Bulk Samples Research Articles

First report of apple hammerhead viroid infecting apple trees in Montenegro.

Apple hammerhead viroid (AHVd, Pelamoviroid, Avsunviroidae) is one of the five viroids infecting apples. It has been identified on all continents except Australia since its viroid nature was confirmed (DiSerio et al. 2018; CABI and EPPO 2022). AHVd has been found in apple trees showing leaf mosaic, ringspot and dieback (Hamdi et al., 2021). Apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) and its wild relatives are traditionally grown in Montenegro. With an annual production of 7767 tons on 216 ha, it is the second most important fruit tree (after plum) in the country (Anonymous 2022). In a 2020-2022 survey, 29 apple trees exhibiting virus-like symptoms (e.g. mosaic, necrosis) were sampled throughout Montenegro, including 16 locations in eight municipalities (Podgorica, Danilovgrad, Niksic, Mojkovac, Bijelo Polje, Berane, Pljevlja and Savnik). Small RNAs were isolated using the mirVana miRNA Isolation Kit (Ambion, Life Technologies) and pooled into three bulk samples. Each bulk contained 9 to 10 samples. Libraries of sRNAs were constructed using the Ion Total RNA-Seq Kit v2 and barcoded using the Xpress RNA-Seq Barcode 1-16 Kit (Ion Torrent) according to the manufacturer's instructions. Small RNA library sequencing was performed on Illumina platform (Novogene Europe) yielding 9.9, 9.8 and 18.6 million reads in the three libraries. The CLC Genomics Workbench software was used to demultiplex the reads into pools using the 'Demultiplex Reads' tool. The online program VirusDetect (Zheng et al. 2017) was used for virus/viroid detection and identification. Besides viruses known to infect apple (apple stem grooving virus, apple stem pitting virus, apple mosaic virus), contigs mapping to AHVd were identified in all three bulks enabling full AHVd genomes reconstruction. To verify AHVd presence, all 29 apple samples were tested by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using the AHVd PG13f/PG12r primers (Messmer et al. 2017). AHVd amplicons were obtained in three samples (30/21, 32/21 and 38/21) from bulk 1 and two samples (47/21 and 55/21) from bulk 2, while all samples from bulk 3 tested negative potentially due to the low titer of the pathogen or nucleotide mismatches at the 3' end of the primers. The three amplicons from bulk 1 were Sanger sequenced and partial AHVd genomes over 200 nts were obtained from two of them (30/21 and 32/21) (GenBank acc. nos. OQ863319 and OR020603). Furthermore, three full consensus AHVd genomes were assembled in Geneious Prime by mapping Sanger sequences onto contigs from Virus Detect and named 30/21, 32/21 and 38/21 (acc. nos. PP133245, -46, and -47, respectively). All three genomes exhibited conserved hammerhead motifs (Messmer et al. 2017). In BLASTn analysis, the isolate 30/21 from Montenegro shared the highest nt identity (98.8%) with the isolate SA-36 (ON564299) from Czechia, while 32/21 and 38/21 showed the highest identities (95.4% and 92.3%) with isolates SD17_2-3 (MK188691) from Canada and JF2 (ON564298) from Czechia, respectively. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of AHVd infecting Malus domestica in Montenegro. The AHVd-positive samples 30/21 and 32/21 originated from at least two-decade-old apple trees from Niksic, whilst 38/21 came from a 40-year-old tree from Mojkovac district, suggesting that this viroid has long been present in different parts of the country. The AHVd discovery in Montenegro should be considered in any phytosanitary regulations and pome fruit certification program in the country.

Oxygen transport mechanism and the effect of microstructure on the oxygen response behavior of an oxygen-sensitive composite Ce0.9Gd0.1O2-ẟ – La0.6Sr0.4FeO3-ẟ at high temperature

Compositions like gadolinium doped cerium oxide Ce0.9Gd0.1O2-ẟ and strontium doped lanthanum ferrite La0.6Sr0.4FeO3-ẟ, or their composites are well known in the field of fuel cell electrolyte, oxygen transporting membrane and catalytic reactor applications. This work offers insight into composite material's oxygen response characteristics, taking Ce0.9Gd0.1O2-ẟ and La0.6Sr0.4FeO3-ẟ in 70: 30 wt percent. One pot sol-gel method was employed for the powder synthesis. The powder was characterized by TG-DSC, XRD, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). FESEM-EDX and EDX-line profiling techniques were used to check the compositional homogeneity of sintered bodies. Oxygen response tests were conducted from ambient (20 % O2) to 100 % O2 concentration, using bulk samples sintered at three different temperatures, i.e., 1000, 1150, and 1250 °C at a fixed soaking time of 4 hours. The sintered specimens' apparent porosity, bulk density, surface morphology, and electrical conductivity were also examined. The sintering temperature significantly impacts response behavior as the porosity and grain size of the sintered body plays a vital role in sensing performance. The mechanism of response towards oxygen is also discussed. Sample 73–100 displayed the best performance among others. We achieved the lowest response and recovery time of 15 – 48 sec and 45 – 80 sec from a 0.60 mm thick bulk material at 950 °C. Harsh environments were intentionally created to check the reliability and reproducibility of the response data. This material could be a good candidate as an oxygen gas sensor at high temperatures owing to its good sensitivity, reliability, reversibility, and stability.

Fish otoliths from the bathyal Eocene Lillebælt Clay Formation of Denmark.

Few deepwater otolith associations from the Eocene have been found so far. The small assemblage of aragonitic-preserved otoliths from the Lillebælt Clay Formation described here therefore adds to the understanding of early Palaeogene deep-sea fish faunas. These otoliths were obtained from a level at about the Ypresian/Lutetian interface and may thus be older than the otoliths previously described from Trelde Næs from mold casts from carbonate concretions. Only 14 otoliths were recovered from about 6,000 kg processed bulk samples. The assemblage also differs in the composition and contains three new species and one new genus: Diaphus? duplex n. sp., Bregmaceros danicus n. sp. and the ophidiid Pronobythites schnetleri n. gen, n. sp. In addition, the new genus Treldeichthys n. gen. in Acanthomorpha incertae sedis is established for T. madseni (Schwarzhans, 2007). The small assemblage also differs in composition from comparable associations described from southwest France and northern Italy on the species level but shows some relationship on a higher systematic level. The mechanism and timing of the colonization of the deep sea by selected groups of fishes is discussed, particularly in respect to the depth migration of demersal fishes.

Enhanced thermoelectric and mechanical performance of Bi2S3 bulk materials by compositing with Bi0.33(Bi6S9)Br nanorods

Recently, Bi2S3 has garnered significant interest in the thermoelectric field due to its abundant and low-toxicity constituents. Nevertheless, pure Bi2S3 material has not been utilized in thermoelectric applications because of its low electrical conductivity. This study presents the fabrication of the Bi0.33(Bi6S9)Br-doped Bi2S3 bulk samples with high electrical conductivity and mechanical performance via the melting method in conjunction with spark plasma sintering technology. The increased electron concentration is attributed to the replacement of S2− by Br− and the introduction of extra Bi in the lattice. At 323 K, the electrical conductivity of the Bi2S3 + 3 wt% Bi0.33(Bi6S9)Br sample increased to 208 Scm−1, signifying a 3-order-of-magnitude enhancement compared to the pure sample. The enhanced electrical conductivity led to the optimization of the electrical transport properties. At 573 K, the Bi2S3 + 2 wt% Bi0.33(Bi6S9)Br bulk sample achieved a peak power factor value of 481 μWm−1K−2, which is four times higher than that of the pure sample. Notably, the low lattice thermal conductivity of the Bi2S3 + 5 wt% Bi0.33(Bi6S9)Br sample was 0.56 W−1 m−1K−1 at 673 K. Given the significantly enhanced electrical transport properties and suppressed thermal conductivity, the Bi2S3 + 2 wt% Bi0.33(Bi6S9)Br sample achieved a peak ZT value of 0.45 at 673 K and a high ZTave value of 0.33 from 373 to 673 K. Compared to the pure Bi2S3 sample, these values are 5 times and 3 times higher, respectively. Such advancements can be implemented in the domain of power generation. Additionally, the mechanical properties of the sample exhibited substantial enhancement, and the average hardness of the 2 wt% Bi0.33(Bi6S9)Br-doped sample increased from 2.73 GPa of the pure sample to 3.03 GPa. This novel strategy of dual point defects modulation provides a new pathway to enhance the thermoelectric performance of Bi2S3 and other material systems.

Deconstructing Intratumoral Heterogeneity through Multiomic and Multiscale Analysis of Serial Sections.

Tumors may contain billions of cells, including distinct malignant clones and nonmalignant cell types. Clarifying the evolutionary histories, prevalence, and defining molecular features of these cells is essential for improving clinical outcomes, since intratumoral heterogeneity provides fuel for acquired resistance to targeted therapies. Here we present a statistically motivated strategy for deconstructing intratumoral heterogeneity through multiomic and multiscale analysis of serial tumor sections (MOMA). By combining deep sampling of IDH-mutant astrocytomas with integrative analysis of single-nucleotide variants, copy-number variants, and gene expression, we reconstruct and validate the phylogenies, spatial distributions, and transcriptional profiles of distinct malignant clones. By genotyping nuclei analyzed by single-nucleus RNA-seq for truncal mutations, we further show that commonly used algorithms for identifying cancer cells from single-cell transcriptomes may be inaccurate. We also demonstrate that correlating gene expression with tumor purity in bulk samples can reveal optimal markers of malignant cells and use this approach to identify a core set of genes that are consistently expressed by astrocytoma truncal clones, including AKR1C3, whose expression is associated with poor outcomes in several types of cancer. In summary, MOMA provides a robust and flexible strategy for precisely deconstructing intratumoral heterogeneity and clarifying the core molecular properties of distinct cellular populations in solid tumors.

Quick-connect scanning tunneling microscope head with nested piezoelectric coarse walkers.

To meet changing research demands, new scanning tunneling microscope (STM) features must constantly evolve. We describe the design, development, and performance of a modular plug-in STM, which is compact and stable. The STM head is equipped with a quick-connect socket that is matched to a universal connector plug, enabling it to be transferred between systems. This head can be introduced into a vacuum system via a load-lock and transferred to various sites equipped with the connector plug, permitting multi-site STM operation. Its design allows for reliable operation in a variety of experimental conditions, including a broad temperature range, ultra-high vacuum, high magnetic fields, and closed-cycle pulse-tube cooling. The STM's compact size is achieved by a novel nested piezoelectric coarse walker design, which allows for large orthogonal travel in the X, Y, and Z directions, ideal for studying both bulk and thin film samples ranging in size from mm to μm. Its stability and noise tolerance are demonstrated by achieving atomic resolution under ambient conditions on a laboratory desktop with no vibrational or acoustic isolation. The operation of the nested coarse walkers is demonstrated by successful navigation to a μm-sized 2D sample.

Heterogeneous pseudobulk simulation enables realistic benchmarking of cell-type deconvolution methods

BackgroundComputational cell type deconvolution enables the estimation of cell type abundance from bulk tissues and is important for understanding tissue microenviroment, especially in tumor tissues. With rapid development of deconvolution methods, many benchmarking studies have been published aiming for a comprehensive evaluation for these methods. Benchmarking studies rely on cell-type resolved single-cell RNA-seq data to create simulated pseudobulk datasets by adding individual cells-types in controlled proportions.ResultsIn our work, we show that the standard application of this approach, which uses randomly selected single cells, regardless of the intrinsic difference between them, generates synthetic bulk expression values that lack appropriate biological variance. We demonstrate why and how the current bulk simulation pipeline with random cells is unrealistic and propose a heterogeneous simulation strategy as a solution. The heterogeneously simulated bulk samples match up with the variance observed in real bulk datasets and therefore provide concrete benefits for benchmarking in several ways. We demonstrate that conceptual classes of deconvolution methods differ dramatically in their robustness to heterogeneity with reference-free methods performing particularly poorly. For regression-based methods, the heterogeneous simulation provides an explicit framework to disentangle the contributions of reference construction and regression methods to performance. Finally, we perform an extensive benchmark of diverse methods across eight different datasets and find BayesPrism and a hybrid MuSiC/CIBERSORTx approach to be the top performers.ConclusionsOur heterogeneous bulk simulation method and the entire benchmarking framework is implemented in a user friendly package https://github.com/humengying0907/deconvBenchmarking and https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8206516, enabling further developments in deconvolution methods.

Improving laser powder bed fusion processability of pure Cu through powder functionalization with Ag

The Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) manufacturing of dense Cu parts with near infrared conventional systems is still challenging due to the high reflectivity and thermal conductivity of the powder. In this paper, we investigate a novel approach to improve LPBF processability of Cu through the modification of particle surface properties. Pure Cu powders were coated with a thin layer of high-conductivity Ag by electrodeposition. The coated powder was also heat-treated at 500 °C and 600 °C to promote diffusion at the coating interface, producing different powder particle configurations. LPBF equipped with 200 W laser was used to produce bulk samples using pure Cu and Cu/Ag powder, which were comprehensively characterized by electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The Ag coating improved the material processability and density, forming a eutectic phase mixture able to heal pores and defects at the end of the solidification process.

Evaluation of airborne asbestos concentrations associated with the maintenance of brakes on an industrial overhead crane

Objectives To evaluate potential airborne asbestos exposures during brake maintenance and repair activities on a P&H overhead crane, and during subsequent handling of the mechanic’s clothing. Methods Personal (n = 27) and area (n = 61) airborne fiber concentrations were measured during brake tests, removal, hand sanding, compressed air use, removal and reattachment of chrysotile-containing brake linings, and reinstallation of the brake linings. The mechanic’s clothing was used to measure potential exposure during clothes handling. Results All brake linings contained between 19.9% to 52.4% chrysotile asbestos. No amphibole fibers were detected in any bulk or airborne samples. The average full-shift airborne chrysotile concentration was 0.035 f/cc (PCM-equivalent asbestos-specific fibers, or PCME). Average task-based personal air samples collected during brake maintenance, sanding, compressed air use, and brake lining removal tasks ranged from 0 to 0.48 f/cc (PCME). The calculated 30-minute time-weighted average (TWA) airborne chrysotile concentration associated with 5-15 minutes of clothes handling was 0–0.035 f/cc PCME. Conclusion The results indicated that personal and area TWA fiber concentrations measured during all crane brake maintenance and clothes handling tasks were below the current OSHA 8-h TWA Permissible Exposure Limit for asbestos of 0.1 f/cc. Further, no airborne asbestos fibers were measured during routine brake maintenance tasks following the manufacturer’s maintenance manual procedures. All short-term airborne chrysotile concentrations measured during non-routine tasks were below the current 30-minute OSHA excursion limit for asbestos of 1 f/cc. This study adds to the available data regarding chrysotile exposure potential during maintenance on overhead cranes.

The effect of annealing on micro-hardness of molybdenum single crystals

Molybdenum (Mo) crystals exhibit excellent mechanical properties such as high yield strength, high elastic modulus, very high melting point, and excellent corrosion resistance, making them a suitable choice for various industrial applications. The mechanical behaviour of these crystals has been investigated through tension, compression, and indentation experiments. The indentation experiments on annealed Mo single-crystal thin film show an increase in hardness with increase in annealing temperature from 400 °C–650 °C. However, it is not clear whether this behaviour is specific to the Mo thin films or these are applicable to the bulk samples of single crystals also. In order to address these issues, the Vickers indentation experiments are performed on as-received and annealed samples of (100) -, (110) -, and (111) -oriented Mo single crystals. The results show that the low-temperature annealing leads to an increase in micro-hardness by 9% for (100) oriented crystals. The x-ray diffraction (XRD), electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) studies have shown that there is a drop in the number of dislocation sources or dislocation density ( ρ ) with no high-angle grain boundary formation or any microstructural changes or any oxide formation. This necessitates to enhance the applied stress required for significant yielding (or yield strength) which results in an increase in the hardness. Based on experimental observations, a hardening mechanism governed by dislocation annihilation during annealing has been proposed in the present study.

Piezoelectric Charge Coefficient of Halide Perovskites.

Halide perovskites are an emerging family of piezoelectric and ferroelectric materials. These materials can exist in bulk, single-crystal, and thin-film forms. In this article, we review the piezoelectric charge coefficient (dij) of single crystals, thin films, and dimension-tuned halide perovskites based on different measurement methods. Our study finds that the (dij) coefficient of the bulk and single-crystal samples is mainly measured using the quasi-static (Berlincourt) method, though the piezoforce microscopy (PFM) method is also heavily used. In the case of thin-film samples, the (dij) coefficient is dominantly measured by the PFM technique. The reported values of dij coefficients of halide perovskites are comparable and even better in some cases compared to existing materials such as PZT and PVDF. Finally, we discuss the promising emergence of quasi-static methods for thin-film samples as well.

Laser-disintegrated copper-activated salicylic acid (Cu-SA) nanoparticles suppressed the seed-borne pathogens of rice with enhanced seed invigoration parameters.

Leading phytopathological research is focused on managing seed-borne pathogens of rice through the utilization of engineered nanomaterials. Herein, blue laser-induced topo-morphologically nano-advanced copper salicylates (Cu-SA) (Cu/SA in 1:1 and 1:2 ratio) were prepared and evaluated for their augmented antifungal potential along seed invigoration effects in contrast to their prepared sonicated formulations. Laser disintegration on the Cu-SA (Cu/SA in 1:1 and 1:2 ratio) was achieved with high degree of success and precision using blue laser, which yielded uniformly distributed spherical nanoparticles with a narrow size distribution and better crystallinity than aqua-dispersed sonicated formulations. In vitro antifungal evaluation against seed-borne fungi of rice viz. Fusarium verticillioides and Fusarium fujikuroi revealed multiple times the augmented potential of laser-disintegrated nanoformulations (l-CuSA) than sonicated (s-CuSA) and bulk samples. Laser-induced nano-sodium bis(2-oxobenzoato)cuprate (II) (l-CuSA2) with Cu/SA in 1:2 ratio was the best to inhibit the in vitro fungal growth. Ultra-micrographs and fungal double-staining assay further rationalized the membrane disruption as the mode of action for the fungitoxicity. Nanopriming of fungal infested rice seeds with l-CuSA2 at 2500 μg/mL for 8 h showed the maximum reduction of seed rot (80.43%) and seedling blight (63.15%) with respect to control (untreated). The seed-invigorating factors of l-CuSA2 nanoprimed seeds were enhanced to maximum extent and showed the highest per cent germination (35.29%), shoot length (11.42%), root length (21.14%), dry weight (75.43%) and vigour index (81.04%) over the control. Inclusively, the seed nanopriming with l-CuSA2 proved as agro-compatible hypo-toxic semi natural nanoplatform for sustainable agriculture.

Full phonon dispersion along the stacking direction in nanoscale van der Waals materials by picosecond acoustics

Phonon dispersion in crystals determines many important material properties, but its measurement usually requires large-scale facilities and is limited to bulk samples. Here, we demonstrate the measurement of full phonon dispersion along the stacking direction in nanoscale systems by using picosecond acoustics. A heterostructure sample was prepared consisting of layers of hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) sandwiching a thin layer of black phosphorus (BP), within which a strain pulse was generated by photoexcitation and observed with an optical probe in the BP layer. The strain pulse traverses to the few nanometer thick hBN layers, where it propagates to the edge and echoes back, like acoustic waves in Newton’s cradle. The echoes returning to the BP layer provide information on the frequency-dependent time-of-flight and group velocity dispersion of the sample system. The microscopic origin of the photoinduced strain pulse generation and its propagation is revealed from first principles. Phonon frequency combs observed in the Fourier transform spectrum confirm the strain wave round trips and demonstrate the feasibility of determining group velocity dispersion through photoacoustics.

Functional LSMO foams for magneto-caloric applications

The ferromagnetic La1-x\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$_{1-x}$$\\end{document}Srx\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$_{x}$$\\end{document}MnO3\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$_3$$\\end{document} (LSMO) manganites are ideal materials for magneto-caloric applications due to their high Curie temperature. Here, we prepare open-cell, porous LSMO foams starting from a commercial polyurethane (PU) foam and commercial LSMO powder with x=0.3.\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$x = 0.3.$$\\end{document} The cut PU foams are then covered by a slurry of LSMO powder mixed with PVA and water, and then, the foams are subjected to a heat-treatment with two steps at 600 ∘\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$^\\circ$$\\end{document}C (burn-off organic material) and 1200 ∘\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$^\\circ$$\\end{document}C (sintering/compacting). The resulting ceramic LSMO foams are then characterized by X-ray, SEM, electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) orientation mapping and magnetic measurements. The foam sample consists of randomly-oriented LSMO grains with an average grain size of 188 nm, being distinctly smaller than bulk samples of the same composition, but considerably larger than LSMO nanowires prepared by electrospinning. The magnetic data reveal a high Curie temperature like the bulk samples, and an entropy change, -ΔSM\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$-\\Delta S_{\ ext{M}}$$\\end{document} slightly higher than that of the bulk samples, which points to a strong influence of the LSMO grain size. Thus, the resulting LSMO foam material is well suited for magneto-caloric applications at room temperature.

VNIR–SWIR reflectance spectroscopy as a nondestructive technique for compositional determination of archaeological talc samples with a machine learning approach

The material from which an archaeological piece is made provides a great deal of information regarding the society in which it was made; thus, any misidentification can lead to erroneous conclusions. The uniqueness of many of these pieces hinders their mineralogical analysis because the pieces cannot be damaged for sampling; therefore, errors in the classification of these materials are common. In the present study, we evaluate the suitability of the spectroradiometry technique in the analysis of two archaeological talc pieces. Both came from the Iron Age archaeological site of Peña del Castro (La Ercina, León) in the northwestern Iberian Peninsula. We compared the spectral curves of these 2 pieces with the spectral curves from 50 talc geological samples from different geographical sources, combining bulk and powdered samples. Our results show that spectral curves enabled the identification of the talc material in the powdered and bulk samples. Moreover, the absence of the talc characteristic features in other soft materials also used in antiquity enabled the detection of incorrect identification of the classified pieces. Even though our results cannot be used to define any absorption feature characteristic to establish the provenance of the material, in the present study, spectral analysis has been shown to be suitable as a nondestructive technique to mineralogically identify archaeological pieces.

Preparation, structure and thermophysical properties of (Nd0.2Sm0.2Eu0.2La0.2Dy0.2)2Gd0.5Yb0.5TaO7 high entropy oxide

A novel (Nd0.2Sm0.2Eu0.2La0.2Dy0.2)2Gd0.5Yb0.5TaO7 high-entropy oxide was successfully prepared through the sol–gel and high-sintering technique. The synthesized powder has a single-lattice structure, and the bulk sample has sole pyrochlore-type lattice. Given the particularity structure and the high concentration of oxygen vacancies caused by ion doping, the (Nd0.2Sm0.2Eu0.2La0.2Dy0.2)2Gd0.5Yb0.5TaO7's thermal conductivity (1.385–1.187W·m−1·K−1) is lower than those of (La1/6Nd1/6Yb1/6Y1/6Sm1/6Lu1/6)2Ce2O7, Sm2Zr2O7, and Sm2Ce2O7. Its excellent phase stability and suitable coefficient of thermal expansion (～10.80 × 10−6 K−1, ～1200 °C) also indicate its potential as candidate oxide for thermal barrier coatings.

Bi-metallic lattice structures manufactured via an intralayer multi-material powder bed fusion method

The laser powder bed fusion technology is widely utilized for manufacturing intricate metallic components, overcoming design limitations inherent in traditional subtractive methods. Recent advancements in powder bed fusion have extended to the creation of metal multi-material structures, allowing for functionally graded and tailored properties within a single component. While functionally graded lattice structures are commonly achieved by spatially varying the relative density and/or topology of the lattice, multi-material lattices are rarely studied particularly via metal additive manufacturing where multi-material methods are a relatively recent development. This study applies an accessible enhancement to a standard powder bed fusion system for multi-material additive manufacturing, and investigates printed and heat-treated bi-metallic lattices containing regions of both 316L and 17–4PH stainless steel. The bi-material interface is examined in lattice and bulk samples, and the compression behaviour of bi-metallic lattices is investigated experimentally and computationally. The material interface is shown to be robust as built and under loading, and the bi-metallic lattices exhibit greater energy absorption than single-material samples. The inclusion of the ductile 316L in bi-metallic lattices also delays the propagation of local failure and shear bands initiated in the more brittle 17–4PH. Finite element analysis simulates the lattice compression which includes strut fracture and as-built diameters informed by computed tomography, enabling further investigation and analysis of multi-material lattice designs. This work demonstrates the benefit of multi-material additive manufacturing by providing improved performance over single-material designs.

Single-cell signatures identify microenvironment factors in tumors associated with patient outcomes

The cellular components of tumors and their microenvironment play pivotal roles in tumor progression, patient survival, and the response to cancer treatments. Unveiling a comprehensive cellular profile within bulk tumors via single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) data is crucial, as it unveils intrinsic tumor cellular traits that elude identification through conventional cancer subtyping methods. Our contribution, scBeacon, is a tool that derives cell-type signatures by integrating and clustering multiple scRNA-seq datasets to extract signatures for deconvolving unrelated tumor datasets on bulk samples. Through the employment of scBeacon on the The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) cohort, we find cellular and molecular attributes within specific tumor categories, many with patient outcome relevance. We developed a tumor cell-type map to visually depict the relationships among TCGA samples based on the cell-type inferences.

Effects of Mg Substitution on the Structural with Rietveld Analysis, Magnetic and Magnetocaloric Properties of Ni-Cu-Cd Bulk Ceramics

Bulk ceramics with optimized density are highly prioritized over ferrite nanoparticles to fabricate devices for their optimal magnetic saturation, lower coercivity, and anisotropy, enhanced resistance, etc. To achieve such bulk specimen using Ni0.5-yMgyCu0.2Cd0.3Fe2O4 disc samples are sintered at 1423 K keeping the heating and cooling rate at 10 K and 5 K respectively. In due course, structural as well as theoretical Rietveld analysis, optical, and magnetic properties have been analyzed using these bulk samples. XRD has explored structural properties and after that these values have analyzed with the Rietveld refinement procedure and obtained goodness of χ2 (1–2) value and other parameters such as lattice parameters, crystal structures, cation distribution, and maximum entropy mapping. Surface morphology and grain size have examined from the as-grown surface without further polishing and annealing by electron microscopy and revealed a decreasing trend of grain size 6.1 µm to 4.2 µm. UV–Vis spectroscopy characterization ensured optical properties for bulk as well as nanopowders and the band gap has been found in the range of 1.4 to 1.6 eV and is increasing with Mg content. Magnetic hysteresis loop exhibits a less decreasing nature up to y = 0.3 of magnetic saturation along with the Law of Approach to saturation which compiles magnetic anisotropy. The temperature-dependent magnetization curves exhibit a sharp decreasing value (i.e. dM/dT maximum) at Curie point, decreasing from 630 K to 505 K with increasing Mg content. At.3 T magnetic field the changes in relative cooling power value have been found in the range 53.82Jkg-1 to 37.79Jkg-1 which could be considered as potential for magnetocaloric refrigeration.

Noncollinear Electric Dipoles in a Polar Chiral Phase of CsSnBr3 Perovskite.

Polar and chiral crystal symmetries confer a variety of potentially useful functionalities upon solids by coupling otherwise noninteracting mechanical, electronic, optical, and magnetic degrees of freedom. We describe two phases of the 3D perovskite, CsSnBr3, which emerge below 85 K due to the formation of Sn(II) lone pairs and their interaction with extant octahedral tilts. Phase II (77 K < T < 85 K, space group P21/m) exhibits ferroaxial order driven by a noncollinear pattern of lone pair-driven distortions within the plane normal to the unique octahedral tilt axis, preserving the inversion symmetry observed at higher temperatures. Phase I (T < 77 K, space group P21) additionally exhibits ferroelectric order due to distortions along the unique tilt axis, breaking both inversion and mirror symmetries. This polar and chiral phase exhibits second harmonic generation from the bulk and pronounced electrostriction and negative thermal expansion along the polar axis (Q22 ≈ 1.1 m4 C-2; αb = -7.8 × 10-5 K-1) through the onset of polarization. The structures of phases I and II were predicted by recursively following harmonic phonon instabilities to generate a tree of candidate structures and subsequently corroborated by synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction and polarized Raman and 81Br nuclear quadrupole resonance spectroscopies. Preliminary attempts to suppress unintentional hole doping to allow for ferroelectric switching are described. Together, the polar symmetry, small band gap, large spin-orbit splitting of Sn 5p orbitals, and predicted strain sensitivity of the symmetry-breaking distortions suggest bulk samples and epitaxial films of CsSnBr3 or its neighboring solid solutions as candidates for bulk Rashba effects.