Photolithographic Mask Fabrication Process Using Cr/Sapphire Carriers

Elaboration of the technology of novel photolithographic masks fabricated on sapphire substrates for UV and DUV application was described. The main technological steps of mask fabrication as Cr metallization deposition, selection of resist for lithography and Cr layer etching were developed and reported. The etching of Cr films was carried out through resist mask. Detailed study of Cr layer etching process was performed using different solutions such as KMnO4, HCl and ceric ammonium nitrate-based solutions to obtain good-quality structures with the smallest possible undercut of Cr layer and smooth edge. The mask fabrication process was validated by fabrication of test structures of microelectronic device using photolithography technique

The importance of spatial configuration of urban land cover in governing thermal response of urban form structure at design and masterplan levels.

Urban areas worldwide are affected by the urban heat island (UHI) effect whereby towns and cities are warmer than their rural backgrounds, having a negative impact on human health and well-being, energy use, and ecology. Appropriately distributed and spatially configured urban greenspaces can be used to mitigate the UHI, however, their efficacy so far has been investigated from either sparse air temperature measurements, micro-scale model simulations or coarse- resolution remotely sensed land surface temperature (LST), resulting in outcomes specific to particular urban fragments or averaged over areas relevant to masterplan and not urban design level. Additionally, the effect of the non- vegetated portion of land cover (LC) on the capacity of urban greenspaces to alleviate excess heat has largely been ignored. In this work, these gaps are addressed by using fine spatial resolution LST and LC data over the entire extents of three British towns to elucidate the relationship between LST and spatial configuration of urban form, taking into account both the spatial properties of greenspaces and their built-up neighbours. Spatial configuration of urban form was defined by aggregation of individual LC patches, size, elevation, and distance to LC patches of other types. Elucidation of the urban form-LST relationships required downscaling of available coarse resolution imagery with the use of high resolution ancillary data, and sub-division of main LC types into classes with distinct spatial aggregation and thermal properties. Random Forest regression allowed for determination of specific spatial configuration conditions leading to the formation of the hottest and coldest LC patches of a given type and highlighted the importance of neighbouring LC in their formation. Subsequently, the requirement for sophisticated spatial analyses for UHI-mitigating urban design was verified through assessment of the heat mitigation index generated by the InVEST 3.8.7 Urban Cooling model, which performed better at scales relevant to masterplans.Harris, Jim (Associate)PhD in Environment and Agrifoo

From the past to the present, optical coherence tomography in glaucoma: a practical guide to a common disease [version 2; peer review: 2 approved]

Glaucoma comprises a group of disorders of the optic nerve that cause degenerative optic neuropathy, characterised by failure of neuroretinal rim tissue in the optic nerve head, retinal nerve fibre layer, and retinal ganglion cells. Glaucoma imposes a serious epidemiological threat, with an steady increase in the global number of cases. In the current ophthalmological practice, glaucoma is diagnosed via a series of examinations, including routine funduscopic examination, ocular tonometry, gonioscopy, measurement of the visual field, and assessment using the optical coherence tomography (OCT) technique. Nowadays, the OCT technique helps in systematising the diagnostic pathway and is a basic diagnostic tool for detection of early glaucomatous eye changes. It is also vital in assessing progression and monitoring treatment results of patients. The aim of this review was to present the OCT technique as a main tool in diagnosing and monitoring glaucoma

Ecosystem services from combined natural and engineered water and wastewater treatment systems: Going beyond water quality enhancement

Combined natural and engineered water and waste water systems (cNES) are nature-based solutions that utilise naturally occurring processes to remove impurities from water and therefore contribute to the ecosystem service of water quality enhancement. We hypothesise that these systems may also have a potential to deliver ecosystem services other than their primary purpose of water purification and we use spatially-explicit modelling tools to determine these benefits. We focused on three different types of cNES: bank filtration (BF), managed aquifer recharge/soil aquifer treatment (MAR/SAT), and constructed wetlands (CW), and combined the ecosystem services cascade, DESSIN and CICES conceptual frameworks with multiple InVEST 3.4.4 models to investigate the spatial distribution of intermediate ecosystem services within the sites as well as in the surrounding landscape. We also determined the role of habitats present within the sites in wider landscape’s connectivity to the nearest Natura 2000 areas using the Circuitscape 4.0 model, assessed the public perception of the aesthetic value of two of the cNES technologies, i.e. CW and MAR/SAT, via an online survey, and linked the determined ecosystem services to their likely beneficiaries. Our results indicated that the sites characterised with semi-natural ecosystems had a good potential for ecosystem services provision and that the selected cNES technologies were favourably received by the public as compared to their engineered equivalents. We concluded that determination of ecosystem services potential from nature-based solutions, such as cNES technologies, should be done in consideration of various contextual factors including the type of habitats/ecosystems present within the proposed solutions, the location within the landscape as well as properties and ecosystem services potential of the areas surrounding the sites, all of which can be facilitated by deployment of spatially-explicit ecosystem service models at early stages of the planning process

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Estimation of Cutoff Values of Cotinine in Urine and Saliva for Pregnant Women in Poland

Setting appropriate cutoff values and the use of a highly sensitive analytical method allow for correct classification of the smoking status. Urine-saliva pairs samples of pregnant women in the second and third trimester, and saliva only in the first trimester were collected. Offline SPE and LC-ESI-MS/MS method was developed in the broad concentration range (saliva 0.4–1000 ng/mL, urine 0.8–4000 ng/mL). The mean recoveries were 3.7±7.6% for urine and 99.1±2.6% for saliva. LOD for saliva was 0.12 ng/mL and for urine 0.05 ng/mL; LOQ was 0.4 ng/mL and 0.8 ng/mL, respectively. Intraday and interday precision equaled, respectively, 1.2% and 3.4% for urine, and 2.3% and 6.4% for saliva. There was a strong correlation between salivary cotinine and the uncorrected cotinine concentration in urine in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy. The cutoff values were established for saliva 12.9 ng/mL and urine 42.3 ng/mL or 53.1 μg/g creatinine with the ROC curve analysis. The developed analytical method was successfully applied to quantify cotinine, and a significant correlation between the urinary and salivary cotinine levels was found. The presented cut-off values for salivary and urinary cotinine ensure a categorization of the smoking status among pregnant women that is more accurate than self-reporting

Analysis of the status of Polish nurses working abroad

Nursing increasingly can be characterized as a mobile profession. The freedom of movement within the European Union, the recognition of professional qualifications and permanent nurses shortages in developed countries, facilitates their migration. Migration of nurses may be a factor in both positively and negatively modifying the situation in the Polish healthcare sector. Analysis of the nurses' motivations to migrate and analysis of the initial and the current situation of Polish nurses working in the profession outside Polish borders. The study was conducted in 2012-2013 and used a questionnaire method. The study included 25 nurses working in Italy, 19 in Norway and 7 in the UK. All study participants were women, their average age was 40.8 years. They worked abroad for an average of 6.4 years. The main motives of the decision to migrate, regardless of country of the current residence, were financial incentives and better working conditions in the destination countries. Almost all study participants (97.8%) were generally satisfied with their work abroad and the vast majority (86%) again would decide to migrate. More than half of respondents (60%) do not plan the return migration