Organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) with a hydroxy-functionalized semiconductor incorporated into a receptor layer were fabricated and shown to respond strongly to the analyte dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP) that simulates phosphonate nerve agents. Large and reproducible source-drain current changes were observed upon exposure to DMMP vapor. Compared to single component transistors, OFETs with a mixed hydroxylated and nonhydroxylated semiconductor upper layer exhibited higher sensitivity. We further investigated the selectivity of the heterostructured OFETs by comparing responses upon exposure to different interference vapors with response to DMMP exposure. Much higher response was observed in the case of DMMP, even when the concentration of DMMP vapor was much lower than other analytes. Microstructures of OSC were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), revealing that the organic mixture has similar crystal structure and surface morphology to those of single component OSC films, indicating that the enhanced performance of the mixture is due to its chemical properties, rather than microstructural effects.

No abstract

A bilayer organic field effect transistor (OFET) sensor utilizing a phenol functionalized molecule as a receptor layer, designed to enhance interaction with a target vapor dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP) is presented. The presence of this receptor layer is shown to enhance the sensing properties of the device, supporting the hypothesis that the phenolic receptor material is hydrogen bonding to the DMMP vapor molecules.

Ultrafast pulsed lasers find application in a range of spectroscopy and sensing techniques including laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), coherent Raman spectroscopy, and terahertz (THz) spectroscopy. Whether based on absorption or emission processes, the characteristics of these techniques are heavily influenced by the use of ultrafast pulses in the signal generation process. Depending on the energy of the pulses used, the essential laser interaction process can primarily involve lattice vibrations, molecular rotations, or a combination of excited states produced by laser heating. While some of these techniques are currently confined to sensing at close ranges, others can be implemented for remote spectroscopic sensing owing principally to the laser pulse duration. We present a review of ultrafast laser-based spectroscopy techniques and discuss the use of these techniques to current and potential chemical and environmental sensing applications.

No abstract

Abstract-Every surgical item used during surgery (e.g., sponges) must be accounted for after surgery to ensure that none of these items is left inside the patient. Despite the numerous precautions in place, in approximately 1 in 1500 cases, something gets left behind inside the patient's body. This paper presents ASSIST, an automated system for surgical instrument and sponge tracking that increases the safety of surgical procedures. ASSIST utilizes RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology to aid in accounting for all items used during surgery. The design takes into account safety, simplicity, ease of deployment, and ease of use. An initial evaluation utilizing RFID-tagged sponges demonstrates that ASSIST can reliably track surgical sponges with minimal impact to current operating room procedures. Sources of error that can impact the reliability of the system are also discussed.

No abstract

High quality AlxGa1−xN alloy films with x<0.4 have been prepared on self-nucleated (00.1) sapphire substrates by low-pressure metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. It has been shown that the lattice constant of the films varies linearly with alloy composition x (Vegard’s law is obeyed) and that homogeneous and inhomogeneous strain and alloy clustering are minimized in these self-nucleated AlxGa1−xN films. Consistent with their reduced strain and chemical uniformity, the derived optical band gaps of these AlxGa1−xN films also show a linear dependence on alloy composition x, yielding a bowing parameter b≊0 eV.