Anharmonic Decay of Vibrational States in Amorphous Silicon

Anharmonic decay rates are calculated for a realistic atomic model of amorphous silicon. The results show that the vibrational states decay on picosecond timescales and follow the two-mode density of states, similar to crystalline silicon, but somewhat faster. Surprisingly little change occurs for localized states. These results disagree with a recent experiment.Comment: 10 pages, 4 Postscript figure

An unusual cause of post-operative orbital edema in a child after general anesthesia

We present an unusual ocular complication during the perioperative period, bilateral orbital edema in an otherwise healthy child after an outpatient surgical procedure. Ocular complications under general anesthesia remain a rare event. When periorbital edema is present, the appropriate work-up includes ruling out the potential for an allergic event by reviewing the medications administered and serum tryptase testing. Ophthalmology consultation should be considered to exclude pathology native to the eye itself. An allergist may assist in confirming a diagnosis and for allergic testing, if indicated. In our patient, the eventual diagnosis of exclusion was that of a localized reaction to the cellophane-based eye tape

Reconfiguration for Programmable ASIC Arrays

In an approach recently proposed for the yield enhancement of programmable gate arrays (PGAs), an initial placement of a circuit is first obtained using a standard technique such as simulated annealing on a defect-free PGA. In the next step this placement is reconfigured so that the circuit is mapped onto the defect-free portion of a defective PGA chip with the same architecture. We first provide a graph theoretical formulation of the reconfiguration aspect of this approach. Based upon this formulation, we present three efficient algorithms. The first one optimally reconfigures the I/O buffers located on the periphery of a programmable array. The remaining algorithms are used as heuristics to reconfigure the gates located within a PGA and the processors within wafer scale integrated processor array. We evaluate the heuristic algorithms using the measure of routability and total wire length of the reconfigured placement of the circuit. Based on this evaluation, we establish good reconfiguration strategies

Electromagnetic interference in a cardiac pacemaker during cauterization with the coagulating, not cutting mode

Electromagnetic interference in pacemakers has almost always been reported in association with the cutting mode of monopolar electrocautery and rarely in association with the coagulation mode. We report a case of electrocautery-induced electromagnetic interference with a DDDR pacemaker (dual-chamber paced, dual-chamber sensed, dual response to sensing, and rate modulated) in the coagulating and not cutting mode during a spine procedure. We also discuss the factors affecting intraoperative electromagnetic interference. A 74-year-old man experienced intraoperative electromagnetic interference that resulted in asystole caused by surgical electrocautery in the coagulation mode while the electrodispersive pad was placed at different locations and distances from the operating site (This electromagnetic interference did not occur during the use of the cutting mode). However, because of careful management, the outcome was favorable. Clinicians should be aware that the coagulation mode of electrocautery can cause electromagnetic interference and hemodynamic instability. Heightened vigilance and preparedness can ensure a favorable outcome