Novel MCM Interconnection Analysis Using Capacitive Charge Generation (CCG)

A new SEM technique, Capacitive Charge Generation (CCG), has been developed to rapidly image MCM interconnection continuity. The new technique uses low primary electron beam energies (< 2.0 keV), very high beam currents (>100 nA), and fast electron beam scan rates (>5 frames/second) to probe buried conductors in MCMS. For these conditions, new surface charging effects have been observed that enable examination of conductors under thick insulating layers. CCG has been applied to conductors covered by over 90 {mu}m of polymer dielectric. The physics of CCG signal generation and applications for MCM failure analysis are described

High-pT pi0 Production with Respect to the Reaction Plane Using the PHENIX Detector at RHIC

The origin of the azimuthal anisotropy in particle yields at high pT (pT > 5 GeV/c) in RHIC collisions remains an intriguing puzzle. Traditional flow and parton energy loss models have failed to completely explain the large v2 observed at high pT. Measurement of this parameter at high pT will help to gain an understanding of the interplay between flow, recombination and energy loss, and the role they play in the transition from soft to hard physics. Neutral mesons measured in the PHENIX experiment provide an ideal observable for such studies. We present recent measurements of \piz yields with respect to the reaction plane, and discuss the impact current models have on our understanding of these mechanisms.Comment: Contribnution to the proceedings of Hot Quarks 2006, 15-20 May 2006, Villasimius, Sardini

Backside localization of open and shorted IC interconnections

A new failure analysis technique has been developed for backside and frontside localization of open and shorted interconnections on ICs. This scanning optical microscopy technique takes advantage of the interactions between IC defects and localized heating using a focused infrared laser ({lambda} = 1,340 nm). Images are produced by monitoring the voltage changes across a constant current supply used to power the IC as the laser beam is scanned across the sample. The method utilizes the Seebeck Effect to localize open interconnections and Thermally-Induced Voltage Alteration (TIVA) to detects shorts. The interaction physics describing the signal generation process and several examples demonstrating the localization of opens and shorts are described. Operational guidelines and limitations are also discussed

Practical plant nematology: a field and laboratory guide

The damage caused by plant parasitic nematodes to crops is often attributed to other pests and diseases, especially in developing countries where resources sometimes make it difficult to identify and quantify the nematode problem. This book is an easy-to-follow practical guide on nematode assessment, with clear instructions and many illustrations

Theorising interprofessional pedagogic evaluation: framework for evaluating the impact of interprofessional CPD on practice change

This paper outlines the development of a conceptual framework to guide the evaluation of the impact of the pedagogy employed in continuing professional development for professionals in education, health and social care. The work is developed as part of the Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Interprofessional Learning across the Public Sector (CETL: IPPS) at the University of Southampton. The paper briefly outlines the field for pedagogic research and comments on the underpinning theories that have so far been used to guide research into interprofessional learning (IPL). It maps out the development of interprofessional CPD in its specific context as part of the CETL: IPPS with its links to a local authority undergoing service reorganisation and the role of the continuing professional development (CPD) in effecting change. It then brings together a theoretical framework with the potential toexplore, explain and evaluate the essential features of the model of pedagogy used in interprofessional CPD, in which professionals from education have for the first time been included alongside those from health and social care. The framework draws upon elements of situated learning theory, Activity Theory and Dreier’s work (2002, 1999) on trajectories of participation, particularly Personal Action Potency. By combining the resulting analytic framework with an adapted version of an established evaluation model, a theoretically-driven, practicable evaluation matrix is developed. The matrix has potential use in evaluating the impact of pedagogic input on practice change. The paper models a process for developing a conceptual framework to steer pedagogic evaluation. Such a process and the resulting matrix may be of use to other researchers who are similarly developing pedagogic evaluation

Randomized controlled trial of an intervention to maintain suppression of HIV viremia after prison release: The impact trial

Background: HIV-infected individuals transitioning from incarceration to the community are at risk for loss of viral suppression. We compared the effects of imPACT, a multidimensional intervention to promote care engagement after release, to standard care on sustaining viral suppression after community re-entry. Methods: This trial randomized 405 HIV-infected inmates being released from prisons in Texas and North Carolina with HIV-1 RNA levels 0.99). Conclusions: Higher rates of HIV suppression and medical care engagement than expected based on previous literature were observed among HIV-infected patients with suppressed viremia released from prison. Randomization to a comprehensive intervention to motivate and facilitate HIV care access after prison release did not prevent loss of viral suppression. A better understanding of the factors influencing prison releasees' linkage to community care, medication adherence, and maintenance of viral suppression is needed to inform policy and other strategic approaches to HIV prevention and treatment

Toward an internally consistent astronomical distance scale

Accurate astronomical distance determination is crucial for all fields in astrophysics, from Galactic to cosmological scales. Despite, or perhaps because of, significant efforts to determine accurate distances, using a wide range of methods, tracers, and techniques, an internally consistent astronomical distance framework has not yet been established. We review current efforts to homogenize the Local Group's distance framework, with particular emphasis on the potential of RR Lyrae stars as distance indicators, and attempt to extend this in an internally consistent manner to cosmological distances. Calibration based on Type Ia supernovae and distance determinations based on gravitational lensing represent particularly promising approaches. We provide a positive outlook to improvements to the status quo expected from future surveys, missions, and facilities. Astronomical distance determination has clearly reached maturity and near-consistency.Comment: Review article, 59 pages (4 figures); Space Science Reviews, in press (chapter 8 of a special collection resulting from the May 2016 ISSI-BJ workshop on Astronomical Distance Determination in the Space Age

Young and Intermediate-age Distance Indicators

Distance measurements beyond geometrical and semi-geometrical methods, rely mainly on standard candles. As the name suggests, these objects have known luminosities by virtue of their intrinsic proprieties and play a major role in our understanding of modern cosmology. The main caveats associated with standard candles are their absolute calibration, contamination of the sample from other sources and systematic uncertainties. The absolute calibration mainly depends on their chemical composition and age. To understand the impact of these effects on the distance scale, it is essential to develop methods based on different sample of standard candles. Here we review the fundamental properties of young and intermediate-age distance indicators such as Cepheids, Mira variables and Red Clump stars and the recent developments in their application as distance indicators.Comment: Review article, 63 pages (28 figures), Accepted for publication in Space Science Reviews (Chapter 3 of a special collection resulting from the May 2016 ISSI-BJ workshop on Astronomical Distance Determination in the Space Age

Fitting the integrated Spectral Energy Distributions of Galaxies

Fitting the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of galaxies is an almost universally used technique that has matured significantly in the last decade. Model predictions and fitting procedures have improved significantly over this time, attempting to keep up with the vastly increased volume and quality of available data. We review here the field of SED fitting, describing the modelling of ultraviolet to infrared galaxy SEDs, the creation of multiwavelength data sets, and the methods used to fit model SEDs to observed galaxy data sets. We touch upon the achievements and challenges in the major ingredients of SED fitting, with a special emphasis on describing the interplay between the quality of the available data, the quality of the available models, and the best fitting technique to use in order to obtain a realistic measurement as well as realistic uncertainties. We conclude that SED fitting can be used effectively to derive a range of physical properties of galaxies, such as redshift, stellar masses, star formation rates, dust masses, and metallicities, with care taken not to over-interpret the available data. Yet there still exist many issues such as estimating the age of the oldest stars in a galaxy, finer details ofdust properties and dust-star geometry, and the influences of poorly understood, luminous stellar types and phases. The challenge for the coming years will be to improve both the models and the observational data sets to resolve these uncertainties. The present review will be made available on an interactive, moderated web page (sedfitting.org), where the community can access and change the text. The intention is to expand the text and keep it up to date over the coming years.Comment: 54 pages, 26 figures, Accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space Scienc