A computational study based on molecular dynamics simulation technique has been used to predict the mechanical and thermal behavior of carbon nanotube (CNT) reinforced natural rubber (NR) composites. A single-walled 5,5 armchair type CNT has been used for this purpose. In this study, a comparison has been made between pristine and functionalized CNTs. The functionalization groups used in this study were carboxylic (COOH), ester (COOCH3) and hydroxyl (OH). The studies show the improvement in elastic properties of developed composites in the presence of functionalization group. In addition, the effect of volume fraction and 1-25% addition of functionalization group has been studied. The obtained simulation results show the better load-transfer capacity in developed polymer system and improved elastic modulus. Thermal properties of developed composite systems were studied by non-equilibrium molecular dynamics method (NEMD). The addition of functionalized CNTs shows enhanced mechanical and thermal properties.

Design and fabrication of a microstrip feedline-based Vivaldi antenna in the frequency range of 6.0–8.0 GHz have been presented. The Vivaldi antenna is a planar antenna, fabricated at the microstrip feedline by having an exponentially tapered slot profile on it. An optimized computer-aided design has been developed and simulated for the desired radiation parameters like voltage standing wave ratio, bandwidth, directionality, beam-width, etc. The optimized design has been fabricated and tested. Wherever the results are not found as desired; problem has been comprehensively investigated and analyzed. This is found associated with a discontinuity at feed line, fabrication tolerance constraints and parasitic capacitance at the edges or the bent of the microstrip feedline which introduce the parasitic reactance in antenna design. Here, the presented work explores a generalized theoretical procedure for the compensation of associated problem by incorporating the reactive patch on the feedline. The developed theory is applied in fabrication and tested for the desired results.

A northern feature, that is most likely related to a counterjet, was found on parsec scales in 3C 84 (which is in NGC 1275) in “First Science” observations on the VLBA1 at 8.4 GHz (Walker et al., 1994) and in Global VLBI observations at 22 GHz (Vermeulen et al., 1994). The jet/counterjet length ratio, brightness ratio at 22 GHz, and speeds, as measured over many years with VLBI, fit a simple beaming model with symmetric jets oriented at 30–50 degrees to the line-of-sight and traveling at a speed of 0.3–0.5 times the speed of light. These ranges allow for Hubble constants of between 50 and 100 km s–1 Mpc–1. The brightness of the counterjet at 8.4 GHz was very much lower than expected with this model, assuming that the spectral indices in the near and far side jets are similar. This was interpreted as the result of free-free absorption in an ionized medium that lies in front of the counterjet but not in front of the near-side jet. An accretion disk or torus has an appropriate geometry to show this effect (for an analysis, see Levinson et al., 1995).

Using phase-referencing, the coherent integration time of VLBI observations can be substantially increased, permitting observations of weaker (≃mJy) target sources (see e.g. Beasley & Conway 1995). The position of a source can also be accurately measured relative to a reference source, allowing absolute and proper-motion measurements, optical-radio image alignment, and alignment of images made at different frequencies.

An unusual counterjet feature was discovered in 3C 84, the compact radio nucleus of NGC 1275, in the “First Science” observations on the VLBA at 8.4 GHz (Walker et al., 1994), and simultaneously in Global VLBI observations at 22 GHz (Vermeulen et al., 1994). Comparison of these images indicated a strongly inverted spectrum in this feature, but the interpretation was clouded by the two-year difference between the epochs of observation. To resolve this ambiguity, and to study the spectrum of the counterjet, we exploited the capabilities of the VLBA to make nearly simultaneous observations of 3C 84 at 2.3, 5.0, 8.4, 15.4, 22, and 43 GHz, in four apparitions over a 16-day period in January 1995. These observations also served to continue structural monitoring programs at 15 and 22 GHz. This paper presents preliminary images from those observations. A companion contribution by Walker et al. (1995) discusses the interpretation of the images.

VLBA observations of the two-sided emission structures in 3C 84 have been used to study the ionized gas in the vicinity of the presumed accretion disk on parsec scales. Strong free-free absorption is seen with a radial gradient, but only upper limits have been obtained on a stimulated recombination line at 23 GHz.

We report on proper motions in the core, jet, and counter-jet of 3C 84, monitored by the VLBA at 2cm and 7mm.

Multi-frequency VLBA observations were used to study the magnitude and radial dependence of free-free absorption of the radio emission from the counterjet in 3C 84.

During quasi-periodic flux variations, the core of this galactic superluminal source shows: (a) a flat radio spectrum between 13cm and 2cm; (b) elongation of the core along the axis of arcsecond-scale ejecta; (c) a time-delay of ~4 mins at 3.6cm, relative to 2cm; (d) progressively less variation of the flux at 2cm, 3.6cm & 13cm; and (e) scatter-broadening to 1.9mas at 8.4GHz (135mas at 1GHz).

Two-hundred MRSA strains from inpatients with healthcare-associated (HA) and 100 MRSA strains from outpatients with community-associated (CA) skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) were tested for antimicrobial susceptibility, staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) typing, Panton–Valentine leucocidin (PVL) toxin, seh and arcA genes. Based on SCCmec typing, HA-MRSA isolates were further divided into HA-SCCmec I/II/III MRSA and HA-SCCmec IV/V MRSA, and CA-MRSA isolates into CA-SCCmec I/II/III MRSA and CA-SCCmec IV/V MRSA. SCCmec types were further characterized by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, spa typing and multi-locus sequence typing. Seventy-five (37·5%) HA-MRSA isolates and 83/100 CA-MRSA isolates were SCCmec IV/V genotype. HA-SCCmec IV/V MRSA was associated with malignancy (P = 0·03) and bone fractures (P = 0·02) compared to CA-SCCmec IV/V MRSA. HA-SCCmec IV/V MRSA was associated with PVL gene carriage compared to HA-SCCmec I/II/III MRSA (P < 0·001). ST22-MRSA-IV (EMRSA-15), ST772-MRSA-V, and ST36-MRSA-IV and ST239:EMRSA-I:III were the major clones identified. Our study documents the emergence of SCCmec IV and SCCmec V MRSA clones in an Indian hospital.

Electronic textiles offer possibilities for producing large-area sensors circuits on conformal substrates. To demonstrate this concept, a 5×4 element acoustic array was produced on a 3m × 1m fabric substrate. In the course of fabricating the acoustic array a variety of production issues were identified that impacted the performance of the prototype when experimental tests were carried out with this prototype acoustic array. Fabric-based acoustic array design and production, along with design issues related to scaling an acoustic array to handle larger numbers of microphones on large-area fabrics, are the focus of this paper.

Electrotextiles have attracted increasing attention in recent years. The combinations of textile structures that are lightweight, flexible, conformable, and strong, with electronics have aroused keen interest from many disciplines. With technological innovations appearing in both textile and electronics, integration of these has started giving benefits. Innovations like the sensate liner, soft switches and smart composites have found many applications in sports, healthcare, military, aerospace engineering, civil engineering and many other fields. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of various electrotextile products available and explain their functionality. Additionally, the paper provides a review of future electrotextile products, which are in the developmental phase, and the challenges that need to be addressed by researchers and industry.

Weaving, knitting or placing electronic circuits within a textile matrix offer exciting possibilities for large-scale conformal circuits where the circuit dimensions can be measured on the scale of yards instead of inches. However, compared with conventional printed circuit board circuits, the textile manufacturing process and the electrical/mechanical properties of the fibers used in making the textile place unusual constraints on the electrical performance of textile circuits. In the case of distributed sensors connected via an electronic fabric, signal attenuation and the ability to form reliable interconnections are major challenges. To explore these challenges we have woven and knitted a variety of electrical transmission lines and optical fibers in fabrics to analyze their performance. The formation of interconnects and disconnects between conductors woven in textiles is also discussed, and a passive acoustic array is described as a possible electronic textile application.

This paper describes the development of woven electrical circuits, which are formed by interlacing conducting and non-conducting threads into a woven fabric. Conductive threads in these electrical networks are arranged and woven such that they follow desired electrical circuit designs. Electronic devices can be attached to these electrical networks, which can serve as flexible circuit boards. In these woven circuits, an efficient transfer of current from one conductive yarn to an orthogonal one is achieved by the formation of an effective electrical interconnect at the point of intersection of these yarns. Formation of woven conductive networks also involves disconnect formation or cutting of conductive yarns at certain specified points. Different methods and processes were identified and applied in order to form interconnects and disconnects at specified points of these fabrics. Efficacy of these interconnects was evaluated by DC resistance and AC Signal measurements. The results of these evaluations are reported. The conductive threads woven into these fabric-based circuits were also evaluated for signal integrity issues.

Metallic and semi-conducting nano-particles were incorporated into and on the surface of optical fibers to form sensors and other optoelectronic devices on standard telecommunications grade optical fibers. Optical fibers provide a macroscopic platform to exploit the wide range of functionality inherent in nanostructures and nano-particles. Several ways of forming sensitive and robust chemical sensors, based on plasmon resonances of metallic islands and nano-particles, were demonstrated. These nano-particles were formed on tip or surface of the optical fibers by thermal or plasma arc annealing of very thin (4 -12 nm) gold films, that were deposited by electron beam deposition and sputtering. Development of in-line optical fiber structures, involving single mode or multimode optical fibers fused to an arrangement of coreless and graded index fibers, was also carried out. This enabled light propagating in the core of the optical fiber to expand to the surface of the coreless fiber and to effectively interact with nano-particles on the surface and the environment. Metallic and semiconducting nano-particles were also incorporated inside an optical fiber matrix and this could enable us to effectively characterize novel materials and possibly form optical switches. Moreover, these optical fiber sensors and devices were integrated into textile structures to explore the possibility of formation of optoelectronic textiles.