Scaling planar silicon devices

The generation-over-generation scaling of critical CMOS technology parameters is ultimately bound by nonscalable limitations, such as the thermal voltage and the elementary electronic charge. Sustained improvement in performance and density has required the introduction of new device structures and materials. Partially depleted SOI, a most recent MOSFET innovation, has extended VLSI performance while introducing unique idiosyncrasies. Fully depleted SOI is one logical extension of this device design direction. Gate dielectric tunneling, device self-heating, and single-event upsets present developers of these next-generation devices with new challenges. Strained silicon and high-permittivity gate dielectric are examples of new materials that will enable CMOS developers to continue to deliver device performance enhancements in the sub-100 nm regime.     

Power system analysis using space-vector transformation

In this paper, the space-vector transformation used in machine vector control is applied to power system analysis. The proposed method is used to model electric machines, power electronic converters, transformers, and transmission lines and to analyze power sources and loads with different connections (delta and wye). This method can also be applied to analyze steady-state (or transient phenomena) and unbalanced sources, including harmonics. Models obtained with this method are as simple as those of the per-phase approach. With the space-vector transformation, instantaneous active and reactive power concepts can be generalized, and new power system control strategies can be developed when power electronic converters are used. Steady-state, transient behavior, and harmonic analyses examples and applications are presented to illustrate the performance and advantages of the proposed method. This method can be extended to unbalanced systems (e.g., unsymmetric faults) using instantaneous symmetrical components in polyphase balanced circuits.     

PGRP-LB: An Inside View into the Mechanism of the Amidase Reaction

Peptidoglycan recognition proteins (PGRPs) are ubiquitous among animals and play pivotal functions in insect immunity. Non-catalytic PGRPs are involved in the activation of immune pathways by binding to the peptidoglycan (PGN), whereas amidase PGRPs are capable of cleaving the PGN into non-immunogenic compounds. Drosophila PGRP-LB belongs to the amidase PGRPs and downregulates the immune deficiency (IMD) pathway by cleaving meso-2,6-diaminopimelic (meso-DAP or DAP)-type PGN. While the recognition process is well analyzed for the non-catalytic PGRPs, little is known about the enzymatic mechanism for the amidase PGRPs, despite their essential function in immune homeostasis. Here, we analyzed the specific activity of different isoforms of Drosophila PGRP-LB towards various PGN substrates to understand their specificity and role in Drosophila immunity. We show that these isoforms have similar activity towards the different compounds. To analyze the mechanism of the amidase activity, we performed site directed mutagenesis and solved the X-ray structures of wild-type Drosophila PGRP-LB and its mutants, with one of these structures presenting a protein complexed with the tracheal cytotoxin (TCT), a muropeptide derived from the PGN. Only the Y78F mutation abolished the PGN cleavage while other mutations reduced the activity solely. Together, our findings suggest the dynamic role of the residue Y78 in the amidase mechanism by nucleophilic attack through a water molecule to the carbonyl group of the amide function destabilized by Zn²⁺.     

Insect sex pheromones

The half-lives (t _1/2) for evaporative loss ofn-alkyl andn-alkenyl acetates from rubber septa were determined at temperatures varying from 15 to 35 °C. The changes int _1/2 with temperature gave high correlations with the equation, Int _1/2 = H/RT+y _o where H is the heat of vaporization,R is the gas constant,T is the absolute temperature, andy _o is a constant. Half-lives changed dramatically with temperature and the degree of change with temperature increased with increasing molecular weight. For mixtures, component ratios changed with temperature, but the degree was modest. At 20 °C there was a 7.5-fold ratio oft _1/2 between members of the homologousn-alkyl orn-alkenyl acetates differing by two carbon atoms. The large change int _1/2 with temperature and with number of carbon atoms is a consequence of the thermodynamic relationships and the temperature range of pheromone usage. Therefore, a similar degree of change inf _1/2 with temperature and number of carbon atoms will apply to other formulations of the same type (those in which the rate of evaporation is first order). The values oft _1/2 at 20 °C mainly agreed very well with those reported previously at room temperature. However, our previously reported values for pentadecyl and hexadecyl acetate were revised. Half-lives were shown to depend on the vapor pressure of a compound in the formulation substrate, but not on the vapor pressure of the pure compound.Mention of a commercial or proprietary product does not constitute an endorsement by the USDA.     

Structural Consequences of the 1,2,3-Triazole as an Amide Bioisostere in Analogues of the Cystic Fibrosis Drugs VX-809 and VX-770

Although the 1,2,3-triazole is a commonly used amide bioisostere in medicinal chemistry, the structural implications of this replacement have not been fully studied. Employing X-ray crystallography and computational studies, we report the spatial and electronic consequences of replacing an amide with the triazole in analogues of cystic fibrosis drugs in the VX-770 and VX-809 series. Crystallographic analyses quantify subtle differences in the relative positions and conformational preferences of the R¹ and R² substituents attached to the amide and triazole bioisosteres. Computational studies derived from the X-ray data highlight the improved hydrogen bonding donor and acceptor capabilities of the amide in comparison to the triazole. This analysis of the spatial and electronic differences between the amide and 1,2,3-triazole will inform medicinal chemists as they consider using the triazole as an amide bioisostere.     

Retention of inorganic arsenic by coryneform mutant strains

The natural resistance mechanisms of corynebacteria to respond to the environments containing high levels of arsenic were successfully adopted to develop inexpensive and selective extractants for submicrogram amounts of arsenic. Kinetic and equilibrium characteristics were evaluated, and a preliminary exploration of the capability of these strains to be used for arsenic speciation was also made in this work. Three kinetics models were used to fit the experimental data. It was found that the pseudo-first-order kinetics model was not quite adequate to describe the retention process, while the intraparticle diffusion and the pseudo-second-order kinetics models provide the best fits. The equilibrium isotherm showed that the retention of arsenic was consistent with the Langmuir equation and that the Freundlich and Dubinin-Radushkevich models provided poorer fits to the experimental data. The maximum effective retention capacity for arsenic was about 15.4 ng As/mg biomass. The amount of arsenic retained was directly measured in the biomass by forward planning a slurry electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometric procedure.     

Performance characteristics of a commercial controlled-release dispenser of sex pheromone for control of codling moth (Cydia pomonella) by mating disruption

Performance characteristics of polyethylene tube dispensers containing a mixture of (E,E)-8,10-dodecadien-1-ol (1), dodecan-1-ol (2), and tetradecan-1-ol (3) were evaluated for suitability as a mating disruptant for codling moth control. The rate of loss of pheromone component from a dispenser at any time was found to be described by the equation: –dP/dt=(k ₁ k ₂ +k _d)P whereP is the amount of pheromone component in the dispenser well;t is time;k ₁ is the ratio of the amount dissolved in the dispenser wall to the amount in the dispenser well;k ₁ is the ratio of the evaporation rate to the amount dissolved in the dispenser wall;k _d is the rate constant for chemical decomposition. The evaporation rate,E, of a pheromone component at any time was given by:E=k ₁ k ₂ P For all three components during the first three weeks,k ₁ decreased from ca. 0.25 to ca. 0.10 and was approximately constant thereafter. The decrease ofk ₁ with time may have been caused by weather-induced cross-linking of the polyethylene. Over timek ₂ was constant and was 1.27 ± 0.26 × 10^–3/hr for1, 1.96 ± 0.33 × 10su–3/hr for 2, and 0.31± 0.05 × 10^–3/hr for 3. Thek ₂ was zero for2 and3 and 6.96 × 10^–4 for1. After 150 days in an orchard in 1991, 95% of1 was lost from the dispensers (61% of the loss was by chemical decomposition and 39% by evaporation). The heat summation units in a Yakima valley orchard during 1991 were 4.7% above the average for the 1980–1991 period, while during 1990 they were the highest for this period (26% above average). After the first three weeks of dispenser aging, the regression line half-lives for1 for 1990 and 1991 were 31.0 and 35.1 days, respectively. The difference in temperature between 1990 and 1991 did not affect the half-life of1 very much because so much of the loss was from photochemically induced decomposition. Based on an estimate of the required minimum evaporation rate for mating disruption of 2 mg/ha-hr and a half-life of 35 days for1, 2345 dispensers/ha would be required for one application per season; 944 dispensers/ha for two applications per season; and 734 dispensers/ha for three applications per season. If a different emission rate of1 is required for reliable mating disruption, then the number of dispensers required would be changed proportionately.     

The bonding of heavy metals on nitric acid-etched coal fly ashes functionalized with 2-mercaptoethanol or thioglycolic acid

Coal fly ash is a waste by-product of the coal fire industry, which generates many environmental problems. Alternative uses of this material would provide efficient solutions for this by-product. In this work, nitric acid-etched coal fly ash labelled with 2-mercaptoethanol or thioglycolic acid was assessed for retention of Al(III), As(III), Cu(II), Cd(II), Fe(III), Mn(II), Hg(II), Ni(II), Pb(II) and Zn(II) ions. The bonding characteristics between the organic compounds with the solid support, as well as with the metal ions, were evaluated using various surface analytical techniques. Visualization of the organically-functionalized coal fly ash particle was possible using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), while the elemental composition of the functionalized material, before and after retention of the metal ions, was obtained by energy dispersive (ED)-X ray spectrometry (XRS) and electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (ETAAS). Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrometry and Raman spectrometry were used to obtain information about the functional groups. It was found that some metal(oid) ions (As, Ni, Pb, Zn) were coordinated through the mercaptan group, while other metal(oid)s (Al, Cd, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn) were apparently bonded to oxygen atoms. A low-cost and effective solid phase retention system for extraction of heavy metals from aqueous solutions was thus developed.     

Detection of Rotor Faults in Brushless DC Motors Operating Under Nonstationary Conditions

There are several applications where the motor is operating in continuous nonstationary operating conditions. Actuators and servo motors in the aerospace and transportation industries are examples of this kind of operation. Detection of faults in such applications is, however, challenging because of the need for complex signal processing techniques. Two novel methods using windowed Fourier ridges and Wigner-Ville-based distributions are proposed for the detection of rotor faults in brushless dc motors operating under continuous nonstationarity. Experimental results are presented to validate the concepts and illustrate the ability of the proposed algorithms to track and identify rotor faults. The proposed algorithms are also implemented on a digital signal processor to study their usefulness for commercial implementation     

A rapid procedure for screening and isolating oxygenated free fatty acid metabolites from plants and natural waters

A rapid method of isolating a relatively pure fraction of oxygenated fatty acids from plants and natural waters is described. These metabolites were isolated from aqueous extracts using octadecylsilyl silica in a reverse-phase batch extraction method. The extraction method, together with reverse-phase analytical high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC), was used to establish a routine screening method for the presence of these compounds in a variety of natural sources. A reverse-phase preparative HPLC purification method is also described.