Strengths of the resonances at 436, 479, 639, 661, and 1279 keV in the 22^{22}Ne(p,γ\gamma)23^{23}Na reaction

The $^{22}$Ne(p,$\gamma$)$^{23}$Na reaction is included in the neon-sodium cycle of hydrogen burning. A number of narrow resonances in the Gamow window dominates the thermonuclear reaction rate. Several resonance strengths are only poorly known. As a result, the $^{22}$Ne(p,$\gamma$)$^{23}$Na thermonuclear reaction rate is the most uncertain rate of the cycle. Here, a new experimental study of the strengths of the resonances at 436, 479, 639, 661, and 1279 keV proton beam energy is reported. The data have been obtained using a tantalum target implanted with $^{22}$Ne. The strengths $\omega\gamma$ of the resonances at 436, 639, and 661 keV have been determined with a relative approach, using the 479 and 1279 keV resonances for normalization. Subsequently, the ratio of resonance strengths of the 479 and 1279 keV resonances was determined, improving the precision of these two standards. The new data are consistent with, but more precise than, the literature with the exception of the resonance at 661 keV, which is found to be less intense by one order of magnitude. In addition, improved branching ratios have been determined for the gamma decay of the resonances at 436, 479, and 639 keV.Comment: Final version, now using the Kelly et al. (2015) data [15] for normalization; 10 pages, 7 figures, 3 table

New simple and low-cost methods for periodic checks of Cyclone® Plus Storage Phosphor System

The recent large use of the Cyclone® Plus Storage Phosphor System, especially in European countries, as imaging system for quantification of radiochemical purity of radiopharmaceuticals raised the problem of setting the periodic controls as required by European Legislation. We described simple, low-cost methods for Cyclone® Plus quality controls, which can be useful to evaluate the performance measurement of this imaging system

Nipple Reconstruction Using the “Arrow Flap” Technique: Outcomes and Patients Satisfaction

Introduction: Skin-sparing mastectomy (SSM) entails complete removal of the breast tissue and the nipple and areola complex (NAC) with preservation of as much of the overlying skin as possible. The preservation of the natural skin envelope during SSM improves the aesthetic outcome of immediate breast reconstruction, but the lack of NAC determines that the reconstructed breast remains anatomically incomplete with not always satisfactory final results. For this purpose, the aim of the present study was to investigate and evaluate the impact of nipple reconstruction after skin sparing and skin reducing mastectomy on the patients' perception and intimate life. Materials and method: This was a comparative single-center prospective study that involved 42 patients underwent NAC reconstruction after SSM. A pre- and postoperative quality-of-life and psychological questionnaires Breast-Q questionnaire (Breast Conserving therapy module) were given to all the patients before the surgery and 6 months after. The statistical analysis with chi-square test was performed. Results: After 6 months a prevalence of patients reported to be very satisfied in regard to shape, appearance, naturalness, projection, position and symmetry. The study shows an overall improvement in all the psychological items analyzed with statistically significant difference regarding: "patient's satisfaction," "self-confidence," "appearance of the breast." Conclusion: The authors believe that the NAC reconstruction has useful functional and aesthetic results particularly appreciated by patients who feel demoralized after breast demolition surgery

Nonlinear optical properties of Au–Ag nanoplanets made by ion beam processing of bimetallic nanoclusters in silica

The nonlinear absorption of Au–Ag nanoplanets made by Ar irradiation of bimetallic nanoclusters in silica has been experimentally investigated by means of the single beam z-scan technique. The measurements have been performed in the picoseconds regime in order to isolate the fast electronic contribution to the third-order nonlinearity. The results reveal large nonlinear absorption properties of these systems, characterized by the concomitance of saturable and reverse saturable absorption. A phenomenological expression has been developed to fit the z-scan curves and to quantitatively determine the nonlinear optical parameters

Nanopatterning of silica with mask-assisted ion implantation

In the present paper we combined ion implantation and nanosphere lithography to regularly dope, by a mask-assisted process, a SiO2 substrate with rare earth ions (Er) by ion implantation and to fabricate by sputtering a plasmonic 2D periodic array of Au nanostructures on the silica surface spatially coupled to the implanted Er3+ ions. The aim of this work is to study how Er3+ emission at 1.5 lm can be affected by the interaction with a plasmonic nanostructure. In particular we have found a variation of the radiative lifetime of the Er3+ emission and a change from single exponential to bi-exponential of the luminescence intensity decay

Structural, Optical, Magnetic and Electrical Properties of Sputtered ZnO and ZnO:Fe Thin Films: The Role of Deposition Power

Structural, optical, magnetic, and electrical properties of zinc oxide (henceforth, ZO) and iron doped zinc oxide (henceforth, ZOFe) films deposited by sputtering technique are described by means of Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, grazing incidence X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope (SEM), UV–Vis spectrometer, vibrating sample magnetometer, and room temperature electrical conductivity, respectively. GIXRD analysis revealed that the films were polycrystalline with a hexagonal phase, and all films had a preferred (002) c-axis orientation. The lattice parameters a and c of the wurtzite structure were calculated for all films. The a parameter remains almost the same (around 3 Å), while c parameter varies slightly with increasing Fe content from 5.18 to 5.31 Å throughout the co-deposition process. The optical gap for undoped and doped ZO was obtained from different numerical methods based on the experimental data and it was increased with the increment of the concentration of Fe dopant from 3.26 eV to 3.35 eV. The highest magnetization (4.26 × 10−4 emu/g) and lowest resistivity (4.6 × 107 Ω·cm) values of the ZO films were found to be at an Fe content of 5% at. %. An explanation for the dependence of the optical, magnetic, and electrical properties of the samples on the Fe concentrations is also given. The enhanced magnetic properties such as saturated magnetization and coercivity with optical properties reveal that Fe doped ZO thin films are suitable for magneto-optoelectronic (optoelectronic and spintronics) device applications

Structural, Optical, Magnetic and Electrical Properties of Sputtered ZnO and ZnO:Fe Thin Films: The Role of Deposition Power

Structural, optical, magnetic, and electrical properties of zinc oxide (henceforth, ZO) and iron doped zinc oxide (henceforth, ZOFe) films deposited by sputtering technique are described by means of Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, grazing incidence X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope (SEM), UV–Vis spectrometer, vibrating sample magnetometer, and room temperature electrical conductivity, respectively. GIXRD analysis revealed that the films were polycrystalline with a hexagonal phase, and all films had a preferred (002) c-axis orientation. The lattice parameters a and c of the wurtzite structure were calculated for all films. The a parameter remains almost the same (around 3 Å), while c parameter varies slightly with increasing Fe content from 5.18 to 5.31 Å throughout the co-deposition process. The optical gap for undoped and doped ZO was obtained from different numerical methods based on the experimental data and it was increased with the increment of the concentration of Fe dopant from 3.26 eV to 3.35 eV. The highest magnetization (4.26 × 10−4 emu/g) and lowest resistivity (4.6 × 107 Ω·cm) values of the ZO films were found to be at an Fe content of 5% at. %. An explanation for the dependence of the optical, magnetic, and electrical properties of the samples on the Fe concentrations is also given. The enhanced magnetic properties such as saturated magnetization and coercivity with optical properties reveal that Fe doped ZO thin films are suitable for magneto-optoelectronic (optoelectronic and spintronics) device applications

Sub-nanometric metallic Au clusters as efficient Er3+ sensitizers in silica

Silica films co-implanted with Er and Au ions show an enhancement of rare earth photoluminescence after gold introduction in the matrix. Er excitation originates in a broad spectral region, from the red to the near ultraviolet. We have investigated the influence of gold aggregation on the optical properties of co-doped samples by varying the temperature of post-Au implantation annealing in the 400-900 degrees C range. Optical measurements and extended x-ray absorption analysis support the hypothesis of an energy transfer process mediated by sub-nanometric Au aggregates with metallic character that are optically activated mostly through electron interband transitions between d and sp-conduction levels

Optimal geometric parameters of ordered arrays of nanoprisms for enhanced sensitivity in localized plasmon based sensors

Plasmonic sensors based on ordered arrays of nanoprisms are optimized in terms of their geometric parameters like size, height, aspect ratio for Au, Ag or Au0.5-Ag0.5 alloy to be used in the visible or near IR spectral range. The two figures of merit used for the optimization are the bulk and the surface sensitivity: the first is important for optimizing the sensing to large volume analytes whereas the latter is more important when dealing with small bio-molecules immobilized in close proximity to the nanoparticle surface. A comparison is made between experimentally obtained nanoprisms arrays and simulated ones by using Finite Elements Methods (FEM) techniques

Emission Rate Modification and Quantum Efficiency Enhancement of Er3+Emitters by Near-Field Coupling with Nanohole Arrays

The control of the spontaneous emission properties of quantum emitters with limited losses by near-field coupling with plasmons-supporting nanostructures is one of the keys for next-generation high-efficiency and high-coherence plasmonic devices. In the present work, gold nanohole arrays are demonstrated to be an effective plasmonic system for controlling radiative rate and quantum efficiency of the 1540 nm emission of Er3+ ions embedded in silica. Finite element method electrodynamic simulations were used to describe the interaction between dipolar Er3+ emitters and the nanohole arrays. The results are in agreement with those of photoluminescence measurements performed in different coupling configurations. Particularly, we demonstrated that owing to the combination of strong emission enhancement and low level of ohmic losses in the metal, nanohole arrays are able to enhance the far-field photon yield up to 74%. This in turn is related to an extremely high far-field quantum efficiency: more than 90% of the emitted photons reach the far-field for the most efficient configurations investigated in which the extraordinary optical transmission peak of the nanohole array is matched with the Er3+ emission