Bending Magnet Synchrotron Radiation Imaging with Large Orbital Collection Angles.

Synchrotron radiation (SR) from bending magnets, wigglers, and undulators is now extensively produced for users at storage ring based light sources, with unique properties in terms of average brightness and stability. We present a profound study of bending magnet SR intensity distribution in the image plane of a focusing optical system. Measurements of this intensity distribution at the MAX-IV low emittance storage ring are compared to theoretical predictions, and found to be in excellent agreement. This work shows upon the possibility of performing high resolution emittance diagnostics with visible or near-visible SR on upcoming low-emittance storage ring based light sources. As a byproduct of our study, we derive a closed analytical expression for the intensity distribution from a zero-emittance beam, in the limiting case of wide orbital collection angles. This expression finally allows us to demonstrate the meeting between classical electrodynamics applied to SR emission and focusing, and the Landau and Lifshitz prediction of radiation intensity distribution nearby a caustic.

Tunable High Spatio-Spectral Purity Undulator Radiation from a Transported Laser Plasma Accelerated Electron Beam.

Undulator based synchrotron light sources and Free Electron Lasers (FELs) are valuable modern probes of matter with high temporal and spatial resolution. Laser Plasma Accelerators (LPAs), delivering GeV electron beams in few centimeters, are good candidates for future compact light sources. However the barriers set by the large energy spread, divergence and shot-to-shot fluctuations require a specific transport line, to shape the electron beam phase space for achieving ultrashort undulator synchrotron radiation suitable for users and even for achieving FEL amplification. Proof-of-principle LPA based undulator emission, with strong electron focusing or transport, does not yet exhibit the full specific radiation properties. We report on the generation of undulator radiation with an LPA beam based manipulation in a dedicated transport line with versatile properties. After evidencing the specific spatio-spectral signature, we tune the resonant wavelength within 200-300 nm by modification of the electron beam energy and the undulator field. We achieve a wavelength stability of 2.6%. We demonstrate that we can control the spatio-spectral purity and spectral brightness by reducing the energy range inside the chicane. We have also observed the second harmonic emission of the undulator.

Validation of the dermatology-specific proxy instrument the Infants and Toddlers Dermatology Quality of Life.

BACKGROUND: The first dermatology-specific proxy health-related quality of life (HRQoL) instrument for children 0-4 years old with skin diseases, the Infants and Toddlers Dermatology Quality of Life (InToDermQoL), was recently developed. In order to avoid the problem of cross-cultural inequivalence focus groups work and pilot tests were organized simultaneously in all national centres of the project. The InToDermQoL showed good comprehensibility, clarity and acceptance. OBJECTIVE: To validate the InToDermQoL questionnaire during international field tests. METHODS: Internal consistency, test-retest reliability, convergent and discriminant validity of the InToDermQoL questionnaire were checked during international field tests. RESULTS: Parents of 473 children with skin diseases filled in the national language versions of the InToDermQoL questionnaire. All three age-specific versions of the InToDermQoL questionnaire with 10, 12 and 15 items, respectively, showed high internal consistency (Cronbach's α 0.90-0.93), good test-retest reliability (correlation coefficients > 0.9), significant correlations with the most widely used atopic dermatitis-specific proxy instrument, the Infants Dermatitis Quality of Life Index (correlation coefficients 0.68-0.79). The InToDermQoL versions for children <3 years old well correlated with the atopic dermatis severity measure Scoring of Atopic Dermatitis (correlation coefficients 0.66 and 0.86 for 10 and 12 items versions, respectively). The InToDermQoL questionnaire discriminated well among different diagnoses and disease severity levels. CONCLUSION: Our field tests confirmed internal consistency, test-retest reliability, convergent and discriminant validity of the InToDermQoL questionnaire. Development and validation of the InToDermQoL questionnaire make it possible to assess dermatology-specific aspects of HRQoL in youngest children with skin diseases. There are many reasons to assess HRQoL in dermatologic clinical practice, and we hope that our new instrument will be used internationally in paediatric dermatology for research and practical needs.

New aspects of longitudinal instabilities in electron storage rings.

Novel features of the longitudinal instability of a single electron bunch circulating in a low-emittance electron storage ring are discussed. Measurements and numerical simulations, performed both in time and frequency domain, show a non-monotonic increase of the electron beam energy spread as a function of single bunch current, characterized by the presence of local minima and maxima, where a local minimum of the energy spread is interpreted as a higher-order microwave instability threshold. It is also shown that thresholds related to the same zero-intensity bunch length depend linearly on the accelerating radio frequency voltage. The observed intensity-dependent features of the energy spread, confirmed by measurements with two independent diagnostics methods, i.e. horizontal beam profile measurements by a synchrotron light monitor and photon energy spectrum measurements of undulator radiation, are given a theoretical interpretation by applying a novel eigenvalue analysis based on the linearized Vlasov equation.

[Present condition and perspective of development of self-care decontamination products].

Present condition and perspective of development of self-care decontamination products. This work provides data describing the current state and perspectives of development of self-care decontamination products for neutralization and removal of poisonous and highly toxic biologic and radioactive agents from open human body surfaces and close- fitting cloth. The history of self-care decontamination products creation in Russia and foreign countries is represented. The detailed performance characteristics of the developed individual anti-gas kits IPP-3, IPP-51, IPP-8, IPP-10, IPP-11, which were accepted to the Army and the Navy supply in the 1920-1930s, during the Great Patriotic war, in post-war period and now, are given. The individual anti-gas kits RSDL, M291, M295 and MKI for government-issue equipment of North Atlantic nations' armies are described in detail. It was showed that the general limitation both of the native and foreign anti-gas kit models is the poor efficacy against exposure of vesicants from the group of blister warfare agents. The most perspective research guidelines in creation of new self-care decontamination products. are validated.

The electron spectro-microscopy beamline at National Synchrotron Light Source II: a wide photon energy range, micro-focusing beamline for photoelectron spectro-microscopies.

A comprehensive optical design for a high-resolution, high-flux, wide-energy range, micro-focused beamline working in the vacuum ultraviolet and soft x-ray photon energy range is proposed. The beamline is to provide monochromatic radiation to three photoelectron microscopes: a full-field x-ray photoelectron emission microscope and two scanning instruments, one dedicated to angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy (µ-ARPES) and one for ambient pressure x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning photoelectron microscopy (AP-XPS/SPEM). Microfocusing is achieved with state of the art elliptical cylinders, obtaining a spot size of 1 µm for ARPES and 0.5 µm for AP-XPS/SPEM. A detailed ray tracing analysis quantitatively evaluates the overall beamline performances.

Wavefront analysis of nonlinear self-amplified spontaneous-emission free-electron laser harmonics in the single-shot regime.

The single-shot spatial characteristics of the vacuum ultraviolet self-amplified spontaneous emission of a free electron laser (FEL) is measured at different stages of amplification up to saturation with a Hartmann wavefront sensor. We show that the fundamental radiation at 61.5 nm tends towards a single-mode behavior as getting closer to saturation. The measurements are found in good agreement with simulations and theory. A near diffraction limited wavefront was measured. The analysis of Fresnel diffraction through the Hartmann wavefront sensor hole array also provides some further insight for the evaluation of the FEL transverse coherence, of high importance for various applications.

[Antioxidant status in tissue of the liver and pancreas of quails and its correction by adding the corn of amaranth to their feed].

The paper deals with the results of research of activity of enzymes of superoxide dismutase and catalase, and also amount of products of lipid peroxidation, in tissue of liver and pancreas of quails in the postnatal period of ontogenesis and their correction by the grinded corn of amaranth. It is established that the first weeks of quails life is distinguished by a deficiency of antioxidant system, and the corn of amaranth activates the enzymes of antioxidant defence, that favours a decrease in the content of lipid peroxidation products in the studied organs.

A three-dimensional magnetostatics computer code for insertion devices.

RADIA is a three-dimensional magnetostatics computer code optimized for the design of undulators and wigglers. It solves boundary magnetostatics problems with magnetized and current-carrying volumes using the boundary integral approach. The magnetized volumes can be arbitrary polyhedrons with non-linear (iron) or linear anisotropic (permanent magnet) characteristics. The current-carrying elements can be straight or curved blocks with rectangular cross sections. Boundary conditions are simulated by the technique of mirroring. Analytical formulae used for the computation of the field produced by a magnetized volume of a polyhedron shape are detailed. The RADIA code is written in object-oriented C++ and interfaced to Mathematica [Mathematica is a registered trademark of Wolfram Research, Inc.]. The code outperforms currently available finite-element packages with respect to the CPU time of the solver and accuracy of the field integral estimations. An application of the code to the case of a wedge-pole undulator is presented.