Double-spin-echo diffusion weighting with a modified eddy current adjustment

Magnetic field inhomogeneities like eddy current-related gradient fields cause geometric distortions in echo-planar imaging (EPI). This in particular affects diffusion-weighted imaging where these distortions vary with the direction of the diffusion weighting and hamper the accurate determination of diffusion parameters. The double-spin-echo preparation often used aims to reduce the cumulative eddy current effect by adjusting the diffusion-weighting gradient pulse durations to the time constant of the dominant eddy current contribution. However, eddy currents with a variety of time constants may be present and cause residual distortions. Here, a modification is proposed where the two bipolar gradient pairs of the preparation are adjusted independently to different time constants. At the expense of a slightly prolonged echo time, residual geometric distortions and correspondingly increased values of the diffusion anisotropy can be reduced as is demonstrated in phantoms and the human brain. Thus, it may help to improve the reliability of diffusion-weighted EPI.     

片状热容激光器热效应有限元分析

基于激光介质的非均匀内热源模型,利用有限元数值方法,模拟计算了热容模式下高功率激光二极管阵列(LDA) 重复脉冲泵浦片状激光介质的瞬态温度分布和热应力分布及其波前畸变和应力双折射。结果表明:热容模式下,当增益介质不能够被全口径泵浦时,也会出现严重的热效应,介质的表面靠近边缘处会出现大的拉应力集中,介质表面的最大轴向位移和最大拉应力随泵浦光斑尺寸缩小而增大;而当全口径泵浦时,介质表面热形变大大减弱,较小的拉应力存在于介质内部,而且泵浦光斑和介质的几何形状对热分布有很大影响。结果还表明,介质片表面变形和热光效应是产生波前畸变的主要原因,而热应力双折射产生的附加相移与激光介质的切割方向有关,它对光束产生较大的退偏作用,从而影响激光器的输出性能。理论模型得到了实验结果的验证。     

A-site cation ordering in AA′BB′O6 perovskites

Unlike ordering of the octahedral B-site cations, ordering of the larger A-site cations in stoichiometric perovskites is rare. Herein the A- and B-site ordering characteristics of several double perovskites with AA′BB′O₆ stoichiometry have been investigated. The compounds investigated include NaLaMgWO₆, NaLaMgTeO₆, NaLaScNbO₆, NaLaScSbO₆, NaLaTi₂O₆, and NaLaZr₂O₆. Group theoretical methods are used to enumerate the possible structures of AA′BB′X₆ double perovskites that result from the combination of rock salt ordering of the B-site cations, layered ordering of the A-site cations, and octahedral tilting distortions. This combination results in 12 possible structures in addition to the aristotype. Among the compounds investigated only NaLaMgWO₆ and NaLaScNbO₆ show significant long-range ordering of the A-site cations, Na⁺ and La³⁺. A complete structural characterization is presented for NaLaMgWO₆. This compound possesses monoclinic C2/m (#12) space group symmetry, with unit cell dimensions of , , , β=90.136(1)° at room temperature. The results presented here show that in AA′BB′O₆ perovskites layered ordering of A-site cations creates a bonding instability that is compensated for by a second-order Jahn-Teller distortion of the B′ cation. These two distortions are synergistic and the removal of one leads to the disappearance of the other.     

Direct-space analysis of the Si–Si bonding pattern in the π-bonded chain reconstructed Si(111)(2 × 1) surface

Atomic and bond properties of silicon atoms in the buckled π-bonded chain reconstructed Si(111)(2 × 1) system were investigated by applying the quantum theory of atoms in molecules to a number of wavefunctions from periodic ab initio calculations using a slab model for the surface and geometries from experiment. Reconstruction involves much larger surface-cell charge distortions than in the unrelaxed surface and drastic changes in the atomic polarizations of the surface layer atoms. The effect of buckling is to largely differentiate the properties (charge, energy, volume, atomic polarizations) of the two unique atoms of each surface layer. The direction of electronic charge transfer in the topmost chain (from the “up” to the “down” atom) was found to be opposite to what was claimed previously. The π conjugation is not strictly localized along the topmost layer chains (where it is also largely incomplete), but rather it extends over a 2D array of bonds between the topmost and the lower surface layers. Received: 19 July 2000 / Accepted: 2 October 2000 / Published online: 23 January 2001     

Crystal and molecular structure of [Cu(pyrimidine)4]2BF4

The crystal structure of [Cu(pyrimidine)₄]2BF₄ was determined using single crystal X-ray diffraction. The compound crystallizes in the monoclinic space groupP2₁/n, with lattice parametersa=9.9736(8),b=13.872(1),c=16.568(1) Å. β=98.002(1), andZ=8, yielding a calculated density of 1.857 g/cm³. The Jahn-Teller distorted copper coordination sphere is composed of the four pyrimidine ligands in the equatorial positions (ave. Cu?N=2.02 Å) and the longer axial bonds from the copper to one fluorine (ave Cu?F=2.39 Å) on each of the BF ₄ ^? anions. The crystal structure features layers of molecules having interleaved pyrimidine rings: the layers are connected through intermolecular H … F hydrogen bonds.     

片状热容激光器热效应有限元分析

 基于激光介质的非均匀内热源模型,利用有限元数值方法,模拟计算了热容模式下高功率激光二极管阵列(LDA) 重复脉冲泵浦片状激光介质的瞬态温度分布和热应力分布及其波前畸变和应力双折射。结果表明:热容模式下,当增益介质不能够被全口径泵浦时,也会出现严重的热效应,介质的表面靠近边缘处会出现大的拉应力集中,介质表面的最大轴向位移和最大拉应力随泵浦光斑尺寸缩小而增大;而当全口径泵浦时,介质表面热形变大大减弱,较小的拉应力存在于介质内部,而且泵浦光斑和介质的几何形状对热分布有很大影响。结果还表明,介质片表面变形和热光效应是产生波前畸变的主要原因,而热应力双折射产生的附加相移与激光介质的切割方向有关,它对光束产生较大的退偏作用,从而影响激光器的输出性能。理论模型得到了实验结果的验证。     

Numerical analysis of spatial distortions in a single-grating chirped pulse amplification system

A numerical study of spatial distortions of a laser beam after propagation through an optical single-grating chirp pulse amplification (CPA) system was developed. This study is based on numerical simulation using the ray-tracing model from Rayica module of MATHEMATICA and it relates the behavior of the aberrated beam in terms of spatial distortions (eg. spatial chirp and pulse front tilt) in case of grating incident angle variation. The results are relevant for different applications which use CPA systems with needs of high quality laser beam profile.     

Metallic solutions of the continuum model for conducting polymers

In the continuum approximation of the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger model for degenerate and nondegenerate ground state systems, an exhaustive survey of solutions of the standard gap equations is given. With special emphasis on the electronic energy spectrum, the pertinent results of Takahashi [1] are extended to the whole μ, k-plane. Periodic metallic phases and their grand potentials are discussed.     

Band distortions in emission and specular reflection FTIR spectroscopy

General equations for emittance and reflectance of multilayer systems are given. It is demonstrated that band distortions can be avoided by application of the appropriate working equations. An opaque (thick) sample is employed as a reference.