BINA

The interplay of interactions and disorder in low-dimensional superconductors supports the formation of multiple quantum phases as possible instabilities of the superconductor-insulator transition (SIT) at a singular quantum critical point. We explore a one-dimensional model which exhibits such a variety of phases in the strongly quantum fluctuations regime. Specifically, we study the effect of weak disorder on a two-leg Josephson ladder with comparable Josephson and charging energies (E J∼ E C). An additional key feature of our model is the requirement of perfect Z 2 symmetry, respected by all parameters including the disorder. Using a perturbative renormalization-group (RG) analysis, we derive the phase diagram and identify at least one intermediate phase between a full-fledged superconductor and a disorder-dominated insulator. Most prominently, for repulsive interactions on the rungs we identify two …

Chaos is generally considered a nuisance, inasmuch as it prevents long-term predictions in physical systems. Here, we present an easily accessible approach to undo deterministic chaos in arbitrary two-dimensional optical chaotic billiards, by introducing spatially varying refractive index therein. The landscape of refractive index is obtained by a conformal transformation from an integrable billiard. Our study shows that this approach is robust to small fluctuations. We show further that trajectory rectification can be realized by relating chaotic billiards with non-Euclidean billiards. Finally, we illustrate the universality of this approach by extending our investigations to arbitrarily deformed optical billiards. This work not only contributes in controlling chaos, but provides a novel pathway to the design of billiards and microcavities with desired properties and functionalities.

Electronic waste is the fastest growing waste stream and one of the most significant constituents is electronic plastics. In this study, the combustion kinetic of typical electronic plastic waste—television set (TV) plastic shell—was investigated using two basic kinetic methods. The reaction mechanism and kinetic compensation effect were probed as well. The thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) revealed that its degradation process can be divided into four stages, namely, reaction initiation stage (20–300 °C), major reaction stage (300–450 °C), minor reaction stage (450–600 °C), and reaction cessation stage (600–1,000 °C). The activation energy (E) were calculated and indicated that, the kinetic parameters from six model-free methods gradually decreased with α increasing from 0.1 to 0.35, and then slightly increased. The Flynn--Wall--Ozawa (FWO) method was more reliable and E values decreased from 155.0 to 147 …

The structure of the gut tissue facilitates close and mutualistic interactions between the host and the gut microbiota. These cross-talks are crucial for maintaining local and systemic homeostasis; changes to gut microbiota composition (dysbiosis) associate with a wide array of human diseases. Methods for dissecting host-microbiota interactions encompass an inherent tradeoff among preservation of physiological tissue structure (when using in vivo animal models) and the level of control over the experiment factors (as in simple in vitro cell culture systems). To address this tradeoff, Yissachar et al. recently developed an intestinal organ culture system. The system preserves a naive colon tissue construction and cellular mechanisms and it also permits tight experimental control, facilitating experimentations that cannot be readily performed in vivo. It is optimal for dissecting short-term responses of various gut components (such as epithelial, immunological and neuronal elements) to luminal perturbations (including anaerobic or aerobic microbes, whole microbiota samples from mice or humans, drugs and metabolites). Here, we present a detailed description of an optimized protocol for organ culture of multiple gut fragments using a custom-made gut culture device. Host responses to luminal perturbations can be visualized by immunofluorescence staining of tissue sections or whole-mount tissue fragments, fluorescence in-situ hybridization (FISH), or time-lapse imaging. This system supports a wide array of readouts, including next-generation sequencing, flow cytometry, and various cellular and biochemical assays. Overall, this three-dimensional organ …

We present barcoded oligonucleotides ligated on RNA amplified for multiplexed and parallel insitu analyses (BOLORAMIS), a reverse transcription-free method for spatially-resolved, targeted, in situ RNA identification of single or multiple targets. BOLORAMIS was demonstrated on a range of cell types and human cerebral organoids. Singleplex experiments to detect coding and non-coding RNAs in human iPSCs showed a stem-cell signature pattern. Specificity of BOLORAMIS was found to be 92% as illustrated by a clear distinction between human and mouse housekeeping genes in a co-culture system, as well as by recapitulation of subcellular localization of lncRNA MALAT1. Sensitivity of BOLORAMIS was quantified by comparing with single molecule FISH experiments and found to be 11%, 12% and 35% for GAPDH, TFRC and POLR2A, respectively. To demonstrate BOLORAMIS for multiplexed gene …

The intercalation of layered compounds opens up a vast space of new host–guest hybrids, providing new routes for tuning the properties of materials. Here, it is shown that uniform and continuous layers of copper can be intercalated within the van der Waals gap of bulk MoS2 resulting in a unique Cu–MoS2 hybrid. The new Cu–MoS2 hybrid, which remains semiconducting, possesses a unique plasmon resonance at an energy of ≈1eV, giving rise to enhanced optoelectronic activity. Compared with high‐performance MoS2 photodetectors, copper‐enhanced devices are superior in their spectral response, which extends into the infrared, and also in their total responsivity, which exceeds 104 A W−1. The Cu–MoS2 hybrids hold promise for supplanting current night‐vision technology with compact, advanced multicolor night vision.

We investigate second harmonic generation (SHG) from hexagonal periodic arrays of triangular nano-holes of aluminum using a self-consistent methodology based on the hydrodynamics-Maxwell–Bloch approach. It is shown that angular polarization patterns of the far-field second harmonic response abide to threefold symmetry constraints on tensors. When a molecular layer is added to the system and its parameters are adjusted to achieve the strong coupling regime between a localized plasmon mode and molecular excitons, Rabi splitting is observed from the occurrence of both single- and two-photon transition peaks within the SHG power spectrum. It is argued that the splitting observed for both transitions results from direct two-photon transitions between lower and upper polaritonic states of the strongly coupled system. This interpretation can be accounted by a tailored three-level quantum model, with results …

The need for improved batteries and supercapacitors, which are not based on lithium compounds, promotes significant research efforts to find suitable alternative systems based on various mono and multivalent cations capable of delivering high energy and power density with good long-term stability. The progress in aqueous Zn-ion batteries and supercapacitors obtained over the past years lead to the development of new structures and compounds that enable revisable hosting of Zn-ions while keeping good structural integrity. Yet, as aqueous electrolytes involve also the generation and co-insertion of protons it is necessary to carefully define what is the charge storage mechanism in these Zn insertion compounds. In this work, the use of Ti3C2Tx as an anode for the Zn-ion system was evaluated for the first time in different ZnCl2 concentrations. Remarkable changes in the charge storage mechanism and the …

The parasite Trypanosoma brucei cycles between an insect and a mammalian host and is the causative agent of sleeping sickness. Here, we performed high‐throughput mapping of pseudouridines (Ψs) on mRNA from two life stages of the parasite. The analysis revealed ~273 Ψs, including developmentally regulated Ψs that are guided by homologs of pseudouridine synthases (PUS1, 3, 5, and 7). Mutating the U that undergoes pseudouridylation in the 3′ UTR of valyl‐tRNA synthetase destabilized the mRNA level. To investigate the mechanism by which Ψ affects the stability of this mRNA, proteins that bind to the 3′ UTR were identified, including the RNA binding protein RBSR1. The binding of RBSR1 protein to the 3′ UTR was stronger when lacking Ψ compared to transcripts carrying the modification, suggesting that Ψ can inhibit the binding of proteins to their target and thus affect the stability of mRNAs …

While Efimov physics in ultracold atoms is usually modeled with an isolated Feshbach resonance, many real world resonances appear in close vicinity to each other and are therefore overlapping. Here we derive a realistic model based on the mutual coupling of an open channel and two closed molecular channels while neglecting short-range physics as permitted by the narrow character of the considered resonances. The model is applied to three distinct scenarios with experimental relevance. We show that the effect of overlapping resonances is manifested most strikingly at a narrow resonance in whose vicinity there is a slightly narrower one. In this system the Efimov ground state extends not only over the scattering length zero crossing between the two resonances but also over the pole of the second resonance to finally meet the dissociation threshold below it. In the opposite scenario, when a narrow …

We measured the photon count rate (PCR) and dark count rate (DCR) of a superconducting nanowire single photon detector (SNSPD) exposed to either a DC magnetic field (up to 60 mT) or to a low-amplitude oscillating field ( 0.12 – 0.48 mT, up to 50 kHz). In both cases, the results show an increase in the PCR and the DCR as the DC field or the frequency of the AC field increase. However, the ratio DCR/(PCR + DCR) increases significantly with an increasing DC field, whereas this ratio is approximately constant as the frequency of the AC field increases up to frequencies in the kHz regime. The results suggest a more favorable effect of AC fields on the operation of the SNSPD.

The specific capacity of Ni-rich LiNixCoyMnzO2 (x>0.5) cathodes is higher as their Ni content is higher and can reach values up to 240 mAh g-1 (x →1) while being charged below 4.3V vs. Li. This property is very important as charging below this potential does not endanger the anodic stability of the electrolyte solutions of Li ion batteries. However, as the content of Ni is higher, the electrochemical, structural and thermal stability is lower. Here we concentrate on LiNi0.85Co0.1Mn0.05O2 which was stabilized by doping with 1 mol% of W using a simple solid-state synthesis. Such doping improved pronouncedly the electrochemical, thermal and structural stability, although both X-ray diffraction and density functional theory (DFT) studies indicated negligible change in the structural parameters upon doping. For instance, 96% capacity retention was achieved for doped cathodes after 120 cycles at 45°C vs. Li anodes …

The need for improved batteries and supercapacitors, which are not based on lithium compounds, promotes significant research efforts to find suitable alternative systems based on various mono and multivalent cations capable of delivering high energy and power density with good long-term stability. The progress in aqueous Zn-ion batteries and supercapacitors obtained over the past years lead to the development of new structures and compounds that enable revisable hosting of Zn-ions while keeping good structural integrity. Yet, as aqueous electrolytes involve also the generation and co-insertion of protons it is necessary to carefully define what is the charge storage mechanism in these Zn insertion compounds. In this work, the use of Ti3C2Tx as an anode for the Zn-ion system was evaluated for the first time in different ZnCl2 concentrations. Remarkable changes in the charge storage mechanism and the …

We analyze theoretically and experimentally cases of asymmetric detection, stimulation and loss within a quantum nonlinear interferometer of entangled pairs. We show that the visibility of the SU(1,1) interference directly discerns between loss on the measured mode (signal), as opposed to the conjugated mode (idler). This asymmetry also affects the phase sensitivity of the interferometer, where coherent seeding is shown to mitigate losses that are suffered by the conjugated mode, therefore increasing the maximum threshold of loss that still allows for sub-shot-noise phase detection. Our findings can improve the performance of setups that rely on direct detection of entangled pairs, such as quantum interferometry and imaging with undetected photons.

In systems near phase transitions, macroscopic properties often follow algebraic scaling laws, determined by the dimensionality and the underlying symmetries of the system. The emergence of such universal scaling implies that microscopic details are irrelevant. Here, we locally investigate the scaling properties of the metal-insulator transition at the LaAlO 3/SrTiO 3 interface. We show that, by changing the dimensionality and the symmetries of the electronic system, coupling between structural and electronic properties prevents the universal behavior near the transition. By imaging the current flow in the system, we reveal that structural domain boundaries modify the filamentary flow close to the transition point, preventing a fractal with the expected universal dimension from forming.

We study the polarization dynamics of ultrafast solitons in mode-locked fiber lasers. We find that when a stable soliton is generated, its state of polarization shifts toward a stable state, and when the soliton is generated with excess power levels it experiences relaxation oscillations in its intensity and timing. On the other hand, when a soliton is generated in an unstable state of polarization, it either decays in intensity until it disappears, or its temporal width decreases until it explodes into several solitons, and then it disappears. We also found that when two solitons are simultaneously generated close to each other, they attract each other until they collide and merge into a single soliton. Although these two solitons are generated with different states-of-polarization, they shift their state of polarization closer to each other until the polarization coincides when they collide. We support our findings by numerical calculations of …

We measured the photon count rate (PCR) and dark count rate (DCR) of a superconducting nanowire single photon detector (SNSPD) exposed to either a DC magnetic field (up to 60 mT) or to a low-amplitude oscillating field ( 0.12 – 0.48 mT, up to 50 kHz). In both cases, the results show an increase in the PCR and the DCR as the DC field or the frequency of the AC field increase. However, the ratio DCR/(PCR + DCR) increases significantly with an increasing DC field, whereas this ratio is approximately constant as the frequency of the AC field increases up to frequencies in the kHz regime. The results suggest a more favorable effect of AC fields on the operation of the SNSPD.

The 3D printing method, alternatively known as additive manufacturing (AM), is promising for rapid tooling and layered micromanufacturing. However, significant fundamental research and applied study in the 3D printing area are still necessary to develop new manufacturing mechanisms for combining multi-materials for multiscale and multi-functionality behaviors. Among those materials, particles with unique mechanical, thermal, electrical, optical, and other functional properties can find broad applications in structural composites, thermal packaging, electrical devices, optoelectronics, biomedical implants, energy storage, filtration, and purification. This review will first briefly cover the 3D printing basics before presenting the critical factors in polymer/particle-based printing. We will then introduce a spectrum of different printing mechanisms, i.e., vat polymerization-based, jetting-based, material extrusion-based …

The current work presents a facile and green synthesis of carbon quantum dots (C-dots), which could serve as initiators for polymerization. Herein, C-dots have been synthesized from an easily available green herb, dill leaves, by a single-step hydrothermal method. These C-dots were efficiently utilized as initiators for the photopolymerization of the polymer poly(norepinephrine) (PNE) for the first time. The photopolymerization is discussed by a factorial design, and the optimized synthesis conditions were evaluated by a third-order regression model of three reaction parameters: monomer concentration, C-dots concentration, and UV exposure time. The sign convention of the factorial design mode indicated that monomer concentration and time of exposure are the most important factors for polymerization. The photopolymerized poly(norepinephrine) was extensively studied using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR …

The big jump principle explains the emergence of extreme events for physical quantities modelled by a sum of independent and identically distributed random variables which are heavy-tailed. Extreme events are large values of the sum and they are solely dominated by the largest summand called the big jump. Recently, the principle was introduced into physical sciences where systems usually exhibit correlations. Here, we study the principle for a random walk with correlated increments. Examples are the autoregressive model of first order and the discretized Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process both with heavy-tailed noise. The correlation leads to the dependence of large values of the sum not only on the big jump but also on the following increments. We describe this behaviour by two big jump principles, namely unconditioned and conditioned on the step number when the big jump occurs. The unconditional big jump principle is described by a correlation dependent shift between the sum and maximum distribution tails. For the conditional big jump principle, the shift depends also on the step number of the big jump.

Among the examined organic electrodes for aqueous mono and multivalent ions batteries, polyimide is considered a promising candidate because of its high capacity and good cyclability in different electrolyte solutions. While most of the studies so far were focused on the energetic performance of polyimide anodes, much less is known about their charge storage mechanism and particularly how such electrodes are affected by the solvation properties of the inserted cations. Using in situ EQCM-D, a direct assessment of the cationic fluxes and their hydration shells inserted/extracted to/from PI electrodes upon potential application was performed for a large variety of mono and multivalent cations. Our observations demonstrated a pronounced withdrawal of water molecules from the polymeric electrodes during insertion of chaotropic cations and significantly less water withdrawal upon insertion of kosmotropic cations …