Effects of Hydrogen Plasma on the Electrical Properties of F-Doped ZnO Thin Films and p-i-n -Si:H Thin Film Solar Cells

1.5 wt% zinc fluoride (ZnF2) was mixed with zinc oxide powder to form the F-doped ZnO (FZO) composition. At first, the FZO thin films were deposited at room temperature and 5×10-3 Torr in pure Ar under different deposition power. Hall measurements of the as-deposited FZO thin films were investigated, and then the electrical properties were used to find the deposition power causing the FZO thin films with minimum resistance. The FZO thin films with minimum resistance were further treated by H2 plasma and then found their variations in the electrical properties by Hall measurements. Hydrochloric (HCl) acid solutions with different concentrations (0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.5%) were used to etch the surfaces of the FZO thin films. Finally, the as-deposited, HCl-etched as-deposited, and HCl-etched H2-plasma-treated FZO thin films were used as transparent electrodes to fabricate the p-i-n α-Si:H thin film solar cells and their characteristics were compared in this study. We would show that using H2-plasma-treated and HCl-etched FZO thin films as transparent electrodes would improve the efficiency of the fabricated thin film solar cells

Effect of Different Deposition Power of In 2

The (In, Ga, Zn)Ox (IGZO) thin films were deposited on glass substrates using cosputtering method in radio frequency magnetron sputtering system. Zn2Ga2O5 (Ga2O3-2 ZnO, GZO) and In2O3 ceramics were used as targets and dual guns were used to deposit the IGZO thin films. Deposition power of GZO target was 80 W and deposition power of pure In2O3 target was changed from 70 W to 100 W, and the deposition time was 30 min. The effect of deposition power of In2O3 target on the crystalline, surface, electrical, and optical properties of the IGZO thin films was investigated at room temperature in a pure Ar atmosphere. The cosputtered IGZO thin films showed a very smooth and featureless surface and an amorphous structure regardless of the deposition power of In2O3 target due to the room temperature sputtering process. However, the cosputtered IGZO thin films exhibited transparent electrode properties because they had high transmittance ratio and low resistivity. The value variations in the optical band gap (Eg) values of the IGZO thin film were evaluated from the plots of (αhν)2=c(hν-Eg). We would also show that the deposition power of In2O3 target would have a large effect on mobility and Eg value of the IGZO thin films

Different Renal Function Equations and Dosing of Direct Oral Anticoagulants in Atrial Fibrillation

BACKGROUND: Randomized trials of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) adopted the Cockcroft-Gault (CG) formula to calculate estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) to determine the dosages of DOACs. OBJECTIVES: The authors aimed to investigate the agreements/disagreements of eGFRs calculated using different equations (CG, Modified Diet in Renal Disease [MDRD], and Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration [CKD-EPI] formulas), and their impacts on the dosages of DOACs and clinical outcomes. METHODS: Medical data from a multicenter health care provider in Taiwan including 39,239 patients with atrial fibrillation were used. Among these patients, there were 11,185 and 2,323 patients treated with DOACs and warfarin, respectively. RESULTS: At the cutoff values of eGFR of 50 mL/min, the agreements were 78% between MDRD and CG and 81% between CKD-EPI and CG. The disagreements among the different equations were largely due to overestimations, especially for patients aged >75 years and with a body weight of <50 kg (58.8% for MDRD and 50.9% for CKD-EPI). Among patients receiving DOACs whose dosages were defined as “on label” based on MDRD or CKD-EPI, only those whose dosages were “truly on label” based on CG were associated with a lower risk of major bleeding (adjusted HR: 0.34; 95% CI: 0.26-0.45) compared to warfarin. CONCLUSIONS: The adoptions of MDRD or CKD-EPI rather than CG would result in inappropriate dosing of DOACs (mainly overdosing), which would attenuate the advantages of DOACs compared to warfarin. The CG equation should be used as the gold standard to calculate eGFRs and guide the DOAC dosages

Direct Oral Anticoagulants in Atrial Fibrillation Patients With Concomitant Hyperthyroidism

Objective Patients with hyperthyroidism were excluded from randomized clinical trials of direct oral anticoagulants(DOACs) for stroke prevention in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). Methods We performed a nationwide retrospective cohort study using data from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. We enrolled 3,213 and 1,181 NVAF patients with hyperthyroidism taking DOACs and warfarin, respectively, from June 1, 2012 to December 31, 2017. We also enrolled 53,591 and 16,564 NVAF patients without hyperthyroidism taking DOACs and warfarin, respectively. We used propensity score-based stabilized weights (PSSWs) to balance covariates across the study groups. We also used 1:4 matching on both taking DOACs, with (n=3,213) and without hyperthyroidism (n=12,852); and both taking warfarin, with (n=1,181) and without hyperthyroidism (n=4,724). Results After PSSW, DOAC had a comparable risk of ischemic stroke/systemic embolism (IS/SE) and a lower risk of major bleeding (hazard ratio (HR):0.65; [95% confidential interval (CI):0.44-0.96]; P=0.0295) than warfarin among patients with hyperthyroidism. There were comparable risks of IS/SE and major bleeding between those patients with and without hyperthyroidism. However, patients taking warfarin with hyperthyroidism had a lower risk of IS/SE than those without hyperthyroidism (HR:0.61; [95%CI:0.43-0.86]; P=0.0050). Conclusion Among NVAF Asian patients with concomitant hyperthyroidism, DOACs may be an effective and safer alternative to warfarin. Thromboprophylaxis with DOACs may be considered for such patients, and it is important to validate this finding in further prospective study.Supplemental materials (figures and tables) for the article of "Direct Oral Anticoagulants in Atrial Fibrillation Patients with Concomitant Hyperthyroidism" Funding provided by: Chang Gung Memorial HospitalCrossref Funder Registry ID: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100012553Award Number: CMRPG3G1371-3Funding provided by: Chang Gung Memorial HospitalCrossref Funder Registry ID: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100012553Award Number: CMRPG3F0991-3Funding provided by: Chang Gung Memorial HospitalCrossref Funder Registry ID: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100012553Award Number: CMRPD1K0031Funding provided by: Chang Gung Memorial HospitalCrossref Funder Registry ID: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100012553Award Number: CMRPG3K0021We performed a nationwide retrospective cohort study using data from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. We enrolled 3,213 and 1,181 NVAF patients with hyperthyroidism taking DOACs and warfarin, respectively, from June 1, 2012 to December 31, 2017

Paraoxonase-1 Is Not a Major Determinant of Stent Thrombosis in a Taiwanese Population

BACKGROUND: Clopidogrel is a prodrug that undergoes in vivo bioactivation to show its antiplatelet effects. Recent studies have shown that cytochrome P450 (CYP), ATP-binding cassette transporters (ABCB1), and paraoxonase-1 (PON1) play crucial roles in clopidogrel bioactivation. Here, we aim to determine the effects of genetic polymorphisms of CYP (CYP 2C19*2, CYP 2C19*3, and CYP 2C19*17), ABCB1 (ABCB1 3435C>T, ABCB1 129T>C, and ABCB1 2677G>T/A), and PON1 (PON1 Q192R, PON1 L55M, and PON1 108C>T) on the development of stent thrombosis (ST) in patients receiving clopidogrel after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). METHODS AND RESULTS: We evaluated the incidence of ST (0.64%) in 4964 patients who were recruited in the CAPTAIN registry (Cardiovascular Atherosclerosis and Percutaneous TrAnsluminal INterventions). The presence of genetic polymorphisms was assessed in 20 subjects who developed ST after aspirin and clopidogrel therapy and in 40 age- and sex-matched control subjects who did not develop ST, which was documented after 9 months of angiographic follow-up. ST was acute in 5 subjects, subacute in 7, late in 7, and very late in 1. The presence of CYP 2C19*2 allele was significantly associated with ST (adjusted odds ratio [ORadj]: 4.20, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.263-9.544; P = 0.031). However, genetic variations in PON1 and ABCB1 showed no significant association with ST. CONCLUSION: We conclude that in a Taiwanese population, PON1 Q192R genotype is not associated with ST development after PCI. However, the presence of CYP 2C19*2 allele is a risk factor for ST development after PCI

The Role of Imported Cases and Favorable Meteorological Conditions in the Onset of Dengue Epidemics

Dengue/dengue hemorrhagic fever is the world's most widely spread mosquito-borne arboviral disease and threatens more than two-thirds of the world's population. Cases are mainly distributed in tropical and subtropical areas in accordance with vector habitats for Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus. However, the role of imported cases and favorable meteorological conditions has not yet been quantitatively assessed. This study verified the correlation between the occurrence of indigenous dengue and imported cases in the context of weather variables (temperature, rainfall, relative humidity, etc.) for different time lags in southern Taiwan. Our findings imply that imported cases have a role in igniting indigenous outbreaks, in non-endemics areas, when favorable weather conditions are present. This relationship becomes insignificant in the late phase of local dengue epidemics. Therefore, early detection and case management of imported cases through timely surveillance and rapid laboratory-diagnosis may avert large scale epidemics of dengue/dengue hemorrhagic fever. An early-warning surveillance system integrating meteorological data will be an invaluable tool for successful prevention and control of dengue, particularly in non-endemic countries

The Physics of the B Factories

This work is on the Physics of the B Factories. Part A of this book contains a brief description of the SLAC and KEK B Factories as well as their detectors, BaBar and Belle, and data taking related issues. Part B discusses tools and methods used by the experiments in order to obtain results. The results themselves can be found in Part C