Nowadays, transparent amorphous oxide semiconductor (TAOS)-based transparent thin-film transistors (TTFTs) are utilized as the backplane of organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays. Among many ...TAOSs examined to date, amorphous (a-)SnO2 is one of the most promising candidates owing to its environmental compatibility, e.g., indium-free. Although several SnO2-based TFTs have been demonstrated so far, the reported characteristics are ambiguous, e.g., extremely high electron mobility (>100 cm2 V–1 s–1) and behaviors far different from those of currently used a-InGaZnO4-based TFTs. Here, we show high-performance bottom-gated a-SnO2-based TTFTs. First, we systematically investigated the electron transport properties and the band gap of SnO2 films with various thicknesses. Then, we optimized the SnO2 thickness by analyzing the operation mechanism of the TTFTs using an electric-field thermopower modulation technique. We found that the optimal SnO2 thickness is 4.2 nm for high-performance TTFTs (highest on-to-off current ratio (∼105) and high mobility (∼20 cm2 V–1 s–1)). The present results would be essential to develop a-SnO2-based TTFTs in commercial applications.
Purpose. To compare the 2-year effect of multiple doses of lutein/zeaxanthin on serum, macular pigmentation, and visual performance on patients with early age-related macular degeneration (AMD). ...Methods. In this randomized, double-blinded, and placebo-controlled trial, 112 early AMD patients randomly received either 10 mg lutein, 20 mg lutein, a combination of lutein (10 mg) and zeaxanthin (10 mg), or placebo daily for 2 years. Serum concentration of lutein/zeaxanthin, macular pigment optical density (MPOD), visual functions including best-spectacle corrected visual acuity (BCVA), contrast sensitivity (CS), flash recovery time (FRT), and vision-related quality of life (VFQ25) was quantified. Results. Serum lutein concentration and MPOD significantly increased in all the active treatment groups. Supplementation with 20 mg lutein was the most effective in increasing MPOD and CS at 3 cycles/degree for the first 48 weeks. However, they both significantly increased to the same peak value following supplementation with either 10 mg or 20 mg lutein during the intervention. No statistical changes of BCVA or FRT were observed during the trial. Conclusions. Long-term lutein supplementation could increase serum lutein concentration, MPOD, and visual sensitivities of early AMD patients. 10 mg lutein daily might be an advisable long-term dosage for early AMD treatment.
Deuteration of hydrogen-bonded phase transition crystals can increase the transition temperatures due to the isotope effect. But rare examples show the opposite trend that originates from the ...structural changes of the hydrogen bond, known as the geometric H/D isotope effect. Herein, we report an organic crystal, diethylammonium hydrogen 1,4-terephthalate, exhibits a reversible structural phase transition and dielectric switching. Structural study shows the cations reside in channels formed by one-dimensional hydrogen-bonded anionic chains and undergo an order-disorder transition at around 206 K. The deuterated counterpart shows an elongation of the O···O hydrogen bond by about 0.005 Å. This geometric isotope effect releases the internal pressure of the anionic host on the cation guests and results in a downward shift of the phase transition temperature by 10 K.
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Intrinsic polarization-sensitive materials have achieved booming status in light polarization detection for the merits of direct detection, easy miniaturization, and low manufacturing cost. The ...promising optoelectronic properties and favorable structure tunability of two-dimensional (2D) perovskites provide valuable supplements for traditional 2D materials in the field of polarization detection. However, almost all polarization-sensitive 2D perovskites depend on hard-to-use out-of-plane anisotropy, and an effective strategy to achieve excellent in-plane anisotropy for polarization detection remains a great challenge. In this work, a pair of 2D chiral perovskites with large structural distortion was constructed by introducing chiral carboxylate amine cations and the unique cationic assembly
via
strong hydrogen bonding interacts intensely with inorganic sheets to bring about huge in-plane structural anisotropy. Based on the significant in-plane structural and electronic anisotropy, the fabricated device exhibits a high photocurrent anisotropy ratio of up to 8 under 405 nm irradiation. This work enlightens the mechanism of 2D perovskites with large in-plane anisotropy and provides an effective strategy utilizing homochirality to achieve excellent in-plane polarization detection.
A unique cationic assembly
via
strong H-bonding interacts intensely with perovskite inorganic sheets to bring about huge in-plane structural anisotropy that leads to high photocurrent anisotropy responses.
Functional dynamic molecular crystals have drawn increasing interest in exploring next-generation flexible and smart materials. Molecular rotors, as a typical type of dynamic material, are good ...candidates that can exhibit bulk properties and functionalities. Herein, we report a molecular rotor crystal as a model system to show a unique structural phase transition-related ferroelasticity. The molecular rotor is dumbbell shaped containing a freely rotating axial rotator and multiple peripheral
tert
-butyl groups on the two plates with restricted motions. The crystal undergoes a ferroelastic structural phase transition at 263 K with unconventional inverse temperature symmetry breaking (ITSB),
i.e.
, a higher-symmetric low-temperature paraelectric phase (point group mmm)
vs.
a lower-symmetric high-temperature ferroelastic phase (point group 2/
m
). Combined crystallographic and NMR spectroscopy studies reveal that unequal motions of the peripheral
tert
-butyl rotators and anisotropic steric repulsion among the molecules are the key cooperative intermolecular interactions to drive a concerted molecular movement to result in the unique ferroelastic phase transition with ITSB. Our study may open avenues for designing and exploring new types of dynamic functional materials.
A molecular rotor crystal shows a ferroelastic phase transition with unique inverse temperature symmetry breaking which is a result of concerted molecular movement triggered by anisotropic steric repulsion among adjacent molecules.
Motivated by the success of methylammonium lead iodide, substantial efforts have been made to search for moisture- and air-stable metal halide perovskites (MHPs) for various optoelectronic ...applications. Lowering the structural dimensionality in 2D and quasi-2D MHPs greatly increases the stability, but the simultaneously lowered electronic dimensionality leads to less efficient and large anisotropic charge carrier separation and transport. Herein, we report the construction and characterization of three 3D MHP analogs APb
2
I
6
(A = linear alkyl-diammonium cation) displaying balanced high stability and isotropic photoresponse. Single-crystal-based devices exhibit on/off ratios of photocurrent higher than 1.0 × 10
3
in all three crystallographic directions and ultra-long device stability (>12 months) at 40% relative humidity. The enhanced stability and quasi-isotropic photoresponse are ascribed to the specific choice of the cations and the genuine 3D electronic dimensionality. This type of 3D MPH analog is expected to be a promising candidate for fabricating high-performance optoelectronic devices.
3D lead iodide perovskite analogs display both high stability and quasi-isotropic photoresponse, consistent with both 3D crystallographic and electronic structures.
Noctuidae is known to have high species diversity, although the genomic diversity of Noctuidae species has yet to be studied extensively. Investigation of transposable elements (TEs) in this family ...can improve our understanding of the genomic diversity of Noctuidae. In this study, we annotated and characterized genome-wide TEs in ten noctuid species belonging to seven genera. With multiple annotation pipelines, we constructed a consensus sequence library containing 1038-2826 TE consensus. The genome content of TEs showed high variation in the ten Noctuidae genomes, ranging from 11.3% to 45.0%. The relatedness analysis indicated that the TE content, especially the content of LINEs and DNA transposons, is positively correlated with the genome size (r = 0.86,
-value = 0.001). We identified SINE/
as a lineage-specific subfamily in
a species-specific expansion of the LTR/
subfamily in
, and a recent expansion of SINE/
subfamily in
We further revealed that of the four TE classes, only LINEs showed phylogenetic signals with high confidence. We also examined how the expansion of TEs contributed to the evolution of noctuid genomes. Moreover, we identified 56 horizontal transfer TE (HTT) events among the ten noctuid species and at least three HTT events between the nine Noctuidae species and 11 non-noctuid arthropods. One of the HTT events of a
transposon might have caused the recent expansion of the
subfamily in the
genome. By determining the TE content, dynamics, and HTT events in the Noctuidae genomes, our study emphasized that TE activities and HTT events substantially impacted the Noctuidae genome evolution.
This study was designed to elucidate the role of inflammatory process in diabetic retinopathy and to investigate the effect of baicalein treatment on diabetic rat.
Retinal microglial cells were ...identified with CD11b antibody, and retinal Müller cells were identified with glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP). The gene expression of interleukin (IL)-18, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, and IL-1beta was examined by quantitative real-time PCR. The expression of GFAP and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was examined by quantitative real-time PCR, immunohistochemistry, and Western blot analysis. Vascular permeability was measured in vivo by bovine serum albumin conjugated with FITC. Baicalein was given by oral administration (150 mg/kg/d) with an animal feeding needle beginning 5 days after streptozotocin (STZ) injection.
By 24 weeks after onset of diabetes, microglial cells were activated and proliferated, and Müller cells upregulated their GFAP and VEGF expression. Pro-inflammatory factors, including IL-18, TNF-alpha, and IL-1beta, were significantly upregulated. Obvious vascular leakage and abnormality were demonstrated, and ganglion cell loss was significant. Baicalein treatment ameliorated diabetes-induced microglial activation and pro-inflammatory expression, reduced the GFAP and VEGF expression from Müller cells, and significantly reduced vascular abnormality and ganglion cell loss within the retina.
Inflammatory process, characterized by microglial activation and Müller cells dysfunction, was implicated in STZ-induced diabetic retinopathy. Baicalein treatment ameliorated inflammatory process, and therefore inhibited vascular abnormality and neuron loss in diabetic retinas.
Chiral hybrid metal halides (CHMHs) have received a considerable amount of attention in chiroptoelectronics, spintronics, and ferroelectrics due to their superior optoelectrical properties and ...structural flexibility. Owing to limitations in synthesis, the theoretical prediction of room-temperature stable chiral three-dimensional (3D) CHFClNH 3 PbI 3 has not been successfully prepared, and the optoelectronic properties of such structures cannot be studied. Herein, we have successfully constructed two pairs of chiral 3D lead iodide hybrids ( R / S / Rac -3AEP)Pb 2 I 6 (3R/S/Rac, 3AEP = 3-(1-aminoethyl)pyridin-1-ium) and ( R / S / Rac -2AEP)Pb 2 I 6 (2R/S/Rac, 2AEP = 2-(1-aminoethyl)pyridin-1-ium) through chiral introduction and ortho substitution strategies, and obtained bulk single crystals of 3R/S/Rac. The 3R/S exhibits optical activity and bulk photovoltaic effect induced by chirality. The 3R crystal device exhibits stable circularly polarized light performance at 565 nm with a maximum anisotropy factor of 0.07, responsivity of 0.25 A W −1 , and detectivity of 3.4 × 10 12 jones. This study provides new insights into the synthesis of chiral 3D lead halide hybrids and the development of chiral electronic devices.
Intrachannel nonlinearity is considered as a major distortion in high capacity transmission systems. To better understand the nonlinear distortion, the nonlinearity modeling is an essential ...technology. Most of current nonlinear models focus on the statistical characteristics of nonlinear noise. In this paper, we investigate the analytical models that predict the time-varying nonlinear noise waveform. For the return-to-zero (RZ) pulse-shaped system, the "power weighted, additive-multiplicative model" is investigated under various system conditions for quadrature phase shift keying and 16 quadrature amplitude modulation formats, with dispersion managed and unmanaged link composed of standard single mode fiber or nonzero dispersion-shifted fiber. For the non-RZ and Nyquist pulses, the Nyquist nonlinear model is investigated. Both two models achieved 95% accuracy which is defined as the absolute value of the cross correlation between the noise waveform obtained by split step Fourier simulation and the waveform calculated by the model. Simulation also shows that the model functions well for the most optical power range of commercial communication systems.
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