Refractory high-entropy alloys hold the potential for high-temperature applications beyond the capability of the state-of-the-art Ni-based superalloys, and thus, it is important to study their solid ...solution formation characteristics and mechanical properties. In this study, designed by CALPHAD method, formation of as-cast arc-melted body-centered cubic MoNbTaTiV was experimentally verified using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The measured density and lattice parameter for MoNbTaTiV are 9.29g/cm3 and 3.224 Å, which obey the rule of mixtures (ROM). The alloy exhibits high hardness at 443 Hv, high yield strength at 1.4 GPa, and good compressive fracture strength at 2.45 GPa with a fracture strain of ∼30% at room temperature. The yield strength and hardness values of this alloy, and other single-phase refractory high-entropy alloys, are estimated using a simple model of solid solution strengthening. Reasonable agreement between modeling prediction and experiments is obtained. In addition, first-principles density functional theory calculations predict an enthalpy of formation of −0.865 kJ/mol for the MoNbTaTiV alloy, with calculated atomic volume and elastic properties (e.g., bulk and elastic moduli) obeying the ROM.
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•MoNbTaTiV exhibits the BCC structure, agreeing with CALPHAD calculations.•Predicted solid solution strengthening agrees well with experiments.•Hardness of BCC high entropy alloys is about three times the yield strength.•Calculated atomic volume and bulk and shear moduli obey the rule of mixtures.
Understanding magnetic phases in quantum mechanical systems is one of the essential goals in condensed matter physics, and the advent of prototype quantum simulation hardware has provided new tools ...for experimentally probing such systems. We report on the experimental realization of a quantum simulation of interacting Ising spins on three-dimensional cubic lattices up to dimensions 8 × 8 × 8 on a D-Wave processor (D-Wave Systems, Burnaby, Canada). The ability to control and read out the state of individual spins provides direct access to several order parameters, which we used to determine the lattice's magnetic phases as well as critical disorder and one of its universal exponents. By tuning the degree of disorder and effective transverse magnetic field, we observed phase transitions between a paramagnetic, an antiferromagnetic, and a spin-glass phase.
Compared to the emerging embryonic stem cell (ESC) gene network, little is known about the dynamic gene network that directs reprogramming in the early embryo. We hypothesized that Oct4, an ESC ...pluripotency regulator that is also highly expressed at the 1- to 2-cell stages in embryos, may be a critical regulator of the earliest gene network in the embryo.
Using antisense morpholino oligonucleotide (MO)-mediated gene knockdown, we show that Oct4 is required for development prior to the blastocyst stage. Specifically, Oct4 has a novel and critical role in regulating genes that encode transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulators as early as the 2-cell stage. Our data suggest that the key function of Oct4 may be to switch the developmental program from one that is predominantly regulated by post-transcriptional control to one that depends on the transcriptional network. Further, we propose to rank candidate genes quantitatively based on the inter-embryo variation in their differential expression in response to Oct4 knockdown. Of over 30 genes analyzed according to this proposed paradigm, Rest and Mta2, both of which have established pluripotency functions in ESCs, were found to be the most tightly regulated by Oct4 at the 2-cell stage.
We show that the Oct4-regulated gene set at the 1- to 2-cell stages of early embryo development is large and distinct from its established network in ESCs. Further, our experimental approach can be applied to dissect the gene regulatory network of Oct4 and other pluripotency regulators to deconstruct the dynamic developmental program in the early embryo.
Abstract
Supported atomic metal sites have discrete molecular orbitals. Precise control over the energies of these sites is key to achieving novel reaction pathways with superior selectivity. Here, ...we achieve selective oxygen (O
2
) activation by utilising a framework of cerium (Ce) cations to reduce the energy of 3
d
orbitals of isolated copper (Cu) sites. Operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy, electron paramagnetic resonance and density-functional theory simulations are used to demonstrate that a Cu(I)O
2
3−
site selectively adsorbs molecular O
2
, forming a rarely reported electrophilic η
2
-O
2
species at 298 K. Assisted by neighbouring Ce(III) cations, η
2
-O
2
is finally reduced to two O
2−
, that create two Cu–O–Ce oxo-bridges at 453 K. The isolated Cu(I)/(II) sites are ten times more active in CO oxidation than CuO clusters, showing a turnover frequency of 0.028 ± 0.003 s
−1
at 373 K and 0.01 bar
P
CO
. The unique electronic structure of Cu(I)O
2
3−
site suggests its potential in selective oxidation.
In biology, polymorphism is a well-known phenomenon by which a discrete biomacromolecule can adopt multiple specific conformations in response to its environment. The controlled incorporation of ...polymorphism into noncovalent aqueous assemblies of synthetic small molecules is an important step toward the development of bioinspired responsive materials. Herein, we report on a family of carboxylic acid functionalized water-soluble benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxamides (BTAs) that self-assemble in water to form one-dimensional fibers, membranes, and hollow nanotubes. Interestingly, one of the BTAs with the optimized position of the carboxylic group in the hydrophobic domain yields nanotubes that undergo reversible temperature-dependent dynamic reorganizations. SAXS and Cryo-TEM data show the formation of elongated, well-ordered nanotubes at elevated temperatures. At these temperatures, increased dynamics, as measured by hydrogen–deuterium exchange, provide enough flexibility to the system to form well-defined nanotube structures with apparently defect-free tube walls. Without this flexibility, the assemblies are frozen into a variety of structures that are very similar at the supramolecular level, but less defined at the mesoscopic level.
We report the in situ observation of a plasma vortex induced by a solar wind dynamic pressure enhancement in the nightside plasma sheet using multipoint measurements from Time History of Events and ...Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS) satellites. The vortex has a scale of 5–10 Re and propagates several Re downtail, expanding while propagating. The features of the vortex are consistent with the prediction of the Sibeck (1990) model, and the vortex can penetrate deep (~8 Re) in the dawn‐dusk direction and couple to field line oscillations. Global magnetohydrodynamics simulations are carried out, and it is found that the simulation and observations are consistent with each other. Data from THEMIS ground magnetometer stations indicate a poleward propagating vortex in the ionosphere, with a rotational sense consistent with the existence of the vortex observed in the magnetotail.
Key Points
Solar wind pressure pulse‐driven vortex was observed in the magnetosphere
Simulation and ground magnetic field data confirm this tailward moving vortex
The vortex can penetrate deep inside the tail plasma sheet and couple to FLRs
Sea Surface Temperature (SST) is of great importance to study several major phenomena due to ocean interactions with other earth systems. Previous studies on SST based on statistical inference ...methods were less accurate for longer prediction lengths. A considerable number of studies in recent years involve machine learning for SST modeling. These models were able to mitigate this problem to some length by modeling SST patterns and trends. Sequence analysis by decomposition is used for SST forecasting in several studies. Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition (EEMD) has been proven in previous studies as a useful method for this. The application of EEMD in spatiotemporal modeling has been introduced as Multidimensional EEMD (MEEMD). The aim of this study is to employ fast MEEMD methods to decompose the SST spatiotemporal dataset and apply a Convolutional Long Short-Term Memory (ConvLSTM)-based model to model and forecast SST. The results show that the fast MEEMD method is capable of enhancing spatiotemporal SST modeling compared to the Linear Inverse Model (LIM) and ConvLSTM model without decomposition. The model was further validated by making predictions from April to May 2023 and comparing them to original SST values. There was a high consistency between predicted and real SST values.
A novel compact high-flux neutron generator with a pitcher-catcher configuration based on laser-driven collisionless shock acceleration (CSA) is proposed and experimentally verified. Different from ...those that previously relied on target normal sheath acceleration (TNSA), CSA in nature favors not only acceleration of deuterons (instead of hydrogen contaminants) but also increasing of the number of deuterons in the high-energy range, therefore having great advantages for production of high-flux neutron source. The proof-of-principle experiment has observed a typical CSA plateau feature from 2 to 6 MeV in deuteron energy spectrum and measured a forward neutron flux with yield 6.6×10^{7} n/sr from the LiF catcher target, an order of magnitude higher than the compared TNSA case, where the laser intensity is 10^{19} W/cm^{2}. Self-consistent simulations have reproduced the experimental results and predicted that a high-flux forward neutron source with yield up to 5×10^{10} n/sr can be obtained when laser intensity increases to 10^{21} W/cm^{2} under the same laser energy.