Thermodynamic description, hardness and electrical conductivity of the Bi–Ni–Zn system: Experiment and modeling

The rapid growth of interest in attaching energy-dispersive x-ray analysis systems to transmission electron microscopes has centered largely on microanalysis of biological specimens. These are frequently either embedded in plastic or supported by an organic film, which is of great importance as regards stability under the beam since it provides thermal and electrical conductivity from the specimen to the grid.Unfortunately, the supporting medium also produces continuum x-radiation or Bremsstrahlung, which is added to the x-ray spectrum from the sample. It is not difficult to separate the characteristic peaks from the elements in the specimen from the total continuum background, but sometimes it is also necessary to separate the continuum due to the sample from that due to the support. For instance, it is possible to compute relative elemental concentrations in the sample, without standards, based on the relative net characteristic elemental intensities without regard to background; but to calculate absolute concentration, it is necessary to use the background signal itself as a measure of the total excited specimen mass.

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Macromolecular structures of biological specimens are not obscured by controlled osmium impregnation

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100076639 ◽

1983 ◽

Vol 41 ◽

pp. 606-607

Author(s):

Klaus-Ruediger Peters ◽

Samuel A. Green

Keyword(s):

Thin Films ◽

Electrical Conductivity ◽

Critical Point ◽

Metal Films ◽

High Magnification ◽

Osmium Impregnation ◽

Instrumental Resolution ◽

20 Nm ◽

Continuous Metal

High magnification imaging of macromolecules on metal coated biological specimens is limited only by wet preparation procedures since recently obtained instrumental resolution allows visualization of topographic structures as smal l as 1-2 nm. Details of such dimensions may be visualized if continuous metal films with a thickness of 2 nm or less are applied. Such thin films give sufficient contrast in TEM as well as in SEM (SE-I image mode). The requisite increase in electrical conductivity for SEM of biological specimens is achieved through the use of ligand mediated wet osmiuum impregnation of the specimen before critical point (CP) drying. A commonly used ligand is thiocarbohvdrazide (TCH), first introduced to TEM for en block staining of lipids and glvcomacromolecules with osmium black. Now TCH is also used for SEM. However, after ligand mediated osinification nonspecific osmium black precipitates were often found obscuring surface details with large diffuse aggregates or with dense particular deposits, 2-20 nm in size. Thus, only low magnification work was considered possible after TCH appl ication.

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Newborn's Preference for Faces

European Psychologist ◽

10.1027/1016-9040.1.3.200 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 1 (3) ◽

pp. 200-205 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Carlo Umiltà ◽

Francesca Simion ◽

Eloisa Valenza

Keyword(s):

Visual System ◽

Structural Properties ◽

Sensory Properties ◽

Human Face ◽

System Experiment ◽

Face Experiment

Four experiments were aimed at elucidating some aspects of the preference for facelike patterns in newborns. Experiment 1 showed a preference for a stimulus whose components were located in the correct arrangement for a human face. Experiment 2 showed a preference for stimuli that had optimal sensory properties for the newborn visual system. Experiment 3 showed that babies directed their attention to a facelike pattern even when it was presented simultaneously with a non-facelike stimulus with optimal sensory properties. Experiment 4 showed the preference for facelike patterns in the temporal hemifield but not in the nasal hemifield. It was concluded that newborns' preference for facelike patterns reflects the activity of a subcortical system which is sensitive to the structural properties of the stimulus.

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