Combined optical and acoustical detection of single microbubble dynamics

A detailed understanding of the response of single microbubbles subjected to ultrasound is fundamental to a full understanding of the contrast-enhancing abilities of microbubbles in medical ultrasound imaging, in targeted molecular imaging with ultrasound, and in ultrasound-mediated drug delivery with microbubbles. Here, single microbubbles are isolated and their ultrasound-induced radial dynamics recorded with an ultra-high-speed camera at up to 25 million frames per second. The sound emission is recorded simultaneously with a calibrated single element transducer. It is shown that the sound emission can be predicted directly from the optically recorded radial dynamics, and vice versa, that the nanometer-scale radial dynamics can be predicted from the acoustic response recorded in the far field.     

Microbubble generation in a co-flow device operated in a new regime

A new regime of operation of PDMS-based flow-focusing microfluidic devices is presented. We show that monodisperse microbubbles with diameters below one-tenth of the channel width (here w = 50 μm) can be produced in low viscosity liquids thanks to a strong pressure gradient in the entrance region of the channel. In this new regime bubbles are generated at the tip of a long and stable gas ligament whose diameter, which can be varied by tuning appropriately the gas and liquid flow rates, is substantially smaller than the channel width. Through this procedure the volume of the bubbles formed at the tip of the gas ligament can be varied by more than two orders of magnitude. The experimental results for the bubble diameter d(b) as function of the control parameters are accounted for by a scaling theory, which predicts d(b)/w ∝ (μ(g)/μ(l))(1/12)(Q(g)/Q(l))(5/12), where μ(g) and μ(l) indicate, respectively, the gas and liquid viscosities and Q(g) and Q(l) are the gas and liquid flow rates. As a particularly important application of our results we produce monodisperse bubbles with the appropriate diameter for therapeutic applications (d(b) ? 5 μm) and a production rate exceeding 10(5) Hz.     

Thermal convection for large Prandtl numbers

The Rayleigh-Bénard theory by Grossmann and Lohse [J. Fluid Mech. 407, 27 (2000)] is extended towards very large Prandtl numbers Pr. The Nusselt number Nu is found here to be independent of Pr. However, for fixed Rayleigh numbers Ra a maximum in the Nu(Pr) dependence is predicted. We moreover offer the full functional dependences of Nu(Ra,Pr) and Re(Ra,Pr) within this extended theory, rather than only give the limiting power laws as done in J. Fluid. Mech. 407, 27 (2000). This enables us to more realistically describe the transitions between the various scaling regimes.     

Inclusive Pomeron-Pomeron interactions at the CERN ISR

Data are presented for the first time on inclusive Pomeron-Pomeron interactions which produce a central systemX (composed mainly of multimeson states) in proton-proton collisions at \(\sqrt s \) at the CERN ISR. The systemX has a Feynman-x distribution which is sharply peaked atx _f=0, is inconsistent with any significant contributions from Reggeon exchange processes, and has an invariant mass dependence in good agreement with the predicted formM _x ^?2 . Kaon production is about 15% of pion production, nearly independent ofM _x, while proton-antiproton production averages about 5% of pion production and increases withM _x. The structure of the central systemX develops into a jetlike shape, asM _x increases, as would be expected from a model of Pomeron fragmentation. The shape of thex _f(π) distribution in the center of mass of theX system (although not proving existence) is consistent with asoft partonic substructure of the Pomeron.     

Neutral strange particle production in proton-proton collisions at\sqrt s = 63 GeV

The inclusive cross section for the production ofK _s ⁰ mesons, Λ and \(\bar \Lambda\) particles in proton-proton interactions at \(\sqrt s = 63\) GeV is presented. The produced particles have been detected in the full phase space. Behaviour of the longitudinal and transversal depandences of the cross sections are discussed. The total production cross sections for _s ⁰ mesons and Λ particles was determined to \(\sigma _{{\rm K}_S^0 } = (25.5 \pm 1.4)\) mb andσ _Λ =(7.8±1.2) mb respectively. A strong energy dependence of the production cross sections is observed.     

The influence of HF on the incorporation of silicon into the erionite-like AlPO4-17 molecular sieve

The synthesis of SAPO-17 with high silicon content (up to 18 weight-%) succeeded with the addition of HF to the reaction mixtures. The characterization of the samples with chemical analysis, XRD, and adsorption measurements show the incorporation of silicon into tetrahedrally coordinated framework positions. Spectroscopic methods (IR, ¹⁹F MAS NMR) demonstrate the presence of fluorine in the as-synthesized samples. The effect of the fluorine consists in (i) the improvement of the silicon incorporation into framwork positions, (ii) the stabilization of the as-synthesized samples and (iii) the charge compensation of the template ion by F⁻.