Filtenna Integration Achieving Ideal Chebyshev Return Losses

This paper demonstrates that it is possible to find an ideal filter response (Chebyshew, Butterworth,..) considering the antenna as the last resonator of a filter under certain circumstances related with the antenna performance and the bandwidth of the filtenna device. If these circumstances are not accomplished, we can achieve excellent performance as well, by means of an iterative process the goal of which is defined by either a filter mask or a classical filter function itself. The methodology is based on the conventional coupling matrix technique for filter design and has been validated by fabricating a microstrip prototype using hairpin resonators and a rectangular patch antenna

Nonlinear Performance of BAW Filters Including BST Capacitors

This paper evaluates the nonlinear effects occurring in a bulk acoustic wave (BAW) filter which includes barium strontium titanate (BST) capacitors to cancel the electrostatic capacitance of the BAW resonators. To do that we consider the nonlinear effects on the BAW resonators by use of a nonlinear Mason model. This model accounts for the distributed nonlinearities inherent in the materials forming the resonator. The whole filter is then implemented by properly connecting the resonators in a balanced configuration. Additional BST capacitors are included in the filter topology. The nonlinear behavior of the BST capacitors is also accounted in the overall nonlinear assessment. The whole circuit is then used to evaluate its nonlinear behavior. It is found that the nonlinear contribution arising from the ferroelectric nature of the BST capacitors makes it impractical to fulfill the linearity requirements of commercial filters

Electron beam driven alkali metal atom source for loading a magneto-optical trap in a cryogenic environment

We present a versatile and compact electron beam driven source for alkali metal atoms, which can be implemented in cryostats. With a heat load of less than 10mW, the heat dissipation normalized to the atoms loaded into the magneto-optical Trap (MOT), is about a factor 1000 smaller than for a typical alkali metal dispenser. The measured linear scaling of the MOT loading rate with electron current observed in the experiments, indicates that electron stimulated desorption is the corresponding mechanism to release the atoms.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure

Dynamical replica theoretic analysis of CDMA detection dynamics

We investigate the detection dynamics of the Gibbs sampler for code-division multiple access (CDMA) multiuser detection. Our approach is based upon dynamical replica theory which allows an analytic approximation to the dynamics. We use this tool to investigate the basins of attraction when phase coexistence occurs and examine its efficacy via comparison with Monte Carlo simulations.Comment: 18 pages, 2 figure

Second-generation antihistamines: a study of poisoning in children

The toxicity of second-generation antihistamines after an overdose by a child is still unknown. The objective of this study is to use data from Poisons Centres in France to describe the toxicity profile of second-generation antihistamines for children and to compare the severity of poisoning observed from these with a first-generation antihistamine. This was a retrospective, multi-centre and observational study focusing on human cases of single-substance exposure to a second-generation antihistamine and to mequitazine, reported between 1 January 2001 and 31 December 2016 in Poisons Centres in France. From a total of 9403 children included, 5980 were exposed to a second-generation antihistamine and 3423 were exposed to mequitazine. The severity of exposure to second-generation antihistamines in children is low: among the children followed until a known outcome, 9% of children were symptomatic and in 97% of cases, the symptoms shown were of a minor-level severity (primarily drowsiness or restlessness). Depending on the substance, children who ingested doses 16 to 69 times the maximum recommended therapeutic dose remained asymptomatic. No deaths or severe symptoms were observed. No cases of lengthening of the QT interval or arrhythmias were identified. Mequitazine led to more symptoms than other substances (14.8% symptomatic children vs. 7.5%, Odd ratio (OR): 2.3 (2.0-2.6), p < 0.0001), more symptoms of moderate intensity (1.4 vs. 0.2%, OR: 8.3 (4.1-18.5), p < 0.0001) and more hospitalisation (19.1 vs. 8.7%, OR: 2.5, 95% CI: (2.2-2.8), p < 0.0001). The severity of poisoning from second-generation antihistamines appears to be low among children and considerably lower than poisoning caused by mequitazine

Overexpression of a Medicago truncatula stress-associated protein gene (MtSAP1) leads to nitric oxide accumulation and confers osmotic and salt stress tolerance in transgenic tobacco

The impact of Medicago truncatula stress-associated protein gene (MtSAP1) overexpression has been investigated in Nicotiana tabacum transgenic seedlings. Under optimal conditions, transgenic lines overexpressing MtSAP1 revealed better plant development and higher chlorophyll content as compared to wild type seedlings. Interestingly, transgenic lines showed a stronger accumulation of nitric oxide (NO), a signaling molecule involved in growth and development processes. This NO production seemed to be partially nitrate reductase dependent. Due to the fact that NO has been also reported to play a role in tolerance acquisition of plants to abiotic stresses, the responses of MtSAP1 overexpressors to osmotic and salt stress have been studied. Compared to the wild type, transgenic lines were less affected in their growth and development. Moreover, NO content in MtSAP1 overexpressors was always higher than that detected in wild seedlings under stress conditions. It seems that this better tolerance induced by MtSAP1 overexpression could be associated with this higher NO production that would enable seedlings to reach a high protection level to prepare them to cope with abiotic stresses

Thermal and radio-oxidation of epoxy coatings

Degradation induced by thermal (50-110 °C) and radio-oxidation of low T g epoxy-amine networks has been studied. It has been found that oxidation leads mainly to amide groups formation at the vicinity of tertiary amines whatever ageing conditions (thermal or radio-oxidation at 200 Gy h -1 ). In addition, some species as acids, peracids or formates have been revealed indicating a chain scission process. Physical modifications as T g decrease and soluble fraction increase due to chain scission process, have been correlated with chemical modifications

Divergent selection in a Mediterranean pine on local spatial scales

1. The effects of selection on an organism's genome are hard to detect on small spatial scales, as gene flow can swamp signatures of local adaptation. Therefore, most genome scans to detect signatures of environmental selection are performed on large spatial scales; however, divergent selection on the local scale (e.g. between contrasting soil conditions) has also been demonstrated, in particular for herbaceous plants. 2. Here, we hypothesised that in topographically complex landscapes, microenvironment variability is strong enough to leave a selective footprint in the genomes of long-lived organisms. To test this, we investigated paired south- versus north-facing Pinus pinaster stands on the local scale, with trees growing in close vicinity (≤820 m distance between paired south- and north-facing stands), in a Mediterranean mountain area. While trees on north-facing slopes experience less radiation, trees on south-facing slopes suffer from especially harsh conditions, particularly during the dry summer season. 3. Two outlier analyses consistently revealed five putatively adaptive loci (out of 4034), in candidate genes two of which encoded non-synonymous substitutions. Additionally, one locus showed consistent allele frequency differences in all three stand pairs indicating divergent selection despite high gene flow on the local scale. Permutation tests demonstrated that our findings were robust. 4. Functional annotation of these candidate genes revealed biological functions related to abiotic stress response, such as water availability, in other plant species. 5. Synthesis. Our study highlights how divergent selection in heterogeneous microenvironments shapes and maintains the functional genetic variation within populations of long-lived forest tree species, being the first to focus on adaptive genetic divergence between south- and north-facing slopes within continuous forest stands. This is especially relevant in the current context of climate change, as this variation is at the base of plant population responses to future climate.European Commission http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000780European Science Foundation http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000782Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100004837University of BrodeauxPeer Reviewe