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A workflow is developed based on the ideal MHD model to investigate the linear physics of various Alfvén eigenmodes in general axisymmetric toroidal geometry by solving the coupled shear Alfvén wave (SAW) and ion sound wave (ISW) equations in ballooning space. The model equations are solved by the FALCON code in the singular layer, and the corresponding solutions are then taken as the boundary conditions for calculating parallel mode structures in the whole ballooning space. As an application of the code, the frequencies and mode structures of toroidal Alfvén eigenmode (TAE) are calculated in the reference equilibria of the Divertor Tokamak Test facility with positive and negative triangularities, respectively. As typical result for reactor relevant plasma conditions, which are strongly triangular in the outer core region where magnetic shear is of order unity, we show that the triangularity effect on TAE is generally small. Furthermore, by properly handling the boundary conditions, we demonstrate finite TAE damping due to coupling with the local acoustic continuum and find that the damping rate is small for typical plasma parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Area detectors have been widely used in X-ray diffraction (XRD) to improve the acquisition speed and data quality. Here, an accurate, high efficiency, low distortion approach with a large angle range for collecting powder X-ray diffraction data is developed which is carried out by rotating a small area detector on the detector arm of the diffractometer. A series of collected images are spliced and converted into one 1D XRD pattern. The calculation of the 2θ value and intensity corresponding to every pixel are shown in detail. The calibration of the detector and experimental geometry was carried out. Finally, the reliability of this method has been demonstrated by the X-ray diffraction measurements of a standard LaB6 powder and Rietveld refinement results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the slab plasma as a paradigm model, we have derived analytically equations for the nonlinear generation of zero-frequency zonal flows by electron drift waves including, on the same footing, both the beat-driven and spontaneous excitations. It is found that the beat-driven zonal flow tends to reduce the frequency mismatch between the electron drift waves and, thereby, contributes to a significant O(1) enhancement of the modulational instability drive and lowering its threshold. Implications to tokamaks plasmas as well as drift-wave soliton formation are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A general equation describing the resonant nonlinear mode-coupling among kinetic Alfvén waves (KAWs) is derived using nonlinear gyrokinetic theory, which can be applied to study the potentially strong spectral energy transfer of KAWs. As a first application, the parametric decay of a pump KAW into two sideband KAWs is studied, with particular emphasis on cascading in the perpendicular wavenumber. It is found that, for the "co-propagating" cases with all three KAWs propagating in the same direction along the equilibrium magnetic field line, it exhibits a dual cascading character in the perpendicular wavenumber space; while for the "counter-propagating" cases with one sideband propagating in the opposite direction with respect to the pump wave, it instead, can exhibit both dual and inverse cascading behaviors. Furthermore, the implications of these findings on shear Alfvén waves regarding instability, nonlinear saturation, and charged particle transport in fusion plasmas are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, gyrokinetic theory of drift waves (DWs) self-regulation via the beat-driven zonal flow (ZF) is presented, and finite diamagnetic drift frequency due to plasma nonuniformity is shown to play a dominant role in the ZF beat generation. The obtained nonlinear DW equation is a nonlinear Schrödinger equation, in which the linear dispersiveness, linear growth, nonuniformity of diamagnetic drift frequency, and cubic nonlinearity induced by the feedback of beat-driven ZF to DWs are self-consistently included. The nonlinear DW equation is solved numerically in both uniform and nonuniform plasmas. It is shown that the DW envelope soliton may form due to the balance of linear dispersiveness and nonlinearity and lead to turbulence spreading to linearly stable region. It is further found that though the threshold on the DW amplitude for soliton formation is well within the relevant parameter regimes of realistic tokamak experiments, solitons cannot extend beyond the range bounded by the turning points of the wave packet when plasma nonuniformity is self-consistently accounted for. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An in situ methodology was devised to refine the annealing parameters for a soft magnetic high-entropy alloy, Al 0.7 NiCoFe 1.5 Cr 1.5 . Anomalous Hall measurements were employed to elucidate the magnetic characteristics in real time during annealing. This approach facilitates the determination of an optimal annealing temperature range, centered approximately at 500 ° C , within a single annealing process. After annealing, a notable 51.5% enhancement in the saturation magnetization was observed, accompanied by a significant 80.5% reduction in coercivity. Moreover, the methodology enables the acquisition of intricate insights into phase transitions occurring throughout the annealing process. The findings affirm the efficacy of the in situ technique for refining the annealing parameters and underscore its potential applicability in the exploration of microstructural and phase transformations in materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The anomalous Nernst effect (ANE), as a three-dimensional thermoelectric effect in ferromagnetic materials, is expected to break through the limitations of the traditional Seebeck effect, thereby improving thermoelectric conversion efficiency. This study reports an anisotropic anomalous Nernst effect in metallic nickel assembled by the alignment of nanowires. It is found that the ANE voltage varies with the angle to the alignment direction of nanowires within the in-plane of metallic nickel. The ANE voltage reaches 530 nV under a longitudinal temperature difference of 23 K when the magnetic field is applied parallel to the alignment direction of nanowires, which is 143% of its value in the vertical direction. This design concept for anisotropic materials may provide a novel path to enhanced thermoelectric efficiency in ANE-based thermoelectric devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antiferromagnetic spin dynamics is the key issue to develop spintronic devices. We adopt ab initio nonadiabatic molecular dynamics with spin–orbit-coupling (SOC) to investigate photoinduced spin dynamics in an antiferromagnetic semiconductor MnPS3 monolayer. Optical doping triggers MnPS3 from Néel antiferromagnetic to ferromagnetic phase at an experimentally achievable electron–hole pair density of 1.11 × 1014 cm−2. This phase transition can be ascribed to the light-induced mid-gap states of S-p orbitals, which lower the electron excitation energy and strengthen the SOC effect between S-p and Mn-d orbitals. The excited S-p electrons first decay to the mid-gap states due to p–p electron–phonon-coupling and then relax to the spin-down Mn-d orbitals via SOC. Such a dramatic relaxation process prolongs the photogenerated carrier lifetime up to 648 fs, providing an explanation for the unusual optoelectronic performance of MnPS3. The reversible switching of magnetic order via optical means gives an important clue for information storage and highly efficient photocatalysts utilizing antiferromagnetic semiconductors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spin Seebeck effect (SSE) for an yttrium iron garnet (YIG)/nickel oxide (NiO)/platinum (Pt) trilayer device was studied in a wide temperature range. It is found that the SSE signal is nonmonotonic in the temperature domain and shows a maximum around the Néel temperature of the NiO layer, which is similar to the temperature dependence of the spin pumping signal in the same device. This result identified that the thermal-excited incoherent spin currents are also sensitive to the fluctuation of an antiferromagnetic system and can be used to probe the antiferromagnetic phase transition. Furthermore, the antiferromagnetic NiO layer is considered to be valuable for the optimization of spin transport efficiency at YIG/Pt interface, which enhances the SSE signal around room temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The linear properties of the low-frequency shear Alfvén waves such as those associated with the beta-induced Alfvén eigenmodes (BAEs) and the low-frequency modes observed in reversed-magnetic-shear DIII-D discharges [W. Heidbrink et al., Nucl. Fusion 61, 066031 (2021)] are theoretically investigated and delineated based on the theoretical framework of the general fishbone-like dispersion relation (GFLDR). By adopting representative experimental equilibrium profiles, it is found that, even though both modes are predominantly of Alfvénic polarization, the low-frequency mode is a reactive unstable mode with weak coupling to the energetic particles, while the BAE involves a dissipative instability due to resonant excitation by the energetic ions. Thus, the low-frequency mode is more appropriately called a low-frequency Alfvén mode (LFAM). Moreover, the ascending frequency spectrum patterns of the experimentally observed BAEs and LFAMs can be theoretically reproduced by varying qmin and also be well interpreted based on the GFLDR. The present analysis illustrates the solid predictive capability of the GFLDR and its practical usefulness in enhancing the interpretative capability of both experimental and numerical simulation results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We demonstrate analytically that, in toroidal plasmas, scattering by drift wave turbulence could lead to appreciable damping of toroidal Alfvén eigenmodes via generation of short-wavelength electron Landau damped kinetic Alfvén waves. A corresponding analytic expression of the damping rate is derived, and found to be, typically, comparable to the linear drive by energetic particles. The implications of this novel mechanism on the transport and heating processes in burning plasmas are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the widespread application of EMI filters, a method to improve power density has become a main concern in switch mode power supplies. Many previous works have been done for improving the EMI filtering performance of chokes. This article investigates an integrated choke structure that can minimize the leakage magnetic flux, enlarge the DM inductance, and improve the DM noise suppression performance. Compared to discrete EMI filter inductors, the proposed stacked choke scheme can integrate CM and DM chokes into toroidal cores by applying a combination of different types of toroidal cores. The proposed inductor can exhibit better DC magnetic saturation characteristic. Finite Element Method (FEM) simulations, impedance measurement, insertion loss and conducted EMI noise spectrums (150 kHz–30 MHz) are used to validate the accuracy of the theoretical analysis and the proposed equivalent magnetic reluctance models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

C-type lectins (CTLs) are widely distributed in mammals, insects, and plants, which act as pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) to recognize pathogens and initiate immune responses. In this study, we identified a C-type lectin gene called BmIML-2 from the silkworm Bombyx mori. Its open reading frame (ORF) encodes 314 amino acids, which contain dual tandem C-type lectin-like domain (CTLD). BmIML-2 is highly expressed in the fat body and is significantly induced at 24 h after BmNPV infection. Moreover, overexpression of BmIML-2 dramatically inhibited the proliferation of BmNPV, and knockdown assay via siRNA further validated the inhibition of BmIML-2 on viral proliferation. In addition, transcript level detection of apoptosis-related genes and observation of apoptosis bodies implied that overexpression of BmIML-2 promoted BmNPV-induced apoptosis. Immunofluorescence analysis indicated that BmIML-2 distributed throughout the cytoplasm and was slightly concentrated in the cell membrane. Taken together, our results suggest that BmIML-2 could inhibit in the proliferation of BmNPV by facilitating cell apoptosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple toroidal Alfvén eigenmodes (TAEs) driven unstable by energetic electrons and a geodesic acoustic mode (GAM) have been successively observed in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) low-density Ohmic discharges. Nonlinear mode couplings among these modes are conclusively identified. Theoretical analysis suggests that the coupling of simultaneously driven TAEs is the mechanism for GAM excitation. These results experimentally show the potential role of nonlinear mode coupling to the saturation of energetic-particle driven TAE instability, which may nonlinearly transfer energy of energetic particles to bulk plasma and heat fuel ions via low frequency mode such as GAM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We demonstrate that in a nonuniform plasma, the parametric decay instabilities of kinetic Alfvén waves could be quantitatively and qualitatively different from that in a uniform plasma. Specifically, the decay rate via ion Compton scattering is found to be enhanced, typically, by an order of magnitude. Furthermore, the parity of the decay kinetic Alfvén wave spectrum is broken, leading to finite net wave momentum transfer and, consequently, significant convective plasma transport with implications for confinement improvement. That localized absolutely unstable eigenmodes may be excited by a mode-converted pump wave is also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The two-field equations that govern fully nonlinear dynamics of the drift wave (DW) and geodesic acoustic mode (GAM) interaction in toroidal geometry are derived within the nonlinear gyrokinetic framework. Two stages with distinctive features are identified and analyzed using both analytical and numerical approaches. In the ‘linear’ growth stage, the derived set of nonlinear equations can be reduced to the intensively studied parametric decay instability, accounting for the spontaneous resonant excitation of GAM by the DW. The main results of previous works on spontaneous GAM excitation, e.g. the greatly enhanced GAM group velocity and the nonlinear growth rate of GAM, are reproduced from the numerical solution of the two-field equations. In the fully nonlinear stage, soliton structures are observed to form due to the balancing of the self-trapping effect by the spontaneously excited GAM and kinetic dispersiveness of the DW. The soliton structures enhance turbulence spreading from the DW linearly unstable region to the stable region, exhibiting convective propagation instead of a typical linear dispersive process, and are thus expected to induce core-edge interaction and nonlocal transport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Secondary low frequency mode generation by energetic particle induced geodesic acoustic mode (EGAM) observed in LHD experiment is studied using nonlinear gyrokinetic theory. It is found that the EGAM frequency can be significantly higher than local geodesic acoustic mode (GAM) frequency in low collisionality plasmas, and it can decay into two GAMs as its frequency approaches twice GAM frequency, in a process analogous to the well-known two plasmon decay instability. The condition for this process to occur is also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we proposed a simple method to synthesize gold nanoparticles carried by boehmite, which was made directly from Al/Au bilayer films by a one-step hydrothermal treatment. The boehmite carrier is porous with a special density-gradient structure. As a result, the embedded gold nanoparticles demonstrate good size uniformity, strong surface plasmon resonance, and good affinity for reacting solution. Such nanoparticles carried by boehmite exhibit the high potential of applications as efficient catalysts and sensitive bio-sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interfacial spin transport efficiency was studied in a yttrium iron garnet (YIG)/Pt spin-pumping system with different nickelic interlayers. It was found that the magnitude of the spin-pumping signals is sensitive to the chemical composition and crystalline orientation of the nickelic interlayers. As shown by the results obtained, a 2 nm thick metallic Ni interlayer enhances the spin-pumping signal, making it several times larger than that found for a YIG/Pt control sample. The spin-pumping signal around room temperature was found to be enhanced (suppressed) by antiferromagnetic NiO interlayers with perfect [111] orientation (without perfect [111] orientation). Our results confirm that a nickelic interlayer is a possible choice for optimizing interfacial spin transport, which is important for the development of a highly effective spin-based device. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The local stability of ion-temperature gradient driven mode (ITG) in the presence of a given radial electric field is investigated using gyrokinetic theory and ballooning mode formalism with toroidal effect accounted for. It is found that zero frequency radial electric field-induced poloidal rotation can significantly stabilize ITG, while the associated density perturbation has little effect on ITG stability due to the modification of finite-orbit-width effect. However, the parallel mode structure is slightly affected due to the evenly symmetric density modulation associated with the zero-frequency radial electric field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Theoretical and numerical studies of the two-dimensional (2D) global stability and mode structures of high-n beta-induced Alfvén eigenmodes excited by magnetically trapped energetic electrons in tokamaks are carried out by employing the WKB-ballooning mode representation along with the generalized fishbone-like dispersion relation. Depending on parameter regimes, it is found that (i) the mode growth rate has a maximum with increasing energetic electron density at the ground radial eigenstate; (ii) the ground and excited radial eigenstates can be unstable simultaneously, and the most unstable mode is related not only to the pressure gradient of energetic electrons, but also to the width of the mode itself; (iii) the corresponding 2D mode structures are twisted due to the anti-Hermitian contribution from wave-energetic electron interaction and show opposite deformation directions compared with that in the presence of energetic ions; and (iv) the mode structures, especially, the mode width and its radial asymmetry, can be affected by radial eigen-mode number, energetic electron density, and magnetic shear. Finally, the radial symmetry breaking of the localized e-BAE mode structure with respect to parallel wave-number has a potential impact on toroidal momentum transport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two novel nonlinear mode coupling processes for reversed shear Alfvén eigenmode (RSAE) nonlinear saturation are proposed and investigated. In the first process, the RSAE nonlinearly couples to a co-propagating toroidal Alfvén eigenmode (TAE) with the same toroidal and poloidal mode numbers, and generates a geodesic acoustic mode. In the second process, the RSAE couples to a counter-propagating TAE and generates an ion acoustic wave quasi-mode. The condition for the two processes to occur is favored during current ramp. Both the processes contribute to effectively saturate the Alfvénic instabilities, as well as nonlinearly transfer of energy from energetic fusion alpha particles to fuel ions in burning plasmas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hybrid MHD-gyrokinetic code simulations are used to investigate the dynamics of frequency sweeping reversed shear Alfvén eigenmode (RSAE) strongly driven by energetic particles (EPs) during plasma current ramp-up in a conventional tokamak configuration. A series of weakly reversed shear equilibria representing time slices of long timescale MHD equilibrium evolution is considered, where the self-consistent RSAE-EP resonant interactions on the short timescale are analyzed in detail. Both linear and non-linear RSAE dynamics are shown to be subject to the non-perturbative effect of EPs by maximizing wave-EP power transfer. In the linear stage, EPs induce evident mode structure and frequency shifts; meanwhile, RSAE saturates by radial decoupling with resonant EPs due to weak magnetic shear, and gives rise to global EP convective transport and fast frequency chirping in the non-adiabatic regime. The spatiotemporal scales of phase space wave-EP interactions are characterized by the perpendicular wavelength and wave-particle trapping time. The simulations provide insights into general as well as specific features of the RSAE spectra and EP transport in experimental observations, and illustrate the fundamental physics of wave-EP resonant interaction with the interplay of the magnetic geometry, plasma non-uniformity and non-perturbative EPs. Possible application for understanding the non-adiabatic frequency chirping as convective and relaxation branches is also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dependence of fishbone cycle on energetic particle intensity has been investigated in EAST low-magnetic-shear plasmas. It is observed that the fishbone mode growth rate, saturation amplitude as well as fishbone cycle frequency clearly increase with increasing neutral beam injection (NBI) power. Moreover, enhanced electron density and temperature perturbations as well as energetic particle loss were observed with greater injected NBI power. Simulation results using M3D-K code show that as the NBI power increases, the resonant frequency and the energy of the resonant particles become higher, and the saturation amplitude of the mode also changes, due to the non-perturbative energetic particle contribution. The relationship between the calculated energetic particle pressure ratio and fishbone cycle frequency is obtained as ${f_{\textrm{FC}}} = 2.2{(1000{\beta _{\textrm{ep,calc}}} - 0.1)^{5.9 \pm 0.5}}$. Results consistent with the experimental observations have been achieved based on a predator–prey model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: To investigate the diagnostic value of lung-specific X protein (LUNX) messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) expression in peripheral blood of patients with nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in micrometastasis.Materials and Methods: Peripheral blood samples of 112 patients with NSCLC were collected, and the expression of LUNX, cytokeratin 19 (CK19), and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) mRNA was measured by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).Results: The expression of LUNX, CK19, and CEA mRNA was increased in peripheral blood of patients with NSCLC compared with that of patients with benign lung disease (P < 0.05), and the sensitivity of LUNX mRNA was higher than that of CK19 and CEA mRNA (P < 0.05). LUNX-positive expression was also associated with lymph node metastasis, tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) staging, and reduced 5-year survival rate of patients in our cohort (P < 0.05). Further, the 5-year survival improved for those LUNX-positive patients who became LUNX negative following adjuvant chemotherapy compared to those who remain LUNX positive (P < 0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that lymph node metastasis, TNM stage, and LUNX mRNA expression in peripheral blood were independent prognostic factors.Conclusion: The detection of LUNX expression in peripheral blood of patients with NSCLC by RT-PCR is a highly specific and sensitive detection method for tumor micrometastasis that may be used for molecular diagnosis of tumor micrometastasis. LUNX mRNA expression in peripheral blood is an independent factor affecting prognosis of NSCLC and thus may reliably predict NSCLC prognosis and guide appropriate adjuvant chemotherapy treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the conversion process of the short-circuit arc to the submerged power supply arc, because the short-circuit arc diameter is much larger than the submerged power supply arc, the specific position of the submerged power supply arc cannot be determined, and the initial position of the submerged power supply arc has a certain randomness. The purpose of this paper is to try to use the binocular stereo vision method to reconstruct the submerged arc image in three dimensions, obtain the moving image of the arc, obtain more comprehensive information than the two-dimensional image, and multi-field coupling dynamics of the power supply arc. In this paper, the multi-field coupling effects of electromagnetic force, thermal buoyancy, wind load and air resistance of the submerged arc of the half-wavelength transmission line are considered comprehensively, and the chain arc model is incorporated into the force equation and motion model of the submerged arc. By deeply analyzing the formation and motion mechanism of the arc root, the arc root model of the submerged power arc is established, and the optimal selection method of the current element length is proposed. The physical simulation experiment of the half-wavelength submerged arc is carried out, and the simulation results are compared with the experimental results to verify the effectiveness of the simulation model. By comparing the trajectory and self-extinguishing time of different submerged currents, wind speeds and winds to the submerged power supply arc, the effects of wind load, thermal buoyancy and electromagnetic force on the arc are analyzed, which indicates that the built arc model can effectively account for the wind load. The influence of submarine power arc motion and self-extinguishing characteristics. The results show that the submarine power arc image is acquired by constructing a binocular stereo vision system, and the obtained submersible arc image is reconstructed three-dimensionally. The three-dimensional image of the arc is obtained and compared with the actual image. The result shows that the three-dimensional reconstruction The result is effective, and the exploration study provides a new method for further obtaining the multiple variations of the true arc length of the arc with the arcing time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zero frequency zonal flow (ZFZF) excitation by trapped energetic electron driven beta-induced Alfvén eigenmode (eBAE) is investigated using non-linear gyrokinetic theory. It is found that, resonant energetic electrons (EEs) not only effectively drive eBAE unstable, but also contribute to the non-linear coupling, leading to ZFZF excitation. The trapped EE contribution to ZFZF generation is dominated by EE responses to eBAE in the ideal region, and is comparable to thermal plasma contribution to Reynolds and Maxwell stresses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Neural tube defects (NTDs) are severe, common birth defects that result from failure of normal neural tube closure during early embryogenesis. Accumulating strong evidence indicates that genetic factors contribute to NTDs etiology, among them, HOX genes play a key role in neural tube closure. Although abnormal HOX gene expression can lead to NTDs, the underlying pathological mechanisms have not fully been understood. Method: We detected that H3K27me3 and expression of the Hox genes in a retinoic acid (RA) induced mouse NTDs model on E8.5, E9.5 and E10.5 using RNA-sequencing and chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing assays. Furthermore, we quantified 10 Hox genes using NanoString nCounter in brain tissue of fetuses with 39 NTDs patients including anencephaly, spina bifida, hydrocephaly and encephalocele. Results: Here, our results showed differential expression in 26 genes with a > 20-fold change in the level of expression, including 10 upregulated Hox genes. RT-qPCR revealed that these 10 Hox genes were all upregulated in RA-induced mouse NTDs as well as RA-treated embryonic stem cells (ESCs). Using ChIP-seq assays, we demonstrate that a decrease in H3K27me3 level upregulates the expression of Hox cluster A–D in RA-induced mouse NTDs model on E10.5. Interestingly, RA treatment led to attenuation of H3K27me3 due to cooperate between UTX and Suz12, affecting Hox gene regulation. Further analysis, in human anencephaly cases, upregulation of 10 HOX genes was observed, along with aberrant levels of H3K27me3. Notably, HOXB4, HOXC4 and HOXD1 expression was negatively correlated with H3K27me3 levels. Conclusion: Our results indicate that abnormal HOX gene expression induced by aberrant H3K27me3 levels may be a risk factor for NTDs and highlight the need for further analysis of genome-wide epigenetic modification in NTDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In superconductors, a topological configuration of the superconducting order parameter called a superconducting vortex carries magnetization. Such a magnetic topological object behaves like a minute particle generating a magnetic flux. Since the flux is localized with a nanometer scale, the vortex provides a nano-scale probe for local magnetic fields. Here we show that information of magnetic stripes in insulators can be read out by using vortices in an adjacent superconductor film as a probe. The orientation and width of magnetic micro stripes are both transcribed into resistance change of the superconductor through the modulation of vortex mobility affected by local magnetization. By changing the direction of external magnetic fields, zero-field resistance changes continuously according to the stripe orientation, and its modulation magnitude reaches up to 100%. The width of the stripes can also be estimated from the oscillatory magnetoresistance. Our results demonstrate a new possibility for non-volatile analog memory devices based on topological objects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enhanced light transmission through coupling incident light with surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) on a layer-plus-islands nanostructure Ag layer, surrounded by symmetric ZnO dielectrics (ZnO/Ag/ZnO), was investigated. The couple and decouple processes at ZnO/Ag and Ag/ZnO grating interfaces were considered to confine the incident light to SPPs (near field) and then to excite the SPPs to radiate light (far field), which enhanced light transmission. A broad range of light transmission enhancement showed a blueshift with increasing Ag midlayer mass thickness. The physical reasons for light transmission enhancement were theoretically discussed using both the metal/dielectric grating interface model and the Drude–Lorentz free electron model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is known that the ac electrodeposition method with low current density can grow compact metal nanowires, but the length of those nanowires is very short. In contrast, the ac electrodeposition method with high current density can grow long metal nanowires. However these long nanowires are not compact and contain lots of defects. In this paper, we describe a multistep ac electrodeposition method to fabricate long metal nanowires with compact structure uniformly filled upon a porous anodic aluminum oxide template. Using this method, Co nanowires with high coercivity (Hc∥) and remnant ratio (Mr/Ms) have been prepared under relatively low deposition current density. The Co nanowires exhibited obvious magnetic anisotropy with the easy axis along the axial direction of nanowires. The maximal Hc∥ (2900 Oe) and Mr/Ms (0.95) were optimal for the perpendicular magnetic recording materials. The magnetic microstructure of Co nanowires is also discussed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experiments were conducted in a parallel-plate channel in which an extremely dilute suspension of heavy, positively polarized spheres was exposed to an ac electric field under conditions such that the field lines were arranged in the channel cross section perpendicular to the streamlines of the main flow. To reduce the effects of the gravitational settling of the particles, the channel was slowly rotated around a horizontal axis. Following the application of a high-gradient strong ac field (∼ several kV/mm), the particles were found to move towards both the high-voltage and grounded electrodes and to form arrays of "bristles" along their edges. The process was also modeled theoretically by computing the trajectories of individual particles under the action of dielectrophoretic, viscous, and gravitational forces and under conditions of negligibly small particle Reynolds numbers. The model calculations required no fitting parameters because the particle polarizability was determined independently by measuring the frequency and concentration dependence of the complex dielectric permittivity of a suspension in a low-strength field (∼ V/mm). The predictions of this model were found to be consistent with the experimental data for the rate of particle accumulation on the electrodes but not for the aggregation pattern which, even for initially extremely dilute suspensions, appeared to be governed by the interparticle interactions and to be created by a two-step mechanism. The results of our studies provide the basic characteristics of the field-induced particle motions and segregation needed for the design and optimization of electrohydrodynamic apparatuses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reference 1 Mei X., Li C., Peng P., Wang J., He E., Qiu Z., Xia D., Zhao Q., Shen D. Bombyx mori C-Type Lectin (BmIML-2) Inhibits the Proliferation of B. mori Nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV) through Involvement in Apoptosis. In the original publication [[1]], there was a mistake in Figure 5: Effects of BmNPV infection and replication by knockdown of BmIML-2 in BmN cells as published. Bombyx mori C-Type Lectin (BmIML-2) Inhibits the Proliferation of B. mori Nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV) through Involvement in Apoptosis. [Extracted from the article]

Nonlinear generation of high frequency modes (HFMs) by the toroidal Alfvén eigenmode (TAE) observed in the HL-2A tokamak is analyzed using nonlinear gyrokinetic theory. It is found that the HFM can be dominated by | nq − m | = 1 perturbations with predominantly ideal magnetohydrodynamic polarization if the two primary TAEs are copropagating, while the HFM can be characterized by nq − m = 0 electrostatic perturbations if the two primary TAEs are counter-propagating. Here, n and m are the toroidal and poloidal mode numbers, respectively, and q is the safety factor. The nonlinear process is sensitive to the equilibrium magnetic geometry of the device. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Here we have proposed a simple method for forming antireflective coating. By putting a rf sputtered metallic Al film into boiling ultrapure water, the film becomes transparent. Its optical transmittance exceeds the glass substrate itself. In addition, the glass substrate with such coating on both sides shows almost perfect transmittance at specific wavelengths. By electron diffraction, the crystal structure of the transformed film is confirmed to be boehmite. The refractive index of the transparent film is estimated to be one of the median values of the glass and air. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new purple quail-like (q-lp) mutant found from the plain silkworm strain 932VR has pigment dots on the epidermis similar to the pigment mutant quail (q). In addition, q-lp mutant larvae are inactive, consume little and grow slowly, with a high death rate and other developmental abnormalities. Pigmentation of the silkworm epidermis consists of melanin, ommochrome and pteridine. Silkworm development is regulated by ecdysone and juvenile hormone. In this study, we performed RNA-Seq on the epidermis of the q-lp mutant in the 4th instar during molting, with 932VR serving as the control. The results showed 515 differentially expressed genes, of which 234 were upregulated and 281 downregulated in q-lp. BLASTGO analysis indicated that the downregulated genes mainly encode protein-binding proteins, membrane components, oxidation/reduction enzymes, and proteolytic enzymes, whereas the upregulated genes largely encode cuticle structural constituents, membrane components, transport related proteins, and protein-binding proteins. Quantitative reverse transcription PCR was used to verify the accuracy of the RNA-Seq data, focusing on key genes for biosynthesis of the three pigments and chitin as well as genes encoding cuticular proteins and several related nuclear receptors, which are thought to play key roles in the q-lp mutant. We drew three conclusions based on the results: 1) melanin, ommochrome and pteridine pigments are all increased in the q-lp mutant; 2) more cuticle proteins are expressed in q-lp than in 932VR, and the number of upregulated cuticular genes is significantly greater than downregulated genes; 3) the downstream pathway regulated by ecdysone is blocked in the q-lp mutant. Our research findings lay the foundation for further research on the developmental changes responsible for the q-lp mutant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the silkworm, metamorphosis and moulting are regulated by ecdysone hormone and juvenile hormone. The subject in the present study is a silkworm mutant that does not moult in the 2nd instar (nm2). Genetic analysis indicated that the nm2 mutation is controlled by a recessive gene and is homozygous lethal. Based on positional cloning, nm2 was located in a region approximately 275 kb on the 5th linkage group by eleven SSR polymorphism markers. In this specific range, according to the transcriptional expression of thirteen genes and cloning, the relative expression level of the BmCPG10 gene that encodes a cuticle protein was lower than the expression level of the wild-type gene. Moreover, this gene’s structure differs from that of the wild-type gene: there is a deletion of 217 bp in its open reading frame, which resulted in a change in the protein it encoded. The BmCPG10 mRNA was detectable throughout silkworm development from the egg to the moth. This mRNA was low in the pre-moulting and moulting stages of each instar but was high in the gluttonous stage and in newly exuviated larvae. The BmCPG10 mRNA showed high expression levels in the epidermis, head and trachea, while the expression levels were low in the midgut, Malpighian tubule, prothoracic gland, haemolymph and ventral nerve cord. The ecdysone titre was determined by ELISA, and the results demonstrated that the ecdysone titre of nm2 larvae was lower than that of the wild-type larvae. The nm2 mutant could be rescued by feeding 20-hydroxyecdysone, cholesterol and 7—dehydrocholesterol (7dC), but the rescued nm2 only developed to the 4th instar and subsequently died. The moulting time of silkworms could be delayed by BmCPG10 RNAi. Thus, we speculated that the mutation of BmCPG10 was responsible for the silkworm mutant that did not moult in the 2nd instar. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bisphenol A (BPA), as an emerging environmental pollutant, is potentially harmful to plant growth. Chlorophyll (Chl) is critical in photosynthesis that provides matter and energy for plant growth. How BPA affects the chlorophyll content remains largely unknown. Here, the effects of BPA on Chl synthesis in soybean seedlings were investigated. Exposure to 1.5 mg/L BPA decreased the 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) content and increased protoporphyrin IX (Proto IX), magnesium protoporphyrin, and protochlorophyll contents and 5-aminolaevulinic acid dehydratase, porphobilinogen deaminase, uroporphyrinogen III synthase, uroporphyrinogen III decarboxylase, and protoporphyrinogen oxidase activities. Exposure to 17.2 and 50.0 mg/L BPA exerted the opposite effects on these four intermediates and five enzymes. Following the withdrawal of BPA exposure, the aforementioned parameters gradually recovered, except magnesium protoporphyrin content in exposure to 50.0 mg/L BPA. Our findings revealed that exposure to low-concentration BPA increased the Chl content in soybean seedlings through improving Chl synthesis, especially the conversion from ALA to Proto IX, whereas exposure to high-concentration BPA decreased the Chl content through inhibiting Chl synthesis, especially the conversion from ALA to Proto IX. The dual effects of BPA were largely reversed following the withdrawal of BPA exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The acoustic spin pumping (ASP) stands for the generation of a spin voltage from sound waves in a ferromagnet/paramagnet junction. In this letter, we propose and demonstrate a method for pure detection of the ASP, which enables the separation of sound-wave-driven spin currents from the spin Seebeck effect due to the heating of a sample caused by a sound-wave injection. Our demonstration using a Pt/YIG/PZT sample shows that the ASP signal in this structure measured by a conventional method is considerably offset by the heating signal and that the pure ASP signal is one order of magnitude greater than that reported in the previous study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Excitation of geodesic acoustic mode (GAM) by collisionless trapped electron mode (CTEM) is studied within the framework of nonlinear gyrokinetic theory. The dispersion relation describing GAM excitation by drift wave turbulence valid for arbitrary k⊥ρi is derived. Here, k⊥ and ρi are, respectively, perpendicular wave vector and thermal ion Larmor radius. It is found that the parametric decay process of CTEM into a GAM and a CTEM sideband is unstable in both small and large k⊥ρi regimes due to, respectively, ion and trapped electron nonlinearity. For moderate k⊥ρi, however, there exists a negligible-GAM-excitation state where ion and trapped electron nonlinearities cancel each other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Previous studies have shown that the 3′ UTR of BmVMP23 was destroyed by an inserted fragment, and the BmVMP23 expression was downregulated in the lethal egg of “Ming” (l-em ). In this study, we found a miRNA (bmo-miR-1a-3p) that matches the 3′ UTR sequence of BmVMP23 perfectly. The relationship between bmo-miR-1a-3p and the BmVMP23 expression was examined by the co-transfection in vitro. The luciferase assay result showed that luc expression was strongly repressed. This result inferred that bmo-miR-1a-3p may downregulate BmVMP23 expression via complementary interaction with the target sites at the 3′ UTR. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Bisphenol A (BPA) is a representatively endocrine disruptor, which shows a highly toxic effect on life system. Its potential toxicity on plants that are the primary producers in earth’s ecosystem is not well documented. Here, the effects of BPA on the growth, photosynthesis, content of chlorophyll (Chl), initial fluorescence (F 0), maximal photochemical efficiency (F v/F m), effective quantum yield of photosystem II (Φ PSII) and photosynthetic electron transport rate (ETR) in soybean seedlings were investigated by using gas exchange measurement system and chlorophyll fluorometer to understand the toxic effect of BPA on plants. It was found that when soybean seedlings were treated with BPA at the low concentration (1.5mgL−1), the growth indices (the plant height, fresh and dry weights of stems, fresh and dry weights of leaves, leaf area) were increased obviously compared with those of the control, which was not related with the photosynthesis, the content of Chl and the chlorophyll fluorescence. When soybean seedlings were treated with BPA at the high concentrations (7.0, 12.0, 17.2 and 50.0mgL−1), the growth indices, net photosynthetic rate, the content of chlorophyll, F v/F m, Φ PSII, ETR were decreased, while F 0 was increased, compared with those of the control. Obviously, BPA at the high concentrations showed the toxic effect on soybean seedlings. The results from correlation analysis indicated that the inhibition in the growth of soybean seedlings treated with BPA was related to the decrease in photosynthesis because of the decrease in the content of chlorophyll and the change in chlorophyll fluorescence. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

When neutrally buoyant poly alpha olefin particles in corn oil were exposed to a gradient ac electric field generated by a spatially periodic electrode array, these particles experienced the negative dielectrophoresis and instability in all the suspensions of concentration range from 0.01% to 5% (v/v). One critical particle concentration was experimentally determined as 1% (v/v) below which the particles in corn oil were segregated to form island-like structures in the lower electric field regions; and above which, particles only formed straight stripes. The island-like structure was suspended in the lowest electric field area. Specially designed experiments with a suspension of 1.126% (v/v) confirmed that there exists particle instability. Anisotropic properties of electric interactions are responsible for particle instability in all the suspensions of different concentrations and island-like structures were formed only in the dilute suspensions in which the particle instability has enough space to be developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]