2,145 research outputs found
Recommended from our members
Dielectric spectroscopy study of thermally-aged extruded model power cables
âModelâ extruded power cables, having a much reduced geometry but using the same extrusion techniques and materials as full-sized cables, have been examined using dielectric spectroscopy techniques to study their thermal ageing effects. Cables insulated with homo-polymer XLPE and co-polymer of XLPE with micron-sized ethylene-butyl-acrylate (EBA) islands were studied by both frequency-domain and time-domain dielectric spectroscopy techniques after accelerated thermal ageing under 135°C for 60 days. In the frequency domain, a frequency response analyzer (FRA) was used to measure the frequency range from 10-4Hz to 1Hz at temperatures from 20°C to 80°C. In the time domain, a special charging/discharging current measurement system was developed to measure the frequencies from 10-1Hz to 102Hz. These techniques were chosen to cope with the extremely low dielectric losses of the model cables. The results are compared with those from new model power cables that were degassed at 80°C for 5 days. Thermal ageing was found to increase the low-frequency conductivity, permittivity and the discharging current. Both homo- and co-polymer cables have substantial increase of dielectric loss after ageing
First direct observation of two protons in the decay of Fe with a TPC
The decay of the ground-state two-proton emitter 45Fe was studied with a
time-projection chamber and the emission of two protons was unambiguously
identified. The total decay energy and the half-life measured in this work
agree with the results from previous experiments. The present result
constitutes the first direct observation of the individual protons in the
two-proton decay of a long-lived ground-state emitter. In parallel, we
identified for the first time directly two-proton emission from 43Cr, a known
beta-delayed two-proton emitter. The technique developped in the present work
opens the way to a detailed study of the mechanism of ground-state as well as
beta-delayed two-proton radioactivity.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure
The Equation of State and the Hugoniot of Laser Shock-Compressed Deuterium
The equation of state and the shock Hugoniot of deuterium are calculated
using a first-principles approach, for the conditions of the recent shock
experiments. We use density functional theory within a classical mapping of the
quantum fluids [ Phys. Rev. Letters, {\bf 84}, 959 (2000) ]. The calculated
Hugoniot is close to the Path-Integral Monte Carlo (PIMC) result. We also
consider the {\it quasi-equilibrium} two-temperature case where the Deuterons
are hotter than the electrons; the resulting quasi-equilibrium Hugoniot mimics
the laser-shock data. The increased compressibility arises from hot
pairs occuring close to the zero of the electron chemical potential.Comment: Four pages; One Revtex manuscript, two postscipt figures; submitted
to PR
Line-field confocal optical coherence tomography: a new tool for non-invasive differential diagnosis of pustular skin disorders
Background The spectrum of pustular skin disorders (PSD) is large and particularly challenging, including inflammatory, infectious and amicrobial diseases. Moreover, although pustules represent the unifying clinical feature, they can be absent or not fully developed in the early stage of the disease. The line-field confocal optical coherence tomography (LC-OCT) is a recently developed imaging technique able to perform a non-invasive, in vivo, examination of the epidermis and upper dermis, reaching very high image resolution and virtual histology. Objectives We aimed to investigate the potentialities of LC-OCT in the non-invasive differential diagnosis of a series of 11 PSD with different aetiology, microscopic features, body location and incidence rates. Materials and Methods Complete LC-OCT imaging (i.e. 2D/3D frames, videos) was performed on a total of 19 patients (10 females and 9 males) aged between 35 and 79 years. Images were blindly evaluated and compared with corresponding histopathologic findings. Results The LC-OCT imaging was able to detect with high accuracy the pustule structure including shape, margins, morphology and cellular content, along with peculiar epidermal and adnexal alterations in each condition, including: Acute Generalized Exanthematous Pustulosis, Generalized pustular psoriasis, Generalized pustular figurate erythema, Subcorneal Pustular Dermatosis, Intraepidermal IgA pustulosis, Palmoplantar pustulosis, Palmoplantar pustular psoriasis. Herpetic whitlow, Acrodermatitis continua of Hallopeau, Vesicopustular Sweet syndrome and Vesicopustular Eosinophilic cellulitis, with pustular appearance, were also compared. Conclusions The new LC-OCT can represent a rapid, non-invasive and painless tool which can help differentiating among PSD of different aetiology and microscopic morphology in clinical mimickers in daily practice
Perioperative mortality and major cardio-pulmonary complications after lung surgery for non-small cell carcinoma
Objectives: A database of patients operated of lung cancer was analyzed to evaluate the predictive risk factors of operative deaths and life-threatening cardiopulmonary complications. Methods: From 1990 to 1997, data were collected concerning 634 consecutive patients undergoing lung resection for non-small cell carcinoma in an academic medical centre and a regional hospital. Operations were managed by a team of experienced surgeons, anaesthesiologists and chest physicians. Operative mortality was defined as death within 30 days of operation and/or intra-hospital death. Respiratory failure, myocardial infarct, heart failure, pulmonary embolism and stroke were considered as major non-fatal complications. Preoperative risk factors, extent of surgery, pTNM staging, perioperative mortality and major cardiopulmonary complications were recorded and evaluated using chi-square statistics and multivariate logistic regression. Results: Complete data were obtained in 621 cases. The overall operative mortality was 3.2% (n=19). Cardiovascular complications (n=10), haemorrhage (n=4) and sepsis or acute lung injury (n=5) were incriminated as the main causative factors. In addition, there were 13 life-threatening complications (2.1%) consisting in strokes (n=4), myocardial infarcts (n=5), pulmonary embolisms (n=1), acute lung injury (n=1) and respiratory failure (n=2). Four independent predictors of operative death were identified: pneumonectomy, evidence of coronary artery disease (CAD), ASA class 3 or 4 and period 1990-93. In addition, the risk of major complications was increased in hypertensive patients and in those belonging to ASA class 3 or 4. A trend towards improved outcome was observed during the second period, from 1994 to 97. Conclusion: Our data demonstrate that perioperative mortality is mainly dependent on the extent of surgery, the presence of CAD and provision of adequate medical and nursing care. Preoperative testing and interventions to reduce the cardiovascular risk factors may help to further improve perioperative outcom
The Path Integral Monte Carlo Calculation of Electronic Forces
We describe a method to evaluate electronic forces by Path Integral Monte
Carlo (PIMC). Electronic correlations, as well as thermal effects, are included
naturally in this method. For fermions, a restricted approach is used to avoid
the ``sign'' problem. The PIMC force estimator is local and has a finite
variance. We applied this method to determine the bond length of H and the
chemical reaction barrier of H+HH+H. At low
temperature, good agreement is obtained with ground state calculations. We
studied the proton-proton interaction in an electron gas as a simple model for
hydrogen impurities in metals. We calculated the force between the two protons
at two electronic densities corresponding to Na () and Al
() using a supercell with 38 electrons. The result is compared to
previous calculations. We also studied the effect of temperature on the
proton-proton interaction. At very high temperature, our result agrees with the
Debye screening of electrons. As temperature decreases, the Debye theory fails
both because of the strong degeneracy of electrons and most importantly, the
formation of electronic bound states around the protons.Comment: 18 pages, 10 figure
The 2-D electron gas at arbitrary spin polarizations and arbitrary coupling strengths: Exchange-correlation energies, distribution functions and spin-polarized phases
We use a recent approach [Phys. Rev. Letters, {\bf 84}, 959 (2000)] for
including Coulomb interactions in quantum systems via a classical mapping of
the pair-distribution functions (PDFs) for a study of the 2-D electron gas. As
in the 3-D case, the ``quantum temperature'' T_q of a classical 2-D Coulomb
fluid which has the same correlation energy as the quantum fluid is determined
as a function of the density parameter r_s. Spin-dependent exchange-correlation
energies are reported. Comparisons of the spin-dependent pair-distributions and
other calculated properties with any available 2-D quantum Monte Carlo (QMC)
results show excellent agreement, strongly favouring more recent QMC data. The
interesting novel physics brought to light by this study are: (a) the
independently determined quantum-temperatures for 3-D and 2-D are found to be
approximately the same, (i.e, universal) function of the classical coupling
constant Gamma. (b) the coupling constant Gamma increases rapidly with r_s in
2-D, making it comparatively more coupled than in 3-D; the stronger coupling in
2-D requires bridge corrections to the hyper- netted-chain method which is
adequate in 3-D; (c) the Helmholtz free energy of spin-polarized and
unpolarized phases have been calculated. The existence of a spin-polarized 2-D
liquid near r_s = 30, is found to be a marginal possibility. These results
pertain to clean uniform 2-D electron systems.Comment: This paper replaces the cond-mat/0109228 submision; the new version
include s more accurate numerical evaluation of the Helmholtz energies of the
para- and ferromagentic 2D fluides at finite temperatures. (Paper accepted
for publication in Phys. Rev. Lett.
The gravitational mass of Proxima Centauri measured with SPHERE from a microlensing event
Proxima Centauri, our closest stellar neighbour, is a low-mass M5 dwarf
orbiting in a triple system. An Earth-mass planet with an 11 day period has
been discovered around this star. The star's mass has been estimated only
indirectly using a mass-luminosity relation, meaning that large uncertainties
affect our knowledge of its properties. To refine the mass estimate, an
independent method has been proposed: gravitational microlensing. By taking
advantage of the close passage of Proxima Cen in front of two background stars,
it is possible to measure the astrometric shift caused by the microlensing
effect due to these close encounters and estimate the gravitational mass of the
lens (Proxima Cen). Microlensing events occurred in 2014 and 2016 with impact
parameters, the closest approach of Proxima Cen to the background star, of
1\farcs6 0\farcs1 and 0\farcs5 0\farcs1, respectively. Accurate
measurements of the positions of the background stars during the last two years
have been obtained with HST/WFC3, and with VLT/SPHERE from the ground. The
SPHERE campaign started on March 2015, and continued for more than two years,
covering 9 epochs. The parameters of Proxima Centauri's motion on the sky,
along with the pixel scale, true North, and centering of the instrument
detector were readjusted for each epoch using the background stars visible in
the IRDIS field of view. The experiment has been successful and the astrometric
shift caused by the microlensing effect has been measured for the second event
in 2016. We used this measurement to derive a mass of
0.150 (an error of 40\%) \MSun for Proxima
Centauri acting as a lens. This is the first and the only currently possible
measurement of the gravitational mass of Proxima Centauri.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, accepted by MNRA
Minimal work principle: proof and counterexamples
The minimal work principle states that work done on a thermally isolated
equilibrium system is minimal for adiabatically slow (reversible) realization
of a given process. This principle, one of the formulations of the second law,
is studied here for finite (possibly large) quantum systems interacting with
macroscopic sources of work. It is shown to be valid as long as the adiabatic
energy levels do not cross. If level crossing does occur, counter examples are
discussed, showing that the minimal work principle can be violated and that
optimal processes are neither adiabatically slow nor reversible. The results
are corroborated by an exactly solvable model.Comment: 13 pages, revtex, 2 eps figure
UVA-1 phototherapy as adjuvant treatment for eosinophilic fasciitis: in vitro and in vivo functional characterization
Introduction: Eosinophilic fasciitis (EF) is a rare autoimmune disease causing progressive induration of dermal, hypodermal, and muscularis fascia. The exact pathogenesis is yet to be fully understood, and a validated therapy protocol still lacks. We here aimed to realize a clinicalâfunctional characterization of these patients. Materials and methods: A total of eight patients (five males, 45 years average) were treated with adjuvant high-dose UVA-1 phototherapy (90 J/cm), after having received the standard systemic immunosuppressive protocol (oral methylprednisolone switched to methotrexate). Body lesion mapping, Localized Scleroderma Assessment Tool (LoSCAT), Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI), High-Resolution Ultrasound (HRUS) (13-17MHz), and ultra HRUS (55â70 MHz) were performed at each examination time taking specific anatomical points. Gene expression analysis at a molecular level and in vitro UVA-1 irradiation was realized on lesional fibroblasts primary cultures. Results: The LoSCAT and the DLQI showed to decrease significantly starting from the last UVA-1 session. A significant reduction in muscularis fascia thickness (â50% on average) was estimated starting from 3 months after the last UVA-1 session and maintained up to 12 months follow-up. Tissues was detected by HRUS. The UVA-1 in vitro irradiation of lesional skin sites cells appeared not to affect their viability. Molecular genes analysis revealed a significant reduction of IL-1Ă and of TGF-Ă genes after phototherapy, while MMPs 1,2,9 gene expression was enhanced. Comment: These preliminary in vivo and in vitro findings suggest that UVA-1 phototherapy is a safe and useful adjuvant therapy able to elicit anti-inflammatory effects and stimulate tissue matrix digestion and remodeling at lesional sites
- âŠ