Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is a semiconductor that can be applied in different technological areas. In this work, we investigated the modifications of the electrical properties of thin films composed of TiO2 nanoparticles produced with different morphologies. The solvothermal route used for the synthesis allowed the production of nanoparticles with functionalized surfaces due to oleate groups. It was possible to modulate nanocrystals shape and size due to the detachment crystal growth mechanism, by changing the reaction time. Nanorods were obtained using 4 h of synthesis, and an increase in the reaction time to 64 h led to a bipyramidal morphology. The functionalization by the organic ligand allowed the preparation of stable colloidal solutions, which were used to prepare thin films by the dip-coating method. The films presented a homogeneous surface, an average thickness around 100 nm, and no agglomerations were observed. The electrical resistance measurements indicated a typical behavior of semiconductors, and they were dependent on the nanoparticle morphology. An exploratory test indicated that the thin films prepared using nanorod particles presented a higher electrical response compared with isotropic particles, when exposed in a liquefied petroleum gas vapor atmosphere. Therefore, the morphology of the nanoparticles is a key factor for the further application of these thin films in gas sensing. Employing an easy methodology which required simple apparatus, and by using reaction time modulation only, it was possible to prepare homogeneous thin films with a tunable electrical response.

In accordance with strict requirements of portability, cheapness, and modularity, an innovative assistive device for hand disabilities has been developed and validated. This robotic orthosis is designed to be a low-cost, portable hand exoskeleton to assist people with physical disabilities in their everyday lives. Referring to hand opening disabilities, the authors have developed a methodology which, by starting from the geometrical characteristics of the patient's hand, defines the novel kinematic mechanism that better fits to the finger trajectories. The authors have validated the proposed novel mechanism by carrying out a Hand Exoskeleton System (HES) prototype, based on a single-phalanx mechanism, cable driven. The testing phase of the real prototype with a patient is currently on going.

We investigate the structure of the outer automorphism group of the Cuntz algebra and the closely related problem of conjugacy of maximal abelian subalgebras in . In particular, we exhibit an uncountable family of maximal abelian subalgebras, conjugate to the standard maximal abelian subalgebra via Bogolubov automorphisms, that are not inner conjugate to .

We consider a twisted action of a discrete group G on a unital C*-algebra A and give conditions ensuring that there is a bijective correspondence between the maximal invariant ideals of A and the maximal ideals in the associated reduced C*-crossed product.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV)- and hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related chronic infections represent a major health problem worldwide. Although the efficacy of HBV and HCV treatment has improved, several important problems remain. Current recommended antiviral treatments are associated with considerable expense, adverse effects and poor efficacy in some patients. Thus, several alternative approaches have been attempted. To review the clinical experiences investigating the use of lipid- and water-soluble vitamins in the treatment of HBV- and HCV-related chronic infections, PubMed, the Cochrane Library, MEDLINE and EMBASE were searched for clinical studies on the use of vitamins in the treatment of HBV- and HCV-related hepatitis, alone or in combination with other antiviral options. Different randomised clinical trials and small case series have evaluated the potential virological and/or biochemical effects of several vitamins. The heterogeneous study designs and populations, the small number of patients enrolled, the weakness of endpoints and the different treatment schedules and follow-up periods make the results largely inconclusive. Only well-designed randomised controlled trials with well-selected endpoints will ascertain whether vitamins have any role in chronic viral hepatitis. Until such time, the use of vitamins cannot be recommended as a therapy for patients with chronic hepatitis B or C.

The automorphisms of the canonical core UHF subalgebra ℱn of the Cuntz algebra 𝒪n do not necessarily extend to automorphisms of 𝒪n. Simple examples are discussed within the family of infinite tensor products of (inner) automorphisms of the matrix algebras Mn. In that case, necessary and sufficient conditions for the extension property are presented. Also addressed is the problem of extending to 𝒪n the automorphisms of the diagonal 𝒟n, which is a regular maximal abelian subalgebra with Cantor spectrum. In particular, it is shown that there exist product-type automorphisms of 𝒟n that do not extend to (possibly proper) endomorphisms of 𝒪n.

We completely determine the localized automorphisms of the Cuntz algebras corresponding to permutation matrices in Mn ⊗ Mn for n = 3 and n = 4. This result is obtained through a combination of general combinatorial techniques and large scale computer calculations. Our analysis proceeds according to the general scheme proposed in a previous paper, where we analysed in detail the case of using labelled rooted trees. We also discuss those proper endomorphisms of these Cuntz algebras which restrict to automorphisms of their respective diagonals. In the case of we compute the number of automorphisms of the diagonal induced by permutation matrices in M3 ⊗ M3 ⊗ M3.

We introduce and study several notions of amenability for unitary corepresentations and $*$-representations of algebraic quantum groups, which may be used to characterize amenability and co-amenability for such quantum groups. As a background for this study, we investigate the associated tensor ${{C}^{*}}$-categories.

Given a unitary representation u of the locally compact group G on the Hilbert space H, we investigate the notion of infinite tensor power of u. Then we apply the results to study covariance of the associated canonical action of G on the generalized Cuntz algebra $\mathcal{O}_H$ in the GNS representation of (the gauge-invariant extension of) some pure quasi-free state. We examine in detail the case of a measure-preserving action of G on a measure space X. In this case, covariance is (almost) equivalent to the existence of a G-invariant state on $L^\infty(X)$.

Given a coaction $\alpha$ of a Hopf ${\rm C}^*$-algebra $A$ on a ${\rm C}^*$-algebra $B$ with an $\alpha$-invariant ${\rm C}^*$-subalgebra $C$, and a conditional expectation $E:B \rightarrow C$ commuting with $\alpha$, it is shown that if $(\pi, u)$ is a covariant representation of the system ($C, A, \alpha\mid_C$), then there is an associated covariant representation ($\tilde{\pi}, \tilde{u}$) of the system ($B, A, \alpha$), where $\tilde{\pi}$ is the representation induced from $\pi$ up to $B$ via $E$, and $\tilde{u}$ is a unitary corepresentation of $A$ naturally associated with $u$. Some applications are also discussed, including a lifting of ergodic coactions to von Neumann algebras, and a characterization of the amenability of multiplicative unitary operators via infinite tensor product covariant representations.