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Through Silicon Via(TSV), as a key interconnection technology in 3D integrated circuits, is used to connect input and output of chips in different layers. When multiple TSVs with alternating current close to each other, will produce the proximity effect, which increases the resistance of the TSV, thus affecting the transmission performance of TSV. Therefore, a method of calculating AC resistance of TSV array based on barycentric interpolation is presented. On the basis of triangulation of TSV cross section and determining the current intensity of vertices, the AC power consumption of TSV is calculated by interpolation method, the AC to DC resistance ratio of TSV is calculated by the AC to DC power ratio, and then the AC resistance value of TSV under the influence of proximity effect is obtained. This method can realize the calculation of AC resistance of TSV array in arbitrary scale and arrangement, and it will provide guidance and verification for the design of transmission structure in three dimensional integrated circuits. Finally, the numerical results of this method are compared with the results of commercial solver ANSYS Q3D. The experimental results show that the proposed method acquires better performance.

Switchback experiments, where a firm sequentially exposes an experimental unit to random treatments, are among the most prevalent designs used in the technology sector, with applications ranging from ride-hailing platforms to online marketplaces. Although practitioners have widely adopted this technique, the derivation of the optimal design has been elusive, hindering practitioners from drawing valid causal conclusions with enough statistical power. We address this limitation by deriving the optimal design of switchback experiments under a range of different assumptions on the order of the carryover effect—the length of time a treatment persists in impacting the outcome. We cast the optimal experimental design problem as a minimax discrete optimization problem, identify the worst-case adversarial strategy, establish structural results, and solve the reduced problem via a continuous relaxation. For switchback experiments conducted under the optimal design, we provide two approaches for performing inference. The first provides exact randomization-based p-values, and the second uses a new finite population central limit theorem to conduct conservative hypothesis tests and build confidence intervals. We further provide theoretical results when the order of the carryover effect is misspecified and provide a data-driven procedure to identify the order of the carryover effect. We conduct extensive simulations to study the numerical performance and empirical properties of our results and conclude with practical suggestions. This paper was accepted by George Shanthikumar, big data analytics. Funding: The authors thank the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)-IBM partnership in Artificial Intelligence and the MIT Data Science Laboratory for support. Supplemental Material: Data and the online appendix are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.4583. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work is motivated by our collaboration with a large consumer packaged goods (CPG) company. We have found that whereas the company appreciates the advantages of dynamic pricing, they deem it operationally much easier to plan out a static price calendar in advance. We investigate the efficacy of static control policies for revenue management problems whose optimal solution is inherently dynamic. In these problems, a firm has limited inventory to sell over a finite time horizon, over which heterogeneous customers stochastically arrive. We consider both pricing and assortment controls, and derive simple static policies in the form of a price calendar or a planned sequence of assortments, respectively. In the assortment planning problem, we also differentiate between the static vs. dynamic substitution models of customer demand. We show that our policies are within 1-1/e (approximately 0.63) of the optimum under stationary demand, and 1/2 of the optimum under nonstationary demand, with both guarantees approaching 1 if the starting inventories are large. We adapt the technique of prophet inequalities from optimal stopping theory to pricing and assortment problems, and our results are relative to the linear programming relaxation. Under the special case of stationary demand single-item pricing, our results improve the understanding of irregular and discrete demand curves, by showing that a static calendar can be (1-1/e)-approximate if the prices are sorted high-to-low. Finally, we demonstrate on both data from the CPG company and synthetic data from the literature that our simple price and assortment calendars are effective. This paper was accepted by Hamid Nazerzadeh, big data analytics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To understand the influence of storage period on the quality of light-flavor Daqu, physicochemical and biochemical indices, as well as microbial communities of Daqu were analyzed by traditional and metagenomics methods. The results suggest that the moisture content of the Daqu samples are essentially invariant during the storage period; the acidity ascended slowly during the first 3 months, then descended; the saccharifying power of some samples began to decrease during the first 3 months. The diversity of the bacterial and fungal communities of some of the Daqu samples was found to decline to a minimum after storage for 3 months. On the basis of the variations in primary indices of the Daqu samples, it was deemed acceptable to store samples for 3 months before use for light-flavor Daqu. This is the first report of Daqu quality being estimated during storage by physicochemical, biochemical, and microbial indices, and it provides a theoretical foundation for the quality evaluation of Daqu during storage and use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To identify thrombi in patients with posterior circulation large artery occlusion using susceptibility-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).Methods: All patients hospitalized with intracranial posterior circulation occlusion from January 2003 to September 2013 were included. MRI and computed tomography angiography were reviewed to determine the presence of arterial occlusion and identify thrombi. Eighty-one patients were analyzed to investigate susceptibility vessel sign (SVS) that was identified as blooming artifact (BA) on T2*-weighted gradient echo imaging.Results: We identified 21 of 63 (33.3%) patients with BA in symptomatic patients, and 1 of 18 (5.6%) in the asymptomatic group with significant difference (P = .019). BAs were found in 6 of 10 (60.0%) patients with cardioembolism, 5 of 13 (38.5%) with dissection, 9 of 34 (26.5%) with large artery atherosclerotic disease, and 1 of 6 (16.7%) with undetermined cause.Conclusion: Identifying SVS may be useful in exploring the fresh thrombi and the mechanism of posterior circulation stroke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • The limit of detection of the flexible sensor is 3.5 ppb at room temperature. • CTAB improves the sensing performance of the flexible sensor for NH 3. • The flexible sensor with excellent stability. A highly selective and sensitive flexible room temperature ammonia (NH 3) sensor was produced by in situ polymerizations of polyaniline (PANI) with modulation of Hexadecyl trimethyl ammonium Bromide (CTAB) on a porous Polyvinylidene fluoride film (PVDF). CTAB allows the PANI nanoparticles to grow uniformly on the surface and in the internal pores of the PVDF film, which increases the sensor's response to the NH 3. As a result, the sensor's response values to 5 ppm NH 3 and 0.01 ppm NH 3 are 81.3 % and 4.6 % at 20 °C, respectively. The sensor also shows excellent selectivity for NH 3 and maintains superior stability. Such a highly responsive and sensitive sensor is expected to be applied to detect chronic kidney disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Aims: It is crucial to detect the composition of the thrombus in isolated brainstem infarction with large artery occlusion. The aim of this study was to explore the susceptibility vessel sign (SVS) whose composition is mainly deoxidized red cells in patients with isolated brainstem infarction and posterior circulation large artery occlusion. Methods: This was a single-center retrospective study. All patients with posterior circulation large artery occlusion from January 2003 to September 2013 were included. We identified 213 patients who had posterior circulation large artery occlusion, and 81 patients met the imaging eligibility criteria. Among the 81 patients, 21 had isolated brainstem infarction. Results: Among the 21 patients, 7 (33%) had SVS and 2 (10%) had pseudo-SVS (calcified vessels without thrombosis). In the 7 patients with SVS, we found atrial fibrillation in 2 patients, dissection in 3 patients and large artery atherosclerotic disease (LAAD) in 2 patients. There were SVS in 100% (2/2) of patients with atrial fibrillation, 50% (3/6) of patients with dissection, and 20% (2/10) of patients with LAAD. Conclusions: SVS reflects pathology of deoxidized red cells composition in patients with isolated brainstem infarction. This finding may be useful to explore the different stroke mechanisms and therapy strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to find a suitable method for detecting the microbe index of Daqu for Chinese liquor brewing, during the regular production of Daqu, the phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) profiles of Daqu for light-fragrant Chinese liquor were investigated. Three types of Daqu clearly showed different features. The PLFA 18:3 w 6c (3, 6, 9), as one of the biomarkers for fungi, was the highest in the Houhuoqu samples, the lowest in the Hongxinqu samples and moderate with fluctuations in the Qingchaqu samples. The PLFA 18:1 w 9c, another biomarker for fungi, was only detected in the Hongxinqu samples with a steady content. The ratio of the fungi to bacteria of Hongxinqu was 11:20, which was significantly higher than in the Qingchaqu and the Houhuoqu samples. Principal component analysis found that most of the variations in the PLFA patterns were due to the different Daqu types. Variances analysis found that some PLFAs had the potential to be used as representative biomarkers for each type of Daqu. Copyright © 2016 The Institute of Brewing & Distilling [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report in vitro and in vivo magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of C6 glioma cells with a novel acetylated 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane (APTS)-coated iron oxide nanoparticles (FeO NPs). In the present study, APTS-coated FeO NPs were formed via a one-step hydrothermal approach and then chemically modified with acetic anhydride to generate surface charge-neutralized NPs. Prussian blue staining and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) data showed that acetylated APTS-coated FeO NPs can be taken up by cells. Combined morphological observation, cell viability, and flow cytometric analysis of the cell cycle indicated that the acetylated APTS-coated FeO NPs did not significantly affect cell morphology, viability, or cell cycle, indicating their good biocompatibility. Finally, the acetylated APTS-coated FeO nanoparticles were used in magnetic resonance imaging of C6 glioma. Our results showed that the developed acetylated APTS-coated FeO NPs can be used as an effective labeling agent to detect C6 glioma cells in vitro and in vivo for MR imaging. The results from the present study indicate that the developed acetylated APTS-coated FeO NPs have a potential application in MR imaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report a facile approach to fabricating low-generation poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimer-stabilized gold nanoparticles (Au DSNPs) functionalized with folic acid (FA) for in vitro and in vivo targeted computed tomography (CT) imaging of cancer cells. In this study, amine-terminated generation 2 PAMAM dendrimers were employed as stabilizers to form Au DSNPs without additional reducing agents. The formed Au DSNPs with an Au core size of 5.5 nm were covalently modified with the targeting ligand FA, followed by acetylation of the remaining dendrimer terminal amines to endow the particles with targeting specificity and improved biocompatibility. Our characterization data show that the formed FA-modified Au DSNPs are stable at different pH values (5-8) and temperatures (4-50 °C), as well as in different aqueous media. MTT assay data along with cell morphology observations reveal that the FA-modified Au DSNPs are noncytotoxic in the particle concentration range of 0-3000 n M. X-ray attenuation coefficient measurements show that the CT value of FA-modified Au DSNPs is much higher than that of Omnipaque (a clinically used CT contrast agent) at the same concentration of the radiodense elements (Au or iodine). Importantly, the FA-modified Au DSNPs are able to specifically target a model cancer cell line (KB cells, a human epithelial carcinoma cell line) over-expressing FA receptors and they enable targeted CT imaging of the cancer cells in vitro and the xenografted tumor model in vivo after intravenous administration of the particles. With the simple synthesis approach, easy modification, good cytocompatibility, and high X-ray attenuation coefficient, the FA-modified low-generation Au DSNPs could be used as promising contrast agents for targeted CT imaging of different tumors over-expressing FA receptors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report a facile approach to fabricating dendrimer-stabilized gold–silver alloy nanoparticles (Au–Ag alloy DSNPs) for targeted in vitro computed tomography (CT) imaging of cancer cells. In this study, folic acid (FA)-modified amine-terminated generation 5 poly(amidoamine) dendrimers (G5·NH2–FA) were used as stabilizers to prepare Au–Ag alloy DSNPs by simultaneously reducing both gold and silver salts, followed by acetylation of the dendrimer terminal amines. The formed Au–Ag alloy DSNPs were characterized via different techniques. We show that the formed Au–Ag alloy DSNPs are spherical in shape with a relatively narrow size distribution, have good water solubility and colloidal stability, and display higher X-ray attenuation intensity than the iodine-based contrast agent of Omnipaque at the same molar concentration of the active element (i.e., Au plus Ag, or iodine). Cytotoxicity assay results show that the Au–Ag alloy DSNPs are cytocompatible in a given concentration range. Importantly, the formed Au–Ag alloy DSNPs are able to be specifically taken up by cancer cells overexpressing FA receptors and enable targeted CT imaging of the cancer cells. Given the unique structural characteristics of dendrimers and the facile synthesis of DSNPs, the developed Au–Ag alloy DSNPs may be used for various biomedical applications in sensing, diagnosis, and therapeutics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and chlorinated paraffins (CPs) are well-knownpersistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the environment, which are toxic, bio-accumulativeand suspected to be carcinogenic. Short-chain (SCCPs) and medium-chain CPs (MCCPs) aremost commonly seen in soils and water and originate from typical industrial synthetics. Inthis work, the concentrations of 16 PAHs, prior controlled by the Environmental ProtectionAgency (EPA) of the US, 24 SCCPs and 24 MCCPs in the soils of six agricultural samplingfields in the suburbs of Shanghai were monitored. The results were as follows: Thetotal concentrations of the 16 PAHs are in a range of 161.69-5141.08 ng g−1. Theagricultural soils nearby industrial parks are often seriously polluted by PAHs,while those far away from the industrial areas in Qingpu District in the westernsuburb of Shanghai are in the lowest content of PAHs. The rate of fluoranthene(Flu) in the PAHs in the soils is the highest, 20.3% on average, followed by pyrene(Pyr) and chrysene (Chr), 16.3% and 12.8% on average respectively. The PAHsin the soils are dominated by high-ring homologues (above three rings), whichmakes up 87.5% on average. The rate of 4-ring homologues in the PAHs is thehighest, 59.1% on average. This suggests that the PAHs in the agricultural soils inShanghai were mainly derived from coal combustion. The concentrations of CPs in thesoils are in a range of 6.99 - 499.27 ng/g. SCCPs, in a range of 3.18 - 101 ng/g,are dominantly composed of C12−13 homologues, with the chlorination degreeof 63.1% on average. Especially, in the soils of Baoshan and Qingpu Districts,Shanghai, the C13 homologue makes up over 50% of the total SCCPs. MCCPs, in arange of 1.68 - 396 ng/g, are dominantly composed of C14−15 homologues, withthe chlorination degree of 52.3% on average. The concentrations of MCCPs aremostly higher than those of SCCPs in the soils. Compared with the soils of theother areas in the world, however, the concentrations of SCCPs and MCCPs in theagricultural soils in Shanghai are at the medium level. According to the ratios ofhomologues, CPs in the soils in Shanghai was mostly caused by the discharge ofindustrial solid wastes, sewage sludge application and/or wastewater irrigation.Generally, the degree of CPs contamination in the soils in Shanghai is lighter than thatof PAHs. Moreover, the increase of PAHs in the soils is not correlated with theelevation of CPs simultaneously, suggesting that PAHs and CPs in the soils havedifferent paths and sources of pollution. This work was supported by the Science andTechnology Commission of Shanghai Municipality (Grant no. 17DZ1202300). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A simple method to fabricate porous ZnO for trace-level acetone detection. • MEMS structure with small size and high sensitivity. • Non-contact inkjet printing technology for the rapid prototyping of transducers. • The sensor with 3.2 response to 10 ppb acetone at 200℃. • A good linearity relationship between response and concentration of acetone. In this study, inkjet printing tactics is employed to deposit sensitive materials, which is a nest-like array vertically assembled by petal-shaped structure composed of nanoparticles. It overcomes the disadvantages of cumbersome and unstable operation of traditional deposition technology for gas sensor sensitive materials based on MEMS. The mesoporous ZnO-sensor shows high gas-sensing response to low concentration acetone. The excellent performance of mesoporous ZnO-sensors lies in the uniform small nanoparticles, their multi-dimensional assembly structures and rich oxygen vacancy defects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We report the dendrimer-mediated synthesis and shape evolution of gold–silver alloy nanoparticles (Au–Ag alloy NPs) with different metal compositions. In this study, amine-terminated generation 5 poly(amidoamine) dendrimers were used as stabilizers to prepare Au–Ag alloy NPs with different gold atom/silver atom/dendrimer molar ratios without the assistance of additional reducing agents. Following a one-step acetylation reaction to transform the dendrimer terminal amines to acetyl groups, a series of Au–Ag alloy NPs with surface acetyl groups were formed. The alloy NPs before and after acetylation reaction were characterized using 1H NMR, UV–vis spectrometry, transmission electron microscopy, inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy, and X-ray absorption coefficient measurements. We showed that the optical property, the size, and the morphology of the bimetallic NPs were greatly affected by the metal composition and their surface modification. At the constant total metal atom/dendrimer molar ratio, the alloy NPs experienced a shape evolution from spherical particles and polyhedrons to curved nanowires with the Au content. Acetylation of the dendrimer terminal amines seemed to thicken the nanowires. The formed Au–Ag alloy NPs were stable at different pH (pH 5–8) and temperature (4–50°C) conditions. X-ray absorption coefficient measurements showed that the attenuation intensity of the alloy NPs was dependent on both the metal composition and surface functional groups. At a given metal composition, the X-ray attenuation intensity of the binary NPs was enhanced after acetylation. The formed metal alloy NPs with tunable size and shape prepared using the dendrimer stabilizers may be used in a range of applications in catalysis, sensing, and biomedical sciences. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In this work, we investigated PEGylated black kidney bean protein isolates (BKBPI) by PEG succinimidyl carbonate (PEG-SC), PEG succinimidyl succinate (PEG-SS) and PEG succinimidyl propionate (PEG-SPA) conjugation. The functional properties, thermodynamic stability, in vitro digestion stability, and hemagglutination activity of the modified products were evaluated. The degree of PEGylation was measured, and FTIR analysis revealed that protein-PEG conjugations were formed, and that no obvious changes in water- and fat-holding capacities were observed. The solubility, emulsifying property, and foaming property were all improved through the modification, while, higher thermodynamic stability was achieved with the increase in Td values and reduction of ΔH. The PEGylated proteins were found to be more resistant to in vitro digestion, and the hemagglutination activity was significantly ( P <  0.05) decreased, indicating the higher safety of the protein isolate. The results showed that the functional properties, thermodynamic stability, and biological safety of BKBPI were improved by PEGylation, which could serve to increase the applications for this protein. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SiO 2 amorphous nanowires and SiO 2 nanocrystallites have been formed by a simple thermal evaporation process at a relatively low temperature. SEM study shows that the morphologies and sizes of SiO 2 nanostructures are controlled by adjusting the growth conditions. The unique optical properties of the SiO 2 nanostructures are discussed. A growth mechanism is proposed on the basis of experimental conditions and the SiO 2 nanostructures growth habits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Based on density functional theory, the spin frustration and the spin–lattice coupling in hexagonal HoMnO3 are investigated. By comparing the different lattice geometry of antiferromagnetic, noncollinear Γ 1 and Γ 4 structure, we show that the ionic position in the unit cell, the bond length, the distribution of electronic structures have a significant correlation with frustrated magnetic structures. The strong orbital hybridizations of Ho 5d z 2 -O(3,4) 2p z and Mn 3 states modify the strength of the bonds and hold the key to spin–lattice coupling and lattice distortion. All these provide theoretical support for the explanation of the magnetoelectric phenomenon in HoMnO3. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

SiO 2 nanowires have been successfully synthesized on the surface of the silicon substrate via a thermal evaporation method using SnO 2 powders as the catalysts. The final synthesized product was systematically studied by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy (RS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and electron energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), UV-Visible absorption and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The results reveal that in the reaction and growth process, the real catalytic effect is Sn and SnO x , and the growth of SiO 2 nanowire is most likely controlled by VLS mechanism. The PL spectral results indicate the obtained products have a stable yellow-green emission range. The products have improved performance and can be used in optoelectronic semiconductor devices. • SiO 2 nanowires are successfully prepared by thermal evaporation using SnO 2 as catalyst. • The growth mechanism of SiO 2 nanowires follows the VLS mechanism. • Due to the influence of saturated vapor pressure, the morphology and structure of samples are different in different temperature regions. • The SiO 2 nanowires display yellow-green emission which is probably ascribed to the luminescence center model of the doped SiO 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]