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- Feroci, M., et al.
(författare)
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The large observatory for x-ray timing
- 2014
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Ingår i: Proceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering. - : SPIE. - 9780819496126
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Large Observatory For x-ray Timing (LOFT) was studied within ESA M3 Cosmic Vision framework and participated in the final downselection for a launch slot in 2022-2024. Thanks to the unprecedented combination of effective area and spectral resolution of its main instrument, LOFT will study the behaviour of matter under extreme conditions, such as the strong gravitational field in the innermost regions of accretion flows close to black holes and neutron stars, and the supranuclear densities in the interior of neutron stars. The science payload is based on a Large Area Detector (LAD, 10 m2 effective area, 2-30 keV, 240 eV spectral resolution, 1° collimated field of view) and a Wide Field Monitor (WFM, 2-50 keV, 4 steradian field of view, 1 arcmin source location accuracy, 300 eV spectral resolution). The WFM is equipped with an on-board system for bright events (e.g. GRB) localization. The trigger time and position of these events are broadcast to the ground within 30 s from discovery. In this paper we present the status of the mission at the end of its Phase A study.
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- Feroci, M., et al.
(författare)
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LOFT - The large observatory for x-ray timing
- 2012
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Ingår i: Proceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering. - : SPIE - International Society for Optical Engineering. - 9780819491442 ; , s. 84432D-
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The LOFT mission concept is one of four candidates selected by ESA for the M3 launch opportunity as Medium Size missions of the Cosmic Vision programme. The launch window is currently planned for between 2022 and 2024. LOFT is designed to exploit the diagnostics of rapid X-ray flux and spectral variability that directly probe the motion of matter down to distances very close to black holes and neutron stars, as well as the physical state of ultradense matter. These primary science goals will be addressed by a payload composed of a Large Area Detector (LAD) and a Wide Field Monitor (WFM). The LAD is a collimated (<1 degree field of view) experiment operating in the energy range 2-50 keV, with a 10 m2 peak effective area and an energy resolution of 260 eV at 6 keV. The WFM will operate in the same energy range as the LAD, enabling simultaneous monitoring of a few-steradian wide field of view, with an angular resolution of <5 arcmin. The LAD and WFM experiments will allow us to investigate variability from submillisecond QPO's to yearlong transient outbursts. In this paper we report the current status of the project.
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- Larsson, Malin K., et al.
(författare)
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Endocardial border delineation capability of a multimodal polymer-shelled contrast agent
- 2014
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- BackgroundA novel polymer-shelled contrast agent (CA) with high mechanical and chemical stability was recently developed [1]. In excess to its ultrasound properties, it also supports targeted and multimodal imaging [2-4]. Even though these new possibilities have the potential to lead to new methodologies and approaches for non-invasive diagnosis, it is important that the fundamental diagnostic features in contrast-enhanced ultrasound are preserved. The aim of this study was therefore to examine the clinical use of the polymer-shelled CA by analyzing the left ventricular endocardial border delineation capability in a porcine model. In addition, physiological effects due to CA injections were studied.MethodsThe endocardial border delineation capability was assessed in a comparative study, which included three doses (1.5 ml, 3 ml and 5 ml, [5x108 MBs/ml]) of the polymer-shelled CA and the commercially available CA SonoVue® (1.5 ml, [2-5x108 MBs/ml]). Ultrasound images of the left ventricle were evaluated manually by blinded observers (n=3) according to a 6-segment model, in which each segment was graded as 0=not visible, 1=barely visible or 2=well visible, as well as semi-automatically by a segmentation software. Furthermore, duration of clinically useful contrast enhancement and changes in physiological parameters were evaluated.ResultsFor the highest dose of the polymer-shelled CA, the obtained segment scores, time for clinically sufficient contrast enhancement and semi-automatic delineation capability were comparable to SonoVue®. Moreover, neither dose of the polymer-shelled CA did affect the physiological parameters.ConclusionThis study demonstrated that the polymer-shelled CA can be used in contrast-enhanced diagnostic imaging without influence on major physiological parameters.
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