509 research outputs found
Resolution Tests of CsI(Tl) Scintillators Read Out by Pin Diodes
This research was sponsored by the National Science Foundation Grant NSF PHY 87-1440
Sensitive and fast identification of bacteria in blood samples by immunoaffinity mass spectrometry for quick BSI diagnosis
Bloodstream infections rank among the most serious causes of morbidity and mortality in hospitalized patients, partly due to the long period (up to one week) required for clinical diagnosis. In this work, we have developed a sensitive method to quickly and accurately identify bacteria in human blood samples by combining optimized matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MS) and efficient immunoaffinity enrichment/separation. A library of bacteria reference mass spectra at different cell numbers was firstly built. Due to a reduced sample spot size, the reference spectra could be obtained from as few as 10 to 10(2) intact bacterial cells. Bacteria in human blood samples were then extracted using antibodies-modified magnetic beads for MS fingerprinting. By comparing the sample spectra with the reference spectra based on a cosine correlation, bacteria with concentrations as low as 500 cells per mL in blood serum and 8000 cells per mL in whole blood were identified. The proposed method was further applied to positive clinical blood cultures (BCs) provided by a local hospital, where Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were identified. Because of the method's high sensitivity, the BC time required for diagnosis can be greatly reduced. As a proof of concept, whole blood spiked with a low initial concentration (10(2) or 10(3) cells per mL) of bacteria was cultured in commercial BC bottles and analysed by the developed method after different BC times. Bacteria were successfully identified after 4 hours of BC. Therefore, an entire diagnostic process could be accurately accomplished within half a day using the newly developed method, which could facilitate the timely determination of appropriate anti-bacterial therapy and decrease the risk of mortality from bloodstream infections
Modulation instability induced by cross-phase modulation in a dual-wavelength dispersion-managed soliton fiber ring laser
We report on the observation of modulation instability induced by cross-phase
modulation in a dual-wavelength operation dispersion-managed soliton fiber ring
laser with net negative cavity dispersion. The passively mode-locked operation
is achieved by using nonlinear polarization rotation technique. A new type of
dual-wavelength operation, where one is femtosecond pulse and the other is
picosecond pulse operation, is obtained by properly rotating the polarization
controllers. When the dual-wavelength pulses are simultaneously circulating in
the laser ring cavity, a series of stable modulation sidebands appears in the
picosecond pulse spectrum at longer wavelength with lower peak power due to
modulation instability induced by cross-phase modulation between the two lasing
wavelengths. Moreover, the intensities and wavelength shifts of the modulation
sidebands can be tuned by varying the power of the femtosecond pulse or the
lasing central wavelengths of the dual-wavelength pulses. The theoretical
analysis of the modulation instability induced by cross-phase modulation in our
fiber laser is also presented.Comment: 26 pages, 10 figure
Search for Neutral Higgs Bosons of the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model in e+e- Interactions at \sqrt{s} = 189 GeV
A search for the lightest neutral scalar and neutral pseudoscalar Higgs
bosons in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model is performed using 176.4
pb^-1 of integrated luminosity collected by L3 at a center-of-mass energy of
189 GeV. No signal is observed, and the data are consistent with the expected
Standard Model background. Lower limits on the masses of the lightest neutral
scalar and pseudoscalar Higgs bosons are given as a function of tan(beta).
Lower mass limits for tan(beta)>1 are set at the 95% confidence level to be m_h
> 77.1 GeV and m_A > 77.1 GeV
Search for Extra Dimensions in Boson and Fermion Pair Production in e+e- Interactions at LEP
Extra spatial dimensions are proposed by recent theories that postulate the
scale of gravity to be of the same order as the electroweak scale. A sizeable
interaction between gravitons and Standard Model particles is then predicted.
Effects of these new interactions in boson and fermion pair production are
searched for in the data sample collected at centre-of-mass energies above the
Z pole by the L3 detector at LEP. In addition, the direct production of a
graviton associated with a Z boson is investigated. No statistically
significant hints for the existence of these effects are found and lower limits
in excess of 1 TeV are derived on the scale of this new theory of gravity
Measurement of the Probability of Gluon Splitting into Charmed Quarks in Hadronic Z Decays
We have measured the probability, n(g->cc~), of a gluon splitting into a
charm-quark pair using 1.7 million hadronic Z decays collected by the L3
detector. Two independent methods have been applied to events with a three-jet
topology. One method relies on tagging charmed hadrons by identifying a lepton
in the lowest energy jet. The other method uses a neural network based on
global event shape parameters. Combining both methods, we measure n(g->cc~)=
[2.45 +/- 0.29 +/- 0.53]%
Measurement of Triple-Gauge-Boson Couplings of the W Boson at LEP
We report on measurements of the triple-gauge-boson couplings of the W boson
in e+e- collisions with the L3 detector at LEP. W-pair, single-W and
single-photon events are analysed in a data sample corresponding to a total
luminosity of 76.7 pb^{-1} collected at centre-of-mass energies between 161 GeV
and 183 GeV. CP-conserving as well as both C- and P-conserving
triple-gauge-boson couplings are determined. The results, in good agreement
with the Standard-Model expectations, confirm the existence of the self
coupling among the electroweak gauge bosons and constrain its structure
Measurement of Hadron and Lepton-Pair Production at 130GeV < \sqrt{s} < 189 GeV at LEP
We report on measurements of e+e- annihilation into hadrons and lepton pairs.
The data have been collected with the L3 detector at LEP at centre-of-mass
energies between 130 and 189 GeV. Using a total integrated luminosity of 243.7
pb^-1, 25864 hadronic and 8573 lepton-pair events are selected for the
measurement of cross sections and leptonic forward-backward asymmetries. The
results are in good agreement with Standard Model predictions
Measurement of Mass and Width of the W Boson at LEP
We report on measurements of the mass and total decay width of the W boson
with the L3 detector at LEP. W-pair events produced in
interactions between 161 GeV and 183 GeV centre-of-mass energy are selected in
a data sample corresponding to a total luminosity of 76.7 pb. Combining
all final states in W-pair production, the mass and total decay width of the W
boson are determined to be GeV and
GeV, respectively
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