The reaction 2H(p,pp)n in three kinematical configurations at E_p = 16 MeV

We measured the cross sections of the $^2$H(p,pp)n breakup reaction at E$_p$=16 MeV in three kinematical configurations: the np final-state interaction (FSI), the co-planar star (CST), and an intermediate-star (IST) geometry. The cross sections are compared with theoretical predictions based on the CD Bonn potential alone and combined with the updated 2$\pi$-exchange Tucson-Melbourne three-nucleon force (TM99'), calculated without inclusion of the Coulomb interaction. The resulting excellent agreement between data and pure CD Bonn predictions in the FSI testifies to the smallness of three-nucleon force (3NF) effects as well as the insignificance of the Coulomb force for this particular configuration and energy. The CST also agrees well whereas the IST results show small deviations between measurements and theory seen before in the pd breakup space-star geometries which point to possible Coulomb effects. An additional comparison with EFT predictions (without 3NF) up to order N$^3$LO shows excellent agreement in the FSI case and a rather similar agreement as for CD Bonn in the CST and IST situations.Comment: 20 pages, 11 figure

An Empirical Analysis of the Current Need for Teleneuromedical Care in German Hospitals without Neurology Departments

Indroduction. At present, modern telemedicine methods are being introduced, that may contribute to reducing lack of qualified stroke patient care, particularly in less populated regions. With the help of video conferencing systems, a so-called neuromedical teleconsultation is carried out. Methods. The study included a multicentered, completely standardized survey of physicians in hospitals by means of a computerized on-line questionnaire. Descriptive statistical methods were used for data analysis. Results. 119 acute hospitals without neurology departments were included in the study. The most important reasons for participating in a teleneuromedical network is seen as the improvement in the quality of treatment (82%), the ability to avoid unnecessary patient transport (76%), easier and faster access to stroke expertise (72%) as well as better competitiveness among medical services (67%). The most significant problem areas are the financing system of teleneuromedicine with regard to the acquisition costs of the technical equipment (43%) and the compensation for the stroke-unit center with the specialists' consultation service (31%) as well as legal aspects of teleneuromedicine (27%). Conclusions. This investigation showed that there is a high acceptance for teleneuromedicine among co-operating hospitals. However these facilities have goals in addition to improved quality in stroke treatment. Therefore the use of teleneuromedicine must be also associated with long term incentives for the overall health care system, particularly since the implementation of a teleneuromedicine network system is time consuming and associated with high implementation costs

Quantitative Histomorphometry of the Healthy Peritoneum

The peritoneum plays an essential role in preventing abdominal frictions and adhesions and can be utilized as a dialysis membrane. Its physiological ultrastructure, however, has not yet been studied systematically. 106 standardized peritoneal and 69 omental specimens were obtained from 107 patients (0.1-60 years) undergoing surgery for disease not affecting the peritoneum for automated quantitative histomorphometry and immunohistochemistry. The mesothelial cell layer morphology and protein expression pattern is similar across all age groups. Infants below one year have a thinner submesothelium; inflammation, profibrotic activity and mesothelial cell translocation is largely absent in all age groups. Peritoneal blood capillaries, lymphatics and nerve fibers locate in three distinct submesothelial layers. Blood vessel density and endothelial surface area follow a U-shaped curve with highest values in infants below one year and lowest values in children aged 7-12 years. Lymphatic vessel density is much lower, and again highest in infants. Omental blood capillary density correlates with parietal peritoneal findings, whereas only few lymphatic vessels are present. The healthy peritoneum exhibits major thus far unknown particularities, pertaining to functionally relevant structures, and subject to substantial changes with age. The reference ranges established here provide a framework for future histomorphometric analyses and peritoneal transport modeling approaches. © 2016, EDP Science. All rights reserved

The effect of loading direction and Sn alloying on the deformation modes of Zr: An in-situ neutron diffraction study

Deformation modes (slip and twining) in a strongly textured model hcp alloy system (Zr–Sn) have been investigated using in-situ neutron diffraction and deformation along with complementary electron microscopy. Analysis of the evolution of the intergranular strain evolutions and intensity of specific reflections from neutron diffraction show differential influence of Sn on the extent of twinning too, depending on the deformation direction. While Sn displayed very noticeable influence on twin activity when samples were compressed along a direction that predominantly activates prismatic slip, this effect was not seen when samples were compressed along other different directions. These experimental observations were successfully simulated using a CPFE (crystal plasticity finite element) model that incorporates composition sensitive CRSS (critical resolved shear stress) for slip and composition insensitive CRSS activation of twinning. The success of the CPFE model in capturing the experimental observations with respect to twin evolution suggests that the twinning in Zr is chiefly governed by the initial crystallographic texture and the associated intergranular stress state generated during plastic deformation

Background reduction by a getter pump around the ionization volume of a Lamb-shift polarimeter and possible improvements of polarized ion sources

The Koln-Julich Lamb-shift polarimeter is used to measure the nuclear polarization of the hydrogen or deuterium beam produced with the atomic-beam source for the polarized target at the ANKE spectrometer at COSY-Julich. The precision of the earlier results had been dominated by the recombination of atoms in the ionizer. Protons or deuterons from the dissociative ionization of unpolarized recombined H-2 or D-2 molecules had strongly contributed to the extracted ion beam. To suppress this effect, in the new ionizer a nonevaporable getter pump of about 2000 l/s H-2 or D-2 pumping speed surrounds the ionization volume. It reduces the extracted current of unpolarized ions, produced from the recombined molecular gas, by a factor of about 20 compared with the earlier value, which reduces the error of the polarization measurements to about 0.5%. Now the H-2 or D-2 molecules in the ionization volume predominantly are those which are contained in the incoming beam from the atomic beam source. This allows the measurement of the fraction of unpolarized molecules in the polarized atomic H or D beam. The improvement achieved is a valuable step toward the measurement of the nuclear polarization of a gas sample, extracted from the storage cell of the polarized internal gas target for the spectrometer ANKE in the COSY-Julich storage ring with the Lamb-shift polarimeter. Furthermore, the results show that the polarization of proton or deuteron beams would be increased by the installation of such a pump around the ionization volume of atomic-beam ion sources with an electron-impact ionizer. For ECR ionizers the recombined H-2 or D-2 molecules would be absorbed, whereas the noble gases, used as buffer, are not pumped by the getter material. (c) 2005 American Institute of Physics