"SAMs meet MEMS": surface modification with self-assembled monolayers for the dry-demolding of photoplastic MEMS/NEMS

In this contribution we demonstrate the use of self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) as anti-adhesion coating to assist the removal of photoplastic MEMS/NEMS with a patterned metal layer from the surface without wet chemical sacrificial layer etching, so-called 'dry-demolding'. The SAMs functionality here is to reduce the stiction between the surface and a thin evaporated metal film. The double-layer SAM/metal provides enough stability to support subsequent micromachining step

Retention of mouth-to-mouth, mouth-to-mask and mouth-to-face shield ventilation

Background: Retention of mouth-to-mouth, mouth-to-mask and mouth-to-face shield ventilation techniques is poorly understood.Methods: A prospective randomised clinical trial was undertaken in January 2004 in 70 candidates randomly assigned to training in mouth-to-mouth, mouth-to-mask or mouth-to-face shield ventilation. Each candidate was trained for 10 min, after which tidal volume, respiratory rate, minute volume, peak airway pressure and the presence or absence of stomach inflation were measured. 58 subjects were reassessed 1 year later and study parameters were recorded again. Data were analysed with ANOVA, \textgreekq2 and McNemar tests.Results: Tidal volume, minute volume, peak airway pressure, ventilation rate and stomach inflation rate increased significantly at reassessment with all ventilation techniques compared with the initial assessment. However, at reassessment, mean (SD) tidal volume (960 (446) vs 1008 (366) vs 1402 (302) ml; p<0.05), minute volume (12 (5) vs 13 (7) vs 18 (3) l/min; p<0.05), peak airway pressure (14 (8) vs 17 (13) vs 25 (8) cm H2O; p<0.05) and stomach inflation rate (63% vs 58% vs 100%; p<0.05) were significantly lower with mouth-to-mask and mouth-to-face shield ventilation than with mouth-to-mouth ventilation. The ventilation rate at reassessment did not differ significantly between the ventilation techniques.Conclusions: One year after a single episode of ventilation training, lay persons tended to hyperventilate; however, the degree of hyperventilation and resulting stomach inflation were lower when a mouth-to-mask or a face shield device was employed. Regular training is therefore required to retain ventilation skills; retention of skills may be better with ventilation devices

Fluka Estimations concerning Obstacles in the LHC Magnets.

The effect of the impact of the full energy LHC proton beam with an object left in the beam pipe is investigated in order to assess the conditions for a superconducting magnet's quench. FLUKA simulations indicate that a quench would happen about 20 m downstream from the impact for a current through the object being several orders of magnitude lower than the nominal beam current. If such a strict current limit (decreasing with increasing obstacle's thickness) is not exceeded in operational conditions, the obstacle might be destroyed without causing any quench, being the vaporization time dependent on its shape and movement. However, any rise of the traversing current above the mentioned limit would result in a beam dump and the obstacle remaining in the machine

Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy and Illness Stage in Schizophrenia-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background It is not known whether regional brain N-acetyl aspartate (NAA) changes in the progression from prodrome to chronic schizophrenia. We used effect size meta-analysis to determine which brain regions show the most robust reductions in NAA first episode and chronic schizophrenia as measured by proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy and to determine whether these changes are present in individuals at high risk of developing schizophrenia. Methods We identified 131 articles, of which 97 met inclusion criteria. Data were separated by stage of illness (at risk, first episode schizophrenia, chronic schizophrenia) and by brain region. For each region, mean and SD of the NAA measure was extracted. Results Significant reductions in NAA levels were found in frontal lobe, temporal lobe, and thalamus in both patient groups (effect size > .3; p < .01). In individuals at high risk of schizophrenia (of whom approximately 20% would be expected to undergo transition to psychosis), significant NAA reductions were present in thalamus (effect size = .78; p < .05), with reductions at trend level only in temporal lobe (effect size = .32; p < .1), and no reductions in frontal lobe (effect size = .05; p = .5). Conclusions These data suggest that schizophrenia is associated with loss of neuronal integrity in frontal and temporal cortices and in the thalamus and suggest that these changes in the frontal and temporal lobe might occur in the transition between the at-risk phase and the first episode

Levodopa reverses gait asymmetries related to anhedoniaand magical ideation

Animals and men turn preferentially away from the hemisphere with the more active dopamine (DA) system. Consistent with the idea of a right-hemispheric hyperdopaminergia in schizophrenia, a leftsided turning bias was described for unmedicated psychotic patients. We investigated the modulating role of DA and schizophrenia-like thought on whole-body turns in a controlled double-blind study. The number of veers to either side when walking blindfolded straight ahead (20 meter) was assessed in 40 healthy righthanded men (20 men received levodopa, the remaining participants placebo). Side preferences were analyzed in terms of individuals' positive (Magical Ideation, MI) and negative (Physical Anhedonia, PhysAn) schizotypal features. In the placebo group, increasing MI scores were related to increasing left-sided veering and increasing PhysAn scores were related to increasing right-sided veering. In the levodopa group, this relationship between preferred veering side and type of schizotypy was reversed. The finding in the placebo group suggests an association between MI and a relative right-hemispheric hyperdopaminergia. Unexpectedly, levodopa did not enhance this veering bias, but reversed it, suggesting that psychosis-protective mechanisms exist in the healthy positive "schizotypic” brain. Also unexpectedly, levodopa made "anhedonics” veer like "magics” after placebo, suggesting that DA agonists suppress negative schizotypal symptom

FLUKA simulations for the optimization of the Beam Loss Monitors

The collimation system in the beam cleaning insertion IR7 of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is expected to clean the primary halo and the secondary radiation of a beam with unprecedented energy and intensity. Accidental beam losses can therefore entail severe consequences to the hardware of the machine. Thus, protection mechanisms, e.g. beam abort, must be instantaneously triggered by a set of Beam Loss Monitors (BLM's). The readings in the BLM's couple the losses from various collimators, thus rendering the identification of any faulty unit rather complex. In the present study the detailed geometry of IR7 is upgraded with the insertion of the BLM's, and the Monte Carlo FLUKA transport code is used to estimate the individual contribution of every collimator to the showers detected in each BLM

An atom fiber for guiding cold neutral atoms

We present an omnidirectional matter wave guide on an atom chip. The rotational symmetry of the guide is maintained by a combination of two current carrying wires and a bias field pointing perpendicular to the chip surface. We demonstrate guiding of thermal atoms around more than two complete turns along a spiral shaped 25mm long curved path (curve radii down to 200$\mu$m) at various atom--surface distances (35-450$\mu$m). An extension of the scheme for the guiding of Bose-Einstein condensates is outlined

The Impact of Vacuum Gate Valves on the LHC Beam

The LHC vacuum sector valves are located in the straight sections of the LHC ring, and designed to sectorize the LHC vacuum. The valves are interlocked and should trigger a beam dump request if they close on a circulating beam. This report studies the impact on the machine if this request is not made and the valve scrapes the LHC beam halo. Cascade calculations are made using a model of IR7, with several different valve locations, to calculate the downstream energy deposition in superconducting magnet coils and the corresponding signal in beam loss monitors at the quench level. The calculations are done at 7, 5, and 3.5 TeV. It is found that when a downstream magnet reaches the quench level, the neighbouring BLMs see a signal well above the detection threshold. Furthermore, the BLM signal is consistent with the BLM applied threshold settings and a signal is seen in the time domain before the quench level is reached. Therefore the report concludes that the BLMs can see the closing valve and trigger a beam dump before the quench (or damage) level is reached

Unit cell of graphene on Ru(0001): a 25 x 25 supercell with 1250 carbon atoms

The structure of a single layer of graphene on Ru(0001) has been studied using surface x-ray diffraction. A surprising superstructure has been determined, whereby 25 x 25 graphene unit cells lie on 23 x 23 unit cells of Ru. Each supercell contains 2 x 2 crystallographically inequivalent subcells caused by corrugation. Strong intensity oscillations in the superstructure rods demonstrate that the Ru substrate is also significantly corrugated down to several monolayers, and that the bonding between graphene and Ru is strong and cannot be caused by van der Waals bonds. Charge transfer from the Ru substrate to the graphene expands and weakens the C-C bonds, which helps accommodate the in-plane tensile stress. The elucidation of this superstructure provides important information in the potential application of graphene as a template for nanocluster arrays.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures, paper submitted to peer reviewed journa