Aerosol-assisted chemical vapour deposition of transparent superhydrophobic film by using mixed functional alkoxysilanes

A method for the preparation of transparent superhydrophobic silica coatings on glass substrates via aerosol-assisted chemical vapour deposition (AACVD) is described. A multi-layer process to produce dual scale silica nanoparticles films, by using different functional alkoxysilanes was investigated. A first layer of 3-methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (MPS) and a second layer of tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) were deposited at different temperatures to generate micro and nano particles of silica. Finally, a layer of perfluorooctyltriethoxysilane was deposited on top of the two layers to achieve superhydrophobicity. The transparent superhydrophobic film showed transparency of 90% in the visible light region with a static water contact angle of 165° and a sliding angle lower than 1°. Various durability tests were performed on the transparent superhydrophobic film, showing a constant water repellency after corrosion and organic solvents tests, strong resistance under UV light, and thermal stability up to 400 °C. Sandpaper mechanical robustness durability test showed superhydrophobicity for up to 5 rubbing cycles. In this study, a novel strategy to achieve highly transparent superhydrophobic glass surfaces using AACVD of alkoxysilanes, to produce surfaces with excellent durability is described. This shows great potential to obtain silica superhydrophobic films for large-scale applications

Assessing the Nature of the Distribution of Localised States in Bulk GaAsBi.

A comprehensive assessment of the nature of the distribution of sub band-gap energy states in bulk GaAsBi is presented using power and temperature dependent photoluminescence spectroscopy. The observation of a characteristic red-blue-red shift in the peak luminescence energy indicates the presence of short-range alloy disorder in the material. A decrease in the carrier localisation energy demonstrates the strong excitation power dependence of localised state behaviour and is attributed to the filling of energy states furthest from the valence band edge. Analysis of the photoluminescence lineshape at low temperature presents strong evidence for a Gaussian distribution of localised states that extends from the valence band edge. Furthermore, a rate model is employed to understand the non-uniform thermal quenching of the photoluminescence and indicates the presence of two Gaussian-like distributions making up the density of localised states. These components are attributed to the presence of microscopic fluctuations in Bi content, due to short-range alloy disorder across the GaAsBi layer, and the formation of Bi related point defects, resulting from low temperature growth

Service user involvement in clinical guideline development and implementation: Learning from mental health service users in the UK

The participation of patients and the public in the development of clinical treatment guidelines is increasingly valued in international guideline programmes. This paper extends the findings of Harding et al. (2010) exploration of the views of service users of mental health resources who participated in NICE guideline development groups developing UK clinical treatment guidelines for mental health related disorders. In this research, service users reported not unduly obstructed by some of the concerns raised about their involvement as lay members, influencing the relevance of recommendations to the individual consumer of the service, and grappling with the opaque nature of decision-making processes and asymmetries in power. We argue that these insights, combined with observations from research in guideline development and advances in the recovery movement and in the shared decision-making clinical model leads to progress in the guideline development topics of translation of evidence to recommendations, optimising the acceptability of treatment recommendations to service users, participants in the treatment decision being different but equal and reconciling different types of knowledge

Service user involvement in clinical guideline development and implementation: Learning from mental health service users in the UK

The participation of service users and the public in the development of clinical guidelines is increasingly valued in international guideline programmes. This paper extends the findings of Harding et al.'s (2010) exploration of the views of service users who participated in developing NICE mental health guidelines. This analysis considered the relative value of personal versus professional knowledge and experience, the barriers to service users contributing effectively in guideline development, the unspoken ‘rules’ concerning decision making, and issues of power and group dynamics. We combine these insights with observations from research in guideline development and with advances in the recovery movement and in the shared decision-making clinical model to suggest areas of improvement in guideline development, notably: translating evidence to recommendations, optimizing the acceptability of treatment recommendations to service users, and reconciling different types of knowledge

Service user involvement in clinical guideline development and implementation: Learning from mental health service users in the UK

The participation of patients and the public in the development of clinical treatment guidelines is increasingly valued in international guideline programmes. This paper extends the findings of Harding et al. (2010) exploration of the views of service users of mental health resources who participated in NICE guideline development groups developing UK clinical treatment guidelines for mental health related disorders. In this research, service users reported not unduly obstructed by some of the concerns raised about their involvement as lay members, influencing the relevance of recommendations to the individual consumer of the service, and grappling with the opaque nature of decision-making processes and asymmetries in power. We argue that these insights, combined with observations from research in guideline development and advances in the recovery movement and in the shared decision-making clinical model leads to progress in the guideline development topics of translation of evidence to recommendations, optimising the acceptability of treatment recommendations to service users, participants in the treatment decision being different but equal and reconciling different types of knowledge

Service user involvement in clinical guideline development and implementation: Learning from mental health service users in the UK

The participation of service users and the public in the development of clinical guidelines is increasingly valued in international guideline programmes. This paper extends the findings of Harding et al.'s (2010) exploration of the views of service users who participated in developing NICE mental health guidelines. This analysis considered the relative value of personal versus professional knowledge and experience, the barriers to service users contributing effectively in guideline development, the unspoken ‘rules’ concerning decision making, and issues of power and group dynamics. We combine these insights with observations from research in guideline development and with advances in the recovery movement and in the shared decision-making clinical model to suggest areas of improvement in guideline development, notably: translating evidence to recommendations, optimizing the acceptability of treatment recommendations to service users, and reconciling different types of knowledge

Low-temperature photoluminescence study of exciton recombination in bulk GaAsBi

International audienceThe exciton recombination processes in a series of elastically strained GaAsBi epilayers are investigated by means of time-integrated and time-resolved photoluminescence at T = 10 K. The bismuth content in the samples was adjusted from 1.16% to 3.83%, as confirmed by high-resolution X-ray diffraction (HR-XRD). The results are well interpreted by carrier trapping and recombination mechanisms involving the Bi-related localized levels. Clear distinction between the localized and delocalized regime was observed in the spectral and temporal photoluminescence emission