Abstract Purpose Gamma Knife radiosurgery (GKRS) is a precise and efficacious treatment modality for vestibular schwannoma (VS) with favorable cranial nerve preservation rates. This study aims to better characterize facial nerve (FN) outcomes in VS after GKRS. Methods A query of six medical databases was conducted following PRISMA guidelines. Eligible studies exclusively reported VS managed with single-fraction GKRS and included House-Brackmann (HB) scale assessments prior to and following GKRS. Data was analyzed using random-effects modeling, and FN preservation was defined as HB I or II at last follow-up. Results Data was analyzed from 15 articles with 3,155 patients at an mean age of 55.0 years. Mean tumor volume, radiation dose, follow-up, tumor control, and hearing preservation were 4.28 cm3, 13.3 Gy, 59.4 months, 92.7%, and 62.6%, respectively. The pooled FN preservation rate was 92.9%. Mean preoperative tumor volume > 2.5 cm3 and age > 60 years were significantly associated with worse preoperative FN function (p = 0.019, p = 0.023, respectively). Normal FN function (HB = 1) at last follow up was 95.8% for VS volume < 2.5 cm3 and 89.4% with larger volumes (p < 0.001). Doses ≤ 13 Gy were significantly associated with superior FN preservation (96.5%) compared to higher doses (p < 0.001). Tumor control and hearing preservation were not significantly associated with FN preservation. Conclusion This meta-analysis identifies tumor volume and radiation dose as prognostic factors for FN preservation. A FN preservation rate of 93% may be expected at five years after GKRS. This study provides a unique characterization of FN outcome that should be considered in the management of VS.

• Book : 167(1)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page :
• Keyword :

This article analyzes the propagation of electromagnetic waves in multilayer systems using the transfer matrix method (TMM). Some fundamental optical properties, which include transmittance and reflectance, are examined in dielectric materials and photonic crystals; the influence on radiation propagation associated to some system variables, including the number of layers, their thickness, and stratified deposition, is analyzed. Our main results include the identification of transmission and reflection bands, the influence of the system geometry and periodicity on the optical efficiency, and the viability of the TMM, which can be accomplished by comparing our results with experimental data. In addition, sets of optimal configurations of multilayer systems are presented that show how transmittance is maximized within the optical spectrum. These findings highlight the versatility of the TMM in order to design coatings of high transmittance (or reflectance) and advanced photonic devices, which have several applications, including the areas of photovoltaic cells and optical sensors.

• Book : (70)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.77-100
• Keyword :

• Book : ()
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page :
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ABSTRACTA dry air atmospheric pressure volume dielectric barrier discharge is employed to fix nitrogen in water. Producing nitrate for use as nitrogen fertilizer is the primary motivation. A 0D chemistry model is developed and informed by the electrical, and geometric characteristics of the device and the plasma gas temperature. Modeled ozone and nitrate densities are compared to those measured experimentally in the plasma effluent and treated liquid for a range of gas temperatures. Modeled and measured ozone densities are in good agreement; however, the model lacks the liquid chemistry to properly represent the measured nitrate density. A gas temperature‐based shift from ozone to producing regimes is observed in both experiment and model, and the reactions responsible are evaluated.

• Book : ()
• Pub. Date : 2025
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• Book : 752()
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.151450-151450
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Though extensive experiments have been performed in the past to measure electron emission properties under electron beam bombardment, reliable measured data for clean and smooth surfaces are still lacking for most elemental solids. In this study, we have conducted a comprehensive Monte Carlo simulation to examine electron emission yields, including secondary electron yield (SEY), backscattering coefficient (BSC), and total electron yield (TEY), for germanium. The uncertainties associated with theoretical calculations have also been assessed with a total of 4608 scattering models by considering several dominant factors that can influence the calculated yields, i.e., optical energy loss function dataset, work function data, dielectric function model for electron inelastic scattering, and scattering potential for electron elastic scattering. Our results indicate that the work function value significantly affects the simulated SEY, and the energy loss function dataset and elastic scattering potential moderately influence both SEY and BSC. Our simulated BSC data are somewhat higher than most of the experimental measurements, while the simulated SEY data are mostly lower than the experimental data within the estimated theoretical uncertainty. This study highlights the critical need for establishing an accurate database of electron emission yields using theoretical modeling, considering particularly the unreliability of the previous experimental data caused by surface contamination during measurements.

• Book : 137(6)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page :
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This research note presents the properties of the F(R,T)-gravity model in combination with magnetized strange quark matter. We obtain the equation of state for the magnetized strange quark matter in the F(R,T)-gravity model endowed with the Lagrangian through of Ricci curvature. We also examine the Ricci solitons supported by a time-like conformal vector field in F(R,T)-gravity, attached with magnetized strange quark matter fluid. Within this ongoing research, we give an estimate of the total quark pressure and total density in the phantom barrier and the radiation epochs of the Universe. Finally, using Ricci solitons, we study the various energy conditions, some black holes criteria, and Penrose’s singularity theorem for magnetized strange quark matter fluid spacetime coupled with the F(R,T)-gravity model.

• Book : 13(4)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.586-586
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Melanoma is an aggressive disease that arises from mutations in the cells that produce the pigment melanin, melanocytes. Melanoma is characterized by a high mortality rate, due to avoidance of applied therapies and metastasis to other organs. The peculiar features of boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT), particularly its cell-level selectivity, make BNCT a promising modality for melanoma treatment. However, appropriate cellular models should be used to study new therapies or improve the efficacy of existing therapies. Spheroids, which have been used for years for in vitro studies of the efficacy of anti-cancer therapies, have many characteristics shared with tumors through which they can increase the accuracy of the cellular response compared to 2D culture in vitro studies and reduce the use of animals for research in the future. To the best of our knowledge, when we started researching the use of spheroids in BNCT in vitro, there was no publication showing such use. Our study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of a 3D cellular model (spheroids) for testing BNCT on melanoma cells. We assessed boronophenylalanine (10BPA) uptake using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry in both spheroids and 2D cultures of melanoma and melanocytes. DNA damage, Ki67 protein expression, and spheroid growth were analyzed. The experimental groups included: (1) IR_B (neutron flux + 50 µg 10B/mL), (2) IR (neutron flux alone), (3) C_B (no irradiation, 50 µg 10B/mL), and (4) C (no irradiation and no treatment with boron). The total absorbed doses were estimated to be 2.1–3.1 Gy for IR_B cells and spheroids as well as 8.3–9.4 Gy for IR_B spheroids, while estimated doses for IR cells were 0.5–1.9 Gy. The results indicated that IR_B spheroids might exhibit a reduced diameter. Melanoma cells in the 3D model showed that their DNA damage levels may be higher than those in the 2D model. Moreover, the Ki67 assay revealed differences in the expression of this marker between irradiated melanoma cell lines. In conclusion, preincubation with 10BPA enhances BNCT efficacy, leading to cell growth inhibition and increased DNA fragmentation. Differences in DNA damage between 2D and 3D models may be due to dissimilarities in cell metabolism caused by a changed cell architecture.

• Book : 14(3)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.232-232
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Abstract The mass loss rates of planets undergoing core-powered escape are usually modeled using an isothermal Parker-type wind at the equilibrium temperature, T eq. However, the upper atmospheres of sub-Neptunes may not be isothermal if there are significant differences between the opacity to incident visible and outgoing infrared radiation. We model bolometrically driven escape using AIOLOS, a hydrodynamic radiative-transfer code that incorporates double-gray opacities, to investigate the process’s dependence on the visible-to-infrared opacity ratio, γ. For a value of γ ≈ 1, we find that the resulting mass loss rates are well approximated by a Parker-type wind with an isothermal temperature T = T eq/21/4. However, we show that over a range of physically plausible values of γ, the mass loss rates can vary by orders of magnitude, ranging from 10−5×  the isothermal rate for low γ to 105×  the isothermal rate for high γ. The differences in mass loss rates are largest for small planet radii, while for large planet radii, mass loss rates become nearly independent of γ and approach the isothermal approximation. We incorporate these opacity-dependent mass loss rates into a self-consistent planetary mass and energy evolution model and show that lower/higher γ values lead to more/less hydrogen being retained after core-powered mass loss. In some cases, the choice of opacities determines whether or not a planet can retain a significant primordial hydrogen atmosphere. The dependence of escape rate on the opacity ratio may allow atmospheric escape observations to directly constrain a planet's opacities and therefore its atmospheric composition.

• Book : 980(1)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.152-152
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In high-energy physics, resistive plate chamber (RPC) detectors operating in avalanche mode make use of a high-performance gas mixture. Its main component, Tetrafluoroethane (C2H2F4), is classified as a fluorinated greenhouse gas. The RPC EcoGas@GIF++ collaboration is pursuing an intensive R&D on new gas mixtures for RPCs to explore eco-friendly alternatives complying with recent European regulations. The performance of different RPC detectors has been evaluated at the CERN Gamma Irradiation Facility with Tetrafluoropropene (C3H2F4)-CO2-based gas mixtures. A long-term ageing test campaign was launched in 2022, and since 2023, systematic long-term performance studies have been carried out thanks to dedicated beam tests. The results of these studies are discussed together with their future perspectives.

• Book : 8(1)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.15-15
• Keyword :