Abstract: A method for fabricating a micromirror in a wafer, including the steps of: depositing and etching layers forming two arms; etching the wafer such that in the back face only a thin portion of the wafer remains in the region of formation of the micromirror and the arms; performing an anisotropic etch, such that the thin portion remains only in the areas of the micromirror and the arms; and performing an isotropic etch to remove the thin portions under the arms, the etching step for forming the arms being performed following their shape and so as to form holes traversing the arms, the holes being positioned at edges of the region separating the micromirror and the wafer on both the side of the micromirror and the side of the portions of the wafer remaining after the anisotropic etching step. The invention also concerns the micromirror.

Abstract: This invention relates to the field of multi-objective workflow optimization. Certain exemplary embodiments of the invention are applicable in cases where workflow descriptions contain choice variables relating for instance to the selection of a specific service provider out of several service providers that provide similar services, to the selection of human workers, or to the selection between alternative subworkflows. A binding represents a combination of choices, binding the choice variables to specific values. Bindings induce specific cost and/or quality properties to the workflow, a binding being Pareto-optimal if no other binding exists that is at least as good for every cost and/or quality property and better for at least one property.

Abstract: The invention relates to new proteins called alkylcytosine transferases (ACTs) derived from O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase, and to substrates for ACTs specifically transferring a label to these ACTs and to fusion proteins comprising these. The substrates according of the invention are substituted cytosines of formula (I) wherein R1 is an aromatic or a heteroaromatic group, or an optionally substituted unsaturated alkyl, cycloalkyl or heterocyclyl group with the double bond connected to OCH2—; R2 is a linker; and L is a label or a plurality of same or different labels. The invention further relates to methods of transferring label L from these substrates of formula (I) to ACTs and ACT fusion proteins. The system of ACT-compound of formula (I) is particularly suitable for double labelling studies together with the known system O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase (AGT)-benzylguanines.

Abstract: The invention relates to a system and a method for assessment of walking and miming gait in human. The method is preferably based on the fusion of a portable device featuring inertial sensors and several new dedicated signal processing algorithms: the detection of specific temporal events and parameters, 5 optimized fusion and de-drifted integration of inertial signals, automatic and online virtual alignment of sensors module, 3D foot kinematics estimation, a kinematic model for automatic online heel and toe position estimation, and finally the extraction of relevant and clinically meaning-full outcome parameters. Advantageously including at least one wireless inertial module attached to foot, the system provides common spatio-temporal parameters (gait cycle time, stride length, and stride velocity), with the 10 advantage of being able to work in unconstrained condition such as during turning or running.

Abstract: A method and device for predicting faults in a distributed heterogeneous IT system (100), the method comprising: creating a local checkpoint (19) in an explorer node (10) of said system (100), said local checkpoint (19) reflecting the state of said explorer node (10); running a path exploration engine (14) on said local checkpoint (19) in order to predict faults, wherein a plurality of possible inputs (71) are used by said exploration engine (14) in order to explore different paths, wherein path exploration comprises sending messages to remote client nodes (20), and receiving messages from said remote clients (20); wherein said received messages do not reveal checkpoints of said other nodes, so as to avoid leakage of any confidential information.

Abstract: A dye sensitized solar cell, comprising a heteroleptic polypyridil complex of Ru, Os or Fe. The donating ligand has an extended conjugated ?-system increasing the light absorbance and keeing the LUMO energy level higher than that of the anchoring ligand. A compacting compound whose molecular structure comprises a terminal group, a hydrophobic part and an anchoring group may be co-adsorbed together with the dye on the semi-conductive metal oxide layer of the photoanode, forming a dense mixed self-assembled monolayer.

Abstract: The present invention relates to methods and neuronal cellular preparations allowing monitoring intracellular and transcellular molecular events on both short and long timescales in an ex vivo neuronal network of intact post-mitotic neurons. In particular, the invention relates to methods, kits, genetically engineered neuronal cells, preparations and uses thereof allowing the ex vivo monitoring of early neuronal disease-related changes in neuronal network behavior.

Abstract: In a view, e.g. of scenery, of a shopping or museum display, or of a meeting or conference, automated processing can be used to annotate objects which are visible from a viewer position. Annotation can be of objects selected by the viewer, and can be displayed visually, for example, with or without an image of the view.

Abstract: A Semiconductor device including, on at least one surface of a layer made of a crystalline semiconductor material of a certain type of conductivity, a layer made of an amorphous semiconductor material, doped with a type of conductivity opposite to the type of conductivity of the crystalline semiconductor material layer, characterized in that the concentration of the doping elements in the amorphous semiconductor layer varies gradually.

Abstract: An event-driven tracking analog to digital converter (ADC) architecture is proposed. The proposed architecture has less sensitivity to amplifier and DAC non-linearity, reduces the swing and dynamic common-mode range requirement of the operational transconductance amplifier (OTA) and comparators, respectively.

Abstract: The invention relates to a device (1) for forming droplets in a microfluidic circuit, the device comprising a chamber (3) containing a first fluid and defined by two opposite walls (10, 11) that diverge relative to each other in at least one given direction, and a microchannel (8) containing a second fluid and leading into a zone of said chamber (3) that is upstream relative to the given direction, the outlet of the microchannel (8) into the chamber (3) constituting an enlargement in the flow section for the second fluid, and the enlargement giving rise to droplets (14) of the second fluid forming within the first fluid.

Abstract: A spectroscopic polarimetric system of broad spectral range, includes a light source suitable for emitting an incident light beam over a wavelength range, a polarization state generator (PSG), a polarization state analyzer (PSA), and a detector. The PSG and the PSA have respective elements for modulating the polarization of the light beam. The elements of the PSG for modulating polarization are suitable for generating a sequence of m polarization states with m>4 at each measurement wavelength, the elements of the PSA for modulating polarization are suitable for determining a sequence of n polarization states with n>4 for each measurement wavelength, and the detector elements are suitable for acquiring a sequence of N measurements with 16<N?n×m at each wavelength to extract therefrom a polarimetric spectroscopic measurement of the Mueller matrix of the sample. An extended spectroscopic polarimetric measurement method is also described.

Abstract: A method for cleaning the surface of a silicon substrate, covered by a layer of silicon oxide includes: a) exposing the surface for 60 to 900 seconds to a radiofrequency plasma, generated from a fluorinated gas, to strip the silicon oxide layer and induce the adsorption of fluorinated elements on the substrate surface, the power density generated using the plasma being 10 mW/cm2 to 350 mW/cm2, the fluorinated gas pressure being 10 mTorrs to 200 mTorrs, and the substrate temperature being lower than or equal to 300° C.; and b) exposing the surface including the fluorinated elements for 5 to 120 seconds to a hydrogen radiofrequency plasma, to remove the fluorinated elements from the substrate surface, the power density generated using the plasma being 10 mW/cm2 to 350 mW/cm2, the hydrogen pressure being 10 mTorrs to 1 Torr, and the substrate temperature being lower than or equal to 300° C.

Abstract: The present invention relates to amorphous transition metal sulphides as electrocatalysts for hydrogen production from water or aqueous solutions and use thereof in electrodes and electrolysers.

Abstract: An optical device for measuring the transmission and diffusion of a tissue of the front segment of an eye, includes: a light source; an optical collimation system for directing the collimated light beam towards a tissue of the front segment of an eye to be characterized; an optical mire placed on the optical path between the optical collimation system and the tissue; an optical imaging system capable of receiving a light beam transmitted by the mire and the tissue and capable of forming an image of the mire on an image detector; and an image processing system capable of calculating a modulation transfer function for the tissue from an image of the mire through the ocular medium. The optical mire includes a set of alternately light and dark angular sectors radially distributed from a central point. Different image processing methods for extracting a function representing the transmission and diffusion characteristics of the tissue are described.

Abstract: Method for estimating and correcting a frequency offset between a local clock of a receiving transceiver and a remote clock of an emitting transceiver comprises receiving by said receiving transceiver, a signal emitted by the emitting transceiver, said signal lacking a continuous sinusoidal carrier and having at least one symbol, each symbol being emitted within a time frame having a first duration; sampling the signal by taking for each time frame a set of energy measurements of said signal; forming a matrix representative of said energy measurements; determining from said energy matrix, points of maximum of energy within each time frame; determining a line connecting a plurality of said points within each of said time frames; determining a slope of said line; calculating a frequency offset between the clocks of the emitting and receiving transceivers using the slope; and adjusting the receiving transceiver's clock frequency according to the frequency offset.

Abstract: A digital filter bank having a number J?1 of stages is disclosed. For each integer j such that 1?j?J, the j-th stage includes a plurality of filtering units (20, 21) each receiving an input signal of the j-th stage. These filtering units include a low-pass filtering unit (20) using real filtering coefficients and at least one band-pass filtering unit (21) using complex filtering coefficients. Following each band-pass filtering unit of the j-th stage, a respective modulus processing unit (25) generates a processed real signal as a function of squared moduli of complex output values of the band-pass filtering unit. The input signal of the first stage is a digital signal supplied to the digital filter bank, while for 1<j?J, the input signal of the j-th stage includes the processed real signal generated by at least one modulus processing unit of the (j?1)-th stage.

Abstract: The present invention discloses a method to improve the image resolution of a microscope. This improvement is based on the mathematical processing of the complex field computed from the measurements with a microscope of the wave emitted or scattered by the specimen. This wave is, in a preferred embodiment, electromagnetic or optical for an optical microscope, but can be also of different kind like acoustical or matter waves. The disclosed invention makes use of the quantitative phase microscopy techniques known in the sate of the art or to be invented.

Abstract: A method is described of depositing film of an amorphous or microcrystalline material, for example silicon, from a plasma on to a substrate. Microwave energy is introduced into a chamber as a sequence of discrete microwave pulses, a film precursors gas is introduced into the chamber as a sequence of discrete gas pulses, and gas for generating atomic hydrogen is supplied to the chamber at least during each microwave pulse. Each microwave pulse is followed in non-overlapping fashion with a precursor gas pulse, and each precursor gas pulse is followed by a period during which there is neither a microwave pulse nor a precursor gas pulse.

Abstract: The present invention concerns a receiver and a method for retrieving data from Ultra wideband radio transmission signals received by a receiver and transmitted in packets containing at least a preamble known to the receiver and a payload containing data unknown to the receiver. The payload data is formed of at least one burst containing at least one pulse. The method comprises the steps of receiving a signal corresponding to the preamble of a packet by a receiver; determining the energy of the received signal; determining weighting coefficients from the energy of the received signal; receiving a signal corresponding to the payload of a packet by a receiver; determining the energy of the received signal; calculating a threshold depending on the weighting coefficients; and applying a decision rule based on the sampled energy, weighted by said weighting coefficients and depending on said calculated threshold.