Megasonic Enhanced Electrodeposition

A novel way of filling high aspect ratio vertical interconnection (microvias) with an aspect ratio of >2:1 is presented. High frequency acoustic streaming at megasonic frequencies enables the decrease of the Nernst-diffusion layer down to the sub-micron range, allowing thereby conformal electrodeposition in deep grooves. Higher throughput and better control over the deposition properties are possible for the manufacturing of interconnections and metal-based MEMS.Comment: Submitted on behalf of EDA Publishing Association (http://irevues.inist.fr/handle/2042/16838

Hautkrebs – cremen statt schneiden? : Nichtoperative Behandlungen auf dem Vormarsch

»Gönnen Sie Ihrer Haut Zukunft.« Unter diesem Slogan wirbt die Frankfurter Oberbürgermeisterin Petra Roth als Schirmherrin der Deutschen Hautkrebsstiftung (www.hautkrebsstiftung.de) für Maßnahmen zur Prävention von Hauttumoren. Diese Krebsformen nehmen derzeit weltweit in der hellhäutigen Bevölkerung am stärksten zu, wobei aufgrund unserer bereits in frühen Jahren sonnenbelasteten Freizeitgewohnheiten mehr und mehr jüngere Menschen erkranken. Neue Therapieoptionen erlauben es, Krebs sowie Krebsvorstufen früher und effektiver zu behandeln. Dabei spielen insbesondere nichtinvasive Methoden eine immer wichtigere Rolle. Cremen statt schneiden – dies ist nicht immer, aber immer öfter die richtige Lösung

Designing Cross-Company Business Intelligence Networks

Business Intelligence (BI) ist der allgemein akzeptierte Begriff für Methoden, Konzepte und Werkzeuge zur Sammlung, Aufbereitung, Speicherung, Verteilung und Analyse von Daten für Management- und Geschäftsentscheidungen. Obwohl unternehmensübergreifende Kooperation in den vergangenen Jahrzehnten stets an Einfluss gewonnen hat, existieren nur wenige Forschungsergebnisse im Bereich unternehmensübergreifender BI. Die vorliegende Arbeit stellt eine Arbeitsdefinition des Begriffs Cross-Company BI (CCBI) vor und grenzt diesen von gemeinschaftlicher Entscheidungsfindung ab. Auf Basis eines Referenzmodells, das existierende Arbeiten und Ansätze verwandter Forschungsbereiche berücksichtigt, werden umfangreiche Simulationen und Parametertests unternehmensübergreifender BI-Netzwerke durchgeführt. Es wird gezeigt, dass eine Peer-To-Peer-basierte Gestaltung der Netzwerke leistungsfähig und kompetitiv zu existierenden zentral-fokussierten Ansätzen ist. Zur Quantifizierung der Beobachtungen werden Messgrößen geprüft, die sich aus existierenden Konzepten zur Schemaüberführung multidimensionaler Daten sowie Überlegungen zur Daten- und Informationsqualität ableiten oder entwickeln lassen.Business Intelligence (BI) is a well-established term for methods, concepts and tools to retrieve, store, deliver and analyze data for management and business purposes. Although collaboration across company borders has substantially increased over the past decades, little research has been conducted specifically on Cross-Company BI (CCBI). In this thesis, a working definition and distinction from general collaborative decision making is proposed. Based on a reference model that takes existing research and related approaches of adjacent fields into account a peer-to-peer network design is created. With an extensive simulation and parameter testing it is shown that the design proves valuable and competitive to centralized approaches and that obtaining a critical mass of participants leads to improved usefulness of the network. To quantify the observations, appropriate quality measures rigorously derived from respected concepts on data and information quality and multidimensional data models are introduced and validated

A physical model for PDZ-domain/peptide interactions

The PDZ domain is an interaction motif that recognizes and binds the C-terminal peptides of target proteins. PDZ domains are ubiquitous in nature and help assemble multiprotein complexes that control cellular organization and signaling cascades. We present an optimized energy function to predict the binding free energy (ΔΔG) of PDZ domain/peptide interactions computationally. Geometry-optimized models of PDZ domain/peptide interfaces were built using Rosetta, and protein and peptide side chain and backbone degrees of freedom are minimized simultaneously. Using leave-one-out cross-validation, Rosetta’s energy function is adjusted to reproduce experimentally determined ΔΔG values with a correlation coefficient of 0.66 and a standard deviation of 0.79 kcal mol−1. The energy function places an increased weight on hydrogen bonding interactions when compared to a previously developed method to analyze protein/protein interactions. Binding free enthalpies (ΔΔH) and entropies (ΔS) are predicted with reduced accuracies of R = 0.60 and R = 0.17, respectively. The computational method improves prediction of PDZ domain specificity from sequence and allows design of novel PDZ domain/peptide interactions

Loss Analysis for Laser Separated Solar Cells

AbstractHalf-cell modules are promising candidates for new innovative module designs as they offer major advantages. Modified connection schemes reduce the serial resistance losses yielding a higher overall module performance. The reduced size of the cells allows a more flexible module design that is needed for special applications such as implementations on curved surface. Furthermore, a better performance under partial shading can be achieved. However, these advantages lead to a benefit only if the losses induced by the cell separation process are negligible. In this work, we study the different sources of power reduction, i.e. increased shunting and recombination, for mono-crystalline and multi-crystalline silicon solar cells separated using different laser process parameters. It is shown that recombination plays the major role for an optimized laser separation process. Additionally we identify the laser scribing process as the major source of losses in comparison to the mechanical breaking

The IFN-inducible Golgi- and endoplasmic reticulum- associated 47-kDa GTPase IIGP is transiently expressed during listeriosis.

Members of the 47-kDa GTPase family are implicated in an IFN-gamma-induced, as yet unclear, mechanism that confers innate resistance against infection with intracellular pathogens. Overt immunological parameters are apparently uncompromised in mice deficient for individual members and the prototype of this family, IGTP, localizes to the endoplasmic reticulum. This suggests that these GTPases are involved in intracellular defense. We analyzed the expression of the 47-kDa GTPase cognate, IIGP, in splenic sections from mice infected with the intracellular pathogen Listeria monocytogenes by immunohistochemistry. An early transient IIGP induction was observed revealing the IFN-gamma responsiveness of cellular subcompartments within the spleen in early listeriosis. Marginal metallophilic macrophages and endothelial cells within the red and white pulp strongly expressed IIGP, while other splenocytes remained negative. In vitro analyses show that both type I and type II IFNs are prime stimuli for IIGP induction in various cells, including L. monocytogenes-infected or LPS-stimulated macrophages, endothelial cells, and activated T cells. Contrary to the subcellular localization of IGTP, IIGP was predominantly associated with the Golgi apparatus and also localizes to the endoplasmic reticulum. We conclude that IIGP exerts a distinct role in IFN-induced intracellular membrane trafficking or processing

Fluid shear stress-induced transcriptional activation of the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 gene requires Sp1-dependent DNA binding

AbstractHemodynamic forces play a fundamental role in the regulation of endothelial cell survival. As signaling via the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) receptor-2 pathway has been previously demonstrated to impact endothelial cell survival, we hypothesized that laminar shear stress may facilitate survival in part by inducing VEGF receptor-2 expression. This study shows a time- and dose-dependent upregulation of endothelial VEGF receptor-2 expression by fluid shear stress in microvascular and large-vessel derived endothelial cells. A functional analysis of the 5′-regulatory region of the VEGF receptor-2 promoter localized the shear stress-response element to a sequence between bp −60 and −37 that encompasses two adjacent consensus Sp1 transcription factor binding sites. Constitutive and shear stress-inducible Sp1-dependent complexes are bound to this element, indicating that fluid shear stress-induced transcriptional activation of the VEGF receptor-2 gene requires Sp1-dependent DNA binding. Together, these results suggest that biomechanical stimulation may lead to endothelial cell survival by upregulating VEGF receptor-2 expression