Some properties of inn films prepared by reactive evaporation

Some optical and electrical properties of degenerate InN films prepared by a reactive evaporation technique are presented. Thermal stability of these easily dissociated samples is discussed and evidence is presented indicating that the partial pressure of atomic nitrogen rather than diatomic nitrogen is a more fundamental parameter for describing thermal equilibrium. This has important implications for the growth of all group III-nitrides.     

New applications for LTPS array technology including lab‐on‐chip and MEMS actuators

Abstract— The use of low‐temperature poly‐Si technology for new applications beyond displays is presented. These applications include lab‐on‐chip, MEMS actuators, and sensors. As a key example, the use of high‐voltage poly‐Si TFTs for rapid heating and temperature control, as is required for DNA amplification within lab‐on‐chip, is described in detail. Other examples given include MEMS ink‐jet printer heads and the formation of photosensors and impedance sensors for optical and electronic input, which can be used not only in displays and lab‐on‐chip, but also for new applications such as fingerprint sensing and particle counting.     

A comparison of infants' and adults' sensitivity to Western musical structure.

28 adults and 48 8-mo-old infants listened to repeated transpositions of a 10-note melody exemplifying the rules of Western tonal music. They were tested for their detection of 2 types of changes to that melody: (1) a 4-semitone change in 1 note that remained within the key and implied dominant harmony (diatonic change) or (2) a 1-semitone change in the same note that went outside the key (nondiatonic change). Adults easily detected the nondiatonic change but had difficulty with the diatonic change. Infants detected both changes equally well, performing better than adults in some circumstances. These findings imply that there are qualitative differences in infants' and adults' processing of musical information. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Shallow angle beam combining using a broad-band XeF laser

Experiments in which two xenon fluoride laser pump beams (353 nm) were crossed at an angle of 2.5 mrad in a 565-cm-long Raman amplifier containing high-pressure (10-atm) hydrogen are described. Bisecting the angle made by these two pump beams was a seed beam at the vibrational Stokes shifted wavelength of 414 nm. This seed beam was generated from a portion of the pump beam that was split off and brought to focus in a separate Raman seed generator. All three beam paths were adjusted so they arrived in the main Raman amplifier at the same time. For the 1.4-Å (FWHM) xenon fluoride pump radiation this required path offset precision to within 0.2 mm over many meters of optical path. The beam quality of the resulting amplified Stokes beam was determined through shearing interferometry techniques to be near the diffraction limit, whereas the pump beams had significant optical distortion     

DNA sequencing, automation, and the human genome

DNA sequencing is one of the key analytical operations of modern molecular biology and a crucial element of biotechnology. The principles of DNA sequencing and details of the technologies of both manual, radioisotope-based and automated, fluorescence-based approaches are described. The goals and rationale of the Human Genome Initiative are discussed along with implications for future sequencing technologies. Finally, a glimpse of emerging DNA sequencing technologies is offered.     

Kinetic issues for short-pulse KrF laser operation

Various kinetic issues that are important for modeling the performance of large-scale-size krypton fluoride lasers have been investigated. These kinetic issues include: electron quenching, photoionization from excited rare gas atoms, fuel burn-up, and the accessibility of higher lying levels of KrF* to be effectively stimulated by the laser cavity flux. The results of these studies have been incorporated into a laser kinetics code. Absorption and gain measurements have been carried out over a broad range of conditions to provide a data base to test the code's accuracy and to make subsequent refinements. The code projections for short-pulse operating conditions important for laser-fusion applications are presented.     

Substance use and AIDS: A reply to Fisher (1993).

Replies to the comment by D. G. Fisher (see record 1993-39094-001) on the authors' original article (see record 1992-36889-001) concerning the neglect of the substance abuse field by health care practitioners. H. J. Shaffer et al point out that nothing in their original article should be misconstrued as condoning or encouraging the use of psychoactive drugs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Detailed optical characterization of a near diffraction limitedxenon fluoride laser

A 1 m gain length, electron-beam-pumped xenon fluoride laser (λ=353, 351 nm) utilizing two laser mixtures of lean and rich NF ₃, with Xe and balance Ne, which was operated with a confocal unstable resonator with magnification of 2.24, is discussed. The resultant beam quality was diagnosed with both shearing interferometry to measure near-field phase, and far-field focal-spot evaluation techniques. These measurements resulted in a beam quality of <1.15 times the diffraction limit with no evidence of the wide angle energy loss. The laser was fully characterized with regard to electron-beam deposition uniformity, transient refractive index effects, and optical quality of the resonator and diagnostic components