CMOS-compatible MEMS processes and their application to the development of biosensors

The research activity developed during my Ph.D. program was focused on CMOS-compatible MEMS (Micro-Electro-Mechanical System) processes and their application to the development of biosensors. A first activity has been oriented towards the development of a technique to reduce the etching times and increase the freedom in the design of large suspended microstructures fabricated by bulk anisotropic etching of silicon. This goal was obtained by pre-patterning of the membrane with periodic convex-corner patterns. Different periodic patterns are proposed and analyzed, experimental release times for dielectric membranes are presented. The second activity research was focused on the design and fabrication improvement of a magnetically actuated microbalance for biosensing application. A CMOS-compatible protocol for covalent bonding of organo-functional silanes (to be used as link sites for biomolecular probes) on the microbalance surface was developed. The functionality of the device as a gravimetric sensor was verified. Moreover, a single chip integrated electronic oscillator based on the MEMS resonator was designed. A first prototype of circuit was implemented and characterized

How Does Learning Affect Market Liquidity? A Simulation Analysis of a Double-Auction Financial Market with Portfolio Traders.

We study the relationship between liquidity and prices in an artificial financial market where portfolio traders with limited resources interact through a continuous, electronic open book. We depart from the standard asset pricing framework in two ways. First, we assume that investors have incomplete information about the distribution of returns. Second, we model the portfolio choice problem using prospect-type preferences. We model the utility function in terms of deviations of the portfolio growth rate from a specified target growth rate, and we assume that investors are more sensitive to downside movements. We show that the parameters defining the learning process affect the price dynamics through their impact on the variability of the market liquidity

Putable Common Stock

The underpricing of initial public offerings is a well-documented phenomenon in the financial literature. The purpose of this paper is to show how this empirical regularity could be solved by an appropriate choice of financing instruments, namely, by an intelligent mix of common stocks and put options. The latter additional instrument, modeled in this paper as a lump sum paid by insiders of the firm to outsiders, helps alleviate the asymmetry of information existing between insiders and outsiders of the corporation, allowing good firms to sell the package they offer at the full information value

Konzeption und prototypische Entwicklung eines web- und datenbankbasierenden Raumreservierungssystems im Umfeld einer non-territorialen Büroumgebung

Gegenstand der hier vorgestellten Arbeit ist die Konzeption und prototypische Entwicklung eines web- und datenbankbasierenden Raumreservierungssystems im Umfeld eines non-territorialen Büros. Zunächst wird die Notwendigkeit einer solchen Anwendung unter arbeitswirtschaftlichen Aspekten und dem non-territorialen Anwendungsumfeld hergeleitet, das - durch die spezifischen Arbeits- und Raumkonzepte - Einfluss auf die Konzeption der Anwendung nimmt. Auf der Grundlage dieser Ergebnisse erfolgt die Entwicklung des Raumreservierungssystems, dessen informationelle Basis in einem MySQL-Datenbank abgelegt und mittels der Skriptsprache PHP an das webbasierte Front-End angebunden wird. Neben der technischen Konzeption finden auch nutzerorientierte Aspekte Berücksichtigung, die Themen wie Screen-Design und Usability ansprechen. Zur besseren Veranschaulichung und zum Zwecke der Prototypentwicklung wird ein dreidimensionales Grundrissmodell konstruiert, das die Belegungssituation dynamisch widerspiegelt und zusätzliche Informationen zu den Raumtypen offeriert. Die Ausarbeitung bezieht sich auf die technische, personelle und räumliche Infrastruktur des Office Innovation Centers der Fraunhofer Gesellschaft am Institut für Arbeitswirtschaft und Organisation

Ehrlichia infection in Italy.

Immunoglobulin M seroconversion to Ehrlichia chaffeensis was documented in U.S. citizens bitten by ticks in Sardinia. Seven cases of suspected ehrlichiosis in local residents were not confirmed by laboratory tests. In Alpine areas antibodies to E. phagocytophila were detected in persons at high risk, i.e., foresters (8.6%) and hunters (5.5%), and in controls (1.5%). Of 153 persons bitten by ticks, only one was Ehrlichia antibody-positive after 6 months

Analysis of movement in primary maize roots

AbstractStudying plant root kinematics is important for understanding certain aspects of root growth and movement, which are strictly correlated in plants. However, there is little available data on autonomous movements in plant roots, such as nutations, and the data that are available are poorly described. We investigated the autonomous movements during growth in primary maize roots by estimating the main kinematic parameters of nutations (i.e., the period of duration and amplitude) and the growth rate. The estimations of nutation parameters were performed by developing dedicated methods, which are based on the analysis of root tip displacement and tip velocity. The data relative to the tip displacements were obtained using tip tracing software developed by our team specifically for this purpose. The results confirmed that the nutational phenomenon covers the continuous range of periods and amplitudes, with certain dominant period-amplitude types, which we clustered into three groups: i) amplitudes less than 0.1 mm and 4–16 min periods, ii) amplitudes less than 0.1 mm and 20–120 min periods, and iii) amplitudes greater than 0.1 mm and 24–120 min periods

INFLUENCE OF THE BUD POSITION IN THE SACCHARUM OFFICINARUM STALK ON THE INITIAL GROWTH OF SPROUTS

The use of buds in different positions on the thatch for planting can become a problem, as each part has different concentrations of reserves and hormonal balances, acting differently on the sprouts. This study aimed to evaluate the initial growth of seedlings from sugarcane buds selected from different parts of the plant stalk. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse using a randomized block design arranged in a 2 x 3 factorial scheme, consisting of two sugarcane varieties and three bud collection positions, with four replications. Buds from the base, middle, and apex of the sugarcane stalk were used. The sprouting speed index for the RB922579 variety, for buds from the base, middle, and apex, was 115, 367, and 339% higher than the SP803280 variety. Similarly, the values for the sprouting coefficient were 67.8, 78.3, and 191.6%, respectively. The apex buds sprouted 65% more than the base buds. The RB922579 variety was superior to the SP803280 variety regarding sprouting and biometric traits, with only the opposite occurring for sprouting speed. Buds from the apex of the stem provide greater sprouting, sprouting speed index, and sprouting speed coefficient than buds from the base and middle of the stem. Sprouting was not correlated with the biometric traits, which were positively correlated.A utilização de gemas em diferentes posições no colmo para o plantio pode se tornar um problema, devido cada parte possuir diferentes concentrações de reservas e balanços hormonais, agindo de forma diferente nas brotações. Assim, esse estudo teve por objetivo avaliar o crescimento inicial de mudas provenientes de gemas de cana-de-açúcar selecionadas de diferentes partes do colmo da planta. O experimento foi conduzido em casa de vegetação utilizando o delineamento experimental em blocos casualizados, em esquema fatorial 2 x 3, consistindo em duas variedades de cana-de-açúcar e três posições de coleta das gemas, com quatro repetições. Foram utilizadas gemas da base, do meio e da ponta do colmo da cana-de-açúcar. O índice de velocidade de brotação para a cultivar RB922579, para as gemas da base, meio e ponta foram 115, 367 e 339% superior a cultivar SP803280, respectivamente. Da mesma forma, os valores para o coeficiente de brotação foram de 67,8, 78,3 e 191,6%, respectivamente. A brotação das gemas da ponta foram 65% superior ao observado nas gemas da base. A cultivar RB922579 foi superior a cultivar SP803280 nas características de brotação e biométricas, sendo que apenas na velocidade de brotação ocorreu inversão. Gemas provenientes do ápice do colmo proporcionam maior brotação, índice de velocidade de brotação e coeficiente de velocidade de brotação em relação às gemas da base e do meio do colmo. A brotação não se correlacionou com as caraterísticas biométricas, que apresentam correlação positiva entre si

Preliminary data on the genetic variability of the fan mussel <i>Pinna nobilis</i> in the Northern Sardinia = Dati preliminari sulla variabilità genetica del mollusco bivalve <i>Pinna nobilis</i> nella Sardegna settentrionale

The fan mussel Pinna nobilis Linnaeus, 1758 is one of the most endangered Mediterranean bivalve. After a reduction of its distribution as a consequence of anthropic factors, the environmental politics led to a new demographic increasing of individuals in some Mediterranean regions. This work aimed to shed some light on the genetic structure of two new-raised populations in northern Sardinia

A gonadotropin-releasing hormone type neuropeptide with a high affinity binding site for copper(ii) and nickel(ii).

In vertebrates gonadotropin-releasing hormone I (GnRH-I) is a key regulator of reproductive development and function. The receptor-binding activity of human GnRH-I can be modified by the presence of divalent copper. Thus, copper binding to N-terminal amino acids in GnRH-I induces structural changes that influence receptor interactions and downstream intracellular signalling cascades. It is not known if copper-binding is restricted to human GnRH-I or if it is also a feature of GnRH-type peptides that have been identified in other taxa. To investigate this, we have characterised copper binding to a recently discovered GnRH-type peptide from the starfish Asterias rubens (ArGnRH). Using a range of spectroscopic and biophysical techniques we show that this peptide can bind copper(ii) and nickel(ii). Copper(ii) is bound in a square-planar, high-affinity (Kd ∼ 10-12 M) site incorporating four nitrogen donor atoms from a histidine imidazole group, two amides and the N-terminal amine group. The ArGnRH copper affinity and geometry are quite different to GnRH-I suggesting the copper sites have evolved to suit the environment the peptides are exposed to. By comparing the copper binding sites in ArGnRH and human GnRH-I and conducting a phylogenetic analysis of GnRH-type peptide sequences from a range of species, we predict that copper-binding is an evolutionarily ancient feature of GnRH-type peptides that has been retained, modified or lost in different lineages

Financial development and intergenerational education mobility

Using years of education as a measure of status, we study the relationship between financial development and intergenerational mobility, focusing on human capital investments boosted by financial deepening. We consider a set of indices to capture different components of the overall intergenerational education mobility. Using a sample of 39 countries, we find that financial development is related to structural mobility but not to exchange mobility. In particular, while we detect an inverted U-shaped relationship between financial development and structural mobility, we do not find any significant relationship with exchange mobility. (C) 2018 Africagrowth Institute. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V