Precision Timing with the CMS MIP detector

The Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is undergoing an extensive Phase II upgrade program to prepare for the challenging conditions of the High-Luminosity LHC (HL-LHC). A new timing layer is designed to measure minimum ionizing particles (MIPs) with a time resolution of 30 ps and a hermetic coverage up to a pseudo-rapidity of $|\eta|$ = 3. This MIP Timing Detector(MTD) will consist of a central barrel region based on LYSO:Ce crystals read out with SiPMs and two end-caps instrumented with radiation-tolerant Low Gain Avalanche Diodes (LGADs). The precision time information from the MTD will reduce the effects of the high levels of pile-up expected at the HL-LHC, and will bring new and unique capabilities to the CMS detector. We present the current status and ongoing R&D of the MTD, including recent test beam results.Comment: Talk presented at CIPANP 2018. 8 pages, 4 figures, LaTeX, 1 tabl

Precision Timing with the CMS MIP Timing Detector

The Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is undergoing an extensive Phase II upgrade program to prepare for the challenging conditions of the High Luminosity LHC (HL-LHC). A new timing layer is designed to measure minimum ionizing particles (MIPs) with a time resolution of 30 ps and hermetic coverage up to a pseudo-rapidity of |η|=3. This MIP Timing Detector (MTD) will consist of a central barrel region based on LYSO:Ce crystals read out with SiPMs and two end-caps instrumented with radiation-tolerant Low Gain Avalanche Detectors (LGADs). The precision time information from the MTD will reduce the effects of the high levels of pile-up expected at the HL-LHC and will bring new and unique capabilities to the CMS detector. The time information assigned to each track will enable the use of 4D-vertexing which will render a 5-fold pile-up reduction thus recovering the current conditions. Precision timing will also enable new time-based isolations and improved b-tagging algorithms. All of this translates into a 20% gain in effective luminosity when looking at di-Higgs boson events decaying to a pair of b-quarks and two photons. We present the current status and ongoing R&D of the MTD, including implications on the physics reach at the HL-LHC and test beam results

Precision Timing with the CMS MIP Timing Detector

The Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is undergoing an extensive Phase II upgrade program to prepare for the challenging conditions of the High Luminosity LHC (HL-LHC). A new timing layer is designed to measure minimum ionizing particles (MIPs) with a time resolution of 30 ps and hermetic coverage up to a pseudo-rapidity of |η|=3. This MIP Timing Detector (MTD) will consist of a central barrel region based on LYSO:Ce crystals read out with SiPMs and two end-caps instrumented with radiation-tolerant Low Gain Avalanche Detectors (LGADs). The precision time information from the MTD will reduce the effects of the high levels of pile-up expected at the HL-LHC and will bring new and unique capabilities to the CMS detector. The time information assigned to each track will enable the use of 4D-vertexing which will render a 5-fold pile-up reduction thus recovering the current conditions. Precision timing will also enable new time-based isolations and improved b-tagging algorithms. All of this translates into a 20% gain in effective luminosity when looking at di-Higgs boson events decaying to a pair of b-quarks and two photons. We present the current status and ongoing R&D of the MTD, including implications on the physics reach at the HL-LHC and test beam results

Design and performance of the Fermilab Constant Fraction Discriminator ASIC

We present the design and performance characterization results of the novel Fermilab Constant Fraction Discriminator ASIC (FCFD) developed to readout low gain avalanche detector (LGAD) signals by directly using a constant fraction discriminator (CFD) to measure signal arrival time. Silicon detectors with time resolutions less than 30 ps will play a critical role in future collider experiments, and LGADs have been demonstrated to provide the required time resolution and radiation tolerance for many such applications. The FCFD has a specially designed discriminator that is robust against amplitude variations of the signal from the LGAD that normally requires an additional correction step when using a traditional leading edge discriminator based measurement. The application of the CFD directly in the ASIC promises to be more reliable and reduces the complication of timing detectors during their operation. We will present a summary of the measured performance of the FCFD for input signals generated by internal charge injection, LGAD signals from an infrared laser, and LGAD signals from minimum-ionizing particles. The mean time response for a wide range of LGAD signal amplitudes has been measured to vary no more than 15 ps, orders of magnitude more stable than an uncorrected leading edge discriminator based measurement, and effectively removes the need for any additional time-walk correction. The measured contribution to the time resolution from the FCFD ASIC is also found to be 10 ps for signals with charge above 20 fC

Genetic subtypes of smoldering multiple myeloma are associated with distinct pathogenic phenotypes and clinical outcomes

Smoldering multiple myeloma (SMM) is a precursor condition of multiple myeloma (MM) with significant heterogeneity in disease progression. Existing clinical models of progression risk do not fully capture this heterogeneity. Here we integrate 42 genetic alterations from 214 SMM patients using unsupervised binary matrix factorization (BMF) clustering and identify six distinct genetic subtypes. These subtypes are differentially associated with established MM-related RNA signatures, oncogenic and immune transcriptional profiles, and evolving clinical biomarkers. Three genetic subtypes are associated with increased risk of progression to active MM in both the primary and validation cohorts, indicating they can be used to better predict high and low-risk patients within the currently used clinical risk stratification models

Cord blood IgG and the risk of severe Plasmodium falciparum malaria in the first year of life

Young infants are less susceptible to severe episodes of malaria but the targets and mechanisms of protection are not clear. Cord blood antibodies may play an important role in mediating protection but many studies have examined their association with the outcome of infection or non-severe malaria. Here, we investigated whether cord blood IgG to Plasmodium falciparum merozoite antigens and antibody-mediated effector functions were associated with reduced odds of developing severe malaria at different time points during the first year of life. We conducted a case-control study of well-defined severe falciparum malaria nested within a longitudinal birth cohort of Kenyan children. We measured cord blood total IgG levels against five recombinant merozoite antigens and antibody function in the growth inhibition activity and neutrophil antibody-dependent respiratory burst assays. We also assessed the decay of maternal antibodies during the first 6months of life. The mean antibody half-life range was 2.51months (95% confidence interval (CI): 2.19-2.92) to 4.91months (95% CI: 4.47-6.07). The rate of decline of maternal antibodies was inversely proportional to the starting concentration. The functional assay of antibody-dependent respiratory burst activity predicted significantly reduced odds of developing severe malaria during the first 6months of life (Odds ratio (OR) 0.07, 95% CI: 0.007-0.74, P=0.007). Identification of the targets of antibodies mediating antibody-dependent respiratory burst activity could contribute to the development of malaria vaccines that protect against severe episodes of malaria in early infancy

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy

Globalization intentions in tension: The case of Singapore

10.1177/0020872810371202International Social Work535671-68

The Heterotrimeric Laminin Coiled-Coil Domain Exerts Anti-Adhesive Effects and Induces a Pro-Invasive Phenotype

Laminins are large heterotrimeric cross-shaped extracellular matrix glycoproteins with terminal globular domains and a coiled-coil region through which the three chains are assembled and covalently linked. Laminins are key components of basement membranes, and they serve as attachment sites for cell adhesion, migration and proliferation. In this work, we produced a recombinant fragment comprising the entire laminin coiled-coil of the α1-, β1-, and γ1-chains that assemble into a stable heterotrimeric coiled-coil structure independently of the rest of the molecule. This domain was biologically active and not only failed to serve as a substrate for cell attachment, spreading and focal adhesion formation but also inhibited cell adhesion to laminin when added to cells in a soluble form at the time of seeding. Furthermore, gene array expression profiling in cells cultured in the presence of the laminin coiled-coil domain revealed up-regulation of genes involved in cell motility and invasion. These findings were confirmed by real-time quantitative PCR and zymography assays. In conclusion, this study shows for the first time that the laminin coiled-coil domain displays anti-adhesive functions and has potential implications for cell migration during matrix remodeling

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements