Étude des isotones N = 81 : 139Ce, 141Nd, 143Sm, au moyen des réactions (d, t ) et (3He, α)

Les niveaux excités des isotones N = 81 : 139Ce, 141Nd, 143Sm, ont été étudiés au Tandem MP d'Orsay jusqu'à plus de 3 MeV d'énergie d'excitation, essentiellement au moyen d'un spectromètre magnétique split pole, en utilisant les réactions (d, t) à 26,21 MeV (resolution :14 keV) et (3He, α) à 25 MeV (résolution : 23 keV). Les distributions angulaires correspondant à un grand nombre de niveaux finaux (~ 90 pour les 3 isotones) ont été analysées en approximation de Born avec ondes distordues (DWBA). Beaucoup des niveaux analysés (plus de 30) n'avaient pas été observés ou séparés dans les expériences (p, d) ou (d, t) antérieures. La force à une particule est généralement répartie sur plusieurs niveaux, la fragmentation étant particulièrement importante pour les sous-couches 2d 5/2 et 1g 7/2. Des calculs tenant compte du couplage des états à un trou avec les états collectifs du cœur, effectués par Heyde et Brussaard, reproduisent convenablement la partie de basse énergie d'excitation des spectres expérimentaux, mais ne reproduisent pas la fragmentation observée à énergie d'excitation plus élevée

Deposition of tin oxide, iridium and iridium oxide films by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition for electrochemical wastewater treatment

In this research, the specific electrodes were prepared by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) in a hot-wall CVD reactor with the presence of O2 under reduced pressure. The Ir protective layer was deposited by using (Methylcyclopentadienyl) (1,5-cyclooctadiene) iridium (I), (MeCp)Ir(COD), as precursor. Tetraethyltin (TET) was used as precursor for the deposition of SnO2 active layer. The optimum condition for Ir film deposition was at 300 °C, 125 of O2/(MeCp)Ir(COD) molar ratio and 12 Torr of total pressure. While that of SnO2 active layer was at 380 °C, 1200 of O2/TET molar ratio and 15 Torr of total pressure. The prepared SnO2/Ir/Ti electrodes were tested for anodic oxidation of organic pollutant in a simple three-electrode electrochemical reactor using oxalic acid as model solution. The electrochemical experiments indicate that more than 80% of organic pollutant was removed after 2.1 Ah/L of charge has been applied. The kinetic investigation gives a two-step process for organic pollutant degradation, the kinetic was zero-order and first-order with respect to TOC of model solution for high and low TOC concentrations, respectively

CFD analysis of an ALD reactor: gaseous species distribution and cycle time

A three-dimensional Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model is built for a Cambridge Nanotech® ALD reactor, considering the Atomic Layer Deposition process of aluminum oxide (Al2O3), using trimethyl aluminum (TMA, Al(CH3)3) and water vapor (H2O) as precursors and argon as inert gas. The developed model investigates the transport phenomena during the reactant pulses of the ALD cycle, while no reactions are taken into account. Due to the lack of measurements of the reactants inlet flows into the reactor, a model for the precursor feeding system is also built. Its results are used as transient inlet boundary conditions of the reactor model. Results about the gas flow field, temperature and species distributions inside the ALD reactor are obtained during each pulse. A good agreement between the experimental and calculated pressure pulses at the reactor exit is observed, which allows validating the approach. The simulations show the effect of the reactor loading door, resulting to flow regimes that affect the gaseous species distribution close to the substrate surface. As illustrated in Fig. 1, it is shown that for the side of the wafer close to the loading door, the gas phase reactant concentration above the substrate is always lower. Finally, the ALD purging steps of a complete cycle are simulated. The results show that the purging steps can be reduced to a time period smaller than the operated one, thus minimizing the ALD total cycle time

Computational mechanistic investigation of the initial growth of Alumina ALD: Effect of substrate pretreatment on nucleation period reduction

In this work, the surface mechanisms including reaction, adsorption and desorption steps during the ALD of Al2O3 from TMA and H2O on Si substrates are investigated. The analysis is performed using a surface chemistry model, coupled to a CFD model for a commercial reactor treating 20 cm Si wafers. [4] This model is used to feed a geometric model that simulates island growth on a surface. The model predictions are validated by comparing its results with experimental measurements and literature data. It is shown that for ALD exposures in the range of ms, no reactions between a perfect Si substrate and reactants take place due to the low activation energy of the desorption step. The effect of initial long duration TMA exposures before deposition is investigated, showing that they clearly lead to an increase of nucleation sites on the surface by allowing TMA adsorption and reaction to occur, thus producing methyl groups transformed in active hydroxyl bonds by the subsequent H2O exposure. This significantly reduces the nucleation period, hence decreasing the number of ALD cycles needed to obtain a conformal continuous film

Neocortical hyperexcitability in a genetic model of absence seizures and its reduction by levetiracetam

PURPOSE: To study the effect of the antiepileptic drug levetiracetam (LEV) on the patterns of intrinsic optical signals (IOSs) generated by slices of the somatosensory cortex obtained from 3- and 6-month-old WAG/Rij and age-matched, nonepileptic control (NEC) rats. METHODS: WAG/Rij and NEC animals were anesthetized with enfluorane and decapitated. Brains were quickly removed, and neocortical slices were cut coronally with a vibratome, transferred to a submerged tissue chamber, and superfused with oxygenated artificial cerebrospinal fluid (aCSF). Slices were illuminated with a dark-field condensor and examined with a x2.5 objective; images were processed with a real time digital video image-enhancement system. Images were acquired before (background) and during electrical stimulation with a temporal resolution of 10 images/s and were displayed in pseudocolors. Extracellular stimuli (200 micros; <4 V) were delivered through bipolar stainless steel electrodes placed in the white matter. RESULTS: IOSs recorded in NEC slices bathed in control aCSF became less intense and of reduced size with age (p < 0.05); this trend was not seen in WAG/Rij slices. Age-dependent decreases in IOS intensity and area size were also seen in NEC slices superfused with aCSF containing the convulsant 4-aminopyridine (4-AP, 5 microM); in contrast, significant increases in both parameters occurred with age in 4-AP-treated WAG/Rij slices (p < 0.05). Under any of these conditions, the IOS intensity and area size slices were larger in WAG/Rij than in NEC slices. LEV (50-500 microM) application to WAG/Rij slices caused dose-dependent IOS reductions that were evident both in control and in 4-AP-containing aCSF and were more pronounced in 6-month-old tissue. CONCLUSIONS: These data demonstrate age-dependent IOS modifications in NEC and WAG/Rij rat slices and identify a clear pattern of hyperexcitability that occurs in 6-month-old WAG/Rij neocortical tissue, an age when absence seizures occur in all animals. The ability of LEV to reduce these patterns of network hyperexcitability supports the potential use of this new antiepileptic drug in primary generalized epileptic disorders

Molecular mechanisms of drug resistance in natural Leishmania populations vary with genetic background

The evolution of drug-resistance in pathogens is a major global health threat. Elucidating the molecular basis of pathogen drug-resistance has been the focus of many studies but rarely is it known whether a drug-resistance mechanism identified is universal for the studied pathogen; it has seldom been clarified whether drug-resistance mechanisms vary with the pathogen's genotype. Nevertheless this is of critical importance in gaining an understanding of the complexity of this global threat and in underpinning epidemiological surveillance of pathogen drug resistance in the field. This study aimed to assess the molecular and phenotypic heterogeneity that emerges in natural parasite populations under drug treatment pressure. We studied lines of the protozoan parasite Leishmania (L.) donovani with differential susceptibility to antimonial drugs; the lines being derived from clinical isolates belonging to two distinct genetic populations that circulate in the leishmaniasis endemic region of Nepal. Parasite pathways known to be affected by antimonial drugs were characterised on five experimental levels in the lines of the two populations. Characterisation of DNA sequence, gene expression, protein expression and thiol levels revealed a number of molecular features that mark antimonial-resistant parasites in only one of the two populations studied. A final series of in vitro stress phenotyping experiments confirmed this heterogeneity amongst drug-resistant parasites from the two populations. These data provide evidence that the molecular changes associated with antimonial-resistance in natural Leishmania populations depend on the genetic background of the Leishmania population, which has resulted in a divergent set of resistance markers in the Leishmania populations. This heterogeneity of parasite adaptations provides severe challenges for the control of drug resistance in the field and the design of molecular surveillance tools for widespread applicability

A novel approach to measure mitochondrial respiration in frozen biological samples.

Respirometry is the gold standard measurement of mitochondrial oxidative function, as it reflects the activity of the electron transport chain complexes working together. However, the requirement for freshly isolated mitochondria hinders the feasibility of respirometry in multi-site clinical studies and retrospective studies. Here, we describe a novel respirometry approach suited for frozen samples by restoring electron transfer components lost during freeze/thaw and correcting for variable permeabilization of mitochondrial membranes. This approach preserves 90-95% of the maximal respiratory capacity in frozen samples and can be applied to isolated mitochondria, permeabilized cells, and tissue homogenates with high sensitivity. We find that primary changes in mitochondrial function, detected in fresh tissue, are preserved in frozen samples years after collection. This approach will enable analysis of the integrated function of mitochondrial Complexes I to IV in one measurement, collected at remote sites or retrospectively in samples residing in tissue biobanks