The fabrication and unique characteristics of a new type of thin layer electrode, an optically reflective thin layer electrode (ORTLE), are described. The electrode was fabricated by the anodization of a thin layer of aluminum sputtered onto a plain glass microscope slide to create a 750 nm-thick porous alumina film. A thin film of gold was then sputtered atop the porous and transparent alumina...

We present the underlying mechanism for the mobility enhancement in a pentacene thin-film transistor TFT with a photocrosslinking polymeric insulator, poly vinyl cinnamate PVCi . Experimental results for the optical anisotropy, x-ray diffraction, and microscopic layer-by-layer coverage of the pentacene film on the photocrosslinked PVCi layer, exposed to a linearly polarized ultraviolet LPUV lig...

The electrochemical activities of PbO(2) thin-film electrodes were systematically studied with an oxygen-transfer reaction, i.e., the oxidation of thiourea. Five different types of PbO(2) film electrodes were prepared using various methods to investigate the influence of the interfacial oxide layer formed between the Ti substrate and the PbO(2) layer contacting the electrolyte. Among the electr...

We studied structural changes in a 5 unit cell thick La1.96Sr0.04CuO4 film, epitaxially grown on a LaSrAlO4 substrate with a single unit cell buffer layer, when ultra-high electric fields were induced in the film by applying a gate voltage between the film (ground) and an ionic liquid in contact with it. Measuring the diffraction intensity along the substrate-defined Bragg rods and analyzing th...

PURPOSE Tear lipocalin (Tlc) is a major lipid binding protein in tears and is thought to have an important role in stabilizing the Meibomian lipid layer by transferring lipids to it from the aqueous layer or ocular surface, or by adsorbing to it directly. These possible roles have been investigated in vitro using human Tlc. METHODS Tlc was purified from human tears by size exclusion chromatog...

We present surface x-ray diffraction results from Pb films grown on pretreated Si(111) substrates at 110 K. Time-resolved data show that the films follow a metastable layer-by-layer growth mode. The resulting film roughness is small, allowing for a thickness-dependent study of the film layer structure and its distortion (strain) relative to the bulk. The strain arises as a result of quantum con...

Spectroscopic ellipsometry and high resolution transmission electron microscopy have been used to characterize microcrystalline silicon films. We obtain an excellent agreement between the multilayer model used in the analysis of the optical data and the microscopy measurements. Moreover, thanks to the high resolution achieved in the microscopy measurements and to the improved optical models, tw...

A hybrid blocking layer consisting of a conducting TiO2 network embedded in a ceramic matrix is implemented in a solid-state dye-sensitized solar cell. This novel type of blocking layer is thinner than the classical blocking layer films as shown with SEM and XRR measurements, and thereby the conductivity of the hybrid film is increased by 110%. A percolating TiO2 network, proven by TEM/ESI and ...

BaHfO3 (BHO) has been proposed as a new cap layer material for YBa2Cu3O7-δ (YBCO) coated conductors. Highly c-axis oriented BHO cap layer has been deposited on ion-beam assisted deposition-MgO buffered Hastelloy tapes by direct-current-magnetron sputtering method. The epi-growth of BHO films combined with its properties is investigated in details. The degenerated cubic crystal structure of BHO ...

PURPOSE The differential diagnosis of dry eye syndrome is still a challenging task. The purpose of this study was to understand the relationship between a novel, objective clinical parameter, the "corrected lipid layer stabilization time," and commonly performed clinical tests for dry eye patients. METHODS Data were obtained from a prospective clinical study with 59 patients of different subj...