Towards reliable micromagnetic detection of white etching layers in deep drilled quenched and tempered steels

Ultrafine-grained white etching layers (WEL) can be formed in the machining of steels, titanium alloys and nickel-based superalloys due to high forces and temperatures in the contact area of the tool and the workpiece. In general, these layers are associated with very high hardness and brittleness as well as (tensile) residual stresses. These mechanical properties of WEL can have a severely negative impact on the lifetime and reliability of components. As a result, it is of crucial importance to reliably detect WEL, understand the underlying mechanisms and physical relationships in their formation and finally control their emergence in machining. Currently, WEL are usually detected using destructive metallographic analyses. In recent years, therefore, the applicability of alternative non-destructive methods for the reliable detection of WEL has been increasingly investigated. In this context, methods such as X-ray diffraction, acoustic emission (AE) and eddy current testing were used. The analysis of magnetic Barkhausen noise (MBN) was identified as a particularly suitable method for the detection of WEL in steels with a very high potential for application in production technology. In this study, MBN analysis is employed for the time-efficient and non-destructive detection of WEL in deep drilled components made of the quenched and tempered steel AISI 4140. It is shown that WEL form in drilling, especially at high cutting speeds and feeds. The use of coated guide pads and cutting edges promotes the formation of WEL. Hardness in the WEL exceeds the hardness of the bulk material up to three times. Specimens with thick WEL can be separated from specimens free of WEL by significantly lower maximum magnetic Barkhausen noise amplitudes

Controlling fast transport of cold trapped ions

We realize fast transport of ions in a segmented micro-structured Paul trap. The ion is shuttled over a distance of more than 10^4 times its groundstate wavefunction size during only 5 motional cycles of the trap (280 micro meter in 3.6 micro seconds). Starting from a ground-state-cooled ion, we find an optimized transport such that the energy increase is as low as 0.10 $\pm$ 0.01 motional quanta. In addition, we demonstrate that quantum information stored in a spin-motion entangled state is preserved throughout the transport. Shuttling operations are concatenated, as a proof-of-principle for the shuttling-based architecture to scalable ion trap quantum computing.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Cytidine-5-diphosphocholine reduces microvascular permeability during experimental endotoxemia

Background: Microvascular permeability and leukocyte adhesion are pivotal mechanisms in sepsis pathophysiology contributing to the development of shock and mortality. No effective pharmacological therapy is currently available to restore microvascular barrier function in sepsis. Cholinergic mediators have been demonstrated to exert anti-inflammatory effects during inflammation. Cytidine-5-diphosphocholine (CDP-choline) is an extensively studied cholinergic drug due to its brain protective characteristics in cerebrovascular diseases. This study evaluated the effect of CDP-choline on microvascular permeability and leukocyte adhesion during endotoxemia. Methods: Macromolecular leakage, leukocyte adhesion, and venular wall shear rate were examined in mesenteric postcapillary venules of rats by using intravital microscopy (IVM). Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (4 mg/kg/h) or equivalent volumes of saline were continuously infused following baseline IVM at 0 min. IVM was repeated after 60 and 120 min in endotoxemic and nonendotoxemic animals. CDP-choline (100 mg/kg) was applied as an i.v. bolus. Animals received either saline alone, CDP-choline alone, CDP-choline 10 min before or 30 min after LPS administration, or LPS alone. Due to nonparametric data distribution, Wilcoxon test and Dunn's multiple comparisons test were used for data analysis. Data were considered statistically significant at p < 0.05. Results: Treatment with LPS alone significantly increased microvascular permeability and leukocyte adhesion and decreased venular wall shear rate. CDP-choline significantly reduced microvascular permeability in animals treated with LPS. Leukocyte adhesion and venular wall shear rate were not affected by CDP-choline during endotoxemia. Conclusion: CDP-choline has a protective effect on microvascular barrier function during endotoxemia. Considering the excellent pharmacologic safety profile of CDP-choline, its use could be an approach for the treatment of capillary leakage in sepsis

Essential role of glucose transporter GLUT3 for post-implantation embryonic development

Deletion of glucose transporter gene Slc2a3 (GLUT3) has previously been reported to result in embryonic lethality. Here, we define the exact time point of growth arrest and subsequent death of the embryo. Slc2a3−/− morulae and blastocysts developed normally, implanted in vivo, and formed egg-cylinder-stage embryos that appeared normal until day 6·0. At day 6·5, apoptosis was detected in the ectodermal cells of Slc2a3−/− embryos resulting in severe disorganization and growth retardation at day 7·5 and complete loss of embryos at day 12·5. GLUT3 was detected in placental cone, in the visceral ectoderm and in the mesoderm of 7·5-day-old wild-type embryos. Our data indicate that GLUT3 is essential for the development of early post-implanted embryos