Strain and electric field tunable photoelectric properties of multilayer Sb2Se3

Antimony selenide, Sb2Se3, has been attracted widespread attention in photovoltaic applications due to its high absorption coefficient and suitable band gap. However, the influence of uniaxial strain and electric field on the electronic and photovoltaic properties of multilayer Sb2Se3 is still unknown. Here, the quantitative relationship, such as strain-property, electric field-property, as well as thickness-property, is explored via first-principles calculations. Our results demonstrate that the band gap and photovoltaic parameters (Jsc, Voc, FF and PCE) of multilayer Sb2Se3 are not only affected by the uniaxial strain and electric field, but can also be tuned via the coupling of thickness with strain and electric field. The band-gap of multilayer Sb2Se3 is linear dependent on uniaxial strain and external electric field. We found that the effect of strain on the photovoltaic parameters could be negligible as compared with the effect of thickness. However, the effect of electric field is thickness dependent, 1 ‒ 2 layer(s) thin films are not affected while the impact of electric field increases with the increasing thickness. The quantitative strain (electric field)-properties relation of multilayer Sb2Se3 suggesting that Sb2Se3 films have a potential application in the field of strain and electric field sensors.

Relating spinal injury-induced neuropathic pain and spontaneous afferent activity to sleep and respiratory dysfunction

Spinal cord injury (SCI) can induce dysfunction in a multitude of neural circuits including those that lead to impaired sleep, respiratory dysfunction and neuropathic pain. We used a lower thoracic rodent contusion SCI model - known to develop mechanosensory stimulus hypersensitivity, and spontaneous activity in primary afferents that associates neuropathic pain - and paired this with new approaches that enabled chronic capture of three state sleep and respiration to characterize dysfunction and assess possible interrelations. Noncontact electric field sensors were embedded into home cages for noninvasive capture in naturally behaving mice of the temporal evolution of sleep and respiration changes for 6 weeks after SCI. Hindlimb mechanosensitivity was assessed weekly, and terminal experiments measured primary afferent spontaneous activity in situ from intact lumbar dorsal root ganglia (DRG). We observed that SCI led to increased spontaneous primary afferent activity (both firing rate and the number of spontaneously active DRGs) that correlated with reduced hindpaw mechanical sensitivity, increased respiratory rate variability, and increased sleep fragmentation. This is the first study to measure and link sleep dysfunction and variability in respiratory rate in a SCI model of neuropathic pain, and thereby provide broader insight into the magnitude of overall stress burden initiated by neural circuit dysfunction after SCI.

Dual spherical intensity sensors for new generation lowfrequency electric fields

These electric fields adversely affect the environment, technical and biological objects. In this regard, it is necessary to control the levels of electric fields, an important characteristic of which is the strength of the electric field. Sensors of the electric field strength are required to sense the electric field. The existing sensors are inconvenient in operation and have a high error in the perception of the electric field strength, reaching  20 %. In the work under consideration, the idea of creating a universal sensor of a new type, related to the type of dual sensors, is put forward. Its versatility lies in the fact that it embodies all types of known sensors — single, double, and now twin. The error in the perception of the intensity of the inhomogeneous electric field of the dual sensors does not exceed + 5 % in the entire spatial measurement range 0a1. In this case, the distance d to the field source is limited only by the radius of the spherical base of the sensor, i.e. d  R. At the same time, for sensors that are part of a dual sensor in the same spatial measurement range, the error is  35 %. Using a dual sensor, it is possible to achieve a significant increase in the accuracy of measuring the strength of inhomogeneous electric fields in a wide spatial measurement range in comparison with known sensors.