Flexible broadband WS_(2)/Si optical position-sensitive detector with high sensitivity and fast speed

Si-based optical position-sensitive detectors(PSDs)have stimulated the interest of researchers due to their wide range of practical applications.However,due to the rigidity and fragility of Si crystals,the applications of flexible PSDs have been limited.Therefore,we presented a flexible broadband PSD based on a WS_(2)/Si heterostructure for the first time.A scalable sputtering method was used to deposit WS_(2)thin films onto the etched ultrathin crystalline Si surface.The fabricated flexible PSD device has a broad spectral response in the wavelength range of 450-1350 nm,with a high position sensitivity of~539.8 mV·mm^(−1)and a fast response of 2.3μs,thanks to the strong light absorption,the built-in electrical field at the WS_(2)/Si interface,and facilitated transport.Furthermore,mechanical-bending tests revealed that after 200 mechanical-bending cycles,the WS_(2)/Si PSDs have excellent mechanical flexibility,stability,and durability,demonstrating the great potential in wearable PSDs with competitive performance.

Relationship of High Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein with Cardiovascular, Diabetic, and Hepatic Biomarkers

Biomarkers are early predictors of various disorders, circulating level of C-reactive protein is a sensitive biomarker of systemic inflammation and may also be associated with the development of diabetic, hepatic, and cardiovascular diseases. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the association between circulating levels of high sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and various biomarkers for hepatic, diabetic, and cardiovascular health. The retrospective analysis included 438 individuals who were tested for these panels simultaneously at Vibrant America Clinical Laboratory. The study population included free-living individuals without any preexisting clinical conditions. Among the cardiovascular markers, a positive correlation and significant association was found between high levels of hs-CRP and serum levels of triglycerides (r = 0.0964, p −0.1423, p −0.1216, p < 0.0105) with circulating levels of hs-CRP. Among all the diabetic markers, glucose (r = 0.1547, p < 0.0011) and glycated serum protein (r = 0.1725, p < 0.0003) were positively correlated with circulating hs-CRP. In the hepatic panel, AST, a transaminase that plays a vital role in amino acid metabolism, was found to have a strong positive correlation with hs-CRP (r = 0.2139, p < 0.0001). In conclusion, the results clearly show the association of hs-CRP with diabetic, hepatic, and cardiovascular risk factors indicating its central value as a key marker for several lifestyle-associated disorders.

HIGH RESOLUTION, HIGH SENSITIVITY MOIRE METHOD

Based on geometric moire method, moire interferometry and microscopic moire interferometry, a high spatial resolution and high sensitivity geometric microscopic moire method is presented. Geometric micron-moire patterns are produced by the superposition of two high frequency gratings through a microscope system. Compared with other grating-based photo-mechanics methods, microscopic moire method could provide whole-field moire patterns of both high spatial resolution and high sensitivity. The frequency of specimen and reference gratings used in this method can be from 1 line/mm to 10000 lines/mm. Additionally, a 4F optical filter system is used to enhance the contrast of microscopic moire patterns effectively.

Relationship between high sensitivity C-reactive protein and angiographic severity of coronary artery disease

Background Coronary artery disease(CAD)remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality.Cytokines play a potential role in atherosclerosis pathogenesis and progression.We investigated the association between high sensitive C-reactive protein(hs CRP)and severity of CAD.Methods CAD patients were stratified according to hs CRP cut-off value into high levels hs CRP group(≥8.4 mg/L)and low levels hs CRP group(<8.4 mg/L).Severity of CAD was assessed according to artery stenosis degree and the number of vessel involved.Statistical analysis was performed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences(SPSS,version 23.0).Results The mean age was 60.3±11.0 years.The level of hs CRP was increased and ranged from 0.2 to 1020.0 mg/L.Biochemical risk factors and severity of CAD didn’t show significant differences between the two groups.In multivariate linear analysis,cardiac troponin I(c Tn I)and serum amyloid A(SAA)were predictors of hs CRP.As shown in receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve analysis performed in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction(STEMI)and compared to myonecrosis biomarkers,hs CRP(area under the curve(AUC):0.905;95%CI:0.844-0.966;P<0.001)could be a powerful predictor marker in evaluating the infarct size after myocardial infarction but not better than c Tn I.Conclusions Hs CRP levels were not associated with the severity of CAD but could be useful in the evaluation of myocardial necrosis in patients with STEMI.

Wide measurement range and high sensitivity spongy MWCNT/polydimethylsiloxane pressure sensor based on a single-electrode enhanced triboelectric nanogenerator

Flexible pressure sensors have broad application prospects,such as human motion monitoring and personalized recognition.However,their applicability is limited by complex structures,low output performance,low sensitivity,and narrow measurement range.In this study,we report a single-electrode spongy triboelectric sensor(SSTS)mainly composed of spongy composite multi-walled carbon nanotubes/polydimethylsiloxane(MWCNT/PDMS)film and conductive fabric,which can simultaneously generate contact electrification and electrostatic induction coupling in a single-electrode contact-separation mode.The SSTS combines the triboelectric effect,properties of doping material,and spongy porous structure(soft sugar as a sacrificial template).An SSTS with an MWCNT content of 10 wt%and a porosity of 64%exhibits high sensitivity,a wide measurement range,and excellent linearity.It also displays two sensitivity regions(slopes):1.324 V/kPa from 1.5 to 28 kPa in the low-pressure range and 0.096 V/kPa from 28 to 316.5 kPa in the high-pressure range,with linearities of 0.980 and 0.979,respectively.Furthermore,the SSTS delivers a high-performance output and high stability,thus enhancing the monitoring of hand pressure changes,human movement,personalized spatial recognition,and other detection tasks.This new strategy for human motion monitoring shows great potential in the healthcare fields,sports rehabilitation,and human-computer interactions.

Relationship between coronary atherosclerosis plaque characteristics and high sensitivity C-reactive proteins, interleukin-6

Background The relationship between inflammatory markers and the characteristics of coronary atherosclerosis plaques is uncertain. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the relationship between the characteristics of coronary atherosclerosis plaques and inflammatory markers such as high sensitivity C-reactive proteins （Hs-CRP） and interleukin-6 （IL-6）. Methods All patients suspected of having coronary heart disease （CHD） underwent Siemens 64-slice CT angiography （64-SCTA） to distinguish the quality of plaque of coronary artery lesions. Blood samples were taken to measure levels of serum Hs-CRP and IL-6 in different plaque groups and the control group and compared with the value of 64-SCTA for detection of coronary artery plaque. Results The sensitivity of detecting coronary artery plaque by 64-SCTA was 87.4%, the specificity was 87.1%, the positive predictive value was 82.2%, and the negative predictive value was 91.0%. Comparing the levels of serum Hs-CRP and IL-6 among plaque groups, the mean levels of serum Hs-CRP and IL-6 in three plaque groups were significantly higher than those in the control group （P 〈0.01）. The mean levels of serum Hs-CRP and IL-6 in the soft plaque group and mixed plaque group were significantly higher than those in hard plaque group （P〈0.01）. Plaque burden in the soft plaque group and mixed plaque group was significantly higher than in the hard plaque group （P 〈0.01）, but there was no statistical difference between the soft plaque group and mixed plaque group （P=-0.246）. There was a negative correlation between the CT scale and Hs-CRP and IL-6 levels in the soft plaque group （r= -0.621, P〈0.01, and r= -0.593, P 〈0.01 respectively）. There was a positive correlation between the plaque burden and Hs-CRP and IL-6 levels in the soft plaque group （r=0.579, P〈0.05 and r=0.429, P〈0.05 respectively）. Conclusions 64-SCTA is an effective way to distinguish the different quality of coronary atherosclerosis plaque. Serum Hs-CRP and IL-6 levels can be considered as the indexes to judge the degree of CHD and may reflect the activity of plaque in CHD patients. Thus it is important for clinical diagnosis and risk evaluation of acute coronary syndrome （ACS） patients.

Comparision of high sensitivity C-reactive protein and matrix metalloproteinase 9 in patients with unstable angina between with and without significant coronary artery plaques

Background Inflammation within vulnerable coronary plaques may cause unstable angina by promoting rupture and erosion. C-reactive protein （CRP） is the most reliable and accessible test method for clinical use for identifying coronary artery disease event. Matrix metalloproteinase 9 （MMP-9） is highly over-expressed in the vulnerable regions of a plaque. Our aim was to evaluate the plasma levels of MMP-9 and hsCRP in subjects with both unstable angina and coronary plaques, as well as in those with unstable angina without coronary plaques.

A high sensitivity spectrometer with tunable diode laser for ambient methane monitoring

Tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy （TDLAS） has been widely employed in atmospheric trace gases detection. In the measurement of these trace gases, harmonic detection combined with a multi-pass white cell could remarkably enhance the detection sensitivity. In this paper, a portable TDLAS system built specifically for long time monitoring methane in the atmosphere is introduced. The detection limit is below 100 ppb that is enough for the monitoring of ambient methane, and the long time monitoring results obtained in Beijing are given, which is well coincident with that of the Fourier transform infrared （FTIR） spectroscopy.

High sensitivity and high selectivity terahertz biomedical imaging

We demonstrate two distinct emerging terahertz （THz） biomedical imaging techniques.One is based on the use of a new single frequency THz quantum cascade laser and the other is based on broadband THz time domain spectrocopy.The first method is employed to derive a metastasis lung tissue imaging at 3.7 THz with clear contrast between cancerous and healthy areas.The second approach is used to study an osseous tissue under several imaging modalities and achieve full THz spectroscopic imaging based on the frequency domain or on a fixed THz propagation time-delay.Sufficient contrast is achieved which facilitated the identification of regions with different cellular types and density compositions.

Facilely prepared layer-by-layer graphene membrane-based pressure sensor with high sensitivity and stability for smart wearable devices

With the prosperous development of artificial intelligence,medical diagnosis and electronic skins,wearable electronic devices have drawn much attention in our daily life.Flexible pressure sensors based on carbon materials with ultrahigh sensitivity,especially in a large pressure range regime are highly required in wearable applications.In this work,graphene membrane with a layer-by-layer structure has been successfully fabricated via a facile self-assembly and air-drying(SAAD)method.In the SAAD process,air-drying the self-assembled graphene hydrogels contributes to the uniform and compact layer structure in the obtained membranes.Owing to the excellent mechanical and electrical properties of graphene,the pressure sensor constructed by several layers of membranes exhibits high sensitivity(52.36 kPa……-1)and repeatability(short response and recovery time)in the loading pressure range of 0–50 kPa.Compared with most reported graphene-related pressure sensors,our device shows better sensitivity and wider applied pressure range.What’s more,we demonstrate it shows desired results in wearable applications for pulse monitoring,breathing detection as well as different intense motion recording such as walk,run and squat.It’s hoped that the facilely prepared layer-by-layer graphene membrane-based pressure sensors will have more potential to be used for smart wearable devices in the future.

High sensitivity D-shaped hole fiber temperature sensor based on surface plasmon resonance with liquid filling

A high sensitivity D-shaped hole double-cladding fiber temperature sensor based on surface plasmon resonance(SPR)is designed and investigated by a full-vector finite element method.Within the D-shaped hole doublecladding fiber,the hollow D-section is coated with gold film and then injected in a high thermo-optic coefficient liquid to realize the high temperature sensitivity for the fiber SPR temperature sensor.The numerical simulation results show that the peaking loss of the D-shaped hole double-cladding fiber SPR is hugely influenced by the distance between the D-shaped hole and fiber core and by the thickness of the gold film,but the temperature sensitivity is almost insensitive to the above parameters.When the thermo-optic coefficient is -2.8×10^(-4)∕℃,the thickness of the gold film is 47 nm,and the distance between the D-shaped hole and fiber core is 5μm,the temperature sensitivity of the D-shaped hole fiber SPR sensor can reach to -3.635 nm∕℃.

High sensitivity ratiometric fluorescence temperature sensing using the microencapsulation of CsPbBr3 and K2SiF6:Mn4+phosphor

A dual emission sensing film has been prepared for colorimetric temperature sensing using CsPbBr_(3)perovskite nanocrystals(CsPbBr_(3)NCs)and manganese doped potassium fluorosilicate(K_(2)SiF_(6):Mn^(4+),KSF)encapsulated in polystyrene by a microencapsulation strategy.The CsPbBr_(3)-KSF-PS film shows good temperature sensing response from 30℃to 70℃,with a relative temperature sensitivity(Sr)up to 10.31%℃^(−1) at 45℃.Meanwhile,the film maintains more than 95%intensity after 6 heating-cooling cycles and keeps its fluorescence characteristics after 3 months.The film can be used to monitor temperature change by naked eye under a UV lamp.In particular,the temperature discoloration point of the sensing film can be controlled by the ratio change of CsPbBr_(3):KSF to expand its applications.The study of the CsPbBr_(3)-KSF-PS sensing mechanism in this work is helpful to provide effective strategies for the design of reliable,high sensitivity and stable temperature sensing system using CsPbBr_(3)NCs.

Optical Properties of High Sensitivity Fiber Bragg Grating on Temperature Sensor

In this paper, the spectrum shift properties of the center reflection wavelength detected to be based on the FBG sensor with ambient temperature change. The basic theoretical methods and numerical simulation for the spectral properties of uniform Bragg grating is analyzed by using coupling mode theory which is optical properties of high sensitivity fiber Bragg grating on temperature sensor in accordance with experiment.

A high sensitivity tune measurement system for BEPCII

Background The tune is one of the most important parameters of the storage ring which play a crucial role in the brightness optimization.The synchrotron radiation will suppress the oscillation and make the detection unusual difficulty without any kicker excitation.Purpose A new high sensitivity tune measurement system is developed to show the real-time tune during the colliding.Method Peak diode detectors are used to convert short beam pulses from a button BPM into slowly varying signals.Their DC components,constituting a large background related to beam offsets,are suppressed by series capacitors,while the small signals related to beam oscillations are passed to the subsequent stages for amplification and filtering.Conclusion A direct diode detection technique based on the diode peak hold circuit could increase the sensitivity by hundreds time which gets a clearly tune peak even with synchrotron radiation and bunch-by-bunch feedback damping.

Elderly patients with non-cardiac admissions and elevated highsensitivity troponin:the prognostic value of renal function

BACKGROUND High-sensitivity cardiac troponin(hs-cTn)levels are frequently elevated in elderly patients presenting to the emergency department for non-cardiac events.However,most studies on the role of elevated hs-cTn in elderly populations have investigated the prognostic value of hs-cTn in patients with a specific diagnosis or have assessed the relationship between hs-cTn and comorbidities.AIM To investigate the in-hospital prognosis of consecutive elderly patients admitted to the Internal Medicine Department with acute non-cardiac events and increased hs-cTnI levels.METHODS In this retrospective study,we selected patients who were aged≥65 years and admitted to the Internal Medicine Department of our hospital between January 2019 and December 2019 for non-cardiac reasons.Eligible patients were those who had hs-cTnI concentrations≥100 ng/L.We investigated the independent predictors of in-hospital mortality by multivariable logistic regression analysis.RESULTS One hundred and forty-six patients(59%female)were selected with an age range from 65 to 100(mean±SD:85.4±7.61)years.The median hs-cTnI value was 284.2 ng/L.For 72(49%)patients the diagnosis of hospitalization was an infectious disease.The overall in-hospital mortality was 32%(47 patients).Individuals who died did not have higher hs-cTnI levels compared with those who were discharged alive(median:314.8 vs 282.5 ng/L;P=0.565).There was no difference in mortality in patients with infectious vs non-infectious disease(29%vs 35%).Multivariable analysis showed that age(OR 1.062 per 1 year increase,95%CI:1.000-1.127;P=0.048)and creatinine levels(OR 2.065 per 1 mg/dL increase,95%CI:1.383-3.085;P<0.001)were the only independent predictors of death.Mortality was 49%in patients with eGFR<30 mL/min/1.73 m2.CONCLUSION Myocardial injury is a malignant condition in elderly patients admitted to the hospital for non-cardiac reasons.The presence of severe renal impairment is a marker of extremely high in-hospital mortality.

Highly sensitive and stable probe refractometer based on configurable plasmonic resonance with nano-modified fiber core

A dispersion model is developed to provide a generic tool for configuring plasmonic resonance spectral characteristics.The customized design of the resonance curve aiming at specific detection requirements can be achieved.According to the model,a probe-type nano-modified fiber optic configurable plasmonic resonance(NMF-CPR)sensor with tip hot spot enhancement is demonstrated for the measurement of the refractive index in the range of 1.3332-1.3432 corresponding to the low-concentration biomarker solution.The new-type sensing structure avoids excessive broadening and redshift of the resonance dip,which provides more possibilities for the surface modification of other functional nanomaterials.The tip hot spots in nanogaps between the Au layer and Au nanostars(AuNSs),the tip electric field enhancement of AuNSs,and the high carrier mobility of the WSe_(2)layer synergistically and significantly enhance the sensitivity of the sensor.Ex-perimental results show that the sensitivity and the figure of merit of the tip hot spot enhanced fiber NMF-CPR sensor can achieve up to 2995.70 nm/RIU and 25.04 RIU^(−1),respectively,which are 1.68 times and 1.29 times higher than those of the conventional fiber plasmonic resonance sensor.The results achieve good agreements with numerical simulations,demonstrate a better level compared to similar reported studies,and verify the correctness of the dispersion model.The detection resolution of the sensor reaches up to 2.00×10^(−5)RIU,which is obviously higher than that of the conventional side-polished fiber plasmonic resonance sensor.This indicates a high detection accuracy of the sensor.The dense Au layer effectively prevents the intermediate nanomaterials from shedding and chemical degradation,which enables the sensor with high stability.Furthermore,the terminal reflective sensing structure can be used as a practical probe and can allow a more convenient operation.

The prognostic role of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein in patients with acute myocardial infarction

1 Introduction Inflammation is one of the main mechanisms in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis,and the interest to the evaluation of inflammatory biomarkers in coronary artery disease(CAD)has been increasing over the last decade.[1,2]Destabilization of chronic artery plaques,which leads to acute coronary syndromes,has been associated with inflammatory status.[1,3]。

Highly sensitive digital optical sensor with large measurement range based on the dual-microring resonator with waveguide-coupled feedback

We propose a novel high-performance digital optical sensor based on the Mach-Zehnder interferential effect and the dual-microring resonators with the waveguide-coupled feedback. The simulation results show that the sensitivity of the sensor can be orders of magnitude higher than that of aconventional sensor, and high quality factor is not critical in it. Moreover, by optimizing the length of the feedback waveguide to be equal to the perimeter of the ring, the measurement range of the proposed sensor is twice as much as that of the conventional sensor in the weak coupling case.

Tunable and highly sensitive temperature sensor based on graphene photonic crystal fiber

Optical fiber temperature sensors have been widely employed in enormous areas ranging from electric power industry,medical treatment,ocean dynamics to aerospace.Recently,graphene optical fiber temperature sensors attract tremendous attention for their merits of simple structure and direct power detecting ability.However,these sensors based on transfer techniques still have limitations in the relatively low sensitivity or distortion of the transmission characteristics,due to the unsuitable Fermi level of graphene and the destruction of fiber structure,respectively.Here,we propose a tunable and highly sensitive temperature sensor based on graphene photonic crystal fiber(Gr-PCF)with the non-destructive integration of graphene into the holes of PCF.This hybrid structure promises the intact fiber structure and transmission mode,which efficiently enhances the temperature detection ability of graphene.From our simulation,we find that the temperature sensitivity can be electrically tuned over four orders of magnitude and achieve up to~3.34×10^(-3) dB/(cm·℃)when the graphene Fermi level is~35 meV higher than half the incident photon energy.Additionally,this sensitivity can be further improved by~10 times through optimizing the PCF structure(such as the fiber hole diameter)to enhance the light–matter interaction.Our results provide a new way for the design of the highly sensitive temperature sensors and broaden applications in all-fiber optoelectronic devices.

Highly sensitive and stretchable piezoelectric strain sensor enabled wearable devices for real-time monitoring of respiratory and heartbeat simultaneously

The World Health Organization has declared COVID-19 a pandemic.The demand for devices or systems to diagnose and track COVID-19 infections noninvasively not only in hospitals but also in home settings has led to increased interest in consumer-grade wearables.A common symptom of COVID-19 is dyspnea,which may manifest as an increase in respiratory and heart rates.In this paper,a novel piezoelectric strain sensor is presented for real-time monitoring of respiratory and heartbeat signals.A highly sensitive and stretchable piezoelectric strain sensor is fabricated using a piezoelectric film with a serpentine layout.The thickness of the patterned PVDF flexible piezoelectric strain sensor is only 168μm,and the voltage sensitivity reaches 0.97 mV/με.The effective modulus is 13.5 MPa,which allows the device to fit to the skin and detect the small strain exhibited by the human body.Chest vibrations are captured by the piezoelectric sensor,which produces an electrical output voltage signal conformally mapped with respiratory–cardiac activities.The separate heart activity and respiratory signals are extracted from the mixed respiratory–cardiac signal by an empirical mode decomposition data processing algorithm.By detecting vital signals such as respiratory and heart rates,the proposed device can aid early diagnosis and monitoring of respiratory diseases such as COVID-19.