Controlled Assembly of Macromolecular β-Sheet Fibrils

Construction of functional molecular devices by directed assembly processes is one of the main challenges in the field of nanotechnology. Many approaches to this challenge use biological assembly as a source of inspiration for the build up of new materials with controlled organization at the nanoscale. In particular, the self-assembly properties of β-sheet peptides have been used in the design of supramolecular materials, such as tapes, nanotubes, and fibrils

Spray Deposition of High Quality CuInSe2 and CdTe Films: Preprint

A number of different ink and deposition approaches have been used for the deposition of CuInSe2 (CIS), Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS), and CdTe films. For CIS and CIGS, soluble precursors containing Cu, In, and Ga have been developed and used in two ways to produce CIS films. In the first, In-containing precursor films were sprayed on Mo-coated glass substrates and converted by rapid thermal processing (RTP) to In2Se3. Then a Cu-containing film was sprayed down on top of the In2Se3 and the stacked films were again thermally processed to give CIS. In the second approach, the Cu-, In-, and Ga-containing inks were combined in the proper ratio to produce a mixed Cu-In-Ga ink that was sprayed on substrates and thermally processed to give CIGS films directly. For CdTe deposition, ink consisting of CdTe nanoparticles dispersed in methanol was prepared and used to spray precursor films. Annealing these precursor films in the presence of CdCl2 produced large-grained CdTe films. The films were characterized by x-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Optimized spray and processing conditions are crucial to obtain dense, crystalline films

Multi-Layer Inkjet Printed Contacts to Si

Ag, Cu, and Ni metallizations were inkjet printed with near vacuum deposition quality. The approach developed can be easily extended to other conductors such as Pt, Pd, Au, etc. Thick highly conducting lines of Ag and Cu demonstrating good adhesion to glass, Si, and printed circuit board (PCB) have been printed at 100-200 deg C in air and N2 respectively. Ag grids were inkjet-printed on Si solar cells and fired through the silicon nitride AR layer at 850 deg C, resulting in 8% cells. Next generation inks, including an ink that etches silicon nitride, have now been developed. Multi-layer inkjet printing of the etching ink followed by Ag ink produced contacts under milder conditions and gave solar cells with efficiencies as high as 12%

Multi-Layer Inkjet Printed Contacts for Silicon Solar Cells: Preprint

Ag, Cu, and Ni metallizations were inkjet printed with near vacuum deposition quality. The approach developed can be easily extended to other conductors such as Pt, Pd, Au, etc. Thick highly conducting lines of Ag and Cu demonstrating good adhesion to glass, Si, and printed circuit board (PCB) have been printed at 100-200 C in air and N2 respectively. Ag grids were inkjet-printed on Si solar cells and fired through the silicon nitride AR layer at 850 C, resulting in 8% cells. Next generation inks, including an ink that etches silicon nitride, have now been developed. Multi-layer inkjet printing of the etching ink followed by Ag ink produced contacts under milder conditions and gave solar cells with efficiencies as high as 12%

Solution Deposition of Amorphous IZO Films By Ultrasonic Spray Pyrolysis (Poster)

This study investigates atmospheric-pressure solution deposition routes as an alternative to these traditional high-vacuum techniques

Solution Deposition of Amorphous IZO Films by Ultrasonic Spray Pyrolysis: Preprint

This study investigates atmospheric-pressure solution deposition routes as an alternative to these traditional high-vacuum techniques

Amorphous Transparent Conducting Oxides (TCOs) Deposited at T 100<= ..deg.. C

The summary of this report is that amorphous InZnO (a-IZO) is a very versatile TCO with: (1) low process temperatures ({approx} 100 C); (2) easy to make by sputtering; (3) excellent optical and electronic properties; (4) very smooth etchable films; and (5) remarkable thermal processing stability

Direct-Write Contacts: Metallization and Contact Formation; Preprint

Using direct-write approaches in photovoltaics for metallization and contact formation can significantly reduce the cost per watt of producing photovoltaic devices. Inks have been developed for various materials, such as Ag, Cu, Ni and Al, which can be used to inkjet print metallizations for various kinds of photovoltaic devices. Use of these inks results in metallization with resistivities close to those of bulk materials. By means of inkjet printing a metallization grid can be printed with better resolution, i.e. smaller lines, than screen-printing. Also inks have been developed to deposit transparent conductive oxide films by means of ultrasonic spraying

Recommendations on scuba diving in Birt-Hogg-Dubé syndrome

Introduction: Although very uncommon, severe injury and death can occur during scuba diving. One of the main causes of scuba diving fatalities is pulmonary barotrauma due to significant changes in ambient pressure. Pathology of the lung parenchyma, such as cystic lesions, might increase the risk of pulmonary barotrauma. Areas covered: Birt–Hogg–Dubé syndrome (BHD), caused by pathogenic variants in the FLCN gene, is characterized by skin fibrofolliculomas, an increased risk of renal cell carcinoma, multiple lung cysts and spontaneous pneumothorax. Given the pulmonary involvement, in some countries patients with BHD are generally recommended to avoid scuba diving, although evidence-based guidelines are lacking. We aim to provide recommendations on scuba diving for patients with BHD, based on a survey of literature on pulmonary cysts and pulmonary barotrauma in scuba diving. Expert opinion: In our opinion, although the absolute risks are likely to be low, caution is warranted. Given the relative paucity of literature and the potential fatal outcome, patients with BHD with a strong desire for scuba diving should be informed of the potential risks in a personal assessment. If available a diving physician should be consulted, and a low radiation dose chest computed tomography (CT)-scan to assess pulmonary lesions could be considered.</p

The Puromycin Route to Assess Stereo- and Regiochemical Constraints on Peptide Bond Formation in Eukaryotic Ribosomes

We synthesized a series of puromycin analogues to probe the chemical specificity of the ribosome in an intact eukaryotic translation system. These studies reveal that both d-enantiomers and β-amino acid analogues can be incorporated into protein, and provide a quantitative means to rank natural and unnatural residues. Modeling of a d-amino acid analogue into the 50S ribosomal subunit indicates that steric clash may provide part of the chiral discrimination. The data presented provide one metric of the chiral and regiospecificity of mammalian ribosomes