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We aimed to analyze the radiation dose and compare survival among combined modality therapy using modern radiation techniques for patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).This retrospective study included patients with clinically staged T1-4N0-3M0 ESCC from 2014 to 2018. Patients who received combined modality therapies with curative intent were enrolled. The overall survival (OS) rates among combined modality therapy were compared. The clinical variables and impacts of radiation dose on survival were analyzed by the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression model.Of the 259 patients, 141 (54.4%) received definitive concurrent chemoradiotherapy (DCCRT); 67 (25.9%) underwent neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery (NCRT+S); 51 (19.7%) obtained surgery followed by adjuvant chemoradiotherapy (S+ACRT). Two-year OS rates of the DCCRT, NCRT+S and S+ACRT group were 48.9, 61.5 and 51.2%. In the subgroup analysis of DCCRT group, the 2-year OS of patients receiving radiation dose 55-60 Gy was 57.1%. Multivariate analyses showed that clinical stage (p = 0.004), DCCRT with 55-60 Gy (p = 0.043) and NCRT+S with pathological complete response (pCR) (p = 0.014) were significant prognostic factors for better OS. The radiation dose-survival curve demonstrated a highly positive correlation between higher radiation dose and better survival.Our results suggest that NCRT+S can provide a favorable survival for patients with ESCC, especially in patients who achieved pCR. The optimal radiation dose might be 55-60 Gy for patients receiving DCCRT via modern radiation techniques. Further randomized clinical studies are required to confirm the survival benefits between NCRT+S and DCCRT with escalated dose.

PURPOSE Conventional 99m Tc-macroaggregated albumin (99m Tc-MAA) planar scintigraphy overestimates lung shunt fraction (LSF) compared to SPECT/CT. However, the respiratory motion artifact due to the temporal mismatch between static SPECT and helical CT (HCT) may compromise the SPECT quantitation accuracy by incorrect attenuation correction (AC) and volume-of-interest (VOI) segmentation. This study aims to evaluate AC and VOI segmentation effects systematically and to propose a CT map for LSF and tumor-to-normal liver ratio (TNR) estimation in static 99m Tc-MAA SPECT/CT. METHODS The 4D XCAT phantom was used to simulate a phantom population of 120 phantoms, modeling 10 different anatomical variations, nine TNRs (2-13.2), nine tumor sizes (2-6.7 cm diameter), eight tumor locations, three axial motion amplitudes of 1, 1.5, and 2 (cm), and four LSFs of 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%. An analytical projector for low-energy high-resolution parallel-hole collimator was used to simulate 60 noisy projections over 360°, modeling attenuation and geometric collimator-detector response (GCDR). AC and VOI mismatch effects were investigated independently and together, using cine average CT (CACT), HCT at end-inspiration (HCT-IN), mid-respiration (HCT-MID), and end-expiration (HCT-EX) respectively as attenuation and segmentation maps. SPECT images without motion, AC, and VOI errors were also generated as reference. LSF and TNR errors were measured as compared to the ground truth. RESULTS HCT-MID has slightly better performance for AC effect compared with other CT maps in LSF and TNR estimation, while HCT-EX and HCT-MID perform better for VOI effect. For a respiratory motion amplitude of 1.5 cm and a LSF of 5%, the LSF errors are 19.56 ± 4.58%, -6.79 ± 1.74%, 77.29 ± 14.74%, and 111.25 ± 18.29% corresponding to HCT-MID, HCT-EX, HCT-IN, and CACT in static SPECT. The TNR errors are -12.38 ± 6.42%, -20.55 ± 11.25%, -20.89 ± 9.98%, and -22.89 ± 14.38% respectively. HCT-MID has the best performance for LSF estimation for LSF > 10% and TNR estimation, followed by HCT-EX, HCT-IN, and CACT. CONCLUSIONS The HCT-MID is recommended for AC and segmentation to alleviate respiratory artifacts and improve quantitation accuracy in 90 Y radioembolization treatment planning. HCT-EX would also be a recommended choice if HCT-MID is not available.

The incidence of radiation pneumonitis (RP) has a highly linear relationship with low-dose lung volume. We previously established a volume-based algorithm (VBA) method to improve low-dose lung volume in radiotherapy (RT). This study assessed lung inflammatory changes by integrating fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (Thirty esophageal cancer patients receivedEleven patients in the nRP group and 19 patients in the RP group were identified. In 30 RP lungs, post-RT SUVmax, SUVmean and GLG of HD regions showed significant increases compared to values for pre-RT lungs. There were no significant differences in values of 22 nRP lungs. Post-RT SUVmax and SUVmean of HD regions, MLD, and lung VThis study successfully integrated

This paper demonstrates an AlGaInP-based 620-nm red micro-light-emitting-diode (µ-LED) array and studies the enhancement effect of the surface treatments using (NH4)2S x solutions by comparing the characteristics of µ-LED arrays with and without the (NH4)2S x treatment. Furthermore, our µ-LED array demonstrates a measurement of the current efficiency (2.6 cd/A), which improves the light output uniformity. Also, we apply a setup for measuring the response time at the fast ns-level to analyze the effect of passivation in AlGaInP-based µ-LED arrays.

PurposeFluorine-18-fuorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography/computerized tomography (PET/CT) scan serves as a useful tool not only for tumor detection, radiotherapy (RT) target volume delineation but also for the assessment of the inflammatory changes in normal organs. Previously we proposed the volume-based algorithm (VBA) method to reduce low dose-volume of lung by improving the arc angle in dynamic arc-based RT. The aim of this study was to assess lung inflammation by integrating 18F-FDG PET/CT with VBA before and after arc-based RT for esophageal cancer (EC).MethodsThirty EC patients underwent 18F-FDG PET/CT imaging before RT (pre-RT) and after RT (post-RT) on a retrospective pilot study. The VBA was used to define the high dose (HD) (≧ 5 Gy) region and the low dose (LD) (< 5 Gy) region in the lungs. The maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax), mean standardized uptake value (SUVmean), and global lung glycolysis (GLG) of the HD and LD regions in the lungs were quantified. The pre-RT and post-RT SUVmax, SUVmean, and GLG of HD and LD regions in lungs were analyzed in radiation pneumonitis (RP) ≧ grade 1 and non-radiation pneumonitis (nRP) lungs. The mean lung dose (MLD), V5, V10, V15, V20, V25, V30 in lungs were analyzed. Vx indicates the organ volume percentage exceeding a radiation dose of x (Gy). Receiver-operating characteristic curves were used to identify optimal cut-off values for RP after RT.ResultsIn RP lungs (n = 30), the SUVmax, SUVmean and GLG of the HD region between pre-RT and post-RT showed significant increases (all p < 0.05). Whereas there were no significant differences in those of the HD and LD regions in nRP lungs (n = 22). The post-RT SUVmax (2.78 vs. 2.07, p = 0.000) and post-RT SUVmean (0.64 vs. 0.52, p = 0.015) of the HD region in RP lungs were significantly higher than those in nRP lungs. The MLD (10.15 Gy vs. 8.11 Gy, p = 0.041), lung V5 (49.78% vs. 38.07%, p = 0.010) and lung V10 (32.25% vs. 24.71%, p = 0.017) in the RP lungs were significantly higher than those in nRP lungs. The area under the curve (AUC) of post-RT SUVmax of the HD regions was 0.852, and the AUC of the lung V5 was 0.727. For predicting RP, the optimal cut-off values of post-RT SUVmax and lung V5 were > 2.28 and > 47.14%. respectively. ConclusionThis study successfully integrated 18F-FDG PET/CT with VBA to assess RP in EC patients undergoing dynamic arc-based RT. The post-RT SUVmax and post-RT SUVmean of HD (≧5 Gy) regions can be used to evaluate RP. The post-RT SUVmax > 2.28 of HD regions and lung V5 > 47.14% may be a potential predictor of RP. 18F-FDG PET/CT is a promising tool to detect RP for EC patients treated with arc-based RT.

In this paper, we propose a parameter estimation method for multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) automotive radars that consists of two stages. The first stage is a low-complexity three-dimensional (3D) constant false alarm rate (CFAR) detection technique that exploits spatial filtering to extend radar coverage, and it performs low-complexity peak detection. The second stage is an ESPRIT-based direction-of-arrival (DOA) estimation technique that adopts time-frequency resource division to generate high-quality snapshots and it performs DOA estimation of targets without the knowledge of the target number. Computer simulations reveal that the proposed method achieves the performance of the two-dimensional ordered statistic CFAR (2D OS-CFAR) while having much lower computational complexity, and it offers the higher resolution DOA estimation compared to the conventional MIMO radars.

The decrease of light output efficiency with the reduction of LED (light-emitting diode) die size is one of the challenges of micro-LED displays. Here we propose a digital etching technology that employs multi-step etching and treatment to mitigate sidewall defects exposed after mesa dry etching. In this study, by two-step etching and N2 treatment, the electrical properties of the diodes show an increase of forward current and a decrease in reverse leakage due to suppressed sidewall defects. An increase of light output power by 92.6% is observed for 10 × 10-µm2 mesa size with digital etching, as compared with that with only one step etching and no treatment. We also demonstrated only 1.1% decrease in output power density for a 10 × 10-µm2 LED as compared with a 100 × 100-µm2 device without performing digital etching.

ConventionalThe 4D XCAT phantom was used to simulate a phantom population of 120 phantoms, modeling 10 different anatomical variations, nine TNRs (2-13.2), nine tumor sizes (2-6.7 cm diameter), eight tumor locations, three axial motion amplitudes of 1, 1.5, and 2 (cm), and four LSFs of 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%. An analytical projector for low-energy high-resolution parallel-hole collimator was used to simulate 60 noisy projections over 360°, modeling attenuation and geometric collimator-detector response (GCDR). AC and VOI mismatch effects were investigated independently and together, using cine average CT (CACT), HCT at end-inspiration (HCT-IN), mid-respiration (HCT-MID), and end-expiration (HCT-EX) respectively as attenuation and segmentation maps. SPECT images without motion, AC, and VOI errors were also generated as reference. LSF and TNR errors were measured as compared to the ground truth.HCT-MID has slightly better performance for AC effect compared with other CT maps in LSF and TNR estimation, while HCT-EX and HCT-MID perform better for VOI effect. For a respiratory motion amplitude of 1.5 cm and a LSF of 5%, the LSF errors are 19.56 ± 4.58%, -6.79 ± 1.74%, 77.29 ± 14.74%, and 111.25 ± 18.29% corresponding to HCT-MID, HCT-EX, HCT-IN, and CACT in static SPECT. The TNR errors are -12.38 ± 6.42%, -20.55 ± 11.25%, -20.89 ± 9.98%, and -22.89 ± 14.38% respectively. HCT-MID has the best performance for LSF estimation for LSF 10% and TNR estimation, followed by HCT-EX, HCT-IN, and CACT.The HCT-MID is recommended for AC and segmentation to alleviate respiratory artifacts and improve quantitation accuracy in

A foldable AMOLED display capable of enduring very severe folding and environmental impact was obtained using symmetric panel stacking (SPS) with an innovative design of color filter structure. The display was subjected to in-situ folding cycle under an ambient test condition of 60° C/90% RH and no performance degradation was found for the display and the touch function during and after the test. In addition, 95% coverage of BT. 2020 color space was obtained without additional power consumption compared to that of the panel with NTSC color space.

A foldable active-matrix organic light-emitting diode display capable of enduring very severe folding and environmental impact was obtained using symmetric panel stacking with an innovative design of color filter structure. The display was subjected to in situ folding cycle under an ambient test condition of 60°C/90% relative humidity, and no performance degradation was found for the display and the touch function during and after the test. In addition, 95% coverage of BT.2020 color space was obtained without additional power consumption compared with that of the panel with National Television System Committee (NTSC) color space.

A 1.25" circular plastic-based AMOLED display has been developed for wearable application. By locating gate drivers in the active area and bending the plastic substrate outside the active area of the panel, we successfully realized a display with true circular shape and slim border, respectively.

A 5” plastic-based AMOLED panel with optimal structure and optical design was fabricated. The panel is designed to coincide the OLED/TFT layer with the neutral plane and limit the largest strain of the outmost part to be less than 1%. Its performance remained prominent after repeated rolled at 3mm radius.

A highly durable and foldable AMOLED display with a symmetric panel stacking (SPS) design and touch functionality was demonstrated to surpass 1 million folding cycles with no damage to the TFT, OLED and TFE layers. The S/N ratio of the touch function was improved using a metal mesh touch sensor.

Recent research has found that electricity consumption is a very useful variable in economics. In many applications it might be desirable to decompose electricity consumption into unpredictable and deterministic (or highly predictable) component. We want to find out whether forecasting works better if we model electricity load independently for each hour or if we model in the first step the average daily consumption and in a second step we model for each hour deviation from this average. We therefore compare two simple, yet flexible models for hourly electricity consumption in Germany. Both models use temperature, industrial production, hours of daylight and dummies for days of the week and month of the year as explanatory variables. We find that the first model, despite being simpler, forecasts hourly electricity demand more precisely. This indicates that hourly electricity consumption represents various goods, and should be modelled separately for each hour.

An efficient p-doped transport layer composed of an ambipolar material, 2-methyl-9,10-di(2-naphthyl)anthracene (MADN) and tungsten oxide (WO(3)) has been developed. The admittance spectroscopy studies show that the incorporation of WO(3) into MADN can greatly improve the hole injection and the conductivity of the device. Moreover, when this p-doped layer was incorporated in the tris(8-quinolinolato)aluminum-based device, it achieved a current efficiency of 4.0 cdA and a power efficiency of 2.4 lmW at 20 mAcm(2). This work paves the way to simplify the fabrication of future p-i-n organic light-emitting devices with a single common ambipolar MADN material.

Residual demand, the difference between demand and solar and wind production, is an important variable in predicting the future price and storage requirements. However, little is known about predicting the residual demand itself as well as its quantiles. Therefore, we model both demand and residual demand using both ordinary and quantile regression and compare the results for the hourly electricity consumption in Germany. We find that the residual demand is less predictable than demand. The effect is visible for all hours, and is higher for the lower than the upper quantiles.

In this work, the admittance spectroscopy studies show that doping cesium fluoride (CsF) into 2-methyl-9,10-di(2-naphthyl)anthracene (MADN) can greatly decrease the resistance of MADN and raises the Fermi level from deep level to only 0.1 eV below the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital, resulting in enhancing the electron injection. In addition, the diffusion width of CsF from doped MADN layer into tris(8-quinolinolato)aluminium is clearly observed by capacitance-frequency measurement and is about 9.4 nm. Moreover, the diffusion width is significant to be affected by external thermal.

A power-efficient and stable organic light emitting diode with a simplified structure based on 2-methyl-9,10-di(2-naphthyl)anthracene (MADN) has been developed. The incorporation of 10% tungsten oxide (WO3) into MADN and 15% cesium carbonate (Cs2CO3) into MADN has been found to improve the hole and electron injection, respectively. Based on this work, it is anticipated that p-i-n OLEDs fabrication process can be considerably simplified and the bill of materials cost can reduced by using one ambipolar host for both the p- and n-doped carrier transport layers.