Technology Transfer in Nanotechnology

This report considers how technology transfer in nanotechnology can be optimised, building on existing good practices and also learning from technology transfer of other technologies. It seeks to help researchers, technology managers, industry and policy-makers, by informing and guiding their technology transfer activities in nanotechnology. It is generally accepted, but not well received, that Europe is less successful in converting its research output into marketable products than the US, historically, and now, increasingly, Asia. To address this, Europe needs to create the right environment for more of its technological output to become commercialised. This means having the right conditions locally, nationally and EU-wide to support development and deployment. Challenges (or missions) are expected to receive about half of the anticipated EUR 100 billion funding for Horizon Europe (the upcoming EU Framework Programme 2021-2027), under its Global Challenges and Industrial Competitiveness pillar. These will draw on the most advanced technologies, both enabling and disruptive, with nanotechnology being among the most versatile of those, albeit that it is still a technology in development with relatively few large-scale applications. Advanced materials (many at the nanoscale) are expected to become increasingly important for society and for business. This report therefore focuses on nanotechnology and increasing the success of Europe in transferring nano from being science and technology to its enabling products and processes, from the laboratory to the market.JRC.I.4-Intellectual Property and Technology Transfe

THEORETICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL EVALUATION OF THE WINDOWLESS INTERFACE FOR THE TRASCO-ADS PROJECT

TRASCO-ADS is a national funded program in which INFN, ENEA, and Italian industries work on the design of an accelerator driven subcritical system for nuclear waste transmutation. TRASCO is the Italian acronym for Transmutation (TRAsmutazione) of Waste (SCOrie). One of the most critical aspects in the design of an Accelerator Driven System is related to the interface region, which is the part of the beamline located between the accelerator, operating under UHV conditions, and the pressurized reactor vessel, consisting of a contained plenum of Pb-Bi eutectic (LBE). A so-called window could separate these two environments, but thermomechanical considerations and radioprotection issues point out that this component could be critical. In the windowless interface, no window is located between the linac and the spallation target. Only a suitable pumping and trapping system, for the gases and the vapors outcoming from LBE, divides the UHV accelerator and the spallation target vacuum. Vacuum gas dynamics theoretical considerations and calculations are presented in this article. The need for a validation of the theoretical models gave the motivation for an experimental work, whose results are also discussed. Scale-up of the experimental setup to the full system needs accurate analyses for a proper dimensioning of the system in the interface region

Revealing Strain Effects on the Chemical Composition of Perovskite Oxide Thin Films Surface, Bulk, and Interfaces

Understanding the effects of lattice strain on oxygen surface and diffusion kinetics in oxides is a controversial subject that is critical for developing efficient energy storage and conversion materials. In this work, high-quality epitaxial thin films of the model perovskite LaSrMnCoO (LSMC), under compressive or tensile strain, are characterized with a combination of in situ and ex situ bulk and surface-sensitive techniques. The results demonstrate a nonlinear correlation of mechanical and chemical properties as a function of the operation conditions. It is observed that the effect of strain on reducibility is dependent on the "effective strain" induced on the chemical bonds. In-plain strain, and in particular the relative BO length bond, is the key factor controlling which of the B-site cation can be reduced preferentially. Furthermore, the need to use a set of complimentary techniques to isolate different chemically induced strain effects is proven. With this, it is confirmed that tensile strain favors the stabilization of a more reduced lattice, accompanied by greater segregation of strontium secondary phases and a decrease of oxygen exchange kinetics on LSMC thin films

Outgassing Behavior of C/2012 S1 (ISON) From September 2011 to June 2013

We report photometric observations for comet C/2012 S1 (ISON) obtained during the time period immediately after discovery (r=6.28 AU) until it moved into solar conjunction in mid-2013 June using the UH2.2m, and Gemini North 8-m telescopes on Mauna Kea, the Lowell 1.8m in Flagstaff, the Calar Alto 1.2m telescope in Spain, the VYSOS-5 telescopes on Mauna Loa Hawaii and data from the CARA network. Additional pre-discovery data from the Pan STARRS1 survey extends the light curve back to 2011 September 30 (r=9.4 AU). The images showed a similar tail morphology due to small micron sized particles throughout 2013. Observations at sub-mm wavelengths using the JCMT on 15 nights between 2013 March 9 (r=4.52 AU) and June 16 (r=3.35 AU) were used to search for CO and HCN rotation lines. No gas was detected, with upper limits for CO ranging between (3.5-4.5)E27 molec/s. Combined with published water production rate estimates we have generated ice sublimation models consistent with the photometric light curve. The inbound light curve is likely controlled by sublimation of CO2. At these distances water is not a strong contributor to the outgassing. We also infer that there was a long slow outburst of activity beginning in late 2011 peaking in mid-2013 January (r~5 AU) at which point the activity decreased again through 2013 June. We suggest that this outburst was driven by CO injecting large water ice grains into the coma. Observations as the comet came out of solar conjunction seem to confirm our models.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, 3 table

The interplay among psychopathology, personal resources, context-related factors and real-life functioning in schizophrenia: stability in relationships after 4 years and differences in network structure between recovered and non-recovered patients

Improving real-life functioning is the main goal of the most advanced integrated treatment programs in people with schizophrenia. The Italian Network for Research on Psychoses previously explored, by using network analysis, the interplay among illness-related variables, personal resources, context-related factors and real-life functioning in a large sample of patients with schizophrenia. The same research network has now completed a 4-year follow-up of the original sample. In the present study, we used network analysis to test whether the pattern of relationships among all variables investigated at baseline was similar at follow-up. In addition, we compared the network structure of patients who were classified as recovered at follow-up versus those who did not recover. Six hundred eighteen subjects recruited at baseline could be assessed in the follow-up study. The network structure did not change significantly from baseline to follow-up, and the overall strength of the connections among variables increased slightly, but not significantly. Functional capacity and everyday life skills had a high betweenness and closeness in the network at follow-up, as they had at baseline, while psychopathological variables remained more peripheral. The network structure and connectivity of non-recovered patients were similar to those observed in the whole sample, but very different from those in recovered subjects, in which we found few connections only. These data strongly suggest that tightly coupled symptoms/dysfunctions tend to maintain each other's activation, contributing to poor outcome in schizophrenia. Early and integrated treatment plans, targeting variables with high centrality, might prevent the emergence of self-reinforcing networks of symptoms and dysfunctions in people with schizophrenia

The association between insight and depressive symptoms in schizophrenia: Undirected and Bayesian network analyses

Background. Greater levels of insight may be linked with depressive symptoms among patients with schizophrenia, however, it would be useful to characterize this association at symptom-level, in order to inform research on interventions. Methods. Data on depressive symptoms (Calgary Depression Scale for Schizophrenia) and insight (G12 item from the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale) were obtained from 921 community-dwelling, clinically-stable individuals with a DSM-IV diagnosis of schizophrenia, recruited in a nationwide multicenter study. Network analysis was used to explore the most relevant connections between insight and depressive symptoms, including potential confounders in the model (neurocognitive and social-cognitive functioning, positive, negative and disorganization symptoms, extrapyramidal symptoms, hostility, internalized stigma, and perceived discrimination). Bayesian network analysis was used to estimate a directed acyclic graph (DAG) while investigating the most likely direction of the putative causal association between insight and depression. Results. After adjusting for confounders, better levels of insight were associated with greater self-depreciation, pathological guilt, morning depression and suicidal ideation. No difference in global network structure was detected for socioeconomic status, service engagement or illness severity. The DAG confirmed the presence of an association between greater insight and self-depreciation, suggesting the more probable causal direction was from insight to depressive symptoms. Conclusions. In schizophrenia, better levels of insight may cause self-depreciation and, possibly, other depressive symptoms. Person-centered and narrative psychotherapeutic approaches may be particularly fit to improve patient insight without dampening self-esteem

The interplay among psychopathology, personal resources, context-related factors and real-life functioning in schizophrenia: stability in relationships after 4 years and differences in network structure between recovered and non-recovered patients

Improving real-life functioning is the main goal of the most advanced integrated treatment programs in people with schizophrenia. The Italian Network for Research on Psychoses previously explored, by using network analysis, the interplay among illness-related variables, personal resources, context-related factors and real-life functioning in a large sample of patients with schizophrenia. The same research network has now completed a 4-year follow-up of the original sample. In the present study, we used network analysis to test whether the pattern of relationships among all variables investigated at baseline was similar at follow-up. In addition, we compared the network structure of patients who were classified as recovered at follow-up versus those who did not recover. Six hundred eighteen subjects recruited at baseline could be assessed in the follow-up study. The network structure did not change significantly from baseline to follow-up, and the overall strength of the connections among variables increased slightly, but not significantly. Functional capacity and everyday life skills had a high betweenness and closeness in the network at follow-up, as they had at baseline, while psychopathological variables remained more peripheral. The network structure and connectivity of non-recovered patients were similar to those observed in the whole sample, but very different from those in recovered subjects, in which we found few connections only. These data strongly suggest that tightly coupled symptoms/dysfunctions tend to maintain each other's activation, contributing to poor outcome in schizophrenia. Early and integrated treatment plans, targeting variables with high centrality, might prevent the emergence of self-reinforcing networks of symptoms and dysfunctions in people with schizophrenia

Off-label long acting injectable antipsychotics in real-world clinical practice: a cross-sectional analysis of prescriptive patterns from the STAR Network DEPOT study

Introduction Information on the off-label use of Long-Acting Injectable (LAI) antipsychotics in the real world is lacking. In this study, we aimed to identify the sociodemographic and clinical features of patients treated with on- vs off-label LAIs and predictors of off-label First- or Second-Generation Antipsychotic (FGA vs. SGA) LAI choice in everyday clinical practice. Method In a naturalistic national cohort of 449 patients who initiated LAI treatment in the STAR Network Depot Study, two groups were identified based on off- or on-label prescriptions. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to test several clinically relevant variables and identify those associated with the choice of FGA vs SGA prescription in the off-label group. Results SGA LAIs were more commonly prescribed in everyday practice, without significant differences in their on- and off-label use. Approximately 1 in 4 patients received an off-label prescription. In the off-label group, the most frequent diagnoses were bipolar disorder (67.5%) or any personality disorder (23.7%). FGA vs SGA LAI choice was significantly associated with BPRS thought disorder (OR = 1.22, CI95% 1.04 to 1.43, p = 0.015) and hostility/suspiciousness (OR = 0.83, CI95% 0.71 to 0.97, p = 0.017) dimensions. The likelihood of receiving an SGA LAI grew steadily with the increase of the BPRS thought disturbance score. Conversely, a preference towards prescribing an FGA was observed with higher scores at the BPRS hostility/suspiciousness subscale. Conclusion Our study is the first to identify predictors of FGA vs SGA choice in patients treated with off-label LAI antipsychotics. Demographic characteristics, i.e. age, sex, and substance/alcohol use co-morbidities did not appear to influence the choice towards FGAs or SGAs. Despite a lack of evidence, clinicians tend to favour FGA over SGA LAIs in bipolar or personality disorder patients with relevant hostility. Further research is needed to evaluate treatment adherence and clinical effectiveness of these prescriptive patterns