Flexible In-Ga-Zn-O based circuits with two and three metal layers: simulation and fabrication study

The quest for high-performance flexible circuits call for scaling of the minimum feature size in Thin-Film Transistors (TFTs). Although reduced channel lengths can guarantee an improvement in the electrical properties of the devices, proper design rules also play a crucial role to minimize parasitics when designing fast circuits. In this letter, systematic Computer-Aided Design (CAD) simulations have guided the fabrication of highperformance flexible operational amplifiers (opamps) and logic circuits based on Indium-Gallium-Zinc-Oxide (IGZO) TFTs. In particular, the performance improvements due to the use of an additional third metal layer for the interconnections has been estimated for the first time. Encouraged by the simulated enhancements resulting by the decreased parasitic resistances and capacitances, both TFTs and circuits have been realized on a free-standing 50μm thick polymide foil using three metal layers. Despite the thicker layer stack, the TFTs have shown mechanical stability down to 5mm bending radii. Moreover, the opamps and the logic circuits have yielded improved electrical performance with respect to the architecture with two metal layers: gainbandwidth- product (GBWP) increased by 16:9%, for the first one, and propagation delay (tpd) decreased by 43%, for the latter one

The parent?infant dyad and the construction of the subjective self

Developmental psychology and psychopathology has in the past been more concerned with the quality of self-representation than with the development of the subjective agency which underpins our experience of feeling, thought and action, a key function of mentalisation. This review begins by contrasting a Cartesian view of pre-wired introspective subjectivity with a constructionist model based on the assumption of an innate contingency detector which orients the infant towards aspects of the social world that react congruently and in a specifically cued informative manner that expresses and facilitates the assimilation of cultural knowledge. Research on the neural mechanisms associated with mentalisation and social influences on its development are reviewed. It is suggested that the infant focuses on the attachment figure as a source of reliable information about the world. The construction of the sense of a subjective self is then an aspect of acquiring knowledge about the world through the caregiver's pedagogical communicative displays which in this context focuses on the child's thoughts and feelings. We argue that a number of possible mechanisms, including complementary activation of attachment and mentalisation, the disruptive effect of maltreatment on parent-child communication, the biobehavioural overlap of cues for learning and cues for attachment, may have a role in ensuring that the quality of relationship with the caregiver influences the development of the child's experience of thoughts and feelings

AMON: a wearable multiparameter medical monitoring and alert system

This paper describes an advanced care and alert portable telemedical monitor (AMON), a wearable medical monitoring and alert system targeting high-risk cardiac/respiratory patients. The system includes continuous collection and evaluation of multiple vital signs, intelligent multiparameter medical emergency detection, and a cellular connection to a medical center. By integrating the whole system in an unobtrusive, wrist-worn enclosure and applying aggressive low-power design techniques, continuous long-term monitoring can be performed without interfering with the patients' everyday activities and without restricting their mobility. In the first two and a half years of this EU IST sponsored project, the AMON consortium has designed, implemented, and tested the described wrist-worn device, a communication link, and a comprehensive medical center software package. The performance of the system has been validated by a medical study with a set of 33 subjects. The paper describes the main concepts behind the AMON system and presents details of the individual subsystems and solutions as well as the results of the medical validation

Stretchable and Conformable Oxide Thin-Film Electronics

Stretchable large-area high-performance amorphous oxide thin-film electronics fabricated using locally reinforced composite elastomers or wavy structures are functional while elongated by >200% and after 4000 stretching and relaxation cycles. 2D stretchable sensors, amplifiers, and circuits for wireless power transmission are conformably wrapped around arbitrary 3D structures and enable sensor systems for electronic implants and skins

The Impact of Antidepressant Treatment on Cognitive Functioning in Depressed Patients with Parkinson's Disease

Depression is associated with more rapid cognitive decline in Parkinson’s disease (PD). The goal of this study was to examine the impact of the acute (8-week) and longer-term (24- week) antidepressant treatment on cognition in PD and to detail cognitive predictors of treatment response. Fifty-two depressed PD patients were enrolled in an NIH funded randomized-controlled trial of nortriptyline, paroxetine, and placebo. Neuropsychological testing was performed at baseline, and weeks eight and twenty-four. Higher baseline scores on measures of executive functioning, speed of processing, and verbal memory were associated with antidepressant response. Treatment responders did not exhibit larger gains in cognition than non-responders. Findings warrant replication

Flexible In-Ga-Zn-O based circuits with two and three metal layers: Simulation and Fabrication study

The quest for high-performance flexible circuits call for scaling of the minimum feature size in thin-film transistors (TFTs). Although reduced channel lengths can guarantee an improvement in the electrical properties of the devices, proper design rules also play a crucial role to minimize parasitics when designing fast circuits. In this letter, systematic computer-aided design simulations have guided the fabrication of high-performance flexible operational amplifiers (opamps) and logic circuits based on indium-gallium-zinc-oxide TFTs. In particular, the performance improvements due to the use of an additional third metal layer for the interconnections have been estimated for the first time. Encouraged by the simulated enhancements resulting by the decreased parasitic resistances and capacitances, both TFTs and circuits have been realized on a free-standing 50-μm-thick polymide foil using three metal layers. Despite the thicker layer stack, the TFTs have shown mechanical stability down to 5-mm bending radii. Moreover, the opamps and the logic circuits have yielded improved electrical performance with respect to the architecture with two metal layers: gain-bandwidth-product increased by 16.9%, for the first one, and propagation delay (tpd) decreased by 43%, for the latter one