Metal-Organic-Framework-Derived N‑Doped Hierarchically Porous Carbon Polyhedrons Anchored on Crumpled Graphene Balls as Efficient Selenium Hosts for High-Performance Lithium–Selenium Batteries

Developing carbon scaffolds showing rational pore structures as cathode hosts is essential for achieving superior electrochemical performances of lithium–selenium (Li–Se) batteries. Hierarchically porous N-doped carbon polyhedrons anchored on crumpled graphene balls (NPC/CGBs) are synthesized by carbonizing a zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8)/CGB composite precursor, producing an unprecedented effective host matrix for high-performance Li–Se batteries. Mesoporous CGBs obtained by one-pot spray pyrolysis are used as a highly conductive matrix for uniform polyhedral ZIF-8 growth. During carbonization, ZIF-8 polyhedrons on mesoporous CGBs are converted into N-doped carbon polyhedrons showing abundant micropores, forming a high-surface-area, high-pore-volume hierarchically porous NPC/CGB composite whose small unique pores effectively confine Se during melt diffusion, thereby providing conductive electron pathways. Thus, the integrated NPC/CGB-Se composite ensures high Se utilization originating from complete electrochemical reactions between Se and Li ions. The NPC/CGB-Se composite cathode exhibits high discharge capacities (998 and 462 mA h g^–1 at the 1st and 1000th cycles, respectively, at a 0.5 C current density), good capacity retention (68%, calculated from the 3rd cycle), and excellent rate capability. A discharge capacity of 409 mA h g^–1 is achieved even at an extremely high (15.0 C) current density

Doubling Absorption in Nanowire Solar Cells with Dielectric Shell Optical Antennas

Semiconductor nanowires (NWs) often exhibit efficient, broadband light absorption despite their relatively small size. This characteristic originates from the subwavelength dimensions and high refractive indices of the NWs, which cause a light-trapping optical antenna effect. As a result, NWs could enable high-efficiency but low-cost solar cells using small volumes of expensive semiconductor material. Nevertheless, the extent to which the antenna effect can be leveraged in devices will largely determine the economic viability of NW-based solar cells. Here, we demonstrate a simple, low-cost, and scalable route to dramatically enhance the optical antenna effect in NW photovoltaic devices by coating the wires with conformal dielectric shells. Scattering and absorption measurements on Si NWs coated with shells of SiN_<i>x</i> or SiO_<i>x</i> exhibit a broadband enhancement of light absorption by ∼50–200% and light scattering by ∼200–1000%. The increased light–matter interaction leads to a ∼80% increase in short-circuit current density in Si photovoltaic devices under 1 sun illumination. Optical simulations reproduce the experimental results and indicate the dielectric–shell effect to be a general phenomenon for groups IV, II–VI, and III–V semiconductor NWs in both lateral and vertical orientations, providing a simple route to approximately double the efficiency of NW-based solar cells

Switching of Photonic Crystal Lasers by Graphene

Unique features of graphene have motivated the development of graphene-integrated photonic devices. In particular, the electrical tunability of graphene loss enables high-speed modulation of light and tuning of cavity resonances in graphene-integrated waveguides and cavities. However, efficient control of light emission such as lasing, using graphene, remains a challenge. In this work, we demonstrate on/off switching of single- and double-cavity photonic crystal lasers by electrical gating of a monolayer graphene sheet on top of photonic crystal cavities. The optical loss of graphene was controlled by varying the gate voltage <i>V</i>_g, with the ion gel atop the graphene sheet. First, the fundamental properties of graphene were investigated through the transmittance measurement and numerical simulations. Next, optically pumped lasing was demonstrated for a graphene-integrated single photonic crystal cavity at <i>V</i>_g below −0.6 V, exhibiting a low lasing threshold of ∼480 μW, whereas lasing was not observed at <i>V</i>_g above −0.6 V owing to the intrinsic optical loss of graphene. Changing quality factor of the graphene-integrated photonic crystal cavity enables or disables the lasing operation. Moreover, in the double-cavity photonic crystal lasers with graphene, switching of individual cavities with separate graphene sheets was achieved, and these two lasing actions were controlled independently despite the close distance of ∼2.2 μm between adjacent cavities. We believe that our simple and practical approach for switching in graphene-integrated active photonic devices will pave the way toward designing high-contrast and ultracompact photonic integrated circuits

Data_Sheet_2_Long-term survival benefits of intrathecal autologous bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (Neuronata-R®: lenzumestrocel) treatment in ALS: Propensity-score-matched control, surveillance study.docx

ObjectiveNeuronata-R® (lenzumestrocel) is an autologous bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cell (BM-MSC) product, which was conditionally approved by the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (KMFDS, Republic of Korea) in 2013 for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). In the present study, we aimed to investigate the long-term survival benefits of treatment with intrathecal lenzumestrocel.MethodsA total of 157 participants who received lenzumestrocel and whose symptom duration was less than 2 years were included in the analysis (BM-MSC group). The survival data of placebo participants from the Pooled-Resource Open-Access ALS Clinical Trials (PROACT) database were used as the external control, and propensity score matching (PSM) was used to reduce confounding biases in baseline characteristics. Adverse events were recorded during the entire follow-up period after the first treatment.ResultsSurvival probability was significantly higher in the BM-MSC group compared to the external control group from the PROACT database (log-rank, p ConclusionThe results of the present study showed that lenzumestrocel treatment had a long-term survival benefit in real-world ALS patients.</p

Enhancement of Light Absorption in Silicon Nanowire Photovoltaic Devices with Dielectric and Metallic Grating Structures

We report the enhancement of light absorption in Si nanowire photovoltaic devices with one-dimensional dielectric or metallic gratings that are fabricated by a damage-free, precisely aligning, polymer-assisted transfer method. Incorporation of a Si₃N₄ grating with a Si nanowire effectively enhances the photocurrents for transverse-electric polarized light. The wavelength at which a maximum photocurrent is generated is readily tuned by adjusting the grating pitch. Moreover, the electrical properties of the nanowire devices are preserved before and after transferring the Si₃N₄ gratings onto Si nanowires, ensuring that the quality of pristine nanowires is not degraded during the transfer. Furthermore, we demonstrate Si nanowire photovoltaic devices with Ag gratings using the same transfer method. Measurements on the fabricated devices reveal approximately 27.1% enhancement in light absorption compared to that of the same devices without the Ag gratings without any degradation of electrical properties. We believe that our polymer-assisted transfer method is not limited to the fabrication of grating-incorporated nanowire photovoltaic devices but can also be generically applied for the implementation of complex nanoscale structures toward the development of multifunctional optoelectronic devices

Antibody profiles for MuSK, LRP4, and clustered AChR in patients with MG seronegative for AChR antibody on radioimmunoprecipitation assay.

<p>LEMS, Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome; MND, motor neuron disease; MG, myasthenia gravis; MuSK, muscle-specific tyrosine kinase; CBA, cell-based assay; RIPA, radioimmunoprecipitation assay; LRP4, low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 4; cAChR, clustered acetylcholine receptor.</p

Clinical features of AChR antibody seronegative generalized MG (on radioimmunoprecipitation assay) according to the antibody profile.

<p>Clinical features of AChR antibody seronegative generalized MG (on radioimmunoprecipitation assay) according to the antibody profile.</p

Clinical features of the patients with the LRP4 antibody, and of the patients who were double seropositive.

<p>Clinical features of the patients with the LRP4 antibody, and of the patients who were double seropositive.</p

Cell based assays to detect antibodies to clustered AChR, MuSK or LRP4.

<p><b>Patient IgG binding is shown in red. For the AChR and MuSK assays, EGFP tags exhibit a green fluorescence highlighting the transfected cells; there is no color tag in the LRP4 assay. Patient 41 is positive for AChR, Patient 42 is positive for MuSK antibodies, and patient 72 is low positive for LRP4 antibodies.</b> MuSK, muscle-specific tyrosine kinase; LRP4, low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 4; AChR, acetylcholine receptor.</p