Duty-related risk of sudden cardiac death among young US firefighters.

BACKGROUND: Little is known regarding duty-related risks for sudden cardiac death (SCD) among young firefighters. AIMS: To investigate duty-related SCD among US firefighters aged 45 or younger. METHODS: We collected data on duty-related SCD from the US Fire Administration (USFA) and the US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Two physicians independently reviewed each record. The proportions of time spent by firefighters performing specific duties were estimated from a municipal department, 17 large metropolitan departments and a national database. We estimated the duty-specific relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) of SCD relative to non-emergency duties based on the observed deaths and the expected average proportions of time per duty. RESULTS: The USFA recorded 205 age-eligible on-duty SCDs between 1996 and 2012; 86 (42%) of these deaths and one additional SCD were investigated by NIOSH (total n = 206). NIOSH was more likely (P < 0.001) to report on SCD associated with physical training (69% of cases were investigated) and fire suppression (57%). Compared with non-emergency duties, the risk of SCD was increased for fire suppression (RR 22.1, 95% CI 14.8-32.9), alarm response (RR 2.6, 95% CI 1.5-4.6), alarm return (RR 4.1, 95% CI 2.7-6.2) and physical training (RR 4.8, 95% CI 3.2-7.2). RRs for SCD were higher among firefighters with a pre-existing history of a cardiac condition. All 16 SCDs associated with alarm response occurred among volunteer firefighters. CONCLUSIONS: The performance of strenuous emergency duties is strongly associated with an increased risk of SCD among young firefighters, particularly among those with a history of cardiovascular disease.

Higher-order suppression in diffraction-grating monochromators using thin films.

Although a continuously tuneable source of photons is a very desirable feature of synchrotron radiation it has one main drawback: the contamination of the photon beam by higher-order diffracted light. Several elements have absorption edges which lie between 10 and 200 eV, a range prone to high second- and third-order content in XUV monochromators. They can, therefore, be used as transmission filters to reduce this higher-order content. This paper describes the use of thin filters to reduce the higher-order content in diffraction-grating monochromators. Their suppression efficiency, transmission and ageing have been characterized using photoelectron spectroscopy and compared with calculated values. The effect of oxide contamination on their performance has been assessed. Filters are now installed on eight XUV beamlines and have been in routine use for several years.

Development of high-throughput flexible multichannel electron detectors at Daresbury Laboratory.

Continuing demands from Synchrotron Radiation Source (SRS) end-users for higher throughput and improved reliability in photoelectron spectroscopy experiments have driven an intensive development programme for new multichannel electron detectors. The development philosophy focuses on high throughput to match present and future source intensity, flexible structures to allow increased mobility of designs and modular design for easy maintenance and repair. Developments include parallel readout electronics and innovative detector heads for the hemispherical deflection analysers currently in use on the SRS. Novel anode arrays have been implemented in the detector heads and extensive microchannel plate (MCP) characterization has been undertaken to source the MCPs most suited to this application. The present multichannel detection systems provide a significant enhancement to single-channel detection systems. They have also surpassed previous multichannel detection systems due to their high throughput, flexible structure and modular design. Information on these developments and experimental results obtained at Daresbury Laboratory are presented.

Resonant photoemission from complex cuprates and nickelates.

Synchrotron-excited resonant-photoemission measurements at rare-earth 4d --> 4f and transition-metal 3p --> 3d thresholds have been carried out using a variety of complex cuprates and nickelates on stations 6.1 (grazing-incidence monochromator) and 6.2 (toroidal-grating monochromator) at the SRS CLRC Daresbury Laboratory. The systems studied are Nd(2)Ni(1 - x)Cu(x)O(4), La(2 - x)Sr(x)Ni(1- y)Fe(y)O(4 + delta) and Bi(2)Sr(2)Ca(1 - x)Y(x)Cu(2)O(8 + delta). A combination of EDC and constant-initial-state data is used to examine the 4f and 3d contributions to the valence-band density of states and their binding-energy positions relative to the Fermi energy. This allows the study of the valence states of the transition-metal ions and their modulation on doping. For La(2 - x)Sr(x)Ni(1 - y)Fe(y)O(4 + delta), this approach is used to infer a valence state of >/= 3.0 for Fe. In the case of Bi(2)Sr(2)Ca(1 - x)Y(x)Cu(2)O(8 + delta), the effect of Cu valence modulation on the 3p resonance is observed as x is varied. This is discussed in the light of controversy surrounding shifts in core-level photoemission with doping for this system.