The clinical phenotype of patients with haemophilia A (HA) often differs between individuals with the same factor VIII (FVIII) gene defect (e.g. within the same family) or the same coagulant activity of FVIII (FVIII:C). We proposed that because the thrombin generation assay in platelet-poor plasma of HA patients provides more information [peak thrombin concentration, endogenous thrombin potential (ETP), rate of thrombin generation and lag-time] than a clot-based FVIII assay it might provide insight into these differences. We therefore investigated the relation between the results of the thrombin generation assay and the clinical severity in nine families with HA (23 patients with different phenotypes). We also examined the contribution of prothrombotic risk factors: (FV Leiden G1691A and prothrombin G20210A), the coagulant activity of FVIII and tissue factor (5'UTR) polymorphisms. Our data detect marked differences between individuals but these did not correlate with the reported clinical phenotype. These differences were also reflected in a marked difference in response to the therapeutic amounts of FVIII. This might account for differences in amounts of treatment consumption. Reduced peak and possibly rate of thrombin generation, rather than FVIII:C or ETP appear to represent the critical defects in FVIII-deficient plasma. We suggest that the analysis of parameters in thrombin generation is a useful tool to detect bleeding tendency in HA but not to predict the modulation of the haemorrhagic tendency in patients within families. However the presence of the other factors such as vessel wall components, protein C and platelets might need to be incorporated into this system.

Silver nanowire (AgNW) networks offer excellent electrical and optical properties and have emerged as one of the most attractive alternatives to transparent conductive oxides to be used in flexible optoelectronic applications. However, AgNW networks still suffer from chemical, thermal, and electrical instabilities, which in some cases can hinder their efficient integration as transparent electrodes in devices such as solar cells, transparent heaters, touch screens, and organic light emitting diodes. We have used atmospheric pressure spatial atomic layer deposition (AP-SALD) to fabricate hybrid transparent electrode materials in which the AgNW network is protected by a conformal thin layer of zinc oxide. The choice of AP-SALD allows us to maintain the low-cost and scalable processing of AgNW-based transparent electrodes. The effects of the ZnO coating thickness on the physical properties of AgNW networks are presented. The composite electrodes show a drastic enhancement of both thermal and electrical stabilities. We found that bare AgNWs were stable only up to 300 °C when subjected to thermal ramps, whereas the ZnO coating improved the stability up to 500 °C. Similarly, ZnO-coated AgNWs exhibited an increase of 100% in electrical stability with respect to bare networks, withstanding up to 18 V. A simple physical model shows that the origin of the stability improvement is the result of hindered silver atomic diffusion thanks to the presence of the thin oxide layer and the quality of the interfaces of hybrid electrodes. The effects of ZnO coating on both the network adhesion and optical transparency are also discussed. Finally, we show that the AP-SALD ZnO-coated AgNW networks can be effectively used as very stable transparent heaters.

Silver nanowire (AgNW) networks are emerging as one of the most promising alternatives to indium tin oxide (ITO) for transparent electrodes in flexible electronic devices. They can be used in a variety of optoelectronic applications such as solar cells, touch panels and organic light-emitting diodes. Recently they have also proven to be very efficient when used as transparent heaters (THs). In addition to the study of AgNW networks acting as THs in regular use, i.e. at low voltage and moderate temperature, their stability and physical behavior at higher voltages and for longer durations should be studied in view of their integration into real devices. The properties of AgNW networks deposited by spray coating on glass or flexible transparent substrates are thoroughly studied via in situ measurements. The AgNW networks' behavior at different voltages for different durations and under different atmospheric conditions, both in air and under vacuum, has been examined. At low voltage, a reversible electrical response is observed while irreversibility and even failure are observed at higher voltages. In order to gain a deeper insight into the behavior of AgNW networks used as THs, simple but realistic physical models are proposed and are found to be in fair agreement with the experimental data. Finally, as the stability of AgNW networks is a key issue, we demonstrate that coating AgNW networks with a very thin layer of TiO using atomic layer deposition (ALD) improves the material's resistance against electrical and thermal instabilities without altering optical transmittance. We show that the critical annealing temperature associated to network breakdown increases from 270 °C for the as-deposited AgNW networks to 420 °C for AgNW networks coated with TiO. Similarly, the electrical failure which occurs at 7 V for the as-deposited networks increases to 13 V for TiO-coated networks. TiO is also proved to stabilize AgNW networks during long duration operation and at high voltage. Temperature higher than 235 °C was achieved at 7 V without failure.

To fabricate graphene based electronic and optoelectronic devices, it is highly desirable to develop a variety of metal‐catalyst free chemical vapor deposition (CVD) techniques for direct synthesis of graphene on dielectric and semiconducting substrates. This will help to avoid metallic impurities, high costs, time consuming processes, and defect‐inducing graphene transfer processes. Direct CVD growth of graphene on dielectric substrates is usually difficult to accomplish due to their low surface energy. However, a low‐temperature plasma enhanced CVD technique could help to solve this problem. Here, the recent progress of metal‐catalyst free direct CVD growth of graphene on technologically important dielectric (SiO2, ZrO2, HfO2, h‐BN, Al2O3, Si3N4, quartz, MgO, SrTiO3, TiO2, etc.) and semiconducting (Si, Ge, GaN, and SiC) substrates is reviewed. High and low temperature direct CVD growth of graphene on these substrates including growth mechanism and morphology is discussed. Detailed discussions are also presented for Si and Ge substrates, which are necessary for next generation graphene/Si/Ge based hybrid electronic devices. Finally, the technology development of the metal‐catalyst free direct CVD growth of graphene on these substrates is concluded, with future outlooks.

Routine antenatal hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) screening and immunization of risk babies is very effective in preventing perinatal transmission of hepatitis B virus (HBV). We studied 1,800 parturients attending a public hospital to assess the rationale for such vaccination in Bangladesh. In one in every 29 deliveries (63 of 1,800 or 3.5%), the mother was found to be HBsAg positive. All were asymptomatic and many (41 of 63 or 65%) without risk factors would remain undetected if HBsAg screening were performed on selected groups. Most of the HBsAgpositive mothers (54 of 63 or 85.7%) were found to be chronic carriers and 30.2% (19 of 63) were also hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) positive, indicating high infectivity. Although 23 cord blood were positive for HBsAg or HBeAg, none were positive for IgM antibody to hepatitis B core antigen (IgM anti-HBc), suggesting transplacental transmission of the antigens rather than intrauterine infection. These findings are discussed in relation to the cost-effectiveness of routine prenatal screening and immunization of risk babies compared with universal infant immunization.

To fabricate stable and high-quality graphene− silicon (Si) heterojunctions, it is of paramount importance to grow high-quality graphene on pristine Si surfaces directly and understand its growth mechanism. The performance of graphene− Si-based hybrid electronic/optoelectronic devices depends on the quality of such heterojunctions. Herein, we have carried out detailed density functional theory (DFT) and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation studies related to the metal-catalyst-free direct chemical vapor deposition (CVD) growth mechanism of graphene on the Si(100) surface, which is hardly reported to date. The DFT results suggest that the direct CVD growth of graphene on Si substrates is possible at high temperatures, and hydrogen passivation of Si surfaces does not affect the graphene growth. Moreover, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses of the direct thermal CVD-grown graphene on the Si(100) substrates reveal that the formation of silicon carbide (SiC) takes place even at 900 °C. This is in stark contrast to the results reported so far, where the graphene growth temperature exceeded 900 °C. It is concluded that high-temperature (≥900 °C) direct CVD growth of graphene takes place on a self-limited thin SiC buffer layer instead of the actual Si substrate underneath, which is undesirable for fabrication of graphene−Sibased hybrid electronic/optoelectronic devices. Hence, high-temperature metal-catalyst-free direct growth of graphene on Si substrates using thermal CVD systems needs a revisit.

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Heterostructures built from 2D materials and organic semiconductors offer a unique platform for addressing many fundamental physics and construction of functional devices. Interfaces play a crucial role in tailoring the heterostructure properties. Here, density functional theory computations are performed to explore the interfacial properties of heterostructures made of group VI transition metal dichalcogenides (TMD) and organic molecules such as perylene tetracarboxylic dianhydride (PTCDA) and pentacene. First principle calculations predict that the organic pentacene layer exhibits covalent interfacing with MoSe2 and WSe2, while the interface of other studied TMD/organic heterostructures form van der Waals (vdW) interfaces. Owing to the different molecular geometry of PTCDA and pentacene in their respective heterostructures, the work function can be modulated of the order of 1.0 eV in comparison with pure monolayer MX2 in MX2/pentacene (M = Mo, W; X = S, Se) heterostructures, while the change of work function in MX2/PTCDA (M = Mo, W; X = S, Se) is negligible (order of 0.1 eV) in comparison with pure monolayer MX2. This study will be helpful to design high‐performance optoelectronic devices based on TMDs and organic semiconductors.