Development, Characterisation and High-Temperature Suitability of Thin-Film Strain Gauges Directly Deposited with a New Sputter Coating System

New sensor and sensor manufacturing technologies are identified as a key factor for a successful digitalisation and are therefore economically important for manufacturers and industry. To address various requirements, a new sputter coating system has been invented at the Institute of Micro Production Technology. It enables the deposition of sensor systems directly onto technical surfaces. Compared to commercially available systems, it has no spatial limitations concerning the maximum coatable component size. Moreover, it enables a simultaneous structuring of deposited layers. Within this paper, characterisation techniques, results and challenges concerning directly deposited thin film strain gauges with the new sputter coating system are presented. Constantan (CuNiMn 54/45/1) and NiCr 80/20 are used as sensor materials. The initial resistance, temperature coefficient of resistance and gauge factor/k-factor of quarter-bridge strain gauges are characterised. The influence of a protective layer on sensor behaviour and layer adhesion is investigated as well. Moreover, the temperature compensation quality of directly deposited half-bridge strain gauges is evaluated, optimised with an external trimming technology and benchmarked against commercial strain gauges. Finally, the suitability for high-temperature strain measurement is investigated. Results show a maximum operation temperature of at least 400 °C, which is above the current state-of-the-art of commercial foil-based metal strain gauges

Cardiorespiratory fitness is associated with hard and light intensity physical activity but not time spent sedentary in 10–14 year old schoolchildren: the HAPPY study

Sedentary behaviour is a major risk factor for developing chronic diseases and is associated with low cardiorespiratory fitness in adults. It remains unclear how sedentary behaviour and different physical activity subcomponents are related to cardiorespiratory fitness in children. The purpose of this study was to assess how sedentary behaviour and different physical activity subcomponents are associated with 10–14 year-old schoolchildren's cardiorespiratory fitness

Aerobic capacity, activity levels and daily energy expenditure in male and female adolescents of the kenyan nandi sub-group

The relative importance of genetic and socio-cultural influences contributing to the success of east Africans in endurance athletics remains unknown in part because the pre-training phenotype of this population remains incompletely assessed. Here cardiopulmonary fitness, physical activity levels, distance travelled to school and daily energy expenditure in 15 habitually active male (13.9±1.6 years) and 15 habitually active female (13.9±1.2) adolescents from a rural Nandi primary school are assessed. Aerobic capacity ([Formula: see text]) was evaluated during two maximal discontinuous incremental exercise tests; physical activity using accelerometry combined with a global positioning system; and energy expenditure using the doubly labelled water method. The [Formula: see text] of the male and female adolescents were 73.9±5.7 ml(.) kg(-1.) min(-1) and 61.5±6.3 ml(.) kg(-1.) min(-1), respectively. Total time spent in sedentary, light, moderate and vigorous physical activities per day was 406±63 min (50% of total monitored time), 244±56 min (30%), 75±18 min (9%) and 82±30 min (10%). Average total daily distance travelled to and from school was 7.5±3.0 km (0.8-13.4 km). Mean daily energy expenditure, activity-induced energy expenditure and physical activity level was 12.2±3.4 MJ(.) day(-1), 5.4±3.0 MJ(.) day(-1) and 2.2±0.6. 70.6% of the variation in [Formula: see text] was explained by sex (partial R(2) = 54.7%) and body mass index (partial R(2) = 15.9%). Energy expenditure and physical activity variables did not predict variation in [Formula: see text] once sex had been accounted for. The highly active and energy-demanding lifestyle of rural Kenyan adolescents may account for their exceptional aerobic fitness and collectively prime them for later training and athletic success

Stau Search in IceCube

The tau lepton’s supersymmetric partner, the stau, appears in some models as the next-to-lightest supersymmetric particle. Their deacy process into the lightest superpartner is usually suppressed by supersymmetry breaking, which makes it a long-lived particle. In this scenario, its signature is a long, minimally ionizing track when traveling through the IceCube detector. Independent of their primary energy, the stau tracks appear like low-energy muons in the detector. A potential signal of staus would thus be an excess over muon tracks induced by atmospheric muon neutrinos. Our analysis focuses on the region around the horizon as here the ratio between stau signal and atmospheric background is largest. We will present the first sensitivity to constrain the stau mass using IceCube and demonstrate the potential of this analysis with future improvements

Detection of mouth alcohol during breath alcohol analysis.

The presence of mouth alcohol (MA) during alcohol breath test for law enforcement is the most common cause of falsely high breath alcohol concentrations (BrAC). A fast and reliable test for detection of MA roadside at the scene of the act would facilitate the police efforts for proper prosecution. A tentative technique to use orally exhaled water vapour as a reference gas to position the origin of alcohol was validated. BrAC and water vapour concentration (WVC) were simultaneously measured as a known MA component was added to subjects with existing blood alcohol. In the absence of MA, water always precedes alcohol in a volumetric expirogram. In the presence of MA this relationship reversed. A scatterplot of WVC versus BrAC from similar fractional exhaled volumes illustrates how their relative positions change by MA. A deviation area (DA) between the scatterplot curve and a fictitious linear relationship was defined as a measurement of MA. The accuracy and cut-off level of the DA to detect MA were determined with receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) was 0.95 (95% CI 0.90-1.0), indicating excellent discriminatory ability. The optimal cut-off for DA to discriminate between MA ≥0.010mg/L (1μg/100ml, 0.002g/210L) or lack of MA was -0.35, with a sensitivity of 0.91 and specificity of 0.95. Analysis of BrAC in relation to WVC is a practical method to detect and confirm MA contamination with high reliability

Galectin-3 levels relate in children to total body fat, abdominal fat, body fat distribution, and cardiac size

Galectin-3 has recently been proposed as a novel biomarker for cardiovascular disease in adults. The purpose of this investigation was to assess relationships between galectin-3 levels and total body fat, abdominal fat, body fat distribution, aerobic fitness, blood pressure, left ventricular mass, left atrial size, and increase in body fat over a 2-year period in a population-based sample of children. Our study included 170 children aged 8–11 years. Total fat mass and abdominal fat were measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Body fat distribution was expressed as abdominal fat/total fat mass. Maximal oxygen uptake was assessed by indirect calorimetry during a maximal exercise test and scaled to body mass. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure and pulse pressure were measured. Left atrial size, left ventricular mass, and relative wall thickness were measured by echocardiography. Frozen serum samples were analyzed for galectin-3 by the Proximity Extension Assay technique. A follow-up DXA scan was performed in 152 children 2 years after the baseline exam. Partial correlations, with adjustment for sex and age, between galectin-3 versus body fat measurements indicated weak to moderate relationships. Moreover, left atrial size, left ventricular mass, and relative wall thickness and pulse pressure were also correlated with galectin-3. Neither systolic blood pressure nor maximal oxygen uptake was correlated with galectin-3. There was also a correlation between galectin-3 and increase in total body fat over 2 years, while no such correlations were found for the other fat measurements. Conclusion: More body fat and abdominal fat, more abdominal body fat distribution, more left ventricular mass, and increased left atrial size were all associated with higher levels of galectin-3. Increase in total body fat over 2 years was also associated with higher levels of galectin-3

4. Band 1677 - Juni 1690, Teil A

Galectin-3 has recently been proposed as a novel biomarker for cardiovascular disease in adults. The purpose of this investigation was to assess relationships between galectin-3 levels and total body fat, abdominal fat, body fat distribution, aerobic fitness, blood pressure, left ventricular mass, left atrial size, and increase in body fat over a 2-year period in a population-based sample of children. Our study included 170 children aged 8–11 years. Total fat mass and abdominal fat were measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Body fat distribution was expressed as abdominal fat/total fat mass. Maximal oxygen uptake was assessed by indirect calorimetry during a maximal exercise test and scaled to body mass. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure and pulse pressure were measured. Left atrial size, left ventricular mass, and relative wall thickness were measured by echocardiography. Frozen serum samples were analyzed for galectin-3 by the Proximity Extension Assay technique. A follow-up DXA scan was performed in 152 children 2 years after the baseline exam. Partial correlations, with adjustment for sex and age, between galectin-3 versus body fat measurements indicated weak to moderate relationships. Moreover, left atrial size, left ventricular mass, and relative wall thickness and pulse pressure were also correlated with galectin-3. Neither systolic blood pressure nor maximal oxygen uptake was correlated with galectin-3. There was also a correlation between galectin-3 and increase in total body fat over 2 years, while no such correlations were found for the other fat measurements. Conclusion: More body fat and abdominal fat, more abdominal body fat distribution, more left ventricular mass, and increased left atrial size were all associated with higher levels of galectin-3. Increase in total body fat over 2 years was also associated with higher levels of galectin-3

A longitudinal analysis of the relationships of physical activity and body fat with nerve growth factor and brain-derived neural factor in children

Background: Nerve growth factor (NGF) and brain-derived neural factor (BDNF) are important for brain function and detectable in the blood. This study explored the longitudinal associations of physical activity and body fat with serum NGF and BDNF in children. Methods: Two waves of measurements were performed 2 years apart in 8- to 11-year-old children, including physical activity using the ActiGraph model 7164, body composition by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, and serum NGF and BDNF determined by multiplex immunoassay. The first wave included 248 children. Full information maximum likelihood estimation with robust standard errors was applied in structural equation modeling. Results: Vigorous physical activity showed a direct positive longitudinal relationship with NGF (standardized coefficient β = 0.30, P = .01) but not with BDNF (β = 0.04, P = .84). At the same time, body fat percentage was positively related to both NGF (β = 0.59, P < .001) and BDNF (β = 0.17, P = .04). There was an indication of an indirect relationship of vigorous physical activity with NGF (product of unstandardized coefficient β = −0.18, P = .02) and BDNF (β = −0.07, P = .05) through the negative relationship with body fat percentage (β = −0.36, P < .001). Conclusions: Vigorous physical activity is directly related to serum NGF and indirectly through the level of body fat. The relationships with serum BDNF are more complex