Lateral oxidation of InAlAs in InP-based heterostructures for long wavelength vertical cavity surface emitting laser applications

We have studied the wet thermal oxidation of In0.52Al0.48AsIn0.52Al0.48As and its potential application in current and optical confinement in vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs). Two types of InP-based heterostructures were used to study the effect of adjacent layer compositions on the lateral oxidation behavior of the InAlAs. It was found that the oxidation of In0.52Al0.48AsIn0.52Al0.48As with InP adjacent layers, compared with In0.53Ga0.47AsIn0.53Ga0.47As adjacent layers, proceeded faster, more uniformly and with minimal degradation of the surrounding layers making it ideal for optoelectronic applications. © 1998 American Institute of Physics.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/70669/2/APPLAB-72-2-135-1.pd

Growth of high-quality GaAs/AlAs Bragg mirrors on patterned InP-based quantum well mesa structures

We have investigated the regrowth of GaAs/AlAs quarter-wave Bragg reflectors on patterned mesa InP-based quantum well heterostructures that can be fabricated into 1.55 μm vertical cavity surface emitting lasers. It is seen from transmission electron and scanning electron microscopy that the multiple layer GaAs-based mirrors can be grown on InP-based heterostructure mesas of diameters 10–40 μm without noticeable propagation of defects into the reflector layers or the quantum well region below. At the same time the photoluminescence from the quantum wells after regrowth indicates that lasers can be fabricated. © 1997 American Institute of Physics.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/70502/2/APPLAB-71-5-581-1.pd

Genomics reveals historic and contemporary transmission dynamics of a bacterial disease among wildlife and livestock

Whole-genome sequencing has provided fundamental insights into infectious disease epidemiology, but has rarely been used for examining transmission dynamics of a bacterial pathogen in wildlife. In the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), outbreaks of brucellosis have increased in cattle along with rising seroprevalence in elk. Here we use a genomic approach to examine Brucella abortus evolution, cross-species transmission and spatial spread in the GYE. We find that brucellosis was introduced into wildlife in this region at least five times. The diffusion rate varies among Brucella lineages (∼3 to 8 km per year) and over time. We also estimate 12 host transitions from bison to elk, and 5 from elk to bison. Our results support the notion that free-ranging elk are currently a self-sustaining brucellosis reservoir and the source of livestock infections, and that control measures in bison are unlikely to affect the dynamics of unrelated strains circulating in nearby elk populations

Management of Intracranial Metastatic Disease With Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy

Treatment approaches for metastatic brain tumors continue to evolve, with increasing recent emphasis on focal therapies whenever possible. MRI-guided Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy (LITT) is a minimally invasive surgical option that has broadened the capability of the neurosurgeon in treating difficult-to-treat intracranial lesions. This technology uses image-guided delivery of laser to the target lesion to generate heat and thereby ablate pathological tissue and has expanded the neurosurgical armamentarium for surgical treatment of brain metastases. In this study, we describe the indications for LITT in the management of intracranial metastatic disease and report our institutional experience with LITT

Optimisation problems and replica symmetry breaking in finite connectivity spin-glasses

A formalism capable of handling the first step of hierarchical replica symmetry breaking in finite-connectivity models is introduced. The emerging order parameter is claimed to be a probability distribution over the space of field distributions (or, equivalently magnetisation distributions) inside the cluster of states. The approach is shown to coincide with the previous works in the replica symmetric case and in the two limit cases m=0,1 where m is Parisi's break-point. As an application to the study of optimization problems, the ground-state properties of the random 3-Satisfiability problem are investigated and we present a first RSB solution improving replica symmetric results.Comment: 16 pages Revtex file, 1 figure; amended version with two new appendices; to be published in J.Phys.

Statistical mechanics of the random K-SAT model

The Random K-Satisfiability Problem, consisting in verifying the existence of an assignment of N Boolean variables that satisfy a set of M=alpha N random logical clauses containing K variables each, is studied using the replica symmetric framework of diluted disordered systems. We present an exact iterative scheme for the replica symmetric functional order parameter together for the different cases of interest K=2, K>= 3 and K>>1. The calculation of the number of solutions, which allowed us [Phys. Rev. Lett. 76, 3881 (1996)] to predict a first order jump at the threshold where the Boolean expressions become unsatisfiable with probability one, is thoroughly displayed. In the case K=2, the (rigorously known) critical value (alpha=1) of the number of clauses per Boolean variable is recovered while for K>=3 we show that the system exhibits a replica symmetry breaking transition. The annealed approximation is proven to be exact for large K.Comment: 34 pages + 1 table + 8 fig., submitted to Phys. Rev. E, new section added and references update