Ablation of subsurface tumors using an ultra-short pulse laser

This paper demonstrates the novel technique of ablating subsurface tumors with minimal thermal damage to surrounding healthy tissue using a focused laser beam from an ultra-short pulse diode laser source. Experiments were performed on anesthetized healthy mice as well as mice with mammary tumors in order to demonstrate the fundamental advantages of using a focused-beam, ultra-short pulse laser to ablate subcutaneous tissues. The technique was demonstrated through histological analysis of tissue samples after irradiation of anesthetized mice with or without mammary tumors. To demonstrate the efficacy of subsurface focusing, temperature was monitored at the subsurface tumor location and at the surface in an untranslated sample while irradiating with a focused ultra-short pulsed 1552 nm laser. Results show that temperature rise was dramatically greater at the focal depth than at the surface. Irradiation at the subsurface tumor location while translated over time across the tumor location resulted in precise ablation of the tumor. This work shows that a focused-beam ultra-short pulse 1552 nm laser results in precise ablation at the desired location with high efficacy and a minimal zone of collateral thermal and/or mechanical damage.     

Self-Consistent Model and Numerical Analysis of VCSEL''s Laser Diodes

A self-consistent model of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSEL's) is presented in this paper, in which the carrier diffusion rate equation, the photon density rate equation, and the thermal conduction equation are considered simultaneously. The nonuniform heat flux density distribution in the active region due to the current-spreading effect is taken into account. The effects of temperature on gain and transparency carrier density are also included in this model. It is nonlinearly and self-consistently solved in the Matlab environment. The transient and lateral distribution characteristics of the carrier and photon densities and the junction temperature are investigated. Some interesting results are gotten and analyzed.     

Evidence for dark energy from the cosmic microwave background alone using the Atacama Cosmology Telescope lensing measurements

For the first time, measurements of the cosmic microwave background radiation (CMB) alone favor cosmologies with w = -1 dark energy over models without dark energy at a 3.2-sigma level. We demonstrate this by combining the CMB lensing deflection power spectrum from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope with temperature and polarization power spectra from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe. The lensing data break the geometric degeneracy of different cosmological models with similar CMB temperature power spectra. Our CMB-only measurement of the dark energy density Ω(Λ) confirms other measurements from supernovae, galaxy clusters, and baryon acoustic oscillations, and demonstrates the power of CMB lensing as a new cosmological tool.     

Determination of complex modes in photonic crystal waveguides using the phase variation in characteristic coefficients

An efficient frequency-domain method, the phase variation monitoring (PVM) method, is proposed to determine the electromagnetic eigenmodes in two-dimensional photonic crystal waveguides. The proposed method is based on monitoring the reflection and transmission coefficients of incident plane waves. It is successfully applied to an illustrative line-defect photonic crystal waveguide and proved to be capable of calculating the in-plane leakage through the finite-size photonic crystal surrounding the line-defect. Calculation of the leakage loss is not only important for proper understanding of wave propagation within the defect but also for its significant role in applications of photonic structures.     

The effects of GaN capping layer thickness on two-dimensional electron mobility in GaN/AlGaN/GaN heterostructures

In this paper we present a study of the effect of GaN capping layer thickness on the two-dimensional (2D)-electron mobility and the two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) sheet density which is formed near the AlGaN barrier/buffer GaN layer. This study is undertaken using a fully numerical calculation for GaN/Al_xGa_1−xN/GaN heterostructures with different Al mole fraction in the Al_xGa_1−xN barrier, and for various values of barrier layer thickness. The results of our analysis clearly indicate that increasing the GaN capping layer thickness leads to a decrease in the 2DEG density. Furthermore, it is found that the room-temperature 2D-electron mobility reaches a maximum value of approximately 1.8×10³ cm² /Vs⁻¹ for GaN capping layer thickness grater than 100 Å with an Al_0.32Ga_0.68N barrier layer of 200 Å thick. In contrast, for same structure, the 2DEG density decreases monotonically with GaN capping layer thickness, and eventually saturates at approximately 6×10¹² cm⁻² for capping layer thickness greater than 500 Å. A comparison between our calculated results with published experimental data is shown to be in good agreement for GaN capping layers up to 500 Å thickness.     

Spatial characterization of the response of a silica optical fiber to wideband ultrasound

Optical fibers have long been recognized as a promising technology for remote sensing of ultrasound. Nonetheless, very little is known about the characteristics of their spatial response, which is significantly affected by the strong acoustic mismatches between the fiber and surrounding medium. In this Letter, a new method is demonstrated for wideband spatial acoustic characterization of optical fibers. The method is based on the excitation of a point-like acoustic source via the opto-acoustic effect, while a miniature fiber sensor is implemented by a π-phase-shifted fiber Bragg grating. Despite the relative complexity of acoustic wave propagation in the fiber, its spatial sensitivity in the high frequency band (6-30?MHz) exhibited an orderly pattern, which can be described by a simple model. This property reveals new possibilities for high-performance imaging using fiber-based ultrasound sensors, where knowledge of the sensor's spatial sensitivity map is generally required.     

Functional MR imaging in the awake monkey: effects of motion on dynamic off-resonance and processing strategies

Functional MR imaging of the alert, behaving monkey is being used more and more often to detect activation patterns and guide electrophysiological research investigating the neural basis of behavior. Several labs have reported fMRI data from the awake monkey, but none of them has studied and systematically corrected the effects of monkeys' motion on fMRI time series. In this study, a significant refinement of acquisition and correction strategies is reported that can be used to minimize magnetic susceptibility artifacts induced by respiration and by jaw and body movement. Real-time acquisition of sensor signals (e.g., signals induced by jaw and body movement) and MR navigator data were combined to optimize fMRI signal-correction strategies. Within trials, the artifact-induced off-resonance changes were small and mainly reflected the effects of respiration; between trials, movements caused major changes of global frequency and shim (>20 Hz/cm). Several methods were used to assess the stability of the fMRI series: k-space analysis ('dynamic intensity and off-resonance changes in k-space', dubbed DICK and DORK) and image analysis using a Laplace operator and a center-of-mass metric. The variability between trials made it essential to correct for inter-trial variations. On the other hand, images were sufficiently stable with our approach to perform fMRI evaluations on single trials before averaging of trials. Different motion correction strategies were compared: DORK, McFLIRT (rigid body model with three translations and three rotations) and 2D image alignment based on a center-of-mass detection (in-plane translation). The latter yielded the best results and proved to be fast and robust for intra- and inter-trial alignment. Finally, fMRI in the behaving monkey was tested for spatial and temporal reproducibility on a trial-to-trial basis. Highly activated voxels also displayed good reproducibility between trials. On average, the BOLD amplitude response to a short 3-s visual stimulus was close to 2%.     

Synthesis,spectroscopic characterization,and computed optical analysis of green fluorescent cyclohexenone derivatives

Cyclohexenone containing chalcones core is one important class of materials, which exhibit high nonlinear optical (NLO) responses and good crystallizability. The present study reports the successful development of six new fluorescent cyclohexenone derivatives (CDs) via conventional Robinson annulation method. The molecular structures of these newly synthesized CDs were confirmed by using various analytical techniques such as ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, FTIR, EIMS, UV–Vis spectroscopy and single crystal X‐ray diffraction. The crystallographic data revealed that the spatial structure of the representative CD (4BE) belongs to monoclinic, P2₁/c space group. The results from luminescence studies show that the CDs molecules apparently emit intense green light at room temperature in aqueous media. The relative polarity and molecular chemical stability of the CDs molecules were predicted by measuring the molecular electrostatic potential and frontier molecular orbital energy. In addition, the UV–Vis spectra, transition character and electronic structures of these CDs were computed by using quantum chemical methodology. It was interesting to note that the values of computed and experimental electronic transitions (λ_max) were in good agreement and these CDs display high hyperpolarizability (β) values. The present work will be helpful for systematical understanding of the structures and the optical properties of CDs for studying the structure–activity relationship that will suggest their potential application in photonic devices. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Inhibition of aluminum corrosion by phthalazinone and synergistic effect of halide ion in 1.0 M HCl

The inhibitive effects of 1-(2H)-phthalazinone (PTO) for aluminum alloy (2024) corrosion in 1.0 M HCl solution and the synergistic effect of KI on the corrosion inhibition efficiency were assessed using electrochemical measurements. Results showed that the inhibition efficiency increased with an increase in concentration of the PTO and synergistically increased with addition of KI. Adsorption characteristic of PTO molecules in absence and presence of KI was approximated by Freundlich and Langmuir adsorption isotherm models, respectively. The synergistic effect is found to decrease with increase in the concentration of PTO and a competitive inhibition mechanism exists between KI and PTO cations.