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Concentration-dependent carbon dot (CD) fluorescence was developed and utilized alongside hyperspectral microscopy as a specific labeling and identification technique for bacteria. Staining revealed that the CD concentration within cells depended on the characteristic intracellular environment of the species. Therefore, based on the concentration dependence of the CD fluorescence, different bacterial species were specifically labeled. Hyperspectral microscopy captured subtle fluorescence variations to identify bacteria. Method validation using Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus licheniformis succeeded with an identification accuracy of 99%. As a simple, rapid method for labeling and identifying bacterial species in mixtures, this technique has excellent potential for bacterial community studies.

Uniform and well-crystallized NaGd(MoO4)2: Yb3+/Er3+ microcrystals with tetragonal plate morphology were synthesized by a facile hydrothermal method. The structure and phase purity of the samples were identified by powder XRD analysis. The steady-state and transient luminescence spectra were measured and analyzed. Under 980 nm excitation, intense green luminescence at 531 and 553 nm, and red luminescence at 657 and 670 nm were observed. The optimum doping concentrations for Yb3+ and Er3+ are determined to be 20% and 1% in NaGd(MoO4)2 tetragonal plate microcrystals. With increasing Yb3+ doping concentrations, the total integral emission intensities increase first and then decrease. The red/green intensity ratio of NaGd(MoO4)2: Yb3+/Er3+ microcrystals increases from 0.4 to 1.0 with the increase in Yb3+ concentrations. Based on the energy level diagram, the energy-transfer mechanisms are investigated in detail according to the double logarithmic plot of upconversion intensities versus pump powers. The energy-transfer mechanisms for green and red upconversion luminescence are ascribed to two-photon processes at lower Yb3+ concentrations, and involve high-Yb3+-induced one-photon processes at higher Yb3+ concentrations. For the red upconversion luminescence, energy back-transfer process, that is, 4S3/2 (Er3+) + 2F7/2 (Yb3+) → 4I13/2 (Er3+) + 2F5/2 (Yb3+), is dominant at higher Yb3+ concentrations. Theoretical model of the energy-transfer mechanisms based on rate equations is established, which agrees well with the experimental results.

A rotating phenyl ring is introduced between the two pyridinium rings, namely, 1,1'-bis[3-(trimethylamonium)propyl]-4,4'-(1,4-phenylene)bispyridinium tetrachloride ((APBPy)Cl4 ), to form a switchable conjugation. In this design, the conjugation is switched "off" in the oxidized state and the two pyridinium rings behave independently during the redox process, yielding a concomitant transfer of two electrons at the same potential and, thus, simplifying the battery management. The conjugation is switched "on" in the reduced state and the charge can be effectively delocalized, lowering the Lewis basicity and improving its chemical stability. By pairing 0.50 m (APBPy)Cl4 with a 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidin-1-yl oxyl derivative as the positive electrolyte, a flow battery delivers a high standard cell voltage of 1.730 V and a high specific capacity of 20.0 Ah L-1 . The battery also shows an exceptionally high energy efficiency of 80.8% and a superior cycling stability at 80 mA cm-2 . This strategy proves itself a great success in engineering viologen as a two-electron storage mediator with high capacity and stability.

In this paper, [NaGd1-xNdx](MoO4)2 crystals with x = 0.005–0.05 were grown by Czochralski method at 950 ℃ for 10 hours and subsequently characterized by absorption spectroscopy and fluorescence spectroscopy. The intensity parameters of Nd3+ were calculated by Judd-Ofelt theory, and the relationship between the parameters and Nd3+ concentration was analyzed. The results show that with the increasing Nd3+ concentration, the oscillator strength, stimulated emission cross-section, Ωt and spontaneous transition probability decrease slightly, while the fluorescence lifetime decreases significantly. However, the fluorescence branching ratio is almost unchanged with the increasing Nd3+concentration. The [NaGd1-xNdx](MoO4)2 crystal with (x = 0.01) possesses the highest quantum efficiency of 88.98%, a good fluorescence line-width of 23 nm, a large value of σem·τf up to 0.55 × 10−22 cm2·s and a stimulated emission cross-section up to 3.747 × 10−19 cm2 for the transition from 4F3/2 to4I11/2 at 1064 nm. Test results indicate that [NaGd1-xNdx](MoO4)2 crystals are an excellent gain media for the solid state laser system.

BACKGROUND Vibrio parahaemolyticus is the leading causative pathogen of gastroenteritis often related to contaminated seafood. Photodynamic inactivation has been recently proposed as a strategy for killing cells and viruses. The objective of this study was to verify the bactericidal effects caused by photodynamic inactivation using methylene blue (MB) over V. parahaemolyticus via flow cytometry, agarose gel electrophoresis and sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Vibrio parahaemolyticus counts were determined using the most probable number method. A scanning electron microscope and a transmission electron microscope were employed to intuitively analyze internal and external cell structure. RESULTS Combination of MB and laser treatment significantly inhibited the growth of V. parahaemolyticus. The inactivation rate of V. parahaemolyticus was >99.99% and its counts were reduced by 5 log10 in the presence of 0.05 mg mL−1 MB when illuminated with visible light (power density 200 mW cm−2) for 25 min. All inactivated cells showed morphological changes, leakage of cytoplasm and degradation of protein and DNA. CONCLUSION Results from this study indicated that photodynamic technology using MB produced significant inactivation of V. parahaemolyticus mainly brought about by the degradation of protein and DNA. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry