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Abstract Refraction is a basic beam bending effect at two media’s interface. While traditional studies focus on stationary boundaries, moving boundaries or potentials could enable new laws of refractions. Meanwhile, media’s discretization plays a pivotal role in refraction owing to Galilean invariance breaking principle in discrete-wave mechanics, making refraction highly moving-speed dependent. Here, by harnessing a synthetic temporal lattice in a fiber-loop circuit, we observe discrete time refraction by a moving gauge-potential barrier. We unveil the selection rules for the potential moving speed, which can only take an integer v = 1 or fractional v = 1/q (odd q) value to guarantee a well-defined refraction. We observe reflectionless/reflective refractions for v = 1 and v = 1/3 speeds, transparent potentials with vanishing refraction/reflection, refraction of dynamic moving potential and refraction for relativistic Zitterbewegung effect. Our findings may feature applications in versatile time control and measurement for optical communications and signal processing.

AbstractOnline learning is a necessary teaching method for higher education institutions to cope with future unpredictable events. This study aims to investigate the impact of four forms of perceived quality in online interaction on the satisfaction of international students. The four types of online interaction considered are Teacher-Student Interaction (TSI), Student-Student Interaction (SSI), Student-Content Interaction (SCI), and Student-Interface Interaction (SII). Employing a quantitative research approach, we used a questionnaire for data collection in the investigation. The questionnaire underwent rigorous assessment for reliability and validity. The population of this study consists of a university in Zhejiang Province, China, with over 2,000 international students enrolled in 2019. Utilizing a stratified random sampling technique, we selected 320 international students exclusively participating in 100% online courses. Data analysis, conducted using SPSS 26.0, included descriptive analysis, correlation analysis, and multiple linear regression analysis. The research findings underscore the critical role of the perceived quality of three types of interactions—TSI, SSI, and SCI—in influencing student satisfaction with online learning interactions. This study contributes to enriching research on international student satisfaction with online interaction, providing valuable insights for educators and institutions aiming to enhance the quality of online learning experiences.

AbstractRenewable energy requires long-duration energy storage technologies, of which vanadium flow battery is regarded as the ­most suitable candidate for safe and long-duration energy storage ­applications. However, vanadium flow batteries still suffer from capacity decay and low power density, which arise from membrane degradation and high resistance. Herein, a sulfonated poly (4,4′-diphenylether-5,5′-bibenzimidazole) (SOPBI) membrane is reported for use in vanadium redox flow batteries. The prepared SOPBI membranes show an area resistance of 0.63 Ω cm2 at room temperature after doped with 3 M H2SO4. Moreover, membranes with 3 M H2SO4 doping exhibit tensile stress at break of 15.1 MPa. Benefiting from the SOPBI membrane, the all-vanadium redox flow battery delivers a superior energy efficiency of 77.7% at 140 mA cm−2 while operating stably at a current density of 120 mA cm−2 for 200 cycles.

Growth-regulating factors (GRFs) are transcription factors that play a pivotal role in plant growth and development. This study identifies 12 Solanum tuberosum GRF transcription factors (StGRFs) and analyzes their physicochemical properties, phylogenetic relationships, gene structures and gene expression patterns using bioinformatics. The StGRFs exhibit a length range of 266 to 599 amino acids, with a molecular weight of 26.02 to 64.52 kDa. The majority of StGRFs possess three introns. The promoter regions contain a plethora of cis-acting elements related to plant growth and development, as well as environmental stress and hormone response. All the members of the StGRF family contain conserved WRC and QLQ domains, with the sequences of these two conserved domain modules exhibiting high levels of conservation. Transcriptomic data indicates that StGRFs play a significant role in the growth and development of stamens, roots, young tubers, and other tissues or organs in potatoes. Furthermore, a few StGRFs exhibit differential expression patterns in response to Phytophthora infestans, chemical elicitors, heat, salt, and drought stresses, as well as multiple hormone treatments. The results of the expression analysis indicate that StGRF1, StGRF2, StGRF5, StGRF7, StGRF10 and StGRF12 are involved in the process of tuber sprouting, while StGRF4 and StGRF9 may play a role in tuber dormancy. These findings offer valuable insights that can be used to investigate the roles of StGRFs during potato tuber dormancy and sprouting.

Abstract Protein degradation techniques, such as proteolysis‐targeting chimeras (PROTACs) and lysosome‐targeting chimeras (LYTACs), have emerged as promising therapeutic strategies for the treatment of diseases. However, the efficacy of current protein degradation methods still needs to be improved to address the complex mechanisms underlying diseases. Herein, a LYTAC Plus hydrogel engineered is proposed by nucleic acid self‐assembly, which integrates a gene silencing motif into a LYTAC construct to enhance its therapeutic potential. As a proof‐of‐concept study, vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR)‐binding peptides and mannose‐6 phosphate (M6P) moieties into a self‐assembled nucleic acid hydrogel are introduced, enabling its LYTAC capability. Small interference RNAs (siRNAs) is then employed that target the angiopoietin‐2 (ANG‐2) gene as cross‐linkers for hydrogel formation, giving the final LYTAC Plus hydrogel gene silencing ability. With dual functionalities, the LYTAC Plus hydrogel demonstrated effectiveness in simultaneously reducing the levels of VEGFR‐2 and ANG‐2 both in vitro and in vivo, as well as in improving therapeutic outcomes in treating neovascular age‐related macular degeneration in a mouse model. As a general material platform, the LYTAC Plus hydrogel may possess great potential for the treatment of various diseases and warrant further investigation.

High‐dimensional multiplexing technology is of importance in the on‐chip photonic interconnections and challenging to design within ultracompact footprint. Herein, high‐dimensional demultiplexers are proposed and demonstrated to enable wavelength‐division and mode‐division simultaneously. The functional regions of digital metamaterials are obtained by inverse design individually and are cascaded to work as high‐dimensional demultiplexers. The gradient‐based inverse design is carried out with an efficient method combining finite‐element method, density method, and method of moving asymptotes. The performances are simulated by 3D finite difference time domain with silicon‐on‐insulator configuration. The proposed demultiplexer with four‐channel has ultracompact footprint of 4.1 × 3.65 μm2. Its average transmission efficiency is 38.7% and contrast ratios are higher than 13.0 dB. Besides, the proposed demultiplexer with six‐channel has a footprint of 4.55 × 5.55 μm2. Its average transmission efficiency is 24.3% and contrast ratios are higher than 11.8 dB.

Uranium content measurement is very important to nuclear material accounting and product quality control in nuclear bulk facilities. It needs high accuracy and precision. In this work, 3 different measurement steps from 2 analytical standards GB 11841—1989 and ASTM C1267-17, which were uranium content test methods by iron(Ⅱ) reduction followed by chromium(Ⅵ) titration, were discussed by simulated experiments and following uncertainty evaluation. The results show that, the total uncertainties of the 3 steps are all lower than 0.1%, which is the international target value of uranium content measurement by redox potential titration method. The step for 2.3 g sample of GB 11841—1989 is more suitable to sign value measurement in reference material production, because of its lowest uncertainty. In routine testing works, the step for 0.20-0.25 g sample of GB 11841—1989 is better in sample weighting, the step of ASTM C1267-17 is better in titration and potassium dichromate solution preparation.

Driver fatigue represents a significant peril to global traffic safety, necessitating the advancement of potent fatigue monitoring methodologies to bolster road safety. This research introduces a conditional generative adversarial network with a classification head that integrates convolutional and attention mechanisms (CA-ACGAN) designed for the precise identification of fatigue driving states through the analysis of electroencephalography (EEG) signals. First, this study constructed a 4D feature data model capable of mirroring drivers’ fatigue state, meticulously analyzing the EEG signals’ frequency, spatial, and temporal dimensions. Following this, we present the CA-ACGAN framework, a novel integration of attention schemes, the bottleneck residual block, and the Transformer element. This integration was designed to refine the processing of EEG signals significantly. In utilizing a conditional generative adversarial network equipped with a classification header, the framework aims to distinguish fatigue states effectively. Moreover, it addresses the scarcity of authentic data through the generation of superior-quality synthetic data. Empirical outcomes illustrate that the CA-ACGAN model surpasses various extant methods in the fatigue detection endeavor on the SEED-VIG public dataset. Moreover, juxtaposed with leading-edge GAN models, our model exhibits an efficacy in in producing high-quality data that is clearly superior. This investigation confirms the CA-ACGAN model’s utility in fatigue driving identification and suggests fresh perspectives for deep learning applications in time series data generation and processing.

Abstract To compare and assess the choroidal and retinal microstructural vascularity in amblyopic eyes with the fellow eyes in anisometropic amblyopic children using angiography optical coherence tomography (Angio-OCT). Twenty-seven children (54 eyes; 5.59 ± 1.08 years old; 59.3% girls) were enrolled in this study. Choroidal thickness (CT) was measured with the use of the enhanced depth imaging mode in Angio-OCT. Parafoveal/peripapillary vascular density indices and the foveal avascular zone (FAZ) size were analyzed by MATLAB code programming on Angio-OCT images. The mean FAZ size of the amblyopic eyes were larger both in superficial and deep capillary plexus layer (SCPL/DCPL). Compared with the contralateral eyes (BCVA were normal), all the vascular density indices of SCPL and DCPL in the parafoveal and peripapillary zones were lower in the amblyopic eyes, however, the difference was insignificant (p > 0.05). No significant decrease was observed in four quadrants analyses of the amblyopic eyes (p > 0.05). Except for the measurement at 2000 µm and 1500 µm from the fovea in temple, CT in amblyopic eyes were significantly thicken than the fellow eyes (p

Thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS) is a well-established instrumental technique for accurately analyzing isotopes of elements with low first ionization potential. However, the measurement accuracy is affected due to the existence of the mass fractionation effect. Generally, applying the external standard method or total evaporation method is the most common way to correct the mass fractionation effect. Total evaporation (TE） technology is the most conventional method for uranium major isotope ratio measurement (235U/238U) using TIMS. However, due to the strong peak tailing of the major isotopes and other factors, the measurement precision and accuracy of minor isotope ratios (234U/238U and 236U/238U) are relatively low. In this study, the modified total evaporation (MTE) method for highly precise measurement of uranium isotopes ratios by TIMS was developed based on the research of dynamic heating procedures, dynamic and static receiving procedures, peak tailing correction, efficiency calibration of collectors and mass discrimination calibration. The accuracy and reliability of the MTE method were verified with different reference materials. The experiment results showed that the yield of uranium oxide should be monitored and the related parameters should be precisely controlled to reduce the yield of uranium oxidation during measurement. This action could guarantee the effectiveness of the MTE measurement and improve the uranium samples utilization. The initial strength of 187Re+ played an important role in the ionization efficiency of uranium and the yield of uranium oxide. The optimal signal of 187Re+ should be set in the range of 0.17-0.22 V. When uranium samples with 2% 235U isotopic abundance were measured by the MTE method using TIMS, the measurement precisions of 235U/238U, 234U/238U and 236U/238U were 0.024%, 0.06%, and 0.19%, and the bias between the measured value and reference value were 0.025%, 0.19%, and 0.38%, respectively. Compared to the TE method, the MTE method showed the same precision for the 235U/238U ratio measurement. As for the MTE measurement of 234U/238U and 236U/238U ratios, the major uranium isotopes (235U and 238U) were used as an internal standard to overcome the mass fractionation effect. When the tailing effects were eliminated, the measurement precisions of 234U/238U and 236U/238U ratios were improved by 5 to 10 times. As for sample amount, the TE method generally requires the uranium amount of less than 1 μg, while 5 μg is required for the MTE method.

High temperature is the most important environmental factor limiting potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) yield. The tuber yield has been used to evaluate the heat tolerance of some potato cultivars, but potato yield was closely correlated with the maturation period. Therefore, it is necessary to employ different parameters to comprehensively analyze and evaluate potato tolerance to heat stress. This study aimed to investigate physiologic changes during growth and development, and develop accurate heat tolerance evaluation methods of potato cultivars under heat stress. About 93 cultivars (including foreign elite lines, local landraces and cultivars) were screened using an in vitro tuber-inducing system (continuous darkness and 8% sucrose in the culture medium) under heat stress (30 °C) and normal (22 °C) conditions for 30 days. The tuber yield and number decreased significantly under heat stress compared to the control. A total of 42 cultivars were initially selected depending on tuber formation, after in vitro screening, further testing of selected cultivars was conducted in ex vitro conditions. The screened cultivars were further exposed to heat stress (35 °C/28 °C, day/night) for 60 days. Heat stress led to an increase in the plant height growth rate, fourth internode growth rate, and membrane damage, and due to heat-induced damage to chloroplasts, decrease in chlorophyll biosynthesis and photosynthetic efficiency. Three principal components were extracted by principal component analysis. Correlation and regression analysis showed that heat tolerance is positively correlated with the plant height growth rate, fourth internode growth rate, the content of chlorophyll b, photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, transpiration rate, tuber number, and tuber yield, and negatively correlated with the cell membrane injury level. The nine traits are accurate and representative indicators for evaluating potato tolerance to heat stress and could determine a relatively high mean forecast accuracy of 100.0% for the comprehensive evaluation value. Through cluster analysis and screening, cultivar FA, D73, and C132 had the highest heat comprehensive evaluation value, which could be further selected as heat-resistant varieties. This study provides insights into the different physiological mechanisms and accurate evaluation methods of potato cultivars under heat stress, which could be valuable for further research and breeding.

Dynamic localization is a method of confining light. Here the authors demonstrate higher-order dynamic localization of photons in a synthetic temporal mesh lattice and discuss the idea of tunable temporal cloaking by combining different-order localizations.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to compare the differences of V-pattern exotropia in craniosynostosis and normal children. 39 children were included in this study, 19 craniosynostosis and 20 children in control group. They underwent comprehensive ocular examinations and received strabismus surgery. The extraocular muscle samples were analysed. Compared with the control group, craniosynostosis group had larger deviation in primary and up gaze, larger V pattern, and more severe inferior oblique overaction. For 20–40, and 50–60 prism diopter exotropia, the lateral recession in the craniosynostosis group was larger than that in the control group, 7.13 ± 0.44 mm vs 6.71 ± 0.47 mm, 8.90 ± 0.21 mm vs 7.75 ± 0.46 mm (p = 0.025, 0.000). The anterior transposition of craniosynostosis group was more anterior than that of control group, posterior 1.03 ± 1.24 vs 2.68 ± 0.94 mm (p = 0.000). Compared with the control group, the extraocular muscle abnormality in craniosynostosis was significant, 32% vs 5% (p = 0.031). There were 40 proteins in craniosynostosis group, which were different from those in control group. A larger V pattern and larger deviation is common in craniosynostosis children. For the same PD of deviation, it usually needs more recession in craniosynostosis because of the thinner and weaker extraocular muscles. Collagen related proteins were increased in craniosynostosis, and decreased contraction related protein tropomodulin might play key role for the weakness of EOMs.

A novel broadband antenna designed for the terahertz (THz) frequency range is proposed and developed for the THz emitter on a photomixer chip. This THz emitter comprises an ultra-high-speed indium phosphide photodetector integrated with a planar THz antenna. This paper presents a novel broadband antenna configuration comprising a combination of bowtie and circular patch elements designed for the frequency range of 150 GHz to 500 GHz. Detailed parametric analysis of the antenna’s design parameters is also provided. The simulation results demonstrate that the optimized antenna achieves an impedance bandwidth of 350 GHz, satisfying the |S11| ≤ −10 dB condition, and exhibits a relative bandwidth of 107% within the 150 GHz to 500 GHz frequency range. This novel broadband terahertz antenna showcases an exceptional wideband performance and is highly suitable for high-speed transmission systems.

Smart windows with high visible transmission can control the absorption or transmission spectrum of solar irradiation based on seasonal variations and personal preferences, allowing buildings to save energy. However, it is a considerable challenge to design a metasurface with high solar modulation ability (ΔAsol), integral luminous transmittance (Tlum), transmission light's color rendering index (Ra) and simple structure for smart windows. In this work, we design and optimize the asymmetric-structured multilayer and micro-nano array by applying the method of scanning parameters and fully-connected network methods. The optimization results show that ΔAsol and Tlum negatively correlate when the transmitted light of these two structures has a high Ra. This conclusion of designing high-performance asymmetric-structured metasurfaces provides essential guidance for designing future smart windows.

In this paper, we present a scheme for achieving broadband efficient beam splitting based on homogeneous ultra-thin metasurfaces, which is composed of an ultrathin dielectric spacer sandwiched between periodic arrays of identical rectangular metal resonators and an optically thick metal film. Based on this scheme, three beam splitters for incident wavelengths in the ultraviolet (UV), visible, and infrared (IR) are designed and investigated numerically. Although these beam splitters exhibit polarization-dependent optical responses, each one still has an operational band in which the conversion efficiency remains above 90 % for any polarization incidence. The operational band is respectively 250–299 nm, 478–574 nm, and 1411–1700 nm for these three metasurface-based beam splitters. Moreover, we propose a dual-band beam splitter and a four-channel beam splitter based on this metasurface with MIM configuration. The operational window of the dual-band beam splitter respectively locates in the visible and infrared regions.

Abstract With the incorporation of noble metal materials, photonic crystal fibers (PCFs) could be performed as an effective platform for refractive index sensing of the filling analytes. Furthermore, by coating functional dielectric layers upon the metal surfaces, the resonance energy transfer is modulated from the core mode of the PCFs towards the surface plasmon resonance mode of the metals, and the sensing performance could be boosted. Here, considering that the exciton-plasmon coupling is efficient between perovskite quantum dots (QDs) and gold, a kind of CsPbBr3 QDs/Au bilayer coated triangular-lattice PCFs has been simulated numerically as the refractive index sensors. With the optimization of the QDs and gold layer thicknesses, together with the variation of the central hole size of the PCFs, in the refractive index (RI) region of 1.26 to 1.34, a rather narrow full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the loss spectra was achieved as 13.74nm when the central hole size was 1.28 µm and the highest figure of merit was 63.79RIU (the central hole size was 1.53 µm). This work demonstrates that the analyte identification accuracy was enhanced by FWHM narrowing of the loss spectra; in addition, taking the abundance of the material choice of perovskite QDs into consideration, more analytes could be detected effectively. Moreover, by adopting asymmetric structures, the sensitivity of the PCFs based refractive index sensors could be further improved.

Due to the unique optical responses induced by vertical atomic asymmetry inside a monolayer, two-dimensional Janus structures have been conceived as promising building blocks for nanoscale optical devices. In this paper, second harmonic generation (SHG) in Janus transition metal chalcogenide oxide monolayers is systematically investigated by the first-principles calculations. Second-order nonlinear susceptibilities are theoretically determined for Janus MXO (M = Mo/W, X = S/Se/Te) monolayers. The calculated values are comparable in magnitude with Janus MoSSe monolayer. X-M-O symmetry breaking leads to non-zero components in vertical direction, compared with the non-Janus structure. Focusing on the SHG induced by incident light at 1064 nm, polarization-dependent responses of six Janus MXO monolayers are demonstrated. The symmetry of p-polarization changes from six-fold to three-fold with acute incidence angle. Moreover, the effects of biaxial strain on band structures and SHG are further investigated, taking MoSO as an exemplary case. We expect these results to bring in recipes for designing nonlinear optical devices based on Janus transition metal chalcogenide oxide monolayers.

A core–shell nanowire heterostructure is an important building block for nanowire-based optoelectronic devices. In this paper, the shape and composition evolution induced by adatom diffusion is investigated by constructing a growth model for alloy core–shell nanowire heterostructures, taking diffusion, adsorption, desorption and incorporation of adatoms into consideration. With moving boundaries accounting for sidewall growth, the transient diffusion equations are numerically solved by the finite element method. The adatom diffusions introduce the position-dependent and time-dependent adatom concentrations of components A and B. The newly grown alloy nanowire shell depends on the incorporation rates, resulting in both shape and composition evolution during growth. The results show that the morphology of nanowire shell strongly depends on the flux impingement angle. With the increase in this impingement angle, the position of the largest shell thickness on sidewall moves down to the bottom of nanowire and meanwhile, the contact angle between shell and substrate increases to an obtuse angle. Coupled with the shell shapes, the composition profiles are shown as non-uniform along both the nanowire and the shell growth directions, which can be attributed to the adatom diffusion of components A and B. The impacts of parameters on the shape and composition evolution are systematically investigated, including diffusion length, adatom lifetime and corresponding ratios between components. This kinetic model is expected to interpret the contribution of adatom diffusion in growing alloy group-IV and group III-V core–shell nanowire heterostructures.

Three ultracompact integrated photonic devices are proposed, assisted by etched structures. A mode-order converter (MOC) is achieved with a footprint of 0.85 × 1.4 μm2, which exhibits high performances with insertion loss (IL) below 0.34 dB and mode purity (MP) above 90% within 100 nm waveband. Moreover, a mode blocking filter (MBF) is proposed based on a subwavelength grating with a footprint of 0.8 × 4.12 μm2, which allows the propagation of TM0 mode but blocks the TM1 mode with a remarkably high extinction ratio of 31.6 dB at the wavelength of 1550 nm. Finally, a compact reciprocal optical diode (ROD) is presented by cascading the abovementioned MOC and MBF with a footprint of 0.85 × 5.9 μm2. This ROD enables one-way transmissions for both TM0 mode and TM1 mode with contrast ratios of 19.74 dB and 32.04 dB, respectively. The design methodology paves a new way for mode manipulation in integrated multimode photonic circuits.

This study is to investigate the role of the coating of TiO2 nanoparticles deposited on wool fibers against high-intensity ultraviolet B (UVB), ultraviolet A (UVA), and visible light irradiation. The properties of tensile and yellowness and whiteness indices of irradiated TiO2-coated wool fibers are measured. The changes of TiO2-coated wool fibers in optical property, thermal stability, surface morphology, composition, molecular structure, crystallinity, and orientation degree are characterized using diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, scanning electronic microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction techniques. Experimental results show that the tensile properties of anatase TiO2-coated wool fibers can be degraded under the high-intensity UVB, UVA, and visible light irradiation for a certain time, resulting in the loss of the postyield region of stress–strain curve for wool fibers. The coating of TiO2 nanoparticles makes a certain contribution to the tensile property, yellowness and whiteness indices, thermal stability, and surface morphology of wool fibers against high-intensity UVB, UVA, and visible light irradiation. The high-intensity UVB, UVA, and visible light can result in the photo-oxidation deterioration of the secondary structure of TiO2-coated wool fibers to a more or less degree. Meanwhile, the crystallinity and orientation degree of TiO2 coated wool fibers decrease too.

A high-contrast and compact wavelength diplexer is presented for conventional 1550 nm and emerging 2000 nm based on a subwavelength-grating (SWG) coupler. The SWG silicon waveguide thoroughly blocks the light propagation around 1550 nm but fully supports 2000 nm (extinction ratio: 43.11 dB). This grating type anisotropic metamaterial not only efficiently reduces the coupling length but also expands the operational bandwidth. Simulated by 3D finite-difference time-domain method, the proposed diplexer possesses a remarkably low insertion loss and a high contrast of 25.24 (31.7) dB at 1550 (2000) nm. The operational bandwidth of 200 (108) nm is achieved with contrast over 15 dB and insertion loss below 0.22 dB. The footprint of diplexer is only 5.27 μm × 11.85 μm. Moreover, such design has the scalability by simply tuning the geometrical parameters of SWG.

The upcoming beyond-5G and 6G ultra-high speed transmission networks have urged photonic transceivers to allow for higher bandwidth performance. In this work, an evanescent coupled high speed waveguide photodetector (PD) is fabricated and analyzed. Adopting a modified uni-traveling carrier structure, the PD exhibits a bandwidth of 100 GHz and a low dark current of 3 nA at −1.5 V. Numerical simulations show that the measured responsivity of 0.25 A W ^−1 is worsened by the inaccurate cleaving length of the coupling waveguide, and could potentially reach 0.688 A W ^−1 with anti-reflection film at the facet. The bandwidth is bound by high resistance and capacitance giving a transit-time limit as high as 310 GHz.

A rational design of transition metal catalysts to achieve selective hydrogenation of furfural (FFR) to tetrahydrofurfuryl alcohol (THFA) under facile conditions is a promising option. In this work, a series of Ni catalysts were synthesized by controlled thermal treatment of Ni-based metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), with the purpose of modulating the interface of nickel nanoparticles by the reticular coordination in MOF precursors. The catalytic performance indicates that Ni/C catalyst obtained at 400 °C exhibits efficient conversion of FFR (>99%) and high selectivity to THFA (96.1%), under facile conditions (80 °C, 3 MPa H2, 4.0 h). The decomposition of MOF at low temperatures results in highly dispersed Ni0 particles and interfacial charge transfer from metal to interstitial carbon atoms induced by coordination in MOF. The electron-deficient Ni species on the Ni surface results in an electropositive surface of Ni nanoparticles in Ni/C-400, which ameliorates furfural adsorption and enhances the hydrogen heterolysis process, finally achieving facile hydrogenation of FFR to THFA.

The chemical terrorist attack is a type of unconventional terrorism that threatens the safety of cities. This kind of terrorist attack is highly concealed and difficult to be detected. Once the attack is successful, the consequences will be severe and the scope of impact will be enormous. Therefore, public security and emergency departments need to perform risk analysis and dynamic knowledge update to reduce risk or mitigate the effects of accidents. In order to quickly and effectively analyze the risk of chemical terrorist attacks, this article proposed a hybrid approach (B-R model) to analyze the risk of chemical terrorist attacks. First, a modular and customizable Bayesian network (BN) model library was built, which can satisfy users to select multi-dimensional risk factors. Based on the personalized BN, a risk knowledge graph (RKG) is constructed with multi-source data to realize the combination of risk analysis and knowledge acquisition. Then the threat degree of terrorist organizations, the strength of defensive forces, and the risk value of targets is calculated and displayed. The BN-RKG method provides data and theoretical support for defenders' resource allocation and emergency decision-making. Finally, a case study was conducted for a hypothetical scenario analysis. The result shows that the hybrid method can help with risk control and have the potential to support practical policymaking.

Abstract The control of the polarization states of light plays an important role in modern optical systems. However, traditional polarization manipulating devices often have narrow bandwidth and their large size makes it difficult for them to achieve miniaturization and integration of optical systems. This work presents an ultrathin quarter waveplate with a periodic silver film 2 × 2 rectangular hole array with a thickness less than λ/50. Numerical simulation shows that the waveplate can efficiently transform a circular polarized wave into a linearly polarized one at the center of 1550 nm, and its bandwidth is 525 nm. Furthermore, the quarter waveplate can efficiently invert linear polarization into circular polarization at 1550 nm, which ellipticity is near unit. With an array of small holes on a metal film to enhance transmission, this structure can increase the transmission to 0.44. The broadband quarter waveplate can be used in communication system and near infrared band system, and be integrated with other optical devices at nanoscale to achieve polarization operation, detection, and sensing.

Nuclear power plants have a complex structure and changeable operation mode, which induces low setting calculation efficiency. After analyzing the technology, architecture, and functional logic of a variety of relay protection setting calculation systems and combining the characteristics of the setting calculation of nuclear power plants, the relay protection setting calculation system in nuclear power plants based on B/S architecture and cloud computing is studied in this paper. The system adopts three-tier B/S architecture, applies two key technologies, the cloud computing task distribution synchronization mechanism and the cloud component automatic assembly mechanism, and introduces a particle swarm optimization algorithm to provide technical support for nuclear power plant setting calculation; the running example of the nuclear power plant system fully proves the efficiency and reliability of the relay protection setting calculation system of the nuclear power plant, which has high practical value.

A parallel array of 10 side-illuminated waveguide photodetectors (WGPDs) with double-cladding structure was designed and fabricated. In order to achieve high coupling efficiency to the fiber, the thicknesses of InGa0.24As0.53P cladding layers and In0.53Ga0.47As core layer were optimized. The array exhibited a uniform responsivity of 0.54 A/W at 1310 nm without anti-reflection (AR) coating and dark currents lower than 1.3 nA at −5 V. Each photodetector (PD) showed a bandwidth of over 30 GHz, amounting to 400 Gbit/s transmission capacity for the whole chip. In addition, numerical analysis showed that the fiber alignment tolerance to the chip edge along vertical and horizontal directions, when using a lensed fiber, were 1.8 μm and 4.6 μm, respectively. The simple fabrication, easy alignment capability and high performance make the photodetector array a competitive solution for future 400 Gbit/s parallel communication.

Metasurfaces with both multifunctionality and tunability hold great application potential in next-generation optical devices. In this paper, we propose a stretchable metasurface composed of arrays of identical dielectric rectangular resonators embedded in the polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) substrate. It is shown that the metasurface possesses three functions at the operating wavelength of 532 nm. The switching of functions can be implemented by changing the period Px of the metasurface, induced by stretching the PDMS substrate along the x-direction. When the period Px is less than the operating wavelength of 532 nm, the behavior of metasurface can switch between transmissive window and reflective mirror. When the period Px of the metasurface varies from 532 nm to 700 nm, the metasurface act as a dynamic equal-power beam splitter with conversion efficiency higher than 90%, and the corresponding splitting angle can be adjusted from 90° to around 49.5°. Moreover, we achieve the switching of transmissive window/reflective mirror/split-ratio-variable splitter based on the metasurface consisting of arrays of identical L-shaped resonators embedded in the PDMS substrate.

In this letter, we propose ultra-compact TE-polarized even-to-odd mode converter designs by introducing Ge/Si patterns into silicon waveguide-integrated functional region. The Ge areas with continuous boundaries are determined by topology optimization that combines finite element method, geometric projection method, and method of moving asymptotes. Both two-dimensional (2D) and quasi-3D designs are presented. Simultaneous beam splitting and phase shifting are achieved in the functional region with only 1.0 × 1.55 μm2 area. Based on the 3D finite-difference time-domain simulations, the quasi3D designs possess satisfactory mode purity (>0.99) at center wavelength 1550 nm, and the mode purity keeps higher than 0.92 within the wavelength range from 1500 to 1600 nm. Meanwhile, the forward transmission efficiency is shown higher than 0.89 within the operational bandwidth. Moreover, the robustness is demonstrated by considering the loss of Ge material and the geometric deviations. The proposed mode-order converters bring together advantages including wavelength footprint, high mode purity, low insertion loss, and large operational bandwidth.

Abstract In this paper, we present an all-dielectric gradient metasurface, composed of periodic arrangement of differently sized cross-shaped silicon nanoblocks resting on the fused silica substrate, to realize the function of polarization split in visible region. The cross-shaped silicon block arrays can induce two opposite transmission phase gradients along the x-direction for the linear x-polarization and y-polarization. By properly designing, the metasurface can separate the linearly polarized light into x- and y-polarized ones, which propagate at the same angle along the left and right sides of the normal incidence in the x-z plane. Particularly, when a beam with the polarization angle of 45.0° is incident on the proposed device, the x- and y-polarized transmitted ones possess nearly equal intensity within the wavelength range from 579 to 584 nm. We expect the proposed polarization beam splitter can play an important role for future free-space optical devices.

In recent years, transparent solar technology has attracted increasing attention, which has the potential to let many of the surfaces of our buildings environment be turned into solar harvesting arrays without impacting their function or aesthetics. Glazing with nanostructured surface possessing different solar absorption ability from different directions is studied currently as a route to reduce the environmental cost of keeping appropriate indoor temperature. Here a transparent and solar thermal metasurface based on low cost copper plasmonic nanostructures is proposed and a maximum 25% difference in absorption from different sides is demonstrated experimentally. The spectra show strong activity in the infrared and still have transparency for visible light, which can be further improved by optimizing the structures according to the simulations. These materials are suitable as an alternative design of window glazing for energy saving. Keywords: Thermal management, Plasmonic, Nanostructure, Metamaterial

Abstract We propose and numerically demonstrate an ultra-broadband graphene-based metamaterial absorber, which consists of multi-layer graphene/dielectric on the SiO2 layer supported by a metal substrate. The simulated result shows that the proposed absorber can achieve a near-perfect absorption above 90% with a bandwidth of 4.8 Thz. Owing to the flexible tunability of graphene sheet, the state of the absorber can be switched from on (absorption > 90%) to off (reflection > 90%) in the frequencies range of 3–7.8 Thz by controlling the Fermi energy of graphene. Moreover, the absorber is insensitive to the incident angles. The broadband absorption can be maintained over 90% up to 50°. Importantly, the design is scalable to develop broader tunable terahertz absorbers by adding more graphene layers which may have wide applications in imaging, sensors, photodetectors, and modulators.

Abstract Plasmonic metasurfaces have attracted much attention in recent years owing to many promising prospects of applications such as polarization switching, local electric field enhancement (FE), near-perfect absorption, sensing, slow-light devices, and nanoantennas. However, many problems in these applications, like only gigahertz switching speeds of electro-optical switches, low-quality factor (Q) of plasmonic resonances, and relatively low figure of merit (FOM) of sensing, severely limit the further development of plasmonic metasurface. Besides, working as nanoantennas, it is also challenging to realize both local electric FE exceeding 100 and near-perfect absorption above 99%. Here, using finite element method and finite difference time domain methods respectively, we firstly report a novel optically tunable plasmonic metasurface based on the hybridization of in-plane near-field coupling and out-of-plane near-field coupling, which provides a good solution to these serious and urgent problems. A physical phenomenon of electromagnetically induced transparency is obtained by the destructive interference between two plasmon modes. At the same time, ultrasharp perfect absorption peaks with ultra-high Q-factor (221.43) is achieved around 1550 nm, which can lead to an ultra-high FOM (214.29) in sensing application. Particularly, by using indium-doped CdO, this metasurface is also firstly demonstrated to be a femtosecond optical reflective polarizer in near-infrared region, possessing an ultra-high polarization extinction ratio. Meanwhile, operating as nanoantennas, this metasurface achieves simultaneously strong local electric FE(|E loc|/|E 0| > 100) and a near-perfect absorption above 99.9% for the first time, which will benefit a wide range of applications including photocatalytic water splitting and surface-enhanced infrared absorption.

We propose and numerically demonstrate a design of bidirectional transverse electric (TE) polarized mode-order converter based on silicon-on-insulator platform. This converter is realized by introducing high refractive index material inlaid in a silicon slab waveguide. Simulated by three-dimensional finite-difference method time-domain, the forward (TE0 to TE1-like conversion) transmittance reaches approximately 88.2%, while the backward value (TE1 to TE0-like conversion) is about 89.4% at the wavelength of 1550 nm. The footprint of this converter is as small as 0.95 × 1.5 μm2. Fabrication tolerance analysis demonstrates satisfactory robustness. Moreover, we present a polarization-independent converter with slightly modified geometry. The transmittance keeps above 87.2% within the wavelength range from 1500 nm to 1600 nm for both TE and transverse magnetic modes. These devices are expected to contribute to the on-chip mode division multiplexing.

Based on density functional theory, we theoretically investigate the electronic structures of free-standing armchair Janus MoSSe nanoribbons (A-MoSSeNR) with width up to 25.5 nm. The equilibrium structures of nanoribbons with spontaneous curling are obtained by energy minimization in molecular dynamics (MD). The curvature is 0.178 nm−1 regardless of nanoribbon width. Both finite element method and analytical solution based on continuum theory provide qualitatively consistent results for the curling behavior, reflecting that relaxation of intrinsic strain induced by the atomic asymmetry acts as the driving force. The non-edge bandgap of curled A-MoSSeNR reduces faster with the increase of width compared with planar nanoribbons. It can be observed that the real-space wave function at the non-edge VBM is localized in the central region of the curled nanoribbon. When the curvature is larger than 1.0 nm−1, both edge bandgap and non-edge bandgap shrink with the further increase of curvature. Moreover, we explore the spontaneous curling and consequent sewing process of nanoribbon to form nanotube (Z-MoSSeNT) by MD simulations. The spontaneously formed Z-MoSSeNT with 5.6 nm radius possesses the lowest energy. When radius is smaller than 0.9 nm, the bandgap of Z-MoSSeNT drops rapidly as the radius decreases. We expect the theoretical results can help build the foundation for novel nanoscale devices based on Janus TMD nanoribbons.

Abstract We propose and theoretically investigate an efficient solar light absorber based on a multilayer structure consisting of tungsten nanoparticle layers and SiO2 layers. According to our calculation, average absorbance over 94% is achieved in the wavelength range between 400 and 2500 nm for the proposed absorber. The excellent performance of the absorber can be attributed to the localized surface plasmon resonance as well as the Fabry-Perot resonance among the metal-dielectric-metal layers. We compare the absorbing efficiency of tungsten nanosphere absorber with absorbers consisting of the other metal nanoparticles and conclude that iron can be an alternative material for tungsten in solar energy systems for its excellent absorbing performance and the similar optical properties as tungsten. Besides, a flat multilayer absorber is designed for comparison, and it is also proved to have a good absorbing performance for solar light.

Metasurface-based beam splitters attracted huge interest for their superior properties compared with conventional ones made of bulk materials. The previously reported designs adopted discrete metasurfaces with the limitation of a discontinuous phase profile. In this paper, we propose a dual-band beam splitter, based on an anisotropic quasi-continuous metasurface, by exploring the optical responses under x-polarized (with an electric field parallel to the direction of the phase gradient) and y-polarized incidences. The adopted metasurface consists of two identical trapezoidal silicon antenna arrays with opposite spatial variations that lead to opposite phase gradients. The operational window of the proposed beam splitter falls in the infrared and visible region, respectively, for x- and y-polarized light, resulting from the different mechanisms. When x-polarized light is incident, the conversion efficiency and total transmission of the beam splitter remains higher than 90% and 0.74 within the wavelength range from 969 nm to 1054 nm, respectively. In this condition, each array can act as a beam splitter of unequal power. For y-polarized incidence, the maximum conversion efficiency and transmission reach approximately 100% and 0.85, while the values remain higher than 90% and 0.65 in the wavelength range from 687 nm to 710 nm, respectively. In this case, each array can be viewed as an effective beam deflector. We anticipate that it can play a key role in future integrated optical devices.

Abstract We propose and numerically investigate a perfect ultra-narrowband absorber with an absorption bandwidth of only 1.82 nm and an absorption efficiency exceeding 95% in the visible region. We demonstrate that the perfect ultra-narrowband absorption is ascribed to the coupling effect induced by localized surface plasmon resonance. The influence of structural dimensions on the optical performance is also investigated, and the optimal structure is obtained with the extremely low reflectivity (0.001) of the resonance dip. The perfect absorber can be operated as a refractive index sensor with a sensitivity of around 425 nm/RIU and the figure of merit (FOM) reaching 233.5, which greatly improves the accuracy of the plasmonic sensors in visible region. Moreover, the corresponding figure of merit (FOM*) for this sensor is also calculated to describe the performance of the intensity change detection at a fixed frequency, which can be up to 1.4 × 105. Due to the high sensing performance, the metamaterial structure has great potential in the biological binding, integrated photodetectors, chemical applications and so on.

We propose and investigate a silicon photonic TE-pass polarizer consisting of alternating layers made out of copper/silicon nitride (Cu/Si3N4). Based on a Si stripe waveguide, the launched dominant fundamental TE mode can normally pass through it with little influence, whereas the unwanted fundamental TM mode ends up in nearly zero output as it is gradually coupled into a plasmonic mode. Particularly, the polarizer with wedge-shaped Cu/Si3N4 structure can achieve extremely high extinction ratio (ER) of 52.34 dB and low insertion loss of 0.35 dB within an ultracompact device length of 2 μ m. It also presents a relatively wide operating bandwidth of 61 nm maintaining ER >20 dB. Furthermore, considering Si3N4 itself a good Cu2+ ion diffusion barrier and its good adhesion to copper, the device fabrication is reasonably practicable using complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS)-compatible technologies. Last but not the least, we first present and analyze the connection between mode property and device performance, which could provide a significant step forward for establishing and improving the polarization diversity systems of great importance in nanophotonic integrated circuits.

Quantum dots (QDs) show great promise for use in nanotechnology, owing to their high quantum efficiency, color tenability, narrow emission, and high luminescence efficiency. As a new generation of light-emitting devices (LEDs), QD-LEDs have attracted a great deal of attention in displays and lighting. To meet the commercial requirements, the brightness of QD-LEDs needs to be further improved. In this work, we propose multilayer heterostructures on a SiO2 substrate, which provides multiple reflective bands with the very high reflective efficiency of nearly up to 100%. Electric field distributes mostly in the superficial layer. The proposed structure provides highly multiband reflection covering the emission peaks of QDs in LEDs; hence, it can eventually enhance QDs' fluorescence and enhance the brightness of QD-LEDs. We investigate four typical emission wavelengths, mainly aiming for red QD-LEDs and infrared QD-LEDs, which correspond to the applications of displays, infrared illumination, optical communication, and so on. The total reflection bands can be adjusted according to practical requirements by tuning the thickness of every layer. One fabrication procedure can be used for different kinds of QDs or the same kind of QD with different sizes without changing their processing properties. The proposed structure has fewer flat layers compared with 1-D photonic crystals, which leads to lower cost and easier fabrications.

A method of focal-shift resonance with substrate based on two commonly used structures of nano-optical lens is presented with numerical simulations. This resonance exhibits periodicity with the variation of substrate refractive index. Both types of lenses are based on gradual changed nanoslits and analyzed by the extraordinary optical transmission theory. This displacement of focal point can reach the order of microns. A periodic intensity change of focal light is observed between two absorption peaks in metal nanolens. The origin of this focal shift is also discussed with the analysis of the Fresnel number in diffraction. The finite element method is utilized in this paper.

We theoretically present a design for simultaneous all-optical OR and XOR logic gates based on single quantum dot (QD)-bimodal cavity system working in low-photon-number regime. The coupling between the QD and two degenerate cavity modes establishes new indirect excitation paths. Driven by single pulsed laser, both mode transmissions are observed. The delay between the peaks of the transmitted pulses is regarded as the extra transition interval (ETI) in the indirect path. When driven by two orthogonally polarized pulsed lasers with delay same as ETI, the coupling system suppresses the latter mode transmission due to the destructive interference effect. The OR and XOR logic gates based on presence of light are built and the function can be switched between two detectors by simply adjusting the driving pulse sequence. The results show that the proposed logic gates work well within a large range for coupling strength with comparable cavity decay rate. When taking two nonidealities (the detuning between two cavity modes and nonidentical coupling strengths) into consideration, the proposed system shows acceptable tolerances. Moreover, the robustness of the performance on parameters of the driving lasers, including pulse delay, width of pulse, absolute driving strength, and relative driving strength ratio, are demonstrated.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has been gradually considered a public health challenge worldwide. Sulfated polysaccharides, extracted from seaweed, have been shown to have an anti-inflammatory effect on the disease. In this study, LMW-ulvan, a unique sulfate Ulva polysaccharide with low molecular weight, was prepared using the enzymatic method. The structural characterization of LMW-ulvan and its protective effect on colitis induced by dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) were studied. The results showed that LMW-ulvan with molecular weight of 2.56 kDa consists of 57.23% rhamnose (Rha), 28.76% xylose (Xyl), 7.42% glucuronic acid (GlcA), and 1.77% glucose (Glc). Its backbone contains (1→3,4)-linked Rha, (1→4)-linked Xyl, and (1→4)-linked GlcA with small amounts of (1→4)-linked Rha residues; sulfate substitution was at C-3 of Rha. LMW-ulvan was found to reduce DSS-induced disease activity index, colon shortening, and colonic tissue damage, which were associated with decreased oxidative stresses and inflammation, thus improving the expression of tight junction proteins. These results indicate that LMW-ulvan is able to improve colitis and may be a promising application for IBD.

An optical 90° hybrid based on an InGaAsP/InP deep-ridged 4 × 4 multimode interference (MMI) coupler is proposed and fabricated. Manufacturing tolerances on structural parameters of the 90° hybrid including multimode waveguide width and length, waveguide core thickness, and refractive index are analyzed over the whole C-band using a three-dimensional beam propagation method (3D BPM). The simulation results show that the 90° hybrid is insensitive to the interference length with a deviation of 10 μm. However, the width fluctuations produce far stronger performance variations than length fluctuations. The common-mode rejection ratios (CMRRs) are always above 40 dB, and the phase error (PE) is always below 2.5° with the fluctuations of the refractive index by 0.01 and the thickness by 0.1 μm of the core layer. The fabricated device exhibited a quadrature phase response with a high common-mode rejection ratio of more than 25 dB and a small phase error of less than 5° from 1545 nm to 1560 nm.

Multipole interferences have attracted a lot of interests in last decade due to extraordinary performance on beam control and scattering shaping. However, most of previous works focused on the dipole-based interferences while the quadrupole modes and other high-order multipole modes with unique properties were of less attention. In this work, we aim to expand the present dipole-based multipole-interference regime to the quadrupole-interference regime. We study the interference between an electric quadrupole (EQ) and a magnetic quadrupole (MQ) in both isolated and periodically arranged homogeneous cross dielectric structure. Through structural parametric control, the EQ and MQ can be precisely tuned to share the same resonant intensity at a specific wavelength, resulting in a generalized Kerker effect. Moreover, a dark MQ mode, which is orthogonal with the original MQ mode, arises when we increase the interaction between structure. We find that the spectral approaching between dark MQ and original bright EQ results in an EIT effect and Fano-shaped spectral reflection response. The induced Fano spectrum possesses tunable quality factors varying from ∼10 to >10 ^5 with the variation of EQ–MQ coupling efficiency. The numerically derived maximum quality factor (238, 618) of the dielectric EQ–MQ coupling system even exceeds the quality factors of many plasmonic resonant systems. We also prove that such spectrum can be adopted to refractive index sensing. Besides, we show that EQ–MQ coupling can bring about rapid 2 π phase change, which can be applied in metasurface designs. These results and conclusions about the EQ–MQ interference systems can provide a promising avenue for advanced optical devices.