Correlated electronic decay following intense near-infrared ionization of clusters

We report on a novel correlated electronic decay process following extensive Rydberg atom formation in clusters ionized by intense near-infrared fields. A peak close to the atomic ionization potential is found in the electron kinetic energy spectrum. This new contribution is attributed to an energy transfer between two electrons, where one electron decays from a Rydberg state to the ground state and transfers its excess energy to a weakly bound cluster electron in the environment that can escape from the cluster. The process is a result of nanoplasma formation and is therefore expected to be important, whenever intense laser pulses interact with nanometer-sized particles

Intracluster Coulombic decay following intense NIR ionization of clusters

We report on the observation of a novel intracluster Coulombic decay process following Rydberg atom formation in clusters ionized by intense near-infrared fields. A new decay channel emerges, in which a Rydberg atom relaxes to the ground state by transferring its excess energy to a weakly bound electron in the environment that is emitted from the cluster. We find evidence for this process in the electron spectra, where a peak close to the corresponding atomic ionization potential is observed. For Ar clusters, a decay time of 87 ps is measured, which is significantly longer than in previous time-resolved studies of interatomic Coulombic decay

Coronary Risk Factors in Patients with Coronary Artery Ectasia : A Case-Control Study from Iran

Coronary artery ectasia is a rare finding in angiography. We investigated the prevalence of coronary artery ectasia and assessed cardiovascular risk factors as probable influencing factors in this disease in our region. This study was conducted from October 2007 to March 2010 on 2500 patients visiting Imam Reza and Qaem and Razavi hospitals, Mashhad, Iran who had chest pain and were selected for angiographic studies. The study was based on reviewing angiographic films besides filling in questionnaires. 103 coronary artery ectasia cases showing 4% prevalence for this kind of coronary involvement were selected as the study group and compared with 62 patients with atherosclerosis and no ectasia as the control group. Mean age of the study and control group was 57.6 and 54.1yrs, respectively indicating a statistically significant difference (p=0.032). The study and control groups showed no significant difference based on sex, smoking history and mean Body Mass Index (BMI). However, a BMI above 25 had a significantly higher prevalence in the study group (p=0.036). Mean hs-CRP and homocystein levels were 3.4 and 11.8 in the study group and 2.3 and 8.3 in the control group, respectively, both revealing a significant difference (p=0.002, p<0.001). Hyperlipidemia in ectasia patients in comparison to controls was significantly more prevalent (p=0.001). The prevalence of coronary artery ectasia was 4% and cardiovascular risk factors in ectasia cases included: hyperlipidemia, high hs-CRP, and homocystein

Correlated electronic decay following intense near-infrared ionization of clusters

We report on a novel correlated electronic decay process following extensive Rydberg atom formation in clusters ionized by intense near-infrared fields. A peak close to the atomic ionization potential is found in the electron kinetic energy spectrum. This new contribution is attributed to an energy transfer between two electrons, where one electron decays from a Rydberg state to the ground state and transfers its excess energy to a weakly bound cluster electron in the environment that can escape from the cluster. The process is a result of nanoplasma formation and is therefore expected to be important, whenever intense laser pulses interact with nanometer-sized particles