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Recent advances in inverse-design approaches for discovering optical structures based on desired functional characteristics have reshaped the landscape of nanophotonic structures, where most studies have focused on how light interacts with nanophotonic structures only. When quantum emitters (QEs), such as atoms, molecules, and quantum dots, are introduced to couple to the nanophotonic structures, the light–matter interactions become much more complicated, forming a rapidly developing field – quantum nanophotonics. Typical quantum functional characteristics depend on the intrinsic properties of the QE and its electromagnetic environment created by the nanophotonic structures, commonly represented by a scalar quantity, local-density-of-states (LDOS). In this work, we introduce a generalized inverse-design framework in quantum nanophotonics by taking LDOS as the bridge to connect the nanophotonic structures and the quantum functional characteristics. We take a simple system consisting of QEs sitting on a single multilayer shell–metal–nanoparticle (SMNP) as an example, apply fully-connected neural networks to model the LDOS of SMNP, inversely design and optimize the geometry of the SMNP based on LDOS, and realize desirable quantum characteristics in two quantum nanophotonic problems: spontaneous emission and entanglement. Our work introduces deep learning to the quantum optics domain for advancing quantum device designs; and provides a new platform for practicing deep learning to design nanophotonic structures for complex problems without a direct link between structures and functional characteristics.

Dissipation, often associated with plasmons, leads to decoherence and is generally considered fatal for quantum nonlinearities and entanglement. Counterintuitively, by introducing a dissipative plasmonic nanoantenna into a typical cavity quantum electrodynamics (QED) system, we unveil the wide existence of the atom-photon quasi-bound state (qBS), a kind of exotic eigenstate with anomalously small decay, in the hybrid plasmonic-photonic cavity. To derive the analytical condition of atom-photon qBS, we formulate a quantized two-mode model of the local density of states by connecting the interacting uncoupled cavity modes to the macroscopic QED. With resonant plasmon-photon coupling, we showcase the single-atom qBS that improves the efficiency of single-photon generation over one order of magnitude; and the two-atom qBS that significantly enhances spontaneous entanglement generation compared with a bare photonic cavity. Notably, such single-atom and multi-atom qBS can be simultaneously accessed in realistic plasmonic-photonic cavities, providing a versatile platform for advanced quantum technologies, such as quantum light sources, quantum computation, and quantum information.

Background: We have already discovered 23 patients during the work of the outpatient department and operations whose unstable signs on the posterolateral ankle. The anterior drawer test demonstrated normal during the physical examinations while the spaces of the posterior tibiotalar joints increased in stress X-ray plain films. ATFL intact and posterolateral ligaments lax were found during operations too. It is important to make existence claims and illuminate the mechanism of posterolateral ankle instability.Methods: A finite element model of the ankle was established for simulating to cut off posterolateral ligaments in turn. Ankle movements with tibia rotation under load on five forefoot positions were simulated as well.Results: The difference values with tibia external rotation were negative, and the positive results occurred with tibia internal rotation. The tibia-talus difference values in some forefoot positions were 2 ~ 3 mm after PTFL together with CFL or/and PITFL were cut off. The tibula-talus difference values were 2.21 ~ 2.76 mm after both PTFL and CFL were cut off. The tibia-fibula difference values were small. The difference values increased by 2 ~ 5 mm after cutting off the PITFL.Conclusions: Posterolateral ankle ligaments, especially CFL and PITFL, play a significant role in maintaining ankle stability. The serious injuries of both CFL and PITFL would affect posterolateral ankle stabilities. PITFL was important to subtalar joint stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The incidence of liver cancer has shown different temporal trends across populations, while the underlying reasons remain unclear., Methods: We examined temporal trends in the incidence of liver cancer in Hong Kong, Sweden, and the United States since the 1970s through 2021 using joinpoint regression and age-period-cohort analysis., Results: The age-standardized incidence rate of liver cancer in Hong Kong steadily decreased (average annual percentage change [AAPC] -2.2%, 95% confidence interval [CI] -2.8% to -1.7% in men; AAPC -2.1%, 95%CI -3.1% to -1.1% in women) in 1983-2020. The rate in Sweden increased on average by 0.8% (95%CI 0.2% to 1.4%) per year in men and was stable in women (AAPC 0.2%, 95%CI -0.9% to 1.4%) in 1970-2021. The rate in the United States increased by 2.1% (95%CI 1.5% to 2.8%) per year in men and by 2.1% (95%CI 1.6% to 2.5%) in women in 1975-2020, but decreasing trends were noted in 2015-2020 (AAPC -6.6%, 95%CI -8.3% to -4.9% in men; AAPC -4.2%, 95%CI -7.5% to -0.5% in women). Stratified analysis by histological type showed such decrease in recent years was limited to hepatocellular carcinoma, rather than intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. We observed distinct changes in trends across age groups and different trends across birth cohorts., Conclusion: The incidence of liver cancer has decreased in Hong Kong but increased in Sweden and the United States since the 1980s, despite decreasing incidence in the United States since 2015. Such disparities may be explained by different etiology and implementation of preventive measures across populations., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. on behalf of The American College of Gastroenterology.)

Background: Early detection of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) poses a significant challenge. The absence of highly sensitive and specific diagnostic biomarkers for nasopharyngeal carcinoma contributes to the unfavourable prognosis of NPC patients. Here, we aimed to establish a non-invasive approach for detecting NPC using circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA)., Methods: We investigated the potential of next-generation sequencing (NGS) of peripheral blood cells as a diagnostic tool for NPC. We collected data on genome-wide nucleosome footprint (NF), 5'-end motifs, fragmentation patterns, CNV information, and EBV content from 553 Chinese subjects, including 234 NPC patients and 319 healthy individuals. Through case-control analysis, we developed a diagnostic model for NPC, and validated its detection capability., Findings: Our findings revealed that the frequencies of NF, fragmentation, and motifs were significantly higher in NPC patients compared to healthy controls. We developed an NPC score based on these parameters that accurately distinguished NPC from non-NPC cases according to the American Joint Committee on Cancer staging system from non-NPC (validation set: area under curve (AUC) = 99.9% (95% CI: 99.8%-100%), se: 98.15%, sp: 100%). This model showed superior performance over plasma EBV DNA. Additionally, the NPC score effectively differentiated between NPC patients and healthy controls, even after clinical treatment. Furthermore, the NPC score was found to be independent of potential confounders such as age, sex, or TNM stage., Interpretation: We have developed and verified a non-invasive approach with substantial potential for clinical application in detecting NPC., Funding: A full list of funding bodies that contributed to this study can be found in Funding section., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests We declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

The diffraction spectra of Imaginary-Part Photonic Crystal (IPPC) slabs are analyzed by using Scattering-Matrix Method. By investigating the thickness dependence of the diffraction, we find the remarkable red shift of central wavelength of diffraction spectrum, which obviously distinguishes from the phenomenon of spectral hole. We observe that diffraction efficiency can be enhanced more than twentyfold by optimizing the geometry parameters. These imply that the diffraction spectra of the IPPC slab can be controlled at will and used to guide the design to achieve useful nanoscale devices.