An optrode with built-in self-diagnostic and fracture sensor for cortical brain stimulation

This paper proposes a self-diagnostic subsystem for a new generation of brain implants with active electronics. The primary objective of such probes is to deliver optical pulses to optogenetic tissue and record the subsequent activity, but lifetime is currently unknown. Our proposed circuits aim to increase the safety of implanting active electronic probes into human brain tissue. Therefore, prolonging the lifetime of the implant and reducing the risks to the patient. The self-diagnostic circuit will examine the optical emitter against any abnormality or malfunctioning. The fracture sensor examines the optrode against any rapture or insertion breakage. The optrode including our diagnostic subsystem and fracture sensor has been designed and successfully simulated at 350nm AMS technology node and sent for manufacture

Gain enhancement of circular waveguide antennas using near-zero index metamaterials

In this article, a rigorous analytical methodology is introduced for designing near-zero refractive index metamaterials (NZIMs). Our proposed NZIM media is realized by three stacked layers of perforated metallic surfaces, each layer composed of a fishnet-like periodic array of square holes. By a proper design of such structures, a low refractive index medium is achieved at their corresponding plasma frequency. The low refractive index property is studied by retrieving the effective parameters of NZIM via inversion techniques, which gives an effective near-zero refractive index, at an operating frequency of 1.5 GHz. Then, the designed NZIM is used for gain enhancement of a circular waveguide antenna. The analysis shows that the proposed platform can enhance the directivity of our antenna by 3 dB while maintaining the return loss <−20 dB. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc

Anthropometric characteristics and sport background of athlete students

Background : Evaluating the anthropometric characteristics and sport background of athlete students is of utmost importance. The present study was conducted to evaluate anthropometric characteristics of female and male athlete students of Ministry of Health and Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology. Materials and methods : It was a descriptive study. Initial data including height, weight, waist and hip circumferences, and sport background of athletes were recorded. Results : 3700 students had entered this study, of these, 42.2 were females and 57.8 were males. The mean height of male and female athletes was 177.86 and 162.44 cm, respectively. Their mean weight was 71.63 and 56.51kg, respectively. BMI was 22.61 and 21.46 kg/m2, respectively. Among male athletes, 30.6 had learnt their interested sport at university, 31.1 at sport clubs, 27.2 at high school, and 10.6 in other places. For female athlete these figures were 10, 19.4, 44.2, and 26, respectively. The mean year of sport practice was 8.2 and 5.48 years for male and female athletes, respectively. Conclusion : Most of the athletes had normal anthropometric measures. These measures can be used to select suitable athlete for championships