Search

Deep-brain Magnetic Stimulation (DMS) is a noninvasive brain modulation method that improves hippocampal neural activity. The frequency of DMS has a significant effect on the hippocampal induced electric field. In this paper, we investigate the relationship between stimulation frequency and DMS-induced hippocampal electric field. The frequency sensitivity and distribution uniformity of the hippocampal electric field are calculated to quantify this relationship. The results show that the DMS-induced hippocampal electric field has a frequency-dependent property. The frequency sensitivity of the DMS-induced hippocampal electric field in the high frequency band is lower than that in the low frequency band, which corresponds to the low-pass filtering property of the neuron membrane. The frequency sensitivity of DMS-induced hippocampal electric field is highest in the range of 30–40 Hz. The uniformity of the hippocampal electric field induced by a single coil also reaches the highest in the range of 30–40 Hz, while uniformity of the hippocampal electric field induced by multiple-coil increases with increasing frequency. The frequency-dependent property of the DMS-induced hippocampal electric field is positively correlated with the quantity and size of coils, while negatively correlated with the spacing of the coils. This study is of great help in the selection of DMS frequencies and the design of coils.

The effect of minor additions of substitutional elements such as Al, Cu, Mn, and Fe on the room-temperature (RT) and elevated-temperature hardness of a single bcc phase Hf20Nb31Ta31Ti18 refractory high entropy alloy is studied here. Interestingly, 2.5 at. % nominal addition of Fe hardened the base Hf20Nb31Ta31Ti18 alloy in the temperature range from RT to 800 °C, while the same nominal content of addition of Al, Cu, and Mn softened the base alloy from RT to 1000 °C. Regardless of solid solution hardening or solid solution softening, the hardness variation with temperature essentially showed the same three-stage pattern for all studied alloys here: a temperature-dependent decrease in hardness below 300 °C/400 °C, followed by a temperature-independent hardness plateau between 300/400 and 800 °C, and finally a temperature-dependent decrease in hardness at temperatures higher than 800 °C. The mechanism for solid solution hardening or softening in bcc-structured refractory high entropy alloys is discussed, together with their temperature dependence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]