Research Profile

Peter O'Brien

Biography

Dr. Peter O’Brien obtained his PhD in Physics from University College Cork in 1999. He has a Masters in Electronic Engineering and Degree in Physics from Trinity College Dublin. He was a postdoctoral scholar at the California Institute of Technology and research scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena (Micro Devices Laboratory) where he worked on the development of millimetre wave devices for remote sensing applications. Dr O’Brien co-founded one (Biosensia) and founded a second company (Epi-Light). His second company, Epi-Light limited, developed speciality photonic systems for medical device and pharmaceutical applications. He successfully sold the company in 2009 and returned to the Tyndall National Institute to establish a research activity in advanced photonic packaging. Dr O’Brien is now head of the Photonics Packaging Group and is involved in a wide range of both academic and industry research projects, across the telecoms and medical device sectors. Dr. O’Brien is also deputy director of the Science Foundation Ireland, Irish Photonic Integration Centre (www.ipic.ie). Dr O'Brien is an Adjunct Professor at the College of Optical Science, University of Arizona, Tucson.

  • Photonic device integration and packaging research for telecom, medical device and sensing applications

  • Strong focus on InP and Silicon photonic technologies

  • Leads large and highly experienced research team (research staff and PhD Students)

  • Design capabilities in optical, thermal, mechanical and electrical for photonic integration and packaging

  • State-of-the-art photonics integration and packaging laboratories

  • Development of fibre coupling, micro optical systems and flipchip integration processes

  • International research collaboration in Europe, US and Asia with academic and industrial partners

  • Research collaborations with leading institutes (eg. UC Berkeley, Caltech, University of Arizona, University of Columbia, IMEC, Fraunhofer Institute, VTT, CNRS-LETI)

  • Research collaborations with leading telecoms and medical device companies (eg. Stryker, Medtronic, Lake Region, ST Microelectronics)

  • Advanced photonic packaging and integration capabilities are now made available through Europractice (Europe) and MOSIS (US)

Regular invited speaker at international conferences and involved in conference organising committees

Research Grants

 ProjectFunding
Body
Start DateEnd DateAward
Integrated silicon photonic biosensor systems.Science Foundation of Ireland01-SEP-1431-AUG-16€174,191.00
I-PIC Irish Photonics Integration Research Centre.Industry01-JUL-1331-DEC-16€65,414.00
Solder Ink-Jet Dispenser.Science Foundation of Ireland01-JAN-1331-DEC-14€263,244.00
Access CenTer for PHotonics innovAtion Solutions and Technology support.European Union01-NOV-1331-OCT-17€324,424.00
Compact Fibre Coupled High Power UV Light Source.Enterprise Irl01-JUN-1301-JUN-14€108,480.00
SFI 12/RC/2276 IPIC POB TP4 SFIScience Foundation of Ireland01-SEP-1331-DEC-16€18,300.00
I-PIC Irish Photonic Integration Research Centre.Science Foundation of Ireland20-MAY-1331-DEC-16€1,053,221.00
Laser Welding System.Science Foundation of Ireland01-JAN-1331-DEC-13€347,364.00
I-PIC Irish Photonics Integration Research Centre.Industry01-OCT-1330-SEP-15€40,000.00
Advanced Fibre-Waveguide Packaging.Science Foundation of Ireland01-JAN-1331-DEC-15€212,445.00
Eblana 12/RC/2276 IPIC POB TP4Industry01-SEP-1331-AUG-15€5,000.00
I-PIC Irish Photonics Integrated Research Centre.Science Foundation of Ireland01-JUL-1331-DEC-16€151,253.00
Compact Fibre Coupled High Power UV Light Source.Industry/EI Projects01-JUN-1331-OCT-14€27,814.00
I-PIC Irish Photonics Integration Research Centre.Science Foundation of Ireland01-OCT-1331-OCT-15€85,400.00
Tyndall Photonics Packaging Commercial Entity.Miscellaneous01-JAN-1331-JAN-18€213,060.00
Technology Centre Collaborative Project.Enterprise Irl01-NOV-1230-MAY-14€82,246.00
Advanced Multicolour Fluorescence Detection Package.Enterprise Irl01-APR-1201-JUL-13€99,134.00
Photonaic Libraries and Technology for Manufacturing.European Union01-OCT-1231-MAR-17€593,486.00
Advanced Multicolour Fluorescence Detection Package.Industry/EI Projects01-APR-1201-JUL-13€19,064.00
FDMA Access By Using Low-cost Optical Network Units in Sillicon Photonics.European Union01-OCT-1230-JUN-16€312,782.00
Tyndall Block C Optical Interconnect LabTYNDALL01-APR-1131-DEC-17€154,811.00
Epixfab services specifically targeting (SME) industrial take-up of advanced silicon photonics.European Union01-OCT-1131-DEC-14€132,945.00
Feasibility Study Grants within Innovation PartnershipsEnterprise Irl01-JUL-0930-JUN-12€4,560.00
Travel SupportEnterprise Irl01-OCT-0901-APR-10€900.00
Wide Spectrum LED (WiSeLED)Enterprise Irl01-OCT-0930-OCT-11€109,110.00

Publications

Book Chapters

 YearPublication
(2016)'Packaging of Silicon Photonic Devices'
Peter O’Brien , Lee Carrol, Cormac Eason, Jun Su Lee (2016) 'Packaging of Silicon Photonic Devices' In: Silicon Photonics III. Berlin Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag. [Details]

Peer Reviewed Journals

 YearPublication
(2016)'Silicon Photonic IC Transmitter and Flip-Chipped CMOS IC Driver targeting implementation in FDMA-PON'
Sylvie Menezo, Enrico Temporiti ; Junsu Lee ; Olivier Dubray ; Maryse Fournier ; Stéphane Bernabé ; Daniele Baldi ; Benjamin Blampey ; Gabriele Minoia ; Matteo Repossi ; André Myko ; Sonia Messaoudène ; Lee Carroll ; Silvio Abrate ; Roberto Gaudino ; Peter O'Brien ; Benoit Charbonnier (2016) 'Silicon Photonic IC Transmitter and Flip-Chipped CMOS IC Driver targeting implementation in FDMA-PON'. IEEE Photonics Technology Letters, [Details]
(2016)'Roadmap of Silicon Photonics'
David Thomson, Aaron Zilkie, John E Bowers, Tin Komljenovic, Graham T Reed, Laurent Vivien, Delphine Marris-Morini, Eric Cassan, Léopold Virot, Jean-Marc Fédéli, Jean-Michel Hartmann, Jens H Schmid, Dan-Xia Xu, Frédéric Boeuf, Peter O'Brien, Goran Z Mashanovich and M Nedeljkovic (2016) 'Roadmap of Silicon Photonics'. Journal of Optics, [Details]
(2016)'Meeting the Electrical, Optical, and Thermal Design Challenges of Photonic-Packaging'
Jun Su Lee, Lee Carroll ; Carmelo Scarcella ; Nicola Pavarelli ; Sylvie Menezo ; Stéphane Bernabé ; Enrico Temporiti ; Peter O'Brien (2016) 'Meeting the Electrical, Optical, and Thermal Design Challenges of Photonic-Packaging'. IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics, [Details]
(2015)'Thermally Controllable Silicon Photonic Crystal Nanobeam Cavity without Surface Cladding for Sensing Applications'
Fegadolli, WS;Pavarelli, N;O'Brien, P;Njoroge, S;Almeida, VR;Scherer, A (2015) 'Thermally Controllable Silicon Photonic Crystal Nanobeam Cavity without Surface Cladding for Sensing Applications'. Acs Photonics, 2 :470-474 [DOI] [Details]
(2015)'A sensitive optical micro-machined ultrasound sensor (OMUS) based on a silicon photonic ring resonator on an acoustical membrane'
Leinders, SM;Westerveld, WJ;Pozo, J;van Neer, PLMJ;Snyder, B;O'Brien, P;Urbach, HP;de Jong, N;Verweij, MD (2015) 'A sensitive optical micro-machined ultrasound sensor (OMUS) based on a silicon photonic ring resonator on an acoustical membrane'. Scientific Reports, 5 [DOI] [Details]
(2015)'Hybrid III–V/Silicon SOA in Optical Network Based on Advanced Modulation Formats'
Peter Kaspar, Guilhem de Valicourt, Romain Brenot, Miquel A. Mestre, Philippe Jennevé, Alain Accard, Dalila Make, François Lelarge, Guang-Hua Duan, Nicola Pavarelli, Marc Rensing, Cormac Eason, Peter O’Brien, Ségolène Olivier, Stéphane Malhouitre, Christophe Kopp, Chirstophe Jany, and Sylvie Menezo (2015) 'Hybrid III–V/Silicon SOA in Optical Network Based on Advanced Modulation Formats'. IEEE Photonics Technology Letters, [Details]
(2004)'Sub-picomole colorimetric single nucleotide polymorphism discrimination using oligonucleotide-nanoparticle conjugates'
Murphy, D,O'Brien, P,Redmond, G (2004) 'Sub-picomole colorimetric single nucleotide polymorphism discrimination using oligonucleotide-nanoparticle conjugates'. Analyst, 129 :970-974 [DOI] [Details]
(2009)'Optimal Laser Welding Assembly Sequences For Butterfly Laser Module Packages'
Song, JH, O'Brien, P, Peters, FH; (2009) 'Optimal Laser Welding Assembly Sequences For Butterfly Laser Module Packages'. Optics Express, 17 (19):16406-16414 [Details]
(2013)'Hybrid Integration of the Wavelength-Tunable Laser With a Silicon Photonic Integrated Circuit'
Snyder, B,Corbett, B,O'Brien, P (2013) 'Hybrid Integration of the Wavelength-Tunable Laser With a Silicon Photonic Integrated Circuit'. Journal of Lightwave Technology, 31 :3934-3942 [DOI] [Details]
(2013)'A 10 Gb/s Linear Burst-Mode Receiver in 0.25 mu m SiGe: C BiCMOS'
Ossieur, P,Quadir, NA,Porto, S,Antony, C,Han, W,Rensing, M,O'Brien, P,Townsend, PD (2013) 'A 10 Gb/s Linear Burst-Mode Receiver in 0.25 mu m SiGe: C BiCMOS'. IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits, 48 :381-390 [DOI] [Details]
(2002)'Development of a microfluidic device for fluorescence activated cell sorting'
Kruger, J,Singh, K,O'Neill, A,Jackson, C,Morrison, A,O'Brien, P (2002) 'Development of a microfluidic device for fluorescence activated cell sorting'. Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering, 12 :486-494 [DOI] [Details]
(2013)'Packaging Process for Grating-Coupled Silicon Photonic Waveguides Using Angle-Polished Fibers'
Snyder, B,O'Brien, P (2013) 'Packaging Process for Grating-Coupled Silicon Photonic Waveguides Using Angle-Polished Fibers'. Ieee Transactions On Components Packaging And Manufacturing Technology, 3 :954-959 [DOI] [Details]
(2012)'Investigation of the Packaging-Induced RF Attenuations and Resonances in a Broadband Optoelectronic Modulator Module'
Han, W,Rensing, M,Wang, X,Yang, H,Peters, FH,O'Brien, P (2012) 'Investigation of the Packaging-Induced RF Attenuations and Resonances in a Broadband Optoelectronic Modulator Module'. Journal of Lightwave Technology, 30 :2610-2617 [DOI] [Details]
(2011)'A 10G linear burst-mode receiver supporting electronic dispersion compensation for extended-reach optical links'
Ossieur, P,Quadir, NA,Porto, S,Rensing, M,Antony, C,Han, W,O'Brien, P,Chang, Y,Townsend, PD (2011) 'A 10G linear burst-mode receiver supporting electronic dispersion compensation for extended-reach optical links'. Optics Express, 19 :604-610 [Details]
(2011)'Optimization of Microwave Packaging Structure for Directly Modulated Laser Modules Using Three-Dimensional Electromagnetic Model'
Han, W,Rensing, M,O'Brien, P,Peters, FH (2011) 'Optimization of Microwave Packaging Structure for Directly Modulated Laser Modules Using Three-Dimensional Electromagnetic Model'. Journal Of Electronic Packaging, 133 [DOI] [Details]
(1998)'Improved near- and far-field distributions in broad area semiconductor lasers with enhanced current spreading'
O’Brien, P.A and Skovgaard, P and McInerney, J.G (1998) 'Improved near- and far-field distributions in broad area semiconductor lasers with enhanced current spreading'. Proceedings of Laser and Electro-Optics Society (IEEE-LEOS), Florida, USA, [Details]
(2013)'Analysis and Demonstration of a Photonic Integrated Mode Coupler with MDM and WDM Transmission over Few-Mode Fiber'
Chen, H and Sleiffer, V and Snyder, B and Kuschnerov, M and van Uden, R and Jung, Y and Okonkwo, C and Raz, O and O’Brien, P and de Waardt, H and others (2013) 'Analysis and Demonstration of a Photonic Integrated Mode Coupler with MDM and WDM Transmission over Few-Mode Fiber'. IEEE Photon. Tech. Letters, 25 (21) [Details]
(1998)'Broad area semiconductor lasers with improved near and far fields using enhanced current spreading'
O’Brien, P.A and Skovgaard, P.M.W and McInerney, J.G (1998) 'Broad area semiconductor lasers with improved near and far fields using enhanced current spreading'. Elec. Lett, 34 [Details]
(2002)'Focusing Properties of High Brightness Gain Tailored Broad-Area Semiconductor Lasers'
O’Callaghan, J.R and Houlihan, J and Voignier, V and Huyet, G and McInerney, J.G and Corbett and B and O’Brien, P.A (2002) 'Focusing Properties of High Brightness Gain Tailored Broad-Area Semiconductor Lasers'. IEEE Photonics Technology Letters, 14 (1) [Details]
(2011)'Directly Modulated Laser Diode Module Exceeding 10 Gb/s Transmission'
Song, J and Rensing, M and Daunt, C and O'Brien, P.A and Peters, F (2011) 'Directly Modulated Laser Diode Module Exceeding 10 Gb/s Transmission'. IEEE Trans on Comps, Packaging and Manufacturing Tech, 1 (6) [Details]
(2000)'Modification of internal temperature distribution in broad area semiconductor lasers and the effect on near- and far-field distributions'
O'Neill, E and O'Brien, P.A and Houlihan, J:McInerney, J (2000) 'Modification of internal temperature distribution in broad area semiconductor lasers and the effect on near- and far-field distributions'. Proceedings of Optoelectronics, 147 (31-35) [Details]
(2004)'Development and test of an integrated microsystem for HPLC separation and detection using refractive index measurements'
Brennan, D,O'Brien, P,O'Brien, J,Freeman, N,Swann, M (2004) 'Development and test of an integrated microsystem for HPLC separation and detection using refractive index measurements'. Sensors and Actuators B-Chemical, 103 :184-189 [DOI] [Details]
(2012)'Silicon Photonics for Next Generation FDM/FDMA PON'
Charbonnier, B,Menezo, S,O'Brien, P,Lebreton, A,Fedeli, JM,Ben Bakir, B (2012) 'Silicon Photonics for Next Generation FDM/FDMA PON'. Journal Of Optical Communications And Networking, 4 :29-37 [DOI] [Details]
(2013)'Demonstration of a Photonic Integrated Mode Coupler With MDM and WDM Transmission'
Chen, HS,Sleiffer, V,Snyder, B,Kuschnerov, M,van Uden, R,Jung, YM,Okonkwo, CM,Raz, O,O'Brien, P,de Waardt, H,Koonen, T (2013) 'Demonstration of a Photonic Integrated Mode Coupler With MDM and WDM Transmission'. IEEE Photonics Technology Letters, 25 :2039-2042 [DOI] [Details]
(1999)'The control of growth dynamics by the use of designed precursors for the MOCVD of electronic ceramics Part II'
Jones, A. C.,Leedham, T. J.,Wright, P. J.,Crosbie, M. J.,Williams, D. J.,Davies, H. O.,Fleeting, K. A.,O'Brien, P.,Pemble, M. E. (1999) 'The control of growth dynamics by the use of designed precursors for the MOCVD of electronic ceramics Part II'. Materials Science in Semiconductor Processing, 2 (22):165-171165   [Details]
(2002)'Ion chromatography on-chip (vol 924, pg 233, 2001)'
Murrihy, JP,Breadmore, MC,Tan, AM,McEnery, M,Alderman, J,O'Mathuna, C,O'Neill, AP,O'Brien, P,Avdalovic, N,Haddad, PR,Glennon, JD (2002) 'Ion chromatography on-chip (vol 924, pg 233, 2001)'. Journal of chromatography. A, 943 :311-311 [Details]
(2001)'On-chip definition of picolitre sample injection plugs for miniaturised liquid chromatography'
O'Neill, AP,O'Brien, P,Alderman, J,Hoffman, D,McEnery, M,Murrihy, J,Glennon, JD (2001) 'On-chip definition of picolitre sample injection plugs for miniaturised liquid chromatography'. Journal of chromatography. A, 924 :259-263 [Details]
(1998)'Imaging of curved facet unstable resonator semiconductor lasers operating at 980 nm'
O'Brien, P,Moorhouse, C,Braddell, J,McInerney, J; (1998) 'Imaging of curved facet unstable resonator semiconductor lasers operating at 980 nm'. Electronic Letters, 34 :561-562 [Details]
(1998)'Internal temperature distribution measurements in high power semiconductor lasers'
O'Brien, P,O'Callaghan, J,McInerney, J; (1998) 'Internal temperature distribution measurements in high power semiconductor lasers'. Electronic Letters, 34 :1399-1401 [Details]
(1998)'Inhomogeneous pumping and increased filamentation threshold of semiconductor lasers by contact profiling'
Skovgaard, PMW,O'Brien, P,McInerney, JG; (1998) 'Inhomogeneous pumping and increased filamentation threshold of semiconductor lasers by contact profiling'. Electronic Letters, 34 :1950-1951 [Details]
(1999)'A study of impurities in some CdS/CdTe photovoltaic cells prepared by wet-chemical methods using secondary ion mass spectrometry and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy'
Boyle, DS,Hearne, S,Johnson, DR,O'Brien, P; (1999) 'A study of impurities in some CdS/CdTe photovoltaic cells prepared by wet-chemical methods using secondary ion mass spectrometry and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy'. Journal of Materials Chemistry, 9 :2879-2884 [Details]
(2013)'Butterfly packaged high-speed and low leakage InGaAs quantum well photodiode for 2000nm wavelength systems'
Yang, H,Ye, N,Phelan, R,O'Carroll, J,Kelly, B,Han, W,Wang, X,Nudds, N,MacSuibhne, N,Gunning, F,O'Brien, P,Peters, FH,Corbett, B (2013) 'Butterfly packaged high-speed and low leakage InGaAs quantum well photodiode for 2000nm wavelength systems'. Electronics Letters, 49 :281-282 [DOI] [Details]

Conference Publications

 YearPublication
(2016)SPIE Photonics West Proceedings
M. J. Leahy ; C. Wilson ; J. Hogan ; Peter O’Brien ; R. Dsouza ; K. Neuhaus ; D. Bogue ; H. Subhash ; Colm O’Riordan ; Paul M. McNamara (2016) The how and why of a $10 optical coherence tomography system SPIE Photonics West Proceedings [Details]
(2015)2015 IEEE INTERNATIONAL SOLID-STATE CIRCUITS CONFERENCE DIGEST OF TECHNICAL PAPERS (ISSCC)
Rakowski, M;Pantouvaki, M;De Heyn, P;Verheyen, P;Ingels, M;Chen, HT;De Coster, J;Lepage, G;Snyder, B;De Meyer, K;Steyaert, M;Pavarelli, N;Lee, JS;O'Brien, P;Absil, P;Van Campenhout, J (2015) A 4x20Gb/s WDM Ring-Based Hybrid CMOS Silicon Photonics Transceiver 2015 IEEE INTERNATIONAL SOLID-STATE CIRCUITS CONFERENCE DIGEST OF TECHNICAL PAPERS (ISSCC) [Details]
(2015)2015 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS CONFERENCE AND EXHIBITION (OFC)
Brunina, D;Porto, S;Jain, A;Lai, CP;Antony, C;Pavarelli, N;Rensing, M;Talli, G;Ossieur, P;O'Brien, P;Townsend, PD (2015) Analysis of Forward Error Correction in the Upstream Channel of 10Gb/s Optically Amplified TDM-PONs 2015 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS CONFERENCE AND EXHIBITION (OFC) [Details]
(2015)2015 PHOTONICS CONFERENCE (IPC)
Ye, N;Yang, H;Gleeson, M;Pavarelli, N;Zhang, HY;O'Callaghan, J;Han, W;Nudds, N;Collins, S;Gocalinska, A;Pelucchi, E;O'Brien, P;Gunning, FCG;Peters, FH;Corbett, B (2015) AlInGaAs Surface Normal Photodiode for 2 mu m Optical Communication Systems 2015 PHOTONICS CONFERENCE (IPC) [Details]
(2013)ECOC
Chen, H and van Uden, R and Okonkwo, C and Snyder, B and Raz, O and O’Brien, P.A and van den Boom, H and de Waardt, H and . Koonen, T (2013) Employing an Integrated Mode Multiplexer on Silicon-on-Insulator for Few-mode Fiber Transmission ECOC [Details]
(2010)OWU3, OFC2010, San Diego
Shi, K and Smyth, F and Reid, D and Roycroft, B and Corbett, B and Song, J.H and O’Brien, P.A. and Peters, F and Barry, L.P (2010) Characterization of a Novel Three-Section Tunable Slotted Fabry-Perot Laser OWU3, OFC2010, San Diego [Details]
(2013)OECC
Chen, H and Sleiffer, V and Snyder, B and Kuschnerov, M and van Uden, R and Jung, Y and Okonkwo, C and Raz, O and O’Brien, P.A and de Waardt H and others (2013) Demonstration of a Photonic Integrated Mode Coupler with 3.072Tb/s MDM and WDM transmission over Few-Mode Fiber OECC [Details]
(2014)Photonics Europe, Brussels
O'Brien, P.A (2014) Packaging challenges for integrated photonic circuits Photonics Europe, Brussels [Details]
(2001)NanoTech2001, Montreux, Switzerland
Kr\"uger, J and Porta, P and Singh, K and Brennan, D and O’Neill, A and O’Brien, P.A (2001) Development of a Microfluidic Device for Fluorescent Induced Cell Sorting NanoTech2001, Montreux, Switzerland [Details]

Professional Activities

Committees

 CommitteeFunctionFrom / To
Actphast Project Commitee Dr O’Brien is a member of the Actphast management committee and attends meetings in Brussels every two months to review industry proposals.2013 /

Employment

 EmployerPositionFrom / To
Tyndall National Institute Head of Photonics Packaging Group01-JAN-08 /
NMRC Microfluidics and Biophotonics Group Leader01-JAN-00 / 01-JAN-03
General Semiconductor Limited Planar Silicon Process Manager01-JAN-92 / 01-JAN-96
BioSensia Limited CTO and Co-founder01-JAN-03 / 01-JAN-05
Micro Devices Laboratory Caltech Postdoctoral Scholar01-JAN-99 / 01-JAN-00
Epi-Light Limited CEO and Founder01-JAN-05 / 01-JAN-08

Education

 YearInstitutionQualificationSubject
1992National University Ireland, Cork MScEngineering Science
1990Trinity College, Dublin B.A. (Mod.)Physics
1999National University Ireland, Cork PhDPhysics

Research Information

External Collaborators

 NameOrganisation / InstituteCountry
Prof. Roel Baets University of GentBELGIUM
Jerry O'Brien Radissens DiagnosticsIRELAND
Pim Kat Fiber TechnobisHOLLAND
David Tallon Stryker MedicalIRELAND
Don Bogue Compact ImagingU.S.A.
Jim Somers Eblana PhotonicsIRELAND
Prof. Axel Shearer California Institute of TechnologyU.S.A.
Prof. Laura Marcu University of California DavisU.S.A.
Dr. Philip Absil IMECBELGIUM
Dr. Jean-Marc Fedeli CEA-LETIFRANCE
Dr. Gideon Yosef Kaiam CoporationIRELAND
Dr. Amit Khanna EuropracticeBELGIUM
Dr. Antonello Fincato ST MicroelectronicsITALY
Dr. Erik Chmelar Stryker MedicalU.S.A.
Dr John Hayes Lake Regional MedicalIRELAND
Carlos Lee European Photonic Industry ConsortiumBELGIUM

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University College Cork

Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh

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