Thermodynamic magnetization discontinuity between the A and B phases of superfluid3he

We present data for the magnitude of the thermodynamic magnetization discontinuity at the equilibrium A-B transition in superfluid³He, M_AB, over its entire pressure-temperature-magnetic field phase diagram. The data was taken by measuring flux changes in a SQUID pick-up coil, which was calibrated by a novel first-principles technique. We compare our results with those of NMR experiments, and find that the two types of measurements yield different values, and this discrepancy is not the result of thermometry or field errors.     

Evidence for Glass–glass Interfaces in a Columnar Cu–Zr Nanoglass

Comprehensive analyses of the atomic structure using advanced analytical transmission electron microscopy-based methods combined with atom probe tomography confirm the presence of distinct glass–glass interfaces in a columnar Cu-Zr nanoglass synthesized by magnetron sputtering. These analyses provide first-time in-depth characterization of sputtered film nanoglasses and indicate that glass–glass interfaces indeed present an amorphous phase with reduced mass density as compared to the neighboring amorphous regions. Moreover, dedicated analyses of the diffusion kinetics by time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectroscopy (ToF SIMS) prove significantly enhanced diffusivity, suggesting fast transport along the low density glass–glass interfaces. The present results further indicate that sputter deposition is a feasible technique for reliable production of nanoglasses and that some of the concepts proposed for this new class of glassy materials are applicable.     

Deterministic Polymorphic Engineering of MoTe2 for Photonic and Optoelectronic Applications

Developing selective and coherent polymorphic crystals at the nanoscale offers a novel strategy for designing integrated architectures for photonic and optoelectronic applications such as metasurfaces, optical gratings, photodetectors, and image sensors. Here, a direct optical writing approach is demonstrated to deterministically create polymorphic 2D materials by locally inducing metallic 1T′-MoTe₂ on the semiconducting 2H-MoTe₂ host layer. In the polymorphic-engineered MoTe₂, 2H- and 1T′- crystalline phases exhibit strong optical contrast from near-infrared to telecom-band ranges (1–1.5 µm), due to the change in the band structure and increase in surface roughness. Sevenfold enhancement of third harmonic generation intensity is realized with conversion efficiency (susceptibility) of ≈1.7 × 10⁻⁷ (1.1 × 10⁻¹⁹ m² V⁻²) and ≈1.7 × 10⁻⁸ (0.3 × 10⁻¹⁹ m² V⁻²) for 1T′ and 2H-MoTe₂, respectively at telecom-band ultrafast pump laser. Lastly, based on polymorphic engineering on MoTe₂, a Schottky photodiode with a high photoresponsivity of 90 AW⁻¹ is demonstrated. This study proposes facile polymorphic engineered structures that will greatly benefit realizing integrated photonics and optoelectronic circuits.     

An Overview and Future Perspectives of Aluminum Batteries

A critical overview of the latest developments in the aluminum battery technologies is reported. The substitution of lithium with alternative metal anodes characterized by lower cost and higher abundance is nowadays one of the most widely explored paths to reduce the cost of electrochemical storage systems and enable long‐term sustainability. Aluminum based secondary batteries could be a viable alternative to the present Li‐ion technology because of their high volumetric capacity (8040 mAh cm^?3 for Al vs 2046 mAh cm^?3 for Li). Additionally, the low cost aluminum makes these batteries appealing for large‐scale electrical energy storage. Here, we describe the evolution of the various aluminum systems, starting from those based on aqueous electrolytes to, in more details, those based on non‐aqueous electrolytes. Particular attention has been dedicated to the latest development of electrolytic media characterized by low reactivity towards other cell components. The attention is then focused on electrode materials enabling the reversible aluminum intercalation‐deintercalation process. Finally, we touch on the topic of high‐capacity aluminum‐sulfur batteries, attempting to forecast their chances to reach the status of practical energy storage systems.     

Dynamic optimal experimental design yields marginal improvement over steady‐state results for computational maximisation of regulatory T‐cell induction in ex vivo culture

The isolation of T cells, followed by differentiation into Regulatory T cells (Tregs), and re‐transplantation into the body has been proposed as a therapeutic option for inflammatory bowel disease. A key requirement for making this a viable therapeutic option is the generation of a large population of Tregs. However, cytokines in the local microenvironment can impact the yield of Tregs during differentiation. As such, experimental design is an essential part of evaluating the importance of different cytokine concentrations for Treg differentiation. However, currently only single, constant concentrations of the cytokines have been investigated. This work addresses this point by performing experimental design in silico which seeks to maximize the predicted induction of Tregs relative to Th17 cells, by selecting an optimal input function for the concentrations of TGF‐β, IL‐2, IL‐6, and IL‐23. While this approach sounds promising, the results show that only marginal improvements in the concentration of Tregs can be achieved for dynamic cytokine profiles as compared to optimal constant concentrations. Since constant concentrations are easier to implement in experiments, it is recommended for this particular system to keep the concentrations constant where IL‐6 should be kept low and high concentrations of TGF‐β, IL‐2, and IL‐23 should be used.Inspec keywords: patient treatment, molecular biophysics, proteins, cellular biophysics, diseasesOther keywords: Tregs relative, optimal input function, dynamic cytokine profiles, optimal constant concentrations, IL‐23, computational maximisation, regulatory T‐cell induction, inflammatory bowel disease, viable therapeutic option, local microenvironment, Treg differentiation, single concentrations, predicted induction, dynamic optimal experimental design, interleukin‐2, IL‐6, transforming growth factor‐β     

Microalgae-Based Biohybrid Microrobot for Accelerated Diabetic Wound Healing

A variety of wound healing platforms have been proposed to alleviate the hypoxic condition and/or to modulate the immune responses for the treatment of chronic wounds in diabetes. However, these platforms with the passive diffusion of therapeutic agents through the blood clot result in the relatively low delivery efficiency into the deep wound site. Here, a microalgae-based biohybrid microrobot for accelerated diabetic wound healing is developed. The biohybrid microrobot autonomously moves at velocity of 33.3 µm s⁻¹ and generates oxygen for the alleviation of hypoxic condition. In addition, the microrobot efficiently bound with inflammatory chemokines of interleukin-8 (IL-8) and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) for modulating the immune responses. The enhanced penetration of microrobot is corroborated by measuring fibrin clots in biomimetic wound using microfluidic devices and the enhanced retention of microrobot is confirmed in the real wounded mouse skin tissue. After deposition on the chronic wound in diabetic mice without wound dressing, the wounds treated with microrobots are completely healed after 9 days with the significant decrease of inflammatory cytokines below 31% of the control level and the upregulated angiogenesis above 20 times of CD31⁺ cells. These results confirm the feasibility of microrobots as a next-generation platform for diabetic wound healing.     

Wavelet transforms for detecting microcalcifications in mammograms

Clusters of fine, granular microcalcifications in mammograms may be an early sign of disease. Individual grains are difficult to detect and segment due to size and shape variability and because the background mammogram texture is typically inhomogeneous. The authors develop a 2-stage method based on wavelet transforms for detecting and segmenting calcifications. The first stage is based on an undecimated wavelet transform, which is simply the conventional filter bank implementation without downsampling, so that the low-low (LL), low-high (LH), high-low (HL), and high-high (HH) sub-bands remain at full size. Detection takes place in HH and the combination LH+HL. Four octaves are computed with 2 inter-octave voices for finer scale resolution. By appropriate selection of the wavelet basis the detection of microcalcifications in the relevant size range can be nearly optimized. In fact, the filters which transform the input image into HH and LH+HL are closely related to prewhitening matched filters for detecting Gaussian objects (idealized microcalcifications) in 2 common forms of Markov (background) noise. The second stage is designed to overcome the limitations of the simplistic Gaussian assumption and provides an accurate segmentation of calcification boundaries. Detected pixel sites in HH and LH+HL are dilated then weighted before computing the inverse wavelet transform. Individual microcalcifications are greatly enhanced in the output image, to the point where straightforward thresholding can be applied to segment them. FROG curves are computed from tests using a freely distributed database of digitized mammograms.     

GPU-based real-time approximation of the ablation zone for radiofrequency ablation

Percutaneous radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is becoming a standard minimally invasive clinical procedure for the treatment of liver tumors. However, planning the applicator placement such that the malignant tissue is completely destroyed, is a demanding task that requires considerable experience. In this work, we present a fast GPU-based real-time approximation of the ablation zone incorporating the cooling effect of liver vessels. Weighted distance fields of varying RF applicator types are derived from complex numerical simulations to allow a fast estimation of the ablation zone. Furthermore, the heat-sink effect of the cooling blood flow close to the applicator's electrode is estimated by means of a preprocessed thermal equilibrium representation of the liver parenchyma and blood vessels. Utilizing the graphics card, the weighted distance field incorporating the cooling blood flow is calculated using a modular shader framework, which facilitates the real-time visualization of the ablation zone in projected slice views and in volume rendering. The proposed methods are integrated in our software assistant prototype for planning RFA therapy. The software allows the physician to interactively place virtual RF applicator models. The real-time visualization of the corresponding approximated ablation zone facilitates interactive evaluation of the tumor coverage in order to optimize the applicator's placement such that all cancer cells are destroyed by the ablation.     

Characterization of terrestrial water dynamics in the Congo Basin using GRACE and satellite radar altimetry

The Congo Basin is the world's third largest in size (~ 3.7 million km²), and second only to the Amazon River in discharge (~ 40,200 m³ s^− 1 annual average). However, the hydrological dynamics of seasonally flooded wetlands and floodplains remains poorly quantified. Here, we separate the Congo wetland into four 3° × 3° regions, and use remote sensing measurements (i.e., GRACE, satellite radar altimeter, GPCP, JERS-1, SRTM, and MODIS) to estimate the amounts of water filling and draining from the Congo wetland, and to determine the source of the water. We find that the amount of water annually filling and draining the Congo wetlands is 111 km³, which is about one-third the size of the water volumes found on the mainstem Amazon floodplain. Based on amplitude comparisons among the water volume changes and timing comparisons among their fluxes, we conclude that the local upland runoff is the main source of the Congo wetland water, not the fluvial process of river-floodplain water exchange as in the Amazon. Our hydraulic analysis using altimeter measurements also supports our conclusion by demonstrating that water surface elevations in the wetlands are consistently higher than the adjacent river water levels. Our research highlights differences in the hydrology and hydrodynamics between the Congo wetland and the mainstem Amazon floodplain.