Inverse Low Gain Avalanche Detectors (iLGADs) for precise tracking and timing applications

Low Gain Avalanche Detector (LGAD) is the baseline sensing technology of the recently proposed Minimum Ionizing Particle (MIP) end-cap timing detectors (MTD) at the Atlas and CMS experiments. The current MTD sensor is designed as a multi-pad matrix detector delivering a poor position resolution, due to the relatively large pad area, around 1 $mm^2$; and a good timing resolution, around 20-30 ps. Besides, in his current technological incarnation, the timing resolution of the MTD LGAD sensors is severely degraded once the MIP particle hits the inter-pad region since the signal amplification is missing for this region. This limitation is named as the LGAD fill-factor problem. To overcome the fill factor problem and the poor position resolution of the MTD LGAD sensors, a p-in-p LGAD (iLGAD) was introduced. Contrary to the conventional LGAD, the iLGAD has a non-segmented deep p-well (the multiplication layer). Therefore, iLGADs should ideally present a constant gain value over all the sensitive region of the device without gain drops between the signal collecting electrodes; in other words, iLGADs should have a 100${\%}$ fill-factor by design. In this paper, tracking and timing performance of the first iLGAD prototypes is presented.Comment: Conference Proceedings of VCI2019, 15th Vienna Conference of Instrumentation, February 18-22, 2019, Vienna, Austri

Nernst Effect and Anomalous Transport in Cuprates: A Preformed-Pair Alternative to the Vortex Scenario

We address those puzzling experiments in underdoped high $T_c$ superconductors which have been associated with normal state "vortices" and show these data can be understood as deriving from preformed pairs with onset temperature $T^* > T_c$. For uncorrelated bosons in small magnetic fields, and arbitrary $T^*/T_c$, we present the exact contribution to \textit{all} transport coefficients. In the overdoped regime our results reduce to those of standard fluctuation theories ($T^*\approx T_c$). Semi-quantitative agreement with Nernst, ac conductivity and diamagnetic measurements is quite reasonable.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures; Title, abstract and contents modified, new references added, figures changed, one more figure added; to be published on PR

Normal-superconducting transition induced by high current densities in YBa2Cu3O7-d melt-textured samples and thin films: Similarities and differences

Current-voltage characteristics of top seeded melt-textured YBa2Cu3O7-d are presented. The samples were cut out of centimetric monoliths. Films characteristics were also measured on microbridges patterned on thin films grown by dc sputtering. For both types of samples, a quasi-discontinuity or quenching was observed for a current density J* several times the critical current density Jc. Though films and bulks much differ in their magnitude of both Jc and J*, a proposal is made as to a common intrinsic origin of the quenching phenomenon. The unique temperature dependence observed for the ratio J*/Jc, as well as the explanation of the pre-quenching regime in terms of a single dissipation model lend support to our proposal.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figures, submitted to Physical Review

Wanted dead or alive : high diversity of macroinvertebrates associated with living and ’dead’ Posidonia oceanica matte

The Mediterranean endemic seagrass Posidonia oceanica forms beds characterised by a dense leaf canopy and a thick root-rhizome ‘matte’. Death of P. oceanica shoots leads to exposure of the underlying matte, which can persist for many years, and is termed ‘dead’ matte. Traditionally, dead matte has been regarded as a degraded habitat. To test whether this assumption was true, the motile macroinvertebrates of adjacent living (with shoots) and dead (without shoots) matte of P. oceanica were sampled in four different plots located at the same depth (5–6 m) in Mellieha Bay, Malta (central Mediterranean). The total number of species and abundance were significantly higher (ANOVA; P<0.05 and P<0.01, respectively) in the dead matte than in living P. oceanica matte, despite the presence of the foliar canopy in the latter. Multivariate analysis (MDS) clearly showed two main groups of assemblages, corresponding to the two matte types. The amphipods Leptocheirus guttatus and Maera grossimana, and the polychaete Nereis rava contributed most to the dissimilarity between the two different matte types. Several unique properties of the dead matte contributing to the unexpected higher number of species and abundance of motile macroinvertebrates associated with this habitat are discussed. The findings have important implications for the conservation of bare P. oceanica matte, which has been generally viewed as a habitat of low ecological value.peer-reviewe

Higher COVID-19 pneumonia risk associated with anti-IFN-α than with anti-IFN-ω auto-Abs in children

We found that 19 (10.4%) of 183 unvaccinated children hospitalized for COVID-19 pneumonia had autoantibodies (auto-Abs) neutralizing type I IFNs (IFN-alpha 2 in 10 patients: IFN-alpha 2 only in three, IFN-alpha 2 plus IFN-omega in five, and IFN-alpha 2, IFN-omega plus IFN-beta in two; IFN-omega only in nine patients). Seven children (3.8%) had Abs neutralizing at least 10 ng/ml of one IFN, whereas the other 12 (6.6%) had Abs neutralizing only 100 pg/ml. The auto-Abs neutralized both unglycosylated and glycosylated IFNs. We also detected auto-Abs neutralizing 100 pg/ml IFN-alpha 2 in 4 of 2,267 uninfected children (0.2%) and auto-Abs neutralizing IFN-omega in 45 children (2%). The odds ratios (ORs) for life-threatening COVID-19 pneumonia were, therefore, higher for auto-Abs neutralizing IFN-alpha 2 only (OR [95% CI] = 67.6 [5.7-9,196.6]) than for auto-Abs neutralizing IFN-. only (OR [95% CI] = 2.6 [1.2-5.3]). ORs were also higher for auto-Abs neutralizing high concentrations (OR [95% CI] = 12.9 [4.6-35.9]) than for those neutralizing low concentrations (OR [95% CI] = 5.5 [3.1-9.6]) of IFN-omega and/or IFN-alpha 2