Vertically Processed GaInP/InP Tandem-Junction Nanowire Solar Cells.

We present vertically processed photovoltaic devices based on GaInP/InP tandem-junction III-V nanowires (NWs), contacting approximately 3 million NWs in parallel for each device. The GaInP and InP subcells as well as the connecting Esaki tunnel diode are all realized within the same NW. By processing GaInP/InP tandem-junction NW solar cells with varying compositions of the top junction GaInP material, we investigate the impact of the GaInP composition on the device performance. External quantum efficiency (EQE) measurements on devices with varying GaInP composition provide insights into the performance of the respective subcells, revealing that the GaInP subcell is current-limiting for all devices. I-V measurements under AM1.5G illumination confirm voltage addition of the subcells, resulting in an open-circuit voltage of up to 1.91 V. However, the short-circuit current density is low, ranging between 0.24 and 3.44 mA/cm2, which leads to a resulting solar conversion efficiency of up to 3.60%. Our work shows a path forward toward high-efficiency NW photovoltaics and identifies critical issues that need improvement.

Processing and characterization of large area InP nanowire photovoltaic devices.

III-V nanowire (NW) photovoltaic devices promise high efficiencies at reduced materials usage. However, research has so far focused on small devices, mostly ≤1 mm2. In this study, the upscaling potential of axial junction InP NW photovoltaic devices is investigated. Device processing was carried out on a full 2″ wafer, with device sizes up to 1 cm2, which is a significant increase from the mm-scale III-V NW photovoltaic devices published previously. The short-circuit current density of the largest 1 cm2devices, in which 460 million NWs are contacted in parallel, is on par with smaller devices. This enables a record power generation of 6.0 mW under AM1.5 G illumination, more than one order of magnitude higher than previous III-V NW photovoltaic devices. On the other hand, the fill factor of the larger devices is lower in comparison with smaller devices, which affects the device efficiency. By use of electroluminescence mapping, resistive losses in the indium tin oxide (ITO) front contact are found to limit the fill factor of the large devices. We use combined light-beam induced current (LBIC) and photoluminescence (PL) mapping as a powerful characterization tool for NW photovoltaic devices. From the LBIC and PL maps, local defects can be identified on the fully processed devices.

The importance and effectiveness of nutritional counselling in patients with autoimmune thyroid diseases in Poland.

BACKGROUND: Autoimmune thyroid diseases are the most common diseases in humans. Their pathogenesis is complex, pushing patients to search different ways of alleviating their effects, one of which is diet change. The aim of this study was to assess the role of medical personnel in shaping eating habits in patients with autoimmune thyroid disease based on experiences declared by patients. METHODS: We examined 208 individuals, of which 205 were qualified for final investigation. We selected study participants using accidental sampling, based on their appearance in health care facilities, including the ones providing endocrinological advices. The relationships between the qualitative features were tested using the Chi-square test of independence, assuming the significance level of p < 0.05. In the case of the expected cardinality < 10, the Chi-square test with correction for Yates continuity was used, while for the cardinality < 5-the Fisher exact test. RESULTS: People with thyroid disease are statistically more likely to use dietitian advice than people without thyroid disease. The highest percentage of respondents decided to modify their nutrition due to their own initiative. In addition, patients with autoimmune thyroid disease are statistically more likely to consider changing their diet to improve their well-being. The connection between the source of advice and modification of eating behaviour was also noted. CONCLUSION: Thanks to the joint effort of medical staff, patients can receive reliable knowledge about their disease, treatment and nutrition adapted to their needs. Trial registration approved by the Bioethics Committee of Medical University of Silesia in Katowice (opinion no.: PCN/0022/KB1/80/2).

CKD: The burden of disease invisible to research funders / Enfermedad renal crónica: la carga sanitaria invisible para los organismos que

The uptake of the current concept of chronic kidney disease (CKD) by the public, physicians and health authorities is low. Physicians still mix up CKD with chronic kidney insufficiency or failure. In a recent manuscript, only 23% of participants in a cohort of persons with CKD had been diagnosed by their physicians as having CKD while 29% has a diagnosis of cancer and 82% had a diagnosis of hypertension. For the wider public and health authorities, CKD evokes kidney replacement therapy (KRT). In Spain, the prevalence of KRT is 0.13%. A prevalent view is that for those in whom kidneys fail, the problem is “solved” by dialysis or kidney transplantation. However, the main burden of CKD is accelerated aging and all-cause and cardiovascular premature death. CKD is the most prevalent risk factor for lethal COVID-19 and the factor that most increases the risk of death in COVID-19, after old age. Moreover, men and women undergoing KRT still have an annual mortality which is 10–100-fold higher than similar age peers, and life expectancy is shortened by around 40 years for young persons on dialysis and by 15 years for young persons with a functioning kidney graft. CKD is expected to become the fifth global cause of death by 2040 and the second cause of death in Spain before the end of the century, a time when 1 in 4 Spaniards will have CKD. However, by 2022, CKD will become the only top-15 global predicted cause of death that is not supported by a dedicated well-funded CIBER network research structure in Spain. Leading Spanish kidney researchers grouped in the kidney collaborative research network REDINREN have now applied for the RICORS call of collaborative research in Spain with the support of the Spanish Society of Nephrology, ALCER and ONT: RICORS2040 aims to prevent the dire predictions for the global 2040 burden of CKD from becoming true.

El impacto del concepto actual de enfermedad renal crónica (ERC) en la población, médicos y autoridades sanitarias ha sido bajo. Los médicos aún confunden la ERC con la insuficiencia renal crónica. En un manuscrito reciente, en una cohorte de personas con ERC, solo el 23% de los participantes fueron diagnosticados de ERC por sus médicos mientras que el 29% estaban diagnosticados de cáncer y el 82% de hipertensión. Para el público en general y las autoridades sanitarias, la ERC evoca la terapia de reemplazo renal (TRR). En España, la prevalencia de TRR es del 0,13%. La opinión predominante es que para aquellos en los que fallan los riñones, el problema se “resuelve” mediante diálisis o trasplante de riñón. Sin embargo, la principal carga sanitaria de la ERC es el envejecimiento acelerado y la muerte prematura de causa cardiovascular o de cualquier causa. La ERC es el factor mas prevalente de riesgo de mortalidad por COVID-19 después de la edad avanzada.Además, los hombres y mujeres que se someten a TRR todavía tienen una mortalidad anual que es de 10 a 100 veces superior a sus pares de edades similares, y la esperanza de vida se reduce en alrededor de 40 años para jóvenes en diálisis y en 15 años para jóvenes con un injerto renal funcionante.Se espera que la ERC se convierta en la quinta causa mundial de muerte para 2040 y la segunda causa de muerte en España antes de fin de siglo, época en la que 1 de cada 4 españoles tendrá ERC.Sin embargo, para 2022, la ERC se convertirá en la única causa de muerte entre las 15 principales a nivel mundial que no cuenta con el respaldo de una estructura de investigación CIBER en España.Los Principales grupos de investigación renal en España agrupados en la red de investigación colaborativa renal REDINREN han solicitado la convocatoria RICORS de investigación colaborativa en España con el apoyo de la Sociedad Española de Nefrología, ALCER y ONT ...

The role of mesoscopic structuring on the intermixing of spin-polarised conduction channels in thin-film ferromagnets for spintronics.

The separation of spin-up and spin-down conduction channels is fundamental to electronic transport in ferromagnets and essential for spintronic functionality. The spin states available for conduction are defined by the ferromagnetic material, but additional physical factors can affect scattering and modify the spin-dependence of conduction. Here the effect of mesoscopic structuring, arising during the growth of ferromagnetic thin films, on the electronic transport was investigated. Resistivity and anisotropic magnetoresistance were measured in a series of Ni80Fe20 thin films as a function of nominal film thickness from [Formula: see text] up to [Formula: see text]. The observed thickness dependence of the resisivity and magnetic anisotropy of resistivity are interpreted using a model that accounts for the macroscopic structuring from the growth of the films and incorporates a structural dependence of the spin-flip scattering. The model shows good agreement for both the thickness dependence of the resistivity and the reduction of the anisotropic magnetoresistivity. The latter indicating that increasing mixing of the conducting spin channels occurs in ultra-thin films, mainly a consequence of macroscopic structuring of the films.

[The historical development of foreign market research--as seen through Friedrich Witte's travels to Russia]. / Untersuchungen zur historischen Entwicklung der Auslandsmarktarbeit--aufgezeigt an Friedrich Wittes Reisen nach Russland.

Dr. Friedrich Witte (1829-1893), the promotor and owner of the Chemical Works Friedrich Witte, Rostock, has carried out five extensive travels to Russia between 1880 and 1890. Analyzing the preserved travel reports and other materials recorded, it becomes obviously that a qualitative work and development of products, the continuous efforts for supply, the contact with representatives and the travels as to market research as well were already forming a uniformity of the adequate research 100 years ago.