A Study on Simulation of Flood Inundation in a Coastal Urban Area Using a Two-Dimensional Numerical Model

Source: ICHE Conference Archive - https://mdi-de.baw.de/icheArchiv

Systematic DC/AC Performance Benchmarking of Sub-7-nm Node FinFETs and Nanosheet FETs

In this paper, we systematically evaluate dc/ac performances of sub-7-nm node fin field-effect transistors (FinFETs) and nanosheet FETs (NSEETs) using fully calibrated 3-D TCAD. The stress effects of all the devices were carefully considered in terms of carrier mobility and velocity averaged within the active regions. For detailed AC analysis, the parasitic capacitances were extracted and decomposed into several components using TCAD RF simulation platform. FinFETs improved the gate electrostatics by decreasing fin widths to 5 nm, but the fin heights were unable to improve RC delay due to the trade-off between on-state currents and gate capacitances. The NSEETs have better on-state currents than do the FinFETs because of larger effective widths (W-eff) under the same device area. Particularly p-type NSEETs have larger compressive stress within the active regions affected by metal gate encircling all around the channels, thus improving carrier mobility and velocity much. On the other hand, the NSEETs have larger gate capacitances because larger W-eff increase the gate-to-source/drain overlap and outer-fringing capacitances. In spite of that, sub-7-nm node NSEETs attain better RC delay than sub-7-nm node as well as 10-nm node FinFETs for standard and high performance applications, showing better chance for scaling down to sub-7-nm node and beyond.11Ysciescopu

Bottom oxide Bulk FinFETs Without Punch-Through-Stopper for Extending Toward 5-nm Node

Structural advancements of 5-nm node bulk fin-shaped field-effect transistors (FinFETs) without punch-through-stopper (PTS) were introduced using fully calibrated TCAD for the first time. It is challenging to scale down conventional bulk FinFETs into 5-nm technology node due to the sub-fin leakage increase. Meanwhile, bottom oxide deposition after anisotropic etching for source/drain (S/D) epi formation prevents the sub-fin leakage effectively even without the PTS doping, thus achieving better gate-to-channel controllability. Bottom oxide FinFETs also have smaller gate capacitances than do conventional FinFETs because the parasitic capacitances decrease by smaller S/D epi separated from the bottom Si layer, which reduces junction and outer-fringing capacitances. But smaller S/D epi decreases the stresses along the channel direction, and the effective widths decrease by the bottom oxide layer blocking the current paths at the bottom side of fin channels. Furthermore, increase of the interconnect resistance and capacitance parasitics down to 5-nm node diminishes the improvements of total delays as the interconnect wire length increases greatly. In spite of these drawbacks, 5-nm node bottom oxide FinFETs achieve smaller total delays than do the 7-nm node conventional FinFETs, especially for low-power applications, thus promising for the scalability of bulk FinFETs along with simple and reliable process by avoiding PTS step.11Ysciescopu

Acinetobacter baumannii invades epithelial cells and outer membrane protein A mediates interactions with epithelial cells

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Acinetobacter baumannii </it>is a nosocomial pathogen of increasing importance, but the pathogenic mechanism of this microorganism has not been fully explored. This study investigated the potential of <it>A. baumannii </it>to invade epithelial cells and determined the role of <it>A. baumannii </it>outer membrane protein A (AbOmpA) in interactions with epithelial cells.</p> <p>Results</p> <p><it>A. baumannii </it>invaded epithelial cells by a zipper-like mechanism, which is associated with microfilament- and microtubule-dependent uptake mechanisms. Internalized bacteria were located in the membrane-bound vacuoles. Pretreatment of recombinant AbOmpA significantly inhibited the adherence to and invasion of <it>A. baumannii </it>in epithelial cells. Cell invasion of isogenic AbOmpA^-mutant significantly decreased as compared with wild-type bacteria. In a murine pneumonia model, wild-type bacteria exhibited a severe lung pathology and induced a high bacterial burden in blood, whereas AbOmpA^-mutant was rarely detected in blood.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p><it>A. baumannii </it>adheres to and invades epithelial cells. AbOmpA plays a major role in the interactions with epithelial cells. These findings contribute to the understanding of <it>A. baumannii </it>pathogenesis in the early stage of bacterial infection.</p

Temperature dependence of Mott transition in VO_2 and programmable critical temperature sensor

The temperature dependence of the Mott metal-insulator transition (MIT) is studied with a VO_2-based two-terminal device. When a constant voltage is applied to the device, an abrupt current jump is observed with temperature. With increasing applied voltages, the transition temperature of the MIT current jump decreases. We find a monoclinic and electronically correlated metal (MCM) phase between the abrupt current jump and the structural phase transition (SPT). After the transition from insulator to metal, a linear increase in current (or conductivity) is shown with temperature until the current becomes a constant maximum value above T_{SPT}=68^oC. The SPT is confirmed by micro-Raman spectroscopy measurements. Optical microscopy analysis reveals the absence of the local current path in micro scale in the VO_2 device. The current uniformly flows throughout the surface of the VO_2 film when the MIT occurs. This device can be used as a programmable critical temperature sensor.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Observation and Numerical Prediction of 2011 East Japan Tsunami Inpacific Ocean

Source: ICHE Conference Archive - https://mdi-de.baw.de/icheArchiv

Simple Assessment of Red Blood Cell Deformability Using Blood Pressure in Capillary Channels for Effective Detection of Subpopulations in Red Blood Cells

Assessment of red blood cell (RBC) deformability as a biomarker requires expensive equipment to induce and monitor deformation. In this study, we present a simple method for quantifying RBC deformability. We designed a microfluidic channel consisting of a micropillar channel and a coflowing channel connected in series. When blood (loading volume = 100 μL) was injected continuously into the device under constant pressure (1 bar), we monitored the boundary position of the blood and the reference flow in the coflowing channel. A decrease in the deformability of RBCs results in a growing pressure drop in the micropillar channel, which is mirrored by a decrease in blood pressure in the coflowing channel. Analysis of this temporal variation in blood pressure allowed us to define the clogging index (CI) as a new marker of RBC deformability. As a result of the analytical study and numerical simulation, we have demonstrated that the coflowing channel may serve as a pressure sensor that allows the measurement of blood pressure with accuracy. We have shown experimentally that a higher hematocrit level (i.e., more than 40%) does not have a substantial influence on CI. The CI tended to increase to a higher degree in glutaraldehyde-treated hardened RBCs. Furthermore, we were able to resolve the difference in deformability of RBCs between two different RBC density subfractions in human blood. In summary, our approach using CI provides reliable information on the deformability of RBCs, which is comparable to the readouts obtained by ektacytometry. We believe that our microfluidic device would be a useful tool for evaluating the deformability of RBCs, which does not require expensive instruments (e.g., high-speed camera) or time-consuming micro-PIV analysis

Enhanced cardiac expression of two isoforms of matrix metalloproteinase-2 in experimental diabetes mellitus.

BackgroundDiabetic cardiomyopathy (DM CMP) is defined as cardiomyocyte damage and ventricular dysfunction directly associated with diabetes independent of concomitant coronary artery disease or hypertension. Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), especially MMP-2, have been reported to underlie the pathogenesis of DM CMP by increasing extracellular collagen content.PurposeWe hypothesized that two discrete MMP-2 isoforms (full length MMP-2, FL-MMP-2; N-terminal truncated MMP-2, NTT-MMP-2) are induced by high glucose stimulation in vitro and in an experimental diabetic heart model.MethodsRat cardiomyoblasts (H9C2 cells) were examined to determine whether high glucose can induce the expression of the two isoforms of MMP-2. For the in vivo study, we used the streptozotocin-induced DM mouse heart model and age-matched controls. The changes of each MMP-2 isoform expression in the diabetic mice hearts were determined using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Immunohistochemical stains were conducted to identify the location and patterns of MMP-2 isoform expression. Echocardiography was performed to compare and analyze the changes in cardiac function induced by diabetes.ResultsQuantitative RT-PCR and immunofluorescence staining showed that the two MMP-2 isoforms were strongly induced by high glucose stimulation in H9C2 cells. Although no definite histologic features of diabetic cardiomyopathy were observed in diabetic mice hearts, left ventricular systolic dysfunction was determined by echocardiography. Quantitative RT-PCR and IHC staining showed this abnormal cardiac function was accompanied with the increases in the mRNA levels of the two isoforms of MMP-2 and related to intracellular localization.ConclusionTwo isoforms of MMP-2 were induced by high glucose stimulation in vitro and in a Type 1 DM mouse heart model. Further study is required to examine the role of these isoforms in DM CMP

Whole-brain imaging with receive-only multichannel top-hat dipole antenna RF coil at 7 T MRI

This work investigates the construction and performance of an eight-channel top-hat dipole receiver RF coil with a capacitive plate to increase the longitudinal whole-brain coverage and receiver sensitivity gain in the brain at 7 T MRI. The construction method for top-hat dipole-based receiver RF coil by adjusting the length and structure corresponding to each channel consists of tuning, matching, balun, and detuning circuitry. Electromagnetic simulations were analyzed on a 3-D human model to evaluate B1+ efficiency and specific absorption rate deposition. Coil performance was evaluated in the human head imaging in vivo. EM simulation results indicated a higher B1− sensitivity in the brain and z-directional coverage of the proposed eight-channel receiver RF coil. The MR images were acquired with an identical field of view showing the receiver coverage improvement in the brain when capacitive plates are used. The MR images also show the clear visibility of the complete set of the cervical vertebrae as well as the spinal cord. The acquired MRI results demonstrate the capability of the proposed RF coil to increase the receiver coverage in the longitudinal direction. Moreover, the B1+ efficiency, as well as receiver sensitivity in the brain, can be substantially improved with the use of multilayered capacitive plates of proper shape and size in conjunction with an RF coil