An electron microscopic study of the archaeal feast/famine regulatory protein: 6. The cylindrical assembly form

Using a microcrystal of the feast/famine regulatory protein (FFRP) pot0434017 (FL11), a cryo-electron micrograph was taken, showing a projection of cylinder-like assemblies packed parallel to each other. This electron micrograph was processed in the Fourier space by selecting spots reflecting the packing and, in addition, those reflecting stacking of units inside the cylinders. Twenty seven subimages were selected, each containing three cylinders of 24 discs each, running nearly parallel to each other. By averaging these images and in combination with another average showing a different view [Ishijima, S. A., Clowney, L., and Suzuki, M. (2004) Proc. Jpn. Acad., Ser. B 80, 183–188], some details of the 3D structure of the cylindrical assembly form are discussed.     

An electron microscopic study of the archaeal feast/famine regulatory protein: 2. Crystal formation by a full length FFRP,pot0434017 (FL11)

In the crystal the archaeal feast/famine regulatory protein pot0434017 (FL11) forms helical cylinders, each extending along the c axis and densely packed with a hexagonal symmetry in the a/b plane. By applying cryo-electron microscopy to protein solutions yielding crystals, with selectively focussing zero-loss electrons accelerated at 200 KV, two types of regular objects were observed, hexagonal (i.e. projections of crystals to their a/b planes) or rectangular (i.e. projections onto planes perpendicular to a/b). The two types of images are different in the ranges of sizes, suggesting that the crystallization might initiate by forming a hexagonal sheet on the a/b plane, subsequently extending along the c axis. Some other images obtained were intermediate between regular and amorphous, suggesting that some crystals were growing inside amorphous precipitates by rearranging the protein molecules, and that some larger crystals were growing by absorbing smaller amorphous precipitates. Tubes running parallel to each other were also observed in pieces of thin films. These tubes have hollows in their centers, and their lateral arrangement with a periodicity of ~150 Å and the presence of a helical component ~50 Å suggest that they are projections of the helical cylinders, forming mono-layers on the a/c or b/c planes.     

Accuracy of image registration between MRI and light microscopy in the ex vivo brain

A multistep procedure was developed to register magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and histological data from the same sample in the light microscopy image space, with the ultimate goal of allowing quantitative comparisons of the two datasets. The fixed brain of an owl monkey was used to develop and test the procedure. In addition to the MRI and histological data, photographic images of the brain tissue block acquired during sectioning were assembled into a blockface volume to provide an intermediate step for the overall registration process. The MR volume was first registered to the blockface volume using a combination of linear and nonlinear registration, and two dimensional (2D) blockface sections were registered to corresponding myelin-stained sections using a combination of linear and nonlinear registration. Before this 2D registration, two major types of tissue distortions were corrected: tissue tearing and independent movement of different parts of the brain, both introduced during histological processing of the sections. The correction procedure utilized a 2D method to close tissue tears and a multiple iterative closest point (ICP) algorithm to reposition separate pieces of tissue in the image. The accuracy of the overall MR to micrograph registration procedure was assessed by measuring the distance between registered landmarks chosen in the MR image space and the corresponding landmarks chosen in the micrograph space. The average error distance of the MR data registered to micrograph data was 0.324±0.277 mm, only 8% larger than the width of the MRI voxel (0.3 mm).     

An electron microscopic study of the archaeal feast/famine regulatory protein: 7. Single particles formed by pot0434017

Particles formed by a feast/famine regulatory protein (FFRP), pot0434017 (FL11), in solution in the absence of DNA were analyzed using electron microscopy (EM). By applying conventional (i.e. dry) EM to the protein negatively stained with uranyl acetate, top views of tetrameric assemblies of dimers were obtained, where four pairs each of N-domains were extending from C-domains assembled around the centers. In cryo-EM images of the protein embedded in 3D amorphous ice, sets of four densities were arranged around ellipsoids having similar lengths for their long axes but of different lengths for their short axes. These images were interpreted as projections with different tilts of four pairs of N-domains arranged inside flat assemblies: the positively charged N-domains only were stained with ammonium molybdate, but the negatively charged C-domains were unstained and thus unobservable. Using seventeen such cryo-images, in combination with a crystal structure equivalent to an assembly of C-domains, a disk-like 3D structure was reconstructed.     

An electron microscopic study of the archaeal feast/famine regulatory protein: 4. Estimation of the particle size

Using the method of Fourier transform, cryo-electron micrographs of two types of archaeal feast/famine regulatory proteins (FFRPs), pot0434017 (FL11) and pot1216151 (DM1), were analyzed. After correcting the Fourier power spectra by considering effects of the contrast transfer functions (CTFs), peaks were identified at frequencies, corresponding to the particle size of ~130 Å for FL11 in the complex with DNA, in addition, a smaller size, ~40 Å, for the same protein in the absence of DNA, the particle size of ~65 Å for DM1 when interacting with a ligand, and a smaller size of ~30 Å when the ligand was removed. These numbers are consistent with our previous observations that dimers of FL11 form octamers, i.e. tetrameric assemblies of the dimers, upon intercation with DNA, and that similar octamers of a smaller FFRP, DM1 of the molecular weight approximately half that of FL11, are stabilized by interaction with the ligand. Some aspects of CTF correction are discussed.     

An electron microscopic study of the archaeal feast/famine regulatory protein: 3. Labeling of the N-terminus using nickel

Histidine residues added to the N-terminus of a polypeptide (i.e. a His-tag) was used, for the first time to our knowledge, for electron labeling of the protein upon its electron spectroscopic imaging. Originally such a His-tag was developed by another group to purify modified proteins by taking advantage of their affinity to nickel. The feast/famine regulatory protein pot0434017 (FL11) was modified by adding six His residues to its N-terminus, so that each His pair would chelate a nickel ion. An electron microscope was operated at 200 KeV, and the electrons that lost the energy by ~875 eV upon interaction with the metal were selectively focused. The majority, 60–70%, of the spots detected in the electron micrographs were paired by distances shorter than 80 Å, and over 70% of them were paired by distances shorter than 40 Å. It is concluded that the protein molecules formed dimers, and the termini of most of the protein molecules were labeled with nickel by this method.     

Scattering phase functions of horizontally oriented hexagonal ice crystals

Finite-difference time domain (FDTD) solutions are first compared with the corresponding T-matrix results for light scattering by circular cylinders with specific orientations. The FDTD method is then utilized to study the scattering properties of horizontally oriented hexagonal ice plates at two wavelengths, 0.55 and 12 μm. The phase functions of horizontally oriented ice plates deviate substantially from their counterparts obtained for randomly oriented particles. Furthermore, we compute the phase functions of horizontally oriented ice crystal columns by using the FDTD method along with two schemes for averaging over the particle orientations. It is shown that the phase functions of hexagonal ice columns with horizontal orientations are not sensitive to the rotation about the principal axes of the particles. Moreover, hexagonal ice crystals and circular cylindrical ice particles have similar optical properties, particularly, at a strongly absorbing wavelength, if the two particle geometries have the same length and aspect ratio defined as the ratio of the radius or semi-width of the cross section of a particle to its length. The phase functions for the two particle geometries are slightly different in the case of weakly absorbing plates with large aspect ratios. However, the solutions for circular cylinders agree well with their counterparts for hexagonal columns.     

基于螺旋线的紧凑型高压纳秒脉冲发生器

提出了一种结合高耦合Tesla变压器和螺旋形成线(FL)的紧凑型高压纳秒脉冲发生器,由内置Tesla变压器充电的螺旋FL包含外屏蔽筒、螺旋中筒和内导体筒,内外筒的两端均短路连接,螺旋中筒的一端开路,另一端穿过内外筒短路端面并与主开关电极连接。该结构简单紧凑、易于实现,输出脉冲前沿快、平顶好。给出了一组10 GW功率、百ns脉宽的FL设计,采用Midel 7131合成酯绝缘介质,FL外筒内径0.88 m,长度2 m。     

铜箔上生长的六角氮化硼薄膜的扫描隧道显微镜研究

利用扫描隧道显微镜研究了采用化学气相沉积法在铜箔表面生长出的高质量的六角氮化硼薄膜. 大范围的扫描隧道显微镜图像显示出该薄膜具有原子级平整的表面, 而扫描隧道谱则显示, 扫描隧道显微镜图像反映出的是该薄膜样品的隧穿势垒空间分布. 极低偏压的扫描隧道显微镜图像呈现了氮化硼薄膜表面的六角蜂窝周期性原子排列, 而高偏压的扫描隧道显微镜图像则呈现出无序和有序排列区域共存的电子调制图案. 该调制图案并非源于氮化硼薄膜和铜箔衬底的面内晶格失配, 而极有可能来源于两者界面处的氢、硼和/或氮原子在铜箔表面的吸附所导致的隧穿势垒的局域空间分布.     

Analysis of HRTEM images for carbon nanostructure quantification

Image processing algorithms have been developed to extract fringe length, tortuosity and separation from high resolution transmission electron microscopy images. To validate the separation algorithm, a comparison is made between the image-based fringe separation and that obtained by analysis of X-ray diffraction data for a progressively heat-treated carbon black. Agreement is favorable. To illustrate the utility of the analysis parameters for a range of carbon nanostructures, analysis is applied to a series of pyrolytically prepared carbon soots – qualitatively described as containing amorphous, graphitic or fullerenic nanostructure. For all processing, the intermediate image, in the form of a skeletonized binary image of the original high resolution transmission electron micrograph, is shown and found to accurately reflect the nanostructural organization within the carbon as visually observed. Statistical results for each analysis parameter, extracted from the binary images, are presented in the form of histograms and quantitatively distinguish the different carbon nanostructures.     

Microstructure and microhardness analysis of the hexagonal oxides formed on the surface of the AISI 304 stainless steel after Nd:YAG pulsed laser surface melting

The laser surface melting (LSM) technique was adopted to modify the surface layer microstructure of the AISI 304 stainless steel in this paper. The results showed that the hexagonal morphologies have been successfully fabricated on the surface after LSM. These hexagons had side lengths of about 0.5-1 μm and were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) and high resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM). It was proved by the XRD that the stainless steel surface mainly consisted of γ-Fe, Cr₂O₃, Fe₂O₃ and some manganese oxides. The FESEM micrographs showed that the hexagonal oxides were regular hexagons in geometry. The HRTEM micrographs also indicated the presence of the hexagons on the surface of the stainless steel. The spacing values were calculated from the HRTEM micrograph and the SAED pattern, and the hexagonal oxide phases determined by these spacing values were consistent with those verified by the XRD. After LSM, the microhardness of the stainless steel was significantly improved.     

Several large-scale superperiodicities on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite observed by scanning tunneling microscopy

On freshly cleaved highly oriented pyrolytic graphite we observed large-scale superperiodicities by a scanning tunneling microscope at room temperature in air. Several hexagonal superstructures with periods of 30 nm, 4.2 nm, 2.4 nm, and 2.0 nm, respectively, and a strip-like superstructure with a period of 1 nm were obtained. With exception of the largest hexagonal superperiodicity (30 nm spacing), all other superstructures are superimposed on the atomic corrugation of graphite. The origin of these superstructures is not clear yet. We assume that they arise from crystal defects in graphite. The hexagonal superstructure may be caused by the Moiré effect due to the rotational misorientation of the two top layers or of two successive layers near the surface.     

The calculation of transition probabilities for atomic oxygen

In this contribution we present scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) and spectroscopy (STS) investigations on isolated cobalt clusters in contact with Ge(001). Mass-filtered nanoparticles with diameters ranging from 3 to 11 nm are generated using an arc cluster ion source (ACIS) and deposited under soft landing conditions (E_kin/atom < 0.5 eV). Since the tip radius is of the same order as the nanoparticle diameters the recorded STM images are significantly affected by tip folding. By means of the “blind reconstruction method" it is possible to approximate the tip shape. After a respective deconvolution of the image structural features of the particle facets become observable. According to the equilibrium shape of the clusters being a truncated octahedron in the size range under investigation, hexagonal and rectangular features appear in the images. STS is sensitive to occupied and unoccupied states near the Fermi level and reveals the existence of distinct states in the tunnelling conductivity of the substrate as well as on the clusters. The richly structured density of states of the germanium surface serves here as tip condition test. First measurements of the tunnelling conductivity of the Co_N/Ge(001) are presented and discussed.     

水热法制备的Li4-3xEux(MoO4)2微晶及其发光性能

采用水热法制备了Li_4-3xEu_{x(MoO4)2系列红色荧光粉.通过X射线衍射(XRD)、扫描电镜(SEM )和荧光分析(FL)对产物的微结构、形貌和发光性能进行表征分析.XRD分析表明,制备的Li4-3xEux(MoO4)2微晶均为白钨矿四方结构.SEM结果显示:随着x的增大,Li4-3xEux(MoO4)2微晶的晶粒尺寸相应减小,在0.2~0.5 μm之间变化.荧光分析结果表明:源于Eu³⁺的⁵D0→⁷F2和⁵D0→⁷F1电荷转移的592 nm和614 nm的特征发射峰显现明显,后者的发射强度远远大于前者.随着x的增大,样品中Eu³⁺的两个特征发射峰的强度先增大后减小,在x=1.0时达到最大.}     

Fibre sizing using Fraunhofer diffraction

The light scattering pattern from absorbing cylinders is shown to be adequately described by Fraunhofer diffraction for cylinders with diameter greater than 8 μm for light of wavelength 632.8 nm. This permits the use of a simple inversion procedure based on a Fourier transform of the scattering pattern to obtain the size distribution of fibre widths. For fibres of diameter less than 8 μm the same inversion procedure may be used when an electron micrograph of the fibres becomes the scattering object. The maximum resolution of this inversion procedure is shown to be proportional to the largest angle scanned and its performance with experimental data is illustrated.     

Bounds and exact theories for the transport properties of inhomogeneous media

We investigate the bounds of Milton on the transport coefficient of a two-component composite, in their application to the square and hexagonal arrays of cylinders, and the three cubic lattices of spheres. We show that, in all five cases, as more information is supplied about the geometry of the composite, the bounds converge to the precise point obtained from an exact theory specific to the geometry in question. We illustrate the use of the bounds in determining whether a set of known values of the transport coefficient adequately specifies the general behaviour of that quantity. We determine the values of two structure-dependent parameters for cell materials with spheroidal cells and the value of one parameter for hexagonal and square arrays of cylinders with missing array elements. These parameters determine bounds both on the transport and on the elastic properties of the respective materials.     

Towards a quantitative analysis of magnetic force microscopy data matrices

Fast and efficient software tools previously developed in image processing were adapted to the analysis of raw datasets consisting of multiple stacks of images taken on a sample interacting with a measuring instrument and submitted to the effect of an external parameter. Magnetic force microscopy (MFM), a follow-up of atomic force microscopy (AFM), was selected as a first testbed example. In MFM, a specifically developed ferromagnetic scanning tip probes the stray magnetic field generated from a ferromagnetic specimen. Raw scanning probe images taken on soft patterned magnetic materials and continuous thin films were used, together with synthetic patterns exploited to assess the absolute performance ability of the proposed texture analysis tools. In this case, the parameter affecting the sample-instrument interaction is the applied magnetic field. The application discussed here is just one among the many possible, including, e.g., real-time microscopy images (both optical and electronic) taken during heat treatments, phase transformations and so on. Basically any image exhibiting a texture with a characteristic spatial or angular dependence could be processed by the proposed method. Standard imaging tools such as texture mapping and novel data representation schemes such as texture analysis, feature extraction and classification are discussed. A magnetic texture stability diagram will be presented as an original output of the entropic analysis on MFM datasets.     

Light backscattering by hexagonal ice crystals

Backscattering of light by hexagonal ice columns and plates has been calculated by means of a ray-tracing code. It is shown that backscattering by the hexagonal ice cylinders at their arbitrary orientations is caused by a peculiar corner-reflector effect. A gigantic peak of backscattering is found at the angle of about 32.5° between the principal axis of a particle and the incidence direction for both hexagonal ice columns and plates. This peak is explained by multiple total internal reflections inside the crystals that take place for a part of incident rays. The obtained results on backscattering efficiency allow one to calculate backscattering by an ensemble of the hexagonal ice cylinders of various sizes, shapes and orientations. Slant lidar remote sensing of cirrus clouds for discrimination between aligned columns and plates is suggested as an application of the results obtained.     

Natural convection mass transfer behavior of serially connected cylindrical electrodes

Natural convection mass transfer rates at both vertical and horizontal serially connected tubes were reported using the electrochemical technique involving the measurement of limiting currents for the deposition of copper on copper cylinders from acidified cupric sulphate solutions. Measurements were carried out with: (a) one tube active; (b) two tube surfaces active; (c) three tube surfaces active.

The electrolyte concentration and a number of serial connections of tubes were varied to provide a range of GrSc extending from 5.3×10⁸ to 9.5×10¹¹. The mass transfer rates at serially connected horizontal cylinders were in good agreement with mass transfer data in the literature. Correlation of results covered both laminar and turbulent conditions separately. The mass transfer rates at serially connected vertical cylinders were controlled by the boundary layer development at the multi-electrodes. The results for vertical electrodes, which are single, serially connected two and three electrodes, were separately correlated in the turbulent region.

The results illustrate the important effect of boundary layer development in determining current distribution in multi-electrode electrochemical cells.     

FOURIER ANALYSIS OF TEMPORAL AND SPATIAL OSCILLATIONS OF TUNNELING CURRENT IN SCANNING TUNNELING MICROSCOPY

Partially oxidized Si(111) surfaces and surfaces of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) were studied by two different ultrahigh vacuum scanning tunneling microscope (UHV-STM) systems and by an STM system working under ambient conditions, respectively. The STM current images of partially oxidized Si(111) surfaces and HOPG surfaces were analyzed by one/two-dimensional fast Fourier transformation (1D-FFT/2D-FFT). The phenomenon of temporal oscillations of tunneling current on the partially oxidized Si(111) surfaces was detected with both UHV-STM systems. Temporal as well as spatial oscillations of tunneling current appeared in highly resolved STM current images of the Si(111) surfaces simultaneously, but both kinds of oscillations could be discriminated according to their different influence on the 2D-FFT spectra of the current images, while varying the scanning range and rate. On clean HOPG surfaces only spatial oscillations of tunneling current induced by the surface structure were observed.