Microfabrication of stacks of acoustic matching layers for 15 MHz ultrasonic transducers

This paper presents a novel method used to manufacture stacks of multiple matching layers for 15 MHz piezoelectric ultrasonic transducers, using fabrication technology derived from the MEMS industry. The acoustic matching layers were made on a silicon wafer substrate using micromachining techniques, i.e., lithography and etch, to design silicon and polymer layers with the desired acoustic properties. Two matching layer configurations were tested: a double layer structure consisting of a silicon–polymer composite and polymer and a triple layer structure consisting of silicon, composite, and polymer. The composite is a biphase material of silicon and polymer in 2-2 connectivity. The matching layers were manufactured by anisotropic wet etch of a (1 1 0)-oriented Silicon-on-Insulator wafer. The wafer was etched by KOH 40 wt%, to form 83 μm deep and 4.5 mm long trenches that were subsequently filled with Spurr’s epoxy, which has acoustic impedance 2.4 MRayl. This resulted in a stack of three layers: The silicon substrate, a silicon–polymer composite intermediate layer, and a polymer layer on the top. The stacks were bonded to PZT disks to form acoustic transducers and the acoustic performance of the fabricated transducers was tested in a pulse-echo setup, where center frequency, −6 dB relative bandwidth and insertion loss were measured. The transducer with two matching layers was measured to have a relative bandwidth of 70%, two-way insertion loss 18.4 dB and pulse length 196 ns. The transducers with three matching layers had fractional bandwidths from 90% to 93%, two-way insertion loss ranging from 18.3 to 25.4 dB, and pulse lengths 326 and 446 ns. The long pulse lengths of the transducers with three matching layers were attributed to ripple in the passband.     

Focal length measurement of a varifocal liquid lens with capacitance detection

This paper reports on a detailed deformation model of varifocal liquid lenses fabricated by Parylene-on-liquid-deposition (POLD), which can be applied to measure and adjust the focal length of such lenses without using extra sensors or sensing mechanisms. The lens was fabricated by encapsulating a liquid between a transparent electrode and a polymer film that was covered with a metal electrode. When voltage is applied to the two electrodes, the lens deforms due to the electrostatic force, and its focal length and the capacitance between the two electrodes change simultaneously. This characteristic enables the focal length of the lens to be adjusted and detected by measuring the capacitance change. The focal length of the fabricated varifocal liquid lens changed from 153.6 to 82.6 mm by applying 150-V. The focal length change of the liquid lens was calculated from the change in its capacitance. Finally, to confirm the efficiency of this varifocal liquid lens, we fabricated a confocal distance sensor using the lens for laser scanning and demonstrated that this system can be used to measure distances of 94–140 mm with an average error of 0.83 mm and a standard deviation of 0.77 mm.     

Optimization of view ordering for motion artifact suppression

Motion artifacts in MRI may be reduced by optimized view ordering. Extensive simulations of view-ordering techniques were performed on high-resolution phantom images to determine the best strategy for distributing motion in k-space. Although not exhaustive, simulation results indicate that minimizing motion at the center of k-space is critical to overall image quality. For 2D imaging, using edge-center-edge view order and setting the readout direction parallel to the direction of the motion produces the sharpest point spread function and the lowest image energy error. For 3D imaging, using an edge-center-edge view order proves to be the optimum choice in general. Given these observations, several important issues regarding the measurement of motion effects are discussed.     

Rayleigh waves in an isotropic elastic half-space coated by a thin isotropic elastic layer with smooth contact

In the present paper, we are interested in the propagation of Rayleigh waves in an isotropic elastic half-space coated with a thin isotropic elastic layer. The contact between the layer and the half space is assumed to be smooth. The main purpose of the paper is to establish an approximate secular equation of the wave. By using the effective boundary condition method, an approximate, yet highly accurate secular equation of fourth-order in terms of the dimensionless thickness of the layer is derived. From the secular equation obtained, an approximate formula of third-order for the velocity of Rayleigh waves is established. The approximate secular equation and the formula for the velocity obtained in this paper are potentially useful in many practical applications.     

Transient Absorption Dynamics and Nonlinear Optical Response in Colloidal Ag2S Quantum Dots

Optics and Spectroscopy - The mechanism of the nonlinear optical response of colloidal solutions of Ag2S quantum dots passivated with thioglycolic acid molecules is considered. Appearance of...     

Choice of Parameters for Toluidine Blue O Colorimetric Assay: Influence on the Determination of Grafting Density of Anionic Groups

Journal of Applied Spectroscopy - The grafting of specific functional groups has been drawing attention later as a simple and effective way to modify materials surfaces to induce a particular...     

Periodic Motions of Stokes and Navier–Stokes Flows Around a Rotating Obstacle

We prove the existence and uniqueness of periodic motions to Stokes and Navier–Stokes flows around a rotating obstacle \({D \subset \mathbb{R}^3}\) with the complement \({\Omega = \mathbb{R}^3 \backslash D}\) being an exterior domain. In our strategy, we show the C _b -regularity in time for the mild solutions to linearized equations in the Lorentz space \({L^{3,\infty}(\Omega)}\) (known as weak-L ³ spaces) and prove a Massera-typed Theorem on the existence and uniqueness of periodic mild solutions to the linearized equations in weak-L ³ spaces. We then use the obtained results for such equations and the fixed point argument to prove such results for Navier–Stokes equations around a rotating obstacle. We also show the stability of such periodic solutions.     

Copper(II) Triflate Catalyzed Amination of 1,3-Dicarbonyl Compounds

A method to prepare α,α-acyl amino acid derivatives efficiently by Cu(OTf)(2) +1,10-phenanthroline (1,10-phen)-catalyzed amination of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds with PhI?NSO(2) Ar is described. The mechanism is thought to initially involve aziridination of the enolic form of the substrate, formed in situ through coordination to the Lewis acidic metal catalyst, by the putative copper-nitrene/imido species generated from the reaction of the metal catalyst with the iminoiodane source. Subsequent ring opening of the resultant aziridinol adduct under the Lewis acidic conditions then provided the α-aminated product. The utility of this method was exemplified by the enantioselective synthesis of a precursor of 3-styryl-2-benzoyl-L-alanine.     

Toxicity and anticancer effects of an extract from Selaginella tamariscina on a mice model

The toxicity and antitumour effect of the ethanol extract of Selaginella tamariscina (STE), a plant widely used in folk medicine, were examined in a mice model. In the single-dose acute toxicity test, an oral administration of 10,000?mg?kg(-1) STE did not cause any lethality. The sub-acute toxicity study showed that the treatment by 250,?1000 and 3000?mg?kg(-1?)day(-1) for 30 continuous days did neither alter the body weights nor the haematological parameters in BALB/c mice. The anticancer effect of STE was evaluated in BALB/c mice inoculated with Lewis lung carcinoma cells. Oral administration of STE could not prevent the tumour formation but provided strong inhibition of tumour growth.     

Efficient and selective multicomponent oxidative coupling of two different aliphatic primary amines into thioamides by elemental sulfur

An efficient and selective multicomponent oxidative coupling of two different aliphatic primary amines into thioamides by elemental sulfur under solvent-free conditions has been developed.