Structural,optical and electrical properties of indium doped Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4 thin films synthesized by the DC and RF reactive magnetron cosputtering

Element doping into the Cu₂ZnSn(S,Se)₄ (CZTSSe) absorber is an effective method to optimize the performance of thin film solar cells. In this study, the Cu₂In_xZn_1-xSn(S,Se)₄ (CIZTSSe) precursor film was deposited by magnetron cosputtering technique using indium (In) and quaternary Cu₂ZnSnS₄ (CZTS) as targets. Meanwhile, the In content was controlled using the direct current (DC) power on In target (P_In). A single kesterite CIZTSSe alloy was formed by successfully doping a small number of In³⁺ into the main lattice of CZTSSe. The partial Zn²⁺ cations were substituted by In³⁺ ions, resulting in improving properties of CZTSSe films. Morphological analysis showed that large grain CIZTSSe films could be obtained by doping In. The well-distributed, smooth, and dense film was obtained when the P_In was 30 W. The band gap of CIZTSSe could be continuously adjusted from 1.27 to 1.05 eV as P_In increased from 0 to 40 W. In addition, the CIZTSSe alloy thin film at P_In = 30 W exhibited the best p-type conductivity with Hall mobility of 6.87 cm²V^?1s^?1, which is a potential material as the absorption layer of high-performance solar cells.     

Combining molybdenum carbide with ceria overlayers to boost Mo/CeO2 catalyzed ammonia synthesis

The design of an efficient non-noble metal catalyst is of burgeoning interest for ammonia synthesis. Herein, we report a Mo₂C/CeO₂ catalyst that is superior in ammonia synthesis activity. In this catalyst, molybdenum carbide coexisted with the ceria overlayers which is from the ceria support as the strong metal–support interaction. There is a high proportion of low-valent Mo species, as well as high concentration of Ce³⁺ and surface oxygen species. The presence of Mo₂C and CeO₂ overlayers not only leads to enhancement of hydrogen and nitrogen adsorption, but also facilitates the desorption and exchange of adsorbed species with the gaseous reagents. Compared with the Mo/CeO₂ catalyst prepared without carbonization, the Mo₂C/CeO₂ catalyst is more than sevenfold higher in ammonia synthesis rate. This work not only presents an explicit example of designing Mo-based catalyst that is highly efficient for ammonia synthesis by tuning the adsorption and desorption properties of the reactant gases, but opens a perspective for other elements in ammonia synthesis.     

Deep Integration of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (InE) Education in Chinese University Classrooms

Recently, InE has been regarded as a popular education strategy in Chinese universities. However, problems have been exposed in the adoption of InE, for example, in InE courses and competitions. The purpose of this paper is to provide a possible solution to the problems, which is to organize effective InE courses by integrating InE with Inter-Course-level Problem-Based Learning (ICPBL). A detailed case is demonstrated by an ICPBL elective course design with deep integration of InE in the teaching, learning, and assessments. This paper contributes to a new curriculum design for promoting InE education in practically for Chinese universities.     

Effect of Temperature and Strain Rate on the Hot Deformation Behaviour of Ferritic Stainless Steel

Metals and Materials International - The flow behaviour and microstructure characteristics of a ferritic stainless steel were investigated using plain strain compression test on a Gleeble 3500...     

A Potent Mimetic of the Siglec-8 Ligand 6’-Sulfo-Sialyl Lewisx

Siglecs are members of the immunoglobulin gene family containing sialic acid binding N-terminal domains. Among them, Siglec-8 is expressed on various cell types of the immune system such as eosinophils, mast cells and weakly on basophils. Cross-linking of Siglec-8 with monoclonal antibodies triggers apoptosis in eosinophils and inhibits degranulation of mast cells, making Siglec-8 a promising target for the treatment of eosinophil- and mast cell-associated diseases such as asthma. The tetrasaccharide 6’-sulfo-sialyl Lewis^x has been identified as a specific Siglec-8 ligand in glycan array screening. Here, we describe an extended study enlightening the pharmacophores of 6’-sulfo-sialyl Lewis^x and the successful development of a high-affinity mimetic. Retaining the neuraminic acid core, the introduction of a carbocyclic mimetic of the Gal moiety and a sulfonamide substituent in the 9-position gave a 20-fold improved binding affinity. Finally, the residence time, which usually is the Achilles tendon of carbohydrate/lectin interactions, could be improved.     

Supramolecular Glyco‐nanoparticles Toward Immunological Applications

Glyco‐mimicking nanoparticles (glyco‐NPs) with Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) donor and acceptor groups formed via dynamic covalent bond of benzoboroxole and sugar from two complementary polymers are prepared. The glyco‐NPs are proved to be quite stable under physiological conditions but sensitive to pH. So the glyco‐NPs can be internalized by dendritic cells with integrity and nontoxicity and then dissociate within the acidic organelles. This particle dissociation is directly observed and visualized in vitro, for the first time via the FRET measurements and fluorescent microscopy. This feature makes controlled release of drug or protein by glyco‐NPs possible, i.e., when model antigen Ovalbumin is loaded in the glyco‐NPs, the released Ovalbumin in dendritic cells stimulates T cells more efficiently than the free Ovalbumin itself as a result of the enhanced antigen processing and presentation. Thus, the results enlighten a bright future of the glyco‐NPs in immunotherapy.     

Structural health analysis on cyber physical system based on reliability

The Journal of Supercomputing - Cyber physical system (CPS) is consisting of two interdependent networks, i.e., a cyber network embedding into a physical network. Although interdependence makes the...     

Smart firefighting construction in China: Status,problems, and reflections

“Smart firefighting” construction as a part of the “smart city” has been a concern of the public security and fire agencies at all levels. In this study, the status, problems, and reflections of “smart firefighting” construction in China are discussed. A recent survey indicates that China has launched its smart firefighting construction and initially created a new perspective on its regional smart firefighting work based on three main aspects: intelligent disaster perception by Internet of Things (IoT) construction, intelligent disaster prevention by big data construction, and intelligent disaster disposal by emergency rescue platform construction. However, the current smart firefighting construction in China still has some prominent problems such as the data interconnectivity and normalized management of various platforms, the extensibility of smart firefighting platforms, and the intelligent level of smart firefighting researches, which need to be solved urgently. Therefore, we argue that smart firefighting construction in China should establish data interconnectivity, industrial normalized management, 2D/3D geographic information interaction and extension, high-integration fire protection theory, and many other aspects in the near future and truly realize firefighting visualization and efficient data applications for 4D time space. This study could provide valuable reference for smart firefighting and smart city construction.