10-W-level monolithic dysprosium-doped fiber laser at 3.24 μm

We report, to the best of our knowledge, the first entirely monolithic dysprosium (Dy)-doped fluoride fiber laser operating in the mid-IR region. The system delivers 10.1 W at 3.24 μm in continuous operation, a record for fiber oscillators in this range of wavelengths. The Dy3+ fiber is pumped in-band using an erbium-doped fiber laser at 2.83 μm made in-house and connected through a fusion splice. Two fiber Bragg gratings directly written in the Dy-doped fiber form the 3.24 μm laser cavity to provide a spectrally controlled laser output. This substantial increase of output power in the 3.0 3.3 μm spectral range–could open new possibilities for applications in spec-troscopy and advanced manufacturing

Elastocapillary Levelling of Thin Viscous Films on Soft Substrates

A thin liquid film with non-zero curvature at its free surface spontaneously flows to reach a flat configuration, a process driven by Laplace pressure gradients and resisted by the liquid's viscosity. Inspired by recent progresses on the dynamics of liquid droplets on soft substrates, we here study the relaxation of a viscous film supported by an elastic foundation. Experiments involve thin polymer films on elastomeric substrates, where the dynamics of the liquid-air interface is monitored using atomic force microscopy. A theoretical model that describes the coupled evolution of the solid-liquid and the liquid-air interfaces is also provided. In this soft-levelling configuration, Laplace pressure gradients not only drive the flow, but they also induce elastic deformations on the substrate that affect the flow and the shape of the liquid-air interface itself. This process represents an original example of elastocapillarity that is not mediated by the presence of a contact line. We discuss the impact of the elastic contribution on the levelling dynamics and show the departure from the classical self-similarities and power laws observed for capillary levelling on rigid substrates

Données récentes sur l’occupation humaine dans les Alpes méridionales durant l’Antiquité

Parmi les nombreux travaux portant sur l’occupation du milieu alpin, très peu concernent la période antique. Les recherches, souvent anciennes, se sont focalisées sur des questions telles que les grandes voies transalpines, l’organisation administrative des régions alpines ou le développement urbain. L’occupation de ces régions était principalement appréhendée à travers quelques découvertes ou des fouilles anciennes, principalement dans les fonds de vallées des Alpes du Nord. Le développement de l’archéologie préventive a permis d’acquérir de nouvelles connaissances dans les zones basses mais ce sont surtout les recherches entreprises, depuis une dizaine d’années dans les Alpes méridionales, qui ont fait progresser les connaissances sur le peuplement de la montagne, en appréhendant ce milieu dans son ensemble, depuis les vallées jusqu’à la haute montagne.Amongst the many research projects dealing with the occupation of alpine landscapes, very few directly deal with the Roman period. Older research projects often emphasised the study of the major trans-Alpine routes, or the administrative organisation of the urban zones in the Alps. The settlement of these regions was primarily based on data from earlier excavations, mainly from the valley bottoms of the northernAlps. Rescue (or salvage) archaeology has enhanced our knowledge of lowland alpine archaeology, but it is the research undertaken during the past decade in the Southern Alps that increased our understanding of mountain populations covering all altitudes from valley bottoms to the high altitudes

Type IX secretion system PorM and gliding machinery GldM form extended arches spanning the periplasmic space

International audienc

La filiacion y la fecundacion "in vitro"

Las tecnicas de reproduccion asistida no solo representan una solucion para ayudar a superar problemas de esterilidad, sino que su practica conlleva problemas eticos y juridicos. Esta Tesis analiza los problemas que plantea la fecundacion "in vitro", desde el punto de vista de la filiacion, para determinar la paternidad y maternidad cuando se utilizan los gametos de la pareja o de un tercero. Desde este punto de vista, se estudian la situacion juridica del tercero -llamado donante- y de las madres subrogadas, asi como las acciones de filiacion Tambien se examina la problematica que plantea la congelacion de semen y embriones, al poder un hombre engendrar un hijo despues de muerto. Entre las fuentes que se analizan estan los principales informes extranjeros que han estudiado la problematica de estas tecnicas, asi como el Informe especial de..

Enabling planetary science across light-years. Ariel Definition Study Report

Ariel, the Atmospheric Remote-sensing Infrared Exoplanet Large-survey, was adopted as the fourth medium-class mission in ESA's Cosmic Vision programme to be launched in 2029. During its 4-year mission, Ariel will study what exoplanets are made of, how they formed and how they evolve, by surveying a diverse sample of about 1000 extrasolar planets, simultaneously in visible and infrared wavelengths. It is the first mission dedicated to measuring the chemical composition and thermal structures of hundreds of transiting exoplanets, enabling planetary science far beyond the boundaries of the Solar System. The payload consists of an off-axis Cassegrain telescope (primary mirror 1100 mm x 730 mm ellipse) and two separate instruments (FGS and AIRS) covering simultaneously 0.5-7.8 micron spectral range. The satellite is best placed into an L2 orbit to maximise the thermal stability and the field of regard. The payload module is passively cooled via a series of V-Groove radiators; the detectors for the AIRS are the only items that require active cooling via an active Ne JT cooler. The Ariel payload is developed by a consortium of more than 50 institutes from 16 ESA countries, which include the UK, France, Italy, Belgium, Poland, Spain, Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Portugal, Czech Republic, Hungary, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Estonia, and a NASA contribution

Probing inner membrane protein topology by proteolysis running head: Protease accessibility

International audienceInner membrane proteins are inserted into the membrane via α-helices. These helices are not only membrane anchors but usually mediate specific interactions with membrane protein partners or participate to energetic processes. The number, location and orientation of these helices is referred as topology. Bitopic membrane proteins that consist of a single membrane-embedded domain connecting two soluble domains are distinguished from polytopic ones that consist to multiple-spanning TMH connected by extramembrane domains. Defining inner membrane protein topology could be achieved by different methods. Here, we describe a protease accessibility assay that allows to define topology based on digestion profiles

Du recouvrement de la surface cellulaire à la motilité par glissement : une étude structurale et fonctionnelle du complexe coeur GldKLMN du système de sécrétion de type IX

Le système de sécrétion de type IX (SST9) est un appareil multi-protéique transmembranaire restreint au phylum des Bacteroidetes. le SST9 est impliqué dans différentes fonctions, telles que, la sécrétion de facteurs de virulence, la biogenèse de la couche-S ou la motilité cellulaire. Au cours de ma thèse, je me suis concentré sur l'étude de quatre de ses sous unités, les protéines GldKLMN. J'ai caractérisé leur organisation moléculaire globale par des approches de biochimie, me permettant de définir les topologies, localisations et le réseau d'interaction de ces composants. Dans un second temps, je me suis intéressé à la dynamique in vivo du complexe, en utilisant des approches de microscopie à fluorescence et de microfluidique.The type IX secretion system (T9SS) is a multi-protein apparatus restricted to the Bacteroidetes phylum. T9SSs are involved in different functions, such as toxin secretion, biogenesis of S-layer or bacterial gliding motility. Throughout my Ph.D. I focused on the characterization of the GldKLMN T9SS core complex. First, I deciphered the overall molecular organization of these subunits by defining topologies, subcellular, localizations and interaction network of these components. Further, I investigated the in vivo dynamics of the complex with a fluorescence microscopy-based approach