Microring-Assisted Coupling Between Dissimilar Waveguides

The use of microring resonators to assist in the evanescent field coupling between dissimilar waveguides is proposed and analyzed. Theoretical analysis based on the coupled mode theory and nu-merical example show that complete cross power transfers can be obtained near the microring resonances. Applications of the device include power dividers, low-power thermo-optic or electro-optic switches, and modulators.     

Three-dimensional atomic imaging of crystalline nanoparticles

Determining the three-dimensional (3D) arrangement of atoms in crystalline nanoparticles is important for nanometre-scale device engineering and also for applications involving nanoparticles, such as optoelectronics or catalysis. A nanoparticle's physical and chemical properties are controlled by its exact 3D morphology, structure and composition. Electron tomography enables the recovery of the shape of a nanoparticle from a series of projection images. Although atomic-resolution electron microscopy has been feasible for nearly four decades, neither electron tomography nor any other experimental technique has yet demonstrated atomic resolution in three dimensions. Here we report the 3D reconstruction of a complex crystalline nanoparticle at atomic resolution. To achieve this, we combined aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy, statistical parameter estimation theory and discrete tomography. Unlike conventional electron tomography, only two images of the target--a silver nanoparticle embedded in an aluminium matrix--are sufficient for the reconstruction when combined with available knowledge about the particle's crystallographic structure. Additional projections confirm the reliability of the result. The results we present help close the gap between the atomic resolution achievable in two-dimensional electron micrographs and the coarser resolution that has hitherto been obtained by conventional electron tomography.     

彩色多普勒超声在腹壁下动脉穿支选择中的应用

验证彩色多普勒超声对腹壁下动脉穿支血管术前探查的有效性,寻找腹壁下动脉穿支术前优势穿支的选择标准。利用彩色多普勒超声探查腹壁下动脉穿支皮瓣行乳房再造患者52例,重点记录穿支血管穿腹直肌前鞘点的体表投影、口径、血流信息,并通过分析比较以上信息,选择优势穿支。结果52例患者腹壁下动脉穿支穿腹直肌前鞘点于超声下均可显示,平均每侧下腹部3支,距脐平均(5.7±2.09)cm,其中条件适用于显微外科的穿支平均口径(0.95±0.32)cm,血流峰速平均约16.4 cm/s,阻力指数平均0.7。术中优势穿支采用率92.31%。说明高频彩色多普勒超声适用于腹壁下动脉穿支皮瓣术前血管探查,可精确指导穿支的术前选择,辅助手术方案制定以及皮瓣设计。     

Methane formation from long-chain alkanes by anaerobic microorganisms.

Biological formation of methane is the terminal process of biomass degradation in aquatic habitats where oxygen, nitrate, ferric iron and sulphate have been depleted as electron acceptors. The pathway leading from dead biomass to methane through the metabolism of anaerobic bacteria and archaea is well understood for easily degradable biomolecules such as carbohydrates, proteins and lipids. However, little is known about the organic compounds that lead to methane in old anoxic sediments where easily degradable biomolecules are no longer available. One class of naturally formed long-lived compounds in such sediments is the saturated hydrocarbons (alkanes). Alkanes are usually considered to be inert in the absence of oxygen, nitrate or sulphate, and the analysis of alkane patterns is often used for biogeochemical characterization of sediments. However, alkanes might be consumed in anoxic sediments below the zone of sulphate reduction, but the underlying process has not been elucidated. Here we used enrichment cultures to show that the biological conversion of long-chain alkanes to the simplest hydrocarbon, methane, is possible under strictly anoxic conditions.     

Effective Approach to Elevate the Intelligence of Management Decision System

Based on the sticking point of the low intelligence of the existing management decision system, this paper puts forward the idea of enriching and refining the knowledge of the system and endowing it with the ability to learn by means of adopting three types of heterogeneous knowledge representation and knowledge management measures. At length, this paper outlines the basic framework of an intelligence system for the sake of management decision problem.     

Simulation and uniform design-based automatic generation of risk scenarios

This paper presents a methodology for automatically generating risk scenarios for dynamic reliability applications in which some dynamic characteristics(e.g.,the order,timing and magnitude of events,the value of relevant process parameters and initial conditions) have a significant influence on the evolution of the system.The main idea of the methodology is:(i) making the system model "express itself" through simulation by having the model driven by an elaborated simulation engine;(ii) exploiting uniform design to pick out a small subset of representative design points from the space of relevant dynamic characteristics;(iii) for each selected design point,employing a depth-first systematic exploration strategy to cover all possible scenario branches at each branch point.A highly dynamic example adapted from the literature(a chemical batch reactor) is studied to test the effectiveness of the proposed methodology.