Partially-disordered photonic-crystal thin films for enhanced and robust photovoltaics

We present a general framework for the design of thin-film photovoltaics based on a partially-disordered photonic crystal that has both enhanced absorption for light trapping and reduced sensitivity to the angle and polarization of incident radiation. The absorption characteristics of different lattice structures are investigated as an initial periodic structure is gradually perturbed. We find that an optimal amount of disorder controllably introduced into a multi-lattice photonic crystal causes the characteristic narrow-band, resonant peaks to be broadened resulting in a device with enhanced and robust performance ideal for typical operating conditions of photovoltaic applications.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Characteristics of the Potential Temperature Distribution Along Mountain Slopes Experiencing Cross-Mountain Air Currents in the Winter Season

In winter, northwesterly winds in the vicinity of Japan are predominant in the winter pressure distribution pattern that characterizes the climate of the environs of Japan, and on the Kanto Plain cross-mountain air currents frequently occur in winter because the winds pass over the Joshin’etsu mountainous region. A detailed analysis of the cross-mountain air currents is important to understanding the climate in the northwestern inland region of the Kanto Plain on the leeward side. In addition, little research has been conducted on the role of the gap flow in regard to the winter cross-mountain air currents. To address this shortage, advanced meteorological observation was carried out along the channel traversing the Joshin’etsu mountainous region, and that data was used to research the characteristics of the surface atmosphere along the mountain slopes when winter cross-mountain air currents blow. As a result, in the case in which cross-mountain air currents were not blowing, the potential temperature along the mountain slope tended to rise with altitude, in both the Sea of Japan side and Pacific Ocean side. However, in the case in which cross-mountain air currents were blowing, the potential temperature distribution was nearly uniform on the slope of the leeward, Pacific Ocean side, regardless of elevation. The case in which cross-mountain air currents were blowing had characteristics similar to foehn. This also suggests an impact by gap winds that pass through the Uonogawa-Tonegawa channel

A Comparison of Constraint Handling Rules with Equivalent Transformation Rules

We have proposed a novel computation framework called Equivalent Transformation (ET). The ET framework is a rewriting system in which computation is executed by rewriting rules. Rewriting rules of the ET framework are called Equivalent Transformation Rules (ETRs). The theory of ET guarantees the correctness of the computation by ETRs. Multi-head ETRs which have multiple atoms in their head part are valid ETRs. Constraint Handling Rules (CHR) are declarative language extension designed for writing user-defined constraints. CHR allows to use multi-head guarded rules for its computation. This paper compares the rewriting rules of ET and CHR, especially multi-head rules. We show that all CHR rules ca

Expression of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Detected by Cetuximab Indicates Its Efficacy to Inhibit In Vitro and In Vivo Proliferation of Colorectal Cancer Cells.

Cetuximab is a chimeric mouse-human monoclonal antibody that targets the human epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). However, EGFR expression determined by immunohistochemistry does not predict clinical outcomes of colorectal cancer (CRC) patients treated with cetuximab. Therefore, we evaluated the correlation between EGFR levels detected by cetuximab and drug sensitivities of CRC cell lines (Caco-2, WiDR, SW480, and HCT116) and the A431 epidermoid carcinoma cell line. We used flow cytometry (FCM) to detect EGFR-binding of biotinylated cetuximab on the cell surface. Subcloned cell lines showing the highest and lowest EGFR expression levels were chosen for further study. Cytotoxic assays were used to determine differential responses to cetuximab. Xenograft models treated with cetuximab intraperitoneally to assess sensitivity to cetuximab. Strong responses to cetuximab were specifically exhibited by subcloned cells with high EGFR expression levels. Furthermore, cetuximab inhibited the growth of tumors in xenograft models with high or low EGFR expression levels by 35% and 10%-20%, respectively. We conclude that detection of EGFR expression by cetuximab promises to provide a novel, sensitive, and specific method for predicting the sensitivity of CRC to cetuximab