Generation of in-phase pulse train from optical beat signal

We propose and demonstrate generation of an in-phase optical pulse train from an optical beat signal. The proposed method is based on four-wave mixing occurring between the two continuous waves of the beat signal and on spectral filtering to shape the spectrum to be symmetric about the carrier frequency. We perform an experiment to verify the proposed method and obtain a 1.5 ps width in-phase pulse train from a 160 GHz beat signal. Furthermore, we employ a pulse compression scheme to reshape and compress the obtained pulse train, and we show that a 160 GHz repeating, 0.7 ps FWHM, nearly transform-limited, in-phase sech pulse train is successfully generated.     

A Narrative Review of Alternate Gait Training Using Knee-ankle-foot Orthosis in Stroke Patients with Severe Hemiparesis

Impairments resulting from stroke lead to persistent difficulties with walking. Subsequently, an improved walking ability is one of the highest priorities for people living with stroke. The degree to which gait can be restored after a stroke is related to both the initial impairment in walking ability and the severity of paresis of the lower extremities. However, there are some patients with severe motor paralysis and a markedly disrupted corticospinal tract who regain their gait function. Recently, several case reports have described the recovery of gait function in stroke patients with severe hemiplegia by providing alternate gait training. Multiple studies have demonstrated that gait training can induce “locomotor-like” coordinated muscle activity of paralyzed lower limbs in people with spinal cord injury. In the present review, we discuss the neural mechanisms of gait, and then we review case reports on the restoration of gait function in stroke patients with severe hemiplegia.     

Alternating copolymers consisting of arylalkyl methacrylates. II. Effect of coil collapse on fluorescence spectra of alternating copolymers of 2-(9-carbazolyl)ethyl methacrylate and aromatic vinyl monomers

Alternating and random copolymers of 2-(9-carbazolyl)ethyl methacrylate with aromatic vinyl monomers were synthesized and their fluorescence properties were compared in good and poor solvents. Contraction of the polymer coils induced the hypochromic effect, i.e., the mutual interaction of the ground-state chromophores, but caused little quenching of their excited state. This is sharp in contrast with the vinyl-type of polymers, exhibiting large interactions in both the ground and excited states. Introduction of bulky groups on the comonomers in the alternating copolymers further suppressed these interactions. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

High-speed living ring-opening polymerization by a new catalyst based on metalloporphyrin

Polymerization of ϵ-caprolactone and δ-valerolactone initiated with aluminum porphyrin (1) was much accelerated by the addition of methylaluminum diphenoxide with bulky substituents 2, to give polymers with narrow molecular weight distribution. The polymerization of β-butyrolactone was also accelerated by 2, to different extents depending on the mode of ring scission. 2 also accelerated the living polymerization of propylene sulfide initiated with zinc porphyrin (3). The effect of 2 is due to the coordinative activation of monomer.     

Cyclization reaction of polyacrylonitrile and poly(styrene-co-acrylonitrile) studied by PVT measurements

Pressure, volume, temperature (PVT) measurements reveal that during the intramolecular cyclization reaction of poly(acrylonitrile) (PAN) and poly(styrene-co-acrylonitrile) (SAN) the volume decreases. This volume contraction becomes smaller with increasing styrene content in the random copolymers and should be related to the simultaneous decrease of longer acrylonitrile homo-sequences. The onset temperature of the cyclization reaction is raised with higher styrene contents in the random copolymers. Thus, it can be excluded that the cyclization reaction has a major influence on the discoloration process of SAN samples having relatively small acrylonitrile contents (less than 50 mol-%) during thermal annealing below 300°C.     

Change in dislocation distribution of KCl single crystals during thermal cyclic annealing

The change in dislocation distribution of KCl single crystals during thermal cyclic annealing was studied by etch pit method. The results obtained are summarized as follows. (1) In contrast to the case in Cu (KITAJIMA et al.; HASEGAWA et al.), the dislocation distribution in KCl crystals became non-uniform with an increase in the cyclic annealing time, i.e., in the region near the surface, many sub-boundaries were formed, but in the interior, the density of dislocations and sub-boundaries decreased. The cyclic annealing is more effective in reducing the dislocation density than the isothermal annealing. (2) The longer the period of thermal cycle, the more effective in reducing the dislocation density. (3) The larger the temperature difference between the maximum and minimum during one cycle, the more effective in reducing the dislocation density. (4) In the Sr-doped crystals, the thermal cyclic annealing was also effective in reducing the dislocation density within subgrains but sub-boundary length per unit area slightly increased by the cyclic annealing. (5) When the samples were annealed under the atmosphere of Cl₂, the dislocation density remarkably increased against our expectation, although the scattering centres had disappeared by this treatment.     

Two-dimensional hydrophilic interaction chromatography coupling anion-exchange and hydrophilic interaction columns for separation of 2-pyridylamino derivatives of neutral and sialylated N-glycans

A novel chromatographic approach coupling anion-exchange (diethylaminoethylene) and hydrophilic-interaction (amide or zwitterionic type) columns was developed for the separating of 2-pyridylamino derivatives of N-glycans (PA-N-glycans). This is a kind of on-line, two-dimensional (2D) separation approach in hydrophilic-interaction chromatography (called the 2D-HILIC method), analogous to that of coupling cation- (or anion-, or mixed ion-) exchange and reversed-phase columns in hydrophobic interaction (reversed-phase) chromatography. The efficiency of the 2D-HILIC method was tested with biantennary neutral and sialylated PA-N-glycan standards by properly combining linear gradient elutions of water-acetonitrile and spiked-salt (ammonium acetate) elutions. The retention time RSDs of all the peaks in three sequential runs of a 100 min cycle are less than 0.52%, which indicates a reasonably good repeatability of the 2D-HILIC method. Then, the method was applied to a complex mixture of PA-N-glycans from human serum proteins. It was demonstrated that the neutral PA-N-glycans and mono-, di-, tri-, and tetrasialylated PA-N-glycans are able to be eluted in turn according to the number of sialic acids in an automated (programmed) single run.     

Quantum key distribution experiment through a PLC matrix switch

Quantum key distribution (QKD) is being studied as a way to provide unconditionally secure communications. Several experiments have shown its feasibility. However, most experiments have used a point-to-point occupied optical link. In order to use QKD for secure communications on a real network, it is preferable to be able to change parties on demand and to have quantum transmission and ordinary optical transmission share the optical network. In this work, QKD through a silica-based planar lightwave circuit (PLC) 8 × 8 non-blocking matrix switch was investigated. We found that an interferometer type switch can work even for a single-photon-level light and that a multi-user QKD network can be constructed using a silica-based PLC 8 × 8 non-blocking matrix switch. In addition, single-photon-level transmission and ordinary optical transmission can share the same 8 × 8 non-blocking matrix switch, so which shows the possibility of sending quantum signals through current optical networks.     

Measurement Accuracy in Phase-Shifting Point Diffraction Interferometer with Two Optical Fibers

A phase-shifting point diffraction interferometer (PS/PDI) with point sources of two single mode optical fibers has been developed, which will be appropriate for the surface figure measurement of large aperture optics on a sub-nanometer scale. To reduce the measurement error factors, a fiber optic plate (FOP) is used as a projection plane for interference pattern. Errors caused by imperfection of optical alignment, such as position of point sources and tilt of FOP, are minimized by analyzing the measured phase data with an original method. Measurement accuracy in the PS/ PDI is estimated with the interference pattern produced by the two optical fiber sources. If inhomogeneity of the FOP and a systematic error of the PS/PDI are eliminated, the measurement accuracy of the present system is estimated to be less than 4nm P-V and 0.7nm rms, respectively, at a measurement wavelength of 632.8 nm.