Composition and submicron structure of thin films of supersaturated Zn x Pb1 − x S solid solutions

Thin films of supersaturated Zn _x Pb_{1 ? x} S solid solutions containing up to 4.1 mol % ZnS have been obtained by hydrochemical deposition. The dependence of the material structure and surface morphology on the film composition has been studied. It is established that an increase in the content of zinc sulfide leads to the growth of grains with a more complicated crystalline structure, the formation of grain boundary fragments with dimensions from 60 to 100 nm, and a modification of the electrical properties of deposited layers.     

Cardioinotropic Effects in Subchronic Intoxication of Rats with Lead and/or Cadmium Oxide Nanoparticles

Subchronic intoxication was induced in outbred male rats by repeated intraperitoneal injections with lead oxide (PbO) and/or cadmium oxide (CdO) nanoparticles (NPs) 3 times a week during 6 weeks for the purpose of examining its effects on the contractile characteristics of isolated right ventricle trabeculae and papillary muscles in isometric and afterload contractions. Isolated and combined intoxication with these NPs was observed to reduce the mechanical work produced by both types of myocardial preparation. Using the in vitro motility assay, we showed that the sliding velocity of regulated thin filaments drops under both isolated and combined intoxication with CdO–NP and PbO–NP. These results correlate with a shift in the expression of myosin heavy chain (MHC) isoforms towards slowly cycling β–MHC. The type of CdO–NP + PbO–NP combined cardiotoxicity depends on the effect of the toxic impact, the extent of this effect, the ratio of toxicant doses, and the degree of stretching of cardiomyocytes and muscle type studied. Some indices of combined Pb–NP and CdO–NP cardiotoxicity and general toxicity (genotoxicity included) became fully or partly normalized if intoxication developed against background administration of a bioprotective complex.     

Evidence that cell surface beta 1,4-galactosyltransferase spontaneously galactosylates an underlying laminin substrate during fibroblast migration

beta 1,4-Galactosyltransferase is unusual among the glycosyltransferases in that a subpopulation exists on the cell surface in addition to its traditional biosynthetic location within the Golgi complex. On the cell surface, galactosyltransferase is expressed in spatially restricted, cell type-specific domains, where it functions as a receptor for extracellular oligosaccharide ligands during selected cellular interactions. For example, galactosyltransferase is found on the leading and trailing edges of migrating cells, where it facilitates lamellipodia formation and cell spreading by binding to specific N-linked oligosaccharides within laminin. Although the ability of galactosyltransferase to serve as a laminin receptor is well documented, it is unclear whether it functions solely in a lectin-like capacity to bind laminin glycoside ligands or uses its intrinsic catalytic activity to release itself from and modify its oligosaccharide substrate. In this study, we determined whether cell surface galactosyltransferase spontaneously galactosylates laminin matrices during cell migration using endogenous galactose donors. Cells were prelabeled with [3H]galactose, washed, and transferred in small clusters onto laminin matrices. The prelabeled cells migrated out from the cell cluster, during which time they deposited covalently bound [3H]galactose residues onto the laminin matrix. The degree of galactosylation was both laminin- and time-dependent and required actively migrating, intact cells. The radioactivity released from the 3H-galactosylated laminin by acid hydrolysis comigrated with authentic galactose standards on paper chromatography. In parallel assays, there was no radioactivity deposited on laminin matrices when cells were prelabeled with [3H]fucose or [3H]leucine. Furthermore, [3H]galactosylation was dependent upon galactosyltransferase-mediated cell migration, since prelabeled cells did not deposit [3H]galactose when migrating on fibronectin, upon which migration is integrin-dependent and galactosyltransferase-independent. These results raise the possibility that galactosyltransferase functions catalytically during cell migration, either to dissociate from its oligosaccharide ligand and/or to modify the extracellular matrix.     

Design criteria for GaAs MESFETs related to stationary high field domains

Using a modified theory of the high-field domains which takes into account the field-dependent diffusion we show that the existence of the high-field domain at drain side of the gate in GaAs MESFETs leads to a new set of design criteria which should be met to achieve the optimum performance. We derive these criteria and estimate the drain-to-source breakdown voltage and the maximum power of the device as functions of the doping density and device dimension. We also estimate the optimum gate length, the thickness of the active layer, the drain-to-gate separation and the doping level as functions of frequency. It is demonstrated that a larger than conventional drain-to-gate separation might be necessary for power devices to house a fully developed highfield domain and to avoid a premature breakdown at the drain. Our estimates indicate that the maximum power at 10 GHz can reach a theoretical limit of about 20 watts for class A operation.     

DC and microwave characteristics of sub-0.1-μm gate-lengthplanar-doped pseudomorphic HEMTs

Analytical modeling of these very-short-channel HEMTs (high-electron-mobility transistors) using the charge-control model is given. The calculations performed using this model indicate a very high electron velocity in the device channel (3.2±0.2×10⁷ cm/s) and clearly demonstrate the advantages of the planar-doped devices as compared to the conventional uniformly doped HEMTs. Devices with different air-bridged geometries have been fabricated to study the effect of the gate resistance on the sub-0.1-μm HEMT performance. With reduced gate resistance in the air-bridge-drain device, noise figures as low as 0.7 and 1.9 dB were measured at 18 and 60 GHz, respectively. Maximum available gains as high as 13.0 dB at 60 GHz and 9.2 dB at 92 GHz, corresponding to an f_max of 270 GHz, have also been measured in the device. Using the planar-doped pseudomorphic structure with a high gate aspect-ratio design, a noise figure of less than 2.0 dB at 94 GHz is projected based on expected further reduction in the parasitic gate and source resistances     

Small-signal nonlinear curcuit model of GaAs MESFET

Simple analytical expressions are derived for the drain-to-gate feedback capacitance, for the gate-to-source input capacitance, for the equivalent domain capacitance and the equivalent domain resistance for a GaAs metal-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MESFET). The equivalent circuit parameters are related to the material parameters such as the doping density, the dielectric constant, the low-field mobility, the diffusion coefficient, the built-in voltage and to the design parameters such as the gate length, the gate periphery, the active layer thickness, etc. The results which are in good agreement with the results of Willing et al. [4] may be used for a computer-aided design of GaAs power amplifiers and logic circuits.     

Radiation characteristics of getter materials in the region of a phase transformation

The results of studies of the radiation characteristics of samples of titanium and alloys thereof in the region of their polymorphous transformation and the temperature dependence of the emissivity in the β phase are presented. The calorimetric method of electron heating in high vacuum was used. It is shown that changes in the integral hemispherical emissivity ɛ _th for titanium iodide and industrial-grade titanium related to the transformation of a hexagonal close-packed lattice into a body-centered cubic lattice have different characters. Original Russian Text ? B.A. Shur, V.E. Peletskii, 2009, published in Pribory i Tekhnika Eksperimenta, 2009, No. 1, pp. 162–167.     

Experimental study of the thermal conductivity of heat insulation materials based on expanded vermiculite

Results are presented for experimental studies of the thermal conductivity of expanded vermiculite. Tests are performed in an experimental test unit by a steady-state heat flux. Thermal studies are carried out in the range 300–1100 K. It is shown that thermal conductivity increases uniformly with an increase in temperature. The most probable reason for an increase in thermal conductivity is the effect of heat radiation. Results are provided for an approximate second power polynomial. __________ Translated from Novye Ogneupory, No. 11, pp. 41–43, November 2007.