Safety and Potential Usability of Immersive Virtual Reality for Brain Rehabilitation: A Pilot Study.

This study was conducted to demonstrate the safety and usability of an immersive virtual reality (VR) game as a rehabilitative training by assessing adverse events (AEs), adherence, and satisfaction in patients with brain injury who had free optional opportunities. The results were analyzed retrospectively. Seventy-eight patients with brain injury, undergoing rehabilitation treatment for motor impairment, were recruited.

Targeted Writing and Deleting of Magnetic Skyrmions in Two-Terminal Nanowire Devices.

Controllable writing and deleting of nanoscale magnetic skyrmions are key requirements for their use as information carriers for next-generation memory and computing technologies. While several schemes have been proposed, they require complex fabrication techniques or precisely tailored electrical inputs, which limits their long-term scalability. Here, we demonstrate an alternative approach for writing and deleting skyrmions using conventional electrical pulses within a simple, two-terminal wire geometry.

Direct Demonstration of Topological Stability of Magnetic Skyrmions Topology Manipulation.

Topological protection precludes a continuous deformation between topologically inequivalent configurations in a continuum. Motivated by this concept, magnetic skyrmions, topologically nontrivial spin textures, are expected to exhibit topological stability, thereby offering a prospect as a nanometer-scale nonvolatile information carrier. In real materials, however, atomic spins are configured as not continuous but discrete distributions, which raises a fundamental question if the topological stability is indeed preserved for real magnetic skyrmions.

Dynamics of the Bloch point in an asymmetric permalloy disk.

A Bloch point (BP) is a topological defect in a ferromagnet at which the local magnetization vanishes. With the difficulty of generating a stable BP in magnetic nanostructures, the intrinsic nature of a BP and its dynamic behaviour has not been verified experimentally. We report a realization of steady-state BPs embedded in deformed magnetic vortex cores in asymmetrically shaped NiFe nanodisks.

ThunderPunch: A bare-hand, gesture-based, large interactive display interface with upper-body-part detection in a top view.

We present a new bare-hand gesture interface for large-screen interaction in which multiple users can participate simultaneously and interact with virtual content directly. To better reflect the intent of our new interface, we have created a new type of hardware system with a large hybrid display, named ThunderPunch. Unlike the conventional method, which involves positioning the camera in front, the cameras are mounted on the ceiling so that they avoid covering the large screen.

Solution-Processed Ferrimagnetic Insulator Thin Film for the Microelectronic Spin Seebeck Energy Conversion.

The longitudinal spin Seebeck effects with a ferro- or ferrimagnetic insulator provide a new architecture of a thermoelectric device that could significantly improve the energy conversion efficiency. Until now, epitaxial yttrium iron garnet (YIG) films grown on gadolinium gallium garnet (GGG) substrates by a pulsed laser deposition have been most widely used for spin thermoelectric energy conversion studies. In this work, we developed a simple route to obtain a highly uniform solution-processed YIG film and used it for the on-chip microelectronic spin Seebeck characterization.

Inertia-driven resonant excitation of a magnetic skyrmion.

Topological spin structures such as magnetic domain walls, vortices, and skyrmions, have been receiving great interest because of their high potential application in various spintronic devices. To utilize them in the future spintronic devices, it is first necessary to understand the dynamics of the topological spin structures. Since inertial effect plays a crucial role in the dynamics of a particle, understanding the inertial effect of topological spin structures is an important task.

Magnetism of the hypo-oxide state at the diffuse interface between the ferromagnet and antiferromagnet phases.

At the interface between ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic phases, various spin configurations with a higher degrees of complexity than in the bulk states can be derived due to the diverse possible interface atomic structures, where coupling interactions among the constituting atoms can form in consistence with altered atomic configurations. The interface magnetic properties then depend on the collective behavior of such spin structures. In the present work, an extended interfacial configuration of a hypo-oxide state was prepared by establishing the gradient of oxygen concentration across the spatially diffuse interface region between ferromagnetic metallic and antiferromagnetic oxide phases at the nanometer scale.

Spin-orbit torque-driven skyrmion dynamics revealed by time-resolved X-ray microscopy.

Magnetic skyrmions are topologically protected spin textures with attractive properties suitable for high-density and low-power spintronic device applications. Much effort has been dedicated to understanding the dynamical behaviours of the magnetic skyrmions. However, experimental observation of the ultrafast dynamics of this chiral magnetic texture in real space, which is the hallmark of its quasiparticle nature, has so far remained elusive.

Mechanically Robust, Stretchable Solar Absorbers with Submicron-Thick Multilayer Sheets for Wearable and Energy Applications.

A facile method to fabricate a mechanically robust, stretchable solar absorber for stretchable heat generation and an enhanced thermoelectric generator (TEG) is demonstrated. This strategy is very simple: it uses a multilayer film made of titanium and magnesium fluoride optimized by a two-dimensional finite element frequency-domain simulation, followed by the application of mechanical stresses such as bending and stretching to the film. This process produces many microsized sheets with submicron thickness (∼500 nm), showing great adhesion to any substrates such as fabrics and polydimethylsiloxane.

Integrated arrays of air-dielectric graphene transistors as transparent active-matrix pressure sensors for wide pressure ranges.

Integrated electronic circuitries with pressure sensors have been extensively researched as a key component for emerging electronics applications such as electronic skins and health-monitoring devices. Although existing pressure sensors display high sensitivities, they can only be used for specific purposes due to the narrow range of detectable pressure (under tens of kPa) and the difficulty of forming highly integrated arrays. However, it is essential to develop tactile pressure sensors with a wide pressure range in order to use them for diverse application areas including medical diagnosis, robotics or automotive electronics.

Effect of the solvent used for fabrication of perovskite films by solvent dropping on performance of perovskite light-emitting diodes.

Organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites have emerged as a next-generation candidate for light-emitting device applications due to their excellent optical and electrical properties with narrow band emission compared to organic emitters. The morphological control of perovskite films with full surface coverage and few defect sites is essential for achieving highly efficient perovskite light-emitting diodes (PeLEDs). Here, we obtain a highly uniform perovskite film with a remarkably reduced number of defect sites in a perovskite crystal using chlorobenzene dropping.

Optical design of ZnO-based antireflective layers for enhanced GaAs solar cell performance.

A series of hierarchical ZnO-based antireflection coatings with different nanostructures (nanowires and nanosheets) is prepared hydrothermally, followed by means of RF sputtering of MgF2 layers for coaxial nanostructures. Structural analysis showed that both ZnO had a highly preferred orientation along the 〈0001〉 direction with a highly crystalline MgF2 shell coated uniformly. However, a small amount of Al was present in nanosheets, originating from Al diffusion from the Al seed layer, resulting in an increase of the optical bandgap.

Thermoelectric Signal Enhancement by Reconciling the Spin Seebeck and Anomalous Nernst Effects in Ferromagnet/Non-magnet Multilayers.

The utilization of ferromagnetic (FM) materials in thermoelectric devices allows one to have a simpler structure and/or independent control of electric and thermal conductivities, which may further remove obstacles for this technology to be realized. The thermoelectricity in FM/non-magnet (NM) heterostructures using an optical heating source is studied as a function of NM materials and a number of multilayers. It is observed that the overall thermoelectric signal in those structures which is contributed by spin Seebeck effect and anomalous Nernst effect (ANE) is enhanced by a proper selection of NM materials with a spin Hall angle that matches to the sign of the ANE.

Stochastic formation of magnetic vortex structures in asymmetric disks triggered by chaotic dynamics.

The non-trivial spin configuration in a magnetic vortex is a prototype for fundamental studies of nanoscale spin behaviour with potential applications in magnetic information technologies. Arrays of magnetic vortices interfacing with perpendicular thin films have recently been proposed as enabler for skyrmionic structures at room temperature, which has opened exciting perspectives on practical applications of skyrmions. An important milestone for achieving not only such skyrmion materials but also general applications of magnetic vortices is a reliable control of vortex structures.

Wave modes of collective vortex gyration in dipolar-coupled-dot-array magnonic crystals.

Lattice vibration modes are collective excitations in periodic arrays of atoms or molecules. These modes determine novel transport properties in solid crystals. Analogously, in periodical arrangements of magnetic vortex-state disks, collective vortex motions have been predicted.

Resonant amplification of vortex-core oscillations by coherent magnetic-field pulses.

Vortex structures in soft magnetic nanodisks are highly attractive due to their scientific beauty and potential technological applications. Here, we experimentally demonstrated the resonant amplification of vortex oscillations by application of simple coherent field pulses tuned to optimal width and time intervals. In order to investigate vortex excitations on the sub-ns time scale, we employed state-of-the-art time-resolved full-field soft X-ray microscopy of 70 ps temporal and 25 nm lateral resolution.

Logic operations based on magnetic-vortex-state networks.

Logic operations based on coupled magnetic vortices were experimentally demonstrated. We utilized a simple chain structure consisting of three physically separated but dipolar-coupled vortex-state Permalloy disks as well as two electrodes for application of the logical inputs. We directly monitored the vortex gyrations in the middle disk, as the logical output, by time-resolved full-field soft X-ray microscopy measurements.

Tunable negligible-loss energy transfer between dipolar-coupled magnetic disks by stimulated vortex gyration.

A wide variety of coupled harmonic oscillators exist in nature. Coupling between different oscillators allows for the possibility of mutual energy transfer between them and the information-signal propagation. Low-energy input signals and their transport with negligible energy loss are the key technological factors in the design of information-signal processing devices.

Edge-soliton-mediated vortex-core reversal dynamics.

We report an additional reversal mechanism of magnetic vortex cores in nanodot elements driven by currents flowing perpendicular to the sample plane, occurring via dynamic transformations between two coupled edge solitons and bulk vortex solitons. This mechanism differs completely from the well-known switching process mediated by the creation and annihilation of vortex-antivortex pairs in terms of the associated topological solitons, energies, and spin-wave emissions. Strongly localized out-of-plane gyrotropic fields induced by the fast motion of the coupled edge solitons enable a magnetization dip that plays a crucial role in the formation of the reversed core magnetization.

Universal criterion and phase diagram for switching a magnetic vortex core in soft magnetic nanodots.

The universal criterion for ultrafast vortex-core switching between the up- and down-core bistates in soft magnetic nanodots is investigated by micromagnetic simulations along with vortex-core switching that occurs whenever the velocity of vortex-core motion reaches its critical velocity, upsilon cri = (1.66 +/- 0.18) gamma mean square root of Aex (e.

Physical origin and generic control of magnonic band gaps of dipole-exchange spin waves in width-modulated nanostrip waveguides.

We report, for the first time, on a novel planar structure of magnonic-crystal waveguides, made of a single magnetic material, in which the allowed and forbidden bands of propagating dipole-exchange spin waves can be manipulated by the periodic modulation of different widths in thin-film nanostrips. The origin of the presence of several magnonic wide band gaps and the crucial parameters for controlling those band gaps of the order of approximately 10 GHz are found by micromagnetic numerical and analytical calculations. This work can offer a route to the potential application to broadband spin wave filters in the gigahertz frequency range.

Dynamic origin of vortex core switching in soft magnetic nanodots.

The magnetic vortex with in-plane curling magnetization and out-of-plane magnetization at the core is a unique ground state in nanoscale magnetic elements. This kind of magnetic vortex can be used, through its downward or upward core orientation, as a memory unit for information storage, and thus, controllable core switching deserves some special attention. Our analytical and micromagnetic calculations reveal that the origin of vortex core reversal is a gyrotropic field.