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This study investigates the role of innovation in attaining economic growth and development in the 27 EU Member States (EU-27). Our analytical approach employs advanced panel data econometric methods, including an autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model and data mapping analysis. Additionally, an interactive approach to regulatory quality was introduced to evaluate its influence on economic development. The results suggest that innovation significantly impacts economic development in both the long and short term. Empirical evidence indicates that the quality of regulatory frameworks is a main factor in shaping economic development in both the long and short terms. The main findings imply the need for countries to align their strategies with the effective integration of digital technologies and sustained innovation and further substantially invest resources in R&D capabilities to ensure robust economic progress. Among the countries examined, Sweden, the Netherlands, Finland, and Denmark exhibited the highest levels of innovation. Some nations, with significant economic potential, such as Romania and Bulgaria, tend to underinvest in R&D.

This paper conducts a comprehensive bibliometric analysis to explore the existing literature on the interrelation between climate change and economic growth through the prism of environmental policies. Utilising both VOSviewer and Bibliometrix software, we analyse 2,131 articles from the Web of Science database between 2000 and 2024, focusing on the fields of Economics, Social Sciences, and Environmental Science. Our investigation identifies key trends, research hotspots, patterns, and gaps in the literature, highlighting the significant impact of climate change on the macroeconomic environment. Bibliometric networks created on account of keywords such as “climate change risks,” “macroeconomy,” and “environmental policy” reveal strong interconnections among research clusters, particularly emphasising the role of public policy in managing climate-related risks. Notably, our findings evidence the geographical distribution of research on this topic, which is more prominent in non-EU countries despite the European Union’s recent policy focus on sustainability. This paper underscores the necessity for targeted research and policy measures to address the economic implications of climate change, emphasising the role of consumer behaviour, uncertainty, and expectations with a country-specific focus. Our research contributes to the existing literature by providing a detailed mapping of the intellectual landscape and suggesting directions for future research to support effective climate policies.

In an economy facing multiple crises (economic, pandemic, energy crisis, political and security crises) becomes necessary to determine the implications of fiscal changes on the economy’s evolution. This paper aimed to assess the link between taxation and economic growth in the European Union Member States, considering panel data for the period 2000-2021 to identify taxation’s specific implications on economic growth. The methodological endeavour encompassed both qualitative and quantitative research approaches. The qualitative analysis of the study involved a bibliometric analysis of the existing literature and visual mapping of the bibliographic data employed to highlight the differences between the values of the variables recorded in the EU countries. The quantitative research methodology assumed the empirical analysis through a panel data regression with fixed and random effects to identify the reaction of the growth rate of the gross domestic product to changes in direct and indirect taxes. Our results indicate a relationship between taxation and economic growth, depending on the tax type. We have identified a direct relationship in the case of taxes on the income or profits of corporations, including holding gains and value-added taxes and an indirect relationship in the case of taxes on individual or household income including holding gains and other taxes on production. In addition, the impact of indirect taxes is more significant. These specific relationships influence the change in fiscal policies in response to economic shocks.

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is one of the most powerful techniques to probe surfaces and material properties at the nanoscale, and pattern organic and inorganic molecules. In all cases, knowledge of the tip geometry and its evolution with continued use is essential. In this work, a broadly applicable energy model for the evolution of scanning probe tip radii during use is presented based on quantitative wear experiments. Experiments were conducted using AFM probes made of both undoped and nitrogen-doped diamond. Undoped diamond probes were found to be nearly ten times more wear resistant than commercially available silicon nitride probes. For a constant applied force, a linear relationship between wear volume and total dissipation energy is identified. The change in tip radius was also found to be proportional to the square root of scan distance, x0.5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Optical diagnostics will be critical for the operation and performance assessment of burning plasma experiments, such as ITER. At the same time, extracting light for these diagnostics with reflective mirrors becomes difficult in the burning plasma environment due to the deleterious effects of the prolonged exposure on plasma and nuclear radiations. As an alternative, we explore the possibility to use freestanding diffractive optical elements, such as transmission gratings and zone plates, as light extractors. Since in diffractive systems, light is deflected by periodic slits rather than by a surface, these may withstand plasma exposure with less degradation of their optical properties. To investigate this possibility, we developed freestanding transmission gratings for the visible range and exposed them to conditions resembling (or even exceeding) those expected for the ITER “first mirrors.” The results of this study indicate that the gratings can withstand high heat fluxes and plasma and energetic radiation bombardment. Additionally, in contrast to the reflective elements, the extraction efficiency of diffractive elements may even improve with plasma exposure, which is possibly due to the shaping and thinning of the grating bars by plasma erosion. Moreover, in tightly collimated configurations, even very thin gratings can be used to extract light from hot fusion plasmas, as demonstrated by our tests of an extreme ultraviolet extractor at the National Spherical Torus Experiment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fracture strength of ultrananocrystalline diamond (UNCD) has been investigated using tensile testing of freestanding submicron films. Specifically, the fracture strength of UNCD membranes, grown by microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (MPCVD), was measured using the membrane deflection experiment developed by Espinosa and co-workers. The data show that fracture strength follows a Weibull distribution. Furthermore, we show that the Weibull parameters are highly dependent on the seeding process used in the growth of the films. When seeding was performed with microsized diamond particles, using mechanical polishing, the stress resulting in a probability of failure of 63% was found to be 1.74 GPa, and the Weibull modulus was 5.74. By contrast, when seeding was performed with nanosized diamond particles, using ultrasonic agitation, the stress resulting in a probability of failure of 63%, increased to 4.13 GPa, and the Weibull modulus was 10.76. The tests also provided the elastic modulus of UNCD, which was found to vary from 940 to 970 GPa for both micro- and nanoseeding. The investigation highlights the role of microfabrication defects on material properties and reliability, as a function of seeding technique, when identical MPCVD chemistry is employed. The parameters identified in this study are expected to aid the designer of microelectromechanical systems devices employing UNCD films. © 2003 American Institute of Physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, the medical systems of the EU Member States have a need for more efficient public policies and strategies to integrate the new societal challenges, the fragile economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, and sustain the development of health systems. This research explores the relationship between public governance and health expenditures allocation, under the theory of welfare economics and the concern for economic development. The research approaches both qualitative and quantitative methodologies. The first refers to bibliometric analysis and review of the existing literature, followed by data mapping process to rank the EU countries based on the variables employed. The quantitative approach also includes advanced empirical analyses (principal component analysis - PCA and regression analysis) performed over the period 2007-2020. Two indices were created through PCA, technical governance and democratic governance, gathering the effects from different world governance indicators. The main results reveal that both governance indices have a direct influence on health expenditures per capita, while GDP growth, applied as a control variable, negatively influences health expenditures. Our results emphasise a need to redesign the public governance of health systems in terms of health spending allocations and increase investments in healthcare to support economic growth in the long run.

The fracture strength of ultrananocrystalline diamond membranes grown by microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition was measured using a membrane deflection experiment. The data showed that the fracture strength followed a Weibull distribution.