The ATLAS experiment will replace its existing Inner Detector with the new all-silicon Inner Tracker (ITk) to cope with the operating conditions of the forthcoming high-luminosity phase of the LHC ...(HL-LHC). The outer regions of the ITk will be instrumented with ∼18000 ATLAS18 strip sensors fabricated by Hamamatsu Photonics K.K. (HPK). With the launch of full-scale sensor production in 2021, the ITk strip sensor community has undertaken quality control (QC) testing of these sensors to ensure compliance with mechanical and electrical specifications agreed with HPK. The testing is conducted at seven QC sites on each of the monthly deliveries of ∼500 sensors.
This contribution will give an overview of the QC procedures and analysis; the tests most likely to determine pass/fail for a sensor are IV, long-term leakage current stability, full strip test and visual inspection. The contribution will then present trends in the results and properties following completion of ∼60% of production testing. It will also mention challenges overcome through collaborative efforts with HPK during the early phases of production. With less than 5% of sensors rejected by QC testing, the overall production quality has been very good.
The bulk damage of p-type silicon sensors caused by gamma irradiation with high total ionizing doses has been investigated. The study was carried out on different types of n+-in-p silicon diodes with ...different oxygen concentrations and silicon bulk resistivities. The Secondary-Ion Mass Spectrometry technique was used to determine the relative concentration of oxygen in the individual samples. The measured diodes were irradiated by a 60Co gamma source to total ionizing doses ranging from 0.50 up to 8.28 MGy, and annealed for 80 min at 60 °C. The main goal of the study was to characterize the gamma-radiation induced displacement damage by measuring I–V and C–V characteristics, and the evolution of the full depletion voltage with the total ionizing dose. The Transient Current Technique was used to verify the full depletion voltage and to extract the electric field distribution and the sign of the space charge in the silicon diodes irradiated to the lowest and the highest delivered total ionizing doses.
The results show a linear increase of the bulk leakage current with the total ionizing dose, with the damage coefficient being dependent on initial resistivity and oxygen concentration of the silicon diode. The effective doping concentration and full depletion voltage decrease significantly with an increasing total ionizing dose, before starting to increase again at a specific dose. We assume that the initial decrease in the effective doping concentration is caused by the effect of acceptor removal. An additional notable finding of this study is that the bulk leakage current and C–V characteristics of the gamma-irradiated diodes do not show any evidence of an annealing effect.
This paper investigates modelling and active vibration control (AVC) of ultra-lightweight convertible structures based on the elastic kinetic motion mechanism with a focus on civil and structural ...engineering applications. Model building is carried out in the linear parameter-varying (LPV) framework for the example of a convertible Fin Ray structure. In a first step local linear time-invariant (LTI) models are derived from a finite element model of the structure for different transformation states. On the basis of this collection of local LTI models, a grid-based LPV model is established. An AVC of multiple modes is implemented by means of a modal velocity feedback control. Single-input single-output (SISO) control design is carried out with the root locus method for the first and second mode using the same control input under the assumption of well separated eigenfrequencies. The implemented AVC is validated in simulation.
Background: Resistin is a newly identified adipocytokine which has demonstrated links between obesity and insulin resistance in rodents. In humans, proinflammatory properties of resistin are superior ...to its insulin resistance-inducing effects. Objectives: To assess resistin expression in synovial tissues, serum and synovial fluid from patients with rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis and spondylarthropathies (SpA), and to study its relationship with inflammatory status and rheumatoid arthritis disease activity. Methods: Resistin expression and localisation in synovial tissue was determined by immunohistochemistry and confocal microscopy. Serum and synovial fluid resistin, leptin, interleukin (IL)1β, IL6, IL8, tumour necrosis factor α, and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 levels were measured. The clinical activity of patients with rheumatoid arthritis was assessed according to the 28 joint count Disease Activity Score (DAS28). Results: Resistin was detected in the synovium in both rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. Staining in the sublining layer was more intensive in patients with rheumatoid arthritis compared with those with osteoarthritis. In rheumatoid arthritis, macrophages (CD68), B lymphocytes (CD20) and plasma cells (CD138) but not T lymphocytes (CD3) showed colocalisation with resistin. Synovial fluid resistin was higher in patients with rheumatoid arthritis than in those with SpA or osteoarthritis (both p<0.001). In patients with rheumatoid arthritis and SpA, serum resistin levels were higher than those with osteoarthritis (p<0.01). Increased serum resistin in patients with rheumatoid arthritis correlated with both CRP (r = 0.53, p<0.02), and DAS28 (r = 0.44, p<0.05), but not with selected (adipo) cytokines. Conclusion: The upregulated resistin at local sites of inflammation and the link between serum resistin, inflammation and disease activity suggest a role for resistin in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis.
•The paper addresses the possible evolution of internal material length.•Nonlocal weight kernel function of wave propagation time normalized by an internal time.•Strong localization with a ...non-spreading damage zone.•Pure geometric extension to 3D from WKB approximation for wave propagation in damaged media.•Defines Nonlocal Eikonal damage framework for isotropic and anisotropic damage models.
The paper addresses open questions concerning isotropic/anisotropic nonlocal models: possible evolution of internal length and special treatments near boundaries and cracks. First, the nonlocal weight is considered as function of information/wave propagation time normalized by an internal time, which leads to localization with a non-spreading damage zone. The limit value of full damage is attained at a single point in 1D. Second, the WKB approximation for wave propagation in 3D damaged media defines interaction distances as solutions of an eikonal equation. This motivates the interpretation that damage, possibly anisotropic, curves the space in which the interaction distances are calculated.
The amounts of mixed municipal waste in the EU countries differ during the last decades. Waste composition is influenced especially by the recent trends in the packaging of products that are daily ...purchased and the attitude towards sorting of municipal solid waste. Waste composition is one of the most important factors that shape future waste management planning. The sortable waste fraction in the mixed municipal waste specifies the potential for an increase in separation efficiency. The composition of the waste can be determined via analysis, but only a limited number of such analyses can be carried out. Moreover, the respective analysis is a challenging task and presents a complex statistical problem which must reflect many aspects of human activity. Appropriate waste sampling based on spatial stratification is crucial to estimate the waste composition quality in different regions. The waste samples for analysis are defined using principles of operational research to cover the regional variability. Mathematical models are developed to identify optimum clustering of waste generation areas. The principals and practice from local investigations are used to reveal waste composition. Decisions are made as to where to sample the waste and how many representative samples are necessary to faithfully describe the waste composition in the entire area. This means that suitable division into sub-areas and optimal choice of representative sub-areas in the sense of waste composition must be made. These results are then used to design the waste treatment infrastructure. The described approach to waste composition is also shown via a micro-region-level case study.
Fourteen new dipolar cations have been synthesized, containing methoxy or tertiary amino electron donor groups attached to helquat (Hq) acceptors. These Hq derivatives have been characterized as ...their TfO– salts by using various techniques including NMR and electronic absorption spectroscopies. UV–vis spectra show intense, relatively low energy absorptions with λmax ≈ 400–600 nm, attributable to intramolecular charge-transfer (ICT) excitations. Single-crystal X-ray structures have been solved for two of the chromophores, one as its PF6 – salt, revealing centrosymmetric packing arrangements (space groups Pbca and P1̅). Molecular quadratic nonlinear optical (NLO) responses have been determined directly by using hyper-Rayleigh scattering (HRS) with a 800 nm laser, and indirectly via Stark (electroabsorption) spectroscopy for the low energy absorption bands. The obtained static first hyperpolarizabilities β0 range from moderate to large: (9–140) × 10–30 esu from HRS in MeCN and (44–580) × 10–30 esu from the Stark data in PrCN. The magnitude of β0 increases upon either extending the π-conjugation length or replacing a methoxy with a tertiary amino electron donor substituent. Density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent DFT calculations on selected tertiary amino chromophores confirm that the low energy absorptions have ICT character. Relatively good agreement between the simulated and experimental UV–vis absorption spectra is achieved by using the CAM-B3LYP functional with the 6-311G(d) basis set. The βtot values predicted by using DFT at the same level of theory are large ((472–1443) × 10–30 esu in MeCN). Both the theoretical and experimental results show that para-conjugation between Hq and electron donor fragments is optimal, and enlarging the Hq unit is inconsequential with respect to the molecular quadratic NLO response.
In this review, we focused on the intersection between steroid metabolomics, obstetrics and steroid neurophysiology to give a comprehensive insight into the role of sex hormones and neuroactive ...steroids (NAS) in the mechanism controlling pregnancy sustaining. The data in the literature including our studies show that there is a complex mechanism providing synthesis of either pregnancy sustaining or parturition provoking steroids. This mechanism includes the boosting placental synthesis of CRH with approaching parturition inducing the excessive synthesis of 3beta-hydroxy-5-ene steroid sulfates serving primarily as precursors for placental synthesis of progestogens, estrogens and NAS. The distribution and changing activities of placental oxidoreductases are responsible for the activation or inactivation of the aforementioned steroids, which is compartment-specific (maternal and fetal compartments) and dependent on gestational age, with a tendency to shift the production from the pregnancy-sustaining steroids to the parturition provoking ones with an increasing gestational age. The fetal and maternal livers catabolize part of the bioactive steroids and also convert some precursors to bioactive steroids. Besides the progesterone, a variety of its 5alpha/beta-reduced metabolites may significantly influence the maintenance of human pregnancy, provide protection against excitotoxicity following acute hypoxic stress, and might also affect the pain perception in mother and fetus.
Summary
Spirituality is an ancient concept with many contemporary applications to the field of health promotion. While recognized in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as a basic human ...right, definitional misunderstandings about what spirituality is, and is not, and the mechanisms by which it affects the health of young people, remain. In this cross-national analysis involving >75 000 adolescents from 12 countries, we examined the relative importance of each of four spiritual health domains (connections to self, others, nature and the transcendent) in the lives of young people, and how these connections relate to a standard indicator of positive mental health status. Descriptive and applied regression analyses confirmed two major findings: (i) boys and girls in all 12 countries ranked the importance of each of the four domains in the same order, with ‘connections to self’ identified as most important; and (ii) both direct and indirect pathways are evident that connect the remaining three domains to positive mental health status, but through strong connections to self. Based on our scale items, fostering a strong connection to self, which involves cultivating a sense of meaning, purpose and joy in the lives of adolescents, appears most fundamental to fostering optimal mental health. This may be achieved directly or, dependent upon context and culture, indirectly with emphasis on the connections afforded by the other three domains. Such findings provide important insights to guide the content of adolescent health promotion interventions.
Lay Summary
Spirituality is considered by many to be an important domain of health. It is sometimes measured in four domains of connections: to oneself, to others, to nature and to the transcendent. While the importance of such connections is recognized as a fundamental human right for children, few international studies have studied their impacts on the health and well-being of young people. In this study of young people conducted over 4 years in 12 countries, we examined the perceived importance of each of four spiritual health domains and how they each related to positive mental health status in >75 000 adolescents. ‘Connections to self’ were consistently viewed as most important among boys and girls in all 12 countries. Fostering of strong connections to self, which involves cultivating a sense of meaning, purpose and joy in the lives of adolescents, appears most fundamental to achieving mental health and well-being. This may be achieved directly through a focus on connections to self, or indirectly by focusing on the indirect effects of the other three domains on mental health. This opens up many opportunities for health promotion in child populations, internationally.
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