2.45 GHz Active Isolator based on asymmetric coupler

An active isolator achieving both high isolation and low insertion loss at 2.45 GHz is proposed. The isolator is based on an asymmetric coupler and is designed to leverage the gain and reverse isolation of an amplifier and coupling coefficients between the input and output of the coupler. The insertion loss and isolation of the isolator are enhanced by using the coefficients, and the power level with optimal isolation can be determined for a target specification. The asymmetric coupler increases the power handling capability of the proposed isolator that has a low coupling coefficient and achieves highly efficient isolation with a high coupling coefficient. Electromagnetic-circuit co-simulation results show that the proposed isolator with operation stability has ≥40 dB isolation and <1 dB insertion loss for input power between 0−8 dBm

Observation of transverse spin Nernst magnetoresistance induced by thermal spin current in ferromagnet/non-magnet bilayers

Electric generation of spin current via spin Hall effect is of great interest as it allows an efficient manipulation of magnetization in spintronic devices. Theoretically, spin current can be also created by a temperature gradient, which is known as spin Nernst effect. Here, we report spin Nernst effect-induced transverse magnetoresistance in ferromagnet (FM)/non-magnetic heavy metal (HM) bilayers. We observe that the magnitude of transverse magnetoresistance (i.e., planar Nernst signal) in FM/HM bilayers is significantly modified by HM and its thickness. This strong dependence of transverse magnetoresistance on HM evidences the spin Nernst effect in HM; the generation of thermally-induced spin current in HM and its subsequent reflection at the FM/HM interface. Our analysis of transverse magnetoresistance shows that the spin Nernst angles of W and Pt have the opposite sign to their spin Hall angles. Moreover, our estimate implies that the magnitude of the spin Nernst angle would be comparable to that of the spin Hall angle, suggesting an efficient generation of spin current by the spin Nernst effect

Highly efficient plasmonic organic optoelectronic devices based on a conducting polymer electrode incorporated with silver nanoparticles

Highly efficient ITO-free polymeric electronic devices were successfully demonstrated by replacement of the ITO electrode with a solution-processed PEDOT:PSS electrode containing Ag nanoparticles (NPs). Polymer solar cells (PSCs) and light emitting diodes (PLEDs) were fabricated based on poly(5,6-bis(octyloxy)-4-(thiophen-2-yl)benzo[c][1,2,5]thiadiazole) (PTBT):PC61BM and Super Yellow as a photoactive layer, respectively. The surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect and improved electrical conductivity by the Ag NPs clearly contributed to increments in light absorption/emission in the active layer as well as the conductivity of the PEDOT:PSS electrode in PSCs and PLEDs. The ITO-free bulk heterojunction PSCs showed a 1% absolute enhancement in the power conversion efficiency (3.27 to 4.31%), and the power efficiency of the PLEDs was improved by 124% (3.75 to 8.4 lm W-1) compared to the reference devices without Ag NPs. The solution-processable conducting polymer, PEDOT:PSS with Ag NPs, can be a promising electrode for large area and flexible optoelectronic devices with a low-cost fabrication process.close11

Radish microgreens produced without substrate in a vertical multi-layered growing unit are rich in nutritional metabolites

Growing microgreens on trays without substrate in a vertical multilayered growing unit offers several advantages over traditional agriculture methods. This study investigated the yield performance and nutritional quality of five selections of radish microgreens grown in sprouting trays, without a substrate using only water, in an indoor multilayer cultivation system using artificial light. Various parameters were measured, including fresh weight, dry matter, chlorophyll, minerals, amino acids, phenolics, flavonoids, anthocyanins, vitamin C, glucosinolates, and antioxidant activity with four different in vitro assays. After ten days, the biomass had increased by 6-10 times, and the dry matter varied from 4.75-7.65%. The highest yield was obtained from ‘Asia red’, while the lowest was from ‘Koregon red’. However, ‘Koregon red’ and ‘Asia red’ had the highest dry matter. ‘Asia red’ was found to have the highest levels of both Chls and vitamin C compared to the other cultivars, while ‘Koregon red’ exhibited the highest levels of total phenolics and flavonoids. Although variations in the levels of individual glucosinolates were observed, there were no significant differences in the total content of glucosinolates among the five cultivars. ‘Asia purple’ had the highest anthocyanin content, while ‘Asia green 2’ had the lowest. The K, Mg, and Na concentrations were significantly highest in ‘Asia green 2’, and the highest Ca was recorded in ‘Asia purple’. Overall, ‘Asia purple’ and ‘Koregon red’ were the best cultivars in terms of nutritional quality among the tested radish microgreens. These cultivars exhibited high levels of dry weight, total phenolics, flavonoids, anthocyanins, essential and total amino acids, and antioxidant activities. Moreover, the implementation of this vertical cultivation method for microgreens, which relies solely on water and seeds known for their tall shoots during the sprouting could hold promise as a sustainable approach. This method can effectively be utilized for cultivar screening and fulfilling the nutritional and functional needs of the population while minimizing the environmental impacts associated with traditional agriculture practices

Establishment of Efficacy and Safety Assessment of Human Adipose Tissue-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells (hATMSCs) in a Nude Rat Femoral Segmental Defect Model

Human adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cell (hATMSC) have emerged as a potentially powerful tool for bone repair, but an appropriate evaluation system has not been established. The purpose of this study was to establish a preclinical assessment system to evaluate the efficacy and safety of cell therapies in a nude rat bone defect model. Segmental defects (5 mm) were created in the femoral diaphyses and transplanted with cell media (control), hydroxyapatite/tricalcium phosphate scaffolds (HA/TCP, Group I), hATMSCs (Group II), or three cell-loading density of hATMSC-loaded HA/TCP (Group III-V). Healing response was evaluated by serial radiography, micro-computed tomography and histology at 16 weeks. To address safety-concerns, we conducted a GLP-compliant toxicity study. Scanning electron microscopy studies showed that hATMSCs filled the pores/surfaces of scaffolds in a cell-loading density-dependent manner. We detected significant increases in bone formation in the hATMSC-loaded HA/TCP groups compared with other groups. The amount of new bone formation increased with increases in loaded cell number. In a toxicity study, no significant hATMSC-related changes were found in body weights, clinical signs, hematological/biochemical values, organ weights, or histopathological findings. In conclusion, hATMSCs loaded on HA/TCP enhance the repair of bone defects and was found to be safe under our preclinical efficacy/safety hybrid assessment system

EEG Beta Oscillations in the Temporoparietal Area Related to the Accuracy in Estimating Others&apos; Preference

Humans often attempt to predict what others prefer based on a narrow slice of experience, called thin-slicing. According to the theoretical bases for how humans can predict the preference of others, one tends to estimate the other&apos;s preference using a perceived difference between the other and self. Previous neuroimaging studies have revealed that the network of dorsal medial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) and right temporoparietal junction (rTPJ) is related to the ability of predicting others&apos; preference. However, it still remains unknown about the temporal patterns of neural activities for others&apos; preference prediction through thin-slicing. To investigate such temporal aspects of neural activities, we investigated human electroencephalography (EEG) recorded during the task of predicting the preference of others while only a facial picture of others was provided. Twenty participants (all female, average age: 21.86) participated in the study. In each trial of the task, participants were shown a picture of either a target person or self for 3 s, followed by the presentation of a movie poster over which participants predicted the target person&apos;s preference as liking or disliking. The time-frequency EEG analysis was employed to analyze temporal changes in the amplitudes of brain oscillations. Participants could predict others&apos; preference for movies with accuracy of 56.89 ?? 3.16% and 10 out of 20 participants exhibited prediction accuracy higher than a chance level (95% interval). There was a significant difference in the power of the parietal alpha (10~13 Hz) oscillation 0.6~0.8 s after the onset of poster presentation between the cases when participants predicted others&apos; preference and when they reported self-preference (p &lt; 0.05). The power of brain oscillations at any frequency band and time period during the trial did not show a significant correlation with individual prediction accuracy. However, when we measured differences of the power between the trials of predicting other&apos;s preference and reporting self-preference, the right temporal beta oscillations 1.6~1.8 s after the onset of facial picture presentation exhibited a significant correlation with individual accuracy. Our results suggest that right temporoparietal beta oscillations may be correlated with one&apos;s ability to predict what others prefer with minimal information

Clinical and Radiographic Features of Adult-onset Ankylosing Spondylitis in Korean Patients: Comparisons between Males and Females

The objective of this study was to investigate clinical and radiographic features and gender differences in Korean patients with adult-onset ankylosing spondylitis. Multicenter cross-sectional studies were conducted in the rheumatology clinics of 13 Korean tertiary referral hospitals. All patients had a confirmed diagnosis of ankylosing spondylitis according to the modified New York criteria. Clinical, laboratory, and radiographic features were evaluated and disease activities were assessed using the Bath ankylosing spondylitis disease activity index. Five hundred and five patients were recruited. The male to female ratio was 6.1:1. Average age at symptom onset was 25.4±8.9 yr and average disease duration was 9.6±6.8 yr. Males manifested symptoms at a significantly earlier age. HLA-B27 was more frequently positive in males. Hips were more commonly affected in males, and knees in females. When spinal mobility was measured using tragus-to-wall distance and the modified Schober's test, females had significantly better results. Radiographic spinal changes, including bamboo spine and syndesmophytes, were more common in males after adjustment of confounding factors. In conclusion, we observed significant gender differences in radiographic spinal involvement as well as other clinical manifestations among Korea patients with adult-onset ankylosing spondylitis. These findings may influence the timing of the diagnosis and the choice of treatment

Role of non-thermal electrons in ultrafast spin dynamics of ferromagnetic multilayer

Understanding of ultrafast spin dynamics is crucial for future spintronic applications. In particular, the role of non-thermal electrons needs further investigation in order to gain a fundamental understanding of photoinduced demagnetization and remagnetization on a femtosecond time scale. We experimentally demonstrate that non-thermal electrons existing in the very early phase of the photoinduced demagnetization process play a key role in governing the overall ultrafast spin dynamics behavior. We simultaneously measured the time-resolved reflectivity (TR-R) and the magneto-optical Kerr effect (TR-MOKE) for a Co/Pt multilayer film. By using an extended three-temperature model (E3TM), the quantitative analysis, including non-thermal electron energy transfer into the subsystem (thermal electron, lattice, and spin), reveals that energy flow from non-thermal electrons plays a decisive role in determining the type I and II photoinduced spin dynamics behavior. Our finding proposes a new mechanism for understanding ultrafast remagnetization dynamics. © 2020, The Author(s).1