Moiré-free fingerprint sensors based on multilayer oxide-metal-oxide electrodes.

The display quality of touchscreen devices with on-screen fingerprint sensors is reduced by moiré patterns, interference phenomena caused by an overlap between the pixel pattern of the display, and the electrode pattern of the fingerprint sensor. A promising strategy for resolving this issue is to reduce the visibility of the moiré pattern, by including a filling layer with a transmittance similar to that of the electrodes, between the different patterns. We propose a moiré-free fingerprint sensor that uses an oxide-metal-oxide (IZO/Ag/IZO) multilayer as a highly transparent electrode. To verify the moiré reduction effect, we conducted a two-dimensional spectral analysis to calculate the spatial frequencies of the superimposed image of the display and the sensor patterns, and demonstrated experimentally that the proposed electrode greatly reduces the undesirable moiré phenomenon.

Rspo 1 promotes osteoblast differentiation via Wnt signaling pathway.

R-spondin (Rspo)s proteins are a new group of Wnt/beta-catenin signaling agonists. These signaling molecules are known to be involved in the developmental stages of skeletal system. Recent studies in various murine osteoblast models have proposed that Rspo 1 may interact with Wnt signaling pathway to induce differentiation in osteoblasts. Though findings in murine osteoblasts implicate a synergestic role of Rspo 1 with Wnt signaling, still no study has addressed the similar role in more clinically applicable osteoblast models i.e., human cell lines or primary cells. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated the possible role of Rspo 1 during differentiation process of human in vitro osteoblast cell models like primary osteoblasts or human osteoprogenitor cell line hFOB 1.19 along with murine preosteoblast cell line MC3T3 E-1. Our results showed increase in Rspo 1 at transcript level during differentiating phase of human primary osteoblasts and human FOB 1.19 cells. We also found that Rspo 1 (100 ng/mL) acts additively with Wnt3a to activate Wnt signaling, as confirmed by luciferase activity after transfection of TOPFLASH construct to hFOB 1.19 cells. Similar additive role of Rspo 1 and Wnt3a was apparent in alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity analysis of human primary cells. Moreover, a reduction in ALP activity was observed with knock-down of Rspo 1 by transfected shRNA in hFOB 1.19 cells. These results suggested the possibility of autocrine regulation by Rspo 1 on the osteogenic activities in human in vitro osteoblast models. Furthermore, these results were corroborated in MC3T3-E1, murine osteoblast cell model. Osteoblastic differentiation was induced by transfection of Rspo 1 which was confirmed by increased ALP staining and qRT-PCR analysis of osteogenic markers, such as Runx2 and osteocalcin. In conclusion, present study highlights the role of Rspo 1 in bone remodeling where it activates Wnt signaling to induce differentiation, as shown in human as well murine in vitro osteoblast cell models.

Continuous cuffless blood pressure monitoring using photoplethysmography-based PPG2BP-net for high intrasubject blood pressure variations.

Continuous, comfortable, convenient (C3), and accurate blood pressure (BP) measurement and monitoring are needed for early diagnosis of various cardiovascular diseases. To supplement the limited C3 BP measurement of existing cuff-based BP technologies, though they may achieve reliable accuracy, cuffless BP measurement technologies, such as pulse transit/arrival time, pulse wave analysis, and image processing, have been studied to obtain C3 BP measurement. One of the recent cuffless BP measurement technologies, innovative machine-learning and artificial intelligence-based technologies that can estimate BP by extracting BP-related features from photoplethysmography (PPG)-based waveforms have attracted interdisciplinary attention of the medical and computer scientists owing to their handiness and effectiveness for both C3 and accurate, i.e., C3A, BP measurement. However, C3A BP measurement remains still unattainable because the accuracy of the existing PPG-based BP methods was not sufficiently justified for subject-independent and highly varying BP, which is a typical case in practice. To circumvent this issue, a novel convolutional neural network(CNN)- and calibration-based model (PPG2BP-Net) was designed by using a comparative paired one-dimensional CNN structure to estimate highly varying intrasubject BP. To this end, approximately [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], and [Formula: see text] of 4185 cleaned, independent subjects from 25,779 surgical cases were used for training, validating, and testing the proposed PPG2BP-Net, respectively and exclusively (i.e., subject-independent modelling). For quantifying the intrasubject BP variation from an initial calibration BP, a novel 'standard deviation of subject-calibration centring (SDS)' metric is proposed wherein high SDS represents high intrasubject BP variation from the calibration BP and vice versa. PPG2BP-Net achieved accurately estimated systolic and diastolic BP values despite high intrasubject variability. In 629-subject data acquired after 20 minutes following the A-line (arterial line) insertion, low error mean and standard deviation of [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] for highly varying A-line systolic and diastolic BP values, respectively, where their SDSs are 15.375 and 8.745. This study moves one step forward in developing the C3A cuffless BP estimation devices that enable the push and agile pull services.

Lack of continuity of care experienced by people diagnosed with schizophrenia in South Korea.

People diagnosed with schizophrenia (PDS) will find seamlessly coordinated services and care in their communities if they are delivered with a high level of continuity of care (COC). Most studies of COC were conducted in Western countries that initiated deinstitutionalisation several decades ago. Limited studies highlight experiences of COC among PDS who live in societies still heavily relying on institutionalised care, such as prolonged hospitalisation, like South Korea where PDS stay in psychiatric hospitals over 100 days on average. This qualitative study explored COC that PDS experienced in South Korea. We focused on cross-boundary COC, which refers to service coordination at a given moment, and longitudinal COC, which refers to care over a period of time. Twenty-one PDS completed in-depth interviews from June to August 2017. Fifteen participants were male (71.4%), and ages ranged from 26 to 71. We used grounded theory techniques for data analysis, including initial open coding, in vivo coding, constant comparison and axial coding. Findings include that PDS experienced poor longitudinal COC when discharge planning during hospitalisation was absent, which undermined their ability to live independently. Poor employment support effectively undermined recovery even if PDS worked hard to attain economic self-sufficiency. As for cross-boundary COC, poor communication between psychiatrists and providers offering psychiatric rehabilitation services was a barrier. PDS in general had difficulties locating needed psychiatric rehabilitation services in the community. The lack of COC appeared to arise from particular sociocultural contexts, including poor self-determination in consumer-provider relationships, families' lack of knowledge and support, and discrimination and prejudice. Despite experiences with discrimination, no participants appeared to have internalised messages that they are 'less than' those without mental illnesses. Findings highlight the significance of multi-pronged approaches to increase COC, which can effectively link PDS, families, psychiatrists and psychiatric rehabilitation service providers.

Gradient area-selective deposition for seamless gap-filling in 3D nanostructures through surface chemical reactivity control.

The integration of bottom-up fabrication techniques and top-down methods can overcome current limits in nanofabrication. For such integration, we propose a gradient area-selective deposition using atomic layer deposition to overcome the inherent limitation of 3D nanofabrication and demonstrate the applicability of the proposed method toward large-scale production of materials. Cp(CH3)5Ti(OMe)3 is used as a molecular surface inhibitor to prevent the growth of TiO2 film in the next atomic layer deposition process. Cp(CH3)5Ti(OMe)3 adsorption was controlled gradually in a 3D nanoscale hole to achieve gradient TiO2 growth. This resulted in the formation of perfectly seamless TiO2 films with a high-aspect-ratio hole structure. The experimental results were consistent with theoretical calculations based on density functional theory, Monte Carlo simulation, and the Johnson-Mehl-Avrami-Kolmogorov model. Since the gradient area-selective deposition TiO2 film formation is based on the fundamentals of molecular chemical and physical behaviours, this approach can be applied to other material systems in atomic layer deposition.

Single crystal-like Si patterns for photonic crystal color filters.

A novel fabrication method for a two-dimensional photonic crystal color filter based on guided mode resonance is proposed. An amorphous silicon layer deposited through the low-temperature plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) process is patterned into two-dimensional structures using low-cost nanoimprint lithography. It is then effectively crystallized using multi-shot excimer laser annealing at low energy. We have demonstrated analytically and experimentally that single crystal-like silicon patterns on a glass substrate can offer high-efficiency photonic crystal color filters for reflective display applications. The highly crystallized silicon patterning scheme presented here may be very attractive for a variety of devices requiring high carrier mobility and high optical efficiency.

Fabrication and MFM study of 60 nm track-pitch discrete track media.

Discrete track magnetic recording media with a 60 nm track pitch and prewritten servo patterns were fabricated and tested for read/write performance, and a feasibility analysis of the embedded servo was performed. The fabrication process consisted of ultraviolet nanoimprint lithography (UV-NIL) and sequential ion beam etching on a conventional perpendicular magnetic recording medium. Magnetic patterns were written to the fabricated tracks at 700 kilo flux changes per inch (kFCI) using a spin stand and were read using magnetic force microscopy (MFM), with a resulting signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 12.15 dB. The servo pattern was also visualized with MFM. These results demonstrated the feasibility of writing to a 30 nm wide discrete data track and the workability of the embedded servo pattern.

Preoperative endoscopic retrograde biliary drainage increases postoperative complications after pancreaticoduodenectomy compared to endoscopic nasobiliary drainage.

BACKGROUND: Preoperative biliary drainage prior to pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) by percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage (PTBD) or endoscopic biliary drainage (EBD) is performed to improve liver functions, including immunity and coagulation that affect postoperative recovery in patients with jaundice. EBD can be performed through endoscopic retrograde biliary drainage (ERBD) or endoscopic nasobiliary drainage (ENBD). There is no clear consensus about which drainage is more suitable for preoperative EBD. The purpose of this study was to compare the postoperative outcomes of ENBD and ERBD performed prior to PD. METHODS: Data were collected retrospectively from the medical records of 3 hospitals: Chuncheon, Kangdong and Kangnam Sacred Heart hospitals. From January 2007 to April 2019, PD was performed in 230 patients, among whom, 88 patients had undergone preoperative EBD. These 88 patients were divided into two groups according to the method of preoperative biliary drainage: ENBD versus ERBD. We compared clinical data and postoperative complications after PD between ENBD and ERBD. RESULTS: The overall complication rates in the ENBD group were significantly lower than in the ERBD group (26.1% vs. 57.1%, P=0.003). Postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF) rates (11.1% vs. 38.1%, P=0.003) and postpancreatectomy hemorrhage (PPH) rates (2.2% vs. 14.3%, P=0.036) in the ENBD group were also lower than in the ERBD group. CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides further evidence that patients undergoing ERBD before PD are more likely to suffer POPFs and PPHs. This suggests that ENBD should be preferred in order to minimize the risk of POPFs and PPHs in patients with biliary obstruction prior to undergoing PD.

Fixation Using Carnoy's Solution Enables Detection of More Lymph Nodes After Gastrectomy for Gastric Cancer.

BACKGROUND: To compare the number of lymph nodes (LNs) detected when using Carnoy's solution (CS) versus 10% neutral buffered formalin (NBF) to fix specimens after radical gastrectomy for gastric cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: LNs were routinely detected using NBF until 2020, since then, for the fixation procedure, residual fat was fixed in CS for 24 hours and dissected again for the detection of further LNs. Of 143 specimens, 117 were included in the NBF group and 26 in the CS group. RESULTS: The mean numbers of LNs examined were 27.85±14.89 and 36.30±12.41 in the NBF and CS groups, respectively (p=0.008). The mean number of additional LNs detected using CS was 8.07±2.91, of which 0.38±1.02 were metastatic. Additional LNs were found in all patients of the CS group, and all were ≤3 mm. Of the 26 patients in the CS group, metastatic LNs were detected in four, disease in two of whom was up-staged. CONCLUSION: CS is an appropriate alternative to NBF for the fixation of gastric cancer specimens, and more LNs were detected in the resected specimens fixed when using CS compared with NBF.

Nobiletin Inhibits Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer by Inactivating WNT/ß-Catenin Signaling through Downregulating miR-15-5p.

BACKGROUND: Nobiletin is a natural compound with anticancer activity; however, the mechanism is not clear. METHODS: The inhibitory effect of nobiletin on non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells was examined using soft agar, Transwell, and apoptosis analyses. Cancer stemness was measured by sphere assay. Genes and miRNAs regulated by nobiletin were identified by whole-genome sequencing. Protein levels were detected by western blot and immunofluorescence assays. RESULTS: Nobiletin significantly inhibited NSCLC cell colony formation and sphere formation and induced apoptosis. Nobiletin upregulated negative regulators of WNT/ß-catenin signaling, including NKD1, AXIN2, and WIF1, while it inhibited the expression of ß-catenin and its downstream genes, including c-Myc, c-Jun, and cyclin D1. Furthermore, we identified that GN inhibits miR-15-5p expression in NSCLC cells and that NKD1, AXIN2, and WIF1 are the target genes of miR-15-5p. CONCLUSIONS: Nobiletin has a strong inhibitory effect on NSCLC, and nobiletin plays an anticancer role by inhibiting miR-15-5p/ß-catenin signaling in NSCLC.

Characterization of Spatial Distribution of Trap Across the Substrate in Metal-Insulator-Semiconductor Structure with Band Bending Effect.

We report the technique of trap distribution extraction according to the vertical position of the substrate in the p-MOSFET. This study was conducted on a single device. This technique is an experimental method. Ctrap was extracted based on the deep depletion C-V characteristics. In VFB, the trap level is neutral. When bias is applied, the energy band bends, resulting in modulation of the quasi-Fermi level. The area created by the bending of the energy band is equal to the area created by the Fermi level modulation. The trap level existing in this area becomes charged. Considering this, the spatial distribution of Trap was extracted. The trap extracted by the proposed method has a maximum value at the interface, rapidly decreases, and is distributed up to 8 nm in the vertical direction. The study of trap spatial distribution is expected to be applicable to the separation of trap interface state and bulk trap extraction later.

Nanoimprinted photonic crystal color filters for solar-powered reflective displays.

A novel concept for reflective displays that uses two-dimensional photonic crystals with subwavelength gratings is introduced. A solar-powered reflective display with photonic crystal color filters was analyzed by a theoretical approach. We fabricated the photonic crystal color filters on a glass substrate by using low-cost nanoimprint lithography and multi-scan excimer laser annealing to produce RGB color filters through a single patterning process. The theoretical and experimental results show that the color filters have high reflectance and angular tolerance, which was qualitatively confirmed by chromaticity coordination analysis.

The C-reactive protein to albumin ratio predicts postoperative complication in patients who undergo gastrectomy for gastric cancer.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the preoperative C-reactive protein (CRP) to albumin ratio (CAR) of patients with gastric cancer and to investigate the factors correlated with perioperative complications. From March 2016 to December 2019, 128 patients who underwent curative gastrectomy for gastric cancer were enrolled in a retrospective study. The preoperative cutoff value of the CAR for predicting postoperative complications was 0.265 on receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Clinical characteristics were compared between patients with complications (Clavien-Dindo grade ≥2, n = 20) and without complications (Clavien-Dindo grade <2, n = 108). On univariate and multivariate analyses, estimated blood loss (EBL) during the operation (HR 1.003, p = 0.039) and CAR (HR 2.832, p = 0.045) were independent predictors of postoperative complications. In conclusion, preoperative CAR appears to be a predictor of postoperative complications in the patients undergoing surgical treatment of gastric cancer.

On-screen fingerprint sensor with optically and electrically tailored transparent electrode patterns for use on high-resolution mobile displays.

In this study, a mutual capacitive-type on-screen fingerprint sensor, which can recognize fingerprints on a display screen to provide smartphones with full-screen displays with a minimal bezel area, is fabricated. On-screen fingerprint sensors are fabricated using an indium tin oxide transparent conductor with a sheet resistance of ~10 Ω/sq. and a transmittance of ~94% (~86% with the substrate effect) in the visible wavelength range, and assembled onto a display panel. Even at this high transmittance, the electrodes can degrade the display quality when they are placed on the display. The interference between periodic display pixel arrays and sensor patterns can lead to the Moiré phenomenon. It is necessary to find an appropriate sensor pattern that minimizes the Moiré pattern, while maintaining the signal sensitivity. To search for appropriate patterns, a numerical calculation is carried out over wide ranges of pitches and rotation angles. The range is narrowed for an experimental evaluation, which is used to finally determine the sensor design. As the selected sensor pitches are too small to detect capacitance variations, three unit patterns are electrically connected to obtain a unit block generating a larger signal. By applying the selected sensor pattern and circuit driving by block, fingerprint sensing on a display is demonstrated with a prototype built on a commercial smartphone.

Two-dimensional photonic crystal color filter development.

Reflective color filters using two-dimensional photonic crystals based on sub-wavelength gratings were proposed and constructed. Using low-cost nanoimprint lithography, an amorphous silicon layer was deposited through the low-temperature PECVD process and patterned into two-dimensional structures. The isolated amorphous silicon patterns were readily crystallized using a multi-shot excimer laser annealing at low energy. A study of the close relationship between color filter reflectance and silicon pattern crystallinity is introduced. Theoretical and experimental results show that the proposed color filters have high reflectance and, moreover, decrease the dependence on incident angle compared to one-dimensional photonic crystal color filters.

Self-assembly growth process for polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane cubic crystals.

The colloidal self-assembly process for the formation of polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane cubic crystals is described; the growth process consists of the formation of spherical particles, one-dimensional particle chains, bundles of chains, and finally, the formation of cubic crystals.

The fabrication of Co-Pt electro-deposited bit patterned media with nanoimprint lithography.

Bit patterned media with 25 nm hole diameter and 50 nm pitch size were fabricated with serial processes comprising master patterning with electron-beam lithography, a Si etching process, multi-layer soft stamp replication, and UV nanoimprinting, followed by Co-Pt magnetic material filling by electro-deposition. From these processes, the designed patterns were well defined, and perpendicular magnetic anisotropy of the fabricated bit patterned media was obtained.

Aluminum Matrix Composites Manufactured using Nitridation-Induced Self-Forming Process.

Conventional manufacturing processes for aluminum matrix composites (AMCs) involve complex procedures that require unique equipment and skills at each stage. This increases the process costs and limits the scope of potential applications. In this study, a simple and facile route for AMC manufacturing is developed, a mixture of Al powder and the ceramic reinforcement is simply heated under nitrogen atmosphere to produce the composite. During heating under nitrogen atmosphere, the surface modification of both Al and the reinforcement is induced by nitridation. When the oxide layer covering Al powder surface is transformed to nitrides, temperature in the local region increases rapidly, resulting in a partial melt of Al powder. The molten Al infiltrates into the empty space among Al powder and reinforcement, thereby enabling consolidation of powders without external forces. It is possible to fabricate AMCs with various types, sizes, volume fractions, and morphologies of the reinforcement. Furthermore, the manufacturing temperature can be lowered below the melting point of Al (or the solidus temperature for alloys) because of the exothermic nature of the nitridation, which prevents formation of un-wanted reactants. The relative simplicity of this process will not only provide sufficient price competitiveness for the final products but also contribute to the expansion of the application scope of AMCs.

Exploration of the prevalence and correlates of substance use among sheltered adolescents in South Korea.

Substance use among sheltered adolescents is very serious in South Korea--a nation in the process of rapid industrialization and urbanization. However, few studies have investigated substance use among the adolescents which is a growing concern of the changing society of this nation. This study examined the prevalence of substance use and explored risk factors that predict substance abuse by sheltered adolescents. Through a questionnaire survey of sheltered adolescents, data on substance use and the risk factors were collected. The sample of the adolescents included 44 (33.3%) males and 88 (67.2%) females; their mean age was 15.8 years (SD = 1.62). The results of a logistic regression analysis showed that alcohol expectancy, physical abuse, and peer pressure were all statistically significantly associated with substance abuse. Findings on the critical issues are expected to lead to the development of urgently needed prevention programs for the high-risk adolescents in South Korea.