[en] x-ray micro-laminography was qualified and implemented as a complementary solution for the 3D microstructural analysis of tungsten coated carbon-fibre reinforced carbon (W/CFC) samples retrieved from JET ITER-like wall. As expected, the W layers spatially correlate with the morphology of the CFC substrate. Three main cases were distinguished; (i) tungsten layers coated parallel to PAN fibre bundles tend to have a quasi-continuous, weakly waved surface (waves amplitude <100 μm); (ii) tungsten layers coated onto the relatively porous felt region appear to smoothly follow even the surface of the largest pores of around 250 μm and (iii) samples coated perpendicular to the PAN fibre bundles display frequently and strong crater-like discontinuities of the metal layer. The characteristics dimensions of these gaps range in the order of 300–400 μm both in the coating plane and perpendicular to it. On some craters the bottom W layer is broken and the generated debris can be found even deeper than one mm into the CFC substrate. These W particles, sized of 20–40 μm, are always found in the large gaps located between the fibre bundles perpendicular to the coated surface. (paper)

[en] We report the low-temperature study of very thin Nb_xSi_1-x films that are used in various systems for astrophysical detection with bolometers. We have decreased the thin film thicknesses from 60nm down to 12.5nm and shown that the sensitivity gain due to lowering the heat capacity is not to the detriment of the electron-phonon coupling or to noise characteristics. On the superconducting side, we show that, at small thicknesses, the critical temperature and the normal resistance can be adjusted by tuning the thickness and the composition of the films

[en] Lab-on-a-chip strategies using miniaturized devices enable cells to be cultured in a tridimensional (3D) space that offers a real model mimicking in vivo environment. One may provide architectural configurations relevant for specific tissues to maintain them at adequate temperature, oxygen levels, and pH during the necessary time intervals for observation. Herein, we propose a miniaturized lab-on-chip glass device suitable for simultaneous dosimetry measurements and evaluation of the biological effects of ionizing radiation on cancer cells. For the 3D fabrication of biologically relevant microenvironment, high repetition rate picosecond laser-assisted etching is applied to create microfluidic networks between sealed cell culture chambers in photo-sensitive glasses (PG). To evaluate the radiation dose, we employed collimated X-ray beams to generate free electrons in the PG samples by photoreduction of Ag ions to Ag atoms. A subsequent thermal treatment applied to the PG induced clustering of precipitated Ag atoms to color the exposed area to brown, which allows us to directly evaluate a threshold of the applied X-ray radiation dose applied directly on chip. Based on our glass biochip, we tested the response of human melanoma cancer cells exposed to various X-ray doses. This lab-on-chip platform is a valuable tool to analyze and validate the cellular response to new irradiation strategies as alternatives to conventional radiotherapy methods.

[en] Future cosmic microwave background experiments for high-resolution anisotropy mapping and polarisation detection require large arrays of bolometers at low temperature. We have developed a process to build arrays of antenna-coupled bolometers for that purpose. With adjustment of the Nb_xSi_1-x alloy composition, the array can be made of high impedance or superconductive (TES) sensors

[en] Background: Amyloidosis is a heterogeneous group of diseases caused by extracellular deposition of insoluble fibrils in multiple organs. Several types of amyloid can infiltrate the heart resulting in a restrictive cardiomyopathy, heart failure, and arrhythmias. The most clinically relevant cardiac involvement occurs in primary light-chain (AL) amyloidosis, hereditary or variant transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTRv), and wild-type transthyretin (ATTRwt) amyloidosis. In recent years, the sensitivity of bisphosphonate scintigraphy (BS) has been validated for the non-invasive diagnosis of cardiac amyloidosis. The semi quantitative visual grading score (Perugini) G2/G3 is pathognomonic for amyloid cardiomyopathy with ATTR. BS together with cardiac imaging (US or MRI) can diagnose ATTR amyloidosis, only if AL amyloidosis is excluded, by measuring free light chains (kappa, lambda and K/L ratio) in serum and urine with immunofixation. Subcostal radiotracer intensity uptake at the level of the left ventricle (G1 score) is often challenging and compliance with the acquisition, including SPECT, and interpretation protocols, decrease false positive or negative results. Objective: In this paper, we intend to present some cases with equivocal uptake score and low sensitivity of BS in the diagnosis of cardiac amyloidosis.