A novel design of white light emitting diodes (WLEDs) emerges to meet the growing global demand for resource sustainability while preserving health and environment. To achieve this goal, a facile method is developed for the chemical synthesis of a luminescent silicon nanocrystal (ncSi) with a large Stokes shift between absorption and emission. The WLED is prepared by a simple spin‐coating method, and contains a hybrid‐bilayer of the ncSi and luminescent polymer in its device active region. Interestingly, a well‐controlled ultrathin ncSi layer on the polymer makes possible to recombine electrons and holes in both layers, respectively. Combining red and blue‐green lights, emitted from the ncSi and the polymer layers, respectively, produces the emission of white electroluminescence. Herein, a hybrid‐WLED with a sufficiently low turn‐on voltage (3.5 V), produced by taking advantages of the large Stokes shift inherent in ncSi, is demonstrated.

Objective-A large-scale, prospective, randomized clinical trial has recently revealed that the addition of highly purified eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) to low-dose statin therapy significantly reduces the incidence of major coronary events. Here we investigated in vivo and in vitro effect of EPA on monocyte adhesion to endothelial cells and adhesion molecules. Methods and Results-A new en face immunohistochemistry of endothelial surface in combination with confocal microscopy revealed marked reduction of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced monocyte adhesion to the aortic endothelium in parallel with the suppression of vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1) and nuclear translocation of nuclear factor-B p65 in EPA-treated mice relative to vehicle-treated groups. In an in vitro adhesion assay system under physiological flow conditions, EPA inhibited LPS-induced monocyte adhesion and endothelial adhesion molecules. We found significant decrease in plasma concentrations of soluble intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (sICAM-1) and sVCAM-1 in patients with the metabolic syndrome after a 3-month administration of highly purified EPA (1.8 g daily). Multivariate regression analysis revealed that EPA administration is the only independent determinant of sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1. O besity may be viewed as a state of chronic low-grade inflammation and confers a higher risk of atherosclerotic diseases. 1 There is considerable evidence that obese adipose tissue is markedly infiltrated by macrophages, 2,3 suggesting that they may participate in the inflammatory pathways that are activated in obese adipose tissue. Using an in vitro coculture system composed of adipocytes and macrophages, we have demonstrated that saturated fatty acids released from adipocytes via the macrophage-induced lipolysis serve as a naturally occurring ligand for Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) to induce the inflammatory changes in macrophages through nuclear factor-B (NF-B) activation. 4,5 Notably, n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs) such as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid are unable to activate macrophages and can even antagonize the proinflammatory effect of saturated fatty acids or LPS, 6 a well-defined exogenous ligand for TLR4, 7 thereby highlighting the antiinflammatory effect of n-3 PUFAs. Conclusions-ThisAtherosclerosis is a complex pathological process that is associated with vascular wall dysfunction and inflammation. 8The monocyte-endothelial cell interaction may play a crucial role in atherosclerotic plaque formation. 9 Indeed, the adhesion of circulating monocytes to the intimal endothelial cell monolayer is thought to be one of the earliest events, which is mediated through complex interactions among multiple adhesion molecules and their counterreceptors expressed by both endothelial cells and monocytes, such as selectins, intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1), and ␤1-and ␤2-integrins. 10 Several previous reports indicated that the TLR4/NF-B signaling pathway in both endo...

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The effect of pulsed laser irradiation on silver particles in aqueous solution was investigated. The particle size decreased and the size distribution became narrower after irradiation for 15 minutes using third harmonics of a pulsed YAG laser. The number of the aggregated particles also decreased after the irradiation.

Order or disorder often exists in a uniform spin system consisting of one kind of magnetic ion. Nevertheless, they rarely coexist in normal conditions. Our thermodynamic and microscopic magnetic studies of Co2(OH)3Cl, a distorted tetrahedral lattice compound with uniform Co2+ spin, demonstrate that the spins located on one corner of the tetrahedron are periodically ordered, but those on the other three are disordered below a ferromagnetic transition at TC=10.5 K. The partial order resembles that of the field-induced "kagomé-ice" state in spin ice pyrochlore compounds. Evidence suggests that a distortion in the tetrahedron is responsible for this partial ferromagnetic order in a zero field.

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The interfacial layer and the transition layer of the lanthanum oxide film on a Si substrate prepared by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition have been studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, cross-sectional scanning transmission electron microscopy, and energy dispersive X-ray analysis. It was revealed that the diffusion of silicon into the lanthanum oxide occurs during the film deposition and post-annealing, and consequently, a lanthanum silicate is formed. The composition of lanthanum and silicon in the silicate is nonstoichiometric and gradually changes in the direction of the film thickness. These results show that the suppression of the silicon diffusion is essential in controling the properties of the dielectric films.

A (K,Na)NbO3-based lead-free piezoelectric ceramic was successfully densified. It exhibited an enhanced electromechanical coupling factor of kp = 0.52, a piezoelectric constant d33 = 252 pC/N, and a frequency constant Np = 3170 Hz m because of the incorporation of an elaborate secondary phase composed primarily of KTiNbO5. The ceramic's nominal composition was 0.92K0.42Na0.44Ca0.04Li0.02Nb0.85O3–0.047K0.85Ti0.85Nb1.15O5–0.023BaZrO3–0.0017Co3O4–0.002Fe2O3–0.005ZnO, abbreviated herein as KNN–NTK composite. The KNN–NTK ceramic exhibited a dense microstructure with few microvoids which significantly degraded its piezoelectric properties. Elemental maps recorded using transmission electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (TEM–EDS) revealed regions of high concentrations of Co and Zn inside the NTK phase. In addition, X-ray diffraction patterns confirmed that a small portion of the NTK phase was converted into K2(Ti,Nb,Co,Zn)6O13 or CoZnTiO4 by a possible reaction between Co and Zn solutes and the NTK phase during a programmed sintering schedule. TEM studies also clarified a distortion around the KNN/NTK interfaces. Such an NTK phase filled voids between KNN particles, resulting in an improved chemical stability of the KNN ceramic. The manufacturing process was subsequently scaled to 100 kg per batch for granulated ceramic powder using a spray-drying technique. The properties of the KNN–NTK composite ceramic produced using the scaled-up method were confirmed to be identical to those of the ceramic prepared by conventional solid-state reaction sintering. Consequently, slight changes in the NTK phase composition and the distortion around the KNN/NTK interfaces affected the KNN–NTK composite ceramic's piezoelectric characteristics.