Search

Plastic/ductile inorganic van der Waals (vdW) thermoelectric semiconductors offer transformative advantages for high‐performance flexible thermoelectric devices, which can displace the self‐charge system of wearable electronics. However, the chemical origin of their plasticity remains unclear. Here, it is reported that the exceptionally large plastic strain of the bulk SnSe2 crystal results from its polytype conversion under an external force. The SnSe2 single crystal consists of a large‐period polytype with 18R low‐symmetry structure rather than the trigonal and hexagonal‐phase that are frequently observed in the polycrystalline specimen. In situ applied pressure to the specimen drives a phase transition from low to high‐symmetry, that is, from 18R to 4H, and finally to 2H‐SnSe2. First principle calculations corroborate that the dynamic phase transition is a pressure‐activated process and only 15 MPa pressure erases their energy gaps, consistent with experimentally measured strain–stress curves. This dynamic phase transition results in superior and near isotropic plasticity along the direction parallel and perpendicular to the cleavage plane. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The core task for Mott insulators includes how rigid distributions of electrons evolve and how these induce exotic physical phenomena. However, it is highly challenging to chemically dope Mott insulators to tune properties. Herein, we report how to tailor electronic structures of the honeycomb Mott insulator RuCl3 employing a facile and reversible single‐crystal to single‐crystal intercalation process. The resulting product (NH4)0.5RuCl3⋅1.5 H2O forms a new hybrid superlattice of alternating RuCl3 monolayers with NH4+ and H2O molecules. Its manipulated electronic structure markedly shrinks the Mott–Hubbard gap from 1.2 to 0.7 eV. Its electrical conductivity increases by more than 103 folds. This arises from concurrently enhanced carrier concentration and mobility in contrary to the general physics rule of their inverse proportionality. We show topotactic and topochemical intercalation chemistry to control Mott insulators, escalating the prospect of discovering exotic physical phenomena. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Understanding the impact of ocean acidification and warming on communities and ecosystems is a researcher priority. This can only be achieved through a combination of experimental and field approaches [...]

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are crucial players in tumour progression. Herein, this work was designated to decipher the clinical significance, function and molecular mechanism of a lncRNA, differentiation antagonizing non-coding RNA (DANCR) in colorectal cancer (CRC). Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was adopted to examine DANCR, miR-185-5p and HMGA2 mRNA expressions in CRC tissues and cells. Both gain-of-function and loss-of-function cell models for DANCR were established, and then MTT, wound healing and Transwell, flow cytometry assays were carried out to detect the proliferation, migration, invasion, cell cycle and apoptosis of CRC cells. Dual-luciferase reporter gene assay and RIP assay were utilized to validate the targeting relationships between DANCR and miR-185-5p. Western blot was employed for detecting high mobility group A2 (HMGA2) expressions in CRC cells. In this study, we demonstrated that the expression of DANCR was elevated in CRC tissues and cell lines, and its high expression was significantly associated with increased TNM stage and positive lymph node metastasis. DANCR overexpression promoted CRC cell proliferation, migration, invasion and cell cycle progression, but inhibited apoptosis; while knocking down DANCR caused the opposite effects. DANCR was further identified as a molecular sponge for miR-185-5p, and DANCR could indirectly increase the expression of HMGA2 via repressing miR-185-5p. In conclusion, DANCR/miR-185-5p/HMGA2 axis participated in the progression of CRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]