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• The ZGO films were annealed in oxygen at 200–600 °C to investigate the factors affecting the film quality. • The R, D * and EQE of the optimized device are 61.8 A/W, 1.2 × 1012 Jones, and 255.9 %, respectively. • The annealed ZGO PD achieves a 309-fold improvement in responsivity compared to the unannealed device. Doped gallium oxide-based thin films are a class of wide-band semiconductor materials with the advantages of chemically stable, tunable bandgap, and offer the benefit of ultraviolet response. In order to obtain photodetectors (PDs) with superior response, higher demands are placed on the quality of growth and processing of doped films. In this work, Zn-doped ternary metal oxide ZnGaO (ZGO) thin films were grown using the atomic layer deposition technique and annealed at different temperatures under an oxygen atmosphere. The results showed that the high-quality ZGO films with good uniformity, high visible light transmittance, low roughness, and significant reduction of oxygen vacancies were obtained after annealing. Subsequently, metal-semiconductor-metal PDs were prepared based on the studied ZGO films. The responsivity (R), detectivity (D *), and external quantum efficiency (EQE) of the optimized device are 61.8 A W–1, 1.2 × 1012 Jones, and 255.9 %, respectively. Compared to the unannealed device, the annealed ZGO PD achieves a maximum 309-fold increase in responsivity. This thermal engineering work may provide a strong reference for the development of low-cost, large-area, high-performance ultraviolet detection. And it also broadens the application of ternary metal oxides in optoelectronics. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Within the context of an open innovation business environment, the frequent interaction and coordination activities among heterogeneous partners have a significant impact on enterprises' business model. Nevertheless, fewer empirical research has been made to explore how to match external partners and update organizational dynamic capabilities at an ecosystem level. Therefore, this paper attempts not only to investigate the direct impact of partner match on different business model innovation (BMI) themes (efficiency-centered BMI and novelty-centered BMI) but only to shed light on the pivotal mediating role of interfirm dynamic capabilities. Design/methodology/approach: This paper utilized the methodology of Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to investigate the impact of diverse partner selection criteria and interfirm dynamic capabilities on two distinctive themes of BMI. More than 20 industry clusters with multiple industries were selected as representatives of the creative ecosystem, predominantly from the Yangtze River Delta region. Valid data were collected from 254 managers by both online questionnaires and offline interviews. Findings: The findings of the study show that different partner match criteria have distinct direct impacts on BMI themes. Partner complementary and partner synergy, deriving from the "task-related criteria", are significantly correlated with both EBMI and NBMI. Conversely, partner compatibility, deriving from "Partnering-related Criteria", shows a positive correlation with EBMI but not NBMI. Furthermore, compare the indirect effect on EBMI, the paper' results demonstrate interfirm dynamic capabilities as mediator can more maximize external benefits to promote NBMI. Practical implications: The study findings effectively help enterprises implement different BMI themes. From a management perspective, whether pursuing EBMI or NBMI, enterprises should consciously seek partners who can provide complementary support or share mutual goals across diverse industries. This strategic approach can significantly enhance the opportunities for sustainable and innovative business development. Furthermore, to successfully accomplish NBMI, enterprises must cultivate interfirm dynamic capabilities encompassing a comprehensive range of cross-organizational innovation capacities, such as bolstering organizational learning capability, establishing interactive network platforms to enhance coordination capabilities and engaging in integrative activities to foster a collective mindset. Originality/value: This paper contributes to the match theory by introducing three critical matching criteria, enabling enterprises to discern partners based on diverse organizational characteristics. Additionally, this paper broadens the scope of the dynamic capability literature by adopting a network perspective to strengthen interaction and relationship mechanisms. The authors primarily elucidate the concept of interfirm dynamic capabilities as a formative higher-order model formed by three sub-capabilities (absorptive capacity, coordination capability and collective mind). Finally, this paper combines matching theory with dynamic capacity theory to the field of BMI, which adds depth and complexity to the existing ecosystem innovation research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The neural network-based method for modeling magnetic materials enables the estimation of hysteresis B-H loop and core loss across a wide operation range. Transformers are neural networks widely used in sequence-to-sequence tasks. The classical Transformer modeling method suffers from high per-layer complexity and long recurrent inference time when dealing with long sequences. While down-sampling methods can mitigate these issues, they often sacrifice modeling accuracy. In this study, we propose MAG-Vision, which employs a vision Transformer (ViT) as the backbone for magnetic material modeling. It can shorten waveform sequences with minimal loss of information. We trained the network using the open-source magnetic core loss dataset MagNet. Experimental results demonstrate that MAG-Vision performs well in estimating hysteresis B-H loop and magnetic core losses. The average relative error of magnetic core losses for most materials is less than 2%. Experiments are designed to compare MAG-Vision with different network structures to validate its advantages in accuracy, training speed, and inference time.

This study explores how governmental and regional investments in the digital economy foster the emergence of new industries and the region's sustainable competitiveness. In particular, we focus on the creation of the big data comprehensive pilot zone (BDCPZ) in China that serves as a proxy for digital economy advancement initiatives. Employing a quasi-experimental design and a panel dataset from 31 Chinese provinces (2009–2020), this study uses the difference-in-differences approach to evaluate the impact of BDCPZ on the region's competitiveness. Our findings show that enhanced digital economy advancement significantly boosts the creation of new industries, such as the creative industry. This study advances understanding by linking economic development and the business environment and conducting a heterogeneity analysis to identify the most influential characteristics for new industry creation. These characteristics are categories that fall under regional ecosystems—including talent mobility, innovation culture, and financial institutions—and act as mediators of this relationship, offering valuable insights for stakeholders to enhance regional sustainable competitiveness and innovation. Managerial relevance statement: This study offers valuable managerial insights for managers, policymakers, and industrial networks to apply in practice. By understanding the importance of regional talent mobility and strong innovation culture, managers in traditional engineering firms can experiment with novel strategies like rotational mobilizing programs to increase agility and diversify into creative sectors. Policymakers can support these efforts in three ways: by incentivizing digital economy advancements like automation, application of emerging technologies through tax breaks and grants; by establishing cross-sector innovation hubs where traditional industries collaborate with tech startups and creative enterprises; and by focusing on training and reskilling programs. Finally, industrial networks, i.e. consultancy networks drive strategy and collaboration, are encouraged to educate financial institutions on how to assess creative industry projects and facilitate talent mobility by linking traditional engineering firms with SMEs and startups to acquire valuable cross-sector experience, foster innovation, and contribute to the development of new industries.

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ABSTRACTLiver cancer, one of the most common malignant tumors, has seriously threatened people’s physical and mental health. The paper was conducted to investigate the functions of two different anesthesia methods on Tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), C-reactive protein (CRP) and T lymphocyte subsets in patients undergoing liver cancer resection, and to explore the liver function impact of patients undergoing liver cancer surgery. 80 liver cancer patients were split into propofol intravenous anesthesia group and sevoflurane inhalation anesthesia group. The patient’s operation-related indicators and changes in TNF-α, CRP and T lymphocyte subsets before anesthesia, after anesthesia, 1 day after anesthesia, and 3 days after anesthesia were calculated. The levels of TNF-α and CRP in the two groups after operation were clearly higher than those before anesthesia, but there was no obvious difference between the two groups. After operation, the TNF-α of the propofol intravenous anesthesia group was lower than the sevoflurane inhalation anesthesia group. The CD3+, CD4+ and CD4+/CD8+ levels in both groups recovered to the pre-anaesthesia level 3 days after the operation. The levels of ALT, AST, ALB and TBIL returned to normal at d4 in both propofol intravenous anesthesia and sevoflurane inhalation anesthesia groups. Compared with evoflurane inhalation anesthesia for patients with liver cancer, intravenous anesthesia with propofol can reduce the body’s inflammatory response to a certain extent, has weak inhibitory effect on T lymphocyte immune function, and a smaller effect on liver function.

To clarify the precipitation of silica hydrate from the real desilication solutions of aluminosilicate solid wastes by adding seeds and improve integrated waste utilization, the seeded precipitation was studied using synthesized sodium silicate solution containing different inorganic salt impurities. The results show that sodium chloride, sodium sulfate, sodium carbonate, or calcium chloride can change the siloxy group structure. The number of high-polymeric siloxy groups decreases with increasing sodium chloride or sodium sulfate concentration, which is detrimental to seeded precipitation. Calcium chloride favors the polymerization of silicate ions, and even the chain groups precipitate with the precipitation of high-polymeric sheet and cage-like siloxy groups. The introduced sodium cations in sodium carbonate render a more open network structure of high-polymeric siloxy groups, although the carbonate ions favor the polymerization of siloxy groups. No matter how the four impurities affect the siloxy group structure, the precipitates are always amorphous opal-A silica hydrate.

The economical removal of organics from sodium aluminate solutions has been required for decades. Based on security filtration using tricalcium aluminate hexahydrate (TCA) as a filter aid, a novel short process to eliminate impurity particles and remove organics simultaneously was presented. Ultrafine TCA samples with poor crystallization, high TCA content, high surface free energy, and large lattice distortion were prepared in the concentrated sodium aluminate solution. The zeta potential of the TCA binary mixture in alkaline solutions was linearly depended on the TCA content, suggesting the additivity of the zeta potential in the binary mixture. The variation in the electrical double layer of the TCA binary mixture was demonstrated in the alkaline solution. Furthermore, the ultrafine TCA exhibited a high adsorption capacity for organics with long alkyl chains and high relative-molecular-mass. The adsorption capacity of 69.69 mg/g organic carbon for sodium humate was achieved, whereas the digestion at a high temperature remarkably reduced the adsorption capacity of TCA.

In this work, we synthesize a series of linear-comb block copolymers, polystyrene-b-poly(polyethylene glycol methyl ether acrylate) (PS–PPEGMEA), and study the microphase separation mechanism by LiTFSI-doping. The increasing salt concentration promotes the microphase separation of PS–PPEGMEA and also deflects the phase transition boundaries to the lower PPEGMEA volume fraction. We reveal that the effective interaction parameter exhibits a linear to nonlinear dependence on increasing salt concentration and is eventually weakened by the formation of ion clusters at high salt concentration. We further quantify the conformational asymmetry of PS–PPEGMEA by theoretical analysis and point out that the limit of the order–order transition boundaries is defined by strong segregation theory. Therefore, electrostatic interaction and conformational asymmetry jointly determine the microphase separation of PS–PPEGMEA block copolymer electrolytes. This study provides a fundamental understanding of the phase behaviors of salt-doped linear-comb block copolymers and suggests experimental strategies to modulate their nanostructures, which could be very useful for developing novel solid polymer electrolytes.

Phosphorus is a promising candidate for high energy density lithium/sodium-ion batteries due to its high capacity. However, the dynamics of carrier shuttling in the alloyed phosphorus anode are quite complex due to the multiple phase transitions during the lithiation/sodiation process. Here, we identify Li(Na)P and Li(Na)3P as stable phases from both ex situ and in situ X-ray diffraction measurements of black phosphorus (BP). Our results regarding the dynamics of lithiation/sodiation indicate that the entire reaction could be limited by sluggish lithium/sodium ion migration in the stable phases, Li(Na)P and Li(Na)3P, supported by ab initiomolecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations. Additionally, Li3P has higher activation energies and correspondingly lower ion conductivity than LiP, making it the key role in the whole dynamics of lithium-ion transport during the lithiation process. In comparison, the dynamics of sodiation exhibit quite active behavior due to lower energy barriers for sodium-ion transport. However, the electrochemical performance of sodium-ion batteries suffers from a large charge transfer resistance at the electrode/electrolyte interface due to the generation of corrosive Na3P. Therefore, the construction of a stable solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) is crucial to improving the electrochemical performance of phosphorus anodes.

Objective: Low primary patency rate is a major problem of radio-cephalic arteriovenous fistula (RC-AVF) creation. Radial artery deviation and reimplantation (RADAR) is associated with low juxta-anastomotic stenosis rate. However, inflow artery stenosis is prominent with RADAR. To further reduce injury to veins and arteries during operation, a modified no-touch technique (MNTT) was used to create RC-AVF.Methods: We retrospectively reviewed our prospectively maintained database of patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD)s undergoing RC-AVF creation for hemodialysis using either the MNTT between January 2021 and January 2022 (MNTT group) or conventional surgical procedure ( end-to-side vein-to-artery anastomosis) between October 2016 and October 2017 (Control group). Patients who chose to undergo RC-AVF surgery underwent standardized preoperative mapping and postoperative fistula evaluations using duplex ultrasound. Additionally, 4D flow MRI data were used to visualize and quantify the hemodynamics of one RC-AVF by MNTT. Outcomes included primary patency, juxta-anastomotic stenosis, and maturation rates.Results: Forty patients underwent RC-AVFs by MNTT, compared to 60 patients in the control group. The MNTT group had a higher primary unassisted patency rate than the control group (p= 0.038). Juxta-anastomotic stenosis (all on the cephalic vein) occurred in 4 (10%) patients who underwent MNTT. RC-AVF maturation rates after 3 months were not different between both groups (maturation rate: 90% and 81.7% in the MNTT and control groups, respectively, p= 0.253). COX regression showed that both conventional AVF surgery (p= 0.031) and smaller cephalic vein diameter (p= 0.034) were associated with higher odds of RC-AVF failure. The AVF flow within the proximal vein remained helical during cardiac cycle. The distribution of wall shear stress (WSS) and oscillatory shear index (OSI) differed from that of conventional surgical AVF.Conclusion: RC-AVF by MNTT increases primary patency rate and decreases juxta-anastomotic stenosis rate. The improvement in hemodynamics may be one of the important reasons for the better patency rate of in the RC-AVF by MNTT group.

AbstractThis study presents the formulation and validation of a three-dimensional Flow Lattice Model (FLM) with application to the Hygro-Thermo-Chemical (HTC) model for analysis of moisture transport and heat transfer in cementitious materials. The FLM is a discrete transport model formulated in association with meso-mechanical models, such as the Lattice Discrete Particle Model. This enables the simulation of transport phenomena at the length scale at which the material exhibits intrinsic heterogeneity. The HTC theoretical formulation is based on mass and energy conservation laws, written using humidity and temperature as primary variables, and considering explicitly various chemical reactions, for example, cement hydration and silica fume reaction, as internal variables. In this work, the HTC formulation was extended to include the effect of temperature on the sorption isotherm. The FLM solutions were compared with those of a continuum finite element implementation of the HTC model and experimental data available from the literature; the overall agreement demonstrates the reliability of the proposed approach in reproducing phenomena such as cement hydration, self-desiccation and temperature-dependent moisture drying.

Graphical Abstract: The mechanism of leaching lithium and potassium from tailings was considered to involve the ion-substitution reaction. Sodium ion in the sodium bicarbonate solution substituted Li+of cookeite and K+of illite, respectively.

Surface modification of magnesium alloys was performed using a coating process to optimize their performance. Friction stir processing for preparing magnesium-based high-entropy alloy coatings effectively addressed issues such as oxidation, pores, cracks, and poor coating quality found in existing processes. In addition, it substantially enhanced the hardness and wear resistance of magnesium alloys. The micro-structure and elemental distribution for the cross-section and surface for the magnesium-based high-entropy alloy coating had been studied. The impact of magnesium-based high-entropy alloy upon hardness and wear resistance of the magnesium alloy had been analyzed, focusing on its favorable forming and binding characteristics. Finally, the heat conduction process during friction stir processing were discussed in detail. The theoretical basis for the preparation of magnesium-based high entropy coatings was improved.

Space-division multiplexing (SDM) has been widely studied to increase the per-fiber capacity/spectral efficiency (SE) and break the nonlinear Shannon limit of the single-mode fiber (SMF). In spite of the achieved dramatic progress, the high SE of reported SDM systems is realized generally at the cost of a large fiber cladding diameter or high-complexity multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) processing. In this paper, SDM transmission with a net spectral efficiency over 200 bit/s/Hz is experimentally demonstrated utilizing a low-complexity modular MIMO equalization with a dimension of 4×4 and a time-domain length of 15. A 14-km seven ring-core fiber (SRCF) is employed in the SDM systems, supporting 84 orbital angular momentum (OAM) mode channels (7 cores × 6 OAM modes × 2 polarizations) within a cladding diameter of 180 μm, each of which carries 40 wavelengths. With a 12-Gbaud 8-quadrature amplitude modulated (8QAM) signal carried in each data channel, a raw (net) SE of 241.92 (201.6) bit/s/Hz and capacity of 120.96 (100.8) Tbit/s can be achieved, where the bit-error rate (BER) of all channels is below the 20% soft-decision forward error correction (FEC) threshold of 2.4×10−2.

The hybrid multiplexing of the wavelength and mode has been introduced to provide higher capacity density for data centers. One promising approach for further increasing the channel capacity is to combine them with a few-mode multi-core fiber (FM-MCF). Fan-in/fan-out (FI/FO) devices are important connectors between MCF and few-mode fiber (FMF). Here, an integrated three-dimensional optical waveguide broadband FI/FO device was demonstrated to convert light from a one-dimensional FMF array into a two-dimensional array matched with the FM-MCF. The device was fabricated by femtosecond laser direct writing and achieved three modes (LP01, LP11, LP21) transmission with high efficiency and low-wavelength dependence by optimizing the refractive index difference and waveguide length. The insertion losses (ILs) of LP01, LP11, and LP21 modes within the 7-cores at four wavelengths were less than 1.8-dB, 2.6-dB, and 6.5-dB, respectively. Based on the 7-core FI/FO device and FM-MCF, a multi-core four-wavelength (1271, 1291, 1311, 1331-nm) $\times $ two-mode (LP01, LP11) hybrid multiplexing communication system without any amplifier was demonstrated experimentally. 10-Gbit/s on-off keying signals communication below the forward error correction limit of 3.8E-3 per channel was achieved successfully using the direct detection technique. The proposed FI/FO device has great potential for hybrid coarse wavelength division multiplexing and space division multiplexing communication transmission in data centers.

Objective: To investigate the risk factors for delayed postoperative bleeding after endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) in patients with gastric precancerous lesions and to construct a risk prediction model. Methods: This retrospective analysis included clinical data from patients with gastric precancerous lesions who underwent ESD at Wuhan University People's Hospital between November 2016 and June 2022. An XGBoost model was built to predict delayed bleeding after ESD using risk factors identified by univariable and multivariate logistic regression analysis. The model was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic curves (ROC), and SHapely Additive exPlanations (SHAP) analysis was used to interpret the model. Results: Seven factors were statistically associated with delayed postoperative bleeding in gastric precancerous lesions after ESD: age, low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, hypertension, lesion size ≥ 40 mm, operative time ≥ 120 min, female, and nonuse of hemoclips. A risk prediction model was established. In the training cohort, the model achieved an AUC of 0.97 (0.96–0.98), a sensitivity of 0.90, a specificity of 0.94, and an F1 score of 0.91. In the validation cohort, the AUC was 0.94(0.90–0.98), with a sensitivity of 0.85, a specificity of 0.89, and an F1 score of 0.85. In the test cohort, the AUC was 0.94 (0.89–0.99), the sensitivity was 0.80, the specificity was 0.92, and the F1 score was 0.84, indicating strong predictive capability. Conclusion: In this study, an XGBoost prediction model for assessing the risk of delayed postoperative bleeding after ESD in patients with gastric precancerous lesions was developed and validated. This model can be applied in clinical practice to effectively predict the risk of post-ESD bleeding for individual patients.

We propose a center-raised ring-core fiber (RCF), which can support 5-mode-group-multiplexed multiple-input and multiple-output free (MIMO-free) transmission. The center region in the index profile of the ring core is lifted from silica to enlarge the separation of lower-order mode groups (MGs) so that the RCF supports more weakly-coupled MGs. Moreover, the 5-MG RCF was fabricated, and the loss of each mode can maintain about 0.3 dB/km. The minimum effective index separation between the adjacent radial first-order MGs is 1.35 $\times\; 10^{-3}$. In addition, we also adopted the swept-wavelength interferometry (SWI) technique to evaluate the coupling coefficients between the radial first-order MGs in the RCF, which are all less than −30 dB/km. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that 5 MGs modulated by 32-Gbaud QPSK signals are multiplexed and transmitted in a 10-km RCF MIMO-free transmission system. To the best of our knowledge, it is the largest number of the multiplexed radial first-order MGs of the RCF at present. At the same time, we also verified the wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) performance of the fiber in the C-band. In the future, in order to further increase the transmission capacity of this fiber, 4 × 4 MIMO and dense WDM in C+L bands can be utilized. Therefore, we believe that this fiber can increase the number of weakly-coupled MGs to increase the single-fiber transmission capacity of mode division multiplexing (MDM).

Recently, sparse mode-division multiplexing (MDM) scheme has been proposed and experimentally verified to support long-haul MDM transmission without intermodal multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) processing, in which only multiple non-adjacent linearly-polarized (LP) modes in weakly-coupled few-mode fibers (FMFs) are utilized as active channels to achieve ultralow modal crosstalk. However, suffering from inevitable coupling among active modes and idle modes, signals may be exposed to distributed impairment in form of inter-mode interference (IMI). In this article, the generation mechanism of IMI effect is firstly theoretically analyzed. Then numerical simulations are carried out to investigate the impact of IMI accompanied with distributed modal crosstalk (DMC) in sparse-MDM systems. Experimental setup for measuring IMI intensities of 3 non-degenerate LP modes (LP01, LP02 and LP03) in a weakly-coupled 10-LP-mode fiber is established and the measurement results agree well with the theoretical square-law relationship. Finally, the optical signal-to-noise ratio (OSNR) penalty related to IMI effect is experimentally investigated for 60 km 3-mode FMF transmission, the experimental results of which show that IMI effect may be a major impairment of sparse-MDM systems. This work is beneficial to practical applications of long-haul MDM techniques.

AbstractThe current school uniform customization mode cannot satisfy the requirements of customers regarding the elements such as design and efficiency, though the demand for the customization of the school uniform industry in China is gradually expanding. In this study, a school uniform customization platform was established based on virtual display technology to improve the efficiency and experience of school uniform customization. This study was applied with four steps. In the first part, interviews on school uniform customization were conducted following grounded theory to obtain information on the specific demand for design, process, and supply. In the second and third parts, a uniform design database with a 3D virtual effect and a uniform customization platform with three subsystems were built under the consideration of the requirements identified. This platform allowed users to change the style, color, fabric, details, and other elements of school uniforms in the system, generate 3D virtual renderings of school uniforms, and contact suppliers in the system. Afterward, the customized platform was tested and scored through a real-use situation in the fourth part. The results demonstrated that the average score was more than 3 out of 5 points, indicating that the customized design platform can meet the needs of users.

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The escalating crosstalk and interference in wireless services necessitate effective techniques like single-channel blind source separation (SCBSS). Deep Learning (DL) has shown promise in enhancing spectrum efficiency in wireless communications. Existing DL-SCBSS methods primarily focus on speech separation and speech enhancement, limiting their direct application to communication signals due to waveform and time scale differences. To address these challenges, we introduce a complex time-domain dilated convolutional recurrent network (CTDCRN), which can directly operate in-phase and quadrature components (I/Q) of complex signals. Simulation results showcase CTDCRN’s superiority over traditional methods and real-valued networks in Pearson’s correlation coefficient and bit error rate (BER).

Synthetic metallic nano-chaperones possessing biomolecular chaperone functions hold great promise as candidates for modulating protein conformation. Despite extensive research, the involvement and mechanisms of interfacial metal atoms in metallic nano-chaperones on modulating protein conformation remain elusive, significantly hindering the development of high-performance metallic nano-chaperones. In this study, interfacial atomically precise metal nanoclusters (Au25, Au24Ag1, Au24Cd1, Au24Cu1) modified with the same ligand 3-Mercaptopropionic acid (MPA) were prepared as a model to systematically investigate their modulation effects on Aβ40fibrillation. All-atom molecular dynamics simulation suggested that the interfacial doped metal atoms (Cu, Cd and Ag) can influence the folding of Aβ40in contact with them through weak interactions including vander-Waals forces and electrostatic interactions. Isothermal titration calorimetry results further revealed that the interaction of Au24Cu1to Aβ40was 1.76, 2.09, 16.67 times larger than those of Au24Cd1, Au24Ag1and Au25, respectively. Consequently, these differential interactions translated into different modulating effects of metallic nano-chaperones on Aβ folding and even subsequent fibrillation, with the order of effectiveness being Au24Cu1> Au24Cd1> Au24Ag1> Au25. This work provides microscopic molecular insights into the identity of interfacial metal atoms on metallic nanoclusters and offers guidelines for customizing metallic nano-chaperones by manipulating their interfacial metal atoms.

The level of attention that university students can pay to their study is one of the important factors influencing their academic achievements, especially during the COVID-19 period, with online courses. The aim of this study is to find out the factors that influence university students' attention level. A questionnaire about students' level of attention during online courses was completed by English-majored students of different professional directions in a Chinese university (n = 611). Comparative tests show that gender difference in the attention level is significant in that female students take COVID-19 more seriously than male students as they cheat less and work harder; female students have a greater level of attention than male students do. Test results also show that grade difference is statistically significant in that freshmen have the greatest level of attention, and junior students are easier to adapt to online education and to use online platform.

ABSTRACT The pronounced decrease of Effective Thermal Conductivity (ETC) due to the cracking behavior of concrete changes the temperature profile in concrete structures, indirectly inducing the redistribution of thermal stresses. [...]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to present a bibliometric analysis and systematic literature review of industry convergence and value innovation to understand the current research status; second, to provide a coherent theoretical research framework for future research. Design/methodology/approach: This study adopts a two-step analysis approach by combining bibliometric analysis and systematic literature review to explore the research topic of industry convergence and value innovation. Besides, two bibliometric tools, HistCite and VOSviewer, were applied to this study. Findings: This study found that Stefanie Bröring and Fredrik Hacklin are the top two most influential authors among all authors in the sample publications. Technological Forecasting and Social Change is one of the top-ranking journal that often publishes this topic of articles. Germany and the University of Munster are the most influential country and institutions, respectively. Besides, five core research themes were identified based on keywords co-occurrence map, theoretical lenses, factors promoting industry convergence, indicators of industry convergence, the impact of industry convergence and emerging research directions. Based on the above analysis, this paper constructed a theoretical research framework of industry convergence and value innovation. Research limitations/implications: This paper only draw data from one database – Web of Science – which cannot provide broad coverage of the research topic. Besides, the bibliometric method of this paper is based on high local citation score and high-frequency words, articles in the skirting subjects' area may not be analyzed. Practical implications: With the rapid development of technology, such as nanotechnology, radio - frequency identification (RFID), etc., the iterative upgrading of products also comes. As a result, the boundary between industries is gradually blurred, and the phenomenon of industry convergence appears. Therefore, managerial decision-makers are facing challenges of how to respond to the convergence phenomena. From the firm level, firms are facing the problem of value innovation of the existing product, new product development and core competence improvement. Industries are facing the problem of transformation and upgrading. This paper provides certain theoretical insights for both firms and industries to guide the practice accordingly. Originality/value: This paper is the first to use a bibliometric method to examine the topic of industry convergence and value innovation. In addition, this paper presents an in-depth analysis of this topic and provides a comprehensive theoretical research framework for future study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PAPER-CUT AS A KIND OF TRADITIONAL CULTURAL HERITAGE, IS ONE OF CHINESE most representative traditional folk arts. Its unique aesthetic and decorative features are beyond the ones of other art [...]

ABSTRACT The pronounced decrease of effective thermal conductivity (ETC) due to cracking behavior of concrete will change the temperature profile in concrete structures, indirectly inducing the redistribution of thermal stresses. [...]

Over-activation of oxidative stress due to impaired antioxidant functions in nucleus pulpous (NP) has been identified as a key factor contributing to intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD). While Kartogenin (KGN) has previously demonstrated antioxidant properties on articular cartilage against osteoarthritis, its effects on NP degeneration have yet to be fully understood.

We proposed and experimentally demonstrated a high-resolution omnidirectional vector bending sensor based on 7-core fiber Mach-Zehnder interferometers (MZIs), which is interrogated by the microwave photonics technique. The sensor is composed of three MZIs in the 7-core fiber, and each MZI consists of two symmetric outer cores. Instead of using the traditional wavelength demodulation method, which has the drawback of very limited resolution due to the used optical spectrum analysis devices, e.g., optical spectrum analyzer (OSA), the proposed sensor is interrogated by high-resolution microwave photonics filter (MPF) system, which is capable of offering up to KHz level measurement resolution. As a result, curvature measurement with resolution of 0.0213 m−1 is demonstrated when the used resolution of vector network analyzer (VNA) is 500 kHz. Thanks to the ultra-high measurement resolution of VNA (∼KHz), the curvature resolution can achieve 4.27 × 10−5 m−1 in theory, which is 2 orders of magnitude higher than the traditional wavelength demodulation-based fiber bending sensors. The measured curvature sensitivity of the MZI exhibits highly bending direction dependence, attributed to different strain variation under distinct bending angle. In addition, owing to the different angular positions of cores of the MZI in the 7-core fiber, the MZIs have differential response to fiber bending. This feature has been used to develop vector bending sensing, which is manage to determine the bending direction by using any two MZIs, and the obtained average relative errors for the retrieved curvature and bending direction are 2.57% and 0.86%, respectively. The proposed sensor possesses the unique advantages of high sensitivity and high resolution over the state-of-the-art technology, which is very promising for omnidirectional vector bending sensing in the future.

Unidirectional magnetoresistance (UMR) has been intensively studied in ferromagnetic systems, which is mainly induced by spin-dependent and spin-flip electron scattering. Yet, UMR in antiferromagnetic (AFM) systems has not been fully understood to date. In this work, we reported UMR in a YFeO3/Pt heterostructure where YFeO3is a typical AFM insulator. Magnetic-field dependence and temperature dependence of transport measurements indicate that magnon dynamics and interfacial Rashba splitting are two individual origins for AFM UMR, which is consistent with the UMR theory in ferromagnetic systems. We further established a comprehensive theoretical model that incorporates micromagnetic simulation, density functional theory calculation, and the tight-binding model, which explain the observed AFM UMR phenomenon well. Our work sheds light on the intrinsic transport property of the AFM system and may facilitate the development of AFM spintronic devices.

DNA has been demonstrated as a powerful platform for the construction of inorganic nanoparticles (NPs) into complex three-dimensional assemblies. Despite extensive research, the physical fundamental details of DNA nanostructures and their assemblies with NPs remain obscure. Here, we report the identification and quantification of the assembly details of programmable DNA nanotubes with monodisperse circumferences of a 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, or 10 DNA helix and their pearl-necklace-like assemblies with ultrasmall gold nanoparticles, Au25nanoclusters (AuNCs), liganded by −S(CH2)nNH3+(n= 3, 6, 11). The flexibilities of DNA nanotubes, analyzed via statistical polymer physics analysis through atomic force microscopy (AFM), demonstrate that ∼2.8 power exponentially increased with the DNA helix number. Moreover, the short-length liganded AuS(CH2)3NH3+NCs were observed to be able to form pearl-necklace-like DNA–AuNC assemblies stiffened than neat DNA nanotubes, while long-length liganded AuS(CH2)6NH3+and AuS(CH2)11NH3+NCs could fragment DNA nanotubular structures, indicating that DNA–AuNC assembling can be precisely manipulated by customizing the hydrophobic domains of the AuNC nanointerfaces. We prove the advantages of polymer science concepts in unraveling useful intrinsic information on physical fundamental details of DNA–AuNC assembling, which facilitates DNA–metal nanocomposite construction.

With the recent and increasing number of high-profile data breaches, businesses are becoming increasingly concerned about cybersecurity. Such data breaches have cost the affected companies millions of dollars due to [...]

Past studies on salt-doped polymer blends indicate that the electrostatic effect is complicated due to the combined effects of translational entropy of dissociated ions, ion solvation, ion–ion correlation, and ion clustering, especially at high salt concentrations. It still remains a challenge to unveil the electrostatic interaction of dissociated ions on phase separation explicitly in experiments. To address this challenge, the key principle of this study is to have the salt at extremely low concentrations, while its effect on phase separation is significant enough to be detected by scattering techniques. This experimental design enables the solvation of dissociated ions as the dominating factor, carefully avoiding complications from other effects. We characterize concentration fluctuations at full length scales by small-angle laser light scattering, X-ray scattering, and neutron scattering. The measured cloud points, spinodal temperatures, correlation lengths, and effective interaction parameters exhibit significant increase with the salt fraction, indicating that the electrostatic interaction promotes phase separation. We further reveal the electrostatic interaction of cations and anions, respectively. The asymmetric deflection of the phase diagram is quantitatively explained by the composition-dependent solvation of dissociated ions. This fundamental research provides experimental support for the progress of recent theoretical work and is helpful to guide the structural control in polymer electrolytes.

Purpose: The paper aims to explore how perceived prosumer content quality (PPCQ) and perceived interaction quality (PIQ) improve users' co-creation experiences and subsequently influence their co-creation intentions in the future. In addition, the paper examines users' prosumer ability into consideration. Design/methodology/approach: The research model based on stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) paradigm is developed to observe users' participation in value co-creation activities. In total, 318 valid responses were collected from a survey. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the model and Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) PROCESS macro (Model 58) by Hayes was applied to investigate the moderating effect of prosumer ability in mediation paths. Findings: It is observed that co-creation intention is determined by user-learning value, social-integrative value and hedonic value, which are influenced by PPCQ and PIQ. Besides, uses' prosumer ability moderates the indirect effects of PPCQ and PIQ on co-creation intentions through co-creation experiences. Research limitations/implications: The paper provides a prosumption perspective to explain users' co-creation intentions in social commerce and proposes the importance of user-learning, social-integrative and hedonic values in determining co-creation intentions. Practical implications: Social commerce platforms can encourage prosumption activities and cultivate multi-level prosumers to achieve a win–win situation. Originality/value: Little prior research has explicitly examined how and why users participate in value co-creation activities in social commerce from prosumption perspective. The current paper seeks to fill this gap and open new avenues for other value co-creation researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses about the integration of technology. Topic highlights including parametric algorithms, generative adversarial networks (GANs), and style transfer algorithms, into ceramic design, using Chinese ink splash ceramics as an example. It emphasizes the need for a human-machine collaborative ceramic design model that combines human creativity with artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the design process.

Determining how to add more signal channels without enlarging the cable volume is continually an issue in managing submarine cables. To improve the cost per bit and the power efficiency, space division multiplexing (SDM) is regarded as a promising solution that could be used to address optical density and cable capacity challenges regarding submarine cables. In this study, we focus on angular momentum (OAM) modes supporting few-mode ring-core fiber (RCF) solutions for submarine cables. Considering the inhibition of the hydrogen loss for the submarine cable, we propose a center-region-lifted 3-OAM-mode-group supporting RCF (abbreviated to 3-OAM-MG RCF) with a core-cladding index contrast of 0.6${\%}$, and meanwhile we also design and fabricate a matched 3-OAM-MG erbium-doped fiber (EDF). To confirm the short-haul transmission ability, we conduct a wavelength/mode/polarization division multiplexing (WDM-MDM-PDM) transmission test through a 25.3-km 3-OAM-MG RCF, where the coupled modes inside MG are demultiplexed by using 2 × 2 multiple-input multiple-out (MIMO) equalization. The transmission capacity is approximately 35 Tbit/s and the bit error rates (BERs) of all the channels are less than 2.4$\times 10^{-2}$. For the application scenario of long-haul submarine communication, a cascade WDM-MDM transmission system consisting of 3-OAM-MG RCF and 3-OAM-MG EDF is set up, which makes the BERs of all the mode and wavelength channels below the 20${\%}$ soft-decision forward error correction (SD-FEC) threshold. It indicates that data-carrying OAM mode multiplexing transmission has potential application in a long-haul submarine cable system.

Group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) play important tissue resident roles in anti-parasite immunity, allergic immune response, tissue homeostasis, and tumor immunity. ILC2s are considered tissue resident cells with little proliferation at steady state. Recent studies have shown that a subset of small intestinal ILC2s could leave their residing tissues, circulate and migrate to different organs, including lung, liver, mesenteric LN and spleen, upon activation. However, it remains unknown whether other ILC populations with migratory behavior exist. In this study, we find two major colon ILC2 populations with potential to migrate to the lung in response to IL-25 stimulation. One subset expresses IL-17A and resembles inflammatory ILC2s (iILC2s) but lacks CD27 expression, whereas the other expresses CD27 but not IL-17A. In addition, the IL-17A+ILC2s express lower levels of CD127, CD25, and ST2 than CD27+ILC2s, which express higher levels of IL-5 and IL-13. Surprisingly, we found that both colon ILC2 populations still maintained their colonic features of preferential expression of IL-17A and CD27, IL-5/IL-13, respectively. Together, our study identifies two migratory colon ILC2 subsets with unique surface markers and cytokine profiles which are critical in regulating lung and colon immunity and homeostasis.

Charge density waves (CDWs), a common phenomenon of periodic lattice distortions, often suppress ferromagnetism in two-dimensional (2D) materials, hindering their magnetic applications. Here, we report a novel CDW that generates 2D ferromagnetism instead of suppressing it, through the formation of interstitial anionic electrons as the charge modulation mechanism. Viafirst-principles calculations and a low-energy effective model, we find that the highly symmetrical monolayer LaBr2undergoes a 2 × 1 CDW transition to a magnetic semiconducting T′ phase. Concurrently, the delocalized 5d1electrons of La in LaBr2redistribute and accumulate within the interstitial space in the T′ phase, forming anionic electrons, also known as 2D electride or electrene. The strongly localized nature of anionic electrons promotes a Mott insulating state and full spin-polarization, while the overlap of their extended tails yields ferromagnetic direct exchange between them. Such transition introduces a new magnetic form of CDWs, offering promising opportunities for exploring novel fundamental physics and advanced spintronics applications.

System stability and robustness are highly desired in a mode division multiplexing (MDM) transmission system. The matching of the active fiber and transmission FMF effectively reduces the transmission impairments and is conducive to transmission stability. In this paper, we proposed and fabricated a well-matched triple-layered-core few-mode erbium-doped fiber (FM-EDF) for low differential modal gain (DMG) with multilayer ions doping adjustment. Based on the fabricated FM-EDF, the amplifier is constructed experimentally. By a simple LP01 pump mode, the modal gains are higher than 24 dB, and meanwhile, the DMG of 1.6 dB is obtained. The compatibility between the FM-EDF and the passive transmission FMF is verified in an MDM transmission system with a matching degree higher than 83%. Results show that after long-haul FMF transmission and single-stage amplification, the difference in the output signal power is lower than 1.8 dB at the receiver. The fabricated FM-EDF is beneficial for practical MDM systems with high mode stability, excellent fiber linkage integration, and signal channel equalization, which shows much potential for long-haul MDM transmission and multistage amplification.

Based on the growth mechanism of natural biological branching systems and inspiration from the morphology of plant root tips, a bionic design method called Improved Adaptive Growth Method (IAGM) has been proposed in the authors’ previous research and successfully applied to the reinforcement optimization of three-dimensional box structures with respect to natural frequencies. However, as a kind of ground structure methods, the final layout patterns of stiffeners obtained by using the IAGM are highly subjected to their ground structures, which restricts the optimization effect and freedom to further improve the dynamic performance of structures. To solve this problem, a novel post-processing geometry and size optimization approach is proposed in this article. This method takes the former layout optimization result as start, and iteratively finds the optimal layout angles, locations, and lengths of stiffeners with a few design variables by optimizing the positions of some specific node lines called active node lines. At the same time, thicknesses of stiffeners are also optimized to further improve natural frequencies of three-dimensional box structures. Using this method, stiffeners can be successfully separated from their ground structures and further effectively improve natural frequencies of three-dimensional box structures with less material consumption. Typical numerical examples are illustrated to validate the effectiveness and advantages of the suggested method.

The proliferation of smart phones raised novel privacy and security concerns due to the unprecedented amounts and types of personal information that these devices and their applications could collect, use, [...]