376 research outputs found
Development of the ALMA-North America Sideband-Separating SIS Mixers
As the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) nears completion,
73 dual-polarization receivers have been delivered for each of Bands 3 (84-116
GHz) and 6 (211-275 GHz). The receivers use sideband-separating superconducting
Nb/Al-AlOx/Nb tunnel-junction (SIS) mixers, developed for ALMA to suppress
atmospheric noise in the image band. The mixers were designed taking into
account dynamic range, input return loss, and signal-to-image conversion (which
can be significant in SIS mixers). Typical SSB receiver noise temperatures in
Bands 3 and 6 are 30 K and 60 K, resp., and the image rejection is typically 15
dB.Comment: Submitted to IEEE Trans. Microwave Theory Tech., June 2013. 10 pages,
21 figure
The Palaeoproterozoic global carbon cycle : insights from the Loch Maree Group, NW Scotland
Fieldwork was supported by the Edinburgh Geological Society Clough & Mykura Fund, the Carnegie Undergraduate Scholarship and a stipend provided by the Irvine Bequest through the University of St Andrews to G.B.K. Laboratory work, and isotope and geochronology analyses were financed by NERC grant NE/G00398X/1 to A.R.P., A.E.F., D.J.Condon and A.P.M. Thanks go to T. Donnelly, J. Dougans, A. Calder, D. Herd, B. Pooley and A. Mackie for laboratory assistance.Peer reviewedPostprin
The impact of PARPs and ADP-ribosylation on inflammation and host–pathogen interactions
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.Poly-adenosine diphosphate-ribose polymerases (PARPs) promote ADP-ribosylation, a highly conserved, fundamental posttranslational modification (PTM). PARP catalytic domains transfer the ADP-ribose moiety from NAD+ to amino acid residues of target proteins, leading to mono- or poly-ADP-ribosylation (MARylation or PARylation). This PTM regulates various key biological and pathological processes. In this review, we focus on the roles of the PARP family members in inflammation and host–pathogen interactions. Here we give an overview the current understanding of the mechanisms by which PARPs promote or suppress proinflammatory activation of macrophages, and various roles PARPs play in virus infections. We also demonstrate how innovative technologies, such as proteomics and systems biology, help to advance this research field and describe unanswered questions
Dynamic Versus Static Oxidation of Nb/Al-AlO/Nb Trilayer
High quality Nb-based superconductor-insulator-superconductor (SIS) junctions
with Al oxide (AlO) tunnel barriers grown from Al overlayers are widely
reported in the literature. However, the thin barriers required for high
critical current density (J) junctions exhibit defects that result in
significant subgap leakage current that is detrimental for many applications.
High quality, high-J junctions can be realized with AlN barriers, but
control of J is more difficult than with AlO. It is therefore of
interest to study the growth of thin AlO barriers with the ultimate goal of
achieving high quality, high-J AlO junctions. In this work, 100\%\
O and 2\%\ O in Ar gas mixtures are used both statically and
dynamically to grow AlO tunnel barriers over a large range of oxygen
exposures. In situ ellipsometry is used for the first time to extensively
measure AlO tunnel barrier growth in real time, revealing a number of
unexpected patterns. Finally, a set of test junction wafers was fabricated that
exhibited the well-known dependence of J on oxygen exposure (E) in order to
further validate the experimental setup
Galactic interstellar 18O/17O ratios - a radial gradient?
(Abridged) Our aim is to determine 18O/17O abundance ratios across the entire
Galaxy. These provide a measure of the amount of enrichment by high-mass versus
intermediate-mass stars. Such ratios, derived from the C18O and C17O J=1-0
lines alone, may be affected by systematic errors. Therefore, the C18O and C17O
(1-0), (2-1), and (3-2), as well as the 13CO (1-0) and (2-1) lines, were
observed towards 18 prominent galactic targets (a total of 25 positions). The
combined dataset was analysed with an LVG model, accounting for optical depth
effects. The data cover galactocentric radii R between 0.1 and 16.9 kpc (solar
circle at 8.5 kpc). Near the centre of the Galaxy, 18O/17O = 2.88 +/- 0.11. For
the galactic disc out to an R of ca. 10 kpc, 18O/17O = 4.16 +/- 0.09. At ca. R
= 16.5 kpc, 18O/17O = 5.03 +/- 0.46. Assuming that 18O is synthesised
predominantly in high-mass stars (M > 8 Msun), while C17O is mainly a product
of lower-mass stars, the ratio from the inner Galaxy indicates a dominance of
CNO-hydrogen burning products that is also apparent in the C- and N-isotope
ratios. The high 18O/17O value of the solar system (5.5) relative to that of
the ambient ISM suggests contamination by nearby high-mass stars during its
formation. High values in the metal-poor environment of the outer Galaxy are
not matched by the low values observed towards the even more metal-poor LMC.
Apparently, the outer Galaxy cannot be considered as an intermediate
environment between the solar neighbourhood and the ISM of small metal-poor
galaxies. The apparent 18O/17O gradient along the galactic disc and the
discrepancy between outer disc and LMC isotope ratios may be explained by
different ages of the respective stellar populations.Comment: Accepted by Astron. & Astroph.; 10 pages + 4 pages on-line material
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Development of the ALMA Band-3 and Band-6 Sideband-Separating SIS Mixers
As the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) nears completion, 73 dual-polarization receivers have been delivered for each of Bands 3 (84-116 GHz) and 6 (211-275 GHz). The receivers use sideband-separating superconducting Nb/Al-AlOx/Nb tunnel-junction (SIS) mixers, developed for ALMA to suppress atmospheric noise in the image band. The mixers were designed taking into account dynamic range, input return loss, and signal-to-image conversion (which can be significant in SIS mixers). Typical SSB receiver noise temperatures in Bands 3 and 6 are 30 and 60 K, respectively, and the image rejection is typically 15 dB
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