Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry (PIXL) is a micro-focus X-ray fluorescence spectrometer mounted on the robotic arm of NASA’s
Perseverance
rover. PIXL will acquire high spatial ...resolution observations of rock and soil chemistry, rapidly analyzing the elemental chemistry of a target surface. In 10 seconds, PIXL can use its powerful 120 μm-diameter X-ray beam to analyze a single, sand-sized grain with enough sensitivity to detect major and minor rock-forming elements, as well as many trace elements. Over a period of several hours, PIXL can autonomously raster-scan an area of the rock surface and acquire a hyperspectral map comprised of several thousand individual measured points. When correlated to a visual image acquired by PIXL’s camera, these maps reveal the distribution and abundance variations of chemical elements making up the rock, tied accurately to the physical texture and structure of the rock, at a scale comparable to a 10X magnifying geological hand lens. The many thousands of spectra in these postage stamp-sized elemental maps may be analyzed individually or summed together to create a bulk rock analysis, or subsets of spectra may be summed, quantified, analyzed, and compared using PIXLISE data analysis software. This hand lens-scale view of the petrology and geochemistry of materials at the
Perseverance
landing site will provide a valuable link between the larger, centimeter- to meter-scale observations by Mastcam-Z, RIMFAX and Supercam, and the much smaller (micron-scale) measurements that would be made on returned samples in terrestrial laboratories.
Recent advancements in transistor technology, such as the 35 nm InP HEMT, allow for the development of monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) low noise amplifiers (LNAs) with performance ...properties that challenge the hegemony of SIS mixers as leading radio astronomy detectors at frequencies as high as 116 GHz. In particular, for the Atacama Large Millimeter and Submillimeter Array (ALMA), this technical advancement allows the combination of two previously defined bands, 2 (67-90 GHz) and 3 (84-116 GHz), into a single ultra-broadband 2+3 (67-116 GHz) receiver. With this purpose, we present the design, implementation, and characterization of LNAs suitable for operation in this new ALMA band 2+3, and also a different set of LNAs for ALMA band 2. The best LNAs reported here show a noise temperature less than 250 K from 72 to 104 GHz at room temperature, and less than 28 K from 70 to 110 GHz at cryogenic ambient temperature of 20 K. To the best knowledge of the authors, this is the lowest wideband noise ever published in the 70-110 GHz frequency range, typically designated as W-band.
Introducción: El cáncer de próstata, común en hombres mayores, implica riesgos graves y requiere detección temprana. Su incidencia fluctúa, influenciada por pruebas de detección y avances médicos. ...Factores como la edad, dieta y antecedentes familiares aumentan el riesgo. Esta investigación se centra en evaluar estos riesgos en hombres mayores de 40 en Cochabamba durante 2023. Metodología: Se efectuó un estudio descriptivo y cuantitativo en hombres de Cochabamba, 40 años o más, evaluando factores de riesgo de cáncer de próstata. Se encuestaron 1464 hombres sobre edad, antecedentes familiares, dieta, peso, inflamación prostática y exposición a químicos. Se utilizó un formulario en línea y Excel para el análisis, cumpliendo con las normas éticas y el consentimiento informado. Resultados: Los resultados de la encuesta en hombres de Cochabamba revelan la prevalencia de factores de riesgo de cáncer de próstata en 1464 participantes. Se detalla la distribución por edad, antecedentes familiares, dieta, peso, historial de inflamación prostática, exposición a químicos y vasectomía. Se encontró una alta incidencia de antecedentes familiares (24,2 %) y prostatitis crónica (32,5 %), mientras que la exposición a químicos en el trabajo fue baja (7,8 %) y la vasectomía poco común (2,6 %). Discusión: El estudio reveló que el 24.2 % tenía antecedentes familiares de cáncer de próstata, destacando la influencia genética en el riesgo. La dieta alta en grasas afectó al 28.8 %, mientras que la prostatitis crónica se encontró en el 32.5 %. La exposición a químicos en el trabajo fue del 7.8 %, y la vasectomía se asoció con el 2.6 % de los participantes.
In this paper, we report on the first demonstration of monolithically integrated waveguide transitions in a submillimeter-wave monolithic integrated circuit (S-MMIC) amplifier module. We designed the ...module for a targeted frequency range of 300-350 GHz, using WR2.2 for the input and output waveguides. The waveguide module utilizes radial -plane transitions from S-MMIC to waveguide. We designed back-to-back radial probe transitions separated by thru transmission lines to characterize the module, and have incorporated the radial -plane transitions with an S-MMIC amplifier, fabricated monolithically as a single chip. The chip makes use of an S-MMIC process and amplifier design from the Northrop Grumman Corporation, Redondo Beach, CA, using 35-nm gate-length InP transistors. The integrated module design eliminates the need for wire bonds in the RF signal path, and enables a drop-in approach for minimal assembly. The waveguide module includes a channel design, which optimizes the -plane probe bandwidth to compensate for an S-MMIC width, which is larger than the waveguide dimension, and is compatible with S-MMIC fabrication and design rules. This paper demonstrates for the first time that waveguide-based S-MMIC amplifier modules with integrated waveguide transitions can be successfully operated at submillimeter-wave frequencies.
In this letter we report an ultra-low-noise amplifier module chain in the WR4 frequency range. The amplifier chips were fabricated in a 35 nm InP HEMT technology and packaged in waveguide housings ...utilizing quartz E-plane waveguide probes. When cryogenically cooled to 22 K and measured through a mylar vacuum window, the amplifier module chain achieves a receiver noise temperature of 87 K at 228 GHz and less than a 100 K noise temperature from 217 to 236 GHz. The LNA modules have 21-31 dB gain and the power dissipation is 12.4-15.8 mW. To the best of authors' knowledge, these are the lowest LNA noise temperatures at these frequencies reported to date.
We have been developing gallium nitride (GaN) monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs) towards the goal of implementing a single chip transceiver frontend for cloud radar arrays at Ka-band. ...We present our first effort design, fabrication and test cycle implementation of GaN power amplifiers (PAs), low noise amplifiers (LNAs), driver amplifier, single-pole-double and triple throw switches, and voltage controlled attenuator. These components are necessary for implementing a transceiver unit cell concept with digital calibration capabilities to enable scalable array sizes for radar and radiometry.
Cryogenic MMIC low-noise amplifiers for V-band Varonen, Mikko; Mei, Xiaobing; Sarkozy, Stephen ...
2017 IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS),
2017-June
Conference Proceeding
In this paper we report ultra-low-noise amplifier modules and amplifier module chains for V-band (50-75 GHz). The amplifier chips were fabricated in Northrop Grumman Corporation's (NGC) 35-nm InP ...HEMT technology and packaged in WR15 waveguide housings utilizing alumina E-plane waveguide probes. The amplifier modules achieve 18 to 27 K noise temperatures from 50 to 75 GHz when cryogenically cooled to 21 K. When measured through a mylar vacuum window, a cascade of two amplifier modules achieves a receiver noise temperature of 18.5 K at 58 GHz. A second chain has a measured receiver noise temperature between 20 to 28 K for the whole V-band. To the best of authors' knowledge, these are the lowest LNA noise temperatures for V-Band reported to date.
In this work, we describe new miniaturized low noise amplifier modules which we developed for incorporation in small-scale satellites or Cubesats, and which exhibit similar or better performance ...compared to previously reported LNAs in the literature. We have targeted the WR4 (170-260 GHz) and WR3 (220-325 GHz) waveguide bands for the module development. The modules include two different methods of E-plane probes which have been developed for low loss, and stability at high frequencies. MMIC LNAs were also developed for these frequency ranges and fabricated in Northrop Grumman Corporation's 35 nm InP HEMT technology, and we have experimentally verified that noise performance is lower than reported in prior work. The best results include a miniature LNA module with 550K noise at 224 GHz, and a wideband LNA module with 15 dB gain from 230-280 GHz.
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