cro Factors associated with household willingness to pay for Universal Health Coverage in Cameroon: a nationwide cross-sectional analysis By ifp.nyu.edu Published On :: Tue, 05 Nov 2024 07:59:38 +0000 Sustained financing for Universal Health Coverage (UHC) has been a concern for the Cameroon government. Household contributions have been considered as a financing mechanism, but this raises concerns on the wi… Read the full article › The post Factors associated with household willingness to pay for Universal Health Coverage in Cameroon: a nationwide cross-sectional analysis was curated by information for practice. Full Article Open Access Journal Articles
cro Connie Evingson performs tonight at Crooners Lounge By minnesota.publicradio.orghttps Published On :: Mon, 31 Dec 2018 09:07:53 -0600 Hibbing native Connie Evingson will be performing tonight at Crooners Lounge in Fridley. That's one of your many musical options this New Year's Eve. Full Article
cro Cellist Yo-Yo Ma plays Bach in shadow of border crossing By minnesota.publicradio.orghttps Published On :: Sat, 13 Apr 2019 16:50:00 -0500 The world-renowned cellist brought his Bach Project to the sister cities of Laredo, Texas, and Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, on Saturday. Full Article
cro Orchestra finds child who charmed crowd with 'wow!' By minnesota.publicradio.orghttps Published On :: Sat, 11 May 2019 09:35:00 -0500 A performing arts group has found the child who was literally wowed by a recent classical music concert. Full Article
cro The Improvised Life: Sam Miltich takes his message of jazz and mental health across Minn. By minnesota.publicradio.orghttps Published On :: Thu, 23 May 2019 11:55:25 -0500 Fifteen years ago, Sam Miltich was a teenager on top of the world. He taught himself how to play jazz guitar growing up in the woods outside Grand Rapids. And he got so good that at 18 he played in Europe and New York. Then, four years later, something happened that made it hard for Miltich to comprehend living, much less making a living playing jazz. Full Article
cro A Fascinating Montage of Hasidic Families Trying to Cross the Street During the New York City Marathon By laughingsquid.com Published On :: Mon, 11 Nov 2024 17:26:21 +0000 Abe Kugielsky shot footage of Hasidic people trying to cross the street in Williamsburg during the 2024 New York City Marathon. Full Article Blog
cro John Rhys-Davies narrates 'Scrooge' podcast; talks connection with Tolkien's Gimli: 'We all carry our chains' By www.christianpost.com Published On :: Tue, 12 Nov 2024 08:30:25 -0500 Actor John Rhys-Davies narrates a reimagined audio drama of "A Christmas Carol," drawn by the story’s themes of transformation, compassion and redemption, which he likens to the journeys of both Scrooge and his Rings character, Gimli, as they overcome prejudice and open their hearts to others. Full Article
cro Microsoft Word flags 'maternity leave,' suggests other 'inclusive' phrases By www.christianpost.com Published On :: Tue, 12 Nov 2024 12:30:55 -0500 Microsoft's Word program now recommends replacing the term "maternity leave" with more “inclusive” language. Full Article
cro Dining across culture war divides By www.christianpost.com Published On :: Tue, 16 Jan 2024 07:57:01 -0500 My lefty dinner guests who were chowing down on Coq Au Vin and pumpkin cobbler around my table the other night recounted how they have seen behind the Woke Left curtain and they detest it in the same way I loathe the rot in my sphere. The parallels were uncanny. Full Article
cro Russia may lift moratorium on death penalty after Crocus City Hall attack By english.pravda.ru Published On :: Tue, 26 Mar 2024 15:14:00 +0300 The monstrous terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall in Russia triggered discussions about the need to reinstate death penalty in the country. It is the legal side of the issue that is being discussed, since the moratorium was established by the Constitutional Court. Russian officials believe that the moratorium on the death penalty that was introduced in Russia in 1996 in connection with the entry into the Council of Europe should be suspended. State Duma speaker Vyacheslav Volodin believes that there is no need for any referendum here — it would only be enough for the Constitutional Court to lift it. Lawyers believe executions will return to Russia Experts maintain that according to the Constitutional Court's clarification from 2009, the binding nature of this or that political decision shall remain unchanged. However, the head of the State Duma Committee on Legislation, Pavel Krasheninnikov, said that there are grounds for lifting the moratorium. Full Article Russia
cro Russia to test new device to jam wireless headphones at railway crossings By english.pravda.ru Published On :: Fri, 05 Apr 2024 17:08:00 +0300 Russian engineers developed a wireless headphone jammer that is going to be put to the test at railway crossings. Students from the Institute of Radio Engineering Systems and Control of Southern Federal University developed a jamming device that turns off wireless headphones at railway tracks. The micro-controller of the device detects the Bluetooth signal from the headphones in its range and reboots the 2.4 GHz frequency on which Bluetooth and Wi-Fi operate. This causes the sound in the headphones to disappear, and the person will be able to hear the train or the alarm at the crossing. Full Article Science
cro Fearing Le Pen, the left saves Macron and recovers "pink neoliberalism" By english.pravda.ru Published On :: Tue, 09 Jul 2024 12:20:00 +0300 The big loser in the French elections was not the far right. It's true that if it hadn't been for the spurious agreements between the New Popular Front and the Macronists, the National Regroupment would have grown even more. But the result of the second round is not exactly a victory for the left. After Marine Le Pen's RN led the first round of the elections, the leaders of the NFP fell into the trap of the French press and Emmanuel Macron, abandoning numerous candidates of their own to increase the chances of the neoliberal right linked to the Renaissance party beating the far right. The French big bourgeoisie called for a "republican front" to create a "cordon sanitaire" made up of the left and the neoliberal right in order to prevent a landslide victory for the RN, which led to agreements in around 220 constituencies for the candidate with supposedly the least chance of winning the RN to abandon the race in favour of the candidate with the greatest chance. Except that most of the abandonments were by the NFP so that Macron's allies could beat Le Pen's allies, even though the NFP came second in the first round, far ahead of Macron's coalition. Full Article Opinion
cro Customer adoption of Bitsight cloud monitoring grows 170% amid increased demand for Visibility Across digital infrastructure By www.retailtechnologyreview.com Published On :: Bitsight, the cyber risk management solutions provider, has introduced new asset mapping capabilities to help companies better manage vulnerabilities across their extended attack surface. Full Article Surveillance and Security Cloud Computing
cro Infinigate and CYREBRO expand partnership across Europe By www.retailtechnologyreview.com Published On :: Infinigate Group, the technology platform and trusted advisor in cybersecurity, cloud and network infrastructure, has expanded its partnership with CYREBRO, an AI-native Managed Detection and Response (MDR) solution, bringing state-level SOC services to MSPs and MSSPs across Europe, through the Infinigate Cloud marketplace. Full Article Surveillance and Security Cyber Security
cro Ransomware surge: RansomHub dominates as Lockbit fades, new threats emerge across industries By www.retailtechnologyreview.com Published On :: Check Point Research (CPR) has released a report revealing that ransomware remains the top cyber threat. RansomHub has quickly emerged as the fastest-growing group, operating through Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS). Full Article Surveillance and Security Critical Issues
cro 5 Reasons Why You Can’t Stop Scrolling on Social Media By www.retailtechnologyreview.com Published On :: By Craig McPherson, freelance writer.Think of this. You've got a serious deadline to cover and are working on it. After one hour of work, you turn back to social media for a "state of relaxation". But guess what? You keep on scrolling your favourite social media platform for hours and end up missing the deadline. Sounds familiar, right? Full Article Critical Issues
cro CrowdStrike to acquire Adaptive Shield By www.retailtechnologyreview.com Published On :: Mon, 13 Nov 9200 17:31:40 +0000 CrowdStrike has agreed to acquire SaaS security solutions provider, Adaptive Shield. With this acquisition, CrowdStrike reports that it will be the only cybersecurity vendor to provide unified, end-to-end protection against identity-based attacks across the entire modern cloud ecosystem – from on-premises Full Article Cyber Security Cloud Computing
cro RAIN Alliance reports 32% Increase in global RAIN RFID chip shipments as adoption and usage diversifies across multiple industries By www.retailtechnologyreview.com Published On :: RAIN Alliance, the non-profit industry organisation supporting the development and adoption of Ultra High Frequency (UHF) Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), has announced that 44.8bn RAIN RFID tag chips were shipped globally in 2023.This figure represents year-on-year growth of 32%, and reflects increasing demand across a variety of industries.... Full Article RFID Data Capture Critical Issues
cro Could self-checkouts become the norm across all retail sectors? By www.retailtechnologyreview.com Published On :: By Ed Smith, freelance journalistSelf-checkouts have proven to be an increasingly popular option for shoppers to take control of their own scanning of items. It can feel a little quicker and allows you to scan then pack your goods at your own pace rather than trying to keep up with a cashier. Full Article Critical Issues Kiosk Technology EPoS Systems
cro China (Shenzhen) Cross Border E-commerce Fair set to unveil innovation and digital transformation this September By www.retailtechnologyreview.com Published On :: With e-commerce leaders such as Alibaba, Amazon, eBay, and TikTok on hand to share insights at the China (Shenzhen) Cross Border E-commerce Fair (CCBEC) from 11 – 13 September 2024, the show will welcome nearly 1,500 exhibitors from around the globe. Full Article Exhibitions and Events Internet Retailing
cro SUV rams into crowd of joggers in China, over 20 hurt By english.pravda.ru Published On :: Mon, 11 Nov 2024 21:27:00 +0300 In the Chinese city of Zhuhai, a car rammed into a crowd of people near a sports center. The 62-year-old driver fled the scene of the accident but was later detained. The victims were hospitalized, China Daily said with reference to local authorities. WARNING: The videos are extremely graphic! Click here to see more photos and videos from the scene. Full Article Incidents
cro Macroevolution By www.talkorigins.org Published On :: Updated September 16, 2006: In evolutionary biology today macroevolution is used to refer to any evolutionary change at or above the level of species. It means the splitting of a species into two or the change of a species over time into another. This FAQ has been expanded, updated, illustrated, and rewritten. Full Article
cro Paysend launches instant cross-border payouts to China UnionPay cards By www.retailtechnologyreview.com Published On :: Paysend has launched instant and simple cross-border payouts to China UnionPay cards for its Enterprise customers. Full Article Data Capture Retail Supply Chain
cro More contagious COVID-19 BA.2 omicron to take over the U.S. By english.pravda.ru Published On :: Tue, 05 Apr 2022 12:20:00 +0300 Centrers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that the more contagious subvariant BA.2 of omicron strain now makes up 72% of COVID-19 infections in the U.S. According to the data, the BA.2 is able to displace all other COVID-19 strains and its subvariants. Ali Mokdad, an epidemiologist at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation in Washington state, estimates that the displacement might happen in the next two weeks. According to different sources, the BA.2 is from 30% to 80% more contagious than the BA.1. A top WHO official, Maria Van Kerkhove, describes BA.2 as the most transmissible version of the virus so far. Full Article Health
cro "Protrusions and herniated discs - blame the leg-crossing position". Here's why By english.pravda.ru Published On :: Wed, 19 Apr 2023 12:57:00 +0300 Neurologist-vertebrologist and manual therapy specialist, Professor of the UnitelmaSapienza Roman University and the UniCamillus International Medical University, Jalal Saidbegov, explains why sitting cross-legged can have a negative impact on the health of the spine. This position can cause a disruption of the anatomical structures of the intervertebral disc, which can lead to the development of protrusions and hernias in the lumbar region. Even for healthy individuals, this position is not very beneficial, so it should not be abused. However, there are a number of recommendations that can help reduce the risk of negative consequences: If you cannot avoid this position, try not to sit in it for a long time and not use it too often. Try to sit in this position for no more than five minutes, after which switch legs, making the upper leg the lower one, and vice versa. This will help redistribute the load on the spine and reduce its one-sided tension. Never bend forward or twist when sitting in this position, as this can further increase the load on the intervertebral discs. It is better to spend most of the time sitting in a classic and more useful position, leaning back and resting against the back of the chair, without leaving empty space between the lower back and the lower part of the chair back. Your legs should be able to reach the floor freely. If your chair or armchair is too high, you can use a footrest to achieve a comfortable position. Full Article Health
cro Understanding Nottinghamshire’s groundwater microbial ecosystems - British Geological Survey By news.google.com Published On :: Thu, 24 Aug 2023 07:00:00 GMT Understanding Nottinghamshire’s groundwater microbial ecosystems British Geological Survey Full Article
cro New research supports conservation of fallow deer across Europe - British Geological Survey By news.google.com Published On :: Tue, 16 Apr 2024 10:05:04 GMT New research supports conservation of fallow deer across Europe British Geological Survey Full Article
cro Seed layer formation by deposition of micro-crystallites on a revolving substrate: modeling of the effective linear elastic, piezoelectric, and dielectric coefficients By journals.iucr.org Published On :: The rotating substrate method of crystallite deposition is modeled, allowing computation of effective material coefficients of the layers resulting from the averaging. A worked numerical example particularized to 6mm ZnO is provided. Full Article text
cro Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and its 3D structures from crystallography and electron cryo-microscopy By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-09-11 Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) is the first enzyme in the pentose phosphate pathway. It has been extensively studied by biochemical and structural techniques. 13 X-ray crystal structures and five electron cryo-microscopy structures in the PDB are focused on in this topical review. Two F420-dependent glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (FGD) structures are also reported. The significant differences between human and parasite G6PDs can be exploited to find selective drugs against infections such as malaria and leishmaniasis. Furthermore, G6PD is a prognostic marker in several cancer types and is also considered to be a tumour target. On the other hand, FGD is considered to be a target against Mycobacterium tuberculosis and possesses a high biotechnological potential in biocatalysis and bioremediation. Full Article text
cro Laboratory X-ray powder micro-diffraction in the research of painted artworks By journals.iucr.org Published On :: This review summarizes the methodological aspects of laboratory X-ray powder micro-diffraction and demonstrates the assets of the method in the research of painted artworks for evaluation of their provenance or diagnosing their degradation. Full Article text
cro A micro-beamstop with transmission detection by fluorescence for scanning-beam synchrotron scattering beamlines By journals.iucr.org Published On :: The correct determination of X-ray transmission at X-ray nanoprobes equipped with small beamstops for small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering collection is an unsolved problem with huge implications for data correction pipelines. We present a cost-effective solution to detect the transmission via the X-ray fluorescence of the beamstop with an avalanche photodiode. Full Article text
cro Non-invasive nanoscale imaging of protein micro- and nanocrystals for screening crystallization conditions By journals.iucr.org Published On :: The article presents a non-invasive nanoscale imaging technique that can be used in screening crystallization conditions for protein micro- and nanocrystals. Full Article text
cro RAPID, an ImageJ macro for indexing electron diffraction zone axis spot patterns of cubic materials By journals.iucr.org Published On :: RAPID (RAtio method Pattern InDexing) is an ImageJ macro script developed for the quick determination of sample orientation and indexing of calibrated and uncalibrated zone axis aligned electron diffraction patterns from materials with a cubic crystal structure. In addition to SAED and NBED patterns, the program is also capable of handling zone axis TEM Kikuchi patterns and FFTs derived from HR(S)TEM images. The software enables users to rapidly determine whether materials are cubic, pseudo-cubic, or non-cubic, and to distinguish between P, I, and F Bravais lattices. It can also provide lattice parameters for material verification and aid in determining the camera constant of the instrument, thus making the program a convenient tool for on-site crystallographic analysis in the TEM laboratory. Full Article text
cro Crystal structure of N-terminally hexahistidine-tagged Onchocerca volvulus macrophage migration inhibitory factor-1 By journals.iucr.org Published On :: N-terminally hexahistidine-tagged O. volvulus macrophage migration inhibitory factor-1 has a unique jellyfish-like structure with the prototypical macrophage migration inhibitory factor trimer as the `head' and a C-terminal extension as the `tail'. Full Article text
cro A micro-beamstop with transmission detection by fluorescence for scanning-beam synchrotron scattering beamlines By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-10-29 Quantitative X-ray diffraction approaches require careful correction for sample transmission. Though this is a routine task at state-of-the-art small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) or diffraction beamlines at synchrotron facilities, the transmission signal cannot be recorded concurrently with SAXS/WAXS when using the small, sub-millimetre beamstops at many X-ray nanoprobes during SAXS/WAXS experiments due to the divergence-limited size of the beamstop and the generally tight geometry. This is detrimental to the data quality and often the only solution is to re-scan the sample with a PIN photodiode as a detector to obtain transmission values. In this manuscript, we present a simple yet effective solution to this problem in the form of a small beamstop with an inlaid metal target for optimal fluorescence yield. This fluorescence can be detected with a high-sensitivity avalanche photodiode and provides a linear counter to determine the sample transmission. Full Article text
cro Laboratory X-ray powder micro-diffraction in the research of painted artworks By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-11-08 Painted artworks represent a significant group of cultural heritage artifacts, which are primarily admired because of their aesthetic quality. Nevertheless, the value of each particular painting depends also on what is known about it. Material investigation of paintings is one of the most reliable sources of information. Materials in painted artworks (i.e. panel, easel and miniature paintings, wall paintings, polychromed sculptures etc.) represent an extensive set of inorganic and organic phases, which are often present in complicated mixtures and exhibit characteristics reflecting their geological genesis (mineral pigments), manufacturing technology (artificial pigments), diverse biological nature (binders or dyes) or secondary changes (degradation or intentional later interventions). The analyses of paintings are often made challenging by the heterogeneous nature and minute size of micro-samples or, in some cases, even by the impossibility of sampling due to the preciousness, fragility or small dimensions of the artwork. This review demonstrates the successful implementation of laboratory X-ray powder micro-diffraction for material investigation of paintings, illustrating its efficiency for mineralogical analysis of (i) earth-based materials indicating the provenance of paintings, (ii) copper-based pigments pointing to their origin, and (iii) products of both salt corrosion and saponification enabling one to reveal the deterioration and probable original appearance of artworks. Full Article text
cro An alternative method to the Takagi–Taupin equations for studying dark-field X-ray microscopy of deformed crystals By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-09-26 This study introduces an alternative method to the Takagi–Taupin equations for investigating the dark-field X-ray microscopy (DFXM) of deformed crystals. In scenarios where dynamical diffraction cannot be disregarded, it is essential to assess the potential inaccuracies of data interpretation based on the kinematic diffraction theory. Unlike the Takagi–Taupin equations, this new method utilizes an exact dispersion relation, and a previously developed finite difference scheme with minor modifications is used for the numerical implementation. The numerical implementation has been validated by calculating the diffraction of a diamond crystal with three components, wherein dynamical diffraction is applicable to the first component and kinematic diffraction pertains to the remaining two. The numerical convergence is tested using diffraction intensities. In addition, the DFXM image of a diamond crystal containing a stacking fault is calculated using the new method and compared with the experimental result. The new method is also applied to calculate the DFXM image of a twisted diamond crystal, which clearly shows a result different from those obtained using the Takagi–Taupin equations. Full Article text
cro Performance of a photoelectron momentum microscope in direct- and momentum-space imaging with ultraviolet photon sources By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-01-01 The Photoelectron-Related Image and Nano-Spectroscopy (PRINS) endstation located at the Taiwan Photon Source beamline 27A2 houses a photoelectron momentum microscope capable of performing direct-space imaging, momentum-space imaging and photoemission spectroscopy with position sensitivity. Here, the performance of this microscope is demonstrated using two in-house photon sources – an Hg lamp and He(I) radiation – on a standard checkerboard-patterned specimen and an Au(111) single crystal, respectively. By analyzing the intensity profile of the edge of the Au patterns, the Rashba-splitting of the Au(111) Shockley surface state at 300 K, and the photoelectron intensity across the Fermi edge at 80 K, the spatial, momentum and energy resolution were estimated to be 50 nm, 0.0172 Å−1 and 26 meV, respectively. Additionally, it is shown that the band structures acquired in either constant energy contour mode or momentum-resolved photoemission spectroscopy mode were in close agreement. Full Article text
cro Deep learning to overcome Zernike phase-contrast nanoCT artifacts for automated micro-nano porosity segmentation in bone By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-01-01 Bone material contains a hierarchical network of micro- and nano-cavities and channels, known as the lacuna-canalicular network (LCN), that is thought to play an important role in mechanobiology and turnover. The LCN comprises micrometer-sized lacunae, voids that house osteocytes, and submicrometer-sized canaliculi that connect bone cells. Characterization of this network in three dimensions is crucial for many bone studies. To quantify X-ray Zernike phase-contrast nanotomography data, deep learning is used to isolate and assess porosity in artifact-laden tomographies of zebrafish bones. A technical solution is proposed to overcome the halo and shade-off domains in order to reliably obtain the distribution and morphology of the LCN in the tomographic data. Convolutional neural network (CNN) models are utilized with increasing numbers of images, repeatedly validated by `error loss' and `accuracy' metrics. U-Net and Sensor3D CNN models were trained on data obtained from two different synchrotron Zernike phase-contrast transmission X-ray microscopes, the ANATOMIX beamline at SOLEIL (Paris, France) and the P05 beamline at PETRA III (Hamburg, Germany). The Sensor3D CNN model with a smaller batch size of 32 and a training data size of 70 images showed the best performance (accuracy 0.983 and error loss 0.032). The analysis procedures, validated by comparison with human-identified ground-truth images, correctly identified the voids within the bone matrix. This proposed approach may have further application to classify structures in volumetric images that contain non-linear artifacts that degrade image quality and hinder feature identification. Full Article text
cro Heitt Mjölnir: a heated miniature triaxial apparatus for 4D synchrotron microtomography By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-01-01 Third- and fourth-generation synchrotron light sources with high fluxes and beam energies enable the use of innovative X-ray translucent experimental apparatus. These experimental devices access geologically relevant conditions whilst enabling in situ characterization using the spatial and temporal resolutions accessible at imaging beamlines. Here, Heitt Mjölnir is introduced, a heated miniature triaxial rig based on the design of Mjölnir, but covering a wider temperature range and larger sample volume at similar pressure capacities. This device is designed to investigate coupled thermal, chemical, hydraulic and mechanical processes from grain to centimetre scales using cylindrical samples of 10 mm × 20 mm (diameter × length). Heitt Mjölnir can simultaneously reach confining (hydraulic) pressures of 30 MPa and 500 MPa of axial stress with independently controlled sample pore fluid pressure < 30 MPa. This internally heated apparatus operates to temperatures up to 573 K with a minimal vertical thermal gradient in the sample of <0.3 K mm−1. This new apparatus has been deployed in operando studies at the TOMCAT (Swiss Light Source), I12 JEEP (Diamond Light Source) and PSICHÉ (Synchrotron SOLEIL) beamlines for 4D X-ray microtomography with scan intervals of a few minutes. Heitt Mjölnir is portable and modular, allowing a wide range of 4D characterizations of low-grade metamorphism and deformational processes. It enables spatially and temporally resolved fluid–rock interaction studies at conditions of crustal reservoirs and is suitable for characterization of material properties in geothermal, carbonation or subsurface gas storage applications. Technical drawings and an operation guide are included in this publication. Full Article text
cro In situ characterization of stresses, deformation and fracture of thin films using transmission X-ray nanodiffraction microscopy By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-01-01 The use of hard X-ray transmission nano- and microdiffraction to perform in situ stress and strain measurements during deformation has recently been demonstrated and used to investigate many thin film systems. Here a newly commissioned sample environment based on a commercially available nanoindenter is presented, which is available at the NanoMAX beamline at the MAX IV synchrotron. Using X-ray nanoprobes of around 60–70 nm at 14–16 keV and a scanning step size of 100 nm, we map the strains, stresses, plastic deformation and fracture during nanoindentation of industrial coatings with thicknesses in the range of several micrometres, relatively strong texture and large grains. The successful measurements of such challenging samples illustrate broad applicability. The sample environment is openly accessible for NanoMAX beamline users through the MAX IV sample environment pool, and its capability can be further extended for specific purposes through additional available modules. Full Article text
cro Finback: a web-based data collection system at SSRF biological macromolecular crystallography beamlines By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-01-19 An integrated computer software system for macromolecular crystallography (MX) data collection at the BL02U1 and BL10U2 beamlines of the Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility is described. The system, Finback, implements a set of features designed for the automated MX beamlines, and is marked with a user-friendly web-based graphical user interface (GUI) for interactive data collection. The Finback client GUI can run on modern browsers and has been developed using several modern web technologies including WebSocket, WebGL, WebWorker and WebAssembly. Finback supports multiple concurrent sessions, so on-site and remote users can access the beamline simultaneously. Finback also cooperates with the deployed experimental data and information management system, the relevant experimental parameters and results are automatically deposited to a database. Full Article text
cro Sub-micrometre focusing of intense 100 keV X-rays with multilayer reflective optics By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-02-22 A high-flux sub-micrometre focusing system was constructed using multilayer focusing mirrors in Kirkpatrick–Baez geometry for 100 keV X-rays. The focusing mirror system had a wide bandwidth of 5% and a high peak reflectivity of 74%. Performance was evaluated at the undulator beamline BL05XU of SPring-8, which produced an intense 100 keV X-ray beam with a bandwidth of 1%. When the light source was focused directly in both vertical and horizontal directions, the beam size was measured to be 0.32 µm (V) × 5.3 µm (H) with a flux of 1 × 1012 photons s−1. However, when a limited horizontal slit was used to form a secondary source, the focusing beam size decreased to 0.25 µm (V) × 0.26 µm (H) with a flux of 6 × 1010 photons s−1. The 200 nm line and space patterns of a Siemens star chart made of tantalum were clearly resolved by the absorption contrast of the focused beam. This 100 keV focusing system is applicable to various fields of nondestructive analyses with sub-micrometre resolutions. Full Article text
cro Development of dual-beamline photoelectron momentum microscopy for valence orbital analysis By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-04-15 The soft X-ray photoelectron momentum microscopy (PMM) experimental station at the UVSOR Synchrotron Facility has been recently upgraded by additionally guiding vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) light in a normal-incidence configuration. PMM offers a very powerful tool for comprehensive electronic structure analyses in real and momentum spaces. In this work, a VUV beam with variable polarization in the normal-incidence geometry was obtained at the same sample position as the soft X-ray beam from BL6U by branching the VUV beamline BL7U. The valence electronic structure of the Au(111) surface was measured using horizontal and vertical linearly polarized (s-polarized) light excitations from BL7U in addition to horizontal linearly polarized (p-polarized) light excitations from BL6U. Such highly symmetric photoemission geometry with normal incidence offers direct access to atomic orbital information via photon polarization-dependent transition-matrix-element analysis. Full Article text
cro Infrared spectroscopy across scales in length and time at BESSY II By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-04-23 The infrared beamline at BESSY II storage ring was upgraded recently to extend the capabilities of infrared microscopy. The endstations available at the beamline are now facilitating improved characterization of molecules and materials at different length scales and time resolutions. Here, the current outline of the beamline is reported and an overview of the endstations available is given. In particular, the first results obtained by using a new microscope for nano-spectroscopy that was implemented are presented. The capabilities of the scattering-type near-field optical microscope (s-SNOM) are demonstrated by investigating cellulose microfibrils, representing nanoscopic objects of a hierarchical structure. It is shown that the s-SNOM coupled to the beamline allows imaging to be performed with a spatial resolution of less than 30 nm and infrared spectra to be collected from an effective volume of less than 30 nm × 30 nm × 12 nm. Potential steps for further optimization of the beamline performance are discussed. Full Article text
cro Asymmetric electrostatic dodecapole: compact bandpass filter with low aberrations for momentum microscopy By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-06-20 Imaging energy filters in photoelectron microscopes and momentum microscopes use spherical fields with deflection angles of 90°, 180° and even 2 × 180°. These instruments are optimized for high energy resolution, and exhibit image aberrations when operated in high transmission mode at medium energy resolution. Here, a new approach is presented for bandpass-filtered imaging in real or reciprocal space using an electrostatic dodecapole with an asymmetric electrode array. In addition to energy-dispersive beam deflection, this multipole allows aberration correction up to the third order. Here, its use is described as a bandpass prefilter in a time-of-flight momentum microscope at the hard X-ray beamline P22 of PETRA III. The entire instrument is housed in a straight vacuum tube because the deflection angle is only 4° and the beam displacement in the filter is only ∼8 mm. The multipole is framed by transfer lenses in the entrance and exit branches. Two sets of 16 different-sized entrance and exit apertures on piezomotor-driven mounts allow selection of the desired bandpass. For pass energies between 100 and 1400 eV and slit widths between 0.5 and 4 mm, the transmitted kinetic energy intervals are between 10 eV and a few hundred electronvolts (full width at half-maximum). The filter eliminates all higher or lower energy signals outside the selected bandpass, significantly improving the signal-to-background ratio in the time-of-flight analyzer. Full Article text
cro Investigation of fast and efficient lossless compression algorithms for macromolecular crystallography experiments By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-06-05 Structural biology experiments benefit significantly from state-of-the-art synchrotron data collection. One can acquire macromolecular crystallography (MX) diffraction data on large-area photon-counting pixel-array detectors at framing rates exceeding 1000 frames per second, using 200 Gbps network connectivity, or higher when available. In extreme cases this represents a raw data throughput of about 25 GB s−1, which is nearly impossible to deliver at reasonable cost without compression. Our field has used lossless compression for decades to make such data collection manageable. Many MX beamlines are now fitted with DECTRIS Eiger detectors, all of which are delivered with optimized compression algorithms by default, and they perform well with current framing rates and typical diffraction data. However, better lossless compression algorithms have been developed and are now available to the research community. Here one of the latest and most promising lossless compression algorithms is investigated on a variety of diffraction data like those routinely acquired at state-of-the-art MX beamlines. Full Article text
cro High-angular-sensitivity X-ray phase-contrast microtomography of soft tissue through a two-directional beam-tracking synchrotron set-up By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-07-15 Two-directional beam-tracking (2DBT) is a method for phase-contrast imaging and tomography that uses an intensity modulator to structure the X-ray beam into an array of independent circular beamlets that are resolved by a high-resolution detector. It features isotropic spatial resolution, provides two-dimensional phase sensitivity, and enables the three-dimensional reconstructions of the refractive index decrement, δ, and the attenuation coefficient, μ. In this work, the angular sensitivity and the spatial resolution of 2DBT images in a synchrotron-based implementation is reported. In its best configuration, angular sensitivities of ∼20 nrad and spatial resolution of at least 6.25 µm in phase-contrast images were obtained. Exemplar application to the three-dimensional imaging of soft tissue samples, including a mouse liver and a decellularized porcine dermis, is also demonstrated. Full Article text
cro BEATS: BEAmline for synchrotron X-ray microTomography at SESAME By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-07-15 The ID10 beamline of the SESAME (Synchrotron-light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East) synchrotron light source in Jordan was inaugurated in June 2023 and is now open to scientific users. The beamline, which was designed and installed within the European Horizon 2020 project BEAmline for Tomography at SESAME (BEATS), provides full-field X-ray radiography and microtomography imaging with monochromatic or polychromatic X-rays up to photon energies of 100 keV. The photon source generated by a 2.9 T wavelength shifter with variable gap, and a double-multilayer monochromator system allow versatile application for experiments requiring either an X-ray beam with high intensity and flux, and/or a partially spatial coherent beam for phase-contrast applications. Sample manipulation and X-ray detection systems are designed to allow scanning samples with different size, weight and material, providing image voxel sizes from 13 µm down to 0.33 µm. A state-of-the-art computing infrastructure for data collection, three-dimensional (3D) image reconstruction and data analysis allows the visualization and exploration of results online within a few seconds from the completion of a scan. Insights from 3D X-ray imaging are key to the investigation of specimens from archaeology and cultural heritage, biology and health sciences, materials science and engineering, earth, environmental sciences and more. Microtomography scans and preliminary results obtained at the beamline demonstrate that the new beamline ID10-BEATS expands significantly the range of scientific applications that can be targeted at SESAME. Full Article text
cro In situ characterization of stresses, deformation and fracture of thin films using transmission X-ray nanodiffraction microscopy. Corrigendum By journals.iucr.org Published On :: 2024-08-06 Errors in variable subscripts, equations and Fig. 8 in Section 3.2 of the article by Lotze et al. [(2024). J. Synchrotron Rad. 31, 42–52] are corrected. Full Article text