On using lens-assisted hologram interferometry to investigate semiconductor device behaviour

The paper analyses some of the causes that limit the performance of the hologram interferometry method when used for the study of the behaviour of semiconductors devices. Then some results are shown obtained by the authors using a method of lens-assisted microscope hologram interferometry for studying such structures. The method allows detection of defects and, besides, it renders quantitatively the structure local non-uniformities during the normal operation of the semiconductor devices.     

The Effect of Bio-Synthesized Silver Nanoparticles on Germination,Early Seedling Development,and Metabolome of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Changes in the metabolome of germinating seeds and seedlings caused by metal nanoparticles are poorly understood. In the present study, the effects of bio-synthesized silver nanoparticles ((Bio)Ag NPs) on grains germination, early seedlings development, and metabolic profiles of roots, coleoptile, and endosperm of wheat were analyzed. Grains germinated well in (Bio)Ag NPs suspensions at the concentration in the range 10–40 mg/L. However, the growth of coleoptile was inhibited by 25%, regardless of (Bio)Ag NPs concentration tested, whereas the growth of roots gradually slowed down along with the increasing concentration of (Bio)Ag NPs. The deleterious effect of Ag NPs on roots was manifested by their shortening, thickening, browning of roots tips, epidermal cell death, progression from apical meristem up to root hairs zone, and the inhibition of root hair development. (Bio)Ag NPs stimulated ROS production in roots and affected the metabolic profiles of all tissues. Roots accumulated sucrose, maltose, 1-kestose, phosphoric acid, and some amino acids (i.e., proline, aspartate/asparagine, hydroxyproline, and branched-chain amino acids). In coleoptile and endosperm, contrary to roots, the concentration of most metabolites decreased. Moreover, coleoptile accumulated galactose. Changes in the concentration of polar metabolites in seedlings revealed the affection of primary metabolism, disturbances in the mobilization of storage materials, and a translocation of sugars and amino acids from the endosperm to growing seedlings.     

On-line determination of organophosphorus pesticides in water by solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography with thermionic-selective detection

This paper describes the extraction of 49 organophosphorus pesti-cides (OPPs) from water samples using solid-phase microextraction (SPME). Three fibers, including a 15-μm XAD-coated fiber, a 85-μm polyacrylate-coated fiber, and a 30-μm polydimethylsilox-ane-coated fiber (PDMS), were evaluated here. The effects of stirring and the addition of NaCl to the sample were examined for the polyacrylate-coated fiber. The precision of the technique was examined for all three fibers and the extraction kinetics were investigated using the XAD- and polyacrylate-coated fibers. With some exceptions, the XAD- and polyacrylate-coated fibers performed better than the PDMS-coated fiber. The superiority of the XAD-nd polyacrylate-coated fiber. The superiority of the XAD- and polyacrylate-coated fibers over the PDMS-coated fibers can be attribuibuted to the aromatic functionalities of the XAD and the polar functionalities in the polyacrylate. The relatively high percent RSDs indicate that the SPME technique needs to be further refined before it can be used for anything other than screening. A more effective form of agitation than mechanical stirring may be neccessary to reduce variability and achieve a faster equilibrium between the sample and the SPME fiber.     

Raman Micro-Spectroscopy of Dental Pulp Stem Cells: An Approach to Monitor the Effects of Cone Beam Computed Tomography Low-Dose Ionizing Radiation

The objective of this study was to determine the molecular and biochemical changes in dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) due to consecutive low-dose ionizing radiation exposures using label-free Raman micro-spectroscopy (RMS). Ionizing radiation produces biological damage leading to health effects of varying severity. The effects and subsequent health implications caused by exposure to low-dose radiation, such as diagnostic exposure, remain ambiguous. We identified Raman biomarkers characteristic to low-dose cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) irradiation of the DPSCs. The biomarkers were monitored inside the cells using the relative intensity distribution of the 785 and 1734?cm^?1 bands. The control cells presented a higher relative intensity of the nucleic acid specific Raman bands, whereas the irradiated cells revealed an increased intensity of the lipid-induced bands. The results obtained in this study demonstrate the capability of RMS for the detection of cell response to diagnostic radiation dose levels. This may indicate the potential of the technique for future applications such as monitoring the radiation responses in pediatric patients suffering repeated radiological exposures.     

The effect of the hydration degree on the hydrothermal and thermo-oxidative stability of some collageneous matrices

The methods of the thermal analysis (TG, DTG and DTA) were used in order to investigate the effect of the hydration degree on the thermal behaviour of some collageneous matrices. It was pointed out that the degradation of hydrated collagen in the temperature range 20-400°C occurs through two successive processes accompanied by mass losses. The first process, consisting in the collagen dehydration, is endothermic and takes place in the temperature range ≈25 - ≈125°C. The second process is exothermic and consists in the decomposition and/or thermo-oxidation of dry collagen. The thermal parameters of both processes depend on the hydration degree of collagen. The observed dependencies show that the hydrothermal and thermo-oxidative stability of collagen are strongly correlated with its water content. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The photochemical reaction cycle of retinal reconstituted bacteriorhodopsin

The function of three types of bacteriorhodopsins was compared: the wild-type, the bleached and retinal reconstituted and retinal deficient bacteriorhodopsin after retinal addition. The apparent pK(a) of the proton acceptor group for the bleached BR and retinal deficient BR shifted toward higher pH values compared to the wild-type BR. Fitting the photocycle model to the absorption kinetic signals for all three proteins showed the existence of the same intermediates, but the time-dependent concentration of the intermediates was different. Although measurements were made at pH 7, the absorption kinetics and photoelectric signals in both retinal reconstituted samples acted as wild-type bacteriorhodopsin at significantly higher pH. Below pH 3 the retinal deficient and reconstituted sample bleached. These results suggested that the added retinal was not able to rebind in the same position in the protein as in native bacteriorhodopsin. This points out that care should be taken, when bleached bacteriorhodopsin is reconstituted with different retinal analogs.     

On-line determination of organochlorine pesticides in water by solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography with electron capture detection

This paper describes the extraction of 20 organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) from water samples using solid-phase microextraction (SPME). Three fused-silica fibers coated or bonded with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) of different film thicknesses (20-, 30-, and 100-μm) were evaluated. The extraction time, the effects of stirring and addition of NaCl to the aqueous sample, the linear range and the precision of this technique, and the effect of carryover were examined for 20 analytes and are presented here. A comparison with results using conventional liquid-liquid extraction demonstrate that the SPME technique is well suited as a fast screening technique for OCPs in water samples.     

Tartrazine: physical,thermal and biophysical properties of the most widely employed synthetic yellow food-colouring azo dye

Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry - The food-colouring dye tartrazine is a significant additive and in the same time a biologically active material. Thermal behaviour of trisodium...     

Analysis of compounds of environmental concern: II. Diphenyl ethers

Nineteen halogenated and/or nitrated diphenyl ethers (currently listed in EPA Method 8111) have been separated on a DB-5/ DB-1701 column pair connected to an inlet splitter and separate electron capture detectors. Retention times are included for 10 additional compounds evaluated for their suitability as internal standards or surrogate compounds for incorporation into Method 8111. Method reproducibility and linearity are discussed, and results are presented for extracts of two real samples spiked with the 19 diphenyl ethers and analyzed using the dual-column dual-detector arrangement.     

Existence and multiplicity of solutions for asymptotically linear, noncoercive elliptic equations

First we prove the existence of a nontrivial smooth solution for a p-Laplacian equation with a (p − 1)-linear nonlinearity and a noncoercive Euler functional, under hypotheses including resonant problems with respect to the principal eigenvalue of (-D_p, W^1,p₀(Z)){(-{\it \Delta}_p,\,W^{1,p}_0(Z))} . Then, for the semilinear problem (i.e., p = 2), assuming nonuniform nonresonance at infinity and zero, we prove a multiplicity theorem which provides the existence of at least three nontrivial solutions, two being of opposite constant sign. Our approach combines minimax techniques with Morse theory and truncation arguments.