Tools for creating wide-field views of the human retina using Optical Coherence Tomography

Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) has allowed in-vivo viewing of details of retinal layers like never before. With the development of spectral domain OCT (SD-OCT) details of nearly 2µm axial resolution and higher imaging speed have been reported. Nevertheless, a single volume scan of the retina is typically restricted to 6mm x 6mm in size. Having a larger field of view of the retina will definitely enhance the clinical utility of the OCT. A tool was developed for creating wide-field thickness maps of the retina by combining the use of already available tools like i2k Retina (DualAlign, LLC, Clifton Park, NY) and the thickness maps from Cirrus HD-OCT research browser (Carl Zeiss Meditec, Dublin, California, USA). Normal subjects (n=20) were imaged on Zeiss Cirrus HD-OCT using 512x128 Macular Cube scanning protocol. Sixteen overlapping volumetric images were obtained by moving the internal fixation target around such that the final stitched maps were 12mm x 14mm in size. The thickness maps were corrected for inter-individual differences in axial lengths measured using Zeiss IOL Master and averaged to obtain a normative map. An algorithm was also developed for montaging 3-D volume scans. Using this algorithm two OCT volume scans can be registered and stitched together to obtain a larger volume scan. The algorithm can be described as a two step process involving 3-D phase-correlation and 2-D Pseudo-polar Fourier transform (PPFT). In the first step, 3-D phase-correlation provides translation values in the x, y and z axis. The second step involves applying PPFT on each overlapping pair of B-scans to find rotation in the x-y plane. Subsequent volumes can be stitched to obtain a large field of view. We developed a simple and robust method for creating wide-field views of the retina using existing SD-OCT hardware. As segmentation algorithms improve, this method could be expanded to produce wide-field maps of retinal sub-layers, such as the outer nuclear layer or retinal nerve fiber layer. These wide-field views of the retina may prove useful in evaluating retinal diseases involving the peripheral retina (e.g., retinitis pigmentosa and glaucoma)

Optimal anti-ferromagnets for light dark matter detection

We propose anti-ferromagnets as optimal targets to hunt for sub-MeV dark matter with spin-dependent interactions. These materials allow for multi-magnon emission even for very small momentum transfers, and are therefore sensitive to dark matter particles as light as the keV. We use an effective theory to compute the event rates in a simple way. Among the materials studied here, we identify nickel oxide (a well-assessed anti-ferromagnet) as an ideal candidate target. Indeed, the propagation speed of its gapless magnons is very close to the typical dark matter velocity, allowing the absorption of all its kinetic energy, even through the emission of just a single magnon

Magnetic field measurement from the Davis-Chandrasekhar-Fermi method employed with Atomic Alignment

The Davis-Chandrasekhar-Fermi (DCF) method is widely employed to estimate the mean magnetic field strength in astrophysical plasmas. In this study, we present a numerical investigation using the DCF method in conjunction with a promising new diagnostic tool for studying magnetic fields: the polarization of spectral lines resulting from the atomic alignment effect. We obtain synthetic spectro-polarimetry observations from 3D magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence simulations and estimate the mean magnetic field projected onto the plane of the sky using the DCF method with GSA polarization maps and a modification to account for the driving scale of turbulence. We also compare the method to the classical DCF approach using dust polarization observations. Our observations indicate that the modified DCF method correctly estimates the plane-of-sky projected magnetic field strengths for sub-Alfv\'enic turbulence using a newly proposed correction factor of $\xi' \in 0.35 - 0.75$. We find that the field strengths are accurately obtained for all magnetic field inclination and azimuth angles. We also observe a minimum threshold for the mean magnetic field inclination angle with respect to the line of sight, $\theta_B \sim 16^\circ$, for the method. The magnetic field dispersion traced by the polarization from the spectral lines is comparable in accuracy to dust polarization, while mitigating some of the uncertainties associated with dust observations. The measurements of the DCF observables from the same atomic/ionic line targets ensure the same origin for the magnetic field and velocity fluctuations and offer a possibility of tracing the 3D direction of the magnetic field

Photoluminescence and photocatalytic degradation studies on some metallophthalocyanines

This paper deals with the up-conversion intrinsic photoluminescence by exciting the Metallo-Phthalocyanine (MPc) prepared by melt method. MPcs were further characterized using UV visible spectrophotometer, FT-IR, and thermal analysis. The magnetic susceptibility, optical absorption and photoluminescence behavior of these compounds were studied. Photocatalytic degradation of amido black 10B dye using different MPcs at varing pH was done to see the efficiency of these compounds. High emission intensity and easy preparation makes these systems potential candidates for application as luminescent material