923 research outputs found
Performance analysis of peak tracking techniques for fiber Bragg grating interrogation systems
In this paper, we propose a spectral correlation-based technique for tracking the wavelength shift of a fiber Bragg grating. We compared this approach, by means of a Monte Carlo numerical simulation, to the typical peak tracking techniques applied in classic interrogation systems. As result, we obtained a considerable gain in terms of noise tolerance (about 20 dB), which can be further incremented by selecting large-bandwidth gratings.
This permits to increase the power budget of a fiber Bragg grating interrogator without changing the optical layout, overcoming classical limitations of commercial and custom systems. Penalties due to the non-idealities have been evaluated through the same Monte Carlo approach. Finally, we discuss a practical application of the peak tracking techniques to a fiber Bragg grating-based weight sensor, in which we applied the spectral correlation to track both the Bragg wavelength position, spectral deformations due to high strain, and spectral non-linearity
A modified technique of orthotopic transplant of the kidney in rabbits
In this study kidneys were harvested from bred-for-research cats weighing 4 to 5 kg. General principles of donor bilateral nephrectomy en bloc with aorta, vena cava, renal vessels, and ureters were followed. After the harvest the grafts were placed in lactated Ringer slush. A cuff was prepared on the renal vein over a 10 French plastic tube. The aorta was divided and left in connection with the renal artery at each side. Twenty female checkered Flemish giant rabbits weighing 4.0-6.0 kg served as recipients. After premedication with 40 mg/kg of ketamine, anesthesia was maintained with repeated doses (every 10-15 min) of a 0.1-mL mixture of 5 parts ketamine and 1 part acepromazine diluted 50% in a normal saline. Arterial pressure, CVP, blood gases, and temperature were monitored. Through a limited midline incision a native left nephrectomy was performed. The venous anastomosis was performed with a cuff technique without clamping the vena cava (which causes severe hemodynamic instability); the anastomotic time was 2-3 min. The arterial anastomosis was performed with an end-to-side aorta-to-aorta anastomosis; the anastomotic time was 5 to 7 min. There were no episodes of venous or arterial thrombosis. The donor procedure took approximately 40 min, and the backtable preparation of the graft an additional 45 to 60 min. Preparation of the recipient for the anastomosis took 15 min and the anastomotic time (warm ischemia) was 13 +/- 5 min. In this model suitable for xenograft research the duration of the surgery in the recipient has been greatly reduced because of (1) the previous backtable preparation of the graft, and (2) the cuff technique used for venous anastomosis. The present anesthesia regimen and careful hemodynamic monitoring were also important in the success of this model
Native NIR-emitting single colour centres in CVD diamond
Single-photon sources are a fundamental element for developing quantum
technologies, and sources based on colour centres in diamonds are among the
most promising candidates. The well-known NV centres are characterized by
several limitations, thus few other defects have recently been considered. In
the present work, we characterize in detail native efficient single colour
centres emitting in the near infra-red in both standard IIa single-crystal and
electronic-grade polycrystalline commercial CVD diamond samples. In the former
case, a high-temperature annealing process in vacuum is necessary to induce the
formation/activation of luminescent centres with good emission properties,
while in the latter case the annealing process has marginal beneficial effects
on the number and performances of native centres in commercially available
samples. Although displaying significant variability in several photo physical
properties (emission wavelength, emission rate instabilities, saturation
behaviours), these centres generally display appealing photophysical properties
for applications as single photon sources: short lifetimes, high emission rates
and strongly polarized light. The native centres are tentatively attributed to
impurities incorporated in the diamond crystal during the CVD growth of
high-quality type IIa samples, and offer promising perspectives in
diamond-based photonics.Comment: 27 pages, 10 figures. Submitted to "New Journal of Phsyics",
NJP-100003.R
Mid Campanian-Lower Maastrichtian magnetostratigraphy of the James Ross Basin, Antarctica: Chronostratigraphical implications
The James Ross Basin, in the northern Antarctic Peninsula, exposes which is probably the world thickest and most complete Late Cretaceous sedimentary succession of southern high latitudes. Despite its very good exposures and varied and abundant fossil fauna, precise chronological determination of its infill is still lacking. We report results from a magnetostratigraphic study on shelfal sedimentary rocks of the Marambio Group, southeastern James Ross Basin, Antarctica. The succession studied covers a ~1,200 m-thick stratigraphic interval within the Hamilton Point, Sanctuary Cliffs and Karlsen Cliffs Members of the Snow Hill Island Formation, the Haslum Crag Formation, and the lower López de Bertodano Formation. The basic chronological reference framework is given by ammonite assemblages, which indicate a Late Campanian – Early Maastrichtian age for the studied units. Magnetostratigraphic samples were obtained from five partial sections located on James Ross and Snow Hill islands, the results from which agree partially with this previous biostratigraphical framework. Seven geomagnetic polarity reversals are identified in this work, allowing to identify the Chron C32/C33 boundary in Ammonite Assemblage 8-1, confirming the Late Campanian age of the Hamilton Point Member. However, the identification of the Chron C32/C31 boundary in Ammonite Assemblage 8-2 assigns the base of the Sanctuary Cliffs Member to the early Maastrichtian, which differs from the Late Campanian age previously assigned by ammonite biostratigraphy. This magnetostratigraphy spans ~14 Ma of sedimentary succession and together with previous partial magnetostratigraphies on Early-Mid Campanian and Middle Maastrichtian to Danian columns permits a complete and continuous record of the Late Cretaceous distal deposits of the James Ross Basin. This provides the required chronological resolution to solve the intra-basin and global correlation problems of the Late Cretaceous in the Southern Hemisphere in general and in the Weddellian province in particular, given by endemism and diachronic extinctions on invertebrate fossils, including ammonites. The new chronostratigraphic scheme allowed us to calculate sediment accumulation rates for almost the entire Late Cretaceous infill of the distal James Ross Basin (the Marambio Group), showing a monotonous accumulation for more than 8 Myr during the upper Campanian and a dramatic increase during the early Maastrichtian, controlled by tectonic and/or eustatic causes.Fil: Milanese, Florencia Nidia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientÃficas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Geociencias Básicas, Aplicadas y Ambientales de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Geociencias Básicas, Aplicadas y Ambientales de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Olivero, Eduardo Bernardo. Universidad Nacional de Tierra del Fuego; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientÃficas y Técnicas. Centro Austral de Investigaciones CientÃficas; ArgentinaFil: Raffi, MarÃa Eugenia. Universidad Nacional de Tierra del Fuego; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientÃficas y Técnicas. Centro Austral de Investigaciones CientÃficas; ArgentinaFil: Franceschinis, Pablo Reinaldo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientÃficas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Geociencias Básicas, Aplicadas y Ambientales de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Geociencias Básicas, Aplicadas y Ambientales de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Gallo, Leandro César. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientÃficas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Geociencias Básicas, Aplicadas y Ambientales de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Geociencias Básicas, Aplicadas y Ambientales de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Skinner, Steven M.. California State University; Estados UnidosFil: Mitchell, Ross N.. California Institute of Technology; Estados UnidosFil: Kirschvink, Joseph L.. California Institute of Technology; Estados Unidos. Tokyo Institute of Technology; JapónFil: Rapalini, Augusto Ernesto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientÃficas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Geociencias Básicas, Aplicadas y Ambientales de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Geociencias Básicas, Aplicadas y Ambientales de Buenos Aires; Argentin
Direct experimental observation of nonclassicality in ensembles of single photon emitters
In this work we experimentally demonstrate for the first time a recently
proposed criterion adressed to detect nonclassical behavior in the fluorescence
emission of ensembles of single-photon emitters. In particular, we apply the
method to study clusters of NV centres in diamond observed via
single-photon-sensitive confocal microscopy. Theoretical considerations on the
behavior of the parameter at any arbitrary order in presence of poissonian
noise are presented and, finally, the opportunity of detecting manifold
coincidences is discussed
Influence of the bias-voltage on the anchoring energy for nematic liquid crystals
The influence of the bias-voltage on the anisotropic part of the nematic surface energy is analyzed. The experimental data show a strong dependence of the anchoring strength on the bias-voltage when the electrodes of the nematic cell are covered with WO3. The observed dependence can be interpreted taking into account the ions dissolved in the liquid crystal. We propose a model in which the effect of the bias-voltage is to collect the ions near the electrodes, in a surface layer whose thickness is of the order of the Debye’s screening length. The surplus of electric field due to this ions confinement gives rise to an electrostatic contribution to the total energy that can be considered as a surface energy. The proposed model is in good agreement with the experimental data. The model is used to interpret the observed independence of the anchoring strength on the bias-voltage when the indium-oxide electrode is covered with a film of polyimide, or it is without any covering. The influence of a charge emission from the electrodes under the bias voltage on the anchoring
energy is also analyzed. Possible applications of the observed phenomenon are discussed
Photo-physical properties of He-related color centers in diamond
Diamond is a promising platform for the development of technological
applications in quantum optics and photonics. The quest for color centers with
optimal photo-physical properties has led in recent years to the search for
novel impurity-related defects in this material. Here, we report on a
systematic investigation of the photo-physical properties of two He-related
(HR) emission lines at 535 nm and 560 nm created in three different diamond
substrates upon implantation with 1.3 MeV He+ ions and subsequent annealing.
The spectral features of the HR centers were studied in an "optical grade"
diamond substrate as a function of several physical parameters, namely the
measurement temperature, the excitation wavelength and the intensity of
external electric fields. The emission lifetimes of the 535 nm and 560 nm lines
were also measured by means of time-gated photoluminescence measurements,
yielding characteristic decay times of (29 +- 5) ns and (106 +- 10) ns,
respectively. The Stark shifting of the HR centers under the application of an
external electrical field was observed in a CVD diamond film equipped with
buried graphitic electrodes, suggesting a lack of inversion symmetry in the
defects' structure. Furthermore, the photoluminescence mapping under 405 nm
excitation of a "detector grade" diamond sample implanted at a 1x1010 cm-2 He+
ion fluence enabled to identify the spectral features of both the HR emission
lines from the same localized optical spots. The reported results provide a
first insight towards the understanding of the structure of He-related defects
in diamond and their possible utilization in practical applicationsComment: 9 pages, 3 figure
Single-photon-emitting optical centers in diamond fabricated upon Sn implantation
The fabrication of luminescent defects in single-crystal diamond upon Sn
implantation and annealing is reported. The relevant spectral features of the
optical centers (emission peaks at 593.5 nm, 620.3 nm, 630.7 nm and 646.7 nm)
are attributed to Sn-related defects through the correlation of their
photoluminescence (PL) intensity with the implantation fluence. Single
Sn-related defects were identified and characterized through the acquisition of
their second-order auto-correlation emission functions, by means of
Hanbury-Brown-Twiss interferometry. The investigation of their single-photon
emission regime as a function of excitation laser power revealed that
Sn-related defects are based on three-level systems with a 6 ns radiative decay
lifetime. In a fraction of the studied centers, the observation of a blinking
PL emission is indicative of the existence of a dark state. Furthermore,
absorption dependence from the polarization of the excitation radiation with
about 45 percent contrast was measured. This work shed light on the existence
of a new optical center associated with a group-IV impurity in diamond, with
similar photo-physical properties to the already well-known Si-V and Ge-V
emitters, thus providing results of interest from both the fundamental and
applicative points of view.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure
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