Structure perfection variations of Si crystals grown by Czochralski or floating zone methods after implantation of oxygen or neon atoms followed by annealing

Structure perfection of the silicon crystals grown by the Czochralski and floating zone methods after implantation with oxygen or neon fast iones followed by annealing at the temperatures T ~ 1050-1150 ⁰0C, when large SiOx precipitates were formed, was studied by means of various X-ray diffraction methods. Considerable increments of integral reflectivities for different Bragg reflections of such samples in comparison with those calculated for a perfect crystal were detected. Broadening of the spatial intensity distribution curves for the Bragg-diffracted beams taken by a single crystal spectrometer as well as the maps of the diffuse isointensity distribution near a reciprocal lattice point, registered by the Philips high-resolution diffractometer, are shown. All of these diffraction effects related to creation of the SiOx precipitates formed on structural damages caused by implantation of oxygen or neon ions and subsequent annealing. Contrary to FZSi, where the appearence of SiOx precipitates was discovered due to intensive diffuse scattering near the layer contained the implanted oxygen ions only, in the case of CZSi samples with larger concentration of oxygen (up to 1*10¹⁸ at/cm³) such defects were formed not only near the burried layer, created by ions of oxygen or neon (with energy E = 4 MeV, dose 10¹⁴cm⁻²) but in a bulk of a crystal. Annealing of the FZSi crystals implanted by oxygen (E ~ 200 keV, dose ~ 10¹⁶-10¹⁷ cm⁻²) at enhanced hydrostatic pressure, additionally stimulated SiOx precipitation close to the implanted layer

Experimental Evidence of Giant Electron - Gamma Bursts Generated by Extensive Atmospheric Showers in Thunderclouds

The existence of a new phenomena - giant electron-gamma bursts is established. The bursts are generated in thunderclouds as a result of the combined action of runaway breakdown and extensive atmosphere showers (RB-EAS). The experiments were fulfilled at the Tien Shan Mountain Scientific Station using EAS-Radio installation. This specially constructed installation consists of a wide spread EAS trigger array and a high time resolution radiointerferometer.Comment: 30 pages, 16 figure

Volume I. Introduction to DUNE

The preponderance of matter over antimatter in the early universe, the dynamics of the supernovae that produced the heavy elements necessary for life, and whether protons eventually decay—these mysteries at the forefront of particle physics and astrophysics are key to understanding the early evolution of our universe, its current state, and its eventual fate. The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is an international world-class experiment dedicated to addressing these questions as it searches for leptonic charge-parity symmetry violation, stands ready to capture supernova neutrino bursts, and seeks to observe nucleon decay as a signature of a grand unified theory underlying the standard model. The DUNE far detector technical design report (TDR) describes the DUNE physics program and the technical designs of the single- and dual-phase DUNE liquid argon TPC far detector modules. This TDR is intended to justify the technical choices for the far detector that flow down from the high-level physics goals through requirements at all levels of the Project. Volume I contains an executive summary that introduces the DUNE science program, the far detector and the strategy for its modular designs, and the organization and management of the Project. The remainder of Volume I provides more detail on the science program that drives the choice of detector technologies and on the technologies themselves. It also introduces the designs for the DUNE near detector and the DUNE computing model, for which DUNE is planning design reports. Volume II of this TDR describes DUNE\u27s physics program in detail. Volume III describes the technical coordination required for the far detector design, construction, installation, and integration, and its organizational structure. Volume IV describes the single-phase far detector technology. A planned Volume V will describe the dual-phase technology

Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE), far detector technical design report, volume III: DUNE far detector technical coordination

The preponderance of matter over antimatter in the early universe, the dynamics of the supernovae that produced the heavy elements necessary for life, and whether protons eventually decay—these mysteries at the forefront of particle physics and astrophysics are key to understanding the early evolution of our universe, its current state, and its eventual fate. The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is an international world-class experiment dedicated to addressing these questions as it searches for leptonic charge-parity symmetry violation, stands ready to capture supernova neutrino bursts, and seeks to observe nucleon decay as a signature of a grand unified theory underlying the standard model. The DUNE far detector technical design report (TDR) describes the DUNE physics program and the technical designs of the single- and dual-phase DUNE liquid argon TPC far detector modules. Volume III of this TDR describes how the activities required to design, construct, fabricate, install, and commission the DUNE far detector modules are organized and managed. This volume details the organizational structures that will carry out and/or oversee the planned far detector activities safely, successfully, on time, and on budget. It presents overviews of the facilities, supporting infrastructure, and detectors for context, and it outlines the project-related functions and methodologies used by the DUNE technical coordination organization, focusing on the areas of integration engineering, technical reviews, quality assurance and control, and safety oversight. Because of its more advanced stage of development, functional examples presented in this volume focus primarily on the single-phase (SP) detector module

Highly-parallelized simulation of a pixelated LArTPC on a GPU

The rapid development of general-purpose computing on graphics processing units (GPGPU) is allowing the implementation of highly-parallelized Monte Carlo simulation chains for particle physics experiments. This technique is particularly suitable for the simulation of a pixelated charge readout for time projection chambers, given the large number of channels that this technology employs. Here we present the first implementation of a full microphysical simulator of a liquid argon time projection chamber (LArTPC) equipped with light readout and pixelated charge readout, developed for the DUNE Near Detector. The software is implemented with an end-to-end set of GPU-optimized algorithms. The algorithms have been written in Python and translated into CUDA kernels using Numba, a just-in-time compiler for a subset of Python and NumPy instructions. The GPU implementation achieves a speed up of four orders of magnitude compared with the equivalent CPU version. The simulation of the current induced on 10^3 pixels takes around 1 ms on the GPU, compared with approximately 10 s on the CPU. The results of the simulation are compared against data from a pixel-readout LArTPC prototype

IOP-lowering therapy and ocular surface in glaucoma. Part 2. The effect of preservatives on ocular surface

IOP-lowering therapy and ocular surface in glaucoma. Part 2. The effect of preservatives on ocular surface A.V.&nbsp;Antonova1, V.P.&nbsp;Nikolaenko1,2, V.V.&nbsp;Brzheskiy3 1City Multidisciplinary Hospital No. 2, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation 2St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation 3St. Petersburg State Pediatric Medical University, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation This article reviews published data from different years (mainly recent data) on the effect of active ingredients and preservatives of IOP-lowering medications on ocular surface. The rate and severity of ocular surface diseases are directly associated with dosage regimen and duration of topical glaucoma treatment. Dose-dependent and time-dependent loss of goblet cells, expansion and activation of fibroblast populations, release of proinflammatory cytokines by conjunctival cells account for dry eye symptoms and signs, poor adherence to treatment, and poor results of glaucoma filtration surgery. However, the analysis of more than 16,000 PubMed publications using keywords “ocular surface” did not answer a number of important questions. Can ocular surface disease symptoms reduce following the surgery? Can ocular surface get back to its baseline anatomical functional state and provide long-term filtering bleb functioning? What is the maximum d uration of glaucoma pharmacotherapy to have a chance of ocular surface improvement after glaucoma surgery? The aim of our studies is to address these challenges. Keywords: glaucoma, glaucoma therapy, ocular surface, dry eye disease, OSDI, inflammation, preservatives, benzalkonium chloride, preservative-free agents. For citation: Antonova A.V., Nikolaenko V.P., Brzheskiy V.V. IOP-lowering therapy and ocular surface in glaucoma.&nbsp; Part 2. The effect of preservatives on ocular surface. Russian Journal of Clinical Ophthalmology. 2020;20(3):133–141. DOI: 10.32364/2311-7729-2020-20-3-133-141. <br

IOP-lowering therapy and ocular surface in glaucoma. Part 1. The effects of drug substances of glaucoma medications on the ocular surface

A.V. Antonova1, V.P. Nikolaenko1,2, V.V. Brzheskiy3 1City Multidisciplinary Hospital No. 2, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation 2St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation 3St. Petersburg State Pediatric Medical University, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation This article reviews recent data on the effect of active ingredients and preservatives of IOP-lowering medications on the ocular surface. The rate and severity of ocular surface disease depend on the intensity and duration of glaucoma treatment as well as baseline ocular surface status. In addition, each class of IOP-lowering medications is characterized by specific effects on ocular surface. Long-term pharmacotherapy results in tear film instability and tear hyperosmolarity. Dose- and exposition-dependent loss of goblet cells, corneal epithelial toxicity, meibomian gland dysfunction, increased activity and expansion of fibroblasts, and pro-inflammatory cytokine release from goblet cells account for the development and progression of symptoms and signs of dry eye as demonstrated by progressive deterioration in Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI), Norn’s test, and Schirmer’s test. The result is poor adherence to medical treatment and poor outcomes&nbsp; of conjunctival glaucoma surgery.&nbsp; Our findings can be applied to develop perioperative management strategy of patients with glaucoma to maximize the chances of long-term surgical success. Keywords: glaucoma, IOP-lowering treatment, ocular surface, dry eye disease, Ocular Surface Disease Index, inflammation, preservatives, benzalkonium chloride, preservative-free medication. For citation: Antonova A.V., Nikolaenko V.P., Brzheskiy V.V. IOP-lowering therapy and ocular surface in glaucoma. Part 1. The effects of drug substances of glaucoma medications on the ocular surface. Russian Journal of Clinical Ophthalmology. 2020;20(2):79–84. DOI: 10.32364/2311-7729-2020-20-2-79-84. <br

Realization of a cascade treatment algorithm for glaucoma in St. Petersburg

A.V. Antonova1, V.P. Nikolaenko1,2, V.V. Brzheskiy3 1City Multidisciplinary Hospital No. 2, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation 2St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation 3St. Petersburg State Pediatric Medical University, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation Aim: to analyze the duration and regimen of topical treatment and the pattern of prior laser and surgical procedures in patients with glaucoma who were admitted to the hospital for IOP-lowering interventions. Patients and Methods: this study included 500 consecutively enrolled patients who underwent surgery for uncontrolled glaucoma in 2016–2020 and were followed up for 6–24 months. Disease history, cumulative "preservative" load, clinical examinations, and surgical outcomes were assessed. Results: preoperatively, most patients received the maximum medical therapy (i.e., three agents in two bottles). Simultaneous use of all four major classes of IOP-lowering medications occurred in 10% of patients only. Two-third of patients required surgical interventions to reduce IOP after a 6-year medical therapy. By the time of admission, 60% of patients were diagnosed with advanced or end-stage glaucoma. Prior laser or surgical procedures to reduce IOP were performed only in 142 patients and 52 patients, respectively. Treatment adherence was lower in men compared to women, irrespective of its stage. Conclusion: most patients received adequate medical therapy. However, in general, surgery was performed too late. It gives the impression that the efficacy of therapeutic and laser stages of cascade glaucoma treatment is no more than five years. In addition to the obvious drawbacks of a laissez-faire strategy (irreversible vision loss), the risk of surgical failure significantly increases. Long-term (at least 3-year) therapy using (non)fixed-dose combinations of agents containing preservatives is the major modifiable risk factor for early filtration loss. Preservative-free prostaglandin analogues improve treatment tolerability, adherence to treatment, and chances for success of IOP-lowering surgery. The authors’ results demonstrate that gender differences should be considered when planning treatment and follow-up visits. Keywords: glaucoma, IOP-lowering therapy, glaucoma surgery, ocular surface, preservatives, benzalkonium chloride. For citation: Antonova A.V., Nikolaenko V.P., Brzheskiy V.V. Realization of a cascade treatment algorithm for glaucoma in St. Petersburg. Russian Journal of Clinical Ophthalmology. 2021;21(3):123–128 (in Russ.). DOI: 10.32364/2311-7729-2021-21-3-123-128. </p

Effect of gender on the ocular surface after trabeculectomy

A.V. Antonova1,2, V.P. Nikolaenko1,2, V.V. Brzheskiy3, A.Ja. Vuks4 1St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation 2City Multidisciplinary Hospital No. 2, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation 3St. Petersburg State Pediatric Medical University, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation 4V.M. Bekhterev National Medical Research Center for Psychiatry and Neurology, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation Background: the effect of gender on the rate and course of ocular surface diseases (in particular, conjunctival and corneal xerosis) is fairly well known. Meanwhile, gender-dependent changes in the ocular surface after trabeculectomy have not yet been studied. Aim: to analyze the effect of gender on changes in the ocular surface after trabeculectomy. Patients and Methods: this study enrolled 443 patients (168 men and 275 women) who underwent surgical interventions for uncontrolled primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) in 2016–2020 and were followed up for 6–24 months. Trabeculectomy was performed as the first IOP-lowering procedure in 418 patients (150 men and 268 women) and reoperation in 25 patients (18 men and 7 women). Changes in subjective symptoms (OSDI) and clinical and functional signs of dry eye syndrome (tear film break-up time/TBUT and total tear production by Schirmer's I test) characterizing the ocular surface in various surgical outcomes (complete and partial success, failure) in men and women were analyzed. Results: women have more severe subjective symptoms but not functional signs of dry eye preoperatively. They are characterized by strict adherence to treatment (manifested in lower initial IOP compared with men) but more frequent eye drop instillations and greater cumulative preservative load on the ocular surface. Gender is not an independent risk factor for surgical failure. Successful trabeculectomy results in a significant reduction in the severity of conjunctival and corneal xerosis symptoms (OSDI) for at least 2 years in both genders. Despite clear postoperative improvement, women are significantly inferior to men in this parameter at all study control points. TBUT in both men and women increases significantly during the first 6 months postoperatively, and over the next 1.5 years TBUT stabilizes at the achieved level. An increase in Schirmer's I test results in men becomes significant only at the end of the second year of follow-up. In women, a significant increase in total tear production is reported as early as 6 months after trabeculectomy and changes slightly over the next 1.5 years. Restarting IOP-lowering medications in partial success and failure of trabeculectomy eliminates the improvement of ocular surface condition achieved during the drug-free period as early as after 6 months. Conclusions: regardless of gender, successful trabeculectomy results in a significant and long-term (at least 2 years) improvement of subjective symptoms (OSDI) and functional signs (in particular, TBUT) of conjunctival and corneal xerosis. Women are characterized by a clearer improvement in the parameters studied than men. Significant gender differences are found only when comparing subjective symptoms in the first year after surgery. Restarting IOP-lowering medications postoperatively brings the parameters back to baseline levels. Keywords: gender, glaucoma, trabeculectomy, ocular surface, dry eye disease, OSDI, tear film break-up time, TBUT, Norn's test, Schirmer's I test. For citation: Antonova A.V., Nikolaenko V.P., Brzheskiy V.V., Vuks A.Ja. Effect of gender on the ocular surface after trabeculectomy. Russian Journal of Clinical Ophthalmology. 2023;23(3):136–145 (in Russ.). DOI: 10.32364/2311-7729-2023-23-3-5. <br