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BACKGROUND: There is no consensus on managing pregnancy when the fetus is diagnosed with idiopathic premature constriction or closure of the ductus arteriosus (PCDA). Knowing whether the ductus reopens is valuable information for managing idiopathic PCDA. We conducted a case-series study to investigate the natural perinatal course of idiopathic PCDA and examined factors associated with ductal reopening. METHODS: We retrospectively collected information about the perinatal course and echocardiographic findings at our institution, which, on principle, does not determine delivery timing based on fetal echocardiographic results. We also examined perinatal factors related to the reopening of the ductus arteriosus. RESULTS: Thirteen cases of idiopathic PCDA were included in the analysis. The ductus reopened in 38% of cases. Among cases diagnosed in

Agradecimentos: This study was part of the research program "Programa de Monitoramento de Longa Duração das Comunidades Recifais de Ilhas Oceânicas - PELD" (441241/2016-6, Carlos E.L. Ferreira-PI). K.Y.I. received scholarships from Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) - Finance Code 001 - and Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq); T.C.M. received post-doctoral fellowship from Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (FAPERJ; E-26/202.858/2016); J.P.Q. received post-doctoral fellowship from FAPESP (2018/21380-0); M.C. received post-doctoral fellowships from CNPq (153797/2016-9), Projeto Monitoramento de Praias (PMP/BS UFPR/UNIVALI 46/2016) and CAPES (PDE 88881.170254/2018-01); I.S. received grants from CNPq. We thank J.P. Krajewski, C. Sazima, and L. Almeida for the photographs of reef fish follower-feeding associations, and two anonymous referees for insightful suggestions. J.P.Q. thanks for the contribution of the Research Center for Marine Biodiversity of the University of São Paulo (NPBiomar) Abstract: Structurally complex and competitive environments such as reef habitats may promote alternative behavioural feeding tactics in fishes. An understudied behavioural tactic is the follower-feeding association, in which individuals of a species follow (called "follower") and benefit from the foraging activities of individuals of another species that disturbs the substrate (called "nuclear"). Here, we investigated the incidence of this tactic at three oceanic islands in the southwestern Atlantic by characterizing pairwise, and the emergent network of follower-feeding associations. We quantified associations among species according to their trophic categories, activity period, and group size. The incidence of follower-feeding associations was higher at islands with higher species richness, but the proportion of associations per species was higher at islands with lower species richness. Overall, mobile invertebrate-feeders, omnivores and macrocarnivores were the most common trophic categories engaged in this tactic. Most of follower-feeding associations involved diurnal species, which indicates that followers rely on visual cues to engage in this tactic. We also found that nuclear species were mainly solitary, while followers tended to aggregate in small- to medium-sized groups. Our study indicates that follower-feeding association is an opportunistic yet frequent feeding tactic at oceanic islands, which may stem from resource partitioning in such remote habitats CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQ COORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPES FUNDAÇÃO DE AMPARO À PESQUISA DO ESTADO DE SÃO PAULO - FAPESP Fechado

Interactions among species are likely to change geographically due to climate-driven species range shifts and in intensity due to physiological responses to increasing temperatures. Marine ectotherms experience temperatures closer to their upper thermal limits due to the paucity of temporary thermal refugia compared to those available to terrestrial organisms. Thermal limits of marine ectotherms also vary among species and trophic levels, making their trophic interactions more prone to changes as oceans warm. We assessed how temperature affects reef fish trophic interactions in the Western Atlantic and modeled projections of changes in fish occurrence, biomass, and feeding intensity across latitudes due to climate change. Under ocean warming, tropical reefs will experience diminished trophic interactions, particularly herbivory and invertivory, potentially reinforcing algal dominance in this region. Tropicalization events are more likely to occur in the northern hemisphere, where feeding by tropical herbivores is predicted to expand from the northern Caribbean to extratropical reefs. Conversely, feeding by omnivores is predicted to decrease in this area with minor increases in the Caribbean and southern Brazil. Feeding by invertivores declines across all latitudes in future predictions, jeopardizing a critical trophic link. Most changes are predicted to occur by 2050 and can significantly affect ecosystem functioning, causing dominance shifts and the rise of novel ecosystems., SI

Background The optimal coronary revascularization strategy for the patients on hemodialysis is yet to be determined. In the real-world practice, we sometimes encounter the rapid deterioration after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) to angiographically intermediate but functionally significant stenosis. According to the fractional flow reserve (FFR) based revascularization strategy, the clinical outcome of the deferred lesions is reported to be almost equivalent to that of the lesions received PCI. However, whether the relationship also applies to hemodialysis patients is unclear. Purpose To assess the clinical outcome of the lesions for which revascularization strategy was determined by FFR in patients with hemodialysis. Methods Consecutive 147 vessels in 120 patients with hemodialysis whose revascularization strategy was decided according to the FFR were enrolled in this study. We compared the clinical outcomes of the deferred group (FFR ≥0.80, 87 vessels, 78 patients) with the PCI group (FFR Results The median follow-up period was 2.3 years (interquartile range, 1.5–4.0 years). The beseline characteristics of the lesions and patients were well balanced between the 2 treatment groups except for the distribution of target vessels and FFR value. The cumulative TVF rate was not significantly different between the deferred group and PCI group (2-year event rate 26.7% vs. 17.7%; Log-rank p=0.23). The risk of MACE was also not significantly different between two groups (2-year event rate 35% vs. 30%; Log-rank p=0.48). Conclusion The clinical outcome of the lesions/patients for which received revascularization based on FFR was equivalent to the deferred lesions/patients even in the patients on hemodialysis (2,129/3,000). Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding sources: None. Table 1Figure 1

Aims The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of aggressive lipid-lowering therapy with pitavastatin and ezetimibe in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) as compared with those with other classification of an acute coronary syndrome (ACS) including non-STEMI (NSTEMI) and unstable angina pectoris (UA). Methods This is a post hoc sub-analysis of the HIJ-PROPER study. In the original study, ACS patients with dyslipidemia were randomized to either pitavastatin + ezetimibe therapy or pitavastatin monotherapy. In the present analysis, we divided HIJ-PROPER participants into the STEMI group (n=880) and NSTEMI + UA group (n=841). Cardiovascular events were analyzed between the two groups. The primary endpoint was a composite of major advanced cardiovascular events (MACE; all-cause death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, non-fatal stroke, unstable angina pectoris, and ischemia-driven revascularization) Result During median follow-up period of 3.4 years, the cumulative incidence of the primary endpoint in STEMI group was 31.9% in the pitavastatin+ezetimibe therapy, compared with 39.7% in the pitavastatin-monotherapy (HR, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.62–0.97; p=0.02). However, there was no effect of pitavastatin+ezetimibe therapy on the primary endpoint in the NSTEMI + UA group. Concerning the individual components of the primary endpoint in STEMI group, the percentage of occurrence of all-cause death was significantly lower in the pitavastatin+ezetimibe therapy compared to pitavastatin mono-therapy (14 patients (3.2%) vs. 31 patients (6.9%), respectively; HR, 0.45; 95% CI, 0.23–1.84, p=0.01). Multivariate analysis revealed that use of ezetimibe and prevalence of diabetes mellitus at baseline were independent predictors of primary endpoints in STEMI group (HR, 0.79; 95% CI, 0.63–0.99; p=0.04 for use of ezetimibe, HR 1.54; 95% CI, 1.22–1.94, p=0.0003 for diabetes mellitus). Conclusion Patients with pitavastatin+ezetimibe therapy as compared with pitavastatin-monotherapy had lower cardiovascular event in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. Kaplan-Meier curves for primary endpoint Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: None

Background This study aimed to elucidate whether high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) at 3-month follow-up for patients receiving contemporary lipid-lowering therapy after acute coronary syndrome (ACS) could predict cardiac events. Methods The HIJ-PROPER study was a multicenter, prospective, randomized trial comparing intensive lipid-lowering therapy (pitavastatin + ezetimibe) and conventional lipid-lowering therapy (pitavastatin monotherapy) after ACS. For the present analysis, the entire cohort was divided into three groups according to HDL-C levels at 3-month follow-up (Group 1, HDL-C ≤43 mg/dL; Group 2, 43–53.6 mg/dL; Group 3; HDL-C ≥53.6 mg/dL). Baseline characteristics and the incidence of the primary endpoint (a composite of all-cause death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, non-fatal stroke, unstable angina pectoris, or ischemia-driven revascularization) were compared among the three groups. Results The primary endpoint was reported in 34.8%, 30.1%, and 24.6% of patients in Groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively. The incidence of the primary endpoint was significantly higher in Group 1 than in Group 3 (hazard ratio [HR], 1.5; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.19–1.9; p=0.001). Irrespective of the treatment regimen, Group 1 had a significantly higher rate of the primary endpoint than Group 3 (pitavastatin + ezetimibe therapy: HR, 1.6; 95% CI, 1.12–2.22; p=0.01 and pitavastatin monotherapy: HR, 1.4; 95% CI, 1.05–1.98; p=0.02). These trends remained even after adjustment for baseline characteristics and lipid profiles. Conclusions Lower levels of HDL-C at 3-month follow-up are associated with higher incidence of the cardiovascular events in patients with acute coronary syndrome receiving contemporary lipid-lowering therapy. HDL-C levels and Cardiovascular events Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: None

Phyto-Fenton process utilizes the endogenous hydrogen peroxide in plants to degrade organic pollutants in presence of iron catalyst. In this study, we have applied the magnetite particles in continuous treatment system of constructed wetland (CW) to study the effectiveness in removing sulfamethoxazole (SMX) antibiotics. Experimental results demonstrated that SMX was removed by constructed wetlands in the presence and absence of magnetite fine particles. OH radical formation was observed in the plant+Fe system with electron spin resonance spectroscopy. The magnetite addition favoured the plant growth and endogenous H2O2. However, enhanced treatments by phyto-Fenton process were not enhanced in the presence of magnetite particles, but the plants+soil CWs showed better removal efficiencies compared to the soil CWs.

Polarization sensitive femtosecond mid-infrared spectrometer is developed based on chirped-pulse upconversion. Polarization and frequency dependence of the pump pulse on the vibrational coupling between the CO stretching modes of a metal carbonyl complex reveals the appearance of Raman-active vibrations due to a slight decrease in the molecular symmetry.

Fedotovite K_{2}Cu_{3}O(SO_{4})_{3} is a candidate of new quantum spin systems, in which the edge-shared tetrahedral (EST) spin clusters consisting of Cu^{2+} are connected by weak intercluster couplings forming a one-dimensional array. Comprehensive experimental studies by magnetic susceptibility, magnetization, heat capacity, and inelastic neutron scattering measurements reveal the presence of an effective S=1 Haldane state below T≅4 K. Rigorous theoretical studies provide an insight into the magnetic state of K_{2}Cu_{3}O(SO_{4})_{3}: an EST cluster makes a triplet in the ground state and a one-dimensional chain of the EST induces a cluster-based Haldane state. We predict that the cluster-based Haldane state emerges whenever the number of tetrahedra in the EST is even.

Background Collagen fibres in the dermis play an important structural role in the skin. Age-related changes to these fibres cause wrinkles and slackness of facial skin. However, it is not clear how dermal collagen fibres affect skin colour. The purpose of this study was to clarify the influence of altered collagen fibres on skin colour, using both experimental measurement of fibre density and Monte Carlo simulations in an optical model of skin. Methods Reflection spectra were measured from the cheeks of 12 Japanese women (22-65 years old) by spectral colorimeter. Two-dimensional autocorrelation functions were calculated from second harmonics generation (SHG) images acquired from the same locations and used to calculate collagen density indices. Monte Carlo simulations of light reflectance by skin were performed using a nine-layered model that precisely imitates skin structure. The relationship between dermal collagen fibre density and skin reflection spectra was analysed. Results A positive correlation was found between collagen density and skin brightness, as measured by the colour value, L* (using the L*a*b* colour space). In addition, collagen density showed a strong inverse correlation with age and with the optical absorption of dermis. The Monte Carlo simulations showed that the reflection spectrum of skin changes when the scattering coefficient of the dermis is altered. These changes were the same for simulated and experimentally measured reflection spectra. Conclusion When collagen fibre density in the upper dermis is decreased with age, skin colour becomes less bright because light scattering in the skin is decreased.

Hydrogen-free diamond-like carbon (DLC) coatings were formed using four different deposition methods: trigger-type arc ion plating, laser-discharge-induced arc ion plating, filtered cathodic vacuum arc ion plating and magnetron sputtering. Wear tests were conducted on the coatings under a lubricated condition to investigate the effect of their surface hardness on wear, as well as the phase transformation from sp 3 to sp 2 and the influence of their surface properties. The results showed that DLC coating wear tended to decrease with higher hardness and that surface droplets (particles) formed during the deposition process tended to have the effect of increasing wear. Further wear testing was done using thicker coating samples to investigate the effect of the droplets in more detail. The results showed that abrasive wear tended to occur accompanying the falling out of droplets from inside the coating. An examination of such droplets by electron energy-loss spectroscopy using a transmission electron microscope (TEM-EELS) revealed that they originated from sputtered graphite debris that was not completely melted during the coating deposition process and served as the nucleus for droplet growth. Additionally, the structure of the droplet-coating interface was found to be a weak sp 2 -rich layer.

Temperature variation of radiative recombination rate obtained for defect photoluminescence (PL) in high-quality a-Si:H after illumination of intense pulsed light is presented and compared with results previously reported for defective a-Si:H films. We have not found significant difference between the temperature variation of the rate of radiative recombination at photo-created radiative defects and that at native radiative defects. This fact suggests the recombination processes at the photo-created defects and the native defects are similar. The temperature dependence of the radiative recombination rates in a-Si:H is predicted by a model of the recombination processes for various cases of different density of deep and strongly localised tail states. Our recent experimental results for the principal PL and defect PL coincide with the prediction of the model. (© 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

We report 1H NMR results for (CH3)2NH2CuCl3measured at very low temperature down to 0.1 K using a dilution refrigerator. Field induced magnetic ordered state is revealed by the NMR measurements and a magnetic phase diagram for the system is proposed.

Low-pressure arc cleaning is a process for removing an oxide layer. Currently, chemical and mechanical means are typically used to remove such layers. However, both methods present difficulties such as a liquid waste, dust, and noise. Regarding the low-pressure arc cleaning, waste comes from one source: the oxide layer. In addition, the cathode spot has very high temperatures that are sufficient to remove the oxide layer. This paper describes the removal of the nanometer-thick oxide layer from a thin metal plate. An oxide layer of 27-157 nm was removed, thereby, obtaining a smooth surface whose respective arithmetical mean height (Ra) and average length of an outline curve element (R sm) are 0.04 and 6.4 mum. In that case, Ra and R sm increased with an increasing oxide-layer thickness at 397-1680 nm. Those results depend on the oxide-layer thickness. Therefore, although the surface is cratered and rough after a cathode-spot treatment on the chemical oxide layer (6.7 nm), a smooth surface is obtainable after the cathode-spot treatment on the thermal oxide layer (27, 66, and 157 nm). Surface roughness depends on the processing time to produce one crater, which depends on the oxide-layer thickness

Background/aims: Macrocarpals, which are phloroglucinol derivatives contained in eucalyptus leaves, exhibit antimicrobial activity against a variety of bacteria including oral bacteria. This study examined effects of macrocarpals A, B, and C on periodontopathic bacteria, especially Porphyromonas gingivalis. Methods: Macrocarpals A, B, and C were purified from a 60% ethanol-extract of Eucalyptus globules leaves. To investigate antibacterial activity, representative periodontopathic bacteria were cultured in media with or without various amounts of macrocarpals; subsequently, the optical density at 660 nm was measured. Macrocarpal inhibition of P. gingivalis Arg- and Lys-specific proteinases was assessed by spectrofluorophotometric assay and sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis. The effect of macrocarpals on P. gingivalis binding to saliva-coated hydroxyapatite beads was examined with 3H-labeled P. gingivalis. Results: Growth of P. gingivalis was inhibited more strongly than growth of Prevotella intermedia or Prevotella nigrescens and Treponema denticola by macrocarpals, however, Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans and Fusobacterium nucleatum were much more resistant. Macrocarpals inhibited P. gingivalis Arg- and Lys-specific proteinases in a dose-dependent manner. The enzyme-inhibitory effect of macrocarpals was confirmed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis in which hemoglobin degradation by P. gingivalis proteinase was inhibited by macrocarpals. P. gingivalis binding to saliva-coated hydroxyapatite beads was also strongly attenuated by macrocarpals. Conclusions: Macrocarpals A, B and C demonstrated antibacterial activity against periodontopathic bacteria. Among tested bacteria, P. gingivalis displayed the greatest sensitivity to macrocarpals; additionally, its trypsin-like proteinase activity and binding to saliva-coated hydroxyapatite beads were inhibited by macrocarpals. These results indicate that eucalyptus leaf extracts may be useful as a potent preventative of periodontal disease.

Background: The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether oral clonidine premedication becomes an alternative to N2O in terms of shortening the induction time and attenuation of the adrenergic response to tracheal intubation during inhalation induction with sevoflurane, and to evaluate the quality of anesthetic induction according to the patient's satisfaction. Methods: We studied 84 female patients who were randomly allocated into four study groups: Groups I and II received a placebo orally, and Groups III and IV received clonidine at 150 and 300 µg, respectively, 90 min before induction of anaesthesia. Patients were anesthetized using a triple-deep-breath technique with 5% sevoflurane in Groups I, III and IV, and with 60% N2O−5% sevoflurane in group II. Results: Induction time was significantly longer (P

We studied the thermal shock resistance of a silicon nitride containing elongated and preferentially aligned grains with different volume fractions of pores, ranging from 0 to 0.27. It was found that an increase in the volume fraction of pores decreased both the strength and the temperature through which the sample must be quenched to cause cracking. However, at intermediate values of the porosity (0.07), the temperature change required to cause cracking was much smaller than predicted. Observations of the resulting damage suggested that this had occurred because of the formation of cracks just underneath and parallel to the cooled surface of the sample that were able to change the direction of their growth. The extent of cracking was found to be only very weakly dependent on the volume fraction of pores, consistent with calculations of the variation of crack driving force within the sample.

N,N-diphenyl-8-[2-(4-pyridinyl)ethenyl]-dibenzofuran-2-ylamine has been synthesized as a novel second-harmonic generation (SHG) material. From reflection measurement in powder form, the SHG of the titled compound is found to be nine times as intense as that of urea. An effective d coefficient by means of second-harmonic wave generated with the evanescent wave (SHEW) method is estimated to be 3 pm/V. The cutoff wavelength of the compound is 370 nm.

Temperature variation of non-radiative recombination rate, competing with defect photoluminescence (PL), has been obtained from characteristic lifetimes estimated from experiments by means of frequency resolved spectroscopy (FRS) for a-Si:H films after illumination of pulsed light. Conventional interpretation of thermal quenching of the PL in a-Si:H, where the non-radiative recombination rate has an activation-type temperature dependence and the radiative recombination rate is independent of the temperature, is not suitable to explain the experimental results of the defect PL. The temperature variation of the non-radiative recombination rate obtained for the defect PL is well described by a theory of Englman and Jortner for the case of strong electron–phonon coupling.

The simultaneous detections of transient reflectivity (TR), transient reflecting first and second order diffraction signals, at a silicon surface revealed that each signal reflected different physical processes of carrier dynamics under a high pump power of 5 mJ/cm2. It was shown that the second order diffraction could detect a refractive index change which was not linearly dependent on the excited carrier density, and it was suggested that the nonlinearity was caused by many-body interactions among carriers at the band-edge states. The dynamics observed with the second order diffraction corresponded to the recombination of the band-edge carriers. Analysis of the first and second order diffractions in combination with the recently developed spectroscopic detection provided selective information on the ultrafast carrier and heat dynamics for a silicon surface, that is, carrier-phonon scattering, recombination of carriers, heat generation, and diffusion. Additionally, it was shown the TR might allow observa...

The oxygen nonstoichiometry of (La,Sr)(Co,Cu)O 3− δ (LSCC) was measured thermogravimetrically. It was found that LSCC has no oxygen excess region. Its behavior is similar to (La,Sr)FeO 3− δ (LSF) but not to (La,Sr)MnO 3± δ (LSM). The electrical conductivity decreases as compared to (La,Sr)CoO 3− δ (LSC). However, it was expected that the ionic conductivity in LSCC would increase, as is suggested from electrical conductivity measurement and oxygen nonstoichiometry measurements. High temperature XRD analysis showed the elimination of phase transformations by addition of Cu yet with no reduction in the thermal expansion coefficient. The cathode activity of LSCC, the electrode interfacial conductivity, σ E , was 15.32 S cm −2 in air at 1073 K. The electrode activity of LSCC is better than that of LSC, although the electrical conductivity of LSCC is lower.

One of the tasks in machine learning is to build a device that predicts each next input symbol of a sequence as it takes one input symbol from the sequence. We studied new approaches to this task. We suggest that deterministic finite automata (DFA) are good building blocks for this device, together with genetic algorithms (GAs), which let these automata "evolve" to predict each next input symbol of the sequence. Moreover, we study how to combine these highly fit automata so that a network of them would compensate for each others' weaknesses and predict better than any single automaton. We studied the simplest approaches to combine automata: building trees of automata with special-purpose automata, which may be called switchboards. These switchboard automata are located on the internal nodes of the tree, take an input symbol from the input sequence just as other automata do, and predict which subtree will make a correct prediction on each next input symbol. GAs again play a crucial role in searching for switchboard automata. We studied various ways of growing trees of automata and tested them on sample input sequences, mainly note pitches, note durations and up/down notes of Bach's Fugue IX. The test results show that DFAs together with GAs seem to be very effective for this type of pattern learning task.

The recently developed spectroscopic transient reflecting grating technique with a time resolution of 200 fs was applied to a silicon surface under the pump intensity of more than 1 mJ/cm2. This method provides information on excited free carrier dynamics and subsequent heat generation and diffusion selectively based on appropriate choice of probe wavelength. With regard to the thermal component, the temperature at the surface increased within several picoseconds and then decayed after about 300 ps. As the pump intensity was increased, the maximum temperature rise showed a nonlinear dependence on it, and also the temperature rise time became faster. The results led to the conclusion that the carrier dynamics causing a temperature rise at a silicon surface is dominated mainly by Auger recombination, not by the decay to a band edge under the high carrier density conditions.

We have studied the effect of process parameters on uniformity and reproducibility in the engineered barrier ramp-edge Josephson junctions with YBa2Cu3Ox electrodes. The engineered barrier is formed during an etching and annealing process. We investigate excess currents in the junctions by analysing the magnetic field modulations of critical current. The observed excess currents in this study decrease exponentially with increasing annealing temperature. We thus speculate that these excess currents flow via superconductive pinholes in the barrier of the interface-engineered junction (IEJ) due to the formation of CuO2 plane which is formed during the barrier formation. We try to patch these pinholes by substituting Cu and Y for Ga and Pr, respectively. We have found that deposition of amorphous PrGaO3 (PGO) in the IEJ barrier dramatically decreases the excess current.

We have investigated the relationship between process parameters and junction characteristics ( I c , R n ) of interface-modified junctions (IMJs) made on MgO substrates, and have derived empirical equations from the obtained relationships. Thin and uniform tunnel barriers of IMJs were formed by ion irradiation and annealing. We chose accelerating voltage ( V acc ), etching time ( t etch ) and deposition temperature ( T dep ) as the process parameters for the control of critical current ( I c ). We prepared four different samples fabricated in the same conditions, and examined the reproducibility and controllability of I c . The obtained I c s were very close to the expected value, and the run-to-run 1 σ -spread was 20% at 4.2 K. Furthermore, we could also control I c of IMJ made on SrTiO 3 substrates.

We have studied the properties of ramp-edge interface modified Josephson junctions (IMJs) whose barriers are formed during the etching process and subsequent annealing process. We investigate the effect of process parameters on junction characteristics (I/sub c/, R/sub n/) and obtain an empirical equation concerning their relationship. We select accelerating voltage (V/sub acc/) and etching time (t/sub etch/) for the control of I/sub c/ of IMJs and set the target value of I/sub c/ at 4.2 K to 500 /spl mu/A in this study. This target value can be realized by V/sub acc/=500 V and t/sub etch/=20 min from our empirical equation. We prepare four different samples fabricated in the same conditions, and examine the reproducibility and controllability of I/sub c/. The obtained I/sub c/s are very close to the target value, and the run-to-run spread is confined to about 150 /spl mu/A. The reproducibility and controllability of I/sub c/ are improved compared to our previous data of junctions with artificial barriers.

This paper presents a method of estimating the initial rotor position of a surface permanent-magnet synchronous motor without a position sensor. The estimation is performed by using the nonlinear magnetization characteristics of the stator core caused by the magnet of the rotor. This method is based on the principle that the d-axis current value for the voltage vector applied to the motor under some conditions increases as the voltage vector generated from the inverter approaches the N pole of the rotor. During the estimation process, the rotor is practically at standstill. The experimental results show that the average of the estimation error is /spl plusmn/3.8 electrical degrees.

We demonstrate time-resolved measurements of carrier drag effect in modulation-doped n-type GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells and edge wires by using a micro-photoluminescence measurement setup and a novel ultrafast and high repetition shutter camera. As well as we demonstrate time-resolved two-dimensional images of carrier drag effect, we found that the relaxation time of exciton–electron scattering and exciton–lattice scattering are very long in comparison with previous studies and theories. In addition, the relaxation times in the edge-wires is longer than those in the wells, probably resulting in high exciton mobility in the edge wires.

Transmutation of 129 I to 130 I by (n, γ) reaction and isotope dilution with stable iodine were discussed. The transmutation in LWR is calculated by supposing that targets irradiated for 25 years are substituted with new targets. The result showed that initial amount of 129 I will be reduced to 11.5%. In order to lower dose equivalent of general public than 0.1mSv/y, 400 times isotope dilution of 129 I is required. The feasibility of the isotope dilution was discussed at dissolution process of spent fuel, conditioning process of the waste and disposal conditions.

To clarify the relationship between the epidemics of severe invasive group A streptococcal infections (streptococcal Toxic Shock-Like Syndrome; TSLS) and common group A streptococcal infections in Japan, we examined the T serotypes of S. pyogenes strains (group A streptococci) isolated from clinical specimens of the streptococcal infections (17999 cases) in the period 1990–5, including the severe infections (TSLS) (29 cases) in the period 1992–5. Characteristic points of the analyses were: (1) dominant serotypes of the infections in these periods were T12, T4, T1, T28 and TB3264, which were consistently isolated; (2) isolates of T3 rapidly increased through 1990 to 1994 while T6 decreased in the period 1990–3; (3) when Japanese area was divided into three parts, T3 serotype tended to spread out from the north-eastern to the south-western area; (4) strains of T3 and T1 serotypes were dominant in the TSLS. Dominant-serotype strains of streptococcal infections did not always induce severe infections and dominance of T3 serotype in the TSLS seemed to be correlated with the increase of T3 in streptococcal infections. These results may indicate that certain clones of S. pyogenes are involved in the pathogenesis of the TSLS.