Single-shot extreme ultraviolet laser imaging of nanostructures with wavelength resolution

We have demonstrated near-wavelength resolution microscopy in the extreme ultraviolet. Images of 50 nm diameter nanotubes were obtained with a single ~1 ns duration pulse from a desktop-size 46.9 nm laser. We measured the modulation transfer function of the microscope for three different numerical aperture zone plate objectives, demonstrating that 54 nm half-period structures can be resolved. The combination of near-wavelength spatial resolution and high temporal resolution opens myriad opportunities in imaging, such as the ability to directly investigate dynamics of nanoscale structures.     

Slope detection method by modulated speckle patterns

An optical technique for slope detection by using as storing medium a photorefractive BSO crystal is proposed. The technique relays in that a local tilt produced in a diffusing reflective surface can be mapped as a speckle transversal shifting in a plane perpendicular to the optical axis. The volume nature of the storing medium is quite adequate to highlight the speckle volume nature and its associated properties. Experimental results obtained by using a rubber vibrating membrane are presented.     

Using permutations to detect dependence between time series

In this paper, we propose an independence test between two time series which is based on permutations. The proposed test can be carried out by means of different common statistics such as Pearson’s chi-square or the likelihood ratio. We also point out why an exact test is necessary. Simulated and real data (return exchange rates between several currencies) reveal the capacity of this test to detect linear and nonlinear dependences.     

Association Phenomena of Poly(arylene ether sulfone)s in Dimethylformamide

Three poly(arylene ether sulfone)s (two polymers and one copolymer) containing diphenylfluorene, phenolphthalein and 2,4-bis[(4-chlorophenyl)sulfonyl]-1-(phenyltio) benzene)] units were synthesized by the classical Williamson polyetherification reaction. The association phenomenon in N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) was investigated by different methods: gel permeation chromatography (GPC), viscosity, atomic force microscopy (AFM), fluorescence spectroscopy and dynamic light scattering (DLS). Both AFM and DLS measurements evidenced the formation of aggregates with spherical or ellipsoidal shape at a concentration around 0.05 wt.%. This behavior could be explained by dipole-dipole interactions between macromolecular chains, probably with the participation of solvent molecules, and by H-bonds involving hydroxyl end groups.     

Interacting Field Theories in Robertson-Walker Spacetimes: Analytic Approximations

The renormalization of a scalar field theory with a quartic self-coupling via adiabatic regularization in a Robertson-Walker spacetime is discussed. The adiabatic counterterms are presented in a way that is most conducive to numerical computations. A variation of the adiabatic regularization method is presented which leads to analytic approximations for the energy–momentum tensor of the quantum field and the quantum contribution to the effective mass of the mean field. Conservation of the energy–momentum tensor for the field is discussed and it is shown that the part of the energy–momentum tensor which depends only on the mean field is not conserved but the full renormalized energy–momentum tensor is conserved, as expected and required by the semiclassical Einstein's equation. It is also shown that if the analytic approximations are used the resulting approximate energy–momentum tensor is conserved. This allows a self-consistent backreaction calculation to be performed using the analytic approximations. The usefulness of the approximations is discussed.     

Imaging spin-reorientation transitions in consecutive atomic Co layers on Ru(0001)

By means of spin-polarized low-energy electron microscopy, we show that the magnetic easy axis of one to three atomic-layer thick cobalt films on Ru(0001) changes its orientation twice during deposition: One-monolayer and three-monolayer thick films are magnetized in plane, while two-monolayer films are magnetized out of plane. The Curie temperatures of films thicker than one monolayer are well above room temperature. Fully relativistic calculations based on the screened Korringa-Kohn-Rostoker method demonstrate that only for two-monolayer cobalt films does the interplay between strain, surface, and interface effects lead to perpendicular magnetization.     

Analysis of the escape in systems with four exit channels

In this paper, we have performed a numerical investigation of the escape of a particle from two different dynamical systems with the same number of exit channels. We have chosen specific values of the parameters of the systems so that the openings of the potential well in both systems are approximately of the same size. We have found that, in the galactic system, the distribution of the times of escape follows a sequential pattern that has never been detected before. Moreover, we have proved that this pattern is directly related to the geometry of the stable manifolds to the Lyapunov orbits located at the openings of the potential. Finally, we have shown that the different nature of the two systems affects the way the escape occurs, due to the difference in the geometry of the manifolds to the Lyapunov orbits in both systems.     

Blood oxygenation monitoring using hyperspectral imaging after flap surgery

In this paper, we present a new method for the assessment of skin flap perfusion based on the non-invasive monitoring of skin blood oxygenation using hyperspectral imaging. This method consists of generation of oxyhemoglobin and deoxyhemoglobin maps in skin flap from hyperspectral image using an analytic model based on Beer–Lambert law. The results obtained on a fasciocutaneous sural flap have revealed that the oxyhemoglobin and deoxyhemoglobin maps facilitate the visualization of some differences between different areas of the flap, an aspect that clinical examination fails to do. In conclusion, the proposed method could provide a new option for a more accurate assessment of flap survival.