Fiber-optic confocal reflectance microscope with miniature objective for in vivo imaging of human tissues

We have built a fiber-optic confocal reflectance microscope capable of imaging human tissues in near real time. Miniaturization of the objective lens and the mechanical components for positioning and axially scanning the objective enables the device to be used in inner organs of the human body. The lateral resolution is 2 micrometers and axial resolution is 10 micrometers. Confocal images of fixed tissue biopsies and the human lip in vivo have been obtained at 15 frames/s without any fluorescent stains. Both cell morphology and tissue architecture can be appreciated from images obtained with this microscope.     

IC设计复杂化加剧：先进验证方式重要性倍增

虽然目前的IC设计持续以惊人的速度复杂化,但设计者仍然希望可以通过先进的验证工作提高工作效率.所谓的先进验证工作便是将测试平台自动化(Test-Bench Automation)和正式属性检测(Formal Property Checking)两功能添加到功能验证(Functional Verification)的流程之中.本文将主要探讨其中的基本概念、价值以及使用方法,进而帮助读者了解.     

Photoswitchable Superabsorbency Based on Nanocellulose Aerogels

Chemical vapor deposition of a thin titanium dioxide (TiO₂) film on lightweight native nanocellulose aerogels offers a novel type of functional material that shows photoswitching between water‐superabsorbent and water‐repellent states. Cellulose nanofibrils (diameters in the range of 5–20 nm) with native crystalline internal structures are topical due to their attractive mechanical properties, and they have become relevant for applications due to the recent progress in the methods of their preparation. Highly porous, nanocellulose aerogels are here first formed by freeze‐drying from the corresponding aqueous gels. Well‐defined, nearly conformal TiO₂ coatings with thicknesses of about 7 nm are prepared by chemical vapor deposition on the aerogel skeleton. Weighing shows that such TiO₂‐coated aerogel specimens essentially do not absorb water upon immersion, which is also evidenced by a high contact angle for water of 140° on the surface. Upon UV illumination, they absorb water 16 times their own weight and show a vanishing contact angle on the surface, allowing them to be denoted as superabsorbents. Recovery of the original absorption and wetting properties occurs upon storage in the dark. That the cellulose nanofibrils spontaneously aggregate into porous sheets of different length scales during freeze‐drying is relevant: in the water‐repellent state they may stabilize air pockets, as evidenced by a high contact angle, in the superabsorbent state they facilitate rapid water‐spreading into the aerogel cavities by capillary effects. The TiO₂‐coated nanocellulose aerogels also show photo‐oxidative decomposition, i.e., photocatalytic activity, which, in combination with the porous structure, is interesting for applications such as water purification. It is expected that the present dynamic, externally controlled, organic/inorganic aerogels will open technically relevant approaches for various applications.     

Deposition of Carotenoids in Eggs from Hens Fed Diets Containing Saponified and Unsaponified Oleoresin Paprika

Deposition of carotenoids in saponified paprika (SP) and unsaponified oleoresin paprika (OP) in egg yolks as well as the dietary level for desired pigmentation were evaluated. Sixty-four hens on a carotenoid-depletion diet were divided into two replicated groups of each of eight dietary treatments containing from 0 to 16 mg paprika carotenoids per kg feed. Colour and the carotenoid content of egg yolk increased linearly ( P< 0·01) with the amounts of paprika carotenoids in the diets. The colours of egg yolks from hens fed similar concentra-tions of OP or SP were not significantly different ( P< 0·01). A low dose (4 mg kg⁻¹) of OP or SP provided yolk colour equivalent to the colour of eggs in supermarkets. High-performance liquid chromatographic analyses showed that carotenoids deposited in the yolk are in the free alcohol form, regardless of the form of carotenoids in the diet. Capsanthin, the predominant carotenoid in paprika, was deposited in egg yolk less efficiently than zeaxanthin and lutein.     

计算光刻驱动DFM的拥有成本

45和32nm节点的可制造性需要新的策略。计算光刻提供了为设计流程定义解决方案的方法。随着晶体管数目的增加、芯片功能和性能的日益提高,集成电路的几何尺寸变得越来越小,这需要以一种史无前例的方法来改造设计和制造流程。当关键技术、工具和接口开始出现并且展示它们的实际价值     

Self‐Assembled In‐Plane Growth of Mg2SiO4 Nanowires on Si Substrates Catalyzed by Au Nanoparticles

In‐plane growth of Mg₂SiO₄ nanowires on Si substrates is achieved by using a vapor transport method with Au nanoparticles as catalyst. The self‐assembly of the as‐grown nanowires shows dependence on the substrate orientation, i.e., they are along one, two, and three particular directions on Si (110), (100), and (111) substrates, respectively. Detailed electron microscopy studies suggest that the Si substrates participate in the formation of Mg₂SiO₄, and the epitaxial growth of the nanowires is confined along the Si <110> directions. This synthesis route is quite reliable, and the dimensions of the Mg₂SiO₄ nanowires can be well controlled by the experiment parameters. Furthermore, using these nanowires, a lithography‐free method is demonstrated to fabricate nanowalls on Si substrates by controlled chemical etching. The Au nanoparticle catalyzed in‐plane epitaxial growth of the Mg₂SiO₄ nanowires hinges on the intimate interactions between substrates, nanoparticles, and nanowires, and our study may help to advance the developments of novel nanomaterials and functional nanodevices.     

Extreme Two‐Phase Cooling from Laser‐Etched Diamond and Conformal,Template‐Fabricated Microporous Copper

This paper reports the first integration of laser‐etched polycrystalline diamond microchannels with template‐fabricated microporous copper for extreme convective boiling in a composite heat sink for power electronics and energy conversion. Diamond offers the highest thermal conductivity near room temperature, and enables aggressive heat spreading along triangular channel walls with 1:1 aspect ratio. Conformally coated porous copper with thickness 25 µm and 5 µm pore size optimizes fluid and heat transport for convective boiling within the diamond channels. Data reported here include 1280 W cm^?2 of heat removal from 0.7 cm² surface area with temperature rise beyond fluid saturation less than 21 K, corresponding to 6.3 × 10⁵ W m^?2 K^?1. This heat sink has the potential to dissipate much larger localized heat loads with small temperature nonuniformity (5 kW cm^?2 over 200 µm × 200 µm with <3 K temperature difference). A microfluidic manifold assures uniform distribution of liquid over the heat sink surface with negligible pumping power requirements (e.g., <1.4 × 10^?4 of the thermal power dissipated). This breakthrough integration of functional materials and the resulting experimental data set a very high bar for microfluidic heat removal.     

Non‐geostationary satellite orbit communications satellite constellations history

This special issue of the journal on ‘constellations’ comes at a critical time in their development as a second wave of such non‐geostationary satellite orbit (NGSO) systems is being planned and deployed. These mega‐constellations as they have become known are, with a few exceptions, very much larger than those in the first wave and are focused on broadband and 5G applications rather than speech and narrow band data as those deployed in the first wave during the 1990s. However, as we explain in this editorial, there are many similarities in the design and business plans to the first wave and, perhaps, many similar lessons to be learned.     

Tunable Injection Barrier in Organic Resistive Switches Based on Phase‐Separated Ferroelectric–Semiconductor Blends

Organic non‐volatile resistive bistable diodes based on phase‐separated blends of ferroelectric and semiconducting polymers are fabricated. The polarization field of the ferroelectric modulates the injection barrier at the semiconductor–electrode contact and, hence, the resistance of the comprising diodes. Comparison between the on‐ and off‐current of the switching diodes, with the current measured for semiconductor‐only diodes reveals that the switching occurs between bulk‐limited, i.e., space‐charge‐limited, and injection‐limited current transport. By deliberately varying the HOMO energy of the semiconductor and the work‐function of the metal electrode, it is demonstrated that injection barriers up to 1.6 eV can be surmounted by the ferroelectric polarization yielding on/off current modulations of more than five orders of magnitude. The exponential dependence of the current modulation with a slope of 0.25 eV/decade is rationalized by the magnitude of the injection barrier.     

直接调制应用中的混合分数N阶合成器

对减少元器件数量、提高性能的需求不断促使无线系统结构的革新，其中之一就是直接调制结构。直接调制适于采用调频方式的GSM、蓝牙和802.11b系统。系统发射部分的直接调制，直接将数据送入DS合成器的DS调制器部分。目前，对高速数据系统采用这项调制技术尚有困难，这是因为DS合成器环路带宽窄，不足以减少DS调制器在高频段产生的量化噪声。这种带宽较窄的锁相环滤波器一方面衰减量化噪音，另一方面，由于数据也被滤掉，会引起符号间干扰(ISI)。所以，为了在高速数据速率标准中使用直接调制结构，必须降低量化噪声。本文分析几种类型…