Maxillary canine-first premolar transposition - Restoring normal tooth order with segmented mechanics

Tooth transpositions present at a relatively low incidence in the world population and primarily affect maxillary canines and premolars. Treatment of this disturbance should take into account aspects such as facial pattern, age, malocclusion, tooth-size discrepancy, stage of eruption, and magnitude of the transposition. Mechanics for correction should be entirely individualized, reducing the risks and adverse effects. Practitioners often select simpler options, indicating extraction of permanent teeth, which is an irreversible procedure that may bring about damages to the patient. This study presents a case report and treatment of unilateral transposition of maxillary canine and premolar with repositioning of affected teeth to their respective normal positions.

Dependence of La2O3 content on the nonlinear electrical behaviour of ZnO, CoO and Ta2O5 doped SnO2 varistors

The effects of La2O3 on the properties of (Zn, Co, Ta) doped SnO2 varistors were investigated in this study. The samples with different La2O3 concentrations were sintered at 1400 degrees C for 2 h and their properties were characterized by XRD, SEM, I-V and impedance spectroscopy. The grain size was found to decrease from 13 pm to 9 gm with increasing La2O3 content. The addition of rare earth element leads to increase the nonlinear coefficient and the breakdown voltage. The enhancement was expected to arise from the possible segregation of lanthanide ion due to its larger ionic radius to the grain boundaries, thereby modifying its electrical characteristics. Furthermore, the dopants such as La may help in the adsorption of O' to O '' at the grain boundaries characteristics. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

NONLINEAR SCALAR COUPLING MODELS AND PROTON-NUCLEUS SCATTERING OBSERVABLES

The effects of nonlinear scalar field couplings on elastic proton-nucleus scattering observables are investigated using a relativistic impulse approximation. Nonlinear couplings affect in a nontrivial way the effective nucleon mass and the nuclear scalar and vector densities. Modifications on the densities might have observable consequences on scattering observables. Our investigation indicates that the description of the observables for the reactions p-O-16 and p-Ca-40 at 200 MeV are not greatly modified with the use of nonlinear models in comparison with the description using linear models.

Antimony orthophosphate glasses with large nonlinear refractive indices, low two-photon absorption coefficients, and ultrafast response

Antimony glasses based on the composition Sb2O3-SbPO4 were prepared and characterized. The samples present high refractive index, good transmission from 380 to 2000 nm, and high thermal stability. The nonlinear refractive index, n(2), of the samples was studied using the optical Kerr shutter technique at 800 nm. The third-order correlation signals between pump and probe pulses indicate ultrafast response (<100 fs) for all compositions. Enhancement of n(2) was observed by adding lead oxide to the Sb2O3-SbPO4 composition. Large values of n(2)approximate to10(-14) cm(2)/W and negligible two-photon absorption coefficients (smaller than 0.01 cm/GW) were determined for all samples. The glass compositions studied present appropriate figure-of-merit for all-optical switching applications. (C) 2005 American Institute of Physics.

Nonlinear properties and stability of SnO2 varistors prepared by evaporation and decomposition of suspensions

SnO2 varistors doped with CoO, Cr2O3 and Nb2O5 were prepared by evaporation and decomposition of suspensions. The composition of the varistors was optimized to improve electrical properties, such as nonlinearity, leakage current and electrical stability. The best results were achieved with the following composition: 99.15% SnO2 +0.75% CoO+0.05% Cr2O3 +0.05% Nb2O5. Samples showed high density, reaching 99.5% of the theoretical density, as well as an homogeneous microstructure. The nonlinear coefficient was higher than 30 in the current range from 10(-7) to 10(-2) A/cm(2). The leakage current was 0.86 mu A/cm(2). These samples showed high stability of electrical parameters when they were exposed to high current of 27 mA/cm(2) for different time periods up to 30 min. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Nonlinear refractive index measurements in antimony-sulfide glass films using a single beam nonlinear image technique

The nonlinear refractive index, n(2), of films based on the new glass system Sb(2)O(3)-Sb(2)S(3) was measured at 1064 nm with laser pulses of 15 ps, using a single-beam nonlinear image technique in presence of a phase object. The films were prepared from bulk glasses by RF-sputtering. A large value of n(2) = 3 x 10-(15) m(2)/W, which is three orders of magnitude larger than for CS(2), was determined. The result shows the strong potential of antimony-sulfide glass films for integrated nonlinear optics. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Patterns in parabolic problems with nonlinear boundary conditions

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Designing a modified Hopfield network to solve an Economic Dispatch problem with nonlinear cost function

Economic Dispatch (ED) problems have recently been solved by artificial neural networks approaches. In most of these dispatch models, the cost function must be linear or quadratic. Therefore, functions that have several minimum points represent a problem to the simulation since these approaches have not accepted nonlinear cost function. Another drawback pointed out in the literature is that some of these neural approaches fail to converge efficiently towards feasible equilibrium points. This paper discusses the application of a modified Hopfield architecture for solving ED problems defined by nonlinear cost function. The internal parameters of the neural network adopted here are computed using the valid-subspace technique, which guarantees convergence to equilibrium points that represent a solution for the ED problem. Simulation results and a comparative analysis involving a 3-bus test system are presented to illustrate efficiency of the proposed approach.

Nonlinear optimization using a modified Hopfield model

Systems based on artificial neural networks have high computational rates due to the use of a massive number of simple processing elements. Neural networks with feedback connections provide a computing model capable of solving a rich class of optimization problems. In this paper, a modified Hopfield network is developed for solving constrained nonlinear optimization problems. The internal parameters of the network are obtained using the valid-subspace technique. Simulated examples are presented as an illustration of the proposed approach.

Femtosecond nonlinear optical properties of lead-germanium oxide amorphous films

The nonlinear (NL) response of lead-germanium oxide amorphous films was investigated using a Ti:saphire laser delivering pulses of approximate to 150 fs at 800 nm. The Kerr shutter technique was employed to reveal the time response of the nonlinearity that is smaller than 150 fs. The sign and magnitude of the nonlinearity were obtained using a novel technique called thermally managed eclipse Z scan which allows the simultaneous characterization of cumulative and noncumulative NL effects. The NL refractive index of electronic origin, n(2)approximate to 2x10(-17) m(2)/W, and the NL absorption coefficient, alpha(2)approximate to 3x10(3) cm/GW, were determined. (c) 2007 American Institute of Physics.

Localized mechanics of dentin self-etching adhesive system

The bond strength of composite resins (CRs) to dentin is influenced by the interfacial microstructure of the hybrid layer (HL) and the resin tags (TAG). The contemporary self-etching primer adhesive systems overcame the inconvenient of the etch-and-rinse protocol. Studies, however, have demonstrated that HL thickness and TAG length vary according to the wetting time and additional use of acid-etching prior to self-etching primers. This study investigated the localized stress distribution in the HL and the dentin/adhesive interface. Two HL thicknesses (3 or 6 mu m), two TAG lengths (13 or 17 mu m) and two loading conditions (perpendicular and oblique-25 degrees) were investigated by the finite element (FE) analysis. Five two-dimensional FE models (M) of a dentin specimen restored with CR (38 x 64 mu m) were constructed: M1 - no HL and no TAG; M2 - 3 mu m of HL and 13 mu m of TAG; M3 - 3 mu m of HL and 17 mu m of TAG; M4 - 6 mu m of HL and 13 mu m of TAG; and M5 - 6 mu m of HL and 17 mu m of TAG. Two distributed loadings (L) (20N) were applied on CR surface: L1 - perpendicular, and L2 - oblique (25 degrees). Fixed interfacial conditions were assigned on the border of the dentin specimen. Ansys 10.0 (Ansys (R), Houston, PA, USA) software was used to calculate the stress fields. The peak of von Mises (sigma(vM)) and maximum principal stress (sigma(max)) was higher in L2 than in L1. Microstructures (HL and TAG) had no effect on local stresses for L1. Decreasing HL decreased sigma(vM) and sigma(max) in all structures for L2, but the TAG length had influence only on the peributular dentin. The thickness of HL had more influence on the sigma(vM) and sigma(max) than TAG length. The peritubular dentin and its adjacent structures showed the highest sigma(vM) and sigma(max), mainly in the oblique loading.

INTEGRATION OF THE NONLINEAR POISSON BOLTZMANN-EQUATION FOR CHARGED VESICLES IN ELECTROLYTIC SOLUTIONS

The Poisson-Boltzmann equation (PBE), with specific ion-surface interactions and a cell model, was used to calculate the electrostatic properties of aqueous solutions containing vesicles of ionic amphiphiles. Vesicles are assumed to be water- and ion-permeable hollow spheres and specific ion adsorption at the surfaces was calculated using a Volmer isotherm. We solved the PBE numerically for a range of amphiphile and salt concentrations (up to 0.1 M) and calculated co-ion and counterion distributions in the inside and outside of vesicles as well as the fields and electrical potentials. The calculations yield results that are consistent with measured values for vesicles of synthetic amphiphiles.

Renormalization in non-relativistic quantum mechanics

The importance and usefulness of renormalization are emphasized in non-relativistic quantum mechanics. The momentum space treatment of both two-body bound state and scattering problems involving some potentials singular at the origin exhibits ultraviolet divergence. The use of renormalization techniques in these problems leads to finite converged results for both the exact and perturbative solutions. The renormalization procedure is carried out for the quantum two-body problem in different partial waves for a minimal potential possessing only the threshold behaviour and no form factors. The renormalized perturbative and exact solutions for this problem are found to be consistent with each other. The useful role of the renormalization group equations for this problem is also pointed out.

Pattern recognition theory in nonlinear signal processing

A body of research has developed within the context of nonlinear signal and image processing that deals with the automatic, statistical design of digital window-based filters. Based on pairs of ideal and observed signals, a filter is designed in an effort to minimize the error between the ideal and filtered signals. The goodness of an optimal filter depends on the relation between the ideal and observed signals, but the goodness of a designed filter also depends on the amount of sample data from which it is designed. In order to lessen the design cost, a filter is often chosen from a given class of filters, thereby constraining the optimization and increasing the error of the optimal filter. To a great extent, the problem of filter design concerns striking the correct balance between the degree of constraint and the design cost. From a different perspective and in a different context, the problem of constraint versus sample size has been a major focus of study within the theory of pattern recognition. This paper discusses the design problem for nonlinear signal processing, shows how the issue naturally transitions into pattern recognition, and then provides a review of salient related pattern-recognition theory. In particular, it discusses classification rules, constrained classification, the Vapnik-Chervonenkis theory, and implications of that theory for morphological classifiers and neural networks. The paper closes by discussing some design approaches developed for nonlinear signal processing, and how the nature of these naturally lead to a decomposition of the error of a designed filter into a sum of the following components: the Bayes error of the unconstrained optimal filter, the cost of constraint, the cost of reducing complexity by compressing the original signal distribution, the design cost, and the contribution of prior knowledge to a decrease in the error. The main purpose of the paper is to present fundamental principles of pattern recognition theory within the framework of active research in nonlinear signal processing.

Generalized point interactions in one-dimensional quantum mechanics

There is a four-parameter family of point interactions in one-dimensional quantum mechanics. They represent all possible self-adjoint extensions of the kinetic energy operator. If time-reversal invariance is imposed, the number of parameters is reduced to three. One of these point interactions is the familiar delta function potential but the other generalized ones do not seem to be widely known. We present a pedestrian approach to this subject and comment on a recent controversy in the literature concerning the so-called delta' interaction. We emphasize that there is little resemblance between the delta' interaction and what its name suggests.