On spurious and corrupted multifractality: The effects of additive noise, short-term memory and periodic trends

We study the performance of multifractal detrended fluctuation analysis (MF-DFA) applied to long-term correlated and multifractal data records in the presence of additive white noise, short-term memory and periodicities. Such additions and disturbances that can be typically found in the observational records of various complex systems ranging from climate dynamics to physiology, network traffic, and finance. In monofractal records, we find that (i) additive white noise hardly results in spurious multifractality, but causes underestimated generalized Hurst exponents h(q) for all q values; (ii) short-range correlations lead to pronounced crossovers in the generalized fluctuation functions F_q(s) at positions that decrease with increasing moment q, thus causing significantly overestimated h(q) for small q and spurious multifractality; (iii) periodicities like seasonal trends (with standard deviations comparable with the one of the studied process) result in spurious “reversed” multifractality where h(q) increases with increasing q (except for very short time windows). We also show that in multifractal cascades moderate additions of noise, short-range memory, or periodic trends cause flawed results for h(q) with q<2, while h(q) with q>2 remains nearly unchanged.     

On the nature of the BOLD fMRI contrast mechanism

Since its development about 15 years ago, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has become the leading research tool for mapping brain activity. The technique works by detecting the levels of oxygen in the blood, point by point, throughout the brain. In other words, it relies on a surrogate signal, resulting from changes in oxygenation, blood volume and flow, and does not directly measure neural activity. Although a relationship between changes in brain activity and blood flow has long been speculated, indirectly examined and suggested and surely anticipated and expected, the neural basis of the fMRI signal was only recently demonstrated directly in experiments using combined imaging and intracortical recordings. In the present paper, we discuss the results obtained from such combined experiments. We also discuss our current knowledge of the extracellularly measured signals of the neural processes that they represent and of the structural and functional neurovascular coupling, which links such processes with the hemodynamic changes that offer the surrogate signal that we use to map brain activity. We conclude by considering applications of invasive MRI, including injections of paramagnetic tracers for the study of connectivity in the living animal and simultaneous imaging and electrical microstimulation.     

A 43Ca and 13C NMR study of the chemical interaction between poly(ethylene-vinyl acetate) and white cement during hydration

⁴³Ca and ¹³C NMR methods were used to study the chemical interaction of poly(ethylene–vinyl acetate) (PEVAc) admixture in commercial-grade white cement. From ⁴³Ca NMR it is shown both that PEVAc induces modest changes in the hydrated cement structure, and that hydrated commercial cement is significantly more complex than models that have been used for its structure in past work. The ¹³C NMR results show that the PEVAc hydrolysis occurs early in the cement hydration acceleration period, with a rate well-fit by an exponential decay using a time constant of 6±1 days.     

Imaging and correlation used for guided laser lithotripsy

High-speed imaging of phenomena akin to laser lithotripsy is performed. A new method for guiding laser light for the stone destruction is proposed. This is based on a combination of signals obtained from the correlation of fluorescent and ballistic images.     

Dispersion measurements using time-of-flight remote detection MRI

Remote detection nuclear magnetic resonance and magnetic resonance imaging can be used to study fluid flow and dispersion in a porous medium from a purely Eulerian point of view (i.e., in a laboratory frame of reference). Information about fluid displacement is obtained on a macroscopic scale in a long-time regime, while local velocity distributions are averaged out. It is shown how these experiments can be described using the common flow propagator formalism and how experimental data can be analyzed to obtain effective porosity, flow velocity inside the porous medium, fluid dispersion and flow tracing of fluid.     

Diamond/graphite content and biocompatibility of DLC films fabricated by PLD

Biocompatibility and physicochemical properties of diamond-like carbon (DLC) thin layers prepared by pulsed laser deposition method were studied. The films of high and low diamond/graphite content were prepared by changing the laser energy density on the graphite target from 4 to 11 J cm⁻². The bonds and surface properties as roughness, atomic force microscopy topology, contact angle parameters, and zeta potential were measured. The cell adhesion/proliferation on DLC layers was tested using normal human fibroblasts and keratinocytes.     

Formation of copper islands on a native SiO2 surface at elevated temperatures

A combination of in situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis and ex situ scanning electron- and atomic force microscopy has been used to study the formation of copper islands upon Cu deposition at elevated temperatures as a basis for the guided growth of copper islands. Two different temperature regions have been found: (I) up to 250 °C only close packed islands are formed due to low diffusion length of copper atoms on the surface. The SiO₂ film acts as a barrier protecting the silicon substrate from diffusion of Cu atoms from oxide surface. (II) The deposition at temperatures above 300 °C leads to the formation of separate islands which are (primarily at higher temperatures) crystalline. At these temperatures, copper atoms diffuse through the SiO₂ layer. However, they are not entirely dissolved in the bulk but a fraction of them forms a Cu rich layer in the vicinity of SiO₂/Si interface. The high copper concentration in this layer lowers the concentration gradient between the surface and the substrate and, consequently, inhibits the diffusion of Cu atoms into the substrate. Hence, the Cu islands remain on the surface even at temperatures as high as 450 °C.     

Auxiliary probe design adaptable to existing probes for remote detection NMR, MRI, and time-of-flight tracing

A versatile, detection-only probe design is presented that can be adapted to any existing NMR or MRI probe with the purpose of making the remote detection concept generally applicable. Remote detection suggests freeing the NMR experiment from the confinement of using the same radio frequency (RF) coil and magnetic field for both information encoding and signal detection. Information is stored during the encoding step onto a fluid sensor medium whose magnetization is later measured in a different location. The choice of an RF probe and magnetic field for encoding can be made based solely on the size and characteristics of the sample and the desired information quality without considering detection sensitivity, as this aspect is dealt with by a separate detector. While early experiments required building probes that included two resonant circuits, one for encoding and one for detection, a modular approach with a detection-only probe as presented here can be used along with any existing NMR probe of choice for encoding. The design of two different detection-only probes is presented, one with a saddle coil for milliliter-sized detection volumes, and the other one with a microsolenoid coil for sub-microliter fluid quantities. As example applications, we present time-of-flight (TOF) tracing of hyperpolarized (129)Xe spins in a gas mixture through coiled tubing using the microsolenoid coil detector and TOF flow imaging through a nested glass container where the gas flow changes its direction twice between inlet and outlet using the saddle coil detector.     

Thin SiC<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript> layers prepared by hybrid laser–magnetron deposition

Thin SiC _x films were fabricated by hybrid laser–magnetron deposition system. KrF excimer laser was used for deposition of carbon and magnetron at the same time for sputtering of Si species. Films were fabricated in argon/hydrogen ambient with and without additional RF discharge. The substrate temperature was changed up to 700°C. Films topology, crystallinity, composition, chemical bonds and optical emission spectra were studied. Films were smooth and amorphous. Films of thickness 400–1000 nm were fabricated. Adhesion moved from 8 to 14 N, depending on deposition conditions.