Performance of 4*4 optical crossbar switch utilising acousto-optic deflector

A multicasting photonic space switch reconfigurable in 50 ns is demonstrated utilising commercially available acousto-optic Bragg cells at lambda =0.83 mu m. Insertion loss of 15 dB, extinction ratio of 33 dB, crosstalk of -24 dB and polarisation difference of 0.8 dB are reported.<>     

Utilization of electroplating to lock fibers for use in opticaldevice packaging

An electroplating technique for permanently fixing single-mode fibers into position in optical device packages is described. In this technique, the fiber is mounted in a metal tube and aligned to an optical device mounted on a metal substrate. The fiber is in close proximity to the substrate and a flexible conductive gel is used to connect the two electrically. The fiber, gel, and substrate thus form the plating cathode. When immersed in a plating bath with an anode inserted, metal can be deposited across the gel, forming a strong metal bridge between the fiber and substrate, locking the fiber into position. Under appropriate conditions, misalignments within ±1 μm during the plating process have been observed. This technique was used to package a laser diode transmitter, which locked the laser-to-fiber alignment to within 0.7 μm, or 0.1 dB of the optimum coupled power     

Physical design issues for very large ATM switching systems

The authors examine the physical design issues associated with terabit/second switching systems, particularly with regard to the customer access portion of the switch. They determine the physical design requirements in the areas of backplane interconnections, integrated circuit packaging, and circuit board technology and identify areas where existing- or near-future physical design technologies are inadequate to meet the requirements of this application. A new 3D interconnection architecture that solves some of the problems encountered at the backplane level is suggested. It is also suggested that multichip module technology will help meet some of the speed and density requirements at the chip packaging level. Some of the system-level consequences of the proposed model are discussed     

MRI correlates of cognitive impairment in childhood-onset multiple sclerosis.

Objective: Brain MRI measures were correlated with neuropsychological function in 35 pediatric-onset multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and 33 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Method: Mean age of MS patients was 16.3 ± 2.3 years with average disease duration of 4.3 ± 3.1 years. Cortical gray matter, thalamic, and global brain volumes were calculated for all participants using a scaling factor computed using normalization of atrophy method to normalize total and regional brain volumes for head size. T1- and T2-weighted lesion volumes were calculated for MS patients. Results: Cognitive impairment (CI) was identified in 29% of the MS cohort. Cognitive deficits predominantly involved attention and processing speed, expressive language, and visuomotor integration. Relative to controls, the MS group showed significantly lower thalamic volume (p p p p     

Powering the fiber loop optically-a cost analysis

Recent successes in transporting optical power near the 1-W level via optical fiber suggest that it may be possible to operate conventional telephone station sets using electricity derived photovoltaically from light in a fiber. The authors investigate the constraints on optical powering in fiber-in-the-loop (FITL) applications and assess its applicability in terms of end-to-end efficiency, loop length, and system cost. To make this assessment, they look at several different optical-powering system architectures and components vis-a-vis their cost-versus-delivered-power capability. Related issues such as safety and reliability are discussed.<>     

Exon scanning of the entire TSC2 gene for germline mutations in 40 unrelated patients with tuberous sclerosis

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a dominantly inherited multisystem disorder resulting in the development of hamartomatous growths in many organs. Genetic heterogeneity has been demonstrated linking the familial cases to either TSC1 at 9q34.3, or TSC2 at 16p13.3. About two-thirds of the TSC cases are sporadic and appear to represent new mutations. While both genes are thought to account for all familial cases, with each representing approximately 50% of the mutations, the proportion of sporadic cases with mutations in TSC1 and TSC2 is yet to be determined. We have examined the entire coding sequence of the TSC2 gene in 20 familial and 20 sporadic cases and identified a total of twenty-one mutations representing 50% and 55% of familial and sporadic cases respectively. Our rate of mutation detection is significantly higher than other published reports. Twenty out of 21 mutations are novel and include 6 missense, 6 nonsense, 5 frameshifts, 2 splice alterations, a 34 bp deletion resulting in abnormal splicing, and an 18 bp deletion which maintains the reading frame. The mutations are distributed throughout the coding sequence with no specific hot spots. There is no apparent correlation between mutation type and clinical severity of the disease. Our results document that at least 50% of sporadic cases arise from mutations in the TSC2 gene. The location of the mutations described here, particularly the missense events, should be valuable for further functional analysis of this tumor suppressor protein.     

Accessing electronic information in UK further education: Findings from JUBILEE in FE,a JLSC‐funded research project

The further education sector has been exposed to many changes during the last decade, including the development of a National Information and Technology structure, an increasing emphasis on ‘lifelong learning’, ‘key skills’, collaboration and regional planning, changes in funding arrangements and growth in student numbers and wider participation. Growing emphasis on the use of Electronic Information Services (EIS) in teaching is forcing academic staff to acquire and expand their ICT and information literacy skills. In the course of this paper some of the main barriers and impediments faced by academic staff in the present climate are discussed as identified by the JUBILEE research. These included access to technology, staff attitudes and skill levels and the focus of available EIS. Enabling access to EIS has emerged as a pivotal aim and the research found that through the implementation of an informed EIS strategy, effective communication and awareness raising, tailored user training programmes, and embedding EIS into the curriculum, the ability of users to access and use EIS effectively is enhanced. The necessity for further education institutions to succeed in this aim is vital given that, in an increasingly digital world of information, access is the key.     

Pulsed and CW high temperature operation of InGaAs/GaAs strained layer vertical cavity surface emitting lasers

The performance of strained layer InGaAs/GaAs vertical cavity surface emitting lasers defined by ion implantation over a approximately 75 degrees C temperature range is reported on. Maximum CW output levels for the temperature extremes of 10 and 86 degrees C are 7.5 MW and 200 mu W, respectively for 20*20 mu m/sup 2 /devices. The temperature dependence of the CW threshold current exhibits exponential behaviour to 80 degrees C.<>     

Engineering Increased Stability into Self‐Assembled Protein Fibers

Two stages in the rational redesign of a peptide‐based, self‐assembling fiber (SAF) are described. The SAF system comprises two peptides designed to form an offset α‐helical coiled‐coil heterodimer. The “sticky‐ends” are complementary and promote longitudinal assembly. Alone, the two peptides are unstructured, but co‐assemble upon mixing to form α‐helical fibrils, which bundle to form fibers 40–50 nm wide and tens of micrometers long. Assembly is controllable and occurs at pH 7 in water, making SAFs a potential scaffold for 3D cell culture. The purposes of the redesigns were 1) to investigate the fiber‐thickening process, and 2) to increase fiber stability for potential biological and biomedical applications. First, mutations were made to the original peptide designs to increase fibril–fibril interactions and so produce thicker and more‐stable fibers. The second iteration aimed to increase the primary peptide–peptide interactions by increasing the overlap in the offset dimer and so promote the initial step in fiber formation. As judged by circular dichroism spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy, both iterations improved fiber assembly and stability: the critical peptide concentration for assembly improved from 60 μM to 4 μM ; the midpoint of thermal unfolding increased from 22 °C to 65 °C; and the salt tolerance improved from 75 mM to greater than 250 mM KCl. These improvements bring closer applications of the SAF system under physiological conditions, for example as a biocompatible material for 3D cell culture. In addition, ordered surface features were observed in the second‐ and third‐generation fibers compared with the original design. This indicates improved internal order in the redesigned fibers. In turn, this suggests a molecular mechanism for the improved stability and sheds light on the fiber‐assembly process.