Influence of temperature and salinity fluctuations on propagation behaviour of partially coherent beams in oceanic turbulence

A theoretical study of the behaviour of partially coherent beams propagating through oceanic turbulence has been performed. Based on the previously developed knowledge of beam spreading of a partially coherent beam in the atmosphere and the spatial power spectrum of the refractive index of ocean water, we study the normalized root-mean-square width of a partially coherent beam on propagation through oceanic turbulence and its turbulence distance which may be a measure of turbulence resistance. Our analysis indicates that the behaviour of partially coherent beams on propagation may be described by the rate of dissipation of the mean-squared temperature chi(T) and that of salinity chi(S). In terms of a quantity w that defines the contributions of the temperature and salinity distributions to the distribution of the refractive index, chi(S) could be written as a function of chi(T) and w. Therefore, the behaviour of partially coherent beams on propagation can be characterized only by chi(T) for a given w. The results are shown for curved surfaces, from which one can see that partially coherent beams exhibit robust turbulence resistance when the water volume has a smaller chi(T).

Field enhancement and power distribution characteristics of subwavelength-diameter terahertz hollow optical fiber

Fields in subwavelength-diameter terahertz hollow optical fiber (STHOF) can be intensified by large discontinuity of the electric field at high index contrast interfaces. The influences of fiber geometry and refractive index of the dielectric region on the fiber characteristics, such as power distribution, enhancement factor, have been discussed in detail. By appropriate design, the intensity in the central region of STHOF may be enhanced by a factor of greater than 1.5 compared with subwavelength-diameter terahertz fiber without the central hole and the loss can be reduced. For its compact structure and simple fabrication process, the fiber may be very useful in many miniaturized high performance and novel terahertz photonic devices. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The tunable negative refractive index in granular composite

The effective refractive index of a kind of granular composite, which consists of granular metallic and magnetic inclusions with different radius embedded in a host medium, is theoretically investigated. Results show that for certain volume fractions of these two inclusions, the negative permittivity peak shifts to low frequency and the peak value increases with increasing radius ratio of the radius of magnetic granulae to that of metallic granulae. Simultaneously, peak value of permeability decreases with the radius ratio, and value peak shifts to high frequency with increasing volume fraction of magnetic inclusion. Therefore, the radius ratio can affect the effective refractive index considerably, and it is found that by adjusting the radius ratio, the refractive index may change between negative and positive values for certain volume fractions of the two inclusions. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Negative refraction via domain wall resonances in a homogeneous mixture of ferro- and nonmagnetic substances

We deliver the general conditions on the synthetic proportions for a homogeneous mixture of ferro- and nonmagnetic substances to become left-handed. As an alternative for left-handed metamaterials, we consider mixing ferromagnetic materials with nonmagnetic microscopic particles. In the mixture, the ferromagnetic material provides the needed permeability via domain wall resonances at high frequencies, whereas the nonmagnetic material gives the required permittivity. Using the effective medium theory, we have found that when the concentration of the nonmagnetic particles falls into a certain range, the refractive index of the mixture is negative, n < 0, which includes the double negative ( epsilon < 0 and mu < 0) and other cases ( e. g. epsilon < 0 and mu > 0). We finally give the requirements on the microscopic material properties for the ferromagnetic materials to reach the domain wall resonances at high frequencies.

The origin of the super-resolution via a nonlinear thin film

In laser applications, resolutions beyond the diffraction limit can be obtained with a thin film of strong optical nonlinear effect. The optical index of the silicon thin film is modified with the incident laser beam as a function of the local field intensity n(r) similar to E-2(r). For ultrathin films of thickness d << lambda the transmitted light through the film forms a profile of annular rings. Therefore, the device can be related to the realization of super-resolution with annular pupils. Theoretical analysis shows that the focused light spot appears significantly reduced in comparison with the diffraction limit that is determined by the laser wavelength and the numerical aperture of the converging lens. Analysis on the additional optical transfer function due to the thin film confirms that the resolving power is improved in the high spatial frequency region. (C) 2007 Published by Elsevier B.V.

Changes in social inequalities in disability-free life expectancy in Southern Europe: the case of the Basque Country

Background: Health expectancy is a useful tool to monitor health inequalities. The evidence about the recent changes in social inequalities in healthy expectancy is relatively scarce and inconclusive, and most studies have focused on Anglo-Saxon and central or northern European countries. The objective of this study was to analyse the changes in socioeconomic inequalities in disability-free life expectancy in a Southern European population, the Basque Country, during the first decade of the 21st century. Methods: This was an ecological cross-sectional study of temporal trends on the Basque population in 1999-2003 and 2004-2008. All-cause mortality rate, life expectancy, prevalence of disability and disability free-life expectancy were calculated for each period according to the deprivation level of the area of residence. The slope index of inequality and the relative index of inequality were calculated to summarize and compare the inequalities in the two periods. Results: Disability free-life expectancy decreased as area deprivation increased both in men and in women. The difference between the most extreme groups in 2004-2008 was 6.7 years in men and 3.7 in women. Between 1999-2003 and 2004-2008, socioeconomic inequalities in life expectancy decreased, and inequalities in disability-free expectancy increased in men and decreased in women. Conclusions: This study found important socioeconomic inequalities in health expectancy in the Basque Country. These inequalities increased in men and decreased in women in the first decade of the 21st century, during which the Basque Country saw considerable economic growth.

Optical properties of dye-doped zirconia films by spectroscopic ellipsometry

The optical properties of zirconia films doped with rhodamine 6G and oxazine 725 by the sol-gel process were investigated using spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE). Accurate refractive index n and the extinction coefficient k were determined using a three-oscillator classical Lorentz model in the wavelength range of 300-800 nm. The derived refractive index of dye-doped films exhibited anomalous dispersion in the absorption region. Wavelength tunable output lasing action yellow and near-infrared wavelength region was achieved by DFB configuration using zirconia films doped with R6G and oxazine 725. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Physical and thermal properties of P2O5-Al2O3-BaO-La2O3 glasses

The physical and thermal properties Of P2O5-Al2O3-BaO-La2O3 glasses were investigated. The effects of glass compositions on the transition temperature, thermal expansion coefficient, density, hardness and refractive index of glasses were studied. The highest hardness of the glasses is 4143.891 MPa and the lowest thermal expansion coefficient of the glasses is 71.770 x 10(-7)/&DEG; C. A phosphate glass with high mechanical strength and good thermal characteristic is obtained.

Analysis of Body Composition and Food Habits of Spanish Celiac Women

The purpose of the present work was both to analyze composition of Spanish celiac women and to study the food habits and gluten-free diet of these celiac patients, in order to determine whether they achieve a balanced and healthy diet as well as to highlight nutritional qualitative and/or quantitative differences. 54 adult celiac women (34 +/- 13 years) took part in the six-month study. Height, weight and body composition were measured. An analysis of energy consumption and of the macronutrient distribution of their diet was carried out. Their fulfillment of micronutrient intake recommendations was verified. Participants showed a Body Mass Index of 21.6 +/- 2.4 kg/m(2). Energy Intake was slightly lower than the Dietary Reference Intakes. Excessive protein apart from over-consumption of fat was observed. More than three quarters of participants consumed meat in excess. Carbohydrate consumption along with that of fiber was below recommended levels. Vitamin D, iron, and iodine had a low percentage of recommendation compliance. In general, participants followed the recommendations of dairy products and fruit intake whereas vegetable consumption was not enough for the vast majority. We conclude that although the diet of celiac women does not differ much from the diet of general population, some considerations, such as reducing fat and protein consumption and increasing fiber intake, must be taken into account.

Antireflective characteristics of triangular shaped gratings

The antireflection properties of triangular shaped gratings are studied by a combination of the effective medium theory and the anisotropic thin-film theory. The triangular shaped structures are analyzed as a function of grating period, filling factor, and groove depth, and the antireflective characteristics are also studied when visible-infrared light is incident upon them. Numerical examples are given for gratings on glass substrate with refractive index of 1.5. The results show that this kind of grating is capable of reducing reflections, and could achieve very low reflectivity over a wide field of view and a wide waveband by choosing appropriate parameters.

Theoretical analysis of optical properties of dielectric coatings dependence on substrate subsurface defects

A model for refractive index of stratified dielectric substrate was put forward according to theories of inhomogeneous coatings. The substrate was divided into surface layer, subsurface layer and bulk layer along the normal direction of its surface. Both the surface layer (separated into N-1 sublayers of uniform thickness) and subsurface layer (separated into N-2 sublayers of uniform thickness), whose refractive indices have different statistical distributions, are equivalent to inhomogeneous coatings, respectively. And theoretical deduction was carried Out by employing characteristic matrix method of optical coatings. An example of mathematical calculation for optical properties of dielectric coatings had been presented. The computing results indicate that substrate subsurface defects can bring about additional bulk scattering and change propagation characteristic in thin film and Substrate. Therefore, reflectance, reflective phase shift and phase difference of an assembly of coatings and substrate deviate from ideal conditions. The model will provide some beneficial theory directions for improving optical properties of dielectric coatings via substrate surface modification. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Theoretical analysis of influence of substrate microdefects on polarized light properties of dielectric coatings

A model for refractive index of stratified dielectric substrate was presented according to inhomogeneous coatings theories. The substrate was divided into surface layer, subsurface layer and bulk layer along the normal direction of its surface. The former two layers were equivalent to inhomogeneous coatings. Theoretical deduction was executed by employing the characteristic matrix method of optical coatings, and one mathematical calculation example was presented. The results indicate that reflectance, reflective phase shift and phase difference of polarized light deviate from ideal conditions. It shows that substrate microdefects can induce volume scattering and change propagation characteristic of light both in coatings and substrate. (c) 2005 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Population structure of pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) in British Columbia and Washington, determined with microsatellites

Population structure of pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) from British Columbia and Washington was examined with a survey of microsatellite variation to describe the distribution of genetic variation. Variation at 16 microsatellite loci was surveyed for approximately 46,500 pink salmon sampled from 146 locations in the odd-year broodline and from 116 locations in the even-year broodline. An index of genetic differentiation, FST, over all populations and loci in the odd-year broodline was 0.005, with individual locus values ranging from 0.002 to 0.025. Population differentiation was less in the even-year broodline, with a FST value of 0.002 over all loci, and with individual locus values ranging from 0.001 to 0.005. Greater genetic diversity was observed in the odd-year broodline. Differentiation in pink salmon allele frequencies between broodlines was approximately 5.5 times greater than regional differentiation within broodlines. A regional structuring of populations was the general pattern observed, and a greater regional structure in the odd-year broodline than in the even-year broodline. The geographic distribution of microsatellite variation in populations of pink salmon likely ref lects a distribution of broodlines from separate refuges after the last glaciation period.

Comparison of habitat-based indices of abundance with fishery-independent biomass estimates from bottom trawl surveys

Rockfish species are notoriously difficult to sample with multispecies bottom trawl survey methods. Typically, biomass estimates have high coefficients of variation and can fluctuate outside the bounds of biological reality from year to year. This variation may be due in part to their patchy distribution related to very specific habitat preferences. We successfully modeled the distribution of five commercially important and abundant rockf ish species. A two-stage modeling method (modeling both presence-absence and abundance) and a collection of important habitat variables were used to predict bottom trawl survey catch per unit of effort. The resulting models explained between 22% and 66% of the variation in rockfish distribution. The models were largely driven by depth, local slope, bottom temperature, abundance of coral and sponge, and measures of water column productivity (i.e., phytoplankton and zooplankton). A year-effect in the models was back-transformed and used as an index of the time series of abundance. The abundance index trajectories of three of five species were similar to the existing estimates of their biomass. In the majority of cases the habitat-based indices exhibited less interannual variability and similar precision when compared with stratified survey-based biomass estimates. These indices may provide for stock assessment models a more stable alternative to current biomass estimates produced by the multispecies bottom trawl survey in the Gulf of Alaska.

Larval abundance of summer flounder (Paralichthys dentatus) as a measure of recruitment and stock status

Summer flounder (Paralichthys dentatus) is one of the most economically and ecologically important estuarine-dependent species in the northeastern United States. The status of the population is currently a topic of controversy. Our goal was to assess the potential of using larval abundance at ingress as another fishery independent measure of spawning stock biomass or recruitment. Weekly long-term ichthyoplankton time series were analyzed from Little Egg Inlet, New Jersey (1989–2006) and Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina (1986–2004). Mean size-at-ingress and stage were similar between sites, whereas timing of ingress and abundance at ingress were not similar. Ingress primarily occurred during the fall at Little Egg Inlet and the winter at Beaufort Inlet. These findings agree with those from earlier studies in which at least two stocks (one north and one south of Cape Hatteras) were identified with different spawning periods. Larval abundance at Little Egg Inlet has increased since the late 1990s and most individuals now enter the estuary earlier during the season of ingress. Abundance at Little Egg Inlet was correlated with an increase in spawning stock biomass, presumably because spawning by larger, more abundant fish during the late 1990s and early 2000s provided increased larval supply, at least in some years. Larval abundance at ingress at Beaufort Inlet was not correlated with spawning stock biomass or with larval abundance at ingress at Little Egg Inlet, further supporting the hypothesis of at least two stocks. Larval abundance at Little Egg Inlet could be used as a fishery-independent index of spawning stock size north of Cape Hatteras in future stock assessments. Larval occurrence at Beaufort Inlet may provide information on the abundance of the stock south of Cape Hatteras, but additional stock assessment work is required.