• Biomaterials and Biomechanics in Bioengineering
• /
• v.2 no.3
• /
• pp.127-141
• /
• 2015

Silver-based systems activated by low intensity direct current continue to be investigated as an alternative antimicrobial for infection prophylaxis and treatment. However there has been limited research on the quantitative characterization of the antimicrobial efficacy of such systems. The objective of this study was to develop a semi-mechanistic pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) model providing the quantitative relationship between the critical system parameters and the degree of antimicrobial efficacy. First, time-kill curves were experimentally established for a strain of Staphylococcus aureus in a nutrientrich fluid environment over 48 hours. Based on these curves, a modified PK/PD model was developed with two components: a growing silver-susceptible bacterial population and a depreciating bactericidal process. The test of goodness-of-fit showed that the model was robust and had good predictability ($R^2>0.7$). The model demonstrated that the current intensity was positively correlated to the initial killing rate and the bactericidal fatigue rate of the system while the anode surface area was negatively correlated to the fatigue rate. The model also allowed the determination of the effective range of these two parameters within which the system has significant antimicrobial efficacy. In conclusion, the modified PK/PD model successfully described bacterial growth and killing kinetics when the bacteria were exposed to the electrically activated silver-titanium implant system. This modeling approach as well as the model itself can also potentially contribute to the development of optimal design strategies for other similar antimicrobial systems.

• Physical Therapy Korea
• /
• v.21 no.4
• /
• pp.1-8
• /
• 2014

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a neuromodulatory technique that delivers low-intensity direct current to cortical areas, thereby facilitating or inhibiting spontaneous neuronal activity. This study was designed to investigate changes in various sensory functions after tDCS. We conducted a single-center, single-blinded, randomized trial to determine the effect of a single session of tDCS with the current perception threshold (CPT) in 50 healthy volunteers. Nerve conduction studies were performed in relation to the median sensory and motor nerves on the dominant hand to discriminate peripheral nerve lesions. The subjects received anodal tDCS with 1 mA for 15 minutes under two different conditions, with 25 subjects in each groups: the conditions were as follows tDCS on the primary motor cortex (M1) and sham tDCS on M1. We recorded the parameters of the CPT a with Neurometer$^{(R)}$ at frequencies of 2000, 250, and 5 Hz in the dominant index finger to assess the tactile sense, fast pain and slow pain, respectively. In the test to measure CPT values of the M1 in the tDCS group, the values of the distal part of the distal interphalangeal joint of the second finger statistically increased in all of 2000 Hz (p=.000), 250 Hz (p=.002), and 5 Hz (p=.008). However, the values of the sham tDCS group decreased in all of 2000 Hz (p=.285), 250 Hz (p=.552), and 5 Hz (p=.062), and were not statistically significant. These results show that M1 anodal tDCS can modulate sensory perception and pain thresholds in healthy adult volunteers. The study suggests that tDCS may be a useful strategy for treating central neurogenic pain in rehabilitation medicine.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
• /
• v.29 no.2
• /
• pp.185-194
• /
• 2019

Objective: This study was conducted to investigate the intensity of the extremely low frequency magnetic fields(ELF-MF) generated inside of the cabins during subway operation. Methods: The ELF-MF intensity were investigated on 30 subway lines in Korea, including in the Greater Seoul Metropolitan Area(Seoul and Gyeonggi-do Province), Incheon, Busan, Daegu, Daejeon, and Gwangju. ELF-MF intensity was measured at 0.9 m from the floor using EMDEX II meters with a resolution of $0.01{\mu}T$. All data were collected every three seconds and analyzed with EMCALC 2013 version 3.0B software. Basic characteristics of subway operation, including alternative current(AC) or direct current(DC), voltage level, and opening year of the line were investigated. Real-time information during measurement, such as the time of departure, moving and arrival of trains, were also recorded. Results: The arithmetic mean(AM) and maximum(Max) intensity of ELF-MF were $0.62{\mu}T$ and $11.51{\mu}T$, respectively. Compared by region, the ELF-MF intensity measured inside cabin were the highest in the Seoul Metropolitan Area($AM=0.80{\mu}T$), followed by Busan($AM=0.30{\mu}T$), Daegu($AM=0.29{\mu}T$), Incheon($AM=0.14{\mu}T$), Gwangju($AM=0.04{\mu}T$) and Daejeon($AM=0.03{\mu}T$). The average ELF-MF level measured in AC trains($AM=1.36{\mu}T$) was also significantly higher than in DC trains($AM=0.28{\mu}T$). In terms of the opening year of the subway, trains opened before 1990($AM=0.85{\mu}T$) was the highest and the lowest was 2000-2009($AM=0.24{\mu}T$). Conclusions: The AC supply has the greatest influence on the generation of the ELF-MF intensity in subway cabins.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
• /
• v.16 no.1
• /
• pp.445-452
• /
• 2015

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a neuromodulatory technique that delivers a low-intensity direct current to the cortical areas, thereby facilitating or inhibiting spontaneous neuronal activity. This study was designed to examine the changes in various sensory functions after tDCS. A single-center, single-blinded, randomized trial was conducted to determine the effect of a single session (August 4 to August 29) of tDCS with the current perception threshold (CPT) in 50 healthy volunteers. Nerve conduction studies (NCS) were performed in relation to the median sensory and motor nerves on the dominant hand to discriminate peripheral nerve lesions. The subjects received anodal tDCS with 1mA for 15 minutes under two different conditions, with 25 subjects in each group. The conditions were as follows: tDCS on the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and sham tDCS on DLPFC. The parameters of the CPT was recorded with a Neurometer$^{(R)}$ at frequencies of 2000, 250 and 5 Hz in the dominant index finger to assess the tactile sense, fast pain and slow pain, respectively. In the test to measure the CPT values of the DLPFC in the anodal tDCS group, the values increased significantly in all of 250 and 5 Hz. All CPT values decreased for the sham tDCS. These results showed that DLPFC anodal tDCS can modulate the sensory perception and pain thresholds in healthy adult volunteers. This study suggests that tDCS may be a useful strategy for treating central neurogenic pain in rehabilitation medicine.

• Proceedings of the IEEK Conference
• /
• 2003.07b
• /
• pp.743-746
• /
• 2003

We have successfully used hydrophobic direct-wafer bonding, along with H-induced layer splitting of Ge, to transfer 700nm think, single-crystal Ge films to Si substrates. Optical and electrical properties have been also observed on these samples. Triple-junction solar cell structures gown on these Ge/Si heterostructure templates show comparable photoluminescence intensity and minority carrier lifetime to a control structure grown on bulk Ge. When heavily doped p$^{+}$Ge/p$^{+}$Si wafer bonded heterostructures were bonded, ohmic interfacial properties with less than 0.3Ω$\textrm{cm}^2$ specific resistance were observed indicating low loss thermal emission and tunneling processes over and through the potential barrier. Current-voltage (I-V) characteristics in p$^{+}$Ge/pSi structures show rectifying properties for room temperature bonded structures. After annealing at 40$0^{\circ}C$, the potential barrier was reduced and the barrier height no longer blocks current flow under bias. From these observations, interfacial atomic bonding structures of hydrophobically wafer bonded Ge/Si heterostructures are suggested.ested.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
• /
• v.31 no.12
• /
• pp.3697-3702
• /
• 2010

We demonstrate that vertically aligned carbon nanotubes can be synthesized directly on tantalum substrate via water-assisted chemical vapor deposition and evaluate their properties as electrochemical capacitors. The mean diameter of the carbon nanotubes was $7.1{\pm}1.5\;nm$, and 70% of them had double walls. The intensity ratio of G-band to D-band in Raman spectra was as high as 5, indicating good quality of the carbon nanotubes. Owing to the alignment and low equivalent series resistance, the carbon nanotube based supercapacitors showed good rate performance. Rectangular shape of cyclic voltammogram was maintained even at the scan rate of > 1 V/s in 1 M sulfuric acid aqueous solution. Specific capacitance was well-retained (~94%) even when the discharging current density dramatically increased up to 145 A/g. Consequently, specific power as high as 60 kW/kg was obtained from as-grown carbon nanotubes in aqueous solution. Maximum specific energy of ~20 Wh/kg was obtained when carbon nanotubes were electrochemically oxidized and operated in organic solution. Demonstration of direct synthesis of carbon nanotubes on tantalum current collectors and their applications as supercapacitors could be an invaluable basis for fabrication of high performance carbon nanotube supercapacitors.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering Conference
• /
• 2008.11a
• /
• pp.561-562
• /
• 2008

The numerical analysis of sound radiation by vibrating structure is a well known and mature technology used in many industries. Accurate methods based on the boundary or finite element method have been successfully developed over the last two decades and are now available in standard CAE tools. These methods are however known to require significant computational resources which, furthermore, very quickly increase with the frequency of interest. The low speed of most current methods is a main obstacle for a systematic use of acoustic CAE in industrial design processes. In this paper we are going to present a set of innovative techniques that significantly speed-up the calculation of acoustic radiation indicators (acoustic pressure, velocity, intensity and power; contribution vectors). The modeling is based on the well known combination of finite elements and infinite elements but also combines the following ingredients to obtain a very high performance: o a multi-frontal massively parallel sparse direct solver; o a multi-frequency solver based on the Krylov method; o the use of pellicular acoustic modes as a vector basis for representing acoustic excitations; o the numerical evaluation of Green functions related to the specific geometry of the problem under investigation. All these ingredients are embedded in the ACTRAN/AR CAE tool which provides unprecedented performance for acoustic radiation analysis. The method will be demonstrated on several applications taken from various industries.

• Applied Microscopy
• /
• v.47 no.1
• /
• pp.29-35
• /
• 2017

Transverse magnetic field annealing (TFA) was carried out on $Fe_{73.5}Cu_1Nb_3Si_{15.5}B_7$ nano-crystalline magnetic core with the aim at decreasing coercivity ($H_c$) while keeping high inductance ($L_s$). The magnetic field generated by direct current (DC) was applied on the magnetic core during different selected annealing stages and it was proved that the nanocrystalline magnetic core achieved lowest $H_c$ when applying transverse field during the whole annealing process (TFA1). Although the microstructure and crystallization degree of the nanocrystalline magnetic core exhibited no obvious difference after TFA1 compared to no field annealing, the TFA1 sample showed a more uniform nanostructure with a smaller mean square deviation of grain size distribution. $H_c$ of the nanocrystalline magnetic core annealed under TFA1 decreased along with the increasing magnetic field. As a result, the certain size nanocrystalline magnetic core with low $H_c$ of 0.6 A/m, low core loss (W at 20 kHz) of 1.6 W/kg under flux density of 0.2 T and high $L_s$ of $13.8{\mu}H$ were obtained after TFA1 with the DC intensity of 140 A. The combination of high $L_s$ with excellent magnetic properties promised this nanocrystalline alloy an outstanding economical application in high frequency transformers.

• The korean journal of orthodontics
• /
• v.33 no.4 s.99
• /
• pp.279-291
• /
• 2003

Electric current is a highly probable way as a clinical tool for tooth movement. The purposes of this study were to determine the usefulness of exogenous electric currents in accelerating orthodontic tooth movement and to investigate the effects of electric-orthodontic treatment on the remodeling of the periodontal tissue histologically The study was performed with six male cats weighing around 3kg. The electric device wich is providing the direct electric current of $20{\mu}A$ was inserted to the removable appliance. The right and left maxillary canines were assigned as control and experimental sides respectively. The control canine was Provided with orthodontic force (75gm) oかy and the experimental side was given the same amount of force and electricity. The lingual buttons were bonded to the maxillary canines and both sides of canines were retracted with NiTi coil spring. The electric device was adjusted to provide 20uh direct current to the experimental canines S hours a day The amount of the canine movement was measured with electronic caliper every week. After 4 weeks of tooth movement, the animals were sacrificed and the histologic study was performed. The results of this study were as follows. 1. The application of a direct current to the experimental tooth significantly increased the final amount of orthodontic tooth movement. The amount of tooth movement after 28-day was 37% more in the experimental side. 2. The electrically stimulated tooth showed histologic evidence of significant increases in the amount of bones and matrix deposition in the area of tension. 3. In the compression side, the electric-orthodontic treatment stimulated bone resorption more extensively in the experimental canines. 4. After 28 days of electricity exposure and orthodontic force, the experimental side demonstrated significantly more osteoblasts, osteoclasts, capillaries and osteoid tissues, reflectinr an increase in the local tissue's cellular activity. 5. Intermittent electrical stimulation (five hours a day) had effects to enhance orthodontic tooth movement and tissue remodeling. These results suggested that the low-intensity exogenous electric current by the miniature electric device might accelerate orthodontic tooth movement and bone remodeling in vivo and have the possibility to reduce the orthodontic treatment duration.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
• /
• 2016.02a
• /
• pp.306.1-306.1
• /
• 2016

ZnO semiconductor material has been widely utilized in various applications in semiconductor device technology owing to its unique electrical and optical features. It is a promising as solar cell material, because of its low cost, n-type conductivity and wide direct band gap. In this work ZnO/Si heterojunctions were fabricated by using pulsed laser deposition. Vacuum chamber was evacuated to a base pressure of approximately $2{\times}10^{-6}Torr$. ZnO thin films were grown on p-Si (100) substrate at oxygen partial pressure from 5mTorr to 40mTorr. Growth temperature of ZnO thin films was set to 773K. A pulsed (10 Hz) Nd:YAG laser operating at a wavelength of 266 nm was used to produce a plasma plume from an ablated a ZnO target, whose density of laser energy was $10J/cm^2$. Thickness of all the thin films of ZnO was about 300nm. The optical property was characterized by photoluminescence and crystallinity of ZnO was analyzed by X-ray diffraction. For fabrication ZnO/Si heterojunction diodes, indium metal and Al grid patterns were deposited on back and front side of the solar cells by using thermal evaporator, respectively. Finally, current-voltage characteristics of the ZnO/Si structure were studied by using Keithly 2600. Under Air Mass 1.5 Global solar simulator with an irradiation intensity of $100mW/cm^2$, the electrical properties of ZnO/Si heterojunction photovoltaic devices were analyzed.