under the test as multilayer structure composed of thin layers with different dielectric characteristics. The Optical Layer Analysis (OLA) is able to fulfill these requirements. A short description why the optical properties are crucial for meaningful SAFT reconstruction results will be given first. Afterwards the OLA will be derived and applied on representative samples to discuss and evaluate its benefits and limits.

Hydraulic Design Criteria for Spacer Grids of Nuclear Fuel Element

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Juanico, Luis; Brasnarof, Daniel

2000-01-01

In this paper a hydraulic model for calculating the pressure drop on the CARA spacer grids is extended.This model is validated and feedback from experimental hydraulic test performed in a low pressure loop.The importance of the spacer grid geometric parameter (that is, its thickness and length, the number and kind of their fix spacer), developing hydraulic design criteria for spacer grid on fuel element

Preclinical Evaluation of Bioabsorbable Polyglycolic Acid Spacer for Particle Therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akasaka, Hiroaki; Sasaki, Ryohei; Miyawaki, Daisuke; Mukumoto, Naritoshi; Sulaiman, Nor Shazrina Binti; Nagata, Masaaki; Yamada, Shigeru; Murakami, Masao; Demizu, Yusuke; Fukumoto, Takumi

2014-01-01

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of a polyglycolic acid (PGA) spacer through physical and animal experiments. Methods and Materials: The spacer was produced with surgical suture material made of PGA, forming a 3-dimensional nonwoven fabric. For evaluation or physical experiments, 150-MeV proton or 320-MeV carbon-ion beams were used to generate 60-mm width of spread-out Bragg peak. For animal experiments, the abdomens of C57BL/6 mice, with or without the inserted PGA spacers, were irradiated with 20 Gy of carbon-ion beam (290 MeV) using the spread-out Bragg peak. Body weight changes over time were scored, and radiation damage to the intestine was investigated using hematoxylin and eosin stain. Blood samples were also evaluated 24 days after the irradiation. Long-term thickness retention and safety were evaluated using crab-eating macaques. Results: No chemical or structural changes after 100 Gy of proton or carbon-ion irradiation were observed in the PGA spacer. Water equivalency of the PGA spacer was equal to the water thickness under wet condition. During 24 days' observation after 20 Gy of carbon-ion irradiation, the body weights of mice with the PGA spacer were relatively unchanged, whereas significant weight loss was observed in those mice without the PGA spacer (P<.05). In mice with the PGA spacer, villus and crypt structure were preserved after irradiation. No inflammatory reactions or liver or renal dysfunctions due to placement of the PGA spacer were observed. In the abdomen of crab-eating macaques, thickness of the PGA spacer was maintained 8 weeks after placement. Conclusions: The absorbable PGA spacer had water-equivalent, bio-compatible, and thickness-retaining properties. Although further evaluation is warranted in a clinical setting, the PGA spacer may be effective to stop proton or carbon-ion beams and to separate normal tissues from the radiation field

Zircaloy spacer grid for boiling light water reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Borgiani, F.; Cali', G.P.; Cerretti, P.; Pazzo, P.

1975-01-01

The need to increase the neutronic efficiency of the new cores of BWR's, lead to study types of spacer-grids made of low neutronic absorption materials as zircaloy-4. The particular mechanical behaviour of this material suggested to design a spacer-grids such as to utilize only blanking, slotting and bending operations as plastic forming and to avoid therefore drawing effects. The optimization of the bending procedures lead to a final spacer-grids configuration equally stiff in all directions and planes. Only for the ''elastic constraints'' nichel alloy sheets were used to made easy the whole spacer design. The ''rigid constraints'', supporting the rods, have been obtained directly from the spacer structure. Calculations were performed to verify the mechanical strength of the main grid components. In this framework a computer code was developed to find the best elastic characteristic of the ''elastic constraints'' taking into account the machining tolerances. Some original methods to test the integral behaviour of the grid assembled as well as the procedures to be adopted for its best maintenance, are described

Mechanical/structural performance test method of a spacer grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoon, Kyung Ho

2000-06-01

The spacer grid is one of the main structural components in the fuel assembly, which supports the fuel rods, guides cooling water, and protects the system from an external impact load, such as earthquakes. In order to develop the spacer grid with the high mechanical performance, the mechanical and structural properties of the spacer grids must be extensively examined while designing it. In this report, the mechanical/structural test methods, i.e. the characteristic test of a spacer grid spring or dimple, static buckling test of a partial or full size spacer grid and dynamic impact test of them are described. The characteristic test of a spacer grid spring or dimple is accomplished with universal tensile test machine, a specimen is fixed with test fixture and then applied compressive load. The characteristic test data is saved at loading and unloading event. The static buckling test of a partial or full size spacer grid is executed with the same universal tensile testing machine, a specimen is fixed between cross-heads and then applied the compressive load. The buckling strength is decided the maximum strength at load vs. displacement curve. The dynamic impact test of a partial or full size spacer grid is performed with pendulum type impact machine and free fall shock test machine, a specimen is fixed with test fixture and then applied the impact load by impact hammer. Specially, the pendulum type impact test machine is also possible under the operating temperature because a furnace is separately attached with test machine

Bioinformatics analyses of Shigella CRISPR structure and spacer classification.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Pengfei; Zhang, Bing; Duan, Guangcai; Wang, Yingfang; Hong, Lijuan; Wang, Linlin; Guo, Xiangjiao; Xi, Yuanlin; Yang, Haiyan

2016-03-01

Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) are inheritable genetic elements of a variety of archaea and bacteria and indicative of the bacterial ecological adaptation, conferring acquired immunity against invading foreign nucleic acids. Shigella is an important pathogen for anthroponosis. This study aimed to analyze the features of Shigella CRISPR structure and classify the spacers through bioinformatics approach. Among 107 Shigella, 434 CRISPR structure loci were identified with two to seven loci in different strains. CRISPR-Q1, CRISPR-Q4 and CRISPR-Q5 were widely distributed in Shigella strains. Comparison of the first and last repeats of CRISPR1, CRISPR2 and CRISPR3 revealed several base variants and different stem-loop structures. A total of 259 cas genes were found among these 107 Shigella strains. The cas gene deletions were discovered in 88 strains. However, there is one strain that does not contain cas gene. Intact clusters of cas genes were found in 19 strains. From comprehensive analysis of sequence signature and BLAST and CRISPRTarget score, the 708 spacers were classified into three subtypes: Type I, Type II and Type III. Of them, Type I spacer referred to those linked with one gene segment, Type II spacer linked with two or more different gene segments, and Type III spacer undefined. This study examined the diversity of CRISPR/cas system in Shigella strains, demonstrated the main features of CRISPR structure and spacer classification, which provided critical information for elucidation of the mechanisms of spacer formation and exploration of the role the spacers play in the function of the CRISPR/cas system.

Application of Thin ZnO ALD Layers in Fiber-Optic Fabry-Pérot Sensing Interferometers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daria Majchrowicz

2016-03-01

Full Text Available In this paper we investigated the response of a fiber-optic Fabry-Pérot sensing interferometer with thin ZnO layers deposited on the end faces of the optical fibers forming the cavity. Standard telecommunication single-mode optical fiber (SMF-28 segments were used with the thin ZnO layers deposited by Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD. Measurements were performed with the interferometer illuminated by two broadband sources operating at 1300 nm and 1550 nm. Reflected interference signal was acquired by an optical spectrum analyzer while the length of the air cavity was varied. Thickness of the ZnO layers used in the experiments was 50 nm, 100 nm, and 200 nm. Uncoated SMF-28 fiber was also used as a reference. Based on the results of measurements, the thickness of the ZnO layers and the length of the cavity were selected in order to achieve good visibility. Following, the interferometer was used to determine the refractive index of selected liquids.

Accretion disc boundary layers - geometrically and optically thin case

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Regev, Oded; Hougerat, A.A.

1988-01-01

The method of matched asymptotic expansions is applied to an optically and geometrically thin boundary layer between an accretion disc and the accreting star. Analytical solutions are presented for a particular viscosity prescription in the boundary layer. For a typical example we find that the disc closely resembles standard steady-disc theory. It is identical to it everywhere save a narrow boundary layer, where the temperature increases rapidly inward (by an order of magnitude), the angular velocity achieves maximum and decreases to its surface value and other variables also undergo rapid changes. This and previous work can now be used to calculate the emission from accretion discs including the boundary layers for a wide range of parameters. (author)

Stress Analysis of Single Spacer Grid Support considering Fuel Rod

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yoo, Y. G.; Jung, D. H.; Kim, J. H. [Chungnam National University, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Park, J. K.; Jeon, K. L. [Korea Nuclear Fuel, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2010-10-15

Pressurized water reactor (PWR) nuclear fuel assembly is mainly composed of a top-end piece, a bottom-end piece, lots of fuel rods, and several spacer grids. Among them, the main function of spacer grid is protecting fuel rods from Fluid Induced Vibration (FIV). The cross section of spacer grid assembled by laser welding in upper and lower point. When the fuel rod inserted in spacer gird, spring and dimple and around of welded area got a stresses. The main hypothesis of this analysis is the boundary area of HAZ and base metal can get a lot of damage than other area by FIV. So, design factors of spacer grid mainly considered to preventing the fatigue failure in HAZ and spring and dimple of spacer grid. From previous researching, the environment in reactor verified. Pressure and temperature of light water observed 15MPa and 320 .deg. C, and vibration of the fuel rod observed within 0 {approx} 50Hz. In this study, mechanical properties of zirconium alloy that extracted from the test and the spacer grid model which used in the PWR were applied in stress analyzing. General-purpose finite element analysis program was used ANSYS Workbench 12.0.1 version. 3-D CAD program CATIA was used to create spacer grid model

Biomechanical Analysis of an Expandable Lumbar Interbody Spacer.

Science.gov (United States)

Soriano-Baron, Hector; Newcomb, Anna G U S; Malhotra, Devika; Palma, Atilio E; Martinez-Del-Campo, Eduardo; Crawford, Neil R; Theodore, Nicholas; Kelly, Brian P; Kaibara, Taro

2018-06-01

Recently developed expandable interbody spacers are widely accepted in spinal surgery; however, the resulting biomechanical effects of their use have not yet been fully studied. We analyzed the biomechanical effects of an expandable polyetheretherketone interbody spacer inserted through a bilateral posterior approach with and without different modalities of posterior augmentation. Biomechanical nondestructive flexibility testing was performed in 7 human cadaveric lumbar (L2-L5) specimens followed by axial compressive loading. Each specimen was tested under 6 conditions: 1) intact, 2) bilateral L3-L4 cortical screw/rod (CSR) alone, 3) WaveD alone, 4) WaveD + CSR, 5) WaveD + bilateral L3-L4 pedicle screw/rod (PSR), and 6) WaveD + CSR/PSR, where CSR/PSR was a hybrid construct comprising bilateral cortical-level L3 and pedicle-level L4 screws interconnected by rods. The range of motion (ROM) with the interbody spacer alone decreased significantly compared with the intact condition during flexion-extension (P = 0.02) but not during lateral bending or axial rotation (P ≥ 0.19). The addition of CSR or PSR to the interbody spacer alone condition significantly decreased the ROM compared with the interbody spacer alone (P ≤ 0.002); and WaveD + CSR, WaveD + PSR, and WaveD + CSR/PSR (hybrid) (P ≥ 0.29) did not differ. The axial compressive stiffness (resistance to change in foraminal height during compressive loading) with the interbody spacer alone did not differ from the intact condition (P = 0.96), whereas WaveD + posterior instrumentation significantly increased compressive stiffness compared with the intact condition and the interbody spacer alone (P ≤ 0.001). The WaveD alone significantly reduced ROM during flexion-extension while maintaining the axial compressive stiffness. CSR, PSR, and CSR/PSR hybrid constructs were all effective in augmenting the expandable interbody spacer system and improving its stability. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All

Study of Diffusion Bonding of 45 Steel through the Compacted Nickel Powder Layer

Science.gov (United States)

Zeer, G. M.; Zelenkova, E. G.; Temnykh, V. I.; Tokmin, A. M.; Shubin, A. A.; Koroleva, Yu. P.; Mikheev, A. A.

2018-02-01

The microstructure of the transition zone and powder spacer, the concentration distribution of chemical elements over the width of the diffusion-bonded joint, and microhardness of 45 steel-compacted Ni powder spacer-45 steel layered composites formed by diffusion bonding have been investigated. It has been shown that the relative spacer thickness χ compacting pressure of 500 MPa. The solid-state diffusion bonding is accompanied by sintering the nickel powder spacer and the formation of the transition zone between the spacer and steel. The transition zone consists of solid solution of nickel in the α-Fe phase and ordered solid solution of iron in nickel (FeNi3).

Fuel assembly spacer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shirakawa, Ken-etsu.

1988-01-01

Purpose: To reduce the pressure loss of coolants by fuel assembly spacers. Constitution: Spacers for supporting a fuel assembly are attached by means of a plurality of wires to an outer frame. The outer frame is made of shape memory alloy such that the wires are caused to slacken at normal temperature and the slacking of the wires is eliminated in excess of the transition temperature. Since the wires slacken at the normal temperature, fuel rods can be inserted easily. After the insertion of the fuel rods, when the entire portion or the outer frame is heated by water or gas at a predetermined temperature, the outer frame resumes its previously memorized shape to tighten the wires and, accordingly, the fuel rods can be supported firmly. In this way, since the fuel rods are inserted in the slacken state of the wires and, after the assembling, the outer frame resumes its memorized shape, the assembling work can be conducted efficiently. (Kamimura, M.)

Physical layer impairments tolerance based lightpath provision in software defined optical network

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Zhao Xianlong; Xu Xianze; Bai Huifeng

2017-01-01

As all-optical networks grow with ever increasing ultra-high speed, the communication quality suffers seriously from physical layer impairments ( PLIs) .The same problem still exists in software defined optical network ( SDON) controlled by OpenFlow.Aimed to solve this problem, a PLIs tol-erance based lightpath provision scheme is proposed for OpenFlow controlled optical networks.This proposed approach not only takes the OSNR model to represent those linear PLIs factors, but also in-troduces those nonlinear factors into the OSNR model.Thus, the proposed scheme is able to cover most PLIs factors of each optical link and conduct optical lightpath provison with better communica-tion quality.Moreover, PLIs tolerance model is also set up and considered in this work with some necessary extension to OpenFlow protocols to achieve better compatibility between physical layer im-pairments factors and various services connections.Simulation results show that the proposed scheme is able to get better performance in terms of packet loss rate and connection setup time.

Spacer grid for fuel elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hensolt, T.; Huenner, M.; Rau, P.; Veca, A.

1978-01-01

The spacer grid for fuel elements of a gas-cooled fast breeder reactor (but also for PWRs and BWRs) consists of a lattice field with dodecagonal meshes. These meshes are formed by three each adjacent hexagons grouped arround a central axis. The pairs of legs extending into the dodecagon and being staggered by 120 0 are designed as knubs with inclined abutting surfaces for the fuel rods. By this means there is formed a three-point bearing for centering the fuel rods. The spacer grid mentioned above is rough-worked from a single disc- resp. plate-shaped body (unfinished piece). (DG) [de

Spacer grid for fuel elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hensolt, T.; Huenner, M.; Rau, P.; Veca, A.

1980-01-01

The spacer grid for fuel elements of a gas-cooled fast breeder reactor (but also for PWRs and BWRs) consists of a lattice field with dodecagonal meshes. These meshes are formed by three each adjacent hexagons grouped arround a central axis. The pairs of legs extending into the dodecagon and being staggered by 120 are designed as knubs with inclined abutting surfaces for the fuel rods. By this means there is formed a three-point bearing for centering the fuel rods. The spacer grid mentioned above is rough-worked from a single disc- resp. plate-shaped body (unfinished piece). (orig.)

Properites of ultrathin films appropriate for optics capping layers in extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUVL)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bajt, S; Edwards, N V; Madey, T E

2007-06-25

The contamination of optical surfaces by irradiation shortens optics lifetime and is one of the main concerns for optics used in conjunction with intense light sources, such as high power lasers, 3rd and 4th generation synchrotron sources or plasma sources used in extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUVL) tools. This paper focuses on properties and surface chemistry of different materials, which as thin layers, could be used as capping layers to protect and extend EUVL optics lifetime. The most promising candidates include single element materials such as ruthenium and rhodium, and oxides such as TiO{sub 2} and ZrO{sub 2}.

PCR-Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) genes sequencing and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Methods: DNA extraction, purification, amplification and sequencing of Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) genes were per- formed using ... Keywords: Internal transcribed spacer genes, phylogenetic, genetic relationship, clinical and environmental fungi, HIV-TB. ... Nigeria. An Ethical clearance was obtained from the Eth-.

Surface-Tethered Iterative Carbohydrate Synthesis (STICS): A spacer study

Science.gov (United States)

Ganesh, N. Vijaya; Fujikawa, Kohki; Tan, Yih Horng; Nigudkar, Swati S.

2013-01-01

Comparative study of STICS using HPLC-assisted experimental set-up clearly demonstrated benefits of using longer spacer-anchoring systems. The use of mixed self-assembled monolayers helps to provide the required space for glycosylation reaction around the immobilized glycosyl acceptor. Both extension of the spacer length and using mixed self-assembled monolayers help to promote reaction and the beneficial effects may include moving the glycosyl acceptor further out into solution and providing additional conformational flexibility. It is possible that surface-immobilized glycosyl acceptors with a longer spacer (C8-O-C8)-lipoic acid have a higher tendency to mimic a solution-phase reaction environment than that of acceptors with shorter spacers. PMID:23822088

Membrane with integrated spacer

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Balster, J.H.; Stamatialis, Dimitrios; Wessling, Matthias

2010-01-01

Many membrane processes are severely influenced by concentration polarisation. Turbulence promoting spacers placed in between the membranes can reduce the diffusional resistance of concentration polarisation by inducing additional mixing. Electrodialysis (ED) used for desalination suffers from

A Study on Structural Strength of Irradiated Spacer Grid for PWR Fuel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jin, Y. G.; Baek, S. J.; Kim, D. S.; Yoo, B. O.; Ahn, S. B.; Chun, Y. B. [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Kim, J. I.; Kim, Y. H.; Lee, J. J. [KEPCO NF, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2014-10-15

A fuel assembly consists of an array of fuel rods, spacer grids, guide thimbles, instrumentation tubes, and top and bottom nozzles. In PWR (Pressurized light Water Reactor) fuel assemblies, the spacer grids support the fuel rods by the friction forces between the fuel rods and springs/dimples. Under irradiation, the spacer grids supporting the fuel rods absorb vibration impacts due to the reactor coolant flow, and also bear static and dynamic loads during operation inside the nuclear reactor and transportation for spent fuel storage. Thus, it is important to understand the characteristics of deformation behavior and the change in structural strength of an irradiated spacer grid.. In the present study, the static compression test of a spacer grid was conducted to investigate the structural strength of the irradiated spacer grid in a hot cell at IMEF (Irradiated Materials Examination Facility) of KAERI. To evaluate the structural strength of an irradiated spacer grid, hot cell tests were carried out at IMEF of KAERI. The fuel assembly was dismantled and the irradiated spacer grid was obtained for the compression test. The apparatus for measuring the compression strength of the irradiated spacer grid was developed and installed successfully in the hot cell.

Raman study of self-assembled InAs/InP quantum wire stacks with varying spacer thickness

Science.gov (United States)

Angelova, T.; Cros, A.; Cantarero, A.; Fuster, D.; González, Y.; González, L.

2008-08-01

Self-assembled InAs/InP (001) quantum wire stacks have been investigated by means of Raman scattering. The characteristics of the observed vibrational modes show clear evidence of confinement and atomic intermixing between As and P atoms from the wire and the spacer. The change in the intermixing with spacer layer thickness and growth temperature is investigated. Likewise, the effect of annealing on the exchange of As and P atoms is also studied. Resonance effects in confined and interface phonons are discussed for excitation in the vicinity of the InAs E1 critical point. Finally, the energy of the interface modes is related to the structural characteristics of the wires by comparing the experimental data with a lattice dynamic calculation based on the dielectric continuum model.

Improved spacers for high temperature gas-cooled heat exchangers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nordstroem, L A [Swiss Federal Institute for Reactor Research, Wuerenlingen (Switzerland)

1984-07-01

Experimental and analytical investigations in the field of heat exchanger thermohydraulics have been performed at EIR for many years, Basic studies have been carried out on heat transfer and pressure loss for tube bundles of different geometries and tube surfaces. As a part of this overall R+D programme for heat exchangers, investigations have been carried out on spacer pressure loss in bundles with longitudinal flow. An analytical spacer pressure loss model was developed which could handle different types of subchannel within the bundle. The model has been evaluated against experiments, using about 25 spacers of widely differing geometries. In a gas-cooled reactor it is important to keep the pressure loss over the primary circuit heat exchangers to a minimum. In exchangers with grid spacers these contribute a significant proportion of the overall bundle losses. For example, in the HHT Recuperator, with a shell-side pressure loss of 3.5 % of the inlet pressure, the spacers cause about one half of this loss. Reducing the loss to, say, 2.5 % results in an overall increase in plant efficiency by more than 1 % - a significant improvement Preliminary analysis identified 5 geometries in particular which were chosen for experimental evaluation as part of a joint project with the SULZER Company, to develop a low pressure-loss spacer for HHT heat exchangers (longitudinal counter-flow He/He and He/H{sub 2}O designs). The aim of the tests was to verify the low pressure-loss characteristics of these spacer grid types, as well as the quality of the results calculated by the computer code analytical model. The experimental and analytical results are compared in this report.

In vitro microbiologic evaluation of PTFE and cotton as spacer materials.

Science.gov (United States)

Paranjpe, Avina; Jain, Sumita; Alibhai, Karim J; Wadhwani, Chandur P; Darveau, Richard P; Johnson, James D

2012-09-01

To microbiologically evaluate the efficacy of cotton and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) tape used as spacer materials. Twenty-six extracted human molars were restored using either cotton or PTFE tape as spacers under a standardized provisional restorative material (Cavit). The teeth were incubated for 7 days in a culture of Streptococcus gordonii or in liquid media alone. The spacers were removed and tested for bacterial contamination. The access cavities were also evaluated for bacterial contamination. Nine of 10 teeth with cotton spacers and one of 10 teeth with PTFE spacers were positive for S gordonii growth. The nine teeth in the cotton group also showed contamination of the access cavities. Even under optimal conditions, cotton spacers may cause leakage into the access cavities. Cotton fibers may serve as a route for bacterial contamination of the access cavities and root canal space. In contrast, PTFE tape did not provide an avenue for bacterial contamination.

The CRISPR Spacer Space Is Dominated by Sequences from Species-Specific Mobilomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Shmakov, Sergey A; Sitnik, Vassilii; Makarova, Kira S; Wolf, Yuri I; Severinov, Konstantin V; Koonin, Eugene V

2017-09-19

Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats and CRISPR-associated protein (CRISPR-Cas) systems store the memory of past encounters with foreign DNA in unique spacers that are inserted between direct repeats in CRISPR arrays. For only a small fraction of the spacers, homologous sequences, called protospacers, are detectable in viral, plasmid, and microbial genomes. The rest of the spacers remain the CRISPR "dark matter." We performed a comprehensive analysis of the spacers from all CRISPR- cas loci identified in bacterial and archaeal genomes, and we found that, depending on the CRISPR-Cas subtype and the prokaryotic phylum, protospacers were detectable for 1% to about 19% of the spacers (~7% global average). Among the detected protospacers, the majority, typically 80 to 90%, originated from viral genomes, including proviruses, and among the rest, the most common source was genes that are integrated into microbial chromosomes but are involved in plasmid conjugation or replication. Thus, almost all spacers with identifiable protospacers target mobile genetic elements (MGE). The GC content, as well as dinucleotide and tetranucleotide compositions, of microbial genomes, their spacer complements, and the cognate viral genomes showed a nearly perfect correlation and were almost identical. Given the near absence of self-targeting spacers, these findings are most compatible with the possibility that the spacers, including the dark matter, are derived almost completely from the species-specific microbial mobilomes. IMPORTANCE The principal function of CRISPR-Cas systems is thought to be protection of bacteria and archaea against viruses and other parasitic genetic elements. The CRISPR defense function is mediated by sequences from parasitic elements, known as spacers, that are inserted into CRISPR arrays and then transcribed and employed as guides to identify and inactivate the cognate parasitic genomes. However, only a small fraction of the CRISPR spacers

Eddy current monitoring of spacers in coolant channel assemblies of nuclear reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhole, V.M.; Rastogi, P.K.; Kulkarni, P.G.; Vijayaraghavan, R.

1993-01-01

An eddy current testing method has been standardised for monitoring spacer springs which are used in coolant channel assemblies of pressurised heavy water nuclear reactors (PHWRs). The standard bobbin coil probe used for monitoring the spacer spring detects only the location but does not monitor the tilt orientation and tilt angle of a tilted spacer spring. The knowledge of location along with the tilt orientation of the spacer spring greatly improves the performance of repositioning methods. A modified probe with angular windings has been developed in laboratory tests for monitoring the location as well as the tilt orientation of the spacer springs. Experimental results are presented showing excellent performance of the modified probe in monitoring the exact location as well as tilt orientation of a spacer spring. The modified probe has also been used successfully in the field during repositioning of spacer springs in PHWRs before commissioning. (Author)

Retinal nerve fiber layer thickness is associated with lesion length in acute optic neuritis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kallenbach, K; Simonsen, Helle Juhl; Sander, B

2010-01-01

included 41 patients with unilateral optic neuritis and 19 healthy volunteers. All patients were evaluated and examined within 28 days of onset of symptoms. The peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFLT), an objective quantitative measure of optic nerve head edema, was measured by optical...... coherence tomography and the length and location of the inflammatory optic nerve lesion were evaluated using MRI. RESULTS: Ophthalmoscopically, 34% of the patients had papillitis. The retinal nerve fiber layer in affected eyes (mean 123.1 microm) was higher during the acute phase than that of fellow eyes......BACKGROUND: Acute optic neuritis occurs with and without papillitis. The presence of papillitis has previously been thought to imply an anterior location of the neuritis, but imaging studies seeking to test this hypothesis have been inconclusive. METHODS: This prospective observational cohort study...

Buckling behavior analysis of spacer grid by lateral impact load

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoon, Kyung Ho; Kang, Heung Seok; Kim, Hyung Kyu; Song, Kee Nam

2000-05-01

The spacer grid is one of the main structural components in the fuel assembly, Which supports the fuel rods, guides cooling water, and protects the system from an external impact load, such as earthquakes. Therefore, the mechanical and structural properties of the spacer grids must be extensively examined while designing it. In this report, free fall type shock tests on the several kinds of the specimens of the spacer grids were also carried out in order to compare the results among the candidate grids. A free fall carriage on the specimen accomplishes the test. In addition to this, a finite element method for predicting the critical impact strength of the spacer grids is described. FE method on the buckling behavior of the spacer grids are performed for a various array of sizes of the grids considering that the spacer grid is an assembled structure with thin-walled plates and imposing proper boundary conditions by nonlinear dynamic impact analysis using ABAQUS/explicit code. The simulated results results also similarly predicted the local buckling phenomena and were found to give good correspondence with the shock test results

Layer-by-layer assembly of multicolored semiconductor quantum dots towards efficient blue, green, red and full color optical films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Jun; Li Qian; Di Xiaowei; Liu Zhiliang; Xu Gang

2008-01-01

Multicolored semiconductor quantum dots have shown great promise for construction of miniaturized light-emitting diodes with compact size, low weight and cost, and high luminescent efficiency. The unique size-dependent luminescent property of quantum dots offers the feasibility of constructing single-color or full-color output light-emitting diodes with one type of material. In this paper, we have demonstrated the facile fabrication of blue-, green-, red- and full-color-emitting semiconductor quantum dot optical films via a layer-by-layer assembly technique. The optical films were constructed by alternative deposition of different colored quantum dots with a series of oppositely charged species, in particular, the new use of cationic starch on glass substrates. Semiconductor ZnSe quantum dots exhibiting blue emission were deposited for fabrication of blue-emitting optical films, while semiconductor CdTe quantum dots with green and red emission were utilized for construction of green- and red-emitting optical films. The assembly of integrated blue, green and red semiconductor quantum dots resulted in full-color-emitting optical films. The luminescent optical films showed very bright emitting colors under UV irradiation, and displayed dense, smooth and efficient luminous features, showing brighter luminescence in comparison with their corresponding quantum dot aqueous colloid solutions. The assembled optical films provide the prospect of miniaturized light-emitting-diode applications.

Numerical analysis of the spacer grids' compression strength

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schettino, C.F.M.; Gouvea, J.P.; Medeiros, N.

2013-01-01

Among the components of the fuel assembly, the spacer grids play an important structural role during the energy generation process, mainly for their requirement to have enough structural strength to withstand lateral impact loads, due to fuel assembly shipping/handling and due to forces outcome from postulated accidents (earthquake and LOCA). This requirement ensures a proper geometry for cooling and for guide thimble straightness in the fuel assembly. In this way, the understanding of the macroscopic mechanical behavior of this component becomes essential even to any subsequent geometrical modifications to optimize the flue assemblies' structural behavior. In the present work, three-dimensional finite element models destined to provide consistent predictions of 16X16-type spacer grids lateral strength were proposed. Firstly, buckling tests based on results available in the literature were performed to establish a methodology for spacer grid finite element-based modeling. The, by considering a spacer grid interesting geometry and some possible variations associated to its fabrication, tolerance, the proposed numerical models were submitted to compression conditions to calculate the buckling force. Also, these models were validated for comparison with experimental buckling load results. Comparison of buckling predictions combined to observations of actual and simulated deformed spacer grids geometries permitted to verify the consistency and applicability of the proposed models. Thus, these numerical results show a good agreement between the and the experimental results. (author)

Effect of a thermally evaporated bis (2-methyl-8-quninolinato)-4-phenylphenolate cathode buffer layer on the performance of polymer photovoltaic cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Dal-Ho; Park, Jea-Gun

2012-01-01

We investigated the device characteristics of polymer photovoltaic (PV) cells based on a poly(3 hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and [6,6]-phenylC61 butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) bulk heterojunction with a cathode buffer layer of thermally evaporated bis (2-methyl-8-quninolinato)-4-phenylphenolate (BAlq). A power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 2.46% was obtained with the insertion of a 4-nm-thick BAlq, which was ∼118% increase over that for the cell without a BAlq layer, under Air Mass 1.5 Global (AM 1.5 G) illumination, 100 mW/cm 2 . Moreover, we examined the charge carrier transport property, and found that the hole mobility of the cell was enhancement due to the insertion of a BAlq layer with a thickness of less than 4 nm, which accounted for the improved in the photocurrent and fill factor (FF) due to the better balance of charge carriers. Finally, the BAlq buffer layer was also demonstrated as an optical spacer that improved the optical absorption of the P3HT:PCBM layer, which accounted for the J sc enhancement of the device.

LIBS: study of elemental profile of different layers of the optical window of Tokamak

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maurya, Gulab Singh; Jyotsna, Aradhana; Rai, Awadhesh Kumar; Ajai Kumar

2012-01-01

In the Tokamak, during confinement of plasma, impurities are deposited on optical window, mirror, limiters, etc. of the tokamak. Thus a layer of impurity on the surface of the optical window causes less visibility which creates problem in the study of plasma parameters and other diagnostics of the plasma generated in the tokamak. Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) is a useful atomic spectroscopic technique for analysis of materials in any phase (Solid, Liquid, Gas etc). LIBS spectra of optical window have been recorded in the spectral range of 200-500 nm. In present study we have focused laser on the surface of the window, to study the layer-wise elemental profile of optical window, we have recorded the LIBS spectra with increasing number of laser shots on the same point of the window. In first laser shot, spectral signature of Cr, Fe, and Ni etc. are present in the LIBS spectra, which is related with the impurity but after five to six laser shots at the same point of the optical window spectral signature Si, B are observed which is related to the glass material. Thus our study demonstrates the capability of LIBS as an in-situ monitoring tool for detection of elemental profile in different layers of optical window of the Tokamak. (author)

Dependences of optical properties of spherical two-layered nanoparticles on parameters of gold core and material shell

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pustovalov, V.K.; Astafyeva, L.G.; Zharov, V.P.

2013-01-01

Modeling of nonlinear dependences of optical properties of spherical two-layered gold core and some material shell nanoparticles (NPs) placed in water on parameters of core and shell was carried out on the basis of the extended Mie theory. Efficiency cross-sections of absorption, scattering and extinction of radiation with wavelength 532 nm by core–shell NPs in the ranges of core radii r 00 =5–40 nm and of relative NP radii r 1 /r 00 =1–8 were calculated (r 1 —radius of two-layered nanoparticle). Shell materials were used with optical indexes in the ranges of refraction n 1 =0.2–1.5 and absorption k 1 =0–3.5 for the presentation of optical properties of wide classes of shell materials (including dielectrics, metals, polymers, vapor shell around gold core). Results show nonlinear dependences of optical properties of two-layered NPs on optical indexes of shell material, core r 00 and relative NP r 1 /r 00 radii. Regions with sharp decrease and increase of absorption, scattering and extinction efficiency cross-sections with changing of core and shell parameters were investigated. These dependences should be taken into account for applications of two-layered NPs in laser nanomedicine and optical diagnostics of tissues. The results can be used for experimental investigation of shell formation on NP core and optical determination of geometrical parameters of core and shell of two-layered NPs. -- Highlights: • Absorption, scattering and extinction of two-layered nanoparticles are studied. • Shell materials change in wide regions of materials (metals, dielectrics, vapor). • Effect of sharp decrease and increase of optical characteristics is established. • Explanation of sharp decreasing and increasing optical characteristics is presented

Antibiotic-impregnated articulating cement spacer for infected total knee arthroplasty

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Parag Garg

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Background : Standard treatment of chronic infected total knee arthroplasty (TKA is a two-stage revision, the first step being placement of an antibiotic-impregnated cement spacer. Here we describe the results of a new technique (modification of the Goldstien′s technique for intraoperative manufacture of a customized articulating spacer at minimal cost and with relatively good conformity and longevity. Materials and Methods : Thirty-six infected knees underwent this procedure from June 2002 to May 2007. The technique consists of using the freshened femur and tibia interface as molds wrapped in a tin foil for manufacturing the two components of the spacer with antibiotic-impregnated methyl methycrylate cement. We used the spacer and the femoral component of the trial set of a TKA system to mold them to perfect articulation. We also reinforced the spacer with a K-wire scaffold to prevent fracture of the cement mantle in the last 21 cases. Results : All 36 knees showed excellent results in terms of infection control, mobility, and stability. There was significant improvement in the WOMAC and Knee Society Scores (20 and 39 points respectively. There were two fractures of the spacers in the initial 15 cases that did not have K-wire scaffolding but none in the last 21 that had reinforcement. Conclusion : This technique provides a more conforming spacer, with good range of motion and stability. The reinforcement helps in preventing the fracture of the cement mantle and is cost effective.

Development and characterization of 3D-printed feed spacers for spiral wound membrane systems

KAUST Repository

Siddiqui, Amber

2016-01-02

Feed spacers are important for the impact of biofouling on the performance of spiral-wound reverse osmosis (RO) and nanofiltration (NF) membrane systems. The objective of this study was to propose a strategy for developing, characterizing, and testing of feed spacers by numerical modeling, three-dimensional (3D) printing of feed spacers and experimental membrane fouling simulator (MFS) studies. The results of numerical modeling on the hydraulic behavior of various feed spacer geometries suggested that the impact of spacers on hydraulics and biofouling can be improved. A good agreement was found for the modeled and measured relationship between linear flow velocity and pressure drop for feed spacers with the same geometry, indicating that modeling can serve as first step in spacer characterization. An experimental comparison study of a feed spacer currently applied in practice and a 3D printed feed spacer with the same geometry showed (i) similar hydraulic behavior, (ii) similar pressure drop development with time and (iii) similar biomass accumulation during MFS biofouling studies, indicating that 3D printing technology is an alternative strategy for development of thin feed spacers with a complex geometry. Based on the numerical modeling results, a modified feed spacer with low pressure drop was selected for 3D printing. The comparison study of the feed spacer from practice and the modified geometry 3D printed feed spacer established that the 3D printed spacer had (i) a lower pressure drop during hydraulic testing, (ii) a lower pressure drop increase in time with the same accumulated biomass amount, indicating that modifying feed spacer geometries can reduce the impact of accumulated biomass on membrane performance. The combination of numerical modeling of feed spacers and experimental testing of 3D printed feed spacers is a promising strategy (rapid, low cost and representative) to develop advanced feed spacers aiming to reduce the impact of biofilm formation on

(ISSR) and internal transcribed spacer

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Cladistic relationships within the genus Cinnamomum (Lauraceae) in Taiwan based on analysis of leaf morphology and inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) molecular markers.

Orthognathic model surgery with LEGO key-spacer.

Science.gov (United States)

Tsang, Alfred Chee-Ching; Lee, Alfred Siu Hong; Li, Wai Keung

2013-12-01

A new technique of model surgery using LEGO plates as key-spacers is described. This technique requires less time to set up compared with the conventional plaster model method. It also retains the preoperative setup with the same set of models. Movement of the segments can be measured and examined in detail with LEGO key-spacers. Copyright © 2013 American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

System for measuring spacer pin pitch in a nuclear fuel assembly

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Isono, Kenji; Tateishi, Yoshinori; Mano, Tadashi.

1975-01-01

Object: To reduce the period for discriminating whether or not spacer pin pitch is satisfactory by simultaneously inserting a number of reference rods into a nuclear fuel assembly spacer ring element of a reactor and arranging them such that they can be simultaneously withdrawn to simplify the withdrawing operation. Structure: A spacer provided with a ring element which clamps a nuclear fuel element is supported on a spacer support with a rod secured to the support as a guide and is secured to the support by securing means. A vertically movable structure with a reference rod provided upright and thru-holes formed in two support plates provided in the same row as the spacer ring element is operated by a fluid pressure mechanism to simultaneously insert the reference rod into the spacer ring element. The reference rod is mounted in support plates via ball bearings such that it is slightly movable in the horizontal direction, and it is aligned with respect to the core of the ring element. The intercore distance of the reference rod is measured with the reference rod inserted in the ring element, thereby measuring the space pin pitch. From the results of measurement, discrimination as to whether the spacer is satisfactory or not is made. (Kamimura, M.)

Hydrogel Spacer Prospective Multicenter Randomized Controlled Pivotal Trial: Dosimetric and Clinical Effects of Perirectal Spacer Application in Men Undergoing Prostate Image Guided Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mariados, Neil, E-mail: nmariados@ampofny.com [Associated Medical Professionals of New York, Syracuse, New York (United States); Sylvester, John [21st Century Oncology, East Bradenton, Florida (United States); Shah, Dhiren [Western New York Urology Associates, Cancer Care of WNY, Cheektowaga, New York (United States); Karsh, Lawrence [The Urology Center of Colorado, Denver, Colorado (United States); Hudes, Richard [Chesapeake Urology Research Associates, The Prostate Center, Owings Mills, Maryland (United States); Beyer, David [Arizona Oncology Services Foundation, Phoenix, Arizona (United States); Kurtzman, Steven [Urological Surgeons of Northern California, Campbell, California (United States); Bogart, Jeffrey [The Research Foundation of State University of New York, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, New York (United States); Hsi, R. Alex [Peninsula Cancer Center, Poulsbo, Washington (United States); Kos, Michael [Urology Nevada, Reno, Nevada (United States); Ellis, Rodney [University Hospitals Case Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio (United States); Logsdon, Mark [Sutter Health Sacramento Sierra Region, Sutter Institute for Medical Research, Sacramento, California (United States); Zimberg, Shawn [Advanced Radiation Centers of New York, Lake Success, New York (United States); Forsythe, Kevin [Oregon Urology Institute, Springfield, Oregon (United States); Zhang, Hong [University of Rochester, Rochester, New York (United States); Soffen, Edward [CentraState Medical Center, Freehold, New Jersey (United States); Francke, Patrick [Carolina Regional Cancer Center, 21st Century Oncology, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (United States); Mantz, Constantine [21st Century Oncology, Fort Meyers, Florida (United States); Rossi, Peter [Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia (United States); DeWeese, Theodore [The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland (United States); and others

2015-08-01

Purpose: Perirectal spacing, whereby biomaterials are placed between the prostate and rectum, shows promise in reducing rectal dose during prostate cancer radiation therapy. A prospective multicenter randomized controlled pivotal trial was performed to assess outcomes following absorbable spacer (SpaceOAR system) implantation. Methods and Materials: Overall, 222 patients with clinical stage T1 or T2 prostate cancer underwent computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans for treatment planning, followed with fiducial marker placement, and were randomized to receive spacer injection or no injection (control). Patients received postprocedure CT and MRI planning scans and underwent image guided intensity modulated radiation therapy (79.2 Gy in 1.8-Gy fractions). Spacer safety and impact on rectal irradiation, toxicity, and quality of life were assessed throughout 15 months. Results: Spacer application was rated as “easy” or “very easy” 98.7% of the time, with a 99% hydrogel placement success rate. Perirectal spaces were 12.6 ± 3.9 mm and 1.6 ± 2.0 mm in the spacer and control groups, respectively. There were no device-related adverse events, rectal perforations, serious bleeding, or infections within either group. Pre-to postspacer plans had a significant reduction in mean rectal V70 (12.4% to 3.3%, P<.0001). Overall acute rectal adverse event rates were similar between groups, with fewer spacer patients experiencing rectal pain (P=.02). A significant reduction in late (3-15 months) rectal toxicity severity in the spacer group was observed (P=.04), with a 2.0% and 7.0% late rectal toxicity incidence in the spacer and control groups, respectively. There was no late rectal toxicity greater than grade 1 in the spacer group. At 15 months 11.6% and 21.4% of spacer and control patients, respectively, experienced 10-point declines in bowel quality of life. MRI scans at 12 months verified spacer absorption. Conclusions: Spacer

Biofouling Control in Spiral-Wound Membrane Systems: Impact of Feed Spacer Modification and Biocides

KAUST Repository

Siddiqui, Amber

2016-12-01

High-quality drinking water can be produced with membrane-based filtration processes like reverse osmosis and nanofiltration. One of the major problems in these membrane systems is biofouling that reduces the membrane performance, increasing operational costs. Current biofouling control strategies such as pre-treatment, membrane modification, and chemical cleaning are not sufficient in all cases. Feed spacers are thin (0.8 mm), complex geometry meshes that separate membranes in a module. The main objective of this research was to evaluate whether feed spacer modification is a suitable strategy to control biofouling. Membrane fouling simulator studies with six feed spacers showed differences in biofouled spacer performance, concluding that (i) spacer geometry influences biofouling impact and (ii) biofouling studies are essential for evaluation of spacer biofouling impact. Computed tomography (CT) was found as a suitable technique to obtain three-dimensional (3D) measurements of spacers, enabling more representative mathematical modeling of hydraulic behavior of spacers in membrane systems. A strategy for developing, characterizing, and testing of spacers by numerical modeling, 3D printing of spacers and experimental membrane fouling simulator studies was developed. The combination of modeling and experimental testing of 3D printed spacers is a promising strategy to develop advanced spacers aiming to reduce the impact of biofilm formation on membrane performance and to improve the cleanability of spiral-wound membrane systems.

Analytical prediction of fuel assembly spacer grid loss coefficient

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lim, J. S.; Nam, K. I.; Park, S. K.; Kwon, J. T.; Park, W. J.

2002-01-01

The analytical prediction model of the fuel assembly spacer grid pressure loss coefficient has been studied. The pressure loss of gap between the test section wall and spacer grid was separated from the current model and the different friction drag coefficient on spacer straps from high Reynolds number region were used to low Reynolds number region. The analytical model has been verified based on the hydraulic pressure drop test results for the spacer grids of three types for 5x5, 16x16(or 17x17) arrays. The analytical model predicts the pressure loss coefficients obtained from test results within the maximum errors of 12% and 7% for 5x5 test bundle and full size bundle, respectively, at Reynolds number 500,000 of the core operating condition. This result shows that the analytical model can be used for research and design change of the nuclear fuel assembly

A Numerical Analysis on the Local Deformation of a Spacer Grid Structure for Nuclear Fuel Cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jang, Myung-Geun; Na, Geum Ju; Kim, Jong-Bong; Shin, Hyunho

2016-01-01

The result of a preliminary numerical investigation on local deformation characteristics of a multi-layered spacer-grid structure with five guide tubes is reported based on implicit finite element analysis. For the numerical analysis, displacements of top and bottom cross sections of each guide tube in a single-layer model were constrained while a lateral displacement was imposed on the single layer. Unlike the impact hammer test that is generally employed to characterize the deformation characteristics of the space-grid structure, the buckling phenomenon occurs locally in this study; it takes place at the inner grids around each tube and the degree of bucking is more apparent for tubes near the lateral surface where the lateral displacement was imposed. (paper)

Ertapenem Articulating Spacer for the Treatment of Polymicrobial Total Knee Arthroplasty Infection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dragan Radoicic

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. Periprosthetic joint infections (PJIs are the primary cause of early failure of the total knee arthroplasty (TKA. Polymicrobial TKA infections are often associated with a higher risk of treatment failure. The aim of the study was to assess the efficacy of ertapenem loaded spacers in the treatment of polymicrobial PJI. Methods. There were 18 patients enrolled; nine patients with polymicrobial PJI treated with ertapenem loaded articulating spacers were compared to the group of 9 patients treated with vancomycin or ceftazidime loaded spacers. Results. Successful reimplantation with revision implants was possible in 66.67%. Ertapenem spacers were used in 6 cases in primary two-stage procedure and in 3 cases in secondary spacer exchange. Successful infection eradication was achieved in all cases; final reimplantation with revision knee arthroplasty implants was possible in 6 cases. Conclusion. Ertapenem can be successfully used as antimicrobial addition to the cement spacers in two-stage revision treatment of polymicrobial PJIs. However, this type of spacer may also be useful in the treatment of infections caused by monomicrobial extended spectrum beta-lactamases producing gram-negative bacilli. Further clinical studies are required to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ertapenem spacers in the treatment of polymicrobial and monomicrobial PJIs.

Experimental investigation of turbulent flow through spacer grids in fuel rod bundles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Caraghiaur, Diana; Anglart, Henryk; Frid, Wiktor

2009-01-01

This paper contains experimental data of pressure, velocity and turbulence intensity in a 24-rod fuel bundle with spacer grids. Detailed pressure measurements inside the spacer grid have been obtained by use of a sliding pressure-sensing rod. Laser Doppler Velocimetry technique was used to measure the local axial velocity and its fluctuating component upstream and downstream of the spacer grid in sub-channels with different blockage ratios. The measurements show a changing pattern in function of radial position in the cross-section of the fuel bundle. For sub-channels close to the box wall, the turbulence intensity suddenly increases just downstream of the spacer and then gradually decays. In inner sub-channels, however, the turbulence intensity downstream of the spacer decreases below its upstream value and then gradually increases until it reaches the maximum value at approximately two spacer heights. The present study reveals that spacer effects, such as local pressure distribution and turbulence intensity enhancement, not only depend exclusively on the local geometry details, but also on the location in the cross-section of the rod bundle.

Experimental investigation of turbulent flow through spacer grids in fuel rod bundles

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Caraghiaur, Diana [Royal Institute of Technology, Division of Nuclear Reactor Technology, Department of Physics, School of Engineering Sciences, AlbaNova University Center, SE-106 91 Stockholm (Sweden)], E-mail: dianac@kth.se; Anglart, Henryk [Royal Institute of Technology, Division of Nuclear Reactor Technology, Department of Physics, School of Engineering Sciences, AlbaNova University Center, SE-106 91 Stockholm (Sweden); Frid, Wiktor [Swedish Radiation Safety Authority, Reactor Technology and Structural Integrity, SE-171 16 Stockholm (Sweden)

2009-10-15

This paper contains experimental data of pressure, velocity and turbulence intensity in a 24-rod fuel bundle with spacer grids. Detailed pressure measurements inside the spacer grid have been obtained by use of a sliding pressure-sensing rod. Laser Doppler Velocimetry technique was used to measure the local axial velocity and its fluctuating component upstream and downstream of the spacer grid in sub-channels with different blockage ratios. The measurements show a changing pattern in function of radial position in the cross-section of the fuel bundle. For sub-channels close to the box wall, the turbulence intensity suddenly increases just downstream of the spacer and then gradually decays. In inner sub-channels, however, the turbulence intensity downstream of the spacer decreases below its upstream value and then gradually increases until it reaches the maximum value at approximately two spacer heights. The present study reveals that spacer effects, such as local pressure distribution and turbulence intensity enhancement, not only depend exclusively on the local geometry details, but also on the location in the cross-section of the rod bundle.

Grid spacers for use in a nuclear fuel assembly

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kuwako, Akira.

1987-01-01

Purpose: To obtain spacers capable of reducing the pressure loss by enlarging coolant flow channels when the fuel temperature is high, while capable of reliably maintaining the fuel pins with no vibrations when the fuel temperature is low. Constitution: This invention concerns grid spacers for constituting fuel assemblies for use in water cooled reactors. Memory shape alloys are disposed at least a portion of a spacer element that takes such a shape as urging the pin when the fuel temperature is low, while enlarging the coolant flow channel to reduce the pressure loss when the fuel temperature is high. (Ikeda, J.)

Computer-Aided Design Method of Warp-Knitted Jacquard Spacer Fabrics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Li Xinxin

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Based on a further study on knitting and jacquard principles, this paper presents a mathematical design model to make computer-aided design of warp-knitted jacquard spacer fabrics more efficient. The mathematical model with matrix method employs three essential elements of chain notation, threading and Jacquard designing. With this model, the processing to design warp-knitted jacquard spacer fabrics with CAD software is also introduced. In this study, the sports shoes which have separated functional areas according to the feet structure and characteristics of movement are analysed. The results show the different patterns on Jacquard spacer fabrics that are seamlessly stitched with jacquard technics. The computer-aided design method of warp-knitted jacquard spacer fabrics is efficient and simple.

The influence of the preliminary garter spring spacer simulator clamping force in the pressure tube spacer -calandria tube hook-up simulator aging behaviour

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gyongyosi, T.; Deloreanu, G.; Puiu, D.; Corbescu, B.; Anghel, N.; Dinu, E.

2016-01-01

The garter spring spacer is a specially constructed torsion spring used to fit-out the CANDU 6 fuel channel. The pressure tube ageing decreases the gap to the calandria tube. Continuous gap decrease directly affects the garter spring spacers behavior during fuel channel assembly operation. The preliminary clamping force value of the garter spring spacer assembly is important for its ageing behavior. This paper briefly describes the experimental technological facilities used for conducted the experiments and highlights some of the important moments during an experiment carried out in laboratory conditions, without using pressurized boiled water and irradiation working conditions. The results analysis and some conclusions are outlined at the end, pointing out that a garter spring spacer preliminary clamping force increase reduces the vibration response signal amplitude, and does not lead to its relaxation. The paper is dedicated to specialists working in research and technological engineering. (authors)

Variations of retinal nerve fiber layer thickness and ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer thickness according to the torsion direction of optic disc.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Kang Hoon; Kim, Chan Yun; Kim, Na Rae

2014-02-20

To examine the relationship between the optic disc torsion and peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness through a comparison with the macular ganglion cell inner plexiform layer complex (GCIPL) thickness measured by Cirrus optical coherence tomography (OCT). Ninety-four eyes of 94 subjects with optic disc torsion and 114 eyes of 114 subjects without optic disc torsion were enrolled prospectively. The participants underwent fundus photography and OCT imaging in peripapillary RNFL mode and macular GCIPL mode. The participants were divided into groups according to the presence or absence of optic disc torsion. The eyes with optic disc torsion were further divided into supranasal torsion and inferotemporal torsion groups according to the direction of optic disc torsion. The mean RNFL and GCIPL thicknesses for the quadrants and subsectors were compared. The superior and inferior peak locations of the RNFL were also measured according to the torsion direction. The temporal RNFL thickness was significantly thicker in inferotemporal torsion, whereas the GCIPL thickness at all segments was unaffected. The inferotemporal optic torsion had more temporally positioned superior peak locations of the RNFL than the nontorsion and supranasal-torted optic disc. Thickening of the temporal RNFL with a temporal shift in the superior peak within the eyes with inferotemporal optic disc torsion can lead to interpretation errors. The ganglion cell analysis algorithm can assist in differentiating eyes with optic disc torsion.

Fundamental characterization of the effect of nitride sidewall spacer process on boron dose loss in ultra-shallow junction formation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kohli, P. [Silicon Technology Development, Texas Instruments, Dallas, TX 75243 (United States) and Microelectronics Research Center, University of Texas, Austin, TX 78758 (United States)]. E-mail: puneet.kohli@sematech.org; Chakravarthi, S. [Silicon Technology Development, Texas Instruments, Dallas, TX 75243 (United States); Jain, Amitabh [Silicon Technology Development, Texas Instruments, Dallas, TX 75243 (United States); Bu, H. [Silicon Technology Development, Texas Instruments, Dallas, TX 75243 (United States); Mehrotra, M. [Silicon Technology Development, Texas Instruments, Dallas, TX 75243 (United States); Dunham, S.T. [Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195 (United States); Banerjee, S.K. [Microelectronics Research Center, University of Texas, Austin, TX 78758 (United States)

2004-12-15

A nitride spacer with an underlying deposited tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) oxide that behaves as a convenient etch stop layer is a popular choice for sidewall spacer in modern complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) process flows. In this work, we have investigated the effect of the silicon nitride spacer process chemistry on the boron profile in silicon and the related dose loss of B from Si into silicon dioxide. This is reflected as a dramatic change in the junction depth, junction abruptness and junction peak concentration for the different nitride chemistries. We conclude that the silicon nitride influences the concentration of hydrogen in the silicon dioxide and different nitride chemistries result in different concentrations of hydrogen in the silicon dioxide during the final source/drain anneal. The presence of H enhances the diffusivity of B in the silicon dioxide and thereby results in a significant dose loss from the Si into the silicon dioxide. In this work, we show that this dose loss can be minimized and the junction profile engineered by choosing a desirable nitride chemistry.

Optical Properties of Plasmon Resonances with Ag/SiO2/Ag Multi-Layer Composite Nanoparticles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ye-Wan, Ma; Li-Hua, Zhang; Zhao-Wang, Wu; Jie, Zhang

2010-01-01

Optical properties of plasmon resonance with Ag/SiO 2 /Ag multi-layer nanoparticles are studied by numerical simulation based on Green's function theory. The results show that compared with single-layer Ag nanoparticles, the multi-layer nanoparticles exhibit several distinctive optical properties, e.g. with increasing the numbers of the multi-layer nanoparticles, the scattering efficiency red shifts, and the intensity of scattering enhances accordingly. It is interesting to find out that slicing an Ag-layer into multi-layers leads to stronger scattering intensity and more 'hot spots' or regions of stronger field enhancement. This property of plasmon resonance of surface Raman scattering has greatly broadened the application scope of Raman spectroscopy. The study of metal surface plasmon resonance characteristics is critical to the further understanding of surface enhanced Raman scattering as well as its applications. (fundamental areas of phenomenology (including applications))

Retinal layer measurements after successful macula-off retinal detachment repair using optical coherence tomography.

Science.gov (United States)

Menke, Marcel N; Kowal, Jens H; Dufour, Pascal; Wolf-Schnurrbusch, Ute E; Ceklic, Lala; Framme, Carsten; Wolf, Sebastian

2014-09-04

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) was used to analyze the thickness of various retinal layers of patients following successful macula-off retinal detachment (RD) repair. Optical coherence tomography scans of patients after successful macula-off RD repair were reanalyzed with a subsegmentation algorithm to measure various retinal layers. Regression analysis was performed to correlate time after surgery with changes in layer thickness. In addition, patients were divided in two groups. Group 1 had a follow-up period after surgery of up to 7 weeks (range, 21-49 days). In group 2, the follow-up period was >8 weeks (range, 60-438 days). Findings were compared to a group of age-matched healthy controls. Correlation analysis showed a significant positive correlation between inner nuclear-outer plexiform layer (INL-OPL) thickness and time after surgery (P=0.0212; r2=0.1551). Similar results were found for the ellipsoid zone-retinal pigment epithelium complex (EZ-RPE) thickness (P=0.005; r2=0.2215). Ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer thickness (GCL-IPL) was negatively correlated with time after surgery (P=0.0064; r2=0.2101). For group comparison, the retinal nerve fiber layer in both groups was thicker compared to controls. The GCL-IPL showed significant thinning in group 2. The outer nuclear layer was significantly thinner in groups 1 and 2 compared to controls. The EZ-RPE complex was significantly thinner in groups 1 and 2 compared to controls. In addition, values in group 1 were significantly thinner than in group 2. Optical coherence tomography retinal layer thickness measurements after successful macular-off RD repair revealed time-dependent thickness changes. Inner nuclear-outer plexiform layer thickness and EZ-RPE thickness was positively correlated with time after surgery. Ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer thickness was negatively correlated with time after surgery. Copyright 2014 The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, Inc.

Preliminary analysis of the effect of the grid spacers on the reflood heat transfer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sugimoto, Jun; Murao, Yoshio

1982-02-01

The results are described about the preliminary analysis of the effect of the grid spacers on the heat transfer during reflood phase of a PWR LOCA. Experiments at JAERI and other facilities showed substantial heat transfer enhancement near the grid spacers. The heat transfer enhancement decreases with the distance from the grid spacers in the downstream region of the grid spacers. Several mechanisms are discussed about the heat transfer enhancement near the grid spacers. A model of a coalescence of the water droplets downstream the spacers is proposed based on the review of the experimental data. The heat transfer correlation for the saturated film boiling is utilized to quantify the heat transfer augmentation by the grid spacers. (author)

High performance EUV multilayer structures insensitive to capping layer optical parameters.

Science.gov (United States)

Pelizzo, Maria Guglielmina; Suman, Michele; Monaco, Gianni; Nicolosi, Piergiorgio; Windt, David L

2008-09-15

We have designed and tested a-periodic multilayer structures containing protective capping layers in order to obtain improved stability with respect to any possible changes of the capping layer optical properties (due to oxidation and contamination, for example)-while simultaneously maximizing the EUV reflection efficiency for specific applications, and in particular for EUV lithography. Such coatings may be particularly useful in EUV lithographic apparatus, because they provide both high integrated photon flux and higher stability to the harsh operating environment, which can affect seriously the performance of the multilayer-coated projector system optics. In this work, an evolutive algorithm has been developed in order to design these a-periodic structures, which have been proven to have also the property of stable performance with respect to random layer thickness errors that might occur during coating deposition. Prototypes have been fabricated, and tested with EUV and X-ray reflectometry, and secondary electron spectroscopy. The experimental results clearly show improved performance of our new a-periodic coatings design compared with standard periodic multilayer structures.

Tuning magnetic properties of non-collinear magnetization configuration in Pt/[Pt/Co]{sub 6}/Pt/Co/Pt multilayer structure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kalaycı, Taner, E-mail: taner.kalayci@marmara.edu.tr [Department of Physics, Marmara University, 34722, Kadıköy, Istanbul (Turkey); Deger, Caner [Department of Physics, Marmara University, 34722, Kadıköy, Istanbul (Turkey); Akbulut, Salih [Department of Physics, Gebze Technical University, 41400, Gebze, Kocaeli (Turkey); Yildiz, Fikret, E-mail: fyildiz@gtu.edu.tr [Department of Physics, Gebze Technical University, 41400, Gebze, Kocaeli (Turkey)

2017-08-15

Highlights: • Effects of Pt spacer and reference layers thickness are investigated by MOKE and FMR. • Controlling of non-collinear states in multilayered thin film systems is studied. • Micromagnetic approach is used for modeling of magnetic multilayered structure. • Magnetic parameters are determined by a simulation based on metropolis algorithm. - Abstract: In this study, effects of Pt spacer and Co reference layers thickness in [Co/Pt]{sub 6}/Pt/Co multilayer have been revealed to tailor magnetization directions in non-collinear configuration. Magneto-optic Kerr effect and ferromagnetic resonance techniques were employed to investigate magnetic properties. Bilinear coupling between [Co/Pt]{sub 6} and Co layers and anisotropy constants were determined by a micromagnetic simulation based on metropolis algorithm. 3 nm spacer causes ferromagnetic coupling while the samples have 4 and 5 nm spacer are coupled anti-ferromagneticaly. Also, tuning magnetic anisotropy of [Co/Pt]{sub 6} layer was accomplished by Co reference layer. It is revealed that controlling of non-collinear states in such systems is possible by variation of thickness of spacer and reference layers and [Co/Pt]{sub 6}/t{sub Pt}/t{sub Co} trilayer system can be used in multilayered magnetic systems.

BWR fuel assembly having fuel rod spacers axially positioned by exterior springs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taleyarkhan, R.P.

1988-01-01

In a fuel assembly having spaced fuel rods, an outer hollow tubular flow channel surrounding the fuel rods so as to direct flow of coolant/moderator fluid there-along, and at least one spacer being disposed along the channel and about the fuel rods so as to maintain them in side-by-side spaced relationship, an arrangement for disposing the spacer in a desired axial position along the fuel rods is described comprising: yieldably resilient springs disposed between an interior side of the outer channel and an exterior side of the spacer. The springs have an inherent spring bias directed away from the exterior sides of the spacers and toward the interior side of the channel such that by contact with the channel and spacer the springs assume states in which they are deflected away from the channel interior side so as to exert sufficient compressive contacting force thereon to maintain the spacer substantially stationary in the desired axial position along the fuel rods

Investigation of radiative effects of the optically thick dust layer over the Indian tropical region

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. K. Das

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Optical and physical properties of aerosols derived from multi-satellite observations (MODIS-Aqua, OMI-Aura, MISR-Terra, CALIOP-CALIPSO have been used to estimate radiative effects of the dust layer over southern India. The vertical distribution of aerosol radiative forcing and heating rates are calculated with 100 m resolution in the lower atmosphere, using temperature and relative humidity data from balloon-borne radiosonde observations. The present study investigates the optically thick dust layer of optical thickness 0.18 ± 0.06 at an altitude of 2.5 ± 0.7 km over Gadanki, transported from the Thar Desert, producing radiative forcing and heating rate of 11.5 ± 3.3 W m−2 and 0.6 ± 0.26 K day−1, respectively, with a forcing efficiency of 43 W m−2 and an effective heating rate of 4 K day−1 per unit dust optical depth. Presence of the dust layer increases radiative forcing by 60% and heating rate by 60 times at that altitude compared to non-dusty cloud-free days. Calculation shows that the radiative effects of the dust layer strongly depend on the boundary layer aerosol type and mass loading. An increase of 25% of heating by the dust layer is found over relatively cleaner regions than urban regions in southern India and further 15% of heating increases over the marine region. Such heating differences in free troposphere may have significant consequences in the atmospheric circulation and hydrological cycle over the tropical Indian region.

Functional Micrococcus lysodeikticus layers deposited by laser technique for the optical sensing of lysozyme.

Science.gov (United States)

Dinca, Valentina; Zaharie-Butucel, Diana; Stanica, Luciana; Brajnicov, Simona; Marascu, Valentina; Bonciu, Anca; Cristocea, Andra; Gaman, Laura; Gheorghiu, Mihaela; Astilean, Simion; Vasilescu, Alina

2018-02-01

Whole cell optical biosensors, made by immobilizing whole algal, bacterial or mammalian cells on various supports have found applications in several fields, from ecology and ecotoxicity testing to biopharmaceutical production or medical diagnostics. We hereby report the deposition of functional bacterial layers of Micrococcus lysodeikticus (ML) via Matrix-Assisted Pulsed Laser Evaporation (MAPLE) on poly(diallyldimethylamonium) (PDDA)-coated-glass slides and their application as an optical biosensor for the detection of lysozyme in serum. Lysozyme is an enzyme upregulated in inflammatory diseases and ML is an enzymatic substrate for this enzyme. The MAPLE-deposited bacterial interfaces were characterised by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Fourier-Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman and optical microscopy and were compared with control interfaces deposited via layer-by-layer on the same substrate. After MAPLE deposition and coating with graphene oxide (GO), ML-modified interfaces retained their functionality and sensitivity to lysozyme's lytic action. The optical biosensor detected lysozyme in undiluted serum in the clinically relevant range up to 10μgmL -1 , in a fast and simple manner. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cross-layer restoration with software defined networking based on IP over optical transport networks

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Hui; Cheng, Lei; Deng, Junni; Zhao, Yongli; Zhang, Jie; Lee, Young

2015-10-01

The IP over optical transport network is a very promising networking architecture applied to the interconnection of geographically distributed data centers due to the performance guarantee of low delay, huge bandwidth and high reliability at a low cost. It can enable efficient resource utilization and support heterogeneous bandwidth demands in highly-available, cost-effective and energy-effective manner. In case of cross-layer link failure, to ensure a high-level quality of service (QoS) for user request after the failure becomes a research focus. In this paper, we propose a novel cross-layer restoration scheme for data center services with software defined networking based on IP over optical network. The cross-layer restoration scheme can enable joint optimization of IP network and optical network resources, and enhance the data center service restoration responsiveness to the dynamic end-to-end service demands. We quantitatively evaluate the feasibility and performances through the simulation under heavy traffic load scenario in terms of path blocking probability and path restoration latency. Numeric results show that the cross-layer restoration scheme improves the recovery success rate and minimizes the overall recovery time.

Analyses of the Collapse Behavior of a Spacer Grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jang, Myung-Geun; Na, Geum Ju; Jag, Yeon-Hui; Kim, Hee Cheol; Kim, Jong-Bong; Kim, Jaeyoug

2016-01-01

In order to investigate the protection capability of a spacer grid assembly for impact load, a hammer impact test has been carried out. The crush strength is measured in the hammer impact test. Song et al. carried out the experiment and finite element analysis for the hammer impact test for various weld line depth. Park et al. designed the spacer grid shape to get required crush strength via finite element analysis. Song et al. also optimized the spacer grid shape to maximize the crush strength, and carried out the finite element analysis for the hammer impact test considering the weld properties. Kim et al. carried out finite element analysis for various guide tube hole shape and compared the crush shape and crush strength. In this study, the effect of shape defect on the crush behavior in the hammer impact test is investigated. The spacer grid cannot be exactly the square. Therefore a lateral displacement (imperfection) is imposed to square spacer grid and then hammer impact is carried out. The effect of the lateral imperfection on the crush strength is investigated. The effect of the shape defect on the crushing behavior in the hammer impact test is investigated by finite element analysis. It is shown that the collapse become severe as the lateral imperfection displacement increases, especially when the imperfection is greater than or equal to 0.7 mm

Numerical analysis of the spacer grids' compression strength

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schettino, C.F.M.; Gouvea, J.P.; Medeiros, N., E-mail: carlosschettino@inb.gov.br, E-mail: jpg@metal.eeimvr.uff.br [Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF), Volta Redonda, RJ (Brazil). Programa de Engenharia Metalurgica

2013-07-01

Among the components of the fuel assembly, the spacer grids play an important structural role during the energy generation process, mainly for their requirement to have enough structural strength to withstand lateral impact loads, due to fuel assembly shipping/handling and due to forces outcome from postulated accidents (earthquake and LOCA). This requirement ensures a proper geometry for cooling and for guide thimble straightness in the fuel assembly. In this way, the understanding of the macroscopic mechanical behavior of this component becomes essential even to any subsequent geometrical modifications to optimize the flue assemblies' structural behavior. In the present work, three-dimensional finite element models destined to provide consistent predictions of 16X16-type spacer grids lateral strength were proposed. Firstly, buckling tests based on results available in the literature were performed to establish a methodology for spacer grid finite element-based modeling. The, by considering a spacer grid interesting geometry and some possible variations associated to its fabrication, tolerance, the proposed numerical models were submitted to compression conditions to calculate the buckling force. Also, these models were validated for comparison with experimental buckling load results. Comparison of buckling predictions combined to observations of actual and simulated deformed spacer grids geometries permitted to verify the consistency and applicability of the proposed models. Thus, these numerical results show a good agreement between the and the experimental results. (author)

Impact of spacer thickness on biofouling in forward osmosis

KAUST Repository

Valladares Linares, Rodrigo

2014-06-01

Forward osmosis (FO) indirect desalination systems integrate wastewater recovery with seawater desalination. Niche applications for FO systems have been reported recently, due to the demonstrated advantages compared to conventional high-pressure membrane processes such as nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO). Among them, wastewater recovery has been identified to be particularly suitable for practical applications. However, biofouling in FO membranes has rarely been studied in applications involving wastewater effluents. Feed spacers separating the membrane sheets in cross-flow systems play an important role in biofilm formation. The objective of this study was to determine the influence of feed spacer thickness (28, 31 and 46mil) on biofouling development and membrane performance in a FO system, using identical cross-flow cells in parallel studies. Flux development, biomass accumulation, fouling localization and composition were determined and analyzed. For all spacer thicknesses, operated at the same feed flow and the same run time, the same amount of biomass was found, while the flux reduction decreased with thicker spacers. These observations are in good agreement with biofouling studies for RO systems, considering the key differences between FO and RO. Our findings contradict previous cross-flow studies on particulate/colloidal fouling, where higher cross-flow velocities improved system performance. Thicker spacers reduced the impact of biofouling on FO membrane flux. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.

Impact of spacer thickness on biofouling in forward osmosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Valladares Linares, R; Bucs, Sz S; Li, Z; AbuGhdeeb, M; Amy, G; Vrouwenvelder, J S

2014-06-15

Forward osmosis (FO) indirect desalination systems integrate wastewater recovery with seawater desalination. Niche applications for FO systems have been reported recently, due to the demonstrated advantages compared to conventional high-pressure membrane processes such as nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO). Among them, wastewater recovery has been identified to be particularly suitable for practical applications. However, biofouling in FO membranes has rarely been studied in applications involving wastewater effluents. Feed spacers separating the membrane sheets in cross-flow systems play an important role in biofilm formation. The objective of this study was to determine the influence of feed spacer thickness (28, 31 and 46 mil) on biofouling development and membrane performance in a FO system, using identical cross-flow cells in parallel studies. Flux development, biomass accumulation, fouling localization and composition were determined and analyzed. For all spacer thicknesses, operated at the same feed flow and the same run time, the same amount of biomass was found, while the flux reduction decreased with thicker spacers. These observations are in good agreement with biofouling studies for RO systems, considering the key differences between FO and RO. Our findings contradict previous cross-flow studies on particulate/colloidal fouling, where higher cross-flow velocities improved system performance. Thicker spacers reduced the impact of biofouling on FO membrane flux. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impact of spacer thickness on biofouling in forward osmosis

KAUST Repository

Valladares Linares, Rodrigo; Bucs, Szilard; Li, Z.; AbuGhdeeb, M.; Amy, Gary L.; Vrouwenvelder, Johannes S.

2014-01-01

Forward osmosis (FO) indirect desalination systems integrate wastewater recovery with seawater desalination. Niche applications for FO systems have been reported recently, due to the demonstrated advantages compared to conventional high-pressure membrane processes such as nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO). Among them, wastewater recovery has been identified to be particularly suitable for practical applications. However, biofouling in FO membranes has rarely been studied in applications involving wastewater effluents. Feed spacers separating the membrane sheets in cross-flow systems play an important role in biofilm formation. The objective of this study was to determine the influence of feed spacer thickness (28, 31 and 46mil) on biofouling development and membrane performance in a FO system, using identical cross-flow cells in parallel studies. Flux development, biomass accumulation, fouling localization and composition were determined and analyzed. For all spacer thicknesses, operated at the same feed flow and the same run time, the same amount of biomass was found, while the flux reduction decreased with thicker spacers. These observations are in good agreement with biofouling studies for RO systems, considering the key differences between FO and RO. Our findings contradict previous cross-flow studies on particulate/colloidal fouling, where higher cross-flow velocities improved system performance. Thicker spacers reduced the impact of biofouling on FO membrane flux. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.

High quality ZnO layers with adjustable refractive indices for integrated optics applications

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Heideman, Rene; Lambeck, Paul; Gardeniers, Johannes G.E.

1995-01-01

Thin (approx. 1 μm) crystalline ZnO films with a good optical quality and a good (0002) texture are grown under two considerably different process parameter sets using a r.f. planar magnetron sputtering unit. The optical parameters of the two corresponding ZnO layers are distinctly different: high

Group-III nitride based high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) with barrier/spacer layer

Science.gov (United States)

Chavarkar, Prashant; Smorchkova, Ioulia P.; Keller, Stacia; Mishra, Umesh; Walukiewicz, Wladyslaw; Wu, Yifeng

2005-02-01

A Group III nitride based high electron mobility transistors (HEMT) is disclosed that provides improved high frequency performance. One embodiment of the HEMT comprises a GaN buffer layer, with an Al.sub.y Ga.sub.1-y N (y=1 or y 1) layer on the GaN buffer layer. An Al.sub.x Ga.sub.1-x N (0.ltoreq.x.ltoreq.0.5) barrier layer on to the Al.sub.y Ga.sub.1-y N layer, opposite the GaN buffer layer, Al.sub.y Ga.sub.1-y N layer having a higher Al concentration than that of the Al.sub.x Ga.sub.1-x N barrier layer. A preferred Al.sub.y Ga.sub.1-y N layer has y=1 or y.about.1 and a preferred Al.sub.x Ga.sub.1-x N barrier layer has 0.ltoreq.x.ltoreq.0.5. A 2DEG forms at the interface between the GaN buffer layer and the Al.sub.y Ga.sub.1-y N layer. Respective source, drain and gate contacts are formed on the Al.sub.x Ga.sub.1-x N barrier layer. The HEMT can also comprising a substrate adjacent to the buffer layer, opposite the Al.sub.y Ga.sub.1-y N layer and a nucleation layer between the Al.sub.x Ga.sub.1-x N buffer layer and the substrate.

Optimized Design of Spacer in Electrodialyzer Using CFD Simulation Method

Science.gov (United States)

Jia, Yuxiang; Yan, Chunsheng; Chen, Lijun; Hu, Yangdong

2018-06-01

In this study, the effects of length-width ratio and diversion trench of the spacer on the fluid flow behavior in an electrodialyzer have been investigated through CFD simulation method. The relevant information, including the pressure drop, velocity vector distribution and shear stress distribution, demonstrates the importance of optimized design of the spacer in an electrodialysis process. The results show width of the diversion trench has a great effect on the fluid flow compared with length. Increase of the diversion trench width could strength the fluid flow, but also increase the pressure drop. Secondly, the dead zone of the fluid flow decreases with increase of length-width ratio of the spacer, but the pressure drop increases with the increase of length-width ratio of the spacer. So the appropriate length-width ratio of the space should be moderate.

A Study on Cell Size of Irradiated Spacer Grid for PWR Fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jin, Y. G.; Kim, G. S.; Ryu, W. S. and others

2014-01-01

The spacer grids supporting the fuel rods absorb vibration impacts due to the reactor coolant flow, and grid spring force decreases under irradiation. This reduction of contact force might cause grid-to-rod fretting wear. The fretting failure of the fuel rod is one of the recent significant issues in the nuclear industry from an economical as well as a safety concern. Thus, it is important to understand the characteristics of cell spring behavior and the change in size of grid cells for an irradiated spacer grid. In the present study, the dimensional measurement of a spacer grid was conducted to investigate the cell size of an irradiated spacer grid in a hot cell at IMEF (Irradiated Materials Examination Facility) of KAERI. To evaluate the fretting wear performance of an irradiated spacer grid, hot cell tests were carried out at IMEF of KAERI. Hot cell examinations include dimensional measurements for the irradiated spacer grid. The change of cell sizes was dependent on the direction of the spacer grids, leading to significant gap variations. It was found that the change in size of the cell springs due to irradiation-induced stress relaxation and creep during the fuel residency in the reactor core affect the contact behavior between the fuel rod and the cell spring

Heterogeneous diversity of spacers within CRISPR

Science.gov (United States)

Deem, Michael; He, Jiankui

2011-03-01

Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) in bacterial and archaeal DNA have recently been shown to be a new type of anti-viral immune system in these organisms. We here study the diversity of spacers in CRISPR under selective pressure. We propose a population dynamics model that explains the biological observation that the leader-proximal end of CRISPR is more diversified and the leader-distal end of CRISPR is more conserved. This result is shown to be in agreement with recent experiments. Our results show that the CRISPR spacer structure is influenced by and provides a record of the viral challenges that bacteria face. 1) J. He and M. W. Deem, Phys. Rev. Lett. 105 (2010) 128102

Direct transfer of metallic photonic structures onto end facets of optical fibers

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Xinping; Liu, Feifei; Lin, Yuanhai

2016-07-01

We present a flexible approach to transfer metallic photonic crystals (MPCs) onto end facets of optical fibers. The MPCs were initially fabricated on a glass substrate with a spacer layer of indium tin oxide (ITO), which was used as a buffer layer in the transferring process. The fiber ends were firstly welded on the top surface of the MPCs by a drop of polymer solution after the solvent evaporated. The ITO layer was then etched by hydrochloric acid (HCl), so that the MPCs got off the substrate and were transferred to the fiber ends. Alternatively, the MPCs may be also etched off the substrate first by immersing the sample in HCl. The ultra-thin MPC sheet consisting of gold nanolines interlaced with photoresist gratings was then transferred to cap the fiber ends. In the later approach, we can choose which side of the MPCs to be used as the contact with the fiber facet. Such methods enabled convenient nanostructuring on optical fiber tips and achieving miniaturized MPC devices with compact integration, extending significantly applications of MPCs. In particular, the fabrications presented in this manuscript enrich the lab-on-fiber engineering techniques and the resultant devices have potential applications in remote sensing and detection systems.

Direct transfer of metallic photonic structures onto end facets of optical fibers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xinping Zhang

2016-07-01

Full Text Available We present a flexible approach to transfer metallic photonic crystals (MPCs onto end facets of optical fibers. The MPCs were initially fabricated on a glass substrate with a spacer layer of indium tin oxide (ITO, which was used as a buffer layer in the transferring process. The fiber ends were firstly welded on the top surface of the MPCs by a drop of polymer solution after the solvent evaporated. The ITO layer was then etched by hydrochloric acid (HCl, so that the MPCs got off the substrate and were transferred to the fiber ends. Alternatively, the MPCs may be also etched off the substrate first by immersing the sample in HCl. The ultra-thin MPC sheet consisting of gold nanolines interlaced with photoresist gratings was then transferred to cap the fiber ends. In the later approach, we can choose which side of the MPCs to be used as the contact with the fiber facet. Such methods enabled convenient nanostructuring on optical fiber tips and achieving miniaturized MPC devices with compact integration, extending significantly applications of MPCs. In particular, the fabrications presented in this manuscript enrich the lab-on-fiber engineering techniques and the resultant devices have potential applications in remote sensing and detection systems.

Global control of colored moiré pattern in layered optical structures

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Kunyang; Zhou, Yangui; Pan, Di; Ma, Xueyan; Ma, Hongqin; Liang, Haowen; Zhou, Jianying

2018-05-01

Accurate description of visual effect of colored moiré pattern caused by layered optical structures consisting of gratings and Fresnel lens is proposed in this work. The colored moiré arising from the periodic and quasi-periodic structures is numerically simulated and experimentally verified. It is found that the visibility of moiré pattern generated by refractive optical elements is related to not only the spatial structures of gratings but also the viewing angles. To effectively control the moiré visibility, two constituting gratings are slightly separated. Such scheme is proved to be effective to globally eliminate moiré pattern for displays containing refractive optical films with quasi-periodic structures.

ATLAS barrel hadron tile calorimeter: spacers plates mass production

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Artikov, A.M.; Budagov, Yu.A.; Khubua, J.

1999-01-01

In this article we expose the main problems of the mass production of the so-called 'spacer plates' for the ATLAS Barrel Hadron Tile Calorimeter. We describe all practical solutions of these problems. Particularly we present the measurement procedures and calculation schemes we used for the spacers dimensions determination. The results of the calculations are presented

On the impact analysis of a PWR spacer grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song, Kee Nam; Lee, S. H.

2012-01-01

A spacer grid, which is an interconnected array of slotted grid straps and is welded at the intersections to form an egg crate structure, is one of the most important structural components in a PWR fuel assembly. From a structural point of view, the spacer grid is required to have sufficient crush strength under lateral loads so that nuclear fuel rods are maintained in a cool able geometry, and that control rods can be inserted. The capacity of a spacer grid to resist lateral loads is usually characterized in terms of its crush strength, and it was reported that the lateral crush strength of the spacer grid is closely related with welding quality of the spacer grid. Microstructures in the weld zone, including a heat affected zone (HAZ), are different from that in a parent material. Consequently, the mechanical properties in the weld zone are different from those in the parent material to some extent. When a welded structure is loaded, the mechanical behavior of the welded structure might be different from the case of a structure with homogeneous mechanical properties. Nonetheless, mechanical properties in the welded structure have been neglected in many structural analyses of the spacer grid due to a lack of mechanical properties in the weld zone. When the weld zone is very narrow and the interfaces are not clear, it is difficult to take tensile test specimens in the weld zone. The reason for this is that the mechanical properties in the parent material are usually used in the structural analyses in the welded structure. As an aside, it has been recently determined that the ball indentation technique has the potential to be an excellent substitute for a standard tensile test, particularly in the case of small specimens or property gradient materials such as welds. In this study, to investigate the effect on the mechanical behavior of the spacer grid when using weld mechanical properties, strength analyses considering the weld mechanical properties recently obtained

Skin-Inspired Hierarchical Polymer Architectures with Gradient Stiffness for Spacer-Free, Ultrathin, and Highly Sensitive Triboelectric Sensors.

Science.gov (United States)

Ha, Minjeong; Lim, Seongdong; Cho, Soowon; Lee, Youngoh; Na, Sangyun; Baig, Chunggi; Ko, Hyunhyub

2018-04-24

The gradient stiffness between stiff epidermis and soft dermis with interlocked microridge structures in human skin induces effective stress transmission to underlying mechanoreceptors for enhanced tactile sensing. Inspired by skin structure and function, we fabricate hierarchical nanoporous and interlocked microridge structured polymers with gradient stiffness for spacer-free, ultrathin, and highly sensitive triboelectric sensors (TESs). The skin-inspired hierarchical polymers with gradient elastic modulus enhance the compressibility and contact areal differences due to effective transmission of the external stress from stiff to soft layers, resulting in highly sensitive TESs capable of detecting human vital signs and voice. In addition, the microridges in the interlocked polymers provide an effective variation of gap distance between interlocked layers without using the bulk spacer and thus facilitate the ultrathin and flexible design of TESs that could be worn on the body and detect a variety of pressing, bending, and twisting motions even in humid and underwater environments. Our TESs exhibit the highest power density (46.7 μW/cm 2 ), pressure (0.55 V/kPa), and bending (∼0.1 V/°) sensitivities ever reported on flexible TESs. The proposed design of hierarchical polymer architectures for the flexible and wearable TESs can find numerous applications in next-generation wearable electronics.

Impact of feed spacer and membrane modification by hydrophilic, bactericidal and biocidal coating on biofouling control

KAUST Repository

Araújo, Paula A.

2012-06-01

The influence of polydopamine- and polydopamine-. graft-poly(ethylene glycol)-coated feed spacers and membranes, copper-coated feed spacers, and commercially-available biostatic feed spacers on biofouling has been studied in membrane fouling simulators. Feed spacers and membranes applied in practical membrane filtration systems were used; biofouling development was monitored by feed channel pressure drop increase and biomass accumulation. Polydopamine and polydopamine-. g-PEG are hydrophilic surface modification agents expected to resist protein and bacterial adhesion, while copper feed spacer coatings and biocides infused in feed spacers are expected to restrict biological growth. Our studies showed that polydopamine and polydopamine-. g-PEG coatings on feed spacers and membranes, copper coatings on feed spacers, and a commercial biostatic feed spacer did not have a significant impact on feed channel pressure drop increase and biofilm accumulation as measured by ATP and TOC content. The studied spacer and membrane modifications were not effective for biofouling control; it is doubtful that feed spacer and membrane modification, in general, may be effective for biofouling control regardless of the type of applied coating. © 2012 Elsevier B.V.

Effects of grid spacer with mixing vane on entrainments and depositions in two-phase annular flows

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Akimaro Kawahara

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The effects of mixing vanes (MVs attached to a grid spacer on the characteristics of air–water annular flows were experimentally investigated. To know the effects, a grid spacer with or without MV was inserted in a vertical circular pipe of 16-mm internal diameter. For three cases (i.e., no spacer, spacer without MV, and spacer with MV, the liquid film thickness, liquid entrainment fraction, and deposition rate were measured by the constant current method, single liquid film extraction method, and double liquid film extraction method, respectively. The MVs significantly promote the re-deposition of liquid droplets in the gas core flow into the liquid film on the channel walls. The deposition mass transfer coefficient is three times higher for the spacer with MV than for the spacer without MV, even for cases 0.3-m downstream from the spacer. The liquid film thickness becomes thicker upstream and downstream for the spacer with MV, compared with the thickness for the spacer without MV and for the case with no spacer.

Optical luminescence studies of the ethyl xanthate adsorption layer on the surface of sphalerite minerals.

Science.gov (United States)

Todoran, R; Todoran, D; Szakács, Zs

2016-01-05

In this work we propose optical luminescence measurements as a method to evaluate the kinetics of adsorption processes. Measurement of the intensity of the integral optical radiation obtained from the mineral-xanthate interface layer, stimulated with a monochromatic pulsating optical signal, as a function of time were made. The luminescence radiation was obtained from the thin interface layer formed at the separation surface between the sphalerite natural mineral and potassium ethyl xanthate solution, for different solution concentrations and pH-es at the constant industry standard temperature. This method enabled us to determine the time to achieve dynamic equilibrium in the formation of the interface layer of approximately 20min, gaining information on the adsorption kinetics in the case of xanthate on mineral surface and leading to the optimization of the industrial froth flotation process. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Transcriptional regulator-mediated activation of adaptation genes triggers CRISPR de novo spacer acquisition

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Liu, Tao; Li, Yingjun; Wang, Xiaodi

2015-01-01

Acquisition of de novo spacer sequences confers CRISPR-Cas with a memory to defend against invading genetic elements. However, the mechanism of regulation of CRISPR spacer acquisition remains unknown. Here we examine the transcriptional regulation of the conserved spacer acquisition genes in Type I......, it was demonstrated that the transcription level of csa1, cas1, cas2 and cas4 was significantly enhanced in a csa3a-overexpression strain and, moreover, the Csa1 and Cas1 protein levels were increased in this strain. Furthermore, we demonstrated the hyperactive uptake of unique spacers within both CRISPR loci...... in the presence of the csa3a overexpression vector. The spacer acquisition process is dependent on the CCN PAM sequence and protospacer selection is random and non-directional. These results suggested a regulation mechanism of CRISPR spacer acquisition where a single transcriptional regulator senses the presence...

Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) Spacers for Anterior Cervical Fusion: A Retrospective Comparative Effectiveness Clinical Trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Lemcke, Johannes; Al-Zain, Ferass; Meier, Ullrich; Suess, Olaf

2011-01-01

Anterior cervical decompression and fusion (ACDF) is the standard surgical treatment for radiculopathy and myelopathy. Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) has an elasticity similar to bone and thus appears well suited for use as the implant in ACDF procedures. The aim of this study is to examine the clinical and radiographic outcome of patients treated with standing alone PEEK spacers without bone morphogenic protein (BMP) or plating and to examine the influence of the different design of the two spacers on the rate of subsidence and dislocation. This retrospective comparative study reviewed 335 patients treated by ACDF in a specialized urban hospital for radiculopathy or myelopathy due to degenerative pathologies. The Intromed PEEK spacer was used in 181 patients from 3/2002 to 11/2004, and the AMT SHELL spacer was implanted in 154 patients from 4/2004 to 12/2007. The follow-up rate was 100% at three months post-op and 82.7% (277 patients) at one year. The patients were assessed with the Japanese Orthopedic Association (JOA) questionnaire and radiographically. At the one-year follow-up there were 118/277 patients with an excellent clinical outcome on the JOA, 112/277 with a good outcome, 20/277 with a fair outcome, and 27/277 with a poor outcome. Subsidence was observed in 13.3% of patients with the Intromed spacer vs 8.4% of the patients with the AMT SHELL. Dislocation of the spacer was observed in 10 of the 181 patients with Intromed spacers but in none of the 154 patients with Shell spacers. The study demonstrates that ACDF with standing alone PEEK cages leads to excellent and good clinical outcomes. The differences we observed in the subsidence rate between the two spacers were not significant and cannot be related to a single design feature of the spacers.

Measurement and CFD calculation of spacer loss coefficient for a tight-lattice fuel bundle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In, Wang Kee; Shin, Chang Hwan; Kwack, Young Kyun; Lee, Chi Young

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Experiment and CFD analysis evaluated the pressure drop in a spacer grid. • The measurement and CFD errors for the spacer loss coefficient were estimated. • The spacer loss coefficient for the dual-cooled annular fuel bundle was determined. • The CFD prediction agrees with the measured spacer loss coefficient within 8%. - Abstract: An experiment and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis were performed to evaluate the pressure drop in a spacer grid for a dual-cooled annular fuel (DCAF) bundle. The DCAF bundle for the Korean optimum power reactor (OPR1000) is a 12 × 12 tight-lattice rod array with a pitch-to-diameter ratio of 1.08 owing to a larger outer diameter of the annular fuel rod. An experiment was conducted to measure the pressure drop in spacer grid for the DCAF bundle. The test bundle is a full-size 12 × 12 rod bundle with 11 spacer grid. The test condition covers a Reynolds number range of 2 × 10 4 –2 × 10 5 by changing the temperature and flow rate of water. A CFD analysis was also performed to predict the pressure drop through a spacer grid using the full-size and partial bundle models. The pressure drop and loss coefficient of a spacer grid were predicted and compared with the experimental results. The CFD predictions of spacer pressure drop and loss coefficient agree with the measured values within 8%. The spacer loss coefficient for the DCAF bundle is estimated to be approximately 1.50 at a nominal operating condition of OPR1000, i.e., Re = 4 × 10 5

Success of Two-Stage Reimplantation in Patients Requiring an Interim Spacer Exchange.

Science.gov (United States)

George, Jaiben; Miller, Evan M; Curtis, Gannon L; Klika, Alison K; Barsoum, Wael K; Mont, Michael A; Higuera, Carlos A

2018-03-23

Some patients undergoing a 2-stage revision for a periprosthetic joint infection require a repeat spacer in the interim (removal of existing spacer with insertion of a new spacer or spacer exchange) due to persistent infection. The objectives of this study are to (1) determine the factors associated with patients who receive a repeat spacer and (2) compare the infection-free survival (overall and stratified by joint type) of reimplantation in patients who did or did not receive a repeat spacer. From 2001 to 2014, 347 hip or knee 2-stage revisions that finally underwent reimplantation and had a minimum 2-year follow-up were identified. An interim spacer exchange was performed in 59 (17%) patients (exchange cohort). Patient-related and organism-related factors were compared between the exchange and non-exchange cohorts. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were performed to assess the success (absence of signs of infection, reoperation for infection, periprosthetic joint infection-related mortality) of both cohorts. Patients in the exchange group had higher comorbidity score (P = .020), prolonged time to reimplantation (P exchange cohort, and 78% (knee 77%, hip 78%) in the non-exchange cohort (P = .020). Patients requiring an interim spacer exchange were found to have more comorbidities, prolonged treatment period, and were more likely to be infected with a resistant organism. About one-third of such patients became reinfected within 5 years compared to only one-fifth of the patients without an interim spacer exchange. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Separator-spacer for electrochemical systems

Science.gov (United States)

Grimes, Patrick G.; Einstein, Harry; Newby, Kenneth R.; Bellows, Richard J.

1983-08-02

An electrochemical cell construction features a novel co-extruded plastic electrode in an interleaved construction with a novel integral separator-spacer. Also featured is a leak and impact resistant construction for preventing the spill of corrosive materials in the event of rupture.

Effects of different rod spacers (helical types) on coolant crossmixing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhukov, A.V.; Sviridenko, E.Ya.; Matyukhin, N.M.; Rymkevich, K.S.; Ushakov, P.A.

1981-11-01

The results of investigations (electromagnetic measuring method) on coolant cross mixing in rod clusters with spiral wire spacers with different winding directions, with alternating unfinned and finned rods (case 'fin to rod'), as well as in rod clusters with much space between the rods, (case 'fin to fin') are reported. The local fluid dynamics parameters (distribution of the transversal and longitudinal velocity component) that define the physical processes of the coolant exchange in the rod clusters with helical spacers are explained. The investigation results for different helical spacer types are compared with each other. (orig.) [de

Experimental study of mechanical properties on spacer in NHR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiang Yueyuan; Shi Jibing; Xu Yong

2007-01-01

The spacer of NHR-200 is composed mainly of the inner, outer and cornual strips which are ranged in egg-crate of 12 x 12-3. First, the pre-distortion of three kinds of three-arc springs on reactor working condition and their related clipping-force ranges are analyzed in this paper. Secondly, the mechanical experiments of 1:1 prototype, such as the load-distortion experiments, which the load and distortion are respectively measured by strain gauge and displacement sensor, of three kinds of springs, rigid supports and the spacers in two different directions are carried out on a special experimental facility. The experimental results show that the spacer can completely meet the design demands of mechanical properties of the fuel assemblies in NHR-200. (authors)

All-optically tunable EIT-like dielectric metasurfaces hybridized with thin phase change material layers

Science.gov (United States)

Petronijevic, Emilija; Sibilia, Concita

2017-05-01

Electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT), a pump-induced narrow transparency window within the absorption region of a probe, had offered new perspectives in slow-light control in atomic physics. For applications in nanophotonics, the implementation on chip-scaled devices has later been obtained by mimicking this effect by metallic metamaterials. High losses in visible and near infrared range of metal-based metamaterialls have recently opened a new field of all-dielectric metamaterials; a proper configuration of high refractive index dielectric nanoresonators can mimick this effect without losses to get high Q, slow-light response. The next step would be the ability to tune their optical response, and in this work we investigate thin layers of phase change materials (PCM) for all-optical control of EIT-like all-dielectric metamaterials. PCM can be nonvolatively and reversibly switched between two stable phases that differ in optical properties by applying a visible laser pulse. The device is based on Si nanoresonators covered by a thin layer of PCM GeTe; optical and transient thermal simulations have been done to find and optimize the fabrication parameters and switching parameters such as the intensity and duration of the pulse. We have found that the EIT-like response can be switched on and off by applying the 532nm laser pulse to change the phase of the upper GeTe layer. We strongly believe that such approach could open new perspectives in all-optically controlled slow-light metamaterials.

Phosphorus-based compounds for EUV multilayer optics materials

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Medvedev, Viacheslav; Yakshin, Andrey; van de Kruijs, Robbert Wilhelmus Elisabeth; Bijkerk, Frederik

2015-01-01

We have evaluated the prospects of phosphorus-based compounds in extreme ultraviolet multilayer optics. Boron phosphide (BP) is suggested to be used as a spacer material in reflective multilayer optics operating just above the L-photoabsorption edge of P (λ ≈9.2 nm). Mo, Ag, Ru, Rh, and Pd were

Self-Supporting High Performance Multi-Layer Insulation Technology Development (SSMLI)

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — A new type of MLI—Integrated Multi-Layer Insulation (IMLI)—uses rigid, low-conductivity polymer spacers instead of netting to keep the radiation barriers separated....

Spacer geometry and particle deposition in spiral wound membrane feed channels

KAUST Repository

Radu, A.I.

2014-11-01

Deposition of microspheres mimicking bacterial cells was studied experimentally and with a numerical model in feed spacer membrane channels, as used in spiral wound nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO) membrane systems. In-situ microscopic observations in membrane fouling simulators revealed formation of specific particle deposition patterns for different diamond and ladder feed spacer orientations. A three-dimensional numerical model combining fluid flow with a Lagrangian approach for particle trajectory calculations could describe very well the in-situ observations on particle deposition in flow cells. Feed spacer geometry, positioning and cross-flow velocity sensitively influenced the particle transport and deposition patterns. The deposition patterns were not influenced by permeate production. This combined experimental-modeling approach could be used for feed spacer geometry optimization studies for reduced (bio)fouling. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.

Optical characteristics of silicon nanowires grown from tin catalyst layers on silicon coated glass

KAUST Repository

Ball, Jeremy

2012-08-20

The optical characteristics of silicon nanowires grown on Si layers on glass have been modeled using the FDTD (Finite Difference Time Domain) technique and compared with experimental results. The wires were grown by the VLS (vapour-liquid-solid) method using Sn catalyst layers and exhibit a conical shape. The resulting measured and modeled absorption, reflectance and transmittance spectra have been investigated as a function of the thickness of the underlying Si layer and the initial catalyst layer, the latter having a strong influence on wire density. High levels of absorption (>90% in the visible wavelength range) and good agreement between the modeling and experiment have been observed when the nanowires have a relatively high density of ∼4 wires/μ m2. The experimental and modeled results diverge for samples with a lower density of wire growth. The results are discussed along with some implications for solar cell fabrication. © 2012 Optical Society of America.

Optical characteristics of silicon nanowires grown from tin catalyst layers on silicon coated glass

KAUST Repository

Ball, Jeremy; Centeno, Anthony; Mendis, Budhika G.; Reehal, H. S.; Alford, Neil

2012-01-01

The optical characteristics of silicon nanowires grown on Si layers on glass have been modeled using the FDTD (Finite Difference Time Domain) technique and compared with experimental results. The wires were grown by the VLS (vapour-liquid-solid) method using Sn catalyst layers and exhibit a conical shape. The resulting measured and modeled absorption, reflectance and transmittance spectra have been investigated as a function of the thickness of the underlying Si layer and the initial catalyst layer, the latter having a strong influence on wire density. High levels of absorption (>90% in the visible wavelength range) and good agreement between the modeling and experiment have been observed when the nanowires have a relatively high density of ∼4 wires/μ m2. The experimental and modeled results diverge for samples with a lower density of wire growth. The results are discussed along with some implications for solar cell fabrication. © 2012 Optical Society of America.

Optical characterization of composite layers prepared by plasma polymerization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Radeva, E; Hikov, T; Mitev, D; Pramatarova, L; Stroescu, H; Nicolescu, M; Gartner, M; Presker, R

2016-01-01

Thin composite layers from polymer/nanoparticles (Ag-nanoparticles and detonation nanodiamonds) were prepared by plasma polymerization process on the base of hexamethyldisiloxane. The variation of the layer composition was achieved by changing the type of nanoparticles. The optical measurement techniques used were UV-VIS-NIR ellipsometry (SE), Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopy. The values of the refractive index determined are in the range 1.30 to 1.42. All samples are transparent with transmission between 85-95% and very smooth. The change in Raman and FTIR spectra of the composites verify the expected bonding between polymer and diamond nanoparticles due to the penetration of the fillers in the polymer matrix. The comparison of the spectra of the corresponding NH3 plasma treated composites revealed that the composite surface becomes more hydrophilic. The obtained results indicate that preparation of layers with desired compositions is possible at a precise control of the detonation nanodiamond materials. (paper)

Structure and Optical Properties of the Atmospheric Boundary Layer over Dusty Hot Deserts

Science.gov (United States)

Chalermthai, B.; Al Marzooqi, M.; Basha, G.; Ouarda, T.; Armstrong, P.; Molini, A.

2014-12-01

Strong sensible heat fluxes and deep turbulent mixing - together with marked dustiness and a low substrate water content - represent a characteristic signature of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) over hot deserts, resulting in "thicker" mixing layers and peculiar optical properties. Beside these main common features however, desert boundary layers present extremely complex local structures that have been scarcely addressed in the literature, and whose understanding is essential in modeling processes such as transport and deposition of dust and pollutants, local wind fields, turbulent fluxes and their impacts on the sustainable development, human health and solar energy harvesting in these regions. In this study, we explore the potential of the joint usage of Lidar Ceilometer backscattering profiles and sun-photometer optical depth retrievals to quantitatively determine the vertical aerosol profile over dusty hot desert regions. Toward this goal, we analyze a continuous record of observations of the atmospheric boundary layer height from a single lens LiDAR ceilometer operated at Masdar Institute Field Station (24.4425N 54.6163E, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates), starting March 2013, and the concurrent measurements of aerosol optical depth derived independently from the Masdar Institute AERONET sun-photometer. The main features of the desert ABL are obtained from the ceilometer range corrected backscattering profiles through bi-dimensional clustering technique we developed as a modification of the recently proposed single-profile clustering method, and therefore "directly" and "indirectly" calibrated to obtain a full diurnal cycle climatology of the aerosol optical depth and aerosol profiles. The challenges and the advantages of applying a similar methodology to the monitoring of aerosols and dust over hyper-arid regions are also discussed, together with the issues related to the sensitivity of commercial ceilometers to changes in the solar background.

A 130 GHz Electro-Optic Ring Modulator with Double-Layer Graphene

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lei Wu

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The optical absorption coefficient of graphene will change after injecting carriers. Based on this principle, a high-speed double-layer graphene electro-optic modulator with a ring resonator structure was designed in this paper. From the numerical simulations, we designed a modulator. Its optical bandwidth is larger than 130 GHz, the switching energy is 0.358 fJ per bit, and the driven voltage is less than 1.2 V. At the same time, the footprint of the proposed modulator is less than 10 microns squared, which makes the process compatible with the Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductors (CMOS process. This will provide the possibility for the on-chip integration of the photoelectric device.

Investigation of aperiodic W/C multi-layer mirror for X-ray optics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Zhanshan; Cheng Xinbin; Zhu Jingtao; Huang Qiushi; Zhang Zhong; Chen Lingyan

2011-01-01

Design, fabrication and characterization of aperiodic tungsten/carbon (W/C) multi-layer mirror were studied. W/C multi-layer was designed as a broad-angle reflective supermirror for Cu-Kα line (λ = 0.154 nm) in the grazing incident angular range (0.9-1.1 deg.) using simulated annealing algorithm. To deposit the W/C depth-graded multi-layer mirror accurately, we introduce an effective layer growth rate as a function of layer thickness. This method greatly improves the reflectivity curve compared to the conventional multi-layer mirror prepared with constant growth rate. The deposited multi-layer mirror exhibits an average reflectivity of 19% over the grazing incident angle range of 0.88-1.08 deg. which mainly coincides with the designed value. Furthermore, the physical mechanisms were discussed and the re-sputtering process of light-atom layers is accounted for the modification of layer thicknesses which leads to the effective growth rates. Using this calibration method, the aperiodic multi-layer mirrors can be better fabricated for X-ray optics.

Effect of ethanethiolate spacer on morphology and optical responses of Ag nanoparticle array-single layer graphene hybrid systems

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Sutrová, Veronika; Šloufová, I.; Melníková Komínková, Zuzana; Kalbáč, Martin; Pavlova, Ewa; Vlčková, B.

2017-01-01

Roč. 33, č. 50 (2017), s. 14414-14424 ISSN 0743-7463 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA15-01953S; GA MŠk(CZ) LM2015073 Grant - others:GA MŠk(CZ) CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/16_013/0001821 Institutional support: RVO:61389013 ; RVO:61388955 Keywords : Ag nanoparticle * single layer graphene * ethanethiol Subject RIV: JI - Composite Materials; CF - Physical ; Theoretical Chemistry (UFCH-W) OBOR OECD: Composites (including laminates, reinforced plastics, cermets, combined natural and synthetic fibre fabrics; Physical chemistry (UFCH-W) Impact factor: 3.833, year: 2016

Hydrogel-coated feed spacers in two-phase flow cleaning in spiral wound membrane elements: a novel platform for eco-friendly biofouling mitigation.

Science.gov (United States)

Wibisono, Yusuf; Yandi, Wetra; Golabi, Mohsen; Nugraha, Roni; Cornelissen, Emile R; Kemperman, Antoine J B; Ederth, Thomas; Nijmeijer, Kitty

2015-03-15

Biofouling is still a major challenge in the application of nanofiltration and reverse osmosis membranes. Here we present a platform approach for environmentally friendly biofouling control using a combination of a hydrogel-coated feed spacer and two-phase flow cleaning. Neutral (polyHEMA-co-PEG10MA), cationic (polyDMAEMA) and anionic (polySPMA) hydrogels have been successfully grafted onto polypropylene (PP) feed spacers via plasma-mediated UV-polymerization. These coatings maintained their chemical stability after 7 days incubation in neutral (pH 7), acidic (pH 5) and basic (pH 9) environments. Anti-biofouling properties of these coatings were evaluated by Escherichia coli attachment assay and nanofiltration experiments at a TMP of 600 kPag using tap water with additional nutrients as feed and by using optical coherence tomography. Especially the anionic polySPMA-coated PP feed spacer shows reduced attachment of E. coli and biofouling in the spacer-filled narrow channels resulting in delayed biofilm growth. Employing this highly hydrophilic coating during removal of biofouling by two-phase flow cleaning also showed enhanced cleaning efficiency, feed channel pressure drop and flux recoveries. The strong hydrophilic nature and the presence of negative charge on polySPMA are most probably responsible for the improved antifouling behavior. A combination of polySPMA-coated PP feed spacers and two-phase flow cleaning therefore is promising and an environmentally friendly approach to control biofouling in NF/RO systems employing spiral-wound membrane modules. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Air-water flooding in multirod channels: effects of spacer grids and blockages

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cha, Jong Hee; Jun, Hyung Gil

1993-01-01

This paper presents the experimental results on flooding of countercurrent flow in vertical multirod channels, which consists of falling water film and upward air flow. In particular, the effects of spacer grids, with and without mixing vane, and of blockage in the multirod bundle on the behaviour of flooding were investigated. The 5 x 5 zircaloy tube bundle was used for the test section. The comparison of previous analytical models and empirical correlations with present data on flooding showed that the existing models and correlations predict much higher flooding curves. The spacer grid causes the lower flooding air flow rate to compare with the bare rod bundle. However, the mixing spacer grids need a higher flooding air flow rate for a constant liquid flow rate than the spacer grids without mixing vanes. The bundle containing blockages has the highest flooding air flow rate among the bundles with spacer grids and blokages. Empirical flooding correlations for the three types of test section have been made. (Author)

All-optical measurement of interlayer exchange coupling in Fe/Pt/FePt thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Berk, C.; Ganss, F.; Jaris, M.; Albrecht, M.; Schmidt, H.

2018-01-01

Time Resolved Magneto Optic Kerr Effect spectroscopy was used to all-optically study the dynamics in exchange coupled Fe(10 nm)/Pt(x = 0-5 nm)/FePt (10 nm) thin films. As the Pt spacer decreases, the effective magnetization of the layers is seen to evolve towards the strong coupling limit where the two films can be described by a single effective magnetization. The coupling begins at x = 1.5 nm and reaches a maximum exchange coupling constant of 2.89 erg/cm2 at x = 0 nm. The films are ferromagnetically coupled at all Pt thicknesses in the exchange coupled regime (x ≤ 1.5 nm). A procedure for extracting the interlayer exchange constant by measuring the magnetic precession frequencies at multiple applied fields and angles is outlined. The dynamics are well reproduced using micromagnetic simulations.

Interband magneto-optical transitions in a layer of semiconductor nano-rings

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Voskoboynikov, O.; Wijers, Christianus M.J.; Liu, J.L.; Lee, C.P.

2005-01-01

We have developed a quantitative theory of the collective electromagnetic response of layers of semiconductor nano-rings. The response can be controlled by means of an applied magnetic field through the optical Aharonov-Bohm effect and is ultimately required for the design of composite materials. We

Three-dimensional mapping of peripapillary retinal layers using a spectral domain optical coherence tomography

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hashmani N

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Nauman Hashmani, Sharif Hashmani Department of Ophthalmology, Hashmanis Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan Purpose: To map and view the effects of age, gender, and axial length on seven individual retinal layers around the optic nerve head (ONH.Methods: We scanned 242 healthy patients using the Spectralis spectral domain optical coherence tomography in an outpatient setting. The layers were observed on the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study sectors using the standard Spectralis Family Acquisition Module 6.0.11.0. The center was the ONH, the inner circle (IC was 1–3 mm away, and the outer circle (OC was 3–6 mm away. The seven layers were retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL, ganglion cell layer (GCL, inner plexiform layer (IPL, inner nuclear layer (INL, outer plexiform layer (OPL, outer nuclear layer (ONL, and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE. Additionally, we calculated the mean thickness of two combined layers: inner retinal layer (IRL and photoreceptor layer (PL. Finally, we measured the mean of the total retinal thickness (TRT.Results: The TRT was highest at the inferior end in the IC and at the nasal end in the OC. The RPE (p<0.001 and PL (p<0.001 were thicker in males; however, the IRL (p=0.015 was thicker in females. We found that the RNFL (p<0.001, r=0.139, GCL (p<0.001, r=0.116, IPL (p=0.016, r=0.059, INL (p<0.001, r=0.104, OPL (p=0.009, r=0.064, ONL (p<0.001, r=0.157, RPE (p=0.001, r=0.079, IRL (p<0.001, r=0.190, PL (p=0.030, r=0.053, and TRT (p<0.001, r=0.191 correlated negatively with age. The axial length significantly and negatively correlated at the GCL (p=0.003, r=0.093, IPL (p=0.020, r=0.072, INL (p=0.018, r=0.073, ONL (p<0.001, r=0.110, IRL (p=0.003, r=0.092, and TRT (p=0.003, r=0.094. We found poor reproducibility in the IC; however, this was excellent in the OC.Conclusion: We found significant differences in layers according to age, gender, and axial length. Additionally, reproducibility can be improved by altering the

Two-stage revision of septic knee prosthesis with articulating knee spacers yields better infection eradication rate than one-stage or two-stage revision with static spacers.

Science.gov (United States)

Romanò, C L; Gala, L; Logoluso, N; Romanò, D; Drago, L

2012-12-01

The best method for treating chronic periprosthetic knee infection remains controversial. Randomized, comparative studies on treatment modalities are lacking. This systematic review of the literature compares the infection eradication rate after two-stage versus one-stage revision and static versus articulating spacers in two-stage procedures. We reviewed full-text papers and those with an abstract in English published from 1966 through 2011 that reported the success rate of infection eradication after one-stage or two-stage revision with two different types of spacers. In all, 6 original articles reporting the results after one-stage knee exchange arthoplasty (n = 204) and 38 papers reporting on two-stage revision (n = 1,421) were reviewed. The average success rate in the eradication of infection was 89.8% after a two-stage revision and 81.9% after a one-stage procedure at a mean follow-up of 44.7 and 40.7 months, respectively. The average infection eradication rate after a two-stage procedure was slightly, although significantly, higher when an articulating spacer rather than a static spacer was used (91.2 versus 87%). The methodological limitations of this study and the heterogeneous material in the studies reviewed notwithstanding, this systematic review shows that, on average, a two-stage procedure is associated with a higher rate of eradication of infection than one-stage revision for septic knee prosthesis and that articulating spacers are associated with a lower recurrence of infection than static spacers at a comparable mean duration of follow-up. IV.

Modes of interaction between nanostructured metal and a conducting mirror as a function of separation and incident polarization

Science.gov (United States)

Bonnie, F.; Arnold, M. D.; Smith, G. B.; Gentle, A. R.

2013-09-01

The optical resonances that occur in nanostructured metal layers are modulated in thin film stacks if the nanostructured layer is separated from a reflecting conducting layer by various thicknesses of thin dielectric. We have measured and modeled the optical response of interacting silver layers, with alumina spacer thickness ranging from a few nm to 50 nm, for s- and p-polarized incident light, and a range of incident angles. Standard thin film models, including standard effective medium models for the nanostructured layer, will break down for spacer thickness below a critical threshold. For example, with polarisation in the film plane and some nano-islands, it may occur at around 10 nm depending on spacer refractive index. Of particular interest here are novel effects observed with the onset of percolation in the nanolayer. Hot spot effects can be modified by nearby mirrors. Other modes to consider include (a) a two-particle mode involving a particle and its mirror image (b) A Fano resonance from hybridisation of localized and de-localised plasmon modes (c) a Babinet's core-(partial) shell particle with metal core-dielectric shell in metal (d) spacing dependent phase modulation (e) the impact of field gradients induced by the mirror at the nano-layer.

Optic disc and peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer characteristics associated with glaucomatous optic disc in young myopia.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Jong Eun; Sung, Kyung Rim; Park, Ji Min; Yoon, Joo Young; Kang, Sung Yong; Park, Sung Bae; Koo, Hyung Jin

2017-03-01

To explore optic disc and peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) features associated with glaucomatous optic disc (GOD) in young myopia. Presence of GOD, optic disc tilt, and disc torsion were determined using fundus photographs. If the measured disc tilt ratio was >1.3, the optic disc was classified as tilted. Optic disc torsion was defined as a >15° deviation in the long axis of the optic disc from the vertical meridian. The average and four quadrants RNFL thicknesses were assessed using spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). Logistic regression analyses were performed to identify factors associated with the presence of GOD. Nine hundred and sixty myopic subjects were recruited from four refractive surgery clinic databases. The mean age was 26.6 ± 5.7 years and spherical equivalent (SE) was -5.5 ± 2.5 diopters. Among 960 eyes, 26 (2.7%) received GOD group classification. Among 934 normal eyes, 290 (31.0%) had titled optic discs. Eighteen eyes (69.2%) in the GOD group had tilted optic discs. When compared to normal eyes, the GOD group had significantly higher tilt ratios (1.4 ± 0.2 vs. 1.2 ± 0.1, p Optic disc tilt was found in approximately one-third of young myopic eyes and was independently associated with the presence of GOD.

Boiling transition phenomenon in BWR fuel assemblies effect of fuel spacer shape on critical power

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamamoto, Yasushi; Morooka, Shin-ichi; Mitsutake, Toru; Yokobori, Seiichi; Kimura, Jiro.

1996-01-01

A thorough understanding of the thermal-hydraulic phenomena near fuel spacer is necessary for the accurate prediction of the critical power of BWR fuel assemblies, and is thus essential for effective developments of a new BWR fuel assembly. The main purpose of this study is to develop an accurate method for predicting the effect of spacer shapes on critical power. Tests have been conducted under actual BWR operating conditions, using an annulus flow channel consisting of a heated rod and circular-tube channel, and BWR simulated 4x4 rod bundles with heater rods unheated just upsteam of spacer. The effect of spacer shapes on critical power was predicted analytically based on the droplet deposition rate estimation. The droplet deposition rate for different spacer shapes was calculated using a single-phase flow model. The prediction results were compared with the test results for the annulus flow channel using ring-type spacers. Analytical results of critical power agreed with measured critical power from point of the effects of changes in the rod-spacer clearance and the spacer thickness on critical power. (author)

Photoreceptor layer map using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Ji Eun; Lim, Dae Won; Bae, Han Yong; Park, Hyun Jin

2009-12-01

To develop a novel method for analysis of the photoreceptor layer map (PLM) generated using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT). OCT scans were obtained from 20 eyes, 10 with macular holes (MH) and 10 with central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC) using the Macular Cube (512 x 128) protocol of the Cirrus HD-OCT (Carl Zeiss). The scanned data were processed using embedded tools of the advanced visualization. A partial thickness OCT fundus image of the photoreceptor layer was generated by setting the region of interest to a 50-microm thick layer that was parallel and adjacent to the retinal pigment epithelium. The resulting image depicted the photoreceptor layer as a map of the reflectivity in OCT. The PLM was compared with fundus photography, auto-fluorescence, tomography, and retinal thickness map. The signal from the photoreceptor layer of every OCT scan in each case was demonstrated as a single image of PLM in a fundus photograph fashion. In PLM images, detachment of the sensory retina is depicted as a hypo-reflective area, which represents the base of MH and serous detachment in CSC. Relative hypo-reflectivity, which was also noted at closed MH and at recently reattached retina in CSC, was associated with reduced signal from the junction between the inner and outer segments of photoreceptors in OCT images. Using PLM, changes in the area of detachment and reflectivity of the photoreceptor layer could be efficiently monitored. The photoreceptor layer can be analyzed as a map using spectral-domain OCT. In the treatment of both MH and CSC, PLM may provide new pathological information about the photoreceptor layer to expand our understanding of these diseases.

Retinal axial focusing and multi-layer imaging with a liquid crystal adaptive optics camera

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu Rui-Xue; Zheng Xian-Liang; Li Da-Yu; Hu Li-Fa; Cao Zhao-Liang; Mu Quan-Quan; Xuan Li; Xia Ming-Liang

2014-01-01

With the help of adaptive optics (AO) technology, cellular level imaging of living human retina can be achieved. Aiming to reduce distressing feelings and to avoid potential drug induced diseases, we attempted to image retina with dilated pupil and froze accommodation without drugs. An optimized liquid crystal adaptive optics camera was adopted for retinal imaging. A novel eye stared system was used for stimulating accommodation and fixating imaging area. Illumination sources and imaging camera kept linkage for focusing and imaging different layers. Four subjects with diverse degree of myopia were imaged. Based on the optical properties of the human eye, the eye stared system reduced the defocus to less than the typical ocular depth of focus. In this way, the illumination light can be projected on certain retina layer precisely. Since that the defocus had been compensated by the eye stared system, the adopted 512 × 512 liquid crystal spatial light modulator (LC-SLM) corrector provided the crucial spatial fidelity to fully compensate high-order aberrations. The Strehl ratio of a subject with −8 diopter myopia was improved to 0.78, which was nearly close to diffraction-limited imaging. By finely adjusting the axial displacement of illumination sources and imaging camera, cone photoreceptors, blood vessels and nerve fiber layer were clearly imaged successfully. (electromagnetism, optics, acoustics, heat transfer, classical mechanics, and fluid dynamics)

A technical report on the evaluation of the integrity for the TIG welded spacer grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song, Kee Nam; Yoo, Ho Sik; Lww, Chang Woo

1994-07-01

The spacer grid, which supports fuel rods, guide thimble and instrumentation tube, is classified into two types according to their strap material,.ie. inconel and zircaloy spacer grid. KOFA fuel of 14 x 14 and 17 x 17 type has seven and eight spacer grid respectively. Zircaloy spacer grid is assembled by straps whose cross points are welded by TIG welding method. This technical report provides to give some information about structure and function of the spacer grid and the basis and characteristic of the TIG welding method. A series of test which is conducted to evaluate the integrity of TIG welded zircaloy spacer grid and their results have been also studied. (Author) 18 refs., 23 figs., 3 tabs

A technical report on the evaluation of the integrity for the TIG welded spacer grid

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Song, Kee Nam; Yoo, Ho Sik; Lww, Chang Woo [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea, Republic of)

1994-07-01

The spacer grid, which supports fuel rods, guide thimble and instrumentation tube, is classified into two types according to their strap material,.ie. inconel and zircaloy spacer grid. KOFA fuel of 14 x 14 and 17 x 17 type has seven and eight spacer grid respectively. Zircaloy spacer grid is assembled by straps whose cross points are welded by TIG welding method. This technical report provides to give some information about structure and function of the spacer grid and the basis and characteristic of the TIG welding method. A series of test which is conducted to evaluate the integrity of TIG welded zircaloy spacer grid and their results have been also studied. (Author) 18 refs., 23 figs., 3 tabs.

Numerical simulation of bubble motion about a grid spacer in a rod bundle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Zheng; Hosokawa, Shigeo; Hayashi, Kosuke; Tomiyama, Akio

2009-01-01

Numerical simulations based on a three-dimensional two-way bubble tracking method are carried out to predict bubble motions in a square duct with an obstacle and in a two-by-three rod bundle with a grid spacer. Comparisons between measured and predicted bubble motions demonstrate that the two-way bubble tracking method gives good predictions for trajectories of small bubbles in the upstream side of the grid spacer in the rod bundle geometry. The predicted bubble trajectories clearly show that bubbles are apt to migrate toward the rod surface in the vicinity of the bottom of the grid spacer. Analysis of forces acting on the bubbles confirms that pressure gradient force induced by the presence of the spacer is the main cause of the bubble lateral migration toward the rod surface. Motions of steam bubbles at a nominal operating condition of a pressurized water reactor (PWR) are also predicted by using the bubble tracking method, which indicates that steam bubbles also migrate toward the rod surface at the upstream side of the spacer due to the spacer-induced pressure gradient force. (author)

Photoluminescence of phosphorus atomic layer doped Ge grown on Si

Science.gov (United States)

Yamamoto, Yuji; Nien, Li-Wei; Capellini, Giovanni; Virgilio, Michele; Costina, Ioan; Schubert, Markus Andreas; Seifert, Winfried; Srinivasan, Ashwyn; Loo, Roger; Scappucci, Giordano; Sabbagh, Diego; Hesse, Anne; Murota, Junichi; Schroeder, Thomas; Tillack, Bernd

2017-10-01

Improvement of the photoluminescence (PL) of Phosphorus (P) doped Ge by P atomic layer doping (ALD) is investigated. Fifty P delta layers of 8 × 1013 cm-2 separated by 4 nm Ge spacer are selectively deposited at 300 °C on a 700 nm thick P-doped Ge buffer layer of 1.4 × 1019 cm-3 on SiO2 structured Si (100) substrate. A high P concentration region of 1.6 × 1020 cm-3 with abrupt P delta profiles is formed by the P-ALD process. Compared to the P-doped Ge buffer layer, a reduced PL intensity is observed, which might be caused by a higher density of point defects in the P delta doped Ge layer. The peak position is shifted by ˜0.1 eV towards lower energy, indicating an increased active carrier concentration in the P-delta doped Ge layer. By introducing annealing at 400 °C to 500 °C after each Ge spacer deposition, P desorption and diffusion is observed resulting in relatively uniform P profiles of ˜2 × 1019 cm-3. Increased PL intensity and red shift of the PL peak are observed due to improved crystallinity and higher active P concentration.

Physical-layer network coding for passive optical interconnect in datacenter networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Rui; Cheng, Yuxin; Guan, Xun; Tang, Ming; Liu, Deming; Chan, Chun-Kit; Chen, Jiajia

2017-07-24

We introduce physical-layer network coding (PLNC) technique in a passive optical interconnect (POI) architecture for datacenter networks. The implementation of the PLNC in the POI at 2.5 Gb/s and 10Gb/s have been experimentally validated while the gains in terms of network layer performances have been investigated by simulation. The results reveal that in order to realize negligible packet drop, the wavelengths usage can be reduced by half while a significant improvement in packet delay especially under high traffic load can be achieved by employing PLNC over POI.

In vivo determination of the optical properties of muscle with time-resolved reflectance using a layered model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kienle, A.; Glanzmann, T.

1999-01-01

We have investigated the possibility of determining the optical coefficients of muscle in the extremities with in vivo time-resolved reflectance measurements using a layered model. A solution of the diffusion equation for two layers was fitted to three-layered Monte Carlo calculations simulating the skin, the subcutaneous fat and the muscle. Relative time-resolved reflectance data at two distances were used to derive the optical coefficients of the layers. We found for skin and subcutaneous fat layer thicknesses (l 2 ) of up to 10 mm that the estimated absorption coefficients of the second layer of the diffusion model have differences of less than 20% compared with those of the muscle layer of the Monte Carlo simulations if the thickness of the first layer of the diffusion model is also fitted. If l 2 is known, the differences are less than 5%, whereas the use of a semi-infinite model delivers differences of up to 55%. Even if l 2 is only approximately known the absorption coefficient of the muscle can be determined accurately. Experimentally, the time-resolved reflectance was measured on the forearms of volunteers at two distances from the incident beam by means of a streak camera. The thicknesses of the tissues involved were determined by ultrasound. The optical coefficients were derived from these measurements by applying the two-layered diffusion model, and results in accordance with the theoretical studies were observed. (author)

Modeling the effect of spacers and biofouling on forward osmosis performance

KAUST Repository

Mosqueira Santillá n, Marí a José

2014-01-01

and operational conditions. For this, a two dimensional numerical model for FO systems was developed using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). This model allowed the evaluation of the impact of (i) spacers and (ii) biofilm, and (iii) the combined impact of spacers

Articulating spacers used in two-stage revision of infected hip and knee prostheses abrade with time.

Science.gov (United States)

Fink, Bernd; Rechtenbach, Annett; Büchner, Hubert; Vogt, Sebastian; Hahn, Michael

2011-04-01

Articulating spacers used in two-stage revision surgery of infected prostheses have the potential to abrade and subsequently induce third-body wear of the new prosthesis. We asked whether particulate material abraded from spacers could be detected in the synovial membrane 6 weeks after implantation when the spacers were removed for the second stage of the revision. Sixteen hip spacers (cemented prosthesis stem articulating with a cement cup) and four knee spacers (customized mobile cement spacers) were explanted 6 weeks after implantation and the synovial membranes were removed at the same time. The membranes were examined by xray fluorescence spectroscopy, xray diffraction for the presence of abraded particles originating from the spacer material, and analyzed in a semiquantitative manner by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Histologic analyses also were performed. We found zirconium dioxide in substantial amounts in all samples, and in the specimens of the hip synovial lining, we detected particles that originated from the metal heads of the spacers. Histologically, zirconium oxide particles were seen in the synovial membrane of every spacer and bone cement particles in one knee and two hip spacers. The observations suggest cement spacers do abrade within 6 weeks. Given the presence of abrasion debris, we recommend total synovectomy and extensive lavage during the second-stage reimplantation surgery to minimize the number of abraded particles and any retained bacteria.

Effects of optical layer impairments on 2.5 Gb/s optical CDMA transmission.

Science.gov (United States)

Feng, H; Mendez, A; Heritage, J; Lennon, W

2000-07-03

We conducted a computer simulation study to assess the effects of optical layer impairments on optical CDMA (O-CDMA) transmission of 8 asynchronous users at 2.5 Gb/s each user over a 214-km link. It was found that with group velocity dispersion compensation, two other residual effects, namely, the nonzero chromatic dispersion slope of the single mode fiber (which causes skew) and the non-uniform EDFA gain (which causes interference power level to exceed signal power level of some codes) degrade the signal to multi-access interference (MAI) ratio. In contrast, four wave mixing and modulation due to the Kerr and Raman contributions to the fiber nonlinear refractive index are less important. Current wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) technologies, including dispersion management, EDFA gain flattening, and 3 rd order dispersion compensation, are sufficient to overcome the impairments to the O-CDMA transmission system that we considered.

Deformation behavior of cell spring of an irradiated spacer grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jin, Y. G.; Baek, S. J.; Ryu, W. S.; Kim, G. S.; Yoo, B. O.; Kim, D. S.; Ahn, S. B.; Chun, Y. B.; Choo, Y. S.

2012-01-01

Mechanical properties of a space grid of a fuel assembly are of great importance for fuel operation reliability in extended fuel burnup and duration of fuel life. The spacer grid with inner and outer straps has cell spring and dimples, which are in contact with the fuel rod. The spacer grids supporting the fuel rods absorb vibration impacts due to the reactor coolant flow and also grid spring force is decreasing under irradiation. This reduction of contact force might cause the grid to rod fretting wear. The fretting failure of the fuel rod is one of the significant issues recently in the nuclear industry from an economical as well as a safety concern. Thus, it is important to understand the characteristics of cell spring behavior for an irradiated spacer grid. In the present study, the stiffness test and dimensional measurement of cell springs were conducted to investigate the deformation behavior of cell springs of an irradiated spacer grid in a hot cell at IMEF (irradiated materials examination facility) of KAERI

Implementation of spacer therapy for acute asthma in children.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Vandeleur, M

2009-09-01

The aim was to develop and implement an evidence based guideline for the treatment of acute asthma using a metered dose inhaler and spacer combination. Children admitted to Cork University Hospital Paediatric Department with acute asthma were identified during two identical 2 month seasonal periods before (2005) and after (2006) implementation of the new guidelines in September 2006. Pre-intervention and post-intervention audits by case note review were performed to determine the impact of and compliance with this evidence-based guideline emphasising patient assessment, spacer delivered bronchodilator and specific discharge criteria. Patients had similar characteristics during the two study periods. There was a raised threshold for admission after guideline implementation with 11\\/52 patients having mild exacerbations in 2006, compared to 21\\/36 in 2005. Duration of admission was less in the post-implementation group for equivalent exacerbation severity e.g. for moderate severity; 28 hours in 2005, 23 hours in 2006. Duration of bronchodilator therapy was shorter in 2006 and more likely to be given by spacer device earlier for equivalent levels of severity e.g. for moderate exacerbations, in 2006 the average length of salbutamol therapy was 18 hours with 12 hours by spacer device, in 2005 the average length of therapy was 25 hours with 3 hours by spacer. There was earlier initiation of oral corticosteroids; the average time to administration was 56 minutes in 2006 and 227 minutes in 2005. There was an improved documentation of asthma education in 2006 e.g. inhaler technique was reviewed in 37\\/52 in 2006, 21\\/35 in 2005 and better use of written action plans.

Effect of spacer grids on CHF in tube bundles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jayanti, Sreenivas; Valette, Michel

2004-01-01

Spacers grids are used to support tube bundles in steam generators and in nuclear reactor fuel assemblies. These grids interface with the flow and heat transfer in a number of ways and their effect has been studied by a number of researchers. It is known that generally they have a beneficial effect on critical heat flux (CHF) in typical nuclear reactor assemblies. However, the enhancement obtained depends on the geometric characteristics of the spacer grids as well as on the parameter range in terms of pressure, local mass velocity and quality. In the present study, the problem is approached in the context of a one-dimensional three-field model. Unlike in previous approaches, no specific modeling of the constitutive laws is made to account for spacer effects and only the geometric details such as the reduction in the cross-sectional area and the hydraulic diameter are included in the calculation which is otherwise the same as that for flow through a single tube. It is shown by comparison with literature data that this approach leads to satisfactory prediction of the thermal-hydraulic effects of spacers and that the beneficial effects of spacers on dry out can be manifested only when the entrainment rate is neither too high nor too low. Their effect on reducing the post-dry out wall temperature is also limited to certain cases. The present work has been performed as part of the EDF-CEA Neptune project also supported by the Institut de Radioprotection et de Surete Nucleaire (IRSN, France) and FRAMATOME-ANP. NEPTUNE is a new set of two phase thermalhydraulic computer codes devoted to safety analysis of nuclear power plants. (author)

Effect of a spacer moiety on radiometal labelled Neurotensin derivatives

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mascarin, A.; Valverde, I.E.; Mindt, T.L. [Univ. of Basel Hospital (Switzerland). Div. of Radiopharmaceutical Chemistry

2013-07-01

The binding sequence of the regulatory peptide Neurotensin, NT(8-13), represents a promising tumour-specific vector for the development of radiopeptides useful in nuclear oncology for the diagnosis (imaging) and therapy of cancer. A number of radiometal-labelled NT(8-13) derivatives have been reported, however, the effect of the spacer which connects the vector with the radiometal complex has yet not been investigated systematically. Because a spacer moiety can influence potentially important biological characteristics of radiopeptides, we synthesized three [DOTA({sup 177}Lu)]-X-NT(8-13) derivatives and evaluated the effect of a spacer (X) on the physico-chemical properties of the conjugate including lipophilicity, stability, and in vitro receptor affinity and cell internalization. (orig.)

Coordinated Multi-layer Multi-domain Optical Network (COMMON) for Large-Scale Science Applications (COMMON)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vokkarane, Vinod [University of Massachusetts

2013-09-01

We intend to implement a Coordinated Multi-layer Multi-domain Optical Network (COMMON) Framework for Large-scale Science Applications. In the COMMON project, specific problems to be addressed include 1) anycast/multicast/manycast request provisioning, 2) deployable OSCARS enhancements, 3) multi-layer, multi-domain quality of service (QoS), and 4) multi-layer, multidomain path survivability. In what follows, we outline the progress in the above categories (Year 1, 2, and 3 deliverables).

Shape Analysis of the Peripapillary RPE Layer in Papilledema and Ischemic Optic Neuropathy

Science.gov (United States)

Kupersmith, Mark J.; Rohlf, F. James

2011-01-01

Purpose. Geometric morphometrics (GM) was used to analyze the shape of the peripapillary retinal pigment epithelium–Bruch's membrane (RPE/BM) layer imaged on the SD-OCT 5-line raster in normal subjects and in patients with papilledema and ischemic optic neuropathy. Methods. Three groups of subjects were compared: 30 normals, 20 with anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (AION), and 25 with papilledema and intracranial hypertension. Twenty equidistant semilandmarks were digitized on OCT images of the RPE/BM layer spanning 2500 μm on each side of the neural canal opening (NCO). The data were analyzed using standard GM techniques, including a generalized least-squares Procrustes superimposition, principal component analysis, thin-plate spline (to visualize deformations), and permutation statistical analysis to evaluate differences in shape variables. Results. The RPE/BM layer in normals and AION have a characteristic V shape pointing away from the vitreous; the RPE/BM layer in papilledema has an inverted U shape, skewed nasally inward toward the vitreous. The differences were statistically significant. There was no significant difference in shapes between normals and AION. Pre- and posttreatment OCTs, in select cases of papilledema, showed that the inverted U-shaped RPE/BM moved posteriorly into a normal V shape as the papilledema resolved with weight loss or shunting. Conclusions. The shape difference in papilledema, absent in AION, cannot be explained by disc edema alone. The difference is a consequence of both the translaminar pressure gradient and the material properties of the peripapillary sclera. GM offers a novel way of statistically assessing shape differences of the peripapillary optic nerve head. PMID:21896851

Optically induced second-harmonic generation in CdI sub 2 -Cu layered nanocrystals

CERN Document Server

Voolless, F; Hydaradjan, W

2003-01-01

A large enhancement (up to 0.40 pm V sup - sup 1) of the second-order optical susceptibility was observed in CdI sub 2 -Cu single-layered nanocrystals for the Nd:YAG fundamental laser beam lambda = 1.06 mu m. The Cu impurity content and nanolayer thickness of the cleaved layers (about several nanometres) play a crucial role in the observed effect. The temperature dependence of the optical second-harmonic generation (SHG) together with its correlation with Raman spectra of low-frequency modes indicate a key role for the UV-induced anharmonic electron-phonon interactions in the observed effect. The maximal output UV-induced SHG was achieved for a Cu content of about 0.5% and at liquid helium temperatures.

An optical, electrical and ultrasonic layered single sensor for ingredient measurement in liquid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kimoto, A; Kitajima, T

2010-01-01

In this paper, an optical, electrical and ultrasonic layered single sensor is proposed as a new, non-invasive sensing method for the measurement of ingredients in liquid, particularly in the food industry. In the proposed sensor, the photo sensors and the PVDF films with the transparent conductive electrode are layered and the optical properties of the liquid are measured by a light emitting diode (LED) and a phototransistor (PT). In addition, the electrical properties are measured by indium tin oxide (ITO) film electrodes as the transparent conductive electrodes of PVDF films arranged on the surfaces of the LED and PT. Moreover, the ultrasonic properties are measured by PVDF films. Thus, the optical, electrical and ultrasonic properties in the same space of the liquid can be simultaneously measured at a single sensor. To test the sensor experimentally, three parameters of the liquid—such as concentrations of yellow color, sodium chloride (NaCl) and ethanol in distilled water—were estimated using the measurement values of the optical, electrical and ultrasonic properties obtained with the proposed sensor. The results suggested that it is possible to estimate the three ingredient concentrations in the same space of the liquid from the optical, electrical and ultrasonic properties measured by the proposed single sensor, although there are still some problems such as measurement accuracy that must be solved

Hemodynamic monitoring in different cortical layers with a single fiber optical system

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Linhui; Noor, M. Sohail; Kiss, Zelma H. T.; Murari, Kartikeya

2018-02-01

Functional monitoring of highly-localized deep brain structures is of great interest. However, due to light scattering, optical methods have limited depth penetration or can only measure from a large volume. In this research, we demonstrate continuous measurement of hemodynamics in different cortical layers in response to thalamic deep brain stimulation (DBS) using a single fiber optical system. A 200-μm-core-diameter multimode fiber is used to deliver and collect light from tissue. The fiber probe can be stereotaxically implanted into the brain region of interest at any depth to measure the di use reflectance spectra from a tissue volume of 0.02-0.03 mm3 near the fiber tip. Oxygenation is then extracted from the reflectance spectra using an algorithm based on Monte Carlo simulations. Measurements were performed on the surface (cortical layer I) and at 1.5 mm depth (cortical layer VI) of the motor cortex in anesthetized rats with thalamic DBS. Preliminary results revealed the oxygenation changes in response to DBS. Moreover, the baseline as well as the stimulus-evoked change in oxygenation were different at the two depths of cortex.

Indirect optical crosstalk reduction by highly-doped backside layer in single-photon avalanche diode arrays

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Osrečki, Željko; Knežević, Tihomir; Nanver, Lis K.; Suligoj, Tomislav

2018-01-01

A method of reducing indirect optical crosstalk in single-photon avalanche diode arrays is investigated by TCAD simulations. The reduction is accomplished by taking advantage of an enhanced optical absorption in a highly-doped Si layer on the backside of the wafer. A simulation environment was

Manipulation of recombination zone by utilizing the donor of electroplex as a spacer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lü, Zhaoyue, E-mail: lvzhaoyue@ecust.edu.cn [Department of Physics, School of Science, East China University of Science & Technology, Shanghai 200237 (China); Yin, Yuehong [Department of Applied Physics, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Henan Polytechnic University, Jiaozuo, Henan Province 454000 (China); Xiao, Jing [Physics and Electronic Engineering College, Taishan University, Shandong Province 271021,China (China)

2016-11-15

The emission of electroplex is varied with applied voltages, leading to poor color stability of devices. In this work, the recombination region was investigated in organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) based on the electroplex between N,N’-diphenyl-N,N’-bis(1-naphthyl-phenyl)-1,1′-biphenyl-4,4′-diamine(NPB) and 2-(4-biphenylyl)-5-(4-tert-butylphenyl)-1,2,4-oxadiazole (PBD). Color stability was manipulated by introducing the donor of electroplex as a spacer, which plays an important role of recombination zone for electroplex-based OLEDs. The 5-nm-spacer-device brought out a tolerable chromaticity coordinate shift of less than 0.01 for both x- and y-value. White light emission with CIE coordinates of (0.37,0.28) and (0.33,0.26) at 12 V was achieved when the thickness of spacer was 7 and 10 nm, respectively. The 7-nm-spacer-device exhibited better color stability than the 10-nm-spacer-device. This proves that adjusting spacer thickness is a simple and efficient method to control recombination region and can be useful for fulfilling color-stable electroplex-based white emission.

Manipulation of recombination zone by utilizing the donor of electroplex as a spacer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lü, Zhaoyue; Yin, Yuehong; Xiao, Jing

2016-01-01

The emission of electroplex is varied with applied voltages, leading to poor color stability of devices. In this work, the recombination region was investigated in organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) based on the electroplex between N,N’-diphenyl-N,N’-bis(1-naphthyl-phenyl)-1,1′-biphenyl-4,4′-diamine(NPB) and 2-(4-biphenylyl)-5-(4-tert-butylphenyl)-1,2,4-oxadiazole (PBD). Color stability was manipulated by introducing the donor of electroplex as a spacer, which plays an important role of recombination zone for electroplex-based OLEDs. The 5-nm-spacer-device brought out a tolerable chromaticity coordinate shift of less than 0.01 for both x- and y-value. White light emission with CIE coordinates of (0.37,0.28) and (0.33,0.26) at 12 V was achieved when the thickness of spacer was 7 and 10 nm, respectively. The 7-nm-spacer-device exhibited better color stability than the 10-nm-spacer-device. This proves that adjusting spacer thickness is a simple and efficient method to control recombination region and can be useful for fulfilling color-stable electroplex-based white emission.

A functional analysis of the spacer of V(DJ recombination signal sequences.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alfred Ian Lee

2003-10-01

Full Text Available During lymphocyte development, V(DJ recombination assembles antigen receptor genes from component V, D, and J gene segments. These gene segments are flanked by a recombination signal sequence (RSS, which serves as the binding site for the recombination machinery. The murine Jbeta2.6 gene segment is a recombinationally inactive pseudogene, but examination of its RSS reveals no obvious reason for its failure to recombine. Mutagenesis of the Jbeta2.6 RSS demonstrates that the sequences of the heptamer, nonamer, and spacer are all important. Strikingly, changes solely in the spacer sequence can result in dramatic differences in the level of recombination. The subsequent analysis of a library of more than 4,000 spacer variants revealed that spacer residues of particular functional importance are correlated with their degree of conservation. Biochemical assays indicate distinct cooperation between the spacer and heptamer/nonamer along each step of the reaction pathway. The results suggest that the spacer serves not only to ensure the appropriate distance between the heptamer and nonamer but also regulates RSS activity by providing additional RAG:RSS interaction surfaces. We conclude that while RSSs are defined by a "digital" requirement for absolutely conserved nucleotides, the quality of RSS function is determined in an "analog" manner by numerous complex interactions between the RAG proteins and the less-well conserved nucleotides in the heptamer, the nonamer, and, importantly, the spacer. Those modulatory effects are accurately predicted by a new computational algorithm for "RSS information content." The interplay between such binary and multiplicative modes of interactions provides a general model for analyzing protein-DNA interactions in various biological systems.

How to use an inhaler - no spacer

Science.gov (United States)

... MDI) administration - no spacer; Bronchial nebulizer; Wheezing - nebulizer; Reactive airway - nebulizer; COPD - ... 66. National Asthma Education and Prevention Program website. How to use a metered-dose inhaler. ...

Metal-insulator transition in AlxGa1-xAs/GaAs heterostructures with large spacer width

Science.gov (United States)

Gold, A.

1991-10-01

Analytical results are presented for the mobility of a two-dimensional electron gas in a heterostructure with a thick spacer layer α. Due to multiple-scattering effects a metal-insulator transition occurs at a critical electron density Nc=N1/2i/(4π1/2α) (Ni is the impurity density). The transport mean free path l(t) (calculated in Born approximation) at the metal-insulator transition is l(t)c=2α. A localization criterion in terms of the renormalized single-particle mean free path l(sr) is presented: kFcl(sr)c=(1/2)1/2 (kFc is the Fermi wave number at the critical density). I compare the theoretical results with recent experimental results found in AlxGa1-xAs/GaAs heterostructures with large spacer width: 1200<α<2800 Å. Remote impurity doping and homogeneous background doping are considered. The only fitting parameter used for the theoretical results is the background doping density NB=6×1013 cm-3. My theory is in fair agreement with the experimental results.

Characterization of feed channel spacer performance using geometries obtained by X-ray computed tomography

KAUST Repository

Haaksman, Viktor A.

2016-09-09

Spiral-wound membrane modules used in water treatment for water reuse and desalination make use of spacer meshes for keeping the membrane leaves apart and for enhancing the mass transfer. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) has gained importance in the design of new spacers with optimized hydrodynamic characteristics, but this requires a precise description of the spacer geometry. This study developed a method to obtain accurate three-dimensional (3-D) geometry representations for any given spacer design from X-ray computed tomography (CT) scans. The method revealed that the filaments of industrial spacers have a highly variable cross-section size and shape, which impact the flow characteristics in the feed channel. The pressure drop and friction factors were calculated from numerical simulations on five commercially available feed spacers used in practice. Model solutions compared well to experimental data measured using a flow cell for average velocities up to 0.2 m/s, as used in industrial reverse osmosis and nanofiltration membrane operations. A newly-proposed spacer geometry with alternating strand thickness was tested, which was found to yield a lower pressure drop while being highly efficient in converting the pumping power into membrane shear. Numerical model solutions using CFD with geometries from CT scans were closer to measurements than those obtained using the traditional circular cross-section strand simplification, indicating that CT scans are very well suitable to approximate real feed spacer geometries. By providing detailed insight on the spacer filament shape, CT scans allow better quantification of local distribution of velocity and shear, possibly leading to more accurate estimations of fouling and concentration polarization. © 2016 Elsevier B.V.

Optic Nerve Head and Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Differences Between Caribbean Black and African American Patients as Measured by Spectral Domain OCT.

Science.gov (United States)

Rao, Rohini; Dhrami-Gavazi, Elona; Al-Aswad, Lama; Ciarleglio, Adam; Cioffi, George A; Blumberg, Dana M

2015-01-01

There are well-established differences in optic nerve morphology between patients of African and European descent. Spectral domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) scanning has demonstrated these differences with respect to optic disc area (DA), average cup-disc ratio, cup volume, and nerve fiber layer thickness. However, the term "African descent" describes a heterogenous group with considerable variability. This study evaluates differences in optic nerve and retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) parameters as measured by Cirrus HD-OCT between Caribbean black and African American patients. A total of 25 African American subjects and 25 Caribbean black subjects with normal ocular examinations were consecutively recruited to this study. All patients received imaging of the optic nerve and nerve fiber layer with Cirrus HD-OCT. Optic nerve and RNFL parameters were evaluated for statistically significant differences using a t test. A mixed effect model for correlated data was then created to adjust outcome variables for (1) repeated measures and (2) optic nerve size. Two one-sided t tests were then utilized to determine equivalence. After adjustment for DA, RNFL thickness, cup volume, DA, inferior nerve fiber layer, and vertical cup-disc ratio demonstrated statistically significant equivalence between the 2 groups (P value fiber layer quadrant was significantly different between the 2 groups and may merit further investigation. Findings of this study suggest that optic nerve and RNFL morphology is markedly similar between Caribbean blacks and African Americans once adjusted for optic nerve size but cannot be considered equivalent in all measures, particularly in the superior nerve fiber layer.

Effect of plastic spacer handling on salbutamol lung deposition in asthmatic children

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lipworth, Brian J; Lee, Daniel K C; Anhøj, Jacob

2002-01-01

AIMS: To study the effects of electrostatics in a plastic spacer on the lung deposition of salbutamol in asthmatic children. METHODS: Twenty-five children (5-12 years) with mild asthma were given salbutamol hydrofluoroalkane pressurized metered dose inhaler 400 micro g via a 750 ml plastic spacer...... on separate days. Blood samples were taken for plasma salbutamol at 5, 10, 15 and 20 min after inhalation to measure lung bioavailability as a surrogate for relative lung dose. With immediate inhalation following actuation, a new rinsed spacer (NewRinsed ) was compared with a used spacer after repeated daily...... log transformed and expressed as geometric mean fold difference for the average plasma salbutamol concentration (Cav) over 20 min. RESULTS: There were significant differences (P NewRinsed 1.92 fold (95% CI 1.15, 3...

Quasiparticle energies, excitons, and optical spectra of few-layer black phosphorus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tran, Vy; Fei, Ruixiang; Yang, Li

2015-01-01

We report first-principles GW–Bethe–Salpeter-equation (BSE) studies of excited-state properties of few-layer black phosphorus (BP) (phosphorene). With improved GW computational methods, we obtained converged quasiparticle band gaps and optical absorption spectra by the single-shot (G 0 W 0 ) procedure. Moreover, we reveal fine structures of anisotropic excitons, including the series of one-dimensional like wave functions, spin singlet–triplet splitting, and electron–hole binding energy spectra by solving BSE. An effective-mass model is employed to describe these electron–hole pairs, shedding light on estimating the exciton binding energy of anisotropic two-dimensional semiconductors without expensive ab initio simulations. Finally, the anisotropic optical response of BP is explained by using optical selection rules based on the projected single-particle density of states at band edges. (paper)

Long-term retinal nerve fiber layer changes following nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dotan G

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Gad Dotan,1 Michaella Goldstein,1 Anat Kesler,1 Barry Skarf21Department of Ophthalmology, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; 2Eye Care Services, Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, MI, USABackground: In cases of nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION, retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL thickness changes have been described during the first 12 months following the acute event. The purpose of this study was to report on the long-term RNFL changes in these eyes beyond the first year following onset of NAION.Methods: Fourteen eyes of 13 patients with NAION were analyzed in this retrospective observational case series study. Uninvolved eyes served as controls. All patients underwent a complete neuro-ophthalmological examination and repeat measurements of peripapillary RNFL thickness using Stratus optical coherence tomography.Results: On optical coherence tomography scan performed on average 6 months following onset of NAION, the mean global RNFL thickness (59.8 ± 11.8 μm was significantly thinner (P < 0.001 compared with uninvolved eyes (95.1 ± 13.9 μm. In a second optical coherence tomography scan performed on average 13 (range 12–23 months later, the mean global RNFL thickness (58.9 ± 6.5 μm was not significantly different (P = 0.702 from the first scan.Conclusion: There appears to be no further RNFL loss beyond the first 6 months following an acute event of NAION.Keywords: optical coherence tomography, retinal nerve fiber layer, nonartertic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy

Shelf life of pie caps with biodegradable films as spacers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniela Verónica Escobar Gianni

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Commonly pie caps at market use polyethylene films as spacers between them. This paper studies the conventional spacers replacement with edible and biodegradable films made with whey protein isolate (WPI and potassium sorbate as a preservative. Besides facilitating the separation of pie caps, with this application is intended to increase their shelf life. The films made by the compression molding method were used as spacers in pie caps without preservative in their formula (A and with preservative (B and they were compared with conventional polyethylene spacers (C. During four months, monthly sensory, microbiological and physicochemical (humidity evaluations were done on the pie caps, together with humidity and solubility evaluations of the films. None of the samples showed microbiological or sensory deterioration. The sensory attributes showed no or slight difference in study time. Between samples the differences were minor: the best scores were for sample A in color, sample C in flavor, and samples B and C in texture and overall liking. The edible films have an interesting potential for this application, although studies in disguise the flavor of serum should be done.

Automated intraretinal layer segmentation of optical coherence tomography images using graph-theoretical methods

Science.gov (United States)

Roy, Priyanka; Gholami, Peyman; Kuppuswamy Parthasarathy, Mohana; Zelek, John; Lakshminarayanan, Vasudevan

2018-02-01

Segmentation of spectral-domain Optical Coherence Tomography (SD-OCT) images facilitates visualization and quantification of sub-retinal layers for diagnosis of retinal pathologies. However, manual segmentation is subjective, expertise dependent, and time-consuming, which limits applicability of SD-OCT. Efforts are therefore being made to implement active-contours, artificial intelligence, and graph-search to automatically segment retinal layers with accuracy comparable to that of manual segmentation, to ease clinical decision-making. Although, low optical contrast, heavy speckle noise, and pathologies pose challenges to automated segmentation. Graph-based image segmentation approach stands out from the rest because of its ability to minimize the cost function while maximising the flow. This study has developed and implemented a shortest-path based graph-search algorithm for automated intraretinal layer segmentation of SD-OCT images. The algorithm estimates the minimal-weight path between two graph-nodes based on their gradients. Boundary position indices (BPI) are computed from the transition between pixel intensities. The mean difference between BPIs of two consecutive layers quantify individual layer thicknesses, which shows statistically insignificant differences when compared to a previous study [for overall retina: p = 0.17, for individual layers: p > 0.05 (except one layer: p = 0.04)]. These results substantiate the accurate delineation of seven intraretinal boundaries in SD-OCT images by this algorithm, with a mean computation time of 0.93 seconds (64-bit Windows10, core i5, 8GB RAM). Besides being self-reliant for denoising, the algorithm is further computationally optimized to restrict segmentation within the user defined region-of-interest. The efficiency and reliability of this algorithm, even in noisy image conditions, makes it clinically applicable.

Hot fuel examination facility element spacer wire-wrap machine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tobias, D.A.; Sherman, E.K.

1989-01-01

Nondestructive examinations of irradiated experimental fuel elements conducted in the Argonne National Laboratory Hot Fuel Examination Facility/North (HFEF/N) at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory include laser and contact profilometry (element diameter measurements), electrical eddy-current testing for cladding and thermal bond defects, bow and length measurements, neutron radiography, gamma scanning, remote visual exam, and photography. Profilometry was previously restricted to spiral profilometry of the element to prevent interference with the element spacer wire wrapped in a helix about the Experimental Breeder Reactor II (EBR-II)-type fuel element from end to end. By removing the spacer wire prior to conducting profilometry examination, axial profilometry techniques may be used, which are considerably faster than spiral techniques and often result in data acquisition more important to experiment sponsors. Because the element must often be reinserted into the nuclear reactor (EBR-II) for additional irradiation, however, the spacer wire must be reinstalled on the highly irradiated fuel element by remote means after profilometry of the wireless elements. The element spacer wire-wrap machine developed at HFEF is capable of helically wrapping fuel elements with diameters up to 1.68 cm (0.660 in.) and 2.44-m (96-in.) lengths. The machine can accommodate almost any desired wire pitch length by simply inserting a new wrapper gear module

Knitting Technologies And Tensile Properties Of A Novel Curved Flat-Knitted Three-Dimensional Spacer Fabrics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Li Xiaoying

2015-09-01

Full Text Available This paper introduces a knitting technique for making innovative curved three-dimensional (3D spacer fabrics by the computer flat-knitting machine. During manufacturing, a number of reinforcement yarns made of aramid fibres are inserted into 3D spacer fabrics along the weft direction to enhance the fabric tensile properties. Curved, flat-knitted 3D spacer fabrics with different angles (in the warp direction were also developed. Tensile tests were carried out in the weft and warp directions for the two spacer fabrics (with and without reinforcement yarns, and their stress–strain curves were compared. The results showed that the reinforcement yarns can reduce the fabric deformation and improve tensile stress and dimensional stability of 3D spacer fabrics. This research can help the further study of 3D spacer fabric when applied to composites.

Pros and cons of symmetrical dual-k spacer technology in hybrid FinFETs

Science.gov (United States)

Pradhan, K. P.; Andrade, M. G. C.; Sahu, P. K.

2016-12-01

The symmetrical dual-k spacer technology in hybrid FinFETs has been widely explored for better electrostatic control of the fin-based devices in nanoscale region. Since, high-k tangible spacer materials are broadly became a matter of study due to their better immunity to the short channel effects (SCEs) in nano devices. However, the only cause that restricts the circuit designers from using high-k spacer is the unreasonable increasing fringing capacitances. This work quantitatively analyzed the benefits and drawbacks of considering two different dielectric spacer materials symmetrically in either sides of the channel for the hybrid device. From the demonstrated results, the inclusion of high-k spacer predicts an effective reduction in off-state leakage along with an improvement in drive current. However, these devices have paid the cost in terms of a high total gate-to-gate capacitance (Cgg) that consequently results poor cutoff frequency (fT) and delay.

Using cathode spacers to minimize reactor size in air cathode microbial fuel cells

KAUST Repository

Yang, Qiao

2012-04-01

Scaling up microbial fuel cells (MFCs) will require more compact reactor designs. Spacers can be used to minimize the reactor size without adversely affecting performance. A single 1.5mm expanded plastic spacer (S1.5) produced a maximum power density (973±26mWm -2) that was similar to that of an MFC with the cathode exposed directly to air (no spacer). However, a very thin spacer (1.3mm) reduced power by 33%. Completely covering the air cathode with a solid plate did not eliminate power generation, indicating oxygen leakage into the reactor. The S1.5 spacer slightly increased columbic efficiencies (from 20% to 24%) as a result of reduced oxygen transfer into the system. Based on operating conditions (1000ς, CE=20%), it was estimated that 0.9Lh -1 of air would be needed for 1m 2 of cathode area suggesting active air flow may be needed for larger scale MFCs. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.

Nuclear reactor fuel assembly spacer grids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jabsen, F.S.

1977-01-01

Designs of nuclear reactor fuel assembly spacer grids for supporting and spacing fuel elements are described which do not utilize resilient grid plate protrusions in the peripheral band but retain the advantages inherent in the combination resilient and rigid protrusion cells. (U.K.)

Suppression of subthreshold characteristics variation for junctionless multigate transistors using high-k spacers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lou, Haijun; Zhang, Baili; Li, Dan; Lin, Xinnan; He, Jin; Chan, Mansun

2015-01-01

In this work, the high-k spacer is proposed to suppress the subthreshold characteristics variation of junctionless multigate transistor (JMT) with non-ideal sidewall angle for the first time. It is demonstrated that the variation of subthreshold characteristics induced by the changing sidewall angle is efficiently suppressed by high-k spacers due to the enhanced corner effect through the fringe capacitance, and the electrostatic integrity of JMTs is also improved at sub-22 nm gate length. Two key parameters of high-k spacer, the thickness and length, have been optimized in terms of the suppression of subthreshold characteristics variation. Then their optimal values are proposed. The benefit of high-k spacer makes JMTs more scalable. (paper)

Mid-infrared materials and devices on a Si platform for optical sensing

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Vivek; Lin, Pao Tai; Patel, Neil; Lin, Hongtao; Li, Lan; Zou, Yi; Deng, Fei; Ni, Chaoying; Hu, Juejun; Giammarco, James; Soliani, Anna Paola; Zdyrko, Bogdan; Luzinov, Igor; Novak, Spencer; Novak, Jackie; Wachtel, Peter; Danto, Sylvain; Musgraves, J David; Richardson, Kathleen; Kimerling, Lionel C; Agarwal, Anuradha M

2014-01-01

In this article, we review our recent work on mid-infrared (mid-IR) photonic materials and devices fabricated on silicon for on-chip sensing applications. Pedestal waveguides based on silicon are demonstrated as broadband mid-IR sensors. Our low-loss mid-IR directional couplers demonstrated in SiNx waveguides are useful in differential sensing applications. Photonic crystal cavities and microdisk resonators based on chalcogenide glasses for high sensitivity are also demonstrated as effective mid-IR sensors. Polymer-based functionalization layers, to enhance the sensitivity and selectivity of our sensor devices, are also presented. We discuss the design of mid-IR chalcogenide waveguides integrated with polycrystalline PbTe detectors on a monolithic silicon platform for optical sensing, wherein the use of a low-index spacer layer enables the evanescent coupling of mid-IR light from the waveguides to the detector. Finally, we show the successful fabrication processing of our first prototype mid-IR waveguide-integrated detectors. PMID:27877641

Enhanced optical-to-THz conversion efficiency of photoconductive antenna using dielectric nano-layer encapsulation

Science.gov (United States)

Gupta, Abhishek; Rana, Goutam; Bhattacharya, Arkabrata; Singh, Abhishek; Jain, Ravikumar; Bapat, Rudheer D.; Duttagupta, S. P.; Prabhu, S. S.

2018-05-01

Photoconductive antennas (PCAs) are among the most conventional devices used for emission as well as detection of terahertz (THz) radiation. However, due to their low optical-to-THz conversion efficiencies, applications of these devices in out-of-laboratory conditions are limited. In this paper, we report several factors of enhancement in THz emission efficiency from conventional PCAs by coating a nano-layer of dielectric (TiO2) on the active area between the electrodes of a semi-insulating GaAs-based device. Extensive experiments were done to show the effect of thicknesses of the TiO2 layer on the THz power enhancement with different applied optical power and bias voltages. Multiphysics simulations were performed to elucidate the underlying physics behind the enhancement of efficiency of the PCA. Additionally, this layer increases the robustness of the electrode gaps of the PCAs with high electrical insulation as well as protect it from external dust particles.

The effect of oxidation on physical properties of porous silicon layers for optical applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pirasteh, Parasteh [Laboratoire d' Optronique, CNRS-UMR FOTON 6082, Universite de Rennes 1, ENSSAT Tecnhopole Anticipa, 6 rue de Kerampont, BP 447, 22305 Lannion Cedex (France); Charrier, Joel [Laboratoire d' Optronique, CNRS-UMR FOTON 6082, Universite de Rennes 1, ENSSAT Tecnhopole Anticipa, 6 rue de Kerampont, BP 447, 22305 Lannion Cedex (France)]. E-mail: joel.charrier@univ-rennes1.fr; Soltani, Ali [Institut d' Electronique, de Microemectronique et de Nanotechnologie, CNRS-UMR 8520, Cite Scientifique Avenue Poincare, BP 69, 59652 Villeneuve d' Ascq Cedex (France); Haesaert, Severine [Laboratoire d' Optronique, CNRS-UMR FOTON 6082, Universite de Rennes 1, ENSSAT Tecnhopole Anticipa, 6 rue de Kerampont, BP 447, 22305 Lannion Cedex (France); Haji, Lazhar [Laboratoire d' Optronique, CNRS-UMR FOTON 6082, Universite de Rennes 1, ENSSAT Tecnhopole Anticipa, 6 rue de Kerampont, BP 447, 22305 Lannion Cedex (France); Godon, Christine [Laboratoire de Physique Crystalline, Institut des Materiaux Jean Rouxel, 44322 Nantes Cedex 3 (France); Errien, Nicolas [Laboratoire de Physique Crystalline, Institut des Materiaux Jean Rouxel, 44322 Nantes Cedex 3 (France)

2006-12-15

In order to understand the optical loss mechanisms in porous silicon based waveguides, structural and optical studies have been performed. Scanning and transmission electron microscopic observations of porous silicon layers are obtained before and after an oxidation process at high temperature in wet O{sub 2}. Pore size and shape of heavily p-type doped Si wafers are estimated and correlated to the optical properties of the material before and after oxidation. The refractive index was measured and compared to that determined by the Bruggeman model.

Investigating the thermal hydraulic performance of spacer grid with mixing vanes using STAR-CCM+ and MATRA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Agbodemegbe, V. Y.

2014-07-01

Enhancement of heat transfer for flow through rod bundles is linked to the extent and sustainability of mixing in the flow geometry. Spacer grids used as support for rod bundles in nuclear reactors, when attached with ditferent designs of mixing vanes promote turbulent mixing by inducing swirl or forced lateral convection that improves mixing within or between sub-channels. The improved turbulent mixing raises the margin of the onset of critical heat flux in light water reactors (LWR) and also ensures a higher fuel cycle economy. To optimize design of mixing vanes and performance of spacer grids with mixing vanes, computational fluid dynamic simulations arc carried out on new designs and validated experimentally prior to industrial application. In the present study, computational fluid dynamic simulation using STAR-CCM+ and sub-channel analysis with MATRA were performed for flow of water through a 5 X 5 rod bundle geometry for which the rod to rod pitch to diameter ratio was 1.33 and the wall to rod pitch to diameter ratio was 0.74. The two layer k-epsilon turbulence model with an all- y + automatic wall treatment function in STAR-CCM+ were adopted for an isothermal single phase flow through the geometry with imposed cyclic periodic and non-cyclic periodic interface boundary conditions. The objective was to primarily investigate the detail flow behavior in rod bundle in the presence of spacer grids with and without attached mixing vanes. Furthermore, the present study also investigated the extent of turbulent mixing and lateral mass flux induced by the mixing vanes through comparative analysis of parametric trends for spacer grid with and without mixing vanes. New models and empirical correlations for describing the mixing vanes effects were also developed. These semi-empirical correlations improved the prediction for lateral mass flux due to turbulence, fraction of flow diverted through gaps and cross-flow resistance coefficients. Validation of simulation results

BWR fuel assembly with improved spacer and fuel bundle design for enhanced thermal-hydraulic performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mildrum, C.M.; Taleyarkhan, R.P.

1987-01-01

In a fuel assembly having a bundle of elongated fuel rods disposed in side-by-side relationship so as to form an array of spaced fuel rods, an outer tubular flow channel surrounding the fuel rods so as to direct flow of coolant/moderator fluid along the fuel rods, a hollow water cross extending centrally through and interconnected with the outer flow channel so as to divide the channel into separate compartments and the bundle of fuelrods into a plurality of mini-bundles thereof being disposed in the compartments, and spacers axially displaced along the fuel rods in each of the mini-bundles thereof. Each spacer is composed of inner and outer means which together define spacer cells at corner, side and interior locations of the spacer and have respective protrusions formed thereon which extend into cells so as to maintain the fuel rods received through the spacer cells in laterally spaced relationships. The improvement is described which comprises: (a) a generally uniform poison coating within at least a majority of the fuel rods; (b) a predetermined pattern of fuel enrichment with respect to the fuel rods of each mini-bundle thereof which together with the uniform poison coating within the fuel rods ensures that the packing powers of the fuel rods in the corner and side cells of the spacers are less than the peaking power of a leading one of the fuel rods in the interior cells of the spacers; and (c) each of the fuel rods being received through the cells of each spacer having a diametric size smaller than that of each of the fuel rods received through the side and interior cells of each spacer, the diametric sizes of each of the fuel rods received through the side and interior cells of each spacer being generally equal

Evolution of microstructure and related optical properties of ZnO grown by atomic layer deposition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adib Abou Chaaya

2013-10-01

Full Text Available A study of transmittance and photoluminescence spectra on the growth of oxygen-rich ultra-thin ZnO films prepared by atomic layer deposition is reported. The structural transition from an amorphous to a polycrystalline state is observed upon increasing the thickness. The unusual behavior of the energy gap with thickness reflected by optical properties is attributed to the improvement of the crystalline structure resulting from a decreasing concentration of point defects at the growth of grains. The spectra of UV and visible photoluminescence emissions correspond to transitions near the band-edge and defect-related transitions. Additional emissions were observed from band-tail states near the edge. A high oxygen ratio and variable optical properties could be attractive for an application of atomic layer deposition (ALD deposited ultrathin ZnO films in optical sensors and biosensors.

Strong room-temperature ultraviolet to red excitons from inorganic organic-layered perovskites, (MX4 (M=Pb, Sn, Hg; X=I-, Br-)

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmad, Shahab; Prakash, G. Vijaya

2014-01-01

Many varieties of layered inorganic-organic (IO) perovskite of type (MX4 (where R: organic moiety, M: divalent metal, and X: halogen) were successfully fabricated and characterized. X-ray diffraction data suggest that these inorganic and organic structures are alternatively stacked up along c-axis, where inorganic mono layers are of extended corner-shared MX6 octahedra and organic spacers are the bi-layers of organic entities. These layered perovskites show unusual room-temperature exciton absorption and photoluminescence due to the quantum and dielectric confinement-induced enhancement in the exciton binding energies. A wide spectral range of optical exciton tunability (350 to 600 nm) was observed experimentally from systematic compositional variation in (i) divalent metal ions (M=Pb, Sn, Hg), (ii) halides (X=I and Br-), and (iii) organic moieties (R). Specific photoluminescence features are due to the structure of the extended MX42- network and the eventual electronic band structure. The compositionally dependent photoluminescence of these IO hybrids could be useful in various photonic and optoelectronic devices.

Reference Architecture for Multi-Layer Software Defined Optical Data Center Networks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Casimer DeCusatis

2015-09-01

Full Text Available As cloud computing data centers grow larger and networking devices proliferate; many complex issues arise in the network management architecture. We propose a framework for multi-layer; multi-vendor optical network management using open standards-based software defined networking (SDN. Experimental results are demonstrated in a test bed consisting of three data centers interconnected by a 125 km metropolitan area network; running OpenStack with KVM and VMW are components. Use cases include inter-data center connectivity via a packet-optical metropolitan area network; intra-data center connectivity using an optical mesh network; and SDN coordination of networking equipment within and between multiple data centers. We create and demonstrate original software to implement virtual network slicing and affinity policy-as-a-service offerings. Enhancements to synchronous storage backup; cloud exchanges; and Fibre Channel over Ethernet topologies are also discussed.

Effects of buffer layer annealing temperature on the structural and optical properties of hydrothermal grown ZnO

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhao, X.Q.; Kim, C.R.; Lee, J.Y.; Heo, J.H.; Shin, C.M. [Department of Nano Systems Engineering, Center for Nano Manufacturing, Inje University, Obang-dong, Gimhae, Gyeongnam 621-749 (Korea, Republic of); Ryu, H., E-mail: hhryu@inje.ac.kr [Department of Nano Systems Engineering, Center for Nano Manufacturing, Inje University, Obang-dong, Gimhae, Gyeongnam 621-749 (Korea, Republic of); Chang, J.H. [Major of Nano Semiconductor, Korea Maritime University, 1 Dongsam-dong, Yeongdo-Ku, Busan 606-791 (Korea, Republic of); Lee, H.C. [Department of Mechatronics Engineering, Korea Maritime University, 1 Dongsam-dong, Yeongdo-Ku, Busan 606-791 (Korea, Republic of); Son, C.S. [Department of Electronic Materials Engineering, Silla University, Gwaebeop-dong, Sasang-gu, Busan 617-736 (Korea, Republic of); Lee, W.J. [Department of Nano Engineering, Dong-Eui University, 995 Eomgwangno, Busanjin-gu, Busan 614-714 (Korea, Republic of); Jung, W.G. [School of Advanced Materials Engineering, Kookmin University, 861-1 Jeongneung-dong, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 136-702 (Korea, Republic of); Tan, S.T. [Institute of Microelectronics, 11 Science Park Road, Science Park II, Singapore 117685 (Singapore); Zhao, J.L. [School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798 (Singapore); Sun, X.W. [Institute of Microelectronics, 11 Science Park Road, Science Park II, Singapore 117685 (Singapore); School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798 (Singapore)

2009-02-01

ZnO was deposited on bare Si(1 0 0), as-deposited, and annealed ZnO/Si(1 0 0) substrates by hydrothermal synthesis. The effects of a ZnO buffer layer and its thermal annealing on the properties of the ZnO deposited by hydrothermal synthesis were studied. The grain size and root mean square (RMS) roughness values of the ZnO buffer layer increased after thermal annealing of the buffer layer. The effect of buffer layer annealing temperature on the structural and optical properties was investigated by photoluminescence, X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. Hydrothermal grown ZnO deposited on ZnO/Si(1 0 0) annealed at 750 deg. C with the concentration of 0.3 M exhibits the best structural and optical properties.

Efficient light emitting devices based on phosphorescent partially doped emissive layers

KAUST Repository

Yang, Xiaohui

2013-05-29

We report efficient organic light emitting devices employing an ultrathin phosphor emissive layer. The electroluminescent spectra of these devices can be tuned by introducing a low-energy emitting phosphor layer into the emission zone. Devices with the emissive layer consisting of multiple platinum-complex/spacer layer cells show a peak external quantum efficiency of 18.1%, which is among the best EQE values for platinum-complex based light emitting devices. Devices with an ultrathin phosphor emissive layer show stronger luminance decay with the operating time compared to the counterpart devices having a host-guest emissive layer.

Enhanced Optical and Electrical Properties of TiO_2 Buffered IGZO/TiO_2 Bi-Layered Films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moon, Hyun-Joo; Kim, Daeil

2016-01-01

In and Ga doped ZnO (IGZO, 100-nm thick) thin films were deposited by radio frequency magnetron sputtering without intentional substrate heating on a bare glass substrate and a TiO_2-deposited glass substrate to determine the effect of the thickness of a thin TiO_2 buffer layer on the structural, optical, and electrical properties of the films. The thicknesses of the TiO_2 buffer layers were 5, 10 and 15 nm, respectively. As-deposited IGZO films with a 10 nm-thick TiO_2 buffer layer had an average optical transmittance of 85.0% with lower resistivity (1.83×10-2 Ω cm) than that of IGZO single layer films. The figure of merit (FOM) reached a maximum of 1.44×10-4 Ω-1 for IGZO/10 nm-thick TiO_2 bi-layered films, which is higher than the FOM of 6.85×10-5 Ω-1 for IGZO single layer films. Because a higher FOM value indicates better quality transparent conducting oxide (TCO) films, the IGZO/10 nm-thick TiO_2 bi-layered films are likely to perform better in TCO applications than IGZO single layer films.

Numerical investigation on practicability of reducing MCST by using grid spacer in a tight rod bundle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu, Xiaojing; Morooka, Shinichi; Oka, Yoshiaki

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Standard grid spacer design causes decreased heat transfer in a tight rod bundle. • Heat transfer is greatly enhanced by flow-enhancing features. • Swirling flow adversely affects the heat transfer downstream of grid spacer. • Enhanced heat transfer by existing grid spacer is limited in a short region. • Improved grid spacer can effectively reduce MCST. - Abstract: The numerical investigation was carried out to reveal the practicability of reducing the maximum cladding surface temperature (MCST) within the inner sub-channel of a tight, hexagon rod bundle using commercial CFD code STAR CCM+ 6.04. The special heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics caused by four existing grid spacer designs were discussed in detail by analyzing the effects of grid strap length, different flow enhancing features and different Reynolds numbers. It was found that the local heat transfer within the grid strap is greatly enhanced due to the raised flow velocity. Both the standard grid spacer and the grid spacer with split-vanes cause decreased heat transfer in the downstream region. The friction drag is very influential in the tight rod bundle and can eliminate the positive effect of flow blockage on the heat transfer performance. The grid spacer with flow blockage discs induces relatively good heat transfer performance and higher pressure drop within sub-channels, indicating a tradeoff between the heat transfer augmentation and the pressure drop. The combination of multiple existing grid spacers can reduce the MCST to a certain level, but the corresponding disadvantages cannot be ignored. The improved grid spacer design was proposed based on the overall considerations of heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics and has been proved more suitable to widely reduce MCST for SCWR than any other grid spacer designs involved in present study

Spacer grid for a nuclear reactor fuel assembly

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jabsen, F.S.

1978-01-01

The spacer grid consists of pairs of plates forming rectangular cells and enclosing the cylindrical fuel assemblies. They have got rigid as well as elastic projections extending into the cells and holding the fuel assemblies. Additional pairs of plates are arranged in about the center of the grid of plates. They have got only elastic projections extending on both sides of the plates into one cell each. This spacer grid may be used for reactor cores with and without fuel channels. By the combination of spring-elastic and rigid projections there is obtained a reinforced outer tie. Hydraulic pressure losses, parasitic neutron capture, and hot spots are essentially reduced. (DG) [de

Optical losses in p-type layers of GaN ridge waveguides in the IR region

Science.gov (United States)

Westreich, Ohad; Katz, Moti; Atar, Gil; Paltiel, Yossi; Sicron, Noam

2017-07-01

Optical losses in c-plane (0001) GaN ridge waveguides, containing Mg-doped layers, were measured at 1064 nm, using the Fabry-Perot method. The losses increase linearly with the modal content of the p-layer, indicating that the absorption in these waveguides is dominated by p-layer absorption. The p-layer absorption is strongly anisotropic with E⊥c losses 4 times higher than E∥c. The absorption is temperature independent between 10 °C and 60 °C, supporting the possibility that it is related to Mg-bound holes.

Enhancement of magneto-optical Faraday effects and extraordinary optical transmission in a tri-layer structure with rectangular annular arrays.

Science.gov (United States)

Lei, Chengxin; Chen, Leyi; Tang, Zhixiong; Li, Daoyong; Cheng, Zhenzhi; Tang, Shaolong; Du, Youwei

2016-02-15

The properties of optics and magneto-optical Faraday effects in a metal-dielectric tri-layer structure with subwavelength rectangular annular arrays are investigated. It is noteworthy that we obtained the strongly enhanced Faraday rotation of the desired sign along with high transmittance by optimizing the parameters of the nanostructure in the visible spectral ranges. In this system, we obtained two extraordinary optical transmission (EOT) resonant peaks with enhanced Faraday rotations, whose signs are opposite, which may provide the possibility of designing multi-channel magneto-optical devices. Study results show that the maximum of the figure of merit (FOM) of the structure can be obtained between two EOT resonant peaks accompanied by an enhanced Faraday rotation. The positions of the maximum value of the FOM and resonant peaks of transmission along with a large Faraday rotation can be tailored by simply adjusting the geometric parameters of our models. These research findings are of great importance for future applications of magneto-optical devices.

Modeling the effect of spacers and biofouling on forward osmosis performance

KAUST Repository

Mosqueira Santillán, María José

2014-11-01

Currently, the most utilized desalination technology is reverse osmosis (RO), where a membrane is used as a physical barrier to separate the salts from the seawater, using high hydraulic pressure as driving force. A major problem in RO systems is biofouling, caused by severe growth of bacterial biofilms. Both, the need of an external energy input, as well as biofouling, impose a high cost on RO operation. Forward osmosis (FO) is an alternative membrane process that uses an osmotic pressure difference as driving force. FO uses a concentrated draw solution to generate high osmotic pressure, which extracts water across a semi permeable membrane from a feed solution. One of the main advantages of FO is the limited amount of external energy required to extract water from the feed solution. The objective of this research is the assessment of the impact of spacers, separating the membrane sheets, and biofouling on the FO system performance. This type of studies allow the optimization of membrane devices and operational conditions. For this, a two dimensional numerical model for FO systems was developed using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). This model allowed the evaluation of the impact of (i) spacers and (ii) biofilm, and (iii) the combined impact of spacers and biofilm on the performance of FO systems. The results obtained showed that the presence of spacers improved the performance of FO systems. Cavity configuration spacer gave the higher water flux across the membrane in clean systems; whereas for biofouled systems, the submerged configuration showed a better performance. In absence of spacers, the thickness or amount of biofilm is inversely proportional with the water flux. Furthermore, membrane surface coverage of the biofilm is more important than the amount of biofilm in terms of the impact on the performance. The numerical model can be adapted with other parameters (e.g. membrane and spacer thickness, feed and draw solution, solution concentration, etc.) to

Large magnetoresistance in Heusler-alloy-based epitaxial magnetic junctions with semiconducting Cu(In{sub 0.8}Ga{sub 0.2})Se{sub 2} spacer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kasai, S. [Research Center for Magnetic and Spintronic Materials, National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), 1-2-1 Sengen, Tsukuba 305-0047 (Japan); Center for Emergent Matter Science, RIKEN, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako 351-0198 (Japan); Takahashi, Y. K.; Ohkubo, T. [Research Center for Magnetic and Spintronic Materials, National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), 1-2-1 Sengen, Tsukuba 305-0047 (Japan); Cheng, P.-H.; Ikhtiar,; Mitani, S.; Hono, K. [Research Center for Magnetic and Spintronic Materials, National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), 1-2-1 Sengen, Tsukuba 305-0047 (Japan); Graduate School of Pure and Applied Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba 305-8577 (Japan); Kondou, K. [Center for Emergent Matter Science, RIKEN, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako 351-0198 (Japan); Otani, Y. [Center for Emergent Matter Science, RIKEN, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako 351-0198 (Japan); Institute for Solid State Physics, University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa 277-8581 (Japan)

2016-07-18

We investigated the structure and magneto-transport properties of magnetic junctions using a Co{sub 2}Fe(Ga{sub 0.5}Ge{sub 0.5}) Heusler alloy as ferromagnetic electrodes and a Cu(In{sub 0.8}Ga{sub 0.2})Se{sub 2} (CIGS) semiconductor as spacers. Owing to the semiconducting nature of the CIGS spacer, large magnetoresistance (MR) ratios of 40% at room temperature and 100% at 8 K were obtained for low resistance-area product (RA) values between 0.3 and 3 Ω μm{sup 2}. Transmission electron microscopy observations confirmed the fully epitaxial growth of the chalcopyrite CIGS layer, and the temperature dependence of RA indicated that the large MR was due to spin dependent tunneling.

Biofouling patterns in spacer filled channels: High resolution imaging for characterization of heterogeneous biofilms

KAUST Repository

Staal, Marc

2017-08-15

Biofilms develop in heterogeneous patterns at a µm scale up to a cm scale, and patterns become more pronounced when biofilms develop under complex hydrodynamic flow regimes. Spatially heterogeneous biofilms are especially known in spiral wound reverse osmosis (RO) and nanofiltration (NF) membrane filtration systems used for desalination and wastewater reuse to produce high quality (drinking) water. These spiral wound membrane modules contain mesh-like spacer structures used to create an intermembrane space and improve water mixing. Spacers create inhomogeneous water flow patterns resulting in zones favouring biofilm growth, possibly leading to biofouling thus hampering water production. Oxygen sensing planar optodes were used to visualize variations in oxygen decrease rates (ODR). ODR is an indication of biofilm activity. In this study, ODR images of multiple repetitive spacer areas in a membrane fouling simulator were averaged to produce high resolution, low noise ODR images. Averaging 40 individual spacer areas improved the ODR distribution image significantly and allowed comparison of biofilm patterning over a spacer structure at different positions in an RO filter. This method clearly showed that most active biofilm accumulated on and in direct vicinity of the spacer. The averaging method was also used to calculate the deviation of ODR patterning from individual spacer areas to the average ODR pattern, proposing a new approach to determine biofilm spatial heterogeneity. This study showed that the averaging method can be applied and that the improved, averaged ODR images can be used as an analytical, in-situ, non-destructive method to assess and quantify the effect of membrane installation operational parameters or different spacer geometries on biofilm development in spiral wound membrane systems characterized by complex hydrodynamic conditions.

5 X 5 rod bundle flow field measurements downstream a PWR spacer grid

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Castro, Higor F.P.; Silva, Vitor V A.; Santos, André A.C.; Veloso, Maria A.F., E-mail: higorfabiano@gmail.com, E-mail: mdora@nuclear.ufmg.br, E-mail: vitors@cdtn.br, E-mail: aacs@cdtn.br [Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, MG (Brazil); Centro de Desenvolvimento da Tecnologia Nuclear (CDTN/CNEN-MG), Belo Horizonte, MG (Brazil)

2017-07-01

The spacer grids are structures present in nuclear fuel assembly of Pressurized Water Reactors (PWR). They play an important structural role and also assist in heat removal through the assembly by promoting increased turbulence of the flow. Understanding the flow dynamics downstream the spacer grid is paramount for fuel element design and analysis. This paper presents water flow velocity profiles measurements downstream a spacer grid in a 5 x 5 rod bundle test rig with the objective of highlighting important fluid dynamic behavior near the grid and supplying data for CFD simulation validation. These velocity profiles were obtained at two different heights downstream the spacer grid using a LDV (Laser Doppler Velocimetry) through the top of test rig. The turbulence intensities and patterns of the swirl and cross flow were evaluated. The tests were conducted for Reynolds numbers ranging from 1.8 x 10{sup 4} to 5.4 x 10{sup 4}. This experimental research was carried out in thermo-hydraulics laboratory of Nuclear Technology Development Center – CDTN. Results show great repeatability and low uncertainties (< 1.24 %). Details of the flow field show how the mixture and turbulence induced by the spacer grid quickly decays downstream the spacer grid. It is shown that the developed methodology can supply high resolution low uncertainty results that can be used for validation of CFD simulations. (author)

5 X 5 rod bundle flow field measurements downstream a PWR spacer grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Castro, Higor F.P.; Silva, Vitor V A.; Santos, André A.C.; Veloso, Maria A.F.

2017-01-01

The spacer grids are structures present in nuclear fuel assembly of Pressurized Water Reactors (PWR). They play an important structural role and also assist in heat removal through the assembly by promoting increased turbulence of the flow. Understanding the flow dynamics downstream the spacer grid is paramount for fuel element design and analysis. This paper presents water flow velocity profiles measurements downstream a spacer grid in a 5 x 5 rod bundle test rig with the objective of highlighting important fluid dynamic behavior near the grid and supplying data for CFD simulation validation. These velocity profiles were obtained at two different heights downstream the spacer grid using a LDV (Laser Doppler Velocimetry) through the top of test rig. The turbulence intensities and patterns of the swirl and cross flow were evaluated. The tests were conducted for Reynolds numbers ranging from 1.8 x 10"4 to 5.4 x 10"4. This experimental research was carried out in thermo-hydraulics laboratory of Nuclear Technology Development Center – CDTN. Results show great repeatability and low uncertainties (< 1.24 %). Details of the flow field show how the mixture and turbulence induced by the spacer grid quickly decays downstream the spacer grid. It is shown that the developed methodology can supply high resolution low uncertainty results that can be used for validation of CFD simulations. (author)

Influence of interface layer on optical properties of sub-20 nm-thick TiO2 films

Science.gov (United States)

Shi, Yue-Jie; Zhang, Rong-Jun; Li, Da-Hai; Zhan, Yi-Qiang; Lu, Hong-Liang; Jiang, An-Quan; Chen, Xin; Liu, Juan; Zheng, Yu-Xiang; Wang, Song-You; Chen, Liang-Yao

2018-02-01

The sub-20 nm ultrathin titanium dioxide (TiO2) films with tunable thickness were deposited on Si substrates by atomic layer deposition (ALD). The structural and optical properties were acquired by transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy and spectroscopic ellipsometry. Afterwards, a constructive and effective method of analyzing interfaces by applying two different optical models consisting of air/TiO2/Ti x Si y O2/Si and air/effective TiO2 layer/Si, respectively, was proposed to investigate the influence of interface layer (IL) on the analysis of optical constants and the determination of band gap of TiO2 ultrathin films. It was found that two factors including optical constants and changing components of the nonstoichiometric IL could contribute to the extent of the influence. Furthermore, the investigated TiO2 ultrathin films of 600 ALD cycles were selected and then annealed at the temperature range of 400-900 °C by rapid thermal annealing. Thicker IL and phase transition cause the variation of optical properties of TiO2 films after annealing and a shorter electron relaxation time reveals the strengthened electron-electron and electron-phonon interactions in the TiO2 ultrathin films at high temperature. The as-obtained results in this paper will play a role in other studies of high dielectric constants materials grown on Si substrates and in the applications of next generation metal-oxide-semiconductor devices.

Research report on development of spacer grid strap for AFA 3G fuel assembly

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ye Yuandong

2004-11-01

The current development and tendency for fuel assemblies being of low leakage, high burn-up and long cycle fuel reload in the world are presented, and the necessity and feasibility to develop the spacer grid for high burn-up fuel assembly are elaborated. Considering all the activities in implementing of spacer grid and the technical difficulties in machining of tools, the major technological processes are introduced; the research program and the approaches to develop the spacer grid while research targets and overall schedule are defined and some key technical points and applicable practices are discussed. Finally the requirements and the conditions necessary for developing of spacer grid are proposed. (authors)

A functional analysis of the spacer of V(D)J recombination signal sequences.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Alfred Ian; Fugmann, Sebastian D; Cowell, Lindsay G; Ptaszek, Leon M; Kelsoe, Garnett; Schatz, David G

2003-10-01

During lymphocyte development, V(D)J recombination assembles antigen receptor genes from component V, D, and J gene segments. These gene segments are flanked by a recombination signal sequence (RSS), which serves as the binding site for the recombination machinery. The murine Jbeta2.6 gene segment is a recombinationally inactive pseudogene, but examination of its RSS reveals no obvious reason for its failure to recombine. Mutagenesis of the Jbeta2.6 RSS demonstrates that the sequences of the heptamer, nonamer, and spacer are all important. Strikingly, changes solely in the spacer sequence can result in dramatic differences in the level of recombination. The subsequent analysis of a library of more than 4,000 spacer variants revealed that spacer residues of particular functional importance are correlated with their degree of conservation. Biochemical assays indicate distinct cooperation between the spacer and heptamer/nonamer along each step of the reaction pathway. The results suggest that the spacer serves not only to ensure the appropriate distance between the heptamer and nonamer but also regulates RSS activity by providing additional RAG:RSS interaction surfaces. We conclude that while RSSs are defined by a "digital" requirement for absolutely conserved nucleotides, the quality of RSS function is determined in an "analog" manner by numerous complex interactions between the RAG proteins and the less-well conserved nucleotides in the heptamer, the nonamer, and, importantly, the spacer. Those modulatory effects are accurately predicted by a new computational algorithm for "RSS information content." The interplay between such binary and multiplicative modes of interactions provides a general model for analyzing protein-DNA interactions in various biological systems.

Calculated efficiencies of three-material low stress coatings for diffractive x-ray transmission optics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kubec, Adam; Braun, Stefan; Gawlitza, Peter; Menzel, Maik; Leson, Andreas

2016-01-01

Diffractive X-ray optical elements made by thin film coating techniques such as multilayer Laue lenses (MLL) and multilayer zone plates (MZP) are promising approaches to achieve resolutions in hard X-ray microscopy applications of less than 10 nm. The challenge is to make a lens with a large numerical aperture on the one hand and a decent working distance on the other hand. One of the limiting factors with the coated structures is the internal stress in the films, which can lead to significant bending of the substrate and various types of unwanted diffraction effects. Several approaches have been discussed to overcome this challenge. One of these is a three-material combination such as Mo/MoSi_2/Si, where four single layers per period are deposited. Mo and Si represent the absorber and spacer in this case while MoSi_2 forms a diffusion barrier; in addition the thicknesses of absorber and spacer are chosen to minimize residual stress of the overall coating. Here the diffraction efficiency as well as the profile of the beam in the focal plane are discussed in order to find a tradeoff between lowest residual stress and best diffraction properties.

Microbial fuel cells with an integrated spacer and separate anode and cathode modules

KAUST Repository

He, Weihua

2016-01-01

A new type of scalable MFC was developed based on using alternating graphite fiber brush array anode modules and dual cathode modules in order to simplify construction, operation, and maintenance of the electrodes. The modular MFC design was tested with a single (two-sided) cathode module with a specific surface area of 29 m2 m−3 based on a total liquid volume (1.4 L; 20 m2 m−3 using the total reactor volume of 2 L), and two brush anode modules. Three different types of spacers were used in the cathode module to provide structural stability, and enhance air flow relative to previous cassette (combined anode–cathode) designs: a low-profile wire spacer; a rigid polycarbonate column spacer; and a flexible plastic mesh spacer. The best performance was obtained using the wire spacer that produced a maximum power density of 1100 ± 10 mW m−2 of cathode (32 ± 0.3 W m−3 based on liquid volume) with an acetate-amended wastewater (COD = 1010 ± 30 mg L−1), compared to 1010 ± 10 mW m−2 for the column and 650 ± 20 mW m−2 for the mesh spacers. Anode potentials were unaffected by the different types of spacers. Raw domestic wastewater produced a maximum of 400 ± 8 mW m−2 under fed batch conditions (wire-spacers), which is one of the highest power densities for this fuel. Over time the maximum power was reduced to 300 ± 10 mW m−2 and 275 ± 7 mW m−2 for the two anode compartments, with only slightly less power of 250 ± 20 mW m−2 obtained under continuous flow conditions. In fixed-resistance tests, the average COD removal was 57 ± 5% at a hydraulic retention time of 8 h. These results show that this modular MFC design can both simplify reactor construction and enable relatively high power generation from even relatively dilute wastewater.

Retinal nerve fiber layer thickness map determined from optical coherence tomography images

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mujat, M.; Chan, R. C.; Cense, B.; Park, B.H.; Joo, C.; Akkin, T.; Chen, TC; de Boer, JF

2005-01-01

We introduce a method to determine the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness in OCT images based on anisotropic noise suppression and deformable splines. Spectral-Domain Optical Coherence Tomography (SDOCT) data was acquired at 29 kHz A-line rate with a depth resolution of 2.6 mum and a depth

Enhanced optical output of InGaN/GaN near-ultraviolet light-emitting diodes by localized surface plasmon of colloidal silver nanoparticles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hong, Sang-Hyun; Kim, Jae-Joon; Jung, Yen-Sook; Kim, Dong-Yu; Park, Seong-Ju; Kang, Jang-Won; Yim, Sang-Youp

2015-01-01

We report on the characteristics of localized surface plasmon (LSP)-enhanced near-ultraviolet light-emitting diodes (NUV-LEDs) fabricated by using colloidal silver (Ag) nanoparticles (NPs). Colloidal Ag NPs were deposited on the 20 nm thick p-GaN spacer layer using a spray process. The optical output power of NUV-LEDs with colloidal Ag NPs was increased by 48.7% at 20 mA compared with NUV-LEDs without colloidal Ag NPs. The enhancement was attributed to increased internal quantum efficiency caused by the resonance coupling between excitons in the multiple quantum wells and the LSPs in the Ag NPs. (paper)

Effect of plastic spacer handling on salbutamol lung deposition in asthmatic children

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lipworth, Brian J; Lee, Daniel K C; Anhøj, Jacob

2002-01-01

AIMS: To study the effects of electrostatics in a plastic spacer on the lung deposition of salbutamol in asthmatic children. METHODS: Twenty-five children (5-12 years) with mild asthma were given salbutamol hydrofluoroalkane pressurized metered dose inhaler 400 micro g via a 750 ml plastic spacer...

Mounting system for optical frequency reference cavities

Science.gov (United States)

Notcutt, Mark (Inventor); Hall, John L. (Inventor); Ma, Long-Sheng (Inventor)

2008-01-01

A technique for reducing the vibration sensitivity of laser-stabilizing optical reference cavities is based upon an improved design and mounting method for the cavity, wherein the cavity is mounted vertically. It is suspended at one plane, around the spacer cylinder, equidistant from the mirror ends of the cavity. The suspension element is a collar of an extremely low thermal expansion coefficient material, which surrounds the spacer cylinder and contacts it uniformly. Once the collar has been properly located, it is cemented in place so that the spacer cylinder is uniformly supported and does not have to be squeezed at all. The collar also includes a number of cavities partially bored into its lower flat surface, around the axial bore. These cavities are support points, into which mounting base pins will be inserted. Hence the collar is supported at a minimum of three points.

Bimetallic spacer means for a nuclear fuel assembly

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anthony, A.J.

1981-01-01

A bimetallic spacer means designed to be cooperatively associated with a nuclear fuel assembly and operative to resist the occurrence of in-reactor bowing of the nuclear fuel assembly. The subject bimetallic spacer means in accord with one embodiment of the invention includes a member formed, at least principally, of Zircaloy to which are attached a plurality of stainless steel strips. The latter stainless steel strips are located on the external surface of the Zircaloy member and with the major axis of each of the plurality of stainless steel strips extending substantially perpendicular to the major axis of the Zircaloy member. In accord with another embodiment of the invention, the subject bimetallic spacer means includes a member formed at least principally of Zircaloy to which a plurality of stainless steel strips are attached so as to be positioned thereon externally thereof and with the major axis of each of the plurality of stainless steel strips extending substantially parallel to the major axis of the Zircaloy member. In accord with a further embodiment of the invention, the stainless steel strips are attached to preselected members, each embodying at least a cladding of Zircaloy, which are located in the rows of fuel rods that define the perimeter of the fuel matrix of the nuclear fuel assembly. In each of the embodiments, the stainless steel strips during power production expand outwardly to a greater extent than do the members to which the stainless steel strips are attached, thereby forming stiff springs which abut against like bimetallic spacer means with which the other nuclear fuel assemblies are provided in a given nuclear reactor core to thus prevent the occurrence of in-reactor bowing of the nuclear fuel assemblies. Namely, the stainless steel strips expand laterally relative to the fuel assembly and thereby occupy the space adjacent to the external surface of the fuel assembly

Effects of layer nanodefects on the light transmission by optical elements with multilayer interference coatings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fekeshgazyi, Yi.V.; Syidenko, T.S.; Mitsa, O.V.; Barna, P.; Kyikyineshyi, O.Ye.

2011-01-01

The light transmission properties of optical elements with multilayer interference coatings have been studied. The reduction of transmittance maxima for optical elements with coating containing defects is found to be stronger for larger refractive indices of the substances that the defects are made of. The shape of transmittance curves is found to substantially depend on the defect dimensions along the direction of light propagation and the defect arrangement in the layer bulk. The results obtained are necessary for the developing of a technology aimed at manufacturing the optical elements with multilayer interference coatings for laser facilities and optical lenses.

Electrical and optical transport properties of single layer WSe2

Science.gov (United States)

Tahir, M.

2018-03-01

The electronic properties of single layer WSe2 are distinct from the famous graphene due to strong spin orbit coupling, a huge band gap and an anisotropic lifting of the degeneracy of the valley degree of freedom under Zeeman field. In this work, band structure of the monolayer WSe2 is evaluated in the presence of spin and valley Zeeman fields to study the electrical and optical transport properties. Using Kubo formalism, an explicit expression for the electrical Hall conductivity is examined at finite temperatures. The electrical longitudinal conductivity is also evaluated. Further, the longitudinal and Hall optical conductivities are analyzed. It is observed that the contributions of the spin-up and spin-down states to the power absorption spectrum depend on the valley index. The numerical results exhibit absorption peaks as a function of photon energy, ℏ ω, in the range ∼ 1.5 -2 eV. Also, the optical response lies in the visible frequency range in contrast to the conventional two-dimensional electron gas or graphene where the response is limited to terahertz regime. This ability to isolate carriers in spin-valley coupled structures may make WSe2 a promising candidate for future spintronics, valleytronics and optical devices.

Application of a hydrogel spacer for postoperative salvage radiotherapy of prostate cancer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pinkawa, Michael; Schubert, Carolin; Escobar-Corral, Nuria; Holy, Richard; Eble, Michael J.

2015-01-01

In contrast to primary radiotherapy, no reports are available for a hydrogel spacer application in postoperative salvage radiotherapy for prostate cancer. A 77-year-old patient presented 20 years after radical prostatectomy with a digitally palpable local recurrence at the urethrovesical anastomosis (PSA 5.5 ng/ml). The hydrogel spacer (10 ml, SpaceOAR trademark) was injected between the local recurrence and rectal wall under transrectal ultrasound guidance. Treatment planning was performed with an intensity-modulated technique up to a total dose of 76 Gy in 2-Gy fractions. The same planning was performed based on computed tomography before spacer injection for comparison. The local recurrence, initially directly on the rectal wall, could be displaced more than 1 cm from the rectal wall after hydrogel injection. With a mean total dose of 76 Gy to the planning target volume, rectal wall volumes included in the 70 Gy, 60 Gy, 50 Gy isodoses were 0 cm 3 , 0 cm 3 , and 0.4 cm 3 with a spacer and 2.9 cm 3 , 4.5 cm 3 , and 6.2 cm 3 without a spacer, respectively. The patient reported rectal urgency during radiotherapy, completely resolving after the end of treatment. The PSA level was 5.4 ng/ml a week before the end of radiotherapy and dropped to 0.9 ng/ml 5 months after radiotherapy. A hydrogel spacer was successfully applied for dose-escalated radiotherapy in a patient with macroscopic local prostate cancer recurrence at the urethrovesical anastomosis to decrease the dose at the rectal wall. This option can be considered in specifically selected patients. (orig.) [de

Buffer layer between a planar optical concentrator and a solar cell

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Solano, Manuel E. [Departamento de Ingeniería Matemática and CI" 2 MA, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Casilla 160-C (Chile); Barber, Greg D. [Penn State Institute of Energy and the Environment, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802 (United States); Department of Chemistry, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802 (United States); Lakhtakia, Akhlesh [Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802 (United States); Faryad, Muhammad [Department of Physics, Lahore University of Management Sciences, Lahore 54792 (Pakistan); Monk, Peter B. [Department of Mathematical Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716 (United States); Mallouk, Thomas E. [Department of Chemistry, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802 (United States)

2015-09-15

The effect of inserting a buffer layer between a periodically multilayered isotropic dielectric (PMLID) material acting as a planar optical concentrator and a photovoltaic solar cell was theoretically investigated. The substitution of the photovoltaic material by a cheaper dielectric material in a large area of the structure could reduce the fabrication costs without significantly reducing the efficiency of the solar cell. Both crystalline silicon (c-Si) and gallium arsenide (GaAs) were considered as the photovoltaic material. We found that the buffer layer can act as an antireflection coating at the interface of the PMLID and the photovoltaic materials, and the structure increases the spectrally averaged electron-hole pair density by 36% for c-Si and 38% for GaAs compared to the structure without buffer layer. Numerical evidence indicates that the optimal structure is robust with respect to small changes in the grating profile.

Mechanical test for fuel assembly spacer grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Heung Seok; Jeong, Yeon Ho; Song, Kee Nam; Kim, Hyung Kyu; Yoon, Kyung Ho; Bang, Je Keun.

1997-06-01

In order to propose some tests for a new spacer grid, the grid mechanical tests performed by ABB-CE, KWU and Westinghouse have been investigated. It is known that a static compression test, a dynamic impact test, and a grid spring characteristic test were commonly carried out by the vendors when a prototype spacer grid was developed. The static compression test is to measure the stresses on the strips as well as to obtain the grid stiffness. The dynamic impact test is to get some basic data for accident analysis such as impact stiffness, impact strength, and coefficient of restitution. Since each fuel vendor has his theory on an accident analysis, every vendor employs his particular method for the dynamic impact test. The dynamic impact test can be divided into two in accordance with the number of impact face, and the duration of impact pulse. One is an one-sided impact test and the other is an through-gird impact test. The duration of the impact pulse for the former is considerably shorter than the latter. Therefore, the grid can endure much higher load under the one-sided impact condition than under the through-grid impact condition. The grid spring characteristic test is to obtain a force versus deflection curve. This curve is very important in designing the spacer grid to provide fuel rods with a sound supports in core. (author). 18 tabs., 26 figs

Double-layer optical fiber coating analysis in MHD flow of an elastico-viscous fluid using wet-on-wet coating process

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zeeshan Khan

Full Text Available Modern optical fibers require a double-layer coating on the glass fiber in order to provide protection from signal attenuation and mechanical damage. The most important plastic resins used in wires and optical fibers are plastic polyvinyl chloride (PVC and low and high density polyethylene (LDPE/HDPE, nylon and Polysulfone. One of the most important things which affect the final product after processing is the design of the coating die. In the present study, double-layer optical fiber coating is performed using melt polymer satisfying Oldroyd 8-constant fluid model in a pressure type die with the effect of magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD. Wet-on-wet coating process is applied for double-layer optical fiber coating. The coating process in the coating die is modeled as a simple two-layer Couette flow of two immiscible fluids in an annulus with an assigned pressure gradient. Based on the assumptions of fully developed laminar and MHD flow, the Oldroyd 8-constant model of non-Newtonian fluid of two immiscible resin layers is modeled. The governing nonlinear equations are solved analytically by the new technique of Optimal Homotopy Asymptotic Method (OHAM. The convergence of the series solution is established. The results are also verified by the Adomian Decomposition Method (ADM. The effect of important parameters such as magnetic parameter Mi, the dilatant constant α, the Pseodoplastic constant β, the radii ratio δ, the pressure gradient Ω, the speed of fiber optics V, and the viscosity ratio κ on the velocity profiles, thickness of coated fiber optics, volume flow rate, and shear stress on the fiber optics are investigated. At the end the result of the present work is also compared with the experimental results already available in the literature by taking non-Newtonian parameters tends to zero. Keywords: Non-Newtonian fluid, Oldroyd 8-constant fluid, MHD flow, Double-layer fiber coating, OHAM, ADM, Wet-on-wet coating process

Experimental investigations of turbulent flows in rod bundles with and without spacer grids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trippe, G.

1979-07-01

In the thermofluiddynamic design of liquid metal cooled reactor fuel elements the lack of experimentally confirmed knowledge of the three-dimensional flow events in rod bundles provided with spacer grids has appeared as a significant problem. To close this gap of knowledge, detailed measurements of the local velocities were made on a 19-rod bundle model. The Pitot method of differential pressure measurements was used as the measuring system. In the first part of the work the fully developed flow regime not influenced by spacers was investigated. A simple relation was derived for distributing the mass flow among the subchannels of a rod bundle; it is but slightly dependent on the Reynolds number. This relation allows a quick, coarse calculation of the distribution of the undisturbed, fully developed mass flow in bundles with similar geometries. By evaluation of further experiments known from the literature, empirical relationships were found for the local velocity distribution within the subchannels of such bundles. In the second part the effect of grid shaped spacers was investigated. The three-dimensional flow events caused by the spacers were completely recorded and interpreted physically. The deeper understanding of these flow processes can now serve to improve the model concept used in the present design computer programs. Single results of the investigations which take primary importance are the quantitative relations existing between the changes of mass flow in the bundle boundary zone, caused by a spacer, and the geometry of this spacer. The transferability to other bundle geometries was discussed and delimited. Moreover, it was shown that the mass flow in the bundle boundary zone can be successively reduced by spacers placed one behind the other in the bundle. A noticeable dependence of flow events on the Reynolds number was not found for the range relevant in practical application (30.000 [de

Few-layer antimonene decorated microfiber: ultra-short pulse generation and all-optical thresholding with enhanced long term stability

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Yufeng; Liang, Zhiming; Jiang, Xiantao; Chen, Yunxiang; Li, Zhongjun; Lu, Lu; Ge, Yanqi; Wang, Ke; Zheng, Jilin; Lu, Shunbin; Ji, Jianhua; Zhang, Han

2017-12-01

Antimonene, a new type of mono/few-layer two-dimensional (2D) mono-elemental material purely consisting of antimony similar as graphene and phosphorene, has been theoretically predicted with excellent optical response and enhanced stability. Herein, we experimentally investigated the broadband nonlinear optical response of highly stable few-layer antimonene (FLA) by performing an open-aperture Z-scan laser measurement. Thanks to the direct bandgap and resonant absorption at the telecommunication band, we demonstrated the feasibility of FLA-decorated microfiber not only as an optical saturable absorber for ultrafast photonics operation, but also as a stable all-optical pulse thresholder that can effectively suppress the transmission noise, boost the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and reshape the deteriorated input signal. Our findings, as the first prototypic device of absorption of antimonene, might facilitate the development of antimonene-based optical communication technologies towards high stability and practical applications in the future.

A study on improvement of analytical prediction model for spacer grid pressure loss coefficients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lim, Jonh Seon

2002-02-01

Nuclear fuel assemblies used in the nuclear power plants consist of the nuclear fuel rods, the control rod guide tubes, an instrument guide tube, spacer grids,a bottom nozzle, a top nozzle. The spacer grid is the most important component of the fuel assembly components for thermal hydraulic and mechanical design and analyses. The spacer grids fixed with the guide tubes support the fuel rods and have the very important role to activate thermal energy transfer by the coolant mixing caused to the turbulent flow and crossflow in the subchannels. In this paper, the analytical spacer grid pressure loss prediction model has been studied and improved by considering the test section wall to spacer grid gap pressure loss independently and applying the appropriate friction drag coefficient to predict pressure loss more accurately at the low Reynolds number region. The improved analytical model has been verified based on the hydraulic pressure drop test results for the spacer grids of three types with 5x5, 16x16, 17x17 arrays, respectively. The pressure loss coefficients predicted by the improved analytical model are coincident with those test results within ±12%. This result shows that the improved analytical model can be used for research and design change of the nuclear fuel assembly

The independent loss model with ordered insertions for the evolution of CRISPR spacers.

Science.gov (United States)

Baumdicker, F; Huebner, A M I; Pfaffelhuber, P

2018-02-01

Today, the CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) region within bacterial and archaeal genomes is known to encode an adaptive immune system. We rely on previous results on the evolution of the CRISPR arrays, which led to the ordered independent loss model, introduced by Kupczok and Bollback (2013). When focusing on the spacers (between the repeats), new elements enter a CRISPR array at rate θ at the leader end of the array, while all spacers present are lost at rate ρ along the phylogeny relating the sample. Within this model, we compute the distribution of distances of spacers which are present in all arrays in a sample of size n. We use these results to estimate the loss rate ρ from spacer array data for n=2 and n=3. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hardware-efficient signal generation of layered/enhanced ACO-OFDM for short-haul fiber-optic links.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Qibing; Song, Binhuang; Corcoran, Bill; Boland, David; Zhu, Chen; Zhuang, Leimeng; Lowery, Arthur J

2017-06-12

Layered/enhanced ACO-OFDM is a promising candidate for intensity modulation and direct-detection based short-haul fiber-optic links due to its both power and spectral efficiency. In this paper, we firstly demonstrate a hardware-efficient real-time 9.375 Gb/s QPSK-encoded layered/enhanced asymmetrical clipped optical OFDM (L/E-ACO-OFDM) transmitter using a Virtex-6 FPGA. This L/E-ACO-OFDM signal is successfully transmitted over 20-km uncompensated standard single-mode fiber (S-SMF) using a directly modulated laser. Several methods are explored to reduce the FPGA's logic resource utilization by taking advantage of the L/E-ACO-OFDM's signal characteristics. We show that the logic resource occupation of L/E-ACO-OFDM transmitter is almost the same as that of DC-biased OFDM transmitter when they achieve the same spectral efficiency, proving its great potential to be used in a real-time short-haul optical transmission link.

Interfacial exchange, magnetic coupling and magnetoresistance in ultra-thin GdN/NbN/GdN tri-layers

Science.gov (United States)

Takamura, Yota; Goncalves, Rafael S.; Cascales, Juan Pedro; Altinkok, Atilgan; de Araujo, Clodoaldo I. L.; Lauter, Valeria; Moodera, Jagadeesh S.; MIT Team

Superconducting spin-valve structures with a superconductive (SC) spacer sandwiched between ferromagnetic (FM) insulating layers [Li PRL 2013, Senapati APL 2013, Zhu Nat. Mat. 2016.] are attractive since the SC and FM characteristics can mutually be controlled by the proximity effect. We investigated reactively sputtered GdN/NbN/GdN tri-layer structures with various (SC) NbN spacer thicknesses (dNbN) from superconducting to normal layers. Magnetoresistive behavior similar to GMR in metallic magnetic multilayers was observed in the tri-layers with dNbN between 5-10 monolayers (ML), where thinner NbN layers did not show superconductivity down to 4.2 K. The occurrence of GMR signal indicates the presence of a ML of FM metallic layers at the GdN/NbN interfaces. Susceptibility and transport measurements in these samples revealed that the interface layers (ILs) are ferromagnetically coupled with adjacent GdN layers. The thickness of each of the IL is deduced to be about 1.25 ML, and as a result for dNbN magnetically coupled and switched simultaneously. These findings and interfacial characterization by various techniques will be presented. Work supported by NSF and ONR Grants.

Technology of electron beam welding for Zr-4 alloy spacer grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pei Qiusheng; Wu Xueyi; Yang Qishun

1989-10-01

The welding technology for Zr-4 alloy spacer grid by using vacuum electron beam was studied. Through a series of welding technological experiments, metallographic examinations of seam structure and detecting tests for welding defect by X-ray defectoscopy, a good welding technology was selected to meet the requirements. The experimental results indicated that the Zr-4 alloy spacer grid welded by vacuum electron beam welding is feasible

Electronic energy loss spectra from mono-layer to few layers of phosphorene

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mohan, Brij; Thakur, Rajesh; Ahluwalia, P. K.

2016-01-01

Using first principles calculations, electronic and optical properties of few-layers phosphorene has been investigated. Electronic band structure show a moderate band gap of 0.9 eV in monolayer phosphorene which decreases with increasing number of layers. Optical properties of few-layers of phosphorene in infrared and visible region shows tunability with number of layers. Electron energy loss function has been plotted and huge red shift in plasmonic behaviours is found. These tunable electronic and optical properties of few-layers of phosphorene can be useful for the applications of optoelectronic devices.

Electronic energy loss spectra from mono-layer to few layers of phosphorene

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mohan, Brij, E-mail: brijmohanhpu@yahoo.com; Thakur, Rajesh; Ahluwalia, P. K. [Department of Physics, Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla (HP) India 171005 (India)

2016-05-23

Using first principles calculations, electronic and optical properties of few-layers phosphorene has been investigated. Electronic band structure show a moderate band gap of 0.9 eV in monolayer phosphorene which decreases with increasing number of layers. Optical properties of few-layers of phosphorene in infrared and visible region shows tunability with number of layers. Electron energy loss function has been plotted and huge red shift in plasmonic behaviours is found. These tunable electronic and optical properties of few-layers of phosphorene can be useful for the applications of optoelectronic devices.

Evaluation of spacer grid spring characteristics by means of physical tests and numerical simulation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schettino, Carlos Frederico Mattos, E-mail: carlosschettino@inb.gov.br [Industrias Nucleares do Brasil (INB), Resende, RJ (Brazil)

2017-11-01

Among all fuel assemblies' components, the spacer grids play an important structural role during the energy generation process, mainly due for its primary functional requirement, that is, to provide fuel rod support. The present work aims to evaluate the spring characteristics of a specific spacer grid design used in a PWR fuel assembly type 16 x 16. These spring characteristics comprises the load versus deflection capability and its spring rate, which are very important, and also mandatory, to be correctly established in order to preclude spacer grid spring and fuel rod cladding fretting during operation, as well as prevent an excessive fuel rod buckling. This study includes physical tests and numerical simulation. The tests were performed on an adapted load cell mechanical device, using as a specimen a single strap of the spacer grid. Three numerical models were prepared using the Finite Element Method, with the support of the commercial code ANSYS. One model was built to validate the simulation according to the performed physical test, the others were built inserting a gradient of temperature (Beginning Of Life hot condition) and to evaluate the spacer grid spring characteristics in End Of Life condition. The obtained results from physical test and numerical model have shown a good agreement between them, therefore validating the simulation. The obtained results from numerical models make available information regarding the spacer grid design purpose, such as the behavior of the fuel rod cladding support during operation. Therewith, these evaluations could be useful to improve the spacer grid design. (author)

Evaluation of spacer grid spring characteristics by means of physical tests and numerical simulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schettino, Carlos Frederico Mattos

2017-01-01

Among all fuel assemblies' components, the spacer grids play an important structural role during the energy generation process, mainly due for its primary functional requirement, that is, to provide fuel rod support. The present work aims to evaluate the spring characteristics of a specific spacer grid design used in a PWR fuel assembly type 16 x 16. These spring characteristics comprises the load versus deflection capability and its spring rate, which are very important, and also mandatory, to be correctly established in order to preclude spacer grid spring and fuel rod cladding fretting during operation, as well as prevent an excessive fuel rod buckling. This study includes physical tests and numerical simulation. The tests were performed on an adapted load cell mechanical device, using as a specimen a single strap of the spacer grid. Three numerical models were prepared using the Finite Element Method, with the support of the commercial code ANSYS. One model was built to validate the simulation according to the performed physical test, the others were built inserting a gradient of temperature (Beginning Of Life hot condition) and to evaluate the spacer grid spring characteristics in End Of Life condition. The obtained results from physical test and numerical model have shown a good agreement between them, therefore validating the simulation. The obtained results from numerical models make available information regarding the spacer grid design purpose, such as the behavior of the fuel rod cladding support during operation. Therewith, these evaluations could be useful to improve the spacer grid design. (author)

Optical Coherence Tomography in Optic Nerve Hypoplasia: Correlation With Optic Disc Diameter, Nerve Fiber Layer Thickness, and Visual Function.

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, John P; Baran, Francine; Phillips, James O; Weiss, Avery H

2017-12-15

The correlation between optic disc diameters (DDs) with average retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFLT) and visual function in children with optic nerve hypoplasia (ONH) having nystagmus is unknown. Data were obtained from a retrospective review of 28 children (mean age: 9.4 years; ±5.1). Optic DD was defined as the maximal horizontal opening of Bruch membrane with spectral optical coherence tomography combined with a confocal laser ophthalmoscope. Average RNFLT was obtained from circumpapillary b-scans. RNFLT was also remeasured at eccentricities that were proportionate with DD to rule out potential sampling artifacts. Visual function was assessed by visual acuity at last follow-up and by visual evoked potentials (VEP) in 11 patients. The eye with the larger DD, which had better visual acuity, was analyzed to exclude potential effects of amblyopia. DD was correlated with average RNFLT (r = 0.61), visual acuity (r = 0.32), and VEPs (r = 0.66). The relationship between RNFLT and DD was as follows: average RNFLT (μm) = 0.074 * DD (μm) - 18.8. RNFLT also correlated with the ratio of horizontal optic DD to macula-disc-margin distance (DD:DM; r = 0.59). RNFLT measured at eccentricities proportionate with DD showed progressive decrease in thickness only for DDs <1,100 μm. All patients with DD <1,000 μm had subnormal visual acuity, whereas those with DD <1,200 μm had subnormal VEPs. DD correlates with average RNFLT and with visual function in children with ONH. Using OCT imaging, DD can be obtained in children with nystagmus and provides objective information.

In vitro performance of three combinations of spacers and pressurized metered dose inhalers for treatment in children

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Berg, E; Madsen, J; Bisgaard, H

1998-01-01

The performance of pressurized metered dose inhalers (pMDIs) and spacers in correct dose recommendations is important, but limited information on dose delivery and fine-particle dose from different combinations of spacers and pMDIs is available. In this study, three combinations of spacers and p...... and spacers, with the NebuChamber giving the highest dose, both as delivered dose and in droplets account for these differences....

Optical properties of uniformly sized silicon nanocrystals within a single silicon oxide layer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

En Naciri, A., E-mail: aotmane.en-naciri@univ-lorraine.fr [Universite de Lorraine, LCP-A2MC, Institut Jean Barriol (France); Miska, P. [Universite de Lorraine, Institut Jean Lamour CNRS UMR 7198 (France); Keita, A.-S. [Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (Germany); Battie, Y. [Universite de Lorraine, LCP-A2MC, Institut Jean Barriol (France); Rinnert, H.; Vergnat, M. [Universite de Lorraine, Institut Jean Lamour CNRS UMR 7198 (France)

2013-04-15

Silicon nanocrystals (Si-NC) with different sizes (2-6 nm) are synthesized by evaporation. The system is composed of a single Si-NC layer that is well controlled in size. The numerical modeling of such system, without a large size distribution, is suitable to perform easily the optical calculations. The nanocrystal size and confinement effects on the optical properties are determined by photoluminescence (PL) measurements, absorption in the UV visible range, and spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE). The optical constants and the bandgap energies are then extracted and analyzed. The dependence of the optical responses with the decrease of the size of the Si-NC occurs not only with a drastic reduction of the amplitudes of dielectric function but also by a significant expansion of the optical gap. This study supports the idea of a presence of a critical size of Si-NC for which the confinement effect becomes weak. The evolution of those bandgap energies are discussed in comparison with values reported in literature.

Retinal single-layer analysis with optical coherence tomography shows inner retinal layer thinning in Huntington's disease as a potential biomarker.

Science.gov (United States)

Gulmez Sevim, Duygu; Unlu, Metin; Gultekin, Murat; Karaca, Cagatay

2018-02-12

There have been ongoing clinical trials of therapeutic agents in Huntington's disease (HD) which requires development of reliable biomarkers of disease progression. There have been studies in the literature with conflicting results on the involvement of retina in HD, and up to date there is not a study evaluating the single retinal layers in HD. We aimed to evaluate the specific retinal changes in HD and their usability as potential disease progression markers. This cross-sectional study used spectral-domain optical coherence tomography with automatic segmentation to measure peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (pRNFL) thickness and the thickness and volume of retinal layers in foveal scans of 15 patients with HD and 15 age- and sex-matched controls. Genetic testing results, disease duration, HD disease burden scores and Unified HD Rating Scales motor scores were acquired for the patients. Temporal pRNFL, macular RNFL (mRNFL), ganglion cell layer (GCL), inner plexiform layer (IPL), inner nuclear layer and outer plexiform layer thicknesses and IPL, retinal pigment epithelium and outer macular volume were found lower in HD compared to controls, while outer nuclear layer and outer retinal layer thickness were increased (p layer thicknesses, most significantly with mRNFL and GCL and disease progression markers. The outcomes of this study points out that retinal layers, most significantly mRNFL and GCL, are strongly correlated with the disease progression in HD and could serve as useful biomarkers for disease progression.

A simulation methodology of spacer grid residual spring deflection for predictive and interpretative purposes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, K. T.; Kim, H. K.; Yoon, K. H.

1994-01-01

The in-reactor fuel rod support conditions against the fretting wear-induced damage can be evaluated by spacer grid residual spring deflection. In order to predict the spacer grid residual spring deflection as a function of burnup for various spring designs, a simulation methodology of spacer grid residual spring deflection has been developed and implemented in the GRIDFORCE program. The simulation methodology takes into account cladding creep rate, initial spring deflection, initial spring force, and spring force relaxation rate as the key parameters affecting the residual spring deflection. The simulation methodology developed in this study can be utilized as an effective tool in evaluating the capability of a newly designed spacer grid spring to prevent the fretting wear-induced damage

Non linear fe analysis on the static buckling behavior of the spacer grid structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song, K.N.; Yoon, K.H.

2001-01-01

In this study considered is the static buckling behavior of spacer grids in the fuel assembly, which are required to have a sufficient strength against an accident like earthquake. Special attention is given to the finite element modeling of the spot-welding and the constraints between the spacer strips assembled together: it is found that a proper treatment of the constraints is critical for accurate assessment of the buckling behavior including strain localization at the point of spot welding. The buckling strength of the 17 x 17 spacer grid, which is difficult to analyze due to a large number of degrees of freedom, is estimated from analysis for the smaller models 3 x 3, 5 x 5, 7 x 7, and 9 x 9 spacer grids. (authors)

Nonlinear optical activity in Bridgman growth layered compounds

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miah, M.I., E-mail: m.miah@griffith.edu.au [Queensland Micro- and Nanotechnology Centre, Griffith University, Nathan, Brisbane, QLD 4111 (Australia); Biomolecular and Physical Sciences, Griffith University, Nathan, Brisbane, QLD 4111 (Australia); Department of Physics, University of Chittagong, Chittagong 4331 (Bangladesh)

2010-02-15

Layered semiconductor compound CdI{sub 2} has been grown with the Bridgman technique and studied by nonlinear transmittance spectroscopy. The optical absorption in CdI{sub 2} shows a nonlinear transmission of the incident laser power (P{sub 0}) within a lower power limit. The transmission, however, is found to saturate at high powers, giving a clamped output. The value of the incident power (P{sub 0C}) at which clamping starts is also found to depend on the crystal temperature (T{sub L}). The values of P{sub OC} ranges from 55 to 65 MW cm{sup -2} for T{sub L} = 4.2-180 K. The dynamic range (D{sub R}) as a function of T{sub L} is calculated and the values are found to range from D{sub R} = 2 to 1.6. The optical limiting mechanisms are discussed. The two-photon absorption (TPA) coefficient ({beta}) of the optical nonlinear process in CdI{sub 2} is estimated. The values are found to be within a range from {beta} = 47 to 25 cm GW{sup -1} and be decreasing with increasing T{sub L}. As expected for the TPA process, the experimental data within a certain range follows the linear relation: log (P{sub 0}/P{sub T}) = A{sub G} + {Omega}(P{sub 0} - P{sub T}), where P{sub T} is the transmitted power, A{sub G} is the absorbance of the ground state and {Omega} is a constant depending on the absorption cross-section and the relaxation time. The values of A{sub G} and {Omega} estimated from the fits to the measured data vary with T{sub L}. The findings resulting from this investigation might have potential applications in optical sensors protection.

Facile preparation, optical and electrochemical properties of layer-by-layer V{sub 2}O{sub 5} quadrate structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Yifu, E-mail: yfzhang@dlut.edu.cn; Zheng, Jiqi; Wang, Qiushi; Hu, Tao; Tian, Fuping; Meng, Changgong

2017-03-31

Highlights: • Layer-by-layer V{sub 2}O{sub 5} structures self-assembly by quadrate sheets like “multilayer cake” were synthesized. • Carbon spheres is as the structure-directing reagent like adhesive to guide the formation of layer-by-layer structures. • UV–vis spectrum shows two major absorption bands at about 340 and 478 nm and PL spectrum exhibits the emission peak at 545 nm for V{sub 2}O{sub 5} layer-by-layer structures. • The electrochemical properties of layer-by-layer V{sub 2}O{sub 5} structures are significantly improved in organic electrolyte. - Abstract: Layer-by-layer V{sub 2}O{sub 5} structures self-assembly by quadrate sheets like “multilayer cake” were successfully synthesized using NH{sub 4}VO{sub 3} as the vanadium sources by a facile hydrothermal route and combination of the calcination. The structure and composition were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer, X-ray powder diffraction, Raman and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The optical properties of the as-obtained V{sub 2}O{sub 5} layer-by-layer structures were investigated by the Ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy and photoluminescence spectrum. The electrochemical properties of the as-obtained V{sub 2}O{sub 5} layer-by-layer structures as electrodes in supercapacitor device were measured by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and galvanostatic charge-discharge (GCD) both in the aqueous and organic electrolyte. The specific capacitance is 347 F g{sup −1} at 1 A g{sup −1} in organic electrolyte, which is improved by 46% compared with 238 F g{sup −1} in aqueous electrolyte. During the cycle performance, the specific capacitances of V{sub 2}O{sub 5} layer-by-layer structures after 100 cycles are 30% and 82% of the initial discharge capacity in the aqueous and organic electrolyte, respectively, indicating the cycle performance is significantly improved in organic electrolyte. Our results turn out that layer-by-layer

Nuclear reactor spring strip grid spacer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Patterson, J.F.; Flora, B.S.

1978-01-01

A bimetallic grid spacer is described comprising a grid structure of zircaloy formed by intersecting striplike members which define fuel element openings for receiving fuel elements and spring strips made of Inconel positioned within the grid structure for cooperating with the fuel elements to maintain them in their desired position. A plurality of these spring strips extend longitudinally between sides of the grid structure, being locked in position by the grid retaining strips. The fuel rods, which are disposed in the fuel openings formed in the grid structure, are positioned by means of the springs associated with the spring strips and a plurality of dimples which extend from the zircaloy grid structure into the openings. In one embodiment the strips are disposed in a plurality of arrays with those spring strip arrays situated in opposing diagonal quadrants of the grid structure extending in the same direction and adjacent spring strip arrays in each half of the spacer extending in relatively perpendicular directions. Other variations of the spring strip arrangements for a particular fuel design are disclosed herein

A study on the characteristics of the spacer spring by finite element method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Park, Sung Keun; Kim, Hyung Kyu; Kim, Kyu Tae [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea, Republic of)

1995-06-01

The mechanical integrity of spacer springs in KOFA was certified through the mechanical tests by KWU. In this report, the spacer spring characteristics were obtained by using a commercial FEM code ANSYS, and the calculated results were compared with the mechanical test results. It has been found that the analytical results from ANSYS were in good agreement with the test results in the actual working range of the spacer springs even though some errors occurred in the range of initial spring deflection. The errors were thought to occur due to the simplified boundary conditions and the nominal dimensions which are used in calculations rather than the as-fabricated dimensions. Though the results from ANSYS are not fully satisfied, the analytical method in this report has been verified to be used as a method for investigating the characteristic of spacer springs roughly before conducting mechanical tests. 8 tabs., 25 figs (Author) .new.

Ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer and retinal nerve fibre layer changes within the macula in retinitis pigmentosa: a spectral domain optical coherence tomography study.

Science.gov (United States)

Yoon, Chang Ki; Yu, Hyeong Gon

2018-03-01

To investigate how macular ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer (GCIPL) and retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) thicknesses within the macula change with retinitis pigmentosa (RP) severity. Spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) was used to examine 177 patients with RP and 177 normal controls. An optical coherence tomography (OCT) line scan was used to grade RP severity. Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) was categorized as more advanced if there was no identifiable inner segment ellipsoid (ISe) band (NISE) and as less advanced if an ISe band could be identified and peripheral loss of ISe was apparent (IISE). Ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer (GCIPL) and RNFL thicknesses were manually measured on OCT images and analysed. Pearson's correlation analyses were used to examine correlations between GCIPL thickness, RNFL thickness, visual acuity (VA) and visual field extent in patients and controls. Ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer (GCIPL) was significantly thicker in IISE than in control eyes (p layer (RNFL) was significantly thicker in eyes with IISE and NISE than in control eyes in both horizontal and vertical meridians (all p layer (GCIPL) thickness showed a weak positive correlation with vision, and RNFL thickness showed a weak negative correlation with vision and visual field extent. Based on these results, the inner retina, including the GCIPL and RNFL, maintains its gross integrity longer than the photoreceptor layer in RP. Additionally, thickening of the inner retina may have some functional implications in patients with RP. © 2017 Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Use of a wedge cuvette in thin layer photometry and its application to oximetry

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Spaan, J. A.; Garred, L. J.; van de Borne, P.

1977-01-01

A wedge cuvette was constructed by fixing 2 glass plates at a known angle with a spacer at one end. This resulted in a thin layer with thickness varying from 0 to 250 micrometer. By measuring the intensity of a beam of light through the thin layer as a function of distance along the wedge (and thus

Ultra-Thin Optically Transparent Carbon Electrodes Produced from Layers of Adsorbed Proteins

Science.gov (United States)

Alharthi, Sarah A.; Benavidez, Tomas E.; Garcia, Carlos D.

2013-01-01

This work describes a simple, versatile, and inexpensive procedure to prepare optically transparent carbon electrodes, using proteins as precursors. Upon adsorption, the protein-coated substrates were pyrolyzed under reductive conditions (5% H2) to form ultra-thin, conductive electrodes. Because proteins spontaneously adsorb to interfaces forming uniform layers, the proposed method does not require a precise control of the preparation conditions, specialized instrumentation, or expensive precursors. The resulting electrodes were characterized by a combination of electrochemical, optical, and spectroscopic means. As a proof-of-concept, the optically-transparent electrodes were also used as substrate for the development of an electrochemical glucose biosensor. The proposed films represent a convenient alternative to more sophisticated, and less available, carbon-based nanomaterials. Furthermore, these films could be formed on a variety of substrates, without classical limitations of size or shape. PMID:23421732

Nuclear reactor spring strip grid spacer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Patterson, J.F.; Flora, B.S.

1980-01-01

An improved and novel grid spacer for maintaining the fuel rods of a nuclear reactor fuel assembly in substantially parallel array is described. The invention provides for spring strips to maintain the fuel elements in their desired orientation which have more positive alignment than previous types while allowing greater flexibility to counterbalance the effects of differential thermal expansion. (UK)

Optical and photoelectrochemical studies on Ag{sub 2}O/TiO{sub 2} double-layer thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Chuan, E-mail: cli10@yahoo.com [Department of Biomedical Engineering, National Yang Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan 11221 (China); Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Central University, Jhongli, Taoyuan, Taiwan 32001 (China); Hsieh, J.H. [Department of Materials Engineering, Ming Chi University of Technology, Taishan, Taipei, Taiwan 24301 (China); Cheng, J.C. [Department of Electronic Engineering, National Taipei University of Technology, Taipei, Taiwan 10608 (China); Huang, C.C. [Department of Biomedical Engineering, National Yang Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan 11221 (China)

2014-11-03

When two different oxides films stacked together, if the absorption (upper) layer has both its conduction and valence bands more negatively lower than that of the layer underneath, then the photo-excited electrons can be forwarded to the underneath layer to become an effect of energy storage. Recent studies discovered that the double-layers of Cu{sub 2}O/TiO{sub 2} films possess such capacity. In order to investigate this specific phenomenon, we use a DC magnetron reactive sputtering to deposit a double-layer of Ag{sub 2}O/TiO{sub 2} films on glass substrate. The film thicknesses of the double-layer are 300 nm and 200 nm respectively. X-Ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and UV–VIS–NIR photospectrometer and photoluminance tests were used to study the structure, morphology, optical absorption and band gaps of the stacked films. From XRD and SEM, we can confirm the microstructures of each layer. The UV–VIS–NIR spectrum revealed that the optical absorption of Ag{sub 2}O/TiO{sub 2} fell in between the single film of Ag{sub 2}O and TiO{sub 2}. Further, two band gaps were estimated for Ag{sub 2}O/TiO{sub 2} films based on the Beer-Lambert law and Tauc plot. Photoluminance and photoelectrochemical tests indicated that delayed emission by electron-hole recombination and photoelectrical current was effectively support the mechanism of electrons transfer from Ag{sub 2}O to TiO{sub 2} at Ag{sub 2}O/TiO{sub 2} interface in the double-layer films. - Highlights: • A double-layer of Ag{sub 2}O/TiO{sub 2} films was deposited on glass substrate by sputtering. • XRD confirms the nanocrystalline structures of the stack deposited films. • UV–VIS–NIR spectroscopy shows the enhanced of optical absorption in Ag{sub 2}O/TiO{sub 2}. • Photoluminance and photoelectrochemical tests show electron-hole separation effect.

Photoluminescence properties of Bi/Al-codoped silica optical fiber based on atomic layer deposition method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wen, Jianxiang; Wang, Jie; Dong, Yanhua; Chen, Na; Luo, Yanhua; Peng, Gang-ding; Pang, Fufei; Chen, Zhenyi; Wang, Tingyun

2015-01-01

Highlights: • We report on a new fabrication method of producing Bi/Al-codoped silica optical fibers. • There are obvious Bi-type ions absorption peaks at 520, 700 and 800 nm. • The fluorescence peaks are 1130 and 1145 nm with 489 and 705 nm excitations, respectively. • Their fluorescence lifetimes are 701 and 721 μs, respectively. • And then there are obvious fluorescence bands in 600–850 and 900–1650 nm with 532 nm pump exciting. • There is a maximum fluorescence intensity peak at 1120 nm, and its full wave at half maximum (FWHM) is approximately 180 nm. • These may mainly result from the interaction between Bi and Al ions. • The Bi/Al-codoped silica optical fibers would be used in high power or broadly tunable laser sources, and optical fiber amplifier in the optical communication fields. - Abstract: The Bi/Al-codoped silica optical fibers are fabricated by atomic layer deposition (ALD) doping technique combing with conventional modified chemical vapor deposition (MCVD) process. Bi 2 O 3 and Al 2 O 3 are induced into silica optical fiber core layer by ALD technique, with Bis (2,2,6,6-tetra-methyl-3,5-heptanedionato) Bismuth(III) (Bi(thd) 3 ) and H 2 O as Bi and O precursors, and with Al(CH 3 ) 3 (TMA) as Al precursor, respectively. The structure features and optical properties of Bi/Al-codoped silica optical fibers are investigated. Bi 2 O 3 stoichiometry is confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The valence state of Bi element is +3. Concentration distribution of Si, Ge and O elements is approximately 24–33, 9 and 66 mol%, respectively, in fiber preform core and cladding layer region. Bi and Al ions have been also slightly doped approximately 150–180 and 350–750 ppm in fiber preform core, respectively. Refractive index difference of the Bi/Al-codoped fiber is approximately 0.58% using optical fiber refractive index profiler analyzer. There are obvious Bi-type ions absorption peaks at 520, 700 and 800 nm. The fluorescence

Photoluminescence properties of Bi/Al-codoped silica optical fiber based on atomic layer deposition method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wen, Jianxiang, E-mail: wenjx@shu.edu.cn [Key Laboratory of Specialty Fiber Optics and Optical Access Networks, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200072 (China); Wang, Jie; Dong, Yanhua; Chen, Na [Key Laboratory of Specialty Fiber Optics and Optical Access Networks, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200072 (China); Luo, Yanhua; Peng, Gang-ding [Photonics & Optical Communications, School of Electrical Engineering & Telecommunications, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2052, NSW (Australia); Pang, Fufei; Chen, Zhenyi [Key Laboratory of Specialty Fiber Optics and Optical Access Networks, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200072 (China); Wang, Tingyun, E-mail: tywang@mail.shu.edu.cn [Key Laboratory of Specialty Fiber Optics and Optical Access Networks, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200072 (China)

2015-09-15

Highlights: • We report on a new fabrication method of producing Bi/Al-codoped silica optical fibers. • There are obvious Bi-type ions absorption peaks at 520, 700 and 800 nm. • The fluorescence peaks are 1130 and 1145 nm with 489 and 705 nm excitations, respectively. • Their fluorescence lifetimes are 701 and 721 μs, respectively. • And then there are obvious fluorescence bands in 600–850 and 900–1650 nm with 532 nm pump exciting. • There is a maximum fluorescence intensity peak at 1120 nm, and its full wave at half maximum (FWHM) is approximately 180 nm. • These may mainly result from the interaction between Bi and Al ions. • The Bi/Al-codoped silica optical fibers would be used in high power or broadly tunable laser sources, and optical fiber amplifier in the optical communication fields. - Abstract: The Bi/Al-codoped silica optical fibers are fabricated by atomic layer deposition (ALD) doping technique combing with conventional modified chemical vapor deposition (MCVD) process. Bi{sub 2}O{sub 3} and Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} are induced into silica optical fiber core layer by ALD technique, with Bis (2,2,6,6-tetra-methyl-3,5-heptanedionato) Bismuth(III) (Bi(thd){sub 3}) and H{sub 2}O as Bi and O precursors, and with Al(CH{sub 3}){sub 3} (TMA) as Al precursor, respectively. The structure features and optical properties of Bi/Al-codoped silica optical fibers are investigated. Bi{sub 2}O{sub 3} stoichiometry is confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The valence state of Bi element is +3. Concentration distribution of Si, Ge and O elements is approximately 24–33, 9 and 66 mol%, respectively, in fiber preform core and cladding layer region. Bi and Al ions have been also slightly doped approximately 150–180 and 350–750 ppm in fiber preform core, respectively. Refractive index difference of the Bi/Al-codoped fiber is approximately 0.58% using optical fiber refractive index profiler analyzer. There are obvious Bi-type ions absorption

Predicting the impact of feed spacer modification on biofouling by hydraulic characterization and biofouling studies in membrane fouling simulators

KAUST Repository

Siddiqui, Amber

2016-12-22

Feed spacers are an essential part of spiral-wound reverse osmosis (RO) and nanofiltration (NF) membrane modules. Geometric modification of feed spacers is a potential option to reduce the impact of biofouling on the performance of membrane systems. The objective of this study was to evaluate the biofouling potential of two commercially available reference feed spacers and four modified feed spacers. The spacers were compared on hydraulic characterization and in biofouling studies with membrane fouling simulators (MFSs). The virgin feed spacer was characterized hydraulically by their resistance, measured in terms of feed channel pressure drop, performed by operating MFSs at varying feed water flow rates. Short-term (9 days) biofouling studies were carried out with nutrient dosage to the MFS feed water to accelerate the biofouling rate. Long-term (96 days) biofouling studies were done without nutrient dosage to the MFS feed water. Feed channel pressure drop was monitored and accumulation of active biomass was quantified by adenosine tri phosphate (ATP) determination. The six feed spacers were ranked on pressure drop (hydraulic characterization) and on biofouling impact (biofouling studies). Significantly different trends in hydraulic resistance and biofouling impact for the six feed spacers were observed. The same ranking for biofouling impact on the feed spacers was found for the (i) short-term biofouling study with nutrient dosage and the (ii) long-term biofouling study without nutrient dosage. The ranking for hydraulic resistance for six virgin feed spacers differed significantly from the ranking of the biofouling impact, indicating that hydraulic resistance of clean feed spacers does not predict the hydraulic resistance of biofouled feed spacers. Better geometric design of feed spacers can be a suitable approach to minimize impact of biofouling in spiral wound membrane systems.

Optical properties of GaInNAsSb/GaAs/GaAs1-xNx (x ∼ 10%) saturable absorber quantum wells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ben Bouzid, S.; Zaghdoudi, W.; Hamdouni, A.; Ben Sedrine, N.; Bousbih, F.; Harmand, J.C.; Chtourou, R.

2008-01-01

We study the effect of the GaAsN narrow QWs on the optical properties of the GaInNAsSb/GaAs QWs using photoluminescence spectroscopy. A drastic effect of the N-rich layers on the QW photoluminesecnec (PL) intensity was observed with a strong influence of the spacer thickness. In the PL spectra a broad band caused by excitonic transitions related with N-related clusters in GaAs barriers is found. Based on calculations from experimental data, we have identified the low QW peak energy to the E 1 -H 1 transition using the shear deformation potentials report Δp/p = 0.24

On the Origin of Reverse Transcriptase-Using CRISPR-Cas Systems and Their Hyperdiverse, Enigmatic Spacer Repertoires

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sukrit Silas

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Cas1 integrase is the key enzyme of the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR-Cas adaptation module that mediates acquisition of spacers derived from foreign DNA by CRISPR arrays. In diverse bacteria, the cas1 gene is fused (or adjacent to a gene encoding a reverse transcriptase (RT related to group II intron RTs. An RT-Cas1 fusion protein has been recently shown to enable acquisition of CRISPR spacers from RNA. Phylogenetic analysis of the CRISPR-associated RTs demonstrates monophyly of the RT-Cas1 fusion, and coevolution of the RT and Cas1 domains. Nearly all such RTs are present within type III CRISPR-Cas loci, but their phylogeny does not parallel the CRISPR-Cas type classification, indicating that RT-Cas1 is an autonomous functional module that is disseminated by horizontal gene transfer and can function with diverse type III systems. To compare the sequence pools sampled by RT-Cas1-associated and RT-lacking CRISPR-Cas systems, we obtained samples of a commercially grown cyanobacterium—Arthrospira platensis. Sequencing of the CRISPR arrays uncovered a highly diverse population of spacers. Spacer diversity was particularly striking for the RT-Cas1-containing type III-B system, where no saturation was evident even with millions of sequences analyzed. In contrast, analysis of the RT-lacking type III-D system yielded a highly diverse pool but reached a point where fewer novel spacers were recovered as sequencing depth was increased. Matches could be identified for a small fraction of the non-RT-Cas1-associated spacers, and for only a single RT-Cas1-associated spacer. Thus, the principal source(s of the spacers, particularly the hypervariable spacer repertoire of the RT-associated arrays, remains unknown.

[Progression of nerve fiber layer defects in retrobulbar optic neuritis by the macular ganglion cell complex].

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, D; Bosc, C; Chiambaretta, F

2017-11-01

Recent studies with SD OCT had shown early axonal damage to the macular ganglion cell complex (which consists of the three innermost layers of the retina: Inner Plexiform Layer [IPL], Ganglion Cell Layer [GCL], Retinal Nerve Fibre layer [RNFL]) in optic nerve pathology. Retrobulbar optic neuritis (RBON), occurring frequently in demyelinating diseases, leads to atrophy of the optic nerve fibers at the level of the ganglion cell axons, previously described in the literature. The goal of this study is to evaluate the progression of optic nerve fiber defects and macular ganglion cell complex defects with the SPECTRALIS OCT via a reproducible method by calculating a mean thickness in each quadrant after an episode of retrobulbar optic neuritis. This is a prospective monocentric observational study including 8 patients at the Clermont-Ferrand university medical center. All patients underwent ocular examination with macular and disc OCT analysis and a Goldmann visual field at the time of inclusion (onset or recurrence of RBON), at 3 months and at 6 months. Patients were 40-years-old on average at the time of inclusion. After 6 months of follow-up, there was progression of the atrophy of the macular ganglion cell complex in the affected eye on (11.5% or 11μm) predominantly inferonasally (13.9% or 16μm) and superonasally (12.9% or 14μm) while the other eye remained stable. The decrease in thickness occurred mainly in the most internal 3 layers of the retina. On average, the loss in thickness of the peripapillary RNFL was predominantly inferotemporal (24.9% or 39μm) and superotemporal (21.8% or 28μm). In 3 months of progression, the loss of optic nerve fibers is already seen on macular and disc OCT after an episode of RBON, especially in inferior quadrants in spite of the improvement in the Goldmann visual field and visual acuity. Segmentation by quadrant was used here to compare the progression of the defect by region compared to the fovea in a global and reproducible

Diffraction-based overlay for spacer patterning and double patterning technology

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Byoung Hoon; Park, JeongSu; Lee, Jongsu; Park, Sarohan; Lim, ChangMoon; Yim, Dong-Gyu; Park, Sungki; Ryu, Chan-Ho; Morgan, Stephen; van de Schaar, Maurits; Fuchs, Andreas; Bhattacharyya, Kaustuve

2011-03-01

Overlay performance will be increasingly important for Spacer Patterning Technology (SPT) and Double Patterning Technology (DPT) as various Resolution Enhancement Techniques are employed to extend the resolution limits of lithography. Continuous shrinkage of devices makes overlay accuracy one of the most critical issues while overlay performance is completely dependent on exposure tool. Image Based Overlay (IBO) has been used as the mainstream metrology for overlay by the main memory IC companies, but IBO is not suitable for some critical layers due to the poor Tool Induced Shift (TIS) values. Hence new overlay metrology is required to improve the overlay measurement accuracy. Diffraction Based Overlay (DBO) is regarded to be an alternative metrology to IBO for more accurate measurements and reduction of reading errors. Good overlay performances of DBO have been reported in many articles. However applying DBO for SPT and DPT layers poses extra challenges for target design. New vernier designs are considered for different DPT and SPT schemes to meet overlay target in DBO system. In this paper, we optimize the design of the DBO target and the performance of DBO to meet the overlay specification of sub-3x nm devices which are using SPT and DPT processes. We show that the appropriate vernier design yields excellent overlay performance in residual and TIS. The paper also demonstrated the effects of vernier structure on overlay accuracy from SEM analysis.

Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Converges More Convexly on Normal Smaller Optic Nerve Head.

Science.gov (United States)

Jung, Kyoung In; Shin, Jeong Ah; Park, Hae-Young Lopilly; Park, Chan Kee

2015-08-01

To investigate retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) configuration in the optic nerve head (ONH) and peripapillary area according to disc size and to determine whether it explains cup discrepancy among eyes with different disc sizes. Horizontal and vertical RNFL curvature and mean thickness were measured using confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (Heidelberg Retina Tomograph) in 63 normal subjects grouped by disc size. Average and quadrant RNFL thickness, disc size, average cup-to-disc ratio (CDR), and convergence angle at the optic disc were also measured using Cirrus HD-optical coherence tomography. The relationships between disc size and RNFL curvature, thickness, angle at optic disc, and CDR were evaluated. RNFL curvature and convergence angle reflects convexity "on" and "into" the optic disc, respectively. CDR was smaller for small discs and was positively correlated with disc size (Poptic disc were positively correlated with disc size (POptic disc area was negatively correlated with mean RNFL thickness at the optic disc margin measured by HRT (P=0.002), but not in the peripapillary area by optical coherence tomography. Using imaging techniques, we demonstrated that the shape of the RNFLs converging "on" and entering "into" the optic disc was more convex for small optic discs compared with large discs. A low CDR for small discs could be mediated by these RNFL profiles at the ONH, which may guide the clinical evaluation of glaucomatous ONH damage.

Graphene as transmissive electrodes and aligning layers for liquid-crystal-based electro-optic devices.

Science.gov (United States)

Basu, Rajratan; Shalov, Samuel A

2017-07-01

In a conventional liquid crystal (LC) cell, polyimide layers are used to align the LC homogeneously in the cell, and transmissive indium tin oxide (ITO) electrodes are used to apply the electric field to reorient the LC along the field. It is experimentally presented here that monolayer graphene films on the two glass substrates can function concurrently as the LC aligning layers and the transparent electrodes to fabricate an LC cell, without using the conventional polyimide and ITO substrates. This replacement can effectively decrease the thickness of all the alignment layers and electrodes from about 100 nm to less than 1 nm. The interaction between LC and graphene through π-π electron stacking imposes a planar alignment on the LC in the graphene-based cell-which is verified using a crossed polarized microscope. The graphene-based LC cell exhibits an excellent nematic director reorientation process from planar to homeotropic configuration through the application of an electric field-which is probed by dielectric and electro-optic measurements. Finally, it is shown that the electro-optic switching is significantly faster in the graphene-based LC cell than in a conventional ITO-polyimide LC cell.

USE OF ANTIBIOTIC CEMENT SPACERS/BEADS IN TREATMENT ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

ABSTRACT. Background: Chronic musculoskeletal infection involving bone present a big challenge to orthopaedic surgeons. ... Current data has demonstrated that the use of .... Antibiotic spacers are effective and add value in the treament of ...

Advanced fabrication of hyperbolic metamaterials

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Shkondin, Evgeniy; Sukham, Johneph; Panah, Mohammad Esmail Aryaee

2017-01-01

Hyperbolic metamaterials can provide unprecedented properties in accommodation of high-k (high wave vector) waves and enhancement of the optical density of states. To reach such performance the metamaterials have to be fabricated with as small imperfections as possible. Here we report on our...... advances in two approaches in fabrication of optical metamaterials. We deposit ultrathin ultrasmooth gold layers with the assistance of organic material (APTMS) adhesion layer. The technology supports the stacking of such layers in a multiperiod construction with alumina spacers between gold films, which...

Ion therapy of prostate cancer: daily rectal dose reduction by application of spacer gel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rucinski, Antoni; Brons, Stephan; Richter, Daniel; Habl, Gregor; Debus, Jürgen; Bert, Christoph; Haberer, Thomas; Jäkel, Oliver

2015-01-01

Ion beam therapy represents a promising approach to treat prostate cancer, mainly due to its high conformity and radiobiological effectiveness. However, the presence of prostate motion, patient positioning and range uncertainties may deteriorate target dose and increase exposure of organs at risk. Spacer gel injected between prostate and rectum may increase the safety of prostate cancer (PC) radiation therapy by separating the rectum from the target dose field. The dosimetric impact of the application of spacer gel for scanned carbon ion therapy of PC has been analyzed at Heidelberg Ion-Beam Therapy Center (HIT). The robustness of ion therapy treatment plans was investigated by comparison of two data sets of patients treated with and without spacer gel. A research treatment planning system for ion therapy was used for treatment plan optimization and calculation of daily dose distributions on 2 to 9 Computed Tomography (CT) studies available for each of the 19 patients. Planning and daily dose distributions were analyzed with respect to target coverage, maximal dose to the rectum (excluding 1 ml of the greatest dose; Dmax-1 ml) and the rectal volume receiving dose greater than 90% of prescribed target dose (V90 Rectum ), respectively. The application of spacer gel did substantially diminish rectum dose. Dmax-1 ml on the treatment planning CT was on average reduced from 100.0 ± 1.0% to 90.2 ± 4.8%, when spacer gel was applied. The robustness analysis performed with daily CT studies demonstrated for all analyzed patient cases that application of spacer gel results in a decrease of the daily V90 Rectum index, which calculated over all patient cases and CT studies was 10.2 ± 10.4 [ml] and 1.1 ± 2.1 [ml] for patients without and with spacer gel, respectively. The dosimetric benefit of increasing the distance between prostate and rectum using spacer gel for PC treatment with carbon ion beams has been quantified. Application of spacer gel substantially reduced rectal

Microcystic Changes in the Retinal Internal Nuclear Layer Associated with Optic Atrophy: A Prospective Study

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Benjamin Wolff

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Purpose. This study aimed at assessing the prevalence of pathologies presenting retinal inner nuclear layer (RINL microcystic perimacular changes associated with optic nerve atrophy (OA. The charts of patients presenting a significant defect of the Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer (RNFL were included prospectively in this study. Patients were classified according to the etiology of the RNFL defect. Two hundred and one eyes of 138 patients were enrolled in this analysis. Retinal images obtained showed the typical hyporeflective perifoveal crescent-shaped lesion composed of small round hyporeflective microcysts confined to the RINL in 35.3% of the eyes. Those findings were found in 75% of eyes presenting hereditary OA, 50% of eyes presenting ischemic optic neuritis, 50% of eyes with drusen of the optic nerve (ON, 44.4% of eyes presenting a compressive OA, 32% of eyes presenting inflammatory optic neuropathy from multiple sclerosis, 18.5% of eyes presenting OA from undetermined origin, and 17.6% of eyes having primary open-angle glaucoma. This study demonstrates that microcystic changes in RINL are not specific to a disease but are found in OA of various etiologies. Moreover, their incidence was found to be dependent upon the cause of OA, with the highest incidence occurring in genetic OA.

The effect of endoskeleton on antibiotic impregnated cement spacer for treating deep hip infection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hsu Wei-Hsiu

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Backgrounds A two-stage revision arthroplasty was suggested optimal treatment for deep infections in hip joint. The effect of endoskeleton of cement spacers on the interim function and infection control remains unclear. Methods From Jan. 2004 to Dec. 2007, we collected a prospective cohort of consecutive 34 patients who treated with two-stage revision total hip arthroplasty for deep infection of hip joint. In group 1, fifteen patients were treated by a novel design augmented with hip compression screw while nineteen patients were treated by traditional design in group 2. Results No fracture of cement spacer occurred in group 1 while 6 cases developed spacer failure in group 2. (p Conclusions Patients being treated for deep infection of hip joint using cement spacer augmented with stronger endoskeleton have lower pain levels and better joint function between stages.

Development and characterization of 3D-printed feed spacers for spiral wound membrane systems

KAUST Repository

Siddiqui, Amber; Farhat, Nadia; Bucs, Szilard; Valladares Linares, Rodrigo; Picioreanu, Cristian; Kruithof, Joop C.; van Loosdrecht, Mark C.M.; Kidwell, James; Vrouwenvelder, Johannes S.

2016-01-01

suggested that the impact of spacers on hydraulics and biofouling can be improved. A good agreement was found for the modeled and measured relationship between linear flow velocity and pressure drop for feed spacers with the same geometry, indicating

Real-time optical modelling and investigation of inorganic nano-layer growth onto flexible polymeric substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laskarakis, A.; Georgiou, D.; Logothetidis, S.

2010-01-01

A major factor for the achievement of the desirable performance, efficiency and lifetime of flexible organic electronic devices is the optimization of the encapsulation layers that protect the device active layers by atmospheric gas molecule permeation. The active layers consisted of small molecule and/or polymer organic semiconductors as well as the organic conductors need to be encapsulated into a transparent medium that will provide the necessary protection and maintain their charge generation and transport characteristics. The encapsulation layers are generally consisted of inorganic thin films (silicon oxide-SiO x and aluminium oxide-AlO x ) deposited onto the polymeric substrates, such as PolyEthylene Terephthalate (PET). In this work, in situ and real-time Spectroscopic Ellipsometry in the ultraviolet spectral region has been implemented in order to investigate the growth of inorganic SiO x and AlO x nano-layers onto PET flexible polymeric substrates as well as the PET/inorganic interface effects during the early stages of growth. The analysis of the pseudodielectric function that was measured in real-time in very short time scales (in the order of hundreds of ms) has provided detailed information on the time evolution of the thickness and deposition rate of the inorganic nano-layers during their growth process as well as on their optical and electronic properties. This work proposes a methodology for using real-time optical monitoring technique with the aim to tailor and control the functionality of these materials for application in flexible electronic devices.

Indirect optical crosstalk reduction by highly-doped backside layer in PureB single-photon avalanche diode arrays

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Osrečki, Željko; Knežević, Tihomir; Nanver, Lis K.; Suligoj, Tomislav

2017-01-01

A method of reducing indirect optical crosstalk in a PureB single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) array is investigated by TCAD simulations. The reduction is accomplished by taking advantage of the enhanced optical absorption of a highly-doped Si layer (p-type, 3×1020 cm-3) on the backside of the

Evaluation of retinal nerve fiber layer thickness measurements using optical coherence tomography in patients with tobacco-alcohol-induced toxic optic neuropathy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Moura Frederico

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Three patients with progressive visual loss, chronic alcoholism and tabagism were submitted to a complete neuro-ophthalmic examination and to retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL measurements using optical coherence tomography (OCT scanning. Two patients showed marked RNFL loss in the temporal sector of the optic disc. However, a third patient presented RNFL measurements within or above normal limits, based on the Stratus-OCT normative database. Such findings may be due to possible RNFL edema similar to the one that may occur in the acute phase of toxic optic neuropathies. Stratus-OCT was able to detect RNFL loss in the papillomacular bundle of patients with tobacco-alcohol-induced toxic optic neuropathy. However, interpretation must be careful when OCT does not show abnormality in order to prevent diagnostic confusion, since overestimation of RNFL thickness measurements is possible in such cases.

Magneto-optical effects induced in a magnetic-fluid layer by thermally released supermassive magnetic monopoles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sofonea, V.; Vekas, L.; Hegedues, E.

1993-01-01

The number of photons in the optical pulse induced via magneto-optical effects by a thermally released (e.g., from old iron ores) supermassive magnetic monopole traversing a thin magnetic-fluid layer is evaluated on the basis of phenomenological models. In certain monopole search experiments, these effects could give a detectable signal of the order of tens of photons and thus it may serve as a basis for a new magnetic-monopole detection method. (orig.)

Biofouling Control in Spiral-Wound Membrane Systems: Impact of Feed Spacer Modification and Biocides

KAUST Repository

Siddiqui, Amber

2016-01-01

was developed. The combination of modeling and experimental testing of 3D printed spacers is a promising strategy to develop advanced spacers aiming to reduce the impact of biofilm formation on membrane performance and to improve the cleanability of spiral

Prevalence of Split Nerve Fiber Layer Bundles in Healthy People Imaged with Spectral Domain Optical Coherence Tomography

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Sirel Gür Güngör

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Objectives: The presence of retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL split bundles was recently described in normal eyes scanned using scanning laser polarimetry and by histologic studies. Split bundles may resemble RNFL loss in healthy eyes. The aim of our study was to determine the prevalence of nerve fiber layer split bundles in healthy people. Materials and Methods: We imaged 718 eyes of 359 healthy persons with the spectral domain optical coherence tomography in this cross-sectional study. All eyes had intraocular pressure of 21 mmHg or less, normal appearance of the optic nerve head, and normal visual fields (Humphrey Field Analyzer 24-2 full threshold program. In our study, a bundle was defined as ‘split’ when there is localized defect not resembling a wedge defect in the RNFL deviation map with a symmetrically divided RNFL appearance on the RNFL thickness map. The classification was performed by two independent observers who used an identical set of reference examples to standardize the classification. Results: Inter-observer consensus was reached in all cases. Bilateral superior split bundles were seen in 19 cases (5.29% and unilateral superior split was observed in 15 cases (4.16%. In 325 cases (90.52% there was no split bundle. Conclusion: Split nerve fiber layer bundles, in contrast to single nerve fiber layer bundles, are not common findings in healthy eyes. In eyes with normal optic disc appearance, especially when a superior RNFL defect is observed in RNFL deviation map, the RNLF thickness map and graphs should also be examined for split nerve fiber layer bundles.

Simulation study of transfer characteristics for spacer-filled membrane distillation desalination modules

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chang, Hsuan; Hsu, Jian-An; Chang, Cheng-Liang; Ho, Chii-Dong; Cheng, Tung-Wen

2017-01-01

Highlights: • A 3D CFD model takes in transmembrane heat and mass transfer developed. • DCMD modules using spacer-filled and empty channels for desalination simulated. • Fluid flow, heat transfer and mass transfer profiles revealed. • Correlations of friction factor and Nusselt number developed. - Abstract: Membrane distillation (MD) is an emerging and promising membrane separation process, which can directly utilize renewable thermal energy or low-grade waste heat, for applications in water or wastewater treatment and food industry. However, a major drawback of MD process is its low energy efficiency. Spacer is the most suggested and studied eddy promoter to enhance the heat and mass transfer, which further improves both the separation and the energy utilization performance, of MD processes. This paper presents the results of a 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation of DCMD (direct contact membrane distillation) modules using channels with and without spacers for desalination application. The model employs permeable wall boundary condition to take into account the transmembrane heat and mass transfer and simulates the entire module length. The simulation reveals similar fluctuating distributions of temperature polarization coefficient, transmembrane heat and mass fluxes as well as the shear stress on the membrane surface along the entire module length. Correlations have been developed for friction factor and average Nusselt number. These correlations are useful for the analysis and design of DCMD modules. The extent of heat transfer enhancement by spacers depends on the geometry of spacers and the Reynolds number of fluid.

Reflectivity and surface roughness of multilayer-coated substrate recovery layers for EUV lithographic optics

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nedelcu, I.; van de Kruijs, R.W.E.; Yakshin, A. E.; von Blanckenhagen, G.; F. Bijkerk,

2008-01-01

We investigated the use of separation, or substrate recovery, layers (SRLs), to enable the reuse of optical substrates after the deposition of multilayer reflective coatings, in particular Mo/Si multilayers as used for EUV lithography. An organic material (polyimide), known from other work to reduce

Microbiologic Evaluation of Cotton and Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) Tape as Endodontic Spacer Materials in Primary Molars An in Vivo Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Prabhakar, Attiguppe Ramasetty; Dixit, Kratika; Raju, O S

PTFE tape, which is commonly used as plumber's tape is an inorganic, non-fibrous, ribbon like material. The aim of this study was to evaluate PTFE tape as endodontic spacer material and to compare it with commonly used spacer material that is cotton, in primary teeth. Seventeen children undergoing pulpectomy of lower second primary molar bilaterally were included in the study. Cotton and PTFE tape were placed as spacers on each side randomly. Samples were taken from the access cavity at baseline and after seven days to check for microbial leakage. Spacer materials were also checked for microbial contamination. The results revealed that there was a significant increase in the bacterial colony count after seven days in cotton group. The access cavities were also positive for microbial leakage in the cotton group where the spacers showed positive growth. In PTFE group only two samples showed microbial contamination of spacer and out of two only one sample showed contamination of access cavity along with spacer. Within the limitations of this study, it can be concluded that PTFE tape performed better than cotton as endodontic spacer material. Thus, PTFE tape can be recommended as an endodontic spacer material as an alternative to cotton in primary teeth.

Spacers for fuel rod clusters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jabsen, F.S.

1978-01-01

The proposition deals with the fixing of nuclear fuel element rods in a grid which consists of a number of crossed Zy-plates which form cells. The rectangular cells have projections which serve as spacers for the fuel rods. According to the invention there are additional butt straps which can be moved in such a way that insertion and extraction of the fuel rods can be done without obstruction and they can be spring-loaded hold in their final position. (UWI) [de

Multi-material poly(lactic acid) scaffold fabricated via fused deposition modeling and direct hydroxyapatite injection as spacers in laminoplasty

Science.gov (United States)

Syuhada, Ghifari; Ramahdita, Ghiska; Rahyussalim, A. J.; Whulanza, Yudan

2018-02-01

Nowadays, additive manufacturing method has been used extensively to realize any product with specific attributes rather than the conventional subtractive manufacturing method. For instance, the additive manufacturing has enable us to construct a product layer-by-layer by successively depositing several materials in one session and one platform. This paper studied the properties of a 3D printed scaffold fabricated through Poly(Lactic-acid) (PLA) deposition modelling in combination with injectable hydroxyapatite (HA)/alginate as cell carrier. The scaffold was designed to serve as a spacer in cervical laminoplasty. Therefore, a series of test were conducted to elaborate the mechanical property, porosity and in-vitro toxicity testing. The results showed that the method is reliable to fabricate the scaffold as desired although the toxicity test needs more confirmation.

Temperature dependent magnetic coupling between ferromagnetic FeTaC layers in multilayer thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Singh, Akhilesh Kumar; Hsu, Jen-Hwa; Perumal, Alagarsamy

2016-01-01

We report systematic investigations on temperature dependent magnetic coupling between ferromagnetic FeTaC layers and resulting magnetic properties of multilayer structured [FeTaC (~67 nm)/Ta(x nm)] 2 /FeTaC(~67 nm)] thin films, which are fabricated directly on thermally oxidized Si substrate. As-deposited amorphous films are post annealed at different annealing temperatures (T A =200, 300 and 400 °C). Structural analyzes reveal that the films annealed at T A ≤200 °C exhibit amorphous nature, while the films annealed above 200 °C show nucleation of nanocrystals at T A =300 °C and well-defined α-Fe nanocrystals with size of about 9 nm in amorphous matrix for 400 °C annealed films. Room temperature and temperature dependent magnetic hysteresis (M–H) loops reveal that magnetization reversal behaviors and magnetic properties are strongly depending on spacer layer thickness (x), T A and temperature. A large reduction in coercivity (H C ) was observed for the films annealed at 200 °C and correlated to relaxation of stress quenched in during the film deposition. On the other hand, the films annealed at 300 °C exhibit unusual variation of H C (T), i.e., a broad minimum in H C (T) vs T curve. This is caused by change in magnetic coupling between ferromagnetic layers having different microstructure. In addition, the broad minimum in the H C (T) curve shifts from 150 K for x=1 film to 80 K for x=4 film. High-temperature thermomagnetization data show a strong (significant) variation of Curie temperature (T C ) with T A (x). The multilayer films annealed at 200 °C exhibit low value of T C with a minimum of 350 K for x=4 film. But, the films annealed at 400 °C show largest T C with a maximum of 869 K for x=1 film. The observed results are discussed on the basis of variations in magnetic couplings between FeTaC layers, which are majorly driven by temperature, spacer layer thickness, annealing temperature and nature of interfaces. - Highlights: • Preparation and

Effect of Weld Properties on the Crush Strength of the PWR Spacer Grid

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kee-nam Song

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Mechanical properties in a weld zone are different from those in the base material because of different microstructures. A spacer grid in PWR fuel is a structural component with an interconnected and welded array of slotted grid straps. Previous research on the strength analyses of the spacer grid was performed using base material properties owing to a lack of mechanical properties in the weld zone. In this study, based on the mechanical properties in the weld zone of the spacer grid recently obtained by an instrumented indentation technique, the strength analyses considering the mechanical properties in the weld zone were performed, and the analysis results were compared with the previous research.

Barriers and supports to implementation of MDI/spacer use in nine Canadian pediatric emergency departments: a qualitative study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Graham Ian D

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Despite recent research supporting the use of metered dose inhalers with spacer devices (MDI/spacers in pediatric emergency departments (PEDs for acute exacerbations of asthma, uptake of this practice has been slow. The objectives of this study were to determine the barriers and supports to implementing MDI/spacer research and to identify factors associated with early and late adoption of MDI/spacers in Canadian PEDs. Methods Using a comparative case study design, we classified nine tertiary care pediatric hospital PEDs based on their stage of implementation. Data were collected using focus group interviews with physicians, registered nurses (RNs, and respiratory therapists (RTs, and individual interviews with both patient care and medical directors at each site. Initial coding was based on the Ottawa Model of Research Use (OMRU categories of elements known to influence the uptake of innovations. Results One hundred and fifty healthcare professionals from nine different healthcare institutions participated in this study. Lack of leadership in the form of a research champion, a lack of consensus about the benefits of MDI/spacers among staff, perceived resistance from patients/parents, and perceived increased cost and workload associated with MDI/spacer use were the most prevalent barriers to the adoption of the MDI/spacer. Common strategies used by early-adopting sites included the active participation of all professional groups in the adoption process in addition to a well-planned and executed educational component for staff, patients, and families. Early adopter sites were also more likely to have the MDI/spacer included in a clinical protocol/pathway. Conclusion Potential barriers and supports to implementation have been identified that will help EDs adopt MDI/spacer use. Future interventions intended to increase MDI/spacer use in PEDs will need to be sensitive to the barriers identified in this study.

Prediction of droplet deposition around BWR fuel spacer by FEM flow analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamamoto, Yasushi; Morooka, Shinichi

1997-01-01

The critical power of the BWR fuel assembly has been remarkably increased. That increase mainly depends on the improvement of the spacer which keeps fixed gaps between fuel rods. So far, these improvements have been carried out on the basis of what developers consider to be appropriate and the results of mockup tests of the BWR fuel assembly. However, continued reliance on these approaches for the development of a higher performance fuel assembly will prove time-consuming and costly. Therefore, it is hoped that the spacer effects for the critical power can be investigated by computer simulation, and it is significantly important to develop the critical power prediction method. Direct calculation of the two-phase flow in a BWR fuel channel s still difficult. Accordingly, a new method for predicting the critical power was proposed. Our method consists of CFD (computer fluid dynamics) code based on the single-phase flow analysis method and the subchannel analysis code. To verify our method, the critical power predictions for various spacer geometries were performed. The predicted results of the critical power were compared with the experimental data. The result of the comparison showed a good agreement and the applicability of our method for various spacer geometries. (author)

Versatile digital micromirror device-based method for the recording of multilevel optical diffractive elements in photosensitive chalcogenide layers (AMTIR-1).

Science.gov (United States)

Joerg, Alexandre; Vignaux, Mael; Lumeau, Julien

2016-08-01

A new alternative and versatile method for the production of diffractive optical elements (DOEs) with up to four phase levels in AMTIR-1 (Ge33As12Se55) layers is demonstrated. The developed method proposes the use of the photosensitive properties of the layers and a specific in situ optical monitoring coupled with a reverse engineering algorithm to control the trigger points of the writing of the different diffractive patterns. Examples of various volume DOEs are presented.

Enhanced Optical and Electrical Properties of TiO{sub 2} Buffered IGZO/TiO{sub 2} Bi-Layered Films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moon, Hyun-Joo; Kim, Daeil [University of Ulsan, Ulsan (Korea, Republic of)

2016-08-15

In and Ga doped ZnO (IGZO, 100-nm thick) thin films were deposited by radio frequency magnetron sputtering without intentional substrate heating on a bare glass substrate and a TiO{sub 2}-deposited glass substrate to determine the effect of the thickness of a thin TiO{sub 2} buffer layer on the structural, optical, and electrical properties of the films. The thicknesses of the TiO{sub 2} buffer layers were 5, 10 and 15 nm, respectively. As-deposited IGZO films with a 10 nm-thick TiO{sub 2} buffer layer had an average optical transmittance of 85.0% with lower resistivity (1.83×10-2 Ω cm) than that of IGZO single layer films. The figure of merit (FOM) reached a maximum of 1.44×10-4 Ω-1 for IGZO/10 nm-thick TiO{sub 2} bi-layered films, which is higher than the FOM of 6.85×10-5 Ω-1 for IGZO single layer films. Because a higher FOM value indicates better quality transparent conducting oxide (TCO) films, the IGZO/10 nm-thick TiO{sub 2} bi-layered films are likely to perform better in TCO applications than IGZO single layer films.

SiNx layers on nanostructured Si solar cells: Effective for optical absorption and carrier collection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, Yunae; Kim, Eunah; Gwon, Minji; Kim, Dong-Wook; Park, Hyeong-Ho; Kim, Joondong

2015-01-01

We compared nanopatterned Si solar cells with and without SiN x layers. The SiN x layer coating significantly improved the internal quantum efficiency of the nanopatterned cells at long wavelengths as well as short wavelengths, whereas the surface passivation helped carrier collection of flat cells mainly at short wavelengths. The surface nanostructured array enhanced the optical absorption and also concentrated incoming light near the surface in broad wavelength range. Resulting high density of the photo-excited carriers near the surface could lead to significant recombination loss and the SiN x layer played a crucial role in the improved carrier collection of the nanostructured solar cells

Environmental sensing with optical fiber sensors processed with focused ion beam and atomic layer deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Flores, Raquel; Janeiro, Ricardo; Dahlem, Marcus; Viegas, Jaime

2015-03-01

We report an optical fiber chemical sensor based on a focused ion beam processed optical fiber. The demonstrated sensor is based on a cavity formed onto a standard 1550 nm single-mode fiber by either chemical etching, focused ion beam milling (FIB) or femtosecond laser ablation, on which side channels are drilled by either ion beam milling or femtosecond laser irradiation. The encapsulation of the cavity is achieved by optimized fusion splicing onto a standard single or multimode fiber. The empty cavity can be used as semi-curved Fabry-Pérot resonator for gas or liquid sensing. Increased reflectivity of the formed cavity mirrors can be achieved with atomic layer deposition (ALD) of alternating metal oxides. For chemical selective optical sensors, we demonstrate the same FIB-formed cavity concept, but filled with different materials, such as polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) which show selective swelling when immersed in different solvents. Finally, a reducing agent sensor based on a FIB formed cavity partially sealed by fusion splicing and coated with a thin ZnO layer by ALD is presented and the results discussed. Sensor interrogation is achieved with spectral or multi-channel intensity measurements.

Ta2O5/ Al2O3/ SiO2 - antireflective coating for non-planar optical surfaces by atomic layer deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Pfeiffer, K.; Schulz, U.; Tünnermann, A.; Szeghalmi, A.

2017-02-01

Antireflective coatings are essential to improve transmittance of optical elements. Most research and development of AR coatings has been reported on a wide variety of plane optical surfaces; however, antireflection is also necessary on nonplanar optical surfaces. Physical vapor deposition (PVD), a common method for optical coatings, often results in thickness gradients on strongly curved surfaces, leading to a failure of the desired optical function. In this work, optical thin films of tantalum pentoxide, aluminum oxide and silicon dioxide were prepared by atomic layer deposition (ALD), which is based on self-limiting surface reactions. The results demonstrate that ALD optical layers can be deposited on both vertical and horizontal substrate surfaces with uniform thicknesses and the same optical properties. A Ta2O5/Al2O3/ SiO2 multilayer AR coating (400-700 nm) was successfully applied to a curved aspheric glass lens with a diameter of 50 mm and a center thickness of 25 mm.

In Silico Study of Spacer Arm Length Influence on Drug Vectorization by Fullerene C60

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Haifa Khemir

2015-01-01

Full Text Available This work studies theoretically the effect of spacer arm lengths on the characteristics of a fullerene C60-based nanovector. The spacer arm is constituted of a carbon chain including a variable number of methylene groups (n = 2–11. To improve the ability of the fullerene carriage, two arms are presented simultaneously through a malonyl bridge. Then the evolution of selected physicochemical parameters is monitored as a function of the spacer arm length and the angle between the two arms. We show here that while the studied characteristics are almost independent of the spacer arm length or vary monotonically with it, the dipole moment and its orientation vary periodically with the parity of the number of carbon atoms. This periodicity is related to both modules and orientations of dipole moments of the spacer arms. In the field of chemical synthesis, these results highlight the importance of theoretical calculations for the optimization of operating conditions. In the field of drug discovery, they show that theoretical calculations of the chemical properties of a drug candidate can help predict its in vivo behaviour, notably its bioavailability and biodistribution, which are known to be tightly dependent of its polarity.

A high-performance channel engineered charge-plasma-based MOSFET with high-κ spacer

Science.gov (United States)

Shan, Chan; Wang, Ying; Luo, Xin; Bao, Meng-tian; Yu, Cheng-hao; Cao, Fei

2017-12-01

In this paper, the performance of graded channel double-gate MOSFET (GC-DGFET) that utilizes the charge-plasma concept and a high-κ spacer is investigated through 2-D device simulations. The results demonstrate that GC-DGFET with high-κ spacer can effectively improve the ON-state driving current (ION) and reduce the OFF-leakage current (IOFF). We find that reduction of the initial energy barrier between the source and channel is the origin of this ION enhancement. The reason for the IOFF reduction is identified to be the extension of the effective channel length owing to the fringing field via high-κ spacers. Consequently, these devices offer enhanced performance by reducing the total gate-to-gate capacitance (Cgg) and decreasing the intrinsic delay (τ).

Geometric effects of spacer grid in an annulus flow channel during reflooding period

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, S.; Chun, S. Y.; Kim, B. D.; Park, J. K.; Yun, Y. J.; Baek, W. P.

2004-01-01

A number of studies on the reflooding phase were actively carried out from the early 70's due to its importance for the safety of the nuclear reactor. (Martini et al., 1973; Henry, 1974; Chung, 1978;) However, few studies have presented the spacer grid effect during the reflooding period. Since the grid is an obstruction in the flow passage, it causes an increased pressure drop due to form and skin friction losses. On the other hand, the spacer grid tends to increase the local wall heat transfer. The present work has been performed in a vertical annulus flow channel with various flow conditions. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the effects of a swirl-vane spacer grid on the rewetting phenomena during the reflooding phase

Lower end fitting debris collector and end cap spacer grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bryan, W.J.

1990-01-01

This patent describes a nuclear reactor having fuel assemblies including an upper end fitting and spaced nuclear fuel rod spacer grids for supporting and spacing a plurality of elongated nuclear fuel rods. Each includes a hollow active portion of nuclear fuel filled cladding intermediate the rod ends and tapering end cap of solid material with a circumferential groove on the rod end which first encounters reactor coolant flow, a lower end filtering debris collector and end cap spacer grid for capturing and retaining deleterious debris carried by reactor coolant before it enters the active region of a fuel assembly and creates fuel rod cladding damage

Effect of electrostatic charge in plastic spacers on the lung delivery of HFA-salbutamol in children

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Anhøj, J; Bisgaard, H; Lipworth, B J

1999-01-01

delivered a significantly (Pplastic spacers reduces lung dose in children by more than two-fold. This is clinically significant and the use of potentially electrostatically charged......AIMS: The effect of the electrostatic charge in plastic spacers in vivo on drug delivery to the lung of hydrofluoroalkane (HFA) salbutamol spray was studied in children. METHODS: Five children, aged 7-12 years, were included in a 3-way crossover randomised single-blind trial. Salbutamol HFA spray...... was delivered on 3 different study days from plastic spacers with mouthpiece. Pre-treatment of the spacers differed between study days: (a) Non-electrostatic 350 ml Babyhaler (coated with benzalkonium chloride) (b) New 350 ml Babyhaler (rinsed in water), and (c) New 145 ml AeroChamber (rinsed in water). Plasma...

Exploring backbone-cation alkyl spacers for multi-cation side chain anion exchange membranes

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Liang; Yu, Xuedi; Hickner, Michael A.

2018-01-01

In order to systematically study how the arrangement of cations on the side chain and length of alkyl spacers between cations impact the performance of multi-cation AEMs for alkaline fuel cells, a series of polyphenylene oxide (PPO)-based AEMs with different cationic side chains were synthesized. This work resulted in samples with two or three cations in a side chain pendant to the PPO backbone. More importantly, the length of the spacer between cations varied from 3 methylene (-CH2-) (C3) groups to 8 methylene (C8) groups. The highest conductivity, up to 99 mS/cm in liquid water at room temperature, was observed for the triple-cation side chain AEM with pentyl (C5) or hexyl (C6) spacers. The multi-cation AEMs were found to have decreased water uptake and ionic conductivity when the spacer chains between cations were lengthened from pentyl (C5) or hexyl (C6) to octyl (C8) linking groups. The triple-cation membranes with pentyl (C5) or hexyl (C6) groups between cations showed greatest stability after immersion in 1 M NaOH at 80 °C for 500 h.

A Method for Quantification of Penetration of Nanoparticles through Skin Layers Using Near-Infrared Optical Imaging

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Melinda Stees

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Our study presents a new method for tracking nanoparticle penetration through different layers of the skin using near-infrared dye-loaded nanoparticles (hydrodynamic diameter = 156 nm and optical imaging. The dye-loaded nanoparticles were mixed in a topical skin cream, applied to human cadaver skin and incubated either for three or 24 h post-application, skin tissue was clipped between glass slides prior to imaging for signal intensity across the skin thickness using an optical imaging system. The data show that nanoparticles penetrate through all the layers of the skin but there is almost an exponential decay in the signal intensity from epidermis to dermis. Depending upon the incubation time, about 55%–59% of the total signal was seen in the epidermis and the remaining through dermis and hypodermis. The advantage of the method is that it allows quantitative analysis of the extent of penetration of nanoparticles through different layers of the skin without interference of any background signal from skin tissue, and without requiring extensive tissue processing. Our method could potentially be used to study the effect of nanoparticle properties and/or the use of different formulation additives on penetration of nanoparticles through different skin layers.

Adsorption properties of BSA and DsRed proteins deposited on thin SiO2 layers: optically non-absorbing versus absorbing proteins

Science.gov (United States)

Scarangella, A.; Soumbo, M.; Villeneuve-Faure, C.; Mlayah, A.; Bonafos, C.; Monje, M.-C.; Roques, C.; Makasheva, K.

2018-03-01

Protein adsorption on solid surfaces is of interest for many industrial and biomedical applications, where it represents the conditioning step for micro-organism adhesion and biofilm formation. To understand the driving forces of such an interaction we focus in this paper on the investigation of the adsorption of bovine serum albumin (BSA) (optically non-absorbing, model protein) and DsRed (optically absorbing, naturally fluorescent protein) on silica surfaces. Specifically, we propose synthesis of thin protein layers by means of dip coating of the dielectric surface in protein solutions with different concentrations (0.01-5.0 g l-1). We employed spectroscopic ellipsometry as the most suitable and non-destructive technique for evaluation of the protein layers’ thickness and optical properties (refractive index and extinction coefficient) after dehydration, using two different optical models, Cauchy for BSA and Lorentz for DsRed. We demonstrate that the thickness, the optical properties and the wettability of the thin protein layers can be finely controlled by proper tuning of the protein concentration in the solution. These results are correlated with the thin layer morphology, investigated by AFM, FTIR and PL analyses. It is shown that the proteins do not undergo denaturation after dehydration on the silica surface. The proteins arrange themselves in a lace-like network for BSA and in a rod-like structure for DsRed to form mono- and multi-layers, due to different mechanisms driving the organization stage.

Analysis of macular and nerve fiber layer thickness in multiple sclerosis patients according to severity level and optic neuritis episodes.

Science.gov (United States)

Soler García, A; Padilla Parrado, F; Figueroa-Ortiz, L C; González Gómez, A; García-Ben, A; García-Ben, E; García-Campos, J M

2016-01-01

Quantitative assessment of macular and nerve fibre layer thickness in multiple sclerosis patients with regard to expanded disability status scale (EDSS) and presence or absence of previous optic neuritis episodes. We recruited 62 patients with multiple sclerosis (53 relapsing-remitting and 9 secondary progressive) and 12 disease-free controls. All patients underwent an ophthalmological examination, including quantitative analysis of the nerve fibre layer and macular thickness using optical coherence tomography. Patients were classified according to EDSS as A (lower than 1.5), B (between 1.5 and 3.5), and C (above 3.5). Mean nerve fibre layer thickness in control, A, B, and C groups was 103.35±12.62, 99.04±14.35, 93.59±15.41, and 87.36±18.75μm respectively, with statistically significant differences (P<.05). In patients with no history of optic neuritis, history of episodes in the last 3 to 6 months, or history longer than 6 months, mean nerve fibre layer thickness was 99.25±13.71, 93.92±13.30 and 80.07±15.91μm respectively; differences were significant (P<.05). Mean macular thickness in control, A, B, and C groups was 220.01±12.07, 217.78±20.02, 217.68±20.77, and 219.04±24.26μm respectively. Differences were not statistically significant. The mean retinal nerve fibre layer thickness in multiple sclerosis patients is related to the EDSS level. Patients with previous optic neuritis episodes have a thinner retinal nerve fibre layer than patients with no history of these episodes. Mean macular thickness is not correlated to EDSS level. Copyright © 2014 Sociedad Española de Neurología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Effect of different coating layer on the topography and optical properties of ZnO nanostructured

Science.gov (United States)

Mohamed, R.; Mamat, M. H.; Malek, M. F.; Ismail, A. S.; Yusoff, M. M.; Asiah, M. N.; Khusaimi, Z.; Rusop, M.

2018-05-01

Magnesium (Mg) and aluminum (Al) co-doped zinc oxide (MAZO) thin films were synthesized on glass substrate by sol-gel spin coating method. MAZO thin films were prepared at different coating layers range from 1 to 9. Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) was used to investigate the topography of the thin films. According to the AFM results, Root Means Square (RMS) of MAZO thin films was increased from 0.747 to 6.545 nm, with increase of number coating layer from 1 to 9, respectively. The results shown the variation on structural and topography properties of MAZO seed film when it's deposited at different coating layers on glass substrate. The optical properties was analyzed using UV-Vis spectroscopy. The obtained results show that the transmittance spectra was increased as thin films coating layer increases.

Optical coherence tomography evaluation of retinal nerve fiber layer in longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frederico C. Moura

2011-02-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To compare optical coherence tomography (OCT measurements on the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL of healthy controls and patients with longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM without previous optic neuritis. METHOD: Twenty-six eyes from 26 patients with LETM and 26 control eyes were subjected to automated perimetry and OCT for comparison of RNFL measurements. RESULTS: The mean deviation values from perimetry were significantly lower in patients with LETM than in controls (p<0.0001. RNFL measurements in the nasal quadrant and in the 3-o'clock segment were significantly smaller in LETM eyes than in controls. (p=0.04 and p=0.006, respectively. No significantly differences in other RNFL measurements were found. CONCLUSION: Patients with LETM may present localized RNFL loss, particularly on the nasal side of the optic disc, associated with slight visual field defects, even in the absence of previous episodes of optic neuritis. These findings emphasize the fact that patients with LETM may experience attacks of subclinical optic nerve damage.

Measurement and model development of the droplet diameter in rod bundles with spacer grids in the reactor core

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

No, Hee Cheon; Lee, Eo Hwak; Yoo, Seung Hun; Jin, Hyung Gon; Kim, In Hun [KAIST, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2010-05-15

To understand and to predict the heat transfer between superheated steam and droplets properly during reflood phase of LBLOCA of APR1400, it is very important to measure broken droplet sizes by spacer grids. A study, therefore, has been performed to investigate droplet size in rod bundles with spacer grids and to develop a spacer grid droplet size model for safety analysis codes. Experiments were conducted with liquid droplets (SMD of 300{approx}700 {mu}m) impacting on various spacer grids at air superficial velocity of 10 and 20 m/s based on FLECHT SEASET. The test channel and the grids were heated to 150 .deg. C to prevent the formation of liquid film during tests. The spacer grids were designed refer to the Korean fuel rod bundles (Korean Standard Fuel, Plus 7) of APR1400 with various blockage area ratio and grid geometries (strap thickness, mixing vane) and about 15,000 droplets were measured at upstream and downstream of the grids in 16 tests. As a result, the measurement of broken droplet size by spacer grids with photography method is presented and the droplet size model related to spacer grids as a function of blockage area ratio is suggested in this report

Relationship Between Optic Nerve Appearance and Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Thickness as Explored with Spectral Domain Optical Coherence Tomography

Science.gov (United States)

Aleman, Tomas S.; Huang, Jiayan; Garrity, Sean T.; Carter, Stuart B.; Aleman, Wendy D.; Ying, Gui-shuang; Tamhankar, Madhura A.

2014-01-01

Purpose To study the relationship between the appearance of the optic nerve and the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness determined by spectral domain optical coherence tomography (OCT). Methods Records from patients with spectral domain-OCT imaging in a neuro-ophthalmology practice were reviewed. Eyes with glaucoma/glaucoma suspicion, macular/optic nerve edema, pseudophakia, and with refractive errors > 6D were excluded. Optic nerve appearance by slit lamp biomicroscopy was related to the RNFL thickness by spectral domain-OCT and to visual field results. Results Ninety-one patients (176 eyes; mean age: 49 ± 15 years) were included. Eighty-three eyes (47%) showed optic nerve pallor; 89 eyes (50.6%) showed RNFL thinning (sectoral or average peripapillary). Average peripapillary RNFL thickness in eyes with pallor (mean ± SD = 76 ± 17 μm) was thinner compared to eyes without pallor (91 ± 14 μm, P < 0.001). Optic nerve pallor predicted RNFL thinning with a sensitivity of 69% and a specificity of 75%. Optic nerve appearance predicted RNFL thinning (with a sensitivity and specificity of 81%) when RNFL had thinned by ∼ 40%. Most patients with pallor had RNFL thinning with (66%) or without (25%) visual field loss; the remainder had normal RNFL and fields (5%) or with visual field abnormalities (4%). Conclusions Optic nerve pallor as a predictor of RNFL thinning showed fair sensitivity and specificity, although it is optimally sensitive/specific only when substantial RNFL loss has occurred. Translational Relevance Finding an acceptable relationship between the optic nerve appearance by ophthalmoscopy and spectral domain-OCT RNFL measures will help the clinician's interpretation of the information provided by this technology, which is gaining momentum in neuro-ophthalmic research. PMID:25374773

Efficient and colour-stable hybrid white organic light-emitting diodes utilizing electron-hole balanced spacers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leem, Dong-Seok; Kim, Ji Whan; Kim, Jang-Joo; Jung, Sung Ouk; Kim, Seul-Ong; Kwon, Soon-Ki; Kim, Se Hoon; Kim, Kee Young; Kim, Yun-Hi

2010-01-01

High-efficiency two-colour white organic light-emitting diodes (WOLEDs) comprising a newly synthesized iridium complex orange phosphor ((impy) 2 Ir(acac)) and a blue fluorophor (BD012) have been realized by placing several kinds of thin spacers between two emitters. Hybrid WOLEDs with a spacer composed of a hole-transporting N,N-dicarbazolyl-3,5-benzene (mCP) and an electron-transporting 4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline (Bphen) exhibit a high external quantum efficiency (EQE) of up to 8.4% and a negligible colour change (the colour coordinate of (0.39, 0.41) at 1000 cd m -2 ) with increasing brightness, whereas the device using a hole-transporting mCP spacer shows a relatively low EQE of 6.2% and a large shift of emitting colour with increasing brightness. Device performance is further characterized based on the charge transport behaviour of the spacers inserted between the two emitters.

Similar Results in Children with Asthma for Steady State Pharmacokinetic Parameters of Ciclesonide Inhaled with or without Spacer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. Boss

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Background Ciclesonide is an inhaled corticosteroid administered by a metered dose inhaler (MDI to treat bronchial asthma. After inhalation, the inactive ciclesonide is converted by esterases in the airways to active metabolite desisobutyryl-ciclesonide (des-CIC. Aim To compare the pharmacokinetic (PK parameters of des-CIC in children after administration of therapeutic dose of ciclesonide with and without spacer (AeroChamber Plus™. Methods Open-label, 3 period, cross over, repeated dose, PK study in 37 children with mild to moderate stable asthma (age: 6–11 y; body weight: 20–53 kg. During each 7-day treatment period, ciclesonide was inhaled once in the morning: A 160 μg MDI with spacer, B 80 μg MDI with spacer, and C 160 μg MDI without spacer. Serum PK parameters of ciclesonide and des-CIC were determined on Day 7 of each period. The primary PK parameters were the AUC τ and C max for des-CIC. Results Inhaling ciclesonide with spacer led to a dose proportional systemic exposure (AUC τ of des-CIC (0.316 μg*h/L for 80 μg and 0.663 μg*h/L for 160 μg. The dose-normalized systemic exposure for des-CIC (based on AUC τ was 27% higher after inhalation of ciclesonide 80 μg or 160 μg with spacer than without spacer; the corresponding C max values for des-CIC were, respectively, 63% and 55% higher with spacer. No clinically relevant abnormalities or adverse drug reactions were observed. Conclusions Inhalation of therapeutic ciclesonide dose with spacer led to a slight increase in the systemic exposure of des-CIC, which does not warrant dose adjustment.

Cross-layer shared protection strategy towards data plane in software defined optical networks

Science.gov (United States)

Xiong, Yu; Li, Zhiqiang; Zhou, Bin; Dong, Xiancun

2018-04-01

In order to ensure reliable data transmission on the data plane and minimize resource consumption, a novel protection strategy towards data plane is proposed in software defined optical networks (SDON). Firstly, we establish a SDON architecture with hierarchical structure of data plane, which divides the data plane into four layers for getting fine-grained bandwidth resource. Then, we design the cross-layer routing and resource allocation based on this network architecture. Through jointly considering the bandwidth resource on all the layers, the SDN controller could allocate bandwidth resource to working path and backup path in an economical manner. Next, we construct auxiliary graphs and transform the shared protection problem into the graph vertex coloring problem. Therefore, the resource consumption on backup paths can be reduced further. The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed protection strategy can achieve lower protection overhead and higher resource utilization ratio.

Attenuation of an optical wave propagating in a waveguide, formed by layers of a semiconductor heterostructure, owing to scattering on inhomogeneities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bogatov, Alexandr P; Burmistrov, I S

1999-01-01

The scattering of an optical wave, propagating in a waveguide made up of layers of a semiconductor heterostructure, is analysed. The attenuation coefficient of the wave is found both for quasi-homogeneous single-crystal layers of a semiconductor solid solution and for layers containing quantum dots. (active media)

Optical characterization of two-layered turbid media for non-invasive, absolute oximetry in cerebral and extracerebral tissue.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bertan Hallacoglu

Full Text Available We introduce a multi-distance, frequency-domain, near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS method to measure the optical coefficients of two-layered media and the thickness of the top layer from diffuse reflectance measurements. This method features a direct solution based on diffusion theory and an inversion procedure based on the Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm. We have validated our method through Monte Carlo simulations, experiments on tissue-like phantoms, and measurements on the forehead of three human subjects. The Monte Carlo simulations and phantom measurements have shown that, in ideal two-layered samples, our method accurately recovers the top layer thickness (L, the absorption coefficient (µ a and the reduced scattering coefficient (µ' s of both layers with deviations that are typically less than 10% for all parameters. Our method is aimed at absolute measurements of hemoglobin concentration and saturation in cerebral and extracerebral tissue of adult human subjects, where the top layer (layer 1 represents extracerebral tissue (scalp, skull, dura mater, subarachnoid space, etc. and the bottom layer (layer 2 represents cerebral tissue. Human subject measurements have shown a significantly greater total hemoglobin concentration in cerebral tissue (82±14 µM with respect to extracerebral tissue (30±7 µM. By contrast, there was no significant difference between the hemoglobin saturation measured in cerebral tissue (56%±10% and extracerebral tissue (62%±6%. To our knowledge, this is the first time that an inversion procedure in the frequency domain with six unknown parameters with no other prior knowledge is used for the retrieval of the optical coefficients and top layer thickness with high accuracy on two-layered media. Our absolute measurements of cerebral hemoglobin concentration and saturation are based on the discrimination of extracerebral and cerebral tissue layers, and they can enhance the impact of NIRS for cerebral hemodynamics and

Diagnosis Of Persistent Infection In Prosthetic Two-Stage Exchange: PCR analysis of Sonication fluid From Bone Cement Spacers.

Science.gov (United States)

Mariaux, Sandrine; Tafin, Ulrika Furustrand; Borens, Olivier

2017-01-01

Introduction: When treating periprosthetic joint infections with a two-stage procedure, antibiotic-impregnated spacers are used in the interval between removal of prosthesis and reimplantation. According to our experience, cultures of sonicated spacers are most often negative. The objective of our study was to investigate whether PCR analysis would improve the detection of bacteria in the spacer sonication fluid. Methods: A prospective monocentric study was performed from September 2014 to January 2016. Inclusion criteria were two-stage procedure for prosthetic infection and agreement of the patient to participate in the study. Beside tissues samples and sonication, broad range bacterial PCRs, specific S. aureus PCRs and Unyvero-multiplex PCRs were performed on the sonicated spacer fluid. Results: 30 patients were identified (15 hip, 14 knee and 1 ankle replacements). At reimplantation, cultures of tissue samples and spacer sonication fluid were all negative. Broad range PCRs were all negative. Specific S. aureus PCRs were positive in 5 cases. We had two persistent infections and four cases of infection recurrence were observed, with bacteria different than for the initial infection in three cases. Conclusion: The three different types of PCRs did not detect any bacteria in spacer sonication fluid that was culture-negative. In our study, PCR did not improve the bacterial detection and did not help to predict whether the patient will present a persistent or recurrent infection. Prosthetic 2-stage exchange with short interval and antibiotic-impregnated spacer is an efficient treatment to eradicate infection as both culture- and molecular-based methods were unable to detect bacteria in spacer sonication fluid after reimplantation.

Impact of feed spacer and membrane modification by hydrophilic, bactericidal and biocidal coating on biofouling control

KAUST Repository

Araú jo, Paula A.; Miller, Daniel J.; Correia, Patrí cia B.; van Loosdrecht, Mark C.M.; Kruithof, Joop C.; Freeman, Benny Dean; Paul, Donald; Vrouwenvelder, Johannes S.

2012-01-01

surface modification agents expected to resist protein and bacterial adhesion, while copper feed spacer coatings and biocides infused in feed spacers are expected to restrict biological growth. Our studies showed that polydopamine and polydopamine-. g

Cervical interfacet spacers and maintenance of cervical lordosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Lee A; Straus, David C; Traynelis, Vincent C

2015-05-01

OBJECT The cervical interfacet spacer (CIS) is a relatively new technology that can increase foraminal height and area by facet distraction. These offer the potential to provide indirect neuroforaminal decompression while simultaneously enhancing fusion potential due to the relatively large osteoconductive surface area and compressive forces exerted on the grafts. These potential benefits, along with the relative ease of implantation during posterior cervical fusion procedures, make the CIS an attractive adjuvant in the management of cervical pathology. One concern with the use of interfacet spacers is the theoretical risk of inducing iatrogenic kyphosis. This work tests the hypothesis that interfacet spacers are associated with loss of cervical lordosis. METHODS Records from patients undergoing posterior cervical fusion at Rush University Medical Center between March 2011 and December 2012 were reviewed. The FacetLift CISs were used in all patients. Preoperative and postoperative radiographic data were reviewed and the Ishihara indices and cervical lordotic angles were measured and recorded. Statistical analyses were performed using STATA software. RESULTS A total of 64 patients were identified in whom 154 cervical levels were implanted with machined allograft interfacet spacers. Of these, 15 patients underwent anterior-posterior fusions, 4 underwent anterior-posterior-anterior fusions, and the remaining 45 patients underwent posterior-only fusions. In the 45 patients with posterior-only fusions, a total of 110 levels were treated with spacers. There were 14 patients (31%) with a single level treated, 16 patients (36%) with two levels treated, 5 patients (11%) with three levels treated, 5 patients (11%) with four levels treated, 1 patient (2%) with five levels treated, and 4 patients (9%) with six levels treated. Complete radiographic data were available in 38 of 45 patients (84%). On average, radiographic follow-up was obtained at 256.9 days (range 48-524 days

Carrier Lifetime in Exfoliated Few-Layer Graphene Determined from Intersubband Optical Transitions

Science.gov (United States)

Limmer, Thomas; Feldmann, Jochen; Da Como, Enrico

2013-05-01

We report a femtosecond transient spectroscopy study in the near to middle infrared range, 0.8-0.35 eV photon energy, on graphene and few layer graphene single flakes. The spectra show an evolving structure of photoinduced absorption bands superimposed on the bleaching caused by Pauli blocking of the interband optically coupled states. Supported by tight-binding model calculations, we assign the photoinduced absorption features to intersubband transitions as the number of layers is increased. Interestingly, the intersubband photoinduced resonances show a longer dynamics than the interband bleaching, because of their independence from the absolute energy of the carriers with respect to the Dirac point. The dynamic of these intersubband transitions reflects the lifetime of the hot carriers and provides an elegant method to access it in this important class of semimetals.

Carrier lifetime in exfoliated few-layer graphene determined from intersubband optical transitions.

Science.gov (United States)

Limmer, Thomas; Feldmann, Jochen; Da Como, Enrico

2013-05-24

We report a femtosecond transient spectroscopy study in the near to middle infrared range, 0.8-0.35 eV photon energy, on graphene and few layer graphene single flakes. The spectra show an evolving structure of photoinduced absorption bands superimposed on the bleaching caused by Pauli blocking of the interband optically coupled states. Supported by tight-binding model calculations, we assign the photoinduced absorption features to intersubband transitions as the number of layers is increased. Interestingly, the intersubband photoinduced resonances show a longer dynamics than the interband bleaching, because of their independence from the absolute energy of the carriers with respect to the Dirac point. The dynamic of these intersubband transitions reflects the lifetime of the hot carriers and provides an elegant method to access it in this important class of semimetals.

Scattering from a random layer of leaves in the physical optics limit

Science.gov (United States)

Lang, R. H.; Seker, S. S.; Le Vine, D. M.

1982-01-01

Backscatter of electromagnetic radiation from a layer of vegetation over flat lossy ground has been studied in collaborative research at the George Washingnton University and the Goddard Space Flight Center. In this work the vegetation is composed of leaves which are modeled by a random collection of lossy dielectric disks. Backscattering coefficients for the vegetation layer have been calculated in the case of disks whose diameter is large compared to wavelength. These backscattering coefficients are obtained in terms of the scattering amplitude of an individual disk by employing the distorted Born procedure. The scattering amplitude for a disk which is large compared to wavelength is then found by physical optic techniques. Computed results are interpreted in terms of dominant reflected and transmitted contributions from the disks and ground.

Nondestructive and in situ determination of graphene layers using optical fiber Fabry–Perot interference

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Cheng; Peng, Xiaobin; Liu, Qianwen; Fan, Shangchun; Gan, Xin; Lv, Ruitao

2017-01-01

Thickness measurement plays an important role for characterizing optomechanical behaviors of graphene. From the view of graphene-based Fabry–Perot (F–P) sensors, a simple, nondestructive and in situ method of determining the thickness of nanothick graphene membranes was demonstrated by using optical fiber F–P interference. Few-layer/multilayer graphene sheets were suspendedly adhered onto the endface of a ferrule with a 125 µ m inner diameter by van der Waals interactions to construct micro F–P cavities. Along with the Fresnel’s law and complex index of refraction of the membrane working as a light reflector of an F–P interferometer, the optical reflectivity of graphene was modeled to investigate the effects of light wavelength and temperature. Then the average thickness of graphene membranes were extracted by F–P interference demodulation, and yielded a very strong cross-correlation coefficient of 99.95% with the experimental results observed by Raman spectrum and atomic force microscope. The method could be further extended for determining the number of layers of other 2D materials. (paper)

Optical properties of mixed phase boundary layer clouds observed from a tethered balloon platform in the Arctic

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sikand, M.; Koskulics, J.; Stamnes, K.; Hamre, B.; Stamnes, J.J.; Lawson, R.P.

2010-01-01

A tethered balloon system was used to collect data on radiometric and cloud microphysical properties for mixed phase boundary layer clouds, consisting of ice crystals and liquid water droplets during a May-June 2008 experimental campaign in Ny-Alesund, Norway, located high in the Arctic at 78.9 o N, 11.9 o E. The balloon instrumentation was controlled and powered from the ground making it possible to fly for long durations and to profile clouds vertically in a systematic manner. We use a radiative transfer model to analyze the radiometric measurements and estimate the optical properties of mixed-phase clouds. The results demonstrate the ability of instruments deployed on a tethered balloon to provide information about optical properties of mixed-phase clouds in the Arctic. Our radiative transfer simulations show that cloud layering has little impact on the total downward irradiance measured at the ground as long as the total optical depth remains unchanged. In contrast, the mean intensity measured by an instrument deployed on a balloon depends on the vertical cloud structure and is thus sensitive to the altitude of the balloon. We use the total downward irradiance measured by a ground-based radiometer to estimate the total optical depth and the mean intensity measured at the balloon to estimate the vertical structure of the cloud optical depth.

Feasibility of gas-discharge and optical methods of creating artificial ozone layers of the earth

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Batanov, G.M.; Kossyi, I.A.; Matveev, A.A.; Silakov, V.P.

1996-01-01

Gas-discharge (microwave) and optical (laser) methods of generating large-scale artificial ozone layers in the stratosphere are analyzed. A kinetic model is developed to calculate the plasma-chemical consequences of discharges localized in the stratosphere. Computations and simple estimates indicate that, in order to implement gas-discharge and optical methods, the operating power of ozone-producing sources should be comparable to or even much higher than the present-day power production throughout the world. Consequently, from the engineering and economic standpoints, microwave and laser methods cannot be used to repair large-scale ozone 'holes'

Non-destructive testing of layer-to-layer fusion of a 3D print using ultrahigh resolution optical coherence tomography

Science.gov (United States)

Israelsen, Niels M.; Maria, Michael; Feuchter, Thomas; Podoleanu, Adrian; Bang, Ole

2017-06-01

Within the last decade, 3D printing has moved from a costly approach of building mechanical items to the present state-of-the-art phase where access to 3D printers is now common, both in industry and in private places. The plastic printers are the most common type of 3D printers providing prints that are light, robust and of lower cost. The robustness of the structure printed is only maintained if each layer printed is properly fused to its previously printed layers. In situations where the printed component has to accomplish a key mechanical role there is a need to characterize its mechanical strength. This may only be revealed by in-depth testing in order to discover unwanted air-gaps in the structure. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an in-depth imaging method, that is sensitive to variations in the refractive index and therefore can resolve with high resolution translucid samples. We report on volume imaging of a 3D printed block made with 100% PLA fill. By employing ultrahigh resolution OCT (UHR-OCT) we show that some parts of the PLA volume reveal highly scattering interfaces which likely correspond to transitions from one layer to another. In doing so, we document that UHR-OCT can act as a powerful tool that can be used in detecting fractures between layers stemming from insufficient fusion between printed structure layers. UHR-OCT can therefore serve as an useful assessment method of quality of 3D prints.

Temperature dependent magnetic coupling between ferromagnetic FeTaC layers in multilayer thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Singh, Akhilesh Kumar [Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati 781039 (India); Department of Physics, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10617, Taiwan (China); Hsu, Jen-Hwa [Department of Physics, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10617, Taiwan (China); Perumal, Alagarsamy, E-mail: perumal@iitg.ernet.in [Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati 781039 (India)

2016-11-15

We report systematic investigations on temperature dependent magnetic coupling between ferromagnetic FeTaC layers and resulting magnetic properties of multilayer structured [FeTaC (~67 nm)/Ta(x nm)]{sub 2}/FeTaC(~67 nm)] thin films, which are fabricated directly on thermally oxidized Si substrate. As-deposited amorphous films are post annealed at different annealing temperatures (T{sub A}=200, 300 and 400 °C). Structural analyzes reveal that the films annealed at T{sub A}≤200 °C exhibit amorphous nature, while the films annealed above 200 °C show nucleation of nanocrystals at T{sub A}=300 °C and well-defined α-Fe nanocrystals with size of about 9 nm in amorphous matrix for 400 °C annealed films. Room temperature and temperature dependent magnetic hysteresis (M–H) loops reveal that magnetization reversal behaviors and magnetic properties are strongly depending on spacer layer thickness (x), T{sub A} and temperature. A large reduction in coercivity (H{sub C}) was observed for the films annealed at 200 °C and correlated to relaxation of stress quenched in during the film deposition. On the other hand, the films annealed at 300 °C exhibit unusual variation of H{sub C}(T), i.e., a broad minimum in H{sub C}(T) vs T curve. This is caused by change in magnetic coupling between ferromagnetic layers having different microstructure. In addition, the broad minimum in the H{sub C}(T) curve shifts from 150 K for x=1 film to 80 K for x=4 film. High-temperature thermomagnetization data show a strong (significant) variation of Curie temperature (T{sub C}) with T{sub A} (x). The multilayer films annealed at 200 °C exhibit low value of T{sub C} with a minimum of 350 K for x=4 film. But, the films annealed at 400 °C show largest T{sub C} with a maximum of 869 K for x=1 film. The observed results are discussed on the basis of variations in magnetic couplings between FeTaC layers, which are majorly driven by temperature, spacer layer thickness, annealing temperature and

Efficient and colour-stable hybrid white organic light-emitting diodes utilizing electron-hole balanced spacers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Leem, Dong-Seok; Kim, Ji Whan; Kim, Jang-Joo [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, and OLED Center, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-744 (Korea, Republic of); Jung, Sung Ouk; Kim, Seul-Ong; Kwon, Soon-Ki [School of Materials Science and Engineering, and Engineering Research Institute (ERI), Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 660-701 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Se Hoon; Kim, Kee Young [Dongwoo Fine-Chem Co., Ltd, Pyeongtaek 451-822 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Yun-Hi, E-mail: jjkim@snu.ac.k, E-mail: skwon@gnu.ac.k [Department of Chemistry and RINS, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 660-701 (Korea, Republic of)

2010-10-13

High-efficiency two-colour white organic light-emitting diodes (WOLEDs) comprising a newly synthesized iridium complex orange phosphor ((impy){sub 2}Ir(acac)) and a blue fluorophor (BD012) have been realized by placing several kinds of thin spacers between two emitters. Hybrid WOLEDs with a spacer composed of a hole-transporting N,N-dicarbazolyl-3,5-benzene (mCP) and an electron-transporting 4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline (Bphen) exhibit a high external quantum efficiency (EQE) of up to 8.4% and a negligible colour change (the colour coordinate of (0.39, 0.41) at 1000 cd m{sup -2}) with increasing brightness, whereas the device using a hole-transporting mCP spacer shows a relatively low EQE of 6.2% and a large shift of emitting colour with increasing brightness. Device performance is further characterized based on the charge transport behaviour of the spacers inserted between the two emitters.

Change of Retinal Nerve Layer Thickness in Non-Arteritic Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy Revealed by Fourier Domain Optical Coherence Tomography.

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Mei; Zhao, Chen; Han, Quan-Hong; Xie, Shiyong; Li, Yan

2016-08-01

To examine the changes of non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION) by serial morphometry using Fourier domain optical coherence tomography (FD-OCT). Retrospective study in patients with newly diagnosed NAION (n=33, all unilateral) and controls (n=75 unilateral NAION patients with full contralateral eye vision) who underwent FD-OCT of the optic disk, optic nerve head (ONH), and macula within 1 week of onset and again 1, 3, 6, and 12 months later. The patients showed no improvement in vision during follow-up. Within 1 week of onset, all NAION eyes exhibited severe ONH fiber crowding and peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) edema. Four had subretinal fluid accumulation and 12 had posterior vitreous detachment (PVD) at the optic disc surface. Ganglion cell complex (GCC) and RNFL thicknesses were reduced at 1 and 3 months (p < 0.05), with no deterioration thereafter. Initial RNFL/GCC contraction magnitude in the superior hemisphere correlated with the severity of inferior visual field deficits. NAION progression is characterized by an initial phase of accelerated RNFL and GCC deterioration. These results reveal that the kinetic change of neural retina in NAION and may have implication on the time window for treatment of NAION. FD-OCT is useful in the evaluation of NAION.

Experimental and numerical characterization of the water flow in spacer-filled channels of spiral-wound membranes

KAUST Repository

Bucs, Szilard; Valladares Linares, Rodrigo; Marston, Jeremy O.; Radu, Andrea I.; Vrouwenvelder, Johannes S.; Picioreanu, Cristian

2015-01-01

Micro-scale flow distribution in spacer-filled flow channels of spiral-wound membrane modules was determined with a particle image velocimetry system (PIV), aiming to elucidate the flow behaviour in spacer-filled flow channels. Two-dimensional water

How type II CRISPR-Cas establish immunity through Cas1-Cas2-mediated spacer integration.

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao, Yibei; Ng, Sherwin; Nam, Ki Hyun; Ke, Ailong

2017-10-05

CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) and the nearby Cas (CRISPR-associated) operon establish an RNA-based adaptive immunity system in prokaryotes. Molecular memory is created when a short foreign DNA-derived prespacer is integrated into the CRISPR array as a new spacer. Whereas the RNA-guided CRISPR interference mechanism varies widely among CRISPR-Cas systems, the spacer integration mechanism is essentially identical. The conserved Cas1 and Cas2 proteins form an integrase complex consisting of two distal Cas1 dimers bridged by a Cas2 dimer. The prespacer is bound by Cas1-Cas2 as a dual-forked DNA, and the terminal 3'-OH of each 3' overhang serves as an attacking nucleophile during integration. The prespacer is preferentially integrated into the leader-proximal region of the CRISPR array, guided by the leader sequence and a pair of inverted repeats inside the CRISPR repeat. Spacer integration in the well-studied Escherichia coli type I-E CRISPR system also relies on the bacterial integration host factor. In type II-A CRISPR, however, Cas1-Cas2 alone integrates spacers efficiently in vitro; other Cas proteins (such as Cas9 and Csn2) have accessory roles in the biogenesis phase of prespacers. Here we present four structural snapshots from the type II-A system of Enterococcus faecalis Cas1 and Cas2 during spacer integration. Enterococcus faecalis Cas1-Cas2 selectively binds to a splayed 30-base-pair prespacer bearing 4-nucleotide 3' overhangs. Three molecular events take place upon encountering a target: first, the Cas1-Cas2-prespacer complex searches for half-sites stochastically, then it preferentially interacts with the leader-side CRISPR repeat, and finally, it catalyses a nucleophilic attack that connects one strand of the leader-proximal repeat to the prespacer 3' overhang. Recognition of the spacer half-site requires DNA bending and leads to full integration. We derive a mechanistic framework to explain the stepwise spacer

Structure of modes of smoothly irregular three-dimensional integrated optical four-layer waveguide

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Egorov, A.A.; Ajryan, Eh.A.; Sevast'yanov, A.L.; Sevast'yanov, L.A.

2009-01-01

As a method of research of an integrated optical multilayer waveguide, satisfying the condition of smooth modification of the shape of the studied three-dimensional structure, an asymptotic method is used. Three-dimensional fields of smoothly deforming modes of the integrated optical waveguide are circumscribed analytically. An evident dependence of the contributions of the first order of smallness in the amplitudes of the electrical and magnetic fields of the quasi-waveguide modes is obtained. The canonical type of the equations circumscribing propagation of quasi-TE and quasi-TM modes in the smoothly irregular part of a four-layer integrated optical waveguide is represented for an asymptotic method. With the help of the method of coupled waves and perturbation theory method, the shifts of complex propagation constants for quasi-TE and quasi-TM modes are obtained in an explicit form. The elaborated theory is applicable for the analysis of similar structures of dielectric, magnetic and metamaterials in a sufficiently broad band of electromagnetic wavelengths

Ultraviolet optical properties of aluminum fluoride thin films deposited by atomic layer deposition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hennessy, John, E-mail: john.j.hennessy@jpl.nasa.gov; Jewell, April D.; Balasubramanian, Kunjithapatham; Nikzad, Shouleh [Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, California 91109 (United States)

2016-01-15

Aluminum fluoride (AlF{sub 3}) is a low refractive index material with promising optical applications for ultraviolet (UV) wavelengths. An atomic layer deposition process using trimethylaluminum and anhydrous hydrogen fluoride has been developed for the deposition of AlF{sub 3} at substrate temperatures between 100 and 200 °C. This low temperature process has resulted in thin films with UV-optical properties that have been characterized by ellipsometric and reflection/transmission measurements at wavelengths down to 200 nm. The optical loss for 93 nm thick films deposited at 100 °C was measured to be less than 0.2% from visible wavelengths down to 200 nm, and additional microstructural characterization demonstrates that the films are amorphous with moderate tensile stress of 42–105 MPa as deposited on silicon substrates. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis shows no signature of residual aluminum oxide components making these films good candidates for a variety of applications at even shorter UV wavelengths.

Two-dimensional optical simulation on a visible ray passing through inter-metal dielectric layers of CMOS image sensor device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Wan-Gyu; Kim, Jun-Seok; Kim, Hee-Jeen; Kim, Sang-Young; Hwang, Sung-Bo; Lee, Jeong-Gun

2005-01-01

Two-dimensional optical simulation has been performed for investigating light propagation through a micro lens and inter-metal dielectric (IMD) layers in an Al and Cu back-end of line (BEOL) onto a Si photodiode, and its effects on the wave power, as well as optical carriers generated by a visible ray in the silicon substrate area, i.e. photodiode of a CMOS image sensor pixel. The number of optically generated carriers in an Al-BEOL has been compared to a Cu-BEOL. It is shown that more optical carriers are generated in the Cu-BEOL for the red color because a higher permittivity dielectric material like SiC is used in the Cu-BEOL to prevent Cu from diffusing into the dielectric material, resulting in higher optical loss in the higher- permittivity dielectric layers. Thus, the optical power density arriving in the silicon substrate is higher in the Al-BEOL than in the Cu-BEOL when the wavelength is blue (470 nm) or green (550 nm) in the visible ray spectrum. In conclusion, the structure of a Cu-BEOL in a CMOS image sensor has to be optimized for generating more optical carriers through lower-permittivity IMD materials or by reducing the permittivity difference between SiC (or SiN) and IMD materials, without deteriorating the capability as a barrier to Cu diffusion.

Custom-made hinged spacers in revision knee surgery for patients with infection, bone loss and instability.

Science.gov (United States)

Macmull, S; Bartlett, W; Miles, J; Blunn, G W; Pollock, R C; Carrington, R W J; Skinner, J A; Cannon, S R; Briggs, T W R

2010-12-01

Polymethyl methacrylate spacers are commonly used during staged revision knee arthroplasty for infection. In cases with extensive bone loss and ligament instability, such spacers may not preserve limb length, joint stability and motion. We report a retrospective case series of 19 consecutive patients using a custom-made cobalt chrome hinged spacer with antibiotic-loaded cement. The "SMILES spacer" was used at first-stage revision knee arthroplasty for chronic infection associated with a significant bone loss due to failed revision total knee replacement in 11 patients (58%), tumour endoprosthesis in four patients (21%), primary knee replacement in two patients (11%) and infected metalwork following fracture or osteotomy in a further two patients (11%). Mean follow-up was 38 months (range 24-70). In 12 (63%) patients, infection was eradicated, three patients (16%) had persistent infection and four (21%) developed further infection after initially successful second-stage surgery. Above knee amputation for persistent infection was performed in two patients. In this particularly difficult to treat population, the SMILES spacer two-stage technique has demonstrated encouraging results and presents an attractive alternative to arthrodesis or amputation. Copyright © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Spacer Facial Artery Musculomucosal Flap: Simultaneous Closure of Oronasal Fistulas and Palatal Lengthening.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Jonathan Y; Alizadeh, Kaveh

2016-01-01

In this series, the authors describe a modification of the facial artery musculomucosal flap for oronasal fistula repair. The spacer facial artery musculomucosal flap technique is characterized by a pedicle inset into the retromolar trigone and palate, obviating a second operative stage. This was performed in 14 patients with a 5.2-cm mean fistula size. Average follow-up was 4.3 years, with one partial flap necrosis but no recurrent oronasal fistula. There was a mean decrease of 18 percent in the distance between the velum and the posterior pharyngeal wall. The spacer facial artery musculomucosal flap provides a single-stage reconstruction of oronasal fistula while lengthening the palate through a pushback mechanism. Although further study of velopharyngeal function is needed, the spacer facial artery musculomucosal flap may be beneficial for patients with a short velum and an oronasal fistula. Therapeutic, IV.

Characterisation of multi-layer InAs/InP quantum wires by surface photovoltage and photoluminescence spectroscopies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ivanov, Ts; Donchev, V; Angelova, T; Cros, A; Cantarero, A; Shtinkov, N; Borissov, K; Fuster, D; Gonzalez, Y; Gonzalez, L

2010-01-01

The optical properties of multi-layer InAs/InP quantum wires (QWRs) with two different spacer thicknesses have been investigated by means of room temperature surface photovoltage (SPV) and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopies, combined with empirical tight binding electronic structure calculations and structural data. The SPV and PL spectra reveal several features, which energy positions are in good agreement. They have been ascribed to excitonic transitions, which take place in the QWR families with heights differing by an integer number of monolayers. Comparing the experimental results with the theoretical ones, we have estimated the QWR family heights and the average atomic concentration of phosphorus in the QWRs. From the simultaneous analysis of the SPV amplitude and phase spectra, based on our vector model for SPV signal representation, a deeper understanding of the SPV results and of the mechanisms of carrier separation in the sample is obtained.

Characterisation of multi-layer InAs/InP quantum wires by surface photovoltage and photoluminescence spectroscopies

Science.gov (United States)

Ivanov, Ts; Donchev, V.; Angelova, T.; Cros, A.; Cantarero, A.; Shtinkov, N.; Borissov, K.; Fuster, D.; González, Y.; González, L.

2010-11-01

The optical properties of multi-layer InAs/InP quantum wires (QWRs) with two different spacer thicknesses have been investigated by means of room temperature surface photovoltage (SPV) and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopies, combined with empirical tight binding electronic structure calculations and structural data. The SPV and PL spectra reveal several features, which energy positions are in good agreement. They have been ascribed to excitonic transitions, which take place in the QWR families with heights differing by an integer number of monolayers. Comparing the experimental results with the theoretical ones, we have estimated the QWR family heights and the average atomic concentration of phosphorus in the QWRs. From the simultaneous analysis of the SPV amplitude and phase spectra, based on our vector model for SPV signal representation, a deeper understanding of the SPV results and of the mechanisms of carrier separation in the sample is obtained.

Two pion correlation from SPACER

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Csoergoe, T.; Zimanyi, J.; Pratt, S.

1989-12-01

The correlation function for neutral and negative pions produced in ultrarelativistic heavy ion collisions was calculated without free parameters based on a space-time version of the LUND model, called SPACER: Simulation of Phase space distribution of Atomic nuclear Collisions in Energetic Reactions. This method includes the effect of Bose correlations for the emitted pion pair. Effects arising from correlations between space-time and momentum space distributions are investigated. The results are compared to the data of two different experiments. The role and interpretation of the chaocity parameter are discussed. (D.G.) 14 refs.; 4 figs

Ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer 1 and internal ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

USER

2010-07-26

Jul 26, 2010 ... in some East Asian countries such as China, Korea and. *Corresponding author. E-mail: soonkwan@kangwon.ac.kr. Tel: +82 33 250 6476. Fax: +82 33 250 6470. Abbreviations: nrDNA, Nuclear ribosomal DNA; ITS, internal transcribed spacer; PCR, polymerase chain reaction; BLAST, basic local alignment ...

MOKE study of Co/Ti/(Gd-Co) multilayers near the magnetic compensation state

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Svalov, A.V.; Fernandez, A.; Vas'kovskiy, V.O.; Kurlyandskaya, G.V.; Barandiaran, J.M.; Anton, R. Lopez; Tejedor, M.

2006-01-01

The magnetic behaviour of [Co/Ti/a-Gd 0.36 Co 0.64 /Ti] 4 /Co layered structures was studied by means of the transversal magneto-optic Kerr effect, with Ti spacers of different thicknesses. Within the Gd 0.36 Co 0.64 amorphous layer, the Gd magnetic sub-lattice dominates at all investigated temperatures. The strong exchange interaction at the interfaces causes 'macroscopic ferrimagnetic behaviour' in the whole system. The existence of a magnetic compensation state in the complete multilayer system was manifested by the change of sign in the magneto-optic hysteresis loops and the increase of coercivity. The evolution of the critical field for a spin-orientation transition leading to a non-collinear magnetic state near the 'compensation temperature' can be described within molecular field theory. The influence of the non-magnetic spacer thickness on the characteristics of the compensation state is also discussed

Cleaved-edge overgrowth of aligned quantum dots on strained layers of InGaAs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wasserman, D.; Lyon, S.A.

2004-01-01

Strain aligned InAs quantum dots were grown on the cleaved edges of first growth samples containing strained In x Ga (1-x) As layers of varying thickness and indium fraction. The formation of the cleaved-edge quantum dots was observed by means of atomic force microscopy. 100% linear alignment of InAs quantum dots over the InGaAs strain layers of the first growth sample is demonstrated. Linear density of the aligned dots was found to depend on the properties of the underlying InGaAs strain layers. Vertical alignment of an additional InAs quantum dot layer over the buried, linearly aligned, initial dot layer was observed for thin GaAs spacer layers

Optical coherence tomography detection of characteristic retinal nerve fiber layer thinning in nasal hypoplasia of the optic disc.

Science.gov (United States)

Haruta, M; Kodama, R; Yamakawa, R

2017-12-01

PurposeTo determine the clinical usefulness of optical coherence tomography (OCT) for detecting thinning of the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) in eyes with nasal hypoplasia of the optic discs (NHOD).Patients and methodsThe medical records of five patients (eight eyes) with NHOD were reviewed. The ratio of the disc-macula distance to the disc diameter (DM/DD) and the disc ovality ratio of the minimal to maximal DD were assessed using fundus photographs. The RNFL thicknesses of the temporal, superior, nasal, and inferior quadrants were evaluated using OCT quadrant maps.ResultsAll eight eyes had temporal visual field defects that respected the vertical meridians that needed to be differentiated from those related to chiasmal compression. The mean DM/DD ratio was 3.1 and the mean disc ovality ratio was 0.81. The mean RNFL thicknesses of the temporal, superior, nasal, and inferior quadrants were 90.3, 103.1, 34.8, and 112.8 microns, respectively.ConclusionSmall optic discs and tilted discs might be associated with NHOD. Measurement of the RNFL thickness around the optic disc using OCT scans clearly visualized the characteristic RNFL thinning of the nasal quadrants corresponding to the temporal sector visual field defects in eyes with NHOD. OCT confirmed the presence of NHOD and might differentiate eyes with NHOD from those with chiasmal compression.

Preclinical investigations towards the first spacer gel application in prostate cancer treatment during particle therapy at HIT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruciński, Antoni; Parodi, Katia; Jäkel, Oliver; Haberer, Thomas; Bauer, Julia; Campbell, Patrick; Brons, Stephan; Unholtz, Daniel; Habl, Gregor; Herfarth, Klaus; Debus, Jürgen; Bert, Christoph

2013-01-01

The application of spacer gel represents a promising approach to reliably spare the rectal frontal wall during particle therapy (IJROBP 76:1251-1258, 2010). In order to qualify the spacer gel for the clinical use in particle therapy, a variety of measurements were performed in order to ensure the biological compatibility of the gel, its physical stability during and after the irradiation, and a proper definition of the gel in terms of the Hounsfield Unit (HU) values for the treatment planning system. The potential for the use of the spacer gel for particle therapy monitoring with off-line Positron Emission Tomography (PET) was also investigated. The spacer gel implanted to the prostate patient in direct neighbourhood to the clinical target volume does not interfere with the particle therapy treatment planning procedure applied at Heidelberg Ion Beam Therapy Centre (HIT). The performed measurements show that Bragg-peak position of the particles can be properly predicted on the basis of computed tomography imaging with the treatment planning system used at HIT (measured water equivalent path length of 1.011 ±0.011 (2σ), measured Hounsfield Unit of 28.9 ±6.1 (2σ)). The spacer gel samples remain physically unchanged after irradiation with a dose exceeding the therapeutic dose level. The independently measured Bragg-Peak position does not change within the time interval of 10 weeks. As a result of the presented experiments, the first clinical application of spacer gel implant during prostate cancer treatment with carbon ions and protons was possible at HIT in 2012. The reported pre-clinical investigations demonstrate that use of spacer gel is safe in particle therapy in presence of therapy target motion and patient positioning induced particle range variations. The spacer gel injected between prostate and rectum enlarge the distance between both organs, which is expected to clinically significantly decrease the undesirable exposure of the most critical organ at risk

Are All Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Defects on Optic Coherence Tomography Glaucomatous?

Science.gov (United States)

Gür Güngör, Sirel; Ahmet, Akman

2017-10-01

In this study, we investigated the patients who were referred to our clinic with a prediagnosis of glaucoma based on retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) defects on optic coherence tomography (OCT) but were determined to have nonglaucomatous RNLF defects upon detailed examination. The ophthalmic examination notes, OCT images, Heidelberg retinal tomography (HRT) II and fundus photographs of 357 patients were retrospectively evaluated. Final diagnoses of these patients were investigated. Of the 357 patients, 216 (60.5%) were diagnosed as open angle glaucoma, 33 (9.2%) as low-tension glaucoma, 39 (10.9%) as pre-perimetric glaucoma. The ophthalmic examinations of 14 patients (3.9%) were normal and there were no RNFL defects in OCT examinations after dilatation. In 39 patients (10.9%), the ophthalmic and optic disc examinations were completely normal and no etiologic factor explaining RNFL defects was found. Twenty-two eyes of 16 patients (4.5%) were included in this study (the mean age was 53.8±11.5 years; 9 men and 7 women). After detailed questioning of the medical history and systemic and neurologic examinations, a diagnosis of ischemic optic neuropathy was made in 11 eyes (10 patients) (2.8%), optic neuritis in 3 eyes (2 patients) (0.6%), optic disc drusen in 4 eyes (2 patients) (0.6%), pseudotumor cerebri in 2 eyes (1 patient) (0.3%), and cerebral palsy in 2 eyes (1 patient) (0.3%). Decrease in RNFL thickness on OCT images alone may be misleading in glaucoma examination. In cases where optic disc cupping is not evident, diagnosis should not be based on OCT RNFL examinations alone, and the patient's medical history, detailed ophthalmic examination, OCT optic disc parameters, HRT, and visual field tests should all be carefully evaluated together.

CFD analysis of pressure drop across grid spacers in rod bundles compared to correlations and heavy liquid metal experimental data

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Batta, A., E-mail: batta@kit.edu; Class, A.G., E-mail: class@kit.edu

2017-02-15

Early studies of the flow in rod bundles with spacer grids suggest that the pressure drop can be decomposed in contributions due to flow area variations by spacer grids and frictional losses along the rods. For these shape and frictional losses simple correlations based on theoretical and experimental data have been proposed. In the OECD benchmark study LACANES it was observed that correlations could well describe the flow behavior of the heavy liquid metal loop including a rod bundle with the exception of the core region, where different experts chose different pressure-loss correlations for the losses due to spacer grids. Here, RANS–CFD simulations provided very good data compared to the experimental data. It was observed that the most commonly applied Rehme correlation underestimated the shape losses. The available correlations relate the pressure drop across a grid spacer to the relative plugging of the spacer i.e. solidity e{sub max}. More sophisticated correlations distinct between spacer grids with round or sharp leading edge shape. The purpose of this study is to (i) show that CFD is suitable to predict pressure drop across spacer grids and (ii) to access the generality of pressure drop correlations. By verification and validation of CFD results against experimental data obtained in KALLA we show (i). The generality (ii) is challenged by considering three cases which yield identical pressure drop in the correlations. First we test the effect of surface roughness, a parameter not present in the correlations. Here we compare a simulation assuming a typical surface roughness representing the experimental situation to a perfectly smooth spacer surface. Second we reverse the flow direction for the spacer grid employed in the experiments which is asymmetric. The flow direction reversal is chosen for convenience, since an asymmetric spacer grid with given blockage ratio, may result in different flow situations depending on flow direction. Obviously blockage

Peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer and optic nerve head characteristics in eyes with situs inversus of the optic disc.

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Sunah; Jin, Sunyoung; Roh, Kyu Hwa; Hwang, Young Hoon

2015-01-01

This study was performed to investigate the peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) and optic nerve head (ONH) characteristics, as determined using a spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT), in eyes with situs inversus of the optic disc. The peripapillary RNFL and the ONH were assessed in 12 eyes belonging to 6 subjects with situs inversus of the optic disc (situs inversus group) and 24 eyes in 12 age-matched, sex-matched, and refractive error-matched healthy subjects (control group) by using OCT. The average, quadrant, and clock-hour RNFL thicknesses (clock-hour 9 on the scan represented the temporal side of the optic disc in both eyes), the superior/inferior RNFL peak locations, and ONH characteristics such as disc area, rim area, cup-to-disc ratio, vertical cup-to-disc ratio, and cup volume were obtained. The differences in RNFL and ONH characteristics between the 2 groups were analyzed. The situs inversus group had a thicker RNFL in the clock-hour sectors 3 and 4, a thinner RNFL in the clock-hour sectors 7, 8, and 11, and more nasally located superior and inferior RNFL peak locations than the control group (P≤0.001). The situs inversus group had a smaller cup-to-disc area ratio, smaller vertical cup-to-disc ratio, and a lesser cup volume than the control group (Poptic disc showed different peripapillary RNFL and ONH characteristics from those without this abnormality. These findings should be considered when assessing eyes with situs inversus of the optic disc.

Improving the Efficiency Enhancement of Photonic Crystal Based InGaN Solar Cell by Using a GaN Cap Layer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. F. Gundogdu

2014-01-01

Full Text Available We studied a high indium content (0.8 InGaN based solar cell design where the active InGaN layer is sandwiched between a GaN cap layer and a GaN spacer layer. The incorporation of the sacrificial cap layer allows for the etching of the front surface without removing the active InGaN resulting in a 50% enhancement of the short-circuit current density for a 15 nm-thick InGaN layer.

Time spans and spacers : Molecular phylogenetic explorations in the Cladophora complex (Chlorophyta) from the perspective of rDNA gene and spacer sequences

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bakker, Frederik Theodoor

1995-01-01

In this study, phylogenetic relationships among genera, species and biogeographic representatives of single Cladophora species within the Cladophorales were analyzed using rDNA gene and spacer sequences. Based on phylogenetic analysis of 18S rRNA gene sequences, the Cladophora complex is shown to be

On the Origin of Reverse Transcriptase-Using CRISPR-Cas Systems and Their Hyperdiverse, Enigmatic Spacer Repertoires.

Science.gov (United States)

Silas, Sukrit; Makarova, Kira S; Shmakov, Sergey; Páez-Espino, David; Mohr, Georg; Liu, Yi; Davison, Michelle; Roux, Simon; Krishnamurthy, Siddharth R; Fu, Becky Xu Hua; Hansen, Loren L; Wang, David; Sullivan, Matthew B; Millard, Andrew; Clokie, Martha R; Bhaya, Devaki; Lambowitz, Alan M; Kyrpides, Nikos C; Koonin, Eugene V; Fire, Andrew Z

2017-07-11

Cas1 integrase is the key enzyme of the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)-Cas adaptation module that mediates acquisition of spacers derived from foreign DNA by CRISPR arrays. In diverse bacteria, the cas1 gene is fused (or adjacent) to a gene encoding a reverse transcriptase (RT) related to group II intron RTs. An RT-Cas1 fusion protein has been recently shown to enable acquisition of CRISPR spacers from RNA. Phylogenetic analysis of the CRISPR-associated RTs demonstrates monophyly of the RT-Cas1 fusion, and coevolution of the RT and Cas1 domains. Nearly all such RTs are present within type III CRISPR-Cas loci, but their phylogeny does not parallel the CRISPR-Cas type classification, indicating that RT-Cas1 is an autonomous functional module that is disseminated by horizontal gene transfer and can function with diverse type III systems. To compare the sequence pools sampled by RT-Cas1-associated and RT-lacking CRISPR-Cas systems, we obtained samples of a commercially grown cyanobacterium- Arthrospira platensis Sequencing of the CRISPR arrays uncovered a highly diverse population of spacers. Spacer diversity was particularly striking for the RT-Cas1-containing type III-B system, where no saturation was evident even with millions of sequences analyzed. In contrast, analysis of the RT-lacking type III-D system yielded a highly diverse pool but reached a point where fewer novel spacers were recovered as sequencing depth was increased. Matches could be identified for a small fraction of the non-RT-Cas1-associated spacers, and for only a single RT-Cas1-associated spacer. Thus, the principal source(s) of the spacers, particularly the hypervariable spacer repertoire of the RT-associated arrays, remains unknown. IMPORTANCE While the majority of CRISPR-Cas immune systems adapt to foreign genetic elements by capturing segments of invasive DNA, some systems carry reverse transcriptases (RTs) that enable adaptation to RNA molecules. From

Optical properties of palladium nanoparticles under exposure of hydrogen and inert gas prepared by dewetting synthesis of thin-sputtered layers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kracker, Michael, E-mail: Michael.Kracker@uni-jena.de; Worsch, Christian; Ruessel, Christian [Otto-Schott-Institut, Jena University (Germany)

2013-04-15

Thin layers of palladium with a thickness of 5 nm were sputtered on fused silica substrates. Subsequently, the coated glasses were annealed at a temperature of 900 Degree-Sign C for 1 h. This resulted in the formation of small and well-separated palladium nanoparticles with diameters in the range from 20 to 200 nm on the glass surface. The existence of a palladium oxide layer can be detected using optical absorption spectroscopy. Purging with hydrogen leads to an irreversible change in the optical spectra due to the reduction of PdO to metallic palladium. Changing the gas atmosphere from hydrogen to argon leads to significant reversible changes in the optical properties of the particle layer. Based on Mie theory and the respective dielectric functions, the spectra were calculated using the real particle size distribution, weighted dispersions relation to adapt the geometrical conditions and complex dielectric functions of palladium and palladium hydride. A good agreement with measured spectra was found and the dependency of the surrounding media can be explained.Graphical Abstract.

Single-Stage Treatment of Osteomyelitis for Digital Salvage by Using an Antibiotic-Eluting, Methylmethacrylate Joint-Spanning Spacer.

Science.gov (United States)

Aimé, Victoria L; Kidwell, John T; Webb, Leland H

2017-06-01

Osteomyelitis of the digit is a challenging problem that can result in amputation. We describe 13 cases of osteomyelitis involving bones of the hand managed with a novel technique. We reviewed records of 12 patients (13 digits) who had joint-spanning, antibiotic-eluting (tobramycin or vancomycin), methylmethacrylate spacers placed as definitive, single-stage treatment for digital osteomyelitis. The primary outcome was digit salvage. Secondary outcomes were infection eradication (no recurrence at 3 months) and spacer removal. Patients were followed up until the infection resolved (ie, no cutaneous signs of infection, including pain, erythema, or swelling). At a mean of 24 months, 10 of 13 infections had successful one-stage treatment. One patient required a second operation to revise a soft tissue flap but the spacer remained in place. Two spacers were removed because of malalignment. An antibiotic-eluting methylmethacrylate spacer is an innovative treatment for digital osteomyelitis. In 12 consecutive patients (13 digits), we successfully salvaged the digit. Copyright © 2017 American Society for Surgery of the Hand. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

CFD analysis on mixing effects of spacer grids with different dimples and sizes for advanced fuel assemblies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yang, B.W.; Zhang, H.; Han, B.; Zha, Y.D.; Shan, J.Q. [Xi' an Jiaotong Univ. (China). School of Nuclear Science and Technology

2016-07-15

The thermal hydraulic characteristics of a mixing vane grid are largely dependent on the structure of key components, such as strip, spring, dimple, weld nugget, as well as the mixing vane configuration. In this paper, several types of spacer grids with different dimple shapes are modeled under subcooled boiling conditions. Prior to the application of CFD on the dimple shape analysis, the mixing effects of spacer grids were studied. After the dimple shape analysis, the side channel effect is discussed by comparing the simulation results of a 3 x 3 and a 5 x 5 spacer grid. The two phase flow CFD models in this study are validated through simple geometry showing that the calculated void fraction is in good agreement with the experimental data. The dimple comparison result shows that varying dimple structures can result in different temperatures, lateral velocities and void fraction distributions downstream of the spacer grids. Comparison of two sizes of spacer grids demonstrate that the side channel generates different flow distribution pattern in the center channel.

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering of amorphous silica gel adsorbed on gold substrates for optical fiber sensors

Science.gov (United States)

Degioanni, S.; Jurdyc, A. M.; Cheap, A.; Champagnon, B.; Bessueille, F.; Coulm, J.; Bois, L.; Vouagner, D.

2015-10-01

Two kinds of gold substrates are used to produce surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) of amorphous silica obtained via the sol-gel route using tetraethoxysilane Si(OC2H5)4 (TEOS) solution. The first substrate consists of a gold nanometric film elaborated on a glass slide by sputter deposition, controlling the desired gold thickness and sputtering current intensity. The second substrate consists of an array of micrometer-sized gold inverted pyramidal pits able to confine surface plasmon (SP) enhancing electric field, which results in a distribution of electromagnetic energy inside the cavities. These substrates are optically characterized to observe SPR with, respectively, extinction and reflectance spectrometries. Once coated with thin layers of amorphous silica (SiO2) gel, these samples show Raman amplification of amorphous SiO2 bands. This enhancement can occur in SERS sensors using amorphous SiO2 gel as shells, spacers, protective coatings, or waveguides, and represents particularly a potential interest in the field of Raman distributed sensors, which use the amorphous SiO2 core of optical fibers as a transducer to make temperature measurements.

Spacer length impacts the efficacy of targeted docetaxel conjugates in prostate-specific membrane antigen expressing prostate cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Peng, Zheng-Hong; Sima, Monika; Salama, Mohamed E; Kopečková, Pavla; Kopeček, Jindřich

2013-12-01

Combination of targeted delivery and controlled release is a powerful technique for cancer treatment. In this paper, we describe the design, synthesis, structure validation and biological properties of targeted and non-targeted N-(2-hydroxypropyl)methacrylamide (HPMA) copolymer-docetaxel conjugates. Docetaxel (DTX) was conjugated to HPMA copolymer via a tetrapeptide spacer (-GFLG-). 3-(1,3-dicarboxypropyl)-ureido]pentanedioic acid (DUPA) was used as the targeting moiety to actively deliver DTX for treatment of Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen (PSMA) expressing prostate cancer. Short and long spacer DUPA monomers were prepared, and four HPMA copolymer--DTX conjugates (non-targeted, two targeted with short spacer of different molecular weight and targeted with long spacer) were prepared via Reversible Addition-Fragmentation Chain Transfer (RAFT) copolymerization. Following confirmation of PSMA expression on C4-2 cell line, the DTX conjugates' in vitro cytotoxicity was tested against C4-2 tumor cells and their anticancer efficacies were assessed in nude mice bearing s.c. human prostate adenocarcinoma C4-2 xenografts. The in vivo results show that the spacer length between targeting moieties and HPMA copolymer backbone can significantly affect the treatment efficacy of DTX conjugates against C4-2 tumor bearing nu/nu mice. Moreover, histological analysis indicated that the DUPA-targeted DTX conjugate with longer spacer had no toxicity in major organs of treated mice.

Using a two-layered sphere model to investigate the impact of gas vacuoles on the inherent optical properties of Microcystis aeruginosa

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Matthews, MW

2013-01-01

Full Text Available A two-layered sphere model is used to investigate the impact of gas vacuoles on the inherent optical properties (IOPs) of the cyanophyte Microcystis aeruginosa. Enclosing a vacuole-like particle within a chromatoplasm shell layer significantly...

MO-AB-BRA-02: Modeling Nanoparticle-Eluting Spacer Degradation During Brachytherapy Application with in Situ Dose-Painting

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Boateng, F [University of Massachusetts Lowell, Lowell, Massachusetts (United States); Ngwa, W [University of Massachusetts Lowell, Lowell, Massachusetts (United States); Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: Brachytherapy application with in situ dose-painting using gold nanoparticles (GNP) released from GNP-loaded brachytherapy spacers has been proposed as an innovative approach to increase therapeutic efficacy during brachytherapy. This work investigates the dosimetric impact of slow versus burst release of GNP from next generation biodegradable spacers. Methods: Mathematical models were developed based on experimental data to study the release of GNP from a spacer designed with FDA approved poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) polymer. The diffusion controlled released process and PLGA polymer degradation kinetics was incorporated in the calculations for the first time. An in vivo determined diffusion coefficient was used for determining the concentration profiles and corresponding dose enhancement based on initial GNP-loading concentrations of 7 mg/g. Results: The results showed that there is significant delay before the concentration profile of GNP diffusion in the tumor is similar to that when burst release is assumed as in previous studies. For example, in the case of burst release after spacer administration, it took up to 25 days for all the GNP to be released from the spacer using diffusion controlled release process only. However, it took up to 45 days when a combined model for both diffusion and polymer degradation processes was used. Based on the tumor concentration profiles, a significant dose enhancement factor (DEF >20%), could be attained at a tumor distances of 5 mm from a spacer loaded with 10 nm GNP sizes. Conclusion: The results highlight the need to take the slow release of GNP from spacers and factors such as biodegradation of polymers into account in research development of GNP-eluting spacers for brachytherapy applications with in-situ dose-painting using gold nanoparticles. The findings suggest that I-125 may be the more appropriate for such applications given the relatively longer half-live compared to other radioisotopes like Pd-103

Vanadium impurity effects on optical properties of Ti3N2 mono-layer: An ab-initio study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Manuchehr Babaeipour

2018-06-01

Full Text Available The present work is investigated the effect of vanadium impurity on electronic and optical properties of Ti3N2 monolayer by using density function theory (DFT implemented in Wien2k code. In order to study optical properties in two polarization directions of photons, namely E||x and E||z, dielectric function, absorption coefficient, optical conductivity, refraction index, extinction index, reflectivity, and energy loss function of Ti3N2 and Ti3N2-V monolayer have been evaluated within GGA (PBE approximation. Although, Ti3N2 monolayer is a good infrared reflector and can be used as an infrared mirror, introducing V atom in the infrared area will decrease optical conductivity because optical conductivity of a pure form of a material is higher than its doped form. Keywords: Dielectric function, Optical conductivity, DFT, Ti3N2: V mono-layer

A numerical approach to the simulation of one-phase and two phase reactor coolant flow around nuclear fuel spacers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stosic, Z.V.; Stevanovic, V.D.

2001-01-01

A methodology for the simulation and analysis of one-phase and two-phase coolant flows around one or a row of spacers is presented. It is based on the multidimensional two-fluid mass, momentum and energy balance equations and application of adequate turbulence models. Necessary closure laws for interfacial transfer processes are presented. The stated general approach enables simulation and analyses of reactor coolant flow around spacers on different scale levels of the rod bundle geometry: detailed modelling of coolant flow around spacers and investigation of the influence of spacer's geometry on the coolant thermal-hydraulics, as well as prediction of global thermal-hydraulic parameters within the whole rod bundle with the investigation of the influence of rows of spacers on the bulk thermal-hydraulic processes. Sample problems are included illustrating these different modelling approaches. (author)

Effect of different commercial feed spacers on biofouling of reverse osmosis membrane systems: A numerical study

KAUST Repository

Bucs, Szilard

2014-06-01

Feed spacers and hydrodynamics have been found relevant for the impact of biofouling on performance in reverse osmosis (RO) and nanofiltration (NF) membrane systems.The objectives of this study on biofouling development were to determine the impact of (i) linear flow velocity and bacterial cell load, (ii) biomass location and (iii) various feed spacer geometries as applied in practice as well as a modified geometry spacer.A three-dimensional mathematical model for biofouling of feed spacer channels including hydrodynamics, solute mass transport and biofilm formation was developed in COMSOL Multiphysics and MATLAB software.Results of this study indicate that the feed channel pressure drop increase caused by biofilm formation can be reduced by using thicker and/or modified feed spacer geometry and/or a lower flow rate in the feed channel. The increase of feed channel pressure drop by biomass accumulation is shown to be strongly influenced by the location of biomass. Results of numerical simulations are in satisfactory agreement with experimental data, indicating that this micro-scale mechanistic model is representative for practice. The developed model can help to understand better the biofouling process of spiral-wound RO and NF membrane systems and to develop strategies to reduce and control biofouling. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.

Effect of different commercial feed spacers on biofouling of reverse osmosis membrane systems: A numerical study

KAUST Repository

Bucs, Szilard; Radu, Andrea I.; Lavric, Vasile; Vrouwenvelder, Johannes S.; Picioreanu, Cristian

2014-01-01

Feed spacers and hydrodynamics have been found relevant for the impact of biofouling on performance in reverse osmosis (RO) and nanofiltration (NF) membrane systems.The objectives of this study on biofouling development were to determine the impact of (i) linear flow velocity and bacterial cell load, (ii) biomass location and (iii) various feed spacer geometries as applied in practice as well as a modified geometry spacer.A three-dimensional mathematical model for biofouling of feed spacer channels including hydrodynamics, solute mass transport and biofilm formation was developed in COMSOL Multiphysics and MATLAB software.Results of this study indicate that the feed channel pressure drop increase caused by biofilm formation can be reduced by using thicker and/or modified feed spacer geometry and/or a lower flow rate in the feed channel. The increase of feed channel pressure drop by biomass accumulation is shown to be strongly influenced by the location of biomass. Results of numerical simulations are in satisfactory agreement with experimental data, indicating that this micro-scale mechanistic model is representative for practice. The developed model can help to understand better the biofouling process of spiral-wound RO and NF membrane systems and to develop strategies to reduce and control biofouling. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.

Single-electron transistors fabricated with sidewall spacer patterning

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Byung-Gook; Kim, Dae Hwan; Kim, Kyung Rok; Song, Ki-Whan; Lee, Jong Duk

2003-09-01

We have implemented a sidewall spacer patterning method for novel dual-gate single-electron transistor (DGSET) and metal-oxide-semiconductor-based SET (MOSET) based on the uniform SOI wire, using conventional lithography and processing technology. A 30 nm wide silicon quantum wire is defined by a sidewall spacer patterning method, and depletion gates for two tunnel junctions of the DGSET are formed by the doped polycrystalline silicon sidewall. The fabricated DGSET and MOSET show clear single-electron tunneling phenomena at liquid nitrogen temperature and insensitivity of the Coulomb oscillation period to gate bias conditions. On the basis of the phase control capability of the sidewall depletion gates, we have proposed a complementary self-biasing method, which enables the SET/CMOS hybrid multi-valued logic (MVL) to operate perfectly well at high temperature, where the peak-to-valley current ratio of Coulomb oscillation severely decreases. The suggested scheme is evaluated by SPICE simulation with an analytical DGSET model, and it is confirmed that even DGSETs with a large Si island can be utilized efficiently in the multi-valued logic.

Determination of the composition of surface optical layers prepared with the use of rare earth and zirconium oxides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mishchenko, V.T.; Shilova, L.P.; Shkol'nikova, T.M.

1991-01-01

Simple titrimetric and gravimetric methods for determination of optical oxide layers (rare earth and zirconium oxides), sputtered on glass or quartz sublayer, have been developed. The minimal determined oxide mass in surface layers is equal to 0.01 mg in titrimetric determination and 0.1 mg - in gravimetric one. It is shown that composition of films and pellets, used for film sputtering, is identical