The ability to manipulate quantum dot (QD) surfaces is foundational to their technological deployment. Surface manipulation of metal halide perovskite (MHP) QDs has proven particularly challenging in ...comparison to that of more established inorganic materials due to dynamic surface species and low material formation energy; most conventional methods of chemical manipulation targeted at the MHP QD surface will result in transformation or dissolution of the MHP crystal. In previous work, we have demonstrated record-efficiency QD solar cells (QDSCs) based on ligand-exchange procedures that electronically couple MHP QDs yet maintain their nanocrystalline size, which stabilizes the corner-sharing structure of the constituent PbI6 4– octahedra with optoelectronic properties optimal for solar energy conversion. In this work, we employ a variety of spectroscopic techniques to develop a molecular-level understanding of the MHP QD surface chemistry in this system. We individually target both the anionic (oleate) and cationic (oleylammonium) ligands. We find that atmospheric moisture aids the process by hydrolysis of methyl acetate to generate acetic acid and methanol. Acetic acid then replaces native oleate ligands to yield QD surface-bound acetate and free oleic acid. The native oleylammonium ligands remain throughout this film deposition process and are exchanged during a final treatment step employing smaller cationsnamely, formamidinium. This final treatment has a narrow processing window; initial treatment at this stage leads to a more strongly coupled QD regime followed by transformation into a bulk MHP film after longer treatment. These insights provide chemical understanding to the deposition of high-quality, electronically coupled MHP QD films that maintain both quantum confinement and their crystalline phase and attain high photovoltaic performance.
Goldschmidt tolerance factor (t) is an empirical index for predicting stable crystal structures of perovskite materials. A t value between 0.8 and 1.0 is favorable for cubic perovskite structure, and ...larger (>1) or smaller (<0.8) values of tolerance factor usually result in nonperovskite structures. CH(NH2)2PbI3 (FAPbI3) can exist in the perovskite α-phase (black phase) with good photovoltaic properties. However, it has a large tolerance factor and is more stable in the hexagonal δH-phase (yellow phase), with δH-to-α phase-transition temperature higher than room temperature. On the other hand, CsPbI3 is stabilized to an orthorhombic structure (δO-phase) at room temperature due to its small tolerance factor. We find that, by alloying FAPbI3 with CsPbI3, the effective tolerance factor can be tuned, and the stability of the photoactive α-phase of the mixed solid-state perovskite alloys FA1–x Cs x PbI3 is enhanced, which is in agreement with our first-principles calculations. Thin films of the FA0.85Cs0.15PbI3 perovskite alloy demonstrate much improved stability in a high-humidity environment; this contrasts significantly with the pure FAPbI3 film for which the α-to-δH phase transition (associated with yellowing appearance) is accelerated by humidity environment. Due to phase stabilization, the FA0.85Cs0.15PbI3 solid-state alloy showed better solar cell performance and device stability than its FAPbI3 counterparts. Our studies suggest that tuning the tolerance factor through solid-state alloying can be a general strategy to stabilize the desired perovskite structure for solar cell applications.
► h of 5μm Fused-Core particles is lower than smaller Fused-Core particles. ► The thinner shell for the Fused-Core particles results in flatter van Deemter plots. ► Thinner shells have reduced ...surface area producing reduced loading and retention. ► Columns of 5μm Fused-Core particles have twice the plates of 5μm porous particles. ► A 5μm Fused-core column provides 3μm performance without the higher pressure.
Superficially porous particles (also called Fused-Core, core shell or porous shell particles) show distinct advantages over comparable totally porous particles for separating small molecules. Columns of Fused-Core particles exhibit very high efficiency because of superior eddy dispersion properties (smaller van Deemter A term). The efficiency for columns of 2.7μm Fused-Core particles actually rivals that for sub-2μm totally porous particles with only about one-half the back pressure. These Fused-Core particles show special advantages with larger molecules for fast separations at high mobile phase velocities because of superior mass transfer (kinetic) properties (smaller van Deemter C term). This report describes the effect of different particle size and porous shell thicknesses on chromatographic performance for Fused-Core particles. Particle characteristics can significantly affect factors of separation importance. For example, the reduced plate height of packed columns is affected by particle diameter. Interestingly, larger Fused-Core particles show smaller reduced plate heights than smaller Fused-Core particles. Also, porous shell thickness has a strong effect on solute retention as well as separation efficiency, and particle surface area has a direct influence on sample loading characteristics. Fused-Core particles with a wide range of physical characteristics have been developed that allows the preparation of stable, efficient packed columns.
Condition assessment of civil engineering structures has been an active research area due to growing concerns over the safety of aged as well as new civil structures. Utilization of emerging ...immersive visualization technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR) in the architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry has demonstrated that these visualization tools can be paradigm-shifting. Extended Reality (XR), an umbrella term for VR, AR, and MR technologies, has found many diverse use cases in the AEC industry. Despite this exciting trend, there is no review study on the usage of XR technologies for the condition assessment of civil structures. Thus, the present paper aims to fill this gap by presenting a literature review encompassing the utilization of XR technologies for the condition assessment of civil structures. This study aims to provide essential information and guidelines for practitioners and researchers on using XR technologies to maintain the integrity and safety of civil structures.
Parsing IKEA Objects: Fine Pose Estimation Lim, Joseph J.; Pirsiavash, Hamed; Torralba, Antonio
2013 IEEE International Conference on Computer Vision,
12/2013
Conference Proceeding, Journal Article
Odprti dostop
We address the problem of localizing and estimating the fine-pose of objects in the image with exact 3D models. Our main focus is to unify contributions from the 1970s with recent advances in object ...detection: use local keypoint detectors to find candidate poses and score global alignment of each candidate pose to the image. Moreover, we also provide a new dataset containing fine-aligned objects with their exactly matched 3D models, and a set of models for widely used objects. We also evaluate our algorithm both on object detection and fine pose estimation, and show that our method outperforms state-of-the art algorithms.
Metal halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have risen in efficiency from just 3.81% in 2009 to over 25.2% today. While metal halide perovskites have excelled in efficiency, advances in stability are ...significantly more complex and have progressed more slowly. The advance of efficiency, which is readily measured, over stability, which can require literally thousands of hours to demonstrate, is to be expected given the rapid rate of innovation in the field. In the face of changing absorber composition, synthetic approaches, and device stack components it is necessary to understand basic material properties to rationalize how to enable stability in devices. In this article the aim is to present an in‐depth review of the current understanding of metal halide perovskite devices and module stability by focusing on what is known retarding intrinsic and extrinsic degradation mechanisms at the material, device, and module level. Once these considerations are presented the discussion then moves to connecting different degradation mechanisms to stresses anticipated in operation and how they can impact efficiency of cells and ultimately modules over time.
This article aims to present an in‐depth review of the current understanding of metal halide perovskite devices and module stability by outlining how basic material intrinsic and extrinsic degradation mechanisms as well as additional complications from the presence of other layers and nonequilibrium conditions impact device and module performance over time.
Central nervous system B cells have several potential roles in multiple sclerosis (MS): secretors of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines, presenters of autoantigens to T cells, producers of ...pathogenic antibodies, and reservoirs for viruses that trigger demyelination. To interrogate these roles, single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-Seq) was performed on paired cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and blood from subjects with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS; n = 12), other neurologic diseases (ONDs; n = 1), and healthy controls (HCs; n = 3). Single-cell immunoglobulin sequencing (scIg-Seq) was performed on a subset of these subjects and additional RRMS (n = 4), clinically isolated syndrome (n = 2), and OND (n = 2) subjects. Further, paired CSF and blood B cell subsets (RRMS; n = 7) were isolated using fluorescence activated cell sorting for bulk RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq). Independent analyses across technologies demonstrated that nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) and cholesterol biosynthesis pathways were activated, and specific cytokine and chemokine receptors were up-regulated in CSF memory B cells. Further, SMAD/TGF-β1 signaling was down-regulated in CSF plasmablasts/plasma cells. Clonally expanded, somatically hypermutated IgM+ and IgG1+ CSF B cells were associated with inflammation, blood–brain barrier breakdown, and intrathecal Ig synthesis. While we identified memory B cells and plasmablast/plasma cells with highly similar Ig heavy-chain sequences across MS subjects, similarities were also identified with ONDs and HCs. No viral transcripts, including from Epstein–Barr virus, were detected. Our findings support the hypothesis that in MS, CSF B cells are driven to an inflammatory and clonally expanded memory and plasmablast/plasma cell phenotype.
Knowledge of human T cells derives chiefly from studies of peripheral blood, whereas their distribution and function in tissues remains largely unknown. Here, we present a unique analysis of human ...T cells in lymphoid and mucosal tissues obtained from individual organ donors, revealing tissue-intrinsic compartmentalization of naive, effector, and memory subsets conserved between diverse individuals. Effector memory CD4+ T cells producing IL-2 predominated in mucosal tissues and accumulated as central memory subsets in lymphoid tissue, whereas CD8+ T cells were maintained as naive subsets in lymphoid tissues and IFN-γ-producing effector memory CD8+ T cells in mucosal sites. The T cell activation marker CD69 was constitutively expressed by memory T cells in all tissues, distinguishing them from circulating subsets, with mucosal memory T cells exhibiting additional distinct phenotypic and functional properties. Our results provide an assessment of human T cell compartmentalization as a new baseline for understanding human adaptive immunity.
► Human memory CD4+ and CD8+ T cell subsets exhibit tissue-specific compartmentalization ► CD69 is constitutively upregulated by all tissue-resident but not circulating T cells ► Memory CD4+ T cells producing IL-2 are the majority subset throughout the human body
Phenolic materials have long been known for their use in inks, wood coatings, and leather tanning. However, there has recently been a renewed interest in engineering advanced materials from phenolic ...building blocks. The intrinsic properties of phenolic compounds, such as metal chelation, hydrogen bonding, pH responsiveness, redox potentials, radical scavenging, polymerization, and light absorbance, have made them a distinct class of structural motifs for the synthesis of functional materials. Materials prepared from phenolic compounds often retain many of these useful properties with synergistic effects in applications ranging from catalysis to biomedicine. This Review provides an overview of the diverse functional materials that can be prepared from natural and synthetic phenolic building blocks, as well as their applications.
Phenolics on the rise: Recent advances in the preparation of functional materials, namely thin films, particles, and bulk materials, based on phenolic building blocks and their diverse applications, ranging from biomedicine to catalysis, are highlighted. This Review will help integrate various disciplines that use phenols and serve as a guide for the development of future materials.
Protein secretion through type-three secretion systems (T3SS) is critical for motility and virulence of many bacteria. Proteins are transported through an export gate containing three proteins ...(FliPQR in flagella, SctRST in virulence systems). A fourth essential T3SS protein (FlhB/SctU) functions to "switch" secretion substrate specificity once the growing hook/needle reach their determined length. Here, we present the cryo-electron microscopy structure of an export gate containing the switch protein from a Vibrio flagellar system at 3.2 Å resolution. The structure reveals that FlhB/SctU extends the helical export gate with its four predicted transmembrane helices wrapped around FliPQR/SctRST. The unusual topology of the FlhB/SctU helices creates a loop wrapped around the bottom of the closed export gate. Structure-informed mutagenesis suggests that this loop is critical in gating secretion and we propose that a series of conformational changes in the T3SS trigger opening of the gate through interactions between FlhB/SctU and FliPQR/SctRST.
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