Surface-emitting circular DFB, disk-, and ring-Bragg resonator lasers with chirped gratings. III: gain saturation effects and above-threshold analysis.
As Part III of this series, this paper focuses on an above-threshold modal analysis which includes gain saturation effects in the surface-emitting chirped circular grating lasers. We derive an exact energy relation which states that, in steady state, the net power generated in the gain medium is equal to the sum of peripheral leakage power and vertical emission power. This relation is particularly useful in checking the accuracy of numerical mode solving. Numerical simulations demonstrate the dependence of required pump level on the vertical emission power and compare the laser threshold and energy conversion efficiency under uniform, Gaussian, and annular pump profiles. A larger overlap between the pump profile and modal intensity distribution leads to a lower threshold and a higher energy conversion efficiency. Finally the dependence of required pump level on device sizes offers us new design guidelines of these lasers for single-mode, high-efficiency, high-power applications.

title: Surface-emitting circular DFB, disk- and ring- Bragg resonator lasers with chirped gratings: a unified theory and comparative study.
abstract: We have developed a theory that unifies the analysis of the modal properties of surface-emitting chirped circular grating lasers. This theory is based on solving the resonance conditions which involve two types of reflectivities of chirped circular gratings. This approach is shown to be in agreement with previous derivations which use the characteristic equations. Utilizing this unified analysis, we obtain the modal properties of circular DFB, disk-, and ring- Bragg resonator lasers. We also compare the threshold gain, single mode range, quality factor, emission efficiency, and modal area of these types of circular grating lasers. It is demonstrated that, under similar conditions, disk Bragg resonator lasers have the highest quality factor, the highest emission efficiency, and the smallest modal area, indicating their suitability in low-threshold, high-efficiency, ultracompact laser design, while ring Bragg resonator lasers have a large single mode range, high emission efficiency, and large modal area, indicating their suitability for high-efficiency, large-area, high-power applications.

title: Adiabaticity criterion and the shortest adiabatic mode transformer in a coupled-waveguide system.
abstract: By analyzing the propagating behavior of the supermodes in a coupled-waveguide system, we have derived a universal criterion for designing adiabatic mode transformers. The criterion relates epsilon, the fraction of power scattered into the unwanted mode, to waveguide design parameters and gives the shortest possible length of an adiabatic mode transformer, which is approximately 2/piepsilon1/2 times the distance of maximal power transfer between the waveguides. The results from numerical calculations based on a transfer-matrix formalism support this theory very well.

title: Influence of N-substituent and solvent on internal conversion in 1-aminonaphthalenes.
abstract: N-Methyl-N-methoxycarbonylmethyl-1-aminonaphthalene (MMAN) and N,N-dimethoxycarbonylmethyl-1-aminonaphthalene (DCAN) were synthesized and their fluorescence and absorption spectra in solvents of varied polarity were investigated and compared to those of 1-dimethylaminonaphthylene (DMAN). The data were discussed in terms of the N-substitution effects on the internal conversion (IC). Results showed that the IC was enhanced when the N-methyl group in DMAN was replaced by N-CH2CO2CH3.

title: Design of fluorescent self-assembled multilayers and interfacial sensing for organophosphorus pesticides.
abstract: This paper details the fabrication of indole (ID) self-assembled multilayers (SAMs) and fluorescence interfacial sensing for organophosphorus (OP) pesticides. Quartz/APES/AuNP/L-Cys/ID film was constructed on L-cysteine modified Quartz/APES/AuNP surface via electrostatic attraction between ID and L-cysteine. Cyclic voltammetry indicates that ID is immobilized successfully on the gold surface. Fluorescence of the Quartz/APES/AuNP/L-Cys/ID film shows sensitive response toward OPs. The fluorescent sensing conditions of the SAMs are optimized that allow linear fluorescence response for methylparathion and monocrotophos over 5.97 x 10(-7) to 3.51 x 10(-6)gL(-1) and 3.98 x 10(-6) to 3.47 x 10(-5)gL(-1), with detection limit of 6.1 x 10(-8)gL(-1) and 3.28 x 10(-6)gL(-1), respectively. Compared to bulk phase detection, interfacial fluorescence sensing based on the SAMs technology shows higher sensitivity by at least 2 order of magnitude.

title: Aspects of endocannabinoid signaling in periimplantation biology
abstract: Physiological roles of endocannabinoids, a group of endogenously produced cannabinoid-like lipid molecules that activate G protein-coupled cannabinoid receptors, are being increasingly appreciated in female reproduction. Adverse effects of cannabinoids on female fertility have been suspected for decades; however, underlying molecular and genetic bases by which they exert these effects were not clearly understood. The discovery of cannabinoid receptors (CB1 and CB2), endocannabinoid ligands (anandamide and 2-acylglycerol) as well as their key synthetic and hydrolytic pathways has helped to better understand the roles of cannabinoid/endocannabinoid signaling in preimplantation embryo development, oviductal embryo transport, embryo implantation and postimplantation embryonic growth. This review focuses on various aspects of the endocannabinoid system in female fertility based on studies that used knockout mouse models. The information generated from studies in mice is likely to shed deeper insight into fertility regulation in women.

title: N-terminal domains of DELLA proteins are intrinsically unstructured in the absence of interaction with GID1/gibberellic acid receptors.
abstract: The plant growth-repressing DELLA proteins (DELLAs) are known to represent a convergence point in integration of multiple developmental and environmental signals in planta, one of which is hormone gibberellic acid (GA). Binding of the liganded GA receptor (GID1/GA) to the N-terminal domain of DELLAs is required for GA-induced degradation of DELLAs via the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway, thus derepressing plant growth. However, the conformational changes of DELLAs upon binding to GID1/GA, which are the key to understanding the precise mechanism of GID1/GA-mediated degradation of DELLAs, remain unclear. Using biophysical, biochemical, and bioinformatics approaches, we demonstrated for the first time that the unbound N-terminal domains of DELLAs are intrinsically unstructured proteins under physiological conditions. Within the intrinsically disordered N-terminal domain of DELLAs, we have identified several molecular recognition features, sequences known to undergo disorder-to-order transitions upon binding to interacting proteins in intrinsically unstructured proteins. In accordance with the molecular recognition feature analyses, we have observed the binding-induced folding of N-terminal domains of DELLAs upon interaction with AtGID1/GA. Our results also indicate that DELLA proteins can be divided into two subgroups in terms of their molecular compactness and their interactions with monoclonal antibodies.

title: Intramuscular delivery of antiangiogenic genes suppresses secondary metastases after removal of primary tumors
abstract: The success of surgery to remove primary tumors can be compromised by the subsequent outgrowth of metastases. It is recognized that primary tumors secrete antiangiogenic factors that suppress the outgrowth of their daughter metastases. In accord we show here that surgical removal of primary EL-4 lymphomas led to a marked decrease in the levels of circulating angiostatin and endostatin, and promoted the growth of distant nodular tumors. Expression vectors encoding angiostatin and endostatin, formulated with poly-N-vinyl pyrrolidone (PVP), were injected into the tibialis and gastrocnemia muscles, leading to expression of angiostatin and endostatin in muscle fibers. High levels of biologically active exogenous proteins were secreted into the circulation. Intramuscular gene therapy with angiostatin and endostatin plasmids significantly inhibited tumor vascularity and induced tumor cell apoptosis, and thereby suppressed the growth of secondary subcutaneous and disseminated metastatic tumors in the lung and liver. Simultaneous intramuscular delivery of both angiostatin and endostatin plasmids significantly prolonged the survival of mice after removal of primary tumors. These results suggest that intramuscular gene transfer of angiostatin and endostatin might serve as a prophylactic cancer-prevention strategy to combat the recurrence of cancer after surgical resection of primary tumors.