Improved reconstruction for MR spectroscopic imaging

Sensitivity limitations of in vivo magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) require that the extent of spatial-frequency (k-space) sampling be limited, thereby reducing spatial resolution and increasing the effects of Gibbs ringing that is associated with the use of Fourier transform reconstruction. Additional problems occur in the spectral dimension, where quantitation of individual spectral components is made more difficult by the typically low signal-to-noise ratios, variable lineshapes, and baseline distortions, particularly in areas of significant magnetic field inhomogeneity. Given the potential of in vivo MRSI measurements for a number of clinical and biomedical research applications, there is considerable interest in improving the quality of the metabolite image reconstructions. In this report, a reconstruction method is described that makes use of parametric modeling and MRI-derived tissue distribution functions to enhance the MRSI spatial reconstruction. Additional preprocessing steps are also proposed to avoid difficulties associated with image regions containing spectra of inadequate quality, which are commonly present in the in vivo MRSI data     

Investigation of hot carrier degradation in asymmetric nDeMOS transistors

Hot carrier degradation in asymmetric nDeMOS transistors is investigated in this paper. It is found that the worst case hot carrier stress condition in asymmetric nDeMOS transistors is at I_g,max, and not at I_b,max and hot-electron injection (HE, i.e. V_gs = V_ds). Further, the damage regions in transistors upon various hot carrier stress modes are located by using variable amplitude charge pumping technique. It is found that the interface traps generation in the gate/n-type graded drain (NGRD) overlap and spacer/NGRD regions is the dominant mechanism of hot carrier degradation in transistors upon I_g,max stress mode. Moreover, both the interface trap generation and the electron trapping are two important factors to induce the electrical parameters shifts of asymmetric nDeMOS transistors under I_b,max and HE stress.     

As Doping in (Hg,Cd)Te: An Alternative Point of View

Acceptor doping of many II–VI compound semiconductors has proved problematic and doping of epitaxial mercury cadmium telluride (MCT, Hg_1−x Cd _x Te) with arsenic is no exception. High-temperature (>400°C) anneals followed by a lower temperature mercury-rich vacancy-filling anneal are frequently required to activate the dopant. The model frequently used to explain p-type doping with arsenic invokes an amphoteric nature of group V atoms in the II–VI lattice. This requires that group VI substitution with arsenic only occurs under mercury-rich conditions either during growth or the subsequent annealing and involves site switching of the As. However, there are inconsistencies in the amphoteric model and unexplained experimental observations, including arsenic which is 100% active as grown by metalorganic vapor-phase epitaxy (MOVPE). A new model, based on hydrogen passivation of the arsenic, is therefore proposed.     

Optimization of electromagnetic phased-arrays for hyperthermia via magnetic resonance temperature estimation

A technique for the optimization of electromagnetic annular phased arrays (APAs) for therapeutic hyperthermia has been developed and implemented. The controllable inputs are the amplitudes and phases of the driving signals of each element of the array. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is used to estimate noninvasively the temperature distribution based on the temperature dependence of the proton resonance frequency (PRF). A parametric model of the dynamics that couple the control inputs to the resultant temperature elevations is developed based on physical considerations. The unknown parameters of this model are estimated during a pretreatment identification phase and can be continuously updated as new measurement data become available. Based on the parametric model, a controller automatically chooses optimal phases and amplitudes of the driving signals of the APA. An advantage of this approach to optimizing the APA is that no a priori information is required, eliminating the need for patient-specific computational modeling and optimization. Additionally, this approach represents a first step toward employing temperature feedback to make the optimization of the APA robust with respect to modeling errors and physiological changes. The ability of the controller to choose therapeutically beneficial driving amplitudes and phases is demonstrated via simulation. Experimental results are presented which demonstrate the ability of the controller to choose optimal phases for the APA using only information from magnetic resonance thermometry (MRT).     

Completely automated multiresolution edge snapper--a new technique for an accurate carotid ultrasound IMT measurement: clinical validation and benchmarking on a multi-institutional database

The aim of this paper is to describe a novel and completely automated technique for carotid artery (CA) recognition, far (distal) wall segmentation, and intima-media thickness (IMT) measurement, which is a strong clinical tool for risk assessment for cardiovascular diseases. The architecture of completely automated multiresolution edge snapper (CAMES) consists of the following two stages: 1) automated CA recognition based on a combination of scale-space and statistical classification in a multiresolution framework and 2) automated segmentation of lumen-intima (LI) and media-adventitia (MA) interfaces for the far (distal) wall and IMT measurement. Our database of 365 B-mode longitudinal carotid images is taken from four different institutions covering different ethnic backgrounds. The ground-truth (GT) database was the average manual segmentation from three clinical experts. The mean distance ± standard deviation of CAMES with respect to GT profiles for LI and MA interfaces were 0.081 ± 0.099 and 0.082 ± 0.197 mm, respectively. The IMT measurement error between CAMES and GT was 0.078 ± 0.112 mm. CAMES was benchmarked against a previously developed automated technique based on an integrated approach using feature-based extraction and classifier (CALEX). Although CAMES underestimated the IMT value, it had shown a strong improvement in segmentation errors against CALEX for LI and MA interfaces by 8% and 42%, respectively. The overall IMT measurement bias for CAMES improved by 36% against CALEX. Finally, this paper demonstrated that the figure-of-merit of CAMES was 95.8% compared with 87.4% for CALEX. The combination of multiresolution CA recognition and far-wall segmentation led to an automated, low-complexity, real-time, and accurate technique for carotid IMT measurement. Validation on a multiethnic/multi-institutional data set demonstrated the robustness of the technique, which can constitute a clinically valid IMT measurement for assistance in atherosclerosis disease management.     

Modelling of electrostatic gate operations in the Kane solid state quantum computer

The nuclear spin quantum computer proposed by Kane [Nature 393 (1998) 133] exploits as a qubit array ³¹P dopants embedded within a silicon matrix. Single-qubit operations are controlled by the application of electrostatic potentials via a set of metallic ‘A’ gates, situated above the donors, on the silicon surface, that tune the resonance frequency of individual nuclear spins, and a globally applied RF magnetic field that flips spins at resonance. Coupling between qubits is controlled by the application of potentials via a set of ‘J’ gates, between the donors, that induce an electron-mediated coupling between nuclear spins. We report the results of the study of the electric field and potential profiles arising within the Kane device from typical gate operations. The extent to which a single nuclear spin can be tuned independently of its neighbours, by operation of an associated A-gate, is examined and key design parameters in the Kane architecture are addressed. Implications for current fabrication strategies involving the implantation of ³¹P atoms are discussed. Solution of the Poisson equation has been carried out by simulation using a TCAD modelling package (Integrated Systems Engineering AG).     

Biometric bits extraction through phase quantization based on?feature level fusion

Biometric bits extraction has emerged as an essential technique for the study of biometric template protection as well as biometric cryptosystems. In this paper, we present a non-invertible but revocable bits extraction technique by means of quantizing the facial data from two feature extractors in the phase domain, which we coin as aligned feature-level fusion phase quantization (AFPQ). In this technique, we utilize helper data to achieve the revocability requirement of bits extraction. The feature averaging and remainder normalization technique are integrated with the helper data to reduce feature variance within the same individual and increase the distinctiveness of bit strings of different individuals to achieve good recognition performance. A scenario in which the system is compromised by an adversary is also considered. As a generic technique, AFPQ can be easily extended to multiple different biometric modalities.     

An X-ray Radiography Study of the Effect of Thermal Cycling on Damage Evolution in Large-Area Sn-3.5Ag Solder Joints

There is a need for next-generation, high-performance power electronic packages and systems utilizing wide-band-gap devices to operate at high temperatures in automotive and electricity transmission applications. Sn-3.5Ag solder is a candidate for use in such packages with potential maximum operating temperatures of about 200°C. However, there is a need to understand the thermal cycling reliability of Sn-3.5Ag solders subject to such high-temperature operating conditions. The results of a study on the damage evolution occurring in large-area Sn-3.5Ag solder joints between silicon dies and direct bonded copper substrates with Au/Ni-P metallization subject to thermal cycling between 200°C and 5°C are presented in this paper. Interface structure evolution and damage accumulation were followed using high-resolution X-ray radiography, cross-sectional optical and scanning electron microscopies, and X-ray microanalysis in these joints for up to 3000 thermal cycles. Optical and scanning electron microscopy results showed that the stresses introduced by the thermal cycling result in cracking and delamination at the copper–intermetallic compound interface. X-ray microanalysis showed that stresses due to thermal cycling resulted in physical cracking and breakdown of the Ni-P barrier layer, facilitating Cu-Sn interdiffusion. This interdiffusion resulted in the formation of Cu-Sn intermetallic compounds underneath the Ni-P layer, subsequently leading to delamination between the Ni-rich layer and Cu-Sn intermetallic compounds.     

Computation of diffusion function measures in q-space using magnetic resonance hybrid diffusion imaging

The distribution of water diffusion in biological tissues may be estimated by a 3-D Fourier transform (FT) of diffusion-weighted measurements in q-space. In this study, methods for estimating diffusion spectrum measures (the zero-displacement probability, the mean-squared displacement, and the orientation distribution function) directly from the q-space signals are described. These methods were evaluated using both computer simulations and hybrid diffusion imaging (HYDI) measurements on a human brain. The HYDI method obtains diffusion-weighted measurements on concentric spheres in q-space. Monte Carlo computer simulations were performed to investigate effects of noise, q-space truncation, and sampling interval on the measures. This new direct computation approach reduces HYDI data processing time and image artifacts arising from 3-D FT and regridding interpolation. In addition, it is less sensitive to the noise and q-space truncation effects than conventional approach. Although this study focused on data using the HYDI scheme, this computation approach may be applied to other diffusion sampling schemes including Cartesian diffusion spectrum imaging.     

系统电源TPS2383A为以太网供电提供了更高的灵活性

TPs2383A是一种适用于以太网供电(PoE)的电源供电设备电源管理器(PSEPM).其根据IEEE规范802.3af能够管理多达8个端口,可实现端口控制和数据采集,并能通过标准的I2C串行接口总线与主机控制器进行通信.TPS2383A是TI PSEPM系列器件中推出的第二款产品,在内核或原TPS2383器件上提供了各种改进,实现了更高的灵活性及易用性.本文将讨论具体的修改方法,并介绍这些修改对完整的、符合规范的PsE或中型系统(mid-span system)实施的影响.