Halide doping effects on transparent conducting oxides formed by aerosol assisted chemical vapour deposition

We report on the effect of halide doping on the Aerosol-assisted Chemical Vapour Deposition of tin oxide. Specifically, the importance of precursor interactions is highlighted. A halide exchange reaction involving part substitution of the tin precursor is believed to occur in the solvent; the complex acting as a marker for improved films with improved transparent-conducting properties. Precursor mixtures of butyltin trichloride and potassium halide (X = F, Cl, Br, I) in propan-2-ol were deposited at a substrate temperature of 450 °C using air carrier gas. Hall Effect results indicate that fluorine gave the best performing n-type transparent conducting thin films that exhibited high optical transparency (> 80% at 550 nm) and resistivity values of 4.9 × 10− 4 Ω.cm, with charge carrier density and carrier mobility values of 8.85 × 1020 cm− 3 and 15 cm3/V.s respectively. Such parameters yield high figures of merit

Manufacture of multilayered artificial cell membranes through sequential bilayer deposition on emulsion templates.

Efforts to manufacture artificial cells that replicate the architectures, processes and behaviours of biological cells are rapidly increasing. Perhaps the most commonly reconstructed cellular structure is the membrane, through the use of unilamellar vesicles as models. However, many cellular membranes, including bacterial double membranes, nuclear envelopes, and organelle membranes, are multilamellar. Due to a lack of technologies available for their controlled construction, multilayered membranes are not part of the repertoire of cell-mimetic motifs used in bottom-up synthetic biology. To address this, we developed emulsion-based technologies that allow cell-sized multilayered vesicles to be produced layer-by-layer, with compositional control over each layer, thus enabling studies that would otherwise remain inaccessible. We discovered that bending rigidities scale with the number of layers and demonstrate inter-bilayer registration between coexisting liquid-liquid domains. These technologies will contribute to the exploitation of multilayered membrane structures, paving the way for incorporating protein complexes that span multiple bilayers

Influence of Humidity on the NO₂ Sensing Properties of SrCo₀.₁Ti₀.₉O₃

Strontium Cobalt Titanate (SCT) was synthesized via solid state route. Phase formation was analyzed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique. Resistive sensors were made using screen printing technique and corresponding sensing properties were investigated in dry as well as humid environment (RH 50%). Experimental results demonstrated that sensors displayed least humidity interference at 400 °C. The operating temperature of the sensor was optimized for best responsiveness. These type of sensors can be effectively used in environmental monitoring of NO2 gas at low ppm

Brunner's gland adenoma: unusual cause of duodenal haemorrhage and obstruction

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Designing durable and flexible superhydrophobic coatings and its application in oil purification

Lotus-inspired superhydrophobic coatings are usually mechanically weak and lack durability, this hinders their practical applications. A suspension that can be treated on various materials in any size and shape to form a mechanically durable superhydrophobic coating is developed, which retains water repellent properties after multiple cycles of abrasion, blade scratching, tape-peeling, repeated deformation, a series of environmental tests and recycling. Based on its superhydrophobicity under oil, two highly efficient systems were developed for oil purification – stirring and inverted cone systems. Small water drops converge on the coated surface that was immersed in oil through velocity-controlled stirring, or designing an inverted cone superhydrophobic surface under oil to collect water drops spontaneously. This coating can be readily used for practical applications to make a durable superhydrophobic coating that functions either in air or oils

Azimuthal anisotropy of jet quenching at LHC

We analyze the azimuthal anisotropy of jet spectra due to energy loss of hard partons in quark-gluon plasma, created initially in nuclear overlap zone in collisions with non-zero impact parameter. The calculations are performed for semi-central Pb-Pb collisions at LHC energy.Comment: Talk given at Fourth International Conference "Physics and Astrophysics of Quark-Gluon Plasma", November 26-30, 2001; 4 pages including 4 eps-figure

Influencing FTO thin film growth with thin seeding layers: a route to microstructural modification

We report on the seeded growth of fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) polycrystalline transparent conducting oxide (TCO) thin films on float glass using a novel two-step chemical vapour deposition (CVD) method. Aerosol-assisted CVD (AACVD) was used to grow a seed layer to direct and promote full film growth via an atmospheric pressure CVD (APCVD) overlay. The method allowed for reproducible control over morphology and denser, rougher, higher-performing TCO at a relatively low growth temperature (500 °C). Growth promotion depended on seeding time with an optimal seeding time being present, below which morphology control and conformal coverage was unavailable. The film properties and functional characteristics were characterised by SEM, AFM, XRD, XPS, UV-Vis-Near IR transmittance-reflectance and Hall Effect probe measurements. Highly transparent and electrically conductive films, comparable to commercial materials and with high roughness and low transmission haze values indicate the process yields high quality films with a controllable morphology that can be tuned to desired application. The versatile method provides a route towards the morphological control of high-quality FTO thin films with high optical clarity and low-emissivity properties and can be readily extended to a variety of different substrates and metal oxide materials

Validation study of the Chinese Early Development Instrument (CEDI)

published_or_final_versio

Prognostic implications of myocardial perfusion imaging and coronary calcium score in a Macedonian cohort of asymptomatic patients with type 2 diabetes

Aim: Type 2 diabetes is a risk factor for coronary artery disease; however, a number of studies have shown that patients are asymptomatic for coronary artery disease. The presence of coronary artery disease in asymptomatic patients with type 2 diabetes was evaluated to determine its impact on management decision and prognosis. Methods: A total of 75 patients underwent single-photon emission computed tomography myocardial perfusion imaging for detection of suspected coronary artery disease. We used 17-segment model for perfusion and function analysis. Multislice computed tomography was performed in 45 patients to assess coronary artery calcium. Complete laboratory analyses with lipid values and standard risk factors were analysed. Forward logistic regression analysis was used to assess predictive parameters for myocardial ischaemia during the follow-up period of 20 ± 4 months. Results and Conclusion: Silent myocardial ischaemia and subclinical coronary artery disease can be detected in a significant proportion of asymptomatic patients with type 2 diabetes. Diabetic patients with normal myocardial perfusion imaging had an excellent 2-year prognosis with optimal medical therapy and intensive risk factor control. In comparison, an abnormal myocardial perfusion imaging led to an increased risk of cardiovascular events. Myocardial perfusion imaging and coronary artery calcium are valuable tools for risk stratification and optimal treatment decision in this asymptomatic diabetic cohort of Macedonian patients. </jats:sec