Monitoring biofilm development in a microfluidic device using modified confocal reflection microscopy

The feasibility of a method to monitor biofilm development non-destructively in a microfluidic device was addressed. Here, we report that biofilm growth could be non-destructively monitored by an image analysis technique based on modification of confocal reflection microscopy.     

Interplay Between Vorticity and Chirality Inside the Vortex Core in Chiral p-Wave Superconductors

The vortex core in chiral p-wave superconductors exhibits various properties owing to the interplay between the vorticity and chirality inside the vortex core. In the chiral p-wave superconductors, the site-selective nuclear spin-lattice relaxation rate T ^–1 ₁ is theoretically studied inside the vortex core within the framework of the quasiclassical theory of superconductivity. T ^–1 ₁ at the vortex center depends on the sense of the chirality relative to the sense of the magnetic field. The effect of a tilt of the magnetic field upon T ^–1 ₁ is investigated. The effect of the anisotropy in the superconducting gap and the Fermi surface is then investigated. The result is expected to be experimentally observed as a sign of the chiral pairing state in a superconducting material Sr₂RuO₄.     

Interactions between sodium tetradecyl sulfate and a series of homogeneous polyoxyethyleneglycol- n- dodecyl ethers

The surface tensions of a mixed system of sodium tetradecyl sulfate (STS) and a series of polyoxyethyleneglycol-n-dodecyl ethers (nED) were measured at temperatures of 30 and 40 C, respectively. When the STS concentration was fixed, the surface tension curves of the mixed system showed a flat portion in the range of which the mixed micelles would be formed. With a decrease of the added STS concentration, the length of the flat portion in these curves decreased gradually, and finally disappeared in the presence of 0.05 mM STS. Furthermore, when the concentration of STS was fixed at 1.0 mM, which is below the critical micelle concentration (CMC), the flat portion length in the surface tension curves de-creased with decreasing ethylene oxide chain length in nED and with increasing temperature. The influence of increment of temper-ature was comparable to that for reducing the length of ethylene oxide chain in nED.     

Highly hydrogenated dietary soybean oil modifies the responses to polychlorinated biphenyls in rats

The effects of dietary highly hydrogenated soybean oil (HSO) upon the changes caused by dietary polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were examined in rats. Six groups of rats were fed the following diets for 30 d: a 20% soybean oil-containing diet (control diet), a diet in which a half of soybean oil was substituted with HSO (HSO-A diet), a diet in which cellulose powder was replaced with HSO (HSO-B diet) and these diets supplemented with 100 ppm PCBs (control+PCBs, HSO-A+PCBs and HSO-B+PCBs diets). Hepatic concentration of PCBs and relative liver weight were markedly decreased in rats fed with the HSO-A+PCBs diet compared with those fed with the other diets containing PCBs. Liver lipids and liver cholesterol were considerably decreased with a reciprocal increase in fecal sterol excretion by rats fed the HSO-A+PCBs and the HSO-B+PCBs diets compared with those fed with the control+PCBs diet. The fatty acid composition in hepatic phospholipids showed an independent increase of the saturated fatty acid content induced by dietary HSO and PCBs. Dietary PCBs also caused decreases in the amounts of monounsaturated and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. These results suggest that dietary HSO prevents accumulation of PCBs in the liver and promotes the excretion of lipids stimulated by PCBs, accompanied by a change in fatty acid metabolism.     

InGaAs avalanche photodiode with InP p-n junction

A new InGaAs avalanche photodiode structure that has an InGaAs light absorption region and InP avalanche multiplying region is proposed. A dark-current density of 2.2 × 10?3 A/cm2 at 90% of breakdown voltage and a multiplication factor of 45 were obtained for the new structure diode fabricated from a liquid-phase epitaxially grown wafer.     

High-gain GaAs avalanche photodiodes with proton-implanted guard ring

A GaAs avalanche photodiode with a multiplication factor as high as 8000 was prepared by Zn diffusion and proton double implantation. The proton-implanted guard ring completely prevented edge breakdown, and multiplication occurred uniformly over the junction area. Dark current was proved to be due to a leakage current at the periphery between junction and implanted layer.     

Growth of silicon nanowires on H-terminated Si {111} surface templates studied by transmission electron microscopy

We have studied the growth of silicon nanowires (SiNWs) by means of transmission electron microscopy. SiNWs are grown from nanocatalysts via the Vapor-Liquid-Solid (VLS) mechanism using silane (SiH4) gas as a source gas. The nanocatalysts are prepared on a hydrogen (H)-terminated Si surface. We have examined the formation mechanism of nanocatalysts on H-terminated surface and have observed several structural variants of SiNWs. According to the study we have suggested that many structural variations of SiNWs are possible, which modify the structural properties of SiNWs to great extents.     

Temperature dependence of multiplication noise in silicon avalanche photodiodes

The temperature dependence of multiplication noise in silicon avalanche photodiodes with a low-high-low impurity density profile is calculated. The variation of multiplication noise by temperature change can be neglected in practical use at a constant multiplication factor, which is in agreement with experimental results.     

Hepta-and nonadecene from marine fish

Two monoalkenes were detected in gizzard shad (Clupanodon punctatus) and sardine (Sardinops melanosticta) by gas chromatography and were identified by combined gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of their cyclic boronate and dioxolane derivatives ascis-6-n-heptadecene andcis-8-n-nonadecene.