Effects of processing parameters on the morphology, structure, and magnetic properties of Cu1−xFexCr2Se4 nanoparticles synthesized with chemical methods

Cu1−xFexCr2Se4 nanoparticles with x = 0, 0.2, and 0.4 were synthesized via thermal decomposition of metal nitrate or chloride salts and selenium powder using different precursor compositions and processing details. Single crystalline nano-belts or nano-rods coexist in the synthesized powder samples with hexagon-shaped plates in dependence on the precursor composition. The belts gathered into conglomerates forming “hierarchical” particles. Visible magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) of Cu1−xFexCr2Se4 nanoparticles embedded into a transparent matrix was investigated for the first time. The similarity of the MCD spectra of all samples showed the similarity of the nanoparticles electronic structure independent of their morphology. Basing on the MCD spectral maxima characteristics, electron transitions from the ground to the excited states were identified with the help of the conventional band theory and the multi-electron approach

Microstructure and magnetooptics of silicon oxide with implanted nickel nanoparticles

Metallic nickel nanoparticles of various sizes are formed in a thin near-surface layer in an amorphous SiO 2 matrix during 40-keV Ni + ion implantation at a dose of (0.25-1.0) × 10 17 ions/cm 2. The microstructure of the irradiated layer and the crystal structure, morphology, and sizes of nickel particles formed at various irradiation doses are studied by transmission electron microscopy and electron diffraction. The magnetooptical Faraday effect and the magnetic circular dichroism in an ensemble of nickel nanoparticles are studied in the optical range. The permittivity ε∧ tensor components are calculated for the implanted samples using an effective medium model with allowance for the results of magnetooptical measurements. The spectral dependences of the tensor ε∧ components are found to be strongly different from those of a continuous metallic nickel film. These differences are related to a disperse structure of the magnetic nickel phase and to a surface plasma resonance in the metal nanoparticles. © Pleiades Publishing, Inc., 2011

Study of morphology, magnetic properties, and visible magnetic circular dichroism of Ni nanoparticles synthesized in SiO2 by ion implantation

A systematic study of ensembles of nickel nanoparticles fabricated by Ni+-ion implantation at a dose of (0.5-1.0)×1017 ions/cm2 in a thin near-surface layer of an amorphous SiO2 matrix by means of transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dc magnetic measurements, and magneto-optical technique is presented. TEM characterization of Ni nanoparticles proves the formation of isolated spherical nickel nanoparticles with diameters from 2 to 16 nm. The crystal structure and lattice constant of the nanoparticles correspond to face-centered-cubic Ni. The larger size nanoparticles are shown to have core-shell structure, which is unusual for the implantation conditions used. The shell of these nanoparticles consists of Ni, while the core has supposedly the composition coinciding with the matrix, i.e., SiO2. The core-shell nanoparticles in the investigated sample coexist with ordinary pure Ni nanoparticles, which strongly affects the magnetic and especially magneto-optic properties of the samples. For all three doses, the nanoparticles are in the superparamagnetic state at room temperature passing to the "frozen" state at lower temperatures. However, only the sample implanted with the lowest dose demonstrates the classic superparamagnetic behavior according to the shape of the experimental magnetization temperature dependencies for the zero-field-cooled (ZFC) and field-cooled regimes. This shape deviation from that characteristic of the pure superparamagnetic ensembles is ascribed mainly to the particle core-shell structure. The Ni nanoparticles' anisotropy constant estimated with the help of ZFC curves appears to exceed the bulk Ni anisotropy second constant approximately by two orders of magnitude. Magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) is characterized by spectral dependence modified strongly as compared to the MCD spectra of a continuous Ni film. In the spectral range 1.1-4.2 eV, the MCD spectrum consists of two broad maxima of opposite sign with the characteristics depending on the implantation dose and the measurement temperature. The MCD spectra analysis allows one to show that the higher-energy maximum (at 3.34-3.48 eV depending on the dose) is related to the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) excitation in pure Ni nanoparticles, while the lower-energy maximum (at 2.19-2.73 eV depending on the dose) should be associated with the SPR excitation in core-shell nanoparticles. © 2013 American Physical Society

The astrometric Gaia-FUN-SSO observation campaign of 99 942 Apophis

Astrometric observations performed by the Gaia Follow-Up Network for Solar System Objects (Gaia-FUN-SSO) play a key role in ensuring that moving objects first detected by ESA's Gaia mission remain recoverable after their discovery. An observation campaign on the potentially hazardous asteroid (99 942) Apophis was conducted during the asteroid's latest period of visibility, from 12/21/2012 to 5/2/2013, to test the coordination and evaluate the overall performance of the Gaia-FUN-SSO . The 2732 high quality astrometric observations acquired during the Gaia-FUN-SSO campaign were reduced with the Platform for Reduction of Astronomical Images Automatically (PRAIA), using the USNO CCD Astrograph Catalogue 4 (UCAC4) as a reference. The astrometric reduction process and the precision of the newly obtained measurements are discussed. We compare the residuals of astrometric observations that we obtained using this reduction process to data sets that were individually reduced by observers and accepted by the Minor Planet Center. We obtained 2103 previously unpublished astrometric positions and provide these to the scientific community. Using these data we show that our reduction of this astrometric campaign with a reliable stellar catalog substantially improves the quality of the astrometric results. We present evidence that the new data will help to reduce the orbit uncertainty of Apophis during its close approach in 2029. We show that uncertainties due to geolocations of observing stations, as well as rounding of astrometric data can introduce an unnecessary degradation in the quality of the resulting astrometric positions. Finally, we discuss the impact of our campaign reduction on the recovery process of newly discovered asteroids.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&

Boundary-Layer Formulation of Dendritic Growth: Existence of a Family of Steady-State Needle Solutions

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A xandarellid artiopodan from Morocco – a middle Cambrian link between soft-bodied euarthropod communities in North Africa and South China

NB. A corrigendum [correction] for this article was published online on 09 May 2017; this has been attached to this article as an additional file. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ © The Author(s) 2017. The attached file is the published version of the article

Boundary-layer approaches to dendritic growth

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РАК ТОЛСТОЙ КИШКИ С МИКРОСАТЕЛЛИТНОЙ НЕСТАБИЛЬНОСТЬЮ У ПОЖИЛЫХ БОЛЬНЫХ: РОЛЬ ИММУНОДЕФИЦИТА И КЛИНИЧЕСКИЕ ОСОБЕННОСТИ

Background. Tumors demonstrating the phenomenon of microsatellite instability (MSI) represent a special category of colorectal cancer (CRC). Such neoplasms account for up to 20 % of CRC and are characterized by specific molecular and clinical manifestations, including high immunogenicity and sensitivity to immunotherapy. MSI phenotype occurs in two different groups of patients: young individuals with Lynch syndrome and patients older than 70 years with non-hereditary CRC. We assume that the development of sporadic MSI-positive tumors in elderly patients may be associated with age-dependent decrease in immune defense. The aim of the study was to investigate clinical and morphological characteristics in elderly patients with MSI-positive colorectal cancer. Material and methods. MSI status and mutations in the BRAF gene were tested in a group of 384 CRC patients older than 65 years by PCR-based techniques. A comparative analysis of clinico-pathological features was further conducted in the groups of 23 MSI-positive and 34 MSI-negative CRC cases. Results. MSI-positive phenotype was associated with the proximal tumor location, low degree of differentiation and the presence of the mucinous component in the tumor (p<0.0001, p=0.005, and p=0.0001, respectively). Patients with MSI-positive CRC containing BRAF mutations showed a significant prevalence of RhD-negative erythrocyte phenotype (53.3 % vs 11.8 %, p=0.004). In patients with MSI-positive carcinomas, the increased frequency of preoperative leukocytosis (p=0.009) and lymphopenia (p=0.014) was observed. Conclusion. The increased occurrence of Rh-negative erythrocyte phenotype and white blood formula changes in elderly patients with MSI-positive CRC may indicate the role of immune system disorders in the development of microsatellite-unstable carcinomas.Актуальность. Опухоли с феноменом микросателлитной нестабильности (microsatellite instability, MSI) представляют собой отдельную категорию рака толстой кишки (РТК). Подобные новообразования составляют до 20 % карцином этой локализации и характеризуются своеобразными молекулярными и клиническими проявлениями, в том числе высокой иммуногенностью и чувствительностью к иммунотерапии. Микросателлитная нестабильность встречается у двух разных групп пациентов – молодых больных с синдромом Линча и у пациентов старше 70 лет с ненаследственным РТК. Мы предполагаем, что развитию спорадических MSI-позитивных опухолей у пожилых пациентов может способствовать сопутствующее старению снижение иммунной защиты. Целью исследования стало изучение различных клинико-морфологических характеристик у пожилых больных с MSI-позитивным РТК. Материал и методы. Микросателлитная нестабильность и мутация V600E в гене BRAF оценивались методами, основанными на ПЦР, в группе из 384 больных РТК старше 65 лет. Сравнительный анализ клинических и патоморфологических особенностей выполнен у 23 пациентов с MSI-позитивными опухолями и 34 больных MSI-негативным РТК. Результаты. В группе больных РТК с MSI-позитивным фенотипом преобладают случаи локализации рака в правой половине ободочной кишки, низкая степень дифференцировки и наличие муцинозного компонента в опухоли (p<0,0001, p=0,005 и p=0,0001 соответственно). У пациентов с MSI-позитивным РТК, содержащим мутацию BRAF, значительно чаще встречается резус-отрицательный фенотип эритроцитов (53,3 % vs 11,8 %, p=0,004). У больных с MSI-позитивными карциномами отмечено увеличение частоты лейкоцитоза (p=0,009) и лимфопении (p=0,014) в периферической крови в предоперационном периоде. Заключение. Повышенная частота резус-негативного фенотипа эритроцитов и изменения в формуле белой крови у пожилых больных РТК с MSI-позитивным фенотипом могут свидетельствовать о роли нарушений иммунной системы в развитии микросателлит-нестабильных карцином

Experimental and Numerical Modeling of Segregation in Metallic Alloys

International audienceElectromagnetic levitation (EML) has been used as an experimental technique for investigating the effect of the nucleation and cooling rate on segregation and structure formation in metallic alloys. The technique has been applied to aluminum-copper alloys. For all samples, the primary phase nucleation has been triggered by the contact of the levitated droplet with an alumina plate at a given undercooling. Based on the recorded temperature curves, the heat extraction rate and the nucleation undercooling for the primary dendritic and the secondary eutectic structures have been determined. Metallurgical characterizations have consisted of composition measurements using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry and the analysis of SEM images. The distribution maps drawn for the composition, the volume fraction of the eutectic structure, and the dendrite arm spacing (DAS) reveal strong correlations. Analysis of the measurements with the help of a cellular-automaton (CA)-finite-element (FE) model is also proposed. The model involves a new coupling scheme between the CA and FE methods and a segregation model accounting for diffusion in the solid and liquid phases. Extensive validation of the model has been carried out on a typical equiaxed grain configuration, i.e., considering the free growth of a mushy zone in an undercooled melt. It demonstrates its capability of dealing with mass exchange inside and outside the envelope of a growing primary dendritic structure. The model has been applied to predict the temperature curve, the segregation, and the eutectic volume fraction obtained upon single-grain nucleation and growth from the south pole of a spherical domain with and without triggering of the nucleation of the primary solid phase, thus simulating the solidification of a levitated droplet. Predictions permit a direct interpretation of the measurements