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TCAD-based numerical investigation of RingFET has been presented in this paper for the detection of gas molecules. Sensitivity of the device has been assessed by calculating the change in off-state current with the change in gate work-function (which changes due to the presence of gas molecule). The behavior of the device has also been compared with the equivalent bulk MOSFET and it was observed that RingFET architecture shows 23% higher sensitivity against gas molecules than equivalent bulk MOSFET. Also, the degradation in device sensitivity with applied drain bias is higher in bulk MOSFET. Optimization in the sensitivity parameter has been done by using different channel materials like GaN, InGaN, and GaAs. Compared to GaAs and silicon, GaN-based RingFET is more sensitive towards gas molecules in the sub-threshold region (due to the wider band gap) besides having lower drain current than GaAs and silicon-based RingFET. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of digital technology, education is also charging its pedagogies strategies. The use of ICT has now become an integral part of the world's education system, so the government of India has also taken some steps to bring the Indian education system at the world's pace. The national policy on ICT is an example of such an efforts taken by the Indian Government. As a teacher plays a significant role in the teaching learning process, he needs to be aware of the proper working of the computers and how to use it for the best of his students. Computer anxiety among teachers presents a great hindrance to integrating computer technology in education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present era is an era where every person has his notional world of social media and the internet. In this digitized world, the boundaries between real and virtual realities are diminishing. Internet is a type of wireless network which has triggered the process of wireless and internet-based communication. This cable-free, internetdependent communication is known as wireless communication. This technology was invented to save time and money, but it has shown many adverse effects on the personality of youngsters. Internet addiction is a result of uncontrolled internet accessibility. In today's world, digitization and wireless media have become the basic need of every individual. The life of a person moves around the digital world. This dependency on technology creates unrest among Indian youth. With the growing demand for digitization in family, the intimacy of the human relationship is at stake. If the growing mind of a child will not be cured with needful love and support, the young generation may lead to a state of unrest and behavior disorders. A large population of youth is vulnerable to internet addiction which is one of the major causes of personality disorders. This paper aims to study the effect of digital technology on the behavior of youth. Further, in this paper, the authors have tried to explore the effect of the digital world on Indian youth in the context of their state of unrest, family, and society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

L-Asparaginase is an enzyme successfully being used in the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia, acute myeloid leukemia, and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. However, some disadvantages still limit its full application potential, e.g., allergic reactions, pancreatitis, and blood clotting impairment. Therefore, much effort has been directed at improving its performance. A popular strategy is to randomly conjugate L-asparaginase with mono-methoxy polyethylene glycol, which became a commercial FDA approved formulation widely used in recent years. To improve this formulation by PEGylation, herein we performed cysteine-directed conjugation of the L-asparaginase subunits to prevent dissociation-induced loss of activity. The recombinant cysteine conjugation sites were introduced by mutagenesis at surface-exposed positions on the protein to avoid affecting the catalytic activity. Three conjugates were obtained using different linear PEGs of 1000, 2000, and 5000 g/mol, with physical properties ranging from a semi-solid gel to a fully soluble state. The soluble-conjugate exhibited higher catalytic activity than the non-conjugated mutant, and the same activity than the native enzyme. The cysteine-directed crosslinking of the L-asparaginase subunits produced a higher molecular weight conjugate compared to the native tetrameric enzyme. This strategy might improve L-asparaginase efficiency for leukemia treatment by reducing glomerular filtration due to the increase in hydrodynamic size thus extending half-live, while at the same time retaining full catalytic activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite its natural abundance and widespread use as food, paint additive, and in bone implants, no specific biological function of titanium is known in the human body. High concentrations of Ti(IV) could result in cellular toxicity, however, the absence of Ti toxicity in the blood of patients with titanium bone implants indicates the presence of one or more biological mechanisms to mitigate toxicity. Similar to Fe(III), Ti(IV) in blood binds to the iron transport protein serum transferrin (sTf), which gives credence to the possibility of its cellular uptake mechanism by transferrin-directed endocytosis. However, once inside the cell, how sTf bound Ti(IV) is released into the cytoplasm, utilized, or stored remain largely unknown. To explain the molecular mechanisms involved in Ti use in cells we have drawn parallels with those for Fe(III). Based on its chemical similarities with Fe(III), we compare the biological coordination chemistry of Fe(III) and Ti(IV) and hypothesize that Ti(IV) can bind to similar intracellular biomolecules. The comparable ligand affinity profiles suggest that at high Ti(IV) concentrations, Ti(IV) could compete with Fe(III) to bind to biomolecules and would inhibit Fe bioavailability. At the typical Ti concentrations in the body, Ti might exist as a labile pool of Ti(IV) in cells, similar to Fe. Ti could exhibit different types of properties that would determine its cellular functions. We predict some of these functions to mimic those of Fe in the cell and others to be specific to Ti. Bone and cellular speciation and localization studies hint toward various intracellular targets of Ti like phosphoproteins, DNA, ribonucleotide reductase, and ferritin. However, to decipher the exact mechanisms of how Ti might mediate these roles, development of innovative and more sensitive methods are required to track this difficult to trace metal in vivo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the major drawbacks of many of the currently used cancer drugs are off-target effects. Targeted delivery is one method to minimize such unwanted and detrimental events. To actively target lung cancer cells, we have developed a conjugate of the apoptosis inducing protein cytochrome c with transferrin because the transferrin receptor is overexpressed by many rapidly dividing cancer cells. Cytochrome c and transferrin were cross-linked with a redox sensitive disulfide bond for the intra-cellular release of the protein upon endocytosis by the transferrin receptor. Confocal results demonstrated the cellular uptake of the cytochrome c-transferrin conjugate by transferrin receptor overexpressing A549 lung cancer cells. Localization studies further validated that this conjugate escaped the endosome. Additionally, an in vitro assay showed that the conjugate could induce apoptosis by activating caspase-3. The neo-conjugate not only maintained an IC50 value similar to the well known drug cisplatin (50 μM) in A549 cancer cells but also was nontoxic to the normal lung (MRC5) cells. Our neo-conjugate holds promise for future development to target cancers with enhanced transferrin receptor expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, an analytical model has been developed for junctionless silicon on insulator ion-sensitive FET for pH sensing applications. The pH sensors detect the change of the hydrogen ion concentration in the aqueous solution. The modeled results show good agreement with the simulation results obtained by using Sentaurus. The electrolyte region has been considered by changing appropriate intrinsic semiconductor material in which the electron and hole charges represent the mobile ions in the aqueous solution. The effect of pH on surface potential, threshold voltage, and drain current has been investigated through model and simulations. In addition, the impact of different gate oxide materials, which act as adhesion layer, has been investigated. The pH response is defined as the amount of threshold voltage shift when the pH (in the injected solution) is varied from lower to higher values. Effect of the electrolyte region thickness on the pH sensitivity has also been discussed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • ROFDTS deployed successfully in Indus-2 synchrotron radiation source. • ROFDTS measures the temperature profile of a 160 m long power supply cable (current 760 A, DC) of dipole magnets. • ROFDTS can also detect the progress of unforeseen fire events anywhere in the cable. • The sensing fiber of ROFDTS could survive in the harsh environment of Indus-2. • Mapping of various dipoles is provided on the temperature profile curve. The paper presents the work on development and application of Raman optical fiber distributed temperature sensor (ROFDTS). ROFDTS has been used for monitoring the temperature profile and detecting the progress of unforeseen fire events anywhere in a 160 m long power supply cable (current 760 A, DC) of dipole magnets in the Indus-2 synchrotron radiation source (SRS). Indus-2 is a national facility and is being operated in round the clock mode. The sensing fiber could survive in the harsh environment of Indus-2 SRS that consists of bremsstrahlung radiation of 6.7 Rad/h, high magnetic field of 1.5 T and radio frequency (RF) field of 1.27 MV at 505.812 MHz. The fire detecting capability of ROFDTS was first tested on the mock test setup in the laboratory by artificially creating the four hot zones. Each hot zone has the width of 1.0 m in the sensing fiber at the spatial locations of 26 m, 48 m, 70 m and 92 m respectively. An audio-visual alarm was generated when the temperature of the hot zones exceeded the set temperature limit of 50 °C within 30 s of the start of the fire. Finally, ROFDTS system was deployed to measure the temperature profile of power supply cable during 'no operation', 'injection' of the electron beam current (109 mA with the energy of electrons @ 550 MeV) and at 'normal operation' of the electron beam current (145 mA with the energy of electrons @ 2.5 GeV) in Indus-2 SRS. The peak temperature of power cable reached from 26 °C to 44 °C from 'no operation' to during the 'normal operation' condition of the Indus-2 SRS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human serum transferrin (sTf) is a protein that mediates the transport of iron from blood to cells. Assisted by the synergistic anion carbonate, sTf transports Fe(III) by binding the metal ion in a closed conformation. Previous studies suggest sTf's role as a potential transporter of other metals such as titanium. Ti is a widely used metal in colorants, foods, and implants. A substantial amount of Ti is leached into blood from these implants. However, the fate of the leached Ti and its transport into the cells is not known. Understanding Ti interaction with sTf assumes a greater significance with our ever increasing exposure to Ti in the form of implants. On the basis of in vitro studies, it was speculated that transferrin can bind Ti(IV) assisted by a synergistic anion. However, the role and identity of the synergistic anion(s) and the conformational state in which sTf binds Ti(IV) are not known. Here we have solved the first X-ray crystal structure of a Ti(IV)-bound sTf. We find that sTf binds Ti(IV) in an open conformation with both carbonate and citrate as synergistic anions at the metal binding sites, an unprecedented role for citrate. Studies with cell lines suggest that Ti(IV)-sTf is transported into cells and that sTf and citrate regulate the metal's blood speciation and attenuate its cytotoxic property. Our results provide the first glimpse into the citrate-transferrin synergism in the regulation of Ti(IV) bioactivity and offers insight into the future design of Ti(IV)-based anticancer drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Strategies to prevent pyrexia in patients with acute neurological injury may reduce secondary neuronal damage. The aim of this study was to determine the safety and efficacy of the routine administration of 6 grams/day of intravenous paracetamol in reducing body temperature following severe traumatic brain injury, compared to placebo. Methods: A multicentre, randomised, blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial in adult patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Patients were randomised to receive an intravenous infusion of either 1g of paracetamol or 0.9% sodium chloride (saline) every 4 hours for 72 hours. The primary outcome was the mean difference in core temperature during the study intervention period. Results: Forty-one patients were included in this study: 21 were allocated to paracetamol and 20 to saline. The median (interquartile range) number of doses of study drug was 18 (17–18) in the paracetamol group and 18 (16–18) in the saline group (P = 0.85). From randomisation until 4 hours after the last dose of study treatment, there were 2798 temperature measurements (median 73 [67–76] per patient). The mean ± standard deviation temperature was 37.4±0.5°C in the paracetamol group and 37.7±0.4°C in the saline group (absolute difference -0.3°C; 95% confidence interval -0.6 to 0.0; P = 0.09). There were no significant differences in the use of physical cooling, or episodes of hypotension or hepatic abnormalities, between the two groups. Conclusion: The routine administration of 6g/day of intravenous paracetamol did not significantly reduce core body temperature in patients with TBI. Trial Registration: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Acetaminophen is a common therapy for fever in patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) who have probable infection, but its effects are unknown.Methods: We randomly assigned 700 ICU patients with fever (body temperature, ≥38°C) and known or suspected infection to receive either 1 g of intravenous acetaminophen or placebo every 6 hours until ICU discharge, resolution of fever, cessation of antimicrobial therapy, or death. The primary outcome was ICU-free days (days alive and free from the need for intensive care) from randomization to day 28.Results: The number of ICU-free days to day 28 did not differ significantly between the acetaminophen group and the placebo group: 23 days (interquartile range, 13 to 25) among patients assigned to acetaminophen and 22 days (interquartile range, 12 to 25) among patients assigned to placebo (Hodges-Lehmann estimate of absolute difference, 0 days; 96.2% confidence interval [CI], 0 to 1; P=0.07). A total of 55 of 345 patients in the acetaminophen group (15.9%) and 57 of 344 patients in the placebo group (16.6%) had died by day 90 (relative risk, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.66 to 1.39; P=0.84).Conclusions: Early administration of acetaminophen to treat fever due to probable infection did not affect the number of ICU-free days. (Funded by the Health Research Council of New Zealand and others; HEAT Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry number, ACTRN12612000513819.). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Fever suppression may be beneficial for patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and stroke, but for patients with meningitis or encephalitis [central nervous system (CNS) infection], the febrile response may be advantageous. Objective: To evaluate the relationship between peak temperature in the first 24 h of intensive care unit (ICU) admission and all-cause hospital mortality for acute neurological diseases. Design, setting and participants: Retrospective cohort design from 2005 to 2013, including 934,159 admissions to 148 ICUs in Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) and 908,775 admissions to 236 ICUs in the UK. Results: There were 53,942 (5.8 %) patients in ANZ and 56,696 (6.2 %) patients in the UK with a diagnosis of TBI, stroke or CNS infection. For both the ANZ ( P = 0.02) and UK ( P < 0.0001) cohorts there was a significant interaction between early peak temperature and CNS infection, indicating that the nature of the relationship between in-hospital mortality and peak temperature differed between TBI/stroke and CNS infection. For patients with CNS infection, elevated peak temperature was not associated with an increased risk of death, relative to the risk at 37-37.4 °C (normothermia). For patients with stroke and TBI, peak temperature below 37 °C and above 39 °C was associated with an increased risk of death, compared to normothermia. Conclusions: The relationship between peak temperature in the first 24 h after ICU admission and in-hospital mortality differs for TBI/stroke compared to CNS infection. For CNS infection, increased temperature is not associated with increased risk of death. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The design and implementation of empirical mode decomposition (EMD) based preprocessor for backscattered spontaneous Raman anti-Stokes (AS) and Stokes (St) signals obtained from a stainless steel (SS) covered, 62.5/125 μm optical fiber based distributed temperature sensor is presented. The preprocessor dynamically minimizes the error in temperature measurement caused by the difference in attenuation to AS and St signals offered by the optical fiber. Simultaneous denoising of AS and St signals obtained by the EMD based preprocessor yields better signal to noise ratio (SNR) of these signals and allows reduced error in temperature measurement. The EMD based technique is much better than previously reported techniques in terms of simplicity and automation. Automated and dynamic self calibration of distributed temperature sensor is also possible with the proposed preprocessor in an easier way. The use of proposed preprocessor has been demonstrated to develop an optical fiber based distributed temperature sensor with an accuracy of ±2.5 °C in a temperature range of 25–105 °C over a sensing length of 90 m with a spatial resolution of 1 m. The developed system uses a rugged stainless steel (SS) covered 62.5/125 μm Multimode optical fiber. SS covering on the fiber makes it easier and safer to install the sensing fiber in critical field locations where normal sensing fiber cannot be used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inclusion of technology has given new dimensions to education by making education digital oriented, the teaching has moved away from traditional method to ICT enabled teaching. The purpose of the study was to investigate that either traditional method of teaching is better or ICT enabled teaching. For this researchers conducted an experimental study on sixty six (available) prospective teachers in which experimental group was taught through ICT enabled teaching and traditional group was taught by lecture method. The main objective of the study was to compare the effectiveness of traditional method of teaching and ICT enabled teaching with the help of achievement of Prospective Teachers with reference to their Locality and Streams. Two groups pre-test post-test research design was used to conduct the study. The finding of the study shows that prospective teachers of experimental group have been effected by the use of ICT due to which they have shown improvement in their post test scores with respect of their Streams and Locality. Based on the finding it was concluded that ICT as good resource when used in the classroom effects the teaching-learning process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Raman optical fiber distributed temperature sensor, using a wavelet transform based signal processing technique for backscattered anti-Stokes and Stokes signals, is presented. This technique mainly performs two functions. First, it equalizes the wavelength dependent optical fiber attenuation of two Raman backscattered signals and second, denoises these Raman signals without generating any appreciable spatial inaccuracy in locating the hot zones. The proposed technique enables automatic measurement of distributed temperature profile that has better temperature accuracy and very small spatial error in detecting the location of hot zones. The accuracy achieved in temperature measurement with processed Raman signals is much better than the accuracy obtained with unprocessed signals. Results show a maximum temperature error of ±3.5 °C in a temperature range of 25–295 °C and a maximum spatial error of ±3 cm in locating the hot zones over a sensing length of 205 m with spatial resolution of 1 m. The proposed technique has been used for the development of a prototype Raman optical fiber distributed temperature sensor (ROFDTS) system which employs 200/220 μm Polyimide coated Multimode optical fiber. The technique is much simpler compared to other complex techniques described in the literature and is suitable for general temperature sensing applications. The technique supports automatic and dynamic self-calibration of ROFDTS to take care of slow variations/drifts in the observed Raman signals which are due to fluctuations in laser power and laser–fiber coupling. A self-calibration setup has also been developed to track the changes in the temperature of calibration zone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses several studies about the potential role of fever control in critically ill patients. Topics discussed include a relationship observed between early fever and a decrease in mortality assessed at 28 days or hospital discharge, a study investigating the effect of temperature reduction in febrile critically ill patients that both exclude patients with acute neurological presentations, and the effect of induced hypothermia for patients with sepsis due to bacterial meningitis.

Highlights: [•] Optical fiber distributed temperature sensor with STFT technique is presented. [•] Accuracy in temperature measurement is achieved by STFT of Raman signals. [•] Automatically adjusts signals in spite of the several practical difficulties. [•] Tolerates variation in ‘laser power’ and/or ‘coupling between laser and fiber’. [•] Hot zones of 1.9m (56°C) and 1.5m (78°C) at 47m and 85m were measured. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] A temperature dependent model is developed for GAA MOSFET having localized charges. [•] Analytical results are verified with simulation results of ATLAS 3D simulator. [•] Variations in temperature sensitivity due to localized charges are studied. [•] Degradation is higher at low temperatures and in subthreshold region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, circuit performance of Insulated Shallow Extension Silicon On Nothing (ISESON) architecture is investigated. A comparative analysis of ISESON, Silicon On Nothing (SON), and Insulated Shallow Extension (ISE) architecture has been carried out to explore the potential of the devices for low-voltage digital applications, i.e., in terms of combinational and static sequential circuits. The relatively enhanced device performance, lower parasitic capacitances, and improved reliability issues in terms of interface charges at the SiO2/Si interface of ISE-SON over SON, and ISE MOSFET for 22 nm channel length proves the suitability of the architecture for low-voltage digital applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, gate all around (GAA) MOSFET with vacuum gate dielectric is proposed for the first time for improved hot carrier reliability and RF performance. Analog and RF performance of the GAA MOSFET with vacuum gate dielectric (GAA VacuFET) is compared with conventional GAA MOSFET with SiO2 dielectric, and it is found that GAA VacuFET is superior to SiO2 dielectric for RF high-speed applications and more immune to the hot carrier damage because of low electric field at the drain side but it has a serious drawback of low on-current and transconductance as compared to SiO2 dielectric. In order to enhance the on current and transconductance of GAA VacuFET, Gate Electrode engineering and channel doping engineering are used. An analytical model is developed for dual material gate graded channel GAA MOSFET with vacuum gate dielectric (DMG GC VacuFET) and the model is verified with the simulated results. Incorporation of DMG and GC not only enhances digital and analog RF performance of GAA VacuFET but also hot carrier reliability is improved. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: A two dimensional drain current model has been proposed for a gate all around silicon p–n–p–n (pocket doped or tunnel source) tunnel field effect transistor (TFET) including the influence of drain voltage and source/drain depletion widths. The results extracted through numerical simulations have been used to obtain a semi empirical formulation of tunnel barrier width (L BW ) which captures the dependence of gate voltage, drain voltage, and geometrical parameters (radii (R) and gate oxide thickness (t ox)). The model is then used for evaluating various electrical parameters such as: drain current I ds, sub-threshold swing (SS), trans-conductance (g m ), and device efficiency (g m /I ds ). The impact of scaling R and t ox on the above mentioned parameters have also been investigated. Moreover, the model depicts the influence of pocket doping and pocket width (which are crucial parameters for optimization of p–n–p–n TFET performance) on the energy band profile of a p–n–p–n TFET very well. The modeled results are in good agreement with the device simulation results. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In the present work, effect of stress/hot carrier/process damage/radiation damage induced localised/fixed charges on static and dynamic performance of CMOS inverter using nanoscale cylindrical surrounding gate (SRG) MOSFET has been studied. Significant threshold voltage shift, drain current and transconductance degradation due to induced localised charges at the Si–SiO2 interface of the SRG p-MOSFET (used as load) give rise to inverter performance degradation in terms of change in its voltage transfer characteristics, noise margin and propagation delay. Four different localised charge density profiles have been used to in order to estimate the performance degradation due to localised charges. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In this paper, a dielectric-pocket double-gate MOSFET is described for low-voltage low-power applications. A complete drain current model has been developed including the channel length modulation effect. The analytical results have been validated by comparing them with the simulation results using the ATLAS 3-D device simulator. This paper analyzes the impact of dielectric pillars on large-signal performance metrics in terms of linearity and digital performance. Due to high Ion/Ioff ratio, device gain, and extremely low value of intrinsic delay and power dissipation, the proposed design is a suitable candidate for low-voltage low-power digital and analog applications. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this article, a semi-analytical model for germanium absorber-based SOI-tunnel field-effect phototransistor at 1550 nm has been proposed. The model works efficiently for a wide range of intensities i.e. 10−2 to 102 µW/µm2 under the application of a very low gate voltage of 0.54 V. Exhaustive simulations using numerical ATLAS 2D device simulation tool with LUMNINOUS optical module have been carried out to propose the merit of tunnel field-effect transistors (TFETs) over metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs) for optical applications. The proposed TFET design provides a way to assist the ultrasensitive optical interconnects at a very low gate bias of 0.54 V with a maximum sensitivity of 1.5 × 107, responsivity of 270 mA/W, and detectivity of 3.5 × 1012 Jones at low power density of 0.01 µW/µm2. The TFET performance has further been improved by introducing a heavily doped pocket in between source and channel, which serves as a potential alternative for photodetector applications. The proposed pocket-doped TFET design offers significant improvements in device optical response with optimized sensitivity of 4.1 × 107, a responsivity of 772 mA/W, and a detectivity of 9.9 × 1012 Jones at an optical intensity of 0.01 µW/µm2, gate bias of 0.45 V, and drain voltage of 0.6 V. Transient analysis has been carried out to optimize the response time of the phototransistor for both Ge-gated conventional TFET and pocket-doped architecture and the fall time of ∼0.22 ms has been achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This investigation examines the performance of AlGaN/GaN MISHEMTs having single-gate and dual-gate with different biasing combinations to explore the linearity in terms of gmpeak, gate voltage swing (GVS) and higher-order coefficients for intermodulation distortion for low-noise amplifiers (LNAs). In addition, the influence of distinct gate biasing configurations of DG-MISHEMT on current collapse (CC) (in response to OFF-state stress in drain) has been studied using TCAD simulations. It has been observed that drop in drain current value after the gate–drain voltages return to quiescent voltages (VGSQ, VDSQ) reduces for DG-MISHEMT (when both the gates are shorted together) to 9.1% as compared with 19.4% for SG-MISHEMT. Besides, the CC phenomena for DG-MISHEMTs (for shorted gates) exhibit a slight increase from 9% to 11.8% when workfunction increases from 4.1 eV to 5.2 eV for gate G2. Further, linearity in terms of GVS is observed to be doubled for AlGaN/GaN DG-MISHEMTs with both the gates connected together as compared with device with screen gate G2 shorted to source. Additionally, radio frequency performance has been studied in terms of cut-off frequencies fT and fmax and minimum noise-figure NFmin for AlGaN/GaN SG-MISHEMT and DG-MISHEMTs for different gate to gate distance i.e., LGG =100 and 200 nm. It is observed that NFmin is minimum for AlGaN/GaN DG-MISHEMT (with gate G1 floating and gate G2 is biased and LGG =100 nm) i.e., 1.13 dB with corresponding power gain of 18.7 dB at 50 GHz. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper presents two dimensional temperature dependent analytical model of Gate Stack Insulated Shallow Extension Silicon On Nothing (ISESON) MOSFET and compares it with the simulated data using ATLAS 3D device simulator for wide operating temperature i.e. 300–500K for channel length down to 32nm technology node. In this work, a temperature dependent analytical expression of drain current for sub-threshold region to saturation region has been developed. Lower sub-threshold slope and reduced leakage current in case of ISESON MOSFET (as compared to ISE and SON) results in better NMOS inverter performance and hence ISESON can be widely used in CCD camera as well as for fast switching applications. Further, we have also investigated the impact of temperature on electrical characteristics of ISESON MOSFET which are important for analog applications. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The paper presents a simulation study of Nanoscale Cylindrical Surrounding Gate (SRG) MOSFET with localised interface charges. The objective of the present work is to study the performance degradation due to hot carrier induced/radiation induced/stress induced damage in the form of localised/fixed charges at the semiconductor/oxide interface of the device. Impact of fixed charges has been studied on the characteristics such as drain current, transconductance and its higher order terms, device efficiency and linearity FOMs. Effect of nature and extension of interface fixed charges has been discussed in detail through extensive simulation. Circuit reliability issues of the device are discussed in terms of DC bias point degradation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Purpose: To determine whether fever is associated with an increased or decreased risk of death in patients admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU) with infection. Methods: We evaluated the independent association between peak temperature in the first 24 h after ICU admission and in-hospital mortality according to whether there was an admission diagnosis of infection using a database of admissions to 129 ICUs in Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) ( n = 269,078). Subsequently, we sought to confirm or refute the ANZ database findings using a validation cohort of admissions to 201 ICUs in the UK ( n = 366,973). Results: A total of 29,083/269,078 (10.8%) ANZ patients and 103,191/366,973 (28.1%) of UK patients were categorised as having an infection. In the ANZ cohort, adjusted in-hospital mortality risk progressively decreased with increasing peak temperature in patients with infection. Relative to the risk at 36.5-36.9°C, the lowest risk was at 39-39.4°C (adjusted OR 0.56; 95% CI 0.48-0.66). In patients without infection, the adjusted mortality risk progressively increased above 39.0°C (adjusted OR 2.07 at 40.0°C or above; 95% CI 1.68-2.55). In the UK cohort, findings were similar with adjusted odds ratios at corresponding temperatures of 0.77 (95% CI 0.71-0.85) and 1.94 (95% CI 1.60-2.34) for infection and non-infection groups, respectively. Conclusions: Elevated peak temperature in the first 24 h in ICU is associated with decreased in-hospital mortality in critically ill patients with an infection; randomised trials are needed to determine whether controlling fever increases mortality in such patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How children develop? is one of the most mysterious questions facing all human beings. Parents seek to inculcate the best habits in their children and make efforts to make them significant contributors to the society. Intelligence is one of the many important factors in deciding the overall effectiveness of a child. A child of high intelligence separates himself out from the masses through his unique ability to perceive and interpret things. But in recent years, a person's interpretation of effectiveness is shifted towards the degree of emotional intelligence he possesses. The ability to be aware of emotions, how and why they affect behavior, good interpersonal relationships, stress free living and managing own feelings and the feelings of others attain equal importance. These skills are prerequisites to effective living. All parents should be aware of how these things contribute to high emotional intelligence. The present paper is an attempt to guide the parents about the ways and means through which they can nurture emotional intelligence in their children to make their life effective and constructive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Part I of this paper dealt with the simulation study, using ATLAS 2D, of analog-circuit performance metrics for the dual-material-gate (DMG) silicon-on-nothing (SON) MOSFET. It was reported that, out of the several combinations in the DMG design studied, the DMG device with LM1 /L ratio as 1/2 amalga- mates the advantages of using a high metal work-function gate M1 and low metal work-function gate M2 in the most efficient manner. This paper focuses upon the effect of double-layer gate stack (DGS) (high.k/SiO2) on the single-material-gate (SMG) SON and the DMG SON MOSFETs. Improved Early voltage and reduced output conductance of the DMG SON MOSFETs are the driving forces behind the observed increase in intrinsic gain and fT-gain relationship for the DMG devices over SMG SON MOSFETs, with the DMG SON MOSFETs having LM1 /L ratio as 1/2, proving to be the best choice among various LM1/L ratios studied. A further improvement in intrinsic gain in DMG DGS SON MOSFETs comes about because of increased gate control on the channel, thus establishing design guidelines aiming at higher gain and better fT-gain relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two-dimensional (2-D) analytical modeling for a novel multiple region MOSFET device architecture—Tri-Material Gate Stack MOSFET—is presented, which shows reduced short-channel effects at short gate lengths. Using a three-region analysis in the horizontal direction and a universal depletion width boundary condition, the 2-D potential and electric field distribution in the channel region along with the threshold voltage of the device are obtained. The proposed model is capable of modeling electrical characteristics like surface potential, electric field, and threshold voltage of various other existent MOSFET structures like dual-material-gate, electrically induced shallow junction/straddle-gate (side-gate), and single-material-gate MOSFETs, with arid without the gate stack architecture. The 2-D device simulator ATLAS is used over a wide range of parameters and bias conditions to validate the analytical results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The paper presents the results of a systematic analytical characterization, supplemented by 2D device simulation, applied to novel device architecture: STacked Gate Oxide Silicon-On-Nothing (STGO SON) MOSFET with effective channel length down to 80nm. A new approach to explain the pertinent device physics is presented, which can facilitate device design and technology selection for enhanced performance. Numerical device simulation data, obtained using 2D Device simulator: ATLAS, for (a) scale length, (b) potential and electric field distribution and (c) threshold voltage were compared to validate the analytical formulation. Comparison with simulated results reveals excellent quantitative agreement. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A two-dimensional (2-D) analytical model of a dual material gate (DMG) epitaxial (Epi)-MOSFET for improved, SCEs, hot electron effects, and carrier transport efficiency is presented. Using a two-region polynomial potential distribution and a universal boundary condition, we calculated the 2-D potential and electric field distribution along the channel. An expression for threshold voltage for short-channel DMG Epi-MOSFETs is also derived. The ratio of gate lengths has been varied to show which gate length ratio gives the best performance. The analytical results have been validated by the 2-D device simulator ATLAS over a wide range of device parameters and bias conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To analyse agreement between two methods for blood glucose measurement in intensive care patients: capillary blood using a reagent strip and glucometer with arterial blood using a blood gas analyser.Design and Setting: Prospective, single-centre, observational study in a 12-bed tertiary referral intensive care unit.Measurements: Blood glucose levels were measured in consecutive patients using simultaneous measurements of capillary blood samples using glucometry and from a multi-electrode arterial blood gas analyser. An a priori subgroup of patients with tissue hypoperfusion was identified (defined as systolic blood pressure <90 mmHg or vasopressor dependency). A total of 493 paired measurements were obtained; 75 of these were from patients with systemic hypoperfusion.Results: Overall, the mean difference (bias) was 0.12 mmol/l (2.15 mg/dl) and precision 0.77 mmol/l (13.8 mg/dl); 95% limits of agreement were -0.14 and 1.66 mmol/l (-2.5 and 29.8 mg/dl). In patients with systemic hypoperfusion the bias was 0.24 mmol/l (4.0 mg/dl) and precision 0.9 mmol/l (16.2 mg/dl); 95% limits of agreement -2.05 and 1.58 mmol/l (36.8 and 28.4 mg/dl).Conclusions: In a general population of intensive care patients, there is statistical agreement between blood glucose measured from capillary blood glucometry and arterial blood gas analysis. However, in patients with systemic hypoperfusion, the accuracy of agreement between these two measurement techniques may be such that that biochemical hypoglycaemia (<2.5 mmol/l, 44.9 mg/dl) may go undetected if used interchangeably. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the results of a systematic analytical characterization, supplemented by 2D device simulation, applied to novel device architecture: hetero-material double-gate (HEM-DG) MOSFET with effective channel length down to 30 nm. A new approach to explain the pertinent device physics is presented, which can facilitate device design and technology selection for enhanced performance. Numerical device simulation data, obtained using 2D device simulator: ATLAS, for threshold voltage, drain induced barrier lowering (DIBL) and subthreshold swing (S) were compared to the model to validate the analytical formulation. The comparison of symmetric DG (SDG) MOSFET and HEM-DG MOSFET configurations demonstrated superiority of HEM-DG MOSFET: ideal S and reduced DIBL. Comparison with simulated results reveals excellent quantitative agreement. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

We propose a new structure, asymmetric gate stack (ASYMGAS)-MOSFET and its 2-D analytical model. There is two-layer gate stack oxide near the drain and single gate oxide near the source. The model predicts a step function profile in the potential along the channel, which ensures reduced DIBL. In ASYMGAS-MOSFET, the average electric field in the channel is enhanced, and therefore electron velocity, near the source, which improves the overall carrier transport efficiency. The results so obtained are verified using a two-dimensional device simulator, ATLAS, over a wide range of device parameters and bias conditions. Good agreement is obtained for channel lengths down to 0.15 μm. Thus, confirming the validity of our model. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Proposes a two-dimensional analytical model of a dual material gate metal oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor for reduced drain-induced barrier lowering effect. Prediction of a step-function in the potential along the channel which ensures screening of drain potential variation by the gate near the drain; Optimization of the ratio of two metal gate lengths.

Curcumin, a natural polyphenol derived from the spice turmeric (Curcuma longa), contains antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer properties. However, curcumin bioavailability is inherently low due to poor water solubility and rapid metabolism. Here, we further refined for use curcumin incorporated into "biomimetic" nanolipoprotein particles (cNLPs) consisting of a phospholipid bilayer surrounded by apolipoprotein A1 and amphipathic polymer scaffolding moieties. Our cNLP formulation improves the water solubility of curcumin over 30-fold and produces nanoparticles with ~350 µg/mL total loading capacity for downstream in vitro and in vivo applications. We found that cNLPs were well tolerated in AG05965/MRC-5 human primary lung fibroblasts compared to cultures treated with curcumin solubilized in DMSO (curDMSO). Pre-treatment with cNLPs of quiescent G0/G1-phase MRC-5 cultures improved cell survival following 137Cs gamma ray irradiations, although this finding was reversed in asynchronously cycling log-phase cell cultures. These findings may be useful for establishing cNLPs as a method to improve curcumin bioavailability for administration as a radioprotective and/or radiomitigative agent against ionizing radiation (IR) exposures in non-cycling cells or as a radiosensitizing agent for actively dividing cell populations, such as tumors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Abdominal tuberculosis (TB) is the sixth most common form of extra-pulmonary site of infection after lymphatic, genitourinary, bone and joint, miliary and meningeal TB with a rising incidence in recent years. TB can affect any part of the gastro-intestinal (GI) tract including anus, peritoneum and hepato-biliary system. The clinical manifestations of abdominal tuberculosis are non-specific and mimic various GI disorders and cause delay in diagnosis and management. Aim: To evaluate the various clinical, radiological and microbiological findings of abdominal tuberculosis and to define the role of histopathological examination in establishing the diagnosis in resource poor settings and to analyze the compliance and response to anti-tubercular treatment. Materials and Methods: A five year retrospective study (January 2010 to December 2014) was done in a tertiary teaching hospital in Northern India and all the cases diagnosed as abdominal tuberculosis during the study period, were included. The relevant clinical informations, laboratory results, microbiological and radiological investigations were recorded. Histopathological examination of all the resected / excised specimens was done and Ziehl-Neelsen (ZN) staining to detect the tubercular bacilli and Periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) stain to rule out fungal infection was done in all the cases. Results: Out of 48 cases with abdominal tuberculosis, the average age of presentation was 27.4 years with a slight male predominance (Male:Female=1.4:1). Abdominal pain (100%) was the most common presenting symptom followed by anorexia (98%), fever (88%) and intestinal obstruction (88%). The ileum was the most common site of involvement. All the 45 resected / excised tissue specimens (34 cases of intestinal resection and 11 cases of intesinal, omental and lymph nodes biopsies) showed epithelioid granulomas along with necrosis (in 38 cases) and Langhans giant cells (in 42 cases). Acid Fast Bacilli (AFB) positivity was seen in 5 tissue specimens only. All patients were put on anti-tubercular treatment and majority showed good response to therapy. Conclusion: Abdominal tuberculosis should be considered as a differential diagnosis in patients with vague GI symptoms. Study of histopathological findings can aid in the diagnosis in the settings where advanced molecular methods of diagnosis are not available, leading to early diagnosis and management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• β-Gallium oxide gated junctionless phototransistor has been presented as a solar-blind UV photodetector (210–280 nm). • The β-Gallium oxide has been used as a photo absorber layer over the complete channel of the silicon based junctionless transistor. • The device performance has been analyzed using the optical figure of merits, including sensitivity, responsivity, and detectivity. • Dynamic characterization has also been performed for the time response analysis. • The maximum sensitivity obtained is 6.31 × 106 with responsivity of 4.38 × 104 and detectivity of 1.1 × 1012. In this study, a gallium oxide gated junctionless phototransistor has been proposed for the first time for deep ultraviolet (210–280 nm) solar blind radiation (UVC) detection. The inherent optical property of gallium oxide has been utilized here to absorb deep ultraviolet radiation. It is designed as a photo absorber layer over the complete channel of the junctionless field effect transistor. Here, the conduction material is silicon (source, channel, and drain), which is entirely separated by the photo absorber (gallium oxide) layer with an intermediate silicon dioxide insulation layer, resulting in MOS-based architecture. The design optimization has been done using the SILVACO ATLAS-2D TCAD simulations by first calibrating the experimentally fabricated junctionless transistor. The study of the proposed gallium oxide gated junctionless phototransistor shows that the gallium oxide thickness of 30 nm is the best-optimized thickness with a maximum responsivity of 4.38 × 104 A/W and detectivity of 1.1 × 1012 Jones achieved at a very less required V gs = −0.03 V. The spectral response has been performed and it has been calculated that the proposed architecture is best sensitive for 210 nm wavelength and sensitivity reduces significantly outside the deep UV solar spectrum. The time response analysis has also been presented, and it is concluded that the junctionless phototransistor has the advantage of less gate voltage requirements than other gallium oxide-based phototransistors with quite high responsivity in the deep UV solar spectrum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dopingless tunnel field effect transistor (DL-TFET) exhibits a great potential for lowering the sub-threshold current and hence increases the ION/IOFF ratio because of its electrostatically doped source and drain. An analytical model for double gate dopingless tunnel field transistor (DG-DL TFET) is developed, for the first time, by calculating the source and drain work-function-induced doping and using it for solving the 2D Poisson's equation in various regions. Electric potentials, energy band diagrams, electric field, corresponding drain current characteristics, and trans-conductance are obtained through the developed model and are validated by performing extensive device simulation for different gate and drain bias voltages. An excellent match between modeled and simulated results proves the efficacy of the developed model. The ION current obtained in Si-based dopingless TFET is 0.16 µA/µm, IOFF has reduced to 0.296 fA/µm and ION/IOFF obtained from the proposed device structure is 5.4 × 108, and the sub-threshold swing is 50.77 mV/decade. The DG-DL TFET is analyzed for resistive load inverter characteristics and has been further investigated for realizing digital logic functions by controlling the gates of the device independently. The realization of NAND gate requires one "p-type DG-DL TFET", whereas OR gate requires one "n-type DG-DL TFET". The implementations of single bias-controlled logics are useful as they render energy-efficient operations and simultaneously increase the packaging density. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper systematically studies the reliability of non-uniformly doped Double Gate Junctionless transistor using ATLAS TCAD simulation. The reliability analysis is mainly based on the understanding of Band-To-Band-Tunneling (BTBT) current, lattice temperature, drain conductance and gate leakage current. Presented results show that higher source/drain work-function is beneficial in reducing tunneling current (1 × 10−9 A to 4 × 10−11 A @ Vgs = −1 V) but eventually it will also degrade electrostatic current significantly (∼3 order). Source/Drain length has also been varied during optimization and it has been observed that, shorter source drain extension region degrades the device reliability (i.e. higher magnitude of tunneling current (7 × 10−9 A @ Vgs =−1 V for LS = LD = 5 nm)). Different doping profile considered for performance assessment are: uniform, step (i.e. low–low–high and high–high–low etc.) and different configurations of gaussian doping profile. Minimum variation in tunneling current with negative gate bias, i.e. ∼ 1 order has been seen from the device having uniform doping 1019 cm−3 but at the cost of significantly high off-state current (2 × 10−9 A @ Vgs = 0 V) and tunneling current (2 × 10−8 A @ Vgs = −1 V). Thus, instead of using uniform doping, step type profile (i.e. Case A) is the better choice which results in lower tunneling current (1 × 10−9 A @ Vgs = −1 V), moderate lattice temperature (326) and better Ion/Ioff ratio (243 × 108). Device lattice temperature has also been controlled by using step A doping profile even at the higher operating temperatures due to lower Self Heating Effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stripping back uranium(VI) from an organic radioactive solution to an aqueous medium was rendered simple and quantitative by an unprecedented cloud point back-extraction (CPEback) method. The concentration difference of nitrate ions in and out of the micelle was employed to change the uranium distribution coefficient in favor of the bulk aqueous phase. In addition, the monophasic nature of cloud point extraction and the complexing ability of oxalic acid with uranyl ion in the bulk aqueous phase resulted in the quantitative recovery of uranium in a single step. The CPEback parameters were optimized through a cross-optimization process and the recovered uranium was quantified by the biamperometric titration method. The proposed analytical procedure resulted in high back-extraction efficiency and recovery of (99.6 ± 0.2)% and 99.2%, respectively. The process turned large volumes of organic radioactive solution into small volumes of a less hazardous organic medium having high viscosity and negligible vapor pressure. Analysis of two real samples of ~17 and 165 mL organic radioactive solutions resulted in 99% and 98.2% uranium recoveries, respectively. The leftover organic phase containing the extractant and nonionic surfactant can now be easily stored or reused. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the extraction of small-signal equivalent circuit parameters, linearity and intermodulation metrics, and capacitance–voltage characteristics for both AlGaN and GaN channel HEMTs. Compared to GaN channel HEMTs, AlGaN channel HEMTs have better linearity and intermodulation distortion. In the instance of AlGaN channel HEMTs, the device parasitics are decreased. Additionally, the effect of graded AlGaN buffer layer thickness on breakdown characteristics and linearity is examined. For breakdown characteristics, the 200 nm-graded AlGaN buffer layer thickness yields superior results with VBOff 157 V for a thickness of 200 nm (147 V in the case of 500 nm). At 200 nm thickness, the linearity and intermodulation distortion FOMs are also reasonably good, and the remaining device properties are essentially unchanged. Hence, the graded AlGaN buffer thickness can be reduced for high-voltage applications. For higher-voltage applications, the graded AlGaN buffer thickness can, therefore, be decreased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dopingless Tunnel Field Effect Transistor is a prominent device because of its low sub-threshold swing and fast switching speed. In this paper, DL-TFET is investigated for enhancing the performance parameters by applying different engineering techniques. The hetero-junction is implemented in the DL-TFET for increasing the ION current. Further, for reducing the ambipolar current and enhancing the ON-characteristics by introducing the non-uniform oxide layer, hetero-gate and then further optimization is done by varying the "x" compositions of In1-xGaxAs for source side material. The various staggered hetero-gate hetero-junction DL-TFET structures with different EBeff are comparatively investigated for analyzing their performance parameters. Among them, highly staggered Hetero-junction DL-TFET with EBeff = 0.374 eV shows better performance as lower threshold voltage, higher ION current, high transconductance and lower sub-threshold swing. So, the In0.45Ga0.55As/In0.25Ga0.75As based hetero-gate at TG = 4.2 eV and Θ = 7.59° heterojunction DL-TFET structure can be chosen for fast switching and advanced circuit application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, TCAD-based investigation of junctionLess (JL) architecture having double gate (DG) has been performed for visualizing the sensitivity of the device against light intensity. Comparison has been drawn between conventional DG MOSFET and DG-JL transistor (DG-JLT) under dark and light conditions. Effect of light intensity and wavelength has been modulated to optimize the device sensitivity. Higher shift in the drain current (in subthreshold region) has been observed at 0.35 μm of wavelength, i.e., more sensitive to ultraviolet (UV) light. The improved sensitivity of DG-JLT as compared to DG-MOSFET is due to the better subthreshold characteristics of the device (i.e., lower leakage current and subthreshold slope). From the results, it can be concluded that the DG-JLT with channel doping of 1019 cm−3, 10 nm of channel thickness, and having 1 nm of oxide thickness is the best possible choice for UV photodetector due to high sensitivity and responsivity. It has also been observed that more optimizing parameters are available with DG-JLT as the DG-MOSFET is immune toward the device parameter variation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the DC performance of Dual-Gate MISHEMT with different substrate material such as sapphire, silicon carbide SiC, and silicon. The performance parameters evaluated are threshold voltage, drain current, transconductance, and drain conductance. It is observed that DG-MISHEMT with the sapphire substrate and HfO2 gate dielectric results in positive threshold voltage shift from −4.7 to −3.8 V(∼19%) and also degrades the drain current as compared to the device with silicon nitride gate dielectric due to the reduced channel charge concentration. But the device with HfO2/Al2O3 gate stack maintains 182 mA/mm of IDS along with a positive threshold voltage shift of 14.8% as compared to DG-MISHEMT with Si3N4 gate dielectric and sapphire substrate. A similar performance has been observed with Dual-Gate MISHEMT with SiC and silicon substrate. The device, having the silicon substrate and HfO2/Al2O3 gate stack, shows a positive threshold voltage shift of ∼53%, but as a trade-off the drain current reduces to 158 mA/mm as compared to 183 mA/mm of the device at low drain bias with the sapphire substrate and Si3N4 gate dielectric. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, an extensive investigation of low-frequency (1/f) noise and total ionizing dose–response of junctionless accumulation mode double-gate (JAM DG) MOSFET is presented. Current–voltage (Id–Vg) characteristics and low-frequency noise of JAM DG MOSFET are simulated at different ionized doses and compared to different gate oxide thickness and different channel doping concentrations. A significant amount of irradiation-induced threshold voltage shift and increase in low-frequency noise is observed for different gate oxide thickness and channel doping concentration. Moreover, the irradiation-induced border trap densities are also obtained at different doses. The gamma radiation model of Sentaurus TCAD is used to get the required results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]