Teaching transgender and gender-expansive singers in the secondary choral classroom

Transgender and gender-expansive (TGE) students encounter harassment, microaggressions, and adverse experiences in schools (Kosciw et al., 2022). In music classrooms, these students may find a safer space, although the choral classroom, in particular, can be a highly gendered environment (Palkki, 2019). Researchers have described the experiences of TGE students in music classes (Bartolome, 2016; Nichols, 2013; Silveira, 2019). Some quantitative studies exist examining the experiences and attitudes of music teachers working alongside TGE students (Cates, 2022; Silveira & Goff, 2016). However, there is little to no qualitative research that examines the experiences of choral music educators who work with TGE students. In this study I aimed to explore and understand the experiences of four teacher participants who worked alongside TGE students in their choral music classrooms. Two research questions guided this study: 1. What experiences or circumstances might act as catalysts for change for a secondary choral teacher teaching transgender and gender-expansive students? 2. How does the experience of teaching a transgender or gender-expansive student change a secondary choral music teacher's perspective, approach, or classroom? Data were gathered during the fall and winter of the 2021–2022 school year and included semi-structured interviews and artifacts. Interview transcripts served as the primary source of data. Participants shared their own individual experiences as they worked alongside TGE students and themes were organized across individual case studies and a cross-case analysis. The participants made changes to their practice and pedagogy as they worked with TGE students. Cross-case analysis uncovered the themes of isolation, autonomy, and inattention as catalysts for change for teachers as they worked alongside TGE students. Teacher participants also changed their practice regarding language, uniform policies, and voicing. The findings from this study add to the growing literature about the experiences of TGE students in music classes

Analysis and optimization of propagation losses in LiNbO3 optical waveguides produced by swift heavy-ion irradiation

The propagation losses (PL) of lithium niobate optical planar waveguides fabricated by swift heavy-ion irradiation (SHI), an alternative to conventional ion implantation, have been investigated and optimized. For waveguide fabrication, congruently melting LiNbO3 substrates were irradiated with F ions at 20 MeV or 30 MeV and fluences in the range 1013–1014 cm−2. The influence of the temperature and time of post-irradiation annealing treatments has been systematically studied. Optimum propagation losses lower than 0.5 dB/cm have been obtained for both TE and TM modes, after a two-stage annealing treatment at 350 and 375∘C. Possible loss mechanisms are discussed

Atomic nanofabrication . . . .

The method of neutral atom lithography allows to transfer a 2D intensity modulation of an atomic beam imposed by an inhomogeneous light field to a substrate. The complexity of the pattern depends on the properties of the light field constructed from the superposition of multiple laser beams. For the design of suitable light fields we present a mathematical model with a corresponding numerical simulation of the so called inverse problem. Furthermore, details of an experiment carried out with a holographically reconstructed light field are discussed