In Situ Redox Synthesis of Highly Stable Au/Electroactive Polyimide Composite and Its Application on 4-Nitrophenol Reduction.

In this study, we developed a series of Au/electroactive polyimide (Au/EPI-5) composite for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) to 4-aminophenol (4-AP) using NaBH as a reducing agent at room temperature. The electroactive polyimide (EPI-5) synthesis was performed by chemical imidization of its 4,4'-(4.4'-isopropylidene-diphenoxy) bis (phthalic anhydride) (BSAA) and amino-capped aniline pentamer (ACAP).

Sputtered anti-reflection layer on transparent polyimide - substrate improves adhesion strength to - copper layer: effects of layer thickness and sputtering power.

In order to shield the electronic circuits on a transparent polyimide (PI) substrate, an anti-reflection (AR) layer was deposited on a PI film DC reactive magnetron sputtering. The effects of sputtering power and thickness of AR layer on the optical property and adhesion strength of the PI were investigated. The composition of the AR layer influences the bonding between layers.

Anti-reflection Layer-Sputtered Transparent Polyimide Substrate with Reliable Adhesion Strength to the Copper Layer.

Parameters of DC-reactive magnetron sputtering are optimized to deposit anti-reflection (AR) layers on transparent polyimide (PI) substrates, followed by the deposition of the conductive copper layer, to fabricate practically reliable composite films as advanced flexible circuits. When the deposition thickness is controlled and the gas composition during sputtering is adjusted, the resultant AR layer-coated PI film exhibits low reflectance and reveals improved adhesion strength to the copper layer. The adhesion reliability tests confirm that the peel strength between the PI film and the deposited layers could be further improved after thermal processing due to the formation of a worm-like morphology for better mechanical interlocking with layers.

Polyimide-derived graphite barrier layer adhered to seed crystals to improve the quality of grown silicon carbide.

A facial method was developed to fabricate a graphite layer on a SiC seed crystal to reduce the formation of defects during the growth of SiC ingots. The formulated PI matrix combined with an appropriate coupling agent could strongly adhere to SiC and be transformed into protective layers for SiC seed crystals during SiC growth. The thermally conductive graphite layers on SiC effectively reduce the backside diffusion of Si, inhibit the loss of Si from seed crystals during high-temperature growing process, and consequently lead to fewer defects formed in the SiC ingot.

Application of electroactive Au/aniline tetramer-graphene oxide composites as a highly efficient reusable catalyst.

This study proposes a cost-effective, energy-saving, and green process that uses π-π interactions to modify graphene oxide (GO), and the conjugate structure of aniline tetramer (AT) to enhance the dispersion of GO. Au/aniline tetramer-graphene oxide (Au/ATGO) composites were synthesized and applied as a catalyst in this study. The adsorption of AT on GO, π-π interaction, formed ATGO composites.

A Novel Electroactive Imide Oligomer and Its Application in Anticorrosion Coating.

A novel aniline tetramer (AT) capped electroactive imide oligomer (EIO) for metal corrosion protection was successfully synthesized in this study. The chemical structure of the EIO was characterized by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. Furthermore, the redox behavior of EIO was identified using electrochemical cyclic voltammetry studies.

Flexible and transparent polyimide films containing two-dimensional alumina nanosheets templated by graphene oxide for improved barrier property.

Unique two-dimensional alumina nanosheets (Alns) using graphene oxide (GO) as templates are fabricated and successfully incorporated with organo-soluble polyimide (PI) to obtain highly transparent PI nanocomposite films with improved moisture barrier property. The effects of filler types and contents on water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) and transparency of PI are systematically studied. The hydroxyl groups on GO react with aluminum isopropoxide via sol-gel process to obtain alumina coverd-GO (Al-GO), and then thermal decomposition is applied to obtain Alns.

Flexible polyimide films hybrid with functionalized boron nitride and graphene oxide simultaneously to improve thermal conduction and dimensional stability.

Coupling agent-functionalized boron nitride (f-BN) and glycidyl methacrylate-grafted graphene (g-TrG) are simultaneously blended with polyimide (PI) to fabricate a flexible, electrically insulating and thermally conductive PI composite film. The silk-like g-TrG successfully fills in the gap between PI and f-BN to complete the thermal conduction network. In addition, the strong interaction between surface functional groups on f-BN and g-TrG contributes to the effective phonon transfer in the PI matrix.

Learning to listen: effects of using conversational transcripts to help medical students improve their use of open questions in soliciting patient problems.

Objective: This study reports effects of a 'bottom-up' pedagogy using doctor-patient conversation transcripts to improve medical students' use of open questions in soliciting patient problems.

Methods: We implemented an innovative approach involving students reviewing transcripts of medical interviews, skills practice using role-play and standardized patients (SPs), and reflection on these practices. We analyzed three open question categories (general, biomedical, and psychosocial) used by 27 Taiwanese medical students from two SP interviews, conducted before and after training.

Movie dialogues as discourse data in the study of forecasting mechanisms in the delivery of medical bad news.

Understanding the communication skills for delivering bad news, an important daily task for medical professionals, presents a challenge for most researchers due to methodological and ethical dilemmas. Movie dialogues, in which difficult communication of life-and-death issues are fundamental ingredients in creating dramatic effects, are often adopted in medical education and are thus potential data for study. By applying the concept of forecasting mechanism' in bad news delivery (Schegloff 1988; Maynard 2003), this study examines bad news delivery events depicted in three movie clips.

Art therapy for terminal cancer patients in a hospice palliative care unit in Taiwan.

Objective: Even though terminal cancer patients receive help from a hospice palliative care team, they have to suffer the pressure of death with deteriorating conditions. This study aims to evaluate the effect of art therapy for these terminal cancer patients.

Method: The patients involved were terminal cancer patients who were under the care of team members, which included physicians, nurses, social workers, clergy, art therapists, and volunteers in a hospice palliative care unit in Taiwan.

Compatibility enhancement of polyimide-silica hybrid sol-gel materials without incorporation of silane-coupling agent.

A facile route has been developed to enhance compatibility between organic polyimide matrix and dispersed phase of inorganic silica particles without addition of conventional silane-coupling agent. The as-prepared hybrid sol-gel materials having reduced size of SiO2 particle dispersed in polyimide matrix were successfully synthesized through pre-catalyzed sol-gel route using an organic diamine base. The PI-silica hybrid materials through conventional polyamic acid-catalyzed sol-gel route with/without silane-coupling agent were also prepared for comparative control studies.

Synthesis and characteristics of multi-walled carbon nanotubes-polyimide nanocomposite films.

The polyimide/multi-walled carbon nanotubes (PI/MWNTs) nanocomposite film has been successfully synthesized in this study. The source of MWNTs is prepared by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method. Then the MWNTs are washed with acid for purification before being added into the polymer matrix.

Who gets to talk? An alternative framework evaluating companion effects in geriatric triads.

Most studies evaluating companion effects on medical triadic interaction focus on the doctors' part, e.g., how the companion's presence diverts doctors' attention away from the patient.

Opening stages in triadic medical encounters in Taiwan.

Opening stages in medical interviews are important because good doctor-patient rapport facilitates the doctor's tasks in later stages, especially in triadic first-visit interviews where doctors are not acquaintances of patients and companions. Given its importance, the research examines opening stages in the Taiwanese context from two perspectives: discourse components of opening stages and discourse mechanisms of presenting non-acquaintances' identities, especially the companions' identities. By examining 30 geriatric triadic encounters collected in a teaching hospital in southern Taiwan, this research concludes that opening-stage interaction patterns in Taiwanese medical interviews differ from Western patterns in the following ways.