Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are millisecond-duration radio transients
of unknown origin. Two possible mechanisms that could generate extremely coherent emission from FRBs invoke neutron star ...magnetospheres
or relativistic shocks far from the central energy source
. Detailed polarization observations may help us to understand the emission mechanism. However, the available FRB polarization data have been perplexing, because they show a host of polarimetric properties, including either a constant polarization angle during each burst for some repeaters
or variable polarization angles in some other apparently one-off events
. Here we report observations of 15 bursts from FRB 180301 and find various polarization angle swings in seven of them. The diversity of the polarization angle features of these bursts is consistent with a magnetospheric origin of the radio emission, and disfavours the radiation models invoking relativistic shocks.
The morphological features of sand particles play a key role in the mechanical response of the particle assemblage. Advancement of microfocus X-ray computed tomography (μXCT) technology has enabled ...3D visualization of particles at the grain-scale with reasonably high resolution to reveal the particle morphology. This paper utilizes the real part of spherical harmonic (SH) functions to describe the morphology of general-shape sand particles acquired from μXCT images. The influence of the maximum degree of SH functions and mesh fineness on the determination of size and shape descriptors of the particles are systematically investigated. Correlations between different shape descriptors of the studied sands are examined. Utilizing principal component analysis (PCA) and the empirical cumulative distribution function (ECDF), a probabilistic approach considering both intrinsic and phenomenological correlations between SH coefficients is proposed to three-dimensionally regenerate the sand particles. Based on comprehensive and quantitative comparisons between the morphological characteristics of scanned and generated particles, we conclude that the proposed approach performs satisfactorily.
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•Real forms of spherical harmonic functions are employed to reconstruct general-shape particles.•Influence of the maximum degree of SH functions and mesh fineness are systematically investigated.•A probabilistic approach based on PCA and ECDF is proposed to regenerate particles.•Both intrinsic and phenomenological correlations between SH coefficients are considered.•Virtual and real particles bear similar correlations between different shape descriptors.
It is still a great challenge to fabricate conjugated polymer monolayer field-effect transistors (PoM-FETs) due to intricate crystallization and film formation of conjugated polymers. Here we ...demonstrate PoM-FETs based on a single monolayer of a conjugated polymer. The resulting PoM-FETs are highly reproducible and exhibit charge carrier mobilities reaching 3 cm
V
s
. The high performance is attributed to the strong interactions of the polymer chains present already in solution leading to pronounced edge-on packing and well-defined microstructure in the monolayer. The high reproducibility enables the integration of discrete unipolar PoM-FETs into inverters and ring oscillators. Real logic functionality has been demonstrated by constructing a 15-bit code generator in which hundreds of self-assembled PoM-FETs are addressed simultaneously. Our results provide the state-of-the-art example of integrated circuits based on a conjugated polymer monolayer, opening prospective pathways for bottom-up organic electronics.
Air conditioning is essential for maintaining thermal comfort in indoor environments, particularly for hot and humid climates. Today, air conditioning, comprising cooling and dehumidification, has ...become a necessity in commercial and residential buildings and industrial processes. It accounts for a major share of the energy consumption of a building or facility. In tropical climates, the energy consumed by heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) can exceed 50% of the total energy consumption of a building. This significant figure is primarily due to the heavy duty placed on cooling technologies to remove both sensible and latent heat loads. Therefore, there is tremendous potential to improve the overall efficiency of the air-conditioning systems in buildings.
Based on today’s practical technology for cooling, the major components of a chiller plant are (1) compressors, (2) cooling towers, (3) pumps (chilled and cooling water) and (4) fans in air handling units. They all consume mainly electricity to operate. When specifying the kW/Rton of a plant, there are two levels of monitoring cooling efficiency: (1) at the efficiency of the chiller machines or the compressors which consume a major amount of electricity; and (2) at the overall efficiency of cooling plants which include the cooling towers, pumps for moving coolant (chilled and cooling water) to all air-handling units. Pragmatically, a holistic approach is necessary towards achieving a low energy input per cooling achieved such as 0.6kW/Rton cooling or lower by considering all aspects of the cooling plant.
In this paper, we present a review of recent innovative cooling technology and strategies that could potentially lower the kW/Rton of cooling systems – from the existing mean of 0.9kW/Rton towards 0.6kW/Rton or lower. The paper, broadly divided into three key sections (see Fig. 2), begins with a review of the recent novel devices that enhances the energy efficiency of cooling systems at the component level. This is followed by a review of innovative cooling systems designs that reduces energy use for air conditioning. Lastly, the paper presents recent developments in intelligent air-control strategies and smart chiller sequencing methodologies that reduce the primary energy utilization for cooling.
The energy efficient cooling technology, innovative systems designs, and intelligent control strategies described in the paper have been recently researched or are on-going studies. Several have been implemented on a larger scale and, therefore, are examples of practical solutions that can be readily applied to suit specific needs.
Vision-based systems are promising tools for displacement measurement in civil structures, possessing advantages over traditional displacement sensors in instrumentation cost, installation efforts ...and measurement capacity in terms of frequency range and spatial resolution. Approximately one hundred papers to date have appeared on this subject, investigating topics like system development and improvement, the viability on field applications and the potential for structural condition assessment. The main contribution of this paper is to present a literature review of vision-based displacement measurement, from the perspectives of methodologies and applications. Video-processing procedures in this paper are summarised as a three-component framework: camera calibration, target tracking and structural displacement calculation. Methods for each component are presented in principle, with discussions about the relative advantages and limitations. Applications in the two most active fields, bridge deformation and cable vibration measurement, are examined followed by a summary of field challenges observed in monitoring tests. Important gaps requiring further investigation are presented, e.g. robust tracking methods, non-contact sensing and measurement accuracy evaluation in field conditions.
CrSiTe3 has attracted recent interest as a candidate single-layer ferromagnetic semiconductor, but relatively little is known about the bulk properties of this material. Here, we report ...single-crystal X-ray diffraction, magnetic properties, thermal conductivity, vibrational, and optical spectroscopies and compare our findings with complementary electronic structure and lattice dynamics principles calculations. The high temperature paramagnetic phase is characterized by strong spin-lattice interactions that give rise to glassy behavior, negative thermal expansion, and an optical response that reveals that CrSiTe3 is an indirect gap semiconductor with indirect and direct band gaps at 0.4 and 1.2 eV, respectively. Measurements of the phonons across the 33 K ferromagnetic transition provide additional evidence for strong coupling between the magnetic and lattice degrees of freedom. The Si-Te stretching and Te displacement modes are sensitive to the magnetic ordering transition, a finding that we discuss in terms of the superexchange mechanism. Spin-lattice coupling constants are also extracted.
The rapid emergence of antibiotic resistance in pathogenic microbes is becoming an imminent global public health problem. Treatment with conventional antibiotics often leads to resistance development ...as the majority of these antibiotics act on intracellular targets, leaving the bacterial morphology intact. Thus, they are highly prone to develop resistance through mutation. Much effort has been made to develop macromolecular antimicrobial agents that are less susceptible to resistance as they function by microbial membrane disruption. Antimicrobial hydrogels constitute an important class of macromolecular antimicrobial agents, which have been shown to be effective in preventing and treating multidrug-resistant infections. Advances in synthetic chemistry have made it possible to tailor molecular structure and functionality to impart broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity as well as predictable mechanical and rheological properties. This has significantly broadened the scope of potential applications that range from medical device and implant coating, sterilization, wound dressing, to antimicrobial creams for the prevention and treatment of multidrug-resistant infections. In this review, advances in both chemically and physically cross-linked natural and synthetic hydrogels possessing intrinsic antimicrobial properties or loaded with antibiotics, antimicrobial polymers/peptides and metal nanoparticles are highlighted. Relationships between physicochemical properties and antimicrobial activity/selectivity, and possible antimicrobial mechanisms of the hydrogels are discussed. Approaches to mitigating toxicity of metal nanoparticles that are encapsulated in hydrogels are reviewed. In addition, challenges and future perspectives in the development of safe and effective antimicrobial hydrogel systems especially involving co-delivery of antimicrobial polymers/peptides and conventional antimicrobial agents for eventual clinical applications are presented.
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