A Comparative Study for 2D and 3D Computer-aided Diagnosis Methods for Solitary Pulmonary Nodules

Many computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) methods, including 2D and 3D approaches, have been proposed for solitary pulmonary nodules (SPNs). However, the detection and diagnosis of SPNs remain challenging in many clinical circumstances. One goal of this work is to investigate the relative diagnostic accuracy of 2D and 3D methods. An additional goal is to develop a two-stage approach that combines the simplicity of 2D and the accuracy of 3D methods. The experimental results show statistically significant differences between the diagnostic accuracy of 2D and 3D methods. The results also show that with a very minor drop in diagnostic performance the two-stage approach can significantly reduce the number of nodules needed to be processed by the 3D method, streamlining the computational demand

Controlled Heterogeneous Nucleation and Growth of Germanium Quantum Dots on Nanopatterned Silicon Dioxide and Silicon Nitride Substrates

Controlled heterogeneous nucleation and growth of Ge quantum dots (QDs) are demonstrated on SiO_2/Si_3N_4 substrates by means of a novel fabrication process of thermally oxidizing nanopatterned SiGe layers. The otherwise random self-assembly process for QDs is shown to be strongly influenced by the nanopatterning in determining both the location and size of the QDs. Ostwald ripening processes are observed under further annealing at the oxidation temperature. Both nanopattern oxidation and Ostwald ripening offer additional mechanisms for lithography for controlling the size and placement of the QDs