Blood flow in the rabbit aortic arch and descending thoracic aorta

The distribution of atherosclerotic lesions within the rabbit vasculature, particularly within the descending thoracic aorta, has been mapped in numerous studies. The patchy nature of such lesions has been attributed to local variation in the pattern of blood flow. However, there have been few attempts to model and characterize the flow. In this study, a high-order continuous Galerkin finite-element method was used to simulate blood flow within a realistic representation of the rabbit aortic arch and descending thoracic aorta. The geometry, which was obtained from computed tomography of a resin corrosion cast, included all vessels originating from the aortic arch (followed to at least their second generation) and five pairs of intercostal arteries originating from the proximal descending thoracic aorta. The simulations showed that small geometrical undulations associated with the ductus arteriosus scar cause significant deviations in wall shear stress (WSS). This finding highlights the importance of geometrical accuracy when analysing WSS or related metrics. It was also observed that two Dean-type vortices form in the aortic arch and propagate down the descending thoracic aorta (along with an associated skewed axial velocity profile). This leads to the occurrence of axial streaks in WSS, similar in nature to the axial streaks of lipid deposition found in the descending aorta of cholesterol-fed rabbits. Finally, it was observed that WSS patterns within the vicinity of intercostal branch ostia depend not only on local flow features caused by the branches themselves, but also on larger-scale flow features within the descending aorta, which vary between branches at different locations. This result implies that disease and WSS patterns in the vicinity of intercostal ostia are best compared on a branch-by-branch basis.     

The chemical oxygen iodine laser in the presence of a magneticfield. II. Frequency tuning behavior

For pt.I, see ibid., vol.29, no.3, p.933-43 (1993). Results are presented from an experimental/theoretical investigation of the frequency shifting and tuning behavior of a chemical oxygen-iodine laser in the presence of an applied magnetic field. Frequency shifting measurements are presented for both P and S polarization over a range of magnetic field strength from 0 to 3000 G, in a pressure regime (3 torr) where the line shape is Doppler broadened. Theoretical predictions of the location and magnitude of the frequency shifts are shown to be in good agreement with both the present measurements and a previous investigation in the pressure broadened regime     

Assessing the performance of crack detection tests for solder joints

This paper presents both modelling and experimental test data to characterise the performance of four non-destructive tests. The focus is on determining the presence and rough magnitude of thermal fatigue cracks within the solder joints for a surface mount resistor on a strip of FR4 PCB. The tests all operate by applying mechanical loads to the PCB and monitoring the strain response at the top of the resistor. The modelling results show that of the four tests investigated, three are sensitive to the presence of a crack in the joint and its magnitude. Hence these tests show promise in being able to detect cracking caused by accelerated testing. The experimental data supports these results although more validation is required.     

Advanced optical tweezers for the study of cellular and molecular biomechanics

Optical tweezers are an important tool for studying cellular and molecular biomechanics. We present a robust optical tweezers device with advanced features including: multiple optical traps, acousto-optic trap steering, and back focal plane interferometry position detection. We integrate these features into an upright microscope, with no compromise to its capabilities (differential interference contrast microscopy, fluorescence microscopy, etc.). Acousto-optic deflectors (AODs) steer each beam and can create multiple time-shared traps. Position detection, force calibrations and AOD performance are presented. The system can detect subnanometer displacements and forces below 0.1 pN.     

A multimode 0.3-200-kb/s transceiver for the 433/868/915-MHz bands in 0.25-/spl mu/m CMOS

A fully integrated transceiver suitable for low-data-rate wireless telemetry and sensor networks operating in the license-free ISM frequency bands at 433, 868, or 915 MHz implemented in 0.25-/spl mu/m CMOS is presented. G/FSK, ASK, and OOK modulation formats are supported at data rates from 0.3 to 200 kb/s. The transceiver's analog building blocks include a low-noise amplifier, mixer, channel filter, received signal-strength indication, frequency synthesizer, voltage-controlled oscillator, and power amplifier. FSK demodulation is implemented using a novel digital complex-frequency correlator that operates over a wide modulation-index range and approximates matched filter detection performance. Automatic gain control, automatic frequency control, and symbol timing recovery loops are included on chip. Operating in the 915-MHz band in FSK mode at 9.6 kb/s, the receiver consumes 19.7 mA from a 3-V supply and achieves a sensitivity of -112.8dBm at 0.1% BER. The transmitter consumes 28.5 mA for an output power of 10 dBm and delivers up to 14 dBm.     

Nutritive value of corn silage as affected by maturity and mechanical processing: a contemporary review

Stage of maturity at harvest and mechanical processing affect the nutritive value of corn silage. The change in nutritive value of corn silage as maturity advances can be measured by animal digestion and macro in situ degradation studies among other methods. Predictive equations using climatic data, vitreousness of corn grain in corn silage, starch reactivity, gelatinization enthalpy, dry matter (DM) of corn grain in corn silage, and DM of corn silage can be used to estimate starch digestibility of corn silage. Whole plant corn silage can be mechanically processed either pre- or postensiling with a kernel processor mounted on a forage harvester, a recutter screen on a forage harvester, or a stationary roller mill. Mechanical processing of corn silage can improve ensiling characteristics, reduce DM losses during ensiling, and improve starch and fiber digestion as a result of fracturing the corn kernels and crushing and shearing the stover and cobs. Improvements in milk production have ranged from 0.2 to 2.0 kg/d when cows were fed mechanically processed corn silage. A consistent improvement in milk protein yield has also been observed when mechanically processed corn silage has been fed. With the advent of mechanical processors, alternative strategies are evident for corn silage management, such as a longer harvest window.     

A Low Loss X-Band Quasi-Elliptic Ferroelectric Tunable Filter

A compact high quality factor four-pole X-band tunable quasi-elliptic bandpass filter is presented in this letter. The filter is enabled by high-Q ferroelectric barium strontium titanate capacitors and open-loop resonators. The central frequency of 8.35 GHz and the frequency tuning range of 500 MHz (6%) are achieved with a dc bias voltage of 30 V. The selective filter has a fractional 1 dB bandwidth ranging from 5.5% up to 7.3%. The measured insertion loss and return loss are 5.7-3.5 dB and 10.2-7.9 dB, respectively, with a dc bias range of 0 to 30 V. To the best of our knowledge, this is the best analog tunable performance and selectivity in X-band.     

The Role of Electron Localization in Covalency and Electrochemical Properties of Lithium-Ion Battery Cathode Materials

Following the fundamental research conducted by J. B. Goodenough, the important role of electron localization induced by elemental substitution is studied. The size and electron negativity of host and substituting ions are two important factors in tuning material properties such as local structure and transition metal (TM) oxygen covalency. However, another factor, electron localization, which is widely studied in catalyst research but largely overlooked for battery materials, deserves systematic studies. A combined investigation using synchrotronbased X-ray spectroscopy and theoretical calculations is carried out on the Li-Co-Mn-O model system in which the substituting cation Mn⁴⁺, with its 3d³ electronic structure, is used as a promoter for electron localization. Results indicate that electron localization greatly influences the Co O bond by making it less covalent, which increases the delithiation voltage. It is also found that during charge/discharge, electron localization tends to make TM K-edge X-ray absorption near edge spectroscopy (XANES) spectra show a more “rigid shift” behavior while electron delocalization makes the XANES exhibit a “shape change.” It clearly explains why the K-edge XANES data of some TM oxides show no “rigid shift” while the nominal valence states changed. This work highlights the importance of electron localization with guidance for XANES interpretation.