Decomposition is a critical source of plant nutrients, and drives the largest flux of terrestrial C to the atmosphere. Decomposing soil organic matter typically contains litter from multiple plant ...species, yet we lack a mechanistic understanding of how species diversity influences decomposition processes. Here, we show that soil C and N cycling during decomposition are controlled by the composition and diversity of chemical compounds within plant litter mixtures, rather than by simple metrics of plant species diversity. We amended native soils with litter mixtures containing up to 4 alpine plant species, and we used 9 litter chemical traits to evaluate the chemical composition (i.e., the identity and quantity of compounds) and chemical diversity of the litter mixtures. The chemical composition of the litter mixtures was the strongest predictor of soil respiration, net N mineralization, and microbial biomass N. Soil respiration and net N mineralization rates were also significantly correlated with the chemical diversity of the litter mixtures. In contrast, soil C and N cycling rates were poorly correlated with plant species richness, and there was no relationship between species richness and the chemical diversity of the litter mixtures. These results indicate that the composition and diversity of chemical compounds in litter are potentially important functional traits affecting decomposition, and simple metrics like plant species richness may fail to capture variation in these traits. Litter chemical traits therefore provide a mechanistic link between organisms, species diversity, and key components of below-ground ecosystem function.
Full text
Available for:
BFBNIB, NMLJ, NUK, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
We characterize electrical conductivity, microstructure, nano-scale grain boundary structure and chemistry of ceria electrolytes with nominal compositions of Gd sub(0.2)Ce sub(0.8)O sub(2- delta ) ...(GDC) and Gd sub(0.11)Pr sub(0.04)Ce sub(0.85)O sub(2- delta ) (GPDC). The electrolytes are fabricated using mixed oxide nanopowders synthesized by spray drying. AC impedance spectroscopy was performed from 150 degreesC to 700 degreesC in air to determine grain-interior electrical conductivity. Grain-boundary conductivity was determined below 300 degreesC. The grain-interior conductivity of the GPDC was higher than that of GDC by as much as 10 times, depending on the temperature. The GPDC specific grain-boundary conductivity was measured to be approximately 100 times higher than that of GDC. Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) in a scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) confirmed the grain-to-grain compositional uniformity of both materials following heat treatments. Grain boundaries were free of glassy intergranular phases; dopant concentration and Ce oxidation state were found to vary significantly near grain boundaries. Boundary core composition was estimated from STEM EELS to be Gd sub(0.62)Ce sub(0.38)O sub(2- delta ), and Gd sub(0.29)Pr sub(0.16)Ce sub(0.55)O sub(2- delta ) in GDC and GPDC, respectively. Pr segregation to grain boundaries in the GPDC is hypothesized to enhance conductivity by both decreasing oxygen vacancy migration energy, and inducing mixed ionic-electronic conductivity in the near-boundary region.
Full text
Available for:
GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
All-solid-state batteries promise significant safety and energy density advantages over liquid-electrolyte batteries. The interface between the cathode and the solid electrolyte is an important ...contributor to charge transfer resistance. Strong bonding of solid oxide electrolytes and cathodes requires sintering at elevated temperatures. Knowledge of the temperature dependence of the composition and charge transfer properties of this interface is important for determining the ideal sintering conditions. To understand the interfacial decomposition processes and their onset temperatures, model systems of LiCoO2 (LCO) thin films deposited on cubic Al-doped Li7La3Zr2O12 (LLZO) pellets were studied as a function of temperature using interface-sensitive techniques. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, secondary ion mass spectroscopy, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy data indicated significant cation interdiffusion and structural changes starting at temperatures as low as 300 °C. La2Zr2O7 and Li2CO3 were identified as decomposition products after annealing at 500 °C by synchrotron X-ray diffraction. X-ray absorption spectroscopy results indicate the presence of also LaCoO3 in addition to La2Zr2O7 and Li2CO3. On the basis of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and depth profiling of the Li distribution upon potentiostatic hold experiments on symmetric LCO|LLZO|LCO cells, the interfaces exhibited significantly increased impedance, up to 8 times that of the as-deposited samples after annealing at 500 °C. Our results indicate that lower-temperature processing conditions, shorter annealing time scales, and CO2-free environments are desirable for obtaining ceramic cathode|electrolyte interfaces that enable fast Li transfer and high capacity.
Full text
Available for:
IJS, KILJ, NUK, PNG, UL, UM
Atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition has been shown to decrease plant species richness along regional deposition gradients in Europe and in experimental manipulations. However, the general response of ...species richness to N deposition across different vegetation types, soil conditions, and climates remains largely unknown even though responses may be contingent on these environmental factors. We assessed the effect of N deposition on herbaceous richness for 15,136 forest, woodland, shrubland, and grassland sites across the continental United States, to address how edaphic and climatic conditions altered vulnerability to this stressor. In our dataset, with N deposition ranging from 1 to 19 kg N·ha−1·y−1, we found a unimodal relationship; richness increased at low deposition levels and decreased above 8.7 and 13.4 kg N·ha−1·y−1 in open and closed-canopy vegetation, respectively. N deposition exceeded critical loads for loss of plant species richness in 24% of 15,136 sites examined nationwide. There were negative relationships between species richness and N deposition in 36% of 44 community gradients. Vulnerability to N deposition was consistently higher in more acidic soils whereas the moderating roles of temperature and precipitation varied across scales. We demonstrate here that negative relationships between N deposition and species richness are common, albeit not universal, and that fine-scale processes can moderate vegetation responses to N deposition. Our results highlight the importance of contingent factors when estimating ecosystem vulnerability to N deposition and suggest that N deposition is affecting species richness in forested and nonforested systems across much of the continental United States.
Full text
Available for:
BFBNIB, NMLJ, NUK, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
Niche complementarity, in which coexisting species use different forms of a resource, has been widely invoked to explain some of the most debated patterns in ecology, including maintenance of ...diversity and relationships between diversity and ecosystem function. However, classical models assume resource specialization in the form of distinct niches, which does not obviously apply to the broadly overlapping resource use in plant communities. Here we utilize an experimental framework based on competition theory to test whether plants partition resources via classical niche differentiation or via plasticity in resource use. We explore two alternatives: niche preemption, in which individuals respond to a superior competitor by switching to an alternative, less-used resource, and dominant plasticity, in which superior competitors exhibit high resource use plasticity and shift resource use depending on the competitive environment. We determined competitive ability by measuring growth responses with and without neighbors over a growing season and then used
15
N tracer techniques to measure uptake of different nitrogen (N) forms in a field setting. We show that four alpine plant species of differing competitive abilities have statistically indistinguishable uptake patterns (nitrate > ammonium > glycine) in their fundamental niche (without competitors) but differ in whether they shift these uptake patterns in their realized niche (with competitors). Competitively superior species increased their uptake of the most available N form, ammonium, when in competition with the rarer, competitively inferior species. In contrast, the competitively inferior species did not alter its N uptake pattern in competition. The existence of plasticity in resource use among the dominant species provides a mechanism that helps to explain the manner by which plant species with broadly overlapping resource use might coexist.
Full text
Available for:
BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, INZLJ, KILJ, NLZOH, NMLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK, ZRSKP
Abstract
Euclid and the Roman Space Telescope (Roman) will soon use grism spectroscopy to detect millions of galaxies via their H
α
and O
iii
λ
5007 emission. To better constrain the expected galaxy ...counts from these instruments, we use a vetted sample of 4239 emission-line galaxies from the 3D Hubble Space Telescope survey to measure the H
α
and O
iii
λ
5007 luminosity functions between 1.16 <
z
< 1.90; this sample is ∼4 times larger than previous studies at this redshift. We find very good agreement with previous measurements for H
α
, but for O
iii
, we predict a higher number of intermediate-luminosity galaxies than from previous works. We find that, for both lines, the characteristic luminosity,
*
, increases monotonically with redshift, and use the H
α
luminosity function to calculate the epoch’s cosmic star formation rate density. We find that H
α
-visible galaxies account for ∼81% of the epoch’s total star formation rate, and this value changes very little over the 1.16 <
z
< 1.56 redshift range. Finally, we derive the surface density of galaxies as a function of limiting flux and find that previous predictions for galaxy counts for the Euclid Wide Survey are unchanged, but there may be more O
iii
galaxies in the Roman High Latitude Survey than previously estimated.
Ceramic Li7La3Zr2O12 garnet materials are promising candidates for the electrolytes in solid state batteries due to their high conductivity and structural stability. In this paper, the existence of ...“polyamorphism” leading to various glass‐type phases for Li‐garnet structure besides the known crystalline ceramic ones is demonstrated. A maximum in Li‐conductivity exists depending on a frozen thermodynamic glass state, as exemplified for thin film processing, for which the local near range order and bonding unit arrangement differ. Through processing temperature change, the crystallization and evolution through various amorphous and biphasic amorphous/crystalline phase states can be followed for constant Li‐total concentration up to fully crystalline nanostructures. These findings reveal that glass‐type thin film Li‐garnet conductors exist for which polyamorphism can be used to tune the Li‐conductivity being potential new solid state electrolyte phases to avoid Li‐dendrite formation (no grain boundaries) for future microbatteries and large‐scale solid state batteries.
Lithium garnets such as Li7La3Zr2O12 are promising electrolyte materials for solid state batteries due to their high conductivity and structural stability. In this paper, the existence of “polyamorphism” leading to various new glass‐type phases for Li‐garnet thin films besides the known crystalline ceramic ones is demonstrated. A maximum in Li‐conductivity exists depending on the initially frozen thermodynamic state.
Full text
Available for:
FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Abstract
Agrowing avenue for determining the prevalence of life beyond Earth is to search for “technosignatures” from extraterrestrial intelligences/agents. Technosignatures require significant ...energy to be visible across interstellar space and thus intentional signals might be concentrated in frequency, in time, or in space, to be found in mutually obvious places. Therefore, it could be advantageous to search for technosignatures in parts of parameter space that are mutually derivable to an observer on Earth and a distant transmitter. In this work, we used the
L
-band (1.1–1.9 GHz) receiver on the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope to perform the first technosignature search presynchronized with exoplanet transits, covering 12 Kepler systems. We used the Breakthrough Listen turboSETI pipeline to flag narrowband hits (∼3 Hz) using a maximum drift rate of ±614.4 Hz s
−1
and a signal-to-noise threshold of 5—the pipeline returned ∼3.4 × 10
5
apparently-localized features. Visual inspection by a team of citizen scientists ruled out 99.6% of them. Further analysis found two signals of interest that warrant follow up, but no technosignatures. If the signals of interest are not redetected in future work, it will imply that the 12 targets in the search are not producing transit-aligned signals from 1.1 to 1.9 GHz with transmitter powers >60 times that of the former Arecibo radar. This search debuts a range of innovative technosignature techniques: citizen science vetting of potential signals of interest, a sensitivity-aware search out to extremely high drift rates, a more flexible method of analyzing on-off cadences, and an extremely low signal-to-noise threshold.
The past several years have seen a resurgence in the popularity of metal exsolution as an approach to synthesize advanced materials proposed for novel catalytic, magnetic, optical, and ...electrochemical properties. Whereas most studies to-date have focused on surface exsolution (motivated by catalysis), we instead report on the diversity of nanostructures formed in La0.6Sr0.4FeO3 thin films during sub-surface or so-called ‘bulk’ exsolution, in addition to surface exsolution. Bulk exsolution is a promising approach to tuning the functionality of materials, yet there is little understanding of the nanostructures exsolved within the bulk and how they compare to those exsolved at gas–solid interfaces. This work combines atomic- and nano-scale imaging and spectroscopy techniques applied using a state-of-the-art aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM). In doing so, we present a detailed atomic-resolution study of a range of Fe-rich and Fe-depleted nanostructures possible via exsolution, along with qualitative and quantitative chemical analysis of the exsolved nanostructures and oxide phases formed throughout the film. Local structural changes in the perovskite matrix, coinciding with nanostructure exsolution, are also characterized with atomic-resolution STEM imaging. Fe exsolution is shown to create local A-site rich domains of Ruddlesden–Popper phase, and some stages of this phase formation have been demonstrated in this work. In particular, phase boundaries are found to be the primary nucleation sites for bulk and surface exsolution, and the exsolved particles observed here tend to be ellipsoidal with shape factor of 1.4. We report a range of nanostructure types (core–shell, bulk core–shell, adjacent, and independent particles), revealing several possible avenues of future exploration aimed to understand the formation mechanism of each exsolution type and to develop their functionality. This work is thus relevant to materials scientists and engineers motivated to understand and utilize exsolution to synthesize materials with predictable nanostructures.
Abstract
Unbiased sky background modeling is crucial for the analysis of deep wide-field images, but it remains a major challenge in low surface brightness astronomy. Traditional image processing ...algorithms are often designed to produce artificially flat backgrounds, erasing astrophysically meaningful structures. In this paper, we present three ideas that can be combined to produce wide-field astronomical data that preserve accurate representations of the background sky: (1) Use of all-sky infrared/submillimeter data to remove the large-scale time-varying components while leaving the scattered light from Galactic cirrus intact, with the assumptions of (a) the underlying background has little power on small scales, and (b) the Galactic cirrus in the field is optically thin on large scales; (2) Censoring of frames contaminated by anomalously prominent wings in the wide-angle point-spread function; and (3) Incorporation of spatial covariance in image stacking that controls the local background consistency. We demonstrate these methods using example data sets obtained with the Dragonfly Telephoto Array, but these general techniques are prospective to be applied to improve sky models in data obtained from other wide-field imaging surveys, including those from the upcoming Vera Rubin Telescope.
PDF
![The Hα and [O iii] λ5007 Lu...](http://api.summon.serialssolutions.com/2.0.0/image/issn/XR4PS5YY4K/0004-637X_1538-4357/small "The Hα and [O iii] λ5007 Luminosity Functions of 1.2 < z < 1.9 Emission-line Galaxies from Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Grism Spectroscopy")
