The Effect of Contact on the Filter Paper Method for Measuring Soil Suction

The filter paper method is one of the most commonly used and critiqued techniques for measuring soil suction. However, many aspects related to its use still require some clarification. The results of a comprehensive study on the effect of the contact between the soil grains and soil water and the filter paper are presented herein. We investigated the influence of the equilibration time, the texture of the porous material and the degree of contact, or lack thereof, between the soil grains and the filter paper using Miamian #42 and three different types of porous material. To enhance the difference between the total suction and the matrix suction, osmotic suction was induced by saturating the specimens with a sodium chloride solution.

Synthesis Methodology Applied to a Tunable Patch Filter With Independent Frequency and Bandwidth Control

A new methodology for the synthesis of tunable patch filters is presented. The methodology helps the designer to perform a theoretical analysis of the filter through a coupling matrix that includes the effect of the tuning elements used to tune the filter. This general methodology accounts for any tuning parameter desired and was applied to the design of a tunable dual-mode patch filter with independent control of center frequency and bandwidth (BW). The bandpass filter uses a single triangular resonator with two etched slots that split the fundamental degenerate modes and form the filter passband. Varactor diodes assembled across the slots are used to vary the frequency of each degenerate fundamental mode independently, which is feasible due to the nature of the coupling scheme of the filter. The varactor diode model used in simulations, their assembling, the dc bias configuration, and measured results are presented. The theory results are compared to the simulations and to measurements showing a very good agreement and validating the proposed methodology. The fabricated filter presents an elliptic response with 20% of center frequency tuning range around 3.2 GHz and a fractional BW variation from 4% to 12% with low insertion loss and high power handling with a 1-dB compression point higher than +14.5 dB.

Processing of high resolution magic angle spinning spectra of breast cancer cells by the filter diagonalization method

Proton nuclear magnetic resonance (H-1 NMR) spectroscopy for detection of biochemical changes in biological samples is a successful technique. However, the achieved NMR resolution is not sufficiently high when the analysis is performed with intact cells. To improve spectral resolution, high resolution magic angle spinning (HR-MAS) is used and the broad signals are separated by a T-2 filter based on the CPMG pulse sequence. Additionally, HR-MAS experiments with a T-2 filter are preceded by a water suppression procedure. The goal of this work is to demonstrate that the experimental procedures of water suppression and T-2 or diffusing filters are unnecessary steps when the filter diagonalization method (FDM) is used to process the time domain HR-MAS signals. Manipulation of the FDM results, represented as a tabular list of peak positions, widths, amplitudes and phases, allows the removal of water signals without the disturbing overlapping or nearby signals. Additionally, the FDM can also be used for phase correction and noise suppression, and to discriminate between sharp and broad lines. Results demonstrate the applicability of the FDM post-acquisition processing to obtain high quality HR-MAS spectra of heterogeneous biological materials.

Fatigue Reliability of 3 Single-Unit Implant-Abutment Designs

Objectives: Because the mechanical behavior of the implant-abutment system is critical for the longevity of implant-supported reconstructions, this study evaluated the fatigue reliability of different implant-abutment systems used as single-unit crowns and their failure modes. Methods and Materials: Sixty-three Ti-6Al-4V implants were divided in 3 groups: Replace Select (RS); IC-IMP Osseotite; and Unitite were restored with their respective abutments. Anatomically correct central incisor metal crowns were cemented and subjected to separate single load to failure tests and step-stress accelerated life testing (n = 18). A master Weibull curve and reliability for a mission of 50,000 cycles at 200 N were calculated. Polarized-light and scanning electron microscopes were used for failure analyses. Results: The load at failure mean values during step-stress accelerated life testing were 348.14 N for RS, 324.07 N for Osseotite, and 321.29 N for the Unitite systems. No differences in reliability levels were detected between systems, and only the RS system mechanical failures were shown to be accelerated by damage accumulation. Failure modes differed between systems. Conclusions: The 3 evaluated systems did not present significantly different reliability; however, failure modes were different. (Implant Dent 2012;21:67-71)

In vitro fracture resistance of glass-fiber and cast metal posts with different designs

PURPOSE: To evaluate the in vitro fracture resistance of roots with glass-fiber and metal dowels with different designs. METHODS: Fifty-endodontically treated maxillary central incisors were embedded in acrylic resin. Ten of them received only the coronary preparation, and the remaining forty were embedded (except for 4mm of the cervical area) after removing the clinical crowns. Specimens were divided into five groups (n=10): control (teeth with only coronary preparation), cylindrical cast dowel, conical cast dowel, cylindrical glass-fiber dowel and conical glass-fiber dowel. Specimens were subjected to an increasing compressive load (N) until fracture. RESULTS: ANOVA indicated significant difference (P<.05) among the groups, and the Tukey-Kramer´s test identified these differences. The control group (867±243 N) presented the highest values and was statistically similar to cylindrical glass-fiber dowel group (711±180 N). There is no significant difference among the metal dowel cylindrical (435±245 N) or conical (585±164 N) group and conical glass-fiber dowel (453±112 N). Cylindrical glass-fiber dowel (711±180 N) and conical cast dowel and core (585±164 N) groups had intermediate values and did not differ from each other. CONCLUSIONS: Cylindrical glass fiber dowels represent a viable alternative to the cast-metal dowel cylindrical or conical. Cylindrical glass fiber dowels also increase endodontically treated incisors' resistance to fracture.

Optimization of thin noise barrier designs using Evolutionary Algorithms and a Dual BEM Formulation

[EN]This works aims at assessing the acoustic efficiency of differente this noise barrier models. These designs frequently feature complex profiles and their implementarion in shape optimization processes may not always be easy in terms of determining their topological feasibility. A methodology to conduct both overall shape and top edge optimisations of thin cross section acoustic barriers by idealizing them as profiles with null boundary thickness is proposed.

Konstruktion symmetrischer Designs

In dieser Arbeit werden zehn neue symmetrische (176,50,14) Designs und ein neues symmetrisches (144,66,30) Design durch Vorgabe von nichtauflösbaren Automorphismengruppen konstruiert. Im Jahre 1969 entdeckte G. Higman ein symmetrisches (176,50,14) Design, dessen volle Automorphismengruppe die sporadische einfache Gruppe HS der Ordnung 44.352.000 ist. Hier wurden nun Designs gesucht, die eine Untergruppe von HS zulassen. Folgende Untergruppen wurden betrachtet: die transitive und die intransitive Erweiterung einer elementarabelschen Gruppe der Ordnung 16 durch Alt(5), AGL(3,2), das direkte Produkt einer zyklischen Gruppe der Ordnung 5 mit Alt(5) und PSL(2,11). Die transitive Erweiterung von E(16) durch Alt(5) lieferte zwei neue Designs mit Automorphismengruppen der Ordnungen 960 bzw. 11.520; letzteres konnte auch mit der transitiven Erweiterung erhalten werden. Die Gruppe PSL(2,11) operiert auf den Punkten des Higman-Designs in drei Bahnen; sucht man nach symmetrischen (176,50,14) Designs, auf denen diese Gruppe in zwei Bahnen operiert, so erhält man acht neue Designs. Die übrigen Gruppen lieferten keine neuen Designs. Schließlich konnte ein neues symmetrisches (144,66,30) Design unter Verwendung der sporadischen Mathieu-Gruppe M(12) konstruiert werden. Dies war zu diesem Zeitpunkt außer dem Higman-Design das einzige bekannte symmetrische Design, dessen volle Automorphismengruppe im Wesentlichen eine sporadische einfache Gruppe ist.

Matrix Designs and Methods for Secure and Efficient Compressed Sensing

The idea of balancing the resources spent in the acquisition and encoding of natural signals strictly to their intrinsic information content has interested nearly a decade of research under the name of compressed sensing. In this doctoral dissertation we develop some extensions and improvements upon this technique's foundations, by modifying the random sensing matrices on which the signals of interest are projected to achieve different objectives. Firstly, we propose two methods for the adaptation of sensing matrix ensembles to the second-order moments of natural signals. These techniques leverage the maximisation of different proxies for the quantity of information acquired by compressed sensing, and are efficiently applied in the encoding of electrocardiographic tracks with minimum-complexity digital hardware. Secondly, we focus on the possibility of using compressed sensing as a method to provide a partial, yet cryptanalysis-resistant form of encryption; in this context, we show how a random matrix generation strategy with a controlled amount of perturbations can be used to distinguish between multiple user classes with different quality of access to the encrypted information content. Finally, we explore the application of compressed sensing in the design of a multispectral imager, by implementing an optical scheme that entails a coded aperture array and Fabry-Pérot spectral filters. The signal recoveries obtained by processing real-world measurements show promising results, that leave room for an improvement of the sensing matrix calibration problem in the devised imager.

Imaging spin-filter efficiency of W(001) and Ir(001) single crystals

Während der letzten Jahre wurde für Spinfilter-Detektoren ein wesentlicher Schritt in Richtung stark erhöhter Effizienz vollzogen. Das ist eine wichtige Voraussetzung für spinaufgelöste Messungen mit Hilfe von modernen Elektronensp ektrometern und Impulsmikroskopen. In dieser Doktorarbeit wurden bisherige Arbeiten der parallel abbildenden Technik weiterentwickelt, die darauf beruht, dass ein elektronenoptisches Bild unter Ausnutzung der k-parallel Erhaltung in der Niedrigenergie-Elektronenbeugung auch nach einer Reflektion an einer kristallinen Oberfläche erhalten bleibt. Frühere Messungen basierend auf der spekularen Reflexion an einerrnW(001) Oberfläche [Kolbe et al., 2011; Tusche et al., 2011] wurden auf einenrnviel größeren Parameterbereich erweitert und mit Ir(001) wurde ein neues System untersucht, welches eine sehr viel längere Lebensdauer der gereinigten Kristalloberfläche im UHV aufweist. Die Streuenergie- und Einfallswinkel-“Landschaft” der Spinempfindlichkeit S und der Reflektivität I/I0 von gestreuten Elektronen wurde im Bereich von 13.7 - 36.7 eV Streuenergie und 30◦ - 60◦ Streuwinkel gemessen. Die dazu neu aufgebaute Messanordnung umfasst eine spinpolarisierte GaAs Elektronenquellernund einen drehbaren Elektronendetektor (Delayline Detektor) zur ortsauflösenden Detektion der gestreuten Elektronen. Die Ergebnisse zeigen mehrere Regionen mit hoher Asymmetrie und großem Gütefaktor (figure of merit FoM), definiert als S2 · I/I0. Diese Regionen eröffnen einen Weg für eine deutliche Verbesserung der Vielkanal-Spinfiltertechnik für die Elektronenspektroskopie und Impulsmikroskopie. Im praktischen Einsatz erwies sich die Ir(001)-Einkristalloberfläche in Bezug auf längere Lebensdauer im UHV (ca. 1 Messtag), verbunden mit hoher FOM als sehr vielversprechend. Der Ir(001)-Detektor wurde in Verbindung mit einem Halbkugelanalysator bei einem zeitaufgelösten Experiment im Femtosekunden-Bereich am Freie-Elektronen-Laser FLASH bei DESY eingesetzt. Als gute Arbeitspunkte erwiesen sich 45◦ Streuwinkel und 39 eV Streuenergie, mit einer nutzbaren Energiebreite von 5 eV, sowie 10 eV Streuenergie mit einem schmaleren Profil von < 1 eV aber etwa 10× größerer Gütefunktion. Die Spinasymmetrie erreicht Werte bis 70 %, was den Einfluss von apparativen Asymmetrien deutlich reduziert. Die resultierende Messungen und Energie-Winkel-Landschaft zeigt recht gute Übereinstimmung mit der Theorie (relativistic layer-KKR SPLEED code [Braun et al., 2013; Feder et al.,rn2012])

Nonlinear three-dimensional noise filter with low-dose CT angiography: effect on the detection of small high-contrast objects in a phantom model

To study the effect of a nonlinear noise filter on the detection of simulated endoleaks in a phantom with 80- and 100-kVp multidetector computed tomographic (CT) angiography.

Sample size estimation: an overview with applications to orthodontic clinical trial designs

Proper sample size estimation is an important part of clinical trial methodology and closely related to the precision and power of the trial's results. Trials with sufficient sample sizes are scientifically and ethically justified and more credible compared with trials with insufficient sizes. Planning clinical trials with inadequate sample sizes might be considered as a waste of time and resources, as well as unethical, since patients might be enrolled in a study in which the expected results will not be trusted and are unlikely to have an impact on clinical practice. Because of the low emphasis of sample size calculation in clinical trials in orthodontics, it is the objective of this article to introduce the orthodontic clinician to the importance and the general principles of sample size calculations for randomized controlled trials to serve as guidance for study designs and as a tool for quality assessment when reviewing published clinical trials in our specialty. Examples of calculations are shown for 2-arm parallel trials applicable to orthodontics. The working examples are analyzed, and the implications of design or inherent complexities in each category are discussed.

Parallel-recusive filter structures for the computation of discrete transforms

A general approach is presented for implementing discrete transforms as a set of first-order or second-order recursive digital filters. Clenshaw's recurrence formulae are used to formulate the second-order filters. The resulting structure is suitable for efficient implementation of discrete transforms in VLSI or FPGA circuits. The general approach is applied to the discrete Legendre transform as an illustration.

An integrated environment for filter design

Analog filters and direct digital filters are implemented using digital signal processing techniques. Specifically, Butterworth, Elliptic, and Chebyshev filters are implemented using the Motorola 56001 Digital Signal Processor by the integration of three software packages: MATLAB, C++, and Motorola's Application Development System. The integrated environment allows the novice user to design a filter automatically by specifying the filter order and critical frequencies, while permitting more experienced designers to take advantage of MATLAB's advanced design capabilities. This project bridges the gap between the theoretical results produced by MATLAB and the practicalities of implementing digital filters using the Motorola 56001 Digital Signal Processor. While these results are specific to the Motorola 56001 they may be extended to other digital signal processors. MATLAB handles the filter calculations, a C++ routine handles the conversion to assembly code, and the Motorola software compiles and transmits the code to the processor