163 research outputs found
Muon spin rotation studies of niobium for superconducting RF applications
In this work we investigate superconducting properties of niobium samples via
application of the muon spin rotation/relaxation (muSR) technique. We employ
for the first time the muSR technique to study samples that are cutout from
large and small grain 1.5 GHz radio frequency (RF) single cell niobium
cavities. The RF test of these cavities was accompanied by full temperature
mapping to characterize the RF losses in each of the samples. Results of the
muSR measurements show that standard cavity surface treatments like mild baking
and buffered chemical polishing (BCP) performed on the studied samples affect
their surface pinning strength. We find an interesting correlation between high
field RF losses and field dependence of the sample magnetic volume fraction
measured via muSR. The muSR line width observed in ZF-muSR measurements matches
the behavior of Nb samples doped with minute amounts of Ta or N impurities. An
upper bound for the upper critical field Hc2 of these cutouts is found.Comment: 20 pages, 14 figure
Superheating in coated niobium
Using muon spin rotation it is shown that the field of first flux penetration Hentry in Nb is enhanced by about 30% if coated with an overlayer of Nb3Sn or MgB2. This is consistent with an increase from the lower critical magnetic field Hc1 up to the superheating field Hsh of the Nb substrate. In the experiments presented here coatings of Nb3Sn and MgB2 with a thickness between 50 and 2000 nm have been tested. Hentry does not depend on material or thickness. This suggests that the energy barrier at the boundary between the two materials prevents flux entry up to Hsh of the substrate. A mechanism consistent with these findings is that the proximity effect recovers the stability of the energy barrier for flux penetration, which is suppressed by defects for uncoated samples. Additionally, a low temperature baked Nb sample has been tested. Here a 6% increase of Hentry was found, also pushing Hentry beyond Hc1
Coaxial multi-mode cavities for fundamental SRF research in an unprecedented parameter space
Recent developments in superconducting radio-frequency (SRF) research have
focused primarily on high frequency elliptical cavities for electron
accelerators. Advances have been made in both reducing RF surface resistance
and pushing the readily achievable accelerating gradient by using novel SRF
cavity treatments including surface processing, custom heat treatments, and
flux expulsion. Despite the global demand for SRF based hadron accelerators,
the advancement of TEM mode cavities has lagged behind. To address this, two
purpose-built research cavities, one quarter-wave and one half-wave resonator,
have been designed and built to allow characterization of TEM-mode cavities
with standard and novel surface treatments. The cavities are intended as the
TEM mode equivalent to the 1.3GHz single cell cavity, which is the essential
tool for high frequency cavity research. Given their coaxial structure, the
cavities allow testing at the fundamental mode and higher harmonics, giving
unique insight into the role of RF frequency on fundamental loss mechanisms
from intrinsic and extrinsic sources. In this paper, the cavities and testing
infrastructure are described and the first performance measurements of both
cavities are presented
Homocysteine Levels, Haemostatic Risk Factors and Patency Rates after Endovascular Treatment of the Above-Knee Femoro-Popliteal Artery
AbstractObjectives. To investigate the relationship between plasma homocysteine and other haemostatic variables and restenoses or reocclusions after endovascular treatment of symptomatic atherosclerosis of the above-knee femoro-popliteal artery.Design. Prospective observational study.Setting. University hospital.Patients and methods. The study included 103 patients (116 limbs), treated with subintimal angioplasty in 58 cases (50%) and with intraluminal PTA in 58 (50%): 39 (34%) patients were treated for critical limb ischaemia. Blood samples for analyses of fasting plasma values of homocysteine, fibrinogen, D-dimer, activated protein C resistance were drawn upon admission. Median follow-up for all procedures was 11 months (range 0–42 months). Outcome events (arterial patency) were defined as ≥50% restenosis or reocclusion in the treated arterial segment. Patency rates were estimated with the product limit method and Kaplan–Meier curves. Variables found to be related significantly to patency were included in multivariate analysis performed with the Cox proportional hazard model.Results. The 1-year cumulative primary patency rate for all procedures was 48%. One-year limb salvage rate in cases of critical ischaemia was 74%. Multivariate analysis demonstrated significant independent associations between patency rates and plasma D-dimer, diabetes mellitus, the nature of the lesion treated (stenosis vs. occlusion) and antithrombotic therapy with aspirin after the procedure. Plasma levels of homocysteine, fibrinogen or activated protein C resistance were not associated with patency rates. Homocysteine levels were higher in patients with critical limb ischaemia than those with intermittent claudication.Conclusions. Early restenosis or reocclusion after endovascular intervention of lesions in the above-knee femoro-popliteal artery was more frequent following treatment of occlusion (versus stenosis), for patients with diabetes, patients with elevated D-dimer and those without antithrombotic therapy after the procedure. Plasma homocysteine did not appear to influence the outcome of endovascular intervention
Editor's Choice: Contemporary treatment of popliteal artery aneurysm in eight countries: A Report from the Vascunet collaboration of registries.
To access publisher's full text version of this article, please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field or click on the hyperlink at the top of the page marked Files.
This article is open access.To study contemporary popliteal artery aneurysm (PA) repair.Vascunet is a collaboration of population-based registries in 10 countries: eight had data on PA repair (Australia, Finland, Hungary, Iceland, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland).From January 2009 until June 2012, 1,471 PA repairs were registered. There were 9.59 operations per million person years, varying from 3.4 in Hungary to 17.6 in Sweden. Median age was 70 years, ranging from 66 years in Switzerland and Iceland to 74 years in Australia and New Zealand; 95.6% were men and 44% were active smokers. Elective surgery dominated, comprising 72% of all cases, but only 26.2% in Hungary and 39.7% in Finland, (p < .0001). The proportion of endovascular PA repair was 22.2%, varying from 34.7% in Australia, to zero in Switzerland, Finland, and Iceland (p < .0001). Endovascular repair was performed in 12.2% of patients with acute thrombosis and 24.1% of elective cases (p < .0001). A vein graft was used in 87.2% of open repairs, a synthetic or composite graft in 12.7%. Follow-up was until discharge or 30 days. Amputation rate was 2.0% overall: 6.5% after acute thrombosis, 1.0% after endovascular, 1.8% after open repair, and 26.3% after hybrid repair (p < .0001). Mortality was 0.7% overall: 0.1% after elective repair, 1.6% after acute thrombosis, and 11.1% after rupture.Great variability between countries in incidence of operations, indications for surgery, and choice of surgical technique was found, possibly a result of surgical tradition rather than differences in case mix. Comparative studies with longer follow-up data are warranted
Bilateral giant femoropopliteal artery aneurysms: a case report
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Popliteal artery aneurysms are the most common peripheral arterial aneurysms, and are frequently bilateral. Acute limb ischemia, rupture and compression phenomena can complicate these aneurysms when the diameter exceeds 2 cm.</p> <p>Case Presentation</p> <p>We report an 82-year-old male patient with two giant femoropopliteal aneurysms, 10.5 and 8.5 cm diameters, managed in our institution. Both aneurysms were resected and a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) femoropopliteal interposition graft was placed successfully. Management and literature review are discussed.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We believe this is the first report in the medical literature of bilateral giant femoropopliteal aneurysms.</p
Depth-resolved measurement of the Meissner screening profile in a niobium thin film from spin-lattice relaxation of the implanted -emitter Li
We report measurements of the Meissner screening profile in a Nb(300
nm)/AlO thin film using Li -detected nuclear magnetic
resonance (-NMR). The NMR probe Li was ion-implanted into the Nb
film at energies 20 keV, corresponding to mean stopping depths
comparable to Nb's magnetic penetration depth . Li's strong
dipole-dipole coupling with the host Nb nuclei provided a
"cross-relaxation" channel that dominated in low magnetic fields, which
conferred indirect sensitivity to the local magnetic field via the spin-lattice
relaxation (SLR) rate . From a fit of the data to a model
accounting for its dependence on temperature, magnetic field, and
Li implantation energy, we obtained a magnetic penetration depth
= 51.5(22) nm, consistent with a relatively short carrier
mean-free-path = 18.7(29) nm typical of similarly prepared Nb films. The
results presented here constitute an important step towards using Li
-NMR to characterize bulk Nb samples with engineered surfaces, which are
often used in the fabrication of particle accelerators.Comment: 16 pages, 4 figure
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