Private troubles to public issue: empowering communities to reduce alcohol-related harm in Sabah, Malaysia.

Alcohol is the number three contributor to the burden of disease worldwide so must remain a priority health promotion issue internationally. Malaysia is a Muslim country and alcohol-related harm was not seen as a priority until recently, because it only affects a minority of the population. Sabah has more than 30 different ethnic groups, and alcohol has a traditional role in the cultural practices of many of these groups.

Enabling novel functionality in heavily doped ZnO:Ga by nanostructuring: an efficient plasmonic refractive index sensor.

We demonstrate a proof-of-concept refractive index sensor based on heavily doped ZnO:Ga nanostructured in a grating configuration, which supports free space excitation of propagating surface plasmons. The bulk sensitivity of the sensor of 4.9 × 10(3) nm per refractive index unit, achieved in the mid-infrared spectral range with the first grating prototype, surpasses that of the noble metal counterparts by three to four times.

High-spectral-radiance, red-emitting tapered diode lasers with monolithically integrated distributed Bragg reflector surface gratings.

A red-emitting tapered diode laser with a monolithically integrated distributed Bragg reflector grating is presented. The device is able to emit up to 1 W of spectrally stabilized optical output power at 5°C. Depending on the period of the tenth order surface grating the emission wavelengths of these devices from the same gain material are 635 nm, 637 nm, and 639 nm.