Gallium Arsenide preparation and QE Lifetime Studies using the ALICE Photocathode Preparation Facility

In recent years, Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) type photocathodes have become widely used as electron sources in modern Energy Recovery Linac based light sources such as the Accelerators and Lasers in Combined Experiments (ALICE) at Daresbury Laboratory and as polarised electron source for the proposed International Linear Collider (ILC). Once activated to a Low Electron Affinity (LEA) state and illuminated by a laser, these materials can be used as a high-brightness source of both polarised and un-polarised electrons. This paper presents an effective multi-stage preparation procedure including heat cleaning, atomic hydrogen cleaning and the activation process for a GaAs photocathode. The stability of quantum efficiency (QE) and lifetime of activated to LEA state GaAs photocathode have been studied in the ALICE load-lock photocathode preparation facility which has a base pressure in the order of 10^-11 mbar. These studies are supported by further experimental evidence from surface science techniques such as X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) to demonstrate the processes at the atomic level.Comment: Presented at First International Particle Accelerator Conference, IPAC'10, Kyoto, Japan, from 23 to 28 May 201

Hemicelluloses in Hardwoods Growing on Southern Pine Sites

Aspects of the chemistry of the two more common hemicelluloses found in hardwoods growing on southern pine sites are outlined. The 4-O-methylglucuronoxylans have been investigated chemically by several groups of workers and have been shown to consist of an essentially linear backbone of 1,4-β-linked D-xylopyranose residues. To this backbone are attached in a random fashion, α-linked 4-O-methyl-D-glucuronopyranosyl residues through position 2 of about one in ten of the D-xylopyranosyl groups. O-Acetyl residues may also be present. The glucomannans have received less attention. They consist of essentially linear polymers formed of 1,4-β-linked-D-glucopyranose and 1,4-β-linked-D-mannopyranose residues joined in random sequence and may also contain O-acetyl residues. The ratio of the sugars varies between 1:2 and 1:1

Introducing creativity techniques and software apps to the care of people with dementia

This poster reports research to introduce creative problem solving techniques and software to the care for people with dementia in residential homes

Transform-limited X-ray pulse generation from a high-brightness self-amplified spontaneous-emission free-electron laser

A method to achieve high-brightness self-amplified spontaneous emission (HB-SASE) in the free-electron laser (FEL) is described. The method uses repeated nonequal electron beam delays to delocalize the collective FEL interaction and break the radiation coherence length dependence on the FEL cooperation length. The method requires no external seeding or photon optics and so is applicable at any wavelength or repetition rate. It is demonstrated, using linear theory and numerical simulations, that the radiation coherence length can be increased by approximately 2 orders of magnitude over SASE with a corresponding increase in spectral brightness. Examples are shown of HB-SASE generating transform-limited FEL pulses in the soft x-ray and near transform-limited pulses in the hard x-ray. Such pulses may greatly benefit existing applications and may also open up new areas of scientific research

Large-scale structure and the redshift-distance relation

In efforts to demonstrate the linear Hubble law v = Hr from galaxy observations, the underlying simplicity is often obscured by complexities arising from magnitude-limited data. In this paper we point out a simple but previously unremarked fact: that the shapes and orientations of structures in redshift space contain in themselves independent information about the cosmological redshift-distance relation. The orientations of voids in the CfA slice support the Hubble law, giving a redshift-distance power index p = 0.83 +/- 0.36 (void data from Slezak, de Lapparent, & Bijoui 1993) or p = 0.99 +/- 0.38 (void data from Malik & Subramanian 1997).Comment: 11 pages (AASTeX), 4 figures, to appear in the Astrophysical Journal Letter

Randomised field trial to evaluate serological response after foot-and-mouth disease vaccination in Turkey

AbstractDespite years of biannual mass vaccination of cattle, foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) remains uncontrolled in Anatolian Turkey. To evaluate protection after mass vaccination we measured post-vaccination antibodies in a cohort of cattle (serotypes O, A and Asia-1). To obtain results reflecting typical field protection, participants were randomly sampled from across Central and Western Turkey after routine vaccination. Giving two-doses one month apart is recommended when cattle are first vaccinated against FMD. However, due to cost and logistics, this is not routinely performed in Turkey, and elsewhere. Nested within the cohort, we conducted a randomised trial comparing post-vaccination antibodies after a single-dose versus a two-dose primary vaccination course.Four to five months after vaccination, only a third of single-vaccinated cattle had antibody levels above a threshold associated with protection. A third never reached this threshold, even at peak response one month after vaccination. It was not until animals had received three vaccine doses in their lifetime, vaccinating every six months, that most (64% to 86% depending on serotype) maintained antibody levels above this threshold. By this time cattle would be >20 months old with almost half the population below this age. Consequently, many vaccinated animals will be unprotected for much of the year. Compared to a single-dose, a primary vaccination course of two-doses greatly improved the level and duration of immunity. We concluded that the FMD vaccination programme in Anatolian Turkey did not produce the high levels of immunity required. Higher potency vaccines are now used throughout Turkey, with a two-dose primary course in certain areas.Monitoring post-vaccination serology is an important component of evaluation for FMD vaccination programmes. However, consideration must be given to which antigens are present in the test, the vaccine and the field virus. Differences between these antigens affect the relationship between antibody titre and protection

Hyperglycemia Has a Greater Impact on Left Ventricle Function in South Asians Than in Europeans

OBJECTIVE Diabetes is associated with left ventricular (LV) diastolic and systolic dysfunction. South Asians may be at particular risk of developing LV dysfunction owing to a high prevalence of diabetes. We investigated the role of diabetes and hyperglycemia in LV dysfunction in a community-based cohort of older South Asians and white Europeans. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Conventional and Doppler echocardiography was performed in 999 participants (542 Europeans and 457 South Asians aged 58–86 years) in a population-based study. Anthropometry, fasting bloods, coronary artery calcification scoring, blood pressure, and renal function were measured. RESULTS Diabetes and hyperglycemia across the spectrum of HbA1c had a greater adverse effect on LV function in South Asians than Europeans (N-terminal-probrain natriuretic peptide β ± SE 0.09 ± 0.04, P = 0.01, vs. −0.04 ± 0.05, P = 0.4, P for HbA1c/ethnicity interaction 0.02), diastolic function (E/e′ 0.69 ± 0.12, P < 0.0001, vs. 0.09 ± 0.2, P = 0.6, P for interaction 0.005), and systolic function (s′ −0.11 ± 0.06, P = 0.04, vs. 0.14 ± 0.09, P = 0.1, P for interaction 0.2). Multivariable adjustment for hypertension, microvascular disease, LV mass, coronary disease, and dyslipidemia only partially accounted for the ethnic differences. Adverse LV function in diabetic South Asians could not be accounted for by poorer glycemic control or longer diabetes duration. CONCLUSIONS Diabetes and hyperglycemia have a greater adverse effect on LV function in South Asians than Europeans, incompletely explained by adverse risk factors. South Asians may require earlier and more aggressive treatment of their cardiometabolic risk factors to reduce risks of LV dysfunction