Dual-order Raman fiber laser with suppressed low-frequency pump-to-stokes RIN transfer

By employing an output-power clamping technique, a dual-order Raman fiber laser (RFL) is theoretically presented with suppressed low-frequency relative-intensity-noise (RIN) transfer from pump sources to both first- and second-order Stokes output. Their powers can be easily tuned in a large dynamic range. Furthermore, the second-order output power can be individually controlled, which makes it flexible to adjust the ratio of the first- to second-order output power. In addition, the stabilization of low-power second-order output is also accomplished in the RFL setup. These properties fit the proposed RFL for use as dual-order pump sources in Raman fiber amplifiers.     

Two approaches to kinetic analysis applied to the prediction of antioxidant activity

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) followed by mathematical data processing can be used instead of the conventional method of long term thermal aging in predicting the activity of antioxidants in polyolefins. In this method, a regression relationship is established between the oxidation initial temperatures measured by DSC (X data) and the oxidation induction period values determined by thermal aging (Y data). Two approaches, called hard and soft, are employed in the construction of models. In the first case, nonlinear regression analysis is used in combination with successive Bayesian estimation. The second approach combines partial least squares regression and simple interval calculation. Use of a common data set makes it possible to compare these approaches and to draw inferences as to the cases in which one or the other is preferable.     

Effects of montmorillonite modification on optical properties of heterogeneous nematic liquid crystal - clay mineral nanocomposites

Investigations of montmorillonite (MMT) clay mineral modification effects on electro-optical properties of nanocomposites, based on the nematic liquid crystal 4-pentyl-4'-cyanobiphenyl (5CB) and MMT have been carried out. Only the composite with MMT modified by an organic surface-active substance, dioctadecyldimethylammonium chloride, has been shown to manifest electro-optical memory effect and contrast. A polar dopant (acetone), added to the mixture, significantly increases composite homogeneity. Results of IR spectroscopy measurements lead to the conclusion, that there is a mutual influence of components on each other in organoclay systems, which appears as an alignment of near-surface layers of both the organic and inorganic components of the composite. Due to such interactions these systems show electro-optical contrast and memory effect. A composite with organophobic Na-MMT does not show these electro-optical properties, due to the absence of component interactions, as shown by IR spectroscopic data.     

Capillary Zone Electrophoresis Investigation of Interactions between Granulocyte-colony Stimulating Factor and Dextran Sulfate／Carrageenan Oligosaccharide

Granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) is an O-glycosylated glycoprotein. G-CSF stimulates the proliferation and differentiation of hematopoietic progenitor cells committed to the neutrophil/granulocyte lineage in a dose-dependent manner. The most important application of G-CSF is in the treatment of transient phases of leukopenia following chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. Using capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE), former studies showed that G-CSF could interact with polysulfa…     

A simple approach toward low‐dielectric polyimide nanocomposites: Blending the polyimide precursor with a fluorinated polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane

This article describes a new and simple method for preparing polyimide nanocomposites that have very low dielectric constants and good thermal properties: simply through blending the polyimide precursor with a fluorinated polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane derivative, octakis(dimethylsiloxyhexafluoropropyl) silsesquioxane (OF). The low polarizability of OF is compatible with polyimide matrices, such that it can improve the dispersion and free volume of the resulting composites. Together, the higher free volume and lower polarizability of OF are responsible for the lower dielectric constants of the PI‐OF nanocomposites. This simple method for enhancing the properties of polyimides might have potential applicability in the electronics industry. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: 6296–6304, 2008     

Two-step image registration by artificial immune system and chamfer matching

Image registration is the precondition and foundation in the fusion of multi-source image data. A two-step approach based on artificial immune system and chamfer matching to register images from different types of sensors is presented. In the first step, it extracts the large edges and takes chamfer distance between the input image and the reference image as similarity measure and uses artificial immune network algorithm to speed up the searching of the initial transformation parameters. In the second step, an area-based method is utilized to refine the initial transformation and enhance the registration accuracy. Experimental results show that the proposed approach is a promising method for registration of multi-sensor images.