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An integrated experimental study is presented which aims at relating the frictional properties at the particle scale to the bulk mechanical behavior for two different types of sands. We performed direct shear tests and inter-particle tests on lunar regolith simulant DNA-1A and Ottawa sand (benchmark material) under both dry and wet conditions. We found higher macroscopic friction angles for the lunar simulant in both dry and wet conditions, a smaller strength decay for Ottawa sand during reversal direct shear tests and similar strength envelopes of both materials under wet and dry conditions. Particle-scale tests evidenced higher inter-particle friction for DNA-1A in wet conditions with respect to the dry case for normal force lower than 2–3 N. For the lunar simulant, the differences between bulk and inter-particle friction appeared to be emphasized in dry condition and an evident effect of water on the friction coefficient was found only at the micro-scale.

A correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10035-021-01117-2

Scale modelling should be a very useful strategy for the design of lunar structures. Preventing structural damages in the lunar environment is crucial and scale models are helpful to achieve this aim. The size of these models must be scaled to take into account the different gravitational levels. Since the lunar gravity acceleration is about one-sixth of the terrestrial one, it follows that the models on Earth will be very smaller than the prototype to be realized on the Moon. This strategy will represent an opportunity for engineers working on lunar structure design, provided that the errors, both computational and experimental, related to the change of scale are quantified, allowing reliable extension of the physical scale modelling results to the prototype. In this work, a three-dimensional finite element analysis of walls retaining lunar regolith backfill is described and discussed, in order to provide preliminary results, which can guide a future experimental investigation based on physical scale-modelling. In particular, computational errors related to the scale effects are assessed, with respect to a virtual prototype of the lunar geotechnical structure, and compared with errors from other sources of discrepancy, like the adopted constitutive model, the variability of the geotechnical parameters and the calculation section used in the 3D analysis. The results seem to suggest the soundness of this strategy of modelling and are likely to encourage new research, both numerical and experimental, supporting the structure serviceability assessment.

In geotechnics as well as in planetary science, it is important to find a means by which to protect a base from impacts of micrometeoroids. In the moon, for example, covering a moon base with regolith, and housing such regolith by movable bounding walls, could work as a stress-leaking shield. Using a numerical model, by performing impacts on a granular material housed in a rectangular container made with one movable sidewall, it is found that such wall mobility serves as a good means for controlling the maximum force exerted at the container's base. We show that the force exerted at the container's base decreases as the movable wall decreases in mass, and it follows a Janssen-like trend. Moreover, by making use of a dynamically defined redirecting coefficient K(X), proposed by Windows-Yule et al. [Phys. Rev. E 100, 022902 (2019)2470-004510.1103/PhysRevE.100.022902], which depends on the container's width X, we propose a model for predicting the maxima measured at the container's base. The model depends on the projectile and granulate properties, and the container's geometry.

The study of processes characterized by impulsive nature (i.e. impacts) can be considered of great interest in both physics and engineering disciplines: in the geotechnical field, for instance, their effect on the interaction between soil and structures need to be investigated. The present work aims at the validation, by means of two-dimensional finite element simulations, of a methodology of force calibration which uses results obtained from three-dimensional discrete element analysis for predicting the stress at the base of a granular bed, retained by a movable wall, arising when the system is hit by a projectile. To approach this problem, the low-velocity impact has been modeled as a punctual impulsive force on a granular packing.

The Janssen model of stress redistribution within laterally bounded particulate assemblies is a longstanding and valuable theoretical framework, widely used in the design of industrial systems. However, the model relies on the assumption of a static packing of particles and has never been tested in a truly dynamic regime nor for a constraining system whose geometry is dynamically altered. In this paper, we explore the pressure distributions of granular beds housed within a container possessing a laterally mobile sidewall, allowing the depth, height, and cross-sectional areas of the systems studied to be dynamically altered, thus, inducing particle rearrangements and flow in the particulate system constrained thereby. We demonstrate that the systems studied can be successfully described by the Janssen model across a wide range of system expansion rates, including those for which liquidlike flow is clearly observed and propose an extension to the model allowing for an improved characterization of constrained dynamic systems.

Understanding the mechanical behavior of lunar regolith is of great importance to address the building of structures on the Moon, as well as for predicting the response of some equipment or...

Reduction in pore water pressure is an useful strategy to improve the stability of slopes. Deep draining trenches can be used for this purpose. For the realization of deep trenches, the usual conventional construction techniques are not adequate and the use of adjacent vertical panels, built by means of the methods well-established for diaphragm walls, is necessary. However, unbonded materials (i.e., gravels) cannot be used, because the excavation of a panel adjacent to one already built will cause instability. For this scope a bonded material such as pervious concrete can be used. It must have high permeability; filtering capacity, in order to prevent internal erosion of the soil in which the trench drain is installed; and sufficient shear strength after a short curing time to avoid the instability of adjacent previously built panels. This paper reports the hydraulic characterization of two mixtures of pervious concrete carried out in the laboratory. Hydraulic conductivity was measured in saturated conditions. Then, the water retention functions of the mixtures were experimentally deduced by investigating different calculation options and their impact on the simulation of seepage processes through an unsaturated soil mass, in which an ideal trench is located.

In a preliminary version of the NA48 experiment at the CERN SPS, in which an iron-scintillator sandwich calorimeter was used as a photon detector, the ratio of K L → πμνγ and K L → πμν decays was measured. The branching ratio BR(K L →πμνγ, E γ ∗ ≥30 MeV )/(K L → πμν ) is found to be (2.08±0.17 +0.16 −0.21 )×10 −3 , where the first error is statistical and the second systematic. The result is in agreement with theoretical predictions.

Improved branching ratios were measured for the $K_L \to 3 \pi^0 $ decay in a neutral beam at the CERN SPS with the NA31 detector: $\Gamma (K_L \to 3 \pi^0) / \Gamma (K_L \to \pi^+ \pi^- \pi^0) = 1.611 \pm 0.037$ and $\Gamma (K_L \to 3 \pi^0) / \Gamma (K_L \to \pi e \nu ) = 0.545 \pm 0.010$. From the first number an upper limit for $\Delta I =5/2$ and $\Delta I = 7/2 $ transitions in neutral kaon decay is derived. Using older results for the Ke3/K$\mu $3 fraction, the 3$\pi^0$ branching ratio is found to be $\Gamma (K_L \to 3 \pi^0 )/ \Gamma_{tot} = (0.211 \pm 0.003)$, about a factor three more precise than from previous experiments.

A digital mammography system based on a GaAs pixel detector has been developed by the INFN (Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare) collaboration MED46. The high atomic number makes the GaAs a very efficient material for low energy X-ray detection (10-30 keV is the typical energy range used in mammography). Low contrast details can be detected with a significant dose reduction to the patient. The system presented in this paper consists of a 4096 pixel matrix built on a 200 /spl mu/m thick semi-insulating GaAs substrate. The pixel size is 170/spl times/170 /spl mu/m/sup 2/ for a total active area of 1.18 cm/sup 2/. The detector is bump-bonded to a VLSI front-end chip which implements a single-photon counting architecture. This feature allows to enhance the radiographic contrast detection with respect to charge integrating devices. The system has been tested by using a standard mammographic tube. Images of mammographic phantoms will be presented and compared with radiographs obtained with traditional film/screen systems. Monte Carlo simulations have been also performed to evaluate the imaging capability of the system. Comparison with simulations and experimental results will be shown.

We have investigated the detection performance of GaAs detectors made with different thickness and contact geometries. A comparison is made between these detection capabilities and the imaging requirements for the following medical applications: digital mammography, digital chest radiography and nuclear medicine. Experimental results and preliminary images are presented and discussed.

We present an autoradiography tool to be used mainly for genetic studies. It performs a quantitative analysis of radioactivity and can follow a dynamic process. We designed several applications, in particular one aimed at detecting hybridization of radio-labeled DNA fragments with known DNA-probes deposited on a micro-array. The technique is based on GaAs pixel array detector and low threshold, large dynamic range and good sensitivity integrated electronics developed for medical applications, suitable to detect markers (gamma or beta) such as 14C, 35S, 33P, 32P, 125I, even at very low activities. A Monte Carlo simulation of β− detection in GaAs is presented here in order to study the spatial resolution characteristics of such a system. For several biological applications, the electronics is required to perform at high temperatures (from 37° to 68°): we present here studies of noise and minimum threshold as a function of the temperature.

A GaAs pixel detector designed for digital mammography, equipped with a 36-channel single photon counting discrete read-out electronics, was tested using a test object developed for quality control purposes in mammography. Each pixel was 200×200 μm2 large, and 200 μm deep. The choice of GaAs with respect to silicon (largely used in other applications and with a more established technique) has been made because of the much better detection efficiency at mammographic energies, combined with a very good charge collection efficiency achieved thanks to new ohmic contacts. This GaAs detector is able to perform a measurement of low-contrast details, with minimum contrast lower (nearly a factor two) than that typically achievable with standard mammographic film+screen systems in the same conditions of clinical routine. This should allow for an earlier diagnosis of breast tumour masses. Due to these encouraging results, the next step in the evolution of our imaging system based on GaAs detectors has been the development of a VLSI front-end prototype chip (MEDIPIX ) in order to cover a much larger diagnostic area. The chip reads 64×64 channels in single photon counting mode, each one 170 μm wide. Each channel contains also a test input where a signal can be simulated, injecting a known charge through a 16 f F capacitor. Fake signals have been injected via the test input measuring and equalizing minimum thresholds for all the channels. On an average, in most of the performing chips available up to now, we have found that it is possible to set a threshold as low as 1800 electrons with an RMS of 150 electrons (10 standard deviations lower than the 20 keV photon signal roughly equivalent to 4500 electrons). The detector, bump-bonded to the chip, will be tested and a ladder of detectors will be prepared to be able to scan large surface objects.

A prototype electromagnetic calorimeter containing 180 litres of liquid krypton has been tested in electron and muon beams at the CERN SPS. The main features of this detector are its active shower medium, a granularity of 2 cm with tower readout, and the use of the initial current readout technique with an effective shaping time of about 60 ns. An energy resolution for electrons of 4.1% √E[ GeV ] with a constant term of 0.4% and a noise contribution of 50 MeV has been achieved. The calorimeter has a spatial resolution of 4.5 mm √E[ GeV ] with a constant term of 0.3 mm and a time resolution of about 0.5 ns for energies larger than 10 GeV.

The work presented here was developed in the framework of the SENTINEL Project and is devoted to the analysis of dental radiology dosimetric data. The procedure of data processing allows the analysis of some important aspects related to the protection of the patient and the staff because of the position of the operators near the patient and their exposure to the radiation scattered by the patient. Dental radiology data was collected in an Italian hospital. Following the Italian quality assurance (QA) protocols and suggestions by the leaders of the SENTINEL Project, X-ray equipment performances have been analysed in terms of: kVp accuracy, exposure time accuracy and precision, tube output, dose reproducibility and linearity, beam collimation, artefacts and light tightness. Referring to these parameters the physical quality index (QI) was analysed. In a single numerical value between 0 and 1, QI summarises the results of quality tests for radiological devices. The actual impact of such a figure (as suggested by international QA protocols or as adopted by local QA routine) on the policy of machine maintenance and replacement is discussed.

Recent advances in semiconductor pixel detectors and read-out electronics allowed to build the first prototypes of single photon-counting imaging systems that represent the last frontier of digital radiography. Among the advantages with respect to commercially available digital imaging systems, there are direct conversion of photon energy into electrical charge and the effective rejection of electronic noise by means of a thresholding process. These features allow the photon-counting systems to achieve high imaging performances in terms of spatial and contrast resolution. Moreover, the now available deep integration techniques allow the reduction of the pixel size and the improvement of the functionality of the single cell and the read-out speed so as to cope with the high fluxes found in diagnostic radiology. In particular, the single photon-counting system presented in this paper is based on a 300-microm thick silicon pixel detector bump-bonded to the Medipix2 read-out chip to form an assembly of 256 x 256 square pixels at a pitch of 55 microm. Each cell comprises a low-noise preamplifier, two pulse height discriminators and a 14-bit counter. The maximum counting rate per pixel is 1 MHz. The chip can operate in two modalities: it records the events with energy above a threshold (single mode) or between two energy thresholds (window mode). Exploiting this latter feature, a possible application of such a system as a fast spectrometer is presented to study the energy spectrum of diagnostic beams produced by X-ray tubes.

We present the imaging and spectroscopic capabilities of a system based on a single photon counting chip (PCC) bump-bonded on a Si pixel detector. The system measures the energy spectrum and the flux, produced by a standard mammographic tube. We have also made some images of low contrast details, achieving good results.

We report the status of the art of a prototype based on a GaAs pixel detector bump-bonded to a dedicated VLSI chip to be possibly used for imaging in the nuclear medicine field. This device, with a 200 μm thick pixel matrix (64×64 square pixels, 170 μm side), has already been tested with very good results for digital mammography applications (mean energy 20 keV). For more energetic photons, as in nuclear medicine, a 600 μm thick detector has been chosen. Using radioactive sources ( 241 Am, 60 keV and 99 m Tc, 140 keV photons) we have measured the performance of our prototype in terms of charge collection and detection efficiency of the detector, discrimination capability of the electronics and imaging properties of the whole system. In particular, we have evaluated the spatial resolution properties measuring the Point Spread Function and the imaging capabilities using a home made thyroid phantom. We present also the comparison between these results and those obtained with a traditional gamma camera and the evaluation, made by both experimental measurements and software simulations, of the geometry related to the use of a collimator.

We are characterising a prototype GaAs pixel detector able to perform digital mammography which contains two features which give enhanced performance compared with standard mammographic systems: it can detect low contrast test objects, inaccessible for traditional systems and, using its higher intrinsic detection efficiency, can reduce the radiation dose to the patient. The prototype is a hybrid assembly of a GaAs detector divided into 64×64 pixels, each of which measures 170 μm on the side, which is bump-bonded to a photon counting chip, PCC, developed by the Medipix collaboration. The cells of the readout chip are identical in size to the detector pixels and work in single photon counting mode. We have studied the detection efficiency of some assemblies for different bias voltages, reaching in some cases the detector breakdown point. To test the assembly in the same clinical conditions used in a standard mammographic system we have tested the prototype with radiation produced by a standard mammographic X-ray tube operating at 28 kVp. In particular, working not too far from the detector breakdown point, we are checking its imaging capabilities using a mammographic test phantom with known composition of the materials and therefore known contrast.

In this paper we present the Computer-Aided Library for MAmmography (CALMA Project), i.e. an automated search for the mammograms’ texture, the massive lesions and microcalcifications clusters. CALMA's main purpose is to collect a database of mammographic images, developing CAD tools to be used as a second radiologist in the classification of breast cancer diseases. In this moment, 2200 images are already in our database, which is, to our knowledge, the largest in Europe. One-third of our digitized images are pathological, and they are fully characterized by a consistent description and diagnosis. We try to perform automatically the classification of mammographic images on the bases of tissues’ textures. Such a classification should be done in an unbiased way with respect to radiologists and should support their interpretation of the mammographic image. Results obtained with non supervised neural networks are shown, as well as results coming from a mixed approach (features extraction combined with FF-ANN). Massive lesions are rather large objects to be detected, but they show up with a faint contrast slowly increasing with time. The need for tools able to recognize such a lesion at an early stage is therefore apparent. Our tools are based on a ROI hunter procedure for spiculated lesions showing a number of false positives of the order of 1.4 per image and keeping a 85% sensitivity on our sample. A microcalcication is a rather small (0.1–1.0 mm in diameter) but very brilliant. Some of them, either grouped in cluster or isolated may indicate the presence of a tumor. Up to now only 40 images with microcalcications from our database have been analyzed, and a CAD tool has been designed to detect clusters, reaching a correct classification of 90%.

Aim of this paper is to give a general idea of the characteristic of a system for medical digital imaging based on a GaAs pixel detector bump-bonded to a VLSI electronic chip. After a discussion on the characteristics of the GaAs detector, and its detection and charge collection efficiency properties, it follows a description of the high-density channel VLSI chip named Photon Counting Chip (PCC). Then, a description of the apparatus used to characterize the detector and to perform electrical measurements is made. Finally are discussed irradiation tests and the laboratory setup used at the laboratory course of the ICFA 99 school.

A 4096 pixel Photon Counting Chip (PCC) has been developed and tested. It is aimed primarily at medical imaging although it can be used for other applications involving particle counting. The readout chip consists of a matrix of 64 by 64 identical square pixels, whose side measures 170 micrometers and is bump-bonded to a similar matrix of GaAs or Si pixel diodes covering a sensitive area of 1.18 cm2. The electronics in each cell comprises a preamplifier, a discriminator with variable threshold and a 3-bit threshold tune as well as a 15-bit counter. Each pixel can be individually addressed for electrical test or masked during acquisition. A shutter allows for switching between the counting and readout modes and the use of static logic in the counter enables long data taking periods. Electrical test of the chip have shown a maximum counting and readout modes and the use of static logic in the counter enables long data taking periods. Electrical test of the chip have shown a maximum counting rate of up to 2 MHz in each pixel. The minimum reachable threshold is 1400 e with a variation of 350 e rms that can be reduced to 80 e rms after tuning with the 3-bit adjustment. Electrical noise at the input is 170 e rms. Several read-out chips have been bump bonded to 200 micrometers thick GaAs pixel detectors. Test with (gamma) -ray and (beta) sources have been carried out. A number of objects have been imaged and a 260 micrometers thick aluminum foil which represents a contrast to the surrounding air of only 1.9 percent has been correctly imaged.© (1998) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

The PeakSum Processing System (PSS) is an element of the neutral trigger of the NA48 experiment at CERN. The PSS is a pipelined processor based on a VLSI semi-custom device, containing all the processing blocks needed in the system. The PSS provides information on the energy pattern released in the electromagnetic calorimeter of the NA48 experiment, used to identify K/sub 0//spl rArr//spl pi//sup 0//spl pi//sup 0//spl rArr/4/spl gamma/ decays.

The NA48 collaboration is preparing a new experiment at CERN aiming to study CP violation in the $K^{0}-K^{0}$ system with an accuracy of $2 \times 10^{−4}$ in the parameter $\Re(\epsilon'/\epsilon)$. Decays in two $\pi^{0}$'s will be recorded by a quasi-homogeneous liquid krypton calorimeter. A liquid krypton calorimeter has been chosen to combine good energy, position and time resolution with precise charge calibration and long-term stability. The prototype calorimeter incorporating the final design of the electrode read-out structure is presented in this paper. An energy resolution of $\simeq 3.5$%/$\sqrt{E}$ with a constant term smaller than 0.5% has been obtained. The time resolution was found to be better than 300 ps above 15 GeV.

A case of congenital duodenal stenosis is reported complicated by recurrent pancreatitis. The diagnosis was not initially entertained because of the pancreatitis. The radiographic appearance on gastrointestinal series was unusual for pancreatitis. The finding of an anomalous celiac axis on arteriography suggested the possibility of other congenital anomalies. The diagnosis of congenital duodenal stenosis was confirmed at laparotomy. The obstruction was relieved with a duodenojejunostomy. Two year follow-up reveals the patient to be asymptomatic without recurrence of pancreatitis. This is the first endoscopic report of this lesion and the presence of the duodenal cervix sign should suggest the diagnosis of congenital duodenal stenosis.

The left ventricular reduction called Batista's procedure (BP) is a surgical technique able to improve the ventricular function in the heart disease known as Congestive Heart Failure (CHF). From a geometrical point of view the BP is a restyling of the left ventricle from a spherical configuration to an ellipsoidal one. The authors have written a program ("SoftHeart") which simulates the response of the heart after the BP. The main products of the authors' program are the new ejection fraction and the new stroke volume as a function of the equatorial surgical reduction. Using these curves it is possible to classify the patients into three categories corresponding to a Gaussian-like curve, a flat curve and a monotonic descending curve, respectively. A clinical trial performed on 165 patients allows a good correlation between the three categories built by "SoftHeart" and three different clinical situations. An explanation of the three categories produced by "SoftHeart" using the Laplace and the Frank-Starling laws is reported.