Photonic quasi-crystal LEDs: design, modelling, and optimisation

In this paper we investigate improvement in performance attainable by etching Photonic Crystals and Photonic Quasi-Crystals into the top emitting surface of LEDs. We describe the physical mechanisms of extraction enhancement through ordered surface patterning and investigate benefits in terms of total extraction enhancement, beam directionality, and far field beam quality. Factors such as lattice geometry, etch depth, and epitaxy thickness are investigated. We show that a great variety of far field beam profiles of benefit in applications such as projection TV light engines and direct flat panel display illumination can be obtained simply by adjusting geometric design parameters. Our results show that PCs can provide significant improvement in extraction enhancement for applications requiring non Lambertian beam shapes when etched into standard "production line" epitaxy wafers in comparison to "state of the art" surface roughened thin-GaN LED devices. We investigate PC beam steering effects in these devices confirming that PCs do in fact re-direct light from trapped modes confined within the epi-structure to radiating modes. We also show that by tailoring the thickness of the epi-structure to complement the properties of the photonic crystal, extraction enhancement can be improved by a factor of 9 for some applications

Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy and Women’s Health

Personalized approaches for the management and maintenance of women’s pelvic health are increasingly in demand. As pelvic floor dysfunction is multifactorial and origins vary, it is essential as a clinician, to be familiar with available interventions to address each of these dysfunctions and their causes. This chapter will discuss the role of physical therapy in the management of female patients presenting with pelvic floor dysfunction related to bowel, bladder and sexual health with focus on variations associated with age. Each section addresses a specific type of pelvic floor dysfunction, discusses the methodology for management, as well as the efficacy of the physical therapy intervention related to treatment of each diagnosis

Investigating and Comparing Traffic Induced and Restrained Temperature Stresses in a Conventional Rigid Pavement and Semi-Rigid Layers

The paper investigates and compares the magnitude of restrained temperature stresses that can be achieved in both a rigid pavement and a flexible pavement with a grouted macadam surfacing. The analysis is based on well known Westergrad equation that commonly applicable for concrete and BISAR from Shell that used for flexible pavement A hypothetical pavement is designed to assess the properties of the materials under traffic induced stresses and temperature restrained stresses. The results indicate that grouted macadams could be as vulnerable to combinations of thermal and traffic stress as concrete and with respect to traffic induced stresses at the underside of the surfacing layer. westergaard's analysis is more applicable to the a concrete slab and BISAR is more suitable for grouted macadam surfacin

Fracture and fatigue strength of grouted macadams

Grouted macadams form a class of material which provides significant advantages in comparison to both concrete and conventional asphalt, having both rut resistance and a degree of flexibility. This paper presents a series of laboratory tests on several grouted macadam mixtures, for stiffness, fatigue and low temperature fracture. The variables explored include binder grade and content, aggregate size and gradation, and grout strength. Although the material is found to perform fundamentally as an asphalt, there are several significant differences in the form of fatigue behavior found compared to that usually expected from an asphalt. In particular the effect of varying binder content is found to be markedly different. The results are discussed in terms of optimizing mixture design in order to obtain the most desirable combination of properties (stiffness, fatigue strength, low temperature fracture resistance). Discussion is also presented regarding the possible role of grouted macadams as base or binder courses within highway pavements, and the conclusion is drawn that they are likely to provide an economical solution in many circumstances owing to their superior mechanical properties

Theranostic liposome–nanoparticle hybrids for drug delivery and bioimaging

Advanced theranostic nanomedicine is a multifunctional approach which combines the diagnosis and effective therapy of diseased tissues. Here, we investigated the preparation, characterization and in vitro evaluation of theranostic liposomes. As is known, liposome–quantum dot (L–QD) hybrid vesicles are promising nanoconstructs for cell imaging and liposomal-topotecan (L-TPT) enhances the efficiency of TPT by providing protection against systemic clearance and allowing extended time for it to accumulate in tumors. In the present study, hydrophobic CdSe/ZnS QD and TPT were located in the bilayer membrane and inner core of liposomes, respectively. Dynamic light scattering (DLS), zeta potential (ζ) measurements and fluorescence/absorption spectroscopy were performed to determine the vesicle size, charge and spectroscopic properties of the liposomes. Moreover, drug release was studied under neutral and acidic pH conditions. Fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry analysis were used to examine the cellular uptake and intracellular distribution of the TPT-loaded L–QD formulation. 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was utilized to investigate the in vitro cytotoxicity of the formulations on HeLa cells. According to the results, the TPT-loaded L–QD hybrid has adequate physicochemical properties and is a promising multifunctional delivery vehicle which is capable of a simultaneous co-delivery of therapeutic and diagnostic agents.Konrad Adenauer Foundatio

The effect of using rest periods in 4PB tests on the fatigue life of grouted macadams

Four-point bending tests are commonly used to assess the fatigue resistance of bi-tuminous bound materials that are used in road pavements. However, it is difficult to establish a reliable relationship between the laboratory test results and the field performance of the mate-rial. In order to predict the real life of the pavement, shift factors are normally used to convert the fatigue results obtained in the laboratory onto the actual fatigue life of the material in the field. Those shift factors depend on the type of test used, the testing conditions and the type of mixture used. In this study, an attempt was made to establish a shift factor for grouted mac-adams, based on four-point bending fatigue test results carried out with rest periods between the loading cycles. The result obtained was used to define a fatigue criterion for pavement design with grouted macadams

Quasicrystalline Order in Binary Dipolar Systems

Motivated by recent experimental findings, we investigate the possible occurrence and characteristics of quasicrystalline order in two-dimensional mixtures of point dipoles with two sorts of dipole moments. Despite the fact that the dipolar interaction potential does not exhibit an intrinsic length scale and cannot be tuned a priori to support the formation of quasicrystalline order, we find that configurations with long--range quasicrystallinity yield minima in the potential energy surface of the many particle system. These configurations emanate from an ideal or perturbed ideal decoration of a binary tiling by steepest descent relaxation. Ground state energy calculations of alternative ordered states and parallel tempering Monte-Carlo simulations reveal that the quasicrystalline configurations do not correspond to a thermodynamically stable state. On the other hand, steepest descent relaxations and conventional Monte-Carlo simulations suggest that they are rather robust against fluctuations. Local quasicrystalline order in the disordered equilibrium states can be strong.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figure

Fused and spiro nitrogen heterocycles of quinuclidine and its C-nucleosides

Quinuclidin-3-one (1) was used as a versatile intermediate for the synthesis of fused and spiro quinuclidine and its C-nucleosides. The reaction of 1 with formalin and secondary amines namely; morpholine, piperidine, and piperazine afforded the corresponding Mannich bases 2-4 in acid medium. Quinuclidino[3,2-b]pyran 5 has been synthesized via a selective cyclocondensation reaction between Mannich base of quinuclidinone hydrochloride 2 and malononitrile. The transformation of 1 with formalin and methylamine in molar ratio (1:20:2) afforded the spiro compound 7. Ring expansion of 2 under Schmidt reaction conditions gave the 1,3-diazabicyclo[3.2.2]nonanone derivative 6. Eventually, the synthesis of C-nucleosides 10, 12-14 were achieved by using aldohexoses and aldopentose catalyzed by zinc chloride, while, the bis-quinuclidine derivative 15 was obtained by using sodium carbonate. Newly synthesized compounds were characterized by IR, 1H NMR, and mass spectral data

Isotropic photonic band gap and anisotropic structures in transmission spectra of two-dimensional 5-fold and 8-fold symmetric quasiperiodic photonic crystals

We measured and calculated transmission spectra of two-dimensional quasiperiodic photonic crystals (PCs) based on a 5-fold (Penrose) or 8-fold (octagonal) symmetric quasiperiodic pattern. The photonic crystal consisted of dielectric cylindrical rods in air placed normal to the basal plane on vertices of tiles composing the quasiperiodic pattern. An isotropic photonic band gap (PBG) appeared in the TM mode, where electric fields were parallel to the rods, even when the real part of a dielectric constant of the rod was as small as 2.4. An isotropic PBG-like dip was seen in tiny Penrose and octagonal PCs with only 6 and 9 rods, respectively. These results indicate that local multiple light scattering within the tiny PC plays an important role in the PBG formation. Besides the isotropic PBG, we found dips depending on the incident angle of the light. This is the first report of anisotropic structures clearly observed in transmission spectra of quasiperiodic PCs. Based on rod-number and rod-arrangement dependence, it is thought that the shapes and positions of the anisotropic dips are determined by global multiple light scattering covering the whole system. In contrast to the isotropic PBG due to local light scattering, we could not find any PBGs due to global light scattering even though we studied transmission spectra of a huge Penrose PC with 466 rods.Comment: One tex file for manuscript and 12 PNG files for figures consisting of Fig.1a-d, 2,3, ...

Photonic stop bands in quasi-random nanoporous anodic alumina structures

The existence of photonic stop bands in the self-assembled arrangement of pores in porous anodic alumina structures is investigated by means of rigorous 2D finite- difference time-domain calculations. Self-assembled porous anodic alumina shows a random distribution of domains, each of them with a very definite triangular pattern, constituting a quasi-random structure. The observed stop bands are similar to those of photonic quasicrystals or random structures. As the pores of nanoporous anodic alumina can be infiltrated with noble metals, nonlinear or active media, it makes this material very attractive and cost-effective for applications including inhibition of spontaneous emission, random lasing, LEDs and biosensors