Stochastically Broken Inversion Symmetry of Van der Waals Topological Insulator for Nanoscale Physically Unclonable Functions.

Owing to the exotic state of quantum matter, topological insulators have emerged as a significant platform for new-generation functional devices. Among these topological insulators, tetradymites have received significant attention because of their van der Waals (vdW) structures and inversion symmetries. Although this inversion symmetry completely blocks exotic quantum phenomena, it should be broken down to facilitate versatile topological functionalities.

Electron Release via Internal Polarization Fields for Optimal S-H Bonding States.

Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have received considerable attention as promising electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), yet their potential is often constrained by the inertness of the basal planes arising from their poor hydrogen adsorption ability. Here, the relationship between the electronic structure of the WS basal plane and HER activity is systemically analyzed to establish a clear insight. The valance state of the sulfur atoms on the basal plane has been tuned to enhance hydrogen adsorption through sequential engineering processes, including direct phase transition and heterostructure that induces work function-difference-induced unidirectional electron transfer.

Low-Temperature, Universal Synthetic Route for Mesoporous Metal Oxides by Exploiting Synergistic Effect of Thermal Activation and Plasma.

Mesoporous metal oxides exhibit excellent physicochemical properties and are widely used in various fields, including energy storage/conversion, catalysis, and sensors. Although several soft-template approaches are reported, high-temperature calcination for both metal oxide formation and template removal is necessary, which limits direct synthesis on a plastic substrate for flexible devices. Here, a universal synthetic approach that combines thermal activation and oxygen plasma to synthesize diverse mesoporous metal oxides (VO, VO, TiO, NbO, WO and MoO) at low temperatures (150-200 °C), which can be applicable to a flexible polymeric substrate is introduced.

Chromism-Integrated Sensors and Devices for Visual Indicators.

The bifunctionality of chromism-integrated sensors and devices has been highlighted because of their reversibility, fast response, and visual indication. For example, one of the representative chromism electrochromic materials exhibits optical modulation under ion insertion/extraction by applying a potential. This operation mechanism can be integrated with various sensors (pressure, strain, biomolecules, gas, etc.

Curcumin Stimulates Proliferation of Spinal Cord Neural Progenitor Cells via a Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Signaling Pathway.

Objective: The aims of our study are to evaluate the effect of curcumin on spinal cord neural progenitor cell (SC-NPC) proliferation and to clarify the mechanisms of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase signaling pathways in SC-NPCs.

Methods: We established cultures of SC-NPCs, extracted from the spinal cord of Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 250 g to 350 g. We measured proliferation rates of SC-NPCs after curcumin treatment at different dosage.

Abdominal aortic aneurysm presenting as a claudication.

Back pain and radiating pain to the legs are the most common symptoms encountered in routine neurosurgical practice and usually originates from neurogenic causes including spinal stenosis. The clinial symptoms are often confused with symptoms of peripheral neuropathy, musculo-skeletal disease and vascular disease in elderly patients. Because it is not easy to distinguish out the cause of symptoms by only physical examination, routine spinal MRI is checked first to rule out the spinal diseases in most outpatient clinics.