BackgroundRecently, we showed that the c.40_42delAGA (p.Arg14del) mutation in the phospholamban (PLN) gene can be identified in 10–15 % of Dutch patients with dilated cardiomyopathy or arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy. The arrhythmogenic burden of the p.Arg14del mutation was illustrated by the high rate of appropriate ICD discharges and a positive family history for sudden cardiac death.MethodsOur goal was to evaluate the geographical distribution and the origin of this specific mutation in the Netherlands and to get an estimation of the prevalence in a Dutch population cohort. Therefore, we investigated the postal codes of the places of residence of PLN p.Arg14del mutation carriers and places of birth of their ancestors. In addition, a large population-based cohort (PREVEND) was screened for the presence of this mutation.ResultsBy April 2012, we had identified 101 probands carrying the PLN p.Arg14del mutation. A total of 358 family members were also found to carry this mutation, resulting in a total of 459 mutation carriers. The majority of mutation carriers live in the northern part of the Netherlands and analysing their grandparents’ places of birth indicated that the mutation likely originated in the eastern part of the province of Friesland. In the PREVEND cohort we identified six heterozygous PLN p.Arg14del mutation carriers out of 8,267 subjects (0.07 %).ConclusionThe p.Arg14del mutation in the PLN gene is the most frequently identified mutation in Dutch cardiomyopathy patients. The mutation that arose 575–825 years ago is likely to have originated from the eastern part of the province of Friesland and is highly prevalent in the general population in the northern part of the Netherlands.

Realizing an optimal Schottky interface of graphene on Si is challenging, as the electrical transport strongly depends on the graphene quality and the fabrication processes. Such interfaces are of increasing research interest for integration in diverse electronic devices as they are thermally and chemically stable in all environments, unlike standard metal/semiconductor interfaces. We fabricate such interfaces with n-type Si at ambient conditions and find their electrical characteristics to be highly rectifying, with minimal reverse leakage current (<10 −10 A) and rectification of more than 10 6 . We extract Schottky barrier height of 0.69 eV for the exfoliated graphene and 0.83 eV for the CVD graphene devices at room temperature. The temperature dependent electrical characteristics suggest the influence of inhomogeneities at the graphene/n-Si interface. A quantitative analysis of the inhomogeneity in Schottky barrier heights is presented using the potential fluctuation model proposed by Werner and Güttler.

We present a new method to measure the triplet exciton diffusion length in organic semiconductors. N,N'-di-[(1-naphthyl)-N,N'-diphenyl]-1,1'-biphenyl)-4,4'-diamine (NPD) has been used as a model system. Triplet excitons are injected into a thin film of NPD by a phosphorescent thin film, which is optically excited and forms a sharp interface with the NPD layer. The penetration profile of the triplet excitons density is recorded by measuring the emission intensity of another phosphorescent material (detector), which is doped into the NPD film at variable distances from the injecting interface. From the obtained triplet penetration profile we extracted a triplet exciton diffusion length of 87±2.7 nm. For excitation power densities >1 mW/mm(2) triplet-triplet annihilation processes can significantly limit the triplet penetration depth into organic semiconductor. The proposed sample structure can be further used to study excitonic spin degree of freedom.

The out-of-plane electric polarization at the surface of SrTiO 3 (STO), an archetypal perovskite oxide, may stabilize new electronic states and/or host novel device functionality. This is particularly significant in proximity to atomically thin membranes, such as graphene, although a quantitative understanding of the polarization across graphene-STO interface remains experimentally elusive. Here, we report direct observation and measurement of a large intrinsic out-of-plane polarization at the interface of singlelayer graphene and TiO 2-terminated STO (100) crystal. Using a unique temperature dependence of anti-hysteretic gate-transfer characteristics in dual-gated graphene-on-STO field-effect transistors, we estimate the polarization to be as large as ≈12 μC cm −2 , which is also supported by the density functional theory calculations and low-frequency noise measurements. The anti-hysteretic transfer characteristics is quantitatively shown to arise from an interplay of band bending at the STO surface and electrostatic potential due to interface polarization, which may be a generic feature in hybrid electronic devices from two-dimensional materials and perovskite oxides.

The theoretically predicted intrinsic spin relaxation time of up to 1 μs in graphene along with extremely high mobilities makes it a promising material in spintronics. Numerous experimental studies, however, find the spin lifetime in graphene to be several orders of magnitude below that theoretically predicted. Additionally, analyses of the spin relaxation mechanisms in graphene using conventional processes such as Elliot-Yaffet and D'yakonov-Perel' show a coexistence of both, with no clear dominance. Central to these experimental discrepancies is the role of the local environment including that of the underlying substrate. In this work, we use the electronically rich platform of SrTiO 3 with broken inversion symmetry and study spin transport in graphene in the presence of surface electric fields. We find spin relaxation time and length as large as 0.96 AE 0.03 ns and 4.1 AE 0.1 μm, respectively at 290 K in graphene, using non-local spin valve studies and find a non monotonous dependence with temperature, unlike that observed in other substrates. Analysis of the temperature dependence indicates the role of surface electric dipoles and electric field driven electronic and structural phase transitions unique to SrTiO 3 for spin transport and spin relaxation in graphene.Charge conduction and spin transport parameters in twodimensional graphene are strongly influenced by extrinsic factors related to their local environment. Extrinsic influences range from the specifics of the underlying substrate (suspended, encapsulated, or high dielectric constant), [1,2] the quality of the contacts [3,4] to spinorbit effects due to adatoms. [5][6][7] Despite significant improvements either on enhancing the graphene quality including encapsulation on an atomically flat two dimensional hexagonal Boron Nitride (hBN) substrate or by resolving extrinsic influences, the experimentally measured spin lifetime in graphene is orders of magnitude smaller than theoretically predicted. [8][9][10][11][12][13] Furthermore, conventional spin relaxation mechanisms such as Elliot-Yaffet and D'yakonov-Perel' fail to unambiguously explain the nature and dominance of the spin dephasing processes in graphene on different substrates. [5][6][7][8]14] Spin dephasing can originate from a multitude of effects such as flexural distortions, ripples, local magnetic moments, to name a few, but understanding of their precise micoroscopic mechanism still remains elusive. [5][6][7] In this context SrTiO 3 (STO) lends itself as an interesting choice of substrate to study spin relaxation mechanisms in graphene. [15] STO has an atomically flat surface, similar to that of hBN, with roughness of 90-150 pm and no dangling bonds. However, unlike hBN, STO is electronically versatile. This stems from the remarkably large dielectric constant (e r ) of 300 at room temperature that increases non-linearly to >20 000 at 4 K. [16] Further, distinct from most other substrates on which charge and spin transport in graphene has been studied, the broken inversion symmetry at the sur...

There is a large effort in research and development to realize electronic devices capable of storing information in new ways - for instance devices which simultaneously exhibit electro and magnetoresistance. However it remains a challenge to create devices in which both effects coexist. In this work we show that the well-known electroresistance in noble metal-Nb:SrTiO3 Schottky junctions can be augmented by a magnetoresistance effect in the same junction. This is realized by replacing the noble metal electrode with ferromagnetic Co. This magnetoresistance manifests as a room temperature tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance (TAMR). The maximum room temperature TAMR (1.6%) is significantly larger and robuster with bias than observed earlier, not using Nb:SrTiO3. In a different set of devices, a thin amorphous AlOx interlayer inserted between Co and Nb:SrTiO3, reduces the TAMR by more than 2 orders of magnitude. This points to the importance of intimate contact between the Co and Nb:SrTiO3 for the TAMR effect. This is explained by electric field enhanced spin-orbit coupling of the interfacial Co layer in contact with Nb:SrTiO3. We propose that the large TAMR likely has its origin in the 3d orbital derived conduction band and large relative permittivity of Nb:SrTiO3 and discuss ways to further enhance the TAMR.

Background Recently, we showed that the c.40_42delAGA (p.Arg14del) mutation in the phospholamban (PLN) gene can be identified in 10-15 % of Dutch patients with dilated cardiomyopathy or arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy. The arrhythmogenic burden of the p.Arg14del mutation was illustrated by the high rate of appropriate ICD discharges and a positive family history for sudden cardiac death. Methods Our goal was to evaluate the geographical distribution and the origin of this specific mutation in the Netherlands and to get an estimation of the prevalence in a Dutch population cohort. Therefore, we investigated the postal codes of the places of residence of PLN p.Arg14del P. A. van der Zwaag (*) : P. van der Harst : J.

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