The efficiency of halide perovskite solar cells has progressed rapidly through a series of major breakthroughs. Currently, a certified efficiency of 25.2% has been achieved for a solar cell using a polycrystalline thin film. This is the result of having reached 75% of the Shockley–Queisser limit for single-junction solar cells. However, for further improvements, new breakthrough technologies are required. This article reviews the impact of previous breakthrough technologies on the efficiency of halide perovskite solar cells, based on certified efficiencies. We clarify the current status of halide perovskite solar cells and introduce photon recycling as the next technological innovation for higher efficiencies. Photon recycling keeps the photon concentration inside the light-harvesting layer high, and consequently, leads to open-circuit voltages close to the theoretical value. Although photon recycling has not yet been implemented in real halide perovskite solar cells, three key technologies for implementing it are examined.

The complete chloroplast (cp) genome sequences of three Amaranthus species (Amaranthus hypochondriacus, A. cruentus and A. caudatus) were determined by next-generation sequencing. The cp genome sequences of A. hypochondriacus, A. cruentus and A. caudatus were 150,523, 150,757 and 150,523 bp in length, respectively, each containing 84 genes with identical contents and orders. Expansion or contraction of the inverted repeat region was not observed among the three Amaranthus species. The coding regions were highly conserved with 99.3% homology in nucleotide and amino acid sequences. Five genes – matK, accD, ndhJ, ccsA and ndhF – showed relatively high non-synonymous/synonymous values (Ka/Ks > 0.1). Sequence comparison identified two insertion/deletion (InDels) greater than 40 bp in length, and polymerase chain reaction markers that could amplify these InDel regions were applied to diverse Korean Genbank accessions, which could discriminate the three Amaranthus species. Phylogenetic analyses based on 62 protein-coding genes showed that the core Caryophyllales were monophyletic and Amaranthoideae formed a sister group with the Betoideae and Chenopodioideae clade. Comparing each homologous locus among the three Amaranthus species, identified eight regions with high Pi values (>0.03). Seven of these loci, except for rps19-trnH (GUG), were considered to be useful molecular markers for further phylogenetic studies.

Integration of photonic devices on silicon (Si) substrates is a key method in enabling large scale manufacturing of Si-based photonic–electronic circuits for next generation systems with high performance, small form factor, low power consumption, and low cost. Germanium (Ge) is a promising material due to its pseudo-direct bandgap and its compatibility with Si-CMOS processing. In this article, we present our recent progress on achieving high quality germanium-on-silicon (Ge/Si) materials. Subsequently, the performance of various functional devices such as photodetectors, lasers, waveguides, and sensors that are fabricated on the Ge/Si platform are discussed. Some possible future works such as the incorporation of tin (Sn) into Ge will be proposed. Finally, some applications based on a fully monolithic integrated photonic–electronic chip on an Si platform will be highlighted at the end of this article.

The purpose of this study was to (1) evaluate factors in FIT guest's perception of five-star hotel location, and (2) assess the differences among customer-satisfaction levels and how those differences impacted guests' satisfaction with their choice of hotel. FIT guests (Frequent Individual travellers/foreign independent traveller) staying at 17 five-star hotels were selected based on information of foreign immigration statistics recorded by the Korea National Tourism Organization. Factor analysis of the six dimensions was labelled as Tourism Attraction, Convenience, Safety, Surrounding Environment, Traffic, and Accessibility. Results showed that FIT guests value and expect in a hotel's location: (1) safety, (2) ease of access to transportation portals (air, train, bus, and public transportation), and (3) close connection to area attractions (historic, business, and pleasure).

A novel route to organic-inorganic composites was described based on biomineralization of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-based hydrogels. The 3-dimensional hydrogels were synthesized by radical crosslinking polymerization of poly(ethylene glycol fumarate) (PEGF) in the presence of ethylene glycol methacrylate phosphate (EGMP) as an apatite-nuclating monomer, acrylamide (AAm) as a composition-modulating comonomer, and potassium persulfate (PPS) as a radical initiator. We used the urea-mediated solution precipitation technique for biomineralization of hydrogels. The apatite grown on the surface and interior of the hydrogel was similar to biological apatites in the composition and crystalline structure. Powder x-ray diffraction (XRD) showed that the calcium phosphate crystalline platelets on hydrogels are preferentially aligned along the crystallographic c-axis direction. Inductively-coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS) analysis showed that the Ca/P molar ratio of apatites grown on the hydrogel template was found to be 1.60, which is identical to that of natural bones. In vitro cell experiments showed that the cell adhesion/proliferation on the mineralized hydrogel was more pronounced than on the pure polymer hydrogel.

The interests of low-k dielectric materials to reduce capacitance in multilevel metal interconnects of integrated circuits are well known in the semiconductor industry. Mechanical properties of low-k film are currently the main issues. Improved hardness and modulus are desirable because, when building a multilayered stack and doing sequential processing, films go through chemical mechanical planarization. In this proceeding, we reports the Young's moduli of the typical low k materials, and the effects of various factors for Young's moduli of materials, such as, structures of precursors, density, and porosity. Using atomistic molecular dynamics simulation with experimental measurements, the Young's moduli of films of amorphous silicon oxide in which 25% of Si-O-Si chains were replaced by Si-(CH3 H3C)-Si, Si-CH2-Si, Si-(CH2)2-Si, Si-(CH2)3-Si, Si-(CH2)4-Si, Si-(CH2)6-Si, were measured and analyzed. The predicted trends of Young's moduli of films formed by above precursors are in good consistent with those observed from experiments. The Young's moduli of materials are largely dependent on the densities of materials. Young's modulus of material increases as the density of the material increases. The chemical properties, chain length, and connectivity of material take effects on the Young's modulus of material. Given the same densities of material the smaller number of cavities per unit volume the material has, the lower Young's modulus it shows. Based on the results, the method of predict mechanical properties of materials by the conjunction of basic experimental measurements and atomistic simulation will be discussed.

Elastic modulus and Poisson's ratio of diamond-like carbon (DLC) film was measured by a simple method using DLC bridges which are free from mechanical constraint of substrate. The DLC films were deposited on Si wafer by C6H6r.f. glow discharge at the deposition pressure 1.33 Pa. Because of the high residual compressive stress of the film, the bridge exhibited a sinusoidal displacement by removing the constraint of the substrate. By measuring the amplitude with known bridge length, we could determine the strain of the film required to adhere to the substrate. Combined with independent stress measurement by laser reflection method, this method allows calculation of the biaxial elastic modulus, E/(1–v), where E is the elastic modulus and v Poisson's ratio of the DLC film. By comparing the biaxial elastic modulus with plane-strain modulus, E/(1–v2), measured by nano-indentation, we could further determine the elastic modulus and Poisson's ratio, independently. The elastic modulus, E, increased from 87 to 133 GPa as the negative bias voltage increased from 400 to 550 V. Poisson's ratio was estimated to be about 0.20 in this bias voltage range. For the negative bias voltages less than 400 V, however, the present method resulted in negative Poisson's ratio which is physically impossible. The limitation of the present method was also discussed.

A simple method to measure the elastic modulus and Poisson's ratio of diamond-like carbon (DLC) films deposited on Si wafer was suggested. This method involved etching a side of Si substrate using the DLC film as an etching mask. The edge of DLC overhang free from constraint of Si substrate exhibited periodic sinusoidal shape. By measuring the amplitude and the wavelength of the sinusoidal edge, we can determine the strain of the film required to adhere to the substrate. Combined with independent stress measurement by laser reflection method, this method allows calculation of the biaxial elastic modulus, E/(1 − v), where E is the elastic modulus and v Poisson's ratio of the DLC films. By comparing the biaxial elastic modulus with plane-strain modulus, E/(1 −v2), measured by nano-indentation, we could further determine the elastic modulus and Poisson's ratio, independently. This method was employed to measure the mechanical properties of DLC films deposited by C6H6 r.f. glow discharge at the deposition pressure 1.33 Pa. The elastic modulus, E, increased from 94 to 128 GPa as the negative bias voltage increased from 400 to 550 V. Poisson's ratio was estimated to be about 0.22 in this bias voltage range. For the negative bias voltages less than 400 V, however, the present method resulted in negative Poisson's ratio. The limitation of the present method was discussed.