La croissance continue de la demande mondiale des produits semi-conducteurs (dans un large éventail de secteurs, tels que la sécurité, la santé, le divertissement, la connectivité, l'énergie, etc) a été conduite par la loi de Moore en doublant régulièrement la densité et les performances des circuits numériques. Cependant, comme la miniaturisation de la technologie CMOS commence à atteindre ses limites théoriques, l'ITRS prévoit une nouvelle ère connue sous le nom "Beyond CMOS". Des nouveaux matériaux et dispositifs révèlent une capacité à compléter ou même remplacer le transistor CMOS ou son canal dans les systèmes sur puce à base de silicium. Cela a conduit à l'identification des phénomènes prometteurs tel que la conduction ambipolaire dans les structures quasi uni- et zéro-dimensionnels, par exemple dans les nanotubes de carbone, le graphène et les nanofils de silicium. L’ambipolarité, dans un contexte à double grille (DG-FET), signifie qu’un comportement de type N et P puisse être observé dans le même dispositif en fonction de la polarité de la tension de la grille arrière. En plus de leur performance attractive et leur faible consommation de puissance, les dispositifs ambipolaires à double grille indépendantes (Am-IDGFET) permettent le développement des structures logiques ainsi que des paradigmes de conception entièrement inédits. Les techniques classiques de synthèse logique ne peuvent pas représenter la capacité des Am-IDGFETs de fonctionner soit comme commutateurs de type N ou de type P. Alors des nouvelles techniques doivent être trouvées pour construire une logique optimale. Le travail de cette thèse explore les techniques de conception pour permettre l'utilisation de ces dispositifs en définissant des approches génériques et des techniques de conception basées sur les Am-IDGFETs. Deux contextes différents sont abordés: (i) l'amélioration de la conception de cellules logiques avec des structures plus compactes et une meilleure performance, ainsi que des techniques de conception à faible consommation qui exploitent la grille arrière du dispositif, et (ii) l'adaptation des techniques classiques de synthèse logique comme les diagrammes de décision binaires (BDDs) ou l’approche de classification des fonctions afin de construire des cellules logiques reconfigurables à base des Am-IDGFETs. Les méthodes et les techniques proposées sont validées et évaluées à travers une étude basée sur le dispositif DG-CNTFET par l’intermédiaire des simulations précises, en utilisant le modèle DG-CNTFET le plus mature disponible dans la littérature. / The continuous growth of global demand for semiconductor products (in a broad range of sectors, such as security, healthcare, entertainment, connectivity, energy, etc.) has been both enabled and fuelled by Moore’s law and regular doubling of circuit density and performance increases. However, as CMOS technology scaling begins to reach its theoretical limits, the ITRS predicts a new era known as “Beyond CMOS”. Novel materials and devices show an ability to complement or even replace the CMOS transistor or its channel in systems on chip with silicon-based technology. This has led to the identification of promising phenomena such as ambipolar conduction in quasi one- and zero-dimensional structures, for example in carbon nanotubes, graphene and silicon nanowires. Ambipolarity, in a dual-gate context (DG-FETs), means that n- and p-type behavior can be observed in the same device depending on the backgate voltage polarity. In addition to their attractive performances and the low power consumption, ambipolar double gate devices enable the development of completely new circuit structures and design paradigms. Conventional logic synthesis techniques cannot represent the capability of DG-FETs to operate as either n-type or p-type switches and new techniques must be found to build optimal logic. The work in this thesis explores design techniques to enable the use of such devices by defining generic approaches and design techniques based on ambipolar DG-FETs. Two different contexts are tackled: (i) improving standard cell logic design with more compact structures and better performance, as well as low-power design techniques exploiting the fourth terminal of the device, and (ii) adapting conventional logic synthesis and verification techniques such as Binary Decision Diagrams or Function Classification to ambipolar DGFETs in order to build reconfigurable logic cells. The proposed methods and techniques are validated and evaluated in a case study focused on DG-CNTFET through accurate simulations, using the most mature and recent DG-CNTFET model available in the literature.

Familial amyloidosis with polyneuropathy (FAP) was first reported from Portugal in 1952, but since then this syndrome has been recognized in many countries including Sweden. In this investigation cardiac and pulmonary functions in the Swedish variety of FAP were studied. A retrospective survey of the ECG findings in 71 patients showed a high prevalence of atrioventricular (38%) and intraventricular (41%) conduction defects, and also a high prevalence of atrial fibrillation (14%). In several patients a progression in the conduction defects to advanced disturbances could be observed and 10 out of 71 patients (14%) in the present series required pacemaker treatment. A histopathological study of the atrioventricular part of the conduction system showed marked amyloid infiltration in each case, which may explain the high prevalence of conduction defects. In an échocardiographie study which emcompassed 22 consecutive patients, all but those two patients with the shortest duration of symptomatic disease showed abnormal features. The most frequent and characteristic findings were hypertrophy of the interventricular septum (86%) and a hyperrefractile appearance of the iryocardium (68%). This unusual association of échocardiographie features is considered almost diagnostic of cardiac amyloidosis. A hemodynamic study showed an essentially normal systolic heart function, but in several patients there were signs of impaired diastolic function with increased myocardial rigidity. Several patients showed signs of obstruction of the ventricular outflow tracts. This finding, as well as the échocardiographie features, is in accordance with altered anatomical and functional properties of the interventricular septum. The major pulmonary function abnormalities were decreased maximum respiratory pressure which indicate that the neuropathy in FAP involves the respiratory musculature, and impaired diffusing capacity consistent with an alveo-capillary block caused by amyloid deposits. / digitalisering@umu

6 ABSTRAKT Kardiovaskulární onemocnění představují celosvětově nejčastější příčinu úmrtí. Arytmie neboli poruchy srdečního rytmu k této mortalitě přispívají nemalou měrou. Výzkum v oblasti morfologie převodního systému srdečního má více jak stoletou historii, ale oblast ontogeneze není ani v dnešní době dostatečně prozkoumána. Přitom pochopení mechanismů indukce pracovního myokardu ve specializovanou tkáň by mohl být jeden z klíčů k otevření dveří nových možností diagnostiky a terapie onemocnění v této oblasti. Cílem této práce je pochopení vlivu mechanické zátěže na vznik a vývoj převodního systému srdečního. Chci prokázat, že mechanické zatížení srdce krevním oběhem hraje v embryonálním vývoji nezastupitelnou roli v diferenciaci převodního systému srdečního (PSS). Jako model pozorování jsem si vybral kuřecí srdce. Při porovnání dat získaných na srdci ptáků a savců můžeme najít drobné odlišnosti v detailech, nicméně hlavní principy a mechanismy se zdají být stejné. Kuřecí embryo se vyvíjí 21 dní, přičemž toto časové údobí lze podle Hamburgera a Hamiltona rozdělit do 46 stádií. Zpočátku představuje srdce pouze primitivní trubici, která se stáčí v srdeční kličku. Posléze je přeměněna na zralý čtyřoddílový orgán charakteristický pro vyšší obratlovce. Tyto morfologické změny korelují i se změnami šíření...

Heart Failure is a common long term progressive and serious medical condition with high mortality and costly health services in the UK. By the year of 2010, there were around 90,000 people in the UK suffered from heart failure and in 2008, 10,000 heart failure patients were recorded death. Treatments of heart failure cost the National Health Service around £625 million every year. Although heart failure is highly pro-arrhythmic, the underlying mechanisms of the pro-arrhythmic effects of heart failure are not completely understood. Heart failure is associated with electrical remodelling of the properties and kinetics of some ionic channels responsible for the action potential of cardiac cells. However, it is still unclear whether this ionic channel remodelling can account for the pro-arrhythmic effects of heart failure as the complexity of the heart impedes a detailed experimental analysis. Biophysically detailed computational models have been developed in the last two decades, enabling the evaluation of experimental data. The aim of this thesis is to use arrhythmic mechanisms to investigate the pro-arrhythmic effects of heart failure-induced remodelling on the cardiac action potentials and Purkinje-ventricular junction. Single canine Purkinje fibre and ventricular cell models were developed to investigate the effects of heart failure-remodelled ionic channel currents on cell action potentials and identify optimal options for the potential clinical treatments. One-dimensional strand tissue model and three-dimensional wedge model were developed to further explore the effects of heart failure-induced remodelling in propagation of the canine Purkinje fibre, ventricle and Purkinje-ventricular junction. It was found that heart failure-induced remodelling on the Purkinje fibre and ventricle reduced the conduction safety and increased tissue’s vulnerability to the genesis of the unidirectional conduction block, especially at the Purkinje-ventricular junction, which may cause conduction failure, re-entry or both.

Numerical simulation is used to investigate the accuracy of a direct-contact device for measuring skin-surface temperature. A variation of thermal conductivity of the foam has greater effect on the error rather than a variation of the blood perfusion rate. For a thermal conductivity of zero, an error of 1.5 oC in temperature was identified. For foam pad conductivities of 0.03 and 0.06 W/m-oC, the errors are 0.5 and 0.15 oC. For the transient study, with k=0 W/m-oC, it takes 4,900 seconds for the temperature to reach steady state compared with k=0.03 W/m-oC and k=0.06 W/m-oC where it takes 3,000 seconds. The configuration without the foam and in presence of an air gap between the skin surface and the sensor gives the most uniform temperature profile.

Extensive work is reported in literature on the reduction of iron oxides with carbonaceous reductants. Most of this work considered isothermal reaction of the material mixture, although as shown in some studies, isothermal reaction conditions are not often the norm because of sample size and heating arrangement in the experiment. In industrial processes, such as the rotary hearth type processes and the IFCON® process for iron ore reduction, the norm is non-isothermal reaction. Simulation of industrial processes should take non-isothermal reaction into account if the heat transfer effects within the process are to be investigated. To avoid the complications of coal volatiles in the experimental set-up, few studies were done with coal as reductant. The primary aim of the work presented here is to quantify radiation heat transfer to the surface of an iron ore and coal mixture heated uni-directionally from the sample surface to show the importance of heat transfer in the IFCON® process. Secondary aim of this work are to show the effects of layer thickness, coal volatiles, phase chemistry and particle size in this reaction system. The experimental set-up consists of a tube furnace modified to transport the sample into and out of the experimental tube furnace heating zone under a protected atmosphere, whilst the product gas is analysed throughout the experiment by quadropole mass spectrometer. The sample surface temperature, heating zone temperatures and material bed temperatures were measured throughout the experiment. A sample cutter-splitter was developed to divide the reacted sample into three horizontal segments for chemical analyses. The sample surface temperature and the heating zone temperatures were used as inputs to a radiation network calculation to quantify radiation heat transferred to the sample surface. The radiation network calculation was calibrated against heat-mass balance calculations for pre-reduced ore and graphite samples reacted at furnace temperatures of 1300, 1400 and 1500°C. The results show that radiative and conduction heat transfer control prevails for 16 mm to 40 mm material layers heated uni-directionally from the material layer surface. It is shown that coal volatiles contribute to reduction in the stagnant material layer. Also, smaller particle sizes result in increased reaction rates because of a decrease in the diffusion limited effects which were seen in reaction of the base size of coal and ore particles. / Thesis (PhD (Metallurgical Engineering))--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering / unrestricted

Orientador: Carlos Alberto Carrasco Altemani / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Mecânica / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-24T09:07:23Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Loiola_BrunaRafaella_M.pdf: 2801156 bytes, checksum: 0bbef2296c5a3a938f63b6246554ab2d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013 / Resumo: A transferência de calor conjugada por convecção forçada-condução de dois aquecedores protuberantes montados na parede inferior (substrato) de um duto retangular foi investigada através de medidas experimentais em laboratório. Potência elétrica era dissipada em resistências embutidas nos aquecedores feitos de alumínio, que eram resfriados em regime permanente por um escoamento forçado de ar no duto. Cada aquecedor transferia calor por convecção diretamente das suas superfícies em contato com o escoamento e por condução para a placa do substrato através da interface comum. Esta condução de calor espalhava na placa do substrato e era transferida por convecção da placa para o escoamento de ar no duto. O resfriamento conjugado dos aquecedores na placa de substrato foi descrito por uma matriz de coeficientes conjugados obtidos por meio de testes experimentais realizados com um aquecedor ativo por vez, em uma faixa do número de Reynolds do escoamento entre 1600 e 6400. Foram utilizadas duas montagens experimentais praticamente idênticas, uma com a placa do substrato de acrílico e a outra, de alumínio. O número de Nusselt adiabático, que é um descritor invariante do processo convectivo de troca de calor, também foi avaliado nos testes com o substrato de acrílico. Os coeficientes conjugados obtidos nestes testes foram então utilizados para prever as temperaturas dos aquecedores em testes adicionais com os dois simultaneamente ativos, sob condições variadas de escoamento e aquecimento. A concordância dessas temperaturas indicou que esses coeficientes são descritores invariantes do resfriamento conjugado dos aquecedores discretos no duto. Simulações numéricas do escoamento e da transferência de calor no duto considerado foram efetuadas com o pacote computacional PHOENICS em um domínio tridimensional semelhante ao duto experimental. Os resultados numéricos obtidos foram comparados com as medidas experimentais / Abstract: Conjugate heat transfer by forced convection-conduction of two protruding heaters mounted on the lower wall (substrate) of a rectangular duct was investigated through experiments in laboratory. Electric power dissipation in the Aluminum heaters¿ embedded resistances was transferred under steady state conditions to forced airflow in the duct. Heat losses from each heater included direct convection from its surfaces in contact with the airflow and conduction to the substrate plate through their common interface. This heat conduction was spread in the substrate plate and eventually transferred by convection from the plate to the airflow in the duct. The heaters¿ conjugate cooling was described by a conjugate matrix with coefficients obtained from experimental tests with a single active heater at a time, in the range of the airflow Reynolds number from 1,600 to 6,400. Two almost identical assemblies were used, one with a Plexiglas plate and the other with Aluminum. The adiabatic Nusselt number, an invariant descriptor of the convective heat transfer, was also evaluated in the tests with the Plexiglas plate. The conjugate coefficients were used to predict the heaters¿ temperatures from additional tests with both active heaters, for arbitrary airflow rates and heaters¿ power dissipation. An agreement of these temperatures indicated that the conjugate coefficients are invariant descriptors of their conjugate cooling. Numerical CFD simulations were performed using the PHOENICS software in a three dimensional domain similar to the experimental assembly. The numerical results were compared to those of the experiments / Mestrado / Termica e Fluidos / Mestra em Engenharia Mecânica

A neuropatia motora multifocal (NMM) é uma neuropatia inflamatória de baixa prevalência, 0,6/100.000 pacientes, caracterizada por uma fraqueza muscular progressiva, assimétrica e distal, sem comprometimento sensitivo. A NMM pode mimetizar a esclerose lateral amiotrófica (ELA), outras variantes da doença do neurônio motor e outras polineuropatias inflamatórias desmielinizantes crônicas, com início assimétrico. A diferenciação é importante, tendo em vista as especificidades da evolução e do tratamento das referidas neuropatias. O principal achado eletrofisiológico é o bloqueio de condução nervosa na ausência de anormalidades sensitivas. A fisiopatogenia da NMM é pouco conhecida. O frequente achado de anticorpos circulantes contra o monoassialogangliosídeo (GM1) é sugestivo de que possa haver seu comprometimento em alterações estruturais nodais e perinodais, com comprometimento multifocal da condução nervosa. O corolário desses distúrbios são paresias e paralisias, também de distribuição multifocal. A Imunoglobulina humana por via endovenosa em altas doses constitui o tratamento de escolha. Novas estratégias de tratamento alternativas são necessárias para prevenir fraqueza muscular permanente e incapacidade. Poucos estudos e revisões bibliográficas têm elucidado as características clínicas da NMM, com a ausência na literatura de publicações de série de casos nacionais. No presente estudo, a partir de uma revisão retrospectiva, serão avaliados os aspectos clínicos- eletrofisiológicos da NMM, a fim de se obter um maior entendimento da evolução da doença. / The multifocal motor neuropathy (MMN) is an inflammatory neuropathy that has low prevalence (0.6 / 100,000 patients). It is characterized by progressive, asymmetric and distal muscle weakness without sensory impairment. The MMN can mimic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), other motor neuron disease variants and other chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, with asymmetric start. Differentiation is important, given the specificities of the development and treatment of these neuropathies. The main electrophysiological finding is the nerve conduction block in the absence of sensory abnormalities. The pathophysiology of MMN is little known. The frequent finding of circulating antibodies against monoassialogangliosides (GM1) is suggestive that there may be their involvement in nodal and perinodal structural changes with multifocal impairment of nerve conduction. The corollary of these disorders is paresis and paralysis, with also multifocal distribution. The human immunoglobulin intravenously in high doses constitutes the treatment of choice. New alternative treatment strategies are needed to prevent permanent muscle weakness and disability. Few studies and literature reviews have elucidated the clinical features of MMN and there are no case series publications in the national literature. In this study, from a retrospective review, will be assessed clinic and electrophysiological features of MMN in order to obtain a greater understanding of disease progression.

Este trabalho apresenta um estudo dos mecanismos de transporte iônico nos vidros fluorsilicatos de cádmio e chumbo de composição 40SiO2 40PbF2 20CdF2, e nos vidros boratos contendo LiF de composição 50B2O3 10PbO 40LiF. Estes materiais são importantes pela sua potencial utilização em dispositivos ópticos e eletrólitos sólidos. No vidro borato 50B2O3 10PbO 40LiF o estudo da forma de linha do 7Li mostrou que esta é influenciada tanto por interações dipolares quanto por quadrupolares. O estudo de RMN revelou que há dois F- presentes neste vidro, um deles em vizinhaças de Pb (F- incorporados à rede vítrea substituindo o oxigênio do grupo PbO), e o outro em vizinhanças de Li. A forma de linha de RMN dependente da temperatura para o lítio e para o flúor, e seus tempos de relaxação, exibem as características qualitativas associadas com a alta mobilidade do 7Li e do 19F neste sistema. Este estudo também mostrou que, neste vidro, tanto o Li+ como o F- contribuem para a condutividade medida, sendo que o 7Li é móvel a temperaturas mais baixas (a partir de 250 K), e o 19F começa a se mover em temperaturas mais altas (a partir de 400 K). No vidro 40SiO2 40PbF2 20CdF2, os resultados de RMN mostraram a alta mobilidade do flúor e evidenciaram duas dinâmicas diferentes dos íons flúor. Os dados da relaxação do flúor revelaram um máximo da taxa de relaxação spin-rede abaixo da temperatura de transição vítrea (Tg), indicando que a mobilidade do flúor, neste vidro, é comparável àquelas encontradas em condutores iônicos rápidos / This work presents a study of the ionic transport mechanisms in lead-cadmium fluorosilicate glasses, of composition 40SiO2 40PbF2 20CdF2, and in borate glasses containing LiF, of composition 50B2O3 10PbO 40LiF. These materiais are important due to theirs high potential applicability in optic devices and in solid electrolytes. In the borate glass 50B2O3 10PbO 40LiF, the line shape study of 7Li shows an influence of the dipolar and quadrupolar interactions. The NMR results showed that there are two kinds of F- ions in this glass, one in the Pb vicinity (F- in the glass lattice, in substitution of the PbO oxygen), and the other in the Li vicinity. The NMR line shape depends on the temperature for the 7Li and 19F atoms, and their relaxation times reflect qualitative features related to the high mobility of there nuclei. Also, this study shows that, in this glass, both, 7Li and 19F, play an important role in the electric conductivity. The 7Li is mobile for low temperatures (from 250 K), while the 19F is mobile for high temperatures (from 400 K). In the 40SiO2 40PbF2 20CdF2 glass, the NMR results showed the high mobility of the fluorine ions, indicating two different dynamics of those nuclei. The relaxation data of the 19F presented a spin-lattice relaxation rate maximum below the glass transition temperature (Tg, indicating that the 19F mobility in this glass is comparable to that of rapid ionic conducting glasses

The escalating cost of claims for Noise Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL) in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) supports the need to review and upgrade current hearing conservation practices. The rise of these escalating costs and the need to protect the military personnel when training in extreme noise conditions has initiated an engineering investigation within the Department of National Defence (DND) and in collaboration with the University of Ottawa, to review the existing standards in the field of hearing protection test and evaluation, to propose technical recommendations and to identify the possible technical problems and gaps impacting the quality of the existing procedures. This study dealt with the estimation of the protection capability of Hearing Protection Devices (HPDs) in the case of high-level impulse noise from small firearms weapons that are a particularly damaging source of noise in military environments, representing an important cause of NIHL. Testing and evaluation based on a system engineering approach have been used in this work introducing: - A new testing approach, based on ANSI/ASA S12.42-2010, for testing HPDs when the impulse noise is generated by a small firearm; - A new evaluation approach for HPD performance, introducing a characterization approach using a sub-band analysis for dealing with impulse noise generated by a small firearm. The effectiveness of HPDs, taking into account the physiological human limitations induced by Bone Conduction (BC), is computed by using an innovative method attempting to better prevent the risk of NIHL when using small firearms.