The resistivity, ρ(T), of Cu2ZnSnS4 powder samples, obtained by a solid-state reaction method from pure elements, exhibits an activated character. The Mott variable-range hopping charge transfer is ...observed between T ∼100–230 K, followed by the conductivity due to activation of holes into the states above the mobility threshold when T is increased. Such behavior, accompanied by semi-width W of the acceptor band, exceeding the mean acceptor energy, indicates overlap of the acceptor band states with those of the valence band, forming a joint near-edge hole spectrum in conditions of the strong degree of the compensation. The details of this spectrum have been determined, including positions of the Fermi level, μ, and the mobility threshold, as well as the density of the localized states at the Fermi level, g (μ). The acceptor concentration and the hole localization radius have been obtained, too. These parameters indicate the material to lie relatively far from the metal-insulator transition.
•Resistivity of Cu2ZnSnS4 powder samples has activated character between 100–300 K.•Mott variable-range hopping conductivity is observed within T ∼ 100–230 K.•Activation of holes above the mobility threshold takes place with increasing T.•Energy spectrum of holes is formed by the overlapped acceptor and valence bands.•Details of this spectrum and the localization radius of holes have been determined.
Abstract
Schizophrenia is characterized by the most salient medication adherence problems among severe mental disorders, but limited prospective data are available to predict and improve adherence in ...this population. This investigation aims to identify predictors of medication adherence over a 1-year period in a large national cohort using clustering analysis. Outpatients were recruited from ten Schizophrenia Expert Centers and were evaluated with a day-long standardized battery including clinician and patient-rated medication adherence measures. A two-step cluster analysis and multivariate logistic regression were conducted to identify medication adherence profiles based on the Medication Adherence rating Scale (MARS) and baseline predictors. A total of 485 participants were included in the study and medication adherence was significantly improved at the 1-year follow-up. Higher depressive scores, lower insight, history of suicide attempt, younger age and alcohol use disorder were all associated with poorer adherence at 1 year. Among the 203 patients with initially poor adherence, 86 (42%) switched to good adherence at the 1-year follow-up, whereas 117 patients (58%) remained poorly adherent. Targeting younger patients with low insight, history of suicide, alcohol use disorder and depressive disorders should be prioritized through literacy and educational therapy programs. Adherence is a construct that can vary considerably from year to year in schizophrenia, and therefore may be amenable to interventions for its improvement. However, caution is also warranted as nearly one in five patients with initially good adherence experienced worsened adherence 1 year later.
Previous studies suggest a myriad of factors prevent individuals from engaging in physical activity; however, less is known about barriers faced by individuals with multiple chronic conditions, such ...as peripheral artery disease (PAD) and type 2 diabetes, and how these barriers may impact engagement in physical activity. To date, there are no studies that integrate simultaneous assessment of perceived barriers to physical activity and engagement in physical activity in older adults with PAD and diabetes. This integration is key to understanding the implications of barriers to physical activity and to developing strategies to address those barriers. Therefore, this study investigated the unique physical activity experiences of older adults with PAD and diabetes. This study used a concurrent mixed methods design. Ten adults aged 65 years and older with PAD and diabetes completed semistructured interviews about experiences with physical activity, self-reported questionnaires assessing quality of life and fear of falling, and measures of physical function (eg, 6-minute walk test, chair stand, gait speed). Physical activity was measured objectively with accelerometry. Inductive content analysis was used to identify themes, and integrated analysis was performed to evaluate patterns among qualitative and quantitative variables. On average, participants were 74 years old and spent 10% of their time in moderate or vigorous physical activity (range: 3%–18%); 80% of participants were men. Barriers to physical activity identified through qualitative interviews included lack of accessibility, lack of enjoyment of activity, lack of motivation, and pain and physical health. Facilitators to physical activity were social support, accessibility and convenience, and enjoyment of the activity. Participants with more sedentary time and less moderate or vigorous physical activity tended to report greater fear of falling and greater barriers to physical activity and achieved lower distances in 6-minute walk tests. This research provides insight into both the nature of perceived barriers to physical activity and engagement in physical activity among older adults with PAD and diabetes. The integration of self-reported measures and objective measures facilitates our understanding of the lived experiences of individuals with these conditions. Study findings can be used to support further investigation into factors that influence engagement in physical activity in individuals with PAD and diabetes and to assist in the development of strategies to address identified barriers.
•Access, lack of enjoyment, and physical health were barriers to physical activity.•Social support, convenience, and enjoyment facilitated physical activity.•Greater sedentary time was associated with greater barriers to physical activity.•Participants who were less active also reported greater fear of falling.
Powder samples of Zn2x(CuIn)1-xS2 alloys were prepared by solid state reaction of the elements (T=950DGC) and annealed with cooling rates between 2 and 42 K/h in the entire composition range. ...Structural parameters (e.g. lattice parameter, tetragonal deformation eta) were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies, the chemical composition was determined by EDX analysis on a transmission electron microscope. The room temperature results showed that mixed crystals in the interval 0 < or = x < 0.1 crystallize in the tetragonal chalcopyrite-type structure and in the interval 0.4 < x < or = 1 in the cubic sphalerite-type structure. In between, i.e. for 0.1 < or = x < or = 0.4, a miscibility gap was found, indicated by the coexistence of two phases, resulting in crystals containing tetragonal domains in a cubic matrix. In the single-phase regions the lattice parameter follows Vegard's rule, whereas in the 2-phase field the phases try to match in the a-b-plane (atetr ~acub), causing an increase of the tetragonal lattice parameter c and herewith a strong increase of the tetragonal deformation q. Thus the tetragonal deformation eta = c/2a in 2-phase samples is significantly larger than in tetragonal single-phase samples and even larger than in the end member CuInS2.
ABSTRACT
V392 Persei is a known dwarf nova (DN) that underwent a classical nova eruption in 2018. Here we report ground-based optical, Swift UV and X-ray, and Fermi-LAT γ-ray observations following ...the eruption for almost three years. V392 Per is one of the fastest evolving novae yet observed, with a t2 decline time of 2 d. Early spectra present evidence for multiple and interacting mass ejections, with the associated shocks driving both the γ-ray and early optical luminosity. V392 Per entered Sun-constraint within days of eruption. Upon exit, the nova had evolved to the nebular phase, and we saw the tail of the supersoft X-ray phase. Subsequent optical emission captured the fading ejecta alongside a persistent narrow line emission spectrum from the accretion disc. Ongoing hard X-ray emission is characteristic of a standing accretion shock in an intermediate polar. Analysis of the optical data reveals an orbital period of 3.230 ± 0.003 d, but we see no evidence for a white dwarf (WD) spin period. The optical and X-ray data suggest a high mass WD, the pre-nova spectral energy distribution (SED) indicates an evolved donor, and the post-nova SED points to a high mass accretion rate. Following eruption, the system has remained in a nova-like high mass transfer state, rather than returning to the pre-nova DN low mass transfer configuration. We suggest that this high state is driven by irradiation of the donor by the nova eruption. In many ways, V392 Per shows similarity to the well-studied nova and DN GK Persei.
Zinc (Zn)-anode batteries, although safe and non-flammable, are precluded from promising applications because of their low voltage (<2 V) and poor rechargeability. Here, we report the fabrication of ...rechargeable membrane-less Zn-anode batteries with high voltage properties (2.5 to 3.4 V) achieved through coupling cathodes and Zn-anodes in gelled concentrated acid and alkaline solutions separated by a gelled buffer interlayer containing the working ions. The concentrated gelled buffer interlayers perform dual functions of regulating the pH of the system and acting as the source and sink of the working ions. With this strategy we show low-cost membrane-less 2.5 to 3.4 V Zn-manganese dioxide (MnO
2
) batteries capable of cycling 10-100% of 617 mA h g
−1
-MnO
2
and 20-30% of 820 mA h g
−1
-Zn and demonstrate their application in electric vehicles. This strategy is then applied to other oxide-based cathode systems like Cu
2
O and V
2
O
5
, where voltages of 2 to 3 V are obtained in membrane-less batteries.
A 2.5 to 3.4 V Zn|MnO
2
membrane-less solid-state battery accessing the 617 mA h g
−1
theoretical capacity of MnO
2
and its application in e-mobility is reported. This concept is made possible by a buffering layer that regulates the battery's pH.
MoS2 is a two-dimensional layered transition metal dichalcogenide with unique electronic and optical properties. The fabrication of ultrathin MoS2 is vitally important, since interlayer interactions ...in its ultrathin varieties will become thickness-dependent, providing thickness-governed tunability and diverse applications of those properties. Unlike with a number of studies that have reported detailed information on direct bandgap emission from MoS2 monolayers, reliable experimental evidence for thickness-induced evolution or transformation of the indirect bandgap remains scarce. Here, the sulfurization of MoO3 thin films with nominal thicknesses of 30 nm, 5 nm and 3 nm was performed. All sulfurized samples were examined at room temperature with spectroscopic ellipsometry and photoluminescence spectroscopy to obtain information about their dielectric function and edge emission spectra. This investigation unveiled an indirect-to-indirect crossover between the transitions, associated with two different Λ and K valleys of the MoS2 conduction band, by thinning its thickness down to a few layers.
Due to a lack of valid German instruments measuring shared decision-making (SDM), a theory-driven questionnaire (SDM-Q) to measure the process of SDM was developed and validated.
As a theoretical ...basis steps of the SDM process were defined in an expert panel. Item formulation was then conducted according to the Delphi method. For the first validation on a mixed sample Rasch analysis was used to eliminate items not fitting the construct thus receiving a unidimensional scale.
After eliminating 4 items the remaining 11 form a unidimensional scale with an acceptable reliability for person measures (0.77) and very good reliability for item difficulties (0.95). Analysis of subgroups revealed a different use of items in different conditions. Furthermore the scale showed high ceiling effects.
A new theory-driven instrument to measure the process of SDM has been developed and validated by use of a rigorous method revealing first promising results. Yet the ceiling effects require the addition of more discriminating items, and the different use of items in different conditions demands an in depth analysis.
While the concept of SDM is constantly receiving more attention in medical practice, its valid and reliable measurement remains challenging.
Background:
Despite efforts to provide evidence-based care for people living with kidney disease, health care provider goals and priorities are often misaligned with those of individuals with lived ...experience of disease. Coupled with competing interests of time, resources, and an abundance of suitable guideline topics, identifying and prioritizing areas of focus for the Canadian nephrology community with a patient-oriented perspective is necessary and important. Similar priority-setting exercises have been undertaken to establish research priorities for kidney disease and to standardize outcomes for kidney disease research and clinical care; however, research priorities are distinct from priorities for guideline development. Inclusion of people living with health conditions in the selection and prioritization of guideline topics is suggested by patient engagement frameworks, though the process to operationalizing this is variable. We propose that the Canadian Society of Nephrology Clinical Practice Guideline Committee (CSN CPGC) takes the opportunity at this juncture to incorporate evidence-based prioritization exercises with involvement of people living with kidney disease and their caregivers to inform future guideline activities. In this protocol, we describe our planned research methods to address this.
Objective:
To establish consensus-based guideline topic priorities for the CSN CPGC using a modified Delphi survey with involvement of multidisciplinary stakeholders, including people living with kidney disease and their caregivers.
Study design:
Protocol for a Modified Delphi Survey.
Setting:
Pilot-tested surveys will be distributed via email and conducted using the online platform SurveyMonkey, in both French and English.
Participants:
We will establish a group of multidisciplinary clinical and research stakeholders (both within and outside CSN membership) from Canada, in addition to people living with kidney disease and/or their caregivers.
Methods:
A comprehensive literature search will be conducted to generate an initial list of guideline topics, which will be organized into three main categories: (1) International nephrology-focused guidelines that may require Canadian commentary, (2) Non-nephrology specific guidelines from Canada that may require CSN commentary, and (3) Novel topics for guideline development. Participants will engage in a multi-round Modified Delphi Survey to prioritize a set of “important guideline topics.”
Measures:
Consensus will be reached for an item based on both median score on the Likert-type scale (≥ 7) and the percentage agreement (≥ 75%); the Delphi process will be complete when consensus is reached on each item. Guideline topics will then be given a priority score calculated from the total Likert ratings across participants, adjusted for the number of participants.
Limitations:
Potential limitations include participant response rates and compliance to survey completion.
Conclusions:
We propose to incorporate evidence-based prioritization exercises with the engagement of people living with kidney disease and their caregivers to establish consensus-based guideline topics and inform future guidelines activities of the CSN CPGC.
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