Photoconductive Terahertz antenna with radial symmetry

It has been demonstrated recently that it is possible to guide broadband Terahertz pulses utilising a novel coaxial waveguide. This technique is hindered by the difficulty in exciting the radially polarised fundamental mode of the waveguide. To optimise mode matching, a novel radially symmetric photoconductive Terahertz antenna is proposed. Using finite element method simulations and analytical calculations, it is shown that this antenna can generate the desired radial polarisation.     

Terahertz characterisation of building materials

To obtain realistic models for propagation channels in future pico-cellular indoor terahertz communication systems it is necessary to know the reflective properties of building materials found in a typical office environment. The angular dependent reflection coefficients of different building materials were determined using terahertz time-domain spectroscopy in transmission geometry and Fresnel's equations. This approach is more efficient than a set of measurements in reflection geometry for different angles. Verification of the method with a set of such reflection measurements shows an excellent agreement.     

The effects of limbic lesions on locomotion and stereotypy elicited by dopamine agonists in the rat

The purpose of this experiment was to investigate the functional contributions of various limbic structures to locomotion and stereotypy induced by dopaminergic drugs. Female rats were randomly assigned to one of 5 groups (n = 10-14 rats/group) that received either a lesion of the hippocampus (colchicine + kainic acid), basolateral amygdala (quinolinic acid), frontal cortex (aspiration), nucleus accumbens (ibotenic acid), or served as unoperated controls. Beginning at least 2 weeks following surgery locomotion (measured as photocell beam breaks) elicited by D-amphetamine (0.0, 0.32, 1.0 and 3.2 mg/kg), SKF 82958 (0.0, 0.04, 0.08 and 0.16 mg/kg) or quinpirole (0.0, 0.25, 0.1 and 0.5 mg/kg) was determined. In agreement with previous results rats with hippocampal lesions were hyperactive in response to amphetamine. In comparison to these changes in drug-induced locomotion, lesions of the basolateral amygdala, and frontal cortex had only minor effects on drug-induced locomotion. Lesions of the nucleus accumbens produced consistent hyperactivity that was suppressed by doses of amphetamine or quinpirole that elicited behavioral stereotypy. These results provide evidence suggesting that, in comparison to other limbic structures that have substantial inputs to the nucleus accumbens, the hippocampus play a relatively prominent role in the modulation of drug-induced locomotion.     

Migration and right atrial perforation of an Accufix atrial lead retention wire following partial lead removal during myomectomy

A 36-year-old man with a history of hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy presented to the emergency room with "stabbing" chest pain. He had undergone dual-chamber pacemaker implantation in 1993 using an atrial lead (Accufix; Telectronics; Englewood, Colo) and a myomectomy in 1996 during which the distal portion of the atrial lead was removed. Digital fluoroscopy revealed that the retention wire had migrated out of the remaining atrial lead and perforated the right atrium. The retention wire was successfully removed percutaneously. The need for complete removal of the retention wire in the Accufix lead at the time of open-heart surgery is emphasized.     

Propagation of terahertz pulses in random media

We describe measurements of single-cycle terahertz pulse propagation in a random medium. The unique capabilities of terahertz time-domain spectroscopy permit the characterization of a multiply scattered field with unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution. With these results, we can develop a framework for understanding the statistics of broadband laser speckle. Also, the ability to extract information on the phase of the field opens up new possibilities for characterizing multiply scattered waves. We illustrate this with a simple example, which involves computing a time-windowed temporal correlation between fields measured at different spatial locations. This enables the identification of individual scattering events, and could lead to a new method for imaging in random media.     

Terahertz Conductivity and Hindered Molecular Reorientation of Lithium Salt Doped Succinonitrile in its Plastic Crystal Phase

The terahertz complex permittivity of the molecular plastic crystal succinonitrile (SN) or 1,2 dicyanoethane (N≡C?CH₂?CH₂?C≡N), doped with the lithium salts LiBF₄, LiPF₆, LiTFSI, and LiClO₄ to form solid-state plastic crystal electrolytes, is measured and compared using temperature-dependent terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS). In contrast to the trends at low frequency, SN’s terahertz conductivity decreases slightly when doped with Li-salts. This indicates that at high frequencies the dielectric response is not dominated by ionic charge transport, but instead by relaxational processes which are hindered by the presence of the ionic dopants. Assuming a single Cole-Cole distribution of Debye-like processes dominates the measured spectra, the average relaxation times τ and Arrhenius activation energies E _a are extracted for each electrolyte and are shown to increase significantly relative to undoped SN’s τ and E _a, indicating the relaxational processes are hindered by the presence of the ionic dopants.     

Nanostructured virus crystals for X-ray optics

Certain virus structures can be assembled in the form of a periodic lattice with nanometer-range ordering. Cowpea mosaic virus is crystallized in body-centered-cubic geometry and used as a template for fabrication of metallized thin films with three-dimensional morphology. Calculations predict that these crystals exhibit a normal-incidence reflectivity of 7% for wavelengths around 35 nm, which can be utilized for soft X-ray optical systems.     

Physical activity and the triggering of myocardial infarction: the case for regular exercise

The authors present signs and symptoms in Gr?nblad-Strandberg syndrome and current opinions on therapeutic procedures in choroidal neovascularization where central vision is threatened. The publication includes a case report.     

Sustained attention in the mouse: A study of the relationship with the cerebellum.

To explore the role of the cerebellum in sustained attention, the authors tested lurcher, wildtype, and lurcher chimeric mice with zero, normal, and variable numbers of Purkinje cells, respectively, in a previously validated task of sustained attention. Results indicate that lurcher mice had a deficit in performance likely related to their motor disability, whereas lurcher chimeras performed similarly to wildtype controls. Presentation of auditory or visual distracters caused deficits in the performance of all mice that were specific to either signal (auditory) or nonsignal (visual) events. The authors' results do not support a role of the cerebellum in sustained attention, instead indicating that behavioral changes are an indirect result of motor deficits. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interaction of poly(methyl methacrylate) and nafions

The thermal degradation of Nafion–H, Nafion–K, and the mixture of each of these with poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) has been studied. A mechanism is proposed for the thermal degradation of Nafion–H that involves an initial cleavage of the carbon–sulfur bond leading to SO₂ and OH radical and a carbon-based radical. This carbon-based radical then undergoes further degradation. The addition of PMMA to Nafion–H inhibits further degradation of the Nafion carbon-based radical and instead radical recombination reactions between PMMA fragments and this Nafion radical dominate the reaction scheme. The replacement of the hydrogen in Nafion–H with a potassium (i.e., Nafion–K) produces a much more robust material that does not degrade under conditions similar to those used for Nafion–H. Nafion–K has little effect on the degradation of PMMA.